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Proto-Celtic language
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Proto-Celtic language, also called Common Celtic, is the reconstructed ancestor language of all the known Celtic languages.
Its lexis can be confidently reconstructed on the basis of the comparative method of historical linguistics. As Celtic is a branch of the
Indo-European language family, Proto-Celtic is a descendant of the Proto-Indo-European language. According to recent scholarship,
Celtic may be closest to the Italic languages, to form an Italo-Celtic branch. The earliest archaeological culture that may justifiably
be considered as Proto-Celtic is the Late Bronze Age Urnfield culture of Central Europe from the last quarter of the second
millennium BC.[1] By the Iron Age Hallstatt culture of around 800 BC, these people had become fully Celtic.[1]

The reconstruction of Proto-Celtic is currently being undertaken. While Continental Celtic presents much substantiation for its
phonology, and some for morphology, recorded material is too scanty to allow a secure reconstruction of syntax. Although some
complete sentences are recorded in Gaulish and Celtiberian, the oldest substantial Celtic literature is found in Old Irish, the earliest
recorded of the Insular Celtic languages.

Contents
1 Sound changes from Proto-Indo-European
1.1 Late Proto-Indo-European
1.1.1 Italo-Celtic
1.2 Early Proto-Celtic
1.3 Late Proto-Celtic
1.4 Examples
2 Phonological reconstruction
2.1 Consonants
2.2 Vowels
3 Morphology
3.1 Nouns
3.1.1 *o-stem nouns
3.1.2 *-stem nouns
3.1.3 *i-stems
3.1.4 *u-stem nouns
3.1.5 Velar and dental stems
3.1.6 Nasal stems
3.1.7 *s-stem nouns
3.1.8 *r-stem nouns
3.2 Verbs
4 Dating
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

Sound changes from Proto-Indo-European


The phonological changes from Proto-Indo-European to Proto-Celtic may be summarised as follows.[2] The changes are roughly in
chronological order, with changes that operate on the outcome of earlier ones appearing later in the list.

Late Proto-Indo-European

These changes were shared by several other Indo-European branches.

*e is colored by an adjacent laryngeal consonant:


eh, he > ah, ha
eh, he > oh, ho
Palatovelars merge with the plain velars:
>k
>g
> g
Epenthetic *a is inserted after a syllabic sonorant if a laryngeal and another sonorant follow (RHR > RaHR)
Laryngeals are lost:
before a following vowel (HV > V)

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following a vowel in syllables before the accent (VHC > VC)


following a vowel with compensatory lengthening, otherwise (VH > V)
between plosives in noninitial syllables (CHC > CC)
Two adjacent dentals become *ss (TT > ss)

Italo-Celtic

The following sound changes are shared with the Italic languages in particular, and can be used in support of the Italo-Celtic
hypothesis.[3]

Dybo's rule: long close vowels are shortened (or a laryngeal is lost) before resonant + stressed vowel.
R / ? *iHR > iR
R / ? *uHR > uR
Possibly, postconsonantal laryngeals are lost before pretonic close vowels:
CHiC > CiC
CHuC > CuC
Development of initial stress, following the previous two changes.
Possibly, vocalization of laryngeals to * between a *CR cluster and consonantal *j (CRHjV > CRjV)
Syllabic laryngeals become *a (CHC > CaC)
Syllabic resonants before a voiced unaspirates stop become *Ra (RD > RaD)
*m is assimilated or lost before a glide:
mj > nj
mw > w
*p assimilates to *k when another *k follows later in the word (pk > kk)
sr > r, word-medially -r-
sVs > ss, sTVs > Ts

One change shows non-exact parallels in Italic: the vocalization of syllabic resonants next to laryngeals depending on the
environment. Similar developments appear in Italic, but for the syllabic nasals *m, *n, the result is Proto-Italic *m, *n (> Latin em
~ im, en ~ in).

Word-initially, HRC > aRC


Before voiceless stops, CRHT > CRaT
CRHV > CaRHV
CRHC > CRC

Early Proto-Celtic

Sequences of velar and *w merge into the labiovelars (it is uncertain if this preceded or followed the next change; that is,
whether gw > b or gw > g):
kw > k
gw > g
gw > g
g > b
Aspirated stops lose their aspiration and merge with the voiced stops (except that this counterfeeds the previous change, so
*g > *g doesn't result in a merger):
b > b
d > d
g > g
g > g
*e before a resonant and *a (but not *) becomes *a as well (eRa > aRa): *elH-ro > *gelaro > *galaro / *grH-no > *gerano
> *garano (Joseph's rule).
Epenthetic *i is inserted after syllabic liquids when followed by a plosive:
l T > liT
rT > riT
Epenthetic *a is inserted before the remaining syllabic resonants:
m > am
n > an
l > al
r > ar
All remaining nonsyllabic laryngeals are lost.
>
> in final syllables
Long vowels are shortened before a syllable-final resonant (V:RC > VRC); this also shortens long diphthongs. (Osthoff's law)

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Late Proto-Celtic

Plosives become *x before a different plosive or *s (CC > xC, Cs > xs)
p > b before liquids (pL > bL)
p > w before nasals (pN > wN)
p > (except possibly after *s)
>
ew > ow
uwa > owa

Examples

Example
PIE Proto-Celtic
Proto-Celtic Old Irish Welsh
*p * *phtr > *atr 'father' athir cf. edrydd "home" (< *atrijo-)
*t *t *tri es > *trs 'three' tr tri
*khn-e- > *kan-o- 'sing' canaid canu
*k, *k
*mtom > *kantom 'hundred' ct /ked/ cant
*k *k *ketures > *ketwares 'four' ceth(a)ir pedwar
*b *b *dub-no- > *dubnos 'deep, world' domun dwfn
*d *d *der- > *derk- 'see' derc "eye" drych "sight"
*glehi- > *gli-na- 'to glue' glen(a)id "(he) sticks fast" glynu "adhere"
*g, *g
*en-u- > *genu- 'jaw' giun, gin "mouth" gn "jaw"
*g *b *genh > *bena 'woman' ben OW ben
*b *b *bre- > *ber-o- 'carry' berid "(he) carries" adfer "to restore", cymeryd "to take"[4]
*d *d *dehi- > *di-na- 'suck' denait "they suck" dynu, denu
*ghb-(e)i- > *gab-i- 'take' ga(i)bid "(he) takes" gafael "hold"
*g, *g
*elH-ro- > *galaro- 'sickness' galar galar "grief"
*g *g *gn- > *gan-o- 'kill, wound' gonaid "(he) wounds, slays" gwanu "stab"
*s *s *sen-o- > *senos 'old' sen hen
*m *m *mhtr > *mtr 'mother' mthir cf. modryb "aunt"
*n *n *hnp-t- > *nets 'nephew' niad nai
*l *l *lei- > *lig-e/o- 'lick' ligid "(he) licks" llyo, llyfu
*r *r *hr-s > *rgs 'king' r (gen. rg) rhi
*j *j *hi uhn-s > *juwankos 'young' ac ieuanc
*w *w *hul ht- > *wlatis 'rulership' flaith gwlad "country"

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Example
PIE Proto-Celtic
Proto-Celtic Old Irish Welsh

*a *hep-hn- > *ab (acc. aub afon


*a, he *abonen) 'river'
*, *eh * *brhtr > *brtr 'brother' brthir brawd
*e, he *e *sen-o- > *senos 'old' sen hen
*H (any laryngeal H cf. edrydd
*a *phtr > *atr 'father' athir
between consonants)[5] "home"
*, eh * *ueh-ro- > *wros 'true' fr gwir
*o, Ho, he *o *Hrotho- > *rotos 'wheel' roth rhod
in final syllable, * *hnp-t- > *nets 'nephew' ni nai
*, eh
elsewhere, * *dehno- > *dno- 'gift' dn dawn
*i *i *gih-tu- > *bitus 'world' bith byd
*, iH * *rmeh > *rm 'number' rm rhif
coeg "empty,
*kaikos > *kaikos 'blind' cech "one-eyed"
*ai, hei, ehi *ai one-eyed"
*sehitlo- > *saitlo- 'age'
hoedl
*(h)ei, i, ehi *ei *deiwos > *deiwos 'god' da duw
*oi, i, hei, ehi *oi *oinos > *oinos 'one' en on; en an un
*hi uhn-s > early
before wa, o *juwankos > late *jowankos ac ieuanc
*u 'young'
elsewhere, *u *srutos > *srutos 'stream' sruth ffrwd
*, uH * *ruHneh > *rn 'mystery' rn rhin
*au, heu, ehu *au *tausos > *tausos 'silent' tue "silence" < *tausij taw
*(h)eu, u, ehu; *teuteh > *tout 'people' tath tud
*ou
*ou, u, heu, ehu *geh-u-s > *bows 'cow' b MW bu, biw
before stops, *li *pl thns > *litanos 'wide' lethan llydan
*l before other cailech (Ogam gen.
*kl h- > *kaljkos 'rooster' ceiliog
consonants, *al CALIACI)
*brti- > *briti- 'act of bearing;
before stops, *ri breth, brith bryd
mind'
*r
before other
*mruos > *marwos 'dead' marb marw
consonants, *ar
MIr damnaid "he ties,
*m *am *dm-nh- > *damna- 'subdue'
fastens, binds"
*n *an *hdnt- > *danton 'tooth' dt /ded/ dant
before obstruents,
*hulht- > *wlatis 'lordship' flaith gwlad "country"
*l H *la
before sonorants, *l *pl Hmeh > *lm 'hand' lm llaw
before obstruents,
*mrHtom > *mratom 'betrayal' mrath brad
*rH *ra
before sonorants, *r *rHnom > *grnom 'grain' grn grawn
*am/m daimid "endures, suffers;
*dmh-i e/o- > *damje/o- 'to goddef "endure,
*mH (presumably same submits to, permits",
tame' suffer"
distribution as above) fodam-
*an or *n
probably *nhto- > *gntos gnawd
*nH (presumably same gnth
'known' "customary"
distribution as above)

Phonological reconstruction
Consonants

The following consonants have been reconstructed for Proto-Celtic:

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Velar
Type Bilabial Alveolar Palatal
plain labialised
Plosive b t d k k
Nasal m n
Fricative s
Approximant l j w
Trill r

In contrast to the parent language, Proto-Celtic does not use aspiration as a feature for distinguishing phonemes. So the Proto-Indo-
European voiced aspirated stops *b, *d, *g/ merged with *b, *d, *g/. The voiced aspirate labiovelar *g did not merge with
*g, though: plain *g became *b in Proto-Celtic, while aspirated *g became *g. Thus, PIE *gen- 'woman' became Old Irish ben
and Old Welsh ben, but PIE *gn - 'to kill, to wound' became Old Irish gonaid and Welsh gwanu.

Proto-Indo-European *p was lost in Proto-Celtic, apparently going through the stages * (as in the table above) and *h (perhaps
attested by the toponym Hercynia if this is of Celtic origin) before being lost completely word-initially and between vowels.
Adjacent to consonants, Proto-Celtic * underwent different changes: the clusters *s and *t became *xs and *xt respectively
already in Proto-Celtic. PIE *sp- became Old Irish s (lenited f-, exactly as for PIE *sw-) and Brythonic f; while Schrijver 1995,
p. 348 argues there was an intermediate stage *s- (in which * remained an independent phoneme until after Proto-Insular Celtic
had diverged into Goidelic and Brythonic), McCone 1996, pp. 4445 finds it more economical to believe that *sp- remained
unchanged in PC, that is, the change *p to * did not happen when *s preceded. (Similarly, Grimm's law did not apply to *p, t, k
after *s in Germanic.)

Proto-Celtic Old Irish Welsh


*las- > *laxs- 'shine' las-aid llach-ar
*setam > *sextam 'seven' secht saith
*seret- or *speret- 'heel' seir ffr

In Gaulish and the Brythonic languages, a new *p sound has arisen as a reflex of the Proto-Indo-European *k phoneme.
Consequently, one finds Gaulish petuar[ios], Welsh pedwar "four", compared to Old Irish *cethair and Latin quattuor. Insofar as
this new /p/ fills the space in the phoneme inventory which was lost by the disappearance of the equivalent stop in PIE, we may think
of this as a chain shift.

The terms P-Celtic and Q-Celtic are useful when we wish to group the Celtic languages according to the way they handle this one
phoneme. However a simple division into P- and Q-Celtic may be untenable, as it does not do justice to the evidence of the ancient
Continental Celtic languages. The large number of unusual shared innovations among the Insular Celtic languages are often also
presented as evidence against a P-Celtic vs Q-Celtic division, but they may instead reflect a common substratum influence from the
pre-Celtic languages of Ireland, Scotland, Cornwall and Wales,[1] (http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/288/5469/1158), or
simply continuing contact between the insular languages; in either case they would be irrelevant to Celtic language classification in
the genetic sense.

Q-Celtic languages may also have /p/ in loan words, though in early borrowings from Welsh into Primitive Irish /k/ was used by
sound substitution due to a lack of a /p/ phoneme at the time:

Latin Patricius "Saint Patrick"' > Welsh > Primitive Irish QATRIKIAS > Old Irish Cothrige, later Padraig;
Latin presbyter "priest" > early form of word seen in Old Welsh premter primter > Primitive Irish QRIMITIR > Old Irish
cruimther.

Gaelic pg "kiss" was a later borrowing (from the second word of the Latin phrase osculum pacis "kiss of peace") at a stage where p
was borrowed directly as p, without substituting c.

Vowels

The Proto-Celtic vowel system is highly comparable to that reconstructed for Proto-Indo-European by Antoine Meillet. The
following monophthongs have been reconstructed:

Front Central Back


Type
long short long short long short
Close /i/ /i/ /u/ /u/
Mid /e/ /o/
Open /a/ /a/

The following diphthongs have also been reconstructed:

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Type With -i With -u


With e- ei
With a- ai au
With o- oi ou

Morphology
Nouns

The morphology (structure) of nouns and adjectives demonstrates no arresting alterations from the parent language. Proto-Celtic is
believed to have had nouns in three genders, three numbers and five to eight cases. The genders were the normal masculine, feminine
and neuter, the three numbers were singular, plural and dual. The number of cases is a subject of contention:[6] while Old Irish may
have only five, the evidence from Continental Celtic is considered rather unambiguous despite appeals to archaic retentions or
morphological leveling. These cases were nominative, vocative, accusative, dative, genitive, ablative, locative and instrumental.

Nouns fall into nine or so declensions, depending on the stem. There are *o-stems, *-stems, *i-stems, *u-stems, dental stems, velar
stems, nasal stems, *r-stems and *s-stems.

*o-stem nouns

makkos 'son' (masculine) (Old Irish mac ~ Welsh, Cornish and Breton mab)

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *makkos *makkou *makkoi
Vocative *makke *makkou *makks
Accusative *makkom *makkou *makks
Genitive *makk *makks *makkom
Dative *makki *makkobom *makkobos
Ablative *makk *makkobim *makkobis
Instrumental *makk *makkobim *makks
Locative *makkei *makkou *makkobis

dnom 'stronghold' (neuter)

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *dnom *dnou *dn
Vocative *dnom *dnou *dn
Accusative *dnom *dnou *dn
Genitive *dn *dns *dnom
Dative *dni *dnobom *dnobos
Ablative *dn *dnobim *dnobis
Instrumental *dn *dnobim *dns
Locative *dnei *dnou *dnobis

*-stem nouns

E.g. *lm 'hand' (feminine) (Old Irish lm; Welsh llaw, Cornish leuv, Old Breton lom)

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Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *lm *lmai *lms
Vocative *lm *lmai *lms
Accusative *lmm *lmai *lms
Genitive *lms *lmajous *lmom
Dative *lmi *lmbom *lmbos
Ablative *lm *lmbim *lmbis
Instrumental *lm *lmbim *lmbis
Locative *lmi *lmbim *lmbis

E.g. *wolks 'hawker' (masculine) (Gallic Latinised Volcae)

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *wolks *wolkai *wolks
Vocative *wolk *wolkai *wolks
Accusative *wolkm *wolkai *wolks
Genitive *wolks *wolkajous *wolkom
Dative *wolki *wolkbom *wolkbos
Ablative *wolk *wolkbim *wolkbis
Instrumental *wolk *wolkbim *wolkbis
Locative *wolki *wolkbim *wolkbis

*i-stems

E.g. *slis 'sight, view, eye' (feminine) (Brittonic sulis ~ Old Irish sil)

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *slis *sl *sls
Vocative *sli *sl *sls
Accusative *slim *sl *sls
Genitive *sleis *sljous *sljom
Dative *slei *slibom *slibos
Ablative *sl *slibim *slibis
Instrumental *sl *slibim *slibis
Locative *sl *slibim *slibis

E.g. *mori 'body of water, sea' (neuter) (Gallic Mori- ~ Old Irish muir ~ Welsh mr)

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *mori *mor *morj
Vocative *mori *mor *morj
Accusative *mori *mor *morj
Genitive *moreis *morjous *morjom
Dative *morei *moribom *moribos
Ablative *mor *moribim *moribis
Instrumental *mor *moribim *moribis
Locative *mor *moribim *moribis

*u-stem nouns

E.g. *bitus 'world, existence' (masculine) (Gallic Bitu- ~ Old Irish bith ~ Welsh byd ~ Breton bed)

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Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *bitus *bitou *bitowes
Vocative *bitu *bitou *bitowes
Accusative *bitum *bitou *bits
Genitive *bitous *bitowou *bitowom
Dative *bitou *bitubom *bitubos
Ablative *bit *bitubim *bitubis
Instrumental *bit *bitubim *bitubis
Locative *bit *bitubim *bitubis

E.g. *dnu 'valley river' (neuter?)

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *dnu *dnou *dnw
Vocative *dnu *dnou *dnw
Accusative *dnu *dnou *dnw
Genitive *dnous *dnowou *dnowom
Dative *dnou *dnubom *dnubos
Ablative *dn *dnubim *dnubis
Instrumental *dn *dnubim *dnubis
Locative *dn *dnubim *dnubis

Velar and dental stems

Before the *-s of the nominative singular, a velar consonant was fricated to *-x : *rg- "king" > *rxs. Likewise, final *-d devoiced to
*-t-: *druwid- "druid" > *druwits.[7]

E.g. *rxs 'king' (masculine) (Gallic -rix; Old Irish r; Middle Welsh rhi, Old Breton ri)

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *rxs *rge *rges
Vocative *rxs *rge *rges
Accusative *rgam *rge *rgs
Genitive *rgos *rgou *rgom
Dative *rgei *rgobom *rgobos
Ablative *rg *rgobim *rgobis
Instrumental *rge *rgobim *rgobis
Locative *rgi *rgobim *rgobis

E.g. *druwits 'druid' (masculine) (Gallic druis; Old Irish dru; Middle Welsh dryw "druid; wren", Old Cornish druw)

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *druwits *druwide *druwides
Vocative *druwits *druwide *druwides
Accusative *druwidem *druwide *druwids
Genitive *druwidos *druwidou *druwidom
Dative *druwidei *druwidobom *druwidobos
Ablative *druwid *druwidobim *druwidobis
Instrumental *druwide *druwidobim *druwidobis
Locative *druwidi *druwidobim *druwidobis

E.g. *karnuxs 'carnyx' (masculine?)

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Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *karnuxs *karnuke *karnukes
Vocative *karnuxs *karnuke *karnukes
Accusative *karnukam *karnuke *karnuks
Genitive *karnukos *karnukou *karnukom
Dative *karnukei *karnukobom *karnukobos
Ablative *karnuk *karnukobim *karnukobis
Instrumental *karnuke *karnukobim *karnukobis
Locative *karnuki *karnukobim *karnukobis

E.g. *karants 'friend' (masculine) (Gallic carant-; Old Irish cara; Welsh cr "kinsman; friend", pl. ceraint, Breton kar "relative", pl.
kerent)

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *karants *karante *karantes
Vocative *karants *karante *karantes
Accusative *karantam *karante *karants
Genitive *karantos *karantou *karantom
Dative *karantei *karantobom *karantobos
Ablative *karant *karantobim *karantobis
Instrumental *karante *karantobim *karantobis
Locative *karanti *karantobim *karantobis

Nasal stems

Generally, nasal stems end in *-on-, this becomes *- in the nominative singular: *abon- "river" > *ab.

E.g. *ab 'river' (feminine) (Welsh afon, Breton (obs.) aven, Scottish Gaelic abhainn)

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *ab *abone *abones
Vocative *ab *abone *abones
Accusative *abonam *abone *abons
Genitive *abonos *abonou *abonom
Dative *abonei *abnobom *abnobos
Ablative *abon *abnobim *abnobis
Instrumental *abone *abnobim *abnobis
Locative *aboni *abnobim *abnobis

E.g. *anman 'name' (neuter) (Gaulish anuan-; Old Irish ainm; Breton anv; Welsh enw)

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *anman *anmane *anmanes
Vocative *anman *anmane *anmanes
Accusative *anmanam *anmane *anmans
Genitive *anmanos *anmanou *anmanom
Dative *anmanei *anmanobom *anmanobos
Ablative *anman *anmanobim *anmanobis
Instrumental *anmane *anmanobim *anmanobis
Locative *anmani *anmanobim *anmanobis

*s-stem nouns

Generally, *s-stems end in *-es-, which becomes *-os in the nominative singular: *teges- 'house' > *tegos.

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E.g. *tegos 'house' (masculine), Irish teach, tigh; Welsh t, Breton ti.

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *tegos *tegese *tegeses
Vocative *tegos *tegese *tegeses
Accusative *tegesam *tegese *tegess
Genitive *tegesos *tegesou *tegesom
Dative *tegesei *tegesobom *tegesobos
Ablative *teges *tegesobim *tegesobis
Instrumental *tegese *tegesobim *tegesobis
Locative *tegesi *tegesobim *tegesobis

*r-stem nouns

r-stems are rare and principally confined to names of relatives. Typically they end in *-ter-, which becomes *-tr in the
nominative and *-tr- in all other cases aside from the accusative: *ater- 'father' > *atr, *atros.

E.g. *atr 'father' (masculine)

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *atr *atere *ateres
Vocative *atr *atere *ateres
Accusative *ateram *atere *aters
Genitive *atros *atrou *atrom
Dative *atrei *atrebom *atrebos
Ablative *atr *atrebim *atrebis
Instrumental *atre *atrebim *atrebis
Locative *atri *atrebim *atrebis

E.g. *mtr 'mother' (feminine)

Case Singular Dual Plural


Nominative *mtr *mtere *mteres
Vocative *mtr *mtere *mteres
Accusative *mteram *mtere *mters
Genitive *mtros *mtrou *mtrom
Dative *mtrei *mtrebom *mtrebos
Ablative *mtr *mtrebim *mtrebis
Instrumental *mtre *mtrebim *mtrebis
Locative *mtri *mtrebim *mtrebis

Verbs

From comparison between early Old Irish and Gaulish forms it seems that Continental and Insular Celtic verbs were to develop
differently and so the study of Irish and Welsh may have unduly weighted past opinion of proto-Celtic verbal morphology. It can be
inferred from Gaulish and Celtiberian as well as Insular Celtic that the proto-Celtic verb had at least three moods:

indicative seen in e.g. 1st sg. Gaulish delgu "I hold", Old Irish tongu "I swear"
imperative seen in e.g. 3rd sg. Celtiberian usabituz, Gaulish appisetu
subjunctive seen in e.g. 3rd sg. Gaulish buetid "may he be", Celtiberian asekati

and four tenses:

present seen in e.g. Gaulish uediu-mi "I pray", Celtiberian zizonti "they sow"
preterite seen in e.g. 3rd sg. Gaulish sioxti, Lepontic KariTe
imperfect perhaps in Celtiberian kombalkez, atibion
future seen in e.g. 3rd sg. Gaulish bissiet, Old Irish bieid "he shall be"

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A probable optative mood also features in Gaulish (tixsintor) and an infinitive (with a characteristic ending -unei) in Celtiberian.[8][9]

Verbs were formed by adding suffixes to a verbal stem. The stem might be thematic or athematic, an open or a closed syllable.

Example conjugations

Scholarly reconstructions [2][10][11][12] may be summarised in tabular format.

Conjugation like *bere/o- bear, carry, flow

Pres Impf Fut Pst


Person
Act Pss Act Pss Act Pss Act Pss
1.sg *ber(mi) *berr *berennem *- *bibrm *bibrr *bert *-
2.sg *beresi *beretar *bert *- *bibrsi *bibrtar *bertes *-
3.sg *bereti *beretor *bere(to) *beretei *bibrti *bibrtor *bert *brito
*beromu
Ind 1.pl *berommor *beremmets *- *bibrmes *bibrmmor *bertomu *-
(sns)
*beretes (OI) ~ *bere-
2.pl *berete *beredwe *- *bibrte *bibrdwe *bertete *-
sws (B)
*berentits
3.pl *beronti *berontor *berentets *bibrnt *bibrntor *bertont *britnts
(?)
1.sg *berm *berr *bernnem *- *- *- *- *-
2.sg *bersi *bertar *bert *- *- *- *- *-
3.sg *berti *bertor *ber(to) *- *- *- *- *-
Sbj 1.pl *bermes *bermmor *bermmets *- *- *- *- *-
*bertes (OI) ~ *ber-
2.pl *berte *berdwe *- *- *- *- *-
sws (B)
3.pl *bernti *berntor *berntets *- *- *- *- *-
1.sg *- *- *- *- *- *- *- *-
2.sg *ber! *beretar! *- *- *- *- *- *-
3.sg *beret! *beror! *- *- *- *- *- *-
Imp
1.pl *beromu! *berommor! *- *- *- *- *- *-
2.pl *berets! *beredwe! *- *- *- *- *- *-
3.pl *beront! *berontor! *- *- *- *- *- *-
VN (unmarked) *berowon- *- *- *- *- *- *' *britu-s
Ptple (unmarked) *beront- *beromno- *- *beretejo- *- *- *bertjo- *brito-

Conjugation like *mr- greaten, magnify, enlarge

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Pres Impf Fut Pst


Person
Act Pss Act Pss Act Pss Act Pss
1.sg *mrmi *mrr *mrnnem *- *mriswmi *mriswr *mrts *-
2.sg *mrsi *mrtar *mrt *- *mriswsi *mriswtar *mrtssi *-
3.sg *mrti *mrtor *mr(to) *mrtei *mriswti *mriswtor *mrtsti *-
*mrmu
1.pl *mrmmor *mrmmets *- *mriswmos *mriswmmor *mrtsomu *-
(sns)
Ind
*mrtes
(OI) ~
2.pl *mrte *mrdwe *- *mriswte *mriswdwe *mrtsete *-
*mr-sws
(B)
*mrntits *mrtnts
3.pl *mrnti *mrntor *mrntets *mriswnti *mriswntor *mrtsont
(?) (?)
1.sg *mrm *mror *mronnem *- *- *- *- *-
2.sg *mrosi *mrotar *mrot *- *- *- *- *-
3.sg *mroti *mrotor *mro(to) *- *- *- *- *-
1.pl *mromes *mrommor *mrommets *- *- *- *- *-
Sbj
*mrotes
(OI) ~
2.pl *mrote *mrodwe *- *- *- *- *-
*mro-sws
(B)
3.pl *mronti *mrontor *mrontets *- *- *- *- *-
1.sg *- *- *- *- *- *- *- *-
2.sg *mr! *mrtrs! *- *- *- *- *- *-
3.sg *mrt! *mrr! *- *- *- *- *- *-
Imp
1.pl *mrmu! *mrmmor! *- *- *- *- *- *-
2.pl *mrts! *mrdwe! *- *- *- *- *- *-
3.pl *mrnt! *mrntor! *- *- *- *- *- *-
VN (unmarked) *mrwon- *- *- *- *- *- *' *mrtu-s
Ptple (unmarked) *mrnt- *mrmno- *- *mrtejo- *- *- *mrtjo- *mrto-

Dating
Proto-Celtic is mostly dated to roughly 800 BC (Hallstatt C), see Celtic languages.

In the first decade of the 21st century a number of scholars addressed this question using computational methods, with differing
results. Gray and Atkinson estimated a date of 6100 BP (4100 BC) while Forster and Toth[13] suggest a date of 3200 BC 1500 years
for the arrival of Celtic in Britain, but such early dates are not generally accepted.

See also
Pre-Celtic
Italo-Celtic
Beaker culture
Urnfield
Halstatt culture
La Tne culture
Goidelic substrate hypothesis
Ligures
Azilian

References
Notes

1. Chadwick with Corcoran, Nora with J.X.W.P. (1970). The Celts. Penguin Books. pp. 2833.
2. Matasovi 2009.

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3. Schrijver 2015, pp. 196197.


4. Welsh adfer 'to restore' < *ate-ber-, cymeryd < obsolete cymer < MW cymeraf < *kom-ber- (with -yd taken from the verbal noun cymryd <
*kom-britu).
5. However, according to Hackstein (2002) *CH.CC > in unstressed medial syllables. Thus, H can disappear in weak cases while being
retained in strong cases, e.g. IE nom.sg. *dughtr vs. gen.sg. *dugtr-os daughter > early PCelt. *dugater- ~ dugtr-. This then led to a
paradigmatic split, resulting in Celtiberian gen.sg. tuateros, nom.pl. tuateres vs. Gaulish duxtir (< *dugtr). (Zair 2012: 161, 163).
6. Pedersen, Holger (1913). Vergleichende Grammatik der keltischen Sprachen, 2. Band, Bedeutungslehre (Wortlehre). Gttingen:
Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. ISBN 3-525-26119-5.
7. passim in Whitley Stokes D.C.L., Hon VII. Celtic Declension. Transactions of the Philological Society Volume 20, Issue 1, pages 97201,
November 1887
8. Stefan Schumacher, Die keltischen Primrverben: Ein vergleichendes, etymologisches und morphologisches Lexikon (Innsbruck: Institut fr
Sprachen und Literaturen der Universitt, 2003).
9. Pierre-Yves Lambert, La Langue gauloise: Description linguistique, commentaire d'inscriptions choisies (Paris: Errance, 2003).
10. Alexander MacBain, 1911, xxxvi-xxxvii; An etymological dictionary of the Gaelic language
(https://archive.org/stream/etymologicaldict00macbuoft#page/xxxvi/mode/2up); Stirling: Eneas MacKay
11. Alan Ward, A Checklist of Proto-Celtic Lexical Items (1982, revised 1996), 7-14.
12. Examples of attested Gaulish verbs at http://www.angelfire.com/me/ik/gaulish.html
13. Forster, Peter; Toth, Alfred (2003). "Toward a phylogenetic chronology of ancient Gaulish, Celtic, and Indo-European". Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences. 100: 90799084. Bibcode:2003PNAS..100.9079F. doi:10.1073/pnas.1331158100. PMC 166441 .
PMID 12837934.

Bibliography

Cowgill, Warren (1975). "The origins of the Insular Celtic conjunct and absolute verbal endings". In H. Rix. Flexion und
Wortbildung: Akten der V. Fachtagung der Indogermanischen Gesellschaft, Regensburg, 9.14. September 1973. Wiesbaden:
Reichert. pp. 4070.
Evans, D. Simon (1964). A Grammar of Middle Welsh. Dublin: Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies.
Forster, Peter; Toth, Alfred (July 2003). "Toward a phylogenetic chronology of ancient Gaulish, Celtic, and Indo-European".
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 100 (15): 907984. Bibcode:2003PNAS..100.9079F. doi:10.1073/pnas.1331158100.
PMC 166441 . PMID 12837934.
Gray, Russell D.; Atkinson, Quintin D. (November 2003). "Language-tree divergence times support the Anatolian theory of
Indo-European origin". Nature. 426 (6965): 4359. Bibcode:2003Natur.426..435G. doi:10.1038/nature02029.
PMID 14647380.
Hackstein, Olav (2002). "Uridg. *CH.CC > *C.CC". Historische Sprachforschung. 115: 122.
Lane, George S. (1933). "The Germano-Celtic Vocabulary". Language: 244264. doi:10.2307/409353.
Matasovi, Ranko (2009). Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic. Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series, 9.
Brill Academic Publishers. ISBN 978-90-04-17336-1.
McCone, Kim (1996). Towards a Relative Chronology of Ancient and Medieval Celtic Sound Change. Maynooth: Department
of Old and Middle Irish, St. Patrick's College. ISBN 0-901519-40-5.
Pedersen, Holger (1913). Vergleichende Grammatik der keltischen Sprachen. 2. Band, Bedeutungslehre (Wortlehre).
Gttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. ISBN 3-525-26119-5.
Schrijver, Peter (1994). "The Celtic adverbs for 'against' and 'with' and the early apocope of *-i". riu. 45: 15189.
Schrijver, Peter (1995). Studies in British Celtic Historical Phonology. Amsterdam: Rodopi. ISBN 90-5183-820-4.
Schrijver, Peter (2015). "Pruners and trainers of the Celtic family tree: The rise and development of Celtic in light of language
contact". Proceedings of the XIV International Congress of Celtic Studies, Maynooth 2011. Dublin: Dublin Institute for
Advanced Studies. pp. 191219.
Thurneysen, Rudolf (1946). A Grammar of Old Irish. Tr. D. A. Binchy and Osborn Bergin. Dublin: Dublin Institute for
Advanced Studies.
Zair, Nicholas (2012). The Reflexes of the Proto-Indo-European Laryngeals in Celtic. Leiden: Brill.

External links
The Leiden University has compiled etymological dictionaries of various IE languages
For a list of words relating
(https://web.archive.org/web/20110711231504/http://www.indo-european.nl:80/cgi- to Proto-Celtic language,
bin/main.cgi?root=leiden), a project supervised by Alexander Lubotsky and which includes a see the Proto-Celtic
Proto-Celtic dictionary by Ranko Matasovi. Unfortunately, those dictionaries published by language category of
Brill in the Leiden series (http://www.brill.nl/publications/leiden-indo-european- words in Wiktionary, the
etymological-dictionary-series) have been removed from the University databases for free dictionary.
copyright reasons. Alternatively, a reference for Proto-Celtic vocabulary is provided by the
University of Wales at the following sites:

Proto-Celtic to English Wordlist (PDF)


(http://www.wales.ac.uk/Resources/Documents/Research/CelticLanguages/ProtoCelticEnglishWordlist.pdf)
English to Proto-Celtic Wordlist (PDF)
(http://www.wales.ac.uk/Resources/Documents/Research/CelticLanguages/EnglishProtoCelticWordlist.pdf)

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