Page:Vedic Grammar.djvu/273

 VI. DECLENSION. NOUNS. VOWEL STEMS. 263 2 b. Derivative Stems in -ā. LANMAN, Noun-Inflection 335–365. — WhiTNEY, Sanskrit Grammar p. 131—137. — Cp. Collitz, die herkunft der a-deklination, BB. 29, p. 81—114. 373. The derivative ā-declension corresponds to the derivative a-declen- sion, for the m. adjectives of which it furnishes the f. stems. It includes more feminines than any other declension. Like the a-declension it has many irregularities of inflexion, every case in the singular, except the A., and two cases in the plural showing some abnormal feature. The N. sing. shares with the derivative i-declension the peculiarity of not adding the ending -s; the I. sing. has an alternative form borrowed from the pronominal declension; the D. Ab. G. L. sing. are formed under the influence of the derivative - stems; and the V. sing. ends in -e instead of appearing in the form of the bare stem. In the plural the N. has to a limited extent the same alternative form in -asas as the m. of the a-declension, and the G. is similarly formed with -nām. As in the a-declension, the accent remains in the same position throughout except the V., where it of course shifts to the first syllable. Inflexion. 374. The forms actually occurring, if made from priyá- 'dear', would be as follows: Sing. N. priya. A. priyám. I. priya and priyayá. D. priyayai. Ab. G. triyayas. L. priyayam. V. priye. Du. N. A. priyé. I. Ab. priyábhyam. G. L. priyayos. Pl. N. priyas and priyasas. V. priyas. A. priyas. I. priyábhis. D. Ab. priyábhyas. G. priyánām. L. priyásu. Sing. N. This case never adds the normal ending -s. It is formed in the RV. from 424 stems and occurs more than 1000 times. Examples of the most frequent forms are: yiṣā (24) maiden', dákṣiņā (24) 'good milch cow', ila (17) 'refreshment', jayd (17) 'wife', su-bhága (13) 'beautiful', sūnýta (10) 'joyful', citrá (9) 'brilliant'. a. At the end of odd Padas the final -ā of this N. is regularly written with Sandhi, but must always be read with hiatus; coalescence with e- and r- is, however, twice avoided by nasalization ², while twice3 the -a is shortened before y.. b. Within a Pāda the -ā is written with Sandhi in 160 instances in the RV., but is pronounced (unlike the -ā of the N. A. du. m.) with hiatus in 23 of these instances; while the nominatives is 'car-pole' and manișă devotion' are written as well as pro- nounced with hiatus 4, the former once, the latter four times. A. This case, which is formed with the normal ending -m, is in the RV. made from over 200 nominal stems occurring more than 400 times. Examples of the most frequent forms are: manīşám (21), jayám (11), ámīvām (9) 'distress', yoṣām (7), yóṣaṇām (6) ‘maiden'. a. This case is often identical in form with the L. sing. f. of stems in -ī; thus purvyám may be the A. of purvyá- 'previous' or L. of purvi 'much'. In one instance at least elision of the -m, followed by contraction, takes place 5: śatatamáviveṣīḥ (VII. 195) for ¹ The stem gná- 'woman', though originally | manīşá iyám (V.115; VIL 70¹); manīṣá asmát (VII. dissyllabic, came to be regarded as a radical 34¹); cp. RPr. 11. 29. LANMAN 356 suggests that a-stem and accordingly forms its N. sing. the comparative frequency of this hiatus justi- gnå-s (IV. 94).. fies the restoration of the augment in Pädas short of a syllable; e. g.prá sá [a]vāci(VII. 586). 2 šášadānāṁéşi (1. 12310) and yam'ṛṇamcayé (v. 30¹4). 5 On some contractions in which m has 3° priyá¹ý- (1. 151¹), rju-hásta'y- (V. 41¹5). Cp. 70. probably been elided but explained wrongly 4 işá ákço (VIII. 529); manisá abhi (1. 1017); by the Pada as containing nominatives in -ā, see LANMAN 356.