History of the Peloponnesian War

Of these a great army crossing into Sicily overthrew the Sicanians in battle and drave them into the south and west parts of the same; and instead of Sicania, caused the island to be called Sicilia; and held and inhabited the best of the land for near three hundred years after their going over, and before any of the Grecians came thither. And till now they possess the midland and north parts of the island.

Also the Phoenicians inhabited the coast of Sicily on all sides, having taken possession of certain promontories and little islands adjacent, for trade's sake with the Sicilians. But after that many Grecians were come in by sea, the Phoenicians abandoned most of their former habitations, and uniting themselves, dwelt in Motya and Soloeis and Panormus, upon the borders of the Elymi, as relying upon their league with the Elymi, and because also from thence lay the shortest cut over unto Carthage. These were the barbarians, and thus they inhabited Sicily.

Now for Grecians, first a colony of Chalcideans, under Thucles, their conductor, going from Euboea, built Naxos and the altar of Apollo Archegetes, now standing without the city, upon which the ambassadors employed to the oracles, as often as they launch from Sicily, are accustomed to offer their first sacrifice.

The next year Archias, a man of the Herculean family, carried a colony from Corinth and became founder of Syracuse, where first he drave the Siculi out of that island in which the inner part of the city now standeth, not now environed wholly with the sea as it was then.

And in process of time, when the city also that is without was taken in with a wall, it became a populous city. In the fifth year after the building of Syracuse, Thucles and the Chalcideans, going from Naxos, built Leontium, expelling thence the Siculi, and after that Catana; but they that went to Catana chose Euarchus for their founder.

About the same time in Sicily arrived also Lamis, with a colony from Megara, and first built a certain town called Trotilus, upon the river Pantacius, where for a while after he governed the estate of his colony in common with the Chalcideans of Leontium. But afterwards, when he was by them thrust out, and had builded Thapsus, he died; and the rest going from Thapsus, under the conduct of Hyblon, a king of the Siculi, built Megara, called Megara-Hyblaea.

And after they had there inhabited two hundred and forty-five years, they were by Gelon, a tyrant of Syracuse, put out both of the city and territory. But before they were driven thence, namely one hundred years after they had built it, they sent out Pammilus and built the city of Selinus. This Pammilus came to them from Megara, their own metropolitan city, and so together with them founded Selinus.

Gela was built in the forty-fifth year after Syracuse, by Antiphemus, that brought a colony out of Rhodes, and by Entymus, that did the like out of Crete, jointly. This city was named after the name of the river Gela; and the place where now the city standeth, and which at first they walled in, was called Lindii.

And the laws which they established were the Doric. About one hundred and eight years after their own foundation, they of Gela built the city of Acragante, calling the city after the name of the river; and for their conductors chose Aristonous and Pystilus, and gave unto them the laws of Gela.