OCEANIC MIGRATIONS. 185 



VITIAN. MALAI8IAN. POLYNESIAN. 



ndovu, .... tabu, (Bugis) .... tola, to, .... sugar-cane. 



voli, .... ball, (Jav.) fakatau, ... to trade. 



vcda, .... balas, (Jav.) .... fetaki, .... retaliation. 



vosa, .... bosa, leo, voice. 



koro, .... ndgoro,* nuku, apo, . . town. 



The last two are perhaps accidental coincidences, for the Malaisian 

 words are of Sanscrit origin, and their introduction into the Javanese 

 is supposed to be comparatively modern, though, on this point, we 

 have no certainty.f 



To the above list may be added the affixed possessive pronouns, 

 which, in the singular, at least, are plainly of Malaisian origin. 



It may be thought that if the Vitian has thus derived some of its 

 words directly from the Malaisian, it may owe to the same source all 

 those which we have considered to be of Polynesian origin. But a 

 little reflection will show that this supposition is altogether impro- 

 bable. The Vitian agrees with the Polynesian, not only in many 

 words that are not found in any proper Malaisian dialect with 

 which we are acquainted, but also in many minute grammatical 

 peculiarities. We may mention, for example, the use of the nomi- 

 native particle ho (Comparative Grammar, 17), of the causative and 

 reflective forms ($ 54), of the passive or transitive suffixes ( 56), and 

 of the relative particle ($ 60), none of which are known to exist in 

 any language of the Indian Archipelago. The argument, moreover, 

 from the composition of the language, is offered merely to prove that 

 the Vitians are of mixed descent, while the opinion expressed as to 

 the probable mode in which this mingling of races has been effected, 

 rests upon the peculiar evidence derived from the native traditions 

 and customs, and the relative meaning or similarity in the names of 

 places and tribes. 



The supposition of the existence of people of distinct races, like the 

 Viti and Tonga, in the same group, is countenanced by facts observed 

 at a short distance from the Feejee Islands. We have already spoken 

 of the island of Tanna in the New Hebrides, which has, about five 

 miles from its coast, two islets inhabited by Polynesians, whose 



* The words here given in the various Malaisian dialects are taken from the Compa- 

 rative Vocabulary in Crawford's Indian Archipelago, vol. ii. 



t If the Vitian word vosa be really from the Javanese bosa, it will then be derived from 

 the Sanscrit bhasha, which is also the original of the Latin vox, and the English voice. 



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