In Ptolemy's 'Geography' the city of Kabura and the Kabolita, with the towns of Arguda, or Argandi, and Locharna, or Logarh, are all located in the territories of the Paropamisadæ along the Kabul river. Higher up the stream he places the town of Bagarda, which corresponds exactly in position, and very closely in name with the valley of Wardak. All the letters

of the two names are the same; and as the mere transposition of the guttural to the end of the Greek name will make it absolutely identical with the modern name, there is strong evidence in favour of the reading of Bardaga instead of Bagarda. According to Elphinstone, the Wardak tribe of Afghans occupy the greater part of the Logarh valley. This is confirmed by Masson,† who twice visited the district of Wardak; and by Vigne,‡ who crossed it on his way from Ghazni to Kabul. The only objection to this identification that occurs to me is, the possibility that Bagarda may be the Greek form of Vaekereta, which is the name given in the 'Zend Avesta' to the seventh country that was successively occupied by the Arian race. From its position between Bactria, Aria, and Arachosia, on one side, and India on the other, Vaekereta has usually been identified with the province of Kabul. This, also, is the opinion of the Parsis themselves.

Vaekereta is further said to be the seat or home of Duzhák, which further tends to confirm its identification with Kabul, as the acknowledged country of Zohâk. If the Wardaks had ever been a ruling tribe, I should be disposed to infer that the name of Vaekereta might, probably, have been derived from them. But in our present total ignorance Travels,' ii. 223. 'Ghazni,' p. 140.

* Kabul,' i. 160.

tion to this part of the country is said by the people themselves not to be older than the time of Janghez Khan.* I would, therefore, identify it with Guzar or Guzaristan, which is the chief town on the Helmand at the present day; and with the Ozola of Ptolemy, which he places in the north-west of Arachosia, or in the very same position as Guzaristan.

The name of Tsaukuta still remains to be explained. The identifications just made show that it corresponds exactly with the Arachosia of classical writers, which is the Arokhaj and Rokhaj of the Arab geographers. The latter form is also found in Arrian's 'Periplus of the Erythræan Sea' as 'Paxovool. It was, therefore, not unusual both before and after the time of Hwen Thsang to drop the initial syllable of the name. The original form was the Sanskrit Saraswati, which in Zend became Haraqaïti, and in Greek 'Apaxwrós, all of which agree in the last two syllables with the Chinese Tsaukuta. The first Chinese syllable Tsau must, therefore, correspond with the Ra of the other forms. This change may, perhaps, be explained by a peculiarity of the Turki language, which frequently changes the letter r into a soft z or sh, as the Turki words dengiz, 66 sea," and okuz, "ox," are the same as the Hungarian tenger and okur.† On the Indo-Scythian coins, also, we find the Turki names of Kanishka, Huvishka, and Kushana changed to Kanerke, Hoverke, and Korano in Greek. It seems possible, therefore, that the initial syllable Tsau of the Chinese transcript may be only the peculiar Turki pronunciation of the Indian Ra, which would naturally have come into use with the *'Ayin Akbari,' ii. 163.

† Prichard, Physical History of Mankind,' iv. 403.

of the country by the Turki tribe of Tochari, eginning of the Christian era.

eventh century the king of Ghazni, who lhist, was descended from a long line of Both the alphabet and the language of are said to have been different from those untries; and as Hwen Thsang was acth both the Indian and Turki languages, the speech of the people of Ghazni was ly Pushtu. If so, the people must have as; but, unfortunately, we have no other e us in settling this very intercsting point, ed, the name of O-po-kien, a place to the f Ghazni, may be identified with Afghán, h will be discussed hereafter.

istân, on the Helmand, I am not able to urther information, as that part of the not yet been visited by any European. f is too well known to require any partition, but I may note that it must have ry flourishing condition in the seventh Hwen Thsang estimates its circuit at 30 . At the present day the circuit of the is not more than one mile and a quarter. t an irregular pentagon, with sides varyto 400 yards in length, strengthened by vers. He adds,* that "the Afghans boast strength of the walls and fortifications of ut Ghazni has always been famous in the ce of strength and security; and for this it received its name of Gaza, an old for a "treasury." It is described in some *Ghazni,' p. 122.

scribed, but its size is given as 1000 li, or 166 miles, from east to west, and 800 li, or 133 miles, from north to south. This is, perhaps, nearly correct, as the extreme length, whether taken from the source of the Bara river to Torbela, or from the Kunar river to Torbela, is 120 miles, measured on the map direct, or about 150 miles by road. The extreme breadth, measured in the same way, from Bâzâr, on the border of the Bunir hills, to the southern boundary of Kohât, is 100 miles direct, or about 125 miles by road. The boundaries of Gândhâra, as deduced from these measurements, may be described as Lamghân and Jalâlâbâd on the west, the hills of Swât and Bunir on the north, the Indus on the east, and the hills of Kâlabâgh on the south. Within these limits stood several of the most renowned places of ancient India; some celebrated in the stirring history of Alexander's exploits, and others famous in the miraculous legends of Buddha, and in the subsequent history of Buddhism under the Indo-Scythian prince Kanishka.

The only towns of the Gandara named by Ptolemy are Naulibe, Embolima, and the capital called Proklaïs. All of these were to the north of the Kophes; and so also were Ora, Bazaria, and Aornos, which are mentioned by Alexander's historians. Parashâwar alone was to the south of the Kophes. Of Naulibe and Ora I am not able to offer any account, as they have not yet been identified. It is probable, however, that Naulibe is Niláb, an important town, which gave its name to the Indus river; but if so, it is wrongly placed by Ptolemy, as Nilab is to the south of the Kophes. The positions of the other towns I