Hungarian Historical Phonology hant

hant 'Scholle, Erdscholle; Grabhügel; Rasen, grüner Rasen'

First attestation/Old Hungarian data

[coming]

Important dialectal forms

Notable variants include hent, hont, hajint, hunt- (ÚMTSz II: 844, s.v. hant)

hancsik (UEW)

Uralic/Ugric/Pre-Hungarian reconstruction

Abondolo 1996: 50-51 (no. 114): *kumV

Obsolete:

UEW: ? PUg *kȣmɜ 'Bülte, Bülteninsel, Moorhügel; clump in a marsh, islet in a morass, hump in a marsh'

Loan etymology

None suggested

Cognates suggested in earlier research

MSzFE, UEW:

Khanty: North (Kaz) χŏməs 'ziemlich trockene bültentragende, mit Bäumen bewachsene Insel auf dem Moor, Hügel (auf der Heide, dem Moor)'

Mansi: West (LM) khåmšėl 'zsombék láphalom; Bülte, Moorhügel', North (So) χomali 'Bülte', (N) χåmės: χåmsiŋ mā 'zsombékos láp, tundra; torfartiges Moor, Tundra'

Commentary

UEW reconstructs an uncertain Proto-Ugric *kȣmɜ and notes that the etymology is possible only if n in Hungarian hant goes back to m (the assimilation *mt > nt is regular).

The Ob-Ugric cognates are regular (Honti 1982: 151, No. 273) and point to earlier *u: Abondolo (1996: 50-51, No. 114) reconstructs *kumV to account for the Hungarian and the Ob-Ugric forms. It is unclear whether Hungarian a can be derived from *u (few parallels exist), and the notable variation of vocalism in Hungarian dialects makes it difficult to assume what was the original vowel here. Although a Proto-Ob-Ugric word can be reconstructed, the Ugric etymology remains uncertain.

Conclusion

Because of problems with Hungarian vocalism the Ugric etymology remains uncertain.

References

MSzFE: 216, s.v. hant: ? Proto-Ugric

UEW s.v. kȣmɜ: ? Proto-Ugric Uralonet