Belbina () was a town on a small island of the same name (now known as St. George). The island was very lofty and difficult to access, situated at the entrance of the

Saronic Gulf The Saronic Gulf ( Greek: Σαρωνικός κόλπος, ''Saronikós kólpos'') or Gulf of Aegina in Greece is formed between the peninsulas of Attica and Argolis and forms part of the Aegean Sea. It defines the eastern side of the isthmus of C ...

, about 10 miles (16 km) from the promontory of Sunium. Although nearer to

Attica Attica (, ''Attikḗ'' (Ancient Greek) or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the entire Athens metropolitan area, which consists of the city of Athens, the capital city, capital of Greece and the core cit ...

than the

Peloponnesus The Peloponnese ( ), Peloponnesus ( ; , ) or Morea (; ) is a peninsula and geographic regions of Greece, geographic region in Southern Greece, and the southernmost region of the Balkans. It is connected to the central part of the country by the ...

, it was reckoned to belong to the latter, in particular to

ancient Argolis The regions of ancient Greece were sub-divisions of the Hellenic world as conceived by the ancient Greeks, shown by their presence in the works of ancient historians and geographers or in surviving legends and myths. Conceptually, there is no cl ...

. Therefore, it was inhabited by the

Dorians The Dorians (; , , singular , ) were one of the four major ethnic groups into which the Greeks, Hellenes (or Greeks) of Classical Greece divided themselves (along with the Aeolians, Achaeans (tribe), Achaeans, and Ionians). They are almost alw ...

, and was probably a colony from

Belemina Belemina (), or Belmina (Βέλμινα), or Belbina (Βελβίνα), or Blenina (Βλένινα), was a town of ancient Laconia and ancient Arcadia, at the northwest frontier of the former, the territory of which was called Belminatis (Βελμι ...

(also written Belmina and Belbina), a town on the confines of

Laconia Laconia or Lakonia (, , ) is a historical and Administrative regions of Greece, administrative region of Greece located on the southeastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. Its administrative capital is Sparti (municipality), Sparta. The word ...

and Arcadia.

Themistocles Themistocles (; ; ) was an Athenian politician and general. He was one of a new breed of non-aristocratic politicians who rose to prominence in the early years of the Athenian democracy. As a politician, Themistocles was a populist, having th ...

quotes the island as one of the most insignificant spots in ancient Greece. Although the island is now uninhabited, it was inhabited in antiquity. On the slopes of its hills there are traces of the ancient terraces, and on one of the summits are remains of the ancient town.

References

Populated places in ancient Argolis Former populated places in Greece {{AncientArgolis-geo-stub