les ténèbres ne l'ont point reçue. 6. IL Y EUT un homme appele Jean, qui fut envoyé de Dieu. 7. Il vint pour rendre témoignage, pour rendre, dis-je, témoignage à la lumière, afin que tous crussent par lui.-ST. JOHN, chap. i., v. 1-7.

THE SPANISH LANGUAGE.

§ 39. The Spanish language more closely resembles the Latin than any other of the Romanic languages. It appears that the Cantabrian, the ancient language of the country, disappeared, and the Latin was almost exclusively spoken for centuries. This was greatly modified by the Gothic tongue, and afterward, in some degree, by the Arabic, while the Goths and Moors in succession held possession of Spain. Latin words are subjected to the following changes: The vowel o is generally changed into ue, as in dona, duena; cor, cuer; porta, puerta. When double consonants occur in Latin words, one of them is dropped in Spanish; and i is generally placed before e in the interior of words, as in mandimento, Sp. mandemiento. It retains much of the dignity of the Latin.

1. En el principio era el Verbo, y el Verbo estaba con Dios, y el Verbo era Dios. 2. El estaba en el principio con Dios. 3. Por él fueron hechas todas las cosas: y sin él no se ha hecho cosa alguna de cuantas han sido hechas. 4. En él estaba la vida, y la vida era la luz de los hombres. 5. Y esta luz resplandece en las tinieblas, y las tinieblas no la han recibido. 6. Hubo un hombre enviado de Dios. que se llamaba Juan. 7. Este vino como testigo, para dar testimonio de la luz, á fin de que por medio de él todos creyesen.—ST. JOHN, chap. i., v. 1–7.

§ 40. The Portuguese language originated under the same circumstances as the Spanish. It is less guttural, but harsher and more unpleasing in sound than the Spanish. It has a class of words not found in the Spanish vocabulary, but which are supposed to be drawn from the dialects spoken on the coast of Barbary. The Latin words which have been incorporated in the language have undergone the following changes: the letter x, when final, is generally changed into z; as paz, voz, luz,

perdiz, from pax, vox, lux, perdix. Pl, when initial, is changed into ch, as plaga, chaga. The letter r, when in the middle of words, is often substituted for 1, as craro for claro; obrigar, obligar.

1. No principio era o Verbo, e o Verbo estava com Deos, e o Verbo era Deos. 2. Elle estava no principio com Deos. 3. Todas as cousas forão feitas por elle: e nada do que foi feito, foi feito sem elle. 4. Nelle estava a vida, e a vida era a luz dos homens. 5. E a luz resplandece nas trévas, e as trévas não a comprehendêrão. 6. Houve hum homem enviado por Deos, que se chamava João. 7. Este veio por testemunha, para dar testemunho da luz, a fim de que todos cressem por meio delle.-ST. JOHN, chap. i., V. 1-7.

THE WALLACHIAN, OR DACO-ROMANO.

§ 41. The Wallachian language, now spoken in what was a part of ancient Dacia, retains so many Latin words, that a stranger, speaking in Latin, can render himself tolerably intelligible to the inhabitants. About half of the words have been borrowed from the Greek, the Turkish, and the Slavonian. The character used in printing is peculiar, differing both from the Roman and the Greek.

THE PROVENÇAL, OR ROMAUNT LANGUAGE.

§ 42. This language was spoken in the south of France, and is so called in distinction from the Norman French, which was spoken in the north of France. A modification of this language was spoken by the Waldenses.

SPECIMEN OF THE PROVENÇAL.

1. Lo filh era al comensament; el filh era am Dieu, et filh era Dieus. 2. Aquest era al comensament am Dieu. 3. Totas causas foron fachas per el: e nenguna causa non fon fach senz el. 4. So que fon fach era en lui vida, e la vida era lus dels homes. 5. E la lus en tenebras e tenebras non comprehenseron lui. 6. Oms fon trames de Dieu local avia nom Johan. 7. Aquest venc en testimoni que dones testimoni de lum, que tug crezessan per el.—ST. JOHN, chap. i., v. 1-7.

THE NORMAN FRENCH.

§ 43. This language was spoken in the north of France. It is of later origin than the Provençal. The poets in this language were called Trouveres, as the poets in the Provençal were called Troubadours. A generation before the Norman Conquest, a Norwegian chieftain, named, in his own country, Rolf, and in France, Rollo, settled upon the coast of Normandy. "What Hengist and the Germans were in England, Rollo and his Scandinavians were in France. The province, before called Neustria, took from them the name of Normandy."-LATHAM.

SPECIMEN OF NORMAN FRENCH.

Philippe de Thaun én Françeise raisun
Ad estrait Bestiare, un livere de gramaire,

Pur l'onur d'une gemme, ki mult est bele fèmme.

Aliz est numee, reine est corunée :

Reine est de Engleterre; sa ame n'ait jà guere!
En Ebreu, en verete, est Aliz laus de Dé.

Un livere voil traiter; Dés sait al cumencer!

The Bestiary of PHILIPPE DE THAUN.

ENGLISH.

Philippe de Thaun into the French language
Has translated the Bestiary, a book of science,

For the honor of a jewel who is a very handsome woman.
Aliz is she named, a queen is she crowned:

Queen she is of England; may her soul never have trouble!
In Hebrew, in truth, Aliz means praise of God.

I will compose a book; may God be with its commencement!

THE GREEK FAMILY.

§ 44. The Greek language was spoken in ancient Greece in its several dialects, as the Attic, the Ionic, the Doric, the Æolic. It is the parent of the modern Greek. It has furnished important contributions to the English.

SPECIMEN OF THE GREEK LANGUAGE.

1. Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ λόγος, καὶ ὁ λόγος ἦν πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ Θεὸς ἦν ὁ λόγος. 2. Οὗτος ἦν ἐν ἀρχῇ πρὸς τὸν Θεόν. 3. Πάντα δι αὐτοῦ ἐγένετο· καὶ χωρὶς αὐτοῦ ἐγένετο οὐδὲ ἓν, ὅ γέγονεν. 4. Εν

αὐτω ζωὴ ἦν, καὶ ἡ ζωὴ ἦν τὸ φῶς τῶν ἀνθρώπων. 5. Καὶ τὸ φῶς ἐν τῇ σκοτία φαίνει, καὶ ἡ σκοτία αυτο ου κατέλαβεν. 6. Εγένετο ἄνθρωπος ἀπεσταλμένος παρὰ Θεοῦ, ὄνομα αὐτῶ Ιωάννης. 7. Οὗτος ἦλθεν εἰς μαρτυρίαν, ἵνα μαρτυρήση περὶ τοῦ φωτὸς, ἵνα πάντες πιστεύσωσι δὲ αὐτοῦ.—ST. JOHN, chap. i., v. 1–7.

THE ROMAIC LANGUAGE, OR MODERN

GREEK.

§ 45. The Romaic language, or its equivalent, the modern Greek, is the vernacular language of about 1,180,000 descendants of the ancient Greeks dispersed through the Turkish empire, or residing in the kingdom of Greece. The modern kingdom of Greece contains a population of about 900,000. The language preserves a much nearer identity with the ancient Greek language than the Romanic languages do with the Latin. The term Romaic arose from the name Romaioi, or Romans, applied to the Greeks during the period of their subjection to the Roman Empire of Constantinople.

1. Εἰς τὴν ἀρχὴν ἦτον ὁ λόγος· καὶ ὁ λόγος ἦτον μετα Θεοῦ καὶ θεὸς ἦτον ὁ λόγος. 2. Ετοῦτος ἦτον εἰς τὴν ἀρχὴν μετὰ Θεοῦ. 3. Όλα τὰ πραγμάτα διὰ μέσου τοῦ λόγου ἐγίνηκαν, καὶ χωρὶς αὐτὸν δὲν ἔγινε κανένα ἔιτι ἔγινε. 4. Εἰς αὐτὸν ἦτον ζωὴ, καὶ ἡ ζωὴ ἦτον το φῶς τῶν ἀνθρῶπων. 5. Καὶ το φῶς εἰς τὴν σκότειαν φέγγει καὶ ἡ σκοτεία δὲν το κατάλαβε. 6. Έγινεν ἕνας ἀνθρωπος ἀπεσταλμένος ἀπὸ τὸν θεὸν, το ὄνομα του Ιωάννες. 7. Ἐτοῦτος ἦλθεν εἰς μαρτυρίαν νὰ μαρτυρίση διὰ τὸ φῶς πιστεύσον ὅλοι διὰ μέσου αὐτοῦ.—ST. JOHN, chap. i., ν. 1-7.

THE CELTIC FAMILY.

§ 46. These languages were spoken by the Celts, or Kelts, who are supposed to have migrated from Asia at some early period, and to have been impelled onward by successive emigration, until they found their way to the western part of Europe, to Spain, to Gaul, and to Great Britain. One branch of this stock has been called the Medo-Celtic, containing the Erse, Gaelic, and Manx. The other has been called the Perso-Celtic, containing the Welsh, the Cornish, and the Armorican of Brittany in France.

E

Formerly the Celtic dialects were supposed to have no connection with the Indo-European languages. The researches of Dr. Prichard, in his work on the "Eastern Origin of the Celtic Nations," may be considered as having settled the question the other way.

The Celtic languages are incomplete in grammatical inflections when compared with the Sanscrit, the Teutonic, and the classical languages.

The Welsh has many words found in the Latin, while the Latin and Greek have many Celtic words. The Cornish closely resembles the Welsh, and is now extinct as a spoken language. The Armorican, or Breton, also closely resembles the Welsh. It is spoken by about 800,000 people, 500,000 of whom do not understand French. These three languages, derived from the ancient British, belong to what is called the Cymric branch.

The Erse, or Irish, is now spoken by illiterate portions of the Irish. It is thought that there are 600,000 who can speak no other language. It was once the language of literature and science. "The English," says Camden, "recently flocked to Ireland as the mart of sacred learning." The language of the Highland Scotch, or the Gaelic, is spoken by about 400,000 in the Highlands and the western isles of Scotland. It strongly resembles the Irish. The Manx language is spoken in the Isle of Man, in which there are nearly 50,000 inhabitants. The English is, however, the predominant language. The Erse, the Highland Scotch, and the Manx, constitute the Gaelic, in the broad sense of the term.

1. Yn y dechreuad yr oedd y Gair, a'r Gair oedd gyd â Duw, a Duw oedd y Gair. 2. Hwn oedd yn y dechreuad gyd â Duw. 3.