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Servia (
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 ...
: Σέρβια, ''Sérvia'') is one of the main towns in the Kozani regional unit, West Macedonia,
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 wi ...
. It is one of the most historical places in the region, with a 6th-century
Byzantine 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 Constantinopl ...
castle and the Kamvounia mountain dominating the landscape. There are also a number of 10th century Byzantine cave hermitages and small churches located nearby, which add to the Byzantine atmosphere of the area. Since the local government reform of 2019, it is the seat of the extended
municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...
of Servia. From 2011 to 2019, the town was the seat of the Municipality of Servia-Velventos. The town itself has a population of 3,540 people (2011 census).
Hellenic Statistical Authority (in Greek)
The municipal unit Servia has an area of 400.116 km2, the community (the town proper) has an area of 51.603 km2.


Etymology

Its name derives from the
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, 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 ...
verb ''servo'', meaning "to watch over" or from the ethnonym "Serb", replacing what is thought to be the ancient name of the town Phylacae (
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 ...
: Φυλακαί) from the
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 ...
verb φυλάσσω "to watch over". The ancient name of the town of Servia is also mentioned by Roman writer
Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic ' ...
as well as on an
Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic pe ...
inscription found at the city of Veroia which reads: "Παρμενίων Γλαυκία Φυλακήσιος νικητής εν Δολίχω", i.e. "Parmenion son of Glauceas from Phylacae winner at Doliche".


History


Prehistoric period

Servia has given its name to the prehistoric settlement site beside the former bridge across the Haliakmon river to the west and now submerged deep below the surface of Lake Polyphytos. This was first reported by
Alan John Bayard Wace Alan John Bayard Wace (13 July 1879 – 9 November 1957) was an English archaeologist. Biography Wace was educated at Shrewsbury School and Pembroke College, Cambridge. He was director of the British School at Athens (1914–1923), Deputy Keeper ...
and first excavated by the
British School at Athens , image = Image-Bsa athens library.jpg , image_size = 300px , image_upright= , alt= , caption = The library of the BSA , latin_name= , motto= , founder = The Prince of Wales, later Edward VII, called the foundation meeti ...
under the direction of Walter Heurtley in 1930. Renewed excavations were jointly conducted by the Greek Archaeological Service and the British School at Athens under the direction of Aikaterina Rhomiopoulou and Cressida Ridley between 1971 and 1973;C.Ridley and K.A. Wardle, 'Rescue Excavations at Servia 1971-73: a preliminary report', Annual of the British School at Athens 74 (1979), 185-230. C. Ridley, K.A. Wardle, C.A. Mould, Servia 1 London 2000 in advance before the completion of the Polyphytos hydro-electric dam and the flooding of the valley, to create Polyphytos lake. The site is a low mound created by the debris of successive phases of human occupation, starting in the Middle Neolithic period before 5000 BCE. The square or rectangular buildings, one or two storeys in height, were framed with massive oak posts and the walls were created with
wattle and daub Wattle and daub is a composite building method used for making walls and buildings, in which a woven lattice of wooden strips called wattle is daubed with a sticky material usually made of some combination of wet soil, clay, sand, animal dung a ...
. The 'classic' red on cream ceramic repertoire of this phase is closely related to that of
Thessaly Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thes ...
at such sites as Sesklo and Achilleion. Typical shapes are fruitstands, shallow bowls and beakers. Bone and stone tools are frequent while ornaments of stone and sea shell (Spondylus gaederopus and Glycimeris) are quite frequent. Occupation continued for a thousand years until the early stages of the Late Neolithic period, characterised by black burnished and grey-on-grey pottery. Occasional fragments of pottery of other styles, together with occasional pieces of
obsidian Obsidian () is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed when lava extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. It is an igneous rock. Obsidian is produced from felsic lava, rich in the lighter elements such as silicon ...
from
Melos Milos or Melos (; el, label=Modern Greek, Μήλος, Mílos, ; grc, Μῆλος, Mêlos) is a volcanic Greek island in the Aegean Sea, just north of the Sea of Crete. Milos is the southwesternmost island in the Cyclades group. The '' Venus ...
show that long distance 'trade' links had been established with coastal Thessaly and Eastern Macedonia. After a long interval, occupation resumed in the Early Bronze Age (3rd millennium BC)when the ceramic repertoire suggests a cultural orientation towards
Central Macedonia Central Macedonia ( el, Κεντρική Μακεδονία, Kentrikí Makedonía, ) is one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece, consisting of the central part of the geographical and historical region of Macedonia. With a populat ...
rather than Thessaly. Palaeobotanical studies of seeds and other plant remains recovered from all periods at the site and studied by R. Housely and R. Hubbard provide important information about early Greek agricultural practices.


Ancient period

During ancient times, Servia served as a fort for the passageway between Macedonia and
Thessaly Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thes ...
, hence its name. As time passed people settled around the area and the town of Phylacae was created. People that have passed through the then town of Servia, include
Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...
, on his way to Thebes in 335 B.C., and
Apostle Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
during his journey to Macedonia in the first century A.D.


Byzantine period

Servia reached its peak as part of the
Eastern Roman 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 Constantino ...
when it developed as a strong castle-city (
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 ...
: καστροπολιτεία) guarding the ancient passage from Macedonia to
Thessaly Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thes ...
. In October 1256, Theodoros II Laskaris, emperor of Nicaea, married his daughter Maria to Nicephorus Angelos, son of the despot of Epirus Michael II Komnenos. As a wedding gift, Theodoros was given the cities of Servia and Dyrrachium. As Servia was a prosperous Byzantine town due to trade, it is mentioned in a large number of medieval texts, by writers such as emperor
Constantine VII Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus (; 17 May 905 – 9 November 959) was the fourth Emperor of the Macedonian dynasty of the Byzantine Empire, reigning from 6 June 913 to 9 November 959. He was the son of Emperor Leo VI and his fourth wife, Zoe ...
in the mid 10th century, and by Emperor John VI in the 14th century. Servia is also mentioned in the Chronicle of the Morea.


Ottoman period

The
Ottoman Turks The Ottoman Turks ( tr, Osmanlı Türkleri), were the Turkic founding and sociopolitically the most dominant ethnic group of the Ottoman Empire ( 1299/1302–1922). Reliable information about the early history of Ottoman Turks remains scarce, ...
captured Servia in 1393, after which the town entered a period of steady decline. In 1745 the seat of the Bishop of Servia was moved to the nearby city of Kozani being renamed as the Holy Diocese of Servia and Kozani. At the start of the Greek revolution in 1821, the Ottomans ordered Turkish and Albanian irregular military to plunder the region and prevent the formation of links with Greek revolutionaries of the
Olympus Olympus or Olympos ( grc, Ὄλυμπος, link=no) may refer to: Mountains In antiquity Greece * Mount Olympus in Thessaly, northern Greece, the home of the twelve gods of Olympus in Greek mythology * Mount Olympus (Lesvos), located in Le ...
and Vermio regions. After the collapse of the Greek revolution in Macedonia, revolutionaries of the region moved to the South, where they joined fforces with Greeks in the
Peloponnese The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmus of Corinth land bridge which ...
. A prominent revolutionary from the town was Zisis Sotiriou. In 1864, the town became the seat of the Sanjak of Serfiğe in the Manastir Vilayet, and the town was known as Serfiçe in Ottoman Turkish (also written Serfidze).


20th century

The Greek army entered Servia on 10 October 1912, during the
First Balkan War The First Balkan War ( sr, Први балкански рат, ''Prvi balkanski rat''; bg, Балканска война; el, Αʹ Βαλκανικός πόλεμος; tr, Birinci Balkan Savaşı) lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and invo ...
, after its victory against the Ottoman army in the
Battle of Sarantaporo The Battle of Sarantaporo, also variously transliterated as Sarantaporon or Sarandaporon ( el, Μάχη του Σαρανταπόρου, tr, Sarantaporo Muharebesi, links=no), took place on 9–10 October, 1912. It was the first major battle ...
. On the same day, 117 prominent citizens of Servia were gathered and executed by the Ottomans who were leaving the city, 75 to 90 severed human heads were lined up on either side of one of its streets. From then on the main road of the town leading to the Town Hall is called "117 Εθνομαρτύρων" (''117 ethnomartyron''), i.e. "Of the 117 National martyrs", in remembrance of this dreadful event. Servia was granted to the
Kingdom of Greece The Kingdom of Greece ( grc, label= Greek, Βασίλειον τῆς Ἑλλάδος ) was established in 1832 and was the successor state to the First Hellenic Republic. It was internationally recognised by the Treaty of Constantinople, wh ...
by the Treaty of Bucharest in 1913. During the
Second World War 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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
, on 6 March 1943, Italian troops set the town on fire in response to the defeat and capture of an Italian battalion at the Battle of Fardykambos by the Greek Resistance. After this fire the whole town was left in ruins and most of Greek neoclassical architecture was lost apart from 3 houses which remain until today. One of them was turned into the Folk Museum of Servia.


Recent history

Today Servia stands as one of the main towns and agricultural centres of the surrounding region, with its extended Servia-Velventos municipality having a population of 14,830 people (2011 census). Main road access into Servia is provided by Greek National Road 3, which passes through the town and is part of the
European route E65 European route E65 is a north-south Class-A European route that begins in Malmö, Sweden and ends in Chania, Greece. The road is about in length. Route * **: Malmö ( ) – Ystad *Gap (Baltic Sea) ** Ystad - Świnoujście * **: � ...
, connecting the cities of Florina and Kozani with
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 ...
. A recent historical event that occurred in Servia, was a holy liturgy, celebrated by Metropolitan Paulos of Servia and Kozani at the 7th century Metropolitan Church of
St. Demetrius Saint Demetrius (or Demetrios) of Thessalonica ( el, Ἅγιος Δημήτριος τῆς Θεσσαλονίκης, (); bg, Димитър Солунски (); mk, Свети Димитрија Солунски (); ro, Sfântul Dumitru; s ...
(now in ruins). The event which took place during the summer of 2008 was the first liturgy at the site after 600 years. On Thursday 28 June 2012, the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew visited Servia taking part in Great Vespers at the Church of Agia Kyriake and afterwards visited the old Basilica of Agios Demetrios and the Byzantine castle-city of Servia. The patron Saint of the town is Agia Kyriake.


Administration

The municipality of Servia consists of three municipal units: * Kamvounia * Livadero *Servia The municipal unit of Servia is subdivided into the following communities: * Avles * Goules * Imera * Kastania * Kranidia * Lefkara * Mesiani * Metaxas * Neraida * Platanorrevma * Polyrracho * Roditis * Servia * Trigoniko * Vathylakkos


Sights of interest

*
Byzantine 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 Constantinopl ...
castle built in the 6th century by
Justinian Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565. His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized '' renova ...
. Unfortunately only one of its four towers remain in full as it was bombed by the
Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...
during
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 ...
. * The high bridge of lake Polyphytos. * The Servia gorge. * The Noktaria geological formations at the village of Mikrovalto. * The Folk Museum of Servia. * Various
Byzantine 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 Constantinopl ...
cave-churches, most famous the church of Agios Antonios Kremastos.


Notable people

* St. Theodora (13th century), Queen of
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 ...
. * Georgios Kontaris (17th century), scholar. * Eugenios Pateras (19th century), Bishop of Servia and Kozani. * Zisis Sotiriou (19th century), revolutionary of 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 by ...
. * Georgios Zorbas, (1867–1941), the main hero of the novel by
Nikos Kazantzakis Nikos Kazantzakis ( el, ; 2 March ( OS 18 February) 188326 October 1957) was a Greek writer. Widely considered a giant of modern Greek literature, he was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in nine different years. Kazantzakis's n ...
, "
Zorba the Greek ''Zorba the Greek'' ( el, Βίος και Πολιτεία του Αλέξη Ζορμπά, , Life and Times of Alexis Zorbas) is a novel written by the Cretan author Nikos Kazantzakis, first published in 1946. It is the tale of a young Greek int ...
". * John Zizioulas (born 1931), theologian and chairman of the Academy of Athens. * Apostolos Gkountoulas (born 1985), Olympic rower * Nikolaos Gkountoulas (born 1985), Olympic rower


Culture and sports

The Philharmonic band of the town, established in 1928, is run by the "Morphotikos Omilos Servion", which is the main Cultural Society of the town. It organises a wide range of cultural events and supports teaching classes for children and adults in painting, dance, choir, and chess. Hang gliding is prominent in the area as national championships are held at the cliffs near Kastania. The Servia cycling competition is held annually, with cyclists from all over the country completing one round of the Polyphytos lake; the cycling tour is about 60 km long at 1000 m altitude. Rowing and other water sports at the lake are also established, via the Kozani nautical club. The town's football team is "Titan" (Τιτάν), founded in 1927, and the basketball team is "Anagennisi" (Αναγέννηση).


See also


The Archeological Museum of Aeani
*
Lake Polyfytos Bridge The Servia High Bridge ( el, Υψηλή Γέφυρα Σερβίων, translit=Ypsili Gefyra Servion) is one of the longest bridges in Greece, with a length of 1,372 m. Construction began in 1972 along with the artificial lake and was completed in 1 ...
* Noktaria Geological Park * Velventos * Aeani


Gallery

File:Βυζαντινό κάστρο Σερβίων 12.jpg, Remains of the Byzantine castle File:Kamvounia Servia.png, Mt. Kamvounia at the south side of Servia File:Mt.Kamvounia Servia Greece.JPG, Mt. Kamvounia File:Noktaria_Mikrovaltou_Servia_Greece.png, Noktaria geological formations at the village of Mikrovalto. File:St Georgios Servia Greece.png, The Church of St Georgios at the center of Servia during winter. File:Βασιλική των Κατηχουμένων Σερβίων 1.jpg, Remains of the Byzantine Basilica of Katechoumenon. File:Βασιλική των Κατηχουμένων Σερβίων 7.jpg , Remains of the Byzantine Basilica of Katechoumenon (interior view). File:Ναός Αγίων Αναργύρων Σερβίων 4.jpg , Byzantine church of the Holy Unmerceneries.


References


External links


Municipality of Servia (official website)
{{Authority control Populated places in Kozani (regional unit) Neolithic settlements in Macedonia (region) Municipalities of Western Macedonia