276 
NEMROOD TEPASSE, 
word, having no distinct meaning in the Arabic language, most 
probably was the name of some ancient city of the Babylonians, 
long ago disappeared. I recollect that the learned Prideaux, 
writing on the changes of names with regard to places of an¬ 
tiquity, and on those usually preserved by the Arabs, remarks, 
“ that these people being the oldest nation in the world, and who 
have never been by any conquest dispossessed, nor driven out of 
their country, but have always remained there in a continued 
descent from the first planters until this day, and being also as 
little given to make alterations in their manners and usages, as 
in their country, have still retained those names of places which 
were at first attached to them ; and on these aboriginal people 
acquiring the empire of the East, they restored the original 
names to many cities, after they had been lost for ages under 
the arbitrary changes of successive conquerors. Thus,” he ob¬ 
serves, “ the ancient metropolis of Egypt, which, from Mizraim 
the son of Ham, was called Mesri; afterwards, for many ages, 
had the name of Memphis ; but, on the Arabs making themselves 
masters of Egypt, they recalled the name of Mesri, and the re¬ 
mains of the city hath retained it ever since. For the like 
reason, the city of Tyre, which was anciently called Zor or Zur, 
hath, since it fell into the hands of the Arabs, been again desig¬ 
nated Zor or Sor ; and is, at this day, known by no other name 
in that part of the world. By the same custom, the city of 
Palmyra hath again recovered the old name of Tadmor, bv 
which it was called in the time of Solomon, and is now known 
over the East by no other.” Hence, we may reasonably suppose, 
that the Arabian appellation, Akarkouff, has been one of these long 
traditionary names for a district, or a city sunk in oblivion. 
On arriving at the huge pyramidal mass which appeared in 
