The Rhodian Peraea or Peraia () was the name for the southern coast of the region of

Caria Caria (; from Greek language, Greek: Καρία, ''Karia''; ) was a region of western Anatolia extending along the coast from mid-Ionia (Mycale) south to Lycia and east to Phrygia. The Carians were described by Herodotus as being Anatolian main ...

in western

Asia Minor Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

during the 5th–1st centuries BC, when the area was controlled and colonized by the nearby island of

Rhodes Rhodes (; ) is the largest of the Dodecanese islands of Greece and is their historical capital; it is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, ninth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Administratively, the island forms a separ ...

. Already in Classical times, before their

synoecism Synoecism or synecism ( ; , ''sunoikismos'', ), also spelled synoikism ( ), was originally the amalgamation of villages in Ancient Greece into ''poleis'', or city-states. Etymologically, the word means "dwelling together (''syn'') in the same h ...

and creation of the single Rhodian state in 408 BC, the three

city-states A city-state is an independent sovereign city which serves as the center of political, economic, and cultural life over its contiguous territory. They have existed in many parts of the world throughout history, including cities such as Rome, ...

of Rhodes, Lindos, Ialyssos, and Kameiros, separately possessed territory on the mainland of Asia Minor. This comprised the Cnidian Peninsula (but not

Cnidus Knidos or Cnidus (; , , , Knídos) was a Ancient Greece, Greek city in ancient Caria and part of the Dorian Hexapolis, in south-western Asia Minor, modern-day Turkey. It was situated on the Datça peninsula, which forms the southern side of the ...

itself), as well as the nearby Trachea peninsula and its neighbouring region to the east. Like Rhodes, these territories were divided into

deme In Ancient Greece, a deme or (, plural: ''demoi'', δήμοι) was a suburb or a subdivision of Classical Athens, Athens and other city-states. Demes as simple subdivisions of land in the countryside existed in the 6th century BC and earlier, bu ...

s, and their citizens were Rhodian citizens. During the

Hellenistic period In classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Greek history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the death of Cleopatra VII in 30 BC, which was followed by the ascendancy of the R ...

the extent of the Peraia grew with the addition of various vassal regions. It reached its greatest extent after the

Treaty of Apamea The Treaty of Apamea was a peace treaty conducted in 188 BC between the Roman Republic and Antiochus III, ruler of the Seleucid Empire. It ended the Roman–Seleucid War. The treaty took place after Roman victories at the Battle of Thermopylae ( ...

in 188 BC, when the entirety of Caria and

Lycia Lycia (; Lycian: 𐊗𐊕𐊐𐊎𐊆𐊖 ''Trm̃mis''; , ; ) was a historical region in Anatolia from 15–14th centuries BC (as Lukka) to 546 BC. It bordered the Mediterranean Sea in what is today the provinces of Antalya and Muğ ...

south of the Maeander River came under Rhodian rule, but this was short-lived; when Rhodes submitted to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

in 167 BC, this region was lost again. During this time, the Peraia comprised the fully incorporated portion, lying between Cnidus and

Kaunos Kaunos ( Carian: ''Kbid'';. Translator Chris Markham. Lycian: ''Xbide''; Ancient Greek: ; ) was a city of ancient Caria and in Anatolia, a few kilometres west of the modern town of Dalyan, Muğla Province, Turkey. The Calbys river (now kno ...

, which as before was divided into demes and formed part of the Rhodian state, and the remainder of Caria and Lycia, which were tributary to Rhodes. Rhodes retained a portion of its old domains in Asia until 39 BC, when they were ceded to Stratonicea.

References

Sources

* * * * * Ancient Rhodes Geography of Caria History of Muğla Province Geography of ancient Lycia {{AncientLycia-geo-stub Ancient Caria Oğuz-Kırca, E.D. 2015a. Two Models of Fortresses/ Fortress Settlements in the Carian Chersonesos (Karya Khersonesosu'nda (Pera) İki Tip Kale/ Kale Yerleşimi). TÜBA-AR 18: 125-143. Oğuz-Kırca, E.D. 2015b. The Chora and The Core: A General Look at the Rural Settlement Pattern of (Pre)Hellenistic Bozburun Peninsula, Turkey. PAUSBED 20: 33-62.