Bottiaeans or ''Bottiaei'' (

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

: ) were an ancient people of uncertain origin, living in

Central Macedonia Central Macedonia ( el, Κεντρική Μακεδονία, Kentrikí Makedonía, ) is one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece, consisting of the central part of the geographical and historical region of Macedonia. With a populat ...

. Sometime, during the Archaic period, they were expelled by

Macedon Macedonia (; grc-gre, Μακεδονία), also called Macedon (), was an Classical antiquity, ancient monarchy, kingdom on the periphery of Archaic Greece, Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. Th ...

ians from

Bottiaea Bottiaea (Greek: ''Bottiaia'') was a geographical region of ancient Macedonia and an administrative district of the Macedonian Kingdom. It was previously inhabited by the Bottiaeans, a people of uncertain origin, later expelled by the Macedoni ...

Bottike Bottike or ''Bottice'' (Greek: ) was a western region of ancient Chalcidice, inhabited by Bottiaeans, who, were expelled from their homeland Bottiaea by Macedonians sometime in the Archaic period . Their chief polis was Spartolos. Bottiaeans wer ...

. During the Classical era, they played an active role in the military history of ancient Chalcidice, but after the Macedonian conquest under

Philip II Philip II may refer to: * Philip II of Macedon (382–336 BC) * Philip II (emperor) (238–249), Roman emperor * Philip II, Prince of Taranto (1329–1374) * Philip II, Duke of Burgundy (1342–1404) * Philip II, Duke of Savoy (1438-1497) * Philip ...

nothing remained except the names of these two regions and the adjective

n, which was limited to sole geographical meaning. Unlike other tribes of Macedonia ruled by kings or living in villages, Bottiaeans developed some

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 ...

form of self-government. Unfortunately, no Bottiaean individual is known to us and the limited historical or archaeological sources shed no further light.

Origin

According to Strabo, the Bottiaeans were

Cretans Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...

who sailed with Minos to

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

, but on the voyage back they were driven out of their course and reached Macedonia. They were named Bottiaeans after their leader , Botton, in pre- Argead Macedonia (

Emathia Emathia ( gr, Ἠμαθία) was the name of the plain opposite the Thermaic Gulf when the kingdom of Macedon was formed. The name was used to define the area between the rivers Aliakmon and Loudias, which, because it was the center of the kingd ...

), most of which, as Strabo says, was held by Bottiaeans and

Thracians The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied t ...

, as well as

Paionians Paeonians were an ancient Indo-European people that dwelt in Paeonia. Paeonia was an old country whose location was to the north of Ancient Macedonia, to the south of Dardania, to the west of Thrace and to the east of Illyria, most of their lan ...

and

Epirotes Epirus (; Epirote Greek: , ; Attic Greek: , ) was an ancient Greek kingdom, and later republic, located in the geographical region of Epirus, in north-western Greece and southern Albania. Home to the ancient Epirotes, the state was bordered by ...

. According to

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for hi ...

, they were

Athenian Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

slaves of

Minoan Crete The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age Aegean civilization on the island of Crete and other Aegean Islands, whose earliest beginnings were from 3500BC, with the complex urban civilization beginning around 2000BC, and then declining from 1450B ...

: The same story is related by the Roman-era mythographer

Conon Conon ( el, Κόνων) (before 443 BC – c. 389 BC) was an Athenian general at the end of the Peloponnesian War, who led the Athenian naval forces when they were defeated by a Peloponnesian fleet in the crucial Battle of Aegospotami; later he c ...

Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...

and early Epic poets make no mention of them.

Herodotus Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer A geographer is a physical scientist, social scientist or humanist whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's natural environment and human society ...

in 7.185.1 lists them along with various other tribes in the

Xerxes I Xerxes I ( peo, 𐎧𐏁𐎹𐎠𐎼𐏁𐎠 ; grc-gre, Ξέρξης ; – August 465 BC), commonly known as Xerxes the Great, was the fourth King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, ruling from 486 to 465 BC. He was the son and successor of D ...

's European army. In 8.127.1:

Thucydides Thucydides (; grc, , }; BC) was an Athenian historian and general. His '' History of the Peloponnesian War'' recounts the fifth-century BC war between Sparta and Athens until the year 411 BC. Thucydides has been dubbed the father of " scienti ...

(2.99) includes Bottiaeans with other deported nations by Macedonians. They were deported from

after the expulsion of the Pieres from Pieria to Pieris. According to ''

The Cambridge Ancient History ''The Cambridge Ancient History'' is a multi-volume work of ancient history from Prehistory to Late Antiquity, published by Cambridge University Press. The first series, consisting of 12 volumes, was planned in 1919 by Irish historian J. B. Bur ...

'': However, if two 6th and early 5th century BC cow-and-calf coins found in

belong to Bottiaeans, it seems that not all of them were expelled. Some toponyms of

have been proposed as having Cretan origin ( Gortynia -

Gortys Gortyna ( grc, Γόρτυνα; also known as Gortyn (Γορτύν)) was a town of ancient Crete which appears in the Homeric poems under the form of Γορτύν; but afterwards became usually Gortyna (Γόρτυνα). According to Stephanus of ...

, Axius - Oaxos, Europos - Europa etc.) but nothing is conclusive. Various origins have been speculated: for example,

Minoan The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age Aegean civilization on the island of Crete and other Aegean Islands, whose earliest beginnings were from 3500BC, with the complex urban civilization beginning around 2000BC, and then declining from 1450B ...

and Mycenaean.

League

Spartolos the chief city of Bottiaeans in Bottike, was one of the first (454 BC) and stable members of the Delian League under the

Thracian phoros The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied ...

. It appears in most of the Athenian tribute lists except in 446/5 BC; there we have the phrase ''Bottiaeans and s..'' , which may be read as ''Bottiaeans and Spartolos'' or ''Bottiaeans and synteleis'' (contributors). No doubt the Bottiaean league was formed between 432 and 421. In the beginning of the Peloponnesian War, Bottiaeans and

Chalcidians Chalcis ( ; Ancient Greek & Katharevousa: , ) or Chalkida, also spelled Halkida (Modern Greek: , ), is the chief town of the island of Euboea or Evia in Greece, situated on the Euripus Strait at its narrowest point. The name is preserved from ...

revolted from the Athenian Empire (432 BC, Thuc. 1.57). In 429 BC the Athenians ''arriving before Spartolus in Bottike, they destroyed the corn and had some hopes of the city coming over through the intrigues of a faction''. In the battle of Spartolos, the heavy Chalcidian infantry, the Spartolian

psiloi In Ancient Greek armies, the ''psiloi'' (Ancient Greek , singular ψιλός, ''psilos'', literally "bare, stripped") were the light infantry who usually acted as skirmishers and missile troops, and who were distinguished from the armored '' hopl ...

and

peltast A ''peltast'' ( grc-gre, πελταστής ) was a type of light infantryman, originating in Thrace and Paeonia, and named after the kind of shield he carried. Thucydides mentions the Thracian peltasts, while Xenophon in the Anabasis distin ...

s from

Crusis Crusis or Crousis (Latin: ''Crusaea'' or ''Crossaea'') was called a maritime district of North-West Chalcidice from Potidaea to the Thermaic Gulf. It was named after Crusis the son of Mygdon (son of Ares), Mygdon. The cities of Crusis were: Lipaxus ...

and

Olynthus Olynthus ( grc, Ὄλυνθος ''Olynthos'', named for the ὄλυνθος ''olunthos'', "the fruit of the wild fig tree") was an ancient city of Chalcidice, built mostly on two flat-topped hills 30–40m in height, in a fertile plain at the he ...

, jointly defeated the Athenian army and ''set up a trophy, took up their dead, and dispersed to their several cities'' (Thuc. 2.79.1). In 425 BC Bottiaeans and Chalcidians defeated again the Athenian general Simonides (Thuc.4.7.1), when he attacked

Eion Eion ( grc-gre, Ἠϊών, ''Ēiṓn''), ancient Chrysopolis, was an ancient Greek Eretrian colony in Thracian Macedonia specifically in the region of Edonis. It sat at the mouth of the Strymon River which flows into the Aegean from the interio ...

. However, in the Athenian tribute list of 425/4 BC, Spartolians is mentioned. The name is partly restored. Only ΣΠ is legible and since no other name in the

begins with ''Sp'', the restoration seems inevitable. Olynthus also is listed next. In 422 BC or after, before or as a consequence of the

Peace of Nicias The Peace of Nicias was a peace treaty signed between the Greek city-states of Athens and Sparta in March 421 BC that ended the first half of the Peloponnesian War. In 425 BC, the Spartans had lost the battles of Pylos and Sphacteria, a severe ...

, Athenians made a special alliance and oath with Bottiaeans. As the inscription reads ''with the boule and

strategoi ''Strategos'', plural ''strategoi'', Latinized ''strategus'', ( el, στρατηγός, pl. στρατηγοί; Doric Greek: στραταγός, ''stratagos''; meaning "army leader") is used in Greek to mean military general. In the Hellenist ...

of Bottiaeans, as well the other archontes of the Bottiaean cities''. Not all the names of the cities are legible; only Kalindoia,

Tripoiai Tripoeae or Tripoiai ( grc, Τριποιαί), or Tripoae or Tripoai (Τριποαί), was a town of the Chalcidice in ancient Macedonia. It belonged to the Delian League since it appears in the tribute records of Athens of 421/0 BCE, where ...

Kemakai Camacae or Kamakai ( grc, Καμακαί), also known as Cemacae or Kemakai (Κεμακαί), was a town of Bottiaea, Chalcidice, in ancient Macedonia. It belonged to the Delian League since it appears in the tribute registers of Athens, although ...

or Kamakai and Aioleion or Haioleion. This mention of Kalindoia, a city of

Mygdonia Mygdonia (; el, Μυγδονία / Μygdonia) was an ancient territory, part of Ancient Thrace, later conquered by Macedon, which comprised the plains around Therma (Thessalonica) together with the valleys of Klisali and Besikia, including the ...

, means that Bottike may refer either to regions of Mygdonia and Chalcidice, inhabited by Bottiaeans or that Bottiaean cities existed also outside of geographical

. In early 4th century BC, Bottiaeans are mentioned, for the last time, in a treaty between Amyntas III and the Chalcidians: ''With the Amphipolitans, Bottiaeans, Acanthians and Mendaeans, they shall not make friendship, neither Amyntas nor the Chalcidians separately, but with common consent;''. As for the silver and bronze coinage of Bottice (Βοττιαίων, ''of Bottiaeans'') it may be categorized to : 1. the same type of Chalcidian League coins (Apollo or Artemis with cithara or lyre)Coins from Bottice
/ref> which means that they were at that time allies of Chalcidians. 2. Demeter and forepart of bull in incuse square. There were between six and twelve Bottiaean cities: Spartolos, Kalindoia,

Kamakai Camacae or Kamakai ( grc, Καμακαί), also known as Cemacae or Kemakai (Κεμακαί), was a town of Bottiaea, Chalcidice, in ancient Macedonia. It belonged to the Delian League since it appears in the tribute registers of Athens, although ...

, Haioleion and

Olynthos Olynthus ( grc, Ὄλυνθος ''Olynthos'', named for the ὄλυνθος ''olunthos'', "the fruit of the wild fig tree") was an ancient city of Chalcidice, built mostly on two flat-topped hills 30–40m in height, in a fertile plain at the h ...

(until 479). Other six cities can be classified as probable Bottiaean: Kithas, Tinde, Prassilos, Pleume, Sinos and Thamiskos.

Aftermath

In the Hellenistic and Roman era the name Bottiaean denotes ''of the

'' district. In epigraphy, the

ians for clarification used the suffix -eatai , Botteatai, Botteatôn (cf.

Italiotes The Italiotes ( grc-gre, Ἰταλιῶται, ') were the pre-Roman Greek-speaking inhabitants of the Italian Peninsula, between Naples and Sicily. Greek colonization of the coastal areas of southern Italy and Sicily started in the 8th ...

and Egyptiotes). It may refer either to coins or to the inhbabitans of

. The phrase of Stephanus of Byzantium that Nikaea in Bithynia was a colony of Bottiaeans (Bottiaiôn apoikos) may mean that Lysimachus used as colonists population from

. The citizens of Kalindoia must have been relocated somewhere else, since the city was given to Macedonians. Some towns of

may also have been among the 26 relocated settlements under Cassander for the creation of

Thessalonica Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

References

*The Bottiaians and their poleis by Pernille Flensted-Jensen - Studies in the ancient Greek polis By Mogens Herman Hansen, Kurt A. Raaflau
Page 103 -132
(1995) {{reflist Ancient tribes in Macedonia Cretan mythology