"The Phoenicians, inhabiting an arid coast, made themselves the agents of exchange between peoples. Their vessels spread throughout the Mediterranean. They began to reveal nation to nation, astronomy, navigation and geography perfected each other. The coasts of Greece and Asia Minor were filled with colonies ... From the mixtures of these independent colonies with the ancient peoples of Greece and with the remains of successive barbarian invasions the Greek nation was formed ... by these multiple mixtures this rich language was formed, expressive and sonorous, the language for all the arts."