herodotus

Theras the son of Autesion, the son of Tisamenos, the son ofThersander, the son of Polyneikes, was preparing to set forth fromLacedemon to found a settlement. This Theras, who was of the race ofCadmos, was mother's brother to the sons of Aristodemos, Eurysthenesand Procles; and while these sons were yet children, Theras as theirguardian held the royal power in Sparta. When however his nephews weregrown and had taken the power into their hands, then Theras, beinggrieved that he should be ruled by others after he had tasted of rulehimself, said that he would not remain in Lacedemon, but would sailaway to his kinsmen. Now there were in the island which is now calledThera, but formerly was called Callista, descendants of Membliaros theson of Poikiles, a Phenician: for Cadmos the son of Agenor in hissearch for Europa put in to land at the island which is now calledThera; and, whether it was that the country pleased him when he hadput to land, or whether he chose to do so for any other reason, heleft in this island, besides other Phenicians, Membliaros also, of hisown kinsmen. These occupied the island called Callista for eightgenerations of men, before Theras came from Lacedemon. 148. To thesethen, I say, Theras was preparing to set forth, taking with him peoplefrom the tribes, and intending to settle together with those who havebeen mentioned, not with any design to drive them out, but on thecontrary claiming them very strongly as kinfolk. And when the Minyaiafter having escaped from the prison went and sat down on Taÿgetos,Theras entreated of the Lacedemonians, as they were proposing to putthem to death, that no slaughter might take place, and at the sametime he engaged himself to take them forth out of the land. TheLacedemonians having agreed to this proposal, he sailed away withthree thirty-oared galleys to the descendants of Membliaros, nottaking with him by any means all the Minyai, but a few only; for thegreater number of them turned towards the land of the Paroreatai andCaucones, and having driven these out of their country, they partedthemselves into six divisions and founded in their territory thefollowing towns,--Lepreon, Makistos, Phrixai, Pyrgos, Epion, Nudion;of these the Eleians sacked the greater number within my own lifetime.The island meanwhile got its name of Thera after Theras[130] who ledthe settlement. 149. And since his son said that he would not sailwith him, therefore he said that he would leave him behind as a sheepamong wolves; and in accordance with that saying this young man gotthe name of Oiolycos,[131] and it chanced that this name prevailedover his former name: then from Oiolycos was begotten Aigeus, afterwhom are called the Aigeidai, a powerful clan[132] in Sparta: and themen of this tribe, since their children did not live to grow up,established by the suggestion of an oracle a temple to the AvengingDeities[133] of Laïos and Œdipus, and after this the same thing wascontinued[134] in Thera by the descendants of these men.