1 64 ONOMATOPOETIC WORDS. 



of it " (hdrotrdrony), just our own expression for the best of 

 a thing. We speak of " high-handed " conduct, w hile the 

 Malagasy say, Such an one " uses his arm " (manao 'sundry). 

 We speak of " going with the stream," and they say ' follow- 

 ing the flow of water." The language is indeed very full of 

 examples of short terse phrases and adages, proverbial in 

 form, which give great force and point to native speaking ; 

 and an interesting chapter might be written upon Malagasy 

 proverbs as illustrating native habits of thought, and the 

 moral and religious notions of the people. 



There is a large class of words of the kind called onomato- 

 poetic, like our " whizz," " bang," " crack," &c, where the word 

 is a close imitation of the sound it describes. Thus we find 

 Mhy, for laughing ; mibitsibltsika, for whisper ; mitsiky, for a 

 giggling smile ; donddna, for knocking ; efondfona, for hard 

 breathing ; ddboddboha, for splash, together with many others 

 too numerous for further mention. 



Enough has probably been here said to show that the 

 language of Madagascar offers many features of great interest 

 to the philologist, and that a careful study of its peculiarities 

 throws much light upon the history and character of the 

 people whose mother-tongue it is, and who can employ its 

 musical sounds and poetical idioms with such effect. It has 

 now received a further addition to its capabilities by em- 

 bodying Christian truths, and by being used for the noblest 

 purpose to which human speech can be applied, in the 

 diffusion among the tribes of the great African island of that 

 JiUtzantsdra, or " glad tidings," which is for every nation and 

 people and tongue. 



