Wandering Greeks (8 page)

It is commonly alleged that a specific group of settlements was established primarily as trading posts or, to define this group in a more limited sense, as ports-of-trade. A settlement of this sort is generally referred to as an
emporion
, viz “an
ad hoc
community [comprising] a mixed and possibly shifting population of traders” (
OCD
⁴
s.v
.). The earliest and most northerly Greek settlement in the west, Pithecusae, modern-day Ischia in the Bay of Naples, is generally assigned to this category, though the exact nature and purpose of this foundation are still contested and there is evidence at the site for mixed marriages in the later period (Hansen and Nielsen 2004, 285–87). A major problem is that the word
emporion
is rarely used in ancient sources and it remains unclear whether the Greeks themselves actually employed it in the sense in which modern historians have interpreted it. We should be wary, therefore, of making a neat distinction between an
apoikia
, the
usual word to describe a settlement, and an
emporion
. It is also important to take into account that an
apoikia
, like an
emporion
, would have had a number of temporary inhabitants, especially in its early days before its population became settled.

Not all ventures were state-supported and state-led. Ancient sources tend to emphasize the compulsory and organized nature of emigration, but some were private undertakings for personal gain. Examples include the settlement of Rhodes by the fugitive Tlepolemus (Hom.
Il
. 2.653–70; see later,
chapter 8
) and the abortive attempts by the Spartan prince Dorieus to settle first in North Africa and later in Sicily (Hdt. 5.42–45). Another private venture was that of the Athenian general Miltiades, son of Cypselus, to whom the Thracians living in the Chersonese appealed for military assistance in dealing with their neighbors. After receiving Delphi's approval, Miltiades accepted the invitation “because he was unhappy with Pisistratus's rule and wanted to leave.” He sailed off with other Athenians of similar political persuasion and became a tyrant in the Chersonese (Hdt. 6.34–36). Though we only rarely hear of private ventures of this sort, the phenomenon may well have been more common than its infrequency in our sources suggests.

The Role of Apollo

We can hardly overestimate the courage, spirit, and enterprise of the pioneers. They succeeded, so the belief went, because they placed themselves under the protection and patronage of Apollo of Delphi, who in Callimachus's arresting phrase “weaves the foundations of settlements” (
Ap.
57). Without Apollo's support those who ventured forth would have been as rudderless as the boat people who set sail from Vietnam, Haiti, Cuba, and elsewhere. With Apollo's patronage the crew of hopefuls was assured, in theory at least, an ultimate end to the wanderings, however riddling the description of the geographical location that he had given them. That at least is the picture we receive from our literary sources.

Indeed it is impossible to investigate settlement abroad without confronting the issue of Delphi's centrality to the whole enterprise.
Graham (1982a, 159) observed, “Believing in their gods and hence in themselves, [the Greeks] had the morale required to create permanent new communities far from home.” More recently Malkin (1987, 112–17) described Delphi as “the hub” around which all aspects of the movement operated. Even so, it is by no means certain that all ventures were preceded by a consultation with the Delphic oracle. It is conceivable that the consultations were a fifth-century fiction, as Osborne (1998, 267) and others have pointed out.

Nonetheless we can be certain that every settlement had a unique and sometimes inspirational story to tell about its foundation and that it would have taken pride in handing that story down from one generation to the next. The uses of a foundation story were immense: it could forge a sense of common identity and it could justify a contemporary political agenda. Both Herodotus and Thucydides have preserved a number of such narratives, though to what extent they are grounded in historical fact is questionable. Regrettably no first-person account has survived, unless we count a short fragmentary poem in the first-person plural by the elegiac poet Mimnermus of Smyrna, which alludes with tantalizing brevity to the hubris and violence of the settlers who founded Colophon (fr. 9
IEG
= Str.
Geog
. 14.1.4 C634). In addition, the natural philosopher and theologian Xenophanes, who was a native of that city, wrote an epic poem on the
ktisis
(foundation) of Colophon and another on the
apoikismos
(settlement) of Elea by Colophonians in flight from the Persians. His poems on the subject amounted to 2,000 lines in all (D.L. 9.20).

The Size and Composition of a Settlement

There is little evidence as to the typical number of pioneers who initially set sail in search of a new home. We have figures of 200 for Apollonia in Illyria (Steph. Byz.
s.v. Apollonia
) and 1,000 for Leucas (Ps.-Scylax 34 in
GGM
I.36). If we suppose that each of the 279 settlements required at least 200 to be a going concern, then the number of first-wave pioneers must have been roughly 56,000. However, some enterprises, like the one
dispatched to found Leucas, are likely to have been considerably larger. If we include secondary and even tertiary influxes, and make allowance as well for ventures that came to grief with perhaps total loss of life, then the number of Greeks who sought to settle abroad is likely to have been several times that number.

Whereas the original nucleus would usually have been drawn from a single city-state, the next generation was frequently recruited from a variety of different city-states. Archilochus of Paros's characterization of those who founded Thasos as “wretches from all over Greece,” for instance, is probably a pejorative reference to late-comers (fr. 102
IEG
). Some three generations after Cyrene was founded from Thera in ca. 630, Delphi issued a pronouncement inviting “all Greeks to become
sunoikêsontai
[permanent settlers].” The oracle backed up its offer of land distribution to all-comers with the menacing prophecy that anyone who failed to take advantage of the invitation would come to regret it in the future (Hdt. 4.159.2–3). Since the god of Delphi seems often to have provided a somewhat imprecise description of an intended foundation's site, before setting out the pioneers would be advised to consult with traders who knew likely places in the designated region in which to settle. That they did so is suggested by the fact that all the chief cities that dispatched settlers—Chalcis, Corinth, Eretria, and so on—were very active in trade (Murray 1993, 107).

Designating the Oikist

We do not know how the leader of the pioneering group, termed
oikistês
(oikist, founder of an
apoikia
), was identified or appointed, unless we accept the “official” explanation—namely, that he was often designated as such by the Delphic oracle. The typical oikist is likely to have been of aristocratic background but marginalized perhaps because of a physical defect or because he nursed a grudge against his peers. In other words, he may have been motivated as much by adverse circumstances as he was by ambition and greed. Before announcing his candidacy, he would probably seek Delphic approval. It may have helped not to
appear too eager. Battus of Thera, for instance, who became the oikist of Cyrene, reportedly went to Delphi in order to request the god's assistance in overcoming his speech impediment only to be informed that the oracle had nominated him to be the leader of an overseas settlement (Hdt. 4.155).

The set of qualities that an oikist needed was indeed formidable. They included charisma, self-confidence, shrewdness, self-reliance, and resourcefulness. No less importantly, he had to be a seasoned mariner, ideally equipped with a first-rate knowledge of the principal sea routes and some experience of the region in which he hoped to establish a settlement. The eventual success of the enterprise would have depended very largely on his unwavering determination, given the challenges that he faced both from the elements and from the indigenous population. He might also be presented with a challenge to his leadership whenever the enterprise faltered or faced a setback, as indeed Aeneas did on more than one occasion. The fact that the job description included the ability to demonstrate superhuman strength of will in the face of overwhelming odds is suggested by the fact that the oikist may occasionally have been worshipped as a hero after his death in the belief that his posthumous presence would continue to protect the settlement.

Identifying the Site

When Odysseus arrives at the land of the Cyclopes, the poet describes the amenities of the uninhabited island that lay close to the mainland as follows (Hom.
Od
. 9.131–36, trans. Lattimore (1965)):

Not a bad place at all; it could bear all crops in season, and there are meadow lands near the shores of the gray sea, well-watered and soft; there could be grapes grown there endlessly, and there is smooth land for plowing; men reap a full harvest always in season, since there is very rich soil. Also there is an easy harbor.

Homer is wearing the cap of a potential oikist. It was evidently an instinctive habit of mind, and no doubt many of his contemporaries would have evaluated a site's potential in similar terms. Describing the island as “not a bad place at all” is a striking example of litotes. It is a mark of the Cyclopes' isolation, self-centeredness, and uniquely favored circumstances that they have never seen fit to turn their favored location to their own advantage. Though settlements varied considerably in geographical configuration, regular features include an offshore island (or islands) like this one, a peninsula, and a river on one or both sides of the settlement. Many sites, too, especially those in southern Italy, were situated at the end of a trade route that had been in existence long before the settlement was founded.

Presettlement contacts between Greeks and indigenous peoples must have been commonplace, as Graham (1990, 45) pointed out, and they may well have been a factor in determining the choice of a site, as our literary sources occasionally indicate. Arganthonius, the wealthy Iberian king of Tartessus in southern Spain, invited the Phocaeans “to settle wherever they wished” in his kingdom (Hdt. 1.163.3). Though the Phocaeans rejected his offer, some settlements are known to have been founded at the invitation of the local population, or at any rate with their consent, such as Megara Hyblaea in Sicily (see later,
chapter 4
). Even so, we cannot assume that the oikist would have decided on a precise location before setting sail. And even if he had, unforeseen
circumstances might well have forced him to change his plans and seek an alternative elsewhere.

Choosing the Pioneers

Though many pioneers, lured by the promise of a better life, joined on a volunteer basis, others were conscripted (
katalegesthai
). A fourth-century inscription relating to the establishment of the settlement at Cyrene in North Africa, which allegedly preserves the original wording of an original decree of the seventh century, required one of every two brothers to relocate from Thera to the new foundation, the intention being that no
oikos
would be without an heir (
ML
5.28–29 = Fornara 18; cf. Hdt. 4.153). The decree also contains the following proviso, which testifies to the severity of the situation that prompted the undertaking in the first place (ll. 37–40):