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[German version] (Μουσικανός/ Mousikanós). Indian king of the people of the same name ( Musicani) on the lower reaches of the Indus (Onesicritus in Str. 15,1,21f.; Arr. Anab. 6,15,5-17,2, also briefly Curt. 9,8,8-10). People have often tried to link the name wit the ancient Indian tribal name Mūṣika; however, they originated not in the north west, but in the south of India. M. had initially submitted to Alexander [4] the Great and had been received cordially, but after a failed revolt he was condemned to death. Onesicritus depicts his kingdom as a utopia steeped in Cynical philosophy. …

[German version] (Ζάβιοι/ Zábioi). Indian people according to Nonnus, Dion. 26,65 (who goes back to the Bassariká of Dionysius [32]). Their territory was probably in northwestern India, neighbouring the Dardae (cf. Steph. Byz. s. v. Δάρδαι/ Dárdai), but is not identifiable [1]. Attempts to make a comparison between the information in Nonnus (and Dionysius) and Indian realities remain tenuous (already [2], later e.g. [3], [4]; see also [5]). Rather, it is a matter of a Greek literary reflection of a mythical India, which only acci…

[German version] Called Abhisāra in Old Indian, a mountain people of northern Pakistan (Megasthenes at Arr. Ind. 4,12), on the Soanos river, an eastern tributary of the Indus River (nowadays called Sohan or Suwan [1. 1100 f.]), with King  Abisares. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography 1 G. Wirth, O. by Hinüber, (ed. and trans.) Arrian, Der Alexanderzug - Indische Geschichte, 1985.

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: India, trade with | Mauryas (Μουζιρίς; Mouzirís). Sea port on the south-western coast of India in modern Kerala; the Indian Muciri of the Tamil Sangam poems [1]. Both Greek and Tamil sources describe M. as one of the most important southern Indian port and trading cities. An important trading route to the eastern coast of India originated from M. A papyrus deed (PVindob. 40822) from Egypt reports of a loan that was granted in M. [2]. Because of the unsteadiness of the coast, its exact location remains unknown. I…

[German version] (Hecat. in Steph. Byz. FGrH; Kallatiai in Hdt. 3,38). Indian ethnic group whose members according to Hdt. used to eat their parents -- an ethnological curiosity that in another citation (Hdt. 3,99) was attributed to another Indian people, the Padaioi, likewise to the Iranian Massagetae (Hdt. 1,216) and the  Issedones (Hdt. 4,26). Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography K. Karttunen, India in Early Greek Literature, 1989, 197-202.

[German version] (Μαλλοί; Malloí). Indian people at the confluence of the Punjab rivers Hydaspes, Acesines [2] and Hydraotes, with several fortified cities. In league with the Oxydracae, they violently resisted Alexander the Great. They are probably the ancient Indian Mālava who later emigrated to the east and are attested numismatically and epigraphically in Rājasthān (2nd cent. BC) and in Madhya Pradesh. Their name there is still preserved as Mālwā. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography K. K. Das Gupta, The Mālava, 1966.

[German version] The largest tributary of the Ganges; Iomanes in Arr. Ind. 8,5 (Ἰωμάνης/ Iōmánēs, Var. Ἰωβάρης/ Iōbárēs) and Plin. HN 6,21,63; 6,22,69; 6,23,73; Διαμούνας/ Diamoúnas in Ptol. 7,1,29 (probably from Prakrit Jamunā), perhaps identical to the Οἰδάνης/ Oidánēs of Artemidorus (in Str. 15,1,72). The river rises in the western Himalayas and joins with the Ganges at Allahabad. Between the Y. in the west and the Ganges in the east is the Doab, the ancient heartland of Aryan India. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki)

[German version] (Ναλλοῦρα; Nalloûra). City in the interior of Limyrice in Southern India (Ptol. 7.1.85). There are several cities in Southern India with the Dravidian name Nallūr; exact identification does not appear possible. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography O. Stein, s.v. Ναλλοῦρα, RE 16, 1608.

[German version] Ruined city in northern Afghanistan at the confluence of the rivers Amu Darja ( Araxes) and Koktscha. It was most likely founded by Alexander himself, probably  Alexandria [12]. A. was a Greek polis with temples, gymnasium, theatre, and an acropolis with Greek monumental and tomb inscriptions [1]; among the findings were numerous ostraka containing business records [2], the remains of two literary papyri [3], Hellenistic, Iranian, Indian, and Indo-Greek coins. It was the capital o…

[German version] (Ἰαβαδίου; Iabadíou; Old Indic Yavadvīpa, modern Java or Sumatra). Large island in south-east Asia (Ptol. 7,2,29). The identification is still disputed but Ptolemy knew that the name meant ‘Island of Barley’ (Old Indic, yava, barley). Supposedly it was rich in gold and its capital was called Argyre. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography A. Herrmann, s.v. I. nesos, RE 9, 1175-77.

[German version] (Ὑδραώτης/ Hydraṓtēs in Arr., Ὑάρωτις/ Hyárōtis in Str., Hiarotis in Curt. is based on a Middle Indian form for Old Indian Airāvatī/Irāwatī, probably passed down through Iranian and following Greek ὕδωρ/ hýdōr); one of the main rivers of the Punjab, modern Rāvī in Pakistan; originates in the western Himalayas, flows into the  Acesines [2] (Chenāb) and became known to the Greeks through Alexander's campaign. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography E. Kiessling, s.v. Hyarotis, RE 9, 23f.

[German version] According to Ptol. 7,1,42, a people of north-western India, in the east of modern Afghanistan; Old Indian Lampāka. Its name is preserved in the modern Lamghan; several fragments of Aramaic inscriptions of king Aśoka were discovered there. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki)

[German version] (Ἀβαστάνοι; Abastánoi), also Abastanes. Indian people (Arr. Anab. 6,15,1), called ‘Sambastai’ at Diod. Sic. 17,102,1, ‘Sabarcae’ at Curt. 9,8,4-7, settled near the confluence of the  Acesines and the Indus rivers and were neighbours of the  Malli. Described as a warlike, yet democratic people, conquered by Perdiccas. Probably for Old Indian Ambaṣṭha (see [1. 87 f.]), a western people mentioned in the Aitareyabrāhmaṇa and in the Puranic̣ ethnic lists. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography 1 P. H. L. Eggermont, Alexander's campaign in Southern Punja…

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: India, trade with (Virapatnam). Village and archaeological site on the east coast of southern India, in the south of Pondicherry, the Podouke of Peripl. M. Rubr. and Ptol.; finds in A. created the basis for a chronology for southern Indian archaeology and also produced the first archaeological evidence of trading between the Romans and the Indians [1]. Roman coins and amphorae [2. 151 ff.] and terra sigillata [2. 134 ff.] dating from the first half of the 1st cent. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography 1 J. M. Casal, G…

[German version] (Ναναγούνας; Nanagoúnas). River in western India, rising in the Vindhya mountains (Οὐίνδιον; Ouíndion). Ptol. 7,1,32 (also 7,1,7 and 66). Perhaps modern Tapti. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography O. Stein, s.v. Ναναγούνας, RE 16, 1672f.  F.F. Schwarz, s.v. N., KlP 3, 1565.

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: India, trade with (Ταγάρα: Peripl. m. r. 51, Τάγαρα: Ptol. 7,1,82). Inland city in the Indian state of Maharashtra, modern Ter, where excavations have found e.g. lamps of an Hellenistic type. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography H. P. Ray, Monastery and Guild. Commerce under the Sātavāhanas, 1986, 69 f.

[German version] Members of an Indian dynasty founded at the end of the 4th century BC by Chandragupta Maurya ( Sandracottus), whose territory soon included all of North India (see map). A military campaign by Seleucus I, who wanted to reconquer Alexander [4] the Great's Indian conquests, failed; in a treaty Chandragupta was granted all southeastern satrapies (including Arachosia) and Seleucus received 500 war elephants in exchange. Seleucus's emissary to Chandragupta was Megasthenes, whose Indiká (FGrH 715), preserved in countless fragments, became the standard work …

[German version] The modern Indian Ocean (IO) was mostly known to the Greeks as   Erythrá thálatta [1] which actually only referred to the western part. With the increase in geographical knowledge, Erythrá thálatta was also used for the entire ocean (e.g. Peripl. m.r.) that was otherwise called the Indian Sea (Ἰνδικὸν πέλαγος/ Indikòn pélagos, Ptol. 7,1,1; 7,2,1) or IO (Ἰνδικὸς ὠκεανός/ Indikòs ṓkeanós, Agathemerus 2,4; Oceanus Indicus, Mela 1,9, Sen. Q Nat. 4,2,4). With the large gulfs (Sinus Gangeticus, Sabaracus and Perimulicus) it formed the southern bounda…

[German version] (Ἔπανδρος Νικηφόρος; Épandros Nikēphóros) Indo-Greek king in the 1st cent. BC. He is documented only by his coins (Middle-Indian Epadra). Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography Bopearachchi 103, 305f.

[German version] (Νάουρα/ Náoura). Port in the district of Limyrice, southern India (Peripl. m. r. 53). Because both here and in Ptol. 7,1,8f. the name is followed by Tyndis, Muziris and Nelkynda, in that order, N., as the northernmost of the cities, must correspond to the Nitraíai empórion of Ptol. 7,1,7 (cf. Nitriae in Plin. HN 6,26,104). The precise location of N. remains unknown. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography O. Stein, s.v. Νάουρα, RE 16, 2014f.

[German version] (Νόσαλα; Nósala). Uninhabited island on the Gedrosian coast of the Ichthyophagi (Arr. Ind. 31), location unknown. The island, which was visited by Nearchus [2], was 100 stadia from the coast, and was regarded by the Ichthyophagi as sacred to the Sun. Nearchus' visit to the island is also mentioned in Str. 15,2,13. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography O. Stein, s.v. Νόσαλα, RE 17, 1051f.

[German version] (Κάσπειρα; Káspeira). City of the Caspiraei in India (Ptol. 7,1,47; 49). The name C. was often associated with modern Cashmere, but whereas Ptolemaeus locates C. in the eastern Punjab, the Caspiraei's territory extends from the Punjab as far as the Vindhya mountains in the south; the Caspiraei appear therefore to have lived approximately in modern Rajasthan and Gujarāt. Ptol. (7,1,42), however, connects the land of Caspeiria with the upper reaches of the Jhelum, the Chenāb and the Rāvi, and this again rather suggests Cashmere. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliograph…

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: India, trade with (Νέλκυνδα; Nèlkynda). Trading town in Limyrice, in the south of India (Peripl. m. r. 53f.). It was situated on a river 500 stadia to the south of Muziris  in the kingdom of Pandion, i.e. Pāṇdya, in the southernmost part of India. The port of Barace lay at the mouth of a river. The town is also known as Melcyda (Μελκύδα/ Melkỳda, Ptol. 7,1,9); cf. also gens Nelcyndon in Plin. HN. 6,24,105. The exact location of N. is unknown. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography O. Stein, s.v. Nelkynda, RE 16, 2281-2285.

[German version] (Κωφήν; Kōphḗn: Arr.; Κώφης/ Kṓphēs: Diod., Dionys Per., Str.; Cophes: Plin. HN). Western tributary of the river  Indus [1], old Indian Kubhā, today's Kabul. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography K. Karttunen, India and the Hellenistic World, 1997, 112.

(Ναγαδίβα; Nagadíba). [German version] [1] Coastal city on Taprobane Coastal city on Taprobane (modern Sri Lanka); Ptol. 7,4,7. It seems obvious to identify it with the Middle Indian Nāgadīpa ‘Island of serpents’, but no city with this name is known. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography D.P.M. Weerakkody, Taprobanê, 1997, 85ff. [German version] [2] Island near Taprobane One of the numerous islands near Taprobane, Ptol. 7,4,13. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki)

[German version] (Σῖναι; Sînai). People in eastern Asia (Ptol. 1,17,5 and several times in Ptol. 7,3) with capital Thínai, Latin Thinae (Ptol. 7,3,6, Peripl. m. r. 64); also a term for southern China, which people visited by sea, whereas northern and eastern China were approached by way of the central-Asian caravan routes and was known as Serica, the land of the Seres , or the 'Silk Land'. S. and Serica were never associated with one another. The name S. is from the name of the Chinese Qín dynasty (3rd cent. BC), probably by way of the Old Indian Cīna. China Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliogra…

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: India, trade with According to Peripl. M. Rubr. 52f., an empórion on the west coast of India close to what is now Bombay, Sanskrit Kalyāṇa. C. was established by the elder Saraganes as an important commercial harbour; under Sandanes in the 1st cent. AD it was abandoned in favour of  Barygaza. Also attested in Cosmas [2] Indikopleustes as Calliana (11,16; 11,22). Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography H. P. Ray, Monastery and Guild. Commerce under the Sātavāhanas, 1986.

[German version] also Gangaridae. Mentioned in accounts of Alexander's campaign ( Alexander [4], with map) and in Megasthenes as a powerful people in India. They lived east of the  Prasii on the lower Ganges. Also mentioned in Ptol. 7,1,81. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography D. C. Sircar, Studies in the Geography of Ancient and Medieval India, 1971, 213ff.

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: Alexander (Βάζιρα; Bázira). Town in north-western Pakistan, on the river Swat between the Indus and the Hindu Kush, captured and fortified by  Alexander [4] the Great (Arr. Anab.). Probably near Bīr-kōt̥-Ġundai, where Hellenistic walls, pottery and graffiti have been found. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography P. Callieri, in: A. Gail, G. Mevissen (ed.), South Asian Archaeology 1991, 1993, 339-348.

[German version] Indian people in today's Swat, west of the Indus, with capital Massaga, subjugated by Alexander (Arr. Anab. 4, 23ff.; Ind. 1,1). Called Aspagani by Plin. HN and in Pāli called Assaka, from Old Indian aśva-/Iranian aspa ‘horse’. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography O. v. Hinüber, Arrian. Der Alexanderzug -- Indische Gesch., ed. and translation by G. Wirth, O. v. Hinüber, 1985, 1081f.

[German version] Graeco-Indian king of the 1st cent. BC, only documented from coins, Middle Indian Arkhebiya. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography Bopearachchi, 110-112, 319-324.

[German version] (Ταξίλης/ Taxílēs). King of Taxila, who ruled over a broad and fertile plain between the Indus and the Hydaspes; his neighbours were Abisares in the north and Porus [3] in the east. His father already had allied with Alexander [4] by letter (Diod. Sic. 17,86,4; Curt. 8,12,4 f.; see also Arr. Anab. 4,22,6), and the young king approved the alliance when Alexander stayed with him as a guest for some time in the spring of 326 BC (Arr. Anab. 5,3,5 f.; 5,8,2 f.; Diod. Sic. 17,86,4-7; Plu…

[German version] Indo-Greek king sometime around 100 BC. No literary evidence, but mentioned in an Indian Brāhmī insription (Besnagar inscription; by his envoy, Heliodorus of Taxila), and named on Greek-Bactrian and Indo-Greek coins with the legend ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΝΙΚΗΦΟΡΟΥ ΑΝΤΙΑΛΚΙΔΟΥ / maharajasa jayadharasa aṃtialkidasa. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography O. Bopearachchi, Monnaies Greco-Bactriennes et Indo-Grecques, 1991, 95-97, 271-288.

[German version] (Μανιόλαι νῆσοι; Manióloi nêsoi). An archipelago off the coast of India, beyond the Ganges (Ptol. 7,2,31). Otherwise attested in Greek literature only in Pseudo- Palladius ( Perí tōn tēs Indíēs ethnṓn 1,5), but located by him in the vicinity of Ceylon (perhaps the Maldives or in the dangerous waters around the southern tip of India). Later often mentioned by Arabs, Persians and others. From the time of Ptolemy it was believed that these islands were so magnetic that they pulled the iron nails out of ships. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography A. Herrmann, s.v. Μανιό…

[German version] (Σάγαλα/ Ságala, Ptol. 7,1,46; Old Indian Śākala, Middle Indian Sāgala). City in the Punjab east of Hydaspes, the capital city of the Indo-Greek king Menander [6] in Pāli Milindapañha. S. with its rectangular, probably Hellenistic city plan, was also called Euthydemia or Euthymedia, according to Ptol. l.c.. The city is also known in ancient Indo-Iranian literature (Mahābhārata etc.) and was visited in the 7th cent. AD by the Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang. Its exact location is not known (perhap…

[German version] (Παροπάμισος/ Paropámisos, Str. 15,1,11; 2,9). Mountain range including the Paropamisadae region (Παροπαμισάδαι/Paropamisádai, Str. 15,2,8ff.). Both names occur in many variants that render identification more difficult [1]. Old Iranian (Avesta) * Parupairisaena (cf. upairisaena in Yasna 10); in the Akkadian version of the Bisutun inscription, Paruparaesanna is used instead of Gandara (Gandaritis) in the Old Persian version [2. DB 1,18]. The mountain range with Taurus, Caucasus, Elburs and Himalaya was regarded as part of the great Asian …

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: Alexander | Graeco-Bactria (Σάγγαλα/ Sángala). Capital and fortress of the Indian Cathaei in the Punjab, to the east of Hydraotes (modern Irāvatī). The city was conquered and destroyed in 326 by Alexander [II 4] the Great after a fierce battle (Arr. Anab. 5,22-24; Polyaenus, Strat. 4,3,30). Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography A. Herrmann, s. v. Σάγγαλα, RE 1 A, 1740.

[German version] (Old Indian; Early Middle Indian yona, yonaka; later also joṉa). The Indian name for the Greeks (most likely from Old Persian yauna) originally described the Iones. The earliest records are from about the 4th and 3rd centuries BC (in the grammarian Pāṉini and king Aśoka), hence in the Mahābhārata it may have been a term for the Indo-Greeks. Later the name receives a more general significance as a term for more distant neighbours, and from about the 7th cent. AD it was used as a name for Arabs and Moslems. In the Tamil literature of southern India, Yavanar is found as a term f…

The Old Indian name M. designates two towns. [German version] [1] Indian locality at the confluence of the Yamuna and the Ganges This item can be found on the following maps: Graeco-Bactria | Graeco-Bactria | Mauryas The northern M. (also Méthōra/Μέθωρα in Megasthenes fr. 13a apud Arr. Ind. 8,5) in the land of Śūrasena, at the confluence of the Yamuna and the Ganges. It was an old and important centre of the cult of Kṛsṇa, but also of that of the Indian Heracles; the latter may not, however, be simply identified with Kṛsṇa. Ptol. 7,1,…

[German version] Prehistoric high culture in the 3rd millennium in northwestern South Asia, from Punjab to Baluchistan and Gujarat, with Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro as the most likely important centres. There was lively overseas trade (a harbour was excavated at Lothal in Gujarat) with Makan (modern Oman),  Dilmun (modern Bahrain), the island of Failaka (now part of Kuwait) and Mesopotamia [1. 107ff.]. The famous Indus script is only attested in the form of very short seal legends; the language on wh…

[German version] Region (Σουαστηνή/ Souastēnḗ at Ptol. 7,1,42) around the homonymous tributary of the River Kabul (Greek Σό(υ)αστος/ Só(u)astos, Sanskrit Suvāstu) in modern northwestern Pakistan. After fierce fighting, the area was conquered by Alexander [4] the Great. Later it became part of the Indo-Greek kingdom and a centre of Buddhism. The exact location of the ancient capital Massaga is unknown, but excavations in Birkot Ghwandai (probably Bazira at Arr.  Anab. 4,27,5 ff.) have revealed remains of Hellenistic…

[German version] (μέγας κόλπος/ mégas kólpos, Ptol. 7,2,1; 7,3,1). A large ocean gulf in India extra Gangem, adjoining the Sinae, i.e. south-east Asia, with three rivers: Daonas, Dorias and Seros (Ptol. 7,2,7). Although the geography of south-east Asia seems hopelessly distorted in Ptolemy, and all interpretations of place names in that region must remain highly hypothetical, nonetheless the Magnus Sinus can be identified with the waters lying between the Malacca Peninsula and southern China. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography H. Treidler, s.v. Μέγας κόλπος, RE Suppl…

[German version] (Ὑδάσπης; Hydáspēs; Βιδάσπης; Bidáspēs in Ptol.), probably from Old Indian, Old Indo-Aryan Vitastā (apparently through Iranian mediation); one of the main rivers of the Punjab, modern Jhelum in Pakistan - it rises in the western Himalayas and flows into the  Acesines [2]. At a place on its left shore that can no longer be identified, Alexander fought against  Porus after having traversed the river during a heavy monsoon rain. After the battle, the twin cities of  Nicaea and  Bucephala were fo…

[German version] ( Barbara, also Barbare). Port city at the mouth of the Indus (Ptol. 7,1,59), Ἐμπόριον Βαρβαρικόν or Βαρβαρική ( Empórion Barbarikón, Barbarikḗ), Peripl. M. Rubr. 38f., old Indian Varvara. B. appears to have been the main port of the Indus region, but has disappeared without a trace within the delta area. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki)

[German version] ( P. Díkaios kaì Sōtḗr/'the righteous one and deliverer'; Middle Indian Peukalaüsa). Indo-Greek King of Gandhāra (Gandaritis), beginning of 1st cent. BC, known only from coins. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography Bopearachchi, 106, 309.

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: Graeco-Bactria | Graeco-Bactria | India, trade with | Mauryas (Βαρύγαζα ἐμπόριον; Barýgaza empórion, Ptol. 7,1,62 and Steph. Byz.), harbour town at the Gulf of Cambay in Gujarat, Old and Middle Indian: Bharukaccha, modern Broach. Peripl. m. rubr. 43-49 provides an extensive report on route and commerce; a coin find confirms his statements on the validity of Indo-Greek coins [1]. B. was the port of Ozene, and its trade links extended to Gandhāra and  Bactria. Probably identical with Βαργόση ( Bargόsē) in Str. 15,1,73. Karttun…

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: Graeco-Bactria | Graeco-Bactria (Massaka). Capitol city of the Assaceni in modern Swat west of the Indus, Old Indian Maósakāvatī; conquered by Alexander the Great. Hellenistic wall remains were found in excavations of neighbouring sites. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography P. Callieri et al., Bir-Kot-Ghwandai 1990-1992 (Annali. Istituto Universitario Orientale 52, Supplemento 73), 1994.

[German version] One of Alexander [4] the Great's settlements (Plin. HN 6,26,96; perhaps following Onesicritus), where his fleet set off under Nearchus [2] on its coastal voyage westwards; according to [2] identical with Ἀλεξάνδρου λιμήν/ Alexándrou limḗn ('Alexander's port') in Arr. Ind. 21,10 where the western branch of the Indus flows into the Arabian Sea [1. 127]. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography 1 J. André, J. Filliozat (ed.), Pline l'ancien, Histoire naturelle. Livre VI, 2e partie, 1980 (with French transl. and comm.) 2 H. Treidler, s. v. X., RE 9 A, 2164-2172.

[German version] (Ναμάδης; Namád ēs). River in Gujarāt, rising in the Vindhya mountains (Οὐίνδιον; Ouíndion) and reaching the sea to the east of  Barygaza (Ptol. 7,1,31, briefly also 7,1,65), modern Narmadā. The so-called river Namnadios (Peripl. m.r. 42) [1] is only an emendation by C. Müller (GGM 291) for manuscript Lamnaíos and can hardly be connected with N., although it may be that here, too, the river Narmadā is meant. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography 1 O. Stein, s.v. Ναμάδης, RE 16, 1609.

[German version] (Ξανδράμης/ Xandrámēs). Indian king (in Diod. Sic. 17,93,2; Latin Agrammes in Curt. 9,2,3; Sacram(es) in the Epitome Mettensis 68), second half of the 4th cent. BC. He was described to Alexander [4] as the most powerful king in the Ganges valley. It is therefore probably Nandrus, the last king of the Nanda dynasty in Indian sources, that is meant (Nandas). The account in Just. Epit. 15,4,12-19 of the fall of Nandrus Chandragupta (Sandracottus; Mauryas), although differing in detail, in general…

[German version] Probably an Indo-Greek king or prince, recorded only in one Kharoṣṭī inscription (known as the Bajaur Seal) as Middle Indian Theudama. It is by no means certain that the reading of the short inscription as "of the king Theodamas" is correct, but the name is certain. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum 2.1, Nr. 3

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: India, trade with (Ἀλεξάνδρεια Βουκέφαλα; Alexándreia Bouképhala). City on the right bank of the Hydaspes (modern Jhelum), founded by Alexander [4] the Great on the site of the battle with Porus ( Porus) and named after his warhorse  Bucephalus (Arr. Anab. 5,19,4; Curt.). Still known in the early imperial period (Plin. HN; Peripl. m.r.; Ptol.). According to Lamotte mentioned in Buddhist literature as Bhadāśva [1]. Its exact location is disputed. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography 1 É. Lamotte, Alexandre et le …

[German version] (in Chinese sources Yuèzhī) originally a Central Asian people, which migrated west in the 2nd cent. BC. The I. conquered  Graeco-Bactria and later moved to India, where they founded the powerful  Kushan dynasty ( Kanishka). Their Indian kingdom is called Indo-Scythia by Ptolemy and others.  Scythians Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography J. E. van Lohuizen-de Leeuw, The Scythian Period, 1949.

[German version] (Χρυσῆ χερρόνησος; Chrysê cherrónēsos). South-west Asian Peninsula (Peripl. m. r. 63; Ptol. 7,2,5, etc.), Lat. Promunturium Chryse (Plin. HN 6,20,55), probably on the modern Malacca Peninsula; cf. Sanskrit Suvarṇabhūmi ‘Land of Gold’ and Suvarṇadvı̄pa ‘Island of Gold’ in south-west Asia. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography P. Wheatley, The Golden Khersonese. Studies in the historical geography of the Malay Peninsula before A.D. 1500, 1961.

[German version] (Ταπροβάνη/ Taprobánē). The most common name for the island of Ceylon from the time of Onesicritus (in Str. 15,1,17 and Plin. HN 6,81) and Megasthenes (Plin. HN 6, 81) onwards, Ancient Indian Tāmraparṇi, Middle Indian Tambapaṇṇi. The unrealistic geographical ideas of Antiquity, which are probably based on Eratosthenes [2], are noteworthy: in all Greek and Latin sources T. is much larger than in reality and extends far to the west. Nevertheless, in Ptolemaeus [65] for instance, who devotes a whole chapter to T. (7,4…

[German version] (Peripl. m. r. 58f.; Komaria, Ptol. 7,1,9). Southern Indian harbour town with a cape of the same name. Cf. modern Kanya Kumari on the southern tip of the Indian peninsula. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki)

[German version] Eastern Iranian dynasty (1st-4th cent. AD) whose territory stretched from the Ganges to Lake Aral. The dynasty evolved from nomadic tribes (part of the Yuezhi; Indo-Scythians) who took Bactria ( Bactria) from the Greeks. Heraios is attested as their first ancestor, Kujula Kadphises as founder of the empire. His successors are Vima Kadphises, Kanishka, Vasishka, Huvishka and Vāsudeva (there may be several bearers of these names.). The dating is contentious. The dominant religion was a syncretistic Mahāyāna-Buddhism. The arts were greatly shaped by th…

[German version] (Ashoka). Maurya emperor of India (269/268-233/232 BC), also called Piyadassi/Priyadarōsi (Greek Πιοδάσσης; Piodássēs). Famous for his edicts, many examples of which have been found in many parts of southern Asia, written in Middle Indian dialect, and in the north-west (today Afghanistan) also several fragments in Aramaic, and also an Aramaic-Greek bilingual inscription [3] and a Greek fragment [4] in Kandahar. The edicts convey a lively image of A.'s empire and its administration, and also i…

[German version] (Neo-Persian panǧāb). The land of the five rivers Indus [1], Jhelum (Hydaspes), Chenāb (Acesines [2]), Rāvī (Hydraotes) and Sūtlaj-Beas (Zadadrus, Ptol. 7,1,27, Sydrus, Plin. HN 6,21,63 and Hyphasis). Although it was already known to the Achaemenids, P. entered the Greek geographical consciousness only through the campaigns of Alexander. In 326 BC Alexander [4] conquered P. as far as the Hyphasis, though it hardly resulted in founding any Greek settlements; P. was instead administe…

[German version] (H. in Arr.,  Hypanis in Str., Diod. Sic. and Dionys. Per., Hypasis in Curt. and Plin. HN, Bipasis in Ptol.; all of them possibly passed down from Old Indian Vipāśā- through Iranian); one of the five main rivers of the Punjab, modern Satlaǧ/Beas. At the upper reaches (modern Beas) was the point from which Alexander returned to the  Hydaspes. Thus the Satlaǧ ( Zaradrus of Ptol.), which lies further to the east, remained unknown for the most part to the Alexander historians, and also the lower course, which bot…

[German version] (Ζάραδρος/ Záradros, in manuscripts also Ζάδαδρος/ Zádadros). Indian river in Ptol. 7,1,27 and 42; Sydrus in Plin. HN 6,21,63; Old Indo-Iranian Śutudrī (in the Veda), Śatadru (in Epic), modern Sutlej, an eastern tributary of the Indus [1] in the Punjab. The river rises in the western Himalayas, flows through the Kulindrene region and then into the Indus. As the easternmost of its tributaries it was not noticed by Alexander [4] the Great and therefore not mentioned in Alexander literature. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography H. Treidler, s. v. Z., RE 9 A, 23…

[German version] (Town in India, Hecat. in Steph. Byz.; Caspatyrus of Hdt. 4,44). Here Scylax had begun his journey with the fleet of Darius I down the Indus and through the sea to Egypt. An identification with Multan (as Kāśyapapura) in the Punjab hardly is possible; C. should rather be looked for west of the Indus, perhaps on the Kabul River, as the journey first took an easterly direction. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography K. Karttunen, India in Early Greek Literature, 1989, 41-46.

[German version] (Θράσων; Thrásōn). Indo-Greek king in the Punjab at about the beginning of the 1st cent. BC, recorded only on a number of coins, Middle Indic Thrasa. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography Bopearachchi, 106 f.; 310.

[German version] River ‘at the eastern edge of the world’ (Verg. Ecl. 1,65); probably not in Crete (as stated correctly by Serv. Aen. ad loc., rather it was a variation on Oxus, old Iranian Vaxshu, which, according to Plin. HN 6,48 and Iust. 1,8,2 flows out of the Oaxus lacus. A further variation is Araxes [2]. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography E. Kirsten, s.v. O. (1), RE 17, 1686f.  E. Meyer, s.v. O. (1), RE Suppl. 12, 897f.

[German version] (Δάρδαι; Dárdai). A people in north-west India, Darada in Old Indo-Aryan, today known as the Dards and resident in the region known as Dardistan on the upper reaches of the Indus. Hdt. 3, 102ff. places them in the region below the sources of the Indus where the Δαράδραι ( Darádrai) mentioned by Ptol. 7,1,4 are also to be found. Also mentioned by Plin. HN 6,67 and 11,111 ( Dardae, probably following Megasthenes), Dionys. Per. 1138, Steph. Byz. i.a. According to Megasthenes (F 23b bei Str. 15,1,44), the Δέρδαι ( Dérdai) live on a high plateau in the east and steal gold …

[German version] A. History The area of  Bactria in north-east Iran is a country with an old culture with an early developed city culture and an Iranian population. Greeks settled there sporadically as early as under the  Achaemenids [2]; however, one cannot as yet speak of a Greek population, with [1]. Not until under Alexander [4] the Great, who conquered the country in a gruelling two-year war, were several settlements started for the veterans of his army. Bactria became a Hellenistic satrapy und…

[German version] The regular seasonal winds of the  Indian Ocean. By using the summer southwesterly monsoon it was possible to sail quickly and safely from southern Arabia to India and return in the winter with the northeasterly monsoon. In a similar way the winds could also be used between India and southeastern Asia. The Indians and southern Arabians had probably known these winds for a long time, but their discovery was ascribed by the Greeks to a navigator called Hippalus [2] (ὁ λιβόνοτος/ libόnotos, Latin libonotus; Peripl. m. r. 57). In Plin. HN 6,100; 104 the wind itself is called Hippa…

[German version] (Ἠμωδός/ Ēmōdós, Ἠμωδὸν ὄρος/ Ēmōdòn óros, [ H] emodus; derived through Middle Indian from the Old Indian Haimavata, also Imaos, Ἴμαον ὄρος; Ímaon óros, Imaus, from Old Indian Himavān, ‘covered with snow’). Name of the eastern part of the Hindukuš-Pamir-Himalaya taken as one single mountain range. There were several views about the location of this mountain range; sometimes Imaos was named as the more easterly (Eratosth. in Str. 15,1, 11; Plin. HN 6, 64; Arr. Ind. 2, 3 et al.), sometimes Emodos. (Ptol.). Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography O. von Hinüber, in: G. W…

[German version] People on the east coast of India, Sanskrit Calinga, lived about where Orissa is today; capital city Pertalis (Plin. HN 6,64; 65; 7,30, perhaps following Megasthenes). Their land was conquered in 261 BC by  Aśoka in a bloody war and incorporated into the empire of the  Mauryas; probably identical with the Calliga of Ptol. (7,1,93, in the  Maesolia in eastern India). Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography A. Herrmann, s.v. Kalingai, RE 10, 1604f.

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: India, trade with (Χαβηρὶς ἐμπόριον; Chabērìs empórion). Harbour town of the Soringoi at the mouth of the Chaberos (Kāveri) in southern India, in Ptol. 7,1,13. Old Indian (Tamil) Kāveripaṭṭinam or Pumpuhar; port of the Chola Empire. A Greek settlement is mentioned in classic Tamil poetry. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki)

[German version] (Ἐραννοβόας; Erannobóas). Tributary of the Ganges according to Arr. Ind. 4,3 and Plin. HN 6,65; Middle Indian Hiraññāha, another name for Śoṇa, the modern Son; although the latter is mentioned separately by both authors as Sonus (Σῶνος; Sônos). Ancient Palibothra/Pāṭaliputra was situated at the confluence of the Son and the Ganges. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki)

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: Achaemenids | Alexander | Graeco-Bactria | Graeco-Bactria | India, trade with | Mauryas (Τάξιλα/ Táxila, Skt. Takṣaśilā, Middle Ind. Takkasilā, Takṣaila). City in the Punjab between the Indus and the Hydaspes, near modern Islamabad, visited in the spring of 326 BC (Arr. Anab. 5,8; Str. 15,1,28) by Alexander [4] the Great (with map); its young king Taxiles became his faithful follower. T. was already inhabited in prehistoric times, and excavations have reveal…

[German version] (Λιμυρική; Limyrikḗ). Indian region on the Malabar coast between Naoura and Nelcynda, with Carura [2] as capital (Ptol. 7,1,8; 85; Peripl. m.r. 53f.). It has been suggested that L. should be regarded as an incorrect reading of Damyrice (Old Indo-Aryan Damila, cf. modern Tamil), but the name is preserved only as L. In this country, modern Kerala, lay the famous harbour town of Muziris. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography O. Wecker, s.v. Limyrike, RE 13, 711f.

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: India, trade with (Ὄρθουρα/ Órthoura). City in the interior of the Soringi in Southern India, residence of King Sornas (Ptol. 7,1,91); probably the Greek form of Uraiyūr, capitol of the Choḷā empire on the Kāveri River, with the port of Chaberis at the mouth of the river. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography K. Karttunen, Early Roman Trade with South India, in: Arctos 29, 1995, 81-91  O. Stein, s.v. Ὄρθουρα, RE 18, 1503-1505.

[German version] (Καθαῖοι; Kathaîoi). Indian people in the Punjab either east of the  Hydraotes or between  Hydaspes and  Acesines [2], subjugated by Alexander the Great (Arr. Anab. 5,22; Diod. Sic. 17,91,2; Curt. et al.); perhaps to be identified with Sanskrit Kāthaka (attested as a Vedic school, as also the Kambistholoi and Madyandinoi). Their customs (burning of widows, bride selection, wearing jewellery and high regard for physical beauty) were described by Onesicritus (fr. 34 in Str.) who also reports that there were many metals …

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: Alexander | Graeco-Bactria | Graeco-Bactria | Hellenistic states | India, trade with (Πευκελαῶτις/ Peukelaôtis: Arr. Anab. 4,22,7-8,28,6; also Πευκελαῖτις/ Peukelaîtis: Arr. Ind. 1,8; 4,11; Πευκελαῖτις/ Peukelaîtis: Str. 15,1,27; also e.g. Προκλαίς/ Proklaís: Ptol. Geog. 7,1,44; Ποκλαίς/ Poklaís: Peripl. m. Eux. 47f.). City in Gandhāra (in modern Pakistan, west of the Indus; Gandaritis), Old Indian Puṣkalavatī, Middle Indian Pukkhalāvatī, Greek form probably influenced by names with Peuko- ( Peukolaos, Peukésta…

[German version] (Ζαμῖραι/ Zamîrai, perhaps better Γαμῆραι/ Gamêrai). A tribe, described by Ptol. 7,2,16 as cannibal, in India extra Gangem, beyond the Cirrhadia, roughly in modern Burma ( Argyrâ chṓra, 'silver land' in Ptol. 7,2,17). It is almost impossible to identify the individual peoples and places of southeastern Asia named in Ptol. (attempts in [1] and [2]), because most other sources are from a substantially later period. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography 1 A. Berthelot, L'Asie ancienne centrale et sud-orientale d'après Ptolémée, 1930 2 A. Herrmann, Das Land …

[German version] (Kaniṣka). Most prominent ruler of the Indo-Scythians; exact date controversial, begin of his reign approximately AD 100. His empire stretched from Bactria and Sogdiana to the heartland of India, with Bactra, Surkh Kotal, Taxila and Mathurā as important centres. K. maintained relations with Rome and probably used - apart from Indian and Iranian titles - the Greek title kaísar. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography A. L. Basham (ed.), Papers on the Date of K., 1968.

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: India, trade with (Ὀζήνη/ Ozḗnē). Indian city in the interior of the country east of Barygaza, a former capital city (Peripl. m. Eux. 48); Hellenized form of central Indian Ojjenī (for Old Indian Ujjayinī), the famous metropolis in western India. In Ptol. 7,1,63, O. is the capital city of Tiastanes, identical with the epigraphically attested Kṣatrapa prince Caṣṭana. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography O. Stein, s.v. Ὀζήνη, RE 18, 2048f.

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: Graeco-Bactria | Graeco-Bactria | India, trade with | Mauryas (Παλίμβοθρα/ Palímbothra, also Παλίβοθρα/ Palíbothra; name derived from an early Middle Indian form of Old Indian Pāṭaliputra [1. 34]). City of the Prasii, located in a position favourable for communications in the densely populated state of Magadha at the confluence of the Son and Ganges in modern Patna in Bihar. Made by Sandracottus the capital city of the Maurya empire (Mauryas), often mention…

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: India, trade with Trading city on the south-eastern coast of India, situated opposite  Taprobane (Ptol. 7,1,10; 7,1,95: Kolchikòs kólpos). Peripl. m. r. 58f. made reference to the fact that the coast of  Komarei up to and including C. was important for pearl fishing. C. was probably the city today known as Koṟkai. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki)

[German version] The Greeks of Hellenistic Bactria ( Graeco-Bactria), who conquered southeastern Afghanistan (Paropamisadae and Arachosia) and northwestern India (modern Pakistan) in the 2nd cent. BC. After the first and most important kings ( Demetrius [10] and Menander) the kingdom disintegrated into several parts whose numerous rulers (almost 40) are mostly attested only by coins. The I. held on until the 1st cent. BC or even the 1st cent. AD, when territories were conquered by the  Parthians a…

[German version] (Μαισῶλος; Maisôlos). Indian river, has its source in the Orudia mountain range (unclear according to [1]) and flows south to the Gulf of the Ganges (Ptol. 7,1,15; 37). Either modern Godavari or rather Kistna (Krishna) at whose delta the city of Masulipatam still lies today. Dey [2] also equates the name of the river M. with Old Indian Mahāósāla, a place of pilgrimage on the Godavari. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography 1 O. Stein, s.v. Ὀρούδια, RE 18, 1526f. 2 N. L. Dey, The Geographical Dictionary of Ancient and Mediaeval India, 1927.

[German version] (Κάβουρα, Ptol. 6,18,5, erroneously there also Károura), also called Ortospana; probably what is now Kabul on the  Cophen (Sanskrit Kubhā). In the Alexander histories, C. is never mentioned; following the  Bematistai however it is cited by Plin. HN 6,61 as Ortospanum. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography A. Herrmann, s.v. Kabura, RE 10, 1452f. O. Stein, s.v. Ortospanum, RE 18, 1507f.

[German version] (Μαισωλία; Maisōlía, Ptol. 7,1,15; Masalia, Peripl. m.r. 62); the land of the Maesolians (Ptol. 7,1,79; 93) on the east coast of India. For the name and the position see Maesolus. From an unnamed harbour there, the ships departed, according to Ptolemy, for Chryse Chersonesus (Malacca). Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography 1 B. Chatterjee, The Point of Departure for Ships Bound for ‘Suvarnabhumi’, in: Journ. of Ancient Indian History 11, 1977-1978, 49-52.

[German version] I. Name Old Indian Sindhu as the name for the Indus river, is attested (with Iranian h) as Hindu in the ancient Persian inscriptions; from this came Greek Ἰνδός ( Indōs; with the Ionian loss of h) for the river and then Ἰνδική ( Indikḗ) for the country. The Latin terms are Indus and India. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) [German version] II. Early relationships Whilst relationships between north-western I. and Mesopotamia go back to the 3rd millennium BC, I. became known in Greece only in the late 6th cent. through Scylax (FGrH 709), who visited …

[German version] Name of two Indo-Greek kings. The first, who is mentioned in literary sources (Peripl. M. Rubr. 47, Just. Epit. Prologue B. 41), ruled in Paropamisadae around 180-160 BC; the second, who is known only from coins, ruled about 100 years later in the Punjab. The legends on the coins minted under both of them generally read ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΑΠΟΛΛΟΔΟΤΟΥ ΣΩΤΗΡΟΣ / maharajasa apaladatasa tratarasa. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography O. Bopearachchi, 62-64, 188-194 (Appendix I), 135 f., 346-355 (Appendix II).

[German version] (Σωπείθης; Sōpeíthēs). Indian king in the Punjab to the east of the Cathaei, allied with Alexander [4] (Arr. Anab. 6,2,2; Str. 15,1,30; Diod. Sic. 17,91; Curt. 9,1, 24-30). His land is described very positively, to some extent idealised. There is particularly frequent mention of the fearless dogs he presented to Alexander. The ancient identification of S. with the Old Indo-Iranian Saubhūti is quite uncertain, and that with the prince Sophytes (recorded only numismatically) is certainly mistaken [1. 60-72]. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography 1 R. B. White…

[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: Alexander | Graeco-Bactria | Graeco-Bactria | Hellenistic states | India, trade with | Mauryas (τὰ Πάταλα; tà Pátala). City and military base of Alexander [4] the Great at the mouth of the Indus, probably Pātāla in Old Indian (Arr. Anab. 5,4,1; Arr. Ind. 2,6; Str. 15,1,33 among others). The name was also used for the entire region and later also for the island of Patalene (Ptol. 7,1,55), but the city is never mentioned again. In P.'s place, Barabara became the …

[German version] (Ὀξυδράκαι; Oxydrákai). Indian ethnic group in the Punjab, organized as an 'aristocratic republic'; together with the Malli, subjugated by Alexander [4] the Great in ferocious battles. The name has not been passed down to us in a uniform manner: aside from Oxydrákai in Arr. Anab. 5,22; 6,11 und from time to time, they are called Sydrákai in Str. 15,1,8, Diod. Sic. 17,98 and Arr. Ind. 4, Sudracae in Curt. 9,4,15, Sydraci in Plin. HN 6,25,92, Sugambri in Justin. 12,9,3, and Oxidragae in the Epitome Mettensis 78. In ancient Indian lists of Punjab peoples, those …

[German version] Indian dynasty in Magadha (approx. modern Bihār) on the Ganges, toppled by Chandragupta Maurya (Mauryas) late in the 4th cent. BC. In the Alexander histories, Indian allies told of the great military power of the Nandas who may thus have contributed to the mutiny on the Hyphasis. A legendary tale of the end of the Nandas is found in Indian sources and in Justin (15,4,16 according to Pomp. Trog.; [1]). Though different in many details, all sources agree on the low origins and unpopularity of the Nandas (including Curt. 9,2,6f.). India Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliograph…

[German version] (Arr. Anab. 5,6,2: Σανδράκοττος/ Sandrákottos, Str. 15,1,36: Σανδρόκοττος/ Sandrókottos, Plut. Alexander 62: Ἀνδράκοττος/ Andrákottos, Just. Epit. 15,4: Sandracottus, Old Indo-Iranian Tschandragupta). Indian king ( c. 320-298 BC) of the Mauryan Dynasty, king of the Prasii and founder of the Mauryan Empire (Mauryas with map). In Indian sources, his life is connected with legends, and parts of a S. legend are also found in Justin (15,4). He concluded a peace with Seleucus following a conflict of which no d…

[German version] Indian king of the Kṣatrapa dynasty, who ruled in and around Gujarāt in the 1st or 2nd cent. AD and was then deposed by the Sātavāhana king Gautamīputra Sātakarṇi. He has often been identified with the king Manbanes(-nus?) of Barygaza in Peripl. m.r. 41 (most recently in [1], but the question remains uncertain, latest critique in [2]). Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography 1 J. Cribb, Numismatic Evidence for the Date of the Periplus, in: D.W. McDowall (ed.), Indian Numismatics, History, Art and Culture, 1992, 131-145 2 G. Fussman, Le Périple et l'histoire poli…

[German version] Region of India to the south of  Barygaza, with the cities of Paithana and Tagara. Mentioned only in Peripl. m.r. 50f., where δάχανος has also been correctly explained as the Indian word for south, Old Indian dakṣiṇa. Probably following Middle Indian Dakkhiṇābadha (Old Indian dakṣiṇāpatha) as a term for the Indian peninsula. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki)

[German version] Greek name of the Himalaya, old Indian Himavān,  Emodus. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki)

[German version] (Πράσιοι/ Prásioi; Lat. Prasii). People in eastern India on the lower reaches of the Ganges in modern Bihār, Old Indian p rāchya, 'the Easterners' (e.g. in the Mahābhārata). Situated in their territory wasPalimbothra, the capital of the kingdom of Maurya (Mauryas). The first information about the P. comes from the Alexander historians (Diod. Sic. 17,93, Curt. 9,2,3); from the time of Megasthenes (in Str. 15,1,36), they were considered to be the most powerful people in India. Their territory was known as Πρασιακή/ Prasiakḗ (Ael. NA 17,39, Ptol. 7,1,53). Many pas…

[German version] Indian region in Gujarāt, bordering on Indo-Scythia in the west, with the capital Ozene (Ptol. 7,1,62f., see also Peripl. m.r. 41 (Ariake) and Ptol. 7,1,4f.). The name is obviously related to Old Indian Lāṭa, South Gujarāt. In this country the famous harbour town of Barygaza was situated. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography O. Wecker, s.v. L., RE 12, 837f.

[German version] (called Díkaios, Middle Indian Heliyakriya). Greek king of Bactria in the 2nd cent. BC, attested only by his coins. According to Tarn [1] son of Eucratides I and the last Greek king of Bactria, overthrown by nomads in 141/128. Narain [2] and Bopearachchi [3] differentiate between two H.s on numismatic grounds. The second was supposedly a son of the first and ruled in the south of the Hindu Kush. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography 1 W. W. Tarn, The Greeks in Bactria and India, 21951 2 A. K. Narain, The Indo-Greeks, 1958 3 Bopearachchi, 74-76, 222-225 (H. I.), 9…

[English version] Dieser Ort ist auf folgenden Karten verzeichnet: Indienhandel | Mauryas (Μουζιρίς). Hafenstadt an der SW-Küste Indiens im h. Kerala; das indische Muciri der alttamilischen Sangam-Gedichte [1]. Sowohl griech. als auch tamilische Quellen beschreiben M. als eine der wichtigsten südindischen Hafen- und Handelsstädte. Von dort führte ein wichtiger Handelsweg zur Ostküste Indiens. Eine Papyrus-Urkunde (PVindob. 40822) aus Äg. berichtet von einem Darlehen, das in M. gewährt wurde [2]. Wegen der Unstetigkeit der Küste bleibt die genaue Lage immer noch unbekannt. …

[English version] Fluß ‘am östl. Rand der Welt’ (Verg. ecl. 1,65); wohl nicht in Kreta (so richtig schon Serv. zur Stelle), sondern eine Namensvariante für Oxos, altiran. Vaxschu, der nach Plin. nat. 6,48 und Iust. 1,8,2 aus dem Oaxus lacus herausfließt. Eine weitere Namensvariante ist Araxes [2]. Karttunen, Klaus (Helsinki) Bibliography E. Kirsten, s.v. O. (1), RE 17, 1686f.  E. Meyer, s.v. O. (1), RE Suppl. 12, 897f.