Abkhaz-Adyghe etymology : Query result

Proto-West-Caucasian: *ṗVśV ( ~ -š-)

North Caucasian etymology: North Caucasian etymology

Meaning: step-relative

Abkhaz: -psa

Abaza: -psa

Adyghe: -ṗʷas

Kabardian: -ṗas

Comments: PAT *-pǝśa (cf. Bzyb. -pśa), used in compounds: Abkh. án-psa 'step-mother', áb-psa 'step-father', Abaz. an-psa, ab-psa; pa-psa 'step-son'. PAK *-ṗasǝ (also used in compounds: Ad. nǝ-na-ṗʷas, Kab. āna-na-ṗas 'step-mother', Ad. tǝ-na-ṗʷas, Kab. āda-na-ṗas 'step-father'). The PAK form is impossible to separate from PAT *-pǝśa, thus we can not accept Abitov's and Shagirov's treatment of the AK morpheme as compound ("sitting instead of"), see Shagirov 1,61, as well as the derivation of PAT *-pǝśa from the verb *pǝśaxǝ- (Abkh. a-psáχ-ra, Bzyb. a-pśáx-ra, Abaz. psaχ-ra) 'to change' (Shakryl 1968, 37). The latter explanation should be rejected also for phonetic (accentological) reasons. Abdokov (1983, 141) also rejects PAK *-ṗasǝ as a compound, adducing instead Kab. bǝfa ( < *bǝsʷa) in bǝfa-q:ʷa 'step-son', bǝfa-pχʷ 'step-daughter': however, the source of these words is unknown to us.