The Universal Bi-Gender Suffix Engine of the Archaic Pantheon: The PIE *-mó- + Agent Nominal Template
Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Abstract: Mainstream historical linguistics frequently surrenders the etymologies of the most archaic Greek deities to the "Pre-Greek substrate," labeling them as un-etymologizable foreign loanwords due to localized phonetic variations. This monograph presents a comprehensive, unified alternative framework. We demonstrate that the names of Artemis, Themis, Semele, Moira, and Hermes are not isolated anomalies, but are mathematically regular formations built from a single, native Proto-Indo-European (PIE) structural engine: a core verbal or zoonym root compounded with the Caland-associated characteristic suffix *-mó- and an individualizing agent suffix. Crucially, this paper proves that this template operates as a universal, bi-gender linguistic factory. By maintaining the central *-mó- layer and simply toggling the final animate agent suffix between feminine (-is, -a, -ya) and masculine (-os), prehistoric speakers systematically transformed raw cosmological concepts into personified divine entities. Through regular rules of vocalic syncope, cluster simplification, laryngeal coloring, and nasal dissimilation, this framework unifies the phonetic development of the archaic pantheon under a single mechanical law.
Author: Cornelison, Brandon Eli
Language: English
Subfield: Language and Linguistics
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7224739274