*speḱ-

Reconstruction

The root is *spek̑- "to look, watch, spy" in LIV,^[1] and *speḱ- in de Vaan and Beekes.^[2][3] Greek shows a metathesis of the initial sp- and the final k.^[1][3]

Morphology

LIV reconstructs a full-grade i̯e-present *spék̑-i̯e-, an s-aorist *spḗk̑/spék̑-s- and an iterative *spok̑-éi̯e-, and with question marks an i-reduplicated present and a néu̯-present; the Vedic perfect is an innovation.^[1] The present may also be *spek̑-i̯é-, the Vedic root accent being perhaps secondary.^[1] De Vaan sets up the present *speḱ-ie/o-, the aorist *speḱ-s- and a root noun *speḱ- "who sees".^[2]

Evidence

Reflexes are cited below from Indo-Aryan, Greek, Italic and Germanic.^[1][3] Beekes equates Greek σκέπτομαι (sképtomai), Latin speciō, Avestan spasiieiti and Sanskrit पश्यति (páśyati),^[4] and the s-aorists of the three languages with one another.^[3] Vedic páśyati, which lost its s-, serves as the present of the root "to see" from *derḱ-.^[1]

Meanings

1. to look, to watch, to spy^[1]

Kölligan describes the root as the PIE verb of "spying", beside *derḱ- and other verbs of seeing.^[5] Beekes compares a Vedic formula calling the sun a spy with the Homeric one calling Helios a Ancient Greek σκοπός (skopós).^[3]

Derivatives

• The root noun *spék̑- "watcher", in Indo-Iranian words for "spy" and in Latin haruspex.^[1]
• *spóḱ-eh₂, in Greek σκοπή (skopḗ) and Old Norse spá (“prophecy”).^[3]
• *spek-tlo-, probably in Latin speculum.^[2]

Reflexes

• Indo-Aryan: Sanskrit पश्यति (páśyati, “sees”).^[4]
• Greek: Ancient Greek σκέπτομαι (sképtomai, “to look about, consider”).^[3]
• Italic: Latin speciō (“to look at”).^[2]
• Germanic: Old High German spehōn (“to spy”), a denominative, cited by LIV.^[1]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Rix, Helmut, et al. (2001), Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben, 2nd ed., Wiesbaden: Reichert, p. s.v. *spek̑-
2. ^ 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. speciō
3. ^ 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. σκέπτομαι
4. ^ a b Mayrhofer, Manfred (1956–1980), Kurzgefasstes etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindischen, Heidelberg: Winter, p. 240
5. ^ Klein, Jared; Joseph, Brian; Fritz, Matthias, eds. (2017–2018), Handbook of Comparative and Historical Indo-European Linguistics, 3 vols (HSK 41), Berlin: De Gruyter Mouton, p. 2231, ch. 124, Kölligan