*Hu̯r̥néH-/Hu̯r̥nH-´

‘to sprinkle’

Language: Proto-Anatolian
Grammar: verb
ID: 968

1. Individual Anatolian Languages

1.1 Palaic

*ḫuwarna-

‘to sprinkle with water’

1.1.1Derivatives

1.2 Hittite

ḫurna-/ḫurn-^(mi), ḫurniye/a-^(mi)

‘to sprinkle’

1.2.1Literature / Comments

There is strong disagreement in the literature regarding the vocalic interpretation of the sign ḪAR/ḪUR. Many scholars have chosen the former on account of the attestation ḫa-ar-ni-ia-ad-du (KUB 56.48 i 18) (thus Neu 1983a:55 n. 261, HW 2nd ed. Ḫ:315f., EDHIL:308f.). Other scholars prefer the interpretation ḪUR based on the etymological cognates Pal. ḫuwarnina-⁽ⁱ⁾ ‘to sprinkle’, Hitt./Luw. ḫūwaranzi ‘sprinkled/decorated in scattered fashion’, explaining the sole attestation with ḫa-ar as a sort of hypercorrection (HED:403) or as a phonological vacillation between a and u beside laryngeal (Kimball 1999a:167f.); cf. ^UZUma-aḫ-ra-en beside (much more frequent) ^UZUmu-(u)-uḫ-ra-in. The latter view is followed here. The similar-looking Hittite verb ḫarna-^(mi) ‘to set in motion’ (HW 2nd ed. Ḫ:315) should also be taken into account.

[D.S.]

2. Reconstruction

2.1Reconstruction ‘to sprinkle’

The base of Palaic ḫuwarnina-⁽ⁱ⁾ and ḫuwarnašš(a)-⁽ⁱ⁾ ‘to sprinkle with water’, i.e. *huwarna-, and its cognate Hitt. ḫurna-/ḫurn-^(mi) ‘id.’ allow us to reconstruct a Proto-Anatolian hysterokinetic n-infixed formation *Hu̯r̥néH-/Hu̯r̥nH-´ (cf. Oettinger 1979a:151, hesitantly EDHIL:308f.). An extension in *-i̯e/o- derived from the n-infixed stem is also found in Hitt. ḫurniye/a-^(mi) ‘to sprinkle’ (HED H:403f., HEG A-H:305f.). Additionally, a root-final laryngeal is necessary to explain the thematic inflection (Oettinger 1979a:307), and *h₁ is excluded by the thematic vowel -a- in ḫur-na-mi (EDHIL:308f.), which would have otherwise yielded **ḫur-ne-mi (forms such as ḫur-ni-e-ez-zi belong to the formation in -iye/a-^(mi)). Thus, the root-final laryngeal must be *h₂ or *h₃, just as the root-initial one. For potential cognates see ḫuramma/i- and ḫūwaranzi.

[D.S.]

3. Proto-Indo-European

3.1Semantic Reconstruction

Even if the remodeled nasal present Gk. ῥαίνω ‘to (be)sprinkle’ does not belong to the root in question (and, thus, ultimately equals the PAnat. formation),On the sound law which is crucial in etymologizing the Greek verb, cf. the comment on Gk. ῥαίνω ‘to (be)sprinkle’ above.the meaning of the possible proto-form PIE *h₂u̯r̥‑né‑h_2/3‑/*h₂ur‑n‑h̥_2/3‑´ is clearly reconstructable as ‘to besprinkle’.

3.1.1Root etymology

The Greek compound ἄν‑αυρος ‘torrent’ is of little help in determining the meaning of the underlying root because of the reconstructional ambiguities surrounding its compositional and thus semantic structure (cf. the comment above). While Gk. °αυρος might mean ‘water’, ‘splashing’, ‘sprinkling’, or even ‘drizzle’, it is in any case related to the domain of ‘water, humidity’.
On the other hand, the nasal-infix present PIE/pre‑Anat. *h₂u̯r̥‑né‑h_2/3‑/*h₂ur‑n‑h̥_2/3‑´ ‘to besprinkle’ may be interpreted as causativizing an underlying intransitive verbal root. Thus, PIE *h₂u̯erh_2/3- is reconstructed here with intransitive semantics ‘to splash (intr.), flow, drip (vel sim.)’.Differently, LIV²:291: transitive “besprengen”, obviously adopted from the nasal present.

3.2Morphological Reconstruction

If the sound law PIE *HCL̥- > PGk. *CL̥- is accepted,Cf. the comment on Gk. ῥαίνω sub Transmission above.it is possible to connect Gk. ῥαίνω ‘to (be)sprinkle’ with PAnat. *Hu̯r̥néH‑/*Hu̯r̥nH‑´ ‘to besprinkle’ (Gk. ῥαίνω < PGk. *u̯ran‑i̯é/ó- ← *u̯ranā/ō‑/*aurā/ō- < *h₂u̯r̥néh_2/3‑/*h₂urn̥h_2/3‑´, as per Andrea Covini [pers. comm.]) and to reconstruct a nasal present for PIE based on the Anatolian and Greek data: PIE *h₂u̯r̥‑né‑h_2/3‑/*h₂ur‑n̥‑h_2/3‑´ ‘to (be)sprinkle’.

3.2.1Root etymology

The anlaut of the Anatolian verb as well as the α‑vowel of Gk. (ἄν‑)αυρος ‘torrent’ show reflexes of PIE *h₂‑. The second radical, PIE *‑u‑, is directly reflected in Greek and Palaic and can be deduced from the Hittite data.On a different account regarding the Hittite phonological form, cf. the synopsis above sub Hittite.As is made explicit above (sub PAnat. reconstruction), the quality of the root-final laryngeal is interpreted here as PAnat. *H < PIE *h₂ or *h₃. Thus, contra LIV²:291, the root may be reconstructed as PIE *h₂u̯erh_2/3- ‘to splash (intr.), flow, drip (vel sim.)’.Since PIE *h₂u̯ers- ‘to rain’ (as per LIV²:291f., cf. also NIL:356f., IEW:80f.) is now reconstructed with anlauting *h₁- (cf. LIV²⁺ s.v. *h₂u̯ers‑), thus *h₁u̯ers-, it is impossible to connect this root with PIE *h₂u̯erh_2/3- in terms of different root extensions vel sim.

[A.O.]

4. Transmission

Gk. ῥαίνω ‘to (be)sprinkle’ (Il.+)
GEW II:639f., DELG:965, EDG:1272, LSJ:1564This verb belongs here under the provision that Peters’ sound law *#HCL̥- (maybe better: *#HPL̥- or *#Hu̯L̥‑?) > PGk. *CL̥- is accepted, cf. Peters 1980a:23–26 n. 18; affirmative, e.g., Neri 2017a:212 n. 29; cautious, e.g., Kümmel 2000a:481 n. 923; dismissed by, e.g., LIV²:291 n. 1. An extended variant of this sound law is proposed by Hinge 2007a.

(?)Gk. ἄν‑αυρος ‘torrent (Mosch.+); (river name) (Ps.‑Hes.)’Kretschmer 1919a:51f. regards ἄν‑αυρος as a privative compound meaning ‘without water (in summer)’ > ‘(ModHG) Gießbach, river rising due to heavy showers (in spring/autumn)’. Different periphrases are possible, however, by taking the first constituent as Gk. ἀν(ά) ‘up(wards)’, hence ‘splashing upwards’, ‘having drizzle (> rain) above (vel sim.)’, or ‘splashing again (every spring)’ (cf. ἀνά‑δικ‑ος ‘tried over again’). According to EDG:99f., this word is pre‑Greek.
GEW I:103f., DELG:85, EDG:99f., LSJ:124Additionally, further river and personal names are frequently connected, cf. the dictionaries and, e.g., Kretschmer 1919a:52.