Phyle

In addition to his membership of a citizenship ( polis ) was a Greek in ancient times also a strain tribe (Greek φυλή, " the tribe, the people," from the verb φύεσθαι phyesthai " derived" ), and was a member of his family ties by clan. The familial aspect of the clan was particularly challenged by D. Roussel, who brings the tribe with the polis in conjunction and it moves as the administrative unit in the focal point. However, the roots of this community are hard to find, as for the Dark Ages of Greek history, no written sources exist. In Athens developed from these tribal Collaboration later regional administrative districts which formed the basis for the military districts.

• 3.1 Attic tribes in the early period
• 3.2 Kleisthenische phyla
• 3.3 Further ionic cities

Phyla in Homer

The first written mention is found in Homer in the Iliad. There proposes Nestor the right to organize the army into tribes and phratries ( Hom. Il. II, 362). Further, in the Iliad, in the so-called Catalogue of Ships on the one hand the Rhodians ( Hom. Il. II, 668 ) and on the other the Pelasgians ( Hom. Il. II, 840 ) divided by phyla. Clans / Ethne or poleis be divided extent here, is not entirely conclusive since Homer remains very vague and ambiguous terminology assigns. For him, the seal is in the foreground.

Dorer

When the Dorians there were originally three tribes, Hylleis, Dymanes and Pamphyloi, which were preserved in many cities in the Doric settlement area. In some cities there were a fourth tribe for nichtdorische population.

Crete

In Doric Crete came in classical times the tribe ( called here πυλα ) is of particular importance. How The Great Law of Gortyn in use, the most important officials of the Cretan city-states, the cosmos, from among the able-bodied citizens of a tribe, the so-called Stratos, were chosen. Every year got another Stratos and thus a different tribe commissioned to select the College of universes, so that each tribe was involved equally in the exercise of power. Also in the paragraphs of the Great Law, which deal with the Erbtochterrecht ( Koerner No. 174), appears the tribe. The heiress was stopped, to marry in their own tribe, no one should be from the related legal heirs have been gone or when the heiress wanted to marry anyone of these. Only when marriage efforts were not crowned with success in her tribe, she was allowed to marry someone from a different tribe.

Ionians

Phyla in the Ionians are best known from Athens.

Attic tribes in the early period

In the early days Attica was divided into four phyla. These tribes were named after the sons of the ion. These were in turn made ​​up of three trittyes of four Naukraries.

Kleisthenische phyla

A tribe consisted of a part of the urban area, part country and part of the coast. Overall, there were after the reform by Cleisthenes (see Athenian democracy ) 10 phyla, which then each have a representation in the Council of 500 ( ie 50 MPs per tribe ) had. Each Military District put army units, which also were called phyla (comparable to today's companies ) formed and the basis of the army being. The ten tribes of Attica were named after heroes, known therefore as eponyms (from ancient Greek. Ἐπ - ονομάζείν = call it).

Later Attalos, Ptolemy and Hadrian were added.

Other ionic cities

In other Ionian cities, there were some of the same tribes as in the early days of Athens, which can be explained with common origins, or a conscious acquisition, partially different names of the three tribes often.

Swell

• Herodotus: Histories, Kröner Verlag, Stuttgart, 1971, ISBN 3-520-22404-6
• Pausanias: Travel in Greece, Artemis Verlag, Zurich and Munich, 1987, ISBN 3- 7608-3678 -X.