Reconstructing Prehistorical Dialects: Initial Vowels in Slavic and Baltic (Trends in Linguistics. Studies and Monographs [TiLSM] Book 91)

TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS is a series of books that open new perspectives in our understanding of language. The series publishes state-of-the-art work on core areas of linguistics across theoretical frameworks as well as studies that provide new insights by building bridges to neighbouring fields such as neuroscience and cognitive science. TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS considers itself a forum for cutting-edge research based on solid empirical data on language in its various manifestations, including sign languages. It regards linguistic variation in its synchronic and diachronic dimensions as well as in its social contexts as important sources of insight for a better understanding of the design of linguistic systems and the ecology and evolution of language. TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS publishes monographs and outstanding dissertations as well as edited volumes, which provide the opportunity to address controversial topics from different empirical and theoretical viewpoints. High quality standards are ensured through anonymous reviewing. Acknowledgements 5 List of tables 11 List of figures 13 Abbreviations 15 Graphic and reference conventions 17 Introduction 19 0.1. Common Slavic and the Slavic Migrations 19 0.2. LCS *jezero || *ozero, La. ezars, Li. ẽžeras || ãžeras, OPr. Assaran ‘lake’ 21 Chapter 1 Proto-Slavic E- and A- 27 1.1. PS eE- – LCS *je-|| *o- 28 1.2. The Common Slavic prothesis 33 1.3. Discussion 35 Chapter 2 A typological parallel 39 2.1. The Lithuanian e- > je- change 39 2.2. The Lithuanian e- > a- change 40 2.3. Discussion 42 Chapter 3 The Late Common Slavic *je- || *o- isoglosses 47 3.1. Other Late Common Slavic isoglosses 48 3.2. Implicational relations 50 3.3. The *je- || *o- diversity in time 54 3.4. Scenario A 54 3.5. Scenario Aʹ 57 3.6. Scenario B 59 3.7. The East Slavic gradations 60 3.8. Invariant *je- 64 3.9. Summary 67 Chapter 4 The Baltic change of *e- > *a- 71 4.1. The Baltic data 72 4.2. The geographical distribution 76 4.3. Baltic and Slavic 80 4.4. The larger perspective 81 Chapter 5 Layers of innovation: Slavic, Slavic and Baltic, and Indo-European 85 5.1. Prothesis in Slavic 86 5.2. PS E- in liquid diphthongs 98 5.3. Proto-Slavic and Proto-Baltic by-forms 99 5.4. Summary and results 112 Chapter 6 PIE *e-, *a-, *o- in Slavic and Baltic 115 6.1. Rozwadowski’s change: When and where? 116 6.2. Balto-Slavic *a- > *e-? 120 6.3. Non-Indo-European contacts? 122 6.4. Contact with other Indo-European dialects 123 6.5. Slavic-Baltic *a- > *e- as a contact change 127 6.6. Slavic, Baltic, and other Indo-European dialects 129 Chapter 7 The material 131 7.1.–44. The lexical material 134 Chapter 8 Alternative approaches 175 8.1. The geographical dimension 176 8.2. Categorizing the lexical data 182 8.3. The phonological change 187 8.4. The Baltic change 197 8.5. Conclusion 200 Chapter 9 Perspectives 201 9.1. Proto-Slavic and Common Slavic 201 9.2. Proto-Baltic and Common Baltic 205 9.3. Balto-Slavic versus Slavic-Baltic 205 9.4. Extinct languages in Eastern Europe 206 9.5. Prehistoric phonemics and phonetics 208 9.6. Dialect geography and migration 210 9.7. Reconstructing ante-Migration dialects by projection 211 9.8. Patterns of geographical distribution 212 Chapter 10 Conclusion 215 10.1. Proto-Slavic E- and A- 215 10.2. A typological parallel 216 10.3. The Late Common Slavic *je-|| *o- isoglosses 216 10.4. The Baltic change of *e- > *a- 218 10.5. Layers of innovation: Slavic, Slavic-Baltic, and Indo-European 218 10.6. PIE *e-, *a-, *o- in Slavic and Baltic 221 10.7. The material 222 10.8. Alternative approaches 222 10.9. Perspectives 223 10.10. Conclusion 223 References 225 Index 239 TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS is a series of books that open new perspectives in our understanding of language. The series publishes state-of-the-art work on core areas of linguistics across theoretical frameworks, as well as studies that provide new insights by approaching language from an interdisciplinary perspective. TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS considers itself a forum for cutting-edge research based on solid empirical data on language in its various manifestations, including sign languages. It regards linguistic variation in its synchronic and diachronic dimensions as well as in its social contexts as important sources of insight for a better understanding of the design of linguistic systems and the ecology and evolution of language. TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS publishes monographs and outstanding dissertations as well as edited volumes, which provide the opportunity to address controversial topics from different empirical and theoretical viewpoints. High quality standards are ensured through anonymous reviewing. To discuss your book idea or submit a proposal, please contact Birgit Sievert.

TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS is a series of books that open new perspectives in our understanding of language. The series publishes state-of-the-art work on core areas of linguistics across theoretical frameworks as well as studies that provide new insights by building bridges to neighbouring fields such as neuroscience and cognitive science.

TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS considers itself a forum for cutting-edge research based on solid empirical data on language in its various manifestations, including sign languages. It regards linguistic variation in its synchronic and diachronic dimensions as well as in its social contexts as important sources of insight for a better understanding of the design of linguistic systems and the ecology and evolution of language.

TRENDS IN LINGUISTICS publishes monographs and outstanding dissertations as well as edited volumes, which provide the opportunity to address controversial topics from different empirical and theoretical viewpoints. High quality standards are ensured through anonymous reviewing.

This study aims to shed light on the Slavic dialects that existed before the Slavic migrations. The author pays particular attention to questions of method and the more particular issues that arise out of the lack of temporal continuity between the modern dialects and the dialect divisions.