There is a particular tendency which may be traced throughout all the accounts that have come down to us of early Grecian history, viz., of reducing everything to a _genealogical_ form. It was much encouraged by the opinion of the later historians, that every town and valley had received its name from some ancient prince or hero; thus even Pausanias meets with persons who explained everything by means of genealogies;(2138) who, for example, out of the Pythian temple at Delphi made a son of Delphus Pythis, a prince of early times. This tendency, however, is manifestly founded on the genuine ancient language of mythology. With the inventors of these fabulous narratives, nations, cities, mountains, rivers, and gods became real _persons_, who stood to one another in the relation of human beings, were arranged in families, and joined to one another in marriage. Now although such fictions are in many cases easily seen through, and the meaning of the connexion may be readily deciphered, yet these genealogies, as there was nothing of arbitrary and fanciful invention in them, in after-times passed for real history; and were, both by early and late historians, with full confidence in their general accuracy, made use of for the establishment of a sort of chronology. On these principles, then, the genealogies which were formed in the age of the later epic poets, and perhaps even of the early historians, cannot be considered as pure invention; these too must have been founded on certain arguments and facts, which were generally believed at that time. We will endeavour to point this out in the famous genealogy of the chief races of the Greeks, which was taken from the Ἠοῖαι of Hesiod.(2139) [Transcriber’s Note: Here are the relationships shown in the table: Prometheus and Pandora had Deucalion. Deucalion and Pyrrha had Hellen. Hellen had Dorus, Xuthus, and Æolus. Xuthus had Achæus and Ion.] Now the passage of Hesiod only mentions the three brothers, Dorus, Xuthus, and Æolus, without naming the sons of Xuthus; but it is evident that in this series Xuthus must also represent some race or races; and since no tribe ever bore the title of _Xuthi_, this name must have been used by Hesiod to signify the Ionians and Achaæns, as in Apollodorus, and other writers.(2140) According to another tradition, perhaps of equal antiquity, Zeus, the father of gods and men, was, instead of Deucalion, the husband of Pyrrha.(2141)