BOAS] HANDBOOK OF INDIAN LANGUAGES TAKEL.MA 61 



within the first six groups is to list them as miscellaneous cases. 

 Such are: 



gwel-lelsde^ I shall be lame (of. gwel-la'is Jc.'emna'n I shall make 



him lame 



le^psV wing (if derived, as seems probable, from stem ld°h- carry) 



tlemeya'nwia'^^ people go along to see her married 178.1 (cf. 



tJamayana'^n I take her somewheres to get her married [148.5]) 



Palatal ablaut, it should be noted, does not affect the -a- of the 



second member of reduplicated verbs : 



t' gaHt' ga^l it bounced from her 140.8 



fge^ltg'a'lsi it bounced from me 

 The connecting vowel, however, of verbs reduplicated according to 

 the third type always follows the stem-vowel : 



da¥da-hele']ialxade^ I am accustomed to answer (stem -TiaH-) 

 It is difficult to find a very tangible psychic connection between the 

 various cases that require the use of the palatal ablaut, nor is there 

 the slightest indication that a phonetic cause lies at the bottom of 

 the phenomenon. If we disregard the first group of cases, we shall 

 find that they have this in common, they are all or nearly all intransi- 

 tives derived from transitives by means of certain voice-forming ele- 

 ments {-X-, -xa-, -gwi-, -Ywa-), or else nominal passives or derivatives 

 of such intransitives {-aY'^, -x-ap') ; -Vwa-, it is true, takes transi- 

 tive pronominal forms; but it is logically intransitive in character 

 in that it indicates action in reference to something belonging to the 

 subject. The only trait that can be found in common to the first 

 group and the remaining is that the action may be looked upon as 

 self-centered; just as, e. g,, a form in -xa- denotes that the (logically) 

 transitive action is not conceived of as directed toward some definite 

 outside object, but is held wdthin the sphere of the person of central 

 interest (the subject), so, also, in a form with incorporated first per- 

 son singular object, the action may be readUy conceived of as taking 

 place \\dthin the sphere of the person of central interest from the 

 point of view of the speaker. No difficulty will be found in making 

 this interpretation fit the other cases, though it is not conversely true 

 that all forms implying self-centered action undergo palatalization. 

 The explanation offered may be considered too vague to be con- 

 vincing; but no better can be offered. In any event, the palatal 

 ablaut will be explained as the symbolic expression of some general 

 mental attitude rather than of a clear-cut grammatical concept. 



§ 31 



