omitted. Thus while b.m. 51 has mi a gadwwn, mi ae kadwwn, the older w.m. 71 has in the same passage mi a gadwn, mi ay cadwn. Similarly we have vedyẟẏit in Ỻ.A. 48 but bedyẟir earlier, p. 42.
The syllable closed by the w̯ or i̯ remains closed after its loss; thus cad|w̯wn, be|dydd|i̯ir became căd|wn, be|dy̆dd|ir (not cá|dwn, be|dý|ddir). By re-formation the w̯ is sometimes restored in the spoken lang. in forms like ber|w̯wch ‘boil ye’ impve., on account of the strength of the analogy of ber|w̯i, ber|w̯af, ber|w̯oẟ, etc. But the lit. and ordinary form is bĕr|wch, and the absence of w̯w in the traditional pronunciation accounts for the well-known W. pronunciation of E. wood as ’ood, etc.
ii. i̯ drops before ɥ and u in monosyllables and final syllables; as ɥrch a.l. i 20, Ỻ.A. 67 for *i̯ɥrch pl. of i̯wrch ‘roebuck’; udd ‘lord’ < O. W. I̯ud- (‘*warrior’); peidɥnt r.m. 90 (from peidẏaw ‘to cease’, cf. peidẏw͡ys r.m. 98); Mareduẟ r.p. 1194 for *Maredi̯uẟ, O. W. Morgetiud gen. xiii (≡ Morᵹeti̯üẟ), Gruffudd < O. W. Griphiud (≡ Griffi̯üẟ). It is often found written in Ml. W., as ystyrẏych r.p. 1153 ‘thou mayst consider’, hilẏynt Ỻ.A. 11 ‘they would breed’, llafvurẏus do. 28 ‘laborious’, meẟylẏut w.m. 103 ‘thou wouldst think’; but the spelling is perhaps theoretical; see below.
Initial i̯u in polysyllables has given i, as in Iddew ‘Jew’ for *i̯uẟew; Ithel < *i̯uẟ-hael, O. W. Iudhail.
See Iẟew p 14/1 r. (13th cent.); itewon (t ≡ ẟ) b.b. 102; so in Ỻ.A. see its index, and in r.b., see r.b.b. index. Salesbury wrote Iuddew, which he inferred from the derivation. The Bible (1588 and 1620) has Iddew; but late editors have adopted Salesbury’s unphonetic spelling. D. includes i̯u among rising diphthongs; but his only example is the artificial Iuddew.
It is seen that i̯u became u in the syllables which were accented in O. W., and i in syllables unaccented at that period, § 40. The simplification must therefore have taken place before the shifting of the accent; and Ml. W. forms with ẏu (≡ i̯u) are analogical formations, and perhaps artificial.
iii. w̯ sometimes drops before o; as in the prefixes go‑, gor- for gw̯o‑, gw̯or‑; thus Ml. and Mn. W. goleuni ‘light’, O. W. guolleuni juv. But analogy has tended to restore it; thus while we find athraon m.a. i 256, ii 319 for athrawon Ỻ.A. 112, r.m. 19, r.p. 1234 ‘teachers’, canaon b.a. 38, m.a. i 261, 315 for kanawon r.b.b. 147 ‘whelps’, lleot h.m. ii 234, 235 for llewot Ỻ.A. 10
