Page:Morris-Jones Welsh Grammar 0086.png

86 accented in Ar.) as in gwŷr traed ‘infantry’; √t/dhregh&#8209;: Gk. τρέχω, τρόχος; the √ had also a by Ar. a/e/o altern. § 63 v (2), as in Ir. traig ‘foot’ < *tragets, but we can hardly suppose Ar. o/a in the same word in Brit.—Similarly in Lat. loanwords, as W. achos ‘cause’ < occā́sio.—W. achub < *occū́p- for Lat. occup- § 73 ii (4).

On the other hand a > o in Pr. Kelt. before Ar. ɡ$u̯$h in W. oen, Ir. ūan ‘lamb’ < *ognos < *aɡ$u̯$hnos: O.E. ēanian ‘yean’ § 101 iii (1).

In Brit. e became i before g followed by a vowel; so partly in Gaul; as W. ty ‘house’ O. W. tig < *tigos < *tegos, Brit. Cato-tigirni, also spelt (in Cornwall) Tegerno-mali beside Tigerinomalum Rhys LWPh.² 404, Gaul. Tigernum, Ir. teg ‘house’, tigerne ‘lord’, √(s)theg- § 92 i.—W. hy ‘bold’ < *segos: Gaul. Σεγο-μαρος, √seg̑h&#8209;: Gk. ἔχω < *seg̑hō, Skr. sáhaḥ ‘might’.—W. gwe-ly ‘bed’ < *u̯o-leg&#8209;: Ir. lige < *legii̯o- √legh&#8209;.—Where e appears it is due to a-affection; as in bre ‘hill’ < *brigā § 103 ii (1); thus lle ‘place’ < acc. *ligan < *leg-m̥, √legh&#8209;; gre ‘herd’ < *greg-m̥ = Lat. gregem;—godre ‘bottom (edge of garment), foot (of hill)’ < *u̯o-treg-m̥, √treɡh&#8209;, see (1), pl. godryon, godreon, both in 151.

But before a consonant eg remained: W. gwair m. ‘hay’ < *u̯egr&#8209;: Ir. fēr;—W. tail ‘manure’ < *tegl- § 104 ii (1);—W. arwain ‘to lead’ < *ari-u̯eg&#8209;n- √u̯eg̑h&#8209;: Lat. veho; olr͑ein, etc. § 203 iv (1);—W. tew ‘thick’ § 76 viii.

The mid vowels e and o were pronounced close in Brit. before nasal + explosive and became i and u respectively. Examples:

e before nas. + exp. > W. y; thus W. hynt ‘way’ Ir. sēt < *sent&#8209;: O.H.G. sind ‘way’ < *sent&#8209;.—O.W. pimp, Ml. W. pymp ‘five’, Gaul. πεμπε- < Pr. Kelt. *q$u̯$eŋq$u̯$e < Ar. *penq$u̯$e.—W. cy-chwynnu Ỻ.A. 133 ‘to rise’, later ‘to start’, Ir. scendim < Ar. *sqend- § 96 iii (2).—The y becomes e by a-affection, as Gwent < Venta; cf. E. Wintchester 'Venta Belgarum'. In Lat. loanwords we have y, as tymp < tempus ; tymor < tempora ; cymynn(af) < commend-o; esgynn(af) < ascend-o, etc.; but most nouns have &#8209;enn, Mn. W. &#8209;en, as elfen < elementum; ffurfafen < firmāmentum; ysgrifen < scribenda, all fem., having been treated like native nouns in &#8209;enn § 143 i; mynwent fem. ‘graveyard’ alone has &#8209;ent < pl. monumenta. (Calan is from Vulg. Lat. Kaland&#8209;, which occurs.)

o before nas. + exp. > W. w; thus trwnc < *tronq- § 99 v (3);—twng ‘swears’: Ir. tongim ‘I swear’;—hwnt ‘yonder’: Bret. hoñt § 220 ii (5).—The change took place in Lat. loanwords, as pwnn ‘burden’ < pondus; ysbwng < spongus; except in fem. forms, as llong ‘ship’ < longa (nāvis). W. pont ‘bridge’ < Brit. acc. *pontan (< &#8209;m̥) put for Lat. pontem, became fem. The 3rd pl. subjunct. &#8209;ont instead of *&#8209;wnt is prob. due to the analogy of the other persons, which have &#8209;o&#8209;.

The same change took place before a liquid and explosive, though here with less regularity.