228 THE DECLENSION OF NOUNS these stems the 5-forms are more extensively used in Iranian, since Avestan has nominatives of this kind attached to steins in -if ant : amavd ( amavant -). On analysis the Sanskrit forms of the nom, sg T are derived from this ( ndmasvan , pasuman , etc.). The nominative formed from the vant- and mant - stems would have appeared as °van and °tnan {like °an in the ant- stems). The nominatives in -van, -man are derived from *-vdns, -mans (-vdms, mams) which have replaced *-vas, *-mas by analogical extension of nasalisation to the nom. sg. This phenomenon is found elsewhere in Sanskrit in 5-stems, and since it does not appear in Iranian, it is to be taken as a special Indian development. The alternation of nasalised forms in the strong cases with forms without nasal in the weak cases in such classes as the present participles (< adan . addntam , adatA , etc.), which is due to the change of the sonant nasal to a, led to the extension of n to the strong cases of other classes where the nasal does not originally belong. This is found notably in the comparatives in y as {srdydn ‘ better srdydmsam, srdyasas) and in the perfect participles in -vas ( vidvdn , vid- vAmsam , vidusas). It is found also, in the declension of pums- 1 man ' : pumAn, pumAmsam, pumsds . This is a masc. -as- stem, but one which in contradistinction to the normalised type (raksas, raksdsam , raksdsas) has preserved some archaic features. These are (i) the weakening of the radical vowel as a result of the accentuation of the suffix, (2) the old terminational accent of the oblique cases as in pitrd, uksnds, etc., and {3) the con- sequent weakening of the suffix in these cases. In addition the inflection is complicated by the introduction of the nasal into the nom. acc, sg. (replacing * pumas, *pumasam ). 1 There is one other example of this nasalisation among the masc. as-stems, namely svdvdn , nom. sg. of svdvas - f helpful The introduction of -n- into the heteroclitic nom. sg. of the vant- and mant - stems follows this general principle, and it was further facilitated by the existence of -n- regularly in the acc. sg. which was formed with the vant- stem. The distribution of the two stems corresponds to that of the neuter us and van in dhdnus-jdhdnvan above except that in the masculine the acc. sg. 1 The masc. pumas - would correspond to a neuter *petimos- ‘ pubes The Lat. words pubes, puber, have different suffixes. Since the final root here is likely to be that which appears also in Lat, pu-d-or, b and m may also be vary- ing sulbxal elements, alternatively b in Latin may be for m before r in puber as in hibemus , tuber (; tumdr ),
