THE EARLY AGE OF GREECE VOL.I by W.Ridgeway 1901

THE HOMERIC DIALECT. 645
646 THE HOMERIC DIALECT,
by the Italian archaeologists as the Villanova. We have traced
In Laconia some of the Acheans probably continued as a
the Acheans in their movements from Epirus into Thessaly, and
distinct class (Perioeci) from the Helots, but there is no
concluded that they were a Celtic tribe, who had passed over
trace of any such intermediate class in Thessaly any more
Pindus into Thessaly, as did the Illyrian Thessali at a later time.
than in Argolis.
It has been generally held, and probably with good
So far then the facts rather tend in favour of the belief
reason, that the Thessali adopted the language of the conquered
people of Pelasgiotis. Hence modern writers on the
and adopted their language, as did the Thessalians in their turn
that the Acheans merged into the conquered people of Thessaly
Greek dialects give the name of North Achean to the dialect
later on ;
or have we any prima facie grounds for thinking that
used by the people of Thessaly in historical times. This
the Acheans had made the conquered people adopt their tongue ?
name is based on the assumption that tlie
Illyrian Thessali
We now want a criterion which will enable us to decide
took over the language of the conquered Acheans. But this
whether the language which was called Thessalian in classical
doctrine involves another very important assumption, which
times, and which the ancients termed an Aeolic dialect, was the
will require examination before it can be deliberately accepted
original speech of the Acheans, or that of the pre-Achean
or receive a passive acquiescence. It is assumed that the
inhabitants of Pelasgiotis.
Such a criterion can only be had in
language which was spoken by the natives of Thessaly at the
a district, which good ancient authorities maintain was never
time when the Illyrian Thessali concjuered it, was that of the
conquered by the Acheans, and where down to historical times
Acheans of Phthiotis and Pelasgiotis. But there is no more
an indigenous population continued to dwell. If this indigenous
reason for believing that the language spoken by the Acheans
people is found to speak and write in a dialect closely resembling
was the actual lantjuaye of the ori