Metageitnia ( literally ''change of neighborhood'') was an

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 ...

festival held in Athens during the month

Metageitnion The Attic calendar or Athenian calendar is the lunisolar calendar beginning in midsummer with the lunar month of Hekatombaion, in use in ancient Attica, the ancestral territory of the Athenian polis. It is sometimes called the Greek calendar beca ...

(August/September) in the honor of Metageitnius Apollo. The month of Metageitnion was named after the festival Metageitnia, which celebrated the migration of

Theseus Theseus (, ; grc-gre, Θησεύς ) was the mythical king and founder-hero of Athens. The myths surrounding Theseus his journeys, exploits, and friends have provided material for fiction throughout the ages. Theseus is sometimes describ ...

from Melite to

Diomeia Diomea or Diomeia ( grc, Διόμεια) was a deme of ancient Attica, located in the city of Athens, both within and outside the walls of Themistocles, in interior portion included the eastern sector of the city, and the external portion contained ...

. The celebration of the festival itself declined over time and was replaced by the

Apaturia Apaturia ( el, ) were ancient Greek festivals held annually by all the Ionian towns, except Ephesus and Colophon. At Athens the Apaturia took place on the 11th, 12th and 13th days of the month of Pyanepsion (mid-October to mid-November), on whi ...

. The festival evolved into a celebration of migrations, immigrations, departures, and colonizations among the Ionians - Metageitnius Apollo presided over the '' metoikia (the abode). The Metageitnia is also mentioned by

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 ...

in the treatise ''On Exile'' in

Moralia The ''Moralia'' ( grc, Ἠθικά ''Ethika''; loosely translated as "Morals" or "Matters relating to customs and mores") is a group of manuscripts dating from the 10th–13th centuries, traditionally ascribed to the 1st-century Greek scholar Pl ...

References

See also