Geography and Demography of Salamis: Quantifying a Kingdom of the Cypro-Classical Period

Gennadiou estimates the territory, population and food supply of the kingdom and city of Salamis in the Cypro-Classical period, concentrating on the later fifth and first half of the fourth century BCE. Literary, epigraphic, numismatic and archaeological evidence is combined with demographic and agricultural models, in sections on the territory, the population of the kingdom, the population of the city, and the wheat the territory could produce.

The territory is reconstructed from neighbouring polities, secondary towns and extra-urban sanctuaries. Gennadiou proposes that Salamis controlled the central, north-eastern and eastern parts of Cyprus, about three tenths of the island, and treats the evidence for some boundaries and smaller settlements as provisional (pp. 355–360).

The population estimate starts from reported fleets and army sizes, above all those of Evagoras, with assumptions about ship crews, military service ages and exemptions. The Model West demographic framework then converts the military-age population into totals for the kingdom and the urban centre (pp. 361–368). The wheat estimate uses literary evidence for grain consumption and export, comparative figures for consumption and crop yield, and nineteenth-century figures for Cyprus to calculate consumption needs, seed reserves and the land required for cultivation. Gennadiou cautions that the demographic and agricultural figures rest on models and assumptions, rather than direct measurement.