The ''oikistes'' ( gr, οἰκιστής), often

anglicized Anglicisation is the process by which a place or person becomes influenced by English culture or British culture, or a process of cultural and/or linguistic change in which something non-English becomes English. It can also refer to the influenc ...

as oekist or oecist, was the individual chosen by an ancient Greek

polis ''Polis'' (, ; grc-gre, πόλις, ), plural ''poleis'' (, , ), literally means "city" in Greek. In Ancient Greece, it originally referred to an administrative and religious city center, as distinct from the rest of the city. Later, it also ...

as the leader of any new colonization effort. He was invested with the power of selecting a settling place, directing the initial labors of the colonists and guiding the fledgling colony through its hard early years. The oracle is also consulted during deliberations for choosing an ''oikistes''. After he is appointed and directed to found a colony, he also consults the Delphic oracle. Due to his authority, the ''oikistes'' was often accorded his own cult after his death, and his name was preserved even when all other details of the founding of a colony were forgotten.

References

Society of ancient Greece Greek colonization City founders Greek hero cult {{AncientGreece-stub