The alphabet possesses twenty-six consonants, ar- ranged in a peculiar order, twent3'-four of which may, however, be regarded as essentiall}' equivalent (^al- though with different sounds in many instances) to tlie letters in the Arabic alphabet. The remaining two are letters adopted to express the Greek * and *".
ETHIOPIC LANGUAGE
333
ETHIOPIC LANGUAGE
ETHIOPIC ALPHABET.
Hoi
Lawi
lihaut
Mai
gaiit
Rees
Sat
* Shat Qaf Beth Thawi
* Tjawi Kb arm N alias
* Gnalias 'Alpli Kaf
* Chaf Wawe 'Ain Zai
J ai Jaman Dent *Djent Geiiil Tait *Tshait Pait Tsaddai Dzappa Af Psa
U ta A la
<P ma
TU fa
l_, ra
fi eha
^ qa
A la
i" tha
T tja
•J kha
J na
M gna
A "a
^ka
ll cha
Q) wa
U -a
H za
FTja
Pjv
J? da
A dja
1 ga
m ta
imf tsha
r%. pa
ii tsa
" dza
Zl. fa
T psa
With & y ha
Aia
<J^ ma
UI pa
rj. sja $ qa
a Lu
i" tha 9P tja 5 khu f na 7 gBa K a »a ka TJ-l cha
^ -a 4 za
.? da
.? dja
D ga ni ta YIY tsha
o. pa
a tsa
g dzi 4. f''
U" psa
With e
y ho
C^ mo
W fo Co fl so "fi: she
4> qe
•fl be ^ the *^ tje r^ khe
1 ne
2 gno 'K e
^ cl:e
(D* wo
0 -e
n ze
Kjc
J? je p. ,
!?dje
1 ge f^ te
^tshe o pe K tse O dze 4t fe "F pse
"With e
^i he
A le
With I ^ hi A 15
<J^ mO I (?^ mi
Ul fe Lo re
JTb she
*1? q6
a he
•t th6
^ tje
-5. khe
A no
?i. 'e
^ k6
^ ch6
^■e
li zo
IT j6
Po j6
.^ d6
S dj6
"i ge
flL te
YK tshfi
Xl> pe
i^ tsS
^ dze
Aj fe
'U pse
El Shi
^ qi
a i^^i
■1: thi
^ tji
i^ klii A ni 4. gnl
h. 1 ^ki *^chi
*E ^vi ^•i Rzi Kji
R ji
K. di
\ dji
m. ti
W, tshi
iX pi
i\. tsi
^ dzi
A. fi
T Psi
With b
With ^
Power.
17 ho
U" hu
h
A- 10
A ift
1
^ hho
/fj. hhu
hll
«P mo
G^ mil
m
q' fo
Hi- ta
Q J-r.
c-
L-^
r
jfl SI)
fl- 61
s
fJ sho
R- sha
sh
4» q<>
«5 qu
q
P bo
n- i^tt
b
•f" tho
't thil
th
¥ tjo
^ tja
tj
"(T kho
•J. khfi
kh
^ no
$• nu
11
^ gnu
T gnu
gn Fr.
h'o
1\. 'a
^ ko
Tb ku
k
"5^ cho
''Ji' chu
Cll Ger.
fl) wo
(I), wu
w
^ -6
0- -ft
H z6
H- zii
iz
Kjo
Wja
1 j ^-
P- jo
P ju
j '^^'••
J? do
^ da
d
5? djo
E dja
dj
1 go
t gd
g
fr» to
IIV tu
t
'fiV tsho
^Tl^ tshu
tsh
/^ po
Ce pii
P
8 tso
A' tsu
ts
^ dzo
^ dz(i
dz
^ fo
fjj fa
f
T" pso
T psft
ips
Heb.
n n
D -1
? S
n n
3 D
5?
T
1
'J
Q
^ qua "^ khua Tt> kua 'V gua
DIPHTHONGS.
$qua
^** quo
$ qua
^ khua
'V- khue
•J, khue
^kua
W- kue
5^ kuS
:igua
1^ gue
"% guO
' Separatris of words. * Exclusively Amharic.
^ qui "Vl khul W. kui
"Kgui
ETHIOPIC VERSION
334
ETHIOPIC VERSION
The vowcl-soiinds, which are seven, are not expressed j 1832). It is divided into four parts : The Lair, or the by separ.il lie signs, as in t lie Hebrew and Arabic punct- uation, but arc denoted by niodilications in the origi- nal form of the consonants, after the manner of the Devanagari alphabet. The mode of writing is from h'ft to right. The position of the accent depends upon many complicated rules. As for the written charac- ters, Gcsenius has traced the relation between some of them and their equivalents in the Phoenician alphabet. There is, however, the most striking resemblance be- tween the Geez letters generallv and those in the Himyarite inscriptions, a circumstance which accords well with the supposed connection of Southern Arabia and Ilabesh. Moreover, Lepsius, in an interesting es- sa}', Ui'ber d'e Anordnnng und Verwandsch ift des Semi- iUchen, Jndisch"n, yEthiopischen, etc. Alphabets (in his Zwei sprarhmrgkichende Ahhandlungen, Berlin, 1836, 8vo, p. 74-80), has adduced some striking arguments to prove that tlie Devanagari alphabet must have had some influence on the development of the Geez.
The literature of the Geez language is very scant}' indeed, and that little is almost exclusivel}' of a Bibli- cal or ecclesiastical character. Dr. Laurence has late- ly added considerabh' to this by the publication of the Book of Enoch (q. v.), the Ascension of Isai.ih (q, v.), and the first Book of Esdras (q. v.), in the Ethiopia ver- sion. There also exist in Ethiopic the Christian Book of Adam (in Germ, by Dillmann, Gott. 1853), and several other apocryphal works relating the miracles of Christ, Mary, etc. It possesses nothing, not even an imi- Q* tation of the national poetry, nor of the lexicographical and grammatical works of the Arabs. Some few his- torical works in the shape of chroni- cles, and a few medical treatises, con- stitute the m.iin body of their profane literature. The Geez has ceased, ever since the beginning of the 14th century, to be the vernacular lan- guage of any part of the countrj', having be?ii supplanted at the court of the sovereign by the Amharic. It still continues, however, to be the lan- guage used in religious rites, in do- mestic affairs of state, and in private correspondence. — Kitto, s. v. See Ludolf, Grammalica yEthiopica (id edit. Frcft. 1702, fol.), and his Lexi- con ^Ethiopico-Latinum (2d edit. ilj. 1699, fol., originally Lond. 1661, 4to) ; Hasse, Prrdct. f/db. d. am'), u. dthiop. Sprache (Jen. 1793, 8vo) ; Hupfeld, Exercilt. jEthiopiccu (Lips. 1826, 4to); (Jesenius, in Ersch und Gruber's AHf/emeine En- cydopddk, s. v. Aethiopische Sprache; Dillmann, Lex- icon Ling. yEthvpiccB (Lpz. 1862 sq., 4to) ; Chresto- rti'ith'a Ethinpicu (Lpz. 18(;5, 8vo) ; Castell, Lexicon Jleptarjlottum (Lond. 1669. fol.); Schrader, Z)e Lingum uEih'irp. indole (Vien. 1860 sq., 4to). See Shemitic