Hanno the Navigator

Hanno the Navigator (sometimes "Hannon"; 𐤇𐤍𐤀, ; Ἄννων ) was a Carthaginian explorer of the fifth century BC, best known for his naval exploration of the western coast of Africa. The only source of his voyage is a periplus translated into Greek. He has sometimes been identified as a king. Historians have attempted to identify places on Hanno's route based on the periplus. According to some modern analyses of his route, Hanno's expedition could have reached as far south as Gabon; however, according to others, it could not have taken him further than southern Morocco. The name Hanno was given to many other Carthaginians. Ancient authors who discussed Hanno the Navigator did not provide direct information to identify him exactly. Some called him king, and others used the Latin words dux (leader or general) or imperator (commander or emperor). The Greek translation of Hanno's periplus account names him a basileus, a term which may be interpreted as "king", but was commonly used for high-level Carthaginian officials. The consensus of scholarship places Hanno in the 5th century BC and identifies him as a member of the aristocratic Magonid family. R.C.C. Law identifies Hanno as the son of Hamilcar I. Hanno's account, the periplus ( () circumnavigation), remains extant in Greek-language manuscripts. The original version, written in the Punic language, has been lost. The Greek translation is abridged and 101 lines long. While it contains contradictions and obvious errors, it is likely derived from an original Carthaginian text. The periplus has survived as "the nearest we have to a specimen of Carthaginian 'literature' " and one of the few extant accounts of ancient exploration penned by the explorer himself. In the fifth century, the text was translated into Greek. Over the centuries, the translation was copied several times by Greek and Greek-speaking Roman clerks. Two copies remain extant, dating to the 9th and 14th centuries. Conrad Gessner produced the first Latin translation, printed at Zurich in 1559.