Clime
The climes (singular clime; also clima, plural climata, from Greek κλίμα klima, plural κλίματα klimata, meaning "inclination" or "slope"
Starting with Aristotle (Meteorology 2.5,362a32), the Earth was divided into five zones, assuming two frigid climes (the arctic and antarctic) around the poles, an uninhabitable torrid clime near the equator, and two temperate climes between the frigid and the torrid ones.[3] Different lists of climata were in use in
The modern concept of climate and the related term clime are derived from the historical concept of climata.
Ptolemy
But for the purposes of his geographical tables, Ptolemy reduces this list to eleven parallels, dividing the area between the equator and 54°1' N into ten segments, at half-hour intervals reaching from 12 hours to 17 hours. Even later in his work, he reduces this to seven parallels, reaching from 16°27' N (13 hours) to 48°32' N (16 hours).
Ptolemy's system of seven climes was primarily adopted in
Thirty-nine parallels
To identify the parallels delineating his climes, Ptolemy gives a geographical location through which they pass. The following is a list of the 33 parallels between the equator and the polar circle (39 parallels between the equator and the pole)[5] of the full system of climes; the reduced system of seven climes is indicated by additional numbers in brackets. Both Ptolemy's latitude estimates and modern values are provided. Ptolemy never considered the impact of atmospheric refraction on his calculation of the length of the day. If you account for that and for the drift in orbital parameters since Ptolemy's time, his values are remarkably accurate, off by less than 30 arcseconds in most cases.
parallel | clima | Ptolemy's latitude | actual latitude | longest daylight | location |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 0° | 0° | 12 hours | (equator) | |
2. | 4°4' N | 2°14' N | 12:15 | Taprobana (Sri Lanka) | |
3. | 8°25' N | 6°31' N | 12:30 | Saylac, Somalia )
| |
4. | 12°00' N | 10°42' N | 12:45 | bay of Adulis (Eritrea) | |
5. | I | 16°27' N | 14°46' N | 13:00 | Meroe island
|
6. | 20°14' N | 18°39' N | 13:15 | Napaton (Nubia) | |
7. | II | 23°51' N | 22°20' N | 13:30 | Syene (Aswan )
|
8. | 27°12' N | 25°48' N | 13:45 | Thebes | |
9. | III | 30°22' N | 29°3' N | 14:00 | Lower Egypt |
10. | 33°18' N | 32°4' N | 14:15 | Phoenicia | |
11. | IV | 36°00' N | 34°53' N | 14:30 | Rhodes |
12. | 38°35' N | 37°29' N | 14:45 | Smyrna | |
13. | V | 40°56' N | 39°53' N | 15:00 | Hellespont
|
14. | 43°04' N | 42°5' N | 15:15 | Massalia ( Marseilles )
| |
15. | VI | 45°01' N | 44°7' N | 15:30 | the middle of the Euxine Sea |
16. | 46°51' N | 45°59' N | 15:45 | Istros (Danube) | |
17. | VII | 48°32' N | 47°43' N | 16:00 | the mouths of Borysthenes ( Dnepr )
|
18. | 50°04' N | 49°18' N | 16:15 | Maeotian Lake (Sea of Azov )
| |
19. | 51°06' N | 50°45' N | 16:30 | the southern shore of Britannia | |
20. | 52°50' N | 52°6' N | 16:45 | mouths of the Rhine | |
21. | 54°1' N | 53°20' N | 17:00 | mouths of the Don )
| |
22. | 55° N | 54°29' N | 17:15 | Brigantion in Britannia | |
23. | 56° N | 55°32' N | 17:30 | the middle of Great Britain | |
24. | 57° N | 56°30' N | 17:45 | Katouraktonion in Britannia | |
25. | 58° N | 57°24' N | 18:00 | the southern part of Britannia Minor[6] | |
26. | 59° N | 59°0' N | 18:30 | the middle part of Britannia Minor[6] | |
27. | 61° N | 60°21' N | 19:00 | the northern part of Britannia Minor[6] | |
28. | 62° N | 61°30' N | 19:30 | Ebudes island
| |
29. | 63° N | 62°29' N | 20 hours | Thule | |
30. | 64°30' N | 63°59' N | 21 hours | unknown Scythians | |
31. | 65°30' N | 64°59' N | 22 hours | ||
32. | 66° N | 65°33' N | 23 hours | ||
33. | 66°8'40"N | 65°44' N | 24 hours | polar circle | |
69°30' N | 68°48' N | 2 months | |||
78°20' N | 77°27' N | 4 months | |||
39. | 90° N | 90° N | 6 months | (North Pole) |
See also
References
- ^ H. G. Liddell and R. Scott, A Greek English Lexicon.
- ISBN 0-387-06995-X
- ^ Abel K. (1974). "Zone". Real-Encyclopädie der classischen Altertumswissenschaft. Ed. A. F. von Pauly, G. Wissowa et al. Stuttgart. Suppl.-Bd. XIV: 989–1188.
- ISBN 0-387-06995-X
- ISBN 0-387-06995-X
- ^ a b c Μικρὰ Βρεττανία, later the name of Brittany but by Ptolemy used to refer to Ireland (even though the latitudes given are too far north for the actual location of Ireland).
Bibliography
- Berggren J.L., Jones A. (2000). Ptolemy's Geography: An Annotated Translation of the Theoretical Chapters. Princeton University Press. 216 p.
- Dicks D.R. (1955). "The ΚΛΙΜΑΤΑ in the Greek Geography". Classical Quarterly 5 (49): 248–255.
- Dicks D.R. (1956). "Strabo and the ΚΛΙΜΑΤΑ". Classical Quarterly 6 (50): 243–247.
- Dicks D.R. (1960) The Geographical Fragments of Hipparchus. London: Athlon Press. XI, 214 p.
- Diller A. (1934). "Geographical Latitudes in Eratosthenes, Hipparchus and Posidonius". Klio 27 (3): 258–269.
- Honigmann E. (1929). Die sieben Klimata und die πολεις επισημοι. Eine Untersuchung zur Geschichte der Geographie und Astrologie in Altertum und Mittelalter. Heidelberg: Carl Winter's Universitätsbuchhandlung. 247 S.
- The Itinerary of Alexander through the Seven Climes of Antiquity according to the Aljamiado-Morisco Rrekontamiento del rrey Alisandre. Santa Barbara, CA. Fifth Annual Middle East Studies Regional Conference. March 22, 2003.
- Kubitschek W. (1921). "Klima 2". Real-Encyclopädie der classischen Altertumswissenschaft. Ed. A. F. von Pauly, G. Wissowa et al. Stuttgart. Bd. XI.1: 838–844.
- Marcotte D. (1998). "La climatologie d'Ératosthène à Poséidonios: genèse d'une science humaine". G. Argoud, J.Y. Guillaumin (eds.). Sciences exactes et sciences appliquées à Alexandrie (IIIe siècle av J.C. – Ier ap J.C.). Saint Etienne: Publications de l'Université de Saint Etienne: 263–277.
- Neugebauer O. (1975). A History of Ancient Mathematical Astronomy. Berlin, Heidelberg, New York: Springer Verlag: 43–45, 333–336, 725–733.
- Shcheglov D.A. (2004/2006). "Ptolemy's System of Seven Climata and Eratosthenes' Geography". Geographia Antiqua 13: 21–37.
- Shcheglov D.A. (2006): "Eratosthenes' Parallel of Rhodes and the History of the System of Climata". Klio 88: 351–359.
- Szabó Á. (1992). Das geozentrische Weltbild. Astronomie, Geographie und Mathematik der Griechen. München: Dt. TaschenbuchVerlag. 377 S.
- Szabó Á., Maula E. (1986). Les débuts de l'astronomie de la géographie et de la trigonométrie chez les grecs. Traduit par M. Federspiel. Paris: Libr. philos. J. Vrin. 238 p.
Further reading
- Corbin, Henry (1977). Spiritual Body and Celestial Earth: From Mazdean Iran to Shi'ite Iran. Princeton University Press. pp. 17-50.