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Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c27.s9: 7.8 Some phonological processes

Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c27.s9

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7.8 Some phonological processes

7.8.1 Addition of paragogic suffixes (-y ~ -i, -iy, -yi) to noun-stems ending with -i or -ai

c27.s9.t1.1

The addition of *-i* or *-y* at the end of words is provided for in *Tolkāppiyam* (*Eḻu*. 58). While the traditional example that *nāy* 'dog' may be written as *nā i* or *nāyi* is not supported by literary evidence, there is inscriptional evidence for the addition of the paragogic suffixes *-i* or *-y* after nouns ending in *-i* or *-ai*. This seems to be the true import of the rule cited above.

c27.s9.t1.2

| LT | Corpus | Ref. No. |
| **7.8.1.1 *-y after stems ending in -i*** | | |
| *kaṇi* | *kaṇi-y* | 1.1, 2.1, 4.1 |
| *kevi* | *kavi-y* | 57.3 |
| | *natti-y* | 4.2 |
| *paḷḷi* | *pa(ḷ)ḷi-y* | 2.11, 15.1, 52.4, 77.3 |
| *vaḷuti* | *vaḷutti-y* | 1.7.b |
| | *siri-y* | 2.2.b, 3.2.b |
| **7.8.1.2 *-y after stems ending in -ai*** | | |
| | *atai-y* | 56.2 |
| *-(a)ntai* | *antai-y* | 20.1.a |
| *uṟai* | *uṟai-y* | 61.5, 62.5 |
| *tantai* | *tantai-y* | 2.8 |
| *malai* | *malai-y* | 85.3.a |
| *veḷḷaṟai* | *veḷ-aṟai-y* | 3.3 |
| **7.8.1.3 *-i after stems ending in -i*** | | |
| *kaṇi* | *kaṇi-i* | 3.1 |
| | *kavuṭi-i* | 49.4 |
| | *tāra-aṇi-i* | 44.2 |
| *paḷḷi* | *pa(ḷ)ḷi-i* | 10.5, 89.4 |
| | *veṇ-pa(ḷ)ḷi-i* | 46.1 |
| **7.8.1.4 *-iy after stems ending in -i*** | | |
| *kāviti* | *kāviti-iy* | 3.5 |
| | *nelveḷi-iy* | 7.1 |
| *paḷḷi* | *paḷ(! )i-iy* | 1.9 |

c27.s9.t1.3

| LT | Corpus | Ref. No. |
| **7.8.1.5** *-y-i after stems ending in -i* | | |
| | *siri-y-i* | 1.2.b |
| **7.8.2** *Addition of the euphonic vowel -u to stems ending in liquid consonants* | | |
| **7.8.2.1** *After noun-stems* | | |
| *āciriyar* | *ācirikaru* | 116.5 |
| *erukkāṭṭūr* | *ekkāṭṭūru* | 117.1 |
| | *eru(k)kā(ṭ)ṭu-ūru* | 52.1 |
| | *kaccavanu* | 119.2.a |
| | *tāyiyaru* | 83.3 |
| *mukaiyūr* | *mukaiyuru* | 112.1 |
| **7.8.2.2** *After verb-stems* | | |
| *ār* | *āru* | 114.2.b |
| *puṇar* | *puṇaru-* | 85.2 |
| **7.8.3** *Addition of the prothetic vowel i- before a loanword commencing with a liquid consonant* | | |
| *irācar* (< Skt. *rāja-*) | *irācar* | 111.1 |
| **7.8.4** *Contraction* | | |
| *pem-* (< *perum-*) as in *pemmāṉ* | *pentōṭaṉ* (*pem*+ *tōṭaṉ*) | 102.1 |
| *erukkāṭṭūr* | *ekkāṭṭūru* (*eru-k-* > *ek-*) (cf. *eru(k)kā(ṭ)ṭu-ūru*) | 117.1 |
| **7.8.5** *Loss of initial palatal c-* | | |
| *camaṇa-* (< Pkt. *samaṇa*) | *amaṇaṉ* | 24.1 |
| | *amaṇṇaṉ* | 61.2, 62.2 |
| **7.8.6** *Elision of nasal n* | | |
| *-(a)ntai* | *atai* | 30.2, 56.2 |
| *nantaṉ* | *nataṉ* | 17.1.b, 44.1.c, 48.4 |
| | *nata-* | 3.2.a |
| **7.8.7** *Elision of nasal n with doubling of the succeeding consonant* | | |
| *nanti* | *natti* | 4.2, 69.3 |
| **7.8.8** *Elision of nasal ṉ (probably with nasalisation of the previous vowel)* | | |
| *ceytāṉ* | *ceytā*[ṉ*] | 55.4 |

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