Chapter VII: Preface: TO SECOND EDITION xi (4)

[c. 1665.—"It (their pay) is, however, of a different kind, and not
thought so honourable, but the _Rouzindars_ are not subject, like the
_Mansebdars_ (MUNSUBDAR) to the AGENAS; that is to say, are not bound to
take, at a valuation, carpets, and other pieces of furniture, that have
been used in the King's palace, and on which an unreasonable value is
sometimes set."—_Bernier_ (ed. _Constable_), 215-6.]

AK, s. H. _āk_ and _ark_, in Sindi _ăk_: the prevalent name of the _madār_ (MUDDAR) in Central and Western India. It is said to be a popular belief (of course erroneous) in Sind, that Akbar was so called after the _āk_, from his birth in the desert. [Ives (488) calls it OGG.] The word appears in the following popular rhyme quoted by Tod (_Rajasthan_, i. 669):—

AK-rā jhoprā,
Phok-rā bār,
Bajra-rā rotī,
Mot'h-rā dāl:
Dekho Rājā terī Mārwār.

(For houses hurdles of _madār_,
For hedges heaps of withered thorn,
Millet for bread, horse-peas for pulse:
Such is thy kingdom, Raja of Mārwār!)

AKALEE, or _Nihang_ ('the naked one'), s. A member of a body of zealots among the Sikhs, who take this name 'from being worshippers of Him who is without time, eternal' (_Wilson_). Skt. _a_ privative, and _kāl_, 'time.' The Akālis may be regarded as the Wahābis of Sikhism. They claim their body to have been instituted by Guru Govind himself, but this is very doubtful. Cunningham's view of the order is that it was the outcome of the struggle to reconcile warlike activity with the abandonment of the world; the founders of the Sikh doctrine rejecting the inert asceticism of the Hindu sects. The Akālis threw off all subjection to the earthly government, and acted as the censors of the Sikh community in every rank. Runjeet Singh found them very difficult to control. Since the annexation of the Panjab, however, they have ceased to give trouble. The AKALEE is distinguished by blue clothing and steel armlets. Many of them also used to carry several steel _chakras_ (CHUCKER) encircling their turbans. [See _Ibbetson_, _Panjab Ethnog._, 286; _Maclagan_, in _Panjab Census Rep._, 1891, i. 166.]

1832.—"We received a message from the ACALI who had set fire to the
village.... These fanatics of the Seik creed acknowledge no superior, and
the ruler of the country can only moderate their frenzy by intrigues and
bribery. They go about everywhere with naked swords, and lavish their
abuse on the nobles as well as the peaceable subjects.... They have on
several occasions attempted the life of Runjeet Singh."—_Burnes,
Travels_, ii. 10-11.

1840.—"The AKALIS being summoned to surrender, requested a conference
with one of the attacking party. The young Khan bravely went forward, and
was straightway shot through the head."—_Mrs Mackenzie, Storms and
Sunshine_, i. 115.

AKYÁB, n.p. The European name of the seat of administration of the British province of Arakan, which is also a port exporting rice largely to Europe. The name is never used by the natives of Arakan (of the Burmese race), who call the town _Tsit-htwé_, 'Crowd (in consequence of) War.' This indicates how the settlement came to be formed in 1825, by the fact of the British force encamping on the plain there, which was found to be healthier than the site of the ancient capital of the kingdom of Arakan, up the valley of the Arakan or Kaladyne R. The name AKYÁB had been applied, probably by the Portuguese, to a neighbouring village, where there stands, about 1½ miles from the present town, a pagoda covering an alleged relique of Gautama (a piece of the lower jaw, or an induration of the throat), the name of which pagoda, taken from the description of relique, is _Au-kyait-dau_, and of this AKYÁB was probably a corruption. The present town and cantonment occupy dry land of very recent formation, and the high ground on which the pagoda stands must have stood on the shore at no distant date, as appears from the finding of a small anchor there about 1835. The village adjoining the pagoda must then have stood at the mouth of the Arakan R., which was much frequented by the Portuguese and the Chittagong people in the 16th and 17th centuries, and thus probably became known to them by a name taken from the Pagoda.—(From a note by _Sir Arthur Phayre_.) [Col. Temple writes—"The only derivation which strikes me as plausible, is from the Agyattaw Phaya, near which, on the island of Sittwé, a Cantonment was formed after the first Burmese war, on the abandonment of Mrohaung or Arakan town in 1825, on account of sickness among the troops stationed there. The word Agyattaw is spelt Akhyap-taw, whence probably the modern name."]

[1826.—"It (the despatch) at length arrived this day (3rd Dec. 1826),
having taken two months in all to reach us, of which forty-five days were
spent in the route from AKYAB in Aracan."—_Crawfurd, Ava_, 289.]

ALA-BLAZE PAN, s. This name is given in the Bombay Presidency to a tinned-copper stew-pan, having a cover, and staples for straps, which is carried on the march by European soldiers, for the purpose of cooking in, and eating out of. Out on picnics a larger kind is frequently used, and kept continually going, as a kind of _pot-au-feu_. [It has been suggested that the word may be a corr. of some French or Port. term—Fr. _braiser_; Port. _brazeiro_, 'a fire-pan,' _braza_, 'hot coals.']

ALBACORE, s. A kind of rather large sea-fish, of the Tunny genus (_Thynnus albacora_, Lowe, perhaps the same as _Thynnus macropterus_, Day); from the Port. _albacor_ or _albecora_. The quotations from Ovington and Grose below refer it to _albo_, but the word is, from its form, almost certainly Arabic, though Dozy says he has not found the word in this sense in Arabic dictionaries, which are very defective in the names of fishes (p. 61). The word _albacora_ in Sp. is applied to a large early kind of fig, from Ar. _al-bākūr_, 'praecox' (Dozy), Heb. _bikkūra_, in Micah vii. 1.—See _Cobarruvias_, s.v. _Albacora_. [The _N.E.D._ derives it from Ar. _al-bukr_, 'a young camel, a heifer,' whence Port. _bacoro_, 'a young pig.' Also see Gray's note on _Pyrard_, i. 9.]

1579.—"These (flying fish) have two enemies, the one in the sea, the
other in the aire. In the sea the fish which is called ALBOCORE, as big
as a salmon."—_Letter from Goa, by T. Stevens_, in _Hakl._ ii. 583.

1592.—"In our passage over from S. Laurence to the maine, we had
exceeding great store of Bonitos and ALBOCORES."—_Barker_, in _Hakl._ ii.
592.

1696.—"We met likewise with shoals of ALBICORES (so call'd from a piece
of white Flesh that sticks to their Heart) and with multitudes of
Bonettoes, which are named from their Goodness and Excellence for eating;
so that sometimes for more than twenty Days the whole Ship's Company have
feasted on these curious fish."—_Ovington_, p. 48.

c. 1760.—"The ALBACORE is another fish of much the same kind as the
Bonito ... from 60 to 90 pounds weight and upward. The name of this fish
too is taken from the Portuguese, importing its white colour."—_Grose_,
i. 5.

ALBATROSS, s. The great sea-bird (_Diomedea exulans_, L.), from the Port. _alcatraz_, to which the forms used by Hawkins and Dampier, and by Flacourt (according to Marcel Devic) closely approach. [_Alcatras_ 'in this sense altered to _albi-_, _albe-_, _albatross_ (perhaps with etymological reference to _albus_, "white," the albatross being white, while the _alcatras_ was black.') _N.E.D._ s.v.] The Port. word properly means 'a pelican.' A reference to the latter word in our Glossary will show another curious misapplication. Devic states that _alcatruz_ in Port. means 'the bucket of a Persian wheel,'[26] representing the Ar. _al-ḳādūs_, which is again from κάδος. He supposes that the pelican may have got this name in the same way that it is called in ordinary Ar. _saḳḳa_, 'a water-carrier.' It has been pointed out by Dr Murray, that the _alcatruz_ of some of the earlier voyagers, _e.g._, of Davis below, is not the _Diomedea_, but the Man-of-War (or Frigate) Bird (_Fregatus aquilus_). Hawkins, at p. 187 of the work quoted, describes, without naming, a bird which is evidently the modern albatross. In the quotation from Mocquet again, _alcatruz_ is applied to some smaller sea-bird. The passage from Shelvocke is that which suggested to Coleridge "The Ancient Mariner."

1564.—"The 8th December we ankered by a small Island called ALCATRARSA,
wherein at our going a shoare, we found nothing but sea-birds, as we call
them Ganets, but by the Portugals called ALCATRARSES, who for that cause
gave the said Island the same name."—_Hawkins_ (Hak. Soc.), 15.

1593.—"The dolphins and bonitoes are the houndes, and the ALCATRARCES the
hawkes, and the flying fishes the game."—_Ibid._ 152.

1604.—"The other foule called ALCATRARZI is a kind of Hawke that liueth
by fishing. For when the Bonitos or Dolphines doe chase the flying fish
vnder the water ... this ALCATRARZI flyeth after them like a Hawke after
a Partridge."—_Davis_ (Hak. Soc.), 158.

c. 1608-10.—"ALCATRAZ sont petis oiseaux ainsi comme
estourneaux."—_Mocquet, Voyages_, 226.

1672.—"We met with those feathered Harbingers of the Cape ... ALBETROSSES
... they haue great Bodies, yet not proportionate to their Wings, which
mete out twice their length."—_Fryer_, 12.

1690.—"They have several other Signs, whereby to know when they are near
it, as by the Sea Fowl they meet at Sea, especially the ALGATROSSES, a
very large long-winged Bird."—_Dampier_, i. 531.

1719.—"We had not had the sight of one fish of any kind, since we were
come Southward of the Streights of _Le Mair_, nor one sea-bird, except a
disconsolate black ALBITROSS, who accompanied us for several days,
hovering about us as if he had lost himself, till _Hatley_ (my second
Captain) observing, in one of his melancholy fits, that this bird was
always hovering near us, imagin'd from his colour, that it might be some
ill omen.... But be that as it would, he after some fruitless attempts,
at length shot the ALBITROSS, not doubting (perhaps) that we should have
a fair wind after it...."—_Shelvocke's Voyage_, 72, 73.

1740.—"... a vast variety of sea-fowl, amongst which the most remarkable
are the _Penguins_; they are in size and shape like a goose, but instead
of wings they have short stumps like fins ... their bills are narrow like
those of an ALBITROSS, and they stand and walk in an erect posture. From
this and their white bellies, _Sir John Narborough_ has whimsically
likened them to little children standing up in white aprons."—_Anson's
Voyage_, 9th ed. (1756), p. 68.

1754.—"An ALBATROSE, a sea-fowl, was shot off the Cape of Good Hope,
which measured 17½ feet from wing to wing."—_Ives_, 5.

1803.—

"At length did cross an ALBATROSS;
Thorough the fog it came;
As if it had been a Christian soul
We hailed it in God's name."
_The Ancient Mariner._

c. 1861.—

"Souvent pour s'amuser, les hommes d'équipage
Prennent des ALBATROS, vastes oiseaux des mers,
Qui suivent, indolents compagnons de voyage,
Le navire glissant sur les gouffres amers."
_Baudelaire, L'Albatros._

ALCATIF, s. This word for 'a carpet' was much used in India in the 16th century, and is treated by some travellers as an Indian word. It is not however of Indian origin, but is an Arabic word (_ḳatīf_, 'a carpet with long pile') introduced into Portugal through the Moors.

c. 1540.—"There came aboard of Antonio de Faria more than 60 _batels_,
and _balloons_, and _manchuas_ (q.q.v.) with awnings and flags of silk,
and rich ALCATIFAS."—_Pinto_, ch. lxviii. (orig.).

1560.—"The whole tent was cut in a variety of arabesques, inlaid with
coloured silk, and was carpeted with rich ALCATIFAS."—_Tenreiro, Itin._,
c. xvii.

1578.—"The windows of the streets by which the Viceroy passes shall be
hung with carpets (ALCATIFADAS), and the doors decorated with branches,
and the whole adorned as richly as possible."—_Archiv. Port. Orient._,
fascic. ii. 225.

[1598.—"Great store of rich Tapestrie, which are called
ALCATIFFAS."—_Linschoten_, Hak. Soc. i. 47.]

1608-10.—"Quand elles vont à l'Eglise on les porte en palanquin ... le
dedans est d'vn grand tapis de Perse, qu'ils appellent
ALCATIF...."—_Pyrard_, ii. 62; [Hak. Soc. ii. 102].

1648.—"... many silk stuffs, such as satin, contenijs (CUTTANEE) attelap
(read _attelas_), ALEGIE ... _ornijs_ [H. _oṛhnî_, 'A woman's sheet'] of
gold and silk for women's wear, gold ALACATIJVEN...."—_Van Twist_, 50.

1726.—"They know nought of chairs or tables. The small folks eat on a
mat, and the rich on an ALCATIEF, or carpet, sitting with their feet
under them, like our Tailors."—_Valentijn_, v. _Chorom_, 55.

ALCORANAS, s. What word does Herbert aim at in the following? [The Stanf. Dict. regards this as quite distinct from _Alcorān_, the Korān, or sacred book of Mohammedans (for which see _N.E.D._ s.v.), and suggests _Al-qorūn_, 'the horns,' or _al-qirān_, 'the vertices.']

1665.—"Some (mosques) have their ALCORANA'S high, slender, round steeples
or towers, most of which are terrassed near the top, like the Standard in
Cheapside, but twice the height."—_Herbert, Travels_, 3rd ed. 164.

ALCOVE, s. This English word comes to us through the Span. _alcova_ and Fr. _alcove_ (old Fr. _aucube_), from Ar. _al-ḳubbàh_, applied first to a kind of tent (so in Hebr. _Numbers_ xxv. 8) and then to a vaulted building or recess. An edifice of Saracenic construction at Palermo is still known as _La Cuba_; and another, a domed tomb, as _La Cubola_. Whatever be the true formation of the last word, it seems to have given us, through the Italian, _Cupola_. [Not so in _N.E.D._]

1738.—"CUBBA, commonly used for the vaulted tomb of _marab-butts_"
[ADJUTANT.]—_Shaw's Travels_, ed. 1757, p. 40.

ALDEA, s. A village; also a villa. Port. from the Ar. _al-ḍai'a_, 'a farm or villa.' Bluteau explains it as 'Povoção menor que lugar.' Lane gives among other and varied meanings of the Ar. word: 'An estate consisting of land or of land and a house, ... land yielding a revenue.' The word forms part of the name of many towns and villages in Spain and Portugal.

1547.—"The Governor (of Baçaem) Dom João de Castro, has given and gives
many ALDEAS and other grants of land to Portuguese who served and were
wounded at the fortress of Dio, and to others of long service...."—_Simão
Botelho, Cartas_ 3.

[1609.—"ALDEAS in the Country."—_Danvers, Letters_, i. 25.]

1673.—"Here ... in a sweet Air, stood a Magnificent Rural Church; in the
way to which, and indeed all up and down this Island, are pleasant
ALDEAS, or villages and hamlets that ... swarm with people."—_Valentijn_,
v. (_Malabar_), 11.

1753.—"Les principales de ces qu'on appelle ALDÉES (terme que les
Portugals ont mis en usage dans l'Inde) autour de Pondichéri et dans sa
dependance sont...."—_D'Anville, Éclaircissemens_, 122.

1780.—"The Coast between these is filled with ALDEES, or villages of the
Indians."—_Dunn, N. Directory_, 5th ed., 110.

1782.—"Il y a aussi quelques ALDÉES considérables, telles que Navar et
Portenove, qui appartiennent aux Princes du pays."—_Sonnerat, Voyage_, i.
37.

ALEPPEE, n.p. On the coast of Travancore; properly Alappuḷi. [Mal. _alappuzha_, 'the broad river"—(_Mad. Adm. Man. Gloss._ s.v.)].

[ALFANDICA, s. A custom-house and resort for foreign merchants in an oriental port. The word comes through the Port. _alfandega_, Span. _fundago_, Ital. _fondaco_, Fr. _fondeque_ or _fondique_, from Ar. _al-funduḳ_, 'the inn,' and this from Gk. πανδοκεῖον or πανδοχεῖον, 'a pilgrim's hospice.']

[c. 1610.—"The conveyance of them thence to the ALFANDIGUE."—_Pyrard
della Valle_, Hak. Soc. i. 361.]

[1615.—"The Iudge of the ALFANDICA came to invite me."—_Sir T. Roe,
Embassy_, Hak. Soc. i. 72.]

[1615.—"That the goods of the English may be freely landed after dispatch
in the ALFANDIGA."—_Foster, Letters_, iv. 79.]

ALGUADA, n.p. The name of a reef near the entrance to the Bassein branch of the Irawadi R., on which a splendid lighthouse was erected by Capt. Alex. Fraser (now Lieut.-General Fraser, C.B.) of the Engineers, in 1861-65. See some remarks and quotations under NEGRAIS.

ALJOFAR, s. Port. 'seed-pearl.' Cobarruvias says it is from Ar. _al-jauhar_, 'jewel.'

1404.—"And from these bazars (_alcacerias_) issue certain gates into
certain streets, where they sell many things, such as cloths of silk and
cotton, and _sendals_, and _tafetanas_, and silk, and pearl
(ALXOFAR)."—_Clavijo_, § lxxxi. (comp. _Markham_, 81).

1508.—"The ALJOFAR and pearls that (your Majesty) orders me to send you I
cannot have as they have them in Ceylon and in Caille, which are the
sources of them: I would buy them with my blood, and with my money, which
I have only from your giving. The Sinabaffs (_sinabafos_), PORCELAIN
vases (_porcellanas_), and wares of that sort are further off. If for my
sins I stay here longer I will endeavour to get everything. The slave
girls that you order me to send you must be taken from prizes,[27] for
the heathen women of this country are black, and are mistresses to
everybody by the time they are ten years old."—_Letter of the Viceroy D.
Francisco d'Almeida to the King_, in _Correa_, i. 908-9.

[1665.—"As it (the idol) was too deformed, they made hands for it of the
small pearls which we call 'pearls by the ounce.'"—_Tavernier_, ed.
_Ball_, ii. 228.]

ALLAHABAD, n.p. This name, which was given in the time of Akbar to the old Hindu Prayāg or Prāg (PRAAG) has been subjected to a variety of corrupt pronunciations, both European and native. _Illahābāz_ is a not uncommon native form, converted by Europeans into _Halabas_, and further by English soldiers formerly into _Isle o' bats_. And the _Illiabad_, which we find in the Hastings charges, survives in the _Elleeabad_ still heard occasionally.

c. 1666.—"La Province de HALABAS s'appelloit autrefois _Purop_
(POORUB)."—_Thevenot_, v. 197.

[ " "ELABAS (where the Gemna (JUMNA) falls into the
Ganges.)"—_Bernier_ (ed. _Constable_), p. 36.]

1726.—"This exceptionally great river (Ganges) ... comes so far from the
N. to the S. ... and so further to the city HALABAS."—_Valentijn._

1753.—"Mais ce qui interesse davantage dans la position de HELABAS, c'est
d'y retrouver celle de l'ancienne _Palibothra_. Aucune ville de l'Inde ne
paroit égaler _Palibothra_ ou _Palimbothra_, dans l'Antiquité.... C'est
satisfaire une curiosité géographique bien placée, que de retrouver
l'emplacement d'une ville de cette considération: mais j'ai lieu de
croire qu'il faut employer quelque critique, dans l'examen des
circonstances que l'Antiquité a fourni sur ce point.... Je suis donc
persuadé, qu'il ne faut point chercher d'autre emplacement à Palibothra
que celui de la ville d'HELABAS...."—_D'Anville, Eclaircissemens_, pp.
53-55.

(Here D'Anville is in error. But see Rennell's _Memoir_, pp. 50-54, which
clearly identifies Palibothra with PATNA.)

1786.—"... an attack and invasion of the Rohillas ... which nevertheless
the said Warren Hastings undertook at the very time when, under the
pretence of the difficulty of defending Corah and ILLIABAD, he sold these
provinces to Sujah Dowla."—_Articles of Charge_, &c., in _Burke_, vi.
577.

" "You will see in the letters from the Board ... a plan for
obtaining ILLABAD from the Vizier, to which he had spirit enough to make
a successful resistance."—_Cornwallis_, i. 238.

ALLEJA, s. This appears to be a stuff from Turkestan called (Turki) ALCHAH, ALAJAH, or ALĀCHAH. It is thus described: "a silk cloth 5 yards long, which has a sort of wavy line pattern running in the length on either side." (_Baden-Powell's Punjab Handbook_, 66). [Platts in his Hind. Dict. gives _ilācha_, "a kind of cloth woven of silk and thread so as to present the appearance of cardamoms (_ilāchī_)." But this is evidently a folk etymology. Yusuf Ali (_Mon. on Silk Fabrics_, 95) accepts the derivation from _Alcha_ or _Alācha_, and says it was probably introduced by the Moguls, and has historical associations with Agra, where alone in the N.W.P. it is manufactured. "This fabric differs from the _Doriya_ in having a substantial texture, whereas the _Doriya_ is generally flimsy. The colours are generally red, or bluish-red, with white stripes." In some of the western Districts of the Panjab various kinds of fancy cotton goods are described as _Lacha_. (_Francis, Mon. on Cotton_, p. 8). It appears in one of the trade lists (see PIECE-GOODS) as _Elatches_.]

c. 1590.—"The improvement is visible ... _secondly_ in the _Safid_
ALCHAHS also called _Tarhdárs_...."—_Āīn_, i. 91. (Blochmann says:
"_Alchah_ or _Alāchah_, any kind of corded stuff. _Tarhdár_ means
_corded_.")

[1612.—"Hold the ALLESAS at 50 Rs."—_Danvers, Letters_, i. 205.]

1613.—"The _Nabob_ bestowed upon him 850 _Mamoodies_, 10 fine _Baftas_,
30 _Topseiles_ and 30 ALLIZAES."—_Dowton_, in _Purchas_, i. 504.
"_Topseiles_ are _Tafçilah_ (_a stuff from Mecca_)."—_Āīn_, i. 93. [See
ADATI, PIECE-GOODS].

1615.—"1 pec. ALLEIA of 30 Rs...."—_Cocks's Diary_, i. 64.

1648.—See _Van Twist_ above, under ALCATIF. And 1673, see _Fryer_ under
ATLAS.

1653.—"ALAIAS (Alajas) est vn mot Indien, qui signifie des toiles de
cotton et de soye: meslée de plusieurs couleurs."—_De la
Boullaye-le-Gouz_, ed. 1657, p. 532.

[c. 1666.—"ALACHAS, or silk stuffs interwoven with gold and
silver."—_Bernier_ (ed. _Constable_), p. 120-21.]

1690.—"It (Suratt) is renown'd ... both for rich Silks, such as Atlasses,
Cuttanees, Sooseys, Culgars, ALLAJARS...."—_Ovington_, 218.

1712.—"An ALLEJAH petticoat striped with green and gold and
white."—Advert. in _Spectator_, cited in _Malcolm, Anecdotes_, 429.

1726.—"Gold and silver ALLEGIAS."—_Valentijn_ (_Surat_), iv. 146.

1813.—"ALLACHAS (pieces to the ton) 1200."—_Milburn_, ii. 221.

1885.—"The cloth from which these pyjamas are made (in Swāt) is known as
ALACHA, and is as a rule manufactured in their own houses, from 2 to 20
threads of silk being let in with the cotton; the silk as well as the
cotton is brought from Peshawur and spun at home."—_M‘Nair's Report on
Explorations_, p. 5.

ALLIGATOR, s. This is the usual Anglo-Indian term for the great lacertine amphibia of the rivers. It was apparently in origin a corruption, imported from S. America, of the Spanish _el_ or _al lagarto_ (from Lat. _lacerta_), 'a lizard.' The "Summary of the Western Indies" by Pietro Martire d'Angheria, as given in Ramusio, recounting the last voyage of Columbus, says that, in a certain river, "they sometimes encountered those crocodiles which they call LAGARTI; these make away when they see the Christians, and in making away they leave behind them an odour more fragrant than musk." (_Ram._ iii. f. 17_v._). Oviedo, on another page of the same volume, calls them "LAGARTI o dragoni" (f. 62).

Bluteau gives "LAGARTO, _Crocodilo_" and adds: "In the Oriente Conquistado (Part I. f. 823) you will find a description of the Crocodile under the name of _Lagarto_."

One often, in Anglo-Indian conversation, used to meet with the endeavour to distinguish the two well-known species of the Ganges as _Crocodile_ and ALLIGATOR, but this, like other applications of popular and general terms to mark scientific distinctions, involves fallacy, as in the cases of 'panther, leopard,' 'camel, dromedary,' 'attorney, solicitor,' and so forth. The two kinds of Gangetic crocodile were known to Aelian (c. 250 A.D.), who writes: "It (the Ganges) breeds two kinds of crocodiles; one of these is not at all hurtful, while the other is the most voracious and cruel eater of flesh; and these have a horny prominence on the top of the nostril. These latter are used as ministers of vengeance upon evil-doers; for those convicted of the greatest crimes are cast to them; and they require no executioner."

1493.—"In a small adjacent island ... our men saw an enormous kind of
lizard (LAGARTO _muy grande_), which they said was as large round as a
calf, and with a tail as long as a lance ... but bulky as it was, it got
into the sea, so that they could not catch it."—_Letter of Dr. Chanca_,
in _Select Letters of Columbus_ by Major, Hak. Soc. 2nd ed., 43.

1539.—"All along this River, that was not very broad, there were a number
of Lizards (LAGARTOS), which might more properly be called Serpents ...
with scales upon their backs, and mouths two foot wide ... there be of
them that will sometimes get upon an ALMADIA ... and overturn it with
their tails, swallowing up the men whole, without dismembering of
them."—_Pinto_, in Cogan's tr. 17 (_orig._ cap. xiv.).

1552.—"... aquatic animals such as ... very great lizards (LAGARTOS),
which in form and nature are just the crocodiles of the Nile."—_Barros_,
I. iii. 8.

1568.—"In this River we killed a monstrous LAGARTO, or Crocodile ... he
was 23 foote by the rule, headed like a hogge...."—_Iob Hortop_, in
_Hakl._ iii. 580.

1579.—"We found here many good commodities ... besides ALAGARTOES,
munckeyes, and the like."—_Drake, World Encompassed_, Hak. Soc. 112.

1591.—"In this place I have seen very great water ALIGARTOS (which we
call in English crocodiles), seven yards long."—_Master Antonie Knivet_,
in _Purchas_, iv. 1228.

1593.—"In this River (of Guayaquill) and all the Rivers of this Coast,
are great abundance of ALAGARTOES ... persons of credit have certified to
me that as small fishes in other Rivers abound in scoales, so the
_Alagartoes_ in this...."—_Sir Richard Hawkins_, in _Purchas_, iv. 1400.

c. 1593.—

"And in his needy shop a tortoise hung,
An ALLIGATOR stuff'd, and other skins
Of ill-shaped fishes...."—
_Romeo & Juliet_, v. 1.

1595.—"Vpon this river there were great store of fowle ... but for
LAGARTOS it exceeded, for there were thousands of those vgly serpents;
and the people called it for the abundance of them, the riuer of LAGARTOS
in their language."—_Raleigh, The Discoverie of Guiana_, in _Hakl._ iv.
137.

1596.—"Once he would needs defend a rat to be _animal rationale_ ...
because she eate and gnawd his bookes.... And the more to confirme it,
because everie one laught at him ... the next rat he seaz'd on hee made
an anatomie of, and read a lecture of 3 dayes long upon everie artire or
musckle, and after hanged her over his head in his studie in stead of an
apothecarie's crocodile or dride ALLIGATUR."—_T. Nashe's 'Have with you
to Saffron Walden.'_ Repr. in J. Payne Collier's _Misc. Tracts_, p. 72.

1610.—"These Blackes ... told me the River was full of ALIGATAS, and if I
saw any I must fight with him, else he would kill me."—_D. Midleton_, in
_Purchas_, i. 244.

1613.—"... mais avante ... por distancia de 2 legoas, esta o fermoso ryo
de Cassam de LAGARTHOS o crocodillos."—_Godinho de Eredia_, 10.

1673.—"The River was full of ALIGATORS or Crocodiles, which lay basking
in the Sun in the Mud on the River's side."—_Fryer_, 55.

1727.—"I was cleaning a vessel ... and had Stages fitted for my People to
stand on ... and we were plagued with five or six ALLEGATORS, which
wanted to be on the Stage."—_A. Hamilton_, ii. 133.

1761.—

"... else that sea-like Stream
(Whence Traffic pours her bounties on mankind)
Dread ALLIGATORS would alone possess."
_Grainger_, Bk. ii.

1881.—"The Hooghly alone has never been so full of sharks and ALLIGATORS
as now. We have it on undoubted authority that within the past two months
over a hundred people have fallen victims to these brutes."—_Pioneer
Mail_, July 10th.

ALLIGATOR-PEAR, s. The fruit of the _Laurus persea_, Lin., _Persea gratissima_, Gaertn. The name as here given is an extravagant, and that of _avocato_ or _avogato_ a more moderate, corruption of _aguacate_ or _ahuacatl_ (see below), which appears to have been the native name in Central America, still surviving there. The Quichua name is _palta_, which is used as well as _aguacaté_ by Cieza de Leon, and also by Joseph de Acosta. Grainger (_Sugarcane_, Bk. I.) calls it "rich _sabbaca_," which he says is "the Indian name of the _avocato_, _avocado_, _avigato_, or as the English corruptly call it, _alligator pear_. The Spaniards in S. America call it _Aguacate_, and under that name it is described by Ulloa." In French it is called AVOCAT. The praise which Grainger, as quoted below, "liberally bestows" on this fruit, is, if we might judge from the specimens occasionally met with in India, absurd. With liberal pepper and salt there may be a remote suggestion of marrow: but that is all. Indeed it is hardly a fruit in the ordinary sense. Its common sea name of 'midshipman's butter' [or 'subaltern's butter'] is suggestive of its merits, or demerits.

Though common and naturalised throughout the W. Indies and E. coasts of tropical S. America, its actual native country is unknown. Its introduction into the Eastern world is comparatively recent; not older than the middle of 18th century. Had it been worth eating it would have come long before.

1532-50.—"There are other fruits belonging to the country, such as
fragrant pines and plantains, many excellent _guavas_, _caymitos_,
AGUACATES, and other fruits."—_Cieza de Leon_, 16.

1608.—"The _Palta_ is a great tree, and carries a faire leafe, which hath
a fruite like to great peares; within it hath a great stone, and all the
rest is soft meate, so as when they are full ripe, they are, as it were,
butter, and have a delicate taste."—_Joseph de Acosta_, 250.

c. 1660.—

"The AGUACAT no less is _Venus_ Friend
(To th' _Indies Venus_ Conquest doth extend)
A fragrant Leaf the AGUACATA bears;
Her Fruit in fashion of an Egg appears,
With such a white and spermy Juice it swells
As represents moist Life's first Principles."
_Cowley, Of Plantes_, v.

1680.—"This Tavoga is an exceeding pleasant Island, abounding in all
manner of fruits, such as Pine-apples ... ALBECATOS, Pears,
Mammes."—_Capt. Sharpe_, in _Dampier_, iv.

1685.—"The AVOGATO Pear-tree is as big as most Pear-trees ... and the
Fruit as big as a large Lemon.... The Substance in the inside is green,
or a little yellowish, and soft as Butter...."—_Dampier_, i. 203.

1736.—"AVOGATO, _Baum_.... This fruit itself has no taste, but when mixt
with sugar and lemon juice gives a wholesome and tasty
flavour."—_Zeidler's Lexicon_, s.v.

1761.—

"And thou green AVOCATO, charm of sense,
Thy ripen'd marrow liberally bestows't."
_Grainger_, Bk. I.

1830.—"The AVOCADA, with its Brobdignag pear, as large as a purser's
lantern."—_Tom Cringle_, ed. 1863, 40.

[1861.—"There is a well-known West Indian fruit which we call an AVOCADO
or ALLIGATOR PEAR."—_Tylor, Anahuac_, 227.]

1870.—"The AGUACATE or ALLIGATOR PEAR."—_Squier, Honduras_, 142.

1873.—"Thus the fruit of the _Persea gratissima_ was called AHUCATL' by
the ancient Mexicans; the Spaniards corrupted it to AVOCADO, and our
sailors still further to 'ALLIGATOR PEARS.'"—_Belt's Nicaragua_, 107.

[ALLYGOLE, ALIGHOL, ALLYGOOL, ALLEEGOLE, s. H.—P. _'aligol_, from _'ālī_ 'lofty, excellent,' Skt. _gola_, a troop; a nondescript word used for "irregular foot in the Maratha service, without discipline or regular arms. According to some they are so named from charging in a dense mass and invoking 'Ali, the son-in-law of Mohammed, being chiefly Mohammedans."—(_Wilson._)

1796.—"The Nezibs (NUJEEB) are matchlockmen, and according to their
different casts are called ALLEGOLES or Rohillas; they are indifferently
formed of high-cast Hindoos and Musselmans, armed with the country
Bandook (BUNDOOK), to which the ingenuity of De Boigne had added a
Bayonet."—_W. H. Tone, A Letter on the Maratta People_, p. 50.

1804.—"ALLEEGOLE, A sort of chosen light infantry of the Rohilla Patans:
sometimes the term appears to be applied to troops supposed to be used
generally for desperate service."—_Fraser, Military Memoirs of Skinner_,
ii. 71 note, 75, 76.

1817.—"The ALLYGOOLS answer nearly the same description."—_Blacker, Mem.
of Operations in India_, p. 22.]

ALMADIA, s. This is a word introduced into Portuguese from Moorish Ar. _al-ma'dīya_. Properly it means 'a raft' (see _Dozy_, s.v.). But it is generally used by the writers on India for a canoe, or the like small native boat.

1514.—"E visto che non veniva nessuno ambasciata, solo venia molte
ABADIE, cioè barche, a venderci galline...."—_Giov. da Empoli_, in
_Archiv. Stor. Ital._, p. 59.

[1539.—See quotation from Pinto under ALLIGATOR.

c. 1610.—"Light vessels which they call ALMADIA."—_Pyrard della Valle_,
Hak. Soc. i. 122; and also see under DONEY.]

1644.—"Huma ALMADIA pera serviço do dito Baluarte, com seis marinheiros
que cada hum ven-se hum x(erafi)^m por mes ... x^s 72."—_Expenses of
Diu_, in _Bocarro_ (Sloane MSS. 197, fol. 175).

ALMANACK, s. On this difficult word see Dozy's Oosterlingen and _N.E.D._ In a passage quoted by Eusebius from Porphyry (_Praep. Evangel._ t. iii. ed. Gaisford) there is mention of Egyptian calendars called ἀλμενιχιανὰ. Also in the _Vocabular Arauigo_ of Pedro de Alcala (1505) the Ar. _Manāk_ is given as the equivalent of the Span. ALMANAQUE, which seems to show that the Sp. Arabs did use _manākh_ in the sense required, probably having adopted it from the Egyptian, and having assumed the initial _al_ to be their own article.

ALMYRA, s. H. _almārī_. A wardrobe, chest of drawers, or like piece of (closed) furniture. The word is in general use, by masters and servants in Anglo-Indian households, in both N. and S. India. It has come to us from the Port. ALMARIO, but it is the same word as Fr. _armoire_, Old E. _ambry_ [for which see _N.E.D._] &c., and Sc. _awmry_, orginating in the Lat. _armarium_, or _-ria_, which occurs also in L. Gr. as ἀρμαρὴ, ἀρμάριον.

c. B.C. 200.—"Hoc est quod olim clanculum ex ARMARIO te surripuisse
aiebas uxori tuae...."—_Plautus, Men._ iii. 3.

A.D. 1450.—"Item, I will my chambre prestes haue ... the thone of thame
the to ALMER, & the tothir of yame the tother ALMAR whilk I ordnyd for
kepyng of vestmentes."—_Will of Sir T. Cumberlege_, in _Academy_, Sept.
27, 1879, p. 231.

1589.—"—— item ane langsettle, item ane ALMARIE, ane Kist, ane sait
burde...."—_Ext. Records Burgh of Glasgow_, 1876, 130.

1878.—"Sahib, have you looked in Mr Morrison's ALMIRAH?"—_Life in
Mofussil_, i. 34.

ALOES, s. The name of aloes is applied to two entirely different substances: A. the drug prepared from the inspissated bitter juice of the ALOË _Socotrina_, Lam. In this meaning (A) the name is considered (_Hanbury and Flückiger, Pharmacographia_, 616) to be derived from the Syriac _'elwai_ (in P. _alwā_). B. ALOES-wood, the same as EAGLE-WOOD. This is perhaps from one of the Indian forms, through the Hebrew (pl. forms) _ahālim_, _akhālim_ and _ahālōth_, _akhālōth_. Neither Hippocrates nor Theophrastus mentions aloes, but Dioscorides describes two kinds of it (_Mat. Med._ iii. 3). "It was probably the Socotrine aloes with which the ancients were most familiar. Eustathius says the aloe was called ἱερὰ, from its excellence in preserving life (ad. _Il._ 630). This accounts for the powder of aloes being called _Hiera picra_ in the older writers on Pharmacy."—(_Francis Adams, Names of all Minerals, Plants, and Animals desc. by the Greek authors_, etc.)

(A) c. A.D. 70.—"The best ALOE (Latin the same) is brought out of
India.... Much use there is of it in many cases, but principally to
loosen the bellie; being the only purgative medicine that is comfortable
to the stomach...."—_Pliny_, Bk. xxvii (_Ph. Holland_, ii. 212).

(B) "Ἤλθε δὲ καὶ Νικόδημος ... φέρων μίγμα σμύρνης και ἀλόης ὠσεὶ λίτρας
ἑκατόν."—_John_ xix. 39.

c. A.D. 545.—"From the remoter regions, I speak of Tzinista and other
places, the imports to Taprobane are silk ALOES-wood (ἀλόη), cloves,
sandal-wood, and so forth."—_Cosmas_, in _Cathay_, p. clxxvii.

[c. 1605.—"In wch Iland of ALLASAKATRINA are good harbors faire depth and
good Anchor ground."—_Discription_ in _Birdwood, First Letter Book_, 82.
(Here there is a confusion of the name of the island Socotra with that of
its best-known product—_Aloes Socotrina_).]

1617.—"... a kind of lignum ALLOWAIES."—_Cocks's Diary_, i. 309 [and see
i. 3].

ALOO, s. Skt.—H. _ālū_. This word is now used in Hindustani and other dialects for the 'potato.' The original Skt. is said to mean the esculent root _Arum campanulatum_.

ALOO BOKHARA, s. P. _ālū-bokhāra_, 'Bokh. plum'; a kind of prune commonly brought to India by the Afghan traders.

[c. 1666.—"Usbec being the country which principally supplies Delhi with
... many loads of dry fruit, as BOKARA prunes...."—_Bernier_, ed.
Constable, 118.]

1817.—

"Plantains, the golden and the green,
Malaya's nectar'd mangosteen;
PRUNES OF BOKHARA, and sweet nuts
From the far groves of Samarkand."
_Moore, Lalla Rookh._

ALPEEN, s. H. _alpīn_, used in Bombay. A common pin, from Port. _alfinete_ (_Panjab N. & Q._, ii. 117).

AMAH, s. A wet nurse; used in Madras, Bombay, China and Japan. It is Port. _ama_ (comp. German and Swedish _amme_).

1839.—"... A sort of good-natured housekeeper-like bodies, who talk only
of ayahs and AMAHS, and bad nights, and babies, and the advantages of
Hodgson's ale while they are nursing: seeming in short devoted to
'suckling fools and chronicling small beer.'"—_Letters from Madras_, 294.
See also p. 106.

AMBAREE, s. This is a P. word (_'amārī_) for a HOWDAH, and the word occurs in Colebrooke's letters, but is quite unusual now. Gladwin defines _Amaree_ as "an umbrella over the Howdeh" (_Index to Ayeen_, i.). The proper application is to a canopied howdah, such as is still used by native princes.

[c. 1661.—"Aurengzebe felt that he might venture to shut his brother up
in a covered EMBARY, a kind of closed litter in which women are carried
on elephants."—_Bernier_ (ed. _Constable_), 69.]

c. 1665.—"On the day that the King went up the Mountain of _Pire-ponjale_
... being followed by a long row of elephants, upon which sat the Women
in _Mikdembers_ and EMBARYS...."—_Bernier_, E.T. 130 [ed. _Constable_,
407].

1798.—"The Rajah's _Sowarree_ was very grand and superb. He had twenty
elephants, with richly embroidered AMBARREHS, the whole of them mounted
by his sirdars,—he himself riding upon the largest, put in the
centre."—_Skinner, Mem._ i. 157.

1799.—"Many of the largest Ceylon and other Deccany Elephants bore
AMBÁRIS on which all the chiefs and nobles rode, dressed with
magnificence, and adorned with the richest jewels."—_Life of Colebrooke_,
p. 164.

1805.—"AMAURY, a canopied seat for an elephant. An open one is called
_Houza_ or _Howda_."—_Dict. of Words used in E. Indies_, 2nd ed. 21.

1807.—"A royal tiger which was started in beating a large cover for game,
sprang up so far into the UMBARRY or state howdah, in which Sujah Dowlah
was seated, as to leave little doubt of a fatal issue."—_Williamson,
Orient. Field Sports_, 15.

AMBARREH, s. Dekh. Hind. and Mahr. _ambāṛā_, _ambāṛī_ [Skt. _amla-vāṭika]_, the plant _Hibiscus cannabinus_, affording a useful fibre.

AMBOYNA, n.p. A famous island in the Molucca Sea, belonging to the Dutch. The native form of the name is AMBUN [which according to Marsden means 'dew'].

[1605.—"He hath sent hither his forces which hath expelled all the
Portingalls out of the fforts they here hould att AMBWENO and
Tydore."—_Birdwood, First Letter Book_, 68.]

AMEEN, s. The word is Ar. _amīn_, meaning 'a trustworthy person,' and then an inspector, intendant, &c. In India it has several uses as applied to native officials employed under the Civil Courts, but nearly all reducible to the definition of _fide-commissarius_. Thus an AMEEN may be employed by a Court to investigate accounts connected with a suit, to prosecute local enquiries of any kind bearing on a suit, to sell or to deliver over possession of immovable property, to carry out legal process as a bailiff, &c. The name is also applied to native assistants in the duties of land-survey. But see _Sudder Ameen_ (SUDDER).

[1616.—"He declared his office of AMIN required him to hear and determine
differences."—_Foster, Letters_, iv. 351.]

1817.—"Native officers called AUMEENS were sent to collect accounts, and
to obtain information in the districts. The first incidents that occurred
were complaints against these AUMEENS for injurious treatment of the
inhabitants...."—_Mill. Hist._, ed. 1840, iv. 12.

1861.—"Bengallee dewans, once pure, are converted into demons; AMEENS,
once harmless, become tigers; magistrates, supposed to be just, are
converted into oppressors."—Peterson, _Speech for Prosecution_ in _Nil
Durpan case_.

1878.—"The AMEEN employed in making the partition of an estate."—_Life in
the Mofussil_, i. 206.

1882.—"A missionary ... might, on the other hand, be brought to a
standstill when asked to explain all the terms used by an AMIN or
valuator who had been sent to fix the judicial rents."—_Saty. Rev._, Dec.
30, p. 866.

AMEER, s. Ar. _Amīr_ (root _amr_, 'commanding,' and so) 'a commander, chief, or lord,' and, in Ar. application, any kind of chief from the _Amīru' l-mūminīn_, 'the Amīr of the Faithful' _i.e._ the Caliph, downwards. The word in this form perhaps first became familiar as applied to the Princes of Sind, at the time of the conquest of that Province by Sir C. J. Napier. It is the title affected by many Musulman sovereigns of various calibres, as the Amīr of Kābul, the Amīr of Bokhārā, &c. But in sundry other forms the word has, more or less, taken root in European languages since the early Middle Ages. Thus it is the origin of the title 'Admiral,' now confined to generals of the sea service, but applied in varying forms by medieval Christian writers to the AMĪRS, or lords, of the court and army of Egypt and other Mohammedan States. The word also came to us again, by a later importation from the Levant, in the French form, EMIR or EMER.—See also OMRAH, which is in fact _Umarā_, the pl. of _Amīr_. Byzantine writers use Ἀμὲρ, Ἀμηρᾶς, Ἀμυράς, Ἀμηραῖος, &c. (See _Ducange, Gloss. Græcit._) It is the opinion of the best scholars that the forms _Amiral_, _Ammiraglio_, _Admiral_ &c., originated in the application of a Low Latin termination _-alis_ or _-alius_, though some doubt may still attach to this question. (See Marcel Devic, s.v. _Amiral_, and Dozy, Oosterlingen, s.v. _Admiraal_ [and _N.E.D._ s.v. _Admiral_].) The _d_ in admiral probably came from a false imagination of connection with _admirari_.

1250.—"Li grand AMIRAUS des galies m'envoia querre, et me demanda si
j'estoie cousins le roy; et je le di que nanin...."—_Joinville_, p. 178.
This passage illustrates the sort of way in which our modern use of the
word ADMIRAL originated.

c. 1345.—"The Master of the Ship is like a great AMĪR; when he goes
ashore the archers and the blackamoors march before him with javelins and
swords, with drums and horns and trumpets."—_Ibn Batuta_, iv. 93.

Compare with this description of the Commander of a Chinese Junk in the
14th century, A. Hamilton's of an English Captain in Malabar in the end
of the 17th:

"Captain Beawes, who commanded the _Albemarle_, accompanied us also,
carrying a Drum and two Trumpets with us, so as to make our Compliment
the more solemn."—i. 294.

And this again of an "interloper" skipper at Hooghly, in 1683:

1683.—"Alley went in a splendid Equipage, habitted in scarlet richly
laced. Ten Englishmen in Blue Capps and Coats edged with Red, all armed
with Blunderbusses, went before his pallankeen, 80 (? 8) _Peons_ before
them, and 4 Musicians playing on the Weights with 2 Flaggs, before him,
like an Agent...."—_Hedges_, Oct. 8 (Hak. Soc. i. 123).

1384.—"Il Soldano fu cristiano di Grecia, e fu venduto per schiavo quando
era fanciullo a uno AMMIRAGLIO, come tu dicessi 'capitano di
guerra.'"—_Frescobaldi_, p. 39.

[1510.—See quotation from _Varthema_ under XERAFINE.]

1615.—"The inhabitants (of Sidon) are of sundry nations and religions;
governed by a succession of Princes whom they call EMERS; descended, as
they say, from the Druses."—_Sandys, Iourney_, 210.

AMOY, n.p. A great seaport of Fokien in China, the name of which in Mandarin dialect is _Hia-men_, meaning 'Hall Gate,' which is in the Changchau dialect _A-mui^n_. In some books of the last century it is called _Emwy_ and the like. It is now a Treaty-Port.

1687.—"AMOY or Anhay, which is a city standing on a Navigable River in
the Province of Fokien in China, and is a place of vast
trade."—_Dampier_, i. 417. (This looks as if Dampier confounded the name
of _Amoy_, the origin of which (as generally given) we have stated, with
that of _An-hai_, one of the connected ports, which lies to the N.E.,
about 30 m., as the crow flies, from Amoy).

1727.—"There are some curiosities in AMOY. One is a large Stone that
weighs above forty Tuns ... in such an Equilibrium, that a Youth of
twelve Years old can easily make it move."—_A. Hamilton_, ii. 243.

AMSHOM, s. Malayāl. _am̃śam_, from Skt. _āmśah_, 'a part,' defined by Gundert as "part of a Talook, formerly called _hobili_, greater than a _taṛa_." [Logan (Man. Malabar, i. 87) speaks of the _amsam_ as a 'parish.'] It is further explained in the following quotation:—

1878.—"The AMSHOM is really the smallest revenue division there is in
Malabar, and is generally a tract of country some square miles in extent,
in which there is no such thing as a village, but a series of scattered
homesteads and farms, where the owner of the land and his servants reside
... separate and apart, in single separate huts, or in scattered
collections of huts."—_Report of Census Com. in India._

A MUCK, to run, v. There is we believe no room for doubt that, to us at least, this expression came from the Malay countries, where both the phrase and the practice are still familiar. Some valuable remarks on the phenomenon, as prevalent among the Malays, were contributed by Dr Oxley of Singapore to the _Journal of the Indian Archipelago_, vol. iii. p. 532; see a quotation below. [Mr W. W. Skeat writes—"The best explanation of the fact is perhaps that it was the Malay national method of committing suicide, especially as one never hears of Malays committing suicide in any other way. This form of suicide may arise from a wish to die fighting and thus avoid a 'straw death, a cow's death'; but it is curious that women and children are often among the victims, and especially members of the suicide's own family. The act of running AMUCK is probably due to causes over which the culprit has some amount of control, as the custom has now died out in the British Possessions in the Peninsula, the offenders probably objecting to being caught and tried in cold blood. I remember hearing of only about two cases (one by a Sikh soldier) in about six years. It has been suggested further that the extreme monotonous heat of the Peninsula may have conduced to such outbreaks as those of Running AMUCK and Latah.]

The word is by Crawfurd ascribed to the Javanese, and this is his explanation:

"_Amuk_ (J.). An _a-muck_; to run _a-muck_; to tilt; to run furiously and
desperately at any one; to make a furious onset or charge in
combat."—(_Malay Dict._) [The standard Malay, according to Mr Skeat, is
rather _amok_ (_mengāmok_).]

Marsden says that the word rarely occurs in any other than the verbal form _mengāmuk_, 'to make a furious attack' (_Mem. of a Malayan Family_, 96).

There is reason, however, to ascribe an Indian origin to the term; whilst the practice, apart from the term, is of no rare occurrence in Indian history. Thus Tod records some notable instances in the history of the Rājputs. In one of these (1634) the eldest son of the Raja of Mārwār ran _a-muck_ at the court of Shāh Jahān, failing in his blow at the Emperor, but killing five courtiers of eminence before he fell himself. Again, in the 18th century, Bījai Singh, also of Mārwār, bore strong resentment against the Tālpura prince of Hyderabad, Bījar Khān, who had sent to demand from the Rājput tribute and a bride. A Bhattī and a Chondāwat offered their services for vengeance, and set out for Sind as envoys. Whilst Bījar Khān read their credentials, muttering, 'No mention of the bride!' the Chondāwat buried a dagger in his heart, exclaiming 'This for the bride!' 'And this for the tribute!' cried the Bhattī, repeating the blow. The pair then plied their daggers right and left, and 26 persons were slain before the envoys were hacked to pieces (_Tod_, ii. 45 & 315).

But it is in Malabar that we trace the apparent origin of the Malay term in the existence of certain desperadoes who are called by a variety of old travellers AMOUCHI or AMUCO. The nearest approach to this that we have been able to discover is the Malayālam _amar-kkan_, 'a warrior' (from _amar_, 'fight, war'). [The proper Malayālam term for such men was _Chaver_, literally those who took up or devoted themselves to death.] One of the special applications of this word is remarkable in connection with a singular custom in Malabar. After the ZAMORIN had reigned 12 years, a great assembly was held at Tirunāvāyi, when that Prince took his seat surrounded by his dependants, fully armed. Any one might then attack him, and the assailant, if successful in killing the Zamorin, got the throne. This had often happened. [For a full discussion of this custom see _Frazer, Golden Bough_, 2nd ed., ii. 14 sq.] In 1600 thirty such assailants were killed in the enterprise. Now these men were called _amar-kkār_ (pl. of _amar-kkan_, see _Gundert_ s.v.). These men evidently ran _a-muck_ in the true Malay sense; and quotations below will show other illustrations from Malabar which confirm the idea that both name and practice originated in Continental India. There is indeed a difficulty as to the derivation here indicated, in the fact that the _amuco_ or _amouchi_ of European writers on Malabar seems by no means close enough to _amarkkan_, whilst it is so close to the Malay _āmuk_; and on this further light may be hoped for. The identity between the AMOUCOS of Malabar and the AMUCK runners of the Malay peninsula is clearly shown by the passage from _Correa_ given below. [Mr Whiteway adds—"Gouvea (1606) in his _Iornada_ (ch. 9, Bk. ii.) applies the word AMOUQUES to certain Hindus whom he saw in S. Malabar near Quilon, whose duty it was to defend the Syrian Christians with their lives. There are reasons for thinking that the worthy priest got hold of the story of a cock and a bull; but in any case the Hindus referred to were really Jangadas."] (See JANCADA).

De Gubernatis has indeed suggested that the word _amouchi_ was derived from the Skt. _amokshya_, 'that cannot be loosed'; and this would be very consistent with several of the passages which we shall quote, in which the idea of being 'bound by a vow' underlies the conduct of the persons to whom the term was applicable both in Malabar and in the Archipelago. But _amokshya_ is a word unknown to Malayālam, in such a sense at least.

We have seen _a-muck_ derived from the Ar. _aḥmaḳ_, 'fatuous' [(_e.g._ _Ball, Jungle Life_, 358).] But this is etymology of the kind which scorns history.

The phrase has been thoroughly naturalised in England since the days of Dryden and Pope. [The earliest quotation for "running _amuck_" in the N.E.D. is from Marvell (1672).]

c. 1430.—Nicolo Conti, speaking of the greater Islands of the Archipelago
under the name of the Two Javas, does not use the word, but describes a
form of the practice:—

"Homicide is here a jest, and goes without punishment. Debtors are made
over to their creditors as slaves; and some of these, preferring death to
slavery, will with drawn swords rush on, stabbing all whom they fall in
with of less strength than themselves, until they meet death at the hands
of some one more than a match for them. This man, the creditors then sue
in Court for the dead man's debt."—In _India in the XVth C._ 45.

1516.—"There are some of them (Javanese) who if they fall ill of any
severe illness vow to God that if they remain in health they will of
their own accord seek another more honourable death for his service, and
as soon as they get well they take a dagger in their hands, and go out
into the streets and kill as many persons as they meet, both men, women,
and children, in such wise that they go like mad dogs, killing until they
are killed. These are called AMUCO. And as soon as they see them begin
this work, they cry out, saying AMUCO, AMUCO, in order that people may
take care of themselves, and they kill them with dagger and spear
thrusts."—_Barbosa_, Hak. Soc. 194. This passage seems to show that the
word _amuk_ must have been commonly used in Malay countries before the
arrival of the Portuguese there, c. 1511.

1539.—"... The Tyrant (_o Rey Ache_) sallied forth in person, accompanied
with 5000 resolute men (_cinco mil_ AMOUCOS) and charged the _Bataes_
very furiously."—_Pinto_ (orig. cap. xvii.) in _Cogan_, p. 20.

1552.—De Barros, speaking of the capture of the Island of Beth (_Beyt_,
off the N.W. point of Kāthiāwār) by Nuno da Cunha in 1531, says: "But the
natives of Guzarat stood in such fear of Sultan Badur that they would not
consent to the terms. And so, like people determined on death, all that
night they shaved their heads (this is a superstitious practice of those
who despise life, people whom they call in India AMAUCOS) and betook
themselves to their mosque, and there devoted their persons to death ...
and as an earnest of this vow, and an example of this resolution, the
Captain ordered a great fire to be made, and cast into it his wife, and a
little son that he had, and all his household and his goods, in fear lest
anything of his should fall into our possession." Others did the like,
and then they fell upon the Portuguese.—Dec. IV. iv. 13.