Tahiti, including Eimeo, was proclaimed a French colony. It is the residence of the governor-general of the French dependencies in the Pacific.
Literature.—The following list includes the books which seem most to deserve mention; Hawkesworth's Voyages, especially Wallis’s Voyage, H.M.S. "Dolphin," in vol. i., London, 1773; Cook’s Three Voyages, with Forster’s account of the second voyage; Freycinet, Voyage de la Coquille, and Lesson's account of the same voyage, Paris, 1839 ; Bennett, Whaling Voyage, London, 1840. For manners and customs of the natives, see Cook, Duff, Ellis. For modern statistics, see Desgraz, La Tahiti, Paris, 1845; Notices Coloniales, Paris, 1886, vol. ii. For the early history of the islands, see Ellis, Polynesian Researches, London, 1829; Vincendon-Dumoulin and Desgraz, Iles Taïti. Paris, 1844. For mission history, see Voyage of the Duff, London, 1799; Ellis; Williams, Missionary Enterprise in the South Sea Islands, London, 1839. For the French occupation, see Moerenhout, Voyage aux Iles du Grand Océan, Paris, 1837; Vincendon-Dumoulin and Desgraz; Pritchard, Polynesian Reminiscences, London, 1866.}} (a. v. h.)
TAIWAN. See Formosa.
TAJAK, Tajik, or Tautsik, a term originally occurring in the Pahlavi writings, and explained to mean, first, the Arabs in general, then their descendants born in Persia and elsewhere out of Arabia, and, lastly, the Persians in general and their descendants born in Turkestán and elsewhere out of Persia. Tajak has thus come to be the collective name of all communities of Iranian stock and Persian speech, wherever found in Central Asia. These are co-extensive with the former eastward and northward limits of the Persian empire; but, since the ascendency of the Tûrki races, they have become the subject element in Turkestán, Afghánistán, Bokhára, Khíva, Kashgaria, while still politically dominant in Badakhshán, Wakhán, Darwáz, Kost, and Karatéghin. In most of these places the Tajaks, with the kindred Galchas, seem to form the bulk of the population, the distinction being that Tajak is applied rather to the settled and more civilized lowlanders of modern Persian speech, Galcha to the ruder highlanders of Ferghána, Kohistán, Wakhán, &c., who speak either archaic forms of Persian or dialects intermediate between the Iranian and Sanskritic (Indian) branches of the Aryan linguistic family. The Tajaks are thus a settled Iranian people, agriculturists in the country, traders and artisans in the towns, and are essentially "Parsiván," that is, men of Persian speech,—this term, however, being more specially applied to those of Afghánistán. But, although mainly of Iranian stock, with light complexion and regular features, the Tajaks claim Arab descent, regarding the district about Baghdád as their primeval home, and considering themselves the descendants of the Arabs who overran Central Asia in the first century of the Flight. At the same time, "it is evident that the inhabitants of the greater part of this region (Central Asia) must from an early period have come in contact with the successive waves of Turkish (Tûrki) and even Mongol population which broke over them; accordingly we find that, although the type is essentially Iranian, it has undergone a certain modification, . . . face, though obviously Persian, is more oblong than that of the Turk, more or less heavy cheeks, thick nose, large mouth, wide forehead, . . . middle height, powerful frame, and broad shoulders, . . . dark hair, but among the Galchas a few fair people are found" (Capt. J. M. Trotter, Bokhára, p. 169). The term Tajak must also he distinguished from Sarte, the latter simply meaning "trader" or "shopkeeper," and being applied indiscriminately to the settled as opposed to the nomad element, and especially to the urban populations, of whatever race, in Central Asia. [1] The Tajaks are known as Tâts on the west side of the Caspian (Baku, Lenkoran, &c.).
TAKA. See Nubia.
TALAVERA de la Reina, a town of Spain, in the province of Toledo, is situated on the right bank of the Tagus, and on the railway from Madrid to Caceres, some 40 miles below Toledo and 64 miles south-east from Madrid. It was formerly surrounded by a triple circumvallation, portions of which still remain. It has no buildings of special interest, and its commerce and manufactures are inconsiderable. The population within the municipal limits in 1877 was 10,029.
Talavera is the birthplace (1536) of Mariana the historian. Wellington overcame a superior French force here on July 27–28, 1809.
TALBOT, Family of. Apart from its achievements, this is one of the few families in the English aristocracy which traces alike its descent and its surname from the Norman conquerors of England; and it may really be said that there has hardly been a time during the last eight hundred years in which the Talbots have not been of considerable account in public life. Yet in some periods they appear rather as a potential influence, while at certain marked epochs they stand out among the most prominent actors in English history. The name of Richard Talbot occurs in Domesday Book as the holder of nine hides of land in Bedfordshire under Walter Giffard, earl of Buckingham. There is no evidence that he came over to England with the Conqueror himself; and, as he did not hold of the king in capite, it is clear that he was not a leader. His son Geoffrey Talbot took part with the empress Maud against King Stephen. But apparently it was another son Hugh who continued the line; of whom it is recorded that he held the castle of Plessi against Henry I. for Hugh de Gournay, and afterwards became a monk at Beaubec in Normandy. His son Richard obtained from Henry II. the lordship of Linton in Herefordshire, and from Richard I. the custody of Ludlow castle; and his descendants for some generations appear to have been wardens of various castles on the borders of Wales. Under Edward II. a Gilbert Talbot was head of the house, and invaded Scotland in the king’s company, but afterwards took part with Thomas of Lancaster against the king. He, however, was pardoned, and obtained from Edward III. a confirmation of the grant of the manor of Linton and other lands to himself and his heirs.
His son Richard, who had married a daughter of John Comyn of Badenoch, laid claim to certain lands in Scotland in her right, and, when restrained from entering that country by land (Edward III. having then made an alliance with King David), he joined in a successful expedition which invaded it by sea in the interests of Edward Baliol. Three years later he was taken prisoner in Scotland, and redeemed for 2000 marks, after which the king made him governor of Berwick. He took part also in Edward's wars against France, as did likewise his son Gilbert, who succeeded him. At this time the family possessed lands in the counties of Oxford, Gloucester, Hereford, and Kent, and a little later in Berkshire, Wilts, Salop, and Essex. Another Gilbert Talbot, grandson of the last, claimed to carry the great spurs at the coronation of Henry V., and had a commission to receive the submission of Owen Glendower and his adherents. He also distinguished himself in the invasion of Normandy. He was twice married, his second wife being a Portuguese lady, but he left no male issue, and was succeeded by his brother John, the special hero of the family.
Hitherto the head of the house had borne the name of Lord Talbot; but this John, after obtaining by marriage the title of Lord Furnivall, was for his distinguished actions created earl of Shrewsbury. He made his name so terrible in France that for several generations afterwards French mothers used to threaten refractory children that the Talbots would come if they were not quiet (Brown’s Venetian Calendar, ii. 75). He rescued Maine from the
- ↑ "Qaand un Usbeg est devenu complètement sédentaire . . . il devient Sarte; le mot Sarte n’est donc pas une appellation ethnique" (Charles de Ujfalvy in Bul. Soc. Géogr., June 1878). But the Tajaks, being always settled, were the first to be known as Sartes; whence the still prevalent erroneous impression that the word had a racial meaning, implying an Iranian as opposed to a Tûrki element- Nevertheless there is a certain local etiquette observed in the use of the two words Tajak and Sarte, embodied in the popular saying: "When a stranger presents himself and eats your bread, call him a Tajak; when he is gone you may call him a Sarte."
