Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/pénkʷe

This Proto-Indo-European entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Indo-European

Etymology

Usually explained as a derivation from the words for "fist" and "finger":

• Proto-Indo-European *pn̥kʷ-sti-s (“fist”) > Proto-Germanic *funhstiz > *funstiz (> Old English fȳst (“fist”), Old Frisian fest (“fist”), Old High German fūst (“fist”))
• Proto-Indo-European *penkʷ-ró-s (“finger”) > Proto-Germanic *fingraz (“finger”) (> Gothic 𐍆𐌹𐌲𐌲𐍂𐍃 (figgrs, “finger”), Old Norse fingr, Old English finger, Old High German finger)

Ultimately all of these forms may go back to a verbal stem *penkʷ- (“to take in hand, to handle”), but which is not attested in any of the daughter languages. According to Blažek (1999: 229) however, the meanings “fist”, etc. are primary. Relation has been suggested to *ponkʷ-to- (“all, whole”), possibly seen in Latin cūnctus and Hittite 𒉺𒀭𒆪𒍑 (pa-an-ku-uš, “family”), thus *pénkʷe meaning "the whole (hand)".

Pronunciation

• (Sihler 1995): IPA^(key): [péŋ⁽ʷ⁾.kʷe]

Numeral

cardinal number

5	Previous:	*kʷetwóres
	Next:	*swéḱs

*pénkʷe

1. five

Declension

Uninflected.

Descendants

• Proto-Albanian: *penče
  • Old Albanian: pensë
    • Albanian: pesë
• Anatolian:
  • Luwian: [script needed] (paⁿta)
• Armenian:
  • Old Armenian: հինգ (hing)
    • Armenian: հինգ (hing)
• Proto-Balto-Slavic: *penke
  • Lithuanian: penki
  • Latvian: pieci
  • Sudovian: pank
  • Proto-Slavic: *pętь (< *penkti-) (see there for further descendants)
• Proto-Celtic: *kʷenkʷe (see there for further descendants)
• Proto-Germanic: *fimf (see there for further descendants)
• Proto-Hellenic: *pénkʷe (see there for further descendants)
• Proto-Indo-Iranian: *pánča (see there for further descendants)
• Proto-Italic: *kʷenkʷe
  • Latin: quinque, quīnque
    • Vulgar Latin: *cinque, *cīnque (see there for further descendants)
  • Oscan: 𐌐𐌖𐌌𐌐𐌄 (pumpe)
    • Latin: Pompēiī, Pompēius, Pontius
  • Umbrian: 𐌐𐌖𐌌𐌐𐌄 (pumpe)
• Messapic: [script needed] (penka-)
• Phrygian: πινκε (pinke)
• Tocharian: *p'äñś
  • Tocharian A: päñ
  • Tocharian B: piś

References

• Blažek, Václav. 1999. Numerals. Comparative-Etymological Analysis and their Implications. Brno: Masarykova Univerzita v Brně