Evrytania ( el, Ευρυτανία, ;

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

: ''Eurytania'') is one of the

regional units of Greece The 74 regional units of Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Afr ...

. It is part of the

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

Central Greece Continental Greece ( el, Στερεά Ελλάδα, Stereá Elláda; formerly , ''Chérsos Ellás''), colloquially known as Roúmeli (Ρούμελη), is a traditional geographic region of Greece. In English, the area is usually called Central ...

. Its capital is Karpenisi (approx. 8,000 inhabitants).

Geography

Evrytania is almost entirely formed of mountains, including the Tymfristos and the Panaitoliko in the south. Its rivers include the Acheloos in the west, Agrafiotis to the east, and Megdova in the east flowing down to the

Ionian Sea The Ionian Sea ( el, Ιόνιο Πέλαγος, ''Iónio Pélagos'' ; it, Mar Ionio ; al, Deti Jon ) is an elongated bay of the Mediterranean Sea. It is connected to the Adriatic Sea to the north, and is bounded by Southern Italy, including ...

. It is one of the least populated regional units in Greece. The area borders Aetolia-Acarnania to the west, southwest and south (west over the Acheloos river), Karditsa regional unit to the north, and Phthiotis to the east. Evrytania also features a famous skiing resort located near Karpenisi on the Tymfristos mountain.

Climate

Its climate is a mixture of Mediterranean and mountainous in the western portion. Much of the area receives snow in winter and is warm during the summer months.

Transport

The

Greek National Road 38 National Road 38 ( el, Εθνική Οδός 38, abbreviated as EO38) is a single carriageway road in western and central Greece. It connects Thermo with Lamia, via Agrinio and Karpenisi. It passes through the regional units Aetolia-Acarnani ...

from Agrinio to Lamia passes through the southern part of Evrytania and the town Karpenisi. On the border with Phthiotis, the GR-38 passes through the 1.4 km-long Tymfristos Tunnel since 2004.

History

Evrytania dates to ancient times, the area was first settled around 6000 to 5000 BC. In classical antiquity, the Greek EurytanesDictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854)
/ref> ( el, Ευρυτάνες) resided in the region. In the 2nd century BC it fell into Roman hands, and became part of the Roman province of

Macedonia Macedonia most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a traditional geographic reg ...

. At the division of the Roman Empire in the 3rd century it joined the eastern part, which became the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantin ...

. In the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade in 1204 it became part of the

Despotate of Epirus The Despotate of Epirus ( gkm, Δεσποτᾶτον τῆς Ἠπείρου) was one of the Greek successor states of the Byzantine Empire established in the aftermath of the Fourth Crusade in 1204 by a branch of the Angelos dynasty. It cla ...

, which was conquered by the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

around 1450. Unlike other parts of Greece at the time, while the eastern and the southern parts were definitively ruled by the Ottomans, the area around Agrafa managed to sustain complete autonomy due to the difficulties experienced in conquest of the region. After 400 years, Evrytania finally became part of

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wit ...

following the

Greek War of Independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. The Greeks were later assisted ...

. As in all of Greece, the area was affected by

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, and later 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 ...

. Peace finally returned to Evrytania at the end of the 1940s and its economy expanded, though there was significant migration from the villages to cities.

Administration

The regional unit Evrytania is subdivided into 2 municipalities. These are (number as in the map in the infobox): * Agrafa (2) * Karpenisi (1)

Prefecture

Evrytania was created as a prefecture in 1947 out of the Aetolia-Acarnania prefecture. As a part of the 2011 Kallikratis government reform, the regional unit Evrytania was created out of the former prefecture Evrytania ( el, Νομός Ευρυτανίας). The prefecture had the same territory as the present regional unit. At the same time, the municipalities were reorganised, according to the table below.

Persons

* Pavlos Bakoyannis (1935-1989), Liberal Greek politician *

Markos Giolias Marcos may refer to: People with the given name ''Marcos'' *Marcos (given name) Sports ;Surnamed * Dayton Marcos, Negro league baseball team from Dayton, Ohio (early twentieth-century) * Dimitris Markos, Greek footballer * Nélson Marcos, Portugue ...

, artist * Demosthenis Goulas, artist * Stefanos Granitsas (1880-1915), artist, writer and journalist * Georgios Kafantaris (1873-1946), politician * Spyros Paliouras (1875-1957), a Greek artist and writer * Zacharias Papantoniou (1877-1940), artist, writer and journalist *

Michael Stafylas Michalis Stafylas ( el, Μιχάλης Σταφυλάς; 1920 – 22 May 2018) was born in Granitsa, Evrytania in Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on th ...

(1920-2018), artist *

Lefteris Theodorou Eleutherios or Lefteris ( el, Ελευθέριος, "the liberator") is an epithet and formal attribution in the Greek pantheon, including: *Dionysus *Eros *Zeus From Eleuther, son of Apollo and Aethusa. # He is renowned for having an excellent s ...

, painter *

Spyridon Papadimitriou Spyridon ( grc, Σπυρίδων; ell, Σπυρίδωνας) is a Greek male given name. It is often shortened to Σπύρος (''Spyros''), often Anglicised as Spyridon, Spyro or Spiro. Individuals bearing this name include: *Saint Spyridon, Or ...

, General Greek Army,

Bibliography

*''Evrytania and the History of Agios Nikolaos'' *''Evrytanes Istories'' (''Evrytanian Tales'')

References

External links

*Prefecture of Evrytania Official Website
www.evrytania.grEvrytania
{{Prefectures of Greece Prefectures of Greece 1899 establishments in Greece Regional units of Central Greece