OF THE YOKUBA LANGUAGE. 



45 



words have been adopted by the Papua tribes in their accidental intercourse with Polyne- 

 sians, or belong to both races from primeval times, is a problem yet to be solved. The 

 former opinion seems at first the more probable, but it is doubted much by those who have 

 most carefully studied the languages of these nations."* 



47. The belief in adoption might be plausibly defended, if the Avords were such as are 

 rarely used, or if they were mere synonymes. But as they denote some of the most common 

 objects, such as must be among the earliest named in any language, and as their analogues 

 are found not only among the islanders of the Pacific, but also among the Chinese and Indo- 

 European tribes of the continent, there can be but little, if any, ground for a reasonable doubt, 

 that the similar words are parts of a very ancient inheritance from a common ancestor. 



48. The field of etymological resemblance in Yoruba, is not confined either to the radi- 

 cals or to the derivatives, but it presents even to the superficial observer, a great number of 

 connected analogues, some of which are radical, while others are derivative. Some of the 

 coincidences, especially with Latin and Greek words, are so striking, that I was inclined 

 to believe the words might have been introduced by merchants and slave-traders, until their 

 evident derivation from well-known Yoruba roots, satisfied me that they were indigenous. 

 The following list will illustrate the character of these coincidences: 



abetele, a begging beforehand; Ger.,bitteln. duro, to stay. Lat., duro. 



abi, having. Lat., habeo. 



agOij, Strife. Gr., ayah. 



ake, an axe. 



akc, a large she-goat. Gr., ais. 



akorj, beads made of shells. (Jr., x» OT . 



akuko, a cock. Sans., cucuta. 



amona, a guide. Lat., moneo. 



ataba, a dove. Ger., taube. 



ati, and ; adi, after all. Gr., hi. 



auro, morning. Lat., Aurora, eurus. 



awari, search. Lug., aware. 



bale, or basile, landlord. Gr., fiaadt-Os. 



bata, a small box. Eg., baita. IIeb.,ro. 

 beru, to fear. Lat., vereor; Sans., bhirui. 

 hi, to beget, to breed. Gr., /?:»?. 

 da, to give. Lat., dare. 



emi, I, me. Gr., tpi. 



eni, one. Gr., h. Ger., ein. 



ckaij, once. Sans., eca«. 



eni, a person. Gr., hiou 



es'iij, a horse. Lat., asinus. 



fere, almost. Lat., fere. 



fit), to terminate. Lat., finis. 



fiij, to be fine or nice. Fr., fin. 



fu, to grow, as a plant. Gr., <p6w, 



giga, height. Gr., yiyaz. 



i, he. Lat., is. 



ibe, there ; ibi, here. Lat., ibi. 



ida.ro, dross of iron, cinders. 



igoil, ailgk 1 . Gr., yunia. 



ihiij, hither. Ger., bin ; Eng., hence. 



irin, iron. 



iwora, greediness. Lat., voro. 



dile, to bo dilatory. Eng., delay. 



* P. (3G6. For further Polynesian vocabularies, sec Humboldt's " Kawi-Sprache." 



