JOURNAL 



ASIATIC SOCIETY 



MARCH, 1849. 



Notes on the Languages spoken by the various tribes inhabiting the 

 valley of Asam and its mountain confines. By William Robinson, 

 Inspector of Government Schools in Asam. 



The study of the affinities of languages has always been acknow- 

 ledged to be one of importance. When properly applied, it cannot fail 

 to afford an unerring test of the truth or falsehood of traditionary 

 evidence : and without its aid, it would sometimes be impossible to 

 unravel the mysteries of contradictory testimonies respecting the rela- 

 tions of the different races of mankind. 



Yet no one branch of study, probably, is attended with greater diffi- 

 culties in the prosecution, especially as regards the languages of uncon- 

 nected and barbarous tribes, remote from all contact with literature or 

 civilization. It is seldom to be expected that points of resemblance 

 can be found sufficiently numerous to afford any thing like demonstra- 

 tive evidence of the affinity of languages under these circumstances. 

 And even where we do meet with identity in any given number of 

 words in any two languages, nothing can be inferred from this coinci- 

 dence, respecting the relation of those two languages. For, if the fan- 

 cied resemblance or identity of a certain number of words, — unless, 

 indeed, the proportion be very considerable — were to be esteemed a 

 sufficient proof of their having been derived from a common stock, it 

 would follow that more than half the languages of the universe would 

 exhibit traces of such connection, in whatever order we might pursue 



No. XXVII —New Series. 2 b 2 



