152 ESSAY ON" 



and learned classes, and at court ; the other was current 

 among the lower cbisses, whose poor and barren dialect 

 had fewer sounds to express. Be this as it may, the ele- 

 ments of their alphabets have an obvious affinity with 

 those of the Sanscrit. The Sanscrit alphabet, after strik- 

 ing oft' the double letters, and such as are used to 

 express sounds peculiar to that language, has a sur- 

 prising affinity with the old alphabets used in Europe ; 

 and they seem to have been originally the same. 

 This subject I intend to resume hereafter. The Em- 

 perors of Sumatra, when endeavouring to intioduce 

 civilization into their couiitry, opened an intercourse 

 with India, but more particularly with the kingdom 

 of Magacfha, and Palibothra ; for as Mr. Marsden 

 judiciously observes*, the Malay language has re- 

 ceived no impro\'ement from the dialects of the Pe- 

 ninsula in India. All the Hindi and Sanscrit words in 

 that language are such as were in use at the court of 

 the Emperors o^ India, residing in Bahar, and among 

 the better sort of the inhabitants of that country. 



The Kings of Sumatra call themselves Mahd-rajas 

 to this day; their prime ministers are called Mantri:^ 

 which are both Sanscrit terms. In their language 

 'Dra'^and Dexvata are derived from Deva cind Devatd 

 in Samcrit ; the first of which signifies God, and the 

 other a deity. Among the names of places in Sumatra^ 

 very few are Sanscrit, but the following are undoubt- 

 edly such; viz. Indragiri, Indrapura, Ipura or Aipura, 

 Sinha-pura, Singd-pour, or Sincdpour. 



Jameulus sa3^s that this tract of islands, ov Lancd, 

 consisted of seven principal ones: and to this day in 



♦ As. Res. V. iv. p. 233. 



t Hisr. of Sumatra, p. 285, and from Mantri Ihe Portuguese 

 p]ade Mandarin, 



