CHAPTER II.

Of the Formation of Speech.

Having sufficiently analysed each character, separately in the German alphabet, I shall now proceed to treat of the force of each of them when conjoined.

1. Syllables.

A syllable is formed by uniting together a certain number of individual signs, among which there must indispensably be, one single vowel, or diphthong. These characters, when pronounced, produce an intelligible sound, which is enunciated by means of a single opening of the mouth.

2. Words, and their Derivation.

Words are articulate sounds, used by common consent, as signs of our ideas, and contain as many syllables as there are vowels or diphthongs comprized in them. Words of one syllable are called monosyllables; those of two syllables, dissyllables; words of three syllables, trisyllables; and words of four or more, polysyllables. The monosyllables are to be considered, in the German language, as original or radical words; but the pe lysyllables are formed in three different ways: 1. By means of (Biegung) inflexion, as des Mann-es, of

the

the man; der Weich-e, (the) soft; fest-er, faster ; lie-ben, to love; ich lie-be, I love, &c. 2. By means of (Ableitung) derivation; and 3. By means of (Zusammensetzung) composition.

It will, however, be superfluous to dwell any longer on a subject, which would only bewilder the student in perusing this work. Suffice it, for the present, to observe, that language, among rude and illiterate people, possesses a certain degree of roughness and want of consistency; but as they become more refined, by the influx of new manners, ideas, and modes of thinking, then also their language becomes regular and improved. From hence it happens, that the deep vowels gradually pass on to the next higher ones, and the broad and rough diphthongs into the softer ones.

3. By Composition or Junction,

With respect to the formation of compound words I shall be very brief. I introduced the former and this subject merely as preliminary to the sequel (see the formation of substantives), and as being necessary to exhibit the progression of speech,

If two words be united into one, there ensues a composition, or a compound word. This junction is done for the sake of assisting the ideas, which no simple word can express. The word to which

the attention should be drawn, is the radical one, and always stands behind.*

CHAPTER III.

Of the Accent or Tone of Words.

Having sufficiently dwelt upon the articulation of single characters, their formation into syllables, and single and compound words, the next thing to be considered is, the relation they bear to each other, and the power with which they are pronounced.

Every thing, in the German pronunciation, as well as in other modern languages, depends on the accent, i. e. the peculiar emphasis which syllables require, in order to pronounce the words with correctness.

It seems, that every modern language has a kind of predilection for its accent. The rules which I am about to lay down on that head, as far as they relate to the subject, may be considered by the student as decisive, and the true criterion. It must, however, be observed, that it is not my intention here to give a full description and explana

This is merely applicable to words, but not to syllables or sounds; because the two latter do not give a clear, but merely an obscure idea, whereas words are expressions of a certain determinate representation,

planation of the German metre, or the mecha nical part of German versification: I shall introduce the subject, only, as far as it is necessatily connected with the former instructions. The subsequent rules, therefore, will be quite sufficient for the student, who wishes to acquire the genuine principles of correct pronunciation. With regard to the other part, which refers to the length, shortness, or quantity of syllables (of which I shall treat distinctly under the head of German prosody), it ought not to be confounded with the present subject.

GENERAL STANDARD

FOR THE

GERMAN ACCENT.

According to the most celebrated modern German grammarians (especially professor Gottsched and Adelung), they have adopted as a standard and general rule, that the accent in German is mostly placed on the radical syllable; consequently the auxiliary syllables, which are to be found at the beginning or the end of a word, are never accented.

However ingenious and satisfactory this assertion may appear to the philological mind, and however this notion may be fully confirmed by a strict

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