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=== Historians === ==== Hecataeus of Miletus ==== [[Hecataeus of Miletus]] in a fragment from ''Genealogiai'' states that the ''genos'' ("clan") descending from [[Deucalion]] ruled [[Thessaly]] and that it was called "Pelasgia" from king Pelasgus.{{Sfn|Hecataeus of Miletus|Klausen|1831|loc=Fragment 224 (p. 140)}} A second fragment states that Pelasgus was the son of [[Zeus]] and [[Niobe]] and that his son [[Lycaon (king of Arcadia)|Lycaon]] founded a dynasty of kings of [[Arcadia (ancient region)|Arcadia]].{{Sfn|Hecataeus of Miletus|Klausen|1831|loc=Fragment 375 (p. 157)}} ==== Acusilaus ==== A fragment from the writings of [[Acusilaus]] asserts that the [[Peloponnesus|Peloponnesians]] were called "Pelasgians" after Pelasgus, a son of [[Zeus]] and [[Niobe]].<ref>Mentioned in Pseudo-[[Apollodorus of Athens|Apollodorus]], ''[[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Bibliotheca]]'' 2.1.</ref> ==== Hellanicus ==== [[File:Kastro larissa 1.JPG|thumb|250 px|Larisa of Argos.]] [[Hellanicus of Lesbos]] concerns himself with one word in one line of the ''[[Iliad]]'', "pasture-land of horses", applied to Argos in the [[Peloponnesus]].<ref>Hellanicus fr. 36, Fowler, [https://books.google.com/books?id=j0nRE4C2WBgC&pg=173 p. 173] (apud Scholia (T+) ''Iliad'' 3.75b); cf. Hellanicus fr. 7, Sturtz, [https://books.google.com/books?id=VpZbAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA49 pp. 49–51]; Homer. ''Iliad'', [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Hom.+Il.+3.75&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0134 3.75].</ref> According to Hellanicus, from [[Pelasgus]] and his wife [[Menippe (mythology)|Menippe]] came a line of kings: [[Phrastor|Phrastōr]], [[Amyntor (mythology)|Amyntōr]], [[Teutamides]] and Nanas (kings of Pelasgiotis in Thessaly).<ref>[[Dionysius of Halicarnassus]], ''[[Roman Antiquities]]'' [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Dionysius_of_Halicarnassus/1B*.html#28 1.28.3] (citing [[Hellanicus of Lesbos|Hellanicus]], ''[[Phoronis (Hellanicus)|Phoronis]]'') = Hellanicus fr. 4, Fowler, [https://books.google.com/books?id=j0nRE4C2WBgC&pg=156 pp. 156–157]; cf. Hellanicus fr. 76, Sturtz, [https://books.google.com/books?id=VpZbAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA108 pp. 108–109].</ref> During Nanas's reign, the Pelasgians were driven out by the Greeks and departed for Italy. They landed at the mouth of the [[Po River]], near the Etruscan city of [[Spina]], then took the inland city "Crotona" (''Κρότωνα''), and from there colonized [[Tyrrhenia]]. The inference is that Hellanicus believed the Pelasgians of Thessaly (and indirectly of the Peloponnese) to have been the ancestors of the [[Etruscans]].{{Sfn|Briquel|2013|p=47}} ==== Herodotus ==== In the ''Histories'', the Greek historian [[Herodotus]] of [[Halicarnassus]] made many references to the Pelasgians. In Book 1, the Pelasgians are mentioned within the context of [[Croesus]] seeking to learn who the strongest Greeks were to befriend them.<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0126%3Abook%3D1%3Achapter%3D56 1.56.]</ref> Afterwards, Herodotus ambivalently classified the Pelasgian language as "[[Barbarians|barbarian]]" though he thought of the Pelasgians to have been essentially Greek. Herodotus also discussed various areas inhabited (or previously inhabited) by Pelasgians/Pelasgian-speakers along with their different neighbors/co-residents:<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', 1.57. ({{harvnb|Herodotus|Strassler|2009|p=32}}.)</ref>{{Sfn|Georges|1994|p=134: "Herodotus, like other Greeks, instinctively imagined the non-Dorian inhabitants of 'ancient' Greece—Achaeans, Argives, Danaans, Ionians, Pelasgians, Cadmeans, Lapiths, and all the rest of the races of myth and epic—to be essentially "Greek" and ancestral to themselves, as Aeschylus imagined the Pelasgian Argives in the Supplices [...]"}} {{quote|I am unable to state with certainty what language the Pelasgians spoke, but we could consider the speech of the Pelasgians who still exist in settlements above Tyrrhenia in the city of Kreston, formerly neighbors to the Dorians who at that time lived in the land now called Thessaliotis; also the Pelasgians who once lived with the Athenians and then settled Plakia and Skylake in the Hellespont; and along with those who lived with all the other communities and were once Pelasgian but changed their names. If one can judge by this evidence, the Pelasgians spoke a barbarian language. And so, if the Pelasgian language was spoken in all these places, the people of Attica being originally Pelasgian, must have learned a new language when they became Hellenes. As a matter of fact, the people of Krestonia and Plakia no longer speak the same language, which shows that they continue to use the dialect they brought with them when they migrated to those lands.}} Furthermore, Herodotus discussed the relationship between the Pelasgians and the (other) Greeks,<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', 1.56–1.58. ({{harvnb|Herodotus|Strassler|2009|pp=32–33}}.)</ref>{{Sfn|Georges|1994|p=131: "Herodotus argues near the very beginning of his work that most of the people who later became Hellenes were Pelasgians, and that these Pelasgians were barbarians and spoke a barbarian language. From these Pelasgians Herodotus derives the descent of the Ionians, as well as that of all the other Greeks of the present day who are not Dorians (1.56.3–58) [...]"}} which, according to Pericles Georges, reflected the {{qi|rivalry within Greece itself between [...] Dorian Sparta and Ionian Athens.}}{{Sfn|Georges|1994|pp=129–130}} Specifically, Herodotus stated that the Hellenes separated from the Pelasgians with the former group surpassing the latter group numerically:<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', 1.58. ({{harvnb|Herodotus|Strassler|2009|p=33}}.)</ref> {{quote|As for the Hellenes, it seems obvious to me that ever since they came into existence they have always used the same language. They were weak at first, when they were separated from the Pelasgians, but they grew from a small group into a multitude, especially when many peoples, including other barbarians in great numbers, had joined them. Moreover, I do not think the Pelasgian, who remained barbarians, ever grew appreciably in number or power.}} In Book 2, Herodotus alluded to the Pelasgians as inhabitants of [[Samothrace]], an island located just north of Troy, before coming to Attica.<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0126&layout=&loc=2.51.0 2.51]. The text allows two interpretations, that Pelasgians were indigenous there or that they had been resettled by Athens.</ref> Moreover, Herodotus wrote that the Pelasgians simply called their gods ''theoi'' prior to naming them on the grounds that the gods established all affairs in their order (''thentes''); the author also stated that the gods of the Pelasgians were the [[Cabeiri]].<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0126%3Abook%3D2%3Achapter%3D51 2.51.]</ref> Later, Herodotus stated that the entire territory of Greece (i.e., ''Hellas'') was initially called "Pelasgia".<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0126%3Abook%3D2%3Achapter%3D56 2.56.]</ref> In Book 5, Herodotus mentioned the Pelasgians as inhabitants of the islands of [[Lemnos]] and [[Imbros]].<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0126&layout=&loc=5.26.1 5.26].</ref> [[File:Jean Benner, Athéniennes surprises par des Pélages de Lemnos.jpg|thumb|''Athenian Women Surprised by the Pelasgians of Lemnos'', [[Jean Benner]], {{c.|1876}}]] In Book 6, the Pelasgians of Lemnos were originally Hellespontine Pelasgians who had been living in Athens but whom the [[Athens|Athenians]] resettled on Lemnos and then found it necessary to reconquer the island.<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', 6.137–6.140.</ref> This expulsion of (non-Athenian) Pelasgians from Athens may reflect, according to the historian Robert Buck, {{qi|a dim memory of forwarding of refugees, closely akin to the Athenians in speech and custom, to the Ionian colonies}}.<ref>{{harvnb|Buck|1979|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=5Ada2TbJWM0C&pg=PA79 79]}}.</ref> Also, Herodotus wrote that the Pelasgians on the island of Lemnos opposite Troy once kidnapped the Hellenic women of Athens for wives, but the Athenian wives created a crisis by teaching their children {{qi|the language of Attica}} instead of the Pelasgian.<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0126%3Abook%3D6%3Achapter%3D138 6.138.]</ref> In Book 7, Herodotus mentioned {{qi|the Pelasgian city of [[Antandrus]]}}<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0126&layout=&loc=7.42.1 7.42].</ref> and wrote about the Ionian inhabitants of {{qi|the land now called Achaea}} (i.e., northwestern Peloponnese) being {{qi|called, according to the Greek account, Aegialean Pelasgi, or Pelasgi of the Sea Shore}}; afterwards, they were called ''Ionians''.<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0126%3Abook%3D7%3Achapter%3D94%3Asection%3D1 7.94].</ref> Moreover, Herodotus mentioned that the Aegean islanders {{qi|were a Pelasgian race, who in later times took the name Ionians}} and that the [[Aeolians]], according to the Hellenes, were known anciently as "Pelasgians."<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', 7.95. ({{harvnb|Herodotus|Strassler|2009|p=533}}.)</ref> In Book 8, Herodotus mentioned that the Pelasgians of Athens were previously called ''Cranai''.<ref>Herodotus. ''Histories'', [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0126&query=section%3D%233768&word=Pelasgians 8.44].</ref> ==== Thucydides ==== In the ''[[History of the Peloponnesian War]]'', the Greek historian [[Thucydides]] wrote about the Pelasgians stating that:<ref>Thucydides. ''History of the Peloponnesian War'', [http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.perseus-eng3:1.3 1.3.2].</ref> {{quote|Before the time of [[Hellen]], son of [[Deucalion]] [...] the country went by the names of the different tribes, in particular of the Pelasgian. It was not till Hellen and his sons grew strong in [[Phthia|Phthiotis]], and were invited as allies into the other cities, that one by one they gradually acquired from the connection the name of [[Hellenes]]; though a long time elapsed before that name could fasten itself upon all.}} The author regards the Athenians as having lived in scattered independent settlements in [[Attica]]; but at some time after [[Theseus]], they changed residence to [[Athens]], which was already populated. A plot of land below the Acropolis was called "Pelasgian" and was regarded as cursed, but the Athenians settled there anyway.<ref>Thucydides. ''History of the Peloponnesian War'', [http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.perseus-eng3:2.16 2.16–2.17.1].</ref> In connection with the campaign against [[Amphipolis]], Thucydides mentions that several settlements on the promontory of [[Mount Athos|Actē]] were home to:<ref>Thucydides. ''History of the Peloponnesian War'', [http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.perseus-eng3:4.109 4.109.4].</ref> {{quote|[...] mixed barbarian races speaking the two languages. There is also a small [[Chalcidice|Chalcidian]] element; but the greater number are Tyrrheno-Pelasgians once settled in [[Lemnos]] and Athens, and Bisaltians, Crestonians and Eonians; the towns all being small ones.}} ==== Ephorus ==== The historian [[Ephorus]], building on a fragment from Hesiod that attests to a tradition of an aboriginal Pelasgian people in Arcadia, developed a theory of the Pelasgians as a people living a {{qi|military way of life}} (''stratiōtikon bion'') {{qi|and that, in converting many peoples to the same mode of life, they imparted their name to all}}, meaning "all of Hellas". They colonized Crete and extended their rule over Epirus, Thessaly and by implication over wherever else the ancient authors said they were, beginning with Homer. The Peloponnese was called "Pelasgia".<ref name=":0">Strabo. ''Geography'', [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0239%3Abook%3D5%3Achapter%3D2%3Asection%3D4 5.2.4].</ref> ==== Dionysius of Halicarnassus ==== In the ''Roman Antiquities'', [[Dionysius of Halicarnassus]] in several pages gives a synoptic interpretation of the Pelasgians based on the sources available to him then, concluding that Pelasgians were Greek:<ref name="Dionysius1.17">Dionysius of Halicarnassus. ''Roman Antiquities'', [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Dionysius_of_Halicarnassus/1B*.html#17 1.17].</ref> {{quote|Afterwards some of the Pelasgians who inhabited Thessaly, as it is now called, being obliged to leave their country, settled among the Aborigines and jointly with them made war upon the Sicels. It is possible that the Aborigines received them partly in the hope of gaining their assistance, but I believe it was chiefly on account of their kinship; for the Pelasgians, too, were a Greek nation originally from the Peloponnesus [...]}} He goes on to add that the nation wandered a great deal.<ref name="Dionysius1.17" /> They were originally natives of "Achaean Argos" descended from Pelasgus, the son of Zeus and Niobe.<ref name="Dionysius1.17" /> They migrated from there to Haemonia (later called Thessaly), where they {{qi|drove out the barbarian inhabitants}} and divided the country into Phthiotis, Achaia, and Pelasgiotis, named after Achaeus, Phthius and Pelasgus, {{qi|the sons of Larissa and Poseidon.}}<ref name="Dionysius1.17" /> Subsequently, {{qi|about the sixth generation they were driven out by the [[Curetes (tribe)|Curetes]] and [[Leleges]], who are now called [[Aetolia]]ns and [[Locris|Locrians]]}}.<ref name="Dionysius1.17" /> From there, the Pelasgians dispersed to [[Crete]], the [[Cyclades]], Histaeotis, [[Boeotia]], [[Phocis]], [[Euboea]], the coast along the [[Hellespont]] and the islands, especially [[Lesbos]], which had been colonized by [[Macar]] son of [[Crinacus]].<ref name="Dionysius1.18">Dionysius of Halicarnassus. ''Roman Antiquities'', [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Dionysius_of_Halicarnassus/1B*.html#18 1.18].</ref> Most went to Dodona and eventually being driven from there to Italy (then called Saturnia), they landed at [[Spina]] at the mouth of the [[Po River]].<ref name="Dionysius1.18" /> Still others crossed the [[Apennine Mountains]] to [[Umbria]] and being driven from there went to the country of the Aborigines where they consented to a treaty and settled at [[Velia]].<ref name="Dionysius1.19">Dionysius of Halicarnassus. ''Roman Antiquities'', [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Dionysius_of_Halicarnassus/1B*.html#19 1.19].</ref> They and the Aborigenes took over Umbria but were dispossessed by the [[Tyrrhenians]].<ref name="Dionysius1.19" /> The author then continues to detail the tribulations of the Pelasgians and then goes on to the Tyrrhenians, whom he is careful to distinguish from the Pelasgians.<ref>Dionysius of Halicarnassus. ''Roman Antiquities'', [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Dionysius_of_Halicarnassus/1B*.html#19 1.19–1.20].</ref>
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