The diachrony of the Basque singular inessive and an attempt at popularizing the reconstructive method

Abstract

In consonant-ending words the Basque inessive suffix presents an irregular epenthetic -e- in definite singular phrases (cf. lanean, hitzean...). Jacobsen (1977) provided a solution to this problem by reconstructing the inessive marker as -gan. This article gathers evidence against this proposal and propounds an alternative hypothesis based on the grammaticalization of demontratives. It also establishes a methodological parallel with a well-known problem in the field of astronomy: the analysis of some irregularities in Uranus’ orbit lead to the discovery of Neptune. This article highlights the methodological value of irregularity even in very different scientific domains.