256 



in the Chayma u and teu. The same roots are 

 found in the Tamanack. 



CHAYMA. 



/ TAMANACK. 



Ure, L 



Ure. 



Tuna, water. 



Tuna. 



Conopo, rain *. 



Canepo. 



Poturu, to know. 



Puturo. 



Apoto, fire. 



Uapto (in Caribbean uato). 



Nuna, the moon, a month. 



Nuna t. 



Je, a tree. 



Jeje. 



themselves to a single vowel. In a language of the Ancient 

 Continent, the structure of which is so artificially complicat- 

 ed, in the Biscayan, the patronymic name Ugarte (between 

 the waters) contains the u of ura (water) and arte between. 

 The g is added for the sake of euphony. Guillaume de 

 Humboldt on the Biscayan language, p. 46. 



* The same word, conopo, signifies rain and year. The 

 years are counted by the number of winters, rainy seasons, * 

 They say in Chayma, as in Sanscrit, " so many rains,'" mean- 

 ing so many years. In the Biscayan, the word urtea, year, 

 is derived from urten, (frondescere) to bring forth leaves in 

 spring. 



+ In the Tamanack and Caribbean languages Nono signi- 

 fies the Earth, Nuna the Moon j as in the Chayma. This 

 affinity appears to me very curious ; and the Indians of the 

 Rio Caura say, that the Moon is another Earth. Among 

 savage nations, amidst so many confused ideas, we find cer- 

 tain reminiscences well worthy of attention. Among the 

 Greenlanders Nuna signifies the Earth, and Anoningat the 

 Moon. 



