1877.] Cust — Non- Aryan Languages of India. 17 



Col. Ouseley, one of Uraon. Dr. Caldwell, in his Comparative G-rammar of 

 the Dravidian languages, has entered scientifically into the features of that 

 family, which are well recognized. The Rev. Oscar Flex published in 1874 

 a good practical grammar of the Uraon language, and a considerable number 

 of educational works have been published. A vast number of Aryan words 

 have found their way into these languages, but the structure of the noun 

 and verb has remained intact : when it is asserted, that the syntax has been 

 assimilated to that of Hindi, we must pause, lest the argument should be 

 turned round on the score of the well-known non-Aryan aspect of the 

 Hindi sentence-method. Two of the Gospels have been translated into 

 Gond. The Rev. Mr. Driberg published, in 1849, a very complete 

 grammar and vocabulary of the Mahadeo dialect of the Gond, and Dr. 

 Mauger published an account of the dialect of the Seoni Gonds. The 

 remarkable feature of the Gond is, that it has a system of verbal modifica- 

 tions and inflexions almost as elaborate as that of the Turkish, while the 

 great Dravidian sister-languages of the south are very meagrely furnished. 

 Dr. Caldwell imagines that this unexpected development is due to the 

 influence of the highly-inflected Sonthali, its Kolarian neighbour, which 

 will be noticed below. There exists a lucidly arranged grammar of the 

 Khond, published in the Uriya character by Lingam Letchmajee, 1853 : and 

 Dr. Mauger and Sir W. Elliot have published observations on these langua- 

 ges in 1847, in the Journal of the Bengal Asiatic Society. The Uraon and 

 Rajmahali Maler contain a large admixture of roots and forms belonging to 

 the Kolaiian language. Mr. Hodgson considers the Uraon as a connecting 

 link between the Kolarian family and the Rajmahali ; and the Rajmahali as 

 a connecting link between the Kolarian and Dravidian. 



In the Kolarian family are many tribes under varying names, but 

 which may be reduced to three great branches. 1. The Kols or Hos. 2. 

 The Mundaris, or Mundas, or Bhumij. 3. The Sonthals. It is the generally 

 received opinion, that the origin of this family is from the north-east, either 

 from the farther side of the great linguistic watershed of the Himalaya, or 

 down the funnel of the valley of the Burhamputer. Col. Dalton thinks 

 that he can trace their progress through Asam into the Shan districts of 

 Siam : the immigra^^ion from the north-west of the mighty Aryan race has 

 severed this Central Indian family from its congeners. There is an asserted 

 linguistic resemblance between the Mundari and the Mon of Pegu in British 

 Burmah — this is stoutly denied by others. Nothing is impossible, but 



TToAAa /xera^v 

 Ovped T€ (TKLocvTa, OdXacrad re ■^^^eo'cra. 

 A much more intimate knowledge of the structure of both languages is 

 required to carry out such a connexion. 



Capt. Haughton published vocabularies of some of the Kol dialects : 



