Further, datives in -a, as sun-a, feld-a, became datives in -e, and may here be so considered. Hence, in very late A.S. and in Early English, we find, neglecting stems in -r, the few words which shew mutation in the dative, and others which do not affect the general result, the following uses.
1. Every dative case ends in -e.
2. Every accusative resembles either the nominative or the dative; if the latter, it ends in -e.
Hence, there are ONLY THREE main types, which we may illustrate by the words dōm, ende, and lār. The A.S. dōm became M.E. doom, whilst the form ende persisted without any change of spelling.
The A.S. lār would, we should expect, become M.E. loor, which may here represent it, provisionally, for the present purpose (I substitute it for the type ār in Sievers, merely as being a commoner word). The resulting forms are, accordingly, these:—
| A. | B. | C. |
| nom. acc. end-e | (nom. loor) | nom. acc. doom |
| nom. dat. end-e. | dat. acc. lor-e. | nom. dat. dom-e. |
A. As to this type, there could be no hesitation; all such words
would naturally retain the final -e for a considerable period. Examples appear in ende, end, and words declined like it, such as M.E. herd-e, herdsman, lēche, physician, wyte, punishment; and numerous agential words in -ere, as millére, miller. Also in A.S. giefu, and words declined like it, such as M.E. care, care; shame, shame; sake, sake; love, love. Also in A.S. wine, sife, and words like them, such as M.E. mete, meat, stede, stead, reye, rye, hate, hate, spere, spear. Also in A.S. sunu, son, wudu, wood; M.E. sone, wode. Also in A.S. duru, door, nosu, nose; M.E. dore, nose.
B. In type B, we have a majority for the form lor-e; the Early E. nom. loor gave way, and is seldom found, so that lore became the standard type, in Chaucer, for nom., dat., and acc. alike.
Examples occur in A.S. lār, and words like it, as M.E. fore, journey, path, halle, hall, sorwe, sorrow, stounde, time, wounde, wound, ore, mercy. Also in A.S. bēn, petition, and words like it, such as M.E. quene, queen; hyde, hide, skin; tyde, time; dede, deed.