INTRODUCTION.

ON THE ORIGIN, CONSTRUCTION, DERIVATION, AND ORTHOGRAPHY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.

THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE is chiefly derivative. It was originally formed from the languages spoken by the various tribes from the north of Germany, who settled in this country in the fifth and sixth centuries. The principal of these tribes were the Jutes, the Saxons, and the Angles. On invading this country they drove the greater number of the aboriginal inhabitants into the western and mountainous parts of Wales, where the descendants of these inhabitants are now located, and where the language of the ancient Britons, now called "The Welsh," is still spoken. Soon after these settlers arrived, the southern part of Britain was called Angleland (land of the Angles), or England; and the language which they spoke, formed from the amalgamation of their various dialects, was called the Anglo-Saxon language. At the present time we find four great families of languages spoken in Europe, viz., the Celtic, the Latin, the Sclavonic, and the Gothic. The Celtic languages are spoken by the Welsh, the Highlanders (or Gaels), the Irish, and the inhabitants of the Isle of Man; their respective dialects being called Welsh, Gaelic, Erse, and Manx. The Latin language, with various modifications, is spoken by the Italians, the Spanish, the French, and the Portuguese. The Sclavonic is spoken by the inhabitants of Russia, Poland, Croatia, and some parts of the Austrian Empire. The other inhabitants of Europe speak the Gothic languages, which are also called Teutonic. The English is one of the Gothic family of languages, and as such resembles the German, the Dutch, the Flemish, the Danish, Swedish, and Norwegian.

The majority of words in the English language are from the AngloSaxon, including the more common, homely, and familiar words; as, come, go, can, will, good, see, hear, above, home, bad. The others are mostly from the Latin, or the language of the ancient Romans. Some are from the French, Celtic, Greek, German, and Danish languages. Latin words were introduced by the clergy of the Romish church after Christianity was established, and by learned men, after the revival of the study of the ancient languages in the 15th and 16th centuries. French words were added by the Normans after the Conquest. About the beginning of the 17th century, in the reign of James I., our language had become almost the same as it is now, and was then generally called the English language.

When the Bible had been translated into English, and, by being printed, had been spread among the people; when the Book of Common Prayer had been compiled, and, with the Bible, was read to the people in the churches; and when great writers, such as Spenser, Shakespeare, Ben Jonson, Bacon, and Milton, had published works which were universally read and admired -the language became fixed; and since those times it has not undergone

any material change; although numerous Greek and Latin words have been introduced, chiefly during the present century, to supply new terms required by the rapid extension of the arts and sciences.

The great majority of English words are DERIVATIVES,-the primitive or radical words being comparatively few in number.

Tracing DERIVATIVES to the simpler words from which they are formed is called Derivation; and the study of it is interesting, as illustrative of the structure and affinities of languages, and the means by which the vast number and variety of ideas, requiring expression, have suitable words formed for them from a few primitives.

By way of illustration we shall trace the origin of the word stranger, which on investigation, we find to be derived from the simple vocal sound of è-the Latin preposition denoting "from" or "out of." From this springs ex, as used, for the sake of euphony, before words beginning with a consonant. Thence is derived the adverb and preposition extra, "beyond," or "without" (from ex terra, "out of the land.") Hence is formed the adjective extraneus, and the English extraneous, "foreign," or "strange.' From this source the Franks adopted the word estrange, which, for the sake of euphony, was converted by the French into étrange; whence springs étranger. From these the English have derived the words estrange and estrangement; but it is a frequent rule with English philologists, in anglicising French words, to adopt the initials in the place of the French é, or rather drop the initial e in estrange; and then we have the words "strange" and "stranger."

Hence we may trace a derivative word, containing no less than six consonants, from a simple Latin root, formed of one vocal sound, from which we may string together a kind of philological pedigree, thus:

On entering upon the subject of derivation, there are four things to be taken into consideration, viz.-roots, prefixes, affixes, and inflections..

The primitive words of a language, from which other words are derived (and those words or parts of words from other languages, which are used as bases of derivative words, though not used by themselves,) are called roots. The former are termed separable roots; as, love, man, good; the latter are ☆ termed inseparable roots; as, ject, in project, and adjective; cess, in procession and access; duc, in produce and education; it, in transit, exit, and circuit.

Syllables, by themselves without meaning, placed before roots, are called - prefixes; placed after roots, they are called affixes. In the words prefix, affix, produce, introduce, illegal, and unmanly, the parts, pre, af, pro, intro, il, and un, are prefixes. In the words manly, hardness, lengthen, and satisfy, the parts ly, ness, en, and ƒy, are affixes.

Inflections are changes in the termination of words, to express varieties of meaning; but any word with its inflections is still considered the same word in different forms; as, hat, hats, hat's; love, loves, loving, loved, &c.

Derivative words are of three kinds: inflected words; as, sees, seen, seeing; compound words, which explain themselves, as, seaman, manhood, lighthouse; and words with prefixes or affixes, or both; as, manly, describe, predict, object, unmanly, preceptor.

In order that the English Language may be more easily understood, as well as to give a key by which the student may form any derivative, or class of derivatives, that may be omitted in this Dictionary, we think it necessary farther to inquire how this description of words are deduced from their primitives, and point out the obvious rules by which they not only are formed, but by which their meanings may easily be discovered.

DERIVATIVE SUBSTANTIVES.-The more usual sorts of derived substantives, or nouns, are Diminutive Nouns, Abstract Nouns, Verbal Substantives of the Actor, Verbal Substantives of the Action; Nouns that signify Office, Nouns that signify Dominion or Rule, and Nouns that signify State or Condition.

Diminutive Nouns express the same as their primitive substantives, with the adjective little, and they are formed by adding the termination kin, ling, ock, en, cl, &c., as lamb, lambkin; goose, gosling; duck, duckling; hill, hillock; chick, chicken; cock, cockerel; &c.

Abstract Substantives are regularly formed by adding the termination ess (which denotes the quality or state of what the preceding word expresses) to the adjective, as good, goodness; kind, kindness; and sometimes they end in th, as length from long; strength from strong; wealth from weal. Abstract Nouns borrowed from the Latin end variously, as justice, fortitude, liberty, &c. The Substantives of the Actor or Doer are derived from verbs, and denote the use or habit of doing what the verb from which they are formed expresses. They are generally formed by adding the termination er to the verb, as teach, teacher; play, player, &c; but in words borrowed from the Latin we usually keep the Latin termination or, as in doctor, governor, orator, &c.

Substantives signifying action, as separated from the agent or doer, are

regularly formed in English by adding the termination ing, to a verb, as preach, preaching; pray, praying; sing, singing; learn, learning; read, reading, &c. Some end in ment, age, ance, ery, &c.; as, commandment, tillage, appearance, prudery, &c. Many derived from the Latin end in tion, as instruc tion, correction, &c.; and many otherwise, as lecture, reason, doctrine, &c.

Nouns that signify office, state, condition, &c., are usually formed by adding ship to the primitive substantive, as kingship, the office of a king; stewardship, the office of a steward; guardianship, the office of a guardian; or lordship, partnership, &c., the state or condition of a lord, partners, &c. Some substantives in ship come from adjectives, as hard, hardship, &c. denoting the state of what the preceding word signifies. Nouns that signify state or condition are also formed by adding head or hood to the primitive substantive, as the godhead, the state or majesty of God; manhood, the state or condition of a man; childhood, the state or condition of a child; widowhood, the state or condition of a widow.

Nouns that signify dominion, rule, jurisdiction, or state, are usually formed by adding the terminations wick, ric, and dom, as bailiwick, the jurisdiction of a bailiff; bishopric, the dominion of a bishop; kingdom, the dominion of a king; freedom, the state of being free, &c.

Nouns that signify profession are generally formed by adding the termination ian; as from physic, music, are formed physician, musician, &c.

Nouns denoting character or habit are derived from verbs or adjectives, by adding ard, as drunk, drunkard; dote, dotard, &c.

Nouns which express particular belief, opinion, doctrine, heresy, sect, or something which affects in a manner the preceding word, are formed by the termination ism added to the substantive or verb, as puritanism from Puritan; gentilism from Gentile; baptism from to baptise; catechism from to catechize, &c.

Substantives in ist express the maker or writer of, follower or advocate for, dealer in, or one of, or curious in, a player in, one skilled in, one affected with, what the primitive word expresses, as from Latin, Latinist; bigamy, bigamist; dialogue, dialogist; panegyric, panegyrist; to baptise, baptist; drug, druggist, &c. &c.

DERIVATIVE ADJECTIVES are derived from Substantives in the following manner, viz., Adjectives denoting plenty or abundance are formed from Substantives, 1st, by adding y as from health, healthy; wealth, wealthy; might, mighty, &c.; 2ndly, by adding ous, as from malice, malicious; courage, courageous; right, righteous, &c.; or, 3rdly, by adding ful, as from joy, joyful; sin, sinful; health, healthful.

Adjectives denoting plenty, but with some kind of diminution, are formed from Substantives by the termination some as from light, lightsome; trouble, troublesome; toil, toilsome, &c.

Diminutive Adjectives, or those which denote a little or somewhat of the nature or quality of what the preceding word expresses, are formed by adding the termination ish to a substantive or adjective; as child, childish, or somewhat of a child; black, blackish, or a little black, or somewhat black.

Adjectives of likeness, or those which denote likeness to what the preceding

word expresses, are usually formed by adding the termination ly, and somerimes the adjective like, as godly, or like God; manly, or like a man, or man like, &c.

Adjectives signifying capacity, or denoting a passive quality equal to that may be or worthy of being what the preceding verb or noun expresses, are formed by adding the final participle able, as answer, answerable; to move, moveable; to abolish, abolishable; sometimes by changing ate into able; as in abominable, from to abominate, &c. &c.

Material Adjectives, or those denoting the matter out of which any thing is made, are usually formed by adding en to the substantive; as from oak, oaken; wood, wooden; gold, golden, &c.

DERIVATIVE VERBS.-It cannot be doubted that Verbs are sometimes derived from substantives, adjectives, and even from adverbs; as from the substantive salt, comes to salt; from the adjective warm, to warm; and from the adverb forward, to forward. Sometimes they are found by lengthening the vowel, or softening the consonant; as from grass, to graze; glass, to glaze; brass, to braze, &c.; sometimes by adding the termination en to the substantive or adjective; as from strength, to strengthen; length, to lengthen; short, to shorten; wide, to widen, &c.

DERIVATIVE ADVERBS.-Adverbs of quality or likeness are usually formed by adding the termination ly to the positive adjective; as wise, wisely; foolish, foolishly; sinful, sinfully; base, basely; virtuous, virtuously, &c. In which case it seems equivalent to after the manner of what the preceding word expresses; or, in the manner or force and value of the preceding word. It will thus be found that adverbs ending in ly, which are directly formed from their adjectives without any variation of meaning, are frequently omitted in this dictionary, because the adjective sufficiently explains the word.

Of the INSEPARABLE PARTICLES un, dis, mis, &c.—These inseparable prefixes in composition all include the negative particle not, besides their peculiar signification.

The particle un always signifies privation, that is, the absence or want of something that either was or ought to be; as unmerciful, unkind, unsteady, &c. In words derived from the Latin, the particle in is the same as un; as ingratitude, inactive, incomplete, &c. Sometimes it is an intensive particle, and then it signifies very, or very much, as intent, or very earnest, &c. Sometimes, also, in words borrowed from the French, instead of in we use the French particle en when it is not privative, but it intimates that the thing is inherent in another, is caused in it, or is tending to a junction. En becomes el before 1, and em before b, m, or p, and er before r. The n of in is likewise changed into l, m, and r, according to the initial consonant of the word to be annexed; hence, il, im, ir, instead of in; as in illegal, immodest, irregular, &c. The particle un is always privative, en never; in sometimes privative and sometimes not; yet in verbs it is seldom ever privative, but often in participles and other words.

The particle dis usually signifies some contrariety; as honour, dishonour; like, dislike; grace, disgrace, &c. in which this prefix reverses the meaning