Ancient Pirates

Ancient pirates escape with loot and slaves in tow in this illustration.

Corbis Images

Given the number of small islands to hide either in wait for an ambush or after a successful expedition, the Aegean and Mediterranean seas made the perfect incubators for the earliest pirates. The word pirate can be traced back to the Greek word "peiran," meaning "to attack, make a hostile attempt on, try,"

In other words, from its inception, piracy has been equated with daring.

Pirates were so successful during these days that it evolved into an occupation around which formed a community that passed on from generation to generation. Known collectively as "Sea Peoples," given that pirates were typically organized groups of people from diverse backgrounds, these pirates typically targeted vessels belonging to the dominant naval power at the time: Egypt. Some of the earliest historical references to piracy come from Egyptian tablets.

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