fbpx
Wikipedia

Icaria

Icaria, also spelled Ikaria (Greek: Ικαρία), is a Greek island in the Aegean Sea, 10 nautical miles (19 km) southwest of Samos. According to tradition, it derives its name from Icarus, the son of Daedalus in Greek mythology, who was believed to have fallen into the sea nearby.

Icaria
Ικαρία
View of Agios Kirykos, Ikaria's capital
Icaria
Location within the region
Coordinates: 37°35′N 26°10′E / 37.583°N 26.167°E / 37.583; 26.167Coordinates: 37°35′N 26°10′E / 37.583°N 26.167°E / 37.583; 26.167
CountryGreece
Administrative regionNorth Aegean
Regional unitIkaria
Area
 • Municipality255.3 km2 (98.6 sq mi)
Highest elevation
1,037 m (3,402 ft)
Lowest elevation
0 m (0 ft)
Population
 (2011)[1]
 • Municipality
8,423
 • Municipality density33/km2 (85/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal code
833 xx
Area code(s)22750
Vehicle registrationMO

Administratively, Icaria forms a separate municipality within the Ikaria regional unit, which is part of the North Aegean region. The principal town of the island and seat of the municipality is Agios Kirykos.[2] The historic capitals of the island include Oenoe and Evdilos.

Geography

 
View of mountain range from Kampos, Ikaria

Icaria is one of the middle islands of the northern Aegean, 255.303 square kilometres (98.573 sq mi)[3] in area with 102 miles (164 kilometres) of coastline and a population of 8,312 inhabitants. The topography is a contrast between verdant slopes and barren steep rocks. The island is mountainous for the most part. It is traversed by the Aetheras range, whose highest summit is 1,037 metres (3,402 feet). Most of its villages are nestled in the plains near the coast, with some in the mountains.

Icaria has a tradition of producing strong red wine. Many parts of the island, especially the ravines, are covered in shrubbery, making the landscape lush with green. Aside from domestic and domesticated species such as goats, there are a number of small wild animals to be found, such as martens, European otters, jumping spiders, and green toads. Icaria exhibits a typical Mediterranean climate.

History

 
Evdilos village
 
The town of Fournoi

Icaria has been inhabited since at least 7000 BC, when it was populated by the Neolithic Pelasgians, a blanket term used by the ancient Greeks to refer to all pre-Hellenic peoples inhabiting the Greek region. Around 750 BC, Greeks from Miletus colonized Icaria, establishing a settlement in the area of present-day Campos, which later became the ancient capital city of Oenoe. In antiquity, the island was called Icaria or Ikaria (Ancient Greek: Ἰκαρία), as today; and also Icarus or Ikaros (Ἴκαρος).[4]

Antiquity

Icaria became part of the sea empire of Polycrates during the 6th century BC, and during the 5th century BC, the Icarian cities of Oenoe and Thermae were members of the Athenian-dominated Delian League. During the 2nd century, the island was colonized by Samos.[5] At this time, the Tauropolion,[6] the temple of Artemis was built at Oenoe.

Coins of the city represented Artemis and a bull.[7] There was another, smaller temenos that was sacred to Artemis Tauropolos,[8] at Nas, on the northwest coast of the island.[9]

The sea around Icaria had a fearsome reputation among the Ancients. Homer likened its changeability to a crowd stirred by demagogy: "the gathering was stirred like the long sea-waves of the Icarian main, which the East Wind or the South Wind has raised, rushing upon them from the clouds of father Zeus" (Iliad II, 145), and Horace, too, in the opening of his Odes associates "the African winds as they fight the Icarian waves" with shattered ships (Odes I.i.15–6). The island itself had two associative descriptive epithets: ‘Dolichi' (elongated) and ‘Ichtheoussa' (rich in fish). The name may originally have come from the Phoenician word for fish, ‘ikor', rather than from associations with the mythical Icarus, whose fall was likely associated with the ancient deme of Icaria or Icarion in Attica.[10]

In the later Fabulae ("stories") of Hyginus the Greek versions of myth associated with Melanippe (otherwise Arne) and her sons Boeotus and Aeolus by Poseidon are amended to relate the story of Theano (otherwise Autolyte), wife of Metapontus, a king of Icaria. Metapontus demanded that she bear him children, or leave the kingdom. She presented the exposed twin sons of Melanippe by Neptune to her husband, as if they were her own. Later Theano bore him two sons of her own and, wishing to leave the kingdom to her own children, sent them to kill Melanippe's while out hunting. In the fight that ensued, her two sons were killed, and she committed suicide upon hearing the news.[11] Metapontus later married Melanippe and her two sons founded towns in Propontis called by their names — Boeotia and Aeolia.

Temple of Artemis at Nas

Nas had been a sacred spot to the pre-Hellenic inhabitants of the Aegean, and Nas was an important island port in antiquity, the last stop before testing the dangerous seas around Icaria. It was an appropriate location for sailors to make sacrifices to Artemis Tauropolos, who was a patron of seafarers; here, the goddess was represented in an archaic wooden xoanon.

The temple stood in good repair until the middle of the 19th century when the marble was pillaged, for their local church, by the Kato Raches villagers. In 1939, this church was excavated by the Greek archeologist Leon Politis. During the Axis occupation of Greece during World War II, many of the artifacts that were unearthed by Politis disappeared. Local tales state that the Germans and Italians stole the artifacts. According to local legend, marble artefacts from the temple still lie under the sand of the Nas beach where the temple stood.

In The Anabasis of Alexander, the second-century Greek historian Arrian recorded Aristobulus as saying that Alexander the Great had ordered that Failaka Island in the Persian Gulf should be called Icarus, after Icaria in the Aegean Sea.[12]

 
Map of (N)icaria by Marco Boschini, 1658
 
A church in Agios Kirykos
 
The village of Armenistis

Medieval Era

In the 14th century CE, Icaria was part of the Republic of Genoa's possessions in the Aegean. At some point during this period the Icarians destroyed their own ports to prevent the landing of unwanted visitors. According to local historians, the Icarians, based on their own designs, built seven watchtowers along the coastlines. Once an unknown or enemy vessel appeared, the observers would at once light a fire at the top and run to a tank which was always filled with water. A wooden plug located at the base was pulled, and water would flow. The guards of the other watchtowers were alerted by the fire and repeated the process. In the inner side of each tower's tank are marks identical to the ones measuring volumes in flasks. Each one of these marks was labelled with a different message on it, such as "pirate attack" or "unknown ship approaching". Once the water level reached the mark signifying the appropriate message, the messengers would place the plug back on the tank and put out the fire, so that each of the other towers could decode the size and gravity of the incoming danger. The watchtowers on the island's heights, such as the one in Drakano, were part of the islands' communication network since the time of the Delian League.

At the same time the Icarians rarely built their houses in the form prevalent today. Each house was low, had a single room, a roof of stone slabs, and was distant from neighbouring ones. It had a single low door and the sea-facing side was protected with tall walls, while there was an opening on the roof (locally called the Anefantis). Because a chimney with smoke could betray the house's location, it was often sealed. Smoke was poured through the roof slabs without being visible, while simultaneously clearing the wooden roof supports of insects. Rooms featured the bare necessities, such as a grinding stone and a cauldron. Traditionally, people would sleep on the floor and hide their belongings in the walls. Men and women wore almost the same clothing: sewn woollen skirts for women, a type of fustanella for the men. Later on the vest came to be worn by men and women. This frugal way of living contributed to the famed Icarian longevity and the absence of distinct social classes. Each house was self-sufficient, using the living space around it for the cultivation of the necessary things, women contributed in work and social life. Villages were slowly created by descendants of an original family which gradually spread. Despite the sparse population, societal integrity was large. There were the panigiria (traditional festivals featuring dances, music and consumption of local products), team labor and elder councils who would take the decisions. This unique way of life and architecture was preserved until the end of the 19th century, with many elements surviving until today.

Knights Hospitalier - Ottoman Era

The Knights of St. John, who had their base in Rhodes, exerted some control over Icaria until 1521, when the Ottoman Empire incorporated Icaria into its realm. It was at this time that the problem of piracy reached new heights, where the islanders embraced the tactic of invisibility: they retreated to the island's highlands, hiding their villages and homes. For defence against pirates, aside from this tactic (sparse habitation and hiding of residences) there were watchtowers, various points of concentration and defence (such as plateaus invisible from the sea) and communal hidden supplies to be used in time of need. Their theft was punishable even by death according to the common law of the time. Locals were reported attacking any unwanted visitors on their coastlines, even shipwrecked sailors.

The Icarians lynched the first Turkish tax collector but managed to escape punishment. The oral story in regards to the event talks of an Ottoman Aga, who demanded two locals to carry him on their shoulders atop a seat. The carriers, unable to accept the forcefulness, threw him off a cliff in the Kako Katavasidi area. The Turkish authorities rounded up the population and demanded to know who the perpetrator was, but the answer they received according to legend was "all of us, milord". The Turks realistically determined that there was neither profit nor honour in punishing all.[13]

The Ottomans imposed a very loose administration, not sending any officials to Icaria for several centuries, although in later years they would appoint groups of locals in each village of the island to act as Kodjabashis in order to collect taxes for the empire. The best account that we have of the island during the early years of the Ottoman rule is from the Archbishop J. Georgirenes, who in 1677 described the island as having almost 1,000 hardy, long-lived inhabitants, who were the poorest people in the Aegean.[14]

Without a decent port —the local population destroyed the island's ports long ago to protect themselves from pirate raids— Icaria depended for its very limited intercourse with the outside world upon small craft that were drawn up on the beaches. Icarian boat-makers had a good reputation for building boats from the island's fir forests. Then they sold boats and lumber for coin and grain in nearby Chios. The inshore waters of the island, as told by Georgirenes, provided the best cockle shellfish in the archipelago. Over the centuries, Ikaria would also become renowned for its charcoal, which became known as Carbon Cariot (Ikarian Charcoal).[15]

Goats and sheep roamed virtually untended in the rocky landscape. Cheeses were made for consumption in every household. Icaria in the 17th century was unusual in the archipelago in not producing any wine for export. The people kept barrels of the wine for their own drinking. They also continued to store it in the old-fashioned way prevalent since the Bronze Age, in terracotta pithoi containers sunk to their rims in earth, thus protecting their supplies from both tax collectors and pirates.

Apart from three small towns, none of which exceeded 100 houses,[16] and numerous village settlements, each house had a walled orchard and a garden plot. Unlike the closely built towns of Samos, the hardy inhabitants lived separately in fortified unfurnished farmsteads.

In 1827, during the Greek War of Independence, Icaria broke away from the Ottoman Empire, but was not included in the narrow territory of the original independent Greece, and it was forced to accept Ottoman rule once more a few years later.[17]

 
George N. Spanos, Hero of the Ikarian Revolution

Free State of Icaria

Free State of Icaria
Ελευθέρα Πολιτεία Ικαρίας
1912–1912
 
Flag
Anthem: Anthem of Ikaria (Konstantinos Psachos/Fragiskos Carrer)[18]
CapitalAgios Kirykos
Common languagesGreek
Religion
Greek Orthodox
GovernmentRepublic
• President
Ioannis Malachias
History 
• Established
18 July 1912
• Disestablished
4 November 1912
Preceded by
Succeeded by
 
Bust of Ioannis Malachias, leader of the Icarian revolution; Agios Kirikos, Icaria
 
Flag of the Free State of Ikaria with commemorative writing and date.

Icaria remained part of the Ottoman Empire until 17 July 1912, when the Icarians expelled the Turkish garrison and thereby achieved independence.[17] After its independence and the outbreak of the First Balkan War, Icaria's sole "warship", the Cleopatra, was used to provide food and supplies to the islands of Samos and Chios, which were captured by the Greek Navy during the war.

George N. Spanos (c. 1872–1912) of Evdilos, killed in a Turkish ambush on 17 July 1912, is honoured as the hero of the Icarian Revolution. His bust, depicting him defiantly, with bandoliers on his body and rifle in hand, may be seen at the memorial established in his honour at the site of his death located in the Icarian town of Chrysostomos.

 
Memorial in honour of George N. Spanos; Chrysostomos, Icaria

On 18 July 1912, the Free State of Icaria (Ελευθέρα Πολιτεία Ικαρίας, Elefthéra Politía Ikarías) was declared. The neighboring islands of Fournoi Korseon were also liberated and became part of the Free State. Ioannis Malachias (Ιωάννης Μαλαχίας) was the first and only president of the Free State of Icaria.[17]

For five months, it remained an independent country, with its own government, armed forces, national flag, coat of arms, postage stamps, and national anthem. These five months were difficult for the island's economy. There were food shortages and they were at risk of becoming part of the Italian Dodecanese.[17] On 4 November 1912, after a delay due to the Balkan Wars, Icaria officially became part of the Kingdom of Greece. The Ottoman Empire recognized Greece's annexation of Icaria and the other Aegean islands in the Treaty of London (1913).

Second World War

The island suffered losses in property and lives during the Second World War as the result of the Italian and then German occupation. There are no exact figures on how many people starved, but in the village of Karavostamo alone over 100 perished from starvation.

"Red Rock"

After the ravages of the war the nationalists and communists fought in the Greek Civil War (1946–49), and the Greek government used the island to exile about 13,000 communists. To this date, the majority of the locals have remained sympathetic to left parties and communism, and, for this reason, Icaria is referred to by some as the "Red Rock" (Κόκκινος Βράχος, Kokkinos Vrahos).[19][20]

In his analysis, "Rebels and Radicals; Icaria 1600–2000", historian Anthony J. Papalas (East Carolina University) examines modern Icaria in the light of such 20th-century questions as poverty, emigration to America, the nature of the Axis occupation, the rise of Communism, the Greek Civil War, and the rightwing reaction to radical postwar movements.

Modern era

The quality of life improved greatly after 1960, when the Greek government began to invest in the infrastructure of the island to assist in the promotion of tourism. Today, Icaria is considered one of the world's five "Blue zones" – places where the population regularly lives to an advanced age (one in three make it to their 90s).[21] This is due to healthy diet, lifestyle, and genetics.[22] The Ikaria Study, published in 2011, sought to understand the factors that contributed to longevity.

Demographics

The inhabitants of the island are known as Icarians or Icariots. (Greek: Ικαριότες, Ikariótes).

An Icarian diaspora is found throughout Greece, specifically on Thimena and Fournoi Korseon, as well as in Athens, where a large community is found. The people of Icarian diaspora can be found throughout the world, mainly in Australia, the United States, Canada, Egypt and the United Kingdom.[23]

Icarian Greeks are closely related to other Aegean island Greeks, such as Greeks from Samos, Chios, Fournoi Korseon, and Patmos, as well as Greeks from Anatolia.

Municipality

 
A street in Raches village

The present municipality Ikaria was formed in the 2011 local government reform by the merger of the following three former municipalities, that became municipal units:[2]

Subdivisions

The municipal units Agios Kirykos, Evdilos and Raches are subdivided into the following communities (constituent villages in brackets):

Agios Kirykos

  • Agios Kirykos (Agios Kirykos, Therma Ikarias, Katafygio, Lardades, Mavrato, Koundouma, Mavrikato, Xylosyrtis, Oxea, Tsouredes, Faros)
  • Perdiki (Perdiki, Kioni, Mileopo, Monokampi, Ploumari)
  • Chrysostomos (Chrysostomos, Vardarades, Vaoni, Livadi, Plagia)

Evdilos

  •  
    Evdilos (Evdilos, Kambos, Agia Kyriaki, Droutsoulas, Kerameio, Kyparissi, Xanthi, Fytema)
  • Arethousa (Arethousa, Kyparissi, Pera Arethousa, Foinikas)
  • Dafni (Dafni, Akamatra, Kosoikia, Petropouli, Steli)
  • Karavostamo
  • Manganitis (Manganitis, Kalamonari)
  • Frantato (Frantato, Avlaki, Kalamourida, Kampos, Kremasti, Maratho, Pigi, Stavlos)

Raches

  • Raches (Christos, Agios Dimitrios, Armenistis, Vrakades, Kares, Nas or Kato Raches, Kouniadoi, Mavriannos, Nanouras, Xinta, Proespera, Profitis Ilias, Tsakades)
  • Agios Polykarpos (Agios Polykarpos, Agios Panteleimonas, Gialiskari, Kastanies, Lapsachades, Lomvardades, Mandria)
  • Karkinagri (Karkinagri, Amalo, Kalamos, Lagkada, Pezi, Trapalo)

Museums

 
Icaria's interior is mountainous, with the population mainly living around the coast. Agios Kirykos and Evdilos are the two ports serviced by passenger ferries, which are Icaria's main transport links to the rest of Greece.

Archeological Museum of Kampos The Archaeological Museum, located in the village of Kambos, stands on a hill which was once the ancient fortress of Oinoe, and is immediately next to Agia Irini, Ikaria's oldest church. The museum contains over 250 artifacts, including Neolithic tools, pottery vessels, clay statuettes, columns, coins, and carved headstones.

Archeological Museum of Agios Kirikos Housed in the former lycee of Agios Kirikos, which was built by immigrant Ikarians living in America, the recently renovated neoclassical building dating to 1925 is the home of Ikaria's Archeological Museum as of 2014. This listed building will house all of Ikaria's most relevant finds and highlight the history and culture of the island in the facilities of a modern museum and research/conservation center.

Complete with multimedia displays and films dedicated to the Myth of Ikaros and the ancient citadel of Drakano, the museum presents Ikaria's archeological findings and relates to the visitor an understanding of the cultural, commercial and social development of the settlements of ancient Ikaria throughout the course of the island's history.

Folk & Historical Museum Of Agios Kirikos Located in Agios Kirikos, The Folk & History Museum of Agios Kirikos in Ikaria was launched in July 2010, and is the result of the long efforts by Professor Themistocles Katsaros. Its mission is to preserve and promote Ikarian folklore, traditions and customs through its display of over 1,500 objects that reflect the history and heritage of Ikaria and its inhabitants. The museum exhibits items of cultural importance from the island, including dresses, textiles, household articles, pottery, agriculture and trade tools & instruments, photos, documents and many other objects.

Of particular interest amongst the items displayed in the museum is the flag of the Free State of Ikaria (1912). Some of the exhibits have been organised thematically and chronologically, so that objects and images give visitors an idea of social and economic life in Ikaria from the 18th century to the 1970s, when traditional life still continued in the region.

Folklore Museum Of Vrakades The Folklore Museum of Vrakades is located in the scenic village of Vrakades, 650 meters above sea level on the north-western side of the island. The village was founded in the 17th century and contains old stone houses and captains' villas of architectural note. The museum houses an interesting collection of items related to the history and people of the region. Of particular interest are documents and memorabilia from the Free State of Ikaria.

Other exhibits include various clay and wooden objects used by housewives, beekeepers, and farmers, ecclesiastical relics from Profit Elias in Vrakades and the convent of Evagelistrias Mavrianou, books by Ikarian writers, Ikarian records and documents over 500 years old. Of note is the cutter, "lanari" in Greek, used for the processing of wool and goat hairs from which the modest local clothing was made, the "lisgos", a simple tool used for making ropes, an old digging tool, and many other tools belonging to the first inhabitants of the island.

Notable people connected with Icaria

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Απογραφή Πληθυσμού - Κατοικιών 2011. ΜΟΝΙΜΟΣ Πληθυσμός" (in Greek). Hellenic Statistical Authority.
  2. ^ a b "ΦΕΚ A 87/2010, Kallikratis reform law text" (in Greek). Government Gazette.
  3. ^ (PDF) (in Greek). National Statistical Service of Greece. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-21.
  4. ^   Smith, William, ed. (1854–1857). "Icarus". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography. London: John Murray.
  5. ^ Graham Shipley, A History of Samos, c 800–188 B.C. (Oxford) 1987:205.
  6. ^ Strabo (xiv.1.19) gives the temple name Tauropolion
  7. ^ Barclay V. Head, Historia numorum: a manual of Greek numismatics vol. 2, no. 602, with legend ΟΙ or ΟΙΝΑΙ[ΩΝ], noted by Croon 1961:note 4.
  8. ^ for the aspect of Artemis that was associated with the Tauri, a people living near the Black Sea in the Crimean peninsula, see the article Brauron; that connection underlies the Iphigenia in Aulis of Euripides
  9. ^ Two sites are distinguished in J. H. Croon, "Hot Springs and Healing: A Preliminary Answer" Mnemosyne, Fourth Series, 14.2 (1961:140–141).
  10. ^ P. 44, Peter Green, From Ikaria to the stars, (Austin, 2004)
  11. ^ Hyginus, Fabulae 186
  12. ^ Arrian (1884) [2nd century AD]. "XX". The Anabasis of Alexander; or, The history of the wars and conquests of Alexander the Great . Translated by Chinnock, E. J. London: Hodder & Stoughton. p. 409 – via Wikisource.
  13. ^ Georgirenes 1677:
  14. ^ Joseph Georgirenes, A Description of the Present State of Samos, Nikaria, Patmos, and Mount Athos (London 1677) pp 54–70; Georgirenes is the source for the summary of traditional culture that follows.
  15. ^ Anthony J. Papalas (2004). Rebels and Radicals Icaria 1600–2000. pp. 60–65. ISBN 9780865166059.
  16. ^ Georgirenes' Cachoria, Steli, famous for its nut trees, and Musara, with its church containing relics of Saint Theoctistes of Lesbos; the Byzantine ruins remained of a larger town than any existing village (Georgirnes 1677:58).
  17. ^ a b c d Anthony J. Papalas (2004). Rebels and Radicals Icaria 1600–2000. ISBN 9780865166059.
  18. ^ "βιογραφίες των δημιουργών του". Ikaria News (in Greek). from the original on 30 December 2016. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
  19. ^ "Municipality of Ikaria". National elections – July 2019. Ministry of the Interior (Greece). The majority of votes in this election were for left-wing parties: Syriza (35.11%) and KKE (30.23%)
  20. ^ Kalampogias, Antōnēs (2016). Ikaria, o kokkinos vrachos / Ικαρία, ο "κόκκινος βράχος" (in Greek). Athens: Sychroni Epochi. ISBN 978-9604512355.
  21. ^ Weekend Edition Saturday. "The Island Where People Live Longer". NPR.org. NPR. Retrieved 2013-03-26.
  22. ^ Dina Spector (2012-07-13). "Ikaria Greece Longevity Secrets". Business Insider. Retrieved 2013-03-26.
  23. ^ Stylianos I. Simakis, ΕΚΑΤΟ ΧΡΟΝΙΑ ΙΚΑΡΙΑΚΗΣ ΕΞΩΤΕΡΙΚΗΣ ΜΕΤΑΝΑΣΤΕΥΣΗΣ, 1892-1991 [One-Hundred Years of Ikarian Overseas Migration, 1892-1991], Dekalogos, Athens, 2015.
  24. ^ See ABC article
  25. ^ Papalas, Rebels and Radicals, p. 270. See also
  26. ^ "BAFTA David Lean Lecture: Yorgos Lanthimos". 3 February 2018.
  27. ^ "State Theatre premieres Elena Carapetis new play the Gods of Strangers about migrants in Australia". 21 October 2018.
  28. ^ "Dean Karnazes Goes the Extra Mile".
  29. ^ Stephan Pastis, The Saturday Evening Pearls: A Pearls Before Swine Collection, Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2009, page 7: book here
  30. ^ Cartledge, Ikarians In South Australia: The origins of the Pan-Ikarian Brotherhood of South Australia “Ikaros” Inc., and its connections with the community, 2014, p. 3: access article here
  31. ^ "What office item do you cherish most?". 27 January 2019.
  32. ^ "Theo Maras, his rise from humble beginnings in Ikaria to being one of the most influential Australian businessmen". 18 June 2020.
  33. ^ "How a poor boy from Ikaria went on to become one of the most successful businessmen in Australia". 19 June 2019.
  34. ^ brother of Nik, see
  35. ^ "Upfront and solo: classical violinist Niki Vasilakis - Neos Kosmos". 18 March 2016.
  36. ^ "Resolution of The Board of Supervisors of Contra Costa County, California" (PDF). June 6, 2017.
  37. ^ Nyenhuis, Jacob E. (2003). Myth and the Creative Process: Michael Ayrton and the Myth of Daedalus, the Maze Maker. Wayne State University Press. pp. 313–314. ISBN 978-0-8143-3002-9.

External links

  • "The Island Where People Forget to Die" by Dan Buettner, The New York Times, October 24, 2012

icaria, this, article, about, island, deme, ancient, attica, attica, other, uses, disambiguation, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challe. This article is about an island For the deme of ancient Attica see Icaria Attica For other uses see Icaria disambiguation This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Icaria news newspapers books scholar JSTOR March 2021 Learn how and when to remove this template message Icaria also spelled Ikaria Greek Ikaria is a Greek island in the Aegean Sea 10 nautical miles 19 km southwest of Samos According to tradition it derives its name from Icarus the son of Daedalus in Greek mythology who was believed to have fallen into the sea nearby Icaria IkariaView of Agios Kirykos Ikaria s capitalIcariaLocation within the regionCoordinates 37 35 N 26 10 E 37 583 N 26 167 E 37 583 26 167 Coordinates 37 35 N 26 10 E 37 583 N 26 167 E 37 583 26 167CountryGreeceAdministrative regionNorth AegeanRegional unitIkariaArea Municipality255 3 km2 98 6 sq mi Highest elevation1 037 m 3 402 ft Lowest elevation0 m 0 ft Population 2011 1 Municipality8 423 Municipality density33 km2 85 sq mi Time zoneUTC 2 EET Summer DST UTC 3 EEST Postal code833 xxArea code s 22750Vehicle registrationMOAdministratively Icaria forms a separate municipality within the Ikaria regional unit which is part of the North Aegean region The principal town of the island and seat of the municipality is Agios Kirykos 2 The historic capitals of the island include Oenoe and Evdilos Contents 1 Geography 2 History 2 1 Antiquity 2 2 Temple of Artemis at Nas 2 3 Medieval Era 2 4 Knights Hospitalier Ottoman Era 2 5 Free State of Icaria 2 6 Second World War 2 7 Red Rock 2 8 Modern era 3 Demographics 4 Municipality 4 1 Subdivisions 5 Museums 6 Notable people connected with Icaria 7 See also 8 References 9 External linksGeography Edit View of mountain range from Kampos Ikaria Icaria is one of the middle islands of the northern Aegean 255 303 square kilometres 98 573 sq mi 3 in area with 102 miles 164 kilometres of coastline and a population of 8 312 inhabitants The topography is a contrast between verdant slopes and barren steep rocks The island is mountainous for the most part It is traversed by the Aetheras range whose highest summit is 1 037 metres 3 402 feet Most of its villages are nestled in the plains near the coast with some in the mountains Icaria has a tradition of producing strong red wine Many parts of the island especially the ravines are covered in shrubbery making the landscape lush with green Aside from domestic and domesticated species such as goats there are a number of small wild animals to be found such as martens European otters jumping spiders and green toads Icaria exhibits a typical Mediterranean climate History Edit Evdilos village The town of Fournoi Icaria has been inhabited since at least 7000 BC when it was populated by the Neolithic Pelasgians a blanket term used by the ancient Greeks to refer to all pre Hellenic peoples inhabiting the Greek region Around 750 BC Greeks from Miletus colonized Icaria establishing a settlement in the area of present day Campos which later became the ancient capital city of Oenoe In antiquity the island was called Icaria or Ikaria Ancient Greek Ἰkaria as today and also Icarus or Ikaros Ἴkaros 4 Antiquity Edit Icaria became part of the sea empire of Polycrates during the 6th century BC and during the 5th century BC the Icarian cities of Oenoe and Thermae were members of the Athenian dominated Delian League During the 2nd century the island was colonized by Samos 5 At this time the Tauropolion 6 the temple of Artemis was built at Oenoe Coins of the city represented Artemis and a bull 7 There was another smaller temenos that was sacred to Artemis Tauropolos 8 at Nas on the northwest coast of the island 9 The sea around Icaria had a fearsome reputation among the Ancients Homer likened its changeability to a crowd stirred by demagogy the gathering was stirred like the long sea waves of the Icarian main which the East Wind or the South Wind has raised rushing upon them from the clouds of father Zeus Iliad II 145 and Horace too in the opening of his Odes associates the African winds as they fight the Icarian waves with shattered ships Odes I i 15 6 The island itself had two associative descriptive epithets Dolichi elongated and Ichtheoussa rich in fish The name may originally have come from the Phoenician word for fish ikor rather than from associations with the mythical Icarus whose fall was likely associated with the ancient deme of Icaria or Icarion in Attica 10 In the later Fabulae stories of Hyginus the Greek versions of myth associated with Melanippe otherwise Arne and her sons Boeotus and Aeolus by Poseidon are amended to relate the story of Theano otherwise Autolyte wife of Metapontus a king of Icaria Metapontus demanded that she bear him children or leave the kingdom She presented the exposed twin sons of Melanippe by Neptune to her husband as if they were her own Later Theano bore him two sons of her own and wishing to leave the kingdom to her own children sent them to kill Melanippe s while out hunting In the fight that ensued her two sons were killed and she committed suicide upon hearing the news 11 Metapontus later married Melanippe and her two sons founded towns in Propontis called by their names Boeotia and Aeolia Temple of Artemis at Nas Edit Nas had been a sacred spot to the pre Hellenic inhabitants of the Aegean and Nas was an important island port in antiquity the last stop before testing the dangerous seas around Icaria It was an appropriate location for sailors to make sacrifices to Artemis Tauropolos who was a patron of seafarers here the goddess was represented in an archaic wooden xoanon The temple stood in good repair until the middle of the 19th century when the marble was pillaged for their local church by the Kato Raches villagers In 1939 this church was excavated by the Greek archeologist Leon Politis During the Axis occupation of Greece during World War II many of the artifacts that were unearthed by Politis disappeared Local tales state that the Germans and Italians stole the artifacts According to local legend marble artefacts from the temple still lie under the sand of the Nas beach where the temple stood In The Anabasis of Alexander the second century Greek historian Arrian recorded Aristobulus as saying that Alexander the Great had ordered that Failaka Island in the Persian Gulf should be called Icarus after Icaria in the Aegean Sea 12 Map of N icaria by Marco Boschini 1658 A church in Agios Kirykos The village of Armenistis Medieval Era Edit In the 14th century CE Icaria was part of the Republic of Genoa s possessions in the Aegean At some point during this period the Icarians destroyed their own ports to prevent the landing of unwanted visitors According to local historians the Icarians based on their own designs built seven watchtowers along the coastlines Once an unknown or enemy vessel appeared the observers would at once light a fire at the top and run to a tank which was always filled with water A wooden plug located at the base was pulled and water would flow The guards of the other watchtowers were alerted by the fire and repeated the process In the inner side of each tower s tank are marks identical to the ones measuring volumes in flasks Each one of these marks was labelled with a different message on it such as pirate attack or unknown ship approaching Once the water level reached the mark signifying the appropriate message the messengers would place the plug back on the tank and put out the fire so that each of the other towers could decode the size and gravity of the incoming danger The watchtowers on the island s heights such as the one in Drakano were part of the islands communication network since the time of the Delian League At the same time the Icarians rarely built their houses in the form prevalent today Each house was low had a single room a roof of stone slabs and was distant from neighbouring ones It had a single low door and the sea facing side was protected with tall walls while there was an opening on the roof locally called the Anefantis Because a chimney with smoke could betray the house s location it was often sealed Smoke was poured through the roof slabs without being visible while simultaneously clearing the wooden roof supports of insects Rooms featured the bare necessities such as a grinding stone and a cauldron Traditionally people would sleep on the floor and hide their belongings in the walls Men and women wore almost the same clothing sewn woollen skirts for women a type of fustanella for the men Later on the vest came to be worn by men and women This frugal way of living contributed to the famed Icarian longevity and the absence of distinct social classes Each house was self sufficient using the living space around it for the cultivation of the necessary things women contributed in work and social life Villages were slowly created by descendants of an original family which gradually spread Despite the sparse population societal integrity was large There were the panigiria traditional festivals featuring dances music and consumption of local products team labor and elder councils who would take the decisions This unique way of life and architecture was preserved until the end of the 19th century with many elements surviving until today Knights Hospitalier Ottoman Era Edit The Knights of St John who had their base in Rhodes exerted some control over Icaria until 1521 when the Ottoman Empire incorporated Icaria into its realm It was at this time that the problem of piracy reached new heights where the islanders embraced the tactic of invisibility they retreated to the island s highlands hiding their villages and homes For defence against pirates aside from this tactic sparse habitation and hiding of residences there were watchtowers various points of concentration and defence such as plateaus invisible from the sea and communal hidden supplies to be used in time of need Their theft was punishable even by death according to the common law of the time Locals were reported attacking any unwanted visitors on their coastlines even shipwrecked sailors The Icarians lynched the first Turkish tax collector but managed to escape punishment The oral story in regards to the event talks of an Ottoman Aga who demanded two locals to carry him on their shoulders atop a seat The carriers unable to accept the forcefulness threw him off a cliff in the Kako Katavasidi area The Turkish authorities rounded up the population and demanded to know who the perpetrator was but the answer they received according to legend was all of us milord The Turks realistically determined that there was neither profit nor honour in punishing all 13 The Ottomans imposed a very loose administration not sending any officials to Icaria for several centuries although in later years they would appoint groups of locals in each village of the island to act as Kodjabashis in order to collect taxes for the empire The best account that we have of the island during the early years of the Ottoman rule is from the Archbishop J Georgirenes who in 1677 described the island as having almost 1 000 hardy long lived inhabitants who were the poorest people in the Aegean 14 Without a decent port the local population destroyed the island s ports long ago to protect themselves from pirate raids Icaria depended for its very limited intercourse with the outside world upon small craft that were drawn up on the beaches Icarian boat makers had a good reputation for building boats from the island s fir forests Then they sold boats and lumber for coin and grain in nearby Chios The inshore waters of the island as told by Georgirenes provided the best cockle shellfish in the archipelago Over the centuries Ikaria would also become renowned for its charcoal which became known as Carbon Cariot Ikarian Charcoal 15 Goats and sheep roamed virtually untended in the rocky landscape Cheeses were made for consumption in every household Icaria in the 17th century was unusual in the archipelago in not producing any wine for export The people kept barrels of the wine for their own drinking They also continued to store it in the old fashioned way prevalent since the Bronze Age in terracotta pithoi containers sunk to their rims in earth thus protecting their supplies from both tax collectors and pirates Apart from three small towns none of which exceeded 100 houses 16 and numerous village settlements each house had a walled orchard and a garden plot Unlike the closely built towns of Samos the hardy inhabitants lived separately in fortified unfurnished farmsteads In 1827 during the Greek War of Independence Icaria broke away from the Ottoman Empire but was not included in the narrow territory of the original independent Greece and it was forced to accept Ottoman rule once more a few years later 17 George N Spanos Hero of the Ikarian Revolution Free State of Icaria Edit Free State of IcariaEley8era Politeia Ikarias1912 1912 FlagAnthem Anthem of Ikaria Konstantinos Psachos Fragiskos Carrer 18 CapitalAgios KirykosCommon languagesGreekReligionGreek OrthodoxGovernmentRepublic PresidentIoannis MalachiasHistory Established18 July 1912 Disestablished4 November 1912Preceded by Succeeded by Ottoman Empire Kingdom of Greece Bust of Ioannis Malachias leader of the Icarian revolution Agios Kirikos Icaria Flag of the Free State of Ikaria with commemorative writing and date Icaria remained part of the Ottoman Empire until 17 July 1912 when the Icarians expelled the Turkish garrison and thereby achieved independence 17 After its independence and the outbreak of the First Balkan War Icaria s sole warship the Cleopatra was used to provide food and supplies to the islands of Samos and Chios which were captured by the Greek Navy during the war George N Spanos c 1872 1912 of Evdilos killed in a Turkish ambush on 17 July 1912 is honoured as the hero of the Icarian Revolution His bust depicting him defiantly with bandoliers on his body and rifle in hand may be seen at the memorial established in his honour at the site of his death located in the Icarian town of Chrysostomos Memorial in honour of George N Spanos Chrysostomos Icaria On 18 July 1912 the Free State of Icaria Eley8era Politeia Ikarias Elefthera Politia Ikarias was declared The neighboring islands of Fournoi Korseon were also liberated and became part of the Free State Ioannis Malachias Iwannhs Malaxias was the first and only president of the Free State of Icaria 17 For five months it remained an independent country with its own government armed forces national flag coat of arms postage stamps and national anthem These five months were difficult for the island s economy There were food shortages and they were at risk of becoming part of the Italian Dodecanese 17 On 4 November 1912 after a delay due to the Balkan Wars Icaria officially became part of the Kingdom of Greece The Ottoman Empire recognized Greece s annexation of Icaria and the other Aegean islands in the Treaty of London 1913 Second World War Edit See also Axis occupation of Greece during World War II The island suffered losses in property and lives during the Second World War as the result of the Italian and then German occupation There are no exact figures on how many people starved but in the village of Karavostamo alone over 100 perished from starvation Red Rock Edit After the ravages of the war the nationalists and communists fought in the Greek Civil War 1946 49 and the Greek government used the island to exile about 13 000 communists To this date the majority of the locals have remained sympathetic to left parties and communism and for this reason Icaria is referred to by some as the Red Rock Kokkinos Braxos Kokkinos Vrahos 19 20 In his analysis Rebels and Radicals Icaria 1600 2000 historian Anthony J Papalas East Carolina University examines modern Icaria in the light of such 20th century questions as poverty emigration to America the nature of the Axis occupation the rise of Communism the Greek Civil War and the rightwing reaction to radical postwar movements Modern era Edit The quality of life improved greatly after 1960 when the Greek government began to invest in the infrastructure of the island to assist in the promotion of tourism Today Icaria is considered one of the world s five Blue zones places where the population regularly lives to an advanced age one in three make it to their 90s 21 This is due to healthy diet lifestyle and genetics 22 The Ikaria Study published in 2011 sought to understand the factors that contributed to longevity Demographics EditThe inhabitants of the island are known as Icarians or Icariots Greek Ikariotes Ikariotes An Icarian diaspora is found throughout Greece specifically on Thimena and Fournoi Korseon as well as in Athens where a large community is found The people of Icarian diaspora can be found throughout the world mainly in Australia the United States Canada Egypt and the United Kingdom 23 Icarian Greeks are closely related to other Aegean island Greeks such as Greeks from Samos Chios Fournoi Korseon and Patmos as well as Greeks from Anatolia Municipality Edit A street in Raches village The present municipality Ikaria was formed in the 2011 local government reform by the merger of the following three former municipalities that became municipal units 2 Agios Kirykos Evdilos RachesSubdivisions Edit The municipal units Agios Kirykos Evdilos and Raches are subdivided into the following communities constituent villages in brackets Agios Kirykos Agios Kirykos Agios Kirykos Therma Ikarias Katafygio Lardades Mavrato Koundouma Mavrikato Xylosyrtis Oxea Tsouredes Faros Perdiki Perdiki Kioni Mileopo Monokampi Ploumari Chrysostomos Chrysostomos Vardarades Vaoni Livadi Plagia Evdilos Evdilos Evdilos Kambos Agia Kyriaki Droutsoulas Kerameio Kyparissi Xanthi Fytema Arethousa Arethousa Kyparissi Pera Arethousa Foinikas Dafni Dafni Akamatra Kosoikia Petropouli Steli Karavostamo Manganitis Manganitis Kalamonari Frantato Frantato Avlaki Kalamourida Kampos Kremasti Maratho Pigi Stavlos Raches Raches Christos Agios Dimitrios Armenistis Vrakades Kares Nas or Kato Raches Kouniadoi Mavriannos Nanouras Xinta Proespera Profitis Ilias Tsakades Agios Polykarpos Agios Polykarpos Agios Panteleimonas Gialiskari Kastanies Lapsachades Lomvardades Mandria Karkinagri Karkinagri Amalo Kalamos Lagkada Pezi Trapalo Museums Edit Icaria s interior is mountainous with the population mainly living around the coast Agios Kirykos and Evdilos are the two ports serviced by passenger ferries which are Icaria s main transport links to the rest of Greece Archeological Museum of Kampos The Archaeological Museum located in the village of Kambos stands on a hill which was once the ancient fortress of Oinoe and is immediately next to Agia Irini Ikaria s oldest church The museum contains over 250 artifacts including Neolithic tools pottery vessels clay statuettes columns coins and carved headstones Archeological Museum of Agios Kirikos Housed in the former lycee of Agios Kirikos which was built by immigrant Ikarians living in America the recently renovated neoclassical building dating to 1925 is the home of Ikaria s Archeological Museum as of 2014 update This listed building will house all of Ikaria s most relevant finds and highlight the history and culture of the island in the facilities of a modern museum and research conservation center Complete with multimedia displays and films dedicated to the Myth of Ikaros and the ancient citadel of Drakano the museum presents Ikaria s archeological findings and relates to the visitor an understanding of the cultural commercial and social development of the settlements of ancient Ikaria throughout the course of the island s history Folk amp Historical Museum Of Agios Kirikos Located in Agios Kirikos The Folk amp History Museum of Agios Kirikos in Ikaria was launched in July 2010 and is the result of the long efforts by Professor Themistocles Katsaros Its mission is to preserve and promote Ikarian folklore traditions and customs through its display of over 1 500 objects that reflect the history and heritage of Ikaria and its inhabitants The museum exhibits items of cultural importance from the island including dresses textiles household articles pottery agriculture and trade tools amp instruments photos documents and many other objects Of particular interest amongst the items displayed in the museum is the flag of the Free State of Ikaria 1912 Some of the exhibits have been organised thematically and chronologically so that objects and images give visitors an idea of social and economic life in Ikaria from the 18th century to the 1970s when traditional life still continued in the region Folklore Museum Of Vrakades The Folklore Museum of Vrakades is located in the scenic village of Vrakades 650 meters above sea level on the north western side of the island The village was founded in the 17th century and contains old stone houses and captains villas of architectural note The museum houses an interesting collection of items related to the history and people of the region Of particular interest are documents and memorabilia from the Free State of Ikaria Other exhibits include various clay and wooden objects used by housewives beekeepers and farmers ecclesiastical relics from Profit Elias in Vrakades and the convent of Evagelistrias Mavrianou books by Ikarian writers Ikarian records and documents over 500 years old Of note is the cutter lanari in Greek used for the processing of wool and goat hairs from which the modest local clothing was made the lisgos a simple tool used for making ropes an old digging tool and many other tools belonging to the first inhabitants of the island Notable people connected with Icaria EditEleftheria Arvanitaki born 1957 singer originates from Icaria Ioannis Malachias 1880 1958 first and only President of the Free State of Ikaria Aristides Phoutrides 1887 1927 Harvard professor of classical philology Aris Poulianos born 1924 anthropologist born in Icaria Zack Space born 1961 American politician family originates from Icaria Christodoulos I Stefanadis born 1947 professor of cardiology born on Icaria Christodoulos Xiros born 1958 Greek terrorist member of November 17 terrorist group Anthony Maras Greek Australian film director Chris Kourakis Chief justice of South Australia 24 Mikis Theodorakis lived in exile on the island 25 Nick Mamatas American author family originates from Icaria Yorgos Lanthimos Greek film director His grandmother is from Icaria 26 Elena Carapetis Australian actress Her father s family originates in Icaria 27 Dean Karnazes American ultramarathon runner and author His mother s family originates from Icaria 28 Stephan Pastis American cartoonist 29 Alex Carapetis Australian musician 30 Jonathan Carapetis Australian paediatric physician His father is from Ikaria 31 Theo Maras Greek Australian property mogul 32 Nik Chapley Greek Australian businessman and Foodland owner 33 John Chapley Greek Australian businessman and Foodland owner 34 Niki Vasilakis Greek Australian violinist 35 George V Spanos judge of the California Superior Court his father was born on Icaria 36 Nicholas Ikaris sculptor 37 See also EditPan Icarian BrotherhoodReferences Edit a b Apografh Plh8ysmoy Katoikiwn 2011 MONIMOS Plh8ysmos in Greek Hellenic Statistical Authority a b FEK A 87 2010 Kallikratis reform law text in Greek Government Gazette Population amp housing census 2001 incl area and average elevation PDF in Greek National Statistical Service of Greece Archived from the original PDF on 2015 09 21 Smith William ed 1854 1857 Icarus Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography London John Murray Graham Shipley A History of Samos c 800 188 B C Oxford 1987 205 Strabo xiv 1 19 gives the temple name Tauropolion Barclay V Head Historia numorum a manual of Greek numismatics vol 2 no 602 with legend OI or OINAI WN noted by Croon 1961 note 4 for the aspect of Artemis that was associated with the Tauri a people living near the Black Sea in the Crimean peninsula see the article Brauron that connection underlies the Iphigenia in Aulis of Euripides Two sites are distinguished in J H Croon Hot Springs and Healing A Preliminary Answer Mnemosyne Fourth Series 14 2 1961 140 141 P 44 Peter Green From Ikaria to the stars Austin 2004 Hyginus Fabulae 186 Arrian 1884 2nd century AD XX The Anabasis of Alexander or The history of the wars and conquests of Alexander the Great Translated by Chinnock E J London Hodder amp Stoughton p 409 via Wikisource Georgirenes 1677 Joseph Georgirenes A Description of the Present State of Samos Nikaria Patmos and Mount Athos London 1677 pp 54 70 Georgirenes is the source for the summary of traditional culture that follows Anthony J Papalas 2004 Rebels and Radicals Icaria 1600 2000 pp 60 65 ISBN 9780865166059 Georgirenes Cachoria Steli famous for its nut trees and Musara with its church containing relics of Saint Theoctistes of Lesbos the Byzantine ruins remained of a larger town than any existing village Georgirnes 1677 58 a b c d Anthony J Papalas 2004 Rebels and Radicals Icaria 1600 2000 ISBN 9780865166059 biografies twn dhmioyrgwn toy Ikaria News in Greek Archived from the original on 30 December 2016 Retrieved 29 December 2016 Municipality of Ikaria National elections July 2019 Ministry of the Interior Greece The majority of votes in this election were for left wing parties Syriza 35 11 and KKE 30 23 Kalampogias Antōnes 2016 Ikaria o kokkinos vrachos Ikaria o kokkinos braxos in Greek Athens Sychroni Epochi ISBN 978 9604512355 Weekend Edition Saturday The Island Where People Live Longer NPR org NPR Retrieved 2013 03 26 Dina Spector 2012 07 13 Ikaria Greece Longevity Secrets Business Insider Retrieved 2013 03 26 Stylianos I Simakis EKATO XRONIA IKARIAKHS E3WTERIKHS METANASTEYSHS 1892 1991 One Hundred Years of Ikarian Overseas Migration 1892 1991 Dekalogos Athens 2015 See ABC article Papalas Rebels and Radicals p 270 See also BAFTA David Lean Lecture Yorgos Lanthimos 3 February 2018 State Theatre premieres Elena Carapetis new play the Gods of Strangers about migrants in Australia 21 October 2018 Dean Karnazes Goes the Extra Mile Stephan Pastis The Saturday Evening Pearls A Pearls Before Swine Collection Andrews McMeel Publishing 2009 page 7 book here Cartledge Ikarians In South Australia The origins of the Pan Ikarian Brotherhood of South Australia Ikaros Inc and its connections with the community 2014 p 3 access article here What office item do you cherish most 27 January 2019 Theo Maras his rise from humble beginnings in Ikaria to being one of the most influential Australian businessmen 18 June 2020 How a poor boy from Ikaria went on to become one of the most successful businessmen in Australia 19 June 2019 brother of Nik see Upfront and solo classical violinist Niki Vasilakis Neos Kosmos 18 March 2016 Resolution of The Board of Supervisors of Contra Costa County California PDF June 6 2017 Nyenhuis Jacob E 2003 Myth and the Creative Process Michael Ayrton and the Myth of Daedalus the Maze Maker Wayne State University Press pp 313 314 ISBN 978 0 8143 3002 9 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ikaria The Island Where People Forget to Die by Dan Buettner The New York Times October 24 2012 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Icaria amp oldid 1118614237, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.