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Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

778   285. MERIDIN

worth noticing that the Franciscan transcriptions with -e- support Abû-l-Fida's spelling of Kûmmâjar without the long a of the last syllable which he uses in War when it is the name of the Hungarians.

The name of « Mengiar » comes in Polo after that of « Lac », and we know that the « Lac » are the Lezghians. In the same way, Abû-'i-Fidâ says (II, i, 283) that « in the neighbourhood of Kûmmajar are the Lakzi (Lezghians) ». It does not seem any more possible to doubt that « Mengiar » designates in Polo the region of the city of Màjar.

Strange as it may appear, Polo's spelling with an -n- at the end of the first syllable is not without support from other documents. The Genoese acts published by BRXTIANU name the Hungarians when the real Hungarians are meant (although occasionally Rumanians are mixed up with them; cf. Le commerce génois, p. 229); but a document of 1289 from Caffa refers to the sale of « sclavum unum de proienie maniar, nominatum Balaban », and another of the same year, from Caffa also, to the sale of « sclavum unum... de proienie maniar, nominatum Teronda » (Actes des notaires, 178, 258). BRXTIANU (Le commerce génois, 229) has already seen that « Maniar » must be MaTar on the Kuma, identical with Polo's « Mengiar ». I do not know what « Teronda » means, but balaban is a good Turkish word designating a kind of falcon, and, as a proper name, has spread widely to India and to Egypt (although generally read wrongly « Balban »).

285.  MERIDIN

meredimi V   rneridien L   meridin Z; R

The Mardin of our maps; Polo couples it with « Mus » as the name of a province (see « Mus »). The «Meredimi» of V leaves the possibility that Polo had written «Meredin»; on the place, cf. Y, I, 62; LS, 96.

Hethum always writes « Meredin »; Ricold has « Merdinum »; Fra Mauro's « Merdi » stands for « Merdi » = « Merdin » (cf. Hist. des Crois., Arm., II, 985; HALLBERG, 351-352). These transcriptions suppose *MArdin, instead of the usual Arabic spelling Mârdin.

286.  MINGAN

maghan TA3   migan V   mingii VA

mangha TA'   mingam FA, FB   mitigan VL

migam LT   mingan F; R   miungaym P

Mong. Mingyan, which means « thousand »; Rasidu-'d-Din generally transcribes it 31 Mingqan = Mingyan. This is a frequent name among the Mongols of the period; WANG Hui-

tsul (19, 11) distinguishes three Hjj   Ming-an in YS alone. The present one is certainly the

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