Echinades
Encyclopedia
The Echinades are a group of islands in the Ionian Islands
, off the coast of Acarnania
, Greece
. Also transliterated Ehinades – or, per Homer
, Echinae , informally the Oxeiae (Sharp Islands), and during the Middle Ages, under the Italian name Curtzolari.
Several of the islands have been joined to the mainland by alluvial deposits. Herodotus says that half of the islands had been already united to the mainland in his time (ii. 10); and Thucydides expected that this would be the case with all of them before long, since they lay so close together as to be easily connected by the alluvium brought down by the Achelous River
(ii. 102.). This expectation, however, has not been fulfilled, which Pausanias
attributed (viii. 24. § 11) to the Achelous bringing down less alluvium in consequence of the uncultivated condition of Aetolia
; but there can be little doubt that it is owing to the increasing depth of the sea, which prevents any perceptible progress being made.
The Echinades are mentioned by Homer, who, in the Iliad
, says that Meges, son of Phyleus
, led 40 ships to Troy
from Dulichium
and the sacred islands Echinae, which are situated beyond the sea, opposite Elis
. Phyleus was the son of Augeas
, king of the Epeians in Elis, who emigrated to Dulichium because he had incurred his father's anger. In the Odyssey
, Dulichium (which may be an island in the Echniades) is frequently mentioned along with Same (Kefalonia
), Zacynthus, and Ithaca
as one of the islands subject to Ulysses
, and is celebrated for its fertility. Strabo, and most modern writers, place Dulichium among the Echinades, most identifying it with the island of Makri
. Euripides
(in Iphigeneia at Aulis
) identifies the Echinades with the islands of Taphos (Taphiae Insulae). However, most modern scholars, including the editors of the Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World
, place the island of Taphos at Meganissi east of Lefkada
, quite northwest of the Echinades; hence, the islands of Taphos would include Meganissi, Kalamos
, Kastos
, and surrounding islands.
Homer, as we have already seen, describes the Echinades as inhabited; but both Thucydides and Scylax represent them as deserted. Strabo simply says that they were barren and rugged (x. p. 458). Stephanus of Byzantium
names a town Apollonia situated in one of the islands (s. v. ). Pliny the Elder
gives us the names of nine of these islands — Aegialia
, Cotonis, Thyatira, Geoaris, Dionysia, Cyrnus, Chalcis, Pinara, Mystus
. Another of the Echinades was Artemita
, which became united to the mainland. Artemidorus
spoke of Artemita as a peninsula near the mouth of the Achelous, and Rhianus
connected it with the Oxeiae
(Oxeias, Oxiés, or Scrofés) islands. (Steph. B. s. v. ) The Oxeiae are sometimes spoken of as a separate group of islands to the west or south of the Echinades, but are included by Strabo under the general name of Echinades (x. p. 458). The Oxeiae, according to Strabo, are mentioned by Homer under the synonymous name of Thoae or Thoai.
The Echinades derived their name from the echinus or the sea urchin
, in consequence of their sharp and prickly outlines. For the same reason they were called Oxeiae, or the Sharp Islands, a name which one of them still retains under the slightly altered form of Oxeia
(Oxiés, Oxiá, or Oxia). Leake remarks that the Echinades are divided into two clusters, besides Petalas
(Petalá), which, being, quite barren and close to the mainland, is not claimed, or at least is not occupied by the Ithacans, though anciently it was undoubtedly one of the Echinades. The northern cluster is commonly called the Drakoneras
(Dhragonares), from Drakonera
(Dhragonára), the principal island; and the southern, the Oxeiae. By the Venetians they were known as the islands of Kurtzolári, which name belongs properly to a peninsula to the left of the mouth of the Achelous, near Oxeia. Seventeen of the islands have names, besides the four Modhia
(Stamodio or Módi Islands), two of which are mere rocks, and nine of the seventeen are cultivated. These are, beginning from the south — Oxeia (Oxiá), Makri (Makrí), Vrómonas
(Vromotas or Vrómona), Pontikos
(Pondikónisi), Karlonísi
(Karlónísi), Prováti
, Lampriní (Lambrinó), Sofía
(Sofiá), Drakonera (Dhragonára). Oxeia alone is lofty (421 meters). Makri and Vrómonas are the two islands next in importance.
Administratively, the Echinades form part of Kefalonia and Ithaca Prefecture
in Greece. Many of the islands are privately owned and periodically one comes up for sale. The Battle of the Echinades
in 1427 and the Battle of Lepanto
in 1571 were fought at or near the islands.
Ionian Islands
The Ionian Islands are a group of islands in Greece. They are traditionally called the Heptanese, i.e...
, off the coast of Acarnania
Acarnania
Acarnania is a region of west-central Greece that lies along the Ionian Sea, west of Aetolia, with the Achelous River for a boundary, and north of the gulf of Calydon, which is the entrance to the Gulf of Corinth. Today it forms the western part of the prefecture of Aetolia-Acarnania. The capital...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. Also transliterated Ehinades – or, per Homer
Homer
In the Western classical tradition Homer , is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest ancient Greek epic poet. These epics lie at the beginning of the Western canon of literature, and have had an enormous influence on the history of literature.When he lived is...
, Echinae , informally the Oxeiae (Sharp Islands), and during the Middle Ages, under the Italian name Curtzolari.
Several of the islands have been joined to the mainland by alluvial deposits. Herodotus says that half of the islands had been already united to the mainland in his time (ii. 10); and Thucydides expected that this would be the case with all of them before long, since they lay so close together as to be easily connected by the alluvium brought down by the Achelous River
Acheloos River
The Achelous , also Acheloos, is a river in western Greece. It formed the boundary between Acarnania and Aetolia of antiquity. It empties into the Ionian Sea...
(ii. 102.). This expectation, however, has not been fulfilled, which Pausanias
Pausanias (geographer)
Pausanias was a Greek traveler and geographer of the 2nd century AD, who lived in the times of Hadrian, Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius. He is famous for his Description of Greece , a lengthy work that describes ancient Greece from firsthand observations, and is a crucial link between classical...
attributed (viii. 24. § 11) to the Achelous bringing down less alluvium in consequence of the uncultivated condition of Aetolia
Aetolia
Aetolia is a mountainous region of Greece on the north coast of the Gulf of Corinth, forming the eastern part of the modern prefecture of Aetolia-Acarnania.-Geography:...
; but there can be little doubt that it is owing to the increasing depth of the sea, which prevents any perceptible progress being made.
The Echinades are mentioned by Homer, who, in the Iliad
Iliad
The Iliad is an epic poem in dactylic hexameters, traditionally attributed to Homer. Set during the Trojan War, the ten-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek states, it tells of the battles and events during the weeks of a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles...
, says that Meges, son of Phyleus
Phyleus
In Greek mythology, Phyleus was a son of King Augeas of Elis and father of Meges. He supported Heracles instead of his father and was exiled. After Heracles killed Augeas and his other sons, he gave Phyleus the kingdom. During the time of his exile, Phyleus led a colony of Epeans to the island of...
, led 40 ships to Troy
Troy
Troy was a city, both factual and legendary, located in northwest Anatolia in what is now Turkey, southeast of the Dardanelles and beside Mount Ida...
from Dulichium
Dulichium
Dulichium, Dolicha, or Doliche was a place noted by numerous ancient writers that was either a city on, or an island off, the Ionian Sea coast of Acarnania, Greece....
and the sacred islands Echinae, which are situated beyond the sea, opposite Elis
Elis
Elis, or Eleia is an ancient district that corresponds with the modern Elis peripheral unit...
. Phyleus was the son of Augeas
Augeas
In Greek mythology, Augeas , whose name means "bright", was king of Elis and father of Epicaste. Some say that Augeas was one of the Argonauts....
, king of the Epeians in Elis, who emigrated to Dulichium because he had incurred his father's anger. In the Odyssey
Odyssey
The Odyssey is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is, in part, a sequel to the Iliad, the other work ascribed to Homer. The poem is fundamental to the modern Western canon, and is the second—the Iliad being the first—extant work of Western literature...
, Dulichium (which may be an island in the Echniades) is frequently mentioned along with Same (Kefalonia
Kefalonia
The island of Cephalonia, also known as Kefalonia, Cephallenia, Cephallonia, Kefallinia, or Kefallonia , is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece, with an area of . It is also a separate regional unit of the Ionian Islands region, and the only municipality of the regional unit...
), Zacynthus, and Ithaca
Ithaca
Ithaca or Ithaka is an island located in the Ionian Sea, in Greece, with an area of and a little more than three thousand inhabitants. It is also a separate regional unit of the Ionian Islands region, and the only municipality of the regional unit. It lies off the northeast coast of Kefalonia and...
as one of the islands subject to Ulysses
Odysseus
Odysseus or Ulysses was a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer's epic poem the Odyssey. Odysseus also plays a key role in Homer's Iliad and other works in the Epic Cycle....
, and is celebrated for its fertility. Strabo, and most modern writers, place Dulichium among the Echinades, most identifying it with the island of Makri
Makri
Makri is a Greek island, one of the Echinades, in the Ionian Islands group. It is administered by the municipality of Ithaca and is northeast of the island...
. Euripides
Euripides
Euripides was one of the three great tragedians of classical Athens, the other two being Aeschylus and Sophocles. Some ancient scholars attributed ninety-five plays to him but according to the Suda it was ninety-two at most...
(in Iphigeneia at Aulis
Iphigeneia at Aulis
Iphigenia in Aulis is the last extant work of the playwright Euripides. Written between 408, after the Orestes, and 406 BC, the year of Euripides's death, the play was first produced the following year by his son or nephew, Euripides the Younger, and won the first place at the Athenian city...
) identifies the Echinades with the islands of Taphos (Taphiae Insulae). However, most modern scholars, including the editors of the Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World
Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World
The Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World is a large-format English language atlas of ancient Europe, Asia, and North Africa, edited by Richard Talbert. The time period depicted is roughly from archaic Greek civilization through Late Antiquity . The atlas was published by Princeton...
, place the island of Taphos at Meganissi east of Lefkada
Lefkada
Lefkada, or Leucas or Leucadia , is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea on the west coast of Greece, connected to the mainland by a long causeway and floating bridge. The principal town of the island and seat of the municipality is Lefkada . It is situated on the northern part of the island,...
, quite northwest of the Echinades; hence, the islands of Taphos would include Meganissi, Kalamos
Kalamos (island)
Kálamos , is a mountainous island and a former community in the Ionian Islands, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Lefkada, of which it is a municipal unit. It lies east of Lefkada, near the Greek mainland...
, Kastos
Kastos
Kastos is a Greek island and a former community east of the island of Lefkada, Ionian Islands, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Lefkada, of which it is a municipal unit. Until the mid-1970s, the island was administered under the Kefalonia prefecture...
, and surrounding islands.
Homer, as we have already seen, describes the Echinades as inhabited; but both Thucydides and Scylax represent them as deserted. Strabo simply says that they were barren and rugged (x. p. 458). Stephanus of Byzantium
Stephanus of Byzantium
Stephen of Byzantium, also known as Stephanus Byzantinus , was the author of an important geographical dictionary entitled Ethnica...
names a town Apollonia situated in one of the islands (s. v. ). Pliny the Elder
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
gives us the names of nine of these islands — Aegialia
Aegialia
Aegialia is a genus of beetle in family Scarabaeidae. It contains the following species:* Aegialia concinna* Aegialia crescenta...
, Cotonis, Thyatira, Geoaris, Dionysia, Cyrnus, Chalcis, Pinara, Mystus
Mystus
Mystus is a genus of catfishes of the family Bagridae.Mystus is poorly diagnosed. Macrones had previously been used by earlier authors, but this generic name was preoccupied in Coleoptera. Phylogenetic relationships within this genus are poorly understood, though it has been suggested that there...
. Another of the Echinades was Artemita
Artemita
Artemita or Artemita in Apolloniatis was a city in what is now eastern Iraq that flourished under the Parthian Empire.Though its exact location is not known, it was located on the major route to Khorasan, between Seleucia and the Zagros Mountains...
, which became united to the mainland. Artemidorus
Artemidorus Ephesius
Artemidorus of Ephesus was a Greek geographer, who flourished around 100 BC. His work in 11 books is often quoted by Strabo, but only fragments of the work exist...
spoke of Artemita as a peninsula near the mouth of the Achelous, and Rhianus
Rhianus
Rhianus was a Greek poet and grammarian, a native of Crete, friend and contemporary of Eratosthenes . The Suidas says he was at first a slave and overseer of a palaestra, but obtained a good education later in life and devoted himself to grammatical studies, probably in Alexandria...
connected it with the Oxeiae
Oxeiae
The Oxeiae or Oxeias or Oxiés or Scrofés are the group of southern islands in the Echinades chain, which itself forms a portion of the Ionian Islands of Greece. The name comes from the chief island of Oxeia....
(Oxeias, Oxiés, or Scrofés) islands. (Steph. B. s. v. ) The Oxeiae are sometimes spoken of as a separate group of islands to the west or south of the Echinades, but are included by Strabo under the general name of Echinades (x. p. 458). The Oxeiae, according to Strabo, are mentioned by Homer under the synonymous name of Thoae or Thoai.
The Echinades derived their name from the echinus or the sea urchin
Sea urchin
Sea urchins or urchins are small, spiny, globular animals which, with their close kin, such as sand dollars, constitute the class Echinoidea of the echinoderm phylum. They inhabit all oceans. Their shell, or "test", is round and spiny, typically from across. Common colors include black and dull...
, in consequence of their sharp and prickly outlines. For the same reason they were called Oxeiae, or the Sharp Islands, a name which one of them still retains under the slightly altered form of Oxeia
Oxeia
Oxeia is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the chief island in the southern group of the Echinades, part of the Ionian Islands. Oxeia possesses the highest point in the Echinades, 421 m. The mountains of Aitoloakarnania on the mainland are to the northeast...
(Oxiés, Oxiá, or Oxia). Leake remarks that the Echinades are divided into two clusters, besides Petalas
Petalas
Petalas or Petalá is the largest island of the Echinades, among the Ionian Islands group of Greece. Some, including Leake, have conjectured that Petalas is the ancient Dulichium, from which the Iliad reports that 40 ships sailed to Troy, but Strabo and most modern authors prefer the...
(Petalá), which, being, quite barren and close to the mainland, is not claimed, or at least is not occupied by the Ithacans, though anciently it was undoubtedly one of the Echinades. The northern cluster is commonly called the Drakoneras
Drakoneras
The Drakoneras or Dhragonares form the northerly grouping of the Echinades islands, which are part of the Ionian Islands group of Greece. The name comes from the island Drakonera which is the chief island of the Drakoneras....
(Dhragonares), from Drakonera
Drakonera
Drakonera or Dhragonára is an island of the Echinades, among the Ionian Islands group of Greece. Drakonera forms part of the northern group of the Echinades, which are called the Drakoneras after the island. The mainland with the Aitoloakarnania prefecture is to the north and east. Several...
(Dhragonára), the principal island; and the southern, the Oxeiae. By the Venetians they were known as the islands of Kurtzolári, which name belongs properly to a peninsula to the left of the mouth of the Achelous, near Oxeia. Seventeen of the islands have names, besides the four Modhia
Modhia
The Modhia or Stamodio or Módi Islands form a small chain of islands, themselves part of the Echinades group, which in turn are part of the Ionian Islands of Greece...
(Stamodio or Módi Islands), two of which are mere rocks, and nine of the seventeen are cultivated. These are, beginning from the south — Oxeia (Oxiá), Makri (Makrí), Vrómonas
Vromonas
Vromonas or Vromona is a Greek island in the Ionian Islands located east of the island of Ithaca.-External links:*Map and aerial photos:* **Street map information from: , or or...
(Vromotas or Vrómona), Pontikos
Pontikos
Pontikos or Pondikónisi , also Pondikos, Pontikonissi or Pontikonisi is an island of the Echinades, among the Ionian Islands group of Greece...
(Pondikónisi), Karlonísi
Karlonísi
Karlonísi or Karlónísi is an island of the Echinades, among the Ionian Islands group of Greece. It is administered by the municipality of Ithaca and is northeast of the island....
(Karlónísi), Prováti
Prováti
Prováti is an island of the Echinades, among the Ionian Islands group of Greece....
, Lampriní (Lambrinó), Sofía
Sofía (Echinades)
Sofía or Sofiá is an island of the Echinades, among the Ionian Islands group of Greece.-External links:*...
(Sofiá), Drakonera (Dhragonára). Oxeia alone is lofty (421 meters). Makri and Vrómonas are the two islands next in importance.
Administratively, the Echinades form part of Kefalonia and Ithaca Prefecture
Kefalonia and Ithaca Prefecture
The Cephalonia Prefecture was a prefecture in Greece, containing the Ionian islands of Cephalonia and Ithaca. In 2011 the prefectural self-government was abolished and the territory is now covered by the peripheral units of Cephalonia and Ithaca.-Provinces:...
in Greece. Many of the islands are privately owned and periodically one comes up for sale. The Battle of the Echinades
Battle of the Echinades (1427)
The Battle of the Echinades was fought in 1427 among the Echinades islands off western Greece between the fleets of Carlo I Tocco and the Byzantine Empire...
in 1427 and the Battle of Lepanto
Battle of Lepanto
The Battle of Lepanto normally refers to the 1571 Holy League victory over the Ottoman fleet. There were also three earlier battles fought in the vicinity of Lepanto:*Battle of Naupactus in 429 BC, an Athenian victory during the Peleoponnesian War...
in 1571 were fought at or near the islands.
| Name | Greek | Community | Subgroup | Area (km²) | Highest Point |
Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Praso | Πράσο | Pylaros | Drakoneres | 38°28′58"N 20°58′10"E | ||
| Sofia | Σοφία | Pylaros | Drakoneres | 0.174 | 38°28′49"N 21°0′5"E | |
| Lambrinos | Λαμπρινός | Pylaros | Drakoneres | 0.352 | 61 m | 38°28′22"N 21°0′18"E |
| Drakonera | Δρακονέρα | Ithaka | Drakoneres | 2.442 | 137 m | 38°28′51"N 21°1′15"E |
| Philippos | Φίλιππος | Pylaros | Drakoneres | 0.046 | 38°28′17"N 21°0′55"E | |
| Pistros | Πίστρος | Pylaros | Drakoneres | 0.114 | 41 m | 38°27′51"N 21°0′58"E |
| Kalogiros | Καλόγηρος | Ithaka | Drakoneres | 0.249 | 38°29′28"N 21°8′49"E | |
| Karlonisi | Καρλονήσι | Pylaros | Drakoneres | 0.719 | 77 m | 38°28′32"N 21°2′35"E |
| Tsakalonisi | Τσακαλονήσι | Pylaros | Drakoneres | 0.1 | 38°27′44"N 21°2′11"E | |
| Provati | Προβάτι | Pylaros | Drakoneres | 1.21 | 75 m | 38°27′48"N 21°2′53"E |
| Pondikos | Ποντικός | Pylaros | Drakoneres | 0.736 | 38°27′17"N 21°3′59"E | |
| Gravaris | Γκράβαρης | Pylaros | Modia | 24 m | 38°26′24"N 21°1′36"E | |
| Soros | Σωρός | Pylaros | Modia | 0.038 | 31 m | 38°26′5"N 21°1′30"E |
| Apasa | Άπασα | Pylaros | Modia | 0.024 | 17 m | 38°25′53"N 21°1′29"E |
| Modi | Μόδι | Pylaros | Modia | 0.258 | 66 m | 38°25′25"N 21°1′20"E |
| Petalas | Πεταλάς | Pylaros | Ouniades | 5.497 | 251 m | 38°24′50"N 21°5′41"E |
| Vromonas | Βρόμονας | Ithaka | Ouniades | 1.047 | 141 m | 38°22′9"N 20°59′43"E |
| Makri | Μάκρη | Ithaka | Ouniades | 0.983 | 126 m | 38°21′30"N 21°2′19"E |
| Kouneli Makropoula |
Κουνέλι Μακροπούλα |
Ithaka | Ouniades | 0.095 | 126 m | 38°21′6"N 21°3′17"E |
| Oxia Oxia Oxia may refer to:*the acute accent in polytonic Greek*Oxeia, a Greek island... |
Οξεία | Ithaka | Ouniades | 4.223 | 421 m | 38°18′13"N 21°6′39"E |