AVIONICS.
 

BABYLOS.
 

Jects m the physical and political geography of

the known world.—2.  Ora Maritima, a fragment

in 703 iambic trimeters, describing the  shores

of the Mediterranean  from Marseilles  to  Cadiz.

—3. Aratea Phenomena and Aratea Prognostica,

both in  hexameter verse, the  first containing

1325, the second 552 lines, being a paraphrase

of the  two works of Aratus.  The poems are

edited by Wernsdo.'f, in hia Poetas Latini Mino-

res, vol. v, pt ii, which, however, does  not in-

slude the Aratea: [reprinted, with the addition

of the Aratea, by Lemaire, in the  fifth volume of

his Poetoc Latini Minores, Paris,  1824-26.]

  Aviones, a people  in the north of Germany,

whose position is uncertain.

  Avitus, Alphius, a Latin poet under Augustus

and  Tiberius, the fragments of some  of  whose

poems are preserved in the Anthologia Latina.

  Avitus, Cluentius.   Vid. Cluentius.

'  Avitus, M. M-eoilius, Emperor of the West,

was raised to the throne  by the assistance of

Theodoric II, king of the  Visigoths,  in A.D.

455 ; but, after a year's reign, was  deposed by

Ricimer.

  [Axantos,  another  name of  Uxantis  (now

Ouessant), on the northwestern coast of Gallia.]

  [Axellodunum (now Brugh ?), a castle of the

Brigantes in Britannia.]

  Axenus.  Vid Euxinus Pontus.

  Axia (now  Castell  d'Asso), a  fortress  in the

territory of Tarquinii  in Etruria.

  Axion  ('Ai;lav), son of Phegeus, brother of

Temenus, along with whom he killed Alcmaeon.

  [Axionious ('A^wviKog), an Athenian poet of

the middle comedy, of whose plays only a few

fragments have  been preserved in Athenasus:

these are published  collectively in Meineke's

Fragmenta Comic. Grasc, vol. ii, p. 769-72, edit.

minor.]

  Axiothea ('AfroBia), a maiden of Phlius, who

came to Athens,  and, putting on male attire, was

for some time a hearer of Plato, and afterward

of Speusippus.

  Axius,  Q,  an intimate friend of Cicero and

Varro, one of the speakers in the third book of

Varro's De Re Rustica.

  Axius ("Afjoc: now Wardar or Vardhari), the

chief river in  Macedonia, rises in  Mount Scar-

dus, receives  many affluents, of which the most

important is  the Erigon,  and flows  southeast

through Macedonia into the Thermaic Gulf.  As

a river-god, Axius begot by Peribcea a son, Pel-

agon, the father of Asteeop^eus.

  Axona (now Aisne), a river in Gallia Belgica,

which falls into the Isara (now  Oise).

  Axume.  Vid. Auxume.

   [Axus ('A£<5f), capital of a small kingdom in

Crete.]

   [Axylus  ("AftiAoc), a  Thracian  prince, men¬

tioned  in the Iliad, son of Teulhranus, slain by

Diomedes.]

   Azan  ('A&v), son  of Areas  and the nymph

Erato, brother of Aphidas and Elatus.  The part

of  Arcadia  which he received  from his father

was called Azania:  it was on  the borders of

Elis.

   Azani ('A&voi : 'A&vlrng), a town of Phrygia

on the River Rhyndacus, and twenty miles south¬

west of Cotyaeium (now Kiutayah).  The ruins of

columns,  capitals, and other architectural frag¬

ments  are scattered  over  the ground.   There

            134
 

are also the  re mams of a splendid temple and

of a theatre.   This ancient site was discovered

by Mr. Keppel.

  Azania or  Barbaria ('A£avla, HapBapia : now

Ajan), the region  on the eastern coast of Afri¬

ca, south of Aromata Promontorium (now Cap*

Guardafui), as far as  Rhaptum Promontoriura

(now Cape Formosa ?).

  Azenia ('A&vla :  'Afyvievg), a demus  in the

southwest of  Attica, near Sunium, belonging  to

the tribe Hippothoontis.

  Azeus ('A&vg), son of Clymenus of Orehome-

nos,  brother  of  Erginus, Stratius, Arrhon, and

Pyleus,  father of Actor and grandfather  of As-

tyoche.

  [Aziris  ("Afjp/c in Hdt, or "A&Xig in Call

now Temmineh),  a city  cf Marmarica in Africa,

opposite to the island of Platea, and founded by

the Theraeans.]

  Azorus or  Azorium ("Afapog, 'A^apiov : 'Afu-

plrng,' Afyspidrng, 'A^apeig), a town in the north

of Thessaly, on  the western slope of Olympus,

formed,  with  Doliche and Pythium, the Perrhae-

bian Tripolis.

  Azotus ("Afuroc:  'A^ariog:  now Asltdod  or

Ashdoud), a city of Palestine, near the sea-coast,

nine miles  northeast of Ascalon.   It wa3 one

of the free cities of the Philistines, which were

included within the portion of the tribe of Judah



                      B.



  Babrius (BdBpiog), a Greek poet, probably in

the time of Augustus, turned the fables of Esop

into verse,  of which only a few fragments were

known till within the  last few  years, when a

manuscript containing one hundred and twenty-

three fables  was discovered  on  Mount  Athos.

Edited  by Laehmann,  Berol, 1845; by  Orelli

and Baiter, Turic,,  1845 : by Lewis, Lond, 1847,

  Babylon (BaBvXav: TSaBvXavtog,  fem. BaBv-

Xavlg:  Babel in Old  Testament: ruins at and

around  Hillah),  one of the oldest and greatest

cities of the ancient world, the capital of a great

empire,  was  built on both sides of the River

Euphrates, in about  32*  28' north latitude.  Its

foundation, and the establishment of a kingdom

by Nimrod,  with the city  for a  capital, are

among the first  recorded facts subsequent  to

the Deluge (Gen,x, 9,  10;  xi, 1-10).    Secu¬

lar history ascribes its origin to Belus  (i.  e,

the god Baal), and its enlargement and  deflora¬

tion to Ninus, or his wife Semiramis; or, accord

ing to another tradition, the country was  sub¬

dued  by Ninus,  and the city was subsequently

built by Semiramis, who made it the capital  of

the Assyrian  empire.  At all events, it is pretty

clear that  Babylon  was subject  to  the  Assyr¬

ian kings of Nineveh from a very early period;

and the time  at which the governors of Babylon

first succeeded in making themselves virtually

independent,  can not be  determined with any

certainty until we know more of  the history

of the early Assyrian dynasties.    Compare Na

bonassar.  The  Babylonian empire begins with

the reign of  Nabopolassar, the father of Nebu

chadnezzar, who, with  the aid  of the  Median

king  Cyaxares,  overthrew the  Assyrian mou

arcby, and destroyed  Nineveh (3.C. 606), and

soon  afterward  defended his  kingdom  againsf

the aggressions  (at first successful) of  Necno