Histories

The second opinion is less grounded on knowledge than the previous, though it is more marvellous to the ear: according to it, the river effects what it does because it flows from Ocean, which flows around the whole world.

The third opinion is by far the most plausible, yet the most erroneous of all. It has no more truth in it than the others. According to this, the Nahr an- Nil [31.1,30.166] (river), AfricaNile flows from where snows melt; but it flows from Libya [17,25] (nation), AfricaLibya through the midst of Ethiopia [39,8] (nation), AfricaEthiopia, and comes out into Egypt [30,27] (nation), Africa Egypt.

How can it flow from snow, then, seeing that it comes from the hottest places to lands that are for the most part cooler? In fact, for a man who can reason about such things, the principal and strongest evidence that the river is unlikely to flow from snows is that the winds blowing from Libya [17,25] (nation), AfricaLibya and Ethiopia [39,8] (nation), AfricaEthiopia are hot.