--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "card" <cardemaister@...> wrote:
>
>
> I doubt that because Sanskrit vowels (save *short* a-sound) are "pure", like
> those e.g. in Italian and Finnish, whereas that Russian i-like sound (as in
> 'bit') would be, I believe, described as reduced (not sure about that,
> though), like many vowels for instance in English.
>
BTW, I think it's possible that native speakers of English
might hear the *qualitative* difference between short (hrasva) and long
(diirgha) a-sound in Sanskrit easier that for instance myself, because they are
accustomed, so to speak, to reduced vowels, whereas
I prolly hear easier the difference in their length, because vowel
length is a so called distinctive feature in Finnish as well
as in Sanskrit!?
For intance:
Finnish 'sama' (same), 'saama' ([something] acquired [by someone])
(In context: Saama-ni soma siima: The cute [soma] (fishing)line
[siima] acquired [saama] by me [-ni].)
Sanskrit 'sama' (same), 'saama(n)':
2 sAman 1 n. (fr. 1. %{sA} = 1. %{san}) acquisition , possession ,
property , wealth , abundance RV. VS.
3 sAman 2 n. (m. only in TBr. ; prob. connected with %{sAntv} ; accord.
to some fr. 1. %{sA} ; cf. 3. %{sAman}) calming , tranquillizing , (esp.) kind
or gentle words for winning an adversary , conciliation , negotiation (one of
the 4 Upa7yas or means of success against an enemy , the other 3 being %{dAna}
, %{bheda} , and %{daNDa} , qq. vv. ; ibc. or instr. sg. and pl. , `" by
friendly means or in a friendly way , willingly , voluntarily "') TBr. &c. &c.
4 sAman 3 n. (of doubtful derivation ; accord. to Un2. iv , 152 fr.
%{so} = 2. %{sA} , as `" destroying sin "' ; in Nir. vii , 12 apparently
connected with %{sammita} ; by others derived fr. 1. %{san} , %{sA} , %{sAntv}
, and perhaps not to be separated fr. 1. and 2. %{sAman}) a metrical hymn or
song of praise , (esp.) a partic. kind of sacred text or verse called a Sa1man
(intended to be chanted , and forming , with %{Rc} , %{yajus} , %{chandas} ,
one of the 4 kinds of Vedic composition mentioned first in RV. x , 90 , 9) RV.
&c. &c. ; any song or tune (sacred or profane , also the hum of bees) MBh.
Ka1v. &c. ; the faculty of uttering sounds (?) TBr. (Sch.)
sIman m. (see 2. %{sI} and %{sItA}) a separation or parting of the hair so as
to leave a line AV. Br. AitUp. ; a suture of the skull L. ; f. or n. a boundary
, border , bounds , limit , margin , frontier (lit. and fig.) Ya1jn5. Ka1v.
Pur. ; f. a ridge serving to mark the boundary of a field or village A1past.
VarBr2S. ; a bank , shore L. ; the horizon L. ; the utmost limit of anything ,
furthest extent , summit , acme , ne plus ultra Ka1v. Inscr. ; the scrotum Pat.
on Pa1n2. 2-3 , 36 ; a partic. high number Buddh. ; the nape of the neck L.
