Alonissos
Encyclopedia
Alonnisos also transliterated as Alonissos or Alonisos, is a Greek island in the Aegean Sea
. After Skiathos
and Skopelos
it is the third member of the Northern Sporades
. It is 3 km (2 nm) E of the island of Skopelos. Alonnisos is also the name of a village on the island, as well as the municipality
that encompasses the island and the village.
The village of Alonnisos is located on the southern part of the island. It is locally known as Chora. The main port of the island is located in the southeast and is called Patitiri
. There is ferry and hydrofoil service from Patitiri to Volos
, Agios Konstantinos
, and Thessaloniki
on the mainland and to the islands of Skiathos
, Skopelos
and Skyros
. The bay at the southern end of the island is also called Alonnisos.
The Municipality of Alonnisos includes the nearby islands of Adelfoi, Gioura
, Kyra Panagia
(Pelagos), Peristera
, Piperi
, Psathoura
and Skantzoura
.
and until the 19th century, the island was known as Liadromia (Λιαδρόμια). It was renamed in 1838, as it was – mistakenly according to later research – identified with Alonnisos of Antiquity. In reality, the present island of Alonissos was known as Ikos (Ίκος) to the Ancient Greeks.
and northwest of the island of Skyros.
and olives. Spruce
trees are abundant on the island. While fishing is a popular profession on the island, tourism is now the main industry.
Housing traditionally consists of closely constructed houses with stone walls, which, until 1965, were centered around the capital. A small fortress protected against enemies and pirates. The island and the village were heavily damaged in the 1965 earthquake
. Many inhabitants returned not to the village of Alonnisos, but to Patitiri. The old village has been restored in recent years, with rebuilt houses now utilised for tourism.
The beaches around the island consist of pebbles. The ecosystem in the north side of the island is in good condition. The Mediterranean Monk Seal
(Monachus-Monachus) is common around the island, and in 1992 the Alonnisos Marine Park was created to protect these seals and other animals.
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
. After Skiathos
Skiathos
Skiathos is a small Greek island in the northwest Aegean Sea. Skiathos is the westernmost island in the Northern Sporades group, east of the Pelion peninsula in Magnesia on the mainland, and west of the island of Skopelos.-Geography:...
and Skopelos
Skopelos
Skopelos , ancient Peparethos or Peparethus , is a Greek island in the western Aegean Sea. Skopelos is one of several islands which comprise the Northern Sporades island group. The island is located east of mainland Greece, northeast of the island of Euboea and is part of the Thessaly Periphery....
it is the third member of the Northern Sporades
Sporades
The Sporades are an archipelago along the east coast of Greece, northeast of the island of Euboea, in the Aegean Sea. It consists of 24 islands, of which four are permanently inhabited: Alonnisos, Skiathos, Skopelos and Skyros.-Administration:...
. It is 3 km (2 nm) E of the island of Skopelos. Alonnisos is also the name of a village on the island, as well as the municipality
Communities and Municipalities of Greece
For the new municipalities of Greece see the Kallikratis ProgrammeThe municipalities and communities of Greece are one of several levels of government within the organizational structure of that country. Thirteen regions called peripheries form the largest unit of government beneath the State. ...
that encompasses the island and the village.
The village of Alonnisos is located on the southern part of the island. It is locally known as Chora. The main port of the island is located in the southeast and is called Patitiri
Patitiri
Patitiri is the capital town of the island of Alonnisos in the Sporades, located in the southern part of the island. The population in 2001 was 1,697. Patitiri was destroyed in the 1965 earthquake.-Population:...
. There is ferry and hydrofoil service from Patitiri to Volos
Volos
Volos is a coastal port city in Thessaly situated midway on the Greek mainland, about 326 km north of Athens and 215 km south of Thessaloniki...
, Agios Konstantinos
Agios Konstantinos, Phthiotis
Agios Konstantinos is a town and former municipality in Phthiotida , Greece. After the 2011 administrative division reforms it became part of the municipality of Molos-Agios Konstantinos and it is now ranked as a municipal unit. Its population was 3,410 in 2001.The town has a harbor with a regular...
, and Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...
on the mainland and to the islands of Skiathos
Skiathos
Skiathos is a small Greek island in the northwest Aegean Sea. Skiathos is the westernmost island in the Northern Sporades group, east of the Pelion peninsula in Magnesia on the mainland, and west of the island of Skopelos.-Geography:...
, Skopelos
Skopelos
Skopelos , ancient Peparethos or Peparethus , is a Greek island in the western Aegean Sea. Skopelos is one of several islands which comprise the Northern Sporades island group. The island is located east of mainland Greece, northeast of the island of Euboea and is part of the Thessaly Periphery....
and Skyros
Skyros
Skyros is an island in Greece, the southernmost of the Sporades, an archipelago in the Aegean Sea. Around the 2nd millennium BC and slightly later, the island was known as The Island of the Magnetes where the Magnetes used to live and later Pelasgia and Dolopia and later Skyros...
. The bay at the southern end of the island is also called Alonnisos.
The Municipality of Alonnisos includes the nearby islands of Adelfoi, Gioura
Gioura
Gioura is a Greek island and an abandoned settlement in the eastern part of the Sporades. It is administratively part of the municipality of Alonnisos. The island name dates back to the ancient times as Gerontia. The name was later altered to Gioura. The island also features a Neolithic settlement...
, Kyra Panagia
Kyra Panagia
Kyra Panagia is a Greek island in the Sporades. It is administratively part of the municipality of Alonnisos in Magnesia Prefecture. The island is also known by the name of Pelagos and rarely Pelagonisi. In Antiquity it was known as Ephthyros and Polyaigos . A bay in the south west of the island...
(Pelagos), Peristera
Peristera
Peristera , also Aspro, locally Xero , is a Greek island in the Sporades. It is administratively part of the municipality of Alonnisos and is also directly east of the namesake island. The 1991 census read three inhabitants, making it one of the smallest municipal district in the Northern Sporades....
, Piperi
Piperi
Piperi can mean:* Piperi, Greece, an island in Greece* Piperi clan, a clan in Montenegro* Piperi , a village in Bosnia and Herzegovina...
, Psathoura
Psathoura
Psathoura is a Greek island in the Northern Sporades. It is administratively a part of Alonnisos and forms a depopulated sub-municipal district which is not officially a settlement. The Psathoura lighthouse, built in 1895, stands at 28.9 metres. It is one of the tallest in the Aegean...
and Skantzoura
Skantzoura
Skantzoura is a Greek island in the Sporades. The island is located about 25 to 30 km east-southeast of the main island of Alonnisos.-Nearest islands and islets:...
.
History
In the Middle AgesMiddle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
and until the 19th century, the island was known as Liadromia (Λιαδρόμια). It was renamed in 1838, as it was – mistakenly according to later research – identified with Alonnisos of Antiquity. In reality, the present island of Alonissos was known as Ikos (Ίκος) to the Ancient Greeks.
Geography
The island at its widest is 4.5 km from northwest to southeast and at its longest is 20 km from southwest to northeast. The area of the island is 64 km2. The island is mostly limestone. It is located east of mainland Greece and Magnesia, northeast of EuboeaEuboea
Euboea is the second largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete. The narrow Euripus Strait separates it from Boeotia in mainland Greece. In general outline it is a long and narrow, seahorse-shaped island; it is about long, and varies in breadth from to...
and northwest of the island of Skyros.
The island
Agriculture is widespread on Alonnisos, predominantly mixed farming and vineyards. The main products are almonds, grapes, figsFIGS
FIGS is an acronym for French, Italian, German, Spanish. These are usually the first four languages chosen to localize products into when a company enters the European market....
and olives. Spruce
Spruce
A spruce is a tree of the genus Picea , a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the Family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal regions of the earth. Spruces are large trees, from tall when mature, and can be distinguished by their whorled branches and conical...
trees are abundant on the island. While fishing is a popular profession on the island, tourism is now the main industry.
Housing traditionally consists of closely constructed houses with stone walls, which, until 1965, were centered around the capital. A small fortress protected against enemies and pirates. The island and the village were heavily damaged in the 1965 earthquake
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
. Many inhabitants returned not to the village of Alonnisos, but to Patitiri. The old village has been restored in recent years, with rebuilt houses now utilised for tourism.
The beaches around the island consist of pebbles. The ecosystem in the north side of the island is in good condition. The Mediterranean Monk Seal
Mediterranean Monk Seal
The Mediterranean monk seal is a pinniped belonging to the Phocidae family. At some 450-510 remaining individuals, it is believed to be the world's second-rarest pinniped , and one of the most endangered mammals in the world.It is present in parts of the Mediterranean Sea and the eastern Atlantic...
(Monachus-Monachus) is common around the island, and in 1992 the Alonnisos Marine Park was created to protect these seals and other animals.
Communities and subdivisions
The Municipality includes several other islands with small resident populations. The total land area of the municipality is 129.607 km². The 2001 census population was 2,700 inhabitants, of whom only 28 persons lived on the other islands.Alonissos Island
- Ágios Pétros (Άγιος Πέτρος)
- Alónnisos (Αλόννησος)
- Chrysi Milia (Χρυσή Μηλιά)
- Gérakas (Γέρακας)
- Isiomata (Ισιώματα)
- Kalamákia (Καλαμάκια)
- Marpounta (Μαρπούντα) - abandoned
- Mourtero (Μουρτερό)
- PatitiriPatitiriPatitiri is the capital town of the island of Alonnisos in the Sporades, located in the southern part of the island. The population in 2001 was 1,697. Patitiri was destroyed in the 1965 earthquake.-Population:...
(Πατητήρι) - Steni ValaSteni ValaSteni Vala is the second most populated village on the Greek island of Alonnisos. Located on the east coast roughly 11km north of Patitiri. It has several tavernas and a campsite. There is a large beach just north of the village....
(Στενή Βάλα) - Votsi (Βότση)
Other islands
- Adelfoi (Αδελφοί)
- GiouraGiouraGioura is a Greek island and an abandoned settlement in the eastern part of the Sporades. It is administratively part of the municipality of Alonnisos. The island name dates back to the ancient times as Gerontia. The name was later altered to Gioura. The island also features a Neolithic settlement...
(Γιούρα) - Kyra PanagiaKyra PanagiaKyra Panagia is a Greek island in the Sporades. It is administratively part of the municipality of Alonnisos in Magnesia Prefecture. The island is also known by the name of Pelagos and rarely Pelagonisi. In Antiquity it was known as Ephthyros and Polyaigos . A bay in the south west of the island...
(Κυρά Παναγιά) - PeristeraPeristeraPeristera , also Aspro, locally Xero , is a Greek island in the Sporades. It is administratively part of the municipality of Alonnisos and is also directly east of the namesake island. The 1991 census read three inhabitants, making it one of the smallest municipal district in the Northern Sporades....
(Περιστέρα) - PiperiPiperi, GreecePiperi is a Greek island in the Sporades. It is administratively part of the municipality of Alonnisos and is also the Sporades' easternmost island. The 2001 census reported a population of two inhabitants.-Nearest islands and islets:...
(Πιπέρι) - PsathouraPsathouraPsathoura is a Greek island in the Northern Sporades. It is administratively a part of Alonnisos and forms a depopulated sub-municipal district which is not officially a settlement. The Psathoura lighthouse, built in 1895, stands at 28.9 metres. It is one of the tallest in the Aegean...
(Ψαθούρα) - SkantzouraSkantzouraSkantzoura is a Greek island in the Sporades. The island is located about 25 to 30 km east-southeast of the main island of Alonnisos.-Nearest islands and islets:...
(Σκάντζουρα)
Historical population
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1991 | 2,985 |
| 2001 | 2,425 |
| 2011 | 2,366 |