Souli ( el, Σούλι) is a municipality in

Epirus sq, Epiri rup, Epiru , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Historical region , image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg , map_alt = , map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinri ...

, northwestern

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 seat of the municipality is the town of Paramythia.

Name and History

The origin of the name Souli is uncertain. In the earliest historical text about Souli, written by

Christoforos Perraivos Christoforos Perraivos ( el, Χριστόφορος Περραιβός) was a Greek officer of the Greek War of Independence, member of the Filiki Eteria and author. In non-Greek sources his name is usually found as ''Per(r)evo(s).'' Biography Pe ...

in 1803, an oral tradition of the locals is recorded. According to this, the first settlers of Souli were shepherds who came from a village called Gardiki trying to avoid the Ottoman oppression. A certain Muslim ("Turk" in the text) named Soulis attempted to expel the early Souliotes from there but the latter resisted with arms. In the battle they killed Soulis and since then the area was named Souli. Another theory suggests that the name comes from Albanian and means 'mountain summit'. The municipality owes its name to the villages of Souli that are located in the southern part of this region. Those villages were originally settled by the Souliotes, a warlike Orthodox community who sought refuge in the mountainous terrain from the Ottomans. Those villages in the early 19th century had a population of c. 12,000.Vickers, Miranda. ''The Albanians: A Modern History''. I.B. Tauris, 1999. , p. 20.Sakellariou, M. V. ''Epirus, 4000 Years of Greek History and Civilization''. Ekdotikē Athēnōn, 1997, , p. 248. After their expulsion, the population of the region was significantly reduced. In the 18th and 19th century, the citizens of Souli rebelled against the

Ottoman rule Ottoman is the Turkish spelling of the Arabic masculine given name Uthman ( ar, عُثْمان, ‘uthmān). It may refer to: Governments and dynasties * Ottoman Caliphate, an Islamic caliphate from 1517 to 1924 * Ottoman Empire, in existence fro ...

. Today, many Souliote villages, churches, and fortifications are left partially abandoned due to immigration to other countries, as well as moving to larger towns like Paramythia. Some examples of partly abandoned or sparsely populated villages are Koukoulii (sometimes referred to as Kouklious), Zotiko, and Tsaggario to a lesser extent. The Castle of Kiafia, constructed by Ali Pasha of the Ottoman Empire in order to hide his treasure and money, is completely abandoned and in ruin.

Municipality

Valley of the Suli, the ancient Acheron - Walsh Robert & Allom Thomas - 1836

The present municipality of Souli was formed in the 2011 local government reform by the merger of the following 3 former municipalities, which became municipal units: *

Acherontas Acherontas ( el, Αχέροντας) is a former municipality in Thesprotia, Epirus, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Souli, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit has an area of 67.343 ...

* Paramythia *Souli The municipality has an area of 502.8 km², and the municipal unit 93.2 km².

Province

The province of Souli ( el, Επαρχία Σουλίου) was one of the

provinces A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

of Thesprotia. It had the same territory as the present municipality. It was abolished in 2006.

References

{{Wikiquote Populated places in Thesprotia Municipalities of Epirus (region) Provinces of Greece