Nakdan, Sajisom or Simson, a Jewish writer noted for his mastery of the Hebrew tongue, and hence surnamed " the Grammarian," flourished about 1240. He was familiar with the best works of his Spanish co- religionists, such as those of Chajug (q. v.), Jona ibn- Ganach (q. v.), Parchon (q. v.), Aben-Ezra (q. v.), and other grammarians, and is the author of a grammatical work entitled n'lJipn -.!ian,or "^pia^d 'O, which dis- cusses the vowel-points and accents. Elias Levita refers to this work of Samson Nakdan in his Massoreth ha-Mas- soreth, but it has not as yet appeared in print. Excerpts of it, however, have been published in Abicht's A ccen- tus Hebr. ex aniiqitissimo usu lectorio vel miisico expli- cati, etc. ; acced. Porta accentimm Lat. conveisa et notis illustr. (Leips. 1713); Delitzsch, in Jesurun, p. 16, 86, 92, 192, 249, 252: comp. Flirst, Bibl. .lud. iii, 16; De Eossi, Dizionario (Germ. transL), p. 242 ; Wolf, Bibli- otheca Ilebraa, i, 1152; iii, 1160; iv, 1003; Geiger, Sckimschon ein Lexicograph in Deutschlaml, in the Wis- senschaftl. Zeitschriftfur JUdische Theologie, v, 413-30; Ginsburg, in Levita's Massoreth ha-Massoreth (Lond. 1867), p. 257 ; Kalisch, Ilebr. Grammar (Lond. 1863), ii, 29; Zunz, ZurGeschichtev.Literatur,i). 113, 114. (B. P.)
Waked. The Hebrew word Ci"ii', arom', rendered '•naked" in our IJiljles, means absolute nakedness in such passages as Job i, 21; Eccles. v, 15; IMic, i, 8; Amos ii, 16; but in other places it means one who is ragged or poorlj' clad (John xxi, 7; Isa. Iviii, 7), in the same sense as yvfiroq in James ii, 15, which does not indeed differ from a familiar application of the word " naked" among ourselves. A more peculiar and Ori- ental sense of the word is that in which it is applied to one who has laid aside his loose outer garment, and goes about in his tunic. When, therefore, Saul is described as having lain ilown "naked" (1 Sam. xix, 24), we are to understand that he had laid aside his flowing outer robe; and it was tluis that Isaiah went "naked" and barefoot (Isa. XX, 2 ; comp. John xxi, 7). Our use of the word " undress," to denote simply a dress less than that which we consider full and complete, corresponds to this signification of the word. See Dress. This word is also used metaphorically to signify ;>»/ to shame, stripped of resources, void of succor, disarmed. Tluis in Jer. xlix, 10, " I have made Esau bare," etc., signifies the destruc- tion of the Edomites, (Jod having exposed them de- fenceless to their invaders. The " nakedness of a land" (CJen. xlii, 9) signifies the weak and ruined i)arts of it ' where the country lies most open and exposed to dan- ger. " Naked" is also put for discovered, known, mani- fest. So in Job xxvi, 6, "Hell is naked bifure him;" the unseen state of the dead is open to the eyes of God. St. Paul says in the same sense, " Neither is there any !
creature that is not manifest in his sight ; but all things are naked and open unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do" (Heb. iv, 13). Nakedness also signifies sin or folly. Thus in Gen. iii, 7 it is indicative of sin in general; in Exod. xxxii, 25; 2 Chron. xxviii, 19; Ezek. xvi, 36, it is put for idolatry- ; and elsew here in the Scriptures for all kinds of vice, but idolatry in par- ticular.
Nakir is the name of one of the angels or da;nions who attend the dead at burial, according to the belief of the Indian Mussulmans. The \ahir and Monkir, as these angels are called, attend the body soon after it is interred, set it upright in the grave, and ques- tion the soul, which it is believed they have power to recall to the corpse for the sake of examination. The question from the angels is. Who is thy Lord, and who is thy prophet, and what is thy religion ? They who can answer in the orthodox formula, " There is no god but God, and Mohammed is his prophet," are dismissed with honor, and their rest, is visited with sweet airs from paradise. The unbelievers are beaten with iron maces, and gnawed by dragons, till they fdl the ceme- teries with bowlings, which are audible alike to angels and jins, but mercifully withheld from men, whose nerves might be less equal to the sound, or their hearts more moved to compassion. See Trevor, India, its Na- tives and Missions, p. 149, 227.
Nala is in Hindil mythology the name of a monkey chief, who, according to some authorities, built for Ka- ma (q. V.) the bridge from continental India to the isl- and of Ceylon. See Thomas, Diet, of Biog. and Myth. s. V.
Naldi, Antonio, an Italian theologian, was born at Facnza towards the close of the 16th century. He was of a noble family, and had embraced religious life among the Theatins, and was distinguished for his learning and piety. He died at Rome in 1645. We have of his works, Questiones practice in foro interion usu frequentes (Bologne, 1610, 1624, 1646, 4to) -.—Resolu- tiones practicm casuum conscientiee, in quibus prcecipiie de justitia contractus licelli vulgo nuncupati, et de cam- Mis agitur (Brescia, 1621, 4to) : — Adnotationes ad raria juris pontifcii loca (Kome, 1632, fol. ; Lyons, 1671, fol. ; and in the Corpus juris cono«?Vi, Lyons, 1661, 2 vols. 4to) : — Summa theologim moj-alis (Brescia, 1623 ; Bo- logne, 1625). See Hoefer, Xouv. Biog. Generale, s. v.; Mittarelli, De Litterutura Faventina, p. 124.