Sabine

Sabine , river, c.575 mi (925 km) long, rising on the prairies NE of Dallas, Tex. It flows SE across Texas, then south to mark the Texas-Louisiana line. Near its mouth it broadens to form Sabine Lake (c.17 mi/27 km long; c.7 mi/11.3 km wide), then goes through Sabine Pass to the Gulf of Mexico. The Neches River flows into the lake. Port Arthur, Tex., is on Sabine Lake, and Orange, Tex., is on the river. The Sabine-Neches Canal divides above Port Arthur, the west branch leading up the Neches River to Beaumont and the east branch flowing to Orange. Part of the Intracoastal Waterway, it permits oceangoing vessels to reach these cities.

Sabine of, relating to, or denoting an ancient Oscan-speaking people of the central Apennines in Italy, north-east of Rome, who feature in early Roman legends and were incorporated into the Roman state in 290 bc. The Sabines were renowned in antiquity for their frugal and hardy character and their superstitious practices.

The (unhistorical) legend of the Rape of the Sabine Women reflects the early intermingling of Romans and Sabines; some Roman religious institutions were said to have a Sabine origin.