“On. the Ancient’ HELLENES. 133 
oO 
fequence, the Greeks employed a word derived from the ori- 
- ental name of that element, to fignify the beginning, and Ceres 
was the fame deity with TELLUs, or the earth. In Greek, the 
word Igavs, nearly the fame with grai or grau, fignifies an old 
woman. Indeed, grai and grau are actually the fame ; for the 
ancient Greek alphabet had no upfilon. The words Peaio and 
Teasxos, according to this deduction, imported the original inha- 
bitants of Greece, and was applied to them by the Pelafgi, in 
order to exhibit this very character. Every body knows, that 
the mythologifts of Greece made no fcruple to forge imaginary 
perfonages, upon every occafion, when they found themfelves 
embarrafled in tracing out the progenitors of a nation. Thus, 
according to them, Mepeus was the father of the Medes, PER- 
sEus of the Perfians, PoorNnix of the Phcenicians, Syrus of 
the Syrians, &c. According to the fame arrangement, GRatvs, 
if he was not the father of the Greeks, was at’ leaft the father 
of their Gentile name. HELLEN, Ion, Dorus, /EoLus,,. 
AcHzus, were beings of the like equivocal generation. 
However far and wide the term Hedlas came to be diffufed' 
afterwards, it was at firft confined to one {mall city of Theflaly. 
It lay in Phthiotis, a fmall diftri€t of that country, toward the 
fouth. According to Srraso, fome were of opinion, that 
Phthia, Hellas, and Achaia, were the fame. Sia» re, of per 
Thy avrny evar tn “EAAads nos Ayouw * Anda little after, he 
adds :—‘* Now thofe who fay fo, fhew you, about fixty ftadia 
“ from their city, the ruins of a city which they believe to 
“ have been Hellas, and near it two fountains, the one called 
““ Mefleis and the other Hyperiea.’’ He goes on to inform us, 
that the people of Melitza alleged, that Hellas being fituated. 
on a low ground beyond the Enipeus, the inhabitants, pro- 
bably on account of the unhealthinefs of the fituation, de- 
“* ferted it, and went over to their city f. The author of the 
Brevia Scholia on the Iliad is of. the fame opinion. “ Not in- 
4 ** deed: 
* STRABO, p. 431. + P. 431- 
“ 
cs 
