Apollonia (Ancient Greek, Koine Greek: Ἀπολλωνία, ἡ; city-ethnic: Ἀπολλωνιάτης, Apolloniates; ; or Apolonia) was an Ancient Greek trade colony which developed into an independent polis, and later a Roman city, in southern Illyria. It was located on the right bank of the Aoös/Vjosë river, approximately 10 km from the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. Its ruins are situated in the county of Fier, close to the village of Pojan, in Albania. Apollonia was founded around 600 BC by Ancient Greek colonists from Corinth and possibly Corcyra as a trading settlement after an invitation by local Illyrians on a largely abandoned coastal site. It was perhaps the most important of the several classical towns known as Apollonia. Corinthian colonial policy seems to have been relatively liberal, and was more focused towards resource extraction so as to support the growing Corinthian population, rather than exploitation or expulsion of the local Illyrian population. Apollonia gradually gained political independence from Corinth and was organized as a polis under an oligarchic system. According to Aristotle, In Apollonia's oligarchy, a small Greek elite class largely descended from the original colonists ruled over a largely local Illyrian population. Apollonia flourished in the Roman period. From the 2nd century BC it became an important military staging ground for the Roman armies. It was home to a renowned school of philosophy, acquiring fame as a cultural center, and by the end of the Republican period it became a major center of Greek learning. The reputation of Apollonia attracted many brilliant students from different parts of the empire, including Augustus, the first Roman emperor. The city began to decline in the 3rd century AD when its harbor started silting up as a result of an earthquake. It was abandoned in the 4th century AD. The name of the city is mentioned among the modern bishoprics of the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania (Apollonia and Fier). Apollonia is also a titular see of the Latin Church. The ruins were designated as an archaeological park on 7 April 2003 by the government of Albania. Name The settlement was initially known as Gylakeia () after its founder, Gylax. Apart from one inscription and a mention by Stephanus of Byzantium there is no other information which has been preserved about him. Gylax may have been a tyrant closely linked to the ruling dynasty of Corinthian tyrant Periander. The decision to change the name