Blair Collection > Archaeologia Britannica, giving some account additional to what has been hitherto publish'd, of the languages, histories and customs of the original inhabitants of Great Britain

2 TIT. I. COMPARATIVE ETYMOLOGY.
tion is Owan. The Britijb for a Prince or Sovereign is Teyrn, the /r//& for a
Z,or^ is Tighearna^ but pronounc'd 'Tiarna^ (o that the Difference is very little
ia Pronunciation , and both' rnake but the lame with the Gree\ and Latm Ty-
rannus^ as indeed Avon is no other than Amnii: and fo in many hundreds of
other words. Nor is the Difference much lefs between the Weljb Orthography,
and the Armoric : The word that fignifies Flejhj is according to the former, writ-
ten Cigy according to the latter ^tc; but pronounced by both I(^g: So Celyttj
Holly [Arm. §luelen'] muft be read i(f/yn, &c.
The Defign then, of this Comparative Etymology being to fliew that Languages
receive their Origin from an Accidental Difference either in the Acceptation
and Ufe, or elfe in the Orthography or Pronunciation of Words, and an Ad-
dition or Omiffion of Syllables ; I thought the following Alphabet in the Pro-
nunciation whereof moft Languages agree i the fitteft for writing the above
mention'd ; but lliall in the Irifi Dictionary , and upon other occafions, make
ufe of their own Orthography.
'The General Alphabet made ufe of in the Wellh, Cornifli, Armoricfl»<^Irifh.
.•J ,'.;; :. ' "^:^' '~^
A. b. K- d. dh. e, f. 5. {or g.) gh, h, 1. k. 1. Ih. m. n o. p. r. rh. f. ih. t. tli. U. v y.- y. 7.. ih
\' \
X. Is Pronounc'd as by the Modern ^Greeks or as Ch. by the J^Vel/h^^d Irijb.
Dh, As tlie Englijfj Th. in the words This, That^ &c. !,^.j
G or 5. Always as the German G. or as in Engltjh before a. o. and y^t^
Sh. As much fofter than x- as G. is fofter than K.
I. As in Englip in the words Win, JQn j but never as in Wind, Kind, &c.
Lh. Is peculiar to the Weljfj, and is to L. as Th. to T.
Th. Is always Pronounced as in Englijli'm the words Thought], Thifiki never
as in This, Thither, Whether, Father, Brother.
U. or u as the Englijb 00. where Note that u before a vowel makes a diftindl
* Syllable.
y. As the Englijh I in the words Third, Bird; O in Honey, Money, U in
Mud, Muji, &c.
Zh. Is as much fofter than the Englip Sh. as Z. than S.
A. Denotes a long vowel, as Mor [Great] is pronounced as the EnghJJj word
Morei and Man [Small] as Mane. In molt words of two Syllables, the
Accent is in the former, in the Wtljh , Cormjlj and Armonc , and in thole
of more, in the Penultima.
t Prefix'd to any Word, fhews that its now obfolete, or at leaft not general-
ly uled; but occurs in mss.
All the others are Pronounced as in EngltJIj, and no Letter ever changes or
lofes its Pronunciation , excepting in the IriJIi , the ancient Orthography
whereof has been much better prefer vd than its Pronunciation i as is ma-
nifeft from many inftances wherein they agree with the Weljh and Ar-
moric in the former ; but fail in the latter ; Pronouncing as different from
what they write, as the French.
The Pronunciation here exprefled by Dh. and Th, is us'd by the Weljh and
Cornijb, and in fome Parts of Bafs-Bretagne -, That by Gh. diftindtly by the
Bajs-Britans, and more foftly by the Irtjlj and Scots. Lh. and Rh. are pe-
culiar to the Weljh i Sh. to the Irijh , and Zh. to the Cornijh and Armo-
ric. The reft are common to all.
The Auxiliary h. fo frequent in thefe Language?, might have been omitted in this
General Alphabet i by ufing other Ancient or hxotic Letters, befides the 5 and
%. butcuftoni having made it obvious and familiar to other Languages, I thought
it a lefs eye- fore than a more mixt Alphabet j and have therefore only intro-
duc'd X- to obviate the Readers Pronouncing Ch. as in Englijh, and S leaft he
fhould read G before E and 1 as in the words Gentle, General, Magijlrate, &c.
a Vid. lUieeltr's Travels, p 3^4..
3 The