Greek Texts & Translations

Pithecussae as well as Capreae, Leucosia, the Sirenes, and the Oenotrides, are but so many detached fragments from the continent, but other islands have risen from the bottom of the sea, a circumstance which frequently occurs in many places; for it is more reasonable to think that the islands in the midst of the sea have been raised up from the bottom, and that those which lie off headlands and are separated merely by a strait were broken off from them. Still it is beside our purpose to investigate thoroughly whether the name were given to the city for these causes, or whether it were named by the Samnites from the Latin word regium, which signifies royal, on account of its importance, ^note for their chieftains participated in the privileges of citizenship with the Romans, and generally used the Latin language. But Dionysius (the elder), having been treated with contempt by them, destroyed the illustrious city which had founded many towns and produced many distinguished characters, whether statesmen or men of letters, ^note for when he sought a consort from their city, they offered him the hangman's daughter; ^note but his son (Dionysius the younger) partly restored it, ^note and called it Phoebia. During the war with Pyrrhus, a body of Campanians destroyed most of the citizens against the faith of treaties, ^note and a little