Balsa (Roman town) 2005, "Atlas de Balsa e Metodologia arqueo-topográfica", Campo Arqueológico de Tavira, Tavira (PIC) Luís Fraga da Silva: 2011, "Arqueo-topografia de Balsa Romana. Apresentação", "Blog imprompto.blogspot.com" (PIC) Balsa (Roman town) Balsa was a Roman coastal town in the province of Lusitania, Conventus Pacensis (capital Pax Julia). The modern location is in the rural estates of Torre d'Aires, Antas and Arroio, parish of Luz de Tavira, county of Tavira, district of Faro, in Algarve, Southern Portugal. Balsa is a pre-Roman place-name with a probable Phoenician etymology: "B'LŠ...", a possible theonym connected with the older Phoenician occupation of neighbouring Tavira. It is mentioned
Lusitania "a country of waters", a root word that formerly meant a prince or sovereign governor of a region. Ancient Romans, such as Pliny the Elder ("Natural History", 3.5) and Varro (116 – 27 BC, cited by Pliny), speculated that the name "Lusitania" had Roman origins, as when Pliny says "lusum enim Liberi Patris aut lyssam cum eo bacchantium nomen dedisse Lusitaniae et Pana praefectum eius universae" [Lusitania takes its name from the "Lusus" associated with Bacchus and the "Lyssa" of his Bacchantes, and Pan is its governor]. "Lusus" is usually translated as "game" or "play", while "lyssa" is a borrowing