5 SO DAN. 
fne of Laifh or Lelhem, (Jcfh xix. 47.) From Dan to 
Eecrfluba (the fouthem boundary) was the common phrafe 
in thole times for the longed: extent of the Holy Land. 
For it is remarkable, that this-city appears to be the lad 
acquifition made by tire KraeliteS before king David's 
time ; and Beerflieba (according to Gen. xxi. 22. to the 
end) appears to be the firft conceffion made to the pa¬ 
triarch Abraham. So that from Dan to Beerjaeba, denoted 
the longed extent both of time and fpace. At Dan, Je¬ 
roboam erefted one of the golden calves. 1 Kings, xii. 
DAN, or Jor'Dan, a river famous in facred hidory, 
on account of its having been miraculouily divided to 
let the Ifr.ielites under Jofhua pafs into the promifed 
land; Jofh.iii. 14-1 7. This river is now called Sc/ieria/i ; 
it is the larged in Pulefrine, and perhaps the only one in 
that country which deferves the name of a river. Geogra¬ 
phers are not agreed as to its fourcc or origin: the mod 
common opinion is, that it arifes from two fpringsat the 
foot of mount Libanus, one of which is called Jor, the 
other Dan; and that thefe two fprings, uniting their wa¬ 
ters and their names, at the city of Dan, near Paneades 
or Pi ilippi Cel'area, built by Philip the tetrarch, form 
tire river Jordan. Reland derives it from a Hebrew word 
which dignities to run. Others fay it comes from a word 
which fignifies a river, and the city of Dan. But Jofe- 
phus is more exafilto this point: “ It has been believed,” 
lays he, “ that Paneades was the place of its origin ; but 
it only hides itfelf in the earth in that place ; its real 
fource is in a lake to the right of Trachonitis, called 
Fiola from its round figure, 120 dadia, or furlongs, from 
Celarea.” The Jordan makes feveral windings as it quits 
Paneades, divides Trachonitis from Upper Galilee and 
Iturea, (or, as dome fay, Trachonitis and Iturea from 
Upper Galilee,) bathes the cities of Seleucia, and forms 
a pond between Cefarea and the Sea of Galilee thirty 
dadia wide, called Meron or Semechonftis: thence it 
Jlnpes its courfe eafteriy ; and, being increafed by a great 
number of fprings, it wadies the cities of Chorafan and 
Capernaum, and runs into the Sea of Galilee; or rather, 
the Jordan itfelf, finding a more fpacious bed, expands, 
and forms that vad lake, which is called the Lake or Sea 
of Tiberias, the Lake or Sea of Genelitreth, or the Sea 
of Galilee, being, according to Pliny, 1,'600,000 paces 
(1500 miles) long, and 6000 paces broad. Pading beyond 
this lake, the Jordan has feveral more finuofities; and 
two leagues oft' is again augmented by receiving the wa¬ 
ters of the river, or, as Modes calls it, the torrent of 
Jabbok, and of feveral other rivers. Here it takes the 
name of Jordan the Great ; then it feparates Perea from 
Samaria, and Judea from the country of Moab, and runs 
through the muddle of the valley which reaches from 
Genelareth to the Dead Sea, into which it runs after lb 
many windings,, that Pliny fays it comes thither in fpite 
of itfelf. It traverdes that lea, and is loft, according to 
Adrichomius, in a neighbouring gulf, or, as Paufanius 
fays, in the very marfhes of the Alphaltites. The length 
of the Jordan is about one hundred miles, and its breadth 
feldom lefs than three hundred feet; but, when the Is¬ 
raelites palded, it was much wider, being at the time of 
barley-harveft, (Jodi. iii. 15.) when, according to hifto- 
rians facred and prophane, the melting of the fnows from 
mount Libanus, greatly increafed the waters of this river, 
do as to make them overflow their banks. Whether this 
periodical overflow takes place at pre.fent, modern travel¬ 
lers cannot agree. Maundrel, who was there on the 30th 
of March, which was about the time, that the Ifraelites 
palfed the Jordan, not only remarked no inundation, but 
fays the waters were much below their natural banks. 
Doupdam, on the contrary, who was there at the fame 
fealon, fays that the waters were yellow and muddy, 
like thofe of the Seine in winter; that the dream was 
expremely deep and rapid, and ready to overflow its 
banks by the acceflion of.melted fnow from mount Liba- 
ltus. Saurin's Dif. ii. 3 , 9. 
DAN, J. [from dominus, as don in the Spanilh ; and 
1 
D A N 
donna, Italian, from domino..'] The old term of honour 
for men, as we now fay Majler. It appears not to have 
been ufed in prole, but feems to have been rather of 
ludiprous import: 
This whimpled, whining, purblind, wayward boy, 
This fignor JuYiio’s giant dwarf, dan Cupid. Smhejpeare. 
Dick, if this dory pleafeth thee, 
Pray thank dan Pope, who told it me. Prior. 
DAN, one of the twelve patriarch’s of Tfrael, was the 
fifth fon of Jacob, by Bilhah the handmaid of Rachael. 
Jn the lad blefiing which Jacob pronounced on his fons, 
Dan was compared to 11 a ferpent by the way, an'adder 
in the path, that biteth the horfe’s heels, fo that his 
rider fhull fall backwards which has been interpreted 
to be a prediction of the fubtlety and cunning by which 
his defendants fhould afterwards be diftinguifhed in their 
negociations and warlike exploits. The,tribe called by 
his name had their rap lie (lions afTigned them to the wed- 
ward of the portion of Benjamin, on the coafts of the 
Mediterranean fea, from Joppa on the north, to the 
neighbourhood of A fealon on the fouth. The molt ex¬ 
traordinary perfon whom they produced was Sampfon, 
the celebrated judge of Ifrael, and the fcourge of the 
Philidines. They conftituted one of the ten tribes who, 
on the acceflion of Rchoboam, fon of Solomon, revolted 
from the family of David. 
DAN, a confiderable river of North Carolina, which 
unites with the Staunton, and forms the Roanoke. The 
famous Burfted-hill (lands on the bank of the Dan, in 
Virginia, near the borders of North Carolina. It appears 
to have been an ancient volcano. There are large rocks 
of the lava, or melted matter, from 1000 to 1500 weight, 
lying on the fummit of the hill. The crater is partly 
filled, and covered with large trees. 
DAN-JAAN, a town of Canaan, probably the Dan 
before-mentioned, through which Joab and his colleagues 
paffed, when by David’s order they numbered the people. 
2 Sam. xxiv. 6. 
DA'NAE,yi in antiquity, a coin fomewhat more than 
an obolus, which the ignorant and fuperditious ufed to 
put into the mouths of the dead, to pay their pallage 
over the river Acheron. 
DA'NAE, in fabulous hidory, the daughter of Ari- 
fius king of Argos ? by Eurydice. She was confined in 
a brazen tower by her father, who had been told by an 
oracle, that his daughter’s fon would put him to death. 
His endeavours to prevent Danae from becoming a mo¬ 
ther proved fruitlefs; and Jupiter, who was enamdiired 
of her, introduced himfelf to her bed, by changing liirft- 
felf into a golden (bower. From his embraces Danae had 
a fon, with whom Ihe was expofed on the fea by her fa¬ 
ther. The wind drove the bark which carried her to 
the coafts of the ifland of Seriphus, where fhe was faved 
by fome filhermen, and carried to Polydecles king of the • 
place, vhofe brother, called DHtys, educated the child 
called Perfeus, and tenderly treated the mother. Poly- 
deifies fell in love with her; but, as he was afraid of 
her fon, he fent him to conquer the Gorgons, pretend¬ 
ing that he wilhed Medufa’s head to adorn the nuptials 
which lie was going to celebrate with Hippodamia, the 
daughter of CEnomaus. When Perfeus had viclorioully 
finilhed his expedition, he retired to Argos with Danae,. 
to the houfe of Acrifius, whom he inadvertently killed. 
Some fuppofe that it was Proetus the brother of Acri- 
fius-,. who introduced himfelf to Danae in the brazen 
tower; and, indead of a golden (Lower, it was maintain¬ 
ed, that the keepers of Danae were bribed by the gold 
of iter feducer. Virgil mentions that Danae came to 
Italy with fome fugitives of Argos, and that (he founded 
a city called Ardea. Ovid. Apollodorus. 
DA'NAl, a name given to the people of Argos, and 
promilcuoufi.y to all the Greeks, from Danaus their king. 
DANA'IDES, the fifty .daughters of Danaus king of 
Argos. When their uncle /Egyptus came from Egypt 
with 
