Reconstruction:Proto-Celtic/knissos

This Proto-Celtic 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-Celtic

Etymology

Usually derived from Proto-Indo-European *kneyd- (“to scratch”) + *-tós. The same root also yielded Old Norse hníta (“to strike”) and Ancient Greek κνίζω (knízō, “to scratch”). The semantic evolution may have gone from "scratched (thing)" > "skin".

Noun

*knissos m

1. skin

   Synonyms: *krokkenom, *kennos

2. flesh

Inflection

Masculine o-stem
	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*knissos	*knissou	*knissoi
vocative	*knisse	*knissou	*knissūs
accusative	*knissom	*knissou	*knissoms
genitive	*knissī	*knissous	*knissom
dative	*knissūi	*knissobom	*knissobos
locative	*knissei	*?	*?
instrumental	*knissū	*knissobim	*knissūis

Reconstruction notes

The vowel of Middle Welsh cnes is irregular; one would expect **cnys. It must have been influenced by or borrowed from a cognate where the -e- would be regular.

Related terms

• *knidā (“wound”)
  • Old Irish: cned
    • Middle Irish: cned
      • Irish: cneá (reformed spelling), cneadh (classical spelling)

Descendants

• Proto-Brythonic: *knɨs
  • Cornish: cnes
  • Middle Welsh: cnes
• Old Irish: cnes
  • Middle Irish: cnes
    • Irish: cneas
    • Scottish Gaelic: cneas