The mystery of Paleo-Sardinian language or languages

[Mens-Sarda]

According to archaeological findings, in Sardinia during the prehistoric age flourished various cultures, some seemed to be connected to the megalithic cultures present in Iberia, Corsica and southern France, others appear connected to the Aegean world, particularly to the Cycladic Neolithic civilization of the Cyclades islands, Greece (3200-1000 b.C.). Therefore the Paleo-Sardinian people supposedly spoke a pre-IE language or more pre-IE languages. Genetic studies on Sardinian DNA showed some points in common with Basques; this suggests that during a remote age Sardinia had a direct contact with Iberian peoples, while linguistic studies on actual Sardinian language and toponyms show traces of a proto-Basque substratum; according to linguists about 30-40% of toponyms in central-northern Sardinia are inexplicable in Latin or actual Romance-Sardinian, but they instead make perfectly sense if compared to Basque or proto-Basque.

For this reason, (as an amateur) driven by curiosity I started to read some Basque etymological dictionary, to see with my eyes if I could find something comparable with actual Romance-Sardinian language and with Sardinian inexplicable toponyms. With my great surprise I've found many coincidences, some words that I've found can be compared to synonymouses, many other words are instead nearly identical in pronunciation and meaning. Another striking thing that I've found are the Basque Onomatopoeias or Ideophones, which are often composed by the repetition of two identical words; the same thing that happens with actual Sardinian Onomatopoeias and Ideophones.

So I wrote a little list of these coincidences between Basque and Sardinian vocabulary and toponyms. Have fun

Spoiler!

• Basque - Sardinian
  

• Agian, Ahian = maybe
  
• Igiantu = unless
  

• Ahardi, Aardi, Ardi = sow
• ‘Erda, Gherda, Berda = little cubes of pork lard

• Aiho = desire
• Aju (pronounce “ÀYU”) = desire, will

• Aitz, Haitz = crag, stone
• Aizkor = axe
• Aitza, Aicia, Alcia, Aiscia, Ascia, Aiscra, Ascra = splinter, sliver

• Antza = appearance, attitude
• Atza = attitude, courage

• Antzu, Antxu = literally “empty”, said of non-pregnant females
• Anzare = to give birth; said of female animals

• Ardi-kari = sheeps’ guardian, sheperd
• Àrrica! Àrriga! = call for the sheperd dog

• Aritz, Haritz = oak
• Arìtzo = Sardinian village on the mountains, surrounded by oak woods

• Arratz = bush
• Arrasone = tangle of bushes
• Basque / Paleo-Sardinian voice Arratz / Arras + Latin augmentative suffix One.
• Arras+One = big bush

• Aztigar, Axtigar, Gaztigar = maple tree
• Astìghe, Ostìghe, Costìghe = maple tree

• Bor, Bar = Basque prefix meaning “deep, down, below”
• Bor, Bar = prefix present in the names of many Sardinian villages situated into deep valleys or lowlands.
• Example :
• Borutta : it’s a village situated in a deep valley overlooked by a deep rocky cliff (in Sardinian : cliff, fall = rutta).
  
• Basque / Paleo-Sardinian voice Bor + Romance-Sardinian voice “Rutta”, feminine past participle of the Latin/Sardinian verb “Rùere” = to fall.
• Bor+Rutta = deep fall.

• Burrumba = uproar, hubbub
• Burrumballa = uproar, hubbub (used in central-southern Sardinia)

• Dirdira = tremor
• Tiri-tiri = onomatopoeic voice said to describe a person trembling and soaked to the bone because of rain

• Ganga = mouth’s palate
• Ganga = under the jaw

• Golko = gulf
• Golgo = name of a deep pit-grotto with wide rounded edges (like a gulf), situated in central-eastern Sardinia

• Gor = Basque prefix meaning “to swallow”
• Gorropu = name of a deep and narrow gorge situated in central Sardinia
• Basque / Paleo-Sardinian voice “GOR” + Latin voice “RUPE” (cliff)
• Possible evolution : GOR-RUPE->GOR-ROPE->GOR-ROPU = swallowing cliff

• Gora = high, elevated
• Cora, Gora = deep gorge or channel made by water
• Compare it also with the Slavic “Gora” = mountain

• Ihes/Iges = refuge
• Tigesi = medieval name of the village of Thiesi; which was founded on an high plateau by the refugees of other villages abandoned because of famine and plagues.

• Iturri, Üthür-i = source
• Ìttiri = village of north-western Sardinia
• Ittireddu = another village of north-western Sardinia
• The name ITTIREDDU seems to be composed by the Paleo-Sardinian voice ÌTTIRI + the Romance-Sardinian diminutive suffix EDDU; so if ÌTTIRI = source, then ITTIREDDU = little source
• Ettori = name of a creek near my village

• Keremul = a variety of apple
• Cherémule = a village of north-western Sardinia
• During the Byzantine age the village was named KELEMALUM or KEREMALUM.
• Pre-IE voice KELE (caldera) + Latin voice MALUM (apple tree); it makes sense since the village is situated on the side of an ancient extinct volcano.
• So KELE+MALUM = caldera’s apple tree

• Kukurru, Kukur = summit, upper part, top of the mountain
• Cùccuru = summit, upper part, top of the mountain, top of the head

• Kukurusta = rooster’s comb / crest
• Cogorosta = rooster’s comb / crest
• Basque / Paleo-Sardinian voice “KUKUR / KOKOR” + Latin voice “CRESTA” (crest)
• Possible evolution :
• KUKUR-CRESTA->KUKUR-CRISTA->KUKUR-CRUSTA->KUKUR-RUSTA->KOKOR-ROSTA->COGOR-ROSTA->COGO-ROSTA.
• During the evolution of Sardinian there are many examples of switch from E to I, from U to I, from U to O and viceversa, and also examples of disappearance of the initial C.
• KUKURUSTA / COGOROSTA = literally “summit’s crest, top of the head’s crest”

• Coccorrótzi, Coccorrócci, Coccorrói = bump
• Word apparently composed by Basque / Paleo-Sardinian “KUKUR/KOKOR” (summit, top of the head) + Basque “OZI” (sprout, growth, excrescence).
• KOKOR+OZI = top of the head's excrescence = bump

• Cugumía = toponym of a place in the countryside of this area, it’s a passage between two hills, a narrow passage that gives access to the plateau above these hills.
• Word apparently composed by Basque / Paleo-Sardinian “KUKUR” (summit) + Basque “MEHAR” (narrow)
• KUKUR-MEHAR->KUKU-MEHA->KUGU-MEHA->CUGU-MÍA = narrow summit

• Lantar = hoarfrost, dew
• Lentore = hoarfrost, dew

• Mokor = pile, stack, little hill
• Mògoro = village in central Sardinia situated on a little hill

• Mustupil = muzzle, snout
• Mutzighile = muzzle, snout
• Muccighile (Corsican) = muzzle, snout
• Possible evolution :
• MUSTUPIL->MUZTUPIL->MUZTIPIL->MUZTIBIL->MUZTIGIL->MUTZIGIL->MUTZIGHILE
• Changes from U to I, or P to B to G, TZ to C or viceversa, plus metathesis phenomenon are documented in Sardinian.

• Orro = shout, bellow, moo
• Òrriu = donkey’s bray

• Pinpirin-a = embryon of fruit
• Pimpirina (south Sardinia) = a morsel of something

• Pitxi-ka / Pitzi-ka = a little quantity
• Piticca (south Sardinia) = feminine of “PITICCU” (little)

• Tuturru = summit, upper part
• Istuturrada = slap given to the back top of the head

• Txintxirri = onomatopoeic voice meaning "Rattle, rattling sound"
• Cincirriólu, Thinthirriólu, Tzintzirriólu = bat
• The pronunciation of Basque Txintxirri is identical to that of Sardinian CINCIRRIÓLU.
  
• Which seems to be formed by the Basque / Paleo-Sardinian voice Txintxirri / Cincirri + the Latin diminutive suffix “OLU”.
• Txintxirri / Cincirri + OLU = little rattling thing (because of the bat’s call, similar to the sound of a rattle)

• Zakhur. Zakur, Xakur = dog
• Jàgaru = hunting dog
• Ghjàcaru (southern Corsican) = dog
• Compare it also with the Albanian “Zagar” (hunting dog); and also with German “Jäger” (hunter)

• Zurrumba = suppuration, bloating
• Zurúmba = hump, hunchback
• Zurumbone = bump

List of Basque Ideophones / Onomatopoeias
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...ones_in_Basque
http://www.pyreneanexperience.com/basque-language/

Some Sardinian Ideophones / Onomatopoeias

Spoiler!

• ciò-ciò = call for pigs
• ps-ps = call for cats
• mus-mus = call for cats (Latin "mus - muris" = mouse)
• té-té = call for dogs
• cori-cori / gori-gori = tickle
• feri-feri = impatient, anxious, insistent (from the Sardinian verb "férrere" = to bring, to end-up; Latin "ferre" = to bring, to lead)
• ferru-ferru = unmovable, impossible to persuade (from Sardinian "ferru" = iron)
• tricia-tricia = soaked to the bone
• tiri-tiri = trembling and soaked to the bone
• toppi-toppi = limping, unsteady (from Sardinian "toppu" = limp)
• triki-traka = repetitive annoying noise
• rue-rue = about to fall (singular imperative of Latin / Sardinian verb "Rùere" = to fall)
• fue-fue = impatient to go (singular imperative of Sardinian "fuire" = to escape)
• mudu-mudu = silently, stealthily (from Sardinian "mudu" = mute)