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JOHNSON'S DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. A New Edition,
founded on that of 1773, the last published in Dr. Johnson's lifetime : with numerous Emendations
and Additions. By E. G. Latham, M.D., F.R.S. To be published in Bi-monthly Parts, foiiniug, when
completed, 2 vols., 4to.
London : LONGMAN, GREEN, & CO., and other Proprietors.
THE
ENGLISH LANGUAGE.
l-KINTED BY WOODFALL AiND KINDER,
ANUKI. COltT, SKl.NKEU SlttlKl.
THE
ENGLISH LANGUAGE.
K. 6. LATHAM. M.A., M.D., F.E.S., Ac,
LATE FELLOW OF KINO's COLLF.GE, CAMBRIDGE ; AND LATE PROFESSOR OF ENGLISH
IN UNIVERSITY COLLEGE, LONDON, ETC.
FIFTH EDITION, REVISED AND ENLARGED.
LONDON:
WALTON AND MABEKLY,
UPPER GOWER STREET; AND lYY LANE, PATERNOSTER ROW;
LONGMAN, GREEN, LONGMAN, AND ROBERTS,
PATERNOSTER ROW.
1862.
TO
THE EEV. WILLIAM BUTCHEE, M.A.,
OF ROPSLEY, LINCOLNSHIKE,
IN ADMIRATION OF HIS ACCOMPLISHMENTS A3 A LINGUIST,
AND AS A TESTIMONIAL OF PRIVATE REGARD,
etc follototng Plages are JngcritcO,
BY HIS FRIEND,
THE AUTHOR.
London,
November 4th, 1841.
CONTENTS.
PART I.
ORIGINES.
CHAPTER I.
GEKMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. ITS NAME.
5E0T.
1-5. The English Language foreign to England
6, 7. The tenn Saxon ......
8. „ Anglo-Saxon .....
PAGK
1, 2
3
CHAPTER II.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. — APPROXIMATE DATE OF ITS
INTRODUCTION.
9. German origin of the English Language
10, 11. Earliest date of its introduction .
12. Latest date „ ,, . .
13, 14. The Notitia ....
15. The Franks of Mamerttnus .
CHAPTER III.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. DIRECTION AND RATE,
16, 17. Direction ........
18-22. Rate ........
10
ll-i;}
CHAPTER IV.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. WITH WHAT LANGUAGE, OR
LANGUAGES, DID IT COME IN CONTACT ?
23-26. British or Latin ? . ..... .13-15
27. The word Wales ....... 15
CHAPTER V.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. CRITICISM OF THE CURRENT
STATEMENTS CONCERNING ITS INTRODUCTION.
28-31. Germany at tlie time of the Angle Conquest . . 16-18
32-30. Current accomits ...... . 18-22
37. Authorities . . ■ ■ . .22
VIU
CONTKNTS.
•BCT.
3S. Beda . . . •
3i». ^Vnglo-Saxou Chromclo
40-40. (.'ritioism . . • •
47. Evaouiition of Britain l>v tlio Romans
PAOK
22
24
24-30
30
CHAPTER VI.
GF.RM.\N oniOIN OF TUE ENGLISH LANGUAOE. THE PAllTS Or GEUMANV FROM
WJIIOH IT WAS INTUOnUCED. EXTERNAL EVIDENCE. THE CARLOVINGIAN
ANNALISTS. THE SLAVES. THE D.A.NES. THE FRISIANS.— THE SAXONS.
•1<-51. Method of Investigation . . . 31, 32
62. Boundaiies of Slavonia ...... 32
53 Denmark ...... 32
54. „ ., Friesland ...... 32.
55-57. „ „ Saxony ...... 33-35
58. The Chattuari. ....... 35
59. The Bi-ucteri ........ 35
UO. The Chama'ST ........ 36
01. Boundaiy on the South-East . . . .36
02. Saxony and Friesland ...... 37
CHAPTER Vn.
GER>L^.N ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. PARTS, ETC. EXTERNAL EVIDENCE.
— WRITERS PRIOR TO THE ANGLE CONQUEST. TACITUS. THE ANGRIVARII,
ETC. THE AXGLT, ETC. — PTOLEMY, ETC. THE SAXONS.
63-66. Extracts from Tacitus, &c. . . . . . 37-40
67, 08. His and Ptolemy's notice of the Angles
09, 70. Ptolemy's notice of the Saxons
71-73. The Sabalingii, &c.
74-77. Fm-ther notices of the Saxons
. 40, 41
. 41, 42
. 42, 43
. 43-47
CHAPTER VIII.
OERM.AN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. PARTS OF GERMANY, ETC. CON-
SIDERATION OF THE CHANGES WHICH MAY HAVE TAKEN PLACE BETWEEN
THE CLASSICAL AND THE CARLOVINGIAN PERIOD.
78. Di\isions of Saxony ....... 47
79-83. Criticism ........ 47-50
CHAPTER IX.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. POPULATIONS ALLIED TO, OR IN
THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF, THE ANGLES. THE SUEVI. THE LONGOBARDS.
THE VARINI. THE REUDIGNI. THE MYRGINGS. HNiEF THE HOCING AND
HENGEST.
84-86. Poi^ulations allied to the Angles . . . 50, 51
87, 88. The S}ieri ....... 51-54
89. The Langohardi ....... 54
90. The Varini ........ 55
91. The Reudigni ........ 57
92. The Myrgingn ....... 58
93. The nonnffx ........ 61
CONTENTS.
IX
CHAPTER X.
GEKMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. PABTS OF GERMANY FROM WHICH
IT WAS INTRODUCED. INTERNAL EVIDENCE. LANGUAGE. PRELIMINARY RE-
MARKS. THE OLD SAXON.
SECT.
94-96. Preliminaiy remarks
97, 98. Old Saxon
99. The Frekkenliorst Roll
100. The Essen RoU
101. The Legend of St. Boniface
102. The Essen Confession
103. The Abrenuntiatio Diaholi
104. 105. The Heliand .
106. The Carolinian Psalms
107. Glosses
108. Chai-ms
PAGE
62-65
65
65
73
74
75
77
77-82
82
90
91
CHAPTER XI.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGU.AGE. PARTS OF GERMANY FROM WHICH
IT WAS INTRODUCED. INTERNAL EVIDENCE. LANGUAGE. THE OLD FRISIAN.
109, 110. Old Frisian inflections ..... 92-94
111. Old Frisian Laws ....... 95
CHAPTER XII.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH UNGUAGE. PARTS OF GERM.\NY, ETC. —
INTERNAL EVIDENCE. LANGUAGE. THE MIDDLE FRISIAN.
112. Poem by Gysbert Japicx
100
CHAPTER XIII.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. PARTS OF GERMANY, ETC. INTER-
NAL EVIDENCE. LANGUAGE. THE NEW FRISIAN OF THE DUTCH PROVINCE OF
FRIESLAND.
113. Abe in Fetse, &c.
101
CHAPTER XIV.
GERMAN ORIGIN, ETC. PARTS OF GERMANY, ETC.— INTERNAL EVIDENCE. LAN
GUAGE. THE NEW FRISIAN OF EAST FRIESLAND.
114. Frisian of Saterland
105
CHAPTER XV.
GERMAN ORIGIN, ETC. PARTS OF GERMANY, ETC.— INTERNAL EVIDENCE. LAN-
GUAGE. THE NEW FRISIAN. NORTH FRISIAN OF HELIGOLAND AND THE
DUCHY OF SLESWICK.
115, 116. Divisions of the North Frisian . . . io8, 109
117. North Frisian of Heligoland ..... 109
~~ - " Sylt . . . . . .112
— ., „ the Mainland ..... 112
X CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XVI.
GERMAN ORIGIN, ETC. — INTERNAL EVIDENCE. — ANGLO-SAXON, OR OLD SAXON,
ELEMENTS IN THE EXISTING DIALECTS OK NORTHERN GERMANY.
SKCT. I'AGK
118-120. Saxon elements in the Low-German dialects . . 120, 121
121. Specimen from Frokkonhorst ..... 122
Warcndorf . . • . .123
Valley of the Diemel . . . .124
122. The Dual Pronoun and the Plural in -^ . . . . 125
CHAPTER XVII.
RELATIONS OF THE ITIANK TO THE SAXON.
123-125. Nature of the Frank frontier .... 132, 133
CHAPTER XVIII.
GERMAN ORIGIN, ETC. — P.VRTS OF GERMANY, ETC. INTERNAL EVIDENCE. LOCAL
NAMES.
12G. General character of English geographical names . . 134
127. List of endings . • • • • . . 134
128. Remarks . • • • .134
CHAPTER XIX.
GERMAN ORIGIN, ETC. PART OF GERMANY, ETC. INTERNAL EVIDENCE. PER-
SONAL NAMES.
129-131. General character of A. S. personal names . . 13C-138
132. Forms in -ing ....... 138
133. Compounds of sunuz=ison ...... 139
CHAPTER XX.
GERMAN ORIGIN, ETC. PART OF GERJIANY, ETC. INTERNAL EVIDENCE. NURSERY
RHYMES.
134. 135. Nursery rhymes ..... 140-148
CHAPTER XXI.
RETROSPECT, ETC. AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL
. EVIDENCE.
136. Results ........ 148
CHAPTER XXII.
SPECIAL AND DIRECT EVIDENCE OF BEDA. TEXTS, ETC.
137. Extracts from Beda and the A. S. Chronicle. . . . 150
CHAPTER XXIII.
SPECIAL AND DIRECT EVIDENCE OF BEDA. CRITICISM. THE JUTES PROBABLY
GOTHS.
130. The Jutse not Jutlanders ...... 151
140. The Goths of Gaul ....... 153
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XXIV.
SPECIAL AND DIRECT EVIDENCE OF BEDA. CRITICISM. HIS SAXONS, PROBABLY
ANGLES UNDER ANOTHER NAME.
SECT. PA6F.
141, 142. Beda's Saxons Angles .... 155-157
CHAPTER XXV.
SPECIAL AND DIRECT EVIDENCE OF BEDA. HIS ANGVLVS. CRITICISM. LAN-
GUAGE OF ANGLEN.
143. Extract from Alfi-ed . . . .157
144, 145. The language of Anglen ..... 158
CHAPTER XXVI.
ELEMENTS OF THE ANGLE INVASION. FRANKS IN KENT.
140. The Lathes of Kent ... . . .163
CHAPTER XXVII.
ELEMENTS OF THE .\NGLE INVASION. FRISIANS.
147. The Frisians ......
148. Extract fi."om A. S. Chronicle
CHAPTER XXVIII.
RELATIONS OF THE ENGLISH TO THE LANGUAGES OF GERMANY
149, 150. The continental congeners of the Enghsh
151, 152. The Dutch of Holland
153-158. The Platt-Deutsch dialects
159-162. The High-German
163. The Mceso-Gothic ....
164, 165. Encroachment of the Low-German on the Saxon,
tlie High on tlie Low German
166. The Scandhiavian languages
167. The Literary Danish
168. „ Swedish
169. The Icelandic .....
170-177. Comparison of Inflections
165
165
IN GENERAL.
166, 167
167, 168
168-172
172-176
176
and of
179, 180
. 180
. 180
. 183
. 187
191-200
CHAPTER XXIX.
THE KELTIC STOCK OF LANGUAGES, AND THEIR RELATIONS TO ENGLISH.
178-183. British branch ...... 201-205
184-186. GaeUc branch ......
187. Keltic characteristics .....
188. The ancient language of Gaul ....
CHAPTER XXX.
ON THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE GERMAN GROUP OF LANGUAGES.
189. 190. Principles of classification .... 211-214
191, 192. Value of characteristics ....
193. Stage and Dialect ......
205-20!)
. 209
. 210
214-216
. 216
CONTENTS.
SKCT. PAUE
191. Rlrtp of nffinitics ....... 217
1U5. Sniiulinnviiui characteristics — their value . . • 218
IDO. Tho so-ciillod Passive voice . . . . • 219
107. The Post-positivo Article . . .219
IDS. Stages ........ 220
CHAPTER XXXI.
ON CERTAIN POINTS OF NOMENOLATUBE.
199. The terms Gothic, Oerman, &c
200, 201. Gothic and Mccso-gothic
202, 208. German
204, 206. Dutch .
206. Teutonic
207. Anglo-Saxon
208. Icelandic, Old Norse
209. The question of convenience
CHAPTER XXXII.
MINUTE INVESTIGATION CONCERNING THE ORIGINAL LIMITS OF THE ANGLE AREA.
ENGLE A NON -SIGNIFICANT NAME. TIME AND PLACE. APPROXIMATIONS.
SLAVONIC FRONTIER. THE LOMBARDS. — DANISH FRONTIER. — FRISIAN FRON-
TIER. THE HOCINGS AND HNjEF.
210-213. Minute ethnology of the Angle area . . . 236-238
. 238
. 240
. 240
- 241
242, 243
244
. 221
221, 222
223-227
227, 228
228-231
. 232
. 232
233-236
214. Slavonic frontier
215. The Lombards
216. Danish fi'ontier
217. 218. The Frisian frontier .
219, 220. The Chauci and Hocings
221. Conclusion .
CHAPTER XXXIII.
THE PTCTS WHO WERE THEY?
222. Pict glosses ....
223, 224. Extracts ....
225, 226. The word C'ruithneach
227. The copy fi-om Juvencus
CHAPTER XXXIV.
THE BELGjE WERE THEY EARLY OCCUPANTS OF
GERMANS ?
228-235. The Belgic hypothesis .
. 244
245-247
247, 248
. 249
BRITAIN ? — WERE THEY
250-257
CHAPTER XXXV.
ARE THERE FIN, OR UGRIAN, ELEMENTS IN ENGLISH? THE FIN HYPOTHESIS.
236,237. The Fin hypothesis ..... 257-260
CHAPTER XXXVI.
ARE THERE SARMATIAN ELEMENTS IN ENGLISH?
238. Early Sarmatian area, &c.. . . . . . .260
239. „ Lithuania area „ . . . . . .261
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
SECT.
240. Did the English language originate in Germany? .
241. „ ,, come direct from Germany?
242. „ „ come wholly from Germany ?
243. 244. Did the blood and language coincide?
245. Where was the Anglo-Saxon formed?
246. By what was the British obliterated ?
PAGE
262
262
262
262
263
263
PART II.
DIALECTS.
CHAPTER I.
GENERAL VIEW OF THE DIFFUSION OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.
247. English of Wales, Scotland, &c. . . . . 264
248, 249. ,, America, &c. . . . . . 264, 265
. 266
America, &c.
250. Wliat is the Enghsh Language ?
CHAPTER II.
THE RELATION OF THE ENGLISH TO THE ANGLO-SAXON, AND THE STAGES OF
THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.
251, 252. The English the A. S. in a modern form
253. The word old ......
254. Simple transcription and transcription with accommodation
255. Speaking and spelHng .....
256. Imitations of dialects .....
257. Extract from Chaucer .....
267-270
270
271
271
272
273
CHAPTER III.
HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. COMPLICATIONS. WANT OF DATES. THE
ANGLO-SAXON CHARTERS, ETC.
258-260. DiflSculties in the study of the early English and A. S.
261. Codex Vercellensis — exti-act fi'om Kemble
262. A. S. portions of the Codex Dlplomaticus .
263-271. Charters in extenso illustrating the question of date .
272. Dates of MSS.
273. Extract from A. S. Chronicle
274. Semi- Saxon data
275. Extracts from Layamon
276. Notice of the Ormuliun
277. Proclamation of Henry III.
278-281. Remarks — Extract from HaUam
274-277
277
278-288
289-308
303
309
312
313
314
314
315, 316
XIV
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER IV.
THE DIALECTS OF THE ANQLO-S.\XON. — THE WEST-SAXON. — THE NORTH-
LMnUIAN. THE GLOSSES OF THE RUSHWOKTH GOSPELS. THE DURHAJI
GOSPELS. THE RITUAL. THE RUTHWELL CROSS. THE COTTON PSALTER.
SBCT.
282. Characteristic forms — West- Saxon
283. Nortluimbrian
284. The lluslnvorth Gospels
285. The Dui-ham Gospels
280. „ Ritual
287. The Ruthwoll Runes
288, 200. Chai-acteristics of the Northumbrian
291. Probable additions to the data
292. Fragment of Ceadmon
— Death-bed verses of Beda .
293. The Cotton Psalter
294-29G. Norse elements (?)
PAGE
316
318
318
323
325
326
J27-329
329
330
331
331
333, 334
CHAPTER V.
DL\LECTS OF THE ANGLO-SAXON. EAST ANGLIAN. MERCIAN.
297-299. East Anglian compositions .... 334-338
300, 301. Mercian charters ' . . , . . 338-341
302, 303. Remai-ks ....... 341
CHAPTER VI.
PROVINCLAL FORMS OF SPEECH AT PRESENT EXISTING. SOUTHERN GROUP.
304, 305. Existing Dialects
300, 307. Import of Saxon, &c.
308. The Bonaparte Materials
309. Somersetsliire
310. Devonsliii-e
311. Cornwall
312. Gloucestershire
313. Worcestershire
314-316. Herefordshire, Monmouthshire,
317. Dorsetshire
3 is. Wilts
319, 320. Hants
321. Sussex
322, 323. Kent
324^-326. Middlesex, &c. .
CHAPTER Vn.
EXISTING DIALECTS. NORTHUMBRIAN, OR NORTHERN GROUP.
327. Northumbrian group ......
328. Cimiborland ...
— Central Cumberland .....
329. Westmoreland
342, 343
. ■
343, 344
•
. 344
. 345
. 348
. 350
. 351
. 352
Warwickshire
. 353
. 353
. 355
356, 357
. 573
358, 359
359, 360
360
361
362
363
CONTENTS.
XV
PACK
SECT.
330. Lancashire, North ....
. 364
— „ South ....
. 365
331. Cheshire .....
. 370
332. Stafforclslm-e and Shropsliire (?)
. 372
333. Derbyshire and Nottinghamsliire (?)
. 373
334. Yorkshire . . . • .
. 373
— Sheffield
. 373
— Barnsley . . ■ • •
. 375
— West Riding . . . . •
. 375
— Craven .....
. 376
— Cleveland .....
. 377
335. Dm-ham .....
- 378
336. Northumberland ....
.379
— Newcastle .....
. 379
— North Northumberland . . . .
. 382
337. Scotch
. 383
CHAPTER VIII.
EXISTING DIALECTS. — MIDDLE GBODP. — EAST-ANGLIAN DIVISION.
338. East-Anglian
339. Norfolk
340. Suflfolk
341. Essex
342. Remarks
CHAPTER IX.
PROVINCIAL FORMS OF SPEECH AT PRESENT EXISTING. MERCIAN GROUP.
NEGATIVE CHARACTER. SPECIMENS, ETC.
384
385
385
386
343. Mercian group
344. Lincolnshu-e .
388
389
CHAPTER X.
ISOLATED DIALECTS. LITTLE ENGLAND BEYOND WALES.
345. Little England beyond Wales ....
346, 347. Gower .......
CHAPTER XI.
ISOLATED DIALECTS. THE BARONIES OF FORTH AND BARGIE.
348, 349. The Baronies of Forth and Bargie
CHAPTER XII.
MISCELLANEOUS.
250. Gypsy .......
351. Tliieves' language, or Slang .....
252. Talkee-talkee .....
. 392
393-395
395-397
397
397
398
XVI CONTENTS.
CnAPTEll XIII.
THK I.OWI.ANI) SCOTCH.
S»CT. PAGE
358. Tliu rilatious of the Lowlimd Scotch to Euglisli . . . 3!J1)
854. Extnictfrum Wolhiv,- . . .400
CHAPTER XIV.
.\rFII,I.\TION OF DI-VLEOTS. IMPERFECT CONTINUITY OF TIME.
M.'jS. Tiiiiisiiipliou and accommodation ..... 401
;{5(). IVoviucial MSS. . . . . . .402
CHAPTER XV.
ON TUE ORIGIN OF THE LITERARY ENGLISH.
3.')7. The literaiy English neither West-Saxon nor Northumbrian . 404
.Sr)S(. Metropolitan ........ 405
— Exti-acts from Sir T. More ..... 405-407
— „ Sir J. Fortescue .... 407-408
''io\). The literary Englisli not necessarily the Lest . . . 401
CHAPTER XVI.
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE ENGLISH DIALECTS.
300-302. Mr. Gaructt's groups ..... 409-411
CHAPTER XVII.
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. THE KELTIC ELEMENTS.
303-304. Keltic elements . . . . . .411
CHAPTER XVIII.
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. THE L.VTIN OF THE FIRST,
OR ROMAN, PERIOD.
305. The elements -coin, -che.iter, &c. ..... 413
CHAPTER XIX.
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. THE LATIN OF THE
SECOND, OR ANGLE, PERIOD.
300. Extract from Alfred ... . ... 414
3f)7. List of words of Latin origin ..... 414
CHAPTER XX.
HISTORIC.VL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. THE NORSE, OR SCANDI-
NAVIAN, ELEMENT.
368. Opinions respecting it 410
CONTENTS. xvii
CHAPTER XXI.
HISTOBICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. ANGLO-NORMAN.
SECT. PAGJ5
369. Early Normau elements . . . . . . 417
870-37.S. Their prevalence ..... 418, 419
374. Anglo-Norman words in Layamon, &c. . . . . 419
CHAPTER XXII.
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. LATIN OF THE THIRD
PERIOD.
375. Latin of the Third Period ...... 423
CHAPTER XXIII.
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. LATIN OF THE FOURTH
PERIOD. — GREEK.
376. 377. Words from the Latin ..... 423-425
378. „ „ Greek ...... 426
CHAPTER XXIV.
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. — MISCELLANEOUS.
379, 380. Miscellaneous elements ..... 426, 427
381, 382. Direct and indu-ect origins .... 427, 428
383, 384. Words of foreign, simulating a vernacular, origin . 428-430
CHAPTER XXV.
HYBRIDISM, ETC. INCOMPLETION OF THE RADICAL.
385, 386. Hybrid words ...... 430, 431
387. Incompletion of the radical ...... 431
388. Historical and logical analyses ..... 432
CHAPTER XXVI.
ON THE RELATIONS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE TO CERTAIN OTHER LANGUAGES
A3 THE MEMBERS OF A CLASS OF ORDINAL VALUE.
389. The German group and genus ..... 432
390. List of words •••.... 433
— „ inflections . . . . . . . 435
CHAPTER XXVII.
THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE AS CONSIDERED IN RESPECT TO THK STACK OF IT.S
DEVELOPMENT.
392. Import of / have hcoi ■■■■.. 430
."^93. Present tendencies •■•.... 437
/y 2
CONTENTS.
PART III.
i' 11 0 N E S I S.
ClIArXER I.
ELEMEXTAUY SOUNDS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. LETTERS. ALPHABET. —
PECULLVRITIES OF THE ENGLISH SOUND-SYSTEM.
SECT. I'AOK
394. List of soiuuls ..... 438
395. Remarks on the English plionesis and spelling . . . 439
89G. Unstable combinations .."... 441
397-399. Points of cUfterence between tlie English and other languages
in the way of Plionesis ..... 443, 444
CHAPTER II.
ON ACCENT.
400. Briga'de, an'ehor, &c. ....
401. Ex'port and export, &c. .
CHAPTER III.
ORTHOEPY.
402. Orthoepy and Orthograjjliy ....
403. Pronunciation — conversational or rhetorical
404-408. EiTors of pronunciation ....
409. 410. Standards of Orthoepy ....
CHAPTER IV.
ORTHOGR^VPHY. 0RTn0GR.AJ>HICVL EXPEDIENTS.
411, 41'.i. Faults of the English alphabet and orthogi-aphy
413. On certiiin conventional modes of speUing
414-417. Ortliogi-apliical expedients
. 444
. 445
. 445
. 446
446-448
448-450
450-453
. 453
454-45(i
CHAPTER V.
REMARKS ON SOME OF THE DETAILS OF THE ENGLISH ALPHABET AND
ORTHOGRAPHY.
418-423. Details concemin g tlie several letters b, d, k, &c.
456-460
CHAPTER VI.
niS/OIUCAL SKETCH OP THE ENGLISH ALPHABET.
4-24-426. Angle sound-sj'stem
427. Anglo-Norman alphabet
460-402
. 462
CONTENTS.
XIX
PART IV.
ETYMOLOGY.
CHAPTER I.
COMPOSITION DEFINED. ACCENT. ORDER OF ELEMENTS. APPARENT EXCEPTIONS.
DETAILS.
428-431. Definition of Composi ion
432. Words like Mis-deed, wis-do7n, &c.
433. „ black(/moor
— „ nightiHgale
434. „ Thursday
435. ,, mid-ship-man
436. 437. Details
438. Adverbs in composition
439. Compound Pronouns
440. Compounds of like
441. Ten and -ty .
442. Eleven
443. Twelve
PAGE
464-467
467
468
468
468
468
468
470
470
471
472
472
473
CHAPTER II.
DERIVATION. CLASSIFICATION OF DERIVATIVES. DETAILS.
444, 445. Principles of classification .... 473, 474
446-448. Details ...... 474-478
449^55. French and other affixes .... 478-481
456. Accent ........ 481
457-461. DetaUs
CHAPTER III.
DIMINUTIVES.
482-485
462. Details
463. Siveetheart and true-love
CHAPTER IV.
AUGMENTATIVES.
485
486
CHAPTER V.
PATRONYMICS. — GENTILE NAMES.
464-469. Forms in -ituj
486
CONTENTS.
C'lIAl'TEll VI.
AB9TIU0T8. FORMS IN TH-. FOllMS IN -yESS.
470-47 "i. Determinate Absti'acts
47H, 471. Iiulotoriuinato Abstracts
PAGE
486-492
492
CHAPTER VII.
ON CEKTAIN FOUMS IN -i'Ti. DEGREES OF COMPARISON. DEFECT AND
CO.MPLEMENT.
475. Phenomena connected with the forms in -er
476, 477. Comi)ai"ative degi'ee .....
CHAPTER VIII.
FOBMATION OF THE SUPERLATIVE DEGREE. — DETAILS.
478. The ending -st ..... ■
479. Its double origin ......
480. M'orse and Jcs.s ......
481. Inmost and — ......
CHAPTER IX.
C0.MP.VEIS0N OF ADVERBS.
482. Oftener and seldomer .....
483. Elder and ntther .....
493
494, 495
495
495
496
496
497
498
CHAPTER X.
THE ORDINALS.
484. First, second, third
498
485, 486. Superlativity and Ordinahty .
499
500
CHAPTER XI.
EXPRESSION OF DIFFERENCE OF SEX.
487. Form in -in .
500
488. „ -ster
501
489. Gander ■
501
490. Drake
502
491, 492. Peahen, &c.
CHAPTER XII.
COLLECTIVES.
502
493. Oxen, feet, &c.
503
494r-496. Forms in -ery
.
603
-505
CHAPTER XIII.
ON DERIVED VERBS.
497. Rise and raise, &c. . . . .
CHAPTER XIV.
.VDVERBS.
499-501. Darkling, hrighthj, else
505
506 50'
CONTENTS.
XXI
CHAPTER XV.
ON CEHTAIN ADVERBS OF PLACE.
SECT.
502, 503. There, thither, thence ....
504. Yonder ......
505. Anon .......
CHAPTER XVI.
ON WHEN, THEN, AND THAN.
506. When, &c., Accusative Cases
CHAPTER XVII.
INFLECTION. DECLENSION. OF NOUNS. — OF VERBS.
507-509. Inflection and Declension
510.' Conjugation . . . . . .
511. Declension of Verbs .....
CHAPTER XVIII.
ON GENDER.
512. Gender in English .....
513. She and he applied to inanimate objects
514. The Sun in his glory .....
515. Philosophy, Charity, &c. ....
CHAPTER XIX.
NUMBER.
516. A. S. Dual .....
517. Extent of Number .....
CHAPTER XX.
CASE.
518-523. Cases in English — how many
524. Twain ......
525, 526. Determination of Cases ....
527-529. Current and obsolete processes .
CHAPTER XXI.
INFLECTION OF PRONOUNS, ETC.
PAGE
507, 508
. 509
. 509
509
509
510
510
512
513
513
514
615
515
51(i, 617
. 517
517, 518
. 518
530-533. Declension tlu^eefold
519-521
534, 535. Who and that ....
. 521
536. Neuter in -t .
. 521
537-539. Interrogative Pronoim, &c.
521, 522
540-543. Demonstratives ....
. 522
Their present declension
. 523
544, 545. He, &c. .
. 524
546. She .
. 525
547-550. This and that, &c. . . . .
526, 527
551. Extract from Mr. Watts
. 527
552. Form in -t . . . .
. 529
XXM
CONTENTS.
CIIArTER XXII.
TIIK TRUE I'ERSONAL PHONOUNS.
SKCT.
bi)'\. Mc, //«'<", ye
5.")4. Ml/ and tliif
555. nV, ours, us
55(5. Ours, yours, &c.
CHiVPTER XXni.
THE WORD /
557. Its subjective charactei*
CHAPTER XXIV.
INFLECTIOX
558. Possessive case singular
559. Plural
500. Five Rules of euphouy
5G1. Cargoes, beauties
5G2, 503. Wives, loaves, &c.
5G4. Pence, dice, eaves, &c.
565. Mathematics, &c.
OF SUBSTANTIVES.
FACE
530
530
531
531
531
532
532
533
534
534
534
536
CHAPTER XXV.
ADJECTIVES. AT PRESENT UNDECLINED. OEIGINALLY DECLINED.
566. A. S. declension of Adjectives . . . . . 537
567. Vii-tual inflections ....... 538
Examples from Dr. Guest ...... 538
CHAPTER XXVI.
VERBS. FORMATION OF THE PAST TENSE. CHANGE OF VOWEL.
568. The two divisions ....... 539
569. 570. Change of vowel ...... 539
571. Origin of forms like spoke, &c. . . . . . 541
Did . . . . . .542
Night . . . . . .542
572. The Gotliic reduplication the same as that of the Latin and
Greek ........ 542
573. Remarks ........ 543
CHAPTER XXVn.
FORMATION OF THE PAST TENSE. ADDITION OF -ED, -D, OR -T.
574^576. Forms hi -ed . . . . 544, 545
577. Tell, told, &c. . . . . . . . .545
578. Catch, caught, &c. ....... 545
579. A. S. forms in -ode, and -de . . . . . . 545
580. Expedients for adding -d when the root ends witli that sound . 545
581. Equivocalfoi-ms ....... 546
682. Made, uould, yode, &c. . . . . . •..-; . 546
583. Origin of the foi-m ia. -d . . . . , . 546
CONTENTS.
XXlll
CHAPTER XXVIII.
ON IRKEGULARITY AND DEFECT.
SKCT.
585, 586. Preliminaiy Remarks ....
587. Quoth, Defective .....
CHAPTER XXrX.
STRONG AND WEAK VERBS SO-CALLED.
588. Weak and Strong .....
589. The so-called Weak and Strong conjugations
CHAPTER XXX.
PERSONS.
590. Forms like CdUest .....
591. „ Sungest, &c. ....
CHAPTER XXXI.
NUMBERS.
592. A. S. ic s«ng, we swngon, &c. .
CHAPTER XXXn.
ON THE WORDS DTD AND BECAME, CATACHRESTIC.
593. Did, catachrestic .....
594. Became, catachrestic .....
595. Overflown, cataclirestic ....
PAGE
547, 548
. 548
. 548
. 549
. 554
. 554
554
555
556
556
CHAPTER XXXIH.
ON CERTAIN APPARENT PRESENTS.
596. Connection between tlie Pres
3nt and Perfect
. 556
597-598. Bare, durst ....
558, 559
599. Own=a.dimt .
,
. 560
600. Can .
. 561
601. Shall and shotdd
. 562
602. May and might
. 562
603. Minded
. 563
604. Wot .
. 563
605,606. Ought
564, 565
607. Must
. 565
608. The Class Natui-al
. 566
CHAPTER XXXIV.
THE VERB SUBSTANTIVE.
609. Was .
610, 6il. Be
612. Am
613. Worth
. 566
566-567
. 567
. 567
XXIV
CONTENTS.
CIUrTER XXXV.
Till'. i'Ai!Ticirj,i;a. — tiik phesknx participle.
SECT.
(il 1. Fomw in -in;/ uiul ititd ....
CIIArTER XXXVI.
THE P.VST PARTICIPLE. FORM IN -flV.
()15. Forms in -t'li .
(ilC). Jhiinit, J run/:, (Iruii/wn
(>17. Sjxike, spoke, spoken .
(il8. ^<>(/</fH. &c. .
(ill). Forlorn
CHAPTER XXXVII.
PAST PAHTICIPLE. FORMS IN -ED, -li, OH -T.
(■>20. Fonns in -d and -ed .
CHAPTER XXX\TII.
PARTICIPLES. THE PREFIX GE-.
621. "Words like ij-clept, &c. ....
PAGE
508
508
508
509
509
570
570
571
PART V.
SYNTAX.
CHAPTER I.
ox 6YXT.A.X IN GENERAL. — PROPOSITIONS. — NAMES. — MIXED SYNTAX
SINGLE, SYNTAX OF DOUBLE PROPOSITIONS.
022. SjTitax and Construction
023-027. ProiDOsitions
028-031. Tei-ms
632. Parts of Speech
633, 634. Names .
635, 030. Sj-ntax and Common Sense
637. MLxed Sjnitax
638. Figui'cs of Speech
639. Apposition
640. Collectivcness as opposed to Plurality
041. The Kinff of Saxony's army .
642. True notion of part of speech
643. „ of the original form
044. ConvertibiHty
045. Syntax of Single, and Syntax of Double Propositions
CHAPTER II.
SYNTAX OF THE PRONOUN. THIS, THAT.
646. Syntax of the Demonstratives
647. This and that .....
-SYNTAX OF
. 572
573, 574
674
575
576
r 0-5 80
580
580
581
581
582
582
582
582
584
584
585
CONTENTS.
XXV
CHAPTEE III.
SYNTAX OF THE PnONOVH.—YOU.-I.—HlS AND HER.-ITS.
SECT.
648-650. You Q,n^ ye
651. il/e;aud/
652. Pronomen reverentia .
653. Dativiis Etliicus
654. Reflected Personal Pronoun
655. Reflected neuters
656. Equivocal reflectives .
657. His and lier
658. His and its
PAGE
. 586
586, 587
587
587
587
588
588
588
588
CHAPTER IV.
SYNTAX OF PRONOUNS. — TEUE REFLECTIVE ABSENT IN ENGLISH. — THE WORD SELF.
659. True reflectives:=se, suus, &c.
660, 661. Constructious of self
662. „ one
589
590
591
CHAPTER V.
MWE.— THINE.— OURS, ETC.
663-665. My and mine, Ac.
591, 592
666,
667-
670.
671
672
CHAPTER VI.
SYNTAX OF PRONOUNS. THE INDETERMINATE CONSTRUCTION.
It is said, &c. .......
-669. It and there ......
It rains, &c. .......
CHAPTER VII.
SYNTAX OF PRONOUNS. — ARTICLES.
Tlie, an, no, every ......
673. The secretary and the treasurer ....
592
593
593
594
594
674.
CHAPTER VIII.
SYNTAX OF PRONOUNS. — THE NUMERALS.
The numeral one .....
595
675. Substantives .
076, 677. Ellipsis .
fi7H. Proper names .
679. Collocation
CHAPTER rx.
SYNT.VX OF SUBSTANTIVES.
. 595
595, 596
. 506
. 597
X X \ I
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER X.
SYNTAX OF A1)JECT1VK9.
SECT.
080. A(\jectives
681. Pleonasm
682. Collooation
683. Govoruiuout .
684. Full of meat, &c.
685. ]yiser and more wise .
680, 087. The better of the two— whether
688. The sun shines bright .
PAGE
697
597
587
598
598
598
599
599
CHAPTER XI.
SYXT.VX OF VERBS. ON VEKBS IN GENERAL.
689. Verbs ....
690. Intransitive and transitive verbs
691-09-1. Government
095. Modal construction
(HHl. Apposition
. noo
. 600
600, 001
. 601
. 602
CHAPTER XII.
SYNTAX OF VERBS. CONCORD.
097. Concord of Person
604
CHAPTER XIII.
SYNTAX OF \TLRBS. MOODS.
699. Construction of Infinitive Moods
700. Use of to .
701. 702. 1 am to speak
703. Construction of Imperatives .
605
606
607
607
CHAPTER XIV.
TIME AND TENSE.
7 04, 705. Time, present, aorist, future, &c
700. Emphatic construction
707. Habitual and present actions
708. Representative expression
709. Inference
710. Real power of English tenses
607-609
609
609
609
610
Oil
CHAPTER XV.
SYNTAX OF VERBS. IMPERSONALS.
711-713. Meseems, methinks, me listeth
611
CONTENTS.
XXVll
CHAPTER XVI.
SYNTAX OF VERBS. THE AUXILIARIES.
iECT.
rl4. Classification of Auxiliary Verbs
CHAPTER XVII.
THE PARTICIPLE.
715. Its affinity to the Adjective
716. Forms in -ing
717. Combination ■with Jutve
718. He is beaten
CHAPTER X\T:II.
SHALL AND KILL, OUGHT, ETC.
Consti'uction ....
Origin .....
Predictive and promissive powers
Extract from Wallis .
„ Archdeacon Hai'e
Pi-ofessor De Morgan .
726. Criticism ....
Ought, would, &c., used as a present .
CHAPTER XrX.
THE SYNTAX Oi' AD\'ERBS.
729. Syntax and Adverbs simple
719.
720.
721.
722.
723.
724,
725,
727.
72a
730
731
732
Forms in -Ig
Adverbial construction
From ulience, &c.
CHAPTER XX.
SYNTAX OF PREPOSITIONS.
733. Wliat cases are governed by Prepositions ? .
734, 735. Preposition and Infinitive Mood
736. Composition .....
CHAPTER XXI.
THE SYNTAX OF THE NEGATIVE.
737. Place of the Negative
738. Distribution of
739. Double Negative
740. Questions of appeal
741. Quotation from Sir Thomas More
CHAPTER XXII.
THE CASE ABSOLUTE.
742. Objectives — he walked ten miles
14A. Instrumental, him excepted
PAGE
612
613
614
614
615
618
619
620
622
623
623
624
626
627
628
628
628
629
629
630
630
630
631
631
631
632
632
XXVI 11
CONTENTS.
CHArXER XXIII.
SYNT.VX OF COMl'LEX SENTENCES.
7H. Comiectiou of words and conuection of propositionB
CHAPTER XXIV.
ON THE INTERROGATIVE PRONOUN.
745. Qucstious dii'ect or oblique .
740. Ifltoiii do they say that it is }
747. Yes aud iw .
CHAPTER XXV.
THE RELATIVE PRONOUNS.
748. Concord of Relative and Antecedent .
74!). Tlw hoohs ] nant are here
750. Solomon, the son of David, who, &c. .
751. It w your 7nastcr icJio, &c.
CHAPTER XXVI.
THE SYNTAX OF CONJUNCTIONS.
752. General character of Conjunctions .
753-75(5. Copulatives, Disjunctives, and Subdisjunctives
757. Negatives .....
758-7G0. Causal, Final, Illative, and other Conjunctions
7G1. Concord of Person
702. Succession of Tenses
76-3. 2han and then
764. But
765. If
766. 707. Relative Pronouns and Conjunctions allied
CHAPTER XXVII.
THE RECIPROCAL CONSTRUCTION.
768, 709. One another and each other
PAOK
634
635
636
636
636
637
638
638
638-641
641, 642
. 642
. 642
. 643
. 644
. 456
. 645
645-647
. 647
647
PART VI:
PROSODY.
CHAPTER I.
HEXERAL VIEW OF METRE.
770. Prosody and IMetre
771. Affections of Sj^llables
649
650
CONTENTS.
XXIX
SECT.
772.
773.
774.
775.
776.
777.
778.
779.
780.
CHAPTER II.
QU.\NTITy.
Classical Metres .....
Length of Vowels and lengtli of Syllables .
CHAPTER III.
ALLITERATIVE METRES.
Specimen of Alliteration fi-om the Swedish .
,, „ „ Anglo-Saxon
„ (?) Old Saxon or C^) Franl<
The Weissenhriin Hijmn ....
Exti'act fii-om the Edda ....
„ Mus2)ilU ....
„ the Icelandic translation of Paradise Lost
CHAPTER IV.
RHYME AXD ASSONANCE.
781-783. Rhymes, perfect and imperfect, &c.
784. Analysis of a rhymuig syllable
785. Single, double, and treble rhymes
786. Constant and inconstant parts of rhyme
787. Assonance ....
PAGE
651
653
654
654
655
658
658
659
660
661-664
. 664
. 666
. 666
. 667
CHAPTER V.
METRICAL NOTATION AND SCANSION.
788-790.
Accents and measures
668
-670
791. Scansion
670
792. Blank metre .
671
793. Last measiu'e of a verse indifferent .....
672
794-798. Specimens
673
-678
799. Di^dsion of verses
CHAPTER \T:.
CHIEF ENGLISH METRES.
678
800. Formula a x—\
.
679
801. „ axx'i
679
802.
a XX2 —
680
803.
, a .r X 4
680
804.
«.rX5
680
805.
a? -■/ X 6
.
681
806.
a X Xl —
681
807.
axxS
681
808-812. Verses m xa
682
-684
813-816. Blank Verse
684
685
817. PJiyming Heroics
685
818. Six measures
685
819. Seven „
686
820. Eig
ht „ .
(m\
xxx
CONTENTS.
8BCT.
8'21-8i4.-Vorsos in (/.^•.^•
8•2.')-8•28. Vorscsiu.rf/.i.-
SiSl-vS.SM. Versos in .v x a .
834. Nomenclature of Englisli Metres
VAOE
G8C, (>87
087, (-.88
. 080
. 089
CHAPTER VII.
SYMM1;TUICAL, UNSYMMETRICAL and convertible metres. RHYTHM.
835, 83(i. Sjmmcti-ical metres ..... 092, 093
837. Unsj-mmetrical metres ...... 093
838. Convertible metres ....... 694
839. Grammatical and Metrical combinations .... G'-)6
840. 841. EJij-tlun ....... 696, 697
CHAPTER VIII.
ENGLISH ANALOGUES OF THE CLASSICAL METRES.
842. The classical metres as read by Englishmen . . . 698
843. Reasons against the classical nomenclatiu-e as applied to English
metres ........ 699
844. The classical metres metrical to English readers . . .702
845. 840. ^Vliy they are so ..... 702-704
847. Conversion of English into classical metres . . . 704
848. Cesiim . . . . . . . .705
849. Measures and feet . . . . . .700
850. Synapheia ........ 700
Note on the Cesiu'a of the Greek Senarius
707-712
THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.
PAET I.
CHAPTER I.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. - -ITS NAME.
§ 1. The English Language was introduced into England
from Germany. The name of the population which introduced
it is first found in the Latin and Greek writers ; \Adth whom it is
Angli and "AyyXot — also "AyyecXoi : though this is a rare and
doubtful form. The native name, i.e. the name which occurs in the
eaidiest English compositions, is either Engle,^ or jEngle. This
was the nominative plural ; but it Avas only one of three forms.
There were two others — EngJan, and ^nglas. The genitive
plural was ^ngla : so that the English for teri^a Angloruni was
jEngla-land ; its abbreviated form England.
§ 2. The name by which the language was first known was
seo Englisce sjytrec-f — the English speech — English being an ad-
jective. This adjectival form is the only one which now survives ;
so that we say Englishman and English to the total exclusion
of both Engle and Engles. The words Angle and Angles, oc-
casionally and conveniently used, are the translation of the Latin
Anglus and Angli.
§ 3. S-prcec was, perhaps, the commonest word for language ;
* For the inflection of the Gentile name, sec Guest in Transactions of the Philological
Society.
•f- Grimm. Deutsche Grammatik. Third Edition, Introduotinn.
B
THE WORD ENGLISH.
tlhuioli it was not the only ono. In the Moeso-Gotliic, the term
by which the Givek words yXcoaa-a and XaXid were rendered
was razdo., which in Anglo-Suxou became rcord.
Hiord wtes jjii giet
Eortl-bueudmu
An gemreue. — Ccedmon.
i. C,
Language was tliere yet
To tlie earth-dwellers
One common.
Rede, titnga, caud taal, are also either German or Norse terms.
Another is ge^eod; as in Mark v. 41, " Talimthi cumi," ]?8et is
on ure ge]>eode gereht ; " Mnsden ! ic j^e secge, Aris " = " TaUiidld
cumi," which is, in our language, being interpreted, "Damsel!
I say unto thee, Arise." This is an important word, inasmuch as
it is the root of the word Dutch. It is derived from j7eod=:
people or nation; and means the language of the i^eople, or
the vulgar tongue, rather than, simply, language. In Ger-
man it is transparently clear that such is the meaning ; it being
not only opposed to the Lingua Latum but being often the
translation o^ rustica or vulgaris.
§ 4*. English and England, in their older forms Englisc and
Englaland, are native names. This means that they are the
names by which the populations to which they applied desig-
nated themselves rather than the names by which they were de-
signated by their neighbours. They were names like Deutschland
and Deutsclte, rather than names like Germany and German or
Alleraagae and Alleraand ; these latter being terms by which the
English and the French speak of the natives of Hesse, West-
phalia, &:c , rather than the name by which the Hessians, West-
phalians, &c., speak of themselves. The native name, however,
is not, necessarily, the only one ; as may be seen from the ex-
amples just given. Neither is it, necessarily, the commoner, or the
more current one. At the present time, the names Germany di\i.(\.
Allernagne are current where the English and French manner of
speaking of Deutschland prevail ; wdiilst, even in Deutschland
itself, the Latin term Germania is used by such writers as find
it necessary to adopt the language of the classical authorities.
§ 5. The name English, however, was Latin as tcell as
native ; i. e. when our forefathers and their language were written
about in Latin, words like Anglus and Anguliscus were used to
THE WORD SAA'OjV. 3
denote them. Lingua Angloru7n is the expression of Beda. In
a Sangallen MS. we find notice of an abidarium Anguliscum.
§ G. But English was not the only name. Concurrent with
it was the term Saxon, — fures quos Saxonice dicimus wergeld-
'\)eowas. Now, Saxon and Saxony are words like Gerinany and
Allemagne rather than words like Deutscldaiid ; i. e. names used
by one population speaking of another, rather than names used by
a given population speaking of itself Except so far as they
might liave adopted the language of others, I find no evidence
of any Eiiglishmen ever having called either themselves or their
countrymen Saxons. That they may have done so in the way
that a modern man of Deutschland may call himself a German
cannot be denied. Upon this, however, more will be said in
the sequel.
§ 7. The applicants of the name Saxon seem to have been
the original occupants of our island, i. e. the Britons. At the
present time, the Welsh, the Irish and Scotch Gaels, along with
the Manksmen of the Isle of Man, call an Englishman a Saxon,
and the English, the Saxon, language. I believe that the
Romans did the same ; and that, thus, currency was given to the
word. At any rate, Saxon and English were, to a certain ex-
tent, synonymous.
In the following passage from Beda, it seems as if Saxonum
were the term found in Gildas, the British writer, and An-
gloriim, the English adaptation of it. At any rate, Saxonum
is Gildas's term : — " . . . Qui inter alia . . . quae
historicus eorum Gildas fiebili sermone describit, et hoc adde-
bat, ut nunquam genti Saxonum, sive Anglorum, secum Bri-
tanniam incolenti verbum fidei prsedicandum committerent." — •
Hist. Ecclesiast. i. 22.
§ 8. Out of the two has come the compound word Anglo-
Saxon ; the Anglo-Saxon language being the English in its oldest
form. In this sense it is used by modern scholars, and means the
English or the Saxon.
The earliest writer, however, who used it was Paulus Diaco-
nus, or Paul Warnefrid, the historian of the Lombards ; he mean-
ing by it something different, i. e. the Saxons of England, as
opposed to the Saxons of the Continent ; for it must be re-
membered that, in his time, the two branches existed as sepai^te
populations- — one in the British Islands, upon which they were
colonists and conquerors ; and the other in those parts of Ger-
many from which they effected their invasions.
B 2
DATE OF TIIH INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER II.
(JERM.VN ORIGIN OF TUE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. ArPROXIMATE
DATE OF ITS INTRODUCTION.
§ 9. The English language came from Germany. When ?
When was the mother-tongue of the present English first intro-
duced into Britain ? Was it introduced at once, or by degrees ?
Was its introduction the work of a few years or of many gene-
rations ?
It is safe to say that it was introduced gradually ; indeed, at
the present moment, it is' by no means universal. It has not
yet reached the whole of Wales ; nor yet the whole of Scot-
Lmd ; nor yet the whole of Ireland ; nor yet the whole of the
Isle of Man.
Just as the English language has, in our own times, spread
itself over such countries as America, Australia, and New Zea-
land, did the Anglo-Saxon of early times spread itself over Eng-
land, In America, Australia, and New Zealand, there were the
original native languages, originally spoken by the original inha-
bitants. There was just the same in England. In America,
Australia, and New Zealand, the native languages still continue
to be spoken side by side with the English, although only par-
tially. It is just the same in Wales, Scotland, Ireland, and the
Isle of Man. Welsh is spoken in Wales, Manks in the Isle of
Man, Scotch Gaelic in the Highlands of Scotland, and Irish
Gaelic in Ireland.
§ 10. When was the English introduced? It is safe to say
that the English language had found its way to certain parts of
Britain as early as a.d. 597 — as early as A.D. 597, if not
earlier. It was, however, only in certain j^arts that it had
fixed itself It had yet to spread itself over the whole island,
§ 11. At the beginning of the seventh century the Angle,
Saxon, or Anglo-Saxon history, first becomes trustworthy — it
first becomes historical, so to say. There has been trustworthy
history before, but it has been the history of Britain, not of
England. The men and women with whom it has dealt have
been Britons and Romans, rather than Englishmen and Ger-
mans.
There has, also, been, anterior to the beginning of the seventh
OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. 5
centur}^, a trustworthy history of certain German, Angle. Saxon,
or Anglo-Saxon, populations ; but it has been the history of cei'-
tain Germans, &c., on the soil of Germany, not on the soil of
England.
The history, then, of the Angle Germans, as opposed to the
Britons and Romans, and of the Germans of Britain, as opposed
to the Germans of Germany, is trustworthy from A.D. 597 ; and
even then it is only partially so. Indeed, all we can say of A.D.
597 is, that a few well-authenticated statements and a few docu-
ments, ajjply to it ; and when we have said this, we have said
nearly all. Anything like continuous history does not occur
until more than a century afterwards. Hence, A.D. 597 is the
date of our first credible facts ; fects which are few in number,
and isolated. Now, that which gives this year its historical
value is the introduction of Christianity amongst the Angles,
which was then effected ; the evi<lence as to its chief details
(especially as to its date) being, to son;ie extent, documentary.
The following, for instance, is the letter of Pope Gregory to St.
Augustin, who, being charged with the conversion of the Germans
of Britain, had hesitated in his labour — he and his companions
who " perculsi timore inerti, redire doonum potius quam hav-
baram, feram-, incredidamque gentem, cujus ne limguaon quidem
nossent, adire, cogitabant."
Triinslaiion.
Gregory, the servant of the servants of God, to the servants of the Lord,
greeting ! Inasmuch as it were better, in the matter of good things begun, not
to have begun them, than, upon consideration, to (b'aw back from those tilings
which are begun, it behoves us, O most beloved sons, that the good work wliich,
with exceeding zeal, vni\\ the help of God, ye have begun, ye may fulfil. Let not,
then, the labour of the way, nor the tongues of evil-doing men deter you ; but
with all instance and all fervour complete those things wliich, with God's help,
ye have begun, with God as your guide : knowing that for great labour a
greater reward of eternal glory follows. But him, on his return, Augustin,
your provost, whom we also constituted jomx Abbot, in all things, humbly obey :
knowing that, in all things it will profit, for your souls, whatever may be in
his admonition fulfilled. May the Omnipotent God, with his grace, protect
j'ou, and allow me to see the fruit of your labour' in the eternal country.
Although I cannot labom- with you, at the same time I shall be found in
the joy of tlie reward ; because forsooth I have the will to labour. God save
you, most beloved sons.
Given the tenth day of the Kalcnda of August, in the reign of our Lord
Maiu-ice Tiberius, the Most Pious Augustus, the Fom-teenth ; after the Consul-
ship of the same our Lord the ihirtcenlh year. Tn (ho fourteenth iiulicti<in.
G 1>ATE OF THE INTRODUCTION
In the Ori</iii(d.
Gro<^ov'u\s semis sovvonim Dei, servis Domini no.slri. Quia melius fuerat
lnnia noil incipere. quaiu ab liis quie cccpta sunt, cogitatione retiorsum reclii-o,
suninio studio, dileetissiuii lilii, oportct ut opus bouum, quod auxilanto
]')onniu> oiepistis. iniploatis. Ncc labor vos ergo itineris, ncc malcdicorum
boniinum lingiuo deterrcant: scd onini iustantia, omnique fervore, quic
iiu-boastis, Deo auctore, peragite ; scieutes quod laborera magnuni major
a'terna^ retributionis gloria sequitur. llomcanti autem Augustino prieposito
vesti'o, quern et Abbatcm vobis constituinius, in omnibus liumilitcr obcdite :
scientes hoc A'estris animabus per omnia profuturum, qiiidquid a vobis fuerit
in ejus admonitione completiun. Omnipotens Dcus sua vos gratia protegat,
et vestri laboris fructum in aiterna me patria videre concedat ; quatenus etsi
Yobiscum laborare nequeo, simul in gaudio retributionis inveniar, quia laborare
scilicet volo. Deus vos incolumes custodiat, dilectissimi fiUi.
Data die decima kalendarum Augustarum, imperante domino nostro Mau-
ricio Tiberio piissimo Augusto anno decimo quarto, post consulatum ejusdem
domini nostri anno decimo tertio. Indictione decima quarta.
Traiishition.
To the Most Reverend and the Most Holy Brother Etherius, Bishop,
Gregory the servant of the servants of God. Although, wdth priests who
have that charity which pleases God, religious men need no recom-
mendation ; we, nevertheless (shice a fit time for writmg has presented
itself), have cared to send om- letters to j-our brotherhood: remarking
that we have directed tliither, for the benefit of souls, and with the help
of God, the bearer of the present, Augustin, the servant of God, of whose
zeal we are assured along ^ith others ; whom it is necessary that your Holiness
should hasten to, and, -ndth sacerdotal zeal, give him liis proper suste-
nance. AYhom, too, in order tliat ye may be the readier to support him, we
have enjoined cautiously to tell you the occasion : knowing that, when you are
aware of it, ye may lend yourselves with all devotion to comfort him as need
may be. Moreover, we recommend to your charity in all tilings, Candidus, the
Presbyter, our common son, whom we have sent over for the government
of the httle patrimony of om* Chm-cli. God keep you, most reverend brother.
In the Original A-
Reverentissimo et sanctissuno fi-atri Etherio coepiscopo, Gregorius servus
servorum Dei. Licet apud sacerdotes habentes Deo placitam caritatem rehgiosi
viri nulUus commendatione iiidigeant ; quia tamen aptiun scribendi se tempus
ingessit, fratemitati vestrae nostra mittere scripta curaranus : insinuantes,
latores prsesentiiun Augustinum servum Dei, de cujus certi sumus studio,
cum aliis servis Dei, illic nos pro utilitate animanmi, auxiliante Dommo,
direxisse : quem necesse est ut sacerdotaU studio Sanctitas vestra adjuvare,
et sua ei solatia prsebere festinet, Cui etiam, ut promptiores ad suiira-
gandimi possitis existere, causam vobis injunximus subtiliter indicare. Sci-
entes quod ea cognita, tota vos propter Deum devotione ad solaciandum,
quia res exigit, commodetis. Candidum ju-iBterea presbj-terum, communem
filium, quem ad gubernationcm patrimonioli ecclesiae nostrse transmissimus,
* Date as the preceding.
OP THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. 7
caritati vestrfB in omnibus comraenclamus. Deus te incolumem custodiat,
reverentissime fratcr.
These letters, two out of several, are valuable, because they
give a date.
The narrative proceeds : —
Tninslation from Bcda.
There lived at, that time (a.d. 597) King Ethelbert, in Kent, very powerful,
who had extended his kingdom as far as the boundary of the great river
Humber, which divides tiie Northern and Southern divisions of the Angles.
These missionaries got, from the nation of the
Franks, mterpreters.
In the Original.
Erat eo tempore (a.d. 597) rex Jildilberct in Cantia potentissimus, qui ad
conlinium usque Humbrae, fluminis maximi, quo Meridiani et Septentrionales
Anglormn populi dirimuntur, fines imperii tetenderat Accep-
erant autem de gente Francorum iuterpretes. — Hist. Ecclesiast., lib. i. c. 25.
This, indicates the necessity of a language which should be
neither British nor Roman, but German. Still, the Frank
language was not quite the language of the Angles.
§ 12. The English language came from Germany. When?
Before a.d. 597. How nmch ? The latest possible date of
its introduction has been examined. We naw examine tlie
earliest
The earliest notice of a well-known German population, with
a well-known German name, — a population likely to have
introduced into England the mother-tongue of the present
English, — is in tlie Notltla Utriusque Im-perii, the date of
which most probably lies between A.D. 369 and A.D. 408.
It is necessary to put the statement thus guardedly ; since
I by no means deny the existence of isolated German settle-
ments at an earlier period ; I only deny that they represent
that stream of population by which Britain became converted
into England. Partial settlements may have taken place at any
period, and on any part of the soil. Now, whether those that
have been suggested, and which will be considered elsewhere,
were real or unreal, whether the real ones were important or
unimportant, they were not the settlements by which the
mother-tongue of the present English was introduced.
§ 13. With these preliminaries we may take the texts of the
Notitia Utriusque Iiiiperii, of which the date has already been
given as lying between A.D. 369 and A.D. 408. This, however,
is an approximation. Arcadius died in the latter of the two
8 THE LirCS S ANOXIC CM.
yoavs, and the ilDOinnoiit is not likely to bo later than his death,
hi A.D. 30!) the southern part of Scotland was made into a
province by Theodosius, and named by him after the emperor
Valens, Valentia. Now, as Valentla is mentioned in the
Xotitia, the document cannot have been earlier than that event.
It tells us that, when it was composed, certain populations
called SiLVon had extended themselves to portions of Ijoth
Gaul and Britain : in each of which there was a tract called
the Sd.von Shore. Meanwhile, the following extract extends
the jurisdiction of the Count of the Saxon Shore in Britain
fi'om the Wash to the Southampton Water ; there or there-
abouts.
Translation.
U.NDEU THE ORDEUS OF THE RESPECTABLE COUNT OF THE SAXON SHORE IN
BRITAIN. (Clmp. i.)
Tlie Captain of the Company of the Fortenses, at Denge Ness.
Tlie Captain of the Tungricani, at Dover.
The Captain of the Company of the Tumacenses, at Ijympne.
The Brandon Captain of the Dahnatian Cavalry, at Brandon.
The Burgh Castle Captain of the Stablesian Cavalry, at Burgh Castle.
The Tribune of the First Cohort of the Vetasians, at Reculvers.
The Cajitain of the Second Augustan Legion, at Rchborough.
The Captain of the Company of the xibiilci, at Anderida.
The Captain of the Company of Pioneers, at Port Adur.
In the Original.
BUB DISPOSITIONE VIRI SPECTABILIS COJIITIS LIMITIS SAXONICI PER
BRITANNIAM.
Praspositus niuueri Fortensium, Othonse.
Prajpositus militum Tungricanorum, Dubris.
Prsepositus numei'i Tui'nacensium, Lemanis.
Praepositus equitum Dahiiatarum, Branodunensis, Branoduno.
Praspositus equitum Stablesianorum Garionnonensis, Gariannono.
Tribunus Cohortis Prima) Vetasiorum, Regulbio.
Praepositus Legionis II. Aug. Ilutupis.
Propositus numeri Abulcorum, Andoridae.
Praepositus numeri Exploratoruni, Portu Adurni. (Cap. Ixxi.)
Although the exact import of the names of some of tliese
companies is uncertain, and although there may be differences of
opinion as to what is meant by Fortenses, Abulci, and the like,
there is no doubt as to the meanino- of such a term as Dalinatce.
It impHes that the soldiers which bore it were Dalmatians rather
than Romans. Such being the case, their language may have
been Dalmatian also, whatever that was ; a point which must be
carefully remembered when we investigate the minute ethnology
THE LITUS SAXONICUM. 9
of Roman Britain. At any rate, it is clear that under the
name of Roman there was, probably, something that had but
little to do with Rome.
The doctrine that the Litus Saxonicum in general was
German is not only extremely likely in itself, but is confirmed by
a short paragraph in the notice of Gaul, where we find, under
the Commander of the Belgica Secunda, the Dalmatian Ca-
valry of the March — March being a German gloss.
SUB DISPOSITIONE VIRI SPECTABILIS DUCIS BELGICjE SECUND.E.
Equites Dalmatse Marcis in Litore Saxonico. (Chap, xxxvii. § 1.)
§ 1 4. The date, then, of the earliest notice of a well-known
German population with a well-known German name — a popula-
tion likely to have introduced the mother-tongue of the present
English, is the earliest date of the Notitia, viz. A.D. 369.
§ 15. Earlier than this there are notices of some German
populations in Britain ; but the fact of their being Angles,
Siixons, or Anglo-Saxons, is not conclusive. The most im-
portant of these is, perhaps, the following extract from the
panegyric of the orator Mamertinus on the Emperor Maximian,
a colleague of Diocletian's ; which gives us Franks in the parts
about London in the reign of Diocletian.
Tranalation.
By so thorougli a consent of the Immortal Gods, O imconquered Caesar, has
the extermination of all the enemies whom you have attacked, and of the
Frauks more especially, been decreed, that even those of yoxu: soldiers, who
having missed their way on a foggy sea, reached the town of London, de-
stroyed promiscuously and throughout the city, the whole remnant of that me3--
cenary multitude of barbarians, wliich, after escaping the battle, sacking the
touai, and attempting flight, was still left — a deed whereby your provincials
were not only saved, but delighted by the sight of the slaughter.
In the Oriijinal.
Enimvero, Cfesar invicte, tanto Deorum immortalium tibi est addicta con-
sensu omniimi quidem, quos adortus fueris, hostium, sed prsecipue internecio
Francorum, ut illi quoque militcs vestri, qui per errorem nebulosi, ut paulo
ante dixi, maris adjuucti ad oppidum Londinense pervenerant, quicquid ex
mcrcenaria ilia multitudine barbarorum praelio superfuerat. cum, direpta civi-
tate, fugam capessere cogitarent, passim tota urbe confecerint, et non solam
provmcialibus vestris in csede hostium dederint salutem, sed etiam in spec-
taculo voluptatem.
This was A.D. 290; but the Franks, though Germans, were
not Angles. At the same time, there are good reasons for be-
lieving that the}' had certain Angles for their allies ; or at any
latc, they had certain allies whom they called Saxons.
10 FRANKS AND SAXONS.
These Franks seem to liave Leen the countrymen, if not the
actual soldiers, of Carausius. Now Carausius was a German
from the district of the Menapii. He was appointed by Diocle-
tian to protect the coast of Gaul against the Franks and Saxons
— "quod Franci et Saxones infestabant." * His head-quarters
la}' at Bononla-=. Boulogne. His title was Comes maritimi
tradus — Count of the viaritiTne tract, this tract being (as far as
Gaul was concerned) the subsequent Litus Saxonicuni. He
afterwards rebelled, and assumed the Imperial title in Britain ;
Avas assassinated by Allectus (a.D. 293), who (in his turn)
was defeated by Asclepiodotus,
Again, A.D. 306, Constantius dies at York, and his son Con-
stantine, assisted by Eroc, king of the Alemanni, assumes the
empire ; but the Alemanni, though Germans, were not Angles.
CHAPTER III
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. DIRECTION
AND RATE.
§ IG. Direction. — The English language spread from east to
west : this being the direction which we expect a j)riori.
That it did so, however, is a fact which we arrive at by in-
ference rather than from any historical testimony. The eastern
side of Britain is the one upon which a body of Germans
would first land : the western, the one in which the original
language would longest hold its ground.
§ 1 7. Wales is British at the present moment ; Radnorshire
being the county where the Welsh language is at its mini-
mum.. The exact details of the extinction of the Cornish are
imknown. An old woman of the nanie of Dolly Pentreath was
visited by Sir Joseph Bank.s, as the last individual who could
speak it. Many years ago, Mr. Norriss heard an old Cornish
man " repeat the Lord's Prayer, and part of the Creed, which
he had been taught by his father, or grandfather. The man
was probably the last person living who had learned Cornish
* Eutropius, ix. 21.
DIRECTION OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. 1 1
words from one to whom they had been the vernacular idiom,
and even he repeated the words without any definite know-
ledge of their purport." *
In the parish of Llandewednack service was done in Cor-
nish, A.D. 1690.
In Devonshire, a dialect of the British, either identical with
or closely akin to the Cornish, is believed to have been spoken
as late as A.D. 1100.
In Shropshire and Monmouthshire the Welsh lasted longer
than in the other two frontier-counties, Herefordshire and
Cheshire.
That British was spoken in Cumberland after the Conquest,
is generally believed. I have not, however, gone into the evi-
dence of the fact.
§ 18. Rate.^ — In the year A.D. Gl7, a victory over
^Ethelfrith, King of Northumberland, enabled Eadwin to take
possession of that kingdom. One of the early acts of his reign
was the invasion of Elmet not far from the present site of
Leeds. It was not only an independent State, but it was a
British one — sub rege Britionu'm Cerdice. — Beda, iv. 23. This
is so very probable, that no exception lies in the fact of Beda
having written more than 100 years after the event, which
took place subsequent to the introduction of Christianity, and
which also took place in that part of England which Beda knew
well.
§19. In the middle of the eighth century, the number of lan-
guages spoken within the four seas, as known to Beda, was five.
Translation.
This at the present time, according to the number of the books in which
the Divine Law is written, explores and confesses the one and the same know-
ledge of supreme truth and true sublimity in the language of five nations —
viz. the Angles, the Britons, the Scots, the Picts, and the Latins, which, from
the perusal of the Scriptures, is made common to all the others.
In tlie Oriijinal.
Hsec in pr?esenti, juxta numerum librorum quibus lex divina scripta est,
quinque gentium Unguis unam eandcmque summse veritatis et verse sublimitatis
scientiam sciiitatiu- et confitotur, Anglorum videlicet, Brittonum, Scottorum,
Pictorum, et Latinorum, quie mcditationc scripturarum, ceteris omnibus est
facta communis. — Lib. i. c. 1.
* The Ancient Cornish Drama. Editod and translated hy E. Norri.ss. Oxford, 1859.
Vol. IL, p. 497, Appendix.
12 RATE AND DIRECTION
CuoNYKir. I., xiii. ;V.).
Of Langngis in Bretajne sere
I fyiul tliiit sum tym fyf tliare were :
Of Brottys fyrst, and Inglis syne,
reyclit, and Scot, and syne Latyiie.
Bot, of the reyclitis, is ferly,
That are wndon sii halyly,
That nowtliir rcnianandc ar Language ;
Nii3 succession of Lynage ;
S\\a of thare antiqwyte
Is lyk bot fabyl for to be.
§ 20. Such <are the fiicfcs that bear upon the question of
Direction and Rate. They are few, and shght. That the
English hxnguage spread from east to west they tell us. This,
however, is no more than what we might legitimately assume
without them. Whether it developed itself from south to north,
or vice versa, is uncei^tain. Neither can we say from how
many points it spread. Again, the evidence that an}^ British
dialect was spoken to any late period, in either the midland or
the eastern parts of England, save and except the district of
Elmet, is unsatisfactory. Still, there is an approach to it.
Professor Philips has drawn attention to a grant of land in
Leicestershire, for the parts about Charnwood Forest, made in
favom- of a British proprietor. Then there is the story of St.
Guthlac, of Croyland, which runs thus : — " The saint being dis-
turbed one night by a horrid howling, was seriously alarmed,
thinking that the howlers might be Britons. Upon looking out,
however, he discovered that they were only devils — whereby he
was comforted, the Britons being the worse of the two." The
later we make this apocryphal story, the more it tells in favour
of there having been Britons in Lincolnshire long after the
Angle conquests.
That a hilly district like Charnwood, or a fenny one like
Crowland, should give a likely retreat to the remnants of a
population like the Britons, is natural.
§ 21. The train of reasoning indicated by the following fact
is, to a great extent, hypothetical ; at the same time, it has a
sufficient amount of presumption in its favoui- to conmiand our
attention, whether for the purposes of objection or confirmation.
The word schta = settler ; and, perhaps, the plural form scetas,
might, in Lower Canada, be translated habitans. It is a word
which not only enters into composition, but is generally found
as the second element of a compound. Thus, if there v.'ere
OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. 13
such a word as Cmitscetas, it would mean the settlers in Kent.
But no such word has turned up. On the contrary, the ordinary
name of the Kentish men and women is Cantyjcere =z Canticolce.
There is, however (comparatively speaking), a long list of com-
pounds where -ivccre is replaced by -scetas. I do not say that
none of these occur in the earlier Augle districts. I only say
that they are the most numerous in those districts which, on
a prioH grounds, we may suppose were occupied as secondary
settlements — settlements which are, by hypothesis, su|:»posed to
have borne the same relation to the settled kingdoms as those
of the backwoodsmen of America do to the older States.
If this view be valid, the termination -set in the present
counties of Dorset and Somerset suggests the notion that they
may have been somewhat more British than Sussex and Hants.
To which add Devon and Wilts — the old names for which were
jyeinscatas and Wiliscdas ; also the Magscietos in Hereford, and
the Yicsoetas, or Peakmen, in Derby.
In all these the presumption coincides with the form of the
word. In Wilts, Dorset, Devon, Somerset, and Hereford, we
have a western ; in Derby, a mountainous district.
§ 22. The spread of the English is one thing, the obliteration
of the British another. It by no means follows that, because
in one district the displacement was effected by the English, the
same agency must have effected it in another. There may have
been other forces at work. Tliat some portion of the older
form of speech was displaced by the Danes, Scandinavians, or
Northmen, rather than by the Angles, is possible. This, how-
ever, will be considered in the sequel. At present it is suf-
ficient to state, that, ujpon the whole, it was the English by
which the older tongue was displaced ; the displacements
effected by any other language being partial and doubtful.
CHAPTER IV.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. WITH WHAT
LANGUAGE, OR LANGUAGES, DID IT COME IN CONTACT?
§ 23. VfHAT was the language with which the English from
Germany came in contact, and at the expense of which it spread
1 4 BRITISH ?
itself? Was it one language onl^^ ? Was it tlic Biitisli of the
original islanders, or was it the Latin of the Roman conquerors ?
Supposing it to be British, was it all of one sort? Was it all
of one sort, supposing it to have been Liitin ?
The text of Eeda, just given, bears upon these questions. It
fails, however, to settle them. It fails, indeed, to show that the
Latin was n spoken language at all. It points to the ecclesiasti-
cal Latin of the Scriptures ; indeed, in another passage, where
the vernaculars are under notice, the number of them is four,
— omnes nationes et provincias Britannise, quae in quatuor lin-
guas, id est Brittonum, Pictorura, Scottorum et Anglorum, divisaa
sunt, in ditione accepit." — Eccl. Hist. iii. 6.
§ 2-i. It cannot, then, be said that our chief historical
witness is in ftivour of the Latin having been a spoken language
at the time when he wrote, i. e. in the middle of the eighth cen-
tury. Earlier evidence than his, either way, is impossible.
Later evidence that even suggests the Latin as a current form
of speech we have none. The question tlien must be treated
upon internal evidence, upon a balance of the presumptions,
and upon the analogies supplied by other countries. In respect
to the Ibrmer, it may safely be said that as a general rule the
Romans are believed to have introduced their language wherever
they efTected a conquest. In some countries this is known to
be true. In Greece, where there were especial reasons for an
exception, it is known not to be so. In the greater part of
the Roman w^orld, the practice, as in Britain, was doubtful.
§ 25. In Spain and Portugal, in France, Switzerland, Walla-
chia, and Moldavia, whilst it is certain that the original languages
were other than Latin, it is equally certain that the present
forms of speech are of Latin origin. The analogies, then, of
these countries are in favour of the rule just suggested. What,
however,- was the case with the following — Africa, Hun-
gary, Dalmatia, Servia, Bulgaria, Rumelia ? In all these the
evidence that the Latin language displaced the language of the
native inhabitants is nil. Yet it is scarcely possible that if ever
the language of the country around Constantinople had been
Latin we should have failed to have known the fact. As far,
then, as the analogy is concerned, Britain may have as easily have
been in the condition of Thrace and Servia as of Spain and
Gaul.
§ 26. That there was some Latin in Britain is beyond doubt ;
there was the ecclesiastical Latin of the Anglo-Saxon church to
OR LATIN? 15
which our quotation from Beda has drawn attention. There was
the ecclesiastical Latin of the British Church. Finally, there was
the Latin of the Roman soldiers, the Roman officials, the Roman
literati, and the Romanized natives. I can easily believe that
this Latin was current, and perhaps universal, in the towns.
That it was the language of each and all of the numerous
inscriptions that have been found in Britain, is certain ; it being
equally certain that nothing similar in British has ever been
found. It is needless to add, that this is a foct upon which
great stress has been laid by the advocates of the doctrine that
the Latin language entirely displaced the British. It only
proves, however, that the Latin was the language of the
educated classes. All that we know about its exclusive use as a
written language, and all that we are at liberty to believe
about its prevalence in the towns, proves nothing as to the non-
existence of the British in the rural districts. And, that it
did so prevail Ave infer from two primary facts : — (1st.) the
existence of the Welsh and Cornish, in modern times. (2nd.)
the existence of British words in the present English ; these,
though not many, being far more numerous than the Latin
of the corresponding period. The extent to wdiich either the
British or the Latin was homogeneous wiU be considered in the
sequel.
§ 27. Wales, a peculiar and curious word, is now the name
of a country ; but at first it was that of a people — meaning tlie
WelshTTien. Its older form is Wealhas the plural of Wealh. It
was an Anglo-Saxon word used to denote those populations
which resided on the borders of the Anglo-Saxons, but were not
themselves Anglo-Saxon. Hence, it was applied by the Angles
to the remains of the ancient Britons. It is, then, anything
but a Welsh denomination. Neither is it applied to the
Welsh exclusively. Neither are the Angles the only Germans
wiio have had recourse to it when they washed to designate
a nation which was other than German. It applies to the
Italians ; WelscJdand being a German name for Italy. The
Valais districts of Switzerland are the districts occupied by the
Welsh, i. e. the Non-Germans. The parts about Liege constitute
the Walloon country ; a country on the frontier of Germany,
but not German. WallacJua, too, is only another Wales or
Welshland.
16 THE ANGLE PARTS OF GERMANY~^V1IERE.
CHAPTER V.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF TIIP] ENGLISH LANGUAGE. CRITICISM OF
THE CURRENT STATEMENTS CONCERNING ITS INTRODUCTION.
§28. The consideration of tlie date of the introduction of the
mother-tongue of the present English into England has filled
several pages ; pages which, in the eyes of many of my readers,
may have seemed superfluous. It may have seemed superfluous
to have made so long a stoiy out of so simple a matter ; to
have given two extreme dates ; to have encumbered these with
much discussion ; and, finally, to have arrived at an approxima-
tion only. Why this has been done will be seen as we proceed.
At present the question of place commands attention,
§ 29. Whence came the English language? It has been
said that the English language came from Germany. But
Germany, as it stands at present, is a large country ; and the
name an indefinite one. It is foreign to the Germans them-
selves, who call their own country Deutschland ; their language
Deutsche Sprache ; and themselves Deutsche. And Germany,
as it stood when Britain was first invaded, was by no means
co-extensive with the Germany of the nineteenth century. Po-
merania is no true and original part of it : Brandenburg none :
East and West Prussia none : Saxony and Lusatia none. These
have aU become German since the date of the conquest of
Britain ; and they were all, at the time when that conquest
took place, something other than German. Prussia was Lithu-
anic ; Saxony and Lusatia, Brandenburgh and Pomerania, Sla-
vonic. Other parts were also Slavonic — certainly so in the
ninth century, and probably so at a much earlier period. Meck-
lingburg, Lauenburg, Altmark, Luneburg, and a pai*t of Hol-
stein were in this predicament. On the other hand, Holland
and parts of Belgium, which are now (politically at least)
separated from Germany, may easily have formed part of the
Germany of the conquerors of Britain.
§ 30. At the present time, too, the German population of
Germany is by no means uniform. Whatever may be the diffe-
rence between the most extreme forms of the English language
as spoken within the British Isles, it is greater in Germany
ANGLES OF GERMANY. 17
between two extreme Germans : e. g. a Bavarian and a Hol-
steiner are more unlike one another than a Cornishman and
a man from Aberdeen. Just as little uniform was the popu-
lation of ancient Germany. Some jDortions of it came under*
the name of Frank, some under that of Saxon, some under
that of Thuringian ; and in many cases the change of name
corresponded with a change of dialect.
In the course of a few chapters these distinctions will come
out clearer. At present, however, it is sufficient to state, that
on the southern frontier of Germany, Gaul was Keltic, that
there were more Slavonians on the west side of the Elbe than
there were Germans on the east, and that, northwards, towards
or beyond the Eyder, came the Scandinavians. Between these
boundaries lay those portions of the German populations, which,
from their geographical position, are the likeliest, a priori, to
have helped to people England.
§ 31. The English language came from Germany. From
what part ? If Britain had been peopled from Germany, as
America and Australia have been peopled from Britain, within
either the memory of man, or under the full light of clear,
authentic, cotemporary and trustworthy history, such a question
as this last would have been superfluous, for a moderate amount
of information would have supplied the answer. But it was not
during a literary period that Keltic Britain became transformed
into German England ; on the contrary, it was during a time of
darkness and disturbance, when the classical literature had died
out, and before the literature of Christianity had been developed.
Again, if the Anglo-Saxon language had still kept its ground
in Germany, even in an altered form, the reply would have been
easy ; and a reference to the map would have been sufficient.
But this is not the case. Throughout the whole length and
breadth of Germany there is not one village, hamlet, or family,
which can show definite signs of descent from the continental
ancestors of the Anoles of England. In no nook or corner
can dialect or sub-dialect of the most provincial form of the
German speech be found which shall have a similar pedigree
with the English. The Angles of the Continent are either
exterminated or undistinguishably mixed up with the other
Germans in proportions more or less large, and in combinations
more or less heterogeneous. The history of the conquest and
conversion of the S;ixons by Charlemagne is the history of
this fusion or extinction ; and it is this that makes it so difficult
c
l-"^ LWASIONS OF ENGLANP
lo nr<;-ik' l);u'k\\ards (Vnni the present state of tlio Angles of
(«ennany to an earlier one, and so to reconstruct their history.
Frieslaml, indeed, if \ve look to the present condition of the
languages allied to the English and spoken in Geiunany, gives
us the nearest approximation to the mother-country of our
mother-tongue. Nevertheless, it is not exactly from Friesland
that the Anglo-Saxon was derived ; so that Friesland is only
an approximation. Hence, the i^lace from which our language
Wiis derived, as well as the time at wliich it was introduced,
forms a subject of investigation.
§ 32. This (as aforesaid) may also seem superfluous. It can-
not be denied that current historians treat the matter differently ;
that the}^ dispose of it bi'iefly. They give us a definite date —
time and plnce as well. They tell us from what parts of Ger-
many each division of our German invaders came. They tell
ns who led them. They tell us what parts of the country of
the Britons they severally invaded. They give us other details
besides. There were more settlements than one, and the details
run thus : —
(1.) In the year 449 A.D. certain invaders fi-om northern
Germany made the first permanent settlement in Britain.
Ebbsfleet, in the Isle of Thanet, was the spot where they
landed ; and the particular name they gave themselves was that of
Jutes. Their leaders were Heugest and Horsa. Six years after
their landing, they had established the Kingdom of Kent ; so
tliat the county of Kent was the first district where the original
British Avas superseded by the mother-tongue of the present
English, introduced from Germany.
(2.) In the year 477 A.D. invaders from Northern Germany
made the second permanent settlement in Britain. The coast
of Sussex was the spot on which they landed. The particular
name they gave themselves was that of Saxons. Their leader
was -^lla. They established the kingdom of the South Saxons
(Sussex) ; so that the county of Sussex was the second district
where the oi'iginal British was superseded, by the mother-tongue
of the present English, introduced from Northern Germany.
(3.) In the year 495 A.d. invaders from Northern Germany
made the third permanent settlement in Britain. The coast of
Hampshire was the spot whereon they landed. Like the invaders
last mentioned, the}' were Saxons. Their leader was Cerdic.
They established the kingdom of the West Saxons (Wessex) ; so
that the county of Hants was the third district where the
FROM GERiMANY. 19
original British was superseded by the mother-tongue of the
present English, introduced from Northern Germany.
(4.) A.D. 530 certain Saxons landed in Essex; so that the
county of Essex was the fourth district where the original
British was superseded by the mother-tongue of the present
English, introduced from Northern Germany.
(5.) This settlement, which was one of the Angles in East
Anglia, of which the precise date is not known, took place
during the reign of Cerdic in Wessex. The fifth district, then,
where the original British was superseded by the mother-tongue
of the present English, was the counties of Norfolk and Suf-
folk ; the particular dialect introduced being that of the Angles.
(6.) iu the year 547 A.D. invaders fi'om Northern Germany
made the sixth permanent settlement in Britain. The south-
western counties of Scotland, between the rivers Tweed and
Forth, were the districts where they landed. They were of the
tribe of the Angles, and their leader was Ida. The south-west-
ern parts of Scotland constituted the sixth district where the
original British was superseded by the mother-tongue of the
present English, introduced from Northern Germany.
Such are the details of the Anglo-Saxon settlements as taken
from the fullest work upon the subject, Sharon Turner's His-
tory of the Anglo-Saxons ; and it may be added, that they rest
upon data which ninety-nine-hundreths of the investigators of
the period to which they refer acquiesce in.
Supposing them, then, to be accurate, they only require
a few additional facts to make them sufficient for the purposes
of criticism. They only require a notice of the different, parts
of Germany which these three nations came from respec-
tively.
§ 33. Now, the current doctrines upon this point are as
follows : —
(1.) That the geographical locality of the Jutes was the
Peninsula of Jutland ; and that —
(2.) That of the Angles was the pi-esent Duchy of Sleswick ;
so that they were the southern neighbours of the Jutes ; and
that —
(3.) That of the Saxons was a small tract north of the Elbe,
and some district — more or less extensive — between the Elbe
and Rhine.
§ 34. The correctness of all this being assumed, the further
c 2
-<> CRITICISM.
(pvU^tioii as to the ri'latlon Mliit-li tlio diUVrent iinmigrant tribes
Ixnv to each other iiiids ])laee ; and it is only taking up the
(liiTerent prohlenis under investit^ation in tlu'ir due order aud
sequence, if avc ask about the extent to wliich the Jute differed
from (or agreed with) the Angle or the Saxon, and the relations
of the Angle and the Saxon to each other. Did they speak
different lanmiafjes ? — different dialects of a common tonoue ? —
or dialects absolutely identical ? Did they belong to the same,
or to different confederations ? Was one polity common to all ?
AVere the civilizations similar ? Questions like these being
answered, and a certain amount of mutual difference being ascer-
tained, it then stands over to inquire whether any traces of this
original difference are still to be found in the modern English.
Have any provincial dialects characteristics which are Jute rather
than Angle ? or Angle rather than Saxon ? Are (or are not)
certain local customs Saxon rather than Angle — certain points
of dialect Angle rather than Saxon, and vice versa ? Sup-
loosing all this to be accurate, we know where to look for the
answers.
In Kent the original British was superseded by the dialect of
the Jutes — there being also Jutes in parts of Hants, and in the
Isle of Wight ; and
In Sussex the original British was superseded by the Saxon
of Ella's followers ; and
In the following counties, it was the Saxon of Cerdic that
displaced the British : — Hants, Dorset, Wilts, Somerset, Surrey,
Gloster, Buckinghamshire ; these counties constituting the im-
portant kingdom of the West Saxons (Wessex) ; and
It was by the extension of the Saxon introduced by the in-
vaders of A.D. 530 that the original British of Essex, Middlesex,
and part of Hertfordshire was superseded ; and
It was by the extension of the language introduced by the
Ano-le invaders of Norfolk and Suffolk that the orisrinal British
of Cambridgeshire and the Isle of Ely, and of parts of Lincoln-
shire and Northamptonshire, was superseded ; and, lastly.
It was by the extension of the language introduced by the
Angles of the south of Scotland that the original British was
superseded in the following counties : — Northumberland, West-
moreland, Cumberland, Cheshire, Lancashire, Yorkshire, Notting-
hamshire, and the North Midland counties.
Hence, all, as aforesaid, being accurate, we should seek —
CRITICISM. 2 1
For the characteristic difereiitlce of the Jutes, in Kent, part
of Sussex, and the Isle of Wight ;
For those of Saxons, in Sussex, Essex, Hants (Wessex), and
Middlesex ;
For those of the Angles, in Norfolk, Suffolk, Yorkshire, Dur-
ham, Northumberland, 6zc.
Or, changing the expression : —
The diferentioe of the people of Kent, part of Sussex, and
the Isle of Wight (if any) would be explained by the dijferen-
tice of the original Jute immigrants ;
Those of the rest of Sussex, Wessex, Essex, and Middlesex,
by those of the Saxons ;
Those of the jDeople of Norfolk, &c., by those of the Angles.
As to the Saxon portion of England, everything would be
transparently clear, inasmuch as three English counties, at the
present moment, take their name from the word Seaxe (Saxojis),
and preserve the denomination of three Saxon kingdoms, viz.
Es-se.'c, Sus-se«, and Middle-sex.
§ 35. A little consideration, however, engrafted upon a modi-
cum of historical knov/ledge, will tell us that all this is unten-
able. What was the cotemporary history, what the geography,
what the chronology for these times ? Lappenberg and Kemble,
along with others, have shown its worthlessness. The latter
half of the fifth century was, for Britain at least, too late for the
reckoning by consuls and emperors ; whilst the birth of Christ,
introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the sixth century, could
scarcely have taken root as a date much before A.D, 600.
And what are the events, real or supposed, of this period of
darkness ? For Kent, the details concerning Hengest and Horsa,
with their descendants the iEscings. For Sussex, the descent of
Mill, with his sons, in 477 : a defeat of the Britons in 485 ;
the destruction of Anderida in 491. For Wessex, we have some
entries for the years 495, 501, 50cS, 514, 519, 527, 530, 534,
544, 552, 556, 568, 571, 577, 584, 590, 591, 593, 595, and
597 ; when Ceolwulf ascends the throne, and Augustin lands.
For Northumberland, the details are scantier still ; and even still
more scanty are those of East Anglia, Essex, and Mercia.
{;} 30. The present writer believes that objections like these,
— objections of which the preceding remarks give only a
cursory sketch, — are understated rather than overstated.
Hence the usual details are not adopted by him ; neither the
date A.D, 449, nor the triple division into Angles, Saxons,
-- AUTllUUlTY OF BEDA.
ami Jutes. Still less Ikivo tiio districts of Germany, whence
these three supposed populations, respectively, proceeded to
Great Britjiin, been considered as finally determined. On the
contrary, the date of the migration makes one subject for criti-
cism, whilst the locality whence it originated makes another.
§ 37. The chief authorities for the usual details respecting
the earlier Anglo-Saxons are —
a. The Ecclesiastical History of Beda — the Venerable Bede,
as he is generally called.
h. The so-called Saxon Chronicle.
ij 88. Beda. — Beda is the most important. His work is dedi-
cated to Ceolwulf, king of Northumberland, who reigned from
A.D. 729 to AD. 737.
No previous history of the kind existed, so that it was by
special applications to his cotemporary ecclesiastics that Beda
got his fiicts ; each application being made for the history of
some particular diocese or district. Thus —
For Kent, Albinus, abbot of Canterbury, was the chief
authority. He forwarded to Beda, by a priest of the Church of
London named Nothelm, such statements as " vel monimentis
literarum vel seniorum traditione cognoverat." Nothelm visited
Rome, and brought thence those papal letters of Gregory and
others, which have alread}^ been noticed,
Albinus, also, gave some notices of some of the districts
around the kingdom of Kent — " diligenter omnia qua3 in ipsa
Cantuariorum provincia vel etiam in contiguis eidem regionibus
— cognoverat."
For the West-Saxons, Sussex, Isle of Wight, Danihel,
bishop of Wessex, alive when Beda wrote, " nonnulla de
historia ecclesiastica provincise ipsius simul et proximae illi
Australium Saxonum nee non et Vectse Insulse litteris mandata
declaravit." To this we may add certain notices from the
Abbot Albinus.
East Anglia — Norfolk and Suffolk — " Porro in provincia
Orientalium Anglorum quce flierint gesta ecclesiastica, partim ex
ecriptis vel traditione priorum, partim reverentissimi abbatis Esi
relatione comperimus."
Notices also were supplied by the Abbot Albinus, the autho-
rity for Kent
Mercia. — The details here were from the monks of Lesting-
ham : "Diligenter a fratribus monasterii quod ab ipsis conditum
Lsestingaeu {sic) cognominatur agnovimus." Some of these
AUTHORITY OF BEDA. 23
notices extended to the history of ^ssex. For the province
of Lincoln the evidence was separate — " At vero in provincia
Lindissi quae sint gesta erga fidem Christi, quseve successio sacer-
dotalis extiterit, vel Uteris reverentissimi antistitis Cynibercti,
vel aliorum fidelium vivoruni viva voce didicimus."
Northximherland. — Beda himself worked at tlie histoiy
here : — " Quse autem in Nordanhymbrorum provincia ex quo
tempore fidem Christi perceperunt usque ad prsesens per di-
versas regiones in ecclesia sint acta, non uno quolibet auctore,
sed fideli innumerorum testium qui hsec scire vel meminisse
poterant adsertione cognovi, exceptis his quae per meipsum
nosse poteram. Inter qua3 notandum, quod ea quse de sanc-
tissimo pati'e et antistite Cudbercto vel in hoc volumine vel in
libel] o gestorum ipsius conscripsi, partim ex eis quae de illo
prius a fratribus ecclesige Lindisfamensis scripta reperi, ad-
sura psi simpliciter fidem historise quam legebam accommodans,
partim vero ea quae certissima fidelium virorum adtestatione
per me ipse cognoscere potui sollerter adjicere curavi. Lecto-
remque suppliciter obsecro, ut si qua in his quae scripsimus
aliter quam se Veritas habet posita reperit, non hoc nobis
imputet, qui, quod vera lex historiae est, simpliciter ea quae fama
vulgante colleginms ad instructionem posteritatis Uteris mandare
studuimus."
The real evidence, then, is that of Albinus, Daniel, the monks
of Lestingham, &c., rather than that of Beda himself. Nor,
strictly speaking, are these absolutely responsible. Stiictly
speaking, it is only for the Ecclesiastical history of the times
subsequent to the conversion of Ethelbert that any of the
authorities above-mentioned are referred to. For the times
anterior to the introduction of Christianity and the foun-
dation of the See of Canterbury the reference is to the old
writers in general.
Translation.
From the beginning of this vohmie to the time when the nation of the
Angles received the religion of Christ, I have learned what I lay before you
from the writings of those who have gone before me, as I have collected them
from tliis quarter or that. From that time, however, to the present, &c.
In the Orirjinal.
A principio itaque voluminis Imjus usque ad temi:)us quo gens Anglorum
fidem Christi perccpit, ex ]iriorum maxime scriptis, hie inde ccjllectis ea qiu«
promeremus didicimus. Exindo autem, kc.
The gist of the continuation has already been given. It tells
us for what he consulted Albinus — for what Nothelm — for
24 AUTIIOIUTY UF BED A.
wliat Daiiiol, ^^'c. As to the iD'iorum scripta, one was the
Liber Queridus de Excidio Britannioi of Gildas, a scholar of
St. Iltutus, and a monk of Bangor, who died and was buried
at Ghistonbury ; and who states of himself that he was bora
in the year of the battle of the Mons Badonicus ; a battle
which no investigator makes earlier than A.D. 493, and which
some brinsr down to A.D. 51G. Now, let Gildas have written
as early as A.D. 5 tO ; let him have been the brightest luminary
of the British Church ; and let the literary culture which at-
tended the early Christianity of our island have been ever so
high, we still find that, even for ordinary history, his oppor-
tunities whether of time or place, are utterly insufficient to
make his statements conclusive. Mutatis mutandis, this applies
to Beda. Add to Gildas a life of St. Germanus and some few
classical ^v^•iters, and we have the prioruni scripta for the Hls-
toria Ecclesiastica. Whatever may have been the learning of
the author, and however much he may have been in advance
of his aofe, his materials are neither better nor worse than this.
And these were bad. A measure of the amount of inaccuracy
of the authorities for these early times is to be found in their
accounts of the Roman Wall. Gildas says it was built against
the Scots and Picts, and that its date was the fifth centuiy.
Beda follows him. The worthlessness of this statement is well
known. What warrant have we that it is the only error iu
the works in whicli it occurs ?
§ 39. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. — The so-called Anglo-
Saxon Chronicle has always connnauded attention, and that
on good grounds. For the later years of the Anglo-Saxon
period, it is our only full and satisfactory document ; so
that its simple historical value is high. But, besides this,
it is written in the Anglo-Saxon language — so that it has
a philological value as well. Yet this Anglo-Saxon dress has
a tendency to mislead. A chronicle in Latin passes for what
it is, viz. for a composition of the monks ; and compositions
of the monks (as a general rule) are more undervalued than
overvalued. But a work iu the vernacular tongue has a simple
unsophisticated appearance that takes the judgment at a dis-
advantage. It appears to represent a literature of home-growth ;
whilst literatures of home-growth suggest the idea of historical
credibility.
Another reason for overvaluing the importance of the Anglo-
Saxon Chronicle is suggested by the following extract : —
THE SAXON CHRONICLE. 25
Notwithstanding the variations existing among the several manuscripts,
their general resemblance, particularly a striking agreeement in many chrono-
logical errors, both in the Anglo-Saxon and Latin texts, must appear very
remarkable. In explanation of this, Gibson refers to an account, that in the
monasteries of royal fomidation in England, whatever worthy of remembrance
occiuTed in the neighboiu-hood was committed to writing, that such records
were, at the next synod, compared with each other, and that from tliem the
Chronicles were composed. — Lappenberg, Literary Introduction to Einjhtnd
under the Anglo-Saxon Kings — Thorpe's Translation, p. 44.
If we take this view of Gibson's, the Chronicle becomes a
Register; a register of cotemporary events entered as they
hapijened, just as births, deaths, and marriages are entered
throughout the parishes of Enghmd at the present time. A
simple Chronicle, on the other hand, is the work of some his-
torian subsequent to the events recorded ; a work as different
from a Register as a pedigree in the Herald's Office is from a
Family Bible. Of the two the Register is more valuable.
Which was the work in question ? The practice suggested
is mentioned by a writer of the fifteenth century, and
applies to the ecclesiastical entries of an ecclesiastical period.
The times of Hengest and Horsa are Pagan times. For
these, the notion of cotemporary registered entries of facts
as they occurred, whatever may have been the case in the times
nearer the Norman Conquest, is out of the question. Hence,
whatever may be the credibility of the Chronicle during the
reigns of the later Anglo-Saxon kings, its merits, in this respect,
have no bearing upon the questions now under notice, viz.
the details of the German invasion (or invasions) during the
Pagan period and anterior to the year 600 (597).
§ 40. Neither is the work itself for this (and, it may be
added, for a much later) period, stamped with any defiaite
marks of accuracy or trustworthiness. On the contrary, tlvere
are several very suspicious elements in it.
For the first of these the notice is due to Lappenberg, who
remarks that, in the early history of the kingdom of Kent, the
chief events occur at a regular period either of eiglit j'ears or
some multiple of eight. Thus : —
Hengost lands .... a.d. 449
The Battle of Creganford . . 457
„ Wippedsfleet . 405
Tlie Third battle 47 H
Just twenty-fuur years (8 x 3) after Hengest, dies .^sc, his
son.
-^» THE SAXON CHRONICLE.
§ 41 . Tlie proi)or names are not less suspicious than tlie dates.
The names of the Anj^Io-Saxons wlio appear subsequent to the
introduction of Christianity, the names that are found in the
Anglo-Saxon charters, the names on the Anglo-Saxon coins, the
names of undoubtedly real individuals, living under the light of
history, are eminently well marked in character. They are
chiefly compounds, and their elements (though not always capable
of a satisfactory^ interpretation) are evidently referable to the
Anglo-Saxon language. I open a volume of the Codex DipJo-
maticus, hap-hazard (vol. ii. p. 1 73), and find the following list,
as an illustration : —
iElfmne
Sigelin
Wyiisige
Tidelm
Wired
Uhtred
Eadulf
Ccnwald
Wiilfliuii
Cynsige
iElfwald
iEscberht
Cimun
Bcoinstan
Deo'Serd
Eadwaid
Osfei«
^Ifstau, &G.
I find the same in the list of kings from Egberht down-
wards : —
Ecberlit jEthelbald ^thelred Eadweid Eadmimd Eadwig
yEthelw-ulf .^thelbert yEllred .Ethelstan Eadred Eadgar, &c.
I will not say that qio such names occur anterior to A.D. 597.
A feiv such are to be found. But, as a general rule, the names
that occiu" anterior to the introduction of Christianity are names
which do not occur subsequently ; and (vice versa) the names
which appear in the truly historical times are not found in the
doubtful period. But Christianity, it may be argued, may have
afiected the change. This explanation would be valid if the
later names were like John, James, &c. — scriptural designations ;
but they are not. More than this, some of them, such as
Edwin, Elfwine, are found amongst the allied German popula-
tions of the Continent, and that during the Pagan period.
It must be remembered, then, that there are no Hengests,
Horsas, ^scs, Cissas, Stufs, Ports, &c., when we come to the
times of the Alfi-eds and Edwards ; and no Alfreds and Edwards
when we are amongst the Ports and Stufs, &c.
§ 42. Another objection, lies in the eponymic character of
certain pre-historic names. It has been seen what certain
names belonging to the Pagan portion of the so-called Anglo-
Saxon history are not. They are not of the same character as
those that belong to the historic era. Let us now ask what
they are. Tliey are, in some cases, what is called eponymies
{eirwvvfiiaL) ; or, if we prefer the adjective, we may say that
they are eponytnic, i. e. names never borne by individuals at
THE SAXON CHRONICLE, 27
all, but coined by certain speculators in history, arcLseology,
or genealogy, under the hypothesis that the names of certain
facts or places are accounted for by the sui)position that cer-
tain individuals, identically or similarly named, originated them.
In this way Hellen is the eponymus of the Hellenes (or Greeks) ;
not that such a progenitor ever existed, but that some early
speculator on the origin of the Gi'eek nation conceived that he
did, and accounted for a name and nation (the nation being, in
his eyes, but a large family) accordingly.
Our illustrations, however, may be taken from nearer home,
from the facts of the question before us. A locality, with
certain traces of some action that took place in its neigh-
bourhood, gives origin to a name — a name of an individual
who may never have existed. A memorial of unknown
import has to be accounted for, and a hero, accordingly, does or
suffers something on the spot in question, and thereby gives his
name to it. Thus, in the particular question before us, from
the marks of a burial, and the name Horsted, we get the
individual Horsa. The chronicler says, that the place was called
from the man, the critic that the presence of the man was
imagined to suit the place. Upon this point Beda's wording of
Nothelm's or Albinus' report, is as follows : —
Trandation.
Theii' fixst leaders are said to have been two brothers, Hengist and Horsa.
Of these, Horsa was afterwards killed in wars by the Britons, and has, to
this day, in the eastern j^arts of Kent, a monument marked by his name. But
they were the sons of Wihtgils, whose father was Witta, whose father was
Wecta, whose father was Woden, from wliom the royal families of manj^ coun-
tries derive their origin.
In the Original.
"Duces fuisse perhibentur eoriun primi duo fratres Hengist et Horsa; e
quihus Horsa postea occisus in bcllo a Briitonihus,hactenus in Orientalihus Can-
tice partihus monumentum hahet suo nomine insigne. Erant autem filii Fictgilsi,
&UJUS pater Fitta, cujus pater Fecta, cujus pater Foden, de cujus stirpe multa-
rum provincianun regium genus originem duxit." — Hist. Ecci. i. 15.
The words beginning with v are put in italics for a reason
which will soon appear.
That this story of Horsa may liave been found on Kentish
soil (though neither Hengistbury and Horsted are really in
Kent), is prol>ab]e enough. So, also, allowing for the difference
of locality, may other local stories.
§ 4!.'3. Horsa's name, however, suspicious as it is, is less so
2S THE SAXON CUROXICLE.
tlian that of another iikHn iihial : that of Port, as it a])pears in
the Anglo-Saxon Chroiiu'lc : —
A.D. 501. — llor cum Port on Brotcne, nnd liis ii snna Bicda and INIa'gla inid
ii scipiun, on ]px\c stowe {jo is gocucdon I'ortcs-wwv&n and sona land nainou]
and J)ierJ ofslogou aiine gioiigne Brettisc monnan, swi'Se ai^oliic mounan.
Translation.
A.D. oOl. — This year Port and his two sons, Bicda and Mffigla, came to
Britain with t\\ o sliips, at a place wliich is called I'ortsmoutli, and the}' soon
ellected a lauding, and diey there slew a yoiuig British man of high uohility.
Now Portus must have been, simply, the Latin name of
Portsmouth long anterior to A.D. 501.
But the landing of a man named Port at a place called
Portus is no iujpossibility. Granted. It is only highly im-
probable— the improbability being heightened by the strangeness
of the name itself — heiglitened also by the following fact : —
Just as a man named Port hits (out of all the landing-places
in England) upon a spot with a name like his own, a man named
Wihtgar does the same.
Ill the or'xjinal.
A.D. 530. — Her Cerdic and Cynric genamon Wllite Ealaud, and ofslogon
feala men on TT^t/i^gavasbyrg.
A.D. 53i. — Her Cerdic [se forma West-Sexana cyng] Tor's fer^e, and Cynric
his sunn [feng to rice, and] ricsode Tor's xx\a wintra, and hie saldon hiera tusem
nefum Stufe and iri/j^gare [eallj IF(7^^Ealond.
A.D. 544. — Her Wihtgox Ibi^iei'Se, and hiene mon bebyrgde on Wyht-gara-
burg.
Traiidatinn.
A.D. 530. — This year Cerdic and Cyni-ic conquered the island of W'Kjlit, and
slew many men at TFt/ti-garas-burg.'
A.D. 534. — This year Cerdic, the first king of the West-Saxons, died, and
Cynric, his son, succeeded to the kingdom, and reigned from that tune twenty-
six years ; and they gave the whole island of Wiyht to their two grandsons,
Stuf and IF/Aigar.
A.D. 544. — This year Wilitgox died, and they biu-icd liim in Tt77/;-gara-byrg.
Now Wild is the Anglo-Saxon form of the name of Vectis =
Isle of Wight, a name found in the Latin writers long anterior
to A.D. 530, whilst gar is a form of wccre (or wceras) = inhabi-
tants. Hence, just as Kent = the County Kent, and Cant-
ware = the inhabitants of that county or (Canticolcv), so does
Wiht = Vectis, and Wihtgare = Vecticolce. Yet the Anglo-Saxon
Chronicle makes it a man's name.
§ 44. The names of Port and Wihtgar give us the strongest
facts in favour of the suggested hypothesis, viz. : — the ex ]post
facto evolution of personal names out of local ones.
THE SAXON CHRONICLE. 2 9
The following instances are somewhat less conclusive : —
In the oritjiiial.
A.D. 477. — Her com ^^Ua to Bretten-lond and his iii suna, Cymen, and "NVlenc-
ing, and C'lssa, mid iii scij^um, on {^a stowe ]>e is nemncd Cjmenesorr/, and pjer
ofslogon monige Walas, and sume on fleame bedrifon on j^one wudu pe is ge-
nemned Andredes-leage.
A.D. 495. — Her cuomon twegen aldormen on Bretene, Cerdic and Cynric his
siinii mid v. scipum in \)o\\e stede f^e is gecueden Cerdices-o/v/, and l^y ilcan
dasge gefuhtun wid Walum.
Translation.
A.D. 477.— This year ^lla, and his three sons, Ci/men. and Wlencing, and
Cissa, came to the land of Britain with three ships, at a place which is named
Cymenes-ora, and there slew many Welsh, and some they drove in flight into
the wood that is named Andreds-lea.
A.D. 495. — Tins year two ealdormen came to Britain, Cerdic, and Cynric liis
son, with five sliij^s, at a place which is called Cerdics-ora, and the same day
they fought against the Welsh.
Here, the men are Wlencing, Cymen, and Cissa ; the names
Oymenes-ora, and Cissanceas^er, geographical terms, and the old
forms of the present Keynsor and Chichestev. This is sus-
picious, and it becomes more so when we find that the second
elements are Latin, e. g. -ova in Cymenes-orct and -ceaster in
Cissan-ceasi^er.
§ 4.5. In the extract about Horsa and his burial-place, the
names of his ancestors all began with V — l^ictgils, T^itta, T^ecta,
&c. How come the alliterations ? Because the pedigrees are
pieces of poetry rather than history ; it being the rule in Anglo-
Saxon prosody that in every two lines two words should begin
with the same letter. Horsa's pedigree was no more allite-
rative than many others. E. g.: —
1.
Ida Vt'ses -topping, 2.
it/oppa -Esing, Cerdic wfes Cynrices foder,
i?sa wses /ngmng, Cerdic ^lesing,
ingwi ^ngenwitting, J?lesa ^sling,
.^ngenwit ^locing, i^sla 6-'iwising,
ylloc i?enocing, Ciwis IFiging,
i?enoc branding, Tf'ig i^reawining,
i?rand i?£eldaeging, i^reamne /''reo'S igaring,
i?8eldag TFodening, i^reotJogar i?randing,
TJ oden i^reotScjlafing, i?rand i/asldaging,
i^reo^olaf T^re'Sowulfing, jBseldag TFodening.
7'Veo'Sowulf i'^innmg,
i-'inn G'odulfing, A. S. Chronicle, a.d. 552.
6-'odulf 6'eating.
A. S. Chronicle, a.d. 547.
30 Till-: SAXON CHRONICLE.
n. vS'iobalcl 'S'igogoatiiig,
yV.lla wffis Fffiug, A'igcgcat AS'wa'lxla'ging,
)'llc ^'xiVoaing. ^S'wa^bcla-g -S'igegariiig,
/ xlVoa H'ilgilsiiig, >.9igogar K agdaigiiig,
ll'ilgils irestoiialfuing. ITtegdag Jloclemng,
H'estorfalcna Niul'iigliiig, • TT'odcn /'Vi'5o^^allfing.
NffifiUg -S'ffibaldiiig, A. S. Chroiiich', a.d. 500.
Coohvulf's genealogy, to be found under A.D. 597, is of the
same kind ; so is Penda's, A.D. G20 ; so are many others.
§ 46. That there are objections to the criticism winch thus
impugns the early accounts of the Angle invasions is not to be
denied. It may be added, however, that they can always be
met by counter-objections. Such being the case, it is submitted
that the original remarks upon the unsatisfactory character of
the early history are sufficient for our present object. This is
limited. It is not a history of Great Britain that I am writing,
but one of the English language. Hence the whole question as
to the literary and historical value of the early writers is too
wide. The extent to which they are sufficient or insufficient to
prove certain specific facts is all that need be investigated ; and
the character of such facts is the measure of the amount of criti-
cism necessary to invalidate their authority. One of these facts
(real or su^^posed) is the date of A.D. 449, for the first landing of
the first ancestors of the present English. It is only in appear-
ance that this is a simple one. That certain Germans landed
on a certain part of the coast of Kent is the simple straight-
forward part of it. That they were the first who did so is quite
a different matter.
§ 47. Our main guide in these matters is the date of the
evacuation of Britain by the Romans. The passages which bear
most especially upon this point are the following : —
Translation.
Tlie Britons, up to this time, torn by various massacres and events, ai-e re-
duced to the dominion of the Saxons.
In the Original.
Britannia? usque ad hoc tempus vai-iis cladibiis eventibusque laceratae in diti-
onem Saxonum rediguntui-." — Proper Aquitanus, &c., axx. 441.
Translation.
To iEtius, thrice Consul, the gi'oans of the Britons. The Barbarians drive
us to the sea. The sea diives us back, to the Barbariajis. Between these arise
two sorts of death. We are eitlier slaughtered or dro\\ned.
In the orifjinal.
Agitio, ter ConsuH, gomitus Britannoriim. Repcllunt nos Barbari ad mare,
EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL EVIDENCE. 81
repellit nos mare ad Barbaros ; inter lirec oriuntur duo genera funerum : aut
jiigulamur, aut mergimur. — Historia Gihhr, xvii.
The first of these, by an ahnost cotemporaiy author, gives us
an earlier date than the one usually assigned.
CHAPTER VI,
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. THE PARTS OF
GERMANY FROM WHICH IT WAS INTRODUCED. EXTERNAL EVI-
DENCE. THE CARLOVINGIAN ANNALISTS. THE SLAVES. THE
DANES. THE FRISIANS. THE SAXONS.
§ 48. There is no such thing as a definite and undeniable
chronology for the details of the Anglo-Saxon conquest of
Britain ; i. e. there is no account so authentic as to preclude
criticism. Neither is there such a thing as an ethnological map
of Germany for the fifth century ; nor yet is there any accurate
geographical description. Of the proofs of this, a sketch has
just been given ; and if the writer have made out his case, the
v/hole early history of the English Language, and we may add
of the English People, has to be got at by circuitous and indi-
rect methods, by criticism, by inference.
§ 49. Our evidence is of two sorts : — The testimony of
writers, and the comparison of language, manners, customs,
laws, &c. In other words, there is external evidence and
internal evidence. I begin with the former.
§ 50. If we lay out of consideration a few isolated notices,
we shall find that the external testimony to the history, geo-
graphy, and topography of Germany for the nearest times
subsequent to the Angle occupation of England, begins with
the Carlovingian dynasty, and lies in the writings of those
authors who were most employed in recording the acts of Char-
lemagne. They consist, for the most part, of chronicles, under
the titles of Annales Laurissenses, Annales Einhardi, An-
nales Mettenses, Annales Fuldenses, Chronicon Moissiacense,
Annales Petaviani, Alanmannici, Guelfyrbytannii, Nazarii, copy-
ing more or less from either each other or from some cominon
source, and consequently relating nearly the same events. I do
not say that these give good light. I only say that it is tlio
.>2 EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL EVIDENCE.
best Ave can got. Tlioy aiv Id In' found in Peitz'.s Monumcnta
Historica Germanicn, and all, or lu'arl}' all, emanate from Frank
writers — from Christian Fianks.
s^ 51. The latter lialf of the seventh century is the time, and
Northern Germany the place, under consideration. Christianity,
and the influence of Roman civilization, have extended no further
in the direction of the Elbe than the northern boundary of the
empire of the Franks ; and this is why our information conies
tlirougli Frank sources. Tiiis, too, is why our nomenchiture is
Frank — an important point to bear in mind. There is Paganism
which has few or no records on one side, and there is a Christian
empire witli a nascent literature on the other. The notices of
the former come through the latter. We must look, then, on
ancient Northern Germany as the Franks ooked at it. Now
the districts which lay to the north of their own frontiier, dis-
tricts which they eventually succeeded in reducing, but which
at first they only knew as the country of enemies and pagans,
were four : 1. Slavonia. 2. Denmark. 8. Friesland. 4. Saxony.
§ 52. Slavonia, a fact of which we must never lose sight,
extended to the west far beyond its present frontiers. Not only
were Brandenburg, Pomerania, Mecklenbm-g, and Luneburg Sla-
vonic, but Lauenburg was so as well. South of Hamburgh no
part of the Elbe was German. The eastern third, at least, of
Holstein was Slavonic. The present sites of Lubeck and Kiel
were Slavonic. All up to the little river Bille was Slavonic.
Roughly speaking, all to the east of a line drawn from Kiel
to Coburg was Slavonic.
§ 53. Denmark. — Denmark was bounded by the Eyder, or
if not exactly by the Eyder, b}^ a line a little to the north of it.
From the Treen to the Slie ran, at a later period, the Danne-
virJce, and, earlier still, the Kurvirke — the lines of defence
against the Germans — the Danish analogues of the Picts' Wall
in Britain, Meanwhile, the Gammelvold protected the penin-
sula of Svanso ; whilst the Daniscltwald lay between Kiel and
the Eggernfiord. For anything but minute philology this is
enough. For Saxoriy, as distinguished from Denmark, the
Eyder and the Dannevirke give a boundary. Whetlier, how-
ever, there may not have been Angles to the north of the Slie
will be considered in the sequel.
§ 5-i. Friesland. — In every direction, Friesland seems to
have extended further than it does now. How far it extended
inland, is uncertain. The coast, however, at least as far as the
EXTERNAL EVIDENCE — LATER NOTICES. 33
Elbe, or possibly as far as the Eyder, seems to have been
Frisian. Heligoland, under the name of Fositesland, is said to
be — "in confinio Frisonum atque Danorum." — Pertz, 2. 4. 13.
Again — " in confinio Frisonum et Danorum ad quandam insulani
quie Fositesland appellatur. " — Alcuin, Vita S. Willi-
hrordi, c. 80. Now, although an island on the confines of
two countries is no good landmark, the texts that give it suggest
the hkelihood of the Danish and Frisian frontiers having touched
one another. Whether the division was ethnological rather than
political, is another question. The relation of the Frisian area
to the Saxon, along with other details, will be considered more
minutely as we proceed.
§ 55. Saxony. — In the ej-es of a Frank, Saxony and Fries-
land contained all those portions of Germany which, partly from
a diflference of dialect, partly fi-om their paganism, and partly
from their independence, stood in contrast to the organized
empire of the Carlovingians. In the eyes of a Frank, a Saxon
was an enemy to be coerced ; a heathen to be converted.
What more the term meant is uncertain. It was used by the
Franks ; having been previously used by the Romans and the
Britons. That it was native to the Saxons themselves there is
no reason for believlno-.
§ 56. Saxony, from the Frank point of view, fell into two
primary and into six subordinate divisions. There was the
Saxony beyond the Elbe, and there was the Saxony on this
side of the Elbe. The former was called Nordalhiivjia. This is
a compound of the word Nord {■■= North), and Albis { = Elbe).
The termination -ing is a gentile form. It denotes the popula-
tions north of the Lower Elbe and south of the Lower Eyder ;
in other words, the occupants of the western side of the present
Duchy of Holstein.
The Nordalbingians fell into three divisions : —
1 . The Thiedmarsi, or Thiatmarsgi, occupants of Ditmarsh.
2. l^ie Holsati, Holzati, or Holsatas, from whom the present
Duchy of Holstein takes its name.
3. The Stormarii, or people of Stormar, to whom Hamburg
was the capital.
The Saxons to the south of the Elbe lay chiefly in Hanover
and Westphalia. They fell into three divisions, of which an un-
known poet of the tenth century, himself a Saxon, and quoted
as Foeta 8axo, thus writes : —
D
3-t EXTERNAL KVIDEXOE— LATER NOTICES.
'fniiisldlidii.
The jj;onoral division contains tlirco pcoi)lcs ;
Kuowu by which Saxony Uouiishctl of yore ;
Tlie names now ronnun, the old viitue has gone back.
They call those ll'i'stf'dUiniti Avho remain
In the Eastern districts ; whose boundary is not far
Distant from the river Khiue ; the region towards the rising sun
Tlie Oslcrhiidi inhabit, whom some
Call by the name OfitfaJuin, whose fi'ontiers
The treaclierous nation of the Slaves harasses.
Between tlie aforesaid, in the mid region, dwell
Tlie An(jr(tr'uu)s, the third population of the Saxons: of these
The country is joined to the lands of the Franks on the South,
The same is joined to the Ocean on the North.
In tlie orifjlnal.
GeneraUs habet populos divisio ternos ;
Insignita quibus Saxonia floruit olim ;
Nomma nunc remanent \di"tus antiqua recessit.
Deniqne WeatfaJoti vocitant in parte manentes
Occidua ; quonmi non longe terminus amne
A Piheuo distat ; regionem solis ad ortum
Inhabitant OsterJcmU, quos nomine quidam
Ostiahs aUi vocitant, continia quorum
Infestant conjimcta suis gens perfida Sclavi.
Inter predictos media regione morautiu*
Anyrarii, populus Saxoniun tertius ; horvmi
Patria Francorum terris sociatui- ab Austro,
Oceanoque eadem coujimgitm* ex Aquilone.
In respect to the Nordalbingians, he writes : —
Translation.
A certain Saxon people, wliich fi-om the South
The Elbe cuts ofi', as separate towards the Nortli Pole :
These we caU Xordalhimjl in oiu* coimtrj-'s tongue.
In the oriijinaJ.
Saxonum populus quidam, quos claudit ab Austro
Albis, sejimctim positos Aquilonis ad axem :
Hos Nordalbingos patrio sermone vocamus,
§ 57. With the boundai'ies, then, of Westphalia we get the
Loundaries of Saxony on the south and south-west. Tlie fol-
lowing notices help us towards obtaining them : —
Translation.
^Miile this was going on, there came a holy and learned priest from the
nation of the Angles, by name Leoftvin, to the Abbot Gregory, saying that a
command had been given to him from the Lord, in a terrible manner, and in a
EXTERNAL EVIDENCE — LATER NOTICES. 35
triple aclmonition, to help the people to the true doctrme un the lioandari/
hctwirn the Franks and the Saxons, alomj the river Ysel, &c.
In the orhjbial.
Dum taha gerebantur, veiiit qiiidem jDreshiter {sie) sanctus et doctiis de
genere Angloriim nomine Leafwiuus ad Abbatem Gregorum, dicens sibi Do-
mino terribiliter trina admonitione fuisse j)r8eceptum, ut in confinio Francorum
atque Saxonum secus Jlavium Islam, plebi in doctrina in-odesse deberet, &c.
As the narrative goes on, it states that, in the first instance
an oratory was built for the saint at a place called Hvilpa on
the ivest of the aforesaid river ; afterwards a church, at Deveii-
ter, on the east of it — a church which the pagan Saxons of the
parts around succeeded in burning.
The particular Frank district which the Ysel divided from
the Saxon country bore the name Sal-land, which has (either
rightly or wrongly) been translated tJte land of the Sal-ii,
i. e. the famous Sa.lian Franks who enacted the famous Salic
law.
§ .58. (2.) Tlie Locality of the Chattuarii. — On the Niers,
between the Maas and Rohr, lay the land of the Chcdtuarii,
Hazzoari, Attuarii, or Hetivoive ; occupants of the country
about Geizefurt. They were continually attacked by the Saxons :
" Saxones vastaverunt terram Chatuariorum." {Annales Scti
Amandi, a.d. 715.) That these were Saxons from the neigh-
bourhood, I infer fi'om the following passages, which make the
Cliattuarian district a March or frontier land — " trado res pro-
prietatis mese in pago Hcdtuaria in Odeheimero Marca, in
villa qu8e vocatur Geizefurt, quae sita est supra fluvium Nersa."
{See Zeuss in v. Chattuarii.)
§ 59. The Bructeri. — The occupancy of the Bructeri was
the district between the Ruhr and the Lippe. They can
scarcely have come under the term Frank ; inasmuch as in the
eighth century, they were still Pagans. On the other hand,
they are specially excluded, and that by Beda, from the Old
Saxons.
Suid-bertus, accepto episcopatu, de Britannia regressus, non multa i^ost, ad
gentem Boructuarioriim recessit, ac miiltos eormn praedicando, ad \'iam verita-
tis perduxit. Sed cxpugnatis, non longo post tempore Uonietnarus a gente
Antiquorum Saxonum, dispersi sunt quolibct hi qui verbum receperant.
Hist. Feci. r»-12.
They also are mentioned in a life of St. Boniface ; and.
also by Aribo, Bishop of Freising, a.d. 782. The pagus
Borah tra — in ]Mfjo Borterga villa quca dicitur Castorp —
D 2
36 KXTERNAL EVIDENCE — LATER NOTICES.
I'lllii qiitc dicitar I'orricheci in iKUjo Lorotra — IloUhelin,
Hamarathl, Mulinhusun in jpayo Boractron — in pago Boratre,
hi villa vocante Ismerelcke . . . et in eodeni pago, in villa
ijutv dicitur Anddopa . . . similiter et in eodem iiago et in
villa ciijus vocahulum est GeisJce — i7i pagis Dreiiii et Boroctra
in Seliheim, in StocJcheiin — in pago Boiiitergo curtem . . .
JEricseli in provincia Boructuariorum . . . in vivo Ratingen
. . . in quddam Boructuariorum villa Velsenberg nomine,
are all given by Zeuss. One of them classes the Boructuarii
along with the Fi'isians, Rugians, Danes, Huris, and Old Saxons
as pagans.
For all this I am inclined to let the original statement stand :
and to hold that in the eyes of tlie Franks, there was nothing
north of their own country that Avas not either Saxon or
Frisian. And as, over and above their paganism, it was from
Britain that the Boructuarii received their Christianity, I am
inclined to make them more Saxon than aught else. The name,
notwithstanding the shortness of the middle syllable, which will
be seen hereafter, was evidently a compound after the fashion
of Cantuarii =: Cantiuoive z=. inhabitants of Kent, and stood
as Bructvjcere in the native tongue.
§ 60. The Locality of the Chamavi. — The last appearance of
this name, totidem Uteris, is in Gregory of Tours. The district,
however, of Harneland, or the parts about Zutphen and Deventer,
has taken its name from them. There is no doubt as to where
it was, since Zeuss gives — " in Sutfeno in pago Harneland — in
Bidsburg in pogo Hameland — in Bauindre in eodem pago
Hameland — ahhatiarn Attene jiixta Rhenum fluviumi in 'pago
Hamaland."' This is where the earlier notices left them ; notices
which associated them with the Franks — the Franks, however,
of the Lower Empire rather than those of the Carvolingian
period. The following extract makes the locality a Saxon one :
— " Beodoricum ex pago Saxoniw Hamaland." — Sigeherti Vita
Theodori Mettensis Episcopi — apud Leibnitz. I. 294.
§ 01. Boundary on the south-east. Approximate.
Translatiun.
Tliis year, om- Lord and King, Karl, having collected an armj-, marched
into Saxony, upon a place called Padersbuni, where, having pitched his camp,
he sent out his son Karl, across the Weser, in order that such heathens as he
found in those parts he might bring into subjection.
Ill the original.
' In hoc anno domnus (sic) rex Karolus collecto exercitu venit in Saxoniam
EXTERNAL EVIDENCE — LATER NOTICES. 37
in loco qui clicitm- Pati'eshrtanias,ibi castranietatus ; inde etiam mittcus Karo-
lum filium suiim trans fluvium Wiserani, ut quotquot iisdem partibus de infide-
libus suis invenissent, suna ser^'ituti subjugarct.
Hesse, although otlier than Frank in respect to its dialects,
was Frank in its political relations ; but not wholly. The valley
of the Diem el was half Saxon. There were two pagi ; one on
the Upper Diemel, which was Frank, and the other on the Lower
Diemel, which was Saxon. The former was —
" Francorimi pagns qui dicitur Hassi." — Poetn Saxo.
The latter was pagus Hessi Saxonicus. Meanwhile, the town
of Wolfsanger was both Frank and Saxon : — " ad villam cujus
est voeabulum Vulvisangar quam tunc temporis Francis et
Saxones pariter habitare videbantur." — I)ipl. Carol. Magn.
§ 62. Saxony and Friesland. — Where were they separated?
The town of Meppen was Saxon.
Translation.
There is a ^veU-kno^^^l town in Saxony, named Meppen, in the neighbourhood
of which the holy priest, on his journey to Friesland, had arrived.
Tn the origiiiaJ.
Oppidum est in Saxonia, notum quam pliu'imus, Meppen nominatmu, in
cujus vicinia, dum antistes sanctus Frisian! pergens devenerat. — Vita Sancti
Ludtjeri, Fertz, vol. ii. p. 419.
Meanwhile, Angraria, or the parts about Engern and Minden,
divided ires^phalia from ^as^phalia.
CHAPTER VII.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. PARTS, ETC.
EXTERNAL EVIDENCE. WRITERS PRIOR TO THE ANGLE CON-
QUEST. TACITUS. THE ANGRIVARII, ETC. — THE ANGLI, ETC.
PTOLEMY, ETC. THE SAXONS.
§ 63, So much for the notices of ancient Germany subsequent
to the Conquest of England. Wliat was ancient Germany
anterior to that event? What, in the time of the classical
writers, was that particular district which the Franks of tlie
Carlovingian age called Saxony ? Wliat was it in the eyes of
Tacitus and Ptolemy ? Let us put these two extremes together ;
38 KXTKUXAL KVIDENOE — EAULlKll NOTICES.
and, perhaps, wo may tlirow a liglit over the intermediate
]>oriod.
siv (Ik TJtc Angrirarii,Fnsii,and Chauci. — The author with
■whom wo begin is Taeitus ; who gives us the AiigrlvuriL They
are the Angrarii of the Carlovingian writers. They are also the
occupants of the pju'ts about Enrjern in modern geography.
Lying in tlie lieart of Saxonia, and being found in both the
earliest and the latest geographies, they take the first place in
vwv intpiiries. The Frisii go along with them.
Tratixhilhm.
Tlic Aiiijrinirii and Cliamavi are backed immediately by tlic Diilgubini and
Chasuarii, and by other nations not eqiiall}' capable of being named. The
FritsKtns take them up in front. The Great and Little Frisians are named
from theu' relative strengths. Each touches the Ocean, and lies along the
Kliine. They also encircle immense lakes — lakes wliich the Roman fleets
have yet to explore.
In the original.
Anijrivarios et Cliamavos a tergo Dulgibini et Chasuari clndunt, aliicque
gentes baud perinde mcmoratae. A fronte Frisii excipiuut. MajorUnis minn-
rihiisque Frisiis vocabulum est, ex modo viriura : utrpeque nationes usque, ad
Oceanum Rheno prsetexuntiu*, ambiuntque immensos insuper lacus, et Romanis
classibus nondum navigates.
Contiguous to the Frisians, and, like the Frisians, extended
along the coast, though dipping further inland, came the Chauci.
Translation.
The nation of the Chauci, although it begin where the Frisians end, and
covers an immense tract of the sea-board, overhes the frontiers of all the
nations I have enumerated, even until it -ninds itself into the land of the
Chatti. So vast a space do the Chauci not only hold, but fill — a people,
amongst those of Germany, of the noblest.
In the original.
Chaiicorum gens, quamquam incipiat a Frisiis ac partem litoris occupet,
omnium, qiias exposui, gentium lateribus obtenditur, donee in Chattos usque
sinuctur. Tam immensum ten-arum spatium non tenent tautiim Chauci, sed
et implent : populus inter Gennanos nobilissimus.
% (y-")- The Cherusci and Fosi. — From Tacitus.
Translation.
On the side of the Chafici and Chatti, the Cherusci have, for a long time,
indulged in an excessive and weakening state of peace ; unharassed — a peace
more easy than safe. Amid the unrestrained and the strong you may main-
tain a false repose. AMiere action goes on, moderation and probity are the
prerogative of the sti-onger. Hence, those who were once the good and just
Cherusci are now the idle and foolish. With the victorious Chatti their good
fortune has taken the name of wisdom. The Fosi were cU-awn in with the
EXTERNAL EVIDENCE — EARLIER NOTICES. 39
downfall of the Cherusci — the Fosi, a nation of the frontier ; the Fosi who,
then- inferiors diu'ing their prosperity, are, on fair grounds, their fellows in
adversity.
In the orii/iiKil.
In latere Chaucorum Chattorumqne, Cherusci niiniam ac niarcentem diu
pacem ilia cessiti nutrierunt: idque jucundius, quam tiitiiis fuit; quia inter
impotentes et validos falso quiescas : uhi manu agitur, modestia ac prohitas
nomina superioris sunt. Ita qui olim ' boni a^quique Cherusci,' nunc ' inertes
ac stulti ' vocantur : Chattis victoribus fortuna in sapientiam cessit. Tracti
ruina Cheruscorum et Fosi, contermina gens, adversaruni reruiu ex ajquo
socii, cum in secundis minores fuissent.
% QQ. The Bructeri. — From Tacitus.
TransJation.
Bj' the side of the Tencteri the Bructeri were once to be found. Now (as it
is said) the Chaniavi and Angrivarii have replaced them, the Bructeri being
cMven away, and wholly cut off — to the great joy of the nations of their fron-
tier, arising from either the hatred of their pride, or the delights of the i^lunder,
or, it may be, from the favour of the gods usward. For they indulged us with
the spectacle of the fight : a fight wherein more than forty thousand fell — not
under the arms and harness of the Romans, but, more magnificently, as a sight
before tlieir eyes. Long live, among the nations who have no love for us, at
least, such hatred against each other ! When the fate of the empu'e fails, all
that its fortune can give is the discord of its enemies.
In the original.
Juxta Tencteros Bructeri olim occurrebant : nunc Chamavos et Angrivarios
immigrasse narratur, pulsis Bructeris ac penitus excisis, vicinarum consensu
nationmn, sen superbife odio, seu prreda? dulcedine, sen favore quodam erga
nos deorum : nam ne spectaculo quidem proelii mvidere ; super xl. milha, non
armis telisque Romanis, sed, quod magnificentius est, oblectationi ocuhsque
cecideiimt. Maneat quaeso, duretque gentibus, si non amor uostri, at certe
odium sui : quando, urgentibus imjierii fatis, niliil jam prsestare Fortuna majus
potest, quam hostium discordiam.
The Tabula Peutingeriana give.s the form Bructeri. Con-
stantine, in the beginning of the fourth century, gains some
advantages over them, which his panegyrist makes the most of.
The Notitia also names them. Again —
Agrippinam, ligente maximc hieme, petiit . . . transgrcssus Rhenum
Bricteros, ripai proximos, pagum etiam quern Chamavi incolunt, depoi)ulatu3
est. — Gregor. I'nron. 2. 0.
Sidonius Apollinaris, too, alludes to them.
" Toringus,
BructeruH, ulvosa vel quera Nicer alluit unda
Prorunipit Francus." — Cifnii. vi. -'I'M.
This is in enumeration of the allies of Attila.
40 l-.XTERXAL EVIDENCE —KAllLIKU NOTICES.
Ptolemy divides thorn into the Greater and Lesser Bructeri ;
the Chanel and Frisii liciiig the only Germans besides who are
so classified. He jtlaees them to th.e north of the Sigambri,
" vciiit accola sylvne
BrKctcntu, ingeutes Albim liquero Clierusci."
Chiitdhtn, /I'. Cunsitl. Honor. 450.
§ 67. We pass now to the parts lying on each side of a line
drawn from Verden to Luneberg, of which the occupancy; in the
time of Tacitus, is a matter of comparative certainty for one
population only ; but that is an all-important one — the Angli.
They are not mentioned alone in Tacitus, whose list runs thus —
Angli, Varini, Reudigni, Aviones, Eudoses, Suardones, Nuithones
— all uncertain populations. What does the most learned
ethnologist know of a people called the Eudoses ? Nothing.
He speculates, perhaps, on a letter-change, and fancies that by
prefixing a Ph, and inserting an n he can convert the name
into Phundusii. But what does he know of the Phundusii ?
Nothing ; except that b}' ejecting the p/i and omitting the n he
can reduce them to Eudoses. Then come the Aviones, of whom
we know little, but whom, by omission and rejection, we can
identity with the Cobandi, of whom we know less. What light
comes from the Kuithones ? What from the Suardones ? It is
not going too far if Ave say that, were it not for tlie conquest of
England, the Angles of Germany would have been known to the
ethnologist just as the Aviones are, i. e. very little ; that, like the
Eudoses, they might have had their name tampered with ; and,
that, like the Suardones and Nuithones, they might have been
anything or nothing in the way of ethnological affinity, historical
development, and geographical locality.
Of the external testimony bearing upon the Angli of Ger-
many, nine-tenths is from a single passage ; and every word in
that single passage which applies to them applies to the Eudoses,
Aviones, Reudigni, Suardones, and Nuithones as well.
Translation.
With the Lombards it is different. The smaUness of their numbers is
their glory. Girt by nations as numerous as they are shong, it is not by sub-
servience, but by blows and battle, that they hold their o^^^l. Then come the
Reudigni, the Aviones, the Amjli, tlie Varini, the Eudoses, the Suardones, and
the Nuitliones, in-otected by either rivers or forests. There is nothmg remark-
able here except their common worship of Herth or Mother Earth. They
believe that she intoiiiosos in tlie affaii's of manldnd and makes a circuit of
the world. There is in the Ocean a holy grove, and in it a consecrated wagon.
EXTERNAL EVIDENCE — EARLIER NOTICES. 41
shrouded with a paU, and touched by a priest only. He it is who knows that
the goddess has her presence in the shrine, and he it is who, when she is di'a\A-n
bj' heifers, follows her up T\ith exceeding gi'eat reverence. The days are then
joj^ful, and the spots which she deigns to visit, and allows to receive her, fes-
tive. No wars are waged ; no arms taken up ; every sword is shut up ; peace
and quiet alone kno\^^l, alone loved ; until such time as that selfsame priest
gives back the goddess to her temple, sated ^rith her intercourse with mankmd.
Then are the wagon, and the pall, and (if we may believe it) the deity itself,
washed in the secret lake. Slaves officiate. Their office done, the same lake
sucks them in too. Hence, a mysterious terror — -a holy wonder. What is
that which is seen only by those who are about to perish ?
In the original.
Contra Langobardos paucitas nobilitat : i)lurunis ac valentissimis nationibus
ciucti, non per obsequiuni, sed proeliis et periclitando tuti sunt. Reudigni
delude, et Aviones, et Angh, et Yarini, et I^udoses, et Suardones, et Nuithones,
flurainibus aiit silvis muniuntur : nee quidquam notabilis in singulis, nisi quod
in commune Herthum, id est, Terram matrem colunt, eamque intervenire rebus
hominum, invehi populis, arbitrantiu'. Est in insixla Oceani castum nemus,
dicatuni in eo veliiculum, veste contectiun, attingere uni sacerdoti concessuin.
In adesse penetrali deam inteUigit, vectamque bobus feminis multa cimi venera-
tione prosequitur. Lseti tunc dies, festa loca, qutecumque adventu hospitioque
dignatiu*. Non bella ineunt, non arma sumunt, clausimi omne ferrum ; pax et
quies tunc tantiim nota, tunc tantum amata, donee idem sacerdos satiatam con-
versatione mortalium deam templo reddat: mox vehiculum et vestes, et, si
credere veils, numen ipsum secreto lacu abluitur. Servi ministrant, quos
statim idem lacus haurit. Arcanus hinc terror, sanctaque ignorantia, quid sit
id, quod tantum perituri vident.
§ 68. Ptolemy's notice of the Angles is as follows; —
TrtinsJ'ition.
Of the nations of the interior the gi-eatost are those of the Suevi Angli (who
lie east of the Langobardi, stretching northwards to the middle coiu-se of the
Pdver Elbe), and of the Suevi Semnones, who reach from the aforesaid part
of the Elbe, eastward, to the river Suebus, and that of the Bugimtae, in con-
tmuation as far as the Vistula.
In the nrif/iiiii/.
TS)v 8e ivTos Koi [xecroyelav, i6vwv /neytora fX€V iari to, re raiv '2ovijl3a>v rcov
AyyeiXav, ol flaip avaToKiKdoTepoi rmv Aayyo^dp8a)v avareivovTes rrpos rtW upKTOvs
/n/^pt Twu fxecrav Toii ' AX/3ioj 7roTap.oxj Koi ru Tap Sovij/Scoi' roiv 'Sefivovcov, oiTivfS
tirjKOvai fieTci tw' AT^fSiv otto tov elprjpfvov fiepovs rrpos avaro'Xus p-^XP'- '''"'^ '^ovrj-
/3ou TroTapLoi kol to tuiv BovyovvTcov ru k<p(^rjs /cat fJ-expi tov OvtcrrovXa kgtc-
X'iVTUIV.
^ G9. The Saxons of Ptolemy lay to the north of the En)e,
on the neck of the Khersonese, whilst the Slgulones occupied the
Khersonese itself, iveshvards.
Then come —
2, The Sahalingii ; then —
1-1* EXTERNAL EVIDENCE — EARLIER NOTICES.
0. TItc Kohandi ; jil.)Ove these —
4. The Khali ; and above them, but more to the west —
5. The Phuiidusii ; more to tlie east —
(). IVie Kharudcs ; and most to the north of all —
7. The Kimbri
8. The Plmrodini lay next to the Saxons, between tlie rivers
Khalusiis and Suebus.
Tnni^httion.
""The Frisians occupy the sea-coast, beyond the Busakteri (' Bructevi ') as
far as the river Ems. After these the Lesser Chauci, as far as the river
Weser ; then the Greater Chauci, as far as the Elbe ; tlien, in order, on the
neck of the Ciuibric Chersonese, the Saxons ; then, on the Chersonese itself,
beyond the Saxons, the Signlones, on the west ; then the Sabalingii ; then the
Kobandi ; beyond whom the Khali, and even beyond these, more to tlie west,
the Phundusii ; more to the east, the Kharudes ; and the most northern of all,
the Ivimbri. And, after the Saxons, from the river Ivlialusus to the Suebus,
the Pharodini.
In the oriijinaL
Tr]v be TraputKenvlriv KaTe)(ov(Tiv iiwep fxtv tovs Bov(TaKTepovs ol ^piarmoi p.<XP'-
Tov Afxaariov norafjiov' p.eTa Se toCtovs Kav)(oi ol fiiKpoi fi^XP'- ''""'^ Ovicrovpyioi
TTOTafioif fira Kavxot. oi fxei^ovs p-^XP'- '''^^ "A\^ios TTOTUfiov' icpe^rjs Se ctti tov
avx^va Trjs Kifi^piKtis 'K.epcrovqcrov 'S.n^oves' avrrjv 8e ttjv 'Kepcrovrjcrov iinep p.ev tovs
'Sa^ovas ^lyovXcoves ano bvcrp.av, eua Sa^aXtyytot, ttVa Ko/3ai'Sot, vntp ovs 'KaXoi,
Koi eTi virep tovtovs dvcrfiLKooTepot p,ev ^ovv8ovaoi, avaTo\iKU)T€poi Se Jiapovbes,
TTavTcov 8e apKTiKuiTepoi Ki/xl^poi. Mfra Se tovs 2d^ovas ano tov XaXovaov
TiOTafiov /ifXP' '''^^ 2ovrj(3ov iroTapiov ^apohnvoi.
In another place the three islands of the Saxons are men-
tioned— '^a^ovwv vr]crov rpels.
§ 70. — Except the Cimbri, all these populations, with their
navies as they stand in Ptolemy, are strange to Tacitus. I say
^uith their names as they stand in Ptolemy ; because by certain
a.ssumptions, more or less legitimate, three of them, as we have
already seen, have been considered as identified with certain
names found elsewhere.
§71. Respecting the Sabalingii, I have an hypothesis of my
own. Transpose the h and the I and the word becomes Sa-lab-
ing-ii. What of this ?
1. The Slavonic name of the Elbe is Laba ; and —
2. The Slavonic for Transalbian, as a term for the popula-
tion beyond the Elbe, would be Sa-lab-in(jii. This compound
is common. The Fins of Karelia are called Za-voloh-ian, be-
cause they live beyond the volok or watershed. The Kosaks of
the Dneiper are called Za-porog-ian, because they live beyond
EXTERNAL EVIDENCE- -EARLIER NOTICES. 43
the i^orog or ivaterfall. The populations in question I imagine
to have been called Sa-lab-ingian, because they lived beyond the
Laba or Elbe.
This is hypothesis ; but we must remember that a name closely
akin to Sa-lab-ingian actually occurs at the beginning of the
historical period. The population of the Duchy of Lauenburg
is, then, Slavonic. So is that of south-eastern Holstein. So is
that of Luneburg. Now the name of these Slavonians of the
Elbe is Po-lab-ingii (on the Elbe), just as Po-niora-nia is the
country on the sea. Of the Po-labingians, then, the /S'a-labingii
were (by hypothesis) the section belonging to that side of the
Elbe to which the tribe that used the term did not belong.
§ 72. Upon the Khali I have little to say — little, too (in this
place), upon the Kimbri.
The Kharudes bear a name which seems, word for word, to be
Heorot ; a term which may apply to any well-wooded country,
such as Holstein — a term, itself derived from hoU=.]ioltz-=z
wood.
§ 73. Sigulones, too, as a Qiame, is one upon which no light
has been shed. The locality, however, of the population which
bore it is important. The Western part of Holstein in the ninth
century was not only the pre-eminently German portion of the
Peninsula, but it was the only German portion. To the north,
beyond the Eyder, Isiy the Danes. To the east, between the
Segeburg Heath and the sea, lay the Slavonians of the parts
about the Ploner Lake. Unless we carry them to the north of
the Eyder, Ditmarsh must have been within the Sigulonian
boundary ; Ditmarsh being, at the beginning of the historical
period, decidedly Saxon.
§ 74. The Saxons fall into two divisions — those of the con-
tinent and those of the islands. The conditions under which
the former must come are as follows : —
a. They must lie as far south as the Elbe, in order to come
next (i<pe^f]Sf) to the Chauci Majores.
b. They must be on the oiecl; of the Chersonese ; which neck
may mean one of two things ; either the line between Hamburg
and Lubeck, or the line between Tonning and Rendsburg.
c. They must touch the sea ; inasmuch as the fact of any
island being Saxon implies that the coast opposite tt) it was
Saxon also.
d. They must lie sufficiently to the west to have the Sala-
bingians on the ea.st ; and —
•it EXTERNAL EVIDENCE — EARLIER NOTICES.
€. They must Ho sufliciently to the cast to have the Sigulones
on the west.
Nevertheless, as aforesaid, they must touch the sea.
These are not very easy conditions to satisfy — indeed, unless
we suppose that Ptolemy's maps were somewhat different from
oin- own, they are imiiracticahle. Neither is the fixation of the
islands easy. Sylt, Fohr, and Nordstrand, are the ones most
generally quoted. Perhaps, however, the relations of the land
and water have altered since the time of Ptolemy ; so that the
]ihysical history of the North Sea may be the proper complement
to the ethnological inquiries for these parts. The matter is un-
important. It is only necessary to remember that there were
Saxons on two localities — Saxons on the islands, and Saxons on
the sea-coast, Insular Saxons, and Saxons, so to say, of the
Pera3a.
§ 75. To what language did this word Saxon in Ptolemy
belong ? Was it native, i. e. did the Saxons use it to designate
themselves ? We cannot answer this question in the affirma-
tive. Nor yet can we say that it was German. In Tacitus,
where the names are German, it finds no place. This is jpro
tanto against it. Add to this, that none of the names with
which it is associated can be shown to be German, e. g.
Sigulones, Kobandi, &c. On the contrary', one, by hypothesis, is
Slavonic.
§ 76. The extracts which now follow fall into two divisions.
The first makes the Saxons a northern, rather than a southern ;
the second a southern, rather than a northern people. The first
points to the Saxons of Ptolemy, and makes North rather
than South Britain, the country on which they descended. The
second points to the Litus Saxonicum, and makes Kent and
the counties of its frontier the likeliest scene for their depreda-
tions. The first division is by fi\r the largest, though more in
appearance than reality. This is because so many of the quo-
tations are taken from a single writer, Claudian. In several
of them the Saxons are connected with the Picts ; a fact which
we must not forget whenever the ethnography and philology of
those mysterious warriors come under notice.
I'rantsliitioti.
The Picts, the Saxons, the Scots, and the Attaootis harassed the Britons
with continual troubles.
EXTERNAL EVIDENCE — EARLIER NOTICES. 45
Orlijinal.
ricti Siixonesqae et Scotti et Attacotti Britauuos ajrumuis vexavere cou-
tiiiiiis. — Ainiiiicoius MarceUinus, 204.
(2.) ^
Tranahition.
Must I speak of Britain worn mth infantry engagements ? Must the Saxon
wasted by naval battles be ofFered? Must I speak of the Scot diiven to his
bogs?
Orhjinal.
Attritam pedestribus prteliis Britanniam referam ? Saxo consuraptus bellis
navalibus offeretuv? Redactum ad paludes suas Scotum loquar? — Pacatus,
Paneyyric on Thcudoaiits, a.d. 391.
(8.)
Translation.
he draws together in one spot
The scattered forces of the empire, and counts over the wedges
Arraj^ed ; to one legion is the custody of the Sarmatiau bauks,
Another is opposed to the savage Geti^, a thii-d legion bridles the Saxon,
Or the Scot—
Original.
constringit in uniira
Sparsas Imperii vires, cuneosque receuset
Dispositos ; quse Sarmaticis custodia ripis,
Quae sfBvis objecta Getis ; qui"e Saxona fraenat
Vel Scotum legio— — CJauclian.
Translation.
his victorious standards
Did Caesar carry as far as even the Caledonian Britons,
And even after scattering the Scot, and the Pict, along with the Saxon,
He looked for enemies, when Natiu'e forbade liiin
To look any more for men.
Orit/inaL
victricia Caesar
Signa Caledonios advexit ad usque Britannos,
Fuderit et quanquam Scotum, et cum Saxone Pictum,
Hostes qusesivit, qiuim jam Natura vetabat
Quaerere plus homines.
Sidonius AjjolUnaris Pancg. Carm. VII. (a.d. 455).
(5.)
Translation.
Wliat avails the eternal rigour of tlie sky ? what the constellations,
And an unknown sea? from tlie scattered Saxon
The Orknies were wet ; with the blood of the Picts Tliule warmed ;
Her heaps of Scots icy lerne wept.
Original.
Quid rigor a^ternus cadi, quid sidera prosunt
Iguotumque fretum ? maducrunt Saxunc fuso
■td EXTKRNAL EVIDENCE — EARLIER NOTICES.
Oivmlos, iiu-iiluit Pirturuni sanguine! Tliulc :
Scotorum riumiliis llovit glacialis lerno.
Chmdian, IV., Consul. Honor.
TranxJntion.
Then began she [Hoint') to spoalc, " AVliat I am, with yon at my head,
^Matters at no givat distance tell; so far as Tcthys, from tlie subjugation of the
Siiron,
Is milder ; or as Britain is secure, the Pict being weakened."
Ori(jinaI.
Turn sic orsa hiqui ( fumia) " Quantum te principe possum
Non longinqute docent; doniito quod Sii.vone Tethys
Mitior, et fracto seciu-a Britannia Picto."
OlaiuUan.
0-)
Translation.
" Me also," she (Britannia) said, " perishing under tlie nations near me
StiUcho fortified, wlieu the Scot moved all lerne
And Tethys foamed under the hostile rower.
By his care was it effected that I feared not
Scottish darts, that I trembled not at the Pict, that, along mj^ whole coast,
I looked not out on the Saxon coming on me with the doubtful winds."
Oriijinal.
" Me quoque vicinis pereuntem gentibus inquit " (Britannia)
" Munivit Stilicho, totani quum Scotus lernen
]Movit, et infesto spumavit remige Tethys.
Illus effectum cm-is, ue tela timerem
Scotica, ne Pictiim tremerem, ne litore toto
Prospicerem dubiis venturum Saxona ventis.
Claudian.
§ 77. AH these place the Saxons in the north. Tlie follow-
ing, and it must be remarked that Sidonius Apollinaris was a
Gaul, point to the Litus Saxonicurii.
Translation.
Moreover the Annorican tract expected
The Saxon pii-ate, to whom to furrow the British salt sea on a skin.
And to cleave the glaucous ocean with a sewn skiff ■^^as sport.
Original.
Quin et Aremoricus piratam Saxona tractus
Sperabat, cm pelle salum sulcare Britannmn
Ludus, et assuto glaucum mare fundere lembo.
Sidonius ApoUinaris, C'arni. vii. 309 (a.d. 455).
(2.) _
Translation.
That part [of Gaul] wiiich was devastated by the incursion of' the Saxons
tlie Vandals and Alans laid waste.
EXTERNAL EVIDENCE — EARLIER NOTICES. 47
Ori'jiiiaJ.
S(/.voninii iiicursione devastatam partem Vaiidali atquc Alaiii vastavere. —
Prunj)er Aqiiiddiiis ad Ann. 410.
CHAPTER VIII
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. PARTS OF
GERMANY, ETC. CONSIDERATION OF THE CHANGES WHICH
MAY HAVE TAKEN PLACE BETWEEN THE CLASSICAL AND THE
CARLOVINGIAN PERIOD.
§ 78. The mother-country of the Germans of England, in the
time of the Carlovingians and in the e3^es of the Franks, was
Saxonia, or, simply. Saxony. Friesland, or a part thereof, may
occasionally have been included in it.
Of these two areas, Saxonia fell into divisions and sub-
divisions : —
1. Cisalbian, to the south of the Elbe, containing, —
Westphalia.
An gr aria.
Ostphalia.
TI. Transalb Ian, or Nordalhlngian ; beyond the Elbe, con-
taining,—
1. Ditmarsh.
2. Storm ar.
3. Holstein.
On the other hand, in the time of the classical writers —
Frisia was the country of the Frisii Majores, Frisii Minores,
and, to some extent, of the Chauci.
Meanwhile, the occupants of the district which was afterwards
Saxonia, were the —
J . Angrivarii in Angraria.
2. Chamavi, Dulgubini, Chasuarii, and (?) Bructeri in West-
phalia.
3. Cherusci, Fosi, and Angli, in Eastplialia.
4. Saxones, Sigulones, and Harudes (?) for Nordalbingia.
§ 79. Looking, in the first instance, to the texts of the clas-
sical writers only, we cannot but observe that, although there i.s
48 EXTERNAL EVIDENCE — EARLIER NOTICES,
a covtaiii auu)uut of agreement between those of" Tacitus and
rtoleniy, tlieie is a considerable deal of difference also : and still
n^ore is this the case with the classical and Carlovingian
topographers. The Saxony of Ptolemy consists of a small tract
of land in the so-called Cimbric Chersonese ; whereas the
Saxony of Charlemagne is a vast region. Again — and, to a
certain extent, this is the consequence of the preceding — several
of the tribes of Tacitus are no longer apparent. Thus, there
are no Fosi ; no Cherusci.
§ 80. These discrepancies must be investigated ; since it is
ver}' important for us to know whether the Saxonia of the
tenth century do or do not contain the descendants of the occu-
pants of the same area in the second, third or fourth. If it do,
the history of the English language is simplified. Fix the
Angli of Tacitus to a certain part of Germany, and find how
that part is occupied under the Carlovingian period, and you
determine the original country of the ancestors of the present
English. The name has changed, but the population is the
same. Assume, on the other hand, a migration, a conquest,
or an extermination, and the whole question is altered.
§ 81. Now, it is certain there has been a change of some
sort. Of what sort ? The population may have changed, the
name remaining the same ; or the name may have changed, the
population remaining the same. Were the Cherusci, for instance,
bodily transmuted, either by being exterminated on their soil, or
by being transported elsewhere ? or did they only lose the name
Cherusci, taking some other in its stead ? Caesar, Strabo, Velleius,
Paterculus, all speak of the Cherusci and all say nothing about
the Saxons. On the other hand Claudian is the last writer in
Y/hom we find the ^vord Cherusci.
'• vemt accola silvse
Bructerus Hercyniae, latisqiie paluclibus exit
Cimber, et ingeutes Albiiii liquere Cherusci."
Cunsul. IV. Honor. 450.
Hence, as long as we have the Cherusci there are no Saxons,
and as soon as we meet with the Saxons the Cherusci dis-
appear.
To assume, at once and in the first instance, a series of migra-
tions and displacements is to cut, rather than untie, the Gordian
knot. If the Saxons are a new and intrusive population, the
change is a real one. But the name may have changed, the
population remaining the same. If so, the change is nominal.
QUESTION OF CHANGES. 49
§ 82. Nominal changes are of three kinds.
a. A population that at a certain period designated itself by
a certain term, may let that term fall into disuse and substitute
another in its place. When this has been done, a name has
been actually changed.
h. A population may have more than one designation, e. g. it
may take one name when it is considered in respect to its geo-
graphical position, another in respect to its political relations,
and a third in respect to its habits, &;c. Of such names one
may preponderate at one time, and another at another.
c. Thirdly, its own name may remain unchanged, but the
name under which it is spoken of by another population
may alter.
Now, I hold that real changes are rarer than nominal ones ;
and that not in Germany only but all the world over. It is
rare for a population to be absolutely exterminated. It is
rare for a migration to empty a whole country. Possibly, how-
ever, I may have a tendency to exaggerate the rarity of these
phenomena ; since there are many competent authorities who
think differently. Individually, however, when I ask whether,
within a certain period, certain alterations took place, I do not,
without special reasons, assume their reality.
§ 83. With this preliminary, the fii'st thing that strikes us is
that Saxony was a name which, in the mouth of a Frank, had
a much wider signification than elsewhere. Ptolemy applies it
to a mere fragment of land. Tacitus never uses it. With a
Frank it meant any occupant of the parts' immediately beyond
his own frontier who was different from his own countrymen,
without being a Roman, a Dane, or a Slave. Sometimes it
included, sometimes it excluded, the Frisians. Again, the Frank
names are, chiefly, geogi'aphical, e. g. Westfali, Ostphali, Nordal-
hlngii ; whereas the names in Tacitus are the names of nations.
No wonder they differ. With the difference, however, there is
agi'eement. The word Angrivarii, or Angrarii, is common to
the three periods — the Classical, the Carlovingian, and the
Modern ; for (as has been already stated) Engern is the pre-
sent form of it.
As a general rule, the Angli of the Carlovingian period, so
far as they are German, are merged in the Saxons. They occui-,
eo nomine, occasionally ; but only occasionally. The Angli of
the Carlovingian period are generally the English of England.
This is as much as will be said at present. Few real changes
E
50 NATURE OF CHANGES.
of any uiaguitiide, between the times of Tacitus iind the Carlo-
vini;iau annalists, can be assumed. The nominal changes, how-
ever, lU'e considerable.
CHAPTER IX.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. POPULATIONS
ALLIED TO, OR IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF, THE ANGLES.^ THE
SUEVI. THE LONGOBARDS. THE VARINI. THE REUDIGNI.
THE MYRGINGS. HN.EF THE HOCING AND HENGEST.
§ 84. The extracts of the foregoing chapters have given us
certain statements of a true historical character ; in other words,
they have been taken from writers who had fair means of
knowing what they wrote about or alluded to ; the conditions
both of time and place being sufficiently favourable for the
collection of accurate information — or, at any rate, of informa-
tion which, (as long as there is nothing to impugn it,) may pass
for being as authentic as historical information is in general.
They have apjjlied to the question under notice in its geogra-
phical and ethnological aspects ; our business being not so much
to ask what certain populations of Northern Germany did, but
where they vjere, and how they stood in place and blood-rela-
tionship to each other. We may, if we indulge in metaphors,
call our previous extracts landmarks ; landmarks seen, not,
perhaps, through the clear atmosphere of the noon-day, but
through the dim mists and twilight of the early dawn. The
notices of the present chapter are only approximations to this.
They are, at best, but beacons seen through the darkness of
night and throwing but little light on the tracts around them ;
indeed, it is not ■ improbable that some of them may be httle
better than ignes fatui. At the same time, they agree in this.
They give us populations, who, either in the way of ethnological
relationship, or geographical contact, had something or other to
do with the Angles ; and which, pro tanfo, help to illustrate
their history.
Again, the notices of them will, for the most part, be taken
from authors who ai-e eitlier unknown, or who dealt with vague
CRITICISM. 5 1
and uncertain reports, or mythic fictions rather than definite
statements in the way of geography and history.
§ 85. Concerning the Aviones, Eudoses, Suardones, and Nui-
thones there is, as has ah'eady been stated, but little to be said
in any way ; whilst that little illustrates anything rather than
the affinities of the Angles. The ordinary manipulations of the
German School have been applied to them, and a series of unim-
peachable letter-changes has shown that they may come out Obii,
Pliundusii, Pharodini, and Teutones, respectivel3^ All this they
may do, and more. It throws, however, no light upon the
whereabout of the Angles. Of Teutones, Phundusii, Pharodini,
and Obii, we know as little as Ave do of Nuithones, Eudoses,
Suardones, and Aviones. The Suardones, indeed, may be an
exception. We have only to believe that, like the Big Knives,
and other tribes in North America, the nations of Gei'uiany
called themselves Sivords, Daggers, Halherts, Axes, and the
like (not Swordsmen, Daggersnien, &c., which would be not
unlikely), and Saxon, and Suardon are the same word ; since
Seaxe (at present meaning a pair of scissors) originally meant
a sort of bowie knife, and Suard=:siuord. Add to this that
c/L-r means a sivord, and the Cherusci are Saxons and Suar-
dones also. I give this, not because it is true, but because
it comes from high quarters, and has been given to us by those
who ought (as they have done before) to give us better things.
§ 86. Omitting, then, the populations with these very equi-
vocal designations, the ones which command our attention are
the following : —
1. Suevi ;
2. Longobards, or Lombards ;
3. Varini, Varni, or Werini ;
4. Reudigni ;
0 . Myrgings — -Mauringii — Maurunganians.
To which add certain notices concerning
1 . Hnsef the Hoeing and
2 . Hengest.
§ 87. The Suevi. Word for word Suevi is the name of the
occupants of Suevia ; and Suevia is Suahia, or Schvjahen, in an
older form. Now the modern Suabia lies far away from the
Lower, far away from even the Middle, Elbe. It lies on the
Upper Rhine, a locality as little Angle as any in all Germany.
Looking, then, at these localities alone, it is clear that no two
words are less likely to be equivalent than Suevus and Anglus,
E 2
52 THE SUE VI.
'Sov/]^o9 and "Ayyeikos, Schwab and Aiujle. Nevertheless,
they oceui' in couj unction in Ptolemy ; and they occur, not as
the names of two distinct populations, but either as synonyms
or as terms indicative of genus and species ; Siievus being
the name for the class, Anglus for a peculiar division of it.
See § 68.
The same conjunction, though less patent and palpable, is
also found in Tacitus.
Tninxhttioii.
Now we must speak about the Sucri, of whom the nation is not one (like that
of the Chatti or Tenchteri) ; inasmuch as they occupy the gi-eater part of Gei*-
niany, divided in then* several names and nations, altliough, in general, they
are called Sucvi. It is a mai-k of the stock to twist the hair, and to draw it up
in a knot. By this tlie Suevi are distinguished from the otlier Gennans. By
tliis, amongst the Sue^vi themselves, the fi-ee-born are distinguished fi'om the
slaves. .........
The Semnones affirm tliat they ai'e the oldest and the noblest
of tlie Suevi. .........
They have their habitations in a hundi'ed^jirtY/;, and
the result of the vastness of the mass is tliat they beheve themselves to be
the head of the Sue^i.
In the orhjlmd.
Nunc de Suevis dicendum est, quorum non una (ut Chattorum Tenctero-
riunve), gens: majorem enim Germanife partem obtinent, propriis adhuc
nationibus nommibusque discreti, quamquam in commune Suevi vocentm*.
Insigne gentis obliquare crmem, nodoque substiingere. Sic Suevi a ceteris
Gennanis : sic Suevorum ingeuui a servis separantiu*.
Vetustissimos se
noblissimosque Suevorum Semnones memorant. ....
Centum pagis habitantiu* :
magnoque coi-pore efficitui', ut se Suevonim caput credant.
From the Suevian Semnones he passes to the Langobardi,
and from the Langobardi to the Angli, &c. " Contra Lango-
bardos paucitas nobilitat," &c. (See § 67). The section that
next follows begins — " Et h^ec quidem pars Suevorum in secre-
tiora Germanise porrigitur." ....
" Keudigni deinde," kc, and then, " hgec
pars Suevorum," &;c.
The whole of these notices should be taken together, the
context being fully as important as the simple texts.
The Langobards are certainly in the same category with
the Semnones — the Semnones, who are " the head of the Suevi ;"
the Suevi being anything but the occupants of modern Suabia.
The order in which Tacitus takes the populations of this part
of his treatise being from South to North, the Langobardi must
THE SUEVI. 53
be sought on the Middle or Lower, rather than the Upper, Elbe.
How far the Angles are likely to have lain to the east of them
will be considered hereafter. The river Suehus, with its name
so like that of the population which touched its waters, is
remarkable.
Two early authors, then, connect the Suevi with the Angles
(placing them both on the Elbe), and, to a certain extent, Strabo
agrees with them : Strabo stating that they extended from the
Rhine to the Elbe. To this add, that Caesar brings them as far
west as Gaul — Ariovistus being a king of the Suevi.
The name was a general one. This is against its being
native. I do not say that it is conclusively so. Still it is
against it. The general names of antiquity are the names
which are given to certain populations by their neighbours
rather than the names which they give themselves.
§ 88, Suevi Transbadani — Hordosquavi — Norsavi. — So
much, then, for the Suevi of the early writers ; the Suevi, who lay
far to the east of the present Suabia. So did certain populations
mentioned by the later ones ; for we may now notice two Suabian
settlements of the Frank period.
a. Not far from the Harte-^o, was a Suevo-f/o {pagus Sue-
voru^n), said to have been settled in the time of Alboin, King
of the Lombards. Suevi Transbadani, or Suevi beyond the
river Bode, was a designation of these colonists — ^^ Suevi vero
Transbadani illam quam incolunt regionem eo tempore invasere
quo Saxones cum Langobardis Italiam adiere." — Witekind of
Corvey, i. p. 6 3 4.
6. Then there were the Norsavi or Nordosquavi, more cor-
rectly Nordsuavi, or Suevi of the North. These are men-
tioned in an Epistle of King Theodobert to the Emperor Jus-
tinian— "subactis Thuringis .... Norsavorum gentis nobis
placata majestas colla subdidit." Again, in the Annales Met-
tenses ad an. 748 — "Pippinus adunato exercitu per Thurungiam
in Saxouiam veniens fines Saxonuni, quos Nordosquavos
vocant, cum valida manu intravit. Ibique duces gentis asperse
Sclavorum in occursum ejus venerunt, unanimiter auxilium illi
contra Saxones ferre parati, pugnatores quasi centum millia.
Saxones vero, qui Nordosquavi vocantur, sub suam ditionem
subactos contritosque subegit." — Pertz, i. 330.
Now Zeuss identifies these Nordsuavi with the Suevi Trans-
badani ; and, for some time, I followed his view. But a little
consideration Avill show that it by no means follows, that be-
5i THE LOMBARDS.
cause the Sucrl Ty(()i8J)ada)il were Sxcrl in the Korth they
Avcn-e, therefore, tlie Kordsiiavl. A Lincobishire colony in the
East Riding of Yorkshire would certairdy be Englishmen North
of the Humhvr, yet they would not be, North-unibrians. The
difference, however, in the question before us is of but little
importance.
§ 81). The Longohards or Loriihards. — I have elsewhere,*
and at length, given reasons for believing that, notwithstanding
the fact of the specimens of the Lombard form of speech which,
in the shape of glosses and proper names, have come down to
us, being High German, the ancestors of the conquerors of Italy
were closely akin to the Angles ; perhaps, as closely as the
Frisians and the Old Saxons themselves. Perhaps, even, they
were actual Angles under another name.
Unlike the thousand-and-one migrations by which, in ordi-
nary ethnology, nations are moved from one part of the world
to another, like knights on a chess-board (where the intermediate
ground is got over, j9er saltum,) that of the Longobardi is a real
one. In the time of Tacitus we find them in Northern Ger-
many ; in the time of Pope Gregory we find them in Italy.
Nor are there wanting traces of their appearance in more than
one spot interjacent ; i. e. in the country of the Ubii (about
Cologne) ; in the country of the Usipetes (about Wiesbaden) ;
in Bavaria and on the Bohemian frontier. I do not say the
evidence on these points is conclusive. On the contrary, it is
not a little dashed with conjecture. The change of place, how-
ever, whatever may be the exact movements by which it was
effected, is undeniable.
That the Angles and Lombards were conterminous is sug-
.gested, to say the least of it, by the text of Tacitus. That the
former lay to the north rather than the south, and the latter to
the south rather than the north, is an inference to which all our
data point, and one to which few investigators, if any, demur.
§ 90. The Varini, Varni, Werini. — Tacitus is not the only
author who associates the Angli and Varini. Procopius does
so also. He tells us that Radiger, a prince of the Varni, has an
Angle pi'incess betrothed to him. He deserts her for Theode-
child, his father's widow. The princess sails to the mouth of
the Rhine, conquers and forgives him. Date between A.D. 584
and A.D. 547. Theodechild, the widow, was sister to Theudi-
* Transactions of the Royal Society ol Literature.
THE LOMBARDS. 5 5
bert, king of the Franks. As given in Procopius, the story is
as follows : —
"A certain man, named Hermegisclus, ruled over the Varni ; and lie, being
anxions to strengthen his kingdom, had married the sister of Theudibertus
lung of the Franks ; for lus former wife had recently died, having given bii-th
to a boy, called Eadiger, -whom she left to liis father. To him his father be-
trothed a vii-gin of Brittian race, whose brother was at that time king of the
nation of the Aiu/ili, giving her gi-cat wealth under the name of doway. Tills
man, riding in a certain district mth some of the Yarnian nobility, saw a bird
sitting on a tree and croaldng excessively. And then, whether he understood
the ciy of the bird, or having other information, he pretended that he luiew
the bird's predictions ; he said immediatelj^ to those present, that he should
die within forty days ; for so the boding of the bird portended liim ; ' I, there-
fore,' said he, ' X)ro^dding beforehand how you may live most securely and
quietly, have made affinity with the Franks, having taken my wife fi'om among
them, and have contracted a Brittian alliance for my son. But now, as I am
persuaded I must die very shortly, and as I have neither male nor female
issue by this -nife, and, moreover, as my son is yet unwedded and unmatched,
I will communicate to jon my views : and if they do not seem inexpedient to
you, as soon as I arrive at the term of my existence, prosecuting them success-
fulty, cany them into efiect. I tliiuk, therefore, that affinity with the Franks,
rather than with islanders, would be beneficial to the Yarni, and the Franks
have only the waters of the PJiine between them, so that, being our nearest
neighboui's, and extremely powerful, they have the facihty of benefiting or of
injimng us whenever they please, and they will injure us in every way, unless
our affinity A\'ith them prevent it. Let the female island"er betrothed to my
son be abandoned, receiving, as a compensation for this shght, the whole of the
wealth with which she has been honoured by us on this occasion, as the esta-
bUslied customs of men prescribe. But let Piadiger, my son, hereafter marry
his stepmother, as our national usage permits.' "
Hermegisclus dies ; and Eadiger prepares to desert his be-
trothed Brittian. She, to prevent or revenge his desertion, —
" Collecthig foiu- hundred vessels, and embarking in them an armament of
not less than one himch-ed thousand warriors, advanced in person against the
Yarni. She took -sritli her also one of her brothers, to conduct affairs in con-
junction Aritli her for the present ; not liim, indeed, who held the kingdom,
but another who filled a private station. Of all the barbarians whom we
know, these islanders are the most warlike, and they proceed on foot to their
battles. So far fi.-om being exercised in horsemanship, they have never had
even the chance of kno^ring what a horse is, since they have never seen in
this island even a representation of it ; for it appears that such an animal
never existed in Brittia. Should it happen, therefore, occasionally to anj- of
these people to go on an embassy, or for any other cause, to the Romans or
Franks, or elsewhere where horses were used, and should it be necessary for
them to proceed on horseback, then have they no derice whatever for mount-
ing, but other men Lifting them up, place them on the horses ; and, when
wisliing to dismount, they lift them again, and place them on the ground.
Neither, indeed, are the Yarni horsemen, but men who figlit altogether
60 TllK VAIUNI.
on foot. SiK-Ii. tlion. arc (hose biuhiuiaus ; uoiUar iu this expedition was
tljore a single person nueniployed in tlie vessels, each man taking an oar; nor
do tliesc islanders make use of sails, their navigation being cUected by rowing
only."
To pnH'Ocd — the maiden herself builds a fort on the mouth
of the Rhine, keeps within it, but sends her brother against
the enemy. The battle is in favour of the Angii. Radiger
flies ; — the brother returns : — is upbraided for letting Radiger
escape ; goes after him again ; and brings him back. Radiger
is reproached accordingly until he excuses himself, professing
that —
" If she were still AAilling, he slionld many her, and would atone for liis
former misdeeds by his fnture actions. And when these tilings pleased the
damsel, Radiger was both released from liis bonds and houom-cd M-ith otlier
marks of kindness; whereupon he immediately renounces the sister of Theu-
dibeit, and marries the Brittian."
The geography is as strange as any part of this strange
story. The inhabitants of this Brittia —
" Declai'e that the condiicting of souls devolves on them in turn. Such of
them, therefore, as on the ensuing night ai'e to go on tliis occupation, in their
tiu'n of service, retiring to then* dwellings as soon as it grows dark, compose
tlicmselves to sleep, awaiting the conductor of the expedition. All at once, at
night, thej' perceive' that theii* doors ai-e shaken, and they hear a certam indis-
tinct voice summoning them to theii* woi-k. Without delay, arising fi-om theii-
beds, they pi'oceed to the shore, not imderstanding the necessity which thus
constrains them, yet, nevertheless, compelled bj^ its influence. And here they
perceive vessels in readiness, whrolly void of men ; not, however, theii' o\\"n,
but certain sti'ange vessels, in wliich embarldug, they lay hold on the oars, and
feel their bm-den made hea\der by a multitude of j)assengers, the boats being
Blink to the gunwale and rowlock, and floating scarce a finger above the water.
They see not a single person ; but having rowed for one hoiu* only, they
arrived at Brittia ; whereas when they na^dgate their own vessels, not making
use of sails but ro'n'ing, they arrive there ^vith difficulty even in a night and
day. Having reached the Lsland, and been released from their buixlen, they
depart inunediately, the boats quicldy becoming light, suddenly emerging from
the stream, and sinldng in the water no deeper than the keel. These people
see no hiunan being, either wliile navigating with them, or when released from
the sliip ; but they hear a certain voice, which seems to announce to such as
receive them the names of aU who have crossed over with them, describmg
the dignities which they fonnerly j)ossessed, and calling them over by their
hereditary titles. And also if women happen to cross over with them, they
call over the names of the husbands with whom they lived. These, then,
ai'e the tilings wliich men of that distinct declare to take place."
Such a Brittia as this can scarcely be Britain ; indeed the
two are specially distinguished from each other. The distinction,
THE V AKIN I. 57
however, . fails to make the geography clear. Meanwhile, a con-
nectioQ of some kind between the Angles and Varni, is clear
Then comes the heading of a Code of Laws of the Caro-
linian period, which runs thus — " Incijjit lex Anglorum et Weri-
normn, hoc est Thuringorurn." It is to be found in Can-
ciani {Leges Barbaronim), and it may be compared with the
Anojlo-Saxon Laws of Eno-land. It is too short to ffive us
much. What it does give, however, is English.
It gives us, for instance, tlie word Adaling-us — J^theliilg.
It gives us the wergild of a freeman as fixed at two hundred
shillings.
Thirdly, it gives us the English compensation for the different
kinds of bodily injuries.
But who were the Werini ? Doubtless descendants of the
Varni of Procopius, the Varini of Tacitus, and the Werns of
the Traveller's Song, over whom Billing ruled — no Germans of
Hanover, but Slavonians of Mecklenburg.
And how come they to be called Thuringian (Jioc est Thurin-
gorwni) ? I submit that the translation of the heading is not —
" Here beginneth the Law of the Angles and Werini, that is,
the Thuringians," but — " Here beginneth the Law of the
Angles and Werini, that is, of the Angles and Werini of
Thuringia."
Tills difference is, by no means, unimportant ; inasmuch as,
whilst the one makes them Thuringians, which neither an Angle
nor a Werinian could well have been, the other only makes
them settlers in Thuringia, which they most probably were.
§ 9]. The Reudigni. — The last two syllables are inflectional;
the root being R-d. This occurs as the element of a compound
in more Icelandic and Anglo-Saxon passages than one. Who-
ever the Goths of Scandinavia may have been, they fell into
more than one class. There were, for instance, the simple Goths
of Goth-Vdnd, the island Goths of Uy-gota-land, and, thirdly,
the Goths of Reidh-gota-lsind ; an old name for Jutland, as
well as the name of a country east of Poland. Zeuss* well
suggests that these conflicting facts may be reconciled by con-
sidering the prefix Reidh, to denote the Goths of the Continent
in opposition to the word Eg, denoting the Goths of the Islands.
In the Traveller's Song we find a IIreth-k.mg —
" He with Ealhiia,
Fiiitlifnl peace-weaver,
* lu V. JiUw.
58 THK RKUDKiNl.
l\)r the lirst, time,
Of tlie Hirth -kins
Sought the lionio,
Uast of Otnjlf,
Of Eormonrio,
The fierce faitli-brealcer."
Wo also meet "svitli the name in the simple form Ilrcvd : —
'• Eadwiaie I sought aiid Elsa,
" Jilgehimnd and Ilungai',
" And the prond liost
" Of the Witk-Myrgings ; (?)
'• Wulfliere I sought and WjTnhere ;
" Full oft wai' ceased not there,
" "When the lintels' army,
'• With hard swords,
" About llstuJa's wood
" Had to defend
" Their ancient native seat
" Against tlie folk of ^Etla."
Such light as we get from these passages induces us to place
the Reudigni on the eastern side of the Elbe. If so, they lay
beyond the limits of the Carlovingian Saxonia ; the relation
between the HretJts and Ongle being that between the Reudigni
and Angli.
§ 92. The Myrgings, &g. — In the Anglo-Saxon poem, already
quoted, the poem known as The Traveller's Song, the notices of
a nation of Myrgings are immerous — Heaca being their king.
In the first place the geographer himself has had something to
do with them.
ANGLO-SAXON. ENGLISH.
WidsilS ma'Solade, Widsith spake,
"NVoi-dhord on-leac, His word-hoard unlock'd,
Se Se msest Who a vast many [had met with]
^Ma-r^a ofer eor%n, Wonders on earth,
Folca geond ferde. Travell'd through many nations ;
Oft lie flette ge]>ah. Oft he had in hall received
]\Iynehcne ma>J)imi. A memorable gift.
Hine from MynjuKjum Him from among the MijnjitKjs,
iEjjele on-w6con. Nobles gave birth to.
He mid Ealh-hilde, He with Ealliild,
Fsph'e fi-eo)7Uwebban, Faithful j)eace-weaver,
Formnn s[]je. For the first time,
Hro'Scj-ninges Of the Hreth-king,
Ham gesohte, Sought the home
Eastan of Ongle ; East of Ongle,
Eonnanrices Of Eormam-ic,
Wra^'cs wffi'rlogsn. The fierce faith-breaker ;
THE MYRGINGS.
59
Ongou ]>a worn sproean.
" Fela ic momia gefrsgii,
" Msegjjum wealdan."
Again : —
" pa ic to ham bi-cwom,
" Leofum to leane,
" pfes jje he me lond forgeaf,
" Mines faeder ej^el,
" Frea Myrginga ;
" And me \>k Ealli-hild
" O'f^erne for-geaf,
" Dryhtcwen duguj^e,
" Dohtor Eadwines."
Began then much to speak :
" Of many men I'vS heard,
" Ruhng o'er tribes," &c.
" When to my home I came,
" In requital to my friend,
" For that he me had given land,
" My father's home,
" The Myrging's Lord ;
" And to me then Ealliild
''Anotlier gave,
" The noble queen of cliieftams,
" Eadwine's daujfhter."
Again : —
" Mid Moidum ic wtes, and mid
Per sum,
" And mid Myrgingnm,
" And Mofdingum,
" And ongend Myrginginii,
"And mid Amoj^ingum."
" "With the ]\Iedes I was and with the
Persians,
" And \\ith the Myrgings,
'• Arid the Mofdings,
" And again wdth the MyrgUigs,
" And with the Amo things."
More important is an extract wliich brings the Angle Offa in
contact with them, and with the HecOpo-hards.
OfFa weold Ongle,
Alewih Denum ;
Se wfe's fjara manna
INIod gast eaka.
No hwsejjre he ofer Offan
Eorlscj-pe fi'emede ;
Ac Ofta ge-sl6g,
.Surest monna,
Cnihtwesende,
C}Tierica mse'st.
Nse'nig efen eald him
Eorlscipe maran.
On orette,
A'ne sweorde ;
Merce gemse'rde,
Wi^ Myrgingiiin, (?)
Bi Fifeldore,
Heoldon for^ sif^fjan
Englo and Swaj'i'e
Hwa liit Offa geslog.
Hrofjwulf and Tiro's .,'ar
Heoldon lengest,
Sibbe a4, somne.
Offa ruled Ongle,
Alewili the Danes,
Who of those men was
Haughtiest of all.
Yet not o'er Offa he
Supremacy effected,
For Offa won
Earliest of men.
Being a j'outh,
Of kingdoms gi'eatest.
No one of like age with him
Dominion gi-eater
Had in contest gain'd
^Yith his single sword ;
His marches he enlarged
Towards the Myrgings, (?)
By Fifel-dor.
Continued thenceforth,
Engles and Swrefs,
As Offa it had won.
Hrotluilf and Hrotligar
Held veiy long
Peace together.
(U) THE MYUGINUS.
Siilitor-raMlnm : Tlio paternal cousins,
Sil^^an liy' for-wiiw'cou After the}' Imcl expoU'd
"Wicvnga oynn, Tlic race of >Vildngs,
Ami Ingeldes And lugeld's
Ord for-l)igdan. Sword had bow'd,
Forheowau iMt Iloorote, Slaughter'd at Heorot
lleafjubeardiia }>ryin. Tlio host of Hcathobeanls.
Lasth', we get (probably through a blunder) the name WUh-
iMyigingy.
" Eadwine sohte ic, and Elsan, " Eadwine I sought and Elsa,
" .Egehniuid, and Hiingai-, " iEgehnund and Hungar,
'• And Jja wloncan gediyht, " And the proud host
'• 11 VS Miinjiwjar (?) " Of the With-Mijnjiiujs" (?)
In the later writers there is a Maiir'ingian district in the
parts north of the Elbe, i. e. in the parts that the Franks called
Nordalbingia. On the other hand, the Marovingi (Mapoviyyoi)
of Ptolemy lay to south of the Mayn.
Tnoislation.
Again, east of the Abnobsean Mountains (i. e. the Black Forest) dwell,
above, the Suevd, the Kasuari, then the Nertereanes, then the Danduti,
under whom the Tui'oni and Marov'DKji.
Til the orii/iiKiL
II('iXlv utt dvoTokau ^iu tcoi/ 'A/3j'o/3(u'a)i/ oputv oIkovotiv vnep rovs 2ou7j/3ovj
Kacroua'pot, elra ^fprtptapfs (Ira AavdovToi, v(f) oiis Tovpcavoi Koi Mapoviyyoi.
Thirdly, in Warnefrid's account of the migration of the
Lombards, there is a country named Mauringa, not far from
the Assipitti ; whilst
The geographer of Eavenna gives us a Maurungania beyond
the Elbe.
The inference from all this is, that there were two districts to
which a name like Mauring or Merving applied ; a northern
one and a southern one. That the name of the former still
exists in the word Mohvingen I am strongly inclined to believe.
If so, we have an instrument of criticism. A work to which,
in a forthcoming chapter, numerous references will be made, is a
grammar of the North-Frisian language in the Moving dialect,
a dialect which falls into an eastern and a western sub-division,
being spoken on the western coast of Sleswick, in the parishes of
NiebiiU, Deezbriil, Bisum, and Lindholm, Now this locality
suits the Myrgings, in the direction of whom Offa " enlarged
his marches," these being the ones more specially related to the
Angles. Beyond this, however, there is much confusion, which
the present writer hopes, elsewhere, to unravel.
HNiEF, THE IIOCING. ()1
§ 93. Hncpf, the Hoeing, and Hengest — The name of Hn^f,
the Hoeing, should be considered. That, word for word. Hoeing
is Chauci, has already been stated. It is now stated that, word
for word, Hiuef is Hanover ; the expression Hnoef the epony-
TYius of Hanover, being one which is by no means uncommon
in works upon German archseology. Valeat quantum. I lay
little stress on it myself. At the same time, it is an approach
to something like evidence in favom- of Hanover having, at one
time, stood upon ground, either originally belonging to, or
appropriated by, tiie Chauci.
In the poem of Beowulf, Hengest is specially connected with
the Hocings. Amongst its heroes are —
1. Fin, the son of Folcwalda (Fin Folcwalding), a Frisian.
2. Hildeberg, his Queen, a Hoeing (tlie Hocings are the
Chauci).
3. Healfdene, the king of the Danes.
4. Hneef (the eponymus of Hanover) a Hoeing, his vassal.
5. Hengest, a Jute, his (Healfdane's) vassal also.
These two last invade Fin's territory. Hnsef is slain ; Fin's
followers also. The bodies are burned. Hengest remains, and
meditates vengeance ; which he effects by killing Fin and carry-
ing otf his queen.
1. " Hi-o'Sgar's poet after the mead-bench must excite joy in the hall, con-
cerning Finn's descendants, when the expedition came upon them ; Healf-
dene's hero, Hnaef the Scylding, was doomed to fall in Friesland. Hildebui-h
had at least no cause to praise the fidehty of the Jutes ; guiltlessly was she de-
prived at the wai'-game of her beloved sons and brothers ; one after another
they fell wounded with javeUns ; that was a moiu-nful lady. Not in vain did
Hoce's daughter mourn their death after morning came, when she imder the
heaven might behold the slaughter of her son, where he before possessed the
most of earthly joys : war took away all Finn's thanes, excej)t only a few. so
that he might not on the place of meeting gain anytliing by fighting against
Hengest, nor defend in war his wretched remnant against the king's thane ;
but they offered him conditions, that they would give up to him entirely a
second palace, a hall, and throne, so that they should halve the power with the
sons of the Jutes, and at the gifts of treasure every day Folckwalda's son
should honom- the Danes, the troops of Hengest should sei"\'e them with rmgs,
with hoarded treasures of sohd gold, even as much as he would furnish the
race of Frisians in the beer-hall. There they confirmed on both sides a fast
treaty of peace.'
Again, —
" Thence the wamors set out to visit their dwellings, deprived of fi-iends,
to see Friesland, their homes and lofty city ; Hengest j'et, during tlie
deadly-coloured winter, dwelt with Finn, boldly, without casting of lots he cul-
tivated the land, although he might drive upon the sea the ship with the
112 IINiEF, THE IIOCING.
ringed prow; tlic iloop boiled with stunus, wan agaiusl tlic wind, winter locked
llie wftve witli a chain of ice, until tlie second year came to tlie dwellings ; so
doth vet, tliat wliich eternally, happily provideth weather gloriously bright.
"When tlic winter was departed, and the bosom of the eaith was fair, the
wanderer set out to explore, the strau;j;er from his dwellings. lie thought the
more of vengeiuico than of his depsuting over the sea, if he might bring to
pass a hostile meeting, since he inwardly remembered the sons of the Jutes.
Thus he avoided not deatli when Ilunlaf's descendant plunged into his bosom
the llame of war, the best of swords ; tlierefore were among the Jutes, known
bv the edge of tlie sword, what warriors bold of spu'it Finn afterwards fell in
witli, savage sword slaugliter at his own dwelling; since Gu^laf and Oslaf
after the sea-jom'ney mourned the son'ow, the grim onset: they avenged a part
of their loss ; nor miglit the cunning of mood refraiu ia his bosom, when Ids
hall was suiTouuded witli the men of his foes. Finn also was slain. The
Idng amidst his bixnd, and tlie queen was taken ; the warriors of the Scyldmgs
bore to their ships all the household wealth of the mighty Idiig which they
coiUd find in Finns dwelling, the jewels and carved gems ; they over the sea
carried the lordly lady to the Danes — led her to theu* people. The lay was
smig, the song of tlic glee-man, the joke rose again, the noise from the benches
grew loud, cupbearers gave tlie wine from wondrous vessels."
The translation is Mr. Kemble's. It may also be found in a
version of Mr. Tiiorpe's as an appendix to the first volume of
Lappenberg.
CHAPTER X.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. PARTS OF GER-
MANY FROM WHICH IT WAS INTRODUCED. INTERNAL EVI-
DENCE. L.^NGUAGE. PRELIMINARY REMARKS. THE OLD
SAXON.
§ 94. The written language nearest akin to the w^ritten Eng-
lish of the present century is the written English of the last —
and so on.
The unwn-itten forms of speech nearest akin to the written
English are the provincial dialects of the counties of Huntingdon,
Ptutland, the north-eastern part of Northamptonshire, and the
southern part of Lincolnshire.
This means that the standard of our speech is in its newest
form to be found in the most recent written compositions of the
literati of England ; and that the dialects (if so they can be
called) of the districts just named are the purest of our provincial
modes of speaking.
INTERNAL EVIDENCE. 63
But the two statements carry with them something beyond
this. The}'' suggest the fact that when languages become the
vehicles of literature and the exponents of the thoughts of
educated men, they must be viewed in two ways.
a. They must be viewed in respect to the written and literary
language of the country to which they belong in its earlier
forms ; and —
h. They must be viewed in respect to the provincial dialects
spoken, around and cotemporary with them.
Both these are points of minute philology, and neither of
them finds its full exposition in the present chapter. They are
merely indicated. Special notice will be taken of the different
stages of our tongue, and special notice will be taken of our
])rovinciaI dialects hereafter. The point immediately before
us is, the question of the general relations of the English to
the other allied languages of the Continent of Europe, the
area on which it originated. In which case all the different
dialects and all the differences of the same dialect are mero-ed
under the common denomination of English ; and the English
language means English and Anglo-Saxon — English and Low-
land Scotch — English and the English provincial and the
literary dialects ; these being dealt with generally and collec-
tively as elements and ingredients of a single tongue.
§ 95. When languages first separate from a common stock
they are most like each other. Hence, in comparing the s[)eech
of England with the speech of Germany, w^e take the languages
of the two countries in the first known period of their growth.
English and the Dutch of Holland are alike in their present
forms ; but English and Dutch in their oldest known respective
forms are liker still.
This rule is general and convenient, but it is not universal.
Although when languages first separate from a common stock
they are most like each other, it does not always follow that
tiie longer they are separated the more unlike they become.
Languages which differ in an older form may so far change
according to some common principle as to become identical
in a newer one.
To take a single instance. Let two languages have different
signs of the infinitive mood. Let each lose this sign. What
follows ? Even this, that the two originally different forms
become similar.
Thus hcern-an is Anglo-Saxon, hcern-a Fi-isian, Here is
(it INTKKNAL EVIDENCE.
cllrtorcnce. Eject the last s^-llable. The remainder is hcern.
Here is likeness.
Hence it may be seen that when two hmgnages have in their
older stages been differentiated from each other by means of
characters that become obsolete as the language grows modern,
they may grow liker and liker as time proceeds.
§00. Let us now look to the Continent of Germany and
ask about the languages there spoken. Which are nearest akin
to our own ?
The mother-tongue of the present English is the Anglo-Saxon,
and no written specimen of this Anglo-Saxon can be shown to
have originated otherwise than as the language of England, and
on English ground. The manuscripts by which they have been
transmitted to us were written in English monasteries ; and the
dialects which they embody are the dialects of certain English
comities. We cannot often give the exact locality, nor yet deter-
mine the particular form of speech represented, but we can always
safely say that England was the country in which the language
Avas spoken and the words written. I am not aware of any ex-
ception to these statements. If such exist, they are unimportant.
Yet the English language originated in Germany, and in
Germany the so-called Anglo-Saxon must have been spoken
during the whole period that the English invasion was going on,
as well as for some time both before it began and after it had
left off. It was certainly spoken, and may have been tvritten.
It may have been written, or if not written, embodied in poetry,
and so handed down orally. Have any such specimens come
down to us ? This was answered in the negative when it was
stated that all the extant specimens of the mother-tongue of the
present Enghsh are of English origin. Consequently they are
all later than the Anglo-Saxon invasions.
This, however, applies only to the form of the Anglo-Saxon
compositions. I do not say that the matter of some of them
may not be continental. For instance, there is a famous
poem called Beowulf, in which no mention is made of England
at all, and of which the heroes are Danes, Frisians, Geats, and
Angles — Angles as they were in the original Angle-land of
Germany, not Angles after the fashion of Ecbert, Alfred, and
the English kings. Nevertheless, it is only the flatter of
Beowidf that is held to be continental. Its language is
tliat of the Anglo-Saxons of England, and England was
the country in which it took the Anglo-Saxon form. There is
LANGUAGE. 65
no such thing as a specimen of language wliicli is at one and
the same time Anglo-Saxon in form and continental in origin.
§ 97. There is, however, something like it. If we eject
from the AoigloSiixon the prefix Angle, we are enabled
to consider the word Saxon as a sort of generic term for a
group of closely-allied dialects, of which the mother-tongue
of the present English was one. Others there might have
been ; others there probably were ; others there actually were.
Although there are no vestiges of the -<4 ?ir/Zo-Saxon of the
Continent, there still is a Saxon form of speech of continental
origin. Instead of Anglo- write Old-, and you have the cur-
rent and ordinary name by which the language under notice
is designated by the scholars of the nineteenth century ; viz.
OZ(i-Saxon.
How far either of the elements of this compound is excep-
tionable or unexceptionable will be considered hereafter. The
present chapter deals wdth the real rather than the nominal
question as to the nature of a particular form of speech spoken
in a particular part of Germany during, and for some time sub-
sequent to, the reign of Charlemagne. This, whatever else it
may be, is the Saxon of the Continent as contrasted with the
Saxon of the British Isles. It is the Saxon of the Continent,
not because it was never spoken in England, for there is no proof
of that, but because it is only known to us by specimens which
took the form in which they have come down to us in some part
of continental Germany. And, similarly, the Anglo-Saxon is the
Saxon of England, not because it was never spoken in continental
Germany, for it vjas so spoken, but because it is known to us
by specimens which took the form in which they have come down
to us in some part of insular England.
§ 98. Some of the specimens of the so-called Old Saxon,
more properly called the Saxon of the Continent, Continental
Saxon, or old Westphalian, are either actually known, or
legitimately believed to have originated within the limits of
Saoconia — the Saxonia of the Franks. Others, on the other
hand, are held to have done so simply because they exhibit
certain characteristics.
§ 99. At the head of the first class stands a remarkable docu-
ment which is often quoted under the title Frekkenhorstius ; in
which case we must understand some word like Liber, or
Rotulus, and translate it as the FreJckenhorst Book, the Frekken-
horst Roll, or the Frekkenhorst Muniments. Call it, however,
F
60 TUE OLD SAXON.
Avhat we may, the locality is that of the present village of
FirH-enh(y)'st, on the Upper Ems, a little to the south-east of
!Munster. Though well within the Lorclers of Westphalia it
is not far from those of Angraria, being at no great distance
from Engern. There is a Sasseuherg and other villages, the
names ^^■hereof point to the Saxons, in its neighbourhood —
villages where the language or some other Saxon characteristic
may, possibly, have sustained itself at the time when all around
was Frank.
Tlie date is uncertain. According to Massman, the latter
part of the MS. is between twenty and thirty years later than
the former. Now, in this latter pait, we have the name Hen-
ricus Imijerator. There were three other Henries ; but this is
the one to which the title Emperor best applies. If so it gives
us the end of the ninth century for the earliest portion of the
muniment — only, however, as an approximation.
The vocabulary, from the nature of the record, is of the scan-
tiest. Though the document is a long one, it contains but few
glosses ; the same words being repeated over and over again.
It gives us, however, in addition to numerous local and personal
proper names, some interesting words, such as van = from, and
sin = his (suus as opposed to ejus), both of which are Dutch
and German rather than Anglo-Saxon : both, too, being wholly
wanting in the present English, though both occur in the Ger-
man of Germany as well as in the Dutch of Holland. The
numerals, too, are found in full, e. g. : —
1. enon (einen), ena (eine), en (eins).
2. thue, tlie, tue, tuena, tlmena, tua.
3. tlmu, tkrie, thido, thra.
4. uier, ueii", fieri ; uiar.
5. uif, fif.
C. ses, sesse sehs.
7. siuon, siuen.
8. alite, aht (ahto) ; alite.
9. nigon, nigen ; nigen.
10. tbein, tein, ten ; tian.
11. eleuen, eleuan, elleuan.
1'2. tuulif, tuiUf, tuuliua, tuelif.
13. thrutein, tluiutein.
14. uiertein.
15. fiftein.
10. sostein.
17. siuentein, siuontein.
lb. alitctein, ahtetliein, ahtotein ; alitetian.
THE FREKKENnORST ROLL. G7
19. nigeuteiii, nicheutein.
20. tueutigli, tuuiitilic, tuentich ; tuentig, tuentog.
21. en an twinticli.
22. tue eude tuentich.
27. siuon ende tnentliic.
30. thritic, tliritig, tluitich, thritilic.
31. en ende XXX.
33. tlirio ende thvitich.
34. fieri ande (ende) thriticli.
40. fierthic, niertili, fiertich ; uiartlieg.
50. (half hunderod) niftech.
53. III. and fiftech.
60. 1331, sestich.
80. ahtodoch; ahtedeg.
100. hunderod.
150. othar half hmiderod.
The translation is literal, i. e. tlie original is translated into
English word for word ; by which the extent to which the vo-
cabularies of the two forms of speech agree is exhibited. Thus
gerst is rendered by grist rather than barley. Neither are the
names of the measures translated. To have called a niittun a
l^eck, a gallon, or by the name of some other approximate mea-
sure, would have concealed a fact in language without giving us
its equivalent in metrology. The names, too, of the places stand
as the original gives them : their equivalents, some of which are
more certain than others, being given at the end of the extract.
Thit siut thie sculde uan thiemo Lirano Ueliusa : nan themo Houc seluomo ;
tuulif gerstena malt, ende X. malt huetes, ende IIII. muddi ende IIII. malt
roggon, ende ahte muddi ende thruu muddi banauo, ende ueir . . kogii, ende
time specsuin . . . cosuin ; IIII. embar smeras ende alle thie uerscange
the liii-to hared : other half himderod honero, thue mudde eiero, thriu muddi
penikas, enon salmon; ende thero Abdiscon tuuUf sculd lakan, ende thue embar
hanigas, ende en suin sestciu penniggo uuerht, ende en scai?, ende ses muddi
huetes, ende tern scok garuano.
Ande to themo Asteronhus : uif gerstena malt gimelta, in Natiuitate Dni.
et in ResuiTectione Dni to then copon, ende ses muddi, ende tuentigh muddi
gerston, ende uiertili muddi haueron, ende ses muddi erito, ende uier malt
roldion ende en muddi, ende en muddi huetes, ende tue specsuin, ende tue
suin iro ieluiethar ahte penniggo wehrt.
Uan Lacseton ; uif malt gerstina gimelta, ende uier malt rolckon ende en
muddi, ende tue specsuin, ende tue suin iro geliuethar ahte pinniggo werht.
Uan Emesaliarnon ; viertein muddi gerston gimelta, ende en specsuin, ende
tue suin iro geliuethar ahte pinniggo wcrlit.
Uan Suthar (z) Ezzclion; Ricbraht tue malt rolckon, tue gerstina malt gima-
lana, ende Junggi uuan themo seluon thovpa thrithig muddi rukkon, eude ahto
thein muddi gerstinas maltas.
F 2
68 OLD SAXON.
Vtai Fiohttharpii ; Accliu Ihciu iiuuldi rukkon, ciulo (lieiu inmltli gcrstiuas
lualtas.
Van Radisthnrpa ; Aziliu en malt rokkon.
Van Uucrstar Lacsotoii; Lau/.o tuoiithig iniuldi rukkon, ende en gerstin
malt gimelt.
Uau thero !Mussa ; Ilezil tuonthig muddi rokkon, ende on gerstin malt gi
malan, ende, nan thenio soluon tliarpa, lioio tucnthig muddi rokkon, ende
tuontliig muddi gorstinas maltcs, ende Ticzo nan tlicro musna en malt rukkon.
Uan Graftharpa ; ^^'illilv0 tuulif muddi rokkon, ende en gerstin malt.
Reinzo, uan tliemo seluon tlmrpa, en malt rokkon ; ende llemoko, uan tlicmo
seluon tliarpa, tue malt rokkon, ende en malt gerstin gimalan.
Uan Anon ; GheliliO, tue malt rokkon.
Uan Smitliehuson ; Eizo en malt rokkon. An tliemo seluon tliarpa, Alzo
tuentliig muddi rokkon.
Uan Hiu-sti ; Emma tuenthig muddi rokkon.
Uan Ueltseton; Tiezilco tue malt rokkon. Bernliard, an tliemo seluon
thai'pa, tiienthig muddi roldion.
Uau Holonseton ; Azelin en malt rokkon. Wikmund, an tliemo seluon
tliarpa, ende Dagerad ende Azeko alligiliko imo.
Uau Bocliolta ; Liediko tue malt rokkon.
Uan Oronbeki ; Kanko li . . . RazilvO, an tlicmo seluon thaqDa, also
Catmar, uan themo seluon tliarpa, alite tcin muddi rockou. Witzo thritliic
muddi rockon uan themo seluon thai*pa.
Uan Grupilingi ; Witzo en malt rockon. Ratbralit, uan tliemo seluon
thai-pa, en malt rockon, ande en embar hanigas.
Uan Scii)liurst ; INIanniko siuen muddi rockon, ende en embar hanigas.
Jazo, uan themo seluon tharpa, tuentliig muddi rockon, ende tue emmar
hanigas.
Uan Emisahornon ; Meni tuentliig muddi rockon.
Uan Sail Emisahornon ; Meuizo thritliic muddi rockon, ende en gerstin
malt gimalan. Habo, uan themo seluon tharpa, tuenthig muddi rockon.
Uan Dagmathon ; Boio en malt rockon. Lieuikin, an themo seluon tharpa,
also uilo.
Uan Tharphurnin ; Kanlio tuenthig muddi rockon.
Uan Haswinkila; Maldiko fiftein muddi rockon. Kanko, an themo seluon
tharpa, nigen muddi rockon, ende, an themo seluon tharpa, Eililco ahte
muddi rockon. Himiko, an themo seluon tharpa, en malt rockon, ende tue
embar hanigas.
Uan Herithe ; ItOzUiO en . . . malt rockon. Hizil, an themo seluon tharpa,
fiftein muddi rockon. Adbraht, an themo seluon tharpa. thruteiu muddi rockon.
Abbiko, an themo seluon thai-pa, ahte tein muddi rockon.
Uan Mottonhem ; Sizo en malt rockou.
Uan Duttiughuson ; Sicco tue malt i-ockon.
Uan Kukonhem ; AHbik tue malt rockon.
Uan Belon, Witzo sestein muddi rockon. Eildieri, an themo seluon tharpa,
tue malt rockon.
Uan Uomon ; Sello tue malt rockon. Manuilvin, an themo seluon tharpa,
tuenthig muddi rockon.
Uan Sahtinhem; Hameko tue malt rockon. An themo seluon tharpa,
Hameko tue III. sol. malt rockon, ende en embar hanigas. An themo seluon
tharpa, Hoyko en malt rockon.
THE FREKKENHORST ROLL. 69
Uan Uiiarautliavpa ; Gunzo tuenthig niiiddi rockou.
Uan Bergliem ; Eilsuitli alite tein muddi rockoii ende elfefta liaK muddi ger-
stinas maltes. An tliemo seliion tliarpa, Sizo alite tein muddi rockon ende
fifte half muddi gerstiuas maltes.
(2.)
Thit sint tliie sculdl the an thena Hof geldad.
Uan Walegardon ; Haddo en malt gerston, ende tuenthig muddi hauoron.
Reingier uan Uualegardon, ses muddi gerston, ende tue muddi huetes. Hitzel,
uan thero Musna, fif muddi gerston. Thiezo, uan there Musna, ses muddi
gerston.
Uan Anon ; Jeliko ; en malt gerston.
Uan Ueltzeton ; Tliieziko en malt gerston.
Uan Slade ; Abbilco sestein muddi rockou.
Uan Sahtinhem ; Hoyko en malt rockon.
Uan Rehei ; Lieuiko en malt rockon.
Uan Giflahurst ; Lanzo en malt rockon.
Uan Mottonhem ; Sizo en malt rockon.
Uan Belon ; Atzeko tuentilic muddi rockon ende en malt gerston,
Uan Meinbrahtingtharpa ; hillo en gerstin malt ende ses muddi huetes.
Uan lezi ; EaziliO tue miuldi huetes ende tliru muddi rock. Liuppo, uan
themo Asteruualdc, tue muddi hvetcs ; sin nabui- tein muddi comes, ende
tue muddi huetes.
Uan Uornon ; Sello en malt gerston.
(3.)
Thit suit thie sculdi uan themo Houa seluamo ; uan Lecmari, ses muddi ger-
stinas maltes uppen spilveri, ende en ko, ende en kosum, ende tue specsuin,
ende tue suiu ii'o ia huethar ahte pemiingo uuerth, ende thrio anger fieri, ande
thritich kieso, ende thriu half embar smeras, en gi scethan ende tue huite,
ende fieri ende thritich honero, ende tue muddi eiro. Ende thero Abdisscon
sie tuene uan Lecmeri ende uan Uaretharpa en suin sestein penningo uuerth,
ende en scap, ende tue embar hanigas, ende en malt rockon. Ende Attiko uan
Tuierst fif sculd lakan thero Abdisscon.
Uan Smithehuson ; Azeko tuentich muddi rockon. INIanniko, uan themo
seluon tliarpa, fiftein muddi rockon, ende tue muddi melas.
(4.)
Tlutsint thie ofligeso- fan themo Houa to Be(r)uarnon (?) thuringas ende
bauon thes Helegon Auandas te nigcmo gera tue gimalena, malt gerstina ende
en god suin, ende fier muddi rukkinas bradas, ende elit te Sancte retronelhm
Missa also uilu. Ende ses muddi huetes te thero dac huilekon preuenda.
Thit sint thie ofligeso uan then Foreuuerkon. Uan Gestliuuila, ahte
gerstina malt gimalena ende tue malt huetes, ende nigon suin.
Ende uan Telgei, fier gerstina malt gimalena, cndc en malt huetes, ende fier
goda suin.
Ende uan Elislarc, tue gerstina malt gimalena, ende ses muddi huetes, ende
ana ko, ende tue embar hanigas. Thit seal lie giuan to thero Missa Sci Bar-
tholomei.
Ende uan Du.nuingtharpa, tue gerstina malt gimalena, cndc en malt huetes,
ende tue suin iro ia uuethar sestein penningo uuerth.
Uan Berniuelda, fif gerstina malt gimalena, ende fifhnu miuldi huetes, ende
fif goda suin.
70 OLD SAXON.
Eiulo uau Borga thru muddi liucfcs, cade cu gcrstin malt gimalen, cnde en
god suiii.
Endo iiaii Radistliarpa luo gcrstina malt gimalcua, endc ficr muddi liuctos,
cudo lior muddi rockou gibak, endc cu god suin.
Ende iiau Gostlau tuc gcrstiua malt giuialcua oudc ficr muddi luictcs, endc
en suin. Tliemo timmorou ficr muddi gcrston.
Tliit is fan themo ambclita uau tlicmmo Uehusa fifte half punt rockon, endc
thriutein mudili rockon. Van thcmmo ambehta Aningeralo, siuotho half
malt rockou. Van themo ambehta te Balohornon tue malt rockon. Yitu
tlieuio ambehta lukmaro, tue punt rockon, cnde nigentein muddi rockon. Van
themo auibehta tc Uavctharpa ; en punt rockon. Thes sindon alius ahte inint
ende fierteiu muddi gerstinas maltes.
Te Aningeralo ; Waliko sesteui muddi gei'stinas maltes.
Te Pikonhurst; EUko tue muddi rockou, ende tier muddi gerston.
Te Stenbikie ; Eilo tue muddi huctes.
Te Hasleri ; Hiddildn tue muddi huetes.
In Natiuitate Dni X. ul. ordei, te themo hereston altare et XVI. m auene.
Addiuidendu singulis altaribus. Ende tharto Villi, ruslos, ande ses X.
stukkie llesscas de coquina. Et Archipresbitero en malt gerston, et in Quadra-
gesima. VI. m ordei ende tue malt gerston themo hudere. Et Decano semel in
anno VIII. m. auene.
In UigUia Natiuitate Dni. en malt to then liiuppenon, ande to themo in gauge
thero iungerono en half malt. _
Ande to Sci lohanuis Missa fier in. ande to octab. Dni et in Epiphan Dni
simihter. Et in xinuiuersario See Thiedhild — to then neppenon, ande to then
almoson, ande to themo ingauga thero iungereno txie malt. Et in Cena Dni,
et Inuentione Sancte Crucis, et in Festiuitate Omniu Sco simihter. Ande te
thero lieth Missa tier m maltes. te themo inganga thero iungereno. Ande alle
thie Sunnondage an thero uaston, ande te See Marion missa an thero uaston,
similiter. Ande te Paschon en half malt then iungero inte gande. Ande te
then neppinon en ful malt. Ande te thero cruce uuikon en malt then iungeron
inte gande. Ande te Pinkieston en half malt in te gade then iungeron, ande
en malt to then neppinon.
In Festiu Sci Bonifacii, en half malt then iimgeron inte gande. Ande te
thero Missa Sci Uiti. fier m then iungeron inte gande, Ande te then midden
sumera VI m inte gande then iungeron. Ande te thero missa sci Petri simi-
hter. Ande te then misson bethen See Marie smiiliter. Cosme et Damiaiii,
fier n°i. te themo in ganga. Antonii et Conii simihter. In Festiu Sci Michah.
\'I. m. te themo uiganga. In Adventu Dni fier in. te themo inganga. In
Festiu See Andree similiter. Et in Festiu Sci Maximi simihter. Themo koka
fier in gerston. Themo bakkera similiter. Then maleren VI. m an. te than
quernon, endi fier in gerston fan themo necessario. Themo maltere VI. lii.
au te than quernon, uau then sue('g)geron, en- m gerston Ekgou. Then kiete-
laren XVIII. in. gerston. Te Sci Laurentii missa endi te Sci Mathei Missa
VI. 111. gerston then thienest mannon. Tliemo uuidera en ra gerston, te
iuctamon. Te thangimenon alemoson, te thero Missa See Marie VI. in endo
eht te See INIarion Missa sunihter. Tliesas alles sundon en endi XXX, nialto.
Fierthe half malt rockon. IIII. lii ane the rettoii praucndi, and V. malt, and
V. Ill to themo meltetha, si sestein peiiningo uuerth.
Thit bared to thero uuinuard. Van Liuzikon themo ammaht iiianne tuulif
kiesos, ende tuena pcuniuga ende tue muddi rukkiuas iiielas, ende her penning
uuerth pikas.
THE FREKKENHORST ROLL. 7l
Uan Aningeralo ende nan Baleliaruon tliie ammatli man iro ia uuetliar also
uilo.
Uan lukmare Hizel ende Jezo uan Faretliarpa iro ia uuetliar enon penning,
ende en muddi rukldnas melas, ende ses kiesos.
Ende Jeso uan Faretliarpa giued eno siuon gi bunt kopan bandi ende alioro
gi bundo liuilik liebba siuon bandi.
Tbit is tliiu asna tbiu to tbomo batba bored.
De Baloliornon ; van Ebnliiu'st, enon scilling.
De Aningeralo: van Hotnon, enon scilling. Van tbenio ammatlita te
lukmare.
Uan Lacbergon ; enon lialuon scilling, ende uan tliemo ammatlita te Uarc-
tbai-pa.
Uan Uarete enon lialuon scilling.
De Tbui-ron Bokliolta nan tliemo ammatlita to tben Uelius II. scillinga.
Vanlkicon, ammatbte seal cuman XXVIII. brae ord. et XXVIIII. et VI. m.
gimeltas maltes. ord.
Tbese are the dues from the . . . Viehliof: from the Grange itself, twelve
maltings of barley, and ten maltiugs of wheat, and mittuns and mailings of
rye, and eight mittims and three mittuns of beans, and four cows, and two
porkers . . . sow four embers of butter, and all the young ones which
hereto belong, or half a hundred hens, two mittims of eggs, and three mittuns
of panick gi-ass, one salmon. And to the abbess, twelve dues of locks, and
two embers of honey, and one swine, sixteeu-pence worth, and one sheep, and
six mittuns of wheat, and ten . . .
And to the Asteronhus five maltiiigs of barley mealed on the Nativity of
our Lord, and on the FtesiUTection of our Lord, to the . . . and six
mittuns and twenty mittuns of grist, and forty mittuns of oats, and six
mittims of peas, and foiu- maltings of rye, and one niittun of wheat, and two
bacon s^^'ine, and two smne, each worth eight pennies.
From Lacseton, five maltings of grist mealed, and foiu* maltings of rye, and
one mittun and two bacon swine, and two swine, each of them worth eiglit
pennies.
From Ennesaharnon, fourteen mittims of grist mealed, and one bacon
S'Rdne, and two smnes, each of them worth eight pennies.
From Sutliar Ezzehon, Ricbraht two maltings of rye, two maltings of grist
mealed, and Jimggi from the same thorp, thirty mittuns of rye, and eighteen
mittims of grist malt.
From Fiehttharp, Aceliu ten mittuns of rye, and ten mittuns of grist malt.
. From Radistharp, Azilin a malting of rye.
From Werstar Lacseton, Lanzo twenty mittuns of rye and one malting of
grist mealed.
Fi'om the . . . Hezil twenty mittims of rye and one malting of grist
mealed: and from the same tliarp Boio twenty mittims of rye and twenty
mittuns of grist malt ; and Tiezo from the . . . one malting of rye.
From Grapftharp, Willilio twelve mittuns of rye, and one malting of grist :
Reinzo, from the same tharp, one malting of rye ; and Hemoko, from the
same tharp, two maltings of rye and one malting of grist mealed.
I'rom Anon, GhiUlio two maltings of rye.
From Smithehoson, Eizo one malting of rye ; at the same tharp Alzo
twenty mittuns of lye.
7-2 OLD SAXON.
From Hurst Emma, twenty iiiittuns of rvo.
From Weltseton, Tieziko two maltings of rye ; Bcrnhard, on the same
Ihaqi, twenty mittuns of rj'e, &c.
From Ilolonseton, Azelin one malting of rye. Wikmuncl, on the same
tliorp, and Dagorad and Azeko, the same (all lilio) to tlicm.
From Bodiolt, Tiodiko two maltings of rye.
From Oroubek, Kanko h . . . Razilvo, on the same.thoqi, also Gatmar
from the same thorp, and ten mitluns of rye. Witzo, thu-ty mittuns of rye
fi'om the same thorp.
From Grupiling, Witzo one malting of rj-e. Ratbraht, from the same
thoii>, one maltuig of rj-e, and one ember of honey.
From Saphm-st, ]\Iauniko seven mittims of rj'e, and one ember of honey.
Jazo, fi-om the same thoi-p, twenty mittuns of rye, and two embers of honey.
From Emisahum, Meni twentj^ mittims of rj^e.
From Sail Emisahurn, Meinzo thiiiy mittuns of rye, and one malting of
grist mealed. Habo, from the same thoi-p, twenty mittuns of rye.
From Dagmathon, Boio one malting of rje. Lieveken, on the same thorp,
just (all) so much.
From Thai-phimi, Kanko tiventy mittiuis of rj-e.
From Has^^•inkel, Waldiko fifteen mittuns of rye. Kanko, on the same
thoii), nine mittuns of rj-e, and on the same thoi-p, Eliko eight mittuns of rye.
Huniko, on the same thoi-p, one malting of rye, and two embers of honey.
From Herithe, Roziko one malting of rye. Hizil, on the same thorp,
lifteen mittuns of lye. Adbraht, on the same thorp, thiateen mittims of rye.
Abbiko, on the same thorp, ten mittuns of rje.
From Mottonliem, Sizo one malting of lye.
From DutUnghuson, Sicco two maltings of rye.
From I\Jiikonhem, Ubik two maltings of lye.
From Belong, Witzo sixteen mittuns of rye.
From Yomon, Sello two maltings of rye.
From Sahtinhem, Hameko two maltings of rye. On the same thorp,
Hameko, two III. sol maltings of rye, and one ember of honey. On the same
thoi-p, Hoyko one malting of lye.
From Waranthoi-j), Gunzo twenty mittuns of rye.
From Berghem, EUsuith eighteen mittims of rye, and eleven and a half
mittuns of gidst malt. On the same thorp, Sizo o-mied ten mittuns of rye,
and fifty and a half mittims of grist malt
(2.)
These are the dues which are due at the Grange.
From Walegardon, Haddo one malting of grist, and twenty mittuns of oats.
Pieingier, from Walegardon, six mittuns of grist, and two mittuns of vrheat.
Ilitzel fi-om the . . . five mittuns of grist. Thiezo fi'om the . . .
six mittuns of giist.
From Anon, Zehko one malting of grist.
From Weltzeton, Thiejiko one malting of grist
From Slade, Abbiko sixteen mittuns of rye.
From Sahteuhem, Hoyko one maltmg of lye.
From Behei, Licsako one malting of rye.
From Giflaliurst, Lanzo one malting of vyp.
From ]\Iot<^onhem, Sizo one malting of rye.
THE FREKKENHORST ROLL. 73
From Belon, Atzeko twenty mittiins of rye, and one malting of gi-ist.
From Membralitingthorp, Ilillo one malting of grist, and six mittuns of
wheat.
From lezi, Raziko two mittuns of wheat, and three mittuns of rye.
Liuppo, fi-om the Asterwald, tw^o mittuns of wheat. His neighboiu", ten
mittuns of corn, and two mittuns of wheat.
From Hornon, Sello one malting of grist.
(8.)
These are the dues from the Grange itself : Lecmari, six mittuns of gi-ist
malt and two cows, and two . . . swine, and two
bacon-s^\'ine, and smne, each worth eight pennies, and three . . . and
thu-ty cheeses, and three embers half of butter , . and two white, and
four-and-tlm-ty hens, and two mittuns of eggs. And to the Abbess, be two
from Lecmer, and from Warethorp one swhie, being worth sixteen pennies,
and one sheep, and two embers of honey, and one malting of rye. And Attiko
fi'om Werst, five dues of locks to the Abbess.
From Smithehuson, Azeko twenty mittuns of rye. IMannilvO, from the
same thorp, fifteen mittims of rye, and two mittims of melas. Azelin and Hi-
zel, from the same thorp, each fifteen mittuns of rye, and two mittuns of meal.
(4.)
These are the obligations of the hov at Be (r) varnon mealed
maltings of grist, and a good swine, and four mittuns of rye bread, and eight
to St. Petronellas ]\Iass even (all) so many ; and six mittuns of wheat to the
day ... .
These are the obligations of the Forework.
From Gestwil, eight maltings of grist, mealed, and two maltings of wheat,
and nine s^ine.
And from Telgei, four maltmgs of gi-ist mealed, and one maltmg of wheat,
and foiu' good swine.
And from Elislar, two maltings of grist mealed, and six mittuns of wheat,
and one cow and two embers of honey ; this shall he give to the ]\Iass of Saint
Bartholomew, &c., &c.
The remainder, which is as much Latin as Anglo-Saxon, is
not translated. It contains no words which have not been
already rendered into English.
In the present maps, the names, as far as they have been
identified, are as follows : —
Vieliliof; Osterhuus ; Loseten : ; Emsner; Yehtorf; Fiaestrup ;
; ; Eiuen; Schmeddehusen ; Horste; Velsen ; Holsten; Bo-
cholt ; Orbekc (?) ; GriJblingen ; ; Docmar ; Dorphorn ; ;
■ ; Mattenheim; Duttinghusen ; ; Belen ; ; ; Wa-
rendorf ; Berghem (?) ; Walgern ; Schladen ; ; Behe ; ; Men-
trup ; ; ; Telgte ; ; ; Barnesfeld ; :
§ 1 00. Next comes a similar document, only shorter, from Essen,
known as the Rotulus Essensis ; to which we may add TJte
Legend of St. Boniface, or, Fragmentum de Fcsfo Omnium.
Sanctorum, and the Gonfessionis Formula, these last two being
taken from Essen MSS,
74) OLD SAXON.
Ill the Orii/iiKtI.
Uau T^olins ; alite oudo alitodog niiulde maltcs, cndo alitc lirod, tiioiia sostra
crito, uiar iiuuUlc gorsttin. iiiar uotlicr tlicorcs hollos; to tlu-ini liogetidon, ahtc
tiau miuUlo inaltos, omlc Ihiiim uotlicr holtes, eudo uiai'litig bikcra, cudc uscro
herino iiiisso tua crukoii.
Uan EkauskeUia ; si in il iter.
Uau Rengcrenthorpa ; siiuiUtcr.
Vnn Ilxikrotlia; similiter, ana that holt te then hogctidon * * =:= *
* * * I?)
Uan Brokliusen ; te then hogetidon nigen muddc maltes, ende tuentog bilcera,
cnde tua crulcon.
Uan Horlen ; nigen ende niftcch mudde maltes, ende tue iiother Ihiores
holtes, tue mudde gerston, uiar brot, en suster crito, tuenteg bikera, endi tua
crukon, nigen mudde maltes te then hogetidon.
Uan Ninhus; similiter.
Uan Borthbeke; simililer.
Uan Drene ; te usero herano misso, tian ember honegas ; te Pincoston siu-
ondon haluon ember honegas, endi ahtodoch bikera, endi uiar crukon.
In Eiujlisli {literal).
From Vielihof ; eight and eighty mittuns =•= of malt, and eight bread (?) two
soster of peas, fom* mithms of barlev, four other of dry wood ; to the three
feasts, ten mittuns of malt, and tlu'ce other of wood, and forty pitchers, and
to oui- Lord's mass two crocks.
From Eickeuscheid ; similiter.
From Ringeldorf ; similiter.
From Huckai-de; similiter, ^^dthout the wood to the feasts * * * *
* * ::= (?)
From Brockhausen ; to the feast nme mittuns of malt, and twenty pitchers,
and two crocks.
From Horl ; fiftj^-nine mittuns of malt, and two other of dry wood, two
mittuns of barley, foiu* bread, one soster of peas, twenty pitchers, and two
crocks, nine mittuns of malt to the feasts.
From Nienhaus ; similiter.
From Borbeck ; similiter.
From Drone ; to our Lord's mass, ten embers of honey ; to Pentekost, seven
and a half embers of honey, and eighty pitchers, and foiu* crocks.
§ 101.
In the Original.
Vui lesed tho Sanctus Bonifacius Pauos an Roma uuas, that he bedi thena
Kiesur aduocatum, that he imo an Romo en hus gefi, that tliia luidi uuilon
I*antheon heton, wan thar uuorthon alia afgoda inna begangana. So he it imo
tho iegiuan hadda, so A\-ieda he it an uses Drohtines era, ende nsero Frucu
Seta Marium, endi allero Cristes martiro ; te thin, also thar er inna begangan
vuarth thiu menigi there diuuilo, that thar nu inna begangan uuertha tliiu
gehugd allero godcs heligono. He gibod the that al that folk tliis dages also the
Kalend Nouember anstendit (?) te kerikon quami, endi also that godlika tliianust
thar al gedon was, so wither gewarf manno gewilik fra endi bhthi te hus.
This word, which is also English, from the Latin modius, has been treated as
Keltic.
LEGEND OP ST. BONIFACE — THE CONFESSION. 75
Encli thanana so wartli gewonohcd that man liodigo, aliter aUero tliero waroldi,
beged tliia gehugd allero Godes lieligono, te tliiu so vuat so vui an allemo the-
mo gera uergomeloson, that wi et al hodigo gefidlon ; encU that vui, thur there
heligono getliing, hekumau te tliemo ewigon liua, helpandemo iisemo Droh-
tiue.*
In English {literal).
We read that when St. Boniface, Pope, was in Rome, he bade the Caesar
Advocatus to give him a house in Rome, that the people whilom called Pan-
theon, when there were all the heathen gods therein gone. When he had
given it to him so hallowed he it to om- Lord's honour, and onv Lady's, the
Holy INIary, and all the Christ's martyrs, to the end that, even as the multi-
tude of devils had gone therein, now should go in the thought on all God's
saints. He bade that aU the folk tliis day, the Kalends of November, (?)
to chui-ch should come, and also that when godly ser^dtfe there all done was,
every man should depart glad and blj-tlie home. And thence was the custom
that all men, at the present time, over all the world, take thought of all God's
saints, so that what we in all the year have forgotten, we should to-day fulfil,
and that we, through their holy intercession, should reach the everlasting life,
our Lord helping.
§ 102.
Ik giuhu Goda Alomahtigon Fadar, endi aUon siuon helagon vuihethon,
endi thi Godes manne, allero minero sundiono, thero the ili githahta endi
gisprak, endi gideda, fan thiu the ik erist smidia uuerkian bigousta.
Ok iuhu ik so huat so ik thes gideda thes \'uithar mineru Cristinhedi
uuari, endi vuithar minamo gilouon uuari, endi vuithar minemo bigihton
uuari, endi uuithar minemo mestra uuari, endi vuithar minemo herdoma
uuari, endi uiiitliai' minemo rehta uuari.
Ik iului nithas, endi auunstes, hetias, endi bisprakias, sueriamiias, endi
ligannias, firinlustono, endi minero gitidio farlatanero, ouarmodias, endi tragi
Godes ambahtas, horuilliono, mauslahtono, ouaratas endi ouerdi-ankas, endi
ok witidion mos felioda endi dranlv.
Ok iuliu ik that ik giuuihid mos endi drank uitliar Got, endi minas herdomas
raka so ne giheld, so ik scolda, endi nier terida than ik scoldi.
Ik iu giuliu that ik minan fader endi moder so ne eroda endi so ne minnioda
so ik scolda ; and endi ok mina brothar endi mina suestar endi mina otlira
histon endi mina friimd so ne eroda endi so ne mianioda so ik scolda.
Thes giulau ik hluttarliko, that ik arma man endi otlu'a elilendia so ne eroda
endi so ne minnioda so ik scolda.
Thes iuhu ik that ik mina iimgeron endi mina fiUulos so ne lerda so ik scolda.
Thena helagon sunnundag endi thia helagun missa ne firioda endi ne eroda so ik
scolda. Vsas drohtinas likhamon endi is blod mid sulikaru forhtu endi mid suli-
karu minniu ne antfeng so ik scolda. Siakoro ne uuisoda endi im ii'a nodthurti
ne gaf so ik scolda. Sera endi mifraha ne trosta so ik scolda. Minan dcgmon so
rehto ne gaf so ik scolda. Gasti so ne antfeng so ik scolda.
Ok iuliu ik that ik tliia giuur the ik giuuen-an ne scolda, cntU thia ne gi-
sonda the ik gisonan scolda.
Ik iuhu unrehtaro gisibtio, imrehtaro gihorithana, endi unrchtaro githan-
kono unrehtaro uuordo, unrchtaro uuerko, unrchtaro scthlo, unrehtaro
stadlo, unrehtaro gango, unrehtaro legaro, vnrehtas cussiannias, \Tirchtas
For the texts of §§ 101, 102, and 103, see Dorow's Denhndler, Vol. i. Part 2, pp.
8-7, 9, 23, 24, 29, 35, aud Lacorubkt, iu Archii fiir Geschichte cks Niederrhim.
7 c: OLD SAXON.
holsiauuias, luu'olitas auafangas. Ik giliorda lielliinuussia ciuli unlircnia
scspilon. Ik gilofcla thes ik gilouian ne scokla. Ik stal, ik farstolan felioda.
ana orlof gaf, ana orlof anti'ong. ]\Icn ctli suor an vuiethon. Abolganlied
cntli gistricli an mi liadda, cndi mistumft, cndi aniinst. Ik suudioda an
higgiomo givuitscipia cndi an flokanna. Mina gilidi endi min gibed so ne
gihold endi so ne gifiilda so ik scoWa. Ynrelito las, nnrelito sang, nngiliorsam
nuas. ]\Icv sprak cndi iiicr snigoda than ik scoldi, endi niih seluon mid unilon
xiuovdon, endi nud nuilon uuevkon, endi mid iiuilon githankon, mid luiilon
Instou mcr nnsunroda than ik scoldi.
Ik iuhu that ik an Kiriknn nnrehtas tliahta, cndi otlira mcrda them
helagun lecciun. Biscopos endi prestros nc eroda endi ne minnioda so ik
scolda.
Ik iiihu thes alias the ik nn binemnid hebbiu endi binemnian ne mag so ik
it nuitandi dadi so nnviiitandi, so mid gilonon so mid iingilouon, so hiiat so
ik thes gideda thes uuithar Godas uiiillion unari, so vnakondi, so slapandi, so an
dag, so an nahta so an huililvaru tidi so it uariu, so gangii ik is alias an thes
Aloinahtigon Godas ranndburd, endi an siiia ginatha, endi nu don ik is alias
hlntavhkio minan bigihton, Goda Alomahtigon fadar, endi allon sinan Helagon,
cntli tlii Godas manna, gerno an Godas iiuillion te gibotianna, endi tlii biddiu
gibedas, that thu mi te Goda githingi vuesan luiiUias, that ik min lif endi
minan gUouon an Godas liuldion gieudion moti.
Translation.
I confess to God, the Almighty Father, and all his Holy Saints and
. . . . all my sins which I have thought, or s]5oken, or done, from the
first tliat I erst began to work sins.
And I confess that whatsoever of this I did. I did against my Christianity,
arid agamst my belief, and against my understanding, and against my con-
science, and against my example, and against my duty, and against my right.
I confess en\des and malice, and hate and calumnies, swearings and lyings,
lusts and the loss of my daj's, overmood, and idle service of God, whoredoms,
manslaughters, over-eating and over-diiuldng
And I confess that I di-ank against God, and of my duty
took no account as I should, and wasted more than I should.
I confess that I did not lionom-, and did not love my father and mother as
I should ; and eke my brothers and my sisters and my other nearest Idnsmen
and my friends, I did not honour and love as I should.
This I confess pureh^ that I did not honour and love poor men and other
miserables as I should.
Tliis confess I, that I did not teach my young ones aiad . . . as I should.
The holy Simdaj-s and holy masses, I did not honour as I should . . Our
Lord's body and liis blood I did not take with such fear and such love as
I should. The sick I did not visit, and give them their need as I should . .
. . I did not comfort as I should. My tythes I did not give as I should.
Guests I did not receive as I should.
And I confess that I . . . that wliich I should not . . . and that
I did not . . that wliich I should . . .
And I confess unright . . unright . . and unright thoughts, um-ight
words, unright works, unright . . unright . . unright goings, imright
lyings, unright . . unright greetings, miright receptions. I heard idleness
and unclean games. I promised that I should not promise, I stole, I
. . . Without leave I gave, without leave I took. False oaths I swore,
THE ABRENUNTIATIO DIABOLI. — THE HELIAND. 77
oil the altar, rage and strife I had in me and mistrust and envy. I sinned in
lyii.g . . . and cursing. My times and my praj-ers I held not and ful-
filled not as I should. Unright I read, unright I sang, unobedient was I. I
said more and I kept silent more than I should, and myself with many words,
and \\'ith many works, and with many thoughts, and with many lusts I defiled
more than I should.
I confess that I in cluu-ch lumght things thought, and of other tilings more
than the holy lesson. Bishops and priests I did not honour and love as I
should.
I confess that all these that I now have named, and which I cannot name,
so as I did it wittingly or unwittingly, with belief, with unbelief, so that what-
soever I did agamst God's will so wakuig, so sleeping, so by day, so by night,
so whatever tide it was, so go I always in the Ahnighty God's guidance, and
on his gi-ace, and now do I tliis always j)urely in my conscience to God the
Almighty Father, and all his Saints, and all willingly in God's will to pay the
penalty for . . . that thou me to God . . . that I may live, and my
belief in God's grace and mercy.
§ 103. The evidence that the Abrenuntiatlo Didboli is
Westphalian is less conclusive than that conveyed by the names
Frekkenhorst and Essen. Nevertheless, whilst neither Frisian
nor Angle, it is referable to the pagan and semi-pagan districts of
Germany.
Tlie Orhjinal.
Q. Forsaclris tu Diobolae ?
R. Ec forsacho Diabolae, end alhnn Diobolgelde ; end ec forsacho allum
Diobolgeldae, end allum Dioboles uuercmn, and uuordum, Thunar ende Yv^oden,
ende Saxnote ende allum them unholduni the liiro genotas siut.
Q. Gelobis tu in Got Alamehtigan Fadaer ?
R. Ec gelobo in Got Alamehtigan Fadaer.
Q. Gelobis tix in Crist Godes Suno ?
R. Ec gelobo in Crist Godes Siuio.
Q. Gelobis tu in Halogan Gast ?
R. Ec gelobo in Halogan Gast.
In Eiujlhh.
Q. Kenomieest thou the Devil ?
R. I renounce the Devil, and all Devil , and I renounce all DcAdl-
, and all Devil's works, and words, Thunar, and Woden, and Saxnot,
and all the unholy (ones) who are theii- fellows.
Q. Believest thou in God the Ahnighty Father ?
R. I beheve in God, the iVlmighty Father.
Q. Behevest thou in Christ, God's Son?
R. I beheve in Christ, God's Son.
Q. Believest thou in the Holy Ghost ?
R. I believe in the Holy Ghost.
In the matter of date, the presumption is in favour of the
Ahrenuntiatio being older than anything less pagan than itself.
§ 104. The Heliand is believed, and that on good grounds, to
represent the language of the parts about Miinster. It is the
most important specimen of its class. Heliand means Healer,
or Saviour ; the work so entitled being a Gospel History in the
'8
OLD SAXON.
Old-Saxon language, and in metre. Now, although it was in
Ronie part of Westphalia that the Heliand took its form, it was
in an English library that the MS. of it was first discovered.
Hence it passed for a form of the Anglo-Saxon. But this form
was so peculiar as to require an h} pothesis to account for it ;
and the doctrine that a certain amount of Danish influence was
the cause so far took form, and gained credence, as to establish
the terra Dano-Siix.on. In the eyes, then, of Hickes, Lye, and
the older Anglo-Saxon scholars, the Heliand was a Dano-Saxon
composition, and so it continued until the present century, when
not only was its Danish character denied, but its Westphalian
origin was indicated.
Sjiccimens.
Nativitas Christi jjustorihus annunciata,
Luc. 11. 8-13.
Tlio uuard managiui cud,
Obar thesa uiiidon iiuerold.
Uuardos autfimdim,
Thea tliar, ehuscalcos,
Uta uuanm,
Uueros an uualitu,
Uuiggeo gomean,
Fehas aftar felda.
Gisaliiui finistri an tuue
Telatan an liifte ;
Eudi quam liolit Godes,
Uuanum tliiirh tliui uuolcan ;
Endi thea uuardos thai*
Bifeng an them felda.
Sie um-diin an forhtun tho,
Tliea man an ii'a moda.
Gisahim thar mahtigna
Godes Engil cuman ;
The im tegegnes sprac.
Ilet that im thea uuardos
" UuiJit ne antdrcdiii
Ledes fon them liohta.
Ic seal eu quadhe hbora tiling,
Suido uuarlico
Uuilleon seggean ;
Cudean craft mikU.
Nu is Ki'ist geboran,
An thesero selbun naht,
Salig bam Godes,
iVn thera Da-\ddes burg,
Drohtin the godo.
That is mendislo
Manno cunneas,
Then it was to many known,
Over this wide world.
The words they discovered,
Those that there, as horse-grooms,
Withoiit were.
Men at watch,
Horses to tend,
Cattle on the field.
They saw the darkness in two
Dissipated in the atmosphere ;
And came light of God
— through the welkin,
And the words there
Caught on the field.
They were in fright then.
The men in theii' mood.
They saw there mighty
God's angel come ;
That to them face-to-face spake.
It bade thus them these words,
" Dread not a whit
Of miscliief from the light.
I shall to you speak glad tilings.
Very true
Say commands ;
Show strength great.
Now is Christ born.
In this self- same night.
Blessed child of God,
In the David's city.
The Lord the good.
That is exultation
To the races of men.
THE HELIAND.
79
AUaro firilio fruma.
Tliar gi iiia lidau mugixn,
An Bethlema biu'g,
Baruo rildost.
Hebbiath that te tecna
That ic eu gitelleau mag
Uuariin uuordiui,
That he thar bmimdan ligid,
That kind an enera cribbimn,
Tho he si cumng obar al
Erdun audi himiles,
Endi obar eldeo barn,
Uueroldes imaldand."
Eeht so he tho that uuord gespra-
cenmi
So unard thar engUo te them
Uurim cimian,
Helag heriskepi,
Fon Hebanuuanga,
Fagar folc Godes,
Endi fihi sprakiui
Lofnuord manag,
Lindeo Herron ;
Afhobun tho Helagna sang,
Tho sie eft te Hebanuuanga
Uundun thui-h thin uuolcan.
Thea uuardus hordun,
Huo tliiu Engilo craft
Alomahtigna God,
Suido uuerdlico,
Uuordun louodun.
"Diurida si nu," quadun sie,
"Drohtine selbun,
An them hohoston
Hiinilo rikea ;
Endi fridu an erdu,
Fu-iho barniun,
Goduuilligun gumun,
Them the God antkennead,
Thurh liluttran hugi."
Of all men the advancement.
There ye maj' find him,
In the city of Bethlehem,
The noblest of cliildren.
Ye have as a token
That I tell ye
True words.
That he there swathed lieth,
The child in a crib,
Though he be king over all
Earth and Heaven,
And over the sons of men.
Of the world the Ruler."
Right as he that word spake,
So was there of Angels to them,
A multitude come,
A holy host.
From the Heaven-plains
The fair folk of God,
And much they spake
Praise -words many.
To the Lord of Hosts.
They raised the holy song.
As they back to the Heaven-plains
Woimd through the welkin.
The words they heard,
How the strength of the Ajigels
The Almighty God,
Very worthily.
With words praised.
" Love be there now," quoth they,
" To the Lord Imnself
On the highest
Kingdom of Heaven,
And peace on earth
To the children of men.
Good\villed men
Who know God,
Through a pure mind."
(2.)
Multitudo vtilt Christum regem facere ; qui se in montem suhducit.
Math, xiv, 20-23; Marc. vi. 43-46; Luc. ix. 14-17; Joh. vi. 13-15.
That folc al farstod,
Thea man an ii-o mode,
Tliat sie thar mahtigna
Herron habdun :
Tho sie hebcnciming
Thea liudi lobodun
Quadun that gio
Ni uurdi an tint lioht cmnan
Eftlia that he giuuald mid Gode
An thesaru middilgard,
Meron habdi,
Enualdaran luigi.
Alio gisprakun,
That he uuari uuirdig,
Uuclono gcliuilikcs.
I'hat lie erdriki
so
OLD SAXON.
Hiiisaro imarsngo,
thiiilouo imorokhiuolon,
Ku ho sulic gonuit liabiul,
So grote crnlt mid Clode.
Tliea guinuu alio giuuanl,
That sio iiio gihobin.
To Ixerofteu gicuriu iiic to cuniiigc.
That Ivi-iste ni uiias
Uuihtes uuu-ilig ;
Huaud he thit mioroldrild
]M'do eiuli uphiiiiil,
Thurh is cues craft,
Selbo giuuarhtc,
Eudi sidor gihold,
Land eudi liiidskcpi,
Thoh thcs enigan gilobou iii detliu.
Uiu'ede uiiidersacon,
That al an is giuualdc stad,
Cimingrikco craft,
Egan niosti.
I'hidi Kosurdomcs,
Mogiuthiodo niahal :
]3o thin ni miolde he
Th : r : h thoro manno spraka,
1 lebbian enigan licrdom,
Ilclag drohtin,
TJueroldlciuiinges namon ;
Ni tlio mid uuordun strid,
Uuid that folc fnrdur :
Ac for unu tlio thar he iinellde,
An en gebrrgi uppan Huh that barn
Godes,
Gelaro gclqnidi,
Endi is iiuigaron het,
Obar enne seo sidon,
Endi im selbo gibod,
Uuar sie im eft te gegnes,
Ganpren scoldin.
(3.)
Discipidi in navlcula htciun procellosum trajicicntes noctu Christum aquit iiuiin-
huhintem consjnciunt.
Math. xiv. 24-20 ; Marc. vi. 47-50 ; Joh. vi. 16-19.
Tlio telet tliat liuduuerod,
Aftar themu lande allumu,
Tesor folc niikil.
Sidor ii'O fi'aho ginuet.
An that gebii-gi uppan,
Barno rikeost,
Unaldand an is luiilleon,
Tho he thes uuatares stade.
Samnodun tliea gesidos Cristes,
The he imn habde selbo gicorane ;
Sie tueliiii thurh iro treuua goda.
Ni iiuas iin tiieho nigiean ;
Nebu sie an that Godes thionost.
Gerno uueldin
Obar thene seo sidon.
Tho letun sic snide an strom
Ilohlim-nid skip,
Hluttron udeoni,
Skedan skir uuatcr.
Skred lioht dages,
Sunne uuard ad sedle.
The seo lidandean,
Naht nebnlo biuuai-p.
Nathidim erlos.
Forduuardcs an flod.
Uuard thiu fiorthe tid
Thera nahtes cuman.
Neriendo Crist
Uuarode thea uuag lidand.
Tho uuard uuind mikil
Hoh uueder afhaben.
Hlamodiui udeon.
Storm and strome.
Stridiun feridun
Thea uueros uuider uuinde.
Unas im uured liugi,
Sebo sorgono ful,
Selbou ni uuandun,
Lagu lidandea.
An land cumen,
Thurh thes uuedercs geuuin.
Tho gisaliun sie unaldand Krift
An themu see uppan,
Selbun gangan,
Faran an fadion.
Ni mahte an thene flod innan
An thene seo sincan.
Huand ine is selbes craft
Helag anthabde.
Hugi uuard an forhtun
Thero manno modsebo.
AntU-edun that it im malitig fiund,
Te gidroge dadi.
Tho sprak im iro di'ohtin to,
Helag hebencuning,
Eudi sagde im that he iro heiTO uuas.
THE HELIAND.
81
Endi he liriop san aftar thin
Gahahom te themu Gocles Suuas,
Mari endi mahtig.
" Nu gi modes sculuu
" Fastes fahen.
" Ne si in forkt hngi :
" Gibariad gi baldlico.
" Ik bium that barn Godes,
" Is selbes sunn
" The in uuid thesnmu see seal
" Mnndon uuid thesan meristrom."
Uundun ina udeon umbi :
Ho stroni umbihring.
Pteht so he tlio an is hugi tuehode,
So uuek imu that unater under,
Endi he an theme uuag inuan
Sank an thene seostrom,
Endi gerno bad
That he ine tho he an nodiuu uuas.
Thegan an gethuinge
Thiodo Drohtin.
Antfeng ine mid is facbnun,
Tho sprac imu en there manno augegin, Endi fragode sana
Obar bord sldpes,
Baruuirdig gumo,
Petrus the godo.
Ni uuelde pine tholon,
Uuatares uuiti.
" Ef thu it uualdand sis," quad he,
" Herro tlie godo
" So mi an minumu hugi thunldt,
" Het mi than tharod gangan te tlii,
" Obar thesen gebenes strom,
" Drokno obar diap unater ;
" Ef thu min drohtin sis,
" Managoro mundboro."
Tho het me mahtig Crist,
Gangan unu tegegnes.
He uuard garu sano.
Stop af themu stamne,
Endi stridiun geng
Ford te is froiaen.
Thiu flod anthabde
Thene man thurh maht Godes.
Antat he imu an is mode bigan
Andi'aden diap unater :
Tho he (kiben gisah
Thene uueg mid uuindu.
Te hui he tho getuehodi.
" Huat thu mahtes getruoian uuel
" Uuitten that te uuarun.
" That the uuatares craft,
" An themu see innen,
" Thines sides ni mahte,
" Lagustrom gilettien
" So hxngo so thu habdes gelobon te mi
" An tliinumu hugi hardo.
" Nu uuilliu ik tlii an helpun uuesen.
" Nerien tlii an thesaru nodi."
Tho nam ine Alomahtig Helag bi han-
dun.
The uuard imu eft hlutter uuater fast
under fotun.
Endi sie an fadi samad.
Bedea gengun.
Antat sie obar bord sldpes,
Stopun fan themu strome,
Endi uuater
Stromos gestiUid :
Endi sie te stade quamun.
Lagii didandea.
An land samen.
Thurh thes uuateres geuuin.
§ 105. The following is an extract from the same poem, with
a translation into Anglo-Saxon by a modern scholar — the Rev.
J. Stevenson. It is taken from a paper on the Heliand in the
Foreign Quarterly Revieiv, for April, 1831.
Than sat im the landes hirdi
Geginuuard for them guinun,
Godes egan barn :
Uuelda mid is spracim
Spahuuord manag
Lerean thea liudi ;
Huo sie lof Godo,
An thesum uueroldi'ikea,
Uuixkean scolcliu.
Tlux'nnc sast liim se landes hirde
Ongeanweard fore tham guman,
Godes agan barn :
Wolde mid his sprsecum
Wisa word manag
Lairan thone leodo ;
Hu tha lofe Godo
On thissun weorold-rice,
Woorciau sceoidau.
a
8.0
OLD SAXON.
Sat in the oiuU suigmla,
Kiuli sail sic an lan<:jo :
I' lias iiu hold an is hugi
Ilolag (li'ohtin,
!Mil(li ail is mode :
Eiuli tlio is nmud antloc,
I'^iiisdo inid-is miordmi,
T'uuldandes sunn
Manag nuulio thing ;
Eiidi thoin nianunni
Sagde spahnn nnordun,
Them the he te theru spiacn
Crist Alounaldo
Gccoran habda ;
Hniiilike unai'in allaro
Inuininanno
Gode unertlioston
Gnmono cunnies.
Sagde iin tho te sode,
Quad that tliie sahge uuarin,
Man an thesoro middilgard,
Tliie her an iro mode iiuariu
Anne thiu-h odmodi ;
Them is tliat euuiga riki
Swido helaglic
An Hebanvmange
Sin lib fargebeu.
Time sedebat se teiToe cnstos,
E regione (et) coram hominibus ;
Dei proprius iilius :
Yolnit cum ejus sermonibus,
Sapientia dicta multa,
Docere hunc popnlum,
Qua illi laudem Deo
In hoc mimdo
Agere debent.
Sedebat se tunc atque tacebat,
Procnmbebatque se per lungiun :
Fuit illis amicus in ejus mente
Sanctus Dominus,
Eenignus in anima ejus-;
Et tunc OS reseravit ;
Docebat cmn ejus verbis,
Gubcrnantis filius
!Multa prseclara ;
Saet him tlia, and sA\'igodo
And sah and-langne :
Wios tham hold on liis hygc
Ilalig drihten,
^lild in his mode ;
And tha his ninth onleac
"Wisadc mid his wordmn
Wealdandes sunu
^Manag majrlic thing ;
And tiiam mannuiu
S*gde swresiun wordum
Tlnem the he te th£ere spraece
Crist Alwealda
Gecoren hsefde
H^\'ilce wseron allera
Earm-manna
Gode weorthestan
Gimiena cynnes.
He ssede liim tlia to sotlie,
Cwieth that hi selige wteron,
Mamie on thissun middan-geardc,
Tha her on heora mode wferon
Earme thruli eadmode ;
Thsem is sehfes rice
Swithe hselaglic
An Heofen-wange
Sin lif forgifen.
Tlie same in Latin.
Et illis hominibus
Dixit sapientibus verbis
His quos ille huic sennoui
Christus omnipotens
Electus erat ;
Qui fuerunt, omnium
IMiseroriuu
Deo maxime dilecti
Homimnn gentis.
Narravit iUis tunc pro certo,
Dixit, eos faustos esse,
Homines in banc orbe,
Qui hie, in eonim mente erant
Pauperes humihtatis causa ;
Illis est ista ajterna regio,
Yalde sanctum munus
In Cceli campo
Pei"petua vita data.
§ 106. The following specimens are known under two names ;
as the Glossce Lipsienses and as the Carolinian Psalms. Of
these, the lirst arose out of the fact of the famous Lipsius
having been the first to draw attention to them. • Instead, how-
THE CAROLINIAN PSALMS. 83
ever, of cop3'ing them in full, he contented himself with select-
ing the chief words : a proceeding which gave to his specimens
the character of glosses rather than aught else. The text, of
which the first portion was given in extenso by Von de Hagen,
A.D. 1816, was accompanied by the opinion that it was re-
ferable to the age of Charlemagne ; an opinion adopted by both
Ypeij and Clarisse, from whom the following specimens are taken.
Whether they are Old Saxon in the strictest sense of the word
is doubtful. They are treated by the above-named writers as
samples of the Old Dutch of Holland.
From the Text of A. Ypeij.
J'aalKiuulig Maijazijn. P. 1, No. 1. — p. 74.
PSALM LV.
2. Gehori Got gebet miii, in ue fm'uiiir [p] bicla mina ; tlienko te mi in
geliori mi.
3. Gidruouitbin an tilogon miuro, in mistrot bin fan stimmon fiundes, in fan
arbeide smidiges.
4. Uuanda geneigedon an mi unreht, in an abulge unsuoti uuaron mi.
5. Herta min gidruouit ist an mi, in forta duodis fiel ouir mi.
6. Forthta in binonga qiiamon oner mi, in bethecoda ml thuistermissi.
7. In ic quad "uuie sal geuan mi fetberon also duuon, in ic fliugon sal, in
raston sal."
8. Ecco ! firroda ic fliende, ende bleif an eudi.
9. Ic sal beidan sin tliie belialdon mi deda fim luzzUlieide geistis in fan
geiiuidere.
10. Besciu-gi Herro, te deile tunga iro, uuanda ic gesag unribt in fluoc an
burgi.
11. An dag in an nabt umbefangan sal sia oui); mui-a ii'o, unreht in avbeit
an mitdon iro in unrelit.
12. In ne te fuor fan straton iro prisma in losunga.
13. Uuanda of fiunt fluldt mi ic tholodit geuuisso ; in of tbie tbie batoda
mi, ouir mi mikila thing spreke, ic burge mi so mohti geburran fan imo.
14. Tbu geuuisso man einmuodigo, leido min in cimdo min.
15. Thu samon mit mi suota nami mnos : an huse Godes giengon uuir mit
geluni.
10. Ciun dot ouir sia, in nithk stigin an hellon libbinda. Uuanda arbeide
an seletbe iro, an mitdon ini.
17. Ic eft te Gode riepo, in Herro bebielt mi.
18. An auont in an morgan in an mitdondagc tellonsal ic; in kundon, in bo
gehoron sal.
19. Irlosin sal an frithe sela mina fan then tliia ginacont mi, uuanda under
managon he uuas mit mi.
20. Gehorun sal got in ginetheron sal sia, thie ist er uueroldi.
21. Ne geuuisso ist ini uuihsil : in no forchtedon Got. Theneda hant siua
an uuitherloiii.
22. BeuuoUon urcuntscap sina tedcilda sint fan abulgi ansceines sinis ; in
ginekeda herta sin. Geuueicoda sint uiiort sin in ouir olig, in sia sint giscot.
23. Uuii-p ouir herrin sorga thiua, inde he thi tion sal, in ne sal giuon an
iuuon uuanldlheide rehlikin.
G 2
84 OLD SAXOX.
^i. Tim gomiisso got Icidon salt sin an puto anfrison. MiUi bluotlo in losa nc
solun geiuitilelou claga iro. Ik eft ic gotruou sal an tlii lierro.
rSALM LVI.
'2. Ginatlu mi Got uuanda trat mi man. Allan dag anafehtondc uuito-
noda mi.
3. Traduu mi liunda mine allan dag, nnanda manage felitinda angcgin mi.
4. Fan hoi dagis fortin sal ik. Ic geuiiisso an tlii sal gitruon.
5. An Gode sal ik luoan nuort miii, an Gode gitruoda ic. Ni sal ic fortan uuad
duo mi fleisc.
6. Allin dag uuort niina fanuiicton angegin mi. Alia gethaliti iro an uncle.
7. Ununun solim in bergin salun sig. Sia fersna min keuuarun sulun.
8. Also tholudim sila mina fur nicuuethe behaldoua, saltu duon sia an abulge
folc te brecan saltu.
9. God ! lif min cundida tlii. Tliu sattos tranu mina an geginuuirdi tliinro.
10. Also in angeheite tliiuro than bekeron salim liunda mine behaluo. In
so uuiUldn dage ic ruopdu, ecco ! bicanda uuanda got min hist.
11. Aji Gode sal ic louan uuort, an Herro sal ic louan uuort, an Gode
giti'uoda ik ; ue sal ik fortan uuad duo mi man.
12. An mi sint, Got, geheita thinro, tliia ik sal geuan louis tlii.
13. Uuanda thu generedos sila mina fan dode in fuoti mine fan glideu, that
ic like fore Gode an liohte libenden.
PSALM LYII.
2. Ginatlu mi Got ginathi mi, uuanda an thi gitruot sila min. In an scado
fitheraco thini'o sal ic gitruon luitis farhet unreht.
3. Ruopen sal ik te Gode hoista, Got thia uuhala dida mi.
4. Sanda fan Himele in ginereda mi ; gaf an bismere te tradon mi.
5. Santa Got ginatha sina in uuarheit sina, in generida sela mina fan mitton
uuelpo leono. SUp ik gitbuouit. Kint manno tende u'O geuuepene in sceifte,
in tunga iro suert scarp.
0. Irheui tlii ouii- Ilhuila Got, in an alleri u-tlien guolilvkeide thine.
7. Stric macodon fuoti mina, in boigedou sela mina. Giniouon furi antsceuie
min gruoua iu fielon an tliia.
8. Garo lierta min, Got, garo lierta min ; singin sal ic in lof quethaii.
9. Upsta guoKhheide mina, upsta psaltare iu cithara. Up sal ik stan adro.
10. Bigian sal ilv thi an folkou, Hcrro. Lof sal ik quethan thi an thiadi.
11. Uuanda ginukilot ist untes te Himelon ginatha thin, inde iintes te uulco
uuarheit tliin.
12. Upheue thi ouir Himila, Got, in ouir alia ertha guohheide thuie.
PSALM LVIII.
2. Of giuuaro geuuisso rilmussi spreket, relilico hduomit Idnt manno.
3. Geuuisso an hertin unriht luiii-kit an ertlion, an unreht liende iuuua
macunt.
4. Gifiroda sint sundiga fan uuambun, irrodon fan riue spracun losathing.
5. Heimodi imi aftir gelicnussi slangin also aspidis douuero in stuppendero
oron iro.
0. Thie ne sal giliorin stimma angalendero hi tonferis galendiro uuisUco.
7. Got tebrican sal tende u'o an munde iro ; kinnebaco leono sal tebrican Got.
8. Te nieuuethe cumum sulun also uuatur rinende ; thenit bogo sina untes
Bia ummethiga uuertliin.
9. Also uuahs that flutit ginumena uuerthunt, ouir fiel fuir in ne gesagou
gunna.
THE CAROLINIAN PSALMS. 85
10. Er faruamin tliorna iuuua liagiiitliorn, also libbende also an abulge
arsuuelgit sia.
11. BHthon sal rehUco so he gesiet mu-aca. Hencli sina uuascon sal an bluodi
sundigis.
12. In quetlian sal man of genuisso ist uuasmo rihlico. Geuuisso ist Got
ii-duomindi sia erthon.
PSALM LXVIII.
2. Upstandi Got in testorda uuertliin fiimda srna in flient tliia batodon imo
fan antsceine sinin.
3. Also teferit roue tefarin, also flutit uualis fan antsceine fim'is. So farfarin
siuidiga fan antsceine godis.
4. In rebtica goiima uuii-kint in mendint an antsceine Godis, in gelienent an
blitbone.
5. Singet Gode lof quetbet namon sinin, nueg uuii-kit imo tliia iipsteig oiiir
nitbegang. Herro namo imo.
0. Mendit an geginuiiirdi sinro. Gidruoueda uuertliint fan antsceine sini-o
fadera nneisono in scepenin uuidouuano.
7. Got an stede beilegono sinro, Got tbie anuuano duot einis sidin an bnse.
Tbie untleidende bebundona an stercke also tliia tliia uiiitborstridunt tliia
nnonunt an gi'auon.
8. Got mit so tliu giengi an geginuuirdi folkis tliinis ; so tliu tburolitbi an
nustinon.
0. Ertba irruort ist ; geuuisso liimela druppon fan antsceine Godis Sinai, fan
antsceine Godis Irl.*
10. Regin uuilligin utsceltlion saltu got erui tbinin in ummabtig ist. Tliu
geuuisso tbiu'o fi-emidos sia.
11. Quiccafe tbiua uuonon suluii an iro. Tliu geruuidos an suotit liinro Got.
12. Herro giuit wort predicodon mit crefte mikilii-o.
13. Cunig crefte lieuis lieuis, in scuonis liusis te deUine giruouin.
14. Of gi slapit under mitdon sumnungiui, fetberon duuon fersHuedero, in
afrista rugis iro an bleike goldis.
15. So undirsceitit liimilisco cmiinga oiur sia —
16. Fan sneue uuita sulun uuertliun an Selmon berg. Godis berg feit, berg
sueuot, berg feitit.
17. Uuaint gi, berga, gequalilit ? Berg an tbemo uuala gelicast ist Gode te
uuonone an imo. Geuuisso Herro uuonon sal an ende.
18. Rediuuagon Godes mit ten tbusint manobfalt tbusint blitbendero. Herro
an ini an Sinai an HeUigon.
19. Vpstigis an boi, nami liafta antfiengi, geua an mannon. Geuuisso ne
uugelouuinda an te uuonene Herro Got.
20. Geuuiet Herro an dag daga uuelikis gisunda farbt duon sal ims Got sal-
dano unsero.
21. Got unser Got bebaldana duonda ; in Ilen-in Herrin utfabrt dodis.
22. Nouantob Got te brecan sal liouit liiuido sinro an misdacUn iro.
23. Quad HeiTO fan Basan bckeran sal ic ; keron an dubi seuucs.
24. That natuuertbe fuot thin an bluode ; tunga hundo thinro fan fiundun fan
imo.
25. Gesagon ganga tbina Got ganga Godes minis, cuninges minis, tbie ist
an heiUgin.
26. Fiui quanion fiirista gefuogeda singindon, an midlon tbioruo timparinno.
Israel.
so OLD SAXOK
27. An Siiinnungun gouuiot Ge">(.Ie Ilcrvou fan bninuon Isrl.
28. Thar IJouiamin iun<i;olig an miiotlis oiiiirercli, fiuista Juda leiclora iro,
furista Zabiilou, fuiista Neptlialim.
29. Gebiiit God crofti tliini-o ; gefesti that, Got, that tu xiuorktus an iinsig.
30. Fan diiomc thinin an Icrhu * thi offron sulun cnninga geuon.
31. Rofang dior riedis, sanniunga stiero an cuou folico, that sia ut scicthin
thi thia gecoroda siut mit sihior.
32. To stori tliiadi tliia miiga uuihint: cummi sulun bodon fan Aegipto,
Aothiopia furionnuin sal lioiude iro Gode.
33. lUki crtlion siugit godc. siiigit liemn.
34. Sangit gode thia npstigit ouii- himcl himcles te osterlialuon.
35. Ecco! gcuon sal stiiuma sinro stemma crefte geuet guoliclieide Gode ouir
Istr.f mikili siu in craft sin craft sin an uulcun.
3C. Yimderlic Got an heiligon sinin, God Irl liie geuon sal craft in sterke
folkis sinis. Geuuiit Got.
rSALM LXIX.
2. Behaldan ini duo Got, uuanda ingiengon uuatir untes te selon minro.
3. Gestekit bia ic an leimo diupi, in ne ist geuuesannussi. Ic quam an
dioj)i seuues, inde geuuidere bescendida mi.
4. Ic aruidoda ruopinde : lieisa gidana uurthuu kelon mina, te fuoron ougon
min sal ic gitruon an gode niiuiu.
6. Gimanocli foldoda siut ouir locka houidis minis thia hatodon mi thanlds.
Gesterckoda siut tliia heftidon mi fiunda mini mit um*ehte tliia ic ne nam thuo
fargalt.
G. Got thu uueist imuuiti mine, in misdadi mina fan thi ne siut beholona.
7. Ne seaman sig an mi thia bidint thi Herro, Hen-o crefte. Ne uuerthin
gescemdit ouir mi thia suocunt thi Got Isralielis.
8. Uuanda thm-o thi tholoda ik bismer bethecoda scama antsceini min.
9. Elelendig gedan biu bruothron minon in fremithi kindou muodir miuro.
10. Wanda ando buses thinis at mi, in bismer lastriudero tlii fielon ouir mi.
11. In ic thecoda an fastingon sela mina, in gidan ist an bismer mi.
12. In gesatta uuat min te heron, in gedan bin ini an spelle.
13. Angegin mi spracon thia saton an i^ortuu, in an mi sungun thia druncun
iiuiu.
14. Ic geuuisso gebet min te thi Herro, tit uuala te likene Got. An menege
ginathon tliinro gehori mi an uuarheide saldun thim-o.
15. Genere mi fan horouue that ne ic inne stecke genere mi fan then tliia
liatodon mi, in fan diopithou imatiro.
10. Ne mi besenki geuuidere uuateres, nohue farsuelge mi diupi, noli ne
antlucke oviir mi putte munt iro.
17. Gehori mi Herro, uuanda guot ist ginatha tliiua, aftii- menege ginathono
tliiiu-o scauuuo an mi.
18. In ne kere antsceine thin fan knapin thinin, uuanda ic geuuithenot
iiuii'tlion sniumo gehori mi.
19. Tliende selon miiu'O in ginere sia, thuro fiunda mina irlosi mi.
20. Thu uuest laster minin in scama mina in unera mina.
21. Aji geginuuirdi tliinro sint alia tliia uuitoiiont mi. Lasteris beida berta
min in ai-muodis, in ic beid thia samon gedruouit uuirtlii in ne uuas the
getrostoda in ne fant.
22. In gauonan muos min galla, in an thurslc min drenkcdon mi mit ctigo.
* Jerusalem. -j- Israel,
THE CAROLINIAN PSALMS. 87
23. Uucrtlie clisc iro fuii iui au stricko, in an uuitlierloron in an besuiclieide.
24. Duncla unertliiu ougon iro that sia ne gesian in rukgi ire io an crumbe.
25. Utguit ouii- sia abnlge tliina, in heitmuodi abulge thinro befangi sia.
26. Uuertlie unonmiga iro uuosti, in an selethon ii-o ne sia thia uuone.
27. Uuanda thana tbii sluogi ehtidou sia, in oner ser uiuidcno niiuro geoco-
don.
28. Gesette unrebt ouir nnrebt iro, in ne gangint an rebtmissi tbin.
29. Fardiligon iiuertlun fan buoke bbbendero, in mit rebtlicon ne uuertbou
gescriuona.
30. Ic bin arm in tregbaft, salda tbin Got antfieng nii.
31. Louon sal ic namo Godis mit sange, in gemikolou sal ic imo an loue.
32. In gelicon sal it Gode ouii- calf niinniborni forlibrenginde in clauuon.
33. Gesian arma in bbtlii, suokit Got in libbim sela iuuua.
34. Uuanda geborda arma HeiTO, in gibundana sina ne faruuirp.
35. Lotiin imo himela in ertba sen in alia criepinda an ini.
36. Uuando Got bebaldan duon sal syon in gestiftoda siilim uuertliim burge
iudae. In uuaniui sulun tbar in mit erui geuninnon sulun sia.
37. In cimni scalco sinro nieton sal sia. in tliia minnimt namo sinan uuonon
sulun an imo.
PSALM LV.
Literal translation.
1. Hear God bidding mine; and not fore-wai-p (reject) biddings mine; tbink
to me ; and bear me.
2. Saddened be (I) on toil mine ; and mistrust be (I) from voice enemies'
(fiends), and fi-om labom- (of the) sinful.
3. When then they charged on me unrigbt, and on rage unsweet were
(to) me.
4. Heart mine is troubled on me, and fright death's fell over me.
5. Fright and trembhng came over me, and decked (covered) me darkness.
6. And I quoth, " Who shall give me feathers al-so-as (of a) dove; and I flee
shall, and rest shall."
7. Lo ! I went far flpng, and remained in the ^^^lderness.
8. I shall bide them ^\ho held me do (make me safe) from Httlehood of ghost
(sinking of spirit), and fi-om the weather (storm).
9. Be-scourge Lord ! to deals (in pieces) tongues their, when I saw mi-
right and cm-smg in the borough (citj;).
10. On day and night shall they be surroimded with over their walls, un-
rigbt and labom." in middle of them, and unrigbt.
11. And not depart fi-om streets their . . . (?) and Ijong.
12. When if a fiend (enemy) cm-sed me I (had) borne it j^viss (certainly) :
and if they that hated me over me mickle tiling spake, I had bm-rowed
(hidden for protection), as I might biu-row from them.
14. But it lias thou, j^mss, a man one-moody (simi^le in mood) ; leader mine,
and known-one mine.
15. Tliou, together with me sweet mmmedst (tookest) mess : on God's
house gang we with pleasure.
16. Come death over them, and netherwards let them stodge (go) on Hell
living. When craftiness in their cliambers, in middle then- (the middle of them).
17. I after to God cried : and the Lord held me.
8S OLD SAXOX.
18. On cvoii. and on morning, and on mid-daj', tell shall I, and malvO
knowni, and Iio hoar shall.
10. Loose shall on peace soul mine from them who vexed me when under
(amongst) many he was with me.
iiO. Heai- shall God, and lower them : who is ere (before) the world.
•21. Not, ywiss, is to them change; and not feax'ed God. He stretched his
hand in retaliation.
2-2. They doiilod their agreement ; to-dcalcd (divided) arc from anger of his
on-shine (coimtcnance) ; and .... hearts their. Weakened (soft) arc
words his over (more than) oil, and they are shot.
23. Warp over the Lord sorrow thine, and he thee save shall, and ne shall
give for aye weakness to the right-wise.
24. Thou, j'wiss, God lead shall them on tJie pit of hoiTor. ]\Icn bloody
and lying ne shall mid-deal (halve) days their. I after trow (believe) shall on
the Lord.
The same from the English Old Testament.
1. Give ear to my prayer, O God ; and hide not thyself from my supplica-
tion.
2. Attend unto me, and hear me : I moum in my complaint, and make a
noise ;
3. Because of the voice of the cncmj^ because of the oppression of the
wicked : for they cast iniquity upon me, and in wrath they hate me.
4. My heart is sore pained within me : and the terrors of death are fallen
upon me.
5. Fcarfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath over-
whelmed me.
6. And I said, Oh that I had -^ings like a dove ! for then would I fly away,
and be at rest.
7. Lo, then would I wander far off, and remain in the wilderness.
8. I would hasten my escape from the wdndy storm and tempest.
9. Destroy, 0 Lord, and divide theii" tongues : for I have seen violence and
stiife in the city.
10. Day and night tliej^ go about it upon the walls thereof: miscliief also and
sorrow are in the midst of it.
11. Wickedness is in the midst thereof: deceit and guile depart not from
her streets.
12. For it was not an enemy that reproached me ; then I could have borne
it : neither was it he that hated me that did magnify liimself against me ; then
I would have hid myself from liim :
13. But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and mine own acquain-
tance.
14. We took sweet counsel together, and walked imto the house of God in
company.
15. Let death seize upon them, and let them go do^^•n quick into hell: for
wickedness is in their dwellings, and among them.
16. As for me, I will call upon God; and the Lord shall save me.
17. Evening, and morning, and at noon, wall I pray, and cry aloud : and he
shall hear my voice.
18. He hath delivered my soul in peace fi-om the battle that %cas against me :
i.:v there were mauv with me.
THE CAROLINIAN PSALMS. 89
19. God sliaU lieav, and afflict them, even he that abideth of old. Selah.
Because they have no changes, therefore they fear not God.
20. He hath put forth liis hands against such as be at peace with hiin : lie
hath broken Ids covenant.
21. The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war tvas in his
heart : Ms words were softer than oil, yet were they drawn swords.
22. Cast thy bmxlen upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee : he shall
never suffer the righteous to be moved.
23. But thou, O God, shall bring them down into the pit of destruction :
bloody and deceitful men shall not live out haK their days ; but I will trust in
thee.
The same in Dutch (from the Taalhundig Magazljn).
1. Hoor, God ! niijn gebed, en verwerp niet mijne bede ! denk tot (aan) mij,
en hoor mi !
2. Ontroerd ben ik en mijne bezigheheden en misstrootig ben ik vande stem
des vijands en van het leed (mij) van den zondigen (aangedaan).
3. Want zij neigden op mij het oni-eght, en in verbolgenheid waren zij mij
onzoet.
4. Mijn hart is ontroerd in mij, en de vries des doods overveil mij.
5. Vries en beving kwamen over mij en duisternis dedeckte mi.
C. En ik zeide, " wie zal mij gevenvederen als van eene duif; en ik sal vlie-
gen en zal rusten."
7. Zie ik ververde vliedende ende bleef in de woestijn.
8. Ik zal beiden Hem, die mij behouden deed zijn van luttelheid des geestes
en van onweder.
9. Werp (hen) schrilivei'wekkend neder, Heer ! vcrdeel lumne tongen ; want
ik zag onregt en vloek in den borg.
10. Bij dag en bij nacht zal haar (de stad) boven hare murcn omvangcn
onbillijkheid en leed in \\et midden van haar en onregt.
11. En van hare straten voer niet weg woekerzucht en loosheid.
12. Want indien een vijand mij vioekte, ik zoude het gewis dulden ; en indien
die, die mij haatte, over mij groote diugen sprak, zoude ik mij verbergen, zoo
het mogte gebeuren, van (of voor) hem.
13. (Maar) gij gewis eenmoedig mensch, mijn leidsman en mijn konde.
14. Gij naamt zamen met mij het zoete moes. In het huis Gods gingen -^-ij
met onderUng vertrouwen.
15. Kome de dood over hen ; en de levenden moge nederstijgen in de Helle.
Want booze arglistigheid is in hunne zalen, in hun midden.
IG. In echter riep tot God, en do Heer behield mij.
17. In den avond en in den morgen en in den middag zal ik vertellen en
verkondigen ; en Hij zal verhooren.
18. Verlossen zal (Hij) in vrede mijne ziel van degenen, die mij genaken,
want onder menigen was Hij met mij.
19. Verhooren zal God en vernedercn zal (Hij) ze; (Hij) die is eer de wereld
(was) .
20. Gewis is bij hen geene verwisscling ; en zij vreesden God niet : Hij strekt
zijne hand uit in wederloon.
21. Zij bevuilen zijne oorkonde (verbond) ; verdceld zijn zo wcgens de verbol-
genheid zijns aanschijns. En zijn hart nadcrdc. Zijne woorden zijn geweekt
en over (zachter dan) olie en zij zijn goschut.
DO
OLD SAXON.
2-2. "Werp over (op~) (lonllocrmvczorgciulo IIij zal u oiulerliouden. En Ilij
7.a\ niot tocgevcn in ccuwigliciil do wankeling van ecncn rcgtvaardigon.
2^. Gewis Gij, God ! ziilt lion loidon in don put dcr rampzaliglicid. Do man-
ncn dcs bloods on do loozc bcdiiogors zullon hunne dagou niet tot liet midden
brengen. Ik editor zal vorlrcniwoii op U, Iloor !
7. The followiiifr jxlosses arc a]so looked on as Old
§ 10/
Saxon.
!)(• porti'iitia.
Jiicitpites, tlnii liobdiga.
Triinanum, tliriliendiga.
Cani, giisa.
Dc giijantlhus.
Suhteriore (lahro), nitliiromo.
Aditnvis {narihus), criuubon.
De trniisfunncitis.
(De ilia mcKjud), famosissbna, ma-
ristiin.
Seel era to run) , fundigavrt .
Crahoiu's, liornoberon.
De pecnribus.
Dicttimnum, stafuurt.
Armos {villosos), boi.
Fulvos {color), falii
Pernicitas, taUied.
Pilis in contrarlum, strima.
Zelant, andod.
Vivacitas [equorum), quiched.
Quales umhras arietum desuper
ascendtium in aquarum specula,
. . . . sulic so the scimo
iiuas thero uuetliaro an tliemo
iiuatara. so bli iiiu-thon tliia
sciep.
Generosos (equos), atliilarion.
Burdo {ex equo et asina), pruz.
De best lis.
Pardus, lohs.
De serpentibus.
Cristrttus {draco), coppodi.
Olfacta {suo eos necat), stiuika.
Circulato {tractu corporis) ,hxm^O(\.i.
Obturgescunt, suellad.
Lacertus, egithassa.
De mimitis vermihus.
Tredonas (greci vocaitt I ig no runt
vermes), matlio.
Oestrum, bremmia.
Bibiones, uuinuiinni.
GunjulKi, luun'tra.
2'artnus {in lardo), matlio.
De 2nscihus.
Serratam cristam, scarpa»i, canib.
Tortuosa {cauda), struua.
Tngen iosum , glauuuon.
Preualidos, starca.
{Quamlibet ad cursum veloces).
AUigare 2^cdes, tragi uoti.
Concha;, scaliin.
Incremento {hinaj, imasdoma.
Turgescunt, iiuassad.
Humor evi, bled.
Tradunt, telliad.
Vicunt, nietat.
Erodit, enagit.
Negant quidam canes lutrare.
Quibus carnis in offa rana.
Viva datur, genuuelid.
De avibus,
Prepetes (volatus), sniumia.
Grues, la-aru.
Cornices, krainn.
Infiexum {collum), ingebogdon.
Luscinia, nalitigala.
Acredula, alitigala.
Bubo, hue.
Feralis {avis), eislic.
{Hie prior in cadaveribus oculum),
pietit, kanagit.
Annosa, old.
Pice, agastriun.
Poetice, scoplico.
Discrimine, scetha.
Liquescenti {auro), gemalanamo.
Deprehensus est, beuuudan uuar/(t.
Aura rum {signa sub fluctibus colli-
git), uuedaro.
Judconcm,falx, t, fegis«a.
(juud eorum colla ad singula s con-
rersiones mutent colores, so siu
nmbilocod so uuandlod siu ira
bli.
GLOSSES — CHARMS.
91
Vcnerias (aves), licrlica.
Ortigometra, ueldlion.
Semina venenorum, samun heitaruiu'-
tio.
Vctuenint, uarbudmi.
Caduciun morlnim, iiallandia sulit.
Cristis, stralon.
Oarida {avis), scricondi.
Sollertissimd, cleiilistig.
Fidlce, meridier.
Ave t ehere, liel mies.
Institutione, uan lenumga.
Rocjum {sibi construit), hap.
Ovoritm aiitem tantam vim esse
dicunt, ut lignum eis perfusum
non ardeat ac ne vestis qiiidcm
contacta aduratur, hold lescid
uuaii eia, uuadi ne brenuid.
Admixta quoque mice, mengidamo
eia et calca.
Glutinare {fenintur) vitri frag-
mcnta, renniau tibrokau gleste
hopa.
De miniitis animalibus.
Fuci {de mulo, vespce de asino),
draiii.
Cicendela, golduiimil.
Papilione^, iiiuoldaran.
Mahiis, pappillan,
Ckdcx, muggia.
UesicuJa, blasa.
Displosa, testotam.
De aere.
Suhtilis {(ler), the liluttare.
Co)nmotus {aer), geuuagit.
GehintiJnis {nuhiJis), caldondion.
Turhidentius, gesuorkau.
De IV.Jliimiiiilnis.
Increnwnto {Jiundnis), anfluzi.
Liinuin, lemon.
C'ircuitus {mid.tns), umbiueibi.
Iiistar {hestice), te thero uuis.
De terra.
{In modum) centri, dodron.
Orhis, hehhring.
Ambit, Muaid.
De Asid.
Fatescunt, tefarad.
Mercibus, medon.
De Eiiropd.
Germania, tliiudisca liudi.
De insidis.
AJiiearia, bikar.
Gummi, drupil.
Aeris, er.
Tijrannorum , mermahtigaro.
Aratro, eridu.
Sales agrigentinos, scmon salt.
Apiastro, erda.
Intervalla, etto.
§ 108. So are tlie two following charms : * —
(1-)
In the Original.
Vise flot aftar themo uuatare ;
Uerbrustun sina iietherun :
Tho gilielida ina Use Druhtin.
The seluo Druhtui, tliie tliena nisc gihclda,
Thie gihele that herf theru spiu-ihelti !
2'ranslation.
Fish floated after the water ;
Bm"st liis feathers :
Then healed him Our Lord.
The self-same Lord, that that fish healed,
May He heal !....(?)
(2.)
Gang lit, ncflb mid nigim neffi(k)luion !
Ut fana themo marge
See Dorov.', Denl-maler, Part iii. pp. 262, 263.
92. OLD SAXON.
An that ben ; fan (liemo bene
An tlmt llcsc ; ut fim thcmo flesgke
An thia hud ; nt fan thorn hud
An thesa strahi.
Druhtin uuorcho sa !
Tnnishition.
Go out with nine . . . (?) !
Out from the marrow
Into the bone ; from the bone
Into the flesh ; out fi-om the flesh
Into the hide ; out fi.-om the hide
Into these (?)
Lord, work so !
Such are the remains of the so-called Old Saxon, or the Saxon
of Westphalia — a form of speech which we must suppose to
have graduated into the Frisian on the north and north-west,
into the Angle on the north and north-east ; and into the Frank
on the south. Though specially connected with the two former,
it must, by no means, be separated from the latter : inasmuch
as it is highly probable that between the most southern of the
Saxons and the most northern of the Franks, such differences, as
existed were political rather than ethnological. This, however,
is a question on which more will be said in the sequel.
CHAPTER XL
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. PARTS OF GER-
MANY FROM WHICH IT WAS INTRODUCED. INTERNAL EVI-
DENCE. LANGUAGE. THE OLD FRISIAN.
§ 109. Of the Frisian we have specimens in three stages, and,
at least, as many dialects. It is Old Frisian that must most
specially be compared with the Anglo-Saxon.
Transition of Letters.
d in Frisian corresponds to ed in A. S. ; as ddd, rdd, Ms, strdm, ham, cap, are,
hap, Frisian ; dedd, redd, leds, stredm, bedm, cedp, edre, heap, Saxon ; dead,
red, loose, stream, tree (boom), bargain (cheap, chapman), ear, heap, Eng-
lish.
c in Frisian con-esponds to (1), the A. S. a ; as eth, te'ken, he'l, bred, Fris. ; <?>,
tdcen, hdl, hrdd, Saxon; oath, token, hale, broad, EngUsh; — (2), to A. S.
(e ; her, deJe, bre'da, Frisian ; Fris. ha^r, deed, hradan, A. S. ; hair, deed,
roast, Enghsh.
OLD FRISIAN. 93
e to ea and a A. S. — Frisian, tliet, A. S. \)at, Engl, tluit. Fris. ijers, A. S. gars,
Engl, gi-ass. — Also to eq,; prestere. Ft., preost, A. S., pricHt, Engl.; herch,
Fr., heorli, A. S., /h7Z {herg, as in iceberg, Engl.) ; meloh, Fr., meoloc, A.S.
7?i(7/i:, Engl.
i to ^0 A. S. — Fr., irtlie, A. S. eore ; Fris. /ar^<?, A. S. heorte ; Fris. Jlr, A. S.
feor ; = in English, enrth, heart, far.
jd=eoA. S.; as hjdda, heddan, hid — thetfjdrde.feof^e, the fourth — sjdk,se6c,sick.
ju = eo A. S. ; rjiieht, ryth, right— frjund, freond, friend.
Dz = K. S. eg; Fr. sedza, lidzja; A. S. secgan, licgan ; Engl, to say, to lie.
l^z, ts, sz, sth:=A. S. c or ce ; as szereke, or sthereke, Frisian, cyrice, A. S.,
church, Engl.; czetel, Fr., C7/((;Z, A. S., kettle, Engl.
c7( Fr. = /i A. S., as thjach, Fr., )jf'd/t, A. S., ^/ii^/i, Engl.; berch, beurh, hill.
(berg) ; dochtor, dohtor, daughter, &c.
§110.
Declension of Substantives,
(a.)
Substantives ending in a Vowel.
Neuter. Masculine. Feminine,
Sing, Norn. 'Are {an ear) Campa {a chamption) Tunge {a tongue)
Ace, 'Ai-e Campa Tunga.
Dat. 'Ara Campa Tunga.
Oen. 'Ara Campa Tunga.
Plur, Nom. 'Ara Campa Tunga.
Ace. 'Ara Campa Tunga.
Dat. 'Arou Campon Tungon.
Oen, 'Ai'ona Campona Tungona.
ib,)
Substantives ending in a consonant.
Neuter, Feminine.
Sing. Norn. Skip {a ship) Hond {a hand).
Ace. Skip Hond.
Dat. Skipe Hond.
Gen. Skipis Honde,
Plur, Nom. Skipu Honda.
Ace, Skipu Honda.
Dat, Skipmn Hondimi (-on),
Oen, Skipa Honda.
With respect to the masculine substantives terminating in a
consonant, it must be observed that in Anglo-Saxon there are two
modes of declension. In one, the plural ends in -s ; in the other
in -a. From the former the Frisian differs ; with the second it
has a close alliance ; e, g, : —
Saxon,
Frisian
ing. Nom. Svuiu (a sow)
Sunu.
Ace. Sunu
Sunu.
Dat. Suna
Suna.
Oen. Suna
Suna.
94
OLD FRISIAN.
riu,
Sd.vini.
Xoiii. Siiiux
Ace. ►^uiia
IMt. Sunuiu
(iC)}. Sunena
f'risi'di.
Siuia.
Suna.
Sumun.
(Siuiena).
Itcclciisioii of AdjectUes.
{a.)
Indefinite.
Ma.seuUne.
Sin(j. Xom. God God
Godene
Goda (-vim)
Godes
Plur. Norn. Gode Gode
Gode
Godum (-a)
Godera
{h.)
Definite.
Masculine.
Sinff. Kom. Gode Goda
Goda
Goda*
Goda*
Plur. Norn. Goda* Goda*
Goda*
Goda (-on)
Goda (-ona)
In respect to the Pronouns, there is in the Old Frisian of
Dutch Friesland no dual number (the North Frisian has one),
as there is in Anglo-Saxon. On the other hand, however, the
Frisians (whilst they have no such form as his) possess, like the
Icelandic, the inflected adjectival pronoun sin, corresponding to
the Latin siius : whilst, liiie the Anorlo-Saxons, and unlike the
Icelanders, they have nothing to correspond with the Latin se.
In Frisian there is between the demonstrative pronoun used
as an article, and the same word used as a demonstrative in the
limited sense of the term, the following difference of declension : —
Article.
Neuter. Masculine, Feminine.
Sing. Norn. Tliet Thi T]iju.
Ace. Thet Thene Tha.
i^
Neuter.
Xom.
God
Ace.
God
Dat.
Goda (-um)
Gen.
Godes
Kom.
Gode
Ace.
Gode
Dat.
Godiim (-a)
Gen.
Godera
Neuter.
Nam.
Gode
Ace.
Gode
Dat.
Goda*
Gen.
Goda*
Nam.
Goda*
Ace.
Goda*
Dat.
Goda (-on)
Gen.
Goda (-ona)
Feminine.
God.
Gode.
Godere.
Godere.
Gode.
Gode.
Godiun (-a).
Godera.
Feminine.
Gode.
Goda.*
Goda.*
Goda.*
Goda.*
Goda.*
Goda (on).
Goda (-ona)
Dat.
Tha
Tliere,
Gen.
Thes
There.
Plur. No HI.
Tha.
Ace.
Tha.
Dat.
Tha.
Gen.
Thera.
OLD FRISIAN, 95
The Di'inoiistratire in the limited Sense of the Word.
KeHtcr. Masculine. Feminine.
Sintj. Nam. Thet Thi se.
Ace. Tliet Tlieiie se.
Dat. Tham There.
Gen. Thes There.
In the inflection of the verbs there is l^etween the Frisian
and A. S. this important difference. In A. S. the infinitive
ends in -an, as macian, to make, Iceran, to learn, hcernan, to
burn ; whilst in Frisian it ends in -a, as maka, leva, herna.
Sincj. 1. Berne / hum.
2. Berust Thou huniest.
3. Bernth He hums.
Plur. 1. Bernath We hum.
2. Bernath Ye hum.
3. Bernath lliei/ hum.
The Auxiliary Verh Wesa, To Be.
Indicative.
Present.
Sinrj. 1. Ik ben
2. ? 2. Thu \ Was.
3. Hi is
Plur. 1. Wi )
2.1 [ Send 2.1 K Weron.
3. Hja)
Suhjunctive.
Present. Past.
Simj. 1. 2. 3. Se 1. 2. 3. Were.
Plur. 1. 2. 3. Se 1. 2. 3. Were.
/"hj^h. Wesa. i r. Pari^. Wesande. P«sf P«/t. E-wesen.
§111.
Old Frisian Laius.
Ascfja-hog, i. 3. pp. 13, 14. [Ed. Wiard<i)
Thet is thill thredde Hodkest and thes Kynig Kerlcs ieft, theter allera
monna ek ana sina eyna gode besitte umberavat. Hit ne se thet ma hinc
urwinuc mith tele and mith rethc and mith riuchta tliiiigate. Sa hebbere
alsam sin Asega dcma and dele to lioda londrinchte. Thcr ne hnch nen Ascgn,
nenne doni to delande hit ne se thet hi to lara tha Kc^'serc fon lUnne eswcreii
liebbe and thet hi fon da liodon ckeren se. Sa hoch hi tlienne to dcmaiido
and to delande tha fiande alsare frioundc, thriich des ctlies willa, thcr hi to
fara tha Keyscre fon Hume eswercn heth, tlio demande and to delande widuon
and weson, waluberon and alle werlosa liodon, like to helpandc and sine threa
knihnge. Alsa thi Asega nimth tha iinriuchta mida and tha Tirlouada pan-
nuiga, and ma hini urtinga mi mith twam sine juenethon an thes Kyninges
bonne, sa ne hoch hi nenne dom mar to delande, truch thet thi Ascga thi
96 OLD FRISIAN.
liitcknnth tliono prosteiv, liwiuidi^ liia send siiuide iuid lii;i sliiliin wosa u'jfon
lliere ludi^a Kerstenoclo, hia skiluu lalpa alio tliaiu thcr liiani scliiou nauwct
hclpa no inugc.
The same, hi Emjlhli.
That is the third dotonuiuatioii and concession of Iving Cliarlcs, that of all
men each one possess his own goods (house ?) unrobbed. It may not be that
any man overcome Imn with charge (talcs), and with summons (rede), and
with legal action. So let him hold as his Asega (judge) dooms and deals
according to the land-right of the people. There shall no Asega deal a doom
unless it be that before the Cresar of Rome he shall have sworn, and that ho
shall have been by the people chosen. He has then to doom and deal to foes
as to friends, tlu-nugh the force (wiU) of the oath wliich he before the Caesar
of Rome has sworn, to doom and to deal to widows and orphans, to way-
fai'crs and all defenceless peoj)le, to help them as his own kind in the third
degree. If the Asega take an illegal reward, or pledged money, and a man
comdct him before two of his colleagues in the King's Court, he has no more
to doom, since it is the Asega that betokens the priest, and they are seeing,
and tliey should be the eyes of the Holy Clmstendom, they should help all
those who may nought help themselves.
Later Form,
FriescJie Volks-Ahnanali, pp. 84, 85.
Dat oder landriucht is, hweerso dj^o moder her kjoides eerwe foerkapet,
jefta foerwixled mit liar ftyonda reed eer dat kind jerig is; als hit jcrich se,
lilije him cU caep, so halde hitt, ende likje liim naet, so fare hit oen syn ayn
eerwe sender stryd ende sonder schulde.
So hwaso dat kind bifiuclit jefte birawet op sjti ayn eerwe, so breckt hy
tyen lyoedmerck ende to jens dine frane (?) dat sint XXI sclulUngen : ende
aUe da lyoed agen him to helpen ende di fi'ana, dat hij comme op syn ayn
eerwe, deer hi eer hi riuchta aechte : hi ne se dat liio et seld habbe jef seth,
jef wdxled truch dera tria haudneda een, deer liio dis kyndes des lives mede
hulp. Dyo forme need is : hweerso een kynd Jong is finsen ende fitered
noerd oer hef, jefta suther wt bii-gh, soe moet dio moder her kyndes eerwe
setta ende sella ende her kynd lesa ende des lives bilielpa. Dyo oder need
is : jef da jere diore viirdet ende di beta honger wr dat land faert, ende
dat kynd honger stera wU, so moet dio moder her kyndes eerwe setta
ende sella ende capia bar .bern ku ende ey ende coern, deerma da kynde
des lives mede helpe. Dyo tredde need is : als dat kynd is al stocknaken
jefta huusleas ende dan di tiuestere nevil ende calda winter oencomt, so faert
aller manick oen sjti hof ende oen syn huus ende an waranne gaten, ende da
wylda dier seket dyn lioUa beam ende der bii-gha My, aldeer hit syn lyf
oen bUialda mey : sa we^Tiet ende scryt dat onjeriga kynd ende wvst dan syn
nakena Ij-ae ende syn huusleas ende syn fader deer him reda schuld to jenst
dyn honger ende winter ne^'il cald dat hi so diepe ende dimme mitta flower
neylen is onder eke ende onder da eerda bisloten, ende bitacht ; so moet dio
moder her kjmdes eei-n-e setta ende sella, om dat liio da biliield habbe ende
biwaer also lang so hit onjerick is, dat hit oen forste ner oen hoenger naet
forfare.
In English.
The other landright is : whenever the mother sells the inheritance of her
chHd, or exchanges (it) -i^ith rede (counsel) of her friends before the cMld is
OLD FRISIAN.
9'
of age ; when lie is of age, likes lie the bargain, let him hold it, and does
he not hke it, let liini fare (enter) on his own inheritance without strife and
without debts.
AVhoever fights or bereaves the cliild on his own ground, he forfeits ten
ledeniarks, and to the Idng's attorney the mulct is XXI schillings ; and all
tlie lede (people) ought to help him and the king's attorney that he may come
to liis own inheritance, which he owned before by right : unless she has sold,
or set (pawned) or exchanged it through one of the three headneeds (neces-
sities) by which is helped the life of the child. The first need is : whenever a
child is made prisoner and fettered northward over the sea, or southward over
the mountains, the mother must set (pawn) and sell her child's inheritance
and release her cliild and save its life. The other need is : if the years
become dear, and sharp hunger goes over the land, and the child will starve
of hunger, then the mother must set and sell her child's inheritance, and buy
her child's cows and ewes, and corn, wherewith the life of the child is helped.
The tliird need is : when the child is starlc-naked, or houseless, and then the
dark fog and the cold winter come on, when every man fares (enters) his
house and its appurtenances, and lurldng-holes, and the wild deer (beasts)
seek the hollow beam (tree) and the lee of the mountains, where it may save
its Hfe : then moans and weeps the nimor child, and shows his naked limbs,
and his bemg houseless, and (points at) his father, who should jirovide for
him against hunger and the wintry fog-cold, that he so deep and dim is
locked up and covered under the earth with four nails : so the mother must
set and sell her child's inheritance, since she has the keeping and guarding as
long as (the child) is under age, that it dies not from frost or fi'om
hunger.
In the following extracts from the Litterce Bvocmannorum,
edited by Wiarda, the translation is in German. The Broc-
nianni were East Frisians.
1.
Tliit is tliiu forme kere tlier Broc-
men keren hebbath tliet hira Re-
diewa skelin thingia hira ierim ut
and thene ende.
2.
Alsa tlia Ilediewa alra erest ongun-
gath and to liape kenien send, sa
skehn al under ena sucra eta mena
logo oppa Sente Jacobe thet liia buta
penningum and buta bedum hclpa
skele tha erma alsa tlia rika, tha
fiunde alsa tha friunde.
And sprccma thene Redicwa on
iimbe the lessa meidc icftha unibc the
Dies ist die erste Kiir, welclie die
Brockniannen gekiiret (behebet)
liaben, dass ilire Richter sollen
Gericht halten ihr Jahr aus und zu
Ende.
2.
AVenn also die Richter zuerst ein-
treten mid zusammen sind, so sollen
sie alle unter eineni (zusammen)
schweren in der gemeinen Versamm-
Imig auf den Heiligen Jacob, dass
sie oluie Pfeniiiiigen und Bitten (oline
Geld und Gunst) den Arnien helfen,
woUen, so wie den Reichcn, den
Feinden, wie den Freimden.
3.
Und bespricht man den Richter
wegcn ernes (gcnommenen) geringcren
H
98
OLD FRISIAN.
niara. sfi umliingtM'C niilli sox inoii-
jHim iindre tha forma and uiulcr tlia
othore bcniinge and hi schia tha
sogiiiida. And tlii Talcmou A\itho
tlia Sibbc tlior iir thene suercn lietli,
tlier tlia wcrde Icda skel mith sex
etluim. Aud tlii Talomon undiuige ac
nlsa lunbc tha moido and tlui Rcdiewa
driwe tliet riucht forth fon tha
Talomonnem, ther theune weldech
send. And hweder sa tha rediewa
ieftha tha Talemonne thius werde
brecht, sa reke hi tlia liudum aehta
merka, and tlia Piiuchtrum ene lialne
hageste mere, and tlii clagere bisuere
sine meide. i\jad cMuath tha Talemen
aeftha tha Rediewa tliit riucht naut
forth, sa gcie hia mith aclita merknm.
Thera Eedienaud ierim skel stonda
to tha Suniiandei bifai-a "Walbui-godei.
Isti Waldbiu-gedei a Sunnandei, sa
halde ma theune erra.
And thet weEath Bi'ocmen. Thet
ter ah'ec Redieua sette sine Helgena
monnuni enre engleskere mere Meilh
goldis thiiuui wiken, er tha Sunnan-
dei, er Ilia ofgunge eta mena loge.
And hia kethe him thene fi-ethe hi
aehta mercum. And dether aeug
liudamon tha Redieua engua skotlia,
sa felle hit a tuira wegena, and thi
Redieua bisuere sine skatha.
6-
And tha Redieua kethe ut aUe
riuchte fi-etliar fiuwertine nachten er
tha ofgunge. Vrteppese engne fi-ethe
■nitlike and hi wrwnnen werthe sa
odor grosseren Geschenkcs, so ent-
gche or (der Anklagc) mit sechs
jMiinnorn unter der crstcn und unter
der zweiten Gebiu-t und er selbst sey
der siebende. Und der Talemanu
wisse (bewiihre) die Verwandtschaft
dessen, uber den er gesehworen
hat (der unter seiner Gerichtsbarkeit
steliet) und der die zeugeii vorfiihren
soil mit sechs Eiden. Und dor Tale-
mann entgehe auch also wegen eines
(geuommenen) Geschenkes. Und die
Richter solleu dieses Recht wider den
Talcmanii beti'eiben, die alsdenn wal-
tend sind (in dem Amte stehen. Und
wenn es dem Pdchter oder dem Tale-
mann an diesem zeugnisse gebricht,
so entiichte er dem Voike acht Mai'k
und den Richtern eine halbe hcichste
Mark xmd der Kliiger beschwore sein
Geschenlc. Und treiben die Richter
oder die Talemanner dieses Recht
nicht diu'ch, so bllsen sie es mit acht
Marken.
4.
Das Jalu- der Richter soil stehen
bis z duem Sountage vor Walpm-gis-
Tag. 1st der Walpui-gis-Tag am
Sonntage, so halte man den vorher-
gehenden.
5.
Und das wollen die Brockmanner.
Dass jeder Richter bei seinem heUigen
Manne setze (deponire) ein Goldstuck
von dem Werthe einer enghschen
]\Iark di-ei "Wochen vorher, ehe er
von Der gemeinen Versammlung (als
Richter) abgehet. Und dann sollen
sie ilim den Frieden abkimchgen bci
acht Marken. Und thut dann
Jeniand aus dem Volke dem Richter
einigen Schaden, so biisse er es
zwiefach, und der Richter beschwere
Eein^n Schaden.
6.
Und die Richter sollen alle rechte
Friedensbriiche 'sderzehn Tage vorher
auserkennen, bevor sie abgelin. Ueber-
gehen sie einige Friedensbriiche
wissentlich, imd sie dessen iiberfiilu-et
OLD FRISIAN.
99
felle sene tiiiskette. leftlia uncMuchte
vtkethe, sa feUesene eufaldecli.
* * * *
werden, so bezaleii sie sie doppelt.
Sprechen sie aber dieseldeu uurecht
aus, so bezalcn sie einfach.
* * * ■*
218.
Andliwasamanemon asleyth irmare
kerka a hundert merka tha Uudem aud
sechtili tha Helguni. Nelleth liia of
tliere kerka iiaut vnga tlier tbenne on
send sa vnge tlii redieua tbiu- ur tlia
kerka sweren heth and ketbese of.
Nellatb liianautunga sa berne bi tbet
forme beken bi achta merciun tbes
seliia deis,aud imgatb bia tlieuue iiaut
of sa beme aUe sine sitbar tba becue
tbesletera deis aud sogene tba Uude
aliec liira bi acbta mercmai. Aud
boc liii'a sa tba becue uaiit ue berut
aud sine Hude naut breucbt sa la-
dema oppa liiua ali'a erist aud fiucbt
bi ^\itba gitbar sa felle bi a tii-ra
Ave<?e.
219.
Hwersama enue bogere ieftba cue
selsketta breucbt tore case alsa
monege acbta mere reke tlii bauding
tba liudem. Wertb tbi bogere sleiu
sa lidze gersfelle. Ac bert lu vter
loud and wert spreke vmbe tbet ield
sa stoude tlii banding tber to fara
tlierue iune let betb.
220.
Hwersamar enue mou nta linse
bemt, ieftba iuua wergatb, ieftba ut-
gt'ldand bine tbennawii'gie,saieldema
bine mitb tbrium ielduni aud tbet
bus te bernande and himdei-t merka
tba Liudem. And alsa monege sai'e
wergad werthat iuua ieftba uter etere
case alsa monege buudert merca tba
liudem, and alsa monege bus te
bernande.
218.
Und wo man eiueu Maun in der
Kircbe erscblJigt, so soil man hundert
Mark dem Volke und secbzig den
Heibgen bezaleu. Wollen die von
der Kii-cbe nicbt abziehen, die daiiu
sind, so gebe der Ricbter, der iiber die
Kii-cbe beeicbgt ist, bin und fordere
sie ab. Wollen sie nicbt abziebeu,
so zuude er das erste Feuerzeichen
an bei Strafe von acbt Mark an dem-
selben Tage, und zieben sie dennoch
nicbt ab, so solleu alle seine Amts-
genossen an dem folgenden Tage die
Feuerzeichen anziinden, und dadurch
jeder bei Strafe von acbt Mark das
Volk versammeln. Uud wer von
iliuen die Feuerzeichen nicbt anbrenut
und seine Leute nicbt zur stelle
bringt, so gebe man zuerst auf iliu
los, und fecbtet er denn wider seine
Amtsgenossen, so busse er doppelt.
219.
Wenn man eiueu Bogenschiitzen
oder eine, Gesellschaft (melu-erej bei
einem Streite brhiget, so soU der
Anfiilu'er so viele, dem Volke bezaleu.
Wird der Bogenscbiitze erschlagen,
so bleibt er luigebiisst. Ist er ein
Ausliiuder und man spricht lun das
Wehrgeld, so soil der Anfiilu-er dafiir
steben, der iliu liingefiihret bat.
220.
Wo Jemand eiueu Mann aus dem
Hause breuut, oder darin wiirget,
oder beraus trcibet uud denn wiirget,
so entgelte er ilin mit dreifachem
Webrgelde, und seiu Haus verbrenne
man, und hundert Mark sind dem
Volke zu entrichten. Und so viele
darin oder daraus erwiirget werden
bei dem Streite, so viele Marken sind
dem Volke (zu entrichten) luid so
viele Iliiuser zu vcrbreuuen.
H 2
100
MIDDLE FRISIAN.
CHAPTER XII.
GEmrAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. PARTS OF GER-
MANY, ETC. INTERNAL EVIDENCE. I^iNGUAGE. THE MIDJDLE
FRISIAN.
§ 112. Without deternnning too nicely at what exact time
the Old Frisian stage ceases, we may take the middle of the
seventeenth century {say A.D. 1650) as date for the fullest
development of the Middle.
1.*
Smet, ja swiet is 't, oere miete
't boaslden foar e jonge lie ;
Kreftich s^^'iet is 't, sizz' ili jiette,
As it giet mei alders rie.
!Mar oars tiget 'et to'n pleach,
As ik oan myii gcafej-ut seach.
o
" Goime Swobke, lit iiws peaije,"
Bea hj' bar mei mylde stcmm.
" Ofke," sci se, " ho scoe 'kit Idearje !
Wist du ! rie to heite in mem ?"
" Ljeaf ! dat nim ik to myn laest."
Dear mei wier de knote faest.
Da dit pear togear scoe ite,
In bja liiene nin ge\\an,
Heite seach, as woe by bite,
Mem ^^•ier stjoersch in lef fen sin.
" Ofke," sei se, " elk jier in bern.
Wier He faem ! ik woe 't so jern."
4.
Hoite in Iloatske Sneins to keamer
Mekken it mei elkoarme klear.
Tetke krigge Sjolle lu'eamer,
To Siut Eal by wj^n in bjear.
Nu rint elk om as in slet,
In bekleye 't ; mar to let.
5.
Oeds die better, nei ik acbtje,
Da by Saets syn trou tosei :
Hy liet de alders even plachtje,
1.*
Sweet, yes sweet is over measure
The.marrjdng for the young people.
Most sweet is it, I say yet.
When it goes with the elders' rede.
But otherwise it tends to a plague,
As I on my village saw.
2.
" Golden Swobke, let us pair,"
lie bade her with a mild voice.
" Olke," she said, " How should I
clear it !
Wist thou ! rede father and mother ? "
" Love ! I take this to my last."
Theremth was the knot fast.
3.
When tliis pair together should eat.
And they had no gam,
I'ather saw as if he would bite,
Mother was stern and cross of hu-
mour.
" Oflie," she said, " each year a child.
Were I maid ! I would I were."
4.
Hoite and Hoatske every Sunday in
the inn
Made it clear with each other.
Tetke got Sjolle the pedlar
To St. Alof's by wine and beer.
Now each runs about as a slut,
And complains ; but too late.
5.
Oeds did better as I heed,
Wlien he said to Saets his troth :
He let the elders even pliglit.
From tlie Preface to Dr. Boswortli's Anglo-Saxon Dictionary.
MIDDLE FRISIAN. 101
Ilwet se oan elk ick joene mei. What tliey on each {edje) side gave.
Nu besit hy huws in. sclmwr', Now he i)ossesses house and barn,
In syn hern fleane aU' man uavi". And liis cliildi-en outdo all men.
0. G.
Ork, mjni Soan, wolt du bedye, Ork, my Son, wouldst thou thrive,
Rin naet oan allyk ien moll' ! Run not on all like a mole ;
Jcld in rie lit mei dy fiye. Let age and rede woo with thee,
Bern, so gean' dyn saken wol. Child, then go thy affairs well ;
Den sen de himcl uwr Ayn dwaen Then the heaven shall give o\'er thy
doings
Lok in mylde seining' jaen. Luck and mild blessings.
The chief dassics of the Middle Frisian literature are Gysbert
(Gilbert) Japicx, from whom the preceding specimen is taken,
and Althuisen.
CHAPTER XIII.
GERMAN ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. PARTS OF GER-
MANY, ETC. INTERNAL EVIDENCE. LANGUAGE. THE NEW
FRISIAN OF THE DUTCH PROVINCE OF FRIESLAND.
§ 113. Of the Frisian, as it is spoken at the present time in
the Dutch province of West Friesland, the following is a speci-
men.
Abe in Fetse.*
Abe. — Ho djoer binne de mieren, Fetse? Ik haw jister net nei sted w«st.
Fetse. — 'k vni net ; sa liwat by de daelder om, eak ien ki-omke er oer.
Abe. — Wierne er al rju?
Fetse. — Ja, daer stiene al hele keppels. It liket dat se rom binne, mar it
wier myn soarte net.
Abe. — Heste den dyn fa3ste mieren jiers? Hawwe se hjar eigen kost,
jimme mieren ?
Fetse. — Hwet mienste ? dat ik my de eai-en fen 'e kop frette htte wol ? Ik
liaw sunmers genoach oan twa uwthongcre WalcUju, dy 't 'k by my yn de
ongetiid ha'.
Abe. — Jane jimme se den jouns eak neat?
Fetse. — Ja, den laye se sa hwat eiu heal kroiidfol suwpenbry, in dat behim-
melje se eak suwkerswiet. Ik \vit net wter se it berchje yu hjar smello panseu.
lija binne wis oars fen binnen as ien Fries.
Abe. — Ei, kom ju ! It binne ommers eak minsccn as wy.
Tlie same, in the Dutch of Holland.
Abe. — Hoe dmir zyn de mieren Fetse ? ik ben gistcren niet naar de stad
geweest.
Fetse. — Ik wect hot niet; ongeveer ccn daaldcr on cok cen kruimtje er
over.
Abe. — Waren er veel.
* From the Schecrwlnhel foi JoiUe-Bacs, pp. 1-3. — {Dimtcr, i, e. Bcvcntcr, 1835.)
102 MODERN FRISIAN OF HOLLAND.
Fktsk. — Ja, er wnvon al hoclo hoopen. Ilet schynl dat zc niim 7.yn; maar
hot warou goen van 111311 sooit.
AiiE. — Ilobt gy dim uwe vaste luioron jaarlylcs ? Ilebbcn uwc iiiiercu luiiuic
eigen kost?
Fktsk. — Wat liciloelt gy? clat ik mj' do oorcn van liot ]iof)fd v.nl laton otcii?
ik liob in den zoiuor geuoeg aau twee uitgeliougerdc Woudlicdou welke ik by
my hob in do hoojiiig.
AnK. — Gool't gy zo dan 'savonds 00k nicts.
Fetse. — Ja, dan kiygeu ze ongeveer een geheele kruiwagen vol karne-
nicllv, en dat eten ze 00k znikerzoct op. Ik weet niet waar ze liet bergen
in liunue kleine darinen. Ze zyn zokcr inwendig verscliillend van een
Flies.
Abe. — Ocb kom rcis I liet zyn immcrs 00k menschen als v,j.
In EnglinJi.
Abe. — How dear arc (whit is the price of) tlie mowers, Fetse ? I was not in
the town yesterdaj'.
Fetse. — I wot not ; about a dollar a man and a bit (crumh) over.
Abe. — Were there plenty of them ?
Fetse. — Yes, there stood whole heaps. It seemed as if there wei'e enough
of them ; but it is not my sort.
Abe. — Hast thou then yoiu- mowers regular {fast) by the year ? Do they
keep themselves {have tlicy their oirn cost) your mowers ?
Fetse. — What meanest thou ? That I should let my ears be eaten off my
head? I had enough in summer, with two starved woodland-men, that I
had with me at the liay-time.
Abe. — Did you not then give them anything in the afternoon ?
Pexse. — Yes ! Then they must have (crave) about a whole bucketfull of
porridge (soup and barley) ; and that must be as sweet as sugar. I wot not
where they bmy it in their small paunches. The}' must ywiss (certainhj) be
of a different sort in their insides fi-om a Fries.
Abe. — Come now ! They are still men hke ourselves (as we).
It Eicanf/eeJje fen Mat the wees.
1. Do nou Jesus heme wier to Bethlehem yn Judea jai kenuig Herodes
dagen, hen, binne dair wizen fen easteradelen to Jerusalem oankomd, siz-
zende.
2. "Hwsere is di kening fen di Jeuden, di heme is?" "Wy hawwe
ommers sjni stearre yn it easten sjoen ind binne komd om liim to hild-
jen."
3. Di kening Herodes nou, as liy dit hearde, waerd eang ind liiel Jerusalem
mei liim.
4. Ind di haedpresters ind di scniftgelearden by ieuoar bringende freagge hy
hjar, hwjer ch Christus heme mrde moast ?
5. Hja nou somen tsjin liim. " To Bethlehem yn Judea ; want sa is
screaun tla-och di profeet."
6. ' Ind dou, Bethlehem hln ' fen Juda ; dou biste lang di minste naet onder
di piinsen fen Juda; want uwt dy scil di liedcr foartkoinme, dy myn folk
weidje scil."
7. Do hat Herodes di wizen stilkes roj)pen, ind lii freagge hjar wakker nei
di tiid, do di steaiTC opdeage wier.
8. Da^rop hjar nei Bethlehem stjoerende sei hy, " Reisgje hinne ind formm
MODERN FRISIAN OF HOLLAND. 103
flitich nei dat bernke, iud as jimme it foun' liawwe stjoer my tjnige, dat ik
eak kom iiid it liildje."
9. Hja den di keiiing heard liawwende biime foartteiu ; iiid hen, di stearre
dy 't hja yn it easteu sjoen hiene, gong foar hjar uwt, ont hja kaem ind stoe'
boj^pe it plak, doer it bernke wier.
10. Do lija nou di stearre seagen forhuwggen hja mei wakker greate blydscip.
11. Ind yn it huws kommende seagen hja it boike mei Maria syn mem, ind
knibbeljeude habbe hja it liilde.
12. Ind hjar kastkes opdwaende brochten hja bun jeften, goald ind wierk
iud mj-rre. Ind yn di droage throch goadUke joijouwinge formoanne, dat hja
naet nei Herodes to bek gean moasteu forsidden lija lans ien oare wei wer nei
hjar Ian ta.
13. Do hja nou weitein wierne, hen, 's hearen yngel kaem as ien scynsel
foar Joseph yn di droage, sizzende, " Forriis ind min it boike ind syn mem,
" ind flechtje yn Egyi)ten, ind bljouw dagr ta dat ili it dy sizz Herodes ommers
scU it boike siikje om it dead to meitsen."
14. Hi doz forriisjende naeni it boike ind syn mem jni di nacht ind teach er.
15. Mei wei nei Egyj)ten ta, ind liy wier dfer oan di dead fen Herodes ta,
dat sa neiliomme scoe, hwat di heare spratseu liie 'troch di profeet sizzende.
'* Uwt Egypten haw 'ili myu soan roppeu."
16. Do Herodes seach, dat hy fen di -wizen betritzen \ner, wffird hy swide
grhnmitich, ind doer syn feiuteu op astjnerende bet hy alle bern, dy to Bethle-
hem ind yn hjar gerjochtigheid wierne, fen kant holpen, fen twa jier ind doer
onder, nei di tiid, dy hy wakker by di wizen uwtfiske hie.'
17. Do is utti;komd hwat fen di profeet Jeremias spritssen ^vier, sizzende,
18. " Ien stunme is yn Rama heard, geklei ind great getjhm. Rachel Kriet
oer hjar bern, md hja woe hjar naet threastje litte omdat hja wei merne."
19. Do nou Herodes uwt di tiid -wier, 'hen, s'hearen yngel kaem as ien
scynsel foar Joseph j'^n di droage yn Egj'pten, sizzende,
20. " Forriis, nun it boike ind S3'n mem, ind gean yn it Ian' fen Israel ;
want hja binne forstoarn, dy di siele fen it boike sochten."
21. Hy nou forriisjende naem it boilce ind syn mem ind kaem yn it bin fen
Israel.
22. Mar do hy heardo, dat Archelans yn Judea kening wier foar syn licit
Herodes wier hy scruten om dier hinne to gean ; mar throch ien goadeUke
iepenbieringe yn di droage formoanne is hy fortein nei Galileadelen.
2-'3. Ind daer kommende tsjorre hy liin yn di sted dy Nazareth hjit, dat sa
neikomme scoe, hwat fen di profeten sein is, dat hy Nazarenus neamd wu-de
scoe'.
The same in Dutch.
1. Toen nu Jezus geboren was te Beth-lehem, gelegen in Judea, in de dagen
van den Koning Herodes, ziet ! eenioe Wijzcn van bet Oostcn zijn te Jcruzalem
aangekomen.
2. Zeggendc : waer is de geboren Koning de Joden ? want wij hebbcu zijne
ster in bet Oosten gezien en zijn gckomen, om hem te aanbidden.
3. De Konig Herodes nu, dil gehoord hebbende, werd ontroerd en gelieel
Jeruzalem met hem ;
4. En bijeenvergaderd hebbende al dc Ovcrpricsters en Scliriftgeleerden dcs
volks, vraagde van hen, waar de Christus Zon geboren wordcn.
5. En zij zeiden tot hem te Beth-leliem, in Judea iji'lrijcn ; want alzoo is
gesclii'even door den I'l'ofoet :
101 MODERN riUSIAN OF HOLLAND.
(). '' En gij Both-lolu'iii, </ij land van Jiida ! /ijt <j;ocnozins dc niinstc ondor do
l)Oi-ston van Juda ; want uit u zal do Leidsnuin voorlkomen, die niijn volk Israol
weidon zal."
7. Toon hccft llorodcs do "NVijzon lu'iinolijk goroepcn, en vernani naavKtig-
lijk van lion den lijd, wannoor do stor vorsolienen was ;
8. En lion naor Botli-loliom zondondo, zoido liij : "reist lieen en ondovzook
naarstiudijk iiaar hot kindokon, on hols gij hot zult gevonden hebben, boods-
cha[>t hot niij, opdat ik ook komc en hctzclvc aanliiddo !"
9. En zij, den Koning gchoord hebbcnde. zijn hccngcreisd. En, ziet ! dc stor.
die zij ill het Oosten gezien liadden, ging hun voor, tot dat zij kwam en stond
bovon lie j)laats, waar het Idndeken was.
10. Als zij nu de stcr zagen, verhengden zij zich met zeer groote vrengde,
11. En in het huis gekomen zijnde, voiiden zij het kindeken met Maria,
zijne moeder ; en nedcrvalleude hebben zij hetzelve aangebeden ; en hunne
Bchatten opengedaan hebbcnde, bragteii zijhcm gcsclienkcn, goud, en wierook
en mirre.
12. En door Goddelijke oponbaring vermaand zijnde in den droom, dat zij
niet zonden Mcdorkeereu tot Hei'odes, A'crtrokken zij door eenen andercn weg
weder naar hun land.
13. Toen zig nu vertrokken waren, ziet ! de Engel de Hceren verscliijnt Jozef
in den droom, zeggende : "sta op en neem tot u het kindeken en zijne moeder,
en vlied in Egypte en wees aldaar, tot dat ik het u zeggen zal ! want Herodes
zal et Idndeken zoeken, om hetzelve te dooden."
14. Hij dan opgestaan zijnde, nam het kindeken en zijne moeder tot zich in
den nacht, en vertrok naar Egj^ie ;
15. En was aldaar tot den dood van Herodes ; opdat vervuld zon worden
hetgeen van den Heer gesprokeu is door den Profeet, zeggende : " uit Egj'pte
lieb ik mijnen zoon geroepen."
16. Als Herodes zag, dat hij van de Wijzen bedrogen was, toen word hij
zeer toomig; en eenujen afgezonden hebbcnde, hccft hij omgebragt al de kindc-
ren, die bmnen Beth-lehcm en in al deszelfs landpalen narcn, van twee jarcn
oud en daaronder, naar den tijd, dien hij van de Wijzeu naarstiglijk onderzocJit
had.
17. Toen is ver\'uld geworden hetgeen gcsprokcn is door den Profeet Jcre-
mia, zeggende :
18. " Eane stem is in Eama gehoord ; geklag, geween en vecl gckerm ; Eacliel
beweende hare kiuderen, en Molde niet vertroost wezen, omdat zij niet zijn! '
19. Toen Herodes un gestorven was, ziet ! de Engel de Heeren verscliijnt
Jozef in den droom, in Egj-ptc,
20. Zeggende : " sta oj), neem het kindeken en zijne moeder, tot u en trek
in het land van Israel : want zij zijn gestorven, die de ziel van het kindeken
zochten."
21. Hij dan opgestaan zijnde, heeft tot zich gcnomeu het Idndeken en zijne
moeder, en is gekomen in het land van Israel.
22. Maar als hij hoorde, dat Ai'chclaiis in Judca Konig was, in de plaats
van zijnen vader Herodes, vreesde hij daerheen te gaan, maer door Goddelijke
openbaring vei-maand in den di-oom, is liij vertrokken in de deelen van Ga-
lilea.
23. En daar gekomen zijnde, nam hij zijne woonplaats in de stad, genaamd
Nazareth ; opdat vervuld zon worden, watdoor de Profcten gczegd is, dat " liij
Nazarcner zal gcliecten worden."
EAST FRISIAN. 105
CHAPTER XIV.
GERMAN ORIGIN, ETC. PARTS OF GERMANY, ETC. INTERNAL
EVIDENCE. LANGUAGE. THE NEW TRISTAN OF EAST FRIES-
LAND.
§ 114. The Frisian of East Friesland is found, at tlie present
time, only in the fenny district named Saterland, or Sagelter-
land, and the island of Wangeroog.
Saterland*
1.
Ilik kahn nit sette, kalin nit stoeude,
Etter miu AUerljowste wall ilik gounge.
Delir wall ilik var de Finnster stoeude,
Bett dett de Oolden etter Bedde goiiuge.
2.
Well stand der var, well Idoppet an,
De mi so sennig apwaakje kaliu?
Det is din AUerljowste, din
Scliatz, stoend nu ap, un let mi der in !
3.
Ilili stoende nit ap, lete di dir nit in,
Bett dett min Oolden etter Bedde siint.
Gounge du nu fout in den gi-enen Wold,
Denn mine Oolden sclilepe bald.
4.
Wo lange scliell ilik der buten stoende ?
Ihk sjo dett Meddenrotli ounkume,
Dett Meddenrotli, two helle Sterne,
Bi di, AUerljowste, sclilepe ilik jedden.
The same, in the Platt-deiitsch of Vechta.\
1.
Ik kann nit sitten, kann nit stalm,
Na miner Allerlefsten ^vill ik galin,
Dar will ik var datt Fenster stalm,
Bett datt de Oolen na Bedde galin.
2.
Well steit dar viir, well kloppct an,
De mi so sinnig upwecken kann '?
Datt is din Allerlefste, din
Scliatz, stall nu uj), un laat mi der iu !
3.
Ik stall nicli up, late di der nich in,
Bett datt raiuo Oolen na'n Bedde siint.
Gall du nu lien in den groiien Wald,
Denn mine Oolen sclilapet bolle ?
* Fiimenich, p. 233. t Finueiiich, p. 235.
]0U EAST FRISIAN.
4.
"NVo laiigc schall ick clar Initon slalin?
Ick seo (lilt Morgourotli nnkanien.
Patt Morgeuroth, two hollo Storu',
By di, Allcrlolste, schlijpc ick geren.
The same in EnyUsli.
1.
I can not sit, can not stand,
After my all-dearest will I gang,
There wUl I before the window stand,
Till that the elders after bed gang.
2
Who stands there before ? who knocks {eliiji.s) on ?
AVho me so late npwaken con '?
That is tlij' all-dearest, thy
Treasure, stand now up and let me there in.
3.
I stand not up, let thee not in,
Till that my elders after bed are.
Gang tliou now forth in the green wood.
Then ni}' elders sleep soon.
4.
How long shall I there without stand?
I see tlic moniing-red on-come.
The morning-red, two bright stars,
With thee, aU-dearest, sleep I willingly.
Frisiitn.
Ihk stoende var sins Ljowstes Finuster,
Schlepst du of waakest du ?
Ihk sclilepe nit, ilik waajke,
Ihk lete di der nit in,
Ihk hcrr an din Ballen,
Dett du de E,ejochte nit best.
Un wenn ilik dann de Rejochte nit ben,
So tell 't mi an, din Wod ;
Denn ihk un din Kamerad
Wi Be, wi siint Soldat,
Wi gounge meden fout.
Un wenn wi meden fout gounge,
Wett fi'egje wi dann etter di,
So fi-eeje ihk etter vers en
Un laclije di wett ut.
Trog di ben ihk bier kemcn,
In Rig'n un in Schnee,
Kahn Wei hett mi vertrett,
Dett ihk etter di tou gounge.
EAST FRISIAN. 107
riatt Ikutseh.
Ick stall var sius Lefstes Fenster.
Scliloppst dii of waakest clu ?
Ick sclilave nicli, ick waake,
Ick late di der iiich iu,
Ick hore an diii Spreken,
Datt du de Rechte nich bist.
Un wenn ick dann de Reclite nicli bin,
So seg't mi an, din Wort ;
Denn ick un din Kamerad
Wy bej'de, wj sint Soldat,
Wi gaht morgen weg.
Un wenn wj morgen weg gaht.
Watt frage wy dann na di,
So freeje ick na auders eene,
Un lache di watt uut.
Dor di bin ick hier kameu
In Reng'u un in Schnee,
Kien Weg hefF mi verdraten,
Datt ick ua di ton gab.
English.
I stand before my love's (Uefest's) window,
Sleepest thou, or wakest tliou ?
I sleej) not, I wake,
I let you not in
I hear by your bawling,
That thou beest not the right one.
And what if I be not the right one ?
So tell it me on your word ;
For I and thy comrade.
We two, we are soldiers.
We go to-morrow forth.
And when we to-morrow forth go,
W^hat ask we after thee,
I shall com-t somebody else
And laugh at you.
Though j-ou be I come here,
In rain and in snow,
No Avay has stopped me,
That I could go to you.
Frisian.
Babbe, wett wollen wi daelich dwo ?
Du kust Heede mioh, ilik wall Eed fiiiire ; men du kust irst wci fiiiirc, un
hahlje ehn Fouger Eed, un otters kuste etter Fahn goun^c.
(Die Vent fiiuert meddcn Wajchn wci.)
108 NORTH FRISIAN.
ri'ttt Diutsch.
Pappc, watt will wy liiilo doeu?
Du kanns Ilcido iiioihu, ick will Tiirf foiiren ; man du Imims eers wegfoiinui,
nil hiihlon eon Foiijor Tiirf ; un dunu kannsto ua'u Mooro yahu.
(I>e Jiingo luiicrt iiiit dcu Wagon wog.)
Emjlish.
Father, what shall we do to-day?
Thou canst mow heath, I will carry turf; but thou canst first go awa^^ and
fetch a feed of heath, and afterwards tliou canst go to the fen.
(The boy goes a\vay with the waggon.)
CHAPTER XV.
GERMAN ORIGIN, ETC, PARTS OF GERMANY, ETC. INTERNAL
EVIDENCE. LANGUAGE. THE NEW FRLSIAN. NORTU
FRISIAN OF HELIGOLAND AND THE DUCHY OF SLESWICK.
§115. The North Frisian falls into two subdivisions, (1) the
Frisian of Heligoland, and (2) the Frisian of the western part
of Sleswick and the islands opposite.
In the parts about Husum, Bredsted, and Tondern, the Fri-
sians of tlie mainland are distributed over some thirty-eight
parishes ; thirty-eight parishes which, along with the Islands,
and Heligoland, gave, in 1852, a population of 30,000, as
against 170,000 Germans, and 150,000 Danes — the whole
population of Sleswick being 350,000.
§ 116. Their language falls into dialects and sub-dialects.
Eendsen's grammar represents the Moring form of speech, which he
considers to be the purest. He notes, however, a slight difference
of pronunciation between the natives of his own village Resum
and the village which adjoins, Lindholm. He states, too, that
in Niebiill and Deezbilll, the great characteristic of the North
Frisian, as a modern dialect, the Dual of the personal pronoun,
is wanting. Where their neighbours say,
wat=\ve two, nnk=us two,
jctt=ye two, juiik^=you two,
junken=your two,
the Niebiill and Deezbiill people say,
wu=we. iihs=us,
jam=ye. iihsen=our.
jiiringo=you.
Other pre-eminently Friese villages are Dagebiill, Fahretoft,
NORTH FRISIAN. 109
Stedesand, and Enge. For all this district, i. e. for all the main-
laud, for the islands Hooge, Langenass, Nordraarsh, Grode, and
Oland, and, for the parts about Wijk in the island of Fohr, the
dialect, bating small differences like the ones alluded to, is, essen-
tially, one. In the rest, however, of Folir, in Sylt and in
Anirom, there is not only a fresh dialect, but one wliich is not
always readily understood on the mainland.
The displacements implied by these changes are recent. Have
they been the only ones ? I think not. I think that, at one
time, the Frisian area may have extended as far as the northern
boundary of the Duchy. The northern boundary of the Duchy of
SlesAvick is also there, or thereabouts, the southern boundary of the
South, as opposed to the North, Jutland dialect, between which
there is, at least, one important point of difference ; the absence
of the post-positive article, wherein the Danish agrees with the
Friese. Nor is tliis all. The boundary was originally a forest, the
remains of which are still indicated by the names Rodding
(clearance), Oster Vedsted, Tester Vedsted, and Jemvecl ; the
old name of the forest itself having been Farris-skov, with a
Farris-bsek, a Farris-holt, and a Farris-gaard, and a Fros, either
within, or not far from its precincts. Further to the east the
Farris-skov becomes the Gram-skov,
I think it likely that, in the i^ + r of these compounds, we
have the Fr in Friese. At any rate this etymon is better than the
only one I have seen elsewhere, viz. : the Old Norse AWs + the
name of goddess Frey. A passage in Danckwert, vi^ho describes
the wood as having originally stretched from sea to sea, as having
been a mile (Danish) and a half in width, and as having, even
in his time, cleared off to such an extent as to exist in discon-
tinuous patches, puts any connection with the Jli'-tree out of the
question. It makes it a forest of oak and beech ; a wood of
oak and beech, upon the mast of which numerous herds of swine
were fattened.
§ 117. The most southern form of the North Frisian is the
dialect of Heligoland.
The Lord's Prayer.
Uiis Vaacli-, dear Dii beet un de Vergiiv iiiis iiiis Skill
Hemmel ! Us wi vergiiv iiiis Skiilniavs ;
Heilig wees Din Room ; En foore iiiis nig ilm uun Versokniss.
To iiiis kom Din Rik ; Dog erloose iiiis van dct Bisterkens,
Din Wei gescliih liiir iip de Ilir Dan Din es det Rik en dc Kraft
So gnd lis unn do IlcmnicI ; En do HcrUclikcit uun Ewigkeit;
tjiis daglili Bruad do iiiis doUeng; Arnen.^
110
NORTH FRISIAN.
Tl(e Contented IliJiijiihnnler.
Ijidlo -woman, come * * * (?) to me !
Tliou bccst the best up land,
I am in love, hold well ni) thee {think
much of thee),
I pray, do {(jive) me thine hand.
2.
Sliould'st thou ■nith me contented be,
As I vAih. thee eke be,
Lclj' Famol. kumm ens juart tu mi !
Di best di l^ast iilip Lunn,
Ick beu verloei't. hohl viill iilip Di,
Ick bed, du mi Dieu Ilunu.
2.
Skuld Di met mi tofreden wees,
Es ick met Di ook ben,
"NYiar ook iihs lilohr van Boy en Frees, Be eke {even) our clothes of woollen
and frieze,
Wann wi tofi-eden sen. When we contented be.
3. 3.
Dann ess iihs Hemmclrick nigg ficr, Tlicn is our Heaven not far,
Uhs Gliick liaa wi uhn't Hart ; Our happiness [luck) had we iu heart ;
Haa wi keen Wien dann drink wi Bier Have we no wine, then drink we beer,
"Wi wet van keenen Smart. We wit {know) of no smart.
4. 4.
Wann wi met acker koj^ern gung, When we with one-another loving gang,
Wi gung iihs aya Way, We gang our own way,
Di Tidt wardt iiss dann gar nigg lung, Tlie time {tide) is (to) us then at aU not
long.
So floggt iiss ball di Day. So flies us soon the day.
5. 5.
En kommt iihs Kostday, O ! ha swett And comes om- holiday, oh ! how sweet !
Gung wi di Day uhn jiu,
Wann -wi ulm Freud bi acker sett,
En hope na di Inn.
C.
Wi lewT\'e hiisselk dann en stell,
Tofreden met iihs Stann,
Vertienen wi dann ook nigg viill,
Wi kuoje, es wi kann.
7.
En komint di Wonter, met sien KoU,
En skell wi Jaleng haa,
Dann kope wi bi Sacker voll,
Bleft van Vertienst nicks na.
Go we the day through,
When we in joy by each other sit.
And hope after tlie evening.
6.
We live houselike {home-keeping) then
and still.
Contented wdth oui' condition,
If we earn but little.
We rough it as we can.
7.
And comes the winter, with its cold.
And shall we firing have.
Then buy we it by sacMulls,
Tliere remains of oui* earnings no-
thiu" after.
Wi hope iihp di Voerjuar dann,
Dat Fesken dann begennt,
Wi werke dann es Wiflf en Mann,
Uhs FUet dann Segen wennt.
9.
So lapt di Sommer iiss uhn jin,
Jiar m iisz dat versii,
Di Maaren floggt so es di Inn,
En Naagt en Day met Di.
We hope for the spring then.
The fishing then begins,
We work then as wife and man,
Our industry then wins a blessing.
9.
So runs the siinimer out to us,
Before we see it.
The morning flies so as the evening.
And night and day with thee.
NORTH FRISIAN.
Ill
10.
10.
Wat well wi muar, sen siinn en well, What mtII we more, we are sound and
well,
En liaa ja gudd iihs Bruad, And have our breed (health) good,
Esz dan diit Gliick met iisz uhn Spell, There's then our happiness,
Dann lied wi ook keen Nuad. Then suffer we also no need.
The Contented Heligoland Girl's Answer.
1.
Di sprackst mi uhn, ob ick mien
Himn
Met Dien ulm acker lay,
Di sayst, ick ben di Bast iihp Lumi,
En w^ellt mi diai'om frey.
2.
Dat ick iihp Lunn di Bast nigg ben,
Dat wet ick sallew well,
Dogg best di et, diit sayst mien Senn,
Wiar ick met le^^nve skeU.
3.
Dat JawiuT kann ick di well du,
Wi sen ja lick van Stann,
Ick treed dann iittmien Famels-Stuli, I tread now out of my maiden's shoes.
En wi wurr Wiff en Mann. And we become wife and man.
4. 4.
En ha wi fider fort kohm kann. And how wo henceforth fui'ther can
come,
Diit mutt di Tokunft har. That must the fiitm-e learn,
Diit esz Dien Plicht ja dann es Mann, That is your business as husband,
Wann m tu acker hiar. When we to one another belong.
5. 5.
Vertienst Di wat, dann liohl ick diit If you earn anything, I keep it
Es Hiiszwiff dann tu Riath, As housewife for housekeei^ing,
Dayst Di dat nigg, wi kohm tu sploet If you do notliing, we come soon
You speak to me if I my hand
With thine on one another will lay.
Thou sayest I am the best in the land,
And ■\\'illest me therefore coiu't.
2.
That I on the land the best not be,
That wot I myself well.
That's what you are, so says my mind,
With whom I shall hve.
3.
The Yea-word can I to you well make,
We are like in condition.
Uhn Nadel ook en Triaht.
6.
Dogg hope ick, Di dayst Dien Bast,
En haltst mi surrigfrey,
Haa wi dann 'n Betjen uhn di Kast,
Dann kann wi ruhig lay.
7.
So sliitt wi dann met Miitt en Hart,
Usz Treu bet tu di Duad,
O ! mocht wi dann frey blief van
Smart
En wenn diit Gliick ulm Skuat !
To needle eke and tlu'ead.
6.
Yet hope I that you'll do your best.
And hold me free fi'om sorrow.
If we have then a bittikin in the chest.
Then can we sleep quiet.
7.
So conclude we then with mouth and
heart.
Our truth e'en to the death.
Oh ! may we then be free from smart
And win iluch]
bosom !
happiness in th&
From the island Sylt the specimens are both more numerous
1 [-2
NORTH FRISIAN.
luul move ini]iort;iiit ; iiiasniueh as ji body of poems has Leeii.
composed in it by Hansen.
THE OLD BACIIKT.OU.*
Diiilect of Sijlt. In English.
1." 1.
Knap wt'jr iclc iit miu Jungens Skuur, Scarce was I out of my yoiitli's slices,
Knap Diiiiisout woken ual, Scarce a dozen weeks old,
]>a kani dat Friin al on min Sen ; Then came courting in my mind,
]''n l>rid I'uar mi wejr Nununer Jen; A bride for me was Number One;
Each evening ran I hero and there,
AMierever a young woman was.
2.
Well got I eke a Yes from one.
But my mother would not bear it ;
Ark In da liip ik liiir en dcjn,
Ilur en Juiigfaarnon wejr.
2.
Val feng ick uk dat Ja fan Jen ;
Man min IMoodter wildt ek liid,
Jii seed " Min Seen, fortiine jest wat ; She said, " My son, earn something,
Din aiT\'deel maaket di kual ek fat,
"NVii sen jit di jest fjuurtem Jaar
Ek tiiuet me en Snaar."
3.
Sok "SVurder hed ik ek hoi' jerd ;
Man wat wejr ju- to don?
tltfan to See will 'k my da iiw.
En fjuui-tein Jaar fan Hiis afiliiw,
To beek is toamol nli di Tid,
En ik ha jit niin Brid.
Gott, litis Faader ! hoog best Dii
oil de Hemmel aur Din Jungen !
Help iiiis ! liir iiiis sa, dat wii
Wellig sen, de Wei to gungen,
Dat Din Room iiiis liellig es,
En Din Rik iiiis ek geid' mes.
2.
Let Din Wei uk sa fan iiiis
titfoord uud, iis fan de Seelen,
Diar hi Di al sen Ith iiiis.
Sorge fuar iiiis Leewends Deelen,
Diar forgung, me daagliks Bruad ;
Let iiiis fiii fan Hungers Nuad.
3.
Wii sen Send'ers ; nemmen Icjen
Sin giu-t Sldlj on Di bitaale.
Thy heritage makes not the cob fat.
We are yet just fourteen years,
Not served by a daughter-in-law."
3.
Such words had I not willingly heard.
But what was here to do ?
Go out to sea will I,
And fourteen years from house stay
away.
Back, is t^-ice now the time,
And I have yet ao bride.
Paraphrase of the Paternoster.
Let iiiis Guaade bi Di liaale ;
Help, dat wii roght kristelli liiw,
En iiiis Sldlj ners uk foriiw.
4.
Skuld en Kemmer of en Lek
iiiis wat fuiil to di'eien maake ;
Gott ! da sorge, dat wii ek
Unhiiiir uud, of gaar Di wraake.
Haa iiiis Daagen jir jaar Sum;
Da let iiiis on Hemmel kum.
5.
Din es Hoogheid, Din es Maght !
Dii heest alles aur to reeden !
Din es Wislieid ! Fol Bedaght,
Weest Dii alles biiJist to reeden !
Dm es Gudheid ! diarom dii,
Faader, ju- Din Aamen to !
Faader, aa! foriiw ark Send' ;
North Frisian of the Mainland.-^-
Dat hew ick de denn no aw Fraisk vorthelt, for dat do hahl ihsen Stedson-
iiinger Fraisk hiere wiiist. De iille Dankwert schall sehde, dat bei Oxlef dat
From Allen's Danslce Sj}ro(js Histoiie i Hertugdommet Slesvig, vol. ii. p. 751.
NORTH FRISIAN. 113
beest Friiisk snaket word. Dat mei viliclit to sin Tid richtig ween wese, as
dat Friiisloin nog so grott wos dat Oxlef sowatt ma oin tai. Dat es no ors
den dat Tjosk namont her altn's Owerlioind, en so kan dat Friiisk ai rin bliwe.
Ick touk me, dat dat beest Fraisk no to Tids bei'e Bottendik, bei DaagebiiU,
oder viliclit a' we HalHge snaket ward. Von Fairinger en'e Seltinger wall ick
gaar ai snake ; de kon himi je gaar ai verstonne wenn lium me jem snake
wall.
In English.
This is what I have told you about the Frisian, at that tune when all the
Stedesonnig people here were Frisian. The old Dankwert shall have said
the best Frisian was spoken at Oxlef. That may, perhaps, have been the case
in his time, when Friesland was so great that Oxlef lay -witliin it. Tliis is
now othermse ; for the German has got the upper hand, and so the Frisian
cannot remain pure. I tliink that the best Frisian, now-a-daj's, is spoken at
Bottendik, or at Daagebull, or, perhaps, on some of the small islands (Hallige).
Of the people of Fohr and Sylt I will not speak ; for I cannot imderstand
them when they Avill talk with me.
PSxVLM CXXXIX.*
1. Hiere, do forshest me iitt, an kaimst mc.
2. Ick satt untig stiiujn ap, so wiest dti't; dii forstonst min togte fon
fierense.
3. lek gong untig ladd, so bast do am me, an sjogst all min wege.
4. Danu sieh, dirr as nijn urd aw man tung, wat do, Hiere, ai alles 'vviest.
5. Do shafest't, wat ick faar untig herreften duhg, an halst din haujnn
auwer me.
6. Dat to forstaimnen as me alto wunnerbaur, an alto huch ; ick kon't a
begiippe.
7. WiiT shall ick hanegonge faar dan Geist? an win- shall ick haneflijn
faar din onlass ?
8. Faiu- ick apaujn'e Ham met, so bast do dirr ; maget ik min Bedd iiujn'e
'e Helle, lauck, so bast do oik diiT.
9. Niim ick'e Mjarns AVinge, an blief bai't utterst Heef,
10. So wiird doch din Haujnn me dirr fiiii-e, an din rogt Haujnn me
hiijlle.
11. Siihsick: de Junke mai me forbairige, so maujt'e Nagt ock Ljagt am
me wese.
12. Dann ock de Junke as ai junk bai de, an'e Nagt Ijogtet as'e Dai;
Junkliiiid as alk as't Ljagt.
13. Dann do hiihst min Njiirke Jiujn din Magt, do wjarst auwer me iiujn
min Modders Liff.
14. Ick touk de dirrfaar, dat ick wunnerbaarlick maget ban; wuimerbaar
san din Wahke, an dat erkannt min Siel wiijl.
15. Mm Lahse ^vjarn ai forstiigen faar de, as ick aujn Forbiirgenhaid
maget wiird, as ick shahm wiird dele unner't Jard.
16. Din Ugene sachen me, as ick noch unbereset was, an alle Dege MJarn
aujn din Bauck slirawen, dirr noch wurde shiiujn, an as'r noch niin auf Jiiem-
men was.
17. Aurs liorr kostlick san, o Gold, din Togte faar me? Ilocken grotten
Some san's ai?
* From Bendscn, Die Nordfricsische Sj^raclte, p. 4.50.
1 I t NORTH FRISIAN.
IS. Sliiiiijl ick's ti'llo, si) wiinlon's miirr wcso, I'ls Soaslij.irle. Wiiun ick
wii'kue word, ban ick iiooh biii do.
11). Acli Clodd, dul do dii CitnkUuso i'lmbringc iiia'.ist, au dii Blilujdyirrige fou
me wioke nioston.
:2(i. Daiin jii snake lastorliok am de, an din Fijude hiiwe jam aano
Uvsage.
'21. Ick habs ja, Ilioro, da, dirr de babse, an dat fortrott me aw jam, dat's
jam apiju de setto.
•22. lok l:ahs jam rogt faar Alwcr ; diirfaar sail's wriess h.\v me.
2.S. li6;ii:ag me, o Godd, an erfar miu Hart; priiiw me, an erlar hoi-rdainig
ick't mien.
24. An lauck, wirr ick aw en iiirigcn "\Viii ban, an lijdd me aw de ewige
Wiii.
Isa'iiih xlis. 15.
Ick wall de ai forliijtte nocli forsome. As 't moglick, dat en Modder barr
Bjaru forjebse kon, dat's h&r ai aiiwer barren Salm erlarme shiiujl? An
wami 's ham ock forjebse kobs, so wall ick docli de ai forjebse,
Jeremifih viii. 7-11.
En Staurk unuer'e Hammel wijt sin Tidd ; en Turteldow, en Kranik an en
Swalken marke jare Tidd, warm's wibsser kame sban ; aurs min Faujlk wal-
iibseii Hieres Eogt ki wkbse. Horr maage'm doch sedde : We waJise, wa-
rogt as, an biiwe jo billig Sliraft faar iiss ? San 't doch luter Liigue, wat da
Sbraftlierde sette ! Dann wat kaane's Ganjds Here, ^warui 's vibsen Hieres
Urd forsmoie? Dannja gitse allemale, biese lajtt an gi-ott, an biese Prestre
an Propbete liere en falsben Go.ldstijnst, an triiste min Faujlk imjn jare
Unlock, dat's't bijn agte shan, an sedde : Frehse ! Frebse ! an diiT as doch
nan Frebse.
Hahahliulc ii. 4.
Sieli ! de, dirr balsstamg as, be wort nijn R6 aiijn sin Hart hewen, aiu'S de
Rogtfjardige lawet bai san Liiwe.
Jesus, Son of Sirach, xiii. 4-11.
De Hicke dut Unrogt an trotsct nocb dii-rto, aurs de Erme miinjt lihsse an'r
to touke. So long as do bam njuttig bast, briickt'r de ; aiu's wann do hi morr
kaast, so let'r de fare. Willert do wat biibst, so tjartr ma de, an datkummert
ham nint, dat do fordierewst. Wann'r de nohssig bet, kon'r de fien gecke, an
smelet ajtt de, lowet de faale, det de da beste Urde an sait: Hahst wat
nohssig ? an lasigt de ijnsen untig traie to Gast becbeglick, dat'r de am dat
Din brajngt, an tolest auwer de spotet. An wann'r din Niijd ock sjogt, let'r
de doch fare, an shuddet dilt Haad auwer de. Dirrfaar sie to, dat din Ijnfii-
jlligbiiid de ai bethegt an iiujn unlock brajngt.
Jesus, Son of Sirach, xx. 4.
Hulun Gewalt owet aujn't Piogt, he as allickso as en Hofmaister, duT en
Jiimfer shannt, diiT'r beware shiiujl.
Jesus, Son of Sirach, xxi. 9.
De, diiT sin Hiiss baggd ma auser Fiiujlkens Giiujd, be sommelt Stiene to
sin Greef.
Jesus, Son of Sirach, xxxv. 5.
Fon Sonne liijtten, dat as de rogte Goddstijnst, dirr iihsen Hiere behageta
an apliiijilen Unrogt to duliggen, dat as en rogt Forsunigings-ofer.
NORTH FRISIAN. 115
1 John i. 8, 9.
Horr we sedde, we hawe nan Senne, so forfaire we iiss sellew, an' e Wjard
as ai aujn iiss. Am-s horr we iilis Seuue bekaune, so as Godd trau an rogt-
ordig dat'r iiss da Senne tojeft, an rienigt Iiss fon aU Undoged.
Revelation iii. 11.
HiijU, wat do liahst, dat nienunen dia lirolin namt; dann ick kam
bciU.
Leiitieus xix. 11-13.
Jain shan ai stele, nocli Ijaage, untig fillsli hondle, de Ihne ma de Ausere. Dii
sliaht ai falsli swere an Goda Nome wonliillige ; do shaht dan Naiste nijn
tlnrogt diijn, nocli liam beruwe. De Dailiijnner shalit sin Liijn ai tobiihg
hiijlle to am Mjarnem.
Numbers \i. 24-26.
Uhsen Hieres Silgen.
Ulisen Hiere sagen de an bewar de; iihsen Hiere lajt sin Onlass Ijogte
auwer de, an welis de gnahsig; de Hiere left sin Onlass auwer de, an jew de
Frehse.
Deuteronomy x"\d. 18-20.
Rogtere an Amtmann sliaht de sette, dcit's dat Faujllirogte maenrogtfjardig
Rogt. Do sliaht dat Rogt ai biee, an nijn Person aiijnsijn, iintig Gaawe name ;
dann Forihi-mge mage da Wilisse bhnn, an forkiere da Rogttjardiges Sage.
Wat rogt as, diiT shiiht efter jiige, dat do lawe mahst.
Deuteronomy xix. 18-21.
An da Rogtere shan wiijl efterforshe. An wann de, falslie Tjoge en falsli
Tjogniss ijn san Brauser aufliiid liet, so shan'm ham diijn, as he stin Brauser
to duhggen togt, dilt do de Fole fon de wagdahst, dat da ausere dat liiere, an
ai inorr sock airig Stoge faarname to duhggen unner de. Din Uhg shall ham
ai shunige. Siel am Siel, Uhg am Uhg, Tiius am Tiius, Haujnn am Haujiin,
Faujtt am Fiiujtt.
Psalm xix. 2.
De ihne Diii siiit't de ausere, an j6 ihn Nagt miiget't jo auser bekclnnd.
Psalm xc. 10.
Uhs Liiwent wilret sowentig Ihr, an wann't huch kamt, so san't tachentig
Ihr, an wann't kosthck wiihii het, so liet 't Miiute an Arbed wiilm, daim dat
fart hcistig hane, as flucheu we dh'rfon.
Psalm cxxvi. 6, 6.
Da, dirr ma Tiu'c saie, worde ma Friiude biimgen. Ja gunge hane an galle
na di-ege adel Siijd, an kame ma Friiude, an briiige jfire Hocke,
2. The North Frisian Languaye.
Horrwajl ulisen nordfrashe Spriijkc ai so urdrick as, as de huchtjiishe an
auser morr iittbiUct Spriijkc, so liet'r docli Uttdriicke an Wijuuiugo nog, am
ausere sin Togtc dijthck matoilielen, wiuiii 'm 's man to briicken an rogt iiujnto-
wijnnen forstout. Dat aurs en Timg, dirr ham oiler to Shriiftspriijke hiiwet
hot, Brilk faar sock Urde hcwe miiiijt, dirr auwetsannlick Ijnstando an
Bcgidppe bctiekue, as higt intosiecin. Hai 'r en iittbrat Sliraft- an Baukowjisen
htijd an faurtset, so wiird r' ock nog Shridd hiillcn liewe ma auser iittbillet
Spriijke, lis ma de danshe, tjiisho, hoUtiujnshe an ujiigclslic, dirr no altcmiilo
faale urdrickcre san.
T 2
1 1 G NORTH FRISIAN.
In English.
Althoup;h our North Frisian speech is not so word-rich as the High Dutch
and other more developed hinguiiges, so has it, nevertheless, expressions and
wendings (tiu'ns) enough, one's thought clearly to communicate to others,
■when one understands how to use and applj^ it rightl.y. That otherwise a
tongue, which has not raised itself to a written language, must have a want
of such words as betoken super-sensual objects and conceptions is light to see.
Had it possessed and continued, a wide-spread and written book-matter, so
would it have had a progress like more-developed languages, as the Danish,
tlie German, the llollaudish, which are now, altogether, much word-richer.
" I hear thee ajtedk of a better hind."
1.
Do snalcest so ofting fon't btihsere Laujnn,
An saist, dilt Arken as locldick dii-riiujn ;
Dm- k(jn ja niemmen Senne morr diijn,
An wat kohu't biese so gaujd ock dirr fiijn.
As't duT, wirr'e Sunn bestaudig milu shint,
"NVirr't oiler hiigelt an snait imtig riuut ?
Ai diiT, ai dirr, miu Bjtim !
2.
As't duT, wirr de fiihsrede Palmbiilim grait,
An Manuabriijd auwer't liiel Fajl sprtit lait,
Untig madde da Liiujnne aujn't spagehid Heef,
"SViiT Rause apwagse aw arkens Greef,
An salteu Foglc ma dat stjiilligst Blai
Briijdde, an sjunge an flie ambai?
Ai diiT, ai diiT, miu Bjarn !
3.
As't widd tobiihg iiujn en Tidd so fier,
Wirr oUer niemmen en Lass dai sier?
WiiT'e Demant slmid iiujn'e jmikest Nagt,
An ma da Rubine forihued sin Ljagt,
Wirr Parle glame aw de koraUne Straujn :
As't dirr, liew INIudder, dat biihsere Laujnn?
Ai dirr, ai diiT, miu Bjarn !
4.
Kijn Uhg het't siijn, man liewe Diing ;
Nijn Ulu- hierd de friiulicke Jubelsh^\'ing,
Nan Druhm millet de so smuck en Wrall;
Dirr as nun Di'ihss nijn ICi'iiss auwerall,
DuT olmaet nijn Tidd aw dat ewig Heef,
Dann baijante da Staii-e an jantegge't Greef,
Dirr as't, dirr as't, min Bjarn !
The English Original.
1.
I hear thee speak of a better land,
Tliou call'st its children a happy band,
Mother ; oh ! where is that radiant shore ?
Shall we not seek it, and weep no more ?
NORTH FRISIAN.
117
Is it where the flower of the orange hlows,
And the fire-flies dance in the myrtle boughs ?
Not there, not there, my child !
2.
Is it where the feathery palm-trees rise,
And the date grows ripe under sunny skies ?
Or midst the green islands of ghttering seas.
Where fragrant forests perfume the breeze.
And strange bright birds on then- starry wings
Bear the rich hues of all glorious things ?
Not there, not there, my cliild !
3.
Is it far away in some region old,
WTiere the rivers wander o'er sands of gold,
And the bm-ning raj's of the ruby shine.
And the diamond lights up the secret mine,
And the pearl gleams forth from the coral strand ?
Is it there, sweet mother, that better land ?
Not there, not there, my child !
4.
Eye hath not seen it, my gentle boy,
Ear hath not heard its deep songs of joy !
Dreams cannot picture a world so fair !
Sorrow and death may not enter there,
Time may not breathe on its faultless bloom.
Far beyond the clouds and beyond the tomb.
It is there, it is there, mj' child !
The following is from C
sample by which it is followed,
specimen of North Frisian.
Song for a Wedding.
amerer, and, next to the short
and a few others, it is the oldest
1.
We sen hju- to en brullep,
Hjh' mut we uk wat sjimg ;
Up sok gurdt freugeddaogen,
Da mut et lustig gung.
Hoera ! Hoera ! Hoera !
Da mut et lustig gung.
2.
Bi 't sjungen hjerd to drinken,
Ai'k heed biid' slunk en smaok,
En hjir es wat djer keulked !
Dit es en foarskel saok.
Hoera ! enz.
3.
We nem da bi uus glresen,
En leet uus hoi' gefaol
Rogt dugtig iens to drinken
Uus Brid en Brithnans skaol
Hoera! enz.
We are here to a wedding,
Here must we eke somewhat sing ;
Upon such a made (t/art) holiday,
There must it merry go.
Hurrah ! hurrah ! hurrali !
There must it merry go.
2.
By singing belongs drinking.
Each head becomes sleek and smug.
In here is what
This is a capital affair.
HiuTah, &c.
3.
■JVe nim (take) then by our glasses,
And let us heartily
Bight well at once drink
Our bride and bridegroom's health.
Hurrah, &c.
118 KORTH FRISIAN.
Ill 145 2, the following inscription was found on a font at
Bu>>um.
The OrhjiiKil.
Disse hiiTcn dope du liii\o \vi thou ewigcu outlioiiken rnago letc, da sclioUen
osse bcrriio in kresseiit wardc.
'J'niji.-ihitioii h)f Clemens into the present Frisian of AmriJm.
Tlias liirr dip di lia wi tuu ewageu luithoiiken mage leat, tliear skeU lis
biarner uu krasseut wurd.
Kn(jlish.
This here dip have we as an everlasting remeinhrance let make, there shall
cm- baii-ns in chiisteued be.
Tlie IVooerfrom liohtein.
Diar Kam en skep bi Sndher Sjoa There came a sliip by the South Sea,
Me, tri juug fniers 6u di flot. With three j'oimg wooers on the flood ;
Hokken A\-iar di fordeorst ? Who was the first ?
Dit vcinY Peter Rothgi-un. That was Peter Rothgi'un.
Hud siiJit lii sih spooren ? "NMiere set he liis tracks ?
Fuar Hennerk Jerken's diiiir ? For Hermerk Jerken's door.
Hokken kam to diiiii"? Who came to door?
Marrike sallef. Mary-kin herself.
Me kriik cu bekker on di jon hundh, Crock and beaker in one hand,
En guide ring am- di udher hundh. A gold ring on the other hand.
Jil noadliight hom en sin hinghst in, She pressed liini and liis liorse in.
Dod di liingst haaver uud Peter wiin. Gave the horse oats and Peter wine.
Toonkh Gott fuar des gud dei. Thank God for this good day !
Al di brid end brichnaaner of wei, All brides and bridesmen out of way ]
Butolter Marri en Peter alliining ! Except Mary and Peter alone.
Jii look hom iin to kest She locked him up in her box,
En -^-ildh hom nimmer muar mcst. And never would miss him more.
Frisian*
En Faamel oon Eidum hsei her forlaavet, med en jungen Moan, en hem
taasvseret, dat's ier taa en Sliin vorde \al, es en vorde en oern Moans Vof.
Dii junge Moan forleet hem aev her Trauhseld, en ging taa Seeie. Man sin
Faamel forgreit hem bal, en nom moit oere Freiere em Nagtem, en forlaavet
her taahast med en Stagter foan Keitum. De Brellupsdsei vord bestemt, en
de Togorduet hem. med sen Formoan forget, seve Yaei foan Eidum taa Keitum.
Der kommens onervegens en uil Vof oontmoit, en det es en hiin Fortiken for
en Brseid. Man jii see : " Eidumbonne, Keitumbonne, jernge Brseid es en Hex."
.iEergerlik en forbittert svaart de Formoan : " Es yys Braeid en Hex, denn
•\il ik, det \d her altaamoal dealsunken, en vj'dder epvaxten es gi'se Stiine."
Es liii even de Uui'de sseid haei, saank det liiile Selskab med Brseid en
Bredgom deal oone Gi-jTin, ex vaxet Aydder hulv ep es gree Stiine. For ei
menning Jir heves hjem nog visset es grot Stiine, tveer en tveer aeve Sid bei
enooer med de Foimoan oone Si)esse. Je ston taa 'd Norden foan Tmnum,
ei vid foant uil Thinghuged, en taa en Erinnering em jo Beige venliajid vorn
seve sid bei det Huged tau lait ti-inn Huge epsmenn, der 's Braidefartshuye
namden.
* From Alien, Det Danske Sprojs Historic i Ilertuydommet Slesvirj, eller Si/uderJi/Uand.
NORTH FRISIAN. 119
The same in the Dunish of the district.
En Pig' i Eidum liaj forlovvet sse mse en ong Kael aa svorren aa, te liuu ferr
skuld blj^'v te Stein, end liun sknld, blyvv en A'ens Kuen. Den ongg Kael troj no
godt aa liind aa drovv tilsoes. Men de var int lasngg inden te Pig' forglaemt ham
aa tow om Nat remor ander Frieres Besfeg aa forlovvet sie tesist mte en Slavter
fra Keitum. M Daw, te a3 Brollop sknld staae, vaar bestemt, aa se Brujskar
saat sve. i Gaaug fra Eidnm, te Keitum mse fe Anforer i te Spids. Saa kom de da
undervej semor en gammel Kuen aa de betyer int nor^^er Godt for en Bruj . Men
liun qjt aa so : " Eidumbnider, Keitumbynder, Jer Bruj pe 'en Hex ! " No blow
se Anforer aergele aa gall i aj Hoj aa svar aa so : "Ja livinner vor Bruj vaar en
Hex, saa vild se onusk, te vi Oil saank i je Jord aa groj Oil hall op tegjen som
graae Steen." Allersaasnar liiij han saaj di Ord, inden ge heel Selskob mte samt
SB Bruj aa ee Brogom saank neer i £e Jord aa grop hall op segjen som graae
Steen. Enno for int manne Aar sin vidst di aa vis di fern stor Steen, to om to
ve £B Si a ^naen mse te Anforer i a3 Spids. Di stod Noren for Tinnum, int
laant fra den gammel Thingpold, aa for aa hovs, hva de ske de Gaang, vaa
der ve £e Si a a3 Hy opsmedt to sniaa Bjerre sum di kaaldt te Bnijskarhy.
Literary Danish.
En Pige i Eidum liavde forlovet sig med en img Karl og svoren paa, at hun
for skulde bhve til Steen, end hun skulde blive en Andens Kone. Den unge
Karl troede nu godt paa hende og drog tilsoes. Men det varede ikke loenge,
inden Pigen forglemte ham og tog om Natten imod andre Frieres Besog eg
forlovede sig tilsidst med en Slagter fra Keitum. Dagen, da Brjdlupet skulde
staae, var bestemt, og Brudeskaren satte sig i Gang fra Eidum til Keitum med
Anfoi-eren i Spidsen. Saa kom de da underveis imode med en gammel Kone og
det botyder ikke noget Godt for en Brud. Men hun vaabte og sagde : " Eidum-
bonder, Keitumbonder, jer Brud er en Hex ! " Nii blev Anforeren tergerlig
og gal i Hovedet og svor og sagde : " Ja hvis vor Brud var en Hex,
saa vilde jeg onske, at vi Alle sank i Jorden og gi-oede halvt oj) igjen
som gi-aae Steen." Aldrigsaasnart havde han sagt de Ord, inden det hele
Selskab med samt Bruden og Brudgommen sank ned i Jorden og groede halvt
op igjen som gi-aae Steen. Endnu for ikke mange Aar siden vidste de at vise
de fem store Steen, to og to ved Siden af hhianden med Anforeren i Spidsen.
De stode Norden for Tinimi, ildve langt fra den gamle Thingpold, og for at
huske, hvad der skeede den Gang, var der ved Siden af Hojen opkastet to
smaa Bjerge, som de kaldte Brudsharhuierne.
1)1 E)i(jlish.
A maiden in Eidum was engaged to a yoiuig man, and had sworn that she
should be turned to stone before she should become anybody else's wife. The
young man believed her, and went to sea. But it was not long before the
maiden forgot him, and received by night another lover's Aasits, and engaged
herself at last with a butcher from Keitum. The day on wliich the wedding
should take place was fixed, and the bridal procession started from Eidum to
Keitum, with its leader in front. Thej^ met on tlieir way with an old woman
— and that betokens no good for a bride. And she cried out, " Eidmn people !
Keitum people ! — your bride is a witch ! " Then the leader grew angry, and
mad in her head, and answered and said, " Aye, if our bride is a witch, I wish
we may shik in the earth, and all grow up again like grey stones ! " As soon
as she had said the words, tlic whole company, along with the bride and bride-
groom, sank in the earth, and grew half up again as grey stones. And now, till
120 NORTH FRISIAN.
witliin n fo\v yoars npo. ono could soo five pi"'^at stoiios, two find two on each
side, and the loader in front. They stood north of Tinnnni, not far from the old
Thin<^fold ; and. in order to reinenU>er wliat hapiiened at that time, there was
thro^\^l up, by the side of the mound, two small hills, which they called Bra-
(Icskiirchoifii.
Frisi<ni. Danish.
Ik mei di, lep; clshcr Dig,
"\\'el di haa I Vil Dig have !
Lleist dii mi ? Elsker Du mig ?
Skedt me faa. Skal Du mig faa
AVedt dii ek ? Yil du ikke ?
Feist mi dagh ! Fa^st mig dog !
^led (in "Week INIidt i Ugen
Haa wat Lagh. Have vort Lag.
^lan kjenst sii Men can Du sige
"SVat ik jit ? Hvad jig liedder ?
Da best fiii. Da er Du fri,
Best mi quit. Er mig qvit.
Delling skell Ui bruu, Idag skal jeg brygge,
!Miai-en skel He baak, Imorgen skal jeg bage,
Aurmiaren wel ik Brollcp maak. Overmorgeu vil jeg BryUup holde.
In English.
I like you.
Will have thee !
Lilvest thou me ?
Shalt me have.
"Wilt thou not?
Fix me day !
Mid in week ;
Have oiu' law.
But kemiest thou,
What I hight ?
Then beest fi'ee
Beest me quit.
To-day shall I brew,
To-moiTow shall bake,
Day-after-to-morrow wUl I bridal make.
This seems to belong to the well-known nur.sery tale of Rum-
pelstiltsken. There is, however, no prose context.
CHAPTER XYI.
GERMAN OETGIN, ETC. INTERNAL EVIDENCE. ANGLO-SAXON, OR
OLD SAXON, ELEMENTS IN THE EXISTING DIALECTS OF NORTH-
ERN GERMANY.
§ 118. Such are the chief details of the Old Saxon, and the
Fri-sian, the two forms of speech with whicli the language of
NORTH FRISIAN. 121
the Angles, or the Anglo-Saxon as it was spoken in Germany,
was most especially connected. It was akin to the German lan-
guages in general. However, to the two dialects in question,
it was more closely allied tlian to any others. The difference in
their external history has, no doubt, already presented itself to
the reader. The Frisian, though preserved in fragments only,
is still preserved to the present day. The Old Saxon, on
the other hand, is extinct. Throughout the whole length and
breadth of its original area, it is left without any clear and
definite representative.
The present dialects of Hanover and Holstein, are other than
Angle in origin ; and, in like manner, the present dialects of
Westphalia are other than Old Saxon. This means that the
modern Westphalian is not lineally descended from the ancient.
On the contrary, it has been introduced from elsewhere ; has
encroached upon the Saxon ; has displaced and superseded it.
§ 119. The remote ancestors of those Westphalians who, at
the present time, speak a Platt-Deutsch dialect, spoke Old Saxon.
The remote ancestors of those Hanoverians who do the same,
spoke J.7i<7^o-Saxon. How far has the adoption of the present
form of speech been imperfect ; or (changing the expression),
how far do traces of the older languao-e show themselves throuoh
the newer? Have any of the dialects, or sub-dialects, of "West
phalia and Hanover Saxon characteristics ?
The answer is anything but plain. It is easy enough to
find sounds, words, and inflections which are common to the
j)resent dialects of Westphalia, Hanover, or Holstein, and those
of Great Britain ; easy, too, to find certain Anglo-Saxon and
Old Saxon forms which, though non-existing in the present
English, are anything but uncommon in the provincial parts of
Germany, This, however, is not enough. In order to make
them Angle, or Old Saxon, they must be shown to be strange
to all the other divisions and sub- divisions of the German
tongue : and, even then, the evidence, though satisfactory, can
scarcely be considered as conclusive ; inasmuch as the forms in
question may have had an independent origin — possibly one
subsequent to the times of the Angle invasions.
§ 120. As opposed to the ordinary High German of litera-
ture, the dialects of Westphalia, &c., say he for er, wi for ivir,
it for es, and the like. The Dutch of Holland, however does
the same, and so do many of the common Platt-Deutsch dialects
of the Rhine.
1 - - TRACES OF SAXON
ij 1:^1. Of the following s|)cciineiis, the first two arc from the
]^arts Avhich have supplied \is with the most definite examples
of the Old Saxon — the parts about Frekkcnhorst, Warendorf,
and Essen : the third being trom the valley of the Lower Diemel,
where the Saxon and Frank areas met.
(1.)
From the neighbourhood of Frehkenhorst.
Wii Jans Schrokamj) Xachtens idever 'ne Bjielce qiimnm.
1.
" Laiw' Hiiiir. laiw' Hiiiir, so blitz' docli fis ! "
Jans Schrokamp was ut 't Waiitshus kjucmeu,
Wo he air Xaclit satt biis teliisz.
He liarre Djoarst fjoer fiif of sasz,
Aiik woll en Hiilfkeu te vjiel sik njuemen.
2.
Woll qnamm he up 'en rcchten Patt ;
Et blitzt' un ginimmeld, de Wind de hiiiilde,
De Ejeejen gaut, de Wag was glatt ;
AVu fiiken stjoare Jans up't Gatt !
He gi-abb'lde sik wjier up un miiiilde,
3.
Un socli met Hiiuue, Foiit' un Stok
Djoer Rjieke, Hjiegen, Biisk' un Braken
Den richt'sten Patt, dat rilchte Lok.
So quamm he gliikhk biis ann Hok,
Wo ioever d' Bjieke laigeu Stakeu.
4.
Daip was he Bjiek', dat Schemm was schmol:
Do fjoar em 't Griiggelu djoer de Bollen.
" Laiw' Haar, laiw' Hiiiir. oh bhtz' no 'n M61 !
O loclit' mi as met n Wjcerlochtstrol ! "
Laiw' Hiiiir de dai 't em te GefoUeu.
5.
De ganze Liicht stait nu in Glot.
Jans siiiiht 'et Schemm dicht fjoer stik liggen,
Wni jiist drup sctten siincn Fot:
Do wiit 't piikdii lister. — Fjoer Unmot
Filnk h' an te griinen im te spiggeu.
(i.
He ijicpt up t' Gatt no 't Ooaver hen :
" Laiw' Haar, no 'n M61 ! " — De lol; sik bidden.
Gau gi-abbelt Jans met Foot' im. Haun' ;
Van 't Schemmken grip he 't ene Enn',
Un ijiepet ioever de Bjiek' bestiiddeu.
m THE PRESENT DIALECTS. 123
Uiiglish.
How John Sckrohamp, at nhjht, got over the heck.
1.
" Dear Lord, clear Lord I how it lightens ! "
Jack Sclu-okamp was come from tlie inn
Where he all night sat the last ;
He had thii-st for five or six,
But he would take a half-glass too much.
2.
Well came he up the right path :
It hghtened and thimdered ; the wind did ho\\i ;
The rain gushed ; the way was shppery.
How often fell Jack on his back side !
He scrambled uj) again, and growled,
3.
And sought with hands, foot, and stick,
Through reek, bush and brake,
The rightest path, the right gap.
So came he luckily to the yard
Where over the beck lay stakes.
4.
Deep was the beck : the bridge was narrow.
Fright went over him through the ....
" Dear God, dear God ! lighten once more !
Oh, light me with a lightning-flash ! "
The dear God did as he wanted.
5.
The whole lift stands now in a glow.
Jack saw the bridge before him lay,
Will just there up set his foot ;
Then was it pitch dark. For fear
He began to grin and to spit.
G.
He crept backn^ards to the bank ;
" Dear God ! once more." The prayer was heard.
Quick gi-abs Jack with foot and hands,
Of the bridge he gripes the one end.
And gets over the beck cock-horse.
(2.)
From Witrendorf.
Be Nachtigall tin de BUnncrshinge.
Et was emol 'ne nachtigall un 'ne blinncrslango, de haddon bcide men en
auge, un liiiweden tehaupc in en bus lange tied in friaden un vcrdrng. Emoles
woere de nachtigall na en frond te gaste biili't, un sc sia, to de blinnerslnnge :
"Ik sinn da to gaste biiiiit, vm mag mi mot en auge da nicli giieru saicn laten ;
124 SAXON ELEMENTS
si docli so piict nn lone mi '1 dine daton, ik breng et di jiil mnurcn Avier." Un
do blinnerslangc daret lit gafilllikeit. — Aber an don annern dag. da de nacliti-
gall na bus qnainm. gefoU't i'vv so guet, dat se twee aiigeu inuen koppe liadde
iin dat sc na beiden sii'ii kikon konu, dat se de anne blinnerslange dat Icn'de
Ruge uieh wier giewen well. Da siiide de blinnerslange, se woll se appat wul
wior la'igeu. " Gii men," siiide de naclitigall, " un sok mal."
" Ik baue min nest op diiese linne,
So hauge, so haiige, so liauge,
Da west du't din liiiwe nit finnen."
Sie de tied liilwwed alle nacbtigallen twee augcn, un alle blinnerslangen kienne
augen. Aber wo de naclitigall iaer nest baiiet, da A\aienet sige in den busk 'iie
blinnerslange, un se sogg alltied derup te kriipen un will iaern figgend loeker
in de aier buoren nn se utsupen.
English.
The Xightimjalc and the Blhuhcorm.
Once upon a time, the nightingale and the blindworm had each but one eye
apiece, and they Hved together in one house for a long while in peace and con-
cord. At last, the nightingale was invited to a feast hj a friend. She said to
the blindworm, " I am inA-ited to a feast, and I don't like to go wAih one eye ;
be so good and lend me yours, and I will bring it you back in the morning ;"
and the bUndworm did so out of politeness. The next day, when the nightin-
gale came home, she w^as so pleased at having two eyes in her head, and being
able to see on both sides, that she would not give back to the poor blkidworm
the borrowed eye. Then the blindworm said he would get it back again.
" Try," said the nightingale, —
" I have my nest on the linden-tree.
So high, so high, so high.
You ■will not find it."
Since that tune all nightingales have had two eyes, and all blindworms none.
But when the nightingales build their nest, a bhndworm lives in the bush, and
it always strives to cHmb uj) and bore a hole in its enemy's eggs and suck them.
(3.)
From the VaUcy of the IHemel.
Siiss wass de Stadt Giesmer viel giotter osse jetzunder. Da hiet se enmal
enen Ka-ieg ehat mied viellen Heren, de wollen se utbrennen. Se kemen mied
erren Liien un nammen de gantze Feldmark in, un liechten siek vorr de
Dare, de to emacht woren, un iiemme de Miire, un leten nemes iit noch in. Se
hadden auk de Rogge van der Wiede elanget, un de Swine hadden se wieg
edriewwen, un alles Veh, dat vorr den Heren geit. Dat gantze Feld hadden se
afemaggett, un streggeden de Frucht mied den Giilen. Un est woren se
kawisch. Se slachteden dat Veh, un wollen nix angeres eten, osse Fleesch, un
Smalt, un Worste, un Braen, un Zalat derbi. Awer osse alles verterd wass,
de hadden, de viellen Liie vorr der Stadt nix meir to etene. Nu wasset in der
Stadt awer auk nie bietter. Se massden drinne Hunger lien, un wussden nie
meir, wovan lewwen solden. Da wass menker, de dre Kohdcile ehat hadde, un
hadde nu kien enziges meir. Den Supen massden se dunue kaken, un Fleesch
hadden se gar nie meir.
Da siet se van beiden Parthiggen eens eworen, se wiillen twe jNIanu, enen iit
IN THE PRESENT GERMAN DIALECTS. 125
dem, Lager, den aiigeren ut tier Stadt, mied enanger woerpeln laten, tin seen
Ave den hoigesten Wuorp diedde. De Wiiorpeler utem Lager smeit sieA\nven-
teine. Da kriechde de, denn so lit der. Stadt eschicked haddeu, en grauten
Schreckten. He verfahr siek, un daclide ree, iet wore alles verlareu. Awer
smieten massde he doech auk, iin smeit — achteine ! Un da laclieden de Biior-
gcr van Geismer de grauten Hense ut, dariimme, dat de Dickedoers massden
mager afgahn, im laten de Stadt mied Friedden. Dem Buorger awer, de so
gad woerpeln konnde, had se in der Stadt en Teken esat up den Thareu, by
dem he ewoerpelt hadde. Se had dre graute Stene utehagget, esse de AVuor-
pel siet, un had se ehegt up de lingerste Miire vannen Tharen, un darup siet
ewiest to seene achtein Augen. De alien Liie, de nan liewwet, had den Tha-
ren, un de Wiiorpele, de darup woren, nau eseen, uu daavan hied de Thareu
eheiten : De Wiiofjjeltharen.
English.
Once, the towTi Geismer was much greater than it is now. Then, upon
a time, they had a war amongst many of the herdsmen who wanted to bui-n it
down. They came with then- people, and- took possession of the whole com-
mon, and laid themselves before the gates, wdiich were put to, and about the
walls, and let no one either out or in. They had also got the cows out of the
meadow, and the swine they had diiven away, and all the cattle that goes
before the herdsmen. The whole field they mowed down, and strewed the
fruit before their beasts. At first they were proud. They slaughtered the
cattle, and would eat nothing but flesh, and sausages, and roast meat, salad
Avitli it. But when all was used up, and many people before the town had
notliing more to eat, it was no better in the town : they must therein suffer
himger, and wdst not wherefrom they should Hve. There were many who
had had three cows, and had now not one. They had to boil theu* broth thin,
and flesh they had not at all.
Then they agreed between the tn^o parties that they should choose two men,
one out of the camp and the other out of the town, and that they should throw
dice against one another, to see who could make the highest throw. Tlie
thrower from the camp threw seventeen. Then shrieked out the man who was
sent from the towoi a gi-eat slniek : he went wdld, and thought ah-eady that all
was lost. However, tlu'ow he must, nevertheless : and he threw — eighteen !
Then .... the burghers of Geismer, that the .... must go away
hungry, and left the city in peace. To the burgher who had throAvn so well,
they have put a sign on the tower where he made his throw. They had three
gi'eat stones cut as if they were dice, and had them laid upon the topmost
wall of the tower, and there are to be seen there eighteen eyes. The old people
who are still ahve have seen the tower, and the dice which were on the top of
it ; therefore, we have called the tower Wuorpcltlmren.
§ 122. The two forms that have the best claim to be con-
sidered as Saxon, are (1) the Dual Pronoun ; and (2), the
Plural in -t. In the following extracts, we find examples of both.
Parts nhoiit M'mdeit.
Up don Bargen, up der An
Blaihc^ Blaumcn helle,
Un do Iliivcn klor un blau
Farvt dei Angerqucllc.
1-2C> SAXON ELEMENTS
/// Eiiijlish.
Up the liill, up the nlcado^v,
Blow hiight llowers ;
And the Ileavon, clear and blue,
Colours the .... Auger springs.
(2.)
The L'ippe.
De Papen un de Huune,
Verdeiui£?f er Braud met den Munne.
In Englinli.
The parson and the hen
Earn thou- bread with the mouth.
(•3.)
Parts about Rlntcln.
Wi kohni et nich lieven.
Wi hebb<'^ schon Hiiren
Dei moht wi verehren.
Wi kohn^ nich verdi'agen,
Dat du us "n-utt fegen.
"\Vi Willi de nich wehren.
* * * *
Wi stahf asse Eiken,
* * * *
Wi 'kommet met Hacken.
English.
We can it not bear.
We have ah-eady lords
Whom we must honoiu*.
We can not bear
That thou shalt sweep us.
We will not defend you,
* * * *
We stand as oaks.
* * * *
We come with hooks.
(4.)
Parts about Bielefeld.
Martins-Lied.
Siinne Martin, liilges Mann,
Dei us wat vertellen kann.
Van Uj)peln un van Biern,
Dei Niote falli van der Miem.
Siet sou gout un giewet us wat?
Lut't us nich to lange stan !
Wi Toiot't na 'n Husken fodder gan.
Van hier biitt nii Kaolen
Da miot't wi auk la-aj61en,
Un Kaolcu es na farcn.
IN THE PRESENT GERMAN DIALECTS. 127
Kaolen es 'n sclione Stadt,
Sclione Jimgfer, giewet us wat !
Giewct us 'n bietken Kouken !
Dann kion wi ua heller roupeu.
Giewet us 'n bietten Sommerkrut !
Toukcn Jar es Liesebiitt de Brut.
EngUsh.
Martinmas Song.
Saint Martin, holj- man,
"Who can tell us something
Of apples and pears.
The nuts fall from the walls.
Be so good, and give us something.
Let us not too long stand !
We must go home afoot.
From here to Cologne ;
There must we also carol.
And Cologne is far.
Cologne is a fine city.
Fair young woman, give us something ;
Give us a bit of cake.
That we may better shout.
Give Its a bit of salad.
Tliis year is Elizabeth the brid e.
(5.)
Parts ahont Hildcslieim.
1.
Wi komei woll vor eines riken Manns Dcior,
Tau diissen Marten-Abend !
Wi wiinschef dem Heeren einen goldenen Discli,
'N gebratenen Fiscli,
'N Glas mit Wien,
Dat sail des Heeren Mahltiet sien,
Tau diissen Marten-Abend.
2.
Wi wiinsche^ der Fruen 'n goldenen Wagen
Mit Silber beschlagen,
Drm sail si den sx^azieren fahren,
Tau diissen Marten-Abend.
3.
Wi hebbei 'ne Jungfer gcschoorcn,
Von Gold un Silber 'ne krone.
Dei Krone dei is saa wiet un breit,
Bedecket dei leiwe Christenheit.
Bedecket dat Kruut un griine Grass,
Dat Gott, dei Heere, erschaffen hat
Tau DUsser Marten-Abend.
EnfiHsh.
1.
We come well before a rich man's door,
On this Martin'.s eve.
128 SAXON ELEMENTS
Wo wish for the master a golden ili«h ;
A roast lish,
A glass of wine,
Tluit sliall be the master's meal,
On this jSIartin's eve.
We wish the lad}' a golden waggon,
With silver covered.
Therem shall she go to walk
On this Saint Mai'tin's eve.
3.
"We have for the maiden wreathed
Of gold and silver a crown.
The crown is so wide and broad
Covers the dear Christendom.
Covers the herb and gi'een gi-ass
That God, the Lord, has slept
On this Saint Martin's eve.
(6.)
Tlie Loiver Diernel.
Da sief ree de Biiffen, de Stangen, de Pi'angen ;
Se komme^ im willt de Schandarmen iiphangen.
Se stahi inn'em Gliedde, de Scheten im Arm,
Dat jie< 'ne Gesldchte, dat Goed siek erbarm.
EiujVisli.
There are ready the clubs, tlie i)oles, the wdiips ;
They come and will the gens d'armes up-hang.
They stand in a row, the guns on their arm,
That gives a tale — God have mercy !
Parts about MUnster.
Vat kiek^ us de Starnkes so fi-ondhck an,
O ISIoder, wat hav ik di laiv !
O saih, vol se spieled un laches us an,
O JNIoder, kc.
JEiiglish.
Why look the stai-s so friendly on us ?
O mother, how I love thee !
Oh, see how they play and laugh on us !
O mothei', &c.
(8.)
Parts about Gronenherg.
Dann segg'^ se verdi'etlick " de kopp dot us weh,"
De Eene will koffe, de annre will Thee.
Se seggei, se giinen iim us bie der Nacht,
Dat siiid Fameltiiten : dat hewi se bedacht.
Encilish.
Then say they affectedly, " our head aches ;"
The one will coffee, the other tea.
IN THE PRESENT GERMAN DIALECTS. 129
(9.)
Gruhenliage.
Diene Aagen sint brunn un kralle,
Un du weisst et wol nicli, mien Kind !
Dat se gluue Fimken scheite^
lut harte, boase Kind.
In English.
Tliy eyes are brown and lively.
And thou knowest it not well, my cliild !
That they shoot hot sx^arks,
Thou hard, mcked child.
(10.)
Stade.
1.
Un wen see junge Erfken un Schinken will eeten,
Haff id dee holten Teller dato nich vergeeten ;
Hier siind see, von Lindenholt witt un so blank,
Gewiss, dee blieft so mannig Jahr lang.
2.
Doch sollt dee Spisen gesund sin im gefallen.
Mutt Solt daran sin, dat beste Gewiirze von alien,
Een Sollfatt, gron bunt un mit Gold, is een Zier
Un dat beste, wat ick kiiegen kimn, bring' ick eer liier.
In EmjUsli.
1.
And when they will eat young peas and ham,
I have not forgotten the wooden platters.
Here are they of Hnden-wood, white and so clean ;
Ywiss they will be so many years long.
Yet if the food is to be soimd and good,
Salt must be in the best spice of aU.
A salt-cellar, gi-een, variegated with gold, is an ornament,
And the best I can crave bring I here.
(11.)
Ammerland — Oldenhurgh.
Ick weet wol, ick weet wol, wo goot wahnen is ;
To Hollwege, to HoUwege, wenn't Sommer is.
De Halstuppers, de lieww^ de fetten Swien,
De Moorborgers, de cMcwi se henin.
De Halsbecker, heww^ de hogen Schoh,
De Eggelogcr, snorei se to.
To Jiihren steih/ dat hoge Holt,
To Linswcgc siind do Dercus stolt.
Dat Gamholt is nich all to groot,
Doch et7 se geren StutcJibrod.
K
1-H) SAXON ELEMENTS
6. To Hiilstede siind cle Straaten deep
To Wesferstoc siind do Maikens Icep.
7. Do Fikoiiliolter ]iow\\7 do Siiippern-Schoh,
Dainit troe^ so na do Wostersteder Karken to.
8. To jSIansio gah< de Stakcnhaiicrs iilit,
To Ochliolt stab/ de Sogcn Hud.
0. De Torsliolter sticks ahre Staveelkeii ulit ;
Dot weerd' de Howieckers selden froh.
10. De Scggemcrs hcwwi eenen hoUen Boom,
Diirux hang^ se iiliren Sadel im Toom.
11. To Westerloy siind de Graven to braken;
To Liudern siind dc Dooron gestaten.
12. To Borgforde da stalii de liogen Poppeln
Dar geilit dat ganze Kaspel to Koppeln.
13. To Westerstee da streilit de hoge Tooi'u.
Dai'by scball dat ganze Kaspel versoorn.
In EnriUsh.
1. I wot well, I wot well, wbere good wonning is.
At Hollwegge, at HoUwegge, wlien it is summer.
2. Tbe Halstrupp men bave tbe fat swine ;
Tbe IMoorborg men tbey di-ove tbem away.
3. Tbe Halsbed men bave tbe bigb sboes ;
Tbe Eggelob men tie tbem.
4. At Jiibi-en stands tbe liigb wood ;
At Linswege are tbe maidens proud.
5. Garnbolt is not too great ;
Yet tbey eat willingly lye-bread.
6. In Hulstede are tbe roads deep ;
At Westerstree are tbe maidens lovely.
7. Tbe Fikenliotters bave "buckled sboes;
■ Tberewitb tbey go to Westersted cburch.
8. At Mansie go tbe stake-bewers out ;
9. The Forsbolt men stick tbeir boots out,
10. Tbe Seggem men bave a bollow tree;
Tbereon tbey bang tbe saddle and bridles.
11. At Westerlob tbe gi-aves are broken ;
At Lindern are doors sbut.
12. At Borgford stand tbe bigb poplars;
1.3. At Westerstree stands tbe liigb tower;
Tbereby sball tbe wbole paiisb rue.
(12.)
Butjalule.
Hee scbull by siens glyken bljT^en ;
Wy kabmi also wyt as bee ;
Ick kann lesen, reknen, scbrieven ;
Dat is nok woll gar viir di'ee.
IN THE PRESENT GERMAN DIALECTS. ISl
In English.
He should remain with his equals ;
We have come as far as he :
I can read, reckon, write,
Tliat is enough for three.
(13.)
Toivn of Oldenhurgh.
Een'n Ossen vnMt -svi vor Di folu-en,
Dat siilvst Du siist wo gi-oot se siad ;
Dock kann sik saken et geboren,
Dat man se uoch val groter findt.
In Enijlish.
An ox will we before thee bring,
Tliat self you may see how big they are ;
Still it may, perhaps, happen
That one may find them still bigger.
(14.)
Jeier.
Dat is te Banter Karkhof,
De liggt buten dieks up d'Groo ;
De Tuten de roop^, un d'Seekobb kritf,
De Dooden de hboxt to.
In Enr/lish.
That is the churchyard of Bant,
That lies out up in tlie deep ; ;
The sand-pipers ciy, and the seamews sluiek,
They belong to the dead.
(15.)
Osnahurgh.
Dar ginten, dar kiket de Strauten henup,
Dar stahe« wat aule Wjm-er in 'n Trupp ;
De Annke, de Hildke, de Geske, de SHtke,
De Ti-mtke, de Aultke, de Elsbeen, de Taiitke ;
Wann de sick entmo^^^, dat schnaatert sau sehr
Liefhaftig as wenn't in 'n Gausestall wor.
In English.
There yonder, there look up the street,
There stand the old women in a troop ;
The Annke, the Hildke, tlie Geske, the Siltke,
The Trintke, tlie Aultke, the Elsbeen, the Taiiltke.
When they meet each other, it cacltles so sore,
Just as if it were in a goose-stall.
K 2
l'>- RELATIONS OF TOE FRANK
CHAPTER XVII.
RELATIONS OF THE FRANK TO THE SAXON.
§ 12;>. That no dialect of the Continental German is directly
descended from either the Anglo-Siixon or tlie Old Saxon has
already been stated. It has also been stated that the dialects
derived from their nearest congener the Frisian, are spoken
in onl}' two or three not very important localities. Does this
mean that the present language of Westphalia, Hanover, and
Holstein is other than Saxon in its origin ? Not necessarily.
As a genus the Saxon comprehends the Frisian, and as a genus
it niay have comprehended other forms of speech which, without
being either exactly Anglo-Saxon or Old Saxon in the strict
sense of the word, may still have been more Saxon than aught
else. Whether one of such forms may not have been the mother-
tongue of the present Platt-Deutsch is a question that, whetlier
we can answer it or not categorically, should be raised. We
have already found more than one fact which suggests it.
The language of the Carolinian Psalms was, more or less, equi-
vocal : having been treated both as Old Saxon, and Old Dutch
— Old Dutch meaning the Dutch of Holland. Again : the
modern Dutch has more than once been called a descendant
of the Old Frisian. It is not this exactly, though it is some-
thing very like it, being the descendant of a closely-allied
form of speech. Of this w^e have no specimens of equal anti-
quity with the specimens of the Saxon Proper, and the Frisian ;
so that the comparison between the several mother-tongues
in the same stage is impossible. The same is the case with the
English of Scotland as compared with that of South Britain.
Both are English ; both descendants of the Anglo-Saxon. Whether
they are descendants of exactly the same variety of the Anglo-
Saxon is another question. Of the Scotch of the times of
Alfred and ^Ifric, we know nothing. It was, probably, more
Northumbrian than West Saxon, (a point upon which more
will be said when we come to the consideration of the English
dialects,) and, probably, not exactly Northumbrian. At the
same time, it was certainly Saxon rather than anything else.
Again — the fact of some of the existing dialects of Northern
Germany having Saxon characteristics has been indicated. It
is a fact; however, of which there are two explanations. The
TO THE SAXON. 133
forms in -t may liave belonged to tlie original dialects of their
several localities, not having belonged to the language by which
it was displaced ; in which case they are as jjurely Saxon as
the forms in Alfred or ^Ifric. On the other hand, they may
have been common to both : in which case they are Saxon
only by accident.
Now, what if the Old Platt-Deutsch did, actually, contain such
forms ? or what if, without containing them in each and all of its
dialects, it contained them in those which were nearest Saxony
— those which most especially spread themselves over Saxony ?
What if, in addition to these, it contained other forms which were
also Saxon ? What in short, if it were on its northern frontier at
least, Saxon rather than aught else ? The question is to some
extent a verbal, to some extent a real one.
§ 124. It involves the meaning of the word i^rrtTiA;. Hither-
to the contrast between the Frank and Saxon has been strong
and sharp ; or, at any rate, so sharp and so strong, that, al-
though we may meet with districts of which we were doubtful
as to the division to which they belonged, we have met with
nothing that was, at one and the same time, both Saxon and
Frank. The division, however, has been political rather than
ethnological or philological. Let us now examine it more closely.
§ 125. Philologlcally, I believe that the division was a
faint one : and that it is only by comparing the Frank and
Saxon forms of speech from (comparatively speaking) either dis-
tant localities, or from different epochs, that any definite line of
demarcation can be drawn. If so, the mother-tongue of the
present Platt-Deutsch of the Saxon area, though diffused by
Franks, may have been quite as much a Saxon dialect S]ioken
within the Frank frontier as anything purely and simply Frank.
In doing this I M^rite from a Saxon point of view, and, classi-
fying by type rather than definition, take as the centre of my
group the Frekkenhorst Muniments, and ask how ftir the dialects
which may be associated with the form of speech represented
thereby, can be found southwards ?
From a Frank point of view I reverse the process; and ask
how flir northwards the dialects represented by the most northern
of the undoubted Frank specimens are to be found ? Doing
this, I come to some which may be Frank within the frontier of
Saxony.
This means that, though the philological division may have
been slight, the political one was broad.
lot LOCAL NAMES.
CHAPTER XVIII.
GERMAN ORIGIX, ETC.— PARTS OF GERMANY, ETC. INTERNAL
EVIDENCE. LOCAL NAMES.
§ 126. As a general rule, the names on a map of England are
British or English. A few, like Etruria, are new. A few, like
East-ville, Tower-le-Moors, are, more or less, French. A few,
like Wedon-siiper-mare, are, more or less, Latin. Not a few are
Danish. As a general rule, however, the names that we find at
the present moment are names that, with a slight modification of
form, may have belonged to either the British or the Anglo-
Saxon period, — more especially to the latter.
Many, very many, of these are compounds ; compounds
wherein the element of the wider and more-general signification
comes last ; e. g. Stdntitn, or SandwiC, is the toivn characterized
by stones, or the wic characterized by sand.
§ 127. The following elements in the names of places deserve
notice.
Bcec, A. S. = heck = hrooh. The High German bach. It has
(somewhat hastily) been considered a Danish, rather than an
Angle, element.
Botl, A. S. = bottle — as in 'Kar-bottle ■= dwelling-i^lace, build-
ing. Common in the western half of the Duchy of Holstein.
Broc, A. S. = hrooh — Spell-6rooZ;, &c.
Dtc, A. S. = dike, ditch — Dyke, IPos-dyke, &c.
Ig, A. S. = island ; as in Ceortes-i^ =z Cherts-e^/-
Feld, A. S. Form for form, this is the English field. In
A. S., however, it meant an open tract of land rather than an
enclosure.
Fen, A. S. =fen.
Fleot, A. S. z=. fleet, as in the Fleet Ditch, or the river Fleet.
Ford, A. S. z=.ford. Word for ivord, it is the same as the
Danish Fiord. The Danish (Norse) f-rd, however, means an
arm of the sea.
Ham, A. S. zz home. The -ham in words like l^oiimg-ham,
Threeking-/t«77i, &c.
Hangra, A. S. ; -anger, English, as in Bivoh-anger, Pensh-
anger — a meadow.
LOCAL NAMES. 135
Hlavj, A. S. =. a rising ground. The -law so frequent in
Scotland, as applied to hills, e. g. Berwick- Zaiy, &;c.
Holt, A, S. = holt z=. tvood ; as in North-/<o?^.
Hyrne, A. S. = corner, angle. Danish as well as Saxon,
and, from being found in the more Danish parts of Britain, has
passed for an exclusively Danish word — which it is not.
Hyrst, A. S. = hurst zz copse or tvood. One of the most
characteristic words of the list, as may be seen from the com-
parison of any map of Northern Germany, with one of Kent
or Bedfordshire.
Leah, A. S. =. lea. The -ley, in Bsiddow-ley, M-ddrng-ley, &c.
Mere, A. S. and English — Whittlesea Mere.
Mersc, A. S. = niarsh — VesL^-marsh.
Mor, A. S. =z moor — Dart-ivioor.
3Ios, A. S. = moss — moor, or swamp ; as in Chat-wos, i. e.
a locality where mosses grow abundantly rather than the moss
itself.
NcES, A. S. = ness (or tiaze) — Shoebury- -^less, Walton-on-the
Kaze — Scandinavian as well as German. Indeed, it is more or
less Slavonic and Latin as well — noss and nas-us.
Seta, A. S. = settler — Somerset, Dor-set.
Stan, A. S.zz stone — Whet-stone.
Steal, A. S. = stall — Heppen-sto?Z.
Stede, A. S. = place = the -stead in words like Hamp-sieacZ, &;c.
Stow, A. S. =place — stoiu, Wh-stoiu.
Toft, A. S.zztoft, as in W\g-toft.
Tun, A. S, =^071 — Nor-ioJ^, Sut-fo5i=: North-to w)i, South-
tovjn.
Weg, A. S.=way — Stmug-iuay.
Wie, A. S.=wick, ivich — A\n-wlch, Green-iuich, Wick.
Wor^ig, A. S. — worth in Tanx-ivorth, Box-ivorth.
Wudu, A. S.=.wood—Sel-wood, Wich-wood.
Wyl, A. S. z= well — Ash-well, Am-well.
X^orp, A. S. = thorp — M-A\)\e-thorp.
§ 128. (a.) For the geographical names of one district to
exhibit an accurate coincidence with those of another, the phy-
sical conditions of the countries should be identical. We cannot
expect to find tlie terms that apply to fens and marshes in an
alpine region ; nor, vice versa, the names for rocks and hills
amongst the fens. Compare Holland with Derbyshire, and you
will find but few names common to the two. Compare Lincolnshire
with the Hartz, and the result will be equally negative. Com-
loO PERSONAL NAMES.
pare it, liOAvcvev, Avitli Ilollaiul, and fens and moors occur
abundantly.
(6.) For the geographical names of one district to exhibit
an accurate coincidence with those of another, their meanings
should be identical. Sometimes this is the case. The hecks of
England are brooks or streams ; those of Germany the same. The
-tons, -tuns, or -towns, however, of Gernmny are of the rarest ;
indeed they are scarcely, if at all, to be found. Yet the word
is German : its form being zaun. In Germany, however, it
means a hedge, and in Holland (where it is tuiTi) a garden.
The notion of enclosui'e lies at the bottom of its meaning. The
details, however, which result from it are different.
(c.) For the geogi-aphical names of one district to exhibit an
accurate coincidence with those of another, their form should be
identical. The element -ha77i is found all over Germany. But
it is not found in tiie same parts : it is -heim in some ; in others
-hem, in others -um — e. g. Oiypen-heim, Arn-hem, Hus-um.
CHAPTER XIX.
GERMAN ORIGIN, ETC. PART OF GERMANY, ETC. INTERNAL
EVIDENCE. PERSONAL NAMES.
§ 129. As a general rule the Anglo-Saxon personal names
are compound words.
If the principle and details of these compounds ran exactly
parallel with the principle and details upon which the names of
the Anglo-Saxon geogi'aphical localities of the preceding chapter
were constructed, the question as to their development and sig-
nification would be easy. In such a name as Alf-red, or Ed-
vjard, we should have the exact analogues of such words as
Stan-tun or Sand-wic ; wherein the elements -red and -tvard
would be the names for some class of men invested with certain
personal attributes (say councillor, or warden), and Alf- and
Ed- would be qualifying nouns wliich told us what sort of
warden or councillor the particular one under notice might be.
They might mean wise, or lucky, or aught else. In such a case,
the name would be one like MHse-man, Good-fellow, or some
similar compomid of the nineteenth century.
Now I do not say that this is not the case, and I also add
that many good writers treat the whole subject of the Anglo-
PERSONAL NAMES. 137
Saxon personal names as if it were so. At tlie same time, I
deny that the names of the men and women who were our
early ancestors come out in their analysis and explanation half
so clear as do those of our early towns, villages, rivers, and
mountains. This will become manifest as we proceed.
As the list of the preceding chapter was taken from Mr.
Kemble's Codex Diplo'tnaticus, the examples of the present are
from a paper by the same distinguished author On the Names,
Surnames, and Nic-Names of the Anglo-Saxons, published in
the Proceedings of the ArchcEological Institute for 1845.
§ 130. Sometimes the name consists of a substantive pre-
ceded by an adjective, as jE'^el-stdn^ Nolle- stone. Without
asking how it comes that a man gets to be called a stone, we
may see at once that the combination itself is an eminently
intelligible one. It is just such a one as Wise-man or Good-
fellow, the instances already adduced, where the juxtaposition
and nature of the two elements is transparently clear. They
may not always give us a name of which we can see the origin ;
but they always give one of which we can see the principle.
Sometimes the name consists of a substantive preceded by a
substantive ; a substantive which in this case is, more or less,
adjectival in character — e. g. Wulf-hehn {Wolf -helm). This
only differs from words like yE'Sel-stdn in the way that such a
compound as iocA;-smith differs from Black-sm\W\.
Sometimes the name consists of an adjective preceded by a
substantive ; as Widf-hedh, Widf-high. Here begin difficulties.
If we were at liberty to translate this high wolf, the meaning
would be intelligible, though the origin of the name might be
inexplicable. But Wulf-hedh, if it mean anything, means as
high as a wolf. Now a ivolf is not an ordinary standard of
measurement.
Sometimes the name consists of two adjectives, or, to repeat
the previous formula, of an adjective preceded by an adjective,
as ^"Sel-hedh (NoUe-high). The English parallels to this are
combinations like light blue, deep green. Now these are not
compounds, but pairs of separate words, as is stated at large in
the chapter on Composition.
Without saying how far these difficulties are great or small,
important or uniinportant, I limit myself to the statement that
they are of far more frequent occurrence amongst the personal
names of the Anglo-Saxons and the allied populations than
they are amongst the local ones.
13S^ PEllSONAL NAMES.
§ 131. As a general rule, the Angle personal names are com-
pounds. It has also been said, that, of these comjiounds the
latter, or ^fi)ial, element claims our chief consideration. The
initial syllables are, however, not without interest, as may be
seen from the following extract : —
" The Anglo -Saxon proper iianios have also very frequently a law of recur-
rence. It shows itself in the continued repetition of the first part of the
compound in tlie names borne by members of the same family. Endless is
the number of ^£77(f/-helms, yEiel-healds, ^thcl-^ry^s, and ^thel-stkns.
In one family we shall find in succession, or simultaneously, Wiu-mnnd,
TI7(/-heIm, TF/^-hif, TI7/i-stan, or Beorn-vic, Beorn-mod, Beorn-lieiih., Beorn-
lielm. A few examples di-awn from history ^\\^ make this abmidantly
clear.
" Eormen-xic was the fatlier of JStliel-heYht, the first Christian lung of Kent ;
^^/t^Z-bert's son of ^<^(/-bald had issue two sons, Eureen-hcxht and Eonnen-
rfed. Of Eorntcn-rsid'ii six children, three have tlieu* names compounded
with Eormeii-, three with E^el- ; thus, Eormen-hwxh, Eonticn-herg, Eormen-
gyS, M^el-^i-yS, ^^e-rxd, ^thel-hooxhi. Eorcen-hevht'?, daughters were
^orceH-gote and Eormen-lrdd.
" Of tlie seven sons of iE$elfri<5, long of Northumberland, five bore names
with Os-, thus Os-laf, Os-lac, Os-wald, Os-win, Os-mdu. In the successions
of the same royal family we find the male names Os-iri^, Os-wine, Os-ric, Os-
rsed, 6>s-'«ixlf, Os-bald, and (9s-beorht, and the female name Os-^rjiS, and some
of these ai'e repeated several times.
" Saint IF/^-stan was the son of TT7^-mund the son of Wig-\k?, king of
Mercia ; and the sons of JEthel-vrme, Duke of East Anglia, were xE^cI-\\\i\q,
JEthel-^'old, ^Elf-Vi'old, and ^thel-sige. His gi'andson again was ^^el-
wine.
" Lastly, JElfi'ed's son, ^rtJ-weard, man-ied Edd-ghi : their cliilcb-en were
Edd-^vine, Edd-vmuid, Edd-xed, and jE'tirf-burh. ^^«Z-mund's childi-en, again,
were Edd-vi-ig and Edd-gkx. Edd-gkx had cliildren, ^<y-weai'd, Edd-gy^,
and ^«(/-weard. His son Edd-m.vm.d, again, had two sons, Edd-miva.d and
Edd-gax." — Kemhie, in Transactions, do.
Tn a previous chapter this fact has been partiall}^ anticipated.
In the same chapter, too, may be seen the extent to which it
differs from the ordinary alliteration of the Angle metres. How-
ever necessarily it may follow that words beginning with the
same syllable shall also begin with the same letter, there is a
broad difference between the two principles. It is one thing for
so many words to begin with the same initial, another for so
many compounds to be formed out of the same elements. If
the latter carry with it the former, it is ordy in a secondary
manner.
§ 182. Forms in -ing. — The same chapter, with its so-called
pedigrees, is referred to for instances of the affix -ing. It has
the same power as the -thrjs in the Greek Patronymics, so that
PERSONAL NAMES. 139
'Ekdgar-ing means the son of Edgar, and Eadberht Eadgar-iur/,
Eadbert the son of Edgar — Edbert Edgarson.
§ 133. Compounds of siinu = son. — Could such a word as
Edgarson (allowing for a difference of form) occur in the Angle
stage of the English language ? Assuredly it is common enough
in the English stage of the Angle, i. e. in the language of the
nineteenth century : — so it has been for some time. Now the
paper which has already supplied so much gives us the following
extract : — " Ministro qui Ledfwine nomine et Bondan sunu
appellatur cognomine.'" (No. 1739.) Hence our answer is in
the affirmative, it being safe to say that in the Angle stage of
our language the method of signifying descent by the affix of
the patronymic -ing was not the only one. Over and above,
there was the use of the word sunu — son.
Why, however, was the question asked ? Because, common as
are the compounds of son in English, they were rare in Angle.
Again, common as wei'e the forms in -ing in Angle, they are
rare in English. This is a reason, but it is only one out of two.
The other is the weightier one.
a. The forms in -son are not only rare in Angle, but they are
rare in all the Proper German dialects ; and —
b. They are not only rare in all the Proper German dialects
(the Angle included), but they are extremely common in the
Danish, Norse, and Swedish, i. e. in all the languages of the
Scandinavian branch.
The inference from this can hardly fail to be drawn, viz. that
all the numerous Ander-so/is, Thomp-so?is, J ohw-sons, Nel-son-5,
&;c., of England, are, more or less, Danish, as opposed to Angle.
Now, as the previous extract stands, it invalidates this infer-
ence. But it should be added that it comes from a charter of
the Danish King, Cnut's (a.d. 1023). So doing, it leaves the
original inference as it was.
Hence, I have limited myself to saying that the use of the
word son (sunu) occurs during the Angle stage of the English
language. I do not say that it occurs in the pure and unmodi-
fied language of the Angles.
The Latin extract is from the beginning of the Charter. At
the end of it we find the same combination in Anglo-Saxon :
" Dis is ^ara VII. hida hoc t6 Hanitune ^e Cnut An^j. eebdcode
Leofiuine Bondan sunu on dee yrfcB." — " This is the book (deed)
of the seven hydes at Hannington, wldch Cnut, the Icing, granted
to Leofvjine Bondeson for a heritage for ever."
140 NUllSERY RUYMES.
CHAPTER XX.
GERMAN ORIGIN, ETC. PART OF GERMANY, ETC. INTERNAL
EVIDENCE. — NURSERY RHYMES.
§ 134. The evidence of the nursery rhymes, compositions of a
ti-uly popular character, is of the same kind as tlmt afforded by
the local and personal names. The following are all from the
Saxon part of Germany ; though it should be added that they
are not from it exclusively. They are, for the most part, found
elsewhere. Still, Lower Germany seems their great locality.
The extent to which their general character is English is apparent.
1.
Parts about Essen.
Meeken -r-oU noh ]\Ielken golm,
Geng noli Paiter Finken,
Satt clat Bosken in clat Grasz,
Leit dat Keiiken di'iuken.
" Pademiilken, Suckersnutken,
Eck haff sou lang op di gewaclit ! "
" Eck op di, du op mi,
Geele Blaumkes pliicket wi."
In Emjlisli.
Maiden, will to milking go,
Went to ... .
Sent the pail in the gi'ass,
Let the cowkin drink.
"Pade-mUken, Suckersnutken,
I have so long waited for jq\x ! "
" I for thee, thou for me ;
Yellow flowers i)luck we."
2.
Tuck, tuck, tuck, mien Hahneken,
Wat deiste in mienen Hoff ?
Plucks mi alle Blaiimkes aff,
Dat makste vol te groff.
Da ]\Iama watt kiewen.
Da Papa watt schlohn.
Tuck, tuck, tuck, mien Plahneken,
Wu watt et di noch gohn !
In English.
Tuck, tuck, tuck, my henildn,
\Miat doest thou in my j^ard ?
I'luckest me all my flowers off,
That doest thou too rough.
Mammy will be angi-y,
NURSERY RHYMES. 1 41
Dfidcly will scold.
Tuck, tuck, tuck, my henil<in,
We must go after you.
3.
" Frau, Frau, wat spinn i sou flietig ? "
" Fori- miene Mann n' golden Rink."
" Wo ess u Mann ? "
"Inne Schiiiir."
" Watdeithado?"
" Eck segg et ink nicli."
" O segget et mi all ! "
" Ha ess op da Schiiiir un fourt dii Kiiiikskea ;
" Git mogget sa mi awer jou nich jagen."
" Ksch ! ksch ! ksch !"
" Frau, Frau, et liitt."
" Wat liitt et dann ? "
" U Mann ess dout."
" Wa liett dat dann gedohn ? "
" Eck, eck, eck ! "
In English.
" Wife ! wife ! what spin you so busy ? "
" For my husband a golden ring."
" Where is your husband?"
" In the bam."
" What does he there ?"
" I won't teU you."
" He is in the barn, and fothers two cowkins ;
You may now so drive me oft"."
Ksh ! ksh ! ksh !
" Wife ! wife ! a noise."
" What noise is it. then ? "
" Your husband is out."
" What has then done?"
"Eck! eck! eck!"
4.
Tinke, tanke, tellering,
Wanneer biisse gestorwen?
Gistern Oowend iim Lechtenkjiaz.
Marieken, Marieken, wu gait et di ?
1. Half krank ! 2. Gans krank !
3. Half dout. 4. Gans dout.
Lii ! lii ! lii !
In English.
Tinke, tanke, tellering,
When did you die ?
Yesterday evening ....
Marykin, Miirykin, liow goes it with thee?
Half sick, all sick.
Half dead, all dead.
Lu! lu! lu!
1 i2 NURSERY RHYMES.
5.
Ilolstehi.
Slnnp, mien Ivimljcn, slaap !
Din Vailer hott de Schaap,
Diu Mocler plant't en Boineken.
Slaap to, mien liartleev Honcken,
Slaap, Kiudjen, slaap !
In English.
Sleep, my kinchin, sleep !
Thy father keeps the sheep.
Thy mother plants a boomikin.
Sleep, my dearest chicken ;
Sleep, Idnchin, sleej) !
fi.
ITor ! hor ! hor !
Wat steit vor imse Dor ?
Da steit en Mann mit siner Kiepen,
De will ims' liitj Kindjen griepeu.
Hor ! hor ! hor.
In English.
Hark ! hark ! hai-k !
Who's at the door ?
There stands a man, with Ms basket,
Who wHl take lis little cliildi'en.
Hark! hark! hark!
7.
A. Bhnde Koh, ik leide di.
B. Woneem hen ?
A. Na'n BiiUenstall.
B. Wat sail 'k da doon ?
A. lOiitjen im sot Melk eeten.
B. Ik heff keen Lepel.
A. Nimm en Schiiffel.
B. Ik heflf keen Schiiffel.
A. Nimm en Tiiffel.
B. Ik heff keen Tuffel.
A. Siili to, wo du een Imgst.
In English.
A. Blind cow, I lead you.
B. Where?
A. To the ox's stall.
B. ^^hat shall I do there ?
A. Eat cui-ds and buttermilk.
B. I have not any spoon.
A. Take a shovel.
B. I have not a shovel.
A. Take a shpper.
B. I have not a slipper.
A. See and get one.
NURSERY RHYMES. 143
8.
Lang un small
Hett keen Gefall.
Kort un dick
Hett keen Gescliick —
Vun miner Maat
Un clat liett Laat.
In English.
Long and tbiu
Has no strength ;
Short and thick
Has no sense :
My size,
Tliat's right.
9.
Bimi-bam-beier,
De Katt de mag keen Eier.
Wat mag se denn ?
Spek in de Pann.
Ei, wo lekker is unse Madam !
In English.
Boom-bam -byer,
Cat don't lilce eggs.
What does she like ?
Fat in the pan.
Ah, how dainty is my Madam !
10.
Eija Popeia ! wat russelt im Sti-o ?
Unse liitjen Gose de hebben keen Scho.
Schoster hett Ledder, keen Leesten dato,
Dat he de liitjen Gose kann maken eer Scho,
Eija Popeia !
In English.
Eia Popeia ! what rattles in the straw ?
Our httle goslhigs they have not any shoes.
The shoemaker has leather, but no Kst,
To make the little goslings their shoes.
Eia Popeia !
11.
Meelammkon, Mee !
Dat Lammkcn Icep in't Holt,
Et stott sik an een Steeneken,
Do deed em wee sin Beencken,
Do seed dat Lammkcn " Mee ! "
Meeliimmken, Mee !
Dat Lammken Iccp in't Holt,
J ii NURSERY RUYMES.
Et stStt sik lui con Stoekolkoji,
Do deed cm woe sin Kojipclkon,
Do seed dat Liiuiiulvcn " ]\Iee ! " .
IMcoliimnikeu, Mee !
Dat Lainnikcu loop in't Ilulfc,
Et sl6tt sik an cen Stiiickelken,
Do deed em wee sin Biikelken,
Do seed dat Lammken " Mcc ! "
Meoliimmken, Mee !
Dat Lammken leep in't Holt,
Et stott sik an een Dorckcn,
Do deed em Avee see Orekeu,
Do seed dat Lammken " Mee ! "
In EiKjliish.
]\Iec lambkin, Mee !
The lambkin run in the wood,
He knocked against a stonykiu,
He hurt his little bonyldu.
And then the lambkin said " Mee ! '
Mee lambkin, Mee !
The lambkin run in the wood,
He hit agamst a sticklekin,
And hurt liis little noddleldn.
And then the lambkin said " Mee ! '
Mee lambkin, Mee !
The lambldn run in the wood,
He hit against a sti'awikiu,
xYnd luu-t liis Httle belHkiii,
And then the lambkin said " IMee ! ''
Mee lambldn, Mee !
The lambldn run in the wood.
He hit against a doorildn.
And hurt his Little earikin.
And then the lambkin said " Mee ! '
12.
Maikawer, fliehg!
Dien Vahder is in Kiieg,
Deine Mutter is in Pommerland,
Pommerland is ahfebrannt,
Maikawer, fliehg !
In Enfjlisli.
Lady-bird, fly away !
Yoiu- father is in the war,
Y'our mother is in Poraerania ;
Pomerania is bui'nt,
Lady-bird, fly away !
13.
Oldenburg.
Ick will tli wat vertellen
Un lecgeu, w^ta ick kaun :
NURSERY RHYMES. 145
Ick seeg 'n Molile fleegeu,
Deu Miiller d'r acliter ran.
Ick stund iu'ii Droom uu sceg di ran,
Nu lior is, wat ick leegen kanu.
In EiiijUsh.
I'll tell jou a tale,
And see what a lie I can tell ;
I saw a mill a flying,
And the miller running after it.
I stood in a dream
And saw it all,
And now, hear ^vhat a lie I can tell.
14.
Dubberdubherdub mien ]Mann is kamen.
Dubberdubberdub wat hett he mitbrogt "'
Dubberdubherdub 'n Schipp mit Schellen.
Dubberdubberdub wat scholt se gellen '!
Dubberdubberdub 'n halben Stiiver,
Dubberdubberdub dat is to dhhr.
In Englisli.
Dubadubdub, my husband is come.
Dubadubdub, what's he brought?
Dubadubdub, a ship with sails.
Dubadubdub, what does it cost ?
Dubadubdub, half a stiver.
Dubadubdub, that's too dear.
15.
Eenmal weer d'r is 'n Bum%
De Buur de harr 'n Koh,
De Koh de kreeg 'n Kalv,
Nu is de Telk halv.
De Buur de jagt de Koh hennuut.
Nu is mien Telli all ganz uut.
In EmjUsli.
Once there was a farmer,
The farmer had a cow.
The cow had a calf,
And now my tale's half told ;
The farmer drove the cow off,
And now my tale's done.
IG.
Anton, Anton, Gerderud,
Stiik dien dre, veer, Horens uut,
Un wullt du se nich uutstiiken,
Will ick dien Huus tobriikon.
Will ick dien Huus mit Stecncr bosmieton,
Scliast d'r dien Liiben un Dag nich 'ruutl<ioken.
Jn EiH/lish.
Antony, Antony, Gcrdenul,
Stick your three, foui-, horns out,
L
14G NURSERY RHYMES.
If you won't stick tlu'Ui out
I'll break your house,
111 crush your house with stoucs.
17.
Jettkcn l\'t!kou lUilvonnins
Kiunm vaunncht in iuse Ilius,
Un woU den Schinkcn stehlcu.
Un schniciten't up't Dack,
Do Bce't Quack.
In EmiJish.
Yetken Petken Pulverniins
Came to my house by night,
And stole a ham,
Then he crept up, and got on the roof,
And he cried Qualv I
18.
Tlie Lijipe.
A, B, C,
De Katte Icup in den Schnee.
Os se wier heriut kamm,
Hadde se 'ne witte Biiksen an.
A, B, C,
De Katte leup in den Sclmee.
De Mills leup er no.
Do see de Katte jo.
Tn EnrjUsh.
A, B, C,
The cat ran in the snow,
"When it got out
It had its wliite stockings on.
A, B, C,
The cat ran in the snow,
The mouse ran after her,
To see the cat so.
19.
Iluntzelpuntzellven up der Bench,
Pvuntzelpuntzelkcn unner der Bench,
Ess nen Docter in Engeland,
De Runtzelpuntzelken kiu'eiuen kann.
In EiiijUsh.
Ilunzelbunzelken on the bank,
Runzelbunzelken under the bank ;
There is not a doctor in England
That can cui"e Ruuzelbunzelken.
20.
Parts abuiit Minister.
Slaop, Klndken, slaop !
Df.r buten geiht en Schaop,
NURSERY RHYMES. 1 +'
Dat het socke witte Fo:kes,
De Mialke smeck so sotkes,
Slaop, IvincUcen, slaop !
In Eufflisk.
Sleep, kinclien, sleep !
Thereout there goes a sheep,
He has such white footildn,
Tlie milk tastes (smacJii)) so sweet,
Sleej), kincheu, sleep !
21.
Sipp, Sapp, Sumie,
IMin' Moer is en Niuine,
I\Iiu Vaer is eii Pape,
Kann alle Fleitkes maken.
Sipp, Sapp, Suunenkrut,
Dat Water lopp der baowen uut.
In Enylish.
Sip, Sap, Sunne,
My mother is a nun,
]\Iy father is the pope,
* * * *
Sip, Sap, Suunenkrut,
The water runs out above.
22.
Aowens wen ick in min Bettken triade,
Triad' ick in' IMaria's Schaut.
Maria is min" Moder,
Johannes is min Broder,
De leiwe Har is min Geleidsmann,
De mi den Weg wuU wisen kann.
Twialf Engelkes gaoht met mi,
Twee Engelkes an den Ivopp-Eud,
Twee Engelkes an den F6ten-End,
Twee an de rechte Siet,
Twee an de Unke Siet,
Twee de mi decket.
Twee de mi wecket,
Jesus in min Hiiitken,
Maria in minen Sinn,
Im Namen Gaodes slaop ick in.
In Enijlhh.
Even when I to my beddikin tread,
Tread I in Maiy's bosom.
Mary is my motlier,
John is my brother,
The dear Lord is my leader,
Who can show me tlie way ?
Twelve angels go with mo.
Two angels on the head-end,
Two angels on the foot-end,
L 2
us RETROSrECT.
Two on llic right siilc,
Two on the left side,
Two tliat cover me,
Two that Avake mc ;
Jesus in my heart, ,
]\Iary in nij' mind,
In tlie name of God I sleep.
§ 135. And here the investigation of the internal evidence
stops. In a more elaborate work, three additional chapters, at
least, would find their place ; one upon the agreement or dis-
agreement of the laws, and one upon the agreement or disagreement
of the popular superstitions, as they exhibit themselves on the
two sides of the German Ocean. Upon those, however, nothing
could be written which should, at one and the same time, bear
effectively on the question, and come within a moderate com-
pass. The third would give the results of the examination of
tumuli, a matter on which the arcliseologist, in the more limited
sense of the term, would have much to say. The philologue
can only (as he can do with safety) commit himself to the
general statement that all results hitherto obtained point to the
conclusion at which the preceding inquiries have conducted us.
CHAPTER XXI.
RETROSPECT, ETC. AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE EXTERNAL AND
INTERNAL EVIDENCE.
§ 136. Let us now look back upon the facts and questions
of the preceding chapters, review the different points from
wliich the subjects have been contemplated, consider the connec-
tion between them, and ask what results they prepare us for.
1. That the English language came from Gerniany.
2. That it fixed itself in England between a.d. 369 and A.D.
597, has been admitted without doubt or reservation.
3. That by the middle of the eighth century it had displaced
the language, or languages, of Roman Britain, except in Wales
and Cornwall.
With this ends the list of positive and admitted facts. They
are evidently few enough. And not only are they few in num-
ber, but they are as little precise as numerous. Germany is a
RETROSPECT. 149
large place; the interval between A.D. 3G9 and A.D. 597 a long
one. The commonest of the current histories tells us more than
this, tells it in fewer words, and tells it in a less indefinite and
roundabout manner. Be it so.
4. The fifth chapter justifies the hesitation and circumlocution
of the preceding four, and is devoted to the exposition of some
of the chief reasons which invalidate not only the current accounts,
but the original data, on which they are founded. Doing this,
it foreshadows the necessity of a different line of criticism.
Special and direct evidence being w^anting, we must betake our-
selves to inference instead.
For the time and place under notice, Ave have neither maps
nor descriptions ; no map for Northern Germany, no description,
during the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh centuries, for the
North-German populations. We have, however, an accredited
date for the first invasion of Britain — viz. A.D. 449, the year of
the supposed advent of Hengest and Horsa.
Taking this as a sort of central epoch, we ask two questions : —
5. What accounts have we, in the way of external evidence,
for the times nearest this date a.nd folloiving it ?
6. What accounts have we, in the way of external evidence,
for the times nearest this date and preceding it ?
The following chapters deal with these. To proceed : —
7. As it is clear that if we get the state of things on a given
area at two different and distant periods and find them agree we
get the state of things for any intermediate one, the extent to
which changes have taken place during the interval is the next
point that requires consideration.
The result, then, is that the notices of Northern Germany
of the second century are essentially the same as those of the
ninth, the differences being apparent rather than actual, and the
changes which those differences imply being nominal rather than
real. Hence the accounts of certain early classical, and of certain
later Carlovingian writers are, to a certain extent, valid for the
events of the interval between A.D. 369 and A.D. 597.
So much for the question of external evidence, which is not
direct, but circumstantial. Eespecting this, we have got at the
fact that the two sets of witnesses that supply it agree with, rather
tlian contradict, each other. At the same time, the agreement is
by no means transparently visible on the surface, or complete when
seen.
150 EVIDENCE OF BED.i
CHArXER XXII.
SPECIAL AND DIRECT EVIDENCE OF BEDA. — TEXTS, ETC.
§ 137. As opposed to the criticism of the previous chapters,
the evidence upon which the current doctrines respecting the
Angle invasions are based may be called direct or special.
The palmary texts are the following ; the first being from
Beda.
Translation.
" They came from tlu*ee of the cliief peoples in Germany, \dz. the Saxons,
the An(jJes, aud the Jutes. Of Jute origin are the occupants of Kent and
Wi</ht, i. e. the nation which occupies the Isle of "Wight, and that wliich, to
tliis day, in the p^•o^ince of the West Saxons, is named the nation of the
Jutes — oi)posite the Isle of Wight. From the Sa.vons, i. e. from that country
wliich is named after the Old Saxons, came the JEast Saxons, the South Saxons,
the West Saxons. Moreover, from the Angles, i. e. fr'om that country which is
called Angulus, and which from that time to this is reported to have lien as
a desert between the provinces of the Jutes and Saxons, came the East
Angles, the Midland Angles, the Mercians, and all the stock of the Northum-
brians."
In the Original.
" Advenerant autem de tribus Germania; populis fortioribus, id est Sa.von-
ihus, Anglis, Jutis. De Jutarum origine simt Cantuarii et Vectuarii ; hoc est
ea gens, quae Vectam tenet -insulam, et ea, quae usque hodie in pro\dncia
Occidentalium Saxonimi, Jutarum natio nominatiu", posita contra ipsam insulam
Vectam. De Saxonihus, id est ea regione, quae nimc Antiquorum Saxonum
cognominatur, venere Orientales Saxones, Meridiani Saxones, Occidui Saxones.
Porro de Anglis, hoc est de ilia pati-ia, quse Angulus dicitur, et ab eo tempore
usque hodie manere desertus inter pro\TXicias Jutarum et Saxonum perhibetur,
Orientales Angli, Mediterranei Angli, 21ercii, tota Xordhumbrorum proge-
nies."
The following (little more than a translation from the Latin)
is from the Saxon Chronicle (a.d. 449) : —
Translation.
" They came from three powers of Germany, fr-om Old Saxons, fr-om Angles,
from Jutes.
" From the Jutes came the inhabitants of Kent and of Wight, that is, the
race that now dwells in Wight, aud that tribe amongstthe West- Saxons which
is yet called the Jute Idn. From the Old Saxons came the East- Saxons, and
South-Saxons, and West-Saxons. From Angle (wliich has smce always
stood waste betuixt the Jutes and Saxons) came the East-Angles, Middle-
Angles, Mercians, and all the Nortliumbrians."
TEXT OP BED A. 151
In the Orhjinal.
"Da comon }:a men of J^riiu mcgiSum GermauiiTe, of Eald-Seaxitm. of
Anglum, of Jotum.
" Of Jotiun comon Cantware and Wihtware, };set is seo mteiad, {^e nu eardab
on AVilit, and Jjset cyn on West-Sexnm \>q man gyt liset lutuacyn. Of Eald-
Seaxum comon East-Seaxan, and SuS-Seaxan, and West-Seaxan. Of Angle
comon (se a sic^an stod westig betwix lutum and Seaxum) East-Engle,
Middel-Angle, Mearce, and ealle Noi-^ymbra."
Thii'dly ; Alfred writes —
Translation.
"Came they of thi-ee folk the strongest of Germany; that of the Saxons,
and of the Angles, and of the Geats. Of the Geats origmally are the Kent
people and the Wiht-settlers, that is the people wliich Wiht the Island
hve on."
In the Or'ujinal.
" Comon of ^^rym folcum t^a strangestan Germanise, )?fet of Saxiim, and of
Angle, and of Geatnm; of Geatum frnman siudon Cautwoere and Wihti-
saetan, \ii&t is seo J^eod se Wilit j^at ealond on eardab.
§ 1 38, The objection to these notices refers to three questions:
— (]) the meaning of the word Jute; (2) the import of the
term Saxon; (3) the claims of the district called Angulus to be
considered the mother- country of the English.
CHAPTER XXIII.
SPECIAIi AND DIRECT EVIDENCE OF BEDA. CRITICISM. THE
JUTES PROBABLY GOTHS.
§139. That Jute means the Jutlanders of Jutland, we
learn from the context; which tells us, that their country was
conterminous with Angulus.
Now the Jutlanders, at the present moment, are Danes. Yet
in no other part of England do we find the Danes of Jutland
treated as Jutes, but, on the contrary, as ordinary Danes. In
Lincolnshire, in Yorkshire, in several other counties, there were,
as far as the actual population was concerned. Jutes in abundance.
The name, however, by which they are designated is Dane.
Herice, if a Dane from Jutland, when he settled in the Isle of
Wiglit, was called a Jute, he was named in accordance with a
principle foreign to the rest of the island. True Jutlanders
would also have been Danes ; and if they were Danes they wouhl
have been called Dene, and Denisce. Again; in Lincolnshire, in
15 2 TEXT OF BEDA.
Yorkshire, in several other counties where there was an abund-
ance of Jutes, there both was, and is, abundance of evidence to
tlieir occupancy. The names of their settlements (as aforesaid)
ended, and end, in -by. as Grims-?>2/, Whit-Z>?/, &c. Let any one
look to any ordinary map of England, and count the names of
this kind; let him, then, look to their distribution. Let him
note the extent to which they appear in each and all of the dis-
tricts whei-e Danes have ever been supposed to have settled ; and,
then, let him note their utter absence in the parts where Beda
places his Jutes. Compare Lincolnshire, which was really Danish,
with Kent, Hants, and the Isle of Wight, which are only Jute,
and the possibility of error will become apparent. And why
should it be impossible ? why should it be even improbable ?
Beda is, doubtless, a gi-ave authority. But is it Beda who here
speaks ? All that Beda tells us, at first-hand, is the fact to which
he was cotemporary, viz. the fact of their being a " gens qua3
Vectam tenet insulam, et ea quae usque hodie in provincio occi-
dentalium Saxonum Jutarum natio nominatur." How they
came there was another matter; an ordinary piece of history, for
which, perhaps, Bishop Daniel was his infoi'mant ; Bishop Daniel
having no personal knowledge of the event, which happened
some 200 je^rs before he was born.
That they were Juice, in the jDarts under notice, seems to be a
fact. Their origin from Jutland seems to be an inference: and I
submit that it was an incorrect one. I submit that, as far as these
Jutse were Jutes, at all, they were Jutes from the opposite coast
of Gaul, rather tlian Jutes from Jutland. If so, they were Goths.
Tliis I believe, then, to have been the case. Word for word the
two forms are convertible; besides which, Alfred's form is Geat,
and in the work attributed to Asser the name, totidem Uteris, is
Gothus.
§ 140. After the death of Alaric, which took place A.D. 410,
the details of the Gothic movements become obscure. The name,
however, of Ataulfus, or Adolph, the brother-in-law .of the
deceased monarch, stands prominent. So does the evacuation of
Italy. No longer the enemy of Rome, but, on the contraiy, tlie
ally and brother-in-law of the Emjieror Honorius, Adolfus not
only relieves Italy from the hateful presence of his troo])S,
but lends services against the pretenders, and the rebels of
the countries, beyond the Alps. Having marched from
the southern extremity of Campania into Gaul, he occupies
Narbonne, Toulouse, and Bourdeaux, having suffered a re-
CRITICISM.— JUTES. 153
pulse before Marseilles. His loyalty to Rome seems to have
been sincere ; and a remarkable conversation, which he held with
a citizen of Narbonne, of which more will be said in the seqviel,
represents him — according to his own account — as one who had
proposed to himself a laudable object of ambition, it being his
" wish that the gratitude of future as^es, should acknowledo^e the
merit of a stranger, who employed the sword of the Goths, not
to subvert, but to restore and maintain, the prosperity of the
Roman Empire." This is between A.D. 410 and A.D. 415,
The name of Constantine now commands notice. Between
A.D. 400 and A.D. 410 three usurpera followed each other, in
quick succession ; first, Marcus; next, Gratian; thirdly, Constan-
tine; a private soldier, with a borrowed name, and an event-
ful history. He consolidated his power in Britain, and he ex-
tended it. Gaul had already been overrun by the armies of
Rhadagaisus, and other barbarians; and, as Rome was at the
time in the hands of Alaric, assistance from the Imperial metro-
polis was out of the question. Constantine, then, professed
himself a deliverer; and he made good his claim by some par-
tial successes. Some bodies of the barbarians he defeated ; other's
he took into his pay. At Vienne he fortified himself within
the walls ; and, soon after, the Imperial army having crossed the
Alps, and retired into Italy, he was, virtually, the sovereign of
Gaul, This was a.d. 408.
As ruler of Gaul, he invaded Spain; which he gained by sub-
mission rather than conquest: so that, when Ataulfus evacuated
Italy, the title of Constantine was acknowledged from the Pints'
Wall to the Columns of Hercules.
He now engages to deliver Italy from the Goths — for the
submission of Spain was anterior to any compact between
Honorius and Adolphus, — ^and, in either attempting it or pre-
tending to do so, marches as far as the Po. But only to march
back again. In Aries, his capital, he, first, celebrates his triumph,
and, next, hears of the revolt of Gerontius, one of the best of
his generals, who had been left with the command in Spain. But
Gerontius invests another v/ith the purple, — Maximus, whom he
leaves at Tarragona, whilst he, himself, presses forward into Gaul
to attack Constantine, and his son Constans — his son and
colleague ; his son, already invested with the purple, but destined to
an early fall. He is made prisoner at Vienne, and put to death.
His father takes his stand in Aries, and is besieged. The siege,
however, is raised by an Imperial army; to the leader of which
154 THE JUTES— WHAT ?
it must have been difficult to determine wlietlier Coustantine, or
Gerontius, was his enemy. It was the latter, however, who re-
treated. After his death, Maximus is permitted to reign ; but
only for a while. Spain returns to its nominal or real dependence
upon the Em})ire, and Maximus afterwards is executed.
The general who defeats Gerontius was a Constantius, and now
he turns his arms ascainst Constantine, whose reifjn is cominsf
to an end. He sends his ambassador, Edolic, to negotiate an
alliance with the Franks and the Alemanni; and, by doing this,
effects a slight diversion of the arms of Constantius. The support,
however, foils, and he opens the gates of Aries to the Roman
general. His abdication follows the entrance of the conqueror,
and his death his abdication. He is sent, along with his son
Julian, under a strong guard, to Italy, and before they reach
Eavenna, they are put to death. This was November 28, a.d.
41 1 — a year after the death of Alaric, and a little before Adolplms
enters Gaul.
Meanwhile, there was another usurper; Jovinus, the nominee
of Goar, the king of the Alans, and Guntiarius, the king of
the Burgundians. He was invested with the purple at Metz.
To him, from motives unknown, Constantius abandoned Gaul:
which was now beginning to feel the influence of Adolphus ; at
first — but only for a time — the ally and adviser of Jovinus;
who, after associating with himself his brother Sebastian,
accepts the services of Sarus; Goth, like Adolphus, but
either not a Visigoth at all, or, if a Visigoth, one who was
hostile to the new-comers. Or rather Adolphus was hostile
to him: for he attacked him unexpectedly, when attended by
only a few followers, and cut him and his little band to pieces.
And now his loyalty to Rome was at its height. He disgraces
Attains, and sends the heads of Jovinus and Sebastian to Rome.
In A.D. 414 Adolphus invades Spain; but the details of
the Gothic conquests in the Peninsula bear but little upon the
question before us. It is those of the Goths of Gaul that we
are more especially investigating. However, it is in the palace
of Barcelona that he is assassinated ; and that • by a Goth, a
follower, client, or friend of the murdered Sarus.
Adolphus died August, A.D. 415. His successor, Singeric, was
a brother of Sarus; but was assassinated on the seventh day
after his elevation. Walha succeeds: and, after devoting three
yeai's to the consolidation of his power in Spain, crosses the Py-
renees, and establishes himself inAquitaine: when his kingdom
THE JUTES — WHAT? 155
included, inter alia, the flourishing cities of Bourdeaux, Peri-
g-ueux, Angouleme, Agen, Saintes, Poitiers, and Toulouse ; — seven
in number, so that the country was described as a Septimania.
Sidonius Apollinaris, a coteraporary writer, applies this term to
the Gothic district of the Seven Cities.
Such are the chief details of the Goths of Gaul, about A.d. 420.
Concurrently with the then conquest ran those of the Burgun-
dians and the Franks : where these were effected we learned from
the names Burgundy and Franche Compte. The Frank frontier,
however, enlarged itself in the direction of Lorraine, Flanders,
and Holland.
The Littus Saxonicuni and Arinorica give us the remainder :
for, with these exceptions, all Gaul has been accounted for. Let
us say, for the present, that the one is Saxon, and the other either
Roman or Keltic ; or, if not exactly this, Koman and Keltic. Let
us say this, and return to our Goths. Their rule lasts nearly a
century. It begins with Wallia A.D. 419, and ends A.D. 508,
when the Franks under Clovis carry all before them; and when
France, however German it may be, in many respects, ceases to
be either Gothic or Burgundian, either Saxon or Gallic, and is
known as the ffreat kincrdom of the Salian Franks.
Wallia dies soon after his conquest, and is succeeded by
Theodoric, whose flourishing and important reign lasts from A.D.
419 to A.D 451.
CHAPTEE, XXIV.
SPECIAL AND DIRECT EVIDENCE OF BEDA. CRITICISM. HIS
SAXONS, PROBABLY ANGLES UNDER ANOTHER NAME.
§141. The text of Beda suggests a difference between the
Angles and the Saxons. Is this difference real or nominal ? I
believe it to be nominal. I submit that the Saxons were neither
more nor less than Angles under another name.
At the present moment the Welsh call the English Saxons,
and it is presumed that they do so because their ancestors, the
ancient Britons, did so befoi-e them.
That the Romans and Britons spoke of the Angles in the same
15G CRITICISM OF UKDA.
Avay is liiglily ])rolial)le. If one population culled tliem Saxons,
the otlior would do the same.
The name by which the i\^o?i-romanizing Germans of England
(the Angles) were known to the Romans would, ])robably, be
the name by which they were known to the Romanizing
Germans (the Franks and Goths),
Now, tliat this name was Saxon is by no means a matter of
conjecture : on the contrary, it is one on which we have a good
deal of satisfactory evidence. That the Britons used it is
inferred from the present practice of the Welsh. That the
Ivomans used it is inferred from the Litus Saxonicum of the
Notitia. That the Franks used it is shown in almost every
j^age of their annals.
I submit, then, that, whilst the invaders of Britain from the
North of Germany called themselves Eagles, the Britains called
them Saxons. The name, however, though other than English
in its origin, soon became Anglicized. Thus, the country of
tlie —
Orientates Saxones became East-Seaxe, now Essex ;
Meridiani Saxones „ Su'S-Seaxe, „ Sussex;
Occidui Saxones „ West-Seaxe, „ Wessex ;
all in contact with the county of Kent, in which the name pro-
bably arose.
I now add — that no real difference between the Angles and
Saxons has ever been indicated. That undoubted Angles, like
the men of Yorkshire or Northumberland, can be shown to differ
from the so-called Saxons of Sussex or Essex in manners and
dialect no one denies. But do they not differ as North-counti'y-
men and South-countrymen, rather than as Saxons and Angles?
Who finds any difference between Saxon Essex and Angle Suf-
folk ? — between Saxon Middlesex and Angle Hertfordshire ?
Yet this is the difference required under the hypothesis that the
Angles and Saxons Avere really different populations. Again,
the king who is said to have called the whole island England,
or the land of the Engles, was Egbert, king of Wessex, a Saxon
rather than an Angle. We may believe that this was the case
when an Emperor of Austria proposes that all Germany shall
be called Prussia.
To conclude : — I suggest that the conquerors of England,
who introduced the English language and gave the island its
present name, bore two names.
THE SAXONS — WHAT? 157
They were called by themselves, Angles.
„ „ the Frisians, Angles.
„ ,, the Danes, Angles.
But, by the Kelts, they were called Saxons.
„ Romans, „ „ Saxons.
„ Franks, „ „ Saxons.
„ Goths, „ „ Saxons.
Where the latter populations determined the nomenclature the
latter names prevailed.
§ 142. In oneway, however, notwithstanding the previous
arguments, the Saxons may have been different from the Angles.
The latter may have come direct ffom Germany : the former
from the Littus Saxonicum. If so, the populations of the dis-
tricts in -sex — Es-sea;, Middle-sea;, SuB-sex, and Wes-se* — were
only of remote, or indirect, German origin. Though I indicate
this difference, I am not prepared to defend it.
CHAPTER XXV.
SPECIAL AND DIRECT EVIDENCE OF BEDA, HIS ANGULUS.
CRITICISM. LANGUAGE OF ANGLEN.
§ 143. The statement of Beda respecting the district of which
the Latin name was Angulus, like many of his other statements,
re-appears in more than one of the authors who wrote after him.
Alfred.
Translation.
And on the west of tlie Old Saxons is the mouth of the river Elbe and
Friesland ; and then north-west is the land which is called Aiujle and Sea-
land, and some part of the Danes.
In the Orhjinal.
And be wa}stan Eald-Scaxum is Albc mu^a and Frisland. And j^anon
west nor« is \>iei land, the man AiujJc bait, and Sillcndc, and summe da;l
Dena. — Oros, p. 20.
(2.)
Translation.
He sailed to the liarboiir which is called Ilai^um, whicli stands betwixt
the Wends and Saxons, and J «^?e, and belongs to Denmark . . and two
days before he came to Hai<5iun, there was- on his starboard Gothland, and
Sealand, and many islands. On that land lived Erujles, before they hither to
the land came.
158 CRITICISM OF BEDA.
In the OrhjbuiL
He scglode to [ann porte j^e man ha-t Hafjiun ; se stent betvruhs Wincdmn
and Scaxuni. and Amjlf, and hyi'cS in on Done . . and ]pa twegen dagas sur
lie to Hivflium come, liim Ava^s on l^a^t stoorbord Gothland and Sillende and
iglanda fola. On {i^'ni lundum eardodon Engle, fer liicSer on land comon. —
Oros, p. 2S.
The geography is clear. _Angulus means the district which
is now called ^1 nglen ; a triangle of irregular shape, formed by
the Slie, the Flensborger fiord, and a line drawn from Flensborg
to Sleswick. It may be the size of the county of Rutland, or
a little larger ; and' it lies on the side of the Peninsula furthest
from England. Although one of the most fertile parts of Sles-
wick, it was likely to have 'been a desert ; inasmuch as it was a
frontier land, or March, between the Danes and the Slavonians
(or Wends) of the eastern half of Holstein. But it was not
likely to have been the mother-country of any large body of
emigi'ants ; still less for an emigration across the German Ocean ;
least of all for such a one as conquered England. There is,
however, no objection to the Anglen of Sleswick having been
fiart of the countrj^ of the Angles who invaded England. The
only objection lies against its having been co extensive Avith the
mother-country of the English. That a population sufficiently
strong to have conquered and given a name to England and
sufficiently famous to have been classed amongst the leading
nations of Germany, both by Beda himself and by Ptolemy
before him ; is to be deduced from a particular district on the
frontier of Jutland rather than fi-om Northern Germany in
general, from a section of the Duchy of Sleswick rather than
from Holstein and Hanover at large, — is unlikely.
§ l-i<i. On the Language of Anglen. — The statement
that there is no objection to Anglen having been ixirt of
the land of the Angles is the only one that can be made.
Nor can it be made without certain cautions and qualifi-
cations. Anglen can scarcely have belonged to the original
Angle area, but, on the contrary, can only have been an outlying
settlement — a settlement of certain Angles who made their way
in the direction of Denmark, even as the conquerors of Britain
made their w^ay in the direction of Wales and Ireland. This is
because the parts between the Angle districts of Germany were
separated from the Anglen of Sleswick by the Slavonians of
Holstein : whilst the western part of Sleswick itself was
Frisian — the Frisians being (by the Danes at least) clearly
distinguished from the Angles. Still, as certain Angles may
THE ANGULUS — WHAT? 159
luive found their way to the parts about the present towns of
Liibeck and Travemiinde, and (via the Trave) have taken posses-
sion of certain j^arts of Sleswick, the Angle origin of the present
occupants of Anglen is by no means impossible. Nevertheless,
it is extremely doubtful.
The details of the dialects of Anglen are well known. At the
beginning of the historical period, the district lay well within
the limits of Denmark as opposed to Germany : inasmuch as it
lay to the north of the Dannevirke, and to the north of a district
W'herein (at least) two Runic descriptions in pure Norse have
been discovered.
1*
Dmif risj^i sten }:onsi himpigi Svins eften Erik felaga sin ies varp tTau[?r lio
(b-egjar satu um Haithabu, iai- liar vas stmimacLr, diigi- harda goclr.
In Danish.
Thorlef reiste clenne Steen, Svonds Hjeiiibo, efter sin Staldbroder Erik,
som dode, da Helteue sade om Hedeby, ban var St^Temand, en saare god
Helt.
In Enrjlish.
Tborlef cut tliis stone, Svends borne after Eric fellow liis was dead ben
(wben) the heroes sat about (besieged) Hatbeby. He was steerman, a bard
good hero.
2.
Osfii<5r gei-<5i kiunbl oft Sutrik sun sin . . .
In Danish.
OsMd gjorde Hui efter Sutrik sin Son . . .
In English.
Osfrid made (Scotice gart) barrow, after Sutrik his son . . .
It also lay to the north of the Danischwald, or Danish Wood,
and, a fortiori, to the north of the Eyder, the convenient, if
not exactly the accurate, boundary between Denmark and
Germany.
It also lay to the north of a series of villages ending in the
characteristic termination -by, viz.: Hahy, 'Norby, Osierby,
Goiheby, HekkeS?/, Guby, Y'mdeby, and Hedeby (Haitha?>w.). —
To which add, from the district of Svanso. on the east, Ny^y,
S'oby, Sondevby, &c.
In all these, however, the Danish language has given way to
the Platt-Deutsch, so that the question as to any actual inter-
mixture of the original Norse in the parts to the south of
Anglen, has no existence in the minds of even its most zealous
partizans. I use this term, because it is scarcely necessary to
* From Allen, vol. i. pp. 9, 10.
h;o language of anglen.
say that, in Denmark, the matter has assumed a serious and a
political aspect.
§ 14)5. Anglen, however, is claimed as a mixed district, i. e. as
one in which the Danish and the Platt-Deutsch are spoken con-
cm rentl}'. There is no doubt as to this being the case. Neither
is there any doubt as to the Danish being the older language.
The local names ending in -hy are (as has been shown) numerous.
The introduction of the German is a matter of history. The
exact date, however, of its preponderance is uncertain. So
are the exact proportiojis borne by it, at the present moment, to
the Danish. In res^=^ct to this I find the statement that the
Church Service in Anglen was never read in Danish ; in other
words, that, as early as the time of the Reformation, the German
was sufficiently prevalent to exclude its rival language from the
reading-desk. To this, however, one of the latest and best au-
thorities on the subject, Allen, in Det Danshe Sprogs Historie i
Jlertugdommet Slesvig eller Synderjylland, objects, giving some
curious facts in a different dii-ection. Thus, in the sixteenth
centiiry, the parishioners of Gelting complain that their pastor
knows no Danish ; whilst in Husby, Eskriss, and Haveltoft the
registers between A.D. 1G03 and A.D. 1635 contain certain
Danish entries. Now, however much these facts may give us an
approximation to a Church Service, it is not the Church Service
itself ; so that, upon the whole, the original statement is true,
viz. that Anglen was the first district, north of the Slie, in
which the Platt-Deutsch was the language of the preacher. This
was as early as there was any preaching in the vernacular at
all.
How far the Danish still survives is another question. Recent
inquiries have shown that it is anything but extinct. There is
more of it in the north than the south. It is generally under-
stood. It is spoken, when needed, by the majority. It is
spoken, from choice, by few. By a few it is neither spoken nor
understood. In no case, however, is it spoken to the exclusion
of the Platt-Deutsch.
Though this has a greater bearing upon Danish politics than
upon English philology, it is, by no means, irrelevant. The
more we ktiow what Anglen really is the better shall we value
Beda's statement concerning it. One thing is certain, viz. that,
whether Danish or German, at the present moment, it shows no
signs of ever having been English. The Danish is older than
the German, but there is nothing older than the Danish — no-
LANGUAGE OF ANGLEN. 161
tiling, at least, within the range of history. Neither is there any
tradition ; though the belief, on the other side of the peninsula,
that the Frisians are akin to the English, is botli correct and
well founded. Neither is it certain that Anglen is the equiva-
lent to Anglia : for which the Danish would be either Engelland
or Engle. It seems rather to mean The Angle. At any rate
Beda's term is Angulus, and the district itself is Anglen. That
learned men have looked upon the dialect of the district as a
mixture of Danish and Platt-Deutsch with a dash of the original
Anglo-Saxon, is not to be wondered ti*-,. Yet, no undoubted
Anglo-Saxon element has ever been disco /ered in it.
Specimens.
The Prod'itjal Son.
Parts about Bdl. — Danish.
En Man Iio to Senner, a den yngest a clem so te se Faer. " Faer gi mse
den Diel a se Gos, der filder mae te;" a lian diel dem ae Gos. A it
manne Dav deretter saanked den yngest Son olt sit, a dro vsek i et Laend
vidt dsefraa, a lian la der o hva han ho i et ruglost Ltivne. Men som lian sin
ho fotaeer olt, hva han ho, blev der en stiir Houger i de saem Laend a han
begynt a li No. A han gik hen a holdt see te en Borrer der i te Laend, a han
skekked ham itr aa se Mark a vaer ae Sviin. A han ho gjern oet INIask, hva te
Sviin fek, men dae var iiigen a ga ham novve. Men han gik i sae sjel a so
" hvomanne Davlonner haer min Faer di haer rigele Bre, a ae dyer a Monger.
M vil staa op a gaa te min Faer a si te ham: M haer fo(r)si mae emor ae
Himmel a emor dae ; ae er it bet veer a jerr din Son, gyr mae te jen a din
Davlonner." A han sto op a gik te sin Faer. Mon som han enon var et
laant Stykk dsefi-aa, so sin Faer ham, a defotryer ham fo ham, a han lof hen
a foldt ham om ae Hals a kyssed ham. A ae Son so te ham : " Faer ; <b haer
fo(r)si mae." &c. Men ae Faer so te sin Svenn: " Taejer de best Ty liu- a
draejer dem aa ham, a gier ham en Ring aa sin Haend aa Sku aa sm Forre,
a hinter et fedt Kalle aa slavter et a la vos aer a vaer glai, for den hjer Son va
do, a han hae vnrn lov\'end aegjen, a hanv a taft, a han hae vurn funuen aegjen.
A di begynt a vaer luste.
Platt-Deutsch of the District.
En Man har twe Sons. Un de jlingste von se sa to de Fatter :
" Fatter, gif mi de Deel von et Vermogen, de mi tofallt." Uu he deler se dat
Gut. Un nich vehl Dag danah sammler de jlingste Son al wat he har to
samen im trok no en fremde Land wit weg iin verkehm do sin Gut in en
ruchlose Lebend. Awer als he vertiihrt har al wat he har, wiirr' da en grote
Hungersnoth in et solbige Land, un he begynner im le Mangel. Un he ging
hen un hel sik to een von de Borgers da in et Land, mi de sollicker em ut op
sin Land, de Swein to wahren. Un he har sik gern liolpen mit Masch, wat
de Swiin eten ; awer da wahr kein un gev em watt. Awer he ging in sik
selbst un sii; " Worvehl Daglohners bi min Fatter hem rikhg Brot; awer ik
mott Hungerstarben. Ik wiU opstahn un to min Fatter gahn im to em
seggen : Fatter, ik heff mi versehn gegen de Himmel un gegen di. Un bui
nich melir werth un heten dm Son, mak mi to een von din Daglohners." Un
M
102 LANGUAGE OF ANGLEN.
lie stium op uu kohm to sin Falter. Awov als lie nacli wit \\o^ willir, seg sin
Fatter em, iin et vedi'oot em haertlich. mi lie lib hcii lui lull tui om do liiils
uu kiisscr cm.
Parts ahout Toll:.— Danish.
En Main ho ton Sonner, a don oiigst so te liains Far : " Gie mil, Far, den
Piel a Piing, de mil liorr ; a liain diclt em de Piing." A int lang derilttcr
saukcde don ongst Son olt sammel, a gik wied, ur ar Lain, a der ferkamm
liain oil Pang ma Frern a Drikken. Som liain no ho oil hains Pang fertchr,
so kamm en stui dj-er Tee i a hiel Lain, a hain begyint a honger, a gik hen a
vreen ssa ten Main i a Stai; den schilikede hain te Mai-kens, te a war a
Schwin ; a hain well fyll hains Lin ma Anon, de de Sch^in fr ar (oor') a ingen
ga hain nauer. Da gilv hain i ssa a so : " "NVo mange Davlouner heiT min Far,
som der ha Bronok, a a ferdarrere far Hunger; a a will sto op a go hen te
min Far, a see te ham : Far a her gier lu'et i Himmere a for dee, a a er no
ikke bet war a. jirr din Sou, gier ma te din Daulouner." A hain sto op a
kam te hains Far, Som hain awer muu war wied darfro, so hains Far ham, a
de gier ham weh, run hen a follt ham on a Hals a ge ham solt. De
S(5a awer so te ham : " Far a her gier Uret i Him mere a for da, a a er no iklce
bet war a jir din Son." Awer de Far so te jin a hains Swenn : " Tai den beest
IQcd hier a traie ham o, a gie ham en Fiugerriug a hains Hoain, a Sko te
hains Forre ; a taie et fett Kalle hier, a slagter a la woss ar a war glai. .
Platt-Deiitsch.
En Mann har twee Sohns. Un de jongst van se seeg to sien Vader : " Gev
mi, Vader, dat Deel van dat God, wat mi to hort." Un he deelt 'se dat God
to. Un nich lang darnah nehm de jongt Sohn alt to hoap un trock wiet ower
Land un dasiilm breek he sien God ma Prassen dohr. As he nu all dat siene
verh-hi-t har, da waiT 'ne grot diier Tid dohi- dat siilwige Land, un he
fung an Nood to heden. Un he ging hen un verhiier sik hi en Borger van
datsulwigge Land, un de scliickt' em op sien Feld, de Smen to hoiden. Un
he vraU. sien Bunli med de Sei fnll'n, de de Swen fi-eten, un niimms grev se
em. Da slog he in si un spiok : " Vo veel Daglohner het mien Vader, de Brod
g'nog hebb'n, un ik verdarf in Hunger. Ick A^dll un opmaken un to mien
Vader gahn un to em seggen: Vader! ick heff siinnigt in Himmel, un
var di un ick biin nu nich mehr werth, dat ick dien Sohn heete, maak mi as
en van dien Daglolmers." Un he maakt si op un kom to sien Vader. As he
awerst noch \siet af weer, seg em sien Vader, un he dueii; 'em, leip un feel em
om sien Hah im kiisst em.
Hymn.
1.
Kjsere Guj, se takker dae,
Fo den-hjer go Dav ;
Men host do it hjulpen mte,
Hoo var ae blev\'en av ?
2.
Do gast mse Klaeer te mit Lj-v,
Gast mfe dayle Biye,
Do gast nise Glpeer tusenviis
Bevarst maj fraa aa dve.
FRANKS. 1C3
3.
Hold no i den-hjer soet Nat
Din Haend aa over moe,
Saa se sin mon-arl aa ny
Kan, Faer, takke dte.
4.
Min skuld de vser den seest Nat,
M loover lier aa Jord,
Saa tsej mse i din Himmel op
Hvo din Engle boe.
English.
1.
Dear God, I thank thee
For this-here good day ;
But haddest Thou not helped me,
How had I been gone through it ?
2.
Thou gavest me clothes to my body,
Gavest me daily bread ;
Thou gavest me gladnesses thousand-wise,
Preservedst me from death.
3.
Hold, now, in tliis-here swarthy night.
Thine hand aye over me.
So I the morning- early anew
Can, Father, thank Thee.
4.
But should it be the latest night
I live here on earth.
So take me in thj heaven up,
Where thy angels dwell !
CHAPTER XXYI.
ELEMENTS OF THE ANGLE INVASION. FRANKS IN KENT.
§ 146. There may have been Franks in Kent as well as Goths.
One fact in favour of such having been the case lies in —
(a) The extract from Mamertinus in § 15.
(6) The name Kent.
This is no compound of the word Seaxe or Saxon, like
Sus-sea?, 'Essex, &c. — though the county abuts upon disti-icts so
named. Hence, the easiest way of accounting for the words in
-sex, and their limitation to the south of England, is to suppose
that they were the names by which the districts which bore
them were known in Kent ; — the Franks being tlie popula-
tion who, of all the Germans, most eschewed the use of the word
M 2
104. FRANKS.
Angle and most used the word Saxon. Saxon was a name
wliicli a Frank population would give to its neighbours, even if
they were Angle in the strictest sense of the terra. If a Frank
had given a name to even 'Ea,st-Anglian Suffolk, it would have
been Es-sc'.«.
(c) The name HJilothcere, as that of a king of Kent, is emi-
nently Frank, and not at all Angle.
(il) Kent is divided into Lathes. — The Latin term Loiti was
a word belonging to the military nomenclature of Rome during
the fourth century, as well as earlier and later. It applied to
the parts opposite Britain — viz. Gaul and Western Germany.
It denoted a certain kind of military retainers ; the service in
which they were being the Roman. Julian, in Ammianus
(xx. 8) writes of them thus : — " Equos prsebebo Hispanos, et
miscendos gentilibus atque scutariis adolescentes L cetos quosda.m,
cis Rhenum editam barbarorum progeniem, vel certe ex dedi-
titiis, qui ad nostra desuescunt." Zosimus gives the form Aero/.
He speaks of the emperor as being a barbarian by blood, who
by residence amongst the Aerol, a Gallic nation, acquired some
Latin cultivation (2, 54). — MayvevTLOs, <yevo9 jxkv cXkcov aTro
^ap^apwv, fieTOiKrjcras Se eis Aerots, eOvos TdXariKov, iraihelas
rrjs Aarlvcov /xeraa-^cop. The Frank Lseti were settled by
Maximianus, as we learn from Eumenius {Panegyric. Constant.
Cobs. A.D. 296) : — " Tuo — natu Nerviorum et Treverorum arva
jacentia Lcdus postliminio restitutus et receptus in leges Francus
excoluit." The Notitia has a long list of them : —
Prgefectus Latorum Teutoniciarum, Carnimto Senonige Lugdunensis.
Prsefectus Latorum Batavormn et gentilium Suevorum, Bajocas * et Con-
stantiae Lugdunensis secundse.
Prsefectus Latorum gentilium Suevorum, Cenomannos Lugdunensis tertiae.
Prsefectus Latorum Franco rum, Piedonas Lugdiuiensis tertiae.
Praefectus Latorum Lingonensium, per diversa dispersoriun Belgicfe
primae.
Praefectus Latorum Actorum, Epi;so Belgicae primae.
Praefectus Latorum Ner\'iorum, Fanomartis Belgicae secundje.
Prsefectus Latorum Batavorum Nemetacensium, Atrebatis Belgicae se-
cundae.
Praefectus Latorum Batavoiiim Contragineusium, Noviomago Belgic*
secundae.
Praefectus Latorum gentilimn, Remos et Silvanectas Belgicae secundae.
Praefectus Latorum Lagensium, prope Tungros Germaniae secundae.
Praefectus Latorum gentilium Suevonun, Arvernos Aquitanife xsrimte.
• Observe the word /?f(/ocrtS=:I>;iyeux.
FRISIANS. 165
Zeuss (v. Leti), to whom all the texts that have been laid
before the reader are due, concludes with a notice touching the
question of the Kentish lathes most closely. The Theodosian
Code states *' That the lands appointed to the Lcdi, who were
removed to them, were called terrce Lceticon." Such a word,
then, as lathe may have grown out of (terra) Lcetica. That
such existed in Romano-Keltic Gaul has been shown abundantly.
That they also existed in Eomano-Keltic Britain (especially in
the parts nearest to Gaul) is probable
CHAPTER XXVII.
ELEJVIENTS OF THE ANGLE INVASION. FRISIANS.
§ 147. Did any other German populations, under their oiun
name, join the Angle invasions ? Did any of them do so under
the general name of Angle or Saxon ? Did any of them effect
any independent settlements ?
§ 148. The Frisians. — (a) Procopius writes that three very
populous nations occupied Britain, the Angles, the Britons, and
the Frisians.
(b) The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, under the year 897, runs
thus : —
Dy ilcan geare drehtou the hergas on East-Engliun and on NorS-h^'mbnun
West- Seaxna -loud swicSe be jjosm suc5-stffide mid sta?l-liergum ealra s%^d^ustmid
ysiva iEScmn|;e liie fela geara fer timbredon. Da het Alfi-ed cyng timbrian lang
scipu ongen J^a sescas {^a wseron fiilneah tu swa lange swa \ia ciSru, smne bsefdon
Ix. ara, sume ma, J^a waeron segSer ge swiftran ge unwealtran ge eac hierau
j^ionne J^a o^ru. Nseron [hie] nawj^er ne on Fresisc gescsepene, ne on Denisc, bute
swa him selfnm fjiihte j^jet liie nyt-wyil5oste beon meahten. Da set smumn
ciiTe jjses ilcan geares comon \)Sdv sex scipu to Wiht, and f^aer mycel refel
gedydon reg^er ge on Defeniuu ge wel hvor be f^fem sse riman. Da het se
cyng faran mid uigonmn to pava niwena scipa., and forforon him )jone mu<5an
foran on iitere mere. Da foron liie med )jrmi scipiim ut ongen hie, and j^reo
stodon at ufeweardum pmm muSan on drygiun wseron |ja men uppe on londe
of agane. Da gefengon liie f^ara l^reora scipa tu set J^ara mucSan utevveardmn
and ])Si men ofslogon and pset an oXwand on l^am wseron eac f^a men ofslagene
buton fifmn jja comon for j^y onweg ]}e {^ara oSema scipu asseton. Da \vurdan
eac, s\vi^e une^eUce aseten. Dreo asseton on f^a healfe {jtes deapes J^e pa.
Deniscan scipu aseten wseron, and )ja oSru ealle on oSre healfe {^at hira ne
mihte nan to o^rum. Ac {;a fjset wseter wa^s ahebbad fela furlanga from
scipum fja eodou }ja Deniscan from f^sem jjiim scipum to {jsem oiSrum J^ruii J^e
on hira healfe beebbade wseron and hie \.a j^ter gefuhtou. Dser wearS ofslegen
166 FRISIANS.
Lucuinon oyngos gorofa. ami Wull'hoanl Friosa, and ^Ebbc Friesa, and ^Edcl-
Inn-g Friosa, and Atlu'foi-S c gj-ngoscncat, and cdbra monna Fricsiscra and
EugUscra Ixii, and j^ara Doiiiscena cxx.
In English. From Moninnenta Britannica.
The aiTnios from among the East-Anglians and from among the North-
Hnmbrians, harassed the land of the West-Saxons cliiefly, most of all by
their ascs, wliich they had built manj' years before. Then King Alfred com-
manded long sliips to be built to oppose the sescs ; they were full-nigh t^vice
as long as tlie otliers ; some had sixty oai's, and some had more ; they were
both swifter and steadier, and also higher than the others. They were shapen
neither lilve the Frisian nor the Danish, but so as it seemed to him that they
would be most efficient. Then some time in the same year, there came six
ships to Wight, and there tlid much harm, as well as in Devon, and elsewhere
along the sea-coast. Then the Idng commanded nine of the new ships to go
tliither. and they obstructed theii- x^assage from the port towards the outer sea.
Then went they with three of thek sliips out against them ; and three lay in
the ui^per part of the j^ort in the diy ; the men were gone from them ashore .
Then took they two of the thi-ee ships at tlie outer part of the port, and killed
the men, and the other ship escaped ; in that also the men were lolled except
five ; they got away because the other ships were aground. They also were
aground very disadvantageously ; tlu-ee lay agi'Oimd on that side of the deep
on which the Danish ships were aground, and all the rest upon the other side,
so that no one of them could get to the others. But when the water had
ebbed many furlongs from the ships, the Danish men went from then* thi'ee
sliii^s to the other three wliich were left by the tide on their side, and then
they there fought against them. There was slain Lucmnon the king's reeve,
and Wulfheard the Frisian, and Mbhe the Frisian, and ^Ethelhere the Frisian,
and iEthelferth the king's geneat, and of all the men, Frisians and EngHsh,
seventy-two ; and of the Danish men one hundred and twenty.
Of the Chauci, Lombards, and Early Danes, notice will be
taken in the sequel.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
RELATIONS OF THE ENGLISH TO THE LANGUAGES OF GERMANY
IN GENERAL.
§ 149. Three German forms of speech have been specially
noticed — the Old Saxon, the Angle, and the Frisian. But they
are only three out of many. Again, forms of speech such as
the Frank, the Thuringian, &c., have been named. So have
forms of speech called Norse, Icelandic, or Scandinavian.
AU this means that, just as the English is one division of a
RELATION OF THE ENGLISH TO THE GERMAN. 167
group containing the Old Saxon and the Frisian besides, so may
the Old Saxon and the Frisian, along with the English, consti-
tute a division of some higher group or genus.
Which of the members of this same group or genus shall we
take first — the Frisian, the Angle, and the Old Saxon having
already been considered ?
§ 150. These diverged, i. e. the Frisian led in one direction,
the Old Saxon in another.
Each of these tongues was conterminous with some other mem-
ber of the German division, some known member with which we
could compare it. The Anglo-Saxon, on the other hand, had
such portions of its frontier as have not already been under
treatment — such portions of its frontier as were neitlier
Frisian nor Old Saxon — either Slavonic (and, as such, not Ger-
man at all), or else North Hessian and Thuriugian. Hence, it
was only in the direction of those two forms of speech that it
could graduate into any other member its class.
But the early forms of the North Hessian and North Thurin-
gian are as unknown as the southern forms of the Angle.
Hence — the two outside and osculant languages (so to say),
the languages that lead to other members of their class, are the
Frisian and Old Saxon.
Of these the former points to Scandinavia ; the latter to
Southern Germany.
The former leads to the Icelandic, Danish, Swedish, Norwe-
gian, and Feroic, the latter to the Platt-Deutsch, and High-Ger-
man— also to the Moeso-Gothic.
Whether we begin with the Frisian or the Old Saxon we
come to the same class of dialects. These are, on the south and
south-west of the Old Saxon and Frisian frontiers the Dutch of
Holland, and on the south and south-east the numerous Platt-
Deutsch forms of speech of Westphalia and the Lower Rhine.
§ 151. The Dutch of Holland. — Nearly akin to the English,
and still more nearly akin to the Frisian on its northern, and the
Platt-Deutsch of Westphalia on its eastern, frontier is the Dutch
of Holland, of which the Flemish of Belgium is only a modifi-
cation. South of the Flemish frontier comes the French of
Artois and Picardy, no German tongue at all ; but one belong-
ing to another class of languages. The Dutch of Holland
extends into Germany, the dialects of part of Cleves on the
east, and of East Friesland on the north, being more Dutch
than Platt-Deutsch.
16S RELATION OF ENGLISH TO DUTCH OF HOLLAND.
The Dutch of Holland falls into dialects and sub-dialects, e. g.
tlie Groningen, the Guelderland, the Zealand, the Brabant, &c.
The stages of the Dutch of Holland are somewhat indistinct.
Samples of any dialect of the Seven Provinces of equal anti-
quity with the oldest Frisian, tlie oldest Old Saxon, and the
Anglo-Saxon there are none. On the other hand the Old
Frisian and Old Saxon are closely akin to what such specimens
would be if they existed — indeed it has already been stated,
that more than one scholar has dealt with the Carolinian
Psalms as if they were Old Butch.
§ 152. The earliest important work in the true Dutch of
Holland is the Chronicle of Melis Stoke, about A. D. 1300.
Specimen.
Mark, chap. 1.
1. Het begin des evangelies van Jesus Christ, den Zoou van God.
2. Gelijk gesclireven is in de Profeten : ziet, Ik zend mijnen Engel voor nw
aangezigt, die uwen vreg voor u lieen bereiden zal.
3. De stem des roependen in de woestijn : bereidt den weg des Heereu,
maakt zijne paden regt !
4. Johannes was doopende in de woestijn, en predikende den doop der
bekeeiing tot verge\'ing der zonden.
5. En al het Joodsche land ging tot hem nit, en die vad Jerrizalem ; en
werden alien van hem gedoopt in the ri^^er de Jordaan, belijdende huuue
zonden.
6. En Johannes was gekleed met kemelshaar, en met eenen lederen gordel
om zijne lendenen, en et spriukliannen en wilden honig.
7. En hij predikte, zeggende : na niij komt, die sterker is dan ik, wien ik
niet waardig ben, nederbukkende, deu riem zijner sehoeuen te ontbinen.
&. Ik heb uheden wel gedoopt met water, maar liij zal u doopen met deu
Heiligeu Geest.
§ 153. The Platt-Deutsch Dialects. — Piatt means Broad or
Flat. For some reason or other it has become current as a term
in German philology. The Germans of Suabia, Franconia, and
the countries on the upper parts of the Ehine, Weser, and Oder,
thus denominate the dialects of the Loiver Rhine, the Lower
Weser, the Loiver Oder, the Loiver Vistula, &:c.
Such is the meaning of the word in its narrower and more
limited sense — the meaning which it takes in the mouth of an
ordinary German who names the dialects of his country accord-
ing to the current nomenclature.
But there is a wider meanincj as well. Each and all of the
languages that have up to the present time commanded our
attention are not only German, but German with special Platt-
Deutsch affinities. Thus the Frisian, the Dutch of Holland, the
THE PLATT-DEUTSCH. ] 09
Anglo-Saxon, the English, and the Old Saxon are all liker to the
dialects of the Lower Rhine, the Lower Weser, &c., than they
are to the Suabian, the Franconian, the Bavarian, &c.
This engenders a complication. Sometimes the word means
some particular dialect of Westphalia, Oldenburgh, Hanover,
Holstein, Sleswick, Mecklenburgh, &c., to the exclusion of the
English, Frisian, and Dutch of Holland ; and sometimes it
means the English, Dutch, Westphalian, &c., collectively. Hence,
it is correct to say, that the language of Overysel or of Guelder-
land is Dutch rather than Platt-Deutsch ; Dutch like the literary
language of Holland, rather than any provincial dialect of West-
phalia. And it is also correct to say that the English of
England is a Platt-Deutsch form of speech.
All this is correct. Whether it be convenient is another
matter.
In the present work Platt-Deutsch (the German term) will
represent the provincial dialects of Northern Germany — the
provincial dialects of the Loiver (and Middle) Rhine, Weser,
Oder, &c. ; whereas the more generic expression for the group
containing the English, &c., will be Loiv-German, i. e. the
German of the Loiver course of the Rhine, &:c.
Hence there is a Platt-Deutsch sub-section of the Loiu-
Gerraan section.
I cannot give (either geographically or philologically) an exact
line of demarcation between the southern Platt-Deutsch and the
northern High-German divisions. I cannot even say in which
quarter the relationship is the closest, i. e. whether the most like
forms of the Dutch of Holland and of the Platt-Deutsch of
Westphalia are liker each other than the likest dialects of the
Platt-Deutsch and High-German. Such divisions, however, are
often dravsm. Few writers make the Hessian of the middle parts
of Hesse other than High-German. Yet, it contains more than
one of the so-called Low-German characteristics.
§ 154. The points connected with the Platt-Deutsch which
are the most certain, and not the least important, are the follow-
ing : —
1. It is more High-German than any of the forms of speech
hitherto noticed — more High-German than the Old Saxon, the
Anglo-Saxon, the Dutch, the Frisian. Hence —
2. Its original situs is to the south of those forms of
speech, i. e. on the High-German frontier. No one has ever said
J 70 THE rLATT-DEUTSClI.
that any of the above-named hmgnagcs graduate into the Fran-
conian, or the Hessian ; many have said that some of the-
Rhenish forms of the Platt-Deutsch do.
3. From this it spread northward and north-eastwards — the
Franks of the Carolinian perioil being its chief propagators, and
the districts it invaded being Westphalia, Oldenburg, Hanover,
Altmark, Brunswick, Lauenburg, Holstein, Sleswick, Mecklen-
burg, Pomerania, West Prussia, East Prussia, Courland, Livonia,
Esthonia (these last imperfectly).
To all these countries it was originally foreign — the native
languages being —
1 , In Westphalia, Oldenburg, Hanover, Brunswick, and part
of Holstein, the Old and Anglo-Saxon :
2, In Lauenburg, part of Holstein, Altmark, Luneburg,
Mecklenburg, and Pomerania, the Slavonic :
3, In West (?) and East Prussia, Courland, and South Livo-
nia, either the Lithuanic or the Lett.
•i. In North Livonia and Esthonia (German being spoken at
Reval, and even at Dorpat), the Fin of Esthonia.
To these add the original districts from which it was diffused,
which I hold to have been the parts on the Lower and Middle
Rliine about Cologne, and you have the vast area of the Platt-
Deutsch of Germany — the descendant of the Carolinian (or Car-
lovingian) Frank.
§ 155. The stages of the Platt-Deutsch are equally obscure
with those of the Dutch of Holland — more so. Of the different
forms of it, as spoken at the present moment, there are abund-
ant specimens, specimens of which the collection of Firmenich*
is a rich repertorium. But the analogues of the Anglo-Saxon,
the analogues of the Old and Middle English, are scarce ; in some
cases non-existant.
Linear descendants of Old Saxon forms of speech we have
none. They were displaced on the spot where they were spoken
by the Carolinian Frank. But this was not written and pre-
served until a comparatively late period — later in some parts
than in others. I cannot say when and where, for each par-
ticular portion of the present Platt-Deutsch area, the earliest
extant specimen was put to paper, and handed down. I believe
* Firmenich Volkenstimmen Gfrmaniens.
THE PLATT-DEUTSCH. 1 7 '
it was in the parts about Hamburg, Llibeck, &c. As a general
rule, however, we may state that the forms of speech of that part
of the present Platt-Deutsch area, which, without being Frank,
was originally German, have left no modern representatives, and
that the Frank which displaced them is not known in any old
form — i. e. no form cotemporary with the Anglo-Saxon, or Old
Frisian.
§ 156. But there was the original Frank area, the part ot
Germany where the form of speech took birth, and whence it
spread. What have we here ? What have we for the Lower
and Middle Rhine, for South- Western Westphalia? Nothing
which is at one and the same time sufficiently definite to repre-
sent a separate substantive division, and also of high antiquity.
The Oospel Harmony of Tatian is generally called Frank
{Francic), but it has much which is more High-German than
Platt-Deutsch.
§ 157. Again, Hildebrancl and Hathuhrand is a short and,
apparently, a fragmentary poem, in alliterative metre, concerning
two heroes, father and son, of the times of Diedrich of Berne
(Theodoric of Verona) and Otacher (Odoacer). It is held, by
Grimm, to be Old Saxon, in the hands of a Frank copyist. It
is, apparently, a transitional form of speech. The text is given
in the chapter on Prosody.
§ 158. The following is genuine and undoubted Platt-
Deutsch : —
Hyr begynnet cle ffimclacie wo de Kercke vucl clat Kloster des Stliictes tlio
Ffrekenhorst erst js wundeiiycloi van der genade Godes getjnnmri.
In den tyden als regierde de Aller Dorluchtigeste Konjaick iind Keyser
Lodewych de Jiinge, was ejTi wertlick man genompt Euuerwordus. He was
hillich van leuen, vnde sclione van dogheden. He was ock na stat der werlt
van gliebort eyn. van den akler edelsteu. He nam eyn hufirouwen er name was
geheiten Gena. Se was sclione van lyue im klock van syrme mykle, tho der
armoet, dat er gude gerockte wart verbredet oner dat gansse lant. All was se
vruchtende den Heren und bejniede em seer truweluk dach vnd naclit. Welker
Euuerwordus vnde Geua kedden vele liuss gesynnes kneclite vnd megkede. Se
hedden ock vntellick gud van erffuysse, lant, kolt, golt vnd suluer, van perden,
koyen, sw;yTie, \n sckapen, &c., dat em was geeruet van eren oJderen. Nj'ckt de
myn, se en di'ogken ^^ld verleiten sick nickt \'p dat gi'ote Gud. Mer se deyneden
bekle Gode, ingrotenvruckten. Snte Paulus seckt de Hilge Apostell, "alsnyckt
liebbende weren se all djTick besittende."
Here begins tke foundation, wken tke ckurck and tlie cloister of tkc Saint
at Frekenkorst, was first wonderfully by tke gi-ace of God built.
In tke time wken tkere reigned tke most noble King and Keyser, Lodewick
tke Young, was a wortky man named Everward. He was koly of life, and fair
172 IIIGII-GERMAN.
in nctious. lie was also after the fasliion of the world, in hirth one of the
noblest. He took a wife whose name was called Geva. He was beautiful of
body, and wise of mind, mild in sjnrit, that his good fame was spread abroad
over tlie whole land. Nevertheless, he was fearing the Lord and served him
very faithfully, very truly day and night. The same Everward and Geva had
many man-servants and maid-servants in tlieir household. They also had
innumerable goods of inheritance, land, wood, gold and sUver, of horses,
cows, swine and sheep, that is inherited from the ancestors. Nevertheless,
they departed not from the great God. But they both served God in great
fear. St. Paul, the holy Apostle, says, " Though having nothing, they pos-
sjssed all things."
Specimen.
Detmars Chronicle, a.d. 1386.
In dcmesulven Jare scliach den van Lubeke schaden an rove alse in Per-
deu: dat deden Godendoi'pes Denre unde Hulpere. Der worden en del be-
grepen unde worden henget vor Lubeke. Darna schacli, dat desulven
Strateni-overe hadden des nachtes genomen to ene Dorpe, dat het Kurowe,
unde hadden enen Bur darsulves dot geslagen. Des weren de Vogede van
Lubeke unde van MoLne uppe den velde. De Voget van Lubeke was en
wolboreu Man van Ridderen unde Knechten, uude heet Henneke Scharpen-
berch ; de van Molne was en berve Man, imde heet Wendelbarn. Do se dat
Ruchte vornemen, do volgeden se den Morderen unde Strateni'overen ; id was
Nacht unde kunden nene Slawe liolden. Des ghat dar dre Wege in dat
Land to Holsten, dar de Misdedere ute komen weren, de den Schaden dan
hadden : aldus besenden de Vogede twe Wege, in deme dridden volgeden se
sulven.
§ 159. The High-German. — By taking extreme forms we
may easily get High-German specimens wliich differ visibly
from the Platt-Deutsch.
We may get this from two quarters, i. e. either from the
literary language of the present Germans and their forerunners,
or from the more extreme provincial dialects, e. g. the Bavarian,
or the Swiss.
How far is the literary High -German of the present time a
real language ; or how far is it a language of the author and
the schoolmaster ?
In the work of Firmenich, already quoted, there is no part
of Germany of the size of the county of Leicester, without a
sample of its dialect. Yet it is safe to say that none of these
approaches the written language so closely as the ordinary
language of Huntingdon and Northampton approaches the
written English.
Again, — ask in Germany where the best German is spoken —
hest meaning the highest. The answer is, in Hahover or Bruns-
wick— Platt-Deutsch districts.
LITERARY IIIGII-GERMAN. 173
§ 160.
Literary Hujli-Oerman.
I.
From Lessixg's Fables.
herkules.
Als Herkules in den Himmel aufgenommen ward, maclite er seinon Giiiss
iintei" alien Gottern der Juno zuerst. Der ganze Himmel nnd Juno erstaunte
daviiber. "Deiner Feindin," rief man ihm zu, " begegnest du so vorziiglicli?"
" Ja, ilar selbst ; " enviederte Herkixles. " Nur ihre Verfolgimgen sind es, die
mil" zu den Thaten Gelegenheit gegenen, womit ich den Himmel verdienet
habe."
Der 01}Tnp bUligte die Ant wort des neuen Gottes, and Juno ward ver-
sohnt.
Tn English.
As Hercules in the Heaven up-taken was, made he his greeting, under
(among) all Gods, to Juno at (to) first. The whole Heaven and Juno were
astonished thereon (over). "Thy female enemy (fiend,)" cried thej^ him to,
" meetest thou so preferably?" " Yes, herself," answered Hercules, " only her
perseciitions are it, which me to the deeds opportunity (^have) given, wherewith
I the Heaven earned have."
The Olympus approved the answer of the new God, and Juno was recon-
ciled.
2.
From Herder.
Horch, horch die Lerch' am Himmelsthiir singt,
Die liebe Sonn' wacht auf ;
Aus alien Bliimkelchen trinkt
Sie schon ilir Opfer auf.
Das Hochzeitknospfchen freundlich winkt,
Und thut sein Aiiglein auf ;
Was hold und lieb ist, freundlich blinkt,
Wach schones Kind wacli auf,
Wach auf;
Wach schones Kind wach auf.
This is a translation from the song in Cymbeline : — ■
Hark ! the lark at Heaven's gate sings ;
The sun begins to rise :
His steed to water at those sj^rings,
On chaliced flowers that hes.
And winking Mary-buds begin,
To ope theu' golden eyes ;
And everything that pretty bin ;
My Ladye sweet arise,
Aiise,
My Ladye sweet arise.
Literally.
Hark ! Hark ! the lark at Heaven's door sings,
The dear [love) Sun wakes up;
174 OLD HIGH-GERMAN.
Out of all bloom-chalicos drinks
She (tlie sun, wliich is fcmiuine) ali-eaily tlieii- offering up,
The batchelor's button friendly looks.
And does its eye-ling up (=opens little eye).
What gracious and dear is friendly winks,
Wake, fair child, wake up.
Wake up, &c.
From the Xew Testament, Mark i. 1-8.
1. Diess ist der Anfang des Evangelii von Jesu Christo, dem Sohne Gottes.
2. Als gesclii-ieben stehet in den Propheten ; Siehe, " Ich sende meinen
Engel vor dir her, der da bereite deinen AYeg vor dii-."
3. Es ist eine Stimme eines Predigers in der Wiiste : " Bereitet den Weg
des Hemi, machet seine Steige richtig."
4. Johannes der wai- in der Wiiste, taufte und predigte von der Taufe der
Busse, zur Vergebung der Siinden.
5. Und es gieng zu ilun hiuaus das ganze Jiidische Land, und die von
Jeinisalem, und liessen sich alle von ilini taufen im Jordan, und bekannten
ihre Siinden.
6. Johannes aber war beldeidet mit Kameelshaaren, und mit einem ledernen
Giirtel um seine Lenden, und ass Heusclirecken und wilden Honig ;
7. Und predigte imd sprach: "Es kommt einer nach mir, der ist starker,
"denn ich, dem ich nicht genugsani bin, dass ich niich vor ihm biicke, und die
" Pdemen seiner Schuhe auflose.
8. "Ich taufe euch mit Wasser, aber er wird euch mit dem heiligen Geiste
taufen."
§ 161. The Old High-German, called also Francic and Ale-
mannic. was spoken in the ninth, tenth, and eleventh centuries,
in Suabia, Bavaria, and Franconia. It is in the Old High-
German that the Krist of Otfrid, the Fsalms of Notker, the
Canticle of Willeram, the Glosses of Kero, the Vita Annonis,
&c., are composed.
Sj^echnen.
Krtst, i. 12. (Edit. Graff.)
Tho uuanm thar in lante liiiia haltente :
Thes fehes datun uuaiia luiidar fianta.
Zi in quam boto sconi, engil scmenti ;
Joh uuurtun sie inUuhte fon liiuiilisgen liohte.
Forahtun sie in tho galiun so sinan anasahun ;
Joh liintarquamun harto thes Gotes boten uuorto.
Sprah ther Gotes boto sar. " Ih seal ii'i sagen uuuntar.
Ju seal sin fon Gote heil ; nales forahta nihein.
Ih seal iu sagen imbot, gibot ther himihsgo Got ;
Ouh nist ther er gihorti so fronisg arunti.
Thes uuirdit uuorolt siuu zi euuidou blidu,
Joh al giscaft tliiu in uuorolti thesa erdun ist ouh dretenti
iSiuuui boran habet thiz lant then himihsgon Heilant ;
The ist Druhtin Krist guater fon iiuigeru muater.
MIDDLE HIGH-GERMAN. 175
In Betlileem thine kuuinga tliie iiixarun alle thanana.
Fon in iiiiard oiili giboran iu sin miiater magad sconu.
Sagen ill iii, guate mail, uuio ir nan sculut findan,
Zeiclien ouh gdzanii thuruh thaz seltsani.
Zi tliera bergi faret liinana, ii- fmdet, so ill in sageta,
Kind niniini boranaz in Ivi-ipplinn gilegitaz."
Tlio quam unz er zin tho sprali engilo heriscaf,
Hiniilisgii menigi, sns alle singenti —
"In liiuiili-icbes hold si Gote gnallichi ;
Si in erdu fridu ouli alien tliie fol sin guates imillen."
The Same, in English.
Then there was in the land herdsmen feeding :
Of their catQe they made watch against foes.
To them came a messenger faii% an angel shiaing,
And they became lit with heavenly light.
They feared, suddenly as on him they looked ;
And followed much the words of God's messenger :
Spake there God's messenger strait, " I shall to you say wonders.
To you shall there be from God health ; fear nothing at all.
I shall to you say a message, the bidding of the heavenly God :
Also there is none who has heard so glad an errand.
Therefore becomes his world for ever blythe,
And all creatures that in the world are treading tliis earth.
Newly borne has this land the heavenly Sa\'ioiu",
Who is the Lord Christ, good, fi-om a young mother.
In Bethleem, of the kings they were all thence —
From them was also born liis mother, a maid fail*.
I say to you, good men, how ye him shall find,
A sign and token, through tliis wonder.
To youi- biu-gli fai'e hence, ye find, so as I to you said,
A cliild, new born, in a crib lying."
Then came, while he to them spake, of angels a host,
A heavenly retinue, thus all singing :
" In the heavenly kingdom's height be to God glory ;
Be on earth peace also to all who are full of God's mil."
§ 162. The Middle High-German ranges from the thirteenth
century to the Reformation.
Sjjecimen.
Der Nihelungen Not. St. 20-24. {Ed. Lachmann.)
Do wuolis in Nideiianden eins richen kiineges kint;
Des vater hiez Sigemunt, sin muoter Sigehnt;
In eiuer biirge riche witen wol bekant,
Niden hi dem Rine ; diu was ze Santem genant.
Ich sage iu von dem degne, wie schcene der wart.
Sin lip vor alien schanden was vil wol bewart.
Stark nnde ma^re wart sit der kiiene man —
Hey waz er grozer eren ze diser weiide gewau.
170 M(ESO-GOTIIIC.
Sifrit was gelieizcu dor selbo degon guot;
Er versuchte \'il der riclie durch ellenthiirtcn muot :
Diircli siues libes sterke reit er in meucgui laiit;
Hey waz er sneller degue ze den Bm-gonden vant.
In sinen besten ziten, bi sinen jungen tagen,
Man nihte niichel wander von Sifride sagen;
Waz eren an ini wiichse und wie schcene was sin lip :
Sit heten in zc minne din vil wjctliclien wip.
§ 163. The McBSO-Gothic. — The Goths who sacked Rome
under Alaric, and who succeeded to the empire of Augustulus
under Theodoric, were of German origin, and the language
that they spoke was German also. It is called the Mceso-
Gothic.
Of this language we have a specimen, not later than the
fourth century ; and as no Anglo-Saxon work is of equal an-
tiquity, the Moeso-Gothic is considered to be the oldest of all the
German tong-ues. The meaning of the w^ord will be understood
by following the course of the Danube, till we reach the Roman
province of Moesia. The earliest inhabitants of this province
were not akin to any of the tribes of Germany, any more than
the original Britons of England were akin to the Anglo-Saxon
invaders. Before the end, however, of the second century
they Avere conquered by tribes from the south-eastern parts of
Germany. These were called Goths, or, more specifically, the
Goths of Moesia.
Specimen.
Mark, chap. i.
1. Anastodeins aivaggeljous iesviis xristaus sunaus ga\s.
2. Sve gameli}? ist in esai in praufetan. sai. ili insandja aggiln meinana
faiu'a Jjus. saei gamanvei)? vig };einana fanra friis.
3. Stibna vopjandins in anj^idai. manveifj vig franjins. railitos vaurkei)?
staigos gnif:s unsaris.
4. Vas ioliannes daupjands in auf^idai jali merjands daupein idi'eigos du
aflageinai fravam-hte.
5. Jah usiddjedun du imma all iudaialand jali iairusaulymeis jali daiipidai
vesun allai in iam'dane awai fram imma andhaitandans fravam-litim seinaim.
6. Vasu)3-J;an ioliannes gavasifjs taglam idbaudans jali gaii'da filleina bi Imp
seinana jail niatida j^ramsteins jali mill)? liaijsivisk jah merida qij^ands.
7. Qimi|3 sviiitroza mis sa afar mis. {jizei ilc lu im A-aii-}.s anahneivands
andbindan skaudaraip skolie is. afjf^an ik daupja izvis in vatin.
8. 1)3 is daupeijj izvis in alimiii veiliamma.
9. Jail var)5 in jainaim dagain. qam iesus fram nazaraij? galeilaias jah
daupi);s vas fram iohanne in iaurdane.
MCESO-GOTHIC. - 177
10. Jail suns iisgaggancis us |;ainma vatin gasaw uslulaians Idminans jah
lianian svc ahak atgaggandan ana ina.
11. Jail stibna qam us liiminam. jpu is sunus meins sa liuba. in }>iize
vaila galeikaida.
12. Jail suns sai. alima ina ustauh in an);icla.
13. Jalx vas in J^izai auj;iclai clage fidvortiguns fraisans fram satauiu jah vas
mijj diuzam jah aggileis andbahtidedun imma.
14. If? afar jjatei atgibans var}? iohannes. qam iesus in galeilaia merjands
aivaggeljon j^iudangardjos gu\>s qijjands j^atei usfulhioda pata mel.
15. Jah atnewida sik [^iudangardi gu|?3.
16. Idreigo)? jah galaubeil^ in aivaggeljon. jah warbonds fauv marein galeil-
aias gasaAv seunonu jah andraian bro}>ar is. \>is seimonis. vaii'ijandans nati
in marem. vesun auk fiskjans.
17. Jah qafjiin iesus. hiijats afar mis jah gatauja igqis vairfjan nutans manne.
18. Jah suns affetandans j^o natja sehia laistidedun afar imma.
19. Jah jaiiij^ro inngaggands framis leitil gasaw iakobu j^ana zaibaidaiaus
jah iohanne bro|jar is jah l^ans in skipa manvjandans natja.
20. Jah suns haihait ins jah affetandans attaii seinana zaibaidaiu in }:'amma
skipa mifj asnjam galifjon afar imma jah galif^un in kafarnaum.
21. Jah Sims sabbato daga galei);ands in s^^nagogen laisida ius jah usfilmans
vaur)jun ana };izai laiseinai is.
22. Unte vas laisjands ins sve valdufni habands jah ni svasve {jai bokaijos.
23. Jah vas in }jizai sjmagogeu ize manna in uuhrainjamma ahmin jah
ufhropida qij^ands. fi-alet.
24. Wa uiis jah jjus iesu nazorenai. qamt fraqistjan uns kann )?uk was l^u
is. sa veilia gu^js.
25. Jah andbait ina iesus qi|jaiids. j^ahai jah usgagg ut us j^amma ahma
unlirainja.
26. Jah tahida iiia ahma sa unhrauija jah hroi^jands stibnai niildlai usiddja
us imma.
27. Jah afslau{;nodedun allai sildaleikjandans. svaei sokidedun mi}? sis
misso qifjandans. wa sijai j^ata. wo so laiseino so niujo. ei mi); valdufnja
jah ahmam f;aim unlirainjam anabiudi}? jah ufhausjand imma.
28. Usiddja pan merij^a is suns and allans bisitands galeUaias.
29. Jah suns us {^izai syuagogen usgaggandans qeiuun in garda seimonis jah
andrai'ins mi)? iokobau jah iohannem.
30. 1)3 svailiro seimonis log in biinnon. jah suns qej^un imma bi ija.
31. Jah duatgaggands urraisida ]30 undgreipands handu izos.J
32. Jah aflfailot )30 so brinno suns jah andbahtida im. andanahtja j^an
vaur)3anamma. \>an gasaggq sauil. berim du imma allans)3ans ubil habandans
jah uiiliul))ons habandans.
33. Jah so baurgs alia garunnana vas at daiu'a.
34. Jah gahaLlida managans ubil habandans missaleikaim sauhtim jah unliul-
);ons managos usvarp jah ni fi-alailot rodjan )30s unhul}.ons. unte kun-
)3edim ina.
35. Jah air uhtvon usstandans usiddja jah galai); ana au)7Jana staJ3 jah
jainar ba)?.
36. Jah galaistans vaur)iun imma seimon jah j^ai mi)i imma.
37. Jah bigitandans ina qe)iun du imma )3atei allai ]>iik sokjand.
38. Jah qa)i du im. gaggam du ^laim bisunjane liaimon jah baurgim. ei
jah jainar merjau. unte du)3e qam,
1 78 MCESO-GOTIIIC.
30. Jah vas moijaiuls in syuagogim ize and alia galeilaian jah iuiliul)?ons
iisvairpancls.
40. Jah qani at I'mma l^rutslill liabauds bidjanJs ina jah laiivam knussjands
jah qij^ands i'mma jratei. jabai vileis. magt mik galuainjam.
41. Ijj iosns inibinands iiiVakjands handu scina altailok imma jah da)?
i'mma. viljan. vairj? brains.
42. Jah bij^c qap j?ata iesus. suns j^ata {jrutyfill ailuij? af imma jah brains
varjj.
43. Jah gawoljands imma suns ussandida ina jah qa}? du imma.
44. Saiw ci mannliun ni di}?ais vaiht ak gagg |juk silban ataugjan gudjin jah
atbair £i-am galu'aineinai peinai. J^atci anabau); moses du vcitvoilif^ai im.
45. I\) is usgaggands dugann merjau filu jah usqi):an jjata vaurd. svasve is.
ju)jan ni mahta andaugjo in baiu-g galeij^au ak uta ana aufjjaim stadim vas
jah i'ddjedun du imma allajjro.
To the fii'sb eiglit verses the following notes apply. The
remainder may he made out by reference to the chapter from
which the extract is taken.
MCESO-GOTHIC.
Anastodeins, beginning, lit., up-standing — ga-meJi)>, written, painted, Ger-
man, 7)i(tJih'ii=jjfniit. The ga is the sign of the j)articiple ; one word in
EngUsh preserves it, ^•iz. y-dej)i=:alled; A.S. clepian^^to call — aggilu, ciyyeXos
— gamanvei]), j)repare — stihna, voice; German, stimme — vopjandins, crying;
"\veep-ing, — au\>idai, German, odi=waste. Fanins, of the Lord, one of the
many Slavonic words in Ulj)liilas=P««=fZo?«iH«s — staigos, ways^German,
steig ; Danish, stie=.ivaii — daiqijands, baptize=f7i7J — merjands, proclaiming,
preacliing — idreigos, repentance. This has been looked upon as a Keltic word
(ijidf/e'nia, away-lajdug ; fravmtrhte, of sins; foreworks; tbe/o*'e, as in/o/'swear
— usiddjediui, out-goed, out-yode — r/HYa, water, river; aha, Old Gennan, aa,
Norse — andhaitandans ; and=:ooram, hait=i-oco, as in ]tight:=is called, hears
the name :r=^j)roclaiming, confessing ; gavasi]:s, clothed; fvom. rasjan^to clothe
— tayJam, hair (word for word) ; tail, tffgel, A.S. — idhandaus (word for word)
elephant — gairda Jilleina — ^fell (as in /eW-monger), girdle — hup, hips — ]>ram-
steins, twigs (such the translation, not gi'asshoppers) — mile]} hai]}ivisk, heath-
honey; qipands, saying (queathing, as in quoth, bequeathe) — swin]>oza, stronger,
A.S. suiie=i-ery. Compai'ative in z (s). /S'{/=who ; anahneivands, stooping,
bending (Jiiieeliiig) ; — skauda-raip, latchet ; izvis, j'ou; vatin, water ; Lithuanic
wandu ; Danish, vand ; Swedish, vatn ; ahmen, spirit ; veihamma, holy.
Sp>ecimen.
Luke i. 46 — 56.
Jah qua]} Mariam. Mildleid saivala meina Fan, jah svegneid ahma meins
du Goj^a nasjand meinamma. Unte insahu du hnaivenai fjiujos seinaizos : sai
allis fram lumma nu audagjand mik alia kunja. Unie gatavida mis mikiliein
sa mahteiga, jah qeili uamo is. JnJi armahairtee is in aldins aide f;aim ogan-
dam ina. Gatavida svinthein in aiina seinnaimna ; distahida mUdlf^uhtans
gabugdai haii'tiiis seinis ; gadrausida niahteigans af stolam, jah uslihuliida
gahnaividans ; gredigans gasofsidr H^^if^e, jah gabigiiondans insandida lausans ;
hleibida Israela ):'iumagu seinamma, gamundans annahau-teins, sva sve rodida
du attam du attam unsaraim Abrabaima jah fraivtis und aiv.
niGlI AND LOW GERMAN. 179
§ 104, At the present moment there is nothing throughout
the wliole length and breadth of Germany but the High-German,
the Low-German, and the Frisian ; the Low-German including
the Dutch of Holland. Of the Angle and the Old Saxon
nothing remains. The Frisian represents the class they belong
to ; but the Frisian itself is a fragment. The Moe^o-Gothic,
like the Angle and the Old Saxon, is also extinct ; indeed its
exact locality is a point upon which there is more than one
doctrine.
So much, then, for the languages which have disappeared, and
so much for the Frisian, which is in a fair way of disappearing.
The forms of speech which have supplanted them are the High-
German and the Low-German — the German of the South and
East and the German of the North. Allied in structure, they
have developed themselves differently. It was the Low-German
which spread itself at the expense of the Angle and Old Saxon ;
and these it appears to have replaced before the High-German
came into the field. Its encroachments began under Ciiarle-
magne ; when the Old Saxon first, and afterwards the Anglo-
Saxon, gave way to it. It was partially arrested by the
marshes of Friesland. and partially, on the borders of Denmark,
by the Eyder. Sleswick, liowever, though now half German,
was originally wholly Danish ; so that it is the Low-German
which has most especially encroached on the Scandinavian. It
is the Low-German also which has encroached upon the Slavonic
of Luneburg, Lauenburg, Eastern Holstein, Altmark, Mecklen-
burg, Pomerania, and Brandenburg. It is the Low-German
which, protruding itself beyond the boundaries of Slavonia, has
most especially encroached upon the Lithuanian of Prussia, of
Courland, and of Livonia. Finally, it is the Low-German
which has encroached upon the Fin or Ugrian, of Esthonia.
For all this, however, it is not the literary language of Germany,
though it is that of Holland. Elsewhere, notwithstanding the
existence of several notable compositions in it, it passes for a
provincial form of speech. At what time it completed the dis-
placement of the Angle of Germany is uncertain.
§ 165. Mutatis mutandis the material histoiy of the High-
German is nearly that of the Low. The former extended itself in
the south as the latter extended itself in the north. So far as
Switzerland is German, it is High-German ; so are the dialects
of the Tyrol and the Italian frontier, so also the German of
Styria, Carinthia, and Carniola, where it comes in contact with
N 2
1^0 HIGH AND LOW GERMAN.
the Slavonic ; so is the German of Hungaiy, Bohemia, Saxony,
Bavaria, Swabia, and Franconia. The importance, however, ot
the High-German form of speech by no means consists in the
magnitude of its area ; but rather in the fact of its being the
language in Avhich the literature of Germany is embodied. It
was cultivated betimes, and it was cultivated successfully. The
E-eformation determined its ascendancy. Whilst the Protestant
portion of the empire lay almost wdiolly within the limits of
Low Germany, the language of Luther was the High-German of
Saxony ; and it was the High-German of Saxony into which the
standard translation of the Holy Scriptures was made. Hence
it became the language of the Church and the Schools ; and that
in the extreme Low-German disti'icts — the districts which were
m(55t esjjecially Protestant. Of the standard literature, then,
which has been developed since the Reformation, the Low-Ger-
man dialects of Germany supply little or nothing. The Dutch
of Holland (as has been stated) is a cultivated language : and
in Holland only is the Low-German form of speech the vehicle
of a national literatm'e.
The Low-German — propagated by the Carlovingian Franks —
encroached upon the Angle, the Old Saxon, the Frisian, and the
Danish. The High-German of the Keformers has encroached,
and is encroaching, upon the Low.
§ 166. Tlie Scandinavian languages. — Allied to each other,
and allied to the languages of Germany are the following forms
of speech ; forms of speech which we may call Scandinavian^
or Norse : —
1. The Icelandic of Iceland; closely akin to which is the
2. Feroic of the Feroe Isles ; and also
3. Several of the more archaic provincial dialects of Norway,
Sweden, and Denmark.
4. The literary language of Sweden, and
5. The literary language of Denmark and Norway.
§ 1 G7. Tlte literary Danish. — This is Norwegian as w^ell.
Specimen.
1.
In the Original. In English.
Kong Christian stod ved lioien Mast, King Christian stood by \\\^\-the mast
I Piog og Damp ; In reek and damp,
Hans ViErge hamrede saa fast, His weapon hammered so fast
At Gothens Hjehn og Hjerne hrast; That Gotliland's helms and brains
burst ;
THE NORSE LANGUAGE. 181
Da sank Iwert fiendtligt Speil og Mast, Then sank each hostile (fiendlike) stern
I Rog og Damp. and mast
Flye, skreg de, flye, hvad flygte kan ! In reek and damp.
Hvo staaer for Danmarks Christian Fly, shrieked they, fly, what fly can !
I kamp ? Who stands against Denmark's Chris-
tian
In battle ?
Niels Juel gav Agt paa Stormens Brag, Niel Juel gave heed on storms-the crash
Nu er det Tid ! Now is it time.
Han heisede det rode Flag, He hoists the red flag,
Og slog paa Fienden Slag i Slag ; Eke slew on fiend-f/te^ blow on blow.
Da sla-eg de hoit blandt Stormens Then shrieked they high amid storms-
Brag : the crash,
Nu er det Tid ! Now is it time,
Flye, skreg de, hver, som veed et Skjul ! Fly, shrieked they, who knows a shelter!
Hvo kan bestaae for Danmarks Jnel Who can stand agauist Denmark's Juel
I Strid? In fight?
Nordhav ! Glunt af Vessel brod O North Sea ! flash of vessel broke
Din morke Skye, Thy murkj' cloud (sky) :
Da tyede Kpemper til dit Skjod ; Then took refuge warriors {champions)
Thi med ham lyned' Skrajk og Dod. in thy bosom ;
Fra Vallcn hortes Vraal, som brod For with him flashed fright and death.
Din tj'kke Skye. From battle-fields, heard-?<;rts cry which
Fra Danmark Ijaier Tordenskjold ; broke,
Hver give sig i Himlens Void, Thy thick cloud (sky) .
Og flye 1 From Denmark flashes Tordenskiold !
Each give liimself in Heaven's power
(wealding)
And fly.
Du Danskes Vei til Ptoes og Magt, Thy Dane's way to glory and might,
Sortladne Hav ! Dark Sea !
Modtog dhi A^'en, som uforsagt Accept [talce in meeting) thy friend, who
Tor mode Faren med Foragt, reckless
Saa stolt, som du, mod Stormens Magt, Dare meet danger with contempt,
Sortlacbie Hav! So pi'oud as thou, against stoi*ms-^/je
Og rask igjennem Larm og Spil might,
Og Kamp og Seier for mig til Dark Sea !
]\Iin Grav ! And s-\\ift through noise and music,
Ajid fight and victory bear me to (til)
My grave !
2.
Norwegian National Song {concluding stanzas).
Frihedens Tempel i Normandens Dale
Stander saa herligt i Ly af bans Fjeld
Frit tor han tsenke, og frit tiir ban tale,
Frit tor han virke til Norriges Held .
Fuglen i Skove,
Nordhavets Vove
Friere er ei end Norriges ]\Iand
1S2 DANISH.
Villi«j; ilog lydor hau solvj^'ivue Love,
Trofiist mod Koimiiig O'^ Fiodi-oiielaiid.
Elskodo Land lued do skylulie Bjcrgo,
Frugtbaro Dale og liskrigo Kyst !
Troskab og KjiTjrlighed fro vi Dig svpcrge !
Kalder Du, bliide vi for Dig med Lyst.
Evig Du stande,
Elskte blandt Lando !
Frit som den Storm, dor omsuser Dit Fjeld ;
Og mcdens BiJlgen omsnoer Dine Strande,
Stcdse Du voxe i Iliiedcr og Held !
In Eiujlinh.
Freedom's temple in Normans-the dales
Stands so noble in lea of his rock (fell)
Free dares he tliink, and fi"ee dai'es he speak,
Free dares he work til Nonvay's weal.
Bird (/oH7)-the in woods {shaics)
North-sea's-i/te waves
Freer is not than Norway's man ;
Willing, however, obeys he self-given laws.
True -fast towards king and fatherland.
Loved land ■\\ith the sky-high hills (bergs),
Fruitful valleys, and fish-rich coast !
Truth and love glad we for thee swear ;
Callest thou, bleed we for thee with pleasiu'e.
Ever thou stand
Loved amongst lands.
Free as the stoi-m that roars round thy fell ;
And (eke) whilst billow-the laps round thy strand,
Ever thou wax in praise and wellfare,
Xcw Testament. — M.uik i. 1-8.
1. Jesu Christi Guds Sons Evangclii Begyndelse.
2. Ligesom ski-evet er i Propheterne : See, jeg sender min Euge for dit
Ajisigt, som skal berede din Vei for dig.
3. Det er bans Rost, som raaber i Orken : bereder Herrens Vei, gjorre
bans Stier rette.
4. (Saaledes) dobte Johannes i Orken, og prsedikede Omvcndelsens Daab
til Sj-ndemes Forladelse.
5. Og det ganske Land Judaea gUi ud tU ham, og de af Jerusalem ; og alio
de, som bekjendte deres Spider, dobtes af ham i Jordans Flod.
6. Men Johannes var lda3dt i Kameel-Haar, og med et Lsederbelte om sin
Lend, og aad Gr£esho];)j)er og vild Honning;
7. Og praedikede, og sagde : der kommer den efter mig, som er stserkere
end jeg, hvilken jeg ikke er vserdig til at bukke mig ned for, og oplose hans
Skoerem.
8. Vei bar jeg dobt eder med Vaud, men hau skal dobe eder med den
Hellig Aand.
§ 168. The Literary Siuedish
an educated Dane or Norwegian.
SWEDISH. 183
This is easily understood by
Sj)ecimen.
From Frithiof's Saga, Canto ix.
Nu iir att siiga hurii
Jaii Angantyr satt an
Uti sin sal af furu,
Ock clrack med sina miiu ;
Hau var sa glad i luigen,
Sag ut at blanad ban,
Der solen sjmik i vagen,
AUt som fin gj'Une svan.
2.
Vid fonstret gamle Halvar
Stod iitanfor pa vakt.
Hann vaktade lued allvar,
Gaf ock pa nijiJdet akt.
En sed den ganile hade ;
Haun jemt i botten di-ack;
Ock intet ord hann sade ;
Alott hornett in han stack.
3.
Nu sliingde han det vida
I salen in och qvad,
" Skepp ser jag boljan rida ;
" Den fiirden ar ej glad.
" Miin ser jag do den niira,
" Nu lagga de i land ;
" Ock tv^enne j attar bara
" De bleknade pa strand."
4.
Utofvcr boljans spegel,
Frfin salen Jarl s;ig ned :
" Det ar EUidas segel,
" Och Frithiof, tror jag, med.
" Pa gangan och pa pannan,
" Kanns thorstens son igen :
" Sa bUckar ingen annan
"I Nordens land som den."
1.
Now is it to say how
Earl Angantyr sat
In his hall of fir,
And cbank A\ith his men.
He was so glad in spirit,
Looked out on the blue way.
Where the sun sank in the wave,
All as a golden swan.
3.
At the 'n'indow old Halvar
Stood outside at watch ;
He watched with earnestness.
And eke gave heed to the mead.
A habit the old one had ;
He drank even to the bottom,
And not a word did he say.
He only stuck the horn in.*
3.
Now he flung it in far
The haU and said,
" I see a sliip ride the waves ;
" Whose fare is not glad.
" I see men near death,
" They now make the land ;
" And two giants bear
" The pale ones on shore."
4.
Over the billows' mii-ror.
From his hall the Earl looked down :
" That is Ellidas's sail,
" And Frithiof, I trow, with it.
" By gait and front
" Thorsten's son is known ;
" So looks no other
" In the Northland as he."
Fran dryckesbord held modig
Sprang Atle Vildng da,
Svartskaggig Berserk, blodig
Ock Gi-jan at so uppa.
From the drinking-board heroic
Sprang Atle the Viking tlicn,
Blackbearded Berserk, bloody
And OTim to loolc on.
Throutch the window into the drinkinK-voom.
18t
SWEDISH.
' Nil." skrok han, " vil jag priifva
" llvad rycktet uiont denuocl,
" At Frithioi' sviird kaun diil'va;
" Och all(.hig ber oiu trod."
0.
Oi'h upp mod houom spi'imgo
Ilaiins bistra kiimpar toll":
Pa I'orhaiul luftou stuugo,
Och sviuigdc svard ock kolf.
Do stormade mot sti'audcn,
Hvor triittadt di-akskepp stod.
Men Frithiof satt a sandeu
Ock talte ki-ai"t ocli mod.
7.
" Latt kunde jag dig falla,"
Skrek Atle med stort gny.
" Vill i ditt val dock stiilla,
" At kiimpa eller fly.
" Men blott om fred dii beder
" Fastiin an kampc hard,
" Jag som an van dig leder,
" Allt up til Jarlens gard."
8.
" Viil iir jag trott af farden ; "
Genmalte Fritliiof vred,
" Dock ma vi j)rofva svarden,
" FoiT an jag tigger fred.
Da sag man stalen Ijimga,
I solbrim kampehand ;
Pa Augiu-A^adels tnnga,
Hvai' rima stod i brand.
9.
Nu skiftas svardshugg dryga,
Och drapslag hagla nu ;
Och begges skjcildar flyga,
Pa summa gang itu.
De kiimpar utan tadel
Sta dock i kredsen fast ;
]\Ien skai-pt bet Angurvadel,
Och Atles klinga brast.
10.
" Mod svardlos man jag svanger,"
Sad Frithiof, " ei mitt svard.
" Men lyster det dig liinger,
" Yi profva annan fiird."
Som vagor da om hijsten,
De begge storma an ;
Ock stallbekliidda brosten,
Sla tiitt emot hvarann.
"Now," shrieked he, " will I prove
" What Fame meant thereb}^
'' That Fritliiof can dull the sword; *
" And never praj'S for quarter."
(i.
And up ^\'ith him sprung
His tierce champions twelve ;
Beforehand they beat tlie air.
And swung sword and javeUn.
They stormed to the strand.
Where tired the ship stood ;
But Frithiof sat on the sand,
And talked strength and coiu'age.
7.
" Lightly could I fell thee,"
Shrieked Atle, with gi-eat roar.
" But I ^^ill give you choice,
To fight or ay.
" Only ask for peace,
" And. though a champion hard.
" 111 lead you as a fiiend
" Up to the Earl's house."
8.
" Well am I tilled of the voyage,"
Answered Frithiof angry;
" Yet we must try the sword,
" Ere I beg peace."
Then did one see the steel flash
In the tanned champion-hand.
On Angiu'vadel's tongue
Each rune stood a-biu'ning.
9.
Now heavy sword-cuts are exchanged.
And death-strokes hail now
And both tliek sliields fly
At the same time in two.
The warriors with reproach
Stand still in then- circle ;
But shai-p liit Augiu'vadel,
And Atles sword broke.
10.
" Against a swordless man I swing,"
Said Fritliiof, "not my sword.
" But if it list thee longer,
"We tiy another fashion."
As weaves then in autiuun
The two storm on ;
And steel-clad breasts
Dash close against each other.
Of his enemy, {. e. sword-proof.
SWEDISH.
185
11.
De brottades som bjornar,
Uppa sitt fj iill af sno ;
De spande hop som ornar,
Utofver vredgop sjo.
Roclfiistad klippa holle
Vel knappast ut att sta ;
Ock lummig jernek loUe
For mindre tag an sa.
12.
Fi-an paniian svetten lackar,
Cell brostet hiifves kallt ;
Och buskar, sten, ock backar,
Uppsparkas ofver allt.
Med biifvan slutet bida
Stallldadde man a strand ;
Det brottandet var vida
Berbmdt i Nordens laud.
13.
Til slut dock Frithiof fuUde
Sin fien tU jord,
Haun laiiit mod brostet sttillde,
Och tallte vi'edens ord.
" Blot nu mitt sviird jag hade
" Du svarte Berserksskagg,
" Jag genom lifvet lade,
" Pa dig ded hvassa agg."
14.
" Eet skal ei hinder bringa,"
Sad Atle stolt i hag.
" Ga du, ock ta din klinga,
" Jag licgar som jag lag.
" Den ena, som dem andra,
" Skal engang Valhall se :
" Idag skal jag val vandra ;
" I morgon du kanske."
15.
Ei lange Frithiof drojde
Den lek ban sluta vill :
Han Angurvadel hojde ;
. Men Atle lag dvck still.
Det rorde hjeltens sinne ;
Sin \Tede da hann band ;
Holl midt i huggett inue,
Ock tog den fallnes hand.
11.
They -n-restled as bears
On their hill of snow ;
They grappled as eagles
Over an angiy sea.
Root-fast cliffs would scarcely
Hold out to stand ;
And thick iron- oars would fall
For lesser blows than such.
12.
From the brow the sweat plashes,
And the breast heaves cold ;
And bush, stone, and hill
Are Ht-up over all.
With fright they await the upshot
The steel-clad men on the shore :
That tussle was wide
Famed in Northland.
13.
At last, however, Frithiof felled
His foe to earth.
He placed his knee against his breast,
And spoke words of rage.
" If I only had my sword,
" Thou black Berserk-beard,
" I would through thy body
" Pass its sharp edge."
14.
" That be no hindrance,"
Said Atle proud in spirit.
" Go thou, and take thy sword,
" I "ndll be as I have lain.
" The one like the other
" Shall one day see Vallhall.
" To-day I go,
'• To-morrow you maybe."
15.
Not long did Fritliiof delay ;
He will close the game :
He lifted Angurvadel,
But Atle lay still.
That touched the hero's heart,
He checked his rage.
Stopped liimseK half-way in the blow,
And took the fallen-man's hand.
From Frithiof s Saga, Canto xvii.
1.
Kimg Piing han satt i hogbiink om julen och drack mjod,
Hos honom satt bans drottning sa hvit och rosenrod.
Som var och host dem bada man sag bredvid hvarann,
Hon var den friska varen, den kulna host var ban.
18G SWEDISH.
2.
Da ti'iiddc nti salen en okiind gubbe in,
Fran Hufvud oeli till fiitter ban insvcpt var i sldnn.
Ilan liaile staf i bandon ocb lutad sags ban ga,
Men bogro iin de andra don ganilo var iindii.
3.
Ilan satte sig pa biiiikcn liingst ned \dd salens dorr;
Dor iir de annas stiille iinnn, som dct var fiirr.
Do liofmiin logo smiidligt ocb sago tiU bvarann,
Ocb j)ekade nied fingret pa liidcn bjornsldnnsmaiin.
4.
Da Ijnngai- mod tva ogon den frammaude sa bvasst,
Med ena bandeu grep ban en nngersven i bast,
Holt varligen ban viinde den bofman npp ocb ned
Da tystnade de andre ; \i bade gjort sa nied.
In English.
1.
Kbig Pdng be sat m bigb-bencb at Ynlc [Christinas), eke drank mead,
By bun sat bis queen so wliite and rosy-red.
As Spring and Autimin (harvest) tbem botb man saw aside-by eacb otber, ~ 3
Sbe was tbe fresb spring, tbe cbill barvest was be. '
2. I
Tben ti'od out-in hall-the an imkno-uii (unkenned) old-man in; i
From bead and (eke) to feet be covered was in skin ;
He bad staff in band- ^7;^, eke bent was-seen be (to) go.
But bigber tban tbe others tbe old-man was still.
3.
He sat-liim on hench-the along below by balls-?/;^ door;
There is tbe poor's place (staJt) still-now, as that was before.
Tbe court-men laughed scornful, and saw till each-other;
And pointed with &iigev-the at ragged bear-skin man.
4.
Tben flashes -ttith two eyes the stranger so sharp.
With one band be griped a young-swain in baste .
Right (whole) tenderly he timied the coiu-t-man np and do-naa (nether).
Tben kept silent the otliers; we had done ((jar Scotice) with (also).
Swedish New Testament. — Maek i. 1-8.
1. Thotta iir begynnelsen af Jesu Christi, Guds Sons, Evangelio:
2. Sasom skrif^\it ar i Pi-opbeterna : Si, jag siinder min Aengol fvamfor titt
ansikte, b\\*ilken bereda skal tin wag for tig.
3. En ropandes rost ar i ciknen : " Bereder Herrans wiig, gorer bans stigar
riitta."
4. Johannes war i oken, dopte, ocb predikade biittringons dopelse, til syder-
nq^ fijrlatelse.
5. Ocb til honom guigo ut hela Judiska landet, ocb the ntaf Jerusalem, ocb
lato sig alle dopa af honom, i Jordan's flod, ocb bekiinde sina sj-uder.
ICELANDIC. 187
6. Ooli Joliafies war kliidil mod canielaliav, och med en liidergjording om
sina liinder, och at griislioppor, och wildhoni'ig.
7. Och predikade, och sade : En kommer efter mig, som starkare iir an ja",
hwilkens skotwiinger jag icke wardig iir at neder^alht och uplosa.
8. Jag doper eder med watn; men han skal dopa eder med then Heliga
Anda.
§ 169. Tlte Icdandic. — This is remarkable for the small
extent to which it has changed since the thirteenth century,
with the written language of which the modern Icelandic closely
agrees.
Specimens.
1.
Icelandic (Fareyinga-Saga — Ed. Mohnike).
Ok nu er l^at eitthvert sinn un sumarit, at Sigmundr mselti til fjoris : " PI vat
mun vei-{5a, )jo at vitS farim i skog f^enna, er lier er noi-<5r fra gartsi ? " {;6rir
svarar : " a pvi er mer eingi forvitni," segk haun. " Ekld er mer sva gefit,"
segu- Sigmundr, " ok }?angat skal ek fara." " }pii mnnt ra^a hljoto," segir \>\\rn:, " en
brjotum vi^ j^a boSoi-S fostra mins." Nn foru fjeu-, ok hafisi Sigmundr viiSaroxi
eina i hendi ser; koma i skoginn, ok i rj6<5r eitt fagurt ; ok er j^eir hafa {jar
eigi leiugi verlt, {^a heyra jjeir bjom mildiui harSla ok giimhgan. {jat var
vi<5bjorn mikill, iilfgi-ar at lit. {^eir hhiupa nu aptra a stiginn );an, er j^eu- hofiSu
jjangat farit ; stigrinn var mjor ok l^raurigr, ok hle}T;)r ])6y\v fjTir, en Sigmundr
si^ar. Dyrit hlej-pr nu eptk )?eim a stiginn, ok veo(5r f^vi jpraungi- stign-iun, ok
brotna eikmar fyrir jjvi. Sigmundr snyr j^a skjott ut af stignum miUuni
trjanna, ok bi<5r j^ar til er dyrit kemr jafn-fram honum. J^a hoggr hann jafnt
me^al hlusta a dyrinu meS tveim hondum, sva at exin sokkr. En dyrit fellr
afi'am, ok er dautt.
Ferolc.
Nu var so til ajna Ferina um Summari, at Sigmundur snakkaji so vi Towra :
" Kvat man bagga, towat vid farin uj henda Skowin, uj er her noran-firi
Garin? " Towtvu- svarar, " Ikkji havi e Hu at forvitnast ettir tuj," siir han.
"Ikkji eri e so sintm*," siir Sigmimdur, -'og haar skal e fara." "Tufertta
at rao," siir Towrm-, " men ta browtum vid Forbo Fostu-fiijir mujns." Nu
fo^^TU tajr, og Sigmundur heji ajna oksi til Brennuvi uj Hondoni ; tajrk oma in
uj Skowin, og a ajt viikurt rudda Plos men ikkji havatajr veri htir lajngi, firm
tajr hojra kvodtt Brak uj Skowuun, og brat ettii* sujgjalajr ajna eg\iiKa sto^\Ta
Bjodn og gruiska. Ta vii aju stowr Skowbjodn gragulmut a Lilinim. Tair
lejpa nil attir a Rasina, sum tajr hoddu gingji ettir; Rasin viir mjav ogtrong ;
To^^Tur lejpur undan, og Sigmimudr attana. Djowri leipur nu etth- tajmum a
Rasini ; og nu verur Rasin trong kja tuj, so at Ajkjinar brotnavu fra tuj. Sig-
mundur snvTJur ta kvildiani iitiif Rasmi inimicUiuu Trjini, og bujar har til
Djowri kjemur abajnt han. Ta hoggur han bajnt uj Ojrnalystri a Djo^vi-inum
vi bavun Hondun, so at oxin siikkiu' in, og Djowri dettir bajnt framettir, og er
standejt.
Swedish,
Och nu var det engang om sommaren, som Sigmund sade till Thorer:
" Hvad mande val deraf warda, om vi ater g<l ut i skogen, som ligger dcr norr
om garden?" "Det as jad alldeles icke nyfikcn att veta," svaradc Tlior.
ISS ICELANDIC.
" Iclcc gi'ir dot s;'i lued iiiig," siulo Sigmund, " och ditrot miiste jag." "Du Icom-
mer da att rada," sade Thor, " men dorracd ofverh-iida vi var Fosterfaders
bud." De giugo nu astad, och Sigmund hade en vedyxa i handen ; dekommo
in i skogen, och sti-at derpa fingo de se en ganska stor och vildsinnt bjorn, en
driipehg skogsbjorn, vavg-gra till fiirgen. De sprungo dii tiUbaka pa samma
stig som de hade komniit dit. Stigcn var smal och trang; och Thorer sin-ang
franist, nion Sigmund eftorst. Djuvct lopp nu efter dem pjx sligen, och stigcn
blof trang ftir det samma. sa att triiden sonderbrotos i dcss lopp. Sigmund
TJinde da kurtigt retaf fran stigen, och stiillde sig mellan triiden, samt stod
der, tills djuret kom fram midt for honom. Da iattade ban j-xan med begge
hiinderna, och hiigg midt emellan oronen pii djuret, sa att j-xan gick in, och
djuret stijrtade framat, och dog pa stiillet.
Danish.
Og nu var det engang om Sommeren, at Sigmund sagde til Thorer : " Hvad
mon der vel kan flyde af, om vi end gaae hen i den Skov, som ligger her nor-
deufor Gaarden ? " " Det er jeg ilcken nysgjerrig efter at vide," svarede Thorer.
"Ei gaar det niig saa," sagde Sigmund, " og derud maa jeg." "Du kommer
da til at raade," sagde Thorer, " men da overtrade, vi vor Fosterfaders Bud."
De gik nu, og Sigmund havde en Vedoxe i Haanden'; de kom ind i Skoven,
og stras derpaa, saae de en meget stor og gi-um Bjorn, en drabehg Skovejorn,
ulvegi'aa af Fai've. De 16b da tilbage ad den samme Sti, ad hvillien de vare
komne derhen. Stien var smal og trang ; og Thorer 16b forrcst, men Sigmund
bagerst. DjTet 16b nu efter dem paa Stien, og Stien blev trang for det, og
Trseerne brodes i dets. L6b Sigmund di-eiede da nu hurtig ud af Stien, og
stillede sig imellem Trseerne, og stod der indtil Dyret kom frem Hge for ham.
Da fettede han oxen med begge Haender, og hug lige hnellen orerne paa
Dyret saa at oxen sank i, og DjTet stj-rtede fremad, og var dodt poa Stedet.
Enylisli.
And now is it a tune about the summer, that Sigmund spake to Thorir :
" What would become, even if we two go into the wood (shaw), which here is
north fi-om the house ? " Thoiir answers. " Thereto there is to me no curiosity,"
says he. " So is it not with me," says Sigmund, " and thither shall I go."
" Thou mayest counsel," says Thoru*, " but we two break the bidding- word
of foster-father mine." Now go they, and Sigmund had a wood-axe in his
hands ; they come into the wood, and into a fair place ; and as they had not
been there long, they hear a bear, big, fierce, and gi-im. It was a wood -bear,
big, wolf-gi-ey in hue, Theynin (leap) now back (after) to the path, by wliich
they had gone thither. The path was narrow and strait ; and Thorir rims
first, and Sigmimd after. The beast runs now after them on the path, and the
path becomes strait, and broken oaks before it. Sigmund tm-ns then short
out of the path among the trees, and bides there till the beast comes even with
him. Then cuts he even in between the ears of the beast -nath his two hands,
so that the axe smks, and the beast falls forwards, and is dead.
2.
From the Edda. In English.
Upp reis '0«inii Up rose Odin,
alda gautr. Of men Idng ;
ok hann a Sleipni Eke he on Sleipner
soiSul lun lag«i ; Saddle on-laid.
ICELANDIC. 189
rei<5 lianu iiitSr Sa^an Rode he nether-wards thence
Nilllieljar tn N if h el til;
moetti liann hvelpi INIet he the M-help ;
Jjeim er or heljii kom. Wliich out of hell came.
Sa var bl6<5ugr He was bloody
um brjost framan, On breast in front ;
ok galdrs fotSiu' Eke at the spell's father.
gol um lengi. Barked long.
Framm rei<5 O^inn. Forward rode Odin
foldvegr duudi, The fieldway dinned :
hann kom at hafu He came at the high
Heljar ranni. Hell's house.
Note. — This is one of the Norse poems, translated by Gray.
Up rose the king of men v-dth speed,
And saddled strait his coal-black steed, &c.
Note. — The Danish, Swedish, and Icelandic place the definite
article at the end of the word it agi-ees with. Hence storm zz.
storm, stovm-eu zz the storm (stovm-the).
Again, the same languages liave a true passive voice. Hence
ho're^hear, hore-s:=.is heard, hortezzheard, horte-s, luas heard
(Jieard-was).
From Siiorro's Hebiiskringla.
3.
Y'liijUnga S'Kja. — Kap. i.
Sva er sagt, atjkringla heimsins, su er mannfolkit byggir, er mjok vag-
skorin : ganga hof stor I'lr iitsjammi inn i jordina. Er l^at kunnight, at haf
gengi- af Njorvasundum, ok allt ut til Jorsala-lands. Af hafinu gengi- langr
hafsbotu til landnorcb's, er heitir Svartahaf : sa skilr heuns l^ridjungana :
heitir fyrin austan Asia, en fyrir vestan kalla sumir Evropa, en sumir Enea,
En nordan at Svai'tahafi gengr Svi};jod in mikla eda in kalda. Svipjod ena
miklu kalla sumii- menu ecki minni enn Serkland hit mikla ; sumir jafna
henni vid Blaland hit mikla. Hinn neyrdri lutr Svijjjodar liggr obygdr af
frosti ok kulda, swa sem hinn sydii lutr Blalands er audi- af solarbruna. I
Svifjjod eru stor herut morg: {^ar eru ok margskonar >jodirundarhgar, ok mar-
gar tungur : l;ar7eru risar, ok l^ar eru dvergar : |;ar eru ok blamenn ; j;ar eru
dyr ok ckekar furdulega storin. Ur Nordri fra fjollum j^eim, er fjair utan eru
bygd alia, felli- a um S\d);j(kl, su er at rettu heitir Tanais; hiin var fordum
kijllut Tanaqvisl edr Vanaquisl ; hun kemur til sjavar inu i Svarta-haf. I
Vanaqvislum var ]>& kaUat Vaualand, edr Vanheimr; sii a skiir heimsf^ridjun-
gana ; heitir fyrir austan Asia, en fyrir vestan Evropa.
Fyrii- austan Tanaqvisl i Asia, var kallat Asa-land edr Asaheunr ; en hofut-
borgina, er i var landinu, kolludu ^leir Asgard. En i borginui var hofdingi sa
er Odinn var kalladr, j^ar var blotstadr milcill. par var ]pax sidr at 12 hafgodar
voru ffiztir ; skyldu l^eir rada fyrir blotimi ok domiun manna i milli ; >at eru
Diar kalladir edr drottnar: ^eun skyldi f^jonustu veita allr folk ok lotning.
Odmn var hermadr mikUl ok mjok vidforull, ok eignadiz morg riki : han var
sva Sigrfsell, at i hvorri orustu feck liann gagu. Ok sva kom at bans menu
1 i)0 ICELAKDIC.
InuUi )7vi, nt hiiiin aMti luimiliinn sigr i livorn ovustn. pat vav liatlr lians ef
fiiin seudi meiui siiia til onistu, cdr adrav seiulifrarar, atliann lagdiadr lieiuUir
i hotut ^>cini, ok gal" ):oim bjanak ; triidu ]pciv at {^a nmiidi vel farax. Sva var
ok um lians maim, livar scin {jcir tirdu i naudum staddir a sja edr a landi, ^a.
koUudu ]>oh- k naf uhans. ok jjottuz jafnan fa af >vi fro ; }:ar );ottuz jjeir ega allt
tiaust or hauu var. Haun for oi)t sva laiig-t i brot, at liann dvaldiz i ferdimii
miirg misscri.
In EmjJisli.
It is said that the earth's circle which the human race inhabits is torn
across into many bights, so that great seas run into the land from the out-
occan. Thus it is known that a gi'eat sea goes in at Niorvasund, and up to
the laud of Jerusalem. From the same sea a long sea-bight stretches towards
the uorth-oast, and is called the Black Sea, and divides the three pai-ts of the
earth ; of wliich the eastern part is called Asia, and the western is called by
some Europa, by some Enea. Northward of the Black Sea lies Swithiod the
Great, or the Cold. The Great Sweden is reckoned by some not less than the
Saracens' land ; others compare it to the Great Blueland. The northern part
of S\\-itluod lies uninhabited on account of frost and cold, as likewise the
southern parts of Blueland are waste fi-om the burning of the sun. In
Swithiod are many gi'eat domains, and many wonderful races of men, and
many kinds of languages. There are giants, and there are dwarfs, and there
are also blue men. There are wild beasts, and dreadfully large dragons. On
the north side of the mountains which lie outside of all inhabited lands riuis
a river through Swithiod, which is properly called hy the name of Tanais, but
was formerly called Tanaquisl, or Yanaquisl, and wliich falls into the ocean at
the Black Sea. The country of the people on the Yanaquisl was called Vana-
land, or Vanaheim ; and the river separates the three parts of the world, of
which the eastennost part is called Asia, and the westermost Europe.
The country east of the Tanaquisl in Asia was called Asaland, or Asahemi,
and the chief city in that land ^^•as called Asgaard. In that city was a chief
called Odin, and it w^as a great place for sacrifice. It was the custom there
that twelve temple godars should both direct the sacrifices, and also judge the
people. They were called Diars, or Drotners, and aU the people served and
obej-ed them. Odin was a great and very far-travelled warrior, who con-
quered many kingdoms, and so successful was he that in every battle the
victory was on his side. It was the belief of liis people that victory belonged
to him in every battle. It was his custom when he sent his men into battle,
or on any expedition, that he first laid his hand upon tlieu- heads, and called
doAATi a blessing upon them ; and then they believed their undertaking would
be successful. His people also were accustomed, whenever they fell into
danger by land or sea, to call upon his name ; and they thought that always
thej' got comfort and aid by it, for where he was they thought help was near.
Often he went away so long that he passed many seasons on liis journeys.
4.
From the Xew Testament.
Mark i. 1-8.
1. Detta er upphaf evaugeHi um Jesiun Cluistimi Guds son, svo sera slaifad
er Ilia spamonnunum.
2. Sia ! Eg sende minn engel fjTer >er, sa sem tUreide ]iimi veg fjTer {^er.
ANGLO-SAXON AND ICELANDIC.
191
3. Dar er eiu predikara rodcl i cydemorku : " gi-eided >er veg drottins og
gered hans stigu retta."
4. Johannes var i eydcmorku, skirde og predUvade um idranav skirn, til
syndanua fyrergefuingar.
5. Og jjar geek ut til bans allt Juda land, og ^^eir af Jerusalem, og Jieir letu
aller skii-a sig af hon um i Jordan, jatande sinar synder.
6. Enn Johannes var klseddur med iilfballds harum, og eitt olarbelte um
hans lendar, og hann at eiugesprettiu' og skogarlumang.
7. Og predikade og sagde : Dar kemur einn efter mig, som er sterkare
enn eg, livers eg em eigi vcrdugor framnifallaude upp at leysa J^veinge hans
skofata.
8. Eg skire ydur med vatne, enn hann mun skira ydur med hell ogum
anda.
§ 170. The comparison between the chief inflections charac-
teristic of the most important of the preceding languages is as
follows.
Declension of Suhstantives ending in a Vowel.
Anglo-Saxon.
Neuter.
Sing. Nam. Eage (eije).
Ace. Eagre
Dat.
Eagan
Gen.
Eagan
Plur. Nom.
Eagan
Ace.
Eagan
Dat.
Eagan
Gen.
Eagan
Masculine.
Sing. Nom
Nama {a nnme).
Ace.
Naman
Dat.
Naman
Gen.
Naman
Plur. Nom.
Namau
Ace.
Naman
Dat.
Namimi
Gen.
Namena.
Feminine.
Sing. Nom.
Tunge (« tongue)
Ace.
Timgan
Dat.
Tungan
Gen.
Tungan
Plur. Nom.
Tungan
Ace.
Tungan
Dat.
Tungum
Gen.
Tungena
Icelandic.
Neuter
Auga {eije).
Auga.
Auga.
Auga.
Augu.
Augu.
Augum.
Augua.
Masculine.
Bogi {a hon]
Boga.
Boga.
Bogar.
Boga.
Bogum.
Boga.
Feminine.
Tunga {a tongue).
Ti'mgu.
Tungii.
Timgu.
Tiingur.
Tungiir.
Tungum.
Tunmia.
192
ANGLO-SAXON AND ICELANDIC.
Declension of Suhstcviticeis cndiiuj uith a Consontint.
Neuter.
Skixj [a ship).
Skip.
Skipi.
Skips.
Skip.
Skip.
Sldpum.
Slvipa.
Masculine.
Konuugr [a kinrj).
Konimg.
Konungi.
Kouungs.
Koiiiuigar.
Kouiinga.
Ivonungiim.
Konuiiga.
Feminine.
Bru^r (rt bride).
Brui.
BriiSi.
BruSar.
Ijni^ii'.
Bru^ir.
BruiSum.
Bru<Sa.
Neuter.
Sing. Xom.
Leaf \a leaf).
Aec.
Leaf
Dat.
Leafe
Gen.
Leafes
Phir. Kom.
Leaf
Ace.
Leaf
Dat.
Leafum
Gen.
Leafa.
Masculine.
Sing. Xom.
SiniS [a smith).
Ace.
SmiS
Dat.
Smi^e
Gen.
Smiles
Plur. Nam
. Smi^as
Ace.
Smi^as
Dat.
Smi^uni
Gen.
Smi^a.
Foninine.
Sing. Norn.
. Spi-'iec (a speech)
Ace.
Spr'iece
Dat.
Spr'fece
Gen.
Spr'ace
Plur. Nam.
, Spr'feca
Aec.
Spr'ieca
Dat.
Si)i*'seciiia
Gen .
Spr'teca.
§ 171. The most cliaracteristic difference between the Saxon
and Icelandic lies in the peculiar position of the definite article
in the latter language. In Saxon the article corresponding with
the modern word the, is ^oet, se, seo, for the neuter, masculine,
and feminine genders respectively ; and these words, regularly
declined, are 'prefixed to the words with which they agree, just
as is the case with the English and with the majority of lan-
guages. In Icelandic, however, the article, instead of preceding,
foUoivs, its noun, ivlth wJtich it coalesce.'^, having previously
suffered a change in form. The Icelandic article corresponding
to ])C(it, se, seo, is hitt (n.), hiiin (m.), ?tin (f.): from this the h
is ejected, so that, instead of the regular inflection («), we have
the foi-ms (6),
ANGLO-SAXON AND ICELANDIC.
19.3
{a.)
Neitt.
Masc.
Fern.
Sing. Kom.
Hitt
Hinn
Hin.
Ago,
Hitt
Hinn
Hina,
Dat.
Hiiiu
Hinuni
Himii,
Oen.
Hins
Hins
Hinnar.
Plur. Norn.
Hiu
Hinir
Ilinai*.
Ace.
Hiu
Hina
Hiuar.
Dat.
Hinum
Hinitrn
Hinmn.
Gen.
Hiima
Hinna
Hinna,
Shuj. Kovi.
—it
— inn
— in.
Ace.
—it
— inn
— ina (-na).
Dat.
— nu
- — niim
- — inni (-nni).
Gen.
— ins
— ins
— innar (-nnar)
Plur. Kom.
in
nir
nar.
Aec.
— in
— na
— nar.
Dat.
— mini
— num
— num.
Gen.
— nna
— nna
— nna.
whence, as an affix, in composition,
Kent.
Masc.
Fern,
Sing. Kom.
Augat
Boginn
Tungan.
Ace.
Augat
Boginn
Tunguna.
Dat.
Auganu
Boganum
Timgunni.
Gen.
Angans
Bogans
Timgunuar.
Pliir.Nom.
Angun
Bogarnir
Tungiirnar.
Ace.
Auguu
Bogaua
Tungiu-nai*.
Dat.
Auganum
Boguuum
Tuugnnum.
Gen.
Angnanna
Boganna
Ti'mgnanna.
§ 172. In the Swedish, Nomyegian, and Danish this pecu-
liarity in the position of tlie definite article is preserved. Its
origin, however, is concealed ; and an accidental identity with the
indefinite article has led to false notions respecting its nature.
In the languages in point the i is changed into e, so that what
in Icelandic is it and in, is in Danish et and en. En, however,
as a sepai'ate word, is the numeral one, and also the indefinite
article a ; whilst in the neuter gender it is et — en Sol, a sun ;
et Bord, a table : Solen, the sun ; Bordet, the table. From
modern forms like those just quoted, it has been imagined that
the definite is merely the indefinite article transposed. This it is
not. To apply an expression of Mr. Cobbett's, e7i = a, and -en
=:the, are the same combination of letters, but not the same
word.
i9^
ICELANDIC AND ANGLO-SAXON.
Ih'ch'iision of .idjcvtucg.
uhr.
AU.
Dat.
Gen.
Xetit.
Cuule
Cnxle
Godan
Godan
G odan
No7n. Godan
Aec. Gixlau
Ahl
Dat.
Gen.
Godiim
Godmn
Godeua
Neut.
Nam. God
Ace. God
Ahl.
Dat.
Gen.
Gode
Godum
Godes
Xom. Gode
Ace. Gode
Ahl. Godiim
Dat. Godum
Gen. Godra
Saxon.
Dejinite*
Sin(/iilar.
3Iatic.
Goda
Godan
Godan
Godan
Godan
Plural.
G odan
Godan
GcxUim
Godiim
Godena
Indefinite.
Siitgular.
Masc.
God
Godne
Gode
Godiun
Gpdes
Plural.
Gode
Gode
G(3dum
Godum
Godra
Fern.
G6de.
Godan.
Godan.
Godan.
Godan.
Godan.
Godan.
Godum.
Godum.
Godena.
No HI.
Aec.
Ahl.
Dat.
Gen.
Xeut.
Haga
Haga
Ilaga
Haga
Haga
Icelandic.
Definite.*
Singular.
Mase.
Hagi
Haga
Haga
Haga
Haga
Fern.
Haga.
Hogu.
Hogu.
Hogu.
Hocni.
Hogu is the Plural form for all the
Cases and all the Genders.
Indefinite.
Singular.
Fern.
Xeut.
Masc.
Fern.
God.
Norn,
Hagt
Hagi-
Hog.
G6de.
Ace.
Hagt
Hagan
Hog.
Godre.
Ahl.
Hogu
Hiigum
Hagri.
Godre.
Dat.
Hogu
HiJgiun
Hagri.
Godre.
Gen.
Hags
Hags
Plural.
Hagi'ar.
Gode.
Xom.
Hog
Hagir
Hagar.
Gode.
Ace.
Hog
Haga
Hagar.
Godum.
Ahl.
Hogum
Hogmn
Hogmn.
Godum.
Dat.
Hogmn
Hogum
Hogum.
Gocb'a.
Gen.
Hagra
Hagra
Hagra.
Observe in the Icelandic forms the absence of the termina-
tion -an. Observe also the neuter termination -t, as hagr,
hagt. Throughout the modern forms of the Icelandic (viz. the
Swedish, Danish, and Norwegian languages) this termination is
still preserved : e. g. en god Hest, a good horse ; et godt Hjoirt,
a good heart ; en skori Pige, a beautiful damsel ; et Sharpt
Svoerd, a sharp sword.
§ 173. Amongst the pronouns the following differences pre-
sent themselves. The Saxon forms are, for the pronoun of the
second person, J? it (thou), r/i^ (ye ^wo), ge (ye); whilst in Icelandic
they are ]>u, pi"^, per, respectively. Again, in Saxon there is no
reflective pronoun corresponding with the Latin se. In Ice- ^Ji
landic we have sik, ser, sin, corresponding to the Latin se, sihi, V|
suus. Besides this, the word sin is declined, so that like the
Latin suus it becomes adjectival.
The meaning of these terms is explained in p. 198. This order of the cases and
genders is from Rask. It is certainly more natural than the usual one.
ICELANDIC AND ANGLO-SAXON.
195
Sing. Norn
Sitt
Sinn
Sin.
Ace.
Sitt
Sinn
Sina.
Dat.
Siim
Siniim
.Siiini.
Oen.
Sins
Sins
Siimar
Plur. Nom.
Sin
Sinir
Sinar.
Ace.
Sin
Sina
Sinar.
Dat.
Sinum
Sinum
Sinnm.
Gen.
Sitina
Sinna
Shma.
In Saxon there is of course no such an adjectival form.
There the Possessives of the Third Person correspond not with
the Latin suits, sua, swum; but with the Latin ejus and
eorum. The English words Ms and her are genitive cases,
not adjectives.
Further remarks upon the presence of the Reflective Pro-
noun sik in Icelandic, and its absence in Saxon, will appear in
the sequel.
Tl
e N'uinera
s.
Saxon. Icelandic.
1. 'An Eitt, einn, ein
2. Twa .
Tvo, tveir.
3. j^reo .
}jrju, prbc.
4. Feower
Fjogur, fjorii-.
5. Fif .
Fimm.
6. Six .
Sex.
7. Seofon
Sjo.
8. Ealita
'Atta.
9. Nigon
Niu.
LO. Tyn .
Tin.
§ ] 74. Of the Icelandic verbs the infinitives end in -a ; as
halla, to call ; elska, to love ; whereas the Saxon termination
is -an; as lujian, to love, wyrcan, to work.
The persons are as follows: —
Pres. Sing.
Plur.
Saxon.
1. Baerne
2. Bsernst
3. BfernS
1. Bserna?
2. BsernatS
3. BgernaS
Icelandic.
Brenni.
Brennir,
Brennir.
Brennmn,
BrenuiS.
Brenna.
The characteristic, however, of the Icelandic (indeed ot all
the Scandinavian languages) is in the possession of a passive
form, or a iKLSsive voice, ending in ~st : — Uk, j)u, hann
hrennistzzi, thou, he is burnt; Ver hrennumst-=: We are
o 2
19()
ICELANDIC AND ANGLO-SAXON.
hunit ; Jv'?' hrennht = ye are burnt; Ipeir hrennast-=.they
are burnt. Past tense, Ek; Ipu, hann brendist ; ver brendumst,
^er brenduzt, ])eir brcndust. Impeiat. : brenustzzbe thou,
burnt. Infinit.: brcniiasizzto be burnt.
In the modern Danish and Swedish, the passive is still pre-
served, bnt without the final t. In the older stages of Ice-
landic, on the other hand, the termination was not -st but -sc ;
which -sc grcAv out of the reflective pronoun sih. With these
phenomena the Scandinavian languages give us the evolution
and development of a passive voice ; wherein we have the fol-
lowing series of changes: — 1st, the reflective pronoun coalesces
with the verb, whilst the sense changes from that of a reflective
to that of a middle verb ; 2nd, the c changes to t, whilst the
middle sense passes into a passive one ; 3rd, t is dropped from
the end of the word, and the expression that was once reflective
then becomes strictly passive.
Now the Saxons have no passive voice at all. That they
should have one onginating like that of the Scandinavians was
impossible. Having no reflective pronoun, they had nothing to
evolve it from.
Saxon.
The Auxllinnj Verb.
Indicative. — Present.
Sing. 1. Eom {I am)
2. Eart
3. Is
Plur. 1. Syiid (Sjaiclon)
2. Synd (Synclou)
3. Synd (Syudon)
Icelandic.
Em.
Ert.
Er.
Erum.
Eru^.
Eru.
Indicative. — Past.
Sing. 1. Wfe's
2. Wse're
3. Waj'a
Plnr. 1. AVai'ron
2. WiB'ron
3. Wa'ron
Var.
Vart.
Var.
Voni.
Voni.
Sing. 1. Sy'
2. Sy'
3. Sy'
Phir. 1. Sy'n
2. Sy'n
3. Sy'n
Subjunctive. — Present.
Se.
Ser.
Se.
Seum.
SeuiS.
Sell.
ICELANDIC AND ANGLO-SAXON. 197
Saxon. Icelandic.
Siibjuneticc. — Past.
SiiKj. 1. Wne're Vseri.
2. Wfe'ie Vserir.
3. Wfe're Vseri.
Plur. 1. Wa3'ion Va3rum.
2. Wre'ron V^eru.
3. Wie'roii VserucS.
Infiiiltive.
Wesan Vera.
Participle.
Weseude Veraudi.
Il) 175, Recapitulating, we find that the characteristic
differences of the greatest importance between the Icehindic
and Saxon are three in number : —
1st. The pecuhar nature of the definite article.
2nd. The neuter form of the adjectives in -t.
3rd. The existence of a passive voice in -se, -st, or -s.
§ J 76. In the jirevious comparison the substantives were
divided as follows : — 1st, into those ending with a vowel ; 2ndly,
into those ending with a consonant. In respect to the substantives
ending with a vowel {e/tge, nama, tunge), it may have been
observed that their cases were in Anglo-Saxon almost exclusively
formed in -n, as edgan, tungan, &c. ; whilst words bke ship,
and smv^ had, throughout their whole declension, no case
formed in -n ; no case, indeed, wherein the sound of -n entered.
This enables us (at least with the Anglo-Saxon} to make a general
assertion concerning the substantives ending in a voivel in con-
trast to those ending in a consonant, viz. that they take an
inflection in -n.
In Icelandic this inflection in -n is concealed by the fact of
'Ctn having been changed into -a. However, as this -a repre-
sents -an, and as fragments or rudiments of -n are found in the
genitive plurals of the neuter and feminine genders (augna,
tungna), we may make the same general assertion in Icelandic
that we make in Anglo-Saxon, viz. that substantives ending in
a vowel take an inflection in -n.
Along with the indication of this difference may be intro-
duced the terms weak and strong, as applied to the declension
of nouns.
Weak nouns end in a vowel ; or, if in a consonant, in a
consonant that has become final from the loss of the vowel that
198 ICELANDIC AND ANGLO-SAXON.
originally followed it. They also form a certain proportion of
their oblique cases in -n, or an equivalent to -qi — Nora, augo,
Gen, aug-in-s.
Strong nouns end in a consonant ; or, if in a vowel, in one
of the vowels allied to the semivowels y or lu, and through
them to the consonants. They also form their oblique cases
by the addition of a simple inflection, without the insertion
of n.
Furthermore, be it observed that nouns in general are weak
and strong, in other words, that adjectives are weak or strong,
as well as substantives. Between substantives and adjectives,
however, there is this difference : —
1 . A substantive is either weak or strong, i. e. it has one of
the two inflections, but not both. Augo, = an eye, is weak
under all circumstances ; waurd, = a ivord, is strong under all
circumstances.
2. An adjective is both weak and strong. The Anglo-Saxon
for good is sometimes god (strong), sometimes gode (weak).
Which of the two forms is used depends not on the word itself,
but on the state of its construction.
In this respect the following two rules are important : —
1. The definite sense is generally expressed by the weak
form, as se blinde man = the blind man.
2. Th^ indefinite sense is generally expressed by the strong
form, as suin blind man = a blind man.
Hence, as far as adjectives are concerned, the words definite
and indefinite coincide with the words ^veak and strong re-
spectively, except that the former are terms based on the syntax,
the latter terms based on the etymology of the word to which
they apply.
§ IVT.
Declension of Weak Substantives in 3Iceso -Gothic.
Neuter.
Singular.
Plural
Nom.
'Augo {an eye)
'Augona.
Ace.
'Augo
'Augona.
Bat.
'Augin
'Augani.
Gen.
'Augins
Masculine.
'Augone.
Nom.
Manna {a man)
Mannans.
Ace.
]\Iannau
Mannans.
Dat.
^Mannia
INIannam.
Gen.
Manning
Mannane.
M(ESO-GOTHIC.
199
Feminine.
Singular.
Plural.
Kom
Tuggo {a tongue)
Tuggons.
Ace.
Tuggon
Tuggons.
Dnt.
Tuggon
Tuggom.
Gen.
Tuggons
Tuggono.
Beclension of Sti
ong Suhstantives
Neuter.
in Mceso-Goth
Nam.
Vaiird {n xconl)
Vaurda.
Ace.
Vaiird
Vaurda.
Bat.
Vaurda
Vaurdam.
Oen.
Yai'irdis
Masculine.
Vaurde.
Norn
Fisks {a fish)
Fiskos.
Ace.
Fisk
Fiskans.
Iktt.
Fiska
Fiskam.
Oen.
Fiskis
Feminine.
Fiske.
Nom.
Bru}3S {a hride)
Bru}3eis.
Ace.
Bru)p
Brufjins.
Bat.
Bru};ai
Bruf^im.
Gen.
Brufjais
Bruise.
These may be compared with the Saxon declensions : viz.
augo with edge, onanna with naTna, tuggo with tunge, vaurd
with leaf, Jisks with smi'^, and bru^s with sprcec.
Beclension of Weak {or Befmite) Aclj
'ctives in 2Iceso-Gotli
Singular.
Neuter.
Masculine.
Feminine.
Norn
Blindo
Blinda
Blindo.
Ace.
Blindo
Blindan
Blindon.
Bat.
Bliudin
Blindin
Blindon.
Gen.
Blindins
Blindins
Plural.
Blindous.
Nam.
Blindona
Blindans
Bliudons.
Ace.
Blind ona
Blindans
Blindons.
Bat.
Blindam
Blindam
Blindom.
Gen.
Blindone
Blindane
Blindono.
Beclension of Strong Adjectives
in 3Iaso-Gothic.
Singular.
Neuter.
Masculine.
Feminine.
N'om.
Blind-ata
Blind-s
Bliud-a
Ace.
Blind-ata
Blind-ana
Blind-a.
Bat.
Blind-amma
Blind-amma
Bliud-ai.
Gen.
Blind-is
Blind-is
Plural.
Blind-aizos
Nam.
Blind- a
Blind-ai
Blind- OS.
Ace.
Blind- a
Blind-ans
Blind- (is.
Bat.
Blind-aim
Blind-aim
Blind- aim.
Gen.
Blind-aize
Blind-aize
Blind aiozo
•200
MCESO-GOTniC.
Verbs.
Simj.
riur.
Sing.
Flur.
Indicative.
Suhjunctive.
Present.
Presen t.
M.G.
A.S.
M.G.
A.S.
1. Sok-ja
I.uf-io.
Sing. 1. Sok-jf'iu
2. Sok-cis
Liif-ast.
2. Sok-jTiis
. Luf-ige.
•S. S6k-ci|j
Liif-ai5.
3. Snk-jai
. 1. Sok-jam
Luf-i-aS.
Phir. 1. Sok-jaima
2. S6k-ei)^
Liif-i-H(5.
2. Sok-jili}.
3. Sok-jand
Liif-i-ac5.
3. Sok-jaina
Preterite.
Preterite.
1. Sok-ida
Luf-ode.
Sing. 1. Sok-idedjav
2. Sok-icles
Luf-odest.
2. Sok-idedeis
Luf-ode.
3. Sok-ida
Liif-ode.
3. Sok-idedi
. 1. Sok-dedum
Liif-odon.
P?Mr. 1. Sok-idedeiina
2. Sok-dedu}^
Luf-odon.
2. S6k-idedeif3
• Luf-odon
3. Sok-dedum
Lnf-odoii.
3. Sok-idedeina
?he Verb Substantive runs thus —
Indicative
Subjunctive.
Present.
Present.
Sinrj.
Phir.
Sing.
Phir.
1. Im
Sijum.
1. Sij-au
Sij-aima.
2. Is
Si-jiil..
2. Sij-ais
Sij-ai|5.
3. 1st
Si-ud.
3. Sij-ai
Sij-aina.
Preterite.
Preterite.
Sing.
Phir.
Sing.
Phir.
1. Vas
Ves-um.
1. Ves-jau
Ves-eima.
2. Vas-t
Ves-u}3.
2. Ves-eis
Ves-ei)7.
3. Vas
Ves-un.
3. Ves-ei
Ves-eina.
Inf.
Visau.
Sijau.
Part.
Visauds.
The greater fulness of the Maeso-Gothic forms is apparent,
especially in the plurals of the verbs ; which are equivalent to
the Latin araa-77itis, ama-^?'s, 2im-ant, &c.
THE KELTIC LANGUAGE.
201
CHAPTER XXIX.
THE KELTIC STOCK OF LANGUAGES, AND THEIR RELATIONS TO
THE ENGLISH.
§ 178. The languages of Great Britain at the invasion of
Julius Caesar were of the Keltic Stock.
§ 179. Of the Keltic Stock there are two Branches.
The British or Cambrian Branch, represented by the present
Welsh, and containing, besides, the Cornish of Cornwall
and the Armorican of the French province of Brittany. It
is almost certain that the old British, and the ancient language
of Gaul, belonged to this branch.
English.
Welsh.
Head
Pen.
Hair
Cxwallt.
Eye
Llygad.
Nose
Tnvyii.
MoiUh
Ceg.
Teeth
Damiedd.
Tongue
Tafod.
Ear
Clust.
Bach
Cefu.
Blood
Gwaed.
Arm
Braich.
Hand
Llaw.
Leg
Goes.
Foot
Troed.
Nail
Ewin.
Horse
CeffyL
Cow
Buwch.
Calf
Llo.
Sheep
Dafad.
Lamb
Oeu.
Goat
Gafr.
Bog
Ci.
Fox
Llwynog.
Goose
Gwydd.
Croiv
Bran,
180.
Cornish.
Pen.
Bleu.
Lagat.
Tron.
Genau.
Dj'ns.
Tavat.
Scovorn.
Chein.
Giiit.
Brecli.
Lof.
Coes.
Truit.
Ivin.
INIarch.
Bugh.
Loch.
Davat.
Oin.
Gavar.
Ky.
Louvern.
Giiit.
Bran.
Breton.
Penn.
Bleo.
Lagad.
Try.
Guenon.
Dant.
Teod.
Scouarn.
Chein.
Goad.
Brech.
Dom-n.
Garr.
Troad.
Ivin.
March.
Yiocli.
Leiie.
Danvat.
Can.
Chaour.
Chy.
Louam.
Oaz.
Vran.
1^02
)
WELSH.
EiiijlL^h.
Wchh.
Cornish.
Breton.
liml
Adar.
Ezn.
Eiii.
Fish
Pysg.
i^ysg-
Pysg.
One
Un.
Oiian.
Unau.
Tiro
Dau.
Deu.
Daou.
Three
Tri.
Try.
Tri.
Four
Pedwfiv.
Pcswav.
Pevar.
Five
rump.
Pymi).
Pemp.
Six
Cliweeh.
Whe.
Chuech.
Seven
Saith.
Scyth.
Seiz.
Fight
Wyth.
Eath.
Eiz.
Nine
Naw.
Naw.
Nao.
Ten
Deg.
Dek.
Dec.
Twenty
Ugain.
Ugeuis.
Ugent.
Hundred
Cant.
Cant.
Cant.
§ 181.
Welsh.
Mark i. 1-8. *
1. Declireii efengyl lesu Grist, Fab Duw ;
2. Fel yr ysgrifen^-yd jni y prophwydi, Wele, yr yd^vyf fi yn anfon fy
ngliemiad o flaen dy wyneb, yr liwu a barottoa dy ffordd o'th flaen.
3. Lief iin yn llefain yn y diffaethwch, Parottowcli ffordd jx Arglwydd,
gwnewcb ya nniawn ei Iwybrau ef.
4. Yr oedd loan jti bedyddio yn y diffaethwch, ac yn pregethu bedydd etli-
feirwcli, er maddeuant pecbodau.
5. Ac aetb allan atto ef boll wlad Judea, a'r Hierosolpnitiaid, ac a'u bedyd-
diwyd oil ganddo yn afon yr lorddonen, gan g}-ffesu eu pecbodau.
6. Ac loan oedd wedi ei -nisgo a blew camel, a gwregys croen yngbylch ei
Iwynau, ac yn bwytta locustiaid a mel gwyllt :
7. Ac efe a bregetbodd, gan ddju-edyd, Y mae yn dyfod ar fy ol i nn crj4"acli
na myfi, carrai csgidiau yr bwn nid wj-f fi deilwng i ymost'mig, ac i'w dattod.
8. ]\Iyfi yn wir a'cb bedj^ddiais cbwi a dwfr : eitbi- efe a'cli bedyddia cbwi
ii'r Yspryd Glan.
Luke xv. 11-19.
11. Yr oedd gan ryw wr ddau fab :
12. A'r ienangaf o bonynt a ddywedodd wi-tb ei dad, Fy nbad, djTO i mi y
rban a ddigwydd o'r da. Ac efe a rannodd iddynt ei fynyd.
13. Ac ar ol ycbydig ddyddiau y mab ienangaf a gasgiodd y cwbl yngbyd,
ac a gymmertb ei daitli i wlad bell ; ac j^io efe a wasgarodd ei dda, gan fyw yn
afradlawn.
14. Ac wedi iddo drenlio y cwbl, y cododd ne-n-jii maT^T tr\^y y wlad bonno ;
ac yntan a ddecbreuodd fod mewn eisien.
15. Ac efe a aetb ac a lynodd -ni-tb un o dtlinaswyr y wlad liouno ; ac efe a'i
banfonodd ef i'w feusydd i bortlii mocli.
IG. Ac efe a cbwennycbai lenw-i ei fol a'r ciban a f^\^^ttai y mocli ; ac ui
roddodd neb iddo.
17. A iilian ddaetb atto ei bun, efe a ddywedodd. Pa sawl gwas cyflog o'r
eiddo fy nbad sydd jn cael eu gwala a'u gweddiil o fara, a miauiau yn marw o
newyn ?
CORNISH. 203
18. Mi a goclaf, ac a af at fy nliad, ac a ddyweclaf wrtlio, Fy nliad, pecliais
yn erbyu y uef, ac o'th flaen ditliau ;
19. Ac mTv-yach nid ydwyf deih\Tig i'm galw yn fab i ti : gwna fi fel vm o'th
weision cj^flog.
§ 182. The Cornisli literature is of the scantiest. A poem
called Calvary, three religious dramas or mysteries, and a voca-
bulary, are, perhaps, as old as the fifteenth century. Then there
is another, a religious drama, by William Jordan — A.D. IGll,
a few songs, a few proverbs, a short tale, two translations of the
first chapter of Genesis, wdiich Mr. Norriss (the authority for all
these statements) says are very poor translations of the Com-
mandments, Belief, and the Lord's Prayer, one of which is
called ancient, the other modern ; but this (I again quote Mr.
Norriss*) without any apparent reason for the distinction.
Deus Pater.
Adam, otte an puslces,
Ythyu a'n nef lia'n bestes,
Keii-ys yn tyr bag yn mor ;
Ro tlietbe aga bynwyn,
Y a tbue the 'th worbemmjTi,
Saw na bybgb y war nep cor.
Adam.
Yt lianwaf bugh ba tarow,
Ha margb, yw best hep parow
The vap den rag ymweres ;
Gaver, yweges, karow,
Daves, war ve (?) lavarow
'Hy hauow da kemeres.
Lemyn banwaf goyth ha yar,
A sensaf ethyn hep par
The vygyens den war an beys ;
Hos, payon, colom, grvg^^er,
Swan, bargos, bryny ban er,
Moy drethof a vyth hynwys.
Y wf hpiwyn then pnskes,
Porpus, sowmens, syllyes,
01 thy'm gusty th y a vy th ;
Leneson ha bavfasy,
Pysk ragof ny m'a skvsy
Mar corthyaf dev yn perfyth.
Deus Pater.
Rag bones ol tek ha da.
In whed dyth myns j'W formyys,
* Cornisli Drama. Vol. ii. Appendix, p. 438.
■201 CORNISH.
Aga soiia a wra :
May fc sej'tlivcs dyili liymvys.
IIcu y\v dyth a bowesva
Tho pup cleu a vo sylwys ;
Yn (lysginthyens a henna
Ny a bovcs desempys.
/h Eiii/li.sh.
God thf, Father.
Adam, behold the fishes,
Tlie bu-ds of heaven, and the beasts.
Equally in laud and in sea ;
Give to them their names,
They wUl come at thy command,
But do not mistake them iii any sort.
A J inn.
I name cow, and bull.
And horse, it is a beast without equal
For the son of man to helx? himself;
Goat, steer, stag,
Sheej), from my words
To take then- names.
Now I name goose and fowl,
I hold them bu-ds without equal
For food of man on the earth ;
Duck, peacock, pigeon, partridge.
Swan, kite, crows, and the eagle
Fui-ther by me are named.
I give names to the fishes,
Poi-poises, salmons, congers.
All to me obedient they shall be ;
Ling and cod,
A fish from me shall not escape
If I honour God perfectly.
God the Father.
For that all is fail' and good,
In six days all that is created.
Bless them we will :
Let it be called the seventh day.
This is a day of rest
To every man that may be saved ;
In declaration of that
We vri\l rest forthwith.
The Pater-noster.
Older Form.
An Taz, ny es yn nef, bethens thy hannow ugheUes, g\\Tenz doz thy gulas
ker : Bethens thy voth gwraz jn oar kepare hag jnnei: ro thyn ny liitliow
agan peb dyth bara ; gava th^m ny ny agan cam, kepare ha gava ny neb es
cam ma erbyn i\j ; nyo. homfi-ek ny en autel, mez g^^Ttll ny the worth drok :
rag gans te yn an mighterneth, an creveder, hag an' worryans, byz a venitha.
GAELIC. 205
Newer Form.
Agan Taz, leb ez en ncv benigas beth de hanno, gnrra de giilasketli deaz, de
voth beth gwrez en' oar pokar en nev ; vo dony hithow agan pyb dyth bara ; ha
gava do ny agan cabmow, pokara ny gava an gy leb es cam ma war bidn ny ;
ha na dege ny en antail, brez gwitha ny dort droge : rag an mychteyrneth ew
chee do honnen, ha an crevder, ha an 'worryaus, rag bisqueth ha bisqueth.
§ 183.
Aniiorkan of Bas-Bretagne.
Mark i. 1-8.
1. Derou Aviel Jezuz-ICiist, mab Done.
2. Evel m'az eo skrivet gand ar profed Izaiaz : Chetu e kasann va eal dii-ag
da zremm, peliini a aozo ann hend enn da raok.
3. Mouez ann hini a lenv el leac'h disti'6 : Aozid hend ann Aotrou, gi-it ma
vezo eenn he wenodennou.
4. lann a ioa el leac'h distro 6 badezi, hag 6 prezegi badisiant ar binijen
evid distaol ar bec'hejou.
5. Hag holl \xo Judea, hag boll dud Jcruzalem a zeue d'he gavout, hag e
oant badezet gant-han e ster ar Jourdan, goude beza ansavet ho fec'hejou.
G. Ha lann a ioa gwisket gant bleo kanval, gand eur gouriz ler war-dro d'he
groazel, hag e tebre kileien-raden ha mel goiiez. Hag e prezege, 6 lavarout :
7. Eunn all a zeu war va lerc'h hag a z6 kreoc'h eged-oun : ha na zellezaun
ket, 6 stoni dira-z-han, dierea liamm he voutou.
8. Me em euz ho padezet enn dour ; hogen hen ho padezo er Spered-
Santel.
Luke xv. 11-19.
11. Eunn den en doa daou vab :
12. Hag ar iaouanka anezho a lavaraz d'he dad : Va zad, ro d'm al loden
zanvez a zigouez d'in. Hag hen a rannaz he zanvez gant-ho.
13. Hag eimn nebeud dervesiou goude, ar mab iaouanka, 6 veza dastumet
kemend en doa, en em lekeaz enn bent evit mond etrezeg eiu- vro.bell meur-
bed, hag eno e tispiiiaz he zanvez 6 veva gant gadelez.
14. Ha pa en doe dispiilet kemend en doa, e c'hoarvezaz exiun naounegez
vraz er vro-ze, hag e tefiaz da ezommekaat.
15. Kuid ez eaz eta, hag en em lakaad a reaz e gopr gand eunn den eiiz ar
vi-6. Hag he-man hen kasaz enn eunn ti d'ezhan war ar mear, evit mesa ar
moc'h.
16. C'hoanteed en divije leuiia he gof gand ar c'hlosou a zebre ar moc'h :
ha den na roe d'ezhan.
17. Hogen 6 veza distroed d'ezhan he unan, e lavaraz : A bed gopraer z6 e
ti va zad hag en deuz bara e leiz, ha me a varv aman gand ann naoun ?
18. Sevel a rinn, hag ez inn etreze va zad, hag e liviiinn d'ezhan : Va zad,
pec'hed em euz a eneb ann env hag enn da enep ;
19. N'otmn ket talvoudek pelloc'h da veza galved da vab : va zigemer evel
Oman eiiz da c'hopraerien.
§ 18-i. The Gaelic or Erse Branch, represented by the
present Irish Gaelic, and containing, besides, the Gaelic of the
Highlands of Scotland and the Manks of the Isle of Man.
206
GAELIC.
J-JiKjlhh.
Irish.
Scotch.
]\F(inhs.
Haul
Coiui.
Ceann.
Kiono.
Hair
Folt.
Folt.
Folt.
Eye
Sail.
Sail.
SooQ.
Kose
Sron.
• Svoin.
Stroin.
Mouth
Beid.
Beul.
Beeal.
Tooth
Fiacail.
Fiacal.
Feeackle.
Tongue
Teaiiga.
Teanga.
Chengey.
Ear
Duas.
Duas.
Cleaysh.
Back
Driiim.
Druim.
Dreem.
Blood
Full.
Full.
Fuill.
A rm
Gairdean.
Gairdean.
Cliugau.
Hand
Lamli.
Lamh.
Lave.
Leg
Cos.
Cos.
Cass.
Nail
lougua.
lougua.
Ingin.
Horse
Each.
Each.
Agh.
Coio
Bo.
Bo.
Booa.
Calf
Laogh.
Laogh.
Llieiy.
Sheep
Caor.
Caor.
KejTrey.
Lamb
Uan.
Uan.
Eajai.
Goat
Gabliair.
Gabhar.
GoajT.
Dog
Cii.
Cu.
Coo.
Fox
Sionnacli.
Sionnach.
Shj^nnagli,
Goose
Geoilh.
Geodh.
Guiy.
Crow
Feannog.
Feannag.
Feeagli.
Bird
Ban.
Euu.
Eean.
Fixh
lasg.
lasg.
Eeast.
One
Aon.
Aon.
Unnaue.
Two
Do.
Dha.
Dhaa.
Three
Tri.
Tri.
Tree.
Four
Ceathar.
Ceitliin.
Kiare.
Five
Cuig.
Cuig.
Queig.
Six
Se.
Se.
Shey.
Seven
Seacht.
Seachd.
Shiaght.
Eight
Ocht.
Ochd.
Hoght.
Nine
Naoi,
Naoi.
Nuy.
Ten
Deicli.
Deig.
Jeih.
Twenty
Fitche.
Fichead.
Feed.
Hundred
Cead.
Ceud.
Makk i. 1-8.
Keead.
1. Tosach shoisgeil losa Chriosd, I\Ihic De ;
2. Mar ata scriobhtha annsna faidliibh, Feuch, cuiriin mo tlieachdaire rom-
Lad, noch uillmlieochas do sliHghe romliad.
3. Guth an ti eimhgheas ar an bhfasach, Ollmhuighidh slighe an Tigheama,
deanuidh a chasain direach.
4. Do bill Eoin ag baisdeadli ar an bhfasach, agus ag seanmoir bhaisdigh na
haithrighc do chum maithmheachuis na bpeacadh.
5. Agus do chuaidh tir ludaighe uile, agus luchd lerusaleim a mach cliuige,
agus do baisdeadli leis iad uile a sruth lordain, ag admliail a bpeacadh.
GAELIC. 207
G. Agiis do blii Eoin ar na eadughadh do ruainneacli camliall, agus crios
leatliaii- timclieall a leasriiigli; agiis a se biadli do itlieadli se, locuisdighe agus
mil choilteamhail ;
7. Agiis do rinne se seanmoir, ag radh, Tig am dliiaiglisi ncacli is neart-
mliiiire na misi, ag nacli fiu me cromadli agus iallacli a blirog do sgaoileadh.
8. Go deimliin do bhaisd misi sibli le liuisge, acM cbeana baislidli seision
sibli leis an Spioraid Naomh.
Luke xv. 11-19.
11. Do bhadar dias mac ag duine aiiighe :
12. Agus a dubhairt an ti dob oige aca re na atliair, Atbair, tabliair dliamh
an chuid roitbeas mhi dod mbaoiu. Agus do roinn seision a mliaoin eatorra.
13. Agus tar eis bheag^in aimsire ag ciiiinniugbadb a cboda uile don mbac
dob oige, do cbuaidb se air coigcidgb a dtabimb imcbian, agus do dbiombail se
sa uin a mhaoin le na bbeatbaidb baotbchaitbfigb.
14. Agus tar eis a choda uile do cbaitheamb dbo, deiiigh gorta romlior ann
sa tir sin ; agus do thosaigb seision ar bbeitb a riacbdanus.
15. Agus do imtliigh se rounlie agus do cbeangal se e fein do cbatbruigh-
tbeoir don tu.- sin ; nocb do cbuir fa na dbuitcbe a macb e do bbuacbuilleacbd
m^lc.
IG. Agiis ba niliian leis a bbolg do lionadb do na feitbleoguibb do ithdis na
mxica : agus ni tliugadb cunduine dho hid.
17. Agus an tan do cbuimbnigb se air fern, a dubhairt se, Ga mbed do lucbd
tiiarasdail matbarsa aga blifuil iomarcaidh aiaiu, agus misi ag dul a miigba le
gorta !
18. Eireocliaidb me agus rachaidb me dionnsuigbe matbar, agus dearuidli
me ris, A atbair, do pheacaigli me a naghaidh neimbe agus ad fhiadbnuisisi.
19. Agus ni fiu me feasda do mliacsa do gbairm dbiom : deana me mar ^on
dod lucbd tbuarasduil.
§ 185.
Scotch Gaelic.
Mark i. 1-8.
1. Toiseacb Soisgeil losa Criosd Mbic Dbe :
2. A reii" mar a ta e scriobbta anns na faidbibli, Feucb, cuii'eam mo tbeacli-
dair e roiiub do gbnuis, a db'ulluicbeas do sbligbe rombad.
'6. Gutb an ti a'dk'eigbeas anns an fliasach, Ulluicliibh slighe an Tigbearna,
deanaibb a cbemnanna direach.
4. Bba Eoin a' baisteadh anns an fhasacb, agiis a' searmonacliadb baistidh
an aitbreacbais, cbum maitbeanais pbeacanna.
5. Agus cbaidli a macb d'a ionnsuidb tir ludea uile, agus lucbdaiteacbaidh
lerusaleim agus bbaisteadh leis iad uile ann an ambuinn lordain, ag aidea-
cliadh am peacanna.
6. Agus bba Eoin air eudacbadb le fionna cbambal, agus crios leatliair m'a
leasruidb : agus bu bbiadli dlia locuist agus mil fliiadbuicb.
7. Agus sbearmonaicb e, ag radii, A ta neacli a' teacbd a'm' dlieigb a's cum-
hachdaicbe na mise, neacb nach aiiitUi mise air cromadb sios agiis barr-iall a
•blu'Og fbuasgladh.
8. Bliaist mise gii dearbh sibh le b-uisge : acli baistidh esan sibh leis an
Si)iorad Naomba.
208 MANKS.
T.UKE XV. ll-li).
11. r>lia ai,^ tluiuc araidli ditliis mluic :
1'2. Agus tluiblirtirt am tiidc a b'oigc dliiubh va atliaii", Atliair, thoir dhomlisa
a" cliuid roiiiu a tliig orin do d' mliaoiu. Agus roiun e catorra a bheatha-
chadh.
13. Agus an deigh bcagaiu do b'litbibh, cbruinnicli am mac a b'oigc a chuid
xiile, agus ghabh e a thurus do dhuthaich fad aii* astar, agus an siii cliaitli e a
luhaoin le beatha struidheasaich.
14. Agus au uair a chaith e a chiiid uile, dh'cmcli gorta ro mlior sau tir
siu ; agus thoisicli e ri bhi ann an uireasbhuidh.
15. Agus chaidli e agus cbeangail se e fein ri aon do sbaordliaoinibli na
ducba sin : agus chuir e d'a fhearann e, a bhiadhadh mhuc.
1(5. Agus bu mliianu leis a bhru a lionadh do na plaosgaibli a blia na mucan
ag ithcadli ; oir cha d'thug neacli aii* bith dha.
§186.
Blanks.
MarkI. 1-8.
1. Toshiagbt susbtal Yeesey Creest, Mac Yee :
2. Myr te scruit ajois ny phadeyryn ; Curmy-ner, tee mee cur ni}- haghter
roisb dty eddin, dy chiartaghey dty raad Kiongoyrt rhj't.
o. Coraa fer geamagli ayns yu aasagh, kiartee-jee raad y Cbiaru, jean-jee
cassanyn echey jeeragh.
4. Ren Ean baslitey ayns yn aasagli, as preaclieil basbtey arrys, son leih
pcccaghyn.
5. As liie magh huggey ooilley cbeer Yudea as ciunmaltee Yei-usalem, as
v'aa ooilley er njai maslitej^ liorish ajTis awin Yordan, goailbrish nyn becca-
C. As va Ean coanu-it lesh garmad jeli fjTiney Chamel, as lesli crj-ss liare
mysli 6 veegbj'n ; as v'ek beagliey e locustj-n as mill feie :
7. As ren eli preaclieil, gi"a, Ta fer s'pooaral na mish clieet myj^ef, Man^ley
ny braagj-n echey cha vel mee feeu dy chroymmey sheese as dy eaysley.
8. Ta mish dy jarroo er vashtey sliiu lesh uslitey: agh bashtee eshyn shiu
lesh y Spyrryd Noo.
Luke xv. 11-19.
11. Va daa vac ec dooinney dy row :
12. As dooyrt fer saa rish e ajr, Ajt, cur dooys yn ayrn dy cliooid ta my
chour, As rheyun eh e chooid orroo.
13. As laghyn my lui-g shen, hymsee pi mac saa ooilley cooidjaoh as "how
eh jiu'nah gj-s cheer foddej^ as ayns shen hug ed jummal er e chooid b'orish
baghey rouanagh.
14. As tra va ooilley baarit echey, diiTee genney vooar ayns y cheer shen •
as ren eh toshiaght dy ve ayns feme.
15. As hie eh as daill eh-hene rish cmnmaltagh jeh'n cheer shen as hiifr
eshjTi eh magh gys ny magheryn echey dy ne son bochilley muickev.
16. As by-vian lesh e volg y Ihieeney lesh ny bleaystyn va ny muckj-n dy ee :
as cha row dooinney erbee hug cooney da.
17. As ti-a v'eh er jeet huggey bene, dooyrt eh, Nagli nhimmey sharvaant
failt fee my ayr ta nin sale arran oc, as fooiliagh, as ta mish goll mow laccal
beagliey !
MANKS.— KELTIC CHARACTERISTICS. 209
18. Trog-}Tn ovrym, as hem ro^iu gys my ap-, as yer-ym risli, Ayr, tam ee
er n'yaniio peccah noi niau, as kiougoyrt rliyt's.
19. As cha vel mee ny-sodjey feeu d}' ve eumjssili dty vac ; dell rlij-m mj-r
rish fer jeh dty harvaantyn failt.
In all these samples we must allow for differences of ortho-
graphy which conceal a certain amount of likeness.
§ 187. Taken altogether the Keltic tongues form a very
remarkable class. As compared with those of the Gothic stock
they are marked by the following characteristics : —
1 . Scantiness of declension. — In Irish there is a peculiar
form for the dative plural, as cos = foot, eosaihh = to feet (ped-
ibus); and beyond this there is little else whatever in the way
of case, as found in the German, Latin, Greek, and other
tongues. Even the isolated form in question is not found in
the Welsh and Breton.
2. TJte agglutinate character of their verbal inflections. —
In Welsh the pronouns for we, ye, and they, are ni, chivyi,
and hwynt respectively. In Welsh also the root = love is car.
As conjugated in the plural number this is —
car-wn =. am-amws.
cfir-ych z=. am-atis.
ca,Y-ant = a.m.-ant.
Now the -wn, -ych, and -ant, of the persons of the verbs are
the personal pronouns, so that the inflection is really a verb and
a pronoun in a state of agglutination ; i.e. in a state where
the original separate existence of the two sorts of words is still
manifest. This is probably the case with languages in general.
The Keltic, however, has the peculiarity of exhibiting it in an
unmistakable manner ; showing, as it were, an inflection in the
process of formation, and (as such) exhibiting an early stage of
language.
3. The system of initial mutations. — The Keltic, as has
been seen, is deficient in the ordinary means of expressing
case. How does it make up for this ? Even thus. Tlie noun
changes its initial letter according to its relation to the other
words of the sentence. Of course this is subject to rule. As,
however, I am only writing for the sake of illustrating in a
general way the peculiarities of the Keltic tongues, the following
table, from Prichard's Eastern Origin of the Keltic Nations, is
sufficient.
no
KELTIC CHARACTERISTICS.
2.fo)-)ii, Ei clliiiw, his (jod.
3. Vy niiw, my (jod.
Bara, bread .
1. form, Bara cann, m7h7<' bread.
2. Ei vara, /us bread.
S. V}'' mara, ?«// bread.
Lliaw, a hand.
l.fonn, Lhaw wemi,.« 7vhite hand.
2. Ei law, his hand.
Mam, a mother.
1. form, Mam cliiion, a tender mo-
ther.
2. Eivam, /;/s mother.
Rhwyd, a net.
1. form, Piliwyd lawn, a fidl net.
2. Ei rA\^(l, liis net.
From tlie Erse.
Si'iil, an eye.
1. form, Suil.
2. A huil, his eye.
Slainte, health.
2. form, Do hlaiute, your health.
Car, a kinsman.
l.form, Car agos, a near kinsman.
2. Ei gar, his lansman.
3. Ei cliar, lier kinsman.
4. Yy ngliiii', »)y kinsman.
Tad, rt father.
l.form, Tad y plentyn, //ic child's
father.
2. Ei dad, 7i/s father.
3. Ei tlifid, /ifr /^/i/ier.
4. Yy uhad, /«?/ father.
Pen, rt 7j^rt(7.
l./o/VH, Pen gwi", i/.e head of a
man.
2. Ei ben, his head.
3. Ei plien, her head.
4. Yy mlieu, my head.
Gwas, a servant.
l.form, Gwas fydlilon, a faithful
servant.
2. Ei was, his servant.
3. Yy ngwas, my servant.
Duw, a (jod.
l./o/VH, Duw tragarog, a merciful
(jod.
§ 188. The ancient language of Gaul.* — Tlie evidence in
favour of the ancient language of Gaul being Cambrian rather
than Gaelic, lies in the following facts : —
The old Gallic Glosses are more Welsh than Gaelic
a. PetoTTitum-=.a four-wheeled carriage, from the Welsh
])eaer ^zfour and rhodzza ^uheel. The Gaelic for four is
ceatJmir, and the Gaelic compound would have been dif-
ferent.
b. Pempedida the cinquefoil, from the Welsh inimi^^z
five, and dalen-=a leaf. The Gaelic for Jive is cuig, and the
Gaelic compound would have been different.
c. Candetmnzza, measure of 100 feet, fi'om the W^elsh
ccm^ 1=100. The Gaelic for a hundred is cead, and the Gaelic
compound would have been different.
d. Eponaz=.the goddess of horses. In the Old Armorican
the root epz=.horse. The Gaelic for a horse is each.
e. The evidence from the names of geographical localities in
Gaul, both ancient and modern, goes the same way : Nantuates,
* From a Paper of the late Mr. Garnett's, in the Transactions of the Philological
Society.
GERMAN AS A CLASS. 211
Nantouin, Kanteuil, are derived from the Welsh nant — a
valley, a word unknown in Gaelic.
/. Tlie evidence of certain provincial words, which are Welsh
and Armorican rather than Erse or Gaelic.
g. (?) An inscription on an ancient Keltic (?) tablet found at
Paris, A.D. l7ll, and representing a buU and three birds (cranes),
is TARWOS TRI GARANOS. Now, for the first two names,
the Gaelic affords as good an explanation as the Welsh ; the
third, however, is best explained by the Welsh.
Bull = tariv, Welsh ; tarbh, Gaelic.
TJwee z=. tri, Welsh ; tre, Gaelic.
Crane =gaTan,^Qhh.; corr, Gaelic.
CHAPTER XXX,
ON THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE GERMAN GEOUP OF LAN-
GUAGES.
§ 189. Up to the present chapter the statements of the author
respecting the mutual relations which the different languages
of the German group bear to each other, have been anything
but tabular, systematic, or classificational. No general view of
the family has been given — no such view as the naturalist gives
of an order, a family, or a genus with sub-genera. No division
into primary and. secondary sections and sub-sections has been
attempted ; nor yet has much been said about stems and
stocks falling into branches, whilst the branches divide into
ramifications and similar sub- divisions, with names more or iess
metaphorical. Indeed, the language of the genealogist — the
talk about roots and pedigrees — has been carefully eschewed.
Nevertheless, it has not been found convenient to discard it alto-
gether ; inasmuch as more than one term has been found neces-
sary which has suggested the existence of a greater amount of
systematic classification than has been exhibited. Such a term
is the word Scandinavian (or Norse) : a word which is evidently
P 2
-I- GKR:\rAN AS A CLASS.
the generic name for a natural group of tongues, more or less
akin to those of Germany Proper, but, at the same time, more
or less difi'erent from tliem.
Such a word as this indicates the likelihood of such a system
as the following : — The Gothic class (or stock) falls into two
orders (or branches) — The Proper German, and the Scandinavian
or Norse. Again — The German Proper contains the High-
German, Platt-Deutsch, Dutch, &;c., whilst the Norse contains
the Icelandic, Swedish, and Danish. Each of these falls into
dialects and sub-dialects. No doubt, this is, to a great degree,
the case. Yet it is also equally undoubted that the view which
would illustrate it has been kept in the back-ground.
Instead of this, our notices have been to the effect that
the Frisian was likest the Dutch, the Dutch likest certain Platt-
Deutsch dialects, certain Platt-Deutsch dialects likest certain
High-German ones — and so on throuo-hout.
The reason of this lies in the itnportance of rightly measuring
tlie extent to which a systematic classification of languages,
dialects, and sub-dialects into primary, secondary, and other
subordinate divisions is an actual philological phenomenon.
Can languages be thus conveniently ai'ranged ? Can tabulated
exhibitions of them be constructed ? If they can not, it is cer-
tainly a serious error to think that they can. It is a serious
error, because it engenders the idea that definitions of an unat-
tained, or perhaps unattainable, degree of clearness and precision
are practicable. It is a serious error, because it substitutes lines
of demarcation and distinction for lines of connection and tran-
sition ; so subverting the true and natural principles of philo-
logical arrangement, and replacing them by false and artificial
ones. Hence, the chief method by wdiich the mutual afiinities
of the German tongues have been shown, has been the exhibition
of the points wherein one language agreed with another, and
that other with some third, that third with a fourth — and so
on.
This, however, is the plan of the present and later editions
only. It was not the plan of the earlier ones. Therein, the
exhibition of the mutual relationships of the German forms of
speech took the following shape : —
Of the great German stock, there were —
Two branches ; the German Proper (or Teutonic), and the
Scandinavian (or Norse).
The Teutonic branch fell into
GERMAN AS A CLASS.
213
Three divisions, (1) the Moeso-Gotliic, (2) the High German,
and (3) the Low-German.
The Low-German comprised (1 and 2) the Anglo-Saxon and
the English, (3) the Old Saxon, (4 and 5) the Old Frisian and
Modern Dutch, (6) the Platt-Deutsch dialects.
The Scandinavian branch comprehended the Icelandic, Feroic,
Swedish, and Danish, with their dialects and sub-dialects in all
tlieir stages.
In a tabular form such a system as this might be expressed
thus : —
/ Maso-Guthio
Teutonic ' Hujli-Oefinan
German
\Low-German
Scandinavian
Angle
Old Saxon
i Frisian
i Platt-Deutsch, &c.
(Icelandic
Feroic
Swedish . . .
Danish
(Literary German
Suabian
BaA^arian
Hessian, &c.
(Dalecarlian
Smaaland
Halgolaud, &c.
This is a classification which actually exists ; being that
which we find in the works of Grimm, Rask, and the chief
philologues for the German family of languages. No one has
adopted it more implicitly than the present writer — up to a
time. Yet it is exceptionable ; so exceptionable that, unless it
be abandoned, it must be taken with great caution and con-
siderable qualifications. Of these the naturalist, whether zoo-
logist or botanist, best understands the character. He anticipates
it ; seeing the difiiculties it has a tendency to engender before-
hand. It has a tendency to engender the notion that all the
forms of speech comprehended in the same division are more
like each other than they are to any one in any other. Yet
such is not the case. The Platt-Deutsch runs into the High-
German, and the Frisian is as much Dutch as Angle. It is only
the extreme forms of each section that are widel}'' separated
from each other, and definitely characterized.
§ 190. The trutli is that, whatever may be the case when
our knowledge shall have come to be enlarged, we must, at the
present moment, classify according to types ratlier than defi-
21 i GERMAN AS A CLASS.
iiit'ions ; contrasting and comparing tlic typical and central mem-
bers of each group. With this proviso the tabular form is safe,
without it dangerous.
§ 191. Akin to this question of classification, or rather part
and parcel of it, is the still more difficult one of the value of
cJiaracteHstics. Some writers lay great stress upon the absence
or presence of certain sounds ; in other words, upon the Phonesis
of Languages. Others, on the other hand, think but little of a
few vowels and consonants more or less, and accordingly attend
chiefly to something else. At times, this is the inflection or
grammatical structure ; at times it is the dictionary or glossarial
part of the language. '' Such a language," writes A, " has a
passive voice, which some other " (naming it) " has not ; hence,
I separate them somewhat widely."
" But their sound-systems are alike," writes B, " and, con-
sequently, I unite them." A practical instance of this kind of
criticism will show itself after we have looked at some of the
more usual characteristics of the different German forms of
speech ; — some of those which lie most on the surface.
1, The use of 2^ and k for b and g respectively is High-Ger-
man rather than Low, and of the High-German dialects more
particularly Bavarian.
Common Hii/h-Gcrman.
BuidYU
.Blind
Goit
GQ-h]xg-&
2. The use of ~t or -tt for -s or -ss is Low-German, in op-
position to High ; as —
Bavarian.
English.
Piik
HiU {berg).
Paiern
Bavaria.
Plin^
Blind.
/tott
God.
Ke-jiii-k-i
Bange of lulls, &c,
'att-Dcutsch.
High-German.
English
Wa^er
Wa^A'er
"Wa^er.
Swef
Scliweiss
Swea«.
Het
E?
I^.
8. The Frisian chiefly diflers from the Old Saxon and Anglo-
Saxon in the forms of the plural noun and in the termination
of the infinite mood. Thus : —
The plurals which in Anglo-Saxon and Old Saxon end in -s,
in Frisian end in -r ; and the infinitives, which in Anglo-Saxon
and Old Saxon end in -an, in Frisian end in -a.
Anglo-Saxon.
Frisian.
Cyning-rts
Kening-rt'r
Bfern-rt«
Ba3rn-a
GERMAN AS A CLASS. 215
English .
King-s.
Burn.
4. Ill Norse the preference for the sound of -r to -s, and of
-a to -an is carried further than even in Frisian.
5. But the great characteristics of the Norse tongues, as
opposed to the Frisian, and, a fortiori, to all the others, are
the so-called passive voice, and the so-called ^^os^-positive
article.
a. The reflective pronoun s'lk z=. se :=: self coalesces with the
verb, and so forms a rejlective termination. In the later stages
this reflective (or middle) becomes passive in power. Kalla =.
call, and sign self Hence come kalla sig, kallasc, kallast,
kallas ; so that in the modern Swedish jag kallas =: I am called
=: vocor.
h. The definite article in Norse not only foUoivs its substan-
tive, but amalgamates with it ; e. g. hovel =. table, hit =z the or
that; hord-et=zthe table (board).
What is the value of any one of these characteristics ? He
is a bold philologue who answers this question off'hand.
§ 192. The value of a characteristic is not only an obscure
and difiicult question in itself, but the ^measure of value is so
unfixed as for practical purposes to be wholly arbitrary.
Question. " Why do you lay so much stress upon, or, chang-
ing the expression, put so high a value on, the presence of a
post-positive article ? ' '
Ansiuer. "Because it implies some important fact in the his-
tory of the development of the tongues wherein it appears. It
implies that the tongues wherein it occurs were separated from
those wherein it does not occur at an early period. If so, the
relationship must be distant."
"Not so," it may be replied, "the separation may be but
recent, in which case it only shows a considerable amount of
activity in the processes by which language is changed."
" But this is itself important, so that, consequently, the sign
is of value under either point of view." No doubt it is, At
the same time the measure of value is uncertain and fluctuating,
inasmuch as all that has been shown in the preceding dialogue
is, that under either of two views, a case can be made out for
the importance of a certain characteristic. A sign that a Ian-
•21(1 GERMAN AS A CLASS.
gunge has changed quickly is of value and interest ; and so is a
sign of a language having separated itself from some mother-
tongue common to it and certain other forms of speech at an
early period.
Nevertheless, it is bad philology to deal \vith the two facts as
equal and indifferent, and to argue at one time fj-om the one, and
at another from the other.
S 193. All these difficulties are increased when we bring-
under notice, and add to our other points of criticism, the im-
portant question o/ time; inasmuch as the same exceptions that
lie against any OA'erclose classification in the way of order and
genus, stem and branch, division and sub-division, lie against
any unduly strict lines of demarcation between the different
stages of a language ; indeed, in this field of study more than
usual circumspection is required. It is an easy matter to take
a specimen from the reign of (sa}^) King John, and another from
that of our present Queen, and compare them — easy, too, to
arrive at certain results from such a comparison. There will be
likeness and there will be difference ; there will be the older
forms and the newer ones. And the latter will be supposed to
have followed, succeeded, or grown out of the former ; as, in
many cases, they will have done. But in many cases they will
not. What if the two samples not only belong to two different
j)eriods, but to two different dialects also ? In such a case the
sequence, or succession, though nearly linear, is not so altogether.
Whether the proximity of the two lines may not be sufficiently
close to make the difference immaterial, is another question. For
most purposes of investigation it is so — for most, but not for
all.
A little consideration will show that the a priori view of tlie
relationship that languages bear to each other favours this prin-
ciple of classification. We cannot but suppose that the streams
of population by which certain portions of the earth's surface
liave been occupied were continuous. In this case a population
spreads from a centre, like a circle on a still piece of water. Now,
if so, all changes must have been gradual, and all extreme
forms must have passed into each other by m^eans of a series of
transitional ones. It is clear that such forms, when submitted
to arrangement and classification, w^ill not come out in any de-
finite and well-marked groups, but that, on the contrary, they
will run into each other with equivocal points of contact and
GERMAN AS A CLASS. 217
indistinct lines of demarcation ; so that discrimination will be
difficult, if not impracticable. If practicable, however, it will
be effected by having recourse to certain tj^pical forms, around
which such as approximate most closely can most accurately and
conveniently be grouped. When this is done, the more distant
outliers will be distributed over the debateable ground of an
equivocal frontier. But as man conquers man, and occupant
displaces occupant on the earth's surface, forms and varieties,
which once existed, become extinct. The more this extinction
takes place, the greater is the obliteration of these transitional
and intermediate forms which connect extreme types ; and the
greater this obliteration, the stronger the lines of demarcation
between geographically contiguous families. Hence a varia-
tional modification of a group of individuals simulates a dif-
ference of species ; forms which were once wide apart being
brought into juxta-position by means of tlie annihilation of the
intervening transitions.
As a general rule, the more definite the class the greater
the displacement ; and the smaller the differences of dialect
the later the diffusion of the language. Such, at least, is the
prima facie view.
In Paris we hear French ; in Madrid, Spanish ; in Languedoe,
Gascony, and Bearn an intermediate language. But what will
be the case when the provincial forms of speech on each side of
the Pyrenees have been replaced by the literary languages of the
two great kingdoms of France and Spain ? The geographical
contact of two t^q^ical, if not extreme, forms of speech.
§ 194. For the German group of tongues {minus the Moeso-
Gothic, of which the relations are obscure), the following series
of circles and lines may serve as illustrations. The dot in the
middle of each circle represents the form of speech to which the
name by its side applies in its typical form, anterior to its
diffusion. The outline of the circle itself circumscribes the
fresh points over which the language of the centre is supposed
to have spread itself; the original forms of speech there pre-
valent being departures from the strict type of tlie centre, and,
in proportion as they are so, approximations to something else.
This is the case with the Anglo-Saxon and the Frisian on one
side, and the Old Saxon on the other. The points, on the other
hand, represent the localities where there is the maximum
amount of difference.
218 GERMAN AS A CLASS.
0
Frisian Q
0 Old Saxon
© Dutch
0 riatt-Deutscli
0 Higli-German.
TJie lines give us the directions in Avliich certain forms propa-
gated themselves.
Scautlinaviau
Frisian : Anglo-Saxon
.Old Saxon
Dutch
Platt-Deutsch
High-German.
8 195. It may not be unnecessary to add that, Avhatever may
be the exceptions taken to the ordinary classification into divi-
sions and sub-divisions (the exceptions to which are provisional
rather than absolutely valid), the points of contact between the
different members of the German group are those that philo-
loo-ues in general admit. They admit, for instance, that the
Platt-Deutsch dialects touch the High-German on one side and
the Old Saxon and Dutch on the other ; that the Frisian is
closely akin to the Saxon, and, above all, that it is the most
Scandinavian of all the German forms of speech.
The present ^\a'iter, too, admits that the division between the
two primary branches of the fiimily — the Scandinavian and the
German Proper, is, if not absolutely natural, a near approach to
nature ; inasmuch as it is, probably, not very wrong to say that
all the languages in the former division are more like each other
than any one of them is to any form of speech from Germany
Proper. Nevertheless, he hesitates — and that, because, whatever
measure of value he may take as to the importance of the two lead-
ing Scandinavian characteristics — the so-called Passive Voice, and
the Post-positive article — he sees less in them than is seen by
the majority of investigators.
GERMAN AS A CLASS. 219
Let us examine them — taking the former first.
§ 196. It is called a Passive, but it has grown out of a Middle
form, which Middle has grown out of a combination of two
words — viz. the active, or transitive verb, and the pronoun of
the third person.
In this there is nothing extraordinary, every process being
capable of the clearest and most appropriate illustration. The
older forms of the Icelandic give us not only the conjunction of
the third, person with the verb, but that of the first person also.
Thus whilst mik = me, yik = thee, and sik=se. The ejection of
the vowel, the change from -so, to -st, and lastly, the loss of the
t are points of plionesis.
The use of the pronoun of the third person to the displace-
ment and exclusion of those of the first and second is a point
of logic. How comes such a combination as the verb + ])ilc to
have become wholly, and such a combination as the verb + rniJc
to have become nearly, obsolete so long ago as the twelfth and
thirteenth centuries ? for such is the date of the early Icelandic
literature. Whatever may be the exact nature of the confusion
of idea that thus extended the use of the sik in Icelandic at the
expense of the other two pronouns, it gives us a phenomenon
which reappears elscAvhere in the Greek, the Higli-German, and
the Lithuanian, at least.
It cannot, then, be said that a formation so naturally evolved
as the so-called passive voice of the Scandinavian languages is
a philological characteristic of very high value, a philological
characteristic which effects between the languages wherein it is
found, and the languages wherein it is not found, any notably
broad line of demarcation.
§ 197. And, now, let us consider the peculiar position of the
definite article, the article which may conveniently be denomi-
nated posi-positive. Undoubtedly it is a very palpable character-
istic, and one which tells a great deal upon the language, as any
one may discover for himself who passes from the study of the
English or German to that of the Danish, Swedish, or Icelandic.
It makes the reader look to the end of the word where he has
hitherto looked at the beginning, putting the sequence of his
ideas, more or less, out of joint. It gives, too, compactness to
the Scandinavian sentences, and enriches the metres with a large
amount of the so-called trochaic feet.
Undoubtedly this post-positive article is a very palpable cha-
racteristic. Yet it is very doubtful whether it be the measure
of an}^ important phenomenon in the way of evolution or de-
2-20 GERMAN AS A CLASS.
velopment. It is very doubtful ^vllcthcr it iudicates any long
separation in time between the languages wherein it occurs and
the languages wherein it is wanting. It is also doubtful whether
it says that any inordinate amount of change took place within
a comparatively short period. It is a peculiarity easily evolved,
I. e. without an}" extraordinary activity of the processes by which
languages are changed, and without any extraordinary length
of the time for the working of the usual changes at an average
rate. It is safe to say that a period of five or six centuries
is long enough for its development — long enough, and, perhaps,
more than long enough. How do we get at this ? for the state-
ment is something better than a mere guess, is something better
than a mere a 2Jviori speculation. We get at it by certain phe-
nomena supplied by the history of the Latin language and the
languages derived from it. A hundred years before our era
none of these latter had any existence beyond the Italian Penin-
sula. Five hundred years A.D., there were no less than four
new growths, one in France, one in the Spanish Peninsula, one
in Switzerland, and one in the Danubian Principalities. Now,
of these, the first three formed their definite ai'ticles after the
fashion of the Germans Proper — viz. the French, the Spaniards
(and Portuguese), and the Swiss of the Grisons. And the
original Romans did the same. But the fourth formed their
articles after the fashion of the Scandinavian, the Wallachian,
and Moldavian equivalents to llcoinme, il huomo, and el homhre,
being homul ( = honi-ul:ziho7yio ille).
In this, then, we have a form which has been developed since
the conquest of Dacia — in the reign of Trajan.
§ 198. As the relationship of certain languages has been illus-
trated by circles and lines, the stages may be similarly exhibited
by lines and points.
Let the points and lines that run vertically represent the
period betw^een the fourth and nineteenth centuries, the lines
denoting the time to which the different samples of the different
forms of speech are referrible.
Some begin soon, but soon cease, e. g. the Moeso-Gothic ;
which we find as early as the fourth century, but lose before we
reach the sixth.
Some come down late and begin late, e. g. the Dutch and
Platt-Deutsch.
The Anglo-Saxon extends through nearly the whole period ;
but —
GERMAN AS A CLASS.
22]
The Old Saxon neither ascends so high as the Mooso-Gothic,
nor comes down so low as the others.
O H > 'rl e hj M
r^ n- ri,-, t;^ d ?; 1=
o P
o
a
^ O Q
2 fc
O
The more these lines are kept distinct the better the phi-
lology.
CHAPTER XXXT.
ON CERTAIN POINTS OF NOMENCLATURE.
§ 199. The last chapter dealt with the question of classifica-
tion ; the present takes cognizance of certain points of nomen-
clature. The extent to which such remarks are necessary or
superfluous may be collected from the remarks themselves. The
words which will command our attention nre the following — 1.
Gothic. 2. German. 3. Dutch. 4. Teutonic. 5. Anglo-
Saxon. 6, 7. Icelandic and Old Norse.
§ 200. Gothic and Moeso-Gothic. — This is a name (perhaps,
we may say the name) for the genus of which such forms of
speech as the High-German, the Danish, the English, &c. are
species. Such, at least, is the language we may use for the
sake of illustration, even though in some points it may be
exceptionable. Gothic, then, is a generic name.
With the prefix Moeso- it becomes specific, denoting the par-
ticular language of the Ulphiline Translation. Moeso- is from
Mcesia, the name of the present countries of Servia and Bul-
garia during the later periods of the Roman history. In the
fifth century the Lower Moesia was occupied by a German
population. That this gave us the Germans of Moesia, or ]!iloeso-
222 GERMAN AS A CLASS.
Germans, is evident. Whether, however, it gave ns a popula-
tion that is either correctly or conveniently called the Goths of
Moesia, or Mce&o-Goths, is another question.
No grave exception lies against the use of the word Mcesian
as applied to the language of Moesia in the time of Ulphilas —
no grave exception. The likelihood of its being supposed to
denote the original vernacular tongue of Moesia, as spoken
before the German invasion, is of no great importance in the
way of an objection. Still, it is an objection as far as it goes.
What are the merits or demerits of the word Gothic ? Its
merits are the following : —
It is in current use.
It cannot easily be replaced if thrown out of use. Say that
we substituted for it the word German, The following incon-
venience would arise. It would have one power when it applied
to the class, and another when applied to particular languages
of Germany as opposed to Scandinavia.
It iSj to a certain extent, correct ; hut only to a certain ex-
tent. That the speakers of the language of the Ulphiline
translations were called Goths at a period not later than the
third century, and by a population not less important than the
Roman, is generally and reasonably believed.
It has as good a claim as any other word equally specific in
its origin to take an extension of power, and to enlarge itself
into a more general term. Even though other members of the
family to which the speakers of the language of the Ulphiline
translation belonged were of equal historical importance with
the Goths of Moesia, the latter have in their favour the highly
important fact of their language being the one which supplies
us with the earliest specimens of the group to which it belongs.
The Ulphiline translations are the earliest Gothic, or German,
compositions extant.
§ 201. The question, then, as to the demerits of the word is
complex ; neither are the facts which it includes beyond doubt.
They ai-e doubted, however, by no one so much as by the present
writer.
He holds that the term Gothic, as applied to the Germans of
Moesia, is as ethnologically incorrect as the term Briton applied
to the Angles of Britannia — and that for the same reason.
The invaders of neither country took their names with them.
On the contrary, they took them from the countries to which
they went ; having left their own under different ones. That
GERMAN AS A CLASS. 223
no Britons, under that lutme, left Germany to conquer Britannia
is universally admitted. That no Goths, under that name, left
Germany to conquer Moesia is not universally admitted. It
only ought to be. Tlie fact is as follows : — Just as a certaiu
country which was called Britannia long before it became
German, engendered the name Britain, which certain English-
nnem occasionally adopt, did a certain country, of which the
original occupants were the Oet-03, attach to certain invaders the
name Goth-i, a name which they never bore at home, which they
cannot be shown to have adopted themselves, and which (when
all is said about it that can be said) was only a Roman name
for those occupants of the country of the Getce, who in the
fourth and fifth centuries were of German orio-in.
If this be true, the objections against the word Goth, as
applied to a German of Mcesia, are the objections against the
word Briton as applied to an Angle of the Heptarchy. They
lie against the name even in its more limited sense. A fortiori,
they lie against it in its general sense. It would be wrong to
call the East Anglians Britons ; but it would be wronger still to
call the Hessians or the Westphalians so.
But though incorrect, the word may be convenient, or at
least, allowable. Tliis was the case with the word Mwsian ; a
word against which, though an objection lay, it was only a
slight one — too slight to be of much practical importance,
inasmuch as Moesian philology and Moesian history, so far as
they are other than German, is nil — or nearly nil. But it is
not so.
For reasons exhibited elsewhere, I have long satisfied myself
that the history of a population, at one and the same time,
other than German, and, yet more trnly Gothic than any Ger-
mans ever were, is no obscure and unimportant history at all,
but, on the contrary, a history of great interest and influence, a
history of which the vast area bounded by the Gulf of Bothnia
on the one hand, and the Indian Ocean on the other, was the
field.
§ 202. German. — The chief points concerning this name
are —
1. That it Avas, originally, no national name at all, but one
given to the nations on the East and North of Gallia by the
Romans, the Romans having, probably, taken it from the Gauls.
2. That, with few exceptions, it has applied to the Germans
Proper of Germany. Except in philology and ethnology, we do
22 t GERMAN AS A CLASS.
not find either Englisli or Scandinavian writers calling their
countrymen Germans.
3. That the two German divisions most generally meant,
when the word is used in a limited sense, are the Franks and
Alemanni.
4. That the words Frank (or Francic) and Alemann (or
AUemannic) have been occasionally used as synonjaiious Avith
German.
5. That the origin of the word Germani, in the Latin lan-
guage, is a point upon which there are two hypotheses.
a. That it is connected with the Latin word Germani =
genuine.
b. That it grew out of some such German word as Herman,
Trmin, Wehrmann, or the Herm- in Hermunduri, Hermiones,
kc.
Neither of these views satisfies the present writer, who as
little believes the word to have been of native, as lie believes it
to have been of Roman, origin. It by no means follows that
because the Romans called a certain population by a certain
name, that that name was Roman. Strabo, from whom we get
the notion, was not only a Greek, but a Greek who gives his
view of the origin of the word moi-e in the way of an etymo-
logical fancy than aught else : his statement and test being as
follows : —
" The parts immediately beyond the Rhine, beyond the Kelts, and tiu-ned
towards the east, the Germans occupy, diiferiug but Httle from the Keltic
stock ; chiefly in tlieir excess of wildness, size, and yellowness. In size,
habits, and manner of life, they are as we have described the Kelts to be.
Hence, the Piomans seem to me to have given them their name on good
grounds, wishing to designate them as the ijemdne Gauls. For in the Roman
speech German means genuine:" —
'Eidi/s roLvvv ra irepav roii 'Prjvov jxeTo. Toiis KeXrovs npos rfjv ew Ke/cXt/xeVa Tep-
fiavoi vepoPTai, piKpov (^aXXuTTovTes tov KeXrtKoC (j}v\ov, toi re TrXeovaap-a ttJs
dypiorrjTOS Kol tov peyeBovs, Kai Trjs ^avBoTrjTOi' TaWa 8e Tvapaiikricnoi Koi
pop(prus, Koi jjdicri., KOL ^Lois ovTfs, oiovs flpt'jKapev Toiis KeXrovs. Ato diKaid pot
SoKoucrt Pco/iutot TOV TO avTols dtcrdai Tovvopa, as dv yvrjaiovs FaXaTas (fipd^fiv
(iovXopevoi' yvrjaioi yap ol Ttppavol kotu ttjv Papaicou StaXe/croj/.
The name German seems not to have been of Roman —
Nor yet of native origin.
Although, the Romans and the Gauls knew the populations
beyond the Rhine by a certain collective term, no such common
collective term seems to have been used by the Germans them-
selves. They had none. Each tribe had its own designation ;
USE OF CERTAIN TERMS. — GERMAN. 225
or, at most, each king-dom or confederation. Only when the
que.stion as to what was common to the whole country, in oppo-
sition to what was Roman or Gallic, became a great pi-actical
fact, did a general ethnological term arise ; and this was not
German but Dutch.
This is a common phenomenon. In Hindostan we hear of
the wilder mountaineers of Orissa and the Bengal country under
the names of Khond and K61 ; and this is a collective term.
But it is only this in the mouth of a Hindu or an Englishman.
Amongst themselves the separate names of the different tribes is
all that is current.
The evidence of Tacitus is strong upon the point. Speaking
upon their origin, he writes : —
" Celebrant carmiuibus antiquis (quod unum ai:)tid iilos memorise et anna-
lium genus est) Tuistonom demn terra editiun, et filimn Mannum, origio-
nem gentis conditoresque. INIanno tres filios adsignant, e quorum nominibus
proximi Oceano Inga^vones, medii Hermiones, ceteri Istaivones vocentuv.
Quidam autem licentia vetustatis, pliu-es deo ortos, pluresque gentis appeila-
tiones, Marsos, Gambri\dos, Suevos, Vaudalios adfirmant : eaque vera et
aiitiqua nomina. Ceterum Germanise vocabulmn recens et nuper additum :
quoniam qui primi Rheuum traiisgressi Gallos expulerint, ac nunc Tmigri, tunc
Germani vocati suit : ita nationis nomen, non gentis evaluisse paullatim, ut
omnes i)rimum a victore ob metum, mox a seipsis invento nomine, Germani
vocarentur."
Notwithstanding the words " a seipsis invento Romine," I
believe the word German to have been of Gallic oriy,in, so that,
whilst the Germans had no collective name at all, the Eomans
called them as they were ca-lled by their neighbours — the neigh-
bours through whom they (the Romans) more especially came in
contact with them — their neighbours the Gauls.
§ 203. The first use of the word is early in one sense, late in
another. It is early if we look only to the date of the events
with which it is connected. It is late if we look to the histo-
rian who records it. This distinction is necessary ; though
often overlooked. The earliest date assigned to a given event is
one thing : the earliest historian who mentions such an event is
another. A very early event may be recorded by a very late
historian. Now the word Seml-germanis was applied to certain
nations who came across Hannibal as he crossed the Alps ; the
historian who tells us being Livy.
Again — the nation of the Bastarnse took a prominent part in
the wars of Philip, the father of Perseus, against the Romans.
Persuaded to become his allies, they cross the Danube; Cotto,
22G USE OF CERTAIN TERiMS. — GERMAN.
one of their nobles, being sent forward as ambassador. They
enter Thrace. The Thracians retire to Mount Donuca. Here
the Bastarnfe divide. Thirty thousand reach Dardania. The
rest cross tlie Danube homewards. Tiiis is what Livy tells us.
Strabo's evidence is more remarkable.
'Ez' 8e TTJ fiecTopala Baarcipuai fiev to'ls Tvpiyerais o/xopoi kol Tf pfiavols, c^^e-
bov Ti /cat avTo\ rov Te pfxaviKov ye'vovs ovres, els TrXe ico <pv\a 8 tj^pr]-
fiivoi. Kat yap "Arp.ovoi Xtyovral Tives, Koi StSdres, ol be tt]v HevKrjv Karaa-^opTes,
Trfv iv Ta> "larpco vrjcrov, UevKivoi.
This has given the Bastarase great prominence in ethnology ;
since they have the credit of being the first Germans mentioned
by name in history.
Thirdly — In the Fasti Capitolini for B.C. 222, occurs the
following entry : " M. CLAUDIUS M. F. M. N. MAECELLtlS AN,
DXXXI. COS. DE GALLEIS INSUBRIBUS ET G[ER]MAN1S K. MART.
ISQUE SPOLIA OPl {ma) RETTULIT DUCE HOSTIUM YIR (doDiarO
ad Cla) STID {ium- interfecto).' — Grccv. Tlies. Antt. Rom. ii.
p. 227.
This is a notice of some pretension. Polybius, however, calls
tb.e allies of the Insubrian Gauls not Germans but Gcesatw.
More than this — the record itself is not above suspicion. The
part of the stone which contains the letters ER has been repaired,
"and" (the extract is from Niebuhr) "whether ER was put in
at random, or whether it was so on the original stone, I can
neither assert nor deny. I have often seen the stone, but
although a friend of mine wished me particularly to ascertain
the truth, I was never able to convince myself whether the
corner containing the syllable is part of the original stone or
not. It is evident that the name cannot have been Cenomanis,
since they were allied with the Romans, and the.g is quite dis-
tinct. Gonomani does not occur among the Romans. If the
author of these Fasti actually wrote Gemianis the nation is
mentioned. The thing is not at all impossible." — Lecture lyiii.
Dr. L. Schmitz's edition.
The word German, then, is more probably of Gallic than of
either native or Roman origin. It was introduced into English
through the Latin, German and Germany being translations of
Germanus and Germania. In France, Italy, and Spain, the
equivalent terms are AUemagne and Lainagna, from the Latin
Alertianni. Hence, the words in question, however convenient
in Great Britain, are of English rather than European currency.
i
DUTCH. 227
More upon this point, however, will be considered, when we
have noticed two other terms — Dutch and Teutonic.
§ 204. Dutch. — Gerraany is not the name by which a German
denotes his own country. He calls it Deutschland. Neither is
it the name by which a Frenchman designates Germany. He
calls it Alleniagne. Whence the difference ? The different lan-
guages take different names for one and the same country from
different sources. The German term Deutsch is an adjective ;
the earlier form of the word being diutisc. Here the -isc is
the same as the -ish in words like self-ish. Diut, on the other
hand, means people, or nation. Hence, diut-isc is to diitt, as
popularis is to populus. This adjective was first applied to
the language ; and served to distinguish the yopulav, national,
native, or vidgar tongue of the populations to which it belonged
from the Latin. It first appears in documents of the ninth
century : —
" Ut quilibet ei^iscopus homilias apcrte trausferre stndeat in rusticam Ro-
manam linguam ant Theotiscam, quo tandem cuncti iwssint intelligere qu»
dicantxu'." — Sijnodiis Turonensis, a. d. 813.
" Quod in lingua Tliimlisca scaftlegi, id est armorum depositio, vocatur." —
Cajrlt. Worinaticnse.
"DecoUectis quas T/u'^/rZ/scrz lingua heriszuph appeUat.'"^ — Conventus Silva-
censis.
" Si, harhara, quam Teutiscam dicunt, lingua loqueretiu-/' — Vita AdaJhardi,
&c., D.G., i. p. 14, Introduction.
As to the different forms in which either the root or the
adjective appears, the most important of them are as follows :
1. In Moeso- Gothic, ]>iudishj — IOvlkws — Galatians ii. 1; a
form which implies the substantive yiudazu'edvos.
2. In Old High-German, diot = popidus, gives the adjective
diutisc = 'popul-aris.
8. In Anglo-Saxon we have \e6d and peodisc.
Sometimes this adjective means heathen ; in which case it
applies to religion and is opposed to Christian.
Oftener it means intelUgihle, or vernacular, and applies to
language ; in which case it is opposed to Latin.
The particular Gothic dialect to which it was first applied
was the German of the Middle Rhine. Here the forms are
various : — theodisca, thiudisca, theudisca, teudisca, teutisca.
When we reach parts less in contact with the Latin language of
Rome, its use is rarer. Even the Germans of the Rhine fre-
quently use the equivalent term Alemannic, and Francic ;
whilst the Saxons and Scandinavians never seem to have recog-
Q 2
228 DUTCH. — TEUTONIC.
nized the word at all. Hence it is only the Germans of Ger-
many that are Theotisci, or Deutsche. We, of England, apply
it only to the Dut-ch of Holland.
§ 205. Up to a certain time in its earlier history the term
Dutch {Teutisca, Theodisca, &c.) is, to a certain degree, one of
disparagement ; meaning non-Rovian or vulgar. It soon, how-
ever, changes its character ; and in an Old High-German gloss
— uncadiuti (ungideuti) == un-dutch is translated harharus.
The standard has changed. Barbarism now means a departure
from what is Dutch. Nevertheless, originally Deutsche =
vulgar. Hence, like high as opposed to low, rich to jwor, &c.,
the word Deut-sch was originally a correlative term — i. e. it de-
noted something which was 2)opular, vulgar, nationcd, unlearned
— to something which was not. Hence, it could have had no
existence until the relations between tlie learned and lettered
language of Rome, and the comparatively unlearned and un-
lettered vulgar tongue of the Franks and Alemanni had de-
veloped some notable points of contrast. Deutsche, as a name
for Germans, in the sense in which it occurs in the ninth cen-
tury, was an impossibility in the Jirst, or second. This is not
sufficiently considered. Many believe that the Teut-, in Teutones,
is the deut-, in deutsch. To be this exactly is impossible. Any
German tribe that called itself ])euda, diot or cZeo'S in the first
century must have given a different meaning to the word ; and,
so doing, have called themselves homines, heroes, or by some
term equally complimentary.
The present national sense of the Avord is wholly secondary
and derivative. Originally it was no more the name of a
people or a language than the word Vidgate, in the expression
the Vidgate translation of the Scriptures, is the name of a
people or a language.
§ 206. Teutonic. — The history of this word is closely con-
nected with that of the preceding ; inasmuch as both have the
same combination of letters for their first syllable, viz. T. E. u. T.
On the other hand, the final syllables are different. Are the
two words the same ? The common element TEUT is in favour
of their being so. Again, — about the tenth century the Latin
writers upon German affairs began to use not only the words
Theotiscus and Theotisce, but also the words Teutonicus and
Teutonics. Upon this Grimm remarks that the latter term
sounded more learned ; since Teutonicus was a classical word,
an adjective derived from the Gentile name of the Teutones
TEUTONIC. 229
conquered by Murius. This is likely enough. At any rate, no
fact is more certain than that, about the time in question, the
Germans were called, indifterently, either Theotiscl, or Teat-
onici. What does this prove ? That the word Teutoniciis
( = Tkeotiscus) came from the classical term Teutones. Ad-
mitting this, I by no means believe that, on the strength of
their name, the Teutonici ( = Theotisci) were of the same stock
with the classical Teutones ; neither does the similarity prove
that they were. I doubt whether it even implies so much — -
i. e. when taken alone. Its application, however, at the time in
question, to populations unequivocally German, and its use as a
synonym with Dutch {Theotlscus), do more than the name itself.
The name itself proves no more than is proved by the presence
of the root L-t, in the words Lceti, and Latini ; names from
which no one has argued that the Latins and Lceti were the
same.
Of far greater importance than the use of the word Teutoni-
cus in the tenth century is its use in the first and second — its
use by the classical writers. Did they use it as equivalent to
German? Some did — Yelleius Pciterculus most especially.
Nevertheless, the usual meaning of the word Teutones in the
classical writers is to denote a population identical with, or
similar to, the Teutones conquered by Marius. This it meant,
and nothing more. In like manner the adjective Teutonicus
meant after the fashion of the Teutones. I imagine that if a
poet of the times in question were asked what he meant by the
epithet, such would be his answer. That he would say that
Teutonicus was only another word for Germanicus, and that
the Teutones were Germans, I do not imagine ; admitting, how-
ever, that a geographer or historian might do so. At present,
the classical rendering of Teutones and Teutonici is like the
men tvhom Marius conquered — whoever they were. Of course,
this terra connoted something else. It was applied to the
colour and texture of the hair ; so that we read of Teutonici
capilli. It was applied to the manner of throwing javelins, so
that we hear of men who were —
" Teutonico ritu soliti torqiiere cateias." — JEncid, lib. vii. 1. 74.1.
It was applied to several other characteristics besides. Now,
even if we admit all these to be common to the Teutones and
Germans, we get no evidence as to the two words bearing the
same meaning. All that we get is the fjict that Teutonicus.-
230 TEUTONIC.
meant lll'e the men conquered hy Marius, and that these had
certain points in common with the Germans.
Hence — the question as to the German origin of the Teut-
ones nmst be discussed chiefly on its own merits, and, to a great
extent, independently of the fact of the words Teutonic and
Dutch having been used as synonyms; for it has already been
remarked that it was quite impossible for the Teut- in the classi-
cal word Teut-ones, and the Teut- in the medieval form Teut-
iscus, to be one and the same word, with one and the same
meaning. The Teut- in Teut-iscns could have no existence un-
til the contrast between the Latin as a learned, and the German
as an unlearned, language had become prominent and familiar to
both Germans and Latins. On the other hand, the Teut- in
Teut-ones appears far too early for anything of tlie sort.
The syllables Vulg-, and Belg-, are quite as much alike as
Teuton-, and Deut-sch ; yet how unreasonable it would be for
an Englishman to argue that he was a descendant of the Belgce
because he spoke the Vulgar Tongue! Mutatis mutandis, how-
ever, this is the argument of many of the German writers —
though not of all. Are we then to say that it is only some
of the German writers who identify the Deui-sch and the
Teut-ons, on the strength of the name ? We can scarcely do
this. As far as my own reading and experience go, I can
safely say that I have never yet met a German, who, in some
way or other, either consciously or unconsciously, did not
argue from the similarity of name to the descent of his coun-
trymen from the men wdio fought against Marius. He has
done this even though he has not been exactly guilty of the
error just indicated. Nor has he done it upon unreasonable
though (in my mind) insufficient grounds.
Though the Teut- in Tew^ones is not the Teut- in Teii^-iscus in
its secondary sense of vulgar or popular, as opposed to learned
and cultivated, it may still be the same word with its primary
meaning of pteople. It is by no means unlikely for an invading
nation to call themselves the nation, the nations, the people, &;c.
Neither, if a German tribe had done so, would the word employed
be very unlike Teuton-es. Although the word ]>md-a = ncdion
or "people, is generally strong in its declension (so making the
plural j)iud-ds), it is found also in a weak form with its plural
thiot-un — Teuton-. See Deutsche Grammatik, i. 630.
Again — w^e have the Saltus Teut-o-bergius mentioned b}'-
Tacitus {Annal. lib. i. p. GO). Whatever may be the power of
TEUTONIC. 281
the Teut- in Tcutones, it is highly probable that here it means
people; in other words, that it is the Teut- in Dut-ch, and tliat
in its primary sense populus rather than vulgus. It means
either the hill of the people, or the city of the ]people ; according
as the syllable -herg- is derived from huirgs = a hill, or from
baurgs=a city. In either case the compound is allowable, e.g.
diot-ivec, public vxiy, Old High-German ; thiod-sca^/ifo, robber of
the people, Old Saxon ; Ye,6(\.-cyning, ])Qod-inearc, boundary of
the oiation, Anglo-Saxon ; p\6d-land, ])'i6(l-vegr, people's way,
Icelandic. The evidence, then, is reduced to the mere fact of
the first syllable in Tew^-ones, probably meaning people ; whilst
(if so) it was a German gloss. That people, however, was ac-
tually its meaning is only a probability. There is not a tittle
of external evidence on the point. But, supposing that there
were, it would by no means follow that because it was a
German word it was exclusively so. The root p-lh (v-lg) is
equally Slavonic and Latin — ^^^^^^^^ = vulg-us, as well as the
German folk.
Such are the reasons against too much stress on the
root Teut- in Tew^ones. Let us now^ take the rest of the evi-
dence. Yelleius Paterculus has been noticed. Tacitus makes
no mention of the Teutones at all. Ptolemy mentions both
Teut-ona.ru and Teut-ones. The former looks like a German
word ; it being probable that the -arii = tucere. If so. Teuton-
is the name of a place. The localities of both these j)opula-
tions are other than German rather than German. Again —
admitting Teutonarii to be a German word, it is by no means
certain that it applies to a German population.
The remaining- evidence in favour of the Teutones havino;
been German lies in their connection with the Cimbri. What
is the proof of these having been German ? In nine cases out
of ten the discreditable answer is, " their connection with the
evidently Dutch Teutones " — an answer that shows that the
reasoning is in a vicious circle.
The doctrine to which the present writer has long com-
mitted himself is as follows : — for certain reasons, the know-
ledge of the precise origin and locality of the nations con-
quered by Marius was, at an early period, confused and inde-
finite. New countries were made known without giving any
further infoi'mation. Hence, the locality of the Cimbri was
always pushed forwards beyond the limits of the geographical
areas accurately ascertained. Finally, their supposed locality
to^ ANGLO-SAXON. — ICELANDIC, AND OLD NORSE.
retrograded continually northwards, until it fixed in the dis-
tricts of Sleswick and Jutland, where tlie barrier of the sea,
and the increase of geographical knowledge (with one excep-
tion) prevented it from getting further.
This view arises out of the examination of the language of
the historians and geographers as examined in order, from
Sallubt to Ptolemy.
§ 207. Anglo-Saxon. — The Lingua Anglorum of Beda is
translated by Alfred on Englisce. So old is the word English.
This is the commoner term. At the same time the word Saxon
is in use — fures quos Saxonice diciinus vergeld-})eovas. — See § 6.
Why do we call the older stages of the English Language
Anglo-Saxon, when they are so clearly English ? This question
is ably urged by a writer in the Gentleman' s Magazine for
April and May, 1852, who would replace the ordinary nomen-
clature in the oil?wing manner: —
1. A. D. 550-1150 Old Emjlish.
2. — 1150-1:350 Uarly English.
8. — 1350-1550 Middle Emjlish.
4. — 1550-1852 Neiv EnijUsh.
The writer who first uses Anglo-Saxon is Paulus Diaconus.
He means by it the Saxons of England, as opposed to the
Saxons of Germany. Its present power is widely different
from this.
§ 208, Icelandic, Old Norse. — Although Icelandic is the
usual name for the mother-tongue of the Danish, Swedish, and
Norwegian, the Norwegian philologists generally prefer the term
Old Korse.
In fjxvour of this view is the fact that Norway was the
mother-country, Iceland the colony, and tliat some portions of
what is called Old Icelandic was composed in Norwa5^ Still
the reason is insufficient ; since the present term Icelandic is
given to the language not because Iceland ivas the countr}^ that
'produced, but because it is the country that has preserved it.
Suppose that, whilst the Latin of Virgil and Cicero in Italy
had been changing into the modern Italian, in some old Roman
colony (say Sardinia) it had remained either wholly unaltered,
or else, altered so little as for a modern Sardinian — provided
he could read at all — to be able to read the authors of the
Augustan age, just like those of the era of Victor Emmanuel ; no
other portion of the old Roman territor}^ — not even Rome itself
CRITICISM. 233
— having any tongue naore like to tliat of the classical writers
than tlie most-antiquated dialect of the present Italian, Sup-
pose, too, that the term Latin had become obsolete, would it be
imperative upon us to call the language of the Classics Old
Italian, Old Roman, or at least Old Latin, when no modern
native of Rome, Latium, or Italy could read the(u ? Would it
be wrong to call it Sardinian, when every Sard could read
them ? I think not. Mutatis tnutandis, this is the case with
Iceland and Norway.
§ 209. Tlte question of convenience. — The chief subject in
connection with the names that have just passed under rev^iew
has been the tlieoretic propriety, or impropriety, of them. It
is, however, nearly certain tliat this will have but little to do
with their adoption and currency. The practical flicts of most
importance in this way are (I), the extent to which a given
form is actually in use, and (2), its convenience or inconveni-
ence.
a. Gothic. — The word Gothic is more current than con-
venient. At the same time, it is chiefly inconvenient to the
general philologue, to the systematic ethnologist, and to the
special investigator of history of the Sarmatian stock. For the
comparatively limited field of German philology, it is well nigh
unexceptionable. For this reason it is likely to keep its place
longer than it deserves. The present writer is more vexed by
it, than, perhaps, any one else ; yet he must take it as he finds
it, however desirous of replacing it by the term German.
b. Dutch. — The English and continental powers of the
word are difiicult to reconcile. In English it means the language
of Holland, as opposed to that of Germany. In Germany it
means Germam. Then there are the further complications
arising out of the term Hoch-Deutsch (High-Butch), and Plati-
Beutsch. It is doubtful whether these difficulties would be met
by returning to the original English power of the word, which
was (to a certain extent) identical with the modern German. It
was so to a certain extent, inasmuch as in the fifteenth and six-
teenth centuries High-Dutch meant the present literary German,
Low-Dutch meanino- the Dutch of Holland — the Dutch of Hoi-
land rather than the Platt-Deutsch dialects of Germany Proper.
The simple form Dutch is an inconvenient name for the language of
Holland. The compound Xoiy-i)ttfc/i is also inconvenient. The
most correct name, the name current both in Germany Proper
and Holland, is XetJterlandish ; but this is a compound which
'2 ok CRITICISM.
is unpleasing to tlie English ear, sounding too like the dyslo-
gistic term outlandish. Neiherlandlc is hybrid — i. e. English
iu respect to its first three syllables, Greek in respect to its last.
Flemish, if the Dutch of Holland would consent to vise it,
would, perhaps, prove a useful term, for it must be remembered
that, in 'philology, when we talk of the Dutch (of Holland) we
also mean the Flemish (of Belgium). Both must be denoted by
the same word. The name that, individually, I find most con-
venient for the Dutch of Holland and of Belgium, as opposed to
the High-German and Platt-Dewtsch of Germany, is Batavian.
c. d. The two other words (High-German and Platt-Deutscli)
are also convenient — though objections of no small weight lie
against them. In the first place —
1. They are more or less correlative terras. Nevertheless, the
diflTerence of form disguises this correlation.
2. Secondl}'. — Plait-Deufscli is an absolutely foreign word, a
foreign word, too, which is nearly sure to be mispronounced.
Be it so. The words are, still, convenient. We may learn
this by trying to mend them.
Say High-German and Loiu-German. — This means too much ;
since Low-German is used as a generic term, including the
Platt-Deutsch dialects, and a great deal more, ^dz. the English,
and the Dutch of Holland. Or —
Say, High-Dutch and Low-Butch. — The word Low-Dutch
suggests the Dutch of Holland (the Batavian). Or —
Say, HocJc-Beutsch and Platt-Deutsch. — We get two foreign
words instead of one.
Upon the whole, the three best names seem to be (1), High-
German, (2) Platt-Deutsch. and (3) Batavian.
e. Teutonic. — As opposed to Horse or Scandinavian, the
word is usefiil. In this case it denotes the languages of Germany
Proper, Holland, and England as opposed to the Danish, Swedish,
&c. In short, it is a convenient name for the primary division
of the so-called Gothic (German) stock.
/. Saxon — Anglo-Saxon — Angle, English, &c. — Theoretically
the views of the author already referred to are strictly correct,
and they are, of course, strengthened by the doctrine (if sound)
of the present writer.
As to the foreign origin of the word Saxon, the only objec-
tions that lie against it are practical. Even if the terms Anglo-
Saxon and >S'e?7ii-Saxon be got rid of, there is the Old Saxon to
be dealt with. When an unexceptionable term for this has be-
SAXON. — NORSE. 235
come current, the word Saxon may safely be ejected from Ger-
man Philology.
g. Scandinavicm., Norse, Ac. — The first of the terms would
be unnecessary if it were not for the tendency of the otiier to
occasionally engender a certain false notion.
Scandinavian means the languages of the northern branch
of the Gothic (or German) stock, as contrasted with the Teutonic.
So doing, it means the Danish as well as the Swedish, and the
Swedish as well as the Norwegian — also the Feroic and the
Icelandic.
Now Norse may mean this also ; but it may also mean Nor-
wegian as opposed to Swedish, Norivegian as opposed to Danish,
Norwegian as opposed to Icelandic.
On the other hand, Scandinavian is inconvenient. Its power
in Philology is different from its power in Geography. In Phi-
lology it includes Denmai'k. No one would hesitate in saying
that the Danish was one of the Scandinavian languages. In
Geography (generally at least) it excludes Denmark. Few
would say that in visiting Copenhagen they were visiting Scan-
dinavia. Scandinavia, in Geography, means Sweden and Noi-
way.
If the nomenclature for the northern branch of the Gothic
(or German) stock were likely to be settled in England, rather
than between the Danes, Swedes, Norwegians, and Icelanders,
the question would be a simple one. Scandinavian might be
eliminated altogether, Norse might replace it, and Norwegian
denote the Norse of Norway, just as Danish, Stvedish, and
Icelandic would denote that of Denmark, Sweden, and Ice-
land.
But this is not likely to be the case. Meanwhile the Nor-
wegian philologues eschew the word Icelandic and use Old
Norse instead ; the Danes demurring to the substitution.
Of the literature thus designated some portion was undoubtedly
Norwegian rather than Icelandic.
Another portion was undoubtedly Icelandic rather than Nor-
wegian.
A third is of uncertain origin.
This third portion the English philologue most conveniently
calls Old Norse (or simply Norse). The second he conveniently
calls Old Icelandic. The first he conveniently calls Old Nor-
wegian.
What tlie scholars, however, of the countries most interested
2o(j CRITICISM. — NORSE.
in the inatter will ilo is uncertain. It is only certain that by
calling everything OM Norse the nomenclature for the special
and proper Old Koriuegian is impaired.
Now this is by no means a matter of indifference. On the
contrary, certain peculiarities of the special and proper Norse
of Norway (the Old Norwegian) require notice. One of them
is the important form -sc instead of -st, as the sign of the
so-called passive voice — a form of pre-eminent value, inasmuch
as it points to the origin of a passive voice in a middle, of a
middle in a reflective, and of a reflective in the combination of
the verb and pronoun.
This chapter, along with the one which preceded it, has been
written for the sake of indicating the extent to which both the
classification and the nomenclature of the German stock of lan-
guages are matters that we should reconsider rather than
acquiesce in. There is much to be done even in the arrange-
ment of our subject-matter and the naming of our tools.
CHAPTER XXXII.
MINUTE INVESTIGATION CONCERNING THE ORIGINAL LIMITS OF
THE ANGLE AREA. ENGLE A NON-SIGNIFICANT NAME. TIME
AND PLACE. APPROXIMATIONS. SLAVONIC FRONTIER. THE
LOMBARDS. DANISH FRONTIER. FRISIAN FRONTIER.
THE HOCTNGS AND HN^F.
§ 210. What has preceded has been, for the greater part, a
criticism of the current accounts of the Angle invasion, and the
matters allied to it, an exposition of the chief materials upon
which it has been founded ; along with a notification of the
method pursued. A few remarks upon certain points of nomen-
clature and classification followed. The present chapter, and the
ones which follow it, concluding what we may call the origines
of our language, will be devoted to certain questions of a more
speculative nature ; questions which are indicated rather than
answered. This being the case they stimulate further inquiry,
and point out the direction in which it may best be taken up.
§ 21 1. What may be called the minute ethnology of the Angle
area comes first : of the Ang-le area in its most limited sense.
APPROXIMATE LIMITS OF THE ANGLE AREA. 2S7
Tliere were numerous near congeners of tlie Angles; but near
relationship is not, eo nornine, Angleliood,
Let our researches be ever so successful, they can but give an
approximation. This is because there is a question of time as
well as place in every detail of geography. A boundary, except
it be a physical one, and one which enables us to talk of islands,
mountains, degrees of latitude and the like, as such, is essentially
uncertain, fluctuating, and indeterminate : being one thing at one
time, another at another.
The England of the century before the Angle invasion of
Britain need, by no means, have the same boundaries with the
England of the century that followed it. But what if the date
of the Angle invasion itself be uncertain ? Upon the principle
that truth more readily emerges out of error than out of con-
fusion, I shall take the middle of the fifth century, i. e. A.D.
450, for the date of this event : a date in which it is clear that
there are several conventional elements. Without going further
than the feet of its being a particular year at all, and (as such)
implying a single event, rather than a series, we may see this.
Still it is both convenient and approximate.
§ 212. What was the Angle area in Germany A.D. 450 — the
Angle area eo nomine ? The name itself will help us but
little. In man}' of the terms by which the different divisions
of the German population, and the soil of Germany are de-
noted, we have an instrument of criticism. Sometimes, the
terra itself is significant. Sometimes it is still in existence.
Whatever may be the difference of opinion as to the exact
meaning of such a name as Harudes, no one who connects it
with the word heorut = forest, would seek for the population
which bore it in a treeless fen or on a naked heath. Neither
would any one who knew of the existence of such words
as Angarii, and Boructuarli, as the names of definite lo-
calities in the time of the Franks, find nmch difficulty in
dealing with the classical expressions Bructeri, Angrivarii.
Engle, however, or Angle, carries with it nothing that can
help us. Few believe that it means the men of the Angidns.
Few, too, even of those who connect it with the district
called Anglen, believe that that was tlie whole of the Angle
country. There is nothing, then, in the word itself to help
us. That it was a native denomination, we infer from the name
of our own island : without which it might have been an open
question whether Engle was a name by which its bearers desig-
238 ArPROXIMATE LIMITS OF THE ANGLE AREA.
nated themselves, or whether it was one which was applied to
them by their ueighbom's. As for any spot in Germany preserving,
at the present time, or having preserved to the time of true and
authentic history, any definite sign of its original Angle po})u-
lation, the evidence is nil.
Still Angle or {Engle) is a native name ; i. e. a name by
which the men and women who boi'e it called themselves ; not a
name given them by their neighbours.
It seems to have been the name of a people rather than a
place. This means that Angle meant the Angles in its first
power, the country of the Angles in its second. It was a word
like Wales — concerning which see § 27.
§ 213. Was it a generic or a specific name? Did the terra
cover a number of other subordinate names, or did it mean simply
a certain population which called itself Angle and nothing
else — nothing else, at least, in the first instance ? No general
answer can be given to this ; inasmuch as the following is the
doctrine concerning it.
1 . When the Angles came out as active agents in history, with
a separate substantive history of their own, as the conquerors of
Britain, and when they spoke of themselves and told their own
story, it was specific, i. e. it excluded even their nearest con-
querors, such as the Frisians.
2. When the Britons, Romans, and Franks spoke of them, it
was scarcely a name at all. It was a subordinate term to
Saxon ; which applied to the Angles, only inter alios.
3. When the earlier writers, such as Strabo and Tacitus
spoke of them, it had a general import ; and Angle meant the
particular population which called itself so, plus others.
If so, it was generic, specific, or subordinate according to
time and place, i. e. according to the population which used it,
and the time at which it was used.
§ 2 1 4. Slavonic frontier. — For the Angle area, with the word
at once. specific and native, we must get at our result by the way
of exclusion. What was otlier than Angle ? The Angles were,
on their northern, eastern, or north-eastern frontier, in contact
witli the Slavonians of the valley of the Elbe ; these latter being
the most north-western members of their family, just as the Angles
were the most north-western of theirs. I do not, however, hold
that, for the whole extent of the frontier, the Angles were thus
in contact with the Slaves. I only hold that, for one part of it
(and that the northern), there was nothing German in contact
m
APPROXIMATE LIMITS OF THE ANGLE AREA. 239
with Slavonia, which was other than Angle. This, then, in-
volves the question of the Slavonic boundaries. The Germans
of the fifth century touched the Elbe at two points at the
very most — possibly at only one, but certainly at no more
than two. They certainly touched it at some point between
Hamburg and the sea. They probably touched it at the
parts about Magdeburg. The Germans who touched it below
Hamburg were Angles. The Germans who probably touched at
the parts about Magdeburg were Lombards. Between these two
points lay a great western projection of the Slavonic area con-
stituting what is now Altmark and Luneburg.
How far westward the Slaves of Luneburg, who bore the
name Linones, and gave the name to the district, extended, is
uncertain. Those whose language has been alluded to lay in the
east of the Duchy, in the parts about Wustrow, Luchow, and
Danneberg, and on the very verge of the Elbe. For a Slavonic
population, however, of the eighteenth century this is a very
westerly locality. How much further it may have reached in
the eighth ! — further still in the seventh, the sixth, or the fifth !
There is no difiiculty in bringing it, and that within a compara-
tively recent period, to the river Hmenau ; as far as which the
village names are notably, and to a considerable extent, Slavonic.
Beyond it, however, they are scarce. Nevertheless, one name —
that of the little river Bomlitz — is found as ftir to the east as
the parts about Verden, i. e. on the western edge of the Duchy.
Taking this along with the fact of the word Luneburg being
derived from Liiion-es, I am inclined to give the whole of the
district so called to those parts of Germany from which the early
Angles are to be excluded.
The presumption suggested by the known facts of the his-
torical period is in favour of the Slavonic frontier having, as a
general rule, receded rather than advanced ; in other words the
later we make the date the more to the east lies the boundary,
and {vice versa) the earlier tlie date the more it protrudes west-
ward. The evidence, then, of Luneburg having been Slavonic at
a late period is a presumption in favour of some district west of
Luneburg having been so at an eai'Iy one. It is a presumption,
but nothing more. It is a presumption only ; and not a very
strong one.
In the tenth century the Slavonians of the Lower Elbe,
occupants of Lauenburg, were also occupants of a portion of
Holstein. Their boundary was the little river Bille. At an
2iO ANGLE AREA. — THE LOMBARDS.
earlier period they may liave extended beyond the Bille ; i. e.
there is just a presumption in favour of their having done so.
I submit, then, that in tlie fifth centuiy there were no Angles
east of the Luneburg frontier, and no AnQ-les east of the Bille.
§ 215. The Lombards. — For reasons given elsewhere, I have
committed myself to the opinion that, notwithstanding the High-
German character of the glosses in the Lombard laws, the ori-
ginal invadeis of Italy (who are to be distinguished from the
Lombards of the Bavarian dynasty) were Germanized Slavonians;
and not only this, but that, so far as they were German, they
were all but Angles — though Lombard in name. The area
which, both generally and on fair grounds, is given to the
Langobards of Tacitus, is the country about Halberstadt. How
it is bounded we cannot say ; we can only believe that, on
the east, it reached no further than the Elbe and Saale ; the
latter of which rivers was a well-known boundary of Sla-
vonia, though there can be but little doubt that it was not
always an accurate one. Though I find no traces of Germans
beyond, I find many traces of Slavonians on this side of it. At
the present moment, Magdeburg is the last town to the east
which stands on ground originally German ; beyond which,
both above and below, the names of the villages are Polish
rather than German — Stegiitz, Wormlitz, Netlitz, Nelitz, &c.
It is to the north, then, of the Lombards that the Angles
must be sought — but not due north. Due north of Magdeburg,
(as has already been stated) the Altmark, or the Old March,
with the geographical nomenclature full of Polish forms, and
Luneburg, in which the old language was spoken in the last
century, being both Slavonic.
If all this be accurate, the frontier between the Angles and
the Slavonians lay on the lower Elbe, and there was a fi-ontier
between the Angles and the Lombards in the parts about
Halberstad and Magdeburg — the former a north-eastern, the
latter a southern-eastern one.
§ 216. Banish frontier. — The frontier in the direction of
Denmark now comes under notice. Tiie Germans of the Danish
frontier were the Frisians and the Angles ; the Frisians lying
west, the Angles east. This means that thei'e was nothing
German between the Angles and the Danes. The first page
of Saxo Grammaticus tells us that Dan and Angul were
brothers ; a statement which could be strengthened if necessary.
To proceed. — Except for the purposes of minute, not to say
THE CHAUCI FRISIAN. 241
microscopic, ethnology, tliere is no need to refine upon the Eyder
as the boundary between the Danes and the Germans, especially
as the parts which bear most on England are those which are
on the western side of the Peninsula, where the river rolls broad
and strong. From running here nearly at right angles to the
sea, or direct from east to west, it makes a line of demarcation
both definite and convenient.
The Angles, then, were frontagers of the Danes, and the
Danish frontier was the Eyder. This, however, applies only to
the frontier of the historical period. The extent to which
tliere were Germans in Holstein, or Danes in Sleswick in the
fifth century, is unknown. Ptolemy gives us no name of
any Noi'dalbingian population which is, necessarily, German.
Neither does any early writer carry the Angles beyond the
Elbe. I think, then, that their contact with the Danes was the
result of their having pressed themselves northward, and not
the result of their original situs. If so, their conquest of
Holstein may have been concurrent with their invasions of
England.
§ 217. The frontier on the ivest was Frisian : its details being
both obscure and complicated. In the eyes, too, of many they
may seem unimportant : inasmuch as in many respects the dif-
ference between the Frisians and the Angles was but nominal. The
present question, however, is one concerning a name, viz. that of
the county occupied by the men who called themselves Angles.
I find no evidence of any Frisian ever having done so. No
proof either of any Angle ever having called himself a Frisian.
Still the approach to it is near. Both may have been called by
the same name by a third party. Both may have been called
Saxon. Both may, when speaking to certain third parties, have
called themselves Saxons. Both may have spoken a language
which Saxons, Angles, or Frisians may have understood. Still,
name for name, an Angle was an Angle, and a Frisian a Frisian.
§ 218. In treating of the Frisians, I deal with the name
Frisian as the name Angle had to be dealt with — i. e. as a
name which, when collected from some third informant, and,
when relating to a class of populations other than his own, was
generic ; but which, when applied to the Frisians themselves
when they come definitely and prominently out in history, is
specific. As a general name I believe it sometimes includes and
rarely (or never) excludes the Chauci.
R
242 THE CHAUCI FRISIAN.
§ 219. Treating, then, the Chauci as Frisians — remembering
that Tacitus takes the Chauci to the Elbe ; that the North
Frisians, at the present moment, occupy the western third of
South Sleswick ; and that within the historical period they may
reasonably be assumed for Eyderstedt — we are all but forced to
believe that the Frisian extension from North Holland to South
Denmark must have been continuous. It is not necessary — it is
only highly probable — that such was the case. As occupants of
Holstein, they are only an inference — a probable one, it is true ;
still, only an inference. They ma}^ easily have been the Saxons
of Ditmarsh. Still, eo nomine, we fail to find them as Frisians.
A fringe, then, of Frisian occupancy must be assumed as having
existed along the whole Hanoverian and Holstein seaboard. It
was pi'obably a narrow one — narrowest in the parts nearest the
Elbe. Upon the first syllable in Cux-haven being the Chauc- in
Chaiic-i, I lay but httle stress ; though the etymology has been
suggested, and (I believe) adopted.
Now, if we give all the sea-coast to the Frisians, we do it to
the exclusion of the Angles. But if the Angles failed to touch
the sea-coast, how did they get to England ? This is a difficulty
we must meet. The Angles were on the Lower Elbe. But the
mouth of the Elbe is Frisian, and the banks, from Hamburg
to Hanover, Slavonic. Now, this difiiculty is not diminished
by a reference to either Tacitus or Pliny. The Chauci of
Pliny belong to the sea-coast, rather than to the interior ;
and, on the sea-coast, to the least favoured parts of it. The
sketch he gives of their way of living indicates anything but
comfort and power. And, it must be remembered, that Pliny,
from having visited Germany, and been either on, or within, their
frontier, is an authority of more than ordinary value. The
Chauci of Tacitus, on the other hand, are a great nation —
covering much ground and filling it ; their line of frontier being
not only long, but sinuous ; and in one part touching that
of the Chatti. This point of contact may have been the
country to the north of Cassell, where the name Hesse, which,
word for word, is Chatti, first presents itself That there was
a frontier between the Saxons and the Franks in these parts
we know from the topography of the valley of the Diemel :
part of which belonged to the one nation, and part to the other ;
and we also are pretty certain that such Chauci as extended
themselves thus far inland would pass, in the eyes of a Frank,
I
THE HOCINGS. 243
for Saxons. Tliey would do this even when those of the coast
were associated with tlie Frisians.
The line which would connect these extremities, uniting the
Chauci of the northern frontier of Hesse Cassell with the
Chauci of the mouth of the Weser nearly coincides Math the
course of the Weser itself ; the banks of which river are just as
likely to have been occupied by the Chauci as by the men of any
other name. This means that I find no other population for
which any portion of its valley is required to satisfy any of
its geograj:)liical conditions ; though there are some which must
have approached it. On the west, for instance, in the parts about
Minden, the Angrivarii, whom we have fixed at Engern, must
have done so. So must the Cherusci on the East. So must the
Angles themselves. For all this, the whole line of the western
bank, at least, may, as has been stated, have been the occupancy
of the Chauci — from the sea to the Diemel.
If this be the case (and I see no better means of supporting
the well-known text of Tacitus which brings the Chauci and the
Chatti in contact with one another), we next ask how far the popu-
lation under notice extended eastwards ? The further it goes east
and south the harder it is to find an Angle area. Could any
Angles have been Chauci ? I think that some of them, those of
the interior, and those belonging to the south-eastern parts of
the sinuous frontier given by Tacitus, may have been this. At
any rate I think that some of the Chauci were more Angle than
Frisian ; that in everything but name they were Angles ; and,
finally, that it is not improbable that, even in name, some of
them may have been actual Angles.
§220. In Beowulf, we read of the ZToc^'^r/s. Word for word,
this is held to be the Chauci; and that, not by me alone, but by
all, or most, who have wi'itten on the subject. Now Hoeing is
not so much (we must coin the word) a Chaucus as a Chaucian,
i. e. one of Chauch blood ; which makes it possible that be-
tween certain Chauci of the west, and certain Angles of the
east there may have been a minimum of difference.
Again — Hncef the Hoeing is said to be the eponymus of the
city of Hanover. He may or may not be. If he be, he con-
firms the statement of Tacitus as to the inland prolongation of
the Chauci. At the same time, he suggests a difference between
the inland members of the denomination and those of the sea-
coast — the former of whom may have been as much Ano-le as
Frisian, however much the latter were Frisian.
R 2
244 THE IIOCINGS. — THE PICTS.
§ 221. This throws us back on the earlier writers, Strabo,
Ptolemy, and Tacitus. The two former make the name Angle
generic and give it to an im})ortant population on the Middle
Elbe. The latter briiio-s them near enouirh for the sea to have
visited a holy grove in an island — but in doing this connects
them with five other populations ; of which, as far as the text
goes, the Angle may Lave been the most iuland.
Upon the whole, I come to the conclusion that the Angles
■were, originally, an inland population : belonging as much
to the Middle as the Lower Elbe. I also hold that they
were on the Slavonic frontier — thono-h this is an inference
aliunde.
I also think it possible that they may have been, at the very
beginning, Slavonians, though (remembering what a favoured
race the pure Germans think they belong to) I say it with fear
and trembling.
All that we know of them in the fifth century is that they
were on the Lower Elbe, and that they spoke German. The first
century places them on the Middle Elbe. The two frontiers, how-
ever, are compatible.
CHAPTER XXXIII
THE PICTS — WHO WERE THEY?
§ 222. The evidence of the Picts being Kelts of the British
branch — i. e. not only Kelts rather than Germans, but British
Kelts rather than Gaelic Kelts — lies in the following facts : —
a. When St. Columba, whose mother-tongue was the Irish
Gaelic, preached to them, he used an interpreter.
b. A manuscript in the Colbertine Library contains a list of
Pict kings from the fifth century downwards. These names are
not only more Keltic than Gothic, but more Welsh than Gaelic.
Taran — thunder in Welsh. Uven is the Welsh Oiven. The
first syllable in Talorg {z^ forehead) is (perhaps) the tal in
Talhaiarn = iron forehead. Taliessin = splendid forehead.
Wrgust is nearer to the Welsh Giurgust than to the Irish Fer-
gus. Finally, Drust, Drostan, Wrad, Necton, closely resemble
the Welsh Trwst, Trivstan, Giuriad, Nvjythoii, whilst Oineod,
J
THE PICTS. 245
and Domhncdl {Kenneth and Donnell) are the only true Erse
forms in the list.
c. Such are the Proper Names. The only Pict common name
extant is the well-known compound pen vol, which is in the
oldest MS. of Beda peann fahel. This means caput valli and
is the name for the eastern termination of the Vallum of Anto-
ninus. Herein pen is unequivocally Welsh, meaning head. It
is an impossible form in Gaelic. Fal, on the other hand,
though Latin in origin, is apparently Gaelic in form, the
Welsh for a rampart being gwall. Fal, however, occurs in
Welsh also, and means inclosure. — " Incepit autem duorum
ferrae millium spatii a monasterio -5i]burcurnig ad occidentem, in
loco qui sermone Pictorum PeanfaJiel, lingua autem Anglorum
Penneltun appellatur ; et tendens contra occidentem terminatur
juxta Urbem Alcluith." — Hist. Ecc. i. 12. Meanwhile, in
the Durham MS. of Nennius, it is stated that the spot in question
was called in Gaelic Cenail, the modern name Kinneil, and
also a Gaelic translation of pen val ; since cean is the Gaelic
for head, and fhail for rampart or wall.
d. The name of the Ochil Hills in Perthshire is better ex-
plained from the British uchel =. high, than from the Gaelic
uasal.
e. Bryneich, the British form of the province of Bernicia, is
better explained by the Welsh hym — ridge {hilly country),
than by any word in Gaelic*
§ 223. Now this evidence is satisfactory — perhaps, when
taken by itself, sufficient. At the same time it is anything but
conclusive.
Claudian often mentions the Picts. That he mentions them
in company not only with the Scots, but with the Saxons is a point
of no great importance. He mentions them, however, as the
occupants of a northern locality.
" Qiiid rigor feterniis coeli ; qiiid siclera prosunt
Ignotiunque fretum? madiierunt Saxone fiiso
Orcades ; incaluit Pictorum sangiiine llaile,
Scotorum cimiiilos flevit glacialis lerne."
Be quart. Consul. Hon. 30-34.
This, along with similar passages, may be found in § 76.
To which may be added —
" Ille leves Mauros, nee falso nomine Pietos
Edomtiit, Scotumque vago mucrone secutus
Fregit Hyperhoreis remis audacibus undas." vi. 54-57.
* These details and inferences are taken from Mr. Garnett — in Transactions of Phi-
lological Society.
2iG THE PICTS.
Supposing the Picts to be other than native to the soil of
Britain, these notices point towards Scandinavia. So do the
local traditions of the Orlcney and Shetland Islands where the
ruins of numerous ancient dwelling-places are called Pict
Houses.
Again — Nennius writes : —
"Post intervallum multorum aunorum Picti venerunt et occupaverunt
insiilas quie Orccides vocantiu' ; et postea ex insulis affiuitimis vastaverunt non
moclicas et miiltas regiones, occupaveruntque eas in sinistrali plaga Britanniae ;
et manent usque in liodiernum diem. Ihi tcrtiam partem Britannia tenuerunt
et tenent usque nunc." — cv.
(2.)
" Ut Brittoues a Scottis vastati Pictisque Romanonun auxilia qupesierint, qui
secundo venientes, miirum trans insulam fecerint ; sed hoc confestim a prsefatis
hostibus inteiiiipto, majore sint calamitate depressi.
" Exin Brittauia iii parte Brittonum, omni armato milite, militaribus copiis
iiniversis, tota floridaj juveututis alaci-itate spoliata, qupe tyrannomm temeri-
tate abducta nusquam ultra domiim rediit, prsedse taiitum patiiit, utpote oninis
bellici usus prorsus iguara : deniqae subito duabus gentibus transmarinis
vebemeuter ssevis, Scottornm a Circio, Pictorum ah Aquilone, miiltos stupet
gemitque per anuos. Transmarinas aiitem dicimus has geutes, non quod
exti'a Brittaniam essent positie ; sed quia a parte Brittonum erant remotne,
duobus sinibus maris interjacentibiis, quorum unus ab Orientali mari, alter ah
Occidentali, Brittanise terras longe lateque inrmnpit, quamvis ad se invicem
pertingere non possint. Orientalis habet in medio sui urbem Giudi, Occiden-
talis supra se, hoc est, ad dexteram sui habet urbem Alcluith, quod Lingua
eorum significat ' petram cluith ; ' est enim juxta fluvium nominis ilhus.
" Et cum plurimam insulas partem, incipientis ab austro, possedissent, con-
tigit gentem Pictorum de Scythia, ut perhibeut, longis navibus non multis
oceanum ingi-essam, circumagente flatu ventorum, extra fines omnes Brit-
tanifB Hiherniatn pervenisse, ejusque septentrionales oras intrasse, atque in-
venta ibi gente Scottoriun, sibi quoque in partibus illius sedes petisse, neo
impetrare potuisse. Ad banc ergo usque pervenientes navigio Picti ut
diximus, petierunt in ea sibi quoquet sedes et habitationem donari. Re-
spondebant Scotti, quia non ambos eos caperet insula : ' Sed possiunus,'
inquiimt, 'salubre vobis dare consilium quid agere valeatis. Novimus insulam
aliam esse non pvocul a nostra, contra ortum sobs, qnam saepe lucidioribus
diebus de longe aspicere solemus. Hanc adire si vultis, habitabilem vobis
facere valetis : rel si qui restiterit, nobis auxiliariis utimini.' Itaque patentes
Brittaniam Picti, habitare per septentrionales insular partes coeperunt ; nam
Austrina Bntloues occupaverant. C'umque uxorcs Picii non hahentes pe-
terent a Scottis, ea solum conditione dare consenserunt, ut ubi res j)erYenu-et
in dubium, marjis defeminca, rcf/um prosapia, quam de mascuhna regem sibi
eligerent: quod usque liodie apnid Pictos constat esse servatum."
§ 224. The next locality notable for traditions respecting
the Picts is the Scottish border, or rather the line of the Roman
wall ; which is a^^ain attributed to the Fids.
THE PICTS. 2i7
Thus, we have the Picts' Wall in Cumberland and North-
umberland, and the Picts' Houses in Orkney and Shetland ; not
to mention the Pentland (Pi/i^land) Firth, which is generally-
considered to he f return Pidorum.
Again — the most Scandinavian parts of Scotland are Caith-
ness, Orkney, and Shetland ; also Pict.
Finally — the Danish termination -by occurs in Scotland no-
where between Dunscanby Head on the Pentla.nd Firth, and
Annandale, in the parts about the Picts' Wall.
I submit that no doctrine respecting the Pict ethnology should
pretermit these facts, however strong those of the opposite view
may be ; for it must be observed, that, when in these extracts a
third of Britain is given to the Picts, a third is just the por-
tion which is afterwards given to the Scandinavians.
Again — The fact of the royal blood running in the female
line invalidates the inference drawn from tlie British charac-
ter of the names of the Pict kings,
I conclude with the following extract from Beda : —
"Pi-ocedenteautem tempore, Britanma post Brittones et Pictos, tertiam Scot-
tormn nationem iii Pictorum parte recepit, qui duce Remla de Hibernia pro-
gress!, vel amicitia vel ferro sibimet inter eos sedes quas hactenus habeut,
vindicarunt: a quo videlicet duce usque liodie DalreucUni vocantiu', nam lingua
eorum daal partem significat."
Now dal^iixtrs is not a Scotch, and is, certainly, a Scandi-
navian word. It is, possibly, a Pict word. Yet, how could it
belong to the language in which pe/i =: head ?
§ 225. Still this does not exhaust the complications. It is
generally, perhaps universally, stated that the name by which
the Picts were known to the Irish was Cruithneach, or rather it
should be said that the general or universal translation of the
word Cruithneach, a word which appears frequently in the Irish
Chronicles, is Pict.
That, word for word, Cruithneach is Pict, is what no one
has pretended. Neither has any one maintained that the
one term is a translation of the other. Pict, where it has
been translated at all, has been connected with the Latin j^ictus
zzpainled. Cruithneach, on the other hand, where it has
been interpreted, has been made a derivative of the Greek
word KpiOov {Jcrithoii)zzhao-Iey. Neither of these views is
correct ; the latter being absuvd. They are noticed, however,
for the sake of showing that the two names have never been
looked upon as equivalents in the way of signification. If
21:8 THE riCTS.
Cniithneach mean Plot, it means it in the same way that Ger-
man means Dutch : the words being different, and their mean-
ings, so far as they have any, being different also.
§ 226. Let us take a purely formal view of the word. Sup-
pose Ci'uithneach were the name, tot idem lltens, of a nation in the
north of Em'ope, occupant of a sea-coast, and situated in a coun-
try fi-om which Ireland could be invaded, what should we make
of it ? There is, assuredly, something which we should not have
done. We should not have made it mean Pict, however well
the Pict history might have suited. On the contrary, we should
have taken it as we found it, and simply said that, besides such
and such invasions of Ireland, there was a Cruithneach one also.
We might, indeed, if the identification of the Picts gave us
trouble, make the Picts Cruithneach ; but this would be very
different from making the Cruithneach Picts.
Now, though no such name as Cruithneach is known in any
part of Europe whence Ireland could be accessible — no such
name, totidem Uteris, there is a near approach to it. It is
submitted : —
a. That the parts on the Lower Vistula are parts from which
invasions of Ireland were practicable.
b. That the name for the population occupant of these parts
in the eleventh century, is universally admitted to have been
some form of the root Pr-th.
c. That, though Pruth- is not Cruth- exactly, i. e. totidem Ute-
ris, it is just the equivalent which the absence of p in the
Irish Gaelic demands. Cruth- is the form that Pruth- would
take in Irish Gaelic, where c replaces ]) ; so that, word for word,
we may deal with Cruithneach as if it were actually Pritth-
neach ; at any rate, it is the only form which the word could
take in Gaehc.
Again — supposing the Picts not to have been Kelts, there is
a slight fact against their having been Scandinavians in the term
Pentland. It is Norse. But is it a term that one Scandinavian
population would apply to another ? I think not. When the
Norwegians, Danes, or Swedes, spoke of Picts, they certainly
meant something other than Swedish, Danish, or Norwegian.
In this then, we have the elements of what we may call the
Prussian hypothesis — an hypothesis for which I only claim a
share of the credit, in case it be true. I am at liberty to
connect it with the name of my fi-iend Professor Graves, who,
on the strength of a wholly independent series of researches,
i
THE PICTS. 219
not only identifies the Cruitlmeacli of the Irish Chrooicles with
the Prussians, but also the Fomorians of the same with the
Pomeranians.
§ 227. Finally, the following has been taken for a specimen
of the Pict language. It is found in the fly-leaf of a copy of
Juvencus. It is pronounced not to be Welsh ; not Cornish ;
but, par voie d' exclusion, Pict,
Ni giiorcosam nemheimaur hehoid
Mi telun it giirmaur
Mi am franc clam an calaiu*.
(2.)
Ni con ili ni guardam ni cusam lienoicl
Cel iben med nouel
Mi am franc dam an patel.
(3.)
Na mereit nep leguenid lienoid
Is disciim mi coweidid
Dou nam Pdceur imguetid.
Trandalion of Mr. KasJi.'''-
I shall not sleep a single hour to-niglit,
My harp is a very large one,
Give me for my jjlay a taste of the kettle.
(2.)
I shaU not sing a song, nor laugh or kiss to-night,
Before diinldng the Chiistmas mead.
Give me for my play a taste of the bowl.
(•3.)
Let there be no sloth or sluggishness to-night,
I am very sldlful in recitation.
God, King of Heaven, let my request be obtained.
Translation of Archdeacon Williams*
I will not sleep even an hoiu-'s sleep to-night.
My family is not formidable,
I and my Frank servant and oui' kettle.
(2.)
No bard will sing, I will not smile nor kiss to-night ;
Together .... to the Christmas mead
MyseK and my Frank client and our kettle.
* Taliessin ; or, the Bards and Druids of Britain, p. 79.
•■2:a) the picts. — the belg^.
(3.)
Let no one partake of joy to-niglit
Ilutil my fellow soldier arrives.
It is told to me that our lord the King will come.
I liave given it as T found it. The word Noel = Christmas is
Ando-Norman. How it can be Pict as well, Keltic scholars
may decide.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
THE BELG^ WERE THEY EARLY OCCUPANTS OF BRITAIN?
WERE THEY GERMANS ?
§ 228. The Belgian hypothesis is, that the Belgse were Ger-
mans, and that there were BelgfB in Britain in Csesar's time.
The doctrine rests upon a comparison of the map of either
ancient or modern Gaul with certain statements of C^sar, Strabo,
and Tacitus. In the map we find that the parts between the
Seine and Rhine, or the valle^^s of the Marne, the Oise, the
Somme, the Sambre, the Meuse, and the Moselle, were Belgian.
Treves was Belgian ; Luxembourg, Belgian ; the Netherlands,
Belgian. Above all, French Flanders, Artois, and Picardy — the
parts nearest Britain, the parts within sight of Kent, the parts
from whence Britain was most likely to be peopled — were
Belgian.
Again, modern Belgium is as truly the country of two lan-
guages and of a double population as Wales, Ireland, or Scotland.
There is the French, wliich has extended itself from the south,
and the Flemisli, which belongs to Holland and the parts north-
wards. It is in recent times, that the French has encroached
upon the Flemish, and the Flemish has receded before the Fi'ench.
Hence, nothing is mo'-e legiLinicite than. the conclusion, that, at
some earlier period, the dialects of the great German stock
extended as far south as the parts about Cahiis. If so Germans
might have found their way into the south-eastern counties of
England 2000 years ago, or even sooner. Hence, instead of the
Angles and Saxons having been the first German conquerors of
the Britons, and the earliest introdncers of tlie English tongue,
Belgse of Kent, Belgse of Surrey, Belgae of Sussex, and Belgse of
Hampshire, may have played an important, though unrecorded.
THE BELGJ5. 251
part in that long and obscure process which converted Keltic
Britain into German England.
Such views have not only been maintained, but they have
been supported by important testimonies and legitimate argu-
ments. Foremost amongst the former come two texts of Ciesar,
one applying to the well-known Belgse of the Continent ; the
others to certain obscurer Belgse of Great Britain. When Caesar
inquired of the legates of the Kemi, what States constituted the
power of the Belgse, and what was their military power, he
found things to be as follows : — " The onajority of the Belgce
were derived from the Germans ('plerosque Belgas ortos esse ah
Germanis). Having in the olden time crossed the Rhine, they
settled in their present countries, on account of the fruitfulness of
the soil, and expelled the Gauls, who inhabited the parts before
them. They, alone, within the memory of our fathers, when all
Gaul was harassed by the Teutones and Cimbri, forbid those
enemies to pass their frontier. On the strength of this they
assumed a vast authority in the affairs of war, and manifested a
high spirit. Their numbers were known ; because, united by
relationships and affinities (projnnquitatibus et adfinitatihus con-
jandi), it could be ascertained what numbers each chief could
bring with him to the common gathering for the war. The first
in numbers, valour, and influence were the Bellovaci. These
could make up as many as 100,000 fighting men. Their neigh-
bours were the Suessiones, the owners of a vast and fertile
territory. Their king Divitiacus was yet remembered as the
greatest potentate of all Gaul ; whose rule embraced a part of
Britain as well. Their present king was Gallus. Such was
his justice and prudence, that the whole conduct of the war was
voluntarily made over to him. Their cities were twelve in
number; their contingent 50,000 soldiers. The Nervii, the
fiercest and most distant of the confederacy, could send as many ;
the Attrebates, 15,000; the Ambiani, 10,000; the Morini,
25,000; the Menapii, 9000; the Caleti, 10,000; the Velo-
casses and Veromandui, 10,000; the Aduatici, 29,000; the
Condrusi, Eburones, Cserasi, and Psemani, who were collectively
called Germans (qui una nomine Germani appellaniur), might
be laid at 40,000." — Bell. Gall. lib. ii. c. 4.
This is the first statement alluded to. The second is, " that
the interior of Britain is inhabited by those who are recorded
to have been born in the island itself; whereas the sea-coast
is the occupancy of immigrants from the country of the Belgce
THE BELGJE.
brought over for the sake of either war or pkmder. All these
are called by names nearly the same as those of the States they
came from, names which they have retained in the country
upon which they made war, and in the land whereon they
settled."— Bell. Gall. Hb. v. c. 12.
Each of these extracts may be enlarged on. The sixth book
supplies us with the statement that " Segni Condrusique ex
gente et numero Germanorum, qui sunt inter Eburones Tre-
virosque legatos ad Csesarem miserunt, oratum, ne se in hostium
numero duceret, neve omnium Germanoruin, qui essent citra
Rhenum, unam esse causam judicaret/'
These are the most definite and direct statements in Csesar.
The others are of a less decided character. Some go to show
that the Nervii and others had certain customs which were
more German than Keltic ; others, that they formed part of a
German confederacy ; others, that there were Germans on the
left bank of the Ehine.
Respecting the Aduatici, there is a statement which would
be highly important, if it could be shown beyond doubt that
the Cimbri and Teutones were, each and both, German. " Ipsi
erant ex Chnhris Teutonisque proguati ; qui, quum iter in pro-
vinciam nostram atque Italiam facerent, iis impedimentis, quae
secum agere ac portare nou poterant, citra flumen Rbenum
depositis, custodise ex suis ac prsesidio sex millia hominum
una reliquerunt. Hi, post eorum obitum, multos annos a
finitimis exagitati, quum alias bellum inferrent, alias illatum
defenderent, consensu eorum omnium pace facta, hunc sibi
domicilio locum delegerunt." — Bell. Gall. lib. ii. c. 29.
So much for Caesar's notices. Those of Strabo and Tacitus
confirm them : they speak decidedly — Tprjovipots Be crvve'xels
^tp^toL, Kai TOVTO Tep/iavLKov eOvos. — Strabo, lib. iv. c. 3.
" Treveri et Nervii circa afiectationem Germanicce originis ultro
ambitiosi sunt." — Germania, c. 28.
Lastly, we have the general statement of Cassar that the
three divisions into which Gaul falls, one of which is that
of the Belgse, " lingua, institutis, legibus inter se differunt." —
Bell. Gall, lib. i. c. 1.
M}^ reasons for believing that the evidence before us is in-
sufficient, is the circumstance of its being traversed by con-
flicting facts and the likelihood of the link of union between
the Belgpe and the Germans of the left bank of the Rhine
bemg a link of a iiolitical rather than one of an ethnological
THE BELG^. 253
nature. There was a partial German conquest of the Belgian
territory, and a Germano-Belgic confederation. More than this
is not required from the context of Cpesar ; and in the face of
certain facts more should not be sought. Since —
Strabo's confirmation of Csesar is only partial. He writes,
that " the Aquitanians are wholly different from the other
Gauls, not only in language, but in their bodies, — wherein
they are more like the Iberians than the Gauls. The rest are
Gallic in look ; but not all alike in language. Some differ a
little. Their politics, too, and manners of life differ a little." —
Lib, iv. c, 1,
The whole context of the extract about the Nervii, and their
50,000 men, reads like the account of a confederacy. They
were jjrojyinquitatibus et adfinitatihus conjuncti.
As to the chief positive fact in favour of the Keltic affinities
of the Belgse, it lies in the numerous local, national, and indi-
vidual names of the Belgffi, These agree so closely in form with
those of the undoubted Gauls, as to be wholly undistinguishable.
The towns, &c,, end in -acum, -briva, -magus, -dv/num, and
-durum, and begin with Ver-, Ccer-, Con-, and Tre-, just like
those of Central Gallia ; so that we have — to go no further than
the common maps — Viriovi-acitm, M.\nov\-acum, Ov\g\-acum,
Turn-(xc^^'?7^, 'Btxg-aciim, Camar-ac?^9?^, Nemet-ac?*;;;, Catusi-«cu'>7i,
Gemini-ctc^tiH, Blari-rtcii})^, Mederi-«cM77i, H o\h\- acura ; Samaro-
hriva ; ISovio-magus, Mono - magus ; Yero-dunum ; Marco-
durum ; Theo-durum ; Fer-omandui ; Ccer-esi ; Con- dvwsi ;
Tre-yeri — all Keltic forms and compounds.
Now as Caesar's informants about the Belgian populations
were themselves Belgse, it is inconceivable that they should, if
they had been Germans, have used nothing but Gallic terras,
when they spoke of themselves. Again, the names of the
individual Belgian chiefs are as Gallic as those of the towns
and nations, e. g. Conimius and Divitlacus, and so are those of
such Britons as Gassihelaunus.
§ 229. Other facts (as well as the opinion of a safe authoi'ity)
against the German character of the Belgse, may be seen in the
Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography, under the word
Belgce (of Gaul). Some lie in the indefinitude of Csesar's lan-
guage respecting these same Belgpo. In " describing the position
of his troops during the winter of the year B.C. 54-53, he
_ speaks of three legions being quartei'ed in Belgium, or among
the Belgse, while he mentions others as quartered among the
2:) -4 THE BELG.E.
]\Iorini, the Nervii, tlie Essiii, the Rami, the Treveri, and the
Eburoues, all of -whom are Belgse in the wider sense of the
term," Others lie in the redudio ad absurduvi. If every
population which can be construed into Belgian, be German as
well, several populations, whose Keltic character is beyond doubt,
will be transferred from the Keltic stock, which is their riglit,
to the German, which is their wrong, place. The undoubtedly
Non-german Veneti will be in this predicament. So will
the Mediomatrici of Lorraine ; the Leuci, south of the Medio-
matrici ; and the Parisii of Paris. So will the Aulerci and
others. Others lie in the expression of Tacitus, concerning the
Treveri and Nervii, circa affectationem, Szc. " The Treveri and
Nervii affected a German origin, wdiich, if it be true, must
imply that they had some reason for affecting it ; and also that
they were not jDure Germans, or they might have said so. Strabo
(p. 192) makes the Nervii Germans. The fact of Csesar making
such a river as the Marne, a boundary between Belgic and
Keltic peoples, is a proof that he saw some marked distinction
between Belgse and Celtse, though there were many points of
resemblance. Now, as most of the Belgse were Germans, or of
German origin, as the Remi believed or said, there must have
been some who were not Germans or of German origin ; and if
T\'e exclude the Menapii, the savage Nervii, and the pure Ger-
mans, we cannot affirm that any of the remainder of the Belgae
were Germans." — Dictionary of Ancient Geography, v. BeJgce.
§ 230. So much against the German character of the Belgse
of Gaul. The chief (perhaps the only) material fact in its
f;ivour is the following. The evidence that the Batavi and
Caninifates, of Holland, were German, is ver}" strong. Never-
theless, the Batavi formed part of the Gallia of Caesar. More
than this, the names of two Batavian localities. Lug-dunum
and Batavo-du7mrn, are clearly Keltic. There are more ways
than one of explaining this. Thus : the towns may have
come to us in their Keltic names only, the native ones having
been unknown to the early geogi'aphers. Or the original popu-
lation may have been Keltic ; the Batavi having been intru-
sive. I give the argument against which these objections are
made its full weight ; nevertheless, I submit that the balance
of reasons is against the Belgae having been German.
§ 231. The first of the two extracts under notice, the one
which has just been considered, suggested the question as to how
far a statement made concerning certain Germans on the Belgian
THE BELG^. 255
side of the Rhine, might be extended to the Belgse at large. The
second induces us to ask how far a statement which apphes to
the Belgse of Gaul applies to the south-eastern population of
Bi'itain. The first was not decided affirmatively ; neither will
the second be.
Caesar states that there were certain Belgians in Britain ; but
he nowhere says that BelgcB was the name by which they were
called.
Ptolemy gives us the name Belgce, but he nowhere sa}'s that
they came from Belgium.
How far do these two authors mean the same population ?
§ 232. Ptolemy's locality, though the exact extent of the area
is doubtful, is, to a certain degree, very definitely fixed. The
Belgse lay to the south of the Dobuni whose chief town was
Corineum {Cirencester). They also lay to the east and north
of the Durotriges of Z)or-chester. Venta {Winchester) was one
of the towns, and Aquee Soils {Bath), another ; Calleva {Sil-
chester) was not one of them ; on the contrary, it belonged to
the Atrebatii. This coincides nearly with the county of Wilts ;
parts of Somerset and Hants being also included. The Belgse
of Ptolemy agree with those of Csesar only in belonging to the
southern parts of Britain. They are chiefly an inland popu-
lation, and touch the sea only on the south and west ; not on
the east, or the parts more especially opposite Belgium,
§ 233. The second name is that of the Atrebates. There
were Atrebates in Britain. In Belgium there were Atrebates in
Artois, which is only Atrebates in a modern form. Consider-
able importance attaches to the fact, that, before Csesar visited
Britain in person, he sent Commius, an Atrebatian, before him.
Now, this Commius was first conquered by Caesar, and after-
wards set up as a king over the Morini. That Commius gave
much of his information about Britain to Csesar is likely ; per-
haps he was his chief informant. He, too, it was who, knowing
the existence of Atrebates in Britain, probably drew the infer-
ence which has been so lately suggested, viz. that of a Belgse
migration, or a series of them. Yet the Atrebates of Britain
were so far from being on the coast, that they must have lain
west of London, in Berkshire and Wilts ; since Csesar, who ad-
vanced, at least, as far as Chertsey, where he, probably, crossed
the Thames, meets nothing but Cantii, Trinobantes, Cenimagni,
Segontiaci, Ancalites, Bibroci, and Cassi. It is Ptolemy who
first mentions the British Atrebates ; and he places them be-
256 THE BELG^.
tween the Dobiml and the Cantii. Now, as the Dobuni lay
due west of the Silures of South Wales, we cannot bring the
Atrebates nearer the coast than Windsor at most.
Of five other names I take no account — E,emi, Hedui,
Bibroci, Cauci, and Menapii. The two hitter belong to the
geography of Ireland ; the three former are found only in the
Richard of Cirencester.
§ 234. A further fact against the existence of any notably
great German population in Britain lies in a well-known pas-
sage of Tacitus. Tacitus, who was fully as well informed in
respect to the population of Britain as Caesar, has a special
speculation as to the existence of Germans in that Island. He
looks out for them. Hoiv does he find them ? Not in the
plain straightforward way that he would have done had Caesar's
account been correct and the whole south-eastern coast been
German ; but doubtfidly and by the circuitous method of an
inference. He finds certain light-haired, big-bodied men, and
accounts for their being so by the hypothesis of a German
origin. Wltere does he find them ? Not in Kent and Sussex,
but in Scotland,
Upon the whole, the facts against the Belgse of Britain being,
at one and the same time, Belgte from Gaid and German
in blood, largely preponderate against the conclusion to be
drawn from the text and context of Caesar. In my own mind
his statement arose out of an inference — either one of his own,
or one of his probable informant, Commius. The same names
appeared on both sides of the Channel, in Britain as weU as in
Gaul. Out of this fact arose, as a legitimate deduction, the
identity of similarity of the two peoples, and, as a somewhat
less legitimate one, the doctrine of a recent conquest fi'om
Belgium.
§ 235. I will not absolutely commit myself to a similar
doctrine in respect to Ptolemy ; though, upon the whole, I think
that it applies to him also. It is lihely that his Belgae were
hypothetical ; and that no population in Britain gave themselves
that name. No traces of it exist. This, however, is of no
great weight until it be taken with the difficulties of Ptolemy's
text ; which, although by no means inconsiderable when com-
pared with those of Caesar's notice, are still greater when we
take it in detail.
" Next to these (^iz. tlie Silm-es) the Dohiuii, and their town Corineum.
Next, the Atrehatii, and then- town Kalkua. Beyond whom ai-e the Cantii,
THE FIN HYPOTHESIS. 257
the easterniost people. Amongst them are these towns : Londiniiim, Darvenum,
Ilhutupiaj. Again, south from the Attrebatii and the Cantii, lie the Regni
and the town Na3omagus. South of the Dobuni (t. e. tlie parts about
Coi'ineum=Cirencester) he the Belgse, and the towns Ischalis, Hot Spruigs,
Venta. Beyond these, on the west and south, are the Durotriges" (t. e.
Dorsetshii-e).
Here we have more than one point of undoubted certainty,
e. g. Go7dneum = Cirencester, Hot Springs = Bath, and Venta =
Winchester; to say nothing about others less universally ad-
mitted. Nevertheless, the Belgse are a difficult population,
lying as far west as Bath, and as far east as Winchester — as fiir
west as Bath, and yet having the Durotriges to the ivest also.
Were there two towns named Venta for these parts, one in
Hants, and the other in Wilts ? Not impossible ; inasmuch as
the word was a common, rather than a iDroper name, and there
were Ventce elsewhere, e. g. (a Venta Icenoi'um) in Norfolk.
Such and suchlike assumptions may reconcile the difficulties of
the text of Ptolemy. They will, however, not improbably
involve a greater amount of complication and hypothesis than
the simpler doctrine that Ptolemy's Belgse, under that name, had
no existence in Britain at all, but that the authority of Qesar
had led him to infer them, and also to place them in the south.
This, however, is a suggestion rather than a material fact. The
material fact is the Non-german character of any Belgse that
may have been there. That there were some strangers is
likely enough ; but that they were a separate substantive popu-
lation of sufficient magnitude to be found in all the parts of
Britain where Belgic names occurred, and still more that they
were Germans, is an unsafe inference — safe, perhaps, if the texts
of Ceesar stood alone, but unsafe if we take into consideration
the numerous facts, notices, and presumptions which complicate
and oppose them.
CHAPTER XXXV.
ARE THERE FIN, OR UGRIAN, ELEMENTS IN ENGLISH? THE FIN
HYPOTHESIS.
§ 23 G. Are there Fin, or Ugrian, elements in English?
The doctrine that Fin, or Ugrian, elements may be found in
the English language, rests on two foundations.
s
258 THE FIN IIYPOTUESIS.
Tlie first source whence we may get Ugrian elements is
Norway. It is reasonably believed that all the parts north of
the Baltic were once Lap, even as Lapland is. If so, Lap words
may have been taken up by the Norwegian, and, through it,
introduced into England.
§ 237. The second implies what may be the Fin Hypothesis.
This means that just as a Keltic population preceded the Ger-
man, so did a Ugrian population precede the Keltic. All Europe,
according to this view, was once Ugrian or Fin — all Europe
and much of Asia.
By Fin is meant not only the Finlander of Finland, but a
great deal more. All the populations whose languages belong to
the same class are, in the eyes of the ethnologist, Fins. Now
these languages are the following : —
1 . The Lap of the Laplanders,
2. The Magyar of Hungary.
3. The Estonian of Estonia.
4. The Vod. — These are the descendants of the original occu-
pants of Ingria ; a population which, anterior to the Swedish
and Russian conquests on the coasts of the Gulph of Finland,
connected the Fins of the Duchy of Finland with the Rahwas
(for that is their national name) of Estonia.
5. The Permians, Zirianians, and Votiaks, of the Govern-
ments of Vologda, Perm, and Viatka.
6. The Tsheremis, of the Governments of Viatka, Kazan,
Kostroma, Nizhni-novogorod, Orenburg, and Perm.
7. The Morduins, of the Governments of Astrakhan, Kazan, etc.
8. The Vogids, of the Uralian range ; and
9. The Ostiaks, of the drainage of Obi.
10. The Samoyed, and, perhaps, the Yeniseians, and Yitka-
hiri. The stock itself is as often called Ugrian as Fin.
Out of the Fin stock of languages grew what may be called
the Fin hypothesis. It originated (I believe) with Arndt, but
was developed and promulgated by Bask. It was adopted at
once by the Scandinavian philologues and ethnologists, to whose
speculations it has given a character by which they are honour-
ably distinguished. It has given boldness and comprehensive-
ness, at the very least. In his first edition of the English
Language, the present writer adopted it, along with more than
one other doctrine, which he has sice found reason either to
modify or abandon. He believes, too, that, thus adopted, it
THE FIN HYPOTHESIS. 259
found its way into England for the first time. The German
school appears to recognize it generally. In France and America
it has made less way. Dr. Prichard, in his second edition of the
Natural History of Man, adopts it ; using, however, the term
Allophylian instead of Fin or Ugrian.
The Fin hypothesis is closely connected with the Eastern
origin of the Germans their congeners, of the class called Indo-
Europeans ; the Eastern origin of the Indo-Europeans being-
essential to its validity. Without the Fin hypothesis, the
Eastern origin, etc., is possible ; but, without the Eastern origin,
there is no Fin hypothesis. This helps us on towards an antici-
pation of its nature.
If the Indo-Europeans came from the East, and if they were
not the very first occupants of the West, some one must have
been in Europe before them. When they were on the Indus,
the Tigris, and the Euphrates, others must have been on the
Rhine, the Danube, and the Rhone, possibly on the Thames,
possibly on the Ebro and the Guadalquiver. More than this —
Asia is a large area, and it is not from any part of it indifferently
that this hypothesis brings the Indo-Europeans. They were not
Siberians nor Chinese ; possibly they were at one time foi'eign to
even certain parts of India. There are in India impracticable
forests, mountains, and jungles. Besides this, India stretches
far southwards ; so that a population might easily be occupant
of the Ganges and Indus without reaching Cape Comorin —
possibly without having got south of the Nerbudda, Godavery,
or Kistna rivers.
Be this as it may, there was a vast area which, at one time,
was neither uninhabited, nor yet inhabited by Indo-Europeans.
Who did occupy it ? By the hypothesis of Ai'ndt and Rask, the
Fins. Hence the Fin hj^pothesis.
It is, of course, not meant by this that the several popula-
tions which thus resided aboriginally in the plains of Sarmatia,
the mountains of Italy and Spain, the islands of Britain, the
steppes of Siberia, .and the inaccessible extremities of the Indian
Peninsula — to say nothing of China and Siam — were Fins in
the way that the true members of the stock in its narrower
(and proper) sense were Fins. It is merely meant that they
were more related to each other than they were to either the
Indo-Europeans or any other recognized class.
Nevertheless, the group was one of formidable dimensions.
First, it contained populations in the south and west of Europe,
s 2
260 THE FIN HYPOTHESIS.
who, being otlier than Indo-European, took the appearance of
being aboriginal. Some of them were extinct. Others, how-
ever, survived. The Basks of the Pyrenees did this. So did the
Albanians of Albania. These survived, because the inaccessible
nature of their areas had preserved them from the fate of their
congeners in Gaul, Germany, Italy, Greece, and Sarmatia, They
survived, because woods and mountains had been to them what
the cold of the Arctic Circle had been to the Laps, and his
swamps and fens to the Finlander. They survived to suggest to
ethnologists of the nineteenth century a time (long anterior to
the dawn of history) when a complex series of kindred popula-
tions was continuously spread over all Europe, from Albania to
Finland, from Spain to Scandinavia — a series of populations now
broken up and separated.
Secondly, it contained populations to the north and west of
the original home of the Indo-Europeans ; for it seems to have
been in the direction of Europe, rather than in that of either
China or Siberia, that the great hypothetical stream of the Indo-
European pojDulation rolled itself. These were the Chinese and
the tribes of Siberia.
Thirdly, it contained those populations of India itself, whose
language betokened a different origin from that of the popula-
tions whose ancestors spoke Sanskrit. These were the nations
of the Dekhan, and most of the hill-tribes.
CHAPTER XXXVI.
AEE THERE SARMATIAN ELEMENTS IN ENGLISH ?
§ 2.38. Sarmatian is a generic name for the Lithuanic and
Slavonic languages collectively.
Did any members of either of these divisions either accom-
pany the Angles Or effect independent settlements ? They may
easily have done so, inasmuch as we have seen that Mecklen-
burg, Lauenburg, and parts of Holstein were Slavonic, to say
nothing of other parts of Germany : more especially the country
along the Elbe.
The fact, however, of the Slavonic area being in contact
with the Angle has been fully enlarged on already. Never-
SARMATIAN ELEMENTS. 261
tbeless, it is sufficiently important to be again alluded to. Indeed,
an addition may be made to the notice of it. The names of
the chief Slavonic nations of the Angle frontier in the time of
Charlemagne and his successors are known, along with several
details of their history. There were the Werini ; as has been
stated. There were the Obotriti, OhotritcB, Ahotriti, Abotride,
Apodritx, Abatareni, A^pdrede, or Afdrege, between the War-
now and Schwerin. They were the allies of the Franks against
the Saxons, and after the defeat and partial removal of the latter,
were transplanted, as colonists, into some of their colonies. Lau-
enburg was the occupancy of the Polabingii, or the men on the
Laba or Elbe; whose capital was Ratzeburg. The Wagri
were the Slaves of Holstein and the Isle of Femern. The
Linones, or Li7ii, of Luneburg preserved their language till the
beginning of the last century. The Smeldingi, the Bethenici,
the Morizani, the Doxani, and the Hevelli lay further towards
the interior. The populations, however, which began our list,
were actually in contact with the Angles.
§ 239. Again — the original Lithuanic area extended as far
as the frontier between East Prussia and Pomerania. Hence,
members of the Lithuanic division ma,y have joined the Angles.
Nor is this all. A case can be made in favour of a laro-e
portion of Scandinavia having been Lithuanic before it was
German. If so, the Norse element of the English may have
contained Sarmatian words. This question, however, is too new
and too complicated to be gone into in any detail.
Lastly, reasons have been given for believing that the Fomo-
rians of the Irish annals were Pomoranians.
For the possibility of the Picts having been Prussian see the
previous chapter.
CHAPTEE XXXVII.
§ 240. With this chapter concludes our notice of what may
be called the Origines of the English Language. It consists of
miscellaneous suggestions and remarks.
The English language came from Germany. Does this
mean that it originated there ? Not necessarily. Individually,
I believe that it did so originate ; that it was on German soil
202 SUGGESTIONS AND REMARKS,
that it developed its peculiar and numerous characteristics ; that
it was on German soil that it separated itself from certain other
languages, with which, as we proceed, we shall hear that it h.as
numerous general affinities ; — in short, that it was on German
soil that it became German. But though this is my own doctrine,
it is not that of many eminent philologues ; some of whom
believe that, before the men and women who spoke it occupied
German}^ it was, nevertheless, what it was upon German ground.
The belief that it originated in some district east of Germany is
common. Some investigators deduce it from India, some fi'om
the north-west frontier of India, some from Persia, some from
Central Asia. Whatever may be the fact, the inquiry belongs to
general rather than special pliilolog}^ and is a dark and difficult
one.
§ 241. The English language came fi-om Germany, Does
this mean that it came from Germany direct ? Not necessarily.
There was the Litus Saxonicum, from which it might easily
have been introduced,
§ 242. The English language came from Germany. Does this
mean that, presuming it to have come direct, it came wholly
from the German ? By no means. Part might have been
from Germany direct ; but pai-t from the Litus Saxonicum.
More than this ; the Angle parts may represent the direct, the
Saxon the indirect element. If so, the division between Angle
and Saxon is, to some extent, real. If so, the Saxon part may
contain Keltic and Roman elements taken up on the coast of
Gaul, For reasons which will appear in the sequel, I indicate
rather than adopt this alternative.
§ 243. The English language came from Germany. Does
this mean that it was always and exclusively spoken by Germans ?
No, There is no necessity for the blood and language to have
coincided. There were Germans in (say) the first century, who
may have been other than German in some preceding one. At
any rate, some portion of them may have been so. The Angles
were a population, not of Central Germany, but of the German
and Slavonic frontier.
§ 244. The English language came from Germany. Does
this mean that it was spoken on the soil of England by none
but Germans ? No. However much we may believe that the
Britons either retreated before the Saxons, or were annihilated
by them, there must have been some intermixture. If so, some
one of Keltic blood — pure or mixed — must have unlearned his
SUGGESTIONS AND REMARKS. 263
own tongue, and adopted that of his conqueror. This, however,
like the preceding one, is a point of ethnology rather than
philology.
§ 245. Was the language introduced from the Continent in
the form in which we first find it, or formed in England ?
This is asked because the fact of there being good reasons for
believing that other populations besides that of the Angles, in
the strictest sense of the term, took part in the invasion, for
invasion of Britain has a tendency to engender the doctrine that
the Anglo-Saxon may be a mixed, rather than a pure, form of
speech ; a doctrine that is not without some supporters. The
reasons against it, reasons which, in the mind of the present
writer, are conclusive, are (1) the structure of the Anglo-Saxon.
Language, which is as regular as that of any of the allied
tongues, and (2) its close affinity to those, specimens of which
will be noticed hereafter under the name of Old Saxon, which,
undeniably, belong to continental localities — especially to certain
parts of Westphalia.
§ 246. In investigating the direction in which the Angle
conquest moved, and the rate at which it moved, we must
separate the history of the actual Angles from that of the
obliteration of the ancient British language. Ui^on the ivhole,
it was displaced by the English — not, however, exclusively.
There was a Scandinavian influence as well ; and of this, the
direction was twofold. It crossed the island from east to west ;
but it also went round it. The details of this, so far as they
are known, will be considered hereafter. At present it is
enough to say, that while the Danes landed on the coasts of
Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Norfolk, the Norwegians more
especially attacked the northern counties of Scotland, and Ork-
ney, and Shetland. Thence to the Hebrides, the western coast
of Scotland, Cumberland, and Wales, along the Isle of Man, and
Ireland. In Cumberland, then, and in Lancashire and Cheshire,
the original British was encroached npon on each side.
201 DIFFUSION
PAET II.
DIALECTS.
CHAPTER I.
GENERAL VIEW OF THE DIFFUSION OF THE ENGLISH
LANGUAGE.
§ 247. The English Language is spoken in all the counties of
England.
It is spoken in Wales, _2?CM^^irtZZv/ ; that is, in the Principality
of Wales there are two languages, viz. the English, and the
Welsh as well.
It is also spoken in Scotland, jyartially ; that is, in the
Northern and Western counties of Scotland there are two
languages, the English, and a language called the Scotch Gaelic
as well.
It is also spoken in Ireland, 'partially ; that is, in Ireland
there are two languages, the English, and a language called the
Irisli Gaelic as well.
It is also spoken in the Isle of Man, j9ari^a?% ' ^"^^^^ ^^' ^^^
the Isle of Man there are two languages, the English, and a
language called the Manx as well.
It is spoken in the United States of America, in Canada,
in Australia, and, more or less, in all the English colonies and
dependencies.
§ 248. The extension of the English language beyond the
British Isles is a recent event when compared with its extension
over the British Isles in the early periods of our history.
Indeed, the former has taken place almost entirely since the
reign of Queen Elizabeth. It was then that the first English
colony, that of Virginia, was planted in North America ; and it
was only natural that the emigrants who left England should
OF THE ENGLISH LANGUxVGE. 2G5
take their language with them. Upon the shores of America it
came in contact and collision with the numerous dialects of the
native Indians ; and upon these it encroached just as, a thousand
years before, it had encroached upon the original British of
Britain. Certain languages then became entirely lost, and, at
the same time, the tribes that spoke them. Sometimes they
were wholly exterminated ; sometimes they were driven far into
the interior of the land. In a short time populous cities stood
upon the hunting-grounds of the expelled tribes, and the
language of the mother-country became naturalized in a New
World. The subsequent settlement of Maryland, Georgia, and
the remaining States of America completed the preponderance
of the English language from the boundaries of Canada to the
Gulf of Mexico.
During the Protectorate of Cromwell, the island of Jamaica
was taken from the Spaniards, and from that time forwards the
English has been the language of a greater part of the West-
Indian Islands.
In Canada, it first took root after the taking of Quebec in
the reign of George the Second. As Canada, however, had been
previously a French colony, the European language that was
first spoken there was not the English but the French. Hence,
when Quebec was taken, the language of the country fell into
two divisions. There were the different dialects of the original
Indians, and there was the French of the first Em-opean colo-
nists. At the present moment, both these languages maintain
their ground ; so that the English is spoken only partially in
Canada, the French and the Indian existing by the side of it.
At the Cape of Good Hope the English is spoken in a similar
manner; that is, it is spoken partially. The original inhabi-
tants were the CafFre and Hottentot tribes of Africa, and the
earliest European colonists were the Dutch. For these reasons
Dutch and English, conjointly with the Hottentot and Caffra-
rian dialects, form the language of the Cape of Good Hope.
In Guiana, too, in South America, English and Dutch are
spoken in the neighbourhood of each other, for the same reason
as at the Cape.
In Asia the English language is spoken in India ; but there
the original languages of the country are spoken to a fjir greater
extent than is the case in either America or Africa.
Australia and New Zealand are exclusively English colonies,
and, consequently, in Australia and New Zealand English is
2G6 THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE — WHAT?
the only European language that is spoken. In each of these
settlements it encroaches upon the native dialects.
Malta, Gibraltar, Heligoland, Guernsey, and Jersey, and many
other localities of less note, are isolated spots, which, being
portions of the English dominions, use the English language.
§ 24; 9. The English Language was diffused over the English
colonies and dependencies from Great Britain.
The Enoiish Lanmuio-e was diffused over Great Britain from
Germ an jT-.
Mutatis mutandis, the history of the two diffiisions is the
same.
Different portions of one country, at diff*erent times, supplied
different portions of other countries with a population speaking
a certain language.
The particular form of this language varied with the par-
ticular locality from which it was introduced.
Also — with the date of its introduction.
Lastly, it was liable to a further modification from the par-
ticular lan2;uao-es of the new countries with which it came in
contact. Between them, there would be a certain amount of
action and reaction.
§ 250. What is the English Language? This is not very
easily answered. It is not the language of every or of any
book written in English. Science has, to a great extent, a lan-
guage of its own. So have Fine Arts. So have the Useful ones.
Many of the words here are technical rather than generally
current. Neither is it the language of every untaught occupant
of every little village in every English valley or woodland.
This is a dialect rather than a great national language. It is
something more than this : something less. The real English
Language are those parts of the language of common life and
the language of cultivated thought which come in the way of
currency and intelligibility, of quod hie, quod uhique, quod ah
omnibus ; its area being limited by the three seas on the south,
east, and west ; and the Scotch boundary on the north — the line
here being, more or less, arbitrary.
We may get a rough measure for this by taking, haphazard,
a few sentences from any Latin or French author ; and drawing
a line under those words which, either bodily, or through some
derivative, have entered into the English, One sentence is, per-
haps, as good as another for this purpose. Let us take the begin-
nings of the iEneid, and the Henriade.
STAGES OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. 267
(1-)
Arma, virumque eano, Trojoe qui 2ynmus ab oris
Italiam, fato 2>>'qf II t/us, Laviuaque venit
Littora : niiiUum ille et terra jactatu et unda,
Vi Superum, ssevae memorem Jimonis ob iratn.
Multa quoque et hello 2Msgus ; diim conderet urhem,
Inferretque Deos Latio : genus uncle Latinum,
Albaiiique^^rt^/'^s atque altce mcenia Ilomse.
1. Arms. 14. Superior.
2. VirUitij, d-o. 15. Memory, memorial, &c.
3. Accent. ^ 1(\. Ire.
4. Quality, do. 17. Multitude, multiple, &c.
5. Prime. 18. Belligerent.
6. Fate. 19. Passion.
7. He-fuf/ee. 20. Condition.
8. Ad-veut. 21. Urbanity.
9. Littoral. 22. Infer, inference, &c.
10. Multiply, multiple, &c. 23. Deity.
11. Terrestrial. 24. Gender, generation, &c.
12. Jactitation. 25. Patrician.
13. Violent, violence, &g. 26. Altitude.
(2.)
Je cliante ce heros qui regna sur la France,
Et par droit de conquete et par droit de naissance,
Qui par des longs malheur ajiprit a gouverner,
C'alma les factions sut vaincre et pardonner,
Confondit et Mayenne et La Ligue et ITbere,
Et fut de ses sujets le vainqueur et le 2^ere.
CHAPTER II.
THE RELATION OF THE ENGLISH TO THE ANGLO-SAXON, AND
THE STAGES OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.
§ 251. If the present English of the nineteenth century be
compared with the Anglo-SfvXon of the tenth, the following
points t)i difference will be observed : —
1. The Anglo-Saxon language contained words that are either
wanting in the present English, or, if found, used in a different
sense.
2G8
STAGES
A. S.
English.
A. S,
English.
Ivl't
air
switlie
very
liehoma
body
sare
very
stcfn
voice
sitli
late
theod
j)eo2)le
reccan
care about
ece
everlasting
ongitan
understand
ln\-a}t
sharp
sweltan
die, dc.
These words, which are very numerous, although lost (or changed
as to meaning) in the current English, are often preserved in
the provincial dialects.
2. The present English contains words that were either
wanting in the Anglo-Saxon, or, if found, used in a different
sense — voice, people, conjugal, philosophy, alchemist, very, survey,
shaivl, and other words, to the amount of some hundreds.
These have been introduced since the time of the Anglo-Saxons,
from the Latin, Greek, French, Arabic, and other languages.
3. Words found in both Anglo-Saxon and English appear in
different forms in the different languages.
A. S.
English.
A. S.
English
an
eahta
one
eiyht
gsers
ic
grass
I
nygon
encUiifon
nine
eleven
sprasc
cage
speech
eye, dec.
More important, however, than the differences between word
and word are those between inflection and inflection. Thus —
4. The Anglo-Saxon contained grammatical forms that are
wanting in the present English.
A. S.
English.
A. S.
English
tung-e??a
tongues
god->-a
good.
word-«
words
wi-^
tve two
treow-w
trees
gi-^
ye two
sun-rf
son-s
"kvio-ne
uho-m
god-rtw
good
we luf-
'ath
we love
god-?-6
good
we Inf-
jdon
we loved
god-ne
good
to \vd-ianne
to love.
god-es
good
5. The present English contains grammatical forms that were
wanting in Anglo-Saxon. The words ours, yours, theirs, hers,
were unknown in Anglo-Saxon.
6. Grammatical forms found both in the Anglo-Saxon and
the English appear with different forms in the_ different lan-
guages.
OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.
269
A. S.
English.
A. S.
English.
smith -^s
smith's
hva-Hi
u-ho-m
smith-rts
S)idlh-s
blets-0(Z^
hless-ed, dc
liii'-6
her
§ 252. The English language stands to the Anglo-Saxon in
the relation of a derived lan^uaofe to a mother tonsrue, or
(changing the expression) the English may be called the Anglo-
Saxon in its most Qiwdern form ; whilst the Anglo-Saxon may,
with equal propriety, be called the English in its most ancient
form. However, it is not so important to settle the particular
mode of expressing the nature of this relation, as to become
familiar with certain flicts connected with recent languao-es as
compared with the older ones from which they originate ; facts
which chiefly arise out of the tenses of the verbs, and the cases
of the nouns,
Tiie Middle English has inflections which are wanting in the
Modern ; and the Early English has inflections which are want-
incr in the Middle,
The Middle Frisian has inflections which are wanting in the
Modern ; and the Early Frisian has inflections which are want-
ing in the Middle,
The earlier the stao-e of the Dutch lang-uacre, the more nume-
rous the inflections.
The earlier the stage of the High-German, the more nume-
rous the inflections.
The inflection of the Mceso-Gothic is fiiller than that of any
of the allied languages.
The earlier the stage of the Danish, the more numerous the
inflections.
The earlier the stage of the Swedish, the more numerous the
inflections.
The earlier the stage of the Icelandic, the more numerous the
inflections.
So much for the comparison between the different stages of
one and the same language. It shows that the earlier the stage,
the fuUer the inflection : the later the stage, the scantier the
inflection ; in other words, it shows that as languages become
modern, they lose their inflections.
There is another method of proving this rule : and that is by
the comparison of allied languages that change with different
degrees of rapidity.
The Danish language has changed more rapidlj^ than the
270 MEANING OF THE WORD OLD.
Swedish, and, consequently, has fewer of its original inflec-
tions.
The Swedish language has changed more rapidly than the
Feroic, and, consequently, has fewer of its original inflections.
The Feroic has changed more rapidly than the Icelandic, and,
consequently, has fewer of its original inflections.
The Icelandic has changed so slowly, that it retains almost all
the original inflections of the Old Norse.
In all the languages allied to the English, the earlier the
stage, the more numerous are the inflections, and vice versa.
§ 253. The word old as applied to language has a double
meaning.
The language of the United States was imported from
England into America in the reign of Queen Elizabeth. The
language of South Australia has been introduced within the
present generation. In one sense, the American English is
older than the Australian. It was earlier separated from the
mother-tongue.
The language, however, of America may, in the course of
time, become the least old of the two ; the w^ord old being
taken in another sense. It may change with greater rapidity.
It may lose its inflections. It may depart more from the
structure of the mother-tongue, and preserve fewer of its old
elements. In this sense the Australian (provided that it has
altered least, and that it retain the greatest number of the old
inflections) will be the older tongue of the two.
Now what may be said of the language of two countries,
may be said of the dialects of two districts. The one dialect
may run its changes apace ; the other alter but by degrees.
Hence, of two works in two such dialects, the one would
appear older than the otlier, although in reality the two were
cotemporary.
Hence, also, it is a lax expression to say that it is the old
forms (the archaisms) that the provincial dialects retain. The
provincial forms are archaic only when the current language
changes more rapidly than the local idiom. When the local
idiom changes fastest, the archaic forms belong to the standard
mode of speech.
The provincial forms, goand, slepand, for going and
sleeping, are archaic. Here the archaism is with the pro-
vincial form.
The forms almost, horses, nought hut, contrasted with the
4
MEANING OF THE WORD OLD. 271
provincialisms, onmost, hosses, nobhot, are archaic. Tliey have
not been changed so much as they will be. Here the archaism
(that is, the nearer approach to the older form) is with the
standard idiom, A sequestered locality is preservative of old
forms. But writing and education are preservatives of them
also.
§ 254. The study of the dialects of the Old and Middle
English is complicated by a distinction, of some importance,
between simple transcription and transcription with accom-
modation.
Tlie locality of the authorship of a composition is one thing.
The locality of a MS. is another.
Thus — the composition of a Devonshire poet may find
readers in Northumberland, and his work be transcribed by
a Northumbrian copyist. Now this Northumbrian copyist may
do one of two things : he may transcribe the Devonian pro-
duction ver^a^M?! et literatim; in which case his countrymen
read the MS. just as a Londoner reads Burns, i. e. in the dialect
of the writer, and not in the dialect of the reader. On the
other hand, he may accommodate as well as transcribe, i. e. he may
change the ?io?i-Northumbrian into Northumbrian expressions,
in which case his countrymen read the MS. in their own rather
than the writer's dialect.
Now it is clear, that in a literature where transcription com-
hined vjith accommodation is as common as si?/>p?e transcription,
we are never sure of knowing; the dialect of an author unless
we also know the dialect of his transcriber. In no literature is
there more of this se»ii-translation than in the Anglo-Saxon
and the early English ; a fact which sometimes raises difficulties,
by disconnecting the evidence of authorship with the other-
wise natural inferences as to the dialect employed ; whilst, at
others, it smoothes them away by supplying as many specimens
of fresh dialects, as there are extant MSS. of an often copied
composition.
From all this it follows, that the inquirer must talk of copies
rather than of authors.
§ 255. Again — diffei'ences of spelling do not always imply
differences of pronunciation, though perhaps they may he prima
facie of such. Still it is uncritical to be over-hasty in separating,
as specimens of dialect, works, which, perhaps, only differ in
being specimens of separate orthographies.
-Again — the accommodation of a transcribed v/ork is susceptible
272 IMITATION OF DIALECTS.
of degrees. It may go so far as absolutely to replace one dialect
by another, or it may go no further than the omission of the
more unintelligible expressions, and the substitution of others
more familiar.
§ 256. Imitations of dialects must be used with great
caution and addj:ess. An imitation of dialect may be so lax
as to let its only merit consist in a deviation from the standard
idiom.
Edgar in King Lear, when assuming madness, speaks after
the fashion of a clown, and (so doing) speaks provincially. The
particular dialect which he uses is v^ncertain. The locality in
which it is used is Kent. But is the form Kentish ? Many
hold that there was a conventional dialect for the stage, that this
was that of the West Country, inasmuch as the words put into
the mouth of the character under notice, as well as many
others, are most like those of Somerset and Devon — fi'om which
the present Kentish differs notably. On the other hand, a
well-known Kentish specimen of the thirteenth century is
full of West-country forms. If so, the dialect has altered — cer-
tainly since the time of the work in question, possibly since
that of Shakspere.
In Ben Jonson's Tale of a Tub, one (and more than one) of
the characters speaks thus ; his residence being the neighbour-
hood of London : — •
Is it no sand? nor buttermilk? if 't be,
Ich 'am no ^ive, or watering-pot, to clraw
Knots in yom- 'casions. If you trust me, ^o —
If not, ^^jY/forme 't your selves. 'Cham no man's ^\-ife.
But resolute HUts : you '11 cind me in the buttry.
Act 1. Scene 1.
This is certainly Western, rather than South-Eastern, at the
liresent time at least.
Not so, however, with the provincialisms of another of Ben
Jonson's plays, the Sad Shepherd : —
shew yoursell
Tu all the sheepards, bauldly ; gaing amang hem.
Be mickle in theu' eye, frequent and fugeand.
And, gif they ask ye of Eiarine,
Or of these claithes ; say that I ga' hem ye,
And say no more. I ha' that wark in hand.
That web upon the luiine, sail gar em tliinke. Act IL Scene 3.
Here the forms are Northern, the scene of the play being
Sherwood Forest.
CHAUCER FOR DIALECT OF STROTIIER. 273
Is tins the present dialect of Nottinglianisliire ? Scarcely.
Was it the dialect of Nottinghamshire in Jonson's time? It
^nay have been tliat ; but it was, more probably, something con"
ventional ; or, possibly, it was the dialect best known to the
author.
§ 257. The same applies to the following lines from The
Reeve s Tale, which Chaucer puts into the moutli of one of his
north-country clerks, a native of Strother, in the north-western
pai't of the Deanery of Craven.
" Chaucer * undoubtedly copied the hmguage of some native ; and the general
accuracy with which he gives it shows that he was an attentive observer of
all that passed ai-ound hhn. We subjoin an extract fx-om the poem, in order
to give our readers an opportunity of comparing southern and northern
English, as they co-existed in the lifteenth century. It is fi-oui a MS. that
has never been collated ; but which we believe to be well worthy the attention
of any futiu'e editor of the Canterbury Tales. The italics denote variations
from the printed text : —
" John highte that oon and Aleyn higlite that other :
Of 00 toun were thci born that highte Strother,
Ffer in the north I can not tellen ■\^•here.
This Alejii maketh redy al his gere —
And on an hors the sak he caste anoon.
Fforth goth Aleyn the clerk and also John.
With good swerde and bokeler by his side.
John knewe the weye — hym nedes no gide ;
And atte meUe the sak a down he laj-ih.
Aleyn spak first : Al heyle, Sjonond — in fayth —
How fares thi fayre daughter and thy wif ?
Aleyn welcome — quod SymkjTi — be my \ji ?
And John also — how now, what do ye here?
By God, quod John — Symond, nede has na pere.
Hjan bihoves to serve liim self that has na swayn ;
Or ellis he is a fool as clerkes sayn.
Otu'e maunciple I hope he wil be ded —
Swa u-erkes hym ay the wanges in his heed.
And therefore is I come aad eek Aleyn —
To gi'ynde oui-e corn, and carj^e it ham agayme.
I pray yow spedes\ us hethen that ye may.
It shal be done, quod Sj-nikj-n, by my fay !
What wol ye dene wliile it is in hande?
By God, right by the hoper wol I stande.
Quod John, and see how gates the corn gas inne ;
* Gamett, in The Quarterly RcvieiD, No. ex.; also Garnett's Philohglcal Papei\
+ Apparently a hq^tsus calami for sjX'cle {Gamett).
274 CHAUCER FOR DIALECT OF STROTHER.
Yit saiigli I never, by my fatler kynne,
How tliat the lioper waggcs til and fra !
Aleyn ansAvercle — John w-H ye swa ?
Than vsil I be bynethe, by my crown.
And see how gates the mele falles clown
In til the trough — that sal be my clispoi-t.
Quod John — In faith, I is of 3-0 ure sort — ■
I is as ille a meller as are ye.
* * * ♦
And when the mele is sakked and ybound
Tliis John gotli out and fjTit hishors away —
And gan to crie, harow, and wele away !
Our hors is lost — Alejoi, for Godde's banes,
Stepe on tlii feet — come of man attanes !
Alias, oure wardejTi has liis palfi-ey lorn !
This Aleyn al forgat bothe mele and corn —
Al was out of his mj^ide, his housbonderie.
What — whilke way is he goon ? he gan to crie.
The wyf come lepynge in at a ren ;
She saide — Alias, yoiu-e hors goth to the fen
With wylde mai-es, as faste as he may go.
Untliank come on this hand that band hun so —
And he that bet sholde have knet the reyne.
Alas ! quod John, Aleyn, for Chi-iste's peyne,
Lay do^\'n thi swerde, and I icil myn alswa;
I is ful sirift — God wat — a is a ra —
By Goddes herte he sal nought scape us bathe.
Why ne hadde thou put the capel in the lathe ?
II liayl, by God, AlejTi, thou is fonne."
This 7nay be the pure Craven of Yorkshire in Chaucer's
time ; but it may also have conventional elements.
Sufficient, for the present, has been said to show the caution
required in connecting the older with the present provincialisms.
More, however, will be said upon it in tlie sequel.
CHAPTER III.
HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. COMPLICATIONS. WANT
OF DATES. THE ANGLO-SAXON CHARTERS, ETC.
§ 258. The early history of the English language is obscure.
This is because almost all the comparisons v.'hich we can make
between two different specimens of it are only approximate.
We I'arely know with sufficient accuracy what we are comparing.
ANGLO-SAXON COMPOSITIONS. — WANT OF DATES. 275
There may be differences ; but tliese may be differences of
spelling rather than of speaking; of orthography rather than
of language. There may be true differences of language ; but
they may, also, be due to differences of place rather than time,
to dialect rather than development. In each of these alter-
natives we have elements of uncertainty.
Again — in Anglo-Saxon as elsewhere, it is by no means
enough to know the date and place of a writer. We must
know the date and place of the MS. through which his work
has come down to us. The orthography of the last edition of
Shakespear is not the orthography of the first. In like manner
the orthography of the later copies of an Anglo-Saxon author is
different from the orthography of the earlier. Simple transcrip-
tion is one thing. Transcription with accommodation to a change
of either time or place (or both) is another. The extent to
which this accommodation took place will be noticed else-
where.
Such is the general view ; and in considering details, we
shall find that it is difficult to overvalue the importance of- the
cautions it suggests. It is to no moderate, but (on the contrary)
to a very inordinate extent that the question of dialect, in
both the Anglo-Saxon and the early English, complicates that
of stage ; both being complicated by the questions of original
authorship and transcription.
Again — it cannot be too cleai^ly understood, that, although
the Anglo-Saxon literature, both in poetry and prose, is rich,
the authors of the greater portion of it are vmknown, and so
are its date and place. We know the date of Alfred, and
we know the date of iElfric — v/lio lived under Ethelred the
Unready. But for the mass we have nothing but inferences
and conjectures.
§ 259. We may verify this by taking the details of the chief
Anglo-Saxon poems : these being the compositions for which the
highest antiquity is claimed. Beginning with Beowulf, and
looking only to the matter of its legends, we find fair grounds
for attributing to it a high antiquity. It is true, indeed, that
the exact history of the heroes who figure in its pages is, by no
means, supported by cotemporary evidence. On the contrary,
it is, in all probability, fictitious. Few will believe that
A.D. 444 is the date of the birth of Hro^gar ; or that names
like Garmund, Offa, Hygelac, and others apply to cotemporaries
of the third, second, or even fourth centuries. But though few
T 2
27u ANGLO-SAXON COMPOSITIONS. — WANT OF DATES.
enquirers, out of such data as these, will find anything very
positive, there are many who will lay no little stress upon such
a negative fact as the utter absence of any notice of insular
England in a woi'k in which the hero is an Angle and of which
the language is Anglo-Saxon. Of these^ some may agree with the
inference that has long been drawn for them, viz., tliat the date of
the poera in which this remarkable omission occurs transcends
that of the first invasions of England ; in confirmation of which
view it may be added, that though Hengest is a prominent hero
in tlie poem, it is a Hengest wholly unconnected with Bi'itain.
If so, the view of Mr. Kemble, who suggests that, about A.D.
495, the poem may have been brought over from German}^
by some of the Anglo-Saxons who accompanied Cerdic and
Ojmeric may be a correct one. Be tliis as it may, the
negative fact of the absence of any mention of England is, 2^'i'O
tanto, in favour of antiquity.
But this is not all. In spite of its general heathen character,
there are Christian allusions in the poem which bring it down to
t'le time of St. Au^ustin — to the time of St. Augustin or
1 iter.
More than this — the language is that of Csedmon, and the
majority of the other Anglo-Saxon poems ; or, at any rate, it is
the language of the oldest of them : the text being from a MS.
in two hands, one later than the other, and the older of no great
antiquity.
Whatever then may be the antiquity of the matter of Beo-
wulf, its language is that of the two copies which give us the
poem — certainly no later than the newer, probably no older
than the earlier of the two.
§ 260. Mutatis mutandis, the criticism of Beowulf is the
criticism of the poem entitled the Travellers Song, a professed
record of realms and dynasties, with no one word in it in
allusion to England — England the island, — British England.
This qualification is necessary. There is a notice of Oiigles —
Ongle being the name of a district to the east of which the
empire of the great Hermanric lay. This is the England of
the Angles of Germany, and, for a negative fact, its value is a
high one. It is admitted, however, by those who would make
the author a cotemporary of Hermanric, that additions have
been made in transcription. Be it so. The only text that has
come down to us is in the Codex Exoniensis. The language is
that of the other A. S. poems in general.
1
il
ANGLO-SAXON COMPOSITIONS. -WANT OF DATES. 277
So is that of Tlte Battle of Finneshurgh, a poem of which the
matter is as old as Hengest ; whatever Hengest's antiquity
may be.
§ 2 G 1 . Tlie Codex Vercellensis contains, over and above a col-
lection of A. S. homilies, six poems: — (1) The Legend of St.
Andrew. (2) The Legend of Helena, the mother of Gonstantine
the Great, sometimes quoted as the Invention of the Cross.
(3) The Fates of the Twelve Apostles. (4) The departed Soul's
Address to the Body. (5) A Dream of the Holy Rood. (G) A
Religious Fragment, of ninety-two lines. The contents of the
Codex Exoniensis, or Exeter Booh, just noticed, are more
numerous still.
What are the dates of these two Codices ? Probably there is
but one date for the two. If so, we have a great mass of A. S.
verse, of which, as far as the language is concerned, the time is
known. Perha[)s also the place : perhaps even the name of the
author or transcriber. Upon this point, however, the following
passage may speak for itself.
The dialect in which the poems nre composed is that which is huoA^Ti as the
West-Saxon, and which, from the period of the estahlislmient of Wessex in
IDossession of the supreme power in England, became the language of litera-
ture, the court, and the pulpit. In this the works attributed to Alfred are
written : we find it in BcowuK and Cfedmon, and it still survives in the
homilies of Archbishop iElfric. The Vercelli poems present no noticeable
deviation from the general form, nor does their language supply any data that
can be relied on to settle either the time or the locaUty to which we owe them.
There is, however, one passage which contains matter for consideration, and
may possibly one day lead to a conclusion on both these pomts. Towards
the close of the poem of Eleiie the author deserts the epic narrative which
he has so long pursued, and runs off mto a train of lyrical reflections, having
himself and liis fortunes for theu* subjects. In the coiu'se of these lines occur
certain liunic characters, which when taken together compose the name Cyne-
tvitlf, which recurs more than once in the Exeter Book under precisely similar
cu'cumstances. There cannot be a doubt tliis CjTiewulf was the author of
the poem of Elene, ptobably of all the rest, and those Ukewise which occui'
in the other collection, and it becomes a matter of much interest to decide who
he was. Unhappily this is not an easy task ; the name itself is extremely
common, and without any evidence leading us to fix upon any particular indi-
vidual, it would perhaps be hardly justifiable to select as oiu' author some
dignified ecclesiastic merely beca,use he bore the iiame. James Grimm, who
seems to me to attribute too great an antiquity to the poems in the present
form, hints that there was a bisliop of Lindisfarn named Cynewulf who died
in A.D. 780 : but that bishop could neither have Avritten nor read a word of the
poems we possess, which would to him have been nearly as unintelligible as
New German to an Englishman. No doubt these m/aj be only translations
from an earlier Northumbrian version, but this hypothesis has no basis Avhat-
278 CODEX DIPLOMA TICUS
ever save the name Cynewulf, and that has been sho^^•n to be totally inade-
quate. Still less ground is there for auotlier supposition of Grimm's that
Aldhelm (who died in 705) may have been their author, and which appears
to me to rest upon notliing more than the fact that Aldhelm was a poet : for
the philological gi'ound, viz. that the author at one period adckesses two
l)ersons (ustug the dual t/it vos duo) will certainly not show that Aldhelm was
that author, even if we admit — wliich I do not — that ;/it in tliis passage is the
dual pronoun in question. There was, however, a C^Tiewailf who may possibly
have a better claim to the honour: he was an abbot of Peterborough or ]\Iede-
hamstede, in which capacity he is mentioned ^nth praise by Hugo Candidus,
the historian of that abbey, as a man of extensive and various learning, and of
great reputation among his contemporaries. He died 1014, and, according to
my view, is more likely to have composed these poems than an earlier
author.
Here, then, between such authorities as Grimm and Kemble
is a difference of some 300 years : and that on a question which
touches the date of more than one-half of the whole mass of
A. S. poetry.
Of Ctedmon, more will be said when we treat of the dialects
of the Anglo-Saxon.
§ 262. The continuation of our remai'ks applies to the great
repertorium of matter which constitutes Kemble's elaborate work
entitled Codex Diplomaticus J^vi Saxonici, in which we have,
in five volumes, a collection of charters, writs, wills, and similar
documents. Most of them are in Latin ; some in Anglo-
Saxon ; some in both Latin and Anglo-Saxon. In some the
Anglo-Saxon portion may be found in two forms, arising from
difierence of either date or dialect, or both. Some of these are
marked by the editor as spurious. Most of them have dates :
some both date and place. This being the case, it looks as if
the foregoing statements were contradicted, or, at any rate, that
they required modification. As the collection is one of the
highest value, I subjoin the following li.st of those portions of it
which are either Anglo-Saxon or contain Anglo-Saxon elements;
the Anglo-Saxon elements being generally the boundaries of the
different estates.
Vol. 1.
No. 1. Aethelberht of Kent. April 28, 604. Charter iu Latin, boimdaiy
in A. S. Short.
No. 90. Aethelbald of Mercia. a.d. 716-743. Charter, Latin, bounda-
ries, A. S. Gloiicestei-shire.
No. 105. Aethelbald. a.d. 743-745. Charter in A. S. Worcester-
shire.
No. 144. Aethelberht of "Wessex and Kent. 781. Compare with
No. 1.
JiVI SAXONICI. 279
No. 154. Offa of Mercia. Short Charter in Latin, translation in A. S.
Date in the Latin DCt°Lxxx°vi., in the A. S. 689.
No. 166. Offa of Mercia. Charter in Latin ; ^^ith a few lines in A. S.
containing the words tun, comb, and amber, names of measures, a.d. 791-
7<J6.
No. 183. Charter La Latin of Bishop Deneherht. Thursday, October G,
A.D. 803. Followed by an endorsement in A. S. 821-823. Worcestershire.
No. 191. Cuthred of Kent. Charter in Latin. Before a.d. 805. In-
dorsed by Aethehioth and Gaenburh 805-831. Anglo-Saxon.
No. 204. Coe'uwulf of Mercia. a.d. 814. Charter, Latin, boundaries, ia
A. S.
No. 207. Ditto. Charter hi Latin, with a few A. S. words in the
middle.
No. 219. Beornwulf of Mercia. a.d. 825. Charter in A. S.
No. 226. Wulfii-ed, Oswulf, and Beorntluyth. a.d. 805-831. Charter in
A. S. Kent (?).
No. 228. Eadwald. Charter in A. S.
No. 229. Ealhbm-g. About 831. Charter in A. S.
No. 231. Lufa. a.d. 832. Charter in A. S.
No. 235. Abba. a.d. 835. Charter in A. S.
No. 237. Wiglaf of Mercia. a.d. 836. Charter in Latm. Two short
appendixes, of similar import,in A. S. Worcestersliii-e (?).
No. 238. Badauoth. a.d. 837. Charter in A. S.
Vol. 2.
No. 241. Aethelmilf of Wessex. a.d. 839. Charter in Latin. A few
lines in A. S. at end.
No. 243. Berhtwulf of Mercia. a.d. 840. Charter in A. S.
No. 259. Aethelwulf of Wessex. a.d. 847. Dec. 26. Charter m Latin,
boundaries ui A. S.
No. 266. Abbot Ceolred. a.d. 852. Charter in A. S. Lincolnshire or
Northamptonshire — parts about Peterboro (?)
No. 272. Aethelwulf of Wessex, boundaries in A. S. April 23, a.d. 854.
No. 276. Aethelwulf of Mercia. a.d. 855. Charter in Latin, A. S. at
end.
No. 281. Aetlielberht of Kent. a.d. 858. Charter in Latin, boundaries
in A. S. Indorsement at end.
No. 282. Plegi-ed. a.d. 859. Latin and A. S.
No. 285. Aethelberht of Wessex. a.d. 860-862. Charter in Latin
boimdaries in A. S.
No. 287. Aethelberht of Wessex. a.d. 862. Charter in Latin boundaries
in A. S.
No. 288. Aethelberht of Wessex. a.d. 863. Charter in Latin, with
several A. S. words in it ; at end four lines of A. S. The forms sello and
forgeofc=seUe and forgeaf i r^jive.
No. 295. Aetheh-ed of Wessex and Kent. a.d. 868. Chartex in Latin,
boundariesin A. S. Compare 1, and 145.
No. 296. Cialulf. a.d. 868. Charter in Latin, two indorsements in
A. S.
No. 298, Burghred of Mercia. a.d. 869. Boimdaries m A. S.
280
CODEX DIPLOMATICUS
No. :101. Aclfred. Date of original (?) a.p. 871. The text in Semi-Saxon
is given as " a translation of the Saxon original made towards the end of the
l'2th centiuy." Note of Editor.
No. 302. Aothelreii of Wessex. a.d. 8{)7-871. Texts Semi-Saxon.
Werfrith. No date. Forms hiddii and Iinhuju.
Aelfi-cd. A.D. 871-878. A. S. and Latin.
Aetheked. a.d. 883. Chai'ter cliiefly A- S.
Aelfred of Wessex. a.d. 880-885. A long charter in
No name.
No. 305.
No. 310.
No. 313.
No. 314
A. S.
No. 317.
No. 327.
No. 328.
Chai-ter in A. S.
No. 339. Werfrith
in the middle in A. S.
No. 353. Athelstan. a.d. 031, Nov
conclusion, and endorsement in A. S.
No. 359. Athelstan. English rhyme.
Athelstan.
Athelstan.
Dul<e Alfi-ed. a.d. 871-889. Charter m A. S.
Werfi-ith. Charter in A. S.
No date. Considered, however, as after a.d. 900.
A.D. 904. Cliarter at the beginning and end in Latin ;
12. Charter in Latin, houndai-ies,
Athelstan.
Athelstan.
Edmimd.
Edmund.
Edmund..
Edgar.
No. 360.
No. 3C4.
in A. S.
No. 309.
No. 377.
No. 385.
No. 399.
No. 409,
A. S. ■
No. 413.
A. S.
No. 424.
indorsement, A. S.
No. 429. Wulfric.
No. 533.
in A. S.
No. 444.
No. 477.
No. 478.
No. 492.
No. 494.
No. 4fl5.
cestershke.
No. 499.
No. 500.
eestershire (?) .
No. 5'J7. Oswald,
eestershire (?).
No. 508. Oswald.
Worcestershh'e (?).
No. 509. Oswald.
"Worcestersliire (?).
No. 511. Oswald.
EngHsh rhj-me. See
May 28. a.d. 934.
Charter in Latin, boundaries
A.D. 937. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
A.D. 939. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
A.D. 940, Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
A.D. 944. Charter m Latin, boundaries in A. S.
About 946. Charter in Latin, boundaries
Eadred. a.d. "947. Charter in Latin, boundaries (shoi-t) in
Eadred. a.d. 949. Charter in Latin, a line in the middle, and
About 949. Charter in A. S.
A.D. 955. En onomatos cyriou doxa ! Al wisdom, &c.,
Edwy. A.D. 956, Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Ethelweard. a.d. 958. Charter in A. S.
The same, in a modern form.
Beorhtric and ^Ifswyth. Charter in A. S.
Oswald, a.d. 962. Charter in A. S. Woreestershir'e,
Oswald. A.D. 902. Charter in Latin, boundaries, A. S.
Eadgifu.
Oswald.
A.D. 690-.903. Charter in A. S.
A.D. 963. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A, S.
A.D. 903. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
A.D. 903. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A.D. 963. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A.D. 963. Cliai-ter in A. S.
Wor-
Wor-
Wor-
A. S
A. S.
^VI SAXONIOI.
281
The tliird volume carries us over the comparatively short
period of forty years ; and illustrates the reigns of Edgar and
Ethelred the Unready. The Anglo-Saxon element has increased ;
more especially in its application to the description of the
boundaries. What has hitherto been exceptional is now the
rule; viz. the adjunct in Anglo-Saxon, by which the bounds of
the estate under notice are given. The ordinary term by which
these are signified is gemcero, a neuter plural of geina2rez= limes,
and =: I Imites. It is a word of which the origin is doubtful.
Grimm suggests that it may be Slavonic, Kemble that it is Keltic.
3fea7'c = 'mark — is a rarer word ; as is its compound Idiid-mearc.
Landscear ■=: land- shire — is rarer still ; being found "in a set of
comparatively modern charters, and those principally belonging
to the extreme south of England." If this be the case it gives
us an instrument of criticism.
No.
529,
Oswald.
A.P.
966.
No.
530,
Oswald.
A.I).
966.
No.
531.
Oswald.
A.l\
966.
No.
533.
Eadgar.
A.D.
9()7.
No.
534,
Eadgai-.
A.D.
967.
No.
535.
Eadgar.
A.D.
967.
No.
536.
Eadgar.
• A,r>,
967,
No.
537.
Eadgar.
A.D.
967.
No.
538.
Oswald.
A.D.
967.
No.
539,
Oswald.
A.D.
967.
No.
540.
Oswald.
A.D.
967.
No.
541.
Oswald.
A.D.
967.
No.
542.
Oswald.
A.D.
967.
No.
543.
Eadgar.
A.D.
968,
No.
544,
Eadgar,
A.D.
968.
No.
545.
Eadgar.
A,D.
968.
No.
54f'.
Eadgar.
A.D.
968.
No.
547-.
Eadgai:.
A.D.
968.
No.
548.
Eadgar.
A.D.
969.
No.
549.
Oswald.
A.D.
969.
No.
550.
Oswald.
.1. .D.
969.
No.
551.
Oswald.
A.D.
969.
No.
552,
Oswald.
A.D.
969.
No.
553.
Oswald.
A.D.
969.
No.
554.
Oswald.
A.D.
969.
No.
556.
Eadgar.
A.D,
960.
No.
557.
Oswald.
A.D.
969.
No.
558.
Oswald,
A.D.
969.
Short Paibric, A..S.
No.
559.
Oswald.
A.D,
969.
Vol. 3.
Worcestershire.
Worcestershire.
Worcestershu-e.
Charter, Latin, boundaries, A, P,
Charter, Latin, bovuidaries, A, S.
Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. ?.
Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
Worcestershire.
Worcestershire.
Worcestershire.
Worcestershire.
Worcestershke.
Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
Charter, Latin, boundaries. A, S,
Charter, Latin, Rubric, A. S.
Boundai'ies in A. S.
Charter, Latin, boundaries. A, S.
Boundaries, A. S. WcH-cestershire,
Paibric, &c., A. S.
Ptubric, &n., A. S.
Paibric, &c., A. S.
Rubric, &c., A. S.
Rubric, &e., A. P.
Charter, Latiu, boundaries. A, S.
Charter, A. S.
Charter, Latin ; with a few A. P, words.
Boundaries in A. S.
Wilts.
Wilts.
WiltF.
Worcestershire.
Worcesterslm-e,
Worcestersliii'e,
Worcestershire,
Worcestershire,
282
CODEX DirLOMATICUS
No. 5G0.
No. 501.
No. 503.
No. 567.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
568.
569.
570.
571.
572.
573.
577.
No. 578.
No. 583.
No. 585.
No. 580.
No. 587.
Oswald.
Oswakl.
Eadgar.
Eadgar.
Eadgar.
Eadgar.
Eadgar.
Eadgar.
Eadgar.
Eadgar.
Eadgar.
Edgar.
Eadgar.
Eadgar.
Oswald.
Eadgar.
Boimdavies in A. S.
Bouudaries in A. S.
Charter, Latin ; an addition in A. S.
Charter, Latin, with A. S. sentences.
Boundaries, A. S.
Boundaries, A. S.
Long text in A. S.
Boundaries in A. S.
Boundaries in A. S.
A.D. 971. Rubric in A. S.
A.D. 973. Boundaries in A. S.
A.D. 973. Boundaries in A. S.
A.v. 960-975. Charter in A. S. Compai-e No. 5i;
A.D. 974. Piubric in A. S.
A.D. 969.
A.D. 969.
A.D. 970.
A.D. 971.
971.
971.
971.
971.
971.
A.D.
A.D.
A.D,
A.D,
A.D.
A.D. 974. Boundaries in A. S.
A.D. 975. Tliis Charter is in Latui. So are the boun-
daries. They are remarkable, however, for gi\dng the French ai-ticle la — " hiis
metis praefatiun rus hinc inde gii-atur. Primo a Welpul ; de Welpul usque
la drone; de la drone ; usque Chekewell," &c. I should add that the Charter
is obelized.
No. 588. Eadgar. a.d. 975. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S. Dorso.
No. 589. Eadgar. a.d. 975. Charter in Latin, boimdaries in A. S.
590. Eadgar. a.d. 975. Charter in Latin, boimdaiies in A. S.
591. ^thelwold. a.d. 963-975.
592. Eadgar. a.d. 975. Charter in Latin, boundaries, A. S. rubric,
No.
No.
No.
A. S.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
593.
594.
595.
596.
597.
598.
No. 611.
No. 612.
614.
616.
617.
618.
619.
No.
No.
A. S.
No,
No,
No
A. S.
No. 620.
No. 621.
No. 622.
No. 623.
No. 624.
No. 626.
No. 627.
No. 62^^.
No. 632.
iElfheab.
Eadgar,
Eadgar.
Oswald.
Eadgar.
Eadgar.
Eadwerd.
Oswald.
Oswald.
Oswald.
Oswald.
Oswald.
Oswakl.
A.D,
A.D,
A.D
A.D,
A.D. 965-975. Charter m A. S.
A.D. 963-975. Charter in A. S.
976. Charter in Latiii, boimdaries in A. S.
977. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
977. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
978. Charter in Latin, translation in A. S.
A.D. 977. Charter m Latin, boimdaries in A. S.
A.D. 977. Charter in A. S.
A.D. 977. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
A.D. 977. Charter in Latin, conclusion and rubric in
A.D. 977. Chai'ter m Latin, conclusion in A. S.
A.D. 978. Charter in Latui, conclusion in A. S.
A.D. 978. Charter in Latin, conclusion and nibric in
Oswald. A.D. 9^
^thelred. a.d. 979.
-Etheh-ed. a.d. 979.
Charter in Latin and A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Oswald. A.D. 97 9. Charter in Latin, boimdaries in A. S.
Ethelred. a.d. 980. Charter in Latin, boimdaries in A. S.
Ethelred. a.d. 980. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Oswakl. A.D. 980. Charter in Latin and A. S.
Brihtric Gran. a.d. 964-980. Charter in A. S.
Etheked. a.d. 982. Charter m Latin.
^VI SAXONICI.
283
No. 033.
No. 686.
No. 638.
A. S.
No. 630.
No. 040.
No. 641.
No. 64'^.
No. 643.
No. 645.
A. S.
No. 040.
A. S.
No. 648.
No. 649.
No. 650.
A. S.
No. 051.
A. S.
No. 652.
No. 653.
No. 654.
A. S. mixed.
No. 655.
A. S.
No. 657.
No. 65S.
A.S.
No. 600.
in A.S.
No. 002.
No. 663.
No. 604.
A. S.
No. 605.
No. 667.
in A. S.
No. 070.
in A. S.
No. 071.
No. 673.
No. 674.
No. 675.
No. 076.
No. 679.
No. 080.
No. 081.
No. 68-3.
No. 083.
No. 085.
Ethclrcd. a.d. 9S2.
Ethelrcd. a.d. 983.
Ethclrcd. a d. 983.
Chaiier in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric in
Etheh-ed. a.d. 983. Charter, Latin, Rubric, A. S.
Ethelred. a.d. 983. Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
Ethelrcd. a.d. 984. Charter, Latin, boundaiies, A. S.
Etheh-cd. a.d. 984. Charter in A. S.
Etheh-ed. a.d. 984. Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. ?.
Oswald. A.D. 984. Charter, Latin, boundaries and rubric,
Oswald. A.D. 984. Charter, Latin, boundaries and rubric,
Ethelred. a.d. 985. Charter, Latin, boundaries and Rubric, A. S
Oswald. A.D. 985. Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
Etheh-ed. a.d. 985. Chai'ter, Latin, boundaries and rubric,
Oswald. A.D. 985. Charter, Latin, boundaries and rubric,
Etlielred. a.d. 985. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Oswald. A.D. 985. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Etheked. a.d. 980. Charter in Latin, boundaries, Latin and
Etheh-ed. a.d. 980. Charter, Latin, boundaries and rubric,
Ethelred. a.d. 987. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Etheh-ed. a.d. 987. Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric in
Oswald. A.D. 987. Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric
Etheh-ed. a.d. 988.
Ethelred. a.d. 98>^.
Ethelred. a.d. 98.-
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. P.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. 8.
Charter, Latm, boundaries and rubric
Ethelred. a.d. 988. Charter ia Latin, boundaries in A. P.
Oswald. A.D. 988. Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric
Oswald. A.D. 980. Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric
Oswald. A.D. 986. Short Rubric, A. S.
Etheh-ed. a.d. 990. Charter, Latin, boundaries and rubric, A. S.
Oswald, a.d. 990. Charter, Latin, boundaries and rubric, A. S.
Oswal(l. a.d. 990. Charter hi A. S.
Oswald, a.d. 991. Charter in A. S.
Oswald, a.d. 972-992. Charter, A. S.
Oswald. After 972. Charter, A. S.
Oswald. After 972. Charter, A. S.
Oswald. After 972. Charter, A. S.
Oswald. A.D. 978-992. Charter, A. S.
GEfled. Will in A. S.
284 CODEX DirLOMATICUS
No. 087. CEthclrccl. a.d. iJl)4, Cliarter, Latin, boiindaries, A. S.
No. 088. (Etheked. a.d, 1)!»5. Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
No. ()9-2. a<:tliclred. a.d. 095. Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
No. 09:^. Wyntioed. A. S.
No. 694. Wulfvvarn.
No. 095. EalduF. a.d. 99('. Charter, Latin, boundaries A. S.
No. C()8. -Etheh-ed. a.d. 997. Charter, Latin, boundaries and rubric,
A.S.
No. 099, ^theric. a.d. 977. Chai-terA.S.
No. 703. ^theh-ed. a.d. 999. Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
No. 704. ^thelred. Charter in A. S.
No. 705. iEtheh-ed. a.d. 1001. Charter, Latm, boundaries, A..- S. Z)o;-so,
A. S.
No. 700. iEtheh-ed. a.d. 1001, Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. ?. Z>or5o,
A.S.
No. 70«. ^theh-ic. a. d. 1002-1014. A. S.
No. 709. .Etheh-ed. a.d. 1004, Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
No. 710. ^theh-ed. a.d. 1004. Charter, Latin, boundaries. A.- S.
No. 712. ^theh-ed. No date. Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
No. 718. Etheked. No dat". Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
No. 714, Etheh-ed. a. d. 1005. Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
No. 715. ^theked. a.d. 1000, Charter, Latin, translation, A. S.
No. 710. ^Ifrie, a.d. 990-1000. . Charter in A. S.
No. 717, ^Ifthryth. a.d, 990-1000, A. S.
No. 720. ^theh-ed. a.d. 1112. Charter, Latin, boundaries A. S.
No. 721. Queen GElgyfn. a.d. 1012. WiU in A, g.
No. 722, ^thelstan ^theling, Will in A. S.
No. 72?, iEthelred, a,d, 1010. Charter Latin, boundaries A. S.
No. 724, Leofsine. a.d. 1010. Charter, Latin, boundaries, A. S.
Vol. 4,
The fourth volume contains the reigns of Canute, and Ed-
ward the Confessor ; and its contents differ from those of the
preceding ones in being not only to a great extent Anglo-Saxon,
but in being more Anglo-Saxon than Latin. Without giving
the details, we may state that, out 6f 254 charters, 137 are
in the vernacular language ; the proportion of wills and cove-
nants to proper charters being considerable. On the other
hand, the number of spurious and suspicious documents is in-
creased. The asterisks are numerous ", but, besides this, it is
especially stated in the preface that the author does not pledge
himself to the authority of every charter which appears vjithoiit
one. There are " difficulties at this late time, which are not
found, in the same measure, at earlier periods, and the canons
laid down in the preface to th.e first volume become for the
most part inapplicable in the fourth. Indeed, almost the only
I
iEVI SAXONICI. 285
test tliat can be successfully applied is that of anachronism ; and
it is probable that, if, at a later period forgery were resorted to
for the purpose of establishing or defending claims to land, the
date and form assigned to the false documents would have been
those of Eadweard's reign.
Vol. 5.
No. 985. Coenwalh of Wessex. Charter iu Latin, boundaries in A. S.
No. 987. Fritliwalcl of Surry, before 075. Charter iu Latin, modern boun-
daries in A. S.
No. 990. Pope Agatho. a.d. 080. Charter in Latin, same in A. S.
No. 997. Ini of Wessex. a.d. 701. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A. S.
No. 1000. Nunna of Sussex, a.d. 725. Charter in Latin, boiuidaries in
A. S.
No. 1002. Ethclward of Wessex. a.d. 737. Charter in Latin, boundaiies
in A. S.
No. 1000. Cuthred of Wessex. a.d. 749. Charter in Latin, boimdaries in
A. S.
No. 1051. Egbert of Wessex. a.d. 824. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A. S.
No. 1033. Egbert of Wessex. August 19, 825. Charter in Latin, boun-
daries in A. S.
No. 1035. Egbert of Wessex. August 19, 825. Charter in Latin, boun-
daries in A. S.
No. 1036. Egbert of Wessex. a.d, 826. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A. S.
No. 1037. Egbert of Wessex. a.d. 820. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A. S.
No. 1038. Egbert of Wessex. a.d. 826. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A. S.
No. 1039. Egbert of Wessex. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A.S.
No. 1048. Ethel wolf of Wessex. Nov. 5th, 848. Charter in Latin, boun-
daries in A. S.
No. 1049. Etlielwolf of Wessex. a.d. 850. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A.S.
No. 1050. Ethehvolf of Wessex. April 22nd, 854. Charter in Latin, boim-
daries in A. S.
No. 1051. Ethel wolf of Wessex. a.d. 854. Chai-ter in Latin, boundaries in
A. S.
No. 1053. Ethelwolf of Wessex. a.d. 854. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A. S., same in Saxon.
No. 1054. Ethelwolf of Wessex. a.d. 854. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A.S.
No. 1056. Ethelwolf of Wessex. a.d. 856. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A.S.
No. 1057. Ethelwolf of Wessex. Charter in A. S.
No. 1059. Etlieli-ed of Wessex. a.d. 802. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A.S
2SG CODEX DIPLOMATICUS
No. 1001. Etlieli-cd of Wessex. a.d. 8(18. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A. S.
No. 1062. Bishop Eallifiith. a.d. 871, 877. Charter m A. S., boundaries
the same.
No. 1063, Bishop Tunbright. a.d. 877. Charter in Lathi, boundaries,
A.S.
No. 1004. Alfred, a.t. 8S1. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
No. 1005. Alfi-ed. a.d. 88-^. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
No. 1000. Ethelred, Duke of Mercia. a.d. 884. Charter in Latin, boun-
daries in A. S.
No. lOOfl. Alfred. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
No. 1070. Ceolwin, Charter in Latin and A. S., boundaries in A. S.
No. 1073. Etheh-ed, Duke of Mercia. a.d. 896. Charter in A. S.
No. 1975. Etheked, Duke of Mercia. a.d. 873.-899. Charter in A, S.
No. 1077. Edward of Wessex. a.d. 900. Chai-ter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
No. 1078. Edward of Wessex. a.d. 901. Charter in Latin, boundaries and
rubric in A. S.
No. 1079. Bishop Dene^^iilf. a.d. 902. Charter in A. S.
No. 1080. Edwai-d of Wessex. a.d. 903. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A. S.
No. 1083. Edward of Wessex. About 904. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A. S.
No. 1080. Bishop Denewulf. a.d. 870—909. Charter in A. S.
No. 1087. Eadward of Wessex. a.d. 901—909. Charter in A. S.
No. 1088. Edward of Wessex. a.d. 901—909. Charter in A, S.
No. 1089. Bishop Denewulf. a.d. 901 — 909. Charter in Latin, same in
A.S.
No. 1091. Edwai-d of Wessex. a.d. 909. Charter in Latin, boimdai-ies in
A.S.
No. 1093. Edward of Wessex. About 909. Charier in Latin, boundaries in
A.S.
No. 1094. Edward of Wessex. About 910. Charter in Latin, boundai-ies in
A. S.
No. 1005. Edward of Wessex. About 910. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A.S.
No. 1096. Edward of Wessex. a.d. 910. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A.S.
No. 1097. Bishop Wilferht. a.d. 922. Charter m A. S. and Latin : form
inU.
No. 1099. Ethelstan. a.d. 926. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
No. 1101. iEthelstan. April ICth, a.d. 928. Charter in Latin, boundaries
in A. S.
No. 1102. ethelstan. March 23rd, 931. Charter in Latin, boundaries and
rubric in A. S.
No. 1103. ethelstan. Jul^y 21st, 931. Charter in Latin, boundaries m A. S.
No. 1105. Ethelstan. a.d. 931. Charter in Latin, boundai'ies in A. S.
No. 1107. iEtlielstan. Aug. 30th, 932. Charter in Latin, boundaries in
A. S., rubric in A. S.
No. 1108. .Slthelstan. a.d. 132. Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric
in A. S.
MYl SAXONICI.
287
No. 1109. J^tlielstan. a.d. 933. Charter in Latin, bonndaries in A. S.
No. 1110. iEtlielstau. Dec. Kith, 934. Charter in Latin, bomidaries in
A. S. Ptubric and translation in A. S.
No 1111. J^Lthelstan. a.u. 935. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Habric in A. S.
No. 1114. ^thclstan. a.d. 937. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
No. 1115. JEthelstan. a.d. 937. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.,
Rubric in A. S.
No. 1110. iEthelstan. a.d. 938. Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric
in A. S.
No. 1117. iEthelstau. a.d. 938. Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric
in A. S.
No. 1118. JEthelstan. a.d. 938. Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric
in A. S.
No. 1119. iEthelstan. April 23rd, 939.
No.
1218.
Edgar.
a.d. 958.
No.
1219.
Edgar.
a.d. 958.
No.
1220.
Edgar.
A.D. 958.
No.
1221.
Edgar.
A.D. 959.
No.
1222.
iElfgar'
S Will. A.D.
No.
1225.
Edgar.
A.D. 959.
No.
1227.
Edgar.
A.D. 990.
No.
1228.
Edgar.
A.D. 060.
No.
1229.
Edgar.
A.D. 901.
No.
1230.
Edgar.
A.D. 901.
No.
1231.
• Edgar.
A.D. 901.
the end a lease in A.
s.
No.
1232.
Edgar.
A.D. 901.
No.
1233.
Edgar.
A.D. 961.
No.
1235.
Edgar.
A.D. 901.
No.
1230.
Edgar.
A.D. 961.
No.
1238.
Edgar
A.D. 902. <
No.
1241.
Ethelred. a.d. 962,
No.
1243.
Edgar.
A.D. 963.
A. S.
No.
1244.
Edgar.
A. D. 963.
A. S.
No.
1245.
Edgar.
A.D. 963.
A. S.
No.
1246.
Edgar.
A.D. 903.
A. S.
No.
1247.
Edgar.
A.D. 963.
No.
1249.
Edgar.
A.D. 963.
No.
1250.
Edgar.
A.D. 963.
No.
1251.
Edgar.
A.D. 964.
No.
1252.
Edgar.
A.D. 964.
No.
1253.
Edgar.
A.D. 963.
Vol. 6.
Charter in Latm, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter m Latm, boundaries in A. S.
A.D. 958 (about). In A. S. Recent.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Cliarter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boimdaries in A. S.
At
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Cliarter in Latin, boundaries m A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric in
Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubi'ic in
Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric in
Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric in
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latm, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Cliarter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
288
CODEX DirLOMATICUS
Ko. l-loo.
No. 1257.
No. 1258.
No. 1-2G1.
No. 1262.
No. 126?.
No. 1265.
No. 1266.
No. 1260.
No. 1270.
No. 1271.
No. 1272.
No. 1273.
in A. S.
No. 1274.
No. 1275.
A. S.
No. 1276.
No. 1277.
No. 1279.
No. 1281.
No. 1282.
No. 1283.
No. 1284.
No. 1288.
No. 1289.
No. 1290.
No. 1291.
in A. S.
No. 1292.
No. 1293.
No. 1295.
No. 1296.
No. 1298.
No. 1299.
No. 1301.
No. 1307.
No. 1308.
No. 1319.
No. 1310.
No. 1313.
No. 1314.
No. 1315.
No. 1318.
A. S.
No. 1319.
No. 1321.
No. 1322.
No. 1323.
No.. 1325.
Edgixr. A.T^. 565. Charter in Latin, boundiiries in A. S.
Edgar. A.n. 966. Charter iu Latin, boundaries m A. S.
Edgar, a.p. 906. Charter in A. S. (see 518).
Edgar. A.p. 968. Chai'ter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Edgar. A.i). 968. Charter in Latin, boundaries iu A. S.
Edgar, a.p. 968. Charter iu Latm, boundaries in A. S.
Edgar. a.'\ 968. Charter iu Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Edgar. A.i\ 968. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Edgar, a.p. 970. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Edgar, a.d. 970. Charter iu Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Bishop Etlielwold. About 970. Short Charter in A. S.
Bishop Ethelward. About 970. ' Short Charter in A. S.
Edgar. About 970. Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric
Edgar. A.T). 974. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Edgar, a.d. 978. Charter in Latin, boundaries aud rubric in
Edward. About 977. Charter iu Latin, boundaries iu A. S.
Edward. About 977. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Etheked. a.b. 983. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Etheh'ed. a.d. 984. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Etheked. a.d, 984. Chai'ter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Etheh'ed. a.d. 915. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Etheh'ed. About 988. Charter in Latui, boundaries in A. S.
Etheh-ed. a.t^. 965-993. Charter in A. S.
Etheh-ed. a.d. 995. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Will of Wynflced. About a.d. 995. Will iu A. S.
Ethelred. a.d. 996. Charter in Latin, boundaries and rubric
Ethelred. a.d. 996. Charter in Latin, boundaries iu A. S.
Leofwine. a.d. 998. Will in A, S.
Etheh-ed. a.d. 1002. Charter in Latin, boundaries iu A. S.
Ethelred. a.d. 1002. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
WiU of Wulfric. a.d. 1002. A. S.
Ethelred. a.d. 1003. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Ethelred. a.d. 1005. Charter in Latin, boimdaries in A. S.
Etlielred. July, a.d. 1012. Charter in Latm, boimdaries in A.
Ethelred. a.d. 1018. Charter in Latin, bomidaries in A. S.
Ethelred. a.d. 1011. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Ethelred. a.d. 1015. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
Arch Wolfstan. a.d. 1017. Charter in Latin, boimdaries iu A.
Aj-ch Wolfstan. About 1012. Charter yi A. S.
God\\dn. A.D. 1020. Charter in A. S.
Canute, a.d. 1033. Chai-ter in Latin, boundaries and rubric
Canute. About 1033. Charter iu A. S.
Ethelnoth. About 1033. Charter in A. S.
Canute, a.d. 1035. Charter in Latin, boimdaries in A. S.
Canute. About 1030. Charter in A. S.
Canute. Charter in A. S.
S.
s.
^VI SAXONICl. 289
No. 1327. Canute. Clmrtcr in A. S.
No. 1320. Will of Mantatanccn iu A. S.
No. 1332. Edward, a.d. 1042. Charter in Latin, boundaries in A. S.
No. 1334. Bishop Eoelfwold. a.d. 1046. Charter in A. S.
No. 1336. Eadsigead. a.d. 1045-1052. Charter in A. S.
No. 1337. Aeelfgj-fu. About 1053. Charter in A. S.
No. 1339. Will of Ketel. a.d. 1055. In A. S,
No. 1340. Wulfgeat. About 1060. Charter in A. S.
No. 1341. Edward, a.d. 1061. Charter in A. S-
No. 1342. Edward. Charter in A. S.
No. 1343. Edward. Charter in A. S.
No. 1346. Edward. Charter in A. S.
No. 1347. Bishop Ethelwold. Charter in Latui, translation in A. S.
No. 1349. Wiolfkyteh Charter in A. S.
The rule that documents bearing the name of Edward cannot
be of earlier and may be of later date than his reign still holds
good. It does more. It must be held to imply a later rather
than a cotemporary origin. Nor is it difficult to see why this
should be the case. Over and above the general likelihood of
any particular MS. being a modified copy of the original docu-
ment rather than the original document itself, there is in the
case of The Confessor the additional chance of forgery. In any
document made up for the purpose of establishing or defending
a claim to lands under the earlier Norman kings the " date and
form assigned to the false documents would have been those of
Eadweard's reign."
§ 263. With these preliminaries we may notice some of the
more instructive documents — instructive, so far as the present
question (which is that of the dates * of the several specimens of
the Anglo-Saxon language) is concerned. Herein, it is most im-
portant to know how far the antiquity of a given sample is
real or fictitious.
The fii'st two are given because the earlier passes for the
earliest we have. The two, however, are essentially the same —
this identity being a suspicious element.
Let us, however, assume their antiquity. Doing this, we shall
find that the Anglo-Saxon portion of them is neither more nor
less than the ordinary Anglo-Saxon of ^Ifric and Alfi'ed. What,
then, is the case ? Has the language stood three centuries with-
out alteration, or is the language of Alfred and ^Ifric founded on
that of Ethelbert ? If so, the language of Alfi-ed and ^Ifric is
* The dates rather than the dialects. These last form the subject of another enquiry.
The two questions, however, are closely allied, and greatly mixed-up with one another,
U
290 CODEX DIPL0MATICU3
not the ordinary Anglo-Saxon of their times. Individually, I
believe that both the documents are far later than the reign of
the King whose name they bear. Those, however, who admit
their antiquity in form as well as matter have to explain how it
is that their language is so new, or (taking the other alternative)
how it is that that of /Elfric is so old : or else they must hold
that from the seventh to the tenth century the language was
stationar3^ This is not imjDOSsible ; though improbable.
The chartere, however, in question, if genuine in form and
matter, are, as has been stated, the oldest samples of Anglo-
Saxon in existence : and, on the small chance of their being this,
they command notice.
§ 264.
AETHILBERHT OF KENT, AprU 28tli, a.d. 604. (A^o. 1.)
Regnaiite iu perpetuum Domiiio nostro lesu Christo Saluatore ! Mense
Aprili, sub die iiii kl. Maias, Indictione vii, Ego Aetliilberlitus Rex filio meo
Eadbaldo adiiionitionem Catliolicae Fidei optabilem. Nobis est aptam semper
inquirere qualiter per loca sanctorum, pro animae remedio uel stabilitate
Salutis nostrae, aliquid de portione, terrae nostrae ia subsicUis seiiionim Dei,
deuotissima uoluutate, debeamiis oflerre. Ideoque tibi Saucte Audi-ea, tuaeque
Ecclesiae quae est constituta iu ciuitate Hrotibreui, ubi praeesse uidetur Justus
Episcopus, trado aliquautulum telhuis mei. Hie est terminus mei doni : fram
SuSgeate west, andlanges wealles, oiS noi^Slauan to strae'te ; and swa east fram
straj'te oS Doddingbj-ruan, ongean Bradgeat. Siquis uero augere uoluerit banc
ipsam donacionem, augeat illi Dominus dies bonos. Et si praesumpserit
minuere aut contradicere, in coiispectuDei sit damnatus et Sanctonun eius, bic
et in aeterna saecula, nisi emendauerit ante eius transitum quod inique gessit
contra Clii'istianitatem nostram. Hoc, cmn consilio Laiu'encii episcopi et
omnium j)rincipum meorum, signo Sanctae Crucis confirmaui, eosque iussi ut
meciun idem facerent. Amen.
AETHILBERHT OF WESSEX AND IvENT, a.d. 781. {No. 144.
Ohelized.*)
In Nomine Domini nostri Ibesu Cbristi cui patent cuncta penetralia cordis et
corporis Ego Etbelberbt Rex [OccidentaKiun Saxoniun necnon] Cantuarioriun
coucedo Hrofeusisxieclesiae antistiti donum aliquautulum terre iuris mei intra
menia sui)radicte ciuitatis in parte aquilonali . id est fram Doddinc byrnan oS
^a Bradan gatan east be weaUe and swa eft su^ oX <5aet East geat and swa west be
strete o^ Doddinc byrnan. and ^reo bagan be eastan porte butan weaUe and Sar
to feower aeceras mtede be westan ee . boc in aucmentiun monasterii tibi
concessi Sancti Andree Ut mea donatio inmobilis permaneat semj)er. Et si
quis banc meam donationem augere uohierit . augeat Dominus ei uitam. Si
qiiis uero tunc minuere ijresumserit sit separatus a couspectu Domini in die
iudicii nisi prius emendaiierit ante eius transitum quod nequiter gessit.
Actum Dominice Incarnationis . dcclxi.
* TLe word ohelized means that the character is marked with an asterisk by Mr.
Kemble, as a sign that he considers it spurious.
^VI SAXONICI. 291
Ego Etlielberlitus Ilex banc mcam donationem signo sancte crucis con-
firmaui.
Ego Geauberlit Arcliiepiscopus corroboraui. Ego Deora Eiwscopus con-
signaui.
Sigmim manus Uualbard. Sigiiuni maniis Uban. Signrnn manus Udan.
Signum mauus Eallicre. Siguum manus Dudec. Siguum manus Wullaf.
§ 265. The following is given because Offa was a King of
Mercia. Of the Anglo-Saxon, the first clause is no part of the
original deed. The second may or may not be. If, however, it
be this, it is little more than West-Saxon spoken in JVJercia.
For this, however, see § 313.
OFFA, A.D. 789. {No. 154. Worcestershire.)
Volutis curriculo temporum annis, dcc°lxx°vi° . Anno Dominicae ac Salutiferae
lucarnationis, Offa, rex Merciorum, in xxxii. anno regni sui concessit quandam
rui-is particulam, mansam scilicet unam, in uilla quam rui'icolae Bradeuuesse
appellant, monacbis sanctae INIariae Guigornensis Aecclesiae, cum testiimi
affirmatione et excommimicationum aduocatione. Eo uideUcet tenore iuris et
ampUtudinis, quo ipsemet babuit in tempore suae dominationis.
Egomet uero Offa, Diuinae dispensationis gi'atia Rex Merciorum, boc meum
donum affirmando propriis manibus sanctae Crucis signaculmn suppono. Ego
quoque Aldredus Subregulus Uuigornae ciuitatis haec eadem confirmo. Ego
etiani Eadberbt Episcopus baec eadem consiguo. Ego similiter Berbthun baec
eadem coritestor. *******
(1.) Da Sa waerou agaue fif bmidred wintra and nigan and bundeabtatig
wintra fram Cristes gebyi-tide Offa Kyning on ):am an and J;rittigan geare bis
kynedomes geul^e ane bide landes act Bradewassan into j^am Mynstre on
Wigrecestre j^am brotbi'an to bryce a on ece swa full and swa for<5 swa be seolf
haefde.
(2.) Ic Offa fiTU'b Cristes gyie ]\Ip-cena Kining (Sas mine geoue mid rode tacne
gefaestnige. Ic Aldred Wigracestres Undercining j^as ylce geoue gefaestnige.
Ic Eadberbt Bisceop j^as ylce Jjing gefaestnige. Ic Berbtim Sis ylce gefaest-
nige.
§ 266.
In the following, the forms iu Italics — i. e. the o and u in
sello and forgeofa — are really archaic. Whether, however, this
be due to dialect or to date is uncertain.
AETHELBEEHT, a.d. 8C3. {Xo. 288.)
In Nomine Trino Diuino Eegi regnanti in perpetuimi Domino Deo Sabaotli
cui patent cuncta penetralia cordis et corporis terrestria simul et celestia nee
non super etbera regnans in sedibus altis ima et alta omnia sua dicione gu-
bernans cuius amore et eternis premiis ego EtSelbearbt rex Occidentalium Saxo-
num nee non et Cantuariorum dabo et concede meo fideli miuistro et principi
nieo ESelredo aliquam partem terre iuris mei boc est viit. aratra in ilia loco
bubi nominatur Mersabam in sempiternum bereditatem sibi abendum etpossi-
dendum feUciterque in dies eius perfruendum post dies eius cuicumque : bei
u 2
292 CODEX DIPLOMATICUS
hcredi i>lacuerit derelinqnoudum liboram per omnia habeat potestatem citra
cainpis siliiis pratis pascuis aqiiis ueiiationibus j)ascuis j)orcoium simulque ;
mariscis et ciim omnibus utilitatibus rite ac recte ad eandem terram pertinen-
tibns hoc feci pro eius humili hoboedieutia simiilque pro eius placaiiili atque :
conpeteuti pecunia quam ab eo accepi hoc est cccc.tos mancusas aiu-i puris-
simi banc antom ternun supranomiuatam et JNIersaham ego ESelbearht Ilex ab
omui seniitute regali operis intus et foris magnis ac modicis uotis et iguotis
porcnuitcr liuerauo nisi Ms tantum ti-ibus caiisis hoc est expeditione et arcis
munitione pontisque constructioue et illud foras reddat quot siui intus faciendi
appetat bee autem terra prenominata his notissimis terminibus circumcin-
gitiir a meiitie et ab Occidente Stur usqne Blacani-itSe ab Aqiiilone et ab Oriente
Eadwealdes Bocland to brade human estque una semis arati-a ab Oriente Stiu'C
que iacet at confinium usque Gaiailfi Regis ministii to Mersaham et Meda be
eastanee sue Ser mid rialite to cSem lande limpa<5 unamque sabs coquinai'iam
hoc est .T. sealtemsteall et iSer cota to in ilia loco ubi nominatur Herewic et
.iiir. carris transductionem in silba Regis sex ebdomades a Die Pentecosten
hubi alteri homines silbam cedunt hoc est in regis communione hec sunt pascua
porcorum que nosti-a lingiia Saxhouica Denbera nominamus hoc est Husneah
E£re<5ingdemi Herbedingdenn Wafingdenn Widefingdenn Bleccingdenn nee non
5x. statera casei of mersce ad Mersaham reddatur et sl. agnos et xl. uellera oui-
um et duorum dierum refectio vel xxx. argenteis hoc est semiciun hbra redima-
tur hsi quis uero heredum successoiiunque meonim regimi pi-incipum ducimi
optimatum sine exactorum banc meam donationem seruare uoluerit seruetur ei
desuper benedictio sempiterna hsi autem absit quid non optamus ahcuius perso-
nis homo diabohca temeritate instigatus siuTexeiit qui banc meam donationem
vel Huertatem infiingere vel minuere aut in abut conbertere quam a nobis
constitutmn est temptauerit sciat se ante tribunal summi et eterni iudicis ratio-
nem esse reddituram nisi ante (hgna hsatisque placabili factione deo et homini-
bus emendare studuerit hacta est autem hec eadem donatio vel huertas in ilia
loco que uocitatur Bu-enefeld anno Dondnice Incai'nationem dccclsiii. uidic-
tione XI. testibus consentientibus et signo Sancte Crucis Christi coniirmantibus
quorum hie nomina infi-a ac in scedula patefacta Hquescunt.
Ic Eadwald seUo and forgeofit |?is lond et wifeles berge Agustines higum into
Mora beode minre sawle to are and to leedome and iow fer godes lufe bidde J^et
ge Mt minre sawle nyt gedeo and me Mt for gode leanie eow to ehnessum.
Amen.
§ 267. The next is suspiciously like the two grants of
Aethelbert's.
AETHELRED, a.d. 8G8. {Xo. 295.)
Regnante in pei-petumn Domino Deo nostro Omnipotenti Sabaoth, cui patent
cuncta penetraha cordis et corporis, teiTestria simul et coelestia, necnon super
aetlierea regnans in sedibus altissima et alta omnia sua dicione gubernans !
Cuius amore et aeternis j)raeniiis ego Ae^ered Rex Occidentahum Saxonimi nee
non et Cantuariorum, dabo et concede amico meo CuSuuhb Hi-ofensis Aeccle-
siae Episcopo, aliquam partem terrae imis mei, hoc est in duo loco, alia in ciui-
tate Dorobreuia, alia in aquilone ciuitate marisco et prata louge et lato alta et
aqueflua usque ad flumim modico et magno Meadouuege flumina uocatus. et
ueribracho et fi-etos circulo et cingivlo. Inciinunt pellati pirigfliat, et scipfliat
pausunt in flumine. Her sint jja gemtera o)j Miodowegan fram Doddingbyrnau
west andlanges sti-£ete . ut o\> weall and swa be noi-c5an wege ut oS Liabiuges
MYl SAXONICI. 293
cota . and swa be LiaLingos cotxim ots {^a^t se weall east sciat . and swa east binnan
wealle o{>|ja miclan gatan angitn Doddiiigliirnan . and swa tSanne su^an geriaht
fram tSa gatan andlanges weges be eastan Jji lande SU(5 oiS Doddingliyrnan .
jjanne be noriSnn wealle mers and mej^a . oiS mediwaggan sindan J^a gemsera.
Fram miadawegan binnan twam fliatnm tiala sint genemde . piiifiiat and scip-
fliot . i5a gesceadacS l^ajt land westan and eastan o<5 <58et weallfa^sten . jjus hit is
befangeu mid fi-iodome . amen . soS. Ego AecSered Rex haec omnia dabo et
concede CiicSuulfo meo dilecto fratre et Episcopo in sempiternam hereditatem,
sibi habendum et possidendimi fehciterque in dies eius j)erfruendum, et post
dies eius cuicunque ei herede placuerit ad derelinquendum, hberam ab omni
seruitute et regali subiectione hberrima, quam diu Christiana fides in terra
serbatur, aeternahtcr permaneat. Hoc ipsumque omnibus successoribus
nostris in nomine omnipotentis dei obserbare praecipimus. Et si quis hoc
serbare uoluerit, seruet eum Omnipotens Deus. Si qiiis uero per tiranicani
potestatem Mngere aut minuere uoluerit, sciat se maledictum esse a Christo,
nisi emendare boluerit deo et hominibus. Manente hac kartula in sua nichi-
lominus firmitate roborata. His testibus consentientibus quorum hie illic
nomina infrascripta sunt, et signo sanctae crucis corroborata.
Ego AeSered Rex confirmationem cum uexiUo Sanctae Crucis Christi corro-
borabi et subscripsi. Ego Alhfei-<5 Episcopus consensi et subscripsi. Ego
Heahmund Episcopus consensi et subscripsi. Ego Wulf here Dux consensi et
subscripsi. Ego Eadred Dux consensi et subscripsi. Ego Aelfstan Dux con-
sensi et subscripsi. Ego Uuigstan Dux consensi et subscripsi. Ego Aelfstan
Dux consensi et subscripsi. Ego Drihtuuald Dux consensi et subscripsi. Ego
Ecgbearht minister consensi et subscripsi. Ego BeorhtnoS minister consensi
et subscripsi. Ego Ordulf minister consensi et subscripsi. Ego Aesca minister
consensi et subsci'ipsi.
Actum est autem Anno ab Incarnatione Domini nostri Ihesu Christi
DCCCLXVIII.
§ 268. The following are given as specimens of the extent to
which the language and the date may differ. In that of Athel-
stau the language is mere Old English.
AELFRED, a.d. 871.* {Xo. 301.)
In Nomine Domini Ic Elfred Dux and Ethelred Archebiscop & \:o higen at
Cristes chericlie habbez vdse ared embe jset land at Chertham pet is {janne J^et
Elfred efter liis dage hauez bequej^e pet land at Chertham in to f^an liigen to
ogne eyte an gef Jjat sj- pet liigen jjas londes enj-e men unnen willen buteu em
seluen Jjanne sellen hi liit Elfredes biernen oj^er his meyn suitheu suo hi willet
an Jio yrede {^et he wiht hygen arede suo on fye suo on ferme suo hwader he
abidden mage and se archebiscop seUit Elfi,-ede j^et land a Croindune liis dages
to brukene and Jeanne Elfredes uorsith bitide)? and his biernes jjos londes be
Jjisne Jeanne begete hi hem laud gef lii mage at s^^'iche louerde suo J^er Jeanne
sy and at psm hygen And gef eni man agt opathe embe J^et lande at Cheiilie-
ham Jjaune haue)? Elfred yliialde here-ft'ynne hwer on eyhwet hi worde auriten
is hwam Imn seK hit j-fjauith to anwolde And {^at wes on bm-g yi-ed biuore
jjan wyten pe liii-e names hier binejjen awritene synden Ej^eked archebiscop
' Mr. Kemble refers this to the end of the 12th century, looking uijon it as a transla-
tion from some earlier A. S. original.
294- CODEX DIPLOMATICUS
Efjchvald Dux ElfrocI Dux Biornhclm Abot EavJwolf Abot Ccolmnnd Sywolf
Ktlmuud iS: hallo hyseii.
AETIIELRED OF WESSEX, a.d. 807-871. (Xo. 30-2. Ohclizcd.)
Reguaute inipcqietuum Domino Nostro Ihcsu Christo ! Rixicnde lu'e cMtte
Ilaloudc Crist . ich Atlicldred mid Godcs giuc Wcstsaxuc King mid leuc and
c{;catuughe mine tSare seloste wiotenc. Ich forgiue and scllo for me seKne
minro saulo to alosncsse miime iSam leueste and itreweste alderman Elfstanc
alohene idiil landes in Jjai'e istowe \>e is inemned be Chiselbiirne fif hide . him
to habeunc and to brukende on elche halue . j^at is {janue }jat it bie isien ii-e
of al ilvoncMcre and alder domelere jjiughe an ittitradenne an of elchene
Jiinghe butan fierde and angieldes. And het it acheliche fi'e )jiu-3rane habbe
suelcman suo alse ich it habbe gief donue huelman be segen jjat he j^is giue .
and sale ieche o$ mauifelde ■udlle iache him almioti god alle goode here for
wolde and liis igaste furch . agiue ]>a ache reste in <5am towai'de hue. If j^at
ihmpe j^at oui man Jjiu'ch deiiles lore and for {jcscs middelerdes idle {jinghe on
onui idale ihtel ojjer michel Jjis ibreke o};er iwanie wite he hine fi-am alle
leaifidle iune jjese iworlde asceaden and he des sel in domes deghe be foren
Crista rich agieldende bute he it are her on worlde mid richte ibete.
Dises landes freols was iwriten in j^are stowe )jat is inemned at Wiidegate
beforen J;ese wetene jje here namen her benejjen amerkede standen . Ajjelch-ed
rex. Ealfei-S episcopus. Healimund episcopus, etc.
WERFPiITH. {No. 327. Worcester sliire)
In Usses Dryhtnes Noman Haelendes Cristas ic UuerMiS biscop mid alles Sees
heoredes leafe on Weogornaceastre ge gunges ge aides seEe cyneswiSe minre
megan <5reora liida lond on alliinunding tiuie ^?es fif liida c5e higen me geboce-
dan aer on Sreora monna dneg Nil gewrite ic liit eft hii'e mid hina leafe <5get
iSreora hida lond on ^reora monna daeg and heo h£Ebbe Sa -vnidu-raeddenne in
iSfem ■^\'nda Se c5a ceorlas brucaS and ec ic liii'e lete to iSset ceorla gi-af to sim-
di-an and eUes tSret twega hida lond and ^a ceorlas and se alhmunding snaed
here into pi'eosda bpig Sa hwile hit unagaen seo ond eyneswiS hit to neengiim
o^riun men ne lete tSa hwile hit unagaen se bntun to hire bearna sumum swa
hweolcum swa heo ^onne wille gif heo Hfigen gif heo <5onne ne Ufigen lete
hit to sweolcnm hire mega swelce hit liii-e to geearnigan wille ond ic UuerfritS
Biscop biddii and halsigu* iSset *is <5reora hida lond and ec tSset twega €onne liit
agfen seo <5iet hit se agefen into clife to cSfem biscoprice butan eghweolcmn
witSei'cwide ond ec ic Uuerfii^ Biscop and all higen halsigaiS usse sefterfj-lgeud
^£et heora ncenig ^aet gefe gewonige aer liit swa aga^n se swa hit on ^issum ge-
write stondeS and all higen eodan to minum bure on weogorna ceastre and me
saldan heora hondsetene ^isse gercednesse <5ara noman her beneocSan a\\Titen
stondaiS and heo liit haebben eghwajs to fi-eon bvitun agefen elce gere &-eo
mittan hwaetes to ciricsceatte to clife.
AETHELSTAN. {No. 359. North Rklbuj of YorlcsMre. Olelized.)
jjat witen alle );at ener been,
};at jjis charter heren and seen,
J^at I ]>Q king Adelstan
Has yaten and giuen to seint lohn
Of Beuerlike, j^at sai I yow,
* See No. 288 iu p. 292.
JSVI SAXOmCL 295
Tol and tlieam, J^at wit ye now,
Sok and sake oner al \>at land
fjat es giuen into liis Land,
On euer ilke kinges dai-,
Be it all free {^an and ay ;
Be it almouseud, be all free
Wit like man and eeke wit mee.
J:at wil i be liim {^at me scop
Bot til an ercebiscop.
And til \)e seuen minstre prestes
l^at serues God ]peY saint lobn rested.
jpat giue i God and seint lohn
Her befor you euer ilkan.
All my herst com ineldeel
To uphald Ms minstre weell:
^a four)7reue be lieuen kinge
Of ilka plough of estriding.
If it swa betid, or swa gaas,
J:at aui man her again taas
Be he baron, be he erle,
Clark, prest, parson, or chcrel ;
Na be he ne pat ilk Gome
I -nill foi-saye J^at he come
(};at -ndt ye weel or and or)
Till saint lohn mynstre dor ;
And t^ar i will (swo Crist me red)
|;at he bet his misded.
Or he be cui-sed son on on
Wit al fiat seruis saint lohn.
Yif hit swa betid and swa es,
J^at ]pe man in mansing es :
I sai yow ouer fourti daghes,
(Swilk Jjan be sain lohn laghes)
):at ]:e chapitel of Beuerlike
Till pe scirif of Euermke
Send Jsair* writ son onan,
fiat {jis mansedmaji be tan.
l>e sciiTef J^an say i ye,
Witouten any wiit one me
Sal nimen him (swo Crist me red)
Ajad into my prison lede,
And bald him (Jpat is my wilt)
Til he bet liis misgilt.
If men reises newe laghes
In any of^er Idnges daghes,
-Be f^ay fromed, be j^ay yemed
Wit yham of the mjnistre demed,
]pe mercy of ye misdeed,
Gif i saint John, swo Crist me red,
* See § 290. 1.
29 G CODEX DIPLOMATICUS
Yif man be calcl of limes or lif
Or meu chalcngcs land in strif
Wit my bodlaik, wit writ of right,
Y wil saint lo^in liaue yc might.
jjat man )?ar for noglit light in fceld,
Now}3cr \\it staf no wit slioelcl :
Bot twoluc men wil i \)at it telle
Swa sal it be swo hear ibelle.
And he ]pat him swo werne may
Ouercomen be he euer and ay.
Als he in feld war ouercomen,
l^e crauantise of Ldm be nomen.
jjat yati God and saint lohn
Her befor iow and ener ilkon.
If man be foimden slan idiuiukend,
Sterued on saint lohn rite, his aghen men,
Wi};outen swike his aghen baihft's make ye sight,
Nan oyer coroner haue ]>e might :
Swa mikel fredom giue i ye,
Swa hert may tliink or eghe see.
Jrat bane i j^ought and forbiseen,
I will pat per euer been.
Samening and mynstre lif
Last foUike witouten stiif,
God help aUe {^as ilk men
f^at helpes to pe jsowen. Amen.
AETHELSTAN. (Xo. 360. North Eidlng of Yurhsliire. Obelized.)
Wyt all that es and es gan
)7at Hi. King Adelstan
As gyuen als frelich as I may
And to pe capitell of seint WiUrai,
Of my free deuotiou,
Jsair pees at Rippon
On ilke side pe kyrke a mile.
For aU ill deedes and ylke agyle,
And wij^tn J^air kirke yate
At l^e Stan j^at Grij^stole hate ;
Wijjia pe kii'ke dore and pe quare
{;ak* haue pees for les and mare.
Ukan of l^es stedes sal haue pees
Of fi-odmorteU and il deedes
l^at j^aii' don is, tol, tem,
With u'en and mth water deme ;
And jrat pe land of seint WiUi'ai
Of aUiyn geld fre sal be ay.
At na man at langes me to
In j^air Herpsac sal haue at do ;
And for ik will at j^a be saue
I will at j;ai alkyn freedom haue ;
iEVI SAXONIOI. 207
And in al }-iiiges be als free
As liert may tliynke or eygh may se,
At te power of a kuige
Masts make free any j'ynge.
And my seale haiie I sett {jerto,
For I will at na man it undo.
-S^DELSTAN, AprH 23rd, a.d. 939. {No. 1119. Obelized.)
In Godes names ! Icli J3<5elstau, God gyuing, Kyng welding eal Brytone,
mid alle mine wytene and alle Biscope of cSan Idnedome of Engelonde, gclad
by Se Pricingge of iSe Haly Goste, gi-antye and confirmye by <5isse miure
cbartre for me and for (5e kingges of Engelonde ^set come<5 a3fter me, ene and
euereich, tille Gode and sainta Marian, andsainte Michaele, sainte Sampsone
and sainte Branwaladre, .xx\d. liyde londes ret Muleburne, mid t5an isot
<5eret6 liS, and fif a)t Wonlonde, and J^reo atte Fr6mcmou<5e, atte j^le ^an Ye,
to on see and on on londe, c5a3t is to leggende set Ore, and {jreo at Clyue mid
tSare mede tajt <5eret6 liS, and {^reo and on half at Liscombe, and on set Burda-
lueston, and on at Litele Pudele, and flue at Cattesstoke, and .vi. at Comptone,
and to at Widecome, and .v. at Osmjaitone, and .vi. at Holewei-tSe, Sset is alles
seuene and sixty hyden into Middletone, and anne were on Auene at Twynbam,
and al tSset water binne sta^e of WaimouSe and half strym on ^an WajTnoucSe
out on see, and twelf acres to <San were and ^an werhurde, and }7re6 pegne
on SiiS-Sexan, and Salterne by were, and .xxx. liyden on Sidempitone to fos-
terland, and to at Clielmyntone, and six at Hylfelde, and .x. liyde at Ercecombe
to tymberlonde. And icb wolle <5a3t al <5is myn almeslonde mid al ?au ^set
hereto lit5 and fi'eo beo in alle j^inge and freo custumes, ^tet is for mine saule
helpe and for ^e lielpe of here sanlen cSjBt to fore me were and after me comen
schulle kynges of Engelonde, ^an minster tofore gesed of ISIiddeltone in rigte
clene almesse wnlle and gi-antye Saet hit beon al so freo in alle Isinge mid <5an
Sset iSerto liS in eche stede in Englonde in myne cynedome al swa myn ogen ore.
And ich stedeiiastliclie bote and bebeode in Gode almigties hege name, fader and
son and holy gost, ^ast Sis min wille and gifte and of c5is writ fastnynge unge-
wemmed beo, and ungewered, and ungewendelich, Se hwile cSget Christendom
dui'ecS in Sis gelonde Enghsckan. Oiu-e lourd God ahnigtig and alle his
halgen al Se ylc ho so liit beo c5a3t Sis my dede in 6<5ere wise hit buturne o^er
gewanye, oSer ho Soet euere beo, be hey ludan ieyve Christes traytoiu* on heUe
wytte pynende and on echenysse.
And Saet Sis sond beo and stedeuast euere boute ende, ich Se foresedcne
kyng ^Selstan Sis gewritene bocleof habbe gemerked mid Cristes holy rode
t6kne and min ogen honde mid Sisse gewitnesse of alle mine ge\V5'tene Sait
herafter gewTiten beo gefunden, and mid mine biscopes.
ALEGAR'S WILL, about a.d. 958. (No. 1222.)
In Nomine Domini ! Dis is J^lfgares quide ; Sat is erst. Sat ic an mine
louerd tueie swerde fetelsade, an[d] tueie bege ay^er of fifti mancusas goldes,
and pre stedes, an[dj \}i'e cheldes, an[d] pre spcren. And me kidde Deodred
biscop and Eadiick Alderman Sa ic selde mine louerd Sat swerd Sat Eadmund
king me selde on hund tuelftian mancusas goldes, and four pund silueres on
San fetels Sat ic mnste bien mine quides wrde. And ic nefre forwi-outh ne
habbe on Godes Avitnesse wyt mine louerd boten ic s6 mote. And ic an ASel-
298 CODEX DIPLOMATICUS
flode mine doiitlioi" Sat lonti at Cokcfcld and at Dittonc and <5at at Liicnlia'ii
ouor luino day ; and tSannc oner are alderne day ic an int lond at Cokefeld
16 Bi'driclios woi-cSo to suint Eadimmdes stowe. And ic willctSat J3Selflcd iinnc
oucr hire dai Se loudes at Ditton into sqiiilke halegen stowe squilk hii-e red-
likes l^inge for I'lro alder soulc, and oner liiire alder day ic an <5at lond at
Lauenlifiiiu mine douther cliilde, gif ^at God -wolle <5at heo ani hauet, Li'iteii
iEcSellled her wille Imu liis himues, and gif heo non hahbe, gauge into Stoke
for lire aldre soule. And ic an tSat lond at BablnngSeme iESelflcde mine
doucliter; and after liire day min oSer douchter liii-e day; and after here
b6i5ere day mine douchter berne, gif heo bern habbe ; and gif heo bern non
ne habbe, Sanue go it int6 seinte INIarie stowe at Berkinge, for ure alderne
s6ule. And ic an Sat lond at lUeyge mine genger douchter liire day ;
and ouer hii'e day Bei-cSnoiS his day, if he leng libbe Sanne he6; gif he
bern habben Sanne an ic it hem, gif he non ne habben Sanne an ic
hit yESeltiod mine douchter ouer here day ; and after hjTe day into Cristes
kyi'ke at Canterberi Sen hii'de to biyce. And Se lon[d] at Cohie and
at Tygan ic an min gingere douchter ; and ouer hire day, gif heo bern habbe
hu'e bern, and gif heo ne habbe bequeSe ic BernoSe hys day ; and ouer liis
day int6 Stoke for lire aldre soule. And ic an Sat lond at Piltendone and Sat
at Merseye into Stoke. And ic an Sat .3j^Selfled bruke Se lond Ser whyle Se
hire lef beS one raSan heo ic on riS helde and on Se red Sat heo do San
hirde s6 wel so heo best may into Stoke for mine soule and for lu-e aldre.
Ajid ic an Sat lond at Grenestede into Stoke for mine soule, and for .3LSel-
wardes, and for "WiswySen, and ic ^Seliied Sere brice wile liire lif beS on Se
red Sat heo do for Sat soule so wel so he best may. Nu his me God uSe and
min lauerd. And ic an Sat lond at Tidweldington ^Elfwold ouer mine day, Se
he fonnige ilke iliere Sen liii-d at Paules byri for ure aldi-e saule. And ic an
Sat lond at Catham BernoSen and mine gingere douchter here day ; and after
here day wende lond into Mereseie ^Selfled mine douchter. Aoid ic an Sat
■wudelond at Asfeldin to Stoke also Aylkil self it her bouchte. And ic [an] emin
m6der Sat londat Ryssebrok, gif heo leng liuid San ic; Sanne after unker boSer
day ic an it W;^Tielme, gif heo .S^Selfled on richte liirS. And ic wiUe bidden
siiilk louerd so Sanne beoS for Godes louen and for alle hise halegen, werken
min bern Sat w^orken, Sat he nefi-e ne mugen forwerken mine quide Se iic for
mine sonle queden habbe. And gif hit wo awende, habbe bun mS God gema^ne
and ^^-iS Se holi staus Se ic it to becueSen habbe, Sat he nefi-e ne bete buten on
heUe wyte so Sis quide awende, boteu ic meseluen wende er min endinge.
And ic JilSelgar an an hide loud Ses Se Mvli hauede be hundtuelti acren ateo
so he "^^Ule,
§ 269. The second of the pair which follows is a late transla-
tion of the first, and it gives us a notable amount of difi'erence.
The time, however, by which it was brought about it does not
give. What is the real date of the second ? What is the
evidence that the fii-st is as old as A.D. 958 ?
.^DEL\VEARD, A.D. 958. {No. 477.)
Dis is JiSelwyrdaJS cwide mid gej^aehte Odan J^rcebiscopaes and <Sees
hioreda:;s ait Cristees ciricau . Soet is Sonne Sa;t iESclwvrd brace Sa;s lauda:s
JEYI SAXONICI. 299
ou Geocliam liis dscg on freodome be Godes leafe and be ca3s ^rcebiscopces
and be ^ses heoredses ; Sonne yfta;r his daege Eadric, gif he libbe, his deeg,
wi<5 cSon gofole (5e liit gecwasden is, i^set sint .v. pund and ajlce gsere ane
dsegfeorme inliio-«aim, ^sst is iSonne .xr.. ssestra ealaS .lx. hlafa, weSser
and flicce, and an hriSres Ifeiiw, .11. cesas, .Tin. hsenfugulas, and .v. psenningas
to beSe : and <5is sio gelsest to Sancte Michaelces tide, and bio he selces wites
wyiiSe, and gif hwilc forwyrht man hiowan gessece bio se isingad swa hit
niedlic sio be Sees geltes mecSe. Gif hit Sonne gebserige cSaat .3Ec5el\\yrd Iseng
libbe Sonne Eadric, Sonne fo .^Selgyfu to, wiS San ilcan gofole Se hit hier be-
ufan gecwsedsen is, hu-e dfcg. Gif hit Sonne geberige Sast ^ESelwyixl Iteng
libbe Sonne Eacbic oSSe M^elgyiii and he Sa unajtnessa abidan seel, agefe
man land in yfter his dcege in mid him selfum for liine and foi-Sam Se him land
fram com.
Disaes is Oda sercebisscop gewita and Byrhtere msessepreost. Csenwig
msessepreost. Wealdred maissepreost. SigefreS diaconus. Osweald diaco-
nus. FreSegod diaconus. Sigered diaconus. Heared diaconus. Sired preost.
Byrhtmimd. Eadsige. Eadelm. Bp-htsige. ^Selm. Byrhtsige. IByrht-
wig. Liofric. Sielm. Wulfred. Ca3m-ic. Eadweard.
Disa3s wes gewita Eadelm abbod tot sancte Augustine and Byi-htsige diaco-
nus. Eorlebyi'ht msessex^reost. Bodin masssepreost. Bferhtram mtesse-
preost. Beornmund i)reost and Sa in. ^Ifstanas. -S^Selweald. Eadmund.
Wenelm. Cynsige. Eadric. Liofing. Eadsige. Wulfelm. SigefreS. Lio-
fric. Liofstan. Eadstan. Eadmund st4n Cyninges J^aegen. Byrht-
ric. Wilitgar. Wulfstan. and Sa in. geferscipas innan burhwara and utan
burhwara and micle maettan.
[Deos is] seo gerednaes Se Eadric haefS -wiS Sane hired to Cristes cirican,
Sset is Sonne Saet Each-ic gesealde Sam liii-ede to geriseniun .v. pund, twa Saem
peldaestum and Sreo eallum hii-ede, an Saet gerad Saet he hebbe land mid fulh-e
unnan aelde and gegeSe mid eallan San net^^-yrSan {jingum, lessan and maran
de to Ssem lande belimppa)? unbesprecaen wiS aeghwylcne lifes man.
-^DELWEARD. (A^o. 478.)
Dis is A^jelwirdes quyde mid Odes Archebiscopes and J?e hiredcs at Cristes-
chereche yrede J^et is {janne J^et A)3elwird bruke J^as londes ou Ycliam his day on
m-edome be godes j'laue and by pes archebiscopes and by j^es hirdes fianne
hefter his daye Eadrich gef he Hbbe hit bruke his day wiht {^en gauele pe liit
ycuejjen is . J^et sind . v. pund and eche gere enne dey ferme into j^an hi^en
Jjet liis {janne . xl sestres elejj . lx loues . wej^es and fliththe, and ane wel^ere-
shap . II cheses . iiii henfugeles . and v paneges to bef^e and j^is by ylest to
seyntes Michelestide . and by he eches wites worf^e and gef hwUche woworj^e
man {ja hygen hit ofsake be se j^inged suo hit me})lic sy by f^es geltes mefje
. gef hit jjanne yberege )jet Ej^elwird leng hbbe Jeanne Eadiich Jeanne fo E>el-
gife to wilit Jjan ylcke gauele j^e hier buuem yquef^en is hire dey . gef Iiit Jjanne
ybyi-ige J^et E^elwyrd leng hbbe fjanne Edrich of^er Ej^elgiue and he >o unnet-
nesse ybyde {janne ageue he land and hoc efter Iris dage in midliim seluen uor
hine and for }jo pe bun land lu-am com . J^ises is Ode Archebiscop . ywytnesse
and Brig-there messeprest and Jjo j^ri yuersliipes binne burg an bute J^et is al se
bird a Cristescheriche and Seynt AustjTies and at Seynt Gregories and manie
D]>ve yhodede and liauucde of binne burg and bute.
300 CODEX DIPLOMATICUS
After Alfred we have scarcely even an approximate date
until we reach the reign of Ethelred — under which come the
important writings of -^Ifric. In these we have the typical
Anglo-Saxon, which is connected with what precedes rather
than with what follows. Whether, however, the literary lan-
guage of this time be founded upon that of Alfred and (so
being founded) is older than the vernacular, or whether the
language of Alfred be adapted by transcribers to that of ^Ifric,
or, finally, whether the language was not actually stationary, so
that tlie existing copies of both ^Ifric or Alfred represent the
spoken tongue, is more than I can say.
The following charters are under Harold Harefoot's reign, the
rest from that of Edward the Confessor. They have, one and all,
a modern character. The varieties in the orthogi'aphy, for even the
older ones, are considerable. Of these we may safely say that —
Forms like geiurite are older than forms like geivritce;
Forms like Iieora are older than forms like heore ;
Forms like scyre are older than forms like shire, or sire ;
Forms like pegenas are older than forms like ]>eines.
The form cyninge and cyning is older than cynge or cyng :
the form cyng being older than kyng. In like manner cythe
( = notify) is older than kythe.
That statements like these may be generalized, and that it
may be laid down that the use of c is older than of h, and the
use of e final older than that of w, is nothing more than what
we expect cl prior i. Still, great caution is required in the in-
duction. In one of the documents (No. 896) as far, at least, as
the printed text is concerned, we have the three forms cyninge,
cyng, and kynges.
Another of these small tests is to be found in the form you,
=-vobis or vos. It is eow, eou, gau, ihu, &,c. How far these,
and the like of them, are matters of date or matters of dialect
is another question.
§ 270.
HAROLD HARANFOT, 1038. {No. 758.)
Her ky]} on ^ison gewrite >set Harold King . let be ridan Sandwic of Cristes
cjTcean liim sylfan to lianda . and liaefde liit liini wel neh twelf monaS . and
twegen liasringc timan swa j^eali fiillice . eall ongean Godes -nillan . and agen
ealra J^ara Halgena f^e restaS innon Cristes cyi'cean swa swa hit liim s}-S<5an
sorlilice {^ssrajfter agiode . and amanc {jisan si<5e wearS oslfstan Abbud . a3t Sancte
A . and begeat mid bis smeli wi-encan . and mid his golde . and seolfre eall
dp-niuiga 02t steorrau pa )ja wtes j^a^s lunges raidcsmann yxt Iiiui geweaiiS se
^vi SAXON icr. 301
Jji-itlda pcnig of ]ppeve tolne on Sandwic pa. gersedde Eadsige Avcebiscoop fra he {lis
vviste . and eall se liii-ed set Cristes cyrccan betweouan heom ]>xt man sende
selfgar munuc of Cristes cyrcean to harolde kiugce . and wa3s se King {labinnan
Oxanaforde swyjje geseocled . swa j^tet he Iseg orwenae his lifes . j^a wajs lyfingc
bisceop of Defenauscii-e . mid {jam Kincge . and pancred munuc mid him . j^a com
Cristes cyrcean sand to };am Bisceop . and he foi-S pa to j^am Kincge . and ^Elfgar
munuc mid liim . and Oswerd ait hergerdes ham . and pancred . and ssedon Jjam
Kinge . J^aet he hsefde swy^e agylt wi<S Crist pset he eefre sceolde niman senig
piiig . of Cristes cyrcean J^e his foragengceon dydon J^ider inn . seedon psun
kinge pa, embe Sand^\'ic psit liit wa!s liim to handa geriden . pa, laeg se King
and asweartode eall . mid [^are sage . and swor sj'l^jjan imder God ^Imihtine
and luider ealle Halgan J^arto J^aet hit nsefre uses . na liis rse'd na liis daed . j^aet
man sceolde aifre Sandwic don ut of Cristes cyrcean . pa wais soSUce gesyne.
jjast hit WcGs o<5ra manna gej^eaht uses na Haroldes Kinges . and so^Hce Jilfstanes
Abbodes reed waes mid {jam mamian pe hit of Cristes cyi'cean utgerseddon .
)3a sende Harold King ^Ifgar munuc agen to Jsam Arcebisceop Eadsige . and to
eallon Cristes cyrcean muuecan . and grette hig ealle Godes gi'etincge and his .
and het {^ajt hig sceoldan habban Sandwic mto Cristes cp-cean . swa fiill . and
swa foi-S swa hig liit oefi-e hsefdon on senies Kinges dcege . ge on gafole . ge on
streame . ge on strande . ge on vntun . ge on eallon {jam j^mgan pe hit eefre
senig king fyrmest hsefde set foran liim . pa MUsian Abbud . j^is ofaxode })a com
he to Eadsige Arcebisceop . and baed liine fultiunes to j^am hirode embe )jone .
jjriddan Jjenig . and lii begen {ja to eallon gebroj^ran and ba3don f^one hii-ed pset
selfstan abbud moste beon psds jjriddan peniges wurSe of fiaere tolne . and gyfan
>am hirede .x. pund . ac hy forwj^ndon heom ealle togajdere endemes . j^a^t
he hit na sceolde nsefre gebidan . and wses Jseah Eadsige Ai-cebisceop swiSor his
fultum fjone pses liii-edes . and fia he ne mihte na fori her mid f^a gjTrnde he
l^ajt he moste macian fornan gen mikbyjje seker senne liwerf wife >one wodan
to werianne . ac eall se liired him forwyrnde pses forS ut mid ealle . and se
arcebisceop eadsige let hit eall to lieora ageue reede . J^a geweai-S se abbud eelfstan
set . mid micelan fultmne . and let delfon set Hj'jjpeles fleote an mycel gedeK .
and wolde pffit scip ryne sceolde j^serinne licgean eall swa liig dydon on sandwic .
ac him na speow nan Jjingc }:feron . for jsam he swing* eall on idel pe swincS
ongean cristes willau . and se abbud let hit eall }jus . and se liii-ed fengc to
heora agenan . on godes gewdtnisse . and Sancta Marian and ealra j^ara Hal-
gena j^e restaS mnan Cristes cp-cean . and set Sancte Augustine . {^is is eall soS
gelyfe se pe wylle . na gebad ^Ifstan Abbud nsefre on nanan o}>re wisan )jone
)jriddan penig of Sandwic. Godes bletsimg si mid us eallon a on ecnysse.
Amen.
J5GELPJC, 1044. {Xo. 773.)
Her swutelaiS on j^isum ge^\a-ite embe jsa forewp-d pe ^gelric worlite wiS
Eadsige Arcebisceop set para lande fet Cert . |;e CeolnoS Arcebisceop gebohte set
hselejjan )7am [^egene mid liis agenan sceatte . and A};eluf Cing hit gebocode
Ceolnofje Arcebisceope on ece yrfe . )jis synd jsa^nne f^a forcwyrd {^ait ^gekic
hffibbe }.aet land ajt cert his dasg . and tefter his dnege ga ^ajnne f^ast land J:jam
Arcebisceope Eadsige on hand . swa gegodod swa heom bam gerisan mage . and
sy«San heora begra dseg agan si . ^gclrices and psis Arcebisceopes Eadsiges .
psmne ga j^is foresprecene land into Cristes Cyricean mid mete and mid mannan
eal swa hit stande . for ^gelrices sawle . and for Eadsiges Arcebisceopes . };am
godes l^eowan to festrc . and to scrude . {jc Jpa'riune godes lof dreogan sceolan
S02 CODEX DIPLOMATICUS
dfieges and nilitos . and a^gclric gifc5 j^a laudboe ];e ]:XYto gobyre<5 on his life
oriste . and l^ani liirede him to eccro «hnessan . and bruce ajgeMc . and esbearn
his suuu Jjara ()<5ra Lin(hi heora twegra da-g to pam ilcan fore^vp'dan )je segelnocS
arcebisceop and a?geh-ic a3r geworhtan . j^a-t is Stuling . and Melentun . and
se haga binnan port j^e ^Egeb-ic himsylfan getimbrod hasfde . and ajfter heora
twegra dtege fo se Arcebisceop Eadsige fra^rto . gyf he long libbe )?nsniie hi. ocSSe
loc hwa his fefter gencga {^ajnne beo . butan stun heora freonda pa. land fui'l^or on
]}{BS Arcebisceopes gemede ofganmage . to rilitan gafole . oSSeto o)?ran forewyr-
dan . swa hit man l^senne findan mage wiiS {jone Arcebisceop J^e Jeanne Ubbe . and
) iscs is to gemtnesse Eadweai-d Cyncg . and J^lfgyfu seo Hlsefdige . and ^Lf-
wine Bisceop . and Stigand Bisceop . and Goclwine Bisceop . and Godric Deca-
nus . and ealse liii'ed fet Cristes cyricean . and Wxilii-ic Abbud . and eal se
hired jet Sancte Augustine . and iElfwine xVbbud . and Siweard Abbud . and
Wulfno^ Abbud . and Godwine Eorl . and Leofi-icEorl . and AtsurKoda . and
^Ifstan steallaere . and Eadrnter set Burhham . and Godiic tet Bm-nan . and
J^Kuine se reada . and m^nig man jsserto eacan ge gehadude ge l^wede . bin-
nan bm-gan and butan . and gif £enig man on uferan dagan gehadud oiScSe
liEwede {jisne cn^de wille awendan . awende liiaie god selmihtig hi-sedlice of jrisan
lasnan hfe into helle wite . and Jjjer a wunige mid eallan f;am deoflan J^e seo laS-
lice wunung bet^eht is . buton he )je deoppor hit gebete aer his ende . vn.^ Crist
sylfne and wicS ]pone hired. Nu synd l^issa gewrita j^reo . an is innan Cristes
c^Ticean . and o};er a^t sancte augustine . and };a;t j^ridde heefS J^geMc mid
himsyKan.
The same, in a later form : —
Hyer swotelez on t isen pvrite embe tSo forewerde ^e M^elvich. wToji:e vry^
Eadsi<5e archebiscop at ^au londe at Cherth <5e ChehioiS archebiscoj) bo^te at
HeleSen ^au J^egne mid his ogene sheatte and JUSeluf kjTig hit ybokede Ceol-
nocS archebiscoppe on eche yrue. Dis sind <5anne <5e forewerde <5et iE<5elrich
habbe iSat lond -xt Chert his dey ; and efter his dage go ^et land <5an archebis-
sope EadsiSe an hand swo ygoded swo hem bam yrisen mage ; an sitSSen liire
beyre dei 4gon si JS^ekiches and ^as archebiscopes E4dsi<5es, <5anne go <Sis
uorespekene land into Christes cheriche mid mete and mid mannen alswo hit
stondecS for iE^ehiSes saule and for EadsiSes archebiscoppes San gode Jseuweu
to uostre and to scriide Se Serinue Godes lof J^reugon shulle dages and nigtes ;
and iEcSelrich gift <5e landboc ie Serto j'bei^S on his lyue Criste and tSan hii'de
him to echcher elmesse, and briike iE<5eli-i<5 and Esbarn his sime <5are oSre
londe here tueyre dey to San ilcke uorewerde Se ^SelnoS archebiscop and
^Selrich er ywrogten, Sat is Stu tinge and Meletime and se haSe binne port
Se JilSehich hi in self ytymbrcd hauede ; and efter Im-e twejTe dage no se
archebiscop EadsiSe Serto gef he leng libbe Sanne hi oSer hwo is efter guigie
Saune by, bute sum of hj^re frende Set lond furSer on Sas archebiscoppes ymede
ofgon mage to rigten gauole, oSer to oSre uorewerde swo hit man Sanne uinden
mage m^ Sane archebiscop Set Sanne libbe. And Sisses is to y^dSnesse, Ead-
ward king, and J^lfgiue si leuedi, and .<Elfwine Biscop, and Stigand Biscop.
and Goduyne Biscop and Godrich decan, and al se liired at Chi-istes cheriche
and WolfriS abot, and al se hyrd at seynt Austines, and manie abottes and
hierles, and mauie oSre men j'hodede an[d] liawede binne burg and bute. And
gef eni man on ure dagen yhoded oSer Hawed Sisue quyde wiUe [awendan],
awende liine God ahnigti raShSe of Sise leue into helle wite, and Se a wonie mid
alle Siin deulen Ser si lodliche wouiinge is bitagt, bute he Se dipper liit ybete
^VI SAXONICI. SO 3
('■r his cnde ■\n<S Christ selfne and md Save liird. Nu siud ?ise yrite j^rie ; on
is at Cliristes chericho, 6<5er at sejoit Austiue, and cSct J^ridde aue^e ^<5eliich
mid himselue.
BRIHTM.ER, 1053. {Xo. 799.)
Hyer swotelen on <5isen ymite embe c5o uore\yerde iSe BriSmer at Gerscheriche
urogto wyS Stigant Arcliebiscop, and wiS Godrich €aue den, and wy^ alle <5au
liyred at Clmstes cheriche at Cautwai'beiy, iet is Sanne Set he I'ltSe Christe
into Christes cheriche dane homstal cSet he on set, and ake halegene cheriche
efter liis dage and efter Eiidgefan his ybedden and efter his childi-ene dage
Eiidmeres and iESelwjTies, swo hi hit alSer best j'godeden uor hire saule
alesednesse, and swo <5et ge hjTed sholde wji;en <5et se {sendom ne adeswen <5e
into Siii'e cheriche belimpe hene ne atfalle al be iSan Se si cheriche were ygoded.
Hyerto bye<5 ywiSuesse Lyefstau portyreue and biscop, and EylwjTie stikehare,
and manie otSre cSas J^eyne binne biu'g and bate.
EADWEAPtD. (Xo. 827. Hertfordshire)
Eadward King gi-et EadnoS Bisceop and Beorn Eorll and alle mine ^egnes
on Hertfordesire frendlice ; and ic kySe eow Sat ic habbe gifen Ciist and sainte
Petre into Westminstre Sat land at Aldenham, mid sace and mid socne, mid
toll and mid team, and infangeneSef, swa full and swa forS swa Sihtric eorll of
San minstre {jeowlic it lieold and atforen witnisse mid halra ti'xnge iElfrice San
abbod and San gebroSaren upp betahte, and swa swa hit stod Oi-dbrilit abbot
on liande into San minstre behoue and be Kenwlfes kinges dagen. and swa swa
Eadgar king on his writ Siderin it gefestne. And ic neEe naScswon geda-
fian Sat Ster any man any onstiug Sarofer habbe on anyg fmgan oSSe on any
timen buton se abbod and Sa monecas to sainte Peti'es neode. God eow
gehelde and sainte Petres holde. Amen.
EADWEARD, 1066. {Xo. 828. Kent.)
Eadward King gi-et Eadsi Arcebiscop and Godwine Biscop on Eowcestre and
Leofwine eorll on Kente and Esgar staUere and Koberd Wjonarche sune
stallere and alle mine {jegnes on Keute fi-endlic. Ic cySe eow Sat ic wille Sat
Sast cotlif Leosne Se Atsere ahte and beqneS Crist and sainte Petre into West-
minstre liggenon Siderinne to Sera monece foden mid aUen Sare J^ngen Sat
Sarto herS on wode and on felde, on made and on yde and watere, and on
alle oSere j^nge scotfre and gaulfre, on schire and on hundrede, swa fuU fre and
swa foi-S swa he it sainte Petre beqnaS and ice Ses fullice geiiSe. And ic
nelle naSeswon geSafian Sat Ser any man any onsting habbe on 4ni };ngun
oSSe on any tymen buten se abbod and Sa gebroSere to Sas minsh'es niSwr-
Slicre );earfe. And ice an Sat sainte Petre habbe ofer Sam saca and socne,
toll and team, infangeneSef and alle oSere rielite Sa to me belimj)aS. God
eow^ gehelde and sainte Petres holde. iVmen.
EAD^\T3APtD. {Xo. 832. Suffolk.)
Eadward Kyng gret Grimketel Bisscop, and ^Ifwine, and JFAMc, and alle
mine j^egnes on SiiSfolc frendlike ; and ic kiSe ihu Sat ic wille Sat Sat lond
at ]\IUdenlia]e, and Sa nigend half hundred socne into Dinghowe lige into
seint Eadmuude mid sake and mid sokne, so ful and so forSe so it mine moder
on hande istod, and ic neUe Jjafien Sat liom ani man abrede aui Sere J hi^e Sat
ic hem her uSe.
so A CODEX DIPLOMATICUS
EADWEARD. {No. 834. Somerset.)
Eadward Kj^ige gi-et Harold Eorl, and iEgelno* Abbod, and Godw'jai
schcrrue, and alle myncs j^frgcnes on Somerset fi'eondlich ; and ich cui5e bow
iSat icb wolle «at Gyso bisscbop werie now biss lond also liis forgenge aforen
bvm er dude, and ich nolle su«*en i5at man bym eny imlawe beode.
EADWEARD. (No. 838. Somerset.)
Eadward Iving grvt Hai'old Erl, and Ayln6<5 Abbot, and God-ndne, and ealle
mine ^^eiues on Smnerseten frendlicbe ; icb que^e eon *aet icb -wille Sfet Gyse
iscop beo isisses biscopricbes -wr^e beeiinne mid eou. And alcli tSare |?uige
Se *as ^ar mid ricbte togebyi-a* biiinan ports and butan, mid saca and mid
socna, swo iiol and swo noi-S swo liit eni biscop him touoren formest haue<5 on
ealle j^ing. And ich bidde eou aUe ^set ge him beon on fultome Cristendom
tosprekene 16c whar liit \)ari sy and eower fiiltumes be<5urfe eal swo ich
getrowwen So eow habben Sat ge him on fiiltume beon willen. And gif what
sy mid imlage out of <San biscopriche geydon, sy bit londe 6<5er an otSSer \>mge
?av fulstan liim nor minan luuen tSast hit in ongeyn cume swo swo gefor Gode
witen Sat hat richt sy. God eu ealle gehealde.
The same in Latin.
Eadwardus Rex Haroldo comiti, Ailnodo Abbati, Godwino, et omnibus baUiius
suis Sumersetae, salutem ! Significamus nobis nos uelle quod episcopus Giso
ej)iscopatum apud uos possideat cum omnibus dictum episcopatum in uilhs et
extra de iure contingentibus, cum saca et socna, adeo plene et libere per omnia
sicut ullus episcopormn praedecessorum suormn unquam babebat. Rogamus
etiam uos ut coadiutores ipsius esse uelitis ad fidem praedicandam et chris-
tianitatem sustinendam pro loca et tempore, sicut de nobis fideliter confidimus
uos ueUe id ipsum. Et si quid de dicto episcopatu sine in ten-is siue in aliis
rebus conti*a iustitiam fuorit sublatum, adiuuetis eum pro amore nostro ad
restitutionem prout iustum fuerit babendam. Conseruet uos dominus.
EADWEARD. {No. 839. Somerset.)
Eadward King gret Harold Erl, and Touid, minne sch^re refen, and alle
mine f^emes inne Somersfeten frendlicbe ; and ich ke<5e eii <5at Alfred hauet
j^seld Gise biscop bis land at Hlj'tton sacleas and clrene toforen me siluen set
Peddi'cdan, on mine ittitnesse and on Eadi?e mine ibidden and on Haroldes
ferles and on manegTa oSra manna Se mid me Ste'r waren. Nu wil ich Sat se
biscop beo Sas londes worSe mto his biscopriche Se he under honde hauet, and
alch Sare J'inge Sas Se Sarto mid i-ichte gebyi'aS, mid saca and mid socna, swo
ful and swo fui"S swo hit fe'nige biscoppe fonnest on honde stodon tellen f^ingan.
And gyi Sar sy anni j^ing out gedon Sas Se S4s mittbyrS ich beode Sat man
hit lete in ongean comen, Stet non oSer ne sy.
The same in Latin.
Eadwardus Rex Haroldo Comiti, Touid Uicecomiti, et omnibus balliuis suis
Sumersfetse, salutem ! Sciatis qiiod .3ilku"edus uendidit Gisoni episcopo terram
suam de Lutton paciiice et quiete ; teste mcipso coram nobis apud PeiTet. et
testibus EadiSa coniuge nostra, Haroldo comite, et multis aliis qui ima nobis-
iEVI SAXONICI. 305
cum illic aderant. Uolumiis quoqiie quod idem episcopus terram illam cum
omnibus pertiuentiis habeat cum episcopatu quem possidet, et saca et socna
itaplenc sicut unquam aliquis episcoponim praedecessorum suorum in omnibus
habuit. Et si quid iude contra iustitiam fuciit sublatum, rogamus ut reuert-
tetur ; nee aliter liat.
EADWEARD. {No. 8G7. Herefonhldre.)
Eadward Kyng gret iElrod Eurl, and Havald Eurl, and alleliis undurlj'nges
in Herefordeshii-e frendlicb ; and I do gowe to understonden feat I wolle feat
fee prestes in Hereforde at seint ^feelbert ministre feat feey haue euere soke
and sake ouere alle lieore men and alle lieore londes wifeynue boui-ghe and
wifeoute, so fuUe and so foi-fe so feey formest liadde ynne alle {jynges ; and iclio
bidde yowe alle feat ye ben to hem fauerable and lielpynge ouere alle, wlier'
feat feey haue to doone for Goddes loue and for myne.
lluhrie. Haec est translatio cartae Regis Eadwardi in lingua Saxonica
translata in linguam Anglicanam de diuersis priuilegiis et libertatibus aeccle-
siae cathedralis Herefordensis per praefatum regem concessis, scilicet de
socka et sacka, cuius sigillum coopertum est cum panno serico diuersi coloris.
Et haec est scriptura sigilli sancti Eadwardi ' Sigillum Eadwardi Anglorum
Basiley.'
TJie same in Latin.
Eadwardus Rex saluto Ealdredum Episcopum, et Haroldum Comitem, et
omnes meos ministros in Herefordensi comitatu amicabiliter ; et ego notifico
uobis quod ego uolo quod presbyteri Herefordenses apud sancti ^feelberti
monasterium quod ipsi sint de eormn sacha et eormn socha hberi supra
eorum terras et supra eoruni homines, infra burgum et extra, tam plene et tarn
plane sicvit ipsi jprius habuerunt in omnibus rebus. Et ego praecipio uobis
omnibus quod uos sitis eis in adiutoriiun ubicunque sicubi ipsi depauperantur
pro Dei amore et jti'O meo.
EADWEARD. {No. 868. East AncjUa)
Eadward King gret jElfric Biscop, and alle mine jjeynes on Norfolc and on
SufFolc frendlike ; and ic ki¥e ihu feat ic wdlle feat Uui abbot be fees mmstres
wirde at seynt Eadmundes biri, and alle Jjinge fee feerto birefe on lande and on
sake and on sokne and on alle fringe, so ful and so forfe so it firmest feider iiine
lay ; and ic wille feat se freols stonde into feat minstre unaweut fee Cnut Idng
feiderinne ufee, and sifeen Hardcnut kjnig mine brofeer, and ic nelle feat efre
&ui bisscop ani {^iug him feer on a ateo.
The next is decidedly modern.
EADWEARD. {No. 899.)
Iche Edouard Kingc haue geuen
Of my foiTeste the keepinge
Of the hundred of Chehnar and dansinge
To Randolfe Peperkinge and to his IdnUng
With harte and hinde dooe and bokke
Hare and fox Catt and Brooke
Wylde foule with his flocke
Partrich fesaunt hen and fesant cocke
With greue and wyld stob and slock
X
300 CODEX DIPLOMATICUS
To kepeu and to yemen by all her might
Both by dale and eke by uight
And houndos for to honldc .
Gode and swj'fte and bolde .
Foure gi'cy houndes and vi. racches .
For hare and foxe and M'ild cattes
And therof I make him my book
"Wittnes the bnsshop Wolston
And book j-lered many one
And Sweyne of Essex oiu' brother.
And leken to him many other
And om- Steward HoweljTi
That besought mee for him.
EiD^\^ARD. {No. y04.)
Eadwardus Rex "SMf^^do episcopo, Tosti coniiti, Normanno nicecomiti, et
omnibus fidelibus suis et ministi'is, clericis et laicis, de comitatu Hamptoniae
salutem I Notum" nobis facio quod ' JElfwinus abbas de Ramesia et Leofricus
abbas de Burgo notificaueiimt mihi pactionem et commutationem quam habita
collocutione inter se fecerimt. Uolo itaque ut uos intelligatis quod JSKwinus
abbas de Ramesia hoc modo accej)it de Leofi'ico abbate Biu'gi nouem uirgatas
terrae apud Lodinglon de soca sancti Petri nommatim, scihcet liidam Hun-
tingi, duas uii'gatas Godrici Dani, uhgatam Brandi, uii'gatam Leofgari et
uhgatam ^Ifwini nigii, in pleuam commutationem contra omnes homines
nunc et perpetuo liberas et quietas. Et pro his dedit praefato abbati de Burch
totam terram quam sanctus Benedictus habuit apud Marham hberam ab omni
calumnia et quietam in plenam commutationem. Ipse insuper abbas et fi-ati"es
Ramesieuses singulis annis dabimt de charitate abbati et fratribus Biu-gi quatuor
millia anguillariun in quadragesima sub tali mdehcet conditione quod abbas et
frati'es de Ramesia habebimt in territorio sancti Petri de Bm-ch quantum sibi
oi)us fuerit de lapidibus quadratilibus apud Bernech et de petris murahbus apud
Biu'ch in plena oambitioue ; erunt qxioque omni tempore liberi a telonii et omni-
um exactionum uexatione i)er aquam et per terram. Notificauerunt quoque mihi
quodhaec compositio facta fiiit inter eos sub testimonio Leofsii abbatis de Ely et
Wlfgeti abbatis Croilandiae et eorum qui cum ipsis jn^aesentes athierimt. Ita-
que uolo uos scire quod .351fv\'inus abbas ita mecum locutus est et tantiun milii
de suo dedit quod ego hanc conuentionem concessi ; et uolo ut firmiter stet
semj)er sicut inter se prolocuti sunt ad laudem et honorem dei et sanctae
Maiiae sanctiqiie Benedict! tam moderno tempore quam futiu'o. JNIando
igitui' et praecipio ut nullus omnino nee clericus nee laicus hanc commuta-
tionem et pactionem infringere audeat. Prohibeo quoque super plenam foris-
factiu'am meam ne ullus homo tam audax sit ut aliquod grauamen aut uiimiam
inferat hominibus sancti Benedict! neque rebus eorum, sed pacem dei et meam
habeant ipsi et omnia quae ipsorum svmt aut enmt ubique in aqua et terra.
Mando j)raeterea et praecipio per hoc sciiptum meum ut termini et metae in
Kinges deKe ita pennaneant sicut abbas JLlfiAdnus Ramesiae eas du-ationauit
conti'a Siwardum abbatem Dorneiensem sub testimonio Leofsii abbatis de Ely
et Leofric! abbatis de Bm-ch et "\Mfgeti Abbatis CroUandiae et eorum qui cum
ipsis placito interfuerunt ; ex parte scilicet orientaU ipsius nauigii uel ladae
usque ad locum qui dicitiu- Gangestede, et exinde ui parte occidental! ab
Hundeslake usque ad Wenlesmere et medietas de Kanliereholt. Qnicunque
MY I SAXONICI. 807
ergo lianc conucntioiicm eorum in aliqua re temerare uel immiimere prae-
sumpserit separatus sit ille a gaudio coelesti, nisi antequam hie morieus
recedat, delictum suum congrue emendauerit. Amen. Haec carta facta fuit
apud Westminster in festo sancti Petri, teste Stigando archiepiscopo, Eadwino
abbate, Haroldo comite, Esgaro stalere, et Hugelino cubiciilario.
E4dward king gret wel Wulfwi biscop, and Tosti eorl, and NorSman shirre-
fen, and al his mten and al his holden in Hamtonschire haded and leawed
frendlike ; and ik ki<Shen eow tSset ^li'win abbot of Rameseie and Leoi'iic
abbot of Biu'gh habben me gebid of cSset wharfe and of Sast foreward <5set he
habben gespeldn and gedon hem bitwenen, feset ik wille Stet ghe understanden
Sast TElfwyne abbot of Rameseie on c5is wise haued gewharued at Leofric abbot
of Burgh .IX. gherde landes at Ludingtone of seint Petres sokne lande of
Burgh, Himtinges hide by name, and Goderiches twa gherde <5e Denske, and
Brandes gherde, and Leofgares gherde, and Jilfvvynes gherde ^e blake, sker
and saldes to ful wharf mts euerik man, ar dagh and after dagh : and haued
ghiuen lum <5cs fore <50et hind at IMarham al cSret sejnt Benet iSer aght sker and
sakles wii euerik man to ful ^^•harf ; and to eken c5is c5e abbot and <5e broSern of
Rameseie shulne ghiuen ilke glier foure );ousend eol in lenton to carite to Se
abbot and c5e broSren into Burg, t(3 <5aire forwart <5at Se abbot and c5e broSren of
Ramesej-e shulen habben of seint Petres landare were stan at Bernak and wal
stkn at Bm-gh als mikel suui hem byhoued to ful forward sker and sakles wi<S
tol and wits al j^ing bi watre and by lande into Rameseye auere mare, and he
habben me gekiS <Sa)t cSis forward was maked on Leofsis abbotes witnesse of
Ely and Wlfgetes abbotes of Cruland and of ^es men Sat mid hem weren. Nii
ki<5en ik wou Sat ^Ifwyn abbot haued swa wiiS me s]5oken and of liis me
gliiuen c5at ili habbe <5is ilk forward ighetud ; and ik wil Sat it stande als\^■a he
hit gespeken habbet God to loue and saiute Maiie and saiut BenecUctus auere
mare, wiS borene and wiS unborene. And ik hate and beode Sat no man ne
woi-Se s-na doerste ne suua dirst^' Sat Sis ilk wharf and Sis ilk forward breke,
haded ne leawed ; and ik forbeode bi fuUe wite Sat no man ne ^vr6 swa dirsti
Sat seint Beueites meine ne her Jjiug nawher ne deruen, ac Godes griS and
min habben heo and here I^ing bi watre and by land. And ik hate and beode
mid Sis ilk writ Sat Sat ilk merk and mere after Cnoutes deKe kynges stande
alsw& J51f^^•ine abbot of Rameseye it bitolde wiS Siward abbot Dorneye al bi
Gangestode bi Se est half Se delf and Se west haK bi Hinde lake swa onan t6
Wendlesmere and hah RaSeresholt into Rameseye on Leofsies abbotes witte-
nesse of Ely, and on Leofrices abbot of Bm-gh, and Wlgetes abbot of Criiland,
and ?aii-e mon tet hem mid weren. And if aui man Sis ilk forwai'd mid aui
jjing breke and awansige so be heo simdred fram heuenerikes mei-Sen, buten
he liit ibete ar he heSeu wende. Amen. Dis writ was maked at Westminstre
on seiut Petres masdai on Stigandes mttenesse ercebiscop, and Eadwiues
abbot, and Haroldes eorles, and Esgares stalleres, and Hugelines bourSeines.
Istis terminis praefati monasterii rura cncumcincta clarescunt. Limites
terrae de Wmchendon. This beth the .x. hide londe imere into Winchendon.
Erest of AshuUefes well into Beridyke ; of the dyke on Hundrede trwe ; of
the trwe in twam more ; of the more into the heuelonde ; of the heueionde
into twam well yrythie ; of the rytliie into Bichenbroke ; of that broke into
Tame-streme ; andlauge Tame-streme to Ebbeslade ; of the slade to Merewell ;
fro Merewell to Rugslawe ; fro the lawe to the foule putte ; fro the putte to
Rusbroke; fro Rusbroke to Wottesbroke; fro Wottesbroke into Ashulfes well.
X .2
308 CODEX DIPLOMATICTTS ^VI SAXONICI.
De Wihtluill. Thave belli .tu. liide londcymere into Withnll. That is fro
old Hensislade ofre the chff into stony londy wey ; fro the wey into tlie long
lowe ; fi-o the lowe into the Port-stvete ; fro the strete into Charewell ; so aftu*
strem till it sluitt eft into Hensislade. De Bolles, Couele, et Hedpidon.
Thave beth hide londeymere into Conelee. Fro Charwell brigge andlong the
streme on that ritlie ling croft ; endlong rithes estward to that
Cometh to otlier shct up norward to the furlonges heued ; fro the haued
estward into Merehutlie ; fro the huthe into the bro
into Deneacre ; fro the acre into the ockmere ; fro that mere fro
Restell into broke ; fro the broke into Charwell de Cudeslawe.
Thare beth .11. hyde londymere into Cudeslawe. Erest of Portstrete into TrUli-
welle ; fro the welle into rithe ; fi'o to Byshoioes more ; fi.'o the
more into Wyneleslade into the slade into Wjnieles hull ; fro the
liulle on hyme. De L rii S. Frideswide. This i^riuilege was
idith in Hetlingtou iiiyu owne mynster in Oxenford. There seint
Frideswide alle that fi-edome that any fre mynstre fi-elubest
mid sake and mid socna, mid tol and mid teme, and with of
Hedington, and of all the londe that therto be and in felde and aUe
other thinge and ryth that y belyueth and byd us for qviike and dede,
and alle other alle other bemiyfeyt, and alle other thinge that ther
Scripta fuit haec scedula iussu praefati regis in uilla regia,
quae .... appellatur, die octau arum beati Andi'eae apostoli hiis consen-
tientibus p . . . . qui subtus uotati uidentiu".
§ 271. Here end the extracts, for the reign of Edward
the Confessor ; of which it may be said that the date gives
us a limit on one side onl}'. The charters in question are
not older tlian the reign of Edward ; many being (spite of the
date) younger.
The name of Stigand, the archbishop, is of ahnost equal im-
portance with that of the king. Yet how much the orthogra-
phies, at least, differ. In one charter (No. 820) there is a final
ce. In one of Wulfwold's (No. 821) we have the shorter form
cinge (with no k) ; in No. 822, the fuller form cyninge. In No.
836 we have the shorter form cing ; but the fuller forms scyre,
and ^egenas — sJiire and thanes. This is in a Charter of
Edward's. In another of Edward's, No. 850, we have no final
ccj, no 7c, but cing, Ipeines, and siref en =1 shire-reeves z^ sheriffs.
Sometimes we have cylpe — make known ; sometimes ky]>e. As a
general rule, the Anglo-Saxon letter was c, the Danish k : j^et it
would scarcely be safe, without a wider induction, to say that the
use of h was a sign of Danish influence : whilst, if it were, it
would be a fact in the history of our spelling rather than a fact
in the history of our language.
§ 272. Even if the philologue delegate the question to the
palaeographer the matter becomes but a little clearer — if at all.
EXTRACT FROM A. S. CHRONICLE. 309
All that the palaeographer can say is, that such a MS. is older
than another. He has no MS. of which he knows the exact
time and date to begin with. Argue as he may he is always
in danger of arguing in a circle. I should add, however, that
upon this point I speak with unfeigned diffidence, and that I
most unwillingly differ from many high and sound authorities.
Still, I hold that the whole mass of our data for the chronolo-
gical history of our language requires more criticism than it has
met with. Most inquirers in the matter of MSS. endorse tie
opinion of AYanley — the " good judge of the age of manuscripts."
Yet what was Wanley's primwni mobile — ttov (ttw ? One MS.
has the express statement that Dunstan signed it. Even if this
be true, what is its value as a rule for earlier ones ? What if the
fact be (though probable) doubtful ? It is surely easy to copy a
statement that N. or M. did so-and-so. Who knows Dunstan's
handwriting? Individually, I am not satisfied with the dates
given to the A. S. manuscripts, ^vhen they pretend to extreme
nicety and when they serve as the bases for future inquiries.
On the contrary, I believe that any form of Anglo-Saxon pro-
fessing to be older than the reign of Edgar — for I look upon
Dunstan as a landmark — requires special proof This means
that the ordinary, literary, or (if w^e choose to call it so) the
classical, Anglo-Saxon represents, there or thereabouts, the Anglo-
Saxon of Edgar's and Ethelred's reign. What uncertainty pre-
vails immediately before, and immediately after, has been already
indicated.
§ 273. Another landmark appears about the middle of the
twelfth century ; a landmark supplied by the A nglo-Saxon
Chronicle; upon the age of which something has already been
written. The following is from the end of it — for it ends with
the death of Stephen.
A,.D. 1137. Dis gaere for j^e king Steplme ofers£e to Normandi, and {jer wes
imderfangen, forc^i jjset M wenden {^set lie scnlde ben alsiiic alse ]>e eom wes, and
for he liadde get his tresor. Ac he to deld it and scatered sotlice. Micel hadde
Henri king gadered gold and syluer, and na god ne dide me for liis saule fjar
of. Da jje king Stephne to Englaland com, )ja macod he his gadering fet
Oxeneford, and \>ax he nam \>e biscop Roger of Seresberi, and Alexander
biscop of Liucohi, and te canceler Roger liise neues, and dide jelle in prisun,
til hi iafen up here castles. Da ]:& siiikes luidergaston {jfet he mUde man was
and softe and god, and na justise ne dide, )3a diden hi alle ^^1lnder. Hi hadden
hitn manred maked and acfes siioren, ac hi nan treu^e ne heolden, alle he
wferon forsworeu, and here treoiSes forloren; for asuric rice man liis castles
makede and aga?nes him heolden, and fjkleu )>& land full of castles. Hi
8 1 0 EXTRACT FROM A. S. CHRONICLE.
suencten siiicSc {^e wrecce men of {je laud mid castel-weorces ; jja }:e castles
varcn maked, Jja fyldou lii mid deoulcs and yucle men. Da namen hi j^a men
\;e hi wendcn Y^t ani god hcfden, ba<5e be nihtes and be da;ies, cavlmeu and
wunmen, and diden licom in prisnn efter gold and syluer, and pined heom un-
tcllendlico joining, for ne wteren nsenre nan martjTS swa pined alse lu waeron.
Me henged up hi \>e fet and smoked heom mid ful smoke, me henged bi \je
Jjmnbes, 0(5er bi )je hefed, and hengen brj-niges on her fet. Me dide cnotted
strenges abuton here hseued, and uiu-y^en to Jiaet it gsede to pe hsernes. Hi
diden heom in quarterne ]par nadi-es and snakes and pades wgeron inne, and
drai)en heom swa. Simie hi diden in crucet lius, J^aet is in an ceste {jset was
scort and nareu, and undep, and dide scaerpe stanes J^er inne, and )7rengde ]>3
man J^ser inne, f>iet hi braecon aEe ]jq limes. In mani of Jse castles wreron lof and
gi-i, Jjset wseron (?) rachenteges J^jet twa ocSer Jjre men hadden onoh to bseron onne :
Jjffit was swa maced jsset is faestned to an heom, and diden an scaerp ii'en abuton
jsa mannes J^rote and liis hals, jjxt he ne milite nowiderwaixles ne sitten, ne
lien, ne slepen ; oc breron al pset iren. Mani Jjusen lii drapeu mid hungajr. I
ne canne, and ne mai tellen alle jjb wundes, ne alls ]>e pines {^set hi diden
•m:ecce men on his land, and j^aet lastede Jja xix. -ndntre wile Stephne was king,
and seure it was uuerse and iiuerse. Hi lieiden gseildes on Jje tunes seureu wile,
and clepeden it (?) tenserie, J^a pe wrecce men ne hadden nan more to giiien, fja
rffiueden hi and brendon alle l^e tunes, J^set wel Jju milites faren all adaeis fare
sculdest }3U neui'e finden man m time sittende, ne land tiled. Da was corn
diere, and flee, and caese, and butere, for nan ne wass o j^e land. "Wrecce men
stm'uen of himgaer, sume ieden on aelmes \>e waren simi wile rice men, sum
flugen ut of lande. Wes nasui'e gaet mare ^^^.•eccehed on land, ne naenre
heSen men werse ne diden pun hi cUden, for ouer siSon ne for-baren hi nou^er
circe, ne cyrce-iaerd, oc nam al pe god Jjtet jjar iime was, and brenden syden pe
cyrce and altegaedere. Ne hi ne forbaren biscopes land, ne abbotes, ne preostes,
ac ragueden muneces, and clerekes, and aem-ic man o<Ser pe ouer myhte. Gif
twa men oSer pve coman ridend to an tun, al pe tiinscipe flugsen for heom, wen-
den jjffit hi wasron raeueres. De biscopes and lered men heom cm'sede aeure,
oc was heom naht par of, for hi wffiron aU forcm-saed and forsuoren and for
loren. Was sae me tUede : pe er^e ne bar nan corn, for pe land was aU for-don
mid suilce dfedes, and lii saeden openUce ^a^t Crist slep, and his halechen.
Suilc and mare Jjanne we cunnen sa?in, we {^oleuden xis. wintre for lu'e sinnes.
On al }jis yuele tune heold jNIartin abbot his abbotrice xx. ^^'inter and half gaer
and VIII. dfeis, mid micel suiuc, and faud pe munekes, and te gestes al J^aet
heom behoued, and heold mycel carited in the hus, and JjoS we<5ere wrohte on
pe circe and sette j^ar to landes and rentes, and goded it suySe and laet it refen ;
and brohte heom into pe newae mynstre on S. Petres maessed£ei mid micel
wurtscipe, J>aet was anno ab iucarnatione Dom. mcxl. a combustione loci xxiii.
And he for to Rome and psex wses wtel imderfangen fi-am j^e Pape Eugenie, and
begst thare priuilegies, an of alle pe landes of jj'abbot-rice, and an o^er of pe
landes j^e Hen to pe circcMdcan, and gif he leng moste liuen, alse he mint to
don of pe horderwj'can. And he begaet in landes Jjast rice men hefden mid
strengthe, of AVillelm Malduit pe heold Rogingham pie castel, he wan Coting-
ham and Estun, and of Hugo of Walcuile he wan H}-rtIingb, and Stanewig,
and Lx. sol' of Alde^^ingle aelc gaer. And he makede manie munekes. and
plantede winiaerd, and makede manie weorkes, and wende pe tun betere
jjan it isv wajs, and waes god munec and god man, and foiisi hi luueden God
and gode men.
J
EXTRACT FllOM A. S. CHRONICLE. 311
Nu we willeii ssgen sum del wat belanip on Stephne kingcs time. On liis
time the Judeiis of Norwic boliton an Ciisteu cild beforen Estren, and pineden
liim alle jse ilce pining Jja^t ure Driliten was pined, and on langfVid*i liini on
rode hengen for me Drilitnes luue, and sj-^en byricdcn him. Wenden Jjiet it
sciilde ben forholen, oc ure Drihtin atywede {jict he was hali martyr, and to
munekes him namen, and bebyried him heglice, in ie mynstre, and he nialcet
)3ur ure Drihtin wunderhce and manifieldhce miracles, and hatte he S. Willelm.
An. MCXXX. viii. On )7is ga^r com Dauid long of Scotland mid ormete
foerd to }jis land, wolde winnan )jis land, and liim com togsenes Willelm, eorl
of Albamar, \>e jse king adde beteht Euorwie, and to o'Ser seuez men mid faen
men and fuliten wid heom, and flemden \:e king set te Standard, and slogen
suiSe micel of liis genge.
An. MCXL. On {:is gier wolde pe king Stephne taicen Eodbert eorl of Glou-
cestre, jpe kinges sune Henries, ac he ne mihte for he wart it war. Da efter hi Jje
lengten j^estrede );e sumie and te d;ici abuton nontid daiies )ja men eten J^ast me
lihtede candles to feten bi, and j^a^t was XIII. k April, waaron men suide of
wundred. Der efter ford-feordc Willehn, J*^rcebiscop of Cantwar-bA'rig, and te
king makede Teobald JSrccbiscop. jie was abbot in j^e Bee. Der efter wajx
suide micel uuerre betujrx )je king and Randolf eorl of Caestre noht for'Si Jj^t
he ne iaf liim al feet he cuiSe axen him, alse he dide alle oSi-e, oc asfre j;e mai'e
iaf heom J^e wferse hi wajron him. De eorl heold Lincol againes \:e king and
benam liim al psit he ahte to hauen, and te king for J^ider and bessette him, and
liis broker Willelm de II . . . . are in \>e castel, and te eorl stajl ut and ferde
efter Rodbert, eorl of Gloucestre, and brolit him \)u\eY mid micel fei'd, and
fuliten swiSe on Candclmassedaii ageiies heore lauerd, and namen him,
for his men him suyken and flugfen, and Ised liim to Bristowe, and diden p&v
in prisun, and . . . teres. Da was all Engieland stp-ed mar f^an fer wses,
and aU yuel wses in lande. Der efter com pe kinges doliter Heni'ies \>e hefde
ben Emperic on Alamame, and nu wses cuntesse in Angou, and com to Liin-
dene, and te Lundenissce folc hii-e wolde tsecen and scae fleh, and forles j^as
micel. Der efter J;e biscop of Wincestre Henii, ]:e kinges broiSer Stephnes,
spac wad Rodbert eorl and wid j^'emperice and swor heom a<5as jjfet he neure
ma mid te king his bro<5er wolde lialden, and ciu'sede halle \>e men ]pe mid liim
hcolden, and sasde heom pxt he wolde iiuen heom up Wincestre, and dide
heom cumen {^ider. Da hi jjfer inne wneren pa com J^e Idnges cuen . . . liire
strengcSe and besret heom, pist per wjbs nine micel hunggsr. Da lii ne leng ne
miiliten {solen, pa stali hi ut and flugen, and M ^^a^rc5eu war mSuten and fole-
cheden heom, and namen Rodbert eorl of Gloucesti'e and ledden him to Roue-
cestre, and diden him J;are in prisun, and te empeiice fleh into an mjTistre.
Da feorden Sa wise men bet^^'y-x, J^e kinges freond and te eorles freond, and sseht-
lede sua J^set me sculde leten ut pe long of prisun for pe eorl, and te eorl for pe
king, and sua diden. SiSen ^er efter ssetlileden l^e king and Randolf eorl at Stan-
ford and aSes sworen and treucSes fasston jsset her noii'Ser sculde besuiken o'Ser,
and ic ne forstod naht, for pe kiug him si£en nam in Hamtun, jjurhe wicci
rsed, and dide him in prisun, and efsones he let him ut jpiu-he wa;rse red to
{set forewarde >aet he suo)- on halidom, and gysles fand, {jastlie alle liis castles
scnlde iiuen up. Sume he iaf up and sume ne iaf he noht, and dide paime
Wferse iSanne he lifer sculde. Da was Engieland suide todeled, sume helden
mid te king, and siune mid fj'emperice, for j^a pe king was in prisim, f^a wenden
l^e eorles and te rice men }-jet he neure mare sculde cumme ut, and seelitleden
812 EXTRACT FROM A. S. CHRONICLE.
■wytl {j'emperico, aiid broliten lui'c iuto Oxcnford, and iauen hire \>o biu'cli.
Ba *e king was iite, ]>a herde jjget s£Egen, and toe liis feord and bestet hire
in )je tur, and me lajt hire dim on niht of jjo tin- mid rapes, and seal nt
and scfe fleh and irede on fote to Walingford. Deer efter scse ferde ofer sa3,
and hi of Normandi wcnden alle fra jje king to jje eorl of Angjeu, smne here
|;ankcs and sunie here unjjankes, for he besajt heom til hi aiauen up here
castles, and hi nan helpe ne luiefden of the king. Da ferde Eustace {jc
kingcs sune to France, and nam pe Iduges suster of France to wife,
wende to bigseton Normandi )j?er jjurh, oc he spedd leitel, and be godc
rilite, for he was an jiiel man, for ware se he . ... dide mare yuel
} anue god, he reuede };e landes and l«ide mic s on, he brolite
liis wif to Engle-land, and dide hire in \>e caste teb, god
■wimman scse wses, oc scse hedde litel blisse mid him, and christ ne wolde pset
he sculde lange rixan, and waerd ded and his moder beien, and te eorl of
AngfBU wferd ded, and liis sune Hemi toe to J^e rice. And te cuen of France
todielde fi-a f^e king, and sere com to J^e iunge eorl Henri, and he toe hire to
■\\-iue, and al Peitou mid hii-e. Da ferde he mid micel ffei'd into Engle-
land, and wan castles, and te king ferde agenes him micel mare ferd, and
{;oSwie|;ere futen hi nolit, oc ferden pe JSrcebiscop and te wise men betwux
heom, and makede ) fet rahte j fct te king sculde ben lauerd and king wile he
huede, and tefter his dsei ware Henri king, and he helde liim for fader and he
liim for sune, and sib and ssehte sculde ben betwyx heom and on al Engle-land.
Dis and te c<5re foruuardes J^et hi makeden suoren to balden j^e king and te
eorl, and te biscop, and te eorles, and ricemen alle. Da was l>e eorl underfangen
set Wincestre and fet Lundene mid micel wui'tscipe, and aUe diden liim mani-ed,
and suoren fje j)ais to balden, and liit ward sone suide god pais sua f^set neure
was here. Da was i5e king strengere Jeanne he aeuert her was, and te eorl ferde
oner ste, and al folc him luuede, for he dide god justise and makede pais.
§ 27^- Though this passes for part and parcel of the A. S.
Chronicle, it looks much more like the fragment of a Homily
inserted into it. Be this, however, as it may, it is a landmark,
inasmuch as it gives us a limit in one direction. It is no earlier
than Henry II. Yet it is older in language than many of the
Charters attributed to the Confessor.
Here, however, as in so maoy other cases, the question of
time or stage is complicated by that of place, or dialect ; inas-
much as the part of the Chronicle under notice is held upon fair
grounds to have been written at Peterborough. It gives us —
T. The, used as the definite article without respect to Gender,
Number, or Case.
2. The omission of the prefix ge in all past participles except
one ; that one -being gehaten = hight = called; a word, which
in the Northumbrian dialects, retained its initial after all, or
nearly all, of its congeners had lost it.
It, also, gives us other new forms besides. It is decidedly
Anglo-Saxon ratlier than Old English ; and it is, as decidedly',
LAYAMON. 8 1 3
Anglo-Saxon of the times subsequent to the Norman Conquest.
Such, indeed, as a matter of course, are all the notices in the
Chronicle, of which it is a part, for the years subsequent to A.D.
1066 — the date of tlie battle of Hastings.
The extract, then, just given along with the parts which pre-
cede it is our second great landmark. Around it we may group
— and this is all we can do — the following : —
1. Those Charters, which are shown by their language to be
as old as the eleventh and twelfth centuries, and by their matter
to be as new.
2. A poem known as the Rhymivg poetn ; which its rhymes
make new, its language old.
3. (?) An alliterative poem, which, though fi-agmentary, is of
great and gloomy power, known as The Grave.
These are truly what is called Semi-Saxon rather than Old Eng-
lish ; and constitute the older subsection of the section so named.
§ 275, Then come two well-known poems Layainon and Or-
Tnulum, of which all that can be safely said is that they are
later than the notice of the reign of Stephen, and earlier than
that of Henry III.
Layamon is found in two forms : —
1. 1
Bladiif hadde ene siiue, Bladud hadde oue sone,
Leir was ihaten ; Lek was ihote,
Efter his fader daie, After liis fader lie held Jjis loud,
He heold jsis drihlice loud, " lu his oweue houd,
Souaed an his live, Haste his hf-dages,
Sixti ^^inter. Sixti winter.
He makade ane riche bnrli. He makede on riche borli,
(jurh radfulle his crafte, jrorh wisemenne reade,
And he heo lette nemueu. And liine lette nemui,
Efter him seolvau ; After liim seolve ;
Kaer-Leir hehte f^e burh. Kair-Leh- hehte j^e borh.
Leof heo wes }jan kinge. Leof he was \>an kinge ;
{ja we, an lu'e leod-quide, ^e we, on lu'e speche,
Leir-chestre clej)iad, Lejj-chestre cleopie):,
Geare a f^an holde dawou. In |jan eolde daiye.
Transhition literal.
2. 2.
Bladud had a son, Bladud had a son,
Lear was hight ; Lear was liiglit
After his father's days After his father he held the laud
He held his liege laud In his own hand
Together on (through) his life, Through his hfe-days
Sixty winters. Sixty muters.
He made a rich borough He made a rich borough
oil LAYAMON, ETC.
Tlirougli his M-isc craft, Through wise men's counsel,
And lie it let name And he let it name
After himself. After himself.
Caer Lear hight the burgh. Caer Lear hight the borough.
Dear was it to the king. Dear was it to the king.
Which we on our language Wliich we, on our sj)eech,
Leicester call Leicester call
Of 3'ore on the old days. In the old days.
§ 27G. In tlie Ormulum (which is generally looked upon as,
more or less, Danish — though without good reason) there is
the same omission of the prefix ge as in tlie Chronicle. There
is also the use of the forms in th for the plural of he — e. g.
the55r = their =W. S. heora. There is also the use of the for
the definite article : also that of aren-are for synd, or syndon.
§ 277. The Proclamation of Henry III. — This is our next
landmark. It w^as delivered soon after the battle of Lewes,
A.D. 1258, and passes for the earliest specimen of English, and
runs thus : —
Henry, thm'g Godes fultome. King on Engleneloande, Ihoaurd on Yr-
loaud, Duke on Normand, on Acquitain, Eorl on Anjou, send I greting, to alia
hise liolde, ilserde & ilewerde on Huntingdonscliiere.
That mten ge well alle, thset we willen & unnen thaet ure roedesmen alle
other, the moare del of heom, thae beoth ichosen thm-g us and thui'g thset
loandes-folk on ui-e Kuneriche, habbith idon, and schiillen don, in the worth-
nes of God, and ure threo\\'the, for the freme of the loande, thurg the besigte
of than toforen iseide raedesmen, beo stedfeest and ilestinde in alle thinge
abutan sende, and we lieaten alle ure treowe, in the treowthe thset heo us ogen,
thet heo stede-feslhche healden & weren to healden & to swerien the isetnesses,
thet beon makede and beo to maiden, thurg than toforen iseide reedesmen,
other thurg the moare del of heom alswo, alse hit is before iseide. And thet
tehcother helpe thet for to done bitham ilche other, aganes alle men in alle
thet heo ogt for to done, and to foangen. And noau ne of mine loande, ne of
egetewhere, thiu-g this besigte, muge beon ilet other iwersed on oaiewise. And
gif oni ether onie cumen her ongenes, we willen & beaten, tlioet alle lu-e treowe
heom healden deadJichistan. And for thset we willen thset this beo stcedfast
and lestinde, we senden gew this writ open, iseined with ure seel, to halden
amanges gew ine liord. Witnese usselven set Lundeen, thsene egetetenthe day
on the monthe of Octobr, in the two and fowertigtlie geare of lu'e crunning.
In Modern Emjlisli.
Henry, through God's support, Kng of England, Lord of Lreland, Duke of
Normandy, of Acquitain, Earl of Anjou, sends gi'eeting, to all his subjects,
learned and imlearned (i. e. clergy and laity) of Huntingdonshii-e. This
know ye well all, that we vnW and gi-ant, what om* counsellors or the more
part of them, that be chosen through us and through the land-folk of our
PROCLAMATION OF HENRY III. 315
kingcToin, have done, and sliall do, to the honour of God, and our allegiance,
for the good of the land, through the determination of those before-said coun-
sellors, be stedfast and permanent in all things without end, and we enjoin all
oiu' heges, by the allegiance that they thus owe, that they stedfastly hold and
swear to hold and to maintain the ordinances that be made, and be to be made
through the before-said counsellors, or through the more part of them also, as
it is before said, and that each other help that for to do by them each other,
against aU men, in all that they ought for to do, and to j)romote. And none
either of my land nor of elsewhere, through this business, may be impeded or
damaged in any way. And if any man or any woman coiueth them against,
we will and enjoin that aU our lieges them hold deadly foes. And for that we
will that this be stedfast and lastmg, we send you this writ open, sealed with
our seal, to keep amongst you in store. Witness ourself at London, the
eighteenth day of the month of October, in the two and fortieth year of our
crowning.
§ 278. After the battle of Lewes our dates improve, and
we begin with the times of Robert of Gloucester and his suc-
cessors— the history, both of our literature and our language,
being continuous. Enough, however, has been said to show the
great extent to which definite dates and precise localities are
wanted. Of Layainon and the Ormulum, however, all has not
been said that we must say. They will re-appear when the
details of the English dialects come under notice. The question
of stages is the one now before us. It has been said that, in a
definite and minute way, there is much concerning them which
we have yet to work out : and so it is. This, however, only
applies to the question of date and place. How long were
certain changes in being brought about ? Are they really and
purely changes of the same language and the same dialect ? Are
not some of them points of dialect rather than development ? Are
not others points of spelling rather than language ? Such scep-
ticism as has been suggested applies only to questions of this kind.
§ 279. Of the actual changes we know both the principle
and the details — at any rate, we know them to a great extent.
Inflections were lost. Prepositions and (to a certain extent)
auxiliary verbs, and the like, replaced them. The great repertory
for the details of all these are Dr. Guest's papers in the Trans-
actions of the Philological Society ; papers which we may hope
will be republished as a separate monograph. How far such
changes as took place were accelerated by the Norman Conquest
is another question.
§ 280. So is that of the value of the terms Semi-Saxon, Old
English, and the like. We get them by classifying according to
type — by type rather than definition. They run into each other.
3] 6 EXTRACT FROM HALLAM.
Still by taking the centres of groups, and arranging other forms
round them, we get a rough approximation. The following is
fi-om Mr. Hallam.
" Notliing can be more difficult, except by an arbitrary line, than to deter-
mine the commencement of the English language : not so much, as in those
on the Continent, because we are in want of materials, but rather £i-om an op-
posite reason, the possibihty of showiug a very gi-adual succession of verbal
changes that ended in a cliauge of denomination. We should probably ex-
perience a similar difficulty, if we knew equally well the cui'rent idiom of
France or Italy in the seventh and eighth centuries. For when we compare
the earliest English of the thu'teenth centuiy with the Anglo-Saxon of the
twelfth, it seems hard to pronounce why it should pass for a separate lan-
guage, rather than a modification or simphfication of the foimer. We must
conform, however, to usage, and say that the Anglo-Saxon was converted into
English : — 1. By contracting and. othermse modifj-ing the pronunciation and
orthogi-aphy of words. 2. By emitting many inflections, especially of the
noim, and consequently making more use of articles and auxiliaries. 3. By
the introduction of French derivatives. 4. By using less inversion and ellip-
sis, especially in poetry. Of these, the second alone. I think, can be con-
sidered as sufficient to describe a new fonn of language, and tliis was brought
about so gi'adually, that we are not relieved from much of our difficulty, as to
whether some compositions shall pass for the latest offspiing of the mother, or
the earlier fruits of the daughter's fertility. It is a j)roof of this difficulty,
that the best masters of oiu* ancient language have lately introduced the word
Semi- Saxon, which is to cover everything from a.d. 1150 to a.d. 1250." —
Chap, i., 417.
§ 28]. It only remains to speak of Anglo-Saxon Laws.
They begin with Ine and end with Edward the Confessor. The
criticism that applied to the Charters applies to the Laws also.
The differences of date by no means give us a difference of
language.
CHAPTER lY.
ON THE DIALECTS OF THE ANGLO- SAXOX. THE WEST-SAXON.
THE NORTHLnMBRIAN. THE GLOSSES OF THE EUSHWORTH
GOSPELS. THE DURHAM GOSPELS. THE RITUAL. THE RUTH-
WELL CROSS. THE COTTON PSALTER.
§ 282. The points of difference between the "West-Saxon
and the Northumbrian, the two extreme dialects of the Anglo-
Saxon, upon which we must most particularly concentrate our
attention, are the following : —
1. The details connected with the demonstrative pronoun ;
remembering that out of it has grown what is called the pro-
NORTHUMBRIAN AND WEST-SAXON DIALECTS OF THE A. S. 317
noun of the tliird person, as well as the definite article — Ite, heo,
hit — se, seo — pcet, ]>eir, fa, fe ; or, in the present language, he, it
— she — that, they, the —
2. The oblique cases in -n ; like steorran, tungan, &c. —
8. The Plurals in -an (munec-an), as contrasted with those
in -as {munec-as = monks) —
4. The infinitives ; observing whether they end in -an or -a —
5. The first person singular ; observing v/hether it ends in -e
or -0 —
6. The second person singular ; observing whether it ends in
-is or -ist —
7. The three persons of the plural ; observing whether they
end in -J? or -s —
8. The forms signifying am, art, is, are, be, was, Szc. —
9. The form of the participle; whether it begins with, or
without, ge- or y
These require attention, because it is in respect to these that
the two typical forms of the Anglo-Saxon chiefly differ from
each other. Some characterize the West-Saxon ; some the
Northumbrian form of speech.
1 . The West-Saxon article is se, seo, Tpod = 6, rj, to in Greek,
and like the Greek 6, r], ro, it consists of one word for the mascu-
line and feminine genders of the nominative case, and another
for the neuter and the oblique cases. Thus ])one=Tov ; ])C(ire=:
TTjs, TTj ; }pdin = T(p ; pees = rov ; j)ara = rcov. In other
words, the definite pronoun was used as an article, and its
inflection was a full one ; — consisting chiefly in forms of the
root p-, but also in se and seo. Meanwhile, the inflection of
Jie was he, heo, hit ; heo being used where we use she ; and she,
itself being from seo, the definite article of the West-Saxons.
Thirdly ; the West-Saxon equivalents to they, them, and their,
were hi, him, heora, plurals of he.
2, 3. The West-Saxon genitive of steorra=star, was steorr-
an. The nominative plural was also steorr-an.
4. The West-Saxon infinitives ended in -an, as liifi-an=Iove.
All this indicates a liking for terminations in -n.
5. The first person singular of the present indicative ended in
-e ; as ic boern-e^I burn.
6. The second person singular ended in es-t.
7. The plural was lui boern-a]), gi boern-a]), hi boern-a]),^^::^
lue, ye, they burn.
8. Where ive say, we are, ye are, they are, the West Saxons
SIS ANGLO-SAXON DIALECTS.
said, ivl syndon, gi syndon, Id syndon, or (later) loi synd, gi
synd, hi synd. This is the German seyn — a word wholly
wanting to the present English.
9. The W. S. prefixed ge- to the past participle ; as gelufod
^ loved.
The West-Saxon belonged to the South, the North-
umbrian to the North of our Island. The names alone tell us
this. The fact, however, is anything but an unimportant one.
In the first place it induces us to ask, where are the dialects of
the intervening districts, the East-Anglian of SuflTolk and
Norfolk, and the Mercian of Northampton and Derby ? To this
the answer is unsatisfactory. Few samples of them are known ;
and, even in the few we have, there is none in which a West-
Saxon influence is not discernible. Again, it shows that the
assumption of any real difierence between the Angle and the
Saxon, as an explanation of any differences between the West-
Saxon and the Northumbrian is gratuitous. The dialects in
question differ as the dialects of two geographical extremes.
Again — the provincial dialects of the present time can be
shown to graduate into each other — at least, to a great extent.
This is because we have specimens from nearly every county.
For the Anglo-Saxon dialects we have a great gap.
§ 283. Premising that Northuinhrian means North of the
Huinher, and that (so doing) it includes Yorkshire, I draw atten-
tion to the fragmentary or rudimentary character of the class
denoted by the term. Compared with the West-Saxon, in respect
to its literature, it is little more than a local dialect. Indeed its
extant literature, in the higher sense of the word, is nil. It
consists, if we limit ourselves to the records of which the time
and place are ascertained, and the translation is satisfactory, to
little more than three sets of glosses, and one inscription.
§ 28 -i. ] . The Glosses of the Ruslnuovth Gospels. — The Glosses
on the Rushworth Gosj^els are referred by Wanley, whose opinion
is adopted by llr. Garnett, to the end of the ninth, or to the
beginning of the tenth century. This, however, is by no means
certain. The place at which, at least, a portion of them was
written seems to have been Harwood, in Wharfdale. If so,
they give us the most southern sample of the division to which
they belong. The names of the writers are known. There
were two — one of them being named Farmenn. He it is who
describes himself as a priest at Harawuda. The first jiart of
the interlineation is his, and it is remarkable that the Northum-
NORTHUMBRIAN.
310
Liiaii character is less marked in Farmenn's part tlian it is in
his coadjutor's : whose name was Owen — a British designation.
The first of the following specimens is from Mr. Garnett's paper
on the Languages and Dialects of the British Islands; the
peculiar forms being in Italics : the second fi-om Bouterwek's
Screadunga, pp. 31—33.
1.
Bushworth Gospels. Hatton Gospels.
John, chap. iv. John, cliap. iv.
jjset forjjon [j^e hselencl] ongsett Da se Hselend ^^dste }j£et )3a Phari-
[fjsette] //(herclon }p& aide wearas jjaette sei gehyrden, {^et he haefdeema {sic)
the hael[ond] monige tliegnas wp'ceth leorning enilita jjonne Johannes })eah
and fulwatli fjonne loh' [annes] : {\>e1i se Hselend ne fiillode ac hys leoruing
\>e, r swa he, \)e hssY ne fulwade ah cnihtas. Da forlet he Judea laud and
l^egnas liis :) forleort Judeam eor]po
and foerde- &i(ev sona in Galileam.
WSBS gi daefendlic wutudr[ice] hme
for eft on Gahlea, hym ge byrode Jjast
he seolde faran })Ui"h Samaria land
Wicelice he com on Samarian cestre,
Jjsette of [er] foerde \>erh tlia bui-ig [Sa- Jje ys ge ncmneth Sichar, neah fiam
maria]. com for}. on in tha casstre Sa-
mar', Jjto is (//cweden Sichar, neh ]}(er
lyriy Jjsette salde Jacob Josepes siino
his waes wutudl' ther wsella Jacobes.
The hfel' for};on woerig wses of
gonge, sitende wses, and sset, swa ofer
)38em ivaila : tid waes swelce Yio sexta.
tune }>e Jacob sealde Josej)e hys sune.
])fer wajs Jacobes wylle. Se Hselend
sffit a3t \>-A. weUe, }ja he wses weri gegan
and hyt wses middayg. Da com {jier
an wif of Samaria wolde water fecca.
Da cwseS se Haelend to hyre, " Gyf
me di-incan." Hys leorning cnilites
wif [com] of thcer hyrig to hladanne ferdon {^a to j^are ceasti-e woldon heom
)3fet wneter, cwaeth Irim \ie hfel' ; sel me mete beggen. Da cwaj^ ]>dii Samari-
drinca. Jjegnas wutudl'. foerdun in tanisse wyf to hym, " Hu mete bydst
ccesfcre j^aette mete hohtun him. cwseth
f'thon to him |;Eet wif \iio Samarita-
nesca, hu thu Judesc mitli thy ar]>
drincende from me giowes tu jja {^e
mith thy wif 's [sie ?] Samaritanesc ?
ne for jjon gihji'elic bij? Judea to Sa-
maritanisciun. r/;ondswarade the hsel'
])u at me di'enken. ]jonne J'u ert Ju-
deisc, and ic em Samaritanise wjL
Ke brucatJ Judeas and Samaritauissee
metes at gadere." Da answerde se
Hselend and cwfeS to hyre, " Gif )3U
wistes Godes gyfe and hwset se ys j^e
cwse'S to ]>e ' Sele me driiiken,' witod-
and cwfefj him, gif pn tcistes bus Godes lice jju bede hyne haet he sealde jje
and hwelc were se the cwfeth the sel Ij-fes weeter." {^a cwai^ f;fet vryt to
me drinca ]>Vi wutiull'. and woenis hym, " Leof ne Jju nsefst nan j^ing mid
mai-a, gif thu georicades [giowades?] to hladene, and );et ys deop hwanen
fi-om him and [he] g'mtlde i\\e v^'s&iex hafst \>\\ lyfes wfeter cwest. ^u J^get \>\i
cwic welle. cwseth to him ]p2&t wif, mare sy };onne ure foder Jacob, se \>e
drUit [en] ne m [ia ?] hwon tha hlado us j;isne pyt sealde, and he hys beam
hsefest {ju, and the pytt-neh is : hwona, and hys nytanu of [--am di'uncan?"
and hwer, forthon hsefest \)Vi wseter
cnicw elle ? ah ne arYu mara feder
usum Jacobe sej^e salde us thiosne ])jtt,
and walla, and he of him dranc and
suno Ids and feo);orfoto, and nereno
[netenu], his ?
!20 ANGLO-SAXON DIALECTS.
Euangelhan Marci.
on fruina godspelles lijelendes cristes sunu gocles. swa
Cap. I. — 1, Initium euaugelii lesu Cluisti filii Dei. 2. Sicut
awriten is in esaia jjone witgu lienu ic sencle engel niin beforan
scriptum est in Isaia proplieta ecce ego mitto angelum meum ante
onseone ]>me sef^e egearwa<5 weg j^inre stemn cliopande in
faciem tuani qui praeparabit uiam tuam ante te. 3. Uox clamantis in
westenne gearwiga15 weig drilitnes rehte wyrca)? vel doa^ stige vel gongas bis.
deserto parate uiam domini rectas facite semitas eius.
4. wfes iobannes in "n-estenne gefulwade and bodade fiillwiht breow-
Fuit loannes in deserto baj)tizans et praedicans baptismum poeni-
nisse in forgefuisse synna and ferende waes vel foerde to liiiu
tentiae in remissionem j)eccatorum 5. Et egi'ediebatiir ad eum
alle iudeas londe and ^a bierosoliinisca alle and gefiillwade fi'o
oninis ludaeae regio et lerosohinitae uniuersi et baptizabantiu- ab
liim in iordanes streame ondetende synna beora and wses
illo in lordanis flumine confitentes peccata sua. 6. Et erat
iobannes gegerelad vel gewedad mi's berum cameles and gyi'dels fellenne ymb
loannes uestitus pilis cameli et zona pellicea ciix-a
lendenu bis and waldstapan vel loppestra and •wxtdu buniges jpset wsexej? on
lumbos eius et locustas et mel silu-
■mide bendum and J^aet brucende wfes. and bodade cwej^ende
estre edebat. 7. Et praedicabat dicens
cymejj dom strongre mec seft me daes vel bis nam ic wyiiSa fore blutende
uenit fortior me post me cuius non sum dig"nus pi'ocumbens
imdon vel loesan J^wongas gescoas bis ic fulwade eowic
soluere corrigiam calceamentorum eius. 8. Ego baptizaui uos
in wastre be ■uiotudlice gefulwa^ eomc mit? gaste balgu And
aqua ille uero baptizabit uos spiritu sancto. 9. Et
aworden wses in dagum ^aem cwom se hselend fro nazareiS j^aere byrig
factum est in diebus illis uenit lesus a Nazareth
to galilea and gefulwad wass in iordanen fro iobanne. And onstyde
Galilaeae et baptizatus est «to lordane a loanne. 10. Et statim
astag of waetre geseb ont;)aide beofimas and gastes balga swilce
ascendens de aqua uidit apertos coelos et sj)iiituni tanquam
culfra of dune stigende and wuniende in bim vel in iinm. And sttefn
columbam descendentem et manentem in ipso. 11. Et uox
geworden wses of beofune \\\ eart sunu min leof on tSe ic wel licade
facta est de coelis tu es filius mens dilectus in te complacui.
and sona ]>e gast draf bine on westen and was on westen
12. Et statim spiidtus expulit eum in desertum. 13 Et erat in deseiix)
feowertig daga and feowertig nsebta and was acunnad fro
quadraginta diebus et quadraginta noctibus et tentabatur a
);fem •v\'ii5onvearda Tvnes miS wilde deorum and englas gej^egnedon vel herdou
satana eratque cum bestiis et angeli ministrabant
NORTHUMBRIAN. 321
liim fpftcr }7on \TOtudlico gesald wnss ioliannes cwom sc LselentS in gali-
illi. 14. Postqiiam autem traditus est loannes uenit lesns in Gali-
lea bodade godspelles rice godes and cwe{7cnde forjjon
laeam iiraedicans euangeliuni regni Dei. 15. Et dicens quoniam
gefylled is tide and to genealacede rice godes hreowsiaj? and
impletum est teinpus ct appropinqiiamt rcgnum Dei pocniteinini et
gelc'fajj in godspell and fserendo bi sa5 galilea gesfeli
credits cuangelio. 16. Et praeteriens secus mare Galilaeae uidit
simone JrfBt is petrus and andreas broiSer his liia sendende nett on siE
Siinonem ct Andi'cam fratrem eius mittentes retia in marc
werun forj^on fisceres and cwfe)? heo to se haelenS cimiaj^ a3fter me
crnnt enim piscatores. 17. Et dixit eis lesus uenite post me
and gedoa eowic J^aet ge beojjan rel geseon fisceres monnil and
et faciam uos fieri piscatores hominum. 18. Et
ricenlice miiS j^y forleten nett fylgendc werun liim and foerde
protinus relictis i-etibus 'secuti sunt eum. 19. Et progressus
fjonan Ijtel hwon gesneh iacol)U3 zebedes sunu and iohannes brotSer his
mde pusilluin uidit lacobmn Zebedaei et loannem fratrem eius
and fja ilea vcl liia in scip gesetton {>oet nett and sona vel tSaiHit
et ipsos in naui componeutes retia. 20. Et statim
geceigde hia and mi* \>y flet feder his zebedeus in scipe miS ]pse hp-e
uocauit lUos et relicto patre sue Zebedaeo in naui cmn merce-
mounum fylgende wperun him and infoerdun capharnaiun jja^re byrg
naiiis secuti sunt emn. 21. Et ingrediimtiu- Capharnaum
and sona reste dagas infoerde vel ineode to somnimgum gelserde hia
et statim sabbatis ingressus in spiagogam docebat eos.
and swdgadim vel stylton ofer Irere his vrses forf^on laerende hia
22. Et stupebant suj)er doctfina eius erat enim docens eos
s^dlce vel swa he msehte hpefde and no swa uSwutu and wags in
quasi ' potestatem habens et non sictit scribae. 23. Et erat in
somnungum heora monn in gaste unclsenum and oft cleopade
sjmagoga eormn homo in spiiitu immundo et exclamauit
cwaejjende hwset us and de ^^y hoelend J5e nazarenisca come Jju
24. dicens quid nobis et tibi lesu Nazarene uenisti
to losane vel lorene usic ic wat hwset \>\i eart haUg god and
perdere nos scio qui sis sanctus Dei. 25. Et
bebeod vel beboden is liim se haslend cwteiSende swiga jju and gaa of
comminatus est ei lesus dicens obmutesce et exi de
dsem menn gast uncleene and bitende vel bat hine gast Se unclsene and
homine. 26. Et discei-pens eum spiritus imnmndus et
of cliopande stnefne miceke vcl miccle and ofeode fro him and wundrende
exclamans uoce magna exiit ab eo. 27. Et mirati
waerun alle f^us jjfete liie fnignon vel ascadun bet^ilic heom cwej^ende
sunt omnes ita ut conquirerent inter se dicentes
hwfet ):fet is \>is hwilc lar fjios vel !5as niowa is forj^on in mtehte
quidnam est hoc ? quaenam docti'iua haec noua ? qma in potestate
Y
S22 ANGLO-SAXON DIALECTS.
and gastum uncltenum hatn)5 and edmodats liiin and sprang vel
etiani spiiitibus iinmundis iiuperat et obediunt ei. 28. Et pro-
foerde mersung vel merSo his sona vel instyde vel rcejje in eallum j^ae londe
cessit rumor eius statim in omnem regionem
galilsese and recene focrde of somnunga comon in hus
Galilaeae. 29. Et protinus egredientes de synagoga uenerunt ia domum
l^jet is peti'iis and andreas miS iacob and iohannes gelegen wres
Simonis et Andi'eae ciun lacobo et loanne. 30. Decuinbebat
wutndlice swa^gi'e j^tet is petrus fefer di'ifende and rse^e cwedun to him of
autem socrus Simonis febricitans et statim dicunt ei de
|?£e vel of Jjtere and com geneolacede ahof <5a ilea and miS ]>y gegripen
ilia. 31. Et accedens eleiianit earn apprehensa
wa3S bond his and ricenlice forlet hio bal £i-6 ride sobte vel gedrif and
manu eius et continuo dimisit earn febris et
gejjfegnede heom asfen A^itudlice ]>& gewar<5 miiSjjy to sete eode
ministi'abat eis. 32. Uespere autem facto cum occidisset
sunne gefoerdun brohtuu to liim alle J^a yfle hsebbende and deoful b?e-
sol afferebant ad eiun omnes male babentes et daemonia ba-
bende [sic) and wjes alle csesti'e vel burg gesonmad to dore vel geat
bentes 33. Et erat ■ omnis ciuitas congregata ad ianuam.
and lecnade monige {ja J^e weran geswsencte missenlicum adluni
34. Et cm-auit multos qui uexabantm* uariis languoiibus
and deofles monige he fdraf vel afii'de and ne let him sprecau
et daemonia multa eiiciebat et non siuebat ea loqui
forjjon he •v^•isten bine and on feringe swiiSe aras and foerde vel
quoniam sciebant eum. 35. Et diluculo ualde surgens egi'es-
e
f^erende eode in westige stowe vel styde and Ser gebsed and fylgende
sus abiit in desertum locum ibique orabat. 36. Et prosecutus
wffis bim simon and ):at5e mi<5 him wteriun and vax5\>j onfundun
est eimi Simon et qui cum illo erant. 37. Et cum inuenissent
bine cwasdun to him fjjon alle soecafj Se and cwsejj to heom se
eimi dixerunt ei -quia omnes quaerunt te. 38. Et ait illis
hfelenS ga we vel -rnitu gangan in \>?i nelisto lond and <Sa c^esh'e jjsete
eamus iu proximos uicos et ciuitatcs ut
and ec Sa?r ic bodige and to isisse for{:on ic com and -vrses bodande
et ibi praedicem ad hoc enim ueni. 39. Et erat praedicans
in somnimgiun heora and alle galile and deoflas fordraf vel fwai-p
in sjTiagogis eorum et in omni GaUlaea et daemonia eiiciens.
and com to him He f^rowere bed vel bidende {sic) him and mid cneu
40. Et uenit ad eum leprosus deprecans eum et genu
begende vel beginge cwffi)? gif J^u vfili \>vl mseh me geclensige se hselend
flexo dixit ei si uis potes me mimdare. 41. lesus
witudhce \>Q. wfes ndltsende bun gerahte bonda his and lu-an liiiu
autem misertus eius extendit manmn suam et tangens eum
cwsc'jj to bim ic ^^•ille geclrensie and miS \>j cwte}? Inaf^e foerde fi'om
ait illi uolo mimdaxe. 42. Et cmn dixisset statim discessit ab
NORTHUMBRIAN. 323
him pe hriofal and geclonsad wass and beboden wees him hi'sefje and
eo lepra ct mnndatus est. 43. Et comminatus est ei statimque
draf liiue and cwa'j? to him gesili 8u noenegum menn saecge vel cwej^e
ciccit ilhmi. 44. Et elicit ei iiidc neniini dixeri.s
a
ah gaa a3tcaw Jjc tSicm aldor saceid and agef for clsensunge l^ine
sed uade ostende te principi sacerdotum et oflfer pro emundatione tua
jja jse heht raoj'ses in cyjjiiisse iS.nem. so8 he foerde ongan
quae praecepit Moyses m testimoniimi ilhs. 45. Atque ille egressus coepit
bodige and maersige word Jjus j^iiet wntudlico ne msehte ea^^imga
praedicare et difFamare sermonem ita ut iam non posset manifesto
in iSa ceastre ingangan vel ineode ah butan in westigimi sto'mim wajre and
in ciuitatem introu-e sed foris in desertis locis esset et
gesomnadim vd efne comon to liim DPghwonan fro aighwilcu halfe.
conueniebant ad eimi undiqtic.
§ 285. 2, The Glosses of the Durham, or Lindisfarn Gos-
pels.— Quatuor Evangelia Latina, ex translatione S. Hierony-
mi, cwni glossd interlineatd Saxonicd. — Cotton. MSS. Nero,
D. 4.
1.
Matthew, chap. ii.
mi<5<5y arod (?) gecenned were haelend in Saer byrig in dagum He-
Ciim ergo natus esset Jesus in Betlileem Jud^se in diebus He-
rodes cyninges heonu t5a tungiilcraeftga of eustdael cwomun to liierusalem
rodis Regis, ecce magi ab oriente venerunt Hierosolymam,
cweoXonde
hiu cwoedon huer is *e acenned is cjTiig Judeunu gesegon we foi-^on
dicentes Ubi est qui natus est rex Judaeormn? vidimus enim
timgul
sterru his in eustdael and we cwomon to wor^nae liine geherde ■n-iototlice
stellam ejus in oriente et venimus adorare eum. Audiens autem
<5a bui-gT^'feras
herodes se cynig gedi'oefed wses and alle iSa hierusolemisca mi^ liim and
Herodes tiu'batus est et omnis Hierosolyma cmn illo. Et
mesapreusti
gesomuede alle tSa aldormenn biscopa and "Sa u uutta ^ses folces
congregatis (.yu") omes principes sacerdotum et scribas popuh,
geascode
georne gefi-agnde fra him huer crist acenned were,
sciscitabatur ab iis ubi Cliristus nasceretur.
2.
onginnas forueardmercunga feft iohanne-;'
[fol. 203.] INCIPIUNT CAPITULA SECUNDUM lOHANNEM.
in fruma i'<'Zin fma uord ce? crist uses god miiS gode iSerh Sone ilea
I. In priacipio uerbum deus apud demn per quem
* From Bouterwek's Screadunga, pp. 12-1-1.
Y 2
32 i ANGLO-SAXON DIALECTS.
goworht \ver;;n alle ami ioliaiine ]pxi woere gesended gesasgd is ser vel befa
facta sunt omnia et lohaunes missus refertur ante
liim ^aSo eft onfoas Jjaet hia se gcwyi-ces suiio goddes iSerh geafa Lis
eum qiii recipient esse facit filios dei per gratiam suam.
iSxm. fi'ascndimi iiideiim iohanne onssscces Line J^fet Le sie crist ah
II. luterrogantibus Imlaeis lohannes negat se esse CLristum sed
^c
l^ast gesendet were Leseolf bcfe c5?em and stefn }3?ete he were cHoppendes in
missmn se ante illimi uocemque esse clamantis in
uoestern fefter isaias Sjem uitga gesaegeis <5e ilea iiutetlice geondete
deserto sccundtun Esaiam enimtiat ij^smn uero fatetur
0
lemb laedende vel niomende synno middangeardes sec fiiluande in Lalge
agnum • tollente peccata mundi et baptizantem in spii-itu
o
gaste foi-Son <5e ilea sie vel is on ufa allum vel of alle of tufem
sancto eo quod ipse sit supra onmes iii. Ex duobus
ioLanne <5egnmn <5aSe fylgendo ueron iSsem driliten an tolfeddc
lohannis discii)ulis qui secuti fuerant dominum unus Andreas adduxit
broder his secSe petiiis fi'om ^nsm udss genemned fee ^on
fratrem suum qui Petms ab ipso nuncupatus Philippus quoque
ufes geceiged beam godes gebecnas seiSe sona betuih oiSnmi tSe ilea godos
uocatus nataua heh indicat qui mox inter cetera emn domini
simu bi<5 geondetad in Saem frermu yxt useter ymbcerde vel gecerde in
filium coufitetur. iiii. In nubtis aquam conuertit in
win mi^Sy ufes auorden cuc5lice gesene j^sete i^er heseolf uies gehaten
uiniun quo facto cognoscitur quod ubi ipse fuerit inuitatus
uin nedcSserf sie jjfete gescyrte Siera farma mi<5Sy geneolicde eastro
tiinum necesse sit deficere nubtiaiiim. v. Propinquante pascha
iudcana auarp <5a cependo vel of temple and <5?em frasendum vel huset vel becon
ludaeonim eicit uendentes e templo ct inteiTogantibus quod signum
gesalde to luidoanne tempul vel and mn <5rim dagum wasceennes cla^nrun vel godes
daret soluendi templiun et in triduo excitandi miste-
degelnise setteiS t5«m Segne bituih menigo cuoeiS buta sie eftaecenned ui
rium ponit. vi. Nicodemo inter multa dicit nisi renatus in
ric godes iugeonga ne m?ege vel j^aete ne gedoema ah gehaele
regnum domini intrare non posse uel quod non iudieare sed saluai-e
gecuome midg and f^ast woere aedeauad cu?eS uoerc iSaSe in gode aron
uenerit mimdii et manifestari dicit opera quae in domino sancta
gewordne in ^sem. stoue fuluande is gecuoeden iSone htelend
facta. VII. lohanni in Aenon baptizanti dicitur iohannem
fulguge <5e ilea biydgiuna \>pete sie and gedoefenhc is Jjsete gewox Line
baptizare quem ille spousimi esse et oportere crescere se
lnie«re l}-tlige and «e ilea ufa and on ufa allu were jec to gelefanne
autem minui illumque desursiuu et supra omnes esse credentemque
in liine pvete haefde Hf ece ofer <Sone ungeleaflrulle uiit ura^SSo
in eum habere uitam aeternam super incredulum uero u-am
i
NORTHUMBRIAN. 325
geuiiia gctrymciS rel gefa^stiiii t5uit uacUe iacobcs <5a5in iiife samari-
luancre confinnat. viii. Ajjud imteiun lacub mulieri samari-
taiiisca Avaes ajclcaued mi^ mcnigii degliim runu sprajc and monigo
tau[a]o nianifestatus plurimo mj'stice loquitm* et miilti
iSara samaritaiiiscaua lioda gelefot? on Line cuoedendo Sis is sotslice
Samaritanorum creduut in eiun diceutes liic est iiere
haelend middangeai'des regluordes simu sum oiSer untrjaniende
valuator mundi. vim. lieguli cuiusdam filius aegrotans
ondueardnese drilit stefiie gehaeled biS cuoeSendes feder liis gaa sunu
absentis domini uoce sanatiu- dicentis patri eius uade filius
c5in liofaS gelefde iSe ilea and bus his all monno
tuus uiuit credidit ipse et domus eius tota. x. Hominem
eahtu and SritSeih uintra hagbende in untrymnisse liis laiHy gecuoed aris
■XXXUIII" annos habentem in infii-mitate sua dicendo sui'ge
nim bere tsine and geong in sunnedoeg haeleiS efiie gelic liine jja^t
tolle gi'abtatum tuum et ambula in sabbato ctu-at aequalem se quod
uses doendc gode |j.et sunu sua^lce fader auoelite deado sie
erat faciens deo. xi. Quod iilius sicut pater suscitans mortuos sit
geliclic arwyrSe in Ssem gelefdon olleoraiS of dea<5e to life tocymende
aequaliter bonorandus in quo credentes transeant de niorte ad uitam uenturam
sec Son soSsseges Sio tid Sona of byrgennu godo sec tSa yflo eft arisats
quoque pronuntiat borani quo de momunentis boni malique resm-gunt.
fe cySnise his iohanne Sieccille ceigeS and asc tSone faede[r] and
XII. Pro testimonio suo lohannem lucernam appellat j)atreni quoque et
geuiiotto of him cy Suisse getrjTaeS iudaeos oSeme eft foendo vel of him
scribtui-as de se testimonium perhibere Iudaeos aHum recepturos de se
uut moysi miSSy am-at gefaestnade miSSy geneolecde eastro
autem Mosen scribsisse testatur. xiii. Propinquante pascha
iudeana of fif hlafii and tuaem fiscum and fif Susendo
ludaeorum de quiuque panibus et duobus piscibus quinque millia
monno gefylde fe Ssem tacne miSSy to cyninge hine uallaS doa vel ge-
hominum satui-auit pro quo signo cum regem eum ueUent fa-
0
wyrca geflagh and geeade vel geongende on ufa Ste sag frohtandum Segnum
cere fugit et ambulans supra mare pauentibus discipulis
cuoeS ic hit am naUaS gie ondrede fi-o Sreatmn gesolit wses and
ait ego sum nolite thnere. xiiii. A tui'bis quaesitus et
miSSy gemoeted ufes cuagS wjTrcas mett seSe ne losas and hlaf of
inuentus ait operamini cibimi qui non pent et panem de
heofnum so cuoe gesealla hlif midang lilaf lifes hine cueS
ctelis uerum elicit dare uitam mundo. xv. Panem uitae se dicit
and 'Sa gelefendo on liiin eft wgeccende f^set he uere on ^lem hlagtmseste dasg.
et credentes in se resuscitaturum in nouissimo die.
§ 286. 3. The Glosses of the Durham Ritual. — Rituale
Ecclesim D unhelmensis.
i
3 2 (J ANGLO-SAXON DIALECTS.
114;"), c. 10. RitiKife Eccleaue Dunhehnensis. — Hce sunt capitulce in Litania
31(1 jore, \)a:t is, on Jifa dctfjas.-'-
( Sas CYoetS (Irilif ymbh^nu-fa'S woegas liieru' and bihalda'S aud
( Ha)c dicit Dominns. cireuite vias Hierasalem, et aspicite et
gisceawa^ and soeca'S in plaegiword and on plaecvm and gimoeton
considerate, et querite, in plateis ejus an inveniatis
gie woer doend dom and soeceude Ivfv and milsend ic
virum facientem judicium et querentem fidem et proj)itius
biom his
ero ejus.
stonda"S of woegas and gisea'S and gifraigna'5 of sedvm aldum
State super vias et videte et interrogate de semitis antiquis
livoelc sie woeg god and geonga'S on ^ser aud gi gimoeta'S coelnisse
quae sit via bona, et ambulate in ea, et invenietis refrigeiiujn
sawlum irwiuu.
animabus vestris .
( aUes bergies god Isr'l godo doa'5 woegas iuero and raedo ivr'
I Exercituiun Dens Israel, bonas facdte \das vestras et stadia vesti-a,
and ic bya ivih mi's in stove dissvm on eorde l^e ic salde faedorum
et habitabo vobiscum in loco isto in terra quam dedi patribus
iurvm fro woi*\ide and w' worvlde
vestris a seculo et usque in seculum.
god 'Sv ^e [dfeg] gisceadas from naehte dedo vssa from ^iostra
Deus, qui diem discemis a nocte actus nosti-os a tenebrarmu
giscead miste J^atte symle <5a 'Se haelgo ai'on ^encendo in ^iiiimi
distingue caLigine ut semper qu?e sancta sunt meditantes, in tua
symlinga leht ve Ufa tS
jugiter luce vivamus per D'
igefe'Soncgimco gidoe ve di-ilit' haelga faeder aUm' ece god
Gratias agimus, Domine, sancte pater omnipotens feterne Deus,
V tSe vsig oferdoene naebtes rmne to morgenUcum tidvm ^erlilaede
qui nos, ti'ansacto noctis spatio, ad matutiaas boras perducerc
gimoedvmad ar veS bid' {^atte 'Sv gefe vs [dfeg] 'Seosne bvtan synne
dignatus es, quesumus, ut dones nobis diem himc sine peccato
of fara o'S jjat to efenne ^e gode geafo eft ve brenga
transire quatenus ad vesperimi tibi Deo gi'atias referamus,
per Dominum.
§ 287. 4. The Ruthwell Runes. — The inscription in Anglo-
Saxon Kunic letters, on the Ruthwell Cross, is thus deciphered
and translated by Mr. Kemble : —
milt. ..... me.
Eiilmjfi kjTiingk The powerful King,
Hlfimses hlafard. The Lord of Heaven,
Haelda ic ne dserstse. I dared not hold.
* Rituale Eccksiw Dimhehnemis, published by the Surtees Society, pp. 36, 37.
NORTHUMBRIAN.
327
Bismerede ungket men,
Ba eetgaed'rje,
Ik (n)i'SbaetU bist(e)mo(d)
. geredae
Hinss gamteldiB
Estig, Sa he walde
An galgu gistiga
Modig fore
Men,
Thej^ reviled us two,
Both together,
I stained with the pledge of crime.
. prepared
Himself spake
Beiiignantly, when he would
Go up upon the cross,
Coui'ageously before
Men
Mid stralum giwiiudted,
Alegdun hias hina;,
Limwerigne.
Gistodun him .
Iviist wfes on rodi ;
Hwe'Sraj ther fusaj
FeaiTan cwomu
J^tJMae ti lajnmn.
Ic that al bih (eold)
sae ( . . . )
Ic w(iB)s mi(d) gal(l)gu
Mi . . . ) rod . ha
Wounded with shafts,
They laid him down,
Limb-weary.
They stood by Iiim.
Christ was on cross.
Lo ! there witli speed
From afar came
Nobles to him in misery.
I that all beheld
I was with the cross
§ 288. So much for our materials for the Northumbrian
dialect of the Anglo-Saxon ; at least for the most unexception-
able portion of them. The characteristics they supply are as
follows : —
1. The article is ])e rather than se ; and j?io rather than seo,
&c. In the Modern English the is used without respect to
either gender or case. There is a tendency to this in the North-
umbrian. Again — the use of they, &c., instead of hi, hem,
heora, as the plural forms of he and heo, sets in earlier in North-
umbrian than in Wessex.
2, 3. The -n, or -cm, both in the oblique cases and in the
Nominative Plural, is dropped. Sometimes the termination is
-u; as witgu = W. S., lu'degcm = 'prophets. Sometimes it is
-0 ; as ego = W. S., eagan =^ eyes. Generally, however, it is
-a or -e, as
North.
hearta
earthe
nome
w. s.
English
heartan
hearts
earthan
earth's
naman
names.
0-2S ANGLO-SAXON DIALECTS.
i. The -n of the lufinitives is similarly dropped.
North. W. S. English.
cuoetha cweiJan say
ingeoBga ingaugan etiter.
5. The first person singular of the present indicative ends (1)
in -u ; as ic getreoiv-u, ic cleopi-u, ic sel-u, ic ondred-u, ic
ageld-u, ic getwihr-u = / believe, I call, I give, I dread, I imy,
I build — (2) in -o ; as ic sitt-o, ic drinc-o, icfett-o, ic wuldrig-o,
= I sit, I drink, I fight, I glorify.
6. The second person singular ends in -s, rather than -st.
7. The plui'al termination was -s. This form, however, was
not universal. It is in the imperative mood where we find it
most generally, and where it is retained the longest. Elsewhere
the form in J? is found besides.
8. The plural of am, art, is, is
NOETHUMBEIAN. WeST-SaXON.
ici aren "\ j" ici sijndon
gi aren I as opposed to \ gi syndoii.
hi aren J ( hi sijndon.
9 . In the participles the W. S. prefixes ge^, the Northumbrian
often omits it.
§ 289. Upon these differentice we may remark —
1 . That the use of Ipe and Ipio, as opposed to se and seo, is
Frisian. Not that the Frisians discarded se and seo altogether.
On the contrary they used them freely. They used them, how-
ever, only as Demonstratives in the strict sense of the term.
They used them where the Greeks used ovros. Meanwhile,
where the Greeks used 6 and tj, the Frisians used the and thju.
On the other hand the tendency towards the undeclined J?e is a
tendency towards the modern English.
2, 3. The omission of the -n in the inflection of nouns is
also Frisian.
4. So is that of the -n in the infinitive mood.
Frisian.
West- Saxon.
English.
inak-a
maci-an
make
ler-a
lar-an
learn
hcern-a
ha^rn-an
burn.
5. The termination in -ii for the first person singular is Old
Saxon.
6. So is that of the second person in -s, rather than -st.
7. The plural in -s is, at the present time, provincial in the
NORTHUMBRIAN. 329
North of Engiaud. In Scotland it belonged to the literary-
dialect. It appears in the works of James I. throughout.
8. The forms aren approach the modern English ; meanwliile,
the Old Frisian forms are wi send, I send, hja send.
§ 290. Which of the two divisions of the A. S. give us the
older form of language ? No general answer can be given.
Thus —
1 . Supposing that the -s in se and seo represent an original
f', the Northumbrian forms (J?e and pio) are the older. The
origin, however, of the se is doubtful.
2, 3, 4. Of the forms in -n and -a, the West Saxon are the
older.
5, G. On the other hand, the antiquity is in favour of the
Northumbrian verbs in -u, and -o.
7. Of the plurals, however, the West Saxon p is the older.
8. So is the ge-, of the participles.
All this means that different portions of a language change at
different rates, and that general assertions as to the greater
antiquity of one dialect over another are unsafe.
Another caution arises out of the preceding notices ; a caution
against drawing over-hasty conclusions from partial details.
1. To a certain extent the Northumbrian approaches the
standard English of our modern literature, e. g. in the use of
the and are. Yet it would be unsafe to say that it is out of the
Northumbrian that the literary English has grown.
2. To a certain extent the Northumbrian approaches the Old
Saxon.
3. To a certain extent the Northumbrian approaches the Old
Norse ; and as the points in common to the two languages have
commanded no little attention, they will be considered somewhat
fully — not, however, until some miscellaneous additions to the
preceding notices have been made.
§ 291. Many investigators increase the list of Northumbrian
characteristics by going into the differences of phonesis. Doing
this, they are enabled to state that the West-Saxon has a
tendency, wantmg in the Northumbrian, to place the sound of
the y in yet (written e) before certain vowels — Thus, the West-
Saxon eali, pronounced yal, is contrasted with the Northumbrian
all. This seems a real difference ; and one which no one should
overlook. Again — thorh and leht, as contrasted with the W. S.
theorh and IcoJit, give us appreciable differences of sound. So
does thoede = W. S. theoda. In words, however, like
330
ANGLO-SAXON DFALECTS.
North. W. S.
contrasted with
Fet J
f (lay
\/''rt
day
vessel,
the difference of pronunciation is, by no means, so clear as tlie
diHerencc of spelling.
Again — until I know exactly how to sound the W. S. e as
opposed to the Northumbrian oe, I must suspend my judgment
as to the import of such a table as the following : —
NouTii. W. S. English.
been ben prayer
boec bee hooks ■
coelan celan cool
doeman deinan deem
foedan fedan feed
spoed sped speed
swoet
woenan
swet
wenan
sweet
tree II,
upon which all that can be said is, that the West-Saxon looks
most like the modern English. The orthography of the Ruth-
well Runes is not the orthography of the Glosses.
§ 292. Many investigators increase the list of Northumbrian
compositions by the two following fi'agmeuts ; the first of
which is known as Wanley's Fragment of Ceadmon, the second
as the The Death-Bed Verses of Beda.
The Anglo-Saxon monk Ceadmon was born at Whitby in
Northumberland. Yet the form in which his great work has
come down to us is TTes^-Saxon. This has engendered the
notion that the original has been re-cast, and lost, with the
exception of the following fragment printed by Wanley from a
note at the end of the Moore MS., and by Hickes fi-om Wheloc's
Edition of Alfred's Translation of Beda's Historia Ecclesiastica,
4-24.*
Nu scj-lun hergan
Hefaen ricaes uard,
Metudaes msecti,
End bis modgidanc.
Uerc uiildur fadei%
Sue he iiundra gihiiaes,
Eci drictin,
Ora stelidse.
He aerist scopa,
Elda baruiim.
Nu we sceolan herigean
Heofon-rices weard,
Metodes milite,
And his modgethanc.
Wera viaildor fa?der,
Sva he wuldi'es gehwses,
Ece drihten,
Ord onstealde.
He se'rest scop,
Eor'San beamum,
Now we should praise
The heaven - kingdom's
preserver,
The might of the Creator,
And his mood-thought.
The glory-father of works.
As he, of wonders, each
Eternal Lord,
Originally established.
He erst shajjed,
For earth's bairns,
* Collated with the original Moore MS. of Beda in the University Library, by
H. Bradshaw, Esq. , King's College.
NORTHUMBRIAN. 331
Ileben til lirofe ;
Heofou to rofe ;
Heaven to roof ;
Haleg scepou :
Halig scjTDpend :
Holy sliaper ;
Tlia micldun-geard,
Da middangeard,
Then mid-earth,
Moucynnajs uarcl
Moucynnes weard
Mankind's home,
Eci diyctin,
Ece diiliten
Eternal Lord
xEfter tiadse,
JSfter teode,
After formed.
Firum foldu
Firiim foldan
For the homes of men,
Frea allmectig
Freii selmilitig
Lord Almighty.
The Deatli.Bcd
Verses of Beda
are from a MS. at ^
Gallen.
St.
Fore the neidfaerae, Before the necessary journey,
Naenig uniiu'tliit, No one becomes
Thoc-snottui'a Wiser of thought
Than him tharf sie Than him need be,
To ymbhycganne, To consider,
Aer his hionongae Before his departui'e,
Huaet, his gastae. What, for his sj)ii-it,
Godaes aeththa yflaes, Of good or e-vil,
iEfter deothdaege After death-day
Doemid uuieorthae Shall be doomed.
It is not safe, however, to say more than that the ortho-
graph}^ is other than West-Saxon.
§ 293. The same appKes to the Cotton MS. (Vespasian, A.i.)
of a Latin Psalter, with an interlinear gloss in Anglo-Saxon :
of which the Latin element is referred to the seventh, the Auo-le
to the ninth, century. It is this from which the words of
§ 291 are taken ; and, doubtless, the orthography is other than
the standard West-Saxon. (1 .) The plurals end in -u. (2.)
The second persons singular in -s. (3.) Its past participles omit
the initial -ge. Thus :
Psalter. In W. S. English.
hered
bledsad
soth
4. Its personal pronouns are wiec, iliec, usic, eoivic, rather
than me, the, us, eoiv, as in West-Saxon.
Are there sufficient reasons for making it Northumbrian ?
Good investigators have made it so. Meanwhile let it be noted
that the infinitive ends in -n, not in a.
PSALMUS XLII.
( doem mac god and to-scad intingan minne of Seode
( Judica me Deus et disccruc causam meam de gente
noht haUgi'c from men un-rchtun and facnum ge-nere me
non sancta ab homine iuiquo et doloso eiipe me
geherod
praised
gebletsod
blessed
gesoght
souylit.
i'
li
ANGLO-SAXON DIALECTS.
for-Jion Su oarJs j^'od miii and strcii^ii niiii for-hwon me
(iuia tu OS Dcus nious ot I'orlitiulo moa qiiare mc
. ou-woj:; a-iSrilb tSu and ibr-hwoii iin-rot ic iu-j^a JSonne swenceiS nice
reppulisti et quaro tristis iiicedo duiii adlligit mo
so fooiid
iiuiuieus
oii-soud Icht t5in and soS-l'estiiissc isiiie liie mec go-lacdon
Eniitte lucem tuam ct veritatem tuam ipsa me deduxeruiit
aud to-gc-lacddon in muntc i5aem lialgau JSiuiim and in ge-telde
et adduxeruut in monte sancto tuo ct in tuberuaculo
tsiuum
tuo
(ie in-gaa to ■tti-bebe godes to gode se ge-blisseaS iuguSe mine
(Lutroibo ad altare Dei ad Deiun qui laetilicat juventutem meam
Sic ondetto <5e in citran god god min for-liwon un-rot ear^u sawul
Conlitebor tibi in cythara Deus Deus mens Quare tristis es auima
min and for-hwon ge-di'oefes me
mea et quare contm-bas me
[ge-byt in god for-<5on ic-ondettu liim haelu ondwleotan mines
[ Spera in Deum quoniam confitebor illi salutare vultus mei
and god min.
ct Deus meus.
Psalm us XLIII.
( god mid carum urum we ge-herdun and fcdras ure segdun
"■ ( Deus auribus nostris audivimus ct patres nostri annunciaverunt
us were iSoBt wircende t5u earS in degum heara and in dtiegura
nobis Opus quod operatus es in diebus eorum et in diebus
i5am alldum
antiquis
( houda Sine Seode to-stence<5 and c5u ge-plantades liie 5u swentcs
( Manus tua gentes disperdet et plantasti eos adflixisti
folc and on-weg a-drife hie
populos et expulisti eos
< na-les soS-lice in sweorde liis ge-sitta^ eorJSan and eann
( Nee enim in gladio suo possidebuut terram ct bracliium
heara ne ge-haeleiS hie
eorimi non salvabit eos
ah sic s\\i<Sre din and earm iS'm and in-lilitnis ondwleotan *ines
Sed dextera tua et brachium tuum et inkmiiuatio vultus tui
for-i5on ge-licade <5e in him
quoniam complacuit tibi in Ulis
(Su earS se ilea cjniing min and god min «u on-bude haelu
ITu es ipse rex meus et Deus meus qui mandas salutem Jacob
(■ in i5e fiond nre we windwiaS and in noman Siuum we for-hycgatS
^' I In te inimicos nostros ventila^imus et in nomine tuo spernemus
a-risende in us
insurgentes in uos
f na-les so«-lice in bogan minum ic ge-nyhto and sweord min ne ge-
'^- I Non enun arcu meo sperabo et gladius meus non sal-
hacloiS me
vaVjit me
NORTHUMBRIAN. 333
(iSu ge-freades soS-lice usic of «5iicm swencenduin usic and <5a ^a iisic
8. } Salvasti enim nos ex adfligentibus nos ct eos qui nos
(.fiedou tSii ge-stea<5clacSes
oderunt coufutlisti
fin gode we bio^ here aline deg and in noman dinrnu vveondcttacS in
|ln Deo laudabimur tota die et in nomine duo confitebiiniu- in
weorulde.
saecula.
§ 294. The question concerning the Norse elements in the
Northumbrian forms of speech requires notice. Let the date
of tlie Ritual be A.d. 970 — as it probably is. Let the Psalter
be older than the Ritual : as certain opinions make it — opinions
which the present writer objects to, believing them to be founded
on an undue assumption. Let the Psalter be Northumbrian —
as, with the exception of its infinitives ending in -an, it is. Let
the infinitives ending in -a of the Gospels, tlie Ritual, and the
Ruthwell Runes, be looked upon as Danish rather than Frisian
by one critic, and as Frisian rather than Danish by another.
What follows ? Even this — that the advocate of the Danish
doctrine has a strong case in his favour, when he looks at
the dates of the Danish invasions, for he may say that if
the Northumbrian peculiarities were Frisian, they would have
existed fi-om the first ; whereas, being Norse, we miss them at
the beginning, but find them at the end, of the Danish period.
Such is the suggestion of Mr. Garnett, who, after remarking
that the termination in -a was Norse, and that the older text of
the Psalter failed to exhibit it, commits himself to the opinion
that it may be the result of an intermixture with the North-
.men. Mr. H. Coleridge makes this a definite argument against
the Frisian hypothesis. Where, however, is the evidence that
the Psalter, in respect to iiilace, is Northumbrian in the way
that Rituale, &;c., are ?
"The most important peculiarity in which the Diu-ham Evangeles and
Ritual differ from the Psalter is the form of the infinitive mood in verbs.
This, in the Dm-ham books, is, with the exception of one verb, be4n, esse,
invariably formed in a, not in nn, the usual form in all the other Anglo-Saxon
dialects. Now this is also a peculiarity bf the Frisic, and of the Old Norse,
and is found in no other Germanic tongue ; it is then an interesting inquiry
whether the one or the other of these tongues is the origin of this peculiarity ;
whether, in short, it belongs to the Old, the original Frisic, form which pre-
vailed in the fifth, sixth, and seventh centuries, or whether it is o\\-ing to
Norse uifluence, acting in the ninth and tenth, through the establishment of
Danish invaders and a Danish dynasty in the countries north of the Ilumber."
— KjiMBLE, Phil. Trans. No. 35.
334 ANGLO-SAXON DIALECTS.
§ 295. Let the Danish question, however, be tried on its own
merits. According to Mr. Garnett — speaking fi'om information
given him by a friend familiar with the MS. — the Danish words
h)/=itown or vUluge, and at, the prefix to the Norse infinitive
(just as to* is in English) occur once or twice in the Durham
Gospels. That this is something in favour of a Danish influence
is clear. On the other hand —
1 . Harewood, the locality for the Rushworth Glosses, is scarcely
on typical Danish ground — at least as measured by the oc-
currence of village names in -hy.
2. Neither is Durham — the locality, real or supposed, of the
Gospels and Ritual.
3. I do not say that these are very cogent objections. Still,
they are objections.
§ 290. There is another fact against the forms in -a. A
well-known inscription at Aldborough has two words which are
Danish ; but the first is a Proper Name, Ulph, and proves no
more than such names as Thorold or Orm in the reign of
Henry II. — long after the last man who spoke Danish in
England had breathed his last. The other is honom, a truly
Danish form. The inscription runs
Ulj^h liet arrcrau for honom and Guntliara saula.
Ulph bid tliis rear for him, and Guuthar's soul.
Nevertheless, the form drceran is not Danish but Anglo-
Saxon. It may be granted, however, that the inscription is a
mixed one. Be it so. It still teaches us that the change
fi'om -an to -a. in the infinitive mood is not the first change
eflfected by Danish influences. Meanwhile, on the other hand,
it is safe to say that of the two great Norse characteristics, tlje
postpositive article, and the middle voice in -sc, -st, or -s, tliere
is no trace whatever from Caithness to Beachy Head.
CHAPTER V.
DIALECTS OF THE ANGLO-SAXON. EAST ANGLIAN. MERCIAN.
§297. Both the following specimens of the East- Anglian of
Suffolk are from Thorpe's Anuilecta Anglo-Saxonica : —
* To is not wholly absent in Norse. — Saa bratte aa hrasse ce Fjellan te sjaa at=So
steep and sharp is the rock to look at.
EAST-ANGLIAN AND WEST-SAXON DIALECTS OP THE A. S. 335
§ 298.
The Will of a Lady, from the Parts ahout Bury St. Edmunds.
Ic Luba, ea'Smod Godes ^iwen, ^as forecwedenan god and ^as elmessan
gesette and gefestnie ob minem erfelande at Mnndlingbam «em biiue to Cristes
ilrican: and ic bidde, and an Godes libgendes uaman bebiade, ^em men ^e Sis
cand and Sis erbe hebbe et Mundlingliam, Set he Sas god forSleste oS wiaralde
ende. Se man se Sishealdan wUle, and lestan Set ic beboden hebbe an Sisem
gewrite, se him geseald and gehealdau sic hiabeuKce bledsung ; se his ferwerne
oSSe liet agele, se hun seald and gehealden helle-wite, bute he to fulre bote
gecerran wille Gode and mannvim. — Uene ualete.
In English.
I Luba, humble handmaid of God, settle and fasten the aforesaid goods and
alms of my heritage-ui-land at Mnndlingbam to the sisterhood in Christ's
Cluu'ch ; and I order, and in the name of the hving God enjoin, the men who
hold tlds land and this heritage at ]\Iundlingham, that they hold the goods
mitU the world's end. The man who will hold this and continue that which
I have ordered in the writing, be him given and continued, the heavenly
blessiag. Who refuses or neglects it be to him given and continued, the
l)ain of hell, imless he will pay the penalty in full to God and man. — Bene
Valete.
§ 299.
The Legend of St. Edmund : a Homily.
Sc5i swy^e ilsered munuc com sut^an ofer see, from Sseincte Benedictcs stowe,
on ^{jeh-eedes dagum kynges, to Dimstane archeb., j^reom gearas tert^am J^e he
for^ferde, and sum mimuc hatte Abbo. pa wurdon heo on spece, ot5<5et Dim-
stan rehte be Sancto Eadmimdo, swa swa Eadmundes swyrd-borfB hit r?ehte
^Jjelstan kjTige, f^aiSa Dunstan geunc mon wa3s, and }je sweord-borge wses fore-
aldod mon. Da sette Se munuc alle f^as gerecednysse on ane hoc, and eft, Jsa^a
iSeo hoc com to us, bmnon feawiun gearum, J^a awende we hit on Englisc, swa
SAva liit her eefter stont. pe munuc f^a Abbo, binnon twam gearum, wende
ham to mynstre, and wearS j^a to abbode iset on j^am ylcan mynstre.
Eadmmid, f^e a3adiga3 East-Englaj kyng, wses snoter and wurSful, and wur-
iSode symle mid a3>ele Seawum })one Almihtigse God. He wais eadmod and
ifjuncgen, and swa anroede {jui-hwunede, >9et he nolde buga3n to bismerfulle
Icahtrae, ne on nane healfe he ne ahydde his f^eawses, ac w?es symle mundig j^are
sojsan lufe. Gyf ]>n eart to heofod-men iset, ne ahaefe |ju «e, ac beo betweox
monnum swa swa an mon of him. He wfes cystig wa^dhmi and wydcwum,
swa swa feeder, and mid wtel-willendnesse wissode his folc simle to rihtwisnesse,
and >am reiSan styrede and isaihgehce leofode. Hit ilamp j^a a^t njTctan, \>?et
5a Deniscaj leoda? ferden mid scyi)here, hergende and slcandc wide geond lond,
swa swa heorse wnine is. On f^am flotcn wanron «a fjTstan licnfodmcn, Plinguar
and Hubba, geanlsehte >urh deofcl, and heo on NorShumbrclond gelamdon
mid aascmn, and wtesten j^a^t lond and «a leoden ofslogen. Da wende Hinguar
cast mid his scypum, and Hubba bclaf on Norghumbnclande, wunnenum sige
mid wa-lreownesse. Hmguar bicom {^a to East-Englum rowcndc, on f^am
geare \:e Alfred ajJjcUng an and twentig goare wies, f^e >o Wa^st Seaxenc king
sySim. weariS mfcro. And j^e fore-ssede Hinguar fiBrlice, swa swa wulf, to
330" ANGLO-SAXON DIALECTS.
londc bistalcodc, aiul \)C looil;v! sluli, wcrocs niidmf, and [a unwittige cliild, and
to bysmcro tncodo \>ii bilewito cristcne. lie sonde l^a sjbtSan sona to jjam
kyn<;e bootlioo an-endo. j^a't be bugon sceoldo to bis moni-ajdcnc, gif lie Ids feores
robte. Do ivrendraca' com J^a to Eadmiinde kynge, and Hinguares serende
bim bcardbce aboad : " Ilingnar lire kyng, kcne and sigefest on SiB and on
bindc, ba4"t5 fola? jjcodas iwadd, and com nil mid ferdc forlice her to lande, l^a't lie
her wintor-selt mid Ids werode liabbe. Nii ba^t be \>e daslen \>me diglan gobl-
lun-divs, and ^-ine ajblrynas streon bterUce wi<5 liine, jjfet jju beo bis under-kjnig.
gif J>u cwyc bcon wnilt, forjjan <5e t5u nrefst ]psi milite, )?aet 8u mage bini wit5-
stimda}n." Hwajt )ja, Eadmund kyng clypcde ?enne biscop, \>e bim \>a bendest
vacs, and wits bine smoade, bii be J;am retSan Hingiiare berstan sceolde. pa
forbtede \>e biscop for {jam fajrlice gebmi^e, and for Jjacs kynges life, and cwjeS,
Jsa^t liim raxl jjidite, l^ast be to j^am abiige, pe Hingiiar liim bead. Da SAVjTvode
]pe kyng. and biseali to J^are eoiiSan, and cwa?5 pa jet nybstan kjnielice liim to :
" Eala, fju biscop, to bysmere beoS itawode \}Sis eai'man lond leodaj, and me nil
leofi-e were, \}Xt ic on feobte feoUe, wi^ };am <5e min folc moste lieorse eardcs
brucfeu." And ]}e biscop cwaeS : "Eala, j^u leofe kyng, jjin folc bj? ofslagen,
and jju najfst {jonne fultiime, fjset i5u feobten mage, and Jjas flotmen ciimfeS, and
*e cwicne bind^efj, buten }ju mid fleanie fjine feore burge, oS<5e j^u iSe swa bui-ge
piet <5u buge to liim." Da cwajtS Eadmund kyng, swa swa he ful kene wses :
" pass ic \NaLnige and wisce mid mode, ]j-xt ic ane ne bileafe sefter mine leofiim
f;jegnum, \je on beoni? bcddum •mirdon, mid beamum and wifum, ferlice ofsla-
gene from jjisse flotmonnum. Ntes me nfefi'e i^Timelic \}Xt ic wTohte fleames,
ac ic wolde swicSor swelton, gif ic J^yrfte, for mine agene earde, and l^e
Almibtigas God wat )7?et ic nylle bugan from liis bigengum fefre, ne from bis
so<5an lufe, swelte ic libbe ic." iEfter {jissiuu wordmn, be wende to fjam aeren-
dracan 5e Hinguai- to bim sende, and ssede bim unforbt : " Witodlice f^u wfere
nil weorSe slseges, ac ic nelle fylaen mine clacne bandaiii on Jsiae fnle blode, for-
fiam ^e ic foltrfge Criste, {jc us swa bisnode ; ac ic bUf^cbce Vkj]lG beon ofslagen
fjurb eow, gif Mt God foresceawreS. Fare nu swic5e rajje, and Sfege pine ra-jjiim
laforde, ne bulij? nefre Eadmund Hinguare on life, bfej^ene beretogsen, biiton be
to Hselende Criste serest mid geleafan. on fjisse lond buge." Da wende J^e
erendracaj beardlice awseg, and imette j^one wa^beowan Hinguare mid aUe his
ferde fuse to Eadmunde, and sa^de pam arleasum bu liim iandswaered wses.
Hinguar bead {^a mid bealde {jam scyp-bere, and J;fet beo jjses kynges anes aUe
cepan sceoldon, \}e bis here forseah, and bine sone biiidasn.
Hwset {ja, Eadmund kyng, mid j^am ^e Plinguar com, stod innan his lialle,
{ja^s Haelendes imyndig, and awearp lois wepnas, wolde efenlseccn Cristes gebis-
nungum, ]>e forbead Petrum mid wfejinum to feobten wii5 \>a. wpekeowan ludeis-
can. Hwn?t f^a, f^a aidcasan Eadmundum bundon, and bysmoreden hyxbce,
and beot«n mid sahlum, and swa sj-^San Iteddon {jonne ileaffulne kyng to ane
eoi-<5festum treowe, and tegdon bine Sserto, mid bearde bendum, and bine eft
swTincgon longbce mid s-ndpum, and he symle ch-pode, betweox};am s■^^•incglllm,
mid sofjan Ueafan, to Hselende Criste ; and jja baef^ene j^a, for his ileafe, wurdon
f>a s-n-y<Se jitc, forj^am {5e be clypode Crist bim to fultume : heo scytsen )ja mid
gauelocum liim togeanes, o^cSet be aU waes biset mid beorre scotimgum, swjdce
yles burstse, swa swa Sebastianus waes. Da iseah Hinguar, \je arlease flotmon,
Jjffit {je setSele kpig nolde Criste wiSsacen, ac mid andraede ileafe hme aefi'e cly-
pode, baet liine j^a bilisefdian, and >a bsej^enan swa dyden. Betweox j^am \:e be
clypode to Criste \>a:-gyt, j^a tugon j^a bae^ene Jjone halgan to slaege, and, mid
EAST ANGLIAN. 337
nne swencge, slogoii him of Jjfet hsefod, and sawlDS siSode isselig to Criste. pser
^\'ies sum mon geliende iliealden, Jjiirli Gode behjald J^am lia;};eiium, J^e tiis
ilierde all, and hit ffift sfede, swa swa we saecgseS liit her. Hwset j^a, «e flothere
ferde j^a eft to scipe, and behyddon {j£et heafod fjses halgan Eadniundes on j^am
^icciun bremlum, )ja3t liit bibm-iged ne wiu"4e. pa aefter fyrste, sj'SSan heo
ifareue wseron, com j^tet lond-folc to, pe \>xy to lafe j^a wags, {jser heorse lafordes
he buton heafde j^a la?g, and wuitlon swicSe sarig for his slsegie on mode, and
hure {jffit heo najfdon jjjet heafod to fiam bodige. pa ssede ^e sceawere, jjb hit
fer iseah, J^get J;a flotmen hajfdon ]p?et heafod mid heom, and Wfes him i]p\\ht, swa
swa hit W0es fill soS, Jsset heo hj'dden {^ajt heofod on {^am holte. For-hwsega
heo eoden ]>a endemes alle to J^am wude, sfecende gehwser, geond {^j-felas and
brjonelas, glf heo mihten imeten pvdt heafod. W?es eac mycel wiinder Jpset an
wulf wges isend, {jiu'h Godes willunge, to biwaerigenne }:8et heafod, wiS )ja o^re
deor, ofer dieg and nilit. Heo eoden 5a s^cende and cleopigende, swa swa hit
iwiinehc is {jtet <5a f^e on Tvaide gsijp oft : " Hwser eart Jju nu, gerefa ? " And liim
andswyi'de j^aet heafod : " Her, her, her." And swa ilome clypode andswarigende,
o<5cSet heo alle bicomen, \>\v:h pa cl;yT^)imge, him to. pa lieg f^e grsegae wiilf ^^e be-
■niste Jjset heafod, ant mid his twam fotum htefde jjfet heafod bictypped, gredig and
hiingrig, and for Gode ne dp-ste, {jses hsefdes onbiirigen, ac heold hitwi<5 deor. Da
wiirdon heo ofwiuidroden pies ^^-nlfes hordra?dene. and p-xt halige heafod ham
feroden mid heom, f^ankende Jjam Almihtigan aire his ^^iinch'a3. Ac pe wulf
fologede foiiS mid pum. heafde, otSSet heo on tune comeu, s\^'j'lce he tome weere,
and wende ?eft syj-j^an to vrade ongean. Da londleodan pa, sy<5(5an leegdan Jjtet
heafod to fiam hahge bodige, and burigdon, swa swa heo lilitlucost mihten on
s\\'ylce rsedinge, and cyrce arserdon on-uppon liim. Eft pa on fyi-ste, sefter
felse geare, J^a cSeo hergiuig aswac, and sib wearS igyfen j^am iswsencte folce, pa
fengon heo togadere, and Awohten ane cu-ce wur^lice fiam halgan, set his
buiigene, set J^am bed-huse pier he iburiged wtes. Heo wolden pa, ferian, mid
folclice wiu-<5mente, fjone halgan Hchame, and Ifecgen inne J^are circean. pa
wfes mycel waindor j^ajt he wses all hal, swylce he cwic wfere, mid clsemun
hchame, and his sweorse wa5s ihaled, pe ser forslagen wass ; and wfes swulce
an solcene Sred embe his sweorjen, monnum to swutelunge hu he ofslagen
wass. Eac swylce wimdae, j^e <5a wtelreowan haefjena^n, mid ilome sco-
tnnge, on his lice makedon, wseron ihealede, {^lu-li 5one heofonhce God ; and
he lijj swa ansund oSS j^ysne andweardne da?g, abidende aeiistes and piBS ecen
wulcb-es. His lychame us cyS, pe h<S imforsmolsnod, fjset he buton forhgi-e her
on worulde leofode, and mid claene Hfe to Criste si^ode. Sum wydewa wunede,
Oswyn iliaten, on gebedmn and faestenum, monige gear sj-^c^an. peo walde
efsiaen aelce gear J^one sont, and his ntegles ceorfaan syferHce mid lufe, and on
scryne healdon to haligdome on weofode. pa wurSode fiaet lond-folc mid
ileafiBn j^one sont to wurSmente. Da comen on siunne said uns»lig f^eofass
eahta, on ane lulite, to )5am ar-^^oircSaen halgan, and wolden stelon pn madma^s
pe men Sider brohton, and cunnedon mid cra;fte hu heo in-cumcn milite. Sum
sloli mid slasge swy<5e pa, ha}]")san, sum heo mid fjde feolcdon abuta'ii, sum eac
undcrdealf j^a dure mid spade, sum heo mid la;ddriX) wolden unlucaen Jiajt seh-
jjyrl ; ac heo swuncon on ydel, and carmhcc ferdon, swa J^a^t pe halgan waer
heom ■\AT.xn.derUce bont, aelcne swa he stod strutigende mid tola3, J^aat heora nan
ne mihtc jjast morj? gefi'emman, ne heo }jconan styriaen ; ac heo stoden swa 0(5
maregen. Men j^a <5Ees wundredon, hu Jja weargas hangedon, sura upjoon
lajddraj, sum leat to daelfe, and aelc on his weorce wais feste ibundcn. Heo
wurdon pa ibrohto to pa.m biscopo alio, and he hot heom ahon on hoagum
Z
3oS EAST ANGLIAN.
gealgiim nllo ; no lio n;fs na inmndig lui f)(> inilillicortc God clji)odc JjuvIi his
witogiiu jjus word ]>c her st(>n(lio)j : Eos qui cUicuulur ail mortem ciuere ne
cesses. " Da \>q mou het to deajjo al3-s ut symle." And eac ]?a. lialgan cauones
iliadedou i'orbeoda'jj. ge biscopum go proostmii, to beonne embe iSeofies, forjian
j^c liit no bura'5 Inxni tSo beo<5 ioorene Godo to Jjenigenno, \:xt heo jjwiBrlfeccn
scvloii on a^iiges nionnes dea):o, gif lieo beo<5 di-ihtincs {jaegna^s. Eft J:a<Sa
Deodranl biscop, sjiSSau he Ms bee sceawodc, he reowsode mid geomenmge,
fra^t lie swa raj^ne dom sette ^^am imsteligixm f;eofiun, and liit bisaregede tefre,
oS liis hfos ende, and jja Icode bead geonie \>iet heo liim mid fajstajn fiillice
Sreo daga^s, biddcnde l^one Ahnihtigajn God, ]:^t he him ariajn sceolde.
On ):ain londo wies sum mon Leoi'stan iliaton, rice for worulde, im\\ittig for
Gode, |:e rad to {^am halgan mid ricetere s-n-j-Se, and het him £eteo^\•an orhlice
swySe Jrone halgas sont, hwatSer he isund ware ; ac swa raSe swa he iseah J^a^s
sontes hcliame, in awedde ho sona, and wah'eowlice gi'jTnetede, and earmhce
endode yfehim deaj;e. Bis is j^am ihc J^e halga papa Gregorius, on his iset-
nesse [a\\Tat] be J^am halgimi Laurentium, J;e h^ on Rome-burig, tSat men
wolden sceawian hu he lage ; ac God heom gestj'lde, swa j^at <Sar swoilton on
<5are sceawimcge sane seofe men a;tgadere, \>a, swike J^a oiSre to sceawenne ^one
martyr mid mcnnisce dwylde. Fela ■mindi'ae we iherdon on folchce space bi
);am halgan Eadmundmn, ]pe we her nyllaS on •write setten, ac heom wat gehwa.
On fissum halgum is swutel, ant on swylcum o<5rimi, fjfet God Ahnilitig mag
J:one mon araran aft on domes dage ansundne of eoiiSan, ]pe ];>e healt Ead-
mmidne h;ihic hchame, o<5 ^ene mjx-lan dag, f^eah iSe he on moldan come.
Weor^e ware ^eo stow for J^am A\n.u'Sfullan halgmn, ):at liire mon wal ^iiriSode
and walegode mid clane Godes };eowum to Cristes tSeowdome : for);an <5e );e
halga is man-a pone men magon asmean. Nis Angol bidaled Drilitnes
halgene, forjsam on Englse londe hcgsej? swylce halgan, swylce );es halga king,
and Chutbertus fje eadigae, and iEjjeldiyJj on Ehg, and eac liii-e swTister, an-
sund on Hchame, geleafan to trumuncge. BeoiS eac fela o^ra on Angel-cynne,
\;e fela wundi'a wiu'csecS, swa swa hit •wide is cy}?, tSam Almihtigan to lofe, ]pe
heo on ilyfden. Crist sylf swytela}? monnum, jjm-h his maren lialgan, J^at he
is ^Imihtig tGod, J;e maka}? swylce •wundi-fe, j^eah Jje ^a earman Iudeisc£BU
liine allungse v. iSsocon, forj^an Jjo heo beo^ awarigede, swa swa heo \\iscton
heom sj'lfiun. Ne beo^ nane •uimdi'a iwrohte sit heorae bmdgene, for};am \}e
heo ne gclyfaS on );one Ij'tigenden Crist ; ac Crist s^«"utelat3 monnum h^^•ar pe
gode ileafa is, Jjenne he swylce •namch-a A\iu-ca^, }3iu-h liis lialgan, wide geond
)3as eorSan, Jiam beo •\\T.ddor and lof a mid his Heofenlice Feeder.
§ 300. Of the Mercian forms of speech, in a definite and
certain form, we know even less than is known of the East
Anglian. In the first place, the area of Mercia was of inordinate
size. In the next, it was bounded on every side by some other
district — in this unlike the other three ; all of which, on one
side at least, were bounded by the sea. This makes transitional
forms all the more likely to have been numerous. On the west
only was a broad line of demarcation possible ; this being pos-
sible, because, on the west, the British of Wales came in strong
contrast with it. On the north, however, what stood between
the northernmost Mercian, and the southernmost Northumbrian ?
MERCIAN. 339
On the south, what between the southernmost Mercian, and the
northernmost West Saxon ? On the east, what between the
East-Anglian on one side, and the Mercian on another ? Add
to this the likelihood of there having been within the boundaries
of Mercia forms of speech, which differed from each other as
much as certain Mercian forms difiered from certain others
which M^ere other than Mercian. All this, it is true, is nothing
more than what our preliminary observations have prepared us
for. At the same time it may truly be said that all such dif-
ficulties as are involved in the classification of dialects in general
appear, on the question of the Mercian, in an extreme form.
Had we some definite and undoubted specimen of some central
dialect (say Northamptonshu'e), which was known to represent
the language of the district as it was spoken, and also known
either to have taken no modifications from any literary language,
or (what is the same thing) to have represented some written
vernacular of the time and place — our position would have been
different. But anything of this kind is wholly wanting. Of
anything that is Mercian at all, we have but little, and that
little is, to a great extent, West Saxon also. In saying this, I
say little more than what Mr. Kemble himself admits ^ and I refer
more especially to that great scholar, because it is he who has,
in more places than one, most especially committed himself to
the doctrine that differences between the different forms of
the Anglo-Saxon were so great as to engender, in many cases,
mutually unintelligibility. Yet, he also says that the language
of the Vercelli Codex was Mercian (being, probably, written
near Peterboro'), and also that it was essentially the same as
the Anglo-Saxon of Beowulf, JElfric, and the works attributed
to Alfred — the word attributed being his ; a word which I
quote, because, in it, my own doubts as to the so-called com-
positions of that great king being, in language at least, the
works of some later writer find support. Mutatis mutandis,
the same applies to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle; which, again,
is given to Peterboro', and which, again, even in the most aber-
rant MSS., is essentially West Saxon.
§ 301. So are the following extracts from the Codex Diplo-
niaticus ; which are given simply because they, at one and the
same time, bear the names of Mercian kings, and show how
little in the way of real difterences of dialect such names carry
with them. Every one of the peculiarities can be matched in
z 2
StO MERCIAN.
inire West Saxon MSS. The first two, are supposed to represent
the western, the last, the eastern extremities of Mercia.
O.vforthldre or Gloucestershire.
AETIIELRED, a.d. 743. (xVo. 90.)
Tliis sjnd J?a land gemi-cra a3t Eastune J^e JLtlielbald cjniing myrcna geboc-
ade Utele bisceope into sancte inarian. iErest of Turcauwyllas beafde and-
lang stra-te on Cjoielmesstan on IMylonwcg Jjonne andlaug luycges on Heort-
ford J;anen andlang sti'eames on Biu'uliford on foron jja spclstowe }3onau on
Tm-candcue on Seofenwyllas midde-"\veardan of jjam wj'llau to Balesbeorge
sutSaii jjonnc on Cealcwcallas Jjonan eft on Tiu-caudene andlang eft on Turcau-
wyllas beafod. Dis wajs gedon ]ij geare \:e vnes agsen fi'om Cristes flsescnesse
DccxLiii. on J^am cynebame jpe is gecyged Bearwe.
Worcestershire.
AETHILBALD, a.d. 743-745. {Ko. 95.)
In iisscs drylitnes nomaii haelendes cristes ic aedelbald mjTcna cincg waer
beden fi-om f^aem aifidlan bisceope mili-ede {jaeti ic bim alefde and bis j^aem
lialegan liii-ede alle nedbade tiiegra sceopa \>e J^aei-to Umpende beoS j^eti ic bim
forgefe fja )jaein eadgan petre apostola aldormen in jjaem mjnisti'e )je6ma<5 f^aet
is geseted in luiicca maegJ^e in jsaere stowe {>e mon bateS weogernacester fjaere
bene swySe iii-fulre geSafimge ic waes sylleude for mini'e sawle laecedome to
Son |:aeti for miuum sjninum bi beo geea^medden jsaette beo waeren gelomlice
{jingeras wis diibten swySe lustfiillice pk forgeofende ic liim alyfde alle nedbade
tuegra sceopa jja J^e Jjaer abaedde beoS fi-om Jsiiem nedbaderum in liindentuues
bySe ond naefre ic ne mine lastweardas ne <5a nedbaderas geSristlaecen j^at beo
liit onwenden oScSe \>on wiSgaen . gif beo pat nyllen syn beo jjonne amansu-
made from daelneomencge liceman and blodes usses diihtnes baelendes cristes
and fi-om ali-e neweste geleafuli-a syn beo asceadene and asjmdi-ade nymSe beo
bit ber mid J^ingonge bote gebete.
Ic Aetbelbald cincg mine agene sylene trymmende bic beo wrat. Milred
bisceop fjare lialegan rode tacen be beron gefaestnode. Ingwiiald bisceop geSa-
fiende be liit wi-dt WilfiiS bisceop be liit va-kt. Alda ciuges gefera be bit
WTat.
ABBA, A.D. 835. (A'o. 235.)
Ic abba . geroefa cj-Se and \\aitan bate bu min ■RoUa is J;?et mon ymb mtn
ferfe gedoe sefter minu da?ge . merest ymb min lond J^e ic biebbe and me god lab
and ic fet minu lilafordu begiKt. is min wUla gif me god beames unnan wiUe
Sset bit foe to londe sefter me and Ms bruce mid minii gemeccan and sio<5<5an
svrae forS min cymi Sa bwile pe god wille <5fet Seara aenig sie \>e londes weorSe
sie and land gebaldan cimne . gif me Somie gifeiSe sie cSajt ic beam begeotan
ne mege };onne is min wUla piet liit bsebbe min wiif <5a liwile Se liia liit mid
clennisse gebaldan wile and min broSar alcbliere bire fultume and J^set lond bire
nytt gedoe . and liim man seUe an balf swulung an cioUan dene to babbanne
and to brucanne wiSi'an <5e be Sy geornliocar liire Searfa bega and bewiotige.
and mon selle liim to Sem londe .iiii. oxan . and ii. cy . and l. scepa and
aenne born . gif min ^yiii Sonne lua nylle mid clennisse swse gebaldan and
bire liofre sie oScr bemed to niomanne Sonne foen mine mcgas to Sem londe
and liii-e agefcn liire agen . gif liire Sonne liofi-e sie ... . 3^lster to ganganne
MERCIAN. 341
OiSSa sii(5 to farranne ^onue agefen hie t\yc'egeu mine megas alcliliere and ae^el-
wold liii-e . twa ^usenda and fon him to ^em loude and agefe mon to limin. ge
L. eawa and .v. cy . fore hie and mon sells to folcanstane in mid minii Hce .
X. oxan . and .x. cy . and .c. eawa . and .c. swina . and liigum ansundran .
D. pend . wicScSan tSe min wiif her be nuge innganges swae mid minu lice swae
sio^(5an yferrau dogi'e swas hwseder swse hire liofre sie . gif higan Sonne o<5Se
hlaford jjffit nylle liire mynsterlifes gemman . o<5$a hia siolf nylle and hire
oSer <5ing liofre sie . )3onne agefe mon ten himd pend inn mid minii lice me
wis legerstowe and liigum ansimdran fif liuud i)end fore mine sawle . and ic
bidde and bebeode swtelc moun se t'tet min lond hebbe Stet he pelce gere agefe
Sam higum aet folcanstane . l. ambra maltes . and .vi. ambra gTuta . and .iir.
\rega spices and ceses . and .cccc. lilafa . and an hriSr. and .vi. seep . and
swfelc monn seSe to minimi aerfe foe Sonne gedele he Klcum messepreoste bin-
nan cent mancns goldes and jelcum godes Siowe pend and to sancte petre min
wfergeld twa Susenda and freoSomund foe to minu sweorde and agefe Ser set
feower Susenda and him mon forgefe Ser an Sreotenehimd pending . and gif
mine broSar ferfeweard gestrionen Se londcs weorSe sie {sonne aim ic Sem
londes . gif hie ne gestrionen oSSa liiin sylfii feUes hwa?t sele aefter liiora dege
ann ic his freoSomunde gif he Sonne lifes hiS. Gif liim elles hwret sieleS
Sonne ann ic his miiira swfestar smia swaslcmn se hit geSiaii wile and liim
gifeSe biS. and gif {^iet gesele f/iet miii cynn to San clane gewite Sa^t Ser Seara
nan ne sie Se londes weorSe sie )3onne foe se hlaford to and Sa higon ai-t Kristes
cuican and hit mmmii gaste nytt gedoeu . an Sas redenne ic hit Sider seUe Se
se monn seSe Ka-istes cirican hlaford sie se mia and minra erfeweai'da fores-
preoca and mimdbora and an his lilaforddome we bian moten.
Lincolnshire.
CEOLRED, A.D. 852. {^^o. 267.)
In nomine patris et fihi et spiritus sancti ! Ceoked abbnd and Sa higan on
Medeshamstede sellaS Wulfrede Set land set Sempingaham in Sas gerednisse ;
Set he hit haibbe and briice sua lange sua he life and animi serfeuuarde aefter
hiin ; and elce gere sextig foSra wuda to Sse'm hum on Homan Ste'm -n^ida, and
tuelf foSer graefan and sex foSur gerda. End forSon wo liuii Sis land sellaS,
Set he Ses landes fuliie friodom bigete in ae'ce aerfeweardnisse set Sempiugaham
and sst Slioforda, and bruce "Sere cirican lafard on Medeshamstede Ses landes
set Shoforda, and ^Yulfred ^es on Semj^ingaham : and he geselle eghwelce gere
to Medeshamstede tua tunnan fuUe lulitres aloS, and tua sleg-neat, and sex
hund lafes and ten mittan w£elsces alo, and Sere cii-ican laforde geselle egh-
welce gere hors and {jrittig scillinga, and hine ane niht gefeormige fiftene mitta
luhti'es aloS, fif mitta welsces aloS, fiftene sestras HSes : and hi sion symle in
allum here life eadmode and hearsume and under}7e(jdde, and ofer here tuega
dseg Sonne agefe hio Set land into Sere cirican to Medeshamstede mid fi'eo-
dome ; and we him Sis scUaL") mid felda and mid \\T.ida and mid fcnne sua Ser
to behmpeS. SiS heora tuuege dseg agan sic, Sonne agefe mon tuueuti liida
liigumn to biodland and Sere cirican lafarde xii. hida land 03t Forde and ajt
Cegle, and he Ses feonnicd tuuege hida landes set Lscheotum his erfeweorda
sweolcum swelco limi Sonne gesibbast waj're, and Sat were ful frcdcs cj'iine ge
fre swa sua Set oSer into Sere cirican. Anno ucro dominicac incarnationis
DCCc.Lii. indictione xv.
§ 302. If charters like the foregoing, which bear the names
342 MERCIAN.
of Mercian Kings, and, so doing, cany us back to the days of
the so-called Heptarchy, tell us thus little, still less must be ex-
pected from those which, bearing the name of some later king,
merely refer to lands within the old Mercian boundaries. Such
are certain charters (comparatively numerous in the reign of
Edward the Confessor) which apply to the counties, Worcester,
Gloucester, Oxford, Stafford, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Hertford,
and the Isle of Ely. One of Canute's (already noticed) applies
to Northamptonshire. One, containing the name Kirkehy, is
from some portion of the Danish area ; yet the two compounds
in -son and -by are all the Danish elements they contain.
§ 303. Any diferentice between the East Saxon, the Middle
Saxon and the South Saxon of Essex, Middle:iex, and Sussex,
I have failed to find. I have not, however, looked over-closely,
expecting but little. Tiiat Sussex should notably differ from
Hants ; Middlesex and Hertfordsiiire from Berks ; and Essex
from Suffolk is unlikely. Neither are any great differences to
be expected in Kent : though this is a point upon wiiich I
speak with caution.
Of the West Saxon the most extreme locality for which we
have a document is Exeter : which gives the bequest of Bishop
Leofric already alluded to ; viz. : the bequest of his library, con-
taining what is now called the Codex Exoniensis, to the library
of the cathedral. Between this and the documents from the
extreme East there is but little difference.
CHAPTER VI.
PROVIXCIAL FORMS OF SPEECH AT PRESENT EXISTING.
SOUTHERN GROUP.
§ 304. The complement to the study of the dialects of the
Anglo-Saxon period is that of the several provincial forms of
speech of the present day : the chief questions connected with
them being the following; ; —
1. The extent to which they show signs of influences other
than Angle. How far, for instance, is Kent Jute, Lincolnshire
Danish, ^Cornwall Kelt, &c. ?
2. Their difference at different dates.
8. The origin of the standard, or literary English.
In ignoring the ordinary distinction between the Angles
EXISTING DIALECTS. 343
and the Saxons, the present writer deviates widely from his pre-
decessors. Nevertheless, he, by no means, denies that the appli-
cation of the two terms to different parts of England may be a
fact, which, if rightly interpreted, is of considerable importance.
That the words Sux-sea;, Essex, Middle-sea?, and Wes-sex, mean
something in the way of Saxmi-hood is transparently evident.
This, however, was not a difference between the Saxons and the
Anoies, but a difference of the conditions under which the two
names were imposed.
In the Saxon parts of England the influence of the popula-
tions who called the Angles by the name oi Saxon was sufficient
to give currency to the latter term, as opposed to the former ;
whereas, in the Angle parts of England tliis influence was in-
sufficient to affect the currency and predominance of the native
name. The populations who called the Angles by the name of
Saxons were three — (I) the original Britons, {'l) the Eomans,
and (3) the Franks — supposing these latter to have been (as they
are by hypothesis) early occupants of Kent.
Hence the term Saxon as applied to our dialects is convenient ;
its convenience making the use of it excusable ; and the division
of our dialects called Saxon is, to a certain extent, natural;
though not on account of the reasons usually exhibited.
§ 305. The extent to which the standard or classical Anglo-
Saxon was Saxon rather than Angle has already been noticed.
It maj^ be added that it was West Saxon rather than either
South Saxon, or Uast Saxon, Middle Saxon or Kentish.
But, it by no means follows that because the West Saxon was
the form of speech most under cultivation in the times anterior
to the Norman Conquest, it should also be the form of speech in
which the English writers after that event most especially ex-
pressed themselves. On the contrary, the literary development
of the southern dialects may have ceased with the Saxon line
of kings, whereas the reaction against the Anglo-Norman may
have begun with some other dialect.
§ 306. Let—
Saxon = Southern,
Northumbrian = Northern,
East Anglian = Eastern,
Mercian = Midland,
and we get a convenient and not very inaccurate nomenclature ;
a nomenclature, however, which is merely provisional. Should
J>-i-t EXISTING DIALECTS.
it leatl, liowewr, to any undue i Jentilications between the political
and philological divisions, it must be abandoned.
The more extreme forms of speech are those of the North and
South : i. c. Devonshire and Northumberland differ from each
other more than Suffolk and Hereford, or Norfolk and Shropshire.
The Midland counties exhibit the minimum amount of pecu-
liarities. This helps us in our classification. Whatever else
they may do, the Northern, Southern, and Eastern group cannot
directl}- gi-aduate into each other.
§ 307. The Midland dialects make the nearest approach to the
literary English. This is only another way of saying that the
literary English more especially represents the Midland dialects.
That the peasants and country people of these parts partake of
the nature of literary men more than those elsewhere, and that
they speak more purely on the strength of a better education, is
an untenable position. The truer view is, that the English of
our standard authors originated in the Midland counties. Hence
it is the literature that resembles the dialects rather than the
dialects that emulate the literature.
The particular district where the difference between the lan-
guage of the educated portion of the community and the masses
is at its rainimum, I believe, to be the parts between St. Neots
in Huntingdonshire and Stamford on the borders of Lincoln,
Rutland, and Northamptonshire. This gives the county of
Huntingdon as a centre. The same — though in a less degree —
applies to the southern, eastern, and south-eastern parts of
Lincolnshire, Rutland, the north and north-western parts of
Cambridge, the western parts of Essex, Herts, Beds, North-
amptonshire, and part of Bucks. In Warwickshire and Oxford-
shire, a similar representation of the literary English prevails —
though a change from the typical forms of Huntingdon and Bed-
ford is apparent..
§ 308. It is scarcely necessary to inform the reader, that each
and all of the specimens consisting of the second chapter of the
Song of Solomon are from what may be called the Bonaparte
Collection; this meaning that H.I.H, the Prince L. L. Bonaparte,
having chosen the said song for a uniform specimen, and having
got able coadjutors in the reduction of it to the following dia-
lects, has published the series fi'om which the extracts have been
made. To save a number of individual references, I give the
details of the authorship in the following list : —
SOMERSETSHIRE.
345
1. Somersetshire: T. Spencer Baynes, L.L.B.
2. East Devon : G. P. K. Pulman,
3. Devonsliire : Heuiy Baird, Autlior of Nathan Hogg's Letters and
Poems, in the same dialect.
4. Cornwall: Anoujanous. 1859.
5. Dorsetshu-e : The Piev. W. Barnes. 1859.
6. North Wilts: E. lute, F.S.A. 1860.
7. Snssex: Mark Anthony Lower, M.A.
8. Cnmherland : John Rayson.
9. Central Cumberland : William Dickenson. 1859.
10. Westmoreland: Eev. John Bickardson, M.A., Head Master of Appleby
School.
11. Lancashire : Parts about Bolton, James Taylor Staton. 1859.
12. North Lancasliii-e : James Phizackerby. 1860.
13. Craven : H. A. Littledale. 1859.
14. North Riding : The Autlior of a Glossary of Yorksliii-e Words and
Phi-ases, collected in Whitby, and the neighbom-hood.
15. West Ridmg of Yorksliire : Charles Rogers, Author of The Baimsla
Foaks, Amiual an' Pogmoor Ohnenac.
16. Dm-ham.
17. Newcastle : J. G. Forster.
18. Ditto J. P. Robson, Author of Bards of the Tyne.
19. Northumberland: Ditto.
20. Lowland Scotch : Anonymous. 1860. . -'"
21. Ditto J. P. Robson. 1860.
22. Noi-folk: Gniet.
§ 309. For the Saxon group; Somersetshire is convenient as
a commencement. It gives us a strongly-marked, but not an
extreme dialect.
1.
Mr. Guy and the Eohhers.
]\Ir. Guy war a gennehnan
O' Huntsfull, w.ell knawn
As a grazier, a liirch one,
Wi' Ions o' hiz awn.
4.
One time a'd bm to Lunnun,
An zawld hiz cattle well ;
A brought awa a j)ower o' gawld.
As I've a hu-ed tell.
A oten went to Lunnun
Hiz cattle ver ta zill ;
All the bosses that a rawd
Nivcr minded liad^c or hill.
A war afeard o' naw one ;
A niver made hiz will ;
Lilie wither vawk, avaur a went
Hiz cattle ver ta zill.
As late at night a rawd along.
All droo a unket ood,
A ooman rauze vrom off tha groun,
An right avaur en stood.
6.
She look'd za pitis Mv. Guy
At once his boss's pace
Stapt short, a wonderin how, at night.
She com'd in jitch a place.
i40
EXISTING DIALECTS.
A littlo ti-unk war in her hou ;
She zmi'cl vur g^von wi chile,
She ax'il eu nif a'd take er up
Ami cor or a voo iiiilc.
8.
!Mr. Guy, a man o' veelin
Vor a ooman in distress,
Then took er up behind en ;
A cood'u do na less.
9.
A corr'd er trunk avaur en.
And by liiz belt o' leather
A bid her hawld vast ; on tha rawd,
Athout much tak, together.
10.
Not ^-ur tha went avaur she gid
A wldzzle loud an long,
"NVliich Mr. Guy thawt very sti'ange,
Er voice too zim'd za strong ;
11.
She'd lost er dog, she zed ; an than
Another whizzle blaw'd,
That stortled Mr. Guy; a stapt
Iliz boss upon tha rawd.
12.
" Goo on," zed she ; bit ^Ir. Guy
Zum rig beginn'd ta fear ;
Yor voices i"auze upon tha wine,
An zim'd a comin near.
13.
Again tha rawd along ; again
She whizzled, ]\Ir. Guy
Wliipt out his knife an cut tha belt,
Than push'd er off; ver why ?
14.
Tha ooman he took up behine,
Bcgummers, war a man ;
Tha rubbers zaw ad lad ther plots
Our gi-azier to ti'epan.
15.
I sholl not stap to tell what zed
Tha man in ooman's clawse,
Bit he an all o'm jist behine
"War ^\•hat you mid suppauze.
16.
Tha cust, tha swaur, tha dreaten'd too,
An ater Mr. Guy
Tlia gallop'd all ; twar nivor tha near,
Hiz boss along did vly.
17.
Auver do'mis, droo dales, awa a went,
Twar da-hght now amawst.
Till at an uin a stapt, at last,
Ta thenk what he'd a lost.
IS.
A lost ! why nothin — but biz belt
A zmmnet more ad gaiii'd ;
Tliic httle trunk a corr'd awa.
It gawld galore * contain'd.
19.
Kif ]Mr. Guy were hhch avaur,
A now war hircher still,
Tha plunder o' tha liighwamen
Hiz coli'ers went ta ^ill.
20.
In safety Mr. Guy rawd wliim,
A oten tawld tha stoiy ;
Ta meet wi' jitch a rig myzel,
I shood'n soce be zony.
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. I be th' rawze o' Zharon, an' th' lilly o' th' vallies.
2. Loik th' lilly amang tharns, zo be moi love amang th' darters.
3. Loik th' 5-apple-tree amang th' trees o' th' 'ood, zo be moi belovad amang
th' zons. I zot down oonder hiz zhadder wi' great deloight, an' hiz xxmi was
zweiit t' moi teiist.
4. A' vetched me ta th' veasting-houze, an' hiz vlag awver me wer love.
5. Stay me wi' vlagons, comfort me wi' yapples, vor I be zeek o' love.
* This is not a provincial, but a slang, word. It is fjaleor = enoufjh, and is Gaelic.
SOMERSETSHIRE. 34-7
6. Hiz lef hail' be oonder moi yeiicl, an' liiz roiglit lian' do embrace me.
7. I tell ee, O darters o' Jeruzalem, by tli' raws an' by tli' hinds o' th' viel,
dont'e stiu' up nor weak moi love till a' do pleaz .
8. Th' voice o' moi belovad! Zee ! a' cawmt'h leiipin upon th' mountains,
skeepin upon th' hills.
9. Moi belovad be loik a raw era yoong hart : zee ! a' stand'th behind our
wall, a' look'th voath at th' winders, zhowing hiszel droo th' lattice.
10. Moi belovad spoak, an' zed unto me, Rise up, moi love, moi vair wuon,
an' koom away.
11. For, zee, th' winter be past, th' rain be awver an' a-gone.
12. Th' vlowers be koom voiith vrom th' mould ; th' birds be a-zingin all
roun; an' th' cooin o' th' tui'tle-doove be a-yeard in th' Ian'.
13. Th' \dg-tree putteth voiith her green vigs, an' th' vines wi' th' tender
greaps do gie a good zmeU. Arise, moi love, moi vair wuon, an' koom away.
14. O moi doove, that beiist in th' clefs o' th' rocks, in th' zecret pleazes o'
th' stears, let me zee tlioi veace, let me year thoi voice ; vor zweiit be thoi
voice, an' thoi veJice be koomly.
15. Teak uz th' voxes, th' Httle voxes, that spwile th' vines ; vor our vines
have tender greaps.
16. Moi belovad be moine, an' I be hiz ; a' veiideth amang th' lilHes.
17. Till th' day do breilk, an' th' zhadders vlee away, turn, moi belovad, an'
be theow loik a raw or a yoong hart on th' mountains o' Bether.
For a fuller notice of the Somersetshire dialect the reader is
referred to a small work by Spencer Baynes, wherein many of
the details of its phonesis are exhibited. The general character
of this is well known. It consists in an inordinate predomi-
nance of the sonant mutes, and in some remarkable transpo-
sitions. The diphthongal character given to the Somersetshire
vowels is by no means characteristic. It is found in more than
half the counties in England, but the transpositions are im-
portant. They are those of the Anglo-Saxon of Wessex ; and
there is no part of England where the coincidence between the
old and the new forms is so close. In A. S. am — ran ; in the
present Somersetshire, urn z=. run, just as hirch:=zrich.
That the Somersetshire dialect is the lineal descendant of the
West Saxon, is the express opinion of the author of the treatise
just quoted. It is the opinion of Dr. Giles, who is a native of
the county, as well as an acute and independent thinker, and a
good Anglo-Saxon scholar. Still, the evidence of natives is
always to be taken with caution. Every patriotic provincial
claims the greatest amount of Anglo-Saxon for his own dialect.
In the case of Somersetshire, however, 1 believe the claim is as
valid as any such claims ever are. Notwithstanding the fact of
Berkshire being the county which gave birth to Alfred, I mani-
tain that it was to the language of the parts about Sherebourue
3kS EXISTING DIALECTS.
aiiil llie borders of Horsefc and Somerset, rather than the parts
about Wantage, that the literary West Saxon bore the most re-
seniblanee.
The Somersetshire for I, Avhieh is (in full) vtcluj, and which is
becoming obsolete, is remarkable. It is a southern form, from
which we get, by contraction, cW.
The West Somerset dialect approaches that of —
§ 310.
Devonshire.
According to Pulman, Kilmington, near Axminster, is the spot
where the sound of the French eu is first found ; viz. the oo
in moon, spoon = the Scotch ui, foreign to Somersetshire, and
foreign to Cornwall.
To milky =. to mill; and tltey cryath = to cry. It is, how-
ever, the older people who use them. With the rising generation
they are going out. The prefix a, as in agone, is commoner.
East Devon.
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. Ai'm th' rawse o' Sharon, an' th' lily o' tli' volleys.
2. Lailce th' lily among thoiirns ez my leuvc among th' mfdcl'ns.
3. Laike th' opple-tree 'mong other timber 's mai beleuved 'mong th'
youngsters. Ai was glad ta zit under ez sheiide, an' zwit was ez freut in my
meuth.
4. He broiit me to th' feyst-chimmer, an' leuve, ver a flag, did hang auver
me.
5. ViU me wi' flaggins, plej'ze me wi' opples, ver ai 'm leuve-zick.
6. Ez left ban's 'neatli my head, — ez raight's rouu' my waist.
7. Ai bag'th 'ee, O mrdds o' Jerusalem, bai th' roes an' th' hain's o' th' fiel'
nit ta meuve ner ta wake my young-man till's a-maindid teue.
8. Hear th' vaice o' my young-man ! Leuke 'ee zee ! A-com'lh jumpin
'pon the mountins, an' hoppin' 'pon th' liills.
9. Mai young-man's laUie a deer or a young hayne. He stan'th behiline
our woU. He leuk'th voatli \Tem th' kezment an' sliow'th 's zel' ta th' lattice.
10. My yoimg-man spawk teue me, zes he, Git up, my dear ci'eytiu', mai
pirty-wan, kim along.
11. Ver th' wenter, yeue zee, 's a-gone bai, th' wet taime 's a-pas'.
12. Th' viewers sprout'th vwoath in th' gro-mi', — th taime 's a kim'd roun'
ver th' whis'hn' o' birds, an' th' craw o' th' culver's a-yird vur an' naigh.
13. Th' green \dgs be vwoath-caum'd 'pon ther tree, an' kearnd gi'apes
'pon th' vaine sceynt'th the air. Kim along, then, mai swithort, mai pii-ty-
wan.
14. Yeue, mai dove, that abuid'th in th' gaps o' th' rocks, th' bai-pJiarts o'
th' stau's, shaw yer face, an' let's hear 'tis yer vaice. Ver ver vaice ez so swit
an' yer face za geude-leuldn'.
DEVONSHIRE. S49
15. Deu 'ee ketch us th' foxes, tli' yoviug foxes that spayl'th all tli' vaines.
For th' vaine's jist in grape.
16. My young-man ez my aAvn, an' ai 'm hee's. He veed'th 'mong th'
lilies.
17. Till th' gi'ay o' th' murnin,' when th' naight vlee'th away ; kim bock,
au, my leuve, an be laike a raw er young deer tap th' haigh heels o' Bother.
Souff of Solojnon, c. 2.
1. I am tha rose uv Sharin, an tha lilly uv tha vallys.
2. As tha lilly among thaurns, zo es ma luv among tha daters.
3. As tha happle-tree among tha trees uv tha hood, zo es ma beluvid among
tha zins. I zot down under es sliadda Avay grait dehte, an es vi'ewt was zweet
ta ma taste.
4. Ha brort ma ta tha bankitten houze, an es banner auver ma was luv.
5. Stay ma way vlaggius, komfirt ma way happles, viu- I am zick uv luv.
6. Es lift han es under ma liaid, an es rite han dith unbrace ma.
7. I charge yu, Aw ye daters uv Jerewslim, be tha ro's, an be tha hines uv
tha vee-eld, thit ye ster nat up, nur wake ma love, till ha i^laize.
8. Tha voice uv ma behmd ! behold, ha com'th laipin apin tha mowntins,
skippin apin tha liills.
9. Ma beluvid es like a ro ur a yung hart : behold, he stand'th behend our
wal, ha look'th vore at tha mnders, shawin eszul droo tha lattice.
10. Ma belmdd spauk, an zed on-too ma, Rise up, ma luv, ma vair wan, an
kom away.
11. Viu*, lo, tha ■winter es past, tha rain es auver an gaim.
12. Tha viewers appear on tha 'aith ; tha tune uv tha zingin uv bui'ds es
kom, an tha voice uv tha turtle es yerd in oui* Ian.
13. Tha vig-tree put'th vore her green vigs, an tha vmes way tha tender
gi'eape gie a gude zmul. Arise, ma luv, ma vair wan, an kom away.
14. Aw, ma duv, thit art in tha cliffs uv tha rocks, in tha zaycrit ple-aces
uv tha stairs, let ma zee thy countyniuce, let ma yer thy voice ; vor zweet es
thy voice, an thy countynince es comly.
15. Te-ake es tha voxes, that Htt'l voxes, thit spoil tha vines : vur our vines
hev tender gi'e-apes.
IG. Ma behind es mine, an I am hees : he veed'th among tha hllys.
17. Ontil tha day braik, an tha shadda's vlee away, turn, ma beluvid, an be
thou like a ro, ur a yung hart apin tha mowntins uv Bayther.
A Devonshire Dialogue. Mrs. Gwatkin. Edition of 1832.
PiAB. Zo, Bet, how is't? How do try? — Where hast a'be thicka way?
Where dost come from ?
Bet. Gracious, Rab ! you gush'd me. I 've a' be up to vicarige, to vet a
book vor Dame, and was looking to zee if there be auy sliows in en, when you
wisk'd over the stile, and galled me.
Rar. And dost thee look so like a double-rose, when thee art a' galled. Bet?
What dost thee gook thee head vor : look up, wo't?
Bet. Be quiet : let 'lone my liat, wol ye ?
Rar. Wliat art tozing over the book vor ?
Bet. Turning out the dog's cars.
Rab. 'Ot is it — a stoiy-book ?
ooO EXISTING DIALECTS.
Bet. I Avish "(was, I love story-books clearly, many noarts I've a' /it up when
nil the volks have a' be a-boil. ami a' redo till es have had a crick in the nid-
diek, or a' burn'd my cep.
Rab. And dost love to rede stories about spirits and witches?
Bkt. I"U tell thee. I was wan neart rediny a story-book about spirits, that
com'd and draw'd back tlie curtains at the bed's voot (and there was the
ghastly pictiu-es o' em). The clock had beat wan, when an owl creech'd 'pon
the top o' the cliimley, and made my blood rin cold. I zim'd the cat zeed zum
'ot : the door creaked, and the wind hulder'd in tlie chimley like tlnmder. I
prick'd up my eai"S, and presently, zum'ot, very hiu'risome, went dump!
dump ! dump ! I would a' geed my life vor a varden. Up I sprung, drow'd
down my caniUe, and douted en ; and hadn't a blunk o' fire to teen en again.
"What could es do ? I was afear'd to budge. At last I took heart, and went up
stears backward, that nort mert catch me hj the heels. I didn't unraj' mysel
vor the neart, nor teen'd my eyes, bixt healed \\\> my head in the quilt, and my
heart bmupt zo, ye could hear en ; and zo I lied panking till peep o' day.
Il.\B. Poor Bet ! why if a vlea had hopp'd into tliy ear thee wot a' swoon'd.
Bet. You may well enew laugh at me, but I can't help et, nor vorbear
reding the books when I come athort 'em. But I'U tell tliee : I've a' thort
pont zince, tliat the dump ! dump ! dump ! that galled me zo, was nort else
but our gi-eat dog diggin out liis vleas against the di-esser.
R.\.B. Like enew: I marvel that you, who ha' zo much indel and oudel
work to do, can vend time vor reding ; but then, it zeems, you rede when you
ought to zleep.
Bet. "Why, you must know. Dame dosn't hke I shu'd rede zich books ; it
be other lucker books us ha' vrom the Pason ; and when us ha' done up our
chewers, and 'tis candle-teeming, Measter takes hiszell to the alehouse, I take
up my knitting, and Dame redes to me. Good now : es may ha' as many
books vrom the Pason as us wol, he ne'er zaith her nay, and he hath a power
o' em, that a' hath.
§ 311. The Cornish of the following specimen is for the parts
West and South of St. Austell. In the northern part of the
county the dialect approaches that of Devon.
So}ig of Solomon, c. 2.
1. I'm th' rooase of Shaaron, and th' lily of th' valleys.
2. Like th' lily 'mong thorns, so es my love 'mong th' dafters.
3. Like th' apple-tree 'mong th' trees of th' wud, so es my beloved 'mong
th' sons. I sot dowTi onder lies shadda weth g'cat delight, and hes fruit wor
sweet to my taaste.
4. He broft me to th' banqueting house, and hes bamier o^Tcr me wor love.
5. Stay me weth flagons, cumfurt me weth apples : for I'm sick of love.
6. Hes lift hand es onder my head, and hes right hand do embraace me.
7. I chaarge 'ee. Aw you dafters of J'msalum, by th' roes, and by th' hinds
of th' field, that you waan't steer up, nor 'waake my love, till he do plaise.
8. The vooice of my beloved ! behowld, he do come laipin' pon the
raount'ins, skippin' 'pon th' hills.
9. ]My beloved es hke a roe or a A'oung hart : behowld, he do staand be-
hind om- wale, he do luck foathe at th' winders, sha^^ ing liisself through th'
lattice.
GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 3 5 1
10. INIy beloved spok', and said to me, Rise up, my love, my feer waun, and
come away.
11. For, law, tli' wenter es paast, th' rain es o^'^'er and gone.
12. Th' iiowers do appeer '])on th' eertli ; th' tune of th' singin' of bu'ds es
come, and th' vooice of th' turtle es heerd in our land.
13. The fig-tree do put foathe hes green figs, and th' vines weth th' tender
graape do give a good smill. Rise up, my love, my feer waun, and come
14. Aw my dove, who art in th' vaigs of th' rock, in th' saicret plaaces of the
steears, lev us see thy faace, lev us heer thy vooice ; for sweet es thy vooice,
and thy faace es putty.
15. Catch for us th' foxes, the httle foxes, what do spooil th' vines : for oiu*
vines have got tender graapes.
16. My beloved es mine, and I am hes : he do feci 'niong th' lilies.
17. Ontil the day do break, and th' shaddas do fly awaj', tui"n, my beloved,
and be like a roe or a young hart 'j)on th' mount'ius of Bether.
In Cornwall the influence of the original Keltic is the chief
point of investigation. As far as our present data go, it is in-
considerable— inconsiderable, at least, in respect to the vocables
and inflections. That it has affected the phonesis is likely. The
materials, however, for the inquiry are of the scantiest.
In Cornwall we reach our limit to the west, and (so doing)
have to return to Somersetshire, leading, on the south, to Dor-
setshire, and on the north to
§ 312.
Gloucestershire.
Oeorge Ridlers Oven. From HalUwell's Archaic and Provincial Dictionary.
1.
The stowns that built George Pddler's Oven,
And thauy qeum from the Bleakeney's quar ;
And George he wur a jolly old mon,
And his yead it gi'aw'd above liis yare.
2.
One thmg of George Ridler I must commend,
And wiu' that not a notable theng ?
He mead liis brags avoore he died,
Wee any di'ee brothers his zons z'hou'd zeng.
3.
There's Dick the treble and John the moan.
Let every mon zing in his auwn pleace.
And George he wiu- the elder brother.
And therevoore he would zmg the beass.
"^ 4.
Mme hostess's moid (and her neamn 'twur Nclll,
A pretty wench, and I lov'd her well ,
I lov'd her well, good rcauzon why ;
Because zhe lov'd my dog and I.
352 EXISTING DIALECTS.
Mj' dog is good to cntcli a hen,
A duck or goose is vood for men ;
And whore good company I spy,
O thcthor gwoes my dog and I.
6.
My mwothor told I when I wur yonng,
If I did YoUow the stroi^g hecr pwoot,
Tliat drcnk woukl pruv my auvcrdrovv,
And meauk mc wear a tlu'ead-bare cwoat.
7.
iM}' dog has gotten zitch a trick,
To ^dsit moids when thauy be zick :
When thauy be zick and hke to die,
O thether gwoes my dog and I.
8.
"When I have dree zispences under my thumli,
O then I be welcome wherever I come :
But when I have none, O then I pass by,
'Tis poverty j^eai-ts good company.
9.
If I should die, as it may hap,
]\Iy greauve shall be under the good yea! tap :
In vouled earms there wool us lie.
Cheek by jowl, my dog and I.
§ 313.
Worcestershire.
The affinities of the Worcestershire dialect run southwards.
The details, however, are obscure ; inasmuch as we are not only
without a sufficiency of data for the county itself, but are ill-
provided with materials for North Gloucestershire and "Warwick-
shire, the counties on its frontier. That the decidedly south-
western character of the Gloucester dialect, represented by
George Ridlers Oven, becomes less as we move northwards and
eastwards, is certain. Hence, the characteristics of Worcester-
shire, whatever they may be, are by no means very definite or
strongly-marked.
Whether Worcester, Warwick, and Oxfordshire may be more
properly tlirown into tlic group which contains Nortliampton
and Buclis, may be doubtful. It is only certain that it belongs
to the group which contains Gloucestershire and Somersetshire,
rather than to the group which contains Staffordshire and Derby-
shire.
DORSETSHIRE 353
§ 314.
Heeefordshire.
I connect Hereford with Worcester on the strength of its
geographical relations rather than upon the strength of any ac-
curate investigation.
There is a good glossary of the Herefordshire ; but no com-
positions in it. The oldest charters are, like those of Worcester-
shii-e, West Saxon.
§ 315.
Monmouthshire.
In Monmouth, as in Cornwall, the Keltic element and the
English come in immediate and recent contact. Of the details
of its dialect I know nothing.
§ 316. If the place of Worcestershire be doubtful, still more
so is that of Warivickahire ; which is thoroughly equivocal, its
dialect graduating into those of Worcester, Stafford, Oxford,
Leicester, and Northampton, according to the frontier.
§ 317.
Dorsetshire.
A Letter from a Parish Clerk in Dorsetshire to an absent Vicar, in the Dialect
of the County. From Poems on Several Occasions, forraerhj written hy John
Free, D.D. Svo, London, 1757. From HalliuelVs Archaic and Provincial
Dictionary.
Measter, aii't please you, I do send
Tlieaz letter to you as a vrieud,
Hoping you'll pardon the inditing
Becaz I am not us'd to writing,
And that you wiU not take unkind
A word or two from poor George Hind.
For I am always in the way,
And needs must hear what people zay.
First of the house they make a joke,
And zay the clumnies never smoak.
Now the occasion of these jests,
As I do think, were swallows' nests,
That chanced the other day to vaal
Into the parloiu", zut and aal.
Bezidc the people not a few.
Begin to murmur much at you.
For leaving of tliem in the lurch,
And letting straingcrs zcrve the church,
Who are in haste to go agen ;
Zo we ha'nt zang the Lord kuo^vs when.
A A
35 -t EXISTING DIALECTS.
Ami for tluir piciicliln^, I tlo know,
As \\cll us nioost, (is l)ut y.o, zo.
/me if tlie cull you luul were lif^lit,
You ne'er coulil thus your ueiglibours slight ;
But I do fear j-ou've zet your aim on
Naught ill the world but vilthy nianuuoii, &c.
Somj of Solomon, c. 2.
1. I be the rwose o' Sharon, an' the lily o' the valleys.
2. Lik' a lily wi' thorns, is my love among maidens.
;J. Lik' an apple-tree in wi' the trees o' the wood, is my love among sons. I
loug'd vor his sheiidc, an' zot down, an his fruit wer vull sweet to my teaste.
4. He brought me into the feiist, an' his flag uj) above me wer love.
5. Ilefi'esli me wi' ccakes, uphold me wi' apples : vor I be a-piuen vor love.
6. His left hand wer under my head, an' liis right a-cast round me.
7. I do warn ye, Jerusalem's da'ters, by the roes an' the hinds o' the vield,
not to stii-, not to woiike up my love, till he'd like.
8. The vaice o' my true-love ! behold, he's a-comen ; a-leaj)en up on the
mountains, a-sldppen awver the liills.
9. My true-love is lik' a yoimg roe or a hart: he's a-standen behind our wall,
a-looken vwo'th \Tom the wiadors, a-showen out droo the lattice.
10. My true-love he spoke, an' he call'd me, 0 rise up, my love, my fcair
maid, come away.
11. Vor, lo, the Avinter is a%\"S'er, the ra'in's a-gone by.
12. The flowers do show on the ground ; the zong o' the bu-ds is a-come, an'
the coo o' the culver 's a-heard in our land.
13. The fig-tree do show liis green figs, an' the Adues out in blooth do smell
sweet. O rise up, my tinie-love, feair-maid, come away.
14. O my love 's in the clefts o' the rocks, in the lewth o' the cliffs. Let me
look on your feiice, let me hear 'tis your va'ice ; vor sweet is your vaice, an'
comely your ftjice.
15. O catch us the foxes, the young oones, a-sx)weLlen the vines ; vor the
vines ha' neesh grapes.
16. O my love is all mine, an' I be all his : he's a-veeden among the lilies.
17. TUl the day is a-broke, an' the sheades be a-vled, turn back, 0 my love,
an' be lik' a roe or yoimg hart on the mountains o' Bether.
For the full account of the Dorsetshire dialect, as well as for
many beautiful compositions in it, see the Poems of the Rev. W.
Barnes ; according to whom it has a form of the infinitive mood,
which may be called the habitual. Can ye rtiowyzzcan you
mow in general ? Can you niovj this grass ?
Too much stress, however, must not be laid upon this, nor
must the inference that the final vowel represents the -a7i of the
Anglo-Saxon be drawn over-hastily. The same termination is
to be found in the demonstrative pronouns in more than one
district of the south-west; so that the Berkshire thech — tliilk
— this becomes thecky. The doctrine that this is an A. S. infi-
nitive is, of course, untenable.'
WILTSHIRE. 355
§318.
Wilts.
Old Barnzo. From AJterman's Wiltshire Talcs.
Eveiybodj' kneows owld Barnzo, as wears liis yeacl o' one zide. One night
a was coming wlioame vrom market, and veil off 's hos into the road, a was zo
di'imk. Some chaps coming by picked nn up, and zeein' Iiis yead was al o' one
zide, they thought 'twas out o' jiut, and began to pull 't into 'ts pleace agen,
when the owld bwoj^ roar'd out, " Barn zo {born so), 1 tell 'e !" Zo a' was alius
called owld Barnzo ever a'terwards.
Devizes Advertiser, July 19, 1860.
Botn Bo, Vizes Green, 16 July.
Mester Eddytub, — ZuE, — I bys j'cr piaper wen I can stan the penne to
pay var un, and twix Capn Gladst\\'un's inkumtaks and zununit that heant al
times. But I zees, zur, eviy now and agen as u prents leetle notes as voke
rites ee bout zum graveanse ar nother, and zoo I hopes u ull \'ind a kai-nur
zumwher for I to ha my zay about what I kails a publik graveanse. I means
that ther nasty mess of carron aUus a hangen up muost cluose to the ruod up
yonder wer Mester Tugwels houns be kep. Now, zur a lot o ded bosses' legs
an ribs a rottin in the zim, beant nice tilings for noobody to look at, and the
stenk on em is wusser steel, and I promess ee, zur, that last Zatterday night as
I cum whmn fi'om Pottern atter tlie day's work sich a puf come athert the ruod
as purty wel made I cast my stmnmick therrite, an thmks I, if this ere's only
passin how mus it be var they poor voke, messis Widdywintersen and the rest
on em, as hves jis aA\werrite and cant never look out o wander nar uepen thur
door wiout zeeiug an smelling thease tm-rable mess, piu'teklcr wen the wind do
cum up a leedle sowwestard like, and I wunders they beant ded puizend long
avore now. I never dun no ^vurk nor nuthen \tu* Mester Tugwell, but I do no
es a good naterd gennelmen, and I warnd, zur, if a zees thiSj a'll have all put
rite quiksticks. Zoo no muore at presanee vrom yer humbel zarvint,
A POOH WUPvKEN MAN.
Zur, — I'd jist a dun and rade tliis here out to my nayber, and/uow he wants
I to put down a noshiu or 2 o'hisn, a zes can be done verre wel ij^ a P.S., but I
rekns we med scrach ower 2 wuld beds a purty wile avore we vines out wo
that es. Housemerer, Jun zes, zes he, spuose the collarer cmns awver agen
from Ingy ar Jarminy ar Rooshy, viu" zarten ziu'e a ud collar thay poor voke
as leeves in zich voul ah \Tist, and then gennelvoke ud been taaken to we about
clanehness and witewashin and sich like, and Jun zes tha wer main sharp wi
hes wu looman a time bak about the pegsti and tatee-rines up closish to duoor
like, but vaa hez pairt he cant /ee nar smell but as hve pegs and tatee-parens
is jist za nisc as ded bosses and hapes o magets, and then he grould out zummit
about zampel better not parchin ; and ef this, ores 2 long ye mid blaimc he.
Twix u and I, zur, I thinlis Jim got out o bed Icf lag avore thcs marncn, and
nothen hant ben rite wee un all day zunce, but he dunno I be putten that
doun.
Sony of Solomon, c. 2.
1. I be th' nvojis o' Sharon, an' th' lilly o' th' valleys.
2. As th' lilly amang tharns, zo uz my love amang th* moj'dens.
3. As th' api)le-tree amang th' trees o' th' wood, zo uz my beloved amang
A A 2
356 EXISTING DIALECTS.
tir /uus. I zot down uudor liu/ slidulc wi' giut delight, anlui/ fiiiit wer'
zweet to my toiisto.
4. A vot m' to th' bauquoUm-liowsc, an' luiz vlag auvcr m' wcr' love.
5. Stoy 111' wi' wine, comfort m' wi' apples, vor I be zick o' love.
(i. Huz lift houd 's imder my j-ead, an' hiiz right hond do howld m'.
7. I charges 'ee, aw ye da'teis o' Jerusalem, by th' roes an' by th' hinds o'
tir vccld, that ye dwont stir up, nor weiike my love till a do like.
s. Th' zuund o' my beloved! Loa! a comes leppim upon th' mountains,
skii)pmi' upon th' hills.
9. My beloved uz lik a roe or a j'oung liai't: bchowldl a's a standun' beliind
owr wall, a looks vwo'th at the winders, sheawun' husself drough th' lattus.
10. My beloved spwoke, an' zed unto m', Rize u]), my love, my foir iin, an'
come awoiiy.
11. Yor, loa, th' \vinter iiz past, th' rain uz awver an' gone.
12. Th' viewers be zeed upon th' ea'th ; th' time o' th' zengnn' o' birds uz
come ; an' tli' naise o' th' turtle uz heer'd in owr lond.
13. Th' vig-tree puts vwo'th hur green vigs, an' th' vines wi' th' tender
greape do gie a good smill. Rize up, my love, my foir un, an' come awoa}'.
14. Aw my dove, as uz in th' criAices o' th' rock, in th' zecret pleacen o' th'
stairs, let m' zee yer veace, let m' hii'e yer voice ; vor zweet uz yer voice, an'
yer veace uz comely.
15. Teake us th' voxes, th' leetle voxes, as spwiles th' vines ; vor upon owr
vines uz tender greaj)es.
10, ]\Iy beloved uz mine, an' I be his'n ; a do veed amang th' lilies.
17. Till th' day do break, an' th' sheades do vlee awoiiy, turn, my beloved,
an' be lik a roe or a young hart upon th' mountains o' Bether.
In the seventeenth century, the ' Somersetshire ch = I was to
be found in Wiltshire : at least a note of Prince L. L. Bona-
parte, on Kite's Song of Solomon, states that a scarce work —
entitled. The King and Queenes Entertainment at Richmond,
after their Departure frovi Oxford. In a Masque presented hy
the Most Illustrious PHnce, Prince Charles, Sept. 12, 1686 :
Ncduram iTnitare licet facile nonnullis, videatur haud est. Ox-
ford. Printed by Leonard Lichfield, mdcxxxvi. — gives " chave
a million for, Chad not thought," etc. In p. 5 it is expressly
stated that, " because most of the interlocutors were Wiltshire
men, that country dialect was chosen."
§ 319. In an artificial classification of our southern dialects,
we may take the Hampshire Avon as a boundary, in which case
we have Somersetshire, Dorsetshire, Devonshire and Cornwall
with Western Wiltshire leadincr into Gloucestershire on the one
side, -and Hants, Sussex, Surrey, Kent, and the eastern part of
Wiltshire leading into Berkshire on the other ; the characteristics
of the western group being far more decided and prominent than
those of the eastern — the maximum being in Devonshire, the
minimum in Berks or Surrey,
SUSSEX. 357
Such a classification, however, is artificial ; inasmuch as it
separates Western Hants from Eastern .Dorset, and divides
Wiltshire. The natural group would take Wiltshire as a
centre, around which would be arranged Hants, Dorset, Somer-
set, Gloucester, and Berks, with Cornwall and Kent as the
extremities.
§ 320. Of the details of the Hampshire dialect I can say
little. T can only say that its aflinities are exactly those that
the geograpliical position suggests. On the north it passes
into the Wiltshire, and on the west into the Dorsetshire, forms
of speech.
Isle of Wight.
From Hall'meU.
Jan. Wliat's got there you ?
Will. A blastuasliun straddlebob craalun about in the nainmut bag.
Jan. Straddlebob ! where ded'st leyaru to caal'n by tliat iieyam?
Will. Why, what shoud e caalu ? tes the right nej^am, esn ut ?
Jan. Right ueyam, no! why, ye gurt zote vool, casn't zee tes a duuibledore?
WrLL. I knows tes, but ynx aal that straddlebob's zo right a neyam voru as
dumbledore ez.
Jan. Come, I'll be deyand if I doant laay thee a quart o' that.
Will. Done ! and I'U ax meyastur to-night when Igoos whooam, beet how't
wool.
Will. I zay, Jan ! I axed meyastur about that are last night.
Jan. Well ! what did 'ur zay ?
Will. AVhy a zed one neyam ez jest zovittum voru as tother, and he louz a
ben caald straddlebob ever zunce the island was vust ineyad.
Jan. The devvul a liav ! if that's the keeas I spooas I lost the quart.
Will. That thee hast, lucky ! and we'll goo down to Arverton to the Red
Lion and drink un ater we done work.
§ 321. It is the Adur, accordnig to Mr. M. A. Lower, that
divides the East-Sussex dialect from the West-Sussex, the latter
of which approaches the Hampshire.
Sussex.
8o)uj of Solomon, c. 2.
1. I be dc roiiz of Sharon, an de lily of de valleys.
2. Lik de lily among thorns, so is my love among de dalitcrs.
3. Lik the appul-tree among de trees of de ood, so is my beloved among de
sons. I set down under liis sliadder -RTid gurt delight, an his fruit was sweet
to my taiist.
4. He brung me to the banquctin-houso, and his guii llcg over me was love.
5. Stay me wud drinkin-pots, comfort me wud appuls, for I be sick wud love.
6. His left han under my head, an his right han elapses roun me.
358 EXISTING DIALECTS.
7. I charge ye, O ye (lahlois of Jorusalem, by do roes an by de liiiiJs of dc
lil. dat do doiiut rouse up, nor wake my lovo tull such lime as ho likes.
8. De voice of my beloved ; loolcoe, lie comes a-lippin upon de mountains,
a-skijipiu upon de hills.
9. My love is like a roe or ayouug hart ; lookec, he stans beliiml our wall,
he looks out of de winders a-showin of liisself thi-ough the lattice.
10. My beloved spoke, an said to me : Git up, my love, my fair un, an come
away.
11. For lookee, de winter is past, dc rain is over an gone ;
12. De flowers show deirselves on de airth, de time for de singin of burds
is come, an de voice of de ood-pigeont is heai'ed in our land.
13. De lig-tree puts foorth her green figs, an de vines wud de tender graiip
give a good smell. Git up, my love, mj-faii" im, an come away.
lA. O my dove, dat's in de clifts of de rock, m de sacret plaiices of de stairs,
let me see joii fails, let me hear yer voice ; for sweet is yer voice an yer faiis is
comely.
15. Ketch us de foxes, dem liddle foxes what spile de ^incs : for our vines
have got tender gi-aiips.
IG. Mj' beloved is mine, an I be he's : he feeds among de lilies.
17. Tull de dee breaks, an de sliadders goo awaj^ tui"n my beloved, an be ye
lik a roe or a j'oujig hart pon de mountains of Betlier.
§ 322. In Kent we are remarkably deficient in data ; the
only specimens I know being found in the short poem from
•.vliich the following is an extract.
Dick and Sal, Docer, 1830.
1.
An up we got inta de boat.
But Sal begun ta maunder,
Fer fare de stiing, when v,-e gun swhag,
Should break an come asunder.
But Glover sed " It is sa tuiF
• 'Tud bear a dozen men ;"
And when we thought we'd swiuig anough.
He took XLS down again.
;l
And den he looked at mc and sed,
" It seems ta please yoiu- mfe ;"
Sal gi-inn'd and sed she never had
Sudge fun in all Iier hie.
Still less do we know of the dialects or sub- dialects of
Surrey, except that, when they lie on the boundaries of the
county, they graduate into those of Berkshire, Sussex, and Kent.
I am informed by my friend Mr. Durrant Cooper, that up to
the very edge of London, viz. in Wimbledon and Wandsworth,
BERKSHIRE. 359
the dialect of the native labourers is notably provincial, and
also that it is essentially the same as that of Sussex. This
coincides with what Mr. Kemble obsei'ved near Chertsey, where
he resided, viz. that the dialect there was, also, notably pro-
vincial, notwithstanding the near neighbourhood of the capital.
He instanced, I remember, inter alia, the word litton:=z church-
yard.
§ 323. Grouping by type, I think that the Kent, Surrey,
and Sussex dialects may conveniently be arranged round some
central point near the junction of the three counties. That the
extremes graduate into one another, is beyond doubt. Even
single characteristics are found pretty constant over the whole
area. The prefixed sound of w, which stands out with such
prominence in Somersetshire and Gloucestershire, may be heard
in Kent, in Sussex, and (on Box Hill, if not elsewhere) even
within sight of St. Paul's. Indeed, the West Saxon character
of the Old Kentish of the Ayenbyte of In wit,* written a.d.
1340, has long commanded attention.
Non icli wUle ]pet ye ywite hoxi liit is ywent
fiet )3is boc is ywrite mid Engliss of Kent.
jjis boc janad uor lewede men
Vor uader and uor moder and uor oj^er ken
Hem uor to berze vram alle manj^ere zen
jset inne liare inwytte ne bleve no voul wen.
Huo as God is his name yzed,
)jet (pis boc made
God liim yeue j^et bread of angles of heuene
And jserto his red,
And onderuonge his zaule
Huanne j^et he is dyad.
Amen.
Ymende \>et j^is boc is uolved ine the eue of the lioly aspostles Symond and
Judas of ane brotlier of j^e cloj'stre of Sauynt Austin of Canterberi, ine f^e
yeare of oure Lhordes beringe, 1340.
§ 324. Tliat the use of the term Saxon involved in tlie pre-
sent classification partakes of the nature of a misnomer is clear.
It includes Kent, and excludes Essex. Middlesex, as far as the
metropolis allows it to exhibit any provincialisms at all, seems
to go with Essex. At any rate, the confusion between v and w,
which is so often laid to the cliarge of the Londoners, is a decided
East Anglian characteristic.
• Edited for the Roxburghe Chib, by the Rev. J. Stevenson.
•^^>0 EXISTING DIALECTS.
§ 325.
I'r.itKsiiinK.
The provincialisnis of Beik.shire are, by no means, very de-
cided. It may be added that they are those of the counties of
tlie frontier. On the east and south these give a minimum of
characteristics. In this, however, we see little except the im-
practicabiHt}' of classification through definition : combined with
the fact of the arrangement by counties being, more or less,
unnatural — though convenient. So fai', however, as Saxon, or
Southern, is admitted as the name of a group, so far is the
Berkshire dialect a member of the Saxon, or Southern, division.
On the west it graduates into the Wilts and Gloster, on the
north into that of
§ 326.
Oxfordshire.
Dr. Giles suggesting that, in the first element of the word
Whichwood (as in Whichwood Forest), we have the name of the
Anglo-Saxon Hioiccas, also suggests, that in the Forest itself our
ancestors had a great natural boundary between the West
Saxons and the Mercians. I think this likely ; at any rate, I
place South Oxfordshire in the present group, adding that the
peculiarities of its dialects are of no great importance. This
merely means that, in classification. South Oxfordshire goes with
Berks. Both, however, are districts for which we have a mini-
murii amount of data.
It is safe to say that the preceding group contains everything
that can be called Saxon, or Southern. On the Northern frontier
it contains something more.
CHAPTER VII.
EXISTING DIALECTS. NORTHUMBRIAN, OR NORTHERN, GROUP.
§ 327. It is now convenient to take the groups of the oppo-
site extremity of the island, and to consider the Northern, or
Northumbrian, forms of speech. A line drawn from Warrington
to Chestei-field, and from Chesterfield to Goole, gives us a limit
concerning wdiich we maj' predicate that everything to the north,
and something to the south of it, is Northuinhvian. Able writers,
indeed, make the southern part of Yorkshire and South Lanca-
shire Mercian. I think, however, that they have allowed them-
selves to be misled by the jjolitical value of the term.
CUMBERLAND.
3G1
§ 328.
Cumberland.
Tlie Impatient Lassie. By Andei
Diah
Deuce tek the clock ! click-clacldn'
Ay in a body's ear ; [sae
It tells and tells the teyme is past
When Jwohnnj^ sud been here.
Deuce tek the wheel ; 'twill nit run
Nae mair to-neet I'll spin, [roun,
But count each minute wid a seegh
Till Jwohnny he steals in.
How neyce the spunkj^ fire it burns
For twee to sit beseyde,
And theer's the seat where Jwhonny
And I forget to cheyde ; [sits
My fadder, tui, how sweet he
snwores,
My mudder's fast asleep —
He promised oft, but, oh ! I fear
His word he wainnet keep.
What can it be keeps him frae me ?
The ways are nit sae lang,
And sleet and snow are nought at aw
If yen were fain to gang :
Some udder lass, wi' bonnier feace
Has catch'd his wicked ee.
And I'll be pointed at at kurk —
Nay, suiuer let me dee !
0 durst we lasses nobbet gang
And sweetheart them we leyke,
I'd run to thee, my Jvvohnn}', lad,
Nor stop at dog or deyke :
■son. — Westmoreland and Cumberland
■cts. 1839.
But custom's sec a silly thing—
Thur men mun hae their way,
And monie a bonny lassie sit
And wish frae day to day.
I once hed sweethearts monie a yen
They'd weade thro' muck and mire,
And when our fwok wer deed asleep
Com' tremlin' up t' fire.
At Carel market lads wad stare,
And talk, and folloAV me ;
Wi' fejme shwort keakes, ay frae the
fah",
Baitli pockets cramm'd wad be.
0 dear ! what changes women pruive
In less than seeben year,
1 walk the lonnins, owre the muir,
But de'il a chap comes near !
And Jwolinny I nee mair can trust,
He's just like aw the lave ;
I fin' this sairy heart '11 brust
I'll suin lig i' my grave !
But, whisht ! — I hear my Jwohuny's
Aye, that's his varra clog ! [fit —
He steeks the faul yeat softly tm —
Oh, hang that cwoley dog !
Now hey for seeghs and suggar words,
Wi' kisses nit a few —
This warl's a parfe't paradeyse
When lovers they pruive true !
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. I am the rwose o' Sharon, an' the lillie o' the vallies.
2. As the liUie amang thworns, sae is my luive amang the dowters.
3. As the apple-tree amang the trees o' the wud, sae is my beluivet amang
the sons. I sat domi animder his shaddow wi' muckle deleyght, an' Ids frutc
was sweet tui my teaste.
4. He brong me tui' the banquctin' hwous, an' his bannir ower me was
luive.
5. Stay me wi' flaggans, cumfcrt me wi' apples : for I am seek o' luive.
G. His left ban' is anundcr my heed, an' his rect ban' infauls me.
7. I wcarn you, O ye dowters o' Jerusalem, by the rwoes, an' lieyncs o' the
fiel, that ye stur nit up, ner awaeken my luive till lie pleesc.
8. The voyce o' my beluivet ! behauld, he cums loupin' upon the mwouii-
tans, skippin' apon the hills.
oG2 EXISTING DIALECTS.
J). My beluivot is lovkc rt rwoo, or a young biu-k : l)t'liaulil, he stans ahiiil
our waw, ht> luiks owt at the wondaws, showiu' liisscl owtscvdo tlic lottice.
10. ^ly bohiivot spack, an' said intui me, lloise up, my luive, my fail- yen,
an' cum away.
11. For, lo, the winter is l)ve, the rain is owcr an' geane.
12. The ;!oiu-es apear on tlie ycarth ; the tejine o' the singin' burds is cum,
an' tlie voycc o' the turtul duve is heard in our Ian'.
13. The lig-tree puts fm-th her gi-een figs, an' veynes wi' the tendir greape
gev a guid smel. Iveise up, my luive, my fair j'en, an' cum away.
14. O my dure, that art in the cliiFs o' the rock, in the secret pleaces o' the
stah-s, let me see thy cwountinence, let me hear thy voyce ; for sweet is thy
Yoyce, an' thj'^ cwountinence is cumlie.
15. Teck us the foxes, the little foxes that weast the vej-nes; for our veynes
hev tendii" gi-eapes.
IC). My beliiivet is mejaie, an' I am his : he feeds amang the lillies.
17. Till the day breck, an' the shaddaws flee away, tm-n, my beluivet, an' be
thou leyke a rwoe or a j'oung buck apon the mwountans o' Bether.
The boundaries of what the author of the following extract,
Mr. W. Dickinson, gives as Central Cumberland are " marked
by a line commencing on the western coast of Cumberland,
where the river Eden discharges its waters into the sea, ascend-
ing by the course of that stream to Egremont ; and by the
watershed of the elevated forest of Copeland, and south of the
head of Borrowdale to Dunmail Raise. Thence by the south-
eastern boundary of the county to Kirkland, at the foot of
Crossfell, and northwards along the base of the Blackfell range
to Croglin turning westward by Sebergham, Warnel fell, Brockle-
bank and Aspatria, to Allonly on the shore of the Solway Frith.
Within these limits the dialects are tolerabl}' uniform, with oc-
casional imported variations ; and gradually shading off near
the outskirts, and mixing with the provincialisms of the parts
adjoining. To the southward of this area, the form of speech
gradually merges into that of North Lancashire ; and to the
north it becomes largely intermixed with the Southern Scotch,
and occasionally with a dash of the Northumbrian burr."
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. Ise t' i*\^-ose o' Sharon, an' t' lily o' t' valleys.
2. ]My leuvv wad leukk amang t' rest as a lily wad leukk amang thorns.
3. An' he wad leulck amang other men as a apple-tree i' full bleumm wad
leukk in a wood of other sworts o' trees.
4. He brought ma to t' feast, an' aa fand as if his leuw was o' ower ma.
5. Stop ma Avid flagons, comfoi-t ma wid apples, for aa 's seek o' leuvv.
Ci. His left hand 's onder my heed, an' liis reet hand coddles ma.
7. Aa forbid ye, O ye do^\'ters o' Jerusalem, by t' roes an' t' hinds in t' fields
'at ye disturb nut, ncr woken my lem"s% till he pleases.
WESTMORELAND.
86 3
8. My leuvv's voice ! see ya, he comes lowpau ower t' fells, an' sldppan owei*
t' knowes.
9. My leuw is like a roe, or a young buck : see ya, lie stands aliint our wo',
he leulis out o' t' windows, an' shows his-sel tlu'ough t' lattice.
10. My leu^^ spak, an' sed to ma, Git up, my leuw, my fair an, an' come
away. , •
11. For see, t' -nanter 's done, t' rain 's ower an' gone.
12. T' flowers is springan on t' grund, t' tune 's cumt for t' burds to begin to
smg, an' t' sound o' t' wood-pigeon 's hard in t' country.
18. T' fig-tree i^uts forrat t' green figs, an' t' vines an' t' young gi-apes gives
a good smell. Git up, my leuw, my nice an, an' come away.
14. O my pigeon, 'at 's in t' nicks o' t' rock, in t' bye i)leaces o' t' crags, let
ma see thy feass an' hear thy voice ; for thy voice is sweet, an' thy feass is
bonny.
15. Catch us t' foxes, t' laal ans, 'at spoils t' vines ; for our vines hez fine
gi'apes on.
16. My leuw is mine, an' I 's liis : he feeds amang t' lilies.
17. Til t' day breks, an' t' shadows gang ax:a.j, turn, jny Icuvv, an' be like a
roe, or a young buck, on Bether fells.
§ 329.
Westmoreland.
" Any one," writes the Rev. J. Ricliaixlson, " can hit the West-
moreland trill of the r who can pronounce the t'r in doivght'r
or the d'r in mudd'r without the aid of an intervening vowel."
Bi/ 3Irs. Anne Wheeler. — Westmoreland and Cumherland Dialects. 1839.
Gud morrow, gossip Nan,
Haw dus awe at heaam dea ?
Haw dus iwery j-au,
Lile Dick en awe dea ?
Lile Dick lies deet his coat,
AVi follin widdle waddle,
He slird in wie liis foat
Intul a dirty poadle,
Spinky lies coav'd a bull.
En I thought tea sclt it ;
Soo brali awt oth hull;
En varra nearly kilt it.
Tom is gaylie week.
Sends his sarvis teaa ;
Sail lies hor her heel,
Er wod Ilea cum et seea.
I cannit miss this spot,
put niun coo et seea,
I'd rader gang rawndth ICnot,
Then nit say haw deea.
Fare yee week, dear Ann,
As I am a sinner,
Clock lies strucken j^an,
Fleaks toth fry for dinner.
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. I 's t' rooaz o' Sharon, an' t' lily o' t' valleys.
2. As t' Uly amang t' thworng, sooa 's my luv amang t' dowglit'rs.
3. As t' apple-tree amang t' trees o' t' wood, sooa 's my beluv'd amang t'
suns. I sat mc doon lind'r liis shaddo' wi' gcrt plizzir, an' liis frcwt was sweet
to my teeast'.
4. He fctcht me to t' feeastin'-hoose, an' his banner ower me was liiv.
5. Prop mc wi' flagons, ciimfrt me wi' apples : for I's siek o' liiv.
:3(.)t EXISTING DIALECTS.
0. His loft Imnd is uiuVr my liooad, an" liis rocght hand coddles me.
7. I cawtion yc, O dowglit'rs o' Jorcwsaloni, by t' rocs an' by t' hinds o' t'
fields, 'at ye nowd'r stir up, nor wcoak'n my luv, while he chcwses.
8. T' voice o' my boluv'd ! loo' the', ho cu's lowpiu" o' t' foils, skolpin' o' t
hills.
!). ]My boluv'd is like a roc, or a yiiug hart : loo' the', lie stan's ahint oor
wo', he glimcs oot at t' wiiido's, shewin' hissel' through t' lat-wark.
10. My beluv'd speealr, an' said to me. Git iip, mj' luv, my fair un, an' cii'
thy ways.
11. For, see the', t' wint'r's past, t' rain 's owcr an' geean.
12. T' lloow'rs shews thersels o' t' gruiul, t' time o' t' singiu' o' birds is cu'n,
t' cushat-coo is h'ard in oor land.
l-'i T' fig-tree puts oot her green figs, an' t' vines wi' t' tend'r gi'apes give a
good smeU. Git lip, my Iiiv, my fail- un, an' cii' thy waj's.
14. O my cushat, 'at 's i' t' grikes o' t' crags, i' t' darkin'-whols o' f stau's,
let me see thy coontenance, let me hear thy voice ; for sweet is thy voice, an'
thy coontenance is goodUke.
15. Catch us t' foxes, t' Hie foxes, 'at spoils oor vines : for oor vines ha'
tend'r gi'apes.
in. My beluv'd 's mine, an' I 's his ; he feeds amaug t' lilies.
17. T'U t' day breks, an' t' shaddo's flees away, turn roond, my beluv'd, and
be like a roe, or a yiing hart, o' t' fells o' Bother.
§ 330.
North Laxcashike.
Son(/ of Solomon, c. 2.
1. I 'm t' rose a Sharon, an' t' lily a t' valleys.
2. As t' lily amang t" thorns, saah iz me lov amang t' dowters.
3. As t' apple-tree amang t' trees a t' wood, saah iz me belov'd amang t'
sons. I saat doA\Ti under hiz shada we graat delight, an liiz £i-uit was sweet
ta me taast.
4. He browt ma ta t' feastin house, an hiz banner ower ma was love.
5. Stop ma we flagons, plcaz ma we apples : for I'm sick a love.
6. His left hand iz under me head, an his reight hand embraaces me.
7. I chai'ge ye, O ye dowters a Jeruslem, by t' raas, an t' hinds a t' field, that
ye stir nut up, nur awaak me lov, wal he pleaz.
8. The voice a me belov'd ! Lulie ya, he comes loupin on t' mountains,
skippin on t' hills.
9. Me belov'd is like a raa or a young hart : hike ya, he staxis behint owr
woe, he lukes owt a t'windas, shewin hissel through t' lattice.
10. Me belov'd spaak, and saiid ta ma. Git up, me lov, me faar yan, an come
away.
11. For, see ya, t' winter's past, t' raan is ower an gaan ;
12. T' flowers appear on t' earth : the time a t' singin birds iz come, an t'
voice a t' tortles iz heai'd in owt land ;
13. T' fig-tree puts owt her gi-een figs, an t' vines we tender graap gaav a
good smell. Git up, me love, me faar yan, an come away.
14. O me pet, th' art in t' cracks a t' rocks, in t' secret plaaces a t' staars.
SOUTH LANCASHIRE. 365
let ma see the faas, let ma hear the voice ; for sweet iz the voice, an the faas iz
nice.
15. Taak ns ta t' foxes, t' lile foxes, at spoil t'\Tnes: for owr \dnes hev
tender graiij)s.
16. Me belov'tl iz mine an I'm hiz : he feeds amang t' lilies.
17. Wal t' day break, an t' shadas flee away, torn, me belov'd, an be thalike
a rail or a yoimg hart on t' mountains a B ether.
South Lancashire.
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. Awm th' rose o' Shayron, im th' lily oth' valleys.
2. As th' lily amimg thurns, so 's ma love amimg th' dowters.
3. As th' appo-tree ammig th' trees oth' wood, so is ma beloved amung th'
sons. Aw kea^^•rt deawn under his shadow wi' greight deleet, im his fruit wur
sweet to my taste.
4. He browt me to th' banquetin-heawse, un liis banner o'er me wur love.
5. Stay me wi' flagons, comfort me wi' appos : for awm sick o' love.
6. His left hont is imder my yed, un his reet hont clips me.
7. Aw cherge yoa, O yoa dowters o' Jerusalem, by th' roes, un' th' hoinds
oth' fielt, that yoa stur not up, nor wakken ma love, till he pleos.
8. Th' veighce o' ma beloved ! lucko, he comes leopin uppo th' meawntins,
skippin uppo th' liills.
9. Ma belov'd is loike a roe, or a yung hert : lucko, he stonds behaind eawr
w^aw, he gloors at th' \\dndows, sho'win liissel thi'ough th' lattis.
10. Ma belov'd spoke, un said to me, Roise up, ma love, ma fan- un, un
come away.
11. For, sithee, th' winter's past, th' rain's o'er un gone.
12. Th' fleawi's appear uppo th' earth ; th' toime oth' singin-birds is cumn,
un th' veighce oth' tm-tle's yerd i eawrr lond.
13. Th' fig-tree puts eawt hur green figs, im th' voines wi' th' tender gi-ape
^ve a bonny smell. Get up, ma love, ma fak un, un come away.
14. O ma dove, theaw'rt ith' chfts oth' rocks, ith' huddin places oth' staks,
le' me see thy face, le' me yer thy veighce ; for sweet is thy veighce, un thy
face is pratty.
15. Tak us th' foxes, th' little foxes ut sj)eighl th' voines; for eawr voines
have tender grapes.
16. Ma love is moine, vm aAnn liis : he feeds amung th' hhes.
17. Tell th' day breighks, un th' shadows liie away, turn, ma belov'd, un be
theaw loilie a yung roe, or a yung hert uppo th' meawntins o' Bether.
Wauijh's Lancashire Songs, No. 6.
1.
Tlie dulc's i' this bonnet o' mine ;
]My ril)bins '11 never be reet ;
Here, Mally, aw'm Ukc to be fine,
For Jamie'll be comiu' to-nect;
He met me i'th' lone tother day, —
Aw're gooin' for wayter to th' well, —
An' ho begged that aw'd wed him i' May ;
Bi'th' mass, iv he'll let me, aw will.
*>(i() EXISTING DIALECTS.
^^'llon lie took my two homls into liis,
(iooil I^oril, hciiw thc}' tremblrd between;
An' aw cUu-stn't look up in liis face,
Becoso on hiin sceiu' my een ;
My cheek went as red as a rose ; —
There's never a mortal can tell
Heaw happj' aw felt; for, tliea knows,
One coulcVnt ha' axed him thcirsel'.
3.
But til' tale ■wur at th' end o' my timg, —
To let it cawt woiddu't be rest, —
For aw thought to seem forrud wur \ATung ;
So aw towd him aw'd teU him to-neet ;
But, ]\Ially, thae knows very weel, —
Though it isn't a thing one should own, —
If aw'd th' pikein' o'th' world to mysel',
Aw'd oather ha' Jamie or noan.
4.
Neaw, ]\Ially, aw' ve towd tlio my mind ;
"What wouldto do iv 't\\'ur thee ?
" Aw'd tak liim just while he're inclined,
An' a farrantly bargain he'd be ;
For Jamie's as greacUy a lad
As ever stept eawt into th' siin ;
Go, jmnp at thy chance, an' get wed.
An' may th' best o'th' job when it's done ! "
5.
Eh, dear, but it's time to be g^^"on, —
Aw shouldn't like Jamie to wait, —
Aw connut for shame be too soon,
An' aw woidcbi't for th' world be too late :
Aw'm o' ov a tremble to th' heel, —
Dost tliink at my boimet'll do ? —
" Be off, lass, — thae looks very weel ; —
He wants noan o'th' bonnet, thae foo ! "
From Tim Buhhin — the spelling someicliat exaggerated.
TrM. Theaws no peshunce, Meary; boh howd te tung on theawst hear in o
snift : for theaw mun know, ot tis some cunstable wur os preawd ot id tean
poor Turn prisner, or if theaw'd tean o hare on had hiu- eh the appern meet
neaw ; boh th' gobbin ne'er considert o' honging would naw be cawd good
spooart be ony body eh ther senses, on wer enough fort' edge o finer mon's
teeth in mine. Heawe'er he knock os bowdly ot justice's dur, os if id ha dung
it deawn. This fotcht o preaw'd graflf felly eawi;, wliooa put U5 int' a pleck we
as money books an papers as a cart wou'd howd. To tliis mon (whooa I soon
perceiv't wur th' clark) th' cunstable tow'd meh wofoo kesse ; an eh truth,
Meary, I'r os gawmlcss os o goose, on began o whackering os if I'd stown o
SOUTH LANCASHIRE. 367
liow draiglit o horses. Then this felly went eawto bit, on with him coom the
justice, whooa I glendurt sooar, an thowt he favort owd John o' Dobs, whooa
theaw knows awlus wears a breawnish white wig, ot hangs on his shilders like
keaw-teals. " Well, Mr. Cunstable," sed justice, " wliot han ye brought me
neaw? " " Why, pleeos yer worship, ween meet neaw tean o horse-stej^ler,
whooa wur meying off with tit os hard os he cou'd." Ocl, thought I't meh
seln, " neaw or never " Turn ! speyke for the sell, or theawrt throttlt ot tis very
beawt; so I speek up. and sed, "that's naw true, Mr. Justice ; for I'r boh
goonik ofoot's jiese." " Umph," said tli' justice, " there's naw mitch difference
as to that point. Heawe'er, howd teaw the tung, yuug mon, and spej'k when
the'rt spokli'n too. Well, theaw mon ith breawn cooat, theeaw ! " sed th' jus-
tice, " whot has theaw to sey ogen tliis felly here ? Is this tit thy tit, seys
to ? " " It is, sui'." " Here dark, bring's that book, on let's swear him."
Here the justice sed o nominy to 'im, on towd 'im he mimt tey kere o
whot eh sed, or he moot as helt be foresworn, or ong that yeawth there.
" Well, on theaw says ot tis tit's thy tit, is it ? " " It is, pleeos yer worship."
" On where had teaw him, seys to ? " "I bred im, sur." " E what country ? "
" Cown-edge, sm-." "On when wur he stown, seys to?" "Last day boh
yusterday, abeawt three o' clock ith oandurth : for eawr Yem saigh 'im abeawt
two, on we mist 'im abeawt foiu* o' clock." " On fro Cown-edge, theaw seys? "
" Yes, sur." Then the justice turn'd iin to me, on sed, " Is aw tis true ot
this man seys, hears to meh?" "It is," said I, "part on't; on part on't is
naw : for I did naw steyl this tit : nor ist oboon two eawrs sin fm-st time
ot eh brad meh e'n on im." "Heaw coom theaw't be riding owey wi 'im then,
if theaw did naw steyl im ? " " Why, o good deed, sur ; os I'r goink toar
whom to day, o felly weh o little reawnd hat, on o scrimt wig, cuUur o j-oars,
welly, boh shorter, o'ertook meh ; he wur riding o one tit on lad another.
Neaw this mon seeink I'r toj^ard, becose I went wigglety-wagglety ith' lone,
he ofler't meh his lad tit t' ride on. I'r fene otli' proffer, beleemy, on geet
on : boh he ride off, whip on spur, tho he cou'd hardly mey th' tit keawnter
on wou'd stey on meh ot on eleheawse ith' road. Naw, Measter Justice, I'd
naw gon three-quarters on o mile boh tlieese fok o'ertean meh; towd meh
I'd stown th' tit, on neaw han brought meh hither, os in I'r o' ' Yorshai- horse-
steyler.' On tliis is aw true, Master Justice, or mey I ne'er gut' on ill pleck
when eh dee."
The winnot, ruiunnot, and shunnot = wiU not, must not, and
aliall not, are, in other parts of Lancashire, pronounced wiinner,
munner, sliunner. The statement that fire is pronounced
feighur, and key — heigli, suggests the likelihood of the Craven h,
and the Scotch ch having been used in these parts. To this add
the notice concerning the pronunciation of Leigh, as found else-
where (page 877).
The Oldham Weaver. From Mary Barton, vol. i. pp. 51, 52.
1.
Oi'm o poor cotton-weyver, as raony a one knoowas,
Oi've nowt for teh yoat, an oi've woorn eawt my clooas.
368 EXISTING DIALECTS.
Yo'iul Imnlly ;jfi' tupponcc lor s\\v as oi'vc on,
My clogs luv boiitli brostcii, and stuckins oi'vc none.
YoM tliink it wur hard,
To bo browt into tli' warkl,
To be — ilonimod, an do tli' best as yo con.
Owd Dicky o' Billy's kept telling mo lung,
Wee s'd ha' better toimes if I'd but howd my tung,
Oi've howden my tung, till oi've near stopped my breath,
Oi tliink i' my hcoart oi'se soon clem to deeath,
Owd Dicky's weel crammed,
He never ^yvLY clemmed.
An' he ne'er picked ower i' lus loife.
3.
We tow'rt on iz week — thinking aitch day wur th' last,
Wo shifted, an' shifted, till neaw we're quoitc fast ;
We lived upo' nettles, whoile nettles wiir good,
An' Waterloo porridge the best o' eawr food,
Oi'm telUn' yo' true,
Oi can find folk enow,
As wur li-\-in' na better nor me.
4.
Owd Billy o' Dans sent th' baUeys one day.
Five a shop deebt oi eawd liim, as oi could na pay,
But he wur too lat, fur owd Billy o' th' Bent,
Had sowed th' tit an' cart, an' ta'en goods fur th' rent.
We'd neawt left bo' th' owd stoo'.
That wur seeats fur two,
An" on it ceawTod Marget an' me.
5.
Then t' baileys leuked reawnd un as sloy as a meawse,
When they seed as aw' t' goods were ta'en eawt o' t' heawse,
Says one chap to th' tother, " Aws gone, theaw may see ; "
Says oi, " Ne'er freet, mon, yeaur welcome me."
They made no more ado
But whopped up th' eawd stoo',
An' we booath leet, whack — upo' t' flags !
6.
Then oi said to eawr Marget, as we lay upo' t' floor,
" We's never be lower i' this warld, oi'm sure.
If ever things awtern, oi'm sure they mun mend.
For oi think i' my heart we're booath at t' far eend ;
For meat we ha' none ;
Nor looms teh weyve on, —
Edad ! they're as good lost as fund."
SOUTH LANCASHIRE. 869
7.
Eawr Marget declares had lioo clooas to put on,
Hoo'd goo up to Luunon an' talk to th' greet mon ;
An' if things were na awtered when there hoo had been,
Hoo's fully resolved t' sew up meawth an' eend ;
Hoo's neawt to say again t' king.
But hoo loikes a fair thing,
An' hoo says hoo can tell when hoo's hurt.
An old Ballad. From HallmcU.
1.
Now, au yo good gentlefoak an yo wan tarry,
I'le tel yo how Gilbert Scot soud the mare Barry ;
He soud liis mare Barry at Warrikin fair.
But when he'l be pade he kno's no", I swear !
2.
So when he coom worn, and tou'd his mfe Grace,
Hoo stand up o'th' kippo, and swat liim ore'th' face ;
Hoo pi'cht him o'th' hillock, and he faw'd \\i\h a wack,
That he thou't would welly a brockeu his back.
3.
" O woife !" quo' hee, "if thou'l lemme but rise,
I'le gi' the au' th' leet wench inme that lies."
" Thou udgit ! " quo hoo, " but wher does he dwel ? "
" Be lakiu," quo hee, " that I connau tel.
4.
" I tuck liim for t' be simi gentlemon's son.
For he spent tuppence on me when we had dun ;
And he gen me a lunclien o' denty snig poy.
And bi'th' hond't did he shak me moost lovingly."
5.
Then Grace, hoo prompt'd huv neatly and fine,
And to Warrikin went o' Wednesday betime ;
And theer too, hoo stade for 5 markit days.
Til the mon wi' the mare were cimi 't Rondle Shays.
6.
And as hoo was restin one day in her rowm,
Hoo spyd't the mon ridin th' mare into the town ;
Then bounce go's her hart, and hoo wur so gloj)pen,
That out o'th' wmder hoo'd hkc for to loppen.
7.
Hoo stampt and Iioo stardt, and down th' stairs hoo run,
Wi hur hart in hur hondt, and her wind welly gone.
Her head geer flew off, and so did hur snowd,
Hoo stampdt and hoo stardt as if hoo'd been wod.
B B
) EXISTING DIALECTS.
8.
To RoutUc's lioo In-'d. and hoo hov xip the latch,
Afore th' uiou had t}'d th' mare gradoly to th' cratch ;
" iMy gud niou," quo hoo, " my friend greets 5'ou right merrj'',
And begs that yo'l send him the money for Beny."
9.
" Oh, monej- ! " quo he, " tliat cannau I spare."
" Be hilvin," quo hoo, " then lie ha the mare ! "
Hoo poodt and lioo tlu-omperdt him shame to be seen :
" Tliou hangmon ! " quo hoo, " I'le poo out the een !
10.
'• lie mak thee a sompan, I'le houd thee a gi'oat,
lie other ha th' money or poo out the tlu'oat ! "
So between 'em they made sich a wearisom din.
That to mak 'em at peace Roudle Shay did come in.
11.
" Com, fye, naunty Grace — com, fye and a dun;
Yo'st ha th' mare, or the money, whether you won."
So Grace geet the monej-, and whomwai-ds hoo's gon,
B t hoo keeps it herself, and gies GHbei't Scot none.
§331.
Cheshire.
Farmer Dohhin.
A Day ui the Cheshur Fox Dugs.
" Theai- 's slutch upo' thoi coat, mon, thear 's blood upon thoi chin,
It 's welly toim for milkin, now where ever 'ast 'ee bin ? "
" Oiv bin to see the gentlefolk o' Cheshm* roid a run,
Owd wench ! oiv bin a hunting, an oiv seen some rattling fun."
Th' owd mare was in the smithy when the huntsman, he trots thi-Qugh,
Black Bill agate o' ammering the last nail in her shoe ;
The cu^wer laid so wheam loik, and so jo^dal foin the day,
Says I, " Owd mare, we 'U take a fling and see 'em go away."
When up an oi'd got shut ov aw tlie hackney pads an traps,
Orse dealers an orse jockey lads, an such loik swaggei-ing chaps.
Then what a power o' gentlefolk did oi set oies upon !
A reining in then- hunters, aw blood orses every one !
They'd aw got bookskin leathers on, a fitten 'em so toight,
As roind an plump as tm-mits be, an just about as whoit ;
Their spm-s wor maid 0' siller, an their buttons maid o' brass,
Their coats wor red as caiTots an their collm-s gi-een as gi-ass.
A varment looking gemman-on a woiiy tit I seed.
An another close besoid liiin, sitting noble on his steed ;
Ihoy ca' them both owd codgers, but as fresh as paint they look,
Juhn Glegg, Esquon, 0' Withington, an bowd Sir Richard Brooke.
CHESHIRE. 371
I seed Squoii* Geffrey Shakerley, tlie best \m o' that breed.
His smoiling face tould plainly how the sport wi' him agreed ;
I seed the 'Arl ov Grosvenor, a loikly lad to roid,
I seed a soight worth aw the rest, his farently yoiing broid.
Zui- Umferry de Trafford, an the Squou- ov Ai-ley Haw,
His pocket full o' rigmarole, a rhoimiug ou 'em aw ;
Two Members for the Coiaty, both aloik ca'd Egerton,
Squoir Henry Brooks and Tummus Brooks, they 'd aw green collurs on.
Eh ! what a mon be Dixon John, ov Astle Haw, Esquou-,
You wixdna foiad, an measure him, his marrow iu the shoir ;
Squoir Wilbraham o' the Forest, death an danger he defois,
When his coat be toightly buttoned up, an shut be both his oies.
The Honerable Lazzles, who from forrin parts be cum,
An a clrip of owd Lord Delamere, the Honerable Turn ;
Squou- Fox an Booth an Wortliington, Squou* Massey an Squoir Harne,
An many more big sportsmen, but their neames I didna lam.
I seed that great commander hi the saddle, Captain Whoit,
An the pack as thrung'd about him was indeed a gradely soight ;
The dugs look'd foin as satin, an himsel look'd hard as nails,
An he giv the swells a caution not to roid upo' their tails.
Says he, " Young men o' Monchester an Liwerpoo, ciun neai%
Oiv just a word, a warning word, to wliisper in your ear,
AVlien starting from the cuvver soid, j^e see bowd Reynai'd burst.
We canna 'ave no 'untin if the gemmen go it first."
Tom Ranee has got a single oie wnrth many another's two.
He held his cap abuv his yed to shew he'd had a view ;
Tom's voice was loik th' owd raven's when he skroik'd out "Tally ho ! "
For when the fox had seen Tom's feace he thought it toim to go.
Eh moy ! a pratty jingle then went ringuig tlrrough the skoy,
Furst Victor}', then Villager begun the merry croy,
Then every maith was open fi-om the ond'un to the pup,
An aw the pack togetlier took the swelling chorus up.
Eh moy ! a pretty skouver then was kick'd up in the vale,
They sldni'd across the rmaning brook, they topp'd the post an rail,
They didna stop for razzur cop, but play'd at touch an go,
An them as miss'd a footin there, lay doubled up below.
I seed the 'ounds a crossin Farmer Flareup's boundary loin.
Whose daughter plays the pcany and drinks whoit sherry woin,
Gowd lings upon her finger and silk stockings on her feet ;
Says I, " It won't do hhn no harm to roid across his wheat."
So, toightly houdin on by'th yed, I hits th' owd mare a whop,
Hoo plumps into the middle o' the wheatCicld neck an crop ;
And when hoo fl oinder'd out on it I catch'd another spin,
An, missis, that 's the cagion o' the blood upo' my cliiii.
B B 2
''2 EXISTING DIALECTS.
I never oss'd unotlior lop. but hop tlie lauc, and llicu
In twenty nuuutes' toim about tliej^ turn'd toart me ageu ;
The fox was foinly daggled, an tlie tits aw ont o' breath,
When they kilt hun in the open, an owd Dobbin seed the death.
Loik dangling of a babby, then the Huntsman hove hun np,
The dugs a bayin roind him, wliile the gommen croid, Whoo-hup !
Then claue an quick, as doesome cawves Uck fleetins from the pail,
They ^^'orried every inch ov 'im, except his yed and taU.
^^']u^t s up wi' them rich gentlefolk and lords as was na there ?
There w^as noither Marquis Chumley, nor the Voiscount Combermero ;
Noither Legii, nor France o' Bostock, nor the Squoir o' Peckforton —
How cums it they can stop awhom, such sport a goin on ?
Now, missis, sin the markets be a doin moderate well,
Oiv welly maid my moind up just to buoy a nag mysel ;
For to keep a farmer's spirits up 'gen tilings be gettin low,
Theer 's notliiu loik Fox-huntiu and a rattling Tally-ho !
§ 332.
Stapfordshire and Shropshire (?).
A Christmas Carol. From All Bound the Wrekin, by W. }F}dte,p. 288.
" As oi sot on a sunny bonk —
A sunny bonk — a sunny bonk —
As oi sot on a sunny bonk.
On Christmas Dee in t' mornin' ;
Oi saw thray ships coom seelin' boy —
Coom seelin' boy — coom seelin' boy —
Oi saw tliraw ships coom seelin' boy,
On Clu'istmas Dee in t' mornin'.
2.
" And hew should bay in thase thray ships —
, In thase thray ships — in thase tlu-ay ships —
And hew should bay in thase tliray ships.
But Juseph and his fair leddy.
And thay did whistle, and thay did sing.
And all the bells on airth did ring.
For joy that the Saviour hay was bawn
On Christmas Dee in t' mornin'."
From HalliwelVs Archaic and Provincial Dictionary.
A. Dun you know solden-mouth Summy ?
B. Ees, an' a neation good feller he is tew.
A. A desput quoiet mon! but he loves a sup o' drink. Dun you know his
woif?
B. Know her, ay. Hoo's the very devil when her spu-it's up.
YORKSHIRE, 873
A. Hoo is. Hoo uses that mon slieamful ; hoo rags Lim every ueet o' her
loif.
B. Hoo does. Oive kiio^ii her come into the j)ubhc, and call him al' the
names hoo could lay her tongue tew afore all the company, Hoo oughts to
stay till hoo's got him i' the boat, and then hoo mit say wha hoo'd a moind.
But hoo taks alter her feyther.
A. Hew was her feyther ?
B. Whoy, singing Jemmy.
A. Oi don't think as oi ever know'd singing Jemmy. Was he ode Soaker's
brother ?
B. Ees, he was. He lived a top o' Hell Bouk. He was the wickedest,
swearnist mon as ever I know'd. I should think as how he was the wicked-
est mon i' the wold, and they say he had the rheumatiz so bad.
§ 333.
Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire (?).
A Dialogue hetiveen Farmer Bcnnet and Tiimmas L'ule. From HaUhrell.
Farmer Bennet. Tummus, why dunniu- yo mend meh shoon ?
TuMMUs LiDE. Becoz, mester, 'tis zo cood, I Conner work wee the tacliiu at
aw, I've brockn it ten times I'm shur to do. It freezes zo hard. "Why Hester
hung out a smock frock to dry, an in three minits it wor frozzen as stiff as a
poker, and I conner afford to keep a good fire ; I wish I cud, I'd soon mend
yore shoon, an uthers tow. I'd soon yarn some munney, I warrant ye. Con-
ner yo find some work for m', mester, these hard times? I'll doo onnythink
to addle a penny. I con thresh, I con split wood, I con mak spars, I con
thack, I con skower a dike, an I con trench tow, but it freezes zo hard. I con
winner — I con fother, or milk. If there be need on't, I woodner mind drivin
plow or onnythink.
Farmer B. I banner got notliin for ye to doo, Tummus ; but Mester Boord
towd me jist now that they wor gooin to Avinner, an that they shud want sum-
body to help 'em.
Tummus L. O, I'm glad on't, I'll run cor an' zee whelher I con help 'em,
but I banner been weein the threshold ov Mester Boord's doer for a nation
time, becoz I thoot misses didner use Hester well ; bur I duiincr bear malice,
and zo 111 goo.
Farmer B. What did misses Boord za or doo to Hester then ?
Tummus L. Why, Hester may be wor summut to blame too ; for her wor
one on 'em, de ye zee, that jaw'd Sldimnerton, the mak gam that frunted zum
o' the gentlefook. They said t'wor time to dun we sicli litter, or sich stirff, or
I dunner know what they caw'd it, but they wore frunted wee Hester bout it,
an I said, If they wor frunted we Hester, they mid bee frunted wee me.
This set misses's back up, an Hester banner bin a cbai-rin there sin. But
'tis no use to bear malice : zo I'll goo oor, and zee which we the winde blows.
§ 334.
Yorkshire.
Sheffield. From A. Bywalcrs Sheffield Dialect.
Cum all yo cutlin heroes, where'ersome yo be.
All yo wot works at flat-backs, cum Ussen unto me ;
374 EXISTING DIALECTS.
A baskitful for a sliillin,
To lurtk cm \vc arc williii.
Or swap em for red hcrrhis, alir Lellics tubbc filliu,
Or swap em for red herrins, alii' bellies tubbe fill in,
A basldt full o' flat-backs o'm sbure we'l mak, or mooar,
To ger reit into't gallai'a, wbear we can rant an rooar,
Thi'o' flat-backs, stooans, an sticks ;
Red lierrins, booans, an bricks ;
If tbey dooant play Nansa's fansa, or ouna tune we fix,
We'l do the best at e'er we can to braik sum ore ther necks.
Hey, Jont, lad, is that thee, where art ta waddhn too ?
Dusta work at flat-backs yit, as thahs been used to do ?
Hah, cum an tha'st gooa wimma,
An a sample o will gi'tha ;
It's won at o've just fooaged uppa Jeffra's bran new stidda ;
Look at it well, it duz excel all't flat-backs e ahi- sniitha.
Let's send for a pitcher a' ale, lad, for o'm gerrin verra droi ;
O'm ommast chooakt we smitha sleek, the woiud it is so hoi.
Ge Eafe and Jer a drop,
They sen they cannot stop,
They're e sitch a moita hurra to get to 't penny hop.
They're e sicli a moita hurra to get to 't penny hop.
Here 's Streean at lives at Heela, he '1 soon be here, o kno,
He 's larnt a new Makkai'ona step, the best yo ivver saw ;
He has it sooa compleat.
He triees up ivvera street.
An ommast braiks all t' pavors we swattin dalm liis feet.
An Anak troies to beat him wheniv\^er they dun meet.
We 'I raise a tail be Sunda, Steeam ; o kno whoa's won to sell ;
We '1 tee a hammer heead at end, to mak it balance well ;
It 's a reit new Limnon tail ;
We '1 ware it kail for kail ;
Alu* Anak browt it we lum, that neet he cmn be t' mail.
We '1 drink success imto it, — hey ! Jont, lad, teem aht t' ale.
Sheffield.
Soiuj of Solomon, c. 2.
1. O'm t' rooaz a' Sharon, an' t' hlh a' t' valliz.
2. As t' lUli amang thoarns, sooa is mo luv amang t' dowters.
3. As t' apple-tree amang t' trees a' t' wood, sooa is mo beluwed aniang t'
suns. O sat dahn under his shaddo we gret deloight, an his fruit wer sweet
tummi tast.
4. He browt ma to t' banqiiittin hahse, an his banner ore ma wer luv.
5. Stay ma we flaggons, comfort ma we apples, for o 'm sick a' luv.
6. His left hand 's under mo' heead, an' his reit hand huddles ma.
7. O charge ya, O ye dowters a' Jeruslem, be t' roes an be t' hoinds i' t'
field, that yo stur not up nor wakken mo luv till he pleeaz.
WEST YORKSHIRE. 375
8. T' voice a' mo beluvved ! beliold, lie cometli loi^in uppa t' malintiiis,
skippin uppa t' hills.
9. Mo beluwed 's loik a roe or a young hart : behold, he staus beheeut ahr
wall, he looks fooarth at t' winders, sho 'in liis-sen tliroo t' lattice.
10. Mo beluvved spake, an said tumma, Roiz up, mo luv, mo fair an, an
come away.
11. For, lo, t' winter 's past, t' rain 's ore an gone.
12. T' flahwers appear uppa t' earth ; an t' toime a' singin a' t' biu'ds is
come, an' t' voice a' t' turtle 's heeard i' t' land ;
13. T' fig-tree puts forrad her green figs, an t' voines we t' tender gi-ape ge's
a good smell. Roiz, mo luv, mo fail' an, an come away.
14. O mo duv, thah'rt i' t' clefts a' t' rock, i' t' secret places a' t' stairs, let
ma see thali cahntenance, let ma hear thali voice ; for sweet is thali voice, an
thah cahntenance is comla.
15. Tak us t' foxes, t' little foxes, at spoils t' voines : for ahr voines as ten-
der gi-apes.
16. Mo beluwed 's moine, an o 'm his : he feeds amang t' lilliz.
17. Til t' day breik, an t' shaddez floi away, turn, mo beluwed, an be thah
loik a roe or a young hart uppa t' mahntins a' Bether.
Barnsley.
Local Laws for Pudsa. Bainisla Foaks Annual, 1856.
Noa man or up-gi-own lad sal be alaad ta wauk up a t'causey we boatli hiz
hands in hiz pockit, unless it's on a varry coud winter's day, an thay caant
affoard to bye thersenze a pair a gloves.
Two men goiii au-m-e-aum tagether sal be ta wauk e t'middle a t'street, for
it's considerd at thay tay az much room up az a broad-wheel'd cart.
Yung men an ther sweethearts ta wauk au'in-e-ainn where thay like, but not
ta interrupt t'fi-ee passage a uther foaks, be stoj)pin ta look e more than twenty
shop-^dndaz e warn street.
Men, goin a marketin we ther wives at t'Setterdays, a i)urpas ta see at thay
doant cheat em, saant be alaad ; ta goa an carry ther baskit, an pick em up
when they tumal, will be lawfull.
Noa canual sal be alaad ta be snufft we t'finger an tlium, or blawn aglit when
it's cloise * ta onny boddiz faice.
Noabdy sal be alaad ta coff e t'cherch or chapU, becos thay happan ta hear
sumady else do it ; if thave a coud it's lawfull.
Foaks may hev az menny folse teeth az thay like, but folse tongues ar pro-
hibited.
Wimmen sal be alaad to sing ther barms ta sleep, an at windin-wheel an
wesh-tub, but not e ther huzbands' ears.
Noa womman sal be alaad whissal, az it's considerd ta be az bad as a cramu
hen.
Cotton-wool sal not be alaad e fear ov awther man or womman, when tharo
e cumpany ov onnyboddy at's speikin t'truth.
West Riditif/.
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. Ah'm t' roaz a' Sharon an' t' lily a' t' valleys.
2. As t' lily amang thorns, soa iz my luve amang t' dowters.
* This use of oi is at its maximwm about Leeds.
370 EXISTING DIALECTS.
<"?. Az t' npplc-li'oc ainanji; t' troos a' t' wood soa iz my beluv'cl amaiig t'
sons. Ah sat ilaliu uiuKr liiz sluula \\i greet dcli'ct, an hiz frewt wor sweet
ta my taste.
4. He browt ma ta t' bauqiictin' halice, an' liiz banner ower ma wor luve.
5. Stay ma wi' llagons, cunifat ma wi' apples ; for ah'm sick a' luve.
0. Hiz left hand's under my heiid, an' hiz rcight hand embraces ma.
7. Ah charge j-a, O j'o dowters a' Jerusalem, by t' rocs, an' by t' hinds a' t
field, 'at yo stiu* not up, nor waken my luve, till he plciize.
8. T' voice a' ni}- beluv'd ! bchowd he cimies laupin' upa' t' malmtans, skip-
pin' upa t' hills.
9. My beluv'd 's like a roc, or a young hart ; behowd, he stands beliint ahr
wall, he looks Iborth at t' windas, shewiu' liizsen thro' t' lattice.
10. My beluv'd spak, an' said ta ma, Fdse up, my luve, my fair 'un, an' cum
awez.
11. For, lo, t' winter 's past, t' rain 's ov^-er an' gooan.
12. T' flahrs aj)pear on t' earth ; t' time a' t' singin' a' birds iz cum, an t'
voice a' f tm-tle 's hear'd i' alir land ;
13. T' fig-tree j)uts foorth her gi-een figs, an' t' vines wi' t' tender gi-ape gie a
good smell. Rise, lay luve, my fair 'iin, an cum awez.
14. O my duve, 'at art i' t' clefts a' t' rock, i' t' seacrit places a' t' stairs, let
ma see thee calintenance, let ma hear thee voice ; for sweet iz thee voice, an'
thee calmteuance iz cumly.
15. Tak uz f foxes, t' little foxes, 'at spoil t' vines : for ahr vines hae tender
grapes.
16. My beluv'd 's mine, an' ah'm hiz ; he feeds amang t' lilies.
17. Until t' day breyk, an' t' shadas flee awez, turn, my beluv'd, an' bo tliali
like a roe, or a young hart upa' t' mahntans a' Bether.
Craven.
Son// of Solomon, c. 2.
1. I is 't rooaz o' Sharim, an' 't lilly o' t' gills.
2. As 't lilly amang 't wicks, evven soaa is mah luv amang 't dowghters.
3. As 't apple-tree amang 't trees o' 't w'ud, e\^'en sooa is mah luv amang 't
sons. A sat mah daau uuner as shadow wi' gii't delaight, an' as frewt wur
sweeat to mah teast.
4. A browght mah till 't banquetin'-heouse, an' as flag ower mah wur luv.
5. Stay mah wi' pots, comfort mah wi' apples ; fiu* a is fair daau wi' luv.
6. As leaft ban' is imner mah heead, an' as reet han' cuddles mah.
7. A chai-ge yali, O yah dowghters o' Jerusalem, by 't roes, an' by 't hinds o'
't field, 'at yah rog nut, nother wakken mah luv till that a chews.
8. 'T voice o' mah luv ! sithah, a cums lopeing upo' 't fells, skipping upo' 't
hills.
9. Mah luv is laike imtil a roe, or a yung stag : sithah, a stanns ahint wir
wa', a keeks foorth eouet o' 't winder, showin' liissel throwgh 't casement.
10. Mah luv spak, an' sed until mah, Geet up, mah luv, mah bewty, an'
cum away.
11. For, sithah, 't winter 's past, 't rain 's ower an' gon.
12. 'T flowers appear upov 't yird ; 't taime o' 't singing o' burds is cum, an'
't voice o' 't turtle 's heerd i' wu- Ian'.
13. 'T fig-tree puts foorth her green figs, an' 't values va 't tenner gi'aape gi'
a gey good smell. Geet up, mah luv, mah bewty, an' cum away.
NORTH YORKSHIRE. 377
14. 0 mail duv, at is i' 't hoilcs o' 't scarr, i' 't saycrit pleeaces o' 't staairs,
leet mail see tliali feeace, leet mail lieear tliali voice; fur sweeat is tliali voice,
au' tliali feeace is boiiny.
15. Cotch us 't foxes, 't laile foxes, 'at spoil us 't vaines ; fiu" wii' vaiiies ba'
tenner graaxjes.
16. Mall luv is maine, an' I is liisii : a pasters amang 't lillies.
17. Until 't clay breeak, an' 't sbadows flee away, toorn, mail luv, an' bee to
laike until a roe or a yung stag upov 't fells o' Betber.
In a paper of Mr. Garnett's written long before our dialects
had been studied with anything like due care, is a curious
statement concerning the name of the town of Leigh in Lanca-
shire. It is mentioned as a kind of Shibboleth, being sounded
as if the gli were the German ch. It is also said to be the only
word in which this sound survives.
Tliis statement, which always struck me as a strange one, is
explained in the preliminary notes to Mr. H. A. Littledale's
Song of Solomon : where we are told that, in Craven, h is
frequently sounded like the Greek p^. More than this ; in old
words " there is a soft guttural like the German ich, added
to terminations in I. At present it onl}^ appears in a few proper
names, as
Settle, pronounced SeUilr/h,
Kendal, „ Kendalgh.
The traces of it are seen also in
Oreenhalgh, now Greenhall,
Ridehalgh, „ Ridehavgh.
This, however, is so nearly obsolete that I have left the termir.a,-
tions in I to their ordinary English spelling. Sough has this
guttural sound."
Cleveland.
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. Hall am tbe rose o' Sbaroii, and tbe lily of tlie valleys.
2. As tbe lily amang tbe breers, sae is mab boney amang tbe dowters.
3. As tbe apple-tree amang tbe trees o' tbe wood, sae is mab beluvved
amang tbe sons. Hab sat down under bis sbadow wi' gi'eeat deleet, an' bis
fruit was sweet to mab teeast.
4. He browt me to t' feeasting-boose, an' bis banner ower me was luv.
5. Stay me wi' flagons, cumfort me wi' apples, for ball's seek o' luv.
6. His left band is under mab lieead, and bis reet band laps round me.
7. Hall cbaarge ye, O ye dowters o' Jerusalem, by tbe roes an' by tbe binds
o' tbe field, tbat ye stoor nut up nor wakken mab luv till be list.
8. Tbe voice of mab beluvved ! scestbee, be comes lowpin upon tbe moun-
tains, boundin ower tbe bills.
378 EXISTING DIALECTS.
!). ]\Iali bchivvotl is like a roe or a young Imrt ; lotliec ! lie stands aliint oor
wall, ho looks out at I lie Mumlows, showing his-sol at the keeasment.
10. !Mali hcluYYcil spak, an' sod to me, Got up, mah luv, mail bomay yan,
an" hiiie away.
11. For loukst the', the winter 's ncca mair, the rain is ower an' gcean;
12. Tlie tlooers cimi ou the j'crth ; the time o' the singing o' birds is cum,
tlie coo o' tlie cooscot is lieeard iv oor land.
13. The fig-tree nops wi' gi-een fegs, and the varus wi' the tender grape gie
a good saj-nt. Git up, mah luv, mah bonnj- yan, an' cow away.
14. O mah duv, that is i' the clefts o' the rock in the hjc spots o' the stairs,
let me see thah coontenance, let me hear tliah voice ; for thah voice is sweet,
and thah coontenance wcel-favor'd.
15. Tak us the foxes, the laahtlo foxes that nep the varns, for oor varus hae
tender grapes.
10. ]\Iah belu^-ved 's mine, an' hah's his, he feeds amang the lilies.
17. Till the day leeghtens, and the gloaming flits away, turn, mah beluvved,
an' be thoo like a roe or a young hart on the moontans o' Bethor.
§ 335.
Durham.
Sonff of Solomon, c. 2.
1. A' as t' rose uv Sharon, an' t' lilley ud valleys.
2. As t' lUley amang thowrns, sees me luv amang t' dowters.
3. As t' apple-ti*ee amang t' trees ud wood, sees me beluved amang t' sons.
Ah sat doon unnonder liis shaddow, will greet deleyght, an his fi-ewt was sweet
to mee taaste.
4. He browght mah taa banqueting-hoose, an his banner ower mah was luv.
5. Stay mah will Haggons ; cumfurt mah wih apples : for a' seek uv luv.
6. His left kneaf 's unnonder me heed, and his reet kneaf duth cuddle mah.
7. Ah charge ye, O ye dowters uv Jerewsalem, be t' roes, an be to heynds
ud field, at ye stur nut up, ner waaken me luv, till he please.
8. T' voice uv me beluved ! behowld, he cumeth lo^\'pin atoppa to moontens
skippin atoppa t' hills.
9. Me beluved is leyke a roe er a j^oung hart : behowld, he stands ahint our
wo, he lewks furth at t' window's, showen hissel through t' lattice.
10. Me beluved spak, an' sed tmnmah. Rise up, me luv, me bonnier, an ciun
away.
11. Fer, lo, t' winter 's past, t' rain 's ower an gaane.
12. T' flooers appear atoppa t' earth, t' time ud singtn uv burds is cum, an t'
voice ud turtle 's hard iv our land.
13. T' feg-tree puts fiu-th hur green fogs, an t' veynes woid tender grape give
a good smell. Ai'ise, me luv, me bonnier, an cum away.
14. O me dove, 'ats id cleft ud rock, id secret plaases ud stairs, let mah see
thee coontenance, let mah hear thee voice, fer sweet's thee voice, and thee
coontenance 's cumley.
15. Tak us t' foxes, t' little foxes at spoOs t' veynes : fer our veynes hev
tender grapes.
16. Me beluved is meyne, an a as his : he feeds amang t' lillies.
17. Until day brick, an shadows flee away, turn, me beluved, an be thah
leyke a roe er a ugyon rhat atoppa t' moontens uv Bether.
NEWCASTLE. 379
This is the dialect of St. John's Chapel in Weardale ; Wear-
dale being the only district where it is spoken with purity. In
different parts, too, of the Dale there are slight differences.
Didst thou do it:=dud tu dud := did te did z=. wilt thou do it^z
widl tu dud z:: wilt te did, the former about St. John's Chapel,
the latter in the villages of East Gate and Stanhope.
§ 336.
NOBTHUMBERLAND.
Newcastle. By J. P. Rohson.
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. Aw's the rose o' Sharon, an' the lily o' the valleys.
2. Like the lily amaug thorns, se is maw luve amang the clowtors.
3. Like the apple-tree amang the trees o' the wud, se is maw beluv'd amang
the sons. Aw sat doon anun'er his shador wi' gi-eet pUshur', an' liis froot wis
sweet te me teyst.
4. He browt us te the feastin'-hoose, an' liis flag ower us wis luve.
5. Stop us wi' tankerts, cumfort us wiv apples : for aw's seek o' luve.
6. His left han's anun'er me heed, an' his reet han' diz cuddle me.
7. Aw chairge ye, O ye dowtors o' Jeruzalum, be the roes an' the stegs o'
the field, tliit ye divent stor, nor weyldn maw luve tiv he lilies.
8. The voice o' maw beluv'd ! lucka, he cums lowpin' on the moontins,
skippin' ower the liills.
9. Maw beluv'd 's hke a roe or a young buck : seest the', he stan's aliint
wor wa', he luiks oot it the -ndndis, an' shows hissel' throo the stainchils.
10. Maw beluv'd' si')ak', an' says te me. Get up, maw luve, maw bonny
yen, an' let 's away !
11. For, lucka ! the winter's past, an' the rani's a' ower an' geyn ;
12. The flooers cums oot o' the yearth, the time for the singia' o' burds is
cum, an' the cooiu' o' the tortle is hurd i' wor land ;
13. The feg-tree puts oot her gi-een fegs, an' the vines wi' the tender grapes
gies a fine smell. Get up, maw bonny yen, an' howay.
14. O maw duve, that 's i' the clifi's o' the rock, in the liidin'-pleyces o' the
stairs, let 's see thaw feyce, let 's hear thaw voice ; for thaw voice is sweet, an
thaw feyce is cumley.
15. Catch us the foxes, the little foxes, tliit spoils the vines ; for wor vines
hes tender grapes.
16. Maw beluv'd 's mine, an' aw's his ; he feeds amang the liHes.
17. TUl the day leetias, an' the shadis flees away, torn, maw beluv'd, an' be
thoo like a roe, or a yoimg buck on the moontins o' Bethor.
Newcastle. By J. O. Forster.
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. Aw's the rose o' Sharon, an' tlie hly o' the valleys.
2. As the hly amang thorns, sae is maw luiv amang the dowtors.
3. As the apple-tree amang the trees o' the wud, sae is mah boluived amang
the sons. Aw sat doon anun'er his shadow Avi' gi'eet dcleet, an' liis fruit was
sweet te maw t'yest.
4. He browi; me to the bankittin' hoose, an' his bannor ower me was
luiv.
380 EXISTING DIALECTS.
5. Stay mo w'l llngons, cumlbrt me wiv apples: for aw's sock o' luiv.
0. His lel't liaiul is anim'er maw lioccl an" his reet liautl cliz cuddle me.
7. Aw ehairge ye, O ye dowtors o' Jeruzalum, b' the rocs, au' b' the hinds
o' the field, that ye stor mit up nor w'yeken maw luiv tiv he likes.
8. The voice o' maw beluived ! seesta', he comes lowpin' upon the moontius,
skippiu' ower the hills.
9. Maw beluived is like a roe or a young hart: seesta', he stan's aliint wor
wa', he luiks oot at the wiudis, showin' his-sel throe the lattis.
10. Maw beluived sp'yck, an' said tc me, Get up, maw luiv, my bonny yen,
an' bow'way.
11. For, luiksta' ! the Aviutor is past, the rain is ower an' g'j'en;
1^. The lluers cum oot on the ycarth ; the time o' the singin' o' burds is
cum, an' the cooin' o' the tortle is heard i' wor land ;
13. The feg-tree j)uls oot her green fogs, an' the vines wi' the tender grape
gie a gud smell. Get up, maw luiv, maw bonny yen, an' how' way.
14. 0 maw duv, that is i' the clefs o' the rock, 1' the secret pl'yeces o' the
stairs, let me see thy coontenance, let me hear thy voice ; for thy voice is
sweet, an' thy ceentenance is cumh^
15. T'yek huz the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines ; for wor vines
"hae tender gi-apes.
16. ]SIaw beluivcd's mine ; an' aw's his : he feeds amang the lilies.
17. Till the da}' lectins, an' the shadis flee away, torn, maw beluived, an' be
thee like a roe or a young hart on the moontins o' Bethor.
The so-called burr seem.s to be at its maxirmnn on the Tyne,
being softened about Morpeth, Alnwick, and Eothbury. As you
approach Berwick, other changes occur. On the other hand, the
natives of North and South Shields pronounce the r like the
majority of Englishmen ; omitting it when final — Aw's gan
oiva' te tueita wi me hrotha' iv a sculla ■=.! am^ going over the
water with my brother in a sculler.
In a town near Newcassel, a pitman did dwell,
Wiv his wife named Peg, a tom-cat, and hhusel ;
A dog called Cappy, he doated tipon,
Because he was left by his great nncle Tom.
Weel bred Cappy, famous au'd Cappy ;
Cappy's the deg, Tallilio, Talliho !
His tail pitcher-handled, his colour jet black ;
Just a foot and a half was the length of his back ;
His legs seven inches frer shoulders to paws,
And his lugs like twe dockins^ hung owre liis jaws.
Weel bred Cappy, famous au'd Cappy;
Cappy's the dog, Tallilio, Talliho !
For himtin' of varmin reet cliver was he,
And the house fi-er a' robbers his bark wad keep free.
Could baith fetch and carry ; could sit on a stool,
Or, when frisky, wad himt water-rats in a pool.
Weel bred Cappy, &c.
NORTHUMBERLAND. 381
As Ralphj' to market one morn did repair,
In his hatband a pipe, and weel combed was his hair ;
Ower his arm hung a basket — thus onwards he speels,
And enter'd Newcassel wi' Cap at his heels.
Weel breed Cappy, &c.
He hadn't got further than foot of the side,
Afore he fell in with the dog-killin' tribe ;
When a highwayman fellow slipp'd round in a crack,
And a thump on the skull laid him flat on his back !
Down went Cappy, &c.
Now Ralphy, extonish'd. Cap's fate did repine.
While its eyes like twee little pearl buttons did sliine ;
He then spat on Iris hands, in a fury he grew.
Cries, " ' Gad smash ! but ar'l hev settisfaction o' thou,
" For knocldji' down Cappy," &c.
Then this gi-im-luiken fellow his bludgeon he raised
When Ralphy eyed Cappy, and then stood amazed ;
But fearin' aside him he might be laid down,
Threw him into the basket, and bang'd out o' town.
Away went Cajjpy, &c.
He breethless gat hyem, and when liftin' the sneck.
His wife exclaun'd, " Ralphy ! thou's suin gettin' back ;"
" Getten back ! " replied Ralphy, " ar wish ar'd ne'er gyen,
In Newcassel, they're fellin' dogs, lasses, and men.
They've knocked dovsoi Cappy, &c.
" If aw gan to Newcassel, when comes wor pay week,
Ar' liken him again by the patch on his cheek ;
Or if ever he enters wor toon -wdv liis stick.
We'll thump him about tm he's black as au'd Nick,
For killiu' au'd Cappy," &c.
Wiv tears in her een, Peggy heard his sad tale.
And Ral])h wiv confusion and terror gi-ew pale ;
While Cappy's transactions with grief they talk'd o'er,
He creeps out o' the basket quite brisk on the floor !
Weel done, Cappy ! &c.
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. Aw's the rose o' Sharon, an' the lUy o' the valleys.
2. As the lily amang thorns, sae is maw luiv amang the dowtors.
3. As the apple-tree amang the trees o' the wud, sae is maw beluived amang
the sons. Aw sat doon anun'er his shadow wi greet delect, an' his fruit was
sweet te maw t'yest.
4. He browt me to the bankitting-hoose, an" his banner ower me was luiv.
5. Stay me wi' flagons, cumfort me wiv apples : for aw's seek o' luiv.
6. His left hand is anun'er maw hee'd, an' Ms reet hand diz cuddle me.
7. Aw chairgo ye, O ye dowtors o' Jeruzalum, b' the roes, an' b' the hinds o'
the field, that ye stor nut up nor w'yekcn maw luiv tiv he likes.
382 EXISTING DIALECTS.
S. The voice 0 mnw bcluived ! sces'ta, ho comes lowpin' upon the moontins,
skippiu" ower the liills.
!». Maw boluivod is like a roc, or a young liart : seesta' , he stau's ahiut wor
•wa', be hiiks oot at the wintlis, shewing his-sel tlirough the hittis.
10. Maw beluivcd sp'jek, an' said to me, Get np, maw luiv, my bonny yen,
an' how 'way.
11. For liiiksta' ! the winter is past, the rain is ower an' g'yen ;
1-2. Tlie lluors cmn oot on the yearth ; the time o' the singin o' bm-ds is
cum, an' the cooin o" the tortle is heard i' wor hind.
13. The fcg-tree puts oot her green fegs, and the vines wi' the tender gi-ape
gie a gud smell. Get up, maw luiv, maw bonny yen, an' how 'way.
14. O maw duv, that is i' the clefs o' the rock, i' the secret ply'eces o' the
stairs, let me see thy coonteuanco, let me hear thy voice ; for thy voice is
sweet, an' thy coontenance is cumly.
15. Tyek hnz the foxes, the little foxes, tliat spoil the vines, for wor vines
hae tendor grapes.
16. Maw beluived's mine : and aw's his : he feeds amang the lilies.
17. Till the day lectins, an' the shades flee away, torn, maw beluived, an' be
thoo like a roe or a young hart on the moontins o' Bethor.
North Northumberland.
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. Aw's the rose o' Sharon, an' the lily o' the valleys.
2. Like a lily mang thorns is maw luve amang the dowtors.
3. Like a napple-tree mang the trees o' the ^^'ud, is maw luve amang the sons.
Aw sets me ways doon anunder liis shador wiv a leet heart, an' his froot teastid
verra nice.
4. He fetcht us iiitiv his feastin-hoose, an' his flag abeun us wis luve.
5. Hand us up wi' di-inldn-cuj)s, cuinfort us wiv apples, for aw's bad o' luve.
6. His left ban's anunder me heed, an his reet hand cuddles us.
7. Noo aw chaii-ge ye, O ye dowtors o' Jeruz'lum, be the bucks an' the does
o' the field, thit ye dinnet stor, to roose up maw luve, till he hes a mind.
8. "NVheest ! it's the voice o' maw luve ! Leuk ! thondor he cums lowpin'
upon the moontins, an' skm-ryin' ower the hills.
9. Maw troo-luve's like a buck or leish deer : assa ! he's stannin' aliint wor
wa' ; he's leukin' oot o' the windors, an' showin' hissel' thro' tlie panes.
10. Maw troo-luve spak', he says to me, Get up, maw pet, maw canny lass,
an' cimi the ways ;
11. For, seeuoo ; the •winter's past, an' the rain's awl ower an' gean ;
12. The flooers is abeun the grand; the time for the singin' o' burds is here;
an' the churm o' the tortleduve is hm"d i' wor country-side.
13. The feg-ti'ee shuts oot bur green fegs, an' the vines wi' the young greaps
hes a nice smell. Get up, maw pet, maw bonny lass, an' cum the ways.
14. O maw duve, that's i' the holes o' the rock, i' the hidin'-pleaces i' the
steps, let's see thaw feace, let's hear the' talk ; for thaw voice is sweet, an' thaw
feace is luvesvun.
15. Get a-had o' the foxes, the weeny foxes, thit spoils wor greaps : for wor
vines hes bud weakly greaps.
16. Maw troo-luve belangs te me, an' aw tiv liim; he feeds amang the lilies.
17. Tiv sike time is the day daws, an' the cloods is a' flown, torn aboot tiv
us, maw luv, an' be thoo like a buck or leish steg on the moontins o' Bethor.
LOWLAND SCOTCH. 383
§ 337. The following specimens of the Lowland Scotch are
given for the purpose of comparison.
(1.)
By J. P. Rohson.
Song of Salomon, c, 2.
1. I am the rose o' Sharon, an' the hly o' the vallies.
2. Like the lily amang thorns, sae is my love amang the lasses.
3. Like the apple-tree amang the trees of the wud, sae is my lo'ed ane amang
the laddies. I sat me doon anunder his shadow wi' muclde glee, an' his fruit
was sweet in my mou'.
4. He brang me til the wassail-ha', an' his banner aboon me was love.
5. Hand me up m' stoups, mak' me glad ^\i' apples ; for I am forfairn wi'
love.
6. His left han' is aneath my heed, an' liis licht han' kiutles me.
7. I wan-n ye, O ye dochters o' Jerusalem, by the raes an' tlie bines o' the
field, that ye stirna up, nor wauken my love intil his ain pleesur'.
8. The voice o' my ain love ! wow, he comes loupin' upo' the moontans,
skippin' upo' the hills.
9. My ain love is like til a rae or a young deer ; see ! he's stan'in' ahint oor
wa' ; he keeks oot o' the windows, an' kythes at the lattis-panes.
10. My lo'ed ane spak, an' quo' he, Get up, my love, my bonnie thing, an'
come awa'.
11. For, do ye no ken, the winter's awa, an' the rain is a' ower an' gane ?
12. The flow'rs spring oot o' the grund ; the time's come for the sang o' the
birdies, an' the coo o' the cushat is heard a' ower the Ian'.
13. The feg-tree pits oot her gi-een fegs, an' the vines wi' the wee grapes gie
oot a guid smell. Get up, my love, my comely ane, an' come awa !
14. O my doo, thou art in the chffs o' the rock, in the liidin' corners o' the
stau-s, let me ken the sicht o' thy face, let me hear thy voice ; for thy voice is
timefu', an' thy face is winsome.
15. Tak' us the tods, the wee tods that waste the ^ines ; for oor vines ha'e
but puly grapes.
1(5. My lo'ed ane is my ain, an' I am liis : he feeds amang the lilies.
17. Intil the day daw, an' the cluds flit awa', turn tn me, my lo'ed ane, an' be
thou like til a rae or a yoimg deer on the moontans o' Bether.
(2.)
Anonymous.
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. I am the rose o' Sharon, an' the lilUe o' the dales.
2. As the lillie amang thorns, sae is my love amang the dochters.
3. As the apel-tree amang the trees o' the wud, sae is my belovet amang the
sons. I sat doon anoonder his shaddie wi' muckle dehcht, an' his frute was
sweet t' my prien.
4. He brocht me to the wassail-ha', an' his banner ower me was love.
5. Stay me wi' stowps, comfert me wi' apels ; for I am ill o' love.
6. His left ban' is anoonder my heed, an' his richt han' infaulds me.
7. I wairn ye, O ye dochters o' Jerusalem, that ye stir na up, nor wauken
my love tull he likes.
8. The vyce o' my belovet! boliauld, lie comes lowpiu' on the mimtaus,
skippin' on the hilh;.
38 :t EXISTING DIALECTS.
0. My liolovot is like no. rao or iic young liovt : l)elinuUl, ho stan's aliint oor
wa" ; ho looks iurth at tho winnooks, shawiu' hissel' thvougli tho baurs.
10. ]\Iy bolovot spak', an said t' mo, INIy lovo, my fair auc, rise up, an' come
awa'.
11. For, behauld, the wunter is bye, the rain is ower an' gane.
10. The llooors kythe on the j^ird; the season o' the singin' o' birds is come,
an' the vyce o' the cooshat is heard in oor Ian'.
13. The lig-troe pits furth her green figs, and the vinos, wi' thoii- wee bit
grapes, gic ae gudelie smell. Rise up, my love, my fair ano, an' come awa'.
14. O my doo, thoo airt in the cliffs o' the rock, in the sacret places o' the
crannies, let me see thy face, let me hear thy ^yce ; for thy vyce is sweet, an'
thy face is winsome.
15. Catch us the tods, the wee tods, that spile the vines ; for oor vines hae
wee bit grapes.
16. INIy belovet is mine, an' I am his : he feeds amang the hllies.
17. Tull the day daw', an' the shaddies flee awa', turn ye, my belovet, an' be
thoo like ae rae, or ae young hert on the muntans o' Bether.
It is safe to say that the preceding group contains everything
that can be called Northumbrian or Northern. On the southern
frontier it contains somethinGf more.
CHAPTER YIIL
EXISTING DIALECTS. MIDDLE GROUP. EAST -ANGLIAN
DIVISION.
§ 338. From the extreme limits of the group which we have
named Korthumhrian, we, now, turn southwards and eastwards ;
to Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex (?). The dialects of the first two
of these counties constitute the division called East-Anglian.
AVhether it include Essex is another question. I consider that
it does. Those, however, who lay much stress upon the diffe-
rence between Saxon and Angle will demur to this. So, also,
will those who agree with rae in carrying the Essex form of
speech as far west as Herts, but would, also, either throw the
Essex into some other division, or make a separate class of it.
The leading fact, however, is this, viz., that, from the Wash to
the Nore, the dialects graduate into each other ; the indistinct-
ness of frontier on the west being no more than what we expect.
Whether the term 'EiCi^i- Anglian should apply to an 'EiQ&t-Saxon
county is a verbal, rather than a real, question.
NORFOLK. 385
§ 339.
Norfolk.
Sonci of Solomon, c. 2.
1. The rose o' Shaaron I em, and the lily o' the wallej's.
2. AU the same as the lily amimst thorns, so is my love amunst the darters.
3. All the same as th' apple-tree amimst the trees o' the wud, so is my
beloved amunst the sons. I set myseH down ondernane liis shadder wi' gi'ate
dehght, and his fruit wor swate to my Hkin'.
4. He browt me to the faastin' -house, and his bander atop on me was love.
5. Stay me wi' gotches, comfort me wi' apples, for I em cothy wi' love.
6. His left hand is ondernane my liid, and his right hand du cuddle me.
7. I charge yow, O ye darters o' J'rusal'm, b' the roes and b' the hinds o'
the fild, that yow shawoi't stii- up, ner yit wake up my love till so bein' as he
plaze.
8. The mce o' my beloved ! I sa ! look how he du come a lopin' apun the
moimtins, a skippin' apun the hills.
!). My beloved, he is lilcen onto a roe or a young hart : look ! how 'e stand
behind oui- wall ; he look out at oiu- winders, a showiu' hisself out at the case-
mint.
10. My beloved, he spook, and he sa onto me. Rise up, my love, my feer
un, and come awah.
11. For, I sa ; the mnter t' be past, and the rain 'tis over and gom.
12. The flowers they be sin apun the akth ; the tune o' the bads singin' is
come, and the cuin' o' the ringdow is heai-ed in oiu- land.
13. The fig-tree du putt out her gi-een figs, an' the -Rdne-trees wi' the tander
gi'ape give a good smeU. Git up, my love, my feer un, and less come awah.
14. O my dow, that's in the cricks o' the rocks, in the sacret places o' the
stars, let me see yer countenance, let me hear yer wice ; for yar wice t' be
sweet, and yar countenance tidy.
15. Ketch us the foxes, the leetle foxes, as spile the wine-trees; for our
wine ha' tander grapes.
16. My beloved is mine, and I em his ; he du feed amunst the lilies.
17. Ontil the da brake, and the shadders fly away, tarn, my beloved, be yow
liken onto a roe or a young hart apun the mountins o' Bether.
§ 340.
Suffolk.
A Letter, written 1814. From HaUiweU.
Dear Friend,
I was axed some stounds agon by Billy P. our 'scsser at MuUadcn to
make inquu-ation a yeovv if Master had paid-in that there money into the
Bank. BUly P. he fare, kienda, unasy about it, and when I see him at
Cliurch to day he sali Tunmy, says he, prah ha yeow wrot — so I, kienda, weft
nm ofi" — and I sah, says I, I lieent hard from Squire D as yit, but I dare
sail, I shall afore long — So prah write me some hues, an send me wahd,
waitha the money is pahd a' nae. I dont know what to make of our Mulladen
folks, nut I — but somehow or another, they're aUus in dibles, an I'll be rot
C C
3S() EAST-ANGLIAN DIVISION.
if I (lout begin to tliink pomo on cm nil tnhn up scaly nt last ; (in as to that
tlioro i'uUa — ho prow so big and so puid)' that lie want to bo took dovni a peg —
an I'm glad to hare that you ycow glut it cm properly at Wicldium. I'm gooiu
to meet the IMuUaden folks a' Friday to go a bouuden, so prali waite me wahd
afore theuuum, an let mo know if tlie money be pahd, that I may make Billy
1\ asy. How stammiu cawd tis nowadays — we heent no feed no where,
nu the stock run blorcin about for wittles, jist as if twa winter — yeow mah
pond out twool bo a mortal bad season for green geese, an we shant ha no
spring wahts afore Boom fau-. I dipt my ship last Tuesday (list a' me — I mean
^^'cusday ) an tha scringe up their backs so naslumly I'm afeard they're wholly
stiyd — but 'sti-us God tis a strange cowd time. I heent got no news to tell
ye, only we're aU stammenly set up about that there corn bill — some folks
dout fare ta like it no matters, an the sah there was a nashun noise about it
at Norrij last Saturday was a fautnit. The mob they got three efijis, a far-
mer, a squire, an a mulla, an strus yeowre alive they himg um all on one jib-
bit — so folks sail. Howsomever we are all quite enough here, case we fai-e to
tlunk it for our good. If you see that there chap Hany, give my service to
em.
§341.
Essex.
Coch-a-Beiis Hill. From HalliweU.
1.
At Tottum's Cock-a-Bevis Hill
A sput suppass'd by few,
Wliere toddlers ollis haut to eye
The proper pritty wiew :
2.
Where people crake so ov the place.
Leas ways, so I've hai'd say ;
An 'fi-imi its toi) yow, sarteny.
Can see a monsus way.
3.
'Bout this sad Hill, I warrant ya,
Their bog it nuver ceases ;
They'd growl shud j'ow not own that it
Beats Daubuiy's au' to pieces.
4.
But no sense ov a place, some think,
Is this here hill so high. —
Cos there, full oft, 'tis nation coad,
But that don't argufy.
5.
Yit, if they then* inquii-ations maakc
In winter time, some will
Cojidemii that place so no great skakes,
Where folks ha' the coad-chill !
ESSEX. 387
0.
As siun'dy 'haps, when nigh the sput,
May ha' a wish to see 't, —
From Mauldon toun to Keldon 'tis,
An' 'giu a fotu' releet,
7.
Where up the road to load.it goos
So lugsome an' so stiff,
That hosses mosly Idtch a whop,
From drivers in a tiff.
But who'd pay a hoss wliile tugging on ?
None but a letcchy elf :
'Tis right on plain etch chap desaa^es
A clumsy thump liimseLt".
9.
Haul'd o'er the coals, sich fellars e'er
Shud be, by Martin's Act ;
But, then, they're rayther muggy oft.
So witli um we' re not zact.
10.
But thussins, 'haps , to let mn oaf
Is \\Tong, becos etch carter.
If made to smart, his P's and Q's
He'd mine for ever arter.
11.
At Cock-a-BcAis Hill, too, the
Wiseacres show a tree,
Wliich if you clamber n^, besui-c,
A precious way yow see.
12.
I don't tliink I cud clime it now,
Aldoe I uster cud ;
I shudn't warsley loike to troy,
For guelch cum down I shud.
13.
My head 'ood smm, — I 'oodn't do it
Not even for a guinny :
A naarbour ax'd me, tothor day,
'*Naa, naa," says I, " nut quinny."
U.
At Cock-a-Bevis Hill, I was
A-goon to tell the folks.
Some warscs back — when I bargun —
In peace there Uved John Noakes.
C C 2
388 MERCIAN GROUP.
xl} 342. Tlie word Hendazzklnd-ofzzso to say, which has
been made familial- to most of us by Dickens's Yarmoutli boat-
man, is, pre-eminently, East- Anglian. In North Frisian, kander
may be found in a similar sense. I am not, however, prepared
to commit myself to the identity ; still less to base any further
argument upon it. At the^same time, the fact of kander being
Frisian deserves notice.
The Essex, as well as the Suffolk, dialect (e. g. the word i/nqui-
ration) shows an element, which, whether we call it Cockney
or Slang, is artificial.
The geographical (we might almost call them the geometrical)
relations of Essex to Middlesex and Kent (see § 324) must be
noticed. The boundaries meet at an acute angle, with the widen-
ing Thames between them. London is a ■pf>'int ; at which East
Anglia, the Saxon, and the Mercian areas meet ; or (changing
the expression) one to which they converge.
CHAPTER IX.
PROVINCIAL FORMS OF SPEECH AT PRESENT EXISTING. MER-
CIAN GROUP. ITS NEGATIVE CHARACTER. SPECIMENS, ETC.
§ 34.3. The last of our groups now comes under notice. It is
a difiicult one ; the nature of the difficulties connected with it
being easily anticipated. Its characteristics are few : its affinities
quaquaversal, i. e. it touches something, and graduates into it, on
every side. We can only get at its boundaries approximately.
Thus —
1. The counties of Herts, Bucks (with a part of Berks),
Northampton, Warwick, Oxford (part), Worcester (part),
Leicester, Rutland, Lincoln, Cambridge, Hunts, Beds, contain the
group in question, and something more.
2. A line drawn from London to Wisbeach, thence continued
along the coast to a level with the city of Lincoln, then con-
tinued through Lincoln and Leicester to Warwick, and thence
produced to London, contains nothing but what belongs to the
group in question, but without containing the whole of it.
LINCOLNSHIRE. 389
§ 344<.
Lincolnshire.
Parts about Lincoln.
Neddy and Sally.
•' Cum, Sail, it's time we started now,
Yon's Farmer Haycock's lasses redely.
And Maister ses he'll feed the cow."
" He didn't say so, — did he, Neddy?"
" Yees that-he did, so make thee haste,
And git thee sen made smart and pritty ;
Wi yaller ribbon round thee waist.
The same as owd Squire Lowden's Kitty."
"And I'll goa fetch my sister Bess,
I'm sartin sewer she's up and reddy ;
Cum gie's a buss, thou can't do less."
Says Sally, " Noa thou musn't, Neddy."
" See, yonder's Bess a cummin cross
The fields, vn. lots o' lads and lasses.
All aenn be aerm and brother Joss
A shoutmg to the foaks as passes,"
" Odds dickens. Sail, we'll hev a spree.
Me heart's as light as ony feather ;
There's not a chap dust russel me,
Not all the town's chaps put together."
The farmer's wife came smiling in,
Her heart was ever hght and gay,
To caution Ned she did begin —
" Be sewer thou doan't get drimk to-day."
" And mind th' money, dust thee hear,
And keep from out the sowdgers' way ;
Thou recollects tliis time last year.
When thou the smart was forced to pay."
" Yees, that I do," responded Ned,
" But I'll tck care, mum, for the fcwtcr ;
'Twas all through wot the sargent sed, —
Gosh, dang him, now he'll find I'm cuter ! "
Followed by all, the rustic flame
Was rous'd ; Ned marched through all the bustle
And whispered, " Sail, keep howd my aerm,
And stick to me close as a mussel."
390 EXISTING DIALECTS.
" And we'll goii soo tho shows set out,
Soo nil tlie Kij,'lit3 that's worth wliilo soeiu ;
Muu, iliiU you lass, I rare for uowt,
I ilou't ft-fiiix aa I'm n hiiu."
Sally uiost fhoerfully i-oinpliod,
And to tho shows theii" way were hying ;
Ned cauj^ht the canvas and ho cried,
" I'm hlumh'd but you's a wild hcrso llyiug."
" Lftwd look besides there's lots o' things,
All striped about in shape o' donkeys ;
I wonder wots them there wi' winps,
See what a precious load of monkeys ! "
* # * ♦
Deliberating thus awhUo,
On futm-c joys — to fancy seeming,
Exultingly Ned with a smile
Exclaimed " cum, wakken, are you dreamiu?'
" Consarn you, Sail, I'm reiglit you sec,
My toaes and knees seems all a-dingle ;
Let's goa and dance, and merry be,
It's tlie last stattus we'll be single."
* * * ♦
Inspiiing ale, impassioned love,
How many dangers ye are scorning ;
The sequel of my tale shall prove.
" Ned, let's goa h.ome." " I weant till moi-nin.
" I feel mysen just reight and streight.
For ovd j-ou Hlce, to kick or russel,
Hey yon's a town's chap wants to feight ?
Here's up my hat, I'll show him mussel."
The crowd gave way and from behind.
The chaj) advanced, a Morgan rattler ;
Ned shouts for joy, says, " nivor mind,
Let Mm cum on, mmi, I'm liis mattler."
In a gi-een giass field which lay by
The ling was form'd, tho light began;
Each deals liis blows most lustUy,
But Ned's proclaimed the couqu'ring man.
Sally ai'ound him begs and prays,
While tears fast fi-om her eye-Uds start,
That all for home should go their ways.
Without the woeful task to part.
Thus she implored, and he replied,
"Wot meagi-ims art tli' up to, Sally?
It's uowt noa use, I weant be tied,
Goa home thoo sen, doaut dilly dally."
LINCOLNSHIRE. 391
" Nay, promise me that thou'll goa homo,
Wi' Joss and Bess and all tho tuthers ;
But let's goa home just as we cimi,
I've got some failings for oiu* mothers."
" Well, well I wlU, hut here's a spree,
The Sowdgers are aU frisk and merry ;
There's some o' them I kuaw kuaws me,
I'll goa shak hands wi' Sargent Berry."
" It's twelvemonths since, this blessed day,
Me poor owd Sargent eyed and ogled ;
I'd one pound one or more to pay,
Blam'd I was nicety connj-fogled."
With right good- will the Sergeant gi-eets.
And tells him many a tale and story ;
Boldly he marches through the streets
With sword in hand he'U die for gloiy !
Poor Sally's hopes had been that morn.
So buoyant, confident, and light ;
That evening saw her wretched, shorn
Of all, on all her hopes a blight.
With many a hngering look beliind.
She lonely left the Statute Fair,
Hoping that Ned liis home would find.
And this slie thought would end her care.
Ned thought not of his home and Fair,
The Sergeant's scarf he had imtwisted.
And bound it on with martial air,
A7id Ned, x)oor honest Ned, was 'listed !
Parts uhuut FolldiKjliam. By the jy resent Author.
Song of Solomon, c. 2.
1. I'm the roose of Sharon and the Lily of the valHes.
2. Lilce the lily amunst the thorns, so'is my loow* amunst the dahters.
3. As the apple-tree amunst the trees of the wood, so is my sweetheart
amunst the sous. I set mj-sen down underneen his shadder wi great delight
and liis fruit wor sweet to my taiiste.
4. He brought me to the booth, and his flag ovver me wor Iooaw.
5. Set me up with tankards, comfort mc wi apples, for I'm badly of
loovv.
6. His left hand is underneen my head, and his right liand cmbriiiiccs
mc.
7. I give ye notice, o ye dahters of Jenisalem, by the roes and by the hinds
of the field, not to stu-, nor yet to wake up my loovv while he wants.
8. The voice of my loow ! Lce-ye-here ! how he comes a-liiiipui uppon the
mountins, a-skipping uppon the hills.
0. My loo\^ is lijilce a roe or a j'oong hart. Lec-ye-hcro ! he stands bcliiud
our wall, a-slle^^^ng of hisscn.
* The 00, followed by two consonants, is sotinded as the u in full.
oltli ISOLATED DIALECTS.
1(1. I\Iy loovv, ho .spoko. in ul soil to iiu', vilisc uopi), luy luir uu, au coomm
away.
11. For. loe-yoo. tlio winter is past, the riliu is o\^'cr and gone.
1-,'. The Ihnvors show themselves on the certh; the toiiue of the buds for
singiu is eoiuo, and the note of the wood-pi}i;eon is heerd in our land.
13. Tlie lig-tree putts out its -jiri'ou ligs, and the gi-ape-vincs mth tliemcUow
gi'ape give a good smell. CJet up, my loovv, my fair, and coomm away.
11. Oh my doo\-A- tliat's in the cricks of the rocks, in the secret places of
the steggers. let me see thy face, let me hear thy voice, for yar viJice is sweet,
and yar fiiiice coommlj'.
15. Tek us tlie foxes, the little foxes, as spoil the vines, for ar vines ha
tender gi'iiapes.
16. Moy luuvv is mijin, and I am hizzen. He is fothered amunst tlie
lilies.
17. "While the day break, and the shadows Hee away, turn, moy luuw and
be_ loike a yoong roe or a hart uppon the mounttus of Betlier.
If these specimens give us but little in the way of provin-
cialism, less would be given in specimens fi-om Huntingdon,
Northamptonshire, or Bedfordshire ; for, with these as the centre
of the group, we have the Mercian form of speech at its rtiaximum.
of distance from the East Anglian on the east, the West Saxon
on the south, and the Northumbrian on the north. It becomes
less tjqoical in Warwickshire, and North Oxon : and less typical
in Cambridgeshire, on the borders of Suffolk. Upon the whole,
however, the above-named counties are central to a group con-
taining Cambridgeshire and Warwickshire on the one side, and
Lincolnshire and Herts on the other : its characteristics being
negative.
CHAPTER X.
ISOLATED DIALECTS. LITTLE ENGLAND BEYOND WALES,
§ 34.5. Ifiolated Dialects means English dialects not in con-
tinuity ivith the mother-tongue.
In Pejubrokeshire, and a part of Glamorganshire, the lan-
guage is English rather than Welsh. The following extracts
from Higden have effected the belief that this is the result of
a Flemish colony. " Sed et Flandrenses, tempore Regis Hen-
rid Primi in magna copia juxta Mailros ad orientalem An-
glicB plagam hahitationem pro tempore occipientes, septimam
in insula gentem fecerunt : jubente tamen eodem rege, ad
occidentalera Wallice partem, apud Haverford, sunt ti^anslati.
Sicque Britannia his nationihus hahitatur in prcesenti
Flandrensibus in West Wallia."
THE PENINSULA OF GOWER.
393
A little below, however, we learn that these Flemings are
distinguished by their origin only, and not by their language :
— " Flandrenses vero qui in Occidua Wcdlice incolunt, dimissa
jam barharie, Saxonice satis loquv,ntur." — Higden, edit. Gale,
p. 210.
§ 346. The following Vocabulary collected by the Rev. J.
Collins,* in the little peninsula of Gower, contains no exclu-
sively Flemish elements.
Aiigletoucli, ivorm.
Bumbagiis, bittern.
Brauclis, iron stand for a pot or kettle.
Caffle, entangled.
Cammet, crooked.
Cloain, earthenware.
Charnel, place raised in the roof for
hanging hacon.
Clit, to stick together.
Deal, litter, of 2>^'J^-
Dotted, giddy, of a sheep.
Dome, damj).
Dreshel, ajiail.
Eddish, wheat-stubble.
Evil, a three-pronged fork for dung,
&c.
Finny, to clean out, of a stable, &c.
Fleet, exposed in situation, bleak.
Flott, aftergrass.
Flamirtng, an eruption of the nature
of erysipelas.
Trinih., free-spoken, talkative.
Fritliiug, a fence made of thorns uat-
tled.
Foust, to tumble.
Flathin, a dish made of curds, eggs,
and milk.
Gloy, refuse straw after the reed has
been taken out.
Gloice, a sharp pang of pain.
Heavgar, heavier (so also near-ger,
far-ger).
Hamrach, harness collar made of
straiv.
Hay, a small plot of ground attached
to a dwelling.
Kittybags, gaiters.
Lipe, matted basket of peeidiar shape.
Letto, a lout, a foolish felloiv .
Main, strong, fine {of growing crops).
Nesseltrip, the small p)ig in a litter.
Nommet, a luncheon of bread, cheese,
&c. — not a regular meal.
J?P ' lively — convalescent.
Nipperty
Ovice, eaves of a building.
Plym, to fill, to pilump up.
Vljm, full.
Planclie, to make a boarded floor.
Peert, lively, brisk.
Pui"ty, to turn sulky.
Quat, to prress down, flatten.
Quapp, to throb.
Piathe, early, of crops.
Pieremouse, bat.
I»yle, to angle in the sea.
Iliff, an instrument for sharpening
scythes.
Seggy, to tease, to p>rovokc.
Seuimat, sieve made of skin for win-
nowing.
First published in the Transactions of the Philological Society, No. 93.
31) t ISOLATED DIALECTS.
Shoat, smull ichctiten loaf. Slatle, (jrounii sloping towards the
SLowy, to clan; [of icfcither) ; {show, sea.
nith ti'nnini(tii>n y, coinmoii).
Soil], cheese, httttcr, ^o. [as eaten tcith Tite, to tumhlc over.
bread). Toit, a small seat or stool made of
Siieail, handle of a scythe. straw.
Songtills, ijleaniuijs — to gatlicx' son- Toit, fiiskij, uanton.
ijall, is to glean.
Siill, or ZiiU, a wooden plough. Vair, weasel or stoat.
Stiping, a mode of fastening a sheep's
foreleg to its head by a band of Want, mole.
straw, or withy. Wii'g, a u'illoic.
Susan, a brown earthemuarc pitcher. "Wiiuble, to winnow.
Smnp, any bulk that is carried. Wccst, lonely, desolate.
Suant, regular in order. Wash-clisli, the titmouse.
§ 347. How far the parts about Mailros are English rather
than Scotch ; Flemish rather than English ; or how far they are
in the same predicament with Little England ; again, how far the .
Pembrokeshire colony is in the same predicament with Gower,
are separate questions — the former one for the Scotch philologue,
the latter one for a philologue with more knowledge, leisure, and
data, than the present writer.
In the previous list, however, he finds nothing Flemish.
1. Canwiet is the Keltic Jcam, for which see § 8G4.
2. Charnel is Anglo-Norman; from the Latin car o :=. flesh.
3. Dreshel is a Somerset form.
4. Eddish is common in Lincolnshire and elsewhere, meaning
an aftermath of hay in a grass field. In Lincohisbire what seems
to be the eddish of the Gower vocabuLiry is herbage. It means
the feeding on after a crop of corn. In some parts it is passed
off" as a tenant-right, more being charged when no stock has been
sent into the field, on the strength of the next crop being im-
proved thereby. It is, however, not always allowed.
5. Finny is from the A. S. frem =iforvjard. A working-man
at Chertsey told the late Mr. Kemble that the ground vxis frim,
and his statement was noted by that scholar as an Angio-Saxon-
ism remarkable for beino- so near London. The same working:-
man talked of the litton.
6. Fleet. — In Ilssex shallow.
7. Flaviiring. — What is the accent here ? Query flame-ring.
8. Heavgar. — The change from i or y to g is so much rarer
than the reverse, that it deserves notice. It is Slavonic — at
least g = h, and hus is gas. In extreme cases climat is gliraat.
It is found in the Berlin dialect of Germany ; it is found (unless
THE BARONIES OP FORTH AND BARGIE. 395
it be merely a point of spelling) in the East-Anglian Anglo-Saxon
legend of St. Edmund,
9. Hamixcch. — A part of the collar is called the haims by har-
ness-makers in general.
10. This, the Dutch hage, as in the Hague =. garden. It is
the word which has the best claim to pass as Flemish.
11. Ovice. — The A. S. efese = eaves.
12. Peert. — As common in East Anglia as in the West.
13. Planche. — Anglo-Norman.
14. Rathe. — The positive of Qxdher. See below.
15. Sliovjy. — The -y is the Dorset -y (q.v.) Whether it be
the A. S. or of the infinitive is another matter,
16. Soul. — Query the Irish sovjins, word for word.
17. Songalls. — Herefordshire. An elaborate paper by Sir G.
Head, on the word songle, is to be found in the Classical Museum .
18. Susan. — A mere proper name.
1 9 . Suant. — Query pursu^ant •=. following in order.
20. Toil. — As in hoity-toity.
21. Vair. — As in mine-ver :=z ermine, stoat, tveazel.
22. Wimble. — Lincolnshire avertible, as in ivemhle the bowl =
rinse, clean, turn-out.
CHAPTER XI.
ISOLATED DIALECTS. THE BARONIES OF FORTH AND BARGIE.
§ 348. The barony of Forth, to the south of Wexford, is bounded
by the sea to the south and east, and by the barony of Bargie
to the west. It is said to have been colonized by the Welshmen
who accompanied Strongbow in his invasion of Ireland. Ob-
serve the th as an inflection of the plural verb.
Address in the Barony of Forth Language.
Presented in August, 1836, to the Marquis of Normanhy, then Earl of Mul-
grave, and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland ; with a Translation of the Address
in English.*
To's Excllencie Consantine Harrie To His Excellency Constantine
Phijips, Earle Mulgrave, ' Lord Lieu- Henry Phipj^s, Earl Mulgrave, Lord
tenant- General, and General Governor Lieutenant-General and General Go-
of Ireland;' Ye sou7nissive spakeen o vernor of Ireland : The hmnble Address
ouz Dwellers o Baronie Forthe, Weis- of the Inhabitants of Barony Forth,
forthe. Wexford.
Mai"t be plesaunt to tli' Excellcncie, May it please yoiu- Excellency,
Wee, Vassales o' ' His Most Gra- We, the subjects of His Most
cious Majesty' Wilyame ee 4tli an az GraciousMajesty William IV., and as
* Philological Transactions, No. 84.
196
ISOLATED DIALECTS.
wee verilie eliote im coslio an loyiUe
Dwellers iia Bivronio Forth, erave na
ilieke luclde acte t'lick iiecher tlx" Ex-
cellencie, aii ua plaiuo giu'be o' oiiro
3'ola taike, wi' veugem o' core tgio
cure zeuse oyc grades wilkc be cc
digUte wi' yer uiunc, and wliilke wee
ertuna zie, albeit o' Governcre Slates-
miuianabke. Yn erclia an ol o wbiike
y t beeth wi' gleezom o'core tli' cure cene
dwitheth apau j-o vigcrc o'dicke zovc-
reine, AN'ilvixme ec Voui'thc unncrc
lose fatherlie zwae oure dels be ec
spant, az avare ye trad dicke lone ver
name was ee kent var ee Vriene o'
Levertie, an Ilefo brack ge neckers o'
zlaves — ]Mang ourzels — var wee dwi-
theth an Irelone az oure general haime
— y'ast bie' ractzom home delt tons ye
lass ee mate var ercha vassale, ne'er
dwith ee na dicke wai n'ar dicka.
Wee de^rithe ye ane fuse dels bee gien
var ee giidevare o' ee lone ye zwae,
t'avance j)ace an leveitie, an wi'out
vlinch ee gai'de o' general riochts an
poplai-e vartue. — Ye pace — yea wee
ma' zei ye vaste pace whilke be ee
stent o'er ye lone zince th' ast ee cam,
prooth, y'at we alane needed ye giftes
o' general riochts, az be disj)laji;e bie
ee factes o' thie governmente. Ye
state na dicke die o'ye lone, na whilke
be ne'er fash n'ar moil, albeit " Consti-
tutional Agitation," ye wake o'hopes
ee blighte, stampe na per zwae ee be
rare an lightzom. Yer name var
zetch avanct avare y'e, e'en a dicke
var hie, arent whilke ye brine o' zea,
an ee crags o'noghanes cazed nae balk.
Na oure glades ana whilke we dellte
wi' mattoc, an zing t'oui-e caules wi
plou, we hert ee zough o'ye colui'e o'
pace na name o' ' Mulgrave.' Wi
' Irishmen ' oure general hopes be ee
bond, az ' Irislimen,' an az dwellers na
coshe an loyale o' Baronie Fortlie,
w'oul dei an ercha dei, owce maunes
an aiu'e gui'les, prie var lang an hap-
pie zins, home o'lem*nagh an ee vilt
wi benizons, an yersel an oure zove-
wo truly believe both faithful and
loyal inhabitants of tlie Barony Forth,
bog leave, at this favoui'able oppor-
tunity, to approach Your Excellency,
and in the sunple garb of our old dia-
lect to pom* forth fi-om the strength
(or fulness) of our hearts, our strength
(or admmxtion) of the qualities which
characterise j'Oiu* name, and for which
we have no words but of Governor,
Statesman, &c. Sir, each and every
condition, it is mth joy of heart that
our (!yes rest upon tlie repi'esentative
of that Sovereign, WiUiamrV., under
whose paternal rule our days are
spent ; for before your foot pressed
tlie soU, yoiu' name was known to us
as the Friend of Liberty, and He uho
broke the Fetters of the dare. Unto
ourselves — for w'e look on Ireland to
be om* common country — you have
with impartiahty (of hand) muiistered
the laws made for every subject, with-
out regard to tliis party or that. We
behold you, one whose days devoted
to the welfare of the land you govern,
to promote peace and liberty — the un-
compromising guardian of common
rights and public virtue. The peace,
yes, we may say the profound peace,
wliich overspreads the land since your
anival, proves that we alone stood in
need of the enjoyment of common
pri\dleges as is demonstrated by the
results of your government. The
condition this day, of the country, in
which is neither tiunult nor confusion,
but that constitutional agitation, the
consequences of disappointed hopes,
confirm yom* rule to be rare and en-
lightened. Your fame for such came
before you, even into this retired spot,
to which neither the waters of the sea
yonder, nor the mountains above,
caused any mipediment. In om- val-
leys, where we were digging with the
spade, or as we whistled to our
horses in the plough, we heard in
the word ' IMulgrave,' the sound of
the wings of the dove of j)eace. With
MISCELLANEOUS. 397
rine 'till ee zin o'oure dels be var ay Irishmen our common hopes are in-
be ee go t'glade. separably wound up ; as Irishmen,
and as inliabitauts, faithful, and loyal,
of the Barony Forth, we will daily,
and every day, our wives and our
cliildren, implore long and happy days,
free from melancholy and full of bless-
ings, for yourself and good Sovereign,
until the sun of our lives be for ever
gone down the dark valley of death.
§ 349. The statement that these baronies give us the language
of Chaucer, is either a sample of the over-statements that special
inquiries into particular dialects, unaccompanied by a general
view of the whole subject, lead to, or one of those pieces of
rhetoric by which the minute philologue who employs himself on
local dialects magnifies his subject.
The language is clearly archaic : the z ■=. s, being West-
Saxon. It is needless to add that the translation is, by no
meanSj close.
As a 'mixture compare a Luneburg Paternoster (in the Mith-
ridates) for certain Slave localities in the seventeenth century,
where the German and Slavonic mix much as the Gaelic and
English mix here.
CHAPTER XII.
MISCELLANEOUS.
§ 850. Of the Gypsy language I need only say that it is
Hindu. Of Coptic, Bohemian, or Wallachian (supposed ele-
ments), I am not aware that it contains any traces. Neither
have many words from it mixed themselves with our standard
(or even our provincial) dialects.
§ 351. Thieves' Language, or that dialect for which there
is no name but one from its own vocabulary, viz. Slang,
serves to show that in speech nothing is arbitrary. Its com-
pound phrases are either periphrastic or metaphorical ; its simple
monosyllables are generally those of the current language in an
older form. In this dialect I know of no notable specimens
earlier than the reign of Queen Elizabctli. In tlie dramatic
literature of that age they are rife and common. The JRoarhig
Girl, The Jolly Beggars, amongst the plays, and Deckar's Bellman
3i)S iMISCELLANEOUS.
amongst the tracts, preserve us a copious vocabulary, similar to
what we liave now, and similar to what it was in Gay's time.
Of this the greater part is Saxon. Here and there appears a
word of Latin origiu, e. g. jxiii)iu')n=zb7'ead ; cassons =: cheese.
§ 352. The Talkee-Talkee is a Lingua Franca based on the
English, and spoken by the Negi'oes of Surinam.
It is Dutch rather than English ; it shows, however, the latter
lauouao;e as an element of admixture.
Siwcimeit .*
1. Drio doll na bakka dem holi wau bniiloft ua Caua na Galilea; en mamma
va Jesus ben de dapeh.
2. INIa dem ben kali Jesus nanga hem discipel toe, va kom na da bruiloft.
3. En tell ^^ieni kaba, mamma va Jesus takld na hem ; dem no Labi Avieni
moiTo.
4. Jesus takki na hem : mi mamma, hoeworko mi habi nanga joe ? Tem va
mi no ben kom jotto.
6. Hem mamma takld na dem foetoeboi ; oene doe sanni a takld gi oene.
G. ^la dem ben poetti dapeh sUcsi biggi watra-djoggo, na da fasi va Djoe vo
krieni dem: iuniwan djoggo holi toe effi di'ic kannetjes.
7. Jesus takld na dem [foetoeboi] ; Oene foeloe dem watra-djoggo nanga
watra. Ed dem foeloe dem teh na moeffe.
8. En dan a takld na dem : Oene poeloc pildnso, tjarri go na grang-foetoe-
boi. En dem doe so.
9. Ma teh grangfoetoeboi tesi da watra, cHssi ben tron ■Rieni, kaba o no sabi,
na lioepeh da v.i.em komotto (ma dem foetoeboi dissi ben teld da watra ben
sabi) : a kali da bruidigom.
10. A takld na hem : Inniwan somma njoesoe va gi fossi da moiTO smtti
meni, en teh dem dringi noeffe kaba, na bakka da mendre swittiwan; ma joe
ben Idebri da morro boennewan.
11. Datti da fossi marld dissi Jesus ben doe ; en datti ben passa na Cana
na Gahlea va dem somma si hem glori. En dem discipel va hem briebi na
hem.
1. Three days after back, them hold one marriage in Cana in GaUlee, and
mamma of Jesus been there.
2. But them been call Jesus vnth. hmi disciple,, for come to that maiiiage.
3. And when wine end, mamma of Jesus talk to him, them no have wine
more.
4. Jesus talk to him, me mamma how work me have -nitli you ? Time of
me no been come yet.
5. Him mamma talk to them footboj', ye do things he talk to ye.
6. But them been i)ut there six big water-jug, after the fashion of Jew for
clean them; every one jug hold two or thi'ee firkins.
7. Jesus talk to them (footboy) : ye fiU tliem water jug mth water. And
them fiU them till to mouth.
8. And then he talk to them, j-e pour little, carry go to grandfootboy. And
them do so.
* Quarterly Review, vol. xliii.
THE LOWLAND SCOTCH. 399
9. But when grandfootboy taste that water, this been tm-n ^^■ine, could he
no know from where that wine come-out-of (but them footboy this been take
that water well kno^\') : he call the bridegroom.
10. He talk to him, every one man use of give first the more sweet wine ;
and when them di-ink enough end, after back the less sweety wine : but you
been cover that more good wine.
11. That tlie first mii-acle that Jesus been do, and that been'pass in Cana in
Galilee, for them men Bee hiui glory. And them disciple of liim believe in
him.
CHA.PTER XIII.
THE LOWLAND SCOTCH.
§ 353. The term Loiuland is used to distinguish tlie Scotch
of the South and South-east from the Scotch of the Highlands.
The former is English in its immediate affinities and German in
origin ; the latter is nearly the same language with the Gaelic
of Ireland, and is, consequently, Keltic.
The question as to whether the Lowland Scotch be a dialect
of the English, or a separate and independent language, is a
verbal rather than a real one.
Eeasons for considering the Scotch and English as dialects of
one and the same language lie in the fact of their contiguous
dialects being mutually intelligible.
Eeasons for calling one a dialect of the other depend upon
causes other than philological, e. g. political preponderance,
literary development, and the like.
Eeasons for treating the Scotch as a separate substantive
language lie in the extent to which it has the qualities of a
regular cultivated tongue, and a separate substantive literature
— partially separate and substantive at the present time, wholly
separate and substantive in the times anterior to the union of
the crowns, and in the hands of Wyntoun, Blind Harry, Dunbar,
and Lindsay.
Eeasons for making the philological distinction between the
English and Scotch dialects exactly coincide with the geogra-
phical and political boundaries between the two kingdoms are
not so easily given. It is not likely that the Tweed and
Sol way should divide modes of speech as accm-ately as they
divide laws and customs ; that broad and trenchant lines of
demarcation should separate the Scotch from the English exactly
along the line of the Border ; and that there should be no Scotch
400 THE LOWLAND SCOTCH.
elements in NoithunibeiLuul, aiul no Northumbrian ones in
SeotlanJ. Neither is such the case. Hence, in speaking of the
LoNvhmd Scotch, it means the lanu^nai^'c in its typical rather than
in its transitional forms ; indeed, it means the literary Lowland
Scotch, which, under the first five Jameses, was as truly an inde-
pendent language, as compared with the English, as Swedish is
when compared with Danish, Portuguese with Spanish, or vice
versa.
These (viz. those of the Swedish to the Danish, the Portuguese
to the Si)anish, or vice versa) are the true relations between
the Ijowland Scotch and the English. At the same time, the
early history, or origines, is the same for both forms of speech.
So are the ethnological relations. So is the name English.
I have on me a pah' of Lothian hips.
Shall fiiii-cr Inglis male, and mah pei-fs'te,
Than thou canst blabher with thj' Carrick lips.
§ 354. Specimen of the Old Lowland Scotch, or English of
Scotland.
Wallace xi. 230-202.
A Lord off court, qulien he approchji; thar,
Wnwisytly sperd, withoutyn provision ;
" Wallace, dar ye go fecht on our lioun ? "
And he said ; " Ya, so the Kyng suifjT me ;
Or on your selff, gyff ye ocht bettyr be."
Quhat will ye mar? this thing amittyt was,
That Wallace suld on to the hoim pas,
The King thaim chargj-t to bring him gud harnas :
Then he said; " Nay, God scheild me fra sic cass.
I wald tak weid, suld I fecht with a man,
But (for) a dog, that nocht off armes can,
I will haifif navn, bot synglar as I ga."
A gret manteill about liis hand can ta
And his gud suerd ; with him he tuk na mar
Abandounly in barrace cnti-jt thar.
Great chenys was wrocht in the yet with a gjni,
And pull'd it to qulien Wallace was tharin.
The wod lyoun, on Wallace quhar he stud,
Eampand he braid, for he desyiyt blud ;
With his rude poUis in the maiitill, rocht sa.
Aukwai't the bak than Wallace can him ta,
With his gud suerd, that was off burnest steill,
His body in twa it thi'uschyt euirilkdeill.
Syn to the King he raykyt in gi-et u*e.
And said on lowd ; " Was tliis all youi- desjT,
To wajT a Scot thus lychtly in to wapi ?
Is thar mar doggis at ye wald yeit haifl' slajme ?
AFFILIATION OF DIALECTS. 401
Go, biyng thaim furtli, sen I mon dog.^is qwoll,
To do bjnUIyng, quliill that with thee duoU.
It gaynd full wciU I graitliit mo to Scotland ;
For grettar deidis thair mon has apon hand,
Than with a dog in battaill to cscheiff —
At you in France for euir I tak my leiff."
CHAPTER XIV.
AFFILIATION OF DIALECTS. IMPEKFECT CONTINUITY IN TIME.
§ 355. Compare the present chapter with the ones which pre-
ceded it, and the question as to the rehxtions of the modern
dialects to the ancient ones will present itself — all the more
forcibly for our remarks upon the difference between simple
transcrlijtion and transcription vjith accommodation; all
the more forcibly, too, for our cautions respecting the value of
theatrical and other imitations of provincial forms of speech.
As far, however, as I can form an opinion upon a point whicli
has engaged less of my special study than almost any part of
our literature or language, the results are by no means commen-
surate with the preliminary criticism. They appertain to the
history of the written language rather than to that of our
special provincialisms. They tell us that, in certain cases,
certain MSS. were written in parts of the country different from
those wherein the original works were composed. They tell us
that, in certain cases, the authorship is referrible to a different
23art of the country from that of the authorship of the stan-
dard works. They tell us that, in many cases, either external
or internal evidence wiU teach us what those parts of the
country were, and in the cases of two, or more, MSS. of a
single work, account for varies, lectiones in the text. But they
nowhere, or very rarely, give what we most want, viz. the
equivalent to such samples as those that have just been laid
before the reader in the dialects of their respective localities
(say) seven, six, five, four, or (even) three centuries ago. The
reason for this seems to be in the fact of the earlier copyists and
writers (however much the dialect of the parts wherein they
either transcribed or composed might deviate from tlie literary
or cultivated English) having rarely adopted those deviations to
anything like their full extent. Wliat they wrote was the
u D
■i02 AFFILIATION OF DIALECTS.
ordiuiuy English \\ ith certain local cluiractcristics. Tlio diHc-
rence between an in i perfectly-educated North-Briton writing
English withont being very nice as to his Scotticisms, and
Bums composing in his own native Doric, illustrates what I
hold to be the dilference between a copyist in Gloucestershire,
and a writer in the Cdoucestershire dialect, i. e. after the manner
in which Burns was one in the Ayi-shire dialect.
This doctrine, viz. the doctrine that MSS., however pro-
vincial in respect to their locality, are only imperfectly provincial
in respect to their form of speech, is as much an inference
from the language of our archteological critics as it is from
the study of the case itself. An editor, with the text of his
author before his eyes, and with that text as the main object
of his attention, finds discrepancies between his MSS. which
he considers extraordinary. He accounts for them by sup-
posing a difference of either time or place in their transcription.
He fixes the place by the means of certain peculiarities — pro-
nouncing- it to lie in Hants, Gloucester, or Yorkshire, as the case
may be. Here his fimction ends. He has discovered certain
facts connected with the history of his text, and has explained
them as far as was necessary for his subject. The special inves-
tigator of our provincial dialects, however, looks upon the lilSS.
from a difierent point of view, his business being with the his-
tory of the particular form of speech before him — his business
being to compare the old with the new, and to ascertain the
connection between them. In doing this, he finds that what
the editors, looking to the standard English, consider to have
been provincial, he, looking to what is probably some extreme
provincialism, treats as little more than so much ordinary Eng-
lish— ordinary English tinctured with a certain amount of rus-
ticity, or archaism, as the case may be, but nothing else.
§ 356. If this be the case, we should begin with each pro-
vincial dialect as w^e find it, treat it as a language, and work our
way upwards to its oldest forms. But this we cannot often do ;
or rather our oldest forms are modern.
Neither can we often reverse the process : i. e. take an old
specimen of, say, the Lincolnshire, or Devonshire forms of speech,
and trace it downwards — materials being wanting.
That more, however, can be done in each direction than is
done by the present writer, no one knows better than he.
There is something (perhaps much) to be achieved in the
elucidation of our provincial dialects during the early and
AFFILIATION OF DIALECTS. 403
middle periods of their history : the most that is to be done
being found, as is expected, on the two extremities — North
and South. On the Agenbyte of Inwit sometliing has abeady
been said. On more than one Nortliumbrian MS,, there is
much to say. It was in the parts to the north of the Tees
that the literary English had the least influence on both the
original composer and the copyist. It was in the parts north of
the Tees that the dialects most especially comported themselves
as separate, substantive languages. In a northern MS. of the
Cursor Mundi, the writer, speaking of the legend of our Lady
and Saint John, says :—
In a Avritte this ilke I fand ;
Himself it wi'oght, I understand,
In sutliron Englys was it di'awn,
And I have tiu'ned it tUl ur awn,
Language of the northern lede
That can non other Enghs rede.
Now, of the poem from which this is taken, there is a Mid-
land MS. as well as a northern one. So there is of the Seven
Sages. So there is of several other works : in all of which,
according to Mr. Garnett, the northern copy is the original.
The original of Sir Tristremi is also, according to the same
authority, Northumbrian in respect to its origin. Midland in
respect to its transcription.
Affain — the Northumbrian of Mr. Garnett extends as far as
the Forth ; so that, in some degree, at least, it is Scotch ; a fact
which has already been alluded to.
In the Metrical Psalter of the Cotton MSS., Vespasian, D. 7,
of which an extract is given in the paper from which the pre-
ceding notices have been taken,* and which has been printed in
foil by the Surtees Society, the Northumbrian is found in its
nuiximimi of purity, and it differs from the English of the South,
much as the Anglo-Saxon differed. In the York Mysteries,
however, the northern character is abated, and the language of a
great portion is "almost as much metropolitan as Northum-
brian." And this is only one case out of many.
As we approach the centre of England, this influence of the
literary language increases ; and it increases as we descend in
time. Hence, there come long spaces both in time and place
where the line of even an approximate continuity is broken. The
* Garnett. Philological Essays, p. 190.
D D 2
•40-1. AFFILIATION OF DIALECTS.
old compositions wholly lose their local character : whilst the time
for compositions like those of the preceding chapters has not
bofrun. Amono; these last, nine out of ten are recent : and none
old. In most cases tliey are meant to serve some special purpose ;
generally as philological sam[)les. In others they are simply
given as recreations or as curiosities of literature. To anything
like s]"»ontaneous growth they have rarely any pretension. To
conclude : —
1. They generally represent the foi'ms of speech of the more
sequestered districts and the ruder speakers : whereas the older
compositions, with their genuine literary character, represented the
lanmiafres of the towns or monasteries.
2. They generally exaggerate, rather than understate the
local peculiarities ; whereas the older compositions (as is implied
in what has been said of the extent to which they are modified
by the general literary dialect) understate rather than exaggerate
them.
In a work like the present, this is as much as can be said
upon a subject abounding in details. That so7ne results in the
way of a continuous history of each form of the older language
downwards, and of the newer language upwards, in several dia-
lects, is attainable, I am not prepared to deny. They must be
the fruit, however, of much research, new materials, and subtle
criticism.
CHAPTER XV.
ON THE ORIGIN OF THE LITERARY ENGLISH.
§ 357. Closely akin to the question as to the affiliation of dia-
lects, is the question of the origin of the literary English. When
and where did it take form ? Is it some particular dialect cul-
tivated to the exclusion of the others ? Is it a mixture of more
than one ? The history of nil literary languages is difficult : and
that of the English is no exception. The question, however, can
only be touched.
1. It is not the lineal descendant of the literary Anglo-Saxon,
or the Anglo-Saxon of Wessex. Such presumptions as existed
in favour of this view have been definitely set aside by Dr.
Guest, Mr. Garnett, and others : Dr. Guest having suggested
the central districts of English, e. g. Leicestershire, as being its
birlh-place.
THE LITERARY ENGLISH. 405
2. It is not the lineal descendant of the literaiy Nortliuni-
brian.
This means that it is of Midland, or Mercian, rather than of
Northumbrian or West-Saxon origin.
The philologues just named founded their opinion chiefly on
the character of the Midland MSS. The foct of the Midland
dialects being the least provincial is strong evidence in the same
direction. It is not to be supposed that the labouring-men of
Huntingdon and Northampton speak what is usually called
better English, because they read more than the labouring-men
elsewhere. They speak it because their vernacular dialect is
most akin to that of the standard writers. Or (changing the
expression) it is not so much they who approach the written
language as it is the written language which approaches them.
This, however, though true to a certain extent, is not, ne-
cessarily, the whole truth. It cannot be denied that over
a certain area at least, say Hertfordshire, Bucks, and Bedford-
shire, the influence of London has told. If so, the question
grows complex.
§ 358. Individually, then, I am scarcely prepared to call the
Literary English a simple development of some Mercian form of
speech ; admitting, at the same time, each of the reasons just
adduced : admitting, also, that, out of the wi'iters anterior to the
invention of printing, it is those of the Mercian districts, es-
pecially Robert of Bourne (in South Lincoln), whose language
gives the nearest approach to the conditions out of which it
could be evolved. At the same time, I simply derive it from
London, and believe that, in London, it originated with the
learned professions — especially the bar. The following extracts
from Johnson's Preface to his Dictionary, in which it is specially
stated that Sir Thomas More's English came nearest to the
standard of after-times, favour this view,
A ruful lamentacion {writen hy master Thomas More in his youth) of the deth
of quene Elisabeth mother to king Henry the eiyht, tcife to king Henry the
seuenth, and eldest doughter to king Edivard the fourth, tvhich queue Elisa-
beth dyed in childbed in February in the yere of our Lord 1503, and in the
18 yere of the raigne of king Henry the seuenth.
1.
O ye that put your trust and confidence,
In worldly icy and fiaylc prospcrite,
That so lyuo here as ye should neuor hence,
Remember death and loke here vppon me.
40G
THE LITERARY ENGLISH.
Eiisauinplo I Ihyiiko there may no bettor bo.
Your sellb wottc well that iii tliis reahuo was I,
Yom* queiio but late, aiul lo uow liere I lye.
\\'ns I not borne of oltlo worthy linage ?
Was not my mother quecnc, my father kyng ?
^\'ns I not a kiiiges fere in miu-riagc?
1 1 ail I not i>lenty of eiicry pleasauut tlijTig ?
]\Ieroiliill god tliis is a stravmge rcokcnyng :
IJyehesso. houoiu', welth, and aiuicostry,
I lath me forsaken and lo now here I ly.
3.
If worship myght haue kept me, I had not gone.
If wyt myght haue me sailed, I ncded not fere.
If money myght haue holpe, I laclced none.
But O good God what vayleth all tliis gere.
"When deth is come thy mighty mcssangere,
Obey we must there is no remedy.
Me hath he sommoned, and lo now here I ly.
4.
Yet was I late promised otherwysc,
This j'cre to liue in welth and delice.
Lo where to commeth thy blandishyng promyse,
O false astrolagy and dcujTiatrice,
Of goddes secretes makyug thy selfe so wise.
How ti-ue is for this ycre thy prophecy.
The yere yet lasteth, and lo nowe here I ly.
A merry test how a sergeant would learne to jd'iye tliefrere.
Wyse men alway,
AfFjnme and say.
That best is for a man :
Diligently,
For to apply.
The busines that he can,
And in no wyse,
To enterpryse.
An other faculte.
For he that wj-11,
And can no skyU,
Is neiier lyke to the.
He that hath lafte,
The hosiers crafte.
And falleth to maldng shone,
The smythe that shall,
TopajTitpig fall.
His thrift is well nigh done.
A blacke draper,
With wliyte paper.
To go to -nait^Tig scole,
An olde butler,
Becimi a cutler,
I wenc shall prouo a fole.
And an olde ti-ot.
That can I wot,
NothjTig but kysse the cup.
With her pliisick,
Wil kepe one sicke,
Tyll she have soused hym vp.
A man of lawe,
That neiier sawe,
The wayes to bye and seU,
Wenyng to lyse,
By marchaundise,
I wish to spede h}TU well.
THE LITERARY ENGLISU.
407
A marcliaimt eke,
That wyU goo seke,
By all the meanes he may,
To faU in sute,
Tyll he dispute,
His money cleane away,
rietyng the lawe.
For euery sti-awe.
Shall proue a thrifty man,
"With bate and strife.
But by my life,
I cannot tell you whan.
"N^Tian an hatter
Wyll go smatter,
In philosophy,
Or a pedlar,
Ware a medlar,
In theology,
All that ensue,
Suche craftes new.
They driue so farre a cast.
That euennore,
They do therf(jre,
Beslu-ewe themselfe at last.
This thing was trj^ed
And verefyed.
Here by a sergeaunt late,
That thiiftly was,
Or he collide pas,
Raj)j)ed about the pate,
Whyle that he would
See how he could,
A little play the frere :
Now yf you wyll,
Knowe how it fyll,
Take hede and je shall here,
&C., SiG.
The following, from Sir J. Fortescue, Chief Justice of the
Common Pleas, in the reign of Henry IV., is (considering its
datej even more moelern (or rather less archaic) still.
Hyt may peraventure be marveUd by some men, why one Realme is a
Lordshyp only Roi/nU, and the Piynce thereof riilyth yt by his Law, callid
Jus Ecijale ; and another Kyugdome is a Lordschip, Royal and PolUike, and
the Prince thereof riilyth by a Lawe, callyd Jus PoUticum S Rejale ; sythen
thes two Princes beth of egall Astate.
To tliis dowte it may be answeryd in this manner; The first Institution of
thes twoo Reahnys, upon the Incoi-poration of them, is the Cause of this
diversji;e.
When Nembroth by j\Iight, for liis o-mi Glorye, made and incoi-poratc the
first Reabne, and subduyd it to hymself by Tj-rannye, he would not have it
govemj'd by any other llule or Lawe, but by his own Will ; by wliicli and for
th' accomplishment thereof he made it. And therfor, though he liad thus
made a Realme, holy Scripture denyjxl to cal liym a K}Tig, Quia Rex dicitur
a Rcijendo ; Wliych thyug he dyd not, but oppressyd the People by JMyght,
and theifor he was a Tp-ant, and callid Primus Tijrannoruni. But holy
Writ caUith Iiym Rohustus Venator coram Deo. For as the Hunter takyth the
wjdd beste for to scle and eate hym ; so Nembroth subduyd to him the People
with Might, to have their service and their goods, u'Siiig upon them the Lord-
schip that is callid Dominium Regale tantum. After hym Belus that was
callid first a Kyng, and after him his Sone Nyniis, and after liym other
Panyms ; They, by Example of Nembroth, made them llealm3's, would not liavc
them rulyd Ijy other Lawys than by their own Wills. Which Lawys ben right
good under good Princes ; and tlieir Kyngdoms a then most resemhlyd to the
Kyngdomc of God, wliich reynith upon man, riilyng liim by hys own Will.
Wlicrfor many Crystyn Princes usen tlie same Lawe ; and tlierfor it is, that
the Lawj^s sayen, Quod Principi placuit Lnjis liahet vigorem. Ajid thus I
suppose first begamio in P>;Cahnys, Dominium tantum Juyalc. But afterward,
408 TUE LITERARY ENQLISII.
wlien Manlcyiul was more mansueto, and botter disposytl to Vortixc, Gretc
Connniuialtics. as was tho Eoliship, that came into this Lend with Brute,
wyllynj^ to bo luiyod and made a IJody Politilve callid a Kcahne, liavyng an
Hood to govcrno it; as after tho Saying of tho rhilosophcr, ovciy Communaltio
luiyod of many parts must needs have an Heed ; than they chose the same
Brute to bo thoii- Hood and Kj-ng. And they and he upon tliis lucoi-poratiou
and Institution, and onjnig of thoiuself into a Reahne, ordcynyd the same
Ixoiiliue so to be rulyd and justyfyd by such Laws, as tliey al would assent
luito ; wliich Law thorfor is callid PoUticum ; and bycause it is mynystrid by
a Kjnig, it is callid Bejale. Dominium PoUticum dicitur quasi liefjimen, plu-
rium Scientia siie Consilio ministratum. The KjTig of Scotts reynith upon liis
People by tliis Lawe, videlicet, Beijimine Politico d Regali. And as Diodonis
Syculus saith, in his Boko de priscis Historiis, The Realme of Egypte is
rulid by the same Lawe, and theifor the K>Tig therof chaungith not liis
Lawes, mthout the Assent of his People. iVnd in like forme as he saith is
ruled the KjTigdome of Saba, in Felici Ai-abia, and the Lend of Lihie ;
iVnd also the more parte of al the Realmys in Afrike. "Whicli manner of
llule and Lordship, the sayd Diodorus in that Boke, praysith gretely. For it
is not only good for the Prince, that may thereby the more sewerly do Justice,
than by Ids OA\Tie Arbitilment ; but it is also good for his People that recej^ve
thereby, such Justice as they des3'er themself. Now as me seymth, it is
shewyd opinly ynough, why one Kyng rulj^th and reynith on his People Do-
minio tantum Eegali, and that other reynith Dominio Politico S Reyali: For
that one Kjnigdome beganne, of and by, the IVIight of tlie Piince, and that
other beganne, by the Desier and Institution of the People of tlie same
Priace.
§ 359. Whether tlie Literary English be the best English is
another question. There are great violations of strictly logical
CTammar in all dialects : and it is doubtful whether mere cultiva-
tion diminishes either their number or their magnitude. Except
on the principle that whatever is is right, and that rules must
accommodate themselves to language (a doctrine to which the
present writer has no objection, but one to which many object)
rather than language to rules, — except (I say) on some principle
higher than that of the ordinary grammars — the rustic who says
hisself and tlteirselves, speaks better English than the fine writer
who after saying myself and ourselves says himself and them-
selves.
For further illustrations of the bad grammar of the best
Englisli see the remarks on it is me — that dress became you —
it did well enough, in the Syntax. The last of these cata-
chrestic forms is certainly common to the learned and the
vulgar. I am not sure about the second. The first, however,
the vulgar, so long as they are allowed to be natural, avoid.
MR. GARNETT'S GROUPS. 409
CHAPTER XVI.
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE ENGLISH DIALECTS.
§ 3 GO. The details of a language are one thing, the opinions
concerning them another. In the previous chapter I differ in
many points with the writer who first attempted a classification
of our dialects — Mr. Garnett. It is needless to add, that I do
so most unwillingly ; the more so as I owe much of my infor-
mation to him.
1. He draws a real distinction between the Saxons and the
Angle, I a nominal one.
2. He classifies by definition rather than type ; and, so
doing, draws definite lines of demarcation where I, grouping
round a centre, find nothing but the equivocal phenomena of
transition.
3. He lays more stress than I do on single characters.
Upon the whole, however, we agree in the direction of the
affinities, and in the contents, (though not always in the value)
of our classes.
§ 361. With these preliminaries I lay before the reader Mr.
Garnett's groups.
1. The Southern or Standard English of Kent and Surrey.
2. Western English — from Hants to Devon and the Gloster-
shire Avon. Sir F. Madden's notice of the Kentish origin and
Somersetshire character of the Agenbyte of Inwit modified Mr.
Garnett's views upon this point. I believe that he had no ob-
jection to merging the two groups into one. On the other hand
I, who have done so, have none to separating them. The fact
that they graduate into each other is real ; the value of the
class they form is verbal.
3. Mercian — in its t3'pical form in South Lancashire ; well-
marked in Cheshire ; and with vestiges in Shropshire, Stafibrd-
shire, and South and West Derbyshire. It is Mr. Garnett whom
I follow in connecting Shropshire with Staffordshire ; Stafford-
shire leading northwards.
4. Anglian in three subdivisions.
a. East Anglian of Norfolk and Suffolk.
h. Middle Anglian of Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, and
East Derbyshire.
c. North Anglian of Craven, and the West Riding of York-
shire ; with the exception of the Wapentake of Claro.
ilO MR. QARNETT'S GROUPS.
5. NorthuniLiian in Nortliuinljorland, Durluiiu, Cumberland,
Westmorel;u\(.l, North Lancashire (1 e. Lancashire to the North
of the Kibble), the Nortli and East Ridings of Yorkshire, the
Waj)ontako of Claro in the West Riding, and the Ainsty, or
Liberties, of the City of York.
§ 302. Hero the Middle Anglian is my Mercian; and I am
not sure that Mr. Gamett's name is not the better one. It coin-
cides with the Angli Mediterranei of Beda : and it is only
because I find Mr. Kemble and other high authorities calling
the language of the latter part of the Saxon CJironide, which
they attribute to the parts about Peterboro', Mercian, that 1 use
the term. Individually, I prefer the word Midland.
Garnett's IVIercian I connect witli Avhat he calls the North
Anglian, his North Anglian with the Northumbrian. I imagine
that the difference is maiidy as to the value of the class. I
cannot suppose that tlie separation of tlie South, from the North,
Lancashire is ordinal or even generic ; still less that of the
West, from the East and North, Ridings of Yorkshire. I think
that the South Lancashire plural in -en {we callen) has been
overvalued as a characteristic.
Such are the differences of the two classifications. Consider-
ing the differences of the principles upon which they are founded,
they are slight — a fact which leads to the conclusion that a
rough classification of the English dialects has been arrived at.
I conclude with the two following extracts : the former fi-om
Higden, the latter from Giraldus Cambrensis.
1.
^VltlioiTgli the English has been descended from three German tribes, had first
had amongst thi-ee different dialects, namely, Southern, MitUaad, and Nor-
thern. Yet, being mixed in the first instance with Danes — and afterwards
with NoiTQans — they have in many respects corrupted their own tongue, and
now affect a sort of outlandish gabble. In the above threefold Saxon tongue
wliich has barely sur\dved amoug a few country people, the men of tlie east
agree more in sjjcecli with those of the west — as beuig situated under the
same quarter of the heavens — than the northern men mth the southern.
Hence it is that the Mercians or midland English partaldng as it were the
iiatm-e of the extremes, understand the adjoining dialects, the northern and
the southern, better than those last understand each other. The whole speech
of the Northumbiians, especially in Yorkshire, is so harsh and rude, that we,
southern men, can scarcely understand it.
2.
As in the southern part of England, and cliiefly about Devonsliire, the
language now appears more unpoUshed, yet in a far greater degi-ee — savom-ing
of antiquity — the northern parts of tlie island being much coiTupted by the
frequent cxcui'sions of the Danes and Noi-wegians — so it observes more the
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS. — KELTIC. 411
propriety of the original tongue and the ancient mode of speaking. Of this
you have not only an argument but a certauity, from the circumstance that
all the EngUsh b(joks of Cede, Rabanus, Iving Alfred, or any others, will be
found written in the forma proper to this idiom.
CHAPTER XVII.
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. ^THE KELTIC
ELEMENTS.
§ 3G3. The elements out of which the language of England
lias been formed are —
(a.) Elements referrible to the original Britii^h, or (at least)
derived from times anterior to tlie Angle invasion.
(6.) Angle elements.
(c.) Elements other than Angle, introduced since the Anglo-
Saxon conquest.
§ 364. Of the elements anterior to the Angle invasion, the
chief are : —
(a.) The Keltic, or British.
(b.) The Latin of the Roman, or first, period.
The Keltic elements of the present English fall into the fol-
lowing classes
1 . Those that are of late introduction, and cannot be called
original and constituent parts of the language. Some of such
are the words flannel, from the British, and kerne (an Irish
foot-soldier), galore (enough), tartan, plaid, fcc, from the Gaelic
branch. Some of these are scarcely incorporated.
2. Those that were originally common to both the Keltic and
German stocks. Some of such are brother, mother, in Keltic
hrathair, mathair ; the numerals, &:c.
3. Those that have come to us from the Keltic, but have come
to us through the medium of another language. Some of such
are druicl and hard ; the inmicdiate source of which is, not the
Keltic, but the Latin.
4. Keltic elements of the Anglo-Norman, introduced into
England after the Conquest, and occurring in that language as
remains of the original Keltic of Gaul.
5. Those that have been retained from the original Keltic of
the island and which form genuine conatituents of our lani>;unue.
These fall into five subdivisions.
412 KELTIC ELEMENTS.
((/.) Proper names — generally of geographical localities ; as
the Thames, Kent, &;c.
(h.) Conuuon names retained in the provincial dialects of
England, but not retained in the current language ; as gtvethall
zz household stuf, and givlaneiizz flannel in Herefordshire.
(c.) Vulgarisms and slang expressions differing from the words
of the preceding class by being used over the whole of England
— game, as in game {crooked) leg — (see below, IcaTn) — ham {mys-
tify), spree, tantrum.
((?.) Words used by the earlier, but not by the later writers.
Kam. — In Coriolanus we find Tlds is clean kam ; — kam,
meaning crooked, awry. In Lancashire to cam means to hend.
The river Cain, though between (7t«9i-bridge and Ely it is one
of the straightest rivers in England, between Grantchester and
Cambridge is one of the most winding. David Gam, the valiant
Welshman who saved Henry the Fifth's life at Agincourt, was,
probably. Crooked David.
Kendel, as in a kendel of cats. — Welsh cenedl zz family :
cenedluzzto conceive: from which we have the verb kindle.
Imp. — Welsh yinpiaiv=. engraft. Used in falconry for sup-
plying a lost wing-feather.
Crowd, croiuder zz fiddle, fiddler. — In Hudibras, Crowdero is
a proper name. In Venantius Fortunatus we find the words
ccrutta Britanna. Word for word this is cithara.*'
Gapidl, in capul-ltyde zz horse-hide. — Welsh cefyll, Irish caput.
Word for word, this is the Latin caballus.*
{e.) Common names current in the present language — basket,
balderdash, boggle, barrow, button, bother, bran, cart, clout, coat,
dainty, darn, fag, (as in fag-end), fleam {cattle lancet), flaiv,
funnel, gyve (fetter), grid (in f/rid-iivn), gruel, gown, gusset,
hopp)er (in a mill), kiln, m^attock, mop, pelt, rail, rasher (of
bacon), rug, solder (or sawder, in metal work), size {glue), ted (as
bay), tenter (in tenter-hook), welt, wicket, wire.
This list, taken chiefly from Messrs. Garnett and Davies, may
be enlarged — though not (I believe) to any great extent. When
lists of inordinate length are laid before the reader he will gene-
rally find that they are swollen with words which, even when
they are Keltic, are either German or Latin (or both) as weU.
These two words seem to liave come through the Keltic rather than from it.
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS. — LATIN OF THE FIRST PERIOD. 413
CHAPTER XVIII.
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. THE LATIN
OF THE FIRST, OR ROMAN, PERIOD.
§365. Of the Latin of the first period we have but few in-
stances ; these being chiefly geographical names. Thus : —
S2^eenhsim, in Oxfordshire = Sjn^ice.
Devizes z= Devisee.
The -coin, in words like Lin-coln, = colonia, rr Lindi colonia.
— The rivers and brooks named coin are {perhaps) the rivers or
brooks of the colonia — Goln-brooke, the Colne, «fec.
The forms -Chester, -cester, kester-, and -caster, as in Dor-
chester, Ciren-cester, Kester-ion, and An-casfer = the Latin cas-
tra.
The several places named Wath, are {perliajps) the Latin
vadum of this period.
The several places beginning with Pon — e. g. Pon-ton, are
{'perhaps) the Latin pons of this period.
The several Greakes and Cricks are {perhaps) the immediately
Latin, but more remotely Greek, KvpiaKrj — church. If so, they
belong to the period of the British Church.
Crouch, as in Crouch-end zz crux. It is doubtful, however,
whether the name goes back to the time of the British Church,
the only one which could give us the Latin of the first period.
The WatUng street is {perhaps) Via VitaUana. At any rate,
there is an inscription bearing the name of an engineer named
Vitalius.
The numerous Cold Harbours are all said to be on Roman
roads, and it has been surmised that the origin of the first word
may be the Latin calidusz=.warm.
Street, v/hether as Strat-ford, as Stret-ton, or simply as Street
(as in Chester-le-Street), is the Latin strata. Wherever it
occurs it is, at least, prima facie evidence of a Roman road ;
and may be used as an instrument of criticism, the ascertaining
their lines.
Wall is {i')rohahly) vallwm. At any rate, the Picts of Beda's
time spoke of the Peann Fahel as Caput Valli =. the Head of
the Wall.
Whether the list is to be increased or diminished, one fact is
clear : viz. that the Latin of the Roman, Keltic, or first period,
consists, chiefly, of geographical terms. In other words, it con-
tains proper, rather than common, names.
41 t
niSTORICAL ELEMENTS.
CHAPTER XIX.
HISTORICAL ET,EMENTS OF THE ENOLISH LANGUAGE.
OF THE SECOND, OR ANGLE, PERIOD.
-THE LATIN
s^ oOa. The Latin of the Anglo-Saxon, was that of the ecclesi-
astic, rather than the classical period. Many of the words be-
hmging to it were barbarous. Books, too, being rare, the lessons
were given by word of mouth. The extent to which the language
thus taught was cultivated is uncertain. The following is a well-
known extract from King Alfred's Preface to his Translation of
Gregory's Pastorale : —
" So clean was it lost amongst the men of England, that there were very
few on tills" (the sonth) "side of the Humbcr who conld understand their
service in English" (i. e. know what the Lathi meant), "or translate an einstlo
from tlie Latin into tlio English. And I ween that, beyond tlie Himihcr, tliere
were not many. So few were they, that I cannot tliink of any to the south
of Thames, when I began to 'reign. Thank God that now we have a few
teachers."
It seems from the word lost {o'^fcallcn) that there had been
more Latin in the days before Alfred than there was under him ;
and when we consider that the eighth century was the era of
Beda this seems probable.
§ 807. The following words are referrible to this period, i.e.
they were introduced between A.D. 600 and the battle of Hast-
ings. They relate, chiefly, to ecclesiastical matters. The names
of ])lants (chiefly medicinal, or believed to be so) are also nu-
merous.
Anylo-Saxon.
Enrjlisli.
Latin.
Mijnster
mhister
monasterium.
Tempel
temple
templum.
C'hor
chou'
chorus.
Cyrce
chnrch
KvpiaK-q.
Fortic
porch
porticus.
Cluster
cloister
clausterium.
Munuc
monk
monachus.
Bisceoii
bishop
episcopus.
Arcehisceop
archbishop
arcliiepiscopus.
Diacon
deacon
diaconus.
Nunne
mm
norma.
Sanct
saint
sanctus.
Profost
provost
prajpositus.
Prenst
priest
presbji;er.
Masse
mass
missa.
Sacenl
sacerdos.
LATIN OF THE SECOND PERIOD.
415
Anglo-Saxon.
EtKjlish.
Latin.
Alhe
aubo
alba.
Pall
paU
palhiuu.
CallG
chalice
caUx.
Candel
candle
candela.
Psalter
psalter
psalteiium.
Pistel
epistle
epistola.
Pned'wian
preach
prajdicai'e.
Projian
prove
probare.
Tunic
tunic
tmiica.
Serin
scrinium .
Casere {Emperor)
Cfesar.
Ldie
Mly
lihum.
Rose
rose
rosa.
Fyiid
fennel
foeniculuni
NfC'pte
ncpeta.
Lufuste
lovage
ligusticmn.
Feferfwje
feverfew
febrifuga.
Bute
rue
ruta.
Miute
mint
mentha.
Rddice
radish
i-adix.
N(fpe
navew {turnip)
napus.
Senepe ''
sinapi.
CtBrJille
chervill
ceretbhum.
Peterselige
parsley-piert
petroschnimi,
Pervince
periwinlsle
vmca.
Pionie
peony
pseonia.
Lactuce
lettuce
lactuca.
Fic-heam
fig-tree
ficus
Magdala-treow
almond-tree
amygdalum .
Pin-treoic
pine-tree
pmus.
Cederheam
cedai'-beam
ccdrus.
Hiissop
hyssop
hyssopus.
Btdsalm
balsam
balsamtim.
Camedris
germander
chamajdrys.
Fille
serpiUum.
Salvige
sage
sahda.
Aticer
anchor
anchora.
Must
mustum.
Pumicstiin
pumice-stone
piunex.
Area
bow
arcus.
The following arc a few, out of many, words wlncli, though
now of Latin, were, originally, of Anglo-Saxon, origin : —
Creation Frunisceaft
Earth Middamjeard
Providence Foresconn
Creation Seyppena
Evangele Gospel
Ocean Qarseeg
416
niSTORICAL
ELEMENTS.
Pavfidisc
Neor.ma-wmui
Disciplo
Leornbiij-cuiht
IJaptisni
Dippung
Astrology
Twichcraefteg
Scribe
Writer
Pharisee
Bocer
Prophet
Witega
Baptist
FuUuhtcr
De^il
Sceocca.
the slang,
vulgar,
or pr
ovincial word
CHAPTER XX.
HISTOEICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. THE NORSE,
OR SCANDINAVIAN, ELEMENT.
§ 368, Respecting the Danish elements in the English
there are several extreme statements afloat. Whether the
opinions, when analyzed, exactly bear them out, is another
question. There is a statement that the pure Anglo-Saxon lan-
guage was not influenced by them at all ; and this, if it mean
the West-Saxon, is true. There is also the statement, that no
traces of Danish are to be found in our manuscripts : which,
if it mean that there was nothing more than a Danish word
here and there, is also true. There is also a statement, that
there is no trace of Danish to be found in our dialects ; which
is exceptionable. There are Danish words in our dialects.
There are Danish words in such manuscripts as belong to the
Danish parts of England ; but in these manuscripts there are
no traces of any Danish orthography, nor in the dialects are
there any Danish inflections ; marked in their character as those
inflections are. The Danish words themselves, even when the
utmost latitude is allowed, are not numerous ; or they are only
numerous in the eyes of those who would say that the Arabic
words in English form a notable and constituent part of our
language. The evidence, however, of their being Danish at all
is unsatisfactory. It is an easy matter to find an English word
in a Danish dictionary. It is not very diflicult to prove its
absence in an Anglo-Saxon one. To show that it is not Frisian
or Old Saxon is not so easy. To show that it is , absent in the
provincial dialects of Holstein, Hanover, and Westphalia, is
difficult. Yet until all this be done the Norse must not be re-
sorted to. Laying aside then the Lowland Scotch, in which
I
DANISH, OR NORSE. 417
the Norse element is undoubted ; laying aside the provincial
dialects of England, in which Norse words are to be found ;
laying aside the early compositions, which are more or less pro-
vinciiil, we come to the question — What is the amount of the
Danish words in the iwesent English as written and spoken ?
It is small : and it must be admitted that it is sinallor than the
cmTent views respecting the Danish invasions, and the general
analogies of history, at the first view induce us to expect. But
analogy or presumption is one thing, numerical results another.
What is the amount of Danish words in the present English ?
A list of Mr. Coleridge's, than whom no one has given a longer
one, includes all the three classes alluded to, — the provincialisms,
the words found in compositions belonging to the Danish dis-
tricts (in reality a division of the former group), and the integral
portions of the current English. The latter conje under the
conditions of being found in the Norse and not being found in
the Anglo-Saxon dictionaries. They also seem to be absent in
the ordinary Frisian vocabularies. Out of this list, those portions
of the current English which the present writer cannot at once
roiiounce to be other than Norse, are the following : —
Bait
Dock
Fling
Slant
Bray
Doze
Gust
Sly
Bustle
Drub
Hank
Wall {in wall
CJdme
Dwell
ni
eyed)
Dash
Flimsy
Rap
Whim.
Each and all of these, however, he expects to find elsewhere
as his knowledge increases.
CHAPTER XXI.
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. ANGLO-
NORMAN.
§ 369. For practical purposes we may say that the French
or Anglo-Norman element appeared in our language after the
battle of Hastings, A.D. 106G.
Previous, however, to that period we find notices of intercourse
between England and France. Thus —
1. There was the residence in England of Louis Outremer.
2. Ethelred JI. married Emma, daughter of Richard, Duke of
Normandy, and the two children were sent to Normandy for
education.
E E
lis HISTORICAL ELEMENTS.
3. Edward the Confessor is particularly stated to have
encouraged Frencli manners and the French language in Eng-
land.
•i. Ingulphus of Croydon speaks of his own knowledge of
French.
5. Harold passed some time in Normandy.
(>. The French article la, in the term la Drove, occurs in a
deed of A.D. 975.
§ 870. The chief Anglo-Norman elements of our language
are the terms connected with the feudal system, the terms
relating to war and chivalry, and a great portion of the law
terms — duke, count, haron, villain, service, chivalry, warrant,
esquire, challenge, domain, &c. See p. 419.
§ 371. The proceedings in Town Clerks' offices were in
French, as well as the proceedings in Parliament, and in the
Courts of Justice.
In Grammar Schools, boys were made to construe their Latin
into French.
" Fueri in scholis, contra morem caiterarum nationum, et Normannorum
aclventu, derelicto j)roprio vulrjari, construere GalUee compelluntur. Item quod
filii nohiUmn ab i^tsis cunahulurum crepundiis ad Gallicum idionia infonnantur.
Quihus profecto rurales homines assiinulari volentes, ut per hoc spectabiliores
videantur, Francigenari satacjunt oinni nisit.'" — Higden. (Ed. Gale, p. 210.)
§ 372. That the Anglo-Norman of England was, in the reign
of Edward III., not exactly the French of Paris (and most pro-
bably not exactly the Franco-Norman of Normandy), we learn
from the well-known quotation from Chaucer ; —
Ajitl Frenche she spake fill feteoiisly,
After the scole of Stratforde at Bowe,
For I'renche of Parys v.-as to her unlmowe.
Frologue to the Canterhurij Talcs.
The well-known dialogue between Gurth. and Wamba, in
Ivanhoe, upon the words heef, veal, mutton, and jpork, as con-
trasted with ox, calf, sheep, and swine, the former of which are
Anglo-Norman, the latter English, tells us that, whilst the animal
in its natural state bore the name given it by the conquered
natives, the cooked viand took its name from the language of the
conquerors.
§ 373. What the present language of England would have
been had the Norman Conquest never taken place, the analogy
of Holland, Denmaik, and of many other countries enables us
ANGLO-NORMAN.
419
to guess. It would probably have been much as it is at
present.
§ 374. The rate at which the Anglo-Norman elements were
introduced is doubtful. Layamon's long poem, The Brut, was
supposed to be written between a.d. 1200 and A.D. 1225.
The following are, according to Sir F. Madden, all the Aiiglo-
Norman words that are to be found : —
Modern.
LayamoH.
Mod-em.
Lmjardon.
Admiral
admirail
Country
contre
Abbey-
abbey
Ciy
cri
Astronomy
astronomic
Delay
delaie
Annoyed
anued
Failed
failede
Attire
atyre
Fool
fol
Baron
barun
FoUy
folic
Crown
corune
False
falsie
Changed
changede
Guile
gile
Chapel
chapel
Grace
grace
(Jounsel
conseil
Grante
gi'anti
Cxiiise
guyse
Power
pouere
Honour
honur
Procession
processioun
Hostage
hostage
Peace
pais
Latimer
latinier
Park
pare
Machine
machunes
Prison
prisune
Manne
manere
Route
route
Maler
male
Service
sarevi
Mountainn
mountaine
Treasure
tresur.
In a short poem on the Battle of Lewes, written about A.d.
1 264, occur —
trichard I castle I mangonel.
In Minot,
followine- : —
a North-country contemporary of Chaucer's, the
succour
care
pomp
price
rout
save
maintain
gay
enemy
maugre
crown
dance
advance
chance
kayser
false
peer
caitiff
prelate
curse
honor
treason
proffer
manie
com-plain
comfort
leal
plain
journey
mile
baron
quUe = small
counsel
pcnal=penu()n
commandment
grant
galley
defend
galliot
V. E 2
420
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS.
uumbov
bur<:;oRs
assoniblo
blame
inn story
Borj,'oaut
orilain
saint
mercy
torch
jnpo
olive
gi-apo
custom
pall
arms
mischance
assoil
noble
scarlet
flowcrdeluce
anchor
battle
merchant
piu'vcy
reason
delay
duUo
ascry
romance
pavilion
clerk
abate
reach
tnunp
matter
arblast
noble
coward
proper
prest
felony
cattle
fiiav
gentle
uncourteous
armour
affiance
palace
purpose
cariliual
place
distance
lance
flower
covctisc
dine
taboui*.
In Wycliffe, who is generally looked upon as a writer of the
vernacular English, the first four letters only in the index to his
works o"ive the following;' loni:j list of Anoflo-Norman, or Latin,
words.
abash
abece
habitable
habit
inhabit
enhance
praise
abridge
abuse
accept
acolyte
accord
quench
encrease
author
cumber
adjm'e
affix
arblast
disturb
alley
ahen
ahnery
feeble
amend
amice
admonisli
anguish
annoy
anoint
impair
appeal
apert
apply
apparel
array
arbiter
reason
assay
escape
assoil
spy
assail
associate
astonish
attire
austere
attentive
all
ancestry
adventure
avarice
avise
avoid
advocate
advowtiy, &c.
avow
base
baptism
barbarous
barber
barrier
barren
basnet
bat
benefit
beneson
bernacle
bezant
blaspheme
botch
butcher
ANGLO-NORMAN.
421
buffett
compcro
brollicl
compunct
button
conceive
broach
conject
embroidery
conjm-e
bui-geou
consistoiy
ambush
consphacy
caidfl'
constrain
chameleou
consuetude
character
consume
carrion
contrary
caution
conventicle
cauldron
convert
censer
convict
incense
coast
ceremony
cost
certain
coinous
car
cun-ier
chair
corn-age
chariot
correption
charioteer
coii)se
challenge
curtain
charge
corrupt
challice
cousin
charter
couch
chasten
covetous
chamber
convenablc
chandler
kerchief
change
cover
chance
coverhd
cheer
comfort
cbieitain
couple
chivahy
crest
chorus
cross
cinnabar
cruet
circmncise
cubicular
clarify
cruet
clarion
cubit
cockatrice
cucumber
cofl'er
cushion
coffin
couple
coif
conduit
collation
care
collect
ciuious
command
courteous
covenant
custom
commune
dame
common, &c.
damsel
compacicnt
dnm
comparison
(liinm
compass
dance
daunt
daub
debouau'
debris
disdain
fan
diflamo
default
defend
defonu
defy
dainty
delicate
dchght
depart
deposite
deprave
depute
describe
desert
deserve
desire
desperate
despite
destroy
devour
dialectus
diiiame
defer
define
indignation
dihgent
dye
diminish
deceive
disciple
discharge
discomfort
disease
dishonour
disjiend
dispense
dispute
dispoil
dissemble
distrain
disliu'b
ditty
indite
diversity
divijio
422
niSTORICxVL ELEMENTS.
doubt
dross
dromcdaiy
duke
duclij'.
From the Northumhriidi Psalier, a composition even more
English than W}cliffe.
princo
licritago
fautom
face
crown
lion
turn
open
beast
quiver
save
oil
angel
mercy
psiilin
cedar
castle
imicom
vine -yard
peace
mulberri
poverty
sawtry
cry
turtle
mide
porch
power
asp
command
basilisk
relic
hjnnn
poor
pelican
ivory
prophet
timpan
vine
solemnity
figtree
mass-day=lioIiday
synagogue
dragon
offer.
From Chaucer's Testament of Love.
deUciousness
jist
rhjnne
quint
sentence
colour
spuit
acquaintance
piei'ce
plant
boisterous
paint
portraiture
occupation
commend
reverence
sovereign
delight
endite
certes
poesey
matter
phantasy
jay
chatter
lirivy
strange
property
science
faculty
dame
travail
excite
necessaiy
perpetual
muTor
vices
virtues
conceive
eschew
peril
necessai'ies
adventures
persons
desire
preacher
reasonable
perfection
unreasonable
comparisoned
final
deceivable
changeable
creator
principly
consideration
privity
contemplation
deUght
naturel
study
noble
precious
memory
joy
richess
vain
glory
emperor
" prince
perpetuel
memory
peace
contrary
press
passion
disease
testament
love
s^jhere
noble
LATIN.
423
master
gracious
prowess
victory
couquer
jupe
prees
cause
gather
pit'iity
envy
coiiuneut
reason
wallett
almoner
remasile
trencher
rehef
doctram
X)al8
increase
portion
servant
comiaend
passing-
pilgrim
boisterous.
It is almost unuecessaiy to state that these lists are mere
fragmentary contributions to the history of the impoi'tant
element under notice.
CHAPTER XXII.
HISTOEICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.-
THE THIRD PERIOD.
-LATIN OE
§ 875. The Latin of the Third Period means the Latin which
was introduced between the battle of Hastings and the revival
of literature. It chiefly originated in the cloister, in the univer-
sities, and, to a certain extent, in the courts of law.
I have not investigated it ; nor is it easy to investigate. To
find certain words of Latin origin in the writers between the
reigns of William the Conqueror and Henry VIII. is easy ; but
it is not so easy to be sure that they did not come through the
Anglo-Norman, and still less is it easy to be sure that they were
not introduced before the Conquest : in other words, that they
are not specimens of the Latin of the Second Period.
The real reason, however, why little is said about them, lies in
the fact of the present writer having but little to say.
CHAPTER XXIII.
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. LATIN OF
THE FOURTH PERIOD. GREEK.
§ 376. This means the Latin which has been introduced be-
tween the revival of literature and the present time. It has
originated in the writings of learned men in general, and often
i-Jt
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS.
exhibits the pheuonicnou of imperfect incorporation ; i. e. it sup-
plies us with words which are only ])artially English.
Imperfect incori)oration —
1 . Has a direct ratio to the date of introduction, i. e. the
more recent the word the more likely it is to retain its original
inilection.
2. It has a relation to the number of meanings belonging to
the A\ords : thus, when a single word has two meanings, the
original inflection exj>resses one, the English inflection another —
c/c iritis, genii (sinrils), geniuses {men of genius).
3. It occurs with substantives only, and that only in the
expression of number. Thus, although the plurals of substan-
tives like axis and genius are Latin, the possessive cases are
English. So also are the degrees of comparison for adjectives,
and the tenses, &c., for verbs.
§ 377. The cliief Latin substantives introduced during the
latter part of the fourth period, and preserving the Lathi plural
forms are —
Words wherein the Latin plural is the same as the Latin
singular.
Sing.
Pliir.
Apparatus
apj)arati/s
Hiatus
hiat(w
Impetus
impetMs
Caries
caries
Sing.
Congeries
Series
Species
Superficies
Pluv.
congeries
series
specie*
superficies.
(2.)
Words wherein the Latin plural is formed from the Latin
singular b}^ changing the last syllable.
[a.) — Where the singular termination -a is changed in the plural into -le: —
Sing.
riur.
Sing.
Plur.
Formula
formulf^
Larvrt
larv«
Lamina
laminae
Nebuirt
nebula.
.)— Where the
singular termination
-us is changed in the ph
iral into -i:—
Sing.
Plur.
Sing.
Plur.
Calcul?/s
calculi
'Poly])us
polypi
Coloss«s
colossi
Hadius
racUi
CouvoIvuIms
convolvulj
Rauuncul(<s
ranunculi
Foeus
foci
Sai'cophag(/s
sarcophagi
Gcmus
genii
SciiTh?<s
scirrlii
Mag(/s
magi
Stimulus
stimuli
CEsopliag«s
ocs-ipliagi
Tumul(/«
tumuli.
LATIN AND GREEK, ETC.
425
Sin<j.
Avcaiwin
ColljTi««t
'Datttm
Desidcrat«»j
EmporiwJH
Enconu»»i
Errat«?Ji
Gynmasiifm
LhdviMHt
Lustnwt
lar termination
-um is chancjcd in tlie
Plur.
Sin(j.
arcana
]\Iaiisolc!<»J
coWjxvi
Mcdi«Ht
clab<
MeiiKjrandHwt
desiderata
MeustruHV/i
effluvia
Moment^///
cmpori<<
Premi;o/t
encomi(t
Sclioliir»i
eiTato
Specti7/»i
gymnasut
Sjjeculrdw
lixivia
Stratent
lustrrt
Succedanei/»t
j}lural into -a: —
Plur.
mausolca
media
memoranda.
menstma
momenta
premia
scholia
sj)ectra
specula
sti'ata
succedanea.
{(1) — Where the singular termination -is is changed in the plural into -es : —
Sing.
Amamiensjs
Analysis
Antitheses
Axis
Basis
Crisis
Diseresis
Plur.
amanuonst's
analys<^9
antithes<?s
a^es
bast's
criseJS
diasrest's
Sing.
Ellipsis
Emphasis
Hj'pothesis
Oasis
Parenthesis
Sjmthesis
Thesis
Plur.
ellvpses
emphases
hj^^othesfs
oases
parentheses
sjTitheses
theses.
(3.)
Words wherein the plural is formed by inserting -e between
the last two sounds of the singular, so that the former number
always contains a syllable more than the latter : —
Sing.
Apex sounded
Appendix —
Calyx —
Cicatrix —
HeUx —
Index —
Radix —
Vertex —
Vortex —
In all these words the c of the singular number is sounded as
h, of the plural as s.
§ 378. The chief Greek substantives lately introduced, and
preserving the Greek plural forms, are —
(1.)
Words where the singular termination -on is changed in the
plural into -a : —
Plur.
apec-s
apices
appendic-s
appendices
caUc-s
calyces
cicatiic-s
cicatrices
heHc-s
helices
indec-s
indices
radic-s
radices
vertec-s
vertices
vortec-s
voiiices.
■t:^G
HISTORICAL ELEMENTS.
Sintj.
P!ur.
iSimj.
Plur.
ApholioH
apholi<r
CriterioH
criteria
Porihclio/t
porilielia
Ei)hcmero/»
ephemera
AiitomatoH
automatff
riiajnomenow
pluvuomcnw
(20
Words where the phiral is formed from the root by adding
either -es or -a, but where the singular rejects the Last letter of
the root.
Plurals in -es.
Oriijinrd root. Plur. Sivfj.
Apsid- apsicl<^s apsis
Cantharid- cantliaridcs cantharis
Clirysalid- cluysalides cluysalis
Ephemerid- ei:)liemerid6's ephemeris
Tripod- tripodcs tripos.
Plurals in -a.
Original root. Plur. Sing.
Dogmat- dogmata dogma
Lemmat- lemmata lemma
Miasmat- miasmata miasma.*
CHAPTER XXIV,
HISTOKICAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.
MISCELLANEOUS.
§ 379. Of miscellaneous elements we have two sorts; those that
are incorporated in our language, and are currently understood
(e. g. the Spanish word sherry, the Arabic word alkali, and the
Persian word turhaii), and those that, even amongst the educated,
are considered strangers. Of this latter kind (amongst many
others) are the Oriental words hutnmum, leaf tan, gul, &c.
Of the currently understood miscellaneous elements of the
English language, the most important are from the French ; some
of which preserve the original plural forms, as heau, beaux, bil-
let-doux.
Italian. — Some words of Italian origin do the same; as vir-
tuoso, virtuosi.
Hebreiv. — The two Hebrew words cherub and seraph do the
This list is taken from Smart's valuable and logical Englisli Grammar,
MISCELLANEOUS. 427
same; the form cherub-im, and seraph-im being not only plurals,
but Hebrew plurals.
Beyond the words derived from these languages none form
their plural other than after the English method, i. e. in -s — as
waltzes, from the German word waltz.
§ 380. The extent to which a language, like the English,
which, at one and the same time, requires names for many
objects, comes in contact with the tongues of half the world, and
has a great power of incorporating foreign elements, derives
fresh words from varied sources, may be seen from the following
incomplete notice of the languages, which have, in different de-
grees, supplied it with new terms. These are chiefly taken
from a paper of Mr. Craufurd's on the subject.
Arabic. — Admiral, alchemist, alchemy, alcohol, alcove, alem-
bic, algebra, alkali, assassin, &c.
Persian. — Turban, caravan, dervise, &c.
' Tiii'kish. — Coffee, bashatv, divan, scimitar, Janisary, &c.
Indian. — Calico, chintz, cowhage or cowitch, cowrie, curry,
lac, muslin, toddy, &c.
Chinese. — Tea, bohea, congou, hyson, soy, nanldn, &c.
Malay. — Bantam {fowl), gamboge, rattan, sago, slmddock,
&c.
Polynesian. — Taboo.
Siberian. — Mammoth ; the bones of which are chiefly from
the banks of the Lena. Originally Arabic — i. e. Behemoth.
North- American. — Squaiv, wigwam, peminican.
Peruvian. — Cha,rki-= prepared m,eat ; whence jerked beef.
Caribbean. — HaTYimock.
§ 381. A distinction is now drawn between the direct and
the in-direct, the latter leading to the ultimate, origin of words.
A word borrowed into the English from the French may have
been borrowed into the French from the Latin, into the Latin
from the Greek, into the Greek from the Persian, &c., and so on
ad infinitum.
The ultimate known origin of many common words some-
times goes back to a great date, and points to extinct languages.
§ 382, Again, a word from a given language may be intro-
duced by more lines than one ; or it may be introduced twice
over ; once at an earlier, and again at a later period. In such
a case its forms will, most probably, vary ; and, what is more,
its meaning as well. Syrup, sherbet, and shrid) are all originally
from the Arabic, srb ; but introduced differently, viz. the first
-i-28 HISTORICAL ELEMENTS.
thi-oii^a,'li the Latin, tlio second through the Persian, and the
third direct. Minster, introduced during the Anglo-Saxon, is
contnisted witli moniif<fcry, introduced during the Anglo-Norman
j)oriod. By the proper application of these processes, we
account for words so different in their present form, yet so iden-
tical in origin, as priest and presbyter, episcopal and hishop, &c.
§ 383. Words of foreign, simulating averiuwular, origin. —
Let a word be introduced from a foreign language ; let it have
some rcsemljlivnce in sound to a true native term ; lastly, let the
meanings of the two words be not absolutely incompatible.
We may then have a word of foreign origin taking the appear-
ance of an English one. Such, amongst others, are heef-eater,
from hoevffetier ; sparrow-grass = asparagus ; Shotover* =
Chateau^veH ; Jerusalem, -f- = Girasole ; Spanish beefeater =.
spina bifida : periivig =. peruke ; runagate ^renegade ; lute-
string =z lustrine ; I 0 yes = Oyez; ancient = ensign.§
Dog-cheap. — This has nothing to do with dogs. The first
syllable is god = good transposed, and the second the ch-p
in chapnuiM ( = merchant) cheap, and Eastcheap. In Sir J.
Mandeville, we find godkepe = good bargain.
Sky-larking. — Nothing to do with larks of any sort ; still
less the particular species alauda arvensis. The word impro-
perly spelt l-a-r-k, and banished to the slang regions of the
English language, is simply lac = gaone, or sjyoH ; wherein the
rt is sounded as in father (not an in farther). Lekzzgame, in the
present Scandinavian languages.
Zachary Macaiday ■=. Zunialacarregid ; Billy Ruffian r=.
Bellerophon ; Sir Roger Doivlass = Surajah Doivlah, although
so limited to the common soldiers and sailors who first used
them, as to be exploded vulgarisms rather than integi^al parts of
the language, are examples of the same tendency towards the
irregular accommodation of misunderstood foreign terms.
Birdholt. — An incorrect name for the gadus lota, or eel-pout,
and a transformation of barbote.
Whistle-fish. — The same for gadus mustela, or iveazelfish.
Liquorice = glycyrrhiza.
A full and curious list of these words, by Mr. Wedgwood, is
to be found in the Transactions of the Philological Society for
] 8.55 ; which gives, as additions to the preceding —
* As in Sholocer Ilill, iieai- Oxford. + As iu Jerusalem artichoke.
+ A sort of silk. g Ancient Cassio — Othello.
MISCELLANEOUS.
429
Belfry
Brickwall (in tennis)
Baggage (worthless woman)
Crairjish
Country-dance
Causeway
Charterhouse
Curtal-axe .
Dormouse
Dotthlet
Gilliflower .
Gracechurch Street
Own Benjamin
Own Dragon
Humble-bee
Lanyard
Miniature
Nancy Cousins Bay
Penthouse
St. Ubes
Tuberose
Waistcoat
heffroi, French,
bricoler, French,
baggasse, French,
ecrevisse, French,
contredanse, French,
chaussee, French,
chartreuse, French.
cortelazO: Italian,
dormeuse, French,
guibetta, Italian,
giroflee, French.
Gracious street,
benzoin.
tragacanth, Oreek.
bombilus, Latin,
laniere. French,
miniatura, * Latin.
Anse des Cousins, French,
apiuntier, French.
Setubal, Portuguese,
tubereuse, French,
veste, French.
In order for a word to be thus disguised, it is not necessary
that it should be foreign to the German class of languages, or
even to the English division. Thus — BridgeivateT =. Burgh
Walter; breech =: flog = hritschen or pritschem German, and has
nothing to do with breeches ; court-cards =z coat-cards ; decoy =
duch + cooy (the Dutch being entekooi =z duck cage), and has
nothing to do with coy=. allure ; righteous-=.rightivise ; shame-
faced zz shamfast ; uproar = aufruhr in Gei'man, from ruhren zz
stir, and has nothing to do with roar from the Latin rugio :
posture-maker ^boetsenmaker, Dutch, from boetsen-=:possen
(G&nn&Vi) =.tricks. The old form of livelihood is lifelode ; of
fieldfare, fealo-far, where fealow = tawny, and has nothing to do
with fields. Gooseberry zzkruisebeer (Dutch), and has nothing
to do with geese. The older and more correct name for Poland was
Polayn ; the German being Pohlen. The origin of the word is
Polyane ziplains ; the -d being entirelj'- catachrestic. Worm-
wood =iwere-muth ; and has nothing to do with either worms
or wood.
§ 384. Sometimes the transformation of the name has en-
gendered a change in the object to which it applies, or, at least,
has evolved new ideas in connection with it. How easy for a
* From minimum = vermillion. Nothing to do with minuo= diminish.
430 HISTORICAL ELEMENTS. — MISCELLANEOUS.
person who used tlie words beef-eater, sjMrroiv-grass, or Jeru-
fiulem artichoke, to believe tliat the officers designated by the
former either ate, or used to eat, more beef tlian other people ;
that the second word was the name for a (jrass or herb of which
spai'ivu's were fond ; and that Jerusalem artichokes came from
Palestine. To account for the name Shotover Hill, I have
heard that Little Jolni shot over it. Of Leighton Buzzards:
Leif/hton Beaudesert, Mr. Wedgewood tells us that the eagle which
serves as a lectern in the parish church is believed to be the
buzzard that gave the name to the town. In these, and similar
cases, the confusion, in order to set itself right, breeds a fiction.
Sometimes, when the form of a word in respect to its sound
is not affected, a false spiiit of accommodation introduces an un-
etymological spelling ; as frontisiylece fi'om frontispecium, sove-
-/■eigH from sovrano, colleague from collega, lanthorn (old ortho-
graphy) from lanterna.
The value of forms like these consists in their showing that
language is affijcted by false etymologies as well as by true ones.
CHAPTER XXV.
HYBRIDISM, ETC. I^n^COMPLETION OF THE RADICAL.
§385. In lambkin and lancet, the final syllables {-kin and
-et) have much the same power. They both express the idea of
smalhiess or diminutiveness. These words are but two out of a
multitude, the one (lamb) being of English, the other (lance) of
Norman origin. The same is the case with the superadded syl-
lables : kin being English, -et Norman. Now, to add an English
termination to a Norman word, or vice versa, is to corrupt the
language ; as may be seen by saying either lance-kin, or larab-
et. This leads to some observations respecting the Hybridism,
a term derived from hyhrid-a ■=. a mongrel, a Latin word of
Gh^eek extraction.
The terminations -ize (as in criticize), -ism (as in criticism),
-ic (as in comic) — these, amongst many others, are Greek. To
add them to words not of Greek origin is to be guilty of hy-
bridism. Hence, witticism is objectionable.
The terminations -ble (as in penetrable), -biliti/ (as in penetra-
bil'dy), a.l (as in parental) — these, amongst many others, are
HYBRIDISM. 431
Latin terminations. To add them to words not of Latin origin
is to be guilty of hybridism.
Hybridism is the commonest fault that accompanies the intro-
duction of new words, the hybrid additions to the English lan-
guage being most numerous in works on science.
It must not, however, be concealed that several well-esta-
blished words are hybrid ; and that even in the writings of the
classical Roman authors, there is hybridism between the Latin
and the Greek.
Nevertheless, the strict etymological view of every word of
foreign origin is, not that it is put together in England, but that
it is brought whole from the language to which it is vernacular.
Now, no derived word can be brought whole from a language,
unless, in that language, all its parts exist. The word 'penetra-
hility is not derived from the English word penetrable, by the
addition of -ty. It is the Latin word penetrahilitas imported.
Hence, in derived words cdl the parts must belong to one and
the same language, or, changing the expression, every derived
word must have a possible form in the king uage from which it
is taken.
§ 386. A true word sometimes takes the appearance of a
hybrid without really being so. The -icle, in icicle, is appa-
rently the same as the -icle in radicle ; and as -ice is German
and -icle classical, hybridism is simulated. Icicle, however, is
not a derivative, but a compound ; its parts being is and gicel,
both English words.
" Be she constant, be she fickle,
Be she flame, or be she ?c/i7e;."— Sir C. Sedley.
§ 387. On incornpJetion of the Radical. — Let there be in
•a given language a series of roots ending in -t, as semcd-. Let
a euphonic influence eject the -t, as often as the word occurs in
the nominative case. Let the nominative case be considered to
represent the root, or radical, of the v/ord. Let a derivative
word be formed accordingly, i. e. on the notion that the nomina-
tive form and the radical form coincide. Such a derivative
will exhibit only a part of the root ; in other words, the radical
wiU be incomplete. Now, all this is what actually takes place
in words like haimo-ptysis {spitting of blood) sema-phore {a sort
of telegraph). The Greek imparisyllabics eject a part of the
root in the nominative case; the radical forms being hcemat- and
semat-, not hoim- and sem-. Incompletion of the radical is
432 INCOMPLETION OF RADICAL.
one of the commonest causes of words being coined faultily. It
nuist not, however, be concealed, that even in the classical
writers, we have, in words like Siaro/juos and a few otliers, ex-
amples of ineompletion of the radical.
§ 388. The preceding chapters have paved the way for a
distinction between the hlsturlcul analysis of a language and
the logical analysis of one. Let the present language of Eng-
land (for the illustration's sake oulj') consist of 40,000 words.
Of these, let 30,000 be Anglo-Saxon, 5000 Anglo-Norman,
100 Keltic, ]0 Latin of the first, 20 Latin of the second, and
30 Latin of the third period, 50 Scandinavian, and the rest
miscelJaneous. In this case the language is considered according
to the origin of the words tliat compose it, and the analysis is
an historical analysis. But it is very evident that the Englisli,
or any other language, is capable of being contemplated in
another view, and that the same number of words ma}' be very
differently classified. Instead of arranging them according to the
languages whence they are dei'ived, let them be disposed accord-
ing to the meanings that the}'' convey. Let it be said, for iiistance,
that out of 40,000 words 10,000 are the names of natural
objects, that 1000 denote abstract ideas, that 1000 relate to
warfare, 1000 to chmch matters, 500 to points of chivalry,
1000 to agriculture, and so on throughout. In this case, the
analysis is not historical but logical ; the words being classed,
not according to their origin, but according to their meaning.
CHAPTER XXVI.
ON THE RELATIONS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE TO CERTAIN OTHER
LANGUAGES AS THE MEMBERS OF A CLASS OF ORDINAL VALUE.
§ 889. All that has been written about the affinities of the
English to the languages of Germany, Switzerland, liolland, and
Scandinavia, are merely notices of the English language as the
member of a genus. In writing this we use the languages of
the naturalists ; but, without committing ourselves to the doctrine
tliat the phraseology of zoology and botany, on the one side,
and ethnology, or pliilology, on the other, exactly coincide.
ENGLISH AS THE MEMBER OF AN ORDER. 483
Genus, here, merely means a definite division of some larger
group. This larger group we may call an Order.
Now the order to which the English language included in the
genus named German, and the order to which the German, in-
cluding the English, belongs, contains three other groups : —
1 . The Sarmatian ; falling into two divisions.
a. The Lithuanic, of which the Lett of Curland and Livonia,
the Lithuanic proper of Lithuania, and the Old Prussian, now
extinct, of the parts between the Vistula and the Niemen, are
subdivisions ; and
b. The Slavonic, of which the Polish, the Bohemian, the
Lusatian, the Slovak, the Servian and its congeners, the Russian
and its congeners, and the Bulgarian, are subdivisions.
2. The Sanskrit ; or, ancient language of India ; and
3. The Latin and Greek ; the two being dealt with as mem-
bers of the same group.
That all these languages, with their immediate congeners,
whether collateral or derivative, are members of the same order
with the German, no one doubts. Whether the Sanskrit may
not be merged into the Sarmatian is another question ; whilst,
in the mean time, many would separate the Lithuanic from the
Sarmatian.
The main fact, however, is the affinity ; and next to this its
or dined value.
§ 390. How a language belonging to one of these subordinate
groups may agree with one belonging to another is seen in the
following rough comparison between the English on the one side,
and the Latin and Greek on the other. ^
1.
Words.
ENGLISH. LATIN. GREEK.
ligh-t luc-s (lux)
nigh-t noc-s (nox) vv^
snow nic-s (nix)^= vi4ms
horn corn-u Ke'p-as
(■fjfj ovum oi-ov
hide cut-is — -
day tli-es '—
worm verm-is
fitsh pisc-is
• The probable Latin root is sniv- ; the -s being lost, and tlie v being tlic c of
niv-is.
F F
434
ENGLISH
t:x(i(.isii.
Innihn
fuJk
rwc
rut
iihclp
hiniiul
flea
kid
ore
fither
mother
brother
head *
hrow
eiie\
ear
nose
lip .
mouth
tooth
tongue
knee
heel
red
yellotv
cold
full
long
short
thin
young
Jloiv
blow
drag
break
brook
bear
eat
dare
will
stand
wit I
a-m
h-e
LATIN.
calam-us
viUp-us
ov-is
cnt-ul-us
viili)-es
can -is
pulcc-s (piilex)
lircd-us
a>s (fer-is)
pater
mater
frator
caput
fr-ons
oc-ulus
am'-is
nas-iis
lab-iiun
mont-um
dons
lingna (dingna)
genu
cal-x
nit-ilus
gilv-ns
gelid -us
pl-enus
longus
CTU't-US
ten-uis
juvenis
fluo
flo
trah-o
frang-o (£reg-i)
fru-or (fnic-tus)
fer-o
ed-o
vol-o
sto
vid-eo
su-m
fu-i
flIlKKK.
TraTTjp
fxi-jTTvp
o-(ppv s
yOP-V
f-pvo-poi
nXe-'
(j)ep-(j>
6ap-<T€(i)
^ovX-oficu
i-arrjpi
(i-pi
* In Gei-man haupt. + In German avge ; Anglo-Saxon, eciye.
X Meaning knovj, as in / wist not — Middlesex to wit.
AS THE MEMBER OP AN ORDER. 435
2.
Inflections.
The -s in the English genitive singular {father s) is the -s
in patr-is, lapid-is, he, which is the -s in a-wixar os, rlrav-o^,
&c.
2. The -s in the English nominative plural {fathers) is the
-s in lapid-es, nrav-es.
3. The -er in the English Comparative degree {wiser) is pro-
bably, the -er in words like inf-er-us, sup-er-us.
4. The -st in the English Superlative {wis-est) is the -lar in
words like o'Ikt-ktt 09.
5. The -■m in for-m-er is the -m in pri-ni-us.
6. The -^ in tha-t and wha-t is the -c? in -i-c?, and the -t in
0-T-t.
7. The -th in words like four-th, fif-th is the -i( in quar-t-us,
and quin-t-us, reTap-ros, ire/jiir-r-os.
8. The -m in a-m is the -rrt in sum, and el-fx-L
9. The -s in call-es-t is the -s in am-as, and Ti/Trr-ety. The
-i is of a late origin. It was unknown in the Moeso-Gothic, and
in the Old Saxon, where the termination is simply -s.
1 0 . The -th in speaketh is the -t in am-at.
1 1 . The -ing in spealdng is the -nd of the Latin Gerunds,
ama-nd-l, aina-nd-o, anm-nd-urii. The older form of the
English participle was -nd. In Anglo-Saxon lu-fi-and was the
participle. This termination has since been softened down into
-ing.
12. The first d in did is believed on good grounds to be as
true a reduplication as the r in re-rvcpa, and the m in mo-
riiordi.
] 3. The -d in the participle moved is probably the -t in voc-
at-us, and the -^ in rvcp-O-eis.
Now all this gives us the following fact, viz. : that every one
of the ordinary English inflections, as we find them in the
ordinary grammars^ are not only German, as they are shown
to be in the body of the present work, but Latin and Greek as
well.
§ 391. To the order under notice many excellent authorities
(indeed, the great majority of them) add the Keltic. It is,
however, the decided opinion of the present wiiter that this can
only be done by raising the value of the class.
F F 2
4.36 ENGLISH AS THE MEMBER OF AN ORDER.
CHAPTER XXVII.
THE ENOLISII LANOITAGE AS CONSIDERED IN RESPECT TO THE
STACiE OF ITS DEVELOPMENT.
§ 392. In the comparisons between the English and Anglo-
Saxon it is stated that in many cases, where the speakers of the
older language used inflections, the speakers of the newer lan-
guage use prepositions and auxiliary verbs. If the present
work were one on comparative philology, it would have been
added that inflections arose out of separate words incorporated
with the main one. This gives three stages ; the English being
in the third.
Of the languages in the third stage the English is what we
call a/orivard, or advanced, one. Without going further into
details, I will give, as an instance of the extent to which combi-
nations originally concrete have become abstract, the words /
have been. Where is the idea of possession here ? Where the con-
crete import of have ? If / have been mean anything, it means
I j^ossess myself «« a thing ivhich has had a being. Yet, it
scarcely means this. I have written a letter, however, really
meant, / possess a letter as a thing ivritten.
The full details of this may be found in the Syntax. All
that need now be said is, that the concrete meaning of even
the expression last quoted has gone, whilst in the one first
quoted it is scarcely conceivable. In this we have a measure
of the extent to which our language has advanced in the way of,
what we may call, abstraction. The French is, there or there-
abouts, in the same stage. The French say, j'ai ete ; the
Italians, however, say sono stato, and the Germans bin gewesen,
both = am been.
§ 393. The present tendencies of the English may be deter-
mined by observation ; and as most of them will be noticed in
the Etymological part of this volume, the few here indicated
must be looked upon as illustrations only.
1. The distinction between the Subjunctive and Indicative
Mood is likely to pass away. We verify this by the very
general tendency to say if it is, and if he speaks, for if it be,
and if he speak.
2. The distinction (as far as it goes) between the Participle
Passive and the Past Tense is likely to pass away. We verify
ENGLISH — ITS STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT. 437
this by the tendency to say it is broke, and he is smote, for it
is broken, and he is smitten.
3. Of tlie double forms, sung and sang, drank and drunk,
&LC., one only will be the permanent.
As stated above, these tendencies are a few out of a number,
and have been adduced in order to indicate the subject rather
than to exhaust it.
438
SOUNDS AND LETTERS.
PAIIT 111.
PHONE SIS.
CHAPTER I.
ELEMENTARY SOUNDS OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. LETTERS.
ALPHABET. PECULIARITIES OF THE ENGLISH SOUND-SYSTEM.
§ 394. The elementary sounds of the English language are
forty ; of these, thirty-four are simple and six compound.
SIMPLE.
Vowels (12).
1.
The soimd of the letter a ia father.
2.
a in fate.
3.
a in fat.
4.
e in bed.
5.
letters ee in feet.
C.
letter i in tin.
7.
letter-s oo in cool.
8.
letter u in full.
9.
letters aiv in bawl.
10.
letter o ia note.
11.
0 in nut.
12.
u in hut.
Semi-VoiceJii (2j.
13.
tf in tvell.
14.
The
sound of tlie lettei' y in yet.
Mutes ( 14 ) .
15.
2> in pain.
16.
h in hatie.
17.
f in fane.
18.
V in vain.
19.
t in tin.
20.
d in din.
21.
letters th in tkin.
22.
th in thine.
23.
letter /» in kill.
24.
fj in gun.
25.
.1 in seal.
SOUNDS AND LETTERS.
430
26.
letter z in zeal.
27.
letters sh iu shine.
28.
letter s in azure.
Nasal (1).
29.
letters ng in A7'/?<7.
Breatldng (1).
30.
letter h iu /lo^
Liquids (4).
31.
32.
33.
34.
Z in low.
m in //iow.
H in no.
r in rott'.
Compound.
Dijilitlwngs (4).
35.
The soimcl of the letters ou in house.
3(i.
ew in new.
37.
letter i ui pine.
38.
letters oi in voice.
Compound\ a, n
Sibilants) ^^'^
39.
ch hi chest {or oi tsh).
40.
j in jest (or of tfe/t).
The English letters were originally reckoned at twenty-four,
beccause, anciently, i and j, as well as u and v, were expressed by
the same character.
§ 395. Remarks on the English Phonesis and Spelling. — (1,
2, 3.) The (X in father, so common iu French, Italian, Spanish,
German, and most other languages, is comparatively rare in
English — rare, at least, as a proper power of a. Hence, the
ordinary power of this letter, i. e. the sound of the a in fate,
is an English peculiarity. In nine languages out of ten, its
sound is that of the a in father. Neither is the true sound of
the a in fat very common out of England, The ordinary con-
tinental vowel is that of the a in father, pronounced short —
not the a in fate so pronounced.
(4.) The sound which is to the e in bed as the ain farther is to
the a in fat and fate, and the avj in baivl to the o in note and not,
is not found in English as a proper power of e. Like the « in
father, however, it is found as an improper power of something
else.
(5, 6.) The spelling here disguises the real affinities. The ee
in feet is to the i in tin, as the a in fat is to the a in fate, and
the 0 in note to the o in oiot.
Between the ee in feet and the a in faie, the Italian, and many
other languages, have an intermediate sound — the e ferine of the
French.
(7, 8.) The real affinity is again disguised here — the ii in fall
being to the oo in cool as the i in tin to the ee in feet.
4 1-0 SOUNDS AND LETTERS.
Letweeu the ce iu feet and the oo in cool, the Italian, and
many other hinguages, have an intermediate sound.
(y, 10, n.) Tlie spelling again disguises the affinity : the aiv
in 6«u'Z being to the o in note and not, as the am father to the a
in fat or fate.
Between the oo in cool and the o in ^lofe, the Italian, and many
utiiei- languages, have an intermediate sound.
(1 2.) The u in but is somewhat rare beyond the pale of the
English Language. It is commonest in the languages of India.
It is a sound into which certain short vowels, when unaccented,
have a tendency to pass.
(13.) The true w, with its proper semi-vowel sound, is far
from common. Foreigners often sound it as v.
(1 5, 1 6, 17, 1 y.) The quaternion* here is complete — 'p> ^'y f> '^■
(19, 20, 21, 22.) So it is here ; though imperfectly expressed
in spelling — t, d, th, dh). The last two are somewhat scarce
sounds out of England.
(23, 24.) The quaternion here is incomplete, the sounds which
stand to h and g as / and v stand to j:) and h being wanting.
(25, 26, 27, 28.) Quaternion complete.
(29.) Ng. This is the only true nasal we have. It is a
voivel sounded through the nose.
(34.) R at the beginning of a syllable is sounded over the
whole area of the English Language ; and that distinctly — ran,
right, &c.
So it is when medial, or divided between two syllables, so as
to be initial as well as final.
At the end, however, of a syllable, this distinctness and uni-
versality of the sound of r is by no means the case.
There is a large percentage of educated speakers who make
no difference between the sound of the a in father, and the a in
farther ; who, if you tell them to pronounce such a word as cago
after the manner of a Frenchman or an Italian, will utter it
just as they do their own English word cargo ; or (rather) they
pi'onounce their own English word cargo just as they would
cago of French or Italian.
The rule then stands thus — that when a vowel is followed by
r, the r is often dropped altogether, and the vowel made o'pen.
* The sounds of h and v are sonant; i. e. they are sounded at the full ijitcli of the
voice. Those of p and/ are surd, i. e. sounded with the voice in a whisper. li is the
lene of r, and / the kne of ^;. This system gives a qaatcruion. When a language has
four sounds in this relation, the quaternion is comijlete.
SOUNDS AND LETTERS. 441
In the same position, i. e. before r, the sounds of the i in fin,
the u in but, and u in full, all become that of the first e in fer-
ment. Thus, Walker writes that "fir, a tree, is perfectly similar
to the first syllable of ferment. Sir and stir are exactly pro-
nounced as if written sur and stur,"
At the present moment the word near ends in r — to the eye
if not to the ear also. It is also an adjective in the positive
degree. Originally, however, it was only the comparative which
ended in -r ; the positive being neah (i. e, nigh). So that the
r is one of two things — either non-existent in the spoken lan-
guage, being a mere matter of spelling, or (if pronounced) non-
radical.
Sometimes this slurring of the r goes to a still greater length ;
and words wherein it is both final and initiat at once, are pro-
nounced as if it were non-existent. When a speaker pronounces
correct as caw-ect he gives us an instance of this mispronuncia-
tion. Again — in claret the e is often elided ; so that the word
becomes dart. Carry (as many do) the change further still ;
sink the r and open the a, and you get claht — the a as in
father, and the r nowhere.
(35.) The proper elements of the ou in house are not o + u
but a -f w. The German orthography gives this the nearest
where haus =. house.
(36.) The proper elements of the ew in netv are not e + tu
but i + w.
(37.) The proper elements of the i in pme are the a in
fatlier, pronounced very short, + y.
(38.) The proper form of expression for the oi in voice is not
o -\-i but o + y.
(39, 40.) The two compound sibilants .may serve as text to a
comment on one of the most important of our unstable com-
binations.
§ 396. Wherever the sound of either y or ee is preceded by
either s or z, by k or g, or by t or d, the combination is un-
stable; indeed, as a general rule, the sound of ee, when followed
by a vowel and preceded by any consonant whatever (with the
exception of r), has a tendency to change. The details of these
changes claim attention.
With r (as has just been stated) the vowel undergoes no
change at all ; and words like vitreous are [)ronounced as tri-
syllables— vit-reous ; since such a combination as vitryous
4-1.2 SOUNDS AND LETTERS.
"would be unpronounceable; but raUl'ion, i^hilon, &c., become
oniUi/o)!, 2)i)ii/o)i, &c.
With s its effects are more remarkable. A combination
"svliicli was originally sia becomes si/n. The change, however,
does not stop here. The sound of the combination si/ almost
always altei-s to that of sh, so that sija becomes ska ; syee, shee ;
fi/i, sliy ; si/o, sho ; and syu, shu.
With t, preceding, the change goes further still. The vowel
becomes a semi-vowel, so that tia, tie, tio, tlu, &c., become tija,
tye, tyo, tyu, &;c. Then the sound of the combination ty, be-
comes that of tsk. Hence tya becomes tsha ; tye, tshee ; tya,
tslii ; tyo, tsho ; tyu, tshu.
This tendency of i to become y and of y to change the
sound of certain consonants when they precede it, is the key to
a series of apparent anomalies in the English spelling ; and we
may now see tlie principle in the pronunciation of certain words
ending in -ous.
In words like anxious, the change was, first, from an-si-ous to
ang-syous, and then from ang-syous to ang-shous.
In words like precious, the change was the same ; since the c
had the sound of s, and, consequently, was similarly affected —
pres-i-ous, pres-yous, iDreshous.
In words like station the same ; since the sound of t was
the sound of s, &c. — stas-i-on, sta-syon, sta-shon.
In words like rigJdeous we find the same ; the series of
changes being right-e-ous, right-yous, righ-tslious.
Furthermore— the sound of the ew in new (or of the ue in
sue) is connected with that of the imaccented i ; since, by a
series of changes, it often has the same effect upon a preceding
consonant. It often becomes yoo ; so that words like new and
sue may be sounded as nyoo, and syoo. In this case the sound
of y is developed, and this, when preceded by s, z, t, or d, has
the same effects as a 2/ produced by any other process ; i. e. it
changes them into sh, zh, tsli, and dzh. This explains why
sit^ar is sounded shugar; nature, na-tslier ; verdure, ver-dzhur,
&c. ; the u having changed in sound, from eiv to yoo (iiateiur,
na-tyoor, tia-tshoor, na-tsher.
Such is a sketch of one of the processes by which the pro-
nunciation of the English Language has changed, still changes,
and will continue to change. When we hea)' of the jeiu (dzhew)
instead of tlie detv falling, we niay possibly hear a vulgar form
SOUNDS AND LETTERS. 443
of utterance. Nevertheless, it is a vulgarity which lies in the
very innermost parts of the mechanism of our language — of
our language and of innumerable others besides.
§ 3.97. The chief points wherein the English sound-system
differs from that of the more important modern languages, are
worth noting ; a knowledge of them being useful in the study
of foreign tongues.
The scarcity of proper open sounds contrasts the vowel part
of the English sound-system with that of the Italian, French,
and other languages. It is well known how common the
sounds of both the a in father and the aw in bawl are there. In
the French the e final is mute ; so thot the extent to which the
open sound of the e in bed is wanting in English is not very
manifest in the study of that language. Neither is it in Italian,
where no words end in -er. In German, however, and the
Norse tongues, it requires some attention to discern the diffe-
rence of sound between a final -e (as in meinc), and a final -er
(as in meiner).
The absence of the e and 6 ferme of the French and Italian,
and other tongues, is another point to be remembered in the
study of fi'esh languages. Thus the o in the Danish Kone
runs great chance of being sounded by an Englishman as the oo
in cool.
The u of the Germans (y Danish and u French) is a wholly
new sound to the Englishman.
So is the 0 Danish and German, and the eii French.
As these two sounds are both absent in Italian, Spanish, and
Portuguese, the vowel-system of these languages is pro tanto
more English than the French and German, &c. On the other
hand, the u in but gives foreigners trouble, being (as has been
already stated) rare in the European tongues, though common in
the Asiatic.
In the simplicity of its nasal system (i. e. the sounds like the
ng in king) the English agrees with the German, and is specially
contrasted with the French and Portuguese.
W is English rather than continental. The best way for
foreigners to learn it is to place an u- (oo in cool) before some
syllable beginning with a vowel, and pronounce it as quickly as
possible ; e. g. on, u-on (oo-on) ; et, u-et (oo-et), &c. In this
way the sound of w is soon obtained.
§ 398. The mute-system in English is one of the fullest in
the world. Out of the fou)- quaternions three are full and per-
■Ut SOUNDS AND LETTERS.
feet ; so that fourtoen out of the sixteen mutes belong to our
language. The two that are wauthig, the so-called aspirates of
k and g, are the scarcest. Next to these come ^ and p, which
we have.
But though full, the English mute-system is simple. Each
sound has its normal and typical form ; so that the varieties
which go by the names of guttural, cerebral, &c., are- wanting.
Hence the ch German and many similar sounds are strange to
us.
The nasal ng is never initial. We say song, but not ngos.
This limitation of the nasal to the final parts of syllables is
common. The Germans, Italians, &c., avoid an initial 7ig as
much as does the Englishman. In the Keltic, however, it
occurs, as it also does in many Asiatic languages.
§ 899. Though the English sibilants are coynpound, they are
never comjplex. Thus, we say sha or slio. We also say tsha or tsho.
But we never combine the two ; never use the complex sound
tiJdsJut or shtsho ; never say zhdzha or zhdzho. Neither do the
Italians, whose sibilant system is very like our own. The Sla-
vonic population, on the other hand, do ; and make no difficulty
of such sounds as sJdshe, or sJdshetsh. This practice of using
theu' compound sibilants in complex combinations, makes the
Slavonic sound-system look much more unlike the English than
it really is.
CHAPTER II.
ON ACCENT.
§ 400. Words accented on the last syllable — Brigade, pre-
tence, harnoon, relieve, deter, assume, besought, bereft, before,
abroad, abode, abstruse, interrniix, superadd, cavalier.
Words accented on the last syllable but one — An'chor, ar'gue,
hasten, father, foxes, smiting, husband, mdrhet, vapour, bare-
foot, archangel, bespatter, disable, terrific.
Words accented on the last syllable but two — Reg'ular, anti-
dote, for'tify, suscep tible, incontrovertihle.
Words accented on the last syllable but three (rare) — Re-
ceptacle, regulating, talkativeness, absolutely, luminary, inevi-
table, &c.
ACCENT. 445
§ 401. In each part of the following sentences the same word
occurs twice ; but with a difference in the pronunciation. The
first time that each word occurs, the accent is on the first sylla-
ble ; the second time it occurs it is on the last. Furthermore,
the word that is accented on the first syllable is a noun ; the
word that is accented on the second is a verb.
1. Tlic exports from London are very great ; tlie tmpofts to London are very-
great also. 2. America exports corn and imports cloth.
1. Honey is an extract from flowers. 2. You cannot extract honey from all
flowers.
1. I liSiYQ frequent opportunities of visiting home. 2. I frequent the play-
groimd.
1. This is the object. 2. I hope you do not not object.
1. Perfumes are agi'ceable. 2. The Hower 2ierfu)nes the air, &c.
These accents mav be called distinctive.
CHAPTER III.
ORTHOEPY.
§ 402. Ortlibepy and Orthography. — Orthography teaches
us to represent the words of the spoken language by means
of letters ; i. e. by writing or printing. If we first pronounce
a word (e. g. man, or child), then spell it and write it down,
and, lastly, inquire whether the spelling be correct, we ask a
question belonging to the province of orthography. But there
are a vast number of words of which the pronunciation is
doubtful, being sounded diflferently by different persons. For
instance, the word neither is pronounced in three ways : neither,
nayther, and neether. To ascertain the proper pi'onunciation
of words is the province of Ovthoejiy. It teaches us to sjicak
the words of our language accurately. If we first pronounce
a word, and then ask whether we have pronounced it properly,
we ask a question belonging to the province of orthoepy.
Orthoepy deals with words as they are pronounced, or with
language as it is sounded ; orthography with words as they
are spelt, or with language as it is written. The latter pre-
supposes the former. Orthography is less essential to language
than orthoepy, since all languages are spoken, whilst but a few
languages are written. Orthography addresses itself to the eye,
■i4.() ORTHOEPY.
ortlioejw to the ear. Orthoepy deals with the articulate sounds
that constitute syllables and words ; orthography treats of the
signs by which such articulate sounds are expressed in writing.
§ 408. Of pronunciation there are two kinds, the conversa-
tional (or ordinary) and the rhetorical. In common conversation
we pronounce the i in wind, like the i in hit ; in rehearsing, or
in declamation, however, we pronounce it like the i in bite ;
that is, we give it a diphthongal sound. In reading the Scrip-
tures we say blessed ; in current speech we say blest. It is the
same with many words occurring in poetry.
§ 404. Errors in pronunciation are referrible to several heads.
The man who pronounces the verb to survey, as if it was swvey
(that is, with the accent on the wrong syllable), errs in respect
to the accentuation of the word. To say orator instead of oi'ator
is to err in respect to the quantity of the word. To pronounce
the a \n father, as it is pronounced in Yorkshire, or the s in
sound, as it is pronounced in Devonshire (that is, as z), is to err
in the matter of articulation, or the articulate sounds. To mis-
pronounce a word because it is misspelt (to say, for instance,
chemist for chymist, or vice versa, for I give no opinion as to
the proper mode of spelling), is only indirectly an error of
orthoepy. It is an error, not so much of orthoepy as of ortho-
graphy. To give a wrong mflection to a word is not bad pro-
nunciation, but bad grammar. For practical purposes, however,
many w^ords that are really points of grammar and of ortho-
graphy may be dealt with as points of orthoepy.
Errors in the way of articulation generally arise from a source
different from those of accent and of quantity. Errors in
accent and quantity are generally referrible to insufficient gram-
matical or etymological knowledge, whilst the errors of articu-
lation betray a provincial dialect.
§ 40.5. The misdivision of syllables has, in the English, and
in other languages, given rise to a peculiar class of words.
There have been those who have written a narabassador for
an ambassador, misdividing the syllables, and misdistributing
the sound of the letter n. The double form (« and an) of the
English indefinite article, encourages this misdivision. Now, in
certain words an error of this kind has had a permanent in-
fluence. The English word nag is, in Danish or/ ; the n, in
English, Imving originally belonged to the indefinite an, which
preceded it. The words, instead of being divided thus, a??
ag, were divided thus a nag, and the fiiult became perpetuated.
ORTHOEPY. 447
That the Danish is the true form we collect, firstly, from the
ease with which the English form is accounted for, and,
secondly, from the Old-Saxon form ehu, Latin equus. In
adder we have the process reversed. The true form is nadder,
Old English ; natter, German. Here the n is taken from the
substantive and added to the article. In newt and eft we have
each form. The list of words of this sort can be increased.
§ 406. A person who says sick for tJiick, or elebhen for
eleven, does so, not because he knows no better, but because
he cannot enounce the right sounds of th and v. He is incom-
petent to it. His error is not one of ignorance. It is an
acoustic or a phonetic defect. Incompetent enunciation differs
from —
§ 407. Erroneous enunciation, which is the error of a
person who talks of jocholate instead of cJiocolate. It is not
that he cannot pronounce rightly, but that he mistakes the
nature of the sound required. Still more the person who calls
a hedge an edge, and an edge a hedge.
Incompetent enunciation and erroneous enunciation are, how-
ever, only the pi'oximate and immediate causes of bad orthoepy.
Amongst the remote causes are the following.
§ 408. a. Undefined notions as to the language to which
a word belongs. — The flower called anemone is variously pro-
nounced. Those who know Greek say anemone, speaking as if
the word was written anemohuy. The mass say anemone,
speaking as if the word was written anemmony. Now, the
doubt here is as to the language of the word. If it be Greek,
it is anemone. And if it be English, it is (on the score of
analogy) as undoubtedly anemmony. The pronunciation of the
word in point is determined when we have determined the lan-
guage of it.
b. Mistakes as to fact, the language of a ivord being de-
termined.—*-To know the word anemone to be Greek, and to
use it as a Greek word, but to call it anemony, is not to be
undecided as to a matter of language, but to be ignorant as to
a matter of quantity.
c. Neglect of analogy. — Each and all the following words,
orator, theatre, senator, &c., are, in the Latin language, from
whence they are derived, accented on the second syllable ; as
orator, theatre, senator. In English, on the contrary, they are
accented on the first ; as orator, theatre, se'nator. The same is
the case with many other words similarly derived. They simi-
448 ORTHOEPY.
larly suffer a change of accent. So many words do this, that
it is the rule in English for words to throw their accent from the
second syllable (counting from the end of the word) to the third.
It was on the strength of this rule, — in other words, on the
analogies of oraior, &c., that the English pronunciation of the
Greek word dvefxcovi] was stated to be aiieinmone. Now, to
take a word derived from the Latin, and to look to its original
quantity only, without consulting the analogies of other words
similarly derived, is to be neglectful of the analogies of our own
language, and only attentive to the quantities of a foreign one.
These, amongst others, the immediate causes of erroneous
enunciation, liave been adduced not for the sake of exhausting,
but for the sake of illustrating the subject.
§ 409. In matters of orthoepy it is the usual custom to appeal
to one of the following standards.
a. The authority of scholars. — This is of value up to a certain
point only. The fittest person for determining the classical
pronunciation of a word like anemone is the classical scholar ;
but the mere classical scholar is far from being the fittest person
to determine the analogies that such a word follows in English.
h. Tlie It sage of educated bodies, such as the bar, the pulpit,
the senate, &c.— These are recommended by two circumstances :
1. The chances are that each member of them is sufficiently a
scholar in foreign tongues to determine the original pronuncia-
tion of derived words, and sufficiently a critic in his own lan-
guage to be aware of the analogies that are in operation. 2.
The quantity of imitators that, irrespective of the worth of his
pronunciation, each individual can carry with him. On this
latter ground the stage is a sort of standard.
c. TJie authority of societies constituted with the express
purpose of taking cognizance of the language of the country. —
These, although recognized in Italy and other parts of the Con-
tinent, have only been proposed in Great Britain. Their
inefiicacy arises from the inutility of attempting to fix that
which, like language, is essentially fluctuating.
d. The authority of the vjritten language. — The value of this
may be collected from the chapter on orthography.
These, amongst others, the standards that have been appealed
to, are adduced not for the sake of exhausting the subject, but
to show the unsatisfactory nature of authority in matters of
speech.
For a person, on a ppint of pronunciation, to trust to his
\
ORTHOEPY. 449
own judgment, he must be capable, with every word that he
doubts about, of discussing three questions : —
a. The abstract or theoretical propriety of a certain pronun-
ciation.— To determine this he must have a sufficient knowledge
of foreign tongues and a sufficient knowledge of English ana-
logies. He must also have some test by which he can determine
to what language an equivocal word belongs. Of tests for this
purpose, one, amongst others, is the following : — Let it be asked
whether the word lens (in Optics) is English or Latin ; whether
it is to be considered as a naturalized word or a strange one.
The following fact will give an answer. There is of the word
lens a plural number, and this plural number is the English form
lenses, and not the Latin form lentes. The existence of an
English inflection proves that the word to which it belongs is
English, although its absence does not prove the contrary.
That the word anemone is English (and consequently pronounced
anemone) we know fi'ora the plural form, which is not anemonw,
but anemones.
h. The preference of one pronunciation over another on the
score of utility. — The word ascetic, for certain orthographical
reasons, notwithstanding its origin from the Greek word asheo,
is called assetic. For similar reasons there is a tendency to
call the word sceptic, septic. Theoretical propriety (and, be it
observed, the analogy of ascetic has not been overlooked) is in
favour of the word being sounded skeptic. The tendency of
language, however, is the other way. Now, the tendency of
language and the theoretical propriety being equal, there is
an advantage (a point of utility) in saying skeptic, which turns
the scale. By sounding the k we distinguish the word skeptic
from septic. By this the language gains a point in perspi-
cuity, so that we can talk of the anti-skeptic writings of
Bishop Warburton and of the anti-septic properties of char-
coal.
c. The tendencies of language. — The combination eiu is an
Unstable Combination ; that is, it has a tendency to become yoo,
and the y in yoo has a tendency to change a d preceding into
j ; in other words, we see the reason why, by many persons, deio
is pronounced jero.
It is generally an easier matter to say how a word will be
sounded a hundred years hence, than to determine its present
pronunciation. Theoretical propriety is in favour of dew, so
also is the view in the way of utility. Notwithstanding this,
a G
-toO ORTHOGRAPHY.
posterity will say jew, for the tendencies of language are para-
mount to all other influences.
§ 410. We may now judge of the relative value of the three
lines of criticism exhibited above. Other things being equal, the
language should have the advantage of the doubt, and the utility
of a given pronunciation should prevail over its theoretical
propriety. Where, however, the tendencies towards a given
form are overwhelming, we can only choose whether, in
doubtful words, we shall speak like our ancestors, or like our
posterit}'.
CHAPTER IV.
ORTHOGRAPHY. ORTHOGRAPHICAL EXPEDIENTS.
§411. A FULL and perfect system of ovtliogTaphy consists in
two things: — 1. The possession of a sufficient and consistent
alphabet. 2. The right application of such an alphabet.
The English Alphabet fails in each of these points, being
(1.) Insufficient; (2.) Erroneous; (3.) Redundant, and (4.)
Unsteady.
Insufficiency. — «. Voivels. — Notwithstanding the fact that
the sounds of a in father, fate, and fo.t, and the o and the
aw, in note, oiot, and bawl are modifications of a and o re-
spectively, we have still six vowels specifically distinct, for which
we have but five signs. The u in duck, specifically distinct
from the u in hull, has no specifically distinct sign to represent
it.
b. Consonants. — The th in thin, th in thine, sh in shine,
the z in azure, the ng in Jd')ig, require corresponding signs —
single and simple — which they have not.
Inconsistency. — The / in fan, and the v in van, sounds
in a certain degree of relationship to p and b, are expressed
by signs as unlike as / is unlike j>, and as v is unlike b. The
sound of the th in thin, the th in thine, the sh in shine, similarly
related to t, d, and s, are expressed by signs as like t, d, and s,
respectively, as th and sh.
The compound sibilant sound of j in jest is spelt with the
single sign j, whilst the compound sibilant sound in chest is
spelt with the combination oh.
Erroneousness.— The sound of the ee in feet is considered
ORTHOGRAPHY. 451
the long (independent) sound of the e in bed ; whereas it is the
long (independent) sound of the i in pit.
The i in hite is considered as the long (independent) sound of
the i in pit ; whereas it is a diphthongal sound.
The It in OAick is looked upon as a modification of the ii in
hull ; whereas it is a specifically distinct sound.
The oil in house and the oi in oil are looked upon as the
compounds of o and i and of o and u respectively ; whereas
the latter element of them is not i and u, but y and iv.
The th in tkin and the th in thine are dealt with as one and
the same sound ; whereas they are sounds specifically distinct.
The ch in chest is dealt with as a modification of c (either
with the power of h or of s) ; whereas its elements are t and
sh.
Redundancy. — As far as the representation of sounds is
concerned the letter c is superfluous. In words like citizen it
may be replaced by s ; in words like cat by k. In ch, as in
chest, it has no proper })lace. In ch, as in niecJianical, it jnay
be replaced by h.
Q is superfluous, civ or kw being its equivalent.
X also is superfluous, ks, gz, or z, being equivalent to it.
The diphthongal forms ce and ce, as in jEnea,s and Criiesvs,
except in the way of etymology, are superfluous and redundant.
Unsteadiness. — Here we have (amongst many other exam-
ples), 1. The consonant c with the double power of s and k ;
2. g with its sound in gun, and also with its sound in gin ; 3.
X with its sounds in Alexander, apoplexy, Xenophon.
In the foregoing examples a single sign has a double power ;
in the words Philip and fillip, &c. a single sound has a double
sign.
The defects noticed in the preceding sections are absolute
defects, and would exist, as they do at present, were there no
language in the world except the English. This is not the case
with those that are now about to be noticed ; for them, indeed,
the word defect is somewhat too strong a term. They may
more properly be termed inconveniences.
Compared with the languages of the rest of the world, the
use of many letters in the English alphabet is singular. The
letter i (when long or independent) is, with the exception of
England, generally sounded as ee. With Englishmen it has
a diphthongal power. The inconvenience of this is the necessity
tl^.at it imposes upon us, in studying foreign languages, of un-
G G 2
452 ORTHOGRAPHY.
learning the sonnd wliieh we give it in our own, and of learning
the soimd which it bears in the language studied. So it is
(amongst many others) with the letter j. In English this has
the sonnd of dzh, in French of zh, and in German of y. From
singularity in the use of letters arises inconvenience in the study
of foreign tongues.
In using ;' as dzh there is a second objection. It is not only
inconvenient, but it is theoretically incorrect. The letter j was
originally a modification of the vowel i. The Germans, who
use it as the semi-vowel y, have perverted it from its original
power less than the English have done, who sound it dzh.
§ 412. With these views we may appreciate, of the English
alphabet and orthography —
1. Its convenience or inconvenience in respect to learning
foreign tongues. — ^The sound given to the a in fate is singular.
Other nations sound it as a in father.
The sound given to the e, long (or independent), is singular.
Other nations sound it either as a in fate, or as e fernie.
The sound given to the i in hite is singular. Other nations
sound it as ee in feet.
The sound given to the oo in/ooHs singular. Other nations
sound it as the o in note, or as the 6 in chiuso.
The sound given to the u in duck is singular. Other nations
sound it as the ti in bull.
The sound given to the ou in house is singular. Other
nations, more correctly, represent it by au or aiv.
The sound given to the lu in wet is somewhat singular, but
is also correct and convenient. With many nations it is not
found at aU, whilst with those where it occurs it has the sound
(there or thereabouts) of v.
The sound given to y is somewhat singular. In Danish it
has a vowel power. In German the semi-vowel sound is spelt
with j.
The sound given to z is not the sound which it has in German
and Italian ; but its power in English is convenient and
correct.
The sound given to ch in chest is singular. In other lan-
guages it has generally a guttural sound ; in French that of sh.
The English usage is more correct than the French, but less
correct than the German.
The sound given to j (as said before) is singular.
2 . The historical 'propriety of certain letters. — The use of i
ORTHOGRAPHY. 453
with a diplithongal power is not only -singular and inconvenient,
but also historically incorrect. Tlie Greek iota, from whence it
originates, has the sound of i and ee, as in pit and feet.
The y, sounded as in yet, is historically incorrect. It grew
out of the Greek v, a vowel, and no semi- vowel. The Danes
still use it as such, that is, with the power of the German u.
The use of j for dzlt is historically incorrect.
The use of c for k in words derived from the Greek, as ascetic,
&c., is historically incorrect. In remodelling alphabets the
question of historical propriety should be recognized. Other
reasons for the use of a particular letter in a particular sense
being equal, the historical propriety should decide the question.
The above examples are illustrative, not exhaustive.
§ 413. On certain conventional modes of spelling. — In tlie
Greek language the sounds of o in not and of o in note
(although allied) are expressed by the unlike signs or letters o
and ft), respectively. In most other languages the difference
between the sounds is considered too slight to require for its
expression signs so distinct and dissimilar. In some languages
the difference is neglected altogether. In many, however, it is
expressed, and that by some modification of the original letter.
Let the sign (~) denote that the vowel over which it stands
is long, or independent, whilst the sign (") indicates shortness,
or dependence. In such a case, instead of writing not and nayt,
like the Greeks, we may write not and not, the sign serving for
a fresh letter. Herein the expression of the nature of the
Bound is natural, because the natural use of (") and (") is to
express length and shortness, dependence or independence.
Now, supposing the broad sound of a to be already represented,
it is very evident that, of the other two sounds of o, the one
must be long (independent), and the other short (dependent) ;
and as it is only necessary to express one of these conditions,
we may, if we choose, use the sign (~ ) alone ; its presence
denoting, length, and its absence shortness (independence or
dependence).
As signs of this kind, one mark is as good as another ; and
instead of (~) we may, if we choose, substitute such a mark as
C) and (write not = not ^= ncot = oiote) ; provided only that
the sign ( ' ) expresses no other condition or affection of a sound.
This use of the mark ( ' ), viz. as a sign that the vowel over
which it is placed is long (independent), is common in many lan-
guages. But is this the use of ( ' ) natural ? For a reason
4.54 ORTHOGRAPHY.
that the reader has anticipated, it is not natural, but conven-
tional. It is used elsewhere not as the sign of quantity, but as
the sign of accent ; consequently being placed over a letter, and
being interpreted according to its natural meaning, it gives the
idea, not that the s}'llable is long, but that it is emphatic
or accented. Its use as a sign of quantity is an orthographical
expedient, or a conventional mode of spelling.
§ 4 1 4. The English language abounds in orthographical ex-
pedients ; the mode of expressing the quantity of the vowels
being particularly numerous. To begin with these : —
The reduplication of a vowel where there is but one syllable
(as in feet, cool), is an orthographic expedient. It merely means
that the syllable is long (or independent).
The reduplication of a consonant after a vowel, as m spotted,
torrent, is, in most cases, an orthographic expedient. It merely
denotes that the preceding vowel is short (dependent).
The use of tli with the power of the fii'st consonantal sound
in thin and thine, is an orthographic expedient. The combina-
tion must be dealt with as a single letter.
X, however, and q, are not orthographic expedients. They
are orthographic compendiums.
The mischief of orthographic expedients is this : — When a
sign, or letter, is used in a conventional, it precludes us from
using it (at least without further explanation) in its natural
sense. Thus the double o in mood constitutes but one syllable.
If in a foreign language, we had, immediately succeeding each
other, first the syllable mo, and next the syllable od, we should
have to spell it mo-od,OY mood, or mo-od, &c. Again, it is only
by our knowledge of tlie language that the th in nuthooh, is not
pronounced like the th in burthen. In the languages of India
the true sound of t + h is common. This, however, we cannot
spell naturally ; because the combination tli conveys to us another
notion. Hence arise such combinations as thh, or f, «&:c., in
wiiting Hindoo words.
A second mischief of orthographic conventionahties, is the
wrong notions that they engender, the eye misleading the ear.
That th is really t + h, no one would have believed hud it not
been for the spelling.
§ 415. One of our orthographic expedients, viz. the redu-
plication of the consonant following, to express the shortness
(dependence) of the preceding vowel, is as old as the classical
languages : terra, OaKaaaa This lias been already stated. In
ORTHOGRAPHY. 455
respect, liovvever, to its application in Englisli, the followino-
extract from the Orontilum written in tlie thirteenth century)
is the fullest recognition of the practice that I have met with.
And whase wilenn shall J^is boc,
Effl o)^eiT si)3e wi'iteun,
Himm bidde ice J^att hett write i-ihht,
Swa sum {siss boc himm tseche]}]} ;
All {jwerrt utt affterr )jatt itt iss
Oppo f;iss firrste bisne,
AViJj}? all swilc rime als her iss sett,
Wi];|j alse fele wordess :
And tatt he loke well f^att he
All hod-stnff write twiij(jess/--
Eggwhger {.-ser itt uppo {liss boo
Iss writeun o j^att wise :
Loke he well {:att hett wi-ite swa,
FoiT he ne magg noht elless.
On Englissh wi-itenn rihlit te word,
j^att wite he well to sojje.
§ 41G. Two important modes of spelling still stand over for
notice.
(1.) B}^ adding a second vowel, and so giving the appearance
of a diphthong {red, redd) ; and (2) by adding at the end of the
word the letter e, which, fi-om the circumstance of its not being
sounded, is called the e mute {jxit, hate) ; we get, for the present
stage of the English Icmguage, the same results that come from
the reduplication of the vowel, as in feet and cool ; i. e. we get a
sign to the eye that the vowel is long or independent. Such, at
least, is the general inference from these combinations. At the
same time it is doubtful whether either of these is a true ortho-
graphic expedient ; inasmuch as it is highly probable that they
once represented (or approached the representation of) a real
sound ; e. g. the e called mute was once sounded.
Again, the provincial pronunciation of such a word as wheat is
tvhee-iit (there or thereabouts). This, which is provincial now, may
easily be archaic, i. e. belong to the written language in an older
stage. If so, the second vowel is no true orthographic expedient.
Whatever it may be now, it originally expressed a real sound ;
a real sound which has changed and simplified itself during the
interval.
§ 417. Long as is the list of the different powers of the
different letters of the English Language, the greater part of
* Write oue letter twice.
466 ORTHOGRAPHY.
them finds an explanation in one of the above-mentioned prin-
ciples.
The etymological principle explains much ; for the English is
a language which pre-eminently recognizes it ; and it is also a
language which, from the complex character of its organization,
has a large field for its application.
Change between the first use of a given mode of spelling and
the present time explains much also ;
Orthographic expedients explain more ;
Fourthly, the juxta-position of incompatible sounds explains
much. See remarks on d and s. in the next chapter.
CHAPTER V.
KEMAEKS ON SOME OF THE DETAILS OF THE ENGLISH ALPHABET
AND ORTHOGRAPHY.
§ 418. B. — The h in debtor, subtle, doubt, agrees with the b in
lamb, dumb, thumb, ivomh, in being mute. It differs, however,
in another respect. The words debtor, subtle, doubt, are of clas-
sical, the words lamb, duvrib, k>Q. are of Angle origin. In debtm\
kc. the b was undoubtedly at one time pronounced, since it be-
longed to a different syllable ; debitor, subtilis, dubito, being the
original forms. I am far fi-om being certain that, with the other
words, lamb, &c., this was the case. With them the b belonged
(if it belonged to the word at aU) to the same syllable as the m.
I think, however, that instead of this being the case, the b, in
speech, never made a part of the word at all ; that it belongs
now, and that it always belonged, to the turitten language only ;
and that it was inserted in the spelling upon what may be called
the principle of imitation.
§ 419. D. — The reason for d being often sounded like t, is as
follows : —
The words where it is so sounded are either the past tenses
or the participles of verbs ; as 'plucked, tossed, stepped, &lc.
Now the letter e in the second syllable of these words is not
sounded ; whence the sounds of k, of s, and of j:*, come in immediate
contact with the sound of the letter d.
But the sound of the letter d is flat, whilst those of ks, and
p are sharp ; so that the combinations kd, sd, and _2^cZ are unpro-
nounceable. Hence d is sounded as t.
In the older stages of the English Language the vowel e (or
DETAILS. 457
some other vowel equivalent to it,) was actually sounded, and in
those times d was sounded also.
Hence d is retained in spelling, although its sound "is the sound
of t.
§ 420. K (C). — 1. Before e, i and y, the letter c is pro-
nounced as s — cetaceous, city, Cyprian ;
2. Before a, o, and u, it is sounded as k — cat, cool, cut ;
3. Before a consonant it is so sounded — C7'qft.
On the other hand — 1. K rarely comes before a, o, u —
2. But it is used before e, i, or y ; because in that position c
would run the chance of being sounded as s.
Hence at the end of words k is used in prefei'ence to c. We
write stick, lock, rather than stic, lac, or sticc, locc.
And the reason is clear ; the sound of c is either that of k or
that of s.
Which of these sounds it shall represent is determined by wdiat
follows.
If followed by nothing, it has no fixed sound ; but
At the end of words it is follow^ed by nothing ;
Whence it has, at the end of words, no fiixed sound ; and
Therefore being inconvenient, has to be replaced by k.
But, besides this, k is rarely doubled. We write stick rather
than stikk. This is because it is never used except where c would
be pronounced as s ; that is, before a small vowel. If kid were
spelt cid, it would run the chance of being pronounced sid.
Now, the preference of c to k is another instance of the influ-
ence of the Latin language. The letter k was wanting in Latin ;
and as such was eschewed by languages whose orthography was
influenced by the Latin.
Hence arose in the eyes of the etymologist the propriety of
retaining, in all words derived from the Latin (croivn, concave,
concupiscence, «fcc.), the letter c to the exclusion of k. Besides
this, the Anglo-Saxon alphabet, being taken from the Roman,
excluded k, so that c was written even before the small vowels,
a, e,i,y; as cyning, or cining, a king. C then supplants k upon
etymological grounds only. In some of the languages derived
from the Latin this dislike to the use of k leads to several ortho-
graphical inconveniences. As the tendency of c before e, i, y, to
be sounded as s (or as a sound allied to s), is the same in those
languages as in others ; and as, in these languages as in others,
there frequently occur such sounds as kit, ket, kin, &lc., a difficulty
arises as to the spelling. If spelt cit, cet, &c. there is risk of
■i58 ORTHOGRAPHY.
their being sounded sit, set. To remedy this an h is interposed
— ckit, chef, kc. This however, only substitutes one difficulty
for another, since ch is, in all probability, already used with a
different sound : e. g. that of sh, as in French ; or that of k
guttural, as in German. The Spanish orthography is thus ham-
pered. Unwilling to spell the word chimera (pronounced Idmera)
with a h ; unable to spell it with either c or ch, it writes the
word quimera. This distaste for k is an orthographic prejudice.
Even in the way of etymology it is but partially advantageous :
since in the other Gothic languages, where the alphabet is less
rigidly Latin, the words that in English are spelt with a c, are
there wiitten with h — kam, German ; komme, Danish ; skrapa,
Swedish = came, come, scrape.
That the syllables cit, cyt, cet, were at one time pronounced
kit, kyt, ket, we believe : 1 . from the circumstance that if it were
not so, they would have been spelt with an s ; 2. from the com-
parison of the Greek and Latin languages, where the words cete,
circus, cystis, Latin, are Krjrrj, KipKos, kvcttls, Greek.
In the words mechanical, choler, &c. derived from the Greek,
it must not be imagined that the c represents the Greek kappa
or K. The combination c + A. is to be dealt with as a single letter.
Thus it was that the Romans, who had in their language neither
the sound of p^;, nor the sign k, rendered the Greek eld {'^), just
as by th they rendered 0, and by j:>/c, (j).
The faulty representation of the Greek ^ has given rise to a
faulty representation of the Greek k, as in ascetic, from daKy^rt,-
KOS.
§ 421. G. — Where c is sounded as k, g is sounded as in gun.
Where c is sounded as s, g is sounded as j (dzh) — not al-
ways, though generally.
This engenders the use of u as an orthographic expedient.
In words like prorogue, &c., its effect is to separate the g from
the e, and (so doing) to prevent it being sounded as j (dzh).
§ 422. The letter S. — In a very large class of words the
letter s is used in spelling where the real sound is that of the
letter z. Words like stags, halls, peas, &c., are pronounced
stagz, hallz, peaz. It is very important to be familiar with this
orthographical substitution of s for z.
The reason for it is as follows : —
The words where it is so sovmded are either possessive cases,
or plural nominatives ; as sta,g's, stags, slab's, slabs, &c.
Now in these words (and in words like them) the sounds of ^
I
DETAILS. 459
(in stag) and of h (in dab) come in immediate contact with the
sound of the letter s.
But the sound of the letter s is sharp, whilst those of g and h
are flat, so that the combinations gs, bs, are unpronounceable.
Hence s is sounded z.
In the older stages of the English language a vowel was in-
terposed between the last letter of the word and the letter s, and
wlien that vowel v/as sounded, s was sounded also.
Hence s is retained in spelling, although its sound is the
sound of z.
This fact of the final s being so frequently sounded as z, re-
duces the writer to a strait whenever he has to express the true
sound of s at the end of a word. To write s on such an occa-
sion would be to use a letter that would probably be mispro-
nounced ; that is, pronounced as z.
The first expedient he would hit upon would be to double the
s, and write ss. But here he would meet with the following
difiiculty : — A double consonant expresses the shortness of the
vowel preceding, toss, hiss, egg, &c. Hence a double s (ss) might
be misinterpreted.
This throws the grammarian upon the use of c, which, as
stated above, has, in certain situations, the power of s. To
write, however, simply sine, or one, would induce the risk of
the words being' sounded sink, onk. To obviate this, e is added,
which has the double effect of not requiring to be sounded
(being mute), and of showing that the c has the sound of s
(being small).
§ 423. H. — The reason for h appearing in combination with
t and s, in words hke tJiin and shine, is as follows : —
The Greeks had in their language the sounds of both the t in
tin, and of the th in thin.
These two sounds they viewed in a proper light ; that is, they
considered them both as simple single elementary sounds.
Accordingly they expressed them by signs, or letters, equally
simple, single, and elementary. The first they denoted by the
sign, or letter, t, the second by the sign, or letter, 6.
They observed also the difference in sound between these two
sounds.
To this difference of sound they gave names. The sound of
T (t) was called 'psilon (a word meaning bare). The sound of 6
(th) was called dasy (a word meaning rough).
460 ORTHOGRAPHY.
Ill the Latin language, however, tliere was no sucli sound as
that of the tit iwtliin.
And, consequently, there was no simple single sign to repre-
sent it.
Notwithstanding this the Latins knew of the sound, and of
its being in Greek ; and, at times, when they wrote words of
Greek extraction, they had occasion to represent it.
They also knew that the sound was called dasy, in opposition
to the sound of t (t), which was psilon.
Now the Latins conceived that the difference between a sound
called y^riXov, and a sound called haav, consisted in the latter
being pronounced with a stronger breath, or breathing.
In the Latin language the word aspiration means breathing ;
so that, according to the views just stated, the Greek word dasy
was translated by the Latin word aspiratum (i. e. aspirated, or
accompanied by a brecdhing) ; than which nothing is more in-
correct. A breathing is an aspirate ; the power of the Greek
Saau is asperate.
This being the case, the addition of the letter h was thought
a fit way of expressing the difference between the sounds of the
t in tin, and the th in fJiin.
As the influence of the Latin language was great, this view
of the nature of the sound of th (and of sounds like it) became
common.
The Anglo-Saxons, like the Greeks, had a simple single sign
for the simple single sound : viz. f (for the th in thiii), and ^
(for the til in thine).
But their Norman conquerors had neither sound nor sign, and
so they succeeded in superseding the Anglo-Saxon by the Latin
mode of spelling.
Add to this, that they treated the two sounds of th (fhin and
thine) as one, and spelt them both alike.
CHAPTER VI.
HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE ENGLISH ALPHABET.
§ 424. What were the chief peculiarities of the Angle sound-
system? It contained —
1 . The th in thin. — A sign in Greek {$), but none in Latin.
HISTORICAL SKETCH. 4G1
2. The th in thine. — A sign neither in Greek nor Latin.
3. The clt in the German auch. — A sign in Greek (v), but
none in Latin.
4. The flat sound of the same, or the probable sound of the
h in fur/i, leolit, &c., Anglo-Saxon. — A sign neither in Greek
nor Latin.
5. The sh in shine. — A sign neither in Greek nor Latin.
6. The z in azure. — A sign neither in Greek nor Latin.
7. The ch in chest. — A sign neither in Greek nor Latin, un-
less we suppose that at the time when the Anglo-Saxon alphabet
was formed, the Latin c in words like civltas had the power
which it has in the present Italian, of ch.
8. — The j in jest. — A sign neither in Greek nor Latin, unless
we admit the same supposition in respect to g, that has been in-
dicated in respect to c.
9. The sound of the Jcj in the Norwegian hjeniier ; viz. that
(thereabouts) of ksh. — A sign neither in Latin nor Greek.
10. The English sound of iv. — A sign neither in Latin nor
Greek.
1 1 . The sound of the German w, Danish y, — No sign in
Latin, probably one in Greek, viz. v.
12. Signs for distinguishing the long and short powers of
e and 17, o and co. — Wanting in Latin, but existing in Greek.
§ 425. In all these points the classical alphabets (one or both)
were deficient. To make up for their insufficiency one of two
things was necessary — either to coin new letters, or to use con-
ventional combinations of the old.
In the Anglo-Saxon alphabet (derived from the Latin) we
have the following features : —
1 . C used to the exclusion of k.
2. The absence of the letter j, either with the power of y, as
in German, of zh, as in French, or of dzh, as in English.
3. The absence of q ; a useful omission, cw serving instead.
4.. The absence of v ; u, either single or double, being used
instead.
5. The use of 2/ as a vowel, and of e as y.
6. The absence of z.
7. Use of uu, as ^u, or v in Old Saxon.
8. Tlie use, in certain conditions, of / for v.
9. The presence of the simple single sounds j? and ^, for the
th in thin, and the fh in thine, these being introduced as new
sitjns.
462 ORTIIOGRAPUY.
The letter ^u was evolved out of u, being either an original
improvement of the Anglo-Saxon orthographists, or a mode of
expression borroM'cd from one of the allied languages of the Con-
tinent. Probably the latter was the case ; since we find the
following passage in the Latin dedication of Otfiiid's Krist : —
" Hujijs ouim liiigTiii3 barbaries, ut est ineulta et iiidisciplinabilis, atque in
sueta capi rcgiilari freuo gi-ammaticse artis, sic etiaru in multis clictis scriptu
est tlifficilis propter litcrariun aut congeriem, ant incognitam sonoritatem. Nam
intcrdnm tria u it u ut puto qurerit in sona ; priores duo consonantes, ut milii
videtur, tertium vocali sono manente."
The Anglo-Saxon alphabet, although not originally meant to
express a Gothic tongue at all, answered the purpose to which it
was applied tolerably.
§ 426. Change, however, went on ; and the orthography
which suited the earlier Anglo-Saxon would not suit the later ;
at any rate, it would not suit the language which had become,
or was becoming, English, wherein the sounds for which the
Latin alphabet had no equivalent signs increase. Thus there
is at present —
1. The sound of the sic in shine.
2. The sound of the z in azure.
How are these to be expressed ? The rule has hitherto been
to denote simple single sounds by simple single signs, and where
such signs have no existence already, to originate neiu ones.
To combine existing letters, rather than to coin new ones, has
been done but rarely. The Latin substitution of the combina-
tion th for the simple single 6, was exceptionable. It was a
precedent, however, whicli was generally followed.
It is this precedent which accounts for the absence of any
letter in English, expressive of either of the sounds in question.
Furthermore, our alphabet has not only not increased in
proportion to our sound-system, but it has decreased. The
Anglo-Saxon f = the th in thin and ^ = the th in thine, have
become obsolete. Hence, a difference in pronunciation, whicii
our ancestors expressed, we overlook.
This leads us to —
§ 427. The Anglo-Saxon language was Gothic, the alphabet
Roman.
The Anglo-Norman language was Roman, the alphabet
Roman also.
The Anglo-Saxon took his speech from one source ; his writing
from another.
HISTORICAL SKETCH. 463
TJie Aiiplo-Norman took both from the same.
Between the Latin alphabet as applied to the Anglo-Saxon,
and the Latin alphabet as applied to the Norman-French, there
are certain points of difference. In the first place, the sound-
system of the languages (like the French) derived from the
Latin, bore a greater resemblance to that of the Romans, than
was to be found amongst the Gothic tongues. Secondly, the
alphabets of the languages in point were more exclusively Latin.
In the present French, Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese, there is
an exclusion of the h. This is not the case with the Anolo-
Norman. Like the Latins, the Anglo-Normans considered that
the sound of the Greek 6 was represented by th : not, however,
having this sound in their language, they had no corresponding-
sign in their alphabet. The greatest mischief done by the
Norman influence was the ejection from the English alphabet of
]> and 'S. In other respects the alphabet was improved. The
letters z, k, j, were either imported or more currently recognized.
The letter y took a semi-vowel power, having been previously
represented by e, itself having the power of i. The mode of
spelling the compound sibilant with ch was evolved. My
notions concerning this mode of spelling are as follows : — At a
given period the sound of ce in ceaster, originally that of ke, had
become, first, that of ksh, and, secondly, that of tsJi ; still it was
spelt ce, the e, in tbic eyes of the Anglo-Saxons, having the
power of y. In the eyes also of the Anglo-Saxons the compound
sound of ksh, or tsh, would differ from that of k by the addition
of y ; this, it may be said, was the Anglo-Saxon view of the
matter. The Anglo-Norman view vvas different. Modified by
the part that, in the combination th, was played by the aspirate
h, it was conceived by the Anglo-Normans, that ksh, or tsh, dif-
fered from k, not by the addition of y (expressed by e), but by
that of h. Hence, the combination cJc as sounded in chest. The
same was the case with sh.
It is safe to say that in his adaptation of the alphabet of one
language to the sound-system of another, the Angle allowed
himself greater latitude, and acted with a more laudable bold-
ness, than the Norman.
464 COMPOSITION.
PAET IV.
ETYMOLOGY,
CHAPTEE I.
COMPOSITION DEFINED. ACCENT. OKDER OF ELEMENTS.
APPARENT EXCEPTIONS. DETAILS.
§ 428. Composition is the joining together, in language, of
two different words, treated as a single term. Observe the fol-
lowing elements in this definition : —
1. In language. — Words like merry-making are divided by
the hjq^hen. Now, it is very plain that if all words spelt with
a hyphen were to be considered as compounds, the formation of
them w^ould be not a matter of speech or language, but one of
writing or spelling. This distinguishes compounds in language
from mere printers' compounds.
2. Different. — In Old High-German we find the form selj)-
selpo. Here there is the junction of two words, but not the
junction of two different ones. This distinguishes composition
proper fi:om gemination.
3. Words. — In fathers, clear-er, four-th, &c., there is the
addition of a letter or a syllable, and it may be even of the
part of a word. There is no addition, however, of a whole one.
This distinguishes composition from derivation.
4. Treating the combination as a single term. — In the eyes
of one grammarian the term mountain height may be as truly
a compound word as sunbeam. In the eyes of another it may
be no compound but tivo words like Alpnne height ; mountain
being dealt with as an adjective.
§ 429, It is in the determination of this that the accent
plays an important part.
COMPOSITION. 465
The attention of tlie reader is drawn to the followino' line
slightly altered, from Churchill :
Then rest, my friend, and s]nlre thy precious breath.
Compared with and, the verb spare is not only accented, but
the accent is conspicuous and prominent. There is so little on
the one word and so much on the other, that the disparity is
very manifest. But this disparity may be diminished. The
true reading is —
Then rest, my friend, sjnire, spare thy precious breath.
Where we actually find what had previously only been supposed.
In the words spare, spare, the accents are nearly at par. To
proceed. Good illustrations of the parity and disparity of
accent may be drawn from certain names of places. Let there
be such a sentence as the lime house near the new port. Com-
pare the parity of accent here, with the disparity of accent in
the compound words Lhnehouse and NeiupoH. Compare, too,
hldck bird, meaning a bird that is black, with blackbird, the
Latin nierula ; or blue bell, meaning a bell that is blue, with
bluebell, the flower. Expressions like a sharp edged instrument,
meaning an instrument that is sharp and has edges, as opposed
to a sharp-edged instrument, meaning an instrument with
slmrp edges, further exemplify this difference. Subject to a few
exceptions, it may be laid down, that, in the English language,
there is no cor)iposition unless there be either a change of form
or a change of accent.
§ 480. In a red, house, each word preserves its natural and
original meaning, and the statement suggested by the term is
that a house is red. By a parity of reasoning, a mad, house-
should mean a house that is mad ; and, provided that eacli
word retain its natural meaning and its natural accent, such is
the fact. Let a house mean, as it often does, a family. Then
the phrase, a mad, house, means that the house, or family, is
mad, just as a red house means that the house is red. Such,
however, is not the current meaning of the word. Every one
knows that a mad. house means a house for mad men ; in
which case it is treated as a compound word, and has a marked
accent on the first syllable, just as Ltmchouse has. Compared
with the words red house, meaning a house of a red colour, and
compared with the words mad house, meaning a deranged family ,
the word madhouse, in its common sense, expresses a compound
H H
466 COMPOSITION.
idea, as opposed to two ideas, or a double idea. Such is the
commentary upon ircating the combination as a single term ; in
other words, sucli is the difference between a compound word
and tvjo words.
§ 431. In compound words it is i\\Q first term that defines or
particularizes the second. That the idea given by the word
apple-tree is not referable to the words apple and tree, irrespec-
tive of the order in which they occur, may be seen by reversing
the position of them. Tree-apple, although not existing in the
language, is as correct a term as thorn-apple. In tree-apple, the
particular sort of apple meant is denoted by the word tree, and
if there were in our gardens various sorts of plants called apyples,
of which some gi-ew along the ground and others upon trees,
such a word would be required in order to be opposed to earth-
apple, or ground-apple, or some word of the kind. However,
as the word is not current in the language, the class of compounds
indicated by" it may seem to be merely imaginary. Nothing,
however, is further from being the case. A tree-rose is a rose,
a rose-tree a tree of a particular sort. A ground-nut is a nut
particularized by growing in the ground. A nut-ground is a
ground, particularized by producing nuts. A. finger-ring, as dis-
tinguished from ear-rings and from rings in general, is a ring
for the finger. A ring-finger, as distinguished from fore-fingers
and hom fingers in general, is a. finger whereon Hngs are worn.
At times this rule seems to be violated. The words spitfire
and daredevil seem exceptions to it. At the first glance it
seems, in the case of a spitfire, that what he (or she) spits is
fire ; and that in the case of a daredevil what he (or she) dares
is the devil. If so, the initial words spit and dare are par-
ticularized by the final ones^^re and devil. The true idea, how-
ever, confirms the original rule. A spitfire voids his fire by
spitting. A daredevil, in meeting the fiend, would not only
not shrink fi'om him, but would defy him. A spitfire is not one
who spits ^re, but one whose ^ire is spit. A daredevil is not
one who dares even the devil, but one by whom the devil is
even dared. Again, in words like pea.-coch and pea-hen, &c.,
we have apparent exceptions. They are, however, only apparent.
The word ^9ea (though now found in composition only) was, ori-
ginally, an independent word, and the name of a species of fowl,
like pheasant, partridge, or any other appellation. It was the
Latin pjavo, (German pfaii. Hence, if the word peacock mean a
pea {'pfau or pavo) that is male, then do wood-cock, black-cock,
COMPOSITION. 467
and gor-cock, mean woods, blacks, and gars that are male. Or if
the word peahen mean a pea, i^pfait or ]javo) tliat is female,
then do nioorhen and guineahen mean vwors and guineas that
are female. Again, if a peahen mean a pea (pfaM or pavo) that
is female, then does the compound pheasaAit-hen mean the same
as henpheasant ; wliicli is not the case. The fact is, that
peacock means a cock that is a pea (jofau or pa.vo) ; peahen
means a hen that is a pea {pfau or pavo) ; and, finally, pea-
fowl means a fowl that is a pea (j>fau or pavo). In the same
way moorfowl means, not a moor that is connected with a fowl,
but a fowl that is connected with a moor.
§ 432. Composition is the addition of a tvord to a word ;
derivation the addition of certain sownds or syllables to a word.
In a compound, each element has a separate and independent
existence ; in a derivative, only one of the elements has such.
Now it is very possible that in an older stage of a language two
words may exist, may be put together, and may form a com-
pound, each word having a separate and independent existence ;
•whilst in a later stage of the language, only one of these words
may have a separate and independent existence, the other having
become obsolete. In this case a compound word would take the
appearance of a derived one ; inasmuch as only one of its ele-
ments could be exhibited. Such is the case with (amongst
others) the word bishopric. In the present language the word
vie, with the sense here required, has no separate and indepen-
dent existence. For all this, the compound is a true one ; since
in Anglo-Saxon we have the noun rice as a separate, indepen-
dent word, signifying kingdom or domain. Again, without
becoming obsolete, a word may alter its form. This is the case
with most of om' adjectives in -ly. At present they appear to
be derivative ; the termination -ly having no separate and
independent existence. The older language, however, shows
that they are compounds ; since -ly is nothing else but -lie,
Anglo-Saxon ; -lih. Old High-German ; -leiks, Moeso-Gothic =
like, or similiszz otherwise, in vain.
The following words are in the same predicament.
Mis-, as in misdeed, &c. — Moeso-Gothic, misso =.\n turns ;
Old Norse, d mis ■=. alternately ; Middle High- German, misses.
mistake. The original notion was that of alternation, thence
change, thence defect. Compare the Greek aWcos.
Bom, as in wisdom, &c. — the substantive being ddm.
Hood, and head, as in Godhead,, manhood, &c. The sub-
H H 2
468 COMPOSITION.
stantive being hd ids z:z person, order, kind. Nothing to do with
tlie word Jtead.
Shij), as in friendship. — Anglo-Saxon, -scipe, and -sceaft ;
German, -schaft ; Moeso-Gothic, gaskafts = a creature, or creation,
The -sl-ij^ or -scape in landskii) is only an older form. Nothing
to do with the ship that sails.
Less, as in sleepless, &c., has nothing to do with less. Derived
from Idus, 16s, destitute of = Latin expers.
§ 4- 3 3. It must be clear, ex vi termini, that in every com-
pound there are tvjo parts ; i. e. the whole or part of the ori-
ginal, and the whole or part of the superadded, word. Are
there ever more than two ? Yes. There is, sometimes, a third
element, viz. a vowel, consonant, or syllable, that joins the fii'st
word with the second. In the older forms of all the German
languages tlie presence of this third element was the rule rather
than the exception. In the present English it exists in but few
words ; and that doubtfully.
(a) The -a- in black-a-moor is possibly such a connecting
element.
(b) The -in- in night-in-gale is, perhaps, one also. Compare
the German form nacht-i-gall, and remember the tendency of
vowels to take the sound of -ng before g.
§ 434. The -s- in words like Thur-s-day, himt-s-mcm, may
be one of two things —
(«) It may be the sign of the genitive case, so that Thursday
= Thoris dies. In this case the word, like pcder-famiilias in
Latin, is in a common state of S3'ntactic construction.
(6) It may be a connecting sound, like the -i- in iiacht-i-gall.
Reasons for this view occur in the fact that in the modern
German the genitive case of feminine nouns ends otherwise
than in -s ; whilst, nevertheless, the sound of -s- occurs in
composition whether the noun it follows be masculine or
feminine. This fact, as far as it goes, makes it convenient to
consider the somid in question as a connective rather than a
case. Probably, it is neither one nor the other exactly, but the
effect of a false analogy.
§ 43.5. Words like inidshipman, gentlemcmlike, &c., must
be treated as formations from a compound radical : and ana-
lyzed thus — midship-man, gerdlema n-Wke.
§ 436. There is a number of words which are rarel}^ found
by themselves ; or, if so found, have rarely the same sense that
they have in combination. Such are the expressions time and
COMPOSITION. 469
iidQ — might and main — rede me my riddle — ^ay your shot —
7'hyme and reason, &c.
§ 437. By attending to the following sections we shall see
in what way the different parts of speech are capable of being
put together by composition.
Substantives preceded by Substantives. — Day-star, morning-
star, evening-star, land-slip, watch-house, light-house, rose-tree,
oak-tree, fir-tree, Jtarvest-time, goose-grass, sea-man, collar-hone,
shoulder-blade, ground-nut, earth-nid, hazel-nut, fire-wood,
sun-light, moon-light, star-light, torch-light, &c.
Substantives preceded by Adjectives. — BUnd-ioorm, free-
man, half-penny, grey-heard, green-sward, white-thorn, hlack-
tltorn, mid-day, mid-summer, quick-silver, holy-day, &c.
Substantives preceded by Verbs. — Turn-spit, spit-fire, dare-
devil, sing-song, turn-coat, &c.
Substantives preceded by the form in -ing. — Turning-lathe,
satving-mill.
Adjectives preceded by Substantives. — Sinful, thankful,
blood-red, eye-bright, coal-black, snoiu-ivhite, nut-brow7i, heart-
whole, ice-cold, foot-sore, &c.
Adjectives preceded by Adjectives. — All-mighty, ttuo-fold,
many-fold, &lc.
Adjectives preceded by Verbs. — Stand-still, live-long.
Verbs preceded by Substantives. — God-send. Kare.
Verbs preceded by Adjectives. — Little-heed, rough-heiv (?).
Rare.
Verbs preceded by Verbs. — Hear-say. Rare.
Present Participles preceded by Adjectives. — All-seeing, all-
ruling, soft-flowing, fast-sailing, vierry -making.
Past Participles preceded by Adjectives. — New-horn, free-
spoken, fresh-made, neiv-rnade, neiu-laid.
Present Participles preceded by Substantives. — Fruit-bearing,
music-making.
Past Participles preceded by Substantives. — Heaven-born,
bed-ridden, blood-stained.
Verbal Substantives preceded by Substantives. — Man-eater,
woman-eater, kid-knapyper, horn-bhnver.
Verbal Adjectives preceded by Substantives. — Mop-headed,
chicken-hearted.
Verbal Adjectives preceded by Adjectives. — Cold-hearted,
flaxen-haired, hot-headed, curly-pated.
470 COMPOSITION.
§ 438. Adverbs entering into composition are of two sorts:
— (1.) Those that can be separated from the word with which
they combine, and, nevertheless, appear as independent words ;
as over, iinder, well, &5C. (2.) Those that, when they are
separated from the verb with which they combine, have no
independent existence as separate words. — (a) Be-hove, he-Jit,
beseem, be-lieve, be-lie, bespatter, be-smear, he-get, he-labour,
he-do, he-gin, be-gird, he-hold, he-mourn, he-reave, he-deck, be-
think, be-'mire, he-rhyme. The forms throughout the allied
languages are generally hi- or he-, (h) Un-bind, un-do, un-
loose, un-lock, iin-ivind. The forms of this Inseparable in the
different allied languages are — in Mceso-Gothic, and- ; in Old
High-German, ind-, hit-, in- ; in Old Saxon, ant- ; in Middle
and New High-German, eat- ; in Anglo-Saxon, on- ; as on-
bindan (un-bind), on-don {un-do), on-lysan (un-loose), on-
lucan (un-lock), on-tvindan (un-iuind). (c) A-light, a-rouse,
a-rise, a-ivake, a-iuaken, a-het, a-hide, a-llay. The forms of
this Inseparable are different in the different allied languages.
In Moeso-Gothic, us- ; in Old High-German, ur-, ar-, ir-, er-,
er- ; in Old Saxon, and in Anglo-Saxon, d-; as d-risan (arise),
d-iueccan (a-tuake). (d) For-get, for-do, for-go, for-give, for-bid,
for-hear, forswear. The for- here is of a different origin, and
different in meaning and power, from the fore- in words like
fore-tell. In the different allied languages it takes different
forms. In Moeso-Gothic, fair, fadr, fra. In Old High-Ger-
man, far, fer, fir, for. In Middle and New High-German, ver.
In Anglo-Saxon, for.
§ 439. Compound Pronouns. — Of those words which,
though really compound, look most especially like simple ones,
certain pronouns are the most important ; and of these the
foremost is
1. Which. — To follow the ordinary grammarians, and to call
it the neuter of who, is a blunder. It is no neuter at all, but a
compound word. The adjective leiks, like, is preserved in the
Moeso-Gothic words galeiks and missaleiks. In Old High-
German the form is lih, in Anglo-Saxon lie. Hence we have
Moeso-Gothic, 'hve leiks ; Old High-German, huelih ; Anglo-
Saxon, hwilic and hwilc ; Old Frisian, hivelik ; Danish, hvilk-
en ; German, tuelch ; Scotch, vjhilk ; English, tvhich. The
same is the case with —
2. Such. — Moeso-Gothic, svcdeiks ; Old High-German, solih;
COMPOSITION. 471
Old Saxon, suite ; Anglo-Saxon, svnlc ; German, solch ; Eng-
lish, s^tch. Rask's derivation of the Anglo-Saxon swilc from
swa-ylc, is exceptionable.
3. Thilk. — An old English word, found in the provincial
dialects, as thick, thucJc, thech, and hastily derived by many good
authorities from se ylca, is found in the following forms : Moeso-
Gothic, ])eleiks J Norse, hviUhr.
4. Ilk. — Found in the Scotch, and generally preceded by
that, as that ilk, meaning the same. In Anglo-Saxon this
word is ylca, jjreceded also by the article ; se ylca, seo ylce,
pci't ylce. In English, as seen above, the word is replaced by
scome.
5. Each. — The particle i or e from gi enters in the compo-
sition of pronouns. Old High-German, eogaliher, every one ;
eocalih, all ; Middle High-German, iegelich : New High-Ger-
man, jeglich ; Anglo-Saxon, cdc ; English, each; the I being
dropped as in tvhich and ,siich. uElc, as the original of the
English each and the Scotch ilka,* must by no means be con-
founded with the word ylce, the same.
6. Every, in Old English, everich, everech, everilk one, is celc,
preceded by the particle ever.
7. Either. — Old High-German, eogahueclar ; Middle High-
German, iegeweder ; Anglo-Saxon, aghvci'Ser, cey^er ; Old
Frisian, eider,
8. Neither. — The same with n- prefixed.
9. Aught. — In Moeso-Gothic is found the particle aiv, ever,
but only in negative propositions ; ni (iiot) preceding it. Its
Old High-German form is eo, io ; in Middle High- German, ie ;
in New High-German, je ; in Old Saxon, io ; in Anglo-Saxon,
a ; in Norse, ce. Combined with this particle, the word uMt
(thing) gives the following forms: Old High-German, eoiviht ;
Anglo-Saxon, dtviht ; Old Frisian, dtvet ; English, aught. The
word naught is aught preceded by the negative particle.
§ 440. Further remarks on the compounds of like. — The
previous statements have shown that the adjective like, when it
enters into composition, is a peculiar word. It has a great
tendency to change its form. The pronouns %vhicli and such
more especially show this ; inasmuch as, in them, even the
characteristic I is lost. So it is in Frisian, where hok =. ivhich,
and sok-=.such.
* Different from ilk.
472 COMPOSITION.
The change into -hj now commands a notice. Add it to a
Subst;\ntive, and the result is an Adjective ; as man, manly.
Add it to an Adjective, and the result is an Adverb ; as hrave,
hrave-lij. But what if the Adjective already end in -ly, as
daily ? Can we say dail-i-ly ? For further notice upon this
point see the Syntax of Adjectives.
§ 44)1. Ten and ty. — The words thir-teen, four-teen, &c.,
are compounds. This is clear. It is equally clear that they are
compounds of three (or four) and ten : their arithmetical value
being 3 + 10 = 13. That words like thir-ty, for-ty, Szc, are
also compound is not quite so evident, inasmuch as the element
-ty has no separate and independent existence. Nevertheless,
the words in question are not only compounds, but their ele-
ments are three (or four, &c.) and ten — or if not the actual
word ten, one of its derivatives. In Moeso-Gothic we find the
root -tig used as a true substantive, equivalent in form as well
as power to the Greek StK-as — tvdim tigum ]>u8andjoni =
duobus decadibus niyriaduni ; (Luke xiv. 31.) jere ^rije tigive
^aimoruon duaruni decadum. (Luke iii. 23.) ])rins tiguns
silubrinaize = tres decadas argenteorum. (Matthew xxvii.
3. 9.)
In Icelandic, the numbers from 20 to 100 are formed by
means of tigr, declined like vi'^r, and naturally taking the
word which it numerically determines in the genitive case.
Norn. Fjorii- tigir manna = foi(r tens of men.
Gen. FjoguiTa tiga manna = of four tens of men.
Dat. Fjornm tigum manna = to four tens of men.
Ace. Fjora tiga manna ::= four tens of men.
This is the form of the inflection in the best and oldest MSS.
A little later was adopted the indeclinable form tigi, which was
used adjectivally.*
§ 442. Eleven. — The e in e-leven is ein = one. Ein-Yif,
ein-let, . eilef, eilf, elf, Old High-German ; andlova,. Old Frisian ;
eufZ-leofan, end-hifsm, Anglo-Saxon. This is universally ad-
mitted.
The -lev- is a modification of the root laib-an = 7nanere=to
stay = to be over. Hence eleven=one over ten. This is not
universally admitted.
* Det Oldmrske Sproys Grummatll; af P. A. Muuch, og C. C. linger, Christiania,
1847.
DERIVATION. 473
§ 443. Twelve = the root hvo+the root laih=two over ten.
Tvdlif, Moeso-Gothic ; zuelif, Old High-German ; toll, Swedish.
— The same doubts that apply to the doctrine that the -Iv- in
eleven represents the root -laih, apply to the -Iv- in tivelve.
They arise out of the belief, held by many competent judges, in
a series of letter-changes which would bring l-f (or l-v) out of
d-k = ten ; in which case the numerals in question, instead of
being peculiar in their composition, would follow the principle
which gives us thirteen, fourteen, and the rest ; and simply
stand for 10 + 1, and 10 + 2. The chief fact in favour of this
is the Lithuanic form lih, wherein I is reasonably believed to
represent d.
Father + his. — The doctrine, now (as it is to be hoped)
no longer common, that the forms like fathers are a corrup-
tion of father his, is only noticed to be condemned. Expres-
sions like Jesus Christ his sake are the chief foundation for
it. But
1. Expressions like the Queens Majesty cannot be so ex-
plained.
2. Nor yet expressions like the children's bread.
3. His, cannot be he + his.
4. The s is really the s in patris from 'p^ter, and other
genitive cases, both in Latin and the allied languages.
CHAPTER II.
DERIVATION. CLASSIFICATION OF DERIVATIVES. — DETAILS.
§ 444. Derivation proper may be divided according to a
variety of principles. Amongst others —
1. According to the evidence. — In the evidence that a
word is not simple, but derived, there are at least two degrees.
Thus—
{a) That the word strength is a derivative, I infer from the
word strong, an independent form, which I can separate from it.
Of the nature of the word strength there is the clearest evi-
dence, or evidence of the first degree.
(IS) Fowl, hall, nail, sail, tail, soul, &c., are in Anglo-Saxon
fugel, hcegel, 7icvgel, segel, tcagel, sawel, and by the best gram-
4.7-t DERIVATION.
marians, are considered as derivatives. Yet, with these words I
caDuot do what was done with the word strength. I cannot
take fi'om them tlie part which I look upon as the derivational
addition, and after that leave an independent word. Strenyth
Avithout the final th is a true word ; fotol or fugel without the
final I is no true word. If I believe tliese latter words to be
derivations at all, I do it because I find in words like handle,
&LC., the -I as a derivational addition. Yet, as the fact of a
sound being, sometimes, used as a derivational addition does not
preclude it from being, at other times, a part of the root, the
evidence that the words in question are not simple, but derived,
is not absolutely conclusive. In other words, it is evidence of
the second degree.
2. According to the effect. — The syllable -en in the word
whiten changes the noun white into a verb. This is its efiect.
We may so classify our derivatives as to arrange combinations like
-en (whose effect is to give the idea of the verb) in one group ;
whilst combinations like th (whose effect is to give the idea of
abstraction) form another order.
3. According to the form. — Sometimes the derivational ele-
ment is a vowel (as in the -ie in doggie) ; sometimes a conso-
nant (as the -th in strength) ; sometimes a syllable (as the -en
in whiten) ; sometimes a change of vowel without any addition
(as the i in tip, compared with top) ; sometimes a change of
consonant without any addition (as the z in prize, compared
with price). To classify derivations in this manner is to classify
them according to their form.
4. According to the number of the derivational elements. —
In Jhsher, as compared with fish, there is but one derivational
affix. In fishery, as compared with fish, the number of deriva-
tional elements is two.
§ 445. In the present work none of these principles will be
exclusively adhered to. On the contrary, at the expense of a
little repetition, a general view of our several derivational forms
will be followed by a series of remarks upon our Diminutive,
our Patronymic, our Gentile, Abstract and other nouns, — some
of these groups being of particular etymological importance.
§ 446. Details in the luay of form. — Addition of a vowel,
—Bah-y from hahe. In Lowland Scotch this is far more com-
mon, and is spelt ~ie, as dogg-ie, lass-ie, ladd-ie, inous-i-e,
wif-ie.
Addition of L. — 1. Substantives. — gird-le, kern-el.
DERIVATION. 475
2. Adjectives. — lltt-le, mick-le.
S. Verbs, — spark-le.
Addition of R. — Substantives. — (a) Words that in A. S.
ended in -er, and were of the masculine gender — -lauf/h-t-er,
daiigh-t-er.
(b) Words that in A. S. ended in -er, and were of the neuter
gender — lay-er, fodd-er.
(c) Words that in A. S. ended in -ere, and were of the mas-
culine gender. These are the names of agents, e. g. read-er^
sinn-er, harp-er, hunt-er, lend-er, &c.
(d) Words tliat in A. S. ended in -ra, and were of the mas-
culine— gander (A. S. gand-ra).
Verbs — hind-er, low-er.
Addition of N. — Substantives. — raaid-en, ma-in (as in onight
and nfiain). That the -n is no part of the original word in
TYiai-n, we see from the word may. The idea in both may and
mai-n is that of power.
Adjectives. — Words of this sort express the circumstance of
the object to which they are applied, being made of the Tnate-
rial of which the radical part of the derivative is the name.
Thus, gold-en is a derivative from gold, the material of which
golden guineas are made. So, also, oak-en, ash-en, beech-en,
braz-en, flax-en, gold-en, lead-en, silk-en, luood-en, wooll-en,
hem^p-en, ivheat-en, oat-en, wax-en. These, and their like,
though not uncommon in the present English, were much com-
moner in A. S., where, in addition to the foregoing, we find —
Treow-en = vuule of wood [tree)
Stan-en ^
—
stone
Silfi--en =
—
silver
Gyper-en =
—
co2)per
Tigel-en =
—
pottery {tile)
Cl£es-en =
—
glass
Hyi'u-en =
—
horn
FeU-en =
—
skin (fell),
d others.
In
Ber-en = appertaining to bears
Gset-en = — goats
S win- en = — swine
Yter-en = — otters,
the idea of material is departed from.
The form of this affix was, originally, -ein.
476
DERIVATION.
Mceso-Oothic.
Bariz-ein-s
Silubr-ein-s
Eisaru-ein-s
Fill-oin-s
Thaurn-eiu-s
:= made of Jidrlcij {here]
=^ — silver
= — iro7i
= — skin {fell)
= — thorn.
I
In Old High and Middle High-German, the long form continues ;
e. g. stein-in, durn-in-=.7nade of stone, nrruide of thorn. In the
Neiv High-German, the form is simply -en, or -n.
Addition of the sound of O, originating in -oio or -ov, and
spelt in the present Enghsh -oiv. — By comparison with shade
and mead, the forms shad-oiv and mead-oiv are shown to be
derivative ; the evidence being conclusive. We can isolate the
simpler form, and, still, find a word actually existent in the
present language.
The evidence that the -oiv in the following words is deriva-
tional is less decided ; or (changing the expression) words like
galloivs, &c. are in the same category with hail, tail, &c. The
w has grown out of a -g.
English.
BaiT-o«-
Gall-o»-s
Furr-oit-
Sparr-ow
Frisian.
\mx-ig
gul-i(7
furr-i^
spaiT-i</
English.
Swall-o?iJ
FaE-oM'
MaiT-oii'
TaU-o?/'
Frisian.
swilll-/^
fall-j^
vaox-ig
ivl-ig.
To a great extent this form in vj {=.v) is Danish ; e. g. in
Danish nmrv = marrotv, though, in Swedish, the word is merg.
In the Danish furre and spurrerz furrow and sparrow the
change is carried further. SivaUoiu = the Frisian swallig means
throat ; being, in the present English, more or less of a vulgar-
ism, i. e. when used as a substantive. Sivallow, the name of
the bird, has a different origin, and its w represents h, as in the
German schiualbe.
Addition of T. — 1. Substantives. — (a) Words which in A. S.
ended in -t : gif-t, shrif-t, thef-t, wef-t (tveave), rif-t, drif-t, thrif-t,
fros-t (freeze), gris-t {grind), fligh-t, sigh-t, draugh-t (draw),
weigh-t.
(b) Words which in A. S. ended in -ta. The compounds of
the word ivright (from the root work, in the old past tense
^vrought) ; such as cart-wrigh-t, wheel-wrigh-t, mill-wingh-t,
&c.
2. Adjectives. — tigh-t (tie).
DERIVATION. 477
Addition of D. — Substantives. — hran-d Q)urn, hrenn, obso-
lete), floo-d {flow), mai-d {may in LowLand Scotch), see-d (sow),
hurd-en {bear).
Addition of TH (A. S. p as sounded in tJdn). — 1. Substan-
tives.— dea-th, tru-tJt, weal-th, fil-tlt, til-th {tillage) or {tilled,
ground), ki-th (as in the phrase kith and kin).
2. Adjectives. — The syllables -cou-th in the compound word
uncou-th. This word originally means unhnoivn, originating in
the word ken — to know.
Addition of TH (A. S. ^) as sounded in thine, — hiir-th-en
derived from hear.
Addition of the sound of the Z in zeal. — Verbs, cleanse {clenz)
from clean. In A. S. clan-s-ian.
Addition of the sound of K, — hill-ock.
Addition of the sound of the vowel E (as in feet), originating
in -ig, and spelt, in the present English, -y. — Of words like
hlood-y, craft-y, drear-y, might-y, mist-y, mood-y, merr-y,
worth-y, &c., the A. S. forms were bldd-ig, crceft-ig, dreor-ig,
might-lg, mist-ig, mod-ig, myr-ig, worth-ig, &c.
Addition of -ing, originally -ung — farth-ing (^), rid-ing, as
in the three Ridings of Yorkshire, a corruption from thrith'
ing, cleans-ing, dawn-ing, 'morn-ing. The fact that the i, in
these words, was originally u is of great importance ; as will be
seen when we come to the consideration of the verbal abstracts.
This is because, at the present moment, the syllable -ing is the
termination of the present participle ; so that (as far as the fo'rm
goes) daiun-ing may be one of two things. It may be either
the substantive daivii + the termination -ing, or the participle
of the verb dawn. Morn-ing, however, can scarcely come from
such a verb as morn. Meanwliile, cleansing is, to all appear-
ances, more readily derived from the verb cleanse than from
aught else. Cleaning, however, might be from either clean the
adjective, or from clean the verb. More will be said upon these
points in the sequel.
Addition of -kin. — lamb-kin {little lamb), mann-i-kin {little
man).
Addition of the syllable -ard. — drunk-ard, stink-ard.
Addition of the syllable -oUl. — thresh-old.
Addition of the syllable -em. — east-em, luest-ern, north-em,
south-em .
Addition of the syllable -ish. — chlld-ish, Engl-ish, self-ish,
478 DERIVATION.
%vhit-ish. The original form was -ish ; cild-isk (childish),
Engl-isc (Engl-ish), A. S,
Addition of the syllable -oiess. — good-ness, had-ness, wicked-
oiess, hrigJd-ness, dafk-ness, lueari-oiess, dreari-ness, &lc.
Change of the sound of a consonant — cZoth, clothe ; grass,
graze. In each of these pairs of words the former is a substan-
tive and the latter a verb.
Change of the sound of a voiuel. (a) Verbs — rise, raise :
lie, lay : fall, fell : sit, set. (b) Substantives — to2^, tip : cat, kit.
§ 447. In words like fishery and others, the analysis is
fish-er-y. In all such there are two derivational elements and
the result is a double derivative. Of the details more will ap-
pear in the sequel.
§ 448. It was stated that certain compounds take the form
of derivatives. It is now stated that certain derivatives may
take the form of compounds. _ Let a word contain two deriva-
tional elements and let the combination coincide with some word
actually in existence. That this is, by no means, impossible, is
shown by forms in l-ing : where I + i + tig gives us the name
of a fish (ling). In this case, however, there is no fear of error.
Every one knows that duck-ling is anything but the name of a
bird-fish ; anything but a ling of the duck kind. As far,
however, as its mere form is concerned, it might have been one.
What, however, if in words like utmost the m- be one deriva-
tional element, and the -ost another ? In such a case a deri-
vative would simulate a compound, to an extent that might
mislead. Whether such be really the case may be seen below.*
§ 449. For remarks upon Hybridism, see above. Of the
exceptionable forms that have a fair claim to be considered as
naturalized the most important are the following.
1. The French feminine termination -ess attached to English
roots. — To say duch-ess, or count-ess, is correct. To say shep-
herd-ess is common, though exceptionable. No one, however,
calls a female fox a fooc-ess.
2. When the -ess is preceded by -r-, the result is -ress. The
-r-, however, is no sign of gender. It is, itself, often preceded
])y -t-^ which is no sign of gender either. In the Latin word
genitor it is so preceded. The -t-, however, is non-radical ; so
that the analysis is geni-t-or r:z producer =. father ; wherein the
Chapter on tlie Superlative Degree.
HYBRIDISM. 479
-r- denotes agency, and the -t- in geni-t-us — wanting in genui,
genus, &c. These words in -t-or (observe the vowel o) form a
natui-al class. They belong to the same declension, and they
have a corresponding feminine in -ix; e, g. geni-t-or, .father ;
geni-t-rix, mother. The oblique cases of genitrix are geni-tricis,
geni-trici, gem-tricem, geni-trice. They give, in the French,
-trice; corresponding with the masculine form in -eur (^zzor).
Hence — Latin, actor, actrix ; French, acteur, actrice ; English,
actor, actress. In all these cases the vowel is o. Hence, the -r
in raaster, though preceded by -t-, is not in the same category
with the -r in actor. The Latin is magister ; Genitive,
magistri ; in French it is maitre ; in the Feminine, maUresse.
The word, however, is an exceptional one ; and, for practical
purposes, the combination -tr- may be -treated as accidental.
The main fact connected with the words in -tress, is that their
analysis is -t-r-ess, their origin in -tr'icis, -tricein, &c. in words
like genitrices, &c., and their masculine -tor — tor- with an o, as
auctor, actor ; which in French becomes eu — auteur, acteur.
But the -r-, as a sign of agency, is English as well as Latin.
However, the English termination is -er — never -or. We say
fact-or rather than fact-er ; but bak-er rather than haJc-or.
The root is a verb. It is a verb, even where it looks most
like a noun ; as in harp-er, hatt-er, glov-er, where harp, hat, and
glove=^play on harp, make hats, make gloves. It is a verb and
an English verb. Let, however, the verb in question be of
foreign origin, yet treated as if it were English. In this case
we get words like governor, which are neither English nor
French.
Hybridism, and the inaccuracies of spelling to which it leads,
are the chief points that command our attention with Feminines
in -ess, and their corresponding Masculines. The minor details
are of less importance.
§ 450. Duch-ess, count-ess, havon-ess, peer-ess, poet-ess, lion-
ess.— Here -ess is attached, at once, to the main word, and the
idea is that of a state, or condition, rather than action.
Empress. — Here one of the rs in Emper-or is omitted. Em-
peror itself, however, is an anomalous word. The Latin is Im^pe-
rator. Has the -t been lost ? Or is the word an improper for-
mation from empire ? This is a point of French, rather than
English, philology. Meanwhile, Imperatrice is direct from
Im2Jeratrix.
§ 4.51. The masculine, in respect to form, is not always the
•iSO HYBEIDISM.
correlative of tbe Feminine — thus Marquis will not give Mar-
chioness, whieli comes from the Low Latin Marchio.
§ 452. In seain-st)'-css and song-str-css we find instances of
hybridism, and something more. At present, however, it is
enough to say that they are treated according to the analogy of
Tnuster and mistress.
§ 453. Individually, I consider that hybridism is a malum
per se, and that it ought to be discouraged ; though, at the
same time, I must admit that it is, sometimes, all but necessary ;
and also that some hybrids are better than others. When this
is the case there is generally some combination of sounds which
makes the word look more unilingual than it really is. In wit-
ticism (for instance) we have so close a parallel to criticism that
the same analogy a'ppears to apply to both. The classical scholar
knows that it does not. He also knows that w is an impossible
initial in a Greek word. Still, the word is better than many
others. Again, let an English Verb end in -t. Let -er be added.
Let a Feminine in -ess be required. The result will be a regular
form in -tress. Hence, such a word as waitress (though begin-
ning with w) is better than foxess, or sheepess.
§ 454. Add -et to lance, and the result is lanc-et=smaU
lance — a legitimate form, because both the root and the affix
are French. Add -et to sword, and the result (sword-et=^little
sifjord), is a specimen of hybridity. Still there are many of these
hj'brid words which keep their ground, especially when the -et
is preceded by I, as in streamlet.
Words like penetra-hle and penetra-hility are not only possible,
but actual Latin words. So are j^ossihle and possibility. So
are legible and legibility. But readable and bearable, with their
opposites, un-readable and un-bearable, are hybrid, and (to say
the least) exceptionable.
The terminations -ize, -ist, and -ism, are Greek, and in words
like ostracize and ostracism they find a fit and proper place.
In words of English origin they are exceptionable.
§ 455. Individually (to repeat what has been already stated),
I consider that hybridism is a malum per se. It is often diffi-
cult, however, to avoid it. Mau}^ scientific terms err in this
respect : exhibiting tlie heterogeneous juxta-position of more
than one language. Nor is this, in all cases, an accident. Oc-
casionally it occurs through inadvertency : occasionally, howevei',
it is defended. In a few cases it is the lesser of two evils. It
is least blameworthy in words like the ones just quoted ; words
HYBRIDISM.
481
ending in -ise. It would be difficult to dispense with such words
as moralize, civilize, and some others : however much the former
part may be Latin, and however much the latter part may be
Greek. Again — to words like botanic, where the -ic (like the
botan-) is Greek, we may add the Latin -al. As such a word
was possible in the Lower Empire, where such words as
TTpcoTovorapios were common, we may call these (after the fashion
of the architects) Byzantine formations. This, however, is only
naming our tools. The mixture remains the same. At the
same time one of the conditions required in the introduction of
new words is complied with. There exists a language in which
they are possible. Genei-ally, however, the actual occun^ence of
the whole word is impossible. Part comes from Language A :
part from Language B : whilst in Language C, they are tacked
together — sometimes (as in words like botanic-al-ly, with
additions.
§ 45G. A change of accent converts a Noun into a Verb.
Walker has referred this to the action of the Participle.
Substantive.
Verb.
Participle.
ATDstract
absti-act
abstracting
A'ccent
accent
accenting
A'ffix
affix
affixing
A'ugment
augment
augmenting
Colleague
colleague
coUeaguing
Compact
compact
compacting
Compound
compound
compounding
Compress
compress
compressing
Concrete
concrete
concreting
Conflict
conflict
conflicting
Conserve
conserve
conserving
Consort
consort
consorting
Contrast
contrast
contrasting
Converse
converse
conversing
Convert
convert
converting
Desei-t
desert
deserting
Descant
descant
descanting
Digest
digest
digesting
E'ssay
essay-
essajdng
E'xtract
extract
exti-acting
Ferment
ferment
fermenting
Frequent
frequent
frequenting
I'mport
import
importing
I'ncense
insense
insensing
I'nsult
insult
insulting
Cbject
object
objecting
Perfiune
perfume
perfuming
I I
4:82
Substantive.
DIMINUTIVES.
Vcrh.
Participle.
Pennit
pennit
permitting
Prefix
prefix
prefixing
Premise
premise
premising
Pi'esagc
presage
presaging
Present
present
presenting
Produce
produce
producing
Project
project
projecting
Protest
protest
protesting
Rebel
rebel
rebelling
Record
record
recording
Refuse
refuse
refusing
Subject
subject
subjecting
Survey
survey
surveying
Torment
torment
tonuenting
Transfer
transfer
transferring
Transport
transport
transporting
None of those words are of English origin.
CHAPTER III.
DIMINUTIVES.
§ 457. Taking the English and Scotch together, our Diminu-
tives are numerous. Taking the English alone they are few.
The first that come under notice are—
Forms in -ck. — Common in Scotch ; as lassocJc, laddock,
tvifock, playock (plaything), bittock, haddock, sillock (fry of the
coal fish), with many others. In English (a) current — hidlock,
hillock, buttock ; (h) archaic — 'paddock (toad) ; manimock,
(fragment) ; (c) provincial — emmock (emmet), dunnock (hedge-
sparroiv), ruddock (robin-ved-brcast).
Forms in -ick. — These are from the fuller forms in -ock ; as
laddick, lassick, riddick (ruddock), sillick (sillock), emmick
(emriiock).
To proceed : the older form of apricot is cdjricock. The
older form of brittle is brickie (from break). With these pre-
liminaries we may consider —
1. Emmet ■=. ant. Compare emmoc/v and emmick, hq given
above.
2. Oobbet — piece, mouth-full. In Scotch, gappock.
3. Mammet, same as mammock.
DLMINUTIVES. 4.83
4. Gimlet. — In Scotch, gemUck.
The evidence that the -t in these words represents -k is satis-
factory. Professor Key, from whose valuable paper the list
(along with numerous other details) is taken, adds crieJat, hornet,
limpet, locket, rtiallet, 'packet, pocket, siiypit, stnichet (fwm smock),
tippet, wevet (Somersetshire for 8pide7''s %veh), ballot, singot.
Here, however, the origin of the -t is uncertain. The local
term Jitchet -^polecat has a better claim, inasmuch as there is
another form Jitcheiu, in which the origin of the to out of a k is
nearly certain. Brisket and onaggot are transpositions from
bristeck (from breast), and the A. S. ma'Su where a k or g pre-
cedes (as in smock).
Form in -ing. — lorcVing, bird-ing.
§ 458. Foron in -ie. — Scotch — ivijie, daddie, lassie, lambie,
boatie. English — daddy, baby.
Double Derivcdives. — Forms of which the basis is k:
K + ie. — Scotch — Lassockie, lassickie, ivifockie.
K + in. — This gives us the termination -kin, the commonest
of our Diminutives, though by no means general. The follow-
ing list is from a paper on English Diminutives in the Philo-
logical Museum (vol. i. pp. G 79 -686). Mannikin, Ictmbkin,
pipkin (zzlittle pipe). Ger-kin is from the root of gourd
rather than fi'om gourd itself; German, gurke ; Norse, gurka.
Jerkin r:z frock. In Dutch jurk.
Pumykin. — Dutch, pomp. Obsolete in English.
G}7*s/^in = Little pig. Gris ov grice. Obsolete.
Bumpkin. — Root b-m ; Dutch booin ■==. tree, beam ; in German
baum-zztree ; in English beatn (generally = the ^r«6.§, but pre-
served in \\ovn-beam, with the power of arbor). The notion of
woodiness, connected with stupidity, or extreme simplicity, is
shown in the word blockhead.
Fvrhin z=. L ittle fourth = Latin quadrantulus.
Lastly, we have in lad-i-k-in, mann-i-k-in, the combination
i + k-\- n.
§ 459. Form luith-l +ing. — Bant-l-ing, dar-l-ing, chitter-
l-ing, duck-l-ing, first-l-ing, fond-l-ing, found-l-ing, kit-l-ing,
nest-l-ing, star-l-ing {stare), sap-l-ing, seed-l-ing, strip-l-ing,
suck-l-ing, wit-l-ing, year-l-ing, and a few others. In change-
l-ing and nurse-l-ing, the root is other than English. In hire-
l-ing, lord-l-ing, and wit-l-ing, the idea of diminution is accom-
panied by that of contempt.
Form in I + ock. — In Professor Key's list I find, from Jamie-
I I 2
484 DIMINUTIVES.
son, and (assucli) Scotcli — hump-l-ork — a small heaj), Jcnuh-l-ocl-
= a little Jnioh.
The comhination let = l + et. — Here the -I- is German — com-
inon in the Swiss and Bavarian forms of speech — whilst the
-t- is either English or French, as the case may be. When
English, it is -t in emmet; i. e. a ^ = k ; when French, the -t in
lancet. When the latter, it gives us an instance of hybridism.
In gim-let the affix seems to be English. In ham-let, stream-let,
and ring-let, it is, probably, French.
§ 460. The comhination rel=r + el. The analysis of
cochrel {cockerel) dixxd. pickerel is cock-er-el and pick-er-el ; but as
the words cocker and inker have no independent existence, it is
an unsatisfactory one. The nearest approach to a Diminutive of
the kind in fresJier = young frog, the A. S. and O. E. forms for
frog having been frox and frosh = German frosch.
§ 461. Form in -I. — The substantives of this class fall into
two sections.
a. Words which, though substantival in meaning, may be
verbs in origin, in which case the I is the I in dribh-le, trick-le,
«Scc. Sparkle, speckle; we can say either it sparkles, or a
sparkle : the speckled hen, or the hen with speckles. Perhaps,
prickle is in the same category ; though it more probably
belongs to the next section.
6. Words which are in origin, as well as in import. Sub-
stantives— spittle, girdle {girth), nozzle {nose), thimble, throstle
{thumb), griddle {grid-iron), gristle, kantle (small corner, from
kant = corner), hurdle (Dutch horde, German hurde, English,
used by builders, hording), knuckle (German, knock = bone),
stubble, kernel { = little corn).
Soareznn deer in its third year; sorr- el =: one in its
second.
Tiercel. — A small hawk, from tierce.
In the last edition of the present work, after noticing the
forms (like trumpet, lancet, and pjocket) in -tt, and after remark-
ing that they are of French origin ; after noticing, too, certain
German diminutives (like origile zz little eye, liedel = little song) ;
and, finally, after bringing forward the word stream-let, I
state, that " the termination let, as in that w^ord, seems to
be double, and to consist of the Gothic diminutive -I, and the
French diminutive -t." — English Language. Fourth Edition,
vol. ii. p. 147. Instead of Gothic, I would now write Ger-
man.
AUGMENTATIVES. 485
An elaborate paper of Mr. Herbert Coleridge in the Transac-
tions of the Philological Society, A.D. 1857, On Dindnutives in
" Let," has induced me to reconsider this statement.
After remarking that the number of substantives ending in
let amounts to between seventy and eighty, Mr. Coleridge pro-
ceeds to the analysis of them ; throwing them into three groups.
1. Words where the I is part of the root.
2. Those where it is the French -let.
.3. Those where it is really I + t, as in stream-let.
It is only the last which have been considered here.
CHAPTER IV.
AUGMENTATIVES.
§462. The nearest approach to an Augmentative in the Ger-
man languages is to be found in certain words in -art or -ard ;
as drunkard, stink-ard, lag-gard, coiv-ard, and hragg-art.
In tuiz-ard {witchard) superiority of size is made the dis-
tinctive character of the male, as opposed to the female, im-
postor : and wizard, like gander, is a word where the mascu-
line form is fuller than the feminine ; the general rule being that
words like duch-ess, ijeer-ess, &c., are derived from duke, peer,
&LC. The dealers, however, in witchcraft w^ere chiefly women.
Bastard is not a word of this class ; but one from a wholly
different source.
Reynard = fox is from the proper name Ruinhart, Reynold^
or Rinaldo.
Buzzard = the Latin but-eo,shows that the -ard is non-radical.
But- is, apparently, the _2:>'K/-, in initt-ock, another name of the
Buteo.
" Or find the partridge in the j)uttock's nest."
§ 463. Siveetheart with a single accent, and that on the first
syllable, is one thing. Stveet heart with two accents at par is
another. The difference between two separate words and a
single word made up of tivo has been shown elsewhere ; and
the only question that now remains is whether sweetheart be an
ordinary compound, or a derivative, like upmost and others, i. e.
a derivative wearing the garb of a compound. It may be either.
486 AUGMENTATIVES.
It may =^heai't -r sicecty just as bldci- hi nl=hinl + black, or it
msi,y=sweet + art (as in hra<jijart). In favour of this view is the
German lichhart, a word with the same meaning. In the Loiu-
German, tliis would be a possible compound ; inasmuch as, in
Zoic -Germ an, hart=heart. In High-Gevmai], however, the word
is ho'Z — and herz can scarcely give such a compound as lieh-
liart.
There is another word of this sort which requires notice : i. e.
true-love. Adjective for adjective, true is as likely to precede
the substantive love, as faithful, charming, &c., or any other
word. Moore might as easily have written —
Then fare thee well, mine own true love —
as
Then fare thee well, mine own dear love,
though he did not. True love, then, like black bird, is a pair of
words. But true-love (as in truelove's knot) is a compound. Of
what ? Perhaps of love preceded by true ; in which case it is a
Avord like blackbird. Perhaps of something else. In Danish,
trolove=to betroth, and troloved=a, betrothed or evgaged person.
Meanwhile lov = law, and has nothing to do with the tender
passion. Upon this Mr. Laiug, in his well-known work upon
Norway, remarks that the words have no origin in the affections,
and that " a man may be a true love to his bond of ten pounds,
as well as to his sweetheart." He goes further, and holds that
the word love itself ==amo has the same legal character : in which,
however, he is wrong — as may be seen from the German liebe,
and the Latin lub-et. Laying this, however, out of the ques-
tion, it is clear that, if the first part of this doctrine be right,
we have, in truelove, not only a curious derivative, but a word
of Scandinavian origin. And such I once believed it to be.
Where, however, is the evidence of its meaning an engaged 'per-
son in English ? Until this be adduced it is better to suspend
judgment.
CHAPTER V.
PATRONYMICS AND GENTILE NAMES.
§ 464. In Anglo-Saxon the termination -ing is as truly patro-
nymic as -thrjs is in Greek. In the Bible-translation the son
of Elisha is called Elising. In tlie Anglo-Saxon Chronicle occur
PATRONYMICS AND GENTILE NAMES.
487
sucli genealogies as the following : — Ida tvces Eo^yping, Eoppa
Es'uuj, Esa Inging, Inga Angenwiting, Angenvnt Alocing, Aloe
Beonocing, Beonoc Branding, Brand Boildceging, Boildceg W6-
dening, Woden Fri^owuJfing, Fri^otvulf Finning, Finn God-
vndfing, GodwuJf Geating =Idn was the son of Eoppa, Eoppa
of Esa, Esa of Inga, Inga of Angenwit, Angenwit of Aloe, Aloe
of Beonoc, Beonoc of Brand, Brand of Bseldag, Beeldag of
Woden, Woden of Fri^owulf, FriSowulf of Finn, Finn of God-
wulf, Godwulf of Geat. — In Greek, this would be ""iSa ^v
KoTTTreiSr/s, EiOTnra HcrecSrjs, Haa ' lyyeiSrjs, lyya ^ Kyyev-
^ireiSijs, &c. In like manner, Edgar Atheling means Edgar of
the family of the nobles.
The plurals of these forms in -ing have commanded attention
from their prominence in the Anglo-Saxon charters, as the names
of places. Through the Codex Diplomaticvs we learn that the
following districts (along with many others) of which the names
now end in the simple singular sjdlable ing, originally, ended in
the 'plural form -ing-as. Thus —
Barking
in
Essex
was
Bercingrts.
Bocldng
—
Essex
—
Boccingas.
DitcliHng
—
Sussex
—
Dicelingrt*
Docking
—
Norfolk
—
Docciagas.
Mallhig
—
Kent
—
MaUingrts
Reading
—
Berks
—
Readingas.
Tan-ing
—
Sussex
—
Terringas.
These, with others, are (as has been stated) names which
actually occur in A. S. documents. In the following, the forms
in as are inferred from the present names.
Balking in Essex from a
hypotlietical
Balcingas.
BarHng
- Essex
—
Beorling«s.
Banning
Kent
—
Beoi-mingrts
Basiug
Hants
—
Basingfls.
Belting -
Kent
—
Belting^s.
Billing
Norths, &c.
—
BOhugas.
Birling
— Northumberland
—
Biiiingc/5.
BracUng
Hants
—
Bradingr/s.
and so on throughout the alphabet. In a few cases, however,
the as, in the form s, is retained at the present time, e. g. : — ^
Bai'Hngs
Bealings
Hastuigs
Lillingg
Lmcolnslm-e.
Suffolk.
Sussex.
Yorksliire.
488
FORMS IN -ING.
Can these i)lurals, real and h3'[)otl]etical, be the names of men
and women who occupied certain districts rather than the names
of the districts themselves? Yes. The nature of the word
Wales* may be seen above ; but it is only one word out of
many, the transfer of the name of the inhabitants to the land
inhabited being common both in A. S. and Old English. Again,
in Lithuanic —
Szvedcii, Swedes from Szvedas, a Swede = Sweden.
]^"usai, Prussians — Priisas, a Prussian = Prussia.
Leuliai, Poles — Lenkas, a Pole = Poland.
In Cormvall the form is singular ; as is also the simple form
in the following passage : —
" pis ti);ing com liim how Waie him betrayed
perfor is Gascoyn left and er at werre delayed."
PiOBEET OF BOUIINE, 2(J3.
The older name for England is Engle=^Angli, rather than
A nglia.
" The Denes adde the majstre, tho al was ydo,
And by Est Angle and Ljoideseye hii wende vorj^ atte laste,
And so hamward al by Kent and slow and barnde vaste."
Robert of Gloucesteb, 160.
To proceed. "Norfolk and Suffolk are the people (folk) of tlie
North and South, the use of f-lk as the part of a local name
being particularlyc ommon in the Norse.
Sus-sCtS, and 'Ess-ex are the South Saxons, and the East
Saxons rather than South, or East, Saxony.
Somerset, and IDor-set are words of the same kind ; meaning
Sonier-settlers and Dor-settlers — the A. S. form havinof been
sceta=^incola, with a plural both in -as and -an. In the
Codex Diplomaticus we have —
Beonots«ton
in
Worcestershire
Brads<?^an
—
ditto
Giimsetim
—
ditto
Incsetan
—
ditto
Mosetan* in Worcester sim-e.
Wreocenseian — Slu'opsliii'e.
Cradgsetaji — Kent.
CriuW^an — Wilts.
§ 465, The total number of different names, either real or
inferred, which end in -ing, is, as Mr. Kemble writes, 027 ; but,
* Our wall-nuts liare nothing to do with wcdh. They &re foreign nuts; Welsh nuts,
or nuccs (kdlicce.
FORMS IN -IXO.
489
as several of them are repeated in different counties, the sum
total amount to 1329, distributed thus: —
Yorkshire .
127
Berks .
22
NorfoUi
97
Nottingham
22
Liucolnsliire
76
Cambridge .
21
Sussex
68
Dorset
21
Kent .
60
Stafford .
19
Suffolk
56
Dui'ham
19
Nortliumberlanil
48
Leicester .
19
Essex .
48
Surrey
18
Gloster
46
Bucks
17
Somerset .
45
Hunts
16
Northampton
35
Derby
14
Salop .
34
Worcester .
13
Hants
33
Middlesex .
12
Warwick .
31
Hertford .
10
Oxford
31
Cumberland
6
Lancasliire
26
Rutland
4
Wills .
25
Westmoreland
2
Cheshire
25
Comwall .
2
Devon
24
Moimiouth .
0
Bedford
22
'
§ 466. In respect to the names like Tarring, &c., which
stand alone, or without the additions of -luic, -ham, -ivorth,
-borough, and the like, their distribution is as follows : —
Kent .
25
Norfolk
24
Sussex
24
Essex
21
Suffolk
15
York .
13
Lincoln
7
Southampton
6
Berks .
5
Surrey
5
Beds .
4
Norths
4
Lancashire .
4
Middlesex .
4
Herts
3
Hunts
Northumberland
Notts .
Cambridge
Derby
Dorset
Gloucester
Oxon .
Bucks
Devon
Salop .
Leicester
. Somerset
Warwick
Wilts .
§ 467. Supposing these words to be declined like cyning=,
Icing, their possessive case would be, in the singular number,
{say) Malling-es, in the plural, Malling-a. If so, the town of
Mailing, or, of a Mailing would be Mallingestun ; the town of
Ihe Mailings being Mallingatun. But what would Mallingtun
■too FORMS IN -lyo.
be ? This question is anytln'ng but unimportant. In the
Coilex DiplnnuttirHs (No. 1 79), Mr Kcniblo finds an yE'Sel-
ivuJjing huul ; also (No. 195) a Folciuin'm<j hnid ; also (^ibld.),
a Wi/)ih('(()'(li ii(f 1(1)1(1 ; upon which he remarks that this means
the land of an ^Efliclwulf, a Folwine, and a Wynhcanl ; rather
than that of a family called yEtlu-lwulfii^gs, a family called
FoU v:inlu(j>i, or a famil}^ called Wi/nhedrdings. From this, he
argues that the termination -Ing is, by no means, sufficient, in
all cases, to make a patronymic, but that, on the contrary, it
sometimes denotes a genitive, or possessive, case — JEthelwuJjing
hind being exactly equivalent to yEtJiehvuIfes land. In like
manner Woolbedington, Wool Lavington, and Barlavington are,
respectively, Wulfba'dlngtun, Wu{tiajingtun, arid Beorlcflngtun,
or the towns (tunas) of Wulfbsed, Wulflaf, and Beorlaf. —
See Saxons in England, vol. i. p. GO, note.
The view that -ing is virtually a genitive case, is further de-
veloped in a paper by the same author in the Philological Trans-
actions (vol. iv.). Objected to by Mr. Watts, who holds that
the form is adjectival rather than genitive, this view has been
endorsed by Professor Key.
§ 468. The notion that -ing is the sign of a genitive case in
the way that -s is, I hold to be untenable ; and I doubt whether
the author meant to say that it was so. Wallis calls all our
forms in -s Adjectives, on the strength of the import of a good
hat and a man's hat, being, as far as the relations of good and
tnan's to hat are concerned, the same. Yet, he would never
have said that man's was in the same category with bonus, or
bonus in the same category as hominis, except in a very general
way. That the ideas expressed by the words patronymic and
genitive are allied no one doubts — and, it seems to me, that
Mr. Kemble meant little more than this. Without laying
undue stress upon the paucity of examples, and arguing that a
final -a, the sign of the genitive plural, may have been omitted
by either the speaker or the copyist, we may fairly say that the
power under notice is exceptional. If so, all that can be said
is, that in a few instances such words as ^thelwidfing loAidzz
either terra jEthelwulJii, or terra yEthelwuJfiana. For making
the forms exclusively genitive, I see as few reasons as I see for
making them exclusively adjectival. They are neither one nor
the other exactly ; any more than P'riam^ides is exactly either
Priami or Priameius.
§ 469. So much for the purely etymological question. The
ABSTRACT SUBSTANTIVES. 491
historical aspect of the question is, at least, of equal interest.
If phrases like Widjidjiugtmizz Wulfiuf's totvn, we have a great
number of large places founded b}^ single individuals. I do not
say that such is not the case. In many cases — especially in
the Danish parts of England — the undeniable sign of the genitive
case (-s) comes between a personal proper name and a local
common one, e. g. in Ingoldshy, OrmsJcirk, &5G.zzl7igi<illd's
toivn, Orms Church, &c. Upon the whole, however, I flavour
the inference suggested by the numerous plural forms in -ingns,
and believe that the ordinary Patronymic power is the one
whicli best suits the form. The question, however, is far too
complicated for a work like the present.
CHAPTEE VI.
ABSTRACTS. FORMS IN -TH. FORMS IN -NESS
§ 470. Abstracts are of two kinds : («) Determinate, and (6)
Indeterminate
§ 471. The Determinate Abstracts denote qualities to the ex-
clusion of their opposites. They fall into two divisions; in the
first of which the Adjective is simple ; in the second of which it
is either Derivative or Compound.
Adjective Simiile. — Words like long, broad, high, deep,
strong, hot, to which short, narroiv, loiv, shallotu, weak, cold
stand in contrast, run in pairs, as — high, low; broad, nan'ow,
&c. In these each adjective can take the termination -ness ; in
other words, we can say both long-ness and short-ness, broad-
ness and narrow-ness, high-ness and low-ness, deep-ness and
shallow-ness, strong-ness and weaJc-ness, hot-ness and cold-ness —
at least, good authorities have done so. At the same time, it is
clear that there is a difference ; this difference being in favour of
the more negative term of the two. Thus : —
Short-ness is commoner than Longness.
Narrow-ness — — Broadness.
Low-ness — — High-ness.
Shallow-ncss — — Decp-ncss.
Wcak-ncss — — Strong-ness.
Cokl-ness — — Hot-ncss.
If there be any exception to this statement it lies with the
492 ABSTRACT SUBSTANTIVES.
word highness, which is, pcrliaps, coiiimoner than lo^vness. It
should, however, be remembered that it has two meanings —
being used as a title of honour, as your Royal Highness. On
the other hand, Io)>gness and strongness are words which a very
fastidious writer would hesitate about using. And, unless he
gave them their right meaning, he would do well in abstaining
from them.
Second division. — Adjective DeHved (a) Derivative element
-ij — Hiqjpi-ness, un-happiness, naughti-ness.
(b) Derivative element ~ish — slugg-ish-ness, ijeev-ish-ness.
(c) Participial forms in -ed — content-ed-ness.
§ 472. Adjective Compound. — (c) Words in -ly = lih'c
ivorld-li-nesSf rtian-li-ii ess .
(b) Words in -fid — truth-fuUness.
(c) Words in -less — ridh-less-ness, care-less-ness.
§ 473. The Indeterminate Abstracts denote qualities, but
ivithout excluding their opposites. Thus, we may talk of the
length of a very short tvalk — the height of a loiu chair — the
depjth of a shallow stream, and the like. In all these cases we
merely mean that the ^vaIk, the chair, and the tvater have a cer-
tain amount of extension in a certain direction. Whether this
be little or much is another matter. We mention it generally.
If we wished to draw attention to the fact of the three qualities
being beloiu the average we should say short-ness, loiv-ness, and
shalloiu-ness.
§ 474. The Indeterminate Abstracts, in the t^^ical form, are
formed from Adjectives by the addition of -th. As this, how-
ever, is a simple consonant, it creates no new syllable. As it
attaches itself directly to the Adjective (the Adjective itself
generally ending in a consonant) it creates some slight euphonic
modifications. Thus : —
In strong and long the vowel changes, after the manner of
the 0 in old and elder, and the result is streng-th, leng-th.
So it does in broad, giving bread-th. Here the affinity
between the sounds of -d and -th give us a near approach of
a true reduplication of a consonant.
In heighth, the power of the h is often overlooked, and the
word is sounded height.
In dei^th the opposite often occurs, and many say defth, on the
principle that, in the Greek langaiage, gives us such forms as
TV(})Oeis.
With the forms in -th, the phenomenon of § 471 is reversed,
FORMS IN -ER. 493
and words like short-th, narrotv-th, loss-th, cold-th, are either
rare or non-existent : in other words, the negative terms take
the form in -ness.
CHAPTER VII.
ON CERTAIN FORMS IN -ER. DEGREES OF COMPARISON.
DEFECT AND COMPLEilENT.
§ 475. Preparatory to the consideration of the degrees of com-
])arison, we must attend to certain phenomena connected with the
forms in -er ; an ending which is common to (1) certain pro-
noims, as ei-fh-er, n-ei-th-er, whe-th-er, o-th-er ; (2) certain pre-
positions and adverbs, as ov-er, und-er, af-t-er ; (3) adjectives of
the comparative degree ; astvis-er, strong-er, hett-er, &c. ; (4) ad-
jectives, wdth the form of the comparative, but the power of the
positive degree ; as upp-er, und-er, inn-er, out-er, Jdnd-er. What
is the idea common to all these words ? Bopp, who has best
generalized the view of the form, considers the fundamental idea
to be that of duality. In the comparative degree we have a
relation between one object and some other object like it, or a
relation between two single elements of comparison : as ^ is
vjbser than B. In the superlative degree we have a relation
between one object and all others like it^ or a relation between
one single and one complex element of comparison : A is wiser
than B, C, D, &c. Over and above, however, the idea of simple
comparison, there is that of (1) contrariety ; as in inner, outer,
under, upper, over ; and (2) choice in the way of an alterna-
tive; as either, neither, other, and whether, a word which, as a
pronoun, is nearly obsolete. No one at present says vjhether of
the two tuill you have, or whether of the two is this ? but, on
the contrary, which of the two, &c. In Lithuanic, the converse
takes place, and ivhcther (at least its equivalent katras) applies
to more than two, e. g. : —
Trfs bernyczei szeno piove ;
Katras bi'isit mnuo m<;las?
Katras plauksit vainikelio ?
i. e. Three yomig men mow hay ;
Whether {whieh] will be my love ?
Whether (irhieh) will swim for tlie MTeath?
494 COMPARATIVE DEGREE.
The word, as is suggested by this quotation, is an old one ;
being the Latin uter {c-utei\ ^y\\q\icq n-euter = n-eitheT) and the
Greek Korepos ( = irorepos).
The notice of the extent to wliich the notion of comparison is
connected with that of duality is not the only preliminary to
the consideration of what are called the positive, comparative,
and superlative degrees of adjectives and adverbs. A distinc-
tion, important elsewhere, is pre-eminently important here.
This is the distinction between a sequence in logic and a
sequence in etymology. The ideas or notions of thou, thy, thee,
are ideas between which there is a metaphysical or logical con-
nection. The train of such ideas may be said to form a
sequence, and such a sequence may be called a logical one. The
forms thou, thy, thee, are forms or words between which there is
a formal or an etymological connection. A train of such words
may be called a sequence, and such a sequence may be called an
etymological one. In the case of thoiL, thy, thee, the etymologi-
cal sequence tallies with the logical one. In the case of /, my,
me, the etymological sequence does not tally (or tallies imper-
fectly) with the logical one. Applying this to words like good,
better, &c., we see at once, that, whilst some are deficient in their
Comparative and Superlative, others are deficient in their Posi-
tive, forms. The defective character, however, of this class of
words is not all. It must be remarked that the forms which
one word wants are made good by those which another possesses.
Hence, there is not only defect, but what may be called comple-
ment, also. The word good fills up what was wanting to the
forms better and best.
That the phenomena of defect and complement will meet us
again when we reach the pronouns is suggested by the example
just given. It will meet us elsewhere besides. It will meet us
most especially amongst the verbs.
§ 476. Formation of the Comjoaratlve Degree. — Details. —
The comparative is formed from the positive by adding -er ;
as cold, rich, dry — cold-er, rich-er, dry-er. This -r was origi-
nally -s.
§ 477. In worse we may suppose tliat there is a remnant of
this : the Mceso-Gothic form being vdirsiza ; in Old High-Ger-
man, vjirsiro ; Middle High-German, wirser ; Old Saxon, tvir-
so ; Anglo-Saxon, vyrsa ; Old Norse, vern ; Danish, vaerre ;
and Swedish, vdrre.
Near, nearer. — A. S. neah ; comparative, nearre, neo.r, nyr ;
\
SUPERLATIVE DEGREE. 495
superlative, oiyJist, nehst. Observe, the absence of the -r. This
shows that the English positive near is the Anglo-Saxon com-
parative nearre, and that in the secondary comparative nearer,
we have an excess of expression. In the vulgarism hetterer for
better, and in the antiquated forms worser for ivorse, and lesser
for less, we have an excess of expression. In the Old High-
German we have the forms betseroro, meroro, ererera = better,
more, ere. It may be, however, that the r in near is a mere
point of orthography, and that it is not pronounced ; just as
father and farther are, for the most part, pronounced alike.
Farther. — Anglo-Saxon, feor, fyrre, fyrrest. The th seems
euphonic, inserted by the same process that gives the h in av-
Spos.
Further. — Confounded with farther, although in reality from
a different word, fore. Old High-German, furdir ; New High-
German, der vordere ; Anglo-Saxon, fyr'&re.
CHAPTER VIII.
FORMATION OF THE SUPERLATIVE DEGREE. DETAILS.
§ 478. The superlative degree is formed from the positive by
the addition of the syllable -est ; as dark, dark-est ; cold, cold-
est ; rich, rich-est ; dry, dry-est ; loiv, low-est
§ 479. But it may also be formed from the comparative by
changing the r of the comparative into s, and adding t ; as
dark'Cr, dark-es, dark-es-t ; cold-er, cold-es, cold-es-t ; rich-er,
rich-es, rich-es-t ; dry-er, dry-es, dry-es-t j low-er, low-es, lovj-
es-t.
To understand the reason why this complex and apparently
unnecessary process has been noticed, we must remember what
has been said concerning the Moeso-Gothic language, and the
extent to which it preserves the older forms of the Gothic in-
flections ; and, also, that the Moeso-Gothic Comparative was not
formed in r, but in s. Ald-iza, bat-iza, sut-iza, w^ere the ori-
ginal forms of what became in Old High-German alt-iro, bets-iro,
suat'Siro, and in English, old-er, bett-er, siveet-er. This is one
fact. Another is, that luhilst many languages have a Compa-
rative without a Superlative degree, few or none have a Super-
lative without a Comparative. Hence, in the case of a Super-
4S)6
SUPERLATIVE DEGREE.
lative ill -st, two views may be taken. According to the one, it
is the Positive Avith the addition of st ; according to the other,
it is the old Comparative in -s, with tlie addition only of t.
Now, Grimm, and others, lay down as a rule, that the Superla-
lative is formed, not directly from the Positive, but indirectly
tlirough the Comparative.
§ iSO. With the exception of ivorse and less, all the English
Comparatives end in r ; yet no Superlative ends in H, the form
being, not ivise, wiser, wisert, but wise, tviser, luisest. This
fact, without invalidating the notion just laid down, gives ad-
ditional importance to the Comparative forms in s ; since it is
from these, before they changed to r, that we must suppose the
Superlatives to have been derived. This theory being admitted,
we can, by approximation, determine the date of the Superlative
degree. It was introduced into the languages allied to the
English, after the establishment of the Comparative and before
the change of s into r.
§ 481. Of the English superlatives, the ones that demand a
detailed examination, are those that are generally despatched
"udthout difficulty, viz. the words in most, such as midmost, fore-
most, Szc. The current view is that they are compound words,
formed from simple ones, by the addition of the superlative term
Qiiost. Grimm's view is opposed to this. In appreciating this,
we must bear in mind the phenomena of excess of ex'pression ;
at the same time we must not depart from the current theory
without duly considering that we have in Icelandic the forms
nairmeiT, fjoermeir, <&:c. nearer and farther, most unequivocally
compounded of near + unore and of far + more. The A. S.
gives us the following forms : —
Anrjlo- Saxon.
English.
Anijlo-Saxnu.
EnfjUsh.
innema
inmost
forma
foremost
utema
outmost
feftema
aftermost
sicSema
latest
ufema
utmost
Ise tenia
latest
luudeina
liiudmost
ni<5eraa
nethermost
midema
midmost.
Besides these, there are in the other allied languages, words
like fruma, = first, aftuma = last, iniduma = ')iiiddle. These
words show at once, that, as far as they are concerned, the m
which appears in the last syllable of each has nothing to do with
the word inost. On the contrary, there was formed, in Ano-lo-
Saxon, a regular superlative from them by the addition of st ;
COMPAlilSON OF ADVERBS. 497
as a'fte-tn-est, fyr-on-est, Uete-m-est, si'S-rn-est, yfe-ni-est, ute-m-
est. And, hence, in the present English, the different parts of
the syllable most (in words like upTnost), come from difierent
quarters. The on is the m in the Anglo-Saxon words innema,
&,c. ; whilst the -st is the common sign of the superlative. In
sej)arating, then, such words as 'midmost into its component
pai'ts, we should write —
mid-m-ost uot mid-most fore-m-ost not fore-most,
ut-m-ost — ut-most in-m-ost — in-most,
up-m-ost — ui3-most hind-m-ost — hind-most.
In certain words the syllable m-ost is added to a word
already ending in er ; that is, to a word already marked witli
the sign of the comparative degree.
ne-ther-most liin-dei'-most.
utt-er-most out-er-most.
upp-er-most iiin-er-most.
Here, the addition is most^ as a simple word ; and the result
is a Compound — not a Derivative.
Having accounted for the w in the words just mentioned, we
can account for the in in the word forTner. The superlative was
forma; and former was a comparative, catachrestically, derived
fi'om it.
CHAPTER IX.
COMPAKISON OF ADVERBS.
§ 482. Adverbs, like adjectives, take degrees of comparison,
though not to the same extent. In tJie sun shines bright, the
word bright means brightly ; and although the use of the latter
word would have been the more elegant, the expression is not
ungrammatical.
The sun shines to-day brighter than it did yesterday, and
to-morrow it will shine brightest. — Here also the sense is ad-
verbial.
In words like oftener and seldomer the adverbial comparison
is beyond doubt.
§ 483. Adverbs, then, take the degrees of comparison : and
not only do they do this, but the history of their forms is im-
portant. In Anglo-Saxon there were tivo forms ; one in -re
K K
498
COMPARISON OF ADVERBS.
and 'Cstc, the other in -or and -ost. Now the first of these was
the form taken by adjectives ; as se scearpre sweord = the sharper
sword, and se scearpeste siveord=.the sharpest sword: the
second, the form taken by adverbs ; as, se sioeord scyr'6 scearpor
z=.the sword cuts sharper, and se sweord scyr^ scearjjostzzzthe
sli'ord cuts sharpest.
More than this — the adverbial form had a tendency to make
the preceding vowel full : the adjectival, a tendency to make it
small. Thus —
Positive.
Comparative.
Superlative.
Lang,
Lengre,
Lengest,
Long.
Strang,
Strengre,
Strengest,
Strong
Geoug,
Gj-ngi-e,
GjTigest,
Young.
Sceort,
Sc^-tre,
Scyrtest,
Short.
Heah,
Hp-re,
Hyhst,
High.
Eald,
YMre,
Yldest,
Old.
Of this change, the word last quoted is a still-existing speci-
men, as old, elder, and older, eldest, and oldest. A more im-
portant word is rather : in w»hich we pronounce the a like the
a in father, or full. Nevertheless, the i30sitive form is small, the
ct being pronounced as the a in fate, or small. The word itself
means quick, eas?/ = the classical root paS- in paSto*. What we
do quicJdy and iv'dlingly we do by preference. If the word
rather were an adjective, the vowel of the comparative would be
sounded as the a in fate. As it is, however, it is adverbial, and
as such is properly sounded full.
CHAPTER X.
THE ORDINALS.
§ 484. The Ordinals are derived from the Cardinals. There is,
however, no etymological connection between either one and
first, or tvjo and second. With the others the ordinal form is
either th or a modification of it. Thus —
Cardinal.
Thi-ee
Four
Five
Six
Eight
And so on.
Ordinal.
Thir-fZ.
FoiM-th.
Fi£-th.
Six-tk.
Bish-th.
THE ORDINAL NUMBERS. 499
{§ 485. Is tliere any connection between the Ordinals of"
Numerals and the Superlatives of Adjectives ? It is an un-
doubted fact that more than one form is common to certain
Superlatives, and to certain Ordinals. Thus the -iii- in for-vi-er,
of which the Anglo-Saxon is for-on-a, and which is, in Latin,
pri-m-us, and, in Lithuanic, pir-m-as, is, without doubt, the -m-
in infi-m-us, exti-in-us, &c. n: loivest, outermost, &c. ; all being
superlatives. It is also an undoubted fact that the -t- in sex-t-us
(sixth) is the -t- in irpw-T-os, and the -tim- in sep-tim-us, the
-thn- of ex-tion-us. It is impossible to see these coincidences
without admitting the possibility of such identifications. Those,
however, who see this are asked to see more. They are asked
to see, in the Greek form -rar- in ^ik-rar-os, an original -rafxr-
in which both the -t- and -{jl- once existed. They are then
asked to see, in a word like Trpco-r-os, a form in which -/x- is lost,
but the -T- preserved. They are tlien asked to see in ioifi-Tnus,
a form where the -t- is preserved, but without the -fx-.
§ 486. All this passes within the region of the Superlative
Degree, and without any hypothesis as to the affinity between
the ideas of Superlativity and Ordinality. But what if the
latter be superadded ? In this case, the Ordinals are dealt with
as Superlatives, and, mutatis 7)iutandis, the reasoning is
repeated. The -tim- in sep-tlm-us is the full, perfect, and
typical form ; the -t- m quar-t-us, the -t- miinus m-. The -vi-
in deci-rti'US is the -m- minus t-: all this within the compass
of one language. But this is not all ; the Latin for 7 is septem,
the Greek, eirra. The Norse for 7 is sjau. But, in the
English, in seve-n, the -n- (being the -m- of the ordinal) is
reflected back (so to say) on the cardinal. This may, or may
not, be the case. But there is more behind. The Greek for 1 0
is BeKa ; wherein, not only the -t- but the -m- is lost also ; as
may be seen frojn dec-em. But the English for 1 0 is ten ; in
Moeso-Gothic taihun. Here the -A- = -k- (in BeKo), and -c- (in
decern.); whilst the -?i- = -7n- in septi-tn-us = -m- in inji-m-us
= -m- in pTi-m-us^^-m- of the Superlative Degree =-m- of
ordinality — this -m- of ordinality being reflected on the Super-
lative. The same applies to seven and nine. The ^n- is not
radical, as is inferred from sjau, and evvea : and it is ordinal,
as is inferred from s&pti-m-us, and novi~m-us=nonus. All
this should be known, because it is found in the writings of
authoritative grammarians. But is it true ? I cannot say.
It explains so much that I am slow to believe it wholly wrong.
K K 2
500 THE ORDINAL NUMBERS.
At the same time the patent and ostensible argument in favour
of it is unsatisfactory. To treat first as the ordinal of Hvo, is
like treating / as the nominative of one. They are not only
two words but the names for two different ideas. First is a
superlative all the world over. It is at the most honourable
end of a series, or order ; and, as such, Ordinal. But this
order, in which it is so superlative, is not represented by one,
but by second, third, fourth, and so on. In respect to these it
is both ordinal and superlative. What it is to one is another
matter. It is certainly oiot its superlative.
To proceed. Compare second with two, and what is the
correlation? None. The true correlative to second is first;
and as second is from the Latin secundus, to which the root is
the sec- in seq-uor, the two together mean, there or thereabouts,
the 2^receding SLiid the following. If any degree of comparison
comes in here, it is the comjjarative ; and that this does come
in is shown in those languages which, like the Danish, use anden
r= other for second.
Notwithstanding all this, it is possible that, in words like
third, fourth, &c., some idea of superlativeness may exist,
though not to the extent to which it exists in first. When we
say the fifth, or the sixth, we use the definite article just as we
do when we say the best, or tJie rvorst. We also imply that a
number of objects is spoken about ; inasmuch as tlie fifth
implies the fourth, third, second and first which preceded it —
the highest number being at the head of the series. In this
there are the elements of ordinality of some kind. But is it
the ordinality that implies a cardinality ? Is it a correlation be-
tween fifth and five ? No. The ordinals, fi'om tivo, upwards,
are ordinal to each other, and not to their so-called cardinals.
CHAPTEE XI.
EXPRESSION OF DIFFERENCE OF SEX.
§ 487. The cliief affix by which the name of a male is con-
verted into that of a female, is, in German -in ; so that from
fi'eundzn friend we get freund- inn = female friend. It is a
termination which is not only German but Sarmatian also : the
Lithuanic giving
EXPRESSION OF DIFEEllENCE OF SEX.
501
Bajoras
Kiinigs
Kurpius
Avyiuis
A'silas
Gandras
nublemau
pavsou
shoemaker
mother's brother
ass
stork
bajor-eVte.
kunig-e nil.
kurpiuv-r/it'.
aYjn-cne {his tvife)
anTl-ene.
ganih-etie, &c., &c.
This being the case, its absence in English is remarkable.
The only word in which it is believed to exist at the present
moment is vlxen=. female fox zzf'dchsinn, German. I am, how-
ever, by no means certain that the word is not of recent intro-
duction. If so, it is in the same predicament as margraviii
and landgravin from marchgrave, and is merely a naturalized
German word. That the -ine in hero-me, from hero, has a
wholly different origin is manifest ; being from the Greek
rjpcoeivT}.
§ 488. Forms in -ster were o]"iginally the names of Females.
The old glossaries give us —
Textor
webba
1
Citharedus
hearpere
Textrix
webb('6-^re
'
Citharista
heav])estre.
•Cantor
sangere
(2
)
Fidicen
fi«elere
Cantrix
sangestre
Fidicina
fi\)elestre
Lector
rffidere
Sartor
seamere
Lectrix
i-33<Xistre
Sartix
seamestre.
(3.)
Hec pectrix,
a kemps(^>'
Hec siccatrix,
a dijgter
— textrix,
a -Webster
— palmaria,
a hrawdster
— pistrix.
a halter
— salinaria.
a salster
— pantloxatrix,
a hvewster
— aiixiatrix,
a hiik6<6'/-.
On the other hand, such entries as
Hie pistor, a hackstare \ Hie textor, a wehster
are very rare.
At present, however, spinster is the only representative of
what was originally a large class. The words songstress and
seamstress, besides being (as far as concerns the intermixture of
languages) in the predicament of shepherdess, have a double
Derivational element ; 1st, -str, of Germanic, 2nd, -ess, of
classical, origin.
§ 489. Goose, gander. — In the older forms of the word
goose, such as ')(r}v, Greek ; anser, Latin ; gans, German ; as
50^ EXPRESSION OF DIFFERENCE OF SEX.
well as ill the derived form gandei; we have the proofs that,
originally, there belonged to the word the sound of the letter n.
In the forms oBov$, oSovtos, Greek ; dens, dentis, Latin; zalin,
(rerman ; tootli^ English, wc find the analogy that accounts for
the ejection of the n, and the lengthening of the vowel pre-
ceding. With respect, however, to the d in gander, it is not
easy to say whether it is inserted in one word or omitted in the
other. Neither can we give the precise power of the -er. The
following forms occur in the different Gothic dialects : — Gans,
ganazzo, Old High-German — gos, f. ; gaiidra, 'tn., Anglo-
Saxon — gas, Icelandic, f. ; gaas, Danish, f ; gasi, Icelandic, m. ;
gasse, Danish, m. — ganser, ganserei; gansart, gander, and
gdnserich, in different New German dialects. From § 487 we
learn that the word under notice is Lithuanic for a stork.
§ 490. Brake. — The form gdnserich has just been quoted.
Tduberlch, in provincial German, has the same form and the
same power. It denotes a male—faube, in German, signifying
a dove. Of the termination -rik we have a remnant, in Eng-
lish, preserved in the curious word drake. To dAick the word
drake has no etymological relation whatsoever. It is connected
with a word with which it has but one letter in common ; viz.
the Latin a/iias=.a duck. Of this the root is anat-, as seen in
the genitive case anatis. In Old High-German we find the
form anetrekho=:a drake; in provincial New High-German
there is enterich, and dntrecJd, from whence come the English
and Low -German form drake.
§ 491. Peacock, pealien, bridegrooni.—- In these compounds
(as has abeady been stated), it is not the words loea and bride
that are rendered masculine or feminine by the addition of cock,
hen, and groom, but it is the words cock, hen, and groom that
are modified by prefixing j^ea and bride. They are, however,
instances of composition, rather than derivation ; as, indeed,
were gdnserich, tdidjerich, and enterich.
§ 492. As a general rule, the names of females are derived
from those of males ; however, tvizard, gander, and drake are
exceptions
COLLECTIVES.
503
CHAPTER XII.
COLLECTIVES.
§ 493. The so-called plurals wliicb, after the fashion of oxen
and feet, are said to be formed from the singular by either
adding -en, or changing the vowel, are collectives, or, at any rate
in a general way, collectives rather than true plurals. In the
older stages of our language, they were more numerous than
they are now.
Hos-
en =
stocldng-A-
Scher-ejj =
sliire-s
Sho-
en =
shoe-*
T>og\\\x-en =
daughter-5
Ey-ew =
eye-.?
Sustr-e« =
sister-s
Bischop-e« =
bishop-5
Uncl-^« =
uncle -s
Elch-
-en =
elder-s
Tre-en =
tree-s
Arw-
en =
arrow-s
Souldr-CM =
soldier-s.
(2.)
Sing.
Plur.
Sing. Plur.
Freond
frynd
Friends
Bm-li byrig
Burghs
Feond
fynd
Foes
Broc brec
Breeches
Niht
nilit
Night
Tui-f tyi-f
Turves.
Boc
bee
Boohs
To these add, from the present language, men, teeth, mice,
lice, geese.
Kine is doubly changed ; the Scotch form being kye, from
cow. The same is the case with brethren, the forms being
brethre and brothre in the Old English.
§ 494. Forms in -ery. — These are doubly derivative; so
that the analysis of fishery, rookery, &c., is fish-er-y, rooh-e-ry,
&c. Though there is such a word as fisher =i fisherman, there
is no such word as rooker, from which we get rookery. Neither
does fishery mean a collection of fishermen, but one of fishes.
Besides yeomanry and Jewry, the words Englishry, Danishry,
and Welshery, are to be found in old authors.
Thise justise er atteynt of falslied and folia,
Now comes a new pleynt to destroie j^e Juerie,
\}e king was enquere of j^er wikked dedes
So many J^er were dome on {jam salle nedes.
Robert of Bourne, 247.
In Jewry is God known, his name is great in Israel. Ps. 76.
504 COLLECTIVES.
]')ard!ni liight |'e cheftaj-n of jjal company,*
Sadok Sonne of Deniuark kyng JJancsri/. ■
RoBEUT OF Bourne, 16.
With lordes j^at were nclii he held his parlement
Al sole at Deneheglii, after }:am alle he sent,
To fend the Walschrie with him at j^er powere.
RoBEET of Bourne, 244.
Eyrie is generally said to mean the nest of an eagle : —
As an eagle, fed ■nith morning.
Scorns the embattled tempest's warning
"\Mien she seeks her eyrie, hanging
In the mountain cedar's haii-,
And her brood expect the clanging
Of her wings thi'ough the wild air
Sick with famine. — Shelley.
It rather means the collection of eggs, or eggery ; for such
is the old form of the word.
§495. What, however, is the r .^ In the Old Dutch and
other allied dialects, we find a kind of plural in -r.
Hns-ir,
houses ,
O.H.G
Chalp-ir,
calfs,
do.
Lemp-ir,
lambs.
do.
riet-ir.
blades.
do.
Eigii-,
eggs,
do.
Indeed, in one word it occurs in provincial and archaic Eng-
lish, viz. childer zz children. All these are of the neuter
gender.
In other words, such as foolery, prudery, bravery, slavery,
ivitchery, stitchery (iieedleworh), &c., however, this origin is
inadmissible, and the idea of collection or assemblage is either
obscure or non-existent, the -ry having originated out of a false
analogy.
Frisian. Oerman. Danish.
Shiiwwerai Schreiberei Skiiverie
Swennerai Schweinerei Sch^^'inerie
Thiewerai Dieberei Ty^'erie,
meaning writing, swinishness, and theft, respectively.
§ 496. For the difference between current and obsolete pro-
cesses see above. Having become familiar with this, look back
upon the numerous forms, in the way of Derivation, which
have just been given. Doing this, observe which are obsolete,
* From a paper of Dr. Guest' .s, in the Transactions of the Philological Society.
DERIVED VERBS.
505
which current. As a general rule, most of them are obsolete ;
especially the patronymics and diminutives. The abstract forms,
however, are in full force ; a fact by which we may measure
the wants and condition of the English Language.
CHAPTER XIII.
ON DERIVED VERBS,
§ 497. Three classes of derived verbs deserve notice.
1. Those ending in -eyi ; an affix which may be attached to
either an adjective or an abstract substantive ; as soft-en, vjhit-
en, &c., from soft, white, &c., and strength-en, length-en, from
strength and length. They confer the quality which the adjec-
tive implies, and which the abstract substantive denotes by
name.
2. Transitive verbs derived from intrausitives by a change of
the vowel of the root.
Eise
Raise
Lie
Lay.
Sit
Set.
FaU
FeU
Drink
Drench.
In Anglo-Saxon these words
were more
numerous than tl
ai-e at present.
Lit
ransitive.
Transitive.
Yrnan
run.
sernan
make to run.
B}Tnan
hum.
bsernan
make to htirn.
Drincan
drink.
drencan
drench.
Sincan
sink.
sencan
make to sink.
Liegan
lie.
lecgan
lay.
Sittan
sit.
sett an
set.
Drifan
drift.
drsefan
drive.
Feallan
fall.
fyllan
fell.
Weallan
boil.
wyllan
make to boil.
Fleogan
fly-
a-fligan
put to flight.
Beogan
how.
bigan
bend.
Faran
go.
feran
convey.
Wacan
wake.
weccan
awaken.
3. Verbs formed fi'om nouns by changing a final sonant into
its corresponding surd ; as —
506 ADVERBS.
'The breath . . to breathe jironouiiced breadh.
21u' cloth . to I'lothe — clodh.
Some of tlie words thus modified are of foreign origin, as
use (uze) from use (pr. uce) ; greaze from grease, and 2^'i'izc from
price.
CHAPTER XIV.
ADVERBS.
§ 498. That adverbs are formed by means of composition
was shown when the nature of the termination -ly was ex-
plained. It will be shown in the sequel that they may also
originate in Derivation, especially in Inflection.
That they are susceptible of the Degrees of Comparison has
been seen.
§ 499. Certain forms in -ing now remain for notice. In such
an expression as —
The cancUe went out, and so we went daxkling. — King Lear.
the last word is no participle of a verb darkle, but an adverb of
derivation, like unwaringun=. unawares. Old High-German;
stillenge = secretly, Middle High-German ; hlindlings = blindly,
New High-German; darnungo — secretly, Old Saxon; nicJdinge
— hy night, Middle Dutch; hlindeling z=.hlindly, New Dutch;
hceclinga=.haclxivards, handlunga -z hand to hand, Anglo-
Saxon ; and, finally, blindlins, hacMins, darklins, middlins,
scantlins, stridelins, stowlins, in Lov/iand Scotch. — Deutsche
Grammatik, iii. 236.
§ 500. In adverbs like brightly, &c., the termination -ly is
common both to adjectives and to adverbs. It was once an
independent word, viz. leik. Now, as -ly sprung out of the
Anglo-Saxon -lice, and as words like early, dearly, &c., were
originally arlice, deorlice, &c., and as arlice, deorlice, &c., were
adjectives, the adverbs in -ly are {strictly speaking) adjectives
in the neuter gender used adverbially.
§ 501. The following notices ai-e miscellaneous rather than
systematic.
Else, unawares, eftsoons. — These are the genitive forms of
adjectives. By rights is a word of the same sort.
Once, twice, thrice. — These are the genitive forms of nu-
merals.
ON CERTAIN ADVERBS OF PLACE.
507
Needs (as in needs must go) is the genitive case of a sub-
stantive.
Seldom. — The old dative (singular or plural) of the adjective
seld.
Whiloin. — The dative (singular or plural) of the substantive
'while.
Little, less, ivell. — Neuter accusatives of adjectives. Bright,
in the sun shines bright, is a word of the same class.
CHAPTER XV.
ON CEHTAIN ADVERBS OF PLACE.
502. It is a common practice for languages to express by
different modifications of the same root the three folio winor
ideas : —
1 . The idea of rest in a place.
2. The idea of motion totvards a place.
8. The idea of motion fi^om a place.
This habit gives us three correlative adverbs — one of posi-
tion, and two of direction.
It is also a common practice of language to depart from the
original expression of each particular idea, and to interchange
the signs by which they are expressed.
This may be seen in the following table, illustrative of the
forms here, hither, hence, and taken from the Deutsche Grarm-
onatik, iii. 199 : —
Mccso-Goth'w
Old Hujli-German
Old Saxon .
Anglo-Saxon
Old Norse
her, lii)3, liidro,
hilar, huai'a, huanana,
dar, dara, danana,
her, hera, hiiiana,
huar, huar, hiianan,
thar, thar, than an,
her, her, henan,
jjar, l^ider, j^onan,
hvar, hvider, hvonau,
her, hider, henan,
Jjar, JiaSra, {ja^an,
hvar, hvert, hvaiSan,
her, ho^ra, he<5an,
there, thither, thence,
here, hither, hence,
rihere, whither, ivhence.
there, thither, thence,
here, hither, hence,
where, whither, whence,
there, thither, thence,
here, hither, hence,
there, thither, thence,
ivhere, whither, whence,
here, hither, hence,
there, thither, thence,
where, whither, whence,
here, hither, hence.
508
ON CERTAIN ADVERBS OF PLACE.
Middle Hi<jh - Genua n
Modern Hiiih-Oerinan
(la, (lull, diinnen.
wa, war, waiincn,
hie, lier, lieiiuen,
da, dar, dauiieu,
\Y0, ■woliin, wamien,
hier, her, hinneu.
there, thitli^r, thence,
irhere, irhither, whence,
here, hither, hence,
there, thither, thence,
tvhere, irhither, whence,
here, hither, hence.
These local terminations were commoner in the earlier stages
of language than at present. The following are from the
Moeso-Gothic : —
innajjro
= fro}n within.
Utajjro
= from withotit.
iupafji-o
= from above.
FaiiTa)5i-6
= from afar.
AUal^ro
= from all quarters
Now a reason for the comparative frequency of these forms
in Moeso-Gothic lies in the fact of the Gospel of Ulphilas
beins: a translation from the Greek. The Greek forms in -Oev,
caoaOev, e^coOev, avwOev, iroppcoOev, irdvToOev, were just the
forms to encourage such a formation as that in -^ro. — Deutsche
Gra'nvriiatik, iii. 199, &c.
§ 503. The -ce ( = es) in hen-ce, ivhen-ce, then-ce, has yet to
be satisfactorily explained. The Old English is ivhenn-es,
thenn-es. As far, therefore, as the spelling is concerned, they
are in tlie same predicament with the word once, which is pro-
perly on-es, the genitive of one. This statement, however,
explains only the peculiarity of their orthography ; since it by
no means follows, that, because the -s in ones, and the -s in
whennes, thennes, are equally replaced b}^ -ce in orthography,
they must equally have the same origin in etymology.
§ 504. Yonder. — In the Moeso-Gothic we have the following
forms: jdinar, jdina, jdinlpr6=:iUic, illuc, illinc. They do
not, however, explain the form yon-d-er. It is not clear whether
the rf = the -d in jdind, or the ]) in jdinar 6.
§ 505. Anon, as used by Shakspeare, in the sense of j^jj'e-
sently. — The probable history of this word is as follows : the
fh-st syllable contains a root akin to the root yon, signifying dis-
tance in place. The second is a shortened form of the Old High-
German and Middle High-German, -nt, a termination express-
ive, 1, of removal in space ; 2, of removal in time : Old High-
German, enont, ewnont ; Middle High-German, enentlig, jenunt
= beyond. The transition from tlie idea of j^Zace to that of
time is shown in the Old High-German, ndhunt, and the
ON WHEN, THEN, AND THAN. 509
Middle High-German, vernent = lately ; the first from the root
nigli, tlie latter from the root far. — See Deutsche Grammatik,
iii. 215.
CHAPTER XVI.
ON WHEN, THEN, AND THAN.
§506. The Anglo-Saxon adverbs are ivhenne and ])e7ine =
when, then.
The masculine accusative cases of the relative and demon-
strative pronoun are livxene (Jiwone) and \)cvne (pone).
Notwithstanding the difference, the first form is a variety of
the second ; so that the adverbs when and then are pronominal
in origin.
As to the word than, the conjunction of comparison, it is a
variety of then ; the notions of order, sequence, and comparison
being allied.
This is good : then (or next in order) that is good, is an ex-
pression sufiiciently similar to tJiis is better than that to have
given rise to it.
CHAPTER XVII.
INFLECTION. DECLENSION. OF NOUNS. OF VERBS.
§ 507. Inflection now comes under notice. It is a peculiar
kind of Derivation ; of Derivation rather than Composition.
It is, however, by no means, certain that a definition could be
framed so as to exclude all Compounds without inconvenience.
The word fathers, whether taken as a Possessive Case or as a
Nominative Plural, is a good sample of Inflection. The addition
to the main word is the sound expressed by the single letter -s.
That this is not a whole word is evident. By going back, how-
ever, to the Anglo-Saxon period we find that it was preceded
by a vowel — e or a, as the case might be. Now, though this
gives us a syllable, the aflix is as far from being a separate and
independent word as ever : and, hence, it belongs to derivation
rather than composition. But what if it be both possible, and
610 INFLECTION.
probable, that all derivation was once composition, just as all
composition was, originally, the juxtaposition of separate words?
For most purposes, however, composition and derivation are
notably different ; and, for most purposes, Inflection is a peculiar
kind of JDerivaiion. It (Inflection) fills into (1 ) Declension, and
(2) Conjugation.
§ 508. Declension, when fully developed, as it is in the
Latin, Greek, and other languages, and as it is not developed
in the English, gives (1) Gender, (2) Number, (3) and Case,
Conjugation, in like manner, and when similai-iy developed,
gives (1) Voice, (2) Mood, (3) Tense, (4) Person. These are
called the Accidents of the Inflected Parts of Speech ; the
Inflected Parts of Speech being (1) the Noun, (2) the Verb.
§ 509. Nouns are (1) Pronouns, (2) Substantives, (3)
Adjectives. Partici])les are, in some respects, Adjectives ; in
other. Verbs.
To give precedence to the Pronoun over the Substantive
and Adjective is unusual. The step, however, will be justified
as we proceed.
Adverbs, as may be seen by what has preceded, inasmuch as
they can take the Degrees of Comparison, are susceptible of
Derivation ; not, however, of Inflection.
Particles are wholly incapable of Derivation. They may
arise out of Inflection ; but they are not themselves inflected.
Prepositions, Conjunctions, and Interjections, are Particles. So
are the words Yes and No ; and in some languages, the words
expressive of Interrogation.
The Copula am, art, is, was, be, &c., has certain peculiarities
which may give it a claim to be considered as a separate part
of speech. It is generally, however, and not inconveniently,
treated as a Verb ; being called the Verb Substantive.
§ 510. Nouns are Declined, verbs are both Declined and
Conjugated.
§511. Tiie declension of verbs is a fact which should never
be overlooked ; otherwise we run the risk of drawing a broader
line between them and the noun than the structure of lanofuagfe
warrants. Without doubt the difference is both important and
striking, and, without doubt, the two classes are natural. This,
however, is wholly insufficient to put them in anj'thing like
contrast to one another. Though the noun has no moods and
tenses, it cannot be said that the verb has no cases. More than
this. If, on the strengtli of its decided verbal character, we
DECLENSION OF VERES. 511
connect the participle with the verb (and in some sense most
grammarians do so connect it) the inflection of the verb gives
us not only the cases, but numbers and genders as well ; for,
although, in the present stage of our language, the participles
are uninflected, in Anglo-Saxon their inflection was full, as it
was in the Greek and Latin, and as it is in many modern lan-
guages. But without having recourse to the participle, which
is generally, though not consistently, treated as a separate part
of speech, the infinitive mood, along with the gerunds and
supines, where they exist, is, for most purposes, a substantive.
In Old High-German we have hlasennes=.flandi, and others.
We may call this a Gerund if we choose. We may also, if we
choose, call to blassenne a Supine ; nevertheless, the result is a
Noun in a Case. This is because the name of an action is an
Abstract Substantive. When we connect an agent with the idea
of time we get something concrete. But this gives us Persons
and Tenses. A horse may run, or a man. The horse may run
to-day, the man may have run yesterday : but if I wish to
have the notion of the act of running, I must separate, or draw
it off, from both the horses and the men who perform it. In
both these cases the result is something which I can imagine,
but which I cannot perceive through any of my senses. I can
see a ma7i in a state of happiness, and I can see a hoi^se in the
act of running. Haiypiness, however, without some happy
object, or the act of running, without some object that runs, I
cannot perceive ; though I can imagine it. Both, however, are
Substantives ; one being the name of a quality, the other that
of an action.
In English we have such lines as
To err is human, to forgive cli\'ine —
To he or not to be, that is the question —
in which a substantive in the nominative case is represented l)y
a verb with a preposition before it. To err means error, and
to forgive means forgiveness.
In Greek we find
TO (pdove'iv = invidia
Tov (pdovelv = invidicB
€v TO) <^^oi'eIc= in invidia.
This is because the name of any action may be used without
any mention of the agent. Thus, we may speak of the simple
fact of ivalking or moving, independently of any specification
512 GENDER.
of the ivalker or mover. When actions are spoken of thus i
indefinitely, the idea of either person or number has no place in
the conception ; from which it follows that the so-called infinitive
mood must be at once impersonal, and without the distinction
of singular, dual, and plural. Nevertheless, the ideas of time
and relation in space have place in the conception. We can
think of a person being in the act of striking a hloiv, of his
having been in the act of striking a hloiv, or of his being about
to be in the act of striking a bloiv. We can also think of a
person being in the act of doing a good action, or of his being
from the act of doing a good action.
CHAPTER XVIII.
ON GENDER.
§ 512. How for have w^e Genders in English? This depends
on our definitions.
The distinction of sex by wholly difierent words, such as
hoy and girl ; father and mother ; horse and mare, &c., is not
gender. Neither are words like man-servant, he-goat, &c., con-
trasted with nMid-servant, she-goat, &c.
In the Latin words genitrix-=.a mother, and genitor-=.a
father^ the difi*erence of sex is expressed by a difierence of ter-
mination : the words being either derived from each other, or
from some common source. This, however, in strict grammatical
language, is an approach to gender rather than gender itself.
Let the words be declined : —
Sing.
Nom.
Genitor
Genitrix.
Gen.
Geuitor-is
Genitiic-«s
Dat.
Genitor- j
Genitiic-/.
Ace.
Genitor-(?7«
Gemtric-eiii.
Voc.
Genitor
Genitrix.
Plur
Xotn.
Genitor-es
Geniti-ic-es.
Gen.
Genitor- M»?i
Genitiic-!/H;.
Dat.
Genitor-i6(/s
Gemtric-ihus
Ace.
Genitor-fs
Genitric-fs
Voc.
Genitor-<'s
Genitric-<'s.
The sj'llables in itahcs ave the signs of the cases and num-
bers. Now these signs are the same in each word, the differ-
GENDER. 513
ence of sex not affecting them. Contrast, however, with tlie
words (jcnitor and geidtrix the words doriiiitarza midresfy, and
dominiiti=:a master.
SilKJ.
Plar.
Nom.
"Doimw-d
Domin-Ms
Gen.
'Doimn.-(/;
Domin-t
Dat.
Domin-(^e
Domin-o
Ace.
Domiii-^/»t
T>oimn-i()ii
Voc.
Doiniu-a
'Domm-e
Nom.
Domin-«
Doniin-i
Qen.
Domin-rt;-«Hi
Domiu-077(w
Dat.
'Domin-ahus
Domin-is
Ace.
Domin-rts
Domin-os
Voc.
Doinin-«
Domin-j.
Here the letters in italics, or the signs of the cases and num-
bers, are different. Now it is very evident that, if genitrix be
a specimen of gender, domina is something more.
Hence, as terms,, to be useful must be limited, it may be laid
down, as a sort of definition, that there is no gender tuhere
there is no affection of the declension.
§ 513. Another element in the notion of gender, although T
will not ventm-e to call it an essential one, is the following : —
In the words domina and do^ninus, mistress and master, there
is a natural distinction of sex ; the one being masculine or
male, the other feminine, or female. In the words svjord and
lance there is no natural distinction of sex. Notwithstanding
this, the word hasta, in Latin, is as much a feminine gender as
domina, whilst glad luszz a siuord, is, like dominus, a masculine
noun. From this we see that, in languages wherein there are
true genders, a fictitious or conventional sex is attributed even
to inanimate objects ; so that sex is a natural distinction, gender
a grammatical one. Now, in English, we sometimes attribute
sex to objects naturally destitute of it. The sun in his glory,
the moon in her ivane, are examples of this. A sailor calls his
ship she. A husbandman, according to Mr. Cobbett, does the
same with his i^lough and working implements : — -
"In si:)eakiug of a ship we say she and her. Aiid you know that our
country-folk in Hampshii'e call almost everytliiug he or she. It is cimous to
observe that countr}' labourers give the feminine appellation to those things
only which are more closely identified with themselves, and by the quahties
or conditions of which their own efforts, and their character as workmen, are
affected. The mower calls his sei/the a she, the ploughman calls his ptoiii^h a
L L
514 GENDER. — NUMBER.
xht' : but a iiroiig, or a sliovcl, or a harrow, wliicli passes promiscuously from
liaud to hand, and which is appropriated to no purticuhir labourer, is called a
he." — EiujJish Grammar, Letter \'.
§ 5] 4. Although this inny account for a sailor calling his
ship xhc, it will not account for the custom of giving to the sun
a masculine, and to the moon a feminine, pronoun ; still less will
it account for the circumstance of the Germans reversing the
gender, and making the sun feminine, and the moon masculine.
The explanation here is different. Let there be a period in the
history of a nation wherein the sun and moon are dealt with,
not as inanimate masses of matter, but as animated divinities.
Let there, in other words, be a period in the history of a nation
■wherein dead things are personified, and wherein there is a my-
thology. Let an object like the sun be deemed a male, and an
object like the moon a female, deity, and w^e, easily, account for
the Germans saying the sun in her glory ; the r)ioon in his
wane. — '^ Mundilfori had trvo children ; a son, Mdni {Moon),
and a daughter, Sol (Sun)." — Such is an extract taJcen out of
an Icelandic mythological work, viz. the prose Edda. In the
classical languages, however, Phoehus and Sol are masculine, and
Luna and Dknui feminine. Hence it is that, although, in
Anglo-Saxon and Old Saxon, the sun is feminine, it is, in
English, masculine.
§ 515. Philosophy, charity, &c., or the names of abstract
qualities personified, take a conventional sex, and are feminine,
from their being feminine in Latin. In these words there is
no change of foiiii, so that the consideration of them is a point
of rlietoric, rather than of etymology.
CHAPTER XIX.
NtnVIBER.
§ 516. Having separated the idea of Collectiveness from that
of Pluralit}', we may ask to what extent have we numbers in
Enoiish ? Like the Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, we have a
Singular and a Plural. Like the Latin, and unlike the Greek
and Hebrew, we have no Dual There is no dual in the i^rcsent
English. In the Anglo-Saxon there u:as an approach to one dual :
ivit — ive ttvo ; git — ye two. Why is this only an ai)proach ?
Because git is, really, two words, ye two in a contracted forjn.
CASE. 51 o
There is no dual in the present German. In the ancient
German there iwt.s- one. In the present Danish and Swedish
tliere is no dual. In the Old Norse and in the present Ice-
landic a dual number is to be found. From this we learn
that the dual number is one of those inflections that lan-
guages drop as they become modern. The numbers, then, in the
present English are two, the singular and the plural.
§ 517. Over what extent of language have we a plural?
The Latins say, bonus pater =i a good father; boni 'patres-=.
good fatJicrs. In the Latin, the adjective bonus changes its
lorm with the change of number of the substantive that it
accompanies. In English it is only the substantive that is
changed. Hence we see that in the Latin language the num-
bers were extended to adjectives ; whereas in English they are
confined to the substantives and pronouns. Compared with the
Anglo-Saxon, the present English is in the same relation as it is
to the Latin. In the Anglo-Saxon there were plural forms for
the adjectives.
CHAPTER XX.
CASE.
§ 518. The extent to which there are, in the Engiisli language,
cases, depends on the meaning which we attach to the word. In
a house of a father, the relation between the words father and
house is expressed by the preposition of. In a fathers house
the idea is, there or thereabouts, the same ; the relation or con-
nection between the two words being the same. The expression,
however, differs. In a fatJier's house the relation, or connection,
is conveyed, not by a preposition, but by a change of form,
father becoming father's.
§ 519. The father taught the child. — Here there is neither
preposition nor change of form ; and the connection between the
words father and child is denoted by the arrangement only.
§ 520. Now if the relation alone between two words consti-
tute a case, the words or sentences, child; to a father ; of a
father ; and fathers, are all equally cases; of which one may
be called the accusative, another the dative, a third the genitive,
and so on. Perhaps, however, the relationship alone does not
constitute a case.
L L 2
Ldtin.
Xom.
Pater
Oen.
Patris
Dat.
Patri
Ace.
Patrem
Ahl.
Pat re
5 1 0 CASE.
§ 521. For etyiiiological purposes it is necessary to limit the
meaning of the word ; and, as a sort of definition, it may be
laid down that ii'here tJiere h no change of form there is no
case. With this remark, the English language may be compared
witli the Latin.
English.
Sinrf. Xom. Pater . . . a father
. a father s
. to a father
. a father
. from a father.
Here, since in the Latin language there are five changes of
form, whilst in the English there are but tivo, thei-e are (as far,
at least, as the word pater and father are concerned) three more
cases in Latin than in English.
§ 522. It does not, however, follow that because in father
we have but two cases, there may not be other words wherein
there are more than two. Neither does it follow that, because
two words have the same form, they are in the same case, a
remark which leads to the distinction between a real and an
accidental identity of form. In the language of the Anglo-
Saxons the genitive cases of the words smith, end, and day
were respectively, smithes, endes, and dayes ; whilst the nomi-
native plurals were, respectively, smithas, endas, and dayas. A
process of change took place by which the voAvel of the last sylla-
ble in each word was ejected. The result was, that the forms of the
genitive singular and the nominative plural, originally different,
became one and the same : so that the identity of the two cases
is an accident. This relieves the English grammarian from a
difiiculty. The nominative plural and the genitive singular are,
in the present language of England, identical ; the apostrophe in
father 8 being a mere matter of orthography. Hovv'-ever, there
was once a difference. This modifies the previous statement,
which may now stand thus : — for a change of case there must
he a change of form existing or presumed.
§ 523. The number of our cases and the extent of language
over which they spread. — In the English language there is un-
doubtedly a nominative case. This occurs in substantives,
adjectives, and pronouns {father, good, he) equally. It is found
in both numbers.
The words him and them (whatever they may have been
originally) are now true accusatives. So are thee, me, ns, and
CASE. 5 1 7
■you. They are accusative thus far : 1 , They are not derived
from any other case. 2. They are distinguished from the forms,
/, my, &LC. 3. Their meaning is accusative. Nevertheless,
they are only imperfect accusatives. They have no sign of case,
and are distinguished by negative characters only.
§ 524. One word of English is probably a true accusative in
the strict sense of the term, viz. the word tvjainzztwo. The -n
in hvai-n is the -n in hine = JtlTii and hwone =. wltom.
§ 525. The detei'mination of cases. — How do we determine
cases ? In other words, why do we call him and them accusatives
rather than datives or genitives ? By one of two means ; viz.
either by the sense or the form. Suppose that in the English
language there were ten thousand dative cases and as many
accusatives. Suppose, also, that all the dative cases ended in -m,
and all the accusatives in some other letter. It is very evident,
that whatever might be the meaning of the words him and them,
their /on?! would be dative. In this case, the meaning being accu-
sative, and the form dative, we should doubt which test to take.
§ 526. My own opinion is, that it would be convenient to
determine cases by the form of the word alone; so that, even
if a word had a dative sense only once, where it had an accusa-
tive sense ten thousand times, such a word should be said to be
in the dative case. Now, as stated above, the words him and
them, (to which we may add tvhoni) were once dative cases ; -m
in Anglo-Saxon being the sign of the dative case. In the time
of the Anglo-Saxons their sense coincided with their form. At
present they are dative forms with an accusative meaning. Still,
as the word give takes after it a dative case, we have, even now,
in the sentence, give it him, give it them,, remnants of the old
dative sense. To saj^, give it to him,, to them, is unnecessary
and pedantic : neither need we object to the expression, whom
shall I give it. If ever the formal test become generally
recognized and consistently adhered to, him,, them,, and whom,
will be called datives with a latitude of meaning : and then the
approximate accusatives in the English language will be the
forms you, thee, us, me, and the only true accusative will be the
word tivain.
For practical purposes, however, the present English avoids
some of the difficulties here suggested. For the ordinary pur-
poses of grammar, we use neither the term Accusative, nor the
term Dative : making the term Objective serve for both. Doino-
518 CURRENT AND OBSOLETE PROCESSES.
lliis Avc say that the hhit is Ohjeetive, whatever may be the con-
struction ; i e. whether it be Dative as like him, give it him ;
Accusative, as strihe 1dm ; or Ablative, as "part of him, take it
from him.
§ 527. The present is a proper time for exhibiting the diffe-
rence between the current and the obsolete processes of a language.
By adding the sound of the 6' in seal to the word father, we
change it into fathers. Hence the addition of the sound in
question is the process by which the word father is changed
into fathers. The process by which ox is changed into ox-en
is the addition of the sound of the syllable -en.
In all languages there are two sorts of processes, those that
are in operation at a certain period, and those that have ceased
to operate. In illustration of this, let us suppose that, from the
Latin, Greek, French, or some other language, a new word was
introduced into the English ; and that this word was a substan-
tive of the singular number. Suppose the word was tak, and
that it meant a sort of dtvdling -house. In the course of time
it w^oidd be necessary to use this word as the plural ; and the
question would arise as to the manner in which that number
should be formed.
§ 528. Now we have not less than three forms expressive of
the idea of plurality, or something closely akin to it ; and con-
sequently three processes by which a singular may be converted
into either a true plural or its equivalent : —
1 . The addition of -s, ^z, or -ez (es).
2. The change of vowel.
3. The addition of -n.
Notwithstanding this, it is very certain that the plural of a
new word would not be formed in -en (like oxen^ nor yet by a
change of vowel (like feet) ; but by addition of -s — the one
process being current, the other obsolete. Such is the illustration ;
which, for the ordinary purposes of grammar, is sufficient. For
the ordinary purposes of granunai", it may safely be said that
the time has gone by for the development afresh of forms like
oxen and feet. They are obsolete. In strict language, however,
they are not obsolete plurals. They are, rather, collectives,
wliich simulate plurals. Still, they are obsolete.
^ 529. Another point connected with the inflections of the
English language connnands notice : ina.snuich as, if it be over-
looked, we shall run the risk of thinking it more unlike its
INFLECTION OL' PRONOUNS. 519
congeners than it really is. The inflections of the German, Ice-
landic, &c., give what is called an umlaut = aho at-sound ; the
word having a definite technical meaning. An umlaut takes place
when a vowel in the radical part of a word is accommodated to
the vowel of the inflectional addition ; so that the plural (which
is formed by adding e) of a word like fiuss Oliver is not flusse,
but flusse.
We have a little of this umlaut ; but only a little. We have
it in elder from old, rather from rathe, ivomen (pronovmced
whnmeii), from vjonian,^ hretlcrcn from brother, and a few others.
Such is the fact. The equivalents to the umlaut are rare in
English, and found only in fragments. There is a reason for
this. The accommodation is (jenerally from the broader to the
smaller sound. But the additions themselves in A S. were
generally broad, (e. g. smith-as), and in modern English they are
generally without a vowel of any kind (e. g. smiths).
The same broadness of the vowel of the inflections charac-
terizes the Moeso-Gothic ; wherein the umlauts are at a mini-
mum. The early stage of the language has something to do
with this.
CHAPTER XXI.
INFLECTION OF PKONOUNS. THEIR PECULIARITIES. SELF, ONE,
OTHER. OF THE INTERROGATIVE, RELATIVE, AND DEilON-
STRATIVE PRONOUNS.
§ 530. In respect to their Declension, Pronouns fall into three
classes. In the first, it is purely Pronominal ; in the second
it is that of a Substantive ; in the third it is that of an Ad-
jective ; i. e. it is nothing at all. Now, although this last is
a negative fact, it is well to note it in a positive and decided
manner ; inasmuch as the diflerences in the declension of pro-
nouns coincide with certain differences of power. Whilst words
like same and any are, both in. import and in the want of de-
* This plural is formed after tliat of man, as if tiie word were really,
(what many believe it to be,) wife-man, or wonih-man, or some such compound.
It is not tliis ; being, word for word, the Latin feniina ; a term which is Sans-
lait and Lithuanic as well as German and Latin.
520
INFLECTION OF PRONOUNS.
clension, closely akin to the Adjective ; whilst salf, v/itli its
plural selves, is Substantival ; the tj^pical Pronouns like who or
/, &;c., are neither one nor the other, either in sense or inflection ;
but members of a class ^«^r se. In the ]:)resent stage of our lan-
guage these statements may be taken Avithout either reserve or
qualification ; though, in the older stages, some reservations will
be needed.
§ 531. The Adjectival Pronouns with the 7iO-declension may
be disposed of at once. They are same, any, many, and others.
Their i)lace is the dictionary rather than the grammar. Though,
now undeclined, they were declined in A. S.
§ 532. The Substantival Pronouns are three in Number : —
(l-)
Sin/j.
IVom. Self
Pass. Self's
Declined like shelf.
Sinij.
Norn. Other
Poss. Other's.
Declined like mother.
Sing.
Nom. One
Poss. One's
(2.)
(3.)
Plur.
Nom. Selves.
Poss. Selves'
Plur.
Nom. Others.
Poss. Otliers'.
Plur.
Nom. Ones.
Poss. Ones'.
Declined like sivan.
In A. S. these were declined like Adjectives.
§ 533. The identity of form between the words one the
indefinite pronoun, and one the numeral, is entirely accidental.
The numeral has no plural number ; besides which, the meaning
and the origin of the two words are different. The word
under notice is derived from the French, and is the on in such
expressions as on dit. This, in its tm^n, is from the Latin homo
zzman. The German for on dit, at the present time, is man sagt
(inan says) ; and until the Norman Conquest the same mode
of expression prevailed in England. One is often called the
Indeterminate Pronoun. It is used in the Possessive Case, and
in the Plural Number in such expressions as- — One is umvilling to
put one's friend to trouble. — My vnfe and little ones are well.
These, are my tivo little ones' playthings. Such forms as self's
THE INTERROaATIVE. 521
aud selves' are undoubtedly rare. At the same time they are
possible forms, aud, if wanted, are strictly gi'anunatical. Sub-
stitute the word individuality for self, and we see how truly
its nature is substantival ; e. g. A. Tins is the opinion of a
humble individual {myself). B. So much, then, for your
humble individuality (self) and for your humble individu-
ality's (self's) opinion.
§ 534. The purely pronominal forms now come before us.
They fall into two classes. Of the first, vjIlo ; of the second,
thou, is the type.
§ 535. The small, but important, class to which ivho, with its
congeners, belongs, gives two numbers, more than two cases,
and, in its fuller form, three genders — three true genders.
It gives two numbers ; a singular and a plural, as this, these.
This, however, though more than we find in the Adjective, is
not more than we find in the Substantive.
It gives, at least, three cases : a Nominative, ivho, a Possessive
whose, and an Objective loliom. The Objective case in the
Stibstantive exists in the Syntax onl}^ : in other words, it has
no distinctive form. With the Pronoun, we say he struck him.
With the Substantive we say the father loves the child, or, the
child loves his father indifferently.
Finally, it gives, at least, two true genders and fragments of
a third. One of these genders is a Neuter.
{;) 536. This neuter ends in -t, and in the three words
wherein it occurs we have the pronominal inflection in its typical
form.
§ 537. The first division contains —
] . The Interrogative ;
2. The Relative ;
8. The Demonstrative Pronouns ;
all declined on the same principle : i. e. with the Neuter in -t,
a Possessive in -s, and an Objective in ~m ; as tvha-t, whose,
who-m. This we have in the language as it now stands. In
the Anglo-Saxon, however, there was a true Accusative Mascu-
line in -n, e. g. hvcene. It is because the Interrogative, Relative,
and Demonstrative Pronouns are declined on the same principle,
that they form a natural group ; and it is because they best ex-
emplify the pronominal inflection, that they come first.
§ 538. The Interrogative comes before the Relative because
it is, apparently, the older part of speech. In our own, and
many other languages, these two Pronouns are identical. In
522 DEMONSTRATIVES.
the Irish Gaelic, however, tliey are different ; and in more than
one other tongue there is no Relative at all. The Interrogative,
however, is universal. At any rate, though there are several
languao-es which have an Interrogative without a Relative, I know
of none where there is a Relative without an Interrogative.
§ 539. The A. S. form of the Interrogative was hicd^ de-
clined thus — Nom. : Inva ; Accus. : hvxene ; Dat. : Itwceni ;
Gen. : Jnvccs ; Genitive and Dative Feminine: hwcere ; Genitive
Plural : Itvxeva ; Instrumental : fiwi. Closely connected with
Jiivi (= qua causa) is Jioiu (^ quo modo). The present forms
of hvxene, liwctire, and hwi have been already noticed. Hivcmn
(gen. plur.) is obsolete. As to whose, it only seems to end in
-se. The proper sjDelling is luJioes (who's'). The vulgar error
that ivhich is the neuter of ^vho, has already been corrected and
condemned. The Inflection of the Relative is that of the Inter-
rogative. It is only in respect to their Syntax that tlie}^ differ,
§ 540. The I>emonstratives imply the idea of something
'pointed-out. We can imagine a stage in the very infancy of
language when the use of them was accompanied b}^ the finger,
and an object within reach was touched ; one more distant
pointed to ; and one more distant still indicated by attention
drawn to the direction in which it lay. In this condition of
things there is one word for the far distant bodies, and, perhaps,
two for those that lay within ken — these latter falling into two
divisions: (1) one containing the contiguous; (2) one con-
taining those that lay on the boundary line between the near
and distant. Later still, one of these nearer objects might pass
simply for something that was neither the speaker nor the person
spoken to — in which case it would be little more than what is
called tlie name for the third person. With this, as a preliminary,
we may consider details.
§ 541. The Demonstrative for objects in the far distance is yon.
It is only its history which brings the word in its present class.
Looking to its declension only, it belongs to the adjectival pro-
nouns. Historically, however, it is a word of importance. It
is an old one. It is German, being the jen- in jen-sr. It is
Lithuanic ; anas =: that, yon. In both the German and the
Lithuanic, it is declined in full. The declension, however, in
English is obsolete.
The name for objects near enough to be considered at-hand,
and, at the same time, far enough to be separated from anything
within touch (there or thereabouts), j^et not in the vague dis-
DEMONSTUxiTlVES. 523
tauce, is s/tlt, or the root th-, as in thin and that. I can
devise no better exposition than this. Tlie word in question is
not t]tl% is not tlmt, is not the. It is something which, without
being- either one or the other exactly, gives us all tliree. It
shows itself very definitely as this and tltat — contrasted with one
anothei', and indicating comparative and definite nearness ;
nearness which is comparative when contrasted Avith what is
expressed by yon; and dejinite, when contrasted with the
meaning of the and they.
§ 542. This division into the definite and indefinite gives us
what has just been foreshadowed, namely, something sufficiently
demonstrative to be neither this nor that (still less yon), and some-
thing sufficiently connected with the speaker to mean something
related to him, without being either himself or the persons
spoken to. In other words, it gives us a third object, and
when that object is a human being, a third person. All this
has been given as a preliminary, because he, she, and it, generally
dealt with as Personal Pronouns of the Third Person, are here
treated as Demonstratives ; in which case he and she = that
person, and it = thai thing. How far this alteration is gra-
tuitous or scientific will be seen as we proceed.
§ 543. Upon the whole, the Demonstratives are declined like
the Interrogatives. No wonder. They answer to them.
Question. What is that ?
Answer. It is this, that, he, she, or it, as the case may be.
Upon the whole, the two sections belong to the same class ;
though there are details in which they differ. All, however,
have a neuter in ~t ; as wha-t, tha-f, i-t.
§ 544. The present declension of the demonstrative pronouns
is as follows : —
(1.)
Mfisc.
Nam.
He
Ohj.
Hiiu
Push.
His
Secundani, -'--Prcdicn
ice
I
or Adjectival Pons.
No pliu'al form
Neut. Fern.
It —
It Her
— Her
Its Hers.
(-2.)
She — Defective iu tlie oblique cases.
* For the meaning of this, see the Syntax.
524 DEMONSTRATIVES.
Siiiij. Koiii.
That
Plur. Xom.
They
Ohj.
That
Ohj.
Them
Pass.
Thcii-
Secondary, * Predica- )
tire, or xidjcctival Puss. '
Thein
§ 545. His. — Mutatis mutandis, what applies to ivhose ap-
plies to Ids.
Et qiiidem ipsa vox his, ut et iiiteiTOgativiun ivliose, nihil aliiid sunt quam
hee's, tvho's, ubi s omiiiuo idem praistat quod hi aliis possessi^ds. Similiter
aiitem his pro hee's eodem errore quo noiinuuquam bin pro been; item whose
pro tcho's eodem errore quo done, gone, Jinoivne, gruu-ne, &c., pro doen, goen,
Jcnowen, vel don,gon, knoic'n, groiv'n; utrobique contra analogiam linguae; sed
visu defenditui'. — Wallis, c. v.
The A. S. hira. — Hira (with an -a) was the A. S. Genitive
Plural. Like hwcera, however, hira=:eorum and eavum has
been superseded. Considering that the whole A. S. Plural
of he is obsolete, we may well say that the phenomenon of
defect and complement is greatly developed amongst the English
Pronouns.
It. — That this, notwithstanding the loss of the initial
breathing, is a true inflection of he we learn from the A. S.,
where the genders run — Masc. he, Fern, heo, Neut. hit. In the
present German the h is lost altogether ; and er zz he, es zz it.
Its. — This is not only a catachrestic form, but a recent one.
It is in English such a form as idius, or illudius, instead of
ejus or illius would be in Latin ; giving us an inflection
engrafted upon an inflection, i. e. an -s as the sign of the
Possessive Case attached to a -t as the sign of the Neuter
Gender,
Hoo, — The A. S. heo =. she. — Though replaced in the present
language by she, the A. S. heu is still to be found as a pro-
vincialism— generally as hoo ; sometimes (wrongly) as her or
hur.
Hinn. — Now objective, i. e. either dative or accusative. Ori-
ginally, dative only.
Tlie A. S. hyne. — In A. S, the accusative was hyne, now
obsolete, though not extinct. It is the en ( = hini) of the Dor-
setshire dialect.
* For the meaning of this, see the Syntax.
DEMONSTRATIVES.
5 25
§ 54^6. She. — At present this word is uninflected. In A. S.,
however, it was a truly feminine form, from se. It had not,
however, its present power ; but rather coincided with the defi-
nite article, which ran —
Se = 6
Seo =. r)
Thai -TO
in Greek.
Se is extinct ; displaced by the. What was its development ?
In the German languages slight. The Moeso-Gothic gives sa
and so; the Old Norse sd and su. Where are the equivalents
to him, her, &c. ? Why should they not be looked for ? They
will be found if sought — though not within the pale of Ger-
many. The Lithuanic is the language that best illustrates this
now fragmentary form ; the Lithuanic giving us a full declension
of the root -sz-. It means this — so that szis, szi=.se, seo, whilst
jis, ji = he and heo — the declension of the two words being the
same ; as, doubtless, they were originally in German.
Singular.
Masculine.
Feminine.
Nominative.
szis
szi
Accusative.
szi
szie
Locative.
sziame
szioje
Dative.
sziiuii
szei
Instnimciilal.
szium
szie
Genitive.
szio
szios.
Dual.
>
Nominative.
szimlii
szedoi
Accusative.
sziuilu
szedoi
Dative.
szemdvem
sziomdoom
Instrumental.
szemdvem
sziomdvem
Genitive.
sziixchiyu
Plural.
sziiid\i'ju.
Nominative.
sze
szios
Accusative.
szius
szies
Locative.
sziuse
sziose
Dative.
szems
szioms
Listrumental.
szeis
sziomis
Genitive.
sziu
sziu.
So comes from ^/ s-, as ho'W comes from s/ hw-, though the
exact details are uncertain.
Such, too, is to ^s-, mutatis mutandis, as ^vliich is to
526
PEMONSTRATIVES.
*s/u'h', the full form being siva-lUi\
soks.
§ 547.
It is also the Lithnanic
SiiiijiiJi
ir.
Neut.
Masc.
Fein.
Nomiiialivc.
]>(rt
Accusative.
1 Tiaf I'lnnoTi +.-»]
)pone
\.k
J^lxbLl lUllUIllftJ
Dative.
{jam
]>(t're
Genitive.
{385 s
}j0es
\>c(:'re
Plural.
Nominative Accusative \>d
Ablative Dative. ];din
Genitive. ]p(ira.
],e = the uncleclined, and used for all cases and genders.
Just as he ran —
iiKjular.
JVnit.
Masc.
Fern.
\^is
I^es
fjeos
>i3
{jisne
{jas
\}ise
{'ise
f^isse
jjisum
Jjisum
J^isse
J?ises
Jjises
}pds
Jjismn
jjissa.
Jjisse.
1
Nominative.
Accusative.
Dative.
Genitive.
Singular,
lilt
hit
him
7rw
he
liine
him
hi.s
heo
hi
hire
hire.
Plural.
Nominative, Accusative. lii
Dative. liim (heom)
Genitive. liira (heora).
§ 548. With these preliminaries, it is not difficult to give
the historic details of the defect and complement with th-^ as
they appear in they, their, and them, which are, at the present
time, only found in the plural,
A form J^e := the, common for all cases, all numbers, and all
genders, displaced se.
Its displaced his.
Hion, as an objective case singular, displaced hyyie.
Nothing, then, was left but the plural forms, which now
remain, and, these — viz. they, their, them — disj)laced the A. S,
he, heora, heom.
§ 549. The details between these and- those are obscure. At
the present time those is tlie plural of ^yth- ; of which the
neuter is that. In like manner these is the plural of this; a
word which is declined on the same principle as the preceding.
Hence it had pi-'^ne (provincial thisn) as an accusative, pisum as
a dative, pises as a genitive, pi.<^sa as a genitive plural.
DEMONSTRATIVES. 5 2 '
Neiitfif.
d/z.
th/t.
Si III/
ular.
May.cidine.
Fciiiiniiir
Old nit/h-OeriiNni.
di'ser
desju
Dhl Sti.voii.
tliese
tliius
Amj/o-i^inoit.
VOh
{;eos
Plural.
Masculine.
Feminine.
Old nhjTi-German.
dose
deso
Old Saxon.
these
thesH,
Anglo-Saxon.
jji'is for all
genders.
Neuter.
desju.
tliius.
Now it is clear tliat in these the -.s is no inflection, but a
radical part of the word, like the s in rjeese. But what of the
final e ? Was it mute ? If so, it is a mere point of spelling.
Dr. Guest, however, has made this view untenable, and shown
that, in the Old English at least, it was an actual sign of
number.
Wlieu thise Bretons tuo were ed out of tins laud. — Uobkut of Bourne.
Thin is tliilk disciple that bereth wituessjaig of these thingis, and wroot
them. — Wycliifk, John xxi.
Say to us in what i^owcrs thou doist these thingis, and who is he that gaf to
thee this power. — Wycliffe, Lulce xx.
His, though a Possessive Case, was similarly inflected.
Yet the A\'hile he spake to the puple lo his mother and hise hretlu'en stonden
■n-ithoute forth. — Wycliffe, Matt. xii.
And hise disciples camen and token his body. — 'Wycliffe, Matt. xiv.
§ 550. Observe the form j)?/. We may call it, if we choose,
an Ablative Case, but it is rather an Instrumental one ; yy met
= eo inagis=by that onuch more.
It is, then, in such expressions as all the more, all the better,
a different word from the article the, with which its apparent
identity is only accidental. The article comes from le — unde-
clined.
§ 551. Connected w-ith the disuse of his as a Neuter, is the
question as to the origin of its ; upon which I give, in extenso,
the following interesting extract from a paper by Mr. Watts : —
We should thus have been enal)led, for instance, to ascertain both -s^ith case
and precision, at what period a word now so famihar as " its "—the possessive
case of the neuter pronoun— was first introduced into English. At present
the only information on the subject that can be derived from the comparison
of the different versions of the Bible is, that so lately as Kill— the date of the
issue of the authorized version — the word did not exist, or at all everils was
not considered to belong to that elevated portion of the language regarded as
528 DEMONSTRATIVES.
siiitrtblo fur tlie translation of the sacrod writings. Tlierc is one verse of tlie
Bible ill which tlie neuter pronoun would now be used veiy frequently in
different cases, and it is ciurious to observe how it is dealt with in the various
versions.
The recent editors of what is generally called Wicklifle's Bible have, as
has been already stated, printed two versions at length. The verse alluded to
(which is the 9th of Numbers, chapter iv.) is far from alike in the two render-
ings. "Wicklifle's is as follows : —
" And thei shulen take the iacynctyn mantil with the which thei shulen
couer tlie candclstik with the lanterns and her toonges and snyters."
Purvey's runs thus —
" Thei schuleu take also a mentil of iacj'ut with Avliich thei schulen liile the
candilstike vdih hise lanternes and tongis and snytels."
It will be observed that it is here a candlestick which is on one occasion re-
ferred to, with " her tongs," and in the other, witli " his lanterns," — in neither
case with " its ;" that in fact in one case the candlestick seems to be made of
the feminiue, and in tlie other of the masculine gender. The uncertainty ])ve-
vailed for centuries after the time of WickUffe. In Tyndale's version of the
Pentateuch, printed in 1530, the candlestick is both feminine and neuter : —
" And they shall take a cloth of jacyncte and cover the candelsticke of light
and hir lampes and hir snoifers and ijve pannes and all liir oyle vessels which
they occupye aboute it and shall put upon her and on all hir iiistrumeutes a
couerynge of taxus skj-nnes and put it upon staues."
In Coverdale's version, prmted in 1535, the passage is as follows : —
" And they shal take a yalowe clothe and cover the candilsticke of light
therwith, and his lampes, with his snoffers and outquenchers," &c. &c.
In Matthews's Bible (1537), the candlestick is feminine again : —
"And they shall take a cloth of iacincte and couer the candelstj-cke of lyght
and her lampes and her snoffers and fyre panes and all her oyle vessels which
they occupye aboute it," &c.
Last of all comes the authorized version : —
" And they shall take a cloth of blue and cover the candlestick of the light
and his lamps and his tongs and his snuifdishes and all the oil vessels thereof
wherewith they minister unto it."
From the repetition of " his lamps, his tongs, and his snuffdishes," in con-
nection T\ith the "it" at the end of the verse, the pronouns in all cases re-
ferring to the candlestick, no other conclusion can be di-a^vn than that the
word " its " did not then exist, or was purposely excluded. The same pheno-
menon presents itself repeatedly iii other portions of the same book, in wliich^
from the nature of the subject, the occasion for these pronouns recurs more
fr-equently than in other portions of the Scriptures. It has been suggested,
that the regular possessive for it, before the uitroduction of its, was his ; but
it ^\ill be remarked, that if tliis obseiwation be tiiie, it will only apply to one
stage of our language. The quotation from ]\Iatthews's Bible shows that in
the time of Henry the Eighth, the candlestick could be spoken of with " her
oil vessels wliich they occupy about it."
It w^ould be a curious task to trace at what period the missing possessive
pronoun found its way into our language and who introduced it. In Shak-
speare "there are fr-equent indications of its non-existence. Thus in the open-
ing speech of the Idng iii Henry the Fourth we find —
DEMONSTRATIVES. 529
" Tlie edge of \v;ir, like an ill-slicathod sword.
S]iiil] only cut ///\s- Diaster."
and there is a still move apposite instance in the opening scene of IlainJet: —
" Wlicn yon same star that 's westward from the pole,
Had made his course to illume that part of heaven
Where now it bums."
The verbal indexes to Shalispeare and Milton, minute as they are, do not
descend to words deemed so iusigiaificant as "it" and "its ;" and without these
and similar aids, it can only be by good fortime that any progress can be made
in the search for so small an object over so wide a field.
§ 552. And now the neuter termination -t commands atten-
tion. Althouo;h, in the Eno-]ish lanefuao-e, it is found in three
pronouns only, tlie form is an important one. In the Moeso-
Gothic it pervades the whole inflection of adjectives ; so that
their neuters end in -ta, just as truly as the Latin neuters end in
-urn, or the Greek in -ov.
hke
Ml ISC. Fein. Ncut.
Blind-s, blind-ffl, h\\n(\.-atn ;
Masc. Fern. Neut.
Cxc-iis, csec-a, csuc-um.
In Norse, too, at the present moment, all neuters end in -t :
skdn=pulcli-eT, slcont^2)ulckr-imi. In the Modern High- Ger-
man this -t becomes -s, M. hlind-er, N. blind-es. But it is the
Latin -d in i-d, illu-d, istii-d — and, as such, a very old inflec-
tion. And now comes a fact which (whilst it justifies the
importance and prominence given to the pronominal inflection,
of which, in practice, this neuter in -^.lias been the characteristic,)
shows us how in lano-uages of the same order, a mere alteration
in the distribution of certain inflections may effect a great
change. There are two types of inflection in the way of
Gender — one given by the Substantives, the other by the Pro-
nouns. The Adjectives have none of their own. They take
that of the Substantive, or the Pronoun, according to the lan-
guage. The Latin Adjectives (along with the Greek) follow the
Substantives, the result being cwc-us, ccec-um, like doinin-us,
vegh-um. The German follow tlie Pronouns ; the result being
hlind-s, hlind~ata, like ivho, what.
M M
oo'
DEMONSTRATIVES.
CHAPTER XXII.
THE TRUE PERSONAL PRONOUNS.
§ .')53. The true Personal Pronouns, as far as inflection is con
cerned, are, in English, s/ni-, ^tli- and ^/y-- It is not safe
to go more minutely into detail than this ; though, roughly speak-
ing, we may say that they are me (1st person) ; iliou (2nd per-
son singular) ; and ye (2nd person plural). They run thus :- —
8in(j. Objective
■ me.
Possessive .
my.
Plural. Nominative .
we.
Objective
us.
Possessive .
(2.)
our.
SiiKjular ipnhj). Nominative
thou
Objective
thee.
Possessive
(3.)
thy.
Plural {onlij). Nominative
or Objective.
ye.
Objective or
Nominative .
you.
Possessive
your
§ 554. The exact details of the difference between nie and
my are obscure. The A. S. gives nieh and raec ; both Dative
and Accusative rather than Possessive.
give
Dative.
The allied languages
Accusative.
miJi
\>uk
sik
tiiih
dill
sih
mih
\>ik
sik
mich
dich
„ „ „ sich.
As far as the form in -/■ {=h) goes, this looks like Composi-
tion rather than Declension, the -k being the -c in hi-c, hce-c,
ho-c.
McEso-Gotluc
mis
» „
\}US
„ „
sis
Old High- German
mer
,,
dir
Old Norse
mer
\>er
ser
Middle H.
G.
mir
dir
DEMONSTRATIVES. 531
§ 555. That we, our, and us are etymologically allied, i. e.
that they arc forms of the same word rather than different
words, is shown hy the A. S. user=our, and by the Norse vi
and vor=we and our. Tlie evidence that they are connected
with me is not so clear. The affinity, however, between the
sounds of m and w, along with other phenomena, account for it.
For the double, or equivocal power of ye and you, as well as
for the possibly Nominative power of me, and for mine and
thine, see the Syntax.
§ 55G. Ours, yours (also theirs), are cases of our, your
(and their), i. e. each is a case upon a case. We may call them
cases of me, you (and theh^ if we choose. They are, however,
no samples of any Pronominal inflection, but, rather, catachrestic
substantival forms.
CHAPTER XXIII.
ON THE WORD /.
§ 557. No notice has been taken of /. Nevertheless, in
all the previous editions of the present work, as elsewhere,
I have given it a place among the true personal pronouns.
And, doubtless, its place is with ine and thee. If / be not a
personal pronoun, — a personal pronoun of the first person singu-
lar— what is it?
The foregoing chapter, however, treated not of personal pro-
nouns in general, but of their declension, and / is undeclined.
Is this a sufficient reason for excluding it, — for, apparently
ignoring its very existence ? In the present stage of our lan-
guage she is undeclined : yet she has been treated somewhat
fully. To treat / as the nominative case of rtie would, of
course, have been absurd ; but why do I not say (as up to the
present time has been said) that / was defective in the oblique
cases, me in the nominative ; and that they were complementary
to one another ? Mutatis mutandis, this is what v/as said of
he and she ; the former being defective in the nominative
feminine, the latter defective in everything else. A partial
answer to this is conveyed in the statement that she had
once a declension ; but that / never had one. But tliis is an
under-statement. / is, to all appearances, something more than
M M 2
532
INFLECTION OF SUBSTANTIVES.
a mere undeclined word in the present stage of the English
lano'uao-e. It is somethinfj more than a word that has never
been decUned. It is a word essentially undeclinable. As a pro-
noun of the first person, it is the name of the speaker, whoever
he (or she) may be — the name of the speaker speaking of him-
self But such a speaker may be one of two things. He may
be the object of some action from without ; or he may be the
originator of some action interior to, and proceeding from, him-
self In other words, there may be a division of the Pro-
nouns of the first person into two classes — (1) the Subjective ;
and (2) the Objective ; the former being essentially Nominative.
Now, in all the languages more especially akin to our own, and
known by the name Indo-European, this difference exists :
i. e. I is never a form of r)ie. On the other hand, in the lan-
guages allied to the Fin, or Ugrian, it is always one.
1.
Nominative . .
. . . mina.
Infinitive . . .
. . . minuet.
Genitive . . .
. . minim.
Inessive . . .
. . , minussct.
Elative ....
. . . minuhur.
Illative ....
. = minnun.
2
Nominative . .
. , . ben.
Genitive . . .
. . . henum.
Dative ....
. . . band.
Accusative . . .
. . . beni.
Ablative . . .
. . . benden.
The first of these examples is from the Fin of Finland, the
second from the Turkisli.
CHAPTER XXIV.
INFLECTION OF SUBSTANTIVES. THE PLURAL NUMBEES AND
POSSESSIVE CASE IN -S. DETAILS.
§ 558. The A. S. Possessive Singular ended in -es ; as
cyning, cyning-es=^rex, Teg-is. The A. S. Nominative Plural
ended in -«.s, as cyning-as = reg-es. The present English ejects
the vowel, whether e or a ; so reducing the two cases to the
same form. It distingTiishes them, however, in the spelling ;
inasmuch as we write kings =Teg-es, but Jdngs = regis.
§ 559. The Possessive Plural, in A. S., ended in -a; as
POSSESSIVE CASE PLURAL. 533
cynin<j-a = re<jum. The present English knows nothing of this
form. It rarely forms a real Possessive Plural at all. When it
does, it does so by adding the -s of the Singular to the Nomina-
tive Plural ; as ox-en, ox-ens. But this is only done with those
few words where the Nominative Plural does /lo^ akeady end in
-6" ; men, men's ; hretliTen, brethren's ; children, children-s.
This avoids such expressions as the father ses children, the sis^
terses brethren, the masterses men. The difference, however,
we indicate in writing.
The father's children means the \ The master's men, the men of one
children of one father ; master;
The sister's brethren, the brethren The owner's oxen, the oxen of one
of one sister ; ' owner.
But—
The fathers' children means the
children of different fathers ;
The sisters' brethren, the brethren
of different sisters ;
The masters' men, the men of diffe-
rent masters ;
The owners' oxen, the oxen of diffe-
rent owners.
§ 560. To these preliminaries, add the following five rules of
Euphony.
(1 .) Tw^o mutes, one of which is surd and the other sonant,
coming together in the same syllable, cannot be pronounced.
(2.) A surd mute, immediately preceded by a sonant one, is
changed into its sonant equivalent.
(3.) A sonant mute, immediately preceded by a surd one, is
changed into its sonant equivalent.
(4.) In certain cases, a voAvel or a liquid has the same effect
upon the surd letter s, as a sonant mute.
Hilh is pronounced hillz.
Stems — stemz.
Horns — hornz
Stars — starz.
Boys — hoyz.
(5.) When two identical or cognate sounds come together in
the same syllable, they must be separated from each other by the
insertion of the sound of the e in bed — loss, loss-es ; blaze,
blaz-es. Here we must remember, not only that z, zh, and sh
comport themselves as -s, but that the -ch in church, &;c., and
-ge- in judge, &c., are really tsh and dzh, whence church-es,
judg-es, &c. In mona.rch, &c., the ch is not tsh but k (x) ; the
})lural being mona/rchs.
'>31 PLURALS.
§ oGl. All this being borne in mind, the formation of our
Plurals is very regular ; the apparent anomalies being chiefly
points of spelling, like cargoes, beauties, &c., from cargo and
beaut}/.
§ 562. A feW;^ however, are something more. Thus —
The plural of —
wife is not wifes * hut wives t
loaf — loafs — loaves
knife — knifes — knives
half — halfs — halves
life — lifes — lives
leaf — leafs — leaves
calf — calfs — calves.
Eespecting these words we may observe — (1 .) That the
vowel before/ is long; (2.) that they are all of Anglo-Saxon
origin. Putting these two facts together, we can use more gene-
ral language, and say that — When a word ends in the sound of
/, preceded by a long vowel, and is of Anglo-Saxon origin, the
plural is formed by the addition of the sound of the z in zeal.
To this rule there are two exceptions :
1. JDivarf ; a word of Anglo-Saxon origin, but which forms
its plural by means of the somid of s — dwarfs (pronounced
ihvarfce) .
2. Beef ; a word not of Anglo-Saxon origin, but which forms
its plural by means of the sound of z — beeves (pronounced
beevz).
§ 563. If we ask the reason of this peculiarity in the for-
mation of the plurals of these words in -/, we shall find reason
to believe that it lies with the singular rather than with plural
forms. In Anglo-Saxon, / at the end of a word was, probably,
sounded as v ; and it is likely that the original singulars were
sounded loav, halv, vjive, calv, leav. In the Swedish language
the letter/ has the sound of v ; so that staf is sounded stav.
Again, in the allied languages the words in question end in the
sonant (not the surd) mute, — iveib, laid), calb, halb, stab, &c. =z
tvife, leaf, calf, half, staff. Hence the plural is probably normal ;
it being the singular form on which the irregularity lies.
§ 564. Pence. — A contracted iovm. fvoin jiennies ; and col-
lective rather than plural. Sixpence, compared with sixpences,
is no plural, but a singular form.
Dice. — This distinguishes dice for play from dies (diez) for
* As if written infcc, &c. -f- As it" written icifz, &c.
PLURALS. 535
coiniijg. Dice, perhaps, like pence, is collective rather than
plural.
Eaves. — In A. S. efese : so that -s belongs to the root.
Alms. — In Anglo-Saxon cvlmesse.
Riches. — Most writers say, riches are useful ; in which case
the word riches is plural. Still there are a few who say, riches
is useful ; in which case the word riches is singular. The -s is
no sign of the plural number, since there is no such substantive
as rich ; on the contrary, it is part of the original singular, like
the -s in distress. Notwithstanding this, we cannot say richess-
es in the same way that we can say clistress-es. Hence the
word riches is, in respect to its original form, singular ; in
respect to its meaning, either singular or plural — most frequently
the latter.
Neivs. — Some say, this neivs is good; in which case the
word neivs is singular. More rarely we find the expression
these neivs are good ; in which case tlie word news is plural.
Now in the word rtevjs the -s (unlike the -s in alms and riches)
is no part of the original singular, but the sign of the plural,
like the -s in trees. Notwithstanding this, we cannot subtract
the s, and say netv, in the same way that we can form tree from
trees. Hence the word 7ietvs is, in respect to its original form,
plural ; in respect to its meaning, either singular or plural, most
frequently the former.
Means. — Some say, these means are useful ; in which case
the word means is plural. Others say, tlcis means is useful ;
in which case the word means is singular. Now in the word
means the ~s (unlike the s in alms and riches, but like the sin
news) is no part of the original singular, but the sign of the plural,
like the s in trees. The form in the original French, fi"om which
language the word is derived, is onoyen, singular ; moyehs,
plural. If we subtract from the word means the letter s, we
say mean. Now as a singular form of the word means, with
the sense it has in the phrase tvays and means, there is, in the
current English, no such word as inean, any more than there is
such a word as neiu from neivs. But, in a different sense, there
is the singular form mean ; as in the phrase the golden mea^i,
meaning middle course. Hence the word m.eans is, in respect
to its form, plural, in respect to its meaning, either singular or
plural.
Pains. — Some say, these pains are well-taken : in which case
the v^ord 2^ains is plural. Others say, this pains is well-taken;
53G PLURALS.
ill wliicli case the word ^)«//?f' is singular. The form in the
original French, from ^\■hicll language the word is derived, is
peine. The reasoning that has been applied to the word means
is closely applicable to the word imins.
The same also applies to the word amends. The form in
French is amende, without the s.
§ 565. Mathematics, metaphysics politics, eiliics, optics, phy-
sics.-— All the words in point are of Greek origin, and all are
derived from a Greek adjective. Each is the name of some de-
partment of stud}", of some art, or of some science. As the
words are Greek, so also are the sciences which they denote either
of Greek origin, or else such as flourished in Greece. Let the arts
and sciences of Greece be expressed, in Greek, by a substantive
and an adjective combined, rather than by a simple substan-
tive ; for instance, let it be the habit of the language to say the
musical art rather than music. Let the Greek for art be a word
in the feminine gender ; e. g. re'/yr) (tekhnce), so that the musical
art be 77 jMovaUrf re'^vr) {hce moasihca teJchnce). Let, in the pro-
gress of language (as was actually the case in Greece), the
article and substantive be omitted, so that, for the Tnusical art,
or for music, there stand only the feminine adjective, fiovaLKfj.
Let there be, upon a given art or science, a series of books, or
treatises ; the Greek for hooh, or treatise, being a neuter sub-
stantive, ^l^Xiov {biblion). Let the substantive meaning treatise
be, in the course of language, omitted ; so that whilst the science
of physics is called (pva-LKr) (fysikce) from 77 <pvatK7} re'^yr}, a
series of treatises upon the science shall be called ^va-tKr] (fysika)
or physics. Now all this is what happened in Greece. The
science was denoted by a feminine adjective singular, as <j)va-iK7)
(fljsika/), and the treatises upon it by the neuter adjective plural,
as (jivaiKa (fysika). I conceive, then, that, in the Middle Ages,
a science of Greek oris^in mio-lit have its name drawn from two
sources, viz. from the name of the art or science, or fi-om the
name of the books wherein it was treated. In the first case it
had a singular form as physic, logic ; in the second, a plural, as
'mathematics, 'metaphysics, optics.
ADJECTIVES.
537
ADJECTIVES.
CHAPTER XXV.
-AT PKESENT UNDECLINED,-
DECLINED
-OEIGINALLY
§ 560. At the present time, the Enghsh adjective is wholly
destitute of Inflection. In A. S. it was not only declined, but
it had two declensions ; one Indefinite, and one Definite. The
former ran thus : —
Singuhir.
Masculine.
Feminine.
Neuter.
Nominative.
God
God
God
Accusative.
Godne
Gode
God
Ablative.
G6de
Godre
G6de
Dative.
Godiim
Godre
Godum
Genitive.
Godes
Godre
Godes,
Phi
•ul.
Masculine.
Feminine.
Neuter.
Nominative.
Gode
G(xle
Gode
Accusative.
Gode
Gode
Gode
Ablative.
Goduin
Godiim
Godum
Dative.
Godiun
Godum
Godum
Genitive.
Godra
Godra
Godi-a.
The Definite Declension, which was used when the Adjective
was preceded by either the Definite a-rticle or a Demonstrative
Pronoun, was characterized by the predominance of the forms in
-n. Thus :—
Singular. '
Masculine.
Feminine.
Neuter.
Nominative.
G6de
Goda
Gode
Accusative.
Godan
Godan
Godan
Aluitive.
Godan
Godan
Godan
Dative.
Godau
Godan
Godan
Genitive.
Godan
Godan
Godan.
Flu
ral.
Masculine.
Feminine.
Neuter.
Nominative.
Godan
Godan
Godan
Accusative.
Godan
Godan
G6dan
Ablative.
Godum
Godum
Godum
Dative.
Godiun
Godum
Godmn
Genitive.
Godcna
Godeua
Godena
• 38
ADJECTIVES.
The Declension of the Participle was, in the main, that of
the Adjective.
riuml.
Komlnatlvc.
Accusdtive.
Ahhitive.
Diitive.
Giintive.
Nominative.
Accusative.
Ablative.
Dative.
Genitive.
Masculine.
Bajrnand
Bfernandne
Baeruaude
Bsernaudum
Bternaudes
Feminine.
Bajinaud
Ba^rnande
Boernandre
BiTernandre
Bcernandre
Singula I
Masculine.
BBernande
Bfernaude
Bseruandiira
Bfernandiun
Bcernandi-a
Feminine.
Bsemande
Baemaude
Bssrnandum
Ba3rnandum
Brernaudi'a
Neuter.
Baernand
Bajrnand
Bfernaude
Bteruandum
Beernaudes.
Neuter.
Bsei'nande
Bfernaude
BjBrnaudum
Bfernandum
Bsernandi'a.
§ .567. This fulness of inflection of both the Adjective and the
Participle, during the Anglo-Saxon period, contrasts with the
utter absence of declension at the present nioraent, and may
serve as an illustration of what we may call virtual, as opposed
to actual, inflections. An adjective agreeing with a substantive,
denoting a male, is virtually in the masculine gender, inasmuch
as, if there were such a thing, at the present time as the sign of
gender, it would take that of the masculine. It really did this
in an earlier stage of the language. The same applies to the
questions of Number and Case. Adjectives agreeing with
Substantives in the Plural Number or the Possessive Case are
virtually Possessive and Plural Adjectives. The same applies to
Participles.
Old English examples {from Dr. Guest) of the Plural forms of Adjectives.
1. In these lay a gi-et multitude of syJi-e men, hlinde, crokid, and dri/e. —
Wyclifjje, John v.
2. In aU the orders foiu'e is none that can
So much of dalliance and faire language,
He hadde ymade ful many a marriage —
His tipx^et was ay farsed ful of knives,
Aud pinnes for to given/rti>-f ^^•iYes.
Chaucer, Frol.
3. And al the cuntre of Judee wente out to liim, and alle men of Jerusalem.
— ^^VYCLIFFE, Mark i.
4. He ghjTieth lif to alle men, and brething, and alle tliingis ; and made of
von al kpade of men to inhabit on al the face of the erthe. — Wycliffe, Dedis
of Aposths, xvii.
VERBS. • 539
5. That ffulros souc whicli alle thiuges wrought ;
And (ill, that wrought is with a skilful thought.
The Gost that from the fader gan precede,
Hath Bouled hem.
Chaucer, The Second Nonnes Tale,
ft. And '///(' we that ben iu this aray
And maken all this lamentation,
We losten alle our husbondes at that touu.
Chaucer, The Knightes Tale.
1. A good man bryngeth forth gode thingis of good tresore. — Wycliffe,
Matt. vii.
8. So every good ti'ee maketli gode fruytis, but an yvel tree maketh yvel
fi'uytes. A good tree may not make y\'el fruytis, neither an j'vel tree may
make gode fruytis. Every tree that maJieth not good fruyt schal be cut down.
— Wycliffe, Matt. vii.
!). Men loveden more darknessis than light for her werkes weren yvele, for
ech man that doeth yvel, hateth the light. — Wycliffe, John iii.
CHAPTER XXVI.
VERBS. FORMATION OF THE PAST TENSE. CHANGE
OF VOWEL.
§ 568. The verbs fall into two divisions. In the first the
Past Tense is formed by changing the vowel, as speah, spohe.
In the second it is formed by adding the sound of -ed, -d, or -t,
as plant-ed, niove-d, tvep-t.
§509. The chief words which form the past tense by changing
the vowel are —
Present. Past.
( Vowel i'.)
FaU
fell
Hold
held
Draw
drew
Slay
slew
Fly
flew
Blow
blew
Crow
crew
Know
knew
Grow
grew.
{Vouel 00.
)
Shake
shook
Take
took
For-sake
for-sook
540
PAST TENSE FORMED
Tao fonns ; one, marked with nn (isterhk ['■^~), ohsolete.
Present.
/^^s/.
rise
^ rose
^■ris ^
smite
smote
smit
ride
rode
*rid
stride
sti-ode
stiid
slide
*slode
shd
chide
^=chode
chid
drive
di-ove
*driv
thrive
throve
=:-thriv
write
wrote
writ
sHt
■-'.=slat
slit
bite
*bat
bit
s\viin
swam
swum
begin
began
begun
si)ia
span
spun
siag
sang
smig
spring
sprang
si)rung
sting
■-:stang
stung
ring
rang
rung
wring
*wrang
wrung
fling
*fiang
flung
cling
=-clang
clung
string
-i-strang
strimg
sling
slang
slmig
siak
sank
sunk
dririk
drank
diimk
shrink
shrank
shrunk
stick
H=stack
stuck
burst
=:'barst
bm-st
bind
*band
bound
find
*fand •
found
grind
*gi-and
gi-oimd
wind
*wand
wound.
For barst we occasionally find by^ast. The forms like fand
are chiefly Scotch.
§ 570. In A. S., many words which now form their past
tense in -ed, -d, or -t, formed it by the change of vowel.
Present.
Existing Past.
A. S. Past,
Wreak
Wreaked
WrJB'c
Fret
Fretted
Fraj't
Mete
Meted
MfB't
Shear
Sheard
Scear
Braid
Braided -
Brai'd
Knead
Kneaded
Cnai'd
Dread
Dreaded
Dred
Sleep
Slept
Slep
BY CHANGE OF VOWEL.
541
Present.
Fold
Wield
Wax
Leap
Sweep
Weep
Sow
JJake
Gnaw
Lau<fh
W^ade
Lade
Grave
Shave
Step
Wash
Bellow
Swallow
]\Iourn
Spurn
Carve
Starve
Thresh
Hew
Flow
Row
Creep
Dive
Shove
Chew
Brew
Lock
Suck
Reek
Smoke
Bow
Lie
Gripe
Span
Eke
Fare
Exutinfj Past.
J. S.Pasl.
Folded
Feold
Wielded
Weold
Waxed
Weox
Leapt
Hleop
Swept
Sweop
Wept
Weop
Sowed
Seow
Baked
B6k
Gnawed
Gnoh
Laughed
Hloh
Waded
W6d
Laded
H16h
Graved
Grof ■
Shaved
Scof
Stepped
St6p
Washed
Woes
Bellowed
Bealh
Swallowed
Swealli
Mourned
Mearn
Spurned
Spearn
Canned
Cearf
Staiwed
Staerf
Tlu-eshed
Thsersc
Hewed
Heow
Flowed
Fleow
Rowed
Reow
Crept
Creap
Dived
Deaf
Shoved
Sceaf
Chewed
Ceaw
Brewed
Breaw
Locked
Leac
Sucked
Seac
Reeked
Reac
Smoked
Sme&,c
Bowed
Beah
Lied
Leah
Griped
Grap
Spanned
Spen
Eked
Eoc
Fared
For.
§ 571. Origin of the forms resulting from a change of
vowel — In the Moeso-Gothic, the verbs in six out of the twelve
classes, over which, in that language, they are distributed, form
the past tense by the reduplication of the initial consonant. In
the last two there is a change of vowel as well.
r>4--2
DID — iiiGirr.
Present.
Pdtit.
Sdlta
Sf'iisdJt
h'djit
Ildita
hdihdll
called
HUtupa
hldildup
ran
SUpa
sdizlep
slept
Laid
Idilo
laughed
Greta
y dig rot
wept.
It is not only believed that the pcast forms of the existing
English have grown out of these reduplicate prseterites, but
that, in two words, the reduplication still exists.
1. In did from do=.facio, with its participle done, the
final -d is not the same as the -d in moved. What is it ? There
are good grounds for believing that it is an instance of this same
old reduplicate prcBterite now under notice. If so, it is the
latter d, which is radical, and the former which is inflectional.
2. The folloAving couplet from Dryden's Mac Flecnoe
exhibits a form as well as a construction which requires ex-
planation.
An ancient fabric, rais'd t' inform tlie sight.
There stood of yore, and Barbican it hight.
Here the word hight =z was called, and seems to present an
instance of the participle being used in the passive sense without
the so-called verb substantive. Yet it does no such thing. The
word is no participle at all ; but a simple prseterite. Certain
verbs are naturally either passive or active, as one of two allied
meanings may predominate. To he called is passive ; so is, to
he heaten. But to hear as a name is active ; so is, to tahe a
heating. The word hight is in the same class of verbs with the
Latin vapulo ; and it is the same as the Latin word, duo.
Barhican cluit = Barhican auclivit = Barhicccn it hight. So
much for the question as to the construction, which is pi'operly
a point of syntax rather than etymology. In respect to the
form it must be observed that the t is no sign of the prseterite
tense, but, on the contrary, a part of the original word, which
is, in German, heiss-en, in Norse, het-a, and hed-e. In A. S.
this prseterite was heht, and as the M. G. was hdihdit, the form
has been looked upon as reduplicate. Whatever may be its
origin, the present spelling is inaccurate. The g has no business
where it is ; it being only the false analogy of the words high
and height that has introduced it.
§ 572. That this reduplication is the reduplication of the
CRITICISM. 5 43
Greek words like r'^-rv^a, and the Latin ones like mo-mordi,
is generally admitted. Such being the case, the words like sdisalt
are, in respect to their history, neither more nor less than
Perfects.
{;j 573. A line of criticism is suggested by them, which, thoiKdi
it lies in the back-ground, is important ; not so much, however,
in its results as in its moral. It reads us a lesson against over-
hasty generalization. Few persons believe that the change of
vowel is spontaneous, /. e. that it came of itself, independent
of anything which either preceded or followed it. On the con-
trary, it is reasonably believed that changes of vowel are, as
a general rule, secondary processes. Seeing no reason for be-
lieving that they are never primary, I agree with my prede-
cessors on this point, in the main. The only question, then,
that now remains, is the direction of the influence. In rather,
from hra'Sor, it is clear that the influence has been 7'e^j'Ogressive,
in other words, that the affix has acted on what went before it.
The converse, however, was possible, and a state of things is ima-
ginable in which it shall be the first of two vovv^els which shall
determine the character of the second ; in which case the direc-
tion would be forwards rather than backwards, and the action of
the vowel ^progressive. With this alternative as a philological
possibility, it is easy to see that a generalization of a wide kind
is also possible. It may be that certain languages — nay, certain
classes of languages — are characterized by the difference of the
direction of the action of their constituent sounds ; some giving
a progressive, some a retrogressive, system of accommodation. It
may now be added that this is no supposition, but, to a great
extent, a reality. In the German Lmguages the direction is retro-
gressive rather than progressive. In the languages allied to the
Fin and Turkish, the direction is progressive, rather than retro-
gressive. Such is the rule in the main : but that it is not a rule
absolute may be seen in the words under notice. The influence
which changed greta into gaigrot is certainly progressive. For
a German language, however, the progress is an exceptionable
phenomenon ; though the converse is the exception in the
Fin and Turk.
41-
FORMATION OF
CHAPTER XXVII.
FORMATION OF THE PAST TENSE. ADDITION OF -EI), -I),
Oil -r.
§ 574. The current statement that the syllable -ed, rather than
the letter -d, is the sign of the prseterite tense, is true only in re-
gai'd to the written language. In stabbed, moved, bragged,
ivhizzed, judged, jilled, slurred, slaonmed, shunned, barred,
stretued, the e is a point of spelling only, for in language (except
in declamation) there is no second vowel sound. The -d comes
in immediate contact witli the final letter of the original word,
and the number of syllables remains the same as it was before.
"When however, the original words ends in -cZ or -t, as slight
or brand, then, and then only (and that not always), is there the
addition of the syllable -ed ; as in slighted, branded. This is
necessary, since the combinations slightt and brandd, are unpro-
nounceable.
Whether the addition be -d, or -t depends upon the sonancy or
surdness of the preceding letter. After, b, v, th (as in clothe),
g, or z, the addition is -d. This is a matter of necessity. We
say stahd, movd, clothd, braggd, wldzzd, because stabt, movt,
clotht, braggt, whizzt, are unpronounceable. After I, m, n, r, w, y,
or a vowel, the addition is also -d. This is no matter of ne-
cessity, but simply the hahit of the English language. Fill, slurt,
strayt, &c. are as pronounceable as filld, slurrd, strayd, &c.
It is the habit, however, of the English language to prefer the
latter forms.
§ 575. The verbs of this class fall into three sections. In
the first there is the simple addition of -d, -t, or -ed.
Sen'e
served
Cry
cried
Betray
betrayed
Expel
expelled
Accuse
accused
Instruct
instructed
Invite
invited
Waste
wasted
Dip
SUp
Step
Look
Pluck
Toss
Push
dipped {dipt)
sUpxDed {slipt)
stepped (stept)
looked (looJct)
phicked {pluckt)
tossed {tost).
pushed {puslit)
Confess confessed {confcst).
§ 576. In the second, besides the addition of -t or -d, the
vowel is shortened. It also contains those words which end in
-d, or -t, and at the same time have a short vowel in the praeterite.
Such, amongst others, are cut, cost, &c., where the two tenses are
TENSES IN -El\ ETC. 545
alike, and hend, rend, &c., wliere the prreterite i.s formed from
the present by changing -d into -t, as bent, rent, &c.
§ 577. In the third, the vowel is changed.
Tell told I Sell sold
Will would j Shall slioiild.
§ 578. To this group belong the remarkable praeterites of the
verbs seek, beseech, catch, teach, bring, think, and buy, viz. sougld,
besought, caught, taught, hrovgld, thougJd, and bought. In all
these, the final consonant is either g or Jc, or else a sound allied
to those mutes. When the tendency of these to become h and
y, as well as to undergo further changes, is remembered, the
forms in point cease to seem anomalous. In wrought, from
ivork, there is a transposition. In laid and said the present
forms make a show of regularity which they have not. The
true original forms should be legde and saigde, the infinitives
being lecgan, secgan. In these words the i represents the semi-
vowel y, into which the original g was changed. The Anglo-
Saxon forms of the other words are as follows : —
Bj'egan
bohte
Bviiigan
brohte
Secan
sohte
{jeucan
jjolite
Wvrcan
worthe.
§ 579. Out of the three groups into which the Verbs under
notice in Anglo-Saxon are divided, only one takes a vowel before
the dj or t. The other two add the syllables -te, or -de, to the
last letter of the original word. The vowel that, in one out of
the three Anglo-Saxon classes, precedes d is o. Thus we have
lujian, lufode; clypian, chjpode. In the other two classes the
forms are respectively bcernan, bmrnde ; and tellan, tealde ; no
vowel being inserted.
§ 580. In the present English, with several verbs there is
the actual addition of tlie syllable -ed, ; in other words, d is
separated from the last letter of the original word by the addi-
tion of a vowel ; as ended, instructed, &c.
In several verbs the final -d is changed into -t, as bend, bent ;
rend, rent ; send, sent ; gild, gilt ; build, built ; spend, spent ;
&c.
Herein we see a series of expedients for separating the
preeterite form from the present, when the root ends with the
same sound with which the affix begins.
The change from a long vowel to a short one, as in feed, fed,
N N
5t6 ORIGIN OF -D.
kc, can only take place where there is a long vowel to be
changed.
AVhere the vowels are short, and, at the same time, the word
ends in d, the d of the present may become t in the prteterite.
Such is the case with bend, bent.
Where there is no long vowel to shorten, and no d to change
into t, the two tenses (unless we add ed), of necessity, remain
alike. Such is the case with cut, cost, &;c., &c.
§ 581. With forms like fed and led we are in doubt as to
the class. This doubt we have three means of settling.
1. By the form of the participle. — The -en in beaten shows
that the word beat is in the same class as spoke.
2. By the nature of the Vovjel. — If beat were conjugated
like read, its pi-eeterite would be bet.
8, By a knouiedge of the older forms. — The A. S. is bedte,
beot. There is no such a form as bedte, bmtte. The preeterite of
sendan is sende. There is in A. S. no such form as sand.
§ 582. Certain so-called irregularities may now be noticed.
Made, had. — In these words there is nothing remarkable but
the ejection of a consonant. The Anglo-Saxon forms are ma-
code and hcefde, respective!}".
Would, should, could. — It must not be imagined that could
is in the same predicament with these words. In vjill and
shall the ~l is part of the original word. This is not the case
with can.
Tode. — Instead of goed, a regular prseterite from go, now ob-
solete, and replaced by ivent, the prseterite of ivend, — he wends
his wa.y — he vjent his vxiy. Except that the initial g has be-
come y, and the e follows instead of j^receding the d (a mere
point of spelling), there is nothing j^eculiar in this word.
For aught, minded, and did, see the following chapters.
§ .583. The origin of the form in -d is considered, by Gi'imm
and others, to lie in the word do ; of which the prseterite is d-d.
The Moeso-Gothic, in the Dual and Plural of the Indicative, and
in all the persons of the Conjunctive Mood, gives us the form in
full, i. e. the two d's. Having noted this, note also, the exist-
ence of expressions like vje did speak, we did write, and the
like, and the plausibility of the suggestion will become ap-
parent.
Note, too, the greater antiquity of the reduplicate forms ; inas-
much as before did could be attached to such a root as nas-, it
would, itself, have been deduced from do.
IRREGULARITY AKD DEFECT.
Sing.
(1.) nasida
(2.) nasides
(.3.) nasida
Sing.
(1.) nasidedjau
(2.) nasidedeis
(3.) nasidedi
Indicative.
Dual.
nasideduts
Conjunctive,
Dual.
nasidedeits
Plural.
nasidedum
nasidedujj
nasidedum.
riural.
nasidedeiuia
nasidedei)?
nasidedeina.
§ 584. Some remarks, however, of Dr. Trithen on the Sla-
vonic prseterite, induce me to entertain a different doctrine, and
to identify the -d under notice with the -t of the passive par-
ticiples of the Latin language, as found in mon-^f-us, voc-a^-us,
rap-^-us, and probably in the Greek forms like rv^-d-els.
1. The Slavonic prseterite is commonly said to possess gen-
ders : in other words, there is one form for speaking of a past
action when done by a male, and another for speaking of a past
action when done by a female.
2. These forms are identical with those of the participles, mas-
culine and feminine, as the case may be. Indeed the prseterite
is a participle. If, instead of saying ille amavit, the Latins said
ille amatus, whilst, instead of saying ilia amavit, they said ilia
ainata, they would exactly use the grammar of the Slavonic.
3. Hence, as one class of languages, at least, gives us the
undoubted fact of an active prseterite being identical with a pas-
sive partici])le, and as the participle and prseterite in question are
nearly identical, we have a fair reason for believing that the d,
in the English active prseterite, is the d of the participle, which,
in its turn, is the t of tlie Latin passive participle.
CHAPTER XXVITI.
ON IRREGULAEITY AND DEFECT.
§ 585. Whatever the verbs which form the Past Tense by
changing the vowel may be, they are anything but Irregular —
though the}^ are often treated as if they were. Irregular, how-
ever, is a word which we should use as seldom as possible. The
better the grammarian the fewer the irregularities of his gram-
mar. If it were not so, the phenomena of language would
scarcely be worth studying. It is evident, however, that it is
N N 2
548 IRREGULARITY AND DEFECT.
ill the power of the graniiiiarian to raise the number of ety-
mological irregularities to any amount, by narrowing the defi-
nition of the word irregular ; in other words, by framing an
exclusive rule. The current rule of the common granimarians is,
that the pnvterite is formed hy the addition of -t or -d, or -ed.
Now this position is suliieiently exclusive ; since it proscribes
not only the whole class of verbs, like spoke, but also words
like bent and sent, where -t exists, but where it does not exist
as an addition. The regular forms, it may be said, should
be bended and sended. Exclusive, however, as the rule in
question is, it is plain that it might be made more so. The
regular forms might, by the fiat of a rule, be restricted to those
in -d. In this case, words like ^ueJ)t and burnt would be added
to the already numerous list of irregulars. Finally, a further
limitation might be made, by laying down as a rule that no
word was regular, unless it ended in -ed.
§ 586. Thus much concerning the modes of making rules
exclusive, and, consequently, of raising the amount of irregula-
rities— the last art that the philosophic grammarian is ambitious
of acquiring. True etymology reduces irregularity by making
the rules of grammar not exclusive, but general. The quantum
of irregularity is in the inverse proportion to the generality of
our iniles. In language itself there is no iiTCgularity. The
word itself is only another name for our ignorance of the
processes that change words. The nearest approach to a true
Irregularity in the English language is to be found in the word
could, from can ; where the I is wholly inorganic, being foreign
to the root, and only introduced to match the I in should and
would. But even here it is not sounded : so that the Irregularity,
such as it is, is an Irregularity of spelling rather than speaking.
§ 587. Quoth is Defective, — only, however, in the present
stage of our language. The A. S. present was awe^e, exist-
ing, at the present moment, in the compound word bequeathe.
CHAPTER XXIX.
STEONG AXD WEAK VERBS SO-CALLED.
§ 588. In claiming for the forms like spohe, their due amount
of regularity, we improve upon the grammarians of the last cen-
STRONG AND WEAK VERBS — SO-CALLED. 549
tiiry. The exact imj^ort, however, of the two classes has yet to
be determined. The German philologues make out of the two
classes two different Conjugations ; one of which is called Strong^
the other ^Yeak. The words like spoke are strong, because they
are formed from their present tenses by a merely internal change,
i. e. a change of the vowel — no new element being added.
Meanwhile, called, and its fellows, require the addition of a
totally new sound — that of -cl, -t, or -ed, as the case may be ;
this being, somewhat ftmcifully, treated, as a sign of debility.
That these classes, however, (call them what we will,) are natural
is beyond a doubt.
(ci) The so-called Strong Verbs are of English, and few, or
none, of foreign, origin.
(h) Strong words (so-called) become weak. Weak words (so-
called) do not become strong. Hence, the later the stage of a
given language, the fewer are the strong forms. Then, as the
provincial dialects retain many archaisms, it is only natural to
expect that they will partially agree with the A. S. rather than
the modern English. Hence, if we find (as we actually do), in-
stead of (say) leapt, slept, mowed, snowed, &lg. such forms as
lej), slep, Tnew, snew, it is no more than we expect.
(c) The verbs which are strong in any one of the German
languages are generall}^ so in all the rest.
((f) Derived words are weak rather than strong. The intran-
sitive forms drink and lie, are strong ; the transitive forms
drench and lay, are weak.
(e) No new word forms its past tense by a change of vowel.
One of our earliest Norman-French verbs is adouher zz duhb.
Its past tense is duhb-ade.
§ 589. That these classes are natural is beyond a doubt ; in
other words, there is no doubt as to their being genuine classes —
classes of some sort or other. This was recognized as early as
the time of Ben Jonson, who, unlike the majority of his fol-
lowers, was unwilling to see irregulaiity where irregularity had
no real existence. So far, indeed, as he saw it at all, he saw it
on the side of the form in -d, which he called a " common inn
to lodge every strange and foreign guest," hereby using a meta-
phor which shows how clearly he had seen the extent to which
the one process was current, the other obsolete. In regard to
the class under notice he writes —
"That which followeth, for aiiythmg I can lliul (tliuugh 1 ha\-o with some
diligence searched after it), eiitcrtiiiiieth none but natural and humeboru
'^'^0 IRREGULARITY AND DEFECT.
words, which, though in number they be not many, a hundred and twenty, or
thereabouts, yet in variation are so divers and uncertain that they need much
the stamp of some good logic to beat them uito proportion. We have set
down that, that in our judgement agreeth best witli reason and good order.
Which notwithstanding, if it seem to any to be too rough hewed, let him plain
it out more smoothly; and I shall not only not envy it, but, in the behalf of
my country, most heartily thank him for so gi-eat a benefit ; hoping that I
shall be thought sufficiently to have done my part, if, in tolling this beU, I
maj'- draw others to a deeper consideration of the matter : for, touching ni,y-
self, I must needs confess, that after much painful churning, this only would
come."
The be]], liowever, was tolled in vain. Wallis demurred to
liis doctrine, liaving devoted a special cliapter to tlie considera-
tion of wliat lie called the Verba anomalia.
De Verbis Anomalis.
Restat ut de Verborum aliquot Anomalia pauca tradam. De quibus hsec
duo primitus monenda simt.
1. Tota quce sequitur Anomalia non nisi praeteriti Imperfecti temporis, et
Participii Passivi formationem spectat. Nam in ipsis quidem Verbis Irregu-
laribus nihil aliud irregulare est.
2. Tota ilia quantacunque Anomalia, Verba Exotica vix omnino attingit,
sed ilia solo quse Nativa sunt. Exotica vero ilia appello quae a Latinis,
Gallicis, Italicis, Hispanicis, aut etiam Cambro-Bi'itannicis deduximus, quae
quidem multa sunt : Nativa vero iUa voco qufe ab antiqua lingua Teutouica,
seu Saxonica, originem ducimt; qnee quidem omnia sunt Monosyllaba (aut
saltem a Monosyllabis deducta), et plerumque nobis cum Germanis, Belgis,
Danis, etc. comunia sunt (levi saltem immutatione facta) ; quorum nempe sive
Linguae sive Dialcctus ejusdem cum nostra Anglicana siuit originis.
Anomalia prima, quae maxime generalis est, ex celeritate pronunciandi
originem duxit : nempe (post syncopen vocalis e in regulari tenninatione ed),
relicta consona d saepissime mutatiu' in t ; quoties scilicet pronimciatio sic
evadit expeditior (et quidem coutractio potius dicenda videtur, quam Ano-
malia) .
Anomalia secunda etiam frequens est, sed solmnmodo Participiimi Passivum
spectat : Nempe Participium Passivum olim saepissime formabatur in en :
Cujusmodi satis multa adhuc retiiiemus, praesertim Tibi Praeteritum Imper-
fectimi insignem aliquam anomaliam patitur (atque haec quidem Altera Parti-
cipii Formatio, potius quam Anomalia, non incommode dici potest).
Sunt et Aliae Anomaliae non paucae, praeseiiim in Praeterito Imperfecto ; sed
quae magis speciales simt, nee quidem adeo multae quam ut possint sigillatim
recenseri.
He notices, however, the fact of the so-called Irregulars being
exclusively English.
Hickes, after giving a single conjugation for the Anglo-Saxon
verbs, throws the rest into a single class, with the remark, how-
ever, that they follow a principle of their own, along with the
additional suggestion that forsan magis proprie secundam co)i-
STRONG AND WEAK VERBS — SO-CALLED. 551
jugatione'm constituere videantur quam inter anomaUa recen-
seri. Little, however, came of this until lately. In a paper
upon certain tenses attributed to the Greek verb, in the Philo-
logical Museurn,^ it is argued that the so-called second aorist
and second future are in the same category with tlie so-called
English Irregulars.
We may find a satisfactory illustration of this matter in our own language.
In English also there are two originally distinct modes of forming the com-
mon x^ast tense : the first hy adding the syllable ed, as in I killed : the other,
chiefly by certain changes in the vowels, as in / wrote, I saw, I kneic, I ran ;
and many others. Let the reader call the former and regular form the first
aorist, and the latter the second, and he will have a correct idea of the
amount of tlie distinction between those tenses in Greek. The form erv^a in
Greek is what / Jcilled is in English, that is, the regular form of the past
tense, wliich obtains in the vast majority of verbs : the form eXa^ov, on the other
hand, is altogether analogous to / took, or / saw, acknowledged hj all gram-
marians not as a second or distinct preterite, but as an instance of ii-regular
variety of formation obtaining in certain verbs.
But some ^^all probably deem it an objection to the view here taken that
there are verbs in Greek, — many, they perhaps suppose, — in which both
forms of the aorist are in use together. I admit that a few instances of tlus
kind do occiu' ; but even in this i^oint we shall find that tlie analogy with our
own language still holds good. Without rummaging in old authors, we meet
mth many instances in which Enghsh verbs retain both forms of the pre-
terite. Thus, for example, we may say,/ hanged, or I hung; I chid, or I
chode; I spit, or I spat ; I climbed, or / clomb : I awaked, or I awoke; I cleft,
I clave, or / clove ; and a score of others. Except in their greater abundance,
wherein do these differ from the analogous duplicate forms of the Greek
aorist, such as enTeiva and eKravov, I killed ; erv^a and ervnov, I struck ;
e6afj.(ir](Ta and eracjiov, I was astonished? Such duplicates in Greek are ex-
tremely rare : probably there is not one Greek verb in five hundi-ed in which
they can be met with. The form improperly called the second aorist is, in-
deed, common enough, but then, where it exists that of the first aorist is
almost always wanting. We have evpov, iXd^ov, eJ8ov, fjyayov, eXirrov. 'ibpajiov ;
but the regular form is as much a nonenity in these verbs, as it is in the
English verbs / found, I took, I saw, I led, 1 left, I ran. The first aorist
in these would be sheer vulgarity ; it would be parallel to Ifinded, I taked, I
seed.
Now if the circiimstances of the Greek and English, in regard to these two
tenses, are so precisely parallel, a sunple and obvious inquiry arises. ^Vhich
are in the right, the Greek Grammarians or ovu* own ? For either ours must
be wi-ong in not having fitted up for our verb the framework of a first and
second preterite, teaching the pupils to say fi-rst pret. I finded, 2nd pret.
I found ; 1st pret. / glided, 2nd pret. 7 glade ; or the others must be so in
teaching the leai'ner to imagine two aorists for evpia-Kco, as aor. 1. fvprja-a, aor.
2. fvpov; or for aKova, as aor. 1. iJKovaa, aor. 2. fJKoov.
* Vol. ii. pp. 19.3-^226.
o52 TENSE AND CONJUGATION.
To this p;i])er (signed T. F. B.) is attached a long editorial
note, by C. J. H. (Charles Julius Hare), who would reverse the
suggested ]irocess, and improve English grammar by the recog-
nition of the double conjugation. Soon after, Mr. Kemble, in
bis paper on the Englisli Prseterites,* went further in the same
direction. Tlie present writer, owing much to these two writers,
and, especially to the papers in question, was, until lately, satis-
fied to follow them — approving of, and using, the terms Conju-
gation, Weak and Strong. But what do they come to ? Can
we, as a matter of fact, make such forms as swoll and swelled,
Itiiiig and hanged, and a few others, differ from each other, in
the one being transitive, the other intransitive ? Can hung =
lycpendit, whilst hanged = suspendit ? Can swoll = turauit,
whilst siveUed = tumefecit ? Should we cultivate such distinc-
tions as the following? — (1) I hanged him up and there he
hang. (2) I siuelled the number of his followers, which sivoll,
at last, to a thousand. The forms like —
Drink and Drank, as opposed to Drench and Drenched,
Lie — Lay — — La7j — Laid,
Rise — Rose — — Raise — Raised,
are, more or less, confirmatory of this view. Yet they are not
conclusive. All that they tell us is, that when we have two forms,
one primitive and intransitive, and the other derivative and
transitive, it is the former which is strong rather than weak, and
the latter which is weak rather than strong ; the words being
used in the sense suggested by the writers last mentioned.
What do they come to ? If two senses, meaning exactly the
same thing, are a philological tautology, two conjugations are the
same ; and, if so, nothing is got by assuming them. Considering
the origin of the forms like spoke, it is, surely, safe to put them,
as has been suggested, in the same category with Latin words
like Tno-mordi, or cu-curri, or (still better) with words like cepi
fi'om ce-cepi. What, then, are these Latin words ? a reference
to the Greek gives the answer. In Greek Ttrvcf^a {tetyfa) =/
have beaten ; €Tv\lra (etypsa) = I heat. The first is formed by
a reduplication of the initial t, and, consequently, may be called
the redupUcate form. As a tense, it is called the perfect. In
erv-ylra an e is prefixed, and a o- is added. In the allied language
of Italy the e disappears, whilst the o- (s) remains. "Krvyjra is
* Phil. Mtis., vol. ii. pp. 37S-3S8.
TENSE AND CONJUGATION. 553
said to be an aorist tense. In Latin scripsi is to scriho as €TV\jra
is to rvTTco. But, in the Latin language, a confusion takes
place between these two tenses. Both forms exist. They are
used, however, indiscriminately. The aorist form has, besides
its own, the sense of the perfect. The perfect has, besides its
own, the sense of the aorist. In the following pair of quota-
tions, vixi, the aorist form, is translated / have lived, while
tetigit, the perfect form, is translated lie touched.
Vixi, et qiiem dcderat cursiim Fortuna peregi :
Et nunc magna mei sub terras ibit imago. — uSiJn. iv.
Ut primum alatis tetigit magalia plantis. — j.E)i. iv.
When a difference of form has ceased to express a difference
of meaning, it has become superfluous. This is the case with
the two forms in question. One of them may be dispensed with ;
and the consequence is, that, although in the Latin language
both the perfect and the aorist forms are found, they are, with
few exceptions, never found in the same word. When there is
the perfect, the aorist is wanting, and vice versa. The two
ideas I have struck and / struck are merged into the notion of
past time in general, and are expressed by one of two forms,
sometimes by that of the Greek perfect, and sometimes by that of
the Greek aorist. On account of this the grammarians have cut
down the number of Latin tenses ; forms like cucurri and vixi
being dealt with as one and the same tense. The true view,
however, is, that in curro the aorist form is replaced by the per-
fect, and in vixi the perfect form is replaced by the aorist.
Hence, the history of such a pair of words as drank and vioved,
is the history of such a pair of words as tetigi and vixi. Now
the place of these is that of rery-^a and e-rui^a, i. e. they
both belong to one and the same conjugation — of which, how-
ever, they are different tenses, one a perfect, the other an aorist.
If so, what are our vowel-changing Prteterites ? Perfects modi-
fied in form by the loss of the reduplication and changed in
power by having adopted that of the aorist. And what are our
Prseterites in -d ? Aorists. The Conjugation is really one. The
Tense is one in appearance only.
0 0 4; PERSONS.— NUMBERS.
CHAPTER XXX.
PERSONS.
§ 590. I CJJ.L. — Tlie word call is not one person more than an-
other. It is the simple verb wholly uninflected.
llioii callest. — The final -t appears throughout the West-
Saxon, although wanting iu the Northumbrian and Old Saxon.
In Old High-Germau it is commoner in some authors than in
others. In Middle High-German and New High-German it is
universal.
He calls. — The -s in calls is the -th in calleth, changed.
§ 591. Thou spahest, thou brakest, thou sungest. — In these
forms there is a slight though natural anomaly. The second
singular prseterite in A. S. was formed not in -st, but in -e ; as
^u f uncle z=:tJiou foundest, yd siingez=.thou sungest. Hence the
existing termination is derived from tlie present. Observe that
this applies only to the prasterites formed by changing the
vowel. Thou lovecl'st is Anglo-Saxon as well as English, viz.
yu lufodest.
CHAPTER XXXT.
NUMBERS.
§592, In a. S. the vowel of the plural of certain (so-called)
strong prseterites Avas different from that of the singular.
More than this — the vow^el of the second person singular was
different from that of the first and third, but the same as that
of the plural. Hence
Singular.
PhiraJ.
1. Ic
sang
1. We
Si/ngon.
2. Jju si/nge
2. Ge
semgon.
3. He
! sang
3. Hi
Anglo-Saxon.
s«ugon.
Sing.
Plur.
Arn
lu-non
run
Ongan
ongmuion
begun
Span
spimnon
spun
Saug
sungon
liung
Swang
swungon
swung
DID AND BECAME. 555
Sinq. Plur.
Dranc
r
druncou
drunk
Sane
suncon
sunk
Sprang
spningou
we sprung
Swam
swummon
we swam
Rang
I'lmgon
rung.
Examples fiiom the Old English.*
1.
And the men that heelden him, scorniden liim and smyten hhn, and they
blindfelden him and smyten him, and seideu, Areed tliou Cluist to us, who is
he that smoot thee? — Wycliffe, Luke xxii.
2.
Sche ran and cam to Symound Petir and to a nother disciple — and thee
tweyne runnen togidre and thilk other disciple ran before Petir. — Wycliffe,
John xs.
3.
Anoon thei knewen him and thei runnen tliorou al that coimtree and be-
gunnen to bring sik men. — "Wycliffe, Mark vi.
4.
We j)reieder Tite that as he began so also he perfoiu'me in yhou this grace.
— Wycliffe, 2 Cor. viiL.
And the prince of prestis roos and seide to hiin. — Wycliffe, Matt. xxvi.
And summe of the farisees risen up and foughten, seyinge, &c. — Wycliffe,
Deedis 23.
6.
Alas, distance, thou hast no champioun,
But he that starfe for our redemption.
Chaucer, Man of Law's Tale. 621
For which they storven bothe two.
Chaucer, Pardoner's Tale. 530.
The form in -en is, apparently, the conjugation of the A. S.
Subjunctive, transferred to the Indicative.
CHAPTER XXXII.
ON THE WORDS DID AND BECAME, CATACHRESTIC.
§ 593. Did, catachrestic. — In the phrase this ivlll doz=.thls
will anstver the purpose, the word do is wholly different from
* It is scarcely necessary to state that these, as well as the vast majority of the most
apposite examples of the present work, are taken from Dr. Guest's valuable contribu-
tions to the Transactions of the Philological Society.
556 DID AND BECAME.
the word do — ad. In the first case it is equivalent to the
Latin valcre, in the second to the Latin faceve. Of the first,
the Anglo-Saxon inflection is dedh, dugou, dohte, dohtest, &c.
Of the second it is do, do's, dijde, &c. In the present Danish
they write duger, but say duer : as duger det noget?^Is it
worth anything ? pronounced door dcJo note ? This accounts
for the ejection of the g. The Anglo-Saxon form dedh does the
same.
In Eobert of Bourne the prseterite is deih.
riiilip of Flaimclros flcili, and turned sonne the bak :
And Thcbald noulit he deih. — Hobkut ok Bourne, I'S'S.
Philip of Flanders fled, and tiu-ned soon the bach,
And Thebald did no good. —
The king Isaak fleih, his men had no foyson {jiro visions).
All that time he ne deih. — Robert of Bourne, 159.
I'll laugh an' sing, an' shake my leg
As lang 's I dow {am ahle). — Burns.
For cunning men I knaw will sone conclude
I dow nothing.
Sir D. Lyndsay, Comjdainl of the Pajniigo.
Thre yer in carebed lay.
Tristreni the truve he bight ;
Never ne doitijht him day,
For sorrow he had o' night. — Sir Tiistiam, 21.
Three year in carebed lay ;
Tristrem the true he bight ;
The day never did him good.
For the sorrow he had at night.
We cannot, however (although we ought), say that doed ivell
enough, though a Dane says det dugede nolc.
§ 594. Became, catachrestlc. — The catachresis, abuse, or con-
fusion between do = valeo, and do —facio, repeats itself with the
word become. When become— jio, its prasterite is became.
When becoine = convenio =z suit {as in that dress becomes you),
its prseterite ought to be becomed. Become = convenio, is from
the same root as the German bequem = convenient.
§ 595. Overfloiun, catachrestlc. — Tliere is another verb which
has not yet gone wrong, but which is going. I have seen such
sentences as a field overfioiun rvith water. No one, however,
has (I hope) brought himself to say the ivater overflcio the field.
Nevertheless the tendency tu catachresis has set in.
APPARENT PRESENTS. 55 7
CHAPTER XXXIII.
ON CERTAIN APPARENT PRESENTS.
§ 596. The connection between the perfect and present
tenses requires notice. In many actions the connection between
the cause and effect is so evident, that the word which expresses
the former may also be used to denote the hitter. Let us say,
for instance, that a man has appealed to his ra&mory upon a
certain subject. Let us say that he has taxed, has dravjii upon
it, has referred to it. What is this but to say that he has done
sometliing, the act so done being an act of pct&i time ? Never-
theless, the effect of this act is present. The man who has
appealed to, or taxed his memory, like the man who has re-col-
lected his ideas, may truly be said to rertiember. This is an act
o^ present time. In like manner a man who has got the facts that
bear upon any given question, may be said to knoiv them. Further
— the man who has taken courage or made up his mind to do
a thing, dares to do it. The word dares, however, is present ;
whereas, has taken courage, &c., is perfect. Again — I have
taken possession of a houses/ am the possessor of itzzi
2^ossess it = I own it. Instances of this sort are numerous ;
few languages being without them. In Greek and Latin (for
example) the words olha and m^eraini are rarely rendered / have
knoivn, and / have remembered, but / k7iow and / rewemher.
In English there are, at least, nine of these words — (1) dare
and durst, (2) own-=zadm,it, (3) can, (4) shall, (5) may, (G)
mun and mind, (7) ivot, (8) ought, (9) must.. Of these, none
presents any serious dilEculties when we look at them simply in
respect to their meaning. To four of them we see our way
already : dare ■=. I have made uid iny mind ; oimi z=. I have
got possession of ; r}iind=.I have recollected Tny ideas; and
wot =^ I have informed^ myself, or / know. With the other
five a similar train of reasoning gives us similar results.
Let can-=zl have learned, or, / have gotten informcdion,
as a perfect, and it is easy to see that as a present it may mean /
am able. If so, the apophthegm that Knowledge is Poiver, is no
new saying, but one that has been implicit in language for cen-
turies. If so, the common expression / will do all I know, for
cdl I can, is not only justifiable, but laudable.
5o8 APPARENT PRESENTS.
Let oicn, as in I own to having do) le lt,:=.I have assented,
and it soon conies to mean / grant, concede, or admit.
Let shall zz I have chosen, or decided, or let it mean I
have been determined, and it soon comes to mean ./ am in con-
dition to do so and so.
Let niayzzl have gotten the 2)ower, and it = 7 am free to do
so and so.
Let must = I have been constrained, or / have suffered con-
straint, and itrz/ am obliged.
There is no great difficulty, then, in the logical part of tlie
questions considered in the present chapter. Tiiere is an action
which a certain verb expresses, and this action is the effect of a
preceding one. Meanwhile the link that connects the two is so
short that, for the purposes of language, the preliminary act and
its result are one.
But the logical view is not our only one. We must
look at the forms of the words in question, as well as their
meanings. If shall be a perfect tense, what is the present form
out of which it originated ? Again, how do we know it to be
thus perfect ? It is only the etymologist who knows anything
about it ; the common speakers of common English look upon
it as a present. And may they not treat it as such ? May they
not form a perfect tense out of it ? Have they not actually
done so in some instances ? If dare be no present but a
perfect, what is dared ? A perfect formed on a perfect.
Hence, there are two series of phenomena exhibited by the
words under notice. (1.) There is the loss of the original
present. (2.) There is the development of secondary forms.
§ 5 97. It is very evident that the prseterites most likely to
become present are those of the class which changes the vowel.
(] .) TiiC fact of their being perfect is less marked. The word
fell carries with it fewer marks of its tense than the word
moved. (2.) Tiiey can more conveniently give rise to secondary
forms. A prseterite already ends in -d or ~t. If this be used as
a present, a second -(? or -t must be appended.
Respecting these praeterite-presents, we have to consider —
Firstly — the words themselves —
Secondly — the forms they take as perfect-presents (or present-
perfects) ; and —
Thirdly — the secondary forms derived from them.
If we can do more than this, it is well and good. Thus —
it is well and good if we can succeed, in arguing back from the
DARE BURST. 559
existing forms to the ones that are lost, so reconstructing the
original true presents. Also, if we can ascertain the original
meaning as well, so much the better.
§ 598. Dare, durst. — The verb dare is both transitive and
intransitive. We can say either I dare do such a thing, or /
dare (challenge^ such a man to do it. This, in the present
tense, is unequivocally correct. In the perfect the double
power of the word dare is ambiguous ; still it is, to my mind
at least, allowable. We can certainly say / dared him to accept
my challenge ; and we can, perhaps, say / dared not venture on
the expedition. In this last sentence, however, durst is the pre-
ferable expression. Now, although a case can be made out in
favour of dare being both transitive and intransitive, durst is
only intransitive. It never agrees with the Latin word 'pi^o-
voco, only with the Latin word audeo ; inasmuch as, whatever
may be the propriety or impropriety of such a sentence as /
dared not venture, &c., it is quite certain that we can not say /
durst him, to accept my challenge. Again— cZarc can be used
only in the present tense, dared in the perfect only. Durst can
be used in either. Thus — we can say / durst not in the sense
/ am afraid to — and in the sense / was afraid to. We can
also say, / durst not do it, although you ask me; and / durst
not do it when you asked me. In sense, then, durst is both a
prseterite and a present.
In form dur-st is peculiar. What is the import of the -st ?
In such an expression as tJiou durst not, it looks like the -st
in call-es^ ; which is the sign of the second person singular.
But we can say / dui^st and he durst. Hence, if the -st in
dur--st be the -st in call-es/, it is that and something more. In
all probability, the -s is part of the original root, of which the
fuller and older form was dars. If so, the inflection would
PRESENT.
PEKFECT.
Sing.
Plur.
Sing.
Pint:
1.
Dars
Durs-ou
1.
Dvirs-t-e
Durs-t-on.
2.
Durs-e
Diu's-on.
2.
Durs-t-est
Durs-t-on.
3.
Dars
Durs-on.
3.
Durs-t-e
Durs-t-ou.
That the -s is part of the original word is nearly certain.
The root in question is one which occurs beyond the pale of the
German languages. It is Greek as well as German ; and in
Greek the form is Oapp-elv or Oapcr-eiv (iharr-ein, thars-ein), a
fact sufficient to account for both the presence and the absence of
")(U) DARE - OWN.
the -.s\ Let -^s"- be lost in the j)reseiit, aiul let <i become ca, and
Ave have tlie actual A. S. forms.
VWh
SENT.
PERFECT.
Sing.
Phir.
SilHJ.
riur.
1.
Dear
DlUT-OIl.
1.
Durs-te
Dm-s-t-on
2.
; Diirre".' ")
i^Deiu--st j
Durr-ou.
0
f Durst (for"i
( Durst-cst) 5
Diirs-t-on
3.
Dear
Durr-on.
3.
Dui-s-t
Durs-t-on
The Moeso-Gothic forms <are dar, darst ? dar, daurum,
dauru^, dauruii, for the persons of the present tense ; and
ddursta, daurstet, daursta, &c., for those of the prasterite.
.§ 599. Oivii, and oivned, from oivn-=.ad))dt. In sentences
like " he oi(;^?e(Z to having done it = he admitted having done
it;" or " I have oiviied to it:=:I have conceded, or granted it,"
the original and fmidameutal idea is that of giving ; an idea
allied to that of concession and admission. Notion for notion,
this has but little to do with the word own, as applied to pro-
perty. Indeed, it is necessary to bear in mind the fact that
the two words are distinct. To express this difference, the
word before us may be called the oivn concedentis ; the other,
the oivn possidentis.
The A. S. forms are —
Si)i(j. Phir.
1. an uimou.
2. xuine unnon.
3. an uunon.
Of these A. S. forms, unne deserves notice. It gives the
form in e, not the form in -st. It also gives us the change of
the vowel ; so that the word comes out the true prgeterite imne,
instead of the present diU-est, {oivn, oivn-est). The plural forms
are also praeterite — unn-on, rather than an-a^. The prseterite
Sinfj. Plur.
1. utSe u<5-on.
2. u^est UcS-on.
S. u;e u -on.
But the present word own-ed is no modern form of ii'Se, but
a separate and independent formation. Hence, its history is as
follows : —
(«) A certain present, long ago obsolete, gave as its prge-
terite an.
{h) The prseterite an passed as a present.
OWN— CAN. 561
(e) The prsDterite-present gave origin to the secondary pi-je-
terite ii.'^e.
(d) The original prseterite-present changed its form, and from
an or uii (nnne) became utvn.
(e) Meanwhile the form ?'/6e became ol^solete ; and —
(/) Owvi-ed became evolved as an ordinary prseterite of own.
" Ich an well " to cwadh tlie niztegale. — Hale and Nvjlitmyale, 173.
I take that me God an. — Tristram, 3. 7.
/. e. I take what God has given me.
§ 600. Can. — The form could has already been noticed.
The remarks upon it having been to the effect that as the I was
a blunder (and that a blunder of spelling only), we may
simplify the investigation by dealing with the word as if it were
simply coud. The history of the word then comes to be nearly
that of the words an and I'/Se — nearly, but not quite. The
form canst is peculiar, being a truly present form co-existent in
A. S. with the truly prseterite form cunne.
PRESENT.
1. can
2. cimne and canst
3. can
Had the history of ca.n been exactly that of av, the prpeterite
would have been canned. The following (from Dr. Guest) are
good instances of its force as hnow.
I can no more expound in tliis matere,
I lerne song, I can but smal grammere. — Chaucer, Prioress's Tale, v. So.
He seede canst thou Greek. — Wycliffe, Deedis, 21.
Lewede men cwme French non.
Amongst an hondred unne this on. — Richard Canr de Lion, v. G.
i. e. Unlearned men understand no French,
Amongst a hundred scai'cely one.
His fellow taught him homewnrd prively
Fro daj' to day till he conde it bj- rote. — Chaucer, Prioress's Tale, v. 'J:5.
wliile there is a mouthe
PRETERITE.
1.
cuS-e.
2.
cu<5-est.
3.
cutS-e.
For ever his name shall be couthe. — Gower, Confessio Amantis, 0.
I've seen myself, and served against the French,
And they can weU on horseback. — Hamlet, iv. 0.
Macacnas and Agrippa who can^^- most with Csesar are his friends. — Drydeu.
Here can most, &c. = qui ajnid Ciesormi plurimum valcni.
O O
5 0 2 SHALL — MA Y.
Clerlcys jjat kuowon ) ys sclioulde Iciinicit liyt abrodc.
Vinidii of Picrx Plouinan, pass. 2.
Full rodlos may j'c rcn
With all yom- rcwful route,
With care men sail yow ken
Edward j'oure Lord to lout. — Minot, p. 2^^.
Full redcless may ye run
With all 3'our rueful rout
With care one shall teach you
To obej^ Edward j'our Lord.
Sir Edward sale hrn you j'om'e crede. — Minot, p. 34.
§ GOl. Shall and should. — The latter word stands nearly in
the same relation to shall as coud does to can, and u^e to an.
In A. S., however, the u of the plural of the present was long.
PRiETERITE.
Sing. Plur.
1. scul-de scul-d-on.
2. scul-d-est scul-d-on.
3. scul-de scul-d-on.
The form shalt, a form which raises a question of person rather
than tense, has already been noticed.
§ 602. Might from may. — The, -y \n may 'wb.b originally-^;
so that our inquiries may proceed as if the word before us were
mag.
PRESENT.
Sing. Plur.
1. mag mag-on.
PRESENT.
Sing.
Phir.
1. sceal
scul-on.
2 ( scealt ")
(_ scule )
scul-on.
3. sceal
scul-on.
( a. mag-est ")
\ B. mag-e )
mag-on.
3.
I am taught to be filled, and to hungre and to abound and to suffre myseiste.
1 7nay all tilings in him that comfortetli me. — Wycliffe, Fil. iv.
he that most may when he sjiites in pride
When it comes on assay is kesten down mde.
Tounley Mysteries, 84.
The great dai of liis -n-rath the cometh, and who shall mowe {he able to)
stand ? — Wycliffe, Apocalj'pse \i.
I seye to you monye seker to entre and ther schuler not mnwe {he able).
Wycliffe, Luke xiii.
MIND M UN — 1F0 T. O C) 3
§ 603. Minded. — This word is tlie prajterite of mind; as,
A. mind your business ; B. / do 'nvind it, and have minded it
all along. As the prseterite of mind, there is nothing- particu-
lar in the word minded. But there is a great deal which is
particular in the word mind itself, wherein the -d is no part of
the root, but on the contrary the sign of the jirseterite tense ;
so that inindedj is a pra3terite formed from a prpeterite, just like
should, owned, &c., &c. But minded lias the further peculiarity
of being not only a praeterite in -d, but a prseterite in -d formed
upon a prasterite in -d. This is the case with none of the pre-
vious words. Secondary praeterites as they are, their basis was
always formed by a change of vowel ; in other terms, it was a
prseterite like svjam rather than one like call-ed. If it were
not so, there would be two d's in all the preceding words ; just
as there are two d's in min-d-ed. The A. S. forms are ge-man,
ge-manst, ge-'inunon, along with ge-munde, ge-onundon. Hence,
the form minded (he m,inde-d his busioiess) is a tertiary forma-
tion.
1st. There was the form man (mun) from min{T); for all
practical purposes a present.
2nd. There was the form ge-mund£, whence the English pre-
sent mind.
3rd. There is min-d-ed from mind.
Let us, again, go over the A. S. forms, pajdng special atten-
tion to those in ic.
PRESENT.
PR.ETEEITE
Sing.
Phn:
Si>i;/.
Phn:
1.
ge-man .
ge-m»n-on.
1.
ge-m(m-d-e
ge-m^md-on.
2,
( ge-man-st |
2.
ge-m«n-cl-est
ge-nii/n-d-ou.
(. ge-miine )
ge-m«n-on.
8.
ge-mMn-d-e
ge-mMn-d-on.
3.
ge-man .
■ge-m?m-on.
It is from (ge^-mnnde that mind has risen. From mind has
arisen 7)iin-d-ed.
Another form still stands over. In more than one of our
provincial dialects we find the word m-un — as in I mun go ;
at present, this = J must go. Originally, however, it must have
heen I am minded to go = I have mnde up my m^ind to go.
It is a truly prjeterite form. In the Scandinavian tongue it re-
appears, with a somewhat different, though allied, power, as mon
and monne.
§ 604. Wot. — Wot = kvev;. It is the perfect form of ivit,
as in Middlesex to wit = Middlesex to know, or to he known.
o o 2
rilESENT.
Sing.
Phn:
1. ah
agon.
2. agcst, alist
agon.
3. all
agon.
504 OUGHT.
^ GO."). Oin/Jit. — 111 this Avortl tlie gh represents an A. S.
]i ; an h ^vhi(.•h grew out of g.
PILETEIUTE.
>S/;^'/. Phir.
1. iili-te . . ah-t-on.
2. I'lli-t-cst . . ah-t-on.
3. ah-te . . ah-t-ou.
Injiiiitivc, ag-an.
Pditiviplc, ag-en.
In the present English the word ovje = the A. S. ah ; whilst
ought =i\\e, A. S. aide. The Latin (7e6eo = both words; viz.
the A. S. ah, and the English oive. But it has two senses — /
am under a moral ohlic/ation and I am a debtor. But, oive is
limited to the latter of these senses. In the language of the
nineteenth century, at least, we can say / owe money ; but we
cannot say / ovje to pay some. On the other hand, we cannot
say / ought money ; though we can say / ought to 'pay some.
The effect of this twofold sense has been to separate the words
owe and ough-t ; by giving to the former the modern prseterite
ovJ-ed, which no more came from ahie, than owned came fi-om
u^e. It has also deprived ought of its present form, the equiva-
lent to the A. S. ah.
As a consequence of this, ought has two powers. It is a
present and a prseterite as well. We can say
He saj-s tliat I ought to go ; and
He said that I ouglit to go —
just as we say-
He says that I wish to go ; and
He said that I T\ished to go.
Ought comes from owe — from ow- without any sound of n.
Ou'ii concedentis comes from o-n, where there is not only a
sound of n, but where that sound of n is part and parcel of the
root.
What does owm =possess come from ? Not from the oivn
concedentis, thou oh it agrees with that word in having the sound
of n. (1.) The -n of the own concedentis is radical. The -n
of the other otvn is not so. (2.) The otv of the oivn concedentis
has grown out of n. The tu of the other oivn has grown out of
/i, which has grown out of g, gh, k, or kh.
§ 606. Let us now look to the relation between ou'ji and oiue
(whence ought.)
OUGHT — MUST. 565
1. Owe (whence ought) has no n. Neither had oivn until
after the time of Elizabeth.
Steven {^at tlie land au^/Jit {2)ossessed).
Robert of Bourne, 126.
The knight, the which that castle aught.
Fairy Queen, 6. 3. 2.
I owe to be baptized of thee, and thou contest to me.
Wycliffe, Matt. iii.
A stern geannt is he, of him thou oicest to drede.
Tristram, 3. 39.
See where he comes ; nor poppy nor mandi'agora,
Nor all the drowsy sjTups of the world,
Can ever med'cine thee to that sweet sleep
Wliicli thou owe'dst yesterday. — Othello.
2. The vj in the owe (whence ought) represents an/i (A. S. ah),
representing a g, or gh, k, or kh. Hence the connection is with
oive (whence ought). Hence, too, the own debentis gives an
ovje (or own).
§ 607. 3fust. — I can only say of this form that it is common
to all persons, numbers, and tenses.
§ 608. The class of words under notice is a natural one ;
one of their characteristics being their great antiquity. This
is shown by the large portion of the so-called Indo-European
languages over which they are spread.
1. C-n (the root of can) =the yv, the root of <yv-oco, yv-coaKQ},
gn-ovi = know.
2. D-TS (the root of durs-t) — the 6-ps, the root of Oapa-elv
=. dare.
3. 3f-g (the root of maT/) = (?) the mac in made. Made
[proceed, go on) tua virtute jpuer, &lc.
4. -iV- (the root of own concedentis) — (?) the -n- in nuo,
annuo (=znod assent).
5. Otu-, the root of own possidentis — eigan—ex- in e%-ci) =
I have
6. W-t, the root of wit and wot — i\\Q 8 in olh-a {I knowzz
I have seen) and vid-i.
7. M-n (the root of mun and mind) = m-n in the Latin
memini = / have called to mind.
566 THE VERB SUBSTANTIVE.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
THE VEHB SUBSTANTIVE.
^5 (JOD. The so-called Verb Substantive gives us Defect and
Comiileinent ; but no Irregularity.
11 as. — Found both in the indicative and conjunctive.-
INDICATIVE.
CONJUNCTIVE.
SiiKj.
Plur.
Sing. Plur
1. Was.
Were.
1. Were. Were
2. Wast
Were.
2. Wert. Were
3. Was.
Were.
3. Were. Were
) 610.
^6.— In
the present English conjugated thus : —
Present.
CONJUNCTIVE
lilPERATIVE.
Sing.
Plur.
SuKj. Plur.
Be.
Be.
— —
—
Be.
Be. Be.
Be.
Be.
_ _
Iiijin
To be.
Pres. Pa
rt. Being. Past Part. Been.
§ 6 11 . In the Deutsche Crrarn'matih it is stated that the
Anglo-Saxon forms heo, bid, bi'S, heo^, or beo, have not a
present, but a future sense ; that whilst am means I am, beo,
means / shall be ; and that in the older languages it is only
where the form am is not found that be has the power of a
present form. The same root occurs in the Slavonic and Lithu-
anic tongues with the feame power; as, esmi — I am, busu=:I
shall be, Lithuanic. — Esmu zz I am, ; bushu zz I shall be, Livo-
nian. — Jesm = / am ; budu zz I shall be, Slavonic. — Gsein zz I
am ; budu zz I shall be, Bohemian. This, however, proves, not
that tliere is in Anglo-Saxon a future tense (or form), but that
the word beo has a future sense. There is no fresh tense where
there is no fresb form.
This is explained if we consider the word beon to mean not
so much to be, as to become, a view which gives us an element
of the idea of futurity. Things which are becoming anythiitig
have yet something further to do. Again, from the idea of
futurity we get the idea of contingency, and thLs explains the
subjunctive power of be. Hi ne beo'S na cUde, so^lice, on
domesdccye ac beo^ siva micele mcnn siva siva Id migtoii beon
THE VERB SUBSTANTIVE. 567
g'lf hi full, iveoxon on gewiinlicre ylde =:They vnll not he chil-
dren, forsooth, on Domesday, but will ha as much (so muckle)
men as they might be if they were all grown (waxen) in cus-
tomary age. — ^LFRic's Homilies.
§ 612. Am. — The letter -m is no part of the original work.
It is the sign of the first person, just as it is in all the Indo-
European languages. It should also be stated, that, although
the fact be obscured, and although the changes be insufficiently
accounted for, the forms am,, art, are, and is, are not, like am
and tuas, parts of different words, but forms of one and the same
word ; in other terms, that, although between ain and he there is
no etymological connection, there is one between a«i and is.
This we collect from the comparison of the other allied lan-
guages.
Sanskrit
asmi.
asi.
asti.
Zend .
aluni.
asi.
asliti.
Greek .
elfii.
els.
el.
Latin .
sum.
es.
est.
Lithuanic .
esmi.
essi.
esti.
Old Slavonic
ysmij.
yesi.
yesty.
Moeso-Gothic
im.
is.
ist.
Icelandic
em.
ert.
er.
§ 613. Worth. — This is a verb of which the present English
gives us but a fragment. In the following extract it means
hetide.
Woe worth the cliase, woe worth the day,
That cost thy life my gallant grey. — Lady of the Lake.
The A. S. infinitive was uxo7'^an =. iverden in H. G. =. he-
come.
Grote watres wor]}e]p yet rede oi monnes blode,
Chi'istendom wor\> y-cast and a douu.*
Robert oe Gloucester, 132.
And so it fell upon a dai '■
Forsoth as I you tellen mai,
Sir Thopas wold out ride,
He worth upon his stede grey. — Chaucer.
Backe hem noght but let him icor\}e.
Vision oj Piers Plowman.
My ioie is tom-ned into strife
That sober shall I never worthe. — Gower, Conf. Am. 5.
* Great waters will |je yet red of men's blood,
Christcudom will be ca.st dowu.
6G« THE PARTICIPLES.
CHAPTER XXXV.
THE PARTICIPLES. THE PRESENT PARTICIPLE.
§ G rt. The pi'esent participle is formed by adding -inrj, as
move, moving. Like the Latin participle in. -ns, it was originally
declined ; the Moeso-Gothic and Old High-German forms being
hdbands and hajJenter, respectively. In the Old Saxon and
Anglo-Saxon the forms are -and and -ande ; as bindand, bind-
ande=^bindirig. In all tlie Norse languages, ancient and
modern, the -d is preserved. So it is in the Old Lowland
Scotch, and in many of the modern provincial dialects of England,
where strikand, goand, is said for striking, going. In Stafford-
shire, and elsewhere, where the -ing is pronounced -ingg, there
is a fuller sound than that of the current English. In Old English
the form in -nd is predominant, in Middle English the use
fluctuates, and in New English the termination -ing is universal.
In the Scotch of the modern writers we find the form -m.
In A. S., as has already been stated, the Participle was de-
clined.
CHAPTER XXXVI.
THE PAST PARTICIPLE. FORM IN -EN.
§ 61 5. The paHiciple in -en. — In Anglo-Saxon it cdways ended
in -en, as sungen, funden, bunden. In English it does so
occasionally. We say, however, bound and found, the word
bounden being antiquated. Words where the -en is wanting
may be viewed in two lights : 1 , they may be looked upon as
participles that have lost their termination ; 2, they may be con-
sidered as prseterites with a participial sense.
§ 616. Drank, drunk, drunken. — When the vowel of the
plural differs from that of the singular, the participle takes the
plural form. To say / have drunk, is to use an ambiguous ex-
pression ; since drunk may be either a participle minus its
termination, or a prseterite with a participial sense. To say /
ha.ve drank, is to use a prseterite for a participle. To say /
have drunken, is to use an unexceptionable form.
• THE PAST PARTICIPLE IN -EN.
569
§ 617. In all words with a double form, as sjjrd'e and spoke,
break and broke, chive and clove, the participle follows the form
in 0 — spoken, broken, cloven. Spaken, bi'aken, claven, are im-
possible forms. There are degrees of laxity in language, and to
say the spear is broke is bettei- than to say the spear is brake.
These two statements bear upon the future history of the prse-
terite. That of the two forms scmg and sung, one will, in the
course of language, become obsolete, is nearly certain ; and, as
the plural form is also that of the participle, it is the plural form
which is most likely to be the surviving one.
Present.
Prccterite.
Pdrticiple.
Present.
Pneterite.
Participle.
Fall
Fell
FaUen
Shear
Shore
Shorn
Hold
Held
Holden
Wear
Wore
Worn
Draw
Drew
DraA^Ti
Break
Broke
Broken
Shew
Shewed
Shown
Shake
Shook
Shaken
Slay
Slew
Slain
Take
Took
Taken
Fly
Flew
Flown
Get
Got
Gotten
Blow
Blew
Blown
Eat
Ate
Eaten
Crow
Crew
Crown
Tread
Trod
Trodden
Know
Kjiew
Known
Bid
Bade
Bidden
Grow
Grew
Grown
Forbid
Forbade
Forbidden
Throw
Threw
Throwai
Give
Gave
Given
Beat
Beat
Beaten
Arise
Arose
Ai-isen
Weave
Wove
Woven
Smite
Smote
Smitten
Freeze
Froze
Frozen
Ride
Rode
Ridden
Steal
Stole
Stolen
Stride
Strode
Stridden
Speak
Spoke
Spoken
Drive
Drove
Driven
Swear
Swore
Sworn
Thrive
Throve
Thriven
Bear
Bore
Borne
Strive
Strove
Striven
Bear
Bare
Born
Write
Wrote
Written
Tear
Tore
Torn
Bite
Bit
Bitten.
§ 618. Sodden ^vom- seethe. — The -cZ is Anglo-Saxon. It was
found in three other words besides.
PrcEterite.
Partivij^Ae.
Sing.
Phir.
1. CWfficS
cwsedon
\
2. cwaede
cwtedon
\ {/e-cwsd^en^^spokeu
3. cwajS
cwcedon
)
1. sna^
snidon
) ■
2. (?)
snidon
\ ffe-sniden^^cut.
3. cna<5
snidon
)
1. sea<5
sndon
\
2. sude
sudon
\ (je-tioihu — sodden.
3. seaS
sudon
)
o70 THE PAST PARTICIPLE IN -ED. '
1. wearS
\v union
2. wiudc
wurdou
:?. AvoaiiS
wurduii
§ 619. Forlorn. — In the Latin language the change from
s to V, aud vice versa, is very common. We have the double
forms arhor and arbos, honor and honos, &c. Of this change
we have a few specimens in English, e. g. rear and raise. In
Anglo-Saxon a few words undergo a similar change in the plural
number of the so-called strong prseterites,
Ceose, I choose ; ceas, I chose ; curou, ne chose; gecoren, chosen.
Foiieose, / lose ; foiieas, / lost ; forlui'on, ive lost ; forloren, lost.
Hreose, / rush ; hi-eas, / rushed ; hnu'on, we rushed ; gehi'oren,
rushed.
This accounts for the participial form forlorn or lod, in New
Hish-German verloren. In Milton's lines,
the piercing air
Bums frore, and cold j)erforms the effect of fire.
Paradise Lost, b. ii,
we have a form fi'om the Anglo-Saxon participle (jefroren^^
frozen.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
PAST PARTICIPLE. — FORM IN -ED -D, OR -T.
§ 620. The participle in -d, -t, or -ed. — In the Anglo-Saxon
this participle differed fi-om the prseterite, inasmuch as it ended
in -ed or -t ; whereas the prseterite ended in -ode, -de, or -te — as
lufode, bcernde, dypte, prseterites ; gelufod, bcerned, dypt, parti-
ciples. As the ejection of the e reduces words like bcerned tmd
bwrnde to the same form, it is easy to account for the present
identity of form between the weak prasterites and the particij)les
in -d : e.g. I moved, I have moved, &c. The original difference,
however, should be remembered.
TUE PREFIX GE-. 571
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
PARTICIPLES. THE PREFIX GE-.
§ 621. In the older writers, and in works written, like
Thomson's Castle of Indolence, in imitation of them, we find
prefixed to the prceterite participle the letter y-, as yclept =^
called ; yclad = clothed ; ydrad = dreaded.
The following are the chief facts and the current opinion con-
cerning this prefix : —
1. It has grown out of the fuller forms ge- : Anglo-Saxon ge- :
Old Saxon, gi- : Moeso-Gothic, ga- : Old High-German, la-,
cJta-, ga-, ki-, gl-.
2. It occurs, in each and all of the Teutonic —
3. It occurs, with a few fragmentary exceptions, in none of
the Scandlnavia)i, languages.
4. In Anglo-Saxon, it occasionally indicates a difference of
sense; as hdten = called, ge-hkien = 'promised ; horen home,
ge-hovQn = horn.
5. It occurs in nouns as well as verbs.
6. Its power, in the case of nouns, is generally some idea of
associcUion or collection. — Moeso-Gothic, sin^siz a journey, ga-
sin}pa=: acofnpanion; Old High-German, 2^e7'crr/t'iZi; Ici-perki
{ge-hirge)-=.a range of hills.
7. But it has also a frequentative power ; a frequentative
power which is, in all probabality, secondary to its collective
power ; since things which recur frequently recur with a ten-
dency to collection or association. In Middle High-German, ge-
rassel = rustling ; ge-rumpel = c-rumple.
8. And it has also the power of expressing the possession of
a quality.
Av(jl()-Saxnn. Latin.
^t'-feax comatus.
ge-heoYi conlatus.
^e-stence odorus.
In the latest parts of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle (which ends
with the reign of Stephen) we find, inter alia, the absence of this
prefix in all participles except one ; that one being ge-haten ; —
a word which, in the Northumbrian dialect, was the last to lose
its characteristic initial. Word for word, ge-haten = hight =
called. Sense for sense, it = y-clepd, which also means called :
a word which is not yet quite obsolete, and which is the last
participle which preserves tlie prefix.
Anglo-Sa.von.
English.
feax
hair ■
heorte
heart
steuce
odour
57 '2 SYNTAX IN GENERAL.
PAET V.
SYNTAX.
CHAPTER I.
ON SYNTAX IN GENERAL. PROPOSITIONS, NAMES. ^MIXED
SYNTAX. SYNTAX OF SINGLE, SYNTAX OF DOUBLE PROPO-
SITIONS.
§ 622. )Sr:srTJX treats of the arrangement of words and the
principles upon which they are put together so as to form sen-
tences. It deals with groups or combinations ; in this respect
differing from Etymology ; which deals with individual words only.
Go'inposition belongs as much to Syntax as to Etymology ; for
it has already been stated that it is not always an easy matter
to distinguish between two separate words and a compound. A
crow is a hlack bird. It is not, however, a hldck-bird. The cri-
terion is the accent. When the two words are equally accented
the result is a pair of separate words, connected with one another
according to the rules of Sjaitax ; as the crow is a black bird.
When the two words are uiiequaMy accented, the result is a
Compound; as the bldck-bird is akin to the thrush.
§ 623. Construction and Syntax have much the same mean-
ing. We speak of the rules of Syntax, and of the Construction
of sentences. The Syntax of a language is always regulated by
its Etymology : so that in those languages where the sign of
Gender, Number, Case, Person, Tense, and Mood are numerous,
the Syntax is complex. On the other hand, where the Ety-
mology is simple the Syntax is of moderate dimensions.
In Etymology we Decline and Conjugate; in Syntax we
Parse. Parsing is of two kinds ; Logical and Etymological.
Logical Pai'sing gives analysis of sentences according to their
Terms and Copulas, telling us which is the Subject and which is
SYNTAX IN GENERAL. 573
the Predicate, which the chief, and which the secondary, parts of
each. Etymological Parsing gives the analysis of sentences ac-
cording to the Parts of Speech of which they are composed.
It tells us which is the Noun, and which the Verb, &c. It
separates Adjectives from Substantives, Pronouns from Adverbs,
and the like. It deals with Numbers, Cases, Persons, &c.
§ 624. Speech chiefly consists of (1) commands, (2) questions,
and (3) statements. The combination of words by which these
are effected is called a Proposition. There are three kinds of
Propositions ; one to express commands, one to express questions,
and one to express statements.
Propositions which convey commands are called Imperative, as
do this, do not delay, walk.
Propositions which convey questions are called Interrogative,
as — what is this ? who are you ? Is it here ?
Propositions which convey statements are called Declaratory, —
as su7nmer is coining, I am here, this is he.
§ 625. Sentences like may you he happy are, called Optative,
from the Latin word oi)to •=. I ivish. By more than one good
authority, they are placed in a class by themselves as a fourth
species of proposition. And it cannot be denied that they are
expressions of a peculiar character. Would I could is also opta-
tive, meaning I wish I coidd, or more fully,
/ winh
that
I could.
Such being the case, we have two i^ropositions conveyed by
three words. There is the omission of the conjunction that ;
and (more remarkable) that of the personal pronoun as well.
§ 626. Sentences like hoiu well you look convey an excla-
mation of surprise, and have been called Exclamatory. Optative
Propositions are, to a certain extent, Imperative, and, to a certain
extent. Declaratory. In onay you be ha.ppy, change the place of
rfiay and you, and the result is an ordinary assertion, you Tnay he
happy. On the other hand, you he happy is a command. There
is no command, however, without a real or supposed v/ish on
the part of the speaker.
Exclamatory Propositions are, to a certain extent. Interroga-
tive, and to a certain extent. Declaratory. In how well you look,
change the place" of the essential parts, and the result is an or-
dinary assertion, you. look well. Meanwhile how indicates the
5 71 SYNTAX IN GENERAL.
degree or extent of your wcU-lcxiking. But it only indicates it.
The degree itself is undefined ; and (as such) the possible object
of a question. How do you look ? is an actual Interrogation.
§ ()27. Besides being Imperative, Interrogative, or Declara-
tory, Propositions are either Affirmative or Negative. — Summer
if^ early — summer is not early.
§ 628. In respect to their structure Propositions consist of
Terms and Copulas.
§ 629. Terms are of two kinds, Subjects and Predicates.
The Subject is the term by which we indicate the person or
thing concerning which the statement is made or the question
asked. In Imperative Propositions it denotes the person to
whom the command is given. Thus : — Summer is coming —
tvhat is this — make [thou] haste.
The Predicate is the term by which we express what we de-
clare, ask, or. command. There is no Subject without its corre-
sponding Predicate ; no Predicate without its corresponding
Subject ; and without both a Subject and a Predicate there is no
such thing as a Proposition. Without Propositions there are no
Questions, Commands, or Declarations ; and without these, there
would scarcel}^ be such a thing as Language. The little which
there would be would consist merely of exclamations like Oh !
Ah! Pish, &c.
§ 630. The simplest sentences are those which consist of single
simple propositions ; as
Sentences like
The sun is shininr/.
The moon is shininff.
The sun and moon are shiynng ;
The sun and moon are shining bright,
are anything but simple ; for although, when we consider them
merely as sentences, they are both short and clear, they each
consist of two propositions, as will be stated again.
The simplest propositions are those that consist of the simplest
terms ; as
Fire is hurning.
Summer is coming,
and the like ; wherein the number of words is three — three and
no more ; one for the Subject, one for the Predicate, and one for
the Copula.
The shortest propositions are not always the simplest. When
SYNTAX IN GENERAL. 575
each word represents either a term or a copula, their grammatical
elements coincide accm-ately with their logical, as was the case
with the preceding examples. When, however, these contain
fewer than three words, it is clear that either something must be
supplied or that a term and copula are combined in the same
word ; as is the case with such expressions as
Fire burns,
Summer comes,
where comes and hums are both Predicate and Copula at once.
§ 631. The simplest propositions, then, are those that consist
of what are called sinr/Ie-ivorded terms. Most terms, how-
ever, are onany-tuorded. If it were not so, what would become
of those words which, though incapable by themselves of forming
a name, are still used for forming a 2)a}'^ of one — words like
the, of, and the like ? Very simple propositions can easily be
converted into their opposite ; as may be seen by the following
operations upon the words
Fire is burning.
1. Prefix the definite article. — Tliejire —
2. Insert an adjective. — The bright fire —
3. Add an Adverb. — The very bright fire —
4. Add a participle, and convert bright iixio its corresponding adverb. — The
very brightly-burning jire —
5. Introduce a second substantive, slio\^ing its relations to tlie word fire by
means of a preposition. — The very brightly-burning fire of wood —
6. Insert which after fire, followed by a secondary proposition. — The very
brightly-burning fire ivhich teas made this morning of wood. —
7. Add another secondary proposition relating to wood. — The very brightly -
burning fire which tias made this morning out of the wood tvhich was brought
from the country —
8. Add another secondary proposition by means of a conjunction. — Tlie very
brightly-blazing fire which was made this morning out of the wood which was
brought from the country, because there was a sale —
It is clear that processes like this may be carried on ad
injinitum, so that a sentence of any amount of complexity
will be the result ; inasmuch as the Predicate may be made as
many-worded as the Subject. Hovv^ever, notwithstanding all
the additions, the primary and fundamental portion of the pre-
ceding term was simply the word fire.
§ 632. The Part of Speech to which a word belongs is de-
termined by the place that it takes in the structure of a Pro-
position. For instance, — words that can by themselves con-
stitute terms are either Nouns or Pronouns ; words that can
57G SYNTAX IN GENERAL.
constitute hofh predicates and copulas, Vei-bs ; words which can
constitute but parts, or fractions of terms, Adverbs, Preposi-
tions ; and the hke.
§ Go3. Names are either Proper or Common. Proper names
are appropriated to certain individual objects. Common names
are applied to a whole class of objects. George, Mary, London,
&;c., designate one particular person or place. Man, father,
toion, horse, fcc, represent objects of which there is a class or
collection.
§634!. Besides being either Proper or Common, names are
either Invariable or Variable.
Contrast the meaning of such a word as /, with such a word
as father.
Father is a name denoting any individual that stands in a
certain relation to another individual named son. The number
of such individuals is indefinite. Nevertheless they may be
taken as a class, which class is denoted by the general name in
question. This name is invariable, since it cannot be applied to
any object not belonging to the class which it denotes.
/, on the other hand, is a variable name. Its meaning-
changes with the person in whose mouth it occurs. When
Willimn says 7, it means William ; when Thomas says /, it
means Thomas. If a mother says /, it means a mother and a
female; if a father says /, it means a father and a male.
Even if an inanimate object be personified, and be supposed to
speak about itself and to say /, it means that inanimate
object. It denotes the speaker whoever it may be ; but it is
not the invariable name of any speaker whatever.
The two most important terms in Syntax are Concord and
Kegimeu; the first of which means Agreement, the latter
Government. When the Gender, Number, Case, or Person of
two connected words is the same, we have a Concord, and one
word agrees with another. There is also a Concord of Mood
and Tense ; although of this little notice is taken. It is clear,
however, that when we say / do this that I 'may gain by it,
we preserve a Concord ; and that in saying, either, / do this
that I might gain by it, or / did this that I may gain by it, we
break one.
§ G35. A little consideration will teach that, in most cases,
the laws of Syntax are neither more nor less than the dictates
of common sense applied to language, and that, in many cases,
the ordinary rules are superfluous. This applies most especially
SYNTAX IN GENERAL. 577
to the Concords or Agreements. No one, who speaks English,
need be told that in speaking of a man we say he ; of a woman,
she ; of an inanimate object, it. In doing this, we suit the
Pronoim to the Substantive, and use a masculine, feminine, or
a neuter form accordingly. Consequently, the words are said to
agree with one another. It would, however, be strange if they
did not. The word man is the name of a male. The pronoun
he is the same. They are applied to the same object. Again,
— if certain pronouns, such as they, apply only to a number of
individuals, and never to a single person, and if such a verb as
calls applies to a single individual only, and never to a numbei-,
it requires no great amount of ingenuity to discover that such
an expression as they calls is nonsensical. Tliey denotes a mul-
titude ; calls a single individual.
How can the two be united ? It is, of course, useful to know
that the first of these instances gives what the grammarians
call a Concord of Gender ; the second a Concord of Number.
Common sense, however, lies at the bottom of both. A Sub-
stantive and a Pronoun which each denote an object of the same
sex cannot fail to be in the same Gender ; and, because they
are this, they are said to agree with one another. In like
manner a Pronoun and a Verb, when each means the same
person or the same number of persons, exhibit the Concords of
Person and Number.
Much, then, that is considered by the generality of gram-
marians as syntax, can either be omitted altogether, or else be
better studied under another name.
To reduce a sentence to its elements, and to show that these
elements are, the subject, the predicate, and the copula ; to dis-
tinguish between simple terms and complex terms, — this is in
either the department of Jogic or of general grammar.
To show the difference in force of expression, between such a
sentence as great is Diana of tlie Ephesians, and Diana of the
Ephesians is great, wherein the natural order of the subject
and predicate is reversed, is a point of rhetoric.
To state that such a combination as I am moving is gram-
matical, is undoubtedly a point of syntax. Nevertheless it is a
point better explained in a separate treatise, than in a work
upon any particular language. The expression proves its cor-
rectness by the simple fact of its universal intelligibility.
To state that such a combination as / speaks, admitting that
/ is exclusively the pronoun in the first person, and that speaks
p P
578 SYNTAX IN GENEKAL.
is exclusively the verb in tlie third, is undoubtedly a point of
syntax. Nevertheless, it is a point which is better explained in
a separate treatise, than in a work upon any particular
language. An. expression so ungrammatical, involves a con-
tradiction in terms, which unassisted common sense can deal
with.
There is to me a father. — Here we have a circumlocution
equivalent to / have a father. In the English language the
circumlocution is unnatural. In the Latin it is common. To
determine this, is a matter of idiom rather than of syntax.
/ ain speaking, I was reading. — There was a stage in the
German languages when these forms were either inadmissible, or
rare. Instead thereof, we had the present tense, / speah, and
the past, / spoke. To determine the difi'erence in idea between
these pairs of forms is a matter of metaphj-sics. To determine
at what period each idea came to have a separate mode of ex-
pression is a matter of the histoi^y of language. For example,
vas Idisands appears in Ulphilas * (Matt. vii. 29). There, it
appears as a rare form, and as a literal translation of the Greek
rjv BtBa(TK(ov (was teaching). The Greek form itself was, how-
ever, an unclassieal expression for iSlSaaKe. In Anglo-Saxon
this mode of speaking became common, and in English it is com-
moner still. This is a point of idiom involved with one of
history.
Svjear by your sword — sivear on your sivord. Which of these
two expressions is right ? This depends on what the speaker
means. If he mean make your oath in the full rememhrance
of the trust you put in your sword, and with the imprecation,
therein imylied, that it shall fail you, or turn against you, if
you speak falsely , the former expression is the right one. But,
if he mean swear with your hand upon your sivord, it is the
latter which expresses the meaning. To take a different view
of this question, and to write as a rule that verbs of swearing
are follovjed by the p)reposition on (or by) is to mistake the
province of the grammarian. Grammar tells no one what he
should wish to say. It only tells him how what he wishes to
say should be said.
Much of the criticism on the use of will and shtdl is faulty
in this respect. Will expresses one idea of futurity, shall
another. The syntax of the two words is very nearly that of
See Deutsche Grammatil; iv. 5.
SYNTAX IN GENERAL. 579
any other two. That one of the words is oftenest used with
a first person, and the other witli a second, is a fact, afs
will be seen hereafter, connected with the nature of Hangs, not
of words.
The following question now occurs. If the history of forms
of speech be one thing, and the history of idioms another ; if
this question be a part of logic, and that question a part of
rhetoric ; and if such truly grammatical facts as government
and concord are, as matters of common sense, to be left unin-
vestigated and unexplained, what remains as syntax ? This is
answered by the following distinction. There are two sorts of
syntax ; theoretical and practical, scientific and historical, pure
and mixed. Of these, the first consists in the analysis and
proof of those rules which common practice applies witliout
investigation, and common sense appreciates, in a rough and
gross manner, from an appreciation of the results. Tiiis is the
syntax of government and concord, or of those points which
find no place in the present work, for the following reason —
tliey are either too easy or too hard for it. If explained scien-
tifically, they are matters of close and minute reasoning ; if
exhibited empiric^dly, they are mere rules for the memory.
Besides this they are universal facts of languages in general, and
not the particular facts of any one language. Like other
universal facts, they are capable of being expressed symbolically.
Tliat the verb (A) agrees with its pronoun (B) is an immutable
fact : or, changing the mode of expression, we may say that
language can only fulfil its great primary object of intelligibility
when A n B. And so on throughout. A formal syntax thus
exhibited, and even devised a priori, is a philological possi-
bility. And it is also the measure of philological anomalies.
§ 636. Notwithstanding the previous limitations, there is still
a considerable amount of syntax in the English, as in all other
languages. If I undertook to indicate the essentials of mixed
syntax, I should say that they consisted in the explanation of
combinations apparently ungrammatical ; in other words, that
they ascertained the results of those causes which disturb the
regularity of the pure syntax ; that tbey measured the extent of
the deviation ; and that they referred it to some principle of the
human mind-^so accounting for it.
1 a/ni goiiig. — Pure syntax explains this.
/ have gone. — Pure syntax will not explain this. Never-
theless, the expression is good English. The power, however,
P P 2
580 SYNTAX IN GENERAL.
of both luivc and gone is different from the usual power of those
■\vords. This difference mixed syntax explains.
§ G37. Mixed syntax requires two sorts of knowledge — meta-
physical and historical.
1. To account for such a fact in language as the expression
f/ic inan as rides to marhet, instead of the usual expression, the
man ivho rides to market, is a question of what is commonly
called metaphysics. The idea of comparison is the idea common
to the words as and wJio.
2. To account for such a fjict in language as the expression /
have riddeyi a Jiorse is a question of history. We must know
that when there was a sign of an accusative case in English the
words horse and ridden had that sign ; in other words, that the
expression was, originally, / have a horse as a ridden thing.
These two views illustrate each other,
§ 638. In the English, as in all other languages, it is conve-
nient to notice certain so-called figures of speech. They always
furnish convenient modes of expression, and sometimes, as in the
case of the one immediately about to be noticed, account for
facts.
Personification. — The ideas of apposition and collectiveness
account for the apparent violations of the concord of number.
The idea of personification applies to the concord of gender.
A masculine or feminine gender, characteristic of persons, may
be substituted for the neuter gender, characteristic of things.
In this case the term is said to be personified.
The cities lulio aspired to liberty. — A personification of the idea
expressed by cities is here necessary to justify the expression.
It, the sign of the neuter gender, as applied to a male or
female child, is the reverse of the process.
Ellipsis (from the Greek elleij^einzzto fall short), or a
fcdling short, occurs in sentences like / sent to the bookseller's.
Here the word shoj) or house is understood. Expressions like
to go on cdl fours, and to eat of the fruit of the tree, are redu-
cible to ellipses.
Pleonasm (from the Greek pleo7Uizein-=zto he in excess) oc-
curs in sentences like the king, he reigns. Here the word he is
superabundant. In many ^pleonastic expressions we may suppose
an interruption of the sentence, and afterwards an abrupt
renewal of it ; as the king — he reigns.
The fact of the word he neither qualifying nor explaining the
word king, distinguishes pleonasm fi'om apposition.
SYNTAX IN GENERAL. 581
Pleonasm, as far as the view above is applicable, is reduced to
what is, apparently, its opposite, viz. ellipsis.
My hanks, theij are furnished, — the most straitest sect, —
these are pleonastic expressions. In the king, he reigns, the
word king is in the same predicament as in the king, God bless
him.
The double negative, allowed in Greek and Anglo-Saxon, but
not admissible in English, is pleonastic.
§ 639. Apposition. — GcBsar, the Roman emp)eror, invades
Britain. — Here the words Roman emperor explain, or define,
the word Cwsar ; and the sentence, filled up, might stand, Ccesar,
that is, the Roman emperor, &c. Again, the words Roman
emj)eror might be wholly ejected ; or, if not ejected, they
might be thrown into a parenthesis. The practical bearing of
this fact is exhibited by changing the form of the sentence, and
inserting the conjunction and. In this case, instead of one per-
son, two are spoken of, and the verb invades must be changed
from the singular to the plural.
The words Roman emperor are said to be in Apposition to
Ccesar. They constitute, not an additional idea, but an expla-
nation of the original one. They are, as it were, laid cdongside
{appositi) of the word Ccesar. Cases of doubtful number,
wherein two substantives precede a verb, and wherein it is un-
certain whether the verb should be singular or plural, are de-
cided by determining whether the substantives be in apposition
or the contrary. No matter how many nouns there may be, as
long as it can be shown that they are in apposition, the verb ig
in the singular number.
§ 640. Collectiveness as opposed to plurality. — In sentences
like tlte meeting tvas large, the multitude pursue pleasure, m^eet-
ing and multitude are each collective nouns ; that is, although
they present the idea of a single object, that object consists of
a plurality of individuals. Hence, pursue is put in the plural
number. To say, however, the meeting were large would sound
improper. The number of the verb that shall accompany a col-
lective noun depends upon whether the idea of the multiplicity
of individuals, or that of the unity of the aggregate, shall pre-
dominate.
Sand and salt and a mass of iron is easier to hear than a
m/jbn without undsrstanding. — Let sand and scdt, and a mass
of iron be dealt with as a series of things the aggregate of
which forms a mixture, and the expression is allowable.
r)N2 SYNTAX IN GENERAL.
TJiC kimj and the lords and cominons forms an excellent
frame of government. Here the expression is doubtful. Sub-
stitute with for the first and, and there is no doubt as to the
propriety of tlie singular form is.
§ G H. The redaction of complex foi-ons to simple ones. —
In the-klng-of -Saxony s army, the assertion is, not that the army
bt'longs to Saxony, but that it belongs to the King of Saxony ;
which words must, for the sake of taking a true view of
the construction, be dealt with as a single word in the possessive
case. Here two cases are dealt with as one ; and a complex
terui is treated as a single word.
The sanie reasoning applies to phrases like the tivo king Wil-
Ihtmis. If W3 say the two kings William, we must account for
the phrase by apposition.
§ 642. True notion of the part of speech in use. — In he is
gone, the word gone must be considered as equivalent to absent;
that is, as an adjective. Otherwise the expression is as incor-
rect as the expression she is eloped. Strong participles are
adjectival oftener than weak ones ; their form being common
to many adjectives.
§ 643. True notion of the origincd form. — In the phrase I
must speak, the word speak is an infinitive. In the phrase /
am forced to speak, the word speak is (in the present English)
an infinitive also. In one case, however, it is preceded by to ;
whilst in the other, the participle to is absent. The reason for
this lies in the original difference of form. Speak — to ■=! the
Anglo-Saxon sprecan, a simple infinitive ; to speak, or speak + to
=. the Anglo-Saxon to sprecanne, an infinitive in the dative case.
§ 044. ConveHihility. — On the other hand, English Syntax
has certain decided peculiarities. In languages where each part
of speech has its own peculiar and characteristic termination it
is scarcely possible to confound a Substantive with a Verb or a
Verb with a Substantive. In English, however, where these
distinctive signs are rare, it is by no means easy, in all cases, to
separate them. Take, for instance, the word black. It is,
doubtless, in its origin, adjectival. As such, we can give it the
degrees of comparison, and say (for instance) tJds ink is black,
this is blacker, and that is the blackest of all. But what when
we use such an expression as the blacks of Africa or the blacks
are falling, where there is the sign of the plural number, a phe-
nomenon wholly unknown to the English Adjective ? Surely,
we must say that black means black man, or black thing, and
SYNTAX IN GENERAL. 583
tliat the word is no longer an Adjective but a Substantive.
But this is not all. The word may be used as a Verb and a
Participle, and the man who has had his shoes blacked may say
that the little boy at the corner of the street blacl-ed them.
Speaking roughly, we may say that in tiie English language, the
greater part of the words may, as far as their form is concerned,
be one part of speech as well as another. Thus the combina-
tions s-a-n-th, or f-r-a-n-t, if they existed at all, might exist as
either nouns or verbs, as either substantives or adjectives, as
conjunctions, adverbs, or prepositions. This is not the case with
the Greek languao-e. There, if a word be a substantive, it will
probably end in -s, if an infinitive verb, in -ein, &c. The bear-
ings of this difference between languages like the English and
languages like the Greek will soon appear. At present it is
sujSScient to say that a word, originally one part of speech (e. g.
a noun), may become another (e. g. a verb). This may be called
the convertibility of words.
(1.) Adjectives used as substantives. — Of these, we have ex-
amples in expressions like the blacks of Africa — the bitters and
stueets of life — all fours ivere put to the ground ; which are
true instances of conversion, and are proved to be so by the fact
of their taking a plural form. On the other hand, however, lei
the blind lead the blind is not an instance of conversion. The
word blind in both instances remains an adjective, and is shown
to remain so by its being uninflected.
(2.) Particles used as substantives. — "When king Richard says
none of your ifs he uses the word if as a substantive n eicpres-
sion of doubt. Again — one long noiv r= one long present time.
In man is mortal, &c., the Adjective forms a whole term ;
in mortal man is fallible a part of one.
Many good grammarians call the former of these the Predicative,
the latter, the Attributive power of the Adjective. The former
name is unexceptionable ; not the latter. All adjectives, whether
predicative or not, imply an attribute. Be the name, however,
what it may, the distinction between the construction is an
important one ; though less so in English than in many other
languages. In several of the languages wherein the adjective
is declined — in the German, for instance, as one — there are
two forms, one like der gute Knabe, the good, boy, the other like
der Kncibe ist gut =: the boy is good. Of course, in English,
where there is but one form for the Adjective, whatever its con-
struction may be, this distinction lias no visible existence.
584 SYNTAX OF THE PRONOUN.
But what if it exist elsewhere ? What if the current objec-
tions to such expressions as it is me (wliich the ordinary gram-
mars would change into if is I) be unfounded, or rather foundcid
upon the ignorance of this difference ? That the present writer
defends this (so-called) vulgarism may be seen elsewhere. It
may be seen elsewhere that he finds nothing worse in it than a
Frenchman finds in c'est nnoi, where (according to the English
dogma) c'est je would be the right expression. Both construc-
tions— the English and the French — are Predicative ; and when
constructions are Predicative, a change is what we must expect
rather than be surprised at.
§ 645. Some sentences consist of a single proposition, as —
the sun sJdnes ; others, of two propositions combined, as — the
sun shines ; therefore, the day will he jine. This is made
plainer by writing the words thus : —
The sun shines,
therefore
The day wUR be fine.
The Syntax of Single Propositions, being the simplest, comes
fiist under notice.
CHAPTER II.
SYNTAX OF THE PRONOUN. THIS, THAT.
§ 64G. A Pronoun is a variable name which can, by itself,
form either the subject or the predicate of a proposition : as I
am he, that is it.
With words like vjho, what, this, these, that, those, I, thou,
vje, and the like, this power, on the part of the pronoun, is plain
and clear. All such words comport themselves as substantives ;
from which they diflfer, not in respect to the place which they
can take in a proposition, but in respect to the principle upon
which they do so. The substantive is a fixed, permanent, and
inconvertible name : the jDronoun, on the other hand, is conver-
tible or variable. But the aforesaid words which so decidedly
share the nature of substantives, are not the only pronouns.
There are, besides, such words as some, any, many, of which the
SYNTAX OF THE PRONOUN. 585
character is adjectival rather than substantival. Still, they can
form terms ; and that by themselves. At the same time they
are often accompanied by a substantive, and, in some cases,
almost require one. In expressions like so'me are here, any vjill
do, many are called, &c., the substantive, to which they are
the equivalent, can generally be inserted with advantage ; so
that we may say, some men, any instrument, raany indivi-
duals. All the pronouns of this class are undeclined. The near-
est approaches to an exception to the foregoing statement are
supplied by the word same, and the ordinals ; which, instead of
standing quite alone, are generally preceded by the definite
article, so that we say the same, the first, &c. Here, however,
the article is to be looked on as part of the pronoun. For a
further elucidation of this, as well as for the nature of the
article itself, see below. The etymology of the pronoun prece-
ded that of the substantive, on account of the pronominal in-
flection being the fuller. For the same reason, the syntax of
the pronoun comes first. That, however, of the relatives and
interrogatives finds no place for the present. It belongs to the
syntax of compound propositions. That of the demonstratives,
so long as they keep their original demonstrative power, is
simple, being limited to this, these, that, those, and yon. The
simple demonstrative power, however, often passes into some-
thing else : a foct which gives us the syntax of the pronoun
of the third person, along with that of the indeterminate pronoun,
and that of the definite article ; all of which will be illustrated
as we proceed. In origin, however, all these are demonstratives.
§ 647. This and that. — The chief point of syntax connected
with the pure demonstrative is one that is suggested by the fol-
lowing well-known quotation : —
Quocimque aspicies nihil est nisi jiontus et aer ;
Nubibus hie tumiclus, fliictibus ille minax.
Here hie {rztJds or the one) refers to the antecedent last
named (the air) ; whilst ille ( =z that or the other) refers to the
antecedent first named (the sea). On the strength of this ex-
ample, combined with others, it is laid down as a rule in Latin
that this refers to the last, and that to the first, antecedent.
What is the rule in English ? Suppose we say Johns is a good
sword and so is Charles's ; this cut through a thick rope, that
cut through an iron rod. In determining to which of the two
swords the respective demonstratives refer, the meaning will not
58G SYNTAX OF TUE PRONOUN.
help us at all, so that our only recourse is to the rules of gi'am-
mar ; and it is the opinion of the present writer that the rules
of s^ranunar will helj) us just as little. The Latin rule is adopted
by scholars, hut still it is a Latin rule rather than an English
one. It is, probably, a question which no authorit}' can settle ;
and all that grammar can tell us is, that tJdii refers to the name
of the idea which is logically the most close at hand, and thut to
the idea which is logically the most distant. What constitutes
nearness or distance of ideas — in other words, what determines
their sequence — is another question.
CHAPTER III.
SYNTAX OF THE PRONOUN. — FOV. — /. — HIS AND HER. — ITS.
§ 648. You. — As far as the practice of the present mode of
speech is concerned, the word you is a nominative form ; since
we say you move, you are moving, you were speaking. Why
should it not be treated as such ? There is no absolute reason
why it should not. The Anglo-Saxon form for you was eovj ;
for ye, gi. Neither word bears any sign of case at all, so that,
form for form, they are equally and indifferently nominative
and accusative, as the habit of language may make them.
Hence it, perhaps, is more logical to say that a certain form
(you) is used either as a nominative or accusative, than to say
that the accusative case is used instead of a nominative ; for it
is clear that you can be used instead of ye only so far as it is
nominative in power.
§ 649. Dr. Guest has remarked that at one time the two
forms were nearly changing place ; in evidence of which he
gives the following examples : —
As I have made yc one, lords, one remain;
So I go stronger you more honour gain.
Henry VIII. iv. 2.
Wliat gain you by forbidding it to teaze ye.
It now can neither trouble you nor please ye. — Dryden.
§ 650. Carrj'ing out the views just laid down, and admit-
ting you to be a nominative, or ^uasi-nominative case, we may
extend the reasoning to the word nie, and call it a secondary
PERSONAL PRONOUNS. 587
nominative ; inasmuch as such phrases as it is 7ne=zii is I, are
common. To call such expressions incorrect English is to
assume the point. No one says that cest nioi is bad French
and that cest je is good. The fact is, that, with us, the whole
question is a question of degree. Has or has not the custom
been sufficiently prevalent to have transferred the forms vie, ye,
and you from one case to another ? Or, perhaps, we may say,
is there any real custom at all in favour of / except so far as
the grammarians have made one? It is clear that the French
analogy is against it. It is also clear that the personal pronoun
as a Predicate may be in a different category from the personal
pronoun as a Subject.
§ 651. At the same time it must be observed that the
expression it is 7ne=it is I will not justify the use of it is hint,
it is her = it is he and it is she. Me, ye, you, are what may be
called indifferent forms, i. e. nominative as nmch as accusative,
and accusative as much as nominative. Him and her, on the
other hand, are not indifferent. The -on and -r are respectively
the signs of cases other than the nominative.
§ 652. Pronomen reverentice, — When we say you instead
of thou, it is doubtful whether, in strict language, this is a
point of grammar. I imagine that instead of addressing the
person we speak to as a single individual, and applying to him
a plural pronoun, we treat him as a collection of persons. If
so, the practice is other than grammatical. We treat one
person as more than one. There is, evidently, some courtesy in
this ; inasmuch as the practice is very general. The Germans
change, not only the number, but the person, and say (e. g.)
sprechen sie Deutsch = speak they German 1 rather than either
sprechst du {spealcest thou), or sprechet ihr {speak ye).
§ 653. Dativus ethicus. — In the phrase
Rob me the exchequer. — Henry IV.
the rae is expletive, and is equivalent to for me. This is con-
veniently called the dativus ethicus. It occurs more frequently
in the Latin than in the English, and more frequently in the
Greek than in the Latin.
§ 654. The reflected personal pronoun. — In the English
language there is no equivalent to the Latin se, the German
sich, and the Scandinavian sik, or sig ; from which it follows
that the word self is used to a greater extent than would other-
wise be the case. / strike me is awkward, but not ambiguous.
588 TERSONAL PRONOUNS,
Thou strikest thee is awkwanl, but not ambiguous. He strikes
h'nn is ambiguous ; inasmuch as hlrii may mean either the
jwrfion ivho strllces or some one else. In order to be clear we
add the word self when the idea is reflective. He strikes him-
self is, at once, idiomatic, and unequivocal. So it is with the
plural ]iersons. We strike us is awkward, but not ambiguous.
Ye strike you is the same. TJtey strike them is ambiguous.
Hence, as a general rule, whenever we use a verb reflectively,
we use the Avord seJf also. The exceptions to this rule are
either poetical expressions or imperative moods.
He sat khii clo-mi at a pillar's base.
Sit thee dowoi.
§ 655. Reflective neuters. — In / strike me, the verb strike
is transitive. In / fear me, the verb fear is intransitive or
neuter ; unless indeed fear mean terrify — which it does not.
Hence, the reflective pronoun appears out of place, i. e. after a
neuter or intransitive verb. Such a use, however, is but the
fragment of an extensive system of reflective verbs thus formed,
developed in difiierent degrees in the difierent Gothic languages ;
but in all more than in the English.
§ 656. Equivocal reflectives. — The proper place of the re-
flective is after the verb. The proper place of the governing
pronoun is, in the indicative or subjunctive moods, before the
verb. Hence in expressions like the preceding there is no
doubt as to the power of the pronoun. The imperative mood,
however, sometimes presents a coraphcation. Here the govern-
ing person may follow the verb ; so that niouoit ye =: either he
nnountecl or mount yourselves. In phrases, then, like this, and
in phrases
Busk ye, busk ye, my boruiy, bonny bride,
Busk ye, busk ye, my winsome marrow,
the construction is ambiguous. Ye may either be a nominative
case governing the verb husk, or an accusative case governed by
it = yourself.
§ 657. The words his, and her, are genitive cases — not
adjectives, being equivalent to
mater ejus, not mater sua ;
pater ejus, — imter suus.
§ 658. It has already been shown that its is a secondary
genitive.
REFLECTIVE PRONOUNS. 589
To the examples already adduced add (from Dr. Guest) the
following : —
The apoplexy is, as I take it, a kiiid of lethargy. I have read the cause of
hin efi'ects iu Galen; it is a Idud of deafness. — 2 Henry IV. i. 2.
If the salt have lost Ms savour, wherewith shall it be seasoned? It is
neither fit for the land nor yet for the dunghill ; but men cast it out. — Luke
xiv. 34, 35.
Some affirm tliat every plant has his particular fly or catei-pillar, wliich it
breeds and feeds. — ^Walton's Angler.
Tliis rule is not so general, but that it admitteth of Ids exceptions. — Cauew.
CHAPTER IV-
SYNTAX OF PRONOUNS. TRUE REFLECTIVE ABSENT IN ENGLISH.
THE WORD SELF.
§ 659. A TRUE reflective pronoun is wanting in English. In
other words, there are no equivalents to the Latin pronominal
forms se, slhi. Nor yet are there any equivalents in English to
the so-called adjectival forms suus, sua, suuin. At first, it
seems superfluous to state all this — to say that if there were no
such primitive form as se, there could be no such secondary
form as suns. Such, however, is not really the case. Suus
might exist in a language, and yet se be absent ; in other words,
the derivative form might have continued whilst the original
one had become extinct. Such is really the case with the Old
Frisian. The equivalent to se is lost, whilst the equivalent to
suus is found. In the Modern Frisian, however, both forms
are lost.
§ 660. The history of the reflective pronoun in the German
tongues is as follows : —
In Moeso-Gothlc. — Found in two cases, sis, sih = sibi, se.
In Old Norse. — Ser, sikz=sihi, se.
In Old High-German. — The dative form lost ; there being
no such word as sir = sis = sihi.
In Old Frisian, — As stated above, there is here no equi-
valent to se ; whilst there is the adjectival form sin = suus.
In Old Saxon. — The equivalent to se and sihi very rare.
The equivalent to suus not common, but commoner than in
Anglo-Saxon.
590 SELF.
In Anglo-Saxon. — No instance of the equivalent to se at all.
The forms t^innezz-svyin and sinvm =su(), occur in Beowulf.
In Qedmon cases of shizzmits are more frequent. Still the
usual form is hisz=:ejuf!.
In the Butch, Danish, and Sivedish, the true reflectives, both
personal and possessive, occur ; so tliat the modern Frisian
and English stand alone in respect to the entire absence of
them.
§ 661. The unJovhfed constructions of the word self, in the
present state of the cultivated English, are three-fold.
1. In my- self, thyself, ourselves, and yourselves, the con-
struction is that of a common substantive with an adjective or
genitive case. Myself ^zmy individuality, and is similarly
construed — mea individualitas {persomi), or "niei individu-
alitas {persona).
2. In himself and themselves, when accusative, the con-
struction is that of a substantive in apposition with a pronoun.
Himself =.him, the individual.
3. Composition. — It is only, however, when himself and
themselves are in the accusative case, that the construction is
appositional. When they are used as nominatives, it must be
explained on another principle. In phrases like He himself
was present ; they themselves were present, there is no govern-
ment, no concord, no apposition ; at least no apposition between
lii'in and self, them and selves. In this difficulty, the only
logical view that can be taken of the matter, is to consider the
words himself and themselves, not as two words, but as a single
word compounded ; and, even then, the compound will be of an
irregular kind ; inasmuch as the inflectional element -m, is dealt
with as part and parcel of the root.
Herself. — The construction here is amlngnoiis. Since her
may be either a so-called genitive, like my, or an accusative, like
him.
Itself — Is also ambiguous. The s may represent the s in its,
as well as the s- in self.
This inconsistency is as old as the Anglo-Saxon stage of the
English lanofuaofe.
§ 662. Another instance of this preponderance of the
adjectival over the substantival power is conjoined with the
same inconsistency supplied by the word one ; the following
illustrations of which are from Mr. Guest. — Phil. Trans.
No. 22.
MINE. THIN E. 591
In this world woto I no kiiiglit,
Who durst lih oiin with hym tight.
Ipoiaedon, 1(190.
|:ali lia hire ane were
Ayein so kene keisero and al his Idne riche.
&t. Catherine, !)0.
Though she alone were
Against so fierce a kaiser, and all his kingdom.
Here his one, her one, means his singleness, her singleness.
He made his mone
Within a garden all hUn one. — Gower, Confess. Amant.
CHAPTER V.
MINE. — THINE. — OURS. — ETC
§ 663. There is a difference between the construction of my
and nvine. We do not say this is mine hat, and we cannot say
this hat is my. Nevertheless, except as far as the collocation
is concerned, the construction of the two words is the same, i. e.
it is either that of an adjective agreeing with, or that of a
possessive case governed by, a substantive.
§ 664:. A common genitive case can be used in two ways ;
either as part of a term, or as a whole one. — 1. This is John's
hat. 2. This hat is John's : in which case it is said to be
used as a Predicate, or Predicatively. And a common adjective
can be used in two ways ; either as part of a term, or as
a whole term. 1. These are good hats. 2. These hats are
good. Now, whether we consider Tny, and the words like it, as
adjectives or cases, they possess only one of the properties just
illustrated, i. e. they can only be used as part of a term — this
is my hat ; and not this hat is my. And whether we consider
mine, and the words like it, as adjectives or cases, they possess
only one of the properties just illustrated, i. e. they can only be
used as whole terms, or Predicatively — this hat is mine ; not
this is mine hat.
Hence, for a full and perfect construction, whether of an
adjective or a genitive case, the possessive pronouns present the
phenomenon of being, singl}^, incomplete, but complementary to
each other when taken in Lheir two forms.
592 SYNTAX OF PRONOUNS.
§ 6G5. In expressions like "tiiy hat, from which we are
unable to separate my and use it as a single word, the construc-
tion is, nearly, that of the Articles. It is scarcely, however,
safe to say that ony, thy, our, and your, are actual articles.
Nevertheless, they are incapable of being used by themselves.
In the predicative construction of a genitive case, the term is
formed by the single word only so far as the expression is con-
cerned. A substantive is always understood from what has
preceded. — Tills discovery is Newton sz=. this discovery is New-
ton's discovery.
The same with adjectives. — This lueather is fine zz this weather
is fine iveather.
And the same with absolute pronouns. — This hat is mine =z
this hat is my hat ; and this is a hat of mine r: this is a hat of
my hats.
CHAPTER VI.
SYNTAX OF PRONOUNS. THE INDETERMINATE CONSTRUCTION.
§ GGio. Different languages have different modes of express-
ing indeterminate propositions. In Greek, Latin, and English,
the passive voice is used — Xeyerai, dicitur, it is said. The Ita-
lian uses the reflective pronoun ; as, si dice zr it says itself
Sometimes the plural pronoun of the third person is used. Thus,
in our language, they say =z the world at large says. Finally,
Qiian has an indeterminate sense in the Modern German ; as, man
sacjt ■=. man B^ys,-=. they say. The same word was also used in-
determinately in the Old, although, it is not so used in the Mo-
dern, English. In the Old English, the -n was occasionally lost
and man or rtien became me.
The present indeterminate pronoun is one ; as, one says zz
they say = it is said z= man sagt, German, = 091 dit, French := .si
dice, Italian. It has already been stated that the indeterminate
pronoun one has no etymological connection with the numeral
one; but that it is derived from the French onzzhommezzhomo
= man.
Two other pronouns, or to speak more in accordance with the
present habit of the English language, one pronoun, and one
THE INDETERMINATE TRONOUNS. 593
adverb of pronominal origin, are also used indeterminately, viz.
it and there.
§ G67. It can be either the subject or the predicate of a sen-
tence,— It is this — tJi is is it — / am it — it is I. When it is
the subject of a proposition, the verb necessarily agrees with it,
and can be of the singular number only ; no matter what be the
number of the predicate — it is this — it is these. When it is
the pi'edicate of a proposition, the number of the verb depends
upon the number of the subject.
§ 668. There can only be the predicate of a proposition ; dif-
fering in this respect from it. Hence, it never affects the number
of the verb ; which is determined by the nature of the subject —
there is this — there are these. When we say there is these, the
analogy between the words these and it misleads us ; the ex-
pression being illogical. Furthermore, although a predicate, there
alwaj's stands in the beginning of propositions, i. e. in the place
of the subject. This also may mislead.
§ 669. Although it, wdien the subject, being itself singular,
absolutely requires that its verb should be singular also, there is
in German such an expression as — es sind menschen^zit are
men; where esnthe English there.
§ 670. In such phrases as it roAns, it snoius, it freezes, it
would be hard to say, in express terms, what it stands for.
Suppose we are asked ivhat rains ? what snows ? what freezes ?
— the answer is difficult. We might say the rain, the weather,
the sky, or what not. Yet of these answers none is satisfactory.
To say the rain rains, the sky rains, &c., sounds strange. Yet
we all know the meaning of the expression — obscure as it may
be in its details. We all know that the word it is essential to
the sentence ; and that if we omitted it and simply said rains,
the grammar would be faulty. We also know that it is the
subject of the proposition. In the old grammars, the word JDeus
(GocJ) was held to be the subject.
Pluit,
raynes
DeiiR meus.
Gelat,
freses
— tuns.
DegeJat,
thowes
SIIUS.
Ningit,
snawes
— ipsius.
Tonat,
thoueres
— sanctus.
Orandinnt,
liayles
— omnipotens
Fulgurat,
lownes
— creator.
See Wright's volume of Vocabularies from the Tenth Century
to the Fifteenth.
Q Q
59-t
THE ARTICLES.
CHAPTER VII.
SYNTAX OF PRONOUNS. — ARTICLES.
§ 671. The articles in English are the, an, no, and every. More
than one competent writer has abeady suggested that no is an
article. If so, it must, of course, be considered as different in its
construction from the ordinary negative. It has no independent
existence. It lias an existence when coupled with a substan-
tive or another pronoun, li-nnot one, and none, in power. The
construction of every is exactly the construction of no. We can
say every man as we can say no man, and every one as we can
say no one ; but we cannot say every and no alone.
§ 672. When two or more substantives, following each other,
denote the same object, the article precedes the first only. Thus
— we say, the secretary and treasurer, when the two offices are
held by one person. When two or more substantives following
each other denote different objects, the article is repeated, and
precedes each. We say the (or «) secretary and the (or a) trea-
surer, when the two offices are held by different persons. This
rule is much neglected.
§ 673. Before a consonant, r/J^ becomes a; as an axe, a man.
In adder, which is properly nadder, and in nag, which is properly
ag, there is a misdivision. So, also, in the old glossaries.
Heo aiiris
a «ere
i. e. an ear.
hec aquila
a weggle
— an eagle.
heo anguilla
a noie
— an eel.
hec erinaeens
a ?nirchon
— an lu'chin.
hie comes
a nerle
— an earl.
hie senior
a Hald man
— an old man
hie exul
a HOwi;lay
— an outlaw.
hie lutricius
a HotjTe
— an otter.
hec alba
a ?mwbe
— an aube.
hec amictus
a ?;amyt
— an amice.
hec securis
a wax
— an axe.
hec axis
a waxyltre
— an axletree.
hec ancora
a 7jaukyre
— an anchor.
THE NUMERALS.- SYNTAX OF SUBSTANTIVES. 59 o
CHAPTER VIII.
SYNTAX OF PRONOUNS. THE NUMERALS.
§ 674. The numeral o>i 6 is naturally singular. All tlie rest are
naturally plural. Nevertheless such expressions as — one ttvo ( —
one collection of tivo), two tlirees {■=.iv:o collections of three),
are legitimate. They are so because tlie sense of the word is
changed. We may talk of several ones just as we may talk of
several aces ; and of one ttvo just as of one pair.
Expressions like the thousandth-and-first are incorrect. They
mean neither one thing nor another ; 1001st being expressed by
the thousand-and-first, and 1000th + Ist being expressed by the
thousandth-and-the-first. And, here it may be noticed that,
although I never found it to do so, the word odd is capable of
taking an ordinal form. The thousand-cuul-odd-th is as good
an expression as the thousand -and-eigh-th. In words of this
kind the construction is that of the king -of- Saxony' s army.
It is by no means a matter of indifference whether we say tlie
two first or the first tivo. The captains of two different classes
at school should be called the two first hoys. The first and
second boys of the same class should be called the first two boys.
CHAPTER IX.
SYNTAX OF SUBSTANTIVES.
§ 675. A Substantive is an Invaria.hle name, which can foini
either the Subject or the Predicate of a Proposition.
A Substantive is an /^variable name ; herein differing from
the Pronoun, which is Variable.
The Declension of the Substantive is more limited than that of
the Pronoun. It gives but two Cases, and no Gender.
§676. Ellipsis of Substantives. — ^The historical view of
phrases like Rundell and Bridges, St. Paul's, &c., shows that
this ellipsis is common to the English and the other Gothic lan-
guages. Furthermore it shows that it is met with in languages
Q Q 2
596 SYNTAX OF SUBSTANTIVES.
not of the Gothic stock ; and, finally, that the class of words
to which it applies, is, there or thereabouts, the same generally.
Thus —
The words most commonly understood are (1.) house and
family, or words reducible to them. Iwljo^im Diancezzcedem
Diana'. (2.) Country retinue. (3.) Son, daughter, wife, widow.
— N?7\eup KoSpov, Greek,
§ 677. The following phrases are referrible to a different class
of relations : —
1. Right and left — supply ^a7icZ. This is, probably, a real
ellipsis. The words right and left have not yet become true
substantives ; inasmuch as they have no plural forms. In this
respect, they stand in contrast with hitter and sweet ; inasnmch
as we can say he has tasted both the hitters and the siveets of
life.
2. All fours. — To go on all fours. No ellipsis. The word
fours is a true substantive, as proved by its existence as a
plural.
§ 678. Proper names can only he used in the singularnumi^
her. — Proper or individual names are essentially si »(/w?a7', audit
is a common, as well as a true, statement that no individual name
can he plural. How, then, can we use such expressions as hoth
the Bostons are important sea-poiis, or, as long as Moeccenases
ahound Maros ivill he plentiful f-ziSint Mceccenates non deerunt
Flacce, Marones ? The Bodon in Lincolnshire is a different
town from the Boston in Massachusetts ; so that, though the same
combination of sound or letters applies to both, it cannot be
said that the same name is so applied. The same name is one
thing. The same word applied to different objects is another.
A name is only so far individual as it applies to some individual
object. The two Bostons, however, are different objects. In
the case of Mceccenas and Virgil there are but two individuals
— one Msecaenas and one Virgil. Msecaenas, however, is some-
thing more than the particular patron of Virgil. He is the
sample, type, or representative of jxdrons in general. Virgil, in
like manner, is something more than the particular poet pa-
tronized by MsecjEnas. He stands for pjoets in general. Hence
the meaning of the Latin line and of the English sentence that
preceded it, is this : — As long as tltere are men like Ma'ccenas
there tvill also he men like Virgil. But a man like Msectenas
is a patron, and a man like Virgil a poet. Hence — As long as
there are p)atrons there will he poets aUo, When we say the
«
SYNTAX OF ADJECTIVES. 597
four Georges; thePlttn and Camdens, &c,, the words that thus
take a plural form have ceased to be proper names. They
either mean the persons called George, kc, or, persons so like
George, that they may be considered as identical.
§ 679. Collocation. — In the present English, the genitive case
always precedes the noun by which it is governed — the mans
'hat-=.honiinis lyileus ; never the hat man' s zz pileus hominis.
CHAPTER X.
SYNTAX OF ADJECTIVES.
§ 680. An Adjective is a word which can form the Predicate,
but not the Subject, of a Proposition.
An Adjective is a word suggestive of a name rather than an
actual name itself.
The name suggested by an adjective is always that of an ab-
straction.
The Declension of the Adjective is more limited than that of
the Substantive. It gives neither Case nor Number.
It has, however, an Inflection which is wanting both to the
Substantive and the Pronoun, viz. that of Degree.
§ 681. Pleonasm. — Pleonasm can take place with adjectives
only in the expression of the degrees of comparison.
The more serener spirit.
The most straitest sect.
§ 682. Collocation. — As a general rule the adjective precedes
the substantive — a good man, not a man good. When, how-
ever, the adjective is either qualified by the expression of its
mode, or accompanied by another adjective, it may follow the
substantive : —
A vannjust and good.
A woman ivise and fair.
A hero devuted to his country.
A patriot disinterested to a cjreat degree.
Single simple adjectives thus placed after their substantive,
belong to tlie poetry of England, and especially to the ballad
poetry — siglis profound — the leaves green.
598 SYNTAX OF ADJECTIVES.
§ G83. Government. — The only adjective that governs a case,
is the word like. In the expression this is like him, &c., the
original power of the dative remains. This is an inference from
the facts —
That (I) in most languages which have inflections to a suf-
ficient extent, the word meaning Z^X^e governs a dative case ; that
(2) if ever we use in English any preposition at all to express
similitude, it is the preposition to — like to rae, like to death, &c.
§ 684. Expressions such us full of meat, good for John, are
by no means instances of the government of adjectives ; the
really governing words being the prepositions of and for re-
spectively. Hence, the most that can be said, in cases like
these, is that particular adjectives determine the use of particular
prepositions — thus the preposition of generally follows the
adjective /;f7^, «fec.
§ 685. The positive preceded by the adjective more, is equiva-
lent to the comparative — e. g. m,ore wise zz wiser. The reasons
foi' employing one expression in preference to the other, depend
upon the nature of the particular word used. When it is, at
one and the same time, of Anglo-Saxon origin and monosyllabic,
there is no doubt about the preference to be given to the form
in -er. Thus ivis-er is preferable to Qnore wise. When, how-
ever, the word is compound or trisyllabic, the combination with
the word more is preferable —
Dtore fridtful being better ihamfniitf idler,
more viUanuus . . . vlllanouser.
Between these two extremes, there are several intermediate
forms wherein tlie use of one rather than another will depeiid
upon the taste of the writer. The question, however, is a
question of euphony, rather than of aught else. It is also
illustrated by the principle of not multiplying secondary ele-
ments. In words like fruitf idler and fruitf idlest there are two
additions to the root.
§ 686. A refinement uj^on the current notions as to the
power of the comparative degree has already been indicated, and
rtasons are given for believing tliat the fundamental notion
expressed by the comparative inflection is the idea of comparison
or contrast between tivo objects.
If so, it is better, in speaking of only two objects, to use the
comparative degree rather than the superlative — even when we
use the definite article the. Thus —
SYNTAX OF ADJECTIVES. 599
Tliis is the hetter of the two,
rather than
This is the hest of the two.
This principle is capable of an application more extensive than
our habits of speaking and writing will verify.
Again ; to go to other parts of speech : we should logically
say —
Whether of the two,
rather than
Which of the two.
Either the father or the son,
but not
Either the father, the son, or the daughter.
§ 687. Wallis considers the forms in -s, like father s, not as
genitive cases, but as adjectives. Looking to the logic of the
question alone, he is right, and looking to the practical syntax
of the question, he is right also. He is only wrong on the ety-
mological side of the question.
" Nomina suhstantiva apucl nos niillimi vel generum vel casuiim discrimen
sortiimtiu*." — P. 76.
"Duo sunt adjectivorum genera, a substantivis immediate descendentia,
qiise semper substantivis suis praeponuntur. Primum quidem adjectivxun
possessi\ami Hbet appellate. Fit autem a quovis substantivo, sive singulari
sive pluraU, addito -s. — Ut man's nature, the nature of man, natiu-a hmnaua
velhommis; men's nature, natura humaua vel hominum; Viryil's j^oems, the
poems of Vinjil, poemata Vii-gilii vel Virgihana." — P. 89.
§ 688. Certain Adjectives in the Neuter Gender may be used
as adverbs; as the sun shines bright; the time Jiies fust; the
snail moves slow.
These are expressions to which many grammarians object.
Doubtless, it is better to say brightly and slowly. There is one
class of words, however, where we have no choice, viz. the
Adjectives in -ly (from liJce). It has already been stated that
we cannot derive daillly from daily ; in other words that no
such adverb as dailily exists. There exist, however, such
phrases as he labours daily ; he sleeps nightly ; he watches
hourly, and others ; in all of which the simple Adjective is used
as an adverb.
000 SYl^TAX OF VERBS.
CHAPTER XI.
SYNTAX OF VERBS. ON VERBS IN GENERAL.
5j 689. A Verb is a word whicli can, by itself, form both the
Predicate and Copula of a Proposition, as, Tlte sun shines.
For the purposes of Syntax it is convenient to divide verbs
into — (1) Intransitive, (2) Transitive, (3) Auxiliar, (4) Substan-
tive, (5) and Impersonal.
§ 690. Intransitive and Transitive. — A transitive verb
implies an object affected ; as, / 'tnove my limbs, and / strike
the enemy. An act, however, may take place, and yet no
object be affected by it. To hunger, to thirst, to sleep, to wake,
are verbs that indicate states of being rather than actions
affecting objects. As such, they are Intransitive.
§ 691. Many verbs, naturally transitive, may be used as in-
transitive,— e. fj. I move, I strike, &c. Many verbs, naturally
intransitive, may be used as transitives, — e. g. I ivalked the
horse = I made the horse walk.
Transitive verbs are naturally followed by some noun or
other ; and that noun is alivays the name of something affected
by them as an object.
Intransitive verbs are not naturally followed by any noun at
all ; and when they are so followed, the noun is never the name
of anything affected by them as an object.
§ 692. No verb, in the present English, directly governs a
genitive case. This not a mere negation. In Anglo-Saxon
certain verbs did govern one ; e. g. verbs of ruling and others
— weolde thises middangeardes^he ruled (tuealded) this earth's.
§ 693. The word give, with a few others, governs a dative
case. Phrases like give it him, whom shall I give it 'i are
perfectly correct, and have been explained above. The prepo-
sitional construction in give it to him, or to whom shall I give
it ? is unnecessary.
§ 694. The government of verbs, as illustrated by the preceding
examples, is objective. But it may also be modcd. It is
modal when the noun .which follows the verb is not the name
of any object affected by the verb, but the name of something
ex[)laining the manner in which the action of the verb takes
I
\
SYNTAX OF VERBS. 60l
place, the instvuiiieiit with which it is done, the end for which
it is done, &;c.
The government of transitive verbs is necessarily objective.
It may also be modal, — / drlJce the eueriiy tvith the sword -^ferio
hostem glad to.
The government of intransitive verbs can only be modal, — I
walk with the sticl: When we say / tvalk the horse, the
word walk has changed its meaning, and signifies rtiake to
walk, and is, by the very fact of its being followed by the
name of an object, converted from an intransitive into a tran-
sitive verb.
The modal construction may also be called the adverbial con-
struction ; because the effect of the noun is akin to that of an
'adverb, — / Jight 'tuith hravery=zl Jight bravely ; he walks a
king = he tualks regally.
§ 695. The modal construction sometimes takes the appearance
of the objective : inasmuch as intransitive verbs are frequently
followed by a substantive ; which substantive is in the objective
case. To break the sleep of the righteous is to a feet, by break-
ing, the sleep of the righteous : but, to sleep the sleep of the
righteous, is not, to affect, by sleeping, the sleep of the righteous :
since the act of sleeping is an act that affects no object whatever.
It is a state. We may, indeed, give it the appearance of a
transitive verb, as we do when we say, the ornate slept the
patient, meaning thereby lulled to sleep ; but the transitive
character is only apparent. To sleep the sleep of the rigldeous
is to sleep in agreement tuith — or according to — or after tJte
manner of — the sleep of the righteous, and the construction is
adverbial.
1. Traditive.- — As, I give the book to you=.do librum tibi.
I teach you the lesson z^ScSdaKw ere ttjv BiSafTKakiav. In all
traditive expressions, there are three ideas : (1.) an agent, (2.)
an object, (3.) a person, or thing, to which the object is made
over, or transferred, by the agent. For this idea the term
dative is too restricted : since, in Greek and some other lan-
guages, both the name of the object conveyed, and the name of
the person to whom it is conveyed, are, frequently, put in the
accusative case.
2. Appositional. — As, she walks a queen : you consider
me safe. The appositional construction is, in reality, a matter
of concord rather than of gender. It will be considered more
fully in the following section.
002 SYNTAX OF VERBS.
§ 69G. No verb goverus a nominative case. The appositional
construction f>eems to require such a form of government ; but
the form is only apparent.
It is I.
It is tliou.
It is he, &c.
Here, although the word is is foUoiued by a nominative case,
it by no means governs one — at least not as a verb.
It has been stated above that the so-called verb-substantive
is only a verb for the purposes of etymology. In syntax, it is
only a part of a verb, i. e. the copula.
Now this fact changes the question of the construction in
expressions like it is I, tfcc, from a point of government to one
of concord. In the previous examples the words it, is, and /,
were, respectively, subject, copula, and ji'^'^dicate ; and, as it is
the function of the copula to denote the agreement between
the predicate and the subject, the real point to investigate is
the nature of the concord between these two parts of a pro-
position.
Now the predicate need agree with the subject in case only.
1. It has no necessary concord in gender — she is a man in
courage — he is a womoji in effeminacy — it is a girl.
2. It has no necessary concord in number — sin is the wages
of death — it is these tluit do the mischief.
3. It has no necessary concord in person — I am he tvhom
you mean.
4. It has, however, a necessary concord in case. Nothing
but a nominative case can, by itself, constitute a term of either
kind — subject or predicate. Hence, both terms must be in the
nominative, and, consequently, both in the same case. Expres-
sions like this is for me are elliptic. The logical expression is
this is a thing for me.
The predicate must be of the same case with its subject.
Hence — The copula, instead of determining a case, expresses
a concord.
All words connected with a nominative case by the copula
(i. e. the so-called verb-substantive) must be nominative, — It is
I ; I am safe.
All words in apposition with a word so connected must be
nominative. — It is difficult to illustrate this from the English
language, from our want of inflections. In Latin, however, we
SYNTAX OF VERBS. 603
say vocor Johannes z=. I am called John, not vocor Johannem.
Here the logical equivalent is ego swm vocatus Johannes —
where
1. Ego is nominative because it is the subject.
2. Vocatus is nominative because it is the predicate, agreeing
with the subject.
3. Johannes is nominative because it is part of the predicate,
and in apposition with vocatus.
Although in precise language Johannes is said to agree with
vocatus rather than to be in apposition with it, the expression,
as it stands, is correct. Apposition is the agreement of sub-
stantives, agreement the apposition of adjectives.
All verbs which, when resolved into a cojDula and participle,
have their participle in apposition (or agreeing) with the noun,
are in the same condition as simple copulas — she walks a queen
=zshe is walking a queeiizzilla est incedens regina.
The construction of a subject and copula preceded by the con-
junction that, is the same in respect to the predicate by which
they are followed as if the sentence were an isolated proposition.
This rule determines the propriety of the expression — /
believe that it is he as opposed to the expression / believe that
it is him.
I believe zz I am believing, and forms one proposition.
It is he, forms a second.
That, connects the two ; but belongs to neither.
Now, as the relation between the subject and predicate of a
proposition cannot be affected by a word which does not belong
to it, the construction is the same as if the propositions were
wholly separate.
When the substantive infinitive, to be, is preceded by a passive
participle, combined with the verb substantive, the construction is
nominative — it is believed to be he who spoke, not it is believed
to be him. — Here there are two propositions : — ■
1. It is believed. —
2. AVho spoke.
Now, here, it is the subject, and, as such, nominative. But it
is also the equivalent to to be he, which must be nominative as
well. To be he is believed=esse ille creditur, — or, changing
the mode of proof, —
1. It is the subject and nominative.
60 i SYNTAX OF VERBS.
2. Believed is part of the predicate ; and, consequently,
nominative also.
3. To he he is a subordinate part of the predicate, in appo-
sition with believed — ed creditum, nempe eatitas ejus. Or, to
he he is believed zz esse ille est credini.
As a general expression for the syntax of copulas and appo-
sitional constructions, the current rule, that copulas and apposi-
tional verbs must he folloived by the same case by ivhlch they
are preceded, stands good.
CHAPTEE XII.
SYNTAX OF VERBS. CONCORD.
§697. The verb must agree with its subject in person, — I lualk
not I ivalks ; he walks, not he ivalk. It must also agree with
it in number, — lue tvall; not vjg ivalks ; he walks, not he
walk.
I speak may, logically, be reduced to / am speaking ; in
which case it is only the part of a verb. Etymologically,
indeed, the verb substantive is a verb ; inasmuch as it is inflected
as such : but for the purposes of construction, it is a copula
only, i. e. it merely denotes the agreement or disagreement
between the subject and the predicate.
Plurcd subjects with singular predicates. — The wages of sin
are death. — Honest men are the salt of the earth.
Singular subjects with plurcd predicates. — These construc-
tions are rarer than the preceding : inasmuch as two or more
persons (or things) are oftener spoken of as being equivalent to
one, than one person (or thing) is spoken of as being equivalent
to two or more.
Sixpence is twelve halfpeimies.
He is all head and slioulders.
Yiilnera totus erat.
Tu es delicife meaj.
EKTiop. arap av fioi ecrcri Tiarrjp Kcii TVOTVia firjTTjp,
HSe KacriyvrjTos, av 8e fj.oi SaXepos TrapaKoiTTjs.
§ 61)8. A substantive, when it stands alone, and is taken by
SYNTAX OF VERBS. C05
itself, without a pronoun, is impersoruil — the word being used
in a definite and technical sense ; the import of which will
be seen in the sequel. John, for instance, or master, may be
the name of the person speaking ; the name of the person spoken
to ; or the name of the person spoken about — /, John, walk ;
thou, John, walhest ; he, John, walks.
Here the substantive is impersonal, because it belongs to no
person in particular, or to any person indifferently.
The true person is given by the pronoun : and, when there. is
any doubt as to its nature, the question can be settled by the
introduction, or substitution, of a prohoun.
In the vast majority of cases the substantive is in the third
person. This is because the vast majority of objects consists of
things rather than persons ; things which we can talk about,
but which we rarely address ; things which can rarely talk about
themselves. Hence, the pronoun wliich represents them is he,
she, it, or they, rather than I, or thou. Nevertheless, there is
no object whatever which we may not, on some occasion, ad-
dress ; and no object whatever which w^e may not, by an act
of imagination, convert into a speaker. The person, then, is
determined by the pronoun, not by the substantive.
CHAPTER XIII.
SYNTAX OF VERBS. MOODS.
§ 699. The infinitive mood is a noun. The cun-ent rule — that
when two verbs come together the latter is inlaced in the infinitive
mood — means that one verb can govern another only by con-
verting it into a noun, — / begin to move=zI begin the act of
moving. Verbs, as verbs, can only come together in the way of
apposition, — / irritate, I beat, I talk at him, I call him names,
&c. The construction, however, of English infinitives is twofold.
(1.) Infinitive Proper, (2.) Gerundial.
§ 700. When one verb is followed by Awoiher ivithout the pre-
position to, the construction must be considered to have grown
out of the A. S. form in -an.
GOG
INFINITIVES AND GERUNDS.
I ninv TO.
not I iiiav to >'f>.
I mijiht go, —
I can niovo, —
I could move, —
I will speak, —
I woukl speak, —
I shall wait, —
I might to go.
I can to move.
I coiilil to move.
I will ti) speak.
I would to speak.
I shall to wait.
I should wait, not I should to wait.
Let me go,
He let me go,
I do speak,
I did speak,
I dare go,
I durst go,
Let me to go.
He let me to go.
I do to speak.
I did to speak.
I dare to go.
I durst to go.
Thou shalt not see thj^ brother's ox/«?Z down by the way.
"We heard Imn saij, I will destroy the temple.
I feel the pain abate.
He hid her alight.
I would fain hare any one name to me that tongue that any one can speak
as he should do by the rules of grammar.
This, in the present EngHsh, is the rarer of the two con-
structions.
§ 701. When one verb is followed by another, preceded by
the preposition to, i. e. I begin to move, the construction must
be considered to have grown out of the A. S. form in -line.
This is the case wath the great majority of English verbs. The
following examples, from the Old Enghsh, of the gerundial con-
struction where we have, at present, the objective, are Dr.
Guest's : —
1. Eihid myght nought to stand J^am ageyn.
llOBERT OF BOUEN'E.
2. "SMiether feith schall moire to save him?
Wycliffe, James ii.
3. My woful child what flight maist thou to take?
HiGGiNS, Lady Sahrine, 4.
4. Never to retourne no more,
Excej)t he uould liis Life to loose therfore.
HiGGixs, King Alhannet, 0.
5. He said he coidd not to forsalie my love.
HiGGiNs, Queen Elstride, 20.
fi. The mayster lette X men and mo
To ivende. Octavian, 381.
7. And though we owe the fall of Troy requite,
Yet let revenge thereof from gods to hghte.
HiGGixs, King Alhanaet, IG.
8. / durst, my lord, to icager she is honest.
Othello, iv. 2.
9. "VMiom when on gi-ound slie gi-oveUing saiv to roll.
She ran in haste. Faery Queen, iv. 7, 32.
TIME AND TENPJE. 607
§ 702. / am to speak. — Three facts explain this idiom,
^ . The idea of direction tovjards an object conveyed by the
dative case and by combinations equivalent to it.
■ 2. The extent to which the ideas of necessity, obligation, or
intention are connected with the idea of sometJdng that has to
he done, or something towards which some action has a ten-
dency.
3. The fact that expressions like the one in question histori-
cally represent an original dative case or its equivalent ; since
to speak grows out of the Anglo-Saxon form to sprecanne, which,
although called a gerund, is really a dative case of the infinitive
mood.
Johnson thought that, in the phrase he is to blariie, the word
blame was a noun. If he meant a noun in the way that culpa
is one, his view was wrong. But if he meant a noun in the
way that cidpare, and ad cidpandutn, are nouns, it was right.
/ am to blame. — This idiom is one degree more complex than
the previous one ; since / am to blame = / am to be blamed.
As early, however, as the Anglo-Saxon period, the gerunds were
liable to be used in a passive sense : he is to lujigenne =. not he
is to love, but he is to be loved.
The principle of this confusion may be discovered by consider-
ing that an object to be blamed is an object for some one to
blame, just as an object to be loved is an object for some one to
love.
§ 703. Imperatives are —
(1.) Used in the second person :
(2.) They take pronouns after, inst^d of before, them :
(3.) They often omit the pronoun altogether.
CHAPTER XIV.
TEVIE AND TENSE.
§ 704. Time is one thing; tense another ; such statements as
identify them being exceptionable. Tense is to time, much as gen-
der is to sex ; i. e. a grammatical name for a natural condition :
and as sex and gender were carefully distinguished from each
other so should we carefully distinguish tense and time. To
constitute a tense there must be an inflection. Yocat in Latin
()0S TIME AND TENSE.
and calls in English are tenses. Vocaius ftvm and I //ai"e called
are combinations, svliiclij so far as they express time, partake of
the nature of tenses.
The following is an exhibition of some of the times in which
an action may take place, as found in the English and other lan-
guages, expressed by the use of eitlier an inflection or a com-
bination.
§ 705. Time considered in one point only —
1. rreserit. — An action taking place at the time of speak-
ing, and incomplete. — / am heating, I am being beaten. Not
expressed, in English, by the simple present tense ; since / beat
means I am in the habit of beating.
2. Aorist. — An action that took place in past time, or
previous to the time of speaking, and which has no connection
with the time of speaking, — / strnck, I was stricken. Expressed
in English, by the pra^terite, in Greek by the aorist. The term
aorist, from the Greek d ppiaTos=.yndeJined, is a convenient
name for this Sort of time.
8. Future. — An action that has neither taken place, nor is
taking place at the time of speaking, but which is stated as one
which ivill take place. — Expressed, in English, by the combina-
tion of luill or shall with an infinitive mood ; in Latin and Greek
by an inflection. I shall (or wilt) speak, Xe/c-o-w, dica-m.
None of these expressions imply more than a single action ; in
other words, they have no relation to any second action occurring
simultaneously with them, before them, or after them, — / aTH
speaking now, I spoke yesterday, I shall speak to~m.orroiv.
By considering past, jiresent, or future actions not onl}'' by
themselves, but as related to other past, present, or future actions,
we get fresh varieties of expression. Thus, an act may have been
going on, when some other act, itself one of past time, interrupted
it. Here the action agrees with a present action in being in-
complete ; but it differs from it in having been rendered incom-
plete by an action that is passed. This is exactly the case with
the —
4. Imperfect. — / ivas reading when he entered. Here we
have two acts ; the act of reading and the act of entering.
Both are past as regards the time of speaking, but both are pre-
sent as regards each other. This is expressed, in English, by the
past tense of the verb substantive and the present participle, /
was speajking ; and in Latin and Greek by the imperfect tense,
clicebaTn, ervirrov.
TIME AND TENSE, 609
5. Perfect. — Action past but connected with tlie present by its
effects or consequences. — / Juive written, and here is the letter.
Expressed in English by the auxiliary verb leave followed by the
participle passive in the accusative case and neuter gender of the
singidar number. The Greek expresses this by the reduplicate
perfect : r€-rv(f)a ■=. I have beaten.
6. Pluperfect. — Action past, but connected with a second
action subsequent to it, which is also past — / had written when
he came in.
7. Future present. — Action future as regards the time of
speaking, present as regards some future time. 1 shall be speak-
ing about this time to-morrow.
8. Future prceterite. — Action future as regards the time of
speaking, past as regards some future time. — / shall have spoken
by this time to-morroiu.
§ 70 G. These are the chief expressions which are simply deter-
mined by the relations of actions to each other and to the time
of speaking either in English or any other language. But over
and above the simple idea of time, there may be others super-
added : thus, the phrase, / do speak, means, not only that / am
in the habit of speakiug, but that I also insist upon it being
understood that I am so. This may be called the Emp)hatic
construction.
§ 707. Again, an action that is mentioned as either taken
place, or as having taking place at a given time, may take place
again and again. Hence the idea of habit may arise out of the
idea of either present time or aorist time.
§ 708. The representative expression of past and future
time. — An action may be past ; yet, for the sake of bringing it
more vividly before the hearers, we may make it present. He
walks (for walked) up to him, and knocks (for knocked) him
doivn, is, by no means, the natural habitual power of the English
present. So, in respect to a future, / beat you if you dont leave
off for / will beat you. This is sometimes called the historic use
of the present tense. I find it more convenient to call it the re-
presentative use : inasmuch as it is used more after the principles
of painting than of history ; the former of which, necessarily,
represents things as present, the latter, more naturally, describes
them as past.
The use of the representative present to express simple ac-
tions is unequivocally correct. To the expression, however, of
complex actions it gives an illogical character, — As I was doing
this he enters (for entered). Nevertheless, such a use of the
R R
CIO TIME AND TENSE.
present is a fact in language, and we must take it as it
occurs.
The present time can be used instead of the future ; and that
on the principle of representation. Can a future be used for
a present ? No.
The present tense can be used instead of the aorist ; and that
on the principle of representation. Can a past time be used for
a present?
In respect to the perfect tense, where it exists, there is no
doubt. The answer is in the affirmative. For all purposes of
syntax a perfect tense, or a combination equivalent to one, is a
present. Contrast the expression, / come that I may see ; with
the expression, 1 came that I might see ; i. e. the present construc-
tion with the aorist. Then bring in the perfect construction, /
have come. It differs with the aorist, and agrees with the pre-
sent— / have come that I may see. The reason for this is clear.
There is not only a present element in all perfects, but for the
purposes of syntax, the present element predominates. Hence
expressions like / shall go, need give us no trouble ; even though
sluill be considered as a perfect tense. Suppose the root sh-ll to
mean to he destined (or fated). Provided we consider the effects
of the action to be continued up to the time of speaking, we may
say, / have been destined to go, just as well as we can say / am
destined to go.
The use of the aorist as a present (except so far as both the
tenses agTee in their power of expressing habitual actions) is a
more difficult investigation. It bears upon such expressions as
/ ought to go, &c. It is necessary to remember that the
connection between the present and the past time, which is
involved in the idea of a perfect tense (jervcfja), or perfect
combination (/ have beaten), is of several sorts. It may
consist in the 'present proof of the past fact, — / have written,
and here is the evidence that I have done so. It may consist
in the present effects of the 2^ctst fact, — / have written, and here
is the ansiver.
§ 709. Without either enumerating or classifjang these differ-
ent kinds of connection, it is necessary to indicate two sorts of
inference to which they may give origin.
1. The inference of continuance. — When a person says, /
have learned my lesson, we presume that he can say it, i. e.
that he has a present knoivledge of it. Upon this principle
KiKTrjfjuai =. I have earned =: / 2^(^s^^^^- The past action is
assumed to be continued in its effects.
IMPERSONAL VERBS. 611
2. TIlg inference of contrad. — When a person says, / have
been young, we presume that he is so no longer. The action is
past, but it is continued up to the time of speaking by the
contrast which it supplies. Upon this principle, fuit Ilium
means Ilium is no more.
In speaking, this difference can be expressed by a difference
of accent. — / have learned my lesson, implies that / don't
mean to learn it again. I have learned m^/ lesson, implies
that / can say it.
§ 710. Notwithstanding its name, the present tense, in
English, does not express a strictly present action. It rather
expresses an habitual one. He speaks well zz he is a good
speaker. If a man means to say that he is in the act of speak-
ing, he says / am speaking. It has also, especially when com-
bined with a subjunctive mood, a future power — / heat you
( = / will heat you) if you don't leave off. Again — the Eng-
lish praeterite is the equivalent, not to the Greek perfect, but
the Greek aorist. / hGat:zz%TV^a, not r€Tvj:a. The true per-
fect is expressed, in English, by the auxiliary luive -|- the past
participle.
CHAPTER XV.
SYNTAX OF VERBS. IMPERSONALS.
§ 711. Meseems. — -Equivalent to it seem^s to me; mihi vi-
detur ; (palveral fiov. Here, seems is intransitive ; and me has
the power of a dative case.
§ 712. Methinks. — In the Anglo-Saxon there are two forms ;
\encan'=-to think, and '^incanzzto seem. It is from the latter
that the verb in methinks comes. The verb is intransitive ; the
pronoun dative.
MethougTit I saw my late espoused wife
Brought to me, like Alcestis, from the grave.
Milton.
§ 713. Me listeth or me lists. — Equivalent to it pleases me
z=.me juvat. Anglo-Saxon lystanz^to wish, to choose, also to
please, to delight. Unlike the other two, the verb is transitive, so
that me is accusative. These three are the only true impersonal
R R 2
CI 2 AUXILIARY VERBS.
verbs in the English language. Tlie}^ form a class by them-
selves, because no pronoun accompanies them, as is the case
with the equivalent expressions it appears, it pleases, and with
all the other verbs in the language.
CHAPTER XVI.
SYNTAX OF VERBS. THE AUXILIAEIES.
§ 714. The auxiliary verbs may be classified upon a variety
of principles. The following, however, are all that need here
be applied.
According to their inflectional or non-inflectional powers.
— Inflectional auxiliaries are those that may either replace or
be replaced by an inflection. Thus — / a-^i .sf'/'Mc^=: the Latin
ferior, and the Greek TvirTofxai. These auxiliaries are in the
same relation to verbs that prepositions are to nouns. The
chief inflectional auxiliaries are : —
1 . Have ; equivalent to an inflection in the way of tense —
/ have bitten =zmo-mordi.
2. Shall; ditto. I shall call =z voc-aho.
3. Will; ditto. I vjill call ■= voc-aho.
4. May; equivalent to an inflection in the way of mood.
/ am come that I may see=zvenio id vid-eam.
5. Be; equivalent to an inflection in the way of voice. To
he heatenizverherari, TvirrecrdaL.
6. Am, art, is, are; ditto. Also equivalent to an inflection
in the way of tense. / am moving = move-o.
7. Was, were; ditto. / tvas beaten zz €-Tv<p6r]v: I was
moving =. move-bam.
According to their non-auxiliary signiflcations. — The power
of the word Itave in the combination / have a horse, is clear
enough. It means possession. The power of the same word
in the combination / have been, is not so clear ; nevertheless it
is a power which has grown out of the idea of possession.
This shows that the power of a verb as an auxiliary may be a
modification of its original power ; i. e. of the power it has in
non-auxiliary constructions. Sometimes the difference is very
little : the word let, in let us go, has its natural sense of per-
PARTICIPLES. 6 1 3
mission unimpaired. Sometimes it is all but lost. Can and
may exist chiefly as auxiliaries.
1. Auxiliary derived from the idea of possession — have.
2. Auxiliaries derived from the idea of existence — he, is,
was.
3. Auxiliary derived from the idea of future destination, de-
pendent upon circumstances external to the agent — shall.
4. Auxiliary derived from the idea of future destination,
dependent upon the volition of the agent — will. Shall is
simply predictive ; will is predictive and promissive as well.
5. Auxiliary derived from the idea of power, dependent upon
circumstances external to the agent — Tnay.
6. Auxiliary derived from the idea of power, dependent
upon circumstances internal to the agent — can. May is simply
permissive ; can is potential. In respect to the idea of power
residing in the agent being the cause which determines a con-
tingent action, can is in the same relation to may as will is to
shall.
7. Auxiliary derived from the idea of sufferance — let.
8. Auxiliary derived from the idea of necessity — must.
9. Auxiliary derived from the idea of action — do.
In respect to their mode of construction. — Auxiliary verbs
combine with others in three ways.
1 . With liarticiples — a) With the present, or active participle
— / am spealdng : h) With the past, or passive, participle — I
am beaten, I have beaten.
2. With infinitives. — a) With the objective infinitive — / can
speak : b) With the gerundial infinitive — / have to speak.
3. With both infinitives and participles. — / shall have done,
I mean to have done.
CHAPTER XVII.
THE PARTICIPLE.
§ 715. A PARTICIPLE, like an adjective, can form the predicate
of a proposition, but not the subject.
A participle is a word suggestive of a name rather than a
name itself.
G14
PARTICIPLES.
The name suggested by a participle is always that of an
agent.
The declension of the English participle is more limited than
that of the adjective. It gives no degrees.
§ 71C. The forms in -ing have already been noticed. When
substantives, they are in regimen, and govern a genitive case —
What is the meaning of the lady's holding up her train?
Here the word holding :=. the act of holding. — Quid est signifi-
catio elevationis ixdloi de parte fannincn ?
When participles, they are in apposition or concord, and
would, if inflected, appear in the same case with the substantive,
or pronoun, preceding them — What is the meaning of the lady
■ holding up her train ? Here the word holding = in the act of
holding, and answers to the Latin foemince elevantis. — Quid est
significatio foemince elevantis pallani ?
§ 717. The combination of the auxiliary have with the past
participle, requires notice. It is, here, advisable to make the
following classifications : —
1 . The combination with the participle of a transitive verb, —
I have ridden tJie hoi^se; thou hast broken the sword; he has
smitten the enemy.
2. The combination with the participle of an intransitive
verb, — / have waited ; thou hast hungered ; he has slept.
3. The combination with the participle of the verb substan-
tive,— / have been ; thou Jmst been ; he has been.
It is by examples of the first of these three divisions that
the true construction is to be shown.
For an object of any sort to be in the possession of a person,
it must previously have existed. If I possess a horse, that
horse must have had a previous existence. Hence, in all ex-
pressions like / have ridden a horse, there are two ideas — a past
idea in the participle, and a present idea in the word denoting
possession.
For an object of any sort, afiected in a particular manner, to
be in the possession of a person, it must previously have been
affected in the manner required. If I possess a horse that has
been ridden, the riding must have taken place before I mention
the fact of the ridden horse being in my possession ; inasmuch
as I speak of it as a thing already done, — the participle, ridden,
being in the past tense.
/ have ridden a horse — I have a horse ridden r: / have a
horse as a ridden horse. In this case the syntax is of the
AUXILIARY VERBS. 6J5
usual sort. (1.) Have-=.oivn = habeozzteneo ; (2.) Iiorse is the
accusative case = eguztm ; (3.) ridden is a past participle, agree-
ing either with horse, or ivith a ivord in apposition ivith it
understood. Mark the words in italics. The word ridden
does not agree with horse, since it is, virtually, of the neuter
gender. Neither, if we said / hcwe ridden the horses, would it
agree with horses; since it is of the singular number.
The true construction is arrived at by supplying the word
thing. I have a horse as a ridden thing -zzhaheo equum equi-
tatum (neuter).
/ have Itorses as a ridden thing -zihaheo equos eQuitatum
(singular neuter).
Here the construction is —
Triste matiiris frugibus imbres,
Ai'boribus venti, nobis Ainaiyllides irse.
or in Greek—
Aeivov yvvai^lv al 8i wBlvav yovai.
The classical writers supply instances of this use of have.
Compertum habeo, milites, verba viris virtutem non addere = /
have discovered z= I am in possession of the discovery. Quse
cum ita sint, satis de Csesare hoc dictum habeo.
The combination of have with an mtransitive verb is irre-
ducible to the idea of possession ; indeed it is illogical. In /
have waited, we cannot make the idea expressed by the word
waited the object of the verb have or possess. The expression
has become a part of language by means of the extension of a
false analogy. It is an instance of an illegitimate imitation.
The combination of have with been is more illogical still, and
is a stronger instance of the influence of an illegitimate imita-
tion. In German and Italian, where even intransitive verbs
are combined with the equivalents to the English have (Jiaben
and avere), the verb-substantive is not so combined ; on the
contrary, the combinations are —
Italian ; io sono stato = / am been.
German ; icJi bin gewesen = ditto.
which is logical.
§ 718. Syntax of the verb-substantive in the present tense
with the past participle passive. — In propositions like / am
r)ioved, he is beaten, we are struck, it is given, the verb-substan-
tive is joined to the participle passive ; and so there arise phrases
610 AUXILIARY VERBS.
■Nvhich Ikivc the power of a verb iu the passive voice. It is
well known tliat in some languages these ideas are expressed,
not by the combination of the verb substantive and participle,
but by a single word : e. g. in Latin, moveor =. I am moved ;
'percutiTtiUTzzive are struck; daturzzit is given. In the cir-
cumstance that the phrases above have the power of passive
forms, there is nothing peculiar. Beyond this there is, how-
e\er, a peculiarity. The participles moved, beaten, struck, given,
are participles not of a present, but of a jMst tense ; and hence
the proper meaning of the phrases given above (and of all
others like them) should be very different from what it really
is. / am moved, should mean, not / a7n in the act of being
moved, but / am a j'ierson ivho has been moved ; — he is beaten,
should mean, not lie is a 'person ivho is in the act of suffering
a beating, but one ivho has suffered a beating ; in other words,
the sense of the combination should be past, and not present.
By a comparison between the English and Latin languages in
respect to this combination of the verb-substantive and parti-
ciple, this anomaly on the part of the English becomes very
apparent. The Latin word rtiotus is exactly equivalent to the
English word moved. Each is a participle of the passive voice,
and of the past tense. Besides this, .sum in Latin equals / arii
in English. Now, the Latin phrase motus sum is equivalent,
not to the English combination / ami moved, but to the com-
bination I have been moved, i. e. it has a past and not a present
sense. In Greek the difference is plainer still, because in Greek
there are two participles passive, one for the present, and another
for the j)ast tense; e. g. rvirro^evos el/jbl (typtomenos eimi) =. I am
one in the act of undergoing a beating ; rervfifievos ei/ju = I am
one who has undergone a beating. The reason for this confu-
sion in English, lies in the absence of a passive form for the
present. In Mceso-Gothic there existed the forms slahada =r he,
(she or it) is beaten {percutitur, rvirTerai), and slahandazz.
they are beaten {percutiuntur, Tvirrovrai) (typtontai). These
were true passive forms. In like manner there occurred gibacla
— he {she or it) is given (datur), &c. Now, as long as there
was a proper form for the present, like those in Moeso-Gothic,
the combination of the present tense of the verb-substantive
with the participle past passive had the same sense as in Latin
and Greek ; that is, it indicated past time : e. g. ga-bundan-s
im = I have been bound (not 1 am bound), gibans ist^^he
{she or it) has been given (not is given), &lc. "When the pas-
AUXILIARY VERBS. G17
sive form, however, was lost, the combination took the sense of
a present tense.
The extent to which this difference has engendered, in the
various languages of the Gothic stock, a variety of expedients,
may be seen from the following tables taken from the D. G.
iv. 19.
The equivalents to the Latin datur are in —
Moeso-Gothic .
Old Higli-Germau .
of Notker
Middle Hii^h-Germau
New Higli-Germau
Old Saxou
Middle Dutch .
New Dutch
Old Frisian
Anglo-Saxon .
Enghsh .
Old Norse
Swedish .
Danish
gib-ada.
ist kep-an.
wircht kep-au.
\\di-t keb-eu.
\virt geb-en.
wu'd ge-geb-eu.
is gebh-an.
wutlieth gebh-an.
es ge-ghev-en.
bleft ge-ghev-en.
wordt ge-gev-en.
werth e-jev-eu.
weorde? gif-eu.
is giv-en.
er gef-inn.
gifV-es.
bliver giv-en.
vorder giv-en.
To the Latin datus est the equivalents are in-
Mceso-Gotliic .
Old High-German .
„ „ of Notker.
Middle High- German
New High-Gei-man
Old Saxon
MidcUe Dutch
New Dutch
Old Frisian
Anglo-Saxon
Enghsh .
ist gib-ans.
vas-gib-ans.
varth gib-ans.
was kej)-an.
warth kep-an.
ist kep-an.
ist geb-an.
ist ge-geb-en worden.*
was gebh-an.
warth gebh-an.
waert ghe-gev-en.
blef ghe-gev-en.
es ghe-gev-en worden.*
is ejev-en.
is gif-en.
has been giv-en.
Js become given, or is yiven become.
G18 SHALL AND WILL.
Old Norse licfr verit gef-inn.
Swedish liar varit gifv-en.
Diuiibh liar varet giv-en.
D. a. iv. 10.
CHAPTER XVIII.
SHALL AND WILL, OUGHT, ETC.
§ 719. The niceties connected with the use of the first two of
these words are weU known. They are sufficiently numerous
and complicated to demand a special notice.
1. The first point to bear in mind is the fact, that although
such phrases as / shall speak, and / will speak, are called
future tenses, they are, in reality, no such thing. They are com-
binations of a present tense and an infinitive mood — speak
being the infinitive mood, and shall and will the present tenses
of should and would. The act that is to be done is future.
The state of things on the part of the person who is to do it is
present.
2. The next point is one of less importance in the way of
Syntax, than it has been in the way of Etymology ; being also
a point which has already been elucidated. It is the difference
between the two words %oill and shall as present tenses. The
former is a present tense, absolutely and completely, having
always been one. The latter was originally a perfect, and is
what we have called a prseterite-present, or (changing the prefix)
a perfect-present.
For the chief purposes, however, of the present chapter {i. e.
for the chief pm-poses of Syntax), they qj^e both equally present.
Nevertheless, the original diSerence requires remembering.
3. The construction of the two words luill and shall in their
relations to the infinitive which follows them is the same, beincf
also the same as those of the words can, may, must, and a few
others. They are never found except in connection with other
verbs. Hence, whilst we say —
I can do tliis We can do this
Thou may est do this Ye nuiy do tliis
He 7nuiit do this They must do tliis
He shall do this They shall do this
She will do this They tvill do this,
SHALL AND WILL. 619
we caDnot say —
I begin to can They begin to can
Thou beginnest to may Ye begin to may
He begins to must They begin to must
He begms to shall They begin to shall
She begins to tvill * They begin to ivill;
nor yet —
I am canning Thou art maying
He is musting We are shalling
He is willing.*
4. This creates difficulties when we come to the important in-
vestigation of their meaning as separate and independent words.
§ 720. The difficulties, however, are fewer with will than
they are with si tall.
a. Will. — Two facts help us here. We have the same com-
bination of sounds in the word will ■=. volition. We may say,
indeed, that we have the same word ; the same word used both
as a substantive and as a verb. He has so strong a will that
whatsoever he wills he will do.
The classical languages give us the roots vol (in vol-o) and
^ovX (bul) in ^ovK-ofiaL (bulomai). Hence, whatever may be the
case with shall, its fellow-word will denotes not only the fact
that something is predicted to take place, but that the cause by
which it will be brought about is an act of volition on the 'part
of the agent who effects it ; such an agent being itself the origi-
nator of the action rather than the mere instrument through
which certain external influences operate.
h. Shall. — Our aids here are inconsiderable. All that either
comparative philology, or the search for collateral meanings leads
to, as a certainty, is an approximate reconstruction of the origi-
nal form. And here, without going beyond the pale of the
German family of languages, we learn that the older form was
shal — the present h representing, and having grown out of an
original k. That the vowel of the original present was i is not
so certain. Probably, however, it was so.
Let us deal with the word as if this were certain ; the primi-
tive form being skil-. Now —
Let its opposition, or contrast, to will lead us towards an
inkling of its meaning. If will mean agency determined by
* Not, at least, in the senses we say, He will he burnt.
620 SHALL AND WILL
the volition of the agent, eldll may mean agency determined by
causes acting from without upon and through the agent ; the
agent who may more properly be considered as an instrument.
Let us say that tvlll means having the intention to do so and
so, whilst shall means being in the condition to do so and so.
Can we go farther ? I think we can. The only certainty
that comparative philology gives us in the case of shall is the
consonant k as the second letter of the root (skal for shall).
But it is highly probable that the substantive skill is as truly
a derivative from the same root as shall, as willz=.volo is the
same word as will in I will speak := loquar.
Now, such expressions as the condition to do so and so, and
the bias to do so and so, are by no means widely separated in
meaning, inasmuch as the term bias implies external influence
rather than internal resolve. These bring us to the participle
determined, a word which, at first, suggests ideas akin to will
rather than to shall. At Jii'st, I say it does this, because when
we use such a phrase as a determined felloiu, we raise the idea
of a man of a strong will — of a wilful man who will have his
own way, or, at least, of a man not easily diverted from his pur-
pose by external accidents. On the other hand, however, the
connection between bias and determination is close. Often as
Ave use the word determined to express the moral quahty of
strong-ivilled, we fully as often use it to denote the effect of ex-
ternal agencies. We do this (for instance) when we talk of the
conduct of a vreak man being determined by circumstances.
The ideas of determination and decision are visibly allied to
each other. A decided man is (in the first instance) one whom
events have brought to a decision, just as a determined man is
one whom events have brought to a determination. To keep in
this state shows firmness of character, and hence the ordinary
power of the word —
Decide, distinguish, differ. — I submit that the sequence of
ideas here is transparently clear.
Now sk-l = differ, distinguish, seixirate. — It is the Norse
word skilja so translated. It is also the English word in the
phrase what skills it t =. what difference does it Tnake ?
§ 721. Let shall be called the predictive, whilst will is the
promissive, future.
The former simply states that a thing which has not yet
happened, will happen hereafter ; the forces that are to bring it
about being indefinite.
SHALL AND JVJLL. 621
The latter states not only tliat a thing which has not yet hap-
pened will happen hereafter, but also implies a certain amount of
definitude in respect to the forces which will effect it. They
are, by no means, forces brought from the whole universe of
possibilities indefinitely, but forces of a specific character. They
are engendered in the moral constitution (real or supposed) of
the agent — real, when the agent is an actual rational being, sup-
posed, when, without being actually rational, it has a certain
amount of rationality attributed to it, in the way of personifica-
tion on the part of the speaker, either conscious or unconscious.
This is what the two words denote. Prediction is the genus,
'promise, the species. All future things may be predicted ; a
portion of them only can be promised.
Promise implies a prom^iser, and a prom^ise is a prediction
fulfilling its own accomplishment. Will (volition) is an element
in all such ideas.
I do not say that these two words are the best tliat can be
applied. I only add that they are words already used ; and
that by Wallis, as will soon be seen.
Such are the preliminaries. What is their application ?
The ordinary rule of the language of South (though not of
North) Britain, the ordinary rule of the English (though not of
the Scotch) is as follows : —
When simple prediction is intended, the predicative shall is
used in the first person only, the auxiliary of the two other per-
sons being the promissive tuill. Thus —
If three persons are in a house, and the house is on fire,
although the conditions under which all the three are likely to
be burnt are the same, the manner of expressing them is dif-
ferent. A, for instance, says of himself —
I shall be burnt.
But of B and C, he says —
You trill be biirnt, and
He uill be burnt.
He also says of B and C collectively —
They icill be burnt.
Meanwhile —
A and B say of themselves —
We shall be biu'ut.
G22 SHALL AND WILL.
This is the way that A and B speak when the burning de-
pends upon causes external to themselves. To say the least of
such a mode of expression as this, it is an inconsistent one.
But the inconsistency does not stop here, as we may see by
an examination of the promissive forms of parlance, where the
process is reversed.
If one out of tliree persons, choosing, for himself and fellows,
between the stake and some other alternative, prefer to be burnt,
the locution A^aries. A, for instance, says of himself, —
I liill be bm-nt.
But of B and C he says —
You shall be bmiit, and
He shall be biu-nt.
He also says of B and C collectively —
They shall be burnt, or else
Ye shall be burnt.
Changing the expression — shall is predictive, and will is
promissive in the first person only ; whereas, in the second and
third, will is predictive, and shall promissive.
§ 722. In the words of Wallis,—
In pilmis personis .s/«i7Z ?,mx^'\iciiQr prcedicentis est\ will, qaasi promittentis
aut minantis.
In secundis et tertiis personis, shall promittentis est aut minantis : will
simpliciter pjradiceiitis.
Uram = / shall hum. I Uremus = We shall hunt.
Ures = Thou ivilt burn. Uretis = Ye will hum.
Uret = He will hum. \ Urent = Tlicy will hum.
nempe, hoc iMtvimm. pradlco.
2.
I will bum.
Tliou shall burn.
He shall hum.
We will burn.
Ye shall bum.
They shall hum.
Asrain —
Would et should Ulud indicant quod erat vel esset futuram : cum hoc
tantum discrimine : would voluntatem innuit, sen agentis propensionem :
should simpliciter futuritionem. — Wallis, p. 107.
§ 723. Two extracts are now submitted to the reader, in the
hope that they will lead him towards an approximate solution
of these difficult complications — the first fiom a philologue,
the second from a logician and mathematician.
SHALL AND WILL. 623
The first is from Arclideacon Hare, who explains the locu-
tions by a usiis ethicus : —
There is an awful, irrepressible, and almost instinctive consciousness of
the uncertainty of the future, and of our own powerlessness over it, wliich, in
all cultivated langtiages, has silently and imperceptibly modified the modes of
expression with regard to it : and from a double kind of Utotets, the one be-
longing to human nature generally, the other imposed by good-breeding on
the individual, and urging him to veil the manifestations of liis will, we are
induced to frame all sorts of shifts for ^le sake of speaking with becoming
modesty. This is the only way of accounting for the singular mixture of the
two verbs sJudl and uill, by which, as we have no auxiliary answering to the
German iverde, we express the future tense. Our future, or at least what
answers to it, is / shall, thou wilt, he will. "Wlien speaking in the first per-
son, we speak submissively: when speaking to or of another, we speak
courteously. In our older writers — for instance, in oiu" translation of the Bible —
shall is applied to all three persons : we had not then reached that stage of
politeness wliich slu-inks from the appearance even of speaking compulsorily
of another. On the other hand, the Scotch use ivill in the first person ; that
is, as a nation, they have not acquired that particular shade of good-breeding
which shrinks from thrustuig itself forward.
§ 724. The second is from Professor De Morgan, writing with
Archdeacon Hare's doctrine under his special consideration : —
The matter to be explained is the synonymous character of ivill in the
first person mth shall in the second and third ; and of shall in the first person
with will in the second and tliii'd: shall (1) and will (2, 3) are called predicti re ;
shall (2, 3) and uill (1) 2)romissive. The suggestion now proposed will require
four distinctive names.
Ai'chdeacou Hare's nsus ethicus is taken fi'om the brighter side of human
nature: — " Wlien speaking in the first person we speak submissively; when
speaking to or of another, we speak courteously." This explains / shall, thou
wilt ; but I cannot think it explains / will, thou shalt. It often happens that
you xvill, with a persuasive tone, is used courteously for something next to,
if not quite, you shall. The present explanation is taken fi-om the darker
side ; and it is to be feared that the a 2^riori probabilities are in its favour.
In inti'oducing the common mode of stating the future tenses, gi-ammar
has proceeded as if she were more than a formal science. She has no more
busmess to collect together / shall, thou wilt, he will, than to do the same with
/ rule, thou art ruled, he is ruled.
It seems to be the natiu-al disposition of man to think of liis own
volition in two of the following categories, and of another man's in the other
two :
Compelling, non-compelluig ; restrained, non-restrained.
The ego, with reference to the non-ego, is apt, tliinldng of hunself to pro-
pound the alternative, " Shall I compel, or shall I leave him to do as he
likes ? " so that, thinking of the other, the alternative is, " shall he be re-
strained, or shall he be left to his own will?" Accordingly, the express
introduction of his o\\ti will is likely to have reference to compulsion, in case
of opposition; tl^e express introdiiction of the wiU of another, is likely to
O^t SHALL AND WILL.
mean no more tlian tlio gracious penuission of the ego to let non-egr) do as he
likos. Correlativcly, the siipprcssion of reference to his own will, and the
adoption of a simply prcdiotivc fonn on the part of the ego, is Hlcely to be
tlio mode with which, when the person is changed, he will associate the idea
of another having his own way ; whUe the suppression of reference to the
will of the non-ego is lUcely to infer restraint produced by the predomuiant
will of the ego.
Occasionally, the will of the non-ego is referred to as under restraint in
modern times. To / ivUl not, the answer is sometimes you shdll, meaning, in
spite of the will — sometimes ijon uiU, meaning that the uill will be changed
by fear or sense of the inutility of resistance.
§ 725. Adopting the limitation suggested in respect to the
functions of the grammarian, I would remark that the words ego
and non-ego do not exactly denote the will of the spealier, and the
will of some one else, inasmuch as in many of the locutions there is
no notion of will at all. Ego rather means action arising from
an internal impulse, whilst non-ego implies action arising from
circumstances external to the agent. With ego the wilier is the
primum mobile; with non-ego the actor is an instrument
leather than an original and sjDontaneous agent.
According, then, as one of these two ideas predominate, the
use of ivill or shall is determined. In subordinating the ^vill to
the shall the usus etJiicus has an influence. When the agency of
external influences is subordinated to the tvill of the actor, the
converse takes place, and the speaker expresses himself according
to his feeling of power over them. This may be called the usus
potentialis.
§ 726. Between these two there is a debateable gi'ound, of
which it is likely enough that the Scotch and early English
writers may have apportioned a full share in the way of poten-
tiality, the later English authors incHning to the usus ethicus.
How far this is done on either side I cannot say. I doubt
whether the current rule is so absolute as it is said to be. The
very extreme instance of " I will be drowned, no one shall pull
me out," may or may not be a real one. At any rate, it is
generally given to an Irishman. How a Scotchman would
analyze certain expressions, I cannot say. I can only say that
Englishmen sometimes speak and write 7nore Scotico. Of this
I can give an instance out of my own writings. The chapter
upon the Stages of the English Language contains (in the earlier
editions of the present work) the following sentence : — " An
extract from Mr. Hallam shall close the present section and in-
troduce the next."
SHALL AND WILL. 625
This is from the pen of au Englishman, of Lincolnshire, South
Bucks, and Cambridge, who, at the date of the extract, had
never been north of the Humbei-, not, at least, in Great Biitain.
As such, we must take it as we find it — as a sample of English.
It was written unconsciously and currente calamo. It expressed
the state of mind in which he was in. I have seen it, liowever,
quoted as an instance of bad English. Coming, as it did, from
a professor of the English language, it was a well-chosen
example, if a true one. But the more I have looked at the
context, the more satisfied I aui that it is an accurate expression.
All that it violates is a rule ill drawn-up. Had the sentence
been the first in the work, the first in the chapter, or the
first on the subject, will would have been the proper word.
It would denote what I, as the primum TEohile, meant to do.
But it refers to what precedes rather than to what follows. By
these ^))'e-cedents it is (so to say) conditioned. It formed part of
an argument, to which argument I, the writer, was so far bound
as to be an instrument rather than an originator. I was not
R. G. Latham doing as I thought fit with my own, but the ser-
vant of my premises. The more I analyze the text and context
the more I am satisfied that this is the case. At any rate, I
am an Englishman writing English.
I wiU now (here I say ivill because the forthcoming remarks
are additions to my previous argument rather than necessary
parts of it, and I am comparatively free to either insert or omit
them) make another extract fi-om a professor (and, I may add, a
master) of the English language. But he is a North Briton,
Mr. Masson. He writes, '•' I could count up and name at this
moment, some four or five men to whose personal influence,
experienced as a student, I owe more than to any books,
and of whom, while life lasts, I will always think with grati-
tude." * Assuredly, an Englishman would have written '• shall
always think." Why would he? Not because he wrote more
correctly, but because he expressed a difterent idea. Mr. Masson
speaks direct from the feelings engendered by the kindness and
services of the former teachers. He speaks from his own mind,
so that he not only gives us their action on himself, but his own
reaction on them. He might, however, have done differently.
He might have spoken from the simple action of them, keeping
the reaction of his own mind in the background. An English
* Lecture delivered at University Cnlle?e, London. — October, 18.54.
S S
C)26 OUGHT, WOULD, ETC.
writer would have done so, and have said shall accordingly. The
grammar of both is good — for grammar only tells us how to
express our thoughts in language. It does not tell us what to
think. Now, the Englishman and Scotchman, in the matter of
shall and will, think differently. Why they do so is another
matter. The Englishman subordinates himself to the circum-
stances that determine his actions. The Scotchman subordinates
the circumstances to himself. The one carries the line of causality
through his own mind before he takes it up. The other takes it
up before his mind has re-acted on it.
Without asking whether ivill or shall be the better reading in
the following extract, let us ask what each means : —
Pity, Idnd gentlefolks, friends of humanity !
Keen blows the wind and the night's coming on,
Give me some food for my mother and charity ;
Give me some food and then I j n f ''^^ gone.
Here —
Will he (/one means / nill trouble you tw more.
Shall he (/one means You will get rid of me.
§ 727. Ought, ivoulcl, &c., used as ^jresents. — These words
are not in the predicament of shall.
They are present in power, and fjast in form. So is shall.
But they are not, like shall, perfect forms ; i. e. they have no
natural present element in them.
They are aorist pra3terites. Nevertheless, they have a present
sense.
So had their equivalents in Greek : e'^prjv = ■^prj ; eSet = Set ;
7rpocr7]Kev := irpoa-r/KeL.
In Latin, too, would was often not represented by either volo
or voleham, but by velhn.
I believe that the usus ethicus is at the bottom of this con-
struction.
The assertion of duty or obligation is one of those assertions
of which men like to soften the expressions : should, ought.
So is the expression of poiuer, as denoted by may or can —
might, could.
Very often when we say you should (or ought to) do this, we
leave to be added by implication — but you do not. '
Very often when we say / could (or might) do, this we leave
to be added by implication — but I do not exert my poiver.
SYNTAX OF ADVERBS. 627
Now, what is left undone by the ^^rese/ii^ element in this
assertion, viz. the duty to do it, or the power of doing it, con-
stitutes a past element in it ; since the power (or duty) is, in
relation to the performance, a cause — insufficient, indeed, but
still antecedent. This hypothesis is suggested, rather than
asserted.
By substituting the words / am bound, for I ought, we may
see the expedients to which this present use of the prseterite
forces us.
1 am bound to do this now r: / owe to do this now. How-
ever, we do not say oive, but ought.
Hence, when we wish to say / was bound to do this two
years ago, we cannot say / ought (owed) to do this, &c., since,
ought is ah'eady used in a present sense.
We therefore say, instead, / ought to have done this two
years ago ; which has a similar, but by no means an identical
meaning.
/ ivas bound to ixiy two years ago, means tioo years ago I was
binder an obligation to make a jpayment, either then or at some
future time.
I was bound to have loaid, &c., means I ivas under an obli'
gation to have made a ixiyment.
If we rise the word ought, this difference cannot be ex-
pressed.
Common people sometimes say, you had not ought to do so
and so ; and they have a reason for saying it.
The Latin language is more logical. It says not debet factum
fuisse, but debuit fieri.
CHAPTER XIX.
THE SYNTAX OF ADVERBS.
§ 728. An adverb is a word incapable of forming, by itself, a
term, but capable of forming part of one ; in which case it is
connected with the verb — whence its name ; e. g. tlie sun shines
brightly.
The syntax of the adverb is simpler than that of any other
part of speech, excepting, perhaps, that of the adjective.
Adverbs have no concord.
s s 2
628 SYNTAX OF ADVERBS.
Neither have they any government.
The position of an adverb is, in respect to matters of syntax,
pre-eniinentl}' p;u*enthetic ; i. e. it may be omitted without in-
juring the construction. He is jiglding — voiu ; he was Jig! ding
— then; he fights — bravely; I am — almost — tired, Lc.
§ 729. By referring to the chapter on the Adjectives, we shall
find that the neuter adjective is frequently converted into an
adverb by deflection. As any neuter adjective may be so deflected,
we may justify such expressions as full (for fully), conspicuous
(for conspicuously), andi peculiar (Jov p)eculiarly). We are not,
however, bound to imitate everything we can justify.
§ 730. The termination -ly was originally adjectival. At
present it is a derivational syllable, by which we can convert
an adjective into an adverb — brave, bravely. When, however,
the adjective ends in -ly already, the formation is awkward. /
eat my daily bread is unexceptionable English ; / eat my bread
daily is exceptionable. One of two things must here take
place : the two syllables -ly are packed into one (the full expres-
sion being dai-li-ly), or else the construction is that of a neuter
adjective.
§ 731. It has been remarked that, in expressions like He
sleeps the sleep of the righteous, the construction is adverbial.
So it is in expressions like He ivaRxd a mile, It tveighs a
pound. The ideas expressed by mile and pound are not the
names of anything that serves as either object or instrument to
the verb. They only denote the manner of the action, and
define the meaning of the verb.
§ 732. From whence, from thence. — This is an expression
which, if it have not taken root in our language, is likely to do
so. It is an instance of excess of expression in the way of syn-
tax ; the -ce denoting direction frcrni a place, and the pi-eposition
doing the same. It is not so important to determine what this
construction is, as to suggest what it is not. It is not an
instance of an adverb governed by a preposition. If the two
words be dealt with as logically separate, whence (or thence)
must be a noun =: tv J cich pAace (or that pjlace) ; just as from then
till now^from, that time till this. But if (which is the better
view) the two words be dealt with as one (i. e. as an improper
compound) the preposition from has lost its natural power and
become the element of an adverb.
PREPOSITIONS. C29
CHAPTER XX.
SYNTAX OF PREPOSITIONS.
§ 733, All prepositions govern an oblique case. If a word
fail to do this, it fiiils to be a preposition. In the first of the
two following sentences the word up is a preposition, in the
second an adverb : —
1. / cJimhed up the tree.
2. I dbnhed up.
§ 734. All prepositions in English precede the noun which
they govern. I climbed up the tree — never / clirnbed the tree
up. This is a matter not of government, but of collocation.
The same, however, is the case in most languages ; and, from the
frequency of its occurrence, the term pre-position (or prefix) has
originated. Nevertheless, it is by no means a philological
necessity. In more languages than one the prepositions are
post-positive, i. e. they follow their noun.
No preposition, in the present English, governs a genitive
case. This remark is made because expressions hke the part
of the body =1 pars corporis, — a piece of the bread =:portio
panis, make it appear as if the preposition of did so. The true
expression is, that the preposition of, followed by an objective
case, is equivalent, in many instances, to the genitive case of the
classical languages.
It is not so safe to say, in the present English, that no
preposition governs a dative. The expression give it him is
good English ; and it is also equivalent to the Latin da ei. But
we may also say give it to him. Now, the German zu^=.to
governs a dative case, and in Anglo-Saxon, the preposition to,
when prefixed to the infinitive mood, required the case that fol-
lowed it to be a dative.
§ 735. When the infinitive mood is used as the subject of a
preposition, i. e. as a nominative case, we cannot allow to the
preposition to, by which it is preceded, any separate existence
whatever, — to rise -zz rising ; to err := error. Here the preposi-
tion must, for the purposes of syntax, be considered as incorpo-
rated with the noun, just like an inseparable inflection. As
such, it may be preceded by another preposition. The following
example, although a Grecism, illustrates this : —
Yet not to have been dipt iu Lethe's lake,
Coixkl save the son of Thetis from to die.
G30 NEGATIVES.
Akin to tills, but not the same, is the so-called vulgarism,
consisting of the use of the preposition for ; as in / am ready
for to (JO.
§ 730, Composition converts prepositions into adverbs.
"Whether we say ii2)sta}idhig or stamUng-U}}, we express the
manner in which an action takes place, and not the relation
between two substantives. Tlie so-called prepositional com-
poinids in Gi-eek (dva^aivco, airoOvrio-Kw, k.c.) are all adverbial.
Prepositions may be called Transitive Adverbs,
CHAPTER XXI.
THE SYNTAX OF THE NEGATIVE.
§ 737. When the verb is in the infinitive mood, the negative
precedes it. — Not to advance is to retreat.
When the verb is not in the infinitive mood, the negative fol-
lows it. — He advanced not. I cannot.
This rule is absolute. It only seems to precede the verb in
such expressions as / do not advance, I cannot advance, I have
not advanced, &c. However, the words do, can, and have, are
no infinitives ; and it consequently follows them. The word
advance is an infinitive, and it consequently precedes it. Wal-
lis's rule makes an equivalent statement, although differently : —
Adveibimn negandi not (non) verbo postponitur (nempe auxiliari primo si
adsit ; aut si non adsit auxiliare, verbo principali) : aliis tamen orationis
partibus prsefigi solet. — P. 118.
That the negative is rarely used, except with the auxiliary do
— in other words, that the presence of a negative converts a
simple form like it hurnetlt not into the circumlocution it does
not hum — is a fact in the practice of the English language.
The syntax is the same in either expression.
§ 738. What may be called the distrihution of the negative
is pretty regular in English. Thus, when the word not comes
between an indicative, imperative, or subjunctive mood and an
infinitive verb, it almost always is taken with the word which
it follows — / can not eat may mean either I can — not ecd
(i. e. I can abstain), or / cannot — eat (i. e. I am unable to
NEGATIVES. 631
eat) ; but, as stated above, it almost always has the latter signi-
fication.
But not always. In Byron's Deformed Transformed we find
the following lines : —
Clay ! not dead, but soulless,
Though no mortal man would choose thee,
An mimortal no less
Deigns not to refuse thee.
Here not to refuse=^to accept; and is probably a Grecism. To
not refuse would, perhaps, be better.
The next expression is still more foreign to the English
idiom : —
Yet not to have been dipped in Lethe's lake
Could save the son of Thetis fi-om to die.
Here not is to be taken with could.
§ 739. In the present English, two negatives make an affir-
mative. / Aare not not seen hiin=I have seen him. In Greek
this was not the case. Duce aut plures negativce apud Grcecos
vehementius negant is a well-known rule. The Anglo-Saxon
idiom differed fi'om the English and coincided with the Greek.
The French negative is only apparently double ; words like iwint,
pas, mean not not, but cd all. Je ne parle pas=I not speak at
all, not / not speak no.
§ 740. Questions of appeal. — AH questions imply want of
information ; want of information may then imply doubt ;
doubt, perplexity ; and perplexity the absence of an alternative.
In this way, what are called questions of appeal, are, practically
speaking, negatives. WhcU should I do ? when asked in ex-
treme perplexity, means that nothing can well be done. In the
following passage we have the presence of a question instead of
a negative : —
Or hear'st thou (chits, Lat.) rather, pure setherial stream,
"Whose fountain who {no one) shall tell ?
Paradise Lost.
§ 741. The following extract* illustrates a curious and minute
distinction, which the author shows to have been current when
Wycliffe wrote, but which was becoming obsolete when Sir
Thomas More wrote. It is an extract from that writer against
Tyndall.
• Philological Museum (vol. ii.).
032 THE CASE ABSOLUTE.
I would not licro uote by the way that Tyndall here translated no for nay,
for it is but a tritle and mistaking of the Euglishe worde : saving that ye
shoulde see that he whj-oh in two so plain Englishe wordes, and so common
as iu naye and no can not tell when he should take the one and when the
tother, is not for translating into Englishe a man very mete. For the use of
these two wordes in aunswering a question is this. Xo aimswereth the ques-
tion fi-amed by the athniiative. As for ensample if a maune should aske
Tindall himsolfe : ys an heretilce meete to translate Holy Scripture into Eng-
lishe? lo to thys q;iestion if he wUl aunswere trew Englishe, he must
aunswere nay and not no. But and if the question be asked hym thus lo : is
not an heretike mete to translate Hoh' Scripture uito EngUshe? To this
question if he mil aunswere trewe Enghshe, he must amiswere no and not nay.
And a Ij'ke difference is tliere betwene these two advei-bs ye and yes. For if
the question bee fi-amed unto Tindall by the affirmative in thys fashion : If
an heretique falsely translate the New Testament into Englishe, to make
his false heresj'es seem the word of Godde, be his bokes worthy to be bm-ued ?
To this questyon asked in thys ^v3'se, yf he will aunswere true Englishe, he
must aunswere ye and not yes. But now if the question be asked hun tlius
lo ; by the negative : If an heretike falsely translate the Newe Testament into
Englishe to make his false heresyes seme the word of God, be not \\ys bokes
well worthy to be burixed ? To thys question in thys fashion fi-amed if he
wiU aunswere trewe Englishe, he may not aunswere ye but he must aunswere
tjes. and say, yes marry be they, bothe the translation and the translatoiu', and
al that ^^yll hold wyth them.
CHAPTER XXII.
THE CASE ABSOLUTE.
§ 742. Nouns standing absolutely are of two sorts: (I.) Those
originating in an accusative ; (2.) those originating in a dative,
case.
In expressing distance or duration, either in time or sjyace,
we use the noun absolutely ; as he walked ten miles (i. e. the
space of ten miles) ; he stood three hours {i. e. the space of
three hours). Here the words stood, and walh are intransitive ;
so that it is not by them that the words miles and hours are
governed. They stand absolutely. Although not distinguished
in form from the nominative case, they are not nominatives.
They are virtually accusatives ; and when, in an older sta.ge of
the Gothic languages, the accusative ivos distinguished fi'om the
nominative, they appeared in the form of the accusative.
§ 7-13. The door being open, the steed was stolen — the sun
having arisen, the lcd>ourers proceededAo ivork. — In these sen-
THE CASE ABSOLUTE. 633
tences, the words door and sitn stand absolutely ; and, as the
words bei^ig open, and having arisen, agree with them, they,
also, do the same. In English substantives, where there is no
distinction between the nominative and the objective cases, it is
of no practical importance to inquire as to the particular case in
which the words like door and sun stand. In the English j3?'o-
nouns, however, where there ^9 a distinction between the nomi-
native and objective cases, this inquiry must be made.
1 . He made the best proverbs of any one, him only excepted :
2. He made the best proverbs of any one, he only excepted.
Which of these two expressions is correct ? This we can
decide only by determining in what case nouns standing abso-
lutely in the way that door, sun, and him (or he), now stand,
were found in that stage of our language when the nominative
and objective cases were distinguished by separate forms. In
Anglo-Saxon this case was the dative; as vp-a-sprungenre
sunnan=the sun having arisen. In Anglo-Saxon, also, him
was a dative case, so that the case out of which expressions like
the ones in question originated, was dative. Hence, of the two
phrases, him excepted and he excepted, the former is the one
which is historically correct. It is also the form which is logi-
cally correct. Almost all absolute expressions of this kind have
a reference, more or less direct, to the cause of the action
denoted. In sentences like the stable door being open, the horse
was stolen, — the sun having arisen the labourers got up to
work, this idea of either a cause, or a coincidence like a cause,
is jDretty clear.
In the sentence he made the best proverbs of any one, him
only excepted, the idea of a cause is less plain. Still it exists.
The existence of him {i. e. the particular person mentioned as
pre-eminent in proverb-making) is tlie cause or reason why he
(i. e. the person spoken of as the second-best proverb-maker)
was not the very best of proverb-makers. Now the practice of
language in general teaches us this, viz. that where there is no
proper Instrumental case, expressive of cause or agency, the
Ablative is the case that genei'ally supplies its place ; and where
there is no Ablative, the Dative. Hence the Latins had their
Ablative, the Anglo-Saxons their Dative, Absolute. The Geni-
tive Absolute in Greek is explicable upon other principles. In
spite, however, both of history and logic, the so-called best
authorities are in favour of the use of the Nominative case in
the absolute construction.
634 COMPLEX SENTENCES.
In all absolute constructions of the kind in question one of
the words is either a Substantive or a Pronoun, the other a Par-
ticiple. The reason of this is in the fact of all such absolute
constructions indicatinc: either an action or a state.
CHAPTER XXIII.
SYNTAX OF COMPLEX SENTENCES.
§ 74)4;. Syntax deals with (1) the connection of words, and
(2) the connection of propositions. The Syntax that deals with
the connection of words, and the structure of simple proposi-
tions, has already come under notice. The Syntax that deals
with the coimection of propositions now commands attention.
Attention, too, must be given to the word connection. It by
no means follows that because we find a long list of proposi-
tions following each other, there is a connection between them.
Like marbles in a bag, to use an old illustration, they may touch
without cohering ; having as little relation to each other, as so
many different essays or chapters. This is the case with proverbs,
riddles, and the like, where each sentence constitutes a whole.
In ordinary composition, however, this extreme isolation is rare.
In ordinary composition the chances are, that out of three pro-
positions, the middle one will have a double relation ; one with
its predecessor, one with its follower. This relation, however,
need not be grammatical.
Laying, then, out of our account those propositions, which,
though they may stand in juxta-position with one another, have
no grarnmatical connection, we come to the consideration of
those sentences in which there is not only two (or more) propo-
sitions, but, also a connecting link between them ; or, if not this,
something in the nature of the one, which impHes, or presupposes,
the other. This is the case with questions and answers. But
though questions and answers, along with a few other details of
minor importance, come under this division of Syntax ; they,
by no means, constitute the most important part of it. The
most important part of it is constituted by the Relative Pro-
nouns and the Conjunctions. But it must be remembered that
in the way of Etymology, the Relatives and the Interrogatives
are identical.
This is one affinity. That of the Relative Pi'onouns with the
INTERROGATIVES. 635
Conjunction is equally clear. Though expressions like the man
as goes to ma-i-ket instead of the man who goes to market are
exceptionable, there is a reason for their having an existence.
What they may be, belongs to other investigations. At the
present, we are looking for illustrations only. Nor are the most
unexceptionable ones far off. The Latin language gives us the
relations of quod and ut, the Latin and Greek combined those
of ut and ore : with which we may compare our own that ; a
word which originally a Demonstrative Pronoun, is next a rela-
tive, and, finally, a conjunction.
1. That is right.
2. The man that has just left.
3. I fear that I shall be late.
Lastly, the Relative Pronouns and the Conjunction agree in
this — they agree in introducing the Syntax of a new Mood — a
Mood which is sometimes called the Conjunctive, sometimes the
Subjunctive, and sometimes the Potential. Whatever we call
it, it has this characteristic, viz. that it can only exist in the
second of ttvo connected pTopositions^ the connection between
them being effected by either a Relative Pronoun or a Conjunc-
tive. Where neither of these exist, there is no Conjunctive,
Subjunctive, or Potential Mood.
Such is a brief sketch of the reasons for considering the pro-
posed divisions of our Syntax natural ; — a division, however,
upon which, after the Conjunctions have been dealt with, a
little more will be said.
CHAPTER XXIV.
ON THE INTERROGATIVE PRONOUN.
§ 745. Questions are of two sorts, direct and oblique.
Direct. — Who is he ?
Oblique. — What do you say that he is ?
All difficulties about the cases of the inteiTOgative pronoun
may be determined by framing an answer, and observing the
case of the word which gives it. This, however, should be done
by a pronoun ; as, by so doing, we distinguish the accusative
case from the nominative. If necessary, it should be made in
(i36
RELATIVES.
full. Thus the full answer to ivltom do you say that they seek ?
is, / say that they seek him.
CIUECT.
Qu. IJlw is this?— A ns. I.
Qu. iniose is tliis? — Ans. His.
Qu. ](7iri»j do you seek? — A)ts. Him.
OBLIQUE.
Qa. Who do you say that it is? — Ans. He.
Qu. Whose do you say that it is ? — Ans. His.
Qu. TT^jow do you say that they seek?— ^ns. Him.
§ 746. Nevertheless, such expressions as whovi do they say
that it is ? are common, especially in oblique questions.
And he axed hem aud seide, whom seien tlie people that I am? Thei
answereden and seiden, Jolui Baptist — and he seide to him, But uhom seien
ye that I am ? — Wycliffe, Luke x.
Tell me in sadness uhom she is you love.
Borneo and Juliet, i. 1.
And as John fuliilled his coiu'se, he said, whom think ye that I am ?
Acts xiii. 25.
This confusion, however, is exceptionable.
§ 747. When the Copula precedes the Predicate, the question
is Categorical, and its answer is Yes or I^o. — Question. Is
John at homie ? Answer. Yes or no, as the case may be.
When the Predicate precedes the Copula the question is In-
definite, and the answer may be anything whatever. To ivhere
is John ? ^\e may answer at hortie, abroad, in the garden, in
London, I do not hnoiu, fee, &c.
CHAPTER XXV.
THE RELATIVE PRONOUNS.
§ 748. It is necessary that the relative be in the same gender
as the antecedent. It is necessaiy that the relative be in the
same number as the antecedent. It is not necessary that the
relative be in the same case with the antecedent.
1. Jolin, uho trusts me, comes here.
2. John, whom I trust, comes hei'e.
RELATIVES. G37
3. John, whose confidence I possess, comes here.
4. I trust John, who trusts me.
The reason why the relative must agree with its antecedent
in both number and gender, whilst it need not agree with it in
case, is found in the following observations.
1. All sentences containing a relative contain two verbs —
John (1) luho trusts in me (2) comes here.
2. Two verbs express two actions — (1) trust, (2) come.
3. WhUst, however, the actions are two in number, the per-
son or thing which does, or suffers, them is single — John.
4. He (she or it) is singular, ex vi termini. The relative
expresses the identity between the subjects (or objects) of the
two actions. Thus tvho =. John, or is another name for John.
5. Things and persons tliat are one and the same, are of one
and the same gender. The John who trusts is necessarily of
the same gender with the John who comes.
6. Things and persons that are one and the same, are of one
and the same number. The number of Johns who trust, is the
same as the number of Johns who come. Both these elements
of concord are immutable.
7. But a third element of concord is not immutable. The
person or thing that is an agent in the one part of the sentence,
may be the object of an action in the other. The John whom
I trust may trust me also. Hence —
{(i) I trust John — John the ohject.
{b) John trusts me — John the agent.
As the relative is only the antecedent in another form, it may
change its case according to the construction.
(1) I tnist John — (2) John trusts me.
(1) I trust John — (2) He trusts me.
(1) I trust John — (2) Who trusts me.
(1) John trusts me — (2) I trust John.
(1) John ti-usts me — (2) I trust him.
(1) Jolm trusts me — (2) I trust whom.
(1) John ti-usts me — (2) Whom I trust.
(1) John — (2) Whom I trust — (1) trusts me.
§ 749. (1.) The hooks I want are here. — This is a speci-
men of a true ellipsis. In all such phrases in full, there are
three essential elements; (1.) the first proposition; as the books
are here; (2.) the second proposition ; as / want; (3.) the
connecting link — here wanting.
§ 750. When there are two words in a clause, each of which
G3S RELATIVES.
is capable of being an antecedent, the relative refers to the
latter. — Solomon the son of David ivho deiv Goliath is unex-
ceptionable. Not so, however, Solomon the son of David ivho
huilt the temjjle. So far as the latter expression is defensible it
is defensible on the ground that Solomon-the-son-of- David is a
single many-worded name.
§ 7ol. Should we say it is I, your master, who comviand,
or it is I, your Tnaster, who commands you ? — The sentence
contains two propositions.
It is I.
Who commands you.
where the word master is (so to say) undistributed. It may
belong to either clause of the sentence, i. e. the whole sentence
may be divided into either —
It is I your master —
or
Your master who commands you.
This is the first point to observe. The next is, that the verb
in the second clause is governed not by either the personal pro-
noun or the substantive, but by the relative who.
And this brings us to the following question : — which of
the two antecedents does the relative represent ? I or master ?
This may be answered by saying that —
1. When two antecedents are in the same proposition, the
relative agrees with the first. Thus —
It is I yoiu* master —
"Wlio command you.
2. When two antecedents are in different propositions, the
relative agrees with the second. Thus —
1. It is I—
2. Your master who commands you.
This, however, is not all. What determines whether the two
antecedents shall be in the same or in different propositions ? I
believe that the following rules for what may be called the dis-
tribution of the substantive antecedent wiU bear criticism.
1. When there is any natural connection between the sub-
stantive antecedent and the verb governed by the relative, the
antecedent belongs to the second clause. Thus, in the expres-
sion just quoted, the word master is logically connected with
CONJUNCTIONS. 639
the word command; and this fact makes the expression, It is
I, your master, who commxands you, the better of the two.
2. When there is no natural connection between the sub-
stantive antecedent and the verb governed by the relative, the
antecedent belongs to the first clause. It is I, John, who
command (not commands) you.
To recapitulate : the train of reasoning has been as follows : —
1. The person of the second verb is the person of the rela-
tive.
2. The person of the relative is that of one of two ante-
cedents.
3. Of such two antecedents the relative agrees with the one
which stands in the same proposition with itself
4. Which position is determined by the connection or want
of connection between the substantive antecedent and the verb
governed by the relative.
The relations of the Relative Pronoun to the Subjunctive will
be considered after the Syntax of the Conjunctions has been
exhibited.
Note.
I am not siu*e that this is the true cToctriue. I let it stand, however,
because it gives a true distinction. It may be better, however, to hold that
ordinary substantives Hke master and John, instead of being, as is generally
held, of the tliii-d person, are of the person of the pronoun with which they
stand in apposition, and that they are only of the thii-d person when they
stand alone, or with he, she, or it before them. They are, however, so often
in tliis predicament, that it not only seems as if they were so essentially, but
it is somewhat difficult to conceive them otherwise. However, if the doctrine
of tills note be true, master, as long as it is in apposition with /, is of the
same person as /. And so is John. If so, expressions Kke it is I, your master,
who commands you, are only excusable — excusable on the ground of the appo-
sition being, to some extent, concealed.
CHAPTER XXVI.
THE SYNTAX OF CONJUNCTIONS.
§ 752. Notwithstanding their apparent unimportance, few
parts of speech require closer consideration than the Conjunc-
tions. The logical view of their character is instructive. Their
G to CONJUNCTIONS.
history is equally interesting and clear. Finally, above all
other parts of speech, they exhibit the phenomenon of converti-
bility. Nor is this doctrine as to their importance new ; al-
though, in the present work, where the division of Syntax into
that of the simple and that of the complex proposition is in-
sisted on, they may, on a superficial view, appear to take undue
prominence. In all grammars, however, they are important :
although in some their importance is disguised. Both the Latin
and the Greek philologues write largely upon the syntax of the
Subjunctive Mood ; and, it cannot be added, that what they
thus ^vi'ite is either the easiest or the most fascinating portion of
the works wherein it appears. It appertains, however, to the
department of Mood, and, so doing, comes under the notice
of the Verb. Yet where is there a Subjunctive Mood without
either a conjunction or a Relative Pronoun ? I do not say that
this distribution of the functions of the Conjunctions is wrong.
I only say that it disguises much of their ciiaracter. That the
Syntax of a certain Mood, whether Subjunctive or Conjunctive,
depends, largely, upon Conjunctions is clear.
§ 753. Conjunctions connect Terms. Sometimes the terms
these connect lie in one and the same proposition — as, all men
are black or ivhite. Sometimes they lie in different ones, as —
The day is bright
because
The sun shines.
Of these two connections the former is so scarce tliat it needs
only to be noticed. The latter is proportionally common.
Practically speaking, it gives us ninty-nine hundredths of our
Syntax. This enables us to treat Conjunctions as if they con-
nected Propositions only. At any rate, nearly all our rules f^pply
to such as do so.
§ 754. To know the number and nature of all possible
Conjunctions we must know all the different ways in which two
propositions can be related to one another. Thus, the sun may
shine, and the heat of the weather may^ result from its so doing.
In such a case the two propositions (1) the tveather is hot and
(2) the sun shines are linked together as cause and effect. But
this union is double ; inasmuch as we may infer the cause from
the effect or the effect from the cause ; saying, in the first
case, —
9
CONJUNCTIONS. 04.1
The weather is liut
because ■
The sun shines ;
and, in the second,
The sun shines,
therefore
The weather is hot.
Again, of two propositions one may contain an objcctioii to
the other ; as
The weather is warm to-day,
but
ft niU not lie so to-morrow ;
or, one proposition may acnovmce an act, and the intention witli
which it was done : as
/ do this
that
I may succeed.
There are several such relations, and several such links that
connect them. The number, however, is, by no means, great ;
neither has it been uninvestigated. On the contrary, the Con-
junctions have been classified, and named — those that connect
causes and effects having one name, those that imply objections
another — and so on.
I am pleased,
because
This has happened;
but
I shmikl have been disappointed,
if
It had fallen out otlierwise;
and
I think
tliat.
Even now, some of my real
or
Supposed friends will be more surprised
than
Satisfied with the ai'rangement.
§ 7o5. Conjunctions which connect two or more Terms are
called Copulative ; as and.
Conjunctions which connect one of two Terms are called Dis-
junctive ; as or. Disjunctives are either true Disjunctives or
Subdisjunctives. A true Disjunctive separates things. When
T T
(it 2 CONJUNCTIONS.
we say the sun or the onoon is shining, we separate two dif-
ferent objects, one of which shines by day, the other by night.
Subdisjunctives separate names. When we say Victoria, or the
Queen of England, is our sovereign, we speak of the same
object under different names.
§ 756. The idea expressed by a Copukxtive may be
strengthened and made clearer by the addition of the words
each, both, all, or the like. Thus, we may say, both sun and
moon are shining, and Vemts, Jupiter, and the Dogstar are all
visible.
The idea expressed by a Disjunctive may be strengthened and
made clearer by the addition of eitJter. We may say, either the
sun or the moon is shining.
The idea expressed by a Subdisjunctive may be strengthened
and made clearer by the phrase in other tvords. We may say
Queen Victoria, in other words, the Queen of England, &c.
In all these cases, the words both, «fcc., either, &c., and in
other ivords, &c., are no true conjunctions. They strengthen the
Conjunction. The Conjunction, however, exists without them.
§ 757. Or and either have their corresponding Negatives —
nor and neither. I will either come or send is right. So is I
vjill neither come nor send. But I will neither come or send
is wrong. When a question is either asked or implied, whether
takes the place of either. Words like either, &c., are generally
treated as Conjunctions. This, however, they are not. The
most that can be said of them is, that they form part of certain
Conjunctional expressions. They never stand alone. Mean-
while, the words with which they correspond can, as a general
rule, do without them. We say this or that, mine or his, quite
as correctly as either this or that, neither mine nor his. If,
then, they are not Conjunctions, what are they ? Both is de-
cidedly a Pronoun. Either, however, neither, and ivhether, seem
to be both Pronouns and Adverbs. When either means one out
of two, it is a Pronoun. When it means in the way of an
alternative, it is an Adverb.
§ 758. Other Conjunctions are Causal, Illative, Final, and
Conditional.
CausaJs ^ive the cause of a given effect.
T/ie (hnj is icariu
because
The sun shi)ies.
CONJUNCTIONS. 43G
Illatives give the effect of a given cause.
IVie sun sldnes,
therefore
The (lay is warm.
Finals give the object for which a given action is effected.
T (h) this
that
Von may follow my example.
Conditional —
The }iiyht will lie fine
if
the stars shine.
Than implies Comparison. But is Adversative.
§ 759. The Syntax of the Causals and Illatives requires no
special notice. Not so, that of the (1) Copulatives, (2) Disjunc-
tives, (3) Comparatives, (4) Adversatives ; and, above all, the
Conditionals.
§ 700. And, in such expressions as the sun and moon
shine. — As a general rule, it is the Copulative Conjunctions which
give corapendiums of the sort in question. Copulatives require
the Plural, Disjunctives the Singular, number.
§ 761. The concord of persons. — A difficulty that occurs
frequently in the Latin language is rare in English. In ex-
pressions like ego et ille, followed by a verb, there arises a ques-
tion as to the person in which that verb shall be used. Is it to
be in the first person in order to agree with ego, or in the tldrdy
in order to agree with ille '( For the sake of laying down a
rule upon these and similar points, the classical grammarians
arrange the persons (as they do the genders) according to their
dignity, making the word agree with the most vjorthy. In
respect to persons, the first is more worthy than the second, and
the second more worthy than the third. Hence, they said —
Uyo et Balbus sustulimus maiius.
Tu et Balbus stistuUstis manus.
Now in English, the plural form is the same for all three
persons. Hence we say I and you are friends, you and I are
friends, I and he are friends, &c., so that, for the practice of
language, the question as to the relative dignity of the three
persons is a matter of indifference. Nevertheless, it may occur
even in English. Whenever two or more pronouns of different
persons, and of the sivgular number, follow each other disjumC'
T T 2
64-t CONJUNCTIONS.
tivehj, the question of concord arises. / or you, — you or he, —
he or I. I believe that, in these cases, the rule is as follows : —
1 . Whenever the word either or neither precedes the pro-
nouns, the verb is in the third person. Either you or I is
in the wrong — neither you nor I is in the wrong.
2. Whenever the disjunctive is simple, i. e. unaccompanied
with the word either or neither, the verb agrees with the first
of the two pronouns.
/or he am in the wi'ong.
He or I is in tlie MTOug.
Thoii or he art in the -nTong.
He or thou is in the ■^VTong.
§ 762. The Syntax of tJtat gives what is called the succession
of tenses. Whenever it expresses intention, and, consequently,
connects two verbs, the second of wdiich denotes an act which
takes place after the first, the verbs in question must be in the
same tense.
I (Jo this that I may gain hy it.
I did this that I might gain by it.
In the Greek language this is expressed by a difference of
mood ; the subjunctive being the construction equivalent to
'may, the optative to might. The Latin idiom coincides
with the English. A little consideration will show that this
rule is absolute. For a man to he doing one action (in
present time) in order that some other action may folloiv it
(in past time) is to reverse the order of cause and effect.
To do anything in A.D. 1851, that something may result
from it in 1850 is a contradiction; and so it is to say /
do this that / might gain by it. The reasons against the con-
verse construction are nearly, if not equall}^ cogent. To have
done anything at any previous time in order that a 2:>resent
effect may follow, is, ipso facto, to convert a past act into a
present one, or, to speak in the language of the grammarian, to
convert an aorist into a perfect. To say / did this that / may
gain hy it, is to make, by the very effect of the expression,
either may equivalent to might, or did equivalent to have
done.
I did this tliat / might gain.
I have done this that / may gain.
§ 7G3. No conjunction can govern a case. A word that
governs a case, be it ever so like a conjunction, is no conjunc-
CONJUNCTIONS. 645
tion, but a preposition. Titan follows adjectives and adverbs of
the comparative degree. This is sltarper than that. I see
better to-day than yesterday.
Than, in respect to its etymology, is neither more nor less
than then. It is not difficult to see the connection in sense
between such sentences, as I like this better than I like that, and
/ like this — then {afterwards or next in order) like that.
Than is sometimes treated as a preposition when it governs a
case.
Thou art a girl as much brighter than her.
As he is a poet sublimer than me. — Prior.
You are a much greater loser than me. — Swift.
It is better, however, to treat it as a conjunction, in which
case the noun which follows it depends upon the verb of the
antecedent clause. 1. / like yoiv better than he=zl like you
better than he likes you. 2. I like you better' than hinizzi like
you better than I like him.
§ 764. But, in respect to its etymology, is be-utan=z be-out.
It is not difficult to see the connection in sense between such
sentences as all but one, and all without (or except) one.
But, then, is a Preposition and an Adverb, as well as a Con-
junction. Prepositional construction. — They all ran aivay but
me, i, e. except me. Conjunctional Construction. — They all ran
aioay but I, i. e. but I did. not run away.
§ 765. Conditional Conjunctions govern the Subjunctive
Mood.
The chief Conditional Conjunction is if. To say if the sun
shines the day luill be clear is inaccurate. The proper expres-
sion is, if the sun shine, &c.
Although the word if is the type and specimen of the condi-
tional conjunction, there are several others so closely related to
it in meaning as to agree with it in requiring a subjunctive
mood to follow them.
1. Except I be by Silvia in the night,
There is no music in the nightingale.
2. Let us go and sacrifice to the Lord our God lest he fall upon us Tvitli
pestilence.
3. Let him not go lest he die.
4. He shall not eat of the holy tiling unless he wash his flesh with water.
5. Although my house he not so with God.
6. — ^revenge back on itself recoils.
Let it. I reck not so it light well aimed.
7. Seek out his A\'ickedness till i\\ou find none.
04(j CONJUNCTIONS.
And so on Avitli before, ere, as long as.
^ 766. On the other hand, if itself is not always conditional ;
conditional conjunctions being of two sorts : —
1 . Those which express a condition as an actual fact, and one
admitted as such by the speaker.
2. Those which express a condition as a possible fact, and
one which the speaker either does not admit, or admits only in a
qualified manner.
Since the children are so badly brought up, &,c. — This is an
instance of the first construction. The speaker admits, as an
actual fact, the bad^ bringing-up of the children.
If the children be so badly brought-uit, &c. This is an
instance of the second. The speaker admits as a possible
(perhaps, as a probable) fact the bad bringing-wp of the
children; but he does not adopt it as an indubitable one.
Now, if every conjunction had a fixed invariable meaning,
there would be no difliculty in determining whetlier a condition
were absolute and beyond doubt, or possible and liable to doubt.
But such is not the case.
Although may precede a proposition which is admitted as
well as one which is doubted.
(«) Although tlte children are, &c.
(b) Although the children be, &c.
If, too, may precede propositions wherein there is no doubt
whatever implied : in other words, it may be used instead of since.
Hence we must look to the meaning of the sentence in general,
li r than to the particular conjunction used.
It is a philological fact, that if may stand instead of since.
It is also a philological fact, that when it does so, it should
be followed by the indicative mood.
As a point of practice, the following method of determining
the amount of doubt expressed in a conditional proposition is
useful : — Insert, immediately after the conjunction, one of the
two following yjhrases — (1) as is the case; (2) as may or may
not be the case. By ascertaining which of these two supple-
ments expresses the meaning of the speaker, we ascertain the
mood of the verb which follows.
When the first formula is the one required, there is no element
of doubt, and the verb should be in the indicative mood. //
{as is the case) he is gone, I must follovj him.
When the second formula is the one required, there is an
element of doubt, and the verb should be in the subjunctive
THE RECIPROCAL CONSTRUCTION. 647
mood. If (as may or may not be the case) he be gone, I must
follow him.
§ 767. Between the relative pronouns and conjunctions in
general there is this point of connection, — both join propositions.
Wherever there is a relative, there is a second proposition.
So there is, for the most part, wherever tliere is a conjunction.
Between certain relative pronouns and those particular con-
junctions that govern a subjunctive mood there is also a point
of. connection. Both suggest an element of uncertainty or
indefinitude. This the relative pronouns do, through the logical
elements common to them and to the interrogatives ; these
latter essentially suggesting the idea of doubt. Wherever
the person, or thing, connected with an action, and expressed by
a relative is indefinite, there is room for the use of a subjunctive
mood. Thus — " he that troubled you shall bear his judgment,
whosoever he be."
By considering the nature of such words as when, their
origin as relatives on the one hand, and their conjunctional
character on the other hand, we are prepared for finding a relative
in words like till, until, before, as long as, &c. They can all be
expanded into expressions like until the time when, during the
time when, &c. Hence, in an expression like seek out his
wickedness till thou find (not flndest) none, the principle of
the construction, is nearly the same as in he that troubled you,
&c., or vice versa. ^
A Conjunction is a Relative, just as a Preposition is a Tran-
sitive, adverb.
CHAPTER XXVII.
THE RECIPROCAL CONSTRUCTION.
§ 768. In all sentences containing the statement of a reciprocal
or mutual action there are in reality two assertions, one that A.
strikes (or loves) B. ; and another that B. strikes (or loves) A.
* Notwithstanding the extent to which a relative may take the appearance of a con-
junction, there is always one unequivocal method of deciding its true nature. The
relative is always a 2><^rt of the second proposition. A conjunction is no part of
either.
GiS THE RECIPROCAL CONSTRUCTION.
Heuce, if the expression exactly coincided with the fact signified,
there would always he two full propositions. This, however, is
not the habit of language. Hence arises a more compendious
form of expression, giving origin to an ellipsis of a peculiar
kind. Phrases like Eteocles and Polynices hilled each other
are elliptical, for Eteocles and Polynices hilled — each the other.
Here the second proposition expands and explains the first, whilst
the first supplies the verb to the second. Each, however, is elliptic.
The first is without the object, the second without the verb. That
the verb nuist be in the plural number, that one of the nouns
must be in the nominative case, and the other in the objective,
is self-evident from the structure of the sentence.
§ 769. This is the syntax. As to the power of the words
each and one, I am not prepared to say that in the common
practice of the English language there is any distinction betv/een
them. A distinction, however, if it existed, would give precision
to our language. Where tivo persons performed a reciprocal
action, the expression might be, one another ; as, Eteocles and
Polynices hilled one another. Where more than two persons
were engaged on each side of a reciprocal action, the expression
might be, each other; as, the ten champions 'praised each
other. This amount of perspicuity is attained, by difierent
processes, in the French, Spanish, and Scandinavian lan-
guages.
(I.) French. — lis (i. e. A. and B.(.se hattaient — I'lin I'autre.
lis (A. B. C.) se hattaient — les uns les autres.
(2.) In Spanish, t( no otroz=.Vun Vautre, and unos otros=.
les uns les cadres.
(3.) Danish. — ^inander =: the French I'un V autre ; whilst
hverandre z=.le8 uns les autres.
GENERAL VIEW OF METRE. 649
PAET VI.
PROSODY.
CHAPTER I.
GENERAL VIEW OF METRE.
§ 770. The word Prosody is derived from a Greek word {Pro-
sodia) signifying accent. It is used by Latin and English
grammarians in a wider sense, and includes not only the
doctrines of accent and quantity, but also the laws of metre and
versification.
Take the sentence last written, count the syllables, and note
those that are accented.
The notation will be as follows : — The word Prosody is derived
from a Gredk word signifying accent. It is used by Latin and
E'nglish grammarians in a wider sdnse, and includes not only
the doctrines of accent and quantity, but also the laws of metre
and versification. — Here the accented syllables are the 2nd, 3rd,
8th, 11th, 12tb, ]3th, 16th, 20th, 22nd, 26th, 27th, tc. ;
that is, between two accented syllables there are sometimes three,
sometimes two, and sometimes no unaccented syllables inter-
vening. In other words, there is no regularity in the recurrence
of the accent.
Proceed in the same way with the following stanzas, number-
ing each sjdlable, and observing upon which the accent occurs.
Then fare thee well, mine 6wn dear love,
The world hath now for us
No gre6,ter grief, no pain above
The pain of p4rtiiig thus. — Moore.
Here the syllables accented are the 2nd, 4th, 6th, 8th, 10th
050 GENERAL VIEW OF METRE.
12th, 14th, 16th, 18th, 20th, 22nd, 2 ith, 26th, 28th ; that is,
every other syllable. Again —
At the cl6sc of the da,}-, when tlie hamlet is still,
And the mortals the sweets of forgetfiilness prove,
And when uoiij^ht but tlie torrent is heard on the hill,
And there 's nought but the nightingale's song in the gi'ove. — Beattie.
Here the syllables accented are the 3rd, 6th, 9 th, 1 2th, 15th,
18th, 21st, 24th, 27th, 80th, 83rd, 36th, 39th, 42nd, 45 th,
4Sth ; that is, every third sj^llable.
Now, the extract where there was no regularity in the recur-
rence of the accent was prose ; and the extracts where the accent
recurred at regular intervals formed metre. Metre is a general
term for the recurrence ivithin certain intervals of syllables
sirnilarly affected. The syllables that have just been numbered
are similarly affected, being similarly accented.
So are the following : —
AJibot. — ^\jid why not live and act with other men ?
Manfred. — Because my natui-e was averse from life ;
And yet not cruel, for I would not make,
But find a desolation : — like the wind.
The red-hot breath of the most lone simoom,
"NYliich dwells but in the desert, and sweeps o'er
The barren sands which bear no shrubs to blast,
And revels o'er their wild and arid waves.
And seeketh not so tliat it is not sought.
But being met is deadly : such hath been
The path of my existence. — By^on.
§ 771. Accent is not the only quality of a syllable which, by
its periodic return, can constitute metre, although it is the one
upon which Engli«h metre depends. Indeed, it may be doubted
whether a/ny metre whatever exist in which it is not the funda-
mental element, however much the phraseology of grammarians
may run to the contraiy. The classical grammarians, however,
determine the character of their metres not by accent, but by
quantity. The evidence of the importance of accent even in
the metres dependent upon quantity will be given in the
sequel.
Again — there are certain metres wherein the syllables that
occur at the proper periodic intervals either end oy begin with
the same articulate sounds.
In such cases we may say that the similarity of affection
QUANTITY. 651
between the periodic syllables consists in their articulations.
If so, our view of metre is as follows : —
a. Metre is a general term for the recurrence within certain
intervals of syllables similarly affected.
h. Syllables may be similarly affected in respect to (1) their
accents, (2) their quantities, (3) their articulations.
1.
Palrd kyiifegetoiinta kai metro urn enon.
UaKdi Kvifij-yerovvTO. Kai, jxiTpoviiXvov.
Here there is the recurrence of similar quantities.
2.
The way was long, the wind was cold.
Here there is the recurrence of similar accents.
3.
A.
The way was long, the ^dnd was cold.
The minstrel was infirm and old.
Here, besides the recurrence of similar accents, there is a recur-
rence of the same articulate sounds ; viz. of o + Id, these articu-
lations being at the end of the word, or final.
In the following they are at the beginning, or initial —
B.
In Caines c-ynne
\>one cwealm gewi'sec.
All metre goes by the name of poetry, although all poetry is
not metrical. The Hebrew poetry is characterized by the recur-
rence of similar ideas.
CHAPTER II.
QUANTITY.
^ 772. The metres wherein quantity plays its chief part are
those of the Latin and Greek languages.
Specimen.
Phaselus lUc quem videtis hospites
Ait fuisse navium celerimus
C52 QUANTITY.
Neq" ullius natriutls impc-tum trabis
Nequisso prajterirc, slve palniiilis
Opiis foret volrirc sivi- lluteis.
As we read this according to our prouunciatioii, the accentua-
tion of this passage is as follows • —
Phaselus ille quern videtis hospites
A'it fuisse navium celerrimus
Neq' ullius natantis impetum trabis
Nequisse prse'terire, sive palmulis
O'pus foret valare sive linteis.
There is certainly accent as well as quantity here. As cer-
tainly do those accents recur with a certain amount of regu-
larity, though not with the regularity of the quantities. Atten-
tion is directed to this.
So it is to the following : —
JiUii siitis terrls uivis atque dlrae
Grilndiuis misit pater et rubeute
Dextera sacras jaciilatiis arces
Terriiit ilrbem.
Here tlie quantities return with a very imperfect degree of
regularity — the quantities considered singly. But what if,
instead of considering them singly, we arrange them in groups ;
thus : —
or,
■"i---|""r"i-
or,
or any other way ? In such a case the groups of quantities
recur with absolute regularity.
The accents of the lines last quoted run thus : —
Jam satis terris ni\ds atque diras
Grandinis misit pater et rubente
Dextera sacras jiiculatus arces
Terruit urbem.
Here the accents recur more regularly than the quantities
taken by themselves, but less regularly than the quantities taken
in groups.
The extent to which Accent plays a part in metres, which
QUANTITY. 053
are generally considered to be based on quantity, will be further
noticed in the sequel.
At present it is only necessary to notice the two different
waj's in which quantities may be measured.
§ 773. There is a difference between the length of vowels and
the length of syllahhs.
The vowel in the syllable see- is long ; and long it remains,
whether it stand as it is, or be followed by a consonant, as in
seeji, or by a vowel, as in see-in (/.
The vowel in the word sit is short. Followed by a second
consonant it still retains its shortness, e. g. sits. Whatever the
comparative length of the syllables, see and seen, sit and sits,
may be, the length of their respective vowels is the same.
Now, if we determine the character of the syllable by the
character of the vowel, all syllables are sliort wherein there is a
short vowel, and all are long wherein there is a long one.
Measured by the quantity of the vowel the word sits is short,
and the sjdlable see- in seeing is long.
But it is well known that this view is not the view com-
monly taken of the syllables see (in seeing) and sits. It is well
known, that, in the eyes of a classical scholar, the see (in seeing)
is short, and that in the word sits the i is long. The classic
differs from the Englishman thus, — He measures his quantity
not by the length of the vowel, hut hy the length of the
syllable taken altogether. The perception of this distinction
enables us to comprehend the following statements.
I. That vowels long by nature may airpear to become short
by position, and vice versa.
II. That, by a laxity of language, the voivel may be said to
have changed its quantity, whilst it is the syllable Rlone that has
been altered.
III. That, if one person measures his quantities by the
vowels, and another by the syllables, what is short to the one
will be long to the other, and vice versa. The same is the case
with nations.
IV. That one of the most essential differences between the
English and the classical languages is, that the quantities (as far
as they go) of the first are measured by the vowel, those of the
latter by the syllable. To a Roman the word monume7it con-
sists of two short syllables and one long one ; to an Englishman
it contains three short syllables.
654
ALLITERATIVE METRES.
CHAPTER III.
ALLITERATIVE METRES.
§ 77-i. The following is an extract fi-om a poem in the
Swedish, Aviitten according to the alliterative system of the old
Norse literatm-e. It is foreign to the language as now spoken,
but it is given because it is more truly alliterative than any
older specimen. It is given as an extreme form, in order to
serve as an illustration.
feithiof's saga.
Canto XXI.
Sitter i Logen
hogattad holding,
slagsvard vid sidan,
skolden pa arm.
Gangareu gode
guaggai" derinue,
skrapar med giilUiof
gi-undmm-ad graf.
2.
Nu rider rike
Ring ofv'er Bifrost,
s%'igtai- for bordan
bagiga bron.
Upp spiiuga Valballs
livalfdorrar %dda ;
Asai'nas bander
hanga i bans.
Without comparing the recurrence of the accent with the
recurrence of the alliteration so closely as we have done in the
previous chapter, we may remark that all the alliterative sylla-
bles are also accentuate, — this being another proof of the
extent to which accent plays a part in metres generally con-
sidered to be based on alliteration.
§ 775. The following. are samples of the alliterative metre as
it was actually written in (1.) the Anglo-Saxon, (2.) the Old
Saxon, (3.) the Old Norse, (4.) the Old High-German. The
alliteration is more obscure here. It loses, however, much of this
obscm'ity when we know, —
1. That the number of alliterative syllables within a certain
space need not be more than tivo.
2. That all the vowels are considered, for the purposes of
alliteration, as a single letter.
ANGLO-SAXON.
OPENING OF BEOWULF.
Edited and translated by J. M. Kemhle.
HwjET we G-ar-Dena, Kym ge-frunon —
in gear-dagum,
{jeod-cyninga,
bu <5a sej^elingas
ellen fremedon —
ALLITERATIVE METRES,
G5o
oft Scykl Scefing,
sceajjenfa) jjreatum,
monegii moeglmm,
meodo-setla of-teah —
egsode eorl —
sy<St5an se'rest M'earX
fea-sceaft fimden ;
lie )pses fi'ofre ge-ba((l),
weox under wolcnmu,
weor^-myndum jjah ;
o^ 'jj ]iim se'g-liwlyc
{jara yinb-sittendra,
ofer hron-rade,
hyran scolde,
goiuban gyldan —
^ wse's god cjaiiug —
iSrem eafera wse's
sefer cemied,
geoug ill geardum,
}:one god sende
folce to fi.-6fi-e ;
fyren-j^earfe on-geat,
■jJ Lie le'r dragon,
aldor-(le)ase.
lange hwile,
him );8es lif-fi-ea,
wuldres wealdend,
worold-ire for-geaf —
Beo-wulf wse's breme,
blse'd wide sprang,
Scyldes eafera,
Scede-landum in.
§ 7"6.
(?) OLD SAXON, OR (?) FRANK.
FROM THE HILDEBRAND AND HATHUBRAND.
In the Original.
Ih gihorta ctat seggen,
Dat sie lu'hetton asnou mnotin,
Hiltebrabt endi Hadubrah^
Untar heriun tueni
Sunufatarungo (?)
Ire saro (?) rihtiiu,
Garutun sie ii'o guthhammn,
Gurtnn sie iro suert ana,
Helidos ubar ringa,
Do sie to dero hiltiu ritun.
Hiltebraht giiuahalta,
Heribrantes sunn ;
Her was beroro man,
Ferabes frotoro,
Her fragen gistuont (?)
Fobem wortum : wer sin " fater wari ;
Fii'eo in folche ;
Eddo welicbes cnnosles du sis."
" Ibu dn mi aenan sages,
" Ik mideo are-wet,
" Cbind in cbuninchricbe,
" Chud ist mill al Irmindeot."
Hadubrabt gimabalti
Hiltibrantes simu :
" Dat sagetnn mi
" Usere liuti alte anti frote,
" Dea erbiaa warun,
" Dat Hilbrant haetti min fater.
In English.
I beard that saj',
Tliat they challenged in single combat,
Hiltebraht and Hatliubraht,
Between the armies,
• • • . (?)
• • . • (?)
They made ready their war-coats.
They girt theii- swords on,
Heroes over the ring,
When ihey to the war rode.
Hiltebraht spoke,
Heribrant's son.
He was the nobler man.
Of age more wise.
He
With few words ; who liis " father was,
In the folk of men,
Or of what kin thou beest."
" If thou me only sayest,
" I forbear contest
" Child in kingdom,
" Kno\\Ti is me all mankind."
Hadubraht answered Hildebrant's
son,
" That said to me
" Our people, old and wise,
" Who of yore were
" That Hilbrant liight my fatlier.
6o()
ALLITERATIVE METRES.
" (111 licittu Iladubrant)
" Forn her ostar gihueit,
"Floli her Otaehres iiicl.
" Hina miti Tlieotriche
" Euti shioro dogano fihi ;
" Her fiirlach in hinte
" Liittila sitten
" Prut in biu-e ;
" Barn nnwahsan,
" Arbeolosa heraet,
" Ostar liiua det,
" Sid deh-iche darba gistuontum ("?)
" Fatereres mines,
" Dat was so friimtlaos man,
" Her was Otaclu-e nmmettii-ri,
"Degano dechisto,
" Unti Deotriche
" Darba gistontum ;
" Her was eo folches at ente,
" Imo was eo feheta ti leop.
" Chud was her chonnem mannuma,
" Ni waniu ih, in lib habbe."
" Wittu Irmin-Got," quad Hiltibraht,
" Obaua ab havane,
" Dat du neo danahalt mit sus
" Sippan man dine in gileitos! "
Want her do ar arme
Wimtane bouga,
Cheis^i-ingu gitan,
So imo seder Chuning gaj)
Huueo Druhtin ;
" Dat ill dir it un bi huldi gibu ! "
Hadubraht gimalta,
Hntibrantes simn :
" Mit geru seal man,
" Geba infahan,
" Ort -n-idar orte,
" Dn bist dii-, alter Hun, ummet,
" Spaher, spenis mi
" Mit dinem wortema,
" Wilihuh di nu
" Speru weii:)an,
" Pist al so gialtet man,
" So du e^\-in in wit fortos ;
"Dat sage tun mi
" Sacolidante
" Westar ubar Wentilsaeo,
" Dat man wic furnam.
" Tot ist Hihibraht
" (I hight Hadubrant)
" Fore, hence eastward departed,
" Fled Odoacer's spite.
" Him mit Theodoric,
"And of his thanes many.
" He left in land,
" Little to sit,
"Bride in bower;
"Bairn uuwaxen,
" Heu-domless heir,
" Eastward him ....
" . . . . (?)
" Of my kbisman,
" That was so friendless a man.
" He was to Odoacer ujiequal,
" Of thanes worthiest.
" As lonw as to Theodoric,
« • • • • ^-^
" He was even of the people at the end
(top),
" Him was the fight to clear,
" Known was he to keen men,
" I ween not whether he live.
" Wot thou Irmin-gott," quoth Hildi-
brand.
" Over m heaven,
"That thou ....
Wound he then of arm
The wounden bow,
Wliich to him since the King gave,
The Lord of the Huns.
" That I to thee in favour give.
Hadubraht answered Hildebrand"s
son :
" With arms shall man
" Gifts receive.
" Point to point against . . .
" Thou best, old Hun imequal
" ... thou prickest me
" With thy words,
"... now
" With speai- cast,
" Beest so aged a man.
"That said to me,
" Westwards over the Vandal Sea,
" That man war took.
"Dead is Hiltibraht,
ALLITERATIVE METRES.
657
" Heribrantes suno."
Hiltlibnmt giiniiLialta
Heribrantes suiio :
' Wola gisiliu ill,
' In dinem lu'ustim,
' Dat (lu babes keine heiTon goten,
' Dat clu nob bi tlesemo ricbe
' lleccheo ni ■\viu'ti."
' Welaga, nu waltant Got,"
Quad Ililtibrant,
' We vvurt skibit !
' lb wallota sumai'o enti wintro
' Sebstick urlaute.
• Dar man mill eo scerita
' In folc scestantero.
' So man mir at burc einigeru
' Baniin ni gifasta ;
' Nu seal mill suasat cbind
' Suertu liauwan,
' Bietou mit sinu biUiu,
' Eddo ill imo ti banin werdan.
' Dob malit du nu aodlicbo,
' Ibu (lb." din eUent aoc,
' In sus beremo man
' Hrusti girwinuan ;
' Rauba bi Lrabanen
' Ibu du dar enic rebt habes.
' Der si doh nu ai'gosto."
Quad Hildibrant, " ostarliuto,
' Der dir nu wdges warne,
' Nu dill es so wel lustit.
' Gudea gimeii'um
' Niused emotti.
' Wer dar sib liiutu dero prel-zilo
' Hrumen muotti,
' Erdo desero brunnono
' Bedero waltan."
Do laettim se aeiist
Asckim scritan
Scarpen seiu'im,
Dat in dem sciltim stout ;
Do stoptun tosamene,
Starmbort cbludun,
Hewun barniilicco
Huitte scilti
Unti im iro liutun
Luttilo -mii-tun.
" Ileribrant's son."
llildebrabt answered
Ileribrabt's son:
" Well see I,
" In tby barness,
" That thou no good master liast,
" Tbat tbou still by tliis kingdom
" Hero art not."
" Well away now great God,"
Quoth Hiltibrant,
" We Avill decide !
" I wandered summer and winter
" Sixty out of the land
" There they me . . .
" In the folk . . .
" So they me at any burg
"... not fastened.
" Now me . . . child
" With sword hew
"... with his bill.
"Or I to him be the bane.
" Still mayest thou easily
"If to thee thy strength . . .
" ... noble man
" With arms win,
" Prey to ravens,
" If thou there any light hast."
Quoth Hildibraht . . .
" Now it so well pleases thee
■'"\Mio is to-day
Then let they first
With axes . . .
With sharp showers.
That on the shields sounded ;
They dashed together
. . . . soimded
They hewed harmfully
The wliite sliields,
And to them their lindens
Little were.
U U
«:)8
ALLITERATIVE METRES.
Tlic ]l'iissriihn(ii I/i/iiiii*
Dat cliit'ivf^an ili iiiit liniliim,
Fiiiwiz/o mt-ista,
Dat ero iii was,
Noll ufhc'inil
Noll pamu, noli pcrog
. . . iii was,
Ni [stoiTo] noli lieinig,
Noll siiuiia ni sccin,
Noh luano ni luilita,
Nob tier mareo seo,
Do dar ni wiht ni was,
Enteo ni wenteo,
Enti do was der eino,
Almahioo Cot,
Manuo miltisto,
Enti [dar wanin aiili] manalie mit
inan,
Cootlilililia geista
[Enti] Cot heilae,
Cot Almabtico, du himil,
Ente erda cliiworahtos,
Enti du mannum,
So manac coot forscipi,
Forgip mer in dino ganada
Relita galaupa,
Enti cotan wUleon,
Wistom enti spaliida,
[Enti] craft tufiiin za widarstantanne
Ente arc za piwisanne,
Enti diuan willeon.
Za cliiwurclianne.
Thf sduit' ill AtKjla-Sa.roti*
l>a't gofragn ic mid liruui,
Forwisra lau'stum
DiX>t crra uc wees
Nan nphcofon,
Nan beam, nan beorg,
. . . nc wses,
Ne steorra ncenege.
Nan sunna ne scan,
Nan mona ne Icolitode,
Ne se msGre seo :
Donne ):ier no wliit ne woes,
Ende ne wende
And JSonne w.ts se ana
^luiigbtig God
Maunan niildoste,
And [Sajr w£eron eac] manige mid
liim.
Gotciuidige gastas.
[Eala] God balig,
God Almigtiga, «u bcofon,
And eortban gewTotest,
And 5u maunnm
Swa manige gode forscipest ;
Forgif me in isinne gemiltsung
Pielite geleafan
And gode willan,
Wisdom and spede,
Deofol-crafft to wicSerstandanne,
And arg to wiSerianne,
ALnd isine willan
To ge-A\yrceamie.
1.
§ 778.
OLD NORSE.
FROM THE EDDA.
Viiluspd, Stanzas 1 — G.
Hlj6(5s biiS ek allar
belgar kindir
meiri ok minni,
mogu Hoimdallar :
\'ildu at ek ValfoSrs
vol framtelja,
fomspjoll fira,
t^au er ek fremst um man.
Ek man jotna
ar um bonia,
yk er foi-^um
mik foedda bof«u ;
niu man ek lieima,
iiiu i^dtSjiu",
mjutvi^ mojran
fyr mold neSan.
* Both the original and the A. S. translation are from Conybeare's Illustrations of
Anglo-Saxon Poetry.
ALLITERATIVE METRES.
G59
A'r vai- alda
j^ar er Y'luir bygSi,
vara saudr ne sser
ne svalar luinir,
joi-ts fannsk seva
ne uppliiininn,
gap var ginnunga,
en gras livergi.
4.
A'iSr Biu's syiiir
bj64um urn ypcSu,
peic er rai^gnx^
mceran skopu :
s61 skein suunaii
a salar steina,
\}k var gruuci gToin
grceniim lauki.
5.
Sol varp sunnan,
siiini mana,
liendi iuni hoegri
um liiminjodyr ;
sol j^at lie vissi
hvar lion sail atti,
mani f^at ne vissi
hvat liann megius atti,
stjorniu" {jat ne ■vdssu
livai' jjfer sta<5i &ttu.
6.
pk gengu regin oil
a rokstola,
ginnlieilog goS,
ok um J^at gsettusk :
nott ok niSjiuu
iiofii uni gafu,
morgin lietu
ok mi<5jan dag,
undorn ok a^stan,
arnm at telja.
§ 779.
OLD HIGH-GERMAN.
FROM A POEM NAMED MUSPILLI.
Daz hort Hi ralihon
Dia werolt-rehtwison,
Daz sculi der Anticliristo
Mit Eliase pagan.
Der warcli ist kiwafanit ;
Dennewii'dit mitar in wik arliapan ;
Kliensiin sind so ki-eftic,
Diri kosa ist so mihhil.
EUas stritit
Pi den ewigon lip,
Wili den relitkernon
Daz rihlii kistarkan ;
Pidiu seal imo lialfan
Der Imnilcs kiwaltit.
Der Anticristo stet
Pi dem Altfiante
Stot pi demo Siitanase,
Der inan farscnkan seal ;
Pidiu seal er in der wicsteti
Wimt pivaUan,
Enti in demo sinde
Sigalos werdan.
Doh wanit des vila gotmanno,
Daz EUas in demo wige arwartit
(werdit ) .
Silr so daz Eliases pluot
In erda kitruifit,
So imprinnant die perga,
Poum ni kistentit
Einic in erdu,
Aha artrulviient,
Muor varsuUliet sih,
Siiilizot lougui der himil
Mano vallit,
I'rinnit mittilagart,
Stein ni kistentit ciuik in erdu.
Verit denne stuatago in lant,
Verit mit din vinriu
Viriho wison,
Dnr ni mai donne mak andrcmo.
The system of alliteration has hitherto been explained in
the most general way possible ; all that has been attempted
u u 2
(iiiO ALLITERATIVE METRES.
being the cxliibilion of the principle upon which such extracts as
the preceding can be untlorstDod to be metrical ; and that this
tlieir metrical character is by no means transparently clear,
nia}' be collected from the fact that many of the old allitera-
tional compositions were treated by the earlier scholars as
prose.
As a general rule all early German poetry is alliterative :
though it by no means follows that the alliteration was equally
general in all the German forms of speech.
§ 780. Alliteration preceded rhyme. Rhyme followed allitera-
tion. Hence, whenever we have no specimens of a given form of
speech anterior to the evolution of rhyme, we have no allitera-
tional compositions. This is the case with the Frisian, the
Batavian, and the Platt-Deutsch dialects. Indeed, for the
High-German the poem of Muspilli is a solitary, or nearly
solitary, instance. The two languages wherein there is the
most of it are the English during the Anglo-Saxon and early
English periods, and the Norse. In the latter we not only
get numerous specimens, but we also get the rules of its
Prosody. These are, perhaps, more artificial than actual prac-
tice requires. They are also more stringent and elaborate than
those of Anglo-Saxon and High-German.
Thus, the alliterative syllables take names, one being the Jiead-
stave and the other two the 6?/-staves.
The /i(?acZ-stave has its place at the beginning of the second
line, or (if we throw the two into one) immediately after a
break, csesura, pause, or ^was? -division.
The 6?/-staves belong to the fii'st line out of two, or to the
first member of a single one. This is a rule that gives
stringency to the system. Others give licence. Thus, —
An unaccented syllable at the beginning of the second line
(or member) counts as nothing.
Again, the vowels which collectively are dealt with as a single
letter not only may but must be different. This goes far to
enable anything and everything to be metre — inasmuch as all
that is wanted to constitute either one long or two short lines
is the occurrence of three words beginning with a vowel, and
accented on their initial syllable. The following is from Thor-
lakson's Translation of Paradise Lost: —
" Of Man's first disobedience, and the fruit
Of that forbidden tree, whose mortal taste
Brouglit deatli into the world, and all our woe.
RHYME AND ASSONANCE.
661
With loss of Edeu, till one gi'eater JNIau
Restore us, and regain the blissful seat,
Sing, heavenly IMuse, that on the secret top
Of Oreb, or of Sinai, didst iuspke
That shepherd, who first taught the chosen seed,
In the beginning how the Heaven and Earth
Rose out of Chaos : or if Sion liill
DeHght thee more, and Siloa's brook that flow'd
Fast by the oracle of God."
" Um fyi'sta manns
felda MytSni
ok atlysting
af epli forboSnu,
hvatSan ovsegr
upp kom dauisi,
Edens missu-,
ok allt bol manna ;
" partil annarr einu,
secSri ma^r,
aptr fser
OSS vitSreista,
ok afrekar nyan
OSS tn handa
fiillsselustacS
fogiiim sigri ;
' Syng |ju, Menta-
moSir hinineska !
\)ii sem Horebs fyrr
a huldum toppi,
et-a Sinai,
saucSaveiiSi
iuublest frsetSanda
litvaHt sfeSi,
live alheinu" skopst
af alls samblaudi ;
' E<5a lysti >ik
langtum heldr
at Zions hieS
ok Siloa brunni,
sem fi'amstre}-mdi
hja Frett gutShgii ! "
The full details of the Norse alliterative system may be found
in Rask's treatise on the Icelandic Prosody.
CHAPTER IV.
RHYME AND ASSONANCE.
§ 781. In an Alliteration the likeness betw^een the ai'ticulate
sounds which constitute it occurs at the beginning of words. In
rhyme it occurs at the end.
Observe in each of the following couplets the last syllable of
each line. They are said to rhyme to each other.
O'er the glad waters of the dai'k blue sea.
Our thoughts as boundless, and oiu' souls as free.
Far as the breeze can bear the billow's foam,
Survey our empire and behold our home.
These are our realms, no limits to our sway —
Our flag the sceptre all who meet obey.
lili-J RUYME AND ASSONANCE.
The next extract is a stanza of Gray's Elegy, where, instead
of following one another in succession, the rhyming lines come
alternately.
Full many a gem of inircst ray %Qrene
The dark, luifatlioui'd doptlis of ocean hear ;
Fiill many a llower is born to blush yxTuscen,
And waste its sweetness on tlie desert air. — Giiay.
In other stanzas the rhyming lines are sometimes continuous,
and sometimes separated from each other by an interval.
And j-et liow lovel}- in thine age of woe,
Land of lost gods and godlilie men, art thou !
Thy vales of evergi-een, thy liills of snow,
Proclaim thee Nature's varied favoiuite now :
Thy fanes, thy temi^les to tliy surface bow,
Comminghng slowly mth heroic earth,
Broke by the share of every rustic jilough :
So. perish monmneuts of mortal Jiirth,
So per*ish all in turn save well-recorded worth. — Byuon.
It is not difficult to see, in a general wa}^ in what rhyme
consists. The sj^Uables see and free, foam, home, &c., are sjd-
lables of similar sound ; and lines that end in syllables of similar
sound are lines that rhyme.
By substituting in a line or stanza, instead of the final
syllable, some word diffei"ent in sound, although similarly
accented and equally capable of making sense, we may arrive
at a general view of the nature and influence of rhyme as an
ornament of metre. In the following stanza we may spoil
the effect by substituting the word glen for vale, and light for
ray.
Tiu'n, gentle hermit of the vale.
And guide thy lonely tray
To wlierc yon taper cheers the dale
AVith hospitable ray. — Goldsmith.
With this contrast —
Tm-n, gentle hennit of the glen.
And guide thy lonely way
To where yon taper cheers the dale
"With hospitable light.
§ 782. Syllables may be similar in their sound, and yet fail
in furnishing full, true, and perfect rhymes. In each of the
forthcoming couplets there is evidently a similarity of sound,
and there is equally evidently an imperfection in the rhyme.
RHYME AND ASSONANCE. 003
1.
Tlie soft-flo^\ing otitline that steals from the ej-e,
Who threw o'er the surface, — did you or did I ?
Whitehead.
2.
'Tis with our judgments as oiu* watches ; none
Go just alike, yet each beheves Ids ovm. — Pope.
3.
Soft o'er the shrouds aerial whispers breathe,
That seem'd but zephp-s to the train beneath. — Pope.
The first of these three pairs of verses was altered into —
The soft- flowing outline that steals from the -sdew.
Who threw o'er the smface, — did I or did joii ?
and that solely on account of the imperfectness of the original
endings, eye and /.
These are samples of what passes for a rhyme without being
one.
Neither are the syllables Jdgh and -ly, in the following,
rhymes.
The witch she held the hair in her hand,
The red flame blazed high ;
And round about the caiddron stout.
They danced right merriZ^. — Kxrke White.
§ 783. Varieties of imperfect Rhymes. — None and own are
better rhymes than none and man; because there are degrees
in the amount to which vowels differ from one another, and the
sounds of the o in none and the o in oiun are more alike than
the sounds of the o in no7ie and the a in man. In like manner
breathe and teeth are nearer to rhymes than breathe and teaze ;
and breathe and teaze are more alike in sound than breathe and
teal. All this is because the sound of the th in teeth is more
allied to that of the th in hreatJte than that of the z in teaze,
and to the z in teaze more than to the I in teal. This shows
that in imperfect rhymes there are degrees, and that some
approach the nature of true ones more than others.
Hifjh and, hair and air, are imperfect rhymes.
Whose generous cMldren narrow'd not their hearts
With commerce, giv'n alone to arms and arts. — Byuon.
Words where the letters coincide, but the sounds differ, are
only rhymes to the eye. Breathe and hencath are in this pre-
dicament ; so also are cease and ease (eaze).
GG4 RHYME AND ASSONANCE.
In the flit ngo of plcrtsnrc, wcaltli, and case,
Sprang the rank weed, and tlirivcd with large increase.
Pope.
If the sounds coincide, the difference of the letters is unim-
portant.
Bold in the practice of niistalven riUes,
Prescribe, apph% and call tlieir masters fools.
They talk of piinciples, but notions prize,
And all to one loved folly saciifice.
§ 7<S4. Analysis of a rhyming syllable. — Let the syllable
told be taken to pieces. For metrical purposes it consists of
three parts or elements : 1, the vowel (o) ; 2, the part pre-
ceding the vowel (t) ; 3, the part following the vowel (Id). The
same may be done with the word hold. The two words can
now be compared with each other. The comparison shows that
the vowel is in each the same (o) ; tliat the part following the
vowel (Id) is the same ; and, finally, that the part preceding the
vowel is different (t and h). This diflerence between the part
preceding the vowel is essential.
Told, compared with itself (told), is no rhj^me, but an
homceoteleuton (ofiolos, homoios = liIie, and reXevrq, teleutce
= end) or like ending. It differs from a rhyme in having the
parts preceding the vowel alike. Absolute identity of termi-
nation is not recognized in Enghsh poetry, except so far as it
is mistaken for rhyme.
The soft-flo-«ing outline that steals from the eye,
"Who threw o'er the suirface ? did you or did / / — Whitehead.
Here the difference in spelling simulates a difference in sound,
and a horaoeoteleuton takes the appearance of a rhyme.
Bold and note. — As compared with each other, these words
have two of the elements of a rhyme : viz. the identity of the
vowel, and the difference of the parts preceding it. They
want, however, the third essential, or the identity of the parts
following ; Id being different from t. The coincidence, how-
ever, as far as it goes, constitutes a point in metre, as will
soon be seen.
Bohl and mild. — Here also are two of the elements of a
rhyme, viz. the identity of the parts following the vowel (Id).
and the difference of the parts preceding (b and on). The
identity of the vowel (o being different from i) is, however,
wantinfj.
RHYME AND ASSONANCE. 665
Rhymes may consist of a single syllable, as told, hold ; of
two syllables, as ivater, daughter ; of three, as cJieerily, wearily.
Now, the rhyme begins where the dissimilarity of parts imme-
diately before the main vowel begins. Then follows the vowel ;
and, lastly, the parts after the vowel. All the parts after the
vowel must be absolutely identical. Mere similarity is insuffi-
cient.
Then come ere a minute 's gone,
For the long summer clay
Puts its wings, swift as linnets on.
For flying away. — Clare.
In the lines just quoted there is no rhyme, but an assonance.
The identity of the parts after the main syllable is destroyed by
the single sound of the g in gone.
A rhyme, to be perfect, must fall on syllables equally accented.
To make sky and the last syllable of raevrily serve as rhymes, is
to couple an accented syllable with an unaccented one.
A rhyme, to be perfect, must fall upon syllables absolutely ac-
cented.— To make the last syllables of words like flight?/ and
vaevrily serve as rhymes, is to couple together two unaccented
syllables.
A rh}Tne consists in the combination of like and unlike
sounds* — Words like / and eye (homa^oteleuta), ease and cease
(vowel assonances), love and grove (consonantal assonances), are
printers' rhymes ; or mere combinations of like and unlike let-
ters.
A rhyme, moreover, consists in the combination of like and
unlike articulate sounds — Hit and it are not rhymes, but iden-
tical endings ; the h being no articulation. To my ear, at
least, the pair of words, Idt and it, comes under a different class
from the pair hit (or it) and ])it. Hence —
A full and perfect rhyme (the term being stringently defined)
consists in the recurrence of one or more final syllables equally
and absolutely accented, wherein the vowels and the jparts fol-
lowing the vowel shall be identical, whilst the parts preceding
the voxvel shall he artlculcdely different.
To this definition, words like old and hold form no exception.
At the first view it may be objected that in words like old there
is no part preceding the vowel. Compared, however, with hold,
the negation of that part constitutes a difference. The same
applies to words like go and lo, where the negation of a part
following the vowel is a point of identity. Furthermore, I may
G66 RHYME AND ASSONANCE.
observe, tliat the W(n-d i^urt is used in the singular number.
The assertion is not that every individual sound preceding the
vowel must be different, but that the aggregate of them must
be so. Hence, 2^'''^'U ^^'^ hray (where the r is common to both
forms) form as true a rhyme as hray and play, where all the
sounds preceding a differ.
§ 78.). S'uKjle Rhymes, Szc. — An accented syllable standing
by itself, and coming under the conditions given above, consti-
tutes a single rhyme.
'T is hai'cl to say if gi'eatcr want of skill
Appeal" in waiting or in judging ill ;
But, of the two, less dangerous is the oi/ence
To tire the patience than mislead the sense.
Some few in that, but thousands err in this ;
Ten censui'e wrong, for one that writes suniss. — Pope.
Double Rhymes. — An accented syllable followed by an unac-
cented one, and coming under the conditions given above, consti-
tutes a double rhyme.
The meeting points the sacred hair ([issever
From her fair head for ever and for ever. — Pope.
Prove and explain a thing till all men doubt it,
And WTite about it, Goddess, and about it. — Pope.
•
Treble RhyTnes, — An accented syllable followed by two un-
accented ones, and coming under the conditions given above,
constitutes a treble rhyme.
Beware that its fatal asceiuJancy
Do not tempt thee to mope and repine ;
With a humble and hopeful dependencij
Stm await the good pleasure divine.
Success in a liigher beatitude
Is the end of what 's under the pole.
A philosoplier takes it vdth fjratitude.
And believes it the best in the whole. — Byrom.
§ 786. Constant and Inconstant parts of a rhyme. Of
the three parts, or elements, of a rhyme, the vowel and the part
which follows the vowel are constant, i. e. they cannot be changed
without changing or destroying the rhyme. In told and hold,
plunder and blunder, both the o or u on one side, and the -Id
or -nder on the other, are immutable.
Of the three parts, or elements, of a rhyme the part which
precedes the vowel is inconstant, i. e. it must be changed in
RHYME AND ASSONANCE. 667
order to effect the rhyme. Thus, old and old^ told and told,
hold and hold, do not rhyme with each other ; although old,
hold, told, scold, &c=, do. Hence —
Rule 1. In two or more syllables that rhyme with each
other, neither the vowel nor the sounds which folloiu it can be
different.
Rule 2. In two or more syllables that rhyme with each other,
the sounds which precede the vowel cannot be alike.
Now the number of sounds which can precede a vowel is
limited ; it is that of the consonants and consonantal combina-
tions ; of which a list can be made a 'priori.
p
pi
pr
h
hi
hr
f
fi
fr
V
vl
ir
t
tl
tr
d
dl
dr
th
till
tJir
(111
dhl
dhr
k
hi
kr
9
gi
gr
s
sp
^f
St
sth,
dc.
and so on, the combinations of s being the most complex.
This gives us the following method (or receipt) for the dis-.
CO very of rhymes : —
1. Divide the word to which a rhyme is required, into its
constant and inconstant elements.
2. Make up the inconstant element by the different conso-
nants and consonantal combinations until they are exhausted.
3. In the lists of words so formed, mark off those which
have an existence in the language. These will all rhyme with
each other ; and if the list of combinations be exhaustive, there
are no other words which will do so.
Example. — From the word told, separate the o and -Id,
which are constant.
Instead of the inconstant element t, write successively p, j)l,
pr, h, hi, hr, &c. : so that you have the following list : — t-old,
'l>-old, pl-old, pr-old, h-old, hl-old, hr-old, &c.
Of these, words like plold, hlold, hrold, that have no exist-
ence in the language, are only possible, not actual, rhymes.
All words have the same number of possible, but not the
same number of actual rhymes. Thus, silver is a word ame-
nable to the same process as told — pilver, plilver, prilver, hilver,
&c. ; yet silver is a word without a corresponding rhyme. This
is because the combinations which answer to it do not consti-
tute words, or combinations of words in the English language.
GG8 METRICAL NOTATION AND SCANSION.
§ 787. Aasonaiices. — Approximate rhymes, wherein the
vowels only, or the consonants (-»iily, or vowels and consonants,
coincide, are Ciilled attsomnices.
The following is assonant — Irish, however, rather thuji
English : —
O the groves of Bl'/rney
Tlioy are so clKU-ming,
All by the piu'ling of soft silent brooks ;
"SVith bauks of ros<'s
Tliat spontaueously grow there
All stancliug in order by tlie sweet rock close.
In the Spanish and Scandinavian literature assonant metres
are important, numerous, and prominent.
CHAPTER V.
METRICAL NOTATION AND SCANSION.
§ 788. Take a line. For every accented syllable invent a
symbol. Thus —
Let + denote the accent, — the absence of it. Or —
Let ' denote the accent, " the absence of it. Or —
Let a and x do the same respectively.
These last symbols are the most convenient. Hence —
What we write in full, thus —
The way was long, the wind was cold,
we may express symbolically, thus —
X a X a X a X a,
Or dividing the syllables into groups,
X a, X a, X a, X a.
A group of syllables thus taken together is called a Measure ;
the symbohcal expression of the same being called Metrical
Notation.
Measure i& a term which applies to syllables only, when they
are thrown into groups according to their accent
When thrown into groups according to their quantities, the
groups thus constituted are called /ee^.
For the groups formed by the conibination of alliterative
METRICAL NOTATION AND SCANSION. G69
and non-alliterative syllables, stave is a convenient name.
Hence —
The Classical Metres consist of feet, the English (and others)
of 7)ieasures, the Old Norse, &c., of staves.
I should add, however, that this nomenclature is a sufjo-es-
tion, rather than a generally acknowledged fact. Neither is it
unexceptionable. In a stave or a foot the syllables are as truly
Tneasured as in a mfieasure, in the limited sense of the term.
Hence it is far from impossible that the word, like so many
others, may have to bear two meanings, one general and one
special. In this case a raeasure is the name of a group of
syllables similarly affected, whether by quantity or by accent.
If by the former, the result is a foot ; if by the latter, the
result is a measure, in the limited sense of the term.
Whatever may be the result of this suggestion, it is highly
important to keep the metres based upon quantity different
from the metres based upon accent. Hence, if we call (as we
do call) measures based upon quantity by the name of feet,
we must ever remember that we have no feet in the English
metres ; since in English we determine our measures by accent
only.
The classical grammarians express their feet by symbols ; —
denoting length, - shortness. Forms like « "? — ^ ", -,
« " ", &c. are the symbolical representations of the classical feet.
The classical grammarians have names for their feet ; e. g.
iambic is the name of ^ — , trochee of — ", dactyls of — « ", am-
phibrachys of v> — v., anapaest of " , &c.
§ 789. The English grammarians have, hitherto, had no
symbols for their measures : since those that have been submitted
to the reader are only suggested or proposed.
Neither have the English grammarians names for their mea-
sures. Sometimes, they borrow the classical terms iambic,
trochee, &c.
As symbols I have suggested a and x.
As names for the English measures I have nothing to offer
except the remark that the classical names are never used with
impunity. Their adoption invariably engenders confusion. It
is very true that, mutatis viutandis (i. e. accent being substi-
tuted for quantity), words like tyrant and presume are trochees
and iambics ; but it is also true that, with the connnon
nomenclature, the full extent of the change is rarely appre-
ciated.
670 METRICAL NOTATION AND SCANSION.
Symbolically expressed, the following forms denote the fol-
lowing measures : —
1. <t x = tyrant.
2. .(• (I ^^ prcsdme.
3. a X X = merrily.
4. X a x= disable.
5. X X a = cavalier.
I have stated that as names of the English metres I have
nothing to offer. I have only said what they should not be
called. They should not be called feet, and they should not
bear the names borne by feet, e. g. the names trochee, iambic,
&c.
§ 790. Notwithstanding, however, the want of appropriate
denominations for the English measures, the practical inconve-
nience that arises from their absence is inconsiderable ; inasmuch
as the number of our primary combinations is limited, and their
order natm-al. Thus — •
Measures consisting of a single syllable, and measures consist-
ing of four syllables, are of such extreme rarity that the only
practical combinations are the dissyllabic and the trisyllabic —
(1) ax and x a, (2) a x x, x a x, and x x a.
Of these let the shorter take precedence ; so that a x and
X a form the former of two divisions.
Within each of these divisions, let those combinations come
first whose accent shows itself the soonest — thus let a x pre-
cede X a, and a x x precede x a x.
The result is —
A. DissyUabic Measm-es i ^- " ^ ~ ^^'"'"^^
^2. xa — presume.
i3. a X X — merrily.
4. X a X — disable.
5. X X a — cavalier.
As this order is natural, it may be adopted as permanent
also ; in which case our measures are the first, second, third,
fourth, and Jifth.
On these measures the following general assertions may be
made ; viz. —
That the dissyllabic measures are, in English, commoner than
the trisyllabic.
That, of the dissyllabic measures, the second is commoner
than the first.
§ 791. Scansion. — Grouped together according to certain
METRICAL NOTATION AND SCANSION. 671
rules, measures constitute lines or verses ; and grouped together
according to certain rules, lines constitute couplets, triplets,
stanzas, &c.
The absence or the presence of rhyme constitutes blank
verse or rhyming verse, as the case may be.
The succession, or periodic return, of rhymes constitutes
stanzas, or continuous metre, as the case may be.
The quantity of rhymes in succession constitutes couplets, or
triplets.
The investigation of the measures of a line, verse, &c,, is
called Scansion.
In taking the length of a line, we may measure b}- either
the accents or the syllables; so that with four measures of the
formulas a x or x a, we may take our choice between saying
that the verse has four accents, or saying that it has eight
syllables.
For all scientific purposes we count by accents rather than
syllables — in other words, the accent determines the measure,
and the measure the verse. At the same time we have, in
common language, such terms as octosyllabic, applied to lines
like—
The way was long, the wind was cold.
§ 792. Accent is essential to English metre. Rhyme, on
the other hand, is only an ornament. Of all the ornaments of
English versification it is undoubtedly the most important.
Still it is not essential. Metres where there is no rhyme are
called Blank Metres.
Of man's first disobedience and the fruit
Of that forbidden tree, whose mortal taste
Brought death into the world and aU our woe,
With loss of Eden, till one greater Man
Restore us, and regam the blissful seat.
Sing, Heavenly Muse ! — Mflton.
The quality of mercy is not strained.
It droppeth as the gentle dew from heaven
Upon the i^lace beneath ; it is twice bless'd,
It blesscth him that gives and him that takes ;
'T is mightiest of the mighty, it becomes
The tlironed monarch better than his crown.
His sceptre shows the force of temporal power,
The attribute of awe and majesty.
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings :
But mercy is above this sceptred sway ;
(n2 METRICAL NOTATION AND SCANSION.
•It is cutlironccl in tlic hearts of kings :
It is an attribute to God liimseK;
Anil eartlily power dotli thou show likcst God's,
^Vheu mercy seasons justiec. — Shakspr,vee.
§ 703. The last measure in a line or verse is indifferent as
to its leuijth. — By referring to the notice of single rhymes, we
shall find that the number of syllables is just double the
number of accents ; i. e. to each accented there is one un-
accented s}' liable, and no more. Hence, with five accents, there
are to each line ten syllables. This, however, is not the case
where the rhymes are double. Here, with five accents, there
are to each line eleven syllables. Now it is in the last measure
that this supernumerary unaccented syllable appears ; and it is
a general rule, that, in the last measure of any verse, super-
numerary unaccented syllables can be admitted without de-
stroying the original character of the measure. Hence it is,
that, up to a certain point, we may say that the length of
the concluding measure of a line or verse is a matter of indif-
ference.
In the lines
The meeting points the sacred hair dissever
From her fair head, for ever and for ever.
X a appears to be converted into x a x. A different view,
however, is the more correct one. Dissever, and for ever, are
rather x a with a syllable over. This extra syllable may be
expressed by the sign 'plus ( -1- ), so that the words in point may
be expressed hy x a. + , rather than hj x a x.
It is very clear that measures whereof the last syllable is
accented (that is, measures like x a, presume, or x x a, cavalier)
can only vary from their original character on the side of
excess ; that is, they can only be altered by the addition of
fresh syllables. To subtract a syllable fj-om such feet is im-
possible ; since it is only the last syllable that is capable of
being subtracted. If that last syllable, however, be the ac-
cented syllable of the measure, the whole measure is annihilated.
Notliing remains but the unaccented syllable preceding ; and
this, as no measure can subsist without an accent, must be
counted as a supernumerary part of the preceding measure.
With the measures a x, a x x, x a x, the case is different.
Here there is room for a syllaVjle or syllables to be subtracted.
METRICAL NOTATION AND SCANSION. 073
Queen and huntress chaste and fair,
Now the sun is laid to sleep,
Seated in thy silver chair.
State in wonted splendoiu' keep :
Hesperus invokes thy light,
Goddess, exquisitely bright. — Ben Jonson.
In all these lines the last measure is deficient in a syllable,
yet the deficiency is allowable, because each measure is the last
one of the line. The formula for expressing fair, sleep, chair,
&c., is not a, but rather a x followed by the minus sign ( — ),
ox a X — .
A little consideration will show, that, amongst the English
measures, x a and x x a naturally form single, a x and x a x
double, and a x x treble rhymes.
Let a line consist of five measures, each measure being x a.
This we may express thus :
xaxaxaxaxa.
The presence of a supernumerary syllable may be denoted by
the sign + .
xaxaxaxax a+.
On the other hand, the sign — indicates the absence of a
syllable : so that the line
Queen and huntress, ch6,ste and fair,
runs
ax ax ax ax — .
These forms may be rendered more compendious by the intro-
duction of the arithmetical sign x signifying multiplication, by
means of which we may write, instead of
a X a X a X a X — ,
the shorter form
a X X 4: — .
§ 794.
SPECIMENS.
1. (a X.)
Lines wherein the accent falls on the first, third, and fifth
syllables, &c., i. e. upon every second syllable, beginning with
the Jirst.
X X
r>74 METRICAL NOTATION AND SCANSION.
S6 sho str6vo against lier wcJilmosg,
Thoiigli nt limes her spirits sCuik ;
Sh.liH"'^ '"^'" Indrt with w6inan's meekness
To all diitios 6f licr rriuk.
A'lul a pontlo consort made he ;
A'nd her p;eutlo mind was such,
Thdt sho gi'ew a n6hlc lad}',
A'nd tho people 16ved her much.
But a ti'ouble weigh'd upon her,
A'nd perplcx'd her night and m6m
With the burden 6f an h6nour
U'nto wMch she was not born. — Tennyson.
L6,y thy b6w of peS,rl apS,rt,
A'nd thy silver shining quiver ;
Give unto the flying h4rt
Time to breathe, how sh6rt soever ;
Thou that mak'st a day of night,
Goddess exquisitely bright. — Ben Jonson.
§ 795.
2. (x a.)
Lines wherein the accent falls on the second, fourth, and sixth
syllables, i. e. upon every second syllable, beginning from the
second.
On, on he hasten'd, and he drew
IMy gaze of wonder as he flew.
Though like a demon of the night
He pass'd and vanish'd from my sight,
His aspect fi,nd his air imprest
A troubled memory on my breast ;
And long upon my startled e6.r
Rung his dark courser's hoofs of fear. — Byron.
The war, that for a space did fail,
Now trebly thimder'd on the gale,
And Stanley was the cry ;
A light on ISIannion's visage shed,
And fii-ed his gl4zing eye :
With dying hand above liis he^d
He shook the fi'&gments of his blade,
And shouted victory ! — Scott.
On what foimdation stands the warrior's pride ?
How just his hopes, let Swedish Charles decide.
A fi-ame of adamant, a soul of fire,
No dangers fright him, no misfortunes tire;
METRICAL NOTATION AND SCANSION.
675
O'er Love, o'er Fear extends his wide domain,
Unconquer'd lord of pleasure and of pain.
No joy to him pacific sceptres yield,
Wai- sounds the trump, he rushes to the field ;
Behold auxiUar Idngs their powers combine ;
And one capitulate, and one resigTi.
Peace coiu-ts his hand, but spreads her charms in vain.
" Think notliing gaui'd," he cries, " till nought remam.
On IMoscow's walls till Swedish banners fly,
And aU be mine beneath the polar sky ! "
The march begins in miUtary state,
And nations on liis eye suspended wait.
Stern Famine guards the solitary coast,
And Winter barricades the realms of frost.
He comes ! nor toil nor want his coiu'se delay :
Hide blushing Glory, hide Pultowa's day.
>j< * * * * *
His fall was destined to a ban-en strand,
A petty fortress, and a dubious hand.
He left a name at wliich the world grew pale,
To pomt a moral and adorn a tale. — Johnson.
§ 796.
3. {a X X.)
Lines wherein tbe accent falls on tlie first and fourth
syllables, i. e. upon every third syllable, beginning with the
first.
Pibroch o' Donuil Dhu !
Pibroch o' Donuil !
Wake thy shrill voice anew,
Summon Clan Connml.
C6me away, come away,
Hfi,rk to the summons !
C6me in yoiu* war array.
Gentles and commons. —
C6me ev'ry hiU-plaid, and
True lieart that wears one ;
C6me ev'rj' steel blade, and
Strong hand that beiirs one. —
Le^ve the deer, lekve the steer,
Leave nets and barges :
C6me with your fighting-gear.
Broadswords and tdrges.
C6me as the winds come, when
F6rcsts are rendcd ;
(^6me as the w&ves come, wlien
Navies arc str4ndod ;
X X 2
670 METRICAL NOTATION AND SCANSION.
Faster come, fA.stor como,
Faster ami IVistcr,
Cliiof, vassal, piijj;e. ami gi-oom,
Tenant and ni6,stor.
Ffot they come, f^st they come.
See how they gather !
Wide waves tlie eagle plume.
Blended with heather.
C4st your plaids, draw your blades,
F6rward each m^n set !
ribroch of Donuil Dim,
Kuell for the onset. — Scott.
§ 7.97.
•1. (.r a X.)
Lines wherein the accent falls on the second and fifth sylla-
bles ; i. e. ui3on every third syllable, beginning with the
second.
The black bands came over
The A'lps and theii- sn6w ;
AVith Boiirbon, the rover,
They j)ass'd the broad P6.
We [have] beaten all [oiu*] foemen.
We [have] captiu*ed a king,
We [have] tiirn'd back on no men.
And so let us sing,
" The Bourbon for ever !
Though penniless all.
We 'U [have] one more endeavom*
At yonder old wall.
With [the] Bourbon we 11 g&ther
At day-dawn before
The g^tes, and together
Or bre^k or climb 6'er
The wall : on the ladder
As mounts each firm foot,
Oiu- shout shall be gladder,
[And] death 6nly be mute. —
The Bourbon ! the Bourbon !
Sans country or home.
We 11 foUow tlie Bourbon
To plunder old Rome." — Byron.
§ 798.
5. ix X a.)
Lines wherein the accent falls on the third and sixth sylla-
bles ; i. e. upon every third syllable, beginning with the third.
METRICAL NOTATION AND SCANSION. 677
The metres of this measm-e are rarely regular, x x a being
frequently replaced by a; a a; and a x x.
1.
The Assyrian came clowii Hke a wolf on the fold,
And his cohorts were gleaming in piu-ple and gold :
And the sheen of his spears was Hke stars on the sea,
When the blue wave rolls nightly on deej) Gahlee.
2.
Like the leaves of the forest when summer is gi'een,
That host mth theii" banners at sunset were seen :
Like the leaves of tlie forest, when aiitimm is blown,
That host on the morrow lay wither'd and strown.
3.
For the A'ngel of De&th spread liis wings on the blast,
And breathed in the face of the foe as he pass'd ;
And the eyes of the sleepers wax'd deadly and chill.
And their hearts but once heaved, and for ever grew still.
4.
And there lay the steed with his nostril aU wide ;
But through it there roll'd not the breith of his pride :
And the foam of his gasjiing lay white on the turf.
And cold as the spray of the rock-beating surf.
And there lay the rider distorted and pale.
With the dew on his brow, and the rust on liis mail ;
And the tents were all silent, the banners alone,
The lances unlifted, the trumpet unblown.
6.
And the widows of A'shur are loud in then- wail,
And the idols are broke in the temple of Baal,
And the might of the Gentile, iinsmote by the sword,
Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord. — ^Byron.
Know ye the land where the cypress and •:= mj^rtle
Are emblems of deeds that are done in then- clime,
Where the rage of the vulture, the love of tlie tiu'tle.
Now melt into sorrow, now madden to crime ?
Know ye the land of the cedar and vine.
Where the flowers ever blossom, the beams ever shine ;
"Where the light wings of Zephp-, oppress'd with perfume,
Wax faint o'er the gardens of Gul in her bloom ;
* The formula x x a appears most in the middle and concluding lines of this
extract.
G78 METRICAL NOTATION AND SCANSION.
\VlK'ro tlu) citi\)ii ami dlivo arc fairest ul' I'niit,
Ami the voice of the niglitingalo never is luute :
Where the tints of the eiu-th, and tlie hues of the sky,
In coloiu- though varied, hi beauty may vie,
And tlie purple of Ocean is deepest in dye ;
Where the virgins are soft as the roses they tuine,
And all, save the spuit of man, is divine ? •
'T is the cLune of the East ; 't is the land of the Sun —
Can he smile on such deeds as his children have done ?
Oh ! wild as the accents of lover's farewell
Are the hearts wliich they hear, and the tales which they tell.
Byron {Bride of Ahydus).
§ 799. It is not always easy to tell where certain lines end,
and where certain others begin. Thus, we may read —
1.
The Lord descended from above,
Ajid bow'd the heavens most high ;
And underneath Ids feet He cast
The darkness of the sky.
2.
On Cherubs and on Seraphim,
Full royally He rode,
And on the wings of mighty winds
Came flying all abroad.
But we may also read —
The Lord descended from above, and bow'd the heavens most liigh,
And underneath liis feet He cast the darkness of the sky.
On Cherubs and on Seraphim full royally He rode,
And on the ^\ings of might}' winds came flying all abroad.
In tliis matter the following distinction is convenient. When
the last syllable of the fourth measure {i. e. the eighth syllable
in the line) in the one verse rhymes with the corresponding
syllable in the other, the long verse should be looked upon as
broken up into tw^o short ones ; in other words, the couplets
should be dealt with as a stanza. Where there is no rhyme
except at the seventh measure, the verse should remain undivided.
Thus—
Tm-n, gentle hermit of the glen, and guide thy lonely way
To where yon taper cheers the vale ■ndth hospitable ray —
constitute a single couplet of two lines, the number of rhymes
being two. But —
CHIEF ENGLISH METRES. 679
' Turn, gentle hermit of the dale,
And guide thy lonely way
To where yon taper cheers the vale
With hospitable ray —
constitute a stanza of four lines, tlie number of rhymes being
four.
To carry this principle throughout our metres may, perhaps,
be inconvenient. Lines as short as —
It scream'd &ndigrowl\l, and crack'd and howl'd,
it would divide into two.
On the other hand, lines as long as —
Wliere Vu-tue wants and Vice abounds,
And wealth is but a baited hook,
it would make one of.
Thus the former would run —
It scream'd and growl' d,
And crack'd and howl'd, &c. ;
whereas the second would be —
Where Virtue wants and Vice aboimds, and wealth is but a baited
hook, &c.
Nevertheless, the principle is suggested.
CHAPTER VI.
CHIEF ENGLISH METRES.
§ 800. Verses formed by the First Measure, or a x. — 1. A
verse so short as to consist of a single accented syllable can
be conceived to exist. Its formula would he a x — . I know
of no actual specimens. The next in point of brevity would
be a X. This also is either non-existent, or too rare to be of
practical importance.
§ 801. Verses of Two Measures. Formula a x a x, ov a x
x2.
Rich the treS.sure,
Sweet the pleasure. — Dryden.
G80 CHIEF ENGLISH METRES.
Verses of Formula a x a x — , or a xx '2. — .
Tuimilt cease,
Siuli to peace.
§ 802. Three Measures. Formula a a; x 3.
E'vciy di-op we sprinkle,
Smoothes awiiy a wrinkle.
Formula a x x 3 — .
Fill the humper fidr —
O'n the brow of cai'e.
I'he two varieties of this formula, rhyming alternately, con-
stitute the following stanza : — .
Fill the bumper fair ;
E'very drop we sprinkle,
O'n the brow of cai-e,
Smoothes away a ^\Tiulde.
Sages can, tliey say.
Seize the lightning's pinion,
A'nd bring down its ray
From the starr'd dominion. — Moore.
§ 803. Four Measures. Formula a a? x 4.
Then her countenance all over —
But he clasp'd her like a lover.
Formula a x x ^ — .
Pale again as death did prove —
A'nd he cheer'd her soul with love.
These two varieties alternating, and with rhyme, constitute
one of the commonest metres, of which a x is the basis.
Then her countenance all over
Pale again as death did prove ;
But he clasji'd her like a lover,
A'nd he cheer'd her soul with love. — Tennyson.
§ 804. Five Measures. Formula a x x 5.
Narrowing in to where they sat assembled,
L6w volui)tuous miisic winding trembled.
Formula a x x o — .
Then metholight I heai-d a hollow sound,
Gath'ring up from ill the lower ground.
CHIEF ENGLISH METRES. 681
The two varieties mixed : —
Then methought I heard a hollow sound,
Gatli'ring up from all the lower gi-oimd.
Narrowing in to where they sat assembled,
Low voluptuous music winding trembled,
Wov'n in cu-cles : they that heard it sigh'd.
Panted, hand in hand, with faces pale.
Swung themselves, and in low tones repUed ;
Till the fountain spouted, showering wide
Sleet of diamond-drift, and pearly hail :
Then the music touch'd the gates and died.
Tennyson.
§ 805. Six Measures. Formula a x x ^, or a x x ^ — .
O'n a mountain, sti'etch'd beneath a hoaiy -willow.
Lay a shepherd swain, and view'd the rolling biUow.
§ 806. Seven Measures. Formula a x x 7,or a x x7 — ■
We have had enough of action and of motion ; we —
Let us sweai" an oath, and keep it, with an equal mind —
§ 807. Eight Measures. Formula a x x 8, or a x x 8 — .
Comrades, leave me liere a little, while as yet 'tis early morn :
^icave me here ; and, when you want me, sound upon the bugle horn,
Lines of this formula occur sometimes unmixed, and consti-
tuting whole poems ; as —
Here about the beach I wander'd, nourishing a youth subhme
With the fairy tales of science, and the long results of Time ;
Wlien the centimes behind me, hke a fruitful land reposed ;
When I clung to all the Present for the promise that it closed ;
When I dipp'd into the Futiu-e, far as human eye could see,
Saw the vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be —
In the spring a fuller crimson comes upon the robin's breast ;
In the spring the wanton lapT;ving gets himself another crest :
In the spring a Hvelier iris changes on the burnish'd dove ;
In the spring a young man's fancy lightly tui*ns to thoughts of love.
Then her cheek was pale and thinner than should be for one so young,
And her eyes on aU my motions with a nmte observance hung.
And I said, " My cousin Amy, speak, and speak the truth to me ;
Trust me, cousin, aU the current of my being sets to thee."
Tennyson (LockesJcy Hall).
(i^2 CHIEF ENGLISH METRES.
Sometimes mixed with other measures (as with lines of for-
mula (( .(• X 7) :
We have had enough of acliou imcl of motion ; we
RoU'd to lafboard, roll'd to stiuboard, wlien the sm*ge was scctliing free,
Where the wallomng monster si)outed his foam-foiintains in the sea.
Let lis swear an oath, and keep it with an equal mind,
In tlie hollow lotos-land to live and lie recUued
On the luEs, hke gods together, careless of mankind :
For they lie beside theii* nectar, and then- bolts are hurl'd
Far below them in tlie vaUeys, and the clouds are Ughtly curl'd
Round their golden houses, guxUed with the gleaming world ;
Where they smile in secret, looking over wasted lands,
Bhght and famiae, plague and eartliquake, roaring deeps and fiery sands,
Clanging fights, and flaming to-\^-ns, and sinking ships, and praying hands. —
Surely, surely slumber is more sweet than toil ; the shore,
Than labour in the deep mid ocean, wind, and wave, and oar.
Oh ! rest ye, brother mariners, we will not wander more.
Tennyson.
Lilies based upon a x are rarely without rhymes ; in other
words, they rarely constitute blank verse.
§ 808. Verses formed by the Second Measure, or x a. — ].
Lines so short as to be reducible to x a are of too rare an
occurrence to demand special notice.
Formula x a + .
Thou Being
All-seeing,
Oh hear mj- fervent prayer ;
Still take her,
And make her
Thy most pecuUar care. — Burns.
Generally two lines of this formula are arranged as single
verses. Such is the case with those just quoted, that are
printed —
Thou Being, all-seeing.
Oh hear my fervent prayer ;
StiU take her, and make her.
Thy most peciiliar care.
§ 809, Two measures. Formula x a x 2.
Unlieard, unkno^^Ti,
He makes his moan —
CHIEF ENGLISH METRES. 683
What sounds were heard !
Wliat scenes appear' d —
The strains decay,
And melt away. — Pope.
Formula x a x 2 +
Up6n a mountain
Beside a fountain.
§ 810. Tliree measures. Formula x a xS.
With hollow blasts of wind —
AU 6n a rock reclined.
Formula x ax S + .
'Twas when the seas were roaring —
A damsel lay deploring.
The alternation of the two varieties of a; a x 3 constitutes
what may be called Gay's stanza.
'Twas when the seas were roaring
With hollow blasts of wind,
A damsel lay deploring,
All on a rock recHned.
Wide o'er the foammg billows
She cast a wistful look ;
Her head was crown'd with willows.
That ti-embled o'er the brook. — Gay.
Cold sweat is plashing o'er them,
Their breasts are beatiug slow:
The sands and shelves before them
Flash fire at every blow.
Their fellows stand in fear of
The upshot of the fray ;
The child imbom shall hear of
The wrestHng of that day.
§ 811. Four measures. Formula x a x 4}.
On, on he hasten'd, and he drew
My gaze of wonder as he flew.
§ 812. Five measures. Formula a; a x 5.
Fond fool ! six foet of eai-th is all thy store,
And he that seeks for all shall have no more. — Hai.l.
6 Si CHIEF ENQLISn METRES.
Foraiula .t a x 5 + .
The meeting points the sacred hixii- dissever
From her fail* head for ever and for ever. — Pope.
This last is the standard metre of the English language.
In point of time it is one of our earliest forms of verse. It
Avas written b}" Chaucer in the fourteenth century, is written by
the poets of the present generation, and has been used by most
writers of the intermediate period. Its chief cultivators have
been Chaucer, Dryden, Pope, Cowper, and Byron, in rhyme ;
and Milton and the dramatists in blank verse. In character it
has every variety. For serious poetry (except in the drama) it
is considered that the admission of an extra syllable at the end
of the line (i. e. formula x a x ^ -\-) is exceptionable. When-
ever it occurs in Milton, it is found fault with by Johnson ; and
the same author asserts, that, with one exception, it always
appears disadvantageously in Pope. In the drama, where the
language of common life is more especially imitated, the formula
X a X o + is not only admissible but necessary.
§ 813. The general term for metres of the form in question is
Heroic. The first division into which the heroic metres fall is
into — a. Blank heroics ; h. Rhyming heroics.
§ 814. Blank Heroics. — Blank heroics, or blank verse, as it is
generally called, falls into two varieties, determined by the nature
of the subject-matter : a. Dramatic blank verse ; 6. Narrative
blank verse.
§ 815. Dramatic Blank Verse. — With the exception of the
earliest dramas in the language, and some rhyming tragedies
written in imitation of the French about the time of Charles II.,
the writings for the English stage consist chiefly of either prose or
blank verse. It is in blank verse that most tragedies and many
comedies are either wholly or partially written. Dramatic blank
verse not only admits, but calls for, the formula x a x 5 + .
Often there are two supernumerary syllables. In rhyming metres
these would constitute double rhymes.
Othello's Speech before the Senators.
Most potent, grave, and reverend seigniors,
My veiy noble and approv'd good masters, —
That I have ta'en away tliis old man's daughter,
It is most true ; true, I have married her ;
CHIEF ENGLISH METRES. 685
The very head and front of my oifending
Hath tliis extent, no more. Rude I 'm in speech,
And little bless'd wdth the set phi-ase of peace ;
For since these arms of mine had seven years' pith
Till now some nine moons wasted, they have us'd
Their dearest action in the tented field.
And Httle of this gi-eat world can I speak,
More than pertams to feats of broU and battle ;
And therefore little shall I gi-ace my cause
In speaking of myself ; yet by your 'patience
I will a round, unvarnish'd tale deliver
Of my whole course of love : what drugs, what charms,
Wliat conjuration, and what mighty magic,
(For such proceedings am I charg'd withal,)
I won his daughter -with. — Shakspeare.
§ 816. Narrative Blank Verse. — The metre oi Paradise Lost,
Paradise Regained, Young's Night Thoughts, Cowper's Tash,
Cowper's Homer, &c.
Nine times the space that measures day and night
To mortal men, he, mth liis horrid crew,
Lay vanquish'd, rolling in the fiery gulf
Confounded, though hnmortal : but his doom
Preserved him to more wrath, for now the thought
Both of lost happiness and lasting pain
Torments him.
Here the admission of a supernumerary final syllable is
rare. Lines of eleven syllables like the following are un-
common.
Of sovran power with awful ceremomj.
Paradise Lost, b. i.
§ 817. Rhyming Heroics. — In proportion as the subject is se-
rious and dignified, the use of double and treble rhymes is avoided.
§ 818. Six measures. Formulas x ax Q, and x ay. Q -\- .
He lifted up Iris hand tliat b6,ok again did sifijrt. — Spenser.
Ye sacred b6,rds that to your b^i'ps' mel6dious strings
Sung th' S,ncicnt heroes' deeds, the m6numents of kings ;
If, ds those Drtiids tatight who kept the British rites,
And dwelt in darksome groves, there counscHhig with sprites,
Wlien these our soAls by death our bodies do forsake.
They instantly again to other bodies take,
I could have wish'd your sotils redoubled in my brodst,
To give my verse applause to time's eternal rest.— Drayton.
686 CHIEF ENGLISH METRES.
§ 819. Seven measures. Formulas x a x 7, and a; a x 7 + .
But one request I make to Him that Bits the skies above,
That I were freely out of debt as I ■were out of love ;
Oh, tlicu to dance and sinp; and plaj- I should be very wUling,
I"d never owe a maid a kiss, and ne'er a luiavc a sliilling.
Suckling.
§ 820. Eight measures. Formulas a; «, x 8, and a; a x 8 + .
Where Virtue wants and Vice abounds, and wealth is but a baited
hook
^\^lerewith men swallow down the bane before on danger dark they
look.
§ 821. Verses fw'TYied uyon the Third Measure, or a x x. —
Verses formed upon measure a x x are neither frequent nor
regular. Generally there is the deficiency of some unaccented
syllable in which the formula is reduced to a x x — which may
be confounded with the first measure, or a x. The point to
determine is, whether the general character of the verse be tri-
syllabic or dissyllabic.
§ 822. Two measures. Formulas ax x x 2, and a x xx
2 — . Of these the latter is most common. Not only one of
the unaccented syllables, but even both of them are frequently
wantinof at the end of lines.
Where shall the lover rest,
^\ni6m the Fates sever,
From his true maiden's breast,
Pai-ted for ever ?
\Miere through gi-6ves deep and high.
Sounds the far billow ;
^^^lere early violets die
U'nder the willow. — Scott.
O'ft have I seen the sun.
To do her honour.
Fix himself at his noon
To look upon her,
And hath gUt ev'iy gi'ove
E'v'iy liill near her,
With his flames from above,
Stri\Tng to cheer her.
A'nd when she from liis sight
Hath herself tlirn'd,
He, as it had been night,
I'n clouds hath moumd.— Duaytox.
CHIEF ENGLISH METRES. 687
§ 823. Three measures. Formulas a x x x S, and ax x x S — .
Peace to thee, isle of the ocean,
Peace to thy breezes and billows ! — Byron.
§ 824. Four Measures. Formulas a x x x 4<, and a a; a? x 4 — .
Merrily, merrily sh^ll I live now
Under the blossom that haugs on the botigh. — Shakspeare.
Warriors or cliiefs, should the shaft or the sw6rd
Pierce me in leadiog the host of the Lord,
Heed not the corpse, though a king's in your path,
Buiy yoiu" steel in the bosoms of Gath.
(2.)
Th6u, who art bedruig my bfi-ckler and bow,
Should the soldiers of Saul look away from the foe,
LS,y me that moment in blood at thy feet,
Mine be the doom that they dare not to meet.
(3.)
Farewell to 6thers, but never we part,
Heir to my r6yalty, son of my heart ;
Bright be the diadem, boundless the swiy.
Or kingly the death that awaits us to-day. — Byron.
§ 825. Verses formed upon the Fourth Measure, or x a x. —
Verses of a single measure are equivocal, since x a x cannot be
distingui.slied from x a + , and x a x— is identical in form with
X a. The general character of the verses in the neighbourhood
determine, whether measures of this sort shall be looked upon
as dissyllabic or trisyllabic.
§ 826. Two measures. Formulas « a a; x 2, and « a a? x 2 — .
Beside her are laid
Her mattock and spade —
Alone she is there,
Her shoulders are bare —
E'ver alone
She maketh her moan.— Tennyson.
But vainly thou warrest;
For this is alone in
Thy power to declare.
That, in the dim forest.
Thou hoard'st a low mo&.ning. — Coi.ertdge.
GSS CHIEF ENGLISH METRES.
§ 827. Three measures. Formulas x a x x 3, and x ax x S
I've fotiud out a gift for my f^ii' ;
I've found whcro the wood-pigeons brood :
But lot me tluit plunder forbear ;
She'll s^iy 't was a barbarous deed.
He no'er could be ti'6e, she averr'd,
Who [would] r6b a poor bird of its y6img ;
[And] 1 16ved her the more when I hcS,rd
Such tenderness fall from her tongue. — Shenstone.
A c6nquest how h4rd and how glorious ;
Though fate had fast bound her,
With Styx nine times round her,
Yet music and love were victorious. — Pope.
§ 828. Four measures. Formulas x a x x 4;, and xax x 4!-
The ■w6rld will not change, and her heai-t will not break.
Tennyson.
Remember the gl6ries of Brian the brave. — Mooee.
Oh h<ish thee, my babie, thy sire was a knight,
TJiy mother a lady both lovely and bright :
The woods, and the glens, and the towers which we see.
They all are belonging, dear babie, to thee. — Scott.
I ask not the j)leasures that riches suj)ply.
My sabre must win what the weaker must buy :
[It] shall van the fail' bride with her long flowing haii',
And many a maid from her mother shall tear.
I love the fair face of the maid in her youth,
[Her] caresses shall lull me, her music shall soothe.
[Let] her bring to my chamber the many-toned lyi'e,
And sing me a song on the fall of her sii'e. — Byron.
Oh ! yoiing Lochinv4r is come out of the west :
Tlu'ough all the wide border his steeds are the best ;
And, save Ms good broadsword, he weapons had none,
He rode all uuarm'd, and he rode all alone.
So faithful in love, and so gallant in war,
[Did] ye e'6r hear of bridegroom like young Lochinv^r? — Scott.
[Thanks.] my L6rd, for your ven'son; for finer nor fS,tter
Ne'er ranged in the forest nor smoked on the platter :
The flesh was a picture for painters to study,
The fat was so white, and the lean was so ruddy.
[Though] my stomach was shai^), I could scarce help regretting
To spoil such a delicate picture by eatiirg. — Goldsmith.
CHIEF ENGLISH METRES. 689
§ 829. Verses formed upon the Fifth Measure, or x x a.
1. Formula x x a.
As ye sweep
Tlu'ougli the deep. — Campbell.
Usually —
As ye sweep, through the deep.
§ 830. Formula x x ax 2.
In my rage shall be seen
The revenge of a queen. — Addison.
§ 831. Formula x x ax 3.
Mixed with 2.
See the snakes how they rear,
How they hiss in the air,
And the sparldes they flash from theu* eyes. — Dryden.
§ 832. Formula x x a x 4.
And the king seized a flambeau with zeal to destroy. — Dryden.
8 833. Formula x x a y. 5.^ -r, .„ ,
^ ^ , ^ Y Kare, it real.
Jbormula x x a x b. )
Formula x x a xl — .
Now he rode on the w^ves of the wide rolling sea, and he forayed round like
a hdwk.
It is only the postulate of p. 668, in respect to the efi'ect of
a rhyme or its absence, that makes this a single line rather
than two.
§ 834. Nomenclature of English metres. — It is only a few
of the English metres that are known by fixed names. They
are as follows : —
1 . Oay's Stanza. — Lines of three measures, x a, with
alternate rhymes. The odd {i. e. the 1st and 3rd) rhymes
double.
'T was when the seas were roaring
With hollow blasts of wind,
A damsel lay deploring.
All on a rock reclined.
2. Com/mon Octosyllabics. — Foui' measures, x a, with rhyme
and (unless the rhymes be double) eight syllables {octo syllaboe).
Y Y
(J 90 CHIEF ENGLISH ]\IETRES.
— Butler's Hadihras, Scott's poems, The Giaour, and other
poems of Lord Byron.
3. Elegiac Ocfosyllahics. — Same as the last, except that the
rhymes are regularly alternate, and the verses arranged in
stanzas.
And on her lover's ann she leant,
And round her waist she felt it fold,
And far across the liills they went.
In that new world which now is old;
Across the hills and far awa3^
Bej'ond thcii' utmost pui"ple rim.
And deep into the djdng day
The happy princess follow'd him. — Texxyson.
4. Octosyllah'ic Triplets. — Three rhymes in succession. Ge-
nerally arranged as stanzas.
I blest them, and they wander'd on ;
I spoke, but answer came there none :
The didl and bitter voice was gone. — Tennyson.
5. Blank Verse. — Five measures, a? «, without rhyme. Para-
dise Lost, Young's Night Thoughts, Cowper's Task.
6. Heroic Couplets. — Five measures, x a, with pairs of
rhymes. Chaucer, Denhara, Dryden, Waller, Pope, Goldsmith,
Cowper, Byron, Moore, Shelle}-, &c. This is the common metre
for narrative, didactic, and descriptive poetry.
7. Heroic Trvplets. — Five measm-es, x a. Three rhymes in
succession. Arranged in stanzas. This metre is sometimes in-
terposed among heroic couplets.
8. Elegiacs. — Five measures, « a, with regularly-alternate
rhymes, and arranged in stanzas.
The curfew toUs the Icnell of jjarting day,
The lo'RTng herds wind slowly o'er the lea,
The ploughman homeward plods his weaiy way,
And leaves the world to dai-kness and to me. — Gray.
9. Rhymes Royal. — Seven lines of heroics, with the last
two rhymes in succession, and the first five recurring at in-
tervals.
This Troilus, in gift of cm'tesie,
"With hank on hond, and with a huge rout
Of knightes, rode, and did her company,
Passing all through the valley far about ;
And further would have ridden out of doubt.
Full faiue and woe was liim to gone so sone ;
But turn he must, and it was eke to doen. — Chaucer.
CHIEF ENGLISH METRES. 691
This metre was common with the writers of the earlier part
of Queen Elizabeth's reign. It admits of varieties according
to the distribution of tlie first five rhymes.
10. Ottava Rima. — A metre with an Italian name, and bor-
rowed from Italy, where it is used generally for narrative
poetry. The Morgante Maggiore of Pulci, the Orlando
Innamorato of Bojardo, the Orlando Furioso of Ariosto, the
Gierusalemme Liber ata of Tasso, are all written in this
metre. Besides this, the two chief epics of Spain and Portugal
respectively (the Araucaiuij and the Os Lusiados) are thus
composed. Hence it is a form of poetry which is Continental
rather than English, and naturalized rather than indigenous.
The stanza consists of eight lines of heroics, the six first rhym-
ing alternately, the last two in succession.
Arrived there, a prodigious noise he hears,
Which suddenly along the forest spread ;
Whereat fi'om out his quiver he prepares
An arrow for liis how, and lifts his head ;
And, lo ! a monstrous herd of swine appears,
And onward rushes mth tempestuous tread,
And to the fountain's hrink precisely pours,
So that the giant 's join'd by all the boars.
Morgante Mag(jiore (Lord Bykon's Translation).
1 1 . Terza Rima.. — Like the last, borrowed both in name
and nature from the ItaHan, and scarcely yet naturalized in
England.
The Sph'it of the fervent days of old,
When words were things that came to pass, and Thought
Flash'd o'er the future, bidding men behold
Their cliildi-eu's children's doom akeady brought
Forth fi-om the abyss of Time which is to be,
The Chaos of events where Ue half-wi"ought
Shapes that must imdergo mortahty :
What the great seers of Israel wore witliin.
That Spuit was on them and is on me ;
And if, Cassandra-hke, amidst the din
Of conflicts, none will hear, or hearuig heed
This voice from out the Wilderness, the sin
Be theirs, and my owai feeUngs be my meed,
The only guerdon I have ever known.
12. Alexandrines. — Six measures, x a, generally (perhaps
always) with rhyme. The name is said to be taken from the
fact that early romances upon the deeds of Alexander of
T Y 2
6i)'2 SYMMETRICAL, UNSYMMETRICAL,
Macedon, of great popularity, were written in this metre. . One
of the longest poems in the English language is in Alexandrines,
viz. Drayton's PoUy-oUnon.
13. Spenserian Stanza. — A stanza consisting of nine lines,
the eight first heroics, the last an Alexandrine.
It hath been through all ages ever seen,
That \vith the prize of arms and cluvalrie
The prize of beauty still hath jomecl been.
And for that reason's special privitie ;
For either doth on other much rely.
For he meseems most fit the fair to sei've
That can her best defend from villanie ;
And she most fit his ser\dce doth deserve
That fairest is, and from her faith will never swerve.
Spenser.
Childe Harold and other important poems are composed
in the Spenserian stanza.
] 4. Service Metre. — Couplets of seven measures, x a. This
is the common metre of the Psalm versions. It is also called
Common Measure, or Long Measure.
15. Ballad Stanza, — Service metres broken up in the way
suggested in p. 668. Goldsmith's Edvdn and Angelina, &c.
1 6. Poulterer s Measure. — Alexandrines and service metre
alternately. Found in the poetry of Henry the Eighth's
timt-
No other amongst the numerous English metres have hitherto
received names.
CHAPTER VII.
RYMMRTRICAL, UNSYMMETEICAL, AND CONVERTIBLE METRES. —
RHYTHM.
§ 835. Metre is the recurrence, within certain interv^als, of
syllables similarly affected.
The particular way in which syllables are affected in English
metres is that of accent.
The more regular the period at which similar accents recur
the more typical the metre.
AND CONVERTIBLE METRES. — RHYTHM. 693
Nevertheless absolute regularity is not requisite.
This leads to the difference between symmetrical and unsyni-
metrical metres.
§ 836. Symmetrical Metres. — Allowing for indifference of the
number of syllables in the last measure, it is evident that in all
lines where the measures are dissyllabic the syllables will be a
multiple of the accents, i. e. they will be twice as numerous.
Hence, with three accents there are six syllables ; with four
accents, eight syllables, &c.
Similarly, in all lines where the measures are trisyllabic the
syllables will also be multiples of the accents, i. e. they will be
thrice as numerous. Hence, with three accents there will be
nine syllables, with four accents, twelve syllables, and with
seven accents, twenty-one syllables.
Lines of this sort may be called symmetrical.
§ 837. Unsymmetrical Metres. — Lines, where the syllables
are not a multiple of the accents, may be called unsymmetrical.
Occasional specimens of such lines occur interspersed amongst
others of symmetrical character. Where this occurs the general
character of the versification may be considered as symmetrical
also.
The case, however, is different where the whole character of
the versification is unsj^mmetrical, as it is in the greater part of
Coleridge's Christahel and Byron's Siege of Corinth.
In tlie year since Jesus died for men,
Eighteen liundi'ed years and ten,
We were a gallant company'.
Fading o'er land and sailing o'er sea.
O'h ! but wc went men-ily' !
We forded the river, and clomb the high hill.
Never our steeds for a dciy stood still.
Whether we Vaj in the cave or the shed,
Om- sleep fell soft on the hardest bed ;
Whether we coiich'd on oixr rough cap6te.
Or the rougher planks of om- gliduig boat ;
Or stretch'd on the beach, or om* saddles si)read
As a pillow beneath the resting head,
Fresh we woke upon the moiTOw.
A'll our thoughts and words had scope.
We had health and we had hope,
Toil and travel, blit no sorrow.
Here the formula is —
X X a X a X a x a
a X a X a x a
(il)4 SYMMETRICAL, UNSYMMETRICAL,
(( .(■ .1" a .«• a .(• ti
(I X X a X (I X X a
a X a X (I X X
X a X X a X X a x x a
X X X a X X a x a
a X X a X X a X X a
X a X a X X a x a
a X X a X X a X a
X X a X a X X a x a
xaxxaxxaxa
xxaxxaxaxa
a X a X a X a X
a X a X a X a
a X a X a X a
a X a X a X a x
These lines are naturally trisyllabic ; from any measure of which
one of the unaccented syllables may be ejected. Where they
are symmetrical they are so by accident.
A metrical fiction, that conveniently illustrates their struc-
ture, is the doctrine that they are lines formed upon oneasure
X a X, for luJiich either x x a or a x x may he suhstituted, and.
from, which either a x or x a may he formed hy ejection of
either the first or last unaccented syllable.
§ 838. Convertihle Metres. — Such a line as
Ere her faitliless sons betray'cl her
may be read in two ways. We may either lay full stress upon
the word ere, and read
E're her faithless sons betray'cl her ;
or we may lay little or no stress upon either ere or her, reserv-
ing the full accentuation for the syllable faith- in faithless, in
wliich case the reading would be
Ere her faithless sons betrav'd her.
Lines of this sort may be called examples of convertihle metres,
since, by changing the accent, a dissyllabic line may be con-
verted into one partially trisyllabic, and vice versa.
This property of convertibility is explained by the fact of
accentuation being a relative cjuality. In the example before
us ere is sufficiently strongly accented to stand in contrast to
her, but it is not sufficiently strongly accented to stand upon a
par with the faith- in faithless if decidedly pronounced.
The real character of convertible lines is determined from
the character of the lines with which they are associated.
AND CONVERTIBLE METRES. — RHYTHM. 695
That the second mode of reading the line in question is the
pi'oper one, may be shown by reference to the stanza wherein it
occurs.
Let E'rin remember her days of old,
Ere her faitliless sons betraj^'d her,
When Malaclu wore the collar of gold
Wliich he w6u fi'om the pr6ud iuYader.
Again, such a line as
For the glory I have lost,
although it may be read
For the glory I have lost,
would be read improperly. The stanza wherein it occurs is
essentially dissyllabic {a x).
Heed, oh, heed my fatal st6ry !
I' am Hosier's injured ghost.
Come to seek for fame and glory —
For the glory I' have lost.
§ 889. Metrical and Grammatical Combinations. — Words,
or parts of words, that are combined as measures, are words,
or parts of words, combined metrically, or in metrical combina-
tion.
Syllables combined as words, or words combined as portions
of a sentence, are syllables and words grammatically combined,
or in gramm,atical combination.
The syllables ere her faith- form a metrical combination.
The words her faithless sons form a grammatical combina-
tion.
When the syllables contained in the same measure (or con-
nected metricall}^) are also contained in the same construction
(or connected gram matic ally), the metrical and the grammatical
combinations coincide. Such is the case with the line
Remember | the glories | of Brian | the Brave ;
where the same division separates both the measure and the
subdivisions of the sense, inasmuch as the word the is connected
with the w^ord glories equally in grammar and in metre, in
syntax and in prosody. So is of with Brian, and tJie with
Brave.
t)96 SYMMETRICAL METRE. — RHYTHM.
Coutratit Avitli this such a line as
A cliicftain to the Highlands bound.
Here the metrical division is one thing, the grammatical divi-
sion another, and tliere is no coincidence.
Metrical,
A cliicf I tain t6 | the High | lauds b6imd.
Grammatical,
A cliieftain | to the Higlilands | bound.
In the following stanza the coincidence of the metrical and
grammatical combination is nearly complete : —
To dnus ! to ai-ms ! The serfs, they roam
O'er hill, and dale, and glen :
The king is dead, and time is c6me
To clio6se a cliief again.
In
Warriors or chiefs, should the slidft or the sw6rd
Pierce me in leading the h6st of the L6rd,
Heed not the corpse, though a king 's in yom* path,
Bi'uy jova- steel in the b6soms of Gdth. — Byron.
there is a non-coincidence equally complete.
§ 840. Mhython. — The character of a metre is marked and
prominent in proportion as the metrical and the grammatical
combinations coincide. The extent to which the measure
« X X is the basis of the stanza last quoted is concealed by the
antagonism of the metre and the construction. If it were not
for the axiom, that every onetre is to be considered uniform
until there is proof to the contrary, the lines might be divided
thus : —
ax X a X X a x x a
ax X a X X a X x a
ax X a X X a x x a
ax X a X a X x a
The variety which arises in vei'sification fi'om the different
degrees between the coincidence and the non-coincidence be-
tween the metrical and grammatical combinations may be called
Rhythrii.
§ 841. The majority of English tvords are of the form a x ;
ENGLISH ANALOGUES OF THE CLASSICAL METRES. 697
that is, words like tyrant are commoner than words like i^re-
smne.
The majority of English metres are of the form x a ; that is,
lines like
The \;ky was 16ng, the wind was cold,
are commoner than lines like
Queen and huntress, chd,ste and fair.
The multitude of unaccentuated words like the, from, &c.,
taken along with the fact that they precede the words with
which they agree, or which they govern, accounts for the
apparent antagonism between the formulae of our words and
the formulae of our metres. The contrast between a Swedish
line of the form a x, and its literal English version in x a,
shows this.
In Swedish the secondary part of the construction follows,
in English it precedes the main word.
Swedish.
\&ren komiRer, fdglen quittrar, sk6v£'/i 16'fv(/s, solen ler.
Enfflish.
The spring is come, the bu'd is blj-the, the wood is green, the sun is bright.
In this way Syntax affects Prosody.
CHAPTER VIII.
ENGLISH ANALOGUES OF THE CLASSICAL METRES.
§ 842. The Classical Metres as read by Englishmen. — The
metres of the classical languages consist essentially in the
recurrence of similar quantities ; accent inlaying a part. — Now
there are reasons for investigating the facts involved in this
statement more closely than has hitherto been done ; since the
following circumstances make some inquiry into the extent of
the differences between the English and the classical systems of
metre, an appropriate eleuient of a word upon the English lan-
guage.
698 ENGLISH ANALOGUES OF
1. The classical poets are authors pre-eminently familiarized
to the educated English reader.
2. The notions imbibed from a study of the classical pro-
sodies have been unduly mixed up with those which should liave
been derived more especially from the poetry of the German
nations.
3. The attempt to introduce (so-called) Latin and Greek
metres into the German tongues, has been partially successful on
the Continent, and not unattempted in Great Britain.
The first of these statements requires no comment.
The second will bear some illustration. The English gram-
marians sometimes borrow the classical terms, iambic, trochee,
kc, and apply them to their own metres.
How is this done ? In two ways, one of which is wholly
incorrect, the other partially correct, but inconvenient.
To imagine that we have in English, for the practical purposes
of prosody, syllables long in quantity or short in quantity,
syllables capable of being arranged in groups constituting feet,
and feet adapted for the construction of hexametres, penta-
metres, sapphics, and alcaics, just as the Latins and Greeks had,
is wholly incorrect. The English system of versification is
founded, not upon the periodic recurrence of similar quantities,
but upon the periodic recurrence of similar accents.
The less incorrect method consists in giving up all ideas of
the existence of quantity, in the proper sense of the word, as an
essential element in English metre ; whilst we admit accent as
its equivalent ; in which case the presence of an accent is
supposed to have the same import as the lengthening, and the
absence of one, as the shortening, of a syllable ; so that, mu-
tatis mutandis, a is the equivalent to — , and x to ".
In this case the metrical notation for —
The wdy was long, tlie wind was cold —
Meiiily, merrily, shdU. I Uve n6w —
would be, not-
respectively, but —
X a, X a, X a, x a
(Xi \JC 20 ^ Ct 3C *JUj Ct OC <x7j W
Again —
is not —
but—
CLASSICAL METRES. 699
As they splAsli in the blood of the slippery street,
X X a, X X a, x x a, x x a.
With this view there are a certain number of classical feet,
with their syllables affected in the way of quantity, to which
there are equivalent English "measures with their syllables af-
fected in the way of accent. Thus if the formula
A, " " be a classical, the formula a x is an English trochee.
B," " „ ,, xa „ iamlms.
c, " " " „ ,, a X X „ dactyle.
D, " " „ „ X a X ,, amphibrachys.
E," " " „ „ X X a „ anapast.
And so on in respect to the larger groups of similarly-
affected syllables which constitute whole lines and stanzas ;
verses like
A. Come to seek for fame and glory —
B. The way \yas long, the ^vlud was cold —
c. Merrily, merrily, shall I live now —
D. But vainly thou warrest —
E. At the close of the day when the hamlet is still —
are (a), trochaic ; (b), iambic ; (c), dactylic ; (d), amphibrachych ;
and (e), nnapsestic, respectively.
And so, with the exception of the word ampJiibrachych (which
I do not remember to have seen), the terms have been used. And
so, with the same exception, systems of versification have been
classified.
§ 843. Reasons against the classical nomenclature as ap-
pliecl to English metres. — These lie in the two following
facts : —
1. Certain English metres have often a very different cha-
racter from their supposed classical analogues.
2. Certain classical feet have no English equivalents.
1. Compare such a so-called English anapaest as —
As tlioy splash in the blood of tlic slippery street —
with
700 ENGLISH ANALOGUES OF
For the latter line to have such a movement as the former, it
must be read thus —
Dekat6n men et6s to cV cpoi I'riamou.
Now we know well that, whatever may be an English scholar's
notions of the Greek accents, this is not the way in which he
reads Greek anapaests.
Again : the trochaic movement of the ianiblc senarius is a
point upon which the most exclusive Greek metrists have in-
sisted ; urging the necessity of reading (for example) the first
line in the Hecuba —
Hfe'ko nela'ou keutlimoua kai skotou pykis.
rather than —
Haiko nekron keutkmona kai skotou pj^las.
I have said that certain English metres have often a very
different metrical character, &c. I can strengthen the reasons
against the use of classical terms in English prosody, by en-
larging upon the word often. The frequency of the occurrence
of a difference of character between classical and English
metres similarly named is not a matter of accident, but is, in
many cases, a necessity arising out of the structure of the
English language as compared with that of the Greek and
Latin — especially the Greek.
With the exception of the so-called second futures, there is
no word in Greek whereof the last syllable is accented.
Hence, no English line ending with an accented syllable can
have a Greek equivalent. Accent for accent —
Oreeli. Latin. English.
Typto, V6co, = Tyrant,
Typtomen, Scribere, ^ Merrily,
Keutlimona, Vidistis, = Disable,
but no Greek word (with the exception of the so-called second
futures like veyuG) = nemo), and (probably) no Latin word at all,
is accented like presume and cavalier.
From tliis it follows that although the first three measures of
such so-called English anapaests as —
As they splash in the blood of the slipper}"- street,
THE CLASSICAL METRES. 701
may be represented by Greek equivalents (^. e. equivalents in the
way of accent) —
Ep" omoisi feiousi ta kleina prosop' *■ — ■
a parallel to the last measure {-ery street) can only be got at
by one of two methods ; i. e. by making the verse end in a
so-called second future, or else in a vowel preceded by an ac-
cented syllable, and cut off — •
Ep' om6isi ferousi ta kleina nemo —
or,
Ep' omoisi fer6usi ta kleina prosop'.*
Now it is clear that when, over and above the fact that certain
Greek metres having a different movement from their supposed
English equivalents, there is the additional circumstance of
such an incompatibility being less an accident than a neces-
sary effect of difference of character in the two languages, the
use of terms suggestive of a closer likeness than either does
or never can exist is to be condemned ; and this is the case
with the words dactylic, trochaic, iambic, anapoistic, as applied
to English versification.
2. Whoever has considered the principles of English prosody,
must have realized the important fact that, ex vi termini,
no English measure ca.n have either more or less than one
accented syllable.
On the other hand, the classical metrists have several mea-
sures wherein there is more than one long syllable. Thus, to
go no farther than the trisyllabic feet, we have the pyrrhic
("" ) and tribach ( "") without a long syllable at all, and the
spondee ( ), amphimacer (- -, and molossus ( ) with
more than one. It follows then, that (even mutatis mutandis,
i. e. with the accent considered as the equivalent to the long
syllable) English pyrrhics, English tribachs, English amphima-
cers, English epondees, and English molossi, are, each and all,
prosodial impossibilities.
It is submitted to the reader that the latter reason (based
wholly upon the limitations that arise out of the structure
■* For prosdpa. The Greek has heen transliterated into English for the sake of
showing the effect of the accents more conveniently.
702 ENGLISH ANALOGUES OP
of language) strengthens the objections of the previous sec-
tion.
§ S-i-i. The classical metres metrical even to English reruhrs.
— The attention of the reader is directed to the difficulty in-
volved in the following (apparently or partially) contradictory
facts.
1. Accent and quantity differ; and the metrical systems
founded upon them differ also.
2. The classical sj^stems are founded upon quantity.
3. The English upon accent.
4. Nevertheless, notwithstanding the difference of the prin-
ciple upon which they are constructed, the classical metres,
even as read by Englishmen, and read accentually, are metrical
to English ears.
Preliminary to the investigation of the problem in question it
is necessary to remark —
1. That the correctness or incorrectness of the English
pronunciation of the dead languages -has nothing to do with
the matter. Whether we read Homer exactly as Homer
would read his own immortal poems, or whether we read them
in such a way as would be unintelligible to Homer reappearing
upon earth, is perfectly indifferent.
2. That whether we pronounce the anapaes pcituloi, precisely
as we pronounce the dactyle T'ttyre, or draw a distinction be-
tween them, is also indifferent. However much, as is done in
some of the schools, we may say scri-here rather than scrih-ere,
or ani-OT, rather than a-mor, under the notion that we are
lengthening or shortening certain syllables, one unsurmount-
able dilemma still remains, viz. that the shorter we pronounce
the vowel, the more we suggest the notion of the consonant
which follows it being doubled ; whilst double consonants
lengthen the vowel which precedes them. Hence, whilst it
is certain that iJatulce and Tityre may be pronounced (and that
without hurting the metre) so as to be both of the same quan-
tity, it is doubtful what that quantity is. Sound for sound,
Tityre may be as short as patulcB. Sound for sound, pattidca
may be as long as Tlttyre.
Hence, the only assumptions requisite are —
«. That Englishmen do not read the classical metres accord-
ing to their quantities.
h. That, nevertheless, they find metre in them.
§ 845. Why are the classical metres metrical to English
THE CLASSICAL METRES. 703
readers ! — Notwithstanding the extent to which quantity
differs from accent, there is no metre so exclusively founded
upon the former as to be without a cei-tain amount of the
latter ; and in the majority (at least) of the classical (and
probably other) metres there is a sufficient amount of accentual
elements to constitute metre ; even independent of the quant itou-
tive ones.
§ 846, Many (perhaps all) classical metres on a level
with the unsymmetrical English ones. — The following is the
notation of the extract from the Siege of Corinth in the
preceding chapter : —
xxaxaxax a
a X a X a X a
axxaxaxa
a X X a X a X X a
d X a X a X X
X a X X a X X a X X a
a X X a X X a X a
axxaxxaxxa
xaxaxxaxa
axxaxxaxa
X a X X a X X a x a
X X a X X a X a X a
a X a X a X a X
a X a X a X a
a X a X a X a
axaxaxax
Now many Latin metres present a recurrence of accent little
more irregular than the quotation just analyzed. The following
is the accentual formula of the first two stanzas of the second
ode of the first Book of Horace.
1.
Accentual Formula of the Latin Sapphic.
a a X a X \ a X ax ax
a X X a X \ a X ax ax
a X X a X \ a X ax ax
a X X ax
a X X a X \ a X ax ax
axxax\axaxax
a, X X a X \ a X ax ax
a X X a X
704 ENGLISH ANALOGUES OP
2.
Latin AscJepiad.
Horace, Od. I. i. l-fi.
.r a X a x x \ a x x a x x
a X X a X X \ a x ax ax
ax a X a x \ a x x a x''x
ax ax a X \ a X X a x x
ax ax a X \ a X X a x x
X a X a X X \ a X X a X a X
3.
Latin Hexameter.
^n. I. 1-5.
ax X a X ax ax x a x x ax
X a X X a X a x x x a x x ax
a X X X a X a x x x a x x ax
X a X X a X x x x x a x x ax
A longer list of examples would show us that, throughout the
whole of the classical metres, the same accents recur, sometimes
with less, and sometimes with but very little more irregularity
than they recur in the unsynimetrical metres of our own lan-
guage ; and this in a prosody based upon quantity.
§ 847. Conversion of ErKjlish into classical metres. In the
preface to his Translation of Aristophanes, Mr. Walsh has shown,
that, by a different distribution of lines, very fair hexameters
may be made out of the well-known lines on the Burial of Sir
John Moore : —
Not a drum was
Heard, not a funeral note, as Ms corse to the rampart we hm-ried,
Not a soldier dis-
charged his farewell shot o'er the grave where our hero we bmied.
«
We buiied him
Darkly at dead of night, the sods mth oiu' bayonets turning ;
By the struggling
Moonbeams' misty hght, and the lantern dunly bimiiiig.
Lightly they '11
Talk of the spmt that 's gone, and o'er liis cold ashes uj)braid hun ;
But little he '11
Reck if they let liim sleej) on in the grave where a Briton has laid him.
Again, such lines as Coleridge's —
1. Make ready my grave clothes to-rnorrow ;
i
THE CLASSICAL METRES. 705
or Shelley's —
2. Liquid Peneus was fl6wing,
are the exact analogues of lines like —
1. Jam l&cte deplalsuin leonem,
and —
2. Gr§.to Py'iTha sub 6,ntro.
The rationale of so remarkable a phenomenon as regularity
of accent in verses considered to have been comj^osed with a
vietv to quantity only has yet to be investigated. That it was
necessary to the structure of the metres in question is certain ;
a fact which lead us to the consideration of the cesura.
§ 848. The cesura of the classical metrists is the result of —
1. The necessity in the classical metres of an accented syl-
lable in certain parts of the verses.
2. The nearly total absence in the classical languages of
words with an accent on the last syllable.
From the joint effect of these two causes, it follows that in
certain parts of a verse no final syllable can occur, i. e. no word
can terminate.
Thus, in a language consisting chiefly of dissyllables, of
which the first alone was accented, and in a metre which required
the sixth syllable to be accented, the fifth and seventh would
each be at the end of words, and that simply because the sixth
was not.
Whilst in a language consisting chiefly of either dissyl-
lables or trisyllables, and in a metre of the same sort as before,
if the fifth were not final, the seventh would be so, or vice
versa.
Cesura means cutting. In a language destitute of words
accented on the last syllable, and in a metre requiring the sixth
syllable to be accented, a measure (foot) of either the formula
X a, or X X a {i. e. a measure with the accent at the end), except
in the case of words of four or more syllables, must always be
either itself divided, or else cause the division of the following
measures — division meaning the distribution of the syllables of
the measure (foot) over two or more words. Thus —
a. If the accented syllable (the sixth) be the first of a word
of any length, the preceding one (the fifth) must be the final one
of the word which went before ; in which case the first and last
z z
70(5 ENGLISH ANALOGUES OF
]>arts belong to diftercut words, and the measure (foot) is divided
or cut.
h. If the accented syllable (the sixth) be the second of a word
of three syllables, the succeeding one, which is at the end of the
word, is the first part of the measure which follows ; in which
case the fa\st and last parts of the measure (foot) which follows
the accented S3'llable are divided or cut.
As the cesura, or the necessity for dividing certain measures
between two words, arises out of the structure of language, it
only occurs in tongues where there is a notable absence of words
accented on the last syllable. Consequently there is no cesura
in the English.
§ 849. As far as accent is concerned, the classical poets write
in measures rather than feet.
Although the idea of writing English hexameters, «foc., on the
principle of an accent in a measure taking the place of the long-
syllables in a foot, is chimerical, it is perfectly practicable to
write English verses upon the same principle which the classics
themselves have written on, i. e. with accents recurring within
certain limits ; in which case the so-called classical metre is
merely an unsymmetrical verse of a new kind. This may be
either blank verse or rhyme.
The chief reason against the naturalization of metres of the
sort in question (over and above the practical one of our having
another kind in use already), lies in the fact of their being per-
plexing to the readers who have not been trained to classical
cadences, whilst they suggest and violate the idea of quantity
to those who have.
§ 850. Of all metres that of English blank verse is the
simplest. Perhaps throughout the whole range of literature and
art, no style of composition equally simple and severe can be
found, the 'paucity of rules being the measure of the simplicity
and severity.
A single rule gives the form of a noble metre — this rule being
that on every even syllable there shall he an accent.
More than this is unnecessary. With this a poem of the
magnitude of the Paradise Lost may be written — the licences
and accessory ornaments that lie beyond being unnecessary and
unimportant. This will become clearer when we have realized
the fact that in Euo:lish blank verse, even the division into lines
is unnecessary, except so far as it is required for the division of
words and the breaks in the sense.
THE CLASSICAL METRES. 707
With these the end of lines sliould coincide. If it were not
so, the whole of such a poem as the Paradise Lost might form
one line of indefinite length. In certain Greek metres this is
the case. So complete is each part in itself, that the metre may-
be taken up anywhere, and all the lines cohere together — this
cohesion being called Synapheia {^= connection).
In English blank verse there is a Synapheia of the same kind.
NOTE.
For the sake of showing the extent to which the accentual
element must be reccgnized in the classical metres, I reprint the
following paper On the Doctrine of the Cesura in the Greek
Senarius, from the Transactions of the Philological Society,
June 23, 1843 : —
In respect to the Cesura of the Greek tragic senarius, the
rules, as laid down by Person in the Supplement to his Preface
to the Hecuba, and as recognized, more or less, by the English
school of critics, seem capable of a more general expression,
and, at the same time, liable to certain limitations in regard to
fact. This becomes apparent when we investigate the principle
that serves as the foundation to these rules ; in other words,
when we exhibit the rationale, or doctrine, of the cesura in
question. At this we can arrive by taking cognizance of a
second element of metre beyond that of quantity.
It is assumed that the element in metre which goes, in works
of different writers, under the name of ictus metricus, or of
arsis, is the same as accent, i7i the sense of that word in Eng-
lish. It is this that constitutes the difference between words
like tyrant and resume, or survey and survey ; or (to take more
convenient examjiles) between the word August, used as the
name of a month, and august, used as an adjective. Without
inquiring how far this coincides with the accent and accentuation
of the classical grammarians, it may be stated that, in the forth-
coming pages, arsis, ictus metricus, and accent (in the English
sense of the word), mean one and the same thing. With this
view of the arsis, or ictus, we may ask how far, in each parti-
cular foot of the senarius, it coincides with the quantity.
First Foot. — In the first place, of a tragic senarius it is a
matter of indifference whether tlie arsis fixll on the first or second
syllable ; that is, it is a matter of indifference whether the foot
be sounded as tyrant or as resume, as August or as august. In
70S ENGLISH ANALOGUES OF
thelbllowint:; liiifs tlic words ?)«•«, TraXni, €i7rep rivas, iiMiy he pro-
nounced either ;is o/kw. ircXai, eiirep, rt vas, or as i]kw ^ 7rn\ai ,
enrep\ jivas, without any detriment to the character of the
line wherein they occur.
'II'ko) viKpmv KtvBjxava Km (Tkotov wv^as.
Da'Kai KVP'qyfTovvTa Kai jifrpovinvov.
Ya'tup bLKciins (a6 f/ios to Trarpodev.
Ti'vas 770(9' e8pai T«rr8e fioi Boa^ere.
or,
'Hkco viKpccv KexiBiimva Kai ctkotov Trt/Xar.
HdKai KvvrjyfTovvTa Kai [lerpovfievov.
EiTTcp' biKaios ecrd' efios ra jrarpoSev.
Tiva's TVoG' iBpas racrSe poi Goa^ere.
Second Foot. — In the second place, it is also matter of indif-
ference whether the foot be sounded as August or as augfid.
In the first of the four lines quoted above we may say either
veKpcov, or veKpco'v, without violating the rhythm of the verse.
Tltird Foot. — In this part of the senarius it is no longer a
matter of indifference whether the foot be sounded as A ugust or
as angust ; that is, it is no longer a matter of indifference whether
the arsis and the quantity coincide. In the circumstance that
the last syllable of the third foot ')nust be accented (in the Eng-
lish sense of the word), taken along with a second fact, soon
about to be exhibited, lies the doctrine of the penthimimer and
hepthimimer cesuras.
The proof of tlie coincidence between the arsis and the
quantity in the third foot is derived partly from ct 'posteriori,
partly from a priori evidence.
1 . In the Supplices of ^sehylus, the Persw, and the Baccltm,
three dramas where licences in regard to metre are pre-eminently
common, the number of lines wherein the sixth syllable (i. e. the
last half of the third foot) is without an arsis, is at the highest
sixteen, at the lowest five ; whilst in the remainder of the ex-
tant dramas the proportion is smaller.
2. In all lines where the sixth syllable is destitute of ictus,
the iambic character is violated : as —
QprfK-qv TTepatravTes [loyis TtoXKco nopco.
Avoiv yepovToi'v he CTTpaTTjyeLTai (pvyrj.
These are facts which may be verified eithei" by referring to the
tragedians, or by constructing senarii like the lines last quoted.
THE CLASSICAL METRES. 709
Tlie only difficulty that occurs arises in determining, in a dead
lanoua^e like the Greek, the absence or presence of the arsis.
In this matter the writer had satisfied himself of the truth of
the two following propositions : — 1 . That the accentuation of
the grammarians denotes some modification of pronunciation
other than that which constitutes the difference between August
and august ; since, if it were not so, the word ayyeXov would
be sounded like Qnerrily, and the word dyyeXwv like disable ;
which is improbable. 2. That the arsis lies upon radical rather
than inflectional syllables, and out of two inflectional syllables
upon the first rather than the second : as /SXe ir w ^e-<^ a cr-a,
not /3\e7r-ft)',,/SXei/r-ao--a'. The evidence upon these points is de-
rived from the structure of language in general ; where the onus
2>rohandi lies with the critic who presumes an arsis (accent in
the English sense) on a oioji- radical syllable.
Doubts, however, as to the pronunciation of certain words,
leave the precise number of lines violating the rules given above
undetermined. It is considered sufiicient to show that wherever
they occur the iambic character is violated.
The circumstance, however, of the last half of the third foot
requiring an arsis, brings us only half way towards the doctrine
of the cesura. With this must be combined a second fact
arising out of the constitution of the Greek language in respect
to its accent. In accordance with the views just exhibited, the
author conceives that no Greek word has an arsis upon the
last syllable, except in the three following cases : —
1. Monosyllables, not enclitic; as crcfxo v, ira s, ■^9co v, Bfj^oj s,
V(0 V, vv V, &c.
2. Circumflex futures ; as ve/jLco, re/ico, &c.
3. Words abbreviated by apocope ; in which case the penul-
timate is converted into a final syllable ; Ba)/ji\ ^eiSea 6 Kevret r ,
eyo) y , &c.
Now the fact of a. syllable with an arsis being, in Greek,
rarely final, taken along with that of the sixth syllable requiring,
in the senarius, an arsis, gives, as a matter of necessity, the cir-
cumstance that, in the Greek drama, the sixth syllable shall
occur anywhere rather than at the end of a word ; and this is
only another way of saying, that, in a tragic senarius, the sylla-
ble in question shall generally be followed by other syllables in
the same word. All this the author considers to be so truly a
matter of necessity, that the objection to his view of the Greek
cesura must lie either aaainst his idea of the nature of the
710 ENGLISH ANALOGUES OF
accents, or nowhere : since, that bemg admitted, the rest follows
of course.
As the sixth syllable must not be final, it must be followed
in the same word by one syllable, or by more than one.
1. Tlte sixth syllahle followed by one syllable in the same
^vord. — This is only another name for the seventh syllable occm*-
ring at the end of a word, and it gives at once the hepthimimer
cesura : as —
'Hkw veKpojv Kevdfict/va Kai ctkotov ttvXus.
'iKTrjjjiois /cXaSot aiv e^ecrTennevoi.
'OfjLov re TTiuavu) v re (cat (rrevaynarcov.
2. The sixth syllahle followed by two (or more) syllables in
the same word. — This is only another name for the eighth (or
some syllable after the eighth) syllable occurring at the end of a
word : as —
OSfxri ^poreia)!' al [laTcov fie npoayeXa,
Aafinpovs Si'vaoras ep,' TrpenovTas uidepi.
Now this arrangement of syllables, taken by itself, gives any-
thing rather than a hepthimimer ; so that if it were at this
point that our investigations terminated, little would be done
towards the evolution of the raiionale of the cesm-a. It will
appear, however, that in those cases where the circumstance of
the sixth syllable being followed by two others in the same
words, causes the eighth (or some syllable after the eighth) to
be final, either a penthimimer cesura, or an equivalent, will,
with but few exceptions, be the result. This we may prove by
taking the eighth syllable and counting back from it. What
follows this syllable is immaterial : it is the number of syllables
in the same word that precedes it that demands attention.
1. The eighth syllable preceded in the saine ^vord by nothing.
— This is equivalent to the seventh syllable at the end of the
preceding word ; a state of things which, as noticed above,
gives the hepthimimer cesura.
Avrjpi6p.ov yeXa'crp.a Trap,' p.T]rop Se yrj.
2. The eight! i syllable preceded in the same word by one
syllable. — This is equivalent to the sixth syllable at the end of
the word preceding ; a state of things which, as noticed above,
rarely occurs. When, however, it does occur, one of the three
conditions under which a final syllable can take an arsis nmst
accompany it. Each of these conditions requires notice.
THE CLASSICAL METRES. 713
a). With a non-enclitic mo^yio-sy liable the result is a penthi-
inimer cesura ; since the syllable preceding a monosyllable is
necessarily final.
'Hkco o-fjStfcui' (To'v KXvTailnvTjcTTpa Kparos.
No remark has been made by critics upon lines constructed in
this manner, since the cesura is a penthimimer, and consequently
their rules are undisturbed.
/S). With 2^0%-sy liable circumflex futures constituting the
third foot, there would be a violation of the cm-rent rules re-
specting the cesura. Notwithstanding this, if the views of the
present paper be true, there would be no violation of the iambic
character of the senarius. Against such a line as
Kdyo) TO aov vefia irodeivov avkiov
there is no argument cl priori on the score of the iambic charac-
ter being violated ; whilst, in respect to objections derived from
evidence ct posteriori, there is sufficient reason for such lines
being rare.
y). With poly-i^j\[Qh\e^ abbreviated by apocope, we have the
state of things which the metrists have recognized under the
name of quasi-cesura ; as —
KeiTftrf fiT) (^eiSe'o"^' eyco | \eKov liapiv.
3. — The eighth syllable yreceded in the same word by two
syllables. — This is equivalent to the fifth syllable occurring at
the end of the word preceding : a state of things which gives
the penthimimer cesura ; as —
08jJ.T) /Sporetwi/ aijiaTcov j fie TrpoayeXa.
Aap,Trpovs twaaras fp.'7rpf7rov\Tas aidepi.
AyJAVx^ov eiK<o 7rpo'cryeXa)|cra (Ta>p.aTos.
4. The eighth syllable preceded in the same word by three or
7nore than three syllables. — This is equivalent to the fourth (or
some syllable preceding the fourth) syllable occurring at the end
of the word preceding ; a state of things which would include
the third and fourth feet in one and the same word. This con-
currence is denounced in the Supplement to the Preface to the
Hecuba, where, however the rule, as in the case of the quasi-
cesura, from being based upon merely empirical evidence,
requires limitation. In lines like —
Kat ToXXa ttoXX' enftKacrai | 8iKaioi> r)v,
or (an imaginary example),
Toty croiaiv aainbrj' aTpofjioia-' iv avbpaai.
71 2 ENGLISH ANALOGUES OF THE CLASSICAL METRES.
there is no violation of the iambic character, and consequently
no reason against siniilai* lines havinn: been written : althoufxh
from the average proportion of Greek words like eirecKaa-aL and
a<T7riBi]aTpo^otaiv, there is every reason for their being rare.
After the details just given the recapitulation is brief.
1. It was essential to the character of the senarius that the
sixth syllable, or latter half of the third foot, should have an
arsis, ictus metricus, or accent in the English sense. To this
condition of the iambic rhythm the Greek tragedians, either con-
sciously or unconsciously, adhered.
2. It was the character of the Greek language to admit an
arsis on the last syllable of a word only under circumstances
comparatively rare.
3. These two facts, taken together, caused the sixth syllable
of a line to be anywhere rather than at the end of a word.
4. If followed by a single syllable in the same word, the
result was a hepthimimer cesura.
5. If followed by more syllables than one, some syllable in
an earlier part of the line ended the word preceding, and so
caused either a penthimimer, a quasi-cesui'a, or the occurrence of
the third and fourth foot in the same word.
6. As these two last-mentioned circumstances were rare,
the general phenomenon presented in the Greek senarius was
the occurrence of either the penthimimer or hepthimimer.
7. Respecting these two sorts of cesura, the ordinary rules,
instead of being exhibited in detail, may be replaced by the
simple assertion that there should be an arsis on the sixth syl-
lable. From this the rest follows.
8. Respecting the non-occuiTence of the third and fourth
feet in the same word, the assertion may be withdrawn entirely.
9. Respecting the quasi-cesura, the rules, if not altogether
withdrawn, may be extended to the admission of the last sylla-
ble of circumflex fiitures (or to any other polysyllables with an
equal claim to be considered accented on the last syllable) in the
latter half of the third foot.
INDEX.
Abrenuntiatio Diaboli (Old Saxon), text
and translation of .
Abstract Substantives, determinate
indeterminate .
Accent
(cliange of) in Latin words be-
77
486
492
444
come English
converting nouns into verbs
Accents and measures .
Accentual element in Classical metres
Adjectives originally declined
virtual inflection of
used as substantives .
Syntax of .
Collocation
Government
(Anglo-Saxon) declension of 637
Adverbs ....,, 506
comparison of
of ijlace, certain .
448
481
6(38
707
537
538
583
597
597
698
syntax of
Affinities of English to Latin and
Greek, in words ....
inflections
497
507
627
. 433
. 435
■ . 478
. 691
157, 414
. 29
Affixes, French and other .
Alexandrines
AKred, extracts from .
Alliteration in Saxon ijrosody
Alliterative metres, examples of A. S,
and other ..... 654
Alphabet, the 438
(EngUsh) defects of . . 450
historical charac-
ter of 460
America, English of . . . . 264
Analysis of a language, historical or
logical 432
Angle area, minute ethnology of the . 236
limits of . . . .237
Anglen, district called . . .158
language of . . . . ih.
~ specimens of its dialects . .159
Angles, earliest form of the name . 1
of Germany, obscurity of their
position . . . . .17
their locality in Gennany . 19
notices of them by Tacitus . . 40
Ptolemy . 41
. 50
Angles and Saxons, their difference
nominal, not real .
possible Slavonic elements
Angli, Tacitus' notices of the
Anglia (East), settlement in
Anglo-Norman element in English
PAGE
155
ib.
40
19
417
not the French of Paris 418
419
ih.
populations allied to the
• words in. Layamon
early specimens of
Anglo-Saxon, earliest use of the term
by Warnefrid ....
most connected with the
Old Saxon and the Frisian
how modern English dif
fers from it
and philological value
ments in it
Chronicle, its historical
■ susiiicious ele
121
267
24
25
extracts from
150, 309
Anglo-Saxons 1)y whom called Angles,
by whom Saxons . . . .157
Angulus of Beda, criticism on the . ih.
Anon ...... 509
Aorist, English 608
Apposition .... 581, 602
Arabic words in English , . . 427
Armorican of Bas-Bretagne . . 205
Article (definite), its peculiar position
in Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish . 193
Articles, Syntax of . . . . 594
Assonance, meaning of the term . .668
Atrebates the modem Artois . . 255
Augmentatives ..... 485
Auxiliary verbs, classification of . . 612
Bad grammar of the best English . 408
Barnsley, dialect of . . . . 875
Bastarnoe, mentioned as Germans . 226
Jkcame, catachrestic use of . . 556
Beda (Vcnerabilis), five languages in
Britain known to . . . .11
■ his ecclesiastical his-
tory 22
authority examined 24
on the origin of the
English peoxde . . . .150
extracts from . ih.
INDEX.
Beda ^Vcncra1>ilis\ liis Saxons Angles .
" Deatli-lii'd Vi'i-sos"o£
Bolga.' in Britain, question as to .
Keltic atlinities of tlie
facts against the German cha-
racter of .....
Belgium, Flemish of .
Ben Jonson's imitation of provincial
dialects ......
Beowulf, poem called . . .61,
its date ....
Berkshire dialect ....
Blank ver.se, two varieties of
Bonaparte ".'(Prince L. L.) specimens of
English provincial dialects
Boniface, Legend of St., text and
translation of .
Breton language compared with Welsh
and Cornish .....
British branch of Keltic
Britons in Lincolnshire, anecdote re-
specting. .....
Brittia distinguished-from Britain
Bructeri, the ...'..
Burr, the Northumberland .
Bvi
Cambrian branch of Keltic .
Can .......
Carlo vingian annalists
Carolinian Psalms ....
Case absolute .....
Ca-ses of nouna .....
in English, how many
determination of . . .
Ceadmon, fragment of . . .
Cesura ......
of the Greek Senarius, note on
the
Chamavi, the ....
Characteristics, their value in classify
ing languages ....
Charms in Old Saxon .
Charters, Anglo-Saxon
illustrating the question of
date
oldest Anglo-Saxon
Chattuarii, the
Chaucer, j^rovincialisms in .
his "Testament of Love,"
Anglo-Norman words of .
Chauci, the, Frisian ....
Cheshire dialect .....
-Chester, the termination
Chinese words in English .
Christianity among the Angles, intro-
duction of ..... 5
Chronological history of English, diffi-
culty of early . . . .309
• landmarks for . ih.
Cla-ssical metres, English analogues of . 697
and English metres, distinction
between ..... 669
'.\0K
] .^>5
331
2.')0
253
ib.
167
272
64
27r>
360
684
344
74
201
ib.
12
56
35
380
645
201
561
31
83
632
515
516
517
330
705
707
36
214
91
274
289
290
35
272
422
241
370
413
427
Cleveland dialect ....
Codex Diploniaticus JEvi Saxonici,
great value of tlic collection
Anglo-Saxon portions of it
Collectiveness as opposed to plurality .
-coin, the termination
Combinations, unstable
Comi)arison, degrees of . . .
Comparative degree, formation of
Com])lex sentences. Syntax of
Composite words, criterion of
consisting of different
parts of sjjcech ....
Composition, adverbs in . . .
Compound Anglo-Saxon names
l^rououns ....
Concord of j^erson . . . 604,
relative and antecedent
Confessionis Formula (Old Saxon) text
and translation ....
Congeners to the English, continental .
Conjugation of verbs ....
Conjunctions, Syntax of . . .
— copulatives, disjunctives,
and subdisjunctives
causal, final, illative, &c. .
Convertibility of jjarts of speech .
Copula, whether a separate part of
speech ......
Cornish, last person who spoke .
language compared with "Welsh
and Breton .....
literature,
remains of
specimens
Cornwall dialect ....
Cotton P.salter, the ....
Craven dialect, ijeculiar sound of h in
the
Cruithneach, examination of the word
Cumberland dialect ....
Danish element of English .
literary language
Darhlhif) ......
Dativus ethicus .....
De Morgan (Pi-ofessor), on the use of
shall and will . • .
Declension not developed in English
of verbs ....
Denmark, boundaries of . . .
Derbyshire dialect ....
Deutsch, meaning of the word traced .
first appearance in documents
of the ninth century
its various forms .
whether sjoionjanous with Teu-
tonic . . . . .
Devonshire dialect
Dialects, imitations of
of Anglo-Saxon
isolated
affiliation of .
Did, catachrestic use of the word
■ACK
377
278
278
581
413
441
493
494
684
465
469
470
137
470
643
636
75
166
510
039
641
642
582
510
10
201
203
ib.
350
316
377
361
361
417
182
506
587
623
510
511
32
373
227
ib.
ih.
228
348
272
316
394
401
5.55
INDEX.
715
Diemel, specimen of the Old Saxon
from the valley of the
Diminutives, forms of
Dog-cheap, transposition in the expres
sion .....
Dorsetshire dialect
Drake .....
Dramatic blank verse
Dual, Anglo-Saxon
Durham dialect
or Lindisfarn Gospels .
Ritual
Dutch of Holland
124
482
428
353
502
684
515
378
323
.325
167
East-Anglian dialect .
Elder ....
Elegiacs ....
Eleven, analysis of the word
Ellipsis ....
of substantives
.334, 384
. 498
. 690
. 472
. 580
. 595
. 507
. 609
Else
Emphatic construction
-en, forms in, collectives rather than
plurals . . . . . .503
English, origin of the word . . 1
language, date of its introduc-
tion into the island .... 4
diffusion of the , 264
— present tendencies of 436
metres, nomenclature of . . 689
i-7rutvf/,iai, their meaning in Anglo-
Saxon history . . . .26
-er, forms of pronouns and adjectives in 493
Erse language . . . . .205
-enj, collective forms
Essen Roll
Confession
Essex dialect
Saxons in .
Etymology
603
73
75
387
19
465
Euphony in forming the plural, five
rules of 533
Exoniensis (Codex), contents of the . 277
Fasti Capitolini, entry in . . . 226
Feet, a Collective . . . .503
Figures of speech .... 580
Fin, or Ugrian, elements in English (?) . 257
stock of languages . . . 258
Fins, populations coming under the ap-
pellation ..... 258
Flemish of Belgium, a modification of
Dutch 167
Fortescue (Sir J.), specimen of his lan-
guage ...... 407
Forth and Bargie (baronies of) dialects 395
France and England, notices of early
intercourse between . . .417
Frank language, its relation to the
Saxon . ... . . . 645
Franks in Britain in the reign of Dio-
cletian ...... 9
in Kent 163
PAGE
Franks of Mamertinus . . .10
Frekkenhorst Roll (Old Saxon), text of 65
translated . .71
specimen of Old Saxon
from 122
French words in English derivatives . 267
of Paris not the Anglo-Norman . 418
Friesland, boundaries of . . .32
Frisian compared with Norse . .215
of East Friesland, specimens of
the 105
(Middle) specimens with trans-
lation 100
(Modem of Holland) specimen
with translation .... 101
(North) subdivisions of . .108
specimens of the dia-
lects of Heligoland, &c. . . .109
oldest specimens of .117
Saxon
(Old) compared with the Anglo-
transition of letters and
92
inflections .....
declension of substantives .
declension of the article and
of adjectives .....
verbs ....
— text and translation of laws
Frisians in Britain
Gander, derivation of
Garnett's (Mr.) group of dialects
Gaelic, or Erse language
(Scotch), specimen of
ih.
93
94
95
ib.
165
501
409
205
207
Gaul, ancient language of, Cambrian
rather than Gaelic . . • .210
Gender 512
Genitive case, double use of the . . 591
Gentile names . . . • .487
Geogi-aphical names, general character
of English . . ... 134
Saxon terminations
of 135
German origin of the English language . 4
population in Britain, earliest
date of a . . . • .9
High and Low . . .179
group of langu.ages, principle of
their classification . . . .211
stock of languages, analytic table
of the . . . . _ . .213
objections to this classification . ih.
to be classified by type rather
than definition .... ib.
grouj) of languages, diagram
illustrating the . . . .217
discussion concerning the term 223
origin of English, how to be
understood ..... 261
German!, two hypotheses on the word . 224
Strabo on the word . . ih.
Germany, traces of Saxon in present
dialects of 123
716
INDEX.
Glosses of Olil Baxon .
Gloueestei"shire dialect
Gothic and JUeso-Gotbic
a gouerii' uaine
discussion ou the term
PAOE
. 90
. 351
. 221
. ib.
222
." 155
. 393
. ib.
. 508
. 425
. 511
. 425
. 418
. 397
Goths of Gaul ....
Gower, dialect of the Peninsula of
Vocabulary of it ,
Greek forms of adverbs of place .
plural forms used in English
verbs, declension of .
words derived from .
Gurth and Wamba, dialogue between
Gyjisy language, Hindu
Habeo, peculiar classical construction
of the verb ..... 615
Habitu;'.l and present actions, tense of . 609
-ham, German varieties of the termi-
nation . . . . . .136
Hants dialect ..... 356
He applied to inanimate objects . .513
Hebrew words in English . . .426
Heliand (Old Saxon), text and trans-
lation ...... 78
Heligoland, North Frisian of . . 109
Hengistbury, origin of the word . . 27
Henry III., proclamation of . • 314
Herefordshire dialect .... 353
Hexameters, English .... 704
High German, whether a real or only a
literary language . . . .172
specimens of . . . 173
(Old) . . . .174
(Middle) . . .175
His and her, genitive cases . . . 588
Hnffif, the Hoeing , . . .61
the cpoivjmus of Hanover . ib.
Hocinsrs, the, held to be the Chauci . 243
Hollaiid, Dutch of . . . .167
its dialects and sub -dialects . 168
stages . . . . . ib.
specimens of . . . . ib.
Horsted, derivation of ... 27
Huntingdon, the centre of the dialects
approaching the literary English . 344
Hybrid additions to English . . 431
Hybridism a source of inaccurate spelling 479
/, its subjective character . . . 531
/ have been, import of the expression . 436
Icelandic, specimens of . . .187
comi^arison of A. S. inflec-
tions with . . . . .191
most characteristic differences 192
language, characteristic of .195
and Saxon, three character-
istic differences of
Icicle, not a hybrid word
// . . . . .
Imperatives, construction of
Impersonals, syntax of
Indian words in English
197
431
645
607
611
427
PAGE
Infinitives, twofold construction of . 605
Inflected ]iarts of speech . . . 510
Inflection, derivation rather than com-
position . . . . .509
Infections more numerous in early stages
of languages allied to English . . 2G9
•inr/, Anglo-Saxon patronomics ending in 138
comparative prevalence of names
in, in different counties . . . 489
Initial syllables of names . . . 138
Inmost ...... 496
Interrogatives, Anglo-Saxon form of . 522
■ syntax of . . . 635
Irish Keltic compared with Scotch and
Manks 205
Italian words in English . . .426
Its, origin of the word . . . 527
Japicx (Gysbert), Middle Frisian poem by 1 00
Jutes, first German settlers in Britain . 18
their geographical locality . .19
not Jutlanders . . . .151
meaning of the appellation . ib.
criticism on Bede concerning the 152
Juvencus, supposed Pict sjiecimen in a
copy of 249
201
ib.
205
209
Keltic language, two branches of the .
British branch of . . .
Gaelic branch . . .
characteristics of . . .
tongues compared with the Gothic
stock
elements in English
ib.
411
18
358
164
365
366
15
267
413
414
423
164
Kent, establishment of the kingdom of
dialect .....
Laeti, explanation of the Roman appel-
lation ......
Lancashire (North), dialect of
(South), dialect of
Latin, whether a spoken language in
Britain ......
words in English derivatives
of the Roman period .
Angle i^eriod .
' thii-d and fourth periods .
Lathes of Kent, origin of the
Layamon, the poem, extracts in two
forms . . . '. . . 313
Layamon's poem " The Brut " . . 419
Leigh, in Lancashire, singular pronun-
ciation of the word . . .377
Length of vowels and syllables . . 653
Less 496
-let, diminutives in ... . 485
Like, compounds of . . . .47
Lincolnshire dialect .... 389
Literary English not necessarily the best 401
origin of . . . 404
Lithuania area . . . . .261
pronouns, declension of .525
Litteras Brocmannorum, text and trans-
lation of the .....
97
INDEX.
717
Little England beyond Wales, dialect
of 392
Local names, terminations of . .134
Lombards Germanized Slavonians . 240
Longobards or Lombards akin to tlie
Angles 54
Low-Gennan language, divisions of tlie 213
Lowland Scotch
. 398
its relations to English 399
- specimen of Old . 400
Malay words in English
Mammoth originally an Arabic word
Manks Keltic compared with Scotch and
Irish ......
■ specimen^ of . . . .
Manuscripts, dates of ...
May
Measures and feet ....
dissyllabic and trisyllabic
formulae for English
Mercian charters ....
forms of speech
Methinhs ......
Metre, general view of . . .
definition of .
Metres, chief English
nomenclature of English .
specimens of English
symmetrical ....
unsymmetrical
convertible ....
Metrical and grammatical combinations
notation and scansion
Middlesex dialect ....
Minded ......
Mceso, meaning of the prefix
Mceso-Gothic oldest of all the German
tongues ......
declensions
verb substantive
Monmouthshire dialect
Moods, syntax of ... ,
More's (Sir T.) English, specimen of
Must
Myrgings, nation of .
Names, terminations of local
■ (Anglo-Saxon), personal, gene-
rally compounds ....
terminations and initial syllables
of personal
invariable or variable
proper and common
Negative, jjlace of the
distribution of the
double ....
Negatives, syntax of .
-ness, abstract substantives in
Neuter verbs, traditive and appositional
construction of ... .
Newcastle dialect ....
Norfolk dialect .....
427
ib.
206
208
303
562
668
670
679
338
ih.
611
649
651
679
689
673
692
693
694
695
668
359
563
221
176
198
200
353
605
405
565
58
134
136
138
576
ih.
630
ib.
631
630
491
603
379
385
Norman exclusion of Anglo-Sar.on letters
Norse language, specimens of
opposed to Frisian, characteristics
of
element of English .
North American words in English
Northamptonshire dialect .
Northumberland dialect
(Noi-th) dialect .
Northumbrian dialect
dialects, specimens of .
characteristics of
Norse elements
in ......
Psalter, Anglo-Norman
words of
Notitia Utriusque Imperii, the
Number of nouns
Numerals, syntax of .
Nursery rhymes
Oftener ......
Old, double meaning of the word as
ajiplied to language
Norse language ....
Saxon, meaning of the term old .
glosses and charms exempli-
fying
One .......
the pronoun, and owe the numeral,
their identity accidental .
construction of the i)ronoun .
another, and each other
Ordinal numbei'S ....
Origin of words direct, indirect, and
ultimate .....
Ormulum, notice of the
Orthoepy ......
standards of .
Orthographical expedients .
Other
Ottava rima .....
Ourjht ......
Oivn, concedentts and possidentis, con-
struction of .
Oxen ......
Oxfordshire dialects ....
Paradise Lost, extract from the Icelandic
translation of . . . .660
Participle, present and past . . 568
form in en- . . . ib.
form in -ed, -d, or -t . . 570
affinity to the adjective . 613
Particles used as substantives . . 5S3
Parts of speech . . . . .575
Passive voice, Saxons have no . .196
Past tense, formation of the . . 539
Pati-onymics, Anglo-Saxon, ending in
-ing 138, 486
Greek .... 4S7
Paulus Diaconus, first writer who uses
Anglo-Saxon 232
>AGE
463
181
215
416
427
373
379
382
316
321
327
333
422
7
514
595
140
497
270
232
65
90
519
521
591
647
493
427
314
445
448
454
519
691
564
560
603
360
18
INDEX.
Perfect tense, infercnce of continuance
or of contrast in .
Personal names in Saxon history, their
evolution out of Kval ouos
Anglo - Saxon generally
compounds
terminating in -iiig
Persian words in English
Personification .....
Phonesis, peculiarities of English
of English and other lan-
guages, differences of . . .
Pict glosses .....
language, supposed specimen of the,
with translation ....
British rather than Gaelic Kelts .
traditions respecting them
— — their ethnology ....
Platt-DoutsL-li dialects
how the appellation is
to be understood ....
specimen of
Pleonasm ......
of adjectives
Plural number of substantives
different means of form-
ing the ......
(Anglo-Saxon), of words ending
in -ing ......
Plurals, Latin, in modern English
Greek, used in English .
Polynesian word in English .
Portsmouth, origin of the name .
Possessive case of substantives, singular
and plural .....
Poulterer's measure ....
Prepositions, composition of
what cases governed by .
Present time, apparent
and perfect of verbs, connection
between .....
Processes current and obsolete
Procopius's Story of an Angle Princess .
Pronouns, compound ....
three classes of, as to declen-
inflection of . . " .
adjectival and suljstantival .
neuter in -t
interrogative, relative and de-
monstrative .....
personal . . . 530,
syntax of .
reflected jjersonal
reflective neuter .
equivocal reflectives
indeterminate constniction of
Pronomen reverentiaj ....
Pronunciation, errors of . . .
■ conversational or rheto-
rical
right
modes of determining
•.VOK
GIO
2S
136
138
427
580
438
443
244
249
244
246
247
168
169
171
580
597
532
534
487
424
425
427
28
533
692
630
629
557
556
518
64
470
519
519
520
521
521
636
581
587
588
ib.
592
587
446
ib.
448
Projier names
singular only
Projiositions, syntax of single
d.nihlo ....
different kinds of
Prosody
Provincial dialects, purest
forms of speech
Ptolemy's notice of the Angles and
Saxons ....
Quantity ....
Quaternions of letters
Questions of appeal .
direct and oblique
Quoth ....
Rather ....
Reciprocal construction, the
Reduplication, Gothic
Reflective pronoun, true, absent
English
Representative expression of tense
Reudigni, their relation to the Angli
Rhyme, perfect and imperfect
definition of a perfect
constant and inconstant parts
of
Rhymes, single, double, and treble
Royal ....
Rhyming syllable, analysis of a .
Rhythm, definition of
Romans, evacuation of Britain by the
Rotulus Essensis, text and translation
Runic letters on the Ruthwell cross
Rusliworth Gospels, glosses of the
Ruthwell cross, the .
Sabalingii, hypothesis respecting the
Salian Franks, country of the
Sarmatian elements in English
subdivision of
Saterland, Frisian of .
Saxon, etymology of the word
(old), specimens of
I'ACK
. 576
. 596
and
572, 584
573
649
62
342
41
651
440
6-n
635
548
498
647
542
589
609
58
661
665
em
ih.
690
664
696
30
74
326
316
326
42
35
260
ib.
105
51
67
9
Saxonicum, Litus, in Britain
Saxons not applied by the English to
themselves ..... 3
German locality of the . .19
— — — of Ptolemy . . . .41
two divisions of the . . 43
not mentioned by Tacitus . 44
early classical notices of the . ib.
— and Angles, their difference
nominal not real . . . .155
Saxony, boundaries and subdivisions of
33, 47
different significations of the
word ...... 49
Scandinavian languages . . .180
characteristic of
the 195
branches of the 213
INDEX.
719
PAGE
Scandinavian characteristics, value of . 218
■ inconvenience of the term
in philology .
element of English
Scansion ......
Scotch Keltic compared with Irish and
Manks ......
dialect .....
235
416
670
Scotland, English of .
Seldomer .....
Self
threefold construction of the word 590
206
383
264
497
519
Semi-Saxon data ....
charters ....
Service metre .....
-set, meaning in Dorset and Somerset .
-sex, peculiar force of the termination
in Esse.c, Sussex, &c.
Sex, expression of diiference of .
feminines in -in
in -ster
• peahen, &c.
Shakspere, provincialisms in
Shall and will, jiredictive and iiromis-
sive powers of ....
rule for distinguishing .
Wallis's rule
Professor de Morgan on
the use of .... .
■ Archdeacon Hare on the
usus ethicus of ... .
She, applied to inanimate objects
Sheffield dialect .....
Shropshire dialect ....
Slavonia, boundaries of . . .
Somersetshire dialect ....
-son in proper names, the termination .
Song of Solomon in provincial dialects .
Sound-system, peculiarities of the Enj
Ush
differences ft-om other
312
313
692
13
163
500
ih.
501
502
272
620
621
622
623
ih.
513
373
372
32
345
139
346
438
443
453
692
372
216
languages ....
Spelling, conventional modes of .
Spenserian stanza
Staffordshire dialect .
Stages and dialects of languages .
Stronfj and iveak, applied to declensions 197
Strother, dialect of . . . .273
Substantives, inflection of . . . 532
• Syntax of . . . 595
Suevi and Angli, relation of the terms . 52
Suffolk dialect 385
Snnu or son, compounds of . . . 139
Superlative, double origin of the ending
in -St 495
degree, foi-mation of . 495
Superlativity and ordinality . . 499
Surrey, sub-dialects of . . . 358
Sussex dialect ..... 357
establishment of the kingdom of 18
Swedish, specimen of literary . .183
Sweetheart . . . . .486
Syllables, misdivision of . . . 446
Sylt, North Frisian of . . .
Symbols for metrical notation
Synapheia ......
Syntax and common sense .
mixed, requires metaphysical
and historical knowledge .
peculiarities of English .
Tacitus' geogi-aphy of Germany .
on the origin of the Germans .
Talkee Talkee of Surinam, specimen of
Ten and -ty . . . . .
Tenses, real power of English
succession of .
Terminations of local names, meaning of
' woixls, analysis of
Terms and copula of propositions
Terza Rima .....
Teutones not mentioned by Tacitus
question as to their being
German ......
Teutonic language, divisions of the
history of the word
question whether identical
with Dutch ....
Time and tense, difference of
-th, forms of abstract substantives in
than, an accusative case
that ......
then, an accusative case
thence .....
there .....
Thieves' language or slang .
thither ......
To, use of .
-ton, German varieties of the tormina
tion ......
Transcription, simi:)le and with acconi
modation ....
Traveller's Song, an Anglo-Saxon poem
extracts from ....
True-love .....
Turkish words in English .
twain
twelve, analysis of the word
PAGE
112
669
706
676
580
582
38
225
398
472
611
644
134
474
574
691
231
ih.
212
228
228
607
491
509
521
509
507
ih.
397
507
606
136
271
58
486
427
517
473
257
TJgrian or Fin elements in English
Umlaut, English equivalents of the
German ...... 519
Usus Ethicus in accounting for shall
and ^v^U 624
Valais, in Switzerland, origin of the
name . . . . . .15
Varini, the, .associated with the Angli
by ancient authors . . . .54
Verb substantive. Syntax of the . . 566
Verbs, three classes of derived . . 505
declension . . . .511
two divisions of . . . 539
irregular and defective . .547
strong and weak . . .548
tense and conjugation . . 552
720
INDEX.
Verbs, Syntax of . . .
transitive and intransitive
government of .
modal construction of
VerccUensis, Codex, contents of the
Vernacular origin, foreign woi-ds simu
lating a .
PAOK
600
ib.
601
ih.
277
428
Wales, English of . . . .264
originally the name of a people 15
Wallace, extract from .... 400
Wallachia, origin of the name . .15
Walloon country, origin of the name . 15
Warendorf, specimen of Old Saxon from 123
Warwickshire dialect . . . .353
Weah and strong applied to declen-
sions, meaning of . . . . 197
Welsh language compared with Cornish
and Breton ..... 201
specimen of ... . 202
Wcssex, establishment of the king-
dom of .
West Saxon dialect distinguished from
18
the Northumbrian .
. 317
Westmoreland dialect
. 363
Wight (Isle of) dialect
. 357
Wilts dialect .
. 355
Wheut an accusative case .
. 509
Who ....
. 521
Worcestershire dialect
. 352
Worse ....
. 496
Wot
. 563
Wycliffe, Anglo-Norman words in
. 420
Y in yclept, the prefix
. 571
Yes and No
. 636
yon and yonder .
508, 522
Yorkshire dialect '.
. 373
• (West) dialect .
. 375
(North) dialect .
. 377
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MR. PHILIP SMITH'S
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pital for Sick Children. Small Svo,
Ss. <ad. [Just published.
" It is a thoroughly sound piece of ob-
servation and practical ai)plieati<in of
experience. It is so thoroughly clinical
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from the therapeutical point of view,
which chiefly interests us, wo may recom-
mend it with great confidence. — 2'ke
I'ractitioner.
DR. WAL8HE OX DISEASES
OF THE HEART AND GREAT
VESSELS. Third Edition. Revised and
greatly Enlarged. Small Svo, 12s. M.
DR. WALSHE OX DISEASES
OF THE LUNGS. Third Edition.
Revised and greatly enlarged. Small
Svo, 12.S. 6d.
DR. EDWARD SMITH OX
HEALTH AND DISEASE, as Hlus-
trated by the Cyclical Changes in the
Human System. Small Svo, 10s. 6f/.
" One of the most remarkable, valuable,
and useful books we have ever met with."
— Dvhlia Medical Journal.
DR. EDWARD SMITH OX COX-
SUMPTION, in its Early and Remedi-
able Stages. Small Svo, 10s. 6d. cloth,
DR. GEORGE HARLEY OX
JAUNDICE ; its Pathology and Treat-
ment. With the application of Physio-
logical Chemistry to the Detection and
Treatment of Diseases of the Liver and
Pancreas. Svo, 7s. Gd.
'■ This is a suggestive and \aluable
book." — Rankin rj's AbHreict.
DR. GEORGE HARLEY OX
DIABETES. Small Svo, 2s. ijd.
DR. GEORGE HARLEY OX
ALBUMINURIA, WITH or WITH-
OUT DROPSY. Small Svo, 2>-. Qd.
Popular Physiology.
AXIMAL PHYSIOLOGY FOR
SCHOOLS. By Dr. Lardnek. With
l&O Illustrations. Second Edition.
1 vol. large 12mo, 3s. 6c/. cloth.
I!RAI>nlIKV, EVANS, ANP CO., TRIKTCRS, VVHITHFRIAKS.
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