Phocaea (redirected from Phocæa)

Phocaea (fōsē`ə), ancient city, W Asia Minor, N of Smyrna (Izmir), in present Turkey. It was northernmost of the Greek Ionian cities. In the 7th cent. B.C. it grew into a maritime state; its chief colony was Massilia (now Marseilles). In 540 B.C., after a siege by the Persians, most of the inhabitants left, going mainly to Elea in Italy. The city never recovered from the loss. The modern Foça is on the site.

---

Phocaea

Ancient city on the Aegean Sea, northernmost of the Ionian cities on the western coast of Asia Minor (now the Gulf of Izmir, Turkey). An important maritime state c. 1000–550 BC, it founded a number of colonies, including Massilia (Marseille) in the western Mediterranean. It declined after the Persian conquest c. 545 BC. The modern town of Foça is located in an olive- and tobacco-growing region and attracts tourists to the ancient city's ruins.