Messapii
Encyclopedia
The Messapii were an ancient tribe that inhabited, in historical times, the south-eastern peninsula or "heel" of Italy
(Salento
, modern Apulia
), known variously in ancient times as Calabria
, Messapia
and Iapygia. Their chief towns were Uzentum (modern Ugento
), Rudiae (modern Lecce), Brundisium (modern Brindisi
) and Hyria. They spoke the Messapian language
. They are often referred to as "the most southerly of the Iapygian
tribes".
Julius Pokorny
derives their ethnonym
Messapii from Messapia, interpreted as "(the place) Amid waters", Mess- from Proto-Indo-European
*medhyo-, "middle", and -apia from Proto-Indo-European *ap-, "water
" (cf. another toponym, Salapia, "salt water").
.
After Hyria (founded probably in the 18th century BC) they founded other towns, which, at a much later time, the Tarentines
attempted to take. The Iapygians repulsed the Tarentine Greeks however and inflicted a serious defeat on them in 473 BC
, thanks to their superior cavalry. The Messapic cities were independent from each other, and had trade relationships with Greater Greece communities. A corps of Messapic archers fought with Athenians in a war against Syracuse
.
The Messapians were later conquered by the Romans
and absorbed into the Latin
-speaking and Greek
-speaking populace.
, though possibly on the same branch as the Illyrian languages
spoken across the Adriatic in its time. Messapian (or Iapygian) was also spoken by other Iapygian tribes. The Messapii were familiar with literacy, and adapted the Ionic/Tarentine Greek alphabet
to write their own language, recorded in some fifty inscriptions, only partially and indefinitely deciphered thus far.
The language became extinct as its speakers adopted Latin, though some may have adopted Greek.
Other Messapic settlements have been discovered near Francavilla Fontana
, San Vito dei Normanni
and in Vaste (Poggiardo).
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
(Salento
Salento
Salento is the south-eastern extremity of the Apulia region of Italy. It is a sub-peninsula of the main Italian Peninsula, sometimes described as the "heel" of the Italian "boot"...
, modern Apulia
Apulia
Apulia is a region in Southern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its most southern portion, known as Salento peninsula, forms a high heel on the "boot" of Italy. The region comprises , and...
), known variously in ancient times as Calabria
Calabria
Calabria , in antiquity known as Bruttium, is a region in southern Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula. The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro....
, Messapia
Messapia
Messapia may refer to:* The ancient region occupied by the extinct Messapii tribe* The modern region of Salento, roughly equivalent to the ancient region* Messapia, Greece...
and Iapygia. Their chief towns were Uzentum (modern Ugento
Ugento
Ugento is a town and comune in Italy. It has a small harbour, and is situated in the province of Lecce, in Apulia, on the Gulf of Taranto . It includes the frazioni of Gemini and Torre San Giovanni.-History:...
), Rudiae (modern Lecce), Brundisium (modern Brindisi
Brindisi
Brindisi is a city in the Apulia region of Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, off the coast of the Adriatic Sea.Historically, the city has played an important role in commerce and culture, due to its position on the Italian Peninsula and its natural port on the Adriatic Sea. The city...
) and Hyria. They spoke the Messapian language
Messapian language
Messapian is an extinct Indo-European language of South-eastern Italy, once spoken in the region of Apulia. It was spoken by the three Iapygian tribes of the region: the Messapians, the Dauni and the Peucetii....
. They are often referred to as "the most southerly of the Iapygian
Iapyges
The Iapyges or Iapygians were an Indo-European people who inhabited the heel of Italy before being absorbed by the Romans.-Identity:The Iapyges have unknown origins but could have been from Illyria....
tribes".
Julius Pokorny
Julius Pokorny
Julius Pokorny was an Austrian linguist and scholar of the Celtic languages, particularly Irish, and a supporter of Irish nationalism. He held academic posts in Austrian and German universities.-Life:...
derives their ethnonym
Ethnonym
An ethnonym is the name applied to a given ethnic group. Ethnonyms can be divided into two categories: exonyms and autonyms or endonyms .As an example, the ethnonym for...
Messapii from Messapia, interpreted as "(the place) Amid waters", Mess- from Proto-Indo-European
Proto-Indo-European language
The Proto-Indo-European language is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European languages, spoken by the Proto-Indo-Europeans...
*medhyo-, "middle", and -apia from Proto-Indo-European *ap-, "water
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
" (cf. another toponym, Salapia, "salt water").
History
The true origin of the Messapii is debated. The most credited theory is that they came from IllyriaIllyria
In classical antiquity, Illyria was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by the Illyrians....
.
After Hyria (founded probably in the 18th century BC) they founded other towns, which, at a much later time, the Tarentines
Taranto
Taranto is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto and is an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base....
attempted to take. The Iapygians repulsed the Tarentine Greeks however and inflicted a serious defeat on them in 473 BC
473 BC
Year 473 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Mamercus and Iullus...
, thanks to their superior cavalry. The Messapic cities were independent from each other, and had trade relationships with Greater Greece communities. A corps of Messapic archers fought with Athenians in a war against Syracuse
Syracuse, Italy
Syracuse is a historic city in Sicily, the capital of the province of Syracuse. The city is notable for its rich Greek history, culture, amphitheatres, architecture, and as the birthplace of the preeminent mathematician and engineer Archimedes. This 2,700-year-old city played a key role in...
.
The Messapians were later conquered by the Romans
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
and absorbed into the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
-speaking and Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
-speaking populace.
Language and writing
The Messapii spoke the Messapian language, a centum language belonging to its own branch of Indo-EuropeanIndo-European languages
The Indo-European languages are a family of several hundred related languages and dialects, including most major current languages of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and South Asia and also historically predominant in Anatolia...
, though possibly on the same branch as the Illyrian languages
Illyrian languages
The Illyrian languages are a group of Indo-European languages that were spoken in the western part of the Balkans in former times by groups identified as Illyrians: Ardiaei, Delmatae, Pannonii, Autariates, Taulanti...
spoken across the Adriatic in its time. Messapian (or Iapygian) was also spoken by other Iapygian tribes. The Messapii were familiar with literacy, and adapted the Ionic/Tarentine Greek alphabet
Greek alphabet
The Greek alphabet is the script that has been used to write the Greek language since at least 730 BC . The alphabet in its classical and modern form consists of 24 letters ordered in sequence from alpha to omega...
to write their own language, recorded in some fifty inscriptions, only partially and indefinitely deciphered thus far.
The language became extinct as its speakers adopted Latin, though some may have adopted Greek.
Main cities
The main Messapic cities included:- Alytia (AlezioAlezioAlezio is a town and comune in the province of Lecce in the Apulia region of south-east Italy.-History:Alezio was a centre of the Messapi, who would call it Alytia like their former capital in Acarnania. According to Pliny the Elder, the Aletines descended instead from the Iapyges, who descended...
) - Aoxentum (UgentoUgentoUgento is a town and comune in Italy. It has a small harbour, and is situated in the province of Lecce, in Apulia, on the Gulf of Taranto . It includes the frazioni of Gemini and Torre San Giovanni.-History:...
) - Brention/Brenteseion (BrindisiBrindisiBrindisi is a city in the Apulia region of Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, off the coast of the Adriatic Sea.Historically, the city has played an important role in commerce and culture, due to its position on the Italian Peninsula and its natural port on the Adriatic Sea. The city...
) - CavallinoCavallinoCavallino is a town and comune in the Italian province of Lecce in the Apulia region of south-east Italy....
- Hodrum/Idruntum (OtrantoOtrantoOtranto is a town and comune in the province of Lecce , in a fertile region once famous for its breed of horses.It is located on the east coast of the Salento peninsula. The Strait of Otranto, to which the city gives its name, connects the Adriatic Sea with the Ionian Sea and Italy with Albania...
) - Hyria/Orria (OriaOria, ItalyOria is a town and comune in the Apulia region, in the province of Brindisi, in southern Italy. It is the see city of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Oria.- History :...
) - Kaìlia (Ceglie MessapicaCeglie MessapicaCeglie Messapica is a town and comune located in the province of Brindisi in the Puglia region, southern Italy, in the Murge traditional area.- Geography :...
) - ManduriaManduriaManduria is a city and comune of Apulia, Italy, in the province of Taranto. With c. 30,000 inhabitants, it is located 35 km east of Taranto, and 14 km north of the coast.-History:...
- Mesania (MesagneMesagneMesagne is a comune in the province of Brindisi in Puglia,on the south-east Italy coast. Its main economic activities are tourism and the growing of olives and grapes...
) - Neriton (NardòNardòNardò is a town and comune of 31,185 inhabitants and comune in the southern Italian region of Apulia, in the province of Lecce.-History:...
) - Rudiae (Lecce)
- Mios/Myron (Muro Leccese)
Other Messapic settlements have been discovered near Francavilla Fontana
Francavilla Fontana
Francavilla Fontana is a town and comune in the province of Brindisi . And it's also called "Imperiali Town" after the feudal lords that ruled the town from the end of 16th to 18th century.-Geography:...
, San Vito dei Normanni
San Vito dei Normanni
San Vito dei Normanni is an Italian town of 19,947 inhabitants of the province of Brindisi in Puglia. The inhabitants are called Sanvitesi and the town is sometimes referred to as San Vito....
and in Vaste (Poggiardo).
See also
- IllyriansIllyriansThe Illyrians were a group of tribes who inhabited part of the western Balkans in antiquity and the south-eastern coasts of the Italian peninsula...
- IapygesIapygesThe Iapyges or Iapygians were an Indo-European people who inhabited the heel of Italy before being absorbed by the Romans.-Identity:The Iapyges have unknown origins but could have been from Illyria....
- Dauni
- List of Illyrian tribes
- Messapian languageMessapian languageMessapian is an extinct Indo-European language of South-eastern Italy, once spoken in the region of Apulia. It was spoken by the three Iapygian tribes of the region: the Messapians, the Dauni and the Peucetii....
- Illyrian languagesIllyrian languagesThe Illyrian languages are a group of Indo-European languages that were spoken in the western part of the Balkans in former times by groups identified as Illyrians: Ardiaei, Delmatae, Pannonii, Autariates, Taulanti...
- Ancient Italic peoplesAncient Italic peoplesAncient people of Italy are all those people that lived in Italy before the Roman domination.Not all of these various people are linguistically or ethnically closely related...