4. Persic.

Paradise, Firdaws (Persic), a garden, or rather an enclosed park, or chace for hunting.

Shinar; the word appears to be used (Genesis, xi. 2.) as equivalent to the modern Mesopotamia; but it is of Persic origin, and in that language means the bottom of any piece of water, and describes the nature of the country between the rivers Tigris and Euphrates.

Gershom, Gair (Hebrew), a stranger.
Shum (Persic), I am.

"And he called his name Gershom: for he said, I have been a stranger in a strange land." (Exodus, ii. 22.)

5. Turkish, or Mongol-Tartaric.
Ajalon, Ai (Turkish), the moon.
Lun (Hebrew), to dwell.

"And thou moon in the valley of Ajalon." (Joshua, x. 15.) We are quite sure not only that Lun signified city, but that it formed part of compound words like the above, as Strabo says that Pampeluna in Spain signified city of Pompey. The meaning of Ajalon, therefore, was city of the moon, no doubt from being dedicated to Ashtoreth, the Horned Astarte, or the queen of heaven. A city of the name of Ai also occurs in the book of Joshua.

6. Syriac.

Galeed (Hebrew), Jegar-sahadutha, heap of witness (Syriac). "And Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha: but Jacob called it Galeed." (Genesis, xxxi. 47.)

7. Greek.

Anakim, Anax (Pausanias), a Titan, a son of the earth, with the (Hebrew) plural termination im, Anakim.

"And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants." (Numbers, xiii. 33.) I believe the word Zamzummim to have had a similar meaning, and to have been corrupted from the (Persic) Zamin, earth, and Ammim,

(Hebrew) people, i. e. people of the earth, or earth-born. (Deuteronomy, ii. 20.)

Seir (Hebrew); Seir, and Seirios (Greek), the sun.

Anakim and Seir appear to me to be Greek words written in Hebrew characters. This meaning of Seir is corroborated by the context: "as he did to the children of Esau which dwelt in Seir, when he destroyed the Horims from before them." (Deuteronomy, ii. 22.) Horims from Khur (Persic), the sun, and so denominated from being sun-worshippers.

IV. If we adopt Bentley's mode of reasoning, we shall perceive that it is not tenable for a moment. The words Tubal Cain, Hiddekel (Tigris), and Phrat (Euphrates) are mentioned in Scripture before the Deluge. But these words are Arabic; therefore the Arabic was the primitive language of mankind. But the word Jabal also occurs before the Deluge; therefore the Sanskrit was the primitive language of mankind, and so of many of the others. Dismissing all hypothesis, however, the above languages are at least as old as the oldest books of the Bible, and in the present state of our knowledge, must be regarded as forming parts of a primitive language which probably contained the roots or elements of all the languages now spoken by mankind. The very etymology of Palestine, or Philistia, the country in which the Jews settled, appears to be Sanskrit; a strong presumption, if all others were wanting, of the existence of languages much older than their own.

v. With respect to the principle on which I have selected the languages to be examined, there was less difficulty to be encountered, as little aid in determining the affiliation of people and nations could be expected from languages, unless they possessed a certain degree of antiquity; and as the class of language denominated by Adelung Indo-European, is the only one that can be regarded as containing written compositions, deserving the name of old. In adopting this arrangement, however, I must beg leave, with some of the ancient geographers, to regard Egypt as in Asia rather than Africa, or at any rate to include the Coptic and Sahidic in the Indo-European class, as well as the spoken Chinese,

which presents numerous analogies with the Sanskrit, the Persic, the Greek, and the Latin, and is quite as well deserving of attention as their system of real characters, curious as the latter undoubtedly is. A wish to appreciate the justness of that theory of Sir William Jones, in which he traces the languages of Asia to three principal sources, induced me to cast a glance on two or three languages of the Tartaric class; and as the limited nature of my plan precluded me from entering on the vast field of the languages of Africa and of North and South America generally, I have been satisfied with devoting a short chapter to each of those great continents.

VI. With my present views I should arrange the principal written languages, ancient and modern, of Asia and Europe, somewhat in the following order: —

1. Chinese (the spoken language).

2. Egyptian (Coptic and Sahidic).

The Chinese connects itself with the Egyptian by means of two hieroglyphic characters, those of the sun and moon; agreeing precisely as to form, and probably also as to name; and by one Egyptian letter Schei, clearly deducible from a Chinese hieroglyphic.

1. Arabic.

2. Hebrew.

The Arabic or Shemitic Family.

3. Assyrian, Chaldee, or Eastern Aramean.

4. Syriac, or Western Aramean.

5. Samaritan, Phoenician, or Tyrian.

6. Punic, or Carthaginian.

7. Ethiopic, Geez, or Axumitic.

8. Amharic.

The Sanskrit, or Indian Family.

1. Sanskrit (Prakrit).

2. Persic.

3. Sarmatian, or Slavonic.

4. Median.

5. Zendish.

6. Pehlvi.

7. Languages of Asia Minor, not Greek.

8. Scythian, Cimmerian, or Celtic.

9. Greek.

10. Etruscan, or Old Italian.

11. Latin, or Roman.

12. Italian and rustic language of ancient Italy. 13. Mæso-Gothic, Mysian, Phrygian, or Trojan. 14. Anglo-Saxon and English.

15. Frankish and German.

Tartaric Class.

1. Mantchou.

2. Mogul, Ouigour, and Turkish. 3. Armenian.

VII. On the Arabic, or Shemitic family of languages, Heeren, one of the greatest names among continental scholars, in his "Asiatic Nations," a work equally distinguished by profound research and the philosophical spirit that pervades it, has the following observations:-"This perpetual change of language ceases as soon as we cross the river Halys, and enter upon Cappadocia, comprehending the country afterwards called Pontus. On the eastern bank of this river began the empire of a mighty language, which was spoken from the Halys eastward as far as the Tigris, and from the heights of Caucasus to the southern coast of Arabia; and which, with some variations, preserves everywhere a distinctive and original character, being usually styled the Semitic. Its dialects were the Cappadocian in the western countries on the banks of the Halys; the Syrian between the Mediterranean and the Euphrates; and the Assyrian on the farther side of the Tigris, in Kurdistan, or the ancient Adiabene; the Chaldean in Babylonia; the Hebrew and Samaritan in Palestine; the Phoenician in the maritime cities of Phoenicia, and their extensive colonies; and lastly, the Arabic, extending not only over the whole Arabian peninsula but also over the steppes of Mesopotamia, which

have at all times been frequented by wandering hordes of Arabs. Several of these dialects still survive; with others we are acquainted only through their literary fragments; and it cannot be doubted, that at some remote period, antecedent to the commencement of historical records, one mighty people possessed these vast plains, varying in character according to the nature of the country which they inhabited; in the deserts of Arabia pursuing a nomad life; in Syria, applying themselves to agriculture, and taking up a settled abode; in Babylonia, creating the most magnificent cities of ancient times; and in Phoenicia, opening the earliest ports and constructing fleets, which secured to them the commerce of the known world." (Heeren's Asiatic Nations, vol. i. p. 71.)

VIII. The next question that presents itself is, Have the people who spoke these languages, or the languages themselves, any prominent features, or remarkable qualities, which enable us to fix and discriminate them? And if I am not greatly mistaken, the Shemitic race and languages, the latter of which appear to me to be little more than dialects of the Arabic, may be described by the following general characteristics:

1. Many of these people have used the rite of circumcision from time immemorial.

2. They have no particular name for the days of the week, but denominate them from the order of their succession.

3. They omit many of the vowels in writing.

4. Their verbs have a gender in some of the persons of the different tenses.

5. Their verbs, strictly speaking, have but two tenses.

These characteristics, with certain modifications, will, I think, be found generally applicable, but still require a few words to be said in explanation. For instance, Herodotus, our principal authority, informs us that the Egyptians used the rite of circumcision; but I have not classed them among the Shemitic people, and have disposed of them elsewhere with the Chinese. On the subject of circumcision generally Herodotus remarks, that the inhabitants of Colchos, Egypt, and Ethiopia were the only people who, from time im