Achaea Phthiotis ( grc, Ἀχαΐα Φθιῶτις, "

Achaea Achaea () or Achaia (), sometimes transliterated from Greek as Akhaia (, ''Akhaïa'' ), is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Western Greece and is situated in the northwestern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. T ...

Phthia In Greek mythology Phthia (; grc-gre, Φθία or Φθίη ''Phthía, Phthíē'') was a city or district in ancient Thessaly. It is frequently mentioned in Homer's ''Iliad'' as the home of the Myrmidones, the contingent led by Achilles in the ...

") or simply Phthiotis (Φθιῶτις) was a historical region of

ancient Thessaly Thessaly or Thessalia (Attic Greek: , ''Thessalía'' or , ''Thettalía'') was one of the traditional regions of Ancient Greece. During the Mycenaean period, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, a name that continued to be used for one of the major tribes ...

ancient Greece Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cu ...

. It lay in southeastern Thessaly, between Mount Othrys and the northern shore of the

Pagasetic Gulf The Pagasetic Gulf ( el, Παγασητικός κόλπος, Pagasitikós kólpos) is a rounded gulf (max. depth 102 metres) in the Magnesia regional unit (east central Greece) that is formed by the Mount Pelion peninsula. It is connected wit ...

. Inhabited by ''

perioikoi The Perioeci or Perioikoi (, ) were the second-tier citizens of the '' polis'' of Sparta until 200 BC. They lived in several dozen cities within Spartan territories (mostly Laconia and Messenia), which were dependent on Sparta. The ''perioeci' ...

'', it was originally formally not a part of Thessaly proper but a Thessalian dependency, and had a seat of its own in the Delphic Amphictyony. From 363 BC it came under

Boeotia Boeotia ( ), sometimes Latinized as Boiotia or Beotia ( el, Βοιωτία; modern: ; ancient: ), formerly known as Cadmeis, is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Central Greece. Its capital is Livadeia, and its ...

n control, but split away during the Lamian War. In the 3rd century BC it became a member of the

Aetolian League The Aetolian (or Aitolian) League ( grc-gre, Κοινὸν τῶν Αἰτωλῶν) was a confederation of tribal communities and cities in ancient Greece centered in Aetolia in central Greece. It was probably established during the early Hellen ...

, until declared free and autonomous by the

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Ki ...

in 196 BC, following the Second Macedonian War, and re-incorporated into Thessaly. Phthiotis was inhabited by the Achaean Phthiotae (Ἀχαιοὶ Φθιῶται), under which name they are usually mentioned as members of the Amphictyonic League. This district, according to

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called " Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could s ...

, included the southern part of Thessaly, extending from the

Maliac Gulf The Malian or Maliac Gulf ( el, Μαλιακός Κόλπος, Maliakós Kólpos) is a gulf in the western Aegean Sea. It forms part of the coastline of Greece's region of Phthiotis. The gulf stretches east to west to a distance of , depending on ...

on the east, to Dolopia and

Mount Pindus The Pindus (also Pindos or Pindhos; el, Πίνδος, Píndos; sq, Pindet; rup, Pindu) is a mountain range located in Northern Greece and Southern Albania. It is roughly 160 km (100 miles) long, with a maximum elevation of 2,637 metres ...

on the west, and stretching as far north as

Pharsalus ''Pharsalus''Melichar L (1906) ''Monographie der Issiden. (Homoptera). Abhandlungen der K. K. Zoologisch-botanischen Gesellschaft in Wien.'' Wien 3: 1-327 21 is the type genus of planthoppers in the subfamily Pharsalinae (family Ricaniidae); it ...

and the Thessalian plains. Phthiotis derived its name from the

Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...

(Φθίη), which appears to have included in the heroic times not only Hellas and Dolopia, which is expressly called the furthest part of Phthia, but also the southern portion of the Thessalian plain, since it is probable that Phthia was also the ancient name of Pharsalus. The cities of Phthiotis were: Amphanaeum or

Amphanae Amphanae or Amphanai ( grc, Ἀμφαναί, Ἀμφαναία or Ἀμφαναῖον) was the southernmost city on the east coast of the district of Pelasgiotis, Ancient Thessaly, near the border between the Pelasgiotis and Achaea Phthiotis formi ...

, on the promontory Pyrrha and on the

Pagasaean Gulf The Pagasetic Gulf ( el, Παγασητικός κόλπος, Pagasitikós kólpos) is a rounded gulf (max. depth 102 metres) in the Magnesia regional unit (east central Greece) that is formed by the Mount Pelion peninsula. It is connected with ...

; Phthiotic Thebes,

Eretria Eretria (; el, Ερέτρια, , grc, Ἐρέτρια, , literally 'city of the rowers') is a town in Euboea, Greece, facing the coast of Attica across the narrow South Euboean Gulf. It was an important Greek polis in the 6th and 5th centur ...

, Phylace,

Iton Iton () is a river in Normandy, France, left tributary of the river Eure. It is long. Its source is near Moulins-la-Marche. For about 10 km between Orvaux and Glisolles, it disappears and pursues a subterranean course. The Iton flows t ...

, Halus,

Pteleum Pteleum or Pteleon ( grc, Πτελεόν), also Pteleos (Πτελεός), was a town of ancient Thessaly, on the south-western side of Phthiotis, and near the entrance of the Sinus Pagasaeus. It stood between Antron and Halos, and was distant ...

Antron Antron ( grc, Ἀντρών) or Antrones (Ἀντρῶνες)Demosthenes ''Phil.'' iv. p. 133, Reiske. was a town and polis (city-state) of ancient Thessaly in the district Achaea Phthiotis, at the entrance of the Maliac Gulf, and opposite Oreus ...

, Larissa Cremaste, Proerna,

Pras Prakazrel Samuel Michel (; born October 19, 1972) is a Haitian-American rapper, producer, songwriter and actor. He is best known as a member of the hip hop group Fugees, alongside Wyclef Jean and Lauryn Hill. After the Fugees, he earned two ...

Narthacium Narthacium or Narthakion ( grc, Ναρθάκιον or Ναρθάκἶον) was a city of Phthiotis in ancient Thessaly, in the neighbourhood of which Agesilaus, on his return from Asia in 394 BCE, gained a victory over the Thessalian cavalry. ...

Thaumaci Thaumaci or Thaumacus ( grc, Θαυμακοί or Θαυμακός, Thaumakoi/Thaumakos), was a town and polis (city-state) of Phthiotis in Ancient Thessaly, was situated on the pass called Coela, on the road from Thermopylae and the Maliac Gulf ...

Melitaea ''Melitaea'' is a genus of brush-footed butterflies (family Nymphalidae). They are here placed in the tribe Melitaeini of subfamily Nymphalinae; some authors elevate this tribe to subfamily rank. As delimited here, ''Melitaea'' includes the g ...

, Coroneia,

Xyniae Xyniae or Xyniai ( el, Ξυνίαι) was an ancient city in Achaea Phthiotis, Ancient Thessaly, in Greece. In the Middle Ages, it was known as Ezeros (Ἐζερός). The city was located on the western slopes of Mount Othrys, some 4 km sou ...

Lamia LaMia Corporation S.R.L., operating as LaMia (short for ''Línea Aérea Mérida Internacional de Aviación''), was a Bolivian charter airline headquartered in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, as an EcoJet subsidiary. It had its origins from the failed ...

Phalara Phalara ( grc, τὰ Φάλαρα) was a city in Malis in ancient Thessaly that functioned as the port of Lamia. It is located at the modern town of Stylida Stylida ( el, Στυλίδα; older Στυλίς, Stylis) is a town and a municipality i ...

, and Echinus. It has given its name to the modern prefecture of

Phthiotis Phthiotis ( el, Φθιώτιδα, ''Fthiótida'', ; ancient Greek and Katharevousa: Φθιῶτις) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Central Greece. The capital is the city of Lamia. It is borde ...

. The Phthiotis Prefecture however lies to the south of the historical region and does not include it. Historical Phthiotis is today part of

Magnesia Prefecture Magnesia Prefecture ( el, Νομός Μαγνησίας) was one of the prefectures of Greece. Its capital was Volos. It was established in 1899 from the Larissa Prefecture. The prefecture was disbanded on 1 January 2011 by the Kallikratis progra ...

References

Magnesia (regional unit) Aetolian League Geography of ancient Thessaly {{AncientThessaly-geo-stub