2. Apoikia and oikistai

3. Ancient Greek colonies

See: N. G. L. Hammond, A history of Greece to 322 BC, chapter 2, section 1. Oxford University Press, 1959.

For further discussion on the drought in the 8th century BC, see:

4. The origin of the name of Halkidiki

The name Halkidiki has been translated as "according to the custom or law of Chalcis", or "the way of Chalcis", inferring that the Chaldician colonists followed the customs and laws of the mother city, or were afforded the rights established by them. From dikē (Δίκη), justice, fair judgement.

Dike was the Greek goddess of Justice. See Dike at theoi.com.

Very few scholars seem to give credence to the theory that Halkidiki was the name of a Greek tribe native to the area before the colonization by Euboeans.

See: E. Harrison, Chalkidike. Classical Quarterly, 1912, 93 ff., 165 ff.

Harrison's theory was resurrected in the 1970s, but with very weak arguments.

5. Strabo on Macedonia and the colonization of Halkidiki

Strabo (Στράβων, Strabon; 64/63 BC – circa 24 AD), Greek geographer, philosopher and historian from Amaseia in Pontus (today Amasya, Turkey).

"But of all these tribes [of Macedonia - Bisaltae, Edones, Mygdones, Sithones] the Argeadae, as they are called, established themselves as masters, and also the Chalcidians of Euboea; for the Chalcidians of Euboea also came over to the country of the Sithones and jointly peopled about thirty cities in it, although later on the majority of them were ejected and came together into one city, Olynthus; and they were named the Thracian Chalcidians."

Strabo, Geography, Book 7, fragments, 11. At Perseus Digital Library.

"... these cities [of Euboea] grew exceptionally strong and even sent forth noteworthy colonies into Macedonia; for Eretria colonized the cities situated round Pallene and Athos, and Chalcis colonized the cities that were subject to Olynthus, which later were treated outrageously by Philip... These colonies were sent out, as Aristotle states, when the government of the Hippobatae, as it is called, was in power; for at the head of it were men chosen according to the value of their property, who ruled in an aristocratic manner."

Strabo, Geography, Book 10, chapter 1, section 8. At Perseus Digital Library.

6. Herodotus on the Chalcidian possession of Olynthos

Herodotus tells us that at the time of of the Second Persian invasion of Greece (483-479 BC), Olynthos, which was to become the most powerful city in Halkidiki in Classical times (see History part 5), was in the hands of the Bottiai, a local Thracian tribe. After Xerxes left Greece, Artabazos, one of his generals, suspecting that Olynthos was about to join the Corinthian colony of Potidaia in revolt, conquered the city in the winter of 480-479 BC, killed the inhabitants and gave the city to the Chalcidians.

"Thereupon Artabazus laid siege to Potidaea, and suspecting that Olynthus too was plotting revolt from the king, he laid siege to it also. This town was held by Bottiaeans who had been driven from the Thermaic gulf by the Macedonians. Having besieged and taken Olynthus, he brought these men to a lake and there cut their throats and delivered their city over to the charge of Critobulus of Torone and the Chalcidian people. It was in this way that the Chalcidians gained possession of Olynthus."

7. Diodorus on "barbarian" tribes in Halkidiki

Diodorus Siculus (Διόδωρος Σικελιώτης, Diodoros Sikeliotes; also known as Diodorus of Sicily) was a Greek historian from Agyrion in Sicily (today Agira), who lived during the 1st century BC. Almost nothing is known of his life except that he appears to have spent some time in Rome and Egypt. He wrote his enormous 40 volume universal history Bibliotheca historica around 60-30 BC. Only books 1–5 and 11–20 have survived, with fragments and excerpts of the lost books preserved in works of later authors.

In his account of the Peloponnesian War, he mentions the presence of Thracian tribes in and around Halkidiki when dealing with the campaign of the Spartan general Brasidas in the area in 424-422 BC (see History part 5):

"And when all his preparations had been made, he set out from Amphipolis with his army and came to Acte [the Athos peninsula], as it is called, where he pitched his camp. In this area there were five cities, of which some were Greek, being colonies from Andros, and the others had a populace of barbarians of Bisaltic origin [a Thracian tribe], which were bilingual. After mastering these cities Brasidas led his army against the city of Torone, which was a colony of the Chalcidians but was held by Athenians."

8. Ancient Argilos

9. Plutarch on the dispute between the Andrians and Chalcidians over Akanthos

Plutarch (Greek: Πλούταρχος; name as Roman citizen Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus, Μέστριος Πλούταρχος, circa 46-120 AD), Greek historian, biographer and essayist, born in Chaeronea, Boeotia.

Aetia Graeca (Greek Questions or Causes) is a collection of 113 explanations of Greek folklore customs and names. One of his main sources is thought to have been the writings of Aristotle.

"30. What is the 'Beach of Araenus' in Thrace?
When the Andrians and Chalcidians sailed to Thrace to settle there, they jointly seized the city of Sane, which was betrayed to them; but when they learned that the barbarians had abandoned Acanthus, they sent out two scouts.

When these were approaching the city, they perceived that the enemy had all fled; so the Chalcidian ran forward to take possession of the city for Chalcis, but the Andrian, since he could not cover the distance so rapidly as his rival, hurled his spear, and when it was firmly implanted in the city gates, he called out in a loud voice that by his spear the city had been taken into prior possession for the children of the Andrians.

As a result of this a dispute arose, and, without going to war, they agreed to make use of Erythraeans, Samians, and Parians as arbitrators concerning the whole matter. But when the Erythraeans and the Samians gave their vote in favour of the Andrians, and the Parians in favour of the Chalcidians, the Andrians, in the neighbourhood of this place, made a solemn vow against the Parians that they would never give a woman in marriage to the Parians nor take one from them. And for this reason they called the place the Beach of Araenus, although it had formerly been named the Serpent's Beach."

10. Dionysius of Halicarnassus on Aristotle

Dionysius of Halicarnassus (Greek, Διονύσιος Ἀλεξάνδρου Ἁλικαρνᾱσσεύς, Dionysios son of Alexandros of Halikarnassos, circa 60 BC – after 7 BC), Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric during the reign of Emperor Augustus.

His literary letter, the First Letter to Ammaeus, in which he refutes claims that the Athenian orator Demosthenes was influenced by Aristotle's writings on rhetoric, contains one of the oldest surviving biographies of the philosopher. He is among the ancient writers who states that Aristotle's mother was descended from the Chalcidian founders of Stageira.

"Aristotle was the son of Nicomachus, who traced his lineage and his profession back to Machaon, the son of Asclepius [i.e. follower of Asklepios; medical doctor]. His mother, Phaestis, was descended from one of those who led the colony to Stageira from Chalcis.

He was born in the ninety-ninth Olympiad, when Diotrephes was archon at Athens, and was, therefore, three years older than Demosthenes.

In the archonship of Polyzelus, after the death of his father, he went to Athens, being then eighteen years of age. Having been introduced to the society of Plato, he spent a period of twenty years with him.

When Plato died, in the archonship of Theophilus, he went to the court of Hermias, the tyrant of Atarneus, and spent three years with him before retiring to Mytilene in the archonship of Eubulus.

Thence he proceeded, during the archonship of Pythodotus, to the court of Philip, and spent eight years there as Alexander's tutor.

After the death of Philip, in the archonship of Evaenetus, he returned to Athens, and taught in the Lyceum for a period of twelve years.

In the thirteenth year, after the death of Alexander in the archon-year of Cephisodorus, he set off for Chalcis, where he fell ill and died at the age of sixty-three.

Such, then, are the records transmitted to us by the biographers of Aristotle."

11. Relations between Andros and its colonists in Halkidiki

See: Gocha R. Tsetskhladze (Editor), Greek Colonisation, an account of colonies and other settlements overseas, Volume 2; Chapter 1, Greek Colonisation of the Northern Aegean by Michalis Tiverios. Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, Netherlands, 2008.

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