Notes and Queries, Number 30, May 25, 1850 | Page 9

Hardy says in his evidence:--
"In the British Museum there is a Latin letter of Elizabeth of Austria,
Queen of Charles IX. of France, to Queen Elizabeth of England. In the
Latin she is called Elizabetha, and she signs her name Ysabel. In the
_Chronicle de St. Denis_, in the year 1180, it is stated, 'Le jor martmes
espousa la noble Roine Ysabel,' 'Upon this day, Queen Elizabeth was
married;' and in Rigordus de Gestis Philippi Augusti Regis Francois it
is stated, 'Tune inuncta fuit Elizabeth uxor ejus venerabilis foemina;'
and Moreri says she is called 'Elizabeth or Izabeau de Hainault, Queen
of France, wife of Philippe Auguste.' Camden, in his _Remains_, says,
'Isabel is the same as Elizabeth;' that the Spaniards always translate
Elizabeth into Isabel, and the French into Izabeau. I have seen in the
British Museum a deed, in which the name Elizabetha is written in
Latin; on the seal it is Isabella. In the Inquisitiones post Mortem I have
frequently seen Ysabella returned in one country and Elizabetha in an
other for the same person. I have something like a dozen other
instances from Moreri, in which he says that Elizabeth and Isabella or
Isabeau are the same. Elizabeth or Izabeau de France, dau. of Lewis
VIII. and Blanche of Castella; Elizabeth or Isabelle d'Aragon, Queen of
France, wife of Philippe III., surnamed le Hardie; Elizabeth or Isabeau
de Bavière, Queen of France, wife of Charles VI.; Elizabeth or Isabeau
d'Angoulême, wife of King John of England; Elizabeth or Isabeau de
France, Queen of England, dau. of Philippe IV.; Elizabeth or Isabelle of
France, Queen of Richard II.; Elizabeth or Isabelle de France, Queen of
Navarre; Elizabeth or Isabelle de Valois, dau. of Charles of France;
Elizabeth or Isabelle de France, dau. of Philippe le Long, King of
France; Elizabeth or Isabelle de France, Duchess of Milan; Elizabeth or
Isabelle, Queen of Philippe V. of Spain."
WM. DURRANT COOPER.
81. Guildford Street, May 4. 1850.

_Elizabeth--Isabel._--The Greek word [Greek: Elisabet] (Luke, i. 5. &c.)
from which Elizabeth, or _Elisabeth_, must have been adopted as a

Christian name, is used by the LXX. (Exodus, vi. 23.) to express the
Hebrew [Hebrew: Elisheba], the name of Aaron's wife. This at once
directs us to the verb [Hebrew: shaba], or rather to its Niphal, [Hebrew:
nishba], for the Kal form does not occur, _to swear_; for the
combination of letters in [Hebrew: el isshaba], _God will swear_, or
_God sweareth_, is the same as that in the proper name. Now let us
transpose the verb and its nominative case, and we have [Hebrew:
ishaba el], which a Greek translator might soften into [Greek: Isabel].
The use of [Greek: Elisabet] both by the LXX. and the Evangelist,
makes it probable that the mother of John the Baptist, who was of the
daughters of Aaron (Luke, i. 5.), was known amongst her own people
by the recognized and family name of _Elisheba_, as Anna no doubt
would be Hannah ([Hebrew: hanah]), and _Mary, Miriam_ ([Greek:
Mariam], Luke, i. 27.). And this is confirmed by the Syriac version, the
vernacular, or nearly so, of Our Blessed Lord and His disciples, which
has [Syriac: elisheba].
Genesius, in his _Lexicon_, explains Elisheba to mean "cui Deus est
sacramentum," "quæ jurat per Deum, i.e. Dei cultrix: cf. Is. xix. 18." I
should rather take it to be a name expressive of trust in God's promises
or oath, such as _Elijah_, "the LORD is my God;" _Isaiah_, "the
LORD is my salvation;" _Ezekiel_, "God strengtheneth." Schleusner
(_Lex. N.T._) says that others derived it from [Hebrew: saba],
_saturavit_; "sic in Alberti _Gloss. N.T._, p. 87. explicatur, [Greek:
Theou mou plaesmonae]." Wolfius, in his note on Luke, i. 5., refers to
Witsii _Miscellanea_, tom. ii. p. 478., to which I must refer your
correspondent "A.C.," as I have not the book by me.
Camden must, of course, have derived the name {489} from [Hebrew:
shabath], _to rest_; but I think we must rather defer to the authority of
the LXX. And though [Hebrew: el ishaboth] may give us _Elisabeth_,
we shall not be able to deduce Isabel from [Hebrew: ishboth el] quite
so easily.
B.
L ---- Rectory, S ----, May 4. 1850.
Trunck Breeches (No. 24. p. 384.), more commonly called
"trunk-hose," were short wide breeches reaching a little above, or
sometimes below the knees, stuffed with hair, and striped. (See _The
Oxford Manual for Brasses_, p. cvi.; and Planche's _British Costume_,

pp. 334-339. new ed.) Two years ago, I saw in the Strand an old man
with a _queue_; a sight which I made a note of as soon as I got home,
influenced by the same motive that, no doubt, led Smith in 1640 to
append to the death of "old Mr. Grice" the remark, "who