:''The term is also a female form of

Basileus ''Basileus'' ( el, ) is a Greek term and title that has signified various types of monarchs in history. In the English-speaking world it is perhaps most widely understood to mean "monarch", referring to either a "king" or an "emperor" and al ...

'' Basilis ( grc, Βάσιλις or Βασιλίς) was a town of

ancient Arcadia Arcadia ( el, Ἀρκαδία) is a region in the central Peloponnese. It takes its name from the mythological character Arcas, and in Greek mythology it was the home of the gods Hermes and Pan. In European Renaissance arts, Arcadia was celebrat ...

in the district Parrhasia. It was situated on the river Alpheus. According to

Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical co ...

, it was said to have been founded by the Arcadian king

Cypselus Cypselus ( grc-gre, Κύψελος, ''Kypselos'') was the first tyrant of Corinth in the 7th century BC. With increased wealth and more complicated trade relations and social structures, Greek city-states tended to overthrow their traditional her ...

. Its location has been identified with a site east of the modern village

Kyparissia Kyparissia ( el, Κυπαρισσία) is a town and a former municipality in northwestern Messenia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Trifylia, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit. ...

, north of Megalopoli. It lay between the towns

Trapezus Trabzon (; Ancient Greek: Tραπεζοῦς (''Trapezous''), Ophitic Pontic Greek: Τραπεζούντα (''Trapezounta''); Georgian: ტრაპიზონი (''Trapizoni'')), historically known as Trebizond in English, is a city on the Bl ...

and

Thocnia Thocnia or Thoknia ( grc, Θωκνία), or Thocneia or Thokneia (Θώκνεια), was a town of ancient Arcadia in the district Parrhasia (Arcadia), Parrhasia, situated upon a height on the river Aminius, which flows into the Helisson (the present ...

. There was a sanctuary of the

Eleusinian Elefsina ( el, Ελευσίνα ''Elefsina''), or Eleusis (; Ancient Greek: ''Eleusis'') is a suburban city and municipality in the West Attica regional unit of Greece. It is situated about northwest from the centre of Athens and is part of i ...

Demeter In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Demeter (; Attic: ''Dēmḗtēr'' ; Doric: ''Dāmā́tēr'') is the Olympian goddess of the harvest and agriculture, presiding over crops, grains, food, and the fertility of the earth. Although s ...

. The village was already in ruins when Pausanias visited the area in the 2nd century. Basilis is also a popular name among orthodox Christians (Greek: Βασίλης).

References

Populated places in ancient Arcadia Former populated places in Greece Parrhasia {{AncientArcadia-geo-stub