The Etymologic Interpreter; Or, an Explanatory and Pronouncing Dictionary of the English Language - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1150006293 ISBN 13: 9781150006296

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Reseña del editor

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1824 Excerpt: ... Etymology is to decide. So far good; but what kind of etymology? Here the advocate of the Northern Origin (to use his own words in reference to the supposed Divine Origin) takes a short cut which certainly saves much trouble, but leaves us in much ignorance; for instead of proofs he contents himself with assumptions, as if the business were settled by merely asserting that a certain word is a Gothic verb or noun, without even attempting to give us any further information. And, for example, (he affirms,) is the imperative of Annan, give, and Ad or Od, a noun meaning heap, i. e. give heap, or put the heap: and this is the whole history and mystery of the conjunction And!! As to the instances which he gives of Gothic and Saxon words, whence corresponding Latin and Greek words must have been derived, it is difficult to conceive any reason whatever, save that the former are found in Gothic and Saxon letters and spelling. It was at first intended to collect in this place such instances, as well as all such Gothic derivations as seem demonstrably false or absurd, but it was subsequently deemed best to refer the reader to the Dictionary, where they are examined in their alphabetic order. This, whilst it avoids swelling the present work unnecessarily, seems more respectful to the memory of Mr. Home Tooke, than if we were to bring all his objectionable derivations into one view. We take leave of him, therefore, for the present, by merely adding, that with all our esteem for his talents and many of his opinions, we cannot help thinking that he presumed not a little on the etymologic ignorance and credulity of his readers, and that he trusted more to intuitive sagacity, than to careful inspection or laborious inquiry. There are but few Gothic admirers that can deserve...

Details zur Ausgabe

• ISBN 10: 1150006293
• ISBN 13: 9781150006296
• Einband: Tapa blanda
• Sprache: Englisch
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar