an exact grammatical construction, like the other parts of speech. See 133. This name is preferable to that of exclamation, for some exclamations are not interjections, and some interjections are not exclamations.

2. Under interjections are included,

(1.) Natural exclamations, expressing passion or emotion. (2.) Natural exclamations, expressing a state of the will, whether addressed to our fellow-men, or employed to allure or drive away domestic animals.

(3.) Some imitations of natural sounds, whether of animals or of inanimate objects.

(4.) Some imitations of visible appearances.

3. Of the interjections some are primitive or original, others are derived from other parts of speech. The primitive interjections are a sort of universal language, yet not without some variety in different tongues. The derived interjections

vary, of course, in different languages.

4. Primitive interjections, with which we are principally concerned, are all formed by onomatopoeia.

(1.) Some of them result from the position into which the vocal and articulating organs have a tendency to be thrown by the muscular action of the face and other parts in those movements which constitute the natural gestures or signs of emotions. This tendency is more or less indefinite. Hence, in the first place, the resulting word for the same emotion may be different in different languages, according to the habits of articulation which accompany the several languages; and, in the second place, the same interjection, like words in Chinese, may subserve different purposes, according to the intonation.

Thus pain, accompanied with languor or grief, relaxes all the muscles, and the mouth being consequently open, with the other organs in their usual state, the sound ah is produced with a monotonous and feeble intonation, and degenerating into a mere groan. Sharp and sudden pain, on the contrary, throws the muscles into a state of tension round the lips, and produces oh, with the breath drawn in, and the semitonic intonation described by Dr. Rush.

Surprise raises the brows and opens the mouth suddenly;

hence Ah, with an abrupt and upward tone, expresses that

emotion.

Wonder or astonishment rounds the lips; hence results the interjection Oh! with a downward intonation.

Contempt is accompanied with a protrusion of the lips; hence it is expressed by pish, pshaw.

(2.) Other primitive interjections result from the imitation of objective or outward sounds.

For instance, shoo, shoo, which is used in driving away poultry, was probably suggested by the rustling of their wings when they run away suddenly; sheep and lambs are called by the cry of knan, knan, in imitation of the sound which they make in running to be fed; dogs are called to persons by sucking the breath through the lips, in imitation of the cry of puppies. To the onomatopoeia may also be referred such interjections as hush, 'st, whist, used to enjoin stillness and silence, as they all consist merely in atonic or whispering sounds.

5. Derived interjections are either (1.) terms descriptive of the emotion, with appropriate intonations; as, Horrid! shocking! joy! (2.) names, common and proper, used in addressing animals; (3.) verbs in the imperative mode; as, Hark! see! behold! help! halt! or nouns used as imperatives, by means of the intonation; as, Silence! peace! courage! or adverbs, used in like manner for the imperative; as, Softly! away! or (4.) abbreviated forms, used particularly by the vulgar; as, Gramercy, (French grand merci, great thanks); I marry (for ay Mary); 's death (for by his death).

6. Interjections have not, in our common grammars, assumed the importance nor obtained the scientific treatment which they deserve.

For if we regard language as originating in and related to our intellectual faculties only, then interjections, as well as some other classes of words which express our feelings and desires directly, lose their claim to be considered parts of speech. But if we consider language in its broadest sense, as arising from our whole spiritual nature-from our feelings and desires as well as from our reason-as we ought in propriety to do, interjections have a just claim to be considered

an integral part of language; and, as they arise from our sentient nature, which is first formed and precedes the developinent of reason, they deserve in a historical critical view of language an early consideration.

The fact that interjections express the multiplied emotions of the human mind, and lend their aid where all other language fails in this respect; that they are the only medium. of intercourse between man and the brute creation, or of animals with each other; and that they are a natural universal language, is sufficient to exhibit their importance in a philosophic view. There can be no doubt that interjections rightly used contribute much to render language an exact picture of the human mind.

7. Some interjections are the same in languages very remote from each other, as the following examples will show: Greek &, Latin O, Gothic o, English O, Syriac o, to call

attention.

Greek peu, Latin phy, English fie, French fi, Arabic uffu, to express aversion.

Greek ovaí, Latin vai, Gothic vai, English woe, Hebrew oi, hoi, Arabic wa, to express grief.

Latin Ah, English Ah, Hebrew ach, Arabic ah, to express grief.

English interjections are divided into,

I. Natural exclamations, expressing passion or emotion, including,

1. Passive emotions, in which the human mind is overpowered: (1.) wonder or amazement; as, Oh, pronounced with a downward inflection; (2.) pain, grief, or lamentation; as, Ah, Oh, woe, alas; (3.) loathing or aversion; as, Fie, pish, pshaw, tysh, ugh (guttural).

2. Emotions under which the mind is still active: (1.) surprise or admiration; as, Heigh, hoity-toity; (2.) joy or exultation; as, Huzza, hurra, joy; (3.) desire; as, O; (4.) laughter; as, Ha ha; or tittering; as, Hi hi; (5.) threatening; as, Woe.

II. Natural exclamations, expressing a state of the will, addressed to our fellow-men, or else employed to allure or drive away domestic animals.

1. Addressed to our fellow-men; (1.) calling attention generally; as, O, ho, halloo; (2.) enjoining silence; as, Hush, 'st, whist; (3.) calling attention to a particular object; as, Lo, behold, see.

2. Addressed to cows; as, Coh, coh.

3. Addressed to goats and sheep; as, Knan, knan.

4. Addressed to dogs; a whistle made by sucking the breath through the teeth.

5. Addressed to cats; as, Minny, minny; also scat. 6. Addressed to pigs; as, Pig, pig; also shogh, shogh. 7. Addressed to draught cattle; as, Haw, jee, hwo. III. Imitations of natural sounds, whether of animals or of inanimate objects.

1. Of animals: (1.) of cows; as, Moo; (2.) of dogs; as, Bow wow; (3.) of chickens; as, Peep, peep; (4.) of geese; as, Quack.

2. Of inanimate objects; as, of a bell, Ding dong; of a clock or watch, Tick, tick; of a drum, Row de dow dow; of a knocking at the door, Rat a tat tat; of a trumpet, Tantara, tantara; of removing a trumpet from the mouth, Bat, &c. IV. Imitations of visible appearances; as, Flash, zigzag. Other parts of speech are sometimes formed from interjections; as, To puff at, from puff; to ache, from Ah; the noun woe, from interjection woe.

CHAPTER XXVIII.

DERIVATION.

§ 334. DERIVATION has been defined as the drawing or tracing of a word from its root or original. Like Etymology, the word is used in a wide and in a limited sense. In the wide sense of the term every word, except it be in the simple form of a root, is a derived word. In this sense the Cases, Numbers, and Genders of Nouns, the Persons, Modes, and Tenses of Verbs, the Ordinal numbers, the Degrees of comparison are regarded as matters of Derivation. But Der

ivation Proper comprises all those changes that words undergo which are not referable to some of the preceding heads. Inflection, a part of Derivation in its wider sense, is separated from Derivation properly so called, or from Derivation in its limited sense.

THE

CONSTITUENT ELEMENTS OF THE ENGLISH
LANGUAGE.

The English tongue, as it now exists, is not a pure, simple language, but it is made up of many languages.

The constituent parts or elements of the English language are, 1. The Anglo-Saxon basis, inherited from our ancestors; 2. Extensive admixtures from three dead languages, viz., the Latin, the Greek, and the Hebrew; 3. Exotic or foreign terms from various living languages; and 4. Words not reducible to either of the three preceding heads. See § 24.

I. The Anglo-Saxon portion of the language is its basis or ground-work. Although the vocabulary of such words is comparatively small, yet it embraces all the pronouns and pronominal words; all the numerals, cardinal and ordinal, except second; all the primary particles; all the terminations necessary for the inflection of substantives, the comparison of adjectives, and the conjugation of verbs, as well as most of the verbs, adjectives, and substantives in common use. Hence whole paragraphs may easily be written with this part of the language only, while without it hardly a sentence can be formed. See § 335.

The Anglo-Saxon language belongs to the Gothic or Teutonic family of languages, of which the German, Dutch, Danish, and Swedish are also branches. With the Anglo-Saxon there was without doubt an intermixture of the Celtic, but it is not easy now to make the separation.

II. Admixtures from three dead languages, viz., the Latin, the Greek, and the Hebrew.

1. The admixture of words from the ancient Latin is owing to the conquest of England by the Normans, who spoke Norman-French, to the subsequent close intercourse with the French people, and to the influence of the learned class, who studied and wrote Latin. What is owing to each of these