78 INTRODUCTION. 



tion of braying, that N^D, pra, another assumed 

 name for the same animal, is not likely again de- 

 rived from an imitation of the asinine voice, and be 

 equally from an Hebrew root, in a language not 

 remarkable for extent or richness in its vocabulary. 

 ]TtN, atun, is a third designation repeatedly trans- 

 lated by female ass, and also asserted to mean a 

 particular species or race of saddle-asses, and T"O1, 

 diamor, in Arabic chamara, hamar, and hymar, in 

 Ethiopia cehmiri, one decidedly Semitic, refers to 

 the wild ass, and appears again to allude to the 

 voice of the animal. As for IQ"T, reches, translated 

 mules, and not found until about the time of the 

 first kings of Israel, we think the true meaning to 

 be a carrier, equally applicable to a mule and to the 

 swift dromedary, hedgeen, as seems proved by 23*1, 

 recheb, a chariot ; and again traceable in the West- 

 ern Arabic shrulat-er-reech, the celebrated fleet 

 horses of the desert, or swallowers of the wind. 

 The names of animals, in original and in most an- 

 cient languages, unquestionably are often to be 

 traced to imitations of their voice, or to some pre- 

 dominant obvious quality in their form, colours, or 

 uses, and we find this fact particularly applicable 

 to Equidie. Now, taking pra, para, pered, perdaJi, 

 to mean an ass, a mule, or more properly a riding 

 beast, and comparing them with tTD, paras, horses, 

 and O^ttHS, Parasim, Persians, later Parthians, 

 that is, horsemen, we see that the root has a more 

 eastern origin, and belongs to a people coming from 

 the regions of Hindukoh, whose name was derived 



