Abarimon

What it is

The Abarimon are a mythical tribe from Greco-Roman historiography known for their unusual physical traits. They are described as having reversed feet, which would seem to hinder movement, yet they were capable of running at extreme speeds. This contradiction made them a subject of fascination in ancient natural history. The name is also linked to the term antipode, referring to peoples living on the opposite side of the world. These figures appear in various classical texts as examples of the strange creatures believed to inhabit the distant edges of the known earth.

Where it comes from

The primary source for the Abarimon is Pliny the Elder, who included them in his Natural History. He credited information about them to Baiton, a land surveyor who accompanied Alexander the Great. Pliny placed this tribe in India. Another account by Aulus Gellius in Attic Nights presents a similar tale. Later interpretations varied; some legends identified Abarimon as a landscape in Scythia near Mount Imaus, possibly the Hindu Kush or Himalayas. In the Middle Ages, Thomas Cooper’s Thesaurus Linguae Romanae et Britannicae listed them as a tribe in Tataria. Medieval mapmakers often depicted these creatures at the outermost borders of the world.

How scholars and sceptics see it

Modern scholars view the Abarimon as an exaggerated ethnographic description rather than a real people. The legend may stem from misinterpretations of prehistoric wildlife or local fauna found in the Himalayan regions. The story of reversed feet might be a metaphorical or distorted account of indigenous footwear or gait. The inclusion of such tribes in ancient texts reflects the Greco-Roman interest in cataloging the exotic and unknown lands beyond their borders. The varying locations assigned to them, from India to Scythia, highlight the fluid nature of ancient geographical knowledge.

Compare and confuse

The Abarimon share traits with other mythical beings like the Ciguapa and Curupira, who also have reversed feet or backward-facing features. These figures appear in different cultural mythologies as guardians or inhabitants of remote areas. The concept of antipodes was common in ancient thought, describing peoples living on the opposite side of the globe. Unlike the Abarimon, many of these figures are part of living folk traditions, whereas the Abarimon remain confined to classical literature and medieval cartography.

Today

The Abarimon survive today primarily in historical and literary contexts. They appear in encyclopedias of mythical creatures and discussions of ancient geography. Their image persists in references to medieval maps that placed strange beasts at the edges of the world. Modern interest in the Abarimon is academic, focusing on how ancient writers constructed narratives about distant lands. They serve as examples of early ethnographic speculation and the blending of fact and fantasy in classical natural history.

Questions people ask about Abarimon

Good reading and sources

• Abarimon on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• Wikidata recordOpen data