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2. Essai sur l'Universalité de la Langue Française, &c., par M. C. N. Allou. [M. Raynouard.]

3. Recherches sur les Sources Antiques de la Litterature Française, par M. Jules Berger de Xivrey. [M. Daunou.]

4. Monumens Inedits d' Antiquité figurée, Grecque, Etrusque, Romaine, &c., par M. Raoul Rochette. [M. Letronne.]

5. Memoir of Zahir-eddin Mohammed Baber, Emperor of Hindustan, by the late John Leyden and W. Erskine. [M. Silvestre de Sacy.] June.-1. Augustin Freiher von Meyerberg, und Reise nach Russland, &c., von Fr. Adelung. [M. Abel-Rémusat.]

2. Grundzuge zu einer Provenzalischen Grammatick nebst Chrestomathie, &c., par le Docteur Adrian. [M. Raynouard.]

3. Histoire du Droit Municipal en France sous la Domination Romaine et sous les trois Dynasties, par M. Raynouard. [M. Daunou.]

[ADVERTISEMENT.]

ÆSCHYLUS, GREEK AND ENGLISH.

Just published, price 7s. bds.

THE PERSIANS;

containing the Greek Text of Porson, as corrected by Bishop Blomfield, Dindorff, and Schütz; literal Prose Translation, answering line for line, on the opposite page; copious English Critical and Explanatory Notes, elucidating every difficulty of Idiom or Allusion; Parallels and Illustrations from the English Poets; and an engraved Plan of the Battle of Salamis. For the use of senior Greek Students. By WILLIAM PALIN, Private Tutor.

The Series will comprise the best Tragedies of Eschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles; each printed separately, but uniformly, and on the same plan. The Editor's object is not so much to convey the beauties of the Author in his Translation, as to enable the Student thoroughly and easily to understand them in the original; and to render elegant and attractive a study which is, with common aids, laborious and repulsive.

Printed by R. Taylor, Red Lion Court, Fleet Street; and published by Longman and Co. Paternoster Row.

END OF. NO. LXXIX.

THE

CLASSICAL JOURNAL;

N°. LXXX.

DECEMBER, 1829.

On the Etymology and Formation of certain Classes of Latin Words.

LENNEP says, in his " Etymologicum Linguæ Græcæ," that the Latin words Volumnus and Vertumnus are regular participles present passive, formed after the Greek model, and contracted by a familiar syncope from Volumenus, and Vertumenus. The Rev. F. VALPY, Master of Reading School, in a late and useful publication, "An Etymological Dictionary of the Latin Language," represents Alumnus to be formed in the same manner from Alomenus or Alumenus. It is my intention to carry this observation much further, and to show not only that the participle present passive exists as universally in Latin as in Greek, but that it exercises a still more extensive office. I conceive, therefore, that the participle passive in dus, is the same as the participle ending, as above, in menus, syncopated as to the first syllable in me-nus, and intercalating after the n in the second syllable a d, as in ἀνδρὸς from ἀνὴρ, intendo from τείνω, and in the French Vendredi from Veneris-dies. Thus from pugnamenus is formed pugnandus; from monemenus, monendus; from geromenus, or gerumenus, gerundus and gerendus; from sequomenus, sequendus, and secundus. The broader termination of undus gave way to the more easy sound of endus, and was chiefly retained in Eundum, in some law terms; as, de Repetundis, de familiâ Herciscundâ, and in the grammatical term Gerundus. I would suggest too, that iracundus, rubicundus, jucundus, verecundus,

- VOL. XL.

One vol. 8vo. Price 13s. 6d. Longman.

CI. JI.

NO. LXXX. M-P

and facundus, are abbreviations for irascundus, rubescundus, juvescundus, verescundus, and fascundus, from irascor, rubesco, and the obsolete words, juvasco, verescor, and fascor, pάoxw.

In Latin this participle performs another very distinguished office, and becomes a verbal substantive, having three cases in di, do, and dum, under the name of a gerund. In this form, as a gerund, it becomes so much a noun substantive, that it loses its character of being exclusively a passive participle, and is understood either in an active or passive sense, as best suits the

context.

This participle is frequently used impersonally; and then it has a sense which it is difficult to account for, namely, a sense of necessity, duty, and futurity. Thus, 'Nunc est bibendum' is not only nunc bibimus, but also nunc bibemus, and nunc oportet bibere. Perhaps what is done and is doing may be some proof that it ought to be done, or should be done; and so the present may suggest and be connected with the future. Causa latet, vis est notissima.

The Greeks have a participle or verbal adjective in TEOV, which supplies the place of the Latin impersonal gerund. This participle seems formed from the third person singular of the perfect passive, by rejecting the reduplication and augment and by changing a into the adjective termination, έος έη έον. Thus from τεθεράπευται, θεραπευτέον ; from ἤκουσται, ἀκουστέον. xovσTαι, άxoUσTÉov. The verbs, however, that have this participle, are not very numerous. I believe, likewise, that not a single example occurs of any such participle in Homer, Hesiod, or Pindar. Are we to conclude from this, that in their age this participle did not exist, or that it was rejected by them as a prosaic form unsuited to the grandeur of epic and lyric poetry? On the other hand, these participles have been admitted into the tragedies of Sophocles and Euripides.

To return to the original form of this participle in menus, I would observe, that a very large family of substantives are derived from the neuter of this participle, namely, all those having the termination of mentum, the t being intercalated after the n, for the sake of euphony, as in linteus from Aivov. Thus from alumenus have been formed, by different processes, alumenus, alendus, and alimentum. The final tum has been retrenched from many words, as in leaimen, levamen, agmen, carmen, tegumen, volumen, &c., to the great ease and advantage of the poets.

In the middle ages many substantives, which never had any connexion with participles, received this termination, as parlamentum, torneamentum; and in compliance with this usage, and in imitation of the French, we have formed many substan

tives in our own language, such as, settlement, acknowlegement, &c., being Saxon words with a foreign termination. In this way, if we have defiled a little the well of pure English, we have, on the other hand, enriched our language by giving to the terminations of its substantives a greater variety. In lapse of time the original import of this termination has been so far forgotten, that in the three great modern dialects of the ancient Latin, in French, in Spanish, and in Italian, this termination is applied as an adverbial termination in the most extensive manner, as in heureusement, felicemente, premièrement, premieramente, &c. It is observable, that however prevalent these adverbs are in French, we have not ingrafted this form into our language. In adverbs, although the words are French, we give them a Saxon termination, as courteously, cavalierly.

Having considered the participle in dus, I will now notice some irregularities in the participle of the preter tense. It is evident, that out of this participle two classes of substantives have been formed; one masculine, in us, as visus, casus; and the other neuter, in um, as delictum, debitum.

As from Tesoro the French have formed Trésor, so r seems to have been added sometimes after the t in the last syllable of these participles, in order to produce a fuller sound. Thus we find spectrum, tonitru, for spectum, tonitum. In other words the t is changed into ch, as in simulachrum, fulchrum, sepulchrum. As hausi makes haustum, so rosi, clausi and rasi, make perhaps rostum, claustum, and rastum; and hence rostrum, claustrum, and rastrum. The insertion of the s before the t is not easily to be accounted for in the following words, capistrum, (capitum); monstrum (monetum); lustrum (luitum); castrum (quadratum); unless it be on the principle of association with the preceding. We have, however, in our own language something similar, as, for the mere sake, it should seem, of enriching and strengthening the termination, we say trickster, gamester, and mister, for tricker, gamer, and Mi-sir (Monsieur); upholster, and even upholsterer, for upholder; and formerly we said baxter, and brewster, for baker and brewer.

Lastly, I will remove the veil from a class of words, that have hitherto been disguised in consequence of the change of a single letter. In virtus, servitus, juventus, senectus, salus, the formation of the substantive is the same as in humanitas, and sterilitas, except that in the termination of the former words u has been substituted for a. Thus virtus is viritas; servitus, servitas; juventus, juvenitas; senectus, senecitas; and salus, salvitas.

168

"Des Peuples du Caucase et des Pays au Nord de la Mer Noire et de la Mer Caspienne dans le dixième Siècle; ou Voyage d'Abou-el-Cassim." Par M. D'OHSSON. 8vo. Paris, 1828.

In this volume, as in the celebrated work of Barthelemy, a fictitious personage is rendered the vehicle of much interesting and curious information, derived from real and authentic sources; Abou-el-Cassim, the Arabian Anacharsis, speaking of himself only in such brief sentences as were occasionally necessary to connect the various passages extracted from a multiplicity of Arabic, Persian, and Turkish manuscripts. Respecting these Oriental compositions, of which many are extremely rare and valuable, some observations shall be offered in the course of this notice. Here, however, we must assure the reader, that perfect confidence may be placed in the accuracy with which M. D'Ohsson has quoted and translated the passages above mentioned. He supposes that in the year (of our era) 948, Abouel-Cassim was despatched from Baghdad by the Khalifah, on a diplomatic mission to the Bulgarian prince of the Wolga, a vassal of the great Commander of the Faithful; and our envoy describes what he himself had seen during his journey through various countries, and relates what he had heard respecting the more northern regions.

Taking the road of Armenia he crossed the rivers Arass and Kour (the Araxes and Cyrus), and entered the province of Shirvan he then notices the different petty princes who governed in the mountainous regions of Caucasus, each bearing the title of Shah or king, such as Herarzán Sháh, Filán Shah, Tabarserán Sháh, Irán Shah, and others. The name of Cavcas (or Caucasus), M. D'Ohsson seems inclined to derive from the Arabic Cabokh, or Cabak (,). Abou-elCassim mentions the seventy-two nations of that country, each said to have its own particular language and sovereign; reminding us of the seventy, or, according to some reports, the three hundred tribes of Sarmatians and Caucasians, who assembled on certain occasions in the city of Dioscuria, as we learn from Strabo (lib. xi.). Our envoy then describes the celebrated wall constructed by the Persian monarch Chosroës, (Kessra Nouscherevan,) across the Caucasus, one extremity advancing into the Caspian sea. His object in erecting this bulwark was, to defend his dominions from the attacks of various northern bar

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