Xanthos
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{{for|the logographer|Xanthus (historian)}}
{{Infobox World Heritage Site
| WHS = [[Xanthos]]-[[Letoon]]
| Image = [[Image:Reconstruction Nereid Monument BM.jpg|300px|Xanthos Tombs]]
| State Party = {{TUR}}
| Type = Cultural
| Criteria = ii, iii
| ID = 484
| Region = [[List of World Heritage Sites in Europe|Europe and North America]]
| Year = 1988
| Session = 12th
| Link = http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/484
}}
'''Xanthos''' ([[Lycian language|Lycian]]: ''Arñna'', [[Greek language|Greek]]: Ξάνθος) was the name of a city in ancient [[Lycia]], the site of present day [[Kınık,Antalya|Kınık]], [[Turkey]], and of the river on which the city is situated. In early sources, "Xanthos" is used synonymously for Lycia as a whole.
The site has been on the [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]]s list since [[1988]].
==The City==
[[Image:DSC04194.JPG|100px|Xanthos City Ruins|thumb|left|Xanthos City Ruins|Xanthos City Ruins]]
Xanthos is the Greek appellation of the name of the city of Arñna, of Lycian origin. The [[Hittites|Hittite]] and [[Luwian]] name of the city is given as [[Arinna]]. The [[Roman Republic|Roman]]s called the city Xanthus, as all the [[Greek language|Greek]] -os suffixes were changed to -us in [[Latin]]. Xanthos was a center of culture and commerce for the Lycians, and later for the Persians, Macedonians, Greeks, and Romans who in turn conquered the city and occupied the adjacent territory.
Xanthos is mentioned by numerous ancient Greek and Roman writers. [[Strabo]] notes Xanthos as the largest city in Lycia. Both [[Herodotus]] and [[Appian]] describe the conquest of the city by [[Harpagus]] on behalf of the [[Persian Empire]], in approximately [[540 BC]]. According to Heredotus, the Persians met and defeated a small Lycian army in the flatlands to the north of the city. After the encounter, the Lycians retreated into the city which was besieged by Hapargus. The Lycians destroyed their own Xanthos acropolis, killed their wives, children, and slaves, then proceeded on a suicidal attack against the superior Persian troops. Thus, the entire population of Xanthos perished but for 80 families who were absent during the fighting.
During the Persian occupation, a local leadership was installed at Xanthos, which by [[520 BC]] was already minting its own coins. By [[516 BC]], Xanthos was included in the first [[Prefectures of Greece|nomos]] of [[Darius I]] in the tribute list. Xanthos' fortunes were tied to Lycia's as Lycia changed sides during the [[Greco-Persian Wars]], archeological digs demonstrate that Xanthos was destroyed in approximately [[475 BC]]-[[470 BC]], whether by the [[Athens|Athenian]] [[Kimon]] or by the Persians is open to debate. As we have no reference to this destruction in either Persian or Greek sources, some scholars attribute the destruction to natural or accidental causes.
In the final decades of the [[5th century BC]], Xanthos conquered nearby [[Telmessos]] and incorporated it into Lycia.
Reports on the city's surrender to [[Alexander the Great]] differ: [[Arrian]] reports a peaceful surrender, but [[Appian]] claims that the city was sacked. After Alexander's death, the city changed hands among his rival heirs; [[Diodorus]] notes the capture of Xanthos by [[Ptolemy I Soter]] from [[Antigonos]]. Appian, [[Dio Cassius]], and [[Plutarch]] each report that city was once again destroyed in the [[Roman Civil War]]s, circa [[42 BC]], by [[Brutus]], but Appian notes that it was rebuilt under [[Mark Antony]]. Remains of a Roman [[amphitheater]] remain on the site. [[Marinos]] reports that there was a school of grammarians at Xanthos in late antiquity.
The [[archeology|archeological]] excavations at Xanthos have yielded many texts in [[Lycian]] and Greek, including several bilingual texts that are useful in the decipherment of Lycian.
==The River Xanthos==
[[Image:KinikRiver.JPG|100px|Xanthos(Kinik) River|thumb|right|Xanthos (Kinik) River in 2007]] Strabo reports the original name of the river as Sibros or Sirbis. During the Persian invasion the river is called Sirbe which means "yellow" like the Greek word "xanthos", which also means yellow. The river usually has a yellow hue because of the soil in the alluvial base of the valley. Today the site of Xanthos overlooks the modern Turkish village of Kınık.
A Greek legend is that the river was created by the birth pangs of [[Leto]], whose temple, at the [[Letoon]], is on the west bank of the river a few kilometers south of Xanthos. The Letoon has been excavated in the 20th century, and has yielded numerous Lycian, Greek, and [[Aramaic]] texts. A notable trilingual text, known as the [[Letoon trilingual]], in all three languages was found and has been found to contain a reference to king [[Artaxerxes]]. The Letoon has been designated as a [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]].
==Xanthos of the Iliad==
Xanthos is the name given to the river God, (known as [[Scamander]] or Skamandros to mortals) who attempts to drown [[Achilles]] in book XXI of the [[Iliad]].
Also in the Iliad, [[Balius and Xanthus|Xanthos]] is the name of one of Achilles' semi-divine horses who, when rebuked for the death of [[Patroklos]], reminds Achilles of his pre-destined demise.
==External links==
{{commonsCat|Xanthos}}
* [http://www.hst.ulaval.ca/xanthos/eng/index_eng.html Canadian Epigraphic Mission at Xanthos-Letoon], website of the research project on Xanthos by [[Université du Québec à Montréal]] and [[Université Laval]], including downloadable published works
* [http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/fr/actions-france_830/archeologie_1058/les-carnets-archeologie_5064/orient-ancien_5067/turquie-xanthos-letoon_5577/index.html French Archaeological Mission of Xanthos-Letoon], general information on the archaeological work conducted on the site (French)
* [http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/484 UNESCO: Xanthos-Letoon]
*[http://www.thegocek.com Gocek Informations Centre (www.thegocek.com)]
* [http://www.turkeyodyssey.com/articles/xanthos.html Information about Xanthos]
==Sources==
* [[Trevor R. Bryce]], The Lycians, vol. I, pp. 12-27
* Stabo, 14.3.6
* Herodotus, 1.176
* Appian, bell. civ., 4.10.76-80, 5.1.7
* Arrian, anab. 1.24.4
* Diodorus 20.27.1
* Dio Cassius, 47, 34.1-3
* Plutarch, Brutus 30-31
* Marinos, vita Procli 6-8
* Quintus Smyrn. 11.22-26
{{World Heritage Sites in Turkey}}
{{coor title dm|36|20|N|29|19|E|}}
[[Category:Ancient Greek cities]]
[[Category:World Heritage Sites in Turkey]]
[[Category:Lycia]]
[[Category:Antalya|Xanthos]]
[[Category:Turkish Riviera]]
[[ca:Xanthos (ciutat)]]
[[da:Xanthos]]
[[de:Xanthos (Stadt)]]
[[es:Janto (ciudad)]]
[[fr:Xanthe (ville)]]
[[gl:Xanthos]]
[[ko:크산토스]]
[[it:Xanthos]]
[[he:קסנתוס]]
[[ja:クサントス]]
[[pl:Ksantos (miasto)]]
[[pt:Xanthos]]
[[tr:Ksantos]]