Coelbren of the Druids and the Shasta and Veda of the Hindoo Brahmins.

The author of the English Dictionary, throughout the whole of his work, always leans in favor of a Saxon etymology, though in cases of doubt, a preference ought to have been given to the Welsh, as the most ancient, according to all the rules of philological deduction.

Under the letters B and C only, there may be traced no fewer than 200 errors or omissions of this description. Now, presuming that in every other letter of the alphabet an equal number might be discovered, the aggregate would amount to more than 2000 words, the derivation of which may be reclaimed by the Welsh!

To substantiate these claims to their full extent, it would be necessary to adduce in print the whole of the list we have made. But this would be encroaching too much on the space which could be allowed in our Miscellany to such disquisitions, and indeed would be converting its more entertaining pages into a dry etymological dictionary. We are therefore necessarily obliged to constrain ourselves to the citation of only a small portion of these derivatives, and in this we are governed solely by hazard, without making any selection for the purpose.

We anticipate a twofold objection to these etymologies. In the first place, it will, perhaps, be contended, that those Welsh words which approximate the nearest to the modern English were in fact borrowed by the inhabitants of the Principality from their Saxon neighbours, instead of having been, according to our hypothesis, adopted vice versa by the latter from the former. And again, it may possibly be urged on the other hand, that those derivations which seem palpably to differ either in sound, sense, or spelling, from their assigned roots, are too fanciful and too far-fetched to satisfy any judicious philologist.

We shall endeavour to answer this double objection by observing, in the first place, that although all etymological disquisition must necessarily be founded, in a great measure, on conjecture, yet, in the nomenclature of these etymologies, there will be found none which are not quite as probable as the majority of those given by Johnson and other lexicographers, according to all the rules of orthoepical and orthographical induction. And secondly, to obviate the cavil arising from the objection that the words which most resemble the English were always originally Saxon, we may assert, that we have taken great care to introduce none into our list which are not warranted by the authority of the more ancient Welsh writers. This high antiquity places their national originality above the reach of attack.

In the course of these researches we cannot but be struck

with the extraordinary flexibility, with the peculiar plastic property of the Welsh language, arising as well from the great number of its "Prefixes" and " Affixes," as from the continual changes of the initial letters of words according to their juxtaposition or collocation in a sentence. This felicity, or, if you please, this versatility of character, has enabled our ancient British poets so to modulate an almost continued consonance of sweet sounds, as to give their verse an harmonious softness and exquisite delicacy of expression, inimitable in any other tongue, except the Italian, and not exceeded even in that "Regina linguarum," that queen of modern languages. Indeed, there is that connection between the Welsh and the Italian, that the earliest Welsh grammar in print bears the impress of Milan on the title-page. But what surprises us most in the Welsh, are its two very opposite characters of extreme simplicity, and of the most exquisitely complicated refinement.

Paradoxical as this assertion may seem, a very few words will suffice to prove its truth. To demonstrate the simplicity of the ancient British language, I need only cite the following sentence from Mr. Edward Davies's "Celtic Researches," page 257,

"Ea o ele."

"He proceeds out of his place."

Here we have an entire, complete sentence of five words, consisting only of five vowels, with the exception of the initial liquid consonant of the last. The English language is said to abound in monosyllables, but this Celtic period is not merely monosyllabic, but monoliteral. It has the advantage of expressing in six letters that which requires twenty three in English, remarkable as is the latter for its terse and energic brevity.

On the other hand there is no language, not even the Greek, which so readily and elegantly amalgamates, and incorporates together into one sonorous and expressive composite term, so many component words as the Welsh. In proof of this, its sesquepedalian beauty, and as a striking contrast to that Celtic simplicity of monoliteral character of which we have just cited an example, I would instance what Humphry Prichard has said on this subject, in the reign of Elizabeth, in his Latin Preface to Dr. Rhys's Welsh Prosody:"

"Another cause, says he, which suggested the idea of this work, was the singular præexcellence of the language, which, in copiousness and apposite elegance of diction, is inferior to none of her sisters. It is a language, beyond all question, so rich in its derivations, composition, construction, aptness of terms, and peculiar felicity of expression, that nothing can be ever wished for, or imagined more happily adapted to the explanation of any of the fine arts and sciences. In other languages, even in the Hebrew and the Greek, it is not easy, perhaps, to form a combination of any com

posite term exceeding four words, but the Welsh incorporates most beautifully (pulcherrime) not only four, but five and six, and sometimes even a greater number of words in one term of art, as

'Cymhletheurgrwydrgeindorch. Hexameter.

and

"Gorlathrgeindegbhwyn. Pentameter.'

"These and many other words of the same kind occur in Mabinogius, and in the "History of the Giants."

Beautiful and melodious as these two Welsh words undoubtedly are, when properly accented, it must be admitted that they are as difficult to be pronounced by a Saxon as the names of many of the Polish or Russian generals.

One is here naturally led to inquire whether there exists any modern translation of "The History of the Giants." At this time, when there prevails so decided a taste for works of fiction, an edition of the "Stories of the Mountain Giants" would be very desirable. We can easily conceive some cambrian Cuchullin of colossal stature, the hero of the Epopea with this advantage, however, over Ossian's heroes, that our Welsh giants, if we may judge from the above specimens, seem to have had a peculiarly grandiloquent and gigantic language of their own, abounding in words of such vast amplitude as to be almost too much for the pigmy mouths of the degenerate Saxons to grasp.

But to return to our Welsh etymologies, viz.

Banner. The English dictionary ascribes the derivation of this word to the French "Banniere," but we should in vain seek for its elements in that language. For this purpose we must have recourse to the Welsh, and we find it derived from "Banniar," "Bannaer," "Baner," a standard, composed of "Bann," high, &c. and "Aer," battle, slaughter, that is, elevated high in the air above the battle, or as a modern poet has described the British standard having stood

"A thousand years

The battle and the breeze."

The single word, "Banner," as thus analyzed, conveys the whole of the poetic imagery of the "Battle and the Breeze." So also "Standard" probably from "ystang," a pole; "dart," a spear, the flag being displayed on the point of an elevated lance. What further strengthens the probability of this etymology is the great similarity between the old French word "Estendart," from which Johnson deduces the derivation of Standard, and our Welsh "ystangdart," or "ystandart," a spear fixed in the upper extremity of a long pole.

:

Bar is deduced by Johnson from the French "Barre," but both are taken from the ancient British" Barr," vectis, repagulum, pessulum, clathrum; and hence also "spar," a bar of wood, a small

beam, the bar of a gate, from the Welsh "ys barr," sbar, "spar." So likewise "Spear," from the Welsh "Bér," a spear, a lance, a pike, "ysber," "ber," spear; ys being a common Welsh prefix to many words. Johnson has given this latter word spear, a mongrel origin, both Dutch and Saxon, but there can be no question that it is pure British.

Barr, in a metaphorical sense, came to signify any impediment, hindrance, or prohibition; hence "Bargen," a fair contract, in which all unfair advantage or gain on either side was barred, from Barr and ced or cen, an advantage commodum; and from this Welsh Bargen, came the English Bargain, for although the dictionary has ascribed to it a French filiation from " Bargaigne;" yet the common mode of pronouncing the word at this day bargen and not bargain strongly warrants our etymology.

Brawl. From "Brolio," the Welsh for "to boast, to vaunt aloud" more probably than from Johnson's French "brouiller," to embroil.

Balm. Pronounced Bawm, and said by Johnson to be derived from the French Baume, but both are probably from the Welsh "Bawm," apiastrum, Melissa; Balm, mint.

Basket. From the Welsh "Basged," and for this the author of the English dictionary might have cited the authority of Martial;

"Barbara de pictis venit Bascauda Britannis."

Bath. Saxon according to Johnson, but as we contend, ancient British from "Bawdd," an immersion, the double "d" in Welsh being pronounced as th. And this bawdd from boddi, to immerge, to dip. Hence Caer Badon signifies the town of Bath, in Welsh.

Board. A table; honoured by Johnson with a Saxon descent, but derived through the medium of the Anglo-Saxon most unquestionably from the Welsh "Bwrdd," Mensa, a table; the W in the Welsh being generally pronounced as double "O," and this word is still pronounced boord by some of the Herefordshire farmers, and, indeed, is so spelled in many old English books.

Bride. From "priodi," or "briodi," to marry; which became bryd in the Saxon, and bride in English.

Black. Saxon again, according to the Doctor, but we must seek its elementary composition from the Welsh, viz. from wachar, bright; coruscus, igneus, fulgurans, with the Latin privative particle ab prefixed; ablachar, not bright, dark, black.

Bridle. From the Welsh "Bryd," animus, spirit; the bridle being a check on the fiery spirit of the horse. Thus "brido" is to break out, to irrupt.

Bolt. This word is referred by Johnson to a Dutch source, boult," but as it signifies

1. An arrow, a dart.

2. Lightning, a thunderbolt.

3. The bar of a door.

And, again, as the verb neuter "to bolt" means "to spring out with speed and suddenness," there can, we think, be no doubt that it is derived from our old Welsh word "Bollt," a Catapult, an ancient military engine to throw stone on the enemy.

Belly. From the Dutch "Balg," says Johnson; but without travelling so far as Holland to seek the derivation of this word, we have it at home in our Cambrian "Bol," or " Boly" venter. And from Bol, again, we have the English bowl, and the French their bol, a hollow vase of capacity.

Be. To be. The dictionary furnishes us with no derivation of this essential verb, but it comes from the Welsh "Bi," an old word for "will be," "erit;" hence it made "bid," in the imperative, "let it be," or "let it bide," sit. Thus, also, "Byw," vivere, to live, to exist, to be; and "Bu," fuit.

Battle. From the Welsh "Batel," a stretching or drawing of the bow, and thence metaphorically a battle.

Bliss, Bless. Which Johnson correctly defines to mean the highest degree of happiness, the happiness of blessed souls, or the highest degree of happiness which can be desired, the desire of all; is by him, as usual, attributed to a Saxon origin, but we must be allowed to vindicate its aboriginal source from "Blys," which in Welsh signifies extreme desire.

Bran. From the ancient British "Brann," furfur; Johnson derives it from the Italian " Brenna," but the Welsh is much closer.

Flatter. From the Welsh "fladr," loquacious, inapt, and not from the French flater, which must have had the same Celtic origin.

Brother, and Brethren. Evidently from "Brawd," and in the plural "Brodder," the Welsh for brother and brethren, the "dd" being always pronounced as "th." The English dictionary must give them a Saxon origin but they certainly are genuine British.

Bow. A bow and arrows, an instrument of war; no Etymology given by Johnson, but derived from the Welsh “Bwa,” a bow; arcus; so" Bwa Croes," a crossbow.

Boot. From the French "botte," says the doctor, but why not rather from the Welsh " Bwt," a long narrow basket placed in a stream to catch fish, the first primitive boots being probably made