Повторно за Орбелос: прилог кон топонимијата на античка Македонија

Abstract

Following an examination of the extant sources, as well as the problems of toponymy and topography, the authors argue that Lake Cercinitis – as several other scholars have proposed before – should be identified with the northern marshy lake on the lower course of the Strymon, and that the southern lake would then have to be Lake Prasias. This solution affects our understanding of places and events in several ways. (1) We avoid the contradictory situation of a Mount Cercine (allegedly Mt. Ograzden) far to the north and an appropriate Lake Cercinitis near the mouth of the Strymon. Lake Cercinitis - the northern strymonic lake - is now located just below the southern slopes of Mount Cercine, today’s Mount Belasica. (2) Herodotus’ account of the advance of the Persian army along the coast becomes geographically sound. In the extract, Herodotus speaks of the Paeonians of Pangaeum and continues with the Paeonians of Lake Prasias; if Prasias is the upper lake, then Herodotus jumps from one Persian column to another, and then returns to the first, making the story rather confusing. (3) We avoid the odd characterisation of Mount Orbelus as a boundary which, misled by the interpretation of our sources, we tend to look for up north. The inhabitants of the lower lake being Siropaiones, Orbelus would mark the border to the so-called Strymonic Paeonia, described by Herodotus. (4) Mount Orbelus must be located in the immediate vicinity of the lower / southern lake. Today’s Orvilos / Orbelos (Ali Botus / Kitka / Slavjanka) lies too far to the north; local inhabitants would easily have had access to timber from a closer place. To the south lies Pangaeum (Kushinitsa), a mountain whose name has been established with certainty; thus, Mount Orbelus should be almost certainly be identified with Menoikio (Serski Bozdag / Zmijnica).