Seres (Σηρες) was the ancient Greek and Roman name for the northwestern part of China and its inhabitants. It meant "of silk," or "land where silk comes from." Latin is an Indo-European language originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. ...

The name is thought to derive from the Chinese word for silk, "si" (Traditional Chinese: 絲; Simplified Chinese: 丝; pinyin: sī). It is itself at the origin of the Latin for silk, "serica". Traditional Chinese characters are one of two standard character sets of printed contemporary Chinese written language. ... Simplified Chinese characters (Simplified Chinese: 简体字; Traditional Chinese: 簡體字; pinyin: jiǎntǐzì; also called 简化字/簡化字, jiǎnhuàzì) are one of two standard character sets of printed contemporary Chinese written language. ... Pinyin (Chinese: 拼音, pÄ«nyÄ«n) literally means join (together) sounds (a less literal translation being phoneticize, spell or transcription) in Chinese and usually refers to HànyÇ” PÄ«nyÄ«n (汉语拼音, literal meaning: Han language pinyin), which is a system of romanization (phonemic notation and transcription to Roman script) for Standard... Latin is an Indo-European language originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. ...

A summary of Classical sources on the Seres (essentially Pliny and Ptolemy) gives the following account: Pliny the Elder: an imaginative 19c portrait. ... Claudius Ptolemaeus, given contemporary German styling, in a 16th century engraved book frontispiece. ...

" The region of the Seres is a vast and populous country, touching on the east the Ocean and the limits of the habitable world, and extending west nearly to Imaus and the confines of Bactria. The people are civilised men, of mild, just, and frugal temper, eschewing collisions with their neighbours, and even shy of close intercourse, but not averse to dispose of their own products, of which raw silk is the staple, but which include also silk stuffs, furs, and iron of remarkable quality." (Henry Yule, "Cathey and the way thither")

Located in Central Asia, the Pamir Mountains are formed by the junction of the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, and Hindu Kush ranges. ... Bactria (Bactriana) was the ancient Greek name of the country between the range of the Hindu Kush (Caucasus Indicus) and the Amu Darya (Oxus); its capital, Bactra (now Balkh), was located in what is now Afghanistan. ... Sir Henry Yule (May 1, 1820 - December 30, 1880), was a British Orientalist. ...

Classical accounts

Detail of Asia in the Ptolemy world map. Gulf of the Ganges left, Southeast Asian peninsula in the center, China Sea right, with "Sinae" and "Serica" to the North.

The first accounts of the Seres, of disputed authenticity, seem to be those by the Greek historian Ctesias in the 5th century BCE, in which he refers to them as "people of portentous stature and longevity." Download high resolution version (1787x1820, 597 KB)South-East Asia from Ptolemys geography. ... Download high resolution version (1787x1820, 597 KB)South-East Asia from Ptolemys geography. ... Ptolemys world map, reconstituted from Ptolemys Geographia (circa 150), indicating Sinae (China) at the extreme right, beyond the island of Trapobane (Sri Lanka, oversized) and the Aurea Chersonesus (Southeast Asian peninsula). ... Early morning on the Ganges The River Ganges (Ganga in Indian languages) (Devanagiri गंगा) is a major river in northern India. ... Ctesias of Cnidus (in Caria), was a Greek physician and historian, who flourished in the 5th century BC. In early life he was physician to Artaxerxes Mnemon, whom he accompanied in 401 BC on his expedition against his brother Cyrus the Younger. ... (6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC - other centuries) (2nd millennium BC - 1st millennium BC - 1st millennium AD) Events Demotic becomes the dominant script of ancient Egypt Persians invade Greece twice (Persian Wars) Battle of Marathon (490) Battle of Salamis (480) Athenian empire formed and falls Peloponnesian War...

Strabo (circa 20 CE)

The Greek geographer Strabo mentioned the Seres in his "Geographia", written early in the 1st century, in two passages. He also alludes to the longevity of the Seres, said to exceed two hundred years, and quotes from "some writers": Strabo (squinty) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. ... (1st century BC - 1st century - 2nd century - other centuries) The 1st century was that century which lasted from 1 to 100. ...

"Onesicritus ... expatiates also in praise of the country of Musicanus, and relates of the inhabitants what is common to other Indian tribes, that they are long-lived, and that life is protracted even to the age of 130 years, (the Seres, however, are said by some writers to be still longer lived), that they are temperate in their habits and healthy; although the country produces everything in abundance." (Strabo, Geographia, Book XV, Chap I).

In one passage on the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom, he mentions that they extended far into eastern Asia, possibly leading to the first known contacts between China and the West around 220 BCE: Onesicritus, or Onesicrates, of Aegina or Astypaleia (probably simply the old city of Aegina) was one of the writers on Alexander the Great. ... Approximate extent of the Greco-Bactrian kingdom circa 220 BCE. The Greco-Bactrians were a dynasty of Greek kings who controlled Bactria and Sogdiana, an area comprising todays northern Afghanistan and parts of Central Asia, the easternmost area of the Hellenistic world, from 250 to 125 BCE. Their expansion... (Redirected from 220 BCE) Centuries: 4th century BC - 3rd century BC - 2nd century BC Decades: 270s BC 260s BC 250s BC 240s BC 230s BC - 220s BC - 210s BC 200s BC 190s BC 180s BC 170s BC Years: 225 BC 224 BC 223 BC 222 BC 221 BC - 220 BC...

"they extended their empire even as far as the Seres and the Phryni" (Strabo, quoting Apollodorus of Artemita, Geographia, XI.XI.I).

Strabo (squinty) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. ... Apollodorus of Artemita was a Greek writer of the 1st century BCE. Apollodorus is quoted by Strabo as a source for his descriptions of Asia. ...

Pomponius Mela (50 CE)

Pomponius Mela gives the following details on the Seres: Pomponius Mela, who wrote around AD 43, was the earliest Roman geographer. ...

" In the furthest east of Asia are the Indians, Seres, and Scythians. The Indians and Scythians occupy the two extremities, the Seres are in the middle" (Pomponius Mela, De Situ Orbis, I, 2).

Also, after speaking about the Caspian sea and the Scythian shores: Scythia was an area in Eurasia inhabited in ancient times by an Indo-Aryans known as the Scythians. ... Caspian Sea viewed from orbit Caspian redirects here. ...

"From these the course (of the shore) makes a bend and trends to the coast line which faces the east. That part which adjoins the Scythian promontory is first all impassable from snow ; then an uncultivated tract occupied by savages. These tribes are the Cannibal Scythians and the Sakas, severed from one another by a region where none can dwell because of the number of wild animals. Another vast wilderness follows, occupied also by wild beasts, reaching to a mountain called Thabis which overhangs the sea. A long way from that the ridge of Taurus rises. The Seres come between the two; a race eminent for integrity, and well known for the trade which they allow to be transacted behind their backs, leaving their wares in a desert spot" (Pomponius Mela, De Situ Orbis, III, 7).

Saka is also the name of a town in Hiroshima, Japan; for information on this town, see Saka, Hiroshima. ...

Pliny the Elder

Pliny the Elder a few decades later in his "Naturalis Historia" Pliny the Elder: an imaginative 19c portrait. ... Naturalis Historia Pliny the Elders Natural History is an encyclopedia written by Pliny the Elder. ...

He describes the location of the Seres, going east from the Caspian sea: Caspian Sea viewed from orbit Caspian redirects here. ...

" Then, we again find tribes of Scythians, and again desert tracts occupied only by wild animals, till we come to that mountain chain overhanging the sea, which is called Tabis. Not till nearly half the length of the coast which looks north-east has been past, do you find inhabited country. The first race then encountered are the Seres, so famous for the fleecy product of their forests." (Pliny the Elder, The Natural History, Chap XX "The Seres").

He also describes the silk manufacture of the Seres: Pliny the Elder: an imaginative 19c portrait. ... Silk weaver Silk is a natural protein fiber that can be woven into textiles. ...

"The Seres are famous for the woolen substance obtained from their forests; after a soaking in water they comb off the white down of the leaves... So manifold is the labour employed, and so distant is the region of the globe drawn upon, to enable the Roman maiden to flaunt transparent clothing in public" (Pliny the Elder, The Natural History, Chap XX "The Seres").

Pliny also reports a curious description of the Seres made by an embassy from Taprobane to Emperor Claudius, suggesting they may be refering to the ancient Caucasian populations of the Tarim Basin, such as the Tocharians: Pliny the Elder: an imaginative 19c portrait. ... The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (ශ්රී ලංකා in Sinhala / இலங்கை in Tamil) (known as Ceylon before 1972) is a tropical island nation off the southeast coast of the Indian subcontinent. ... A statue of Emperor Claudius Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (August 1, 10 BC–October 13, 54), previously Tiberius Claudius Drusus Nero Germanicus was the fourth Roman Emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, ruling from January 24, 41 to his death in 54. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Taklamakan Desert in the Tarim Basin. ... The Tocharians were the easternmost members of the Indo-European people, inhabiting the Tarim basin in what is now Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, northwestern Peoples Republic of China. ...

"They also informed us that the side of their island (Taprobane) which lies opposite to India is ten thousand stadia in length, and runs in a south-easterly direction--that beyond the Emodian Mountains (Himalayas) they look towards the Serve (Seres), whose acquaintance they had also made in the pursuits of commerce; that the father of Rachias (the ambassador) had frequently visited their country, and that the Seræ always came to meet them on their arrival. These people, they said, exceeded the ordinary human height, had flaxen hair, and blue eyes, and made an uncouth sort of noise by way of talking, having no language of their own for the purpose of communicating their thoughts. The rest of their information (on the Serae) was of a similar nature to that communicated by our merchants. It was to the effect that the merchandize on sale was left by them upon the opposite bank of a river on their coast, and it was then removed by the natives, if they thought proper to deal on terms of exchange. On no grounds ought luxury with greater reason to be detested by us, than if we only transport our thoughts to these scenes, and then reflect, what are its demands, to what distant spots it sends in order to satisfy them, and for how mean and how unworthy an end!" (Pliny the Elder, The Natural History, Chap XXIV "Taprobane")

The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (ශ්රී ලංකා in Sinhala / இலங்கை in Tamil) (known as Ceylon before 1972) is a tropical island nation off the southeast coast of the Indian subcontinent. ... Perspective view of the Himalaya and Mount Everest as seen from space looking south-south-east from over the Tibetan Plateau. ...

Ptolemy (ca 150 CE)

The country of "Serica" is positioned in the 150CE Ptolemy world map in the area beyond the "Imaus" (Pamir Mountains): Ptolemys world map, reconstituted from Ptolemys Geographia (circa 150), indicating Sinae (China) at the extreme right, beyond the island of Trapobane (Sri Lanka, oversized) and the Aurea Chersonesus (Southeast Asian peninsula). ... Located in Central Asia, the Pamir Mountains are formed by the junction of the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, and Hindu Kush ranges. ...

"The inhabited part of our earth is bounded on the east by the Unknown Land which lies along the region occupied by the eastermost nations of Asia Major, the Sinae and the nations of Serice" (Ptolemy Geographia, ca 150 CE).

Ptolemy also positions China (Sinae) quite precisely: Claudius Ptolemaeus, given contemporary German styling, in a 16th century engraved book frontispiece. ...

"The eastern extremity of the known earth is limited by the meridian drawn through the metropolis of the Sinae, at a distance from Alexandria of 119.5 degrees, reckoned upon the equator, or about eight equinoctial hours. . . ."(Book vii, ch. 5.)

Ptolemy also speaks of "Sera, the Capital of the Seres". Antiquity and modernity stand cheek-by-jowl in Egypts chief Mediterranean seaport Located on the Mediterranean Sea coast, Alexandria (in Arabic, الإسكندرية, transliterated al-ʼIskandariyyah) is the chief seaport in Egypt, and that countrys second largest city, and the capital of the Al Iskandariyah governate. ...

See also

• Sino-Roman relations

Sino-Roman relations started first on an indirect basis during the 2nd century BCE. China and Rome progressively inched closer with the embassies of Zhang Qian in 130 BCE and the military expeditions of China to Central Asia, until general Ban Chao attempted to send an envoy to Rome around...

External links

• "Cathey and the way thither", on the Seres.

• Extracts from Ptolemy's Geographia
• Extracts from Pliny's Natural History
• Extracts from Pomponius Mela "De Situ Orbis"

• Pliny on the Seres
• Pomponius Mela's De Situ Orbis (Latin)