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Trojan toponyms, hydronyms and personal names - explanation

Meaning of some names and concepts related to ancient Troy

Aug 26, 2024 11:50 159

Milena VARBANOVA

Ten days ago I promised readers to clarify the meaning of some names and concepts closely related to ancient Troy. I was prompted by the ridiculous interpretations of a "person" who, in his video, mixed up a compilation of morally outdated, naive explanations of Bulgarian and foreign linguists from at least half a century ago and added his own efforts to "translate" in modern Bulgarian the concepts in question.

Since three thousand years separate us from the Trojans who inhabited the city of King Priam, it is proper to bear in mind that not all Trojan names preserved in the works of Homer and in the later works of ancient authors have a direct parallel with concepts in today's Bulgarian language. Some can be interpreted through Aramaic and Sanskrit, because the Bulgarian word that once corresponded to them has disappeared over the centuries.

I will present my explanations of the several Trojan hydronyms, toponyms, and personal names mentioned by "the person" in an almost telegraphic fashion, because I have already explained most of them in my previous articles. I will also provide references to the articles in question. I will also add a few more names that I consider particularly important.

Ida - The name of the emblematic mountains in Troad and on the island of Crete, derives from an epithet of the Sun related to time - "Idi". The name of the mountains indicates that these territories are inhabited by sun worshippers. See my article "The meaning of the Bulgarian solar symbol IYI".

Gargara (or Gargaron ) - This is the highest peak of Mount Ida in the Troas, from which, according to Homer, the gods watched the battles between Trojans and Danaans. Its name originates from the Sanskrit word karkara - "bone", "limestone". See my article "Men of the Amazons".

Il - The name of the founder of Ilion (Troy) does not derive from "mud", but from the epithet of the Sun - Helios ("fiery", "shining"). From Helios and the cult of the Sun, characteristic of the most ancient peoples, originates the general name "God". - El, Il, in Aramaic and in Hebrew. See my article "Bulgarian, Thracian and Aramaic sun".

Ilion - The above interpretation of the name of king Il, also explains the meaning of the name of the city, bearing not only his name, but also the name of the Sun. Accordingly, Ilion means - City of the Sun, City of sun worshipers.

Troy - The name comes from that of Troy, Tros - who, according to some historians, was the son, and according to others, the father of Il. The clue is that, according to third researchers, Troy, whose father is Il, also has a son bearing the name of his grandfather. The name Troy can easily be explained as Third. It is curious that no one pays attention to the exact correspondence of the name Troy with the Bulgarian city Troyan. As I have written many times, in Sicily, inhabited by Siculi, the river Troina still exists today - which divides into three arms.

Priam - The name of the last Trojan king, I think, comes from the Pelasgian word pria - "stone", "rock", but also "first" (the primordial earth element). The suffix "m", which forms the name, is also found in Pyramus - an actor in the famous Babylonian legend "Pyram and Thisba". See my article "Again about the Genoese pria...". Ancient authors claim that Priam is a nickname for the king and his real name is Podarchus (in the myth of the destruction of the walls of Troy by Heracles and Telamon), but it seems to be the other way around - the nickname is Podark. The title "Gift" is not only a "witness", but literally a "herald" of the Bulgarian affiliation of the Trojans.

Hector - The "person" in question makes no assumptions about the meaning of the name of the bravest of the Trojan heroes, the first-born son of King Priam - Hector. But I have looked into it in my research and found that it means "cleaver". Hector is not a nickname, but rather a family name, because the name of his mother, Queen Hecuba, daughter of the Phrygian king, that is Sekova - from the family of the "cleavers", the Siculi. See my article "Ilion, the Iliad and the name of Hector".

Paris - The name by which the "prodigal son" of Priam and Hecuba, presents a serious conundrum. Some researchers translate it through Persian as "mountaineer", others - through Russian as "boy" - boy etc. It is known that he was left in a desolate place to perish because, according to the soothsayers, he would become the cause of the destruction of Troy (and this actually happened). The name the royal couple gave him at birth was Alexander. When, already a man, Paris is recognized by his parents, they hurry to give him the name Alexander again, because, according to the myth, Paris is not a worthy name for a king's son.

I hesitated quite a bit between different explanations of Paris ("parium"?) and finally settled on the Sanskrit parusa (to break), which has several meanings, but among them, "marked", "tainted" stands out. Why? Because, as I reminded, even before he was born, he was declared the cause of the future destruction of his father's kingdom - that is, "marked" ( "predestined" ) is. The Bulgarian name Parush is identical to Paris - sign, mark, decoration. Curiously, Paris can also be interpreted as "died", as his parents believed him to be dead - through their own fault. That is why commemorative games - parentalia (lat.) are organized in his memory, during which he is recognized and returned with honors to the palace.

Scamander - The name of the most famous river in the Troad, sung by Homer in the Iliad and called Xantus (bright) by the gods, and by the Trojans Scamander, can only be properly explained if it is understood what part of speech is this name - participle, adjective or something else. At least ten times I have clearly written that when reading ancient texts and names, the researcher must first determine the parts of speech in the epigraphic monument. The same goes for the name. Scamander, as well as Simoent (the name of the other famous river flowing near Troy), are present participles - recognized by the ending "-ant" ( "and" ) and "-ent". The name "Scamander" really tempts the inept linguist to associate it with a stone, because it features the consonants "k", "m", "n" - "stone" (when I write "clumsy", I am fully aware of what cormorants I am referring to).

But knowing that it is about communion, the researcher will immediately understand that "n" is part of the ending, not the root of the word. Therefore, the name of the river is Skama or Kama and should be translated by an ancient verb that has almost disappeared in Bulgarian, but is constantly used in the English language - come - "ida", "go", "move". I have explained this in my article "Meaning of the Bulgarian solar symbol IYI", but the occasion is different - it is not related to Scamander. Translation of the name Scamander as Dagger, I have seen in the blogs of ordinary people - clearly more resourceful and educated than the "historian" in question, who took on an overwhelming task for him. After all, the name of the river Scamander means - "moving", "coming" - "flowing". Like Ticha, Tisza and Ticino.

Simoent - As I explained above the word Simoent is a participle. The name of the river also appears in the variant Simois. From Simois we can easily derive the word "water", "river" - maya in Aramaic. Moses' name, associated with the episode of his being placed as an infant in a basket floating down the Nile, means literally, "water" and from there - "my".

Granik - We can immediately translate the name of the river as "border". It is related to the ancient Slavic, Russian, Bulgarian and Pelasgian verb "грянуть", meaning "I come" ("future" - future). Which in terms of meaning again comes to "I move", "I run". - and to the "border".

Kebren - The name of the river is an adjective - as a part of speech. I count it by the word kebra, which in ancient Ethiopia, and therefore in the Aramaic world and in Egypt, meant "glory". From it comes the name (or nickname) of the Egyptian pharaoh Khephren - "Glorious". As we can see, the name of the river Kebren was formed according to the rules of Bulgarian grammar - and it also means "glorious". The word "glory" in the deepest antiquity it is invariably connected with the Sun and the solar cult.