ὁ δὲ Πόντος ὁ Εὔξεινος, ἐπʼ ὃν ἐστρατεύετο ὁ Δαρεῖος, χωρέων πασέων παρέχεται ἔξω τοῦ Σκυθικοῦ ἔθνεα ἀμαθέστατα. οὔτε γὰρ ἔθνος τῶν ἐντὸς τοῦ Πόντου οὐδὲν ἔχομεν προβαλέσθαι σοφίης πέρι οὔτε ἄνδρα λόγιον οἴδαμεν γενόμενον, πάρεξ τοῦ Σκυθικοῦ ἔθνεος καὶ Ἀναχάρσιος.
τῷ δὲ Σκυθικῷ γένει ἓν μὲν τὸ μέγιστον τῶν ἀνθρωπηίων πρηγμάτων σοφώτατα πάντων ἐξεύρηται τῶν ἡμεῖς ἴδμεν, τὰ μέντοι ἄλλα οὐκ ἄγαμαι· τὸ δὲ μέγιστον οὕτω σφι ἀνεύρηται ὥστε ἀποφυγεῖν τε μηδένα ἐπελθόντα ἐπὶ σφέας, μὴ βουλομένους τε ἐξευρεθῆναι καταλαβεῖν μὴ οἷον τε εἶναι.
τοῖσι γὰρ μήτε ἄστεα μήτε τείχεα ᾖ ἐκτισμένα, ἀλλὰ φερέοικοι ἐόντες πάντες ἔωσι ἱπποτοξόται, ζῶντες μὴ ἀπʼ ἀρότου ἀλλʼ ἀπὸ κτηνέων, οἰκήματα τε σφι ᾖ ἐπὶ ζευγέων, κῶς οὐκ ἂν εἴησαν οὗτοι ἄμαχοί τε καὶ ἄποροι προσμίσγειν;
Now the region of the Euxine upon which Dareios was preparing to march has, apart from the Scythian race, the most ignorant nations within it of all lands: for we can neither put forward any nation of those who dwell within the region of Pontus as eminent in ability, nor do we know of any man of learning having arisen there, apart from the Scythian nation and Anacharsis. By the Scythian race one thing which is the most important of all human things has been found out more cleverly than by any other men of whom we know; but in other respects I have no great admiration for them: and that most important thing which they have discovered is such that none can escape again who has come to attack them, and if they do not desire to be found, it is not possible to catch them: for they who have neither cities founded nor walls built, but all carry their houses with them and are mounted archers, living not by the plough but by cattle, and whose dwellings are upon cars, these assuredly are invincible and impossible to approach.
ἐξεύρηται δέ σφι ταῦτα τῆς τε γῆς ἐούσης ἐπιτηδέης καὶ τῶν ποταμῶν ἐόντων σφι συμμάχων. ἥ τε γὰρ γῆ ἐοῦσα πεδιὰς αὕτη ποιώδης τε καὶ εὔυδρος ἐστί, ποταμοί τε διʼ αὐτῆς ῥέουσι οὐ πολλῷ τεῳ ἀριθμὸν ἐλάσσονες τῶν ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ διωρύχων.
ὅσοι δὲ ὀνομαστοί τε εἰσὶ αὐτῶν καὶ προσπλωτοὶ ἀπὸ θαλάσσης, τούτους ὀνομανέω […] Ἴστρος μὲν πεντάστομος, μετὰ δὲ Τύρης τε καὶ Ὕπανις καὶ Βορυσθένης καὶ Παντικάπης καὶ Ὑπάκυρις καὶ Γέρρος καὶ Τάναϊς. ῥέουσι δὲ οἵδε κατὰ τάδε.
This they have found out, seeing that their land is suitable to it and at the same time the rivers are their allies: for first this land is plain land and is grassy and well watered, and then there are rivers flowing through it not much less in number than the channels in Egypt. Of these as many as are noteworthy and also can be navigated from the sea, I will name: there is Ister with five mouths, and after this Tyras, Hypanis, Borysthenes, Panticapes, Kypakyris, Gerros and Tanaïs. These flow as I shall now describe.
Ἴστρος μέν, ἐὼν μέγιστος ποταμῶν πάντων τῶν ἡμεῖς ἴδμεν, ἴσος αἰεὶ αὐτὸς ἑωυτῷ ῥέει καὶ θέρεος καὶ χειμῶνος, πρῶτος δὲ τὸ ἀπʼ ἑσπέρης τῶν ἐν τῇ Σκυθικῇ ῥέων κατὰ τοιόνδε μέγιστος γέγονε· ποταμῶν καὶ ἄλλων ἐς αὐτὸν ἐκδιδόντων
εἰσὶ δὴ οἵδε οἱ μέγαν αὐτὸν ποιεῦντες, διὰ μέν γε τῆς Σκυθικῆς χώρης πέντε μὲν οἱ ῥέοντες, τὸν τε Σκύθαι Πόρατα καλέουσι Ἑλλήνες δὲ Πυρετόν, καὶ ἄλλος Τιάραντος καὶ Ἄραρος τε καὶ Νάπαρις καὶ Ὀρδησσός.
ὁ μὲν πρῶτος λεχθεὶς τῶν ποταμῶν μέγας καὶ πρὸς ἠῶ ῥέων ἀνακοινοῦται τῷ Ἴστρῳ τὸ ὕδωρ, ὁ δὲ δεύτερος λεχθεὶς Τιάραντος πρὸς ἑσπέρης τε μᾶλλον καὶ ἐλάσσων, ὁ δὲ δὴ Ἄραρός τε καὶ ὁ Νάπαρις καὶ ὁ Ὀρδησσὸς καὶ μέσου τούτων ἰόντες ἐσβάλλουσι ἐς τὸν Ἴστρον.
The Ister, which is the greatest of all the rivers which we know, flows always with equal volume in summer and winter alike. It is the first towards the West of all the Scythian rivers, and it has become the greatest of all rivers because other rivers flow into it. And these are they which make it great: —five in number are those which flow through the Scythian land, namely that which the Scythians call Porata and the Hellenes Pyretos, and besides this, Tiarantos and Araros and Naparis and Ordessos. The first-mentioned of these is a great river lying towards the East, and there it joins waters with the Ister, the second Tiarantos is more to the West and smaller, and the Araros and Naparis and Ordessos flow into the Ister going between these two.
οὗτοι μὲν αὐθιγενέες Σκυθικοὶ ποταμοὶ συμπληθύουσι αὐτόν, ἐκ δὲ Ἀγαθύρσων Μάρις ποταμὸς ῥέων συμμίσγεται τῷ Ἴστρῳ, ἐκ δὲ τοῦ Αἵμου τῶν κορυφέων τρεῖς ἄλλοι μεγάλοι ῥέοντες πρὸς βορέην ἄνεμον ἐσβάλλουσι ἐς αὐτόν, Ἄτλας καὶ Αὔρας καὶ Τίβισις. διὰ δὲ Θρηίκης καὶ Θρηίκων τῶν Κροβύζων ῥέοντες Ἄθρυς καὶ Νόης καὶ Ἀρτάνης ἐκδιδοῦσι ἐς τὸν Ἴστρον· ἐκ δὲ Παιόνων καὶ ὄρεος Ῥοδόπης Κίος ποταμὸς μέσον σχίζων τὸν Αἷμον ἐκδιδοῖ ἐς αὐτόν.
ἐξ Ἰλλυριῶν δὲ ῥέων πρὸς βορέην ἄνεμον Ἄγγρος ποταμὸς ἐσβάλλει ἐς πεδίον τὸ Τριβαλλικὸν καὶ ἐς ποταμὸν Βρόγγον, ὁ δὲ Βρόγγος ἐς τὸν Ἴστρον· οὕτω ἀμφοτέρους ἐόντας μεγάλους ὁ Ἴστρος δέκεται. ἐκ δὲ τῆς κατύπερθε χώρης Ὀμβρικῶν Κάρπις ποταμὸς καὶ ἄλλος Ἄλπις ποταμὸς πρὸς βορέην ἄνεμον καὶ οὗτοι ῥέοντες ἐκδιδοῦσι ἐς αὐτόν·
ῥέει γὰρ δὴ διὰ πάσης τῆς Εὐρώπης ὁ Ἴστρος, ἀρξάμενος ἐκ Κελτῶν, οἳ ἔσχατοι πρὸς ἡλίου δυσμέων μετὰ Κύνητας οἰκέουσι τῶν ἐν τῇ Εὐρώπη· ῥέων δὲ διὰ πάσης τῆς Εὐρώπης ἐς τὰ πλάγια τῆς Σκυθίης ἐσβάλλει.
These are the native Scythian rivers which join to swell its stream, while from the Agathyrsians flows the Maris and joins the Ister, and from the summits of Haimos flow three other great rivers towards the North Wind and fall into it, namely Atlas and Auras and Tibisis. Through Thrace and the Thracian Crobyzians flow the rivers Athrys and Noes and Artanes, running into the Ister; and from the Paionians and Mount Rhodope the river Kios, cutting through Haimos in the midst, runs into it also. From the Illyrians the river Angros flows Northwards and runs out into the Triballian plain and into the river Brongos, and the Brongos flows into the Ister; thus the Ister receives both these, being great rivers. From the region which is above the Ombricans, the river Carpis and another river, the Alpis, flow also towards the North Wind and run into it; for the Ister flows in fact through the whole of Europe, beginning in the land of the Keltoi, who after the Kynesians dwell furthest towards the sun-setting of all the peoples of Europe; and thus flowing through all Europe it falls into the sea by the side of Scythia.
τούτων ὦν τῶν καταλεχθέντων καὶ ἄλλων πολλῶν συμβαλλομένων τὸ σφέτερον ὕδωρ γίνεται ὁ Ἴστρος ποταμῶν μέγιστος, ἐπεὶ ὕδωρ γε ἓν πρὸς ἓν συμβάλλειν ὁ Νεῖλος πλήθει ἀποκρατέει. ἐς γὰρ δὴ τοῦτον οὔτε ποταμὸς οὔτε κρήνη οὐδεμία ἐσδιδοῦσα ἐς πλῆθός οἱ συμβάλλεται.
ἴσος δὲ αἰεὶ ῥέει ἐν τε θέρει καὶ χειμῶνι ὁ Ἴστρος κατὰ τοιόνδε τι, ὡς ἐμοὶ δοκέει· τοῦ μὲν χειμῶνος ἐστὶ ὅσος περ ἐστι, ὀλίγῳ τε μέζων τῆς ἑωυτοῦ φύσιος γίνεται· ὕεται γὰρ ἡ γῆ αὕτη τοῦ χειμῶνος πάμπαν ὀλίγῳ, νιφετῷ δὲ πάντα χρᾶται·
τοῦ δὲ θέρεος ἡ χιὼν ἡ ἐν τῷ χειμῶνι πεσοῦσα, ἐοῦσα ἀμφιλαφής, τηκομένη πάντοθεν ἐσδιδοῖ ἐς τὸν Ἴστρον. αὕτη τε δὴ ἡ χιὼν ἐσδιδοῦσα ἐς αὐτὸν συμπληθύει καὶ ὄμβροι πολλοί τε καὶ λάβροι σὺν αὐτῇ· ὕει γὰρ δὴ τὸ θέρος.
ὅσῳ δὲ πλέον ἐπʼ ἑωυτὸν ὕδωρ ὁ ἥλιος ἐπέλκεται ἐν τῶ θέρει ἢ ἐν τῷ χειμῶνι, τοσούτῳ τὰ συμμισγόμενα τῷ Ἴστρῳ πολλαπλήσια ἐστὶ τοῦ θέρεος ἤ περ τοῦ χειμῶνος· ἀντιτιθέμενα δὲ ταῦτα ἀντισήκωσις γίνεται, ὥστε ἴσον μιν αἰεὶ φαίνεσθαι ἐόντα.
So then it is because these which have been named and many others join their waters together, that Ister becomes the greatest of rivers; since if we compare the single streams, the Nile is superior in volume of water; for into this no river or spring flows, to contribute to its volume. And the Ister flows at an equal level always both in summer and in winter for some such cause as this, as I suppose:—in winter it is of the natural size, or becomes only a little larger than its nature, seeing that this land receives very little rain in winter, but constantly has snow; whereas in summer the snow which fell in the winter, in quantity abundant, melts and runs from all parts into the Ister. This snow of which I speak, running into the river helps to swell its volume, and with it also many and violent showers of rain, for it rains during the summer: and thus the waters which mingle with the Ister are more copious in summer than they are in winter by about as much as the water which the Sun draws to himself in summer exceeds that which he draws in winter; and by the setting of these things against one another there is produced a balance; so that the river is seen to be of equal volume always.
Cite This Text