Where most of the people who come to Ibiza only care about parties, the island also has a very rich history to explore. As a true Ibiza lover I think it’s important that we also know about this part. So in this blog I’d like to give you some information about the history of the island!
The old history of Ibiza
The Balearic islands arose 8 million years ago, because they were pushed up above sea level by nature. However, the archaeological excavations only go back up to 3000 years ago.
The first people to settle on Ibiza were the Phoenicians in 654 BC. They named Ibiza ‘Ibossim’ to the Egyptian god Bes, which was seen as the god of fun 😉 This name is where the current name of the island comes from.
Greek people also arrived in this period. And there´s been chaos on the island since human history. After invasions the Carthagers took over. Ibiza became important to the Mediterranean, because it was the largest trading place of goods like fish, oil, ceramics, salt etc..
Later followed the Romans (who called Ibiza ‘Ebusus’), Arabic Moors (who called the island ‘Yebisah’) and Christians. At the beginning of the twentieth century Ibiza also suffered from the Spanish Civil War.
And people tried to escape dictator Franco by going to the ‘free’ island Ibiza.
Hippies on Ibiza
Around the 60’s Ibiza became a famous place for ‘hippies’, for example artists. People enjoyed the sun, danced, sang, ate and smoked weed together.
This is the time where Ibiza started to become a party island 😉 After this period the dance scene started to evolve around the 80’s to what it is now.
Dalt Vila & Sa Caleta
To really see the cultural history of the island, the best idea is to go to Ibiza town. The famous ‘Dalt Vila’ – which means ‘high town’ – shows the history perfectly. It’s also often called ‘old town’ as this is the oldest part of Eivissa.
The huge city walls were built in 1554 to protect the island from pirates. This is why there’s also a few cannons here. If you want, you can visit the Dalt Vila Archaeological museum within the city walls.
Another interesting place to visit, on walking distance from the city walls, is the ‘Puig des Molins’ museum. At this museum you can see more of mostly the Phoenician history, with a necropolis (cemetry).
You can also visit the – most likely – first Phoenician settlement in Sa Caleta.
Historical events on Ibiza
So… the island has been occupied several times by different nations and each of them has contributed in some way to the island as it is and looks today. Therefore I think it’s important to know about the past.
If you want to experience more of the history of Ibiza, I recommend to keep an eye out for historical events on the white island (for example the yearly Medieval festival in spring).
Love Mariëlle