in Roman antiquity, were immodest women, who came from Syria to Rome, where they lived by prostitution, and by playing on the flute; the word is derived from the Syriac abub, which signifies a flute; altho' others make it to come from am and Baia, because these prostitutes often retired to Baia. According to Cruquius, these women used likewise to sell paint for ornamenting the face, &c.