The climes (singular ''clime''; also ''clima'', plural ''climata'', from Greek κλίμα ''klima'', plural κλίματα ''klimata'', meaning "inclination" or "slope") in classical Greco-Roman geography and

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies astronomical object, celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and chronology of the Universe, evolution. Objects of interest ...

were the divisions of the inhabited portion of the spherical Earth by geographic latitude. Starting with

Aristotle Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical Greece, Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatet ...

(''Meteorology'' 2.5,362a32), the Earth was divided into five zones, assuming two ''frigid'' climes (the

arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada ( Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm ( Greenland), Finland, Iceland ...

and

antarctic The Antarctic ( or , American English also or ; commonly ) is a polar region around Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica, the Kerguelen Plateau and o ...

) around the poles, an uninhabitable ''torrid'' clime near the

equator The equator is a circle of latitude, about in circumference, that divides Earth into the Northern and Southern hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South poles. The term can al ...

, and two ''temperate'' climes between the frigid and the torrid ones. Different lists of climata were in use in

Hellenistic In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium i ...

and Roman time. Claudius

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of import ...

was the first ancient scientist known to have devised the so-called system of seven climes (Almagest 2.12) which, due to his authority, became one of the canonical elements of late antique, medieval European and Arab geography. In

Medieval Europe In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, the climes for 15 and 18 hours of longest daylight at summer

solstice A solstice is an event that occurs when the Sun appears to reach its most northerly or southerly excursion relative to the celestial equator on the celestial sphere. Two solstices occur annually, around June 21 and December 21. In many count ...

were used to calculate the changing length of daylight through the year. The modern concept of

climate Climate is the long-term weather pattern in an area, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteorologica ...

and the related term are derived from the historical concept of ''climata''.

Ptolemy

gives a list of parallels, starting with the

, and proceeding north at intervals, chosen so that the longest day (summer

) increases in steps of a quarter of an hour from 12 hours at the equator to 18 hours at 58° N, and then, in larger steps, to 24 hours at the arctic circle. 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 Arabo-Persian astronomy, by authors such as al-Biruni and al-Idrisi, and eventually by Amīn Rāzī, the author of the 16th-century ''haft iqlīm'' ("seven climes"), while in Europe, Aristotle's system of five climes was more successful. This view dominated in medieval Europe, and existence and inhabitability of the Southern temperate zone, the antipodes, was a matter of dispute.

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)Otto Neugebauer, ''A History of Ancient Mathematical Astronomy'', (New York: Springer Verlag, 1975), pp. 43–5. of the full system of climes; the reduced system of seven climes is indicated by additional numbers in brackets (note that the latitudes are the ones given by Ptolemy, not the modern exact values): {, class="wikitable" , - ! parallel ! clima ! latitude ! longest daylight ! location , - , 1. , , 0° , 12 hours , (

) , - , 2. , , 4°4' N , 12:15 , Taprobana (

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

) , - , 3. , , 8°25' N , 12:30 , Avalites ( Saylac,

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constitut ...

) , - , 4. , , 12°00' N , 12:45 , bay of Adulis (

Eritrea Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia ...

) , - , 5. , I , 16°27' N , 13:00 , Meroe island , - , 6. , , 20°14' N , 13:15 , Napaton (

Nubia Nubia () (Nobiin language, Nobiin: Nobīn, ) is a region along the Nile river encompassing the area between the Cataracts of the Nile, first cataract of the Nile (just south of Aswan in southern Egypt) and the confluence of the Blue Nile, Blue ...

) , - , 7. , II , 23°51' N , 13:30 , Syene (

Aswan Aswan (, also ; ar, أسوان, ʾAswān ; cop, Ⲥⲟⲩⲁⲛ ) is a city in Southern Egypt, and is the capital of the Aswan Governorate. Aswan is a busy market and tourist centre located just north of the Aswan Dam on the east bank of ...

) , - , 8. , , 27°12' N , 13:45 , Thebes , - , 9. , III , 30°22' N , 14:00 ,

Lower Egypt Lower Egypt ( ar, مصر السفلى '; ) is the northernmost region of Egypt, which consists of the fertile Nile Delta between Upper Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea, from El Aiyat, south of modern-day Cairo, and Dahshur. Historically ...

, - , 10. , , 33°18' N , 14:15 ,

Phoenicia Phoenicia () was an ancient thalassocratic civilization originating in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily located in modern Lebanon. The territory of the Phoenician city-states extended and shrank throughout their his ...

, - , 11. , IV , 36°00' N , 14:30 ,

Rhodes Rhodes (; el, Ρόδος , translit=Ródos ) is the largest and the historical capital of the Dodecanese islands of Greece. Administratively, the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes regional unit, which is part of the S ...

, - , 12. , , 38°35' N , 14:45 ,

Smyrna Smyrna ( ; grc, Σμύρνη, Smýrnē, or , ) was a Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean coast of Anatolia. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna rose to promi ...

, - , 13. , V , 40°56' N , 15:00 , Hellespont , - , 14. , , 43°04' N , 15:15 , Massalia ( Marseilles) , - , 15. , VI , 45°01' N , 15:30 , the middle of the Euxine Sea , - , 16. , , 46°51' N , 15:45 , Istros (Danube) , - , 17. , VII , 48°32' N , 16:00 , the mouths of Borysthenes ( Dnepr) , - , 18. , , 50°04' N , 16:15 ,

Maeotian Lake The Sea of Azov ( Crimean Tatar: ''Azaq deñizi''; russian: Азовское море, Azovskoye more; uk, Азовське море, Azovs'ke more) is a sea in Eastern Europe connected to the Black Sea by the narrow (about ) Strait of Kerch, ...

( Sea of Azov) , - , 19. , , 51°06' N , 16:30 , the southern shore of

Britannia Britannia () is the national personification of Britain as a helmeted female warrior holding a trident and shield. An image first used in classical antiquity, the Latin ''Britannia'' was the name variously applied to the British Isles, Gr ...

, - , 20. , , 52°50' N , 16:45 , mouths of the

Rhine The Rhine ; french: Rhin ; nl, Rijn ; wa, Rén ; li, Rien; rm, label=Sursilvan, Rein, rm, label=Sutsilvan and Surmiran, Ragn, rm, label=Rumantsch Grischun, Vallader and Puter, Rain; it, Reno ; gsw, Rhi(n), including in Alsatian dialect, Al ...

, - , 21. , , 54°1' , 17:00 , mouths of the Tanais river ( Don) , - , 22. , , 55° N , 17:15 , Brigantion in Britannia , - , 23. , , 56° N , 17:30 , the middle of

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

, - , 24. , , 57° N , 17:45 , Katouraktonion in Britannia , - , 25. , , 58° N , 18:00 , the southern part of Britannia MinorΜικρὰ Βρεττανία, later the name of

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period o ...

but by Ptolemy used to refer to

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

(even though the latitudes given are too far north for the actual location of Ireland). , - , 26. , , 59° N , 18:30 , the middle part of Britannia Minor , - , 27. , , 61° N , 19:00 , the northern part of Britannia Minor , - , 28. , , 62° N , 19:30 , Ebudes island , - , 29. , , 63° N , 20 hours , Thule , - , 30. , , 64°30' N , 21 hours , unknown

Scythians The Scythians or Scyths, and sometimes also referred to as the Classical Scythians and the Pontic Scythians, were an ancient Eastern * : "In modern scholarship the name 'Sakas' is reserved for the ancient tribes of northern and eastern Cent ...

, - , 31. , , 65°30' N , 22 hours , , - , 32. , , 66° N , 23 hours , , - , 33. , , 66°8'40"N{{dubious, date=October 2015 , 24 hours , polar circle , - , , , 69°30' N , 2 months , , - , , , 78°20' N , 4 months , , - , 39. , , 90° N , 6 months , (

North Pole The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is the point in the Northern Hemisphere where the Earth's rotation, Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True North Pole to distingu ...

) , -

References

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.

Ptolemy

Thirty-nine parallels

See also

References

Bibliography

Further reading