Polychronicon Ranulphi Higden maonachi Cestrensis; together with the English translations of John Trevisa and of an unknown writer of the fifteenth century.

De Canaa terra. Capitulum quintumdecimum.

CANAAN is a reem [royamme, Cx.] of Syria [Siria, MS., which has also other slightly unclassical forms of proper names in this chapter.] and hatte Canaan, for Canaanes [So α.; Caanes, MS.] children were þe firste þat woned þerynne after Noes flood; and conteyned seuen [vj., Cx., who has alle before acursyd.] naciouns acorsed as it were by heritage of Cam, [þe Cham, α.] Noes sone. Treuisa. Cham was Noes sone, and hadde his fader [faders, Cx. (not α.)] cors; for he lowh [lowȝ, α.] his fader to scorne, for he say [sawe, Cx.] his priue harneys [membrys, Cx.] al bare and vnheled, while he lay on slepe. ℞. Palestina [oþer Phylistea, added in α.] is a prouince of Syria, and þat hiȝte somtyme Philistea; þe cheef [chif, α.] citee þerof hiȝte Philistim, [So α.; Philistym, MS.] and now hatte Ascalon. [So α. and Cx.; Ascelon, MS.] And after þat [þe, α. and Cx.] citee is þe prouince i-cleped Palestina oþer Philistea. And men of þat contrey hatte Palestini and Philistei also; for in þe speche of Hebrewes [Hebrew, Cx.] is no p, but instede of p þey useþ ph; þerfore Philistei and Pales|tini beeþ all oon, and beeþ also i-cleped allophyli, þat is to menynge aliens and straunge men, for þey were alwey aliens and straunge to the folk of Israel. Þat prouince haþ in þe south side Egipt, in þe west Tyrus, in þe north Iudea,

in [and in, Cx.] þe est Idumea. Idumea haþ þe name of Edom; Edom [Edom] added from Cx.] and Esau is all oon, Iacobus broþer. Þat Idumea is a strong londe, hully and hoot, and streccheþ to þe Rede see. Isidorus, libro nono. In þis Idumea is Iobus [Jobyns, α.; Jacobs, Cx.] welle. Þat welle chaunge[þ] [chaungeth, Cx.] hewe and colors foure siþes [α. has some omissions here.] a ȝere by þe monthes; þe firste þre monþes pale as asshes; þe se|counde þre monþes reed as blood; þe þridde þre monþes grene as gras; and þe fourþe þre monþes cleer as water. [α. and Cx. have some slight omissions in the foregoing sentence.] Palestina was i-woned to conteyne þe lond Samaria. Þe cheef [chif, α.] citee of þat lond was somtyme i-cleped Samaria, but now he is i-cleped and hatte Scbaste. Samaria haþ þe name of þe hille þat hatte Somer, and Samaria lieþ bytwene Iudea and Galilea. Men þat woned in Samaria were i-dryue oute, and Assyrii were i-brouȝt ynne. Assyrii holdeþ Moyses lawe, and in [in] added from α.; Cx. has but in somme thynges they discorde.] oþer discordeþ from the Iewes, and hoteþ also Samaritæ, þat is to menynge kepers. For whan men of þe londe were i-take, þey were ordeyned wardeynes of hem. [ham, α.] Sychem, þat hatte Sichema [Sychima, α.] also, is a litel lond yn Samaria, and haþ þe name of Sichem, Emor his sone,

þat first woned þerynne. Also þere is a citee þat hatte Sychem, and now is i-cleped Neopolis. Þat citee Iacob bouȝte som tyme wiþ money and grete trauaille, and ȝaf it to Ioseph his sone ouer [aboue, Cx.] his lotte, so seiþ Hieronymus, [Iherome, Cx.] Genesis, octodecimo capitulo. And þis was a cite of refute [refuge, Cx.] and of socour, so it is i-write Iosuæ vicesimo capitulo. For þat lond [So α. and Cx.; MS. adds þat (clerical error).] was de tribu and of þe lynage of Ephraym; and þere were Ioseph is [Iosephs, Cx.; Ioseph his, α.] bones i-buried, after þat [þat] om. Cx.] þey were i-brouȝte ouȝt of Egipte; witnesse of Holy Writt, Iosuæ ultimo capitulo. In þat place Ioseph his [Iosephs, Cx.] breþeren fedde and kepte flokkes [droues and flockes, Cx.] of bestes: but afterward Abymelech, [So Cx.; Abimaleche, MS.] Ierobabel [Ierobabels, α. and Cx.] sone, destroyed þat place, and slow þe men þat woned þerynne, and sewe salt þerynne, for þe lond schulde na more [nomore, Cx. (not α.)] bere fruit and corne; witnesse Iosuæ nono capi|tulo. Also [and, Cx.] þere is Iacobus welle, þat [þat] where, Cx.] Criste reste by, whan he was wery of wey and of goynge. Galilea is a londe bytwene Iudea and Palestina, and is double, þe ouer Galilea and þe neþer Galilea, and ioyneþ to gidres, and also to Syria and to Phenicia; [Fenicia, MS. and Cx.] in eyþer Galilea is good lond

and greet plente of corne and of fruit, grete lakes and huge, profitable and heleful, [helþful, α. and Cx.] and som lake is so huge [grete, Cx.] and so ful of fische þat me clepeþ it a [So α. and Cx.; þe, MS.] see. So þe lake of Tiberiadis is i-cleped þe see of Tiberiadis, and Genosar þat lake is i-cleped also. Also in þe west side of þe neþer Galilea toward þe grete see fast by þat citee Ptolemaida, [Ptholomaida, MS., α., and Cx.] þat hatte Acon [Acres, Cx.] also, is a welle þat torneþ into glas [aglas, α.] al metal þat is cast þerynne. Cedar is a londe yn þe ouerside of Palestina, and haþ þe name of þat Cedar þat wonede þerynne, [þat wonede þerynne] Added from α. and Cx.] þat Cedar [Cedar] Added from α. and Cx.] was Ismael his eldest sone. Þe ofspringe of Cedar and of Ismael were afterwarde i-cleped Ismaelitæ, and also Agareni more riȝtfulliche þan Saraceni, [Sareceny, MS.] for þey come of Agar þat was Ismael his moder and serued Sarra, but afterward for pryde þey toke wrongfulliche þe name of Sarra and cleped hem Saraceni. Methodius. Þese men haueþ noon hous but walkeþ in wildernesse and woneþ in tabernacles and in teeldis, [tentes, Cx.] and lyueþ by prayes [praye, Cx.] and by venysoun. Þese men schole [schulle, α.; shal, Cx.] somtyme gadere to gidres and goo out of wildernesse and occupie the londes aboute eiȝt wekes of ȝeres, þat is eiȝte siþes seuene ȝere, and þey

schulleþ [shal, Cx., as usual.] ouertorne citees and townes, and slee preestes, and defoule clerkes and holy places, and teie her [here, α.] bestes to tombes of holy [α. omits holy.] seyntes; þat schal byfalle for wickednesse of euel lyuynge of Cristen men. ℞. Þis doynge semeþ fulfilde in þe laste tyme of Heraclius þe emperour, whan [So Cx.; what, MS.] þat false prophete Machometys [Machometes, α.] occupied Persida [So Cx. and α.; Persidia, MS.] and made Egipte and Affrica sogett, [subgette, Cx.] and wroot and brouȝt yn þe false lawe and secte of Saracins, as it is innermore [ynnere more, α.] pleyn i-write after Heraclius tyme. Phenicia [Fenicia, MS., but Phenyx and Phenisia just below; and so α., (nearly). Harl. MS. has F every|where.] is a lond in þe whiche is conteyned tweye londes, Tyrus and Sidon, and haþ in þe est side Arabia, in þe souþ þe Rede see, in þe norþ þe hil þe mount Libany, [Perhaps this is meant for the genitive; and if so should be edited Libani, as Cx. has it, who omits þe hil; α. agrees with MS.] and in þe west þe grete see. Isidorus, libro secundo, capitulo quinto. Phenix, Agenoris sone, by toke rede lettres to þe Phenices, þat beeþ men of Phenicia, and þerfore þat colour was i-cleped Phenicius; and after|ward þe lettre chaunged, and þan it was i-cleped Puniceus, þat is, reed. Hugo, capitulo Phœnix. For Pheniciens [Phenices, α. and Cx.] were þe [α. and Cx. omit þe (twice).] firste fynderes of lettres, ȝit we writeþ capital lettres wiþ reed colour, in token and mynde þat Phenices were þe [α. and Cx. omit þe (twice).] firste fynders of lettres.