Syia or Suia ( grc, Συῒά), also Syba (Σύβα),''

Stadiasmus Maris Magni The ''Stadiasmus Maris Magni'' ( grc, Σταδιασμός ήτοι περίπλους της μεγάλης θαλάσσης) is an ancient Roman periplus or guidebook detailing the ports sailors encounter on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. ...

'' §§ 321-322. was a maritime town of

ancient Crete The history of Crete goes back to the 7th millennium BC, preceding the ancient Minoan civilization by more than four millennia. The palace-based Minoan civilization was the first civilization in Europe. After the Minoan civilization was devastat ...

. It was located on the south coast of Crete and functioned as the harbour of

Elyrus Elyrus or Elyros ( grc, Ἔλυρος) was a town of ancient Crete, which the ''Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax'' places between Cydonia and Lissus. It had a harbour, Syia (Συΐα), situated on the south coast of the island, 60 stadia west of Poec ...

. According to the ''

'', written during Roman times, the town was located 50

stadia Stadia may refer to: * One of the plurals of stadium, along with "stadiums" * The plural of stadion, an ancient Greek unit of distance, which equals to 600 Greek feet (''podes''). * Stadia (Caria), a town of ancient Caria, now in Turkey * Stadi ...

to the west of

Poecilassus Poecilasium or Poikilasion ( grc, Ποικιλάσιον) or Poecilassus or Poikilassos (Ποικίλασσος)''Stadiasmus Maris Magni'', p. 299 ed. Hoffmann was a town on the south coast of ancient Crete. Ancient sources disagree as to its locati ...

, situated on a plain. It probably existed as late as the time of Hierocles (6th century), though now entirely uninhabited. It is located in

Sougia Sougia ( el, Σούγια) is a community and a small village in Chania regional unit on the island of Crete, Greece. It is part of the municipal unit of East Selino (''Anatoliko Selino''). It is located on the south coast of the island, 70 ...

village, 70 km south of

Chania Chania ( el, Χανιά ; vec, La Canea), also spelled Hania, is a city in Greece and the capital of the Chania regional unit. It lies along the north west coast of the island Crete, about west of Rethymno and west of Heraklion. The muni ...

Archaeology

Robert Pashley Robert Pashley (4 September 1805 – 29 May 1859) was a 19th-century English traveller, lawyer and economist. Pashley was born in York and he studied at Trinity College, Cambridge. Distinguished in mathematics and Classics, in 1830 he was elected ...

, visiting in the 19th century, found remains of the city walls as well as other public buildings, but not more ancient than the time of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...

. Several tombs were found, as was an aqueduct.

, ''Travels'', vol. ii. p. 100. Syia flourished in the Roman and the 1st Byzantine period. There are Roman ruins and three large Palaiochristian Basilicas. Syia had set up monetary union with

Yrtakina Hyrtacina or Hyrtakina ( grc, Ὑρτακίνα), also written as Hyrsacina or Hyrsakina (Ὑρσακίνα),''Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax'' p. 18. or Artacina or Artakina (Ἀρτάκινα), was a city of ancient Crete, which, little as we learn of ...

Lissus Lissus or Lissos ( el, Λίσσος) could be: * Lissus (Crete), an ancient Greek city in Crete * Lissos (Illyria), an ancient city in Illyria, the present day city of Lezhë in Albania * Lissus, a river in Thrace Thrace (; el, Θράκη ...

, and

Tarrha Tarrha or Tarra ( grc, Τάρρα), also Tarrhus or Tarros (Τάρρος), was a ''polis'' (city-state) in the southwestern part of ancient Crete, near the Samaria Gorge, at the village of Agia Roumeli. It is situated near the sea, on the hill. H ...

. The city also participated in the

Koinon ''Koinon'' ( el, Κοινόν, pl. Κοινά, ''Koina''), meaning "common", in the sense of "public", had many interpretations, some societal, some governmental. The word was the neuter form of the adjective, roughly equivalent in the government ...

of the Oreians. It seems that the

Saracen upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek and Latin writings, to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Romans as Arabia Pe ...

s destroyed the city.

References

Sougia Basilika Ruins.jpg, Sougia - 01.jpg, Modern day

Sougia - 02.jpg, Modern day

Populated places in ancient Crete Former populated places in Greece Port settlements in ancient Crete Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Greece Archaeological sites in Crete {{AncientCrete-geo-stub