Page:History of the Indian Archipelago Vol 2.djvu/90

 72 GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE tvords probably in great part disseminated among the other Languages through the Language of Java. — Introduc- tion of Arabic. — Its History and Extent. — Its Genius very incompatible with that of the East-Insular Lan- guages* — Other Oriental Languages introduced into the Dia- lects of the Archipelago.'-Telinga. — Persian. — Chinese.-^ Eitropean Languages. In the general character, particular form, and ge- nius, of the innumerable languages spoken within the limits of the Indian islands, there is a remark- able resemblance, while all of them differ widely from those of every other portion of the world. TThis observation extends to every country, from the north, western extremity of Sumatra, to the western shores of New Guinea, and may be even carried to Madagascar to the west, the Phillipines to the east, and the remotest of Cook's discoveries to the south. * The first point of similitude to which I shall refer, is that of sound or pronunciation. Twenty consonants and five vowels are the great- est variety which these languages generally admit. Two diphthong sounds only are found. In some of the more barbarous dialects, to be sure, the vocalic sounds appear to a stranger more various ; but a minuter acquaintance discovers some of these to be no more than uncouth substitutes for more ordinary sounds.
 * Archeologia, Vol. VI.