ὃντος. Further, if, as is said to be the case the sanscrit word as originally meant “to breathe,” the similarity between it and Ainu is yet more striking, for the present-day word for “to blow” in Ainu is as or ash.
The words chacha for “papa,” chip, for “ship,” mat for “female,” pone for “bone,” tu for “two,” re for “three,” and pak for “punishment” have already been mentioned, as also has wakka or aka, Eng: “water” sanscrit: aka. There are others too which might well be compared such as poi, “little,” (Italian poço and poi), sion “a little boy” (Russian сынъ), but space will not allow this subject to be further persued here.
The chief argument, however, for an Aryan origin of the Ainu language will be found to lie in the Grammar rather than in vocabulary. And to it the Reader is now to be introduced.
In writing the Ainu language with the Roman alphabet, the following system has been adopted:—
| letters | pronunciation and remarks | |
|---|---|---|
| a | has the sound of a in the word “father” | |
| e | has the sound of e in the word “benefit” | |
| i | has the sound of i in the word “ravine” | |
| o | has the sound of o in the word “mote” | |
| u | has the sound of u in the word “rule” | |
| ai | has the sound of ai in the word “aisle” or i in ice. However, there are some few cases in which both vowls must be distinctly pronounced; as: aikka, “it was stolen.” | |
