LANC. CELTIC. Washer, a round piece of leather which, when wetted, was pressed upon a stone to draw it up1 Wassail, a slender twig? "as waik as a wassail", a common simile Week, to squeak, to whine, as a pig (P.) Week, to kick (B.) Welle, a grassy field, a plain (Anturs of Arthur, p. 2); Du. veld, a field Welt, a doubling in a garment, a hem (C.); a ribbed knitting (P.) Went, the top part of a knit stocking (J.); a separate part from the rest, formerly made by a thicker, ribbed knitting; Germ. wende, the act of turning, a turn Wessel, to beat Whaff, a gust of wind Whale, to beat with a pliant stick Whap, a blow, to strike smartly. See Wap Wharre, crabs, the crab-tree; Wherr, very sour (C.); Wherled, soured, said of milk (J.) Whelk, a blow (P.) Wherry, to laugh, to giggle W. chwerthin, laughter, a laugh; to laugh; Arm. choarz, laughter; choarzin, to laugh Whew, a sudden transition or vanish- W. chwiw, a whirl, a quick turn ing Whewt, to whistle W. chwyth, a breath, a blast; chwy thell, a whistle; chwythellu, to whistle; Arm. chouitella, to whistle, to play on the flute 'In mechanics, the washer is a ring of metal or leather used to secure tightness of joints. 4TH SER., VOL. XIV. 8 LANC. CELTIC. Whiff, a glimpse; whiffle, to flut- Whig, a sweet cake or bun with Whin, furze Wise, a stalk, a plant; wyzles, potatoe stalks Wither, very strong, lusty (C.); witherin, large, powerful (B.); also astounding Wo, Wöa, the carter's cry to his Wistey a large populous place, a rish, harsh in flavour; Yary, acrid Yerk, Yark, to strike hard with a quick motion-jerk Yeanlin, a lamb just yeaned; A.-S. eanian, to yean WELSH OR IRISH. W. chwif, a quick, sudden move- W. chuiff, a hiss, a whiff, a puff W. gwydd, trees, shrubs; gwydden, W. uthr, terrible, awful; Arm. eūzuz, This list has extended to so great a length that I cannot venture to add any remarks on the social or other conditions which it denotes, or to offer any classification of the words. It reveals much that is interesting and important; but my main design has been to show that the Celtic element in the Lancashire dialect is very considerable; and this object has been accomplished by the mere presentation of the Celtic words that are found in it. These amount to more than seven hundred; and if to these we add the Celtic words which are not found in this dialect, but appear in the dialects of Cumberland on the north, and of Cheshire and Shropshire on the south, we shall have fully a thousand Celtic words that are yet retained, or were retained within this century, in a comparatively small part of the English soil. There are also some words that are probably due to this source; but being found in other languages, it is not easy to determine from what quarter they have been derived; as badger, a dealer in corn, Fr. bladier (cf. sojer from soldier), the Fr. word being drawn from the Celtic blawd=blad, meal; and bruit, to make a talk of; bruited, talked about; Fr. bruit, noise, common tale, report; W. brud (for brut), a report, a chronicle; Ir. bruidh-ean, noise, verbal quarrel. There is also a curious blending of words, apparently Celtic, in the Scandinavian languages, as Prof. Holmboe has pointed out in his Norsk og Keltisk, and hence a difficulty arises in assigning the derivation of some Lancashire words. Thus bool means either a curved handle or a child's hoop; O. N. böll-r, a round lump, a globe; W. bul (bool), a rotundity; Arm. boul, a round body; boul-as, a bud; (Cf. Sans. bul-i, womb or matrice; Hindust. bul-bul-a, a bubble; bul-uk, a large prominent eye). The word truss means a square mass of hay; O. N. truss, a bag, baggage; W. trwsa; Ir. trus, id.; Ir. trusach, a sheaf; Arm. trous; Fr. trousseau. In these and other instances, we may assume that they are from a Celtic source. There can be no doubt that Cumberland and Lancashire were inhabited by a Cymric race at the time of the Saxon invasion. But there are many Celtic words in the dialect that are not now found in the Welsh or Breton languages. Are we to infer that these languages have lost the words that are now found only in Irish or Gaelic? If the number of these words were small, we might make this inference, but as it is of a large amount, it seems more probable that there was a prior occupation of the land by an earlier branch of the Celtic stock. A race allied to the Irish or Gaelic people seems to have made the first Celtic migration into the land, probably from France or Holland, and from the south-eastern parts gradually to have spread themselves over the whole country: one part going westward to Ireland, and the other northward into Scotland. I subjoin some Lancashire words which, I think, are not Teutonic or Scandinavian, on which I shall be glad your readers can throw some light. if Bummlin, a blockhead. W. pump, a round mass? Cam, a head ornament. W. cam? Chitty-bauk, a small beam placed above the main beam. W. cytio, to cut, to diminish; cuta, short? Conivers, the kidneys of a beast. O. N. nyra, a kidney? Coppet, a stool. Copt means convex. Is coppet so called from its form, which was convex at the top? Cush, a cow without horns. Divelin, the swift; said to be so named from its ugliness and screeching note. W. dieflyn, a little devil or imp? Feague, a dirty idle person. Footer, Fotre, to take off the awn or beard of barley by an iron instrument. Ir. Gael. folt, hair, a tail? Footer is for Folter. Govelin, uneducated, rude. Hankle, to mar. Ir. ainghlim, to persecute? Kevel, to sprawl, to gambol. W. chwif, chwyf, a quick motion? Kizent, much dried. Mollicroy, to twist. W. mwl and crum? Pine, to dry over-much. Rallock, to romp. Eng. rollock? Skear, a squirrel's nest. W. caer? Smouch, to take slily. W. muci, a fog; much, darkness? Terrilood, chased by a dog. W. taer, eager, swift; elu, to go? Wesron, the alimentary canal in beasts. CORRIGENDUM. P. 4, last line, for handle read hackle. J. DAVIES. 109 THE SURVEY AND PRESENTMENT OF THE MANOR OF ROATH-KEYNSHAM IN GLAMORGAN. THE parish of Roath, into which enters a part of the manor of Roath-Keynsham, lies between Cardiff and the lower part of the Rhymny river, and consequently forms the south-eastern corner of the county of Glamorgan and of the Principality of Wales. The name occurs in a charter of about 1102 as "Raz". Merrick says that Jenkin ap Adam ap Cynaelthuy, great-grandsire of Sir William ap Thomas, married Alice, daughter and heiress of David Roth; from which family the place may have taken its name. But if, which is very doubtful, there was such a family, they are more likely to have taken their name from the place than to have given their name to it; for Roath or Raz is not, like Sully or Barry, an imported name. way The presentment is inscribed upon three skins of parchment, each 2 feet 4 inches long by about 12 inches broad, and stitched together with white silk thread. The left, or commencing side, has been pared close, so that one or sometimes two words are wanting all the down. Besides this, about 8 inches of the third skin has been cut off, with probably at the least one whole skin, as is shown by a comparison with the contents of a survey of the same manor in 1703, of which a copy of the part describing the boundaries (being the part wanting in the roll) has been preserved, and is here given. The remainder of the roll is in fair condition, save that a part of the heading is stained and obscured. There is no original endorsement; but the roll is addressed, in a later hand, to "Philip Lewis, Esq., Lanrumney." The sixteen jurors are designated as "generosi" or gentlemen, a title then confined to the son of an esquire, or to a landed proprietor above the rank of a yeoman, |