city state · Greece and the Aegean
Abdera
Origins
A first settlement at Abdera by Clazomenae c. 654 BCE was driven out by Thracians. Around 545 BCE citizens of Teos, fleeing the Persian general Harpagus, refounded the city on the Thracian coast east of the Nestos river.
Rule and society
Abdera grew rich from trade with the Thracian interior, minting silver coins with a griffin, and paid one of the highest tributes in the Delian League. It produced Democritus, founder of atomism, and the sophist Protagoras. Despite them, Abderites were the butt of Greek jokes about stupidity. The city was later under the influence of the Odrysian Kingdom.
Decline and legacy
Abdera was weakened by Thracian attacks in the 4th century BCE and annexed by Philip II of the Kingdom of Macedon c. 350 BCE. It survived under Macedonian, Ptolemaic and Roman rule as a smaller town.
On the connections map
Open the full map →Connections (3)
- Abdera was part of Achaemenid Empire512 BCE – 479 BCE
- Abdera was part of Delian League478 BCE – 404 BCE
- Abdera was conquered by Macedonian Empire350 BCE
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Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Abdera. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/abdera
- MLA
- “Abdera.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/abdera. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Abdera.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/abdera.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Abdera’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/abdera (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻