History of the Peloponnesian War

And the laws which they established were the Doric. About one hundred and eight years after their own foundation, they of Gela built the city of Acragante, calling the city after the name of the river; and for their conductors chose Aristonous and Pystilus, and gave unto them the laws of Gela.

Zancle was first built by pirates that came from Cume, a Chalcidean city in Opicia; but afterwards there came a multitude, and helped to people it, out of Chalcis and the rest of Euboea; and their conductors were Perieres and Crataemenes, one of Cume, the other of Chalcis. And the name of the city was at first Zancle, so named by the Sicilians because it hath the form of a sickle, and the Sicilians call a sickle zanclon. But these inhabitants were afterwards chased thence by the Samians and other people of Ionia that in their flight from the Medes fell upon Sicily.

After this, Anaxilas, tyrant of Rhegium, drave out the Samians, and peopling the city with a mixed people of them and his own, instead of Zancle called the place by the name of his own country from whence he was anciently descended, Messana.