AFFINITY OF WORDS. 
197 
is the natural sound of an aspiration; ru is the simple word 
to shake, and the reduplication increases its power; ru has 
thus naturally become the term for an earthquake, which has 
a similar motion to that of a wave. 
In general, however, it must be evident, that when similar 
words, which cannot be traced to sound, occur, there must 
have been some previous connection of the languages, although 
the remembrance of it may have long since passed away. 
A most interesting word is taki, which means to track. Now 
it appears very remarkable, that these two words, which are 
not very dissimilar in sound, should both alike possess two 
very different meanings. Taki means to hawl a canoe by a 
line, and this is likewise the legitimate meaning of the English 
word. Taki also means to trace or track a man by his foot¬ 
marks, and so does the word to track; and both also mean 
a track, made by footsteps. This resemblance can scarcely be 
a chance one. 
Haere, to go, is another; it is the same in Latin, ire, with 
a like signification, so in the Old English, hie; hiegan, Saxon; 
allez, French. 
The word pata, to patter as rain, or drop as water, is 
another, which seems to present a singular resemblance to the 
European one. From pata may be derived the word patu, to 
batter or strike, and the French battu. Tu also signifies to 
strike; and here again we have the same in tue, French, to 
kill, and the Greek word tvtttu) ; and again in tutu, when one 
stands against another as an adversary. 
To give one more instance, we take the letter u, the nipple 
of the breast, to which the infant clings for its support; hence 
u signifies to hold. The canoe, when it touches the land, is 
said to u or hold to the land; hence uta is the shore, u is to 
hold, ta to touch or strike ; utaina is to land; uranga is the 
anchorage ; kia u is to hold on ; wai u, water of the breast, or 
milk ; uma is the breast; umu is an oven, whence food is drawn 
for man, as it is for the infant from the uma. Urunga is a 
pillow, to which the head clings for rest; urungi is the paddle 
used in steering, which causes the canoe to hold on its course ; 
utu, revenge, payment from u to cling, or hold on to, and tu 
