okamido

Throughout the Mediterranean, the Ionians and Dorians founded many colonies. Which could be considered the most important, or longest living?

Salah

Who founded Tarentum in Italy, the Spartans?

Greek history isn't my strong suite, but Tarentum comes up a lot in early Roman history. I believe it also developed a reputation for quality soldiery.

Kevinmeath

This could be a long shot would Rome count?

Marsaille?

Labienus

I think that the most important would be Syracuse, due to her power, demography, culture, geopolitical importance(most important(with Carthage)western Mediterranean city before the 3rd century), role in the Peleponesian war, role in the Punic wars, etc.

The Ionian city-states were also very important due to their role in the Persian Wars but I think that Syracuse just was more relevant here.

Kevinmeath

Sorry for my ignorance but is that Taranto today?

Labienus

Yes it is.

Taras(Greek) or Tarentum(Latin) had an important equestrian tradition which made her a great provider of mercenaries(the Tarentum light cavalry) which were skilled troops. However, Taras stopped her military tradition and relied mainly on mercenaries for her defense(the ancient equivalents of condottieri) after the death of her last great statesman(Archytas).

They appealed to such generals as Archidamus III of Sparta, Alexander Molossus of Epirus and Pyrrhus of Epirus for her protection.

Psellos

Alexandria-Massalia(Marseille)-Antioch-Byzantion-Trapezous-Smyrna-Syrakusai- Kyrene are the most important and influential IMO.

[Alexandria gets the first prise for me.]

As for longest living, there are tens, many inhabited by Greeks till the beginning of the previous century, in today Turkey, Bulgaria(e.g. Smyrna, Trapezous, Amisos, Phokaia, Kerasous, Mesembria, Philippopolis, Pyrgos(Burgas) etc), and other survived with the same(or little altered) name with Greek presence till the middle ages and later( e.g. Taranto, Reggio, Syracusa, Crotone, Dyrrachion, Avlon, Alexandria, etc).

Sargon of Akkad

Their cavalry was supposedly decent, but by Pyrrhus day he 'found the confederates in Italy backwards' according to Plutarch, and his description of the Tarentines is not at all flattering as Pyrrhus tried to organise them for war.

Tarentum was the only Spartan colony, just an interesting fact there.

Syracuse was probably the most powerful and important colony (of Corinth).

My personal favourite was Sybaris, an almost legendary colony that was incredibly rich and prosperous due to them doing as Rome did initially and giving citizenship to any who wished it. They apparently had superb cavalry that was trained, for fun, to dance to the tune of a flute. The rival Greek colony of Croton went to war with them, played their own flutes, which caused the horses to start dancing, ruining their formations and allowing Croton to defeat and destroy Sybaris for all time.

sylla1

Different questions:

- The first known Hellenic colony may have been Al-Mina in Syria (maybe late IX century BC), but it is poorly attested. The longest living were probably some Spartan colonies in the Aegean: Theras, Melos and maybe Gortyn (Crete), probably from the early VIII century BC. The first colonies in Italy (Campania) were Kyme & Pithekoussai circa 750 BC; in Sicily, Naxos circa 735 BC.

- The most influential Hellenic colony was presumably Syrakousai (founded circa 733 BC) as pointed out by our Labienus; with 12,000 km plus by the IV century BC, she had the largest territory of any Hellenic polis ever, with probably some 40,000-45,000 inhabitants (more or less the same population of her own colony Himera); however, the most populated colony was probably Korkyria (Corfu) with up to 55,000-70,000 people.

Hellenistic cities like Alexandria were a different story.

Solidaire

Miletos and Ephessos were two very important colonies, with large contributions to sciences and civilisation.

Syracuse was perhaps the most powerful one, and with a major role in history, acting as a ark of Greek civilisation opened by the Romans when they conquered it. The influence this city's conquest had upon the Romans was monumental.

Alexandria is a whole different story, as Sylla wrote. Perhaps the most significant Greek city outside Greece, ever. In fact, in terms of culture and sciences, I cannot think of any city, other than Athens, overshadowing Alexandria. Also, a most charming city. It still is.