Minoa (Greek: Μινώα, romanized: Minóa Greek pronunciation: [miˈnoa]) was the name of several Bronze-Age port cities on the coasts of the Aegean islands Crete, Paros, Siphnos, Amorgos and Corfu in Greece, as well as the Italian island of Sicily.

Its root, min-, is linked to a group of Aegean languages, appearing elsewhere in toponyms like Minya and Minassos, as well as in the name of the Minyans, an autochthonous group inhabiting the Aegean region.

The inhabitants of Crete were named Minoans by Arthur Evans, after the legendary king.

[citation needed] It seems that the Minoans travelled from Crete down to Egypt, Syria and Mari of Euphrates, to Asia Minor (Anatolia) and the Black Sea through the Aegean islands,[5] and to the west up to Lipari (Aeolian islands) to the north of Sicily.

[6] Approximately in 1600 BC the routes to Italy and Asia Minor were gained by the rising Myceneans.