Can けれども be analysed further?


Consider the conjunction ども, e.g.:

  * 行けども

  * 言えども

Formation rule:

  * Verb Hypothetical form (仮定形) + ども

This leads me to hypothesise that the conjunction けれども (meaning "but; however;
although") is built from けれ + ども.

I am unable to find a verb that is けれる. There is 蹴る though.

What is the composition of けれども? Or is it impossible to break it down further?




As you have already discovered, -domo attaches to the hypothetical form (仮定形).
Historically, this was known as realis (已然形). The kere here is the
hypothetical / realis form of -keri. -keri is an obsolete suffix (助動詞) which
expresses hearsay recollection.

-keri itself may be further split apart as a contraction of -ki ari, where -ki is another obsolete recollectional suffix and ari is the verb ar-i "to be".

While simple and imprecise, you may think of -keri as past tense. You may
still find remnants of it in expressions such as "dakke".

