152 THE FISHERIES OF THE UNITED STATES. 



nomenclature, as translated for lis, by them, look strange and sonnd odd to hundreds of English minds who know- 

 better; but Forster, whom I quote below, was also a German, and hence his testimony to the correct orthography 

 of the subject in question, is all the more valuable, especially so, since he says in the preface to his work there 

 cited : "The numerous researches upon which, more esi)ecially in the ancient part, and that relative to the middle 

 ages, 1 was obliged to enter, the multifarious departments of learning, from which I have derived some of the 

 following notes and remarks, the orthography of a proper name, has frequently cost me hours, and sometimes 

 whole days." 



Cogent reasons why it is "Bering". — Also in this relation. Professor Gill, of the Smithsonian Institution, 

 informs me that "the name of the navigator, which has been conferred on the strait separating America and Asia, 

 is unquestionably spelled Eering and not Behring. I submit in explanation my reasons: 1st. The navigator 

 himself was born in Jutland, and a scion of a Danish family, whose members bore the name of Bering, and two 

 representatives of which had the same Christian name, viz, (1) Vitus Bering, born 1G17, died 1C7.5, some time 

 |)rofessor of poetry at Copenhagen, and (2) Vitus Bering, born 1GS2, died 1753, a priest of Ollerup and Kirkcby. 

 The form Behring, so far as I can ascertain, is unknown in Denmark (see Nyerup's Dansk-Norsk Litteratur-Lexieon : 

 V. i, pp. 50, 57, 1818). 2d. The form Bering is almost (but not quite) universally adopted in all non-English works, 

 for example. Biographic Universelle (Michaud): v. 4, p. 261, 1811; also nouv. 6d.: v. 4, p. 28, 1854; Nouvelle 

 Biograjthie Gen^rale (Hoefer): v. 5, p. 527, 1855; Allgemeine Encyclopiidie der Wissenschaften und Kiinste (Ersch 

 uud Gruber): v. 9, p. 136,1822; Neues Kouversations-Lexicon (Meyer's): v. 3, p. 238, 1862; Deutsch-Amerikanisches 

 Conversations-Lexicon (Schem) : v. 2, p. 296, 1869, and numerous others. The exceptional cases are Pierer's Universal 

 Lexicon, Grand Dictionnaire Universel du xix^siede, etc. In English dictionaries, the true form. Bering, isadoptef? 

 in the Brief Biographical Dictionary, by Holes, 1865, and the Dictionary of Biographical Itefereace, by Phillips, 

 1871, and is gradually superseding the more familiar English form. An explanation of the reason of the origin 

 of the name Behring, is found in the fact that it was originally derived from the Russian, without a knowledge of 

 its primitive source, and was the supposed English phonetic expression of the Russian characters. Inasmuch, 

 however, (1) as the original form of a name, without regard to its pronunciation, is universally adopted in our 

 biographies and bibliographies, and (2) as the original form of the navigator's name was Bering, such is the correct 

 one, and that ■which must ultimately supersede the other. It need only be added that Bering himself, and. the 

 Russians universally, (?) adopt that form when writing in English characters, and that the Russian letter ('u') in 

 his name, represented by 'eh,' is especially ordained by the Russians to be rendered by the Latin character 'e,' 

 in accordance with the pronunciation of the Latin and continental races generally." 



In addition to this clear statement by Professor Gill, I desire to add the following: John Reinhold Forster, I. 

 U. D., who sailed around the world with Captain Cook — a man that universally commanded respect in his day 

 as a scholar and a high-minded gentleman — ^iu his Voyages and Discoveries in the North, London, 1783, j)]). 401-402, 

 writes: "Nevertheless, it would be still more proper to make this strait a kind of monument to the very deserving 

 and truly great navigator, Veit Bering, by naming it, after him, Bering straits.''^ 



The common error of "off" for "ov". — Furthermore, in this connection, it will be noticed that I do- not 

 spell the common Russian terminative "obi" as "-ofl"; these letters "odt." in the Russian, are sounded by their 

 makers exactly as we would "ob" in our own alphabet; for instance, take the name "jBara«oi'," or "Bapanooi" in the 

 Russian; the common English and German spelling in our language is ^'■Baranoff^''; but, when these same writers 

 come to "capaiioBiiMi", instead of making it '■'■ Baranofitch'''' , according to their first erroneous rule, they spell it 

 correctly, '^ Baranovilch." In the same way they murder ^^PribyJov^^ ; but did they chance to wr te it in the 

 possessive, it would appear correctly as "PWfcy^oi'a", and not "PH^/o^a". The Russians have our letter "/", as 

 "*" in their alphabet; and they use it freely when they want to express that same sound of "/" in our tongue; 

 for instance, in '■'■Timothy^'', they always say '■'•Timofay'''' (rnMo*ciii.): '■'■Officer,^'' is " Offltsar,''^ etc. 



The unwarranted " W " for " V ". — This unsettled state of English orthography, as far as it relates to the 

 introduction and correct rendition of Russian nomenclature, produces much embarrassment and annoyance to any 

 writer who may seek for a fixed rule; not only do no two authors agree, but these authorities themselves are guilty 

 of the inconsistencies which I have pointed out above. Thus, these German translations of the Russian have 

 given us "Moscow", when there is no sound of " W" in the Russian language or suggestion of it in that facile and 

 extensive alphabet of nearly tbrty letters. In the case of Moscow, I ]iresume we must be guided by the authority 

 and example of Gibbon, who declares that "some words, notoriously corrupt, are fixed, and as it were, naturalized 

 in the vulgar tongue. The prophet Mohammed can no longer be stripped of the fiimous, though improper, 

 appellation of Mahomet; the well-known cities of Aleppo, Damascus, and Cairo, would almost be lost in the strange 

 descriptions of Hakb, Damashl; and Al Cahira.^^ 



High time to correct such blunders. — But, in all kindness, I submit that the name of Bering has 

 not been so firmly travestied as has that of the Arabic chief, and ought not to be passed down misspelled on the map 

 of the great sea and straits which perpetuate and commemorate his being. And it is high time such numberless 

 outrages as "Wolga", for "Volga"; "Kiew", for "Kiev"; "Azow", for "Azov"; "Pribiloff", for "Pribylov"; 

 "Werst", for "Verst", be corrected in all future printing of Russian nomenclature. 



