C.P.G. Scott

**Charles Payson Gurley Scott** was a professor of Anglo-Saxon at Columbia University, 1879-1888.

The article found in *Journal of the American Oriental Society*, vol. 17, article III. Presented to the Society in April 1896.

## Text

### The Malayan words in English

#### English original

**Abada**, a rhinoceros, a word frequent in the Hakluyt period; also *abado* and once *abath*. It is a transfer of Portuguese *abada* (*a.* 1598), Spanish *abada* (*a.* 1585), New Latin *abada* (1631). This is a mistaken form, arising probably by attraction of the vowel of the article *la* (*la bada* taken as *l'abada*), of what was also used in the proper form *bada*, Portuguese *bada* (1541), Spanish *bada* (1611), Italian *bada* (c. 1606), (not noted in English or New Latin). See the quotations in Yule. *Bada* seemd to be feminin, and hence was by some thought to be "the female Vnicorne."

The word is found in all the principal languages of the Malayan Archipelago. *Bada* is from Malay بادق‎ `bādaḳ`, a rhinoceros. Achinese *badak*, *baděk*, *baduěh*, Batak *badak*, Lampong *badak*, Javanese *warak*, Sundanese *badak*, Balinese *warak*, Dayak *badak*, Macassar *bada*, Bugis *badak*. The final ق ḳ in Malay pronunciation is faint, and often silent. It does not appear in the Macassar form, from which, indeed, the Portuguese and Spanish *bada* may hav been derived. It is absent in the English rendering of several Malay names of places, as in *Ava*, Malay آوق `Āwaḳ`, *Batta* beside *Batak*, Malay باتق `Bātaḳ`, *Sulu*, *Sooloo*, Malay سولق‎ `Sūluḳ`. So *Perak* ڤيرق‎ `Pēraḳ`, *Dayak* دايق‎ `Dāyaḳ` ar usually pronounced without the ḳ.

The pronunciation of the form *abada* must hav been, of course, a-bâ'da. An erroneous accentuation â'ba-da may hav been in use also; the form *abath* implies this. But the form *abda*, which if genuin, would prove the latter accentuation, is a mistake (see below).

>
> `Badac`. Rinoceros.
>
>
>
> —1631 Haex, p. 4.
>

>
> بادق‎‎‎ `bādak` the rhinoceros. `Tandok bādak` or `chūla bādak` the rhinoceros horn.
>
>
>
> —1812 Marsden, p. 31.
>

>
> بادق `bâdakh` eenhoorn, rhinoceros. `Bâdakh gâdjah` rhinoceros met één hoorn. `Bâdakh karbau` rhinoceros met twee hoornen.
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>
>
> —1825 Roorda van Eysinga, p. 36.
>

>
> `Badak` (J. *warak*). The rhinoceros.
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>
>
> —1852 Crawfurd, p. 14.
>

>
> بادق `badak`, neushoorn; `— gadjah`, n. met één, `— karbau` n. met twee hoorns; `lidah —` cochenille-cactus. (Bat. id. Jav. *warak*, Mak. *badà*.)
>
>
>
> —1863 Pijnappel, p. 27.
>

>
> بادق `bādaḳ`, le rhinocéros....Jav. . . . *wadak* [read . . . *warak*], Sund. . . . *badak*. Bat. . . . *badak*, Mak. . . . *bada*. Day. *badak*.
>
>
>
> —1875 Favre, 2:164
>

>
> بادق `bādaḳ`, neushoorn: `tjoela b.`, het hoorn van den neushoorn : `līdah b.` (neushoorntong), naam der cactusachtige gewassen, inz. van den cochenille-cactus....
>
>
>
> —1877 Wall and Tuuk, 1:184.
>

>
> `Bâdak` بادق a rhinoceros.
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>
>
> —1881 Swettenham (1887), 2:7.
>

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> بادق `badaḳ`, rhinoceros, het neushoorndier ; `b. gadjah`, die één en `b. kěrbau`, die twee neushorens heeft.....
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>
>
> —1893 Klinkert, p. 80.
>

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> `Badak`, rhinoceros; `Badak gadjah`, eenhoornige rhinoceros; `Badak kěrbau`, tweehoornige rhinoceros; `Tjoela badak`, hoorn van een rhinoceros; `Lidah badak`, opuntia cochinillifera, een heester, veel aangekweekt voor de cochenillecultuur.
>
>
>
> —1895 Mayer, p. 27.
>

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> `Badak`, بادق. The rhinoceros....
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>
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> —1895 Clifford and Swettenham, p. 106.
>

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> *Badak* neushoorn.
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>
>
> —1879 Dias, *Lijst van Atjehsche woorden*, p. 160.
>

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> `Badaq` rhinoceros, *badoe-ěh*.
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>
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> —188o Arriens, *Maleisch-Hollandsch-Atjehsche woordenlijst*, p. 8.
>

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> بادق *baděḳ*, neushoorn; rhinoceros; *soemboeh —* , de hoorn van den rhinoceros.
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>
>
> —1889 Langen, *Woordenboek der Atjehsche taal*, p. 26.
>

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> *Badak* (ook Ab[oengsch]. v. H.), rhinoceros.
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>
>
> —1891 Helfrich, *Lampongsch-Holl. woordenboek*, p. 33.
>

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> *Warak*, neushoorndier, renoceros.
>
>
>
> —1835 Roorda van Eysinga, *Algemeen Javaansch en Nederduitsch woordenboek*, p. 641.
>

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> . . . [*warak*] N[goko et] K[rama], rhinoceros.
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>
>
> —1870 Favre, *Dictionnaire javanais-français*, p. 290.
>

>
> *Badak*, the rhinoceros, Rhinoceros Sumatrensis....
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>
>
> —1862 Rigg, Dict. of the Sunda lang., p. 29.
>

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> *Warak* rhinoceros.
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>
>
> —1876 Eck, *Balineesch-Holl. wrdbk.*, p. 149.
>

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> *Badak*, d. Nashorn.
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>
>
> —1859 Hardeland, *Dajacksch-deutsches wörterbuch*, p. 24.
>

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> *Badak* rhinoceros.
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>
>
> —1885 Aernout, *Woordenlijstje der Tidoengsche taal*, p. 541.
>

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> . . . *Bâdá* bep. *bâdaka*. 't Mal. `bádakh` rhinoceros.
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>
>
> —1859 Matthes, *Makassaarsch-Hollandsch woordenboek*, p. 173.
>

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> Rhinoceros . . . *badak* `badak`.
>
>
>
> —1833 [Thomsen], *Vocab. of the Eng., Bugis and Malay lang.*, p. 20.
>

The English use appears, as in the case of many other strange animals then first heard of in the far East, and the far West, in the voyages and histories composed or translated in the later decades of the sixteenth century.

>
> It is a very fertile country, with great stoare of prouisioun; there are elephants in great number and *abadas*, which is a kind of beast so big as two great buls, and hath vppon his snowt a little horne.
>
>
>
> —1588 R. Parke, tr. Mendoza (orig. 1585), *Historie of the great and mightie kingdom of China*, etc. (Hakluyt soc., 1853), 2:311. (Y.)
>

>
> We sent commodities to their king to barter for Amber-greese, and for the hornes of *Abath*, whereof the Kinge onely hath the traffique in his hands. Now this *Abath* is a beast which hath one horne only in her forehead, and is thought to be the female Vnicorne, and is highly esteemed of all the Moores in those parts as a most soveraigne remedie against poyson.
>
>
>
> —1592 Barker in Hakluyt (1807), 2:591. (Y.)
>

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> The *Abada*, or Rhinoceros is not in India, but only in Bengala and Patane.
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>
>
> —1598 tr. Linschoten, *Discours of voyages into y' easte & weste Indies*, p. 88 (Y.); repr. Hakluyt soc. (1885), 2:8.
>

>
> Also in Bengala are found great numbers of the beasts which in Latine are called *Rhinocerotes*, and of the Portingalles *Abadas*.
>
>
>
> —1598 *Id.* p. 28 (Y.); repr. Hakluyt soc. (1885), 1:96.
>

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> Camboia lyeth Southward from thence, a great and populous Countrie, full of Elephants and *Abada's* (this Beast is the Rhinoceros).
>
>
>
> —1613 Purchas, *Pilgrimage*, p. 387.
>

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> In Bengala are found great numbers of *Abadas* or *Rhinocerotes*, whose horn (growing up from his snowt,)....is good against poyson, and is much accounted of throughout all India.
>
>
>
> —1613 *Id.* p. 400.
>

See other quotations in Yule and the Stanford dictionary; and references in Pennant, *Synopsis of quadrupeds*, 1771, p. 75.

1. ↑ Yule, Henry and Burnell, Arthur Coke. *Hobson-Jobson: being a glossary of Anglo-Indian colloquial words and phrases, and of kindred terms; etymological, historical, geographical and discursive*. London, 1886. 8vo, 48+870 p.
2. ↑ This passage is quoted, with the unmarkt omission of some words (from "snowt" to "is good"), and with the reference "(1864) 2," in the N.E.D.: and the word *Abadas* is erroneously printed *Abdas*.