mawile/i-

This lexeme is found in the inscription of the inscribed pillar of Xanthos, dated contextually to shortly after the ascension of Artaxerxes II in 405-404 BCE and stylistically to around 400 BCE (Borchhardt & Eichner 1997-1999a:19f.).

[D.S.]

Shevoroshkin 1968c:66 n. 1 (and Shevoroshkin 1977a:142) analyzes the sequence mẽmi mawili convincingly as meaning ‘in the mawili-language’ (cf. mẽmija-). The suffix -ili would be comparable to the use of the Hittite one in luw-ili ‘in Luwian’ and palaumn-ili ‘in the manner of a man from Pala, in Palaic’, which is likewise found in Lyc. A trm̃mili ‘Lycian’. Since trm̃mile/i- is declined like a regular mutated adjective, it is likely that mawili behaves in the same way. Thus, the attested form would be a dative singular agreeing with mẽmi (thus also Schürr 2016d:164). Shevoroshkin 1968c:66 n. 1 suggests that the designation mawi- is to be equated with Mαιονία, which would be possible if Mαι- in Mαι-ονία were to go back to *Mαϝι-. Pending further evidence, his suggestion must be considered highly hypothetical (not accepted in DLL:120, though without justification, hesitant Neumann 2007a:197).Gehrisch 2018a:82 translates it as ‘Milyan’, even though the relation between the two cannot be explained phonologically.

[D.S.]