This book explores the proposition that the absorption of the Greek world into the Roman empire created a new emphasis upon local identities, much as globalisation does today. Localism became the focal point for complex debates: in some cases, it was complementary with imperial objectives, but in others tension exists. The volume as a whole seeks to add texture & nuance to existing literature on Greek identity, which has tended in recent years to emphasise the umbrella category of the Greek, to the detriment of specific poleis' regional identities. It contributes to the literature on the Romanisation of provinces, by emphasising the dialog between a region's self-identification as a distinct space & its selfawareness as a component of the centrally-governed empire.
List of Illustrations
Notes on the Contributors
Editor's Note
List of Abbreviations
1 Thinking local/ Tim Whitmarsh
2 Imperial identities/ Clifford Ando
3 What is local identity? The politics of cultural mapping/ Simon Goldhill
4 Europa's sons: Roman perceptions of Cretan identity/ Ilaria Romeo
5 The Ionians of Paphlagonia/ Stephen Mitchell
6 Ancestry & identity in the Roman empire/ Christopher Jones
7 Making space for bicultural identity: Herodes Atticus commemorates Regilla/ Maud Gleason
8 Being Termessian: local knowledge & identity politics in a Pisidian city/ Onno Van Nijf
9 Epilogue/ Greg Woolf
Index