§16.3.1̔υπέρκειται δὲ τῆς Ἰουδαίας καὶ τῆς κοίλης Συρίας μέχρι Βαβυλωνίας καὶ τῆς τοῦ Εὐφράτου ποταμίας πρὸς νότον Ἀραβία πᾶσα χωρὶς τῶν ἐν τῇ Μεσοποταμίᾳ σκηνιτῶν.
All Arabia, except for the tent-dwellers in Mesopotamia, lies situated beyond Judaea and Coele-Syria as far as Babylonia and the river-land of the Euphrates, extending to the south.
περὶ μὲν οὖν τῆς Μεσοποταμίας καὶ τῶν νεμομένων αὐτὴν ἐθνῶν εἴρηται· τὰ δὲ πέραν τοῦ Εὐφράτου τὰ μὲν πρὸς ταῖς ἐκβολαῖς αὐτοῦ νέμονται Βαβυλώνιοι καὶ τὸ τῶν Χαλδαίων ἔθνος (εἴρηται δὲ περὶ τούτων), τὰ δʼ ἑξῆς τῆς Μεσοποταμίας μέχρι κοίλης Συρίας, τὸ μὲν πλησιάζον τῷ ποταμῷ * καὶ τὴν Μεσοποταμίαν σκηνῖται κατέχουσιν Ἄραβες, δυναστείας ἀποτετμημένοι μικρὰς ἐν λυπροῖς χωρίοις διὰ τὰς ἀνυδρίας, γεωργοῦντες μὲν ἢ οὐδὲν ἢ μικρά, νομὰς δὲ ἔχοντες παντοδαπῶν θρεμμάτων καὶ μάλιστα καμήλων·
Now, concerning Mesopotamia and the tribes that inhabit it, it has been discussed; as for the regions beyond the Euphrates, on the one hand, those near its outlets are inhabited by the Babylonians and the tribe of Chaldaeans (and we have spoken about these), and on the other hand, the regions next to Mesopotamia as far as Coele-Syria—the part near the river * and Mesopotamia—are occupied by the tent-dwelling Arabs, who have carved out small principalities in wretched places on account of the lack of water, practicing either no agriculture or only little, but having pastures of all kinds of herds, especially of camels.
ὑπὲρ δὲ τούτων ἔρημός ἐστι πολλή· τὰ δὲ τούτων ἔτι νοτιώτερα ἔχουσιν οἱ τὴν εὐδαίμονα καλουμένην Ἀραβίαν οἰκοῦντες.
And above these is a great desert; and the regions still more southerly than these are held by those who inhabit the so-called Arabia Felix.
ταύτης δὲ τὸ μὲν προσάρκτιον πλευρὸν ἡ λεχθεῖσά ἐστιν ἔρημος, τὸ δʼ ἑῷον ὁ Περσικὸς κόλπος, τὸ δὲ ἑσπέριον ὁ Ἀράβιος, τὸ δὲ νότιον ἡ μεγάλη θάλαττα ἡ ἔξω τῶν κόλπων ἀμφοῖν, ἣν ἅπασαν Ἐρυθρὰν καλοῦσιν.
Of this country, the northern side is the desert mentioned before, the eastern side is the Persian Gulf, the western side is the Arabian Gulf, and the southern side is the great sea outside both gulfs, all of which they call the Erythraean Sea.
§16.3.2̔ο μὲν οὖν Περσικὸς κόλπος λέγεται καὶ ἡ κατὰ Πέρσας θάλαττα.
Now, the Persian Gulf is also called the Sea of the Persians.
φησὶ δὲ περὶ αὐτῆς Ἐρατοσθένης οὕτως, ὅτι τὸ μὲν στόμα φησὶν εἶναι στενὸν οὕτως ὥστʼ ἐξ Ἁρμόζοντος, τῆς Καρμανίας ἀκρωτηρίου, τῆς Ἀραβίας ἀφορᾶται τὸ ἐν Μάκαις·
Eratosthenes says about it thus: he says that the mouth is so narrow that from Harmozon, the promontory of Carmania, the promontory of Arabia at Macae can be seen across.
ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ στόματος ἡ ἐν δεξιᾷ παραλία περιφερὴς οὖσα κατʼ ἀρχὰς μὲν ἀπὸ τῆς Καρμανίας πρὸς ἕω μικρόν, εἶτα πρὸς ἄρκτον νεύει, καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα πρὸς τὴν ἑσπέραν μέχρι Τερηδόνος καὶ τῆς ἐκβολῆς τοῦ Εὐφράτου·
And from the mouth, the coastline on the right, being curved, at first inclines a little to the east from Carmania, then to the north, and after this to the west as far as Teredon and the outlet of the Euphrates.
περιέχει δὲ τήν τε Καρμανίων παραλίαν καὶ τὴν Περσῶν καὶ Σουσίων καὶ Βαβυλωνίων ἀπὸ μέρους, ὅσον μυρίων οὖσα σταδίων· περὶ ὧν καὶ ἡμεῖς εἰρήκαμεν·
And it encompasses the coast of the Carmanians, and that of the Persians, the Susians, and in part that of the Babylonians, being about ten thousand stadia in length; about which we also have spoken.
τὸ δʼ ἐντεῦθεν ἑξῆς ἐπὶ τὸ στόμα πάλιν ἄλλοι τοσοῦτοι, καθάπερ καὶ Ἀνδροσθένη λέγειν φησὶ τὸν Θάσιον, τὸν καὶ Νεάρχῳ συμπλεύσαντα καθʼ αὑτόν·
And from there, the next part leading back to the mouth is another ten thousand stadia, just as he says Androsthenes of Thasos also states—the man who sailed with Nearchus on his own account.
ὥστε δῆλον ἐκ τούτων εἶναι διότι μικρὸν ἀπολείπεται τῷ μεγέθει τῆς κατὰ τὸν Εὔξεινον θαλάττης αὕτη ἡ θάλαττα·
So that from these things it is clear that this sea falls only a little short of the size of the Euxine Sea.
λέγειν δέ φησιν ἐκεῖνον περιπεπλευκότα στόλῳ τὸν κόλπον, ὅτι ἀπὸ Τερηδόνος ἑξῆς ἐν δεξιᾷ ἔχοντι τὴν ἤπειρον ὁ παράπλους ἔχει προκειμένην νῆσον Ἴκαρον, καὶ ἱερὸν Ἀπόλλωνος ἅγιον ἐν αὐτῇ καὶ μαντεῖον Ταυροπόλου.
And he says that that man, having sailed around the gulf with a fleet, says that, as one sails from Teredon onwards, keeping the mainland on the right, the coastal voyage has lying off it the island of Icarus, and upon it a holy temple of Apollo and an oracle of Tauropolos.