From oath to prohibition

Abstract Prohibitive μά (/maː/) stands out as one of the most remarkable features of the poorly documented Thessalian variety of Hestiaeotis (Western Thessaly). The regular outcome μεί (/meː/) (< PrGk *mē), with the characteristic raising of its long vowel, is well documented in the other Thessalian regions, making unexpected μά all the more puzzling. Attempts to explain this deviant outcome in terms of a phonetic development are largely speculative and unsatisfactory in several respects. This sort of anomaly clearly suggests that a solution should be sought outside of the realm of phonology. Hence, in this paper, the substitution of prohibitive μά for μεί in Hestiaeotis is attributed to the analogical influence of the particle μά (/ma/) used in negative oaths.