The Greek colonisation of southern Italy: Greek-Italic relations

The eight until the sixth century BC saw the migration of large numbers of Greek-speaking people from the Aegean area to southern Italy, a process which is usually referred to in the scientific debate as 'the Greek colonisation of Italy'.1 This migration is known from several ancient literary sources and from the uncovered archaeological traces of Greek and indigenous Italic settlements from this period. Over the last few decades it has been the archaeological data especially that has increasingly contributed to our knowledge of this phenomenon, as from the 1960s onwards more and more archaeological excavations have been carried out on different Greek and Italic sites in southern Italy. This increase in data, however, has caused a debate about the character of relations between the foreign Greek and indigenous Italic groups in the early phase of the colonisation, as the archaeological data seem to contradict the ancient literary sources.2
 These literary sources, which are exclusively Greek as no Italic written sources have survived, consist of stories describing the foundation of different Greek settlements in the coastal areas of southern Italy. They relate the process leading to the moment of migration, the journey to Italy, the arrival on the Italian coast, and  the eventual settling down of the migrants.3 Most of these stories were eventually written down and have survived the ages in the writings of authors from the fifth and fourth century BC.  
In his research of these literary sources Yntema has pointed out that most of these foundation stories show a number of common features. Firstly, the groups of migrating Greeks seem to have beenquite large. Secondly, the Greeks seem to have had a hostile attitude towards the indigenous population. Lastly, the Greeks seem to have had a military superiority.4 In brief, these literary sources relate a process of events in which large groups of Greeks were allegedly able to conquer a large territory for themselves to settle and exploit, culturally and military dominating the underdeveloped indigenous population.5 
These stories determined the scientific view on this period up until the 1960s. However, the increase in archaeological data from the 1960s onwards has led to a reappraisal of these literary sources and has started the debate about the characteristics of the relation between indigenous and Greek groups.6 On one side of this debate are the researchers who adhere to the core of the earlier hypothesis. They have stated the hypothesis that the Greek-Italic relations were hostile. On the other side are researchers who have stated the hypothesis that, contradictory to the literary sources, the Greek-Italic relations were more symbiotic and peaceful. 
One of the protagonist of the first group of researchers is the Italian archaeologist Orlandini. After having excavated the Greek settlement of L'Incoronata, he has postulated the theory that the Greek migrants took possession of the site and destroyed the older indigenous settlement.7 His interpretation of the archaeological data of this site is based on three crucial elements. Firstly, he has dated all the indigenous pottery found on the site in the eight century BC and all the Greek pottery in the seventh century BC just after the disappearance of the indigenous pottery. Secondly, he has assumed that excavated oval structures were used solely by the indigenous population and excavated rectangular structures solely by the Greeks. As a result he has discerned an indigenous phase with only oval structures and a Greek phase with rectangular ones. Thirdly, traces of destruction were found, consisting of pits with debris of the earlier indigenous settlement. It is with this data that Orlandini has tried to corroborate the hypothesis of hostile Greek-Italic relations.
However, Orlandini's interpretation of the archaeological data has been strongly questioned by multiple researchers.8 Firstly, excavations from other parts of the site have not confirmed the existence of traces of destruction.9 Secondly, indigenous pottery has been found by Orlandini in the supposedly Greek rectangular structures. As a result of this discovery, the assumption that rectangular structures were being used solely by Greeks has been questioned. Letting go of this assumption makes it possible that indigenous people were still living at the site in the Greek phase.10 Moreover, research of the indigenous pottery by Yntema has shown that the indigenous pottery found in L'Incoronata can be dated to the seventh century BC, consequently meaning that the indigenous habitation of the site is contemporaneous with the Greek habitation.11 The discovery of a graveyard near the site with graves that have indigenous as well as Greek elements  has been used to support this claim of cohabitation.12 Similar evidence has been found at other Greek sites, further corroborating the hypothesis of cohabitation.13  Hence, the opponents of Orlandini have stated that the archaeological data support the hypothesis of more symbiotic relations, as the data have to be interpreted as signs of cohabitation.14 
Above all, these researchers state that the process of colonisation as described in the literary sources seems unlikely: the organisation needed to support the large group of migrants in a hostile unknown environment would have need to be enormous. They state that without help from the indigenous population the migrants would not have been able to survive.15 Moreover, recent archaeological data from indigenous settlements of the eight century BC have shown that the indigenous society was probably more developed then has always been postulated. This makes it unlikely that the smaller groups of Greek migrants would have been able to dominate the indigenous groups in the earliest phase of the colonisation.16
After some decades of research the data now seems to be in favour of the proponents of symbiotic Greek-Italic relations. Most sites now seem to show good evidence for cohabitation of Greek and Italic groups, and evidence for hostile relations, as postulated by Orlandini, seems incorrect. 


  



Bibliography 

Burgers, G-J. / Crielaard, J.P. 2007, 'Greek colonists and indigenous populations at L'Amastuola, southern Italy', Babesch 82, 77-114.

Carter, J.C. 1993, 'Taking Possession of the Land: Early Greek Colonization in Southern Italy' in: R.T. Scott / A.R. Scott (eds.), Eius Virtutis Studiosi: Classical and Postclassical Studies in Memory of Frank Edward Brown (1908-88), Hanover, 342-367. 

Yntema, D.G. 2011, 'Archaeology and the Origo myths of the Greek Apoikia', in: R. Gocha Tsetskhladze (ed.), Ancient West and East 10, 243-266.

Yntema, D.G. 2000, 'Mental Landscapes of colonization: The ancient written sources and the archaeology of early colonial-Greek southeastern Italy', Babesch 75, 1-49.
1 Yntema 2011, 243.
2 Burgers/Crielaard 2007, 77; Carter 1993, 343.
3 Yntema 2011, 246-247.
4 Yntema 2011, 248; Yntema 2000, 39-40.
5 Burgers/Crielaard 2007, 77; Yntema 2011, 248.
6 Burgers/Crielaard 2007, 78; Yntema 2010, 3-5, 40-45.
7 Carter 2006, 56, 59-60; Carter 2004, 370; Carter 1993, 344; Yntema 2000, 11.
8 See for exemple Carter 2006, Carter 1993 and Yntema 2011.
9 Carter 1993, 344, 348.
10 Carter 2006, 68-73; Carter 1993, 347-348.
11 Carter 2006, 60; Carter 1993, 346; Yntema 2000, 11.
12 Carter 2006, 63-64; Carter 1998, 6; Yntema 2000, 13.
13 Burgers/Crielaard 2007, 83-84. 
14 Carter 2006, 83; Carter 1993, 352.
15 Yntema 2011, 248-249, 251-252.
16 Burgers/Crielaard 2007,