1) Phonetics.
The peculiar Germanic system of word accentuation.
In IE there existed two ways og accntuation: musical pitch and force stress. The position of the stress was free and movable.
Both these properties changed in PG. Force stress became the only type of stress used. In early PG the stress was movable, in late PG its position in the word stabilised The stress was now fixed on the first syllable and could not move in form- or word-building.
This played an important role in the development of Germanic languages: in the development of stressed and unstressed vowels, in the development of unstressed grammatical endings and suffixes.
Vowels.
Vowels underwent qualitattive, quantitative, positional and spontaneous changes. Differentiation of long and short vowels is regarded as an important characteristic of the Germanic group.
Independent Vowel Changes in Proto-Germanic
| Change illustrated | Examples | |||
| PIE | PG | Non-Germanic | Germanic | |
| Old | Modern | |||
| o | a | L nox, Ir nochd, R ночь R могу; мочь | Gt nahts, O Icel nátt, OHG naht Gt magan, OE maзan, mæз O Icel mόðir, OE mōdor Gt broþar, O Icel brόðir, OE brōðor | Sw natt, G Nacht Sw må, NE may Sw moder, NE mother Sw broder, NE brother |
| a: | o: | L mater, R мать O Ind bhrāta, L frater, R брат |
Mutation of Vowels in Late PG
| Change illustrated | Examples | ||||
| Non-Germanic | Germanic | ||||
| Old | Modern | ||||
| РIE e u | { { | G i e u o | L ventus, R ветер L edit, R ест L edere, R есть Lith sunus, R сын Celt hurman | Gt winds, 0 Icel vindr, OE wind OHG izit, OE iteþ, O Icel eta, OE etan O Icel sunr, OE sunu O Icel, OE horn | Sw vind, NE wind G iβt, NE eats, G essen, NE eat Sw son, NE son NE horn, Sw horn |
2) Consonants
The first consonant shift, or Grimm’s law.
Consonant Shift in Proto-Germanic (Grimm's Law)
| Correspondence illustra-ted | Examples | ||||
| Non-Germanic | Germanic | ||||
| Old | Modern | ||||
| PIE | PG | ||||
| ACT I | |||||
| p | L pes, pedis | Gt fōtus, O Icel fótr, OE fōt | Sw fot, NE foot G Fuβ | ||
| p | f | R пена | OE fām | G Feim, NE foam | |
| L piscis, R пескарь | Gt fisks, OE fisc | G Fisch, NE fish | |||
| t | θ | L tres, R три | Gt þreis, O Icel þrir, OE þrēo | Sw tre, G drei, NE three | |
| L tu, Fr tu, R ты | Gt þu, OE þū | G Sw du, NE thou | |||
| k | x | L cor, cordis, Fr coeur, R сердце | Gt hairto, O Icel hjarta, OE heort | G Herz, NE heart | |
| L canis R колода | Gt hunds, OE hund OE holt | G Hund, NE hound G Holz, NE holt | |||
| ACT II | |||||
| b | p | Lith balà, R болото L labare, R слабый | OHG pfuol, OE pōl Gt slepan, OE slǽpan | G Pfuhl, NE pool G schlafen, NE sleep | |
| d | t | L decem, Fr dix, | Gt taíhun, O Icel tíu, OE tien | Sw tio, G zehn, | |
| R десять | NE ten | ||||
| Fr deux, R два | OE twā | NE two | |||
| L edere, R еда | Gt itan, OE etan | Sw äta, NE eat | |||
| L vidēre, R ведать, видеть | OE witan | G wissen, NE wit | |||
| g | k | L genu, Fr genou | OE cnēo, Gt kniu | NE knee, G Knie | |
| L iugum, R иго | Gt juk, O Icel ok, OE зеос | Sw ok, NE yoke | |||
| ACT III | |||||
| bhl | v | O Ind bhrāta, L frater, R брат | Gt broþar, O Icel bróðir, OE brōþor | Sw broder, G Bruder, NE brother | |
| L ferre, R.беру Fr future, R быть | Gt baíran, OE be-ran OHG bin, bíst, OE bēon | G gebären, NE bear G bin, bist, NE be | |||
| dh | ð | O Ind rudhira, R рдеть | Gt rauþs, O Icel rauðr, OE rēad | G rot, Sw röd, NE red | |
| O Ind mádhyas, L medius R делать | Gt midjis [ð], OE middle Gt gadeþs, OE dǽd, dōn | G Mittel, NE middle NE deed, do | |||
| gh | γ | L hostis, R гость L (leg-) lectus, R залегать | Gt gasts, O Icel gestr, OE giest Gt ligan [γ], O Icel liggja, OE liсзаn | Sw gäst, G Gast, NE guest G liegen, NE lie | |
| O Ind vaha,.L via, R везти | Gt wiga [γ], О Iсеl vegr, OE we3 | Sw väg, G Weg, NE way | |||
| 1-It is assumed that PIE contained sets of aspirated plosives opposed to pure non-aspirated plosives: [bh, dh, gb] vs [b, d, g] as well as [ph, th, kh] vs [p, t, k]. The voiceless [ph, th, kh] are not included in the shift, since they behaved like the corresponding pure plosives [p, t, k] and probably were not distinguished in West IE. | |||||
By the terms of Grimm’s law voiceless plosives developed in PG into voiceless fricatives (ACT I), IE voiced plosives were shifted to voiceless plosives (ACT II), and IE voiced aspirated plosives were reflected either as voiced fricatives or as pure voiced plosives (ACT III).
Cases which contradict the Grimm’s law. Voicing of fricatives in PG, or K. Verner’s law.
K.Verner’s law: all the Early PG voiceless fricatives [f, θ, x] which arose under Grimm’s law and also [s] inherited from PIE, became voiced between vowels if the preceding vowel was unstressed, in the absence of these conditions they remained voiceless.