Black Sea is a marginal sea of Atlantic Ocean located between Europe and Asia. The mention of Black Sea dates back to 475 BC and was considered an ill omen.
Historical names and etymology
The principal Greek name Póntos Áxeinos is generally accepted to be a rendering of Iranian word - , compare Avestan, Old Persian, Middle Persian, and New Persian , as well as Ossetic . Ancient Greek voyagers adopted the name as Á-xenos, identified with the Greek word áxeinos . The name Πόντος Ἄξεινος Póntos Áxeinos , first attested in Pindar , was considered an ill omen and was euphemized to its opposite, Εὔξεινος Πόντος Eúxeinos Póntos , also first attested in Pindar. This became the commonly used designation in Greek, although in mythological contexts the "true" name Póntos Áxeinos remained favored.
Strabo's Geographica reports that in antiquity, the Black Sea was often simply called "the Sea" . He also thought the Black Sea was called "inhospitable" before Greek colonization for its difficult navigation and hostile barbarian natives , and that the name was changed to "hospitable" after the Milesians colonized the Pontus region of the southern shoreline, bringing it within Greek civilization.
