236 JOURNAL, R.A.S. (CEYLON). [VOL, XIV. 



This brings to one's mind also the city of Melai on the 

 island Alcomr, one of the Maldives, which is known to us 

 as Male. It is in this way that a confusion of Malabar 

 with Malay has arisen, although they are different peoples 

 and languages. For not even does that most accomplished 

 Oriental scholar B. Herbelotus, in his Bihliotheca Orientalis, 

 distinguish them, writing thus : " Malai. — Oriental geogr a- 

 "phers understand by this name that part of India commonly 

 "called by us the Malabar country. Nevertheless the name 

 " Malabar is sometimes found in their books as if you should 

 " say the Malay country. We also at the present day call the 

 "inhabitants of this country the Malay, and their tongue 

 " the Malay tongue (les Malais et leur langue la langue 

 " Malaique)." Here that most learned man was mistaken. 

 The language of the Malabar country is called Malabar, and 

 the language of the kingdom of Malacca is called Malay ; 

 the two languages are quite different. 



Mr. C. Fernando remarked that the writer of the Paper read 

 (Reland) did not seem to display that Oriental research which might be 

 expected from a Doctor of Philosophy. His treatment of Sinhalese was 

 excelled even by Knox. He had occasion to speak to a Malay gentle- 

 man on the snbject, who assured him that he was unable to recognize 

 some of the words represented in the work as Malay. He did not 

 deem Reland's efforts valuable nor important from a philologieai 

 point of view. 



7. The following Paper was read by the author : — 



