Liodora (Greek: Λιοδώρα) is a small village in

Arcadia Arcadia may refer to: Places Australia * Arcadia, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney * Arcadia, Queensland * Arcadia, Victoria Greece * Arcadia (region), a region in the central Peloponnese * Arcadia (regional unit), a modern administrative un ...

, the central region of the

Peloponnese The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic regions of Greece, geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmu ...

area 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 with ...

. Liodora is part of the Municipal Unit of

Iraia Iraia ( el, Ηραία) is a former municipality in Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it became a municipal unit of the municipality of Gortynia. The municipal unit has an area of 144.002 km2. It consists of ...

, which belongs to the Municipality of Gortynia. It is situated on a low hill near the left bank of the river Ladon, 5 km northeast of

Tripotamia Tripotamia (Greek: Τριποταμιά meaning "three rivers", before 1927: Μπέλεσι - ''Belesi'') is a village and a community in the municipal unit of Tropaia in the westernmost part of Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. It is situated on a hil ...

, 8 km west of

Paloumpa Paloumpa ( el, Παλούμπα, also ''Palouba'') is a town in Arcadia, southern Greece. It is situated on a mountain slope overlooking the valley of the river Alfeios. It was the seat of the former municipality of Iraia. The town is in a remote a ...

and 17 km northwest of

Dimitsana Dimitsana ( el, Δημητσάνα) is a mountain village and a former municipality in Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Gortynia, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit. The ...

, the capital of the Municipality.

Geography

Liodora is situated in a hilly plateau and features several hills. The view to the south are blocked by a mountain slope. Kryonero has several valleys around the area, which also contains forests, grasslands, farmlands and bushes.

Information

Its main production are

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering plant, flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as Orange (fruit), oranges, Lemon, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and lim ...

, fruits, vegetables and other crops, as well as life stock products. The village can be seen as far as to the north and east.

History

The name Liodora was probably derived from Heliodorus (Greek: Ηλιόδωρος) or Leodorus (Greek: Λεόδωρος), an ancient ruler or nobleman of the area, or it is a derivative of the word "Herodora" (Greek: Ηροδώρα), denoting

Hera In ancient Greek religion, Hera (; grc-gre, Ἥρα, Hḗrā; grc, Ἥρη, Hḗrē, label=none in Ionic and Homeric Greek) is the goddess of marriage, women and family, and the protector of women during childbirth. In Greek mythology, she ...

, the wife of

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label=Genitive case, genitive Aeolic Greek, Boeotian Aeolic and Doric Greek#Laconian, Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label=Genitive case, genitive el, Δίας, ''D� ...

, giving gifts. About 5 km to the south of the contemporary village was Ancient Irea, a city built next to the

Alfeios River The Alfeiós or Alpheios ( el, Αλφειός, grc, Ἀλφειός, Latin Alpheus) is the main stream of the Alpheios Valley drainage system, a dendritic type, originating on the north slopes of Mount Taygetus, located in the center of the Pelo ...

, close to

Ancient Olympia Olympia ( el, label=Modern Greek, Ολυμπία ; grc, Ὀλυμπία ), officially Archaia Olympia ( el, label=Modern Greek, Αρχαία Ολυμπία; grc, Ἀρχαία Ὀλυμπία, links=no; "Ancient Olympia"), is a small town in E ...

. In the Middle Ages, the village was the capital of the entire region, which also bared its name. The location of the lost ancient city of Melaneai (Greek: Μελανεαί) is believed to be in the vicinity of contemporary Liodora. Outside the village there is also an ancient cheese factory.

Population

The permanent population of Liodora is currently around 50 people, a number which is more than doubled during holiday seasons. Following is the evolution of the official census figures on the village's population.

External links

Information about Liodora (in Greek)Liodora on the GTP Travel Pages

References