Phoenicia

Phoenicia represents a group of independent coastal city-states located along the eastern Mediterranean, roughly in modern Lebanon and nearby areas. Cities such as Tyre, Sidon, and Byblos were centers of maritime trade, connecting the Levant with the Mediterranean world. Phoenician culture is especially known for shipbuilding, purple dye production, long-distance commerce, and the development and transmission of an alphabet that influenced later writing systems. The term refers to both a geographic region and a shared cultural network rather than a single unified state.