The Greeks in Iberia and their Mediterranean Context

Book excerpt: This volume explores the effects of Greek presence in the Iberian Peninsula, and how this Iberian Greek experience evolved in resonance with its neighbouring region, the Mediterranean West. Contributions cover the Phocaean settlement at Emporion and its relationship with the indigenous hinterland, the government of the Greek communities, Greek settlement and trade at Málaga, the Greek settlement of Santa Pola, Greek trade in Southern France and Eastern Spain, the implications of imported Attic pottery in the fifth and fourth centuries BC and the conception of Iberia in the eyes of the Greeks. The Iberian Peninsula invites discussion of key notions of ethnic identity, the use of code-switching, cultural geography and the role of society in generating, developing and exploiting social memory in a changing world. The contributions in this volume provide a variety of responses and interpretations of the Greek presence, reflecting the extent of this debate and offering different approaches in order to better understand the range of evidence from the Iberian Peninsula. The Greeks in Iberia and their Mediterranean Context develops current research on the Greek presence, presenting diverse opinions and new interpretations that are of interest not only to scholars studying the Iberian Peninsula and Greek settlement but also students of identity, cultural geography and colonisation more widely, as well as the applicability of these concepts to the historical record.