Trittys
The trittyes /ˈtrɪti.iːz/ (Ancient Greek: τριττύες trittúes), singular trittys /ˈtrɪtɪs/ (τριττύς trittús) were the way that population was separated in ancient Attica, and is commonly thought to have been established by the reforms of Cleisthenes in 508 BC. The name means "third", owing to the fact that there were three regions in each trittyes. There were thirty trittyes and ten tribes (though before Cleisthenes, there were four tribes) named after local heroes in Attica[1]. Trittyes were composed of one or more demes; demes were the basic unit of division in Attica, which were smaller units of population.
Cleisthenes
Cleisthenes is credited with changing the way the Athenians were organized, changing the original four tribes (based on family relations) into ten according to residence, and forming each of the 139 demes (subdivisions of smaller city-states) into three groups of trittyes [2]. This orthodox position has been justified through noting "the extraordinary absence of change and modification in the system from the fourth century onwards, once we have the evidence to appreciate it"[3]. However, this is criticised through the observation that, "the fifth century is lacking the necessary evidence for a great deal".[4] Certain scholars go further in saying that they, "cannot believe that the system of trittyes attested in the 4th century bouleutic inscriptions was the original Kleisthenic system"[5].Each tribe was composed of three trittyes, which included one from the coast (paralia), one from the city (asty), and one from the inland area (mesogeia)[2].
Function and Layout
The trittyes were the larger denomination of tribes (phylai) in Ancient Attica, and were formed by the demes that were near each other. The trittyes were often unequal in size and, with that, representation[6]. The amount of representation for each trittys ranged from some areas having twenty-seven representatives (such as Coastal Antiochis), and some areas having only nine representatives/councilors (such as the city section of Aiantis), with others not having much more; the amount of representation for each group does not appear to change drastically over time[6]. Consistently, the city areas tended to have the least amount of representation, and the coastal areas had slightly more than the inland sections[6].
As would make sense, the smaller trittyes had less citizens in them and the larger ones had more, though there are exceptions [7].Individuals in the trittys consisted of resident alien, slaves and citizens (men aged 18 introduced to their respective deme by their father, thus making them a citizen of the trittys)[8]. Therefore, there was the possibility for there to be less citizens than a separate area but more residents in general compared to other areas.
There were two main functions for the trittyes. The first reason is for military organization - grouping areas in order to pull troops from - and the deployment of said military. The second reason is for more of a political organization necessity [9].
References
- Fine, John V.A. The Ancient Greeks: A critical history (Harvard University Press, 1983) ISBN 0-674-03314-0
Traill, John S (1975). The political organization of Attica; a study of the demes, trittyes, and phylai, and their representation in the Athenian Council. Princeton, N.J., American School of Classical Studies at Athens. pp. 70–76.
Footnotes
- ^ Strassler, Robert B (2009). The Landmark Herodotus. Anchor Books. p. 395.
- ^ a b Aristotle (1892). The Constitution of the Athenians. Translated by Poste, Edward. Macmillan. pp. 35–40.
- ^ Whitehead, David. The Demes of Attica, 508/7 -ca. 250 B.C.: A Political and Social Study, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2014. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400857685
- ^ Develin, Bob; Kilmer, Martin (1997). "What Kleisthenes Did". Historia: Zeitschrift für Alte Geschichte. 46 (1): 3–18. ISSN 0018-2311.
- ^ Roessel, David; Hansen, Mogens Herman (1986). "The Athenian Ecclesia: A Collection of Articles 1976-83". The Classical World. 79 (3): 207. doi:10.2307/4349864. ISSN 0009-8418.
- ^ a b c Traill, John S (1975). The political organization of Attica; a study of the demes, trittyes, and phylai, and their representation in the Athenian Council. Princeton, N.J., American School of Classical Studies at Athens. pp. 70–76.
- ^ Traill, John S (1975). The political organization of Attica; a study of the demes, trittyes, and phylai, and their representation in the Athenian Council. Princeton, N.J., American School of Classical Studies at Athens. p. 72.
- ^ Strassler, Robert B (1996). The Landmark Thucydides. Free Press. p. 579.
- ^ Paga, Jessica (2010). Deme Theaters in Attica and the Trittys System. The American School of Classical Studies at Athens.
See Also
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