Droppage of ϝ and σ

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Introduction

In certain environments, digamma or wau (ϝ) and sigma (σ) drop. Knowing where they originally were helps in identifying bases and markers.

(1) When intervocalic, ϝ always drops and σ usually drops.

(2) When beginning a word, ϝ always drops and σ usually drops, and σ regularly becomes a rough breathing /h/:

          Ancient Greek ὕδωρ /hudōr/ : Modern English “water”
          Ancient Greek ὑπέρ /huper/ : Latin super
          Ancient Greek ὑπό /hupo/ : Latin sub
          Ancient Greek ἡδύς /hēdus/ : Latin suavis : Modern English “sweet”

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Intermediate

(1) Intervocalic ϝ always drops, and intervocalic σ usually drops:

βασιλέϝ/ι > βασιλέι (Ionic) or βασιλεῖ (Attic), “to/for a king” (dative singular)

ἀληθέσ/Ṇ > ἀληθέσα > ἀληθέα (Ionic) or ἀληθῆ (Attic), “true” (accusative singular)

γένεσ/ος > γένεος (Ionic) or γένους (Attic), “of a family” (genitive singular)

Intervocalic σ does not drop when it is the first letter of a marker that is added to a base that ends in a vowel. For instance:

• In athematic forms like λε/λυ/σαι > λέλυσαι, σ does not drop because it begins a marker. However, σ drops within markers. Thus, thematic λυ/εσαι > λύεαι in Ionic or λύει or λύῃ in Attic.

Often intervocalic σ is retained when it begins a marker because its droppage would obscure the intended form. For instance:

• If σ dropped from dative plural πόλεσι (πόλε/σι), “to/for city-states,” the result would be indistinguishable from the dative singular πόλει (πόλε/ι), “to/for a city-state.”
• If the aorist marker /σ/ dropped from verb forms like the past aorist ἔλυσε (ἐ/λυ/σ/ε), “she released,” we’d have the same form as the past progressive ἔλυε (ἐ/λυ/ε), “she was releasing.”

(2) When beginning a word, ϝ always drops and σ usually drops:

ϝέργο/ν > ἔργον, “work”

ϝοίνο/ν > οἶνον, “wine”

When this happens, σ usually (and ϝ occasionally) becomes a rough breathing /h/:

σεπ/ομαι > ἕπομαι, “I follow”

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Advanced

Content forthcoming….

intervocalic σ does NOT drop when added to a base (thus sigmatic aorist, /σο in the athematic imperative)

• slegw/ > εἴληφα …

• word-initial σρ- > ῥ- …

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Vocabulary for this lesson (click here for the full lexicon)