Poeni

Poeni is a term used by scholars to refer to the Phoenician-Punic populations that inhabited parts of the western Mediterranean, most prominently Sardinia, from roughly the 9th to the 2nd centuries BCE. The name, derived from Punici in Latin, identifies communities that arose from Phoenician colonists and established urban trading settlements along the coast and at key inland sites. The Poeni were part of the broader Phoenician expansion centered in the Levant, extending to North Africa and Iberia, and they formed a connected network of ports and towns.

In Sardinia, the Poeni built a number of influential city-states, including Nora, Tharros, Bithia, and Caralis (modern Cagliari). These centers developed as hubs of commerce, craft production, and metallurgy, combining Phoenician-Punic cultural elements with local Sardinian traditions. Archaeological remains preserve a material culture that includes imported goods, distinctive pottery, fortifications, and inscriptions written in a Phoenician-derived script. The Poeni engaged in long-distance trade, dealing in metals, textiles, wine, oil, and other commodities, and they maintained ties with other Punic and Mediterranean communities.

The Poeni lived alongside the indigenous Nuragic population of Sardinia, with evidence of interaction and cultural exchange. Their language, Punic, a variant of Phoenician, persisted for several centuries before gradually yielding to Latin after Roman conquest. The decline of the Poeni as a distinct political and cultural entity occurred as Sardinia became integrated into the Roman Republic following the Punic Wars. Archaeology remains the principal source for reconstructing their settlements, economy, and daily life, while the term Poeni continues to denote these ancient Punic communities in Sardinian and Mediterranean history.