Mr. CoLEBROOKE OH the Philosoj)hy of the Hindus, 453 



composed by authors appertaining to particular sdc'hds, and by them taught 

 to their fellows belonging to the same, and have continued current among 

 the descendants of those to whom they were so taught. 



A very curious disquisition occurs in this part of the Mimdnsd,* on the 

 acceptation of words in correct language and barbaric dialects, and on the 

 use of terms taken from either. Instances alleged are yava, signifying in 

 Sanscrit, barley, but in the barbaric tongue, the plant named priycmgii ; 

 vardha, in the one a hog, and in the other a cow ; ptlu, a certain tree.t but 

 among barbarians an elephant ; vetasa, a rattan cane and a citron. The 

 Mimdnsd concludes, that in such instances of words having two acceptations, 

 that in which it is received by the civilized (dryas), or which is counte- 

 nanced by use in sacred books, is to be preferred to the practice of barba- 

 rians {Mlech'ha), who are apt to confound words or their meanings. 



Concerning these instances, Cumarila remarks that the words have no 

 such acceptation, in any country, as is by the scholiast alleged. He is 

 wrong in regard to one, at least, for jiihi is evidently the Persian fil or pil. 

 Modern vocabularies I exhibit the word as a Su ^scrit one in the same sense ; 

 erroneously, as appears from this disquisition. 



Then follows, in Cumarila's Vdrtica, much upon the subject of provin- 

 cial and barbaric dialects ; which, adverting to the age in which he 

 flourished, is interesting, and merits the attention of philologists. He 

 brings examples from the Andhra and Dravida dialects, and specifies as 

 barbaric tongues the Pdrasica, Yavana, Raumaca, and Barbara, but con- 

 fesses his imperfect acquaintance with these. 



Jaimini gives an instance of a barbaric term used in the veda, viz., ^jtca, 

 a black cuckow (cuculus indicus) ; to which his scholiasts add nema, half, 

 tdmarasa, a lotus, and sata a wooden colander ; but without adducing 

 examples of the actual use of them in any of the vedas. Such terms must 

 be taken in theu" ordinary acceptation, though barbarous ; and the passage 

 quoted from the veda where the word pica occurs, must be interpreted 

 " sacrifice a black cuckow at night." It will here be remarked, tliat pica 

 ■ corresponds to the Latin picus, and tliat 7iem answers to the Persic inm. 



On the other hand, a barbaric word, or a provincial corruption, is not to 



• 1. 3. 5. 



\ The nanie is in vocabularies assigned to many different trees. % JatacVmra, SfC. 



