The paper discusses how postcolonial approaches might be applied to the archaeology of the Ionian Coast in southern Italy during the Classical and Hellenistic periods. Until now, postcolonial approaches here have been limited largely to so-called « mixed settlements » of the 7th century BC and, to a lesser degree, to the Imperial period. However, postcolonial approaches might also be useful for a better understanding of the Classical and Hellenistic periods, as the author argues. The paper emphasises the role of subaltern and marginalised groups within the scope of postcolonial criticism, and tries to identify such groups in the archaeological and ephigraphical evidence. Furthermore, the author discusses if and how marginalisation and subalternity led to the formation of hybrid identities, for example in the case of rural populations.