New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-07-26
SONS OF SOMEBODY, But OF WHOM,

A few weeks ago The Tribune published an in
teresting letter from Mr. Charles g. Leland on the
subject of the so-caled Latin races in which he
argued, with the weight Of great authority, that
those races were really NOT Latin at all, save in
the fact that their languages are more or less
derived from that of Rome His view of the
case must we think, be generally accepted as
correct but then the question arises, Who and
what are they? In some cases an answer may
be given with little trouble. In the case OF the
Spaniards, probably notseven Mr.. Leland would
undertake to give a complete and authoritative
answer 1t is, indeed, difficult to give any an
swcr at all that is satisfactory. We know that
many tribes and nations have made ncursions
into Spain, and left their mark there, and to
some extent colonzed the country. But the
autochthones remain an insoluble mystery, as
does also the very name of the land
The name Spain comes, OF course. from the
Latin Hispania But whence did 1t come?
There Is no answer Humboldt made the in
gcnious guess that 1t came from the Basque
"espana" meaning border or edge, referring TO
the fact that the peninsula is the extremity OF
the European Continent. That presuppOses
greater knowledge OF geography oil the part OF
the ancients than we are assured they pos
sessed The Greeks called II Iberia, and VIC
readily identify that name with that of the
River Iberus, which we call the Ebro. But did
the people and the land take their name from
the river or the river its name from them? The
first historical mention OF Spain Is In tho Bible
which speaks Of Tarshish, the Tartessus Of the
Romans, district in the southern part OF the
peninsula. And CadlZ IL the same as Gades, a
Phunician settlement, which Freeman declares
to have kept Its name and place and rank as a
great city longer than any other in Europe
But those names shed no light upon the obscure
problem.
Let II be granted that the autochthones were
Basoues or the ancestors OF the present
Bnsques. Who are the Basques? They are
kin to no other race in Europe. and their Ian
grage Is kin To no other, we might say, In the
world Some say II Is the tongue Adam and
Eve spoke before the Fall Others, that Tubal
Cain brought It to Spain Just before the Con
fusion at Babel Others. that II is the language
of the angels which the devil once tried to
learn, but abandoned after spending seven years
I'm learning three words This Is assured. that
i'm BASQUE II you spell word Solomon you
must pronounce II Nebuchadnezzar So II we
trace the Spanards back TO the Euskaldanac, as
the Basques call themselves, we have gone only
from one mystery to another and more pro-
found one We know Of many conques,s and
Implnntlng Of new stocks. PhGncia, Greece
and Carthage in turn contributed. The Romans
made Spain more Roman than Rome itself. and
left their lasting mark In the names Of many
cities which abide to this day. The Goths and
Vandals followed them and left similar marks
But amid all the original stock has persisted
and IFS identity to-day Is one OF the most
nuzzliuo of Genealogical prOblems perhnps never
10 he solved The Spanlard calls himself n HI
dalgo. which. being interpreted. means 1.-THE son
Of somebody" But whose son?