Walking across Europe [antikvár]

The Restless Continent The origin of the term 'Europe' is shrouded in myth and mystery. Some say that the name is derived from an Ancient Greek word meaning 'broad-faced', describing the round-faced peasants who lived beyond the Greek-speaking, civilised peoples. Another theory is that the word originated in the Near East, from the ancient Akkadian word for 'darkness' or 'twilight', in which case it was probably a geographical designation, referring to the setting of the sun in the west. Perhaps the most appealing explanation is to be found in Greek mythology. Zeus, King of the Gods, was said to have fallen in love with Europa, daughter of the King of Phoenicia. To win her affections, he disguised himself as a bull and presented himself to her on the shores of the eastern Mediterranean. Europa, smitten, mounted his back and was transported to the island of Crete, where she lived and raised a family, so giving birth to a new continent and civilisation. Europe has always been ethnically and linguistically diverse— today, some 43 languages are spoken by its inhabitants—yet somehow peoples of contrasting traditions have, without losing pride in their own distinctiveness, managed to forge an enduring European identity. The process began with the Ancient Greeks, who divided the world into Europe and Asia. By 'Europe' the Greeks meant no more than the Greek world of the Aegean; 'Asia' was simply Persia. By the 5 th century bc the accepted geographical scheme was that of the great Greek historian, Herodotus, who had added a third continent, called Libya, on the southern shores of the Mediterranean Sea. This tripartite division of the world is echoed in the Old Testament. In the account given in Genesis, the three sons of Noah—Shem, Ham and Japheth—were said to have gone their separate ways after the Flood and fathered the peoples