Gripla - 01.01.1977, Síða 185

MODERN ICELANDIC U-UMLAUT
181
(26) félag- n. ‘society’, nom. sg. félag [-aq], definite félagið [-aijið], dat.
sg. félagi [-aiji], nom./acc. pl. félög [-öq], definite félögin
[-öijin], dat. pl. félögum [-öqym]
heilag- ‘holy’, nom. sg. m. heilagur [-aq-], weak heilagi [-aiji],
nom. sg. f. heilög [-öq], etc.
dag- m. ‘day’, acc. sg. dag [-aq], definite daginn [-aijin], dat. pl.
dögum [-öq-]
The following processes have cooperated in the history of the lan-
guage to bring about the alternations illustrated sub (26): (a) the pala-
talization of velar consonants before /i/-initial endings; (b) the change
of palatalized /q/ to /j/; (c) u-umlaut; (d) the diphthongization of the
vowel followed by /j/. The processes (a-d) are independent of each
other by virtue of the fact that they are not co-extensive. One can there-
fore postulate the existence of a palatalization rule, a q’>j rule, a
diphthongization-before-/' rule, and a u-umlaut rule, where the rules
are ordered as just given, except that the u-umlaut rule must precede
the diphthongization rule, for the u-umlauted ö becomes öi, and the
non-umlauted a becomes ai through diphthongization. A few sample
derivations are given sub (27), q.v. (The effect of u-umlaut has been
(27)
palatalization
q,_>j
diphthongization
-laq -löq
-laq +1 -löq + in
-laq’ +1 -löq’ + in
-laj + i -löj + in
-laij + i -löij + in
incorporated into the input representations.) However, it has not been
proved that the rules whose operation is assumed in (27) really are a
part of Modem Icelandic descriptive grammar. Therefore further dis-
cussion of the descriptive problems raised by the altemations illustrated
in (26) has to be postponed until such time that relative certainty is
achieved concerning the status in Modem Icelandic grammar of the
rules involved in (27).
University of Ljubljana