ORIGIN AND HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. THE English language has been derived from various sources, and a brief sketch of its origin and history cannot fail to be interesting. On the landing of Julius Cæsar on the shores of Britain, the country was inhabited by a CELTIC race, whose language still continues to be spoken by the Welsh, the Highlanders, the Irish, and the inhabitants of the Isle of Man,-their respective dialects being called Welsh, Gaelic, Erse, and Manx. Of the Celtic language, as originally spoken by the British, few traces now exist in England, except in geographical or local names. About the middle of the fifth century, the SAXONS, from Lower Germany, gained possession of our Island; and the Celtic Britons were eventually driven into Wales. From one of the branches of the Saxons, called Angles, our country received its name of England, and the new language was denominated the Anglo-Saxon. The Saxons, though primarily an illiterate people, cultivated learning to some extent; and among their principal writers, the names of Gildas, Cadmon, Ælfric, Bede, and King Alfred may be mentioned. After an existence of about six centuries, the Anglo-Saxon dynasty was terminated in 1066, by the invasion of William duke of Normandy, commonly called the Conqueror. The NORMANFRENCH then became the language of the court and the upper classes, while the Saxon continued to be the speech of the common people or peasantry. In the course of time, these two languages were blended into one, and became the basis of the present English. "The Saxon power," Dr Bosworth remarks, "ceased when William the Conqueror ascended the throne, but not the language; for Anglo-Saxon, after rejecting or changing many of its inflections, continued to be spoken by the old inhabitants till the time of Henry III." Subsequently to the Norman conquest, the Saxon laws continued in force, and were translated into Norman-French. But by a statute passed in 36th year of Edward III. (1362), it was enacted that all pleas should be pleaded, debated, and judged in the English tongue; and from this period may be dated the triumph of the English language over the Norman-French in our courts of law. It was during the reign of the Tudor family, in the 16th century, that our language assumed, substantially, the external form in which it is now found, and became enriched by many productions which still form a part of its standard literature. The Anglo-Saxon is the language to which the English owes its general form and structure. All the particles on which its syntax depends, all its pronouns and conjunctions, nearly all its prepositions, most of its monosyllables, and indeed all the words in most general use, are of Saxon origin. The number of words belonging to the English language (says Dr Worcester) has never been accurately ascertained, and it is difficult to ascertain it with exactness; but of the great number of words which have been introduced into the language, in the various sciences, since the first publication of Johnson's Dictionary, very few are of Anglo-Saxon origin. The languages (Saxon, Latin, and Greek) from which most of our words are derived, either mediately or immediately, may be generally known by their prefixes or terminations. Of the AngloSaxon prefixes, the principal are a, be, em, en, fore, im, mis, out, over, un, and under; as a-head, be-friend, em-body, en-able, fore-bode, im-bosom, mis-deed, out-do, over-act, un-bind, under-go. The principal terminations are er, full, less, ly, ness ship; as writ-er, mind-ful, help-less, just ORIGIN AND HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. vii The Latin language is next in importance to the Saxon,-words without number having been thence derived through the French, in consequence of the Norman conquest, especially those terms connected with law and military art. The Latin has also furnished a large portion of the abstract and general terms, especially in the departments of theology, moral and political philosophy, and all the moral Sciences. The following is a summary of the Latin prefixes, which are of immense importance in the composition of words, and in giving copiousness and energy to our language :a, ab, abs (from); as a-vert, ab-jure, abs-tract;—ad, ac, af, ag, al, an, ap, ar, as, at (to); as ad-duce, ac-cede, af-fix, &c. ;—ante (before); as ante-cedent ;—auto (self); as auto-biography ;circum (about); as circum-jacent ;-con, co, cog, col, com, cor (together with); as con-form, coeval, col-lect, &c. ;—contra (against); as contra-dict ;-de (down, from); as de-face, de-grade ;— dis (asunder); as dis-arm ;-e, ex (out of); as e-ject, ex-clude ;-extra (beyond); as extra-judicial-in, ig, il, im, ir (in, not); as in-due, in-visible ;—inter (between); as inter-mix ;-intro (within); as intro-duce ;—ob, oc, of, op (for, in the way of); as ob-ject, oc-cur ;—per (through); as per-vade ;-post (after); as post-script;—pre (before); as pre-cede ;-preter (beyond); as preternatural;-pro (for, forward); as pro-consul ;-re (back, again); as re-turn, re-build ;—retro (backward); as retro-spect ;—se (aside); as se-cede ;-sine (without); as sine-cure ;—sub, suc, suf, sug, sup, sus (under, after); as sub-dean, suc-ceed, suf-fice, sug-gest, sup-plant, sus-pect;—super (above); as super-abound, super-natural ;-trans (over, across, through); as trans-cend ;-ultra (beyond); as ultra-marine. The terminations of words derived directly from the Latin, or mediately from the French, are very numerous, as able, ible, cle, ile, al, ian, an, ant, ent, fy, lar, ity, or, ous, tion, tive, tude, ture. For nearly all our terms in physical science and modern art, we are indebted to the Greek language. When any new discovery is made, we have recourse to that great storehouse of orthological lore. Of the leading prefixes of that language, the following is a summary :-a (without); as acephalous;-amphi (about, or on both sides); as amphi-theatre ;-ana (through, again); as anagram;-anti (against); as anti-christian ;-apo (from); as apo-state;-cata (down, from side to side); as cata-logue ;-dia (through); as dia-gonal;-en, em (in); as en-demic ;-epi (upon); as epi-demic ;-hyper (above); as hyper-critic ;-hypo (under); as hypo-crite ;-meta (beyond); as meta-physics :-para (by the side of, near); as para-llel ;—peri (about) ; as peri-meter ;-syn, sy, tyl, sym (together, with); as syn-onymous, syllogism. The following terminations are from the Greek: ic and ical, logy, graphy, and ize. From the period of the Tudors, great changes have taken place in our language. Numerous words, which in the time of Shakspeare were in current use, have now become obsolete, while many others, owing to the progress of knowledge, the extension of literature, or the usages of fashion, have sprung into existence. Very few of the English writers who preceded the reign of Elizabeth are now much read. Old words have been, from time to time, falling away, and new ones have been formed and brought into use. A large portion of the words found in the early productions of English literature, such as those of Robert of Gloucester, Gower, Chaucer, Wicliffe, and Mandeville, are now obsolete; and in order to understand these words, further assistance is necessary than is afforded by modern authorities. A dictionary of the English language, however, to be complete, ought to contain those words, whether obsolete or not, found in books which are generally read, such as the common version of the Scriptures, and the works of Shakspeare, Speaser, and Milton; though there are many words in these works which are now obsolete, and many which, though not obsolete, are used in an obsolete sense; and in the compilation of this dictamary, those terms, which in their day were of some importance, and of frequent application by the best writers, have been duly retained, and denoted by the common symbol t; while those obwiete terms which were vulgar or cacophonous, and rarely found in any author of repute, have been entirely rejected. There are many words, however, which are very rarely used, but not altoher obsolete; and these have been indicated by the letter R (rare). PHONOTYPY; OR, KEY TO ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION. THE general principles of Pronunciation are founded on Letters; and the letters or elements into which words may be analyzed form the necessary alphabet of a language. In the English alphabet there are twenty-six letters. Of these there are six vowels; and each vowel, by simply opening the mouth, forms a perfect vocal sound. The remaining twenty letters are called consonants, which cannot be sounded without a vowel, and whose pronunciation depends on the particular application and use of different parts of the mouth; as the tongue, the teeth, the lips, the palate, &c. The following is a brief enumeration of the letters of the alphabet, in which the phonetic powers of each are briefly explained and elucidated by notarial or phonotypic marks of pronunciation at the foot of each page. A (a) is a vowel which has four distinct sounds -the long or slender, as in face; the short, as in cat; the open, or Italian, as in father, and the broad, as in wall. Before a word beginning with a vowel, or a silent h, it is, for the sake of euphony, changed into an, as an owl. In many words from the Greek language, a is a prefix of privative meaning; as achromatic, without colour. B (be) is the first consonant, and the second letter of the English alphabet. It is also a mute and a labial, being formed by pressing the whole length of the lips together, and forcing them open with a strong breath. It has a close affinity with the labial letters P and V; and in some languages it is confounded with them. C (se) has two very distinct sounds-one hard, D (de) is a dental and a mute, and has a uniform F After c and g, the final e serves to indicate that c is to be pronounced as s, and g as j. (ef) is a semi-vowel, and articulated as 7, but with the breath alone.-F and V are styled babiodental aspirates. G (dzhë) has two sounds, hard and soft. The hard sound occurs before the vowels a, o, u, 1, and r; as gate, go, gull. The soft one is like the letter, and is found before e and i, as gem, gibbet; though in a few words of German origin it is sounded hard, as get, begin, &c. H (haytsh) is regarded as a note of aspiration, or mark of strong breathing. At the beginning of some words it is mute; as heir, honour; but in most cases it is articulated; as hand, head, heart. It is also mute when united with g; as right, brought. I (7) is the third vowel of the alphabet, and has four different sounds. The first is short and acute, as in chin; the second is long and diphthongal, as in chine; the third is close and slender, though long, as in field; the fourth is short and obscure, as in bird. The second sound is peculiar to the English language, and is the usual vocal pronunciation, when unaffected by a consonant. (ja) is a consonant, and has invariably the sound of the softened g; as in giant, jet, just, &c. K (kā) is a consonant borrowed from the Greek, and has, before all the vowels, one invariable sound, as in keen. It is silent before, as KEY TO ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION. Le is a liquid consonant or semi-vowel, and has only one sound in English, as in like, or canal. At the end of monosyllables it is usually doubled, as in bell, or full; but not after digraphs or diphthongs, as cool, foul, &c. (em) is a liquid and labial consonant, or semivowel, formed by compression of the lips, and a kind of vocal enunciation through the nose, as in come. In English it has one unvaried sound. N (en) is a liquid and a semi-vowel, with a nasal articulation. After m it is silent, or nearly so, as in hymn, or condemn. 0 (3) is the fourth vowel of the alphabet, and has five distinct sounds-first, short and acute, as in not; grave and long, as in tōne; a soft and diphthongal sound, as in move; a broad diphthongal sound, as in nor; and a sound softened like the vowel u, as in dove; a long sound is usually denoted by the servile a, as in moan; or by a final e, as in bone. ix three distinct sounds-the first long and close, as in tūne, with a strong aspirate; the second, a little shorter and more open, as in fall, or für; and the third, short and acute, as in cut, the notarial accent of which, from its general occurrence, it is not necessary to indicate. In many words the long vowel takes the sound of yū, as in union. (ve) is a consonant with a labial articulation, formed by the junction of the upper teeth with the lower lip, as in vain or deaf; v is nearly allied to the letter f, being formed by the same organs; but the one is vocal, and the other aspirate. W is a letter found only in the alphabets of modern languages. It is a consonant at the beginning of words and syllables; but in other situations a vowel, being but another form of u, or the union of two vs. It is precisely the ou of the French, and the # of the Spaniards, Italians, and Germans. With other vowels it forms diphthongs, as in well, want, pronounced ovell, ooănt, &c. At the end of words W is generally silent, as in saw, low, &c. P (p) is a labial consonant, and forms, when followed by the letter h, a digraph (of Greek origin) equivalent to f; as in physic, or para-x graph. (kew) is a consonant, and always followed by u. It has the sound of kw or c hard, and the which follows it, when not silent, is sounded as w; as quail, pronounced kwail ; but it never terminates a word. Rar) is one of the liquids or semi-vowels, and S (es) has two sounds-first, like c soft, as in sit; U is the fifth vowel of the alphabet, and has is used chiefly in words derived from the Greek language. At the end of words it has the sound of eks, as in wax; but in the middle of words it sometimes takes the sound of eks, and sometimes of egz, as in luxury, and exalt. At the beginning of words, where it rarely occurs, it is pronounced like a, as in Xenophon. Y (whi) at the beginning of words and syllables is a consonant, and in other situations a vowel, having the sound of i, and subject to its changes; sometimes being long (when accented), as in defy, and sometimes short (when unaccented), as in glory. At the beginning of words y answers to the German and Dutch j. (zed) has invariably the soft sound of the vocal consonant s, as in rose. The few English words beginning with this letter are chiefly derived from the Greek. By way of fuller illustration, we present the following Phonotypic key, which, for immediate reference, is appended to the foot of every page of the Dictionary all the Phonotypes being of the simplest character, and not uselessly introduced in any word where the pronunciation is clearly conveyed by the letters alone, as in cal, cot, or cut; or in the diphthongs awl, maul, bowl, &c. :— -A" C bef, a ou as k; bef. ei y as s; &g hard; me, hêir, hër; pine, mărîne; CGg soft; s as z; tion as shun; th flat. In connection with the Phonotypy of letters, and pronunciation of syllables and words, Accent forms a material element. It is the laying of a peculiar stress of the voice on a certain letter or syllable in a word; as in the verb a-bet the sharp stress of the voice is on the syllable bet, while in the word re-su'me the accent, or more properly speaking the long quantity, is on the vowel u, or second syllable sume. In the adjective abject, the accent is on the first syllable, while in the verb abject it is on the second, thus making a wide distinction both in sound and meaning. Thus every dissyllable or polysyllable in our language has one of its syllables dis GENERAL RULES FOR THE CORRECT PRONUNCIATION OF EUROPEAN LANGUAGES. THE languages of Europe which are most generally studied by the English are the French, German, and Italian; the Dutch, Swedish, and Danish very nearly assimilating to the German, and the Spanish and Portuguese to the Italian. FRENCH NAMES. A. The vowel a, in French, has two distinct sounds; the first long (pas), as in the English word far; the second short (bal), as in hat. The circumflexed â, however, has a sound broader than a in pas, being intermediate between that in far and that in fall. when at the end of a word (not immediately followed by another word beginning with a vowel), or when followed by another consonant in the middle of a word, they have what is termed the nasal sound, which resembles that of ng, as in long, pang, &c., but is somewhat softer; E has three sounds; the first close, like e in thus m and n are nasal in such words as commet, as été; the second open, and more prolong-parer, contente, but have their natural sound in ed, like a in hate, as tête; and the third obscure, as in battery (retour). I is distinguished by two sounds; first nearly as in the English word fig (il); the second like ie in field, as exile. O has three sounds; first nearly as in robe (trône); second, as in rob (parole); third, as in lord (corps). U has not a precise equivalent in English, but it is nearly like the vocal sound of ue in flue; but before the nasal n, as in un, it takes the sound of ung. is similar to the French i Ai is like & or e open. Au is like . Ei is like è. Eu is similar to the English u in tub, but the sound is more prolonged, nearly resembling u in fur. Ie is like ee in English, or ?. such as commune, connu. Qor qu, in French, sounds like k; e.g. quel is pronounced kel; qui, kee, &c. Ris like the English, but is trilled more strongly, especially when it precedes another consonant or stands at the end of a word, as in vertu, punir: in similar cases the English is but very slightly sounded. S, when single and between two vowels, sounds like z: in other cases it is the same as in English. generally has the same sound as in English, but is sometimes sounded like s; e.g. in six, pronounced seece, and Bruxelles (Brussels), pronounced bru'-sell'; and occasionally like 2, as in dixième, de'-ze`-ame'. Ch is like sh in English: th is like t. Gn (the same as in the Italian) has a sound which blends that of x and y (consonant), or in other words is equivalent to the sound of ni in Oi usually sounds like wă, e.g. moi is pro- minion. Thus Avignon is pronounced à`-veennounced mwă or mwõh. Ou sounds like oo in English. B, c, d, f, k, p, t, v, and z, are the same as in English. G, before a, o, and , is hard, as in the English word gap; before e, i, and y, it is soft, having the sound of za, or of s in pleasure. Gu sounds like g hard; thus gué, guide, are pronounced gå, gheed. His never pronounced in French so forcibly as in English. Some orthoëpists say that h has no sound in French. lish. sounds like soft g in French, or sh in Eng L has usually the same sound as in English; but when it ends a word, being preceded by i, or when I follows i, in any situation, it usually has what is called its liquid sound. This may be said to answer nearly to the sound of lli in million, the sound of /in such cases being blended with that of y (consonant); e.g. papillon is pronounced pa-peel-yon'; Chantilly, shanteel-ye', &c. M and N, when followed by a vowel, or when yon'. The vowel e at the end of a word, when not marked with an accent, is invariably mute, e.g. in parle, contente, &c. The French consonants, when occurring at the end of a word, are generally not pronounced, unless they are immediately followed by a word beginning with a vowel; e.g. in content, Bordeaux, and dents. If, however, they are followed by a mute e, or any other vowel, they must always be articulated, e.g. in contente, dente, &c. It may be observed that the French language has no accent in the sense in which we employ this term. The marks called accents, that are placed over the different vowels, serve only to indicate some particular sounds of these letters. Thus the accent over the e in parlé serves to show that this vowel has its first French sound, and at the same time distinguishes it from parie, another form of the same verb, in which the e is mute. The circumflex imparts to the vowels over which it is placed, a longer and deeper sound than ordinary; e.g. in hâte, tempête, gite, and |
