An island in the Ionian Sea off the coast of Akarnania.
During the Trojan War, the Achaian (Achaean) soldiers from the island of Doulichion and the islands called the Ekhinai (Echinae) were commanded by Meges.
1) There are numerous opinions as to the "real" location of ancient Doulichion but I prefer to believe the modern island of Lefkada is in fact Homer's Doulichion. An argument put forth by J. V. Luce in his 1998 book Celebrating Homer's Landscapes; Troy and Ithaca Revisited makes a convincing case for Lefkada being Doulichion. He quotes passages from the Odyssey and Iliad indicating the size and location of Homer's Doulichion, which only modern Lefkada can satisfy. As examples—the 54 suitors from Doulichion wanting to marry Penelope outnumbered the suitors from any other place, thereby establishing Doulichion as a large island. Also, Doulichion was consistently grouped with the islands known as the Ekhinai (Echinae) and there is no mystery as to their location near the coast of Akarnania (Acarnania).
2) The geographer Strabo identified Doulichion as the island of Dolicha, which was part of the Oxeiai. Although Strabo was an astute and well-read man, I find it difficult to think of Doulichion as a small island.
3) A modern book (Odysseus Unbound by Robert Bittlestone, 2005,) insists that Ithaca was ancient Doulichion. The case is presented suggesting the island of Samos was once two islands, the western-most being ancient Ithaka.
| References: Homer, Iliad book 2, lines 625, 629 Homer, Odyssey book 1, line 246 book 9, line 24 book 9, line 24 book 15, line 299 book 16, lines 123, 247, 396 book 18, lines 127, 395, 424 book 19, line 131 |