A) cy^ ^fi jf Ex IJbris C. K. OGDEN HISTORY 01' THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES; OR, RESEARCHES INTO THE AFFINITIES OF THE TEUTONIC, GREEK, CELTIC, SCLAVONIC, AND INDIAN NATIONS. BY THE LATE ALEXANDER MURRAY, D.D. PROFESSOR OF ORIENTAL LANGUAGES IS THE UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH. \ WITH A LIFE OF THE AUTHOR. VOL. L EDINBURGH : PRINTED FOR ARCHIBALD CONSTABLE & CO. EDINBURGH AND HURST, ROBINSON, AND CO. LONDON. I 1823. LIBRARY p UNIVERSTTY OF CALrFORNIA* L^ , SANTA BAJBBARA b6 I THE EDITOR'S PREFACE. After performing the difficult task of superin- tending the publication of these volumes, the Edi- tor proposes to give a short account of the state in which he found tlie manuscript ; of the views en- tertained by the Author respecting the origin of the European Languages ; and of some of the means by which he acquired that eminent skill as a lin- guist, which fitted him to compose such a work as the present. I. It is well known to the literary world, that the late Dr Murray had long been employed on a work, which was calculated to throw light on the Philosophy of Languages ; but owing to his early death, this work had not received his last correc- tions and improvements. The outline, however, which the author himself had given to the public some years before, in the quarto edition of the Life IV THE EDITOR S PREFACE. of Bruce, proved it to be in a very considerable state of forwardness. After that event, two opinions seem to have been formed by those who had access to the manuscript, and consulted it. It was at first thought that the work was so imperfect, that its publication would not do credit to the Author ; but a more careful examination led to the belief, that, in whatever imperfection the work was left, its publication was warranted, by the curious inquiries which it contains, and the learned discussions into which it enters. In consequence of these views, the manuscript was put into my hands. I found that it consisted of two folio volumes, composed chiefly of text, with a few notes. When these volumes were compared, they were found to be not copies of each other, but two works on the same subject. The first volume, for the most part, was elaborately written, but some points were slightly touched upon, while others were carried to a disproportionate length. The second volume had evidently received the Au- thor's later ideas. The chapters and subdivisions were more perfect, and the subjects treated in them much clearer, and better arranged. In looking over the first volume, the Author seems to have been dissatisfied with his work. The tendency of the learning scattered over it could not always be perceived, and the dryness THE EDITOR S PREFACE. V and obscurity of the details discouraged peru- sal. He, therefore, resolved to cast the whole anew j to give more the form of narrative to what was to appear as text, and to subjoin to the text, thus altered, the bulk of his materials, un- der the title of Facts and Illustrations j a method which was judged to be more distinct and attrac- tive. All that he intended as text seems to have been nearly written out, but little more than a third of what he intended as Facts and Illustrations. We have no doubt that the Author had some difficulty in arranging his materials ; and the read- er will probably be of opinion, that it would have been an advantage to the work, as it now appears, if the Facts and Illustrations could either have been incorporated with the work, so as to have pre- sented a continued train of argument and illustra- tion, or at least could have been so brought under general heads, as to exhibit consecutive proofs of the doctrines submitted to consideration. Such, indeed, the notes, as they now appear, are in some measure to be considered ; but in order to remedy any inconvenience to the reader in consulting them, the subject of each is pointedout in the table of contents. A still more minute view of the text and notes is given in the index. From the place which the Facts and Illustra- tions hold in the manuscript, it is clear that the Author designed them to accompany the text, in a VI THE EDITOR S PREFACE. smaller letter ; but as in this case they would in some measure have disfigured the appearance of the page, as well as constantly interrupted the reader's attention, it has been judged proper to put them at the end of the volume ; and they have been printed in the same letter with the text, as the matters discussed in them are sometimes equally, if not more important. It may be supposed, that selections from the first manuscript volume would render the work more perfect ; and the reader will find the passa- ges by inverted commas, or by notices at the foot of the page, or otherwise, in which such selections have been made. The size to which the present volumes have been confined did not admit of extending these ; but if future editions are called for, there may be room for the admission of other instructive and interesting passages. In printing the second volume, the Author's manuscript has been faithfully followed. From the beginning, it was laid down as an indispensable rule, never to alter his meaning. When either a word or a date has been wanting, it has, for the most part, been supplied. When there was a break in the middle of a sentence, or at the end of a pa- ragraph or chapter, in which further illustration or argument seem to have been intended ; some slight alteration has been made, so as to complete the sense. THE editor's preface. vii Other changes made upon the Author's text are such correction of grammatical mistakes, inac- curate phrases, awkward arrangement of sentences, or useless repetitions, as the Author himself would doubtless have made, had he lived to revise his ma- nuscript. A critical eye, perhaps, may be able to fix on passages where more changes of this kind might have been made. The Editor can only say, that he has not been wanting in diligence ; though some allowance should be made for inexperience. He has at least wished to do justice to the author, whose notice and friendship he was fortunate enough to share ; and can assure his readers, that no unwarrantable liberties have been used with the manuscript. II. As to the correctness of Dr Murray's doc- trines concerning the origin of the European Lan- guages, the attentive reader will now have an op- portunity of judging for himself ; and we do not mean to prepossess him in their favour more than truth and probability will warrant. Whatever may be his judgment, he will at least find that Dr Murray does not form a theory, and then look about for arguments to support it ; but that he was led to the conclusions detailed in this work, by his attempts to analyze the words of which the European languages consist. viii THE editor's preface. As far back as history reaches, men have^^been in possession of articulate language, but how it came into their possession, he reckons foreign to his pur- pose to inquire. It is a matter of universal noto- riety, that all men in a social state have used arti- culate language, and that they have used it, not by instinct, but imitation. The language thus acquir- ed has not been stationary, but advancing to per- fection. As men become civilized, and exert their ingenuity, their wants increase and their ideas mul- tiply ; new terms are invented, and new modes of expression adopted. When tribes, who have thus improved their original language, separated and lost intercourse with each other, their language would suffer still farther chan- ges. These changes would chiefly be made by let- ters or syllables prefixed, inserted, or added ; or by throwing away the various terminations of nouns and verbs ; and they would be governed by no law but the practice of the majority who spoke the language, or dictated to the rest the manner of speaking it. As this method would be common to all the tribes thus separated, various languages would arise. The radical parts would be the same in all, but the modi- fying or changing parts different in each. The con- nection of them all would be discerned by scholars, but unnoticed by the vulgar. I3y carefully marking all the steps by which the THE EDITORS rilEFACE. IX compound and derived words of any language have been formed, by stripping them of all the letters or syllables prefixed, inserted, or added ; and by re- storing to their places those that have been thrown away ; the simple elements of speech may be dis- covered, and a probable notion formed of that languas^e which lies at the root of various dialects, spoken at a later period, and evidently related. From a minute examination of the European and other languages, Dr Murray is persuaded that they are all founded on one language ; that this lan- guage consisted of a few monosyllables, some of which may be considered as varieties of the others. Of these he thinks that ag or wag was probably the first articulate sound. To men, in the first stages of society, all nature was animated. Judging from that activity which they felt in themselves, all the appearances or events in the surrounding universe were thought to be ac- tions. When the impressions which these appearan- ces made upon them were strong, and the sentiments which they awakened uttered in language, they us- ed one or other of the terms now mentioned. All these are verbs of an interjectional nature, and the actions meant by them are forcible, vehement, and striking. The time at which this simple and energetic lan- guage was spoken lies beyond the period of history ; but, if conjecture may be hazarded, it was spoken X THE EDITOR S PREFACE, by some tribe to the north of Persia, not far from the Euxine and Caspian Seas, from which neigh- bourhood the tide of emigration seems to have flow- ed westwards to Europe, and in other directions. This primeval language he found at the root of all the languages which he has examined in this work, Celtic, Teutonic, Greek and Latin, Sla- vonic, Persic and Sanscrit. Of all these he finds the Teutonic to come the nearest to it, and of the branches of the Teutonic which claim this peculiar- ity, the first place is held by the Visigothic, the se- cond by the Tudesque or Alamannic, and the third by the Anglo-Saxon. As this original language became more familiar as a vehicle of thought, it was necessary to restrict the general meaning of these monosyllables, or use them in other related senses to that which they originally bore, and this object was accomplish- ed by adding them to themselves, and to one an- other. New terms were thus obtained, but considerably altered and softened, so as to be manageable by the voice, and agreeable to the ear. This alteration, or softening, took place chiefly upon the added syllables, which appeared generally in the form of a ; ba, fa, or PA ; GA, or ca j da, orTA; la, ma, na, ra, sa ; or these sylhibles reversed. These new terms were again considered as roots to which the altered or .sultcned syllables might be added anew j and this THE EDITOR S PREFACE. XI process might be repeated, as often as the occasions of utterance or communications of thought requir- ed. All kinds of ideas could now be expressed, multitudes of words now started up. The cases and genders of nouns, the persons, moods, and tenses of verbs; adverbs, prepositions, and conjunc- tions ; followed in succession. Thus were formed all the languages of Europe, spoken or dead, as well as those of Asia, considered in this work. As every piece of music has resulted from the endless variety in which seven notes the septem disaimina vocum, can be placed ; so the thousands of words spoken in Europe and part of Asia, formerly or at present, are only modifications or combinations of these nine radicals with one another. There are, therefore, two stages of language mentioned in Dr Murray's Work ; the first when the nine interjectional syllables were used ; . the other when the words of the same meaning, or the consignificatives, as he calls them, were added to these syllables, — a process which was carried on, as circumstances dictated, to the present time. We do not say that these two parts of his sys- tem may not afford room for discussions; but, if they are not demonstrated truth, they look very like it. In support of his account of the rise of the European languages, he has resorted to the inductive me- XU THE EDITOR S PREFACE. thod of reasoning ; and the reader will have cause to admire his ingenuity of analysis, if he cannot always subscribe to his conclusions. Similar in- genuity, perhaps, may bring out other results, and there is certainly room for the farther prosecution of these researches. The object of Dr Murray was to promote Eu- ropean literature ; and it remains with succeeding philologists to refute or substantiate his views. He has gone a certain length, and it lies with others to fill up the outline. He is an expounder of lan- guages on the principles of Home Tooke, and only entered on the path which that ingeniouw philologist opened up. The field of inquiry is still large, and upon it laurels may yet be won by the adventurous and indefatigable scholar. From this work of Dr Murray, it will be seen that the northern languages hold an importance which they have not always been thought to pos- sess. They are seen to explain the beautiful lan- guages of Greece and Rome, as well as Sanscrit, that venerable, though but lately known, language of India. Their usefulness, in this respect, can hardly be questioned, though all the admirers of those languages, perhaps, may not agree in this mode of accounting for their origin and progress. Whether the radical language, on which these and some other languages arc built, be the same as Hebrew, or that language, which is at the THE EDITOR S PREFACE. XIU foundation of Phoenician, Arabic, Chaldaic, Sy- riac, and Etliiopic ; — whether it be the same as the Coptic, or ancient language of the Egyptians, in- to which Alexandrian Greek has been ingrafted ; can only be determined by the future inquiries of philologists, equally skilful and industrious as Dr Murray. From the conformity of all languages yet known, we believe that all men originally spoke one lan- guage ; but, in order to establish this conformi- ty still farther, we must examine not only the European languages in the manner which Dr Mur- ray has followed ; but all those which are spoken on the Continent of Asia, many of which are still unknown ; all those which are spoken on the skirts and in the centre of Africa ; all those spoken by the savages of North and South America; all those in the Islands of the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans. In this undertaking, the truth would not be so diflScult to draw from the learned languages, in which the productions of human genius and science are recorded ; as from those of savage and unletter- ed tribes, which are not written but spoken, and which are so disguised by pronunciation, that a stranger, however ingenious and indefatigable, could not avoid mistakes ; not to mention that many of those who speak them are so remote from persons capable of analyzing them, tliat, in our xiv THE editor's PREFACE. days, at least, we cannot hope to see the induction completed. There is, however, no occasion to despair. Hu- man sagacity and industry are great and unconquer- able. A few years ago chemistry could hardly be reckoned a science, but of late how extended have been its researches ! — how vast the facts which it has discovered ! Its materials, no doubt, are more accessible than the tongues of distant and barbar- ous nations ; but when, by universal consent, the true road to discovery, in respect to language, has been laid open, none can say to what length it may be carried. III. Had Dr Murray reached the ordinary period of human life, we might, from hisfacilityin acquiring languages, as well as extraordinary skill in analyzing words, from that rare industry and perseverance which he was known to possess, have expected that he would have pushed his inquiries much farther than he has done ; and it must ever be regretted by those that have a taste for philological learning, that he did not live to publish in a mature state, what he intended on the Origin of the European Lan- guages. He had for many years entertained the idea of writing on that subject j and he would na- turally have wished to give all possible perfection to a work, on which he was to rest his fame as a scho- lar with future ages. THE EDITOR*S PREFACE. XV Even while struggling with an incurable disease, his ardour and activity could not be abated. Amidst every discouragement he was borne up with that en- thusiasm which the love of letters inspires, — that de- sire of distinction which is *' the last infirmity of noble minds," and without which nothing great, or promising to last for ages, has ever been achieved. This peculiarity of mind, which he carried to his grave, appeared at an early age. Before he left the paternal roof, he acquired, without a teacher, a competent knowledge of Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and French ; and that zealous and enterprising love of literature which he displayed in the country, gathered new force, when he came to study at Edinburgh. While attending the Greek and Latin classes at the University, he engaged in studies, of which few of his contemporaries were capable, or even entertained an idea. From his know- ledge of Hebrew, he naturally turned to Arabic, and this most difficult lancruage he most com- pletely mastered, not only perusing the Koran, in the excellent edition of Maracci, but also the version of that language in Walton's Polyglott Bible, which he often mentioned as an invalu- able treasure for the student of languages, and by which he was initiated into Persic and Ethio- pic, the former of which, before his settlement at Urr as a minister of the Scottish church, he taught to young gentlemen going to India ; and the latter XVI TPIE EDITOR S PREFACE. lie Studied more minutely from the labours of Ludolph, with the view of editing the Travels of Bruce. Sometime before he became a student of divini- ty, he had fallen in with Ulphilas' Gothic version of the Gospels, which he highly valued, as confinn- ing him in those ideas, which he began to enter- tain before he came to the University, concerning the origin of the European Languages. He stu- died the same subject further, in the fragments of a version of the Epistle to the Romans by the same author, discovered and published by Knittel ; and in this study he was assisted by the labours of the learned Ihre. From the Visigothic, of which these frag- ments form a precious remnant, he turned to kin- dred dialects ; and while he considered it as the purest dialect of the Teutonic known, he en- tered into the spirit of the Alamannic, the next in purity, in the collections of Goldast and Schil- ler; into the Saxon, from which the present English has chiefly risen, in the works of Junius, as well as Lye and Manning ; and into the Scan- dinavian, in the Edda of Saemund. However diffuse and tedious the labours of these authors in some cases might be, he discovered their vast utility, and pro- fited greatly by their hints and directions. To others, a grammar or dictionary of an unknown language would be barren and uninviting', but from these he THE EDITOR S PREFACE. XVU could draw the most profound and original instruc- tion. Even from the geograpliical names of a coun- try, or the historical names of its sovereigns, he en- tered into the analogies of language, and disco- vered strong supports of those conclusions which he had already formed. These pursuits were greatly assisted by Hickes*s Thesaurus of tlie Northern Languages. That in- valuable work he perused careiuUy, and found it to contain a mine of knowledge, in that department of study to which his inquiries were directed. It afforded materials in abundance, by due consi- deration of which, his ideas concerning the affini- ties and rise of the European languages were esta- blished on the firmest ground. We do not know whether he had any living as- sistant in learning Celtic, but he certainly studied the writings of Vallancey for Irish ; those of Davies and Richards for Welsh ; and those of Shaw and Stewart for Earse. By these and similar means he arrived at no small proficiency in this very ancient and truly original language. These studies were followed up by an acquaint- ance with the Sanscrit, chiefly through the writ- ings of Halhed and Wilkins. It was difficult for him to get access to proper books relating to Sanscrit ; and he himself acknowledges, that he had not all the language before him ; but he knew enough of it to enable him to connect the Sanscrit with the languages of Europe. VOL. I. b rviii THE editor's preface. The chief link, by which he established this connection, was the Slavonic. He probably at- tained the knowledge of this language from some Russian popular works ; and in the use which he has made of it, he discovers no want of skill, what- ever there might be of books or leisure. Certain- ly his ideas of it are accurate, and not to be dis- puted. With these immense stores of philological know- ledge which he had laid up, he read over more carefully the classics of Greece and Rome. Among the former, Herodotus and Homer particularly en- gaged his attention ; and among the latter, Caesar, Tacitus, Pliny, and Jornandes j though he also re- sorted to Solinus, Justin, Pomponius Mela, and Ammianus Marcellinus. The reader of taste may easily conceive with what delight he must have read these interesting compositions j with what an in- tellectual feast he must have been entertained, when in search of materials to confirm and illus- trate his theories. Some of the helps, by which he acquired such amazing skill in languages, have thus been men- tioned, tliat those who are ambitious to excel in Philology, may know what authors to peruse, if they would rival Dr Murray. His bias for philological research naturally di- rected him to these publications ; and from what- ever cause he received this bias, his attempts were uncommonly successful. As lie was thoroughly THE editor's preface. XIX versant in the principles of universal grammar, and had no difficulty whatever in learning any language ; the meaning of the most useful words, the form of declining the nouns and pronouns, the method of conjugating the verbs, the power of the most ordinary and useful connectives were soon acquired ; and when the ground was thus pre- pared, he went on with an ease, which astonished and delighted his most intimate friends. To this exercise he w^as so trained and accus- tomed, that the most uncouth alphabets and the most dissimilar languages readily gave way to his skilful and unwearied efforts. Whatever difficul- ties they presented to others, he was sure to over- come. In whatever quarter he exerted his powers, he never fliiled to make conquests. He so well understood the elements of speech, and could make such excellent use of the safest guides, that all their idioms soon lay in full view before him. In these respects, what the poet has said on another occasion might be properly applied to him — Tegimen derepta leoni Pellis erat. Telum splendent! lancea ferro, Et jaculum ; teloqur animus PRrESXANxioR omm. David Scot. Manse of Curst orphine, July Q, 1822. CONTENTS VOLUME FIRST. Fagc. Life of Alexander Muhray, D. D. TEXT, PART I. CHAP. I. Account of the principal nations of Europe, and of the German tribes whose languages have reached posterity, - - 1 — II. Same subject continued. — Account of the Teutonic or German tribes, - 17 — III. Origin of the European languages, - 28 Sect. 1. On the first stage of the language, ib. — 2. On the second stage of the language, 34 — IV. Origin of language continued— Sect. 1. Formation of the pronouns, and ca- ses of nouns, - - 41 — 2. Formation of the moods and tenses of verbs, - - - 50 — V. Sect. 1. Origin of derivative nouns, adjec- tive, and substantive, and of deri- '' vative verbs, and the several spe- cies of the verb, - - 64 — 2. Of compound terminations in the principal parts of speech, 80 — VI. Sketch of the nomenclature of the external woi'ld and man, as fixed by the inventors of language, _ - - 93 XXU CONTENTS. NOTES. Page. Note A. On similarity of words in several langua- ges, - - - 143 B. On the usefulness of the materials supplied by geography, to illustrate Gaul and ancient Europe, - - 145 C. On the proofs, that the inhabitants of Gaul, the Alps, and the north of Italy, were Cymri, not Celts of the Irish division, 146 D. On the resemblance of Greek, Latin, Celtic, and Sanscrit, - - - 149 E. On the knowledge which the Greeks and Latins had of Germany and Scandina- via, - - 150 F. On the description of ancient Gaul by Caesai', - - - 154 ■■ - G. On the state of ancient Germany from Tacitus, - - - 159 A view of the changes which words in all languages undergo, from contraction of their syllables, or attenuation of their letters, - - - 168 L. On the affinity of languages, - 174; M. On the remote oi'igin of speech, - 176 — — N. On the progress of children in thinking and speaking, - 177 O. On the mistake of Dr Smith, that savages have few abstract ideas, - 178 S[. On the manner in which the human mind views the changes of the external world, 1 79 CONTENTS. XXlll Page Note P. On the nine radicals on which the Euro- pean languages are built, - 182 Q. On terms expressing many related ideas, and on quick pronunciation, suggesting the dimiiiutive character of the act or object, - - - 184) ■ , .. R. On the Chinese language, - 188 S. On the meaning of terms, as general at first, but afterwards more particu- lar, - - - 190 T. On the various forms of the nine consignifi- catives, and their extensive use in form- ing the European dialects, - ib. U. On the vast number of derivative words from the radical wag, as illustrating the process by which languages are formed, - - - 199 - X. On the sense of AG or wag, joined to any radical, as possessive and active ; with the number of derivative words formed by DA, MA, and NA, - - 203 Y. On the consignificative ba, and its various applications, - - 208 Z. On the derivatives of la, joined to the ra- dicals and their compounds, - 212 r 2 A. On the derivatives of radicals and their compounds, formed by ra and SA, and the wonderful precision given to language by the consignificatives, - 213 — — 2 B. On the difference of compound from radical words, and the transition of one vowel into another j - - - 22i> XXIV CONTENTS. Note 2 C. On the quality of an object, from which the name is taken, - - 226 •^ 2 D. On analyzing the words of any language, 228 A view of the principal significations of the radical words in the European languages, and in the Persic and Sanscrit, 229 A view of the consignificative words, to ascertain the sense of the radicals, joined for the sake of illustration to lag, - 254 A view of the principal compound con- significative words in the European lan- guages, - - - 258 A view of the consignificatives of agency or gender in the European languages, 267 2 E. On the rules to be used in analyzing a term, - - - 269 2 F. On the resemblance of sense between pri- mitives and compounds, and the richness which the latter gives to language, - 271 - 2 G. On the regularity with which new terms are formed, - " 283 2 H. On the formation of proper names, 285 2 I. On pronouns, - - _ 292 ■■ 2 K. On cases or inflections, - 295 2 L. On the dual number, - - S02 — — 2 M. On the repetition of the noun in early lan- guage, - - - - ib. ■ ■ ■ " 2 N. On the rules which the formation of the cases followed, - , - 305 — — 2 O. On the gender of nouns, - - 316 - 2 1*. On words considered as destitute of per- sonal application, till the consignificatives be affixed, - . - 319 CONTENTS. XXV Page. Note 2 Q. On verbs or words expressing action, as first invented in language, - 325 — — 2 R. On the principle on which the perceptions of the mind are classed, - 330 — — 2 S. On verbs expressing present or past action, ib. 2 T. On LAG and words connected with it, 333 2 U. On the changes introduced in several lan- guages, - - - . 335 2 X. On the fertility of the Greek language, 339 2 Y. On the effects of emphasis in the persons of the subjunctive in Teutonic, Latin, Greek, Sanscrit, and Persic verbs, 340 ■ 2 Z. On the derivation of verbs from roots of an opposite meaning, and the time when the author first formed his opinions about the middle and passive voices, - ib. 3 A. On reciprocal verbs, - - 34,3 3 B. On the Teutonic passive, as first explained by Ihre, - - ib. — — 3 D. On Teutonic terms and derivations, 34*5 3 E. On the variety of senses in which preterite participles are used in all the dialects, 348 On English verbs, adjectives, and substan- tives, derived from da, la, tha, done, 353 3 F. On consignificatives of gender in all the dialects of the general language, 358 View of the oldest forms of the indicative, subjunctive, and optative moods in the European languages, - 362 View of the ancient forms, and of the cases of nouns, - - 36? 3 G. On derivative verbs and nouns,— general deductions, - - - 370 XXVI CONTENTS. Page. Note 3 I. On the insertion of B, in certain wordsj for the sake of sound, - - 395 3 L. On the power of secondary composition ex- emplified in woR, - - 396 — — 3 M. On blawd in Scotish, - - 397 — 3 N. On the faculty of abstraction in savages, 398 3 O. On the use of language suggested by thought and feeling, - - ib* — — 3 P. On terms expressive of the effects of fire, 399 — — 3 Q. On the similitude of terms for fire, water, and air, in the dialects of the general lan- guage, _ _ - 402 3 R. On terms expressive of the wind, air, and sky, - - - 403 3 S. On terms expressive of turning or twist- ing, - - _ _ 404 — — 3 T. On terms expressive of trickling or drop- ping, - _ _ 406 3 U. On terms for clouds, mist, vapour, or rain, ib. 3 X. On terms for dew, - - 408 3 Y. On words applied to the earth; - 41 1 ■— — 3 Z. On words applied to fields, heights, &c. 412 4 A. On names of kindred, - - 418 4 B. On names of relations, &c. - 419 — — 4 C. On names of people, sovereign, &c. 421 4 D. On names of slaves, - - 422 — — 4 E. On names for a house or dwelling, 423 ■ 4 F. On the common opinion about life, 426 4 G. On names of the thinking or judging faculty, 427 4 H. On terms for what is wrong, - 428 ■ 4 K. On names of good or useful qualities, 429 ■ 4 L. On names for smooth, level, &c. - 431 CONTENTS. XXVU Page. Note 4 M. On some derivations of lag, lay forth, ex- tend, - - - .:35 4 N. On HVVAL and swind^ - ib. — — - 4 O. On the Teutonic verbs of weighing, 437 4 P. On the term red^ - - 439 ■ 4 Q. On derivatives of mig, to melt, • ib. — — 4 R, On ALo, I nourish, and its related terms, 440 4 S. On BIG and hrig and their compounds, 441 — — 4 T. On the preference of the English language for philological illustration, - 442 4 U, On the senses of bag, fag, and pag, ib. — — 4 X. On the senses of ag, - - ib. 4 Y. On the derivatives of ag or wag, 446 — — 4 Z. On names for animals, - . - 456 — — - 5 A. More names of animals, - - 460 — — 5 B. On the names of the horse, ass, &c. 46S 5 C. On names of birds, - - 466 ERRATA. Vol. I. Page 19, line 18, after Christianity insert A. D. 597. • 3(j, line 1, deie the kindred senses of: and line 3, for make. Nag, read make ; and Nag. — — C7, line 22, for heafod, the head, read heafod the head. 149, line 2, for names read name. 152, line 14, ilele comma after Guttones. 153, line 13, for Lang, read Long. • 157, last line but one, /or middle, read middle. 321, line 26, dele Oldest Form of Greek. Line 28, for Latin, read Old Form of Latin. Vol. II. Page 7, line 1, insert a comma before of. — — 8, line 1, insert a full point after Latin. 9, line 12, dele and. 18, line 10, dele comma after now. ■ 2G, line 23, for consignificative ag, formed agba, read consigni- ficative, ag formed agba. 29, line 5, /or an; bukai, read an bukai. :iO, line 13, reail a full point after mixture. — — 91, line 20, /or he, from OL, read he. From OL. 99, line 15, instead o/pou, topou, read pou topou. In line 1(), read poi topoi, instead of poi, topoi. 152, third line from bottom, for an, on, read an, on ; 189, line IT, for comon, man on man,readcoMON max on man. 405, line 2, for skald is, read skalds. LIFE OF ALEXANDER MURRAY, D. D. Dr Murray's " Philosophical History of the Eu- ropean Languages" can scarcely be offered to the public, unaccompanied by some biographical sketch of its author. This must, however, be written un- der great disadvantages, by one to whom he was personally unknown ; who must collect from the information of others the habits and character of the man, as well as the leading events of his life ; and who, whatever his materials are, cannot ven- ture to make any considerable addition to the size of the volume to which his narrative is to be pre- fixed. It happens very fortunately, that that part of the subject which was least known, and which would XXX LIFE OF DR MURRAY. have required most research, was written by Mr Murray himself. The Rev. Mr Maitland, mini- ster of MinigafF, one of his most intimate friends, had at one time proposed to collect some materials of his early life ; and, with this view, had request- ed that he would furnish him with some leading dates and facts, and with the most probable chan- nels of correct information on other points. Mr Murray, in reply, gave him a distinct history of himself, from his birth till the time when he first arrived in Edinburgh to attend the University. In doing this, he has not only rendered all farther in- quiry with regard to this portion of his life unne- cessary, but has given a specimen of personal bio- graphy, and of literary success and perseverance under every disadvantage, of which the press has yet furnished no similar example. It is writ- ten with all the native simplicity and openness of his character ; and with a minuteness which, as far as it goes, leaves nothing farther to be told. Mr Maitland explains the circumstances which gave occasion to it in the following extract from a letter to Dr Baird :* " When you wrote me last autumn, requesting that I would endeavour to collect some memorials of Dr Murray's early life, * April 26, 1813. LIFE OF DR MURRAY. XXXI I immediately commenced the task, but found my progress so slow and unsatisfactory, that I thought it might be best to apply to Dr Murray himself, to give me a brief sketch of dates and facts, and to point out to me the most likely channels of obtain- ing correct information. Dr Murray soon after- wards sent me the Memoir which I now enclose, and which I consider as one of the most curious specimens of literary biography to be any where met with. *' It is, indeed, prolix and minute. But that very minuteness constitutes one of its principal charms. As he did not write from any notes, it affords a remarkable illustration of his pcvvers of memory ; and it is written throughout with so much simplicity, as to afford a genuine picture of his mind and character. " It was my intention to have put together a few particulars respecting Dr Murray from such information as I could collect. But the moment I perused his own memoir, 1 should have considered it sacrilegious to have abridged or altered one single line. One thing only I have done; and that (you may depend on it) has been done with fidelity. I have verified the facts contained in this sketch, by the most undoubted testimony ; and you may rely on them as authentic materials for biographical history." Mr Murray sent his narrative in the form of a XXXll LIFE OF DR MURRAY. letter to Mr Maitland, and along with it a more private letter, which it would be unjust to withhold from the public. In the private letter, * he says, " Dear Sir, I have, on receiving your letter, and Dr Baird's en-- closed, meditated for some time on the kind or form of the notice which I should give you respect- ing my early reading. It has occurred to me, that a mere list of dates would convey little information, and that, as my access to books at that time of my life was irregular, and my school education quite broken and imperfect, no true idea of my pro- gress, such as it was, could be obtained from stat- ing the names of the books, or the periods when I was at school, without some connective history. I have, therefore, thrown the whole idle tale into a sort of narrative, by far too long indeed, and writ- ten too closely on the paper, as it goes by post. If you, by help of any intimate friend, can overcome the toil of reading it, it will present you with a lively image of ' much ado about nothing.* As I have kept no copy of it, (not having leisure to make one,J perhaps you can let me have a day's use of it, when you come to Fairgirth, for the pur- pose of making one. After all, the facts are suffi- ciently strong in my remembrance ; but I hardly think that I shall ever take the useless trouble of * Dated " Manse of Un; July 25, 1812." LIFE OF DR MURRAY. XXXlll putting them again on paper. * I could have add- ed many other inferior incidents ; but you will justly think that those mentioned are sufficient. Your statement respecting my age is accurate, as you will see by the dates. Dr Baird's statement is erroneous, owing to the hurry of writing, and the distance of time. / gave my age down, as I then supposed the fact to be, at my first acquaintance with him in 1794, at 18 ; but I discovered in 1805, by inquiries at home, and by the Parish Re- gister, that, on the 22 d October 1794^, I was 19 years of age. I was under his immediate care from 1794 to 1796 or 1797> when I began to support myself. In fact, I was always under his counsel and directions, and saw him as frequently as was suitable, from 179'i to I8O6. " As to my juvenile poems, I lost about a score of small poems, chiefly in the Scotish dialect, and once intended for publication. These were very incorrect, stupid, and silly. They were written in 1793 and 1794. I lost them in I796. I have only remaining six poems in English, written in 1794 ; one of them is a fictitious and satirical nar- rative of the life of Homer, whom I represent as a beggar, &c. Another is called the Battle of the * " The disadvantages I lay under could not have been overcome at 14 or J 5, as I had no access to the grammar school till I was of that age." VOL. I. C XXXIV LIFE OF DR MURRAY. • Flies, written in imitation of Parnel's translation of Homer's Battle of the Frogs and Mice. A third is on Incle and Yarico. A fourth on Robe- spierre and Murat, whom I represent as dead and damned. Their dialogue is very horrible. These poems are all grossly incorrect, but they have at times great vigour, both in the thoughts and the expressions. I think it hardly worth while to send them to you ; but if you judge it to be necessary, you may inform me. I beg my kindest and most respectful compliments to Mrs Maitland ; and ever am, " Dear Sir, ** Yours entirely, "Alex. Murray." This letter renders every remark unnecessary to introduce the narrative which is given with so much detail in the following letter, and though written carelessly, and sometimes incorrectly, is in- serted without the least alteration or abridgment ; " Manse qfUrr, July QOth, 1812. " Dear Sir, *' I HAVE many strong objections to state against the utility and propriety of the task which Dr Baird's partiality for me has imposed on you. First, I have as yet done nothing that, in a literary sense, entitles me to a place even in the most tri- LIFE OF DR MURRAY. XXXV vial t'olume of biograjjhi/. Next, I have a just aversion from being made a subject of biographical history ; as, in fact, on account of the absence of any permanent literary merit, a narrative concern- ing me must appear to every reader, as narratives of that kind have often appeared to myself, very contemptible eulogies of men who were, perhaps, a little clever, but whose actions had left no effects ; who, therefore, were not worth a monument, and whose histories seemed mere impertinence to a young aspiring man of letters. Lastly, It is — like human life and human weakness — a piece of absolute uncertainty whether I shall be able to exe- cute my own literary intentions at all, or in a man- ner creditable to my memory. My ambition is high enough, but my feelings will be much hurt if, in the event of failure, I shall have the addition- al mortification of fearing, that I shall be held up to public ridicule by some fool or other, into whose hands the papers of my friends may fall, after their kindness and my small merits have left this scene of accumulating biography. * " The present motives for this task are produced by friendship and great partiality. Gratitude seems to require that I should not refuse to give yoUj and my other proven friend, the means of gratify- ing an amiable curiosity. But I deprecate all the * " I allude to the tribe of life-writers by profession." XXXVl LIFE OF DR MURRAY. unpleasant consequences which may follow, and often have followed, the disclosure of tlie great im- portance of a man to himself, made by the vain personage himself for advancing his own glory, or by the friends who loved him too much, to discern his 7^eal magnitude. In sole compliance, however,, with the wishes of the friends whom I shall honour while I live, I shall set down some of the princi- pal facts that respect my studies till the year 1794, when I received your letter of recommendation to Dr Baird. " I was born on Sunday, the 22d of October 177'5, * and baptized a fortnight after, on Tues- day, 7th November — stated in the register of bap- tisms to be the 27th, but the old style is under- stood, (in the register.) The place where my fa- ther then lived is called Dunkitterick, or common- ly Kitterick ; in Earse, Dun-cheatharaich, — the know of tlie cattle. It is on the burn of Palneur, on the south side, about a quarter of a mile from the burn, and on a rivulet that flows from the high hills above on the south. The hills of Craigneil- dar, Milfore, and others, quite overshadow the spot, and hide it from the sun for three of the win- ter and spring months. This cottage has been in * " I ascertained these points in 1805, — I did not exactly know my ;in^c in 1794''" LIFE OF DR MURRAY. XXXVll ruins for more than twenty years, as the farm is /lerded from the house of Tenotrie, the tenant of which liokls both Tenotrie and Kitterick. This phice, now Liid open by a road, was, when my fa- ther lived there, in a completely wild glen, which was traversed by no strangers but smugglers. Pa- trick Heron's family, in Craigdews, were our next neighbours ; and the black rocks of Craigdews were constantly in our sight. My father, Robert Murray, had been a shepherd all his days. He was born in autumn 'i'JOG, and remembered the time of the battle of Sheriffrauir. Our clan were, as he said, originally from the Highlands. My great-grandfather, Alexander Murray, had been a tenant, I believe, of Barnkiln, * near the present site of Newton-Stewart, but he had retired into MinigafF village before his death. He had several sons. John, my grandfather, was all his life a shepherd. He married, when he was young, a woman of the name of Helen M'Caa. His child- ren were, — Patrick, father of old John Murray in Blackcraig — my father, (Robert, born in Garlarg,) William, John, and Grisel. My grandfather herd- ed, almost all his married lifetime, the farm of Craigencallie, rented by old Patrick Heron, Esq. of Heron. My father married, about 17^0, a * " I think this is the name. The lands above Newton- Stewart were held by a number of small tenants." XXXVlll LIFE OF DR MURRAY. woman of the name of Margaret M*Dowal, aiid had by her many children — Agnes, John, Wil- liam, Robert, James. Some of these are still alive, — very old people. All the boys became shepherds. My father lived chiefly in a place call- ed Garrarie, on the river Dee, opposite to Craig- encallie, and in the parish of Kells. His wife died, I think, about I77O. In December 1774', or rather in January 177«5, he married my mother, whose name is Mary Cochrane. She was the daughter of a shepherd also, who came originally from the parish of Balmaghie, and whose forefa- thers had been small tenants on the estate of Woodhall. She was born August ISth, 1739, and was more than thirty-five years old at tlie time of her marriage. My father was then in his sixty- ninth year, which he had completed before I was born. * When I became of age to know him, ex- cept his very grey, or rather white, hair, I remem- ber no symptoms of the influence of time about his person or in his appearance. He enjoyed hale good health till about a year before his death, which took place at Torwood, or Derwood, in the parish of Kells, in August 1797* " He had been taught to read English in a good style for his time. He wrote not badly, but ex- •■*■■ * " I have OIK' sister — Mary, born in February 1777.. "T 1778." LIFE OF DR MURRAY. XXxix actly like the old men of the seventeenth century. He had a considerable share of acuteness, or natu- ral sagacity, a quality possessed by most of his clan. His temper was rather irritable, but not passionate. His moral character was habitually good ; and I knew, from his way of talking in pri- vate about thefts and rogueries of other persons, that he actually detested these vices. He was very religious in private ; but in company he was mer- ry, fond of old stories, and of singing. Patrick Heron, your elder, if alive, wiil give you a better account of him than I can. He was no fanatic in religious matters, and always respected the esta- blished clergy, whose sermons he never, like many other people, criticised, at least, in my hearing. My brother, James, his youngest son by the first marriage, died of a fever in 17^1, or 1782. His death, which happened at some distance from home, was reported to my father early on a Sun- day morning, and I, then a child, could not con- ceive why my father wept and prayed all that day. " Some time in autumn 1781, he bought a cate- chism for me, and began to teach me the alphabet, r, As it was too good a book for me to handle at all times, it was generally locked up, and he, through- out the winter, drew the figures of the letters to me in his written hand on the board of an old wool-card, with the black end of an extinguished xl LIFE OF Dll MURRAY. heather stem or root, snatched from the fire. I soon learned all the alphabet in this form, and be- came writer as well as reader. I wrought with the board and brand continually. Then the ca- techism was presented ; and in a month or two I could read the easier parts of it. I daily amused myself with copying, as above, the printed letters. In May 1782, he gave me a small psalm-book, for which I totally abandoned the catechism, which I did not like, and which I tore into two pieces, and concealed in a hole of a dike. 1 soon got many psalms by memory, and longed for a new book. Here difficulties rose. The Bible, used every night in the family, I was not permitted to open or touch. The rest of the books were put up in chests. I at length got a New Testament, and read the historical parts with great curiosity and ardour. But I longed to read the Bible, which seemed to me a much more pleasant book, and I actually went to where I knew an old loose- leaved Bible lay, and carried it away in piecemeal. I perfectly remember the strange pleasure I felt in reading the history of Abraham and of David. I liked mournful narratives, and greatly admired Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the Lamentations. I pored on these pieces of the Bible in secret for many months, for I durst not show them openly, and as I read constantly, and remembered well, I soon astonished all our honest neighbours with the large LIFE OF DR MURRAY. xli passages of Scripture I repeated before them. I have forgot too much of my biblical knoxdedge, but I can still rehearse all the names of the Pa- triarchs, from Adam to Christ, and various other narratives seldom committed to memory. " My father's whole property was only two or three scores of sheep and four muirland cows, his reward for herding the farm of Kitterick for Mr Alexander Laidlaw in Clatteranshaws, on the other side of the Dee. He had no debts, and no money. We lived in a wild glen, five or six miles from Mi- nigaff, and more from New-Galloway. All his sons had been bred shepherds. He meant to em- ploy me in that line ; and he often blamed me for laziness and uselessness, because I was a bad and negligent herd-boy. The fact was, I was always a weakly child, not unhealthy, but yet not stout. I was short-sighted, a defect he did not know, and which was often the occasion of blunders when 1 was sent to look for cattle. I was sedentary, indo- lent, and given to books, and writing on boards with coals. In 1783 my fame for wondrous reading and a great memory was the discourse of the whole glen. But my father could not pay the expences of lodging and wages for me at any school. In harvest 1783, William Cochrane, a brother of my mother, returned from England, where he had made a few hundred pounds as a travelling merchant. He came to visit our family, Xlii LIFE OF DR MURRAY. and being informed of my genius, as they called it, undertook to place me next spring at the New- Galloway school, and to lodge me in the house of Alexander Cochrane, my grandfather, then alive, and dwelling about a mile from New-Galloway. This simple expedient might have occurred to my parents, but I never heard them propose it : the idea of school-wages frightened them from employ- ing it. I was brought to New-Galloway about the 26th of May 1784, and for a month made a very awkward figure in the school, then taught by Mr William Gordon. He read English well, and had many scholars. Mr Gillespie, who is almost my equal in years, being born in 177^, or 177^, was then reading the rudiments of Latin. * My pronunciation of words was laughed at, and my whole speech was a subject of fun. But I soon gained impudence ; and before the vacation in August, I often stood duo: of the Bible class. I was in the mean time taught to write copies, and use paper and ink. But 1 both wrote and printed, that is, imitated printed letters, when out of school. My morals did not equally improve. My grand- father was an old man, and could not superintend * " The Latin scholars then in the school were a Dr Paple, now in Dumfries ; John Heron, now deceased, a re- lation of my own ; Mr Gillespie; Dr Alexander Halliday, now in India; Mr M'Kay, schoolmaster of Bahnaclcllan, kQ. The three last had only read the rudiments," LIFE OF DR MURRAY. xlui my proceedings. I learned, therefore, to swear, lie, and do bad tricks, all which practices I have ever since detested. I was fourteen days, or there- by, at this school after the vacation had terminat- ed. But in the beginning of November 1784, I was seized with a bad eruption on the skin, and an illness, which obliged me to leave school, which I saw no more for four years. " In spring 1785, my health grew a little better. I was put to assist, as a shepherd-boy, the rest of the family. I was still attached to reading, print- ing of words, and getting by heart ballads, of which I procured several. I had seen the ballad of Chevy-Chase at New-Galloway, and was quite en- raptured with it. About this time, and for years after, I spent every sixpence that friends or stran- gers gave me on ballads and penny histories. I carried bundles of these in my pockets, and read them when sent to look for cattle on the banks of Loch Greanoch, and on the wild hills in its neigh- bourhood. Those ballads that I liked most were Chevy-Chase, Sir James the Rose, (by Michael Bruce,) Jamie and Nancy, and all heroic and sorrowful ditties. This course of life continued through 1785, I786, and I787. In that time I had read, or rather studied daily, Sir David Lind- say, Sir William Wallace, the Cloud of Witnesses, the Hind let Loose, and all the books of piety in the place. My fame for reading and a memo}\y xliv LIFE OF DR MURRAY. was loud, and several said that I was * a living miracle.' I puzzled the honest Elders of the Church with recitals of Scripture, and discourses about Jerusalem, &c. &c. In I787 and I788, I borrowed from John Kellie, then in Tenotrie, and still residing, I believe, in Minigaff, Salmon's Geographical Grammar, and L'Estrange's Ver- sion of Josephus. I got immense benefit from Salmon's book. It gave me an idea of geography and universal liistory, and I actually recollect, at this day, almost every thing it contains. I learn- ed to copy its maps, but I did not understand the scale. In I788, or early in 1789, Basil Lord Daer came to attend a Committee of the Gentle- men on the line of road between New- Galloway and Newton-Stewart. He had made a map of the whole valley of Palneur from Dee to Cree, which map he lost on the moors near Kitterick. It was found and given to me, and I practised drawing plans of the Glen of Palneur, correcting and print- ing the names of places according to my own fancy. *' As I could read and write, I was engaged by the heads of" two families in Kirkowen parish to teach their children. The name of the one was Robert Milligan, and the other was Alexander Milroy, Laird of Morfad, an old and singular man, who had young grandchildren. I taught these pupils during the winter of 1787-8, but got acquainted LIFE OF DR MURRAY. xlv with few books. 1 received copies of the Numera- tion and Multiphcation Tables from one M'Wil- h'am, a boy of my own age, and a brother teacher. I returned home in March I788. My fees were fifteen or sixteen shiUings. Part of this I laid out on books, one of which was the History of tlie Twelve Csesars, translated from Suetonius ; another. Cock- er*s Arithmetic, the plainest of all books, from which, in two or three months, I learned the four principal rules of arithmetic, and even advanced to the Rule of Three, with no additional assistance, except the use of an old copy-book of examples made by some boy at school, and a few verbal directions from my brother Robert, the only one of all my father's sons, by his first marriage, that remained with us. He was then a cattle-dealer on a small scale. In June I7S8, I made a visit to Minigaff, and got from old John Simpson, a cart- wright, and a great reader, the loan of several vo- Imiies of Ruddiman's Weekly or Monthly Maga- zine during 177^» ITT'i* and 1775, and an old ill-written and superstitious history of the Four Monarchies, of the Popes, the Kings of England, &c. My memory now contained a very large mass of historical facts and ballad poetry, which I re- peated with pleasure to myself, and the astonished approbation of the peasants around me. On the ^6th May I789, my father and his family left Kitterick, and came to herd in a place called Drig- Xlvi LIFE OF DR MURRAY. morn, on Palkill Burn, four miles above Minigaff. He was engaged by Mr Ebenezer Wilson, now re- siding in Barncauclila. A prospect now opened of my attending Minigaff school. I set out by my- self, and arrived in Minigaff village, where my. friend, John Simpson, lived, and where Mr Cra- mond, schoolmaster of Minigaff, dwelt. I think he lodged in Simpson's house. Mr Cramond re- ceived me, and I travelled every day from Drig- morn to Minigaf?'. I read some English, but ap- plied chiefly to writing and arithmetic. In the course of the summer I ran over all Dilworth's Arithmetic. But I was not in stout health, the distance from school was great, and I generally attended only three days in the w^eek. My teach- er allowed this. I made the most of these days ; I came about an hour before the school met, I pored on my arithmetic, in which I am still a pro- ficient, and I regularly opened and read all the Englfsh books, such as the Spectator, World, &c. &c. brought by the children to school. I seldom joined in any play at the usual hour, but read con- stantly. It occurred to me that I might get qua- lified for a merchant's clerk. I therefore cast a sharp lock towards the method of book-keeping, and got some idea of its forms, by reading Hutton in the school, and by glancing at the books of other scholars. When the vacation came on, I was obliged to quit school. At Martinmas 1789, I LIFE OF DR MURRAY. xlvH was engaged by three families in the moors of" Kells and Miiiigaff to teach their children. 1 bought Mair*s Book-keeping, having sent to Edin- burgh for it by a man who rode as post between Wigton and Edinburgh. The families, one of which belonged to my eldest brother, resided at great distances one from another. My brother lived in the Back Hill of Garrarie ; another family lived in Buchan, on Loch Trool j a third on the Dee, near Garrarie. I migrated about, remaining six weeks in each family. Among these moun- tains I found several books. Walker's Arithme- tic, a History of England, a volume of Lang- horne's Plutarch, having the lives of Eumenes, Pompey, Scipio, &c. and Burns' Poems, all which I read with perpetual and close attention. I was fond of verse of all kinds. In 1787» before leav- ing Kitterick, I made a scoffing ballad on a neigh- bour shepherd and a girl of my acquaintance. This was my original sin as to verse. In 1789, the whole moorlands of Ayrshire and Galloway were engaged in discussing the doctrines of a book writ- ten by Dr M'Gill, one of the ministers of Ayr. I entered with much zeal and little knowledge into the feelings of the people, and declaimed against Socinianism, and various religious opinions, which I certainly was not of age to understand. *' A little before Whitsunday 1790, I returned home to Drigmorn. My father had been engaged xlviii LIFE OF DR MURRAY. to herd in Barncauchla, a farm within two miles of MinigafF village, to which farm we removed on the 26th May \^190. I had now easy access to school, and went regularly. As I now understood read- ing, writing, and accounts, in imitation of other lads in the country, I wished to add to these a little French. These were the sum total of qua- lifications deemed necessary for a clerk intending to go to the West Indies, or America. *'• I had in I787 and I788 often admired and mused on the specimens of the Lord^s Prayer in every language found in Salmon's Grammar. I had read in the Magazines and Spectator, that Homer, Virgil, Milton, Shakespeare, and New- ton, were the greatest of mankind. I had been early informed that Hebrew was the first language, by some elders and good religious people. In 1789, at Drigmorn, an old woman, who lived near, showed me her Psalm-book, which was printed with a large type, had notes on each page, and likewise what I discovered to be the Hebrew alpha- bet, marked letter after letter in the 119th Psalm. I took a copy of these letters, hy printing them off in my old way, and kept them. *' I borrowed from one Jack M'Bride, at Bridg- end of Crec, Chambaud's Rudiments of French Grammar. About the SOtli of May I79O, I set to work on it. My indulgent master gave me whole pages of lessons, and in less than a fortnight 10 LIFE OF DR MURRAY. xllX I becan to read lessons on the second volume of the Diable Boiteux, a book which he gave me. Robert Kerr, a son of William Kerr in Risque, was my friend and companion. He, in prepara- tion for Grenada, whither he soon, went, had for some time read French. His grammar was Boy- er's, and the book which he read on an old French New Testament. There was another Grammar in the school, read by Robert Cooper, son of Mr Cooper, late tenant in Clarie. In the middle of the days I sat in the school, and compared the nouns, verbs, &c. in all these books ; and as I knew much of the New Testament by memory, I was able to explain whole pages of the French to Kerr, who' was not diligent in study. About the 15th of June, Kerr told me that he had once learn- ed Latin for a fortnight, but had not liked it, and still had " the Rudiments" beside him. I said, ** Do lend me them ; 1 wish to see what the nouns and verbs are like, and whether they resemble our Frencli." He gave me the book. I examined it for four or five days, and found that the nouns had changes on the last syllables, and looked very sin- gular. I used to repeat a lesson from the French Rudiments every forenoon in school. On the morning of the midsummer fair of Newton-Stewart, I set out for school, and accidentally put into my pocket the Latin Grammar instead of the thin French Rudiments. On an ordinary day, Mr VOL. I. d J '^ LIFE OF DR MURRAY. Cramond would have chid me for this, but on that festive morning he was mellow, and in excellient spirits, a state not good for a teacher, but always desired in him by me, for he was then very com- municative. With great glee, he replied, when I told him my mistake, and showed the Rudiment&, ** Gad, Sandy, I shall try thee with Latin," and accordingly read over to me no less than two of the declensions. It was his custom with me to permit me to get as long lessons as I pleased, and never to fetter me, by joining me to a class. There was, at that time, in the school, a class of four boys ad- vanced as far as the pronouns in Latin Grammar. They ridiculed my separated condition. But be- fore the vacation in August, I had reached the end of the Rudiments, knew a good deal more than they, by reading at home the notes on the foot of each page, and was so greatly improved in French, that I could read almost any French book at open- ing of it. I compared French and Latin, and rivetted the words of both in my memory by this practice. When proceeding with the Latin verbs, I often sat in the school all mid-day, and pored on the first pages of Robert Cooper's Greek Gram- mar, the only one I had ever seen. He was then reading Livy, and learning Greek. By help of his book I mastered the letters, but I saw the sense of the Latin rules in a very indistinct manner. Some boy lent me an old Corderius, and a friend LIFE OF DR MURRAY. ll made me a present of Eutropius. I got a com- mon Vocabulary from my companion Kerr. I read to my teacher a number of colloquies ; and before the end of July, was permitted to take lessons in Eutropius. There was a copy of Eutropius in the school that had a literal translation. I studied this last with great attention, and compared the English and Latin. When my lesson was pre- pared, I always made an excursion into the rest of every book, and my books were not like those of other school-boys, opened only in one place, and where the lesson lay. The school was dissolved in harvest. After the vacation, I returned to it a week or two, to read Eutropius. A few days be- fore the vacation, I purchased from an old man, named William Shaw, a very bulky and aged edi- tion of Ainsworth's Dictionary. This was an in- valuable acquisition to me. It had all the Latin, words, and the corresponding Greek and Hebrew, likewise a plan of ancient Rome, and a dictionary of proper names. I had it for eighteenpence, a very low price. With these books I went off, about Martinmas, to teach the children of Robert Kerr, tenant in Garlarg, English reading, writing, arithmetic, and Latin. Li his house I found seve- ral more books — Ruddiman's Grammar, the most obscure 0^ all works that ever were offered to child- ren for their instruction, a book on which I labour- ed much to no great purpose — Caesar, and Ovid. lii LIFE OF DR laURRAY. I employed every spare moment in pondering on these books. I literally read the dictionary through- out. My method was to revolve the leaves of the letter A, to notice all the principal words, and their Greek synonimes, not omitting a glance at the Hebrew : to do the same by B, and so on through the book. I then returned from X and Z to A, and in these winter months I amassed a large stock of Latin and Greek vocables. From this exercise I took to Eutropius, Ovid, and Caesar, or at times to Ruddiman's Grammar. The in- verted order often perplexed me, and I frequently mistook, but also frequently discerned, the sense. The wild fictions of Ovid have had charms for me ever since. I was not a judge of simple and ele- gant composition, but when any passage contained wild, sublime, pathetic, or singular expressions, I both felt and tenaciously remembered them. Here I got another book, which, from that time, has in- fluenced and inflamed my imagination. This was '• Paradise Lost," of which I had heard, and which I was eager to see. It was lent me by Jean Mac* millan, at present residing in Minigaff village, then housekeeper in Garlarg, and afterwards married to Robert Murray, my brother's son. I cannot de- scribe to you the ardour or various feelings with which I read, studied, and admired this Jirst-rate work. I found it as difficult to understand as Latin, and soon saw that it required to be parsed LIFE OF DR MURRAY. liii like that language. I had tlie use of this copy for a year, and replaced it with one of my own. I account my first acquaintance with Paradise Lost an era in my reading. " About Whitsunday 1791, 1 returned to school, able to read Eutropius, Ovid, Caesar, and Ruddi- man's Grammar, in an intelligent, but not very correct style. I certainly knew a great deal of words and matters, but my prosody was bad, and my English not fluent nor elegant. I found the young class reading Ovid and Csesar, and after- wards Virgil. I laughed at the difficulty with which they prepared their lessons, and often ob- liged them, by reading them over, to assist the work of preparation. My kind master never pro- posed that I should join them. He knew, indeed, that my time at school was uncertain ; and he not only remitted a great part of my fees, but allowed me to read any book which I pleased. I studied his humour, and listened to his stories about his college life, in the University of Aberdeen, where he had been regularly bred, and where he had been the class-fellow of Dr Beattie. " I found my school-fellow Robert Cooper read- ing Livy, the Greek Grammar, and the Greek New Testament. A few days before going to school this season, I had formed an acquaintance with John Hunter, a miner under Mr George Mure, and who lived in the High-Row of the Mi- liv LIFE OF DR MURRAY. ners' Village, at Mr Heron's lead-mines. * This man and his family had come from Leadhills. He showed me many civilities, and gave me the use of the following books, that had belonged to a brother of his then deceased : Luciani Dialogi, cum Tabu- la Cebetis, Greek and Latin ; a Greek New Tes- tament ; Homer's Iliad, Greek and Latin, in two small volumes ; Buchanan! Historia Rerum Gest. Scoticarum ; aud Buchanani Opera Poetica. The first portion of my wages had gone to Dumfries or Edinburgh, to buy Moor's Greek Grammar and Schrevelii Lexicon. I got the Grammar, but I forget how I obtained the Lexicon. My master allowed me to pass over Cassar, Ovid, Virgil, and Sallust, of which last, however, I borrowed copies, and read them privately, or at times with the young class. Dr George Mure was one of the young class, and my intimate friend. After I had read my own lessons, I almost always read along with him his lesson in Virgil and Sallust. But Mr Cra- mond permitted me to read Livy along with Ro- bert Cooper, and Buchanan's History by myself. Robert Cooper was indolent, and I was proud to see that I had overtaken him, and could repeat Greek Grammar, and read Greek in the New Tes- tament, with more ease. He was given to taw^ * '' I was introduced to him by the late Mr Robert Guthrie, my much lamented friend, whose family lived in the same Roiv. 1 knew Mr Guthrie from 1787." LIFE OF DR MUIIUAV. Iv but 1 joined in no sports, but sat all day in the school. My amusement consisted in reading books of history and poetry, brought to school by the other scholars. At home I attacked Homer, and atteiiipted to translate him by help of the La- tin translation. In June 1791, we were allowed to read a daily lesson in the first book and volume of the Iliad,* which we prepared in the school. But I kept the second volume at home, and pored on it, till I fairly became, in an incorrect way, mas- ter of the sense, and was delighted with it. I re- member, that the fate of Hector and of Sarpedon affected me greatly. And no sensation was ever more lively, than what I felt on first reading the passage, which declares, * that Jupiter rained drops of blood on the ground, in honour of his son Sar- pedon, who was to fall far from his country.' My practice was to lay down a new and difficult book, after it had wearied me ; to take up another — then a third — and to resume this rotation frequently and laboriously. I always strove to seize the sense ; but when I supposed that I had succeeded, I did not weary myself with analysing every sentence. About that time I formed a sort of axiom, that every language must have a certain number of words, and that, in learning a language, the stu- dent is not master of it till he have seen all these. ■^ •' We had but one copy, mentioned above." Ivi LIFE OF DR MUIIUAY. I therefore always liked to turn over dictionaries, as well as to read authors. " In July 1791, I found my Greek knowledge increase. I began to translate sentences into Greek, by help of certain phrases at the end of Schrevelius. And so far as I remember, I, during that summer or autumn, attempted to introduce myself to your notice, by letters in Greek and La- tin. The Greek one was short, and no doubt very inaccurate ; the Latin one was longer, and inaccu- rate likewise, but less exceptionable. From that time you began to give me the use of books, and good advices as to my future behaviour and studies, which in my situation were very desirable. * I had from you the loan of Longinus — the Oedipus Ty- rannus — a volume of Cicero's Orations, which I read with great delight — and some others. All that summer and harvest were devoted to hard and continued reading, which was not limited to words in Greek and Latin, but extended to the history and poetry in the several books. I carried Homer in my pocket abroad, and studied him with great diligence. * " You must no doubt remember, tliat I waited on you frequently during the autumn l7yi, and during the years 179'-!, 1793, and 1791. I was not 16 years of age till Oeto- ber 1791. When I went to Edinburgh, I supposed and re- ported myself to be 18 ; but Dr Baird's error is venial, and easily accounted for." LIFE OF Dll MURRAY. Ivil " I had long possessed the Hebrew letters, and knew the meanings of many words. I was now de- termined to learn that language. I sent for a He- brew Grammar to Edinburgh, by the man who rode post. He brought me Robertson's Grammar, and the first edition of that book, which contains the Arabic alphabet in the last leaf. Mr Cra- mond, to whom I showed it, in September 1791 > at the time when I received it, informed me, that he once was able to read Hebrew, but that he had now forgotten it entirely. I had for a long time known the alphabet ; I found the Latin easy and intelligible; I soon mastered the points; and, in the course of a month, got into the whole system of Jewish grammar. On an accidental visit to New- Galloway, I was told by John Heron, a cousin of mine, and father to Robert Heron, author of seve- ral works, that he could give me a small old Lexi- con, belonging to his son. This present was to me astonishingly agieeabie. It contained, besides the words and their Latin interpretations, the book of Ruth in the original. When I came home, some person informed me, that a relation of Mr Wilson's in Auchinleck, then living in MinigafF village, had in her possession a Hebrew Bible, the property of her brother, Mr William Wilson, a dissenting cler- gyman in Ireland. She consented to let me have the use of it for several months. It was a small edition in several volumes, I forget from which Iviii LIFE OF DR MURRAY. press. I made good use of this loan ; I read it throughout, and many passages and books of it, a number of times. At Martinmas 1791, Mr Wil- liam Douglas, in Dranandow, engaged me to teach his children. The fee was, I think, thirty-five or forty shillings. I devoted, as usual, every spare hour to study. French, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, occupied all my leisure time. I sometimes amused myself with printing songs and favourite pieces of poetry, in the following sort of character : * Amang the bonnie winding banks, Whare Docn rins wimpling clear^' &c. &c. " A ballad written in this manner excited more admiration than it really merited, because few lads in the country could do it. I wrote this kind of hand with great celerity, but it is now obsolete with me. ** I returned to vschool in summer 1792, and read Latin and Greek rather for practice, than in a ru- dimental way. The fault of our teacher was a slo- venly inattention to grammatical minutiae, which hurt my future appearance at College, and is more or less the evil of all country schools. In return for this, he was kind, familiar, and communicative. His foible was the love of drink. He had no- body to prepare a comfortable meal for him in his little way, and he went to the ale-house, in order to avoid the weatisomeness and inattention which LIFE OF DR MrilHAY. lix distressed him at home. You know he at length became unfit for any public situation. Yet, had I been placed under a more formal and regular mas- ter, I should never have been able to make a re- spectable progress. For the broken state of my time would have condemned me to wait on children in low and young classes, in order to get by me- mory every part of the Rudiments. And every absent winter, and inaccuracy in reading, would have been pretexts for heginning me anew in the Rudiments and Grammar. All the accurate men have this way of thinking. Mr Dalzel, the Pro- fessor of Greek, rebuked me severely for looking into Plato and Aristophanes in my first year at College. I received his admonitions, but still per- sisted in reading these writers. Desultory study is, no doubt, a bad thing, but a lad whose ambition never ceases, but stimulates him incessantly, en- larges his mind and range of thought, by excur- sions beyond the limits of regular forms. *' In 1792, I read portions of Homer, Livy, Sallust, and any author used in the school. In the autumn 179^, my companion Cooper left the school, and went, I believe, to Glasgow Univer- sity. * I could not imitate him for want of funds. In the winter 179~-3, I engaged myself with Tho- mas Birkmyre, miller of MinigaflP Miln, and taught * " Or to Wiffton School, I forget which." Ix LIFE OF DR MURRAY. his children during that season till March 1793, My wages were only thirty shillings, but my object was to get a residence near Newton-Stewart, and to have liberty of going, in the mnter JbrenighiSi to a school taught by Mr Nathaniel Martin in Bridge-end of Cree. Several young lads attended it, witli a view to exercise themselves in reading English poetry, and in spending their hours agree- able/. Martin had been at Edinburgh, and pos- sessed many new books, such as the Bee, Duncan's Cicero, some of the best English Collections, and so forth. In the Miln I got Gulliver's Travels, and Clarke's Evidences of Christianity. I did not understand the one, nor care much for the other. My companions at the nightly-school were Wil- liam Gilford, lately a writer's fii'st-clerk in Edin- burgh, one Thomas Baird, clerk to a tobacconist, John Mackilwraith, son-in-law to John M*Kie, lately merchant in Castle-Douglas. John Mackil- wraith was an old friend, for his father-in-law was tenant of Kitterick in I788. From him I got the loan of Bailie's English Dictionary, which I stu- died, and learned from it a vast variety of useful matters. I gained from it the A/iglo-Sajron Al- phabet, the Anglo-Saxon Paternoster, and many words in that venerable dialect. This enabled me to read Hicke's Saxon Grammar, without diffi- culty, after I went into Edinburgh, and led the way to the Visi-Gothic and German. About the 10 LIFE OF DIl MURRAY. b XI end of autumn 179^) I liad procured from one Jack Roberts, a small Welsh History of Christ and the Apostles. I had seen a translation, or rather the original English, of this book in former years, but I could not get access to it after I had the Welsh in my possession. I mused, however, a good deal on the quotations of Scripture that abound in it, and got acquainted with many Welsh words and sentences. If I had a copy of the Bible in any language of which I know the alpha- bet, I could make considerable progress in learning it without Grammar or Dictionary. This is done by minute observation and comparison of words, terminations, and phrases. It is the method dictat- ed by necessity, in the absence of all assistance. ■>' " In 1791 J I had the loan of a stray volume of the (Ancient) Universal History from my neigh- bour school- fellows, the Maclurgs, who lived in Glenhoash, below Risque. It contained the his- tory of the ancient Gauls, Germans, Abyssinians^ and others. It included a very incorrect copy of the Abyssinian alphabet, which, however, I transcribed, and kept by me for future occasions. I was completely master of the Arabic alphabet, by help of Robertson's Grammar, in the end of which (first edition) it is given in an accurate manner. ** In the autumn of 1792, about the time I went to the Miln, I had, in the hour of ignorance and ambition, believed myself capable of writing an Ixii LIFE OF DR MURRAY. Epic poem. For two years before, or rather from the time that I had met with Paradise Lost, sub- lime poetry was my favourite reading. Homer had encouraged this taste ; and my school-fellow, George Mure, had lent me, in 1791, an edition of Ossian's Fingal, which is, in many passages, a sub- lime and pathetic performance. * I copied Fingal, as the book was lent only for four days, and carried the MS. about with me. I chose Arthur, general of the Britons, for my hero, and during that winter, 1792-3, wrote several thousand of blank verses about his achievements. This was not my first attempt in blank verse. In 1790, I had purchased * The Grave,' a Poem by Blair, and committed it almost entirely to memory. In summer 1791, about the time that I intruded my- self on your notice, I wrote two pieces in blank verse, one on Death, and another on some religious subject, and sent them to Dr Boyd, at Merton Hall. The Doctor expressed a wish to see me, and I went and waited on him. He was very kind to me, but did not seem to relish my poetry. Dr John Hope, who was at the time on a medical visit to the Doctor, hinted to me, that, in order to please him, it would be proper to court the Comic rather than the Tragic Muse on the next occasion. » " I had read Tdcmaque. Miss llavenscroft Dunbar, then at school, had a very rare and curious edition of it, which I have never met with in Edinburgh." LIFE OF DR MURRAY. Ixiil " The poem of Arthur was, so far as 1 remem- ber, a very noisy, bombastic, wild, and incorrect performance. It was not without obligations to Ossian, Milton, and Homer. But I had com- pleted the seventh hook before I discerned that my predecessors were far superior to me in every thing. The beauties of the first books of Paradise Lost overwhelmed me ; and I began to flag in the ejcecutive department. My companions, young and ignorant like myself, applauded my verses ; but I perceived that they were mistaken ; for my rule of judgment proceeded from comparison in another school of criticism. In March 1793, I left the Miln, and went to a place called Suie, on the very limits of Minigaff, and a mile or two above Glencard. I was employed there to teach writing and arithmetic to one Alexander Hislop, foraierly a travelling merchant^ an old acquaint- ance, and a warm friend. Here I got Pope's Homer, which, indeed, T had seen before, but had not read. In the end of March, one James M'Harg, son of a small farmer in the Moss of Cree, who had been at Glasgow for half a year, in some manufacturing house, came to Suie on his re- turn from Glasgow. I showed him the Epic poem. He was transported with it, and declared that it was the most wonderful piece in the uni- verse. This was not my first introduction to him. I knew him in 1789 at Minigaff school, and visit- Ixiv LIFE OF DR MURRAY. ed him now and then while he lived as a merchant in Dashwood, (Newton-Stewart.) He had for- merly lent me Milton with notes, and the first vohime of Pope's Works. I told him that I did not think the Epic Poem well done, and that I meant to destroy it, and take to smaller pieces. He was an enthusiast in Scotch verse, and had written many comic poems in the manner of Burns, some of them far from contemptible. His heart was very warm, but, like most poets, he was indolent in business, and generally unsuccessful in his affairs. I returned home in May 1793, but did not go to school. Indeed, my business there was completed. The whole periods of my school- education stand as follows : 1. From Whitsunday, 26th May, to the middle of August 17S4, at New- Galloway school, adding a fortnight in the end of October and beginning of November same year. S. About six weeks of time spent at Minigaff in summer 1789. 3. From Whitsunday to vacation time, and a fortnight after vacation, 1790. 4. From Whitsunday to vacation time, 1791. 5. From Whitsunday to vacation, and a fortnight after, 1792. " I passed the summer 1793 at home, and in long visits to my friends in Newton-Stewart, and other parts. I used to live weeks with James M'Harg, and to write in company with him ridicidous bur- lesque poems on any subject that struck our fancy. LIFE OF DR MURRAY. \%V Newton-Stewart, at that time, read with great in- terest Tom Paine's Works, in which M'Harg and I did not feel ourselves much concerned. We both liked Uherty ; but I remember that the death of the King of France, which I read in January 1793 in a newspaper, almost made me cry ; and I. hated Marat and Robespierre. M'Harg had a practice of preying on the credulity of ignorant people, who were not able to read, but were keen Jacobins. He told them a world of lies about the success of the French, &c. &c. which they, with great and absurd joy, communicated to their neigh- bours. We both did a little too much in this wicked way, for we thought these people below par in sense. During that summer I destroyed Ar- thur and his Britons, and began to translate from Buchanan's Poetical Works his Fratres Francis- cani. I made an attempt to obtain Mochrum school, but Mr Steven, * who received me very kindly, told me that it was promised, and that my youth vs^ould be objected to by the heritors and parish. ** Some time in summer 1793, J formed an ac- quaintance with William Hume, a young lad who was intended to become an Antiburgher clergy- man, and who kept a private school in Newton- Stewart. About the same time you introduced me to several members of the Presbytery of Wig- * Minister of Mochrum. VOL. I. e Ixvi LIFE OF DR MURRAY. ton. My friendship with Mr Hume procured me the loan of several new books. I paid a visit to Mr Donnan in Wigton, an excellent man and a scholar. He examined me on Homer, which I read ad aperturam libriy in a very tolerable, though not very correct, manner. He gave me Cicero de Naturu Deorum, which I studied with great ardour, though a speculative treatise. I was enthusiastically fond of Cicero, as my Dictionary gave me a most affecting account of the merits and fate of that great man. In 1791 I bought for a trifle a MS. volume of the Lectures of Arnold Drackenburg, a German professor, on the Lives and Writings of the Roman Authors, from Livius Andronicus to Quinctilian. This was a learned work, and I resolved to translate and publish it. 1 remained at home during the winter of 1793-4, and emplojfcd myself in that task. My transla- tion was neither elegant nor correct. My taste was improving ; but a knowledge of elegant phra- seology and correct diction cannot be acquired without some acquaintance with the world, and with the human character in its polished state. The most obscure and uninteresting parts of the Spec- tator, World, Guardian, and Pope's Works, were those that described life and manners. The parts of these works which I then read with rapture, were accounts of tragic occurrences, of great, but unfortunate men, and poetry that addressed the passions. In spring 1794, I got a reading of LIFE OF DR MURRAY. IXVll Blair's Lectures. The book was lent by Mr Strang, a Relief clergyman, to William Hume, and sublent to me. In 179S I had seen a volume of an Encyclopaedia, but found very considerable dif- ficulties in making out the sense of obscure scienti- fic terms, with which those books abound. " Early in 1794 I resolved to go to Dumfries, and present my translation to the booksellers there. As I had doubts respecting the success of an His- tory of the Latin Writers, I likewise composed a number of Poems, chiefly in the Scottish dialect, and most of them very indifferent. I went to Dumfries in June 1794, and found that neither of the two booksellers there would undertake to pub- lish my translation ; but I got a number of sub- scription-papers printed, in order to promote the publication of the Poems. I collected by myself and friends four or five hundred subscriptions. At Gatehouse, a merchant there, an old friend, gave me a very curious and large-printed copy of the Pentateuch, which had belonged to the cele- brated Andrew Melvin, and the Hebrew Diction* ary of Pagninus, a huge folio. During the visit to Dumfries I was introduced to Robert Burns, who treated me with great kindness ; told me that if I could get out to college without publishing my poems it would be better, as my taste was young, and not formed, and I would be ashamed of my productions when I could write and judge better. Ixviii LIFE OF DR MURRAY. I understood this, and resolved to make j^ublication my last resource. In Dumfries I bought six or seven plays of Shakespeare, and never read any thing, except Milton, with more rapture and en- thusiasm. I had seen his Poems before. " During this summer my friend M'Harg was in Edinburgh, employed as a hawker, or itinerant dealer in tea, &c. He described my situation to James Kinnear, a journeyman printer, a very re- spectable man, who informed him, that if I could be brought into town, Dr Baird and several other gentlemen would take notice of me. I communi- cated this to you, — you countenanced the measure, and, in consequence, I arrived in Edinburgh in the beginning of November 1794. " My Dear Sir, I have exhausted the paper with a wearisome detail of trifles, and have not room to subscribe myself, " Your very faithful and grateful Servant, " Alexr. Murray." Such is the account of his early life given by Mr Murray himself. In tracing the successive steps, by which a boy, from the lowest ranks of the peo- ple, who was equally destitute of instructors, and of all tJie usual facilities of acquiring information, under the pressure of almost every possible disad- vantage of external circumstances, could, at the LIFE OF Dll MURRAY. Ixix age of nineteen, have become qualified to avail him- self of a University education, it is difficult to say, whether our astonishment is greater, in observing the disproportion between the means which he pos- sessed, and the wonderful attainments to which, by the blessing of Providence, they ultimately con- ducted him ; or in considering the ardour and per- severance, by which he surmounted obstacles, which would have consigned any man of a common mind to perpetual insignificance and obscurity. Much was certainly to be done, after he came to Edinburgh, to render any degree of literary emi- nence attainable- But there were no difficulties in his way equal to those which he had already over- come. And from this time he found resources and protection beyond his hopes, and such as were suf- ficient to assure him of ultimate success. Even the humblest of his friends could then con- tribute to pave his way to the most efficient patron- age. He mentions, in his narrative, a Mr M*- Harg of Galloway, then an itinerant hawker, or dealer in tea, by whom he was recommended to Mr James Kinnear, at that time a journeyman printer in the King's Printing-office. To him he soon after sent some specimens of his poetry, and, what was much more curious and im- portant, specimens of his knowledge in Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and French. He was mentioned by Mr Kinnear to his rcla- IXX LIFE OF DR MURRAY. tion Mr Porteous, of the Royal Infirmary, who re- presented his case to Dr Hunter, Professor of Di- vinity, who was at all times a liberal benefactor of helpless men, and was the first individual in Edin- burgh who offered to assist him with money to en- able him to attend the University. It is not known that he availed himself of this offer ; for, on com- ing to town, in November 179"^, having been par- ticularly recommended by Mr Maitland to Dr Baird, Principal of the University, he was exa- mined by Dr Baird, Dr Finlayson, and Dr Moodie, to ascertain his qualifications for the University, as a free scholar ; and, in their presence, read ad aperturam libri, and analyzed with accuracy a passage of French, an Ode of Horace, a page of Homer, and a Hebrew psalm. Such acquirements in a young man, who could scarcely be said to have had the benefit even of a school education, could not fail to astonish his ex- aminators, and to secure him the most efficient pa- tronage in the University. By their recommenda- tion, he not only procured the direct advantages of the University without expence, but such assist- ance and protection, as enabled him to prosecute his studies with every advantage which Edinburgh could afford him. It is not surprising, that, with the countenance received from them, added to the extraordinary qualifications which he already pos- sessed, he should have been able, at a very early LIFE OF DR MURRAY. Ixxi period, by his labours as a private teacher, and his occasional contributions to the periodical publica- tions of the time, to support himself with some de- gree of independence, during his attendance on the University; especially when, two years after his first examination, (in January 1797>) he received from the Corporation of Edinburgh a college bursary, which, by the terms of his presentation, was to be paid quarterly, and was continued for four years. He could then look forward with confidence to the completion of his academical studies. It is no more than justice to those who had the merit of bringing forward into the literary world a man of such distinction as Mr Murray, to record their names in the account of his life. To his hum- ble friend Mr M*Harg, and to his penetration and active zeal, he was indebted for his first introduction to that city, in which he laid the foundation of the celebrity which he afterwards attained. Mr Kin- near's house was the first which received him, * on his arrival in November 1794 ; and he owed much to his attentions and civilities during the whole course of his academical studies. Mr Maitland first introduced him to Dr Baird, from whom he received most efficient assistance and patronage * Mr Murray has left notes, in which he mentions every house in which he resided for the first ten years after he came to town, specifying the situation of the different houses, and the names of those with whom he lived. Ixxii LIFE OF DR MURRAY. during the whole course of his life. And " too much praise," says the author of the Literary His- tory of Galloway, * " cannot be paid to Mr Mait- land and Dr Baird for their kind and generous conduct, particularly as they were entirely stran- gers to each other, and were actuated solely by the motive of bringing into notice indigent merit, and opening to Dr Murray a wider field for the culti- vation of his genius and talents.'* The progress of his studies at the University did not disappoint the sanguine expectations of those who patronized him. He was soon able to reckon among the companions or the friends of his stu- dies men whose names will never be separated from the history of the age to which they belong : Dr Robert Anderson, Mr Thomas Campbell, Francis Jeffrey, Esq. Henry Brougham, Dr Tho- mas Brown, Dr John Leyden. Above all, Dr Leyden became his most intimate associate. He was of the same age with himself. Their ori- ginal pursuits, in the acquisition of knowledge, were substantially the same ; and it was in the same line, and nearly at the same period, that the astonishing attainments of both did honour to the literature and the character of their country. " Murray," says the Rev. Mr Morton, in his Poetical Remains of Dr Leyden, t " once observ- * Page 295. t Page 17. LIFE OF DR MURRAY. Ixxiii ed to Dr Anderson, that there was nobody in Edinburgh whom he should be so much afraid to contend with in languages and philology as Ley- den ; and it is remarkable, that the latter, without knowing this, once expressed himself to the same person, in the same terms, in commendation of Murray's learning." Though it is an anticipation of events which happened at a considerable distance of time, it is most interesting to connect with this anecdote the following quotation from the work now offered to the public, in which Mr Murray recognizes, with peculiar interest, the literary eminence of his friend Dr Ley den. " At the date of the last Chinese embassy," he says, * *' Britain had not a man who could officiate in it as an interpreter. In this pros- tration of the useful knowledge, by which the inter- course of mankind is opened, and their origin in- vestigated, it is pleasing to notice the efforts of literary societies abroad, and of some individuals, whose love of learning, their first and favourite passion, may yet do much in a cause not publicly supported. I allude to a paper in the tenth volume of the Asiatic Researches, on the lan- guages and literature of the Indo-Chinese nations ; and I feel a virtuous satisfaction in perceiving, that two friends, once animated with no mean emulation, * Vol. I. p. 175 and 176. Ixxiv LIFE OF DR MURRAY. though the one be now in illiterate obscurity, and the other be far from his country, are still un- divided." * The premature death of Dr Leyden in the island of Java, in the year 1811, was deeply regretted by Mr Murray, who expressed his feel- ings from that event, in terms which did equal honour to his own heart, and to the memory of his friend. " Our indefatigable and invaluable friend," he says, in a letter to Dr Anderson, t " than whose a more ardent spirit never com- prehended whatever is vast, or surmounted what- ever is difficult in literary pursuit, has prematurely closed his brilliant day, and is gone. When re- cently engaged in researches into the several affini- ties of certain languages in which he was extreme- ly conversant, I felt an anticipation of pleasure, from the thought, that my inquiries would, in due time, come under his able and learned judgment. Alas ! this expectation was utterly vain, for the possibility of its being accomplished was already past." " In this manner are we left to mourn our irre- parable losses, over the havoc made by time and * The allusion is evidently to Dr Leyden, Avho was author of the article referred to in the Asiatic Researches, and the quotation is evidently written before Dr Murray had any prospect of a Professor's Chair. t July 11, 1812. LIFE OF DR MURRAY. IxXV death, among the best of our comforts, and see age advancing rapidly ; many gone for whom we wished to hve, and much undone which should have been accomplished." Having completed his course of Philosophy, Mr Murray applied to the study of Theology, that he might qualify himself to become a minister of the established church. During this period he became an occasional con- tributor to the Scots Magazine, and was ultimately employed by Mr Constable as its principal con- ductor. The Magazine for January 1802 is stated to have been under the management of Dr Leyden and himself conjunctly ; and the seven subsequent numbers are said to have been exclusively edited by Mr Murray. * Among other articles, he inserted in three suc- cessive numbers of this Miscellany, a Life of the late distinguished and enterprising traveller, Mr Bruce of Kinnaird, which contained the substance of what he afterwards prefixed to the third edition of Mr Bruce's Travels. In the Edinburgh Re- view, which commenced in the year 1802, he was * Dr Murray was early a writer of verses, though he did not much cultivate his poetical talents^ after he was rising to eminence. There are several productions of his in the Scots Magazine of the year 1802, both in prose and verse. They are said to be distinguished there by one of the letters B, X, Z. Ixxvi LIFE OF DR MURRAY. the author of the articles on ** Valancy's Pro- spectus of an Irish Dictionary," in the year 1803; on " Clark's Progress of Maritime Discovery," in the year 1804 ; and on " Maurice's History of Hindostan," in the year 1805 ; any one of them suflficient to establish the literary and intellectual distinction of its author. But, during every period of his studies, he de- voted a great proportion of his time to the investi- gation and analysis of language. Every language to which he could find access attracted his curiosi- ty. No difficulties discouraged him, if he thought it possible, by industry or research, to obtain the means of information ; and his astonishing facility in the acquisition of languages enabled him to at- tain, in a few months, what would have been be- yond the reach of ordinary talents and of common industry, during the longest life. It is stated, in his own narrative, that before he came to Edinburgh in the year 1794-, he had acquir- ed the knowledge of the Anglo-Saxon alphabet, by the assistance of Baillie's English Dictionary ; that this afterwards enabled him to read Hicke's Saxon Grammar, and then the Visigothic and German ; and that, at the same period, he had made some progress in the Welsh, He tells us, besides, that, from the languages of Europe, he was irresistibly directed to the languages of the East; and, as early as the year 1791, by the help of a detached volume LIFE OF DR MURRAY. Ixxvii of the Ancient Universal History, was in possession of the Abyssinian, and from Robertson's Hebrew Grammar, of the Arabic alphabet. Afterwards, when his university education had given more form and substance to his inquiries, and he had begun to perceive the original affinity between the lan- guages of the East and the dialects of Europe, he applied his mind with more eagerness to the Eastern languages, and one discovery was quickly succeeded by another. In the prospectus of a work which he announced in the year 1808, the substance of which is contain- ed in the work which is now given to the public, he says, " I have been gratified to find, what has of- ten been vaguely asserted, that the Greek and La- tin are only dialects of a language much more simple, elegant, and ancient, which forms the basis of almost all the tongues of Europe j and I hope to demonstrate, on some future occasion, of Sanskrit itself." In one of his letters to Dr Baird, he says, " The publication of Dr Wilkins's Sanskrita Gram- mar did me material service, though I got his book only in May 1809. Before that time I had li- mited my views to an examination of the Euro- pean dialects. I understood Hindostanee and Persic, and was able to confirm the opinion of Sir William Jones as to the ancient affinity of the Greek, Teutonic, Persic, and Sanskrit. But IxXViii LIFE OF DR MURRAY. ^):*: ' 4 though I knew the alphabet, and had some speci- mens of the Sanskrita, I could not explain any passage of it. I received his book with the plea- sure felt in gratifying a favourite passion ; and T am now happy in being able to identify the Edda and the Vedas. It will amuse you to hear, that OEDA in Islandic, and veda in Sanskrit, are not only in the main the same word, but that they are actually the same as our own term " Wit," or " Wita," which, as you know, in old times signi- fied " Knowledge.'* By means of the Sanskrit I have detected the ancient form of many Persic words, and the history of the several parts of the verb. I have ascertained the identity of the Sar- matee and Slavi, and traced their affinity with the Medes. Of course, I have made the tour of Asia and Europe, and I hope with some advantage to a study which is rather too much despised, but which occupies a considerable portion of the time of every man who reads foreign or ancient books." * By a similar process and analysis he ascertained, to his own satisfaction, that all the European and Indian dialects have the same origin and affinity. While Mr Murray was eagerly prosecuting stu- ♦ The writer of this Memoir has not seen the original of this letter, but has given the quotation as he finds it in " Murray's Literary History of Galloway," pages 298 and 299. 11 LIFE or DR MURRAY. Ixxix dies in which he could have but few competitors, it cannot surprise us, that he should have been select- ed by the booksellers, who had published " Mr Bruce's Travels to discover the Source of the Nile,'* to prepare a new edition of that valuable work. The first edition, published by Mr Bruce him- self, was nearly out of print ; and from the opposi- tion which it had encountered, both from the learn- ed and the ignorant, it was of great importance that the second edition should be ushered into the world, not only with all the additional information which Mr Bruce's papers could supply, but with all the advantage which the discernment and industry of an enlightened Editor could bring to it. After Dr Leyden had gone to India, Mr Murray was, indeed, the only individual in Great Britain, or perhaps in Europe, who was in any degree qua- lified to do justice to such an undertaking. * * Before Mr Murray's engagement with the booksellers, it appears that his respectable friend Dr Leyden, who had not then gone to India, had been consulted on the general subject of Mr Bruce's Travels, and of the proposed edition. A letter of his to Mr Manners, the bookseller, has been preserved, which, not only on account of the subject, but as the letter of so eminent a scholar as Dr Leyden, ought not to be withheld from the public. Mr Murray seems to have adopted the greatest part of the hints which Dr Leyden suggested ; though, it is probable, that he had it not in his power to avail himself of some of them. But the letter it- self is not on that account less interesting to those who can estimate the character of the writer; and it is here » IXXX LIFE OF DR MURRAY. He had some slight knowledge of the Abyssinian dialect, and at least was acquainted with the Abys- inserted without abridgment. I'he precise date is not mentioned. But it must have been written in one or other of the years 1801 or 1802. « Dear Sir, (Tues- day — Edinburgh.) — Having now, by the politeness of Mr Bruce, had an opportunity of examining his father's MSS. with some attention, it is with much pleasure that I proceed to give you my opinion concerning the publication of the posthumous edition, and the additions which may be made from the MSS. With respect to what may be proper- ly denominated the Travels of Mr Bruce, I am convinced that considerable additions may be made from his original journals. These contain many detached observations, which display much accuracy and ingenuity, which the author, when polishing his book, as a classical work, did not find necessary to introduce. In these days, when the ancient rage for travelling seems to have revived, one regrets, that so original an observer should be deprived of an honour which he may justly claim. These observations ought to be introduced in the form of notes, on account of the obvious impropriety of interfering with the text, except by the omis- sion of sections, which may sometimes be judicious, as in the case of the Abyssinian History. The manners and literature of the Abyssinians may likewise be illustrated by some manuscript observations and extracts from the Abys- sinian MSS. of the Kinnaird Collection, which likewise oc- cur among the papers of Mr Bruce, — as Extracts of the Synaxar, and the Book of Enoch, concerning which 1 have lately seen an ingenious Memoir by Langles, Member of the National Institute of Paris. As the i)osthumous edition must of necessity be accompanied by a Life of the Traveller, it is fortunate that the principal materials for this have been 10 **. LIFE OF DR MURRAY. Ixxxi sinian alphabet, before he came to the University. Since that time, he had most assiduously prosecut- supplied by the traveller himself, in a very copious Memoir addressed to the Honourable Daines Barrington, -which, though it is obviously not written for publication, nor could its present form advantageously meet the public eye, would not only afford authentic materials, but copious extracts to his biographer. To the friends of Mr Bruce this is the sub- ject of principal delicacy and importance^ as it must neces- sarily include a critical estimate, not only of his work in a literary point of view, but of his general character, actions, and life. It must likewise comprehend a discussion of the literary questions which have originated from the publica- tion of his Travels, and, particularly, an examination of the objections of the learned Hartmann. Between the literary public and the friends of Mr Bruce these are questions of the utmost delicacy ; and, perhaps, some of his friends may think such a discussion unnecessary. For my own part, I am decidedly of the contrary opinion^ and think that a lite- rary question can only be settled by literary investigation ; and that a contemptuous silence always recoils on those who obstinately maintain it. I farther think, that, at present, it is much more easy to maintain the integrity of Mr Bruce than it will be after the lapse of a few years. The Biogra- phy of Bruce ought likewise to be illustrated by as much of the literary correspondence between him and his friends as possible, for there is nothing which tends so much to convey the stamp of authenticity. " In this life I am convinced that many excellent mate- rials, that would tend to develope and elevate his literary character, might be procured from his learned Memoir on the Ruins of Paestum, which could not be published in a se- VOL. I. / IxXxii LIFE OF DR MURRAY. ed the study of the language ; and by the help of Ludolph's Dictionary and the Polyglot Bible, had made himself master of the two dialects, of which the language consists — of the Amharic, which is the court dialect ; and of the Geez or Tigre, which is the written language, and which is scarcely to be parate form. I know nothing which, if judiciously employ- ed, would convey a higher idea of his literary powers. " To the volume of Natural History some additions might certainly be made ; but not many of the drawings could be used, as the descriptions are wanting. " Of the drawings Avhich remain at Kinnaird of his anti- quities of Africa, about fifty may be published. Of these thirty-eight are highly finished. They relate to Tugga, Tucca, Terebenthina, Cicta, and Tripoli. As these ruins have never been accurately described or delineated, an ori- ginal and interesting Work on the Antiquities of Africa, or rather of Barbary, might be formed of these ; taking the ori- ginal Journal of JNIr Bruce in Barbary as the running text or letter-press, which might amount to seventy or eighty pages in quarto. The original Journal certainly requires to be carefuUy revised ; and must be occasionally illustrated with notes from Dombay and later travellers. This is the only work which should be published separately from the new edition ; and if the new edition could be undertaken in quar- to as well as octavo, ought to make a part of it. But of this you, my dear Sir, and your friends, must be the proper judges. I 'have only stated my literary opinion, and am. Sir, yours sincerely, John Leyden." — Addressed to Mr Alexr. Manners. LIFE OF DR MURRAY. IxXxHi found in common use, beyond the province of Tigre. He had become acquainted, besides, with the dialects in use, in the countries which lie in the vicinity of Abyssinia, the Falashan, Gafat, Agow, Galla, &c. j and was therefore possessed of quali- fications for editing Mr Bruce's Travels, which, it is very probable, were never, in all their extent, possessed by any other individual. That he might have access to the papers and manuscripts, which had either been prepared by Mr Bruce, or had been in his possession, he re- sided constantly at Kinnaird, the mansion-house on Mr Brace's estate, from the month of Septem- ber 1802, till the month of July 1803. No situation could have been more gratifying to a man who had Mr Murray's predilection for oriental literature. Independent of the importance of his labours, as the Editor of Mr Bruce's Travels, the variety of eastern manuscripts which he found in his repositories, to which scarcely any other situation would have given him access, must have added as much to his private satisfaction, as to the extent of his acquisitions as an oriental scholar. But his first concern was the publication of an improved edition of Mr Bruce's book, from the papers and manuscripts at Kinnaird ; and the abi- lity and discernment with which he executed the trust reposed in him, will always reflect honour on IxXxiv LIFE OF DR MURRAY. his memory. The good sense and discrimination with which he put the public in possession of the substantial merits of Mr Bruce, and vindicated both his personal character, and the character of his book, against the petulance and sarcasms both of ignorance and malignity, are not less conspicuous, than the modesty and fairness of the Editor. He published the second edition of Mr Bruce's Travels in the year 1805. Three years after the original publication of the first edition, Mr Bruce had been advised by his friends to publish a second edition in octavo, and before his death, had made arrangements for that purpose. Mr Murray's edition was therefore printed from the copy which the author had himself prepared for the press, and had all the advantage of his last emendations and corrections. It has other advantages, from the indefatigable industry and peculiar talents of the Editor. From his knowledge of the Arabic, Ethiopic, and Amharic, he was in a situation to examine Mr Bruce's manuscripts, and from them to add much to illustrate and confirm his narratives. In the appendixes and notes to the different books — in the account of the Egyptian theology in volume second, selected from Tablonski, after a careful examination of his authorities, and an attentive survey of the Coptic language — in Num- ife LIFE OF DR MURRAY. IxXXV bers second and third of the same appendix, written entirely by Mr Murray, in which there is much ad- ditional information with regard to the origin of the Egyptians, and the history and language of Egypt — in the introduction to volume third, collected from Ethiopic manuscripts, and intended to illus- trate the history and constitution of the Abyssinian monarchy — in the appendixes to the last five books of the Travels — and in the extension of the appen- dix of natural history — Mr Murray has not only made great additions to the accounts before given of individuals, and to the narratives of Mr Bruce's journies in the country of Abyssinia, but he has ar- ranged a large proportion of miscellaneous informa- tion found in Mr Bruce's original journals. He has certainly furnished a variety of minute explana- tory notices, which an inquisitive reader finds of importance to illustrate the author's narrative ; and has added many facts and details, which are there either omitted or abridged. The publication of so large a proportion of the original documents is, besides, an authentic attes- tation of the truth and correctness of Mr Bruce's historical detail, which every candid and intelligent reader knows how to appreciate. Mr Murray prefixed to this edition a life of Mr Bruce, compiled not only from his papers and his literary correspondence, but from a Memoir written by himself, about the year I788. He had suffi- IxXXVi LIFE OF DR MURRAY. cient materials ; and if the arrangement of them has done justice to the memory of Mr Bruce, it has reflected honour on the judgment and talents of his biographer. The sale of the second edition of the Travels was so successful, that Mr Murray was soon requested to prepare a third. With this view he was again, for a few weeks, resident at Kinnaird, in the year 1811, and appears to have left it in the end of the month of May in that year. The third edition was, from that time, in preparation, till it appeared early in February 1813, only a few months before Mr Murray's death. His preface is dated on the 30th of January. This edition contains additional extracts from Mr Bruce's journals, from which, when they are added to the extracts given in the preceding edi- tion, Mr Murray conceived the public to be fully prepared to ascertain both the merits and the defects of the printed narrative. Mr Bruce, like all other travellers, was sometimes led to form hasty and unfounded opinions, from the facts which were presented to him. Mr Murray dpes not disguise his own opinions, when he differ- ed from him. On the contrary, he takes frequent opportunities, in his notes and appendixes, to express his dissent from Mr Bruce' s theories and speculations, and to state very different opinions from the same facts. But this he uniformly does, LIFE OF DR MURRAY. IxXXVil with the respect due to Mr Bruce*s information, and to the peculiar talents which distinguished him. It had always been Mr Murray's object to become a parochial minister in Scotland ; and he had become a licentiate of the Church several years before the publication of Mr Bruce's Travels. But he had been occupied by subjects so remote from the means of obtaining church patronage, that hitherto he had scarcely made any exertions to obtain a living ; and his friends had found no op- portunity of providing for him. But notwithstanding the neglect and injustice which most meritorious individuals often expe- rience, the eminent and peculiar talents, as well as the sterling worth of Mr Murray, could not ultimately fail to secure him both protection and patronage. The living to which he was ultimately inducted was procured by means as honourable to his cha- racter, as they were gratifying to his feelings. William Douglas, of Orchardton, Esq. to whom he had for some time given private lessons, had learnt that Dr Muirhead, minister of Urr, an aged and respectable clergyman in the presbytery of Dumfries, was anxious to obtain an ordained assist- ant and successor. It was not difficult to obtain Dr Muirhead's consent ; and the application to the patron, in which several of Mr Murray's friends IxXXviii LIFE OF DR MURRAY. co-operated with Mr Douglas and Dr Muirhead, was equally successful. It could not fail to be gratifying to obtain a situation, so agreeable to him in other respects, from the kind offices of friends, whom his acknow- ledged merits had procured him ; and especially from the gratitude and affection of a pupil, who was delighted to have such an opportunity to express the respect and consideration with which he regarded him. The situation was not less gratifying to him for other reasons. He had the prospect of receiving from Dr Muirhead and his family every degree of countenance and kindness. His maternal uncle, Mr Cochran, was a farmer in the neighbourhood ; and in his family he had an invitation to reside dur- ing the life of Dr Muirhead. He was, besides, universally acceptable to the parishioners, of whom every individual was prepared to receive him with the utmost cordiality. These expectations were all realized. He was admitted to the charge of Urr, as assistant and suc- cessor to Dr Muirhead, in December 1806. For two years he lived with comfort and respectability in the family of Mr Cochran ; and uniformly re- ceived from Dr Muirhead and his family all the attention and kindness which he had anticipated. Dr Muirhead was at first able to take some part in the public duties of the Sunday. But his constitu- LIFE OF DR MURRAY. Ixxxix tion was gone ; and his health gradually declined, till he died on the l6th of May 1808, leaving Mr Murray in the pastoral charge of the parish. Mr Murray's residence with Mr Cochran had introduced him to the neighbouring family of Mr James Affleck, farmer in Grange ; and he soon formed an attachment to Henrietta Affleck, his daughter, whom he married on the 9th of Decem- ber 1808. It has been sometimes remarked, that juxtaposition makes more marriages than all other external circumstances. In the present instance, it contributed to form a connection, which secured to Mr Murray, during the few years which he sur- vived, a large portion of domestic happiness ; and the connection has ever since done honour to his memory, among those to whom Mrs Murray is personally known. As minister of Urr, Mr Murray was indefatig- able and conscientious in his pastoral duties. Much of his time was certainly devoted to literary pursuits. But these he did not permit to encroach on his pastoral labours. He was a zealous and af- fectionate preacher. And though conscientious usefulness was the object of his life, and he was incapable of frittering down the doctrines of Christi- anity to meet the prejudices of the great or of the small, he appears to have given entire satisfaction to all orders of the people, who universally regard- ed him as a faithful and evangelical pastor, who sin- XC LIFE OF DR MURRAY. cerely meant to do justice to the duties of his of- fice. But his public service was the least part of his pastoral labours. During the course of every year he was accustomed to catechise the individuals in every district of the parish, according to the esta- blished practice of the Scottish clergy, who have always considered a chief part of their usefulness to depend on the fidelity with which they adhere to the apostolical rule of " teaching not only publicly, but from house to house.'* In conjunction with the parochial schools, this is at least one of the most important circumstances in the habits of the country, on which the morals and the peculiar character of the Scottish population depend. But his pastoral labours did not prevent Mr Murray from the assiduous prosecution of his phi- lological inquiries. During the whole period of- his incumbency at Urr, the book which is now of- fered to the public was in preparation. His cor-, respondence with his friends, amidst all the play- fulness of confidential intercourse, had almost al- ways some reference to his favourite studies. The limits prescribed to this Memoir render it impossible to insert much of his correspondence, either on literary or common subjects. The author particularly regrets, that it is not in his power to in- sert his correspondence, in the year 1812, with Sir LIFE OF DR MURRAY. XCl William Drummond of Logie- Almond, who is cer- tainly one of the most learned and ingenious philo- logists which this country has produced. He has it not in his power, though it had been possible to obtain Sir William's permission, not only because it would require more room in the publication than this Memoir can occupy, but because, though Sir W^illiam's ingenious letters are before him, Mr Murray had preserved copies of but a small propor- tion of his part of the correspondence, and has left these not only imperfect, but in some parts ille- gible. It relates chiefly to the Coptic language, or what is understood to be the ancient language of Egypt. Sir William had sent Mr Murray his book on this subject, in which he had made respectful mention of him as a man well acquainted with Ethiopian li- terature, and as the editor of Mr Bruce's Travels. In his correspondence afterwards, he enters on what may be called " the Coptic Question,'* as a subject which he considered Mr Murray to be one of the few persons in this country competent to examine. " It is evident," he says,* " that the Coptic and Sahidic are dialects of the same language. But the question is. Whether or not this language were the ancient Egyptian ?'* There appear to have passed two or three letters * September 28, 1812. XCn tlPE OF DR MURRAY. on this subject, in which the argument has been managed on both sides with a knowledge of the subject, which could only be surpassed by the fair- ness and candour of the writers. The last letter from Sir William, which appears,* contains the following paragraphs, which the writer of this Memoir hopes he will be pardoned for tran- scribing : " I have read," he says, " your letter, of the 28th of October, with great attention, and with pleasure, as well as with profit. It contains the most luminous account of the Coptic language which I have yet seen, and shows that its author well merits the reputation which he has obtained as a philologist. I do not blush to acknowledge, that it has tended much to shake the opinions which I held on the subject of the ancient language of Egypt. My sincere wish is to discover the truth ; and if I again call your attention to the question, it is only with a view to that object. The rules which you have given for fconsidering the Coptic, and for carrying on inquiries concerning it, are ad- mirable." Sir William afterwards states certain difficulties, which still seemed to him to require explanation, with the ingenuity which does so much honour to his literary character, and which his correspondent knew so well how to appreciate. * Dated November 7, 1812. LIFE OF DR MURRAY. XClll There is but one fact more in Mr Murray's lite- rary history which requires to be mentioned : His election to be Professor of Oriental Languages in the University of Edinburgh. This important event in his life happened some weeks before the commencement of his correspond- ence with Sir William Drummond. After the statement which has been given of his peculiar eminence as an Oriental scholar, and of the astonishing extent and superiority of his philo- logical knowledge, it is humbling to be obliged to relate, that he was not elected without a consider- able exertion on the part of his friends, nor with- out the production of most decisive testimonies to his literary attainments ; and that among the pa- trons of the University, (the Magistrates and Town- Council of the City,) his election was carried only by a majority of two votes. It is no reflection on any of the candidates to say, that scarcely any individual in this, or in al- most any other country, was entitled to be his com- petitor, on the ground of equal qualifications. But it must be admitted, on the other hand, that every individual has a right to prosecute his own claims against any competitor ; and, in such a case, to lay his qualifications before the public, whatever their extent may be. There was certainly, on this occasion, both a serious opposition, and a keenly contested canvass. XCIV LIFE OF DR MURRAY. It became, therefore, necessary to bring Mr Murray's pretensions fairly before the public j and to satisfy the Patrons of the University, that, in electing him, in the face of all opposition, they would do no more than justice to themselves, and to the distinguished University entrusted to their patronage. There were three candidates in opposition to Mr Murray, for whom certificates and recommen- dations were laid before the patrons. One of them, (the Rev. Mr Dickson of St Cuthbert's,) as soon as he understood that Mr Murray's name was men- tioned, publicly withdrew his pretensions, by a let- ter to the chief magistrate. The testimonies and recommendations produced for the different candidates, and the whole corre- spondence on the subject, will be found at large in the Scots Magazine for July 1812. ■ Nothing more shall be inserted here than a few extracts from those letters which give the most di- rect testimony to the peculiar qualifications of Mr Murray, from gentlemen qualified to estimate them from their own habits of study, and, in particular, from their acquaintance with Oriental literature. He had many testimonies from men of the first character, who had no pretensions to Oriental learning, but whose superior penetration and im- partiality entitled them to the confidence of the public. But those testimonies are certainly of most 11 LIFE OF DR MURRAY. XCV importance in the narrative of his life, which came from men who were personally qualified, by their own habits of study, to estimate the extent and the distinctive character of his literature. The first is a letter from Henry Salt, Esq. who had himself travelled into Abyssinia, and must be admitted to have been one of the few individuals in this country, who were personally competent to judge of the Oriental and philological attainments of Mr Murray. It is dated on the 23d of June 1812, and was addressed to the Lord Provost of Edinburgh : " My Lord, As I have been informed that the professorship of Oriental Languages in the University of Edinburgh has become vacant, and that the Rev. A. Murray has been proposed as a candidate for it, I do myself the honour of ad- dressing you in his favour. " My acquaintance with Mr Murray originated in my admiration of the deep erudition and extensive research displayed in his edition of Mr Bruce's Tra- vels in Abyssinia. Having twice visited that coun- try, I was led to pay particular attention to its history and literature ; and in these pursuits I received so much assistance from Mr Murray^s labours, that 1 took an early opportunity on my return to Eng- land, in February 1811, from the mission to Abys- sinia, in which I had been engaged, to recommend him to the Marquis Wellesley, as the only 'person in the British dominions in my opinion adequate XCVl LIFE OF DR MURRAY. to translate an Etliiopic letter, which I had brought from Ras Willida Selase, addressed to the King. My recommendation was attended to, and Mr Mur- ray finished the translation in the most satisfactory way. " Mr Murray has since undertaken the very dif- ficult task of translating, for the use of the British and Foreign Bible Society, an abstruse dissertation in Ethiopic, on doctrinal points, written by the pa- triarch of Alexandria, and presented to me by the prime minister of Abyssinia j and the Society felt so greatly obliged to Mr Murray, that, at a general committee, the thanks of the Society were present- ed to him, and an order given, that he should be furnished with copies of all the foreign versions of the Scriptures published by the Society. ** To such honourable testimony as this my indi- vidual opinion can add but little weight ; though I cannot help taking the liberty of stating, that I think the University, by such a choice of a profes- sor, would do honour to itself, as well as a benefit to the literary world, as Mr Murray's superior at- tainments in the various branches of the Oriental languages seem to me to qualify him particularly for such a situation. I have the honour to be, &c. *' Henry Salt.'* The second letter is from A. Hamilton, Esq. Professor of Oriental Languages in the East India LIFE OF DR MURRAY. XCVIl Company's College at Hertford, and is addressed to Dr Thomas Brown. From this letter the fol- lowing paragraphs are extracted : " 92, George Street, Saturday. — My Dear Sir, I learn with great pleasure from your note, that there is a pro- bability of Mr Murray's being elected to fill the chair, vacant by the death of Dr Moodie. I hap- pened last week to meet with him in Galloway, and found his acquisitions in Oriental Literature and Languages so extensive and various, as greatly to exceed my power to appreciate them accurately. With the few languages in which I am conversant, he discovered an acquaintance that surprised me ex- ceedingly ; but the range of his studies included many of which I am completely ignorant." The third testimony is from Dr Baird, the Principal of the University, addressed to the Lord Provost, from which the following paragraphs are extracted : " I mentioned in my first letter, announcing Mr Murray as a candidate, that, on his very first arri- val in town, when a boy, he read and explained, and analyzed accurately, a Hebrew psalm, ad aper- turam libri. He did so in presence of Dr Moodie, Dr Finlayson, and myself. He had learnt the let- ters from finding them at the head of the subdivi- sions of the 119th Psalm. He then borrowed a Hebrew Grammar, Dictionary, and Bible, and, without a master, made himself extensively, and, as we found, correctly acquainted with the language. VOL. I. g XCVIU LIFE OF DR MURRAY. He had never at that time heard any other person pronounce a word of it. I have, in justice to him, to mention farther, that, above twelve years ago, he gave me in manuscript for perusal, A New Hebrew Grammar, or Treatise on the Nature and Ele- ments of the Hebrew Language, which he had composed. It was, in my judgment, a comprehen- sive, judicious, and able performance, and displaying a very intimate knowledge of the peculiar structure, idiom, and general character of the Hebrew." The fourth and last letter is from the Rev. Da- vid Dickson, withdrawing his pretensions as a can- didate, from his conviction of the superior claims of Mr Murray, from which the following para- graphs are extracted. The letter is dated July 6, 1812, After stating the appearance of Mr Mur- ray as a candidate, as the sole reason which had de- termined him to withdraw from the competition, he says, " Mr Murray's attainments in Oriental Lite- rature are so extensive and profound, and have al- ready raised him to such a high rank among Orien- tal scholars, that I should be in danger of incurring the suspicion, and should certainly possess the feel- ing, of having brought dishonour on myself, were I to throw the smallest bar in the way of that pre- ferment, to which he is so justly entitled. When I consider, that, before he had nearly finished his theological studies at the University, a time when most young men in his situation are only beginning 11 LIFE OF DR MURRAY. XCIX to learn the first Elements of Hebrew, he had made himself thoroughly master not only of it, but of its cognate languages or dialects, the Chaldee, Sy- riac, Samaritan, and Arabic — That twelve years ago he had composed a new Hebrew Grammar— That he has ever since prosecuted his researches on philological and literary subjects, and especially mto almost all the languages of the East, with the most unwearied perseverance and distinguished suc- cess ; — when 1 consider these facts, I confess, that I should blush at the thought of hesitating even for a moment to relinquish my own wishes and views with regard to the professorship, in order to promote his hopes of success.'* These documents, which are mentioned for no other reason than that they give a striking view of Mr Murray's attainments in Oriental Literature, and do the highest honour to his memory, were supported by a great variety of the strongest opi- nions which could be expressed in words, from men who, though not Oriental scholars, held the first rank in the science and learning of their country : Dugald Stewart, Esq. Dr James Gregory, Dr Tho- mas Brown, Mr John Playfair, Lord Woodhouselee, the late Lord Meadowbank, Mr Baron Hume, Francis Jeffrey, Esq. Sir Walter Scott, Bart. &c. ; names which every well informed man knows how to appreciate. Nothing could be said to detract from the value of testimonies from such men as C LIFE OF DR MURRAY. these. The only candidate in opposition was well entitled to all the recommendations which were given him. But even in these, with two excep- tions, no attempt was made to lower the preten- sions of Mr Murray. One individual indirectly pleaded his exclusion, because he was not a mini- ster of Edinburgh ! and another, more indirectly still, while he considered him as a profound Orien- tal scholar, affected to start a doubt of his taste in literature, though he admitted, that " his opinion of him was founded, in a great measure, on public report,^ and might be " far short of the justice due to him !" It is scarcely necessary to add, that, on the 8th of July, Mr Murray was elected Professor of Ori- ental Languages. On the 1.5th, the University conferred on him the degree of Doctor in Divinity —a distinction which certainly ought to have been given him long before that time. It would be unjust not to mention, with the re- spect which it deserves, that, in his election to the professorship, Dr Murray was most particularly in- debted to Dr Baird, the Principal of the Universi- ty. He had been uniformly his most zealous friend from his first appearance in Edinburgh ; and, down to the period of his election as a professor, seems not to have lost any opportunity of assisting and be- friending him. On this occasion, he exerted him- self most effectually to render his election secure ; LIFE OF DR MURRAY. CI and did so, from his conviction of his peculiar qua- h'fications, in opposition both to his personal and his party friends, with a firmness and consistency, which certainly did him honour with all impartial men. Dr Murray was not a man to forget his obliga- tions to any one individual to whom he had been indebted, and least of all to forget what he owed to Dr Baird, who had so long and ^ effectually pa- tronized him. But on this occasion he recognised, with the feel- ings of an honourable mind, obligations of an earlier date, with which his gratitude led him to con- nect all the subsequent prosperity which had attend- ed him. It will be recollected, that Mr Kinnear of the King's printing-office was the person who original- ly encouraged him to come to Edinburgh, and the first who received him into his house. And it is a circumstance much to the credit of Dr Murray's character, that Mr Kinnear is one of the first of all his friends whom he wishes to recognise on his elec- tion to a professor's chair ; and whom he recog- nises in terms of peculiar meaning and delicacy. In a letter to his friend Mr Alexander Smellie, writ- ten two days after his election, * he says, *' I have not had an opportunity of communicating to our * loth July. CU LIFE OF DR MURRAY. good and most excellent friend, Mr James Kin- near, my thanks for the pains he took, in preparing me for the Hebrew professorship. They are not the highest steps which raise the building. He was as anxious for my welfare in the year 179^?, as it is possible for my best friends to be in the year 1812. I will not fail to express my thanks to the Honourable the Dean of Guild. Indeed, I shall express them alt my lifetime." Mr Kincaid M'Kenzie, the Dean of Guild, was, indeed, one of the ablest and most ejSicient of his friends in the council. To him he wrote a letter, which bears date on the 9th of July, the day after his election, but which was evidently written before the intimation of his election could have reached him, from which the following extracts are taken : — *' I have this moment received letters from Mr Smellie and Dr Baird, informing me of the unexampled struggle which you have made to support my pretensions as a candidate for the pro- fessorship of the Eastern Languages, in the coun- cil, and in every place where they could possibly be promoted. To say that I am grateful for this most disinterested and remarkable friendship would be feeble language, indeed, and far short of what 1 actually feel. Without considering for a moment what may have been the result of your efforts, which is as yet totally unknown to me, I request permission to assure you, that they have made an LIFE OF DR MURRAY. Clll impression on my mind which will not be effaced by time. If your efforts have been exerted for an unsuccessful candidate, they will not be forgotten— Jbr we have perished in light. If, on the other hand, your labours have been crowned with suc- cess, you have made a professor who will not for- get his friends, nor, so far as his humble abilities go, dishonour the testimony they have given for him. Addicted to literature almost from my in- fancy, and pursuing it in obscurity, where I had neither friends nor supporters, I have found all these ; and my efforts through life are due, not more to the ambition of doing something eminent- ly great in the line of my studies, than to the re- demption of that pledge which my benefactors have mortgaged for me. If I can execute my in- tentions, I am not afraid that your Lordship and the public shall ever be ashamed of the boundless partiality which you and they have shown for a stranger. And this depends in no respect on the event of an election." Dr Murray was formally inducted to his pro- fessorship on the 26th of August 1812, and began to teach his public class on the 31st of October following. Soon after that time he published, for the use of his students, a small treatise, entitled " Outlines of Oriental Philology," which, though it contains much ingenious and original matter, as an abridgment of the Principles of Oriental Gram- CIV LIFE OF DR MURRAY. mar, was known to have been both composed and prepared for publication after his arrival in Edin- burgh. The subject was so familiar to him, and had been so long arranged in his own mind, that little time was necessary to complete such a work. From November till the end of February or be- ginning of March, Dr Murray appears, with very little interruption, to have taught his class regular- ly. Though he had a severe struggle, during the whole period, with an asthmatic and consumptive habit, he was as ardent as he had always been in his studies ; and under the severest pressures of declining health, never despaired of his recovery. He persisted in his public prelections till an ex- cessive debility, of necessity, confined him to the house. Even when his health did not permit him to attend his public lecture, he continued to teach a small Persic class in his own room ; and dis- covered as much zeal in prosecuting his peculiar studies, in the last weeks of his life, as at any pe- riod of his greatest activity. The extent of his occupations, during the Col- lege session, did not prevent him from giving some part of his attention to any subject within the sphere of his own studies, on which he saw that his peculiar talents or information would be useful. From circumstances which it is not necessary to specify in this Memoir, he had, several months be- fore he became a professor, corresponded with Dr LIFE OF DR MURRAY. CV Charles Stuart of Dunearn on a subject which Dr Stuart is long known to have had deeply at heart — the progress of Christianity in India. Dr Mur- ray had voluntarily offered to write an Essay on the Importance of the Indian Mission ; and, in particular, on the Importance of the Translation of the Scriptures into the several languages of India, carried on through the Missionaries at Serampore. He saw the importance of this great undertaking, not only to the best interests of religion, but to promote the progress of civilization and science, as well as the commercial interests of Great Britain. This offer had been made to Dr Stuart some months before Dr Murray's introduction to the University. But his time had been so completely occupied by the prospect of that event, that he had not been able to accomplish what he proposed. Dr Stuart reminded him of the subject in the beginning of the winter session ; but, though he found him as zealous as ever with regard to it, he saw that he was then so much engaged with the business of his class, that it was not in his power to apply his mind to it at that moment. He proposed, however, of his own accord, to send Dr Stuart a sketch of his plan, which he al- lowed him to publish, if he should think it would be useful. The letter which he promised, with a short ex- tract from another, were afterwards published, and CVl LIFE OF DR MURRAY. will be found in the Appendix to this Memoir. It is not necessary to say more of either here, than that they are both worthy of the discernment and talents of their respectable author, and of the sub- ject of so much general interest to which they re- late. During the course of the winter, independent of his labours in tieaching the principles of the gram- mar, and in practising his students in reading the text of the oriental languages, he delivered a course of lectures on general subjects of oriental learn- ing. He did not live to complete his plan, nor were the lectures which he delivered completely finished. But they certainly related to subjects of the great- est interest and importance, of which he appears, from his notes, to have given the most luminous and practical views, and which he illustrated with an extent of oriental learning in which he had few competitors, and with a degree of sound judgment and discernment, more valuable than the utmost efforts of ingenuity. The slightest sketch of the subjects of these lec- tures is sufficient to convey an idea of their im- portance in the literature of the university. In some preliminary lectures he gave a general view of the advantages arising from oriental litera- ture ; and earnestly recommended the study of the eastern languages, 1. As an introduction to the LIFE OF DR MURRAY. CVli moral, political, and natural history of the world j 2. As the means of gratifying and enlarging a cul- tivated taste J 3. As a most important prepara- tion for acquiring the knowledge of religious truth ; and, 4* As the direct channel of intercourse with the eastern nations. In a subsequent lecture he give a short general view of eastern writings as ob- jects of taste, from Arabia, Persia, and India. There is then, in another lecture, a short view of the progress of society in the east, with some details of peculiar customs and manners in differ- ent conditions. There are two lectures which contain the prin^ cipal facts relating to the formation and transla- tion of the Jewish Scriptures. There are two most important lectures on the opinions held by the principal nations of antiquity respecting the creation of the universe ; which were intended to form an introduction to the study of the Jewish Scriptures. There is a very learned and curious lecture on the invention and history of the alphabet j in the conclusion of which he traces the origin of what have been called the Masoretick points, to the practice of the Syrians, in the third or fourth cen- tury, who placed certain Greek vowels in a con- tracted form, above or below their native conson- ants, stating, that, when the Syrian New Testa- ment was brought into Germany in IS55, these /- ■ CVlll LIFE OF DR MURRAY. vowels appeared sufficiently plain in the course of the punctuation : That the uncontracted vowels were called, by the priests, the method of vulgar writing, while the more refined among them pre- ferred dots, which are evident abbreviations of the same vowels, in completing their manuscripts : That both systems are to be seen in every Syrian book ; and that not a doubt remains that the Jewish points are from the Syrian. The lecture contains much more on this curious subject. The last lecture, which was intended to follow this one, was not finished, and does not appear to have been delivered. But he had made some pro- gress in preparing it ; and what he had written is introduced by the following sentence, which can- not be read without the most painful reflections : "It is with exceeding regret," he says, " that I am compelled, by the state of ill health into which I have unexpectedly fallen, to bring our labours to a premature termination. I have waited day after day to see if 'any partial degree of recoveiy might enable me to continue attendance, and confirm your grammatical attainments by a greater extent of practice in reading. My expectations have not been fulfilled.'* Having said this, he stated in what manner he meant to conclude his cours3 for the session, by offijring to his students, 1. Some remarks on their actual progress j 2. A series of advices on the LIFE OF BR MURRAY. CIX manner in which they were to pursue their Hebrew studies ; and, 3. Some general reflections on the part they had to act during the course of their lives, and on the expectations which their country had a right to form with reojard to them. Though he had made considerable progress, he had not completely finished what he meant to say on the first of these points ; and the two last were left entirely untouched. Every individual who reads the mere titles of these lectures, and connects them with what he knows Dr Murray to be capable of, must be con- scious of the value of the course of study which he was conducting, and of the irreparable loss which the university and the public sustained by his death. The subjects of his lectures are of the last importance ; and, though the lectures themselves have been hastily, and in many points, perhaps, in- correctly written, they approach so near to what he intended, and contain so much sound and inter- esting information, that it is impossible not to re- gret that the university, and, indeed, the republic of letters, should have been so prematurely deprived of their completion. Even in the imperfect state in which their au- thor has left them, it is not, perhaps, altogether impossible, that, with a proper revisal, they might still be turned to some account. Dr Murray's introduction to the university had ex LIFE OF DR MURRAY. certainly held out great expectations, from the pe- culiarity of his most singular literature and talents. Much he certainly would have done to enlarge the sphere of Scottish literature, if Providence had pro- longed his life, which, since his decease, there is hitherto no prospect of obtaining to the same ex- tent. But human foresight is limited, indeed ; and nothing can be expected with confidence which depends on the breath of mortals. Dr Murray had been contending fOr many years with a consumptive habit, always flattering himself in his intervals of relief with an ultimate recovery ; but with a mind too intent on his duties and on his studies, to watch the progress of a deceitful ma- lady, which insensibly exhausts the principles of life while the hopes of the patient are kept alive on the verge of the grave. He was conscious of his weakness and of his de- cline ; but till within a very few hours of his death, he never seems to have lost the hopes of his re- covery. Though for several weeks in March he had been confined to his room, he was always looking for- ward to his return to Urr, where he seems to have firmly believed the summer would revive him ; and he only waited for the approach of fiivourable wea- ther to undertake the journey. Mrs Murray and his children had remained at Urr during the winter, for he had yet no house in LIFE OF DR MURRAY. CXI Edinburgh, and was still minister of Urr, not intending to resign his pastoral charge till the fol- lowing autumn. He had so little fear of his own health, that no persuasion could hitherto bring him to consent that Mrs Murray should join him in Edinburgh. He could not think of removing her from the children, while he believed, that, in a very few weeks, or days, he would be able to rejoin her at Urr. He persisted in assuring her that he had every attendance, and that she had no cause to be unhappy, or to be alarmed on his account ; that he was fully resolved to be at Urr early in April j and that her taking a journey to town before that time would be as inconvenient, as he believed it to be unnecessary. The severity of the weather in the beginning of April, more than his own debility, which was, not- withstanding, visibly and rapidly advancing, con- vinced him at last, that at least at the time he had projected, he could not undertake the journey ; and Mrs Murray then obtained his consent that she should come to town. He fixed the l6th of April as the day when he would expect her ; and the event proved, that if she had delayed her jour- ney till that day, she would have arrived too late. Fortunately, the friends who attended him un- derstood his situation better than himself. The late Dr Thomas Brown, his physician, wrote to a friend in the neighbourhood of Urr, intimating the CXU LIFE OF DR MURRAY. real state of his patient's health, and urging Mrs Murray's journey to town, with the least possible delay. Mrs Murray had not received her husband's letter, fixing the l6th for her arrival ; but much to his satisfaction and her own, and greatly to the relief of his friends, who saw the rapid progress of his disease, she reached his lodgings on the 13th. She found him busy with an amanuensis, whom his friends had procured to write for him, still deeply engaged in his favourite studies, and with a multiplicity of papers before him, as unconscious as ever of his danger, and even proposing to take an airing next day in a coach, if the weather should be mild. He was still able to walk unsupported in his room, and when he leaned on Mrs Murray's arm, as he went to bed, told her, that he had never till then taken the same assistance from any of his attendants. He was much interested in her account of the children, and in all her arrangements at Urr, and was eager to tell her, that nothing had prevented him from entreating her to come much sooner to town, but his anxiety about the children, whom he was at last happy to find she had left under the care of her sister. During the following night he had a great deal of sleep, and thought himself much refreshed in the morning. LIFE OF DR MURRAY. CXlli In the morning he took leave of Mrs Murray's brother, who had attended her to town, and was then setting out on his return. He thanked him for his attention to her, and, with a considerable degree of cheerfulness, expressed his hope, that they would soon be able to join him in the country. He was out of bed during the whole of next day, and (what was surprising) seemed to eat heartily, both at breakfast and dinner. He was, notwith- standing, visibly worse, though quite unconscious of his situation ; and when his medical friends clearly showed him, in the course of the day, that tliey were alarmed, though without expressing their opinion in words, he observed to Mrs Murray, after they had left him, that they seemed to think him in a worse state than he had any idea of, and then added, " If I have deceived you, I was myself deceived." After this, he spent some time in giving Mrs Murray directions about his private affairs, and par- ticularly about the payment of some small debts, for which the creditors had no vouchers. He then said to her, that he had many things to mention, and one especially, (evidently referring to his death,) that she ought to prepare herself for an event, which he now saw was very soon to happen. On this last evening of his life, he did not go to bed till eleven o'clock ; and he had a most dis- turbed and restless night. He was often audibly VOL. I. h CXIV LIFE OF DR MURRAY. employed in prayer ; and at one time was heard repeating the IQth verse of the metre version of the 118th Psalm, O set ye open unto me The gates of righteousness. Then will I enter into them. And I the Lord will bless. And he expressed his affectionate gratitude to Mrs Murray, when she subjoined the 20th verse. This is the gate of God, by it The just shall enter in. Thee will I praise, for thou me heardst. And hast my safety been. He was in full possession of his faculties to the last moment, and distinctly showed that he was so, even after he was unable to speak. He expired without a struggle soon after six o'clock in the morning. These are minute particulars, too minute for fastidious readers. But it must be recollected, that they belong to the last moments of one, of the most considerable scholars which this country has ever produced — of a man who did more, with the slen- der means which he possessed, than the most emi- nent scholars in Europe would, under the same dis- advantages, have ever attempted, and who had held LIFE OF DR MURRAY. CXV out the promise of an accession to the literature of his country, if his life had been prolonged, which aggravated a thousand fold the regrets which pre- maturely followed him to the grave. What is still more important, they are the last memorials of a good man, who consecrated his literature to the service of Christianity 5 who, though he died prematurely, while much which he had meditated was still unaccomplished, has left much, of which learned men can avail themselves for ages to come, and as much as will transmit his name to posterity in the same eminent department of eastern literature, with the names of Sir William Jones, Dr Leyden, Dr Carey, Mr Morison, and Dr Marshman. Above all, it must be added, they are the me- morials of one, whose life was a learned commen- tary on his Christian belief, and who died at last in peace with God, with the faith and resignation of a genuine believer. One of the last directions which he had strength to utter to Mrs Murray, was *' to take clear bury- ing ground for him ;" meaning, no doubt, to express his wish, that he might be buried in a grave which had not been occupied before. He was buried in the Greyfriars* church-yard, close to the wall, on the north-west corner of the church. No monument has hitherto been erected for him, nor is there even a stone placed to point out his grave. p CXVl LIFE OF DR MURRAY. But Dr Murray required not this slender me- morial. His " Outlines of Oriental Philology," and the posthumous publication to which this Me- moir is prefixed, will, in the history of literature, record his name among the most learned of his contemporaries. At his death he left a son and daughter. The daughter, with a constitution too like her father's, did not long survive him. The son, though not strong, is at present a promising young man, who, if Providence prolongs his life, may do honour to his father's memory. It has been mentioned, that, in 1811, at the re- quest of the Secretary of State, in consequence of the recommendation of Henry Salt, Esq. Dr Mur- ray had translated a letter from the Prime Minister of Abyssinia to the King of Great Britain, — a ser- vice to which no other individual in his Majesty's dominions was at that time competent. This was not forg-otten after his death. His Majesty was pleased to bestow on his widow an annual pension of eighty pounds, as a public ac- knowledgment of her husband's merits. The book to which this Memoir is prefixed was not completely finished by its Author. One chap- ter, in particular, is imperfect, which is mentioned in a note to page 32] of the second volume. But it is necessary also to state, that there were two original manuscripts ; and that a few para- graphs and notes, found in that which had been 11 LIFE OF DR MURRAY. CXVll first written, are subjoined to the present publica- tion, as they evidently relate to the same subject. There may be some reason to doubt whether this had been the intention of the Author ; whether he had intended them for this publication, though they relate to the same subject ; or, whether, after they were written, if he had intended to publish them, he had not changed or modified some of the opi- nions contained in them. But as he did not live to publish, and might have had a view of those paragraphs, which would not have excluded them from the public eye, what- ever alteration, correction, or arrangement of them he might have contemplated, it has not been thought expedient to withhold them. It is neces- sary, however, that the reader should be apprised of the fact. Those paragraphs and notes, indeed, contain so many learned and interesting statements, that the Reverend Dr Scot, Minister of Corstorphine, to whose liberal superintendence and revisal the Pub- lic are indebted for the appearance of this work at present, did not think that it would have been jus- tifiable to have suppressed them. If they are in any degree different from what the Author himself ultimately intended, their publication in their pre- sent form is not to be imputed to him, and they certainly contain a great deal which does honour to his memory. CXVUl LIFE OF DR MURRAY. Too much praise cannot be given to the kindness and the learned industry of Dr Scot, without whose superintendence, it is more than probable, this book would not have been offered to the world at pre- sent. He will have the goodness to accept of this sincere and public acknowledgment from those who take an interest in Dr Murray's family, and in his literary character. They have also strong reasons to acknowledge their obligations to Messrs Constable and Com- pany, who, from respect to the memory of Dr Mur- ray, have most handsomely taken charge of this publication at their own risk. Their conduct, on this occasion, is worthy of their general charac- ter, as friends to the families of meritorious writers, and distinguished patrons of the literature of Scot- land. The Author of this Memoir does not think him- self qualified to estimate either the merits or the imperfections of Dr Murray's book ; or to antici- pate the character which it will ultimately obtain in the learned world. He believes that he is doing an acceptable service to those who are competent to form an impartial judgment j and will always remember, with satisfaction, the share he has had in promoting the publication of the posthumous work of such an Author as Dr Murray. He has only to add, that the astonishing attain- ments of such men as Sir William Jones, Dr Ley- LIFE OF DR MURRAY. CXlX den, and Dr Murray, which have more the resem- blance of intuitive perceptions, than of acquisitions by ordinary means, cannot be appreciated by com- mon men. A vain man will perhaps rather question the ex- tent, and even the reality of attainments, so unlike his personal experience, than be compelled to con- fess his own inferiority. But Horace has suggest- ed a reply to him, to which there can be no re- joinder, in his supposed address to the frog, who imagined that she could inflate her body to the size of an ox. ■ i Cum magis atqiie Se magis inflaret ; non si te ruperis, inquit. Par eris ; haec a te non multum abludit imago. Hor. Satyr. Lib. II. Sat. 3. j APPENDIX. LETTER from Alexander Murray, D. D., Professor of Oriental Languages in the University of Edinburgh, to Charles Stuart, M. D. Edinburgh, 5, College Street, Dec. 25, 1812. Dear Sir, I promised to state to you my reasons for thinking, that the effects about to result from the exertions of The British and Foreign Bible Society, are indistinctly comprehended by several of its friends, and still more imperfectly by the Pub- lic at large. The translating of the Scriptures into every language is viewed by many as an undertaking purely reli- gious, suggested by great but enthusiastic benevolence, some- what too extensive, and, at all events, to be defeated in its ob- ject, by the gross indolence of barbarians, or the force of their established superstitions. Whoever has contrasted the influence of our religion on life and manners, with that produced by the most venerable systems of superstition, will not hesitate a moment as to the propriety of publishing the doctrines of Christianity in every quarter of the world. Regarded merely as a system of mo- ral discipline, as a rule of conduct, as an antidote against per- nicious errors sanctioned by religious falsehood, it merits a preference to every form of ethical opinion. Other religions CXXll APPENDIX. degrade the mind, in proportion to the impression they make. Our pure faith elevates the whole character in a degree in- deed very perceptible, even to heathen?. " Send us," said a wealthy Indian, to the Missionaries to whom his people had applied for a protector, " send us a man who has learned all your ten commandments." But I decline any discussion of the moral and eternal be- nefits of true religion : they are generally admitted. Some other considerations of far inferior, but yet particular mo- ment, have not occurred so readily, even to that part of the Public which takes an interest in every thing connected with human improvement. That the labours of the Society are opening a way for enlarging useful knowledge, and confer- ring essential advantages on all concerned in its operations, should not be unknown to the Public, or partially understood by its numerous supporters. 1. Our country is the chief residence of civilization and science. It stands unrivalled in religion, government, and public intelligence. The highest point that has as yet been practically reached in the theory of human improvement has been attained in this island. Indebted for much of its opu- lence to a continual intercourse with foreign countries, Bri- tain has the power, above any other state, of communicating its native advantages to them, and of procuring in its turn correct information as to the state of the world. Nothing has been more anxiously desired by men of scientific pursuits than a perfect survey of the natural and moral condition of the globe. That has been the acknowledged object of all the voyages, travels, and discoveries, that have been under- taken for many years. But never did a period occur so fa- vourable to these views as at present. A regular system has been formed for visiting every tribe on the face of the earth, for translating a large popular work into every spoken dialect, and for opening in that manner an intercourse with APPENDIX. cxxiii the most obscure nations. A number of men are found will- ing to forsake their country, and the enjoyments of civilized life, that they may struggle with the caprices of barbarians, where no traveller, for amusement, would dare to appear. These persons have already shown excellent abilities for their office. Scientific men must not forget, that the history of our own species is still incomplete, for want of facts ; that, of the languages spoken on the earth, which are at once the pedigree of nations, and the medium of intercourse, we know not a fourth part ; that further, the Bible in any dialect, with the grammars and dictionaries produced at the time of trans- lation, consign that language to this country for the use of the speculative and practical inquirer. Would a scientific travel- ler, intending to visit Armenia, Tartary, some part of India, or perhaps China, be nothing the better for preparing himself at home, during some months, by reading the respective lan- guages, either under his own skill, or with the assistance of some oriental scholar ? If he enter any of those countries without this preparation, is he not obliged to depend on an interpreter, or reduced to study the language in the midst of disturbance, and perhaps danger, under people who do not understand him, and who are as ignorant of grammatical me- thods as our own common peasantry ? But an objection has been made, that the Bible is not a proper book for that par- ticular purpose. It may be answered by observing, that the Scriptures exhibit a language by great variety of compo- sition, from simple dialogue and narrative, to the most sub- lime poetry. It will not be easy to point out any book which a learner can sooner translate, or of which he can read more in a little time. It might require many months of hard study among foreigners to acquire what it can teach in a philologi- cal sense ; and this labour being surmounted at home, the traveller can, on his arrival, procure books, and natives to read to him. CXXIV APPENDIX. 2. The exertions of the Society are providing means of doing good for future generations. We know that the mo- ral improvement of nations is subject to accident and chance, to unexpected changes, and the unforeseen zeal of private in- dividuals, whose line of conduct is frequently decided by casual situation. In this manner Providence governs human affairs, and sometimes permits, for inscrutable reasons, the best endeavours to fail in success. The greatest benefit may incidentally arise from having a command over the books and literature of a distant country. China is now shut against Christians. The writings of the Jesuits would, how- ever, qualify a person for availing himself of any opportunity to enter it. When all public exertion has ceased, a benevo- lent adventurer may yet carry truth and science into coun- tries that sit under delusion and ignorance. How amply have the Jesuits, and some later travellers, prepared us for opening an intercourse with Abyssinia, the only Christian kingdom in Africa. We possess the written language of that ancient state, and books sufiBcient for directing our judg- ment. On this general, but obvious principle, the labours of the Society may yet support the literature of Europe, and all the best interests of mankind. The Missionaries at Serampore have given us more Indian literature during a few years, than we have had since the British took possession of the country. Government has wisely patronized their exertions. We are indebted to them for many works, of which the San- scrit Grammar is not the least valuable. They have put it in the power of British Scholars to compare the history of India with that of Greece and Rome, to illustrate, from an unexpected quarter, the languages of Homer and Virgil, to teach as a common dialect, the radical basis of the ten mo- dern languages now spoken in the Peninsula. We may smile at the attempts made by some learned persons to show that APPENDIX, CXXV the Society's labours have been grossly exaggerated. I have almost before me at present, portions of the Scriptures in the Sanscrit, Bengalee, Orissa, and Mahratta, and I might easily add several other dialects, the principles of which we are enabled, by getting those books, to teach, if required, in this University ; — a thing totally impossible a few years since, and certainly arising from the industry of the Society. In a short time we may expect the Malay of the interior, the Bir- man, and the Chinese itself, with some of the Tartar dialects spoken north of the Chinese frontier, in the regions that poured successive hordes of barbarians on the nations of the West. It has been asserted to me by many well informed gentle- men from India, that both Hindoos and Mahomedans would read with attention proper portions of our Dictionaries of Arts and Sciences, if these were translated into the native languages. The effects of this kind of reading would not be inconsiderable. It may be looked upon as a principal engine for unsettling the foundations of their inveterate prejudices, and for exciting different opinions, as to our scientific and moral character. The possession of those languages is the first step towards this experiment. 3. The political and commercial advantages resulting from an intercourse opened with the whole world, are surely very obvious. The business of government cannot be conducted in our foreign dominions, without a knowledge of the popu- lar languages. It is our interest to promote justice, order, and good behaviour in all our settlements. We cannot make our intentions effectual, without close intercourse with our native subjects : while we know not them, nor they us, distrust, oppression, and falsehood must continue. A sense of this has led to those literary regulations now observed in the Company's service. With China and the eastern islands of Asia we have long CXXVl APPENDIX. had a lucrative communication. Yet all the knowledge which we have of the languages of those countries is insuffi- cient for public or private purposes. It was found necessary to seek an interpreter in Italy for assisting Lord Macartney in his Chinese embassy. The language has since been studied by a few individuals, but no work has appeared to promote that species of literature. Perhaps we shall owe the first accession to our scanty knowledge of the singular ' language and written character of China, to the industry of the Missionaries at Serampore. It is surely desirable that a merchant, or society of mer- chants, should have some access to information respecting commercial countries ; that even they should have it in their power to qualify some of their number for visiting these. It is no solid objection to this, that our trade has been profit- ably managed without such assistance hitherto; a maxim analogous to the old creed of agriculture, that the ground does well enough without improved cultivation ; or to the principle of some Indian politicians, that '' the people do just as well in their present state." Trade, agriculture, and human society, will always repay judicious expenditure. The exertions of the Society are putting the world in pos- session of that which no government has leisure to collect, nor any mercantile body power to furnish on demand. Make the unnecessary supposition, that every Bible distri- buted in barbarous countries by the agents of the Society is instantly delivered to the flames, the means of future inter- course for the several purposes of religion, science, commerce, and international polici/, are secured. The gate is opened; we are discovered to the world, and the world to us. I have stated these as my sentiments respecting the fo- reign proceedings of the Society. It would not be easy to find an institution, in the success of which so many passions have an interest. Besides that encouragement given to it / . APPENDIX. CXXVii for national reasons, it merits support from every man of li- terature and science, whose pursuits are in the least con- nected with foreign countries. The Christian and Philan- thropist (they are synonymous terms) will view its progress with anxious hope, and pray that it may at last be the in- strument of placing all the kingdoms of the earth under a better rule than any human government ! If this letter appear to you and your friends worthy of publication, you are at perfect liberty to make that use of it. I am. Dear Sir, With great regard and esteem. Your very humble and obedt. Servant, Alex. Murray. Extract J^rom another Letter, 1 MAY remark, that the " Dissertation on the Charac- ter and Sounds of the Chinese Language, including Tables of the elementary Characters, and of the Chinese Mono- syllables," by Mr Marshman, printed at Serampore in I8O9, is by far the most instructive, accurate, and rational account of that language which has yet appeared in Europe. It con- tains a Grammar and Dictionary of the spoken language, and a primary Index of the written character. As these gentlemen are now in possession of the latest and most im- proved Chinese Dictionary, compiled and published by or- der of the Emperor, we may expect from their labours, if properly supported, a knowledge of the most interesting and celebrated language in the world.—— PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. VOL. I. PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. CHAPTER L Account of the principal Nations ofEurope^ and of the German Tribes, whose Languages have reached Po- sterity, " 1 HE object of this Treatise is to ascertain the ge- neral affinities of the European nations, by examin- ing the origin and progress of their language. If an undertaking so difficult and extensive can be accomplished, additional light will be thrown on the history of a large and most interesting section of the human race, — a kind of rule will be fur- nished for conducting similar speculations, — the theory of speech will be better understood, — and the numerous dialects of Europe, Persia, and In- 4f PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF dia, the vehicles of the most refined wisdom and sentiment, will at length be arranged and illustrat- ed." The nations of Europe, with the exception of some inconsiderable tribes, are descended from five particular races of men. These, though ori- ginally from a common and single stock, * have long ceased to know or acknowledge their affinity. In the forests of the west the Celts and Germans, the immediate ancestors of the modern Europeans, soon effaced their moral and physical resemblance to their eastern kindred, from whom they were for ever divided by immense tracts of sea and land, intervening enemies, and the more powerful ob- stacles of new institutions. The hordes (which wandered nearer to the parent race) equally forgot their connection with the civilized nations of Asia. Each tribe, at the irregular, but perpetual, calls of want, ambition, or danger, disappeared gradually or rapidly into the vast wilderness, whose bound- less plains and woods, destitute of human cultiva- tion, were fitted to remove from the mind all for- mer impressions, and to produce in it only the sensations, and consequently the rude habits, of savage life. In these solitudes each horde soon multiplied into various nations, regulated by simi- lar customs, and loosely connected by language. * See Note A. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 5 This, the only monument of their origin, which men must, in some form or other, indelibly pre- serve, is insensibly changed, till, in a few ages, whatever is mutable in its composition, establishes a perpetual difference amongst those who use it. That I may reunite the separate and distinct na- tions of Europe, and promote their literature, by relating the origin and progress of their speech, so far as these are common to them all, " it may be convenient to lay before the reader a short ac- count of the principal races of the population of Europe. As the affinity of these races is esta- blished in this work, a view of the great re- public, from the dawn of its history, will mark the compass, and define the objects of investigation. The primary tribes of Europe are, as is gene- rally known, Ist^ The CeltcBy ancestors of the Irish and Scotch , the Cymri, progenitors of the Welsh, Cornish, and Armoricans ; 2^, The Teutones, ancestors of the Goths, Scandinavians, Saxons, Dutch, and all the German nations ; Sd, The Sauromatae, or Slavi, whose descendants are the Russians, Poles, Bohemians, and Croatians; 4^//, The Greeks and Romans, whose posterity still possesses the south of Europe ; Sthy The Finni, an- cestors of the Laplanders, and of a variety of small nations in the north : the Avares, or HungariaUvS, have been classed in this division." P PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF I, The Celtae were found at the dawn of his- tory in possession of the western extremity of Eu- rope. They were discovered by the Roman am- bition in Gaul in a state of disunion and miHtary decline, which speedily effected their subjugation. Proofs are not wanting to show that they had been a numerous, warlike, and adventurous people. But before the approach of Caesar, and the light of history which accompanied his expeditions, they had sunk into that most hopeless of all the states of human society, — they had acquired the weakness, levity, and servile spirit of civilized life, before they had attained to any of its political or moral improvements. * Jn the west of Gaul, and in Britain, there is evidence to presume, that the greater part of the population consisted of that di- vision of the Celtic race whose posterity now pos- sesses the name of Cymri. But in Ireland the population was wholly Celtic, of that original stem which had penetrated, in the earliest ages, into Gaul, Spain, and the British islands. The an- cestors of the Cymri were of Celtic origin, as their customs and language sufficiently evince. But they had remained nearer to the east, in the heart of Europe, while their kindred reached the Atlan- tic Ocean, until the languages of both underwent a considerable change. The causes of savage war * Note B. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 7 and emigration at length drove the Cymri into the west, whence they expelled the Celtre, and took possession of Gaul and Britain. In these places they were conquered by the Romans, and afterwards greatly reduced by the Saxons. After many ages we find the posterity of the Celt£e and Cymri form a valuable portion of the free, enlight- ened, and virtuous British confederation. Their languages have been preserved by a generous na- tional attachment, and still more by the introduc- tion of writing, which has transmitted to us many manuscripts of respectable antiquity, and of ex- cellent, but as yet unexhausted, use in illustrating their dialects and ancient history. * Of the Celtic and Cymraig languages, this work contains a character, in a part of the narra- tive where it will be better understood and intro- duced than at present. They are more intimately allied to the dialects of Persia and India than the immense distance of time and place would warrant us to believe. Upon no vague interpretation of historical passages, or the faith of an indiscriminat- ing etymology, but on cautious and regular in- quiry, I assert that this connection is as near as could possibly exist between the languages of na- tions so long and permanently separated. The Celtic abounds in very ancient forms of words, * Note C. 8 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF common at this day in Europe and Asia. The Cymraig, or ancient British, illustrates the earlier state of the Celtic, and, by certain peculiarities in its words, unites the Celtic, of which it is a dialect, with the Teutonic. The latter is easily identified with the Persic and Indian ; and the breadth of Europe is illumined by a train, which is kindled on the mountains of the west to terminate on the banks of the Ganges. * II. The Celtas and Cymri were driven from their forests by the Teutonic tribes, the ancestors of the greater part of the modern nations of Eu- rope. The era of the Teutonic settlement in Germany, where that race of men was discovered by history, cannot be established, t Long before the Romans had subdued their own country of Italy, the German warriors had approached the Rhine, and sought, in alliance with the Celtic na- tions, a residence in those countries which border- ed on the Alps. Their inroads became frequent, and at last irresistible. The Celts gradually yielded, and must have been soon overpowered, had not the Roman arms retarded for several cen- turies the course of an invincible and uniform va- lour, which civilized and systematical warfare might repress, but could not subdue, which ac- * Note D. t Note E. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGEU. 9 cordingly survived the vital powers of the most re- gidar government of an^ici^i times, ard destroyed the effects which it had for a thousand y?ars pro- duced on the workh Neither the Celtae nor Teutones had any dis- tinct and probable traditions regarding their ori- gin. * The one of these nations deduced icself from Dis, a deity v/hose attributes and nature are but imperfectxy known. The other, with some consistency, ')ut little knov/ledge, imputed its de- scent to the Earth, the mother of gods and men, whose son Tuistc^ a c!i"inity v/hose name is pre- served in that of the third day of the week, in Teutonic countries, produced Mann, the parent of the German tribes, t Such uninstructive fables are invented by nations in their x'ude state, in every part of the world, and are abandoned as false or ridiculous by their enlightened posterity. The ancient history of Germany must be cautiously dis- covered in monuments which the weakness and pride of savages could noc corrupt or destroy, — in that uniformity of physical and moral qualities which the greatest of the Roman historians traced in all its tribes at an early period, and in those dialects of a language common to the whole Teu- tonic race, which remain at this day to illustrate his performance. The evidence of language and *■ Note F. \r Note G. 10 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF history shows that the German nations were so in- timately related, that an embassy from the Mar- comanni, on the borders of Hungary, might have been delivered in the dialect peculiar to the tribe who sent it, on the banks of the Elbe and Oder, without the necessity of interpretation. The in- terest which the descendants of that race of men have in the tribes which have transmitted to them laws, manners, and all that the victorious hordes of a forest could leave to their descendants, is en- hanced by a discovery that the Teutonic nations spoke a language so simple and original, that their intermixture with the Celtic, Greek, or Indian races cannot be suspected, and that the light, which their speech diffuses over classical literature, is the effect of long separation from the southern world. As, in this work, particular use will be made of the assistance which the Teutonic supplies in the history of language, an account may be ex- pected of the several nations whose neglected mo- numents have afforded what Greece and Rome could not furnish. A generous, but not partial, recollection of the spirit of independence and va- lour which issued from German forests, may apo- logize lor the readiness with which that task, close- ly connected as it is with the subject in view, shall be undertaken and performed. Within the pale of history the Germans were a pastoral na- tion, which has been considered as approaching a THE EUKOPEAN LANGUAGES. 11 civilized and settled state. Their eastern confines joined them to a people of a different race, the de- scendants of the Medes and Persians, whose po- sterity now occupies the same vast regions, in which their fathers led a wandering life, and practised customs more peculiarly native to the Scythian wilderness. III. The Slavi were known in ancient history by the name of Sauromatae. These were Median tribes which issued from the north of Persia, either by the eastern passage of the Caucasean mountains, or by coasting the Caspian Sea. They reached in time the banks of the Tanais, and, in the course of some centuries, got possession of all the coun- tries on the northern shore of the Euxine. Im- pelled by other tribes, they lost the plains, and were driven into the Carpathian mountains, be- tween which and the coast of the Baltic, they wan- dered over immense tracts of woody or marshy ground, too rude to be coveted or invaded by their enemies. The Gothic nation forced its way through their hostile tribes and marshes in its emigration towards the Euxine. About the time when the Gothic power was destroyed in Italy, (A. D. 553,) Jornandes, the Gothic historian, whose forefathers had served under the Alani, near the mouth of the Danube, relates that the Sauromatas were di- vided into three nations, the Antes, Venedi, and 12 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF Slavl ; which all spoke the same language, and possessed smiilar manners and governments. Some account of the Slavonic nations will be found in the Second Part of this work, when the properties of their language come to be considered. The de- scendants of that people are the Poles, Vends, and Bohemians, all the nations from the Adriatic to the Euxine, which lie between the 44th and 46th degree of N. latitude, and the R-ussians, whose dominions extend from the Baltic and Spitzbergen to the American Ocean, and the boundaries of China. The language of this vast portion of man- kind is too little known in Europe ; and the uses to which it may be applied in historical and philo- logical discussions have been hitherto almost un- perceived or neglected. In the north of the Russian empire, on the shores of the Frozen Ocean, exists the progeny of another race, which, though now obscure and inconsiderable, once peopled the countries in the vicinity of Caucasus, inhabited the banks of the Wolga, and established itself, under a certain de- gree of civilized and regular government, in the re- cesses of the Arctic forests. This race, which Tacitus describes nearly in the same manner that modern and better information would approve, was, IV. The Finni, the ancestors of the Lapland- ers and Finns, and of several savage tribes on the THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 13 shores of the Northern Ocean. These, till very lately, subsisted entirely by hunting and fishing. Destitute of all civilization, they exemplified the lowest state of human society j surrounded by wants which they were contented to bear, or imperfectly supply, without exertion of skill, or thought, or industry. Their language is but little known : it has not been attentively surveyed or considered : it appears, however, to be distantly related to those which are the subject of this work ; and it may ex- cite curiosity and surprise, that the inhabitant of the Finnish marshes knows the sky, and what is synonymous with that, the heavens, by no other name than one imported from the distant regions of India. The contrast between the fortune, cha- racter, and country of the Finns, and those of the nations to which we now pass, is that which is found between the extreme of polar misery and the plentiful and genial comforts of the most fa- voured climates, — that which exists in the immense difference between the savage mind, in its lowest state, and the powers of the same spirit cultivated to a height bordering on perfection. V. The names of Greece and Rome sufficiently mark the boundless place which they hold in all that concerns taste and literature. The origin of the tribes which formed their first population is nearly as obscure as that of any other European 14 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF people. The ancestors of the Romans have been reckoned of Greek descent by some authority founded on tradition and language. In the dark- ness of partial and limited erudition, claims have been advanced in favour of their Celtic origin, which are not confirmed by matuie examination. The Latin is not a dialect of the Greek ; it pos- sesses many properties of an original and distinct character ; it approaches, in a variety of peculiar and remarkable features, to what may be consider- ed as the natural aspect of the Greek, while un- moulded by time into that fonn which is common to the Ionic, Doric, and Aeolic dialects. If the Latins had been, like the Phocean or many other states, a colony from Greece, the resemblance of language must have been incomparably greater. It may be safely admitted, that the Romans were re- lated to the Greeks ; that they were certainly a di- vision from the ancient inhabitants of Thessaly or Peloponnesus ; and that their language, on that ac- count, is an excellent commentary on the Hellenic dialects : it must, however, be cautiously observed, that if the Latin be viewed as a descendant of the Greek, which has degenerated from a pure origi- nal, and lost its native perfection in a barbarous colony, the conclusions drawn from that opinion will be ill-founded, and the philological reason- ings erected on them fallacious and unsupported. The obscurity which envelopes the origins of THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 15 Greece is faintly dissipated by the native traditions, which countenance an immigration through Thrace and Thessaly. Before this work terminate, the reader will probably be enabled to decide for him- self on that rational subject of inquiry. The enu- meration of these races of mankind, which are just- ly regarded as the aborigines of Europe, may be concluded with this general truth, long since anti- cipated by the penetration of the learned, and rash- ly used in their speculations by many theological and systematical writers ; that all these races de- scended from one common tribe, which imparted to each of them its language in a state of consider- able advancement. In what particular spot of the earth that tribe wandered, how far it was civilized, whether it had become a great nation, or still con- sisted of disunited hordes of necessitous barbarians, when its laws or anarchy filled the European wil- derness with colonies, will not be easily or soon as- certained. It has been remarked, that the obvious affinity between the Teutonic and Persic points out an early emigration from the East. It has also been declared by a writer, whose literary and mo- ral attainments will be long admired, that the Per- sian and Indian nations were originally the same ; an opinion which the very late introduction of In- dian literature into Europe has prevented those who are qualified from subjecting to examination. The recent benefit of surveying the Indian Ian- 16 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF i^'uage enables n:e to coiifirm praoticiuly the sen- timents ratVei than thd theory of Sir William Jones, by devalci-'ng the early progress; of speech, and arranging in luminous order tlie essen'.ial pro- perties of its various dialects. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. IJ CHAPTER 11. The same subject continued. — Account (rf the Teutonic or German Tribes. In entering upon a new subject of almost un- limited extent, it is convenient that the reader should possess some easy and familiar principle to direct him in his difficulties, — to alleviate the weariness occasioned by close attention,— -and to convey more abstruse knowledge to the mind through a medium which is pleasant, and, at the same time, appropriate. It is fortunate for this inquiry that, of all illustrations, those drawn from old, common, or even vulgar English, are particu- larly suitable. * The mysteries of language, in its rudest state, can be explained by the words of our own tongue to better purpose than by those of any other speech. By a careful study of the Anglo-Saxon, Visigothic, and the elder English writers, more knowledge may be obtained of the original structure of the Greek, Latin, Celtic, or Sanscrit, than the deepest erudition can possibly * Note H. VOL. I. B iB PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF supply. The English reader may prepare him- self for beholding his native tongue at its forma- tion — ^for tracing its affinity with the oldest dia- lects which exist : And, if he feel any regard for that original unity which has been too long forgotten in Europe, or the still more sacred glow of freedom, which is essential to all high cultiva- tion of the mirid and heart, he will probably re- ceive with indulgence a very short and preparatory account of that republic of independent nations, whose ancient or modern dialects have contribut- ed materials for this particular purpose. These nations are the English and Dutch ; the Visi- goths, ancestors of the Spaniards ; the Scandina- vians, progenitors of the Danes, Swedes, Nor- wegians, and Normans ; and the Franks and Ala- manni, whose descendants are the French and Germans, I. The English are the offspring of the Giotas, Angli, and Saxons. The first of these tribes in- habited Jutland, the second an angle or recess of the Baltic around Sleswic, the third occupied the shores of the German Ocean, near the mouth of the Elbe, and a considerable part of the North of Germany. The Angli and Varini were early united by common laws and privileges. All these nations formed but a small portion of the Germanic name ; but they were warlike, adven- THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 19 turous, and ambitious from habits which, in part, belonged to the fierce people from whom they had descended, but in a greater degree to their local situation. They had long carried devastation into the Roman colonies on the Continent and in Bri- tain, They had braved every difficulty which the ocean presented, to deter the weak and unskilful from distant expeditions ; and, in the fifth century, some exiles, from that very district where the re- mains of the Cimbri and Teutones had finally dis- appeared, effected a settlement in South Britain, and founded a German colony. The general character of the Saxons is well known, and there- fore need not be described. It is pertinent to add, that the language of that people in England has been preserved in many valuable and import- ant monuments. Though not written till the in- troduction of Christianity, there is no foundation to believe that it was materially different at the time of their settlement, from what it afterwards was in the later period of the Saxon monarchy, in the days of Bede or Alfred. Examination fully proves that the ancient Dutch, Frisons, and Sax- ons, used the same speech, which was pure, strong, and copious, admitting of unlimited composition, and, like all the older German dialects, possessing inflections like the Latin or Greek, and, conse- quently, admitting of transposition. In the de«. cline of the Saxon government, the Danes gained 20 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF the English sceptre, and imparted some of their customs to the people, which, however, were only temporary. The philologists who have studied our ancient monuments, have specified a slight shade of innovation in the language, which may be considered as introduced by the Danes. This is obviously very faint. The Anglo-Saxon retain- ed its purity with little diminution, as may be seen from its state in writings composed about the Danish period. The Paraphrase of Genesis, imputed to Caedmon, — the Fragment of a Para- phrase of the Book of Judith, — and the Version of Boethius by Alfred, are noble relics of those re- mote times. The wild spirit of Scandinavian poetry is infused by Caedmon into the inspired narrative of the Jewish legislator, whose primajval account of the creation, the fall of man, the de- luge, and the origin of the chosen people, formed a subject worthy of the highest efforts of a power- fully elevated imagination, in a language eveiy way able to promote them. The Anglo-Saxon received particular injury from the introduction of the Norman-French. A colony of Scandinavian adventurers, about the year 912, wrested from the French several pro- vinces. During their residence in these, they lost the use of their native tongue, and when they in- vaded the neighbouring kingdom of England, about 151 years after, they established, as far as au- THE tiUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 21 thority of government could, their own dialect of French in the place of the national language. It was long before this ambitious experiment was abandoned. The Saxon tongue is generally be- lieved to have undergone a remarkable change during the operation of that attempt. The change which it underwent was no doubt extensive in so long a period, but a similar process was observ- able at the same time in the kindred dialects of Holland and Germany, though exposed to no ex- ternal violence. The introduction of new words formed in either case the chief ground of differ- ence. These Continental tongues insensibly left the greater part of the inflections which they in- herited from antiquity. The Anglo-Saxon spirit subdued the adventitious colony into a body en- tirely English, — the language exerted an analo- gous power over the French ; and any person con- versant in old English must have remarked, that these terminations and inflections which the Saxon was supposed to have lost in the Norman period, as well as many words no longer found in English, existed in common use long after the Norman- French was every where obsolete. II. I have derived much assistance from the va- rious dialects of the English and Scottish nations in the subsequent inquiry, nor less from the aid con- stantly afforded by the Dutch and German ; but 2S PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF every philologist, engaged in European antiquities, must owe his principal obligations to the remains of a dialect which no longer continues to be spoken, — a lasting monument of the early triumphs of Christianity, — and of that Teutonic tribe which terminated the degenerate glory of Greece and Rome. The history of the Goths cannot be bet- ter known by its abridgment here. * It is suffi- cient to remark, that their traditions ought not to be altogether rejected by sober inquirers after truth, confirmed, as the substance of these tradi- tions now is, by the uniform testimony of all the ancient chronicles, and the more decisive evi- dence of affinity in language, t The Goths, Vandals, Burgundians, Gepidee, and Longobardi, were divisions of one people. From Scandina- via, where they left two considerable districts, which inherit their name at this day, the Goths crossed the Baltic, pursued for some time an east- ward course along the shore, till they multiplied, or confederated with other tribes, into a force which was adequate to the opposition which they encoun- tered. They afterwards ascended the Vistula, to that point where its most eastern stream runs at no distance from the western branch of the Dnieper, They had nearly perished in the marshes of that dreary district. A part of the nation, and of the • Note 1. t Note K. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 23 large droves of cattle, which constituted its only wealth, was left on the banks of the Przypiec. The most adventurous penetrated through the unsteady wilderness, and dispersed the Spali, a Sarmatic tribe which opposed their passage. Filimer, the Gothic king, conducted his nation to the coast of the Eux- ine, where it afterwards increased into a numerous and formidable people, under the names of Visi- goths and Ostrogoths. This distinction, which had been produced by local situation, was continued in their new settlements, though the ancient union of the Gothic tribes was remembered and acknowledg- ed by themselves at the latest periods. The empire of Hermanuo, their greatest prince, extended to the Baltic, over all the Sarmatian, Finnish, and Vanda- lic stems ; but was at length dissolved by the Huns. The Visigoths crossed the Danube, obtained a set- tlement within the Roman empire, and at length plundered Rome and Italy. They fixed their last- ing residence in Spain, while their kindred, the Ostrogoths, took possession of Italy, at that time abandoned by the courage, freedom, and wisdom, which had formerly made it the most considerable country in Europe. When the Visigoths received Christianity, about the year 376, in Thrace, the Scriptures were trans- lated into their language by Ulphilas, their bishop, a man of great ability and virtue. Of his trans- lation, an imperfect manuscript, containing frag- 2* PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF ments of the Four Gospels, was found, in the six- teenth century, in the monastery of Werden, in Germany. Some passages of the same version have been recovered at a later period. These relics are the oldest monuments of the Teutonic nations. The dialect of the Silver Book, a name obtained from the colour of its letters, is a perpetual evidence of the original and uncorrupted purity of the na- tion which spoke it. It serves for a standard by which the later changes may be detected and esti- mated. By means of it I have discovered the origin of the moods, and deponent cr middle voice in the Greek and Latin ; as also the ancient states of the cases of nouns, of the inflections of verbs, of the in- declinable parts of speech, and of the names of numbers, from all of which I have deduced import- ant conclusions. III. The isles in the Baltic and the peninsula of Scandinavia were first peopled by Finnish tribes. These were expelled by the Teutones, of whom the Goths were probably a division. The posterity of the Teutones are the modern Swedes, Danes, and Norwegians. A colony of Norwegians was fixed in Iceland in A. D. 874. The languages of all these nations are from a single and peculiar dialect of the Teutonic. But all the German dialects approach nearer to the Visigothic than the ancient Scandi- navian, which possesses a distinct and original cha- THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 25 racter. It has suffered considerably from contrac- tion ; it has acquired new forms of inflection in its nouns and verbs ; its words are notwithstanding ex- ceedingly pure, and of eminent use in philological inquiries. The Icelandic is particularly valuable, as it is the repository of all those superstitions which were common to the northern nations in their Pagan state. The poetiy of the Edda exhibits the spirit which despised every danger, and regarded death in the field as a happy introduction to that perfec- tion of enjoyment, with which it long and victorious- ly inspired the Saxon to plough the seas, the Dane to ravage the shores, and the Goth to penetrate into the very heart of an enemy's country. In this work, the use which may be made of the northern litera- ture has not been forgotten. Passages from the Edda will be found illustrative of the language of the Vedas. IV. The Tudesque or Alamannic must parti- cularly be remembered and quoted in the course of these researches. This dialect, which, of all the German tongues, is nearest to the Visigothic, was spoken by the Pranks and Alamanni, ancestors of the Erench and southern Germans. The Pranks, whose posterity forms the greatest and most power- ful nation on the European continent, w^ere a con- federation of the Salii, Sigambri, Bructeri, and the more celebrated states of the Chamavi and Catti. ^6 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF They assumed the general appellation of Freemen, which they were entitled to bear, and which they supported by uniform valour for ages. They were the posterity of the first Teutonic tribes with which history makes us acquainted, of those which tri- umphed over the Roman legions in the plenitude of their discipline, and are recalled to our admira- tion by the name of Arminius. They lost their liberties in their new settlements in Gaul ; and ex- changed their language for the Latin, which they had long known and preferred. Some fragments of the Franco-Tudesque are preserved, but scarcely discriminated from similar monuments of the Ala- manni, a great nation early subdued and admitted into their confederacy by the Franks. The Ala- manni were an assemblage from all the Suevic tribes. No name was more celebrated in ancient Germany than that of the Suevi. It was derived from a par- ticular custom which was practised by the greater number of the Teutonic nations. After many cen- turies of internal war, the Suevi disburdened their vast territories of their superabundant population, which poured itself into the Roman dominions. Unsubdued by the defeats which they sustained from the Romans, the Alamanni gained possession of the Alps, and of a part of Gaul. In these re- gions they became tributary to the Franks. The Alamannic dialect is imperfectly preserved, but what remains of it is exceedingly valuable. We THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 27 trace in it the rudiments of the modern German, and that softening of the consonants which discri- minates the High Dutch from the other Teutonic dialects. The inflections of the nouns and verbs are better perceived in the dialect of Tatian and Olfrid, Alamannic or Tudesque writers, than in Saxon or Scandinavian. So close is the affinity between the Alamannic and Visigothic, that scho- lars of the greatest erudition, though obviously de- ficient in critical learning, have pronounced the fragments of the Silver Book to be Tudesque, not Visigothic ; and their sentiments must be allowed to have that plausibility which the equally narrow arguments of their antagonists were ill calculated to disprove. By a skilful, accurate, and philosophical compa- rison of all these dialects, ancient or modern, the state of the radical speech from which they arise may be fully discovered ; and by extending the same industry to the other European tongues, a similar result prepares the mind, already no stran- ger to the various steps of the progress which lan- guage has made, for displaying the simplicity and the elements of its origin. 2'8 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF CHAPTER III. Origin of the European Languages. The nations from the confines of China to the Atlantic Ocean, from Novaya Zemlia to Africa, speak different dialects of a language, of which the Teutonic is the simplest form now existing. * Though history never could approach it in its in- fancy to record its earliest appearances, that lan- guage was the invention of a single tribe in the rudest ages and state of society. The account, ex- hibited in these pages of the rudiments of speech, depends not on hypothetical but inductive reason- ings ; and however imperfect as a complete narra- tive, it contains all that investigation can now supply. Language was formed by man in the exercise of perception, memory, abstraction, and judgment, the natural faculties of the human mind. These were continually forced into action by sensations of a painful or pleasing character, excited by external * Note L. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 29 objects, and by the inward operation of the active principles or passions. Born in society, and indebt- ed to it for preservation, till he have learned how to act and think in ordinary cases, he must have inherited language, or invented it. * It does not ap- pear that any language originally existed in a finish- ed state. Its composition indicates an infancy, which has been succeeded by many gradations of change, and subsequent improvement. The im- perfect system of communication of thought, form- ed by children and the deaf, in civilized nations, is the principal one still in use among savages. It must have been the only one before the introduc- tion of articulate speech. The voice, the body, the countenance, all contribute to express what the mind feels or knows. In the course of time the use of the natural signs was aided by the articulation of a few short interjectional syllables. These were uttered while the feeling, or external action, affect- ed the mind. At first they probably were but two or three in number ; which was increased gradu- ally, as the convenience of them began to be felt. The process could not be rapid, for the natural signs are always more ready, and consequently more intelligible, t Philosophers have involved this subject in diffi- culties, by supposing that savages form few abstract * Note M. t Note N. 30 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF ideas, and that their notions and their names of objects are all individuals. * Children, or persons in a low state of society, draw their notions from par- ticular sensations and perceptions ; but it is ob- vious that they associate these perceptions with others on the principle of resemblance ; and so far generalize their scanty ideas, that we can easily see traces of conclusions which their minds have deriv- ed from comparison of their recollections. In re- ality, no savage whatever, in possession of a sound mind, arrives at maturity under the constant dis- cipline of want, desire, and external nature, with- out a reasonable proportion of abstract ideas, on which he wills and acts. That the inventors of our parent tongue were rational, though rude in speech, is not to be disputed. They perceived nature in a state of change around them. They felt their own ability to act. They imagined that the effects, produced by external objects on their senses, arose from an agency similar to that of which they were conscious in themselves. Hence all languages are formed on the idea of action. The tree grows, the fire burns, the stone hurts, the plant poisons, are forms of expression still in common use. The actions of man, and the world in which they live, are not discriminated in the thoughts of barbarians and children ; and the first attempts at speech con- * Note O. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 31 sistetl in an effort to give short expressive names to the great classes of effects which association had formed, which experience continually perceived, and judgment arranged agreeably to their charac- ters. Taste and philosophy will receive with aversion the rude syllables, which are the base of that me- dium, through which Homer, and Milton, and Newton, have delighted or illumined mankind. The words themselves, though inelegant, are not numerous : each of them is a verb and name for a species of action. Power, motion, force, ideas united in every untutored mind, are implied in them all. The variation of force in degree was not designated by a different word, but by a slight change in the pronunciation. Harsh and violent action, which affected the senses, was expressed by harsher articulations. I. To strike or move with swift equable pene- trating or sharp effect was Ac ! Ag ! If the motion was less sudden, but of the same species. Wag. If made with force and a great effort, Hwag, These are varieties of one word, originally used to mark the motion of fire, water, wind, darts. II. To strike with a quick, vigorous, impelling force, Bag or Bwag, of which Fag and Pag are softer varieties. 32 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF III. To strike with a harsh, violent, strong blow, DwAG, of which Thwag and Twag are va- rieties. IV. To move or strike with a quick tottering unequal impulse, Gwag or Cwag. V. To strike with a pliant slap, Lag and Hlag. VI. To press by strong force or impulse so as to condense, bruise, or compel, Mag. VII. To strike with a crushing destroying power, Nag and Hnag. VIII. To strike with a strong, rude, sharp, pe- netrating power. Rag or Hrag. IX. To move with a weighty strong impulse, Swag. These nine words are the foundations of lan- guage, on which an edifice has been erected of a more useful and wonderful kind, than any which have exercised human ingenuity. They were ut- tered at first, and probably for several generations, in an insulated manner. The circumstances of the actions were communicated by gestures, and the variable tunes of the voice ; but the actions them- selves were expressed by their suitable monosyl- lable. * External objects are known only by their qualities : each quality was considered as an agent ; the character of its actions suggested the appro- * Note P. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. S3 priate syllable, vvhicli was the verb, noun, and adjective of that quality, at the pleasure of the speaker. When fire burnt or moved in a stream of flame, ag denoted its action, itself, and its bright or penetrating quality. When water yield- ed to the pressure of the foot or hand, it was wag ; when it rushed in a stream, it was rag. When a man simply moved along, the term was wag ; when he moved by quick steps, it was gag ; but if he ran, it was rag. If he struck another a vigorous blow with his fist, the word was bag ; if he did the same with a staff or branch of a tree, it was lag ; if he stabbed him with a sharp object, it was rag ; if he dashed him down to the ground, it was dwag ; and if he put him to death by bruising him when fallen, the expression was mag. For the same reasons the names of objects varied. Wag was moving, gag was going, rag was running, bag was beating, lag was laying or licking, rag was wounding or cutting, dag was striking violently, and mag was murder. When any of the actions denoted by these pri mitive words was rapidly done in a diminished manner, and with less force, the broad sound of the proper syllable was changed into a slender one. Thus lig was a slight blow : dig, and tig, and RIG, were diminutives of dag, tag, and rag, whe- ther used as verbs or nouns. * * Note Q. VOL. I. C 34 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF As none of the words, recently enumerated, were proper, but generic appellations j as in that state they were applicable to all objects, whose qualities had any resemblance, an ambiguity must have ex- isted in the use of them, which their modification by the natural signs of gesture, look, and intona- tion, could not entirely remove. This inconve- nience was felt, and it must gratify a reflecting mind to consider the various and unequal remedies, which have been adopted by the separate races of mankind, to supply a palpable defect. The Chi- nese, whose language continues to be monosyllabic, had recourse to the expedient of varying the sound with the sense, a method sufficient to serve ordi- nary purposes, but of narrow compass, and liable to difficulties in practice. * But the fathers of those nations, whose languages were to receive the most abstract or animated thoughts which the mind is capable of forming, began early to compound their words, and to multiply terms with all the fertility of arithmetical permutation. This new stage of language attracts particular attention. * Note R. THE EUROPEAN L.^A'GUAGES. 35 SECTION II. It is a natural habit of the human mind to re- strict what is general to particular, and to general- ize anew that which has been so restricted ; retain- ing, in the meantime, the restricted idea for the base of the new abstraction. The words ag, bag, DAG, GAG, lag, MAG, NAG, RAG, and SAG, had been in common use to denote general classes of action. * The necessity of restricting their sense to particu- lar kinds of action was founded in the original pe- nury of language. Hence these terms, besides their primary sense, acquired a more limited and personal meaning, peculiar to the actions of the hand or body. Ag naturally signified move, but, applied to the action of the hand or the body, it denoted hold, have, possess. Another form of bodily exertion is when an object is moved or brought by active and quick impulse. On this ac- count, BAG began to signify carry, bear, produce ; DAG, which originally expressed strong violent action, came to signify work, do, perform, or finish ; gag, instead of its general signification to move unequal- ly, assumed the special sense of go. Lag, to lay, became, in a restricted sense, to lay hands on, seize, hold, or possess j mag, to compress, force together, » Note S. 36 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF or gather, varied into the kindred senses of augment, become greater in quantity or number, produce, form, or make. Nag, whose radical meaning was nearly the same as the preceding, converted its original signification into work, work upoUj operate, or ef- fect. In similar manner rag, work, and sag, hold, manage, direct, are restricted senses of rag, to move violently, and swag, to move firmly and forcibly. * These words, of which the general and particular applications were familiar to every individual, when annexed to one another, modified the proper mean- ing of each radical, altered its sense from an abso- lute to a limited state, and expressed circumstances of time, degree, and manner of action. An ex- ample will illustrate this part of the subject. The radical wag, as has been stated, signifies to move, shake, or agitate. This is its original unrestricted sense, not limited by time or any other circum- stance, t When ga, go, or da, do, are joined to it ; wagida, which is a contraction for wag-dag, ex- presses that the action is finished or done ; and GA WAGIDA, that it is done and gone by. This is the origin of the imperfectly preterite and perfectly preterite tense and participle in all the Teutonic dialects. Another participle, generally used in h preterite sense, was formed by affixing mag, make, produce j or nag, work upon, effect. So wagama » Note T. + Note U. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. S7 and WAGANA signify moved, that is, made to move, wrought on to move. If the radical was used as a noun, which frequently happened, the words ma and NA gave it an attributive sense. So wag, a wave, viz. moving water, with ma signified wave- made, that is, become a wave, or wave-augmented ; in other words, with or to a wave, the wave added to some other thing ; which form is the original dative case : With na, wag became wagana, a pre- terite participle, an adjective, and accusative case. In the first sense the new compound belonged to the verb, and signified moved ; in the second, to the noun WAG, and implied wave-wrought, waved ; in the third, it denoted on a wave, or acting on a wave. * The effects, produced on the radicals by the other words already mentioned, were equally important. By joining ag, havings to wag, move ; the com- pound bore what has been called a possessive sense. If the new word was used as a verb, it was a dimi- nutive of the radical ; as a noun it was a dimi- nutive of the original noun ; as an adjective, it sig- nified possessing the qualities of the primitive noun or verb. Thus wagag, which, by ordinary contrac- tion, is WACC, signifies to move often or a little, by repeated but small impulses ; and wagig is either a little wave, or, as an adjective, wavy ; of which the * Note X. 38 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF literal translation is wave-having, that is, possess- ing a wave or the properties of a wave. Along with ba, * bear, bring ; and la, hold, or have ; every radical suffered a like change. To continue the illustration ; wagaba, which is literal- ly move-bearing, and wag-la, which is move-hav- ing, were early contracted into wabba and wala, both as frequently met with in all the European languages as any other words of their kind. Wab- ba signifies to make a quick repeated motion, to wave, or to weave ; and wala, to turn or move about, which is the specific sense of its contracted form. In the uncontracted state the sense of wagla is obvious to every Englishman, t The influence of rag, t work, and swag, make, may be traced universally in the greater part of the words of all languages from Tartary to the Atlan- tic Ocean. Their original sense may be exem- plified in wAG-RA, motion-working, and wag-sa, motion-effecting. It may seem superfluous to ex- plain the power of er in wagger, he who wags ; in WAVER, he or that which waves ; in robber, he or that which robs, or in many thousands of words of the same description. Though this termination is in English chiefly used to express personal ac- tion, in the earliest ages it signified acting in an ad- * Note Y. f Note Z. X Note 2 A. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 39 jective or general sense ; and therefore it required tlie aid of another word to fix its meaning to mas- culine, feminine, or neuter agents. In verbs it produced a signification of greater activity, as to the time and rej^etition of their sense. So wag is to move, but wagger to move much, make many motions j spit, to cast out by the mouth ; spitter, to do so in a quick manner ; pat, to give a light blow ; PATTER, to make many light quick beats. The compounds of sa and the radical words were equally numerous. For example, wag, to move ; WAGSA, to possess motion, to wax ; magsa, to pos- sess bruising, to mash ; ragsa, to possess stretch- ing, or thrusting out, to rax ; lagsa, to possess or have laying, to begin to beat or strike. As nouns, these compounds signified that which has the power of motion, pressing, extending, or beating ; as adjectives, they had a similar and obvious shade of meaning. * By the help of these nine words and their com- pounds, all the European languages have been formed, t To trace their powers and applications, in the different terms of the several dialects, is that immediate rule by which the incessant, but obscure and forgotten, steps of the progress of speech may be discovered and recorded. In English, in La- tin, Greek, Celtic, and Sanscrit ; in ancient or in * Note 2 B. t Note 2 C. 40 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTOEY OF modern language, the same changes on the same words have produced that boundless variety, which overwhelms the memory, makes the mind of'man, in different ages and climates, a stranger to the mind of his own species, and creates no ordinary imjiedi- ment to the dissemination of science. * * Note 2 D. ^»' THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 41 CHAPTER IV. Origin of Language. — Contimiation of the subject. — Formation of the Pronouns^ the Moods and Tenses of Verbs i and Cases of Nouns. SECTION I. At the same period in which language was en- larged by composition, "^ in the manner already de- scribed, it received a permanent addition to its strength, from the combination of lag, to strike ; MAG, to press ; nag, to crush ; and rag, to rush or break j with bag, to beat ; dag, to dash ; gag, to go ; sag, to hold ; and wag, to move. A table is given in the Notes of these compounds, which fix- ed for ever the masculine character of European speech. Some of them are little used at present. Many of them, in a simple or derivative state, give that energy to our poetical compositions which has been so much felt and applauded by able judges. The reader will find in the Notes examples of their efiPect and significations, t With regard to the principal subject, it is pertinent to observe, that * Note 2 E. t Note 2 F. 42 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF every new compound might be verb, noun, or ad- jective, at the pleasure of the speaker. The two ]ast of these states were peculiar to it, the other was rather secondary. All compounds were words of an adjective nature formed from the radical, of which they retained the sense in a limited charac- ter, and modified by the special sense of the com- ponent word. At first, compounds were not con- tracted ; but their length and harshness soon in- troduced that process in such of them as were ge- nerally used, and these rapidly underwent new composition with the ordinary affixes, which were always moveable, long accurately understood, and, in after ages, when their original sense was lost, habitually applied by the most ignorant peasant, with natural, and, for the most part, with absolute propriety. * Pronouns were invented and joined to the verb, about the time that composition chang- ed the language from its monosyllabic to a compo- site form. Proper names did not then exist, at least their number must have been exceedingly small, f The words, which were employed to sig- nify persons, were all of them such as, in one or other sense, expressed possession, the simple idea of which was hold, seize, sway, or have. They were ag, wag, and iiwag, move with the hand, hold ; thwag, seize, take ; swag, sway, manage * Note 2 G. t Note 2 H. 4 f THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 43 with the hand, keep. These, as nouns, underwent the future changes of that class of words. They were at first common to whatever could be called self, which was I, thou, he, she, or it, in the sense of the same thing. At length, like other words, they were restricted, and were appropriated as follows ; AG and wag to the first person, as it is now called ; thwag to the second, and third ; swag to the third person, and to the expression of that idea, contained in demonstrative and relative pro- nouns. Ag was compounded with ma and na. The first compound, agama, which signifies be- longing to possession, that is, to self, is used in a mutilated form for I and me, in all the Eu- ropean languages. The other compound, agana, in every Teutonic dialect, signifies belonging to self, — or own, which is its form in modern English. Swag, by composition, became swagma or sama, the same ; and its simple form, swa and sa, is the pronoun of the third person ; as also the demon- strative and relative pronoun in Old English or Saxon, in Visigothic and Sanscrit. Ag and hwag, self or same, began to be used as relative adjec- tives ; and thwag, which at first equally signified same, thou, he, was limited in sense to the second person, and to an occasional substitution in place of SA, the, and who. * * Note 2 I. 44 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF Such was the origin of the simple pronouns. The cases of nouns and adjectives are next to be considered.* While the verb and noun were in their primitive state, they were utterly indeclin- able. As soon as composition was introduced, a multitude of nouns was formed. Each bore the termination which belonged to its component : A or AG, BA, GA, DA, LA, MA, NA, RA, and SA, WCrC the natural forms of the nominative, but they were gradually changed in a considerable degree. For unaccented syllables are easily varied, and often dropped altogether. Besides, the tendency to join A, RA, SA, DA, or their abbreviated forms, ar, as, ad, to the end of words, was perpetual, because these terminations gave an appropriate sense to each term. Ag or a, acting or having, that is, an actor; RA, a worker ; sa, a possessor j are the words which form the whole classes of attributives and substan- tives in which an actor, possessor, or agent, are de- signated. The nominative, therefore, varied according to the component word or words in its termination. The other cases were all adjectives, raised on the nominative considered as a radical. Isty The Genitive. It was adjectively formed by adding aga, having ; or nasa, which is a com- pound of the seventh and ninth consignificative • Note 2 K. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 45 verbs. Suppose that the example is the noun cwi- No, a woman, which is the ancient name in Eng- lish, the accusative case is cwino-na, having the sense of on or upon j but the genitive is cw^ino- NASA, by contraction cwinons ; the meaning of which is pertaining to a woman. So, from the words HAiRTo, a heart; wate, water; augo, an eye; HiMiN, heaven ; which are common Visigotliic nouns, and almost English, arise the genitives HAiRTiNS, WATiNS, AUGiNS, HiMiNis, pertaining or belonging to a heart, to water, to an eye, to heaven. In Old English, these were heartis, "watis, eies, HEAVENis. The present English genitive in s, as in heart's, eye's, queen's, &c. is the relict of this an- cient adjective form. 2^, The Nominative plural was the same with the genitive. Savages express plurality by repeat- ing the noun, as, indeed, they are naturally prompt- ed to do whenever number, mao^nitude, or fre- quency of any kind presents itself. Our ancestors, whose propensity to composition was, at one period of their language, almost unlimited, formed a se- parate adjective to express whatever is found in pairs, as the feet, eyes, hands, and the like, ves- tiges of which derivative abound in the Greek, Sanscrit, and Visigothic. -^ But they entertain- ed an idea, that, as an object connected with an- * Note 2 L. 46 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF Other by that relation, now designated by the pre- position OF, might be conveniently viewed in lan- guage as an adjective, to which the noun of the related object might be affixed ; so, in like manner, that the same adjective might denote the relation between number and unity. * Hence, notwith- standing the constant influence of contraction, the genitive singular and nominative plural are the same in English words at this day. In the most ancient forms of the Latin, Greek, Sanscrit, and Teutonic, the accusative plural differs not from its nominative, though in the singular a difference be universally established. 3d, The Dative plural and singular were origi- nally made by joining ma, in the sense of aug- mented or added to the noun. Thus, cwinoma signifies to or with a woman ; cwinonoma, by con- traction cwiNOM, to or with women, t Another form of the dative, peculiar to the Cel- tic, Greek, Latin, and Sanscrit, was produced by joining ba, bring, or ba-sa, the second and ninth consignificatives, to the noun. So regs, a king, by contraction in writing, rex ; the original sense of which is, he who directs, or a director ; Gen. regis, anciently regins, belonging to a director ; Dat. REGi, formerly regin, and regim, and regima, with a director; Accus. regem, formerly regen and • Note 2 M. t Note 2 N. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 4? REGiNA, on a director ; Norn. Plur. reges, from REGiNS, and its immediate contraction regeis, di- rectors ; Gen. Plur. regum and regom, from REGONA, of directors j regibus, from regibasa, be- longing to directors. 4.4h, The genitive plural was formed on the no- minative plural, by joining na, a, or ag, having, to the principal part of that case. So cwinons, wo- men ; cwinona, of women. On the same principle of expressing relation by adjective forms, the proper sign of the preterite par- ticiple was affixed to nouns, particularly to such as signified places or individuals. For example, dala, a hollow place, a vale, compounded with da, became DALADA, or DALATHA, and DALATH, which did not only signify daled, or made a vale ; but also put in the vale, or in the vale. With na this compound formed dalathana, an adjective signifying down, or what is put down; and with ra dalathra, pertain- ing to what is down. In Greek and Sanscrit, ad- jectives, so formed from nouns, make a class by themselves, which has been called the ablative case of nouns in books which treat of the Indian lan- guage. Although every verb in its original form com- prehended, in the bare radical, all that we now ex- press by our present of the infinitive, present par- ticiple, and verbal nouns ; yet a practice was early introduced of changing the root into a noun, by 48 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF affixing to it a consignificative verb, which was either na or da. So wag, move, to move, moving ; received an infinitive by adding na, as wagana, to move ; or by annexing da, as wagida, to make mo- tion. One of these was the common form of the infinitive, in English, as late as the age of Chaucer ; the other is the infinitive in Celtic, Slavonic, Per- sic, and Sanscrit, and in certain cases in Latin, un- der the title of Supine. From what has been said in the preceding chap- ter, on the origin of all adjective and derivative nouns by composition, along with the exemplifica- tion of the same doctrine in this chapter in what respects the inflection of these words ; it may be summarily deduced, that all cases, terminations, and signs of number or gender, arise from the use of the consignificative verbs. * These were per- petually applied, in the second stage of language, to multiply particular terms, to express the rela- tions which naturally or artificially exist between and among objects, and to mark degrees of more or less in qualities and actions. A single observation on the origin of gender may suffice to conclude all that appears to be at present necessary for the illustration of nouns. The unaugmented radical, being noun and verb at ' Note 2 0. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 4>Q pleasure, and expressive of action alone, had no ap- propriating sign whatever. * Nouns of a limited nature were formed by adding ag or a, having ; ra, working ; sa, holding ; to the root. As that agent which has, works, holds, is generally a person ; nouns so compounded began to be appropriated to persons, a distinction of whose sex became finally convenient. The noun, in its simplest form, re- mained to mark the object or action which it de- noted, without regard to any actor. This state of the noun is the neuter, in which all substantives and adjectives continued, until, by addition of such con- significative words as had been allotted by use to distinguish the masculine or feminine agent, they assumed a respective gender. At first, all substan- tives were, by their nature, adjective nouns, that is, names of qualities. The adjective, therefore, when applied to any substantive, was considered as liable to receive all its changes of case, number, and gen- der. For as both words owed their form to consie:- nificative verbs, which were fixed to their radicals for a special purpose, it was esteemed necessary that they both should have similar terminations in an uniform and perspicuous manner, t • Note 2 P. f Note 2 Q. VOL. I. D ;0 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF SECTION II. While the noun undei-went these important changes, the verb, the fountain of language, ac- quired new and interesting properties. It has been shown that it was monosyllabic, expressive only of action, and general in its sense ; because it was a rapid articulation, framed to communicate to others the presence of some remarkable operation in nature or in the mind. The word used was that which the savage speaker had been taught, or accustomed to articulate on former occasions, when actions, similar to that immediately at the time af- fecting his senses, had taken place. The monosyl- labic word, therefore, expressed a great class of acr tion, not an individual event. * Though this word might be repeated after the action had ter- minated, it was properly an affirmative verb in the present tense, t The first effort to mark preterite action consisted in doubling the verb, of which traces, more or less evident, are found in all the dialects from Britain to China. For example, LAG, strike, lag-lag, struck ; bag, beat, bag-bag, beaten ; mag, press, mag-mag, pressed ; and so on throughout the whole language. These forms, which served for a preterite tense in any person, according to the view of the speaker, soon under- * Note 2 11. t Note 2 S. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 51 went contraction, and become lelog, bebog, and MEMOG ; it being established as a general rule by observation, that if a be the vowel of the present tense, or radical, the preterite receives o j but, if the vowel be slender, the preterite receives a. The sense of this new form of the verb was completely preterite ; and whether it were used as a participle, a noun, or with pronouns as a particular tense, it continually preserved its characteristic properties. The origin of the imperfectly preterite tense has been amply related in treating of the consignifi- cate verbs. It derived its power, in what regards time, from the words da, do, and ga, go. As to a future tense, our fathers, from the beginning of their language, down almost to our own age, made no other distinction between future and present in speech, than that which may be gathered from the tenor of the discourse. The Celts and Cyrari fol- lowed the same practice. When language had acquired a present, a prete- rite, and imperfectly preterite tense, the verb was rendered personal by joining AG, I; thwa, thou, he, or she ; to the several tenses. The original plural of AGAMA appears to have been agamansa; and the an- cient British still preserves in ordinary use the word HWYNT, they, which was originally heond, from HWAG, or HWAGEN ; in English, who ; but, in its pri- mitive signification, self or same. The readers of our modern tongue may be reminded, that the ter- 52 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF minations est, eth, and s, in our verbs, as in layest, layeth, lays, and laidst, or laidest ; are the faded re- mains of the pronouns which were formerly joined to the verb itself, and placed the language, in re- spect of concise expression, on a level with the Greek, Latin, and Sanscrit, its sister dialects. These pronouns, as is evident from the Visigothic, and a comparison of the other existing monuments, were afhxed as follows : The example here chosen is LAG, lay. * Lagama and laga, I lay — laga-sa-thwa, thou layest— LAGA-THWA, or lagatha, he or she layeth— lagamansa, lagamatha, and lagamasa, we lay — lagathwansa and lagathwantha, you lay — lagahwonda, or lagonda, they lay. The two preterites of lag, viz. lelog and gala- GiDA, received the same additions ; but the neces- sity of shortening the verbs, so augmented, gradual- ly reduced the pronouns into mere terminations, the exact sense of which was not known by those who used them. When it was found difficult to pronounce them at the end of certain verbs, or tenses of verbs, they were dropt. In the plural they were grossly corrupted, and in the end, like many other original properties of the old language, utterly removed, and their place supplied by the use of the separate pronouns, which formerly had * Note 2 T. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 53 not been named, except in cases of special empha- sis. In the example quoted, laga, lagast, lagath, LAGAM, lagiath, and laganda, were changed, in several stages of corruption, into I lay, thou layest, he lays, we lay, you lay, they lay. In Latin, in which LAG is retained in many forms and senses, particularly in the sense of read or speak what is written, and in Greek, in which the same word sig- nifies to utter or say, the pronouns are affixed in the following manner : Latin Greek Visigothic * Saxon German Sanscrit Old British Celtic Persic \eg-o, is, it : imuSj itis, unt. I, &c. ga- ther, collect, read leg-o, eis, ei : omen, ete, onti, I, &c. place, put, lay, express lag-ya, yais, eith : yam, yeith, yanda, I, &c. place, put, lay lag-e, ast, ath : on, on, on, I, &c. lay, put leg-e, est, te : en, en, en, I, &c. lay lag-ami, asi, ati : umah, atha, anti, I, thou, he, "vve, ye, they cling car-Avn, it, ai : &c. loved beir-eam, idh : &c. bear ber-em, i, ed : may bear. em, ech, ent, I, tliou, he, eamaid, ith, idis. Let me, elm, eid, end, I, thou, &c. After this display of the pronominal words in conjunction with the verb, little remains to be said further on that branch of the subject. * Note 2 U. 64i PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF Besides, the indicative or direct manner in which every verb expresses its communication, it may be useful that it should also point out, by some shade of difference, when the action is performed on con- dition, when it may, can, or will happen ; but nei- ther has directly taken place already, nor does so at present. * The inventors of language supplied this convenience, by laying a more full emphasis t on the latter syllables of the verb, which had, in time, the effect of changing the vowels from short to long, and of forming, in the present and prete- rite tenses, what has been termed a future, condi- tional, subjunctive, or optative mood. The empha- sis rests on the last vowel of the word, and is the natural sustained mark of the mind in suspense, or under desire. Pres. ind. lagya, yais, eith : yam, yeith, YANDA ; I lay, &c. Pres. condit. gif, ik, lag-yau, yais, yai : yaim, yaith, yaina ; I, &c. may lay. Pret. ind. lag-ida, des, da : idedum, ideduth, iDEDUN ; I, &c. laid. Pret. condit. lag-idedau, idedeis, idedeith : idedeima, idedeith, idedeina. That the nature of this change may be compre- hended by every English scholar, it must be stated, that, when such words as if, though, unless, except, * Note 2 X. t Note 2 Y. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 55 whether, or, and the like ; are used before verbs, that they lose their terminations of est, eth, and s, in those persons which commonly have them. No speaker of good English, expressing himself condi- tionally, says, though thou fallest, or though he falls, but though thou fall, and though he fall, nor though thou camest, but though, or although, thou came. These conditional states of action our re- mote ancestors signified by a fuller pronunciation of the closing syllable of the verb. For they used no auxiliary words, such as have, may, can, shall, will, nor the preterites of these, which are had, might, could, should, and would, in conjugating their verbs. The use of these words is rare in the Visigothic Silver Book ; and, on many occasions, on which they are now necessary in English, they were not employed by our German predecessors. In the ancient language, there were three tenses only, a present, a preterite perfect, and a preterite imper- fect. The present and future were the same. Each tense had its conditional, formed as has been now shown. The imperative and future were often ex- pressed by the present of the conditional mood : For that which is asked or ordered to be done, and that which shall be performed, are nearly related to conditional or possible events. As all verbs were naturally actives, * no provi- ♦ Note 2 Z. 5b PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF sion had been made for designating a passive state. I bear, I sufiPer, I tolerate, I undergo, I stand, sit, live, sleep, die, and every other word pertaining to a fixed, passive, or inanimate condition, were active in form, and, as it should seem, to a certain degree, in idea. Besides the neuter sense, which such verbs as are now mentioned, gradually acquired ; a new voice was invented in every verb, to be called the Middle, Reciprocal, or Proper, at the pleasure of grammarians.* It was produced by joining a or AG, self, to each person of the verb ; and though it lite- rally described the action of the verb to be per- formed on the actor, it was transferred in Greece, India, and Germany, to the passive, by a process, of which examples are given in the Notes. Being formed in a manner too intricate for con- tinual imitation, it was corrupted by the Visigoths, and relinquished by the later Germans, for the easier method of circumlocution. I venture to re- store the Visigothic passive from a comparison of its parts with the Greek and Sanscrit. It appears only in the present tense, though it certainly was also found, at one period of the language, in the preterites, t Visigothic— Pr^5. Ind. Act. lag-ya, yais, eith : yam- yeithyanda * Note 3 A. t Note 3 B. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 57 VisiGOTHic — Pres. Ind. Passiv. lag.yam-a, yaiz-a, yad- a : yamed-a^ yeitheith-a, yand-a. I, &c. lay^ on, or to myself Greek — Indie. Pres. Middle leg-om-ai, es-ai, et-ai : ometh- a, esth-e, ont-ai. I speak to myself, &c. &c. Sanscrit — Present, Proper voice \-Ag-^, a%-c, at-c ; amah-e, adw-e, ant-e. I cling to myself. Thou, &c. Latin — Pres, Ind. Act. voice leg-o-r, eris, it-ur : im-ur, imini, unt-ur, I am read, &c. &c. * The reader may easily distinguish in all these examples, the additional words in its several forms of A, Ai, E, and UR, after the personal pronouns. All the passive voice in Greek and Latin is con- structed after this form, and applied according to a phraseology, quite vernacular in French, Spanish, and Italian ; examples of which are found in the sentences — II se psrdoit dans les eaux ; he was losing himself in the water, or he was losing in the water — II se noye, he is drowning — II se trompa, he was deceived or mistaken — Cela ne se fait pas aussi, that is not done so, or that does not do itself so — EUe s'est morte, she is dead, and so in in- numerable other instances. A different method of expressing a passive sense * Note 3 C. 58 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF In the verb consisted in giving it a form analogous to a participle. So, I wake, in the old, as in the modern language, signified, I am in a waking state, considered actively j but I waken, either denoted I become awake, I wake myself, or, I am awaked by another, which is the passive state. To length- en, weaken, hearten, darken, &c. are specimens of a mode of expression which was once universal in Europe. But the great and leading principle, on which all new tenses or forms of the verb were constructed, was that of converting the verb into a kind of noun, to which consignificative words were instant- ly applied, expressive of the idea which was pre- sent in the mind, whether that related to time, or to incipient, frequent, diminished action j or to any other circumstances which can affect the word. An account of the particular forms, produced in that manner, will be given in the Second Part of this work, where the origin of the Greek and Latin tenses and derivative verbs is explained. An example or two are sufficient to illustrate the ge- neral observation in the present chapter. Lag sig- nifies lay. Compounded with sa, which means working, possessing, holding ; lag forms lagsa, which literally is lay-working, having, or partaking of laying ; but in use it signifies to give laying, to lay, to begin to lay, to be about to lay, to increase in laying. So wag, move j wagsa, to begin to THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 59 move, to go on moving, to be about to move, to wax or increase. This form is the source of many inceptive, desiderative, and frequentative verbs ; and the origin of the first future in the Greek lan- guage, of the second future in Sanscrit. As the original properties of the verb have been nov^r fully described, this section of the narrative may be closed with a view of the four participles, which are the foundation of an infinite number of derivative verbs and nouns in every dialect. I. The completely preterite participle is formed by the reduplication of the verb, already mention- ed. Examples of it are ogoga, moved ; beboga, forced, bent ; dedwoga, driven, dashed ; gegoga, whirled ; hehwoga, shaken, driven ; leloga, laid ; MEMOGA, condensed, collected, heaped, crammed together ; nenoga, forced, crushed ; reroga, broke by rushing, tearing ; seswoga, moved, carried round with powerful force. * II. The common or indefinitely preterite par- ticiple, t made by prefixing ga, go, or adding da, do; examples of which are agida and wagida, shaken ; bagida, driven by striking ; hwagida, whirled about with strong impulse ; dwagida and DAGiDA, struck forcibly, moved with violent action; " Note 3D. t Note 3 E. 60 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF THWAGIDA, Struck lieavily, thwacked ; twagida, seized firmly, pulled, tweaked ; gagida, moved, trundled, gone j lagida, laid, licked, seized, beat- en ; MAGiDA, squeezed, bruised, held close together, choked or murdered by pressure, mashed, mawled ; NAGIDA, utterly forced down, quenched ; ragida, torn, rent, shaken violently by rushing impetuous force ; swagida, swayed, moved, turned, circum- volved ; cwagida, shaken by a destructive blow, quashed ; scagida, moved, shaken, driven ; sla- GiDA, struck, laid 5 smagida, bruised, smashed. III. The preterite participle in ana, ina, ena, or ONA, formed by affixing na, work upon, effect, ope- rate ; of the power and use of which, the words giv-en, driv-en, riv-en, sunk-en, drunk-en, and the like, are ordinary examples. So, in the old lan- guage, were agana, moved, acted ; wagena, shak- en j BAGENA, beak, banged, bent, impelled ; fagana, wrought, joined by knocking together, agitated ; pagana, driven together, fixed ; cwagena, collected by force, squeezed together; dwagen a, driven, dash- ed, driven in a course, driven aside ; thwagena, thwacked, thumped, grasped hardly ; twagana, catched, pulled, twisted, twined, tweaked; gagena, moved, rolled, gone : hwagana, forced, impelled, whirled, moved by straining ; lagana, licked, laid, put down, levelled, lessened; magana, squeezed by force, moulded, made, produced ; pressed together, THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 6l milled, softened ; collected by pressure, heaped ; enlarged, magnified, enforced, strengthened ; cut, wounded, indented : nagana, driven down, com- pelled to bow, move, go, run ; killed, crushed, soft- ened : iiAGANA, rushed, torn, broken, shaken, rock- ed, stretched, extended, run, flowed, steamed : swAGANA and sagana, moved violently, rolled, agi- tated, made to turn, wheel, sweep, strike, or im- pel : scwagana and scagana, shaken, concussed by most vehement action or power. IV. The participle of the present tense, which was compounded of the verb and two consignifica- tives, NA, work ; and da, do, make ; may be exem- plified in WAGANADA, by contraction, waganda and WAGAND, shaking. In some dialects, ga, go, was used instead of da : Thus, waganga, shaking, wagging ; which is the participial form adopted in modern English. In the Visigothic, Latin, Greek, Sanscrit, Cel- tic, and, indeed, in every other dialect, these im- portant modifications of the verb were the same, differing only by a slight shade of various pro- nunciation, and obscured, in some measure, by the consignificatives, sa, he ; a and i, she ; on and um, which had been constituted as special marks of masculine, feminine, and neuter, by a process al- * Note 3 F. 62 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF ready illustrated. Let us remove the veil of these adventitious circumstances, and unite for ever the particular effects of the same general law. Participle of the Present Tense, Masc. Fem. Neuter. Visigothic, \ lagan ds, andei and : laying: Old Scotish^lay- or Teutonic J and Greek leg-onts^ onta, ont. speaking Latin leg-ents, ents, ents. reading Persic berd-endeh, bearing. Old Scotish,ber- and Sanscrit lag-an, anti, at. clinging For the Celtic and Cymraig see the Notes. Participle of the Preterite in da. Visigothic lag-ids da id Greek lelechots ota ot Latin lec-tus ta turn Persic berd-ideh Celtic beir-the Cymraig car-edig. Sclavonic Preterite Participle in ana. Visigothic lag-an Greek leg-omen-os Latin plenus Sanscrit lag-an Celtic le-ana Cymraig U-awn. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 63 The participles of the reduplicated verb became obsolete in many of the dialects, their places hav- ing been gradually occupied by those in da ; but many instances occur, in all the dialects, of ad- jectives, or substantive nouns, which have been immediately formed from these obsolete varie- ties. 6t PPULOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF CHAPTER V. * Origin of Derivative Nouns, Adjective and Substan- tive — Of Derivative Verbs, and the several Species of the Verb — Of Compound Terminations in the princi- pal Parts of Speech. SECTION I. It has been shown how the rude monosyllable, the sign of action, or of that which acts, obtain- ed voices, moods, numbers, and persons, as a verb ; and cases, numbers, terminations, and other pro- perties, as an adjective or substantive noun. The orig-inal idea of action must recur to the mind of the reader when he is now told, that the four par- ticiples are the mighty and inexhaustible fountains of derivative words of whatever description. The truth of this assertion prevails universally in all the dialects of Celtic, Cymraig, Teutonic, Greek, Latin, Slavic, Persic, and Sanscrit. The manner, in which it became so, is easily explained. l5^, Any verb, by forming a preterite participle in ed, such as pass, passed, give, gived, drive, * Note 3 G. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 65 drivetl ; cleave, cleaved ; reg for reacli, regcd and reached ; streke for stretch, stroked, and stretch- ed; gave rise to an adjective and suhstantivc. To an adjective ; for what can be better English than cleaved wood, cleaved rocks, or stretched cords, a bended bow, joined pieces of matter ? The literal sense of these words are, that the actions of cleav- ing, stretching, bending, joining, had been done or performed on the objects specified ; but the se- condary sense loses sight of the act and time, and considers the effect solely. The very same words speedily became substantives of a common descrip- tion, for passed was changed into past, the past ; gived into gift ; drived into drift ; cleaved into cleft and clift ; reged into right ; streked into straight ; bended into bent, an inclination of matter or mind ; joined into joint, an articulation, (as John- son would have explained it.) * Hence all verbs, adjectives, substantives, and every word whatever not a person of a verb, which ends in d, th, t, or in any of those letters with any single vowel after it closing the word, are directly or indirectly descended from the preterite participle in da, or the present par- ticiple in NADA or NDA. As a direct illustration of the extent to which this rule was carried, it must be added, that sub- * Note 3 H. VOL. I. E 66 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF stantives, in all stages of the language, easily admit of being converted into verbs, and of receiving the preterite consign ificate. Examples of which may be adduced in the verbs to straight, to gift, to drift, to right ; and in eyed, fated, skied, vaulted, rooted, footed, and many othei's which do not merely signify looked at, being fated, made a sky, a vault, a root, &c. but having or possessing an eye, a fate, a sky, vault, root, and the like. 2d, The preterite participle in en produced a similar division of words. As heave, to lift, in the old English made heaved, and heaven, and hove ; so its participles, besides their proper use, formed three original substantive nouns ; heaved, the head ; heaven, the elevated part of the atmosphere ; and hove, any thing raised, a house ; in many dialects called HOFF. The common woj ds riven, driven, molten, chosen, and many other adjectives, are of this order, particularly an innumerable class of substantives and attributives from all the dialects, such as often, even, waxen, wooden, silken, wheaten, &c. and of verbs, as hasten, lighten, glisten, mois- ten, straiten. The word which gives the peculiar sense to all these is na, make, work, — so heave, lift ; heaven, or hoven, made to lift, lifted; — wood, wood-en, made wood, as a participle, but in a se- condary sense, like vaulted or eyed, it signifies, ad- jectively, having wood, or belonging to wood. Con- trast the expressions wooden image, and wooded THE EUIiOPEAN LANGUAGES. 67 image ; or earthen dome, and earthed dome. The same power of na exists in straiten, to make strait ; lighten, make light ; moisten, make moist, and the like. Sd^ The most original of all derivative words come from the ancient redouhled preterite. Every English speaker knows that the preterites of many verbs differ materially from their present tense. For example, cleave, clove ; weave, wove ; drink, drunk ; come, came ; abide, abode ; drive, drove ; bind, bound ; shoot, shot, and so of others. In the earliest ages, these words were clif, cleave ; clif- CLiF,or CECLOF ; WAB, WEWOB, or WEWOF ; drink, de- DRONK ; cwiM, come ; cecwom, or cecwam, came ; AN-BiD, continue, remain ; an-bebad, remained ; dreib, drive ; dedrob, or dedrof, drove ; bind, to put on a tie, from bagand, or begend, encircling or putting about ; beband, or bebond, bound ; sciT, drive, cast ; scescot, shot, driven. Ac- cording to the idea on which drived became drift, cleaved clift, streked straight, bended a bent, heafod, the head, that is, were changed from par- ticiples into substantives or adjectives ; ceclof be- came clove, a chink or fissure ; wewob, a thing woven, a web ; and wewof, that which is woven into a web, woof; dedronk that which hath tak- en drink, drunk ; anbebad, a residence, abode ; dedrob, a drove, that which has been or is driven ; beband, a tie, band, or that with which some- 68^ pniLosormcAL history of thing has been bound, a bond j or that which binds in or borders a region, a bound. From scescot, driven, cast ; came scot, the old word for a shot or discharge of any missile weapon ; and scot, what is cast on one to pay in a club, a share. Skatt was the old name of money, because it was given out in payment. Many of these preterite participles, besides some change in the vowels, received ed and en j but when they annexed these, the change was not so considerable. Indeed, it then occurred irregularly. Thus, bounden, hoven, frozen, sodden, are not so regular as throw, thrown ; wash, washed or washen ; wreathe, wreathed or wreathen. The law of change was, that radicals in a, ae, e, ai, or any broad strong sound, after full reduplication, were con- tracted into and u j and that slender radicals in e approaching to i, in i, ei, y ; underwent con- traction into A, or some broad vowel. 4/A, The participle of the present in anda and ANGA produced a numerous class of new nouns and verbs, in a regular or contracted form. The substan- tives, lightning, airing, shipping, opening, spring, evening, dawning, writing, painting, sufficiently mark the nature of this kind of words. The ver- bal in ing, as thinking, loving, &c. is a very com- mon and useful translation of the natural power of the verb. In the first ages, this participle general- ly ended in anda, inda, or onda ; which occasion- THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 69 ed a new noun and verb from every radical. So BAGAND, binding, a twisting, contracted into band, BEND, BIND, of wliich the preterite bond or band gave rise to a new generation : wag, move ; WAGEND, WAND, WEND, WIND, be moving : HWAG, move with violence or with an effort j HWAND and HwiND, whirl : swag, turn ; swind, move : lag, lay, assuage, soften, smooth ; lind, smooth, mitigate : dag, strike ; ding, beat : gag, move ; gang or ging, go : drag, draw ; dring, draw out, protract ; sag, speak, put out words, Cexprimere vocem ;J sing, con- tinue the voice : iiwag or hag, move or lift with a strain ; hang, lift up, suspend : swig, to turn, move by force ; swing, to make turns in motion, like a bell when rung ; bag, to beat ; bang, to beat greatly : wrag, to force by violent action, to cast, bend ; wring, to twist, torture, drive out of its straight and natural form or path, in the prete- rite WRONG : rag, to shake by a penetrating, breaking, rushing force ; rend, also to stretch, put out, send out, produce, bring : stag, step or give a stretch ; stend, to make strides, also stand, to fix the feet in their steps : fag, to lay hold of ; FANG, seize : hig, bend after in pursuit ; hind or HEND, pursue, try to catch, (preterite partic. hund or hond, that which catches — a dog.) From all these sources now explained, incessant streams of derivative words increased the language. Every new noun might become a verb, every new verb 70 THILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF might produce others having its own particular shade of meaning. The radicals were also com- pounded with the remaining consignificatives, with AG, have or act ; bag, bear ; lag, hold ; mag, make j rag, work ; and sag, possess. \st. Any primitive or derivative might become a noun of action, a verb, or an adjective, by affixing A, AG, ig, og, which are varieties of the same word ; so baga, a striker ; laga, a layer ; maga, a destroyer ; daga, a stabber ; raga, a breaker, runner ; wiga, a wriggler, a worm or serpent j SAGA, a speaker ; — or, if a feminine agent was un- derstood, the adjuncts were i or o, aithei, a mo- ther ; MAWEi, a maid or girl ; thiwi, a servant maid ; cwino, a woman ; cwimanda, he coming, he who will come ; cwimandei, coming, as an adjective, with a feminine noun, but cwimando, she coming or will come. Verbs are made by add- ing to the root ag, ig, or og, as suits the pronun- ciation. So DAG, day ; dagiga, I dawn, or be- come day J DAGiGEST, DAGiGATH, thou, he, &;c. dawn. In most examples, this application of ag is hid by contraction. The power of the auxiliary word is make, work, act ; or have, possess, pertain. In the formation of adjectives, this consignifica- tive holds an eminent place, which deserves to be particularly noticed. All possessives in ag, ig, og ; AC, ic, oc ; ACH, icH, ocH ; or ending, as in Eng- lish, in IE or Y ; arise from this word. For ex- amples, WAG, a wave, a motion ; wagig, having a THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 71 wave, belonging to it, wavy ; hef, a heave, a lift : HEFiG, partaking of a heave, heavy ; leaf, a blade of a tree ; leafig, having a leaf, belonging to a leaf, leafy ; rod, red ; rodig, having redness, ruddy ; GORE, thick blood ; gorig, partaking of gore ; tag, to draw, stretch ; in the contracted present parti- ciple, TEND, to stent, stretch ; tendend, stretch- ing, and in the softer Latin pronunciation tex- DENT ; TENDENTIGA, partaking of stretching, that which belongs to stretching ; tendentia, tenden- cy. These are the steps by which the Latin and its descendants have enriched language. The derivative thus formed is of a diminutive character in what regards the sense. The radical has the sense unimpaired ; the word produced by AG implies not the full sense, but some degree of it. So dew, the morning or evening damp ; dewy, having the quality of dew, having tlie nature of dew ; snowy, having something of snow. This appears particularly in nouns ; dog, an animal well known ; doggie, having the nature of a dog, a little dog ; dear, a darling ; dearie, a little darling ; lad, a young man ; laddie, a little youth, a flivour- ite boy. In the very infancy of language, ag was affixed to all the radicals in the above sense, which chang- ed each of them into a frequentative or diminutive. So wag, move ; wagig or wac, shake, move by little and repeated pulling, awake, vex, weary. 72 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF harass, weaken: lag, lay on; lacc, lay on gentle blows, lick with the tongue, stroke, soothe, flatter : BAG, beat J BACC, work with repeated action, bake : MAG, bruise ; macc, bruise gently, knead, make into a mass or paste : rag, rush, drive through an object ; rag, stretch out, reach with the hand or any other instrument, stretch in walking, expand, open, spread out : swag, to lay hold of, seize ; SWAECC, to seize gently, taste : lag, seize with a blow, lay on hands ; laecc, take, hold : smag, to hit an object with a firm destructive impulse ; SMAECC, to hit it in the same manner with a little and smart force, to smack : slag, to strike fierce- ly ; SLAECC, to make smooth by little blows, to sleek : sprag, to rush forth violently ; spraec, to send forth gently. 9.di The radicals compounded with ba, bring, bear, produce ; constituted another order of nouns and verbs. Ab, to increase, bab, to beat little strokes, to bob ; cwob, to make indistinct motion ; dab, to give a little smart stroke, to dab ; gab, to move the mouth frequently -, nab, to strike forci- bly, but quickly j rob, to pull rudely and speedily j SWAB, to sweep, move rapidly ; stab, to pierce ; tap, to touch gently and hastily ; rap, to make a quick harsh beat j — all these, and many hundreds besides, in the ancient and modern European, or Asiatic languages, are contracted forms of the ra- dicals, or their derivatives, in composition with ba. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 73 Every word ending in b, p, f, as also many in v, are of this order. Sd, The consignificate ma, make, was, like na, work, an early sign of the preterite participle, and, therefore, a fertile progenitor of many words now in ordinary use. Some examples will explain this class of substantives and verbs, of which our an- cestors frequently availed themselves. Bag, force, bend ; bagm, what is bent, rolled, a piece of wood, a tree, log, beam : wag, to turn, turn round ; wagm, what is turned round ; wamba, the belly : LAG, a laid sunk place ; lama, a ditch : rag, rush ; RAMMA, that which rushes in fighting a ram : thwag, seize ; thwama, or thuma, that which catches, a thumb : swag, seizure, property, posses- sion, self ; swama, and sama, belonging to self. In composition with ba, this order of words is remarkably numerous and expressive, in all the dialects. So from tog, lift, raise ; tumba, a hillock, grave-heap, tomb ; from lith, a bending ; limb, a joint : '' from dob, to beat, make hard ; (whence dob and doff, hardened, stiff, dull, deaf,) comes DOBUMBA, by contraction, dumba, dumb. The derivatives in p, which is the softer sound of the consignificative ba, are plentifully used in the English and Scotish dialects. I shall insert some of the more amusing and ordinary varieties of these. '^ Note 3 I. 74 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF From DAG,* to wet, bedew, sprinkle ; damp, a little dewed or wet : from ceag, to move the teeth or mouth, chew, check, or bite ; comes champ, to bite very actively and violently. The frequenta- tives, (for all words of this kind are of that descrip- tion,) the frequentatives, bump, to give a little hard blow ; or if from boom, which originally signified to blow the Gothic trumpet ; to make a short re- peated deep sound : dimp, to make a hollow by a little stroke ; dump, or domp, a dull blow, a blow on an unelastic body : thump, to beat hard ; lump, plump, and clump, a heap, mass ; slump, a mass, a heavy stroke ; crump, to make small, to crush into wrinkles ; imp, a shoot j stump, a stem, or stock of any thing, are from bag, to beat, force j dag, to strike ; thwag, to thwack, or beat strong- ly ; LOGO from lag, a gathering, a collected mass ; slag, to dash ; rag, to break j ag, to grow, breed, produce ; stebm, a stub, of which this latter word is a diminutive. Many other examples might be added to these, though enough has been done to illustrate the general observation. 4ithf Lag, to hold, seize, possess, is, by itself, in composition with the radicals and others, the parent of an extensive order of nouns and verbs. By the addition of other consignificative words, its influ- ence becomes still greater. As examples of its use, * Note 3 K. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. ^5 we may quote wag, to move ; wag-la, to partake of motion, waggle : sweg, to revolve ; swegel, the moving clouds : reg, to stretch ; regel, a thing extended, or straight, a rule : gag or gog, to move unequally ; gogel, to move so, quickly : mag, to bruise, maim ; magel, to maul, mangle : saeg, from swag, to go ; saegel, that which makes go, a sail. Such forms are often contracted ; so, wal, to roll, turn j bal, to roll ; cwal, to bruise, kill ; DWAL, to wander ; fal, joined, wrought to- gether, from fag, to work, operate, collect, join, fadge ; hwal, and hal, to hold and turn, the one sense originating from hwag, in the signification of seize, the other from the radical meaning of move ; lala, to lay, lie along, loll ; mal, to bruise, grind, mill ; scal, a cut, slice, shell, scale ; stal, a fixed place ; stigel, a sharp, or spiked object. The same words, by composition with ed and ig or ic, its softer form, soon underwent a secondary change ; examples of which are, wealc, to roll j HWEALC, to twist ; BALG, to make round, the belly ; to swell, rage ; fald, from fageled, ga- thered together, a fold ; mealc, what is squeezed from the teat ; muld, crumbled earth, mould ; scald, the scaly state, scald ; scalc, one whose hair is cut, a slave ; spealc, a split, from spal, to cut ; WEALc, a twisted shell ; dalg, a ditch, from DAL, dig, and dolg, a dagger, a wound, from the same compound j swelg, a throat, or open mouth. 76 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF from swEL, swallow ; fealg, dun, or flame colour- ed, from FAG el, fiery, waving, shining. Com- pounded with MA, this species gives hwealm, over- turn J cwELM, a complete murder ; helm, a cover, from hwel, and hel, to cast over, hide ; welm, a bubbling spring, or boiling heat, from wel, ori- ginally wigla, move constantly in little waves ; film, a little skin, from fell, the skin, a wrapper. 5thj The consignificative ra, work, must next be considered in its effects on the language. These, at all times, have been important. They may be seen in stagger, swagger, wager, and some other common verbs ; and probably in several thousands of English adjectives and substantives. In the ear- liest ages, this kind of compounds were, like those of la, and other affixes, contracted ; hence w^ar, to keep, strive against, hold, ward, beware ; bar, to carry, move ; cwar, and car, to turn, roll ; dwar, and DAR, to strike, wound ; thwar, to twist, thwart; TWAR, and TAR, to pluck, tease, torment j gar, to stab ; iiwAR, to turn, roll ; lar, to lay thick to bed ; mar, to hurt, injure, impede ; nar, to fast- en ; rar, to rush, sound, roar ; swar, to move heavily, to be heavy; far,. to move, go; and in- numerable others, from compounds of later deriva- tion. Applied to form adjectives, ra produced fager, from fag, labour, join, put together artfully and aptly in its parts ; a compound which does not sig- THE EUUOPEAN LANGUAGES. Tl nify one putting together, a maker or joiner, but wrought into the state described : mager, from MAG, press, which signifies not a presser, but put into a pressed sunk state, meagre : lager, a place where things have been laid ; ligger, a lying place, a bed, a camp : water from wagd,- wagt, contract- ed into WAT. The compound signifies pertaining to water ; that which has become water. Secondary compounds, with er affixed, are innumerable : so in the old language, bag-er, that which rushes forward with its body or snout, a boar : ager, that which moves by working, an oarj ager, belonging to possession ; aar, property, goods : wiGER, from wig, struggle, contend ; wer, war, and the like : and in modern English, aft-er, be- longing to AFT, what is off, or behind ; laught- er, pertaining to laught, which was a name for this act from lahod, the preterite of lah, or lag, to burst into a loud sound, laugh ; slaughter, making destruction by striking ; or pertaining to that act, from slagd, a noun derived from the pre- terite of SLAG, to strike a blow. Of the same species are latter, former, sooner, earlier, and, indeed, all comparatives, as they have been called, of adjec- tive nouns. The following distinctions in this mat- ter are to be carefully made. Ra originally signi- fied make, but not maker, for verbs were names of action, not of actors. AVhen affixed to words, it therefore communicated the sense of make to 78 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF them, as in drive, compel ; driv-era, (for the last vowel was always short in such instances,) drive- making, or driving. To make this noun personal, it required the addition of a, or ag, act ; hence DRivERA signified he who drives, a driver, and in the feminine driveri or drivero. In the decay of the terminations this original fact was lost, by confounding the latter syllables ; so that er, origi- nally ere and era, in joiner, walker, keeper, &c. appears now to be the same with er in scatter, flatter, and the like. This last is simple, the other is a compound. The use of er or ra in adjectives may now be explained : thus, mag, much, from MAG, to condense by force, heap ; mager, having the quality of mag, pertaining to mag or much : LAEG, lay, bring down j lagts, contracted ; lits, what has been or is brought down, little ; lits-er, having the quality of lits, viz. lesser : wis, wise, from WITS, knowing ; wis-er, being in the state of wise, belonging to that state. The termination ra produced, according to the above description, adjectives, substantives, and verbs, as likewise a new form of the adjective expressive of its state, and commonly used to signify an in- crease of its particular sense. All verbs obtained by such composition became subject to the common law of the language, to re- ceive the nine consignificatives, and fonn new words. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 79 The last radical source of compounds is by the union of sa with tlie primitive ; its sense being added to modify the general term. So bag, to strike ; bag-sa, possessing striking, to strike in an inferior manner, to begin to strike : wag, to move : WAGS A, to begin to move, to move by little and little, to wax : lag, to Lay, throw, throw away ; LAGSA, to begin to throw away, to do so a little, to let go, relax: mag, to squeeze : magsa, to squeeze a little, press a little, mitigate by pres- sure : HAG, dart forth ; ragsa, to rash, run in- to ; rac, to reach ; racs, to rax, to stretch. The same termination was affixed almost universal- ly in some dialects to adjectives and substantives, that their relation to a masculine agent might be designated ; — but a distinction similar to what has been made in the case of ra takes place here also. Sa, in nouns in which an agent is implied, is from SWA, self, or he ; not from sa, possess or hold. Consequently, verbs and adjectives of quality are from the latter ; the former produces the mascu- line adjective or substantive. Here we may close the subject of nouns and verbs, which have arisen from the nine primitives or their compounds, enu- merated in Chapter III. at the beginning, by addi- tion of the nine consignificatives. 80 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF SECTION II. Derivatives of all kinds, consisting of a radical and consignificative, were, in a short time, inter- compounded with the nine moveable words. Some of these compounds have been already mentioned. The general law of their formation is, " The origi- nal compound becomes a new root, and is in that state frequently contracted. The consignificatives are added to this word, as they formerly were to the monosyllable." The nouns and verbs so pro- duced are all of a frequentative, diminutive, or re- stricted nature as to meaning — all fitted on that account to express the delicate and varying shades of action and thought, and from their aptitude in this respect to supersede their primitives. * Some idea may be given of compounds of this kind, by a sketch of their more usual forms, which shall conclude the chapter. Istf Those derived from preterite participles : BAGD and BAGT, by contraction bat, beating ; hence, batel, fighting; batter, to beat frequent- ly ; BIG, to strike, catch hard, with hand, mouth, teeth ; bigt, a piece bit off, a bite ; bitter, having the quality or active power of biting : blagd, from blag, to strike, drive out, blow j hence blawd, to * Note 3 L. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 81 drive at j * bladder, having the quality of being blown ; from the same blag, in the sense of send- ing out, shooting ; blad, whatever has grown, a blade, corn, &c. ; bladig, leafy; bladgian, to have blades, grow ; blogd, whatever is blown, a flower, a blister, &c. ; blotsum, what has been blown, a blossom : magd, produced ; modera, a producer, mother: fagd, made; fadora, a maker, author, father : bragd, birth, bringing forth ; bragdor brodor, one belonging to the same breed, a brother : DOGT and TOGT, producing ; dohtor and tohtor, one pertaining to production, that has been pro- duced : AGO, EACD, increase ; att-a or auctor, one who makes increase, an author, a father : segd, setting, sealing ; sadola, a thing to sit on, seat, saddle ; set, setting ; settle, to give setting to : RAGD, noise, racket ; rattle, making of noise, re- petition of noise: hwig, turn; hwigrr, to make turns quickly, to whirr ; hence hwirel, hwirl, to put in action that kind of turning : twag, to seize or pluck forcibly ; twig, to do so with less force, or quickly ; twiger and twirl, to make move rapid- ly by touching : smagd, a strong blow, a keen, pe- netrating, sharp impulse ; smeddum, sharpness ; or the dust which has been made by the operation of such impulse, flower, &c. : fagd, seizure, from FAG and FAH, seize, fathom, as much as can be con- * Note 3 M. VOL. I, F 82 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF tained in the arms at a stretch ; but in a primi- tive sense, to beat, move, impel, fly, fall ; hence FEDER, that with which flying is performed, a feather j figen, a thing for moving with, a fin ; FiDDER from FiGD, motion, to tremble as dogs do when glad, 2^, Compounds of ba, fa, and pa, as wabble, to make the diminished action peculiar to wab, weave. Wab properly signifies to go as a pendu- lum, but wabble, to make short oscillations of the same kind : dab, to plunge into water, or into any thing else ; dabble, to do so frequently at one time : gab, to use the mouth ; gabble, to use it nimbly and often : mib, to make a quick sharp cut, with the teeth ; nibble, to do so repeatedly : STUB, a cut stem ; stubble, small cut stems, or small stems of any kind. In the old language ab signified strength, from agba or acba, in- crease, vigour ; hence aba, a strong man, and ABAL, strength, which must not be confounded with habile, dextrous : bag, beat ; baff, to beat with broad blows ; baffle, give a variety of such blows with less force : wag, move ; w^aff, move in a light manner ; waffle, to agitate by light frequent movements : stig, press with a pointed strong force ; stuff, cram into by such pressure ; stiffle, to press down by much and frequent action of this kind. Of similar race are apple, crutu:, grapple, rumple, crumple. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 83 RirpLE ; from ap, anciently the name of all kinds of fruit ; CREOP, creep ; grap, seize ; rump, make into wrinkles ; crimp, form into plaits or small in- equalities ; rip, pull up, and rub gently. Words in AMP and imp are exceedingly compound ; for instance, crag, break ; crogma, cruma, what has been broken, a crumb ; cromba, to make into crumbs ; crumble, the final derivative, to make by small frequent motions into the state of crumbs. HwEALB, a turn, from hweal; cealb or cealf, the young of cows, from cig and cwig, to bring forth j LAMBA, the young of sheep, from lag, lay, bring ; HWEALP, the young of dogs, &c. 3d, Compounds of en or na ; and m or ma, as BOTTOM, from BOGD, a stump, a root, foundation ; BESOM from begsom, a sweeper 5 bosom from bog- soM, the bend, the hollow recess of the breast ; barm, whatever is carried, or may serve for carry- ing, the head or foam of working liquor, or the lap ; WARM from wagerum, in a moved agitated state ; worm from wigerum, a thing that wriggles ; tharm from thwarum, twisted j swarm from swar, to be in force, in a multitude ; kirn, churn — what is driven back and forward, the action or the instru- ment, from CYR, to turn J miln, the grinding place, from mulena, ground ; cwern, a hand-mill, from cwiRENA, turned. Of old, feminine nouns had this termination, so godena, a goddess ; regina, a female 'sovereign j biaegdina, a female young per- S4> PHiLosormcAL history of son ; for maegd or magd from mag produce, sig- nified a child of any sex. Thus maeg, by itself, but rather with the consignificative a, is found in the sense of a boy, a son, a relation, brother, cou- sin, man of the same tribe, man in any sense. Of this word mann is a contraction, and meant origi- nally either a male or a female. Under this head must be reckoned such verbs as hearten, weak- en, darken, turn, from twir, to go round ; the nouns button, glutton, iron, horn, burthen, SCORN, slattern, GARDEN, BRAIN, TWAIN, WELKIN, derived from bogd, any rounded object, or stump of a rounded form ; glugd, the preterite partici- ple of glug, to swallow j aes and aer, the ancient names for every metal ; hweorn, the participle of hweor, to raise or turn ; bar, carry, in the par- ticiple berd and bard, a load ; borden, what makes a load J SCYR, to cut, use sharply and contemptuous- ly J slagter, to act in a soft, careless, dirty man- ner, from slag wetness, dirt ; card an enclosure, from gewared, enclosed, or geraeced, bound ; braegen, soft, bruised, broken ; twegen, divided, from TWIG, to divide by cutting ; weolcen, the curled clouds, the revolving vapours of the air. Diminutives in kin are of this class. They are se- condary compounds made with ag and na; for ex- ample, LAMB, the young of a sheep ; lambig, a little lamb, (a lammic, as it is pronounced in Scot- land,) wjience lambigena, a lammikin, a lambkin. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 85 Under this title also must be noticed all words ter- minating ill N, except derivatives from the partici- ples in ND, NT, or NG, which, by corruption, have lost their final letters. Derivatives from the La- tin or French, which terminate in on, with few exceptions, ended in ang, ing, or ong, the sign of a present participle. Indeed, there is reason to suspect that they originally stood as follows ; reg, to direct, govern 5 regigonga, a governing, a re- gion ; CAP, take ; capt, taken ; captigonga, a seizing, a caption ; sec, cut ; sect, cut in the pre- terite sense ; sectigong, section ; relatus, brought back, related ; relatigong or relatiging, a re- lating. These harsh but significative terminations were softened into on. Such formations are com- mon in the Teutonic dialects, and perfectly agree- able to the established analogies of the language, being similar to the English verbal nouns, which end in ing, of which the loving, the speaking, the hearing of the ear, the understanding of the mind, are familiar instances. 4}thy Compounds of various kinds, and of a com- plicate description; such as dwerg, a dwarf; hard, firm under the touch ; youth, growth, shank, flirt, start, thank, blink, clasp, gasp, nar- row, HOLLOW, barrow, WINDOW, &c. An analysis of some of these miscellaneous terms will display the genius of ancient speech, and exemplify the history of many hundreds of similar words. Dwig means to 86 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF drive, turn, change j dwigen, dwine, and dwin- dle, to change, diminish, disappear ; dwir for dwi- ger, to decrease; and dwerig, dwerg, and dwarf, a diminutive creature. Hard is from hwered, collected, gathered, firmly rolled, repulsive. Youth is in Anglo-Saxon geogoth. The radical is ag, increase, grow; also breed, produce. Geogod is the abstract, but the adjective is og, growing ; and GEOGiNG, waxing ; by contraction ying and YOUNG. It is worthy of observation that ageld in the preterite signified ald or old ; the one word is properly translated growing, the other grown : grouth is from growoth, the preterite participle of grow, to send out, spring : the ra- dical is graec, in its preterite groh, which is changed into grew. In the oldest state of com- pounded language, many preterites and parts of verbs ended in g, or its softened sound h ; and these in time were converted into the terminations aw, ew, and ow, and the like. Ordinary examples of this are found in blogen or blugen, blown ; bluh, blew ; saeg, see ; sah, saw ; thrag, throw ; thrug, threw ; throgen, thrown ; hag, hew ; haged, hewed ; crag, crow ; crog, crew ; crogen, crown; sceag, see, observe ; scog, saw, discerned — the originals of show and shown ; flig, flee ; flog, flew ; flogen, flown. Among nouns, boga, a bent object, a bow ; log, laid, low ; logen, laid, lown ; clug and cliw, clue, roll ; straeg, straw ; lag, THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 87 law ; DEAG, dew ; saga, a saw j paga, a pat, a paw ; MAGA, the maw ; flag, a breach, flaw ; CEoc, the jaw j scag and scog, a shaw, a covert of wood ; FALG, a furrow ; felg, a fellow ; slag, a blow ; bulg and bilg, any swelled thing, a billow ; TRUGAN, to trust, lean on, depend on, believe j TREUGA, a truce ; trugoth, trust, truth ; crag, a crow, any noisy thing ; braeg, a ridge standing out, a ledge, a brow ; sorg, heaviness, sorrow ; MORG and MORGEN, the dawn ; SNiEG, snow ; rog and RAG, a line, a straight course or line, a row, order, series j holg and holh, hollow ; halig, holy ; Al-haligen-maesse, All-saints-mass, All- hallow-mass. In conformity to this extensive law, GROWTH is the preterite of grow, from grac or grag, send out, spring : shank or sceonc is a compound of scin, the sharp prominent bone of the leg, from scin, to cast out : The radical is SCAG, to agitate greatly and forcibly ; — hence it sig- nifies to shake, drive, strike, cut by a blow ; to drive by violent impulse, dart, shoot. The words thank and clink, originally thanc and blinc, are form- ed after the same analogy. Thig and thwig signify to seize, pull, catch ; and in a secondary sense, take. In the latter sense they were early used to mark the operations of the mind. In simple and vulgar language, the up-take means perception, judgment, and understanding. I cannot up-take him, signi- fies, I cannot understand what he means or says. 88 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF .« I take it that you do not know, is, I think you do not know ; my opinion, my suspicion, my judg- ment is, tliat you do not know. Hence thinc, from TAGiNG or tagincg, taking, judging, the act of judging. As a verb, this word signifies, I per- form the act of taking : in tlie infancy of com- pounded language, it also denoted perceive, take with the eye : the preterite is gethanc, imputa- tion. The word blink or blinc is from the radi- cal LAG, to strike, a very early application of which to light has left numerous derivatives in every European tongue. Lag, shine, dart like light, has produced lig and log, flame, lowe ; liged, (pre- terite partic.) LiHT, light ; logma, leoma, a making of light, a leem ; lauchmon, to lighten ; lauciimoni, lightening : blig, to strike with hasty light, or to flash like an active or winking eye ; blig- iNG, a coruscation ; by contraction, blinc, to give quick repetition of light : from the same radical, GLiGM, to gleam, give flashes ; glom, (preterite,) the state of gleaming, when light and darkness mingle ; gloming, a present participle from glom, the actual presence, or beginning of morning or evening twilight ; glimmer, from gleam, to give short quick flashes ; glimpse, from gliom-sa, to make one gleam, to give a flash ; glent, a hasty small turn of light, from gligen, to lighten ; glent, and glint, from gligenod, lightened. From gligd, the preterite of glig, to send out THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 89 light, is GLiT, a single spring of liglit ; and glitter, to make many quick short springs of tliat kind. Gligs signifies to begin to shine ; gligsod, glist, an incipient emission of light ; glisten, to be- gin to shine, to be in the act of assuming a clear appearance, as happens when tears come into the eyes. Such are the powers of our native speech. Words ending in sp are often, by transposition, from PS. The old language has claps for clasp, graps for grasp, waps for wasp, gaps for gasp. Clap is to strike in one sense of the compound radical LAP,andinanotlier to seize; hence claps, and clasp, to begin to seize, to lay hold on : grap is to grip, seize ; grasp, and graps, to make a seizure by a smart act : gaps is to make a quick strong gape, from GAP, to open : waps means either that which waps, viz. strikes, or, which is the most probable, that which waves back and forward in airy rings. The consignificative sa, hold, seize, take, gives all this order of words a very active, operative cha- racter, as to signification. From SA, and the consignificatives ag, or ac, and DA, rise the two immense orders of verbs and nouns in ASG, isg, osg, usg; or asc, isc, osc, use ; and in AST A, 1ST a, osta, usta. The derivation of the first order is as follows ; bag, in one sense, a blow, bagsa, the giving of a blow, making of a blow ; bagsc, or bagsig, blow-making, by contraction, basg, or basc. 90 PHILOSOPHICAL FIISTORY OF a beating ; bag, in another sense, to move, make run, or to run ; basg, viz. bagsag, or bagsig, hav- ing the property of running, that is, round : freg, or frag, early, new, soon, got after being kill- ed or made ; fregs, pertaining to frag or new ; hence fragsc, fresh, having the quality of being new : lag, lay on ; lags, and lagsc, to lash : mag, and mac, pound, mix by force ; magsc, mash : rag, rushing, precipitate ; ragsc, having that quality, rash : flag, to dart broad flames ; FLAGSC, a flash : thrag, squeeze, bruise ; thragsc, to thresh, beat : splag, to bring a broad quick blow ; SPLAGSC, to splash : nag, and gnag, to bruise by a knock ; gnasc, gnash : swag, to move powerfully ; swagsc, to swash : scot-a, a man of the Scotish tribe ; scotisc, belonging to that tribe : angel-a, a man of the Angli, the tribe which dwelt in the angle ; anglisc, belonging to that tribe : WAL-A, a traveller, foreigner ; walisc, belonging to foreigners, Italian or Welsh : graec-a, a man of the Greek nation ; graeci&c, belonging to it, Greekish : dweorf, a diminutive man ; dweor- Fisc, dwarfish : uppa, raised, from gehop, ele- vate ; uppisc, having the quality of being raised, uppish : LAG, laid and low j lagisc, having the quality or nature of being low, laighish. So black- ish, sweetish, tartish, rakish, foolish, &c. from blac, defective in colour ; sweet, soft to the taste or sen- ses ; tart, stinging, pungent ; iiaca, a roaming, THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 91 roving man ; fol, a soft, simple creature. The other order in sda, and sta, is formed in this man- ner J BAG, move, carry ; bagsa, to be in the act of moving, an actual load ; bagsoda, or bagsta, a thing actually borne : lag, lay, lay off, put away, let go, loose, send off; lagsa, to be in the act of doing so ; lagst, the deed or act of letting go ; — but lag, to lay on, has lagst, a load, a burden, a last ; lag, to lay down foot ; lagst, last, a foot- step, the print of a foot, and shape of a foot ; lag, to seize, by laying on hand ; last, a lifting of any thing, as water, &c. : cwag, to move, drive, cast a throw ; ga-ag, and ga-ah, to blow, breathe ; ga-aust, gast, breathing, breath, what is of the na- ture of air, a ghost ; — but gag, to go, to come, to travel, produces gasta, a comer, traveller, a guest: BLAG, to drive, drive or force out, blow as wind j BLAGST, a blast : fag, join together, work into a firm connected state, fix, bind ; fagst, the act, or abstract of fixing, making firm, fastening ; hence fast, a secure place, and fast, a fixed or kept time ; far different from the descendants of fag, to chew ; FAGD, and FAD, or fed, perform eating, feed ; FEDST, an eating, a feast. Adjectives receive this termination, as lag, slow, lying, lengthening out, waiting ; lata, for lagta, having those qualities, LATE ; latsta, having the nature, or being made to have the nature and quality of late, latest, last : lig, or lag, to lay, bring down, decrease ; ligt. 92 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF and LIT, diminislied, small ; litel, having the qua- lity of small ; litsa, actually possessing the same quality, pertaining to it, less ; but lits, actual- ly diminished, also receives the consignificative RA, and forms litser or letser, lesser ; an d least comes directly from lits-est. Mag, force, power, large, long, broad, takes er, and forms mager, which, when considered as an adjective, means plentiful, numerous; but as the comparative of an adjective, or quality of a quality; — greater, wider, broader, more abundant. In the form of MAGSOD, magnified, by contraction, maist, most; it exemplifies this part of the general subject. So also MiGN, diminished from mig, to press, grind, crumble, consume, diminish ; had these appearances — min, diminished ; miner, having the nature of min, small ; minnista, made into the state of min or small : and faeco, from fac, to make into a heap ; whence faec, a division, a parcel, a piece of any thing ; and faeco, or faecs, belong- ing to a part, partial, which adjective received the forms of faecoer, fewer ; and faecoist, fewest. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 93 CHAPTER VI. Sketch of the Nomenclature nf' the External World and 3Ian, asjioced by the Inventors of' our Language. The copious account of the progress of speech, in the preceding chapters, may be confirmed by a view of those names, which our ancestors imposed on the principal objects of nature and thought. A sketch of this kind must be imperfect. It will, however, be sufficient to satisfy rational curiosity, to stimulate abler inquirers, and to show how the mind conducted itself in forming the medium of rational intercourse. The opinion of the active powers of nature had its origin in analogy ; * but it was universally re- ceived among the savage tribes, that were insensi- bly preparing the way for a better state of society and knowledge, by giving a necessary impulse to reason and thought. I have shown the idea, accord- ing to which articulate sounds were formed to ex- press those general notions, which are the product of every human mind, acting on the various, com- * Note 3 N. 91' PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF plicated, and constant experience of the senses, wliicli is obtained between infancy and maturity. While words continued to be monosyllabic, the act, the agent, the effect, the instruments of action, if known, had one and the same name. Composition removed that imperfection of speech, by creating methods of limiting the sense of the radical, of expressing the relations of time, place, manner of acting, and of particular persons. The general and abstract idea, affixed to each mo- nosyllable, imparted to every new compound its essence, modified according to the speaker's inten- tion ; and, therefore, in a state of being applied to designate any individual act, quality, or object within the range of precise communication. It must be attentively remembered, that all terms run from a general to a particular sense. * The work of abstraction, the ascent from indivi- dual feelings to classes of these, were finished be- fore terms were invented. Man was silent till he had formed some ideas to communicate ; and as- sociation of his perceptions soon led him to think and reason in ordinary matters. Then the actions of life received names, which remote generations might transform, but could not abandon nor de- stroy. Objects were named from any leading or \nin- ^ * Note 3 (>. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 95 cipal quality. Permanent or inherent qualities were considered as prior or present acts. The ra- dical itself, the preterite and present participles of the radical or derivative verb, are, therefore, the base of all nouns. All new objects were named from their qualities, which were classed according to their resemblance to other acts, or qualities, for- merly examined and known. Fire, Air, Water, Earth, are the most obvious agents in nature. Fire was called ag, move, agitate, penetrate, da7% shine. The same word signified to burn. Its derivatives were a- gela or AELA, to burn ; egled or eld, fire or kindling ; elding, matter of fire, firewood ; asca, burnt matter, ashes ; agember or ember, a burn- ing particle ; cagal, coal, the same as elding ; acsela, a burnt or burning thing, aisle ; brag or BRAC, to destroy by fire ; * '' hence brign, brinn, burn. The radical is rag, agitate, destroy ; hence ragst, roast ; brigstel, to bristle ; traec and fraec, to fry. To kindle was tag, to catch fire TAGEND, tand, and tind. From ag is cag, to shine ; also cagand, kind, to kindle or fire. In ancient times agera signified to fire, whence ard, combustion. The flame was lig, LOG, and flog -, a spring or rush of light was ragd, a ray ; and a large stream of light, bagm, • Note 3 P. 9C) PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF a beam. As to the effects of fire on the senses, they were described as hwagt, agitated, strongly moved, pressed, hot or wacerom, from wacer, to agitate much ; warm or cagled, fired, calid. The air ■•' was named from the same radical ag or WAG, to move. Hence ah and aher, the mover, the blower ; wag and wind for wagend, the moving object ; wag, to blow ; wagd and wadger, the air, state of the air, weather ; ahma, a breath of air ; ahera or aura, and ga-ahala, a gale : hence also ga-ohst, a blast or gust. Clouds were called mag, collected ; or nub, con- densed ; or clogd, what is gathered ; or generally weolcen, what is rolled, the welkin. The cir- cumvolution of the clouds, or of any large body, was called sweg and swegel, or swer ; the up- per regions of the air sceog, the covering ; the sky, HEOFEN or hifmel, and himmel, the elevat- ed or lift, the lifted region, t The sun, a fe- male deity in the northern latitudes, was called swoL and swinno, she who shines, from swag or sag, to send out, eradiate. To shine was also DWAG, dag, and rag. All these words denote the striking or darting of light. The bright region oi the upper atmosphere was ag, burn or shine, or agther and aither, the fiery part of the air. The moon was either selinna, the female shiner, * Note 3 Q. t Note 3 R. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 97 her name in Greece, or mana, he who increases, waxes, grows. The stars were stairnons, those which move, from styr to stir, or those wliich are fixed, from stair, stiff. The coruscation of light was called fag, literally to shine like waving light ; and such light was termed foqon and eon and figer, properly fire. Water received some of its hundred names from wag, to move, which is its obvious quality when it is pressed, or when it runs ; ag, wag, ah, a, ea, EAG, EAGSC, AGER, wager, AB, AP, WAP, WAC, HWAGM, HUM, WAGS, and WAS, are all the same expression, varied by the consignificatives. Hence WAG, to wet, supple ; wagd, wetting, and its at- tenuated form WET, to moisten. Wet, as a noun, is a derivative of wetet, moistened. Running water was rag, to burst or run ; hence ragen, a ran, a river ; also stregm, what is stretched ; or gang, a course or movement ; stragend, strand, a runner ; flogs and flogt, a flow ; becc, a moving or bend- ing stream ; broc, a burst of water, a brook ; fagd, a fall. Stagnant water was called lago, lake : and STAGEN, stanck, standing j and lign, a linn. Any lake or the sea was named mor or marei, the great water ; or saeg, the moving water. Weg, movement, was the general name for waving, roll- ing water ; geot, a dash of water, a jaw ; and bilg or bolg a swell or billow. Springs were call- ed wiGL, what boils in little waves, a well, or spout j vol. I, G 98 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF BURN, BRUNN, OF indeed by any appellation which generally signified moving, living, starting, running. A WHIRLPOOL was named hweol, a circling flood, a wheel ; gyrg, what turns round ; swelg, a swal- low, and the like. ^ A small globular portion of water was drop, from the preterite of drib, to squeeze ; or bob, from BAB, to blow ; or guta, from gut, to sprinkle, cast : t MAGD or mogd, lagm or ligm, nagd or NATT, are words which signify wetness, moisture, wet earth, or similar objects : lam, mud ; claet, clay ; and leag, water ; maad, or mat, and its derivative moist ; are original substantives and adjectives in most dialects. Fog likewise signifies wet : its compounds are fogel, foul ; figt and feucht, damp ; fagna, fana, fen, mire j and se- veral others. To make wet, to melt, are mag ; hence magelt to melt ; to squeeze down, to press, thwag ; to move, consume, swag ; to which may be added bag, to press, beat, agitate, work ; hence bagth, to supple, wash, bathe ; rag, to run or melt like grease ; fag, to become soft, wet, putrid ; swAL, to waste as a candle ; and thag, to thaw, wash, soften ; wacs, to supple in water, wash ; and LAEG, soften with water. Rain was called rag in, from rag, to rush 5 snow • Note 3 S. t Note 3 T. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 99 SNAG, from SNAG, to drive on ; sleet slagt, from SLAG, to beat ; hail hagel, from hag, make into round balls ; or grandin, from being like grain; * a shower scur, a running or moving storm. This word is from scir, to move, which has in the pre- terite GEscuRA. Stirm, a storm, is from stir, a con- traction of STIGER, to move, to STEER, Or STIR. A rainbow is regen-boga. Mist is from migst, gathering ; dew t from deag, to dip, make wet ; dank, from deagincg, having the actual proper- ty of DEAG, moisture ; and damp is from deagam- PA, or DEAGENiBA, by Contraction dam pa. Frost arises from frig, to make rigid, that is stiff; and ice, from eags, cold ; or eacs, union ; because the waters are joined. The ancient name of cold was AG, action, painful action. The derivatives were agel and alg, the state of cold, being cold ; ge-egelo, gelu, cold ; and ce-egeled, made cold, or cold. The extremes of heat and cold resemble one another in the effect which they have on the senses. The ancient names of the earth were ag, ac, eac, APA, OP, and several others, which all originate from AG, to mbve. t Production of every kind was denoted by terms signifying to move, act, work, operate, make. Increasing of every kind was denoted by words whose proper meaning was to * Note a U. t Note 3 X. J Note 3 Y. 100 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY Ot move, stretch, act, proceed. Maturity and Age were expressed by the preterite participles of these words. Active destruction was easily marked by such emphatic terms as belonged to its numerous causes. Some of these were to break, dash, drive, strike, shake, stab, tread, crush. But to fall, to run, to melt, to sink, to wither, to harden, to crum- ble, become dry, or soft and putrid ; expressed ideas, which are perfectly familiar in such a world as ours to its decaying inhabitants. The earth was commonly termed ager and AKER, the grower ; and growend, the ground. The derivative of acer is acertha, and airtha, earth. Crumbled earth was mulda, from the pre- terite of MUL, to bruise; pulverised earth dwogst, dust, from dwag, to drive ; wet earth was lag or clag, clay ; and lagm, loam. The plain soil was named lag or lager, what lies ; lig and le/ g, a lee, or level field ; and laganda, the lying ground, the land. From tag, to draw out, to produce ; the earth was called tager or teger, the produ- cer, a word altogether synonymous with ager ; al- so teg LOR or TELLUR, wliich is the same. A hollow below or between hills was digl, and dagl, and DiGN ; a dale, dell, and den ; from dig, to drive, penetrate by force, delve ; also holh, a hol- low, from hwag, to dig. The ground was often called PADANA, trodden, from pag, to beat with the foot, tread. Hills were named heh and hoh, THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 101 from HAH, to lift ; and magund, a heap, a large heaping, from ini ag, to gather by pressure and force. Hence munu was a heap of any thing, a mound, a mountain, a defence, protection. Particular names of these were brig a, beorga, what is pointed, pro- minent, from BRIG, to reach out; sweor, the neck or turn of a hill, from swiger and swir, to roll, turn ; CNAG, a round hill, from nag, to drive round by force ; of whicli the derivatives are cnogel, a knoll ; and cnopa, a knob. From tog, to lift, are found TOGM, a heap, and togmul, tumulus, a little heap, and togmoc, a Celtic word, in the Lowlands of Scotland called a tammock. Law and hleaw arise from the preterite of lig, to take up, lift. Among the earliest names of mountains are alb, from helb or help, an obsolete derivative of hwag, or AG, to lift or raise ; and bigen, or beinn, from big, to dart, stab, point. The sharp ridgy appearance of many mountains procured them the names of drum, the back, from drag, to stand out, to run along ; and crobat, from crab, a deriva- tive of rag, to stand out in a sharp form. A hill, with a circular plain on the top, was called dun and DiNAS, from tyn, to inclose. Rocks arid stones were termed rag or iioc, a split ; crag, a split ; lag, and lap, a cleft ; clip, and cliff, cloven ; stagena, fixed, from stag, to be stiff. A ravine was called holh, heugh ; or LIBRARY trNlVERSTTY OF CALIFORNia SANTA BARBARA 102 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF CLOG, from CLIG, to cleave, a cleugh. A flat stone was LEAC, from lag, to broaden, make plain. A sharp naked spot or rock, was scar, from scyr, to cut. A pass among hills, if strait, was called GLAc, from GLAc, to catch ; but gliging, or glinn, was the low lying ground between mountains. An uncultivated plain was feld, or field, from fag, to make fall. Any natural grass was hagath, heath, from hag, to rise ; and any strong plant, of a single stem, was recd, from rac, to reach, spring. The ground was often called begend, the declivity or bent, from its appearance ; and any long bend- ing grass had the same name. * The term mor signified a hill, from mag, gather ; a lake, from mar, a broad or great water ; and a large wet tract of ground. An island was ea-land, and often EA, water-land. Any ground, over which or a- round which water flowed, was wholm, and holm. A sharp stripe running into the sea was raec, RAECEN, and RiNN, from raec, a long snout, a point ; or nas, a nose ; or muks, a pointed mouth. All plants, trees, grass, and every vegetable thing, obtained the general appellations of ag, or hagad, gras, wags, fag, wort, crut, trag, or RAG, from AG, to increase, grow, bear fruit j hag, to rise, spring ; grac, or grag, and rag, to rise ; * Note 3 Z. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 103 TRAG, to grow J FAG, to procced by moving. Hence agba, and apa, fruit j akr, and wocer, increase of corn, trees, cattle, and of every thing vegetable or animal. Hence also wacsa, to breed, grow, generate, increase. The body of a tree was called bagm, beam, and STUBN, the stock j a forest was wacd, a wood ; a bush was bogsc, a shrub j scrub, or scrobba, a short tree ; scrogga, the same, from scrag, to cut, whence scred, for screged, shred, and scRO- gunted, scrunted. Other names were wald, from WAGELD ; holt, a knot of trees ; and hurst, or hirst, a branch was called boga, a bough, from BAG, to bend ; and braec, and branc, from rac, to reach out, or to separate from, as the arms do from the trunk. A branch of a branch was spRAEG, a spray ; a little division twig, or twi- GEN, by contraction tan. To sprout was termed bag, and blag, and cwig, or cig, active verbs in ordinary use in the senses of to drive out, to strike out, to move. From bag came bogd, a bud, a round germ, which the French call bouton ; from BLAG the old term blagd, blaed, produce of any plant ; and the modern words blade, blossom, bloom, the very names of which may remind the cold philosopher, that he has not yet reasoned him- self entirely into stone. O flowers ! That never will in other climate grow. 104 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF My early visitation, and my last At even ; which I bred up with tender hand From the first opening bud, and gave you names ; Who now shall rear ye to the sun, or rank Your tribes, and water from the ambrosial fount ? Thee, lastly, nuptial bower, by me adorn'd With what to sight, or smeU, was sweet ! from thee How shaU I part ! Paradise Lost, B. XI. p, 279- The word, which in ancient times had the great- est circulation in phrases expressive of growth and life, was cwig. This is a derivative of wig, to move, have motion, life, animal or vegetable prin- ciple. The radical vio, and veg, and its com- pound, VIC, were in use among the Romans, who pronounced the derivative cwig in a hard man- ner, which has elsewhere undergone great varia- tion. Cwig was articulated gig, in Greece and Rome. The derivative gigno, genui, genitum, is universally known. Applied to plants, cwig signified to bud ; to beasts, to breed. A cow was called cwo, a breeder, her young cwealf; the young of the goat, as likewise a child, was termed by the Teutonic nations cid ; cild, a contraction of cigeld, is the ancient form of child ; cwiNo, a breeder, is a woman. Applied to birds, gig meant to hatch, to bring out ; hence CTCEN, a chicken ; and cip, to chip, or form an em- bi-yo in an c^g. In plants, the straw, the grass of THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 105 the field, and several species of herbs, received their names from this general word. The being, who, in a savage state, gave those appellations to the world around him, called him- self AG, SAG, SAMA, and SELF, every one of which expressed property. This idea, which he had formed of himself, has left its traces in every dia- lect from Tartary to the Atlantic. The Hindu, the Icelander, the inhabitants of the Polar, as well as of the Temperate zones, continue to think and speak in the same manner as with their progenitors on this subject. The names by which our rude ancestors distinguished their own species from others were various ; some expressive of strength and power, others of birth and generation. In the infancy of language, there were no terms which possessed an indecent or immoral sense. At the fountain of speech, as of life, all was pure, on account of the naturally general signification of the first words. In allusion to his strength, man was called wiga, a warrior ; or waca, and wacer, and wair, a male : also MAG a, and. fagds, names of the same import, from wac, to produce, and fag, to get, procure, or breed. Woman was called cuino, and fegd- MiNA, and wicba, or weiba, and magda, from cwiG, fag, wac, and mag, words in ordinary use to denote the production of vegetables and ani- mals. The same terms expressed the growth of the tree, the budding of the rose, the blooming of 106 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF the spring, and the generation of every species of animals. The general term applied equally to the parent and to the child j for example, mag, to pro- duce ; MAGA, a father ; gemaga, magd, and math, what is produced, a son, or daughter. Another participle of this word, viz. magena, produced, is at this day pronounced man, which originally sig- nified either a male or a female. Weib, or wif- MAN, is now woman ; and mogdor and fagdor, mother and father. Another name was agda or ATTA, a parent, which in some dialects is athair, in others auctor; which last shows its origin. The verb tag also signified to bring forth, to pro- duce : its derivatives were togd, generation, and TADA, a progenitor. To produce offspring, as a mother, was entitled cwig, and eac, or wac ; to bear fruits, grain, young, was bar, to bring, carry, fetch. Hence baren, what is brought or born, a child ; and barendi, a bearer, a producer, a pa- rent. The words cen and cnag, eniti and nas- coR in Latin, were also common. An infant was called BARN ; a little boy, cnapa ; a lad, or even a boy, cniht, — words which have not had equal fortunes, for bairn is obsolete in English, cnapa is a knave, and cniht is a title of honour. Cnapa is the diminutive of cniht. A family and all related to it were called cynn, from cwiGEN, in Latin gens, in Greek genos, race, kin. A person friendly to another was call- THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 107 ed CYNOD, kind, that is, like one of his own fami- ly, his natural friends. * The country or place of birth was named aecdel and aethel or cwith, and FADER-LAND. Relations were called cneo- MAGAS, t and GESiBBAS. A man often called him- self SWAG, and agn, and swigelba, self. It was common to say myself, his-self, herself, itself, that is the property, the possession of me, him, her, it. A son was called swagena, one's own, belonging to self ; and a sister was termed swagstora, and swisTOR ; a father and mother-in-law were swa- GER and swAGERiNA, From atta, a father, came ATHUM, an uncle, an eem ; and aba, a producer or parent, was either a father or grandfather. The young were called eacingas, growing persons ; the old eaceled, grown persons : a generation was named eaceld and ald : an age signified the same from ag, to increase. The leaders of a tribe who were the old men, were called aldor and aldor-menn. There were no monarchs in the independent solitudes of Asia and Europe. Every man was a warrior, and had his share of the battle and the council. The whole tribe was cynn, or THioD, or FOLC ; the person chosen at times to com- mand it cyninga and thiudans ; ^ the man of the tribe, or nation. A leader was termed toga, and REiKs, director ; a chief man, tir ; a noble person, * Note 4 A. t Note 4 13. :j: Note 4 C 108 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF (for there were some of that kind, whose honour had been created by the merits of their ancestors,) AECTHELA and ETHELA, a man of birth, from eac, to breed. The descendants of such men were •aethelingas. Slaves were commonly called scalcas, * from skal, to shear, cut, because their hair was not per- njitted to be worn in the manner of their masters. A house was called hig, hiw, and higs, by con- traction Hus, from HIG, to raise ; also hof, from HEF to erect : the diminutive is hofel, a hovel. The entrance was called dwor from dwag, to divide, a division, a cleft ; or gagda, and gata, a gate, or passage, f The enclosure, which al- ways encircled a habitation, was gard or curt, from gewered, kept, and cyred, turned. The principal beam was bagm or rof-triw, from ROF, a derivative of rac, to extend, rear, raise ; or RAZN, from rag, the line of whose deriva- tives is RAC, to extend ; racer, by contraction rear, lift, elevate ; raf, to lift up, raise the hand, the voice, and the like. The materials, which were all of wood, were called timr from tog, to lift, take up, raise. To build was timrigan or TiMBRYiAN. For many ages habitations were not fixed beyond the period of an encampment, which was regulated by the conveniences of the spot * Note 1 D. f Note 4 E. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 109 and other interests of the community. The station was callen stad, stead, and stath; the plain where it was made, ham or feed, from higm, a raising of houses. Any single or congregate dwelling was ham or wic, and wics, from wic, to move, act, live in. The more common names of residence were lig to lie ; wic, to move about ; dwagla and DWAL, to wander ; wicna, to won, derived from WIC or wig ; also big, to move, bend, turn, stir ; and stg, to move j not omitting bigda, to bide, a derivative of big. In ancient Greece the same vagrant life was practised, until at length houses became fixed, and small villaa-es were formed on the model of the old encampments. Hence, wrcs became oicos, and ham come. Encampments were frequently made on tops of hills, which were called berg : hence a hill, a town, a fortification, and security, have the same name in all the Teutonic dialects. In Greece these were termed purgos from bairgs, and per- gamos, and bergamos. An army, which was generally composed of the families of the tribe in their natural divisions ; or of some brave leaders, surrounded by their compa- nions, was called here and haryis, from her, to gather ; a soldier was wigga or here-mann ; a companion, gesintha, or gisela ; a company, ge- sindel ; all from scind, to go, or travel. The bat- tle had many names, all derived from such words 110 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF as WIG, to contend ; sig, to turn, defeat ; bag, to beat ; slag, to strike ; mag, to toil, labour ; NAG, to knock ; rag, to stab, and the like. The shield was scyg, and scygd, and scygeld, orscYLD,the cover, from scAG,to cast over, protect; or RAND, the circle, from rinod, run, that is, round. The pole-ax was asca, the cutter, from ac and ag, to cut through ; or sagari, the cutter, from sag, to cut ; a little sword or knife was seacs or sceagen, skein ; the sword was ecga, the sharp-edged, or swEGERED, wliat is swaycd in use. The place where tribes convened was called mot and GEMOT, from met to join, unite ; or garuni and GAFAURDS, from garinn and gafar, run or go to- gether. The great assemblies took place, at fixed periods, on or around a large heap of wood or earth, which had been raised for the purpose. On the top of it was a round eminence, on which the altar or object of worship stood : on a platform be- low that eminence the nobles and elders met : the populace or army, for no slaves, or persons not free, could be present, stood on a larger and lower platform, or at the foot of the mound. Victims, which were sacrificed on the declivity of the mound, appeased with their blood the God of War, whose image or symbol was placed on the top. Priests, called galdoras, and wigleras, and wigans, from GAL, to sing, and wig, to wave, or dedicate to the gods, offered these sacrifices. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. Ill The human mmd which perceives motion, force, and active might in its own exertions ; which soon associates with these the changes of the external world, and on the great principle of resemblance, becomes acquainted not with individuals only, but with classes of objects ; could not be long uncon- scious of itself, nor without a name for its own leading qualities. Life to an ordinary observer seems to consist of motion, which is supported by the breath and by food, and is often believed to be the same with the air which maintains it. * From AG, to move, blow, were formed agma and ahma, breathing, the breath ; agenima, by contraction ANiMA, the breath, spirit. When the living power was viewed as an agent, the word was made mascu- line. The passions, that is to say, all the active principles of the mind, which, while they operate, disorder the body, received names according to the sensations which they produced. Violent indigna- tion or fierce courage was termed mod and mad from MOGED, move ; or rage from rag, to rush j or THWOGM from thwag, to drive, rush ; or WOOD, woD, from wag, to move, agitate. Hate was named from hwagt heat, and all sharp painful passions ag and anger from ag, to pain, agitate, or burn, and its derivative ang, to fret ; or agonda, onda, zeal, warmth, or irritation, * Note 4 F. 1 1*2 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF from the same ag, in the senses already explain- ed. The dispirited passions were chiefly named from words signifying heaviness, trouble, vexation, la- bour, toil ; so swERiG, heavy, sorrowful, from sw£R, heavy, painful ; drob and drof, troubled, from DREiB, to drive ; ang-mod, anxious, from ANG, vexed, and mod, the mind ; broc, breaking, affliction, from brac, break. Most words, which signified to drive, beat, annoy, served likewise to express fear. On the contrary, the joyful states of the mind are all named from verbs denoting quickness, ele- vation, and. the like : gag, to move quickly, play ; in the preterite gog, merriness, joy, joke : glig, to act quickly, and bend nimbly ; hence glagd, glad ; GLIG, glee, play, mirth : fagen, fain, from FAG, to shake, to vibrate ; whence fyke and fidge, and the adjective fickle : mag to be strong, hearty, vigorous ; hence mag, and magerig, mer- ry, and magerith, mirth. To these may be join- ed BLiGTHA, pliant, blithe, from blig, to bend | FOGN, fun, from fag, above stated ; gagmana, game, from gag, as above ; hopa, hope, from hef, to exalt, raise. Any word signifying originally to take, seize, catch, apprehend, seems to have been applied to express perception by all the senses, and the know- ledge, opinion, idea, or notion, which the mind THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 113 forms from it, I take, I hold, I gather, I behold, that is, lay hold on, I discern, I distinguish, I se- parate or divide, I feel, are sentences which illus- trate the origin of intellectual phraseology. I feel is from fah or fag to seize, of which a derivative is FiGEND, find ; I take and touch, are from tag or its diminutive tek, to pluck, pull, grasp ; I see, is from saeg, to seize, take ; I hear, is from her, to lift, as from hlig, or hlif, to lift, come list and listen ; I taste, is from tagst, a derivative of tag or TAG, to take : in old French it is taster, to hold : I smell, is from smag, to penetrate : for the taste and odour of bodies were called by the Teutonic nations smaecc, smaecel, words of kindred race with smoc, the penetrating vapour of burning, boiling, drying substances. The nature of these appellations abundantly shows how the ope- rations of the senses, and of the mind itself were denominated. The most common names for the understanding, in Germany, Greece, Italy, and India, were derived from mag, to seize, the very radical which had produced mag in Celtic, manus in Latin, mare in Greek, and mund in Teuto- nic ; all signifying the hand. Mag, applied to the mind, signified to apprehend, to perceive ; hence mogd, the perceiving power, the hold- ing faculty : its derivative mun, take, produced MUNOD, taken, thought, reputed ; and gemund, or gemynde, the mind, and memory ; for to take and VOL. 1. H 114 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF hold, perceive and retain, are allied ideas. Ano' ther name sprung from wig, to get, gain, win ; the preterite participle of which, wigd, gave rise to a new verb in some dialects, signifying to see with the eye ; in others, to see or catch with the mind. Wit, the noun produced from wig, get or gain, signifies in many languages, to know, catch, or get information, either by the senses or the inter- nal faculties. Other names, such as and-git, AND-NIM, UNDER-STAND, FOR-STAND, SOmC of wllich are from get and nim, to obtain and seize, illus- trate this part of the subject. A compound of SAEG, to seize, is common in Latin, under the form of sentio. Sefn and sinn are Teutonic words in ordinary use, to express the idea of mind, perception, sense, thinking. The verb thing, from TAG or thig, to seize, take, is found to be synonymous with seem, a compound or derivative of SEE. Saiwala, the soul, literally " the power of seeing and perceiving," is from saihw, the or- dinary form of SAEG to see. Names for the judgment, the distinguishing fa- culty, arose from dem, to take, divide ; ah, to take J . hence aht, estimation. The Latin autu- Mo and estimo come from ahtum, thinking, and asiitum, which is the same. Ag or ah, take j from the primitive ag, move ; in tlie old Teu- tonic, denoted thinking : acs signified to get, take knowledge, ask : scagd or scad meaned dis- THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 115 tinction, dividing ; and sceol the act or ability of making distinction. Scyr had a liice sense, and SCEAW both signified to make another discern, or to discern by ourselves. The word ken also ex- pressed to discern with the eye or mind : its de- rivatives are cnaw, know ; and cunnian, to feel, distinguish by trial of the senses. * The names of the memory are chieHy from mag, MAN, and MAR, hold. The imagination was called BiLD, the image or form, or mata, the maker, framer, finder ; and in Celtic, mac memna, the son of the memory. The inclination or propensity towards any act or object was naeging, or wigela, from nag, to bow ; LiG, to lie, to lean ; wig, to bend. Ex- pectation was HOPA, from hef, heave ; or bidung, waiting. Despair was wan-hop, want of hope, or TwiGuNG, doubting, from twig, to divide. Be- lief was GALEAE and galauba, from laub and LEAG, to let on, lean on, trust. Truth was trig- woTH, a noun, from triggw, true, and that from TRIG, to press with the hand, foot, or any organ of sense, to tri/. Waar is another ancient name of truth, from wager, known, certified, analop;ous to GcwisE, in German, certain ; from wit, know. To hicline to think any thing true is wen, from wiGN ; its derivative is wensc, a wish. To stretch * Note 4 G. 116 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF the mind in thought is rec, from rag ; whence RECED, studied, explored, red or rad. The same word, not however in the same sense, signifies to stretch out, extend j and so open and ex- plain a matter j also to stretch the voice, relate, recount, number ; hence recma and rima, nume- ration. The Latin reor, I think, produced ratio, (radigung,) thinking. To be false, to lie, was termed lig and leog, to lie, keep down, conceal, lurk ; or let on, pretend : likewise fac, braegd, gediht, from fac, to seem, appear ; braeg, to stretch out, pretend ; and diht, a making, a made story. To mislead was dwal, from DWAG, drive off the path ; swic, from sweg, to sway. To wander was wag, wor, wand, ir, from AGR ; mar, from mag, to force. Laec means to flatter ; tog and tag, to draw, entice. Wag, to laugh at, make sport of, deceive ; locc, to draw, seduce ; wigl, to move, bring by small motion, wile. The original powers of these terms are explained by the common phrases, to draw, lead, work upon, attract, in the sense of entice, seduce, drive aside, shake, mislead, misguide, bias, turn, bend, trip, jostle, in the sense of put from the right or straight course of walking, travel" ling, acting, either bodily or mentally ; for our ancestors were guided by common feeling and perception, when they thought and spoke. All matter or matters naturally existing, or placed in THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 117 an extended position, they called reged, streced, TAGED, or togen, wliich afterwards became riht, or riglit, straight, and teann, stiff, drawn in Cel- tic. When the idea of force was retained, the meaning was tight, stretched, drawn or thin. When the mere quahty of extension was denoted, these words became applicable to every thing in a line, or things lineally arranged ; to roads, objects extended perpendicularly, or running along hori- zontally. Hence the words raw, a row ; rank, ananger, and the like. The contrary quality of bent, crooked, winding, &c. had many names, for every verb of motion was naturally fitted to express it. Hence ag, to move ; wag, to move ; bag, to bow ; cwAG, to agitate or force ; dwag, to drive ; THWAG, to strike or press ; rag, wrag, and thrag, to twist ; as likewise, twag, to twig or twirl ; pro- duced AG and ang, crooked ; gewog, bent : deri- vatives, of which were wogm or womm, the state of being not straight, distorted ; and won and wohg, a winding, bending, turning, error, depravity : also gebog, bowed, bent, twisted, inclined, which, when applied to the mind, became expres- sive of error and vice. Cwagm and cam, bent, crooked, &c. is found in many dialects : dwa- GEL, from DWAG, signifies, in Teutonic, wan- dering, which is turning back and forward, ge- nerally on account of ignorance. Thwag pro- duced THWAGER, or THWAiR, cross, not Straight, 118 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF across, thwart, perverse. Crag, which is the de- rivative of RAG, gave rise to crook, and crooked. The derivatives rug, runkle, crunkle, crimp, are but a few of the very numerous forms of rag in this sense, to be found in all the dialects. From WRAG came wrig, to wriggle, to make wry ; and wring, to twist, or distort ; of which the preterite is WRONG, distorted, driven out of the straight or natural state. From thrag arose thragen, thrawn, twisted, forced out of the right nature. The Celts, Indians, and Romans, for thrag pro- nounced THAR and THARC, by a transposition of the letters, very common among them in combina- tions of this kind. Hence torqueo, torsi, tor- TUM, to throw, twist ; torques, a chain, &c. * Even LAG, to lay, in the sense of fold, t ply, bend ; afforded logba, a bend, a loop, a turn ; loxos, liquus, plagios, and lugos, common Greek and Latin words for bent, transverse, &c. not omitting the whole families of plico and flecto, which have so greatly enriched the European tongues. This analysis removes all obscurity from the terms which express right and wrong. The right way of acting, in a moral sense, is as much a reali- ty in the mind of an ordinary man, as the straight or the right road. With him, the right road is determined by his judgment, the straight road by his sense. He may doubt about the right road * Note 4 II. t Note 1 I. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 119 among a number, till he have examined them. He doubts as little that there is a right road, though he have not examined them, as he doubts the truth of his senses, as to their being straight or crooked. Moral distinctions vary in degree, but not in kind. When the judgment has a full opportunity of deciding, its sentence is right or wrong, true or not true, as long as the facts before it are entirely the same. The mind does not create distinctions of this kind, but discovers them in the nature of things. It may suppose extension witliout breadth and thickness, but the idea of lineal extension it receives from nature. It may suppose that the murder of an infirm and helpless person is not wrong, or even right in a moral sense, but the ideas of right and wrong, to which it refers all par- ticular actions, are original like those of extension and solidity. * In the above manner, names were invented to express the notions which have been now describ- ed. Hough, smooth ; even or plain ; hard or soft 5 light or heavy ; like and unlike, are properties of matter which, on the principle of natural associa- tion, have also given names to several mental quali- ties. Indeed, the connection established in this way between ourselves and the external world, or rather between our perceptions of the world, and our in- ♦ Note i K. 120 PHILOSOrHICAL HISTORY OF tellectual and moral knowledge, though it joins ideas essentially different, and consequently gives rise to considerable ambiguity j yet, on the whole, it appears to be altogether necessary, in the present limited state of the human mind. It unites the divided acts, objects, and qualities of matter with our sensations of pleasure and pain, with our ab- stract opinions and judgments j in short, with every thing which is spiritual in our constitution. By the classification thus incessantly promoted, a finite mind becomes capable of knowledge, concerning an incalculable number of objects and ideas, which it could never receive by individual experience. The infinite mind knows all individuals, in all states and times ; the limited mind knows only arrangements. The idea of smooth, plain, even in objects, was in ancient speech expressed by laged, and logn, and LAGEN, laid ; preterites of lag to lay ; or baged, beat ; paged, paved ; or maged, bruised, pressed ; NAGED, inclined, put down ; reced and streked, reached, extended, unfolded ; also slagd, slaec, and GLiGD, &c. from slag, strike ; slack, strike lightly, polish ; smagd or smagth, from smag, to smile ; from which come sleek, glid, or glide, smoothly. * From rec, reach, extend, comes RAECD,redd, clear, ready; and breced and greced, * Note 4- L. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 12i extended. These words are in modern English, broad and great. From mag, in the sense of force, condense, collect ; came ma(;, much, large, broad in space ; many, large in number, or size. ^ From LAG, lay forth, lay out, came laginga or langa, lying, stretching out, long; and from wag, in- crease, WAGD or wiGD, increased, wide. From RAG, to stab, sting, pierce, break, came GEROH and RUH, rough, prickly, rugged. The ancient verb ag, to penetrate, afforded ag, sharp ; AGiL, prickly ; aga and ecga, a point, a pointed or edged weapon. Stig, to sting, stab, pierce, produced several appellations of this kind ; such as stickle, stickly, &c. Solidity was formed from swEGLA, moving, vehement, strong : a compound of swEG produced swind and sund, the com- mon word for entire, whole, firm. Any word signifying force, strength, stiffness, might express that idea. Stag, to dash j stig, to set down with force, to stamp and step, has among its numerous derivatives stagd, a station, 56"^ or standing-place, a fixed spot; and stigd, a stithy; stigba, stiff*; stair, fixed, stiff, barren ; stor, in Scotish stuir, strong, stiff, large. Strong, stiff, and solid, are nearly synonymous in the old language. Hard and harsh are from hweor, to move, strike, turn ; a derivative of HwiG, and nearly allied to hurt. Their forms * Note 4 M. 122 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF were hweoreda and iiardsk, or hardisc. As for strong itself, it comes from strac, to stretch ; its earliest form was stracing and STRANG, from which the abstract strangith, strength. As force and motion are constituent ideas in the radicals, there is not a primitive verb in the language which, in one or other form, has not been applied to denote them. It is a fact equally general and remarkable, that the most delicate and gentle perceptions take their names from the verbs which signify violent agita- tion and power. The original words for these are, swoFD, soft, from swab, sweep, drive along ; mol- lis, from MOGD, ground, bruised ; or its derivative MALjin the preterite mol, ground; hvvast, delicate, from hwag, move sharply ; nesc, nice, soft, from NAEG, to gnash, knock ; lenis, from legn, laid down J LiND, smooth, from ligened, sleeked j sweet from swegt, laid, allayed j tender from teg- ner, a derivative of tagd and togd, wrought, pull- ed, crumbled. The adjective tydder, brittle, fragile, is common in Anglo-Saxon. All names of motion, strong, frequent, heavy, slow, soft, &c. are indigenous. The qualities even, plain, equal, and like, are allied. Continuity of surface was expressed by eac, joined, added, continued, from ag. Hence eac, eaben or ibn, and lagen, laid, mean joined, or laid in surface : reced, straight, extended, THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 123 is expressive of the same state. To agree is from AGREER, the principal word in which is gre, liking, from GRAD or gratia. Eac, lig, and rec, not only mean the even, sleek, redd state of surface, and the agreement of two smooth objects, but also agreement, conjunction, and union of minds, or affections. The first, eac, produced am for acm, agree, love ; the second, our words, like, luve or love, LUFST and lifst, or lust and list. The third is found in many of the dialects in the sense of love, of which graidh in Celtic, gratia in Latin, CHARis or ciiarits, for grats, in Greek, are familiar examples. Equal, even, level, plain, are words closely related in their application, whe- ther it be to external or mental qualities. The well known term eager, fair, from fag, to join ; illustrates the idea according to which they are used. It means polished, well-made, when it re- fers to an individual ; concordant, agreeing, paired, when it is an epithet of two objects. It is almost synonymous with maca, from mag, to gather, con- join, collect ; to which the English language owes mate, match, and marrow. These are the origin of the ordinary names of the primary qualities of matter. In the progress of speech, a difficulty occurred in finding terms to designate the parts and the whole of an object. The words hal, whole, and sund, sound, are deri- vatives of HWAL, turn ; and swund, from swag, to 124 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF roll. As EAC signified continuity, what is joined or united ; so hwal and svvund, meant what is rolled, turned together. -'• When applied to time, EAC signified continual, eternal ; sin had the same sense. Continuation of matter, of space, of time, was the ruling idea in them all. Viewed in this light, they expressed unity, perpetuity, inte- grity J one ; continual ; sound, whole. Parts of matter, or of objects, came to be denoted by such words as bit, brac, stuc, ragen, &c. signifying fragments and divisions. But the half was hwealf and HWEALB, a turn, a side ; lagth or leath, the breadth or side in Celtic ; and sam and samod, or EMN, even. In Latin, the former of these words is semi, in Greek hemi. Proximity of objects was marked by words signi- fying pressed, joined, straitened ; as ang, strait, from AG, drive ; and nah, close ; naher, near ; both from nag, press, force. Space was called rocm, reaching, or hwearf, turning ; lagd and lagr, lair ; stath, standing, state. Place itself is from plats, and this from PLAG, to lay, broaden ; plat and flat being sy- nonymous. Time was termed tig, tigd, tigma, from tig, to go or pass ; hweila from hweol, to run, turn ; thraec from tiirag, to run ; faec * Note 4 N. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 125 from FAC, to go ; sinth and sith, from sind, to move : the words course, race, tm-n, explain these fully. Eac, ehe, ecer, and ere, whence early, signified the beginning of time or place, from eac, to produce : rag, to raise, spring, had the same sense : frum, beginning, is a derivative of rag. FoRA, gone, from far, to go, produced forma, former ; and forest, first. Lag, laid, weary, heavy, and its compound slag, are the radicals of LAGTA, late, and lagtista, last, latest j and slago, slow. Time recently past or passing, was called NU from genug, close, dense, pressing ; and objects recently produced were, nigo or niw, new. Time past joined to the present, that is continued time, was EAC, or ge-eac, and ge-eacd, by contraction GYT, yet. The Visigothic has yu for geo, at pre- sent, now ; and nauh for nu auh, now also. All continuity and coincidence m time and in place, or of the objects in the same time and place, are ex- pressed by EAC, AUK, akei, and andi, in English eke, besides. And is the present participle of EAC or AUK, join : it is a contraction of aukandi or EACEND, adding, continuing. Time approach- ing speedily, was marked by suns and so a and swiTH, quick, hasty, vehement, continued, from SWIG to move, swtn to move on ; and by rec, recen, instantly, from rec, to rush, run. Other adjectives, pertaining to this subject, will be men- tioned afterwards in a particular manner, because 126 PHILOSOPHICAL HlSTOllY OF the terms, which express the parts of time and place are an important class of words, displaying great ingenuity in their application, and of universal use in practice. That quality of matter, which constitutes one of its principal properties, is its weight ; "'' the names of which are hefig, related to heaving, heavy ; from HEF, lift, heave, and the consignificative ag ; swER from swEGER, and that from swag, to force, bear, move ; wegtig, weighty, from wegd, or WEGT, motion ; for the verb wag signified to move, carry, lift, and in that sense we have waeg, a weight, or that which lifts an object by equi- poise. The Greek name for heavy was barus or BARU, what is borne, carried ; the Latin gravis is from gray, a derivative of rag, to run, reach, extend ; gravis and grandis are related to BRiTHES, heavy. Weight and large size are close- ly associated, on which account mogles or moles, from MAG, to gather ; and haup, heap, from hag, to lift up, raise ; are common in the dialects. Great motion, force, weight, and magnitude, are all kindred ideas by the radical constitution of lan- guage. Little weight, or lightness, is in almost all the dialects derived from lag to lift, whence liged and liht, light ; and Levis, elafros, in Latin and Greek : lagha is the same in Sanscrit. • Note 4 O. « THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 1^ Form and colour of all kinds were named indi- rectly. There was no original provision made for ex- pressing either themselves or their varieties. The hue, the shape, the make, the form, are from haeg, to strike, cut, hew ; scab, to strike, cut, a derivative of scag, to shake by cutting or working on. Sceaf, in Teutonic, means to make, form, create, shape. Therefore skeapend and sceoppend signify the Creator : gesceaft is a made or created thing, a creature, which is analogous to wiht, a creature, a thing, from wag, to produce. The organs of pro- duction are gescapa. Gemace, the make, is from MAC, work on, mould, form. Our word form is from FREM, to make ; shape, do. Teog, to agitate, pull, excite ; and cin, to generate ; have tog, the mak- ing ; and kind, the kind. Hiw was soon transfer- red to colour, which was anciently denoted by ag, sceaw, and spec, the light, show, and species or appearance. Colours were divided into light and heavy, clear and dark. A strong, a weak, a sad and gay colour, were terms of contrast. White was called ag, arg, agelba, shining, from ag, shine ; and leogic, leuc, light-like, clear ; hwagt, HwiGT, or HwiT ; from hwag, to shine, penetrate, burn. Black, on the contrary, was sweort, from sweor, strong, heavy ; deorc, from dweor, to press on vehemently ; niger, from nag, to bear down, oppress, annihilate ; won and wan, from WACN, defective, weak j obscure, from ob, before 128 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF or upon, and scur, covered, a derivative of scag, cover, whence scado, a shade, shadow. Other names were maland or maelend, from mal, thick, and PELOs, defective, from pall, moveable. From LAG, to lay, diminish, came lagig and laec, lack- ing, defective, from which blac, and its kindred term blaecig, blaew, blue. The Celtic dubh is from DAUB, deaf, dull, heavy, empty ; of which the radical is dwog, beat, deaden, destroy. Green is from grene, grun, and growen, as viridis from viREO, and chlorus from chloa, grass. Glauc and glas are from legg, light or fire, as are ge-alig, gealg, yellow, from al, to burn ; and fealg from fagelic, fiery, fallow. Red * is from RAGED or raeced, rayed, sent forth in a strong force ! Rudig is the diminutive : brun is from BRUN, burnt : graeg is iron coloured, rusty, red- dish ; it is also hoar, a word from har, whitish. The Scythic name of Caucasus was grau-cah, the white or snowy hill : heawi-grei was sea-green ; heawen and haewen-deage, green or beryl-co- loured. There was a considerable degree of vague and inaccurate freedom in the use of all these words. To dye was deag, dip; rag, colour; m.\l, stain, paint : fac, any discolouring substance ; glaes, transparency, from gleog, shining ; a clear, " Note 4 p. 4 THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 129 radiant state was gluth, glow, from glog, shine : BAG, to supple, soften, and its derivatives, bap and BATH, were anciently in much use. Having related at such length the names which were early given to the qualities of the external world, and to the human fliculties, I purpose to conclude this sketch with an account of the names of the human body, of its parts Jind principal ac- tions, to which shall be subjoined the appellations of some animals. The object of this chapter will be fully attained, if it comprehend as much as shall illustrate the true method of philological analysis. The human body was termed rec and reth, HRA, CRAS, CREUN, and GREAT, the shape, or form ; from RAG to frame. Rup, a shape, is found in some very ancient dialects. Crop and corp, its derivative, have been superseded in English by bo- dig, body, which is from bogd, a lump, butt, stock, trunk, foundation. The head, hands, arms, limbs, legs, feet, are from heafod, or heafd, heaved or raised ; hand or hend, to seize j acerm, what is joined, eked, affixed ; lithm, a flexure ; LAG, to go ; and bagt, or fagt, preterites of bag, to move. Other names of the head are begen or BENN, the point ; nogd, what is rounded, the nod- dle f SIR, from swiR, the turn, the vertex. The eye, ag and og, from ag, to shine ; the ear, oger, the taker; the mouth, munth and mund, what Seizes ; the teeth, from tunth, what bruises, VOL, I. I 130 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF grinds ; the jaw, ceac and cinn, from cag, to chew, agitate the place of the jaws, or ceol j the throat, HALS and swir, the turn ; the nose, nosu, EEC, NEB, REC, SNYGT, SNOBEL, from NAG, tO force the breath ; beg, to point ; nab, to be peaked ; RAG, to extend ; snagt, cut, sharpened ; snob, to snuff. The eye-brows are breag, what is extend- ed, stretched. The hair is scuft, tagl, locc, RON, HAR. These, which are but a few of its nu- merous names, are from scwab, a derivative of scwAG, to shake ; tagl, a pointed object, a tail ; log, the preterite of lac, enclose, fold, curl ; RAG, to run out, grow, be stiff and sharp ; and HWAR, rough. The brain is bregen, what is bruised, that is soft ; or hwairn, a name derived from HWAR. The ancient names of the scull are CLAG, CROG, CRAN, CAL, HWAIRNEI, HEAFOD-BOLLA, HARNiscALA. The boucs were called agst, or BAN ; the flesh, ore, flaec, leor, sweor ; the blood, sweot, sang, blod ; the muscles, mogsc, or MOG, what moves ; the heart, hairto, or crid ; the lungs, liht, gelongen, plum, pneogm ; the liver, AG, lober, or lifer ; the bowels, bogelas, ROPAs, inneweardas, GUT, or eyt, &c. ; the sto- mach, maga ; the reins, lund-lagas, rag j the belly, WAMBA, BALG, BUCE, — words derived from WAG, and BAG, and bal, its derivative, to turn, bend, arch ; the bladder, from blagd, blow j the navel, from nab, turn, wind ; or wamb or amb, a THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 131 turning ; the genitals, according to their form or functions. Some of the words from which their names have arisen are mag, to produce ; cwig, to generate ; sceop, to form, create ; rag, to bring forth. Tjerms, equally general in their sense, are eac and ac, to grow, conceive ; gin and fag, to produce; nag, to bear; bar, to fetch, bring; rag, to germinate. The verb mig signified, in the earliest ages, to emit urine ; and there is not a dialect, from the Shannon to the Ganges, which has not this word, or some of its derivatives, in that sense. * Words synonymous with the Latin ejicio, emitto, express other natural acts and functions ; though, in the first ages, all of them were applicable to classes of objects, and as little restricted to any particular sense as these Roman verbs that have been now quoted. The parts of the arm were, ams and scyld, the shoulder ; acs and acsel, the arm-pit ; boga and agelina, the bow, angle, corner, the elbow. The whole arm was sometimes called agelina ; from AG, to join ; and aec, braec, grad, from RAC, to reach. The hand had numerous names, such as MAG, MAGN, LAG, CLAG, FRAG, CROG, GLAC, GRIP, BAGS, from MAG, to catch ; lag, to lay on, seize ; rag, to reach for, that is take, or reach to, that is touch, reach to another, that is give. Every * Note 4 Q. 132 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF kind of motion, which the hand could perform, might give it a name. Every radical had a restricted sense, which arose from personal action ; according- ly, BAG, FAG, CWAG, WAG, LAG, NAG, RAG, SAG, and indeed every primitive word, in the restricted sense of beat, move, work, lay, drive, hold, turn, shake, labour, pluck, draw, &c. applied to this instrument. The hand shut was bag, bog, and fag, whence box and fist ; the catch, or palm, was folm ; the thumb THUMA, the seizer or taker ; the fingers were mag, tag, or fang, from mag, catch ; tag or twag, pull or touch j fang, catch. To close the hand was clic, cleek ; in English, clench. The toes were named from the same verb as the fingers ; only tag was generally the name of the former, and tagt and lagtel of the latter. The knee was cniw and cnig, the bending ; the joints LiTH, from LiG, to bow. The tendons streng, what is stretched ; and nerb and sinu, words of like sense. The foundation of the feet, or of the body sitting, were bonn, and bogt, or bot, the bottom, the sole, which word is from sul, a base. HoH, HOHM, heiil, from hah, to lift, or hang ; were the hough, the ham, the heel. The breast had many names, uchd, the rising, the eminence ; brust, the division ; bog, the bow, or bend j bogsom, the recess ; bron, from rac, to be sharp ; nipel and stricel, from stric and CNOP, what is prominent, headed j pap and bub, THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 133 round, circular. All the names of milk and suck- ing refer to pressure or drawing. So lag, draw ; LAGT, what is drawn, milk ; mag and magel to press ; whence magelig, milk ; swig, to draw : sig and sug, sucking ; dwag, to force ; dagd, the pap. To bring up children or any young was ag, AGLA, and ACL A, ALA, to iucrcasc, nourish, feed, foster ; rac and lift, rear, raise ; also bred, from RAG, breed. * The back was called gebac, hrig, drag, all meaning what is bent, or stretched out, that is ridged, t Any point on the back, or at its ex- tremity, was RUMP or romp, from rag, to run out. In animals, swand, tagl, cwagd, steort, scwiB ; from swag, to turn ; twag, to seize ; CWAG, move, shake ; stiger, stir, move j sc\vab, sweep ; are in use at this day. The ordinary acts of the body are so numerous that only a very few of their names can be insert- ed here, t All primitive verbs have been used in express- ing the varieties of corporeal motion. Bag § pro- duced bear, bustle, bend, bounce, bite, bob, beck, boggle, m the sense qfhesitatmg, bow ; fag pi^o- duced fetch, fare, go^ fag, or ^eary by moving ; fair. * Note 4 R. f Note 4 S. t Note 4 T. § Note 4 U. 134 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF that is shapely, fall, faddle, fickle, fidge, fatten, feed, feel, fumble, fence, fester, find, fit, and fadge, fuss, which is hurry ; pag produced to pad or pace, palpitate, pass, peep, pore, puff, pull, put. The radicals ag, wag, cwag, hwag, and gwag, which are words of related signification ; produced act, eat, ague, a shaking ; agony, a convulsion ; * ach, pain J ancle, the angle of the leg ; wag, t to shake ; waggle, and waddle, walk, wake, wail, wander, wear, to carry clotheSy weep, winch, to turn or twist about ,• wink, work ; hold, halt, haste, have, keep, haul, heave, hear, hie, heat, help, hew, hitch, kick, hit, hoot, wheeze, huff, hunger, hurl, hurry, hustle ; call, cast, catch, chat, cheer, chew, choke, come, keep, cough, &c. gape, to ope?i ; gab, to speak, Jabber J jig ; go, to move, axid gad, ramble ; also get, give, gibe, gog, and goggle. The words in common use from dwag, thwag, and twag, in the sense of bodily action, are dash, die, do, dine, dodge, dowse, be dull and dumb, dwell, dwindle ; take, touch, talk, tattle, taste, tell, tickle, tipple, titter, tug, tumble, turn, twine, twitch or tweak, thirst, totter. Lag produced lay, lick, lash, laugh, lead, lean, leap, let, leave, lie, lift, light Jrom an eminence, limp, lisp, listen, live, loath, loiter, lock, loose, lug, lull, blab, blow, bloat, blush ; climb, • Noto 4 X. + Note 4 Y. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 135 cloy; flinch, fling, flatter, flush, fly; glut; play, plod, ply ; slacken, sleep, slumber, slash, splash, &c. In like manner, mag produced march, meat, maul, meet, mock, move, mumble, murmur; smack, smell, smark, smirk, smother. Nag gave naked, nap, to sleep, nod, kneel, nip, nourish ; gnash, gnaw; snack, snap, snarl, sneak, snub, snufF. The derivatives of rag, which refer to bodily action, are very numerous in all the dialects. Some of them are rack, rage, rail, raise, arise, ramble, run, range, rant, rattle, rave, raw, reach, to stretch or to vo- mit; reel, ride, roar, rock, roll, rot, rouse; brag, breed, bring ; crack, cramp, creep, cry ; drag, draw, dream, dress, drink, droop, drown, drudge ; fret, frizzle, frown ; be greedy, grow, grin, gripe, grope, groan, growl, be gruff or grim ; scrape, scratch, screak, spread, spring, straddle, strain, strangle, stray, stress, stretch, stride, strike, strip, stroke, stroll, struggle, strut ; wrench, wrest, wriggle, wrinkle, writhe. The derivatives of swag, to move, which claim a place in this enumeration, are say, sit, see, send, set, be sick, sink, sup and sip, soil, sound, soothe, be sore, sot, sour, suck, be sullen, swathe, swap, and stoop, swagger, swallow, swash, sway, sweat, swink, swell, swerve, swig, swim, swing, swoon. Among all these verbs, not one, in its radical form and sense, pertained to the body. They and others of this kind, without one exception. 136 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF are from words of a general signification, the nature and origin of which have been formerly ex- plained. The names of animals are derived from similar sources. * It must, however, be remarked, that, as it was customary, in the first ages of language, to name the human species from the fact of being BORN or produced, as the words man, child, BAENE, &c. in old English, and the terms adoles- CENS, juvENis, MAS, MARiTUS, viR, and the like in Latin, sufficiently establish ; so it was usual to call the domestic animals by the ordinary fact of their being bred ; or of their having a productive facul- ty. The name which was proper to the young of all animals frequently became the appellative of the species. It is almost needless to observe that all living things had the general name of cwicu, quick ; or ANIMATA and ANiMALiA, from AN AM the breath of life ; the ox, sheep, cow, and goat, the most ordi nary species of tame animals, had the names AUHS, Awi, EowA, cwo, and GAT, the three first from AUK and WIG, to breed. The bull was called bogs, BUGEL, from BUG, to spring, or bag, to bellow ; sometimes steor, and tare; and often AUHs,a male breeder : cu and cwu, the female, is from cwuga, the derivative of cwic, to bring forth. Her young • Note 4 Z. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 137 was named wigt and wigtula, (vitulus or vitula,) a diminutive from wig, to bring forth young ; and cwegelba or cealf, which is the same. A on, in Celtic, is a very ancient name of a bull or cow : it is directly from ag, to move, breed, increase. The word scEOP or gesceop, a sheep, from sceopan, to make young, produce ; is not so ancient as awa and Awi, which last is the feminine termination. * This word is found in almost every language : in the Celtic it is othisg, (pronounce oisc ;) in the Teutonic dialect, awi, eowa j in Latin, ovis ; Greek, ois ; Slavonic, ovtza, A lamb or young sheep is uan in Celtic, or ltian ; in Cymraig, gen ; in Teutonic, eacen and lamba ; Greek, AMNOS ; Latin, agnus ; Slavonic, agnetze and aegnenoke. Every one of these is derived from AG and eac, to breed and bear young of what- ever kind. The verb, to yean or ean, is, in Anglo-Saxon, eacn ; in Slavonic, aegnite. It is a word pertaining to the conception and produc- tion of all animals ; nor had the original inhabit- ants of Europe, and the adjacent regions of Asia, any common name for the domestic animals, ex- cept what was founded on the idea of their ferti- lity. The ram was called rithe, reathagh, HWRDD in Celtic and Cymraig ; aries in Latin j CRios in Greek ; ramma in the Teutonic : from * Note 5 A. 138 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY OF RAG, to rush forward, to butt, his well-known quaHty. Other names were wedder or wether, and in Slavonic varane, from wagd, production. The modern English senses of ox and wedder are recent, and not according to the original meaning. The horse species had several names. The old- est is EAG or eac, a breed. A female was called MARA, from MAG, to bring forth young ; and the young FOGLA and fala, from fag, to breed. The word signifies what is bred or brought forth. It was once common to the young of birds, and of every animal. A very ancient name of the horse species was marc, from mara, mare, already ex- plained. Other names were asp, and ghora, current in India and Persia. Among the Teutonic nations the words hengista and horsa came into use, and have nearly superseded all others. They are de- rivatives of hang and hoh or hah, for the word horsa was originally hoharsa. The sense was taken from the appearance of the male. Of this proud conquest of our remote ancestors we have received but a very imperfect account. The time when the horse, and other domestic animals, were first brought under human control, is not known.* Herds of cattle were called drof, agmen, grex, herd, feah, neat, and neaten, from such words as DRIVE ; AG, to drive ; rag, to run ; hered, ♦ Note 5 B. THE EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. 139 multitude ; fag, to breed ; nyd, to compel ; some- times ORF or HWERF, from being driven about ; and AL, which is synonymous with a breed. The Greek term poii is from pa or pag, in Teutonic FAG, to feed. Our terra bird is probably from brid, a chicken. The oldest name of this part of the animal king- dom was AG or AGA, from ag, to move. This pro- duced AVIS in Latin, ornis in Greek j edyn ADERYN in Cymraig ; eun and ean in Celtic ; AR, ARNA, EARN, in Tcutouic. The Latin ales is from agla, by contraction ala, a wing, a fin ; the organ by which one flies or swims. The Celtic throws important light on this matter. Ite (undoubtedly from igta or agta, the preterite of ag) signifies a feather, a wing, a fin ; hence a fish is called iasg, and in Greek ichthus ; a bird lAR : ITACH is winged, and italach flying. The same property which gave rise to the terms volu- CRis and ales, from volo, and ala ; and flagel and fagel, from flag and fag, to move or fly ; produced feder, a wing or pinion, from the same FAG ; and agila, the flyer, the eagle, from ag. A wing (originally waginga) is in Greek pteron j in Slavonic kreilo ; but a single feather and fin of a fish are pero ; and a bird ptitza. The Teutonic verb is FAG, to move, fly ; fagd is flying ; fagdera or * Note 5 C. 140 PHILOSOPHICAL HISTORY, &C. FEDERA is an instrument of flying ; figna is pen- NA in Latin, but fin in English. An animal pos- sessing fins is FiGSc, a fish. The Greek name of FERN, a species of plant, is pteris, the winged or feathered. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. FACTS AND ILLUSTKATIONS. Note A. p. 4<. A PRESUMPTION will be established in favour of the above statement, by a view of certain words which no nation can be supposed to borrow from another, which, however, are found in the language of every European, and many Asiatic countries. English. Celtic. Cymraeg. Teutonic. Slavic. Finish. Persic. I Sanxcrit. Father Athair Tad Fader Otche Atkia Pader Pita Mother IMathair Mam Modor Mate Ama Mader Brother Brathair Brawd Brothar Brate Well Brader Bhratri Daughter Nighean Dohtar Doche Moon Luan Lloer Mesyache Heart Cridhe Kridaya Light Whid Gaoth Gwynt Ahst and Wind Vetr Man Mac Mab Maeg Muja Mori Murd Manu Name Ainm Enw Namo Imya Nam Namaa e coincidence among the words of the above list is obvious, and cannot be accidental. ^^ The Indeed, 144 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. it will be found greater, when the reader is in- formed that, in all these languages, there were many synonymous words once in use, which after- wards became obsolete, except one principal term. Dad and father are of this kind in the Teutonic dialects. In Visigothic and Greek, atta and fa- der, or pater, occur frequently. The term amm, for motlier, is found in several Teutonic dialects, and in Sanscrit. Otche is a variety of atta. Though NiGHEAN be the common Celtic word for daughter, dear is also found in the oldest writings. LuAN and lloer, from llug, light, are the Celtic andCymraig names for the moon, but mios and MIS, a month, which signifies a moon's course, show that the word from which they come had been in the language. A particular history of all these terms is contained in this work. It is hardly ne- cessary to confirm the evidence of the above table by the Greek and Latin, in which atta, avus, pa- ter, AUCTOR, are a father ; maia, mater, a mo- ther : frater, (pronounce like fratter in English,) a brother ; fratria, a brotherhood ; thugater, a daughter ; luna, mana, mene, the moon ; men- sis, a month ; cor, cear, cardia, the heart ; lux, light f lucos, clear and white ; lampros, shining j vENTus, atmos, anemos, wind, from ah and wah, or rather ag and wag, blow, of which hereafter ; mas, a male ; onoma and nomen, a name. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 145 Note B. p. 6. The state of Gaul, at the time of the Roman in- vasion, is accurately described by Ca'sar in many places of his Commentaries, particularly in Lib. vi. before his account of the insurrection under Acco. His narrative of the divisions of Gaul is v^^ell known, but requires illustration. The Belgae were most- ly of German origin. The Aquitani spoke the Vase, or Gascon tongue, which seems to have been universal in Spain. The names of the Spanish rivers, mountains, cities; all show that the inhabit- ants were of the Celtic race. The words tag, TAGUS, DURi, DURius, TURiAS, and suERo, are from TAGw, TAW, running water, dwor, water, and suir. A noble commentary, on the ancient history of Europe and Western Asia, might be written by a prudent and rational philologist, from the mate- rials supplied by geography. The French writers Pelletier, Gebelin, and Bullet, are not to be trust, ed. The name of mountains, and of cities raised on them, was brig a, a Cymraig word of very ex- tensive use. Hence Augusto-briga, Lacobriga, Meidobriga, Mirobriga, Arabriga, Tala-brica, now Talavera ; Sego-briga, &c. Spanish towns ; also the Canta-bri, Braecarii, Artabri, Berones, Brigantes ; Spanish tribes. All the Celtic dialects, viz. the Irish, Scotch, Welsh, Cornish, and Armoric, have the word briga in one or other form. It therefore requires much skill, to determine the particular dia- VOL. I. K 146 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. lect, to which that and many other words immedi- ately belong. Note C. p. 7. Some of the arguments for the opinion stated a- bove, concerning the Cymri in Gaul, rest on the following details : Ist, The inhabitants of Britain were all Cymri. See an admirable view of this fact in Mr Chalmers's Caledonia, Vol. I. tln-ough- out, but particularly in B. I. c. 2, 3. The Scot- tish Celtae are a colony from Ireland. See the same work, B. II. c. 6. The ancient British and Gaulish tribes had the same names. Compare Ptolemy's Maps of Gaul and Britain. 2^, The names of Gael, Celtae, Caledonii, are clearly de- rived from Celyddon and Gwyddel in Welsh or Cymraig, words which signify the woods ; for Coed Celyddon (pronounce Kelithon) is common Welsh for the Caledonian wood in Scotland. The native terms are, cel, a wood ; gwyd, trees ; GWYDDo and gwydd, woody land ; gwyddel, (pronounce guithel,) an Irishman ; gwyddeleg, in Celtic gaodhelig, the Irish language. See Rich- ard's Welsh Dictionary and Mr Chalmers's Cale- donia, yassim. The Gaulish nations were called by the Greeks Celtas nearly 500 years before the Christian era. The Romans pronounced gwyddeli galli. The Belgae, who derived their name from Bolg, fierce or warlike, and their dialect from the FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 14-7 Celtic, appear, from the titles of their tribes, towns, and chiefs, to have spoken in the British or Cymraig. So bratus-pantium, from pant, a valley, a bottom ; catalaunum, the battle-plain ; MORiNi, the people on the sea, from mor, the sea 5 aduatici, the people at the ford or passage of the Mosa, from oddi * * * All words ending in tes, such as ATREBATES, CALETEs, show the Cymraig plurals CAiD, OD, ydd, and edd. Such names as VELOCASSES, TRicAssEs, BiDucASSEs, are from GWAs, a youth, a young man. It was common to add MAGI and gwasi to the names of tribes, and MAG and DUN to the names of towns. Magi was youth or men, gwasi young men. Mag was a field or plain, and dun an enclosed height. 3dy The names above mentioned belong to Belgic Gaul, with the exception of one. That the Cym- raig dialect was spoken in Celtic Gaul appears from the names of the rivers garumna, from garw and avon, the rapid river ; and arav-ur, the ARAR, the slow river ; the divona, from dw, God, and ffynon, a fountain. This word is ex- plained by Ausonius Burdigalensis in the verse, Divona, Celtasum lingua, fons addite Divis. The Cymraig mode of forming compounds may be seen in lug-dunum, the hill of the crow ; (con- sult, on this name, Plutarch's Treatise on Rivers ;) 148 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. likewise in vindomar, indutiomar, teutomar ; ORGETORIX, EPOREDORIX, DUMNORIX ; in which MAR or MOER is a chief, and rhys a leader or cham- pion. But the point is completely established by the interpretation of certain Gaulish words given by Roman writers. For example, pempedula, quinquefolium, the plant cinquefoil, mentioned by Apuleius and Dioscorides, from pum, five, and deilen, a leaf; and petoritum, found in the classics, a Gaulic chariot, says Festus, so called a numero quatuor rotarum. Now, every true Briton knows that pedwar is four, and rhod a wheel. The argument turns not on deilen and roth, leaf, and wheel, which are common to the Celtic of Ire- land and Wales ; but on pump and pedwar, which, in all the dialects of the Irish, are coig and cea- THAiR. This distinction has existed since the ear- liest times. The Celt^e of the first colony adopted the forms quinque and quatuor, not from the Latin, but from the original dialect of their ances- tors. The Cymri followed the Teutonic nations in this respect. A multitude of words in their dialect approaches to the Teutonic form, and there- fore afford excellent assistance in connecting the Celta) with the Eastern races of men. The facts thus stated require little confirmation from the Cymraig word allobrogae, which an ancient scholiast on Juvenal affirms to be derived from the Gallic words rrog, ager j and allo, aliud ; in FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 149 modern Welsh al-bro ; nor from ceven, the names of the mons Gehenna, cevennes signifying a ridge. The Arverni had that name from ar VERN, near the mountains ; the Alps and Appe- nines, from alp, high, elevated ; and penn, a peak. It is needless to multiply proofs, which a candid inquirer may have at will, in support of the opi- nion, " That the population of Gaul and the Alps, and the north of Italy ; the armies which invaded Greece under Bolgius and Brennus ; the allies of the German Cimbri and Teutones, were Cymri, not Celts of the Irish division. That primitive race had been expelled from the Continent, a few tribes only excepted, before the dawn of history." Note D. p. 8. The distance between India and Ireland is so great, that any idea of a direct intercourse between the two countries, in ancient times, must not be entertained by minds which are free from preju- dice or enthusiasm. No credit can be attached to the numerous systems of Bryant and his admirers, on this or any other subject. A few distorted words, a solitary passage of some ancient writer, a train of improbable reasonings, form the substance of their voluminous works, which impede and burden the study of rational inquiry. It is not, however, the less certain, that the Celtic is an original lan- guage, which bears great similarity in many of its 150 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. words to the Sanscrit. The Greek, Latin, San- scrit, and Celtic, resemble one another. The Teu- tonic often differs from all of them, and affords an explanation of their peculiarities. For example, the Celtic word, ceud j British, cant ; Latin, CENTUM ; Greek, hecaton ; Sanscrit, sat ; Per- sic, SAD ; and Sclavonic, sto ; signify hundred^ a term which has led to the history of all the rest. In the oldest Teutonic book, hundred is written taihuntehund, that is ten-ten, from taihund, ten. HuND, the last syllable of this word, came into use for it. In the above mentioned languages, hund was corrupted into cent, and ceud : dec a is the Greek corruption of taihund or tigund, ten : HECATON stands for decaedcond. In Sanscrit, tigund became an adjective, dasan and dasat, ten. Hence dasadasat, a hundred, by contrac- tion SAT. The Persian and Slavonic forms are similar to the Sanscrit, because the Persians and Indians were the same people ; and the Slavi are descendants of the Sauromataef i. e. northern Modes. The name med or mat signifies tribe, or people. See Lye*s A. S. Dictionary, in voc. Magas and Maegth. IIund-raed in A. Saxon, means the ?iumber of hund : sto, in Slavonic, is instead of sato. Note E. p. 8. The Teutonic nations had peopled Germany FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS, 151 many centuries before the Christian era, but they had not crossed the Rhine, till about the time of the invasion of Italy by the Cimbri and Teutones, two of their most warlike tribes. The Greeks knew something of the countries beyond the Rhine and Danube, before, or about the period of Alex- ander the Great. Pliny quotes Pytheas of Mar- seilles, Eratosthenes, and others, on the subject of the Guttones, Cimbri, and their kindred, on the shores and in the isles of the Baltic. His words are, " Pytheas Guttonibus, Germanise genti, ac- coli aestuarium Mentonomon nomine ; ab oceano, spatio stadiorum sex millium : ab hoc, diei navigo- tione, insulam abesse Abalum. Illuc vero succi- num fluctibus advehi, et esse concreti maris purga- mentum. Incolas pro ligno ad ignem uti eo, proxi- misque Teutonis vendere. Huic et Timaeus cre- dedit, sed insulam Basiliam vocavlt." (Lib. xxxvii, c. 2.) Pomponius Mela, who wrote about A. D. 45, describes the very large arm of the ocean beyond the Elbe, " Codanus ingens sinus," full of great and small islands ; and adds, that Codanovia, the largest and most fertile of all these, was, in his days, still possessed by the Teutoni. Pliny, Lib. iv. c. 12, gives an account of the Sinus Codanus, joining to the Cimbrorum promontorium, which he relates to "be full of islands : " Quarum clarissima Scandi- navia est, incompertae magnitudinis, portionem tan- turn ejus quod sit notum, Hellevionum gente jj 152 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. incolente pagis, quse alteriim orbem terrarum earn appellat. Nee est minor opinione Finingia." The Romans derived their knowledge of these regions, from the conquests in Germany under Tiberius, from the notices obtained by the garrisons on the Rhine and Danube, and from the traders in amber, vvliich was brought from the mouth of the Vistula. Julius Cgesar observes, in his Commentaries, that the Hercynia Sylva was known to Eratosthenes. If any theory may be formed on a matter so ob- scure, it is probable that the Suevi were the most ancient of the German nations. The Vinduli, or Vandali, of whom the Burgundians, Varini, Casini, and Guttones, (Goths,) were apart; seem to have been Suevic colonies, that had occupied the south- ern shore of the Baltic, and several of its islands. The Cimbri, Teutoni, Cauchi, Cherusci, and other tribes from the Batavian coast to Scandinavia, were certainly more removed, both in place and dialect, from the Suevi than the Vindili. The Visigothic, Longobardic, Vandalic, and Suevic tribes that invad- ed Italy, Spain, and Africa, were assuredly the same people. But the western dialects have peculiarities which separate them from the Eastern Teutonic ; though, in substance and form, both are, generally speaking, the same. The Finns had possession of Scandinavia till they were expelled by the Teutoni. Pliny describes the Teutonic and Finnish countries in language almost proper at this day ; and Jor- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 153 nancies, after relating the unvarying history of the Northern Scred-fini, or Finns, that use snow-skates ; mentions also the Finni mitissimi, Scanzise cultori- bus omnibus mitiores ; that resided in the south, near the Ostrogothae, Raumaricae, and Raugnaric^e. The isle of Funen is said to have its name from the Finns. It seems almost certain, that the Teu- toni entered Scandinavia three or four centuries be- fore the Christian era, and drove before them the Finns, of whom the remains were still to be found in that country in the age of Justinian. The Finns of the North are now called lappi, from lop, leap ; (Vide Faul. Warnefrede de Gest. Lang, Lib. i. c. 5.) Their ancient appellation is from FAEN, a fen, a marsh j given them by the Teu- tones. The name scanden-au, the land of caves, was be- stowed on that large district, from the practice of dwelling in rocky caves, " excisis rupibus, quasi castellis, ritu belluino." (Jorn. c. 3. de Reb. Get.) ScAND, or scANDS, is a cover or defence, from sceagend, covering. The modern word is schants, a fort J and in English sconce, which is still more humble. Scander is one of the most ancient Teu- tonic plurals on record. Au and gau are a re- gion, from AGA, grow, ground ; the same as aia and gaia, earth, in Greek. The name Codanus is considered by Grotius as a corruption of guden, or Gothic. He quotes, in support of this opinion, 154. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. the adjective gudske, often applied by the Swedes and Danes to Gothland ; and his derivation is much confirmed by the term Guttones, the Latin appellation of Gothen, Goths. The reason why we find Guttones, Gottones, and Gotthones or Gotthoi in the classics, is this : The Greek and Latin th was not pronounced like our th in thing, as is generally imagined. Theta was articulated like T-H in Chat-ham, the t and h being distinctly but consecutively heard. Gothen, therefore, was not pronounced as among us, but Got-hen, which produced the above orthography. The progenitors of the Spaniards called themselves guden and go- then, good men ; from Guds or Goths, useful, be- neficial, serviceable. The Quadi, on the contrary, were called cwaden, bad men, — a character which they maintained with much less difficulty. Note F. p. 9. An admirable but obscure account of the politi- cal and religious state of Gaul is given by Caesar, De Bello Gal. Lib. vi. The Druids, a regularly instituted priesthood, had, before his age, reduced the Celtic religion into a system, and consequently they had rendered it more complex and intricate than it usually exists among savages. They taught the people that they were descended from Dis or DiTs, the God of Night ; by which they instructed them to reckon time in preference to day. The FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 155 principal Gaulic deity was Mercury, whom they worshipped as the inventor of the arts, and patron of travelling and merchandise. The native title of this god was Teutat, probably from teut, people ; in modern Celtic tuatii, or tuadh, a word com- mon in old Gaulish, as may be observed in teuto- MARUS, and similar names. A passage in Livy mentions a heap of earth, called mercurias teu- TATES, which identifies Mercury and Teutat, *' the God of the People." One of the well-known oc- cupations of the Grecian Mercury was to conduct souls to the infernal regions, which possibly was also exercised by his Celtic representative. After Mercury, Caesar records, that the Gauls worshipped Apollo, Mars, Jupiter, and Minerva, concerning whom they entertained the common opinions. The native names of these deities were Belen or Belin, Hesus or Gaes, Taramis and Belisama. The learned have been at pains to deduce the dei- ties and superstitions of Gaul from those of Phoe- nicia, — a labour which has contributed to pervert truth and dishonour philology. According to them, Teutates is Taaut and Thoth, Belin Baal, Belisama Beelsamaia, the Queen of Heaven. It requires only a reasonable portion of Oriental learning, and a little common sense, to detect the absurdity of these etymologies. The opinions which have filled, and continue to fill, volumes of Celtic, Antediluvian, Indo-Scythian, and Phceni- 156 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. cian antiquities, vanish under the influence of ra- tional erudition, like idle dreams. The itinerant character of superstition and of Phoenician com- merce may account for some vestiges of the worship of Phoenicia and Egypt in Britain, Gaul, and Germany ; but the religious system of any of these countries appears to have been peculiar to its re- spective people and nation. The Belgic Gauls were mostly of German ori- gin ; but I think that it is evident, from the names of their tribes and chiefs, that in Csesar's age they spoke a corrupted dialect of the Celtic. It has been already shown, that the Celtic of proper Gaul was, in his days, not Earse, but ancient Bri- tish. The pure German names of ario-vists, the support of the army ; suevi ; ubii, the Low- land men, from ub, under, below ; eburones, the bank-men, from ebur or ubar, a bank, (of the river Rhine ;) pae-mani ; cherusci, from here, an army, a multitude; harudes, from har an army ; vangiones, from wang, a plain, a meadow, wang-wonen ; marco-manni, march-men, or bor- derers J siGAMBRi, dwellers on the river Sig ; may be contrasted with belgae, from bolg, fierce 5 nervii, of uncertain origin ; morini, people on the sea, from mor, sea ; atrebates, dwelling in trev, villages or cantons, from a-trefoeddau ; aduatici, living at the ford or passage of the river, from ad-uath j and the Belgic names of FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 1.57 the chiefs Boduognatus, Comius, Iccius, Antebro- gius, and others. The Suessiones were a power- ful Belgic tribe, governed at one time by Divitia- cus, a name evidently not of Teutonic, but Celtic origin ; and afterwards by Galba, (Cass. Comm. Lib. ii. p. 3%) which signifies, in the Celtic dia- lects, DURUS or FORTis. BiBRAX was a Belgic fort, the name is not German. The Belgic name Bo- duognatus resembles in part that of Critognatus, the celebrated Arvernian. If it were necessary in this place, or if it led to any better end than the refutation of the common belief, that the Belgae spoke Teutonic, I could collect minute evidence, sufficient to prove beyond doubt, that these Ger- man colonies had exchanged their original speech for a dialect of that country in which they had settled. As for the indigenous Celtee, almost every name contributes to determine their Cymraig ori- gin. The Boii, from beiaidh, formerly bogth, victory, bravery ; bogii, brave ; Carnutes, Car- noeddau, the people of the cairn, for their dis- trict was the chief seat of the national religion ; Armorici, the people along the sea, called, by Pro- copius, Arborichi, that is, Ar-vorichi, for beta was pronounced v in his time, as it is at present in Greece ; Mediolanum for meadho, now written MEW, MIDDLE, and LLAN, an enclosure, a town ; No- viodunum, Newydd dyn 5 Camulogenus, descend- 158 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. ed from the god Camulus, whence Camulodunum. Tasgetius Carnutensis, sprung from the former kings of the Carnutes, was called Tywysogaethi, pronounce Tu-usogaethi, that is, related to a king, a prince. Moritasgus is king or chief on sea, a sea-king. From the Roman way of writing Uchel- dun, viz. Uxello-dunum ; we discover that the Celtic guttural ch was by Caesar written x, which illustrates Dumnorix, Vereingetorix, Viridorix, Bituriges, Caturiges, Cingetorix, and similar names of chiefs, (rich,) and tribes named from chiefs: Caturix means the chief of battle. Some of these names are known to be British from their mode of composition, rather than from the words, now be- come obsolete in Welsh, but common in ancient British names. The Vase, Irish, and Welsh, are radically the same ; but they have peculiar shades of difference, the exact discrimination of which de- termines the character of the philologist. Whita- ker declared that many thousands of English words were borrowed from the Welsh by the Saxons. The Caledonians are implicitly believed by the modern Highlanders to have spoken Earse. The very memory of the Strathclyde Britons has perish- ed in the north of Scotland. Another order of in- quirers maintains, that the Caledonians, Belgas, and ancient British, spoke Teutonic j and they ac- tually pretend to trace a colony from the isle of Peuce, in the Euxine, to Scandinavia and Scot- 4. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 159 land. The vestiges of language refute these im- probabilities. Note G. p. 9. Tacitus relates these fables in his celebrated treatise on the ancient Germans. The name tuis- TON or TUiscoN, for the reading is disputed, seems to be from twig or tig, in what particular sense it is not easy to ascertain. The nominative, tiw, has been derived in late times from tiwaes or tiwes in TiWES-DAEG, Tuesday, commonly translated DIES MARTis. Somo have distorted tuistonem in- to TUETONEM, and teutisconem, which is an in- stance of unwarrantable emendation. Tuiston is probably from tiohst or twihst, generation, but this is mere unsupported conjecture. His son Manus bears a more certain title, the name Mann being indubitably from magen, a derivative of MAEG, a child, a son, whoever has been born, a man. The descendants of Mann were the Ingevvonen, Istaevonen, and Herumwonen, names descriptive of the local situation of the tribes. The Ingewonen were those that dwelt in the interior towards the Cimbric Chersonese, or promontory of Jutland ; the Istaevonen were those that dwelt in the west ; the Herumwonen those that dwelt in the middle of the country. (Vid. Tac. de Morib. Germ. c. J2, cum not. Brotieri. Edinburgi, 1796.) These names are fabulous, and not of great antiquity. Pliny's 160 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. account, Lib. iv. 14, is, " That there are five races of Germans. The Vindili, (the Vandalii of Taci- tus,) of whom the Burgundiones, Varini, Carini, Gutthones, are a part. Another race are the In- gaevones, a part of whom are the Cimbri, Teutoni, and the nations of the Chauci. But those next to the Rhine are the Istaevones, a part of whom are the midland Cimbri. The Hermiones, of whom are the Suevi, Hermunduri, Catti, Cherusci. The fifth division are the Peucini and Basternae, who border with the forementioned Daci." The name of Germani was given by the Belgic Gauls to a few tribes which passed the Rhine about the age of Caesar, Though most of the Belgas were of German origin, (Vid.X^es. de Bello Gall. Lib. ii.) yet they appear to have lost their own tongue, and to have spoken a dialect of the Celtic. The name Germani is a Celtic corruption of Wehr- mannen, from wigr, battle, and man, a man. The Belgae repelled the invasion of the Teutones and Cimbri, when they were on their way through Gaul into Italy. All ancient writers agree in con- sidering the Cimbri and Teutones as Germanic tribes. As the name of Germani became known to the Romans about A. U. C. 531, before our era 222, (Vide Lapides vel Fastos Capitol, apud Piranesi, pag. 42,) when one of the consuls de- feated the Galli Insubres, and their allies the Ger- mans, at Clastidium ; the passage of the Germani FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. l6l over the Rhine must have happened a little earlier than is generally supposed. Carbo w^as killed by the Cimbri A. U. C. 640, near Aquileia. They ravaged Gaul for several years. In A. U. C. 64<5, they defeated the consul Silanus in Italy. The Tigurini, a division of the Helvetic Gauls, de- stroyed Cassius and his army in A. U. C. 64^7. The Cimbri routed Scaurus in A. U. C. 64f6 ; and in 649 they and their allies, the Teutones, Tigurini, and Ambrones, overcame Manlius and Caepio, who lost 80,000 of their troops. Marius, after watching the united Gauls and Germans for some time, defeated the Teutones at Aix, A. U. C. 65^ ; the Cimbri on the Adige in Italy, A. U. C. 653 ; and dispersed the Tigurini. The name of the Cimbric king was Bolorix. The king of the Teutones was Teutobochus, a man of extraordinary stature and bodily strength. Both names are Gaulic rather than German ; and it deserves to be remark- ed, that the armour of the Cimbri, as described by Plutarch in Mario, p. 420, indicates the opulence of Gaul, a country which, in those times, was much more wealthy than Germany. The Cimbri and Teutones were driven southward by an inun- dation of their settlements in Jutland. The re- mains of the Cimbri are described by Pliny, Taci- tus, and Ptolemy, as residing in that peninsula in their own age ; and so generally had their fame established itself among the other tribes, that the VOL. I. L l62 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. chiefs assumed the name of Cimberius. Cimberius and Nasua were leaders of the Suevi, a very popu- lous and formidable German nation, which is de- scribed by Caesar, De Bell. Gall. Lib. i. and iv. The Suevi of Caesar are said to be the Cherusci and Catti of succeeding writers. The language of all the German tribes was tbe same ; and though there were many varieties in dia- lect, these consisted more in pronunciation than in difference of terms or construction. As the Suevi were the greatest nation, their dialect seems to have been the most common in ancient Germany. The Alamanni were descended from them j the Visigoths, Vandals, Longobardi, and Burgundians, appear to have been Suevic colonies ; and the Saxons, though parted from the Suevi by an extent of country, discover their extraction in the affinity of their dialect. Note H. p. 17. A great impediment to the science of philology has been produced by a partial acquaintance with the languages of this division of the globe, which has led either to inaccurate opinions concerning the origin of speech, or to a misapplication of such mi- nute facts as individuals occasionally possessed. A student in Hebrew seeks only for Hebrew words in every dialect. The learned Bochart found Phoe- nician everywhere. A Celtic philologist derives FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 163 the European languages from his mother tongue. A German proceeds on a similar principle in his inquiries. The historian of Manchester affirmed that many thousands of English words were direct- ly from the ancient British. He was deceived by the resemblance of terms, which was as great be- tween the Slavic and English, as between the Eng- lish and Welsh. Others fill their pages with etymo- logies, which are constrained and absurd, support- ed by no evidence but the shadow of erudition. When I assert, that the language of our own coun- try is calculated to illustrate the history of speech, I only mean, that, after examination, I have found, that the Teutonic dialect is the purest, though not the must polished descendant of the tongue, which was, and is still, used from India to the Atlantic ; and therefore the most suitable for explaining the properties of the other ancient and modern varie- ties. I have considered, with that attention whicli the importance of the subject merited, the Celtic, the Cymraig, all the dialects of the Teutonic, from the Icelandic to the county differences of the Eng- lish : the Latin and Greek acquisitions of eviry polite scholar have been compared with those ne- glected tongues ; the Slavic language, the Persic and Sanscrit, not omitting what could be procured of the Einnish, have been contrasted with the dia- lects of the West of Europe ; that it might be fully ascertained, whether the speech of so great a por- 164 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. tion of our species was regulated by genei'al laws, or entirely subject to the incessant and capricious in- fluence of ignorant chance. I am now convinced, that the wildest and most irregular operations of change in every language obey an analogy, which, when it is discovered, explains the anomaly ; and that, as is common in the study of all progressive knowledge, a view of the gradual history of human speech, in any considerable portion of the world, leads directly to a scientific acquaintance with its principles, which may be of the highest use in illus- trating obsolete dialects, in preserving the purity of our own, in facilitating the intercourse of any one nation with all others, and in completing the mo- ral topography of the globe. It were highly to be wished, that mankind had only one language ; an advantage which will never be directly realized, but which may certainly be approximated by enlighten- ed arrangements. It would next be desirable, that all written knowledge, of whatever description, the product of past ages, could be preserved in a dura- ble, untarnished, and accessible state, unfaded in its colours, and perfect in its composition. Nothing can accomplish this but a rational philology, con- ducted upon philosophical principles, and support- ed by that extensive erudition, which judgment, ap- plication, and talents fit to be entrusted with the li- terature of the world, alone can supply. The differ- ence between a civilized nation, and one which ei- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. l65 ther has never felt, or has imperceptibly lost the benefits of genuine refinement, consists in that com- mand over all the ancient and modern stores of mo- ral and physical science, which raises ordinary indi- viduals to a rank of information superior to that of sages in former times, and ensures not merely the perpetual extension of knowledge to the whole com- munity, but also the power of unlimited improve- ment. That command, as is evident, must be im- perfect, until we have completely established the means of attaining to remote or past, and of con- veying down to posterity present, acquisitions. Pure science is indeed more easily transmitted ; but the mind is as much instructed and formed by works of imagination and history, as by abstract or physical discoveries ; and when taste and morals have perish- ed, the light of science becomes soon extinct. While all of these shall be communicated by speech, an attention to the properties of the medium must continue to aid their preservation and advancement. Note I. p. 22. All the historians of the Roman empire have had occasion to describe the character and actions of this celebrated German tribe. Philology alone, however, can ascertain its affinity with the other Teutonic nations, so as to settle with precision the races, with which the Goths were most nearly con- nected, or of which they were a colony. Many 166 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. writers of great respectability confound the Goths and Get£e, partly from an opinion that the north of Germany, then a forest, could not support a nation so numerous ; and partly from the resemblance of the names. The history of the Getae is not un- known. They were subdued by Darius in their territories, near the southern mouth of the Danube. His conquest was transitory. The Gette remain- ed, after the Persian and Macedonian monarchies were destroyed ; but they had crossed the Danube, and settled in Dacia, a kingdom which they had conquered from the Sarmatae, before the period of the Roman empire. I cannot admit, on the evi- dence which is afforded by history and philology, that the Get^e were of Teutonic origin. 1st, They were Thracians, a people never described, as re- lated to the German tribes, ^dit/y We have evi- dence to show that the Getae and Daci were of one race ; and as we possess many names of the Dacian chiefs, we have it in our power, to contrast them with those of the German and Gothic prin- ces. The Get£e resisted Darius when he invaded Scythia, A. C. N. 508 ; and were greatly reduced by his army. Xerxes afterwards disturbed Thrace, in his expedition into Greece. The Macedonians often attacked the Thracian tribes. The Getae, distressed by these intrusions, formed a settlement on the opposite shore of the Danube, and, in future ages, went by the name of Daci. The Odry- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. iGj sae took possession of their ancient seats ; but Si- talces, the king of that people, fell in an engage- ment with the Triballi, a western tribe, in the eighth year of the Peloponnesian war. The Tri- balli continued to be most powerful Thracian peo- ple, till the period of the Macedonian empire. Teres, Sitalces, Rhoimetalces, Rhesus, Rhescu- poris, are names of Thracian kings, and very un- like those of the Visigoths or Germans. The Getee and Daci lived beyond the Danube in the time of Augustus. ** Daci quoque suboles Getarum sunt ; qui cum Orole (read, says Vossius, Boire- bista, from the epitome of Trogus) rege adversus Bastarnas male pugnassent," &;c. (Justini, Lib. xxxii. p. 224.) Note K. p. 22. The personal authority of Jornandes is not great. His judgment was neither refined nor acute. He was so partial or undiscerning, as to confound his ancestors with the Getas, and to ascribe to them the achievements of the Scythge, Amazons, and the Thracian people, who were attacked by Darius ; but, in return for these palpable defects, he gives an abstract of original poems, and of the histories composed by Ablavius, Cassiodorus, and Priscus. His account of the Scandinavian nations is unique ; and the narrative of the origin of the Goths and Gepidae is far too circumstantial and particular, to be entirely fictitious. It has the air of a wild or- 168 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. mantic tale, repeated by a barbarian, in which the great and leading facts are coloured by the imagi- nation, with which they were in contact. The ori- gin of the tribe is perfectly conformable to the manners and practice of the nations on the Baltic. We know, from Pytheas, that the Teutones in- habited its shores. Pliny and Tacitus inform us, that the Scandinavian tribes excelled in navigation as well as in arms. From the earliest ages, till the time of the Nor- man invasion of England, they had been accustom- ed to a sea-faring life. The practice of sending out colonies was common among these nations ; and when we reason concerning their numbers, we must recollect the well-attested accounts of Caesar and Tacitus, respecting the Gauls and Ger- mans on the Rhine. The notes on Chapter II. may be concluded with a view of the changes, which words in all lan- guages undergo, from contraction of their syllables, or attenuation of their letters. I. Attenuation consists in aspirating a consonant, or in changing it into a softer one. First, By aspiration of the consonants. In all the Celtic dialects, b, c, d, f, g, l, m, n, p, R, s, T, may occasionally receive the aspirate h. Anciently this aspiration and the consonant were both pronounced j as they are in the English FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. l69 words abhor, Wickham, adhere, wolf-head. Brig- ham, Clapham, flilsehood, hghthouse ; and in the words million, Amherst, onion ; only the sound of H was strong, and followed the consonant in close union with it ; the vowel before or behind enabling the person to pronounce both. In time the semi- vowel or liquid letters began to be pronounced a lit- tle through the nose ; and ch, gh, and dh, in the throat. Bh, mh, were nearly converted into v : dh in Welsh slid into the sound of th in those : in Irish Celtic it was often pronounced like gh in the throat. Ch in Welsh and Irish was sounded like H in horse, but much stronger. In Irish th and FH lost the consonants t and f, and retained h only. The same befel sh, the letter itself being dropt, and only the aspirate retained. The Sanscrit had nearly the same course, for most of its consonants admitted aspiration. K, g, T, D, p, s, all admit of aspiration, and may be sounded kh, gh, th, dh, ph, sh, 5 as do the soft consonants in ch, as in church, and j, as in judge. Except in sh, sounded as in shall, the h is distinctly heard after these consonants. The aspiration is retained more firmly in Sanscrit than in Cymraig, or Welsh, or Celtic. Secondly, By changing the consonants into softer ones. In all languages the hard consonants B, D, and G, are particularly liable to be softened into p, T, and c or k. Both b and p fall into f lyO FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. and V, and thence into w. D softens into t, or in- to TH, as in those or them. G hard changes ea- sily into K, and into gh, and ch, guttural ; and con- sequently into H alone. In old English, we have SAEGEL and SAEHEL, a sail ; lig and ligh, and LiH and LI, now written lee, a plain ; daeg, and DAEH or DAH, a day ; flegend, flihand, fliand, flying ; rigt, (straight,) riht, and right, right ; NiGT, niht, and night, night. The gh in straight, weight, light, sight, burgh, through, and in hun- dreds besides, is a vestige of hard g, sounded as in dog or rogue, which gradually fell into gh, as in Brigham ; or , ch, as in Wickham ; and then into strong h, articulated in the throat, as it is at this day in Germany, Holland, Sweden, Scotland, and every where else, within the range of the pure Teutonic dialects. In Scotland, the above words are straiht, waiht, riht, niht, liht, siht, bruh ; and I have heard thruh pronounced for through. The H is as strong as any Englishman can make it ; and must be audibly uttered. Observe, all Scottish words in gh do not preserve this sound at present : All did so formerly. A?icl remark, as a general rule, that all silent consonants in uriting are ves- tiges of obsolete pronunciation. Farther, in every language, g, c, d, t, before or after a slender vowel, e, i, or y ; are particularly liable to be changed into J or dge ; and cii or tsh ; so rig becomes hidge ; kirk becomes church ; FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. I7I NATION becomes natyon, natsion, natshon, na- SHION. Our sound of this and many like is from the French. The later Romans pronounced na- TYO with a liquid but sibilant articulation, which soon became natsio, then nasio : the French na- sion we utter nashon. D is often chansjed into I among bad pronouncers of Celtic, who say Iia for DiA, God ; and the like. In Celtic, (see Stewart's Gaelic Gram. p. 14-20,) c, g, t, d, s, L, n, r, have all a softer sound before a slender vowel. C, before or after e and i, sounds like c in cure ; G, as in fatigue ; t, as in cheek or chuse ; D, as in June or Jew ; s, as in show ; l, as in mil- lion ; n, as mignonette, (a plant ;) r, as in rear. This law of change must be thoroughly studied by every philologist. It is the source of great altera- tions in language. It operates most extensively, and destroys the form of words ; for the progress is from hard to soft, and the softened words never return to their ancient sound, but fall into one simi- lar to their actual one. Thus caseus, in Saxon CEAS, in English cheese, and in corrupt Welsh- English SEEZE. Some groupes of consonants suffer particularly by this change ; so, rise, fish ; lags, lash ; FRESC, fresh j sceac, shake ; drenc, drench, CRACS, crash ; sceon, shine. The Sanscrit and Slavonic, Latin and Anglo-Saxon, have undergone the influence of this law in a very high degree. The Scandinavian dialects, the High and Low 17^ PACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Dutch, and some others, have preserved firmly the primitive forms of their words. II. Contraction is a change which results from a propensity to make the signs as rapid as the thoughts which they express. Harsh combinations soon suffer contraction. Very long words preserve only the principal, that is, the accented part. If a nation accents its words on the last syllable, the preceding ones will often be short, and liable to contraction. If it follow a contrary practice, the terminations are apt to decay. But the greatest of all contraction takes place from softening, and then dropping the hard consonants, particularly g. This hard letter, which is often uttered from the throat, becomes h, and finally disappears. Thus GEOC, GEONG, GILD, GEOWER, GEPOINTED, GEU- ROGHT, GEDON, GEMADE, and hundreds of parti- ciples beginning with ge or ga, gone, became yoke, young, yield, your, ypointed, ywrought, ydone, ymade. (See Chaucer, Spenser, &c.) In the middle of w^ords this change was unlimited ; so bagel, cwagel, degel, tagel, fragil, fagel, I3RAGEL ; IIAEGEL, HIGEL, LAGEN, MAGEN, MAGL, NAGL, REGEL, REGULA, SAEGEL, SAGED, SIGEL, STAEGER, SLAGEN, SPRAEGEN, SPRIGING, wtagr, THTGiNG ; wagel, wagen, wrigen, p^ocluced ball, quell, dell, tail, frail, fail, brawl, hail, hill, Iain, main, oy force ; maul, nail, rail, a xvrapper ; rule. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 173 sail, said, seal, stair, slain, sprain, spring, tear, tiling, wail, wain, a *waggon, wren, a birdy mota- cilia. The same change occurred in the ter- minations ; so AEWiG, aye ; boga, a bow ; braeg, bray ; blog, or blag, a blow ; clag, clay ; caeg, a key, an opener ; dag, a day ; dilg, delve ; bilg, a bilge, a billow ; burg, a burrow ; eag, an eye ; flag and flig, fly ; haeg, a haye or enclosure, and grass ; hig, hye ; hefig, heavy ; HARDIG, hardy ; lig, a lee ; lag, a law, thing set or laid ; maeg, a boy or girl, a may j ragn, rain ; saeg, sea ; swag, motion, sway ; snaeg, creep, sneak ; omeagsc or smeags, smash j splag, splay, broad ; stag, stop, stay ; tig, tie ; treog, tree ; sprig, spray ; waeg, way, wave, weight or weigh ; wrag, wray. The Greek and Latin were obedient to the same law, in a very extensive degree. Their ter- minations in Aios, Eios, &c. were once in ags and igs ; those in io-onis were in ong and ing, so regio for reging or regigung, a ruling or go- verning ; origing, origin, arising, originating ; MARGiNG, the border, the mask or masch ; agla, axilla ; ala, a wing or arm ; fagskis, fascis, a bundle ; muglus, mulus, a mixed or mongrel ani- mal : nogdus, a knot ; magnus, a hand ; rag- digs, RADIOS and radius, a long rod. Examples of this kind are innumerable in Celtic, Cymraig, Latin, Greek, Teutonic, Sanscrit, and, I believe. ly-l* FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. in every human language. This is a law of which a reader must not lose sight for a moment, if he wish to investigate the revolutions of speech. Another common law of contraction consists in the expulsion of n or m before hard consonants. So TUNTH, tooth, becomes toth ; munth, muth, mouth ; swiNTH, strong, becomes swith ; and SUNTH, truth, becomes soth. This takes frequent place in Greek, Latin, and Sanscrit, especially in participial words. We have in these languages OPINIO for opinion ; factio for faction ; transi- Tio for transition, the old nominatives. We find TUPTEIS for TUPTENTS, TETUFOS for TETUFODS, (d is subject to similar elision ;) kritawata, done, for kritawanta ; bagawat for baga want, for- tunate, &c. These observations are required here, to make intelligible some important conclusions in this work. Other notices on the subject will be given in their proper places, it being unnecessary to detain the reader with minute particulars ; though it must be remarked, that an accurate and extensive knowledge of these, as they are found in the various dialects, alone can ensure the deci- sions, and verify the inquiries of the practical philologist. Note L. p. 28. The radical identity of the Greek, Zend or Persic, and Sanscrit, has long since been declared by FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 175 Sir W. Jones. This work will practically esta- blish his opinion in what respects the European nations ; but, as to the Asiatic, it is to be regret- ted, that many of them, which speak dialects of the Sanscrit, are still most imperfectly known. The Indians and Persians, two very ancient and powerful nations, have sent out innumerable tribes, some of which have peopled the northern latitudes of Europe, others have penetrated into the Asia- tic isles, and many have occupied the countries be- tween the Ganges and the Chinese empire. The his- tory of mankind will not be complete, until first the affinities of the Asiatic nations, and afterwards the connection of the African and American races, be ascertained through the medium of language. We know little of the Tartars, Mongus, and Mandshurs. We have not scientifically arranged the tribes in the north-east of Asia. We are in dark- ness as to the Chinese language, itself a phenome- non in the history of speech, on account of its mo- nosyllabic form and singular intonations. At the date of the last Chinese embassy, Britain had not a man who could officiate in it as an interpreter. In this prostration of the useful knowledge, by which the intercourse of mankind is opened, and their origin investigated ; it is pleasing to notice the efforts of literary societies abroad, and of some in- dividuals, whose love of learning, their first and favourite passion, may yet do much in a cause not 176 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. publicly supported. I allude to a paper in the tenth volume of the Asiatic Researches on the Languages and Literature of the Indo-Chinese Nations ; and 1 feel a virtuous satisfaction in per- ceiving, that two friends, * once animated with no mean emulation, though the one be now in illite- rate obscurity, and the other be far from his coun- try, are still undivided. Note M. p. 29. Nothing can be aflSrmed in this work as to the remote origin of speech. The theories erected on the Mosaic genealogies have been of no other ser- vice than to encourage indolent and believing read- ers in trusting to imaginary systems. The ark of Noah, the confusion at Babel, the language of Pa- radise, have been the grain of truth lost in accumu- lated flilsehood. The severity with which philoso- phers have repressed reasonings from final causes, till the properties of the world shall be ascertained by induction, applies in this case. When the lan- guages of the four continents have been all collect- ed and considered ; — when the affinities of nations have been settled through that medium ; — when we have made a plan of the existing facts, arranged by their obvious relations, — we may venture to spe- * By tlie two friends, the aiitlior means himself and the late Dr Leyden, author of the paper alluded to. 4 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 177 culate on the birth-place of" the species, and the state in which it was produced. Large quotations from the Hebrew and Arabic would have enhanced the erudition of this work, if these had been perti- nent to the subject. But I am certain that they are not so. The Hebrew, Arabic, Chaldee, Syriac, and Abyssinian nations, are a distinct race, the pro- perties of whose speech have been but little examin- ed, and have never been philosophically explained. Philologists of a certain description see no differ- ence among the elements of their erudition. When their raven has left the ark, he builds his nest on a barren rock with materials of all descriptions. Note N. p. '29. Children, in the course of the first years of their life, besides the cries produced by pain, express their desires by several short sounds. They taste and feel whatever they can reach. Consequently they are exposed, while awake, to continual sensa- tion and perception. In the noisy talks and ob- jects about them they find abundance of materials for common ideas. They soon attempt to articu- late the sounds familiar to them. They are, in this respect, greatly influenced by those who nurse them. Though some vowels and consonants are naturally easier than others, they pronounce those which are most commonly repeated to them. They soon acquire a very considerable stock of general vcJl. I. M 178 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. notions, the fruits of experience, from the dawn of memory till the latest period ; and, before they can speak, it is evident that they think nearly to the same extent which they do for some time after. There is a habitual reference in their minds of new perceptions to those already known. This continues throughout life. We compare unusual sensations with those which, in the course of our former experience, they most resemble. If we name them, we do not invent a new term, but we apply one already common in a new sense. If the object have several qualities, we give a short de- scription of it. A savage calls brandy " fire-water ;" cannon, " the white man's thunder ;" a ship, " a water- wigwam," &;c. The deaf make sounds in imitation of those that they believe others pronounce. They observe the motion of the lips of them who address them. The hands and countenance are the chief organs of their communication. In all ordinary ideas as to matter, common actions, and conduct, they evidently make a proficiency not inferior to those who can speak. Note O. p. 30. This is the opinion of the illustrious author of the Theory of Moral Sentiments, and the Essay on the First Formation of Language. He seems to have been misled by the unqualified assertions of philo- sophers, as to the degree in which savages form ab- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 179 stract notions. A distinction should be always made, in speculations on this subject, between ordi- nary and philosophical abstraction. No peasant forms refined ideas respecting morals, or abstract reasonings on causes and effects. But still he has a greater stock of general words than to call every river a Thames. In short, our knowledge of language and man will warrant us to infer, that such words as cave, tree, or river, are from general terms ; a cave is a hollow ; a tree is a grower j a river is a runner ; and it further appears, that the words hollow, grow, and run, are from others still more general. The actual experience of savages always must extend to the qualities of the external world, and the natural feelings. They judge intuitively, rather than rea- son on this experience, which has habitually under- gone the powers of association, abstraction, and the united ficulties of a sound but untutored mind. IT Note, pp. 31, 82. * A concise statement of the manner in which the human mind, at all periods, views the external world, is contained in the following sentence : " Every change in the state of things is considered * There is no reference to this note in the text. It relates to the nine words, which the author has found at tlie foun- dation of the European and other languages. (See First Dissertation, closing the Facts and Illustrations belonging ta Chapter III.) 180 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. as an effect, indicating the agency, characterizing the kind, and measuring the degree of its cause." See Outlines of a Course of Lectures on Mechani- cal Philosophy, by Professor Robison, Edinburgh, 1797* The author of these was equally distinguish- ed for his moral, literary, and scientific acquire- ments. The first attempts of men to communicate their thoughts consisted in expressing, by short rapid sounds, the actions of the world about them. As these were various, they required various and different signs. The character of any motion or ac- tion indicated, by resemblance, the class to which it naturally belonged, and entitled it to the sign of that class. It cannot be easily discovered in what order the signs were invented. The two first in the above enumeration appear to be next to the vocal cries, which form a part of instinctive speech. The character of the action, sharp, strong, violent, or unequal, seems to have produced the articulations R, s, D, G. There is a natural prosopopoeia in these and the other radicals, not the effect of study or philosophy, but of that kind which is the founda- tion of harsh descriptions, of harsh objects, and the contrary. An ear can distinguish the difference in this respect between dash and lash, between rack and THWACK, between knock and rock, to shake. Speculations on this subject are amusing, but they must not be carried too far. No confidence can be placed in works which pretend to divine the sense of words from their articulations. I( I had not as- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 181 certalned the existence of the above syllables, by the analysis of throwing off the parts of words, which are evidently additional, and affixed for ob- vious purposes, and of examining varieties, till the simplest form of the word appeared, I would nei- ther have considered these syllables as original, nor stated them as such to the reader. It is further to be observed, that the doctrine of forming names of objects and acts, from their sound, is not verified by examination, to the extent in which it is commonly held. Very few of the inter- jections are the same in different languages. The sounds of bees, cattle, serpents, and the like, as they are respectively the same every where, ought to have had similar names in every country. This is not absolutely the case. These natural sounds are expressed by such articulations as the people of any country have associated with noises of that kind. To buzz, in English, is jujjat in Slavonic ; (observe the J is pronounced like j in French, and not very differently from the English z ;) in Celtic it is suisAN, DURBAN, or TORMAN ; in Latin and Greek bomeio and bombus. To hiss like a snake is, in Russian or Slavonic, ship or svist ; in Greek sizo ; in Latin sibilo. In all examples of this kind, I have observed, that the consonants may be the same, but that the word itself is from some ge- neral radical, modified for the purpose. Imitative words, made without reference to any radical, are 182 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. very rare in language. The words papa, baba, MAMMA, TATA, are quoted as purely natural. It is indisputable, that p, b, t, and m, are the articula- tions first made by children ; but it is forgotten that the nurse is perpetually calling pa, ma, ta-ta, and the like, in the infant's ear. I admit the truth of the articulation, but cannot admit that pater, MATER, DAD, and the like, are from natural sounds ; nor that this accidental circumstance, of their be- ing heard in the mouth of infants, had any material effect in producing fag, mag, and dag, or tag, the obvious roots, not of these words only, but of hundreds besides in the same line of signification. Note P. p. 32. Some command over these words must have been obtained by repetition. Ag! ag! ag! would denote that the action was violent and terrible ; and ag, ag, AG, AG, that it was done very much, or frequently. The syllable might be used in all the extent of our imperative. Rag, run ; rag, rag ; run, run ; dwag, dwag; drive, drive; dash, dash; nag, knock, crush j MAG, MAG, MAG ; kill him, murder him by bruising. Bring water, bag wag ; bring a little water, bag AG ; drive a stone, dwag lag. The oldest name for a stone was lag, cloven, split, from its being a split of a rock. The word rock itself means a rift, a sliced or riven object. Roll a stone, hag lag, that is run it. Swag lag, move a stone, a heavy FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 18-3 rock by rolling. Any thing that grew, increased, waxed, was said to run, or move, according to the idea of its quickness or force. Lag rag, take, or lay a reed ; mag ag, bruise the fire, crush it ; dwag AG, dash out the fire, extinguish ; bag ag^ move the fire, that is kindle it, raise it, or help it ; AG AG, burnt — the repetition marks the thing done ; tig tig, touch, or touched, smitten ; gag or GWAG, walk ; DAG DAG, work work, labour ; aq BAG, the serpent bites, (for all twining or sinuous figures, as eels, serpents, &c. were called ag ;) AG dwag, the serpent strikes ; ag lag, the ser- pent gives a blow ; ag ag, I eat : mag mag, I am chewing, grinding; nag, champ it with thy teeth ; bag, he drinks, that is, takes water ; wag, the air moves ; twag, it is thin, that is, drawn, tugged, tense ; lag, it is flat, viz. laid, levelled ; DWAG, he is dead ; dwag ! dwag ! killed ! killed ! mag ! O MAG ! murdered ! O murdered ; bag, BAG, bag ! they fought very much, greatly ; swag swag, they gave heavy blows ; rag, rushed on. Such I consider as a just and not imaginary speci- men of the earliest articulated speech, when words were few, and the natural signs of voice, gesture, and looks, indicated and supplied their deficiency, as a system of communication. Man, in a savage state, is a rational being, but far more governed by passion, than in his civilized condition. His wants and sufferings produce a 181* FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. necessary and habitual apathy j but when roused, he is wild, ungovernable, and comparatively fran- tic. The bowlings and exclamations of a barbarous tribe, when it has lost some of its members ; and the war-song and war-hoop, used in all savage countries, show that the dominion of imagination is almost unlimited in that state of society. Yet it must not be supposed that uncivilized barbarians do not think that they possess very few abstract ideas, and that all their knowledge is of indivi- dual objects. Their knowledge of the qualities of their forests, mountains, and rivers ; of their own rude arts and weapons, and of their ancient habits and customs, is various and ingenious in a high degree. Their languages are often more copious in terms respecting these matters than is necessary ; and I believe that the most speculative and ab- stract notions might be expressed in any language, however scanty, if the writer were fully master of the analogy or general law, by which abstract terms are always formed. I shall advert to this subject afterwards. Note Q. p. S3. The act, the action, the effect of the act, were denoted by one and the same word. So lag was the act of laying or striking with a long implement, as an arm, a rod, a staff, a sword ; the action of lout, eva- cuate. V. Lag« — Lay, lick, level, strike, strike elas- tically, strike down, flatten ; make plain, smooth, even ; send forth, extend, protract, lengthen, make long ; cast, throw, dart, fling, set off, shoot, let off, send off, dismiss, let go, give leave, permit ; let go inadvertently, drop, loose ; destroy a place, beat it all to pieces ; drive along, lash, whip, impel any object, particularly cattle; work along, row; lag, fail, be slow, late, lazy, restive, loitering, snail-paced; weary, faint ; run swiftly along-, be rapid, go speedily, bend along, lean along, bound forward ; show vigour, elasticity, force, bravery ; walk, go, run, move along in air, fly in water, swim, go prosperously ; run easi- ly and readily as water, flow, move on water, float ; lay on the hand, take, seize, apprehend, catch, hold, VOL. I. Q 242 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS, carry, lift, lift up, raise, exalt as hills, or eminences ; heap, weigh ; clap down, skulk, lie hid, conceal by hiding, dissemble, counterfeit, lie, cheat ; set, put, appoint as nde or law ; lay on, load, burden, sati- ate, fill, cram, fill up ; beat, as rain, snow, hail, weather j lay down, lie, settle, encamp, sleep, lig, remain, live, continue ; lay stress on, trust, depend on, confide, believe, lippen to ; bear, bring, breed, produce and grow as plants or animals, spring; cut, slay, split, divide, hew, fabricate, form, make, shape ; lay together, join, fadge, agree, concord in surface, in humour, fit, please, delight, be simi- lar or agreeing in form, like ; lay on gentle strokes, smooth with the hand along the hair, flatter, soothe j pull, pluck, lug, pull out, eradicate, tear, rend clothes or any thing else, kill, but- cher ; pluck gently, vellicate, entice, draw in, in- veigle ; catch by a snare or trap, seize by a line or gin ; depress, diminish, lessen, abate, make small, fine, lineal ; engrave lin'es on a hard sub- stance, scrabble, scratch, write ; daub, or smear with grease or oil ; sleeken, anoint, make soft or dirty ; squeeze, express, liquify, melt, ooze, drop, leak ; run as water, cover witli water, purify with water, wash ; lie as land, stagnate as water, form lakes ; trench, delve, form ditches and sloughs ; send beams, dart rays, enlighten, enflame, shine, burn, waste, destroy, make clear, white, give lustre and colour ; move, go from, leave, pass. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 243 pass by ; come as an accident, befal, betide, chance, luck ; cast lots, judge by lots ; draw up, draw up with tlie mouth, suck, swallow, glut ; draw up water, drink, exhaust ; lay over, cover, clothe, hide, cover vessels with lids j drive to, shut, close, conclude j lay after, pursue, bend after, follow, strain after, long after, desire, care, regard; lay towards, bend towards, lean to, in- cline, bend, favour, encourage ; inflect, make curved, winding, wimpling, crooked ; bound with a leap, jump, frisk, be glad, play ; also make lit- tle leaps, hop, hobble, halt, linch, crook ; kick, lash out the heels, lay forth or from with the legs, fling, dance ; leap, rock, wave, roll, shake ; lead, direct, draw along, conduct ; whip, lash, raise marks of stripes ; work very actively and nimbly, ply, drive on, labour ; bear, endure, suffer ; bend like a joint, be pliant, buxom ; lift the voice, cry, laugh, roar, sound, prate, speak, jabber, talk, sing aloud, lilt; sound shrill, ring, give a sound like a bell ; follow close, stick to, attach ; inchne to, love, lust ; sound, impress the organ of sense, perceive or catch sound, hear, list ; behold, look, see ; give, offer j slip, slide, glide, be glib, ready ; end, cease, desist ; lay together, gather, accumulate in lumps or heaps, roll, conglobe ; move in a trail- ing way, creep ; grow as wool or down, be rough and hairy ; beat the body from grief, lament ; ap- plaud by noise and beating j sink, fall, melt down, 24^ FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. as snow, or in phthisis ; sink down, sleep j lick with the tongue, lap. VI. Mag. — Crush, mash, strike with destructive compressing violence, grind, bray, bruise, mur- der ; beat, smooth by beating ; squeeze, compress, condense, collect, gather, enlarge in every dimen- sion, make great, huge, tali, collectively nume- rous, wide, broad, extensive, vast ; raise in heaps, mountains ; press down, depress, level j act on, so as to make small, minute, fine ; diminish, waste, annihilate ; grind to powder, meal, dust j pulverize ; waste away by active power, consume, moulder ; conceal, keep close, extinguish j drive forth, cast, throw, loose, shoot, let go, deliver, give, liberate, free j fix, bind, tie j enlarge time and place ; maggle, mar, encumber, delay j remain, stay, continue, endure, be permanent, solid, firm, durable ; impel, move, make go, as persons, water, birds, fishes ; move alternately, exchange ; draw or beat out, make thin, rare, broad j act on the sur- face of bodies, seek into ; act on the taste or smell, liave a penetrative or pungent quality, either sweet or otherwise ; molliiy, make meek, mild, sweet j sting, bite the tongue, be bitter, acrid j stupify, make destitute of sense, stun, make foolish j catch, sei?e with the hand, take, apprehend, manage j seize with the moutli, cat, grind, chew, masticate ; com- press the lips, or other organs ', be mute, silent -, I FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 1^45 wink by half-closing the eye ; make signs ; make mouths, mock, ridicule ; utter a sound through the nose or the lips half shut, moan, murmur, bel- low ; labour, work, make, frame, shape, toil, moil, drudge ; be pained and wretched ; shine, dart rays, glitter ; enlarge, breed, grow as any plant or animal, conceive, bear young, bear fruit ; show might, power, force, valour ; fight, combat, strive ; be moved, full of violent passion, rage, fury, de- sire, or lust, rave ; hold, handle, feel, perceive, retain perception, remember ; show, declare, in- dicate, tell ; cut, shave close, snod, mutilate, man- gle, impair, make defective, break, burst, maim ; cut small, hash, hack ; work on as dough in a mass, agitate ; melt, bake, cook ; conjoin, form into one mass, be in one mass, be among or amidst, mixed with ; grasp, comprehend, inclose, measure, mete, go about, take the dimensions, keep with, mode- rate ; get, find, invent, imagine ; join with, unite, meet ; be vigorous, stout, wanton, merry, saucy ; close, darken, be heavy and murky, gloomy ; liqui- fy by pressure, fire, &c. ; brew, make moist, become mucid, musty, damp, rotten; incorporate, mix, add one thing to another ; shut, hide, act in se- cret ; bestow, honour, favour, contain worth and value, be of price ; smother, choke ; penetrate as smoke or vapour ; water, send forth water ; flow, eject urine ; bruise, make diseased, morbid ; feel a strong and anxious care for, love ; knot, weave ; S46 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. stamp, stain, dip ; form the features into a smile, look kind and soft j use the mouth, talk, converse. VII. Nag or hnag. — Knock, strike down, kill with a hard blow, level, dash down, depress by force, thrust down, lower, humble, diminish, keep down, destroy ; act wastefully on, crum- ble, corrode, gnaw, eat, consume, chew, bite, snap, nip, cut by breaking or nipping, cracking, or striking ; rub, clean, scour, polish severe- ly ; pinch, use harshly, chide, blame ; impel or knock together, condense, thicken, cram, fill, make solid and full, gather, accumulate, raise in rolls, lumps, knolls, hills, clews, globes j join to- gether, bind together, knit, knot, bind, con- stringe, straiten, press hard, make narrow, near, close, brief, distressful, sore ; impel in a race or winding current, run, drive any thing, run violent- ly, rush, make run, guide, conduct, bring ; sting, stab, prick, sew, pierce, wound, hurt, take off by poi- son, give a bruise or contusion ; drive or force down, crush, overthrow, conquer, humble by actual vio- lence ; mollify, soften by force, make delicate, ten- der, infirm ; thaw, melt, make moist or wet, ooze, drop, filter, be foul and putrid ; take, seize, catch hold, grasp, get, find; pluck, pull, divide with the hand or teeth, swallow, distribute, feed or graze; gather, cloud, muffle, hide; compre- hend, judge, perceive, know ; knell, ring, sound. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. ®4j7 make noise ; tell, narrate, count or nmnber, name; be pungent as smoke, odours, burning grease, &c. ; cut, pare, polish by cutting ; nod, lean, incline, ildl ; hit, butt ; work hard, make, do, perform ; wink, twinkle, shine, glitter ; be in- stant, push hard on, be new, fresh, of this mo- ment, now ; move spinningly, whirl, go fast ; beat the ground, dance, jump ; make a noise through the nose, complain, whine, neigh, shriek loud ; notch, slice ; compel, bend, bow, inflect ; strain, strive, struggle ; twist about, twine ; be anxiously fond of; move in water by floating, or by the hands and feet, swim ; settle, dwell, rest ; bear a child, rear, breed, feed, cherish. VIII. Rag or hrag. — Act with rude and most violent force, dash all to pieces, shake terribly, agitate, rock ; rack, rend, rive, rob, strip, peel, rip- ple, reap ; stick, stab, penetrate, run into, rush in- to, drive in, ram, consolidate, run the hand into, search ; be very strong, whole, robust, vigorous, sound ; move sharply, rush along as water, man, or any running and rapid being ; pull, drag, draw, draw together, ruff, wrinkle, pucker ; rouse, raise, make mad, vex, harass, waken ; spring up, rise, rear ; run up, grow as reeds, plants, trees, or any vegetable ; rise into stems, run out as arms or branches, ramify, run or grow as roots ; move, run, walk, travel, proceed, succeed, prosper, go uninter- 248 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. ruptedly, be easy to put in motion, glib, prone, plain and sleek ; run together, clot, lump, clod, coagu- late ; take, seize rudely, grasp, grope, hold, handle, feel, try, examine, prove, perceive, learn ; move an object, make it go along, row, steer, direct, w^ork j run in a straight line, regulate, direct, straighten, correct, be or put or keep in a line or row, arrange, rank ; stretch the arm, reach, give or receive by reaching, stretch the body, endea- vour, long after ; struggle, wriggle, make efforts, wrench, twine, make contortions, twist, wry, go or act cross or wrong ; rush after, pursue, chase, drive violently, banish ; be roused, distorted with anger, raised, commoved, frantic, disturbed ; be full of life, mettle, and action ; be strong, rude, hard, harsh, severe, hard-featured, grim j be sharp, stinging, raw, bitter, cruel, rude and harsh to every sense and feeling of body and mind ; contract the brows, wrinkle ; pull gently, pluck, entice, invite ; run or roll with great force, tumble down ; break, crack, split, open, open a mouth or chink ; grin, divide by pieces ; grate, rub, rasp, scrape, clean, clear j suck, exhaust, swallow voraciously ; emit with a convulsive force, reach, belch, vomit j dart rays, radiate, shine, burn, consume, melt, run by lire, fry, roast, bristle, cook ; dig, delve with a sharp utensil, as a hoe or pig's snout ; dig up ; make lines or carvings by cutting, engrave, in- dent, scribble ; work, do, make, act, perform FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 249 with bustle and motion ; burst out in ciying, roar, ring, bark, weep ; sound or crack by shak- ing or pulling, rattle, clatter ; cast over, cover, dress, wrap, wind about, tie, bind, twist as a rope ; throw, dart ; go, let go, go from, leave, make room by going ; disturb, hurt, an- noy, terrify, frighten, distress, make weary and wretched ; shiver, tremble, shudder from fear, bodily indisposition, aversion, hatej wring, squeeze, express, distil ; drop, press out, be oozy, wet, foul, rotten ; be liable to crumble, brittle, dry, rotten ; be as grit or sand ; grind, pulverise ; stretch, raise, elevate, lift up, rise in a sharp peak, run in a horizontal peak from a snout ; snore, make a noise from the nose, grunt ; press with the foot, trade, trust, credit as being solid and firm ; hit, drive, strike ; carry, bear, bring, fetch, get breed, generate, produce as plants or animals ; bear up, cram, fill, feed j grow large, fat, gross, tall, rank or high-grown j be thick, coarse, gross ; rcacli out, spread, open, extend, display in breadth, explain, illustrate ; sound, speak, tell, number, count, reckon, esteem, value, account, suppose ; explain by telling, say the rea- son or explanation of a thing, narrate the story of, make a speech, give advice in speech, counsel ; pull out, pluck away, extricate, separate by drawing aw^ay, redely save, deliver ; revel, or draw into a knot ; also draw out, unrevel j run in frolicsome 250 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. sportful races, move lightly, skip along, ramble, play, be wanton j spring, frisk, be glad and merry ; run forth, begin, originate, go out, be early ; make, frame, form, shape, create ; be in force, plenty, abundance ; catch, fasten, make fast, keep, be content ; be stiff, hard, rigid, frozen, rhimy, prickly ; be rash, given to run on, precipitate, keen ; tear, harrow, rake ; spread out, straw, strew, sow about, scatter; speak loud, blame, chide, cry, brawl, scold, accuse ; penetrate, apprehend, or learn by sharp trial, inquiry, or interrogation ; discern, divide in thought, judge, separate ideas, perceive new distinctions and differences ; shine, see, look, discern clearly, aim, choose by sight ; be ready, rathe, at ease, resting ; play tricks, gam- bol, make quick turns, cheat ; raise a noise, laugh. IX. SwAG. — Move or act with mighty power ; be strong, sound, vehement, weighty, vigorous, sivay^ govern ; prevail, overcome by force, be bold, brave, full of energy and virtue ; move powerfully, rapidly, and perpetually ; move onwards, proceed, succeed, prosper, advance, increase, grow ; travel, roll, or proceed with unbroken and united motion ; whirl or move round, turn, swim, as in a vertigo or dizziness ; be swift, fleet ; struggle, wrestle, twist, agonize ; work sorely, toil, labour, droop, weary, exhaust, make wretched ; work stoutly and ac- tively ; deflect, turn aside, seduce, stray, swerve; FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 251 set with force the feet, stand j set with force the body, sit, fix, confirm ; lay, put, put down, tread, trample ; act upon violently, drive against, sweep, clean, rub, rub tightly, consume by rub- bing, waste, whet, sharpen ; press, strain, squeeze, express moisture, draw sap from and juice, drop, send out moisture, ooze, slaver ; send out light, act on by fire, burn, melt, singe, oppress with heat, overpower, destroy by violent force, kill ; make soft, sweet, mild, insipid, silly, dull, stu- pid, fatuous, insensible, motionless and spiritless, calm, tranquil, settled ; cease, stop, give over, be silent ; bend to a side, incline, fall, move re- gularly down, descend, sink, descend in length, be long in opposition to tiude and broad; go, walk, make bends or turns, move along by one side, passing by so as not to meet an object, walking not straightly ; move as water or billows, roll, run, flow in a current ; draw powerfully towards the agent, suck, swallow, soak, swig, drink, devour, sup, draw up with the lips j make an impression on the tongue or nostril, have a swack, a savour or odour ; affect the taste, be high or well- tasted ; grasp, seize firmly, catch, take, hold, pos- sess, defend ; perceive with any sense, take in, learn, gain knowledge and wisdom by perception and ob- servation ; make a loud grave sound, speak, say, sing, tell, declare J blow as wind, whistle, hiss j carry, bear, 252 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. move under, bring, produce, breed, be prolific, grow as plants, children, or young animals ; be violent, destructive, hostile, warlike, brave; grind, make small, fine, minute ; draw, extend, make tense ; be sore, vehement, painful ; feel care, anxie- ty, and tender love ; gather, become heavy, dark, thick, swart, black ; act on by fire, dry, make arid, sapless ; act on by force or heat, melt as grease, boil, seeth, become moist, musty, rotten; melt away, as in wasting of the body or any other substance; carry on prosperously, complete, perfect ; work, knead, mix, pound in a mass ; cut any thing with violence, dis- sect, divide, saw, slit, dig, trench, make furrows; swing, vibrate, cast about, wield, whip, lash, beat with a flail ; move to one side, swidder, doubt ; go on without interruption, be easy, tranquil, in repose ; be easy in action, the contrary to dwag, do ; and dur, hard, sore, difficult ; be oppressed and heavy, sleep, rest, be quiet, lie ; lay on a load, burden, fill, cram with meat or any thing, fatten, cloy, satisfy, make full ; send forth sap, moisture, blood ; increase, enlarge, blow up, swell ; make strong, solid, firm ; fix with fear, awe, admi- ration ; press or stamp, seal ; pursue actively, press after, follow, seek, investigate ; roll about, infold, wrap ; send forth, cast, give. Observation 1. — All the senses of any radical arc only different applications of one word, which 10 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 253 is the name of a particular kind of action. The principle, on which the applications were made, was that of real or fancied resemblance. Observation 2. — Ag and wag seem to have co- incided in all their earliest senses : wag and hwag are confounded in later times, at least in some dia- lects, but seldom in Teutonic. Hwag in Greek, Latin, Sanscrit, Slavic, and Celtic, is corrupted in- to cwag or KAG. It, therefore, requires judg- ment and much reading, to distinguish in these dialects the proper derivatives of gwag, the fourth radical, from those of hwag, and those of ge-ag and GE-WAG, which last are secondary. Lag, mag, NAG, RAG, and SWAG, are, perhaps, the best pre- served radicals. He who opens -a dictionary of any European language, under any one of these letters, sees only the various applications of one single term. Observation 3. — All words under a, ie, e, i, o, u, and y; are derivatives of ag, those excepted, which have lost some initial consonant by corrup- tion, or are compounds of various radicals, or have prefixed a vowel for the sake of sound. Observation 4. — The factitious radicals, wlag, BLAG, flag, flag, SPLAG, GLAG, TIILAG, SLAG, sthlag, follow closely the signification of lag i thmag, tmag, and smag, follow mag : bnag, FNAG, PNAG, snag, folloW NAG : WUAG, BRAG, PRAG, FRAG, PHRAG, CRAG, DRAG, TRAG, THRAG, 254 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. GRAG, SRAG, STHLAG, SPRAG, SPHRAG, STRAG, fol- low RAG; SCWAG or SCAG folloWS CWAG, CUt, Strike in two, shake, concuss violently, cast, dart, fling, &c. &c. ; stwag or stag follows dwag, strike, stamp, step, stab, cram, thicken, cover, choke, &c. &c. Such is the mechanism of lan- guage — a stupendous work of human reason and human feelings, produced in a state of ignorance and nature, and yet superior in its kind to any si- milar invention of philosophy, * View of the Consignificative Words, or of those terms which were employed in the second stage of the European Languages to particularize, by their descriptive powers, the sense of the Ra- dical Monosyllables noticed in the above view, joined, for the sake of illustration, to Lag, lay, beat, strike, lash ; lay on the hand, seize, pluck, lug, lift ; lay on a burden, load ; make an elastic bound, leap, run ; level, make * In tlic foregoing view, the author has fully detailed the various senses in which his nine radicals are used in the European and other languages ; and had these senses been illustrated by examples, they would have been more satis- factory. Repetitions, in some respects, were unavoidable, though all those in the maniiscript are not printed. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. ^55 plain, broad, smooth ; lay forth, drive forth, fling, let go, shoot, &c. &c. &c. 1. Ag, work, make, do. Lag-ag, making of beating, by contraction lacc and licc, a lick, a single stripe, or the giving of a single blow ; also acting like a blow, having the qualities of a blow, resembling a blow ; a little blow. Lag, catch J lag-ag or lacc, the act of seizing, a clutch- ing. The varieties of ag are eg, ig, og ; ac, ic, UC ; AK, IK, UK ; ACK, ICK, AGH, &C. &;C. 2. Wag, work, make. Lag-wag, or lag-wa, making a blow, giving a blow. This term is often, like AG, used in making new verbs, being expressive of acting. 3. Bag, fag, or pag, work or produce vigorously, and at one rapid impulse. Lag-ba, producing seiz- ure, laying on the hand by a single and quick effort. Lag, spring; lag-ba, making a spring; by contrac- tion laba or lapa, a leap. This term forms nouns of a diminutive sense in this manner. Lag, strike ; LAG-BA, acting like a blow, resembling it in quali- ties, having the nature but not the full essence of a blow, a little blow, belonging to a blow ; plago- sus. Ba, pa, pha, and fa, are the same word. 4. DwAG, da, ta, tha, labour, work, do. It is used in all dialects as a term denoting do or done. It is the sign of action, partly or wholly performed. Lag, strike ; lagda, or lada, doing of striking, or striking done ; a blow, a stripe. Lag, lay on ; Q56 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. LAGDA, or LADA, laid on, laying-done ; a load. Lag, lay, put down ; lagda, laid. Lag, strike, cut ; LAGTHA, or latha, a cut, a split, a lath. 5. GwAG, go, the name of action going on, or gone by. It is both prefixed and added. Lag, lay ; GA-LAG-DA, laid, the act of laying gone and done. It derivatively signifies to make go on, to carry on, to perform, as in ga-wag-an, to make shake. It is added to Greek verbs in the form of ca. Its va- rieties are ge, e, a ; ghe, y, ce ; ke, che, &;c. 6. Lag, perform, do, bring, produce. Lag, strike ; lag-la, the giving or producing of a blow, the striking, by contraction lal and lael, as in the Scotch phrase, lil for lall, stripe for stripe. La forms verbals, nouns, and adjectives. Lag-la, or LAGELA, may be the producing of a blow, strik- ing a blow, and acting like a blow, having the qualities of a blow. So, in Latin, cub-ile, per- taining to lying, a bed ; ag-ile, pertaining to ac- tion, having active qualities. So aeg or aec, join- ed, united, even ; aeg-wa or aegu, having the nature of being even ; aeg-u-ale, belonging to aegu, evenly. 7. Mag, make, do, work. Lag, level ; lag- ma, making level, finishing, the act of striking, the act of levelling. So iiwag, turn ; iiwag-ma, the act of turning, a single turn, a quick turn of body or mind, a whim. Lag, or lig, bend, bow like a joint j lig-tha, what is bent, a joint, a lith; FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 257 LiTH-MA, tlic making of a lith, or joint, by contrac- tion LIMA, the old form of limb, a joint or articula- tion of the body. It forms adjectives of quality. 8. Nag, work, perform. Lag, lay down ; lag- NA, the performing of laying, accomplishment of laying, lain. Bag, beat ; bagna, or bana, beaten ; used as a participle, an adjective, a noun ; bana, fatal, hurtful, deadly ; bana, beating, murder, kill- ing, bane. Lag, lay down, lie close ; lagna, laid, couched, lurked, concealed ; applied to the mind, the words, and actions, a concealment of the true state, dissimulation by actions, lying by words, (logn, or leugn, in Visigothic,) craft in general. Both NA and ma form participles, nouns of action, and adjectives of quality. 9. Rag, work rudely and with great violence. Lag, lay ; lag-ra, performance of laying, actual laying, the act of laying : lig, cast down, make lie ; LiGRA, performing lying, belonging to it, the place or article which causes or permits lying, the lair, the ligger, the bed, lectus, the spot of en- camping. This term forms active verbals, nouns of action, and adjectives expressive of action or rela- tion to action. 10. Swag, perform, carry on, toil. ''Lag, strike; LAG-SA, the performance or gradual operation of striking, the act of striking : lag, send of, let go ; LAG-SA, the act of letting go, loosing : bag, hit ; bag-sa, the act of hitting, beating : twag, twig, VOL. I. R 258 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. turn, pluck about, drive about; twag-sa, the acting of driving about, tossing. Sa forms names of ac- tors, and adjectives descriptive of operation. All verbals, formed by the consignificatives, ex- press a diminished, specific, and frequentative, sig- nification of the radical. These verbals are more active, definite, and descriptive, than their original. They are, in fact, compounds made according to a regular law, and raised on any verb, at pleasure, for the purpose of describing the immense variety of acts and objects which the mind may either observe or imagine. View of the Principal Compound Consignifica- TiVE Words in the European Languages. 1. Na and da, or na and ga, signs or terms of the participle present. Na, make, and da, do, are conjoined in the form of nda, nta, ntha : na, make, and ga, go, form nga. So lag, lay ; lag- NA-DA, or lag-anda, performing the act of laying j lag-an-ga, going through with the act of laying. As this actual performance may take place in any time, a participle of this kind may describe action going on in past, present, or coming time. The Visigothic participle in anda, and the Latin in NDus, are often future. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 259 2. Ma and NA, terms denoting that the act is go- ing on to a perfect or performed state, and is passive, when completed. Lag, hiy ; lag-ma-na, making and performing the act of laying, actively bringing it to a close. This is not a passive, but a very ac- tive participle, common in Greek, Sanscrit, &c. Many nouns come from this formula, as ag, drive ; agmen, a driving, a drove ; sec, cut ; seg-men, a cutting, a division ; reg, direct in a line j regimen, directino;. 3. Ba and la appear often in the dialects. So AMA, love ; AMA-BA, making or producing love ; ama-b-ile, relating to that which makes love, creates love ; amabilis, he that excites love in others : leg, gather, or read ; leg-iba, making or producing collection ; leg-ib-ile, that possesses the power or property of making itself be gathered by others ; mirabile, that possesses the property of making people stare at it, has in it the quality that creates, admits, or permits, admiration. 4. Ba and nda appear also in adjectives. Vag, wander, stray ; vag-aba, make straying ; vag-ab- unda, in the actual performance of straying : mor, die ; moriba, dying j moribunda, in the act or state of dying. 5. Da and ag appear in such words as amicitia. Am, love ; am-ic, having the quality of loving, friendly, a friend j amici-ta, in the state of friend- 260 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. ly ; AM-ic-iT-iG-A, having the property of being in the state of friend or friendly : the final a is the sign of personal agency : just, conformable to law, just, jusT-iTA, (jus-iTA,) put in the state of just ; JusT-iT-iG-A, possessing that state. 6. Da and na occur in such words as rectitu- Do. Rec, or REG, run in a line, make move in a straight line ; rec-ta, straeced, straight ; rect- ITA, put in the state of right ; then rectituda, rectified ; rectitud-ena, put into the rectified state J the rectified state — righteousness. The Sax- on rihtwis is not from wis, a manner, but from RiHT, straight, riht^wa, having the act or quality of right ; riht-wi-sa, performing the right, or hav- ing the active quality of right. 7. Sa and ag occur in every dialect. Lag, strike ; LAG-sA, perform striking ; lags-ig, lagsc, lagsk, doing the act indicated by lag-sa, or lags, which is a single performance of the act mentioned in the radical. Lash is a modern corruption of lagsc, which signifies a very active but diminished blow. Bag is heat, act on by fire : bagsc, a bask, a single act of heating. In adjectives this combina- tion carries an active, then a possessive sense ; for the power of action always implies possession, ScoTA, a Scot ; scoxisc, acting like a Scot, resem- bling, from that circumstance, a Scot j pertaining to .a Scot: WE ALA, a Gaul; wealisc, acting like a FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 26l Gaul, Welsh. In Greek, sc is the principal term for denoting action going on, also inceptive and fre- quent action. 8. Sa and ta appear much in most dialects, and particularly in such Teutonic nouns as burst, the act of breaking; thorst, the act or state of dryness. Lag, lay on, load ; lagst, or last, a loading ; BLAG, blow ; blagst, an act of blowing, a blast. In these forms sa points out the acting, and ta that the acting is done. Blag is blow ; blag-sa, or blag-is, perform blowing ; and blag-is-ta, a finished or done act of blowing. Mag is much ; MAG-IS make much ; and mag-is- ta put into that state, MAiST, or most. 9. Sa and ma occur often, as in mag, much ; MAG-SA, make much ; mag-si-ma, put into the state of being made much ; maximus. 10. Ba and ra appear in such words as late- bra. Lat is from lagta, laid, couched, clapt down on the ground, or in a hollow ; lat-eba, mak- ing of couching ; and lat-eb-ra, actual perform- ing of lat-eba ; skulking, or the place that admits of it : SCAT, from scagta, is cast out, spring out in little rills j scat-eb-ra, a place where such spring- ing is made. 11. Sa and ig occur in such verbals as lecsis, the speaking. Leg is speak, lec-sa speech-making, lec-s-ig having the property of speech-making, the speaking itself. The final s is the gender. 262 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 12. Wa and nda — in words like the Greek, DACRUEN, full of tcars. Dagra, or tagra, (Go- thic,) is a tear, from tag, melt, thaw, liquify. Dacra-wa is making tears, and dacra-w-unda in the actual state of making tears. Wa and nda are singularly but elegantly joined to preterite partici- ples in Greek and Sanscrit. So grab or graf, scratch, indent lines, write on marble or brass, has GRAF-THA, written, graved; and graftha, with END, makes grafthend or grafthent, being in the actual state of graved, having been graved. Gam, in Sanscrit, is go ; gata gone ; gat-wa, or gat-va, making gone, that is, having gone j gata-v-anta, or, by contraction, gat-av-at, also having gone. Gata, gone, is a contraction of gam-ta, for which ganta, gone, occurs in some places. Ganta-v-ya appears as a participle, for GAMT-Aw-iGA, in the sense of about to be gone, to be gone. The Greeks have such forms as ita, gone ; iteon, for it-ig-on, to be gone, or rather for ita-v-ig-on. These forms cannot be under- stood without close attention to the powers of wa, make, act, go on to act ; and ig or ag, do, having the power and capability of doing. Itya is a go- ing in Sanscrit. 13, Ma and nda, common in such words as aliment and element. Al (agla) is lift, rear, breed, feed ; also breed or produce. Al-ima is making of feeding, having the property of giving FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Q63 food or nourisliment. Almus-a-um is nourishing. Ali-m-enda is actually giving nourishment, and, viewed neutrally, is a thing that feeds another. El, is breed, and elementum the thing that actu- ally breeds another. Elementa mundi are the matters that breed, or have bred the world or its parts. 14. Wa and sa occur in such words as jocose and morose. Ag, or its corruption yag, signifies move the body actively, gesticulate, be merry, geek. The preterite yoc is a merry gesture, a funny trick, a merry saying. Yoc-wa is making such tricks or jests. Yoc-wa-sa is performing those tricks, addicted to them, very full of them. In Teutonic, rihtwisa is given to what is right, righteous. This combination has in that dialect been confounded with wisa, a way or manner ; as L-icA has been with Lie, like. The confusion in these instances is very ancient. 15. Ag and na appear often together in diminu- tives. Any word may become a diminutive by re- ceiving any consignificative that signifies acting, doing as, and therefore resembling ; being like the things but not the thing itself. So lamb, a lamb ; lamb-ig, lamb-acting, doing like a lamb, having the resemblance of a lamb, a kind of lamb, a little lamb, a lammie : maga, a child, a boy ; mag-ula, resembling or acting like a boy, a little boy : puer, a boy ; purr-ul-us, acting like a boy, having the 264 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. qualities of a boy, a little boy. Puerulus becomes puELLus J LiBERULus, a little book, libellus or libellum ; and so of many others in Greek and Latin. In Teutonic na is joined to ig, as lamb, a Iamb j lamb-ig, having the quality of a lamb ; lamb-ig-en, made like a little lamb — a lamb- kin, a LAMMiKiN, a very little lamb. Gylhelm, he that wears a golden helmet, William, by fami- liar contraction Will. This becomes a new di- minutive, WiLL-iG, having the character of Will, Httle Will, Willy j Will-ig-en, WiUikin, Wilkin, very little Will : bytta or butta, a butt, a cask, in Greek pithos ; pith-ac-s, having the nature of a butt, a little butt ; pith-ac-in-e or pithacne, a buttikin ; in German buttchen ; pithacnion, for pitac-n-ig-on, having the quality of pithacne, that is, of a little cask. The woid pithacnion is a very diminutive cask. Butt-ila is like magula, and signifies a little butt or cask, now called a bottle. Another sort of diminutives is formed by isc, as RAD, a root ; rad-isc, having the nature of a root, a little root, a raddish ; paids, a boy, or child ; paid-isk-os, a little child. Many are formed by ed or et, as cask, a corruption of ca- di sc, a little cad us, or vessel, cask-ed, made a cask, put into the state of a cask, having got the nature of a cask. Helm, from hel-ma, a cover- ing, a cover for the head j helm-et, a little cover FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Qt5 for the head, a piece of covering, a head-piece. This preterite-like termination varies into at, et, IT, OT, and UT, according to convenience. Ats is the favourite term for diminutives in Lapland ; Akka, a wife ; akk-ats, a little wife, a dear little wife. 16. Ag and da. Verbs are made by ag, ig, og, UG ; or by wag, wig, wog, &c. These often ap- pear in Teutonic verbs, as lag-ig-an, by contrac- tion, LAG-y-AN and lag-i-an, to make lie ; wil, pull ; wil-wi-g-an, wilwian, wilwan, to make pulling. They are seen in Sanscrit under the forms of YA and VA ; but in Greek and Latin they are de- cayed, though their force continues. Amatus is for AMA-AG-ITUS, AUDITIS for AUD-IG-ITUS, DOCERE for Doc-EG-ERE, and argutus for arg-wa-itus. All verbs in uo, except a few primitives, are either from nouns in wa, or wa is inserted to indicate the manner of their action. Adjectives were extem- porally formed from nouns on the principles of these verbs, as litera-a-itus, literatus, a man of let- ters ; AURiTUS, for auri-i-tus, eared, having ears ; nasutus from nasu-u-tus, nosed, having a nose. Remark that ag and \yAG are bij themselves always short, even when they stand as a, e, i, o ; hut Joiri' ed in this form with verbals they are long ; do- ce-e-re is DOC-E-RE, and so of others. 17. Ag and nga. — The compound nga is of- ten joined to verbs, in order to form verbals of ac- 266 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. tlon, as WEG, move ; wegung, wagging, motion, movement. In the classic dialects of Greece and Rome, the g was lost, but the vowel before n re- mained long : so DRAG, see, look sharply and staringly ; draconga, a seeing, a clear-sighted animal ; draco, dracon, a dragon : umba or AMBA, a height, a lump, a boss ; umbonga, um- BONA, an elevating, bunching, a boss : siph, spout ; SIPHON, a spouting, an instrument for squirting. In general ig was prefixed, when the sense referred to an act. Rat, said, told, explain- ed in speech ; also told over, reckoned ; rat-ig- ONGA, an actual making of telling, or of reckoning : Die, speak, show in speech ; dict, spoken ; dict- IG-ONGA, diction, an actual performance of the thing signified by dict, that is, a speaking, the speak- ing, the act of speaking. Such forms are different from ordo, ordinis, which is simply from ord, a running out in a line, and na. Ordin-a (the A is the gendsr) is made ord, put into the state of ORD. Th^y are also diflerent from nouns like ORiGO, oRiGiNis. Thcsc are from ig, make, and NA, finished. Ora is beginning, from agra or ORA, a very well known verbal of ag, go, proceed, rise, begin ; ori-ig is make beginning, and ORi- ig-en is completely put into that state ; the act of beginning accomplished. The en or in is therefore shorty which is the distinction between this order of nouns and those from nga. When FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. £G7 the vowel before n is long, it always indicates con- traction. Any other compound forms will be found in their proper place in this work. View of the Consignificatives of Agency o;* Gender in the European Languages. 1. Ag, make, work, do. Every name, by the an- cient constitution of language, was either consider- ed as an act done or in doing, or as an act perform- ing itself. In the first case there was no term of agency required. The word was neuter, or, as the Brahmans call it, the noun was crude. In the se- cond case a term of agency was always affixed, and this term was not limited to personal acts, or acts done by males or females, but inanimate things were viewed as agents, because they acted. The names of personal agency were at first the same for both sexes, but in tiine a slender form of the word was adopted for female agency. Ag, or A, is a masculine or feminine actor. Ig, or I, a variety of ag, is always feminine. O appears often for the feminine. It is long, and a contrac- tion of A-A ; but common often stands for a of both genders. Sa, work, make, act, is by far the most common 238 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. terra of agency in all the dialects. It is masculine or feminine, without distinction, and according to choice ; but if combined with a in the form of as, it is masculine. If added to i or e feminine, the compound es or is is feminine. Sa is ah in San- scrit, and in Greek os, in Latin us, for the sake of sound. The Teutonic uses s by itself. Observation 1. All nouns havino; a crement, or double consonant, must be supplied or resolved, as DRACONo,for draco; sermono, for sermo; aetats, for AETAs ; limits, for limes ; amants, for amans ; nepots, for nepos ; pacs^ for pax ; and so in every dialect, particularly in Sanscrit, Latin, Greek. Observation 2. Ra is never a name of personal agency, though very frequently of agency in general. When A masculine or feminine follows na, nt, or RA ; the term of gender is taken from the end, and absorbed by the penult syllable of the word, which syllable becomes long. So canon, a rule, for ca- non-a ; pater, a father, for pater-a ; legon, say- ing, for legont-a, or legonts. This fact must be observed with the utmost attention. Na and da. Neuters are the bare word, perfect in all terms necessary to its intrinsic sense, but want- ing every term of personal agency. Neuters that have any term of personal agency are decayed mas- culines or feminines. It is usual, however, in many dialects, to join na and da to the neuter to give it a more complete sense. So god, good j godata, FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 269 gooded, made fully good : alt,, all ; allata, ailed, made into the state of all : god, good j godena, gooden, gooded. This na or en is corrupted into ON in Greek, and um in Latin and Sanscrit : bon, good ; BONONA, BONON, BONOM, BONUM, gOodcd, existing in that state. "-•■ Note 2 E. p. 41. It is evident, from what has been said in the last section of Chapter III. that the composition of each radical with itself, or with the other eight, lays the ground of what has been usually called the termination. The simplest form of a noun is com- posed of some radical, and a consignificative. But the following general rules must be carefully re- marked. 1. A simple primitive noun is the same as the verb. Such nouns occur very seldom, being now superseded by derivatives. 2. A simple compound noun consists of a radi- cal, and a consignificative, which modifies the sense * All these views have been thrown together^ on account of the imity of the subject, though, in some measure, they refer to the doctrine of the fourth and other chapters. " The shortest account of the progress of our language is this. Nine monosyllables became verbals, when united to one, two, or more of themselves. These verbals became verbs by the same process, and these verbs with the ver- bals new verbs ; and so on to the actual degree now at- tained." — See Manuscript, Vol. I. p. 95. 270 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. of the radical. A noun, in this state, has no gen- der, number, nor reference to a person. It may be adjective or substantive, according to the termina- tions affixed to it afterwards. The Hindu writers call this a noun in a crude state, — not prepared for use. Examples are, wag-ba or waba, wave, or in a waving state ; wag-la or wala, turning ; RAG-RA or RARA, or RAR, breaking ; swagma, moving, malcing motion. These words require some termination, that is to say, a consignificative properly allotted to express he, she, it, he who works, she who acts, &;c. before they take the name of adjective or substantive nouns. For instance, WABA, waving ; wab-ra, wave-worker, a wav-er ; swAMA, a moving in water ; swama-sa, he who moves in water ; swam-j, she who moves in water. In a very ancient sense, nag signified to move, force forward. It was early applied to denote swimming. Na-da, from this verb, signified swum. The ordinary manner of pronouncing nada was NATA : add to this ra, working : natra, of course, signified what makes swimming ; but this word could not express a male swimmer, till ra took the personal sense of he who works. Then nator for natra signified he who swims ; and nat-or- ig-sa, NATRix, she who swims. There are no less than three consignificatives in rix, viz. ra, ag, and SA, yet. 3. The general rule of analysis is as follows : FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 271 Cast off the consignificatives which mark cases, number, and gender ; you will have the crude word. Attend to the initial letter or syllable, and to the syllable at the close of the term : the latter is the consignificative, the former is the radical. So in Latin, bonus-a-um, good ; throw off us, or A, or UM, consignificatives of gender or personal ap- plication, you have bon — a compound of bag, to advance, move forward, help, advantage ; and na, make. Our word bet (bag-da) had the same sense. Bet-er betista, better and best, are well known. To bet is to aid or help, to mend ; to beet fire is to help it. Come in^ auld carlj I'll beet the fire. And gar it bleeze a bonnie flame ; Your blude is cauld ; you've tint the gate ; You should'na stray sae far frae hame. Come in, old fellow, I will mend the fire, and make it blaze with a pretty flame. Your blood is thin ; you have lost your way ; you should not wander so far from home. N. jB. — Though this is the just method of ana- lysis, it must not be regarded as a mechanical pro- cess. Note 2 F. p. 41. In the infancy of language, composition of terms was little, if at all known. The nine primitives, 272 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. slightly varied in articulation, were the whole voca- bulary. Connective and adverbial words were not used. Speech resembled a series of interjections. When composition was introduced, it made a rapid and plentiful progress, verging on excess. It ap- pears to be probable, though, perhaps, this may be reckoned by some an imaginary statement, that AG or WAG was the first articulate word uttered by our barbarous progenitors, and that the consonants b, D, G, L, and the rest, were added afterwards to WAG, at the impulse of feeling, which was harsh, soft, or gentle, according to the natural character of the action. It is certain, that a natural connec- tion exists between the sound and sense, in what re- gards our feelings ; and, that we therefore express harsh sensations by harsh articulate sounds. I can- not fully ascertain the origin of these simplest com- binations which form the nine primitive words ; but I venture to affirm, with greater confidence, that such words as blag, brag, slag, smag, strag, and splag, are compounds. They are found in all the dialects, Celtic, Cymraig, Teutonic, La- tin, Greek, Slavic, and Sanscrit, in greater or smaller numbers in each. They take their mean- ing from the primitive in their composition, and they seem to have inherited the whole compass of its various senses. In some dialects, the primi- tive itself stands in that sense, which, in other dia- lects, they generally supply. In Celtic, for in- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 273 stance, we have raigh, (see Shaw's Diction, v. RAiGH,) signifying an arm, w^hich, in other dia- lects, is BiiACH, brachos, braec, brachium ; reidh, plain, even, level, which, in Saxon, is braed ; MUCH, smoke, in Saxon smoc ; lag, a pit, slough, in Saxon sloc ; ling, throw, dart, in Teutonic sling ; leabar, smooth, Saxon, glib ; RUiGH, reach, attain to, Saxon, streac. Exam- ples of this fact occur in the same dialect. In all the Teutonic varieties, rac is reach, extend any object, as the hand, a plain ground, an elastic sub- stance, &c. Tlie compounds have the same sense, only in a higher degree : b-rac is to stretch, draw out, whence buaeced, braed, broad ; braedan, to draw a sword ; braegd, a stretching over, a co- ver, a pretence, a falsehood ; and many others, such as brac, an arm ; branc, a branch ; brid, a thing brought out ; and bring, for brecing, to move by reaching for with the hand, or going for. Drag, another compound, made more expressive by prefixing d, signifies to pull an object by ex- tending it, to drag, draw, or rack. Drag, in the oldest dialects, means long, extended, drawn ; and TRAG has the same sense, at least in traho in Latin. Strag, a more powerful compound, pre- serves the same meaning in its derivatives, strac, stretch ; stragen, strain ; straced, straight ; STRAGALA or STRALA, a thing shot out, an arrow or dart. IIeged or reced, dreced and streced, VOL. I. s 274 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. appear in right, straight, naturally and morally. Droch and dron (drocen) in Celtic, and derust in Persic, have the same meaning. The gram- marians tell us, that such words as smao, I touch smartly, 1 rub ; and mao, I touch or handle ; are the same in Greek, per aphaeresin, that is by dropping the s. The fact, however, is, that smao is a compound of mao, not its primitive ; and the same is the case with smucho, I waste or con- sume ; STREPHO, I turn ; spao, I draw, and se- veral others of that kind. In general, however, the primitive is become obsolete in those dialects, which use compounds of this ancient description ; that is to say, if spao, in any dialect, be the common term for draw, pao or bao will not be frequently found in this sense. Lag, to strike, strike out, drive out ; seize, hold, take, catch ; dart, shine ; run, leap, lift on high ; lay, lay forth, broaden, extend ; when compounded, will exemplify this idea. Thus blag, or flag, often pronounced PLAG, blow, blow forth as wind, or flowers ; shoot as plants ; blaze, burn ; blaze as fire, run as water j strike a blow : plig, make a lay or ply in an object ; and, in short, every sense of every form of blag, plag, or flag, in every dialect. Lag, with c and g, produces clag and glag, clig and glig, which have various senses corresponding to those of LAG. Lag means catch, clag and glag signify to clutch, grasp, gather with the fin- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 275 gers, or a hooked instrument. Lag, to lay, drive to, shut, which is analogous to sceot or scut, cast, shoot, shut, gives clag, close ; claf, or clavis in Latin, a shutter, a key. Lag or lig, lay, lie, lean, bend ; makes clig, of which cligeno or CLINO, I lean, lie down, is a Greek derivative. Clogd or CLOD, a gathering, a clod or lump, which word is in the purer dialects lomp, from LOG-MA-PA, or logmpa, a collection, a thick as- semblage of matter or substance ; clompa, once clogampa, a collection ; clog, a mass of wood ; CLOGw, a round gathered mass, a clew ; clogb- SA, globs, globus, a round collected body, are from clag and glag, gather together. The Latin glomus was once glogmus or glogmer, a rolling together. Glag, seize, produced the Celtic glac, a catch of the han:l, or of any thing, as of two hills approaching one another. The catch, which a dog makes at food, is call- ed to GLAM or GLAUM, Originally glacm. Milk, in Celtic, is leachd, that which is drawn by the seizure of the hand. It is the preterite participle of LAG or Lac, and was formerly lacda or lagda ; but the Greek galact is from glac, the com- pound. Lag, strike, with sa, makes slag, which has a numerous progeny of many senses in all the dialects ; and plag with the same sa forms splag, to dash asunder. The words splay, spread, or broad ; and splash, to drive liquids with a blow. ^76 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. are better known than the Latin planus and PLAUTUs» which were once plagnos and plog- TOS. Rule 1. — Blag, plag, flag, and wlag, follow lag in its different senses, and are used for it in the different dialects. Glag, clag, and hlag or CHLAG, observe the same laws with blag, &c. as do likewise dlag, tlag, and tiilag. Slag also follows lag, and splag or sblag plag. Brag, PLAG, frag or PHRAG, and WRAG, all bear the va- rious meanings of rag ; and so do grag, crag, and ciiRAG ; srag, strag, sprag, and sthlag ; and add greatly to the force of its expression. Smag follows mag, snag nag, and scag cwag, move violently. Drag, trag, and thrag, obey the rules of rag. The following Scotch phrases are very expressive of the power of these combinations : — A blash of snaw. A lash of rain. He fell with a plash. He slash'd through moor and moss. He came down with a clash. It gaid down wi' a brash, or the cups gaid a' to brash. The needle rash'd into her hand. They drave it a* to smash. Gie us nane o' your nash, or nane o' your snash, viz. none of your chattering noise. To chatter like a monkey is, in some dialects of the Teutonic, called snat- TERN. A screed of cloth. He sprachled up the brae. A strag o' hair. He dravvples on the road. Rule 2. — All these words have, in every dia- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 277 lect, undergone the changes peculiar to their primi- tives, and have received all the consignificatives. For instance, as lag became lab, lac, lach, lad, LATH and LAT, LAF, LAP, LAH, LAJ, LAL, LAM, LAN, LAR, LAS, instead of lag-ba, lag-aga, LAGD, LAGT, LAG-LA, LAG-MA, LAG-NA, LAGSA ; so SLAG, Strike, lay flat, smooth, &c. &c. became SLAB, SLAF, and SLAP, SLAC, SLAED, SLAM, SLAN, SLAs, most of which are found in Teutonic, and all in one or other of the dialects. The same word has these varieties in the slender vowel. In Saxon we have slip, move down ; slid, smooth ; SLIM, beaten till it be thin ; sliht, beaten into a thin unsubstantial state ; both of which words mean thin, light, useless^ because too thin. Other dia- lects furnish other deiivatives of slig. Rule S. — These derivatives of the compound words became verbs, and underwent a ternary state, of a new and more special signification. To slabber, to stammer, to slumber, to grapple, to smatter, to wrong, to shudder, shiver, shrink, blink, flinch, glitter, glimmer ; to blossom ; are ter- nary or quaternary derivatives of slab, wetness ; STAM in Gothic, stopped or stopping in speech ; SLOM for sLiPOM, pertaining to sleep, sleepy ; GRAP, to catch ; smat for smagt, stripe, or speak thickly ; wrag or wrog, to twist by force out of the straight course. The immediate verb is wring, from wraging, of which the preterite participle is 278 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. WRONG, distorted. Shudder is from scud, shake, and that from scag or scwag, agitate forcibly and terribly. Shiver is from scif, shake, a diminutive of sciG. Shrink is from scrinc, a contraction of SCRIGING, from scRiG, lessen. Crig is the origi- nal of the Celtic crion, waste, decay. A shrunk object, is one sunk by wearing down its parts. In Scotland, shrunk wood is sometimes called after the Celtic crynt timmer. To blink is from BLiG,to dart light or lightning, of which blight is the Eng- lish, derivative ; but blink is a contraction of blig- ING or bligincg, as the Saxons wrote and pro- nounced it. Flinch, in the older language flinc, is a contraction of flig, to move, fly, change ; of which flit, to remove from a place is common Scotch, as flit for fligt, to fly in short or quick movements, is ordinary English. To flinch is to de- sert place, to yield place. Glitter is from gligd, a flash of light, of which the radical is glig, shine. Glimmer is from gleom, light. The word stands for gligma, a lightening, a making of light. Blossom is from blag, blow, shoot forth, open as if by in- flation. Blag formed blogt, a thing blown, and BLOTSA, to produce a bloom. Blotsom is the ope- ration of flowering, or the flower itself. The Latin flo, I blow, produced flos, a thing blown ; and the Greek anthos and aotos are from the ancient present and preterite participles of Ao, I blow, of \Vhich the radical is ah or ag. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 279 Such is a specimen of the manner in which the compounds above mentioned multiph'ed new terms ; and I state this part of the history of language with the utmost certainty, as I have examined their appearance in meaning and form, in the Teutonic, Celtic, Cymraig, Latin, Greek, Slavic, and Sanscrit, so far as I have had access to that venerable dialect. As the accession made to speech, by this class of words, was important ; the reader's attention may be called to that part of it, which regards the strength of sound, and the mas- culine turn, which the use of them gives to the fol- lowing quotations : Or Elivagom Spruffo eiir-dropir Sva ox uunz varth or lotunn Enn sioYd Jlei/gthi Or Suth-heimi Hyrr gaf hrimi fior From Hell-waves Sprung poison drops. Which grew till there was from them a giant; And with sparks flown From the southern habitation. The heat gave to the hoarfrost life. Eddoy Ode IF. Stanza 31. He spahe : and to confirm his words outfleiv Millions oijiaming swords, draim fi-om the thighs 280 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Of mighty cherubim ; the sudden blaze Far round ilkimind Hell: highly they raged Against the Highest^ and fierce with grasped arms. Clashed on their sounding shields., the din of war Hurling defiance towards the vault of Heaven. Paradise Lost, Book I. The sole ysowpite into wattir wak. The firmament ourecast with cludis black, The ground fadit and fouch wox al the fieldis, Mountane toppis slekit with snaw, ouer heildis On raggit rolk is of hard harsk quhyn stane^ V^'iXh Jrosyn Jrontis cald clynty clevois schane ; Bewty was loist, and barrand schew the landis. With frostis hare ouerfret the fieldis stands ; Thik dnimly skuggis dirkinnit so the heuin. Dim skyis oft furth warpit fereful leuin Flaggis of fire and mony felloun^atc, Scharp soppis of sleit and of the snyppand snaxv : The dolly dykis war al donk and wate. The law vaVis Jlodderit all wyth spate, The plane streitis, and every hie way. Full ofjluschis, dubbis, myre, and clay, Laggerit legis wallowit fernis schetv, Brown muris kythit thare wissinyt mossy hew ; Bank, bray, and boddum blanschit wox and bare. For gourl waddir grovoit beistis hare. Gavoin Douglas, Prologue to 1th Book of Virgil's Eneid, The soil was drenched in water soft, The firmament overcast with black clouds ; The ground faded, and yellow grew all the fields ; Mountain tops sleeked with snow, are overspread. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 281 On ragged rocks of hard harsh whinstone ; Cold stony steeps shone with Irozen faces ; Beauty was lost, and the lands appeared barren : The fields stand fretted over with gray frosts. Thick muddy shades darkened so the heavens. Dim skies oft shot forth obliquely fearful lightning. Flashes of fire, and many a cruel gust ; Sharp blasts of sleet and of the biting snow. The sad stone- fences were all dripping and wet; The low vales flooded all Avith inundation from the heights. The plain streets, and every highway. Full of streams, standing pools, mire, and clay; Wet common fields showed withered fern. Brown moors declared their wizen'd mossy colour ; Bank, hillside, and plain below it, grew blanched and bare; The hair of beasts trembled on account of the cold coarse weather. In this passage of a celebrated Scotish poet, the phrase wattir wak is of great antiquity, and bor- rowed from the Saxon bards. See Lye's Diction. voc, Wac. Wox is the same as ox in the Ice- landic passage, and fealh is in Saxon fealth, dun-red, whence fallow-deer. The radicals of the words in Italics are clag, gather ; blag, fail, be deficient ; grag, grow ; SLAG, strike level ; snag, drive on ; frag, be- come stiff, also to stretch out the front ; frog, to eat into, indent, adorn ; clag or clig, cleave stones or the ground ; skig or scig, dart, cast light, cast an eye upon, look, appear, show ; 282 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. discern, divide, distinguish. Drag, toss, trou- ble, vex, (drumly water or clouds ;) scag, cover, shade, overcloud ; scig, cover the sky ; flag, blow like a gust of wind, flash as fire j scag, cut, divide ; sceager or sceor, sheer, cutting ; scEORPA, cutting with point or edge. Slag, dash ; slagt, sleet ; snag, catch, snatch, seize hard, pinch, nip ; dash on ; flag, flow, go as mov- ing liquid ; flogd, flowed, a flood ; floder, to put in a flood, a very expressive term, " The grund a' fluidest." Flag, a Latin form of flag and blag, lay out, extend as even soil. Strag, to stretch, spread, spread as matter upon roads. Flush is from flogsc a flowed place. Dub, is from DWAG-BA or DUB A, Water, in Cymraig duvk, or DYFR. Clay is from clag, to make wet or moist, whence claggit, lagger'd, clagger'd, clart*- ED. The Latin lutum is for lagtum or log- tum, what is wet. Bray is from braidh, viz. BRAG, to stretch out, as the declivity of a hill juts out. Blank, white, the origin of blanch, is from blaec, and that from blag or blig, which means both to shine, and to lack or fail. Blaec is defective in colour, black or blue ; but blaec white, pale, seems to be related to laec, in Greek, leucos or laucos, shining white. How- ever that may be, wan in Teutonic is deficient, dark, gray, pale, livid ; so bleak, and black, and 10 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. S83 blanch, may possibly be all from blag, fail, lack, want. The compounds scag, strag, sprag, are among the most powerful of this kind of words. The sc, in Visigothic sk, in Low Dutch sch, pronounced s-h, in German sch, and in English SH, of equal sound ; is in Greek x and sc, in San- scrit csH, and in Slavic s-ch or sh-ch, marked by a single letter, and sounded as in the English name Ash-church. This fact must be noted at- tentively, as it is the key of the history of the de- rivatives of scag or sciG, and marks a law of arti- culation. Skyr or scYR, a sheer, a razor in Saxon, is xuRos in Greek, and cspur in Sanscrit. The Sanscrit verbs cshi, waste, move ; cshub, agitate, and all others beginning with csh, are found to be XEO and xao in Greek, and sceag, sceaf, sceop, &c. shake, agitate, cut, divide, shave, shear, in Teutonic. Note 2 G. p. 42. Proofs of this may be found in the conversation of the most illiterate peasant. Though he know nothing of the separate senses of er, ly, ing, ed, and other terminations, he can apply them with sufficient accuracy ; and whoever has attended to the unfettered conversation of that class of people, must have been often amused with the regularity and justness of their new terms. In the heat of 284! FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. imagination, they frequently display instances of the inimitable felicity in this respect of the early poets. The accuracy of their extemporary com- binations is always in proportion to their know- ledge of the component parts. How regular, then, must have been the combinations of words, which were made in the first ages, when every man knew the sense of the modifying terms, and could ma- nage them widi as great skill as we at present join substantives and adjectives ? As verbs, expressive of motion, action, and force, were the first words ; all nouns or names of objects were verbals. An indication of active per- formance occurred in every term ; and objects, na- turally considered as inanimate or passive, were named from their qualities, which acted on the senses. For example, lag meant a stone, accord- ing to the formers of language, because it was split or rifted. Lag, strike, cut, divide, split, gave LAG, a clift, a split rock. The quality of splitting, or undergoing splitting, was viewed as in the stone, on which account lag-sa and lap-sa, laas or lapis, cliff', were considered as active. Our splinter, that which makes itself into splints, is every way illustrative of this fact, which is universal in the formation of language. Stains in Visigothic, and STAiNA in Saxon, arc for staganasa, and sta- GAN-A : SA and a mean each he, or a personal agent : stagana is the preterite participle of stag. FACTS AND ILLUSTIIATIONS. 285 stand, be firm, stiff; so stanis is he, or the agent who stiffens, or has become by action hard, viz. a stone. Lag-sa is a rifted rock ; and lapis is a deriva- tive of lagsa : CLACH, a stone, is the same as lag, from CLAG, cleave ; in Saxon cliffa and clipsa. Rock is from rag, spHt. It is rog-a, rag- a, rag-s or ROG-s, and c-rag in the oldest dialects. These names are not neuter, but active and personal. E-uPEs or ROPES is a derivative of rag or rog, analogous to lapis, from lag. Stia, a pebble in Greek, was formerly stig-a, she that resists the touch, or is hard. There are no neuter nouns in Celtic, nor in the Arabic dialects ; nor were there many in the oldest English or Saxon. Most names of objects and actions were masculine or feminine, in all the earliest European and Asiatic tongues. Note 2 H. p. 42. All words being at first names of orders of action, it required a particular process to modify these, so as to express individual properties. In savages tribes, the qualities of the mind or body are the base of pro- per names. After language is formed, such names are fanciful enough. One warrior is the eagle, an- other the hound, a third the tiger of their horde. The brown, the red, the grey, the lame, the fat, the lean hero, (for bodily defects are often signs of dis- tinction, not of reproach, in that state of society ;) 286 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. are natural appellations ; but none of these can be given, till the words have been invented and ap- plied to the qualities of man and the world around him. Much less can such terms as self, same, pro- per ; or I, thou, he, she ; be common until some ge- neral term be modified into their particular sense. Holding, having, grasping, keeping, are the roots of words which imply possession. Hab, seize, hold, have^ is common in Latin and Visigothic. Ag, hold, have, own, is common in all the Teutonic dialects, as ic age, I possess, I have ; and its parti- ciples AGEND, having ; and agan, or agn, had ; are as frequent in Anglo-Saxon as echo, I have, in Greek. The Sanscrit ap, have, obtain, get ; which, in Latin, is apiscor, or adepiscor, ad- eptus ; deserves the more notice that ap is selfm modern Hindostani, an elegant dialect of the an- cient Indian. The Sanscrit aham, I, was once agam, and the same as ego, and ik, L The word SWA, svA, from swag, rule, regulate, govern, hold, sway ; is found in every dialect. According to the genius or particular turn of some of these, it has been changed into sa, ho, hos (for sw^as,) so ; and san, KHUi, for svi. In Greek it is sphe, and observe that sw becomes, in that dialect, sph or sf, as sphaira for SWAIRA ; sfingo for swingo ; sphura for svvura ; spiiendone for swindona, a swing, a sling. The origin of samo, same, is finely observable in San- scrit, in which syah, sya, tyad ; and its contrac- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 287 tion SAH, SA, TAD ; signify that masculine, femi- nine, neuter. Any person may see that these are the SA, so, thata, of the Visigothic ; and the no, HA, TO, of the Greek. The connection between SYAH and SVA, self, own, proper, which is declined SVAH, SVA, SVAM, is obvious ; and the origin of same is discovered in svayam, self, himself, herself, &c. — Wilkins' Sans. Gram. p. 555. Every Greek or Gothic student knows that no, he, to ; and sa, so, thata ; mean that, and are used in Homer and Ulfila for who, which, what. Proper, possessive, own, self, same, who, which, this, (Celtic so,) are various meanings of swa. The idea of property or peculiarity is implied in the vv^ord swa and its compounds, in every dialect. Swes is a neuter word in Visigothic, and signifies goods, substance. See the parable of the prodigal son in the translation of the Gospels by Ulfila. It frequently occurs in his version, and in the Saxon, under the forms of swes and swAEs, own, proper ; as lamba swesa, neuter plural ; in Latin oves piiopriae; and gawasidedun iNA WASTYOM swESAiM, they clotlicd him, proprhs vestibus, with his own clothes. The most common derivative of swa is SUMS, suma,sumata, certus-a- UM ; or QUIDAM, QU^.DAM, QUODAM ; SUMS MANN, a certain, a particular man. Sum is from swam, and is found in all the Teutonic dialects. Sama and samo, idem, eadem ; has in Slavonic the sense of SUM ; for SAMO is in Russian self, and samka is kind, 288 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. sort, sex. Liobite samago sebya is to love, (of) his own self; samo-liobie, self-love; sameii niski, the very lowest or nethermost ; sametse and SAMKA, the male and female of animals, that is those of their own sort or kind. In Greek heos- A-ON is SUUS-A-UM, Or SWESA, SWESO, SWESATA, in English own. Sphe, pse, and spheis, stand for swE, and swesans, selves. The Celtic so and sann, this and here ; se and sa, self, as in mise, myself; SIN, that ; are all from swa, which in most dialects has run the course of contraction exemplified in SWA, swE, so, sae, viz. in same manner. So died the brave, was formerly swa died the brave, in thaty in same self manner, which last sense is found. As he died, so died she ; al-swa (for Mr Tooke's al-es, from the German, is inaccurate) died he, SWA died she. The Greek adverb is hoo's for swais. From these facts it appears, that self, same, or own, may be a personal pronoun of any description, either I, or thou, or he ; or a demonstrative pro- noun signifying this or that ; or a relative, who, which, that, as the man same, or self, did it ; or a possessive pronoun, meaning his, her, thy ; or my, or their own. Ag, agama, and agana, proper, peculiar, self, had all these significations, which are still preserved in one or other dialect, and which were originally found in the primitive tongue. In Saxon, and the other Teutonic varieties, agn, awn, own, is as com- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 289 mon as swes. In Greek, ego ; formerly aga, AEGA, and IGA ; signifies myself; and autos, anciently agodsa, agots, is self. The Celtic A, whoy was AG, same, self. In Visigotliic ei or I, who, which, that ; is a relict of aga or aha, same, who ; which in Sanscrit is ayam, iyam, ida.^i, this ; and yah, ya, yad, who, masculine, feminine ; and what or which, neuter. Eshah, esiia, etad ; Hic, haec, hoc j is also from agta, self, same. This and which, the relative and demonstrative, point out their sense of same, or self same, as very appropriate to mark this very thing, same in place with ourselves, and likewise the same thing, which had been antecedently mentioned. A very ingenious writer, the reviewer of Dr Jamieson's Scottish Dic- tionary, (Edinburgh Review, No. XXVII. p. 121,) is inclined to derive the relative and demonstrative pronouns from the participle said ^ but, besides that said is a derivative word in a secondary sense, being the preterite participle of saeg, say, which is from saeg, put forth, exert, move speech, or sound, from SWAG, or sweg ; it appears, on inquiry, that SWA, self, same, is the original of these words, a term of the same sense as thwag, take, hold j ag, hold J and hwag or wag, which produced the other terms of similar application in the various dialects. The philologist, as he advances in general know- edge of the European tongues, will discover, that VOL. T. T 290 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Hw, in Teutonic, is almost always ka or ca in Cel- tic, Latin, Greek, Sanscrit, Persic, and Slavonic. The Gothic pronoun hwas, hwo, and hwata, is Quis, QUAE, QUOD in Latin ; kos-ka-ko in old Greek ; co, cia, ciod, who, whichy what, in Celtic ; KE, who, and che, which, in Persic ; kto, (ke-to, who, that,) who ; ktoreii, who, which, in Slavic ; and kah ka kad, who, masculine, feminine, which or what, in Sanscrit. It might be believed, from such a number of coinciding dialects, that kah, QUI, 01 QUIS, were the purest forms of this pro- noun ; but the contrary appears from accurate in- vestigation, not of this, but of many other words. HuND, for TAiHUN-TEHUND, is seusc, that is to say, explicable in Visigothic j in the other dialects, CENTUM, HECATON, CEUD, &c. are inexplicable. HuND, a dog, from hend, catch, pursue, in Visi- gothic and Saxon, the Greek cuoN, Latin canis, Celtic cu, have nothing but an arbitrary significa- tion. Cutis, cos, clunis, celo, citra, calx, CALAMUS, caput, CAPio, are, in Teutonic, iiydi or HYD, a covering, a skin j hwets, a sharping stone ; HLEND, the loin, hip ; HELA, I cover j hithra, hither, on this side j hel, the heel, rise of the foot ; HEALM, stalk, stem ; iieofod, head j haba, 1 seize, all deducible from earlier verbs. In Latin, and the dialects resembling it, they have no histo- rical meaning. The word silda, ipse, silbo ipsa, in English FACTS AND iLtUSTBATIONS. 291 self, stood for any person, because self is common to all persons. It is formed from swag, self, first by adding la, swala, in Latin solus, by himself, that is alone ; then by joining ba, whicli made swalba or swAELBA, and silba, property, selfiiess. In Celtic, sealbii is property in cattle, the only wealth of ancient times. The ingenious speculations respecting self and soul, " the conscious thinking thing, capable of happiness or misery," made by Sir William Jones, according to Locke's definition, and countenanced by the similarity of these words, and by the use of NEFES or NUFS, breath, soul or life, for self m Arabic, are not confirmed by philology. Silba is property, peculiarity, self, same ; but soul is from saiwalo in Visigothic, and sawel in the other Teutonic dialects, and means the perception or dis- cernment. It is from saiwa, originally swag or swaha, take, apprehend, catch. Perceiving with the eye, or any sense ; perceiving a difference between ideas, or perceiving conclusions arising from them, including sensation, perception, judgment, and rea- soning, all went under the appellation of taking, NoN percipioy oculis, tactu, gustu, auribus, OLFACTU ; NON CAPIO MENTE, NON APPREHENDO, NON ARRiPio SENSUM, are negative uses of the words PREHENDo and CAPIO, catch; perfectly analogous to the first phraseology of the mind. The words taste, see, feel, think, mind, are from twag, take by ^92 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. touch, which was originally twac, twig, twitch, ToocH ; thence tagst, the origin of taster, to grope or feel ; from swag, sag, saeg, and SAEH, seize, catch with hand, eye, mind ; from FAHLAN, a derivative of fag, catch, whence fang and finger, a catcher ; from thing, a derivative of thig or thwig, in Sanscrit dhai, in Greek doc, in Visigothic thugk, take, catch, apprehend. Me thincath is docei moi, it shows, it seems, that is, it makes me take an opinion. Doceo, I seem, is a casual verb, and means I make another talce an opinion by my appearance. It is the same as T.iECAN, to point out in Saxon, and deico, 1 show in Greek ; for to show, or seem, mean that we make others apprehend a thing, or that we maintain an exterior calculated to excite a particu- lar opinion. Mynd, gemynde, gemunod, is from munan in Gothic, to take, to hold, which applies to perception, to memory, to recollecting, or mak- ing others mind, whence moneo, I remind. Note 2 I. p. 43. Thwag, take, possess, produced thwa, thua, and tho, or tiiu, self^ thou, or he, or she, &c. Tiio was preferred to so in the oblique cases of the Teutonic, Greek, and Sanscrit demonstrative pro- noun the, or that ; or, as it has been called, the article. The Visigothic, and indeed the common accusative singidar of tiiu, is tiiuk, or thek, FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. ^3 which is, I believe, the old nominative. The Vi- sigothic plural is Yus, or gus, which is from AG, or iG, not from thu. The Greeks used swa, or SPHE, in some cases of thu. The Sanscrit vah, you ; the Latin vos, from which voster, formed like CASTRUM, a camp, (cas, or ca, lie ; casite- RUM, a ligger, a lying-place,) or like pastor, a feeder, for pascitor ; are terminations of yuvas, or YUVAii, you. Nos, we, and na in Sanscrit, are relicts of vanas, or van ah, we ; originally waha- NANS, from WAH, self. Wahanans was contracted into wanans, wans, was, or weis, which last is the Visigothic j and into we, the modern first person plural. When pronouns began to be joined to verbs, those annexed were a for ah, or aga, 1 ; tha, thou, or SWA or sa, thou. I cannot determine whether the th of tha was not in some dialects changed into s, to which it is related in sound. Tha, or ta, was used for that man or woman, or that thing. The plurals WAH, MAH, WAS, and mahas, stood for we j and THA, redoubled into thata, and often con- tracted into adha, or changed into ete ; served for the plural of tha, thou. The plural the?/ was made by hwinda, or hwagenda, yon, yon same people ; which produced enti, andi, endi, ent, ANT, ONT, and by contraction, ouse, out, iot, and lOH, in all the dialects of this primeval tongue. When terminative vowels are of little importance. SQ'i FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. as to conveying the sense of a compound word, such as verbs combined with the pronouns are ; such vowels are deprived of accent, become slender, and in many cases are dropt. In many dialects mi, the termination of agama, or AGAMi, prevailed over ag, in common use. The Celtic, a very ancient European dialect of the ge- neral language, uses mi, I, thou ; se, or e, he ; SI, or I, she ; sinn, we -j sibh, you ; iad, they. From which it appears, that mi has superseded ag, in this variety ; and that swe, in the feminine swi, a common feminine termination, stand for ta and Ti, he and she ; sinn, originally swin, selves, for we ; SIBH, formerly swiba, same, or selves, for you ; and IAD, or iand, from heond, or hwagend. The Cymraig, or Welsh, has myvi for mimi, or mumu, I, that is, my-my ; tydi, thy-thy ; eve, he ; also HI, she ; ni, we ; chwi, you j hwynt, they. The pronoun redoubled indicates self; so my, I ; myvi, myself. Chwi stands swi, for in this dialect, as in Persic, the guttural ch is used in many instances instead of sw. The Welsh say chwaer, for swair, a sister ; chwech, for siieasii, six ; chwerw, for svvERW, sour, harsh ; ciiwegr, for socrus, or swaihra, a mother in-law ; ciiwiyio, for swifan, to move ; ciiwitii, or ©with, blow. The same na- tion changes s into ii, and say, hwn, hon, iiyn, for sun, son, SAN, this, this same, analogous to so in Celtic. Hwn, iion, iiyn, are iiic, iiiEC, hoc, in FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 295 Latin, as to sense, but I do not think that hwn and Hic are of the same origin. In Persic, men is I ; to is thou ; o, or oe, is he and she. The plurals are ma, shuma, and ishan. In Slavic, ya, or ia, is I ; tei, thou j one, he j MEi, we ; VEi, you ; oni, they. Most of the dia- lects related to the Persian, especially the Slavic and Finnish, resemble it in their pronouns. The Greek AUTOS, self ; the Welsh eiddo, (pronounce eitho,) and the Greek adjective idios, idia, idion, pecu- LiARis, suus, and in English, own, proper, private, are from agsds, possessive, and igd, property. A farther account of the pronouns will be found un- der the particular sections of this work allotted to the various dialects of the language. Note 2 K. p. 44. There are probably no languages, except such as are monosyllabic, and such rs have lost their terminations by long corruption, that are destitute of cases or inflexions. The English and Persic have lost these, by undergoing the fate of the La- tin tongue, on the dissolution of the empire. Be- sides the effects of revolutions, there is a tendency in all languages towards the use of auxiliary words, in declining nouns and verbs, occasioned by the difficulty of applying properly the terminations, invented by the framers of speech. 296 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. In all the dialects from Ireland to India, the terminations of nouns consist of single or com- pound consignificatives, which give the radical its adjective or attributive sense, and fit it for an appel- lative word. There is no real difference between substantives and adjectives, both being expressive of qualities of objects, except that the word, adjective- ly used, takes an additional consignificative, to mark the male or female or neuter agent. The noun is an adjective of one termination. What is asserted above respecting the genitive is derived from examination of the facts discernible in the various dialects, supported by an analysis of geni- tive terminations. In the Hindustani, a modern Perso-Sanscrit dialect of great utility, the genitive is a regular adjective, varying its gender and num- ber according to those of the governing word. Thus RAJA-KA BETA, a king's son ; raja-ki bett, a king's daughter ; rajaon-ka beta, a son of prin- ces 5 RAJAON-KE BETE, SOUS of priuCCS j RAJAON-KI BETi, a daughter of princes, &c. See Dr Gil- christ's Stranger's East Indian Guide to the Hin- doostancc, Calcutta, 1802, p. 23. Rule 26; an excellent practical work, in which that dialect is ex- plained on the principles of a pronouncing dic- tionary, with great conciseness and ingenuity. I have borrowed from it this observation, respecting the affinity of the genitive and adjective termina- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 297 tions. In Hindustani, the cases are mostly made by prepositional words annexed rather than joined to the noun. In Visigothic, we have the cases in all their stages of perfection, semi-decay, and approaching evanescence ; some regular, others broken, others much corrupted. "We may trace in it those inci- pient defects, which are almost universal in the Anglo-Saxon, a dialect much allied to it, but trans- mitted to us in more recent monuments. We find in Ulfila*s version some genitives perfect and regular, as ahmins, of a spirit ; manageins, of a many or multitude ; cwinons, of a woman ; fu- nins, of fire ; others in which the n is elided, and which resemble the Greek and Latin genitives in IS and OS, for example, himinis, of heaven ; fra- WAURHTAis, of a bad work ; sunaus, of a son ; MANS, of a man 5 gauris, of a sad man, an ad- jective masculine, all of which have the genitive in IS. In Saxon and the later Teutonic dialects, we find even the s dropt in certain nouns, which brings these words into resemblance with the Latin genitives in AE, and the Greek genitives in a. In Saxon sunu, a son, has suna, of a son, of which the Visigothic nominative is sunus, genitive sunaus; wiLN,aslave- girl ; wiLNE, of a girl ; witega, a prophet ; wite- GAN, of a prophet. Remark in witega the for- mation of the genitive by na, one part of na-sa. Finally, some words in the Teutonic dialects have W 298 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. the nominative and genitive similar, a circumstance which arises from coincidence of termination, as BAURGs, a town, BAURGs, of a town, for baurgins and BAURGis, or from gross corruption, favoured by the clearness of sense ; as modor brothr, a mother's brother ; faeder land, a father's land ; swistar suNA, a sister's son. The genitive is in such cases elided through negligence j and the two nouns form a sort of compound term. I am happy to be able, in this place, to confirm the opinion of a very eminent classical scholar re- specting the genitive case. It may be found at the close of the Preface to Dr Hunter's edition of Virgil, published at St Andrews in 1800. That most acute writer expresses himself in the following words : " Itaque genitivi formam antiquissimam, unde omnes deinceps aliae quae usu sunt, levibus admo- dum mutationibus, gradatim provenerunt, rem grammaticis, tam veteribus, quam recentioribus adhuc intactam, paucis indicare operae pretium erit. Haec igitur genitivi forma antiquissima, quam declinatio tertia adhuc plerumque servat, de- sinebat in is ; ut aura, aura-is ; animos, animo- is ; labor, olim labors, labor-is ; fructus, fructu-is ; dies, die-is. Postea vcl duos vocales in unam syl- labam coibant, vel s elidebatur, vel dcnique, utrumque simul. Ita ex aura-is, factum est vel aur-as, ut paterfamilias ; vel aura-i, et postremo aur- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 299 ae, quod enunciatum videtur aur-ai : ex animo-is, eliso s, animoi, quod est anim-i ; ut in plurali etiam numero, ex anem-oi et anem-ois facta sunt anim-i et anim-is. In declinatione tertia s plerumque re- tinetur ; interdum, ut in Achill-i, Oront-i, eliditur. In quarta cornu-facit vel corn-us, contractum pro cornu-is ; vel, absque s, cornu, contractum pro cornui. Eodem modo ex die-is factum vel di-es, (vid. A. Gell. IX. 14.) vel die-i, et postremo, vel ,di-i vel di-e prout, vocalis vel prior vel posterior ab altera absorpta fuerit." Every sentence of this remarkable passage is conformable to the fact, and proven both by the older forms of Greek and Latin nouns, to which Dr Hunter refers his readers, and by the most an- cient remains of the Teutonic dialects, the most incorrupt of all the varieties of European speech. In Visigothic, ins, is, ais, and eis, are the com- mon genitive terminations, in almost every noun. The Greek genitive in os is scarcely so pure as the Latin one in is. The existence of es or as in the first Greek declension is a sufficient proof, by itself, of Dr Hunter's account. It must never be forgotten, that the genitive is a mere adjective form, that dies domin-icus, ignis, vestalis, the Arctic circle, the milky way, the braz- en image, the Doric order, the angelic nature, and all similar constructions, are instead of domini dies, ignis vestae, the circle of Arctos, the way SOO FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. of milk, (milc-ig waeg, for meolces waeg, or MiLKiNASA WEGS,) the image of brass, the order of Doris, the nature of an angel, and the like of others ; only, the adjective made by one or more consignificatives sometimes conveys a diminished sense of the noun. For instance, milc-ig, milk- having, does not always mean pertaining to milk, but having the nature of milk, that is, an inferior portion of its nature. Wheat is the direct name of a grain; but wheat Y, of old wheat-ig, a word once very common as a noun in Scotland, means poor inferior wheat. Wif, a common Teutonic name for a woman, has the adjective wif-ig, wife-have, that is not a wife, but having the quality or nature of a wife, and, by transference, a wifie, a little wife. The German word for this diminutive is weiblein, originally weibeling. It follows from these ex- amples, which mark a general fact in all the dia- lects of Europe and India, that though adjectives, such as dominicus, regalis, aereus, &c. may be sub- stituted for the genitive, yet, on account of cer- tain powers in their consignificatives, they are aj)t to convey a sense rather different from that of mere connection between one substantive and an- other. The genitive was, notwithstanding this, an adjective made by na-sa, ra-sa, and perhaps aga or AGO, till it acquired a distinct character by corruption. The identity of the genitive singular and nomi- TACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 301 native plural is abundantly certain, not only from the older, but the later forms of the words, in all the dialects. The coincidence of pennae, of a pen, and pennae, pens ; generi, of a son in law, and generi, sons in law ; fructus, of fruit, and FRUCTUs, fruits ; and the close resemblance of ser- MONis and sermones ; are supported by the ancient Greek and Visigothic declensions. It is demon* strable, that the accusative plurals, in all the dia- lects, contain no preposition. In Visigothic, these and their nominatives are uniformly the same, both terminating in ans, uns, eins, ons, os, or a, neuter, as convenience may direct ; and it is no presumptuous assertion to declare, that the Latin and Greek accusatives in as, os, ous, es, and the like, were formerly ans, ons, ins, or ens, and simi- lar to the nominatives, the history of which may be traced from internal evidence. An account of the ancient Greek and Latin inflections of cases is given in the second part of this work. All that is worthy of additional observation here is, that many of the Visigothic nominatives plural retain the broad vowel, which, in the genitive, has sunk into a slender sound. So ahmans, spirits, ahmins, of a spirit ; himinans, heavens, himinis, of heaven ; handuns, hands, handaus, of a hand. Visigothic neuters, like those in Greek and La- tin, have A in the plural, but the genitive singular is regularly in ins : so augo, an eye ; genitive 302 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS, AUGiNS, dative augin, accusative as nominative, nominative and accusative plural, augona, eyes, AUGONE, of eyes, augom, to eyes. In Latin, Greek, Teutonic, Slavic, and Sanscrit, all neuter genitives and datives, in either number, are the same as those in the masculine. Note 2 L. p. 45. The dual has been reckoned with some justice an unnecessary number. It has faded from the Latin, Celtic, all the modern Teutonic dialects, and the Greek of the Roman empire. It is found in all the ancient dialects of the Teutonic, Greek, and San- scrit, though not equally used in each of them. In Greek and Sanscrit, the masculine nominative dual generally ends in o long. The feminine nomini- tive dual is in a in Greek, in ai or o in Sanscrit, Sanscrit neuter duals generally end in ai. Many Greek feminine words have e short in the dual. Note 2 M. p. 46. At the beginning of the second stage of language, the practice of repeating the noun was probably con- tinued until the addition of the consignificatives to the word superseded it. Ag, water, had no plural except AG, AG, AG ! water, water, water ; until it was compounded with na and sa, which formed the adjective aganasa or agans. This word signified water-wrought, or watered j and, like the other 4 FACTS AND ILLUSTIiATIONS. 303 orders formed by ag, da, na, ba, &c, assumed a place in the language, as an attributive noun, de- scriptive of an object and its relations. To perceive the full force of the compound, it is necessary, first, to consider agana, and then agana-sa. Agana has the nature of giba-na, given ; cwima-na, come; DREiBA-NA, driven. As vaulted, tented, pointed, crested, wooden, earthen, oaten, do not merely sig- nify that the act of vaulting, tenting, pointing, crest- ing, making into wood, earth, or oats, is or has been done ; but likewise having a vault, a tent, a point, a crest, having or being wood, earth, and oats; so agana means watery, put into the state of water, having the quality of water. The addition of sa, work, act, makes the adjective more active in sense, and gives it that operating power which the found- ers of language were always eager to express. When the adjective was formed it served equally for an at- tributive noun of number or connection. Agans, runs ; signified the water's race or course, and many waters. In later ages ag became ah, and a or ae, and AiiWA or aqua, which last are derivative. Ahwos, for AHWONS, waters, is found in Ulfila's version. " Yah at-iddya dalath rign, yah cwemun ahwoSj yah waiwoun windos, yah bistungcwun bi thamma razna yainamma. yah ni gadraus, unte ga- sulith was an staina." — Matth. Chap. vii. v. 25. " And rain came down, and waters came, and winds blew, and they struck on that house. And it fell not, for it was founded on a rock." Aiiwos, SOi FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. waters ; and windos, winds, are nominatives to cwEMUN, they came, from cwim, move, and wai- wouN, they blew, an original preterite of wai, blow, Wagend, or WAIENDS, blowing, is the ancient form of winds, or ventus, he who blows, he who is blowing. Bistungcwun is the preterite of bi- STiNGCWAN, to stab, stick, dash on, in Latin stin- GUERE. Razna and staina are datives of razn, for RAEREN, a thing reared or raised ; and stain, STAGEN, a thing fixed, a stone. Thamma is equal to TOi, and yainamma to ekeinoi, signifying to the, and to that, in Greek. Example of a Visigothic adjective declined. Gaurs, sorrowful, from gewohs ; in Greek, goos, vexation, sorrow ; whence goeros, the same as gaurs. The Visigothic au was pronounced like OMicRON, accented acutely, in Greek. Singular. Masc. Fern. Kent. Nom. Gaurs Gaura Gaur. Gen. Gauris Gaiirizos Gavu'is. Dat. Gauramma Gaui'ai Gauramma. Ace. Gaurana Gaui*a Gaur. Foe. Same as nominative P LURAL. Masc. Fern. Neiit. Nom. Gaurai Gauros Gaiu'a. Gen. Gauraize Gauraizo Gauraize. Dat. Gauraim Gauraim (jauraiui. Ace. Gaurans (jauros Gaura. Foe. Same as nominative. ^FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 305 The Visigotlilc dialect in many instances changes R into z. GAURizosand GAURAizE,in the Saxon dia- lect, would be GAURiRos and gauraire, these cases being made with ra, a common consignificative. GoDES, GODRA, GODEs, are BONi, BONiE, BONi ; and GODRA is BONORUM-ARUM-ORUM, in oui' own ancicBt language. Note 2 N. p. 46. The Visigothic shows the dative in all its varie- ties of change from ma and im to in, ein, ai, and A ; as iMMATA, to him ; gauramma, to a sorrowful man or object ; ahmin, to a spirit ; managein, to a multitude ; himina, to heaven ; galaubainai, to belief; gaurai, to a sorrowful woman ; wastyai, to a garment ; handau, or hando, to a hand. In Latin and Greek, the dative, in its oldest form that has been pi'eserved, ended in i, as tima-i, to honour or value ; penna-i, to a pen or feather ; generoi or generoe, to a son-in-law ; regnoe, to a kingdom ; cuRioi, to an arbiter, master ; logo-i, to a speech ; sermoni, or SERMONEi, to a connected harangue ; SEDiLEi, to a seat ; soterei, to a saver ; fructui, to increase, fruit ; ret, or reei, to a matter. It ap- pears to me that all these words formerly ended in MA, which, by degrees, was changed into aim, oim, eim, and im, or uim, and at last dropt. The Teutonic and Slavic nations applied ma both to the singular and plural, but in the singular they VOL. I. u 306 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. , often dismissed the m, particularly in feminine words and others, where contraction removed a harsh sound, or an ambiguity in case. They said hi- MiNs, heaven, the elevated region ; himinis for HiMiNiNS, of heaven ; and himina, to heaven, for iiiMiNAMMA. Such Contraction removed the ca* cophony of harsh phrases ; as dagamma godamma, to a good day, and bagmamma ubilamma, to an evil tree, sound much more harshly than daga go- damma and BAGMA ubilamma. In all the Teu- tonic and Slavic dialects, substantive nouns and fe- minine adjectives are generally contracted in the dative singular, but the datives masculine and neu- ter of adjectives remain entire, and terminate in am- MA, AM, or OM J the vowel before ma, or m, being varied according to the particular terminations of the nominatives. The same causes, viz. the desire of euphony and variety, and the tendency to contraction, when any of the last syllables of the word resembled the con- significative, (as in HiMiN-iNS,) produced an abbre- viation of the cases in the Latin, Greek, Sanscrit, and Celtic. What arc called declensions in language, arise from the turn given to the contraction of the con- significatives of case, by the last syllables of nouns ; rather than from any real variety in the consignifi- cativcs themselves. Thus, in Latin, feminines in a exert a power over is, i, m, the consiguificativcs of FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 307 the genitive, dative, and accusative, singular, so as to make these ais, at, am ; while masculines in os make the same words to be ois, oi, and om. These were the old terminations of penna and dominus, in the cases here mentioned. General Ride. — In all the European and Indian dialects, the ancient genitive singular ended in ans, or in such contracted varieties of it as ins, ons, AENS, IS, OS, ES, A-IS, 0-IS, AE, OE, EE, AN, IN, ON, EN, UN, ASYA, and H, substituted for s. The dative singular of these dialects ended in ma or ba, or in such contractions of them as am, ab, im, iba, ibya, EBYA, OM, AIM, AIB, OIM, OIB ; and Al, 01, AE, OE, A, E, EI, 0, 01, I, IN, and the like. The accu- sative singular of those dialects ended in na, or in its varieties ana, ona, ina, eina ; an, in, on, en ; AM, IM, OM, UM J or a for A-NA, and the like. The vocative took its form, either from rapidly pronounc- ing the last syllables of the word in calling, or in dwelling on them, as is done in India. General Rule 2. — The nominative and accusa- tive plural of all the dialects were the very same as the genitive singular. They all terminated in ANS, but their varieties are numerous, such as ans, INS, ons, uns, eins; as, es, eis, IS, OS, us, ous ; an, EN, IN, ON, UN ; AE, AI, OI, E, I, AH, EH, IH, OH, and several others. The accusative and nomina- tive plural often differ, in modern as well as in an- cient dialects j but this arises wholly from corrup- 308 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. tion and love of distinction taken together. The accusative is for the most part purer than the no- minative. Pennas is purer than pennai ; dominos than DOMiNoi or domini ; soteras than soteres. This holds in all dialects. General Rule 3. — The genitive plural being formed by a consignificative, added to the nomina- tive plural, preserves some indication of the plural in many instances ; but as it was made by n a as well as by a or ag, the force of contraction has greatly destroyed its original forms. In Greek, Latin, and Sanscrit, na or its varieties, an, am, on, CM, were joined to the plural nominative, sa being always rejected. So regins or regin, kings ; re- gin-am, for regin-an, belonging to kings, of kings ; by contraction regom. When the noun had ins necessarily inherent in the nominative plural, as in the instances of words in is, originally igs, for example mitis ; or when the nominative was of old INS or Eis, as feliceis ; the plural was preserv- ed before om, as in mit-i-om and felic-i-om. In some instances, particularly in feminine words, the Teutones and Latins inserted ra before the genitive terminations. The Latins inserted ra before om, as in penna-r-om, domin or-om. The Teutones in- serted RA before os or is of the genitive feminine, as goderos or god r-a, of a good woman. In the genitive plural, they said gode ra, gode-ro, go- DERA ; bonorum-aruw-orum. But all these in" FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 309 sertions are to be viewed as comparatively recent, and as an extension of the compounding system, applied to prevent ambiguity. For th.e original forms PENNAi-oM and dominai-om, godai-a and goda-o, seem to have been on the verge of sliding into PENNAM, DOMINOM, GODA, GODE, and GODO, when this consignificative v^^as introduced to pre- serve the attributive or adjective sense. The Greek genitives timaon, kurion, bematon, and the Latin SERMONUM, sEDiLiuM, FRUCTUUM, are quite regular. The Sanscrit genitive plural always ends in am, and frequently in nam, the n being the sign of the nominative preserved before am. Genitives, made by A or AG, have, in some dialects of the Teutonic, and in many instances in Slavonic and Celtic, suf- fered so much from contraction, that all traces of the plural are lost, and the word itself is as short as if it were a nominative singular. Example in Icelandic, as, for ans, a deity, a god ; genitive singular, asis, of a god ; dative, asi, to a god ; nominative plural, asar, gods ; genitive plural, asa, of gods ; dative, asom, to gods ; which, in the very first ages, would have been ans, ANsms, ansima, in the singular ; and in the plural, ansans or ansins ; genitive, ansana ; dative, ansanama, or ansanom : Sila, in Slavonic, force, power ; genitive singular and nominative plural, silei, of power and powers ; genitive plural, sile, of powers. In Celtic it is a rule, SIO FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. that monosyllables, which form the nominative plural like the genitive singular, have the genitive plural like the nominative singular. (See Stewart's Gaelic Grammar, p. 55. Edinburgh, 1801.) This monstrous perversion, by which bard signi- fies equally a poet and of poets ; each, a horse and of horses; cluas, an ear and of ears; rose very naturally by dropping the e of barde, eache, CLAUSE, all three contractions of bardine, each- INE, CLAUSINE. General Rule 4. — In all the dialects, the dative plural was made by ba, basa, or ma, added to the nominative plural. The varieties of these are many ; for instance, bus, bis, bos in Latin ; bhih, bhyah, in Sanscrit ; phi in Greek ; aibh or ibh in Celtic ; AM, OM, iM, and the like, in Teutonic ; ame, eime, &c. in Slavic. The long vowel before these marks, which were the sign of the plural, has been elided. Corruption has, in many dialects, shortened that vowel also, as in sermonibus for sermonenibus, or sermone-ibus ; and fructibus for fructou-ibus, and so in many similar instances in all the dialects. The sign itself being conspicuous enough, the bar- barous and civilized tribes of Europe equally ne- glected the sign of the plural, obscurely concealed before the termination. In the modern German and its dialects, am and em are ^^changed into en, in the declension of nouns ; but the ancient form is retained in adjectives. Instances of this are found FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 311 in the Visigothic, and many otlicr old dialects. The practice, therefore, is not absolutely modern. General Rule 5. — In all the dialects, especially in those that are modern, there has been, and there is, a continual tendency to shorten, and, in some combinations, to drop the signs of the cases. In- stances of that tendency are common and nume- rous. The chief examples of cases altogether dropped occur in words that are in daily use, or in languages that have been in a great measure de- stroyed by foreign invasions. The Persic, though once the same as the Sanscrit, has lost almost all its inflections. The English has undergone a change of the same nature ; and the French, Spa- nish, and Italian, though formerly good Latin, have suffered in a high degree from the ignorance of the dark ages. General Rule 6. — If a short vowel, at the close of a word, be dropped ; it is established by observa- tion, that, in all languages, a force, or even a vowel, is given to the preceding syllable. If we do not choose to say bardi or barde, we are apt to say BARiD, bared, or BA-i-RD ; if we will not say berge, we naturally say be-i-rg and birg j if not FOTEN, or its contraction fote, we say fo-et or FET, feet. In like manner, our ancestors said cos, a goose ; gos-e or go-i-s, goes, geese ; totii, a tooth ; TOTHE or toith, tethe, teeth. All the other Teutonic tribes have carried this practice to 312 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. a far greater length than we. The Celtic and Cimbric nations have adopted it, through a consi- derable portion of their languages ; and approaches to it may be discovered in other European tongues. The vowel preceding is made stronger, as in san- TTTA for santitate, vertu for viRTUTE ; or broadened, as in haeg for haga, aet for ata, DRAEc for draca. In some dialects, these latter words are iiaag and draak. But in many instan- ces a vowel is inserted by itself in the body of the word, of which the following examples display a general fiict in Teutonic, Celtic, and Cymraig. In Celtic, bard, a singer, a poet ; genitive sin- gular, and nominative and accusative plural, ba- i-RD, instead of bardi or barde, a contraction of bard an ; dative singular bard, the i of the dative being quite lost ; dative plural, bardaibh, the aibh being the same as abus in Latin. The vocative barda, bards, is the old nominative plural, retained in calling. The same transposition is found in ad- jectives, as GEAL, clear ; geal-ighe, clearer, by contraction gea-i-le, or gile ; taxa, thin ; ta- NAiGiiE, thinner; ta-i-ne, by contraction. In Welsh, BARD, pronounced barth, has beirdd and BEiRDDiox, bards. In Icelandic, a very pure, Teutonic dialect, bi a ug, a rock, has in the plural BioRG for biarge. JNIany instances of the same sort of plurals arc found in the German, FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 313 Low Dutch, and other dialects of the Teutonic order. In the Scandinavian dialects, which are the Da- nish, Swedish and Norwegian j and particularly in their prototype the Icelandic, r is joined to nomi- natives, whether singular or plural, instead of the Visigothic s or Saxon a. The old Icelandic has HEiMR, for HEiM or HAM, a homc ; gestr for CASTS, a guest ; halr for hala, a man ; austr, for aust, east ; stafr, a staff, a long line, a letter ; dalr, a vale ; feigr, timid, cowardly ; autiiiigr, rich. The nominative plural of such words is IR or AR, according as the ancient plural happened to be INS or ans ; or by contraction i or a. Ice- landic genitives singular of masculine nouns are commonly made by s, as vafthrudnir, genitive vafthrudnis, dative vaftiirudni. The dative singular of such nouns is generally in i. Femi- nines have the peculiarity observable in the Visi- gothic genitive feminine ; thus, sol, the sun ; so- lar, of the sun ; aurn, masculine or feminine, the eagle ; arnar, of an eagle. Icelandic datives end also in a, as duada, to death; iieima, at home. The dative singular, masculine and neuter, of adjectives is generally in om ; and the dative plu- rals of almost all Icelandic nouns of every kind, are in AUM, UM, or om, as auldom, to ages ; gaurdum, to enclosures ; iiaurgum, to images; uofom, to temples ; sonom, to sons. Ail the Sl(}vic dialects 314 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. coincide, as to the dative plural, with the Visi- gothic, Alamannic, and Icelandic. Some Icelandic datives singular end in o, as haullo, to a hall ; CONGO, to a road, &c. In short, the dative sin- gular may, in all dialects, terminate in a, e, i, o, or in some diphthong compounded of these, accord- ing to the particular turn given, in ancient times, by the word to the vowel, which joined ma to the noun. This is the reason why we have bono and BONAE in Latin. The o which joined s to bon remained before bono-i, bono-in, bono-im, bono- MA, which A influenced bona-i, bona-in, bona-tm for BONA-MA. Icelandic genitives plural end almost always in a, as asa, of gods ; got ha, of gods ; RASTA, of stages in a journey ; vera, of men ; sala, of rooms or dwellings, of which the plural nominatives are asar, goth (a contracted nomina- tive) rastar, verar, salir. In all such geni- tives, the traces of the nominative plural are total- ly lost. The High and Low Dutch have admitted similar, but not numerous contractions, of the cases of nouns. Except some plurals, on the model of our words feet, teeth, &c. the generality of their plurals end in en, which is an ancient abbreviation of ans, common in Celtic as well as in most Teutonic dia- lects. Our own plurals, oxen, cuen or kine ; su-en or swine, brethren for brotheren, men for mannen, arc examples of the common plural of FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 315 the Dutch and German. The same words in the first ages were auhsans, cuans, suans, brotiira- HANs, MANNANS or MANS, as appears by traces still existing in the Latin, Greek, and Visigothic. The old dative plural in am or em is in modern Dutch and German changed into en ; conse- quently, the dative and nominative coincide. The genitive plural in ana or ena is, in these dialects, the same as the nominative plural. They say in Holland de koningen, the kings ; der koningen, of the kings j den koningen, to the kings ; van de koningen, from the kings. Van, from, go- verns the dative. The German follows a similar method. The article der, die, das, in German, is closely taken from the Alaraannic ther, thie, thaz, or THATA. The masculine is declined, no- minative singular, der ; genitive, des ; ^dative DEM ; accusative den ; of which the plurals are no- minative, die ; genitive, der ; dative, den ; ac- cusative, DIE. The feminine die, is, in the geni- tive singular, der j dative, der, accusative, die. The neuter das is declined in the genitive and da- tive singular, like the masculine ; its accusative singular is das. The neuter and feminine plurals are the same as that of the masculine. The Dutch article de, de, dat or hex, is a degree removed from the Alamannic or Tudesque, towards the Ando-Saxon. Het is our it, which is derived from HE, HEo, hita, this ; masculine, feminine, and Sl6 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. neuter ; or he, she, it j in Visigothic, is, si, it a. De, the, is declined by the Dutch, in the mascu- line singular, as follows, genitive, des ; dative, DEN ; accusative, de. The nominative plural is DE ; genitive, der; dative, den ; accusative, den. The prepositions aan, on ; and van ; fromj are generally used, the one before the dative, the other before the genitive, in both numbers of all adjectives and nouns. The feminine is also de ; genitive, van de, or der ; dative, aan de. Note 2 O. p. 48. The general nature of composition in the Eu- ropean dialects has been shown in Chap. III. The process from monosyllabic to compound words has been illustrated in the notes to that chapter. The origin of pronouns and of the inflections of nouns has been given at length in this section. Prepara- tory to the discussion of what has been termed the gender of nouns, it must be observed, 1 . That A, or ag, ba, pa, fa, da, ta, tha, d, t, TIT, LA, or L ; ma, na, ra, sa ; or M, N, R, s, or any other varieties of these consignificatives, had nothing in their nature or sense expressive of gender, or de- scriptive of the quality of the agent. 2. That, according to the idea respecting action, entertained by the inventors of language, some of these words, viz. ag, or a, and its diminutive, ig, or I ', also SA, or s, its contr FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. tlier or take ; ecloge is electio, taking out, pick- ing, chusing. Some may be inclined to derive lego, reason, from that ancient sense of lag or lig, which is translated tie, bind; and to support their opinion, by referring to the analogy of serjmo, a speech, from SERO, I connect or bind together ; whence also SERIES, a linking, and sertum, a binding. The fact is, that sero, I join by interweaving, or by casting over an object some connective, originally meant I send, I throw, I set forth, of which ex- SERo is a true derivative. Almost every verb of binding in all the dialects, such as lig, lay on or over ; w^ig, whence the Teutonic withan, to join, the Latin vieo, I plait ; the Anglo-Saxon, Persic, and Indian bind or bend, (begend, bend- ing ;) the Teutonic wrag, cast, cover, bind, whence WREATH, not forgetting twag, teag, and teog, in Greek deo ; all rise from radicals signifying cast, put forth, or put on. Sermo, originally sermon- ga, is from sero, I connect ; but logos is from leg, lay forth, make a long and coherent dis- course. The Sanscrit sense of lag, which is cling, stick to, follow, is found in many Teutonic and Celtic words. LiG signified lay, lie towards, lean, follow, adhere to. Our own word cling was originally cliging, following, sticking to j the Celtic le ana m FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. S35 is I follow, I adhere. Any viscid thing was called, in ancient times, claeg, clag, or glugten, gluten, GLEow, GLiGWA, by comiption in Greek colla, for GLAEWA or CLOA. The Celtic is gloadii. The radicals are lig, clig, and glig, all in the sense of lean, bend toward, incline after, follow, stick to, whether applied to animate or inanimate objects, Sequax is a translation of glutinosus. Cling, ap- plied to wood, is not from cliging, following, but from CLIG, lay, strike down, sink ; a clung dog is, in Scottish, one whose belly is like a greyhound's, not very prominent. Note 2 U. p. 53, The Visigothic is the true example for all the Teutonic dialects. The six pronouns a, is, ith, am, eith, anda, appear distinctly in its verbs ; but the Anglo-Saxon and German have corrupted all the plural terminations into on and en, a gross perversion occasioned by the resemblance of am and and. The Latin shows the pronouns very exact- ly, but the Sanscrit excels all the dialects in that respect. The Greek and Latin, which are distant varieties of the same dialect, once declined the verb in this manner : Leg-amij legesi, legeti ; leg-amasa, leg-athatha, leg-andi. The MI, in the first person, was dropped by the Greek and Teutonic, but not by the Sanscrit and 336 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Celtic tribes. The broad a in Greek was changed into o, not very long in sound, but of the long or- dei' of vowels. The second person in esi became IS in Latin, or as i preceded by a ; but in Greek it was contracted into ees, and then into eis. I be- lieve EEsi existed in that dialect down to Homer's age. The ti or thi of the third person is still preserved in the Latin it. The Greeks corrupted it into ET, in this manner legeti, legeet, legee, LEGEi. The plural made by wansa, or rather aga- MANSA, tve, experienced many changes ; for it is a common law of all languages to elide n before a consonant. Some tribes, especially the Greeks, Cymri, and Indians, contracted a dislike to s, and excluded it, or changed it into h, on every favour- able occasion. We therefore have legomen in Greek for legamansa or legomans, and legimus in Latin for legumos, legumons or legamansa. The Sanscrit gives, according to its idiom of chang- ing s into H, LAGAMAH for lagamas, which once stood for lagamans. The plural of the second person, made originally by thwa-thwa or thatha, was soon contracted into at ha, by a general law of enunciation. The remains of thatha or athath are preserved in the Latin it is, used for itith ; but the tii or s is lost in the Greek ete and Teutonic eitii. The third person plural, in anda or andi, has auflered from the practice of excluding n before consonants. In Greek, the elision of n in such FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 337 words as legonti, tuptonti, and others, was not universally adopted in the age of Homer ; but some dialects had begun to admit legousi, &c. as a contracted form of the third person plural. The Persic, Sanscrit, Cymraig, and Teutonic, re- sisted this contraction, which has, however, cr^pt into the Celtic and Slavic. The Cymraig, or ancient British, the Celtic, and Persic, make no use of the verb lag, in their pre- sent state. All of them have many verbs and nouns, derived from that radical. Indeed, every native word in them, which begins with l, is of that description ; but the philologist must observe, that the oldest written dialects often want many terms, which were in ordinary use before the introduction of writing ; that the Visigothic itself employs certain words, which we know to be scarcely so pure as those of the same sense, found in modern Teutonic ; and that, instead of the penury of words, which is said to dis- tress rude nations, every Celtic or German tribe had a greater range of choice in diction than the orators of Greece and Rome. This may appear in- credible, but it is not the less true. While one tribe called food, or eating, mat, from mag, eat ; another might call the same thing aeta, or aeting, from agt, eat ; another might call it fod, from fag, eat ; another might call it bryt, from bkaec, chew, eat ; another tiiigd, from tiiicg, take meat. VOL. I. Y SS8 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. It was in the power of a single tribe to use these five terms, for they are all pure Teutonic ; but some of them were more common in every tribe than others. The less usual, however ancient, were at last discarded, and became altogether un- known. A perpetual distinction must be made between a language fertile in words, that express common ob- jects and ideas ; and one fertile in words descriptive of science, and the quahties of civilized society. No barbarous tribe has many words of the latter kind, though it frequently abounds in the former. I have chosen the verb car, love, to exemplify the Cymraig ; and bier, or ber, to illustrate the Celtic, and Persic, pronouns. Car is the Latin, Celtic, and Greek form ofHAR, or hwear, pressing, squeez- ing, weighing down ; nor must the philologist be surprised to learn that this word signifies dear, as it does in Latin ; and loving, or friendly, as in British and Irish ; for almost all the Teutonic words which denote anxious love, or high consideration, are from similar verbs. Dear is from der, hurt, grieve, vex. The Visigothic swers, valuable, and swERAN, to value, honour, reverence, are from swER, heavy. 8weu is the direct origin of swerg, soRG ; in English, sorrow, care, and literally heavi- ness, pressure, soreness, weight. Lye has besorh, ciiARus ; and besorge, solicitus, carus j besor- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 339 GOST, POTissiMus, CHARissiMus. The verb beir, BAR, and BER, BEAR, is common to the Teutonic, Celtic, Persic, and Sanscrit. The Cymraig, or Welsh, pronouns are mi, I ; ni, we ; Ti, thou ; chwi, you ; efe, or eve, he ; hwynt, they ; hi, she, it ; hwi, they ; hwn, hon, hyn, qui, quae, quod j eiddo, pronounce eitho, self^ in Greek, autos. The Celtic, or Irish, are mi, I ; SINN, we ; THU, thou ; sibh, you ; e, or be, he ; and I, or SI, she ; plural iad, or siad, Sa and san are self ; so is this, and sin is that. A is who, the re- lative, but CO is who, the interrogative. These pronouns are very pure, for sinn, sibh, se and si, SAN, or SIN, and so, are all from swa, or swag, pro- per, possessive, self-same, we, you, he, she, same here, self-same, or this, self-same, or that. A i* AG, same ; in Gothic, ei. The Welsh hwn, or HUN, is a corruption of son, or sun, self, according to a general practice, by which s of the other dia- lects is almost always changed into h. Note 2 X. p. 54. Some grammarians have endeavoured to display the fertility of the Greek, in expressing all the ne- cessary modifications of time and circumstance. A formal attempt of that nature has been made by Mr Harris, in his Hermes, B. I. c. vii. which would have succeeded not in Greek only, but in every other language, to which he could have turned his at- 340 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. tention. By the good help of MELLO,TUNCHANo,and ESOMAi, he makes out a list of particular tenses, not expressly thought on, at the formation of the lan- guage. It is better to examine what simple ten- ses are really found in any dialect, than to enume- rate auxiliary combinations, which are easily invent- ed and irregularly used. His arrangement of the Greek verb might, I believe, be outdone by a simi- lar one of the English, in which, I am going to strike ; I am setting about striking ; I have been thinking of striking ; I happen to be striking ; and such phrases, would afford a tolerable display of copious expression. Note 2 Y. p. 54. The effects of this emphasis are visible in the per- sons of the subjunctive in the Teutonic, Latin, Greek, Sanscrit, and Persic verbs. By dwelling on the last syllable, the voice protracted it ; and there is every reason to believe, that the consignificative ag, make, was introduced into the penult at full length, though afterwards it vanished by coalescing with the vowels. Thus legeti, he says, became lega- GETi, he may say, or legogeti, he is going to say, he is desirous to say. It is certain that legat is the same as the Greek leg. Note 2 Z. p. 55, All verbs which express a fixed, immoveable, or FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 341 settled state, arise from verbs whicli signified the contrary. To sit, stand, fix, continue, are from siG, to sink, come down, settle by falling, or by sensible action ; from stag, to step, put down the foot with force ; whence staeger, a thing that is stepped, walked upon up or down, a stair ; from fag, to join, or fasten by manual operation ; from the Latin con, together, and teneo, I hold ; because that which has the quality of holding with that which is before and after it, without divi- sion, is continual, whether matter, time, or place, be understood. Remain derives its principal sense from maneo, a Latin verb, descended from magna, or MANA, a derivative of mag, press on, be actively durable. Manden, to remain, is a Persic verb, of which the rudiments may be detected in the oldest dialects. The process was mag, press, stop, im- pede, delay, retain, keep ; whence mag-ra, mar, stop, hinder, spoil by hindrance ; and magna, stop- ped by withholding, kept continued. To maggle is common Scotish for impede ; as he was maggled with or by his wet clothes, his feet were maggled by the deep snow, the mire and deep roads maggled him. An impediment in speech, by which the word is stopt, is in Scotish called manting. Con- tineo and teneo are good translations of maneo. DuRUS, hard, is from the active verb dwag, force, hurt. DuKH, in Sanscrit, is hard, forcible, harsh, re- pulsive ; and durus, in Latin, from dug-ra-sa, is 342 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. he who is harsh, hard, repulsive. What is hard is durable ; and endure is to perform the act of resist- ing decay. I have given the above illustration of neuter verbs to show, that, by the original constitution of language, they are all active. 1 stand, I sit, I am, may be expressive of states, unconnected in idea with action ; but I stand, literally signified, in old times, ic stagend-a, I am setting my feet, not I remain in the state of having set them ; ic sig-ta, I perform the act of setting, or I sink down volun- tarily and actively. Ic am, for ic sigm, or sum, denoted I move, I actively live in a place, a word analogous to ic big, I dwell, I cultivate, I stir, I he. Whoever analyses exsisto, versor, incedo, and other recent words of the nature of substantive verbs, will need no aid from this train of examples. I detected the true history of the middle and passive voices of the Greek verb, about six or seven years ago. In 1796, being then at the university, I felt unsatisfied with the distinction commonly made between the present and imperfect middle, and the present and imperfect passive of that verb. It occurred to me, that if the same word have two or more different senses ; there must be something in its composition equally adapted to all these sig- nifications. I was told that legomai signified I speak to or for myself, I speak for my part, &:c. and likewise I am said. It seemed probable that one FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 343 natural sense produced these apparently opposite meanings. This opinion remained in my mind till 1805, when an examination of the Greek and Vi- sigothic verbs confirmed it. The similarity of these dialects, in other respects, supported the conclusion that Ai in the one, and a in the other, placed after the personal pronouns, gave both the reciprocal and passive sense. The pronouns are quite visible in such compounds as legom-ai, leges-ai, leget-ai, and legont-ai. All doubt was perfectly removed by afterwards observing that the Slavic passive is made by joining sia, self, to the persons of the active tenses. Note 3 A. p. 5Q. The French call this the reciprocal form of the verb. The Greek and Latin grammarians have em- ployed the epithet of middle and deponent, as they imagined that this voice held a middle sense be- tween active and passive. The Indians call it atmane-padi, which is translated by Dr Wilkins the proper voice, as it expresses an action done to ourselves. The active voice is called in India PARASMAi-PADi, the common voice. Atmana is breath, soul, self. Parasma is another person. Note 3 B. p. 56. The Visigothic passive was not understood by Junius, Hickes, or by any of the later Teutonic 3tt FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. scholars, till it was explained by Thre, in his com- raentaries on KnittePs fragment of the Visigothic version of Paul's Epistles. The passive of the verb soKYAN, to seek, stands as below : p. Ten. Ik sokyada, thu sokyaza, is sokyada : Weis, yus, eis sokyanda. I am sought, thou art sought, he is sought : We, ye, they are sought. Sulj. Ik sokyaidau, thu sokyaizau, is sokyaidau : Weis, yus, eissokyaindau. I may be sought, &c. We, you, they may be sought. Observe that y, in Visigothic, represents a modifi- cation of G ; the same as that found in gielded, ge- poiNTED, and GARx, in Old English. The sound was once hard g, then gh, or h ; and at last y, or i ; as in YIELDED, YPoiNTED, and YARN, which last is the articulation in the Silver Book. Ai must be sounded e or ae, as in aera ; or open, as in fed and BED. Au is always like omicron in Greek, or like omega, not protracted nor circumflexed. The ma- nifest corruption in the first person singular, and in the first and second plurals, is exposed by the authority of socyaz-a, thou seekest self; and sok- YAiz-A, thou mayest seek self. The latter Teuto- nic dialects have corrupted even the plural of the active voice, which is entire and regular in Visigo- thic. Note 3 C. p. 57. An account of the introduction of r into the Latin verb may be found in the Second Part of this work. PACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 315 Note 3 D. p. 59. Among the many primitive nouns, that have risen from the redoubled and contracted verb, may be mentioned ogs, shaking, terror, awe ; boga, a bend, an arm, a bunch or bowed lump, a log of wood, a shoot of a tree, a tree, an arch, a vault, a bow to bend and shoot with, &;c. ; whence bogel, a bent gut, a bowel ; bogelig, or bolg, a thing bend- ing out, a belly, a vessel, a budget ; bogsom, the bent place, the bosom ; bogst, to swell out, to swell in speech, boast ; though this word may be from BOG, drive, threaten ; dog, a drive or stab, also an impulse, which is not used except in dodge, drive back and forward ; dot, for dogt, make small points, and the Scotish dwich, hit like a ram with the head ; dwing and ding, drive, which are bet- ter referred to dwag. Tog, a pull, a shaking, work- ing, producing, making, which are some of the many senses of tavag, is very common. In German it is written zog or tsog. The radical is written tiuh, teoh, toh, tog, and indeed in a variety of ways. In Greek, tao, I take, reach, pull, stretch, has been superseded by tillo, tetno, teucho, TECo, tello, I pull, I stretch, I make, I breed, I move round, and by other derivatives. Gog, whirled, rolled ; and cwog, rounded, are found in Teutonic, Celtic, and Greek, not to mention other dialects. Goggle, goggulos, and gog, mean roll- ing, moveable, round. All names of rou?2d come 346 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. from such verbs as gag, move, rolled ; cwag, roll ; strag, move violently j rag, or trag, run ; whence trendel, a wooden wheel ; rogtunds, rotundus, round ; strongulos, round ; to which may be added swind, to roll ; whence sphondule, a whirl ; vert, turn ; whence vertebra, a turned bone; and swag-ra or swara, whence swaira and SPHAIRA, a rounded object. Hog produced hotch, to shake, as in Burns* Works, Tale of Tarn o' Shanter : (In the days of James I. it was written HOCK.) Even Satan glowr'd, and fidg'd fu' fain. And hoick' d and blew wi' might and main. Also hustle, to shake hastily. In the sense of lifted or raised it has many descendants. Loga has produced locus, a lay, a place where a thing has been laid : loga, a blaze ; loga, a hollow, a lying place ; which are literally lighted, and laid or lowered j are from the same source. Moga, force, violence, strength, pith, marrow, fat, is found in several dialects. Noga means the joint, the bend, the knee, (the diminutive is cnucel, knuckle, a lit- tle joint,) also a heap, a gathered mount. Roga means breach, cliff*, split, rock, rift, and race, stream, rush, efflux, &c. Swog is motion, toilsome motion, sweating, and force, vehemence, strength ; also a sound, or literally a strong violent noise ex- I FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 347 cited by motion, as the noise of waves, wind, leaves, bells, whistling obscurely, &c. Many fine examples of this occur in Visigothic, Anglo-Saxon, and Old English, such as leafes sweg, the sound of a leaf. WoLCNA sweg, the sound of the clouds. Swegas WAETERA, the sounds of waters. Thu wudu- beamas swegdon, the trees of the wood sounded. Egor-streamas swearte swogan, the black water- streams sounded. Nedran sweg, the hiss of ad- ders. Remark, that sweg, in these examples, is for gesweg, from sweg, sound ; not a substitute for swog, though swog occurs occasionally. Swe- gas means organs. Sweg is both musical sound and harmony j swegan is to play ; swegel, in Dutch, is a flute, and swiglyans is musicians on the flute or pipe in Visigothic. In Old English andScotish this word was written swoucH, swow, SOUGH, and sugh. The wind soucHS, that is whistles. Piping winds are, in Scotish, souchan win's. To go over a tune or air with the breath is, in Scotish, to souf a tune, from swoF, (swEGBA,) Originally in use in the sense of sound gently or diminutively. Sigh, to make a sound with the breath, as in grief, and swegnyan, to make a similar sound for joy, to exult, are both from SWEG. In Milton's age, swing signified to sound like a bell, or like the noise of floods. 348 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. On some wide watered shore. Swinging slow with sullen roar. 11 Penseroso. Ther the space of dayes thre. He heard the sweghynge (al. swowyng) of the flode ; At the last he seid, " Wo is me. Almost I dye for fawte of foode." Jamieson's Popular Ballads, Vol. II. p. 19* Note 3 E. p. 59. Hide, 07' General Law of the European Dia- lects. — " Preterite participles, however formed, have, since the introduction of compound words, been used in all the dialects, to express not only an act done, but the act itself, the performance of the act, the effect produced by the act, and, sometimes in a loose manner, the time and place of action." Hence status, from sto, stand, means stood, or put into the condition of standing. But it like- wise signifies standing, considered as a noun ; the making to stand, the consequence of standing, the time and place of standing. Some of these senses are indirect, but they are all occasionally found. Act, bagt, dagt, gagt, lagt, magt, NAGT, ragt, swagt, and sagt, as well as many other preterites of a more derivative order, all ex- isted in the early part of the second stage of lan- guage, in various senses, according to the variety admitted by the radicals. Agt literally signified moved, shaken, walked, moved on, gone ; increas- 10 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. S^4<9 ed, grown, produced, enlarged ; swelled, blown, aired, winded, dryed, evaporated ; moved by fire, burnt, consumed ; forced, bent, hooked ; agitated, excited, stung, pained, tormented ; and, if used of the effects of acrid or acid substances, soured, bitter- ed, made pungent. In the sense of ag, move, wield, catch, AGT was seized, lield, taken, esteemed, thought. In the sense of turn, revolve, it meant turned, &c. Now, by the law above observed, it fol- lows, that AGD, AGT ; AD, AT J Or ADH, and ATH ; which are varieties of agda, may signify motion, walking, increasing, growing, generating, enlarg- ing, blowing, ventilating, evaporating, burning, destruction, bending, distorting, awaking, irritat- ing, rousing, paining, stinging, souring, vexing, acting, ruling, making, driving, holding, possessing, thinking, esteeming, judging, turning, &c. I be- lieve that such nouns, in these various senses, were found in all the European dialects in their rude state. Many of these words are preserved to this day in Teutonic, Celtic, Greek, Latin, and San- scrit. We have in Teutonic agd or ad, an in- creased or accumulated heap, at for agt, touch- ing or touched, joined, at : aet for agt, consumed, agitated, chewed, eat : aet, from agt, grown, pro- duced ; or AGT, pointed, sharp, oat^ a kind of grain. Observe, the growing field was called hagath or HAETH, from hag, grow ; and growend, ground ; but the cultivated field was called ager, the pro- 350 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. ducer, the grower, from ag. Uth, an oath, is sup- posed to be from ag, speak, analogous to juro. Though the form of the word be certain, the sense is obscure. It may even be eaten, from at, eat ; for the barbarous nations made their oath-takers swal- low a certain substance, which was to make them rot, if they were guilty of perjury. Khorden su- GEND, to eat an oath, is a common Persic phrase at this day. In Greek, aetos, an eagle, is from agts, a flier, one who uses aglas, wings, fliers. Ather, an ear, is from agther, what is sharpened. The Saxon is icker, a sharp or awny grain. Aidos, shame, is from agd, fear, awe^ shaking, from ag, shake. Aitho, I burn, is for agtho. Ag, agani, ignis, ADH, &c. signify fire, from ag, shine, burn. Atalos, tender, is from agt, pliable, flexible, soft. Ate, vexation, pain, hurt of body and mind, is di- rectly from AG, vex, agitate, toss, sting, pain, irri- tate. Atar, but, is from agt or agd, added, and ARA. Atmos, a vapour, is for ahtmos, what is blown, from ag or ah, blow. Atta, a parent, is from agt-a, he who makes production, from ag. In analysing Greek, the philologist must beware of the error of deriving iiadeo, I please ; aeido, I sing ; ado, I satiate ; and several others, from agd. These were originally swadeo, gyddo, and sado, &c. Ago, I act or drive, and its derivatives agon, a struggle, aethlos, a wrestle or contest, are di- rectly from AG. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 351 In Celtic we find many monuments of agd, such as AD, water, from agd, what is moved or runs ; adhna, heat, fire, kindHng fire, from ag, burn ; ATH and AD, gone to, repeated, done again ; aet, for AGD, moved, merry, lively ; adh, ead, aithne, from agd, perception, taking, knowledge ; aith, for AGTH, acute, sharp ; aite, for agta, a dwell- ing, living, inhabiting, hence a place ; aitheach, a son, viz. what grows, from ag, produce, breed, grow J also an overgrown person, a big tall clown, a giant. The Teutonic name of a giant is etun or ETON, in Icelandic iotunn ; all from eced or aged, grown, enlarged, tall. Aith, a height, is from AGTH, increased, raised ; aithne, store, literally what is heaped, hoarded. Aith id, a serpent, liom AGTH, stung, bit. The Teutonic is aedder, a sting- er, and poison is aettar, from agt, bitten, stung ; also what has the quality of biting. At, swelling, for agt, blown, enlarged ; atach, fermenting, from AGT, swelled ; at ha, a blast, from agt, blow J ATHACH, waves, from agt, moved, analo- gous to waeg and wave j atha, a corner, from agt, bent : the Latin angula is from ang, bending, hooked : athal, a flesh>hook, from agt, hooked ; aith, a kiln, from ag, burn, roast, dry ; or from agt, bent, arched j athar, the air, from agd, blown j athair, a father, (vide ATTAj) uchd or OCHD, a breast, from agd or OGD, raised, a height j ochd, eight, from agd or 10 352 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. AUKED, increased ; othar, sick, wounded, from AGD, broken ; for our ail is a contraction of adl, a derivative of A GD, wounded, broken, wearied, diseas- ed, unsound. The words seoc, broken ; adl, brok- en, a breach ; wac, weak, flexible, and not strong ; aegek, distressed, from ag ; malum, from magl, soft, bruised, pliable of body or of mind ; nosos, a disease, from hnesc, soft, weak, a derivative of hnag ; are all analogous in sense, and imply soft, broken, exhausted ; and the very opposite of swund, sound ; hwal, whole j validus, strong 5 trimm, firm ; fortis, stout. Following the analysis of agt, given above, the philologist must apply investigation to the remain- der of the series of radicals compounded with da, TA, THA ; to BAD, BAT, BATH ; tO DAD, DATH, DAT ; and so on throughout the list ; nor must he forget the secondary radicals, to which the European languages owe a profusion of derivative verbs, nouns, and adjectives. Blad, brad, crad, clad, SLAD, STAD, SPAD, DRAD, SPRAED, SMED, FLOD, THRAED, TRED, and their relatives, are as import- ant words in the several dialects as red, lid, bid, PAD, bite, FIT, LOT, GET, SET, MEET, LET, and other legitimate descendants of rag, lag, bag, PAG, BIG, FAG, LAG, GAG, SAG, and MAG. In making such inquiries, while the rule, as to the use of da and its varieties, must be tenaciously remembered J the philologist must previously take FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 353 an accurate view of the words, evidently related to any individual term, first in the dialect to which it belongs, and afterwards in others that are ancient and original. If he forget this precaution, and trust to mechanical etymology, he will sometimes mistake derivative for simple terms, and apparent forms for essential differences. He will join the practitioners of ancient and modern times, who trace every thing to some cause, without troubling themselves about the intermediate steps, or indeed about any thing, except a slight degree of resem- blance. Specimens of common English Verbs, Adjectives, and Substantives, &c. derived from Participles in DA, TA, THA, doUC. Bad, BAG-DA, flexible, distorted, weak; dead, DWEGED, crushed, bruised, stunned ; lead, leacd, livid, made bleak, or perhaps laeged, melted ; mead, maged, cut or mown ; mead, a liquor, from MAGED, liquified ; knead, cnaeged, bruised, beat ; red, RAECED, glittering, raying, sparkling, glow- ing ; bread, braeged, what is roasted ; dread, DRAEGED, terrified, affected with fear ; thread, THRAEGED, thrown, twisted ; spread, spraeged, extended ; gad, gagd, sharpened, pointed ; also to ramble, from gagd, gone, a going, making to go ; VOL. I. z S54 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. lad, LAGD, born, produced, name of any child j mad, MAGED, moved ; wod, wooed, moved ; glad, GLAGED, or GLiGED, made nimble in gestures ; load, HLAGED, laid on j road, raged, run, walk- ed ; broad, braeced, extended ; toad, tagd, a long-toed beast, pada or pagda, paw-footed, claw- ed, either a toad or frog ; sad, swaged, made heavy, solid, dull ; wad, wagd, rolled, wrapped j bed, BEOGD, a thing bent, spread ; beard, beared, what is carried, worn ; deed, dwaged, and daged, wrought, done ; feed, paged, served with eating, from fag, eat ; heed, hygd, laboured on bodily or mentally, cured ; gleed, gligd, lighted, inflam- ed, coal ; blood, blogd, blod, liquified, liquor, what runs or Jlows ; meed, magd, increased, be- nefited, rewarded j need, neged, forced, driven, compelled ; reed, raged, grown, sprung, or sharp- ened, pointed ; breed, bbaeced, reached forth, produced ; speed, spagd, drawn, hurried on, mov- ed swiftly ; seed, saeged, and saewed, cast, scat- tered, sown ; weed, wecd, grown, any plant ; shed, scEACED, or sceaged, cast, shaken over, thrown over hastily, as clothes, cover of any kind ; sled, slaeged, slided, slipt along ; shred, scrae- gkd, rent, torn, cut ; aid, eaced, increased, helped ; maid, maeged, is produced, any young person, from mag, produced ; braid, braeced, spread ; kid, cigd, bred, any thing bred or born ; lid, HLIGD, laid on, covered j bald, bageled. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 355 peeled, bared ; field, fageled, joined, plained, extended ; shield, sceageled, covered ; child, cwiGELED, born ; mild, migeled, softened ; yield, GiBELED, given ; wild, wigeled, grown as forests ; old, eaceled, grown, grown in days, increased ; hence eld, age j young is ge-eacing, growing ; fold, FAGELED, roUcd ; hold, hageled, seized ; mould, MOGELDA, Crumbled, earth ; macelda or macela, the make or mould ; magelda, moist- ened, wet, musty. Bath, baged, wet, washed ; eath, easy ; eaced, continued, ready ; death, dwaged, analogous to cwealed, killed ; magered, mortuus ; swegeled, oppressed ; hnaeced, necatus, bruised ; breath, braeced, sent out, emitted vapour ; lath, laged, what is laid on, or cloven ; wreath, wreaged, enfolded, cast about ; loath, laged, hurtful, inju- rious, laid against. (Vide Lye, in voce.) Cloth, cloged, laid, spread on ; wrath, wraged, moved, distorted with rage ; breadth and width, for bread- ed and wided. The breaded of the ground is what space it is broad. Length, strength, health, wealth, stealth, birth, worth, sloth, moth, broth, mirth, forth, earth, troth, both, and smooth ; with almost all similar to them in th, were langed, stranged, made strong; haled, wholed; wealed, the state of weal ; stealed, the act of stealing ; bered, the act of bearing ; waired, the state or act of WAER, be strong, useful, valuable, equal to 356 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. VALEO and valor in Latin ; slaged, slowed, long- drawn, fixed ; MAGED, having the condition of mag or MiG, a worm or fly ; whence micga, a midge, and in Latin, and several other dialects, mugsca, a fly, or MUCGA, by contraction muia. Our word maggot, a little worm, is well known. Broth is BROWED, from BRAEG, boil, melt, express juice. Mirth, MIRED, from mir, agile, petulant, jumping, wanton. (See magl and gemagl in Lye, and mag and mire in Shaw's Gaelic Dictionary.) Forth is FORED, put in the state of fore. Earth, aered, what is growed, or at length aecered. Troth, trowed, trusted, from trag-wa, press on, tread on, lean on, depend on its solidity. Both, bagod, bowed, bent, doubled, paired. All ordinals in TH are from da, as thri-ed, feowered, fifed, sixed, sibuned, ahted, nigoned, tigoned, &c. now third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth. The Latin tertius, quartus, quinctus, sextus, &c. ; and the Greek tritos, tetartos, pemp- tos, hectos, are the very same ; only os or us shows additionally the masculine gender. Preterite participles in da and tha soon dege- nerated into ta and t. Examples are — at, agt, touched, moved ; bat, bagd, beaten, a blow, a stick to strike 5 eat, from agd, agitated, ground, consumed; heat, iiweaged, moved, agitated, fermented ; cheat, cewaeged or gawaged, played with, mocked, made a sport of; bleat, blagt, cried, roared; FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 357 meat, magt, chewed, eaten ; neat, nagd or nagt, driven, drove; great, geiiaeced, extended, am- ple ; threat, threaged, straitened, pressed, born heavily on ; treat, traht, move, work on, labour on with hands or words, debate, negotiate, dis- course ; seat, saeget or siged, set, settled, sunk down, fixed ; teat, dagd or tigt, drawn, sucked, from DWAG, draw, whence dug ; sweat, sweged, wrought, toiled, melted ; fat, faged, fed ; hat, heafded, by contraction hatte, literally headed ; a hood is also haefded or haufded ; what is, hwag-ta, self-ed, samed ; gnat, gnaged, gnaw- ed, bitten ; flat and plat, flaged and plaged, laid or broadened out ; boa^, bagta, driven ; let, lagta, let go, dismissed, put away ; but, lagta, laid out, increased, protracted, prolonged, marred, delayed ; net, naeget, catched, taken ; fret, fre- ged, gnawn, eaten ; also roasted, fried j set, siget, seated, ranked in proper place, fitted, by setting objects in an arranged state ; wet, from wegt, rain, moisture, water, moved as water ; the name water itself is wagtera, having the property of WAGT, motion or running. In some cases the loss of ga or ge, which was prefixed to an infinite number of participial words in the Old Teutonic, leaves the noun obscure. The verb in the last example was wet, apply or use WAT, or water. The participle was ge-wet-ed or 358 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS, GEWETT, which, by degrees, was confounded with WET, its original. See Lye's Large List of Words under ga and ge. The words haft, theft, cleft, thrift, sift, waft, draught, graft ; from haf, hold ; theof, thieve ; CLIP, cleave ; thrif, thrive ; seof, shake ; waf, move ; drag, draw ; are very obvious as to deriva- tion. Craft, CRAFED, empowered, strengthened; shaft, sceafed, what is cut or polished into a point ; lift, lifed, raised, taken up ; soft, swofed, bruised, mollified by agitation ; sot, from swogt, a soft-tempered man, a fool j straight, straeced, streekit, extended. Note 3 F. p. 61. In most dialects of the general language, particu- larly in the oldest and most original ; the present par- ticiples are formed in nd or ng, or their varieties. When I say that ga was used instead of da in some dialects, I mean that ga was preferred to da, though the use of both was admitted. The reader must observe, that na-da and na-ga are compounds, and, consequently, that they had each two significations. The compound state has existed so long, that the senses are thoroughly coa- lesced. Na, work, and da, act, both signify per- formance y only dwag is to work by one kind of action, and nag, by another. Joined, they signify FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 359 action going on, the very heat and vigour of per- forming. Na and GA have the same sense, except that GA means going, while da signifies doing. In Greek, Latin, Visigothic, and Sanscrit, the consignificatives of gender are preserved almost whole, and are found at the close of all nouns and ad- jectives ; but in Alamannic, Anglo-Saxon, Iceland- ic, Celtic, Slavic, and Cymraig ; they are in many words decayed or lost. This is particularly the case in nouns. In adjectives they are generally bet- ter preserved, because they distinguish the gender of these epithetical words. In modern Swedish, Danish, German, Dutch, English, &c. the consig- nificatives of gender are exceedingly decayed ; in English they are in a manner lost altogether ; and in the other dialects, though they are entire in some instances, they have disappeared in others. In Greek, the consignificatives of the masculine gender are s, as, es ; and particularly os, which is the most common sign of the masculine in adjectives. The terminations on, en, and similar varieties of n, are often masculine, and the long vowel always in- dicates contraction. So tupton, for tuptont-a, or tuptonts ; cuon, for cuon-a; sepedon, rotten- ness, for sepedon- A, or sepedonga. Such termi- nations are often of both genders. Er, or, and other varieties of ra, are also common masculine terminations. Like the terminations in n, they are contractions ; for the oldest form of nouns in er was 360 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. ERA. Thus SAEDER-A, Or SAEDERE, a SOWer ; BAE- CER-A, or BAECERE, E baker J MACER-A,OrMACERE, a maker. When the noun was neuter, the bare consignificative, supported by a short vowel, showed that the word had no gender. So in Teutonic or Visigothic, beidands, he biding or waiting ; beid- AND-Ei, she biding j beidand, biding. In Greek, FEiDON, for FEiDONTS, or FEiDONT-A, Stopping, Stick- ing, sparing ; feidousa, for feidont-a, she sparing ; FEiDONT, sparing: melitoeis, for melitowents, he who is possessing honey ; melitoessa, for melito- WENT-A, she who is sweet ; melitoen, for melito- ent, or MELiTOWENT, honied : sofron, for sofrons, or soFRONA, he, or she, who is sound minded, so- ber J SOFRON, sober ; gender not included : mega- LETOR, he, or she, that is large in heart ; megale- TOR, neuter, great-hearted. These observations ex- tend to all nouns and adjectives in the Greek lan- guage. The Greek feminine consignificatives a, o, and all varieties of ra, and sa, and na, used as feminine, must be divided from the word, as not being pro- perly a part of it. Neuters in i, u, t, nt, n, es, r, after a short vowel, end in a part of the word. Neu- ters in ON, or in s, r, and n, after long vowels, are to be considered as masculines or feminines, which, in course of time, have become neuter ; the ter- mination in ON excepted, which is from na. The neuter was in early times made emphatic by adding FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 361 NAor DA, commonly written ta ; so in Greek ho-los, HOL-K, HOL-oN, he vvhole, she whole ; whol-en, like our given, driven, striven, made whole. The Visigothic has all-s, all-a, allata, he all, she all ; alled, in the neuter, like our loved, or taught. Observe that the above observations on the genders of Greek nouns apply to the true nomina- tives only. I do not consider a to be a termina- tion of any Greek neuter word. The true nomina- tives of DOGMA, MELiTOEN, PAN; and of such kiuds of words ; are dogmat, melitoent, pant. Latin nouns follow the laws of Greek nouns in what regards gender. Bonus-a-um was once writ- ten BON-os-A-OM. Sanscrit nouns observe the same general course. Adjectives end in ah, a, and am, pronounced uh, a, um : present participles termi- nate in AN, ANTi, AT for ANT : feminine nouns of- ten end in i long, as in Visigothic. In short, all the ancient dialects agree in the consignificatives, which mark genders ; and that diversity which ap- pears in modern languages, and which renders the subject intricate and obscure ; is owing chiefly to corruption. The Visigothic adjective ended in s, A, ATA, as HALTS, HALTA, HALT, Or HALTATA ; in Greek, cholos, chole, cholon ; and in English, halt, or lame ; alls, alla, all, or allata, all, masculine, feminine, neuter. The Alamannic, or Tudesque, preferred ere to s, and said allere, or aller ; alla, or alle 5 allata, and by corrup- 362 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. tion, ALLAz. The German, which descends from that dialect, has aller, alle, alles, which is the common form of German adjectives. The Anglo- Saxon used A instead of s in the masculine. -As the masculine and feminine became similar on this account, they were soon confounded. In course of time the a was weakened into e, and finally dropt. So the three genders became alike, and the distinc- tion ceased. View of the Oldest Forms of the Indicative, Subjunctive, and Optative Moods, in the European Languages. * The example ag, move, act, do. Indicative Mood. Singular. — Ag-ami, or ag-ag, and ag-a, or AG-o, I act : ag-aswi, agasi, aga-swa-thwa, agas- THA, agist, thou actest ; agathwa, agitha, agi- TA, or agiti, he acteth, or acts. Dual. — Aga-matha, we two act ; aga-thwa. Plural. — Aga-mans, or aga-math, we act : aga-thwathwans, agathwatha, agathatha, a- * This and the following view, though properly belong- ing to Chapter IV. may be considered as a continuation of those views which are appended to Chapter III. See page 229 and subsequent pages. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 363 GATHETE, AGITIS, yOU act : AGA-GEONDEN, AGEON- DE, AGONTi, AGUNT, they act. Remark that reduplication of pronouns was used to add force to the expression. So age-thwa- EONDEN, or age-tondan, agetosan, let them act ; agi-tO'TE, act you. Subjunctive Mood, This is a new verb raised on the other by help of AG, do, work. He who does, has posses- sion of mai/ and can. If mat/ hold its original sense of maeg, might, or power, I may act, must signify I have power to act in myself, without, or with permission ; and can, in the same manner, re- lates both to intrinsic and delegated power. Ag- AG-iMi is I do act, with power of my own, or power granted to me by any person, object, or event, that can make an act possible or performabie. The other persons are ag-ag-ithi, ag-ag-itiii. This form of the verb is by itself purely indicat- ive. Agam, agas, agat, agamus, agatis, agant, indicatively say, I have the power of acting, I may act, I can act, &c. ; but when the object is to state the power by itself, a verb, such as possum, valeo, or the like, is used. If the verb express a wish or or- der, this tense is properly used. Agat, pronounced of a third person, in an emphatic way, is may he act, give him leave to act, let him act. Ag-ag-it describes the power in him, rising from himself, or granted to 364f FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. him. This tense is often called the potential. It is conditional from position only. Optative Mood, Some dialects have a variety of the subjunctive, which, on account of a greater force laid on it than on the other j has assumed a fuller form than that possessed by a tense expressive of mere ability or power. This is the optative, which is also formed by AG, work, do, — but the emphasis of will, wish, and desire, has given a distinct shape. Ag-ag-imi is properly I do act, but if the mind fix an importance to the action, (or doing,) as an object of will or intention, of wish, or desire, of liberty of action granted by these internal, or by any external cir- cumstances ; then agoimi is the tense preferred to AGE-o, 1 may act, or the Latin agam. The optative is also an indicative tense, capable of being used by itself, as in the example of agoimi, I wish to act, I desire to act, I may act ; or as a prayer, agoimi, may I act ; agoi, may he act. The optative of preterite and past tenses, especi- ally of those that express action past, with a view chiefly to declare the fact, is much employed, with conjunctions, to describe suppositional acts, that are stated to have taken place on certain conditions. Elexa is I said ; lexaimi (lex-ag-imi) is I did say, I did wish to have said, I felt the desire to have said. Elexa refers to an act past and done. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 365 Lexaimi describes a desire that fonnerly existed, and includes the senses of I might have said, 1 could have said, I would have said. The xcords I have said express the past act, the proper meaning of the tense j the words I might, &c. (ic mihte HABBAN SAGT, or cgo potui OF volui dixissc,) relate to the power or desire, present at that time when the action passed by. Both the wish and the act are stated as past and gone. This optative tense serves as a conditional or subjunctive to assertions made in the indicative, particularly if they are made by a preterite or indefinitely preterite verb. The principal optative tense in Latin is the im* perfect subjunctive. An account of the formation of the Latin verb will be found in its proper place. it is sufficient to say, that the formula legerem, ES, ET, EMUS, ETis, ENT, is composcd of LEG, read ; LEGER, read, did read ; and the term eg, or ag, ab- sorbed in the long vowel. Leger-emus is for leger-eg-imus. The tense is an imperfect, that is, one expressive of an act passed, without declar- ing that the act was complete. The signification is, I mayed, I willed, I had power, will, ability, to read. Legerem is I might read, I would read, I could read, I should read,— all acts expressed by the preterite tenses might, could, would, and should, derived from may, can, will, shall. When this tense is used, as it often is, in a present or future signification ; it always receives that sense from a 366 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. conditional supposition. Ic wolde raedan, I would read in common English, like legerem in Latin, means I have a wish at present to read. In certain circumstances, my will must lead me to read. The preterite tense wolde clearly shows, that whatever may be the time of the act of read- ing, the act of willing is in past time. In leger- em the act is referred to indefinitely past time, as in the Greek aorists ; and the syllable eg describes action, and, consequently, a power, a possibility, a volition, belonging to a preterite act. We may suppose any future act past and gone, and we may express it by preterite tenses ; but they must be ac- companied by words stating the condition. The reason, why all these senses rise from one word, is the affinity among the ideas of power in ourselves, power granted to us, power depending on our will, and action dictated to us by circum- stances of duty or necessity, which make us act. I should (sceolde, owed, ought to) read, means either duty dictates to me the act of reading, or, some case being put, my mind would be led, or my temper constrained to read. The derivation of possibility from power, or ability of acting, is evi- dent. Pot IS is from bag, have force, might, use force, work. Ablins is still used as an adverb in Scotch, for possibly. It is a corruption of abalin- ges, in the state of abal, powerful; and, as a noun, power. This word imposed on Mr H. Tooke, who 10 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 367 assigned it as the origin of the compounded part of Latin verbals in bilis. Burns, addressing the Arch- fiend, uses the words that follow : O would ye take a thought and men*, Ye;, aiblins, might, I dinna ken. Still hae a stake ; I'm wae to think upon yon den. E'en for your sake. The sense is, ** O, if you would meditate and re- pent, possibly you still might, though I am not certain as to it, have a chance for deliverance. I am sorry to think on yon dungeon, merely on your account." The Puritans have greatly condemned this stanza. View of the Ancient Forms of the Cases of Nouns. Nominative. — Ahma, a breathing, an act of breathing, a spirit, from ah, breathe, and ma, make. Genitive or Possessive. — Ahma-na-sa, working as the breath, acting as a breath, relating to a breath, pertaining to a breath, of a breath. By contraction ahmins. 368 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Nominative Plural and Accusative Plural, — Ahma-na-sa, relating to a breath, belonging to a breath, said of a number viewed collectively ; by contraction ahmans — the nominative and accusa- tive the same. Dative Singular, — Ahma-ma, breath-making, breath-collecting or gathering, expressive of adding the sense of the noun, — to, at, with, for, by, in, on a breath. Every relation that is at or joined with the object, may be expressed by the dative. Ahma- ma is written in Gothic ahmamma, ahmam, and AHMiN. The last form was used to prevent ambi- guity, occasioned by corruption of other cases. Dative Singular — Ahma-ba, breath- making, bringing, producing. This form is not found in Gothic, but is given as existing in the old dialects, Greek and Sanscrit. Accusative Singular, — Ahma-na, breath work- ing, working on the breath. This is the term of action exerted on the object. The sense is on, up- on, at, after j but action is always understood. The dative is a still and fixed state of the object. The accusative is a state of the object under ac- tion. The genitive is a mere name of possession, or of relation of any kind. When the noun was plu- ral, tliere was originally no term for the accusative plural. The nominative stood instead of it. Genitive Plural. — Aiima-n-ig or ahma-n-ag, having the quality of ahman, that is of ahman-s, FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. S60 spirits, — of or belonging to spirits. The Gothic has AHMAN-E. Dative Plural. — Ahman-ba-sa, spirits-bringing or collecting, or ahman-ma, by contraction, aii- manam and ahmam. These cases are formed on AHMAN, the abbreviation of ahmans, spirits. When the gender is os, or a feminine, it re- mains, and goes before the terms of case. The concourse of vowels leads to considerable corrup- tion. But when the gender is sa, or some letter that drops easily off, the regularity is presei*ved. So in DENTS or tunths, a tooth, from dwagands or THWAGANDS; he that bruises or grinds; nominative, tunths ; genitive and nominative plural, tunth- ANs or TUNTniNS ; dative, tunthama, tunthima ; tunthim, tunthin ; accusative, tunthana ; geni- tive plural, TUNTHAN-iG or TUNTHANE J dative plu- ral, TUNTHANMA or TUNTHAM. Latin, dcnts, dentis, denti or dente, dentem ; dentes, dentium, dentibus, dentes ; originally dent-s, dentins, dentima, dentin, dent-ena ; plural, dentins, dentina, dentin-ba-sa, dentibos. Greek, odonts, odontos, odonti, odonta ; plural, odontes, odonton, odontesi, odontas ; origin- ally donts, dontans in the genitive singular and nominative plural ; dative, dontim, dontin, and donti; accusative, dontana ; genitive plural, don- tan-a ; dative, dontan-ba-sa, dontabasa, dontabase, dontafese, dontessi. The accusative was dontans, now odontas. It is curious to remark the influ- VOL. I. A a 370 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. ence of euphony, on such words as odonts, and onux, a nail, (nags or nagel, from hnag, indent, scratch, penetrate by force.) Populus, a race or kindred, in Old Latin poplos ; genitive, poploe ; dative, poploe ; accusative, po- plom ; nominative plural, poploe or popli ; geni- tive, poplosom ; dative, popleis ; accusative, po- plos ; originally poplo-ins or poploons, in the ge- nitive and nominative plural ; dative, poploim or poploin ; accusative, poplo-na ; genitive plural, poplo'one ; (r is inserted, to prevent the hiatus : The Old Latins lisped the r as if it had been s :) dative plural, poplonbas, poblobos, poplois, poplis. Note 3 G. p. 64.. This chapter treats at full length of the differ- ent kinds of derivative verbs and nouns, so that the principles laid down, and partly exemplified, in the preceding part of the work ; are established, and made practically useful under this division. General Deductions. I. — All words derived from the four participles, that is, from the re- doubled participle, the participle in d, t, or th ; the participle in an, en, on, &c. and the participle in and A or anga, and the varieties of these termi- nations ; had, first, a participial sense j next, a sense of action done or a-doing ; thirdly, a sense of be- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. ^71 ing in the state of action done or a-doing ; fourth- ly, a sense of putting into that state. The first of these is that of a participle, the second that of a verbal noun, the third that of a substantive or ad- jective, the fourth that of a new verb. Example. — In the old language, drived, or DRIFED, (for the verb itself was written drif, and the participle drifed,) first signified driven, that is, the act of drive done ; secondly, drifed, or drift, its contraction ; signified driving in general ; not a substantive, but a noun, expressive of the power of the verb, as a ship on drift or a-drift, a ship under the act of driving. He could not stand the drift of the snow, that is, the actual driving. The drift of nature forced him to relent, viz. the actual influence of nature. Thirdly, drift signified the thing driven, as the drift was lying, that is, the driven snow was lying on the ground ; a drift of cattle, a drove, whether a-driving or not ; a draught, from drag, draw, the name of a thing that has been drawn, or continues to be drawn, without regard to the act. Fourthly, drift became a verb, in the sense of make a drift, that is, drive. Observe how the derivative is fitted to supersede the primitive, being more special, and so more suitable for use. The same holds witli respect to the present par- ticiple. Beg signified bow, and begend bowing, that is, bow a-doing. Begend, by contraction, became bend. Begend first signified bowing, 372 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. next the bowing, a verbal noun ; then the being in that state ; lastly, to put into that state, by do- ing the act. To bow a bow, to bow a tree, be- came to bend a bow, to bend a tree, which is lite- rally to put under bowing. Derivatives in and, END, IND, ond ; and in ang, eng, ing, ong ; are more used in all dialects than their primitives. So stand for stagend, think for thigencg, hang for HAGENG, land for lagend or leagend, sink for siGENCG, wend for wagend, lang for laging ; from STAG, dash down the foot ; thig, take or indicate ; HAG or HAH, lift ; LAG, lie ; sig, move down -, WAG, walk, move ; lag, stretch away. Deduction II. — Every original word in ag, BA, FA, PA, la, ma, ra, sa, or in any variety of these, or in any consignificative, not acting as a par- ticipial affix ; excepting always such of these, or of others, as express gender ; had, first, a signification, made up of those of the radical and consignificative united ; next, a signification, in which the sense of the radical prevailed, though partly modified by the consignificative ; lastly, a signification, in which the remembrance of the compound was lost, and the general sense restricted to a special meaning. Examples. — Ac, grow, breed ; ag-ma, in its first sense, breed-make; in its second, amma, breeder ; in its third, am]\]^. a or amma, a father, amm-i, a mother : ag-ra, grow-work, the first FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 373 sense ; agra, growing, the second ; agra-sa, AGRS, and AGROS ; that growing, viz. a wild or cul- tivated field : ag-la, grow- hold or grow-have ; second, ala, grow, go on growing ; third, ala, grow as men or cattle only. Compounds of compounds follow the same course. So hweal, turn, from hweog-la, makes HWEAL-MA, turn-make ; secondly, a turn over ; thirdly, turn as waves in the sea, or over shore. HwEALM-EL, ill Scotish WHOMMEL, mcans whealm- make, an act of turning over, particularly turning over a dish. She whambelt or whommelt the tub, that is, overturned the washing-pail. — Hweol-oc, turn-act, any thing turned, a turned shell, a whelc, Hweal, in another sense, is blow, puff out j from HWEOG-LA, blow-have, blow ; whence hweol-oc, HWEALC, blow-have, any thing blown, as a blister or swelling from a stroke ; whence whelk, a pim- ple, the mark of a recent stripe, in Greek helcos, in Latin ulcus. Diminutives are made by ac or ag, and la, as WAL, turn ; walc, a single turn, a little turn ; STEAL, a stiff stem ; stealc, a little stem, stalk ; scag, agitate ; scac, agitate frequently, shake ; tal, tell ; TALC, tell in little sentences ; pric, a sharp point ; pric-el, a little point, a prickle ; WAD, a step ; wad-la, make little steps, waddle ; STICK, adhere, stop j stickle, make frequent im- pediment. These senses of ag and la are of a se- condary kind. 374* FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Note 3 H. p. 65., Words in t are sometimes preterite participles from verbs in d or t, as bended, bent ; iended, lent ; hitcd, hit ; sometimes they come from cor- ruption of D, as meant, brought, sought, wrought, salt, for SALED, belonging to the sea ; dart, dared, driven ; milt, miled, soft ; shift, sceafed, moved, avoided, changed ; tuft, tufed, from tuf or thuf, a green bush ; part, from par, separate, in Latin pars, for parts, divided ; nut, for nuced, rolled to- gether ; knot, for cnuced, fixed, by being rolled closely or compacted j knitted. All nouns of this kind had, in the older dialects, marks of gender, that is, of active power j so sals, in Greek hals ; Nucs, a nut j parts, a part j cnytta, a knot. Deduction III. — All modern English words ending in d, de, te, t, th, derived from any dia- lect, ancient or modern, of the Celtic, Teutonic, Greek, Latin, Slavic, Persic, and Sanscrit, have their terminations from da or anda, signs of the preterite and present participle ; that is, they have been preterite or present participles, or they have been adjectives formed on the model of such parti- ciples. Consult Walker's llhyming Dictionary, terminations above stated. J£a:amples of this rule, which comprehends a large portion of the language, are bad, 33agd, bow- ed, pliant, weak, useless ; dread, dreaged, agitat- ed, fear j gad, ga-ac'd, sharpened, a sharp stick or FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 375 iron ; lad, lag*d, produced, born, a youth ; mad, mag'd, moved ; add, from ad, agd, touched ; and D, a remainder of dare, give. Words in ed are all participles or participial adjectives, as orbed, landed, minded, bearded, handed, aged. — Deed, DAED, DAGD, douc J cord, GYRED, twisted ; gleed, GLiGED, inflamed ; need, neged, forced ; pie'd, made like a pie or magpie, speckled ; sled, slaeged, drawn ; braid, braeged or braeced, woven ; bud, boged, bogd, sprung ; curd, crud, crogd, run like milk ; mud, mogd, wetted, dust ; ford, fared or FOROD, passed, a passage ; third, thrid, three- ed ; ward, wared, guarded, weared, also turned ; bard, bared or bered, cried or sung loudly, which, in the oldest Celtic, must have had some consigni- ficative of personal agency, now dropped in Welsh and Irish. Words in id, from the French or La- tin, such as candid, gelid, rancid, solid, vapid, vivid, &c., are all adjectives, formed like aged, orbed, landed, viz. having land, an orb, age. Candid is whitened, having white ; gelid, colded or frosted, having cold ; rancid, rank-made, having a rank, strong, rotten taste ; solid, made firm, for solus is strong, sound, whole, in a lump ; and metaphorical- ly, single, one. Many words in ard are from the French, which anciently formed participial nouns, from derivatives in ar or er, as standar, a stander ; standard, made a stander ; doter, a doting man ; dotard for dotared, a man in that state j bay, bay- Au, a bay horse ; bayard, bayared, one of that SJG FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS, colour ; bas, low, base ; b aster, he who is base ; BASTARD, one in a base or low state, low born ; WISER, he who informs about futurity; wisard, one who is in the state of a prophet j mazzard, mascheard, what is in the state of a grinder or chewer, from mascher, a chewer, viz. the jaw. Words in and, end, ind — band, bagend, binding; hus-band, hus-bugenda, house-inhabiting ; hand, HAGEND, seizing, or haned, catched ; demand, from DE, down, and mand, magand, putting, en- trusting, ordering. Demando was I entrust, enjoin, order, and afterwards ask by an order. — Brand, bragend, a burning, fiery object ; wand, wagend, a moving, flexible rod ; grand, graecend, extend- ing; end, eacend, the joining, the border, the march or limit ; find, fagend, catching, feeling ; tend, tagend, drawing, leaning ; descend, from DE, down, off, and scand, scagend, moving in any direction with an effort, clambering ; rend, ra- gend, tearing; prebend, from prae, forth, and habend, holding, or going on to hold ; sand, sa- gend, sinking or moving particles of stone, &c. ; thousand, thusand, taihuns-taihunds-tehund, ten-tens-ten, from tegund, tying, knotting. Words in ade, ide, ude — gambade, a cast 7Jiade by the leg, or thing made for it, from gamba, the leg, a derivative of gag, go ; brigade, from BiiiGA, company, made into a company ; bro- cade, braided, from broc, embroider, braid ; FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 377 arcade, arched, made an arch ; fade, fagd, weakr ened, diminished in strength or substance ; shade, SCEAD, scEAGED, covcrcd ; grillade, done with a grille or roasting iron ; for in Teutonic graec and BRAEC signify burn, broil, roast ; being from rac, agitate violently, as by fire. Gril is greaced, broil BROCEL, and roast rocst. — Elide, from e, out, and LAED, laegd, or LAGD, driven, struck, pressed ; bastinade, done with a baston, a club, from bagt, BUT, struck, an instrument of striking ; bide, BiGD, settled, dwelt ; slide, sligd, slipped ; bride, braeced, espoused ; camerade, chambered, friend; vaticide, from vates, wagths, a speaker of future events ; and cid*a, a killer, from cwigd, cut ; ode, a song, from aeid or gagd, played, sung : the verb aeid is in Teutonic gidd. All words in tude are of this form j plen, full ; plen-it, for plenid, filled ; plenit-uden, made filled, viz. in the filled state. The consignificative da, done, is thrice found in rectitude ; rec, reach, stretch ; iiECT, straight ; rectit, straighted ; rectitudin, iSTRAiGHTED-ED-EN ; ill English straightness, in Vi- sigothic RAiHTEiNs, for RAiHT-iG-EN-s, rightncss. Words in t — cheat, ceatt, cwigt, or cwaged, played, wagged, sported with ; feat, fact, done, a deed ; flat, flagt, broadened ; plat, plagt, a breadth ; boat, bagt, moved, steered j rat, ragt, rushed, run with speed ; erect, out-reced, stretch- ed out or up ; meet, gemaced, joined, match- S78 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. ed, proper ; hatched, haecced, hewed, a thing b^ which matter is hewed ; buffet, buffed, beat, aci of having been buffed j jet, jaced, cast, spouted ; market, from merc, trade, the traded place ; var- let, a little man, a boy, from var, a man. Let is a compound of la and ed, which makes diminutives, as dribblet, circlet, bandelet, bullet, a little ball ; batlet, a little bat. The Latin, Greek, and Teu- tonic made diminutives by la, as batela, a little bat; waerila, a little man j circulus, a little ring , filiola, a little daughter ; but the darker ages add- ed ed or ET, and formed batelette, varelet, circulet, filiolette, fillette. Words in ant, ent, int, ont, unt, are all formed on the present participle, as secant, cut- ting ; mendicant, begging ; significant, signify- ing ; infant, not speaking ; verdant, greening, that is in actual verdure ; miscreant, unbelieving ; arrogant, asking or demanding to himself j valiant, having actual and present strength ; gallant, having present gaiety, or courtesy ; vigilant, having pre- sent watchfulness j abundant, having overflow or abundance ; tenant, a holding ground ; grant, GRAECEND, reaching, giving; rant, ragand, roar- ing, making noise by action or words ; cadent, falling ; tangent, touching ; scent, from sentio, which is from sagent, or segent, seize, catch, with any power of the body or mind. Sapio, from SAG-PA, catch with the laste, is from the same radi- 10 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 379 cal. Sapient is judging, discerning ; sapients is literally judging-he, for sa is he, or she, or it, if the object be viewed as an active. Sag us, in old Latin, was a man perceiving the future, and sag-ac-s is he possessed of discernment of any kind. Lochiel ! Lochiel, my sight I may seal. But man cannot cover what God will reveal. 'Tis the sunset of life gives me mystical lore. And coming events cast their shadows before. Words in lent are, in many instances, affected in their signification by the power of two consigni- licatives, viz. by la, hold, and nt, the sign of the present participle : so luculent, which is not the same as lucent, for this reason : luc, shine, makes lucend, or lucent, shining : the lucent fields signify the shining fields, the fields actually emitting light, or existing under light ; and lucid fields signify fields put in or under light, and re- , maining in that state ; but the introduction of la changes the sense, and luculus, which may have been used in old Latin, signifies he light-holding, or having of light ; that is, either bright, not ab- solutely light or clear, but clearish. According- ly, luculentus is lucol-end-s, he having a lightish state. It is not implied in la that the light is less- ened, though LA is generally taken in that sense. It is affirmed only that light is had or possessed. All the dialects of the general language have many 380 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. verbs, adjectives, and nouns compounded with la ; in which the sense is not of that kind, which is grammatically termed diminutive. La has a dimi- nutive effect, chiefly when annexed to nouns, as puer in Latin, a boy ; puer-ul-us, a little boy ; fax, a torch ; fac-ul-a, a little torch ; ager, a field ; agerulum or agellum, a little field ; acidus, sharp to taste ; acidulus, a little sharp. The reason of this signification is, that to have the qualities of any object admits of a greater or less degree : acid is positively sharp, but acid-ul, sharp-having or bearing, may imply only a tinge, or slight por- tion of acid. The same reason applies in compounds of AC, oc ; AG, OG ; iG, IK ; and other varieties of AG, have. Lamb, a lamb; lamb-ig, lamb-having ; that is, either possessing lambs, or having something of a lamb, a kind of lamb ; lamb-ig-en, lammikin, lambkin, made to have the nature of a lamb, a very little lamb, from lamb, ig, have ; and na, make ; a form common in Teutonic and Greek ; so polis, a town ; pol-ich-ne, a townikin. According to these observations must be explained turbulent, in the state of making disturbance ; fraudulent, in the ac- tive state of doing fraud ; virulent, actively having venom ; corpulent, actually holding a body, a large body, — for all such derivatives tend to an enhanced sense, arising from the active union of la, hold, or have ; and the present participle. Words in ment possess two powerful consignifi- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 381 cative parts, viz. ma, make, and ent, sign of the present participle. Though some of them are half Teutonic, as garment, boderaent, batement, preach- ment, &c. &c. the model of them is Latin. Add MA, or its varieties, to any verb ; it gives the verb an active sense of make, or made ; so aug, increase ; AUGMA, increase-make, or increased by making the action of the verb ; join, ent, equal to ing in mo- dern English, you have augment, an increase- making. Such forms are participial in Greek and Sanscrit j but in Latin they are used only as nouns, with UM, the sign of the neuter-gender, annexed, which is lost in English. Augment, ornament, testament, ligament, cement, &c. were originally, as to sense, increasing, adorning, witnessing, or show- ing, binding, joining ; by adding um, they denoted the increasing, adorning, witnessing, &c. that is, the thing which increased, adorned, testified ; but in the dark ages, words in ment retained or recover- ed their ancient active sense, as may be seen in re- galement, the act of regaling j bombardment, the act of bombarding ; infeoffment, the act or deed of infeoffing ; and in many others. We can say — dur- ing the refreshment of the troops, for during the refreshing : They had an entertainment, viz. a meal : In the entertainment, for in the entertain- ing. Here the word is both a verbal and a sub- stantive noun ; but this double sense takes place only in more modern examples j for it would not be 8 382 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Latin, French, or English, to say in segmento for in secando, dans le segment for en coupant, or in the segment for in the cutting. Words in rt, with scarcely an exception, are pre- terite participles of words in ar, er, ir, or, and ur ; varieties of ra. They resemble words in rd ; so start* STYRED, moved, a motion ; covert, covered, a cover ; girt, GYRED, girded, a girt ; art, ared, wrought, joined, fitted, a trade or practice ; skirt, skyred, divided, the edge of a robe; snort, snyred, sneer- ed, a sound through the nose ; shirt, scyred, a short linen dress, called in Greek colobion ; a cut or short dress, a cutty-sark ; sort, sortit, come out, produced, race, kind. English words in isx, from the Greek istes, or Latin ista, were formed as follows : soph-os, wise, from SEE in Teutonic, and sap in Latin, perceive with the external or internal faculties. Soph is the old genitive, wise-make, or work ; sophis- ta, wised, made wise ; sophist-a, or es, he who performs or practises wisdom. The noun must first be considered, then the personal termination. In Teutonic such nouns are not uncommon, for in- stance, BiRST or BRisT, for BRicsT, a breaking ; bacst, for bac-s-ed, a baking ; brewst, for brocst, a brewing ; maltst, a malting. Observe each of these nouns arc preterite in their formation, for BRic-s, BAC-s, MALT-s, in the old language, would have signified break-make, bake-make, malt-make ; FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 38S and BRicsT, bacst, maltst, would have meant broke, baked, malted. Add to one of these ra, A, or SA, worker,— all three consignificatives of per- son ; you have bacst -er or Baxter, bacst-a or BAcsT-Es, he who practises baking. Sophist-es is he who practises the making of wise men, which, like other arts, may be done with different abi- lities. The English words in ast, ist, ost, tJST, are preterite participles of verbs in sa, or descendants of sta, formed by imitation, after the distinct senses of sa and ta were lost. Examples are brewst, a browst, a brewing, from broc-st, for braec, is boil ; yest, ga-ah-st, what is blown or pufFt, barm ; blast, blagst, a blow ; fast, facst, fixed ; gast, ga-ag-st, terrified, awed j least, litst, litist, diminished ; best, haetst, command ; midst, MiDisT, midemist, put among, put in the mid part. Latin words in estus are of the same class, as modus, a measure ; mod-es-t-us, measured, kept in measure or bounds; moles, a mass, a weigiit ; mol-es-tus, made heavy, heavisome, burdensome. The terminations ist in Greek, est in Latin, ist, AEST, sT, and their varieties, in Teutonic, were, in later ages, all applied from imitation rather than from an exact knowledge of their sense. We have simplist, fabulist, humanist, lutanist, purist, &c. in our language, contrary to the rules of strict philo- logy. Words in th and the, — examples, loath, lath. 384- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. LAGTH, LAGD, attacked, hostile, hateful ; rath, EAGTH, RAGD, hastcd, Sped, early, ready ; smith, SMiGTH, SMiGD, smitcd ', SMiTH-A, he who follows a beating art ; month, moneth, moned, mooned, a moon's period ; fifth, fifed, fived, the fived day ; the sixed day, the sevened day, the twenti-ed, the hund-raed-eth, the hundreded day. Ruth, REWETH, REWED, from RIG, feel sharp, pungent pain, as in repentance or strong pity ; hearth, HEARED, the place of the har, or burning coals j with, a contraction of withra, turned, from wigd, turned; breadth, breacded, the broadened ; broth, breweth, from broc, boil. Brocwed is brewed, that is, expressed by boiling. — Sloth, sloweth, or SLAWETH, slawed, from slag, creep, slip along ; whence slug, a creeping snail, and sluggard, a slow man ; warmth, warmed, from warm ; booth, BOTH, BOGTH, boged, dwclt, a thing raised for dwelling under ; sooth for suneth, suned, firmed, solid ; troth, treweth, trugeth, troged, tried, felt by pressure to be solid ; north, nyred, darken- ed : in Icelandic Niordr or Niorthr is a giant, who was supposed to preside over temples and images of the gods, a kind of subservient deity or priest. (See the Edda, Vafthrudnismal, Stropli. 38 : Naurvi or Niorfvi, in the same story, Stroph. 25, is called the Father of Niglit.) Naurvi, which sig- nifies dusky, depressed, dark, an epithet nearly the same in sense and derivation with nigei", is declar- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 385 cd in the Edda to be the father of Nott, night. She was married to one Naglflir, by whom slie liad a son, Audr, emptiness ; then to one Anar, by whom she liad lord, the earth ; and, last of all, to Dellingr, the twilight, or darkling time, the period of light and darkness joined together. By Dell- ingr she had Dagr, day. Other words in th and the are breathe, braecd, sent out, expired, blown ; eath, egath, agad, moved, hastened, made quick or ready, easy j birth, bereth, baerth, bered, born, brought ; sheath, sceagth, sceaged, covered, the cover 5 mirth, mireth, mjrgeth, miriged, rejoiced by gestures expressive of pleasure or amusement. All words in r, er, or or, in any variety of ra, which have d, de, t, te, or th, or the, before the said varieties of r, are nouns or verbs of action, form- ed on preterite or present participles, or on words descending from them. — Examples, father, fagd, got, getting ; fader, a getter : mother, mogd, bred, breeding ; mod-er, a breeder : brother, brog, bred, born ; brod-er, one of the same breed : sis- ter, swisT, for swagst, own kin ; swist-ar, one of our own family : calendar, an almanack, he or it who calls the beginning or days of the month, from calend, calling these ; reader, he, she, it that makes reading j adder, a biter, from agd, bitten, poisoned by biting ; padder, he who keeps the road, or walks it on foot, from pad, pagd, VOL. I. B b 386 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. walked, a road ; dodder, what forms bushes or knots, from dod, a bush, dogd or togd, grown ; rudder, roder, rogder, he or it that rows or moves the ship. Sender, bender, holder, feeder, and the like, are self-evident. — Remainder, re- MAiNEDER, or REMANENDER, what remains, or is remaining ; joinder, from joindure or jointure, join-making, the joining ; hinder, make hind, from jhined, kept down, kept back, thrust down, im- peded. (See Lye*s Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, in the word hin and heon.) — Sunder, one making, that is, made into single or separate divisions, from suND, solid, united, sound, one ; order, liter- ally rowed, ranked, ranged, made into rows, from OROD, a line ; solder, sold-making, from soled, preterite of sal or seal, tie, join, cement ; pound- er, pound-maker, from pund, pogend, pigend, pouncing, stamping. Observe that d is euphonic, not a consignificative, in thunder, thunr or thun- ER, noise-making ; and in two or three other words. Hither is hider, hi, this place, hi'd, here*d, or brought here, and hider here-making, belong- ing to here. Thither is thi, that place, thid, tiiered, thider, belonging or relating to there. Other is, in Visigothic, anthar, an, one, anod, made one, one'd, anoder, pertaining to, or making a single one. All words from the Latin, or its dialects, in at or in tor, in itor and utor, are preterite participles FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 387 augmented by the conslgnificative of action or per- sonal agency ; so deprecator, one who deprecates, from deprecatus ; mediator, from mediatus, put in the middle ; gladiator, from gladiatus, sword- ed; actor, from actus, done; traitor, from trayed, TREGED, given up, betrayed ; tutor, defender, from tutus, defended, protected. All words in dler and tler, whether from verbs in le, as settler, kindler, fondler, meddler ; from settle ; from SAGTEL, ciNDEL, cWiEGEND, raising fire or light ; FONDEL, from FON, FAGEN, FEAGEN, a SOft silly creature, a fool ; medel, or middle, intermix one- self by beginning to act ; or from nouns, as sad- dler, girdler, idler, fiddler ; from saedel, a seat ; gyrdel, a girth or girt ; agdel, spoiled, void, empty ; fidel, from figd, a string, a tier ; contain a preterite participle or a word of that order. All English words in ancy, ency; or in ance, ENCE ; if formed after the Latin antia or entia, or the Greek anteia ; involve a present participle and the consignificatives ig and a. A marks the agency as feminine. So radiance and radiancy, from ra- digantiga or radiantia. Radigant is raying, shedding rays, radiant ; and radigant-ig, radiant- having ; and marked as an act or action, with a the sign of the feminine gender. Ardency, ard, from ag-ar-ad, burnt, burn ; ardent, burning, ardent- IG, having that act or quality ; ardent-ig-a, ardent- lA. Observe that a not only marks the agency. 888 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. but seems to have the power of ag, have. For compare abstract nouns in tube with those in ance ; TENDENTiA, for instance, with magnitudo ; the force of the repeated consignificative seems to be ne- cessary in forming those classes of words : tend, stretch; tendent, stretching; tendent-ig, stretch- ing-have, or, as it would be in English, stretchingy ; then tendent-ig-a, having that active quality : MAGN, great ; magnit, greated, made great ; mag- nitudin, the being put into the state of great. The Teutonic nation made these abstracts in an easy way ; ardentia would, among them, have been brinning or brinst ; tendentia, the drift, or drifincg, the straecing or to- wending; and mag- nitudo, the mikil-ig-ens, mikileins, or micil- nysse. All English words in anty, enty, inty, or in TY, from a French or Franco-Latin source, in- clude a present or preterite participle, or words formed after these. The Latin tia was corrupted into tie or' ty, and confounded with the Teutonic IH or IG, in modern English written y. Latin ab- stracts in TAS or tats, as puritas and sanctitas, be- came, in some European dialects, puritade, santi- tade ; purita, and santita ; in others purite and saint- ite, and in English puritie, sanctitie ; purity, sanc- tity. Deduction IV. — All English words in an, FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 389 ANE, EAN, ENE, EEN, IN, INE, AIN, AINE, EMN, ON, OAN, ONE, OWN, UN, UNE, derived from the Teu- tonic, the Latin, Greek, Celtic, or the modern dia- lects of these, involve the consignificative na, which, in the early stages of language, formed preterite participles and possessive nouns, in the model of those participles. Words from the Oriental and other languages, not belonging to those which are the subject of this work, are excepted. This deduction relates to the words contained in more than seventy pages of Walker's Dictionary. Examples are ban, boden, proclaimed, a proclama- tion J an, EACEN, acn, united, one j scian, scea- GEN, cut, a cutter, a sword ; clean, clagen, lift- ed, rubbed, made clear ; dean, doyen, decan, DECANOS, tenthed man, belonging to ten ; mane, MAGENA, high or raised part of the neck ; thane, THEGEN, served, a servant ; bane, bagen, beaten, stung, death-blovv ; vicine, from vic, a dwelling ; VIC-EN, villaged, belonging to the dwelling, near to it, within or about it ; sane, swagen, sound, strong, whole ; wane, wacen, diminished, decay ; pine, poen, pagen, paid, or pigen, tortured, per- haps a little confounded with feo, money or cattle ; fine, FAGEN, wrought, polished, made handsome ; faecn or FACN, deceitful, cunning, subtle, from FAC, feign ; discipline, from discipulina, the act of being treated like a scliolar or learner, from discipulus ; humane, from homanus, probably homi- 390 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. nanus, lie-belonging-to a man, man-like, feeling or acting like a man ; saline, from sal and na, salt- ed, made of salt, pertaining to salt ; can-ine, per- taining to a dog 5 tribune, belonging to a tribe, he who is the tribe-man. In Latin and Greek nouns of the derivative species in ainos, einos, onos, inus, anus, unus, &c., there is good reason to suspect that the diph- thong or long vowel is a relic of ag, ig, og, or UG, which, in ancient times, stood before the con- significative na. So algos, pain ; algeinos, pain- ful, for alg-ig-en-os ; decs, fear ; deinos, for de- ig-enos ; agla, shining, lustre j agl-ag-igs, ag- LAios, splendid. In Homer's age, they still re- tained the vowels produced by changing g into a vowel, or rather by expelling it ; and so permitting the preceding and following vowels to meet. We find deeinos for deinos, and algeeinos for al- geinos ; and the same in many other words. I be- lieve that the original models of salinus, humanus, importunus, and the like, had ag, or some of its varieties, between the radical and na. The differ- ence of sense consisted in the effects of ig and na joined ; thus sal, salt ; salin, made salt, or lite- rally salted ; sal-ig-in, made to have the nature of salt, saltish. Other words in na are glean, gligen, gathered, perform gathering ; quean, cwigen-o, bred, a breed- er, a woman ; yean, eacen, bred, breed 5 fan, va- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 391 GEN, waved, a waver, a fan ; geman, gemagen, mixed, unsacred ; common, mean, a common man ; yeoman, commoner ; moan, magen, sounded, com- plaint, groan. A groan, gragen, is a cry sent out, a clear cry ; but magen is a dull cry, made with the mouth not open, through the nose. Grag is cry out, whence gragt, gret, greet, weep or sa- lute with a cry ; grugel, growl, snarl ; grogent, grunt ; while mag, beside mane or moan, produced MOG, mug, and muc, bellow through the nose ; myr or MUR, murmur ; murn, from muren, mourned, complained, and many others. — Roan, roden, having a red quality ; pan, patin, a kind of pat or pot ; span, spagen, a hand-grasp ; also grasped ; tan, tagen, thicken or dress skin by tugging ; swan, swagen, sounded, the bird that sings ; den, dign or digen, dug, hollowed, a hol- lowed place, a vale j keen, cwicen, vivid, quick, bold. In German keck for cwic is bold. — Biain, blegene, blown, a blister; stain, stacen or sta- GEN, a thing stamped in, a blot made with force ; main, meagen, powerful, chief, greatest; strain, stracen, a stretched body, voice, race ; but strain, kindred, is from streond or strynde, a getting ; mountain, Montana or montagena, elevated, made like mons or monts, a height ; vain, vacen, empty ; vein, vigen, a way, a race, a course, a blood-race, the Anglo-Saxon aedre-wegga ; fin, FiGEN, flied, moved, swum ; fon, a fool, feagen or 39!^ FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. FOGEN, a weak, soft creature ; talon, taglon, from TAG, catch, or tag, the toe ; felon, fegl, biting, sharp, severe, he who has done a cruel deed -, moon, MONA, grown, waxed, or shone ; mon-a, he who waxes ; soon, sun, swugun, quick, continuous, immediate ; earn, ear-en, gained, from ear or eacer, increase, gain ; earn, in Scotish, coagu- late, from YRN, a common transposition of run. Runnet is that by which milk is run. Since naething's awa, as we can learn^ The kirn's to kirn, and milk to earn, Gae butt the house, lass, and waken my bairn, And bid her come quickly ben. The servant gaed quhar the dochter lay ; The sheits war cauld, scho was away, And fast to her gudwife 'gan say, Scho's afF wi' the Gaberlunzie man. Since nothing is gone, that we can discover. The churn must now be churned, and the milk cui'dled. Go to the kitchen, girl, and awake my child. And bid her come quickly into the parlour. The servant went where the daughter had her bed ; The sheets were cold, she was gone : Then quickly she began to say to her mistress. She is away with the wandering beggar. To the above list may be added — dawn, dagen, dayed, the coming of day ; dun, doben, dull or dark hi colour, but dun, dwogen, strike, knock ; FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. SOS yawn, geone, geogen, open ; own, agn, agen, licld, possessed, proper ; un and an, wocen, wacn, deficient, wanting, not ; morn, morgen, dawned, shone or increased ; turn, trin, trigen, roll, run, move around ; western, westeren, belonging to wester, that is, towards the west ; urn, urena, for worna, a water jar ; lorn, loren, lost ; yearn, georn or grin, for graecen, reach after, long for. To groke, in Scotish, is to stretch for meat like a dog. Gredig, is hungry in Visigothic, and gridhne, in Indian, is the same thing. — Dern, DiGEREN, hid J stern, styr-en, the steerage ; quern, cwearen, whatever goes round, a hand- mill or a churn ; iron, yren, metallic. Aiz, aer, from ACER, melting, is metal of any kind. All words in sion and tion, derived from Latin abstract nouns in sio and tio, which had ionis in the genitive, and in early times ion in the nomi- native, are old present participles, constructed on the preterite participle ; so rasus, shaven ; rasion, shaving, a contraction of rasigong ; natus, born ; NATION, natigong, a bearing, a brooding, a race, family, nation. This rule has no exceptions, if the words be abstract nouns. After the fall of the Roman empire, the Italians, Spaniards, and French, formed nouns in one, or ON, which partook of the nature of a present par- ticiple, though the derivation was concealed by the way of writing. Examples are tronco, a stump of 394 FAcrrs and illustrations. a tree ; tronc-one ; in French troncheon, a stick of a short truncated kind ; flasc, a flagon ; flas- CONE, a flask-like vessel ; pont, a bridge ; pontone, a kind of bridge ; bal, a ball ; balone, a kind of ball, a ball-like machine, a balloon ; sala, a room ; s ALONE, a kind of room. The idea of big, unshape- ly, or ugly, was at length attached to some nouns of this order. In Teutonic their form would be troncong, flascong, pontung, balong, saling, or salong, a trunking, flascing, ponting, balling, saling. We say a steading of houses, a holding of land, a calling, or trade ; while on the continent they use mansione, tenimento, and vocatione. The use of on is remarkable in homuncion, from HOMUNCio in Latin. Homin is a man ; homin-ic- UL-us, or HOMUNCULus, a mannikin, or a man-ic- LE ; and homuncion, for homin-ic-ig-ong, a man- ici-ing, or manikieing, a kind of mannikin, some- thing less than a little man. The philologist must distinguish words in on, one, and other varieties of ong, from those that terminate in the varieties of na. Dudgeon, scut- cheon, luncheon, habergeon, hals-beorg-ong, are examples. Diminutives in ig-en owe their sense to ag or ig as mucli as to na. So cat, a cat ; cat-ig, be- longing to a cat, of the nature of a cat, a little cat ; cA t-ig-en, a catkin, a little cat ; wiL, a contraction of William -, wil-h;, belonging to Will, little Will, FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 395 Willie ; wilig-en, Wilkin, little Will ; gyr, a garment ; gyrikin, jerkin, a little coat ; bod, from BOGD, a stab, push j bodkin, a little stabber. In German, leibe, love j leibchin, a little love ; so in the German ballad of Lenore, Schon Liebchen shurzte, sprang und schwang Sich auf das Ross behende ; Wohl um den trauten Reiter schlang Sie, ihre lilienhande. The fair maid tuck'd her dress, sprung and Mounted herself on the horse, actively Glad about the rider threw She her lily hands. Note 3 I. p. 73. All Teutonic words in mb are not pure com- pounds of MA and BA. There is a tendency to in- sert B, for the sake of the sound, after such combi- nations as LiM, for LiTHM, a joint ; crum for crugm, a breaking or rubbing down j and lam, for lagm, a thing produced or bred, a lamb. There is a si- milar tendency observable in humble, for humile, from HUMiLus 5 tremble, for tremile ; dissemble, for dissimile or dissemle, and in many other words of that form in the European languages. The Sanscrit has examples of the same nature. P is inserted in some instances for a like purpose. 396 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Note 3 K. p. 74. We find in Teutonic deag, moisture ; deagig, dewy, moist ; danc, for deagincg, having a moist nature, dank ; damp, for deancba, or deagincba, having a dank nature : Rag, strong, poignant, vio- lent ; RANG, for raging G, strong in taste, smell ; RAMP, having a keen strong smell like a goat. Owing to the various senses of rag, the compounds have various significations, even in the same dia- lect. Rank grass is grass grown high, from rag, grow like a stalk ; and rang, in Anglo-Sax- on, means grown erect, tall, stiff, proud ; some of which senses may be from rag, extend, raise. To ramp, in some dialects, is to creep, from rag, reach out like one creeping. The words repo, creop, creopel, cripple, crawl, are in this line of sense. Note 3 L. p. 80. The power of secondary composition may be finely displayed in the word war, to move, turn ; also labour, guard, defend : 1 . War, to move, a contraction of wagera, work, hold by activity j behold, look. ^. Warb, to turn j ware, to turn j warp, to turn, wind much. 3. Warc, to labour, work, bustle ; warg, or wACRic, agitated, wrought, wearied. 4<. Ward, to guard, look, keep j grow, increase, become ; turn, whence weaud. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 397 5. Warl, weorl, to whirl, hence weould, the globe, world. 6. Warm, wrorm, agitated, turned, twisted, boiled. 7. Warn, from war, guard j to defend, hinder, forbid. 8. Verto, from ward, to turn. 9. Wars, worse, derived from wacr, bad j com- monly WAC, bad ; wacer, worse. Ware strongly expresses the popular ideas of motion, change, dis- appearance ; WARF, warth, wraith, are common names for an apparition, a passing spirit : I dreamt, yestreen, his deadly ivrailh I saw Gang by my een, as white's the driven snaw. Poems of Robert Ferguson. Eclogue on Dr Willcie. . Notes M. p. 81. To blad or blawd, in Scotish, is to give a blow, or rather several blows, which drive the object back and forward : so wind is said to blawd an open door. The radical is blag, lay ; from which comes bla- gelum, that which makes a frequent noise by lay- ing on, moving, beating. The contraction is blel- LUM. Observe the radical power of lag, to strike elastically, in this distich : She tauld thee weel thou wast a skellmn, A blethering, blustering, druken blellum. Burns' Tale of Tarn o Shunter. 398 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. ^nd in this stanza : This day M'K y taks the flail. And he's the boy to blaivd her. He'll clap a shangan on her tail. And set the bairns to daud her Wi' dirt this day. Burns' Poem on the Ordination. Note 3 N. p. 93. The ideas of power, cause, and effect, personal identity, and several others of a very simple descrip- tion, are produced in all men, during the exercise of their bodily and mental faculties. Savages have these ideas, though they do not consider them in an abstract manner. So strongly are they impressed with the belief that every change or effect must ne- cessarily have a cause, that they are prone to sup- pose that external nature acts like an animated be- ing, that the changes perceptible around them are proofs of particular agency, and that the qualities of bodies are former causations. The philosophical sequence is by rude minds viewed as a necessary connection. Note 3 O. p. 94. This is to be understood of primitive or radical terms. 13y the assertion that man was silent till he had formed ideas to communicate, is not meant, that any of our species were originally destitute of FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 399 the natural expressions of feeling or thought. All that it implies is, that man had been subjected, during an uncertain period of time, to the impres- sions made on his senses by the material world, be- fore he began to express the natural varieties of these by articulated sounds. One kind or class of these impressions he at length expressed by the word AG or wag, another by dwag, a third by lag, and so forth with regard to the rest. But this was to give names to classes, not to individual acts or events ; and though the abstraction, which formed such classes, might be greatly aided or supported by the signs ; yet it were absurd to suppose that the sign was invented, till the sense demanded it. The most striking acts of nature affected the senses and the mind, and at last obtained names for themselves, and all that resembled them. If it be contended that these acts, for example, the moving action of fire, of water, or of air, are individuals, not classes ; the reply is not difficult. Ag signifies fire, water, air, and all things that move in a manner similar to them. Note 3 P. p. 95. Destruction by fire was expressed by words, sig- nificative of great and severe motion ; such as fag, eat, consume ; ag, agitate, waste ; rag, brag, PRAG, all denoting violent agitation of the mat- ter consumed ; dag, destroy, common in Celtic, 400 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Greek, and Sanscrit ; and by bag, which is the same with FAG, whence bagla, bala, and baela, a burn- ing heap. Bal, in Icelandic, is flame, burning, the burning pile ; in Latin called rogus, from rag, consume. BuRO is a derivative of bag, as uro is of AG. Fiblth ec for. Hvat maelti Othinn, Adr a bal stigi Scalfi'j i eyra syni. Much have I travelled. What shall Odin have said;, Ere on the pile he mount Himself, in the ear of his sun. Edila, Vafthrudnismal. Stanza 54. Bael-fyr means the lire of the burning heap. Wag, AG, CAG or cwag, dag, fag, bag, lag, SNAG, nag, rag, and swag, have all been used to mark the properties of fire, flame, and burning. Lag applies chiefly to light, which has been named from its darting and rapid course. Lag, lay, strike ; SPLAG, strike momentaneously ; nag, strike vivid- ly ; MAG or MiG, strike with a vibratory impulse ; have produced log, flame ; flog, flame ; las and LAS AIR, flame ; liht and liget, light ; blagsa, a blaze ; glig, gleom, glimmer, a flash of light ; leu- cos, clear ; clarus, clear, or light j splagend, darting light j splendor, bright light ; nitor, 12 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 401 glittering j mico, I vibrate. From scig, or scag, move, cast, impel ; we have scin, for scigen, shine ; sciNA, sheen, radiant : from rag, burst or rush, v^^e find ragdigs, a ray, radius, rutilus, sending oft' little rays. This sense of rag differs from rag, de- stroy. CwAG, or CAG, is the radical of caio, 1 burn, I waste by fire ; and of cwagand, or cagand, burning; whence candeo, I burn, I shine like burn- ing matter, and I become warm. Brig, or brag, send forth like light, rushing ; produces eriht, a contraction of briged, rayed, splendent, lucid, bright. Heat is generally expressed by words significative of agitation. Hwagt, wagerm or WACERM, and hleaw, tepid, are from hwag, move, and wag, move, expressive of the effect of heat on the senses. Hleaw is from hlig. To boil was denoted by bag, or bac, soften ; whence pag, the radical of pepto, I boil soft, and PECH, cook, in Slavic and Sanscrit. Cwag, to soft- en by motion of fire, is the root of coquo. To make fluids boil is in Latin bullio, from bagel, a blown vapour, a bubble, which itself is from bub, a blast. The radix is bag-ba. In Teutonic, to boil is weal, from WAGLA, to move as water rolling, or waves ; to move as a spring bubbling ; whence wyll, a spring, a whirling wave, a whirling pool. Such phrases as the following abound in Anglo Saxon : VVylle aweolle, a fountain boiled up : Bede, 6*25 ; 23. Tha ytha weollon, the waves boiled. Weal- VOL. I. c c 402 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. lende fyr, waving fire, iSre waving as if it boiled. Gebrec thaes weallendes saes, the dash of the boiling ocean. Him Brego engla wylm-hatne lig to wraece sende : Caedmon, 56, 3 : To them the King of the Ang6ls boiling-hot flame for vengeance sent. The Latin fervto is from fag, move ; whence fer, move, and ferb, be in com- motion. FuRo, I rage, is from fer. Thermos, warm, in Greek, and gharma in Persic and Sanscrit, are from thar and gar, otherwise writ- ten thri and ghri. They both mean violent mo- tion. This part of the subject might be illustrated at great length, but there is room only to show how it is to be investigated. Note S Q. p. 96. Fire, water, and air, being all named from their motion, have similar appellations in every country, which uses the language described in this work. The primitive verbs ag, wag, and bag, furnish many of these words. In Celtic aodh is fire, and athar is air. In Greek ouros is wind and water. In Sanscrit vari is water, and vatih is wind. The Gaelic aingeal, Latin ignis, Slavic ogoni, and Sanscrit agani, or agni, fire, come near to ahma, a blast or breath, in Visigothic ; anthos, a blown flower ; aotos, a flower ; aemat, a breeze ; and other derivatives of ao, I blow, in Greek. Wind in Saxon, ventus in Latin, and vat in Sanscrit, are FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 403 contractions of wagend, vahents, and vaiiant, all from wag, move, in Sanscrit va, go. 1"he mov- ing clouds and air are called in Saxon sweg, or swEGEL, from swig, turn, or revolve. In Sanscrit the revolving sky is called swuB ; in Greek spha- IRA, from the same verb : sv, or sw, is always sph in Greek. The term weolcen, from weolc, turn, roll, is much used in old English. Neb, nub, and nebul, or neal, are ancient names of clouds; as are migla, milma, and mihla, used in Visigothic, Cel- tic, Greek, and Slavic. The Indian word is meg- HA, from MUH, make thick. Nimb, from neb, is the Latin and Celtic for a cloud, written nimbus and neamh. Nebo is the clouds or sky in Slavo- nic. Note 3 R. p. 96. The gesceop wind and lyfte, roderas and rume grundas ? Who formed the wind and air, the red or bright sky, and the roomy, that is, wide fields? Fragment of Judith, c. 12. Ruma hodor is, in Alfred's Boethius, for the spacious ether, or wide bright sky. Most of the ancient nations of Europe and Asia considered the sphere of the stars as com- posed of a fiery air, in Sanscrit called akash, from AK, shine, burn ; in Greek aither, from aith or agth, shine, burn. Lift is found in high and low Dutch and Scotish. In Ramsay's Gentle Shep- herd, some well-known lines are, " As yet the sun 404« FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS, was wading in the lift, and I was close on her or e*er she wist." Note 3 S. p. 98. Any word expressive of turning served to de- scribe this object, as verto, vortex ; dineo, from DwiG-NA, turn, dine j cyr and gyr, turn ; coire and GURGES. Car and cyr are very ancient words in Celtic and Teutonic. The Latin circus, a round place ; circulus, a little turned line or ob- ject ; and circum, around ; are common. Car has produced many fine derivatives in Irish and British, as car, a turn or movement, a moment of time, a twist, bend, what moves or agitates, viz. the jaw, and every thing resembling a jaw, as a comb, saw, &c. GEAR, cut by violent motion j cearb, a cut board, also cutting down, a rag, shred ; cirb, fleet, swift J cearb and core, what is turned or moved, a chariot, in Latin carpentum; corr, cut, sharp, acute, a sharp bill of a bird, a sharp turn, a corner, a thing standing out and irregular on that account, uneven, unequal, odd, remaining ; cor, a turn, a cast, a throw, a circular motion ; the state into which a thing is thrown ; cur, or cuir, cast, send, put, sow, plant, generate ; exertion, power ; agitating, tossing back and forward, rveari/ing ; curracii, a moving, quaking marsh, nearly the same as bog, from bog, bow, bend, be soft j cuiuT, a circle about a house, in Teutonic card. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 405 or yard ; coire and corr, a circular place, a pit, a pool, or a hollow. Remark that carr is in British and Celtic a waggon, or any drawn vehicle ; and that the English and French cargo, carry, and CHARGER, are all from car, move. The analogy of CAR, move, and wag, move, carry, in Latin veh, is palpable. The Latin vehiculum, Teutonic wae- GEN, and Celtic car, are altogether synonymous. We are told that in the Oscan dialect veiae signi- fied plaustra, waggons. In Celtic cuar is per- verted, crooked ; cuartan is a thing rolled round, a labyrinth ; cuartag shluganach, from slug, swallow, is a whirlpool; cuarsg, is wrap, roll about; and cuAiRSGiN is the part rolled about, the heart. In Saxon cyr or cur signifies turn, bend, return, twist, go ; in Welsh cerdd is walk, and in Greek CHORDS is space for turning or walking in ; the very same as hwearf, spatium movendi, in Eng- lish a wharf, from hwearf, turn, walk about, in Anglo-Saxon. Choros is, in Greek, what moves or dances in circles ; and also the place of moving. Choreo is I move away, I make place, I separate by making place between. Choris emou is by or with space of me, viz. separated from me. Chorda, in Latin and Greek, is a thing twisted, the same as tharm, rop, and bogel. Curro, coram, and CARMEN, as also certo and curvus, are from cur, move, run ; cor, gone, gone up to, the same in sense as gegen, against, and fora, before, from 406 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. GAG and TAR, go ; car, agitate, vvork, comb, dress, compose ; cer, struggle, twist, wrestle ; curva, twisted, bent. Cura is from car, work, vex, agi- tate the body or mind. Carcer, in Teutonic kar- kara, is a house of torture. Note 3 T. p. 98. Drag, or in Celtic driag, press, produced drig- pa and traec, whence trickle. Strag and Strang, twist, wring, squeeze, gave strangx, a drop ; and stag, dash, drive, press violently; made stigla or stilla, and stagdso, I drop. Geo, cheo, or heo, from gwag, cast, melt ; produced gutta, &c. Braec, run, in Teutonic, gave braec, humour ; BRUE and braon, a drop or drizzle, dreosel or DROPSEL. SiG, fall, made, siol in Celtic. Note 3 U. p. 99. The Celts call hail clochshneachd, or stone- snow ; and meallin, from meall, a knob, lump, round gathering of any substance. The Greek CRUos and crustallos, from crug, analogous to FRiGUS, frost, frozen or stiffened water, is self-evi- dent. Gelu is from ge-egela. Nimbus is allied to NUBES and the Teutonic genippa. The Celtic neamh and neul, from nebula, a little cloud, are allied to NUBES and nimbus; and all arise from NAMB, bend, spread over, cover ; and nub for nag- BA, cover. The Greek nephos, dnophos, and FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 4,0J DSOPHOS, are from nob or nub. Megha in San- scrit, MGLD in Slavic, omichle in Greek, and MiGST or mist in Teutonic, are from mag or mig, gather, thicken, condense, coagulate. In Visio-o- thic and the other dialects, ric, rece, from raec, send out J signified vapour by rain, or smoke; whence Ricwiz, darkness. In the north of England, as in Scotland, roke means vapour, a mist of rain, mois- ture, reek ; of which an excellent example occurs in the fine old ballad of the Battle of Otterbum, edited by Mr llitson, at Newcastle, 1793. The Perssy and the Dowglas mette : That ather of other was fayne. They swapped together, whyll that they swette. With swords of fine CoUayne ; Till the bloode from their bassonettes ran. As the roke doth in the rayne. " Yelde the to me," said the Dowglas, " Or elles thou schalt be slayne." In Latin vap, waff, blow, ventilate, cool, dry by wind, or produce evaporation by exposing to the air, produced vapor, in Greek atmos, from at, blow. It is singular that the Latins called a ser- pent that blows vipera, from this verb ; the same reptile being named by the Celts buafare, a blow- er, from BUF, blow, a term common to their dialect, to the Latin and Teutonic. From bag, move ra- pidly, drive, blow, came bub, or bag-ba, blow, puff 408 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS, from which bub, a blast, is found in Gawin Douglas and other old writers. The Latins called the toad BUFiNG or BUFo, the Celts called it buaf, and a viper BUAFARE, an adder buafathair, and virulent bua- FACH, — all from the idea of blowing poison. The toad, from colour, has been called ruddock, rube- TA, and FRUNOs, red or dun. The Greeks called the rainbow iris or irids, the messenger, a feminine noun, on account of the opi- nion that its divinity was messenger to Here, the Goddess of the Air. The name iros and eiros, a messenger, was common in old Greek. (Vide a remarkable line in Homer's Odyssey.) The Visigothic air and Saxon aer, or ar, a mes- senger, from ag-ra, go, run, still survives in the purer Teutonic dialects, and in the English noun errand. Note 3 X. p. 99. Dew, deaga, moisture, dipping, is from dag or deag, nearly allied to tig and tingo. It has se- veral derivatives, as daggle, &c. The Celtic DEALT is from deagelt, and the Celtic driuchd, Greek drosos, and Latin ros, for rors, are all from ROG, ROS, and ror, which mean to run, sink, fall. Driusan, to fall, is common Visigothic. In Celtic, REO, REOGii, is frost, from rig, stiffen j and in Teutonic iirigma or iiryma, ryme, is frozen dew j in Circck pagos, fixed moisture ; for fag. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 409 PAG, RIG, and STAEG, havc a similar meaning. The words, from which, nouns expressive of moisture or water were derived in ancient times, were very nu- merous; as AG and wag, run, rain ; bag, bathe, sup- ple J DAG, dip; PAG, or pig, drink ; lag, run, melt ; MAG, soften, melt ; nag, soften ; rag, run, flow, rain ; sig, drop, descend ; thag, melt ; not to men- tion compounds of these. Hudor, water ; huo, I rain ; humor, wetness, liquor, melted substance ; AES and AER, melted metal ; mucus, mucor, ma- DEO, MINGO, NEAROS, REO, RHEUMA, TEXIS, TECO, aqua, &c. &c. are common derivatives of these. The following passage from the Edda exhibits the Scandinavian mythology, in what respects the origin of dew : Vafthrudnir. Seg thu that, Gagnradr, Hve sa yor heiter, Er aiistan dregi* Nott oc nyt regin ? Gagnradr. Hrimfaxi heiter, Er hveria dregr Nott oc nyt regin. Mel-dropa fellir hann, Morgin hvern^ Thadan komr daugg iim dala. Vafthrudnir. Seg thu that, Gagnradr, Hve su a heiter Er deilir med lotna sonom Grand oc med Gothom ? 410 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Gagnuadr. Ifing heitir a, &c. &c. Vafthrudnir. Say thou that, Gagnradr, (travelling reaaoner, viz. Odin^) How the horse is called. Which from the east draws Night over the beneficent rulers or Gods ? Gagnradr. Hrimfaxi (hoar-frost-haired) he is called. Who draws every Night over the beneficent Gods. Bit-drops (foam from the bridle in his mouth) makes he fall Every morning ; Thence comes dew on the plains Vafthrudnir. Say thou that, Gagnradr, How that river is called. Which divides between the sons of the giants The ground and the Gods ? Gagnradr. Ifing the river is called, &c, Note 3 Y. p. 99. All words, significative of growing, might be ap- plied to the earth, in the early stages of language. From RAG, spring, came gragend and growend ; from AG or aic, proceed, advance, increase ; came agers, and aker, and ecra, in Greek era. The Celtic and Latin ar signified gro'w corn in what- ever way. Agros and ar, a field, mean ground un- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 41 1 cultivated or otherwise. Aga, a ground, a coun- try, was in Greek aia, in Teutonic au ; or ga-aia, and gawi. (See the Visigothic Gospels, Mark vi. 55, and Luke iii. 3.) As ag signified move, pro- ceed, grow, begin ; its compounds ar, aer, or, ER, and oiR or urn, and UR, came to signify motion* growth, beginningof time, place; and individual ob- jects, beginning of land, a border, a hem, a head, or an end, in Celtic ear, and iarr or earr ; the place of coming or growing, from whence ard or ord, an origin ; aird or airt, a point whence the wind blows ; ort, a place in Teutonic ; the Teu- tonic prepositions er, or, ur, from, out ; and the Celtic UR and or, out of; which is also British. In Celtic, uiR and ur is mould, or earth, on which plants grow ; ur is growing, budding, springing ; and URAL and ur fresh and new, St Columba, the apostle of the Dalriad Scots, is said to have buried alive his friend Oran, as a sacrifice demanded by Heaven for the success of the monastery of I- colum-cille. After three days, curiosity prompted him to open the grave. Oran raised his swimming eyes, and said, Cha 'n 'eil am bas na iongantas. No ifrinn mar dli' aithreasar. There is no wonder in death. Nor is hell as it is reported. Columba, shocked by these sentiments, exclaim- ed in great haste. 412 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Uir ! uir I air beal Grain, ma'n labhair e tuile comhradh. Earth ! earth ! on the mouth of Oran, lest he tell more tales. Macintosh's Gaelic Proverbs, p. 66. Note 3 Z. p. 102. The Teutonic name of a wild natural field was HAGATH or HAiTH, of whicli the adjective was HAITHIWISC, AGRESTIS. GiaSS WaS Called HAWI, what grows ; and hagath or haeth, or woes and RAcs, from WAC, grow, and rac, spring. The Cel- tic tribes, who always pronounced w or v as f, used FAS, increase, grow, enlarge ; and their adjective, fas, corresponded to vastus, large; wide, exten- sive ; and by metaphor wide, waste, empty. A wide waste, or wilderness of ground, they termed FASACH, the waste, the desert ; or raon, reithon, RAECTHON, the plain. The same object was nam- ed by the Teutones authids, the enlarged, or extended, from aukthids ; and the adjective audur means vast, large, empty, desert. Woody places were called wood, grown ; and wigeld, wild, become overgrown. The Celts called wood and a wilderness fiodii, and growing territory FiADH. FiADHiDH was savagc, woody, wild ; and FiADHiDHAD, savagcucss ; two fine examples of the use of DA, the cousignificative, which forms preterite, participles, and adjectives of that nature, if applied once ; but abstract nouns, if used twice. Thus sanctus, hallowed j sanctitats, sanctity ; purus, FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 413 clean ; puritats, or puritas, cleanness ; glucus, sweet ; glucutets, sweetness ; haploos, one- fold, not double ; haplotets, in old Scotish, ae- fald-nesse. a wild beast, or beast of the woods, of whatever kind, was called dihz by the Visi- goths ; deor, by other Teutonic tribes ; ther, by the Greeks ; all apparently from dik, which at this day signifies wood in Slavic. The Celts termed wild animals fiadh, evidently from fiadh, wood. I cannot decide whether venor, I hunt, be from wiGNA, chase, pursue ; or from w^ig-na, wild, analogous to theraomi in Greek : probability inclines to the sense of pursue. The verb ven, hunt, is found in Sanscrit. On examination, I have observed that fiadh in Celtic signifies wild land, a wood, and a wild beast ; all from FiAGH, a corrupt but Celtic variety of vaeg and viG, grow. The adjectives agrios, agrestis j syl- vestris, sylvaticus; ferus, from faeg j confirm this account. The Teutonic hoh, the Persic coh, the Slavic gora, or HORA, and Sanscrit giri, coincide with HORos ; being all from hah, raise, lift j and its de- rivatives HoR and HAR, or haer. The Saxon hill, HiHT, hilling, heahtho, a height ; hear, hight, heap, a raised mass ; may be compared with collis, &c. The Celtic (See Shaw's Diet. Part II. voce Hill) has near sixty names for hills, some from the round gathered form, cnoc, meall, cruach, mam 414 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. for MAGM ; Others from the raised or elevated state, as TULOCH, TULM, UCHDAN, UACHDAR, ARD, AR- DAN ; Others from being peaked or topped, as rinn, BRI, TORR, BRIGH, BARR, BEINN, SIGH ; Originally from RIG or rag, stretch out, run, run in a point : RiGN is pointed, peaked, acute ; and brig, the very same as rig, but strongar in sense : — tog, lift, ele- vate ; BAG, lift, carry up, bear, as any object car- ried on the top, or point, as grain, seed, grass, hair, the head or crown, leaves, bushes. Begn, or bign, is the elevated part of land, the body, &c ; and BAGR, or BARR, is the actual thing in elevation. Sigh is from sig, send forth, as a point ; and siog is a rick, or pointed heap. The declivity, or side of a large mountain, up to the top, or the ascending side of a mountainous country, is in Celtic sliabh, from SLAG-BA, lean, incline, slip downwards ; allied to SLEAS and slios, a declivity, a side of a ridge of hills, or of the loin. Ridged hills are druim, DRUiMAN, and DRONNAG. Single hilis, steep on the sides so as to inclose the top, are din, dinas, and DUN, from dun and tun j from tog, wall, for- tify, inclose by nature or art. The Teutonic mund or munt, in Latin monts, or MONS, signified any heap or hill, any hill thrown up for defence, whether great or small. Many of the ancient German chiefs bore in their names the words MUND and berg, signifying protection or de- fence. The etymologists have miserably confound- *> FACTS AND ILLUSTUATIONS. 415 ed MUND, in this sense, with mund, the mouth, and absurdly translated sigismund,faramund, gunda- MUND, agilmund, thorismund, berimund, the mouth of victory, of the tribe, of favour ; the free mouth, the fierce mouth, the true mouth 5 names by far too loquacious for savage warriors. Sigismunp is the rampart of virstory ; faramund, the fort of the tribe ; (Vid. Paul, Warnefridi de Gest. Long, Lib. ii. c. 9 ; and Lye'.v Anglo-Sax. Diet, voce Fare;) gundamand, the surety of favour to his men ; agild-mund, the protection of the free : an-gild is he who pays no tribute, as the Lon- gobardi were independent : (Vid. de Gestis Long. Lib. i. c. 14 ;) thorismund, the bulwark of the strong ; berigmund, the defence of the hill- fort. Compare in Lye*s Dictionary beorg, col- lis, mons, acervus, muniraentum, refugium ; and as a funeral mound, a barrow, a burial-heap ; be- ORGAN, servare, custodire ; borg, a thing given to be kept till debt was discharged, a pledge, also security of any kind ; borga, he who gives security for another j mund, septum, munimen, tutela, protectio ; mund bora, protector. Instead of septum, the word should have been agger. The Latin moenia and munio are from mogna ; as are the Greek munomai, I put a defence be- fore me, I use a pretext ; and amuno, I ward off by opposing myself between the object attacked and the assailants. Marei, mor, and maee, all 416 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. from MAG, signify the large hill, the large water, and the large wet ground, or moor. The word main-ocean is analogous to marei. Mar is also applied to lakes and soft watery places, whence martsc, a morass, a marsh. The ancient name of land surrounded by water was iG, lAGH, or rather eaga, water-land, from ag, EAG, and EA, water. Ea-lond explains itself. The Celtic iknis, and Latin insula, are inn, ean, or an ; all Celtic contractions for eagen, water, or wave. The Greek nesos is from natsk, wet, watery ; but the proximate verb is nao or naeo, I run as water, from nag and nad, drive, run. The Celtic, Sanscrit, and all the oldest dialects, possess- ed NAD and its radical nag. In the Scandinavian dialects oe, holm, and land, are names of islands, according as they enlarge in size. Oe is ea, but HOLM comes from hweolm, overflown, a name not of isles only, but of all waves, rolled water, waves driven by winds, and of the sea itself. Overflowed land is called holm. The discovery of the true origin of iiwealf and hwolf, a side, a half; HWEoiiL, a wheel ; hweold, inclined, leaned to- wards J iiwearf, turn ; hweal, whole ; hweat, hot ; HWALs, the neck j and several other original words ; led me to some most important conclusions as to the history of the radical terms. The Anglo-Saxon writers have used the words holm, a billow, and holmeg, wavy, stormy, in a FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 41 7 very poetical manner ; for example. Thy laes him westen gryre har haeth holmegum wederum ofer clamme. Lest them the desert frightful with hoar heath should overwhelm (overclim) with stormy blasts. Holmes hlaest, the product of the ocean ; HOLM-AERN, the sca-liousc, a name for a ship j Heah ofer haelethum holm-weall astah, high above the chiefs the water-wall arose ; Ofer holm boren, water-borne as a vessel. These expressions are mostly from the beautiful paraphrase imputed to Caedmon. Seg thu mer that, Fafner, Hve sa holmr heiter, Er blanda heorlaegi Surtus oc Aesir saman ? Edd. Saemund, Say thou to me that, Fafner, How that low-plain is called. Where (they) mix sword-blows Surtr and the Gods together ? SuRTR, from SWART, the black, is the God of the world of fire, who, in the end of time, according to the northern mythology, was to contend with the Anses, or Asi, under Odinn, and to consume the earth. The term holmr is here taken for vaullr, a field, an even plain, such as isles, shores, and banks generally afford. The terms rinn, a peaked promontory ; naes, or NESS ; MYS, a snout or beaked stripe of land ; belong vol. I. D d 418 FACTS AND ILLUSTIIATIONS. respectively to the Celtic, Teutonic, and Slavic. Baga, or BAGHONN, from BAG, bow, is a bay ; SINUS, from sig, recede, is recessus maris aut corporis ; and colpos is most probably from coLP, or HwoLP, a bend, either externally or in- wardly. Note 4 A. p. 107. Kyth and kin mean those that are our acquaint- ance or country, and those that are our relations. The Latin genus and gens are nearly the same as kyth and kin, taking kyth to rise from cwith, birth, or race. In the Teutonic dialects, freond, a lover, from frag, desire ; is opposed to gefah, or FAH, a foe ; from fag, engage, catch, fight, a word originally written feoht and faht, in the east of Scotland at this day pronounced fadght. O he had a sair faught at his death, is a common phrase for he had a great struggle. The Saxon gehata, a hater, is hata, heat, ferment, anger, passion ; as ECHTHROs, an enemy, in Greek, is egd, bitterness,' pain, acrimony of mind. The Latin hostis is a corruption of casts, aguestj a stranger, a foreigner, from GA, go or come. Hospes for hospids, seems to be allied to hostis, and to mean the stranger re- ceived, and the stranger who receives. The Greek ' xenos is instead of exeeinos ; in Homer xeinos, a word from ex, out, and nearly the same as ex- TRA^us, a foreigner, a stranger. The Anglo- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 419 Saxons used civima, a comer, and cast, a tra- veller. By far the most ancient word for production of any kind was ag and ac, of which auctor, a fa- ther ; acta, or atta, a parent ; eac, produce ; ACER, a producer, a field ; ob, or ab, fruit ; aega, an egg ; ecnian, to breed ; eacnung, bearing ; ALDo, I increase, a contraction of ageld ; are, with many others of the same race, common in Latin, Teutonic, and Greek. The natal soil was often termed aethel, and men who were descended of honourable persons were called aethelingas, by the ancient Germans ; but not from the soil or country, which their tribes were frequently chang- ing, but from the fact of birth. Note 4 B. p. 107. Cneomagas signifies knee-relations : cneo in Saxon denotes a knee, and secondarily, a genera- tion, or family. In Celtic glun, a knee, has the same peculiar sense. Indeed, cneow seems to have had the sense of generation in Anglo-Saxon ; for BiNNAN CNEOWE is intra consanguinitatis gradum. Cneow is generatio, progenies ; cneow-sibbe is consanguinitas ; and cneow-rysse and cneow-rim generation, or genealogy. Cnosl is proles, sobo- les, progenies ; and maegth, which is translated generatio. Cniht is ** what is bred or born," a child, a boy, a youth, a h\d, a servant, a young ■4<20 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. soldier. Cniht seems to be from cniged, the preterite participle of cnig, nascor j consequent- ly, GNATUs, NATus, and CNIHT, are synonymous. Mag, breed, is common to the Celtic, Cymraig, Greek, Latin, and indeed to every ancient dialect. Sib or syb is from swigba : swaeg and swaegs, self, PROPRE in the French sense, are found in many si- milar derivatives. Swagens was contracted into suNUs, as in Visigothic ; and the Greeks exchang- ed s for h, and discarded the n, by which the word became huios. The classic philologist must never forget, that h in the beginning of many Greek words stands for s and sw : for example, in Hus for sus, or SUGS, a sow, originally swugs ; in hupnos, sleep, for swupns, or swefens j in hula, wood, for suLVA, or swolwa ; hupo, under, for supo ; HUPAR, a dream, for sufar, or swefer, a sleeping- thought, somnium. But HU initial in Greek is not always for s ; it represents w in hudor, from hud, wet, or KUDOS wats, water ; in hufos, weaving ; or a web, from wubs, or webs, weaving j and it rises from g in huds, I sing ; from gud, or gyd, the Teutonic relative of aeid and aid, sing. Hud- Mos, or humnos, a song ; and humen, a film, a web, such as is between the toes of water-fowl ; follow their primitives. Hubris, an insult, is in Visi- gothic uf-briks, from uf-brikan, scorn, despise, reject. (Vide the Visigothic N. Test. Matt. vi. V. 26.) FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 421 Note 4 C. p. 107. The words thiuda, hleod, and folg, are com- mon Teutonic for what the Latins called populus, and the Greeks demos. Thiuda, or theod, a very celebrated term, is a contraction of thogda, bred, born ; hleod is the same as the Greek laos, from HLAGD, born ; and folc is probably from FAL, bear, breed. All these words are perfectly analogous to the Latin gens and genus, which faithfully express their sense. Another name for a race or family was drott, or droht, a draught, a race, a descent. The chief of such a race was called drotting, which is nearly synonymous with cyning and thiudans. A viceroy, or governor, was called by the Visigoths and the Burgundians, their relations, kindins, or kindina, which is a de- rivative of KIND, a race or tribe. The term reiks, a director, was given to the sovereigns of the Os- trogoths on the Euxine j while the princes of the Visigoths were forced to assume the humbler title of STAUYOs, or judges. Many other epithets of princes and leaders may be found in the Edda, the paraphrases by Caedmon, and the author of the Fragment of Judith, published at the end. Bre- Go, a director, and beorn, which some antiquaries derive from the noun beavy a fierce well-known animal, are very common. All republican tribes seem to have disliked the word reiks, and to have avoided the application of it to their generals or 422 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. nobles. Tlie Greek basi-leus signifies one who marches the people. The allusion to the people in CYNING, THIUDANS, and DROTTING, IS obvioUS. But Rix, or RiGH, was used by the Celts ; b renin, or BREN, (for BREGEN,) by the Cymraig tribes ; rex by the Romans, and raja, by the Indians. The affinity between dux and toga is suffi- ciently intimate. The common Teutonic name for an army was haryis, here, and herg, all derived from HARE, or here, a multitude ; the primitive be- ing HAH, or HAG, lift, raise, accumulate, heap. The leader of an army was called here-toga. The Greek archon is from archo, I am first ; from ar, or acr, beginning, a common Teutonic and Celtic word, written aer, ar, er, and or, or UR ; which, as a preposition, signifies before, ere, out from, out, as er-springen, or ur-springen, to spring from, or out. Ord, beginning, outgoing, is a preterite participle of ar. Leader is from RA and LAGD, carrying, conducting, teaching j a noun formed like faegd-er, a father. Note 4 D. p. 108. The names of slaves were many, and, for the most part, not ignominious. The most common were thegs, or thes, thegen, thigwa, or thiw ; all from tiiwag, take, give, minister ; in Sanscrit das, give, serve ; bahta and andbaiits, a per- son who works about one j from bag, work, serve. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 423 Thegen and andbahts included all servants from menials up to officers of state. Even skalk itself was not reckoned disgraceful, as appears from mar- SCALC, the groom, now marshal ; and other com- pounds of that term. Thraegel, or thrall, is a compelled or forced servant. Servus is from srig, or SRAEG, which is used in Sanscrit, and signifies attend on, minister. A slave, who laboured the land, or tended cattle, and lived in a cottage on the estate, was called by the Teutonic nations BUENDA, a dweller, or cultivator ; or hus-buenda, a house-holding slave : the Latin is colonus, from COL, or HWAL, turn, agitate, work on. The sup- port given to a slave in the house, or in the cottage, was called feorma, or federema, feeding. The cottager had his support from the annual produce. The chosen warriors kept by the chief were tenn- ed geselas, or gesinthas, companions. Note 4 E. p. 108. The name higs has been contracted into hus. Razn and rof, from raeg, raer, and raes, are also used. The Greek and Latin demo and do- Mus are the same as tim in the Teutonic. A com- mon name in Visigothic, Greek, and Latin, for a stately edifice, is heal, alh, halh, or aula, from HAHEL, raise. The shrine of a deity, that is, the elevated place on which his statue stood, or the statue itself, were termed hearg, or haurg, from 424 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. HEAR, exalt. The Latin templum is from TEMPLO, look carefully, discern : it was an open high station chosen for observing the heavens. Aedes is from aecd, enlarged, made into a room or space for inhabiting. Janua is from ganwa, gone, a word synonymous with gata, ganga, and GEODS, which in Greek is oudos, the entrance. Porta is fortha, from far, go, enter, pass : por- Ticus is derived from port-ig-sa, a place having the properties of an entrance. The Greek pula is obscure, but it is probably from pal or pel, go, move, enter. Grad and gard, or garth, in a general sense, signified any inclosure, district, or region. Mid- DANGARD, MIDUNGARD, MIDGARD, and MIDDLE- yirth, are ancient names of this earth or world, which were not given from the notion that it is si- tuated between heaven and hell, as some have af- firmed ; but on account of the Teutonic belief, that it was formed in the void between the worlds of perpetual fire and perpetual frost. The Slavic tribes have adopted gorod, which they pronounce grod or GRAD, to signify town. Staraya-gorod is the old town ; novaya-gorode is the new town. The Greeks called a house oicos, the same as WIGS or wic in Teutonic. The Celts use tigh, a house, from thig, thaec, and teg, cover, theek, in English thatch, which once signified every kind of cover. The other names given to their habita- FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 425 tions mark the antique state of Britain, Ireland, and Gaul. An inclosure, secured by a rude wall, or a natural precipice, formed a residence for the tribe and its cattle. The Irish, Dalriad, and Pictish kings, had no other palace. If the inclosure was on plain ground, cleared of wood ; it was called lann or LONN, from lagen, plain, or logen, a lying place ; and leas, or lios, from leath, broad. If situated on a natural or artificial moat, it was BRUIGHEAN, from BRUIGH, a hill ; or congbhail, a hold ; DiNN, or dun, and dunadh, from dun, in- close ; DAiNGNACH, a fort ; rath, a surety ; port, a bank, an area on a bank. Long-phort is a house- bank, a camp, a settlement. If a plain or area was found on the top of hills, the names were inter- changeable. A cave cut in the rock was called by the Teu- tones SCANS, from scean, cut. The Irish sgonn- SA, a fort, is derived from scans. The common Celtic names for a cave are uaigh, uagh, and UAiMH, fuathais, fuachasach, and blot. Some of these appear to denote the fear or terror, inspir- ed by such places ; for uaigh is from eag or uaig, in Teutonic aga and og, trembling ; a word found in all European dialects j and fuachasach is from FUATH, fear. Uaigneas signifies in Celtic solitari- ness, and uAiGNEACH is lonesome, solitary, secret. As ANA, AN-Lic, AN- SUM, from AN, ouc, signify in Teutonic single ; al-one, solitary, al- one-some. 426 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. (Lye confounds lang-som, longsome, lingering, last- ing, with lonesomej solitary ;) so probably there is a connection between ae, aon, one ; and amhain, one-ly ; or rather between aeg, the well-known root of these, and uaig, a solitary object. A settlement on land, for habitation and tillage, was called by the Celts baile, by the British bod, by the Teutones big, biggincg ; all from bag, or BIG, move, agitate, work, stir, dwell ; an original term found in all the dialects of the general tongue. The word big signifies, in modern language, be or exist. Note 4 R p. 111. In giving this account of the common opinion re- specting life, it is hardly necessary to say, that no man, unbiassed by philosophical opinions, thinks that life, air, or motion, are precisely the same things. An ordinary man considers breathing, moving, eating, and the other well-known acts and qualities of animals, as life, and thinks no farther on the subject. But he never imagines, that he and his body are the same things ; that he and the breath he expires are one ; or that while he calls his soul ANiMA, breath, wind ; and his mind animus ; that there is no difference between those and com- mon air. The rudest savage believes that the spirit survives the body, and preserves the mental faculties after life has terminated. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. AQJ Note 4 G. p. 115. Taking or apprehending, a term applicable to all the senses and faculties, discerning, dividing, and distinguishing, have been epithets of the judgment in almost every dialect. The Greek crino, from GERAEC, take, penetrate, separate ; the Latin cer- No, a variety of crino, and its compound discerno ; were first used to mark ordinary division, then the division of objects by the eye, now called discern- ment, or distinct vision ; and, last of all, the mental act and the power. Judico is known to be from JUDEX, and that is probably from jus-dics, because decision between civil right and wrong is one of the most distinguishing exercises of the faculty. In Teutonic dom, from dem, think, judge, is applied both to private and public acts of judgment. The Celtic nations used breith or breit, a word con- tracted for BRAECT, from braec, take, bear, sepa- rate, think, judge ; of which the derivatives are brat, and breith, judgment, sentence, doom j BREITHEAMH, a judgcr, a judge ; and breathach, critical j breithamhnas, the act of judging, judg- ment. Baramhuil is opinion, from bar, take, think, put case ; the same as opinor in Latin, from or take ; another compound of which is opto, I take, I choose, I wish. Me as is also opinion or conceit, from meas, measure, rate, tax, estimate. Smaoin or SMUAIN, meditate, investigate, think, study, is the same in derivation and meaning as 428 FACTS ANP ILLUSTRATIONS. SMEAG, in Anglo-Saxon, which signifies rub into, penetrate, inquire by painful and sharp application. The affinity of the Greek crino and Celtic breith is very near ; both are from raec, and both signify separate, by taking one object from another. In Latin, aestimo is from ahst, taking, holding, va- luing, in Teutonic. Puto is from a word signify- ing cut, originally bogt or bagt, struck, lopped. As for the Greek nomizo, from nomos, measure, rate ; it is the same as measam in Cpltic. Doceo is I take, I make take, I seem, from doc, in Teutonic thunk and taec. Hegeomai, duco me, is from wag, conduct. Oio, I think, the most original of all these, is from wig, bear, carry ; as is shown by its future oiso. The Teutonic wen, take, think, be of opinion, judge that a thing is to hap- pen, expect, is apparently from wig-na or wign. Waeg, bear, carry, take, wield, is very common in Anglo-Saxon. Se leasa wena, false opinion. Se wena nis wuhte the sothra. The opinion is not by a whit the truer for that. Boet. by Alfred, p. 193. The old English ween is the representative of wen. Wenunga and wen, as adverbs, are — probably, per- haps, it may be, or, it is thought. The Alamannic is uuanen, to think, the most original of all, for it comes from waegnen. Note 4 H. p. 118. The French call wrong tort ; and the Italians FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 429 ."TORTo : the Saxonscalledwrong won, tortus, curvus, pravus, malus ; and a distortion, either natural or moral, wohm or wom, vitium. Wo nosu is a crooked nose, woge gemeta unjust measures, woh- FOTEDE crook-footed, woh-ful full of wickedness. Note 4 I. p. 118. *S nim bu tosd dv iia aosaibh lia Ri fonn tiamhaidh chaich. Ghoir iad 'snoir ghoir gii diomhain An luib an siontai chual an cairdean Air an eide le teine na h oich' Air iiairibh shoillsich iad mu Chonn. Smith's Sean Dana, le Oisain, SfC. p. 250. Note 4 K. p, 119. Good and useful qualities are expressed in the infancy of society by such words as signify strength, power, increase, or addition. Hence the words GOOD, from GE-EACED, or rather GA-AUKD, increased, helped j bet, for bagt, enlarged, added, joined, and (derivatively) mended j wel, for wac-la, strength- ened. As virtus is from virodot, strength ; so CRAEFT, MiHT, dugod ; from CRAB, work ; mag, force ; dwag, work ; are similar terms in the Teu- tonic. Among savages bold, brave, hardy, strong, helpful, quick, keen, are equivalent to good. On the contrary, wac and swac, weak, flexible -, cwagd or QUAAD and bagd, soft, bad ; slac, remiss ; faeg, timorous 5 slim and slicht, &c. are evil, which it- 430 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. self is from ubila, inferior. The Greek word ca- cos is from cwac, weak, cowardly ; and malus is MAGL, nearly related to malacos, soft : pejor was originally baegr, soft, the same word as bagd, bad. A soft effeminate man was termed baedel, and in later times a baity, or bautie. The word faege is the radical of faegr, fear. It was an opinion amono; the barbarians of the north, that when the goddesses of war intended that any of them should die in battle ; a supernatural weakness seized them, so as to reduce the warrior to a coward. A man in that state was called fey. A similar term was arg or erg, in the masculine ARGA, from AG A or oga, fear, atve : the line of de- rivation being agarig, in Scotish erch, eery. The greatest reproach in the world consisted in apply- ing it to any man : it was synonymous with every epithet of cowardice, laziness, and vice. Ferdulf, the Lombard, Duke of Friuli, having rashly affirm- ed that the name of one of his officers was derived from Arga ; that person replied, " Would to God that I and you, Ferdulf, may not go out of this world, till it be known who of us best deserves to be Arga." When they had reached the enemy so near as to know their position, Argaid addressed his general ; " Remember, Duke Ferdulf, that you have called me Arga, weak and useless. Now may the anger of God light on him of us, who last shall get to these Slavi." They both perished. Vide FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 431 Paulum Warnefridi de Gest. Long. Lib. vi. c. 24. The same historian relates, Lib. i. c. 20, tliat the Heruli attacked the Longobardiin the plains (feld) of Hungary, in a rash and unjust manner. Their king sat behind his army, at some distance, engaged in play. He ordered one of his companions to as- cend a tree, and from time to time inform him, how the battle proceeded. He had threatened to cut off the head of the watchman, if he did not report a vic- tory. At last the Heruli were broken, the defeat became general, and, after an obstinate and fatal silence, the watchman exclaimed, " O unhappy Herolia, overcome by the wrath of God." The king was slain, the Heruli scattered every where, and anger from heaven (says the historian) so looked on them, that, seeing the long green grass of the plains, they thought that it was water to swim in, and, while they extended their arms in a swimming posture, they were cruelly cut down by the enemy. Such was the fate of one of the most versatile and immo- ral tribes of Germany. Note 4 L. p. 120. Sleek is from slaec, for geslaegig, having the quality of being struck or beaten down ; and smooth is from sMAEGTH,for smaeged, beaten, the participle of sMAG ; whence smith, a beater, a worker by beat- ing ; and smite, strike. Smit means to touch sen- sibly, to strike, to infect. The Latin planus is 432 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. from PLAGEN, laid ; and laevis is from laeg-b-igs ; for laeb, laef, and laev, are derivatives of laeg, lay; and ba, bear or bring. One of the most ancient names for ready, easy, quick, and metaphorically ready in surface, smooth, was ag or aeg, con- joined, nimble ; which had four leading senses ; 1st, Nimble, ready, easy, whence eacth, eaced, EATH, easy ; 2^, Glib, plain, sleek, unobstructive in surface ; 3d, When applied to two or more ob- jects, smooth between one another, according, agreeing, like, equal ; whence the Greek eicos, like; the Celtic aog, like; the Latin aequus, equal. By using ba, the Teutones obtained ibn for ec-ba- NA, made like or plain, viz. eve?!. The Greek isos is instead of eicsos, in some dialects written eeisos. The Latin aemulus is from aec-ma-la-sa, he who has the property of aec-ma, making himself equal to another ; for aec-ma is equal-making. The ori- ginal idea in all these descendants of aec is active continuity, without difference of surface, motion, or qualities. One, same, solid, whole, sound, en- tire, undivided, are terms corresponding to aec. Adjectives of dimension rise from any verbs, ex- pressive of extended, increased, or enlarged surface. Those of height come from any words that denote lifting, raising, or heaving. Altus, high, is alt, for ACELED or haheled, lifted ; from ag or hag, lift; whence iieoh, lifted; gehoh, a height or hill ; heiiel or HiL, a little height. Haiian, to lift or FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 43-3 suspend, is common Teutonic, as is its derivative HENGAN, to suspend or hang-. Many eminences, from a common hillock, over the dead, to a moun- tain, were called by the Goths, Greeks, and other nations of antiquity, hlaiw, hlaine, a mount ; LOPHE, a summit ; lophos, a lifted ground, any raised object. The Saxon hleaw, a hilK; lift, an eminence, and hliw, a raised defence, a shelter against wind, &c. are well known. The Greek coLONOS is from hilongs, a hillings and the Roman collis from hiligs. Mag, increase, has, in that sense, left ample vestiges of itself in every known dialect of this general speech from India to Britain. If the Celtic want ma, much ; it has i\io, more, and mor, great ; mead, magnitude ; mochd, great ; mol, magnify, praise, in Visigothic mikil- YAN, to praise ; morc, for moric, great, huge. Shaw's explanation of mor, in his Gaelic Diction- ary, marks the principal senses of mag. These are great, noble, bulky, many, to which may be added high. The Sanscrit mahan, mahati, mahat, a present participle of mah, may be compared with its synonymes megas, megale, mega, and mag- Nus-A-UM. The Gothic mikils, mikilei, mikil, and Saxon micel, mycel, mucel, varieties of ma- KiL ; with all the numerous forms of the same word, in the other Teutonic dialects ; are well known to every reader of northern antiquities. A great num- ber, and large dimension or size, were expressed by VOL. I. E e 43i FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. the same word varied by consignificatives. Mag- nus, for MAGA-NA-SA, masculiiie, and multus for mageledasa, masculine, are from the same source. The Teutones used mikil, miki-la, for magnitude, and MANAG, MAG-NA-GA, for number. The powers of NA, make ; la, hold, or have ; ag, have ; da, do ; and and a, performing; are finely displayed in the compounds of mag. Another verb used to ex- press height, accumulation, size, and multitude, was HAG, of which some derivatives have been mention- ed. To these must be added hiuhma, a multitude, a gathering ; heop and hi up, a raised pile, a heap, a troop of men : vide Lye in voce heap : — hip, the raised part of the loin ; hiw, a raised thing, a house, a hive ; haryis, a heap of men, an army, in Anglo- Saxon, here ; hered, an assembly, crowd, flock of beasts, or men ; hopp, spring up, jump ; hopa and hyht, what lifts or raises, viz. expectation or hope ; hopa, a rising, climbing plant, hop ; hoh, what lifts the leg, the hough ; hohm, or hom, and ham, the lifting part of the limb, where the sinews are ; ho and hoh, the raised part of the foot j hehl, the heel ; hofer, swelled, raised on the back ; hof, what is raised, the hoof. Observe that hob, haeb, and HOF, are derivatives of hag and ba. The word HAG is applied to raising or growing of plants, as well as lifting up the mountains j and it often signi- fies to raise the voice, or cry. The radical hag, and its compounds rof or kaf. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 435 RAER, and REACS, or raise, produce a number of nouns of height, growth, accumulation, and exten- sion. Gravis and britiius, heavy, are of the num- ber. Note 4 M. p. 121. Lag, lay forth, extend, in surface, space, time ; made lag, lying, fiat, deep, hollow ; lagt, laid forth, extended, protracted, that is, wide or broad, latus ; and, if applied to time, protracted, long, late ; to actions done in time, hindered, deferred, letted. The present participle of lag, protract, is laginga, or LANG A, protracting, in space, time, or extension, long, equal to macros, for mag-ra, in- creasing ; or tag-la, having the quality of tag, draw, stretch. Wacda, increased, is now written wide, and sigda, extended downwards, sent down, in old English sicley is obsolete, except in Scotland. Note 4 N. p. 124. The properties of this word throw extensive light on the nature of associated thought. The verbs swag, swin, and swind, all existed in the ancient language. We find in the VIsigothic Gospels, swiNTHS, stout, strong: swintheins, power: swin- thnon, to strengthen. One verse, Mark ii. I7, illustrates the whole subject, " Ni thaurbon bwin- thai lekeis, ak thai ubilaba habandans." The sound or strong need not a leech (physician,) but laSG FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. they or those evil-having. In Saxon this is " ne bethurson na tlia halan laeces, ac tha the untrume synt;*' in Scotish, *' na need na the hale of a leech, hot thae the are unsound." Gesund, in Anglo- Saxon, means strong, sound, whole. The Teutonic nations called truth, sunya, and sunth, or soth, sooth : The same idea prevailed in triw and trig- Gwo, true. It is from trig, or trag, to press, drive, drive by strong force ; in a secondary sense tread, also try. Triggw and treow mean strong, firm, solid* The derivative trum is firm, stable, fixed, made strong, fortified ; so " God sceawian ecne and trumme," to behold God the eternal and stedfast. Mid trumre heortan, with firm heart, and " toth- maegenes trum," strong in the power of the teeth. The word truma means a troop or throng ; trum- NEs, strength ; trumman, to confirm, strengthen, become strong, fortify, trim, prepare. The con- clusion is evident, that swind, strong, firm, vehe- ment, signifies also sound or whole, and true ; that trigwa and trigoeth, firm and firmness, by like analogy, mean healthy and health, true and truth. A person in an unsound state was called seoc and siUKS, broken. It is not less evident that sin, per- petual or continual, and its derivative sinteino, eternal, are analogous to ece, everlasting; and aa, Aiw, an age, continuation, eternity. Sund and sin and skld, for sineld, have produced singulak, sindrig, seld, seldom, and seenil, all meaning by FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 437 ones, or in the state of what is entire, whole, unit- ed. Eac and eacen, continued, that is, one, have given origin to aen and ains, ane ; and aenig, be- longing to one, having the nature of one, viz. any : also to anlic, one-like, only ; and eacel, in one, in a lump, viz. all. The daughter of Hengist may be quoted for the use of HAL, in the sense of whole or sound. Her address to Vortigern was Waes hael, hlaford €yning. Be whole. Lord King. From hal, sound, entire, come halig, having the property of being entire, that is, holy ; integer atque purus. Note 4 O. p. 126. The Teutonic verbs of weighing are various, as hahan, to lift up, suspend, hang, from hwag or HWAH, move, lift ; wagan, or waegan, to move, lift, carry ; from wag, of which the derivatives WAEGE, a weighing instrument ; weg-scale, a weigh-scale, a balance ; waege-tunge, the tongue of the balance ; gewaege, and waeht, both signi- fying weight, are common. The Greek words ACHTHos, a weight, a burden; and baros, weight; are directly from ag, move ; and bar, bear. Bar, which appears in barus, weighty, and in words re- lated to it, was softened into fer. The phrase agein cai ferein signifies to drive and carry, that is, to take away all that can go, and bear away all that can be carried. Agein refers to the driving 138 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. of" cattle, but in Greek and Latin, like its Teutonic relation waeg, it often signifies to carry away in whatever manner. Achthos and fortos are near- ly synonymous in their original sense, though in time ACHTHOS was understood to imply oppressive vexatious weight, because ag also signifies to vex by moving back and forward, to weary by an op- pressive load ; v.'hich fer never does. Pondus is from PEND, hang, lift, weigh : the radical is fag or PAG, seize, lay hold, lift*, whence pagend or PEND, lifting. The names of weight are generally from verbs signifying to lift, bear, carry ; or from verbs denot- ing to run down, sink, fall, rush, move forcibly ; and words derived from each of these kinds of verbs are in a metaphorical sense applied to the mind, as may be exemplified by achtheinos, porticos, barus, in Greek ; gravis, mol-estus, onerosus, in Latin ; sad, heavy, sore, burden- some, in English, and trom, heavy, in Celtic. Sad was once swagd, and sagd strong, stiflP, rapid in motion, or hard in resistance to the touch. A sad burden was a heavy one, and weighty though compressed into little bulk ; a sad heart was one oppressed with the burden of grief ; a sad colour was a heavy, dark colour. Sore is in ancient Teu- tonic SWAR, which is used to denote heavy in the most literal sense ; the metaphorical meanings are painful, difficult, grievous, vexatious : swarig, the FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 439 derivative of swar, signifies having the quality of heavy, sorrowful, pitiable, the very same as miser in Latin. In Scotch, a sairy man, or sairy body, is a poor innocent almost silly creature, to be pitied but not despised. The Celtic trom is from troghme, and that from trag or trog, the very same as the Teutonic drag, which means rush violently, drive, draw, pull, drag down. The Saxon derivative DRAEC signifies draw back and forward, vex by plucking. The Celtic adjective trogha, or tru- ADH, is vexed, harassed, lean, pitiful, miserable. Truaghan is a miserable creature. Comh-throm is weight in Celtic : the word signifies conjoint or comparative heaviness, from comh, together, and TROM, heavy. Note 4 P. p. 128. Red is what is called a high, or bright (breced, radiant) colour. When Ills dungeon light look'cl pale and red On the high-born blood of a martyr slain. No anthem was sung at his holy death-bed. Note 4 Q. p. 131. MiG is the attenuated form of the primitive mag, soften, liquify, melt. The verb melt was originally MA GELD, the preterite of mag-la, to soften, of which MOLLIS in Latin is a derivative, and malma in Visigothic, signifying mouldered stone, or sand. 440 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. The Latin mucus, moisture ; madeo, I am moist ; MADIDUS, the ancient preterite participle of mad, or MAGD, are allied to mig. Mingo and mictum correspond to the Slavonic. Note 4 R. p. 133. The classical reader will recollect alo, alui, altum or alitum, and its relatives almus and ALUMNUS, which were originally aloms, pertaining to increasing or nourishing, fostering ; and alo- MENS, from alomena, fed, nourished, bred : when s, the sign of a person, is added, it receives the sense of nursling, fosterling. In Celtic, the cor- respondent term is al, nurture, food ; whence alt, nursing ; altra, fostering; altram and altranas, the same thing. The Visigothic has alidan stiur, the fed, that is, the fatted calf. See the Visigothic Gospels, Luc. ch. xv. v. 23. The original form of alo is ag-la, increase, feed, enlarge, breed, eat. Oleo in Latin, as found in ad-oleo and adoles- co, to enlarge, increase, augment, is closely related to it ; and the Celtic al, nurture, food ; all, a generation or race ; ala, nursing ; alach, brood, family; all, great, large; alt, nursing; altram, nursing ; al, a horse, for eacel, what is bred ; OLL, great, grand ; oil-athair, a foster-father ; are directly descended from agla. The foster- father was likewise termed by the Celts daitean and daiteamiila, from dagte, suckled ; which FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 441 nouns are formed like faegd-er or acthair, fa- ther. Deala, what is sucked, is from dag-la, and deala, what has tlie quality of sucking, is the name of the blood-sucker or leech. Dealt a, or dalta, is suckled, and daltin is a little fosterling. The name of foster in Teutonic is from fedster or FODST-ER ; fodst is feeding, from fegd or fed, feed, of which foda, food, is the preterite parti- ciple. Due distinction must be made between fode, or foda, a child, a thing produced, from fag, generate, and fode, from fegda, eaten. Fag, in the one sense, is fuo in Greek ; in the other it is fago : both are from one radical. Note 4 S. p. 133. Gebaec is from big, or its compound baec, bend ; and hraeg, or hraecca, is from hraec, or HRiG, stretch out, ridge, be prominent. In Slavic, CROBAT is both the ridge of the back and of moun- tains, a name which the Sauromatae gave to the Alps of Hungary. The mountaineers of Pannonia, who are Slavi, call themselves Crabrati, vulgarly Croats. The Celtic drom, dronnan, dromain, are from drag, stretch out, extend ; a primitive meaning which is preserved in dron, right, straight ; DRON-uiLLE, a right angle ; dro, a mason's line, and DROCH, right, straight, direct. Dorsum is for DROHSUM. 442 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS, Note 4 T. p. 133. The list given above is confined to the English language, because it is not my intention to enu- merate all the words of this kind ; but only so many of them as, with the assistance of the notes, shall place it in the reader's power to comprehend the mode of analysis, and to pursue the subject at his pleasure. The English language is most accessible to the generality of philologists. The classical scho- lar will, however, find many comparative examples from his learned dialects in the notes. Note 4 D. p. 133. Bear is bag-ra, in Greek and Latin fer ; it means bring by action. Bag, fag, and pag, mean work, agitate, drive, force by driving, shake, beat, whence walk ; carry, move ; blow, swell, boast ; seize, catch, feel, find ; bend, bow, bind, hook ; throw, strike, fight ; supple, wash, mollify ; move as water, liquify, run j grind, chew, eat j dart, spring, shine, burn j cut, strike through j move the voice, sound, talk, bark ; wag, shake, tremble j and many other applications of these terais. Note 4 X. p. 134. Agonia, from agon, an agitation, struggle, vio- lent movement, descends from the primitive ag^ of which the senses have been already given. The FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 448 common meaning of ag, which is act, is a loose extract from its numerous significations. Eat is AG-TA, AG-DA, ATA, AETA, a word analogous to BAG, or FAG, chew ; mag, masticate ; thwag, and THWAGEN, by contraction tun, beat, bruise. Bite is from bigta, seized, gript. Mordeo, in Celtic MIR, is from magered, pressed, masticated, taken with the teeth, Daco, and dacno, in Greek, are from thwag, or twag, seize, seize with the teeth, which in Celtic were dead, in Teu- tonic tunth, in Latin dents, in Greek odonts, all from tun, bruise, or togen, catch. The jaw was called by the Teutones ceaw, and cea- WEL, by the Celts giall, by the Latins gena, or MAXILLA, from MAG, grind ; and by the Greeks genus, or genis, from ge-ag-wa, or ag, chew, eat. Cinn, the chin ; geneion, the hair on the chin ; ceola, the throat ; gula, or gola, the throat ; are derivatives of ceaw. From ceaw came the Saxon CEAWAN, to chew ; ceawsan, or ceosan, to taste, try, choose, select ; and the Greek geuo, I taste, whence gustus and gusto. Meat was consequently called esus, edulia, AETA, FODA, MATS, for MAGTS ; BIGD, Or BIODH, from BIG, move, live, feed ; victus, from wig, or viG, live, grow ; brosis, from brosco, a derivative of BRAEC, or BROC, bruisc, chew, break. The Greeks used cap, and capt, to denote chewing violently as horses. The Latin cibus is related 444" FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. either to this word, or to capio, which is a little countenanced by the analogy of thicg, take meat in Anglo-Saxon. In the Celtic dialects, cab and GOB, the opening the mouth, particularly of a dog, wild beast, or bird, are relics of a term once uni- versally employed. — Gab, open the mouth, prate, mock. Jabber is common Teutonic and jab, or JAP, is Sanscrit, in the same sense. The word it- self is GE-AB, and GE-AP, from ab, or ap, (ag-ba, or AC-BA,) extend, spread, show, open. Gap, gape, is to open the mouth ; and gap is an opening, a breach, the same as begel, or beul, in Celtic. To yawn is, in Teutonic, geon, from ge-acen, opened ; and a single act of yawning is geon-t, in Scotch gaunt. The Latin os, or ors, and the Sanscrit asya, are from aukrs, an opening. A connection between avg, or eag, the eye, and eac, open, plain, spread, has been established by an early confounding of similar terms. The Greek chio, and Latin hio, hisco, are cor- ruptions of GEO, open, yawn : Chaos is the same as GAN, or GiNN, (Vide Lye in tvcCy') a breach, or gap. The Edda informs us, that the ancient Scan- dinavians believed in two original worlds, one of fire, and another of frost, called Muspel-heim, and Nifl-heim. From a fountain in the frozen world, many rivers of poison ran in the direction of the other, into a vast vacuity called Ginnunga-gap, the yawning, opening. The poison froze in that FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 445 vacuity, but by the subsequent action of heat and warm air coming from the world of fire, it was thawed into drops. The heat gave life to the hoar- frost, and produced Y:aiER, tlie first giant, from whom the HriM'Thursi, from hrim, hoar-frost, and THURS, a strong man, derived their descent. The earth, sky, mountains, and seas, were formed from his body. As til]a.(2;e soon introduced bread among the dif- ferent European tribes, the names of that substance deserves notice. Ar, from ac-r, signifies to plough, in Greek, Latin, Celtic, and almost every other dialect ; but its real sense is, grow corn or grain, raise fruits from the earth ; and, as a noun, it means field, cultivated land, and husbandry. The Greeks called bread artos or arods, from ar ; and the Celts termed it aran. The Cymraig bara alludes to bar, what is born, produced, carried, carried on the top of a tree or stalk. In Celtic bar is top, crop, grain, or fruit born, and bread. The Teu- tonic beor originally signified grain and fruit of eveiy kind, as well as berries. The Latin panis is from PA, feed, eat, the same as fag, and common in Greek and Sanscrit. The Teutonic names hleib, HLEAF, and BREAD, are probably from hleib, lift, raise, leaven, and braeced, roasted. Dough is called dah, from dwag, knead, agitate, or deag, moisten, water : The Celtic is tags : the more common verbs pertaining to the operation are mas- 12 446 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. SO, or MATTO, PINSO, and cnead, of which the ra- dicals are mag, bag, or big, and nag, in their most ancient and natural senses. Gnaed and cnead, in Teutonic, mean bruise, stamp, crush : gnaedil is a pestle, a word corrupted from pistillum. The verb big, force, drive, squeeze, in the Latin, Greek, and Celtic dialects, was changed into pig and pic, under which forms it produced many derivatives, such as pins, beat, pound ; pilos, a thing kneaded together, felted ', piezo, I press, squeeze, pinch ; piCRos, nipping, bitter j and pic, sting, stab, pinch with a sharp object j whence pilum, a pointed dart, for PICLUM J and pilus, a hair, a bristle, or sharp strong hair. The Teutonic pic, sting ; pinc, or PYNiG, pinch J pinan, to torture, excruciate ; pil, a stab or stake, a mortar, a condensed heap or pile, with many others, are of the same extraction. Note 4 Y. p. 184. The radical ag or wag, shake, has a numerous list of derivatives in almost every dialect. In Teu- tonic, AGis, shaking ; OG, fear ; ag, ague, tremb- ling ; OGA, or aga, awe, terror ; egelic, and ege- soM, ugly and awe-some j egerig, timorous ; erch in Scotish, or eery ; in ancient Teutonic, written ARG, earc ; timid, cowardly, bad, useless j in Greek, MD0S,Jear, shame, from agdos, AGi\, ter- ror, wonder, admiration ; agape, admiration, love; Aiscnos, for agskos, u shameful deed j ainos, for FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 4i4<7 AGANS, fearful, horrible ; aigeiros, the trembling poplar ; ocnos, timid, slow, lazy, ashamed ; in Celtic, agh, awe, astonishment ; eagal, fear ; oiLT, fear ; geilt, fear, contractions of eagelt, and GE-EAGELT J ONN, for OGEN, Or EAGEN, sloW, inactive, timid. The Sanscrit has wij, shake, agi- tate, from WAG, the same as ag. That sense of ag, which produces ang, crooked ; ANGULA, an angle, or turn, the turn of the leg or ancle ; ancos, the turn of the elbow, the cubit ; is found in Celtic, Teutonic, Greek, Latin, and many other dialects. As hwag and wag are the same as AG, we find wic, a turn, an angle ; winc, a turn ; wiNCOL, and wincle, a turned shell ; winc, a turn with the eye ; pyrn, for hweorn, a turn, an angle j HWEOL, a turn. The Celtic, Sanscrit, Greek, and Latin dialects, change hw, h, and w, into K or c. Nothing displays the process of compound lan- guage in a more practical point of view, than the list of Saxon or Teutonic words under w, and HW, in any good dictionary. In the single sense of move, or turn, we find wag, waggel ; wad for WAGD, step ; waddle, its diminutive ; waef, move like a weaver ; waf, move like wind ; wit, move or go ; WIC, turn away, retire ; contractions of wiGD, cind wiGiG : wog, or won, moved, turned, crooked ; woged, or wod, moved in mind, raised, mad J woFFA, a mad man ; wof, wander in mad- 448 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. ness, rave ; wand, waend, wend, wind ; contrac- tions of WAGEND, turning ; which signify, as verbs, turn, go, walk, turn away, change by turning; turn away for fear, or through respect, venerate ; wiNTLE, a short turn ; wonder, a state of fear and awe, from WAND, fear; wander, a turning back and forward, as is done by people ignorant of their way ; WEAL, or hweal, turn, roll, from wegel, weolc, and wealc, make little turns, walk, felt cloth by turning back and forward, roll as waves, waters, and clouds ; weoloc, or welc, a turned shell, nearly the same as wincle ; wil, turn to, incline, bend towards, will, from wigel ; wen, incline, turn to ; wensc, a turning of the mind to an event, a wish ; wig, turn, stir in a place ; also a habita- tion ; wiGN, or WIN, dwell ; won, a dwelling-place, a haunt ; wont, or woned, haunted, dwelt, used ; wael, and weal, turn round as a pool, or as boil- in o- water ; waer, war, weor, wyr, from wigr, or WAEGER, turn, move about, circle, go ; hwe- orel, and weorel, whirl ; hweorb, and hweorf, turn, whirl ; weorc, for wigeric, motion, activity of body, work ; weoc, a turn of time or of office, a week ; also a twisted wick for a candle ; wath, for wagth, wandering ; with, and watel, a twist- ed willow twig ; wig, wave, consecrate, hallow. These are derivatives of wag, taken only in one of its numerous senses. The derivations of the other words may assist FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 449 the philologist in understanding the history of language. Hiey are, therefore, partly inserted here. Wake, waecc, wag-ig, move by shaking, stir up ; wear, waeger, carry ; wail, waegel, from WAG, move, a sound ; whence wag-pa, or WOP, cry, weep ; wagth, or woxii, eloquent ; wagered, a speaking, a word ; in Latin, verbum, from WEREB ; shake, sceag, sceagig, sceac, move, agitate, divide, cast with great violence, dart, shine ; sceab, shave ; sceaft, a cut, or polished staff; and sceaf, a cut portion of corn, a sheaf; scead, divide, judge ; a thing cast over, a shed ; sceadw, a shadow ; scal, a slice, a scale ; SCEADDA, a broad thin fish ; scalc, a shaven or shorn slave ; sceot, shoot, cast, pay, scout ; sciN, shine, cast rays ; the sharp bone of the leg ; also a covering, a skin ; sceonc, the whole leg, shank ; scep, cut, polish, shape, create, breed ; SCEOP, a breeding ewe ; scear, and scar, cut, divide, shear, share ; sceorp, scearp, cutting, sharp ; sceort, cut, short ; sceog, a cover^ a thing cast over, a shoe ; scyccel, a covering robe ; scENC, cast drink out into a cup, skink ; scend, cut, shake, hurt, destroy ; sceom, hurting, con- founding, confusion, shame ; sceath, shake, pull, cut, harass, plunder ; scathe, sceocca, any rob- ber, or enemy, the devil, or foe ; scohsel, a little foe or fiend. These are derivatives of sceag, and its diminutive sceag-ig, or scac. Any coarse VOL. I. , F f 450 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. prickly hair is termed sceag, or shag, and shock, from this verb ; so shaggy locks, the shag of vel- vet, the prickles of shagreen. Hold, HALED, from hal, or heol, seize, catch, in Greek, helo, I take ; halt, a catch, hold, im- pediment, from HALDED, held ; haul, heal, seize, catch, pull, drag, in Greek, heil ; have, haf, hab, from HWAG-BA, cast hand on, seize, catch, lift ; heave, haeb, heaf, from hwag-ba, lift up, move up; nearly the same as haH, lift ; hahang, or hang, lift up, suspend ; help, hehelp, increase, raise in force or number j for heha is, in Latin, augeo, whence auxilium, increase ; hie, hig, hygg, from hwig, is a very original word, which signifies move violently, run, press, make effort of body or mind, strain, struggle ; whence higst, haste, and HiGEiiiG, hurry : hig often signifies to cast, dart, and strike with a blow ; whence higt, hit, higert, knock against ; heurter, hurt ; also strike or cut : haecc, cut by small blows, also comes from hig or HWAG, haegw or mw, and heaw, cut, hew, form, shape, make : hwag, and hwig, or hig, also de- note shaking of the body, by lifting it, jumping, &c. ; whence hock, hotch, stir with an effort, make little movements ; hitch, from hicg, to change place by a slight cast of the body. To hitch into verse is to put one by a slight gentle cast into satire. Hitch a little this way is move yourself gently on your seat in this direction. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 451 Hotch, to move the body, when sitting, is com- mon Scotish, as in Burns's works, Tarn o' Shan- ter, p. 19'i of Edit. Edin. I8O7. Even Satan glowr'd, and fidged fu' fain. And hotch'd, and blew wi' might and main. Even Satan stared, and fidged, highly pleased. And moved himself, on his seat, and blew the bag- pipe with his whole force. And In the old poem of Peblis to the Play, ascribed to James I. of Scotland, Will Swane, " ane meikle miller man," attempts a high dance ; but " so hevelie he hockit about, to see him. Lord, as thai ran !" — Works of James I. Perth, 1786, p. lOP^ The verb hear was higr, or haegra, seize, catch, takte, of which heorc, hark, is a diminutive ; heor- CEN is a derivative of heorc, or heorig : and HEARSOM and hyrg, in Teutonic, signify hear, obey, serve. List is hligst, inchnation, bending of the ear. Hoot, hweogt, hot, from haet, call, cry, name ; for HWAG isleft the voice, cry. Howl, yowl, goul, gale, yell, are from geol, or gyll, roar. Wheeze, hweos, signifying blow, is one of the many derivatives of hwag, or hweog, move, blow. Some of these are hwif, or hweof, a little blast, a whifFj HwiTHA and hweoth, a light gale ; hwo- theran, to murmur, as gentle waves ; hweos, 452 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. breathe with hissing ; hwosta, a cough, hoast ; HwosTERAN, to miirmur, or whisper ; hwistel, or HWEOSTEL, whistling ; hyst, a gale, hiss, whis- tle like a serpent. Observe the shrill sound or the hiss of wind in motion is implied in all these. The Greek and Latin synonyme of hweos is sig, from swig, sound ; whence sizo, sibilus, and many others. Fistula in Latin, and feadan in Celtic, stand for hwistula and hweadan ; and the Sanscrit kas, Slavic cashele, and Celtic ca- SACHDAS, are varieties from hwas. Our word cough, in Scotish coh, is a similar corruption of HwoH ; yet it may be from cwah. The Scotish wheezle or whaisle, to pant like a breathless horse or man, and the English whizz, are from hweos. In German, kauchen, from cwah, is to wheeze, and KUCH is cough. Hustle, heostle, higstel, push, press with force ; hurl, HWEORL, hweogerel, move by casting, move quickly in any form ; heat, hweogd, agitated, agi- tate, move by applying fire ; huff, hweof, hweog- FA, make one blow or snuff for anger, take offence suddenly ; hunger, huniger, hwogen or hun, lean after, strive after, follow, desire, long after ; kick, from calcs, the Latin variety of hohs, hahl, HALHS, the heel : calcitro was used to mark striking with the heels, before it was applied to signify striking with the foot : our word is not di- rectly from CALCS, but through the French and FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 453 Norman-Saxon. — Call, in Latin and Greek cal, from cwagla, raise a sound : the Saxon cwig or CIG, call ; cwiGD or cwid, speak, speak loud, chide ; are of* the same race : chat is cwat, from cwaded, cwATT, speak quick and small. — Cast, ceost, cwiGST, from cwag or cwig, turn, wrench, drive ; catch, CATSE, KETSE, applied to taking of beasts by pursuing them : ceos, from cwigsa, is take, seek to take ; and ceost taking, pursuing. Keep, CEP, CAP in Latin, a variety of hab, seize, hold : to kep, in Scotish, is to catch or delay a thing or beast moving by. — Cheer, cyr, ceor, quicken, animate ; from cyr, cwiger, turn, move, run : cyr is a turn of time, a precise moment, a turn of work, the turn of a door : a-char is on turn, also any state into which the mind may turn, as bad or good cheer ; thus what cheer is ? that is, what state of body, mind, or fare ? — Chew, ceaw, ceag- wiGAN, use the jaw, so called from ceag or ge-ag, move or grind : choke is ceoc, from ceawoc, the part about the jaws, nearly the same as throttle. — Come, cwiM, cwigma, a making of motion, move in any direction ; gape, ge-ap, open ; ge-ab, the aperture of the jaws ; gab, use the mouth in speak- ing, talk in a thick clattering manner by mak- ing the jaws go ; jape, gibe, taunt ; jabber, gab- ber, make gabbing, chatter ; gabble, gabel, use the gab in making noisy, thick, indistinct speeches. 454 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Jig, GIG, the diminutive of gag, go quickly, move lightly, dance to music with the feet or arms, play, sport, run about, sound shrilly in any such exer- cise ; nimble motion, or shrill sound by such mo- tion ; a top, any light unstedfast thing ; whence GIGA, a fiddle ; gidig, for gigdjg, whirling, gid- dy ; GiNGLE, sound shrill, from giging, the par- ticiple. Gig or gwig is closely related to gwag, move, go, make go by shaking or pushing ; gog, motion ; goggle, moveable ; jog, for geog, make go, make heavy steps ; jogst, a push, in Scotish a jog ; justle, from jogstel, a push : gad, travel- ling, from GAGD. Get is gegt, and give is gigba or GAGBA, whence gab. Dash, dwags, dwasch ; die, deag, dweag, be- come weak, soft, insensible, as if crushed or beaten. Dull is dofl, deafl, dobl ; deaf is deaf, daubs in Visigothic ; dumb is domb, daubn, and dau- beniba, all from dwag-ba, bruised, blunt, obtuse in mind, body, ears, voice and eyes; for the Greek TUPHLOS is from dofel. Dull is also what is not firm, deaf, douf, hollow. Do, tau, dog, dwag, work with great force ; dine, digna; dig, dwag, cat, feast; dodge, dodig, from dod, dwogd, a movement : a dod is a short step made with a shake of the body, as is done by sheep : to dodle is to hang or move with a number of short bobs : to come with a dod on the ground, FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 4)55 is to fall with a thump like a ball : to toddle is to make a movement consisting of short easy audible steps : to dodge is to make turns and beats back and forward : dwag expresses the beat or impulse. — Douse, DWAES, and dwaesc, dash, dash out ; dwell, DWEL, DWEGL, move, frequent, move in, live ; dwindle, dwin, dwigen, dwigendal, from dwign, move, run, waste, vanish, decay ; take, taec, twaec, twag-ig, seize, catch, pull ; toc or tog, catch ; twic, touch, twitch, pull, tweak ; tagst, taste, touch with the tongue ; twicel, a little touch, tickle; twigen, twine, tweak, pull around; twigst, twist ; twigt, a little impulse or sound ; twitter and titter, make such impulses ; tigt, a little pull, a tit ; tug, tog, pull, from twag ; tell, teacl, from TAc, twag-ig, indicate, show, inform by speech; talk, make much short telling, from teal-c, the diminutive ; tattle, from tealc-tel, little talk- ing, or a train of little talk ; totter, tealter, from tealt, wag, make little touches or short jog- ging steps, in Latin vacillatio, and in Englisli wag- gling. In Scotland, dotter, from dogt or dwogt, a little push, signifies to shake, to shake in walking like an old man : a dotter'd body is a tottering old creature : the epithet extends to the mind : he dottered my hand, is he shook it by a little push. Tipple is to make a practice of toping, that is, of drawing by the tap or taeppe which stops the cask, or causing it to be done by a tapster. (See 4i56 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Shakespeare.) The name tipple was first given to the liquor drawn, and the verb afterwards formed from it. Lick, LAEC, Lice, LAGiG, make little motions with the tongue 5 also lay on a number of quick blows ; LAGSC, a quick blow, lash : lean, hlin, HLAENE, HLiGEN or HLAEGEN, laid down, sunk, clapt ; also lie towards, bend to one side : laugh, HLAH, HLAG, raise the voice ; lift, hlift, from LAG-FA, LAG-BA, raise by seizing ; lug, hlucc, LUGiG, pull by seizing ; leap, hleap, hlop, hlog- BA, spring up, lift the body or feet, run. Hop, step, and leap, in Scotish hap, stap, and loup, is from HAG-PA, STAG -PA, and hlog-pa, a trot, a step, and a jump. Limp is a little leap, a crooked halt- ing step. Let, legt ; loose, leags, leas ; leave, LEAG-BA ; are all from lag, send, put away, desert, suffer to go off or fall off. Loath is lath, lagth, lAgd, hostile, hurtful, hateful. Lull, logel, is lay, soothe, lay asleep. Loll, from the same verb, is lie at breadth or spread out. Slack is slagig, let go, remitted. Sleep is slagpa, remitted, pliant, slipped. Nap is nagpa, and nod is nogd, both from hnaeg or iiNiG, bend, incline the body or head. Note 4 Z. p. 136. The generic names of a wild animal have been mentioned. The reptile tribes, distinguished by crawling and biting, had names correspondent to FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 457 their qualities. The verbs rep, creop, snag, SLAG, and SRAP, a very ancient derivative of rag, furnished appellations significative of creeping. The English words creep, sneak, slink, are the pro- geny of these : snaca, a snake, a creeper ; and SNAEGEL, a snail, are common Saxon : schlund is a serpent in High and Low Dutch : the Latin SERPENS and its derivatives are well known. But one of the oldest names of a reptile is ang, an- GUis, and anguilla, all from aging, or ang, crooked, tortuous, a word found in all the differ- ent dialects. Biting reptiles were called aeta and AEDDER, from AGD, bite, of which echis is a variety found in Greek and Sanscrit. Echidna, for ec- HiDiNA, is a she viper. Cnodalon is any biting reptile, from cnao, I bite, I gnaw. Dragon is a clear-sighted serpent, from drag, or derc, see, hold, or seize with the eye, a Greek and Sanscrit verb. In the Teutonic dialects any tortuous rep- tile was called wigga, as in ear-wigga, an ear- worm ; wibba, wefel, weevil, and worm. Wyrm- CYNN (Vide Lye and Manning, voc. wyrm) is the serpent race. Slah-wyrm is the sloe-worm, the biting worm, from slag, strike. In Greek, scorp, from scEAR, cast, throw, has produced scorpion, the darting seipent. The lizard was called lacerta, in Celtic lagairt, from lag, a claw. The Celtic names lag ha r, and mag, a long catch or claw, and a claw like a hand, have furnished names for the 458 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. reptiles that have feet. Magan is a toad, from MAG, a foot or organ with claws. A fly-worm was called MAGA, MAGOTH, and maggot, from mag, move, the fly itself mogska, or musca. Any fly- worm, that had not received wings on account of its youth, was named by the Greeks schadon, from scEAD, cut bare, shear : the bee, whose young were particularly so called, was herself termed beog, BEO, BEACHANN, and BiENE ; from BEOG, a ring on her body ; or big, fly. Her name of apis may be a corruption of bigs. Melissa is from melith, honey or sweetness ; for mil is sweet in all the northern dialects. The spider is named from spig, spin, a spin- ner. The appellations aranea and arachne are all illustrated by the Teutonic rynel and gan- gel-weafer, a running weaver. The Greek pha- langias rose from the jointed legs of this in- sect, for phalanx means a cylindrical or rather a rectangular long piece of wood. The word aetter-cop, which Whitaker pretended that the Saxons borrowed from the Welsh, is common on the Continent, though with a trifling variation. The Dutch translator of Ovid, speaking of Arach- ne, says, that Minerva changed her whole appear- ance, " en harr niet dan ecu klcin hoofd, kleine handen, die als voeten siin, en een ronde bulk liet, daar uyt zy noch hedcn de wol tot haar garen trekt, om, als een spinnekop, gedurig haar oude oeffening FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 459 te doen, en netten te breiden,'* and left her no- thing but a little head, small hands that are as feet, and a round body, from which she at this day draws wool for her yarn, to exercise constantly, like a spider, her old occupation, and to make nets. At- TER-coPPA is literally, in Anglo-Saxon, the poison- box or vessel, and spinne-cop is a spin-cup. Cob' web is for atter-gop-web. The following list explains the names of other reptiles and insects : Ant, aemetta, and in Celtic, seangan : ae-metta, or an-metta, is unmeasured, thatis, disproportioned; seang is slender: pis-myra, mier, moirb, mor, muravei, formica for mormi- CA, mor, murmos or murmex, are its Saxon, Dutch, Celtic, Cymraig, Slavic, Latin, Hindu, and Greek names ; probably from mor, or mir, bite. Ceaf, a chaffer, or biting fly, is from ceag and ceaf, chew, chaffer, or gnaw. Laec, suck, draw, is the origin of leech : the Celtic is deal, a sucker ; the Ger- man BLUTIGEL, a bloody animal, whence our Scot- ish GIL, by corruption of our own parallel name of it ; and the Greek bdella, from bdello, I squeeze, I press, I suck. Beetle is from bita, biting. Hornet is from hyrn, a horn, a horned-fly. The true form of VESPA and wasp is the Teutonic waeps, from wap, strike, sting. Sphex is from sphig, the Greek corruption of swig, drive, press, sting, pinch. Grillus, grullan, and cricket, are from grig and crag, cry, sound : grill, for grigl, signifies grunt 460 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. or make a noise like a pig ; also cry or chirp obtuse- ly. Cicada and cigal are from cig, cry, or call, in Teutonic. A name for stinging insects is gleg, or GLEiTHAiRE, eitlicr from glag, make a noise; or GLAG, strike. In Saxon these are termed gad-flig and BRiosA, from gad, gagd, a sharp weapon; and BRIG, stab, stimulate, sting. Cuilag, in Cel- tic, and cuLEX, in Latin, signify a fly, from cul, which in Teutonic is hweol, wheel around in the air or elsewhere. All jumping insects were called by our remote ancestors hoppa and loppe, or loo pusT, from HOP and lop, jump. The Latin term LocusTA is in Saxon lopusta, and the appellation of LOPUSTER, or lobstei', has been also given to the crab-fish, or locusta marina. Note 5 A. p. 137. The names cu, gau, denote the cattle species among the Teutonic and Indian tribes. The Celts, Greeks, Latins, and Slavic hordes, preferred bogs, BOGS, and bochs, which was extended by them to deer and wild goats. Bucca means a springing wild animal of the goat or deer species. Bos or BOOS, the contraction of bogs and bohs or bofs, signifies either the male or female. The Slavi call a bull beika, and a cow corova : the Celts use bo, a cow, and buaciiail, pertaining to cows. They also have mart, a cow, and marc, a horse, both from MAR, breed : Mara, masculine, and marei. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 46l feminine, signified in old Teutonic a he-breeder and a she, of the horse or nolt species. The name AUHS, a bull, has no reference to what is now call- ed an ox. Steor, and steoric its diminutive, al- lude to the strength of the beast ; as does tare or TAURUS, from tarb, or trab, stiff, stern, strong. The name of bellow, given to the bulPs cry, is from BAG, or BUG, force out sound, sound loud ; which is not limited to the noise made by him, but also applied to the noise made by bees, dogs, deer, and the like. Bag, or bay, is to bark like a dog, whence EAGER, or BAiR, to Cry, used in old Scotch ; and bageric, or BEOR.C, to make little, or interrupted baying. Bagel, or bell, is to ciy like a hart, &c. ; and the Teutonic bagelig, belg, or bolg, to make such noise, produced bellow. Byma, or bag- ma, is a trumpet ; and byman is to boom. The Greek bombos means the deep noise of bees, hol- low metallic bodies, and trumpets. The Celtic luan and Teutonic lamba are both from lag, lay, produce, bring, a verb applied to the human species, as may be particularly discovered in LEACHT, a family, a race ; luchd, people, that is, one's clan or family ; in Teutonic liuda and leod. From LAG came lagn, or lan, which was re- com- pounded into lamba, " brought forth.*' The Vi- sigothic always used lamba for sheep, as Matth. ix. 36, lamba ni habandona hairdeis, " sheep not hav- ing a shepherd." 462 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Their mortal enemies the lion, tiger, wolf, and fox, were named as below : ligand, layand, LEON, LION, LEAW, the lying couching animal. Ti- GRiDS, the sharp-springing or rapid animal, from TIG, and its derivative tig-ra, be sharp, rapid, cut- ting. Tig and tij are common names for any sharp penetrating dart. Wulfs, vulpes, are from wilb, or wulb, pluck, tear, devour, qualities of the wolf and fox. Lupus and lucos come from locc, lug, pluck, tear away. The name fox is from faecs, a deceiver, a cunning animal : foxina, or vixen, is a she fox. The Celtic seanach, or seannach, is crafty, cunning, wily ; froms ean, an old man, whose natural qualities are such, from his long experience. Vide Shaw's Gael. Diet, vocibus laudat. Tod is from TOD, a bush. The wild boar was called swig, swigens, sus, and Hus, from swig, move impetuously. The Celtic mug is from mag, force, dig. The term swina be- came the name of the species. The appellations BAEii, BAR, FAER, caiue from bar, a bristle, or strong hair born on the back. Verres is from FAEr: faerc and fearh produced porcus, and FAERCiN FERKiN, a little swinc. Choiros, in Greek, is from cyrr, rough, bristly. Hog and pig refer to the age: pig is any young animal, from i»ag, produce ; but hog is a pig or lamb after it has been weaned. Faerhian is to farrow or pig. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 4>63 Note 5 B. p. 138. The names of the leaders of our Anglo-Saxon colony were Hengist and Horsa, who are said to have carried in their banner the figure of a white horse. Some of the names of this animal were de- rived from its uses, as gada, or jade, a travelling horse ; cabalus, a carrying horse ; paerd, a bear- ing horse, from bar, or far, bear or go. Colt is from CEAL, breed ; cealt, a thing bred. Aver is a work-horse, the derivation is uncertain. Nag is a dwarf horse, from nag, diminish, lessen j whence nanus, and nannos, contractions of na- gens. Any animal bred of two species was called by the Latins mulus, or mogls, and by the Teu- tonic nations mong, meng, and mongrel, from MiG, and MENG, mix. The ass was named a sin us, ONOS ; and in Teutonic, ahsel, asilus ; all from AUH, groWj the same word as each, agh, and ox : oxN, ohsta, and oxta, are common Anglo-Saxon words for a she-ass. Auhsns, in Visigothic, and OHSO, in Alamannic, are a bull or ox. The word STOD, from which rose the common terms steed and stud, is the preterite participle of stand, and signifies any thing closed up in a house or fold, to stand there for some particular purpose. Stod- HORs, and stod-myra, are a horse and mare stall- ed, or kept up for breeding ; and as the appellation of sTOD was at length given to any male of the horse or nolt kind, it signifies, in the Teutonic 464 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. dialects, both a little horse and a youtig bull, which are in some places called stot. Stot is a young bull, and originally not very different from stirk ; for STEOR-ic is the diminutive of steor, a bull, and stot is the diminutive of stod, a stallion. The Celtic for a stud, or flock of breeding horses, is GRAGH, or GRAiGH : a horse kept for breeding is called siolach, graighaire, onn, aileach, &c. Filly is the diminutive of foal, and was once pro- nounced folic, a colt, or filly, is called loth in Celtic, and loshade in Sclavonic. The name deor, or deer, meant originally any wild beast. Heort, and cervus, appear to be from HEOR, move, turn, run, in Teutonic ; and CER, or CYR, having the same sense, and being the Celtic, Greek, Latin, and Sanscrit form of hweor, or HEOR. The Greek name, elaphos, is from lap, or lop, run. Our hind is from higenda, running ; bucca, is from bog, run elastically, spring ; and the term applies to the deer and goat species. Spring-boc, and stan-boc, and ibex, or GEBOcs, are synonymous. Da, doe, dama, and dam II, in Celtic, mean a running impetuous animal of the bull or stag kind, from dag, run, rush. Ra, and no, and reh, are from rah, or RAG, rush, run. Fawn, faon, are from fagin, or FAiiEN, a young animal produced. Stag comes from STAEG, walk, or move in a stately manner, in Greek steicho. Gabhar, caper, and capra, FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 4{?5 in Celtic and Latin, are generic names of the goat tribe, from gap, hop, skip, dance, spring. The Greek aigs, and Teutonic g-agts, or gats, gaits, are from ag, spring, rush ; and gag, or ga-ag, run, move quickly. Hmcus is from the shaggy hair of the male-goat, a term allied to hirtus, hirsipilus, and hirsutus ; for haer, in Teutonic, particularly signified long, shaggy, stiff, or coarse hair. Some derive hircus from hirguus, oblique, squint-eyed, looking out at the corner of the eye, from hyrc, a turning or angle, which is not accurate. Tragos is from thrag, rush upon : it always signifies a male. The Celts named the kid (in Saxon cid, a child, and a young goat ;) mang, meann, and MEANNSACH, all froni MAGEN, pi'oduced : the calf of the deer, or cow species, they termed laogh, from lag, fetch, bring, bear. Ellos in Greek, eilan in old British, and eilid in Celtic, are names of the faun, or young of the deer. The radical is al^ breed. Hoedus is from ciDs, or gaets ; and ticcen, in Anglo-Saxon, a kid, (whence zeige in German,) is from tig, breed, in Greek TECO. The wealth of migratory tribes consisted in cattle ; and all kinds of cattle were generically named from the fact of being bred. Pecors, among the Romans, was what breeds, and pecods was a single animal bred. Pecunia was substance in cattle. Faihu, and feoh, were, in Teutonic, VOL. I. G 2: 'h66 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. from the same verb, in the same sense. Aud, ead, OD, from AGD, possessed, was wealth of any kind : FEOH was cattle, or money, called also hord, sceat, GYLD, or GELT. Etenos, in Greek, is from ctao, I get J in English, getting. Feoh, in a special sense, signified the wages given to any retainer or hired soldier, kept in pay, as the phrase was, by meat and fee. Feod was what was given to supply or serve for fee. Note 5 C. p. 139. The names of birds, as such, are all from verbs, signifying to fly; as voluckis, from volo; fogel, and FLUGEL, from fag, and flag, fly ; pat, fly, which is the Greek, Slavic, and Sanscrit variety of FAGT. But AG, fly, is the origin of axilla, and ALA, a flyer, that is, a wing ; of avis, a bird, in Latin ; and ean, for egan, in Celtic. Wag is the radical of vogla, or volo, I fly. Pullus, a chick- en, anciently denoted any young, as fula, in Vi- sigothic, and polos, in Greek, a foal, which, how- ever degraded by use, is nearly the same word as filius, a son. Puer, a boy ; pusus, or pusillus, little as a child ; pupus, a child j and pupillus, a little child ; puser, a boy, in Persic ; and putreh, a son, in Sanscrit j are all, like the words above mentioned, from fag, or its classic variety, pag, breed, generate. The old British adergn is near- ly related to ornjs. FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 467 The words bill, and beck, from beg, bend 5 and SNABEL, from SNOB, a sharp-pointed snout j crest, from CRAECST, or raec, elevate ; nest, from nedst, and NiD, dwell j neb, from nebba, a sharp nose ; claw, from clag, seize ; ionga, and unguis, from AGING, or ANG, sharp, cutting ; spur, from spyr, or spear, a sharp peak ; rostrum, from raec, run out into a point j whence also hrenkos, or hron- Kos, in Greek, any sharp snout of beast or bird ; show the origin of the terms descriptive of birds. Birds, as may be supposed, received their names from their actions and qualities ; so haboc, acci- PITER, and CAPYS, a hawk, from hab, and cap, catch ; gleda, a glider, a glede, or kite, which last is from kut, in Latin yug, expressive of his cry ; RAEFN, a raven, from raef, cry, and corvus, in Latin ; crag, and roc, a crow, from crak, cry 5 agu, and pica, all the pie tribe, from ag, and pic, descriptive of pointed beaks for picking ; geap, and gups, a vulture, from geap, crooked in the neb : vultur is probably from vultus, the broad bald appearance of the head giving occasion to the name, but this is not certain. Gans, ans, gus, and gos, all from ganots, a swimmer; the verb is nag, move on water, or otherwise. It is the origin of neo, and NATO, in Latin, nots, a ship, in Visigothic, SNAMH, swim, in Celtic, and of many derivatives. The Indian name of a goose is hans, and it must be observed, that the name includes the whole spe- 468 FACTS AND ILLUSTRATIONS. cies, male and female. The word ganer, or gan- der, is not so ancient as gans. The Celtic variety of GANS is GEABH, the Cymraig is gwydd, and the Greek is chen. The original name, gannet, is still used. The duck tribe are called from duck- ing. The ancient name is anats, the same as ga- NOTs, a swimmer. Lach, or lag, is probably from their sound 5 and the Greek nessa is from neessa, a she-swimmer. The common cock was called by the Germans and Goths hana, which is now only retained with us in the feminine hen : the name is from HAN, cry, sing, sound : cocc is from the sound of his voice ; the Greek alector is he who rouses men from their beds ; and the Latin gallus, and Gaulish CEiLioG or caolach, are of uncertain signi- fication ; for caol or ceil may have signified sono- rous as well as narrow in the early ages. Many of the pie tribe, remarkable for their loquacity, were called by the Teutones fin a, from fig, move the body or voice : little birds, of the singing or warbling class, were termed finc, finch, a diminutive of FiNA. The lark was called laferic, alauda, or alafda, from lif and lev, lift or soar : in British he is called uchedydd, from uch, high. The name merula, for the blackbird, is from mer, speak by rolling the voice. The name nightingale is from NiHT, the night, and gal, sing. END OF VOLUME FIRST. I'rintL-d by George Ramsay and Company, Edinburgh, 1822. 3 1205 02644 9163 ^ j^; "^.M