pn͂nuta-

This lexeme is found in a grave inscription belonging to Merehi, who is most likely the same as Merehi, brother of Gergis, the ruler of Lycia in the second half of the fifth century BCE.

[D.S.]

gen. adj. dat./loc. sg.

pñnutahi

TL 43.2 (Xanthos)

The phrase trijatrbbahi pñnutahi uhahi refers to a dating accompanied by ẽnẽ xñtawata xer[i]xehe ‘under the rule of Gergis’, i.e. of the trijatrbba pñnuta year. Shevoroshkin 1977a:144 interprets pn͂nuta- as the word for ‘five’ or ‘fifth’, comparing PIE *penk^u̯- ‘five’ (doubted by Carruba 1979a:202 n. 13 and Blažek 2000a:102). This is phonologically plausible, if the accented heavy syllable of the root lenited the following labio-velar *k^u̯- to *g^u̯, which then becomes -u- in Luwic. His approach can be further supported from a contextual perspective, since trijatrbba contains the numeral three; see Lyc. B trija. Gehrisch 2018a:60 suggests plausibly that trijatrbba is the numeral for ‘thirty’, which would yield the translation ‘within the thirty-fifth year – under the rule of Gergis’. This is overall convincing, since Gergis is known to have ruled approximately 40 years (c. 440-400 BCE). Thus, if the translation is correct, the inscription could be dated more precisely to 405 BCE.

No translation of pn͂nutahi is given in Melchert (DLL:50f.) or Neumann 2007a:276f. Carruba 1978b:168 n. 20 had a similar but Greco-centric interpretation, translating trijatrbbahi pñnutahi uhahi as ‘within the year of the third election of Pn͂nuta.’, which is philologically and historically unpersuasive. Outdated is the unconvincing view of Laroche 1974b:135, who interprets the series of three words as a genealogy of personal names.

[D.S.]

Instead of an a-stem, a (mutated) consonantal stem in -nt(i)- with a genitival adjective in -ahe/i- is also possible; see Sasseville 2018a:314-316.

[D.S.]

1. Pn͂nute(/i)- (PN) (Neumann 1967b:31, Neumann 2007a:277f.)

For an attractive Indo-European etymology, see under Meaning. However, more evidence would be welcome.

[D.S.]