16. Z, with an accent (z), is somewhat similar to the above, but has no equivalent in our language.

OBS. The sounds of the letters in Slavonian, Bohemian, and Illyrian, correspond, with very slight exceptions, to those of the Polish language.

PORTUGUESE.

XXVI.

1. The vowels a, e, i, o, u, and y, and the diphthongs ai, ay, au, ei, and ey, are essentially the same as in Spanish.

2. AO is pronounced almost oung.

3. The consonants b, d, f, l, m, n, p, s, t, v, and z, are similar to the English.

4. C is the same as in French, differing from the English only by sometimes having the cedilla.

5. Ch is the same as in French; or, in other words, is like our sh. 6 G and j are the same as in French. (See XIX, 15 and 17.) 7. H, in Portuguese, is always silent. When, however, it follows 7 or n, it renders these letters liquid; thus, filho (son), is pronounced feel'-yo; senhora (lady), sane-yo'-rå, &c.

8. M, frequently, and n, sometimes, has a nasal sound. Sam, like são, is pronounced almost soung; alem or alen sounds like å-leng'. 9. Qu is pronounced as in French, the u in this case not being sounded.

10. R is like the French. (See XIX, 24.)

11. X is sounded like ch in Portuguese, or sh in English.

RUSSIAN.

As the Russians neither employ Roman characters, nor those which can be readily converted into corresponding Roman letters, we have, in writing the geographical names of Russia, followed the mode adopted with respect to oriental names. (See XIV and XV.)

SPANISH.
XXVII.

1. The Spanish a sounds as in the English word far; e like a m ale, i like e in mete; o as in English; u like oo; and y like Spanish i.

2. At and ay are like long i in English. Au sounds like ou in our. (See XX, 13, Obs.) Ei and ey are pronounced à ́-e.

3. The consonants ƒ, l (single), m, n, p, s, t, and v, are pronounced nearly as in English.

4. B, at the beginning of a word, sounds as in English; but when it occurs between two vowels, its sound resembles that of v, with this dif ference-v is pronounced with the upper teeth placed against the under lip, while the sound of the Spanish b is formed by bringing the lips loosely or feebly into contact. This sound seems to be between that

of v and the English w.

5. C, before a, o, and u, is pronounced as in English; before e and i, it has the sound of th in the word thin. In the Catalan dialect it is the same as in English.

6. Ch has the same sound as in English, except in the dialect of Catalonia, where it is pronounced like k.

7. D, at the beginning of a word, is sounded nearly as in English, but is pronounced with the tip of the tongue against the upper teeth, while in pronouncing the English d, the tongue is made to touch the roof of the mouth. At the end of a syllable, or between two vowels, d, in Spanish, sounds like the English th in this, but is somewhat softer. This sound is usually represented, in the present work, by a small capital D.

8. G, before a, o, and u, is hard, as in English.

9. G, before e and i, and j before every vowel, are pronounced like a strong guttural h, similar to the German ch in ach. This sound is indicated by H distinguished as a small capital.

10. Gua and guo sound somewhat like gwå, gwo, but the g is so soft that it is scarcely perceived; so that in these cases the sound of gu seems to approximate very nearly to that of the English w. Gu, before e and i, is usually sounded like g hard; thus, GUIANA is pronounced gheån'-å. When, however, the u is marked with a diæresis; thus, güi; these two letters have the same sound as when before a or o, and consequently güi is pronounced gwe or we. (See table at the end of this Section.)

11. H, in Spanish, is never pronounced, except in words beginning with hue, and then very slightly.

12. Ll (now sometimes written 1), has a sound which combines that of land y (consonant), and is similar to the liquid 7 in French; e. g. villa or vila is pronounced veel'-yå; Llerena, lyà-rà ́-nå.

13. Ñ, in a similar manner, unites the sounds of n and y, and is like gn in French; thus peña is pronounced pane'-yå.

14. Q, in Spanish, is always followed by u. Qu, before a and o, is

sounded as in English; or, in other words, is equivalent to kw; before e and i, it is pronounced like k, unless the u be marked with a diæresis, in which case it is like kw. (See table at the end of this Section.)

15. R is similar to the French, but is trilled more strongly. (See

XIX., 24.)

16. T is to be pronounced by putting the tip of the tongue against the upper teeth.

17. X is usually sounded like the Spanish j, which letter, according to the present mode of spelling, has been generally substituted for it; thus, instead of the old spelling, Ximenes, Xucar, &c., we now see Jimenes, Jucar, &c. X, before a consonant, or before a vowel marked with this sign A, is sounded as in English: Example-Exterior, Exâminar.

18. Z is to be pronounced like th in thin.

The following table will, perhaps, serve to show more clearly the manner in which c, g, j, q, x, and z, are used in Spanish.

OBS. The Spanish language, as spoken in Mexico, differs, in some points, materially from the true Spanish. Thus, z and c, before e and i, instead of having the sound of th, are generally pronounced like s. Among the uneducated classes, ll is universally sounded like y; thus, villa is pronounced vee'-yå. It will be perceived that this is similar to the fashionable pronunciation of the liquid 7 in French. In most countries of South America, the Spanish tongue is spoken in greater purity, though the above-mentioned corruptions prevail, in some parts, to a greater or less extent.

SWEDISH.

XXVIII.

1. The vowels a, e, i, ä, and ö, are similar to the German.

2. A sounds like the English o.

3. O, at the end of a syllable, is like our oo; in other cases, like o in not.

4. U appears to blend the sounds of short e and of oo, being somewhat similar to '-oo. It has been represented, in the present work, by oo; this sound being the nearest to it of any in our language.

5. Y is the same as in Danish; or, in other words, is similar to the French u.

6. The Swedish consonants are for the most part pronounced like the English, with the exception of j, and g before e, i, ä, ö, and ti, which are equivalent to y consonant, and of z, which sounds like ts.

7. Kj sounds like the English ch; thus, Kjöping (written, also, simply Köping) is pronounced chöp'-ing.

The following Table is intended to exhibit the striking discrepancy in the mode of writing the same geographical Bames, which occurs in the works of respectable authors. (See Preface, page xii., and Introduction, page 28.) Small capitals are used to denote the mode of spelling which occurs in the Gazetteer, and wbich the authors consi. dered to be the preferable orthography.

An asterisk denotes that the pronunciation of the spelling to which it is appended is differe from that of the others, But when a name occurs with two or more different spellings, not marked by an asterisk, it is to be understood that the pronunciation of all these is essentially the same.

If the reader will bear in mind that oo in English, ou in French, and u in Italian and German, have the same sound; that i in all the languages of continental Europe is similar to ce in English; that j, in two-thirds of the European lan guages, is like our y; that ch in French, and sch in German, is equivalent to our sh, and that j (and g before e and i) in French is like our zor z in azure-and nearly like the German sch; a clue will be furnished to many of the perplexities with which geographical spelling and pronunciation so much abound. Some other difficulties are explained in the Table by reference to the Introduction: e. g. Habana, Havana; Xingu, Chingu. (App.) placed after a name, indicates that it is to be found in the Appendix.