An 'Emporia' was a place which the traders of one nation had reserved to their business interests withing the territory of another nation. Famous emporia include
Sais where
Solon went to acquire the knowledge of
Egypt,
Elim where
Hatshepsut kept her
Red Sea fleet. Elat, where Thebes was supplied with the mortuary materials,
Linen,
Bitumen,
Naptha,
Frankincense,
Myrrh, and carved stone amululets from
Palestine,
Canaan,
Aram,
Lebanon,
Amon,
Hazor,
Moab,
Edom and the Arabian Peninsula from the
Arabia Petra to
Midian and
Punt.
Emporia functioned much like European trading colonies in China.
In
Ancient Greek it refers both to the various
Phoenician city-states and trade outposts in
Northern Africa, Spain, Britain, and the Arabian peninsula. Included in this term are
cities like Gadges,
Carthage,
Lepcis Magna, and
Cyrene among others (although Cyrene was founded by Greeks).
'Emporia' is also a
Latin plural noun meaning places of
trade, markets, etc.
References
★ ''Septimius Severus; The African Emperor'', Anthony R. Birley, pgs. 1-7