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G.
GAB.
Is the fevenfh Letter of the Alphabet, and the fifth Confonant : But in the Alphabets of all the Oriental Languages, the Hebrew, Phoenician, V Chaldee, Syriac, Samaritan, Arabic, and even Greek, G 'tis the third Letter. See Letter. The Hebrews call it Ghimel, or Gimel, a. d. Camel ; by reafon it refembles the Keck of that Animal : And the fame Appellation it bears in the Sarmatian, Phoenician, and Cbal- dee : In Syriac 'tis pronounced Gonial ; in Arabec, Giim, and in Greek, Gamma.
The Letter G is of the mute Kind, and cannot be any way founded without the Help of a Vowel. 'Tis form'd by the Reflection of the Air againft. the Palate, made by the Tongue, as the Air paflfes out of the Throat: Which Mar- tianus Capella expreiTes thus, G, fpiritus, cum falato ; fo that the G is a palatal Letter. See Letter, Mute, and Palatal.
The Latins took the Liberty to drop the Letter G at the Beginnings of Words, before an n ; as in gnatus, gnofco, gnobilis, gnarrat, &c. which they ordinarily wrote, natas, nofco, nobilis, Sec. They alfo frequently changed it into C, as Gamelus, into Camelus ; Grogulus, Graculus ; Quingentum, quincentum, &c. Sometimes it is put inftead of N, before aC, and another G ; as Agchifes, Agcora, Aggitilla, &c. for An- chifes, Ancora, Anguilla, &c. Inflead of y ; as Magilia, for Mapilia, &c. G is alfo ufed inflead of ^_, and J? inflead of G, as Anquina, Angina, Anguina, &c. Inflead of R, as Aqtiagium, for Aquarium ; Agger, Arger, Sec. And inflead of S, as Spargo, fparfi, fparfum ; or, rather, it is retrench'd from thofe lafl Words, to avoid the Cacophony of fpargfi, or fparcfi.
G, is alfo put for C; as Cneius, for Gneius; Cains, for Gains ; Gaeta, for Caieta : for V, as figere, for fivere.
The Northern People frequently change the G into V, or W; as in Callus, Walkis, Gallia, Wallia, Vallia, &c. For in this Inflance it muft not be faid that the French have changed the W into G; by reafon they wrote Gallus long before Wallus, or Wallia were known ; as appears from all the antient Roman and Greek Writers.
And yet, 'tis equally true, that the French change the W of the Northern Nations, and the V Confonant into G ; as Willielmns, William, into Guillaume, ; Wulphilas, into Gill- fhilas ; Vafco, into Gafcon, &c. It may be added, that the antient Gauls, and Celtce changed the T or v of the primitive Language into G: Accordingly, in the Eas Breton they flill faygouin, of yl Wine, from J", by changing the latter » into 1.
tDiomed. L. 1L de Lit era, calls G, a new Letter : His Reafon was, that the Romans had not introdue'd it before the firft 'Punic War ; as appears from the Roflral Column, erected by C. Duilius, on which we every where find a Cin lieu of G. It was Sp. Carvilius, who firft diftinguifh'd be- tween thofe two Letters; and invented the Figure of the G: as we are affured by Terentius Scaurns. The C ferved very well for G ; it being the third Letter of the Latin Alpha- bet, as theg or y was of the Greek.
The G is found inflead of C in feveral Medals : Vaillant Num. Impcrat. T". J. p. 39- M. Roger produces a Medal ot the Familia Oglllnia, where GAR is read inflead of CAR , which is on thofe of M. Path. But the C is more frequently feen on Medals, in lieu of G ; as AUCUSTAL1S CALLAECIA CARTACINENCES, &c. for AUGU- ST ALIS, &c. Not that the Pronunciation of thofe Words was alter'd ; but only that the G was unartfullyor negligently cut by the Workmen. As is the Cafe in divers Infcriptions of the Eaftern Empire; where AUC, AUCC, AUCCC, are fre- quently found for AUG, &c.
The Form of our G is taken from rhat of the Latins, who borrowed it from the Greeks ; the latin G being cer- tainly a Corruption of the Greek Gamma r, as might eafily be Ihcwn, had our Printers all the Characters and Forms of this Letter, which we meet withal in the Greek and La- tin MSS. thro' which the Letter pafs'd from r to G.
As to the Gamma of the Greeks, 'tis manifestly the J Ghimmel of the Hebrews, or Samaritans. All the Dif- ference between the Gamma and Ghimel confifts in this, that the one is turn'd to the Right, and the other to the Left, according to the different manners of writing and leading, which obtain'd among thofe different Nations : fo that all the pains Salmafuts has taken on Solinus, to prove that the G was derived from Greek Kappa, is loft.
G has alfo been us'd as a Numeral Letter, fignifying 400, according to the Verfe,
G Quadringcntos demonftrativa tenebit.
When a Dafh was added a-top the G, it fignify'd forty thoufand. See A.
G is alfo us'd in Mufic, to fignify one of the Clefs. See Clef.
G is the Clef of the higheft Part, call'd the Treble, or Alt. See Treble.
GABBARA, a Name the Egyptians gave the dead Bo- dies, which they kept by them, inftead of burying them.
That People, out of a Cuftom which they had receiv'd from their Ancestors, and which arofe in fome meafure from the Difpofition of their Country, which is expofed to the Inundations of the Nile; us'd to wrap up the Bodies of Per- fons of Piety and Eminence, particularly thofe of Saints, and Martyrs, in a great Number of linen Cloths, with Balms, and Spices ; and inflead of interring them, preferved them in their Houfes : thinking, that thereby they did them much more Honour. And thefe, St. Auguftin telis us, were what they call'd Gabaras. Sermon CXX. He diverjis, c. 12.
Pliny makes mention of the fame thing, L. VII. c. iff. where he relates, that in the time of Claudius a Gabbara was brought from Arabia, almoft ten Foot long.
Fa. Hardouin imagines, that Pliny here took the Word for a proper Name; and accordingly fearches in Tacitus, for one Abbarus, a King of Arabia : But Hardouin himfelf is not of that Opinion ; taking the Word to be rather the "VOJ Ghibbor, of the Hebrews ; or 1N3] Ghabbar, of the Ara- bians ; and to fignify a Gyant.
But the Jefuite Rofweyd has given us a much better Account in his learned Notes, on the Life of St. Anthony, c. 7 ; and in his Onomafticon, under the Word Gabbara ; where he fhews that we meet with both Gabbara, Gab- bares, Gabarus, and Gabbarus ; and that they all fignify a Bodyembalm'd; which he proves from the Teflimonies of Cicero, Tufcul. gnejl. ; of Pompon. Mela, L. I. c. 9. ; of Sextus Empirical, L. III.; Pyrrhon Hypothef. c. 24.; of Lucian, de Luttu; of Corippus, L. III. De funere Ju- ftiniani ; of St. Augufiin, CaJ/ian, Damafcenus, &c. See Mummy.
The Word is Arabic, Syriac, and Hebrew, form'd of 131 Gaber, a Man.
GABEL, or Gaeelle, in the French Cuftoms, a Duty or Impofition on Salt. See Salt.
The Gabelles is let out to Farm ; and make the fecond Article in the King's Revenue. See Duty, Farm, &c.
There are three Farms of Gabels ; the firft comprehends the greateft Part of the Kingdom : The a d is that of the Lyonnois and Langucdoc ; and the 2 a that oVDauphine and Provence. There are feveral Provinces exempt from the Gabel; having purchafed the Privilege of Henry II.
This Duty is faid to have had its Rife in France, in r28ff. under Philip the Fair. Philip the Long took a Double per Livre on Salt, by an Edict in 1 5 3 1 5 which he promis'd tor remit when he was deliver'd from his Enemies ; and which he did accordingly in 1545. King Jfo&sretum'd it In 13 55 ; and it was granted the Dauphin in 1358, to ranfom King John. Charles V. made it perpetual. Charles VII. rais'd it to fix Deniers: Louis XI. to twelve ; and Francis I. to 24, Livres per Muid. And it has been considerably augmented fincc. Philip de Valois firft eftablifh'd Granaries and Of- ficers of the Gabelles, and prohibited any Perfons from fel- ling Salt: From which time the whole Commerce of Salt, for the Inland Confumption, has lain wholly in the King's Hands, who fells and diftributes every Grain thereof by his Farmers, and Officers created for the purpofe.
The Produce of this Impoft is fo considerable, that it is computed to make one Fourth of the whole Revenue of the Kingdom ; and yields the Crown as much as all the Mings of Peru, Chilly Potqft, and the reft of America does the Spaniards.
Etymologifts are extremely divided as to the Origin of the Word. Some derive ir from the Hebrew Gab, a Pre- lent; others from °)3p to deliver; others from iT?3p Kab- balah, Receipt; others from Ghauel, or Gabe, unjuftLaw; others from the corrupt latin Gabella, or Galium, Tribute.—
Gabel is alfo us'd in fome of our antient Writers, for any fort of Tax, or Impofition : As Gabel of Wines, of Silks, &c. See Duty.
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GABI-
