People
Icthyofagi
Listen to the story
The Icthyofagi, the fish-eaters, as their Greek name says, were a people the Tabula places in the lands beyond the Euphrates. Scholars locate them on the south-east coast of Persia, and ancient writers mention them often. The geographer Ptolemy lists them, and a Greek sailing guide to the Indian Ocean speaks of poor tribes on the Indian coast who lived from fishing. The astronomer Cleomedes was less kind, calling their region harsh and foul-smelling.