Sea, Island, and Mainland: Maritime Colonization and Hinterland Populations

What happened when ancient Greeks settled on islands and coastal promontories—did they simply displace local peoples, or did they create new spaces of cooperation and competition?

In Greek colonization, islands and shorelines often became “middle grounds” where settlers and indigenous communities interacted in dynamic, ad hoc ways. At times, Greeks established poleis that dominated or subjugated hinterland groups; in other cases, mixed settlements and emporia emerged, fostering trade and cultural exchange. Traditional post‐colonial narratives cast these encounters as a binary: colonizers versus displaced “Indigenous” victims.

Join us for a keynote address by Professor Malkin, who will re‐examine the notion of “indigeneity” and propose a nuanced paradigm of “middle ground” interaction—one that transcends the reductive colonizer/colonized framework and reveals the complex realities of maritime settlement in antiquity.

This keynote is part of the international symposium “Is(Lands) and Mainlands in Classical Antiquity”, taking place July 25–26, 2025 in Athens. The symposium brings together over 30 leading scholars from Greece, Turkey, and beyond to explore crucial themes in classical antiquity.

About the Speaker

Irad Malkin is emeritus Professor of Ancient Greek History at Tel Aviv University and Visiting Professor at the Faculty of Classics at the University of Oxford (2017-2026). He is a member of the Athens National Academy and a laureate of the Israel Prize for History (2014). His studies revolve around Greek religion, colonization, ethnicity, networks, and egalitarianism. His books include eight edited volumes and six authored books, among which are Religion and Colonization in Ancient Greece (1987), Myth and Territory in the Spartan Mediterranean (1994), The Returns of Odysseus: Colonization and Ethnicity (1998), Ethnicity and Identity in Ancient Greece (2003), A Small Greek World: Networks in the Ancient Mediterranean (2011) and, with Josine Blok, Drawing Lots: From Egalitarianism to Democracy in Ancient Greece (2024).

Date & Time:

📅 Friday, July 25, 2025

🕢 7:30 PM (Doors open at 7:00 PM)

Location:

🏛 Cotsen Hall, American School of Classical Studies at Athens – Anapiron Polemou 9, Athens

Reception:

Join us for a reception following the discussion.

Seats are limited—RSVP to secure your spot.

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