Deme
In Ancient Greece, a deme or demos was a suburb or a subdivision of Athens and other city-states. Demes as simple subdivisions of land in the countryside seem to have existed in the 6th century BC and earlier, but did not acquire particular significance until the reforms of Cleisthenes in 508 BC. In those reforms, enrollment in the citizen-lists of a deme became the requirement for citizenship; prior to that time, citizenship had been based on membership in a phratry, or family group. At this same time, demes were established in the main city of Athens itself, where they had not previously existed; in all, at the end of Cleisthenes' reforms, Athens was divided into 139 demes. to which one should add Berenikidai, established in 224/223 BC, Apollonieis and Antinoeis. The establishment of demes as the fundamental units of the state weakened the gene, or aristocratic family groups, that had dominated the phratries.
A deme functioned to some degree as a polis in miniature, and indeed some demes, such as Eleusis and Acharnae, were in fact significant towns. Each deme had a demarchos who supervised its affairs; various other civil, religious, and military functionaries existed in various demes. Demes held their own religious festivals and collected and spent revenue.
Demes were combined with other demes from the same area to make trittyes, larger population groups, which in turn were combined to form the ten tribes, or phylai of Athens. Each tribe contained one trittys from each of three regions: the city, the coast, and the inland area.
Cleisthenes' reforms and its modifications
First period: 508 – 307/306 BC
divided the landscape in three zones—urban, coastal and inland —and the 139 demes were organized into 30 groups called trittyes, ten for each of the zones and into ten tribes, or phyle, each composed of three trittyes, one from the coast, one from the city, and one from the inland area.Cleisthenes also reorganized the Boule, created with 400 members under Solon, so that it had 500 members, 50 from each tribe, each deme having a fixed quota.
The ten tribes were named after legendary heroes and came to have an official order:
- Erechtheis named after Erechtheus
- Aigeis named after Aegeus
- Pandionis named after Pandion
- Leontis named after Leos, son of Orpheus
- Acamantis named after Acamas
- Oineis named after Oeneus
- Kekropis named after Cécrops
- Hippothontis named after Hippothoon
- Aiantis named after Ajax
- Antiochis named after Antiochus, son of Heracles
Second period: 307/306 – 224/223 BC
In 307/306 – 224/223 BC the system was reorganized creating the two Macedonian Phylai, named after Demetrius I of Macedon and Antigonus I Monophthalmus, and increasing the Boule to 600 members. Each of the ten tribes, except Aiantis, provide 3 demes ; the missing contribution of Aiantis is covered by two demes of Leontis and 1 from Aigeis.In connection the contribution of each village to the Boule is properly adapted.
Third period: 224/223 – 201/200 BC
The Egyptian Phyle XIII. Ptolemais, named after Ptolemy III Euergetes is created in 224/223 BC and the Boule increases to 600 members, the twelve tribes giving each a demos; moreover a new village is creatied and named Berenikidai, after Ptolemy's wife Berenice II of Egypt.Fourth period: 201/200 BC – 126/127 AD
In 201/200 BC the Macedonian Phylae are dissolved and the villages go back to the original tribe. Moreover, in spring 200 BC the tribe XIV. Attalis, named after Attalus I, is created following the same scheme used for the creation of the Egyptian Phyle: each tribe contributes a deme and a new deme, Apollonieis, is created in honour of Apollonis, wife of Attalus I of Pergamum.As a consequence we have again 12 tribeas and 600 members of the Boule.
From this period there are no more quotas assigned to the demes for the 50 Boule members of each tribe
Fifth period: 126/127 – third century
The last modification is the creation in 126/127 of XV. Hadrianis, named after Hadrian following the same scheme: each tribe contributes a deme and a new deme, Antinoeis is created in honour of Hadrian's favorite, Antinous.More over each tribe contributes 40 members to the Boule.
Representation in the Boule
In the first three periods there it a more detailed system of fixed quotas which essentially remained unchanged. There is no evidence for a single general reapportionment of quotas within each of the first three periods, while there are evident small quota-variations between the first and the second periods.More precisely in:
As regards the last two periods, the material illustrates the complete collapse of the quota-system from 201/200 BC.
Spurious and Late Roman demes
Some deme lists suggest to extend the 139+3 list adding 43 other names some of which have been considered by scholars as attic demes. The criticism performed by John S. Traill shows that 24 are the result of error, ancient or modern, or of misinterpretation and 19 are well known chiefly from inscriptions of the second and third centuries after Christ, i.e. in the fifth period, and thus for political purposes they were originally dependent on legitimate cleisthenic demes.Homonymous and divided demes
There are 6 pairs of homonymous demes:- Halai Araphenides and Halai Aixonides
- Oion Dekeleikon and Oion Kerameikon
- Eitea: there were two demes of that name, but no modifier is known. One is associated to V.Acamantis, later XI.Antigonis and XV.Hadrianis; the other is associated to X.Antiochis
- Oinoe and Oinoe: again no modifier is known; one deme was associated to VIII.Hippothontis, later XII.Demetrias and XIII.Ptolemais; the other was associated to IX.Aiantis, later XIV.Attalis and XV.Hadrianis.
- Kolonai: again no modifier is known; one deme was associated to IV.Leontis; the other to X.Antiochis, later XI.Antigonis and XIII.Ptolemais.
- Eroiadai: again no modifier is known for these two demes associated to VIII.Hippothontis and X.Antiochis.
- Agryle, Upper Agryle and Lower Agryle ; one of them, but there is no prosopographical information for identifying which, was transferred to XI.Antigonis and went back at the end of the Macedonanian period; later one of them was transferred to XIV.Attalis.
- Lamptrai, Upper Lamptrai and Coastal/Lower Lamptrai ; Upper Lamptrai was transferred to XI.Antigonis and went back at the end of the Macedonanian period.
- Pergase, Upper and Lower ; one of them was transferred to XI.Antigonis and went back at the end of the Macedonanian period.
- Ankyle: no special designations of either section are preserved, although they are presumed to have the regular Upper and Lower forms. One section, perhaps Upper Ankale, was transferred to XI.Antigonis and went back at the end of the Macedonanian period.
- Paiania, Upper Paiania and Lower Paiania ; Upper Paiania, was transferred to XI.Antigonis and went back at the end of the Macedonanian period.
- Potamos has three sections, Upper Potamos, Lower Potamos and Potamos Deiradiotes ; during the Macedonanian period, Potamos Deiradiotes belonged to XI.Antigonis and Lower Potamos to XII.Demetrias
List of Athenian demes according to tribes/phylai (φυλαί)
The ten Cleisthenic tribes
- Erechtheïs
- Aigeis
- Pandionis
- Leontis
- Akamantis
- Oeneïs
- Kekropis
- Hippothontis
- Aiantis
- Antiochis
The Macedonian tribes
- Antigonis
Deme Former phyle Trittys # # Lower Agryle Erachtheis city 3 3 Upper Lamptrai Erachtheis coast 5 5 Lower Pergase Erachtheis inland 2 2 Upper Ankyle Aigeis city 1 1 Ikarion Aigeis inland 5 6 Kydathenaion Pandionis city 12 12 Kytheros Pandionis inland 2 2 Upper Paiania Pandionis inland 1 1 Aithalidai Leontis inland 2 2 Deiradiotai Leontis coast 2 2 Potamos Deiradiotes Leontis coast 2 2 Eitea Akamantis inland 2 2 Auridai Hippothontis coast 1 1 Kolonai Antiochis inland 2 2 - Demetrias
Deme Former phyle Trittys # # Diomeia Aigeis city 1 1 Oion Kerameikon Leontis city 1 1 Lower Potamos Leontis coast 1 2 Hagnous Akamantis inland 5 5 Poros Akamantis coast 3 3 Hippotomadai Oineis city 1 1 Kothokidai Oineis coast 2 2 Phyle Oineis coast 2 6 Daidalidai Kekropis city 1 1 Melite Kekropis city 7 7 Xypete Kekropis city 7 7 Koile Hippothontis city 3 3 Oinoe Hippothontis coast 2 2 Atene Antiochis coast 3 4 Thorai Antiochis coast 4 5
The later tribes
- Ptolemais
Deme Former phyle Trittys # # # Kolonai Antigonis inland 2 2 2 Oinoe Demetrias coast 2 2 2 Themakos Erechteis city 1 1 1 Kydantidai Aigeis inland 1 1 1 Konthyle Pandionis inland 1 1 1 Hekale Leontis inland 1 1 1 Prospalta Akamantis inland 5 5 5 Boutadai Oineis city 1 1 1 Phlya Kekropis inland 6 9 9 Oion Dekeleikon Hippothontis inland 3 3 3 Aphidna Aiantis inland 16 16 16 Aigilia Antiochis coast 6 7 7 Berenikidai new 1 - Attalis
Deme Former phyle Trittys # # # Lower Agrile Erechteis city 3 3 3 Ikarion Aigeis inland 5 6 6 Probalinthos Pandionis coast 5 5 5 Sounion Leontis coast 4 6 6 Oion Dekailekon Ptolemais inlamd 3 3 3 Hagnous Akamantis inland 5 5 5 Tyrmeidai Oineis city 1 1 1 Athmonon Kekropis inland 6 10 10 Korydallos Hippothontis city 3 3 3 Oinoe Aiantis coast 4 4 6 Atene Antiochis coast 3 4 4 Apollonieis new - Hadrianis
Deme Former phyle Trittys # # # Pambotadai Erechteis coast 1 1 2 Phegaia Aigeis coast 3 3 4 Oa Pandionis inland 4 4 4 Skambonidai Leontis city 3 4 4 Aphidna Ptolemais inlamd 16 16 16 Eitea Akamantis inland 2 2 2 Thria Oineis coast 7 8 8 Daidalidai Kekropis city 1 1 1 Elaious Hippothontis coast 1 1 1 Trikorynthos Aiantis coast 3 3 6 Besa Antiochis coast 2 2 2 Oinoe Attalis coast 4 4 6 Antinoeis new
The ten tribes of [Thurii]
When the city was settled under the support of Pericles and the command of Lampon and Xenocritus the population was organized in ten tribes, following the Athenian organization: there were tribes for the population of 1. Arcadia, 2. Achaea, 3. Elis, 4. Boeotia, 5. Delphi, 6. Dorians, 7. Ionians, 8. population of Euboea, 9. the islands and 10. Athenians.Later usage
The term "deme" survived into the Hellenistic and Roman eras. By the time of the Byzantine Empire, the term was used to refer to one of the four chariot racing factions, the Reds, the Blues, the Greens and the Whites.In modern Greece, the term dēmos is used to denote the municipalities.