Athamanians or Athamanes were an ancient tribe that inhabited south-eastern Epirus

Epirus

The name Epirus, from the Greek "Ήπειρος" meaning continent may refer to:-Geographical:* Epirus - a historical and geographical region of the southwestern Balkans, straddling modern Greece and Albania...

 and west Thessaly

Thessaly

Thessaly is a traditional geographical region and an administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, and appears thus in Homer's Odyssey....

. Although regarded as "barbarians" by Strabo

Strabo

Strabo, also written Strabon was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher.-Life:Strabo was born to an affluent family from Amaseia in Pontus , a city which he said was situated the approximate equivalent of 75 km from the Black Sea...

 and Hecataeus of Miletus, the Athamanians self-identified as Greeks

Greeks

The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....

. The existence of myths about Athamas

Athamas

The king of Orchomenus in Greek mythology, Athamas , was married first to the goddess Nephele with whom he had the twins Phrixus or Frixos and Helle. He later divorced Nephele and married Ino, daughter of Cadmus. With Ino, he had two children: Learches and Melicertes...

 and Ino

Ino (Greek mythology)

In Greek mythology Ino was a mortal queen of Thebes, who after her death and transfiguration was worshiped as a goddess under her epithet Leucothea, the "white goddess." Alcman called her "Queen of the Sea" , which, if not hyperbole, would make her a doublet of Amphitrite.In her mortal self, Ino,...

 in Achaean Phthiotis

Phthiotis

Phthiotis 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 bordered by the Malian Gulf to the east, Boeotia in the south, Phocis in the south, Aetolia-Acarnania in the southwest, Evrytania in the west,...

 suggests that the Athamanians were settled there before 1600 BC. They were an independent semi-barbarian tribe (in 395 and 355 BC according to Diodorus Siculus

Diodorus Siculus

Diodorus Siculus was a Greek historian who flourished between 60 and 30 BC. According to Diodorus' own work, he was born at Agyrium in Sicily . With one exception, antiquity affords no further information about Diodorus' life and doings beyond what is to be found in his own work, Bibliotheca...

) occasionally allies of the Aetolians. Amynander and Theodorus of Athamania

Theodorus of Athamania

Theodorus of Athamania was king of the Athamanians in south-eastern Epirus. He is known otherwise only from the Delian temple inventories: his daughter Phila made dedications there before 225 BC....

are reported kings of the Athamanians.

Timeline

1330 BC	Athamas becomes King of the Minyans in Boetia.
1300 BC	Athamas is cast away from his kingdom in Boetia submitting to an oracle commanding that he should inhabit a wild and mountainous place. He thus reaches the Pindos mountains, where he marries Themisto, daughter of Ypseus and Kreousa, and becomes the founder of Athamania and Patriarch of the Athamanians.
1100 BC	Dorian Invasion. The Dorians are unable to conquer the Athamanians who are fierce warriors.
1050 BC	Athamania is divided into 4 territories, Heracleia, Argithea, Tetraphylia, and Chalkis.
500 BC	Athamanians are recognized as Greeks by Plato. "Οι έκγονοι του Αθάμαντος, Έλληνες γάρ. (“The descendants of Athamas, are Greeks of course.”) Athamanians become allies of the Spartans.
395 BC	Athamanians dissolve their alliance to Sparta and become allies of the Athenians, Boetians, Thessalians and others.
375 BC	Athamanians participate in the 2nd Athenian Alliance.
355 BC	Athamanians become allies of the Macedonians, Thessalians against the Phocaeans in the 3rd Holly War.
323 BC	Athamanians become allies of the Athenians against the Macedonians.
281-272 BC	King Pyrrhus of Epirus conquers the Athamanians.
250 BC	King Theodorus of the Athamanians builds the city of Theodoria (today’s Theodoriana).
220-178 BC	Reign of King Amynander, the golden age of the Athamanians.
191 BC	Athamania is conquered by the Macedonians. King Amynander escapes to Ambrakia along with Queen Apamia and their children.
190/189 BC (Winter)	King Amynander returns and frees Athamania from the Macedonians.
178 BC	King Selipos, last King of the Athamanians heroically resists the Romans. The city of Selipiana, probably built long after his death, is named after him and his ancient name survives intact in his city for more than two millennia until 1930 when it is changed to Kataphyli, after the name of the rock (Kataphylion) on which king’s Selipos palace was built, by Presidential Decree.
168 BC	The Roman Legions under Aemilius Paulus destroy the cities of Athamania.
165 BC	The Commonwealth of the Athamanians devotes a series of bronze statues to the Delphian Oracle in honor of archon Cassander of Menestheus (no connection to Cassander of Antipatrus of Macedonia).
164-63 BC	The Commonwealth of the Athamanians disintegrates, most of the population emigrates to Aitolia, Thessaly and Epirus. Only but a few Athamanians remain inhabiting the region up to modern times, their cities deteriorating into small villages but still bearing their ancient names.