*per-

*per-¹ to come through, traverse

Reconstruction

LIV sets up 1.*per- "to come through, to traverse", used above all of crossing water; in Greek and Slavic "to penetrate" was partly narrowed to "to pierce".^[1] LIV also notes what seems to be a seṭ variant, seen in a Serbo-Croatian word for "ferry" from *porH-mo-.^[1] Beekes reconstructs *per- "to cross, pass".^[2]

Morphology

LIV's formations are a root aorist *pér-/pr- in Old Avestan fra-frā (“I will cross”), an e-reduplicated present *pé-por/pr- behind Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐍂𐌰𐌽 (faran, “to wander”) and Church Slavonic -прати (-prati, “to cut up”), an i-reduplicated present *pi-pér/pr- in Sanskrit पिपर्ति (píparti, “brings across”), a full-grade i̯e-present ?*pér-i̯e- in Ancient Greek πείρω (peírō, “I penetrate, I pierce”), and a causative *por-éi̯e- in Sanskrit पारयति (pāráyati, “brings across”), Young Avestan -pāraiieiṇti (“they bring across”) and perhaps Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐍂𐌾𐌰𐌽 (farjan, “to convey, to ship”).^[1] LIV marks as innovations the s-aorist of Sanskrit पर्षत् (párṣat, “will bring across”) and of Greek, the perfect and the fientive aorist of Greek, and Old Norse fǿra (“to lead, to bring”), an inner-Germanic causative built on the preterite stem *fōr-.^[1] Because of its i-reduplication and factitive meaning, LIV suggests that the Vedic present may be better separated from the Germanic verb, though it may also be a remodelled *pé-por-.^[1] Derksen notes that LIV links the o-grade of the Slavic verb to the reduplicated present.^[3]

Evidence

The verb is cited under Reflexes from Indo-Iranian, Greek, Italic, Germanic, Celtic and Slavic.^{[1][4][5][6][3]} LIV's list has no Anatolian, Tocharian or Armenian form.^[1]

Competing analyses

Kroonen reconstructs the Germanic verb from an o-grade "intensive-iterative" *pór-e- rather than LIV's reduplicated present, and takes the preterite *fōr- as secondary.^[4] Kroonen also puts Old Church Slavonic парити (pariti, “to fly”) here, from *por-éie-, and Derksen connects the Slavic verbs for "to fly" with Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐍂𐌰𐌽 (faran, “to wander”) and with Sanskrit पारयति (pārayáti), reconstructing *prH- and *pōrH-.^[4][7][8] LIV, following Benveniste, keeps "to fly" apart as 2.*(s)per-, for which see *sper-.^[9]

Beekes derives Ancient Greek πεῖρα (peîra, “trial, attempt”) from this root.^[2] Pokorny had set up "to try, to dare, to risk" as a subgroup of his *per- "to go over".^[10] Rasmussen separates that group, with Latin experior, Latin perīculum and πεῖρα, from the root for crossing, and reconstructs a laryngeal-final root for it.^[11]

Meanings

1. to come through, to traverse^[1]

LIV says the verb was used above all of crossing water.^[1] Beekes finds the old sense "to carry over, to ferry over" still in Ancient Greek πόρος (póros, “passage, ford”) and Ancient Greek πορθμός (porthmós, “ferry, strait”).^[12]

Derivatives

• *pr-to- "crossed" and *pr-tu- "crossing, ford, bridge": Latin porta (“gate”), Latin portus (“harbour”), Avestan pərətu- (“crossing, bridge”), Proto-Germanic *furδú-.^[5]
• *por-o- and *por-dʰmo- in Ancient Greek πόρος (póros, “passage, ford”) and Ancient Greek πορθμός (porthmós, “ferry, strait”).^[12]
• Proto-Greek *per-i̯a in Ancient Greek πεῖρα (peîra, “trial, attempt”).^[2]

Reflexes

• Indo-Iranian, after LIV: Sanskrit पिपर्ति (píparti, “brings across”), Avestan fra-frā (“I will cross”).^[1]
• Greek: Ancient Greek πείρω (peírō, “to pierce, to penetrate”).^[12]
• Italic: Latin porta (“gate”).^[5]
• Germanic: Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐍂𐌰𐌽 (faran, “to go”), Old Norse fara (“to go”), Old English faran (“to go”), Old High German faran (“to go, to travel”).^[4]
• Celtic: Proto-Celtic *φritu- (“ford”); Proto-Celtic *foro- (“edge, limit”).^[5][6]
• Slavic: Proto-Slavic *porti (“to unstitch”), Church Slavonic прати (prati, “to cut”).^[3]

*per-² to strike

Reconstruction

LIV numbers this root 3.*per- "to hit".^[13] Kümmel renumbers it 2.*per-, because he deletes LIV's 2.*per- "to equalize, to balance" and refers that material to 3.*pel- (see *pel-³); Latin pār (“equal”), he suggests, may rather go with Latin pāreō and so with *peh₂s-.^[14] LIV had separated "to equalize" from *perh₂- "to sell", which is a different root.^[15] Derksen also reconstructs *per- for the Baltic verb.^[16]

Morphology

LIV sets up a root aorist *pér-/pr- in Old Armenian եհար (ehar, “struck”), whose present is supplied by another root, and a full-grade e-present *pér-e- in Lithuanian periù (“I beat with a bath besom, I bathe”) and Church Slavonic перѫ (perǫ, “I beat, I wash”).^[13]

Evidence

Three branches attest it, Armenian, Baltic and Slavic, and LIV cites nothing from Anatolian, Indo-Iranian, Greek or Italic.^[13]

Meanings

1. to strike, to hit^[13]

In Baltic and Slavic the verb is used of beating with a besom in the bath, and Slavic also has "to wash".^[13][16]

Reflexes

• Armenian, after LIV and Derksen: Old Armenian եհար (ehar, “struck”).^[13][16]
• Baltic: Lithuanian per̃ti (“to beat, to lash with a besom in a bath”).^[16]
• Slavic, after LIV: Old Church Slavonic пьрати (pĭrati, “to beat, to wash”).^[13]

*per-³ through, across

Reconstruction

Dunkel sets up the adverb 1.*per, with *perā, *perām and *perti, "through, beyond, over; very", used locally, often with the accusative, and as an intensifying prefix.^[17] He takes 1.*per as the base of the derived forms and also of *peri "around" and *pr(ó) "forward, in front", which he treats as separate lemmas.^[17] He classes it as a basic particle, not derived from anything else.^[18] Beekes reconstructs *per "beyond, across" for Ancient Greek πέραν (péran, “across, beyond”).^[19] De Vaan instead traces Latin per (“through, across”) to *péri "across".^[20]

Morphology

Kloekhorst traces Hittite peran (“before, in front of”) to *pér-om, which he compares with Ancient Greek πέρᾱν (pérān) and Sanskrit पर (pára-, “farther”).^[21] Dunkel keeps the enclitic 2.*-per "just, even", as in Ancient Greek -περ (-per) and Latin parumper (“for a little while”), apart from 1.*per, since it limits rather than intensifies.^[18][22]

Evidence

Reflexes are cited below from Anatolian, Greek, Italic, Slavic and Baltic.^{[21][19][20][23][16]}

Meanings

1. through, beyond, over^[17]
2. very, as an intensifying prefix^[17]

Dunkel derives the sense "around", in the sense of a change, from "over", as in Latin pervertō (“to turn around”) and Old Church Slavonic прѣлагати (prělagati, “to transpose, to change”).^[18] He allows that the intensifying prefix may have arisen separately in the branches, since a change from "through" to "very" is commonplace.^[22] The sense "before, in front of" is that of Hittite peran, from *pér-om.^[21]

Reflexes

• Anatolian: Hittite peran (“before, in front of”).^[21]
• Greek: Ancient Greek πέραν (péran, “across, beyond”).^[19]
• Italic: Latin per (“through, across”).^[20]
• Slavic: Old Church Slavonic прѣ- (prě-, “over, through, very”).^[23]
• Baltic: Lithuanian per (“through”).^[16]