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French ; — at any rate lie can never forget it, in the manner that most 

 scholars who have previously learned Latin do. 



Nor is this all ; — the notice of these very changes leads to a consider- 

 ation of their causes, illustrative both of the mental cast of the nation, 

 and the physical, moral, or social influences, which render them unable 

 or indisposed to pronounce certain sounds, or induce them to soften or 

 change certain letters.* Again, the Greek, Latin, and other verbs may 

 be made much more interesting and instructive to the learner, by 

 directing his attention to the formation of the personal terminations, 

 and showing as Professor Key and Dr. Pritchard have done, that these 

 are in fact modifications of the personal pronouns. 



In teaching geography also, philology is no less sen-iceable. What a 

 liveliness does it give to a boy's perceptions, when he learns that the 

 features of a country are commonly named after the features of the 

 body ; — that projecting points are called cape, from the head ; naze, 

 ness, or nez, from their resemblance to a nose ;< — bill, from the beak of 

 a bird ; — and corn, (as in Cornwall,) from the horn of an animal ;f — that 

 the names of seas and rivers often contain a description of their 

 position or their character, while those of places and countries may tell 

 us of their history, as Murviedro, the muri veteres of Saguntum, — their 

 situation, as Beaumaris, (beautiful place on the sea),- — their founder, as 

 St. Petersburg and Constantinople,' — their trade, as Copenhagen, 

 (harbour of merchants), — their productions, as Pihodes, (so called from its 

 roses), — or the character of their soil, as Rutland, {ie. red-land.)* 

 Again, it is most interesting to a boy to learn that the names of rivers, 



• The French, being a vivacious nation, instinctively shorten , as we have seen, th« Latin 

 words, and their quick " frere" is a great contrast to the lazy Itahan " Iratello." In Italy, 

 Again, the monastic life has supplanted the family life, and thu» frate has come to mean 

 "a monk," and they have been obliged to coin a new word. " fratello," to express the r lation 

 in domestic life. Our own tendency to brevity, as compared with the Italians, may be 

 illustraifd by the words John and Giovanni, both formed irom Johannes; and James and 

 Jachimo, both from Jacob. 



+ We may compare "coast," from the Latin " costa," a rib, French " cote ; " isthmus, a 

 neck; Siuus, agulf or "a bosom;" Savannah, from sabana, a sheet; Sierra, a saw-shaped 

 ridge, (comp. Furca), ^gnWim, needles. 



♦ The new n^me, though often very different in appearance, constantly coincides in 

 meaning with the old, as Edin-hurgh and Dmi-edin, (both meaning King Edwin's hill.) 

 Saragossa and Ce:.sar Aut^usta, Holy-MwW and Tre-ffynnnn, Ca(^e)r-]\ii\e and Lugu-vallnm, 

 (caer being exactly etjuivalent to the Latin vallum,) Winchetter (Saxon, Wt/an-cea»/er,) and 

 Caer-gu-eut, (both meaning " white city,") Ba/h and jlqnte calidie, Glatxon-hurr and Ynis- 

 iri^ryn, {ix. glassy isle, witryn being identical with the Latin rt/rnm and the French verre,) 

 Z>on-ube and 7»-tfr, G/6ral-li»r and Mons Calpe, (Jibel, like cal or col, meaning elevation.) 

 Jnato\-ia and Z^iaDt, Mesopotamia and Al-jezireb, Tadmor and Palmyra, Rio de la P^ta 

 and Jryent'xne. 



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