THE STRONG PERFECTS IN THE ROMANCE ... - Page ON

(Mon.), seppi/sappi, OIt., Sic. potti, Umbr. poddi, Cors. pobbi, volli,
valli (Dar., p. 80, Rohlfs, §582), but always with the arrhizotonic forms
formed on the root, as giacesti, avesti, tenesti, OIt. venesti (now venisti
with the i of venire), except in Old Aquilan, Old Roman and other old
dialectal forms such as cappissero, hábbera/(h)ábera (condit.), ebbesti,
appisse, sappessemo, dippisse, plaquesse, iacquesse, pótteri, pótera,
tennesse, sosténnera, vennesse, convénnera. We have already seen that
compared with the possible primitive Latin type Italian differs in having
a strong form 6 also, as ebbero, and the same situation is found also in
form 4 in the dialects, which have forms like ébbimo/ábbimo/áppimu,
sáppimu, póttimu, tínnimu, vínnimu (Dar., p. 96, following Rohlfs, §566),
with which can be compared Sard. appimus, that is, the rhizotonic forms
are all strong. The same position is found dialectally in the -si perfects,
and here the antiquity of a form like díssimo seems to be corroborated by
ORum. zísemŭ, and cf. Sard. lessimus; furthermore these forms agree
with the accentuation of Lat. hábuimus (late), díximus, and seem clearly
to be strongholds of resistance against the tendency to change to
arrhizotonic form 4. As regards the forms like ebbesti, sappessemo,
iacquesse, opinions differ, some explaining them as being formed on the
analogy of the strong forms, but I myself do not see why we cannot
allow a continuation of the classical Latin state of affairs. After all,
especially in the case of the imperfect subjunctive, if forms like giacessi
once become established, there is little reason for them to be associated
with giacqui, as the imperfect subjunctive has no semantic connection
with the preterite and tends to be associated rather with the present
subjunctive, as in Catalan above all, where the stems interact. In most
cases — and this applies to ébbimo too — once the weak form is established,
there is no return to the strong form, and in fact in some areas avesti has
led to avei, avé, averono. Anyway, we will return to this problem of the
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