Alpha privative
An alpha privative or, rarely,[1] privative a (from Latin alpha prīvātīvum, from Ancient Greek
It is derived from a Proto-Indo-European syllabic nasal *n̥-, the zero ablaut grade of the negation *ne, i.e. /n/ used as a vowel. For this reason, it usually appears as an- before vowels (e.g. an-alphabetism, an-esthesia, an-archy).[2] It shares the same root with the Greek prefix nē- or ne-, in Greek
It is not to be confused with, among other things, an alpha copulative (e.g. a-delphós) or the prefix an- (i.e. the preposition aná with ecthlipsis or elision of its final vowel before a following vowel; e.g. an-ode).
Cognates[edit]
Sanskrit[edit]
The same prefix appears in Sanskrit, also as अ- a- before consonants; and अन्- an- before vowels.
Latin[edit]
In Latin, the cognate prefix is in-, which leaves its traces in English words like invisible and inaccessible. The prepositional prefix in- is unrelated.
Germanic languages[edit]
In English and other West Germanic languages, the cognate is un- (or on-).
In North Germanic languages, the -n- has disappeared and Old Norse has ú- (e.g. ú-dáins-akr), Danish and Norwegian have u-, whereas Swedish uses o- (pronounced [u]), and Icelandic and Faroese use the related ó-.
Homonym[edit]
The prefix ἁ- ha- (also ἀ- a- from psilosis), copulative a, is nearly homonymous with privative a, but originates from Proto-Indo-European *sm̥.[2]
See also[edit]
References[edit]