City History

While historical accounts by ancient writers like Strabo note that Side was colonized in the 7th century BC by Greek settlers from Cyme (an Aeolian city in western Anatolia), archaeology tells a subtler story.

Long before the Greeks arrived, a native Anatolian population had already put down roots.

The name "Side" itself does not belong to the Greek language.

In the local ancient Anatolian dialect, it translates literally to "Pomegranate"—a fruit that symbolized fertility, life, and abundance.

The early Greek settlers integrated so thoroughly into the local population that they actually forgot their native Greek tongue.

They adopted the indigenous language, known today as Sidece (Sidetic). To this day, the language remains largely undeciphered, preserved only on a handful of inscriptions and ancient silver coins dating from the 5th and 2nd centuries BC that feature a pomegranate alongside the head of the goddess Athena.

Turkish Archaeological News

Side’s strategic geography, featuring a natural harbor perfectly situated along Mediterranean shipping lanes, guaranteed it would attract world conquerors:

Alexander the Great (333 BC): Recognizing the futility of fighting the Macedonian war machine, Side surrendered to Alexander without a single blow.

This began a swift process of intense Hellenization, swapping out the local dialect for Greek and replacing local Anatolian deities with classical Greek gods like Apollo and Athena.

The Diadochi Wars: Following Alexander's death, control of Side bounced back and forth between his warring generals, shifting from the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt to the Seleucid Empire of Syria.

The Clash of Empires (190 BC):

Side found itself at the epicenter of global conflict during the Syrian War. Off the coast of Side, a massive naval battle took place. The Seleucid fleet—commanded by none other than the legendary Carthaginian general Hannibal Barca—was defeated by a combined fleet from Rome and Rhodes.

Despite the Seleucid defeat, Side managed to maintain a high degree of autonomy, flourishing as a premier center of culture, trade, and higher education in the Eastern Mediterranean.

By the 1st century BC, a power vacuum in the region allowed Cilician pirates to turn the Eastern Mediterranean into a lawless territory.

Side made a dangerous, highly lucrative compromise: it became the primary naval base, market, and stronghold for these pirates.

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| THE PIRATE ECONOMY OF ANCIENT SIDE |

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| Cilician Pirates Raid --> Slaves & Loot Brought |

| Mediterranean Shipping To Side's Deep-Water Port |

| | |

| v |

| Massive Public Infrastructure <-- Enormous Revenue Taxed |

| Funded (Theaters, Walls) At Side's Slave Market |

+--------------------------------------------------------------+

Side became the most infamous slave market in the region.

The immense wealth generated by this dark trade funded heavy fortifications and grand public works.

The Romans initially turned a blind eye because the pirates supplied Rome’s elite with a steady stream of domestic slaves. However, when the pirates began raiding Italian shores, Rome sent General Pompey the Great in 67 BC to crush them, bringing Side firmly under Roman administration.

Under Roman rule, particularly after Emperor Augustus reorganized the region in 25 BC, Side transitioned from a pirate den into a legitimate commercial superpower.

Stripped of the slave trade, Side pivoted to the mass export of olive oil and maritime shipping services.

During the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, the city hit its absolute golden age, with a population swelling to over 60,000 residents.

The wealthy merchant elite poured their fortunes into beautifying the city, erecting the classical monuments that draw visitors today:

The Great Theater: A colossal Roman-style theater built on massive arches (rather than carved into a hillside), capable of seating 15,000 spectators for theatrical plays and brutal gladiatorial games.

The Monumental Nymphaeum: A grand, three-story ornamental fountain at the city gates, fed by a complex 30-mile aqueduct system drawing water from the Manavgat River.

The Temples of Apollo and Athena: Positioned right at the edge of the harbor to greet incoming sailors.

Acanthus Cennet Barut Collection

With the rise of the Byzantine Empire in the 4th century AD, Side adapted once more. It embraced Christianity and was designated the metropolitan see (seat of the Bishopric) of Eastern Pamphylia.

Pagan temples were dismantled or repurposed, and grand basilicas were built over ancient foundations.

However, the city's glory was fading. Constant raids by Isaurian highlanders from the nearby Taurus Mountains forced residents to build a smaller, inner defensive wall, abandoning large sectors of the outer city.

The final blows came in the 7th and 8th centuries AD. Arab naval fleets raided and burned the city, disrupting maritime trade.

Combined with severe earthquakes and the progressive silting of its harbor, Side became a ghost town. By the 10th century, the remaining inhabitants packed up and migrated down the coast to Attalia (modern-day Antalya).

For nearly a thousand years, Side lay abandoned.

Winds blew off the Mediterranean, covering the abandoned temples, theaters, and markets in massive sand dunes.

This natural "mummification" paradoxically protected the ruins from being looted for building stones, preserving them for modern eyes.

Side's modern chapter began unexpectedly in 1895.

A group of Turkish Muslim refugees fleeing persecution on the island of Crete arrived at the deserted peninsula. They built a small fishing village directly on top of the ancient ruins, naming it Selimiye.

The village featured a unique architectural symbiosis: single and two-story Ottoman-style houses with wooden balconies built right over Roman walls and mosaic floors.

In 1947, systematic archaeological excavations began under the leadership of Turkish scholars, gradually brushing away centuries of sand.

Recognizing the priceless historical value of the site, the Turkish government transformed the core peninsula into a protected archaeological zone. Today, Side functions as a rare hybrid space—a living, breathing modern coastal town nested securely inside the skeletal remains of an ancient Mediterranean superpower.