 Frequently assumed to have been born in Sardis, capital of ancient Lydia, the Suda claims that Alcman was actually a Laconian from Messoa.The compositeness of his dialect may have helped to maintain the uncertainty of his origins, but the many references to Lydian and Asian culture in Alcman's poetry must have played a considerable role in the tradition of Alcman's Lydian origin.Thus Alcman claims he learned his skills from the "strident partridges" ("caccabides"), a bird native to Asia Minor and not naturally found in Greece.