- Phoenicians among Others: Why Migrants Mattered in the Ancient MediterraneanDenise Demetriou University of California, San DiegoNovember 10, 2023 - November 10, 2023
11:00am - 1:00pm -
Columbia University
As part of its Classical Dialogues series, the Classical Studies Graduate Program at Columbia University is pleased to welcome Denise Demetriou, Gerry and Jeannie Ranglas Chair in Ancient Greek History at the University of California, San Diego. On November 10, from 11am-1pm, Denise Demetriou will discuss her book Phoenicians among Others: Why Migrants Mattered in the Ancient Mediterranean (Oxford UP, 2023), which "presents a more comprehensive view of the ancient Mediterranean by studying Phoenician immigrants not only in Greek communities but also in Egypt, Carthage, and the central Mediterranean islands of Sicily, Sardinia, and Malta." Introduction by Marc Van De Mieroop (Columbia University) with commentary by Shenda Kuang (Columbia University). Location: Room 509 Hamilton Hall
Phoenicians among Others provides the first history of Phoenician immigrants in the ancient Mediterranean from the fourth to the first centuries BCE. Though an examination of inscriptions, many bilingual in Phoenician and Greek or Egyptian, Phoenicians among Others demonstrates how mobility and migration challenged migrants and states alike. Far from being excluded, and despite facing prejudices, immigrants mobilized adaptive strategies to mediate their experiences and encourage a sense of membership and belonging, constructed new identities, and transformed the societies they joined.
By integrating the voices and histories of immigrants with those of the states in which they lived, Denise Demetriou highlights the diverse ways that migrants influenced the development of societies, introduced new institutions, shaped the policies of their home and host states, made notions of citizenship more fluid, and changed the course of local, regional, and Mediterranean histories.
In its Classical Dialogues series, the interdepartmental Classical Studies Graduate Program CLST at Columbia University invites authors of recent work in ancient studies that is exemplary for the kind of study that CLST aims to foster. All faculty and students at Columbia and beyond are cordially invited. CLST students are required to read carefully at least one chapter or article in advance and prepare questions and comments for discussion.