Note 412 — RADICALS.

Many places and regions, held sacred, and called Coel by the Amonians, were by the Greeks rendered κοιλα, cava. Hence we read of Κοιλη Λακεδαιμων, Κοιλε Ηλις, and the like. Syria was by them styled Κοιλη, the hollow: but the true name was Coëla, the heavenly or sacred. It was so denominated from the Cuthites, who settled there, on account of the religion established. Hence it was also named Shem, and Shama; which are terms of like purport, and signify divine, or heavenly. It is a name, which it retains at this day; as we are informed by [412]Abulfeda, and others. Elis Coela was the most sacred part of Greece; especially the regions of Olympia, Cauconia, and Azania. It was denominated Elis from Ηλ, Eel, the Sun: and what the Greeks rendered Κοιλη of old meant [413]heavenly. Hence Homer styleth it peculiarly [414]Ηλιδα διαν, Elis the sacred. As Coele Syria was styled Sham, and Sama; so we find places, which have a reference to this term, in Elis. A town of great antiquity was named [415]Samicon, which signifies Cœli Dominus. Here was also a temple of Poseidon Samius, surrounded with a grove of olives; and there were festivals observed, which were called Samia. There was likewise of old a city named Sama, or Samos: which Strabo imagines, might have been so named from its high situation: for high places were called [416]Samia. It certainly signifies in some degree high; but the true meaning of Sama was heavenly, similar to Sam, Sham, Shamem, of the eastern nations. Hence Same, Samos, Samothrace, Samacon, were denominated on account of their sanctity. Strabo supposes, that the city Samos in Elis was situated in the Samian plain: it therefore could not well have this name from its high situation. It is moreover inconsistent to suppose regions called κοιλα, or cava, to have been denominated from Sama, high. In short both terms have been mistaken: and Coilus in the original acceptation certainly signified heavenly: whence we read in Hesychius, as also in Suidas, Κοιολης, ὁ Ἱερευς. By which we learn, that by Coioles was meant a sacred or heavenly person; in other words, a priest of Cœlus. In Coioles there is but a small variation from the original term; which was a compound from Coi-El, or Co-El, the Cœlus of the Romans.