Arganthonios ( el, Ἀργανθώνιος) was a king of ancient Tartessos (in
Andalusia
Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a ...
, southern
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
Gargoris
Gargoris was a mythical king of the Cynetes, considered part of the people of Tartessos, and, according to legend, the inventor of beekeeping.
He exiled his own son, Habis, who was adopted by a female deer and saved from the sea, and who later in ...
and
Habis
Habis (from the Cynete language meaning fawn) is a legendary king of the Spanish region of Tartessos. The only source of the legend of Habis and his father Gargoris is the work ''Epitome'' by Justin, who copied it from the now lost work ''Philip ...
, Arganthonios is the earliest documented monarch of the
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula (),
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* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
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**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
.
Life
According to the Greek historian
Herodotus
Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known f ...
, King Arganthonios ruled Tartessos for 80 years (from about 625 BC to 545 BC) and lived to be 120 years old, although some believe he lived to 150. This idea of great age and length of reign may result from a succession of kings using the same name or title. Herodotus says that Arganthonios warmly welcomed the first Greeks to reach Iberia, a ship carrying Phocaeans, and urged them fruitlessly to settle in Iberia. Hearing that the
Medes
The Medes (Old Persian: ; Akkadian: , ; Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ) were an ancient Iranian people who spoke the Median language and who inhabited an area known as Media between western and northern Iran. Around the 11th century BC, the ...
were becoming a dominant force in the neighbourhood of the Phocaeans, he gave the latter money to build a defensive wall about their town. Herodotus comments that "he must have given with a bountiful hand, for the town is many furlongs in circuit".
Name
Given the paucity of sources on the Tartessian language, the origin of the name "Arganthonios" is uncertain. Historians have noted the similarities with Celtic names. In fact, the word "Arganthonios" appears to be based on the Indo-European word for 'silver' (secondarily 'money'), reconstructed as
Proto-Celtic
Proto-Celtic, or Common Celtic, is the ancestral proto-language of all known Celtic languages, and a descendant of Proto-Indo-European. It is not attested in writing but has been partly Linguistic reconstruction, reconstructed through the compar ...
''*arganto-'' and proto-Italic as *''argentom''.Attested reflexes in Celtic include: Celtiberian ''arkanta'' (also compare ''arkanto-beđom'' 'silver mine (?)'), Gaulish ''arganto-'' (in compounds), Old Irish ''argat'', Old Welsh ''argant''; in Latin as ''argentum'', Faliscan ''arcentom'' with cognates Sanskrit ''rajatám'', and others, from
Proto-Indo-European
Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European language family. Its proposed features have been derived by linguistic reconstruction from documented Indo-European languages. No direct record of Proto-Indo-E ...
''*h₂r̥ǵn̥tóm'' 'silver', which is derived from a nominal root ''*h₂erǵ-'' 'white, brilliant; swift'; also compare Ancient Greek ἄργυρον (''arguron'') 'silver'. Tartessos was rich in silver, like all of
Iberia
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
. Similar names (e.g. ''Argantoni'') appear in inscriptions of the Roman period in or near former Tartessian territory. A name or title ''Argantoda(nos)'' is found on silver coinage in Northern Gaul and may have had a meaning akin to "treasurer". Some have identified Arganthonios with the "Tharsis Mask" at the
Archeological Museum of Seville
The Archeological Museum of Seville (Spanish: ''Museo Arqueológico de Sevilla'') is a museum in Seville, southern Spain, housed in the ''Pabellón del Renacimiento'', one of the pavilions designed by the architect Aníbal González. These pavili ...
.
See also
*
Carpia
Carpia ( grc, Καρπία) was an Iberian city which is said to be the site of the ancient city Tartessos, which disappeared around 600 BCE, or the refoundation of the sunken city.
History
Pausanias, a Greek traveler and geographer of the 2nd ...
Spanish mythology Spanish mythology refers to the sacred myths of the cultures of Spain. They include , , Cantabrian mythology, Catalan mythology, Lusitanian mythology and Basque mythology. They also include the myths and religions of the Celts, Celtiberians, Iberia ...