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The Bopf Libi^ry. 
 
 COLLECTED BY FRANZ EGPP, 
 
 3r*rof*essor of Comparative I*h.ilolo«ry in tlie 
 University of Berlin, 
 
 l^urchasetl by l^Co7*neU University, 1S6S* 
 
PROPOSALS 
 
 A MISSIONARY ALPHABET, 
 
 SUBMITTED TO 
 
 THE ALPHABETICAL CONFERENCES 
 
 HRLD AT THE RESIDENCE OF CHEVALIER BUNSEN IN 
 JANUARY 1854. 
 
 "'^'MAX MULLER, M.A., 
 
 TAYLORTAN PKOFESSOR OF AIODF.EN F.UROPRAN I.ANGOAGFS AT OXFORD, 
 FEU.OW OF TTIK liOTAr, ACADEMY AT MUNTCir. 
 
 LONDON: 
 PRINTED BY A. AND G. A. SPOTTISWOODE, 
 
 NEW-STREET-SQUARE. 
 1854. 
 
 6? 
 
jL.L^':rf-^t r, 
 
 CORNELL^ 
 
 UNIVERSITY I 
 
 \; 
 
PROPOSALS 
 
 FOE 
 
 A MISSIONARY ALPHA BE'I 
 
 The want of a standard system of orthography has been experienced 
 by all persons engaged in the study of languages, written or unwritten. 
 The philologist, the historian, the geographer, and more than all the 
 missionary, — he whose message of good tidings is to all nations, — 
 are harassed in their labours by the diversity of alphabets; and the 
 difficulties hence arising may be judged second only to those caused 
 by the diversity of language: — that main barrier, we may confess 
 with Humboldt and with St. Augustine, against the establishment of 
 the Civitas Dei, and the realisation of the idea of Humanity. 
 
 Whatever may be thought of the practicability of finally supplanting 
 all existing alphabets by one uniform system of notation, it is at least 
 our duty, and for the members and directors of Missionary Societies 
 a sacred duty, not to increase the existing diversity, but to do all 
 in our power towards preparing the way for the accomplishment of 
 that highest, though as yet indefinite, aim of society towards which 
 Christianity has from the first been striving. 
 
 For the practical solution of the problem, "How to establish one 
 uniform system of notation which shall be acceptable to the scJiolar, 
 convenient to the missionai'y, and easy for the printer,'' we must con- 
 sider three points : — 
 
 A 
 
I. Which are the principal sounds that can he formed with our 
 organs of speech, and therefore may he expected to occur in any oj the 
 dead or living dialects of mankind ? 
 
 This is a physiological question. 
 
 II. How can these principal sounds, after proper classification, be 
 expressed by us in writing and printing so as to preserve their physio- 
 logical value, without creating new typographical difficulties ? 
 
 This is a practical question. 
 
 III. How can this physiological alphabet he applied to existing 
 languages, and 
 
 a. to unwritten dialects ; 
 
 This depends on a good ear. 
 
 b. to vjritten dialects ; 
 
 This depends on philological research. 
 
 CoroU. III. a. In the application of the physiological alphabet to 
 languages not yet fixed by writing, the missionary should be guided 
 entirely by ear, without paying any regard to etymological con- 
 siderations, which are too apt to mislead even the most accomplished 
 scholar. 
 
 III. 6. In transcribing languages possessed of an historical ortho- 
 graphy, and where, for reasons best known to the archceologist, one 
 sign may represent different sounds, and one sound be expressed by 
 different signs, new and entirely distinct questions are involved, such 
 as must be solved by archEeological and philological research. We 
 shall, therefore, discuss this part (III. b.) separately, and distinguish 
 it by the name of " Transliteration," from the usual method of 
 " transcribing " as applied to unwritten tongues. 
 
 Which are the principal Sounds that can he formed with our Organs 
 of Speech, and tlmrefore may he expected to occur in any of 
 the dead or living Dialects of Mankind ? 
 
 On the first point, which must form the basis of the whole, we have 
 the immense advantage that all scholars who have written on it have 
 
arrived at results almost identically the same.* We are here still in 
 the sphere of physical science, where facts are arranged by observa- 
 tion, and observation may be checked by facts so as to exclude 
 individual impressions and national prejudice. The classification of 
 vowels and consonants proposed by modern physiologists is, so far as 
 general principles are concerned, exactly the same as the one con- 
 tained in Sanskrit grammars composed in the fifth century before 
 Christ, and appended to the different collections of the sacred 
 writings of the Brahmans, — the four Vedas. These grammatical 
 treatises, called " Pratisakhyas," exist in manuscript only, and have 
 not hitherto been published. The classification established by phy- 
 siologists, as the result of independent research, would receive the 
 most striking confirmation by a translation of these writings, now 
 more than two thousand years old. But, on their own account also, 
 these phonetic treatises deserve to be published. Their observations 
 are derived from a language (the Vaidik Sanskrit) which at that time 
 was studied by means of oral tradition only, and where, in the absence 
 of a written alphabet, the most minute differences of pronunciation 
 had to be watched by the ear, and to be explained and described to 
 the pupil. The language itself, the Sanskrit of that early period, had 
 suffered less from the influence of plionetic corruption than any tongue 
 from which we can derive our observations ; nay, the science of pho- 
 netics (^iksha), essential to the young theological student (who was 
 not allowed to learn the Veda from MSS.), had been reduced to a 
 more perfect system in the schools of the Brahmans, in the fittli 
 
 * In a very able article by Professor Heise, in Hoefer's Zeitschrift fiir die 
 Wissenschaft der Sprache, iv. I. 1853, the following autborities are quoted: — 
 
 Chladni, tfber die Hervorbringung der Menschliehen Sprachlaute, in Gilbert's 
 Annalen der Physik. vol. Ixxvi. 1824. 
 
 A. J. Ribbeck, tJber die Bildung der Sprachlaute. Berlin, 1848. 
 
 K. M. Rapp, Versuch einer Physiologic der Sprache. Sttittgardt, 1836. 
 
 H. E. Bindseil, Abhandlungen zur AUgemeinen Vergleichenden Sprachlehre. 
 Hamburg, 1838 
 
 J. Miiller, Elements of Physiology. London, 1842. vol. ii. p. 1044. 
 
 W. Holder, Elements of Speech : an Essay of Inquiry into the natural Produc- 
 tion of Iietters. London, 1669. — This is one of the earliest and best works on the 
 
 subject. 
 
 A.n excellent account of the researches of the most distinguished physiologists 
 ou the human voice, and the formation of letters, is found in Ellis, " The 
 Aliihabet of Nature." — A woi-k full of accurate observations and original thought. 
 
century before Christ, than lias since been anywhere effected. Our 
 notions on the early civilisation of the East are of so abstract a 
 nature that we must expect to be startled occasionally by facts like 
 these. But we now pass on to the general question. 
 
 Consonants and Vowels. 
 
 If we regard the human voice as a continuous stream of air, 
 emitted as breath from the lungs and changed into vocal sound as it 
 leaves the larynx, this stream itself, as modified by certain positions 
 of the mouth, would represent the vowels. " The vowels," as Pro- 
 fessor Wheatstone says, " are formed by the voice modified, but not 
 interrupted, by the various positions of the tongue and the lips." In 
 the consonants, on the contrary, we should have to recognise a 
 number of stops opposing for a moment the free passage of this vocal 
 stream. These consonantal stops, against which the waves of the 
 vowels break themselves more or less distinctly, are produced by 
 barriers forme<l by the contact of the tongue, the soft palate, the 
 palate, the teeth, and the lips with each other. 
 
 Consonants. 
 
 Gutturals, Dentals, cmd Labials. 
 According to an observation which we find already in Vaidik "rani- 
 
 niars, the principal consonantal stops in any lan<'uage are: 
 
 the guttural (k), 
 the dental (t), 
 the labial (p). 
 The pure ^M«M'/-«/ sound, without any regartl as yet to its modifica- 
 tions (whether tenuis, media, aspirata, nasalis, semi-vocalis, or 
 flatus), is produced by stopping the stream of sound by means of a 
 contact between the root of the tongue and the throat, or, more cor- 
 rectly, the soft palate, or the velum pendulum. The throat is called 
 the "place," the root of the tongue the " instrument," of the "uttural 
 The pure dental sound is produced by contact between tongue and 
 teeth. Here the teeth are called the " place," and the tip of tli 
 tongue the "instrument." 
 
The pure labial sound is produced by contact between the upper 
 and lower h'p; the upper lip being the "place," the lower the 
 " instrument." 
 
 All consonants, excluding semi-vowels and sibilants or flatus, are 
 formed by a complete contact between the active and passive organ. 
 
 Formation of the Tenuis. 
 
 If the voice is stopped sharp by the contact of the organs, so as 
 to allow for the moment no breath or sound to escape, the consonant 
 is called tenuis (\pi\6v), hard or surd (k, t, p). 
 
 Formation of the Media. 
 
 If the voice is stopped less abruptly, so as to allow a kind of 
 breathing to continue after the first contact has taken place, the con- 
 sonant is called media {^ikaov), soft or sonant (g, d, b). The soft 
 consonant does not arrest the sound at once, but allows it to be 
 heard during a moment of resistance. 
 
 The difference between a surd and sonant consonant is best illus- 
 trated by a speaking-machine. " The sound p," as Professor Wheat- 
 stone says, " was produced by suddenly removing the left hand from 
 the front of the mouth, which it had previously completely stopped ; 
 the sound b, by the same action ; but instead of closing the mouth 
 completely, a very minute aperture was leftj so that the sound of the 
 reed might not be entirely stifled." This coincides fully with the 
 description given by Mr. Ellis. " In pronouncing ba/' he says, " the 
 vowel is uttered simultaneously with the act of relieving the lips from 
 contact, or rather before they are quite released. If we separate 
 them before the vowel is uttered, allowing the breath to be condensed 
 during a very brief space of time, the sound pa is heard. There is a 
 similar distinction between ab and ap : in the former the effect of the 
 voice remains throughout the consonant, and we may feel a slight 
 tremor of the lips while it is being produced ; in the latter the vowel, 
 properly so called, entirely ceases before the contact is completed." 
 
 Formation of Semi-vowels. 
 
 If there is only an, approach or a very slight contact between the 
 
 A 3 
 
organs, and the voice is slightly stopped or compressed as it reaches 
 the point of contact, the consonants arc called half-consonants or 
 semi-vowels. They are sonant like the media, owing to the process 
 of their formation here described ('h, 1, w). 
 
 At the end of words and before a tenuis the semi-vowels are fre- 
 quently pronounced as a flatus, or they become evanescent. In 
 the Dutch ' dag,' we have the nearest approach to a guttural semi- 
 vowel. If a Saxon pronounces the same word, he changes the d 
 into t, and the guttural semi-vowel into the guttural flatus asper, Jike 
 ch in 'loch.' In other parts of Germany, the final guttural is sounded 
 as a media or as tenuis, while in the English 'day' the guttural 
 semi-vowel has become evanescent. The same applies to French 
 " sou " instead of " sol," and " vaut " instead of " valet." In Sanskrit 
 no semi-vowel is tolerated at the end of words or before a tenuis. 
 
 Professor Wheatstone's researches prove that a distinguishing 
 mark of the semi-vowels consists in their having no corresponding 
 mutes. This applies not only to y, r, 1, but also to w and 'h. It 
 should be remarked, however, that, in the guttural and palatal series, 
 the semi-vowel and flatus lenis can hardly be distinguished except 
 in theory. 
 
 Formation of Sibilants (flatus). 
 
 If there is no contact at all, and the breath passes between the 
 two organs without being stopped, still not without giving rise to a 
 certain friction on passing that point of contact where guttural, 
 dental, and labial consonants are formed, we get the three sibilants, 
 or the " winds," as they are more properly called by Hindu gram- 
 marians. These are, the pure breathing, without even a guttural 
 modification, commonly called spiritus asper and lenis ; the thick 
 guttural flatus, as heard in "loch;" the sharp and soft s for the 
 dentals ; and the sharp and soft f for the labials. The sibilants or 
 flatus are distinguished from all other consonants by this, that with 
 them a breathing is really emitted, while the consonants are only so 
 many stops which preclude the emission of vocal sound. A candle 
 applied to the mouth will at once show the difference between the 
 labial flatus asper, as in " find," and the consonantal stops, such as p, b, 
 or even the labial serai-vowel, as heard in " wind." In this respect 
 
the sibilant flatus approaches nearer to the vowels than even the 
 serai-vowels. 
 
 As we distinguished between tenuis and media in the consonants, 
 we must admit a twofold intonation for the flatus or the sibilants also. 
 A flatus or sibilant cannot be modified exactly in the same manner 
 as a consonant produced by contact ; but, by an analogous process, it 
 may become either " asper" or " lenis," rough or soft. We are best 
 acquainted with this distinction in the primitive and unmodified breath- 
 ing which necessarily precedes an initial vowel. The spiritus asper 
 and lenis in Greek are modifications of that initial breathing which is 
 inherent in every vowel sound at the beginning of a word or of a 
 syllable. It comes out freely as the spiritus asper in Homer and 
 opoQ, frontier, while it is tempered and to our ears hardly audible in 
 'Aristotle and opog, hill. In ancient languages the spiritus asper is 
 frequently represented by the dental flatus (s), and the spiritus lenis 
 by a semi-vowel, as, for instance, the Digamma ^Eolicum. 
 
 The dental flatus, as a tenuis or rather as flatus asper, is heard 
 in sin and seal ; while the media or lenis is frequently represented 
 by the English z, as in zeal and breeze. 
 
 The sharp labial flatus is the pure f, which the Greeks could not 
 pronounce, and which we hear in "find" and "life." The flat cor- 
 responding sound is heard in "vine" and "live." This also is a diffi- 
 cult letter to pronounce, and is therefore avoided by many people, or 
 changed into b, as Scaliger said, 
 
 '' Haud temere antiquas mutat Vasconia voces, 
 Cui nihil est aliud vivere quam bibere." 
 
 Strictly speaking, and in accordance with our own definitions, every 
 consonant at the end of a word, unless followed by a slight vocal 
 exhalation such as is heard in drug, loud, sob, must become a 
 tenuis. Now, if we take words where the final consonant is a flatus, 
 but where, by the addition of a derivative syllable, the flatus ceases 
 to be really final, we shall see distinctly how the flatus asper and lenis 
 interchange. The sharp dental flatus is heard in " grass " and 
 " grease." Here the s is really final, although an e is put at the end 
 of grease. If ^^'e form the two verbs, to graze and to grease, we have 
 
 A 4 
 
8 
 
 the corresponding flat s, the common German s. Exactly the same 
 grammatical process applied to the labial flatus changes "life" mt" 
 "live,"' i. e. the sharp labial flatus into the flat. 
 
 Some languages, as, for instance, Sanskrit, acknowledge none but 
 sharp sibilants ; and a media followed by a flatus is changed in Sanskrit 
 into a tenuis. 
 
 Formation of Nasals. 
 
 If, in the three organs, a full contact takes place and the vocal 
 breathing is stopped, not abruptly, but in the same manner as with 
 the sonant letters, and if afterwards the vocal breathing be emitted, 
 not through the mouth, but through the nose, we get the three full 
 nasal consonants n., n, and m, for the guttural, dental, and labial series. 
 A speaking-machine leaves no doubt as to the manner in which a 
 tenuis may be changed into a narisonant letter. " M," as Professor 
 Wheatstone says, " was heard on opening two small tubes representing 
 the nostrils, placed between the wind-chest and the mouth, while the 
 front of the mouth was stopped as for p.'' 
 
 In most cases the peculiar character of the nasal is determined by 
 the consonant immediately following. In " ink," the n is necessarily 
 guttural ; and if we try to pronounce it as a dental or labial, we have 
 to stop after the n, and the transition to the guttural k becomes so 
 awkward that, even in words like to " in-cur," most people pronounce 
 the n like a guttural. No language, as far as I know, is fond of such 
 incongruities as a guttural n. followed by any but guttural con- 
 sonants, and they generally sacrifice etymology to euphony. In 
 English we cannot pronounce em-ty, and therefore we pronounce and 
 write erap-ty. In the Uraon-Kol language, which is a Tamulian 
 dialect, " enan " is /, and the possessive prefix is "in," mi/. But in 
 the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal we find " im-bas," ?nu 
 father; but " ing-kos," my child. Cicero alludes to the same where 
 he speaks of the n adulterinum. He says, that ■' cum nobis " was pro- 
 nounced like " cun nobis." 
 
 At the end of words and syllables, however, the three nasal sounds 
 guttural, dental, or labial, may occur independently ; and as it is ne- 
 cessary to distinguish a final m from a final n {dyat)nf,bonum), it will be 
 advisable also to do the same for a final guttural nasal, as the French 
 
"bon," " Lundi," or the English " to sing." It is true that in most 
 languages the final guttural nasal becoreies really a double consonant, 
 i.e. n + g, as in " sing," or n + k, as in " sink ;" still, as the pronunciation 
 on this point varies even in difierent parts of England, it will be ne- 
 cessary to provide a distinct category, and afterwards a distinct sign, 
 for the guttural nasal. 
 
 In some languages we meet even with an initial guttural nasal, as in 
 Tibetan '' nga-rang,'' / myself. Whether here the initial sound is 
 really so evanescent as to require a different sign from that which we 
 have as the final letter in "rang," is a question which a native alone 
 could answer. Certain it is that in the Tibetan alphabet itself botli are 
 written by the same sign, while Csoma de Koros writes the initial 
 guttural n by n, the final by ng ; as " na-rang." 
 
 We have now, on physiological grounds, established the following 
 system of consonants : 
 
 Ten.es. Medi.. ,LX _ a^i^s. ^''l^r = ^-'- 
 
 Gutturales : k (cap) g (go) 'h (dag) 'h (loch) 'h (tag) n. (sing). 
 
 Dentales: t(town)d(do) 1 (low) s (seal) z (zeal) n (sin). 
 
 Labiales: p (pint) b (bring) w (win) f(life) v (live) m(sum). 
 Spiritus asper: 'or h(hear). 
 Spiritus lenis : ' (ear). 
 
 Formation of Aspirates. 
 
 According to Sanskrit grammarians, if we begin to pronounce the 
 tenuis, but, in place of stopping it abruptly, allow it to come out with 
 what they call the corresponding "wind" (flatus, wrongly called 
 sibilans), we produce the aspirata, as a modified tenuis, not as a 
 double consonant. This is admissible for the tenuis aspirata, but not 
 for the media aspirata. Other grammarians, therefore, maintain that 
 all raedice aspiratae are formed by pronouncing the mediae with a final 
 'h, the flatus lenis being considered identical with the spiritus; 
 and they insist on this principally because the aspirated sonants could 
 not be said to merge into, or terminate by, a surd sibilant. Ac- 
 cepting this view of the formation of these aspirates, to which we 
 have no corresponding sounds in English, we may now represent the 
 
10 
 
 complete table of the chief consonantal sounds possible in any dialect, 
 as follows: — 
 
 Nasales. 
 
 Guttural : 
 
 Tenuis. 
 k 
 
 Tenuis 
 aspir. 
 
 M 
 
 Media. 
 8 
 
 Media 
 aspir. 
 
 gh 
 
 Semi- 
 vdcales. 
 
 'h 
 
 Flatus 
 sibilantes. 
 
 'h 'h 
 
 Dental : 
 
 t 
 
 tk 
 
 d 
 
 dh 
 
 1 
 
 s z 
 
 Labial : 
 
 P 
 
 ph 
 
 b 
 
 hh 
 
 w 
 
 f V 
 
 It should be remarked that in the course of time the fine distinc- 
 tions between kA, gh, and 'h, between pA, hh, and/, become generally 
 merged into one common sound. In Sanskrit only, and in some of the 
 southern languages of India, through the influence of Sanskrit, the 
 distinction has been maintained. Instead of Sanskrit th we find in 
 Latin the simple t ; instead of dh, the simple d, or, as a nearer ap- 
 proach, the f (dAwma - furaus, &c.). The etymological distinction 
 maintained in Sanskrit between " Aha," fo put, to create, and " da," to 
 give, is lost in Persian, because there the two initial sounds d and Ah 
 have become one, and the root ^' Aa" has taken to itself the meaning 
 both of creating and giving. Whatever objections, therefore, might 
 be raised against the anticipated representation of the tenuis and 
 media aspirata by means of an additional h or li, they would 
 practically apply only to a very limited sphere of languages. In 
 Sanskrit no scholar could ever take kh for k-|-h, because the latter 
 combination of sounds is grammatically impossible. In the Tamulian 
 languages the fine distinctions introduced into their orthography have 
 hardly found their way into the spoken dialects of the people at 
 large. 
 
 Modifications of Gutturals and Dentals. 
 
 From what has been said before on the formation of the guttural 
 and dental sounds, it must be clear that the exact place of contact 
 by which they are produced can never be fixed with geometrical pre- 
 cision, and that by shifting this point forward or backward certain 
 modifications will arise in the pronunciation of individuals, tribes, or 
 nations. The point of contact between the lips is not liable to the 
 
11 
 
 same changes, and the labials are, therefore, the most constant sounds 
 in all dialects. 
 
 A. Dialectic Modifications of Gutturals and Dentals, 
 
 Where this variety of pronunciation is only in degree, without 
 affecting the nature and real character of a guttural or dental con- 
 sonant, we need not take any notice of it. Gutturals from a 
 Semitic throat have a deeper sound than our own, and some gramma- 
 rians have made a new class for them by calling them pectoral letters. 
 The guttural flatus asper, as heard in the Swiss " ach " is deeper, and 
 as it were more pectoral, than the usual German ch : but this is owing 
 to a peculiarity of the organs of speech ; and whatever letter might be 
 chosen to represent this Swiss ch in a phonetic alphabet, it is certain 
 none but a Swiss could ever pronounce it. Sanskrit grammarians 
 sometimes regard h as formed in the chest (urasya), while they 
 distinguish the other gutturals by the name of tongue-root letters 
 (^ihvamwliya). These refinements, however, are of no practical 
 use ; because, in dialects where the guttural sound is affected and 
 diverted from its purer intonation, we generally find that the pure 
 sound is lost altogether ; so that the two hardly ever co-exist in the 
 same language. 
 
 B. Specific Modifications of Gutturals and Dentals. 
 
 1. Palatals as Modifications of Guttwrals. 
 
 But the place of contact of the gutturals may be pushed forward 
 
 so far as to lie no longer in the throat, but in the palate. This 
 
 change has taken place in almost all languages. Latin "cantus" 
 
 is still "canto" in Italian, but in English "chant." In the same 
 
 manner, the guttural tenuis in the Latin "vocs" {vox) has been 
 
 softened in Sanskrit into the sound of the English ch, at least where 
 
 it is followed by certain letters. Thus we have : 
 
 " vachmi," I speak, 
 
 but " vakshi/* thou speakest, 
 
 " vakti," he speaks. 
 
 The same applies to the media. Latin "largus" is Italian "largo," 
 
12 
 
 but English "large."' The Latin guttural media g in "jungo" is 
 softened in Sanskrit into the sound of the English j. We have 
 Sanskrit "yuga," Latin "jugum;" but in the verb we have: 
 
 yunaj + mi, I join. 
 yunak + shi, thoujoinest. 
 yunak + ti, he joins. 
 
 The identity of many words in Latin and Sanskrit becomes palpable 
 at once, if, instead of writing this modified guttural, or, as we may now 
 call it, palatal sound, by a new type, we write it by a modified k. 
 Sansk. " chatvar," or as some write " tschatwar,'' does not look like 
 "quatuor;" but Lithuanian "keturi" and Sanskrit "^atvar" speak 
 for themselves. Sanskrit "cha" or " tscha" does not look like 
 Latin "que;" but Greek " kc" and Sanskrit " ka" assert their re- 
 lationship without disguise. Although, therefore, we are forced to 
 admit the palatals, as a separate class, side by side with the gut- 
 turals, because most languages retain both sets and use them for 
 distinct etymological and grammatical purposes, still it will be well 
 to remember that the palatals are more nearly related to the gutturals 
 than to any other class, and that in most languages the two are still 
 interchangeable. 
 
 That the pronunciation of the palatals may vary again, like that of 
 the gutturals, requires no explanation. Some people imagine they 
 perceive a difference between the English palatal in " church," and 
 the Italian palatal in "cielo," and they maintain that no Englishman 
 can properly pronounce the Italian palatal. If so, it only proves what 
 was said before, that slight modifications like these do never co-exist 
 in the same language ; that English has but one, and Italian but one 
 palatal, though the two may slightly differ. But even if we invented 
 a special letter to represent the Italian palatal, no one except an Italian 
 would be able to pronounce it, not even for his life, as the French 
 failed in " ceci " and " ciceri " at the time of the Sicilian Vespers. 
 All consonants, therefore, which are no longer gutturals, and not 
 yet dentals, should be called palatals. That palatals have ao-ain a 
 tendency to become dentals, may be seen from words like " riaaauic" 
 instead of "/eatvaras" or "keturi." 
 
13 
 
 Frequently the pronunciation of the palatals becomes so broad that 
 ihey seem, and in some cases really are, double consonants. Some 
 people pronounce " church " (kirk) as if it were written " tchurtch." 
 If this pronunciation becomes sanctioned, . and we have to deal with 
 a language which has as yet no historical orthography, it must be left 
 to the ear of the missionary to determine whether he hears distinctly 
 two consonants, or one only though pronounced rather fully and 
 broadly. If he hears distinctly the two sounds t + ch, ort+sh, he should 
 write both, particularly if in the same language there exists another 
 series of letters with the simple palatal sound. This is the case, for 
 instance, in Tibetan and its numerous dialects. If, therefore, the mis- 
 sionary has to deal with a Bhotiya -dialect, which has not yet been 
 fixed by the Tibetan alphabet, the simple palatals should be kept 
 distinct from the compound palatals, tsh, dsh, &c. In the literary lan- 
 guage of Tibet, where the Sanskrit alphabet has been adopted, an 
 artificial distinction has been introduced, and the compound sounds, 
 usually transcribed as tsh, tsbh, and dsh, are distinguished by a diacri- 
 tical mark at the top from the simple palatals, the sound of which is 
 described as like the English ch in church, and j in Join. How this 
 artificial distinction should be rendered in transliteration, will have to 
 be considered under III. J. Ifwe have once the palatal tenuis, the 
 same modifications as those described above give us the palatal media, 
 the two aspiratffi, the nasal, the semi-vowel, and the sibilant. 
 
 The sound of the tenuis is given in the English " church ;" of the 
 media, in " to join." The semi-vowel we have in the pronunciation 
 of " yea." The nasal again hardly exists by itself, but only if followed 
 by palatals. We have it in " inch " and " injure." Where the Spaniards 
 use an fi, they write a double by a simple sound ; for the sound is the 
 nasal followed by the corresponding semi-vowel, ny. The French 
 express the same sound in a different manner. The French " besogne," 
 if it occurred in an African language, would have to be expressed by 
 the missionary as " bezonye.'' 
 
 As to the palatal flatus or sibilant, we must distinguish again 
 between its sharp and flat sound. The sharp sound is heard in 
 " sharp/' or French "chose.'' The flat sound is less known in English, 
 but of frequent occurrence in French'; such as "je," aiid"Joli," very 
 
14 
 
 different from the English "jolly." It is a sound of frequent occur- 
 rence in African languages.* The difference between the bard and 
 soft palatal flatus may best be illustrated by a reference to the modern 
 languages of Europe. A guttural tenuis in Latin becomes a palatal 
 tenuis in English, and a palatal sibilant in French ; cantus, the chant, 
 le chant. Here the initial sibilant in French is a tenuis or asper like 
 the English sh in " she." A guttural media in Latin becomes a pa- 
 latal media in English, and a palatal sibilant in French ; elegia, the 
 elegy, I'elegie. Here the sibilant sound of the French g is the same 
 as in " genou" or "je ;" it is the soft palatal sibilant, sometimes ex- 
 pressed in English by s, as in erasure and pleasure. 
 
 It should be remarked, however, that the proper, and not yet 
 assibilated sound of the palatal flatus asper is not the French ch 
 as heard in " Chine," but rather the German ch in " China," " mfid- 
 chen," " ich," " konig." Both sounds are palatal according to our 
 definition of this term ; but the German might be called the simple, the 
 French the assibilated palatal flatus. Ellis calls the former the " whis- 
 pered guttural sibilant," and remarks that it is generally preceded by a 
 vowel of the i class. The corresponding " spoken consonant " or the 
 flatus lenis, was discovered by Ellis in sucli words as " kon'ge." 
 
 2. Linguals as ModificatioTis of Dentals. 
 
 While the pure dental is produced by bringing the tip of the 
 tongue straight against the teeth, a peculiarly modified and rather 
 obtuse consonantal sound is formed if the tongue is curled back till 
 its tip is at the root, and the dome of the mouth then struck 
 with its back or under-surface. The consonants produced by this 
 peculiar process differ from the dentals, both by their place and by 
 their instrument, and it has been common in languages where these 
 peculiar consonants occur to call them "linguals." Although this 
 name is not quite distinct, the tongue being the agent in the palatals 
 and dentals as well as in these linguals, still it is preferable to 
 another name which has also been applied to them. Cerebrals a 
 
 * Seethe Rev. Dr. Kriipf's " Outline of the Elements of theifibuiUieliLaiioiLtin ■•" 
 Tubingen, 1850, page 23. o '^ • 
 
15 
 
 mere mistranslation of the Sanskrit name " MwrddAanya." * These 
 Unguals vary again in the degree of obtuseness imparted to them 
 in different dialects, and which evades graphical representation. 
 All letters that cease to be pure dentals by shifting the point of 
 contact backward from the teeth, must be considered as Unguals ; and 
 many languages, Semitic as well as Arian, use them for distinct 
 etymological purposes. As with the palatals, we have with the 
 Unguals also a complete set of modified consonants. The lingual 
 tenuis, tenuis aspirata, media, media aspirata, and nasal have no cor- 
 responding sounds in English, because, as we shall see, the English 
 organ has modified the dental sounds by a forward and not by a back- 
 ward movement. The semi-vowel is the lingual r, produced by a 
 vibration of the curled tongue in which the Italians and Scotch excel, 
 and which we find it difficult to imitate. The English and the German 
 r become mostly guttural, while, on the contrary, the Semitic gut- 
 tural semi-vowel, 'hain, takes frequently the sound of a guttural r. It 
 might be advisable to distinguish between a guttural and a lingual r ; 
 but most organs can only pronounce either the one or the other, and 
 the two therefore seldom co-exist in the same dialect. 
 
 The lingual sibilant is a sound peculiar to the Sanskrit ; and as, 
 particularly in modern Indian dialects, it interchanges with the gut- 
 tural tenuis aspirata, its pronunciation must have partaken of a certain 
 guttural flatus. 
 
 There is a peculiarity in the pronunciation of the dental tenuis 
 aspirata and media aspirata, which, though it exists but in few languages, 
 deserves to be noticed here. In most of the spoken idioms of 
 Europe, although a distinction is made in writing, there is hardly any 
 
 * " Mwrddbaiiya," being derived from " marddhan," head or top, was a tech- 
 nical name given to these letters, because their place was the top or highest 
 point in the dome of the palate, the oUpavos of the Greeks. The proper trans- 
 lation would have been " Cacuminals.'' " Cerebrals " is wrong in every respect ; 
 for no letter is pronounced by means of the brain, nor does " murddhan" mean 
 brain. It is not advisable to retain this name, even as a technical term, after 
 it has been proved to owe its origin to a mere mistranslation. It is a word which 
 has given rise to confused ideas on the nature of the linj;ual letters, and which 
 ought therefoi'e to be discai-ded from philological treatises, though the mis- 
 translation and its cause have hitherto failed to attract the observation of either 
 Sanskrit or comparative grammarians. 
 
16 
 
 difference in the pronunciation of t and th, or d and dA. The German 
 " thun," to do, the French " theologie," are pronounced as if they were 
 written "tun," "teologie," In the Low German and Scandinavian 
 dialects, however, the aspiration of the t and d (according to Grimm s 
 law, an organic aspiration) has been preserved to a certain extent, 
 only the consonantal contact by which they are produced takes place 
 no longer between the tongue and the inside of the teeth, but is 
 pushed forward so as to lie really between the tongue and the edge 
 of the teeth. This position of the organs produces the two well-known 
 continuous sounds of th. in "think" and "though." There is a distinct 
 Runic letter to express them, p ; and in later MSS- a graphical dis- 
 tinction is introduced between f and 3, tenuis and media. The dif- 
 ference between the tenuis and media is brought out most distinctly 
 by the same experiment which was tried for f and v. (page 7.). "We 
 have the tenuis in " breath," but it is changed into media in " to 
 breathe." 
 
 We may consider these two sounds as dialectical varieties of the real 
 th and d/t, which existed in Sanskrit, but which, like most aspirated 
 sonant and surd consonants, have since become extinct. To many 
 people the pronunciation of the English th is an impossibility; and 
 in no dialect, except perhaps the Irish, does the English pronunciation 
 of the th coexist with the pure and simple pronunciation of th and 
 dh. Still, as their sound is very characteristic, it might be desirable 
 to mark it also in writing, so that even those who do not know the 
 peculiar accent and pronunciation of a language, should be able to 
 distinguish by the eye the English sound of the th from the usual th 
 and dh. 
 
 The principal consonantal sounds, without any regard as yet to their 
 graphic representation, may now be classified and defined as follows. 
 Where possible, the approximate sound is indicated by English words. 
 
 1. Gutturals - 
 
 2. Palatals - 
 
 3. ]:)eutal5 - 
 1.. Linguals - 
 F>. Labials 
 
 a.' 
 
 Tenuis. 
 
 b. 
 
 Tenuis 
 aspicata 
 
 Media. 
 
 Media 
 aspiraia. 
 
 Naaalis. 
 
 Semivocalis. 
 
 Flatus 
 
 (sibilniis}. 
 
 kite 
 
 church 
 
 tan 
 
 pan 
 
 (breath) 
 
 gate 
 join 
 dock 
 
 bed 
 
 (breathe) 
 
 sing 
 
 Ft. sjgne 
 not 
 
 man 
 
 (lag (Dutch) 
 
 yet 
 let 
 run 
 will 
 
 loch, fag 
 sharp, Vr.JQ, 
 grass, graze. 
 
 life, Mvc. 
 
17 
 
 Vowels. 
 The Physiological Scale of Vowels. 
 
 If we recall the process by which the semi-vowels were formed in the 
 three principal classes, and if, instead of stopping the vocal sound by 
 means of that slight remnant of consonantal contact or convergence, 
 which characterized the formation of the semi-vowels, we allow 
 the full volume of breath to pass over the point of contact and 
 there to vibrate and sound, we get three pure vowel sounds, 
 guttural, palatal, and dental, which can best be expressed by the 
 Italian A, I, U, as heard in psalm, ravine, flute. 
 
 Formation of the Labial Vowel. 
 
 Let us pronounce the labial semi-vowel, the English w in woe, 
 and, instead of stopping the vocal sound as it approaches the labial 
 point of contact, emit it freely through the rounded aperture of 
 the lips, and we have the vowel u. Here also the experiment of 
 the candle will elucidate the process that takes place, but of which 
 we are hardly conscious. The mere semi-vowel w, not followed 
 by any vowel, should not produce any disturbance in the flame ; 
 at least not more than might be occasioned by the motion of the 
 lips, which is the same for all consonants. The labial flatus, f, on 
 the contrarj', will disturb the flame considerably, and the vowel u 
 may extinguish it. 
 
 Formation of tJte Palatal Vowel. 
 
 The same process which changes w into u, changes the guttural 
 semi-vowel 'h into a, and the palatal semi-vowel y into i. Let us 
 pronounce the y in yea without any vowel after it, and it only requires 
 the removal of that stoppage of sound which takes place between tongue 
 and palate, in order to allow the vowel i, as in ravine, to be heard 
 distinctly. 
 
 B 
 
18 
 
 Formation oftlie Guttural Vowel. 
 
 Let us pronounce the guttural semi-vowel as heard in the Dutch 
 dag or the Hebrew 'hain, and, if we try to change this semi-vowel 
 gradually into the vowel a, we feel that what we effect is merely the 
 removal of that stoppage which in the formation of the semi-vowel 
 takes place at the very point of guttural contact. 
 
 The vowels, as was said before, are formed by the voice modified, 
 but not interrupted, by the various positions of the tongue and the 
 lips. " Their differences depend," as Professor Wheatstone adds, " on 
 the proportions between the aperture of the lips and the internal 
 cavity of the mouth, which is altered by the different elevations of 
 the tongue.'' 
 
 Succession of Vowels, natural and artificial. 
 
 The organic succession of vowel sounds is the same as for con- 
 sonants, — guttural, palatal, labial, a, i, u. The succession of vowel 
 sounds produced by the gradual lengthening of a cylindrical tube 
 joined to a reed organ-pipe, as described by Professor Willis*, is an 
 interesting experiment as to the scale of vowels in the abstract. It 
 gives, or, at least, is reported to give, 
 
 i, e, a, aw, o, u. 
 
 beat, bait, bath, bought, boat, boot. 
 
 But as these pipes are round and regular, while the construction of 
 the pipe formed by larynx, throat, palate, jaws, and lips is not the 
 succession of vowels given by these pipes cannot be expected to 
 correspond with the local succession of vowels as formed by the 
 organs of speech. 
 
 Kempelen states that if we pay attention to the successive contrac- 
 tion of the throat only, we shall find, indeed, that the aperture of the 
 throat is smallest if we pronounce the Italian i, and that it eets 
 gradually larger as we pronounce e, a, o, u ; while if we pay attention 
 to the successive contraction of the lips, which is quite as essential 
 
 * Transactions of the Cambriflge Philosophical Society, vol. iii. paper lo 
 1828-29. 
 
19 
 
 to the formation of the vowels as the contraction of the throat, the 
 scale of vowels is a different one. Here the aperture of the lips is 
 largest if we pronounce the a ; and it gradually decreases as we go 
 on to the e, i, o, and u. 
 
 Hence, if we represent the opening of the lips by Roman, and the 
 opening of the throat by English figures, taking the smallest aperture 
 as our unit, we may, according to Kempelen, represent the five 
 vowels in a mathematical progression : 
 
 i =111. 1. e = IV. 2. a= V. 3. o = H. 4. u = L 5. 
 
 It has been remarked by Professor Purkinje, that the conditions for 
 the formation of some of the vowels, particularly of a and e, as heard 
 in far and name, have not been quite correctly stated by Kempelen. 
 The production of both these sounds depends principally on the form 
 of the cavity of the throat between the root of the tongue and the 
 larynx ; in both cases this space is large, but largest in the pronun- 
 ciation of e. The size of the opening of the mouth is the same in 
 the two cases ; not different, as Kempelen states. The position 
 which he ascribes to the lips in pronouncing o is also unnecessary.* 
 
 The experiments of Professor Willis show that, if we look on the 
 instrument by which the vowels are formed as a vibrating membranous 
 tongue, with one tube prefixed, and another.added below the tongue, 
 the shortest length of the tube gives i ; the longest, u ; and an in- 
 termediate one, a. But as the human organ of speech is not a regular 
 tube, we must insist on this, that in the mouth the shortest length is 
 indicated by the point of palatal contact, the longest by the point of 
 labial, and the intermediate by the point of guttural contact ; and 
 that here, by the simultaneous operation of the guttural and labial 
 aperture, the vowels i, u, and a are formed. 
 
 The Lingual and Denial Vowels. 
 
 Besides the three vowels struck at the guttural, palatal, and labial 
 points of contact, the Sanskrit, in strict analogy, forms two peculiar 
 vowels as modifications of the lingual and dental semi-vowels. R 
 and L, subjected to the same process which changes 'h into a, y into 
 
 * See J. Miiller, Elements of Physiology, p. 1047. 
 B 2 
 
20 
 
 i, and w into u, become ri, li, or re and le. At least these sounds 
 ri and li, approach as near to the original value of the Indian vowels 
 as with our alphabet we can express it. According to their origin, 
 they may be described as r and 1 opened and vocalised. 
 
 Unmodified Vowels. 
 
 If we attempt in singing to pronounce no particular vowel, we still 
 hear the vowel-sound of the Italian a. This vowel expresses the 
 quality of the musical vibrations emitted from the human larynx and 
 naturally modified by a reverberation of the palate. But if we arrest 
 the vibrations before they pass the guttural point of contact — if, 
 either in a whispered or a vocalised shape, we emit the voice without 
 allowing it to strike against any part of the mouth — we hear the 
 unmodified and primitive sound as in but, bird, lull. It is the sound 
 which, in Professor Wilhs's experiments, " seems to be the natural 
 vowel of the reed," or, according to Mr. Ellis, " the voice in its least 
 modified form." We hear it also if we take the larynx of a dead 
 body, and blow through it while compressing the chordfe vocales. 
 
 In these experiments it is impossible to distinguish more than one 
 sound ; and most people admit but one unmodified vowel in English. 
 According to Sir John Herschell, there is no difference in the vowels 
 of the words spurt, assert, dirt, virtue, dove, double, blood. Mr. Ellis 
 considers the u in cur as the corresponding long vowel. Other writers 
 however, as Sheridan and Smart, distinguish between the sounds of 
 bird and work, of whirl'd and world; and in some languages this dif- 
 ference requires to be expressed. It is a very delicate difference 
 but may be accounted for by a slight palatal and labial pressure by 
 which this obscure sound is affected afler having escaped the "uttural 
 reverberation. 
 
 In English almost every vowel is liable to be absorbed bv thi' 
 obscure sound ; as beggar, offer, b/rd, work, b?<t. It is sometimes pro- 
 nounced between two consonants, though not expressed in writino- • 
 as el-m, mar-sh, schis-m, rhyth-m. Here it is the breath inherent in 
 continuous consonants. In French it is the e muet, as in entendre 
 Londres. In German it is doubtful whether the same sound exists 
 at all, though I think it may be heard occasionally in such words as 
 leh«r, lebcn. 
 
21 
 
 Quantity of Vowels. 
 All vowels may be short or long, with the exception of the un- 
 modified breathing (Rapp's " Urlaut "), which is always short. 
 The sound of the long a we have in psahn, messa (/A) ; short, in Sam. 
 „ „ i „ neat, Italia ; „ knit. 
 
 „ „ u „ fool, usarono {It.) ; „ full.* 
 
 The sound of e we have in bird. 
 „ o ,, work. 
 
 Diphthongs. 
 
 From the organic local succession of the three simple vowels a, 
 1, u, it follows that real compound vowels can only be formed with 
 a, as the first and most independent vowel, for their basis. The a, 
 on its onward passage from the throat to the aperture of the mouth, 
 may be followed or modified by i or u. It may embrace the palatal 
 and labial vowels, and carry them along with it without having to 
 retrace its steps, or occasioning any stoppage, which of course 
 would at once change the vowel into the semi-vowel. In Sanskrit. 
 therefore, the palatal and labial vowels, if brought in immediate 
 contact with a following a, relapse naturally into their corresponding 
 semi-vowels, y and w, and never form the base of diphthongs. The 
 vowels i + a, or u-j-a, if pronounced in quick succession, become ya 
 and wa, but they will never coalesce into one vocal sound, because 
 the intonation of the a lies behind that of i; the vocal flatus has to be 
 inverted, and this inversion amounts in fact to a consonantal stoppage 
 sufficient to change the vowels i and u into the semi-vowels y and w. 
 
 The four Bases of Diphthongs. 
 
 According to our definition of diphthongs, their basis can only 
 be guttural; but as the guttural a may be short or long, and as the 
 two unmodified vowels (e, o) lie even behind the guttural point of 
 contact, we get really a four-fold basis for diphthong sounds. Each 
 
 * The examples are mostly taken from Ellis, who distinguishes hetween the 
 short a in messa and the stopped a in Sam ; a distinction which, though essential 
 in a theoretical analysis, does not requiie to be expressed in alphabetical notation. 
 
 B 3 
 
22 
 
 of the four vowels (a, a, e, o) being liable to a palatal or labial 
 modification, we may on physiological grounds expect eight different 
 compound vowels. 
 
 This can best be represented by a diagram : 
 
 Guttural. 
 
 
 
 work 
 
 ^. 
 
 Palatal i/ i/ i^ i,fihi I putji V '\ti \i Labial. 
 
 /' / ~' / ^^ '^ ^N 
 
 /' /'' /'' /'' \ \ 
 
 1 
 ire. 
 
 ai (e) 
 sailor. 
 
 (o) au 
 home. 
 
 bow. Europa. bought. 
 
 Diphthongs with 1 as base. 
 If the short a is quickly followed by i and u, so that, as the Hindus 
 say, the guttural is mixed with the palatal and labial vowels like milk 
 and water, we get the diphthongs ai and au, pronounced as in 
 French. They correspond in sound to the Italian e and o, and to tl 
 English sounds in sailor and home. 
 
 Diphtlwngs with a as Base. 
 If the a, as the first element, retains more of its independenf 
 nature, or is long, then n + i pronounced together give the German 
 diphthong ai, as in pic and buy ; a + u give the German di- 
 ))hthong au. a^ in proud. 
 
23 
 
 Diphthongs with e as Base. 
 
 If, instead of the short or long a, the base of the diphthong 
 becomes e, we get the combinations ei and eu, both of rare occur- 
 rence except in German, where the sound of ei (English isle), is 
 thinner than that of ai (English ire). In eu, the two vowels are still 
 heard very distinctly in the Italian Europa. In German they co- 
 alesce more, and almost take the sound of oy in boy. 
 
 Diphthongs with 6 as Base. 
 
 In the diphthong oi also, the pronunciation may vary according 
 to the degree of speed with which the i follows the o. O and u, on 
 the contrary, coalesce easily, and form the well-known deep sound of 
 ou in bought, or of a in fall. 
 
 Different Kinds of Diphthongs. 
 
 Although the sounds of the Italian e and o are here classed to- 
 gether, as diphthongs, with the English sounds of i and ou, this is not 
 meant to deny a difference in degree between the two. The former 
 might be called monophthongs, because the ear receives but one im- 
 pression, as when two notes are struck simultaneously. It is only by 
 theoretical analysis that we can detect the two component parts of e 
 and — a fact well known to every Sanskrit scholar. The ai and au, 
 on the contrary, are real diphthongs ; and an attentive ear will per- 
 ceive ah + ee in the English "I," ah + oo in the English "out." Sir 
 John Herschell compares these sounds to quick arpeggios, where two 
 chords are struck almost, but not quite simultaneously. 
 
 In African dialects, as, for instance. In Zulu, some Missionaries say 
 that two vowels combine for the formation of one sound, as in hai (no), 
 Umcopai (a proper name) ; others, that there are no diphthongs, but 
 that, whenever two vowels meet, the separate power of each is dis- 
 tinctly marked and preserved in pronunciation.* This may depend 
 on a peculiar disposition in the organ of hearing as well as in the 
 organ of speech. 
 
 Objections are likely to be raised against our treating the 
 vowel in " bought" and " fall" as a diphthong. There is, however, a 
 
 * An Essay on the Phonology and Orthography of the Zulu and kindred 
 Dialects in Southern Africa, hy L. Grout, p. 441. 
 
 n 4 
 
20 
 
 i, and w into u, become ri, li, or re and le. At least these sounds 
 ri and li, approach as near to the original value of the Indian vowels 
 as with our alphabet we can express it. According to their origin, 
 they may be described as r and I opened and vocalised. 
 
 Unmodified Vowels. 
 
 If we attempt in singing to pronounce no particular vowel, we still 
 hear the vowel-sound of the Italian a. This vowel expresses the 
 quality of the musical vibrations emitted from the human larynx and 
 naturally modified by a reverberation of the palate. But if we arrest 
 the vibrations before they pass the guttural point of contact — if, 
 either in a whispered or a vocalised shape, we emit the voice without 
 allowing it to strike against any part of the mouth — we hear the 
 unmodified and primitive sound as in but, bird, lull. It is the sound 
 which, in Professor Willis's experiments, " seems to be the natural 
 vowel of the reed," or, according to Mr. Ellis, " the voice in its least 
 modified form." We hear it also if we take the larynx of a dead 
 body, and blow through it while compressing the chordae vocales. 
 
 In these experiments it is impossible to distinguish more than one 
 sound ; and most people admit but one unmodified vowel in English. 
 According to Sir John Herschell, there is no difference in the vowels 
 of the words spurt, assert, dirt, virtue, dove, double, blood. Mr. Ellis 
 considers the u in cur as the corresponding long vowel. Other writers, 
 however, as Sheridan and Smart, distinguish between the sounds of 
 bird and work, of whirl'd and world ; and in some languages this dif- 
 ference requires to be expressed. It is a very delicate difference, 
 but may be accounted for by a slight palatal and labial pressure, by 
 which this obscure sound is affected after having escaped the guttural 
 reverberation. 
 
 In English almost every vowel is liable to be absorbed by this 
 obscure sound ; as beggar, offer, b/rd, work, b^<t. It is sometimes pro- 
 nounced between two consonants, though not expressed in writino- • 
 as el-m, mar-sh, schis-m, rhyth-m. Here it is the breath inherent in 
 continuous consonants. In French it is the e muet, as in entendre 
 Londres. In German it is doubtful whether the same sound exists 
 at all, though I think it may be heard occasionally in such words as 
 k'ber, lebcn. 
 
21 
 
 Quantity of Vowels. 
 All vowels may be short or long, with the exception of the un- 
 modified breathing (Rapp's " Urlaut "), which is always short. 
 The sound of the long a we have in psalnij messa (/<.) ; short, in Sam. 
 „ ), i „ neat, Italia ; „ knit. 
 
 „ „ u „ fool, usarono (/if.) ; ,, full.* 
 
 The sound of e we have in bird. 
 ,, o ,, work. 
 
 Diphthongs. 
 
 From the organic local succession of the three simple vowels a, 
 i, Uj it follows that real compound vowels can only be formed with 
 a, as the first and most independent vowel, for their basis. The a, 
 on its onward passage from the throat to the aperture of the mouth, 
 may be followed or modified by i or u. It may embrace the palatal 
 and labial vowels, and carry them along with it without having to 
 retrace its steps, or occasioning any stoppage, which of course 
 would at once change the vowel into the semi-vowel. In Sanskrit, 
 therefore, the palatal and labial vowels, if brought in immediate 
 contact with a following a, relapse naturally into their corresponding 
 semi-vowels, y and w, and never form the base of diphthongs. The 
 vowels i + a, or u-|-a, if pronounced in quick succession, become ya 
 and wa, but they will never coalesce into one vocal sound, because 
 the intonation of the a lies behind that of i; the vocal flatus has to be 
 inverted, and this inversion amounts in fact to a consonantal stoppage 
 sufficient to change the vowels i and u into the semi-vowels y and w. 
 
 The four Bases of DiphtJwngs. 
 
 According to our definition of diphthongs, their basis can only 
 be guttural ; but as the guttural a may be short or long, and as the 
 two unmodified vowels (e, 6) lie even behind the guttural point of 
 contact, we get really a four-fold basis for diphthong sounds. Each 
 
 * The examples are mostly taken from Ellis, who distinguishes hetween the 
 short a in messa and the stopped a in Sam ; a distinction which, though essential 
 in a theoretical analysis, does not require to he expressed in alpliabetical notation. 
 
 B 3 
 
22 
 
 of the four vowels (a, a, e, o) being liable to a palatal or labial 
 modification, we may on physiological grounds expect eight diiFerent 
 compound vowels. 
 
 This can best be represented by a diagram : 
 
 Guttural. 
 
 
 
 ■work 
 
 Vii^d 
 
 
 .' / / a;&, 
 
 ''' \ 
 
 Palatal i/ y y i/fcalpgfjx \tx \u '« Labial. 
 
 ui et ai ai (e) 
 
 .1 .1 .1 .1, 
 
 voice. ice- ire. sailor. 
 
 {p) au flu eu ou 
 
 . ' I I I 
 
 home. bow. Europa. bought. 
 
 Diphthongs with 1 as base. 
 If the short a is quickly followed by i and u, so that, as the Hindus 
 stiy, the guttural is mixed with the palatal and labial vowels like milk 
 and water, we get the diphthongs ai and au, pronounced as in 
 French. They correspond in sound to the Italian e and o, and to the 
 English sounds in sailor and home. 
 
 DiphtJiongs with a as Base. 
 
 If the a, as the first element, retains more of its independent 
 nature, or is long, then a + i pronounced together give the German 
 diphthong ai, as in pic and buy ; a + u give the German di- 
 phthong au. at; in proud. 
 
'23 
 
 Diphthongs with e as Base. 
 
 If, instead of the short or long a, the base of the diphthong 
 becomes e, we get the combinations ei and eu, both of rare occur- 
 rence except in German, where the sound of ei (English isle), is 
 thinner than that of ai (English ire). In eu, the two vowels are still 
 heard very distinctly in the Italian Europa. In German they co- 
 alesce more, and almost take the sound of oy in boy. 
 
 Diphthongs with 6 as Base. 
 
 In the diphthong oi also, the pronunciation may vary according 
 to the degree of speed with which the i follows the o. O and u, on 
 the contrary, coalesce easily, and form the well-known deep sound of 
 ou in bought, or of a in fall. 
 
 Different Kinds of Diphthongs. 
 
 Although the sounds of the Italian e and o are here classed to- 
 gether, as diphthongs, with the English sounds of i and ou, this is not 
 meant to deny a difference in degree between the two. The former 
 might be called monophthongs, because the ear receives but one im- 
 pression, as when two notes are struck simultaneously. It is only by 
 theoretical analysis that we can detect the two component parts of e 
 and o — a fact well known to every Sanskrit scholar. The ai and au, 
 on the contrary, are real diphthongs ; and an attentive ear will per- 
 ceive ah + ee in the English "I," ah-|-oo in the English "out." Sir 
 John Herschell compares these sounds to quick arpeggios, where two 
 chords are struck almost, but not quite simultaneously. 
 
 In African dialects, as, for instance, in Zulu, some Missionaries say 
 that two vowels combine for the formation of one sound, as in hai (no), 
 Umcopai (a proper name) ; others, that there are no diphthongs, but 
 that, whenever two vowels meet, the separate power of each is dis- 
 tinctly marked and preserved in pronunciation.* This may depend 
 on a peculiar disposition in the organ of hearing as well as in the 
 organ of speech. 
 
 Objections are likely to be raised against our treating the 
 vowel in " bought" and " fall" as a diphthong. There is, however, a 
 
 * An Essay on the Phonology and Ortliof;raphy of the Zulu and kindred 
 Dialects in Southern Africa, by L, Grout, p. 441. 
 
 I! 4 
 
24 
 
 diphthong sound which stands to au (proud) in tlie same relation as 
 oi (voice) to ai (vice). I imagine to hear it in the English broad, 
 which has the same vowel as all, bawl, Paul, nor, war ; and we cer- 
 tainly have it in the Swedish I- The labial element, no doubt, is 
 very slight ; still, let any body pronounce a ind ou (far and bought), 
 and a looking-glass will tell him that he adds a distinct labial pressure 
 in order to change the a into ou. 
 
 Vowels broken iy E or i. 
 
 In some languages we find that certain vowels are modified by an 
 inherent e, or, as some say, by i. The vowels most liable to this 
 modification are a, o, u. 
 
 The a, with an inherent e, becomes German a, as in vater, very 
 nearly the same sound as in the English substantive bear. O, by the 
 same influence, takes the German sound of o in Konig, or that of the 
 French eu in pen. U, in German, becomes ii, the French u in jurer. 
 
 To many organs these sounds are so troublesome that they are 
 sometimes avoided altogether, as in English. Their pronunciation 
 varies in different dialects ; and the German a sounds in some places 
 like e, the French ii like u. 
 
 If we remember how the simple vowel sounds were represented by 
 Kempelen in a mathematical progression according to the amount of 
 aperture of the throat and lips required for their formation, we shall see 
 that what takes place, if an a is changed to ae, an o to oe, and an u to ue, 
 is in each case a diminution of the guttural aperture. While the pure 
 a is formed by 5 degrees of labial and 3 degrees of guttural aperture, 
 the ae is produced by 5 degrees of labial, but only 1 degree of gut- 
 tural aperture. Thus, in the pronunciation of oe, the labial aperture 
 remains at 2 degrees, and in the pronunciation of ue at 1 degree ; but 
 in either case the guttural aperture is respectively reduced from 
 !■ degrees and 5 degrees to 1 degree. We may, therefore, represent 
 
 the broken vowels (Grimm's Umlaut) in the following manner: 
 
 ae = V. 1; oe = II. 1 ; ue^I. 1. 
 
 There is one class of languages, the Tataric, where these broken 
 sounds are of frequent occurrence, and of great importance. The 
 " harmony of vowels " which pervades these dialects would be lost 
 
25 
 
 altogether (as it is, to a great extent, if Tataric languages are written 
 with Arabic letters), unless to these vowels a distinct category were 
 assigned. Besides the broken or softened a, o, and u, the Tataric lan- 
 guages have a fourth vowel, a softening of the i, which we hear in 
 " will." Thus we have, in Yakute : 
 
 Hard vowels a, o, i, u. Heavy vowels a, a, o, o. 
 
 Soft vowels a, 6, i, U. Light vowels i, i, u, ii. 
 
 AH the vowels in a Yakute word depend on the first. If the first 
 is hard, all following vowels must be hard ; if soft, all become soft. 
 Again, if the vowel of one syllable is heavy, that of the next can only 
 be the same heavy vowel, or its corresponding light vowel. If it 
 is light, that of the next syllable must be the same light vowel, or its 
 corresponding heavy vowel. For instance, if the first syllable of a word 
 has a, the next can only have a or i ; if a, a or i ; if o, o or u ; if o, 
 o or ii. 
 
 The vowels would, therefore, come under the following physiological 
 categories : — 
 
 Guttural a, short, as in Sam ; long, as in psalm. 
 
 ,, work 1 
 
 a» 
 
 bird 
 
 cur(?) 
 
 Palatal 
 
 1 ; 
 
 Labial 
 
 u 
 
 Gutturo-palatal 
 
 ai (e) 
 
 3J JJ 
 
 a\ 
 
 » » 
 
 ei 
 
 3) :7 
 
 Oi ; 
 
 Gutturo-labial 
 
 au (o) 
 
 33 33 
 
 aw 
 
 33 33 
 
 eu 
 
 33 33 
 
 ou 
 
 Lingual 
 
 re ; 
 
 Dental 
 
 le 
 
 A broken, as 
 
 in Vdter. 
 
 O „ 
 
 Konig. 
 
 knit; 
 
 ,^ 
 
 neat. 
 
 full; 
 
 >? 
 
 fool. 
 
 debt ; 
 
 j» 
 
 date. 
 
 
 33 
 
 ire. 
 
 
 33 
 
 ice. 
 
 
 33 
 
 voice. 
 
 not ; 
 
 33 
 
 note. 
 
 
 33 
 
 proud. 
 
 
 Ital. Ezcropa. 
 
 
 33 
 
 bought. 
 
 fiery ; 
 
 33 
 
 reach. 
 
 friendly ; 
 
 33 
 
 leach. 
 
 I broken. 
 
 as in 
 
 Diener. 
 
 U „ 
 
 
 Giite. 
 
 It has frequently been remarked that the short vowels in English 
 (hat, bed, pit pot, full) differ frn- their corresponding long vowels. 
 
2G 
 
 not merely in quantity, but in quality also. As they mostly occur in 
 unaccented syllables, they have lost that vocal timbre which the short 
 vowels in German and Italian have preserved. Still it is not neces- 
 sary to invent new signs for these surd vowels, because in origin they 
 correspond exactly to the short vowels in other languages, only that 
 they are uniformly modified by a peculiarity of pronunciation inherent 
 in the English tongue. The English language has lost the pure short 
 vowels altogether ; and it is not by the eye, but by the ear only, that 
 foreigners can learn the peculiar pronunciation of the short vowels 
 in English. 
 
 II. 
 
 How can tliese principal Sounds, after proper Classification, he expressed 
 hy us iti writing and printing, so as to preserve their physiological 
 Value, without creating new typographical Difficulties ? 
 
 The results at which we have arrived in the first part of our 
 inquiry are those on which, with very slight and unimportant excep- 
 tions, all may be said to agree, who, whether in India or Europe, have 
 attempted to analyse scientifically the elements of human speech. 
 There are, no doubt, some refinements, and some more accurate sub- 
 divisions, as will be seen in the extracts given from the Prati^aMyas, 
 which it will be necessary to attend to in exceptional cases, and par- 
 ticularly in philological researches. But, as far as the general phy- 
 siological outlines of our phonetic system are concerned, we hardly 
 expect any serious difference of opinion. 
 
 Widelj^ different opinions, however, start up as soon as we ap- 
 proach the second question, how these sounds are to be e.spressed 
 in writing. Omitting the different propositions to adopt an Oriental 
 alphabet, such as Sanskrit or Arabic, or the Greek alphabet, or 
 newly invented letters, whether short-hand or otherwise, we shall 
 take it for granted that the Latin alphabet, which, though of Semitic 
 origin, has so long been the armour of thought in the struggles and 
 conquests of civilisation, has really the greatest and most natural 
 claims on our consideration. 
 
 There are two principles regulating the application of the Latin 
 
27 
 
 alphabet to our physiological sounds on which there has been a 
 general agreement since the days of Halhed and Wilkins : 
 
 1 . That each sound shall have hut one representative letter, and that 
 therefore each letter shall always express the same sound. 
 
 2. That each simple sound shall be expressed by a single letter, and 
 compound sounds by compound letters. 
 
 If with these two principles we try to write the forty-four conso- 
 nants of our physiological alphabet by means of the twenty-four con- 
 sonants of the Latin, it follows that we must add to the latter diacri- 
 tical signs, in order to make them answer our purpose. 
 
 Now, in the adoption of diacritical signs, another principle should 
 be laid down : 
 
 " That the same modification should always be expressed by tlie same 
 diacritical mark." 
 
 In a theoretical system we might even go a step beyond this, and 
 lay it down as a principle that the same diacritical mark should always 
 express one and the same modification. The advantages which 
 would result from the adoption of such a principle are palpable ; but 
 the variety of diacritical marks which it would entail upon us, and 
 the number of new types which would have to be cast to carry it out 
 consistently, must strongly militate against it, particularly in the con- 
 struction of a Missionary alphabet. Here, as in all branches of Mis- 
 sionary labour, it must be our aim to obtain the greatest results by 
 the smallest means. 
 
 Guttural, Palatal, and Dental Tenuis. 
 The guttural, dental, and labial tenues are naturally expressed by 
 k, t, p. 
 
 Guttural, Palatal, and Dental Media. 
 
 The modification which changes these tenues into mediae should 
 consistently be expressed by a uniform diacritical sign attached to 
 k, t, p. For more than one reason, however, we prefer the Latin 
 letters, g, d, b. 
 
28 
 
 It is understood that g, after once being chosen as the representative 
 of the guttural media, like g in gun, whatever vowel may follow, can 
 never be used promiscuously both for the guttural and the palatal 
 media, as the English g in gun and gin. 
 
 How to express Aspirates ? 
 
 The aspirated tenues and mediae in the guttural, dental, and palatal 
 series, wliich, according to the description given above, are not com- 
 pound, but simple though modified sounds, should be written by 
 simple consonants with a diacritical mark of aspiration. This would 
 give us: 
 
 k'> t'; P> S> d', b'. 
 
 These types have been cut many times since Count Volney 
 founded his prize at the French Academy for transcribing Oriental 
 alphabets, and even before his time. They exist at Berlin, Paris, 
 Leipzig, Darmstadt, Petersbui-g, and several other places. They 
 have been cut in different sizes and on different bodies. Still the 
 difficulty of having them at hand when required, making them range 
 properly, and keeping always a suflScient stock, has been so great 
 even in places like London, Paris, and Berlin, that their adoption 
 would defeat the very object of our alphabet, which is to be used in 
 Greenland as well as in Borneo, and is to be handled bjf unex- 
 perienced printers even in the most distant stations, where nothing 
 but an ordinary English font can be expected to exist. In our Mis- 
 sionary alphabet we must therefore have no dots, no hooks, no accents, 
 no Greek letters, no new types, no diacritical appendages whatsoever. 
 No doubt. Missionary Societies might have all these letters cut and 
 cast on as many sizes and bodies as necessary. Punches or fonts 
 might be sent to the principal Missionary stations. But how long 
 would this last ? If a few psalms or catechisms had to be printed 
 at Bangkok, and if there were no hooked letters to represent the aspi- 
 rated palatal sound by a single type (k"), is it likely that they would 
 send to Calcutta or London for this type, which, after it arrived, 
 might perhaps be found not to range with the rest ? It is much 
 more likely that, in the absence of the type prescribed by the Mis- 
 sionary Societies at home, each missionary would find himself thrown 
 on his own resources, and ditferont alphabets would again spring 
 
29 
 
 up in difFerent places. Besides, our alphabet is not only to be an 
 alphabet of missionaries. In time it is to become the alphabet of 
 those tribes and nations whose first acquaintance with writing will be 
 through the Bible translated into their language and transcribed in a 
 rational alphabet. Fifty or a hundred years hence, it may be the 
 alphabet of all the civilised nations of Africa, Australia, and the 
 greater part of Asia. Must all the printers of Australian advertise- 
 ments, the editors of African newspapers, the publishers of Malay 
 novels or Papua primers, write to Mr. Watts, Crown Court, Temple 
 Bar, for new sorts of dotted and hooked letters? I do not say it is 
 impossible ; but many things are possible, and still not practical ; 
 and these new hooked and dotted types seem to me decidedly to 
 belong to this class. 
 
 In questions of this kind, no harm is done if principles are sacri- 
 ficed to expediency ; and I therefore propose to write the aspirate 
 letters, as all English and most French and German scholars have 
 written them hitherto, by 
 
 kh, th, ph, gh, dh, bh. 
 
 What do we lose by this? The spiritus asper (') is after all 
 but a faintly disguised H, changed into h and -i, for asper and lenis, 
 and then abbreviated into 'and '. Besides, the languages where 
 these simple aspirates occur are not many ; and in India, where 
 they are of most frequent use, the phonetic system is so carefully 
 arranged that there no ambiguity can arise whether kh be meant for 
 an aspirated guttural tenuis or for k followed by the semi-vowel h. If 
 the semi-vowel h comes in immediate contact with k, k-)-h is changed 
 into g + gh, or a stop (virama) has to be put after the k. This might 
 be done where, as in discussing grammatical niceties, it is desirable 
 to distinguish between kh and k-h. The missionary, except in India, 
 will hardly ever suffer from this ambiguity ; and if the scholar should 
 insist on its being removed, we shall see immediately how even the 
 most delicate scruples on this point could be satisfied. 
 
 There is still, if we examine the alphabets hitherto proposed or 
 adopted, a whole array of dots and hooks, which must be elimi- 
 nated, or at least be reduced, as far as possible ; and though we 
 might, after gaining our point with regard to the h, get through 
 gutturals, dentals, and labials, we still have new and more formidable 
 enemies to encounter in the palatals and Unguals. 
 
30 
 
 How to express Palatals ? 
 
 Palatals are modifications of gutturals, and therefore the most 
 natural course would be to express them by the guttural series, 
 adding only a line or an accent or a dot, or any other uniform diacri- 
 tical sign to indicate their modified value. So great, however, has 
 been the disinclination to use diacritical signs, that in common 
 usage, where the palatal tenuis had to be expressed, the most anoma- 
 lous expedients have been resorted to in order to avoid hooks or 
 dots. In English, to represent the Sanskrit palatal tenuis, ch has 
 been used ; and as the h seemed to be too much in the teeth of 
 all analogy, the simple c even has been adopted, leaving ch for the 
 aspirated palatal. On the same ground, the Germans write tsch 
 for the palatal tenuis, and tschh for the aspirate. The French write 
 tch and tchh. The Italians do not hesitate to use ci for the tenuis, 
 though I do not see how they could express the corresponding 
 aspirate. The Russians recommend their- q; and the Brahmans 
 would probably recommend a Sanskrit type. Still all, even the 
 German tschh, are meant to represent simple consonants, which, as 
 in Sanskrit, would not make a preceding short vowel long. That in 
 English the ch, in Italian ci, and in German tsch, have a sound very like 
 the palatal tenuis, is of course a mere accident. In English the ch is 
 not always sounded alike ; and its pronunciation in the different dia- 
 lects of Europe varies more than that of most letters. Besides, our 
 alphabetic representative of the palatal sound is to be pronounced 
 and comprehended, not by a few people in Germany or Italy, but by 
 all the nations of Africa and Australia. Now to them the ch would 
 prove deceptive ; first, because we never use the simple c (by this 
 we make up for the primary alphabetical divorce introduced by the 
 libertus of Spurius Carvilius Ruga), and, secondly, because the h 
 would seem to indicate the modification of the aspirate. 
 
 The natural way of writing the palatals, so as not to obscure their 
 close relationship to the gutturals, would be, k, kh, g, gh. 
 
 But here the same difficulty arises as before. If the dots or marks 
 are printed separately, the lines where these dots occur become 
 more distant than the rest. For one such dotted letter the compo- 
 sitor has to compose a whole line of blanks. These will shift, par- 
 ticularly when there are corrections, and the misprints are endless. 
 
31 
 
 In Tumour's edition of the Maliavansa, whicli is printed with dotted 
 letters, we get thirty-five pages quarto of errata to about a hundred 
 pages of text. But they might be cast on one body. True, they 
 might be — perhaps they will be. At all events they have been; 
 and Volney offered such types to anybody that would ask for them. 
 Still, when I inquire at a press like the University press of Oxford, 
 they are not forthcoming. We must not expect that what is im- 
 possible in the nineteenth century at Oxford, will be possible in the 
 twentieth century at Timbuktu. 
 
 Now the difficulty, so far as I can see, was solved by a compositor to 
 whom I sent some MS., where each palatal letter was marked by a 
 line under it. The compositor, not knowing what these lines m.eant, 
 took them for the usual marks of italics, and I was surprised to 
 see that this answered the purpose, saved much trouble and much 
 expense, and, on the whole, did not look badly. As every English 
 font includes italic letters, the usefulness of these modified types for 
 our Missionary alphabet "springs to the eyes," as we say in German. 
 They are sufilciently startling to remind the reader of their modified 
 pronunciation, and at the same time they indicate, as in most cases 
 they ought, their original guttural character to the reflecting philo- 
 logist. As in ordinary books italics are used to attract attention, so 
 also in our alphabet. Even to those who have never heard the 
 names of guttural and palatal letters, they will show that the h is not 
 the usual k. Persons in the slightest degree acquainted with pho- 
 netics will be made aware that the k is, in shape and sound, a modifi- 
 cation of the k. All who admit that palatals are modifications of 
 gutturals would see at once that the modification intended by k 
 could only be the palatal. And as to the proper pronunciation of the 
 k, as palatal tenuis, in different dialects, people who read their own 
 language expressed in this alphabet will never hesitate over its pro- 
 nunciation. Others must learn it, as they now learn the pronun- 
 ciation of Italian ci and chi, or rest satisfied to know that h stands 
 for the palatal tenuis, and for nothing else. Sooner or later this 
 expedient is certain to be adopted. Thus we get, as the repre- 
 sentatives of the palatals, 
 
 h *h, g, gh. 
 
 Now, also, it will appear how we can avoid the ambiguity before 
 
32 
 
 alluded to, — whether the h of aspirated consonants expresses their 
 aspirated nature or an independent guttural semi-vowel or flatus. Let 
 the h, where it is not meant as a letter, but as a diacritical sign, be 
 printed as an italic /*, and the last ground for complaint will vanish. 
 Still this is only needful for philological objects ; for practical pur- 
 poses the common h may remain. 
 
 In writing, the dots or lines under the palatals will have to be 
 retained. Still they take too much time thus employed to allow us to 
 suppose that the Africans will retain them when they come to write 
 for themselves. They will find some more current marks; as, for 
 instance, by drawing the last stroke of the letter below the line. 
 In writing, however, anybod}' may please himself, so long as the 
 printer knows what is intended when he has to bring it before the 
 public. As a hint to German missionaries, I beg to say that, for 
 writing quickly in this new alphabet, they will £nd it useful in manu- 
 script notes to employ German letters instead of italics. 
 
 An accidental, though by no means undesirable, advantage is 
 gained by using italics to express the palatals. If we read that 
 Sanskrit vach (or vatch, or vatsch) is the same as Latin vox, but 
 that sometimes vach in Sanskrit is vak or vac, the eye imagines that 
 it has three different words to deal with. By means of italics, vak and 
 vak are almost identical to the sight, as kirk and hivJt (church), would 
 be if English were ever to be transcribed into the missionary alphabet. 
 The same applies to the verb, where the phonetic distinction between 
 va/jmi, vakshi, vakti, can thus be expressed without in any way 
 disguising the etymological identity of the root. It would be wrong if 
 we allowed the physiological principles of our alphabet to be modified 
 for the sake of comparative philology ; but where the phonetic 
 changes of physiological sounds and the historical changes of words 
 happen to run parallel, an alphabet, if well arranged, should be capable 
 of giving this fact clear expression. 
 
 If the pronunciation of the palatals is deteriorated, they sometimes 
 take the sound of tch, ts, s, sh, or even th. Coelum (ralXor) becomes 
 Italian cielo ; where the initial sound is the same as in church 
 (kirk). In old Friesic we have "tzaka" instead of English "check.'' 
 In French, "ciel" is pronounced with an initial sharp dental s ; 
 " chose," with an initial sharp palatal s. In Spanish, the pronuncia- 
 
33 
 
 tion of a c before e and i is that of the English th. In these cases 
 when we have to deal with unwritten languages, the sounds, whether 
 simple or double, should be traced to their proper phonetic category, 
 and be written accordingly. It will be well, however, to bear in 
 mind that pronunciation may change with time and vary in different 
 places, and that the most general representation of these sounds 
 by palatals or italicized gutturals will generally prove the best in the 
 long run. 
 
 It must be clear that, with the principles followed hitherto, it would 
 be impossible to make an exception in favour of the English j as 
 representative of the palatal media. It would be a schism in the 
 whole system, and would besides deprive us of those advantages 
 which comparative philology derives from a consistent representation 
 of modified sounds: that Sanskrit yuga (iiyov) is derived from 
 " y^ff>" to join, would be intelligible to everybody ; while neither the 
 German, to whom j is y, nor the Frenchman, nor the Spaniard would 
 see the connexion between j and g. 
 
 The wish to retain the j is natural with Missionary Societies. 
 
 It would enable us to spell uniformly the name of our Lord and 
 
 in all the translations of the Bible which the pious zeal of the 
 mother country is now sowing over the virgin soil of Africa, 
 Australia, and Asia, that one name at least would stand un- 
 altered and uncorrupted in all tongues and all ages. But we may 
 consider this from another point of view. As with other words, and 
 with many of the most sacred in our own language, their full and real 
 meaning seems to grow more clear and distinct the more the 
 material body of the words changes and decays, and the more their 
 etymological meaning becomes dim and forgotten, so will it be with 
 the name of our Lord. Let the name grow and change and vary in 
 all the tongues of the earth, and the very variety of the name will 
 proclaim the unity of Him who has promised to all tongues the gift 
 of His Holy Spirit. And would it avail, even if now we insisted on this 
 point ? A thousand years ago, and all the nations of Europe wrote 
 and pronounced this name uniformly; but at the present day there are 
 hardly two languages where the name is pronounced exactly alike ; 
 and in several the spelling has followed the pronunciation. It will 
 ultimately be the same in Africa, whatever we do at present. But if 
 
34 
 
 an exception is here to be made, let it be a single exception, whiic 
 we retain the regular notation for every other word in which the pure 
 palatal media occurs. 
 
 How to express Linguals ? 
 
 The linguals, as modifications of the dentals, have been hitherto 
 written by common consent as dentals with dots or lines. In writing, 
 this method must be retained, though no doubt a more current form 
 will soon grow up if the alphabet is used by natives. They will 
 probably draw the last stroke of the t and d below the line, and 
 connect the body of the letter with the perpendicular line below. 
 The linguals, therefore, will be, t, th, d, dh; only here also the 
 printer will step in and convert the dotted or underlined letters into 
 italics, t, th, d, dh. 
 
 I am at a loss how to mark that peculiar pronunciation of the 
 dental aspirate, whether tenuis or media, which we write in English 
 simply by th. It is not of frequent occurrence; still it occurs not only 
 in European, but in Oriental languages, — for instance, in Burmese. 
 If it occurs in a language where no trace of the pure dental aspirate 
 remains, we might safely write th (and dh) or th (and dh), as we do 
 in English. The Anglo-Saxon letters ■p and S would be very con- 
 venient ; but how few fonts, even in England, possess these forms ! 
 Again, jA and zh, and even ^ and S', have been proposed ; but they 
 are liable to still stronger objections. Where it is necessary to dis- 
 tinguish the aspirated th and dh from the assibilated, I pi-opose for 
 the latter a dot under the h (th and dh). But I think th and 
 dh will, on the whole, be found to answer all practical purposes, if we 
 only look to people who have to write and read their own language. 
 Philologists, whatever we attempt, cannot be informed of every 
 nicety and shade in pronunciation by the eye. They must learn from 
 grammars or from personal intercourse in what manner each tribe 
 pronounces its dental aspirate ; and comparative philology will find 
 all its ends answered if th represents the organic dental aspirate 
 until its pronunciation deteriorates so far as to make it a flatus or a 
 double consonant. In this case the Missionary also will have to write 
 it ts, or ss, or whatever sound he may happen to hear. 
 
35 
 
 The five principal classes of physiological sounds would, therefore, 
 Iiave the following typographic exponents:— 
 
 
 Tenuis. 
 
 Temiis asp. 
 
 Media. 
 
 Media asp. 
 
 Guttural 
 
 k 
 
 kh 
 
 g 
 
 g/i 
 
 Palatal 
 
 k 
 
 kh 
 
 9 
 
 gh 
 
 Dental 
 
 t 
 
 th (t/i) 
 
 d 
 
 Ah (d/i) 
 
 Lingual 
 
 t 
 
 th 
 
 d 
 
 dh 
 
 Labial 
 
 P 
 
 pA 
 
 b 
 
 hh 
 
 How to express the Nasals ? 
 
 In each of these five classes we have now to look for an exponent 
 of the nasal. 
 
 Where the nasal is modified by the following consonant, it requires 
 no modified sign, for reasons explained in the first part of our essay. 
 The nasal in sink and sing is guttural ; in inch and injure, palatal; in 
 hint and bind, dental ; in imp and dumb, labial. 
 
 But where these nasals occur at the beginning of words or at the 
 end of syllables, each must have its own mark. Let the dental 
 nasal be n, the labial nasal m, the lingual nasal n. Where the gut- 
 tural nasal is really so evanescent as not to bear expression by 
 ng, we must write n and a dot after it (n-), vi'hich makes no difficulty 
 in printing, and will very rarely occur. What we call the palatal n is 
 generally not a simple but a compound nasal, and should be written ny. 
 For transliterating, however, we want a distinct sign, because the 
 palatal nasal exists as a simple tj'pe in Sanskrit, and every single 
 type must be transliterated by a single letter. I-Iere I should pro- 
 pose the Spanish fi. 
 
 The lingual n occurs in Sanskrit only. Its character is generally 
 determined by lingual letters either following or preceding. Still, 
 where it must be marked in Sanskrit transliterations, let it be repre- 
 sented by an italic n. 
 
 How to express the Semi-voweh ? 
 
 The Latin letters which naturally offer themselves as the counter- 
 parts of the semi-vowels, are 'h, y, r, 1, and w. 
 
 c 2 
 
36 
 
 The delicate sound of the guttural semi-vowel occurs very rarely 
 in Arian languages. In Semitic dialects, however, the j; has usually 
 been considered as the guttural semi-vowel. In Hebrew it is some- 
 times not pronounced at all, or, as we should say, it is changed into 
 the flatus lenis; whence, in the Arabic alphabet, to remove this 
 ambiguity and to show in every word the full or weak pronunciation 
 of the guttural semi-vowel, the y was split in two: the one, the 
 c, little more than the flatus lenis; the other, the c, the hollow 
 guttural semi-vowel which only a Semitic throat is able to utter, and 
 which comes very near to the guttural flatus asper as heard in " loch." 
 
 The palatal semi-vowel is usually transcribed in Germany by j, 
 whichj as far as archaeological arguments go, would certainly be the 
 most appropriate sign to represent the semi-vowel corresponding to 
 the palatal vowel i. As, however, the j is one of the most variously 
 pronounced letters in Europe, and as in England it has been usual tc 
 employ it as a palatal media, it is better to discard it altogether from 
 our alphabet, and to write y. 
 
 The lingual semi-vowel is r; if in some dialects the r is pronounced 
 very near to the throat, this might be marked by an italic r, or rh. 
 
 The dental semi-vowel is written 1. The mouille sound of 1 may 
 be expressed by an italic I. 
 
 Where the labial semi-vowel is formed by the lips, let it be written 
 w. More usually it is formed by the upper lip and the edge of the 
 lower teeth. It then becomes what the Hindus call a labio-dental 
 semi-vowel, but is hardly to be distinguished from the labial flatus 
 lenis. 
 
 How to express the Flatus (Sibilants) ? 
 As the unmodified flatus, or, as it should more properly be called 
 the spiritus asper and lenis, can only occur before a vowel, the 
 printer will find no difficulty in representing these two sounds by the 
 usual signs " and ' placed before or over the vowel which follows. 
 At the beginning of words there could be no reasonable objection to 
 this mode of representing the very slight and hardly consonantal 
 sound of the spiritus asper and lenis. But it will take some time 
 before our eyes are accustomed to it in the middle of words. In 
 such cases the Greeks did not mark it. They wrote apua, chariot 
 
37 
 
 but tvapfiaroQ, with beautiful chariots ; they wrote dviip, man, but 
 evavlpla, manliness. Nor in fact does there seem to be any neces- 
 sity for marking the spiritus lenis in the middle of words. Every 
 vowel beginning a syllable has necessarily the spiritus lenis; as 
 going, seeing. As to the spiritus asper, which we have in " vehe- 
 ment," "vehicle," I fear that « ve'ement," "ve'icle," will be ob- 
 jected to by the printer. If so, we have still the h as a last resource 
 to express the spiritus asper in this position. 
 
 The guttural flatus asper, as heard in loch, might be expressed by 
 an Italic h. The flatus lenis cannot be distinguished in pronunciation 
 from the guttural semi-vowel, and has therefoi-e never received an 
 alphabetical exponent. If it should be necessary, however, to assign 
 a type to this physiological category, we should be obliged to write 
 the flatus asper by 'A, and the flatus lenis by 'h. 
 
 The dental flatus sibilans, pronounced sharp as in "sin" or "grass," 
 has, of course, the best claims on the letter s as its representative. 
 Its corresponding soft sound, as heard in please or zeal, is best ex- 
 pressed by z ; only we must take care not to pronounce it like the 
 German z. The more consistent way of expressing the sonant flatus 
 would be to put a spiritus lenis over the s. This, however, would 
 hardly be tolerated, and would be against the Third Resolution of our 
 alphabetical conferences, where it was agreed that only after the 
 Roman types, and the modifications of Roman types as supplied by 
 common fonts (capitals, italics, &c.), had been exhausted, diacritical 
 signs should be admitted into the standard alphabet. 
 
 As all palatals are represented by italics, the palatal sibilant would 
 naturally be written with an italic s. This would represent the sharp 
 sound as heard in " sharp " or " chose." The soft palatal sibilant 
 would have the same exponent as the soft dental sibilant, only 
 changed into italics (z). This would be the proper sign for the 
 French sound in " je," "genou," and for the African soft palatal 
 sibilant, which, as Dr. Krapf, Mr. Tutschek, and Mr. Boyce remark, 
 will never be properly pronounced by an adult European. 
 
 Where it is necessary to express the original, not yet assibilated, 
 palatal flatus, which is heard in konig and kon'ge, an italic y, with the 
 spiritus asper and lenis, would answer the purpose (y and y). 
 
 The labial flatus should be written by f. This is the sharp flatus, 
 
 o 3 
 
38 
 
 as heard in " life" and "find." The soft labial flatus ought consis- 
 tently to be written as f with a spiritus lenis. But here again I fear 
 we must sacrifice consistency to expediency, and adopt that sign with 
 which we are familiar, the Latin v. As we express the labial semi- 
 vowel by w, the v is still at our disposal, and will probably be pre- 
 ferred by the unanimous votes of missionaries and printers. 
 
 The lingual flatus is a sound peculiar to Sanskrit, and, owing to its 
 hollow guttural pronunciation, it may be expi-essed there, as it has 
 been hitherto, by s followed by the guttural h (sh). The Sanskrit 
 knows no soft sibilants ; hence we require but one representation 
 for the lingual sli. 
 
 The different categories of consonantal sounds which we represented 
 at the end of the first chapter by means of English words may now be 
 filled out by the following graphic exponents: — 
 
 a. h. c. d. e. f. g. 
 
 TenuU, ^e^uis ^^,,^ ^dia ^^^^„ ^U ^^ 
 
 I. Guttur. k kA g g/« n. 'h 'A 'h 
 
 II. Pal. k hh g gh n y s z 
 
 III. Dent. t t/t d d/t n \{l) & z 
 
 IV. Ling. t th d dh n r (?•) sh . 
 V. Labial.j p pA b hh m w f v 
 
 Spiritus asper : 
 Spiritus lenis : '. 
 
 Although these exponents of the physiological categories of articu- 
 lated sound have not been chosen because their present pronunciation 
 in English, or French, or German is nearest to that physiological 
 category which each has to represent, still, as we have avoided letters 
 of which the pronunciation fluctuates very much (such as c j x q) 
 it will be found, on the whole, that little violence is done by this 
 alphabet to the genius of any of these languages, and that neither an 
 Englishman, nor a German, nor a Frenchman will ever feel much 
 hesitation as to how any one of our letters should be pronounced. 
 
 Voivels. 
 
 The pronunciation of the vowels is more liable to change than that 
 of the consonants. Hence we find that literary languasres, which 
 
39 
 
 retain their orthography in spite of changes in pronunciation, have no 
 scruple in expressing different sounds by the same sign; or, where 
 two originally different vowels have sunk down to one and the 
 same intermediate sound, we see this same sound expressed often 
 by two different vowels. In the selection, therefore, of letters to 
 express the general vowel sounds of our physiological alphabet, we 
 can pay less attention to the present value of each vowel sign in the 
 spoken languages of Europe than we did even with the consonants. 
 And as there it was impossible, without creating an unwieldy mass 
 of consonantal signs, to express all the slight shades of pronunciation 
 by distinct letters, we shall have to make still greater allowance for 
 dialectical varieties in the representation of vowels, where it would be 
 hopeless should we attempt to depict in writing every minute degree 
 in the sliding scale of native or foreign pronunciation. 
 
 The reason why, in most systems of phonetic transcription, the 
 Italian pronunciation of vowels has been taken as normal, is, no 
 doubt, that in Italian most vowel signs have but one sound, and the 
 same sound is generally expressed by one and the same vowel. We 
 propose, therefore, as in Italian, to represent the pure guttural vowel 
 by a, the pure palatal vowel by i, and the pure labial vowel by u. 
 
 Besides the short a, we want one, or according to others, two graphic 
 signs to represent the unmodified sound of the vocal breathing, which 
 may be deflected from its purity by a slight and almost imperceptible 
 palatal or labial pressure. These are the sounds which we have in 
 " birch" and " work," and which, where they must be distinguished, 
 we propose to write 6 and 6. As we do not want the signs of " 
 and " to mark the quantitjf of vowels, we may here be allowed to use 
 this sign " to indicate indistinctness rather than brevity. 
 
 In most languages, however, one sign will be sufficient to express 
 this primitive vowel ; and in this case the figure has been recom- 
 mended as a fit representative of this undetermined vowel. 
 
 Among the languages which have an alphabet of their own, some, 
 as, for instance, Sanskrit, do not express these sounds by any pe- 
 culiar sign, but use the short a instead. Other languages express 
 both sounds by one sign; for instance, the Hebrew Shewa, the pronun- 
 ciation of which would naturally be influenced, or, so to say, coloured 
 either by the preceding or the following letter. Other idioms again, 
 
 C i 
 
40 
 
 like Latin, seem to express this indistinct sound by e, i, o, or u. Be- 
 sides the long e in res and the short e in celer, we have the indis- 
 tinct e in words like adversum and advorsum, septimus and septumus, 
 where the Hindus write uniformly saptama, but pronounced it pro- 
 bably with vowels varying as in Greek and Latin. Besides the long 
 o in odi, and the short o as in moneo, we have the indistinct o or u 
 in orbs or urbs, in bonom or bonum. In Wallachian, every vowel 
 that has been reduced to this obscure, indefinite sound, is marked 
 by an accent, a, e, I, b, u ; but if Wallachian is written with 
 Cyrillic letters, the 'Yerr' (Tj) is used as the uniform representative 
 of all these vowels. In living languages one sign, the figure 0, will 
 be found sufficient, and in some cases it may be dispensed with 
 altogether, as a slight Shewa sound^is necessarily pronounced, whether 
 wi'itten or not, in words such as mil-k, mar-sh, el-m, &c. The 
 marks of quantity, " and ", are superfluous in our alphabet; not that 
 it is not always desirable to mark the quantity of vowels, but 
 because here again, as with the dotted consonant, a long syllable 
 can be marked by the vowel in italics, while every other vowel is to 
 be taken as short. Thus we should write in English bath, bar, but 
 ass, bank; ravine, and pin ; bwt (i.e. boot), and butcher. We should 
 know at once that a in bath is long, while in ass it is short. 
 
 All compound vowel sounds should be written according to the 
 process of their formation. Two only, which are of most frequent 
 occurrence, the guttural short a, absorbed by either i or u, might 
 perhaps be allowed to retain their usual signs, and be written e and o 
 instead of ai and au. The only reason, however, which can be given 
 for writing e and o, instead of ai and au, is that we save a letter in 
 writing ; and this, considering how many millions of people may in 
 the course of time have to use this alphabet, may be a saving of 
 millions and millions of precious seconds. The more consistent way 
 would be to express the gutturo-palatal sound of the Italian e by ai, 
 the a being short. The French do the same in " aimer," while in 
 English this sound is expressed by ey in prey, by ay in pray, by a in 
 gate, and by ai in sailor. The gutturo-labial sound of the Italian o 
 should be written au, which the French pronounce o. For etymo- 
 logical purposes also this plan would be preferable, as it frequently 
 happens that an o (au), if followed by a vowel, has to be pronounced 
 
41 
 
 ^v- Thus in Sanskrit hhu, to be, becomes bhau (pronounced blio), and 
 It followed by ami, it becomes bhav-ami, I am. 
 
 The diphthongs, where the full or long-guttural a is followed by 
 1 andu, should be written ai and au. "To buy" would have to be 
 written bai; to bow, bau. Whether au coalesce entirely, as in 
 trerman, or less so, as in Italian, is a point which in each language 
 must be learned by ear, not by eye. 
 
 Most people would not be able to distinguish between ai and ei. 
 Still some maintain that there is a difference; as, for instance, in 
 German kaiser and eis. Even in English the sound of ie in "he lies" 
 is said to be different from that of "he lies." Where it is necessary 
 to mark this distinction, our diagram readily supplies ai and ei. 
 
 The diphthong eu is generally pronounced so that the two vowels 
 are heard in succession, as in Italian Europa. Pronounced more 
 quickly, as, for instance, in German, it approaches to the English 
 sound of oy in boy. According to our diagram, we should have to 
 write ei and eu ; but ei and eu will be preferable for practical pur- 
 poses. 
 
 The same applies to the diphthong 6i. Here, also, both vowels 
 can still be heard more or less distinctly. This more or less cannot 
 be expressed in writing, but must be learned by practice. 
 
 The last diphthong, on the contrary, is generally pronounced like 
 one sound, and the deep guttural seems to be followed, not by the 
 vowel u, but only by an attempt to pronounce this vowel, which 
 attempt ends, as it were, with the semi-vowel w, instead of the vowel. 
 In English we have this sound in bought, aught, saw ; and also in fall 
 and all. 
 
 The proper representation of these diphthongs would be oi and 
 ou ; but oi and ou will be found to answer the purpose as well, except 
 in philological works. 
 
 For representing the broken sounds of a, o, u, which we have in 
 German vater, hohe, giite, in the French pretre, peu, and une, but 
 which the English avoids as sounds requiring too great an effort, no 
 better signs offer themselves than a, 6, ii. They are objectionable 
 because they are not found in every English font. For the Tataric 
 languages a fourth sound is required, a broken or soft i. This, too, 
 we must write i. 
 
42 
 
 The Sanskrit vowels, commonly called lingual and dental, are best 
 expressed by ri and li, where, by writing the r and I as italics, no 
 ambiguity can arise between the vowels ri and li, and the semi-vowels 
 r and 1, followed by i. Instead of i, e also or the figure may be used. 
 Thus have all the principal consonantal and vowel sounds been clas- 
 sified physiologically and represented graphically. All the distinctions 
 which it can ever be important to express have been expressed 
 by means of the Roman alphabet without the introduction of foreign 
 letters, and without using dots, hooks, lines, accents, or any other 
 diacritical signs. I do not deny that for more minute points, par- 
 ticularly in philological treatises, new sounds and new signs will be 
 required. In Sanskrit we have Visarga and the real Anusvara (the 
 Nasikya), which will require distinct signs (A, m) in transliteration. In 
 some African languages, clicks, unless they can be abolished in speak- 
 ing, will have to be represented in writing. On points like these an 
 agreement will be difficult, nor would it be possible to provide for all 
 emergencies. It is an advantage, however, that we still have the c, 
 j, and X at our disposal to express the dental, palatal, and lateral 
 clicks. Further particulars on this and similar points I must reserve 
 for a future occasion, and refer the reader, in the mean time, to the 
 very able article of the llev. L. Grout, alluded to before. But I 
 cannot leave this subject without expressing at least a strono- hope 
 that, by the influence of the Missionaries, these brutal sounds will be 
 in time abolished, at least among the Kaffirs, though it may be 
 impossible to eradicate them in the degraded Hottentot dialects. It is 
 clear that they are not essential in the Kaffir languages, for thev 
 never occur in Sechuana and other branches of the great Kaffir family 
 If uniformity can be obtained with regard to the forty-four conso- 
 nantal and the twenty-four vocal sounds, which are the principal mo- 
 dulations of the human voice fixed and sanctioned in the history of 
 language, so far as it is known at present ; if these sounds are always 
 accepted, as defined above, solely on physiological grounds, and hence- 
 forth expressed in those letters alone which have been allotted to 
 them solely for practical reasons, a great step will have been made 
 towards facilitating the intellectual intercourse of mankind and 
 spreading the truths of Christianity. 
 
 But the realisation of this plan will mainly depend, not on ino-enin..c 
 ar"'unients, but on gond-will and rcadv ro-operation. 
 
43 
 
 III. 
 
 Horn can this Physiological Alphabet be applied to existing Languages? 
 
 a. To unwritten Languages. 
 
 After the explanations contained in the first and second parts, there 
 is little more to be said on this point 
 
 The missionary who attempts to write down for the first time a 
 spoken language, should have a thorough knowledge of the physiolo- 
 gical alphabet, and have practised it beforehand on his own language 
 or on other dialects the pronunciation of which he knows. 
 
 He should put from recollection, as much as possible, the historical 
 orthography of German, English, French, or whatever his language 
 may be, and accustom himself to write down every spoken sound 
 under the nearest physiological category to which it seems to belong. 
 He should first of all endeavour to recognise the principal sounds, 
 guttural, dental, and labial, in the language he desires to dissect and 
 to delineate; and where doubtful whether he hears a simple or a 
 modified secondary sound, such as have been described in our alpha- 
 bet, he should always incline to the simple as the more original and 
 general. 
 
 He should never be guided by etymological impressions. This is a 
 great temptation, but it should be resisted. If we had to write the 
 French word for knee, we should feel inclined, knowing that it sounds 
 ^znokyo in Italian and genu in Latin, to write it <?enu. But in 
 French the initial palatal sound is no longer produced by contact, but 
 by a sibilant flatus, and we should therefore have to vfrite zenu. If 
 we had to write down the English sound of knee, we should probably, 
 for the same reason, be willing to persuade ourselves that we still 
 perceived, in the pronunciation of the n the former presence of the 
 initial k. Still no one but an etymologist could detect it, and its 
 sound should be represented in the Missionary alphabet by " ni." 
 
 Those who know the difficulty of determining the spelling of words 
 according to their etymology, even in French or English, although we 
 can follow the history of these languages for centuries, and although 
 the most eminent grammarians have been engaged in analysing their 
 structure, will feel how essential it is, in a first attempt to fix a spoken 
 language, that the writer should not be swayed by any hasty etymo- 
 
44 
 
 logical theories. The Missionarj- should give a true transcript of a 
 spoken language, and leave it to others to decipher it. He who, 
 instead of doing this, attempts, according to his own theories, to im- 
 prove upon the irregular utterance of savages, would deprive us of 
 authentic documents the loss of which is irreparable. He would act 
 like a traveller who, after copying an inscription according to what he 
 thought, ought to have been its meaning, destroyed the original ; 
 nay, he may falsify unawares the ethnic history of the human race. 
 
 Several sentences having been once written down, the Missionary 
 should put them by for a time, and then read them aloud to the 
 natives. If they understand what he reads, and if they understand 
 it even if read by somebody else, his work has been successful, 
 and a translation of the Bible carried out on these principles among 
 Papuas or Khyengs will assuredly one day become the basis for the 
 literature of the future. 
 
 Although the basis of our Standard Alphabet is purely physio- 
 logical, still no letter has been admitted into it, which does not 
 actually occur in one of the well known languages of Asia or Europe. 
 The number of letters might easily have been increased, if we had 
 attempted to represent all the slight shades of pronunciation, which 
 affect certain letters in different languages, dialects, patois, or in the 
 mouth of individuals. But to increase the number of letters is tanta- 
 mount to diminishing the usefulness of an alphabet. 
 
 It may happen, indeed, as we become acquainted, throuo-h the 
 persevering labours of Missionaries, with the numerous tono^ues of 
 Africa, Polynesia, and Asia, that new sounds will have to be acknow- 
 ledged, and will have an independent place allotted to them in our 
 system. But here it should be a principle, as binding as any of the 
 principles which have guided us in the composition of our alphabet 
 that 
 
 " No new sound should ever be acknowledged as such, until lue 
 are able to give a clear and scientific definition of it on physio- 
 logical grounds." 
 
 We are too prone perhaps to imagine, particularly where we have 
 to deal with languages gathered from the mouth of a single inter- 
 preter, or in the intercourse with a few travellers, that we hear sounds 
 of an entirely new character, and apparently requiring a new sign. 
 
45 
 
 But if we heard the same language spoken for a number of years 
 and by a thousand speakers, the natural variety of pronunciation 
 would make our ears less sensitive, and more capable of appreci- 
 ating the general rule, in spite of individual exceptions. We are 
 not accustomed to pay attention to each consonant and vowel, as 
 they are pronounced in our own language ; and if we try for the 
 first time to analyse each word as we hear it, and to write down 
 every vowel and consonant in a language we do not understand, 
 say Russian or Welsh, we shall be able to appreciate the difficulties 
 which a Missionary has to overcome, if he tries to fix a language 
 alphabetically, before he himself can converse in it freely. It has 
 happened, that travellers collecting the dialects of tribes in the Cau- 
 casus or on the frontiers of India, have brought home and published lists 
 of words gathered on the same spot and from the same people, and 
 yet so different in their alphabetical appearances, that the same dia- 
 lect has figured in ethnological works, under two different names. 
 Much must be left to the discretion of Missionaries ; for m most cases 
 it is impossible to control the observations which they have made m 
 countries hitherto unexplored, and in dialects known to themse ves 
 alone. But it will be found that Missionaries who know their lan- 
 guage best, and have used it for the greatest number of years 
 Lniar thus with all its sounds and accents, are least clamorous fb 
 new types, and most willing to indicate, in a general manner, wha^ 
 they know can never be represented with perfect accura y To 
 much distinction leads to confusion, and it ^^ows a p.U o w se 
 economyinthePheniciantheGreektheRom ,a^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 
 
 Uiat they have contrived to expre. ^-n^ ^ ^ J„ j„^^„, ^^ 
 
 elation ^2Z^^^^^^^^-^^^ '-^ ^- -'' 
 signs and e^tabhsh new ^^^^^^^ ^^ .^^^^^^^^ ^^^ ^^^^^^^ 
 
 occasionally, at Uome anu introduce 
 
 n,» sigDS, and m«k. ana^ f„, s tine in framing an aipka- 
 
 „, with o«r resource,, "«? '" ^"^ y^, ,„ ,;„^, „Iue, ha. ■„ 
 be. of .« o»n vhere ea * e.-er bj F ^^ ^^^ ^^^^^^ 
 
 ;:";'; rJloh «;:,.« Afrioa .m ne.er bear .h.. E.rop. ba. 
 found insupportable. 
 
46 
 
 The following alphabet, taken out of the general system of sounds, 
 defined physiologically and represented graphically in the preceding 
 pages, will be found to supply all that is necessary for the ordinary 
 purposes of the Missionary, in his relation to tribes whom he 
 has to teach the writing and reading of their own spoken language, 
 pronounced inevitably by them with shades of sound that no alphabet 
 can render. In philological works intended for a European public, 
 the case will be different. Here it will be necessary to represent 
 the accents of words, the quantities of vowels, and other features 
 essential for grammatical purposes. Here the larger alphabet will 
 come in ; and it will always prove a reserve-fund to the scholar and 
 Missionary, from which they can draw, after their usual supply of 
 letters has been exhausted. 
 
 It should be borne in mind, that although in this smaller alphabet 
 it would be easy to suggest improvements, no partial alteration can be 
 made with any single letter, without disturbing at once the whole 
 system of which it is but a segment. 
 
 Missionary Alphabet. 
 
 1. 
 
 a, a 
 
 Sam, psalm 
 
 2. 
 
 b 
 
 bed. 
 
 3. 
 
 d 
 
 dock. 
 
 4. 
 
 e, e 
 
 debt, date. 
 
 5. 
 
 f 
 
 fat. 
 
 6. 
 
 g 
 
 gate. 
 
 7. 
 
 hC) 
 
 hand. 
 
 8. 
 
 i, i 
 
 knit, neat. 
 
 9. 
 
 k 
 
 kite. 
 
 10. 
 
 1 
 
 let. 
 
 11. 
 
 m 
 
 man. 
 
 12. 
 
 n 
 
 not. 
 
 13. 
 
 o, o 
 
 not, note. 
 
 14. 
 
 P 
 
 pan. 
 
 15. 
 
 r 
 
 run. 
 
 16. 
 
 s 
 
 sun. 
 
 17. 
 
 t 
 
 tan. 
 
 18. 
 
 u, M 
 
 full, fool. 
 
 19. 
 
 V 
 
 vail. 
 
 20. 
 
 w 
 
 will. 
 
 21. 
 
 y 
 
 yet. 
 
 22. 
 
 zeal. 
 
 23. 
 
 9 
 
 join, gin. 
 
 24. 
 
 k 
 
 church. 
 
 25. 
 
 ng (n-) 
 
 English. 
 
 26. 
 
 ny(fi) 
 
 Espana, new. 
 
 27. 
 
 A ('A) 
 
 loch. 
 
 28. 
 
 s 
 
 she. 
 
 29. 
 
 z 
 
 pleasure. 
 
 30. 
 
 tb 
 
 thin. 
 
 31. 
 
 dh 
 (e, 6) 
 
 the. 
 
 32. 
 
 but, birch, wo 
 
 33. 
 
 ai 
 
 ire. 
 
 34. 
 
 au 
 
 proud. 
 
 35. 
 
 oi 
 
 voice. 
 
 36. 
 
 ou 
 
 bought. 
 
 37. 
 
 a 
 
 Vater. 
 
 38. 
 
 
 
 Konig. 
 
 39. 
 
 ii 
 
 GUte. 
 
47 
 
 If we compare this list of letters with the Anglo-Hindustani alpha- 
 bet, so ably advocated by Sir Charles Trevelyan, the differences 
 between the two are indeed but small ; and if we had only to agree 
 upon a small alphabet sufficient to express the sounds of the spoken 
 Hindustani, there is no reason why the Anglo-Hindustani alphabet 
 should not be adopted. It expresses the general sounds which occur 
 in Oriental dialects, and it employs but five dotted letters, for which 
 new types would be required. 
 
 The defects of this system become apparent, however, as soon as 
 we try to expand it; and we are obliged to do this even in order to 
 write Hindustani, unless we are ready to sacrifice the etymological 
 distinction of words by expressing is and _ by h, ^^^ i^, and ^ by s, 
 LU and L by t, and j, J, ^^j and li by z. If distinct types must be 
 invented to distinguish these letters, the array of dotted letters will 
 be considerably increased. Even in Hindustani we should have to use 
 different diacritical marks where we have to express two, three, or 
 four modifications of the same type ; and it would become extremely 
 perplexing to remember the meaning of all these marks. Our diffi- 
 culties would be considerably increased if we tried to adapt the same 
 letters to more developed alphabets, like Sanskrit and Arabic ; and if 
 we went on adding hooks and crooks, crosses and half-moons, dots 
 and accents, &c., we should in the end have more modified than 
 simple types. 
 
 These modified types might, no doubt, be reduced to a certain 
 system ; and, after determining the possible modifications of guttural 
 and dental consonants, each diacritical mark might be used as the 
 exponent of but one modification. A glance at the comparative 
 table of the different systems of transliteration will show how this has 
 been achieved by different scholars more or less successfully. 
 
 But it is only after this has been done, after all letters have been 
 classified, after their possible modifications have been determined, 
 after each modification has been provisionally marked by a certain 
 exponent — such as the accent for expressing the palatal, dots for 
 expressing the lingual modification, — it is then only that the real 
 problem presents itself: " How can all tJiese sounds be expressed by 
 us in writing and printing, without sacrificing all chances of arriving 
 
48 
 
 in the end at one uniform and universal alphabet? " It is clear that 
 every type that has to be compounded or cast afresh is an impedi- 
 ment in the progress of uniformity, because those who have once 
 provided themselves with diacritical types will not change them for 
 others, and those who have but a common English font at their dis- 
 posal will express the necessary modifications as best they can. The 
 question, then, that must be solved, is not whether we should take 
 dots or hooks, but whether it is possible to express all essential 
 modifications in such a manner as to take away all excuse for indi- 
 vidual crotchets, by proposing an expedient accessible to every one. 
 This can be done if we avail ourselves of the resources of our fonts, 
 which invariably contain a supply of one class of modified letters — 
 italics. Many scholars, from Halhed down to Ellis, have seen the use 
 to which these letters could be put in transliterating Oriental lan- 
 guages ; but they have not hitherto been employed systematically. 
 The principle by which we have been guided in making use of italics 
 is this : 
 
 As in each language most letters are liable to but one modification, 
 let that modification, whatever it be, be expressed by italics. 
 
 We thus reduce the number of letters, in our physiological 
 alphabet, that require diacritical marks, on account of their being 
 liable to more than one modification in the same language, to two : 
 and while our Missionary alphabet is thus accessible in every part of 
 the world, we reserve our few diacritical dots to the purposes of 
 transliteration, where, as in Arabic, we may have to represent the 
 same type with more than one diacritical mark. 
 
 b. To written Languages. 
 
 Though this is a question which for the present hardly falls within 
 the compass of Missionary labours, still it may be useful to show that 
 if required, our alphabet would also be found applicable to the trans- 
 literation of written languages. Besides, wherever Missionary in- 
 fluence is powerful enough, it should certainly be exerted towards 
 breaking down those barriers which, in the shape of different alpha- 
 bets, prevent the free intercourse of the nations of the East. 
 
49 
 
 The philologist and the archaeologist must, indeed, acquire a know- 
 ledge of these alphabets, as in the case when their study is a language 
 extinct, and existing, perhaps, in the form of inscriptions alone. But 
 where there is no important national literature clinging to a national 
 alphabet, where there are but incipient traces of a reviving civilisa- 
 tion, the multiplicity of alphabets — the worthless remnant of a bygone 
 civilisation bequeathed, for instance, to the natives of India — should 
 be attacked as zealously by the Missionary as the multiplicity of castes 
 and of divinities. In the Dekhan alone, with hardly any literature of 
 either national or general importance, we have six different alphabets 
 — the Telugu, Tamil, Canarese, Malabar, Tuluva, and Singhalese — all 
 extremely diificult and inconvenient for practical purposes. Likewise, 
 in the northern dialects of India almost every one has its own corrup- 
 tion of the Sanskrit alphabet, sufficiently distinct to make it im- 
 possible for a Bengalese to read Guzerati, and for a Mahratta to 
 read Kashmirian letters. Why has no attempt been made to inter- 
 fere, and recognise at least but one Sanskritic alphabet for all the 
 northern, and one Tamulian alphabet for all the southern, languages 
 of India ? In the present state of the country, it would be bold 
 and wise to go even beyond this ; for there is very little that 
 deserves the name of a national literature in the modern dialects 
 of the Hindus. The sacred, legal, and poetical literature of India is 
 either Arabic, Persian, or Sanskrit. Little has grown up since, in 
 the spoken languages of the day. Now it would be hopeless, should 
 it ever be attempted, to eradicate the spoken dialects of India, and 
 to supplant them by Persian or English. In a country so little 
 concentrated, so thinly governed, so slightly educated, we cannot 
 even touch at present what we wish to eradicate. If India were laid 
 open by highroads, reduced by railways, and colonised by officials, 
 the attempt might be conceivable, though, as to anything like success, 
 a trip through Wales, and a glance at the history of England, would 
 be a sufficient answer. But what might be done in India, perhaps 
 even now, is to supplant the various native alphabets by Roman letters. 
 The people in India who can write are just the men most open to 
 Government influence. If the Roman alphabet were taught in the 
 village schools — of late much encouraged by the Government, parti- 
 cularly in the north-western provinces — if all official documents, in 
 
 D 
 
50 
 
 whatever language, had to be transcribed into Roman letters to obtain 
 legal value ; if the Government would issue all laws and proclamations 
 transcribed in Roman characters, and Missionaries do the same with 
 their translations of the Bible and other works published in any dialect 
 of India, I think we might live to see one alphabet used from the 
 " snows " to Ceylon. 
 
 Let us see, then, how our physiological Missionary alphabet could 
 be applied to languages which have not only an alphabet of their 
 own, but also an established system of orthography. 
 
 We have here to admit two leading principles : — 
 
 First, that in transliterating written languages, every letter, however 
 much its pronunciation may vary, should always he represented by 
 the same Roman type, and that every Roman type should always 
 represent the same foreign letter, whatever its phonetic value may he 
 in different combinations. 
 
 Secondly, that every double letter, though in pronunciation it may 
 be simple, should be transliterated by a double letter, and that a single 
 letter, although its pronunciation be that of a double letter, should he 
 transliterated by a single letter. 
 
 If these two principles be strictly observed, everyone will be 
 able to translate in his mind a Canarese book, written with Roman 
 letters, back into Canarese letters, without losing a tittle of the pe- 
 culiar orthography of Canarese. If we attempted to represent the 
 sounds in transcribing literary languages, we should be unable to tell 
 how, in the original, sounds admitting of several graphic representa- 
 tions were represented. In written languages, therefore, we must 
 rest satisfied with transliterating letters, and not attempt to transcribe 
 sounds. 
 
 This will cause certain diflSculties, particularly in languages where 
 pronunciation and spelling differ considerably. In Arabic we must 
 write al raVtman, though we pronounce arraVjman ; and even in Greek, 
 if we had to transliterate eyyuc, we should, no doubt, have to write 
 'eggus, though none but a Greek scholar would know how to pronounce 
 this correctly ('engiis). But if, instead of imitating the letters, we 
 attempted to represent their proper pronunciation at a certain period 
 of history, how should it be known, for instance, in transcribing the 
 French of the nineteenth century, whether "su" stood for " sou," 
 
51 
 
 halfpenny, or « sous/' under, or " soul," tipsy. In historical lan- 
 guages the system of orthography is too important a pouit to be 
 lost in transcribing, though it is a mistake to imagine that in living 
 languages all etymological understanding would be lost if phonetic 
 reforms were introduced. The change in the pronunciation of words, 
 though it may seem capricious, is more uniform and regular than we 
 imagme ; and if all words were written alike according to a certain 
 system of phonetics, we should lose very little more of etymology than 
 we have already lost. Nay, in some cases, the etymology would be 
 re-established by a more consistent phonetic spelling. If we wrote 
 " foreign " " forgn," and " sovereign " " soveren," we should not be led 
 to imagine that either was derived from "reign," regnum, and the 
 analogy of such words as " Africen" would point out "foranus" or 
 " foraneus" as the proper etymon of "foren." But although every 
 nation has the right to reform the orthography of its language, with all 
 things else, where usage has too far receded from original intention, 
 still, so long as a literary language maintains its historical spelling, the 
 principle of transliteration must be to represent letter by letter, not 
 sound by sound. 
 
 Which letter in our physiological alphabet should be fixed upon as 
 the fittest representative of another letter in Arabic or Sanskrit, in 
 Hindustani or Canarese, must in each case depend on special agree- 
 ment. If we found that ^ in Sanskrit had in most words the nature 
 
 of the guttural spiritus, we should have to write it ' or h, even though 
 in some respects it may represent the guttural semi-vowel. If y in 
 Hebrew can be proved to have been originally the simple guttural 
 semi-vowel, it will have to be written 'h, even though it was pronounced 
 as semi-vocalis fricata ("h), as guttural flatus asper ('A), as guttural 
 media aspirata (gh), or not pronounced at all. Likewise, if English 
 were to be transliterated with our alphabet, we should not adopt any 
 of the principles of the " Fonetic Nus ; " but here also, if the letter h 
 had been fixed upon as on the whole the fittest representative of the 
 English letter h, we should have to write it even where it was 
 not pronounced, as in honest. 
 
 It will be the duty of Academies and scientific societies to settle, 
 for the principal languages, which letters in the Missionary alphabet 
 will best express their corresponding alphabetical signs. 
 
 D 2 
 
52 
 
 The first question, taking a type, for instance, of the Sanskrit 
 alphabet, would be, " What is its most usual and most original 
 value?" If this be fixed, then, "^Is there another type which has a 
 better claim to this value ? " If so, their claims must be weighed 
 and adjusted. When this question is settled, and the physiological 
 category is found under which the Sanskrit type has its proper place, 
 we have then to look for the exponent of this physiological category 
 in the Missionary alphabet, and henceforth always to transliterate the 
 one by the other. 
 
 The following lists will show how some of the Arian, Semitic, 
 and Turanian languages have been transliterated, and how all these 
 alphabets and their transcriptions can be expressed by means of the 
 Missionary alphabet. Objections, I am aware, can hardly fail to be 
 raised on several points, because the original character of several He- 
 brew, Arabic, and Sanskrit letters has been so frequently controverted. 
 If the disputed value of these letters can be clearly settled by argu- 
 ment, be it so; and it will then never be difficult to find the exponent of 
 that physiological category to which it has been adjudged. Failing 
 this, the question should be decided by authority or agreement; for, 
 of two views which are equally plausible, we must, for practical 
 purposes, manifestly confine ourselves to one. 
 
53 
 
 TEXT OP A HYMN OP THE EIGVEDA, 
 
 TRANSCEIBED WITH THE MISSIONARY AX.PHABET. 
 
 Na-asad asm, no sad asit tadanim, na-astd rago, no vyomu paro yat, 
 Kim avariva^ ? kuha kasya sarmann ? ambhaA kim asiA gahanam gabhiiam ? 
 Na mrityur asz'd, amHtam na tarhi ; na ratrya ahna asit praketaA — 
 Anid avatam svadhaya tad ekara, tasmad dha-anyara na paraA himka. na-asa. 
 Tama asit, tamasa gulham agre 'praketam salilam sarvam a idum, 
 TuAAyena-abhv apihitam yad osit tapasas tan mahina-ag-ayata-ekam. 
 Kamas tad agre saraavartata-adhi, manaso retah prathamam yad asit, 
 Sato bandhum asati niravindan hridi pratishya kavayo manisha. 
 Tira«/ano vitato rasmir esham adha svid asid ? upari svid asit ? — 
 Ketodha asan, mahimana asant, svadha avastat, prayatiA parastat. 
 Ko addha veda, ka ilia pravoJat, kuta agata kula iyam visrishii/i ? 
 Arvag deva asya visarg-anena-atha ko veda yata ababhava ? 
 Iyam visnshiir yata ababhava, yadi va dadhe yadi \a na, 
 Yo asya-adliyaksha7( parame vyomant, so anga veda — yadi va na veda. 
 
 Oxford, Christmas, 1853. 
 
 THE END. 
 
LoNiioN : 
 andG. A. Spottiswoodi; 
 New-street- Square. 
 
COMPARATIVE TA ] 
 
 SHOWING 
 
 SOME OF THE CHIEF SYSTEMS OF TEANSCEIPTIOIST AFD TRAJ^SLITERAlTIOJSr HITHERl 
 
 AND THEIB 
 
 i 
 
 CORRESPONDENCE WITH TJttE MISSK 
 
 Guttnralis 
 I. tennis 
 
 2. 
 
 asplrata 
 
 3. media 
 
 4. „ aspirata 
 
 5. tenoissima 
 
 6. nasalis - 
 
 7. semivocalia 
 
 8. „ fricata 
 
 9. spiritus asper 
 
 10. „ lenis 
 
 11. flatus asper 
 
 12. 
 
 lenis 
 
 Palatalis 
 13. tenuis 
 
 14. 
 
 aspirata 
 
 15. media 
 
 16. „ aspirata 
 
 17. nasalis - 
 
 18. semivocalis 
 
 19. flatus asper 
 
 20. 
 
 lenis 
 
 Dentalis 
 21. tenuis 
 
 22. 
 
 aspirata 
 
 u 
 
 kh 
 S 
 
 q 
 
 n* 
 
 •h 
 "h 
 
 '0) 
 
 •A 
 'A 
 
 k 
 kh 
 
 9 
 gh 
 B 
 
 7 
 ^6) 
 
 th 
 
 23. „ assibilata • 
 
 - 
 
 th 
 
 24. media 
 
 - 
 
 d 
 
 25. „ aspirata - 
 
 
 dh 
 
 26. „ assibilata • 
 
 
 dh 
 
 27. tenuissima 
 
 
 t(t) 
 
 28. „ assibilata 
 
 
 fO) 
 
 29. nasalis - 
 
 
 n 
 
 30. semivocalis 
 
 
 1 
 
 31. „ mollis 
 
 
 / 
 
 32. flatus asper, 1. - 
 
 
 8 
 
 33. „ „ 2. - 
 
 
 f 
 
 34. „ lenis 
 
 
 Z 
 
 35. „ asperrimns 
 
 
 i 
 
 
 
 CO 
 
 ■< 
 
 03 
 
 I .1 
 
 a o 
 
 3 
 I ^ 
 
 00 
 
 i i 
 
 o o 
 
 ^ I 
 
 CO hB 
 
 k k 
 
 k k k k 
 
 a* 
 k 
 
 n 
 
 ^ 
 
 n 
 
 
 k 
 
 
 ■a 
 
 o 
 
 «• 1 
 
 
 k 1^^ 
 
 Xf k,h k,h kh cTi kh kh kh kh" k'(kh) k khkhkhkhkhkhkl 
 
 ■^ M g>h gl> gTi gk gt gh gh 
 
 g 
 g' 
 
 g g 
 
 g g 
 
 gh gh gh gh gh gh gii 
 
 )■ 
 
 k k 
 
 csS kh 
 
 g g 
 
 i 
 I 
 
 s 
 
 k 
 kh 
 g 
 
 ng 
 
 Dg 
 
 ng 
 
 ng n 
 
 ng 
 
 'f 
 
 I 
 
 ^ ch ch ch ch ch ch ch ch 
 
 If ch,h ch,h ch'h cb,h chh chh chh chh 
 
 ^ J J J J J J j j 
 
 1? j,h j,h jh jh jh jh jh jh 
 
 3? gn n nj iiy 6 n n n 
 
 d+e 
 
 IT 
 
 J y 
 
 sh 
 
 y 
 
 fh 
 
 y 
 
 rTt t t tt t t t 
 
 J 
 
 nr 
 
 c 
 c" 
 g' 
 g" 
 n 
 
 JXi) 
 
 s 
 
 s 
 
 tch k' tsh c c c k' 
 
 tchh kTi tshh ch ch ch kTi 
 
 «3j g' dsh j j g' V 
 
 djh g'h dshh jh jh g^ g^h 
 
 n n n n n n n 
 
 y 
 
 5 
 
 y 
 
 5 
 
 y 
 
 } 
 ? 
 
 2^ gh gh gh I 
 
 j« q kh q i 
 
 fjS ng 9 ^1 
 
 U g 9 nJ 
 
 W 
 
 tch 
 
 4i g' 
 
 ^ n n n - 
 
 iy^ ^ ^ ^ - 
 
 J3 9 s' 9 
 
 «b j sch j j] 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 t,h 
 
 t,h 
 
 th 
 
 fh 
 
 th 
 
 th 
 
 th 
 
 th 
 
 f 
 
 t' 
 
 th 
 
 th 
 
 th 
 
 th 
 
 th 
 
 th 
 
 th 
 
 ^ 
 
 th 
 
 th 
 
 *4 th 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 '- ' 
 
 
 
 
 . . . 
 
 - - 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 'f 
 
 t 
 
 t 
 
 t 
 
 T 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 ^ 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 ,d 
 
 V 
 
 d,h 
 
 ,d,h 
 
 dh 
 
 d.h 
 
 dh 
 
 1 - 
 
 dh 
 
 dh 
 
 dh 
 
 d* 
 
 d* 
 
 dh 
 
 dh 
 
 dh 
 
 dh; 
 
 dh 
 
 dh 
 
 dh 
 
 <3^ 
 
 dh 
 
 dh 
 
 — * 
 
 dh 
 
 T 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 ft 
 
 I' 
 1 
 
 ¥ 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 a 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 / 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 n 
 
 v( 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 I 
 
 1 
 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 1 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 m m 
 
 .. 
 
 « m 
 
 .. 
 
 S 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 ... 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 / 
 
 1 
 
 
 . . 
 
 . . 
 
 " •■ 
 
 mm m 
 
 ^ 
 
 f 
 
 s 
 
 f 
 
 
 J,. 
 
 s 
 
 s 
 
 s 
 
 s 
 
 s 
 
 s 
 
 s 
 
 a 
 
 s 
 
 a 
 
 s 
 
 8 
 
 Mi 
 
 s 
 
 s 
 
 a a 
 
 
 
 z 
 
 
 ■ m 
 
 I 
 
 
 i" 
 
 
 s 
 
 B 
 
 « m 
 
 
 
 
 • « 
 
 
 • • 
 
 s 
 
 z 
 
 z 
 
 z 
 
TA B L E, 
 
 HITHERTO ADOPTED IN ENGLATO, FEANCE, AND GERMANY, 
 
 MISSIONARY ALPHABET. 
 
 o 
 
 m 
 k 
 
 kh 
 
 
 2 
 
 n 
 
 I 
 
 k k 
 
 kh k'h 
 
 g g g g 
 
 gh gh gh gh(p 
 
 q kh 
 ng 
 I 
 
 n i"! 
 n hj 
 
 kh(^) 
 
 tch 
 
 ch 
 
 dj g' 
 
 y y y - - - 
 
 j 8ch J jh(j) 
 
 t t t 1 4 
 
 ^ ^ '^{ th(i,) 
 
 t t t - - - 
 
 d d d d 
 
 dh dh dh dh 
 
 »{ 
 
 8 8 8 8(^) 
 
 see z 
 
 3 cj 
 
 o ^ 
 
 fa £ 
 hH a 
 
 H S 
 
 T- 
 
 
 I' 
 
 k(a,i) 
 
 «TT k'h kh 
 
 
 g g(a) 
 
 gh g(u) 
 
 , kh k(u) 
 
 <-<: 
 
 XT ch cb(a,i) 
 
 -<> i 
 
 j(i) 
 
 y 
 
 8h 
 
 << 
 
 -TtT 
 
 nr 
 
 KT 
 bTT txi) 
 
 ?T d 
 
 <^T dh 
 
 y 
 
 8h 
 (a) 
 
 t a,i) 
 
 fh t( 
 
 u)J 
 
 th 
 
 th 
 
 d(i) 
 d(a) 
 d(u) 
 
 J:^ n n(a,i) 
 «f: n'(u) n(n) 
 
 T^- 
 
 9 S 
 
 ]>*■] z «(a) 
 
 Iz; 
 
 CO 
 
 cLT 
 
 Li/ 
 
 s 
 
 \ 
 
 t 
 
 z 
 
 z 
 
 J 
 
 J 
 
 c^ 
 
 
 P 
 
 H 
 
 '4 
 
 
 a> 
 
 9« 
 
 ( 
 
 qf k k 
 
 ^ kh kh 
 - kh 
 
 ^ 
 T 
 ^ 
 ^ 
 
 } 
 
 P 
 
 k 
 kh 
 
 g 
 gli 
 
 q 
 
 ■^ n 
 
 g g 
 gh gh 
 k k 
 
 5-. 
 
 
 gh gh gh 
 h h h 
 
 C 
 
 C 
 
 ^ kh kh kh 
 f h h h 
 
 J 
 
 u 
 
 J 
 
 i 
 
 ■3? 
 
 jh 
 
 ch ch ch 
 
 chh chh cbh 
 
 j J J 
 
 jh jh 
 - - n 
 
 y y 
 
 sh s 
 
 zh zh 
 
 th th th 
 
 8 
 
 V 
 
 d 
 
 
 8 8 
 
 d d 
 
 dh dh dh 
 
 2 z z 
 
 t t i 
 
 Z Z 2 
 
 O 
 
 
 •d 
 
 'O 
 
 
 •a 
 
 CO 
 
 
 g 
 
 ijj k k 
 
 ^ g'J 
 
 J q ^'g 
 
 ^ g gll 
 
 y h h 
 
 ^ '(a) \ 
 
 ■ ch kh 
 
 J- 't t,h 
 
 i^ 
 
 j(i) 
 
 W 3 
 
 3 
 3 
 
 I 
 
 k k 
 
 g g 
 
 .1 &^ 
 
 gh 
 
 n h h 
 ^< ' ' 
 
 n ch ch 
 
 ^ sch sh 
 
 
 z z 
 
 fl a 
 
 z 
 
 6 
 
 CJ 
 
 t 
 
 d 
 
 th, t, 
 
 s 
 
 
 a dh,d 
 z 
 
 't t 
 • d 
 n n 
 
 I 1 
 
 ^JU. 
 
 li^ sch 
 
 J 
 
 sch 
 
 n 
 
 th 
 
 a 
 •? 
 
 
 ^ s 
 
 D 8 
 
 T B 
 
 < 
 
 1 
 
 
 n 
 
 - « 
 
 - • 
 
 ej 
 
 1 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 4> 
 
 T 
 
 dh 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 i 
 
 D 
 
 t? 
 
 f 
 
 L 
 
 D 
 
 - - 
 
 - - 
 
 1^ 
 
 J 
 
 J 
 
 (J- 
 J 
 
U I • LCfUiUO 
 
 38. „ aspirata - 
 
 th 
 
 39. media . - • 
 
 d 
 
 40. „ aspirata - 
 
 dh 
 
 41. nasalis - . - 
 
 n 
 
 42. semivocalis 
 
 r 
 
 43. „ mollis 
 
 r 
 
 44. flatus asper 
 
 sh 
 
 45. „ lenia 
 
 zh 
 
 Labialis 
 
 
 46. tenuis ... 
 
 P 
 
 47. „ aspirata • 
 
 ph 
 
 48. media - - . 
 
 b 
 
 49. » aspirata • 
 
 bh 
 
 50. tenuissima 
 
 P 
 
 51. nasalis . - • 
 
 m 
 
 -52. semivocalis 
 
 w 
 
 53. flatus asper 
 
 f 
 
 54. „ lenis 
 
 V 
 
 55. Anuswara 
 
 m 
 
 SG, Visarga - - - 
 
 h 
 
 Vocalis 
 
 
 57. neutral is 
 
 
 
 58. laryngo-palatalis - 
 
 g 
 
 59. laryngo-labialis « 
 
 5 
 
 60. gutturalis brevis - 
 
 a 
 
 61. „ longa « 
 
 a 
 
 62. palatalis brevis • 
 
 i 
 
 63. „ longa - 
 
 i 
 
 64. dentalis brevis • 
 
 li 
 
 65. „ longa - 
 
 n 
 
 66. Ibgualis brevis - 
 
 ri 
 
 67. „ longa - 
 
 n 
 
 68. labialis brevis • 
 
 u 
 
 69. „ longa • 
 
 u 
 
 70. gutturo-palatalis brevis • 
 
 e 
 
 71. „ „ longa - 
 
 e(ai) 
 
 72. dipthongus gutturo-pal. - 
 
 ai 
 
 73. „ laryngo-palatalis 
 
 ei(gi) 
 
 74. „ laryngo-palatalis 
 
 oi(5i) 
 
 75. gutturo-labialis brevis - 
 
 
 
 76. „ „ longa - 
 
 o(au) 
 
 77. diphthongus gutturo-lab. - 
 
 au 
 
 78. „ laryngo-labialis 
 
 eu(Su) 
 
 79. „ laryngo-labialis 
 
 ou (iSu) 
 
 80. Gutturalis fracta 
 
 a 
 
 81. Palatalis fracta • 
 
 i 
 
 82. Labialis fracta • 
 
 ii 
 
 83. Guttoro-labialis fracta • 
 
 
 
 •Z t,h t,h th 't'h Hh 
 ^ d d d 'd d' 
 
 ^ ^^ r,h 
 
 th 
 d 
 
 th 
 d 
 
 th 
 d 
 
 ^'^ dh 'd'h d'h dh dh dh 
 
 n 
 
 r 
 
 n 
 r 
 
 n 
 r 
 
 r 
 
 n 
 r 
 
 n 
 
 r 
 
 n 
 r 
 
 t' th th 
 
 ^ ^ ^ 
 
 d* dh dh 
 
 n n n 
 
 r r r 
 
 ^ 
 
 • • 
 
 fh 
 
 fh 
 
 fh 
 
 sh 
 
 sh 
 
 sh 
 
 8h 
 
 6h 
 
 * • 
 
 . . . 
 
 s' 
 
 sh 
 
 sh 
 
 ^ 
 
 p 
 
 P 
 
 P 
 
 P 
 
 P 
 
 P 
 
 P 
 
 P 
 
 P 
 
 P 
 
 P 
 
 P 
 
 ^ 
 
 p,h 
 
 p,h 
 
 ph 
 
 p'h 
 
 ph 
 
 ph 
 
 ph 
 
 ph 
 
 P 
 
 P* 
 
 ph 
 
 ph 
 
 w 
 
 b 
 
 b 
 
 b 
 
 b 
 
 b 
 
 b 
 
 b 
 
 b 
 
 b 
 
 b 
 
 b 
 
 b 
 
 ^ 
 
 b,h 
 
 b,h 
 
 bh 
 
 b'h 
 
 bh 
 
 bh 
 
 bh 
 
 * • 
 
 bh 
 
 b' 
 
 b' 
 
 bh 
 
 bh 
 
 m 
 
 w 
 
 m 
 
 w,v 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 
 vr 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 
 w 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 
 n 
 h 
 
 m 
 h 
 
 u 
 h 
 
 n 
 h 
 
 n 
 
 o 
 
 h 
 
 m 
 h 
 
 n 
 h 
 
 m 
 h 
 
 n 
 h 
 
 T 
 
 t: 
 
 o 
 
 aa 
 ee 
 ee 
 
 u 
 
 a 
 
 i 
 
 eo 
 
 T5f Iree Iri 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 h 
 
 a a(e)^ ja a a a a a_ a 
 
 a d i, Si a aa a 4 
 
 iiiiii i ii 
 
 i i i i i i i i I 
 
 Iri Iri Iri Iri Iri Iri - . - H • . 
 
 ^ Iree Jree M M Iri Iri Iri Iri • • - In . - 
 
 ■^ re« ri ri rl li ri ri rj r ri rl 
 
 '^ ree ree r7 n ri ri ri ri - - - rf n 
 
 ^oocouuuuu,u u uu 
 
 TgyoooouuuuClii u H H 
 
 T^ 
 
 a 
 
 e 
 
 e 
 
 € 
 
 • • 
 e 
 
 e 
 
 e 
 
 S 
 
 e 
 
 c 
 
 S 
 
 e 
 
 $ 
 
 i 
 
 ue 
 
 ai 
 
 ai 
 
 ai 
 
 ai 
 
 ai 
 
 ai 
 
 ei 
 
 ai 
 
 ai 
 
 ai 
 
 , . 
 
 » <= 
 
 e • 
 
 . • 
 
 _ . 
 
 , • 
 
 • " 
 
 « . 
 
 . . 
 
 • • * 
 
 ^ ^ 
 
 ^ ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 
 
 a 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 a 
 
 ^ 
 
 ou 
 
 uo 
 
 au 
 
 au 
 
 aa 
 
 au 
 
 au 
 
 au 
 
 au 
 
 au 
 
 au 
 
t t t t < t t' 
 
 th th th th th. th fh? 
 d d 4 d <i d d'l 
 
 dh dh dh dh dh dh d'hj 
 n n n n n n fi : 
 r r r r r r r 
 
 
 
 
 u-» ^ 1 t t t 
 
 ^5 7 1 th th th 
 
 ^j ^ dh dh dh 
 
 U WO 9 9 
 J ;^ r r r 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 
 * 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ■ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 • « 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 7 r r r r 
 
 [-« r'(u) r(u) 
 
 ^ 
 
 J r r 
 
 -1 r r 
 
 J 
 
 sh sh sh sh sh sh s 
 
 tp ch s" sh sh( a) 
 
 
 4_^ If sh sh sh 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 P P P P P P P 
 ph ph ph ph ph ph ph > 
 ' b b b b b b b 
 
 1 
 
 «> P P P P 
 
 n P P 
 
 T 
 
 «-* ^ P P P 
 ^_ TR ph ph ph 
 
 <_J ^ b b b 
 ^ Vr bh bh bh 
 
 4_j b b 
 
 3 P P 
 
 3 ph - - 
 
 3 b b 
 3 bh - - 
 
 
 _j b b b b 
 
 t:Y b b 
 
 <-_> 
 
 (-_> 
 
 
 
 
 
 m m m m m m m 
 
 V V W V V_ V, W V 
 
 9 ta tQ m zn 
 
 J^ V V V w 
 
 ^ f f f f(^) 
 
 QxT w w w w 
 
 ■Tyyy m m(a)-j 
 
 f<S: m(i) m(i) 
 .2^»- m'(a) m(u)J 
 
 ^TS V v(a) 
 
 r 
 
 ! 
 
 * ^^ m m m 
 
 J 51 v,w v,w v,w 
 uJ ^ f f f 
 
 j 
 
 ^ m m 
 
 J v(ft) w 
 ^ f f 
 
 m m 
 
 1 V V 
 
 r 
 
 h h h h A as a: 
 
 
 
 
 
 -«:.. -- n 
 
 • - .... .. \\ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 <* X X a 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 g e e e - • - 
 
 
 
 
 
 ~=~ 
 
 
 a a a a a a> a 
 i i 1 i i i i 
 
 1 i i i i 1 i 
 - . h-i • - ii fi 1 1 
 
 . - Iri - - it ft t 
 
 ,A> a a a a 
 AU a S a - - - 
 
 J i i i i 
 ^ i t i - - - 
 
 
 
 1 'SSn' a a - - 
 
 il t • ^ » - - 
 
 L. a,g a 
 — i e ''^' 
 
 ^5r *^ *' 
 
 _ a a 
 
 T 
 
 — * * 
 
 — 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ii? ^ - • fi - - 
 '^ ^ u u • - 
 j'\ ^ u u - - 
 
 — ^ u,u 
 
 ^ ft ft 
 
 _ Q u 
 1 ft u 
 
 _ s g 
 
 e e 
 
 
 rl n n ti ri, f ^ 
 .J* ^9 *.t s: ^ '^ r 
 
 
 * 
 
 
 
 Tl ti Ti n n { r 
 u a ii u u u u 
 
 <i ft ft ft u ft <i 
 
 > u u u u 
 
 ^ U U u - - - 
 
 *i -V X 
 
 
 
 fr 
 
 g e e e e e 
 i ai ai ai ai ai ai ai 
 
 c e e e - - - 
 A) e § g - . - 
 JAM ai ai ai - - - 
 
 »•— «• BB* 
 
 ,^ 
 
 
 
 
 d\ ^ ai ai - - 
 
 • 
 
 ^ ai ai, ei 
 
 
 
 ' 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 — 5 5 
 _:_ o 
 
 .P 
 
 
 i» - - - 
 
 ^ 6 6 6 - - - 
 
 'Jul ao ao ao - - - 
 
 **a •* ••• 
 
 j^ 
 
 J ^rt - - 
 
 
 
 ( 6 6 6 
 u au aa aa aa aa aa ^^ 
 
 ^\ ^ aa au - - 
 
 "y^ au aujo 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 J 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 S 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 S 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 "^ 
 
 To face p. 52. Missionary Alphabet.