Fróðskaparrit - 01.01.1968, Page 89

On Some Cases of Interaction
97
the common Germanic tendency to the phonetic coincidence
of these forms.
The explanation of the above substitution of the inflection
-en for the forms of 3 pl. pres. indic. -et, -að by the fact that
already in Old English and in Low German the inflection -en
is characteristic of all tihe forms of 3 pl. pres. and pret., and
that’s why it was extended from the subjunctive mood either
from the preterite of indicative mood or from the preterite-
present verbs23) to the forms of plural present indicative, in
practice is only a hypothesis from where this inflection could
be spread to the forms of plural present indicative. In parti-
cular this hypothesis does not explain why the extention of
the inflection -en to other forms in English is characteristic of
Middle English. It also seems doubtful to explain the same
process in Low German dialects by the influence of Low Ger-
man or High German24) literary (written) language, for one
must first explain why in High German itself the inflection
-en is typical of all the forms of 3 pl. pres. and pret. indic.
The assumption that inflection -en in 3 pl. pres. indic. in
High German is the result of leveling according to the type
of the inflection (-en)25) of subj. mood or of preterite indica-
tive, seems doubtful, for of all the Germanic languages is
characteristic another tendency, i. e. the extention of the in-
flection of 3 pl. pres. indic. to all the forms of plural present
indicative. Besides, of High German is typical the speading
of the inflection of 3 pl. pres. indic. -ent to the 3 pl. pres.
subj. and 3 pl. pret. indic.20)
Furthermore of all the Germanic languages is characteristic
the tendency to the phonetic coincidence of the forms of inf.
I with 3 pl. pres. indic. This gives reason to think that the
23) A. S. C. Ross. The Plural Present Indicative in English and I.ow
German. »Neuphilologische Mitteilungen«, 1934, Bd. 35, H. 5/6, SS. 169
—170.
24) P. Jørgensen. Zum schleswiger Niederdeutsch, S. 122.
25) H. Paul. Deutsche Grammatik, Bd. II, Halle/Saale, 1956, S. 194.
2e) H. Paul. Mittelhochdeutsche Grammatik, Halle/Saale, 1953, S. 117.