Quod, imprisonment, is an old English cant and Gipsy word which Mr Hotten attempts to derive from a college quadrangle; but when we find that the Hindu quaid also means confinement, the probability is that it is to it we owe this singular term.

There are many words in which it is evident that the Hindu Gipsy meaning has been shifted from a cognate subject.  Thus putti, the hub of a wheel in Gipsy, means the felly of a wheel in Hindustani. Kaizy, to rub a horse down, or scrape him, in the original tongue signifies “to tie up a horse’s head by passing the bridle to his tail,” to prevent his kicking while being rubbed or ’scraped. Quasur, or kasur, is in Hindustani flame:  in English Gipsy kessur signifies smoke; but I have heard a Gipsy more than once apply the same term to flame and smoke, just as miraben stands for both life and death.

Very Oriental is the word kismet, or destiny, as most of my readers are probably aware.  It is also English Gipsy, and was explained to me as follows:  “A man’s kismut is what he’s bound to kair—­it’s the kismut of his see.  Some men’s kismut is better’n wavers, ’cos they’ve got more better chiv.  Some men’s kismut’s to bikin grais, and some to bikin kanis; but saw foki has their kismut, an’ they can’t pen chichi elsus.”  In English, “A man’s destiny is what he is bound to do—­it is the fate of his soul (life).  Some men’s destiny is better than others, because they have more command of language.  Some are fated to sell horses, and others to sell hens; but all people have their mission, and can do nothing else.”

Quran in the East means the Koran, and quran uthara to take an oath.  In English Gipsy kurran, or kurraben, is also an oath, and it seems strange that such a word from such a source should exist in England.  It is, however, more interesting as indicating that the Gipsies did not leave India until familiarised with Mohammedan rule.  “He kaired his kurran pre the Duvel’s Bavol that he would jal ’vree the tem for a besh.”  “He swore his oath upon God’s Breath (the Bible) that he would leave the country for a year.”  Upon inquiring of the Gipsy who uttered this phrase why he called the Bible “God’s Breath,” he replied naively, “It’s sim to the Duvel’s jivaben, just the same as His breathus.”  “It is like God’s life, just the same as His breath.”

It is to be observed that nearly all the words which Gipsies claim as Gipsy, notwithstanding their resemblance to English, are to be found in Hindustani.  Thus rutter, to copulate, certainly resembles the English rut, but it is quite as much allied to rutana (Hindustani), meaning the same thing.  “Sass,” or sauce, meaning in Gipsy, bold, forward impudence, is identical with the same English word, but it agrees very well with the Hindu sahas, bold, and was perhaps born of the latter term, although it has been brought up by the former.