Apollas Ponticus (Ἀπολλᾶς ὁ Ποντικός) was a Hellenistic historian of the 3rd century BCE. The epithet “Ponticus” indicates an origin from the Pontus region on the Black Sea. He is known solely as the author of a single historical work, and no further biographical details survive [1].

His only known work is On the Thessalians (Περὶ Θετταλῶν), a regional history or ethnography of Thessaly. The work is not extant and survives only in fragments preserved by later authors, primarily the geographer Strabo and the Byzantine compiler Stephanus of Byzantium [1].

Apollas Ponticus is a minor, fragmentary historian whose significance lies in his later use as a source. The preserved fragments offer glimpses into Thessalian myths, historical figures, and place names [1]. He is representative of the Hellenistic local historians (Horographoi or Ktiseis) who compiled regional histories, which were later mined by compilers for antiquarian and geographical detail, illustrating the transmission of local traditions in this period [1].

Sources 1. ToposText: Apollas Ponticus (https://topostext.org/people/1500)