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I shall begin with the writings of the Egyptians; not indeed of those that have written in the Egyptian language, which it is impossible for me to do.
But Manetho, who was by birth an Egyptian, had some knowledge of Greek learning, as is very evident; for he wrote the history of his own country in the Greek language, by translating it, as he says himself, out of their sacred records; he also finds great fault with Herodotus for his ignorance and inaccuracy about Egyptian history.
Now this Manetho, in the second book of his Egyptian History, writes concerning us in the following manner.
I will set down his very words, as if I were to bring the very man himself into a court as a witness: “Tutimaeus.
In his reign it happened, I know not why, that God was angry with us, and there came, unexpectedly, men of ignoble birth from the east, and they were bold enough to make an expedition into our country, and easily subdued it by force, because we did not even hazard a battle with them.
So when they had overpowered our rulers, they afterwards burnt down our cities, and demolished the temples of the gods, and treated all the inhabitants in the most barbarous manner.
Some of them they slew, and led their children and their wives into slavery.
At length they made one of themselves king, whose name was Salitis; he also lived at Memphis, and he made both the upper and lower regions pay tribute, and left garrisons in places that were the most suitable for them.
He chiefly aimed to secure the eastern parts, because he foresaw that the Assyrians, who were the most powerful people of that time, would want to seize his kingdom, and invade it.
He found in the Sethroite nome a city very suitable for this purpose, on the east side of the Bubastic channel of the river, which for theological reasons was called Avaris.
He rebuilt it, and made it very strong by the walls he built around it, and put in a very large garrison of two hundred and forty thousand armed men, to guard it.
(153) Salitis came there in summer time, partly to gather his corn, and pay his soldiers their wages, and partly to exercise his armed men, and thereby to intimidate foreigners.
After this man had reigned nineteen years, another, whose name was Bnon, reigned for forty-four years; after him reigned another, called Apachnas, thirty-six years and seven months; after him Apophis reigned sixty-one years, and then Jannas fifty years and one month; after all these, Assis reigned for forty-nine years and two months.
And these six were the first rulers among them, who were all along making war with the Egyptians, and wanted gradually to eradicate them.
This whole nation was styled Hyksos, that is, 'shepherd-kings': for the first syllable hyk, according to the sacred dialect, denotes 'a king', and sos is 'a shepherd', according to the ordinary dialect; and of these is compounded Hyksos: but some say that these people were Arabians.” Now in another copy it is said that this word does not denote 'kings', but, on the contrary, denotes that the shepherds were 'captives'.
For hyk, as well as hak with an aspirate, in the Egyptian language expressly denotes 'captives'; and this to me seems the more probable opinion, and more in accordance with ancient history.
