Mira (antik kent)

( Myra )

Description

Myra (; Ancient Greek: Μύρα, Mýra) was a city in Lycia. The city was probably founded by Lycians on the river Myros (Ancient Greek: Μύρος; Turkish: Demre Çay), in the fertile alluvial plain between, the Massikytos range (Turkish: Alaca Dağ) and the Aegean Sea. By the 3rd century BC the city was Hellenized. Following the wars of the diadochi the area came under the loose control of the Ptolemies, the Seleucids, and finally the Romans.

The region remained under Roman control until it was conquered by the Seljucks and later the Ottomans. During the Ottoman rule the small Turkish town of Kale was established in the area of Myra in the present-day Antalya Province of Turkey. Kale was renamed to Demre in 2005.