Venetian rule in the Ionian Islands to south, including their Greek and Italian names in parentheses: Cythera and Lefkada were additionally called ' or ' and " respectively by the Ottomans. During the Roman Empire, the Ionian Islands were variously part of the provinces of Achaea and Epirus vetus. These would form, with the exception of Cythera, the Byzantine theme of Cephallenia in the late 8th century. From the late 11th century, the Ionian Islands became a battleground in the Byzantine–Norman Wars. The island of Corfu was held by the Normans in 1081–1085 and 1147–1149, while the Venetians unsuccessfully besieged it in 1122–1123. The island of
Albanian Ionian Sea Coast to the east, Greece to the south and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. The coastline has a total length of and specifically marked by a mountainous landscape supplied with deep bays, numerous islands, high cliffs, rocky and sandy coasts and a unique marine life. The Ionian Sea is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea positioned south of the Adriatic Sea, which extend from Sicily up to the Strait of Otranto between Salento and Bay of Vlorë. It is bordered by Italy in the west, Greece and Albania in the east. Though considered by ancient authors to be part of