Proto-Indo-Aryan language
Proto-Indo-Aryan is the reconstructed proto-language of the Indo-Aryan languages. It is intended to reconstruct the language of the Indo-Aryans, who had migrated into the Indian subcontinent. Being descended from Proto-Indo-Iranian, it has the characteristics of a satem language.
History
Proto-Indo-Aryan is meant to be the predecessor of Old Indo-Aryan, which is directly attested as Vedic and Classical Sanskrit, as well as by the Indo-Aryan superstrate in Mitanni. Indeed, Vedic Sanskrit is very close to Proto-Indo-Aryan.Some of the Prakrits display a few minor features derived from Proto-Indo-Aryan that had already disappeared in Vedic Sanskrit.
Today, numerous modern Indo-Aryan languages are extant.
Differences from Vedic
Despite the great archaicity of Vedic, the other Indo-Aryan languages preserve a small number of conservative features lost in Vedic.One of these is the representation of Proto-Indo-European *l and *r. Vedic merges both as. Later, however, some instances of Indo-European again surface in Classical Sanskrit, indicating that the contrast survived in an early Indo-Aryan dialect parallel to Vedic. However, it is not clear that the contrast actually survived anywhere in Indo-Iranian, not even in Proto-Indo-Iranian, as is also found in place of original *r in Indo-Iranian languages.
The common consonant cluster kṣ of Vedic and later Sanskrit has a particularly wide range of Proto-Indo-European and Proto-Indo-Iranian sources, which partly remain distinct in later Indo-Aryan languages:
- PIE *ks, *kʷs, *gs, *gʷs > PII *kš > Middle Indo-Aryan kh-, -kkh-
- PIE *dʰgʷʰ, *gʰs, *gʷʰs > PII *gʱžʱ > Middle Indo-Aryan gh-, -ggh-
- PIE *tḱ; *ǵs, *ḱs > PII *tć, *ćš > Middle Indo-Aryan ch-, -cch-
- PIE *dʰǵʰ, *ǵʰs > PII *ȷ́ʱžʱ > Middle Indo-Aryan jh-, ''-jh-''
Personal pronouns (nominative case)
Most personal pronouns are identical between Proto-Indo-Iranian and Proto-Indo-Aryan and show modest differences between Proto-Indo-Aryan and Sanskrit| Pronoun | PIE | PII and PIA |
| I | *éǵ > *eǵHóm | *aȷ́Hám > *aȷ́ʰám > PIA *aźʰám > Skr अहम् |
| You | *túh₂ | *túH > PIA *tuHám > Skr त्वम् |
| He | *ey- | *sá |
| She | *séh₂ | *sáH > Skr सा |
| It | *tód | *tád > Skr तद् |
| We | *wéy > *weyóm | *wayám |
| You | *yū́ | *yúH > Skr यूयम् |
| They | *tóy | *táy > Skr ते /tai/ |
| They | *téh₂es | *tā́s > Skr ताः |
| They | *téh₂ | *tá > Skr तानि |
Numerals
Most numerals are identical between Proto-Indo-Iranian and Proto-Indo-Aryan. Most number show minimal differences between Proto-Indo-Aryan and Sanskrit.| Numeral | PIE | PII and PIA |
| One | *h₁óynos > *h₁óykos | *Háykas > Skr एक /aika/ |
| Two | *dwóh₁ | *dwáH > Skr द्व |
| Three | *tréyes | *tráyas > Skr त्रयः ' |
| Four | *kʷetwóres | *čatwā́ras > Skr चत्वारः ' |
| Five | *pénkʷe | *pánča |
| Six | *swéḱs | *šwáćš > PIA *ṣwáṭṣ > Skr षट् |
| Seven | *septḿ̥ | *saptá |
| Eight | *oḱtṓw | *Haštā́ > PIA *Haṣṭā́ > Skr अष्ट |
| Nine | *h₁néwn̥ | *Hnáwa > Skr नव |
| Ten | *déḱm̥ | *dáća > PIA *dáśa |