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Now the Ionians of Asia, who meet at the Panionium, have built
their cities in a region where the air and climate are the most
beautiful in the whole world: for no other region is equally blessed
with Ionia, neither above it nor below it, nor east nor west of it.
For in other countries either the climate is over cold and damp, or
else the heat and drought are sorely oppressive. The Ionians do not
all speak the same language, but use in different places four different
dialects. Towards the south their first city is Miletus, next to
which lie Myus and Priene; all these three are in Caria and have the
same dialect. Their cities in Lydia are the following: Ephesus,
Colophon, Lebedus, Teos, Clazomenae, and Phocaea. The
inhabitants of these towns have none of the peculiarities of speech
which belong to the three first-named cities, but use a dialect of
their own. There remain three other Ionian towns, two situate in
isles, namely, Samos and Chios; and one upon the mainland, which
is Erythrae. Of these Chios and Erythrae have the same dialect,
while Samos possesses a language peculiar to itself. Such are the
four varieties of which I spoke.
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