olite discoveries of wit and Science, and have been cherisht and nurst
up to our hands by the most knowing and ingenious of all Nations.

I can hardly believe I shall meet with any inclinable to quarrell me for
the number of 24. that I have thought on for my designe, since I presume it
no easie matter for the most nicely curious to find a just occasion; and
although there are none of them that are not unquestionably deriv'd from
the same originall, it being no great difficulty to convince any well
settled head, that in the propriety of speech there is but one mother
Language: Yet to avoid confusion I distribute them all into 7. different
orders, as they seem to carry an immediate reference to the Languages,
which are the commonly suppos'd originals: such are in the opinion of the
Learned the _Roman_, and the _Greec_, the _Teutonic_ and _Sclavonic_, the
_Hebrew_, _Scythian_, and the _Persian_.

The Roman Idioms are the _Italian_, _Spanish_ and _French_, which cannot
now be unknowne to any but such as are shamefully ignorant; I may adde
likewise the _Portuguese_, which although not very different from the
_Castilian_, yet is not wanting in its owne particular beauties, and hath
receiv'd no mean accession of use and honour from the conquests of its
Kings in the most remote parts of the world.

To the Greec I shall reduce its 3. principall relations, _viz_ the Literall
Greec, such as we meet with in our old Classic Authors, the vulgar as it is
commonly used since the declining age of the Empire at Constantinople, and
the Coptique or AEgyptian, which is but a remainder of the famous government
of the Ptolomies in AEgypt: for although in its idiome there be something
yet remaining of an originall stamp, either in that its words seem to touch
upon the auntient Language of the Pharaohs, or that its inflection no way
resembles the Greec, yet the Empire of Alexander and his successors induc'd
such a confusion, that the Greec hath almost got the better, and involv'd
all the lesser remains of Antiquity.

Under the Teutonic I comprehend the Almain or high German, the Flemmish or
low Dutch, the English and the Danish, which is to this day entertain/'d in
the most Northerne regions, and may give us some intimations of a clearer
light then any besides, as having yet carefully secured some footsteps of
the ancient Language.

The Sclavonic is accompani'd with 3. more considerable dialects the true
Sclavonic, the Polish, and Muscovitis