History Of Greek And Hellenistic Sicily
The History of Greek and Hellenistic Sicily ( grc, Σικελία) began with the foundation of the first colonies around the mid 8th century BC. The Greeks of Sicily were known as Siceliotes. Over centuries attempts were made to put the whole island under Greek rule, but these definitively ended around 276 BC with the departure of Pyrrhus of Epirus, who had managed to conquer the whole island except Carthaginian Lilybaeum. Shortly afterwards the island fell into the hands of the Romans. Territory Cities The Greek cities of Sicily organised themselves as ''apoikìai'' (newly-founded cities detached from their cities of origin and led by an oikistes), fruit of the second Greek colonisation. The first greeks arose in eastern Sicily - in the 8th century BC the Chalcidian Greeks founded Zancle, Naxos, Leontinoi and Katane; in the south-east corner the Corinthians founded Syracuse and the Megareans Megara Hyblaea, while on the western coast the Cretans and Rhodians founded Gela in ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Greek Colonisation
Greek colonization was an organised colonial expansion by the Archaic Greeks into the Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea in the period of the 8th–6th centuries BC. This colonization differed from the migrations of the Greek Dark Ages in that it consisted of organised direction (see Oikistes) by the originating metropolis instead of the simple movement of tribes which characterized the earlier migrations. Many colonies () that were founded in this period evolved into strong city-states and became independent of their metropolis. Reasons for colonization Reasons for colonization had to do with the demographic explosion of this period, the development of the emporium, the need for a secure supply of raw materials, but also with the emerging politics of the period that drove sections of the population into exile. Population growth created a scarcity of farmland and a restriction of the ability of smallholders to farm it, which was similar in every city-state. In places with surp ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Elimi
The Elymians ( grc-gre, Ἔλυμοι, ''Élymoi''; Latin: ''Elymi'') were an ancient tribal people who inhabited the western part of Sicily during the Bronze Age and Classical antiquity. Origins According to Hellanicus of Lesbos, the Elymians were a population of Italic origin, who arrived in Sicily after having fought a war with the Oenotrians. Furthermore for the Greek historian, the Elymians would also have contributed to the formation of the Sicels. Today this thesis seems to be the most accredited and is confirmed by linguistic studies. Elymian, a language for which a different affiliation has long been sought in the past, must also be attributed to this linguistic family (Indo-European); however, the ancient tradition according to which the Elymians came from Troy is corroborated by the linguistic data but today the most authoritative opinions see in Elymian an Italic language more or less similar to Latin. Greek historian Philistus refers to the presence of a people of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Cumae
Cumae ( grc, Κύμη, (Kumē) or or ; it, Cuma) was the first ancient Greek colony on the mainland of Italy, founded by settlers from Euboea in the 8th century BC and soon becoming one of the strongest colonies. It later became a rich Roman city, the remains of which lie near the modern village of Cuma, a ''frazione'' of the ''comune'' Bacoli and Pozzuoli in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Campania, Italy. The archaeological museum of the Campi Flegrei in the Aragonese castle contains many finds from Cumae. History Early The oldest archaeological finds by Emil Stevens in 1896 date to 900–850 BCE and more recent excavations have revealed a Bronze Age settlement of the ‘pit-culture’ people, and later dwellings of Iron Age Italic people, Italic peoples whom the Greeks referred to by the names Ausones and Opici (whose land was called :it:Opicia, Opicia). The Greek settlement was founded in the 8th century BCE by emigrants from cities of Eretria and Chal ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Magna Grecia
Magna Graecia (, ; , , grc, Μεγάλη Ἑλλάς, ', it, Magna Grecia) was the name given by the Romans to the coastal areas of Southern Italy in the present-day Italian regions of Calabria, Apulia, Basilicata, Campania and Sicily; these regions were extensively populated by Greek settlers. These settlers, who began arriving in the 8th century BC, brought with them their Hellenic civilization, which left a lasting imprint on Italy (such as in the culture of ancient Rome). They also influenced the native peoples, such as the Sicels and the Oenotrians, who became hellenized after they adopted the Greek culture as their own. The Greek expression ''Megálē Hellás'', later translated into Latin as ''Magna Graecia,'' first appears in Polybius' '' Histories,'' where he ascribed the term to Pythagoras and his philosophical school. Strabo also used the term to refer to the size of the territory that had been conquered by the Greeks, and the Roman poet Ovid used the term in his p ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Straits Of Messina
The Strait of Messina ( it, Stretto di Messina, Sicilian: Strittu di Missina) is a narrow strait between the eastern tip of Sicily (Punta del Faro) and the western tip of Calabria ( Punta Pezzo) in Southern Italy. It connects the Tyrrhenian Sea to the north with the Ionian Sea to the south, within the central Mediterranean. At its narrowest point, between Torre Faro and Villa San Giovanni, it is wide. At the city of Messina, it is wide. The strait's maximum depth is about . The strait has strong tidal currents that create a unique marine ecosystem. A natural whirlpool in the northern portion of the strait has been linked to the Greek legend of Scylla and Charybdis. In some circumstances, the mirage of Fata Morgana can be observed when looking at Sicily from Calabria. With its bottleneck shape, it is also a compulsory point of transit in the migration of many bird species. In 1957, a 220 kV overhead power line was built across the Strait of Messina. Its pylons are amo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tempio Dei Dioscuri
Tempio Pausania (; sdn, Tèmpiu) is a town of about 14,000 inhabitants in the Gallura region of northern Sardinia, Italy, in the province of Sassari. History Cultural and delegated administrative centre of the Gallura sub-region, Tempio has an ancient history. Typical granite-stone architecture of the historical centre presents many similarities with southern Corsican towns. In 2005-2016 it was the capital of the province of Olbia-Tempio together with Olbia. Main sights * Historical centre of the town, built in grey granite blocks (mainly 18th century); particularly Corso Matteotti, via Roma (''Carrera Longa'', ''Lu Runzatu'', ''Lu Pultali''), Piazza d'Italia (''Piazza di l'Ara''), Parco delle Rimembranze, Fonte Nuova (''Funtana Noa'') and Parco di San Lorenzo, via Mannu (ex via dei Nobili or dei Cavalieri) * Nuraghe Maiori (''Naracu Maiori'') * Nuraghe Polcu (''Naracu Polcu'') * Ruins of Palace of Giudice Nino Visconti di Gallura (1200) * San Pietro (''Santu Petru'') Cathedr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Catania
Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also by the presence of important road and rail transport infrastructures as well as by the main airport in Sicily, fifth in Italy. It is located on Sicily's east coast, at the base of the active volcano, Mount Etna, and it faces the Ionian Sea. It is the capital of the 58-municipality region known as the Metropolitan City of Catania, which is the seventh-largest metropolitan city in Italy. The population of the city proper is 311,584, while the population of the Metropolitan City of Catania is 1,107,702. Catania was founded in the 8th century BC by Chalcidian Greeks. The city has weathered multiple geologic catastrophes: it was almost completely destroyed by a catastrophic earthquake in 1169. A major eruption and lava flow from nearby Mount ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Reggio Calabria
Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label= Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated population of nearly 200,000 and is the twenty-first most populous city in Italy, after Modena, and the 100th most populated city in Europe. Reggio Calabria is located in the exact center of the Mediterranean and is known for its climate, ethnic and cultural diversity. It is the third economic centre of mainland Southern Italy. About 560,000 people live in the metropolitan area, recognised in 2015 by Italy as a metropolitan city. Reggio is located on the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula and is separated from the island of Sicily by the Strait of Messina. It is situated on the slopes of the Aspromonte, a long, craggy mountain range that runs up through the centre of the region. As a major functional pole in the region, it has strong historical ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Trojan War
In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans (Greeks) after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, king of Sparta. The war is one of the most important events in Greek mythology and has been narrated through many works of Greek literature, most notably Homer's ''Iliad''. The core of the ''Iliad'' (Books II – XXIII) describes a period of four days and two nights in the tenth year of the decade-long siege of Troy; the ''Odyssey'' describes the journey home of Odysseus, one of the war's heroes. Other parts of the war are described in a cycle of epic poems, which have survived through fragments. Episodes from the war provided material for Greek tragedy and other works of Greek literature, and for Roman poets including Virgil and Ovid. The ancient Greeks believed that Troy was located near the Dardanelles and that the Trojan War was a historical event of the 13th or 12th century BC, but by the mid-19th century AD, both the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Aristoi
The Aristoi (Greek: ἄριστοι) was the label given to the noblemen in ancient Greek society, and in particular ancient Athens. The term literally means "best", with the denotation of best in terms of birth, rank, and nobility, but also usually possessing the connotation of also being the morally best. The term in fact derives similarly with arete: "The root of the word is the same as ''aristos'', the word which shows superlative ability and superiority, and "aristos" was constantly used in the plural to denote the nobility." History Originally, the Aristoi were tightly knit families who had noble lineage, such as the Bacchiadae in ancient Corinth. In the early 6th century BC, Solon promulgated constitutional reforms in Athens. Among the changes, the status and power of the old aristocracy was altered by making wealth rather than birth a criterion for holding political position. This system was called a Timocracy (Greek: τιμοκρατία). This division called for a n ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Thucydides
Thucydides (; grc, , }; BC) was an Athenian historian and general. His ''History of the Peloponnesian War'' recounts the fifth-century BC war between Sparta and Athens until the year 411 BC. Thucydides has been dubbed the father of "scientific history" by those who accept his claims to have applied strict standards of impartiality and evidence-gathering and analysis of cause and effect, without reference to intervention by the gods, as outlined in his introduction to his work. He also has been called the father of the school of political realism, which views the political behavior of individuals and the subsequent outcomes of relations between states as ultimately mediated by, and constructed upon, fear and self-interest. His text is still studied at universities and military colleges worldwide. The Melian dialogue is regarded as a seminal work of international relations theory, while his version of Pericles' Funeral Oration is widely studied by political theorists, historian ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Helios
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Helios (; grc, , , Sun; Homeric Greek: ) is the deity, god and personification of the Sun (Solar deity). His name is also Latinized as Helius, and he is often given the epithets Hyperion ("the one above") and Phaethon ("the shining"). Helios is often depicted in art with a radiant crown and driving a horse-drawn chariot through the sky. He was a guardian of oaths and also the god of sight. Though Helios was a relatively minor deity in Classical Greece, his worship grew more prominent in late antiquity thanks to his identification with several major solar divinities of the Roman period, particularly Apollo and Sol (Roman mythology), Sol. The Roman Emperor Julian (emperor), Julian made Helios the central divinity of his short-lived revival of Religion in ancient Rome, traditional Roman religious practices in the 4th century AD. Helios figures prominently in several works of Greek mythology, poetry, and literature, in whi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |