Pre-Basque Derivational Morphology: A Minimal Reconstruction

This paper reconstructs the core derivational mechanisms of Pre-Basque (henceforth Pre-B), an internally coherent morphological layer anterior to both ProtoBasque and the documented stages of Basque. Building on the operational framework established in Girard (2026a), the study isolates six derivational patterns that satisfy the criteria of internal recurrence, independent segmentability, and codistribution with other Pre-B traits. These patterns—localization (-(V)r/-(V)ra), collectivization (-ta/-eta), individuation (-na), light nominalization (a-/e-), agentive/instrumental derivation (-ri), and qualitative specification (s ∼ z)—form a structured and semantically transparent system irreducible to modern Basque or ProtoBasque morphology. Their interactions reveal a layered derivational architecture in which morphological operations combine in predictable sequences. The minimal model proposed here provides a conservative yet testable representation of this architecture, demonstrating that Pre-B constituted a morphologically active system governed by its own derivational grammar. These findings refine the internal stratification of the Basque lexicon and lay a foundation for future work on Pre-B phonotactics, lexical structure, and the emergence of later morphosyntactic categories. Part of the Pre-Basque Research Programme: see also Girard (2026a) https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18795462 · Girard (2026b) https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18829186 · Girard (2026c) https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18856708