Kyparissia
Encyclopedia
Kyparissia is a town and a former municipality
in Messenia
, Peloponnese, Greece
. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Trifylia
, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit. The town proper has around 5,708 inhabitants. The town is located on Greek National Road 9
, halfway between Pyrgos
and Methoni
. It is located approximately 65 km south of Pyrgos, 67 km west of Kalamata
via the highway and approximately 16 km south of the Neda River
. The elevation is sea level in the west, approximately 20 m in the town centre, and 50 m or higher in the east; the town is built on terraces. There are approximately 1,500 dwellings in the municipality. In the Middle Ages, it was known as Arkadia, with the second Greek alpha
accented, not sounding like Arcadia
.
It is also an agricultural trade centre. Olive growing dominates the local agriculture; the town is almost surrounded by olive groves and trees and mixed farming. Forests including cypress
es and pine
s lie to its east.
There is an acropolis and a fortress built during the Frankish period
.
Kyparissia has churches, a hospital, schools, lyceums, a gymnasium, banks, churches including Agia Triada, a post office, squares and beaches (paralies).
Downtown is nearly 200 m from the shoreline of the Ionian Sea
, which includes the nearby Gulf of Kyparissia
(Kyparissiakos Kolpos), and west of the nearest mountains. The town has a port to the northwest in the bay; its barriers are almost shaped like the letter G, but the southwest barrier runs to the northwest from the point. The port is mainly used for cargo purposes and has no ferry services.
The shoreline features sea turtles, Caretta caretta.
, the Byzantine
, the Frankish
and the Ottoman
Empire
s. Kyparissia did not became Greek again until the Greek War of Independence
which began in 1821 and was finally won in the late 1820s. After World War II
and the Greek Civil War
, several buildings were rebuilt, but much neo-classical architecture remains today.
Communities and Municipalities of Greece
For the new municipalities of Greece see the Kallikratis ProgrammeThe municipalities and communities of Greece are one of several levels of government within the organizational structure of that country. Thirteen regions called peripheries form the largest unit of government beneath the State. ...
in Messenia
Messenia
Messenia is a regional unit in the southwestern part of the Peloponnese region, one of 13 regions into which Greece has been divided by the Kallikratis plan, implemented 1 January 2011...
, Peloponnese, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Trifylia
Trifylia
Trifylia is a municipality in the Messenia peripheral unit, Peloponnese Periphery, Greece. The seat of the municipality is the town Kyparissia...
, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit. The town proper has around 5,708 inhabitants. The town is located on Greek National Road 9
Greek National Road 9
Greek National Road 9 is the second-longest national highway of Greece. It runs through the western Peloponnese, from Patras to Pylos. Its length is around .This highway travels near:*Bypasses:*Patras and Area, since 2002*Vrachneika*Alissos*Kato Achaia...
, halfway between Pyrgos
Pyrgos, Elis
Pyrgos is the capital of the Elis peripheral unit in Greece. It is named after a local tower. The city is located in the western part of the Peloponnese, in the middle of a plain near the Ionian Sea. It is 96 km away from Patras via Greek National Road 9, 320 km from Athens, and...
and Methoni
Methoni, Messenia
Methoni is a village and a former municipality in Messenia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Pylos-Nestoras, of which it is a municipal unit. Its name may be derived from Mothona, a mythical rock. It is located 11 km south of Pylos and...
. It is located approximately 65 km south of Pyrgos, 67 km west of Kalamata
Kalamata
Kalamata is the second-largest city of the Peloponnese in southern Greece. The capital and chief port of the Messenia prefecture, it lies along the Nedon River at the head of the Messenian Gulf...
via the highway and approximately 16 km south of the Neda River
Neda River
The Neda is a river that flows through the Arcadia, Ilia and the Messinia prefectures in the western Peloponnese in Greece. It is unique in the sense that it is the only river in Greece with a female name.-Geography:...
. The elevation is sea level in the west, approximately 20 m in the town centre, and 50 m or higher in the east; the town is built on terraces. There are approximately 1,500 dwellings in the municipality. In the Middle Ages, it was known as Arkadia, with the second Greek alpha
Alpha
Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet. Alpha or ALPHA may also refer to:-Science:*Alpha , the highest ranking individuals in a community of social animals...
accented, not sounding like Arcadia
Arcadia
Arcadia is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Peloponnese. It is situated in the central and eastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. It takes its name from the mythological character Arcas. In Greek mythology, it was the home of the god Pan...
.
Distances
- AthensAthensAthens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
- 255 km northeast - PyrgosPyrgos, ElisPyrgos is the capital of the Elis peripheral unit in Greece. It is named after a local tower. The city is located in the western part of the Peloponnese, in the middle of a plain near the Ionian Sea. It is 96 km away from Patras via Greek National Road 9, 320 km from Athens, and...
- 63 km north - TripoliTripoli, GreeceTripoli is a city of about 25,000 inhabitants in the central part of the Peloponnese, in Greece. It is the capital of the prefecture of Arcadia and the centre of the municipality of Tripolis, pop...
- 100 km northeast - KalamataKalamataKalamata is the second-largest city of the Peloponnese in southern Greece. The capital and chief port of the Messenia prefecture, it lies along the Nedon River at the head of the Messenian Gulf...
- 67 km southeast - MethoniMethoni, MesseniaMethoni is a village and a former municipality in Messenia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Pylos-Nestoras, of which it is a municipal unit. Its name may be derived from Mothona, a mythical rock. It is located 11 km south of Pylos and...
- 74 km south
Subdivisions
The municipal unit Kyparissia is subdivided into the following communities (constituent villages and 2001 population in brackets):- Armenioi (pop: 462)
- Faraklada (pop: 358)
- Kyparissia (Kyparissia, Memi, Blemenianoi, Myloi, Rouzaki, Terpsithea, total pop: 5,708)
- Mouriatada (Mouriatada, Karvouni, total pop: 125)
- Myro (Myro, Alimaki, total pop: 63)
- Perdikoneri (pop: 327)
- Raches (pop: 305)
- Spilia (pop: 614)
- StasioStasio, GreeceStasio is a division of Kyparissia in Greece. Its 2001 population was 201 for the village. Formerly, it was a village outside the main city. The church in the village is St. Michael's and Gabriel's....
(pop: 312) - Vryses (pop: 306)
- Xirokampos (pop: 68)
Information
The city centre is adjacent to the train tracks. Kyparissia has the southwesternmost railway station in Greece, the southwestern terminus of the OSE railway line. The railroad station has a freight yard with a length of around 500 m.It is also an agricultural trade centre. Olive growing dominates the local agriculture; the town is almost surrounded by olive groves and trees and mixed farming. Forests including cypress
Cupressaceae
The Cupressaceae or cypress family is a conifer family with worldwide distribution. The family includes 27 to 30 genera , which include the junipers and redwoods, with about 130-140 species in total. They are monoecious, subdioecious or dioecious trees and shrubs from 1-116 m tall...
es and pine
Pine
Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...
s lie to its east.
There is an acropolis and a fortress built during the Frankish period
Frankish Empire
Francia or Frankia, later also called the Frankish Empire , Frankish Kingdom , Frankish Realm or occasionally Frankland, was the territory inhabited and ruled by the Franks from the 3rd to the 10th century...
.
Kyparissia has churches, a hospital, schools, lyceums, a gymnasium, banks, churches including Agia Triada, a post office, squares and beaches (paralies).
Downtown is nearly 200 m from the shoreline of the Ionian Sea
Ionian Sea
The Ionian Sea , is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, south of the Adriatic Sea. It is bounded by southern Italy including Calabria, Sicily and the Salento peninsula to the west, southern Albania to the north, and a large number of Greek islands, including Corfu, Zante, Kephalonia, Ithaka, and...
, which includes the nearby Gulf of Kyparissia
Gulf of Kyparissia
The Gulf of Kyparissia is a long, curving indentation along the western coast of the Peloponnese peninsula, Greece. It lies between Cape Katakolo at the north end and Cape Konello to the south. Near the northern extreme is the city of Pyrgos, with the town of Zacharo near the center and the town...
(Kyparissiakos Kolpos), and west of the nearest mountains. The town has a port to the northwest in the bay; its barriers are almost shaped like the letter G, but the southwest barrier runs to the northwest from the point. The port is mainly used for cargo purposes and has no ferry services.
The shoreline features sea turtles, Caretta caretta.
History
The origin of the name dates back to ancient times; since then the town has been part of the RomanRoman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
, the Byzantine
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
, the Frankish
Frankish Empire
Francia or Frankia, later also called the Frankish Empire , Frankish Kingdom , Frankish Realm or occasionally Frankland, was the territory inhabited and ruled by the Franks from the 3rd to the 10th century...
and the Ottoman
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...
Empire
Empire
The term empire derives from the Latin imperium . Politically, an empire is a geographically extensive group of states and peoples united and ruled either by a monarch or an oligarchy....
s. Kyparissia did not became Greek again until the Greek War of Independence
Greek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution was a successful war of independence waged by the Greek revolutionaries between...
which began in 1821 and was finally won in the late 1820s. After World War II
World War II
World 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...
and the Greek Civil War
Greek Civil War
The Greek Civil War was fought from 1946 to 1949 between the Greek governmental army, backed by the United Kingdom and United States, and the Democratic Army of Greece , the military branch of the Greek Communist Party , backed by Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Albania...
, several buildings were rebuilt, but much neo-classical architecture remains today.
Historical population
| Year | Municipal district population | Municipality population |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 4,636 | |
| 1991 | 5,149 | - |
| 2001 | 5,708 | 8,648 |
Famous residents
- Dimitrios Pitsinis - Doctor/General Surgeon (1925-2003)
- Konstantinos LamprinopoulosKonstantinos LamprinopoulosKonstantinos Lamprinopoulos or Lambrinopoulos was a Greek judge, politician and Mayor of Patras from August 18, 1950 until February 12, 1951....
- politician, Mayor of Patras (August 18, 1950 - February 21, 1951), the only person to run Patras who was born in Kyparissia - Theodoros RoussopoulosTheodoros RoussopoulosTheodoros Roussopoulos is a Greek politician. He was Minister of State and Government Spokesman from 7 March 2004 until 23 October 2008, as well as one of Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis's closest aides....
- journalist, politician
External links
| North: Avlona Avlona, Messenia Avlonas is a village and a former municipality in Messenia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Trifylia, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 2,626 . The seat of the municipality was in Sidirokastro.... | Northeast: Tripyla Tripyla Tripyla is a former community in Messenia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Trifylia, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 3,089 . The seat of the community was in Raptopoulo.... | |
| West: Ionian Sea Ionian Sea The Ionian Sea , is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, south of the Adriatic Sea. It is bounded by southern Italy including Calabria, Sicily and the Salento peninsula to the west, southern Albania to the north, and a large number of Greek islands, including Corfu, Zante, Kephalonia, Ithaka, and... | Kyparissia | East: Tripyla Tripyla Tripyla is a former community in Messenia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Trifylia, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 3,089 . The seat of the community was in Raptopoulo.... |
| South: Filiatra Filiatra Filiatra , is a town and a former municipality in Messenia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Trifylia, of which it is a municipal unit. It is passed by Greek National Road 9 and is located south of Kyparissia and Pyrgos, W of Kalamata and... |