4. Nouns

4.1.1. Declension is made by adding terminations to different stem endings, vowel or consonant. The various phonetic changes in the language have given rise to the different declensions. Most of the case-endings, as shown in this Modern Indo-European grammar, contain also the final letter of the stem.

Adjectives are generally declined like nouns, and are etymologically to be classed with them, but they have some peculiarities of inflection which will be later explained.

4.1.2. Nouns and adjectives are inflected in four regular Declensions, distinguished by their final phonemes – characteristic of the Stem –, and by the opposition of different forms in irregular nouns. They are numbered following Graeco-Latin tradition: First or a-Declension, Second or o-Declension, Third or i/u-Declension, fourth or Consonant Declension, and the variable nouns.

NOTE. The Second or o-Declension is also the Thematic Declension, opposed to the rest – and probably older in the evolution of PIE nominal inflection –, which form together the Athematic Declension.

The Stem of a noun may be found, if a consonant stem, by omitting the case-ending; if a vowel stem, by substituting for the case-ending the characteristic vowel.

NOTE. Most Indo-Europeanists tend to distinguish at least two major types of declension, Thematic and Athematic. Thematic nominal stems are formed with a suffix -o- (in vocative -e), and the stem does not undergo ablaut. The Athematic stems are more archaic, and they are classified further by their ablaut behaviour: acro-dynamic, protero-dynamic, hystero-dynamic and holo-dynamic, after the positioning of the early PIE accent (dynamis) in the paradigm.

4.1.3. The following are General Rules of Declension:

a. The Nominative singular for animates ends in -s when the stem endings are i, u, ī, ū, Diphthong, Occlusive and Thematic (-os), or -Ø in ā, a, Sonant and s; while in the plural -es is general, -s for those in ā, and -os for the Thematic ones.

b. The Accusative singular of all masculines and feminines ends in -m; the Accusative plural in -ms.

c. The Vocative singular for animates is always -Ø, and in the plural it is identical to the Nominative.

d. The Genitive singular is common to animates and inanimates, it is formed with -s: -s, -es, -os. A very old alternative possibility is extended -os-(i)o. The Genitive plural is formed in -ōm (also -ēm), and in -ām in a-stems.

e. The Obliques singular end usually in -i: it can be -i, -ei, -ēi, -oi, -ōi or -āi. In the plural, there are two series of declensions, with -bh- (general) and -m- (only Gmc. and Sla.), generally -bhi, -bhis, -bhios, -bhos, and (Gmc., Bal.-Sla.) -mis, -mos, and also some forms in -si (plural mark -s- plus oblique mark -i), found mainly in Graeco-Aryan dialects.

f.  Inanimates have a syncretic form for Nom.-Ac.-Voc. in -Ø in Athematic, or -m in Thematic. The plural forms end in -a or -ā.

g. All Animates have the same form in the plural for Nom.-Voc., in -es.

4.1.4. The so-called Oblique cases – opposed to the Straight ones, Nom.-Acc.-Voc –, are Genitive and the Obliques, i.e. Dative, Locative, Instrumental and Ablative. However, the Ablative seems to have never been independent, but for thematic stems in some dialectal areas. The other three cases were usually just one local case in different contexts (what we call the Oblique), although Late PIE clearly shows an irregular Oblique declension system.

NOTE 1. There are some traces – in the Indo-European proto-languages which show divided Oblique cases – that could indicate a possible first division – from a hypothetical  five-case-IE II– between a Dat. and a Loc.-Ins., and then another, more recent between Loc. and Ins (see Adrados). Languages like Sanskrit or Avestan show 8 cases, while some Italic dialects show up to 8 (cf. Osc. Loc. aasai ‘in ārā’, or Ins. cadeis amnud, ‘inimicitiae causae’, preiuatud ‘prīuātō’, etc.), while Latin shows six and a semisystematic Locative notion; Slavic and Baltic dialects show seven, Mycenaean Greek shows at least six cases, while Koiné Greek shows five, just as Germanic dialects.

NOTE 2. We know that the splitting and merging processes that affected the Obliques didn't happen uniformly among the different stems, and it didn't happen at the same time in plural and singular. Therefore, there was neither a homogene and definite declension system in IE III, nor in the dialects and languages that followed. From language to language, from stem to stem, differences over the number of cases and its formation developed. Firstly syncretism obscured the cases, and thereafter the entire system collapsed: after the time when cases broke up in others, as in most modern Slavic languages, another time came when all cases merged or were completely lost: so today in Romance languages, in Germanic like English, or in Slavic like Bulgarian. However, Modern Indo-European needs to systematize to some extent this diversity, based on the obvious underlying old system, which usually results in 6-case paradigms (normally with Dat.-Abl. and Loc.-Ins.) in most inflected forms.

 

Nominal Desinences (Summary)

 

1. They are usually Animate nouns and end in ā, and ia/ī/iā, and also rarely in ē, ō.  Those in ā are very common, generally feminine in nouns and always in adjectives. Those in ia/ī/iā are always feminine and are also used to make feminines in the adjectival Motion. Those in ō and ē are feminine only in lesser used words. Those in a are etymologically identical to the Neuter plural in Nom.-Acc.-Voc.

a-Declension Paradigm

MIE First Declension corresponds loosely to the Latin First Declension (cf. Lat. rosa, rosae, or puella, puellae), and to the Ancient Greek Alpha Declension (cf. Gk. χώρᾱ, χώρᾱς, or τῑμή, τῑμῆς).

NOTE. The entire stem could have been reduced to IE a, because this is the origin of the whole stem system before IE III, with an original ending *-(e)h₂.

3. It is therefore identical to those nouns in r, n, s of the Fourth Declension, but for some details in vocalism: the Gen. has an -s and not -es/-os; the difference between Nom. and Voc. is that of -ā and -a. The zero-grade of the Nom.-Acc.-Voc. in ia/ī stems is different from the Gen. in -iā.

1. Nominative Singular in -Ø; as, ékwā73, mare, sénā79, old.

Example of ia/ī stems are pótni/pótnī44, lady, wĺqi/wĺqī, she-wolf, djéwi/djéwī, goddess (maybe also Lat. gallī in the later extended gallīna, rēgī in regīna, etc.), as well as Pres.Part. feminines, as príjonti/príjontī, “who loves”, friend, wésnti/wésntī, “who drives”, driver, etc.

Those in ē, ō, which aren't found very often, can present an -s as well; as in Latin bhídhēs (Lat. fides, but also O.Lat. fidis), trust, spékiēs, species, etc.

Nouns in ā can also rarely present forms in a; as in Gk. Lesb. Dika.

2. Accusative Singular in -m; as, ékwām, pótnim/pótnīm, bhídhēm.

3. Vocative Singular in -Ø. It is normally identical to the Nominative, but disambiguation could happen with distinct vowel grades, i.e. Nom. in -ā, Voc. in -a.

4. Genitive Singular in -s; as, ékwās, sénās.

The theme in ia/ī/iā produces a Genitive Singular in -ās; as, pótniās.

5. Dative-Ablative Singular in -āi, probably from an original Dat. -ei ending.

There is also a form -ei for themes in ē and in iā.

6. Locative in -āi, Instrumental in -ā, -ā-bhi, -ā-mi.

 

1. The following table presents the plural paradigm of the a-Declension.

2. The Nominative-Vocative Plural in -s: ékwās, néwās, cowijs.

This form could obviously be confused with the Genitive Singular. In equivocal contexts we change preferably the accent (ekws, ekwms, ekwm).

3. The Accusative Plural in -ms: ékwāms, néwāms.

4. The Genitive Plural in -m: ékwām, newm.

5. The Dative and Ablative Plural in -bhos, -bhios (dial. -mos); as, ékwābh(i)os, ékwāmos.

6. The Locative Plural in -su (also -si, -se); as, ékwāsi, ékwāsu.

6. The Instrumental Plural in -bhis (dial. -mis); as, ékwābhis, ékwāmis.

The Obliques have also special forms Gk. -āisi, -ais, Lat. -ais; as, Lat. rosis<*rosais.

 

 

 

1.  The Stem of nouns of the Second Declension ends in e/o, and they are usually called Thematic. They can be animates and inanimates, as well as adjectives. The inanimates have an ending -m only in Nom.-Acc.-Voc. The animates, with a Nominative in -s, are generally masculine in nouns and adjectives, but there are also feminine nouns and animate adjectives in -os, probably remains of the old indistinctness of declension.

2. MIE Second Declension is equivalent to the Second Declension in Latin (cf. Lat. dominus, dominī, or uinum, uinī), and to the Omicron Declension in Greek (cf. Gk. λόγος, λόγου, or δῶρον, δῶρου).

o-Declension Paradigm

NOTE. This model could indeed have been written without the initial vowel -o-, given that the probable origin of this vowel is the ending vowel of some thematic stems, while other, primitive athematic stems were reinterpreted thereafter and this vowel was added to stem by way of analogy. So, for thematic stems, as wlqo-, this paradigm could be read Nom. -s, Acc. -m, Voc. -e, Gen. -s, -sio, -so, -ī, and so on.

3. The Nominative and the Genitive in -os can be confused. This can only be solved with lengthenings, as in Gen. -os-io or os-o.

1. Nominative Singular Animate in -os; as in wĺqos, wolf, dómūnos, lord, adj. cwós, alive.

2. Accusative Singular Animate in -om; as in wĺqom, dómūnom, cwóm.

3. Vocative Singular Animate in -e; as in wĺqe, dómūne, cwé.

5. The Nom.-Acc.-Voc. Sg. Inanimate in -om; as in jugóm5, joke, adj. néwom, new, mrwóm, dead.

4. Genitive Singular in -os, -osio, -e/oso  (also -ī); as in wĺqosio, mrwós, dómūnī.

NOTE. The original form -os is rare, as the Genitive had to be distinguished from the Nominative. This disambiguation happens, as already said, by alternatively lengthening the ending or changing it altogether. The o-Declension is probably recent in IE III – even though it happened already in Anatolian – and that's why it is homogeneous in most IE dialects, without variations in vocalism or accent.

6. Dative Singular in -ōi, -ō: wĺqōi, dómūnōi, néwōi, mrwṓ.

7. Locative Singular in -oi, -ei: wĺqoi, dómūnoi, néwoi, mrwói.

8. Instrumental Singular in -ō: wĺqō, cwṓ, néwō, mrwṓ.

9. The Ablative Singular is formed in -ōd, and sometimes in -ēd: wĺqōd, cwṓd, néwōd.

 

1. The Thematic Plural system is usually depicted as follows:

NOTE. The ending -ōs is usually considered as derived from the plural ending -es, i.e. *-o-(s)-es > -ōs.

2. The Nominative-Vocative Animate Plural in -ōs; as, wĺqōs, dómūnōs, wrōs.

3. The Accusative Animate Plural in -oms; as, wĺqoms, dómūnoms, mrtóms.

4. The Nom.-Voc.-Acc. Inanimate Plural in -ā, -a; as,  jug/jugá, néwa, mrwá.

5. The Genitive Plural in -ōm/-om (and -ēm); as, wĺqōm, dómūnōm, ceiwṓm, jugṓm.

6. The Instrumental-Locative Plural in -ois/-oisi; -ōis/-ōisi, and also, as in the other declensions, Obliques in -bhis, -bhos, -bhios (-mis, -mos); as, wĺqisi, wrōis, néwoisu, mrwṓis.

 

 

1. Third Declension nouns end in i, u (also ī, ū) and Diphthong. The Nominative ending is -s.

2. This declension usually corresponds to Latin nouns of the Third Declension in -i (cf. Lat. ciuis, ciuis, or pars, partis), and of the Fourth Declension in -u (cf. Lat. cornū, cornūs, or portus, portūs).

i/u-Declension Paradigm

NOTE. Reduplication or combination with the alternating endings -i, -ei/-oi and -u, -eu/-ou, was a common resort in the attested dialects that distinguished Dat. and Loc. in this declension, as in -i-ei, -ei-ei, -eu-ei, and so on, to distinguish similar forms. A common distinction of Loc. -i, Dat. -ei, was known to most dialects of Late PIE, while a general Instrumental in lengthened -ī, -ū (from Ins. ending *-e-h₁) was commonly used; the Ablative, when it appears, shows the same declension as the Genitive.

3. The animates in i and u are masculine or feminine (indifferent to the distinction in adjectives); those in ī and ū, always feminine.

4. The -s can indicate Nominative and Genitive: the distinction is made through the full-grade of the vowel before the declension, i.e. Gen. -ei-s for i, -ou-s for u – but for those in -ti, -tu (type II), v.i.

NOTE. The Vocative of the animates is the same as the Nom.-Acc.-Voc. of the inanimates. In nouns differentiation isn’t necessary, because they have different stem vowels; in adjectives, however, a Vocative singular animate -i can be an homophone with Nom.-Acc.-Voc. singular neuter -i; as e.g. m.Voc. albhí, n.Acc. albhí. This is, though, a rare case, in which the context is generally enough for disambiguation.

1. Nominative Singular Animate in -s; as in ówis[149], ewe, nóqtis¹²⁴, night, ghóstis²⁶, guest, sū́nus¹³⁰, son (cf. also Gk. sújus), médhus, mead, egnís, fire, mánus, hand, adj. swādús, sweet, etc.

2. Accusative Singular Animate in -m; as in ówim, nóqtim, ghóstim, sū́num, mánum, etc.

3. Vocative Singular Animate in -ei or -i, -eu or -u; as in ówei-ówi, sū́neu/sū́nou-sū́nu, sometimes the same Nominative form, as systematically in Latin (cf. Lat. hostis).

4. The Nom.-Acc.-Voc. Singular Inanimate in -i, -u; as in móri, pék[150], médhu, swādú¹²³.

5. Genitive Singular in -eis (-ois) or -(t)ios, -eus (-ous), -(t)uos; as in egnéis[151], sū́nous, owéis (also dial. ówios), mánous, pékwos, adj. swādéus.

6. Dative Singular in -(ej)ei, -(ew)ei, -ou, also with long vowel, -ēi, -ōu, egnéi, nóqtei, owéi, etc.

7. Locative Singular in -(ē)i, -(ē)u, Instrumental in -ī, -ū or dial. -bhi; as sū́n(ē)u, owí, ow, etc.

 

1. Its inflection is similar to that of i, u, but they have no alternating vowels before the declension, and the ī and ū are substituted before vowel by -ij, -uw. They are always feminine, and they cannot be inanimates nor adjectives. They are mostly PIE roots, and found mainly in Indo-Iranian.

 

1. There are long diphthongs āu, ēu, ōu, ēi, which sometimes present short vowels, as well as other endings without diphthong, i.e., ā, ē, ō.

NOTE. The last are probably remains of older diphthongs, from IE II. Therefore, even though from the point of view of Late Proto-Indo-European there are only stems with variants āu, ēu, ē, etc, these can all be classified as Diphthong endings, because the original stems were formed as diphthongs in the language history. This kind of irregularities is usual in today's languages, as it was already four millennia ago.

In zero grade Genitives there are forms with -i- or -ij- or -u- or -uw-, depending on the diphthongs.

NOTE.  These are some IE words, usually secondary formations – especially found in Greek – in -eus, -euos, as in Av. bāzāus, Arm, Gk. Basileus, which are also so declined.

1. The following table depicts the general plural system, common to the Fourth Declension.

NOTE. The inanimate plural forms, -a and -ā, correspond to an older stem vowel of an earlier stage of the language, namely *-h₂ and *-eh₂, following the Laryngeals' Theory.

2. Unlike in the Singular, in which only some Nominatives have an -s, in Nom.-Voc. Plural the -s is general, and there is always one fix-grade vowel, e. So, the opposition Singular-Plural in -s/-es is actually a Ø/e distinction. This opposition has also sometimes another mark, the vowel before the ending (see § 4.7).

3. The Nom.-Voc. Plural Animate is normally in -es; as in cówes, ówes, sū́nes, etc.

There are forms in -ei-es for i stems, as in owéjes; in -eu-es for u stems, as in sūnéwes; in ijes, -uwes for ī, ū; as in bhrúwes; etc.

4. The Accusative Plural Animate is in -ms: ówims, sū́nums, cōms/cóums.

NOTE. Some scholars reconstruct for IE III the accusative plural ending -ns, because most of the attested proto-languages show either -ns (as some endings in Sanskrit or Germanic) or long vowel, sometimes with -s. Most of them also admit an original, older -ms form (a logical accusative singular -m- plus the plural mark -s), but they prefer to reconstruct the attested -ns, thus (implicitly) suggesting an intermediate phase common to all proto-languages, i.e.  IE II *-ms > IE III *-ns > proto-languages -[n]s. We don't know if such an intermediate phase happened, and if it did, if it was common to all languages, or if it was common only to those languages which present in some declensions -ns, and in other declensions another endings. What we do know with some certainty is that the form -ms existed, and at least since IE II, as the Anatolian dialects show.

5. Nom.-Voc. Acc. Plural Inanimate in -ā, -a: pékwā, mórja, médhwā, swādwá, etc.

6. Genitive Plural Animate in -om/-ōm (and Gmc. -ēm): ówjom, nóqtjom, sū́nuwēm/sū́nuwom, cówōm, etc.

NOTE. The -m of the Acc. sg. Animate, Nom.-Acc.-Voc. sg. Inanimate and this case could sometimes be confused. It is disambiguated with the vocalic grade of the Genitive, full or lengthened, as the singular is always Ø.

7. The Obliques are generally divided into two groups, in -bh- (that of Lat., Gk., I.-I., Arm., and Cel.) and in -m- (that of Gmc. and Bal.-Sla.). There are, thus, -bhis, -bhos, -bhios, -bhi , and -mis, -mos; as, sū́nubhis, sū́nubhos, sū́nubhios, sū́numis, sū́numos.

There is also another ending possible, that in -s-i, -s-u, s-e, generally Locative (in I.-I. and Bal.-Sla.), but also possibly general Dat.-Loc.-Ins. (as in Greek); as, sū́nusi, sū́nusu, sū́nuse.

In the Oblique Plural specialized system, which is a common feature of Proto-Balto-Slavic and Proto-Indo-Iranian dialects, (and, to some extent, of Proto-Greek and Proto-Armenian), the Instrumental was probably formed adding the plural mark -s to the Instrumental Singular of the Second Declension, -bhi, -mi. The Dat.-Abl. was then opposed in vowel stem to the Instrumental: -bhos or -mos against -bhis or -mis. The Locative was made with an -s marking the plural, and an -i which is the Loc. mark.

NOTE. Its origin is probably the plural mark -s-, to which the local case ending -i is added. This is a general oblique ending in the thematic declension.

1. The Stem of Nouns of the Second Declension ends in Consonant or Sonant, i.e. -n, -r, -s, Occlusive (especially -t), and rarely -l, -m. The inflection of animates is essentially the same as that of the Second or Thematic Declension.

2. Nouns of the Fourth Declension in MIE correspond to Latin nouns of First Declension in -r (cf. Lat. magister, magistrī), and Third Declension in consonant (cf. Lat. prīnceps, prīncipis, phoenīx, phoenīcis, cōnāmen, cōnāminis, etc.), and to the Ancient Greek Labial and Velar declension (cf. Gk. Ἄραψ, Ἄραβος, or Φρύξ, Φρυγός).

The Nominative ending is -s (with Occlusive, -m, -l), but there is also a Nominative Sg. with pure stem vowel (desinence -Ø and lengthened ending vowel), so that the full-grade Vocative is differentiated. And there is no confusion in Nom./Gen., as -s has a different vowel grade (Nom. -s, Gen. -es or -os).

Consonant-Declension Paradigm

NOTE. These specialized Oblique endings were probably already splitting in Late PIE, at least in a dialect-to-dialect basis. Compare Indo-Iranian Dat. -ei, Loc. -i; Italic Dat. -ei, Loc.-Inst.-Abl. -i; Greek Inst. -bhi; in Balto-Slavic Inst. -mi, and so on. There is no exact original pattern that includes every dialect, but we may reliably imply an original Oblique declension -i, which had split into -i (Loc.) and -ei (Dat.) already in Late PIE.

3. Inanimates have pure vowel stems with different vocalic grades. In nouns there should be no confusion at all, as they are different words, but neuter adjectives could be mistaken in Nominative or Vocative Animate. Distinction is thus obtained with vocalism, as in Animate -ōn vs. Inanimate -on, Animate -ēs vs. Inanimate -es (neuter nouns in -s are in -os).

1. Nominative Sg.Animates in -s; as, dṓms, house, pṓds37, foot, bhŕghs128, bury, dṓnts173, tooth.

2. Accusative Singular Animate in -m [m̥]; as, dṓmm, pṓdm, bhŕghm, dṓntm.

3. Vocative Singular Animate in -Ø; a sin pōd, bhrgh, dōnt.

4. The Nom.-Acc.-Voc. Singular Inanimate in -Ø, with various vocalisms; as in krd[153]

5. Genitive Singular in -es/-os; as in péd(e)s/pedés, dént(e)s/dentés, dém(e)s/demés.

6. Dative Singular in -ei: pedéi, dontéi, bhrghéi, etc.

7. Locative Singular in -i: pedí/pédi, dṓnti, bhrghí, etc.

 

1. Nominative Singular Animate in -Ø with lengthened vowel; as in mātḗr/mtēr14, mother, kwōn[154], dog, ghésōr, hand (cf. Hitt. kiššar, Gk. kheirí), órōn139, eagle.

Stems in s, ndher-genḗs, degenerate, génōs32, kin, áusōs69, dawn, nébhōs31, cloud.

2. Accusative Sg. Animate in -m; as in mātérm, kwónm, ndheregenésm, áusosm, ghesérm.

3. Vocative Singular Animate in -Ø with full vowel; as in mātér, kúon, áusos.

4. The Nom.-Acc.-Voc. Singular Inanimate in -Ø; as in nómn, génos.

The adjectives in -s have the neuter in -es: (a)sugenés (cf. Gk. eugenes, O.Ind. suganaḥ)

5. Genitive Singular in -es/-os; as in mātrés/mātrós (also mātŕs, patŕs, bhrtrs, etc.), kunés/kunós, nomnés/nomnós, ornés.

Nouns and adjectives in -s have an e, not an o, as the final stem vowel: genesés, ausosés.

6. Dative Singular in -ei, Locative Singular in -i: mātérei, mātéri, kwónei, ausoséi, ghésri etc.

8. Instrumental Singular in -bhi (dialectal -mi): mātrbhí, kunbhí, ausosbhí, etc.

With a paradigm common to the Third Declension, here are some inflected examples.