AND BYZANTINE GREEK. 79 



Priscian seems to intimate that the T of TI was a weak consonant, not unlike the 

 Latin V in svadeo, svavis, svesco, svetus. This implies that, when this grammarian 

 flourished, that is, about the beginning of the sixth century, TI consisted of two 

 elementary sounds.'"^' 



In the time of Theognostus, TI was pronounced like T. Thus, jvla, wo'?, could not 

 be distinguished in pronunciation from yva, wo?.'®^ 



§ 57. 

 The Diphtho7igs AI (long A), HI, ni. 



In the earlier inscriptions, the diphthongs AI (long A), HI, ill are written in full ; 

 that is, with an I ; as "Oirai, oTrrji, S^fiai. 



The Jiolians and Dorians began to write H for HI in the third person singular of 

 the subjunctive, as early as the latter part of the fourth century before Christ ; as 



SoKTj, -rrda-xVy evSevrj, TrdOi], alpeOrj, dvaypaipt], dvaredij}^ And according to Gregorius 



Corinthius, the ^olians wrote also fi for SlI in the dative singular of the second 

 declension.'^* 



In inscriptions belonging to the first century before Christ, these diphthongs often 

 appear without the I ; thus, A, H, SI. Dionysius of Halicamassus, however, intimates 

 that the I was distinctly heard.'®'^ 



In inscriptions written after the commencement of the Christian era, this I is 

 generally omitted ; as jepovala, /BovXtJ, B-^fico. The same is true of most of the manu- 

 scripts extant. 



Strabo recognizes the omission of the I in the dative singular, and intimates that, in 



1" Peiscian. 1, 37 S quoque antecedente et sequente A vel U, hoc idem saepe fit, ut svadeo, svavis, svesco, 



svetus, quod apud Aeoles quoque YI saepe patitur, et amittit vim literae in metro, ut Sappho, dXKa r u t 8 ' 



Similiter tt v '^ u t disyllabum invenitur apud eosdem, cum YI non est diphthongoi?. 



"2 ThEOGNOST. pp. 18, 30 vi6s. 130 yv'iov. 



1^' Insck. ^olic 216G, 32, ENAEYH. 3640 ANArPA*H, ANATEGH. Doric 1841 AOKH. 1843 AOKH. 

 1850 HASXH. 2448, II, 28 hash. VIII, 27 aipegh. 



^^* Greg. CouinTH. p. COG OStoi toIs els Q Xrjyoia-ais SotikoIs oi irpocrypaKpovcn to I, as tS> 'OjiTjpai, tH (rod)Si. 



This must refer to the later JEolic dialect. Compare Insck. 3640 TQ AAMQ, XPY2EQ, 2TE*ANQ, tohq. 



As to the earlier ^olic, it did not differ from the other tlialects in the formation of the dative singular of the 

 second declension. Compare Insce. 11 (Elean) TOI, OAYNmoi, EniAPOl, EPPAMENOI, for tqi, oayn- 

 niQI, EniAPQI, EPPAMENQI. 2166, 15 (Lesbian) tqi, toytqi. 



^^5 Dion. Hal. V, 161, 15 napaKeirai 8e tw \oifidv cif TO N XijyovTt ana toC A dp^^opevov acjxovov to &i6 6eu 

 re fte- Koi TU)t avv dyXatat eiy to I XijyoiTt to i'8fTf nopevd evTes doidals dpxopevov dm Toii I. 



