Metátesis de cantidad en jónico-ático y heracleota

Abstract

Quantitative metathesis (QM) in Ionic-Attic (e. g. νηός > νηώς) is usually conceived of as a phonetic process, typologically uncommon, which merely involves a transfer of length from one vowel to another. This traditional doctrine suffers from serious shortcomings. A more fruitful approach favoured by Schwyzer and other scholars views QM as resulting from synizesis (syllabicity loss) of a long vowel with simultaneous compensatory lengthening of the following vowel: e. g. νηός > νε̯ώς. This scenario is superior to the standard explanation on different counts: (a) it presents us with an internally coherent change, parallels for which may be easily found in languages other than Greek; (b) it accounts both for the systematic co-occurrence of synizesis and quantitative metathesis, and is consistent with the different behaviour of monosyllables vs. polysyllables as regards QM in Homeric epics; (c) it makes sense out of some apparent anomalies in accentuation. The second part of the paper deals with the outcome ιω (< /eo/) in the Heraclean Tables and in literary texts, which turns out to be another instance of QM. The lengthening of /o/ compensates for the loss of a mora caused by the synizesis of /e/ in an open syllable. Synizesis followed by the absorption of yod into /s/ explains the controversial 3rd pl. future forms in -σοντι, -σονται which al first glance look «non-Doric».