Philological Proofs of the Original Unity and Recent Origin of the Human RaceJohnes, Arthur James
History
Philological Proofs of the Original Unity and Recent Origin of the Human Race
Johnes, Arthur James
Ethnology; Human beings -- Origin; Language and languages; Monogenism and polygenism
6. It will be seen that in this instance, and in numerous other examples,
finer shades of transition are restored by means of a comparison including
the Four Continents.
7. As regards the Continent of Africa, by this comparison all its
synonymes of the class selected for analysis have, with a few trifling
exceptions, been exhausted. As regards the other three Continents, so
large a portion, probably the great majority, of these synonymes have been
introduced from every region of those continents, that the evidence thus
obtained, combined as it is with a complete investigation of the African
terms, may be considered as equally conclusive with the proofs which would
have been furnished by an exhaustion of the synonymes of all the four
continents.
The examination of synonymous terms is the principle which has been
pursued by Humboldt, in his work on “The Basque,” and by Du Ponceau in his
Treatise on the “Algonquyn Dialects of the North American Indians.” It is
the most satisfactory mode of investigating languages, because it involves
an explanation of the differences as well as of the resemblances they
mutually display.
8. Hence it follows that when all the dialects of each continent are thus
compared in the aggregate with those of each of the other three, the very
same language is reproduced by the reunion of the “_disjecta membra_.”
With reference more especially to the third and fourth results above
stated, I may here advert to the researches of two philologists of the
highest eminence, whose conclusions will not, in the present state of
philological knowledge, be disputed,—the German writer Klaproth, and Dr.
Prichard: the former has treated of the proofs of affinity observable
among the Asiatic languages; the latter has discussed the proofs of mutual
resemblance displayed by certain languages usually classed under the term
“Indo-European.”
The affinities which present themselves among the different languages of
the single continent of Asia, in the following examples, have been
selected as evidence of the original connexion of those languages by
Klaproth.
WORDS FOR “THE SUN.”
_Asia._—Chor Churr (_Ossetian._)
Chor Chorschid (_Persian._)
Chorschid (_Pehlwi_), Huere (_Zend._)(25)
_America._—Coaracy, Curasi, Quarassi (_Brazil._)
_Africa._—Koara (_Bosjesmans._)
_South Africa._—Giro (_Kanga, Negro-land._)
Though the Zend, Pehlwi, and Persian are three kindred dialects of Persia,
it will be observed that the Pehlwi and Persian words in this example,
although clearly allied to the corresponding Zend word (_Huere_), resemble
that word less than they do the American and African terms. On the other
hand, the next example presents to us American and African words perfectly
identical with this term (Huere).
WORDS FOR “THE SUN” AND “DAY.”
_Asia._—Huere, “The Sun,” (_Zend._)
_S. America._—Huarassi, “The Sun” and “Day,” (_Omaguans._)
_Africa._—Hor, Horus, i.e. “The God of Day,” (_Egypt._)
Huer, “Day,” (_Iolofs, Negro-land._)
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