The first natives of the Ancient Phokaia settlement in the place of today's Old Foça are the immigrants who came from the Phokis environs in Greece. Phokaia and its two ports had significantly grown and had become one of the most important harbor-cities of the ancient times. The city lost strength during the Persian rule in West Anatolia. Afterwards, although the city maintained its independent status, the damage caused by the Persians was so devastating that Phokaia never regained its original magnificence.