Age of the Nandas and Mauryas c9.s2.t2.11

c9.s2.t2.11

With the Pauravas and Saubhuti we take leave of the tribal chieftains, who held sway on the borderland and the western Punjab under the titles of *hyparch*, *nomarch* and, more rarely, *Basileus*. We now come to the territories of the autonomous clans. We have to mention first the Glauganikai or Glausians, whose country lay to the west of the Chenab close to the territory of the Pauravas. In their land were no less than thirty-seven cities; of these, the least populated had above five thousand inhabitants many of them had over ten thousand. There was also a large number of populous villages.² We have next to mention the Kathaioi or Cathaeans, who are placed by some on the far side of the Chenab and the Ravi. The name possibly stands for the Sanskrit Katha. A brave and warlike race, the Cathaeans had their stronghold at Sangala, probably situated in the Gurudaspur district not far from Fathgarh, though some prefer the claims of Jandiala to the east of Amritsar, or that of Lahore itself. The people had a keen sense of beauty. Strabo, on the authority of Onesicritus, tells us that they chose the handsomest person as their king, and had customs that remind one of the realm of Saubhuti. Other observations of Onesicritus on the Cathaeans will be cited later.