The morphological and constructional evolution of OHG huuanta and Dutch want

Under a formal and functional reconstruction, the form and semantics of Old High German huuanta and Dutch want receive an explanation for the first time. Both conjunctions, together with Latin unde and Tocharian B ente, A äntā(ne), descend from PIE interrogative-relative *kwo-m-dheh1, *kwo-m-dhoh1, *kwo-m-dhah2 'whence, where', whose semantics may be compositionally analyzed as ablatival-instrumental *kwo-m plus locatival-directional *-dho(h1), *-dha(h2). The novel equation of Old High German huuanta, Dutch want with Latin unde and Tocharian B ente, A äntā(ne) sheds light on a number of phonological and syntactic questions, including the merger of PIE *-nd- and *-ndh- in Latin and Tocharian (§ 2.1) and the non-affrication of *-nd- in Tocharian (§ 3.1.2). Another consequence is that a case can be made for clause-initial aphaeresis which triggered the loss of the labiovelar onsets in unde and ente/äntā(ne), thus pointing to the existence of wh-movement and clause-initial wh-words in both Latin and Tocharian (§ 3.1.1).