Ἄβυδοι

Abydoi: three cities. The one on the Hellespont is a settlement of the Milesians, as per Dionysios: ‘Sestos, where too they established an anchorage opposite Abydos.’ And the one in Egypt is a settlement of the same people, called after a certain Abydos; and the one in Iapygia or Italy, whose name is used as a neuter, as Phileas says: ‘There is also a little town in Iapygia, among the Peuketioi, called thus in the nominative, Abydon.’ There is also the proverb, ‘Do not tread Abydos at random’, that is, do not be over-bold in setting foot on it. It is also applied to things done at random. Those who lived in the Abydos in Miletos had a bad name for sycophancy and effeminacy. The ethnonym is ‘Abydenos’. The ‘Abydene burden’ is also spoken of in reference to disagreeable things. It should be noted that while from ‘Arados’ comes ‘Aradios’, from ‘Tenedos’ ‘Tenedios’ and ‘Tenedeus’, and from ‘Lebedos’ ‘Lebedios’, from ‘Abydos’ comes ‘Abydenos’, perhaps owing to proximity: ‘Kyzikenos’ and similar forms.