HINDOSTANIC. Taalima learning IRISH. Ollamh Tookrie wattles, pannier Tocar Tsjekney fat, full Tigheacht The laft argument we fhall produce in favour of an Oriental Colony fettling in Ireland, is from the words Clan and Baile, both which fignify a colony; we shall dwell particularly on these words, because they have not been admitted into any of the Celtic dialects. Clann fignifies a number of families of the fame tribe, dwelling together; it is the Oriental P Klan, congregationes; a word that paffed with our Scythian Hercules into Italy when be fettled at Croton: hence we find Amadutius, in his Lexicon Vocarum Etrufcarum, p. 69. explains Clann by Natus, filius; Dempfter wildly derives it from the river Clanus in Etruria, because the word Clann happened to be found on an infcription, difcovered near that river; he is corrected by Amadutius, and before him by Pafferus. Baille is of more extenfive fignification: it implies a congregation of mixed tribes; hence it fignifies a town, a village, a fettlement, a colony. The names of every fettlement of this kind in Ireland, has Baille (or Bally) prefixed: hence Bailigheachd, a province, a diftrict, a Bailiwick. It is the Arabick Balad, a province. Urbs, oppidum, domus: the name of Mecca. (a) 7. Bapt. Pafferi has given fuch an ample explanation of Bal, as a Phænician word of the fame fignification with our Baile; we fhall prefent the reader with his remarks, taken from his Effay De nummo aereo Balleorum, printed in the Symbola Litt. Opufcul-Florent, vol. 4. Quod unum certum eft, multæ fuere toto orbe terrarum civitates, quæ hoc nomine dictæ funt, vel ab ejufdem origine paululum perturbatur denominationem acceperunt. Nam præter Macedonicam Ballam & Belam Phæniciæ, cæterafque plurimas, quas in Africa recenfuimus, hæc nobis apud Auctores vel primo oblutu occurrerunt : Ballata, in Mefopotamia. Balatea, in Arab. Balisbega, in Armenia. Ballenæ, in Phrygia. Ballera, in Hifpania. Balliace, in Illyrico. Balacri, in Oriente. Balangræ, in Cyrenaica. Balaretanus, in Africa. Balbura, in Lycia. Balcea, in Teutrania. Balfa, in Cyrene. Balbia opp. Brutiorum. Balari, in Sardinia. (a) Golius. Quod Quod vero ad Balam feu Ballam fpectat, cæterafque quas recenfuimus urbes, quibus una fuiffe videtur origo nominis, illa fi quid rectè sentio, minime a Græco eft, nam BAAA jaculor, nullam mihi ingerit imaginem, quæ in urbium fundatione nomen illis effecerit; nempe hæc vel a conditione, vel ab eorum religione, feu a loci natura, demum ab auguriis petebantur. Putamur potius Ballam feu Balam effe a radice (Ball) mifcere feu confundere, quæ notio optimè conveniebat urbibus illis, quæ a multorum populorum una coëuntiuin concurfu fuerunt conftitutæ, ut omen faceret concordiæ, quemadmodum omnibus par gratia referebatur. Hanc ipfam ideam explicat nobis vox medio ævo frequenter ufitata ad oppida denominanda, quæ ex multis una confluentibus incolis conftituta funt. Quia vero in urbium fundatione hæc populorum commixtio fæpe accidebat, huic a lingua, quæ omnibus tunc communis erat, inde nomen Ballae, feu Balae, factum fuiffe exiftimo." Pafferus has certainly given us the true meaning of this word; hence in the Chaldæan language 10-12 Bol-fuph nomen proprium loci in Babylonia ubi confufus fuit fermo, which was afterwards named Borfoph; whence the adage Ex quænam terra eso de Borfoph-Ne dicas mihi fic, fed de D 2 Bolfuph, nam ibi confudit deus labium univerfæ terræ. (b) In like manner the Latins formed the word Urbs from y Oreb, mixtio, mifcellanea turba, minus aptè ergo Latini duxerant Urbs, ab Urvo, i. e. ab aratri curvatura circumducti. (Tomaffin.) (b) Vide Beres-rabba. Sect. 38. The The word Bali never entered the Celtic dialect: it was caught at by a Welsh author, who is corrected by Dr. Davies in his Welsh dictionary. (c) Bala, fays he, is caput fluminis è lacu fluentis. The Doctor may be right with respect to his own dialect, but in the Irish and Phænician, it has a contrary meaning; when applied to a river, it derives from another word, viz. in Beol, Phæn. and Beol, Irish, the mouth: the embouchure of a river, the exit into the sea, where meeting an oppofite current, the water ftagnates for a while and depofits great banks of fand, which are called Bela, and Bull, as Beal-feafda, now Belfast. Bela at the mouth of the Shannon: the North and South Bulls of Dublin harbour. (d) Ball fignifying a town, a city, a mixture of people, is common to moft oriental nations, as Bala, a town. Tartar Dialect. Z-bal, a habitation. Hebrew. Bal-gafum, a town. Malayan. Balagan, a house. Tartar Calmuc. Balli, a temple. Malabar. Palle, a village. Talenga. It is the Etrufcan Vola or Vela, fometimes written Velia, i. e. oppidum, aut Arx. Hence Volaterra, Volcae, Volumnius, Voltumna, Velfinium, Felfina, Veletras, Velabrum, Velia, &c. &c. See Amadutius, Lex. Voc. Etrufcarum. (c) Price tranflates Bala Pagus; fed qua ratione hoc dicat non video, nifi exiftimat fieri a Lat. Villa. Davies. (d) Hence Punicè & Arabice ya bela est aquæ vortex, quo naves abforbentur. Bochart. С НА Р. 1 CHAP. XI. SECT. I. I. Of Paganism in General. General plan of Idolatry, formed before the difperfion. II. Of the Pagan Religion of the Ancient Irish. IT T is impoffible to draw any Arguments of the affinity of one pagan nation with another; because there was evidently one general principle univerfally adopted by all pagan nations throughout the world. A good and a bad Genius; a mediator between; the worship of the Sun, Moon, and Heavenly hoft, of the Elements and of Angels that prefided over the Elements, conftitutes the Religion of all pagan Nations: to which we may add, that their philofophers and priefts acknowledged one invisible Jah or Effence, that governed the reft. From fome local additaments, from the names of Deities, of Priefts, Sacrificators, and from the fixed Festivals, fome idea may be formed, but of these there must appear an uniform Syftem, because the principles of all Idolaters having been the fame originally, it was matter of complacence in one nation to adopt the name of the attribute of any Deity, in a foreign tongue; and when they did not thoroughly understand the name, they were |