P>I>E> S to GREEK H

 

S TO H

You may have noticed some words that start with S or K or other sounds in other IndoEuropean languages start with an aspirate vowel in Classical Greek.

ἁ ἑ ἱ ἡ ὁ ὑ

Here's a list of words scholars believe started with an initial sibilant in PIE with cognates as proof:

ἅλς Salt or sea PIE seh2ls Sanskrit sara salila Latvian sals Latin sal Old English sealt

ἑλίκη Willow PIE sVlVh Welsh helyg Latin salix Irish saileog Old Englsih sealh > sallow Gaelic seileach

ἕλος marsh PIE selos Sanskrit saras

ἑνος when it means last or former may be a cognate of Latin senex old Irish sen Welsh hen Sanskrit sanas PIE senos

ἡ the Sanskrit sa Gothic sa or so

ἡδυ ἡδονη PIE sweh2dus ProtoHellenic hwadus Sanskrit svadu Latin suavis Old Englsih swete

ἥλιος from *hawelios from PIE *soh2wl sun Baltic Saule Gaelic suil Latin sol Welsh Haul

ὓπνος Gaelic suain Welsh hun Latoin Somnos Sopr Old English swefan Sanskrit svapnas

ὗς pig swine sow PIE suh Latin sus Sanskrit sukara Hindi suar Irish soc

ῶν is a contraction of – οντος *hnt honts Note Hittite asha-a-an-za ashanza if PIE is * sont

Sanskrit has sat reality being.

This does not mean All words with an initial aspirate were originally Initial – S. Some of them originally started with a “W” or or other sound.

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