Menoikio ( gr, Μενοίκιο, also known to the local populations as "Bozdakas" and "Bozdas", Greek corruptions of the Turkish name "Boz Dag", which was applied to the mountain by the

Turks Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic o ...

in Ottoman time, bg, Змийница, ''Zmiynitsa'') is a mountain range in the eastern

Serres Sérres ( el, Σέρρες ) is a city in Macedonia, Greece, capital of the Serres regional unit and second largest city in the region of Central Macedonia, after Thessaloniki. Serres is one of the administrative and economic centers of Northe ...

and western

Drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...

regional units in

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 ...

. The highest peak of the mountain is Mavromata at 1,963 m.

Geography

To the west, it is connected with the

Vrontous Vrontous ( el, Βροντούς, bg, Шарлия - Sharliya) is a mountain range in the northeastern Serres and the westernmost Drama regional units in Greece. Its highest peak is the Ali Babas ( el, Αλή Μπαμπάς) at 1,849 m elevation. ...

mountain range and to the north via the Mavro Vouno mountain to Orvilos. Menoikio is mostly composed of

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...

and is almost entirely deforested. The nearest significant settlements are

Nea Zichni Nea Zichni ( el, Νέα Ζίχνη) is a municipality in the Serres regional unit, of Central Macedonia region, Greece. Population 12,397 (2011). Nea Zichni is also the name of the administrative seat of the municipality, population 2,530 (2011). ...

Emmanouil Pappas Emmanouel Pappas ( el, Εμμανουήλ Παππάς; 1772–1821) was a prominent member of Filiki Eteria and leader of the Greek War of Independence in Macedonia. Biography Pappas was born in Dovista (Δοβίστα), Serres regional uni ...

and

Agio Pnevma Agio Pnevma (Greek: Άγιο Πνεύμα) is a village and a former community in Serres regional unit of Central Macedonia, Greece located 12 km east of the city of Serres, on the southwestern mountain slopes of Menoikio (altitude 310 m). Since th ...

to the south and

Alistrati Alistrati (Greek language, Greek: Αλιστράτη) is a small town in Serres, situated at the borders of the Drama, Greece, regional unit of Drama and Serres (regional unit), regional unit of Serres, in the Macedonia (region), Macedonia region ...

and Mikropoli to the west and north. Otherwise the mountain is among the least populated in the Balkans.

History

On the mountain is testified the existence, in the Roman (imperial) times, of marble quarries and iron mines. A notable landmark of the mountain is the Byzantine monastery of

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

(founded in 1270), 8 km to the north of the city of Serres.

Gennadius Gennadius or Gennadios may refer to: People * Gennadius of Constantinople (died 471), Patriarch of Constantinople from 458 to 471 * Gennadius of Massilia (5th century) Roman historian, best known for his work ''De Viris Illustribus'' * Gennadius ( ...

, the first

Ecumenical Patriarch The ecumenical patriarch ( el, Οἰκουμενικός Πατριάρχης, translit=Oikoumenikós Patriárchēs) is the archbishop of Constantinople (Istanbul), New Rome and '' primus inter pares'' (first among equals) among the heads of th ...

after the

Fall of Constantinople The Fall of Constantinople, also known as the Conquest of Constantinople, was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire by the Ottoman Empire. The city fell on 29 May 1453 as part of the culmination of a 53-day siege which had begun o ...

, after his resignation in 1465 lived as monk in the monastery, ended his days and was buried there in 1473. His relics were exhumed in 1854 and the following epigram was erected in the place where his grave stood:

References

{{reflist

External links

Orvilos - Menoikio - Vrontou (Lailias) terrain map
by Geopsis Landforms of Drama (regional unit) Landforms of Serres (regional unit) Mountain ranges of Greece Geography of Macedonia (region) Landforms of Central Macedonia Landforms of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace Rhodope mountain range

Geography

History

See also

References

External links