*ped-

Reconstruction

LIV sets up the verbal root *ped- "to step; to fall, to sink", and NIL gives it the same meaning.^[1][2] LIV follows Rix in deriving "to fall" from "to set the foot down" through "to go footwards".^[1] The noun "foot" was a static root noun, nominative *pṓd-s, genitive *pḗd-s, accusative *pód-m.^[3] De Vaan gives nominative *pōd-s, accusative *po/ed-m, genitive *pd-os and locative *ped-i.^[4]

Morphology

LIV's formations are a root aorist *péd-/pd- in Sanskrit अपद्रन् (apadran, “they have fallen”), an i-reduplicated present *pi-péd/pd- in Sanskrit पिब्दमान (píbdamāna-, “stepping firmly by turns”) and Old Armenian հիւծանիմ (hiwcanim, “I wane, I waste away”), a i̯é-present *ped-i̯é- in Sanskrit पद्यते (pádyate, “falls, steps”), a perfect *pe-pód/pd- in Sanskrit पपाद (papāda, “has sunk down”) and Old English ge-fæt (“fell”), and a causative *pod-éi̯e- in Sanskrit पादयति (pādáyati, “makes fall”).^[1] Old Norse feta (“to find out”) is an innovated e-present.^[1] Kroonen reconstructs Proto-Germanic *fetan- (“to go, to fall”) from *péd-e- and Old Church Slavonic падати (padati, “to fall”) from *pod-eh₂-ie-.^[5]

Beekes sees an old static ablaut *ped- : *pod- in the noun, with the lengthened nominative in Doric πώς (pṓs).^[6] Kloekhorst finds no evidence in Hittite for an e-grade and reconstructs mobile *pód-ms, *pd-óm, *pd-ós in the plural.^[7]

Evidence

The noun "foot" is cited from Anatolian, Tocharian, Indo-Iranian, Armenian, Greek, Italic and Germanic, and the verb from Indo-Iranian, Armenian, Germanic and Slavic.^[3][8][1] Beekes considers Lithuanian pãdas (“sole of the foot”) and Russian под (pod, “bottom, ground”) hardly possible as cognates, because of Winter's law.^[6]

Meanings

1. to step^[1][2]
2. to fall, to sink^[1][2]

LIV derives the second sense from the first.^[1]

Derivatives

• Root noun *pṓd-s "foot": Hittite pāt- (“foot”), Ancient Greek πούς (poús, “foot”), Latin pēs (“foot”), Proto-Germanic *fōt- (“foot”).^[3]
• *pedo- "footstep, footprint, track": Sanskrit पद (padá, “step”), Old Armenian հետ (het, “footstep, track”), Old Norse fet (“step”); compare Ancient Greek πέδον (pédon, “floor, ground”).^[9]
• *ped-ih₂- in Ancient Greek ἀργυρόπεζα (argurópeza, “with silver feet”).^[4]
• *pēd-ó- "at the bottom" in Ancient Greek πηδόν (pēdón, “blade of an oar”).^[4]
• *ped-h₁i̯-ó- in Ancient Greek πεζός (pezós, “on foot”).^[2]
• *ped-tu- in Latin pessum (“to the bottom”).^[2]

Reflexes

• Anatolian: Hittite pāt- (“foot”).^[7]
• Tocharian: Tocharian B paiyye (“foot”).^[8]
• Indo-Aryan, after LIV: Sanskrit पद्यते (pádyate, “falls, steps”).^[1]
• Armenian: Old Armenian ոտն (otn, “foot”), Old Armenian հետ (het, “footstep, track”).^[9]
• Greek: Ancient Greek πούς (poús, “foot”), Ancient Greek πέδον (pédon, “ground”).^[6]
• Italic: Latin pēs (“foot”).^[4]
• Germanic: Gothic 𐍆𐍉𐍄𐌿𐍃 (fotus, “foot”), Old English fōt (“foot”), Proto-Germanic *fetan- (“to go, to fall”).^[3][5]
• Celtic: Old Irish ís (“below, under”).^[10]
• Slavic, after LIV: Old Church Slavonic пасти (pasti, “to fall”).^[1]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Rix, Helmut, et al. (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben, 2nd ed., Wiesbaden: Reichert, p. s.v. *ped-
2. ^ a b c d e Wodtko, Dagmar S.; Irslinger, Britta; Schneider, Carolin (2008), Nomina im indogermanischen Lexikon, Heidelberg: Winter, p. s.v. *ped-
3. ^ a b c d Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 152
4. ^ a b c d de Vaan, Michiel (2008), Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 7, Leiden; Boston: Brill, p. s.v. pēs
5. ^ a b Kroonen, Guus (2013), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 11, Leiden / Boston: Brill, p. 138
6. ^ a b c Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010), Etymological Dictionary of Greek, with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 10, Leiden; Boston: Brill, p. s.v. πούς
7. ^ a b Kloekhorst, Alwin (2008), Etymological Dictionary of the Hittite Inherited Lexicon, Leiden: Brill, p. 653
8. ^ a b Adams, Douglas Q. (2013), A Dictionary of Tocharian B, 2nd ed., Amsterdam: Rodopi, p. 432
9. ^ a b Martirosyan, Hrach K. (2010), Etymological Dictionary of the Armenian Inherited Lexicon, Leiden: Brill, p. 548
10. ^ Matasović, Ranko (2009), Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic, Leiden: Brill, p. 134