Elis
Encyclopedia
Elis, or Eleia is an ancient district that corresponds with the modern Elis peripheral unit. It is in southern Greece
on the Peloponnesos peninsula
, bounded on the north by Achaea
, east by Arcadia
, south by Messenia
, and west by the Ionian Sea
.
Over the course of the archaic and classical periods, the polis of Elis controlled much of the region of Elis, most probably through unequal treaties with other cities, which will have had perioikic
status.
The first Olympic festival was organized in Elean land, Olympia, Greece
by the authorities of Elis in the 8th century BCE - with tradition dating the first games at 776 BCE. The Hellanodikai
, the judges of the Games, were of Elean origin.
The local form of the name was Valis, or Valeia, and its meaning, in all probability, “the lowland” (compare with the word "valley"). In its physical constitution Elis is similar to Achaea and Arcadia; its mountains are mere offshoots of the Arcadian highlands, and its principal rivers are fed by Arcadian springs.
According to Strabo
, the first settlement was created by Oxylus
the Aetolian who invaded there and subjugated the residents. The city of Elis underwent synoikism - as Strabo notes - in 471 BC. Elis held authority over the site of Olympia and the Olympic games
.
The spirit of the games had influenced the formation of the market: apart from the bouleuterion
, which was housed in one of the gymnasia, most of the other buildings were related to the games, including two gymnasia, a palaestrum, and the House of the Hellanodikai
.
Coele Elis, the largest and most northern of the three, was watered by the river Peneus and its tributary the Ladon. The district was famous during antiquity for its cattle and horses. Pisatis extended south from Coele Elis to the right bank of the river Alpheus
, and was divided into eight departments named after as many towns. Triphylia stretches south from the Alpheus to the river Neda.
Nowadays Elis is a small village of 150 citizens, located 14 km NE of Amaliada
, built over the ruins of the ancient town. It has a museum that contains treasures, discovered in various excavations. It also has one of the most well-preserved Ancient Theaters in Greece built during the 4th century BC and had a capacity of 8000 persons, where below it where found Protoelladic and sub-mycenaean graves. Elis is well known for breeding horses and its hosting of the Olympic games.
In mythology
Intellectuals
In Hesychius
(s.v. ) and other ancient lexica Eleans are also listed as barbarophones. Indeed the North-West Doric
dialect of Elis is, after the Aeolic dialects, one of the most difficult for the modern reader of epigraphic texts.
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
on the Peloponnesos peninsula
Peninsula
A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
, bounded on the north by Achaea
Achaea
Achaea is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of West Greece. It is situated in the northwestern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. The capital is Patras. The population exceeds 300,000 since 2001.-Geography:...
, east by Arcadia
Arcadia
Arcadia is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Peloponnese. It is situated in the central and eastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. It takes its name from the mythological character Arcas. In Greek mythology, it was the home of the god Pan...
, south by Messenia
Messenia
Messenia is a regional unit in the southwestern part of the Peloponnese region, one of 13 regions into which Greece has been divided by the Kallikratis plan, implemented 1 January 2011...
, and west by the Ionian Sea
Ionian Sea
The Ionian Sea , is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, south of the Adriatic Sea. It is bounded by southern Italy including Calabria, Sicily and the Salento peninsula to the west, southern Albania to the north, and a large number of Greek islands, including Corfu, Zante, Kephalonia, Ithaka, and...
.
Over the course of the archaic and classical periods, the polis of Elis controlled much of the region of Elis, most probably through unequal treaties with other cities, which will have had perioikic
Perioikoi
The perioeci, or perioikoi, were the members of an autonomous group of free but non-citizen inhabitants of Sparta. Concentrated in the beach and highland areas of Laconia, the name περίοικοι derives from περί / peri, "around," and / oikos, "dwelling, house." They were the only people allowed to...
status.
The first Olympic festival was organized in Elean land, Olympia, Greece
Olympia, Greece
Olympia , a sanctuary of ancient Greece in Elis, is known for having been the site of the Olympic Games in classical times, comparable in importance to the Pythian Games held in Delphi. Both games were held every Olympiad , the Olympic Games dating back possibly further than 776 BC...
by the authorities of Elis in the 8th century BCE - with tradition dating the first games at 776 BCE. The Hellanodikai
Hellanodikai
The Hellanodikai were the judges of the Ancient Olympic Games, and the success of the games are attributed to their efforts. It was their sacred duty to maintain the standards and legacy of the games, as well as uphold the rules...
, the judges of the Games, were of Elean origin.
The local form of the name was Valis, or Valeia, and its meaning, in all probability, “the lowland” (compare with the word "valley"). In its physical constitution Elis is similar to Achaea and Arcadia; its mountains are mere offshoots of the Arcadian highlands, and its principal rivers are fed by Arcadian springs.
According to 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...
, the first settlement was created by Oxylus
Oxylus
In Greek mythology, Oxylus may refer to:*A son of Ares and Protogeneia, daughter of Calydon.*An one-eyed man from Aetolia, son of Haemon or of Andraemon. He was exiled from Aetolia on account of unintentional homicide; his victim was either his own brother Therimus or a certain Alcidocus, son of...
the Aetolian who invaded there and subjugated the residents. The city of Elis underwent synoikism - as Strabo notes - in 471 BC. Elis held authority over the site of Olympia and the Olympic games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
.
The spirit of the games had influenced the formation of the market: apart from the bouleuterion
Bouleuterion
A bouleuterion was a building which housed the council of citizens in Ancient Greece. There are several extant remains of Bouleuterions around Greece and former Greek territories of ancient times....
, which was housed in one of the gymnasia, most of the other buildings were related to the games, including two gymnasia, a palaestrum, and the House of the Hellanodikai
Hellanodikai
The Hellanodikai were the judges of the Ancient Olympic Games, and the success of the games are attributed to their efforts. It was their sacred duty to maintain the standards and legacy of the games, as well as uphold the rules...
.
Districts
As described by Strabo, Elis was divided into three districts:- Coele (Κοίλη Koilē "hollow") or Lowland Elis,
- Pisatis (Πισᾶτις Pīsātis), or the territory of PisaPisa (Greece)Pisa was the name of an ancient town in the western Peloponnese, Greece. The area controlled by Pisa was called Pisatis, which included Olympia, the site of the Ancient Olympic Games. Pisa and Pisatis were subjugated by Elis in 572 BC. Currently, it is a village within the municipality of Olympia...
, and - TriphyliaTriphyliaTriphylia was an area of the ancient Peloponnese. Strabo and Pausanias both describe Triphylia as part of Elis, and it fell at times under the domination of the city of Elis, but Pausanias claims they reckoned themselves Arcadian, not Elean. They fell under the rule of Elis in the 8th century BC,...
(Τριφυλία Triphūlia "the country of the three tribes").
Coele Elis, the largest and most northern of the three, was watered by the river Peneus and its tributary the Ladon. The district was famous during antiquity for its cattle and horses. Pisatis extended south from Coele Elis to the right bank of the river Alpheus
Alfeios River
Alfeiós is the longest river in the Peloponnese, in Greece. The river is 110 km long, flowing through the prefectures of Arcadia and Ilia. Its source is near Megalopoli in the highlands of Arcadia. The river begins near Davia in central Arcadia, then flows between Leontari and Megalopoli through a...
, and was divided into eight departments named after as many towns. Triphylia stretches south from the Alpheus to the river Neda.
Nowadays Elis is a small village of 150 citizens, located 14 km NE of Amaliada
Amaliada
Amaliada is a town and a former municipality in Elis, West Greece, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Ilida, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit. It has 32,090 citizens...
, built over the ruins of the ancient town. It has a museum that contains treasures, discovered in various excavations. It also has one of the most well-preserved Ancient Theaters in Greece built during the 4th century BC and had a capacity of 8000 persons, where below it where found Protoelladic and sub-mycenaean graves. Elis is well known for breeding horses and its hosting of the Olympic games.
List of Eleans
Athletes- CoroebusCoroebusIn Greek mythology, Coroebus was the son of King Mygdon of Phrygia. He came to the aid of Troy during the Trojan War out of love for Princess Cassandra. During the Sack of Troy, Coroebus convinced some of his fellow soldiers, including Aeneas, to dress in enemy armor to disguise themselves...
of Elis, the first Ancient Olympic gold-medalist
In mythology
- SalmoneusSalmoneusIn Greek mythology, Salmoneus was the son of Aeolus and Enarete, the brother of Athamas, Sisyphus, Cretheus, Perieres, Deionus, Canace, Alcyone, and Perimede. Salmoneus was the father of Tyro by his first wife Alcidice, the second one being Sidero....
, AethliusAethliusAethlius was, in Greek mythology, the first king of Elis, father of Endymion. He was the son of either Zeus and Protogeneia , and was married to Calyce. According to some accounts, Endymion was himself a son of Zeus and first king of Elis. Other traditions again made Aethlius a son of Aeolus, who...
, PelopsPelopsIn Greek mythology, Pelops , was king of Pisa in the Peloponnesus. He was the founder of the House of Atreus through his son of that name....
mythological kings of Elis - EndymionEndymion (mythology)In Greek mythology, Endymion , was variously a handsome Aeolian shepherd or hunter or a king who ruled and was said to reside at Olympia in Elis, but he was also said to reside and was venerated on Mount Latmus in Caria, on the west coast of Asia Minor....
- Sons of Endymion:
- EpeiusEpeiusThere were two characters named Epeius in Greek mythology.#A Greek soldier during the Trojan War. He was the son of Panopeus and had the reputation for being a coward. In the Iliad he participated in the boxing match at the funeral games for Patrocles against Euryalus and won...
- AetolusAetolus, son of EndymionAetolus was, in Greek mythology, a son of Endymion, grandson of Deucalion, and the nymph Neïs, or Iphianassa. According to Pausanias, his mother was called Asterodia, Chromia, or Hyperippe. He was married to Pronoe, by whom he had two sons, Pleuron and Calydon. His brothers were Paeon, Epeius, and...
- PaeonPaeon (son of Endymion)Paeon in Greek mythology was a son of Endymion, king of Elis, and brother of Epeius, Aetolus, and Eurycyda; from whom the district of Paeonia, on the Axius river in Macedonia, was believed to have derived its name.-References:...
- Epeius
- AugeasAugeasIn Greek mythology, Augeas , whose name means "bright", was king of Elis and father of Epicaste. Some say that Augeas was one of the Argonauts....
, king of Elis related to the Fifth Labour of Heracles - AmphimachusAmphimachusIn Greek mythology, Amphimachus is a name attributed to multiple individuals.-Son of Cteatus:Amphimachus was the son of Cteatus and Theronice, daughter of Dexamenus. He was one of the leaders of the Elean contingent at the Trojan War and was slain by Hector.-Son of Nomion:Amphimachus was the son...
, king of Elis and leader of Eleans in Trojan War - Thalpius, leader of Eleans in Trojan War
- OxylusOxylusIn Greek mythology, Oxylus may refer to:*A son of Ares and Protogeneia, daughter of Calydon.*An one-eyed man from Aetolia, son of Haemon or of Andraemon. He was exiled from Aetolia on account of unintentional homicide; his victim was either his own brother Therimus or a certain Alcidocus, son of...
, king of Elis
Intellectuals
- AlexinusAlexinusAlexinus of Elis, was a philosopher of Megarian school and a disciple of Eubulides. From his argumentative nature he was facetiously named the wrangler , From Elis he went to Olympia, in the vain hope it is said, of founding a sect which might be called the Olympian; but his disciples soon became...
(c. 339-265 BC), philosopher - HippiasHippiasHippias of Elis was a Greek Sophist, and a contemporary of Socrates. With an assurance characteristic of the later sophists, he claimed to be regarded as an authority on all subjects, and lectured on poetry, grammar, history, politics, mathematics, and much else...
of Elis, Greek sophist - Phaedo of ElisPhaedo of ElisPhaedo of Elis was a Greek philosopher. A native of Elis, he was captured in war and sold into slavery. He subsequently came into contact with Socrates at Athens who warmly received him and had him freed. He was present at the death of Socrates, and Plato named one of his dialogues Phaedo...
, founder of the Elean School - PyrrhoPyrrhoPyrrho , a Greek philosopher of classical antiquity, is credited as being the first Skeptic philosopher and the inspiration for the school known as Pyrrhonism, founded by Aenesidemus in the 1st century BC.- Life :Pyrrho was from Elis, on the Ionian Sea...
, philosopher - TroilusTroilus of ElisTroilus of Elis was an ancient Greek athlete from Elis who participated at the ancient Olympic Games. He gained controversy by being a referee who won two equestrian events at the 372 BC Ancient Olympic Games. After that a law banned referees from competing...
(4th century BC) athlete
Eleans as barbarians
Eleans were labelled as the greatest barbarians barbarotatoi by musician Stratonicus of AthensStratonicus of Athens
Stratonicus , of Athens, was a distinguished musician of the time of Alexander the Great , of whom scarcely anything is recorded, except the sharp and witty rebuke which he administered to Philotas, when the latter boasted of a victory which he had gained over Timotheus of Miletus...
In Hesychius
Hesychius of Alexandria
Hesychius of Alexandria , a grammarian who flourished probably in the 5th century CE, compiled the richest lexicon of unusual and obscure Greek words that has survived...
(s.v. ) and other ancient lexica Eleans are also listed as barbarophones. Indeed the North-West Doric
Doric Greek
Doric or Dorian was a dialect of ancient Greek. Its variants were spoken in the southern and eastern Peloponnese, Crete, Rhodes, some islands in the southern Aegean Sea, some cities on the coasts of Asia Minor, Southern Italy, Sicily, Epirus and Macedon. Together with Northwest Greek, it forms the...
dialect of Elis is, after the Aeolic dialects, one of the most difficult for the modern reader of epigraphic texts.
External links
- Map from the Hellenic Ministry of Culture
- Elis - the city of the Olympic games