38 



CEYLON BRANCH 



—ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY. 



On the Elements of the Voice, viewed in reference to the Roman 

 and Singhalese Alphabets, commending the toriting of Sin- 

 ghalese in Roman letters, by the Be v. J. G. Mac VICAR, D.D. 



{Read on the 1st August, 1845.] 



The object of this paper, is to analyse some of the princi- 

 pal sounds which the human voice naturally emits, with a 

 view to shew the excellence of the Soman alphabet, and its 

 fitness for representing languages generally, and the . Singha- 

 lese in particular. Its triumphs have indeed already been 

 such, that it is now entitled to the name, not of the Homan 

 alphabet merely, nor of the European alphabet merely, but 

 of the alphabet of all the world. Yery many old ones have 

 left the field on its approach, and in proposing to commit any 

 language for the first time to writing, nothing else hut the 

 Horn an alphabet is ever dreamt of. It is in fact, emphatically, 

 the alphabet of Christian civilization and discovery ; and it 

 cannot but diffuse itself in the same proportion, as Christian 

 civilization and discovery advance. Already indeed it meets 

 with resistance nowhere, except in that region of the world, 

 which has long been characterized by its resistance to all 

 change, and of course to this. It meets with resistance no 

 where but in Asia. There is nothing in the languages of 

 Asia however, which precludes them from the benefit of the 

 Homan alphabet. Our letters require only to receive dia- 

 critical marks so as to equal in number the letters of the 

 Asiatic alphabets, in order to be equally fit with them, for 

 expressing the existing pronunciation, and vastly more fit 

 than they are, both for the pen, and for the press. Oh this 

 subject Sir W. Jones, equally to be admired for the vastness 

 of his knowledge of the languages of Asia, the candour of 



