PIE Roots
The root meaning "to carry"
(Name one variation of the root for 100 more points)
PIE:*Bher
In Völuspá, what is the name of the great ash tree that connects the Nine Worlds and is said to be central to the cosmos?
What is Yggdrasil
This is the name of the monster Beowulf defeats in Hrothgar’s mead hall.
Who is Grendel?
This warrior-prince hesitates to fight his own kin at the start of the Mahabharata’s great war.
Who is Arjuna
This term refers to the systematic vowel changes seen in related Indo-European words like sing, sang, and sung, and was first described by 19th-century linguists studying Proto-Indo-European roots.
What is Ablaut
Root meaning death
(Name one variation of the root for 100 more points)
PIE:*Mr-to
What, or rather, who does Thrym want in exchange for Thor’s stolen hammer, Mjolnir?
Who is Freyja
Beowulf comes from this people, who live across the sea from the Danes.
Who are the Geats?
This charioteer, who also happens to be a god, delivers a sermon on duty and detachment in the Bhagavad Gita.
Who is Krishna
This sound shift, named after a famous German philologist, explains why Latin pater corresponds to English father, through regular changes in Indo-European stop consonants.
What is Grimm's Law
PIE: H1ekwos
Horse
Mythologies often tell of dramatic stories of sacrifice. Whose wisdom did the chief deity of the Aesir receive in exchange for one of his eyes?
Who is Mimir
After Grendel dies, Beowulf must fight this vengeful relative.
Who is Grendel's mother
The great war of the Mahabharata is fought between these two family factions.
Who are the Pandavas and the Kauravas?
This principle says that PIE roots typically consist of a single syllable with a structure of consonant-vowel-consonant, helping define what counts as a valid root.
Root structure rule (CVC)
PIE: *Medhu
Mead
According to Fáfnismál, after slaying Fáfnir, Sigurd gains knowledge not just from the dragon, but also by tasting this specific part of the dragon’s body, which grants him the ability to understand birds.
What is Fáfnir's heart
This object is forged by giants, fails Beowulf in battle, and symbolizes the limits of human craftsmanship.
What is the sword "Hrunting"
This dice game, rigged by Duryodhana’s uncle, leads to the exile of the Pandavas.
What is the game of dice at Hastinapura?
Though not directly attested in most Indo-European languages, these hypothesized PIE sounds explain unexpected vowel coloring and lengthening, and are represented with symbols like h₁, h₂, and h₃.
What are Laryngeals
Root meaning "come/go"
(Name one variation of the root for 100 more points)
PIE: *Gwem
In Sigrdrífumál, Sigrdrífa advises Sigurth to carve these onto a drinking horn to ensure the ale is free from deceit.
What are Beer-Runes
This is the final monster Beowulf faces at the end of his life.
What is a Dragon
This queen and shared wife of the Pandavas is publicly humiliated in court, sparking calls for vengeance and justice.
Who is Draupadi?
This rule in PIE explains how certain syllables become "lengthened" when followed by a particular type of consonant, a phenomenon that is crucial to understanding the alternation between short and long vowels in PIE roots.
What is "compensatory lengthening"