GREEK LANGUAGE. 



that 



wliich marks efFeft, tliat is, why the nominative and the has been called an a;7;f/f ; whereas it is a ^/j/fn/Vfijf derived 



accufative of Greek neuter nouns are always the fame. from the Hebrew ^, ha, which, as an abbreviation of 'pt, en, 



A mukitiide of nouns in all languages exprefs the abflracl ferves to direct the attention to an object, and thus to dillin- 



ideas of action, and confcquently arc derived from verbs, as guifh that object from all other things. ()',, w/jo, anTo-, t/ic 



fubfequcnt to verbs in their formation. Our ideas moreover fame, ifTo , /his, are but different nuulificalions of/. In 



of the perfons, the charaders, the offices of men, are dc- fpeaking briefly of the verb, v.e fliall do little more than 



rived from tlie fame fources ; and from verbs arc derived copy Mr. Jones's fyilem, as explained in that part of his 



the nouns wliich exprefs tliole perfons, charafters, and Greek grammar wlicre he treats of the origin of verbs. 



offices. This fyilem is founded on tiie Hebrew tongue, in which all 



The name of the aflor is derived from the correfponding the varieties of mood, tenfe, number, and perfon arife from 



Verb by adding TO ■, rj, i^-, w; ; as ^aSsi', lo learn, jMxSmr.i the combination of th.e pcrfonal pronouns with a radical noun 



the perfon that learns, a learner; i;)f»ai', to fcek, i;)^v-t/Trf ; or verb. Though a multitude of abllraft nouns are bor- 



fiassi/f, to enquire, iwxri'j, the perfon luho aiquins ; cr-rzu^j;, to rowed from verb.-:, yet all or molt of the Greek verbs are 



Jq-u) \ (TOTfiv-, afo'uter. nouns converted into verbs, by annexing to them the per- 



Nouns exprelung the adtion of the verb abllraftedly fonal pronouns. His own wordh are : We acquire the ideas 



confidered, or the eficcT; of that adtion, are derived from of action by refledling on ourfelvcs, or obfervino- others in 



the correfponding verbs by adding o-i; in the room of certain circumllances ; and die moil limple way which na- 



ihe final w ; as -i^-z-w, to delighl, Trjxs-i- ; t<j4.i.-, delight, ture could at firil fuggeft of exprefllng tliefe ideas was to 



the aH of delighting ; tsz-i-, to produce; Tizs-ir, i^-, , combine the name of the perfon or thing which adts 



the aB of producing, prodiiflion ; y.^it-j:, to judge, x^uj-i.-, xjiVi,-, with the perfon or thing adtcd upon. Thus oiw,- and 



judgment. Hence it is evident that verbs in -».• or liix, (Su, (px, ly^ joined, and abbreviated, is oi;o!l- : and this term 



mult have their correfpondinir nouns- in J. K : thofe in x.i.-", yti, would be futficient to exprefs / ^/WnZ- luine, though it ori- 



Xi, and thofe in 5-0-1/ ( for > .i-) in 5>; ; and thole in ^i; and o-jij ginally meant only wine I; aflbciation fupplying to the 



(for fa) in ^i;-. The penultimate vowels a and s are changed ipeaker, and to the perfon addrelfed, the intern.ediate notion 



into «, and into w; as iJ.x.fl:x,to learn ; ija9ri(nf,inJiru3ion;oi^(iox; of driniing. From t! s account of the origin of verbs, he 



to rrclify ; oj^is-i:-, reditude. ' deduces three conclulions of importance to be obferved. 



Other verbs are changed into abftradt nouns by changing Fiijl, verbs were originally the names of things ; and thus 



the laft fyllable into u--. or /.<,or, or limply into r, the peniilti- received their charadters as verbs from affociatiou. Secondly, 



mate e "being changed into o after the analogy of the perfcdl tlsat every verb confifts of a pronoun exprefling an agent, 



middle; as !i\'ir^, ta fee; ^X-T:^a,, ^\mij.a, a fight; Kji-/-i-, and of a noun or the fubftitute of a noun exprefling an ob- 



K^uiACi., xiiu'j., judgment ; Tfaw for -r^av-x, to pierce ; t^avij.'j., a jedt. Thirdly, that the terminations, t,-, h:, u, >ik, Ojuii, 



•wound; d^ir^i^u, to plunder ; a^iraa-i^o; plunder ; ifi^a, to de- '■''-, ova-i. Were originally the perfonal pronouns, and from 



fne ; oji^y.o-, dejnition ; (p'd'.i^,'-; to corrupt ; $6o^r., corruption ; thefe, with the changes which they underwent, have pro- 



<r-!if,-t, tofjiu; ai^o^r., feed. cceded all the variations of mood, tenfe, number, perfon 



Adjedtives are converted into abftradt nouns by changing and voice. 



the latt fyllable into 7n-, or into vtir, or into «.-, or into k.-. ; The firft perfon, !■, is afragment of =■,!.■ ; and by the fame 



wcio , quaUs,fiich; -oios-r,:, quality ; (y.y.Q , lafe; ■^:.:xornr, bafc- analogy that tya- becomes e/./.s, verbs in a are changed into 



nefs ; licia , alsne, ov one ; fimjc:, the numl/er one, monad; avu:, verbs in t^ui ; as ir^i', <rK!;*i, to place, Sei, or Tiia, -riiaui, to 



Jix ; iou:, or Stcow, t-i-'ofjui, to give ; xXw-, or xtr-Xvy, >.Xv!f<i, or 

 ■-iiyj-v^iji, to hear. The perfonal terminations of verbs in tpi 

 are therefore but a modification of thcfe in i-.-, and confe- 



tzva; Suae, the number tnuo ; c\rfyr,., true; a'/.rfina, truth; 

 onxi/j-o--, approved; io<i:x'y.aiy.,apprchatiijn. 



Adjectives, being the names of qualities, are taken from the 

 names of theobjedtsto which thofe qualities in a prominent quenlly a modification of the perfonal pronouns sjut, t-, («, 

 manner belong ; as om;, an aj's ; ma-o:, contemptible ; ay-^yo.:, !-c», '^.i-., irt, la-i. On this principle the vcibs in ^ii, which 



•wind; Kv-//.oii--, ii'indy ; c.-hij-'Ak:, empty, like the ivind. But 

 adjedtives are derived from nouns by annexing to them the 

 verbs exprefiive of fimilitude, eiko;, like ; iiio: refemllance ; 

 li-i-, fuch, like ; as a»5^i"s-o,-, a man ; cc-.Q^j'-iko-, man-like, manly ; 

 "guiit'-io: for a>bj-^— 'lo;, man-like; alfo KvO^mirwciV..-, for -afi^n^ 



grammarians have hitherto divided into four diitir.d\ clafies, 

 are, according to Mr. Jones's theory, but one clafs, having 

 each the fame perfonal termination, and difierine; only by 

 different modes of contraction ; as .'r«!fi, iyi-t; Ti&s.-or, 

 Ti9i!ji/.i ; oiooiiJLi, oiSi/jji ; zix'W:"', >:ix>.uui. This complex fpe- 



TOfjon-, having the form of a man, manly. This compofi- cies of verbs is hence reduced into great fimp licity, and 

 tion is the origin of that clafs of nouns called patronymics, the acquifition of them rendered very eafy. The fjrit 

 nsAsu:', TliXsiJr,;, one having the form of Peleus, i.e. the fon perfon optative, even of verbs in v, conforms to the aua- 

 of Peleus. logy of verbs in fjn, Tiisr-oi,j;, which originated in ■;v~-iuf,i. 



There are in Greek but two perfonal pronouns, that is, though oblolete. From this fourcc the Latins have derived 

 fubilitutes for nouns, or, as we have explained them in the the final m, amabam. 



article G RammaR, numeral adjedtives, afiuming the charadler The fecond perfon in Hebrew is p,, iha, or ta, a fra"-ment 



of nouns by atfociation with the verb. Thcfe are <>a, /; ^•. or oi ■^p\^, ata. Hence the loKians formid this perfon in 



TV, thou ; rmd they are evidently derived from the Hebrew Ok — vis-ij:, thou kno-uv/l ; r.o-ix, thou ri'aJL The above frag- 



'Z3^N> "'-ke^'y iy which in Greekis written in the various forma ment, confiding of t'h or .' only, has been corrupted into s. 



of lyi-, (>!», !>i.»', li'-vK, ii'vra ; HPN*' "'"' ^"^ ^Y dropping Hence the fecond perfon in every tenfe of the active voice 



{if, P5fl, ?/j;<, or the iEolic Tt/ : ii/alwavsexpreffes the fiibjecl terminates in j', with e or a fliort preceding. The fubjunc- 



or agent in one of the oblique cafes, and tiierefore, as not lives i, i, form no part of the original pronouns, but were in- 



wanni g, has not a nominative cafe Its origin is the He- ferted,as is often the cafe, to lengthen the precedino- vowel, 



brew 'n, khi, life, foul, f:!f, which htttir is the fenfe of m. The third pronoun in Hebrew is ^IH) hoe, which is the 



Pronouns of the third porlon are only definitives or reilridtive parent of he in Eugliih, and in Greek of f. This, « ith the 



adjedtives agreeing with tlie noun defined, expredcd, or im- fubjuiidtivei, forms the third perfon, Tirrri. To the origi- 



plied. The chief of thefe is tj/iif, Zf, winch very improperly nal i the louians added tri. Thus in verbs in ju, tiS;-.-., 



