Reconstructions Search

Leslau connects Proto-MSA *paḳḥ- ‘half’ with the verbal root *pḳḥ, but one has to admit that the meaning “to cut,” “to split” from which “half” could plausibly be derived (Bittner 1913a:97‒98) is hardly ever directly attested for the reflexes of this root, cf. only Hbr. pḳḥ ‘to open the eyes’ (HALOT 959), Syr. pḳḥ ‘floruit’ (LSyr. 589), Arb. fḳḥ ‘to open the eyes; to blossom,’ perhaps also faḳḥat- ‘anus’ (Lane 2424). Mhr. fōḳəḥ and Jib. féḳəḥ ‘to cut in half’ (ML 91, JL 56) can hardly be considered the source of *paḳḥ- ‘half,’ being rather secondarily derived from it. The presence of fḳḥ ‘half’ also in Sabaic (SD 45, Stein 2003:123‒124) can hardly be accidental and should probably be explained as a contact phenomenon (a substratum/adstratum MSA influence on Sabaic or instead a cultural borrowing from Sabaic into early MSA?). One wonders, finally, whether Tgr. fäḳḥa ‘to lease, to practice usury’ (WTS 663) could be related to the meaning “half” with a somewhat peculiar semantic development. (Kogan 2015:566-567)

The origin of Proto-MSA *pḳy ‘to cover, to wear clothes’ is unknown. One cannot exclude that this root once replaced PS *lbš ‘to wear,’ which was re-established as lbs in Mehri and Jibbali (ML 251, JL 159) via borrowing from Arabic. (Kogan 2015:567)

Leslau plausibly connects Proto-MSA *prd ‘to flee in panic’ with PS *prd ‘to be separated,’ represented by Hbr. prd ‘to separate, to diverge’ (HALOT 962), Arb. frd ‘to become sole, single’ (Lane 2363), Sab. frd-m ‘uniquely, alone’ (SD 46), Tgr. täfarädä ‘to part company as enemies’ (WTS 659). The same shift of meaning took place (presumably independently) in Aramaic (Syr. prad ‘fugit,’ LSyr. 593), as well as in Akkadian, where parādu ‘to be fearful, disturbed’ (CAD P 141, AHw. 827) displays a remarkable semantic similarity to the MSA verbs (as duly observed in Huehnergard 1991a:693). (Kogan 2015:567-568)

Leslau is likely correct to derive Proto-MSA *prr (reflexive-intensive stem) ‘to yawn’ from an original meaning “to divide,” “to separate,” eventually compatible with PS *prr represented by Akk. parāru (D) ‘to break up, to disperse,’ naparruru ‘to become crushed, dispersed, separated’ (CAD P 161), Ugr. prr ‘to break’ (DUL 681), Hbr. prr ‘to break, to destroy’ (HALOT 974), Arb. ˀafarra raˀsahu bi-s-sayfi = šaqqaqahu wa-falaqahu (TA 13 318), Gez. farra ‘to shell, to husk’ (CDG 166), Tna. färärä ‘to dissolve flour in water’ (TED 2659). For a closer semantic parallelism cf. Tna. färär bälä ‘to be opened wide (eyes due to astonishment)’ (TED 2659). (Kogan 2015:568)

Could as well be the source of Akkadian parāṣu ‘to break an oath, to transgress, violate a trust’

The origin of Proto-MSA *pṭˁ ‘to be naked’ is unknown. (Kogan 2015:568)

The origin of Proto-MSA *rVbṯ-at- ‘foam on milk’ is unknown. (Kogan 2015:568)

The meaning is hardly connected to that of PCS *rgm ‘to stone’. In Soq. rígɛm ‘to be stoned’ and régom ‘to cover, to protect’ to be treated as different (homonymous) roots, as actually done by Leslau in LS 394. At the same time, it is noteworthy that one of the prominent applications of rgm in Jibbali is connected with covering a dead body with stones. The same semantic nuance is attested in Arabic: raǯam- ‘stones that are placed upon a grave,’ rǯm (II) ‘to place a stone on one’s grave’. It is likely that the meaning “to cover with stones” in Arabic represents a secondary development from “to stone (as punishment),” which, in its turn, influenced Jib. rgm ‘to cover,’ originally unconnected to *rgm ‘to stone’ (Kogan 2015: 217-218)