fhield, a twig basket, or any thing concave like the ancient target. The word is ufed, in the Oriental tongues, to fignify whatever acts in, or upon, water; it fignifies alfo to wash, ND Sacha, lavit, ablutus fuit, quia natator non natat, nifi lavet (Schindler.) no Mi Sachua, navigable rivers, deep waters, which cannot be paffed without a boat, or by fwimming.-Quas fub pede tranfire non poterat, fed natando trajiciebant. nnon Mfcutha, balneum-and hence the Scythian or Irish Scuth, Scudh, a fhip, the Egyptian oxia fkeitia, rates, naves planæ (Kircher) and the Turkish Saica, Navigii genus, vulgò Saique, (Du Cange). Scytho Scandicè, Skeid, Lang baat ella Skuta, Navis longa. Ibid. Skaid, Skana, Skuta, rodarferior (Verelius. Lex.) In monumentis AngloSaxonicis Navigii genus nominatur Sceith, appellatum, fed quod hoc pertinere, non autumavero (Ihre). Sceith a oxuros, Corium ut navigia corio inducta (Junius). In like manner, the words fignifying a hide, do alfo fignify a boat, as oxvar, Coriarii; axuloons, Coriarii Urbs, Scythopolis. In Irish, Bolgh, Bolo, a hide from yba bolgh tegere, whence na Bolun, a hide; and this word gave name to the Belgi or Scythians, on the Cafpian Sea, and to the river Bolga or Volga, because inhabited by these Scythians, who paffed weftward; whence Phlugh in the Armenian, Fluk Arabicè, Vlog Sclavonicè, and Filuka in Italian, a ship. Gr. B. Bax, Navis, Scapha (s). Kali et A mo (s) The Celts or Gemerites, and the Scythians or Magogians, were both named Bolgi or Belge, from the invention and ufe of the boat or ship covered with Hides. Why may not the Keltoi or Celts have derived their name from another invention in boat-building, that is, from the Phoenician or Hebrew Kaia Ets? Kala, fignifies, affare, torrefacere, and Ets a tree. Kalia, toftum, whence the Latin Culina, and non a colendo igne, ut ait Varro. (Tomaffin. Gloff, Hebr.) From the Oriental Kala, this learned Etymologist derives Käλor, Lignum. Kaav, Chalybes, ferrum, fcilicet ignitum; et Xxxdov, Chalandium, Navicula ad incendenda omnes alias, hinc Chalanņus. Calannus, Media Lat. dictus, Gallice Challan, bateau challan. A Kala eft Saxon, Caele Angl. Keel, Gall, Quille, Hifp. Quilla. Forfan et hinc Chaloupe, Navis minor (Tomaffin). If then the Greeks adopted the Scythian and Oriental word ẞλxи, i. e. Navis from Bolg, a boat covered with hide, whence Belga; by the fame A modern Lexiconift (Willmet Lex. in Coranum) has given the Arabic word a different explanation, viz. fluk, and Chald. 75 plak in gyrando, circumvolvendo, fororiantes mammas habuit Virgo. Navis gyrando. fpec. arca Noachi, tumentior rotundiorque pars cujufque reitrue, our bolg fignifies a fwelling or rotundity of any kind; but the application of the word to a ship can have no reference to Noah's ark. Coth, Corrach, Croich, in Irish, fignify also a hide and a boat; hence the Magogians, or original Scythi, and Inventors of this kind of boat, called themselves, or were called Aiteach-Cothi, i. e. the Old Navigators or Ship-men, a name corrupted by the Latins into Attacotti; hence the Oriental - M-Cutha Navis; Ægypt. Katoa. Sic Kitii populi Scythiæ circa mare Cafpium apud Strabonem: nec aliunde nomen hoc, quam a Kithiis hodieque Cataini (Boxhornius)- hence Cothi, Gothi, Geta, were fynonimous names of the children of Gomer and of Magog, confufed in fucceeding ages by a mixture of the Scuthi; whence Syncellus Exa, For your xps. Scythæ, qui etiam Gothi fua lingua; & Tribellius Pollio Scythæ, i. e. pars Gothorum Afiam vaftabant: the Greeks and Latins knew not how to make the diftinction, which caufed Salmafius to ob fame argument, they might have given the name Keltoi to the fame maritime people, who we know did alfo conftruct boats, by burning the tree hollow by fire, which operation would be named by the Orientalists ryn Kalah-ets, and by the Greeks might have been corrupted to Keltoi, i. e. tree-burners, for making boats, in the fame manner they formed Khor Lignum; yet I must own, that Kalon is in my opinion formed of the Scythian Keile, Arbor; and not from Kala, ardere ; hence in Arabic Kalaa, navigavit. So in the Suio-Gothica, Ek, an Oak, forms Eka, and Ekftock, a Ship, a boat. Scapha; inde dicta quod ab excavato robore confecta fuerit, quod genus navigiorum fine dubio omnium antiquiffimum fuit, et quo præcipue ufcs fuiffe veteres Gothos, et Germanos, apud auctores, relatum legimus. Arrhianus de expedit, Alex. M. p. 9. Edit. Gronov, nominat eorum nola porožuxa, quorum apud Getas πολλὴν εὐπορίαν fuiffe dicit. Plin. L. XVI. c. 40. Hift. Nat. perhibet Germaniæ prædones fingulis arboribus cavatis navigaffe, eorumque quafdam triginta hominum tuliffe. Nec dubito, quin veterum caudicæ ejufdem formæ fuerint, de quibus A. Gellius. Ser ecca de brevitate vitæ, &c. ibi notas, (ihre, Gloff. Suis-Goth,) ferve, hoc nomen Exʊn varie a Græcis enunciatum eft, & multas μεταπτωσεις incurrit : nam Σκύθης, Γέτης & Γότθος idem eft. Thus alfo the Gomerites named one tribe of themselves Brigantes, from their being shipmen, and using a vessel called Brig or Brigantin. (See the conclufion of this Introduction.) Si tanto autem in pretio ftudiofe habentur vetera Principum numifmata, aut nummi corum imaginibus infculpti; quanti eftimanda funt vocabula longè numifmatibus quibufcumque antiquiora, quæ licet magis fluxa ac fragiliori commendata metallo, hactenus tamen linguæ ; mundo ipfi pænè coævæ veftigia fervant. Hence the general name of these people was Scuthi and Go-im; that is, Shipmen and Seamen; and hence Goim and Cuthai are ufed by the Hebrew writers to exprefs foreigners, or people that came from another country by water. In like manner the ancient Perfians were called Agem, that is, Japhetans, from Aigh, the Armenian or Scythian name of Japhet: the Arabs converted this word into an opprobrious meaning, and fignified thereby Barbarians, but it really means no more, than those nations which are not Arabians by birth or origin, and in particular the Perfians, and all comprized under the Perfian Empire. The Perfians called their ancient Kings Molouck Agem, King of the Japhetans; they would not ftile their Kings Barbarians. The pofterity of our Magogians navigated the Euphrates in thefe Skin wattled Boats, in the time of Herodotus, who, in his Clio, gives a very particular account "The Veffels, fays he, that defcend the river to Babylon, are round, and in great measure compofed of skins. of them. 66 66 For when they have cut the ribs out of willows, "growing in the hills of Armenia, they cover them with hides extended on the outfide to ferve for a bottom, making no distinction of stem or ftern. Iu thefe vef"fels, lined with reeds, and freighted with merchandize, and especially with cafks of Palm Wine, they venture 66 on the river. Two men ftanding upright, with a pole "in the hand of each, one pulling to and the other "putting off, dire&t the course of these boats; fome of "which are very large, and others lefs: but the most capacious carry the weight of 5000 Talents (about "160 tons). Every veffel has an Afs on board, and the "greatest more. Atter they arrive at Babylon, and have "difpofed of their goods, they fell the ribs of the boat "with the reeds; and loading the hides on the Affes, "return by land to Armenia, the River not being navigable upwards by reafon of the rapidity of the "ftream (o)." Herodotus does not mention how these Hides were put on; they were fowed together with ftrong woollen yarn, as practifed at this day in the Weft of Ireland; and the Omanites of Arabia, the defcendants of our Magogians, continue at this day to few the planks of their Veffels together, as we shall hereafter have occafion to mention. In fine, these Sons of Japhet, being by fituation and by neceffity (on the banks of the Cafpian and Euxine Seas) navigators and fishermen, had the honour of giving names to fhips and boats of all manner of conftru&tion, being originally of their invention; and the names of navigating veffels in all languages are to be traced in their dialect, even at this day, namely, in the Scythic, and all its variations. The Hebrew, Chaldaic, Arabic, and all the European dialects retain these names, and the inventors are still known by the name of Scuthi, in honour and in memory of their invention. Can there be a more honourable name than that of a Scor? Has any nation contributed fo much to the ufe, or to the luxury of mankind, or to general knowledge, by bringing the learning of the world to one concentrical point? What nation on earth have fo great a right to give maritime laws to all the world as the Subjects of the King of Great Britain, the defcendants of thefe Skuthi, or Shipbuilders, and Navigators-Masters of the Seas these three thousand years ? (0) Littebury's translation, p. 122. The The Turks defcendants of these Magogian Scythians, have always kept up this title of Sovereigns of the Seas. The Legends on the Coins of the Turkish Emperors run thus: Soultan el Bereïn uc Hakkan el bahrein: i. e. Rex The Breber or Amazig of Barbary, the defcendants of the old Numidians took this title alfo; but when the Moors drove them to the mountains, and ufurped the fovereignty, they affumed the title, and we find round the Tunifians coins of a modern date. When our Nemedians paffed from Africa to Spain, they preferved the title, fabling that Siim Breac (or Hercules) was married to the Sea, to Erythra (Arthrac) the Ship, &c. When this colony paffed to the Britannic Iles, and the Tyrians and Carthaginians were feated in Spain, they ufurped the title; but, with the Scoti or Scythi of the Britannic Ifles it has invariably remained. Their countrymen, feated at Crotin in Italy, preserved the title, and from them it defcended to the Etrufcans, fictitiously forming the name of the Voyaging Hercules, by two old Scythian words, viz. Fear, homo; Taom or Taoman, Oceanus, whence Vertumnus, in Etrufcan, fignifies Neptune, Hercules the Voyager, &c. &c. The |