DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.1167#0192
• sAOKAK /'cokck/ "to prick" (K precedes stop)
• snOTnT /'potpt/ "to fall away" (n precedes stop)
• sUJOMUJ1) /'Jofff/ "to excavate" (front spirant ^ precedes back spirant Uf)
Magnus (1969: 20T.) states that the sequences -CC, -CCC, and -CCV are allowed at the
end of a Sahidic word, whereas -CCCC and -CCCV are not (V being an unstressed vowel).
4.9.4 Word-initial epenthetic vowel
If <>> is the second consonant in an Egyptian word and precedes the stressed vowel, the
Coptic equivalent frequently has a secondary €- hi- before the first consonant. Sethe
(1899-1902: I, § 9) gave the explanation that both consonants formed a C>- cluster during
a certain period of the history of the Egyptian language, and later a prosthetic vowel was
added at the beginning of the word to avoid the initial consonant cluster. However €-
does not occur in all words of this structure.
As has been discussed in §3.14.2, the consonant <l> can be either retained as /j/ or lost in
Coptic. In the latter case, the motivation for the epenthetic vowel is no longer synchroni-
cally visible. Consequently, four different developments are logically possible for words
with <5> as the second consonant, and all of these are actually attested:
1) <?> retained as /j/, with epenthetic vowel:
bik.w "servants" > keBlMK /aP'jajk/
2) <>> retained as /j/, no epenthetic vowel
hid "pit" (since NK) > ^ICfT /'hjit/, ^IT
3) <3> lost, with epenthetic vowel
kfsj "Nubian" > ^SCOUJ /o'kioj/, beeO)U}
zhw "ground" > ^CHT /a'set/
4) <5> lost, no epenthetic vowel
djdj "head" > s-bACl)A /'coc/
miq.t "ladder" > bA07TKI /'muki/
tis "border" > sTOUJ /'toJ7, beOUJ
The Coptic dialects occasionally show divergent developments. For instance, the equiva-
lent of hi.t "front" is Q.H in Bohairic, 9,H (most frequently) ~ 2IH ~ egH in Sahidic, and
£o,H (most frequently) ~ ?,H in Lycopolitan.
Vergote (1959: i6f.; cf. also 1973/83: lb, § 28c) suggests that £- only appears if the vowel
of the pretonic syllable differs from the stressed vowel, assuming that <?> was lost earlier
between equal vowels than between different vowels:
sft.t "sow" (according to Vergote:) /si$a:yat/ > /s?a:yat/ > s-b€UI(0
qib.t "breast" (according to Vergote:) /qa'hbat/ > /q3i:bat/ > s€Kl6e (however
SKI66 exists as well)
but: b>k.t "female servant" (according to Vergote:) /ba?a:kat/ > /ba:kat/ > bfiCOKI
Unfortunately, it is very difficult to verify whether Vergote's assumptions about the
quality of these pretonic vowels are correct.
192
• snOTnT /'potpt/ "to fall away" (n precedes stop)
• sUJOMUJ1) /'Jofff/ "to excavate" (front spirant ^ precedes back spirant Uf)
Magnus (1969: 20T.) states that the sequences -CC, -CCC, and -CCV are allowed at the
end of a Sahidic word, whereas -CCCC and -CCCV are not (V being an unstressed vowel).
4.9.4 Word-initial epenthetic vowel
If <>> is the second consonant in an Egyptian word and precedes the stressed vowel, the
Coptic equivalent frequently has a secondary €- hi- before the first consonant. Sethe
(1899-1902: I, § 9) gave the explanation that both consonants formed a C>- cluster during
a certain period of the history of the Egyptian language, and later a prosthetic vowel was
added at the beginning of the word to avoid the initial consonant cluster. However €-
does not occur in all words of this structure.
As has been discussed in §3.14.2, the consonant <l> can be either retained as /j/ or lost in
Coptic. In the latter case, the motivation for the epenthetic vowel is no longer synchroni-
cally visible. Consequently, four different developments are logically possible for words
with <5> as the second consonant, and all of these are actually attested:
1) <?> retained as /j/, with epenthetic vowel:
bik.w "servants" > keBlMK /aP'jajk/
2) <>> retained as /j/, no epenthetic vowel
hid "pit" (since NK) > ^ICfT /'hjit/, ^IT
3) <3> lost, with epenthetic vowel
kfsj "Nubian" > ^SCOUJ /o'kioj/, beeO)U}
zhw "ground" > ^CHT /a'set/
4) <5> lost, no epenthetic vowel
djdj "head" > s-bACl)A /'coc/
miq.t "ladder" > bA07TKI /'muki/
tis "border" > sTOUJ /'toJ7, beOUJ
The Coptic dialects occasionally show divergent developments. For instance, the equiva-
lent of hi.t "front" is Q.H in Bohairic, 9,H (most frequently) ~ 2IH ~ egH in Sahidic, and
£o,H (most frequently) ~ ?,H in Lycopolitan.
Vergote (1959: i6f.; cf. also 1973/83: lb, § 28c) suggests that £- only appears if the vowel
of the pretonic syllable differs from the stressed vowel, assuming that <?> was lost earlier
between equal vowels than between different vowels:
sft.t "sow" (according to Vergote:) /si$a:yat/ > /s?a:yat/ > s-b€UI(0
qib.t "breast" (according to Vergote:) /qa'hbat/ > /q3i:bat/ > s€Kl6e (however
SKI66 exists as well)
but: b>k.t "female servant" (according to Vergote:) /ba?a:kat/ > /ba:kat/ > bfiCOKI
Unfortunately, it is very difficult to verify whether Vergote's assumptions about the
quality of these pretonic vowels are correct.
192