6 Iteport on the Name oj the Society. [Jan. 



Esq., Nathaniel ^liddlctoii, Esq., Major William Davy, Charles Wilkiiis, 

 Esq. (afterwaids knighted), Jonatl»a!i J3uncan, Esq, John Bristow, 

 Esq., Tliomas GmliMm, Esq., Francis Fowke, Esq., Thomas Law, Esq., 

 Captain Jonathan Scott, Francis Balfour, Esq., J. D. Paterson, Esq., 

 Ralph Broome, Esq , Burrish Crisp, Esq., Lt. James Anderson, Lt. 

 Charles Hamilton, T. Reuben Burrow, Esq., and George Hillarow 

 Biirlovv, Esq. (afterwards a Baronet). Sir William Jones was elected 

 the fir^t President, and Warren Hastings, the Governor- General, 

 became the first Patron of the Society. 



" The Asiatick Society " thus established, published its transactions 

 under the designation of " T/ie Asiatick Researches" and only modified 

 its orio-inal title by dropping, in 1825, the antique k in ' Asiatick.' 



In 1832 the Society Recorded permission to its Secretary, Mr. James 

 Prinsep, editor of Gleanings in Science "to continue that (last named) 

 publication under the designation of ' The Journal of the Asiatic Society.^ " 

 In availing himself of this permission, however, Mr. Prinsep, whilst 

 printing the Society's resolution correctly in his Journal and inserting 

 the proper title of the Society on the first page of the letter-press and 

 everywhere throughout the records of the Society's Proceedings, incor- 

 porated in the volume, took the liberty of adding on the title-page the 

 words ' of Bengal.' This he probably did with the view of distinguish- 

 in"- this Society from the ' Royal Asiatic Society ' which had recently 

 been started in London, with a branch in Bombay. That he did it 

 without the authority of the Society seems clear, for the most diligent 

 search of the records has failed to show any trace of the matter. And, 

 on the other hand, the Society continues invariably in all its pro- 

 ceedings and coriespondence to call itself, and to be addressed by 

 others as, simply " The Asiatic Society." 



When in 1843, the Society having discontinued the publication 

 of its ' Researches ' took over Mr. Prinsep's Journal on its own account, 

 the existing style of the periodical was tacitly retained, without any 

 alteration. 



In February 1851, the provincial affix 'of Bengal' was printed in 

 the Society's designation in a revised code of the Bye-Laws, but no 

 authority for this addition can be found. It seems to have crept in by an 

 oversight and it doubtless by this time had become familiar by having 

 been printed on the title-pnge of the Jour^ial for so many years. 



This altered title, once printed in the Bye-Law?, soon came into 

 general use, though the Society in its proceedings still occasionally 

 continued to use its proper title, which was also continued on the first 

 page of the Journal regularly up to the end of 1875, the Journal being 

 entitled simply ''The Journal of the Asiatic Society.'' 



