Who were the wise men and why were they called Magi?

        The term Magi was anciently used generally throughout the East, to distinguish philosophers, and especially astronomers. Pliny and Ptolemy mention Aribi as synonymous with Magi; and it was the opinion of many learned in the first ages of Christianity, that the Magi who presented offerings to the infant Savior in Matthew 2:1 came from Southern Arabia for it is certain that "gold, frankincense and myrrh,'' were productions of that country. They were philosophers among whom the best parts of the reformed Magian system, which was extensively diffused, were probably preserved. They were pious men, also, who had some acqaintance, it may be, with the Hebrew prophecies, and were favored themselves, with divine revelations. They are to be regarded as members of the old patriarchal church, never quite extinguished among the heathen; and they had the special honor to present the homage of the Gentile world to the infant Savior. - Hend. Buck; Watson

A Byzantine mosaic of the three Magi depicted in Persian clothing.