Azoros ( el, Άζωρος, ) is a village and a

community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, tow ...

of the Elassona municipality in the

Larissa Larissa (; el, Λάρισα, , ) is the capital and largest city of the Thessaly region in Greece. It is the fifth-most populous city in Greece with a population of 144,651 according to the 2011 census. It is also capital of the Larissa regiona ...

regional unit.Kallikratis law
Government’s Gazette Before the 2011 local government reform it was a part of the municipality of

Sarantaporo Sarantaporo ( el, Σαραντάπορο) is a village and a former municipality in the Larissa regional unit, Thessaly, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Elassona, of which it is a municipal unit. Pop ...

, of which it was a municipal district. The 2011 census recorded 333 inhabitants in the village. The community of Azoros covers an area of 20.308 km².

Geography

Azoros is built at an altitude of 520 meters at the foot of Mount Amarbeis, at a distance of 18 kilometers from

Elassona Elassona ( el, Ελασσόνα; Katharevousa: gr, Ἐλασσών, Elasson) is a town and a municipality in the Larissa regional unit in Greece. During antiquity Elassona was called Oloosson (Ὀλοοσσών) and was a town of the Perrhaebi tr ...

, near the ruins of the ancient thessalian city of

Azorus Azorus or Azoros ( grc, Ἄζωρος or Ἀζώριον) was a town and polis (city-state) in Perrhaebia in ancient Thessaly situated at the foot of Mount Olympus. Azorus, with the two neighbouring towns of Pythium and Doliche, formed a Tripoli ...

. Near the city flows the river

Titarisios The Titarisios ( el, Τιταρήσιος, formerly Ξεριάς - ''Xerias'') is a river in Thessaly, Greece. It is a major tributary of the Pineios. The river begins at the western slopes of Mount Olympus and flows southwest, then south. It leav ...

, an important tributary of the Pineios. There are also natural springs in the nearby areas of Tsouknida, Tsimpitoura and Tsimpitoroula (

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

: Τσουκνίδα, Τσιμπιτούρα, Τσιμπιτορούλα).

Mount Olympus Mount Olympus (; el, Όλυμπος, Ólympos, also , ) is the highest mountain in Greece. It is part of the Olympus massif near the Thermaic Gulf of the Aegean Sea, located in the Olympus Range on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia, be ...

, the highest mountain in Greece, is situated about 25km Northeast of Azoros.

History

The ancient citadel of Azoros and the walls of the Hellenistic and mid-Byzantine period are situated Southeast of the town, on the hill named "Kastri". The area was controlled by the Byzantine Empire, until 1420 when

Turahan Bey Turahan Bey or Turakhan Beg ( tr, Turahan Bey/Beğ; sq, Turhan Bej; el, Τουραχάνης, Τουραχάν μπέης or Τουραχάμπεης;PLP 29165 died in 1456) was a prominent Ottoman military commander and governor of Thessaly ...

, an Ottoman military Commander, conquered the mountainous

Perrhaebia Perrhaebia ( el, Περραιβία) was the northernmost district of ancient Thessaly, where the tribe of the Perrhaebi lived. Major cities were: Pythion, Doliche, Azorus, Oloosson and Phalanna the capital. Perrhaebia was part of Macedon ...

. Until 1991 the town was called Vouvala or Vuvala (Βουβάλα), but was renamed to reflect the ancient city of

which is located within the community. The town was liberated by the Greek Army during the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and defe ...

and was extensively destroyed during the Axis occupation of Greece and the

Greek Civil War The Greek Civil War ( el, ο Eμφύλιος �όλεμος ''o Emfýlios'' 'Pólemos'' "the Civil War") took place from 1946 to 1949. It was mainly fought against the established Kingdom of Greece, which was supported by the United Kingdom ...

Economy

The population of Azoros is occupied in

animal husbandry Animal husbandry is the branch of agriculture concerned with animals that are raised for meat, fibre, milk, or other products. It includes day-to-day care, selective breeding, and the raising of livestock. Husbandry has a long history, starti ...

and

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

Population

According to the 2011 census, the population of the settlement of Azoros was 333 people, a decrease of almost 33% compared with the population of the previous census of 2001.

Culture

The main events of the village take place on January 7 (

procession A procession is an organized body of people walking in a formal or ceremonial manner. History Processions have in all peoples and at all times been a natural form of public celebration, as forming an orderly and impressive ceremony. Religious ...

from the Olympiotissa monastery), July 26 (Feast of St. Paraskevi) and Clean Monday with the custom of representing a traditional wedding attract visitors to the area.

References