THE EFFECT OF SYNCOPE WITH SUBSEQUENT ANAPTYXIS ON CONSONANT QUALITY IN OLD IRISH

Abstract:After syncope, interconsonantal l, r, n became syllabic as per Thurneysen (GOI, 70), and an anaptyctic vowel was later inserted before the nasal or resonant. This paper examines the quality of the Old Irish consonants on either side of the anaptyctic vowel (e.g. the consonants in ecolso, gen. sg. of eclais 'church'). Though Thurneysen discusses the outcomes, his explanation of the palatalisation does not capture all of the facts. This reexamination of the problem provides a more internally consistent solution by differentiating the outcomes based on the structure of the original, pre-syncope syllable (CVRC or CRVC). The findings also have a bearing on the rules of the third palatalisation.