Former toponyms of Greek places
Encyclopedia
Many settlements in Greece
had Greek
and non-Greek forms. Most of those names were in use during the multinational environment of the Ottoman Empire
. Some of the forms were identifiably of Greek
origin, others of Slavic, yet others of Turkish
, Vlach
or Albanian
origin. Following the First World War and the Graeco-Turkish War
which followed, an exchange of population took place between Greece, Yugoslavia
, Bulgaria
and Turkey
(Treaty of Neuilly
, between Greece and Bulgaria and Treaty of Lausanne
, between Greece and Turkey). The villages of the exchanged populations (Bulgarians and Muslims) in Greece were resettled with Greeks from Asia Minor, and the Balkans (mainly from Bulgaria and Yugoslavia).
Since Greece transformed rapidly from a multi-ethnic to a mono-ethnic state the Greek government renamed many places with revived ancient names, local Greek-language names, or translations of the non-Greek names. The multi-ethnic names were officially removed. Although the bulk of the population was Greek the renaming was considered a way to establish a collective ethnic consciousness. A lot of historical Greek names from Asia Minor were also introduced in the region mainly by the resettled refugees. Many Demotic Greek names were also replaced by a Katharevousa
Greek form, usually different only morphologically. This process started in 1926 and continued into the 1960s..
According to ongoing research being carried out at the Institute of Neohellenic Research in Athens, between 1913 and 1996, the names of 4,413 settlements were legally changed in Greece. In each case, the renamings were recorded in the official Government Gazette.
The regional breakdown in renamings is: Macedonia
: 1,805 renamings; Peloponnese
: 827 renamings; Central Greece
: 519 renamings; Thessaly
: 487 renamings; Epirus
: 454 renamings; Thrace
: 98 renamings; Crete
: 97 renamings; Aegean Islands
: 79 renamings; Ionian Islands
: 47 renamings.
The toponyms are divided by Greek prefecture:
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
had Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
and non-Greek forms. Most of those names were in use during the multinational environment of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
. Some of the forms were identifiably of Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
origin, others of Slavic, yet others of Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
, Vlach
Aromanian language
Aromanian , also known as Macedo-Romanian, Arumanian or Vlach is an Eastern Romance language spoken in Southeastern Europe...
or Albanian
Albanian language
Albanian is an Indo-European language spoken by approximately 7.6 million people, primarily in Albania and Kosovo but also in other areas of the Balkans in which there is an Albanian population, including western Macedonia, southern Montenegro, southern Serbia and northwestern Greece...
origin. Following the First World War and the Graeco-Turkish War
Greco-Turkish War (1919-1922)
The Greco–Turkish War of 1919–1922, known as the Western Front of the Turkish War of Independence in Turkey and the Asia Minor Campaign or the Asia Minor Catastrophe in Greece, was a series of military events occurring during the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire after World War I between May...
which followed, an exchange of population took place between Greece, Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
, Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
and Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
(Treaty of Neuilly
Treaty of Neuilly
The Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine, dealing with Bulgaria for its role as one of the Central Powers in World War I, was signed on 27 November 1919 at Neuilly-sur-Seine, France....
, between Greece and Bulgaria and Treaty of Lausanne
Treaty of Lausanne
The Treaty of Lausanne was a peace treaty signed in Lausanne, Switzerland on 24 July 1923, that settled the Anatolian and East Thracian parts of the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire. The treaty of Lausanne was ratified by the Greek government on 11 February 1924, by the Turkish government on 31...
, between Greece and Turkey). The villages of the exchanged populations (Bulgarians and Muslims) in Greece were resettled with Greeks from Asia Minor, and the Balkans (mainly from Bulgaria and Yugoslavia).
Since Greece transformed rapidly from a multi-ethnic to a mono-ethnic state the Greek government renamed many places with revived ancient names, local Greek-language names, or translations of the non-Greek names. The multi-ethnic names were officially removed. Although the bulk of the population was Greek the renaming was considered a way to establish a collective ethnic consciousness. A lot of historical Greek names from Asia Minor were also introduced in the region mainly by the resettled refugees. Many Demotic Greek names were also replaced by a Katharevousa
Katharevousa
Katharevousa , is a form of the Greek language conceived in the early 19th century as a compromise between Ancient Greek and the Modern Greek of the time, with a vocabulary largely based on ancient forms, but a much-simplified grammar. Originally, it was widely used both for literary and official...
Greek form, usually different only morphologically. This process started in 1926 and continued into the 1960s..
According to ongoing research being carried out at the Institute of Neohellenic Research in Athens, between 1913 and 1996, the names of 4,413 settlements were legally changed in Greece. In each case, the renamings were recorded in the official Government Gazette.
The regional breakdown in renamings is: Macedonia
Macedonia (Greece)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in Southern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...
: 1,805 renamings; Peloponnese
Peloponnese
The Peloponnese, Peloponnesos or Peloponnesus , is a large peninsula , located in a region of southern Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Gulf of Corinth...
: 827 renamings; Central Greece
Central Greece
Continental Greece or Central Greece , colloquially known as Roúmeli , is a geographical region of Greece. Its territory is divided into the administrative regions of Central Greece, Attica, and part of West Greece...
: 519 renamings; Thessaly
Thessaly
Thessaly is a traditional geographical region and an administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, and appears thus in Homer's Odyssey....
: 487 renamings; Epirus
Epirus (periphery)
Epirus , formally the Epirus Region , is a geographical and administrative region in northwestern Greece. It borders the regions of West Macedonia and Thessaly to the east, West Greece to the south, the Ionian Sea and the Ionian Islands to the west and the country of Albania to the north. The...
: 454 renamings; Thrace
Western Thrace
Western Thrace or simply Thrace is a geographic and historical region of Greece, located between the Nestos and Evros rivers in the northeast of the country. Together with the regions of Macedonia and Epirus, it is often referred to informally as northern Greece...
: 98 renamings; Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
: 97 renamings; Aegean Islands
Aegean Islands
The Aegean Islands are the group of islands in the Aegean Sea, with mainland Greece to the west and north and Turkey to the east; the island of Crete delimits the sea to the south, those of Rhodes, Karpathos and Kasos to the southeast...
: 79 renamings; Ionian Islands
Ionian Islands
The Ionian Islands are a group of islands in Greece. They are traditionally called the Heptanese, i.e...
: 47 renamings.
The toponyms are divided by Greek prefecture:
- Former toponyms in Drama Prefecture
- Former toponyms in Florina Prefecture
- Former toponyms in Grevena Prefecture
- Former toponyms in Imathia Prefecture
- Former toponyms in Kavala Prefecture
- Former toponyms in Pella Prefecture
- Former toponyms in Pieria Prefecture
- Former toponyms in Xanthi Prefecture
External links
List compiled by the Institute for Neohellenic ResearchSee also
- Prontuario dei nomi locali dell'Alto AdigeProntuario dei nomi locali dell'Alto AdigeThe Prontuario dei nomi locali dell'Alto Adige is a list of Italianized toponyms for mostly German place names in South Tyrol which was published in 1916 by the Royal Italian Geographic Society...
, a massive renaming of German toponyms in the Austrian territory annexed by Italy after World War IWorld War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
(today's South TyrolSouth TyrolSouth Tyrol , also known by its Italian name Alto Adige, is an autonomous province in northern Italy. It is one of the two autonomous provinces that make up the autonomous region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. The province has an area of and a total population of more than 500,000 inhabitants... - Commission for the Determination of Place NamesCommission for the Determination of Place NamesThe Commission for the Determination of Place Names was a commission of the Polish Department of Public Administration, founded in January 1946...
, massive renaming of toponyms in the territory annexed by Poland after World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...