Settlements > Bellegrada
Bellegrada
Background
The name of the city in Albanian is "Berat" or "Berati", which is probably derived from the Old Bulgarian Бѣлградъ or "Bel(i)grad"[citation needed] (Белград, meaning "white city" in the South Slavic languages), under which name it was known in Greek, Bulgarian, Latin and Slavic documents during the High and Late Middle Ages.[citation needed] That name was rendered as Bellegrada (Βελλέγραδα) in Greek.
It is believed to have been the site of an Ancient Macedonian stronghold, "Antipatreia" (Ancient Greek: Ἀντιπάτρεια "city of Antipater") or "Antipatrea" in Latin, while during the early Byzantine Empire the name of the town was "Pulcheriopolis" (Greek: Πουλχεριόπολις, "city of Pulcheria"). In the Republic of Venice the city was known as Belgrad di Romania, while in the Ottoman Empire it was also known as Belgrad-i Arnavud (Albanian Belgrade) to distinguish it from Belgrade.
The earliest recorded inhabitants of the city (6th century BC) were the Greek tribe of the Dassaretae or Dexarioi, the northernmost subgroup of the Chaonians, and the region was known as Dessaretis after them. Modern Berat occupies the site of Antipatreia (Ancient Greek: Αντιπάτρεια), which originally was a settlement of the Dexarioi and later a Macedonian stronghold in southern Illyria. The founding date is unknown, although if Cassander is the founder it has been suggested that Antipatreia was founded after he took control of the region around 314 BC. In 200 BC it was captured by the Roman legatus Lucius Apustius, who razed the walls and massacred the male population of the city.
