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ESSAY IV
333
II. Elision in Hova in the group “predicate + object” is left to the discretion of the speaker, at least so it appears from Hain-Teny. On p. 188, v. 2, we find: “To want to swallow stones” = W. to sw. st. = hitelim batu < hitelin (a) watu, but p. 80, V. 2: “To smell (of) lemons” = manitra wuasari. Elision of the vowel would produce mani buasari.
304. Interjections often dechne to conform to the laws affecting the sentence. In Toba the final a of a word invariably disappears before an initial a of the next one, as in the Riddle Stories, III, Tuuk Lb, I, p. 50, 1. 1 from the bottom: “If it is not permitted” = molo soada adoṅ, which is pronounced molo soad adoṅ. But if the word with final a is an interjection, the a persists, as in Riddle Stories, I, Tuuk Lb, I, p. 49, 1, 11 : " No, father " = indadoṅ ha amáṅ.
305. Within a group of intimate relation the O'peration of the phonetic laws of change is often suspended.
I. In words of substance. In Makassar, final k- changes into q, as in Mak. anaq < Original IN anak, “child”, but before the article added enclitically this change does not take place, e.g. in anak-a, “the child”.
II. In proclitics and enclitics. In Minangkabau, final a changes into o, as in niato, “eye” , <C Original IN mata; but proclitic words hke the j)reposition ka keep their a unchanged.
306. Finally, here are some parallels between IN and IE :
I. Assimilation in Greek and in Toba. Greek dialect in Thumb, “Handbuch der griechischen Dialekte” , § 203: tōl Labyadān < tōn Labyadān. Toba sal lappis, “one layer” < san lampis.
II. Voicing in Sardinian and in Nias. Sardinian tempus, “time”, but su dempus, “the time”. Nias to2do2, “heart” but ba do2do2, “in (the) heart”.
III. Loss of vowel. The word of substance loses a vowel before an enchtic: Rumanian and Balinese. Rumanian: casa, “the house” < casā and the article a. Balinese, from the texts appended to Eck's grammar, p. 62, 1. 2 : “To be contained in the letter” = muṅgw iṅ surat < muṅguh iṅ surat.
