Phalanna (), was a town and

polis Polis (: poleis) means 'city' in Ancient Greek. The ancient word ''polis'' had socio-political connotations not possessed by modern usage. For example, Modern Greek πόλη (polē) is located within a (''khôra''), "country", which is a πατ ...

(city-state) of the

Perrhaebi The Perrhaebi () were an Ancient Greeks, ancient Greek people who lived on the western slopes of Mount Olympus, Olympus, on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedonia. They took part in the Trojan War under Guneus and a ...

ancient Thessaly Thessaly or Thessalia (Attic Greek: , ''Thessalía'' or , ''Thettalía'') was one of the traditional regions of Ancient Greece. During the Mycenaean Greece, Mycenaean period, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, a name that continued to be used for one of ...

, situated on the left bank of the Peneius, southwest of

Gonnus Gonnus or Gonnos () or Gonni (Γόννοι) was a town and polis (city-state) of the Perrhaebi in ancient Thessaly, which derived its name, according to the later Greek critics, from Gonneus, mentioned in the ''Iliad''. Its position made it one ...

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

Homer Homer (; , ; possibly born ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient 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. Despite doubts about his autho ...

ic Orthe became the acropolis of Phalanna; but in the lists of Pliny Orthe and Phalanna occur as two distinct towns. Phalanna was said to have derived its name from a daughter of

Tyro In Greek mythology, Tyro () was an Elean princess who later became Queen of Iolcus. Tyro was the daughter of King Salmoneus of Elis and Alcidice. She married her uncle, King Cretheus of Iolcus, and had three sons with him, and also bore twin s ...

. It was written Phalannus in

Ephorus Ephorus of Cyme (; , ''Ephoros ho Kymaios''; 330 BC) was an ancient Greek historian known for his universal history, now lost. Biography Information on his biography is limited. He was born in Cyme, Aeolia, and together with the historia ...

, and was called Hippia by

Hecataeus of Miletus Hecataeus of Miletus (; ; c. 550 – c. 476 BC), son of Hegesander, was an early Greek historian and geographer. Biography Hailing from a very wealthy family, he lived in Miletus, then under Persian rule in the satrapy of Lydia ...

. Phalanna is mentioned by

Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding i ...

as near

Mylae Milazzo (; ; ) is a municipality () in the Metropolitan City of Messina, Sicily, southern Italy. It is the largest municipality in the Metropolitan City after Messina and Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto. The town has a population of around 31,500 in ...

and Gyrton during the

Third Macedonian War The Third Macedonian War (171–168 BC) was a war fought between the Roman Republic and King Perseus of Macedon. In 179 BC, King Philip V of Macedon died and was succeeded by his ambitious son Perseus. He was anti-Roman and stirred anti-Roman fe ...

between the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

and

Perseus of Macedon Perseus (; – 166 BC) was king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedon from 179 until 168BC. He is widely regarded as the last List of kings of Macedonia, king of Macedonia and the last ruler from th ...

in 171 BCE. The site of Phalanna is in the modern community of Damasi (Δαμάσι) near the village of

Damasouli Damasouli (, ) is a village in the municipality of Tyrnavos. Before the 1997 local government reform it was a part of the community of Damasi. The 2021 census recorded 51 inhabitants in the village. See also * List of settlements in the Larissa r ...

(Δαμασούλι).

References

Populated places in ancient Thessaly Cities in ancient Greece Former populated places in Greece Perrhaebia Thessalian city-states {{AncientThessaly-geo-stub