FOURTH WEEK] October 277 



forms terrapene and turpin, on the contrary, originated in 

 the New World, in the language of the American Redskin. 



Cobra-de-capello is Portuguese for hooded snake, while 

 python is far older, the same word being used by the 

 Greeks to denote a spirit, demon, or evil-soothsayer. This 

 name was really given to designate any species of large 

 serpent. Boa is Latin and was also applied to a large 

 snake, while the importance of the character of size is seen, 

 perhaps, in our words bos and bovine. 



The word viper is interesting; coming directly from the 

 Romans, who wrote it vipera. This in turn is a contrac- 

 tion of the feminine form of the adjective vivipera, in 

 reference to the habit of these snakes of bringing forth 

 their young alive. 



Lizard, through such forms as lesarde, lezard, lagarto, 

 lacerto, is from the Latin lacertus, a lizard; while closely 

 related is the word alligator by way of lagarto, aligarto, to 

 alligator. The prefix may have arisen as a corruption of 

 an article and a noun, as in the modern Spanish el lagarto, 

 a lizard. 



Monitor is Latin for one who reminds, these lizards 

 being so called because they are supposed to give warning 

 of the approach of crocodiles. Asp can be carried back 

 to the aspis of the Romans, no trace being found in the 

 dim vistas of preceding tongues. 



Gecko, the name of certain wall-hunting lizards, is 

 derived from their croaking cry ; while iguana is a Spanish 

 name taken from the old native Haytian appellation biuana. 



Of the word frog we know nothing, although through 

 the medium of many languages it has had as thorough an 



