Locris (; ; ) was a region of

ancient Greece Ancient Greece () was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity (), that comprised a loose collection of culturally and linguistically r ...

, the homeland of the

Locrians The Locrians (, ''Lokroi'') were an ancient Greek tribe that inhabited the region of Locris in Central Greece, around Parnassus. They spoke the Locrian dialect, a Doric-Northwest dialect, and were closely related to their neighbouring tribes ...

, made up of three distinct districts.

Locrian tribe

The city of

Locri Locri is a town and ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Reggio Calabria, Calabria, southern Italy. Its name derives from that of the ancient Greek region of Locris. Today it is an important administrative and cultural center on the Ion ...

Calabria Calabria is a Regions of Italy, region in Southern Italy. It is a peninsula bordered by the region Basilicata to the north, the Ionian Sea to the east, the Strait of Messina to the southwest, which separates it from Sicily, and the Tyrrhenian S ...

(

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

), also known in antiquity as "Epizephyrian Locris", was a colony founded by the Locrians in

Magna Graecia Magna Graecia refers to the Greek-speaking areas of southern Italy, encompassing the modern Regions of Italy, Italian regions of Calabria, Apulia, Basilicata, Campania, and Sicily. These regions were Greek colonisation, extensively settled by G ...

. There is some disagreement over whether it was those from Opuntian Locris or from Ozolian Locris who were responsible.

Ancient Locris

The territory of the Locrians was divided into three by Doris and

Phocis Phocis (; ; ) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Central Greece. It stretches from the western mountainsides of Parnassus on the east to the mountain range of Vardousia on the west, upon the Gu ...

, perhaps due to an early invasion of a contiguous Locrian state. This fact, combined with the region's infertility, meant that the Locrians tended to be dominated by their neighbours, and played little part in Greek history. To the south-west of Phocis was

Ozolian Locris Ozolian Locris () or Hesperian Locris () was a region in Ancient Greece, inhabited by the Ozolian Locrians (; ) a tribe of the Locrians, upon the Corinthian Gulf, bounded on the north by Doris, on the east by Phocis, and on the west by Aetolia. ...

, situated on the north coast of the Gulf of Corinth, between

Naupactus Nafpaktos () or Naupactus, is a town and a former Communities and Municipalities of Greece, municipality in Nafpaktia, Aetolia-Acarnania, West Greece, situated on a bay on the north coast of the Gulf of Corinth, west of the mouth of the river Mor ...

and Crisa. The main cities of Ozolian Locris were Amphissa and Naupactus which was its

seaport A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manc ...

. To the north east of Phocis was

Opuntian Locris Opuntian Locris or Eastern Locris was an ancient Greece, ancient Greek region inhabited by the eastern division of the Locrians, the so-called tribe of the Locri Epicnemidii () or Locri Opuntii (Greek: ). Geography Opuntian Locris consisted of ...

, named after its main

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

, Opus. Finally, to the north of Phocis was Epicnemidian Locris, situated near the pass of

Thermopylae Thermopylae (; ; Ancient: , Katharevousa: ; ; "hot gates") is a narrow pass and modern town in Lamia (city), Lamia, Phthiotis, Greece. It derives its name from its Mineral spring, hot sulphur springs."Thermopylae" in: S. Hornblower & A. Spaw ...

. The Opuntian Locris and the Epicnemidian Locris are often regarded as one people, separate in customs and integration to the Hellenic culture from the Ozolian Locris, considered as the less civilised of the two. The territories of the Opuntian Locris and the Epicnemidian Locris were not a continuous unit but were separated from one another by

and Doris.

Ozolian Locris

The main towns of Ozolian Locris were Amphissa and

. Today, the area is part of

Aetolia-Acarnania Aetolia-Acarnania (, ''Aitoloakarnanía'', ) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the geographic regions of Greece, geographic region of Central Greece (geographic region), Central Greece and the administrative regions of Greece, ...

and

Opuntian Locris

The main towns of Opuntia Locris were Opus and Larymna. Today, Opuntian Locris is part of modern

Phthiotis Phthiotis (, ''Fthiótida'' ; ancient Greek and Katharevousa: Φθιῶτις) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Central Greece (administrative region), Central Greece. The capital is the city of La ...

Epicnemidian Locris

The main towns of Epicnemidian Locris were

Nicaea Nicaea (also spelled Nicæa or Nicea, ; ), also known as Nikaia (, Attic: , Koine: ), was an ancient Greek city in the north-western Anatolian region of Bithynia. It was the site of the First and Second Councils of Nicaea (the first and seve ...

and Thronium. Today, Epicnemidian Locris is part of modern Phthiotis.

Province

The province of Locris () was one of the

provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...

of the Phthiotis Prefecture. Its capital was the town

Atalanti Atalanti ( ''Atalantē'') is the second largest town in Phthiotis, Greece. It is located southeast of Lamia (city), Lamia, north of Livadeia and northwest of Chalcis. In 2011, it was incorporated into the municipality of Lokroi (mu ...

. Its territory corresponded with that of the current municipalities Amfikleia-Elateia, Lokroi, and Kamena Vourla. It was abolished in 2006.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Phthiotis Provinces of Greece