A Comparative Grammar of the Modern Aryan Languages of India v1.c5: Chapter II

A Comparative Grammar of the Modern Aryan Languages of India v1.c5

Language: English

Chapter II

CONTENTS.—§ 31. (1.) CHARACTERISTICS OF SANSKRIT VOWEL SYSTEM. (2.) VOCALISM OF RACES BORDERING ON INDIA.—§ 32. CHANGE OF अ TO इ.—§ 33. CHANGE OF अ TO उ.—§ 34. RETROSPECTIVE INFLUENCE OF इ AND उ.—§ 35. CHANGE OF अ TO ए.—§ 36. अ INTO ओ.—§ 37. इ INTO अ.—§ 38. इ INTO उ.—§ 39. उ INTO अ AND इ.—§ 40. CHANGES OF QUANTITY—SHORTENING.—§ 41. LENGTHENING.—§ 42. GUṆA AND VṚDDHI.—§ 43. ऋ AND ITS CHANGES.—§ 44. OTHER VOWEL CHANGES.—§ 45. INSERTION, OR DIÆRESIS.—§ 46. ELISION.—§ 47. VOWELS IN HIATUS.

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§ 31. In order that the examination of the vowel changes may be something more than a mere enumeration of facts, it is necessary, first, to consider the vowel system of the Sanskrit, and, secondly, to specify certain peculiarities of vocalization in the forms of speech which surround the present modern Aryan area.

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(1.) As contrasted with Greek, Latin, Gothic, and other early languages of its own family, Sanskrit is remarkable for its preference for the *a* sound. Thus, Skr. *saptan* = *hepta*, *septem*, *sibun*, *septyni*, etc.; Skr. *agni* = *ignis*, *ugnis*, *ognĭ*, *anhus*; Skr. *aham* = *ego*, *ik*; Skr. *antar* = *inter*, *undar*, *indir*, *entos*; and many others. The same principle runs through the whole of the inflectional system of the language. This assertion may not appear at first sight correct, but it must be remembered that in the case of nouns ending in *as*, *ā*, *am*, the whole of the terminations, except four or five, have *a* or *ā* for their principal vowel, and that this class of nouns constitutes a very large majority of those actually in use. The pronouns also exhibit a great preponderance of *a* terminations, and in the verbs the endings of the conjugational tenses, especially in the Bhû class, which embraces nine-tenths of the verbs in the language, display the same tendency.

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In addition to this favourite and predominating a sound, there are the other two pure vowels *i* and *u* with their respective long vowels *î* and *û*, and this trilogy of pure sounds¹ maintains itself with peculiar constancy. There are none of those broken or impure vowels, in which other languages so much abound, with the exception of *e* and *o*, *ai* and *au*,—the two former produced by prefixing a short *a* to *i* and *u* respectively, the two latter by prefixing *â* to the same. These latter vowels, however, are almost entirely restricted in their use to derivatives and secondary forms, the dependent or complex meaning being thus philosophically brought into harmony with the broken or impure vowels. *E* and *o*, moreover, are always long, and thus preserve the consciousness of their diphthongal nature. The Keltic races appear first to have introduced a complicated system of broken or impure vowels, and Grimm thinks that through their influence a similar tendency grew up in the languages of the Teutonic family which lay nearest to the Keltic area, as the Anglo-Saxons, Frisians, and Franks. The Kelts, however, must have parted company with the Aryans at a very early date, and the latter consequently have not been affected by their disposition to corrupt the vowelsounds. The modern Aryan languages retain many of the characteristics, in this respect, of their parent speech, and their vowels are still, as in ancient times, chiefly pure and simple.

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¹ "Wie in der sprache überall waltet auch für den vocalismus trilogie. Aus drei vocalen stammen alle übrigen."—Grimm, *Gesch. d. Deutschen Sprache*, p. 191 (274, 1st ed.).

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It must, however, be further noted that Sanskrit permitted no hiatus, that is, no vowel could follow another without the intervention of a consonant; such forms as *meus*, *tuus*, would be foreign to its genius. The principal expedient adopted to prevent a hiatus was the hardening or thickening of the first of two vowels into its corresponding consonantal utterance, and in this manner many forms have been built up. In the spoken languages of early India, however, no such delicacy was felt, a consonant standing singly in the middle of a word was often dropped, and the two vowels thus brought into juxtaposition were allowed so to remain without any compunction. Nay, so far from feeling this objectionable, the Prakrit poets reject consonants to such an extent that their words are often mere floating masses of pulp from which all the bones have been removed. Thus, *prākṛita* becomes *pâua*; *subhaga*, *suhaa*; *niyoga*, *nioö*. In some instances the modern languages have retained Prakrit forms, but in so doing have kept the vowels quite distinct, so that no difficult or complicated vowel-sounds have arisen from their amalgamation. The foreigner, therefore, experiences no such difficulty in pronouncing the Indian vowels as he does in the French combinations *oeu*, *eui*, or the German *oe*, *ue*, nor are there any instances of two different sets of vowels having the same pronunciation as in the English, where *weak* sounds precisely the same as *week*; *meat*, *beat*, as *meet*, *beet*;¹ nor are there any instances where the same combination has four or five different sounds, as in *cough*, *rough*, *bough*, *dough*, *hough*, *through*, pronounced *cauf*, *ruff*, *bow*, *do*, *hock*, *throo*.

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¹ In Old English the distinction was clearly marked. Our fathers from the fifth to the twelfth century, and even later, said *wac* = weak, and *weoc* = week. In many cases, however, our combination *ea*, pronounced as *i* in *machine*, is a corruption of Old English *eo*, as *georn* = yearn, *beom* = beam, *beotung* = beating, *eordhe* = earth, *beost* = beast, *eorl* = earl, *heorte* = heart, etc. To this day our Wessex peasantry in Hampshire and Dorsetshire pronounce *ea* as two syllables, saying *neät*, *beäst*, *weäk*, and the like. See Grimm, *Deutsche Grammatik*, vol. i., p. 239, compared with p. 541 (1st ed.).

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(2.) Although, however, the vocalism of the Aryan group is singularly pure and simple, yet the area occupied by it in the present day is surrounded by peoples whose languages are remarkable for the excessive intricacy and difficulty of their vowel sounds. In the Chinese and its cognate dialects not only are the vowels in themselves complicated, but there exists a system of tones like those of music, by virtue of which a single vowel may have several distinct methods of utterance, and unless the word be pronounced correctly, not only as to sound, but also as to tone, the meaning is entirely changed.¹ As the languages of this group or groups touch the Aryan region along a great portion of its northern and eastern frontier, it may be suspected that their influence has been felt more or less; the more so as many of the races now located in the northern and eastern mountain-ranges have been driven out of the plains of India by the immigrants. Moreover, the low, tangled mass of hills which occupies so large a portion of Central India still harbours races of whose origin we know little more than that it is not Aryan, and whose vowel-system is essentially opposed to that of Sanskrit. Succeeding to these, on the south, are the Dravidians, even yet a puzzle to philologists, amongst whom broken, half-uttered, and impure vowels are frequent.

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¹ I had several proofs of the difficulty of pronouncing these languages when travelling in Sikkim. I sat for some hours on a hill-side trying to pronounce the words *srum deü*, or something to that effect, meaning "hot water," in the Lepcha or Limbu language, I forget which, and had eventually to give up the task in despair. Frequently, too, in trying to say some of the few sentences of Bhotia which I knew, I found all around me convulsed with laughter; and on inquiry learnt that by giving the wrong tone to some unlucky monosyllable, I had converted "bread" or "fire" into something quite different, and generally very indecent.

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I am not in a position to point out how far or in what direction Aryan vocalism has been influenced by these alien races; but that some sort of influence has been at work is almost beyond a doubt. It may, however, be conjectured that the pronunciation has been affected more than the written language, because the latter is always by conscious and intentional efforts kept up to some known standard. To one who has spent some years in the Panjab or Hindustan, the ordinary pronunciation of the Bengalis and Oriyas certainly sounds uncouth and foreign, and as these two races are surrounded by and much mixed up with non-Aryans, it is probable that the contiguity of the latter will eventually be found to have had much to do with this peculiarity. Unfortunately, however, pronunciation is one of those things which it is very difficult to express in writing, and we are thus deprived of the advantages which might arise from the study of this question by European scholars, who have access only to printed or written books. The question is therefore one which probably will not soon be settled.

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The above remarks will have prepared the reader for the assertion that the modern Aryan vowel-system is practically identical with that of Sanskrit. There is little more to be done, in fact, than to note the few and unimportant changes which have taken place, and these are rather individual instances than examples of any generally operating laws. Certain peculiarities occur in this or that language, and the tooth of time has gnawed here and there at unprotected vowels, but little more than this can be said. The Prakrits have mostly wandered further from the Sanskrit type than the languages of to-day, because these latter, always conscious of the existence of Sanskrit and of its position as the parent and type of their speech, have in more recent times frequently had recourse to their common ancestor, and have corrupted the words resuscitated from it in a way peculiar to themselves, and often less violent than that adopted by the various forms of Prakrit.

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§ 32. अ into इ.¹ This change does not occur so frequently or in the same way in the modern languages as it does in Prakrit or Pali. Of the examples given in Vararuchi (Pr. Pr. i. 3), *isi*, *pikkam*, *siviṇo*, *vediso*, *viano*, *muingo*, *ingâlo*, for Skr. *īṣat*, *pakva*, *svapna*, *vetasa*, *vya jana*, *mṛdaṅga*, *aṅgāra*, very few are found in modern tongues. G. has पिकवुं but also पक्ववुं, and इंगारो but also and more commonly अंगारो; M. पिकणें, पिक, etc. All the other words, in so far as they are used at all in a Tadbhava form, retain the *a* in all cases.

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¹ In this and the other chapters on Phonetics the examples given are drawn entirely from the crude or uninflected forms of words. No illustrations from the inflections, or from pronouns, adverbs, or particles are adduced. All such will be noticed in their proper places, and references will in those places be made to the laws laid down in this and the two following chapters. This arrangement is rendered necessary by the method followed in compiling this work, and, it is hoped, will tend to greater clearness and simplicity.

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The Bhagavati supplies *saddhim* = *sārdham*, *puvvim* = *púrbam*, *isi* = *īṣad*, *mijja* = *majjā*, *mitthi* = *masti*, and *chikkh*, *chikkha* = *cakṣh*, *cakṣhā*, together with those mentioned above, and one or two instances where य and ज have been melted down into the palatal vowel, and which therefore do not come under this head.

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In the Saptaśataka some more examples are given: *kiviṇa* for *kṛpaṇa*, “miser”; *puṭṭhi* for *pṛṣṭha*, “back”; *âippaṇa* for *âtarpaṇa*, “dedicating”; *viṇaïm* for *vinayam*, “modesty,” with others which do not come within our present scope, as they are inflectional peculiarities only.

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कृपण occurs only as a Tatsama in except G. करपीण and M. किरपण. The G. form is, however, less corrupt than the Pr., and is therefore to be set down as a modern Tadbhava.

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पृष्ठ is explained by Vararuchi as being for a feminine form पुट्ठी, so that we have here no real change of *a* into *i*.

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आइप्पण is probably for आयप्पण, according to the custom so frequent in Pr. writings of substituting य for nearly every consonant. It does not occur in the moderns.

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The modern languages have in this matter followed generally a different course from the Prakrit. The examples now given are exceptions rather than instances of a rule.

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Skr. पञ्जर “cage,” H. पिंजरा, and so in all. S. पिंजिरो, O. पिंजिरा. Skr. गणन “counting,” H., P. गिना, but also, and in the rest, गन०. Skr. नारङ्ग “orange,” H. नारंगी, but also नारंगो. Skr. सज्ञान “wise,” H. सियाना, P. *id.*, S. सिआणो, O. शिआण.

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Many more isolated instances may be found, but few which run through all the seven languages. It cannot be laid down as a law, that the *a* of Sanskrit undergoes any regular or systematic transmutation into *i* in any dialect, or in any particular class of words. The Sindhi, however, and in a lesser degree the Gujarati and Panjabi, must be excepted from this remark. In the Introduction it has been stated that amongst those peculiarities of the seven languages which seem to depend on their relative geographical position, is the preference exhibited by the western languages for the palatal vowels *i* and *e*, as contrasted by that of the eastern languages for *u* and *o*. In the following list Sindhi converts *a* into *i*, and stands alone in so doing; the other languages retain the *a*. I give the Hindi alone as proof of this,—noting the other languages only when they do not conform to the Hindi in respect of this vowel.

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Skr. कर्कट crab, S. कांकिडो, but H. केकरा. ” कर्कटिका cucumber, ” ककिडो ” ककडी, O. काकुडी, B. *id.* ” कर्कर gravel, ” ककिडो ” कंकर. ” कर्बुर variegated, ” कबिरो ” कबरा and काबर. ” किरण ray, ” किरणि ” किरन. ” क्षण moment, ” खिण ” खन, खण, क्षण. ” क्षमा pardon, ” खिमा ” छमा, but H. and P. also [खिमा, छिमा. ” धक्क shore, ” धिको ” धक्का. ” अतसी linseed, ” इत्सी ” अलसी, Eastern H. तीसी.

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Skr. वङ्क crooked, S. विंगु, but H. बांक, ॰का. ,, वर्कर goat, ,, बकिरो ,, बकरा. ,, पर्व्वन् a festival, ,, पिर्भु ,, परब.

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Here it will be noticed that this substitution of *i* for *a* occurs chiefly in short, open unaccented syllables, such as *kán-ki-ro*, *ká-ki-ḍi*, *kú-bi-ro*; more rarely in closed and accented syllables, as *vín-gu*, *íl-si*. The same practice occurs in Panjabi, where *i* is put for *a* in the short, open unaccented penultimate of infinitives; thus, Skr. *rahaṇam*, *sahanam*, *dahanam*, *kathanam*, *vahanam*, *labhanam*, become H. *rahnâ*, *sahnâ*, *dahnâ*, *kahnâ*, *bahnâ*, *lahnâ*, but P. *rahiṇâ*, *sahiṇâ*, *dahiṇâ*, *kahiṇâ*, *bahiṇâ*, *lahiṇâ*. In *lihiṇen* from *lekhanam* M. has followed the same course, but this is a solitary instance. H. does the same in सुमिरन for स्मरण.

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In many instances the P. puts in a short *i* after *h* following a short vowel, as

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लहिर wave, Skr. लहरी H. लहर. पहिर watch, ,, प्रहर ,, पहर, but also पहिरा. पहिला first, ,, प्रथर ,, पहला, also and more commonly पहिला. नहिर canal, Ar. نهر ,, नहर. बहिंगी banghy,¹ Skr. वहङ्ग ,, बहंगी.

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¹ A pole for carrying burdens.

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In words of this class in Hindi, though the *i* is not always written, yet in vulgar usage it is pronounced, and the *h* is dropped. Thus, the words above mentioned are generally sounded in talking, *pailâ*, *pairâ*, and the like. There exists a tendency to substitute the *i* for the *a* sound in words derived from the Arabic and Persian. Thus we have *nimak* for نمك *namak*, "salt"; *kaghiz* for كاغذ *kâghaz*, and others. In these cases Bengali sometimes goes further and gives *e*, as नेमक.²

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² See J. A. S. B., vol. xxxvii., part i., p. 32, "On the *Istimâl-i Hindi*," by Mr. Blochmann.

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Perhaps also, by the operation of this rule, we may trace back the numerous group of words, of which फिर and फिरना are the most used, to the Skr. root स्फर् “to tremble,” on the analogy of H. तिरना “to swim,” Skr. तरणं.

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§ 33. The next change is that of ऋ into उ. As we find the substitution of the *i* sound most frequent in the western languages, so we must look to the eastern for the *u* sound. Vararuchi gives no examples of this change. The obscure indications of such a change, which Lassen has picked up from ch. viii. of Var. (viii. 32, 68), are—(1) वुट्ट, and खुप्प for मसज, in which example we are not to consider *vuṭṭ* and *khupp* as derived from *masj*, which would be impossible; rather we have here two vulgar words which in Prakrit are used instead of the classical *masj*. *Vuṭṭ* is the origin of the common modern word बुडना, and reversed डुबना “to drown”; of *khupp* there seems to be no trace. (2) Var. viii. 32, *uddhmâ*, *uddhumâ*. An *u* is interpolated in the word *dhmâ*, making it *dhumâ*. But this is not a substitution of *u* for *a*, but an introduction of *u* in the middle of a nexus. (3) Var. viii. 23, मुणि = मनति may be a genuine instance of this change, but if so it is a solitary one. The word मुनि “a sage,” is classical Skr., and it is strange that the classical verb should have the *a*, while the vulgar one has the *u*, from which alone *muni* could have been derived. It is more probable that the original root was मुन्, where the *u* has been correctly preserved by the people, but softened into *a* by the Pandits. (4) viii. 18, सुमर for स्मर is again an interpolation of *u*, not a substitution of it for *a*. H. सुमिरन = स्मरण rests on this form. (5) पहुम for प्रथम occurs, but less frequently than पढम.

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Other examples are *savvaṇṇu* = *suvarṇa*, *vinnu* = *varṇa* (?), *âyukammuṇa*, *parakammuṇa*, = *âtkarmaṇâ*, *parakarmaṇâ*; *mânsu* = *mânsa*, *huyavahu* = *hutavaha* (Bhâg.); in most, if not all, of which the presence of a labial consonant or vowel in the original word has probably operated to produce the change. Instances in Bengali and Oriya are as follows:

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Skr. कर्कटिक cucumber, B. कांकुड, O. कांकुडी, but H. ककडी. ,, पर्पटी a tree,¹ ,, पाकुड ,, पाकड. ,, पटक a cloth, ,, पटुका, O. id. ,, पटका. [पुतली. ,, पुत्रिका doll, ,, पुतुल ,, पुतली, but S. ,, पुष्कर tank, ,, पुखुर ,, पोखर. ,, वत्स calf, ,, बाकुर, O. बाकुरि ,, बछरू, बछडा. ,, [वल्मन ? turning,] ,, बुर्मा gimlet, ,, बरमा. ,, वङ्गन brinjal, ,, बागुन ,, बैगन. ,, उदुम्बर fig-tree, ,, डुमुर ,, ,, द्विप्रहर second watch ,, दुपुर ,, दोपहर. (noon),

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¹ Ficus infectoria, the beautiful large shady tree known to Europeans in India as the pâkar or "pucker" tree.

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,, मसुर lentils, ,, मुसुर ,, मसूर. ,, मुषल pestle, ,, मुषुल ,, ,, औषध medicine, ,, अषुद ,, औषध. ,, चालन winnowing ,, चालुनि² ,, चालनी.

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² Most of these words are vulgar Bengali in constant use among the lower orders, though they are not all to be found in dictionaries.

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It will be observed that in nearly all these cases the u is introduced in short unaccented syllables. In fact, in all those syllables in which from their extreme shortness the vowel is indistinct, the natural tendency of the Bengali is to give it a labial sound, just as that of the Sindhi is to give it the palatal. The Bengali short a sounds at all times so like a short o, that in obscure syllables it naturally glides into u; and many words which in writing have an a might, if we followed the vulgar pronunciation, be written with u. The same holds good to a certain extent of the Oriya. In many cases, too, the fact of one short syllable in a word having the short u as its vowel seems to have exercised a sort of attraction over the neighbouring vowel, making that *u* also.

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§ 34. When a syllable having *a* for its vowel is followed by one having *i* or *u*, these latter sometimes exercise an influence over the former, either by entirely superseding it, or by combining with it into the corresponding *guṇa* vowel. This proceeding is analogous to that discovered by Bopp with respect to the Zend and Old High German. Thus in Zend we have *bavaiti* = Skr. *bhavati*, *dadhâiti* = Skr. *dadâti*, *kerenúite* = Skr. *kṛṇute*; and in Old High German *anst* "grace," makes in certain cases *ensti*, where, under the influence of the *i* of the termination, the preceding *a* has been compounded with an *i* also into *e*.

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In the case of *u* we have in Zend the forms *haurva* = *harva* = Skr. *sarva*; *tauruna* = Skr. *taruṇa*.¹

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¹ Bopp, *Gram. Comp.* ed. Bréal, §§ 41-46-73. I quote from the French edition as being the latest and best form of this great work.

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Examples in the Indian languages:—

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Skr. *अम्लिका* "tamarind," H., P. *इमली*, B. *इम्लि*.

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Skr. *अङ्घ्रि* (*अङ्घ्रि*?) "foot," H., G. *एड़ी*, P. *एड*, M. id., B. *एड़ी* in the sense of heel.

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Skr. *चञ्चु* "beak," H. *चोंच*, M. id., B. *चोंट*.

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Skr. *सन्धि* "hole made by burglars," H. * सेंध*, S. *सेंधि*, *सेंधो*,² B. and U. *सिंध*.

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² In the sense of "friendship, connexion," which is one of the meanings of *sandhi* in Sanskrit.

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Skr. *अङ्गुली* "finger," H. *उंगली*, P. *उंगुली*.

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Skr. *चक्षु* "eye," B. *चौख*, *चोख*, or *चोख* (vulgar).

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There are even instances where the vowel of the last syllable supersedes that of the preceding one when it is other than *a*, as *i*, or *u*.

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Thus:— Skr. विन्दु “drop,” H. बून्द, बुंद, M., P., G. id., S. बुंडो, बूंद. Skr. इक्षु “sugar-cane,” Pr. उक्खु, H. ऊख.¹

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¹ *Ukh* is in use in Eastern Hindustan; the word used in Western Hindustan is *ikh*. This difference rests on the preference for the *i*-sounds in the western area, and that for the *u*-sounds in the eastern.

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These instances, however, are rare.

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By the aid of this law we can see our way to the affiliation of several words which have hitherto been obscure. Thus:— Skr. पत्री “a tree” (पटो), H. पेड, M. id., P. पेढ़. Skr. पशु “cattle,” H. पोहे (dialectic in Gangetic Doab and Oudh). Skr. श्मश्रु “beard,” Pr. मंसू, मस्सू, H. मूंछें “moustache,” B. मोछ, G. मूछ, P. मुच्छ, S. मुछ.

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For the consonantal changes involved in these derivations the reader is referred to the chapters on the single and compound consonants (*nexus*).

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We have traces of this process in Prakrit, though Vararuchi (i. 5), as usual, merely states the fact without attempting to give a reason for it. His examples are *sejjá*, *sunderam*, *ukkero*, *teraho*, *achchheram*, *perantam*, *velli*, for Skr. *śayyâ*, *saundarya*, *utkara* (?), *trayodaśa*, *āścharya*, *paryanta*, *valli*. Some of these words occur again in iii. 18, where he states that the *y*, as the last member of a weak nexus, is lost, showing how far he was from grasping the real facts of the case. In the first two examples of the latter passage *túram*, *dhiram*, for *túrya*, *dhairya*, there is no trace of the influence of the rejected *y* on the vowel of the preceding syllable, because in the first case the preceding vowel is *ú*, which will not in the Indian languages amalgamate with, or yield to, the *i*, and in the second case if there were no *y*, if the word were *dhairam*, it would become in Prakrit *dheram*; the influence of the *y* in *dhairyam* is shown in retaining the long *i* in the Prakrit *dhiram*.

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With regard to the other words, the modern languages carry on the Prakrit form in three cases, thus

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Skr. शय्या, Pr. सेज्जा “bed,” H. सेज, P., S. id., G. सेज, M. id., but in O., H. सञ्जा.

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Skr. त्रयोदश, Pr. तेरहो “thirteen,” H. तेरह, P. तेरां, S. तेरंह G. तेर, M. तेरा, B. तेर, O. id.

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Skr. वल्लि, Pr. वल्लि “creeper,” H. बेल, बेली, and so in all.¹

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¹ The modern languages do not, like the Prakrit, treat e as a short vowel, and they therefore reject one of the two l's, a double consonant being inadmissible after a long vowel.

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In the other cases the य is hardened to ज in writing as well as in pronunciation, and does not affect the preceding vowel. Saundaryam is not in use.

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Skr. आश्चर्य, Pr. अच्छेरो “wonderful,” H. अचरज “astonishment,” P., S. id., G. id. and अचरत.

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Skr. पर्यन्त, Pr. पेरंत “limit,” H. परजत, B. and O. पर्यंत (pron. parjanto), M. id.

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In the example ukkero we have not an instance of the influence of the i or y on a preceding vowel, if Vararuchi be right in deriving it from उत्कर; but this is doubtful. The root is कृ kri, “to cast,” and we might perhaps refer the Prakrit word to a form such as utkiraṇam. In the modern languages we find as follows:—

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M. उकरी, उकरणे, उकीर, उकिरडा, all with various modifications of the sense of heaping up or collecting.

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G. उकरडो, उकरो, उकेरो.

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P. उकढु, S. उकिरणु, उको, उगिड़णु, उगाडणु.

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Bopp, in the passage quoted above, seeks to ascertain whether the intervening consonant has any effect in hindering this reflexive influence, or epenthesis of i and u. He finds that this influence is arrested by a nexus, except nt, which sometimes does, and sometimes does not, hinder it. He also observes that many consonants, the gutturals including *h*, the palatals, the sibilants, and *m* and *v*, arrest this influence; *n* arrests it if the vowel be *â*, but not if it be *a*; *b* generally arrests it. The examples hitherto procured of this process in the Indian languages do not afford sufficient data for determining this point, but a law may be detected which decides in what cases the epenthetic vowel shall combine with the preceding vowel, and in what cases it shall entirely supplant it. It may be thus stated:—when a nexus intervenes, the epenthetic vowel supplants, when only a single consonant intervenes, it amalgamates with, the preceding vowel. The reason of this is that the modern languages do not treat *e* and *o* as short vowels, as the Prakrit does, and they cannot endure to have a long vowel followed by a double consonant or a nexus. When, therefore, either of these two occur, the vowel must be short, and the *i* consequently supersedes and destroys the vowel whose place it has taken. Thus in *amlikâ*, *anguli*, the nexus *ml*, *ng*, demand to be preceded by a short vowel, consequently in *imlî*, *unglî*, the *â* is entirely rejected; but in *patrî*, which had first become *patî*, and in *paśu*, there is only a single consonant, and the *i* and *u* therefore amalgamate with the preceding vowel into *e*, and *o*, *pe*, *pohe*. In *chanchu* and *sandhi* the nasal is treated as an anuswâra, because in the first case we have merely a reduplicated form from a root *cham*; in the latter the word is compounded with the preposition *sam*, and in both cases the *m* is regularly replaced by the anuswâra, which is not strong enough to form a nexus, and the च and घ are each, therefore, regarded as a single consonant, and the long or guṇa vowel can stand before them.

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§ 35. The change from ऋ to इ is rare in bases, though more frequent in inflections. Of the latter it is not here my intention to write. It will be found discussed in the fifth chapter.

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Of this change among the modern languages Gujarati gives many instances. It must here be remarked that the spelling of most of these languages, owing to the want of a literary standard, is very irregular, and in the cases now about to be noticed, it is probable that the spelling has been made to conform to the pronunciation. If this had been done in Hindi and Panjabi, they too would to the eye seem to have changed the *a* into *e*. Thus the Skr. words quoted in § 32: *rahanam*, *sahanam*, *kathanam*, *vahanam*, *labhanam*, become in Gujarati रेहवुं, सेहवुं, केहवुं, बेहवुं, लेवुं. But, as has been shown, the Panjabi introduces an *i*, saying *rahiṇá*, and the Gujarati *e* seems to be only the amalgamation of this *i* with the preceding *a*, a process facilitated by the weakness of the *h* which separates the two vowels. In P. also, before *h*, the careless ordinary pronunciation results in a similar *e* sound. Thus we hear *rehná*, *sehná* for *rahiṇá*, *sahiṇá*, though the latter word is not frequent, and even in H. *rehtá*, *behtá*, is a not uncommon vulgarism in towns. In the verb *lená*, from *labhanam* (Pr. *lahaṇam*), P. *lainá*, G. *levuṇ*, the *h* has dropped out from constant use, leaving only the *e*.

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It amounts almost to a rule in G. that a preceding *h* is replaced by *e*, and a second *e* is even inserted after the *h*, especially in cases where in Skr. an *i* stood in that place. Thus:—

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The same takes place in words borrowed from Arabic or Persian. Thus:—

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Arab. تحصيل collection, G. तेहसील. ” زهر poison, ” जेहेर. ” قهر severity, ” केहेर.¹

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¹ On the subject of the effect of h on vowel-sounds, and its tendency to associate with itself the broken vowels (=in Sanskrit the guṇa and vṛddhi series), see Grimm, Geschichte der Deutschen Sprache, vol. i., p. 216 of the 3rd edit., p. 308 of the 1st and 2nd.

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It is not, however, only in G. that traces of this process can be found. Marathi has also instances of the same character. Thus, नेहमी “constantly,” from Skr. नियम; पंगणे, पंगुळणे “to limp,” “to go wearily,” from Skr. पंगु “lame.” Perhaps also पेठ “a town,” from Skr. पट्टन. So also घेणे “to take,” Skr. ग्रहण, from which also is H. घेरना, M. घेरणे “to inclose,” “surround”; झंप a “spring” or “jerk,” Skr. झंप; झेंडा “flag,” H. झंडा; ढेंकर “a belch,” H. डकार, P., S., G. id., but B. also ढेकर, O. ढेकर, Skr. उद्गार.

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Instances also occur in the other languages, in which not only a but even á is thus modulated, as

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Skr. नकुल “weasel,” H. नेवला, P. नेऊळ, O. and B. नेउल.

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Skr. दा “to give,” H. देना, and so in all; similar to which is M. मेजणे “to measure,” from Skr. मा. M. corrupts also Arabic and Persian words in this manner, as खेरिज, Ar. خارج; तेजी, Pers. ताजी; तेरोख, Ar. تاريخ; हिसेब, Ar. حساب.

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This process, which is irregular and capricious, resembles our own English habit of turning a (आ) into e (ए); thus, we pronounce cane as केण, male as मेल, rate as रेत, instead of काण, माल,राट, as do all other European nations.² The e in the modern Indian languages is never short, as in Prakrit, but is constantly long.

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² Grimm, Deutsche Gram., vol. i., p. 541; where our modern a is written aa, and as he says, “lautet bald æ, bald e, bald á; dem angelsachsischen á (hochdeutsch ei) entspricht es nirgend mehr.”

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In addition to the instances mentioned above may be noted the case of अय aya, which sometimes contracts into e, just, as will be seen further on, as अव ava contracts into o.

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Skr. नयन “eye,” S. नेण, G. नैन, but H., P. नैन. Skr. निश्चय “certainty,” H. निहचे, S. निहिचे, निशे. Skr. समय “time,” H. समे.

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This process, however, is rare, and such forms are not used by correct speakers or writers. निहचै or ॰चय, समै, समइ, समय are all more accurate, as well as more usual methods of writing. The अय, which is the characteristic of the causal verb in Sanskrit, is never changed into ए in the moderns, but undergoes a peculiar treatment of its own.

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The breaking down of a and â into e seems to be one of those points where non-Aryan influences have been at work. The Sanskrit admits of the modulation of i into e by the addition of an ă-sound, but it does not include within the range of its phonetic system the opposite process of flattening a into e by the appendage of an i-sound. This transition is foreign to the genius of the ancient language, in which e is always long. The Dravidian languages, however, possess a short ĕ as one of their original simple vowel-sounds, side by side with the ē corresponding to Skr. ए. The Tamil further substitutes for the Skr. ऐ i.e. आ + इ a sound ei, i.e. ĕ + i. This short ĕ of the Dravidians is often found in Canarese to replace the ă and â of Sanskrit, and in Tamil ei corresponds thereto. Thus, Skr. काक “crow,” becomes in Tamil kâkkei, in Telugu kâki (probably by kâkĕ), in the Kota and other forest dialects of the Nilgiris kâkĕ. Skr. घोटक (seemingly a non-Aryan word) is traceable in Tamil kudirei, Canarese kudurĕ, Kota kudare, etc. So also “the long final â of Sanskrit abstracts becomes in Tamil ei, e.g. âśâ, ‘desire,’ Tamil âsei; Chitrâ, ‘April-May,’ Tamil Sittirei. The same â becomes e in Canarese, e.g., Gangâ, ‘Ganges,’ is in Canarese *Gange* or *Gangeyu*.¹ The first trace of the adoption of this short *ĕ* by Aryan populations is found in Prakrit, and takes the form, not of a distinct sound from the long Sanskrit *ē*, but of a shortening of that sound itself. Thus, words which in Sanskrit exhibit long *e* followed by a single consonant occur in Prakrit with *e* followed by a double consonant. As Prakrit is always very careful to preserve the quantity of Sanskrit words, it is apparent that the common people who spoke Prakrit, having come to regard *e* as a short sound, felt it necessary to double the following consonant in order to preserve the quantity, the vowel which in Sanskrit was long by nature becoming thus long by position. Thus, we get Pr. पेम्म for Skr. प्रेम “love,” एक्कं for Skr. एकं “one,” देब्बो for Skr. देव. These words were pronounced with a short *ĕ*, as in English *get*, *bed*, and the barrenness of invention of the persons who reduced Prakrit to writing is shown by their omitting to provide a separate character for this new sound, as the Dravidians have done. It would be rash, in the present imperfect state of our knowledge on the obscure subject of the relations between the Dravidians and early Aryans, to lay down any definite law on this point; but it is noteworthy, that the Aryan tribes who came most closely into contact with Kols and Dravidians exhibit the greatest proclivity towards the use of these broken vowels. Oriya and Marathi have long been spoken in tracts partly peopled by non-Aryans: in the case of the former by Kols and Telingas; in that of the latter by Gonds, Bhils, and Canarese. The Aryans of Gujarat also displaced non-Aryan tribes, and may from them have caught this trick of speech, as may also the Bengalis from the numerous wild tribes on their frontiers.²

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¹ Caldwell's *Dravidian Grammar*, pp. 98, 99.

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² The Bengali language, as actually spoken by all classes, from the highest to the lowest, differs in many respects from the language as written in books. Especially is this noticeable in the treatment of the vowel आ, which in colloquial usage is

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In this way we may account for the common M. word ठेवणे “to place,” as from Skr. स्थापनं. The universal word टेकना “to prop” is also thus referable to स्था; as is ठेलना “to shove,” used in all the languages, deducible from स्थल्. Many more examples will probably occur to the reader, of words the origin of which has hitherto been uncertain, but which, by the operation of this tendency, may be traced back to familiar Sanskrit roots.+

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To be distinguished from this class of words is that where the two syllables, both vocalized by a, of a Sanskrit word are replaced by a single syllable bearing e. As Skr. कदली “plaintain,” H. केला, P. id., M., G. केळ. Skr. खगल “goat,” O. छेली, B. id., S. छेलो. Skr. बदर “jujube,” H. बेर, P. id., S. बेरु. B. बइर.

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Here we see the result of the Prakrit habit of eliding the single consonant and replacing it by य, so that we get kayali, chhayala, bayara, which, as in the case of नयन and similar words, is contracted into e. Bengali shows the word still in a transitional stage. The rules regulating the treatment of those vowels which are brought into juxtaposition by the elision of an intervening consonant are exhibited in § 46.

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frequently, in fact almost universally, corrupted into ए. The following are familiar examples:

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This Bengali e is pronounced more like the English a in mat, rat, etc., than like the full Italian e in veno, avete, etc., and seems to be a lineal descendant of the short ĕ of Prakrit.

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It will not have escaped notice, that many of the remarks in this section refer rather to a change from *â* to *e*, than from *ă* to *e*. The reason of this is that the treatment of the two sounds is so exactly the same that it was found impossible to keep them apart. Another remark is, that though the short *ĕ* of the Dravidians seems to have had its influence on the modern Aryan languages, yet the *e* of the latter is always long, and the short *ĕ*-sound, wherever it exists, is represented in writing, not by ए, but by ऍ, as in Sindhi. In languages which are so careless and capricious as these, in their methods of expressing sounds in writing, some confusion is inevitable. It may, however, tend to simplify the matter, if we lay down the rule that ए always in all the languages expresses a long sound, even though it represents a corruption from Sanskrit *a* or *â*, brought about by the influence of the non-Aryan short *ĕ*, which originated in all probability the short *ĕ* of Prakrit.

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The whole matter, however, is very obscure at present, and deserves to be made the subject of a separate investigation, both from the Aryan and non-Aryan points of view.

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§ 36. *a* into *o*. This change is very rare. Vararuchi's instances are not to the point. They are *voram*, *loṇam*, *ṇomalliâ*, *moro*, *moho*, *chotthi*, *choddahî*, for *badara*, *lavaṇa*, *navamallikâ*, *mayûra*, *mayûkha*, *chaturtha*, *chaturdaśî*. In all these words what has taken place is either elision of a consonant, by which two vowels are brought into contact, or softening of the semi-vowel *v* into *u*, in both cases giving rise by contraction to *o*. The syllable *ava*, except when initial, in all cases in Prakrit is shortened into *o*, though not unvaryingly so in the modern languages.

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व्यवसाय “labour,” “trade,” H. बेवसाय, व्योसाव, O. बेवसा. व्यवहार “custom,” H. व्योरा, P. बेओरा. लवङ्ग “clove,” Pr., H. लोंग, P. लौंग, S. लौंगु, O. लंग (lŏngŏ).

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Here may also be introduced the H. and P. बेचोटना or ब्योटना, “to cut out clothes,” which would be from a word ब्यवकर्त्तनं, or something of that sort. The words beginning with vyava, such as vyavahâra, vyavasâya, and the like, are written in a great variety of ways in the modern languages. See Chapter III. § 53, and Chapter IV. § 90.

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(1.) Of the words given above, बोर is used only in M. The forms बेर and वहर have been explained in the last section. O. has बर, pronounced bŏrŏ, probably a shortening of the Pr. बोर.

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(2.) लोण. In this word the syllable ava generally appears as ū. H. लून, नून, and only rarely नोन, B. नून, G. लूण, P. नूण, S. लूण, O. नूण. M. uses लोण as the name of a plant growing in salt soil, probably contracted from लावणिक, where o=âva.

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(3.) Nomalliá, not in use; the ordinary name for the flower is chameli=champakeli.

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(4.) मोर, so in all the modern languages. Here we have elision of y and coalition of a+ú=o. I am inclined to think that mor is the original word derived from the cry of the bird, and that mayûra is a piece of Brahmanical euphuism.

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(5.) मोह, not in use, except in the poets.

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(6, 7.) चोत्यो, चउह्वी. All the moderns have forms in o or au, the natural result of the coalescence of a and u after the elision of t, but no true change of a into o. The words are—

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H. चौथा, P. चौथा, S. चोथो, G. id., M. चाँथा, O. चौठ, B. चौटा. H. चौदह, P. चौदां, S. चौड़हँ, G. चोद, M. चौदा, O. चौद, B. चौहा.

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Isolated instances are M. बोकड, Skr. वर्कर, “goat,” where the Prakrit form would be बक्करो, and the modern बाकरा; the influence of the labial consonant having produced the still further change to o. Bengali has कुमोर “potter,” from कुम्भकार; कुतोर “carpenter,” from सूचधार; लोंगर “anchor,” from Persian لنگر, and a few others. In all these cases the tendency appears to be more towards lengthening *â* into *o*, than *a* into the same.

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§ 37. *इ* into *अ*. Vararuchi's examples (i. 13) are *paha*, *haladdâ*, *puhavi*, for *pathin*, *haridrâ*, *prithivî*. *Paha* is probably the Prakrit form of Skr. *patha*. *Pathin* is only one of several forms, and it is not therefore fair to bring this example in here.

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*Haladdâ* is H., O. *हलदी*, M. *हळद*, P. *हल्दी*, *हळधी*. B. characteristically introduces its favourite labial vowel *हलुद*. S. has thrown the *र* forward, where it amalgamates with and strongly cerebralizes the *ड* arising from *द्र*, at the same time the two vowels coalesce into *ai*, thus *हैड*, *haidra*.

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*पृथिवी* is also *पृथ्वी*, and is not therefore a fair example. The word is little used in the moderns, and either as a Tatsama or as a Tadbhava in the form *पिर्थी*.

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H. *बादल* "cloud," if inverted from *वारिद*, may be an instance, but the derivation is not quite satisfactory. In M. *वादळ* means "a dust-storm," which would suggest the Skr. *वातर*, *वातल*, or *वातुल*. In H., P., B., and O., however, the word means "a rain-cloud," not "a dust-cloud."

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Pr. *इअ* for *iti* is not in use in the moderns.

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Skr. *कठिन* "difficult," P. *कठण*, S. *कटनु*, G. *कठण*.

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Skr. *किट* "dirt," M. *कट*, *काट*.

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Skr. *गर्भिणी* "pregnant," P. *गरभण*, *गभण* G. *गाभण*, M. *id.*

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Even long *ई* is thus changed in

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Skr. *परीक्षा* "examination," H. *परखाना*, *परखैया* B. *परख*, *परखाइ*, M. *पारखणे*, *पारखी*, G. *परखवुं*, *परखनार*, P. *id.*, S. *पर्खणु*.¹

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¹ Of these pairs of words the first means testing coin to see if it is good before receiving it at a bank, etc.; the second, a tester or trier of coin. The occupation is almost hereditary, and the Parkhiyas have attained almost magical dexterity.

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Skr. *विभूति* "cowdung ashes," H. *भभूत*, P., G. *id.*, S. *भभूति*.

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Skr. *मिल* "to meet," becomes in G. only *मळवुं*, in the rest it is *मिल*°.

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§ 38. *इ* into *उ*. Skr. वृश्चिक “scorpion,” Pr. विंचुओ, H. बिछूआ, M. विंचु, P. विच्छू, S. बिछूं, but B. and O. बिछा. Var.’s other example, Skr. इक्षु = Pr.उच्छु, has already been explained by epenthesis (§ 34). Vinchhuo is probably to be explained as contracted from a form वृसुच, which is quite as possible a derivative from root वृश्च, as *vrīschika*.

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Skr. श्घ्र “to smell,” H. सूंघना. M. सुंगणे

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Skr. गैरिक “red chalk,” H. गेरू, M. *id.*, O. गेह, G. गेरु.

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Skr. कुट्टिनी “bawd,” O. कुट्टणी.

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Skr. तितंडी “tamarind,” O. तेतुंली.

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With regard to these last two changes, as well as that from *a* into *i*, the modern Indians embarrass the student by the obscurity of their pronunciation, which is such that these three short vowels are with difficulty distinguishable from one another. In dictionaries and printed works the vowel which *ought* to be pronounced is shown, but it cannot be said that this is the vowel which is pronounced in all provinces. The proclivity of the western languages for the *i* and *e* sounds, as also that of the eastern dialects for the *u* and *o* sounds, introduces confusions which are not fairly exhibited in their literature.

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Consequently, changes in these vowels which are authorized by writers are comparatively rare.

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§ 39. *उ* into *अ* and *इ*. Here also instances are few, and Vararuchi has had to resort to some doubtful words, as *maüdam*, *maülam*, for *mukuṭa*, *mukula*, where Skr. has also *makuṭa*, *makula*. *U* becomes *i* in Pr. in *puriso* for पुरुष, but the moderns use *purusho*.

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*U* is changed to *a* in Skr. कर्बुर “variegated,” H. काबर, कबरा, G., M., P., *id.*; कुटुम्ब “family,” H. कुटम, S. कुटुंब, G. कुटम. S. has also कुटिम. H. बिजली from Skr. विद्युत् “lightning,” so also in B., M., G., and P.; O. has बिजुली. The common M. अयणे “to collect,” is by Molesworth derived from Skr. यूथ; H. and G. have the substantive जथा, जथो “a company.” Skr. सुरुङ्गा “a mine,” changes to सुरंग H., सुडंग B., but सिरिंच S. गुद “anus,” becomes गांड in H., P., G., M., and O., unless, which is most probable, the older vulgar word was गण्ड, of which गुद is a softening.

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U is altered to i in some finals, as Skr. वायु “wind,” H. वाइ, B., G., S., id., in the sense of “rheumatism,” which the Indians believe to be caused by wind, though several languages have also forms in u or o, as H. बोओ, B. id., M. वाव, P. and S. वाउ, O. बाअ, but this form means “wind” simply. So also बिन्दु “a drop,” becomes H. बिन्दी, P. id., S. बिंडी, O., M., G. बिंदी, in the sense of “a dot over a letter,” such as that used to indicate anuswâra, while in the general sense of “a drop of rain,” “blood,” etc., it retains the u. In O. the Skr. बालुक “sand,” is बालि, S. वारी, B. बाली, but in the others with u.

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§ 40. Changes in the quantity of vowels are twofold—the shortening of long vowels and the lengthening of short ones.

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The long vowel is shortened in the case of all three vowels. Examples:—

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(1.) आ becomes अ, primarily in unaccented syllables. In a word consisting of two syllables, both of which are open, that is, end with a vowel, if one syllable contain a short accented vowel, while the other has a long but unaccented vowel, the latter not unfrequently becomes short; thus, Skr. yáthâ, táthâ, become in Pr. jaha, taha, optionally, as well as jahâ, tahâ. It is difficult to decide whether the Hindi obtained its forms जीं, तीं from the former or the latter of these, or from some other form altogether; the modern languages, in the majority of the very numerous pronominal and adverbial series which they contain, appear to have received from the old Aryan little more than the radical parts ka, ya, sa, ta, and to have evolved the various formations from their own resources. There are found cases where a long vowel is shortened without any assignable organic cause; probably in such cases the metre is the reason. Thus, *âyaria* = *âchârya*, *pajjava* = *paryâya*, *gahie* = *gṛhītaḥ*. Before a double consonant or nexus, also, the vowel is shortened, as in *kaṇṭam* = *kântam*, *aṇhâna* = *âsnâna* (which paves the way for the modern न्हाना), *appâ* = *âtmâ*, and others (Bhâg.). From Vararuchi come the following:

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Skr. प्रस्तार “a bed,” oxytone, Pr. *pattharo*, *patthâro*. Here the organically long syllable coming immediately before the accent is naturally liable to be slurred over. There is, however, a special inconvenience in shortening this word, as it becomes thereby identical with *pattharo*, from प्रस्तर “a stone.” S., however, has both पथरु “a bed,” and पथरु “a stone.” M. has पथारी in the first sense, and पत्थर in the second; the other languages have only the latter.

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Skr. तालवृन्तक “a fan,” Pr. *talavintaṃ*, not in use in the moderns.

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Skr. चामर “a chowrie,” Pr. *chamar* and *câ°*, but the form with the short vowel is also in use in Skr. The moderns have H. चँवरी, P. *id.*, S. चौंरु, G. चौरी, M. चँवरी and चामर, O. चँअर, B. चमरी; *chauṇrī* and the rest give no clue, as they may come equally well from *c°* or *câ°*.

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Skr. प्रहार “a blow,” Pr. *paharo*, *pahâro*; in poetry the quantity varies according to the exigencies of the metre,—in Saptaś. 7 it is long, in *ib.* 28 short. The word is now seldom used.

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Skr. चाटु “flattery,” Pr. *chaḍu*, *chaḍu*; not in use.

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Skr. हालिक “belonging to a plough,” Pr. *halia*, or *hâlia*. O. हलिआ “a plough bullock,” M. हली. The words of this kind in the modern languages are rather recent formations from हल “a plough,” in which, according to usage, the system of *guṇa* has been neglected.

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There is also a very numerous class of words in Sanskrit which have a long vowel preceding two consonants, *i.e.* a nexus. Prakrit assimilates the first of these two consonants to the last.

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and shortens the vowel. Hindi and the others, except Panjabi, reject one of the two consonants, and as a compensation restore the preceding vowel to its original quantity; as a type of this class may be taken Skr. मार्ग “a road,” Pr. मग्गो, H. मांग. This change in the vowel depends on the succeeding consonants, and is discussed in detail in Chapter IV.

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As additional instances of real vowel shortening, the following are to be noticed:

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Skr. माया “delusion,” H. मया, S. id.; the last syllable here is not only long by nature, but is also accentuated.

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Skr. मार्जनं “polishing,” H., P. संजना; in the rest, however, मा°, which is also a common form in H. In संजन “tooth-powder,” the short vowel is retained.

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Skr. महार्घ “dear (costly),” H. महंगा, but M. महाग, S. महंगो, P. महिंगा, G. मौंघुं.

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Skr. सर्पहार “snake-catcher,” H. सपेरा (i.e. सपहिरा), सपेडा, P. सपिआधा, सपैला.

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Skr. देवालय “temple,” Pr. देउल, S. देवली, H. देवल, M. देवळ, B. देबल, but P. देवाला.

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Skr. कासीस “vitriol,” H. कसीस, P. id., S. कसु.

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In all the above cases it may be laid down as a general rule that the contraction of the long ā into a is due to a long or accented vowel following; an accented vowel, whether long or short, universally retains its quantity more accurately than an unaccented one, even though it be long.

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(2.) ई into इ. Prakrit examples with their modern equivalents, where there are any, are as follows:—

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Skr. पानीय “water,” Pr. पाणिअं. This is the common word for “water” in use now. It is written in all पानी or पाणी, universally with long ī.

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Skr. अलीक “false,” Pr. अलिअं, but H. अलीक.

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Skr. वलीक “painful,” Pr. वलिअं and विलितं.

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Skr. तदानीम् “then,” Pr. तत्राणिं.

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Skr. करीष “cowdung,” Pr. करिसो.

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Skr. द्वितीय “second,” Pr. दुइअं, P. दूजा, दूआ, G. बीजो, S. बीजो, बिओ. Not in use in the rest.

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Skr. तृतीय “third,” Pr. तइअं, P. तीजा, S. टिओ, G. तीजे. Not in use in the rest.

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Skr. गभीर “deep,” Pr. गहिरं, so H. गहिरा or गहरा, and so in all. The Tatsama form गभीर is also in use.

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Skr. शीतकाल “cold weather,” Pr. सोआरो, S. सिआरों.

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Skr. प्लीहा “spleen,” H. पिलई, पिलही, M. पिहा, P., O. प्लीहा, B. पीला; but प्लीहा also in Skr.

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Skr. कील “a pin,” S. किली, H. किल्ला, M. id., O. किला, P. किल्ल.

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(3.) ऊ into उ. The only Pr. instance is महुअं for मधूक “a tree” (the Bassia latifolia). H. restores the quantity महुआ, but G. uses a diminutive with a resulting short vowel, महुडुं; P. महुआ.

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Modern examples are:—

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Skr. कूप “a well,” S. कुइ, M. कुवा, G. कुवो; in the rest it is long.

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Skr. कूदनं “leaping,” S. कुडणु, G. कुदवुं.

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Skr. घूर्णनं, “whirling,” H. घुमना, घुमडी, P. id., S. घुमणु, G. घुमवुं, M. घुमणे, O. घुरिवा, B. घुमडी, but घूरण.

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In the majority of cases, however, the modern languages preserve the quantity of the Sanskrit vowel with great fidelity before a single consonant. The two main disturbing elements are the accent and the nexus. The Prakrits being dead languages, we only know concerning them that which has been handed down in writing, and it cannot be too often repeated that Indian writers of all ages are untrustworthy guides to the spoken languages, as they all consider themselves entitled to alter or “improve” words at their will.

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Considerable difficulty arises in some of the languages from the careless method of writing employed, by which, especially in *i* and *u*, the long vowels are often written where short ones should be, and *vice versa*. Gujarati, for instance, may be said to make practically no distinction between *i* and *ī*, *u* and *ū*. I have seen the same frequently in Oriya correspondence, where बीज्ञापन is written for विज्ञापन, कीक्छि for किक्छि (किञ्चित). In the more accurate Marathi, also, the same practice occurs, as in सापत, सापिंड, for सपत्नी, सपिण्ड. This is, it may be said, mere vulgar corruption, but it must be remembered that vulgar corruptions are the cause of nine-tenths of the changes in language. Pandits, of course, in writing restore the vowels to the quantity they bear in Sanskrit, so that we cannot always tell how far the lengthening or shortening has become an established colloquial habit, or how far it is merely misspelling.

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Linked texts (15)

Prākṛtaprakāśa — Vararuci, Sanskrit
Gāhāsattasaī — Hāla, Māhārāṣṭrī Prakrit
Bhāgavatapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit
Aṣṭādhyāyī — Pāṇini, Sanskrit
Prākṛtapaiṅgala — Apabhraṃśa
Khuddakapāṭha — Pāli
Dhātupāṭha — Pāṇini, Sanskrit
Bhaginisutta — Pāli
Vipattisutta — Pāli
Ṛgvedasaṃhitā — Sanskrit
Karaṇa
Vārtā — Gujarati
Viyāhapannatti — Sudharman, Ardhamāgadhī Prakrit
Candra
Hastin