Chapter DIRZEE to DIUL-SIND of D by The Hobson Jobson Dictionary

DIRZEE to DIUL-SIND

DIRZEE, s. P. darzi, H. darzi and vulgarly darji; [darz, ‘a rent, seam.’] A tailor.

[1623.—“The street, which they call Terzi Caravanserai, that is the Tayler’s Inn.”—P. della Valle, Hak. Soc. i. 95.]

c. 1804.—“In his place we took other servants, Dirges and Dobes, and a Sais for Mr. Sherwood, who now got a pony.”—Mrs. Sherwood, Autobiog. 283.

1810.—“The dirdjees, or taylors, in Bombay, are Hindoos of respectable caste.”—Maria Graham, 30.

DISPATCHADORE, s. This curious word was apparently a name given by the Portuguese to certain officials in Cochin-China. We know it only in the document quoted:

1696.—“The 23 I was sent to the Under-Dispatchadore, who I found with my Scrutore before him. I having the key, he desired me to open it.”—Bowyear’s Journal at Cochin China, in Dalrymple, Or. Rep. i. 77; also “was made Under-Customer or Despatchadore” (ibid. 81); and again: “The Chief Dispatchadore of the Strangers” (84).

DISSAVE, DISSAVA, &c., s. Singh. disava (Skt. desa, ‘a country,’ &c.), ‘Governor of a Province,’ under the Candyan Government. Disave, as used by the English in the gen. case, adopted from the native expression disave mahatmya, ‘Lord of the Province.’ It is now applied by the natives to the Collector or “Government Agent.” (See DESSAYE.) 1681.—“Next under the Adigars are the Dissauva’s who are Governours over provinces and counties of the land.”—Knox, p. 50.

1685.—“…un Dissava qui est comme un General Chingulais, ou Gouverneur des armées d’une province.”—Ribeyro (Fr. tr.), 102.

1803.—“…the Dissauvas…are governors of the corles or districts, and are besides the principal military commanders.”—Percival’s Ceylon, 258.

1860.—“…the dissave of Oovah, who had been sent to tranquillize the disturbed districts, placed himself at the head of the insurgents” (in 1817).—Tennent’s Ceylon, ii. 91.

DITCH, DITCHER. Disparaging sobriquets for Calcutta and its European citizens, for the rationale of which see MAHRATTA DITCH.

DIU, n.p. A port at the south end of Peninsular Guzerat. The town stands on an island, whence its name, from Skt. dvipa. The Portuguese were allowed to build a fort here by treaty with Bahadur Shah of Guzerat, in 1535. It was once very famous for the sieges which the Portuguese successfully withstood (1538 and 1545) against the successors of Bahadur Shah [see the account in Linschoten, Hak. Soc. i. 37 seq.]. It still belongs to Portugal, but is in great decay. [Tavernier (ed. Ball, ii. 35) dwells on the advantages of its position.]

c. 700.—Chinese annals of the T’ang dynasty mention Tiyu as a port touched at by vessels bound for the Persian Gulf, about 10 days before reaching the Indus. See Deguignes, in Mém. de l’Acad. Inscript. xxxii. 367.

1516.—“…there is a promontory, and joining close to it is a small island which contains a very large and fine town, which the Malabars call Diuxa and the Moors of the country call it Diu. It has a very good harbour,” &c.—Barbosa, 59.

1572.—

“Succeder-lhe-ha alli Castro, que o estandarte
Portuguez terá sempre levantado,
Conforme successor ao succedido;
Que hum ergue Dio, outro o defende erguido.”

Çamès, x. 67.

By Burton:

“Castro succeeds, who Lusias estandard shall bear for ever in the front to wave;
Successor the Succeeded’s work who endeth;
that buildeth Diu, this builded Diu defendeth.”

1648.—“At the extremity of this Kingdom, and on a projecting point towards the south lies the city Diu, where the Portuguese have 3 strong castles; this city is called by both Portuguese and Indians Dive (the last letter, e, being pronounced somewhat softly), a name which signifies ‘Island.’ ”—Van Twist, 13.

1727.—“Diu is the next Port…. It is one of the best built Cities, and best fortified by Nature and Art, that I ever saw in India, and its stately Buildings of free Stone and Marble, are sufficient Witnesses of