Series 03: Joseph Banks - Endeavour journal, 25 August 1768 - 12 July 1771 (vol. 2) - No. 0630
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[Page 630]
526
Some account of Princes Island
These specimens of Languages so near each other in situation I chose to give together & selected the words without any previous choise as I had wrote them down on a paper that the similar & dissimilar words might Equaly be seen as for the words parts of the Body which I have made the subject of this & all my specimens of Language I chose them in preference to all others as the names of them are easily got from people of whose Language the enquirer has not the least Idea, What I call the Javan is the Language spoke at Samarang a days journey from the seat of the Emperor of Java I have been told that there are several other languages upon the Island but those I had no opportunity of collecting words from meeting with no one who could speak them.
The Princes Islanders call their Languge Catta Gunung that is the Mountain Language, & say that it is spoken upon the mountains of Java from whence their tribe originaly came first to new Bay a few leagues only off & from thence to Princes Island driven there by the quantities of Tygers