DISCOVERY OF ICELAND

 

      

                                      

 

The Greek discovery of Iceland more than 1000 years before the Vikings is supported by new evidence published in December 2020 by the Houseman Society Journal.

 

Based on an essentially linguistic hypothesis, Dr Andrew Charles Breeze, writes his latest attempt to shed light on the mystery that surrounds the exact location of the legendary  “Thyle” the world’s northernmost island discovered by ancient Greek geographer, astronomer and explorer, Pytheus of Massalia, Marseille, during 300 BC.

 

                                     The Univerisity of Pamplona in Spain

Dr Breeze, the philology professor at the University of Pamplona in Spain, famous for his expertise in historical linguistics, appears convinced that the “island with the ice floes to it”, which took Pytheas 6 days to reach sailing from northern Britain can now, finally, be acknowledged.

 

Greeks not only reached India, with Alexander the Great but they also discovered Iceland with Pytheas”, he told the press as he started to recount his theory.  Dr Breeze compares the old legend of Thyle with those of Atlantis and Eldorado. 

 

                                     The Ancient Library of Alexandria, Egypt 

Pytheas’ actual account from his hometown in Massalia, southern France to Britain and beyond, although well known to scholars, is lost, probably destroyed in the fires of the library of Alexandria, in Egypt.

                                                                Strabo

 

                                                         Diodorus of Sicily

This is why the scientific community has been struggling for centuries to match the northernmost destination of the famous traveller with the exact location, guided by the surviving quotations of later writers such as Strabo and Diodorus of Sicily.

                                                              Taticus

They call this island Thyle and writers like Virgil, Taticus and others used Thyle rather vaguely, for somewhere at the end of the known world.  There have been centuries of arguments of where Thyle was.  Some people say Iceland, some the Feroes, others Norway, yet others the Shetland islands,” Dr Breeze explains.

                                                              Pytheas

He argues, however, that the key to solving the mystery is a linguistic approach to the matter and contends that the ancient name given to the island by Pytheas suffered scribal corruption through the centuries to the point that it became unintelligible.

“The trouble is that Thyle means nothing.  But the Greek word “themele” means alter, slab”, Dr Breeze points out.  In his paper, the Professor supports the idea that the term “Themele was suggested by the island’s southern coast, with high-level cliffs of volcanic rock seem resembling Greek Temples.  Perhaps, like the one excavated after World War II at Marseille (Massalia) where Pytheas came from.

As he envisioned Pytheas and his men first seeing Iceland, Dr Breeze believes that when they saw the mass of Iceland arising from the horizon, with clouds of mist arising from it and, perhaps, columns of smoke and ash from Hekla and other volcanoes, Pytheas thought of the alter in a Greek temple with fire on top and vapours rising from the animal sacrifices.

Here is an ancient map of Iceland:

 

I find this rather vague information fascinating and I am very proud of the successful deeds of our ancient compatriots.

 

(I wish to thank the Greek press and the blog GreekReporter for the valuable information for this post of my blog.)