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246 apply this knowledge by comparing a few groups of cognate terms in the Aryan dialects in evidence of a linguistic unity, subsisting among the various members of the family, and of a relatively advanced stage of civilisation, reached by the proto-Aryans before their separation. Professor Max Müller has drawn up similar lists in his "Biographies of Words," and there he lays it down as a general rules that whatever words are shared in common by Sanskrit and Zend on one side, and any one of the Aryan languages on the other, existed before the great Aryan separation took place, and may be used as throwing light on Aryan civilisation, such as it was at that distant time." To this it has to be added that cognate terms, peculiar to one only of the unities (Asiatic or European), are evidence that they were developed after the primary schism, but existed antecedent to any secondary schism. Developments by growth within each unity from a common stock of primitive roots are evidence merely of the persistency of those distinctive Aryan peculiarities,—the inflexional system and that significant word-change whereby we continually specialise the general or generalise the special. Thus we confer epithets that in course of time become divested of their meaning—"the counters of wise men but the money of fools"—and consequently require an effort of literary emphasis to vitalise or supplant them, the secret, in short, of a rich and expressive vocabulary and a copious literature.


 * —Vaidic, Sanskrit, Zend (Old Persian), Greek, Latin, Celtic (Irish, Welsh, Cornish, Gaelic), Slavonic, Lithuanian, Russian, Teutonic, Old High German, German, Icelandic, Gothic, Anglo-Saxon, Scottish, Old and Middle English, shown by their initials. Where no meaning is given after a word it may be assumed to be identical with that of the head-word under which it stands. Roots and radical meanings are in italic type.


 * —Professor Aufrecht's Lectures; Max Müller, "Biographies of Words," 1888; Skeat, "English Etymological Dict.," 1884; Fick, "Vergl. Wörterbuch der Indo-ger. Sprachen," 1870; Curtius, "Grundzüge der Griech. Etymol." 1873.

.—Papa, S. and Gr. tâta, L. tăta, C. tat, Sl. teta, Go. atta. Mama, S. attâ, T. aithei. Foster-parent, Ved. nanâ,