16 Cust — Non- Aryan Languages of India. [Jan. 



Khyoungthi, who are Buddhists, fairly civilized immigrants from Arracan, 

 speaking a dialect of the Aracan language : their written character is the 

 same as Burmese, which is in fact a branch of the same stock : it has a 

 strong affinity to the Tibetan group. 2. The Chukmas, of uncertain 

 origin, who are Buddhists, merging into Hindus, at the same time that 

 their Aracanese language is yielding to corrupt Bengali. In their language 

 words can be traced which belong to neither. 3. The Toungtha, of mixed 

 origin, if not the aboriginal inhabitants of the district, and more savage 

 than the above-named. Among these are the Tiperahs, or Mrongs, Kumi, 

 Mroos, Khyengs, who are subject to British India : Bungees, and Pankhos, 

 who are partially, and Lushai-Kukis above-mentioned, Shendus or Lakheys, 

 who are entirely independent. All are Pagans, and most are savages. 

 There is a vocabulary of the Khyeng language by Major Fryer, and of New 

 Kuki by Lieut. Stewart, both in the Journal of the Bengal Asiatic Soc*ety. 

 There is a vocabulary of the Tiperah language, but no written character ; 

 the same remark applies to the others. Little is known of the Shendu, but 

 there is a vocabulary by Captain Tickell. 



Proceeding southward we should enter British Burmah, from which 

 for the present we abstain, and crossing the Bay of Bengal to land in 

 Cuttack, we complete the circuit of the province of Bengal by enumerating 

 the non- Aryan languages of Central India. 



They consist of two great linguistic families, and are spoken by a 

 population of not less than four millions, occupying a length of country of 

 about four hundred miles from the District of Cuttack to Rajmahal, the 

 boundary of Bengal and Behar. The two families are the Dravidian and 

 Kolarian, and they are somewhat intermixed in their habitat, thouo-h 

 perfectly distinct in appearance, customs, and language. Both lie outside 

 of the Hindu and Aryan fold. Both are Pagan, and, if not savage in the 

 sense of the Himalaic savages, yet fall short of the moderate type of 

 Asiatic civilization : the language of both is agglutinating, and devoid of 

 literature or of written character. 



In the note in the report of last year a detail is given of the great 

 Dravidian languages of Southern India, which are described as of Scythic 

 origin, and connected with a pre-Aryan immigration from the West. Four 

 tribes who spoke Dravidian languages are there mentioned, as unimportant, 

 two of whom will be noticed here. The Kota, a small Dravidian tribe in 

 the Neilgherries, was incorrectly printed as Kole in last year's report : the 

 two now to be noticed are the Gond, and Kandh, Khond, or Kho : two more 

 are indicated as outlying members of the same family, the Uraon, and the 

 Malers of Rajmahal. Thus we have four tribes in Central India whose 

 language is Dravidian. 



The Rev. Mr. Hurder has published a vocabulary of Rajmahali, and 



