SECT. I. From Mr. Smith's birth till the publication of the Theory of Moral Sentiments 403 SECT. II. Of the Theory of Moral Sentiments, and Differtation on the Origin of Lan- SECT. III. From the publication of the Theory of Moral Sentiments till that of the Wealth SECT. IV. Of the Inquiry into the Nature and Caufes of the Wealth of Nations CONSIDERATIONS CONCERNING THE FIRST FORMATION OF LANGUAGES, &c. &c. THE HE affignation of particular names to denote particular objects, that is, the institution of nouns fubftantive, would, probably, be one of the firft fteps towards the formation of language. Two favages, who had never been taught to fpeak, but had been bred up remote from the focieties of men, would naturally begin to form that language by which they would endeavour to make their mutual wants intelligible to each other, by uttering certain founds, whenever they meant to denote certain objects. Those objects only which were most familiar to them, and which they had most frequent occafion to mention would have particular names affigned to them. The particular cave whofe covering fheltered them from the weather, the particular tree whofe fruit relieved their hunger, the particular fountain whose water allayed their thirst, would first be denominated by the words cave, tree, fountain, or by whatever other appellations they might think proper, in that primitive jargon, to mark them. Afterwards, when the more enlarged experience of these favages had led them to obferve, and their neceffary occafions obliged them to make mention of other caves, and other trees, and other fountains, they would naturally beftow, upon each of those new objects, the fame name, by which they had been accustomed to exprefs the fimilar object they were firft acquainted with. The new objects had none of them any name of its own, but each of them exactly refembled another object, which had fuch an appellation. It was impoffible that those favages could behold the new objects, without recollecting the old ones; and the name of the old ones, to which the new bore fo clofe a refemblance. When they had occafion, therefore, to mention, or to point out to each other, any of the new objects, they would naturally utter the name of the correfpondent old one, of which the idea could not fail, at that inftant, to prefent itself to their memory in the strongest and livelieft manner. And thus, those words, which were originally the proper names of individuals, would each of them infenfibly become the common name of a multitude. A child that is just learning to |