_Pearl_ (Vol. vi., p. 578.; Vol. vii., pp. 18. 166.).--In the Old
German, _merikrioz_ is pearl; and in the Ang.-Sax. it is
_meregreot_,--the latter from _mere_, sea, and _greot_, grit, sand, or
_grot_, an {343} atom. These are so similar to the Greek _margaritas_,
and the _margarita_ of the sister language (Latin), that we may be
excused believing they have a common origin; more especially as we find
the first syllable (at least?) in almost all the cognate Indo-Germanic
or Indo-European languages: Latin, _mare_; Celt., _mor_; Gothic,
_marei_; Sax., _mære_ or _mere_; Old Germ., _meri_; Slavon., _more_ and
_morze_; Swed., _mar_; Iceland, _mar_; Esthon., _merri_; Lett.,
_marrios_.
Among modern languages, we have,--Span., _margarita_; Ital., _margarita_
and _maugherita_; Fr., _marguerite_, but used only in the proverb, "Il
ne faut pas jeter les marguerites devant les pourceaux." Johnson,
Webster, and Halliwell give _margarite_ as an English word. Probably all
derived from the Latin.
At the same time, although not occurring (as far as I am aware) in
either Greek or Latin, the word _pearl_ is found in some shape in most
of the same Indo-Germanic languages: thus, Ital. and Span., _perla_;
Low. Lat., _perla_; French, _perle_; Eng., _pearl_; Dan., _paarl_;
Swed., _perla_ or _p[)a]rla_; Bohem., _perle_; Ang.-Sax., _pearl_ and
_pærl_; Low. Sax., _berel_. Webster says the word _pearl_ may be
radically the same as _beryl_. In the Celtic we find, Irish, _pearla_,
and Welsh _perlyn_.
The Germans derive _pearl_ from _beer_, a berry, making thus _berle_ or
_beerlein_; as in Latin _bacca_ also means a pearl.
Some of your correspondents can, no doubt, inform us whether any
analogous words to _pearl_ and _margarita_ exist in the Sanscrit?