Illyrians

The Illyrians (/ɪˈlɪəriəns/; Ancient Greek: Ἰλλυριοί; Latin: Illyrii or Illyri) were a group of Indo-European tribes who inhabited part of the western Balkans in antiquity and the south-eastern coasts of the Italian peninsula (Messapia). The territory the Illyrians covered came to be known as Illyria to Greek and Roman authors, corresponding to parts of the former Yugoslavia and Albania, between the Adriatic Sea in the west, the Drava river in the north, the Morava river in the east and the mouth of the Vjosë river in the south. The first account of Illyrian peoples comes from Periplus or Coastal Passage, an ancient Greek text of the middle of the 4th century BC.