The difference between the Peshawar and Candhar dialect is, that in the former the Persian is used, when in the latter the Sanscrit ष occurs. The Candharee is reckoned the purest dialect; and when correctly spoken, resembles in the plaintiveness of its tones the peculiar dialect of Ireland. The Alphabet is as follows. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... English. a b p th t J ch h kh Z d th d r d Ꮓ J S sh jh S dz t Pronunciation. as the second a in parable, as the English, Ditto, ditto, as the Continental t, as th in things, as the English, as the English j, as the English, as the aspirated h, as ch in the Scotch loch, the Afghan z used for coupling, the Continental d, as th in those the harsh English d, the English r, the peculiar Maratha d, the English 2, the French j in jour, the English 8, the English sh, unknown in English, the Arabic dwàd, the Arabic dzwàd, the Arabic t, The same story is told of the Afghán language, that the Mahrattas tell of the Canarese, viz., That a certain king sent his vizier to collect all the vocabularies and dialects of the earth; on the vizier's return he proceeded to quote specimens before his royal Master: when he came to speak of the Afghánee dialect, he stopped, and producing a tin pot containing a stone, began to rattle it. The king in surprise asked the meaning of this proceeding. The vizier said that he had failed to get a knowledge of the Afghánee language, and could only describe it by rattling a stone in a tin pot. It is also said, that Mahammad, the Arabian prophet, gave it as his opinion that the Afghánee was to be the language of the infernal regions, as Arabic was to be that of heaven. In the comparison of languages, in which Arabic is called science, (ilm); Turkish accomplishment, (hunar); Persian sugar; Hindustanee salt; the Afghán is complimented with the appellation of the "braying of an ass." |