Page:Notes and Queries - Series 9 - Volume 3.djvu/252

 246

NOTES AND QUERIES.

in. APRIL i, m

e le Delitte [ed i delitti] acknowledging [it] to proceed from an odd and insatiable curiosity, and not from a

mauvais cceur I forgive him for his mention of me,

because I believe that he does it without malice, but, if I had leisure to think of such things, I must own the frequent repetition of the foolish stones would make me peevish. Alas! I have no time to be peevish." Historical MSS. Commission, Fifteenth Report, Appendix, part vi. p. 320.

This scarcely sounds a convincing refutation of the alleged slander. ALFRED F. BOBBINS.

WILLIAM KENDALL'S POEMS. In the British Museum Catalogue of printed books the ' Poems ' of W. Kendall, printed in 1791, are said, with a query, to have been published in Exeter. They were privately printed, and doubtless were distributed by Mr. Kendall, an Exeter solicitor, amongst his friends. But the fact that the ornament, or tailpiece, on pp. 11, 17, and 32 of the * Poems ' appears on p. 210 of Kendall's translation of Filangieri's f Analysis of the Science of Legislation' seems to prove that the little volume was printed in London. JAMES DALLAS.

" AYAH " AND " AMAH." These two words, which are in general use in India and the Farther East as designating a children's nurse and a wet nurse respectively, are, of course, Portuguese as regards their immediate origin and their introduction into the Eastern vocabulary, and as certainly, I think, derived ultimately from the Latin.

1. In Spanish and Portuguese ama has, or had, the meanings of " a mistress of servants, a nurse, a wet nurse"; while the masculine form amo means " a master', a tutor, a foster- father." Capt. John Stevens, in his 'Spanish- English Dictionary,' derives ama from the "Gothick"; and the word certainly has a close resemblance in form and meaning to the Germanic amme. Kluge, in his ' Etym. Diet, of the Germ. Lang.,' refers amme to the instinctive sound made by babes, and says, "comp. Span, and Port, ama"', while Diez ('Etym. Wb. der rom. Spr.,' fifth ed., p. 421) does not suggest a derivation, but simply compares it with words in Basque, Gaelic, &c. The ' Grande Diccionario Portuguez ' of Frei Domingos Vieira states that, according to the dictionary of the Lisbon Academy, the word is derived from the Hebrew amim, from the verb aman, "create, educate, nourish"; but adds, " better from the Latin alma, ' nourisher ' (f.), with syncope of the medial I, as in velum, ve'o ; celum, ce'o." This deriva- tion seems the most probable one.

2. In Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian, aia, aya, aja, all mean a governess or chamber- maid ; while the masc. aio, ayo, ajo, means a tutor or guardian. In Portuguese we have

"ayo do elephante" for a mahout. In his ' Etym. Diet, of the Eng. Lang.,' s.v. ' Ayah,' Skeat says : " Origin uncertain ; Diez ima- gines it to be of Germanic origin ; Wacker- nagel (with greater probability) suggests Lat. auia, by-form of aua, a grandmother, allied to auus, a grandfather." The reference is to Diez's 'Etym. Wb. der rom. Spr.,' p. 428 of fifth ed., s.v. 'Ayo.' I do not think this derivation from aiia at all satisfactory ; and I consider that given by Frei Domingos Vieira much more likely. Under ' Aia ' he says : "According to Constancio, from the Greek ago, to conduct, teach ; but this is not justified, either historically or phonologically. From the French aide, in the Celtic aid, help ; signifying one who stands by another to work conjointly under his orders." Again, under ' Aio/ after referring to aia, Fr. Dom. Vieira adds : " In Low Latin nidus is one who coad j utes, who accompanies ; here we have syncope of the medial d, as in modium, moio, &c." In support of this etymology I may instance the Port, words raio from radius, meio from medius, baio from badius, apoio from podium. Godefroy (' Diet, de 1'Anc. Langue Franc.') records the forms aie, aye, for aide, in the sense of " helper " as well as " help." Com- pare the American use of the word " help " for a servant. DONALD FERGUSON.

5, Bedford Place, Croydon.

BEARDED POPES. In 7 th S. xi. 338-9 are some interesting contributions under the heading ' Bearded Dominicans.' And in 4 th S. xii. 501 the REV. JOHN WOODWARD, having examined the Papal medals in the museum at Naples, reported that all the Popes from Clement VII. to Alexander VIII. were there represented with beards and moustaches.

In the year 1568 Onuphrius Panvinius, an Augustinian of Verona, produced portraits of twenty-seven Popes finely engraved in small folio. The series includes all from Urban VI. to Pius V. From Urban VI. to Pius III. inclusive all have smooth faces. From Julius II. to Pius V., with the exception of Leo X. and Adrian VI., all wear beara and moustache. In only one case, that of Pius IV., is there any sign of cutting. He looks as though his whiskers and beard had been trimmed with the scissors.

RICHARD H. THORNTON.

Portland, Oregon.

ALLEGED ECLIPSE AT THE BATTLE OF ZAMA. May I refer once more to this subject, re- specting which I nserted a few words in 7 th S. v. 85 1 When writing that note I over- looked the fact that Li vy, in speaking of the various prodigies said to have taken place