51. As early as the 8th century, in popular words, the vowels of final
syllables fell, the fall occurring first, perhaps, after liquids:
_hĕrĭ_ ＞ ęr, _malĕ_ ＞ mal; _bŏnŭs_ ＞ bos, _cŏlăphŭm_ ＞ cǫlp, _cōgĭto_ ＞
cüg, _panĕm_ ＞ pan, _prĕtiŭm_ ＞ prętz.
(1) Latin a, however, remained, being generally pronounced ạ: _audiăm_
＞ auiạ, _bŏnă_ ＞ bonạ, _fīliās_ ＞ filhạs.[32]
(2) Latin final ī probably remained in all dialects later than the
8th century, and in some until the beginning of the literary period:
_hábuī_ ＞ águi ＞ aguí. Before it fell, it changed an accented ẹ in the
preceding syllable to ị: see § 27.
(3) Latin i and u remained if they were immediately preceded by an
accented vowel: _fuī_ ＞ füi, _mĕī_ ＞ męi, _sŭī_ ＞ sọi; _cavum_ ✱_caum_
＞ chau, _dĕus_ ＞ dęus, _ĕgo_ ✱_ĕo_ ✱_ĕu_ ＞ ęu, _rīvum_ _rīum_ ＞ riu. In
such cases the two vowels formed a diphthong.
(4) Before final nt Latin e, u remained as e, o: _cantent_ ＞ canten,
_vēndunt_ ＞ vẹndon.
1. In Aude, Tarn, Aveyron, Corrèze, and a part of
Haute-Garonne, final ī was preserved as late as the 12th
century: _pagadi_, _salvi_, _soli_. See _Rom._, XIV, 291-2 and
XXXIV, 362. Such forms occur also in Vaud and Dauphiné. Cf.
_Gram._, II, p. 82.--In the dialect of some texts, _-ī_, before
falling, palatalized a preceding l (or ll), n (or nn), nd, nt,
or t: _annī_ ＞ _anh_, _bellī_ ＞ _beill_, ✱_infantī_ ＞ _efanh_,
✱_spiritī_ ＞ _esperih_, _mundī_ ＞ _monh_. See _Rom._, XXXIV,
353.
2. In the extreme east there are traces of final _-ōs_:
_aquestos_, _ellos_, _tantos_.
3. _Grau_ for _gra_ ＜ _gradum_, _niu_ for _ni_ ＜ _nīdum_ are
Catalan. _Amiu_ for _amic_ ＜ _amīcum_, _chastiu_ for _chastic_
＜ _castīgo_ belong to the dialect of Forez, and point to a very
early fall of the guttural in that dialect. Cf. § 65, D, G.
4. _Aire_, _vaire_, beside _air_ ＜ _aĕrem_, _vair_ ＜ _varium_,
probably show the influence of the numerous nouns in _-aire_
(_amaire_, etc.); cf. § 52, (1). _Fores_ beside _fors_ ＜
_fŏris_, _nemes_ beside _nems_ ＜ _nĭmis_, _senes_ beside _sens_
＜ _sĭne_ probably developed the _e_ when the next word began
with a consonant: see § 62, (3). For _colbe_, see § 48, 1.
_Reide_ _rede_ perhaps owes its -e to _rege_: § 49, (1). Beside
_volp_ ＜ _vŭlpem_ there is a _volpe_.
5. _Coma_, beside _com_, _con_, _co_ ＜ _quōmŏ(do)_, apparently
owes its -a to the analogy of the adverbs _bona_ and _mala_ and
other adverbs of manner. For a different explanation, see J.
Vising in the _Tobler Festschrift_ (_Abhandlungen Herrn Prof.
Dr. Tobler… dargebracht_, 1895), p. 113.
6. E seems to have been inserted in the second person singular
of some verbs, to distinguish it from the third person:
co(g)nōscis ＞ conọisses, _co(g)nōscit_ ＞ conọis.
52. When the fall of the vowel would have resulted in an undesirable
consonant group at the end of a word, the vowel was retained as an
indistinct e: _dŭbĭto_ ＞ dọpte, _lŭcrum_ ＞ lọgre.
The principal groups that call for a supporting vowel are: (1)
a consonant and a liquid; (2) a labial and a dental; (3) in
proparoxytones, a consonant and a c´ or c originally separated by the
vowel of the penult; (4) in proparoxytones, a consonant and an m or n
originally separated by the vowel of the penult. Ex.: _ĭnter_ ＞ ẹntre;
_aptum_ ＞ apte; ✱_dōdĕcim_ ＞ dọtze, _jūdĭco_ ＞ iütge; ✱Jacŏmus ＞
Iacmes, _asĭnum_ ＞ asne.
If the word was a paroxytone, and the first consonant was a palatal and
the second an r, the supporting vowel stood between the two: _major_ ＞
maier, _mĕlior_ ＞ męlher, _mŭlier_ ＞ mọlher, _pĕjor_ ＞ pęier, _sĕnior_
＞ sęnher. Otherwise the supporting vowel followed the consonant group.
The four classes of groups (aside from the palatal + r just mentioned)
will now be examined in detail:--
(1) Examples: _alter_ ＞ autre, _Carŏlus_ ＞ Carles, _dŭplus_ ＞ dọbles,
✱_ĕssĕre_ ＞ ęstre, _fabrum_ ＞ fabre, ✱_mĕr(ŭ)lum_ ＞ męrle, _nŏster_
＞ nǫstre, _pauper_ ＞ paubre, _pŏp(ŭ)lum_ ＞ pǫble, _pōnĕre_ ＞ pọnre,
_recĭpĕre_ ＞ recẹbre, _rŭmpĕre_ ＞ rọmpre, _tŏllĕre_ ＞ tǫlre,
_vŏlvĕre_ ＞ vǫlvre; _mascŭlum_ ＞ mascle, etc.; _flēb(ĭ)lem_ ＞ frẹble,
etc. Under this head is included r-r (_cŭrrere_ ＞ cọrre, _quærĕre_
＞ quęrre), but not ll and rr (_bĕllum_ ＞ bęl, _fĕrrum_ ＞ fęr). In
Provençal the first element was often changed, later than the 8th
century, into a vowel, original b and v becoming u, and d, t, c, g,
and y being turned to i: _bĭbĕre_ ＞ bẹure, _scrībĕre_ ＞ escriure,
✱_mŏvĕre_ ＞ mǫure, _plŏvĕre_ ＞ plǫure, _vīvĕre_ ＞ viure; _latro_ ＞
laire, _matrem_ ＞ maire, _radĕre_ ＞ raire, ✱_rīdĕre_ ＞ rire, _vĭtrum_
＞ vẹire; _desīdĕro_ ＞ desire, etc.; _amātor_ ＞ amaire, _servītor_ ＞
servire, etc.; _dīcĕre_ ＞ dire, _dūcĕre_ ＞ düire, _facĕre_ ＞ faire,
_gracĭlem_ ＞ graile, ✱_tacĕre_ ＞ taire; _frīgĕre_ ＞ frire, _weigăro_
gaire, _lĕgĕre_ ＞ lęire; _bajŭlum_ ＞ baile. Apparent exceptions to the
rule are intervocalic cl, gl, which were probably reduced to single
consonants before the 8th century: _ŏc(ŭ)lum_ ＞ ǫlh, _vĭg(ĭ)lo_ ＞
vẹlh.
1. The rare forms _frair_, _mair_, _pair_, _Peir_ (still
used in Gascony), beside regular _fraire_, _maire_, _paire_,
_Peire_, are probably due to proclitic use; so _sor_ beside
_sorre_ ＜ _sŏror_, and possibly _faur_ beside _faure_ ＜
_faber_. The learned _albir_ = _albire_ ＜ _arbĭtrium_ may
be due to the analogy of other double forms. _Dimerc_ for
_dimercre_ (§ 17, 2) perhaps follows _dimenc_.
2. Rr requires a vowel in a few dialects: _corre_ = _cor_
＜ _cŭrrit_, _ferre_ = _fer_ ＜ _fĕrrum_, _torre_ = _tor_ ＜
_tŭrrem_.
(2) Examples: _cŭbĭtum_ ＞ cọde; _cŏmĭtem_ ＞ comte; _dēbĭtum_ ＞ dẹpte
dẹute, § 47, (3); _dŏmnum_ ＞ domne; _dŭbĭto_ ＞ dọpte; _hŏspĭtem_ ＞
ǫste; _sabbătum_ ＞ sapte.
1. _Azaut_ seems to be post-verbal from _azautar_ ＜ _adaptāre_.
_Escrit_ ＜ _scrīptum_ shows the influence of _dit_ ＜ _dīctum_.
_Malaut_, beside _malaute_ _malapte_ ＜ _mal´habĭtum_, is
reconstructed from the feminine _malauta_ on the model of
_aut_, _auta_. _Set_ ＜ _sĕptem_ must have developed as a
proclitic.
(3) Examples: _jūdicem_ ＞ iütge[33]; _pŏllĭcem_ ＞ pǫuze; _quīndĕcim_ ＞
quinze; _salĭcem_ ＞ sauze; _sēdĕcim_ ＞ sẹdze;--_canŏnĭcum_ ＞ canonge
canọrgue,[34] § 49, (4); _clĕrĭcum_ ＞ clęrge clęrgue (§ 48, 2);
_mĕdĭcum_ ＞ mętge; _mŏnăchum_ ＞ monge mongue mǫrgue,[34] § 49, (4);
_vĭndĭco_ ＞ vẹnie; _viatĭcum_ ＞ viatge, etc.
1. The forms _poutz_, _sautz_, beside _pouse_, _sauze_, would
seem to indicate that lc´ did not require a supporting vowel in
all dialects.
2. ✱_Ficotum_ (= _jēcur_), a fusion of συκωτόν (‘fig-fattened’)
and _fīcus_, combined with ✱_hēpăte_ (= _hēpar_), became
✱fẹ́catu ✱fẹcitu ✱fẹgidu, and then, through the influence of
the familiar ending -igu (= _ĭcum_), ✱fẹdigu ＞ fẹtge. See G.
Paris in _Miscellanea linguistica in onore di G. Ascoli_, 1901,
p. 41; H. Schuchardt in _Zs._, XXV, 615, and XXVIII, 435; L.
Clédat in _Revue de philologie française et de littérature_,
XV, 235. _Pege_, for _peich_ ＜ _pĕctus_, seems to be due to the
analogy of _fetge_.
(4) Examples: _æstĭmo_ ＞ esme; _dĕcĭmum_ ＞ dęsme; _fraxĭnum_ ＞ fraisne;
_incūdĭnem_ ＞ enclütge (cf. § 80, Dn); ✱_metĭpsĭmum_ ＞ medẹsme;
_pĕssĭmum_ ＞ pęsme; _prŏxĭmus_ ＞ prǫsmes.
1. Faim ＜ _facĭmu(s)_ doubtless lost its -e through the analogy
of the alternative form fazẹm ＜ ✱_facímu(s)_ and of the usual
endings -ám, -ẹm.
(5) In some dialects, at least, by, mby, mny, py, rny required a
supporting vowel: _rŭbeum_ ＞ rọtge, _cambio_ ＞ camie, _sŏmnium_ ＞
songe suenh, _apium_ ＞ ache api, ✱_Arvĕrnium_[35] ＞ Alvęrnhe; ratge (=
_rabiem_) is probably French. Original lm, rm, sm required a supporting
vowel in some dialects but not in others: _hëlm_ ＞ ęlme ęlm, _ŭlmum_ ＞
ọlme ọlm, _palmum_ ＞ palm; ✱_ĕrmum_ ἔρημον ＞ erm, _fĭrmum_ ＞ fẹrm,
_gĕrmen_ ＞ gęrme; _spasmum_ ＞ espasme.
(6) Many verbs regularly have an -e in the first person singular of
the present indicative: desire, dọpte, iütge, etc. By the analogy of
these, -e often appears in the first person singular of verbs which
need no supporting vowel: _remīro_ ＞ remir remire. By the analogy of
the preterit (águi, füi, etc.), -i is very often substituted for this
-e: azọr azọri, cant canti, prętz pręzi, etc.
53. Many late words preserve the final vowel as _-e_: benigne, bisbe ＜
_epĭscŏpum_, digne (cf. denhar), mixte (cf. mẹst), regne (cf. reing),
signe (cf. sẹnh). Cf. § 50; (for cǫlbe) § 48, 1; and (for cǫinde,
etc.) § 47, 1. Learned formations from nouns in _-ium_ usually end in
_-i_, simply dropping the _-um_: capitǫli, edifici, empęri, iüzízi,
martíri (martíre), negǫci, ofíci, periüri, remęzi, servízi, vici.
Similar forms in _-i_ were sometimes taken from the accusative of
nouns and adjectives in _-ius_: Boęci ＜ _Boëthium_, prǫpri (prǫpre) ＜
_prŏprium_, savi ＜ _sabium_.
1. It should be remembered that the Latin words, at the time
of their adoption, had undergone various phonetic changes
in the clerical pronunciation: cf. § 15. A form _remezi_,
for instance, presupposes a pronunciation of _remĕdium_ as
remęðiu(m).