Illyria

Ancient name for the eastern coastal region of the Adriatic, north of the Gulf of Corinth. Its three constituent districts were Dalmatia, Iapydia, and Liburnia. It later formed the Roman province of Illyricum. The Albanians are the survivors of its ancient peoples.

Greek colonies were established along the Illyrian coast in the 7th or early 6th century. An Illyrian kingdom, formed about 383 BC, survived until 168 BC when Rome conquered and annexed most of the country after it had sided with Perseus, King of Macedonia (ruled 179–168 BC). The whole of the Illyrian region was formed into the Roman province Illyricum after the final subjugation in AD 9 of Dalmatia (which had become an independent republic 180 BC). Illyrian works of art include the figurative ‘Situla art’ of the 6th century BC, depicting feasting and games.

The ethnological character of Illyria was modified by the Hunnish invasion in the 5th century, and in the 7th century by the Slavonic immigration of Croats and Serbs. Napoleon established the Illyrian provinces as part of his empire. After the Congress of Vienna 1814 the territory went to Austria as the kingdom of Illyria, a title it retained until 1849.