An ancient region of the Balkan Peninsula on the Adriatic coast. Occupied in prehistoric times by an Indo-European-speaking people, the area became the Roman province of Illyricum after the final conquest of the Illyrians in 35-33 B.C. The name was revived by Napoleon for the provinces of Illyria (1809-1815) and retained for the kingdom of Illyria, a division of Austria from 1816 to 1849.