Zitierlink:
https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/taprobanian1885/0041
'October, 1885.]
THE VAEDDA DIALECT.
25
recently. Bailey’s mittiganawa “ walk” is ideally
mita gana. Mr. De Zylva Modliyar, who has
studied the Vaedda, suggested that from its mode
of usage it means “to change/’ rather than to
walk, in the sense of changing from one place
to another. I perfectly agree with this, and con-
nect it with Latin mnto, to change. It is pro-
bably connected with the Old Sinh, or Elu miti
“ mind,” mitigana originally having the sense of,
to be inclined, to be minded; and the use of
mitigan yanda in “where are you minded to go,”
is perfectly the ancient Sinhalese idiom “ yahapath
wena ” used in addressing a superior also used
with the dependent verb understood, by the
context, and not expressed. It, yanda yahapath
wenawa, means yaha “good” path “pleasure”
wenawa, “is” yanda “to go,” our own “if your
good pleasure is” or “ may it please you” exactly.
Though wena “ to be” is now used, it is super-
fluous, the Elu s/path being used alone as patha-
nawa or yaha patheyi.
To Jump, bota dama.
This sounds like to “put the neck,” somewhere,
in Sinhalese, but neck is there botuwa. Bota
is possibly also a form whence came Tamil pay-
tal “jump,” this in Sinhalese would become bay-
tal at once, and the final 1 in all Ceylon languages
has a tendency to atrophy, which in a language
never written would early cause its entire loss;
Greek Vp^da “jump,” is also an obscure co-
derivative, as if beda; English bound also seems
connected. The sense is really to “bound,”
no native of Ceylon ever attempting to jump, but
always bounding, leaping lengthwise, not up-
wards. The connection between bend, bound,
bow, is very near “throwing back the neck,” as a
deer in its leaps, and I should accept “ tossing the
neck” as the derivation, if I knew the idiom to
exist in any related or local language, but I do
not. Rare dama, to keep on the neck, is a Sin-
halese idiom taken from the yoke on the bull’s
neck, and used for “ to submit,” “ to endure.” We
ourselves have an idea of independence in tossing
the head, but that is still far off a Vaedda term
for “ bound,” though both have a sense of freedom.
Did the Sinhalese idiom arise in sarcastic
antithesis ? it is possible. I think the elucidation
further of the connection of such forms as V. bota
dama. T. paytal, Gr. peda, English bound,
bend, bow, which I select as showing extremes,
is worth research by anyone with a library to
refer to. To complete my share of idiomatic
study, I may add all the natives of Ceylon toss the
.bead as a sign of refusal to agre.e 5vi.tfi anything
said, of course when they dare show such inde-
pendence, and call it isa sala.
To Shoot, penna gatcha.
This is past tense, and to shoot must be penna
gana. This is an old form of Sinhalese Vpani,
past tense paenna, to spring; pennaganais “took
spring,” and we find this idea carried on to the
springing and expanding of a cobra’s head and
hood, like a drawn bow, whence the hoodispene,
agreeing with the Vaedda in use of e not ae.
To Rain, diya pompa.
See under “sky,” pomba and pompa being
variants. The Goyi equivalent is gangula bana.
To Drink, diya ka.
The Vaedda recalls the Kandian expression,
diya kanda “ to eat water,” and not “ to drink”;
I reject “to eat” as I have not met with the
idiom elsewhere. The Greek kata-pino “ to
swallow” may perhaps explain it, especially as S.
kata, throat, is probably connected with Gr. kata
“down.” Elu gele “neck” is supported by Elu
vgili to swallow, and as the local languages are
wonderfully balanced in idea, kara neck, ought
to be followed by kari or kara “to swallow.” As
this would drop out of use, owing to kara “ do,” I
am disposed to think diya ka is a corruption from
diya kara, an obscure word for “swallow water.”
All the neighbouring dialects or languages
speak of swallowing water, so idiom sanctions
this derivation, and strongly opposes that from
eat. It is to be noticed the Vaedda does not use
V'ka to eat, so a corruption from kara, to drink,
to avoid confusion with kara to do, was quite
probable. We have, however, the S. uggura
“ throat,” a Prakrit form, andgara “ to swallow,” all
from the Prakrit and S. v'g'ar ‘‘swallow.” I there-
fore do not doubt, considering the continual
interchanges of k and g, the Vaedda had a \/kar
for «Zgar “ to swallow.” In participial Dravidian
usage this would become karna, drinking, under
Sanskrit or allied influence, and thence kana.
All the terms for elephant derived as if from kara
“trunk,” I take from this\/kar\/gar “swallow,”
and kara “trunk” itself from Vkar, as the swallower
or regurgitator, in allusion to its swallowing with
its trunk, both originally and by regurgitation.
I dismiss kara “ hand ” for trunk, as a derivation
suggested after the origin of hastha was confused
with hand, from its sense either of fire or light.
Eat, kapat-ena, kapa.
Confer Tamil ehapadu, and Hindi Vchav, to
“chew/’ and all the allied co-derivatives. It seems
a Skythic root to me. I have not heard kapatena,
it would apparently be “ to eat and come.” Kapa
THE VAEDDA DIALECT.
25
recently. Bailey’s mittiganawa “ walk” is ideally
mita gana. Mr. De Zylva Modliyar, who has
studied the Vaedda, suggested that from its mode
of usage it means “to change/’ rather than to
walk, in the sense of changing from one place
to another. I perfectly agree with this, and con-
nect it with Latin mnto, to change. It is pro-
bably connected with the Old Sinh, or Elu miti
“ mind,” mitigana originally having the sense of,
to be inclined, to be minded; and the use of
mitigan yanda in “where are you minded to go,”
is perfectly the ancient Sinhalese idiom “ yahapath
wena ” used in addressing a superior also used
with the dependent verb understood, by the
context, and not expressed. It, yanda yahapath
wenawa, means yaha “good” path “pleasure”
wenawa, “is” yanda “to go,” our own “if your
good pleasure is” or “ may it please you” exactly.
Though wena “ to be” is now used, it is super-
fluous, the Elu s/path being used alone as patha-
nawa or yaha patheyi.
To Jump, bota dama.
This sounds like to “put the neck,” somewhere,
in Sinhalese, but neck is there botuwa. Bota
is possibly also a form whence came Tamil pay-
tal “jump,” this in Sinhalese would become bay-
tal at once, and the final 1 in all Ceylon languages
has a tendency to atrophy, which in a language
never written would early cause its entire loss;
Greek Vp^da “jump,” is also an obscure co-
derivative, as if beda; English bound also seems
connected. The sense is really to “bound,”
no native of Ceylon ever attempting to jump, but
always bounding, leaping lengthwise, not up-
wards. The connection between bend, bound,
bow, is very near “throwing back the neck,” as a
deer in its leaps, and I should accept “ tossing the
neck” as the derivation, if I knew the idiom to
exist in any related or local language, but I do
not. Rare dama, to keep on the neck, is a Sin-
halese idiom taken from the yoke on the bull’s
neck, and used for “ to submit,” “ to endure.” We
ourselves have an idea of independence in tossing
the head, but that is still far off a Vaedda term
for “ bound,” though both have a sense of freedom.
Did the Sinhalese idiom arise in sarcastic
antithesis ? it is possible. I think the elucidation
further of the connection of such forms as V. bota
dama. T. paytal, Gr. peda, English bound,
bend, bow, which I select as showing extremes,
is worth research by anyone with a library to
refer to. To complete my share of idiomatic
study, I may add all the natives of Ceylon toss the
.bead as a sign of refusal to agre.e 5vi.tfi anything
said, of course when they dare show such inde-
pendence, and call it isa sala.
To Shoot, penna gatcha.
This is past tense, and to shoot must be penna
gana. This is an old form of Sinhalese Vpani,
past tense paenna, to spring; pennaganais “took
spring,” and we find this idea carried on to the
springing and expanding of a cobra’s head and
hood, like a drawn bow, whence the hoodispene,
agreeing with the Vaedda in use of e not ae.
To Rain, diya pompa.
See under “sky,” pomba and pompa being
variants. The Goyi equivalent is gangula bana.
To Drink, diya ka.
The Vaedda recalls the Kandian expression,
diya kanda “ to eat water,” and not “ to drink”;
I reject “to eat” as I have not met with the
idiom elsewhere. The Greek kata-pino “ to
swallow” may perhaps explain it, especially as S.
kata, throat, is probably connected with Gr. kata
“down.” Elu gele “neck” is supported by Elu
vgili to swallow, and as the local languages are
wonderfully balanced in idea, kara neck, ought
to be followed by kari or kara “to swallow.” As
this would drop out of use, owing to kara “ do,” I
am disposed to think diya ka is a corruption from
diya kara, an obscure word for “swallow water.”
All the neighbouring dialects or languages
speak of swallowing water, so idiom sanctions
this derivation, and strongly opposes that from
eat. It is to be noticed the Vaedda does not use
V'ka to eat, so a corruption from kara, to drink,
to avoid confusion with kara to do, was quite
probable. We have, however, the S. uggura
“ throat,” a Prakrit form, andgara “ to swallow,” all
from the Prakrit and S. v'g'ar ‘‘swallow.” I there-
fore do not doubt, considering the continual
interchanges of k and g, the Vaedda had a \/kar
for «Zgar “ to swallow.” In participial Dravidian
usage this would become karna, drinking, under
Sanskrit or allied influence, and thence kana.
All the terms for elephant derived as if from kara
“trunk,” I take from this\/kar\/gar “swallow,”
and kara “trunk” itself from Vkar, as the swallower
or regurgitator, in allusion to its swallowing with
its trunk, both originally and by regurgitation.
I dismiss kara “ hand ” for trunk, as a derivation
suggested after the origin of hastha was confused
with hand, from its sense either of fire or light.
Eat, kapat-ena, kapa.
Confer Tamil ehapadu, and Hindi Vchav, to
“chew/’ and all the allied co-derivatives. It seems
a Skythic root to me. I have not heard kapatena,
it would apparently be “ to eat and come.” Kapa