amẽd

The attestation of this form is limited to the declarative clause of the inscription LW 22 found in the precinct of Artemis in Sardis and roughly datable to the 6^th, 5^th or 4^th century BCE.

[I.Y.]

This form occurs in a clause featuring Sardians as the implicit subject, Artemis as the indirect object, and a verb with the meaning ‘to acknowledge, or ‘to swear’. Based on the synchronic analysis of the context, it can represent either the acc. sg. n. of an otherwise unattested nominal form amẽ-, or a preposition. From a comparative perspective, it should be considered together with LW/N 110.3 ku^!mẽd. Based on the assumption that the relation between amẽd and ku^!mẽd < *kud-amẽd resembles that of German bei vs. wo-bei, the hypothesis that amẽd represents a preposition is to be preferred. The second clause of LW 22 can then be translated along the lines: “And they swore(?) here in the presence of (amẽd) the Sardian Lady” (Yakubovich 2017b).

For the earlier attempts of interpreting this form, made without the benefit of understanding the syntax of the clause where it occurs, see Gusmani 1964a:58.

[I.Y.]

1. kumẽd