Page 185 - Lokmanya Tilak Samagra (khand 2)

170 SAMAGRA TILAK - 2 • THE ORION

krtnami, Gk. priami; Sk. guru, Gk. barus; and sometimes retained
as it is, as in Sk. kratu, Gk. kratus; Sk. gras, Gk. grao, to swallow.
From these instances we may therefore infer that as between
Greek and SanskJit, the initial gutteral in kr or grin SanskJit may
be either retained as it is, or Jabialised or dropped in Greek,-the
same rule which holds good, as shewn above, in Teutonic languages.
It may be noticed here that while gravan becomes laos in Greek.
it is broon in Old Irish, that is, while the initial g of a Sanskrit
word is labialised in Old Irish it is dropped in Greek. This shews
that the initial kr or gr in Sanskrit may be differently represented
in different languages. Sanskrit krimis, Lat. vermis, Gk. elmis,
and Sk. k{ipta, Avestic kerepta, Gk. raptos, may, I think, also be
regarded as further illustrations of the same rule. I know that the
connection betwen the words last quoted is still considered doubtful.
but that is because the rule about the omission of a gutteral before
a liquid as between Greek and Sanskrit, is not yet recognised by
1
scholars. If the examples I have given at the beginning of this para-
graph are, however, sufficient to justify us in applying the rule
to Greek and Sanskrit, the instances last cited may be taken as
further supporting the same view.
With these instances before us, it would be unreasonable to
deny that the three possible changes of kr and gr, which obtain in
Teutonic languages, do not take plfice as between Greek and
Sanslqit, at least initially and if these changes take place initially
analogy at once suggests that they would also take place m~dially.
At any rate there is no reason why they should not. It may be urged
that a comparison of Sk. c:hakra with Gk. kuklos shews that a medial
kr is retained as it is. But as pointed out above the argument is
not conclusive. There may be cases where kr is retained as it is.
But we have seen that by the side of such cases, instances can be
guoted where it is changed to pr or r initially; and we may expect
uie slime threefold possible change medially. It is admitted that
labialisation cakes place· medially; and we have therefore to see if
there are any insta11~.-es where a gutteral is dropped before a liquid
in the body of a word. K. Brugmann tells us that at one period gn
and gm came to be represented by nand min Greek; cf. gignomai
and ginomai, stugnos and stunos. Now this change in the body of
a word is exactly similar to that of agmen into amen, and is evi-
dently due to the same rule, which accounts for the latter change.
Similarly Gk. anoos may be compared with Sk. ajna, and Gk.