Excerpt from A Concise Introduction to the Study of the Malagasy Language as Spoken in Imerina One thing should be impressed on the minds of all who wish to gain a mastery of the language and to use it with freedom, viz. That they must not trust simply to what they can learn from books, or they will acquire but a stiff and bookish style of speaking. On the other hand, it is equally certain that if they are contented to pick up the language by ear only, though they may gain facility in speaking, they will lack accuracy and precision. Careful study of the grammar should go hand in hand with free intercourse with the natives. A beginner should give his main strength during the first year or two to the thorough mastery of the grammar. He should from the outset endeavour as far as possible to avoid forming sentences on English models; and especially should he direct his attention to those points in which the Malagasy language differs so much from his own; eg. In the absence of the logical copula and the consequent difference in the formation of sentences, the common use of the passive, the peculiarities of the relative form, the way in which the agent of an adjunctive verb is expressed, the uses of the particle no, delicate distinctions in the use or omission of the article, etc. If these and similar things are firmly grasped at the outset, a good foundation will exist on which to build. On the other hand, the failure to recognise some of these peculiar features of the language, may lead one to adopt awkward and erroneous modes of expression from which it may be extremely difficult to free one self in after years. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.