4.9. Accent in Declension

4.9.1. Just like vocalic grades, the accent is used, usually redundantly, to oppose the Straight cases (Nom.-Acc.-Voc.) to the Obliques.

NOTE. This is one of the worst reconstructed parts of the Europaio, as each language has developed its own accent system. Only Vedic Sanskrit, Greek and Baltoslavic dialects have more or less retained the old accent, and these have undergone different systematizations, which obscure still more the original situation.

4.9.2. In monosyllabics, the alternating system is clearly observed:

Nom. pods, Acc. podm [pod'm], Gen. podos;

Nom. kwon, Acc. kwonm [kwon'm], Gen. kunos.

4.9.3. In polysyllabics there are some well-known Greek examples:

dhugater / dhugatros, (/dhugəter/, daughter)

cne [G'na:] / cnaios [G'naios] (cf. Europe, Europaios)

NOTE. The above forms in Europaio are cna (woman) and Europa. See § 1.6.5.

1. Stems in -i and -u had a probable root accent in Nom.-Acc., and Genitive with accent on declension, as in the rest of examples.

2. Those in -a are not clear, therefore the alternating system is maintained.

3. The Vocative could be distinguished with the accent. The general rule (observed in ved., gr. and osl.) is that it is unstressed, but for the beginning of a sentence; in this case, the accent goes in the first syllable, to differentiate it from the Nominative with accent on declension.

NOTE. The accent in the Vocative is also related to that of the intonation of the sentence.

4.9.4. In the Plural system no general accent pattern can be found. Each Europaio-derived language developed its own system to distinguish the homophones in Singular and Plural. In the Obliques, however, the accent is that of the Genitive, when it is opposed to the Nom.-Acc; as in patromos, matrobhis, etc.