68 STRABO. BOOK I. said to be the work of Minerva, of the Graces, or of the Muses. But that the Sidonians were skilful artists, is clear from the praises bestowed [by Homer] on the bowl which Euneos gave in exchange for Lycaon : " Earth Own'd not its like for elegance of form. Skilful Sidonian artists had around Etnbellish'd it, and o'er the sable deep Phoenician merchants into Lemnos' port Had borne it." l 34. Many conjectures have been hazarded as to who the Erembi were : they who suppose the Arabs are intended, seem to deserve the most credit. Our Zeno reads the passage thus : I came to the Ethiopians, the Sidonians, and the Arabians. But there is no occasion to tamper with the text, which is of great antiquity; it is a far preferable course to suppose a change in the name itself, which is of frequent and ordinary occurrence in every nation : and in fact certain grammarians establish this view by a comparison of the radical letters. Posidonius seems to me to adopt the better plan after all, in looking for the etymology of names in nations of one stock and community ; [thus between, the Armenians, Syrians, and Ara- bians there is a strong affinity both in regard to dialect, mode of life, peculiarities of physical conformation, and above all in the contiguity of the countries. Mesopotamia, which is a motley of the three nations, is a proof of this ; for the similar- ity amongst these three is very remarkable. And though in consequence of the various latitudes there may be some differ- ence between those who dwell in the north 2 and those of the the south, 3 and again between each of these and the inhabit- ants of the middle region, 4 still the same characteristics are dominant in all.] Also the Assyrians and Arians have a great affinity both to these people and to each other. And [Posi- donius] believes there is a similarity in the names of these different nations. Those whom we call Syrians style them- selves Armenians and ArammaBans, names greatly like those of the Armenians, Arabs, and Erembi. Perhaps this [last] term 1 But in beauty it much excelled [all] upon the whole earth, for the in- genious Sidonians had wrought it cunningly, and Phoenician men had carried it. Iliad xxiii. 742. 2 The Armenians. 3 The Arabs. * The Syrians.
