Reconstruction:Proto-Celtic/loutus

This Proto-Celtic entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Celtic

Alternative forms

*loutwos
*loutwis

Etymology

Pokorny suggests a derivation from Proto-Indo-European *lewh₃- (“to wash”); see also *lowatrom (“bath”).^[1]
Or, possibly related to *lutā (“dirt, mud”), from Proto-Indo-European *lew- (“dirt”) (Ancient Greek λῦμα (lûma, “dirt”), Latin lutum (“mud”)).
Possibly from a Proto-Indo-European root shared by Sanskrit उल्का (ulkā, “meteor, firebrand, torch”).^[2]

Noun

*loutus f^[3]

ash from a fire

Declension

Masculine/feminine u-stem
	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*loutus	*loutū	*loutowes
vocative	*loutu	*loutū	*loutūs
accusative	*loutum	*loutū	*loutuns
genitive	*loutous	*loutous	*loutowom
dative	*loutou	*loutubom	*loutubos
locative	*?	*?	*?
instrumental	*loutū	*loutubim	*loutubis

Reconstruction notes

All Celtic descendants can be unified under a reconstruction *loutwis, but such a mechanical reconstruction would have rather odd suffixation (an i-stem on top of a u-stem).

Matasović supposes separate later extensions, *loutwos for Brythonic and *loutwis for Goidelic. However, *loutwos is unnecessary to reconstruct if *loutwis is also reconstructed, as Proto-Celtic diphthongs and their Brythonic reflexes generally cannot be i-affected, and short i in final syllables can only i-affect *e anyhow.
De Bernardo Stempel prefers an a-stem *loutā that secondarily turned into an i-stem in Old Irish, but she has no idea of how to derive the Brythonic material.^[4]

Descendants

Proto-Brythonic: *llʉdw
- Middle Breton: ludu
- Cornish: lusow
- Middle Welsh: lludw, lludu
  - Welsh: lludw
Middle Irish: lúaith
- Irish: luaith
- Manx: leoie
- Scottish Gaelic: luath²

References

^ Pokorny, Julius (1959) “lou-, lou̯ǝ-”, in Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 692
^ Monier Williams (1872) “उल्का ulkā”, in A Sanskṛit–English Dictionary: […], Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 218, column 3.
^ Matasović, Ranko (2009) “*lowtus-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 246
^ Irslinger, Britta Sofie (2002) Abstrakta mit Dentalsuffixen im Altirischen [Abstracts with Dental Suffixes in Old Irish] (in German), Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag C. Winter, →ISBN, page 115

[1] Pokorny, Julius (1959) “lou-, lou̯ǝ-”, in Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 2, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 692

[2] Monier Williams (1872) “उल्का ulkā”, in A Sanskṛit–English Dictionary: […], Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 218, column 3.

[Matasovic-3] Matasović, Ranko (2009) “*lowtus-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 246

[4] Irslinger, Britta Sofie (2002) Abstrakta mit Dentalsuffixen im Altirischen [Abstracts with Dental Suffixes in Old Irish] (in German), Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag C. Winter, →ISBN, page 115

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