THE INVISIBLE THIRD. THE BASQUE AND CELTIC WORDS FOR 'SWALLOW'

Abstract

Abstract:In a keynote address at the XI. Fachtagung der Indogermanischen Gesellschaft, about possible non-Indo-European influence on the Celtic languages, Kim McCone drew attention to the similarity between the Insular Celtic, e.g. Olr fannall, W gwennol, and the Basque, i.e.enara, ain(h)-ara, words for 'swallow' (Lat hirundo). McCone reconstructs *waNālā or *weNālā as preforms for the Insular Celtic words, and *(w) aiNala for Pre-Basque (McCone 2005, 408-9).¹ This suggestion looks very attractive and suggestive and, if correct, would shed rare light on prehistoric linguistic relationships in Western Europe. In this article, I will examine the equation more closely and add a number of observations.