210 THE FORMATION OF NOUNS For the purpose of this brief exposition the inherited types may be divided into two major classes, namely I, those which function as nouns and II. those which function as adjectives. These are followed by III. Dvandva and IV. Avyayibhava, The first class falls into two main divisions according to whether the first member is (a) an adjective or noun in apposi- tion with the second member or (b) a noun standing in such re- lationship to the second member as would normally be ex- pressed by a case termination. Conversely the adjectival type can conveniently be divided into two classes according to whether the final member is adjective or noun. Of the two major classes, nominal and adjectival, the former are rare in the early language, and this is the case elsewhere in Indo-European. On the other hand the various types of adjectival compound are abundantly represented, as elsewhere, particularly in Greek. We shad see that there is very good reason for this disparity and that it is of significance for understanding how the system evolved. I, A. Compounds in which the two members stand in apposi- tion to each other are named Karmadharaya by the Indian grammarians. The main class consists of an adjective followed by a noun. The type is rare in the Samhitas, but becomes more frequent in the later Vedic prose texts. Examples are candrd - mas- ' (bright) moon purndmdsa- ‘ full-moon J , ekavird - ' unique hero krsnaiakuni- ‘ raven mahdgrdmd- ‘ great host tnahavtrd- ' great hero mahddhana- 1 great wealth nllotpald-
- blue lotus ", rajatapdtra- * silver vessel daksindgm- ‘ southern
fire adharahanu- ' lower jaw ', trtiyasavand- * 3rd pressing navadavd- 1 land newly burnt for cultivation krsnasarpa - ' cobra Such compounds possess frequently specialised mean- ings, which would not automatically be expressed by the simple combination of the meanings of the adjective and the noun. The word krsnasakum literally * black bird ', means more speci- fically 4 raven ' ; ' black bird ' would be expressed by the un- compounded noun and adjective. Similarly mlotpald- means not merely ' a blue lotus ’, but a particular botanical species (Nymphaea cyanea). It is only in the later language that such compounds show a tendency to be used as simple equivalents of the combination adjective + noun, In a smaller class the first member is a noun in a relation of apposition to the second member. Such are purusamrgd-
