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*skel-

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Etymology and origin of the Proto-Indo-European word *skel-

*skel-1 to become guilty

Confidence
Uncertain

Reconstruction

LIV sets up ?1.*(s)kel- "to become guilty", with a question mark.[1] Derksen writes *(s)kel- "to owe",[2] and ALEW *(s)kel- "to become guilty".[3]

Morphology

LIV reconstructs a thematic present *(s)kél-e- for the Baltic verbs and a perfect *(s)ke-(s)kól/(s)kl̥- for the Gothic verb meaning "owes, must, shall".[1] The basic meaning is the one the perfect presupposes, so the Baltic present must have taken on a stative meaning later.[1]

Evidence

The root is found only in Germanic and Baltic.[1][2] LIV adds the s-less Lithuanian kal̃tas (“guilty”);[1] for Derksen the root has a mobile s if it is linked with that word.[2]

Meanings

  1. to become guilty[1]

Derksen glosses the root "to owe".[2]

Reflexes

  • Baltic: Lithuanian skelėti (“to owe”)[2]

*skel-2 to split

Confidence
Probable

Reconstruction

LIV sets up ?2.*(s)kel- "to split" without a laryngeal, and beside it an extended root *skelH-.[4] Beekes and Kloekhorst reconstruct *skelh₂/₃-: the Lithuanian acute points to a laryngeal, and the Hittite verb shows that it cannot be *h₁.[5][6] ALEW writes *skelH- "to slit, to split".[7]

Morphology

For the plain root LIV has only the zero-grade i̯é-present *(s)kl̥-i̯é- of Ancient Greek σκάλλω (skállō, “to stir up, hoe”), and nouns such as Old High German scala (“shell, husk”) from *skol-éh₂-.[4] Kloekhorst reconstructs the Hittite verb as *skólh₂/₃-ei, *sklh₂/₃-énti.[6]

Evidence

LIV's plain root is verbal only in Greek.[4] With the laryngeal root, the verb is found in Anatolian, Greek, Baltic and Armenian.[5][7]

Competing analyses

Beekes finds it unnecessary to assume, against LIV, that the Greek verb reflects a root without a laryngeal.[5] Zair agrees that the Greek verb can regularly continue *skl̥H-i̯e/o- or a nasal present, and that the lack of gemination in Germanic need not rule out a laryngeal.[8]

Meanings

  1. to split[4][7]

In Greek the verb was narrowed to "to hoe the ground", perhaps under the influence of nouns such as the word for "hoe".[4]

Reflexes

  • Anatolian: Hittite iškalla- (“to slit, to split, to tear”)[6]
  • Greek: Ancient Greek σκάλλω (skállō, “to stir up, to hoe”)[5]
  • Baltic: Lithuanian skélti (“to split, to cleave, to strike fire”)[9]

*skel-3 to bend

Confidence
Probable

Reconstruction

Beekes sets up *skel- "to bend, to curve",[10] and de Vaan an s-stem noun *skel-os, -es- "curve, bending".[11] LIV has no verb of this meaning.[1][4]

Morphology

Beekes and de Vaan reconstruct the s-stem *skel-o- and an adjective *skel-ko-;[10][11] Beekes adds *skel-no- for Albanian çalë (“lame”).[10] Ancient Greek σκολιός (skoliós, “crooked, bent, unjust”) has the o-grade.[10]

Competing analyses

De Vaan rejects Schrijver's *skh₁el-, since the Sanskrit verb for "to stumble" belongs with Ancient Greek σφάλλομαι (sphállomai) from *skʷh₂el-.[11] Beekes finds it unlikely that Ancient Greek κυλλός (kullós) and Ancient Greek κῶλον (kôlon) are variants without s.[10]

Meanings

  1. to bend, to curve[10]

Latin scelus (“curse, crime”) shows a shift from "crooked" to "wicked".[11]

Reflexes

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Rix, Helmut, et al. (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben, 2nd ed., Wiesbaden: Reichert, p. s.v. 1.*skel-
  2. ^ a b c d e Derksen, Rick (2015), Etymological Dictionary of the Baltic Inherited Lexicon, Leiden: Brill, p. 415
  3. ^ Hock, Wolfgang, et al. (2015), Altlitauisches etymologisches Wörterbuch (ALEW), online and Hamburg: Baar, p. s.v. skelti
  4. ^ a b c d e f Rix, Helmut, et al. (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben, 2nd ed., Wiesbaden: Reichert, p. s.v. 2.*skel-
  5. ^ a b c d 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. σκάλλω
  6. ^ a b c Kloekhorst, Alwin (2008), Etymological Dictionary of the Hittite Inherited Lexicon, Leiden: Brill, p. 399
  7. ^ a b c Hock, Wolfgang, et al. (2015), Altlitauisches etymologisches Wörterbuch (ALEW), online and Hamburg: Baar, p. s.v. skélti
  8. ^ Zair, Nicholas (2012), The Reflexes of the Proto-Indo-European Laryngeals in Celtic, Leiden: Brill, p. 246
  9. ^ Derksen, Rick (2015), Etymological Dictionary of the Baltic Inherited Lexicon, Leiden: Brill, p. 416
  10. ^ a b c d e f g 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. σκέλος
  11. ^ a b c d e 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. scelus
Cite this entry

“*skel-.” Etymologically, 7 Nov. 2026, etymologically.com/ine-pro/*skel-. Accessed 8 Nov. 2026.

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