294 



PROCEEDINGS OF THE CANADIAN INSTITUTE. 



mann. Taken altogether the Eskimo language is one of the most 

 interesting for the philologist and tlie great extent over which it is 

 spoken and its numerous and isolated dialects make it a sul)ject of 

 the highest importance to linguistic science. When the Eskimo shall 

 have received the same attention at tlie hands of students of language 

 as have the Semitic, or the Aryan tongues, I trust I am not far 

 wrong in predicting that an important step will have been taken 

 towards the solution of the problem of the origin of language. 



The earliest vocabularies of the Eskimo language which we possess 

 are those of Davis ( " a few words of the people of Baffin Bay " ), and 

 Frobisher ("words of the language of Meta Incognita"), which I 

 here insert alphabetically arranged : — 



DAVIS' VOCABULARY.^ 



English. 



Eskimo. 



English. 



Eskimo. 



Beard 



macuah 



Knife, a 



sawygmeg 



Below 



samVjah 



Leap 



con ah 



Boat, a 



ponameg 



Live it 



unircke 



Bracelet, a 



sasobneg 



Music 



madly coy te 



Coat, a 



sugnacoon 



Needle, a 



panvgmah 



Come down 



gounah 



No 



nugo 



Come hither 



icune 



Nose, a 



uderah 



Dart, a 



asanock, maccoah 



Oar, an 



paaotyck 



Eat some 



kesinyoh 



Sea, the 



aob 



Eye, an 



blete 



Seal, a 



ataneg 



Fallen down 



alja 



Sealskin 



lethicksaneg 



Fish 



maatuke 



Shot 



acu 



Fog, a 



tucktodo 



J^kin 



lechiksah 



Give it me 



quoysah 



Son, my 



ugnera 



Go, fetch 



aginyoh 



Stag or Clan 



tuckloak 



Go to him 



cocah . 



Thread, a 



pignagogah 



Harm (I mean no) 



yliaoute 



Tongue 



ugnake 



Have(willyou-this) 



maconmeg 



Wash it 



mysacoah 



Iron 



aoh 



Yonder 



awenny^ 



Kiss me 



canyglow 







FROBISHER'S VOCABULARY.-^ 



English. 



Eskimo. 



English. 



Eskimo. 



Breeches, a pair of 



callagay 



Hand, a 



argotteyt 



Coat, a 



attegay 



Head, the 



mutchatet 



Ear, an 



chewat 



Knife, a 



poUenetagay 



Eye, an 



arered 



Leg, a 



comagaye 



Finger, foremost 



teckkere 



1 Nose, a 



cangiiawe 



" fourth 



mekeUacane 



Ship, a 



accaskay 



" little 



yackethronc 



Thumb, a 



coblone 



" middle 



ketteckle 



Tooth, a 



keiotot 



Foot, a 



atoniagag 







1. Hakl. Soc., Voyages of Inc., Davis. Lond. 1886, p. 20. 



2. Voyages in search of N.W. Passage, Cassel's Nat. Lib., vol. 



no. 32., p. 61. 



