The Maedi (also ''Maidans'', ''Maedans'', or ''Medi''; ) were a

Thracian The Thracians (; ; ) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Southeast Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied the area that today is shared between north-eastern Greece, ...

tribe in antiquity. Their land was called Maedica (Μαιδική). In historic times, they occupied the area between

Paionia In antiquity, Paeonia or Paionia () was the land and kingdom of the Paeonians (or Paionians; ). The exact original boundaries of Paeonia, like the early history of its inhabitants, are obscure, but it is known that it roughly corresponds to m ...

and

Thrace Thrace (, ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe roughly corresponding to the province of Thrace in the Roman Empire. Bounded by the Balkan Mountains to the north, the Aegean Sea to the south, and the Black Se ...

, on the southwestern fringes of Thrace, along the middle course of the Strymon, between the

Kresna Gorge Kresna Gorge () is a steep valley in south-western Bulgaria, stretching about . The gorge has been formed by the Struma River, which flows from the Vitosha mountains. Kresna gorge has a rich biodiversity, which has come under pressure from the ...

and the Rupel Pass (present-day southwestern

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-si ...

says that the Maedi bordered eastward on the

Thunatae The Thunatae (Ancient Greek: Θουνᾶται) were a Dardanian tribe, along with the Galabri, mentioned by Strabo. The Thunatae are mentioned as neighbors of the Maedi, a Thracian tribe.; . Name The tribe is mentioned by Ancient Greek author ...

of Dardania, and that the Axius flowed through their territory. Their capital city was

Iamphorynna Iamphorina or Iamphorynna was the capital of the Maedi, a Thracian tribe in ancient Macedonia. It was taken by Philip V of Macedon in 211 BCE. Writing in the 19th century, William Martin Leake placed it at Ivorina (Vrania), in the upper valley ...

, which lay somewhere in the southwest corner of what is now Bulgaria. Some archaeologists posit it in the area between the cities of

Petrich Petrich ( ) is a town in Blagoevgrad Province in southwestern Bulgaria, located in Sandanski–Petrich Valley at the foot of the Belasica Mountains in the Strumeshnitsa Valley. According to the 2021 census, the town has 26,778 inhabitants. ...

and

Sandanski Sandanski ( ; , formerly known as Sveti Vrach, , until 1947) is a town and a recreation center in southwestern Bulgaria, part of Blagoevgrad Province. Named after the Macedonian Bulgarian revolutionary Yane Sandanski, it is situated in Sanda ...

, but its exact location remains unknown. They were an independent tribe through much of their history, and the Thracian king

Sitalkes Sitalces (Sitalkes) (; ; reigned 431–424 BC) was one of the kings of the Thracian Odrysian state. The Suda called him Sitalcus (Σίταλκος). He was the son of Teres I, and on the sudden death of his father in 431 BC succeeded to th ...

recognized their independence, along with several other warlike "border" tribes such as the

Dardani The Dardani (; ; ) or Dardanians were a Paleo-Balkan languages, Paleo-Balkan people, who lived in a region that was named Kingdom of Dardania, Dardania after their settlement there. They were among the oldest Balkan peoples, and their society wa ...

Agrianes The Agrianes (Ancient Greek: Ἀγριᾶνες, ''Agrianes'' or Ἀγρίαι, ''Agriai'') or Agrianians, were a tribe whose country was centered at Upper Strymon, in present-day central Western Bulgaria as well as southeasternmost Serbia, at t ...

, and

Paeonians Paeonians () were an ancient Proto-Indo-Europeans, Indo-European people that dwelt in Paeonia (kingdom), Paeonia. Paeonia was an old country whose location was to the north of Ancient Macedonia, to the south of Dardania (Roman province), Dardania ...

, whose lands formed a buffer zone between the powers of the Odrysians on the east and of

Illyrian tribes The Illyrians (, ; ) were a conglomeration of Indo-European peoples and tribes in the Balkan Peninsula, Southeastern Europe. Illyrian tribes Possibly related peoples * Antitani / Atintanes / Atintani? ( Illyrian Atintani) *Dassaretae ( ...

in the west, while

Macedon Macedonia ( ; , ), also called Macedon ( ), was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, which later became the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and initially ruled by the royal ...

was located to the south of Paeonia. According to

Plutarch Plutarch (; , ''Ploútarchos'', ; – 120s) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''Parallel Lives'', ...

, the Maedi rebelled against their Macedonian overlords when King

Philip II of Macedon Philip II of Macedon (; 382 BC – October 336 BC) was the king (''basileus'') of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedonia from 359 BC until his death in 336 BC. He was a member of the Argead dynasty, founders of the ...

was besieging

Byzantium Byzantium () or Byzantion () was an ancient Greek city in classical antiquity that became known as Constantinople in late antiquity and Istanbul today. The Greek name ''Byzantion'' and its Latinization ''Byzantium'' continued to be used as a n ...

in 340 BC. The sixteen-year-old

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon (; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), most commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip ...

, who had been left as regent by his father, led an army against the Maedi and founded his first city Alexandroplis. The ancient historian and biographer

describes

Spartacus Spartacus (; ) was a Thracians, Thracian gladiator (Thraex) who was one of the Slavery in ancient Rome, escaped slave leaders in the Third Servile War, a major Slave rebellion, slave uprising against the Roman Republic. Historical accounts o ...

as "a

of nomadic stock," in a possible reference to the Maedi. Plutarch also says that Spartacus' wife, a prophetess of the same tribe, was enslaved with him. In 89–84 BC (during the

First Mithridatic War The First Mithridatic War /ˌmɪθrəˈdædɪk/ (89–85 BC) was a war challenging the Roman Republic's expanding empire and rule over the Greek world. In this conflict, the Kingdom of Pontus and many Greek cities rebelling against Roman rule ...

), the Maedi overran Macedon and sacked

Delphi Delphi (; ), in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), was an ancient sacred precinct and the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient Classical antiquity, classical world. The A ...

as allies of

Mithridates Mithridates or Mithradates (Old Persian 𐎷𐎡𐎰𐎼𐎭𐎠𐎫 ''Miθradāta'') is the Hellenistic period, Hellenistic form of an Iranian languages, Iranian theophoric name, meaning "given by Mithra". Its Modern Persian form is Mehrdad. It ...

. It is said that they made a habit of raiding Macedon when a king of Macedon was away on a campaign.

Sulla Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix (, ; 138–78 BC), commonly known as Sulla, was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman of the late Roman Republic. A great commander and ruthless politician, Sulla used violence to advance his career and his co ...

after this ravaged the land of the Maedi.

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

recorded that ''bolinthos'' was the Maedan word for a species of wild

aurochs The aurochs (''Bos primigenius''; or ; pl.: aurochs or aurochsen) is an extinct species of Bovini, bovine, considered to be the wild ancestor of modern domestic cattle. With a shoulder height of up to in bulls and in cows, it was one of t ...

es or

wisent The European bison (: bison) (''Bison bonasus'') or the European wood bison, also known as the wisent ( or ), the zubr (), or sometimes colloquially as the European buffalo, is a European species of bison. It is one of two extant species of bi ...

s that lived in the region. The Maedi are said to have been of the same race as the Bithynians in Asia, and were hence called ''Maedobithyni''. ().

References

{{DGRG, title=Maedi Thracian tribes Thracian tribes of Macedonia Ancient tribes in Thrace Ancient tribes in Bulgaria

See also

References