Palaeste or Palaiste was a town in the

Ceraunian Mountains The Ceraunian Mountains ( sq, Malet e Vetëtimës, "Thunderbolt mountains"; el, Κεραύνια Όρη, ''Keravnia ori''; la, Cerauni Montes), also commonly Akroceraunian Mountains ( grc, Ἀκροκεραύνια, sq, Malet Akrokeraune "male ...

, on the

Chaonian The Chaonians ( grc, Χάονες, Cháones) were an ancient Greek tribe that inhabited the region of Epirus currently part of north-western Greece and southern Albania.; ; ; ; ; . Together with the Molossians and the Thesprotians, they formed t ...

coast, between the southern Adriatic and the Ionian Sea. The town was placed south of the Akrokeraunian Promontory, the natural boundary that separated

Epirus sq, Epiri rup, Epiru , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Historical region , image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg , map_alt = , map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinri ...

from Illyria in

classical antiquity Classical antiquity (also the classical era, classical period or classical age) is the period of cultural history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD centred on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ...

. It was located near modern day

Palasë Palasë ( sq, Palasë or ''Palasa''; el, Παλάσα, ''Palasa'') also Paljasa ( el, Παλιάσα), is a village in Himarë municipality (13 kilometres from the town), Vlorë County, southern Albania. It is located near the Llogara National ...

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

Etymology

The name ''Palaiste'' is considered to be Illyrian. It is linked to the root morpheme *pal- (shallow water) and the typical Illyrian suffix -este. The ethnic name ''Palaistinoi'' comes from ''Palaiste'', with the typical Illyrian suffix ''-ino'' often used to form

tribal The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in part due to conflic ...

names. The root *pal is also found in the name of the Illyrian tribe of the Plaraioi/Palarioi.

Pseudo-Plutarch Pseudo-Plutarch is the conventional name given to the actual, but unknown, authors of a number of pseudepigrapha (falsely attributed works) attributed to Plutarch but now known to have not been written by him. Some of these works were included in s ...

reports that ''Palaistinos'' was another name of the river Strymon. The name has been speculated to be related to the ethnonym ''

Philistines The Philistines ( he, פְּלִשְׁתִּים, Pəlīštīm; Koine Greek (LXX): Φυλιστιείμ, romanized: ''Phulistieím'') were an ancient people who lived on the south coast of Canaan from the 12th century BC until 604 BC, whe ...

''.

History

Caesar's landing in 48 B.C

Ancient Roman writer Lucan reported that it was here that

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, ...

landed from Brundusium across the Adriatic, in order to carry on the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

against

Pompey Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey or Pompey the Great, was a leading Roman general and statesman. He played a significant role in the transformation of ...

in Illyricum and the oncoming Battle of Dyrrhachium on 10 July 48 BC. Lucan, ''Phars''. 5.460. According to Ian Longhurst, an analysis of other ancient sources, based on geographical and military data, suggests a more likely location for Caesar's landing inside the

Bay of Vlorë The Bay of Vlorë ( sq, Gjiri i Vlorës — ) is a large bay of the Adriatic Sea situated along the Albanian Adriatic Sea Coast on the Mediterranean Sea in Southern Europe. It opens to the sea in the northwest and is largely surrounded by the la ...

north of the

Neritan Ceka Neritan Ceka (born 11 February 1941) is an Albanian archaeologist, professor, and politician. He served as Albania's Minister of Internal Affairs from 27 July 1997 to 18 April 1998. Early life Ceka was born in Tirana. Ceka studied at the Qema ...

analysed the local places by a site survey on the Acroceraunia comparing their situation with the ancient sources, and accepted the historical account of Caesar's landing on Palaeste.

Geography

In classical antiquity Palaeste was located in the

, between the southern Adriatic and the Ionian Sea. The town was placed south of the Akrokeraunian Promontory, which was the natural boundary that separated

Epirus sq, Epiri rup, Epiru , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Historical region , image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg , map_alt = , map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinri ...

from Illyria in

. Located near modern day

on the northernmost coastal part of the ancient Kemara region (modern Himara,

), Palaeste was part of the territory of the

Chaones The Chaonians ( grc, Χάονες, Cháones) were an ancient Greek tribe that inhabited the region of Epirus currently part of north-western Greece and southern Albania.; ; ; ; ; . Together with the Molossians and the Thesprotians, they formed ...

. The present-day village of

Dhërmi Dhërmi ( sq-definite, Dhërmiu; el, Δρυμάδες, ''Drymádes'') is a village in Vlorë County, Albania. It is part of the municipality of Himarë. The village lies 42 kilometers south of the city of Vlorë and about the same distance north ...

has been proposed as a possible location of the ancient site.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * {{Illyrians Cities in ancient Illyria Populated places in ancient Epirus Former populated places in the Balkans Lost ancient cities and towns Illyrian Albania