Note 418 — APPENDIX.

For Isidorus Hispalensis, see Antonio, Bib. Vet., Lib. V. capp. iii., iv.; and Castro, Bib. Esp., Tom. II. pp. 293-344. I judge Isidore’s Latinity chiefly from his “Etymologiarum Libri XX.,” and his “De Summo Bono, Libri III.,” fol., 1483, lit. Goth. No doubt, there are many words in Isidore of Seville, that are not of classical authority, some of which he marks as such, and others not; but, on the whole, his Latinity is respectable. Among the corrupt words he uses are a few that are curious, because they have descended into the modern Castilian; such as, “astrosus, ab astro dictus, quasi malo sidere natus,” (Etymol., 1483, fol. 50. a,) which appears in the present astroso, the familiar term for unhappy, disastrous, and permitted by the Spanish Academy;—cortina, of which Isidore says, “Cortinæ sunt aulæa, id est, vela de pellibus, qualia in Exodo leguntur,” (Etym., f. 97. b,) which appears in the modern Spanish cortina, for curtain;—”camisias vocamus, quod in his dormimus in camis,” (Etym., f. 96. b,) which last word, cama, is explained afterwards to be “lectus brevis et circa terram,” (Etym., f. 101. a,) and both of which are now Spanish, camisa being the proper word for shirt, and cama for bed;—”mantum Hispani vocant quod manus tegat tantum, est enim brevis amictus,” (Etym., f. 97. a,) which is the Spanish manto;—and so on with a few others. They are, however, only curious as corrupted Latin words, which happened to continue in use, till the modern Spanish arose several centuries later.