Basil II's Epitaph

[The Blind King of Bohemia]

I was taking a look at this and was slightly perplexed by this line:

The Persians and Scythians bear witness to this
and along with them Abasgos, Ismael, Araps, Iber.

Now I'm figuring Iber must be Iberia (the Caucasus one), but the other 3 I'm not really sure on. Ismael are Jews perhaps, and Araps maybe Arabs? Can anyone clarify who these peoples are? Thanks.

[Hurin_Rules]

Could Ismael refer to the branch of Shiites, the Ismailis?

http://www.encyclopedia.com/html/I/Ismailis.asp

[Rosacrux redux]

Apparently, Abazgos (Αβάσγοι in Greek) must've been the Abkhazians. Around the time of Basile the Byzantines called the Abkhazians and Georgians under the collective "Αβάσγοι", but I could be mistaken.

I am not sure with Ismael. The Byzantines have used this term to refer to the actual Ismaelites, Arabs in general, Egyptian Arabs, Turks and various others, including Jews. As they have used "Skythians" to refer to Huns, Bulgars, Turks, Mongols, Avars and various other steppe people. "Araps" would refer to "Arapia" (Αραπιά, see also Αράπης) meaning the saracens in general - in modern Greek arapis came to mean "nigger". Iber should be Iveres, Iberians (of the Caucasus region).

Do you have the whole text online? I haven't seen this epitaph and I am quite interested into it. I would be especially interested in the original greek text.

[The Blind King of Bohemia]

I can get you the full translation but not the original Greek.

[Rosacrux redux]

the translation should suffice, then. I'll try to locate the Greek text one of these days in some library here, it has sparked my interest.

[Mount Suribachi]

Ismael would refer to the Arabs. Both Jews and Arabs/Muslims (yes I know they're not the same thing) regard themselves as children of Abraham, but the Jews trace their line through Isaac, the Arabs through Ismael. As you go on through the Old Testament, periodically this tension between the 2 people groups flares up.