 Location |
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Astypalea is the most westerly island of the archipelago and is geographically and architecturally more akin to the Cyclades. It lies between the Cyclades and the Dodecanese
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 Population |
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There is an estimated 1073 inhabitants on Astypalea
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 History |
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According to Greek mythology Astypalea was the sister of Europa, married to Poseidon and had two sons, Anceus who was the kind of Samos and Eurypylea who was the king of Kos. It is said that the island was first inhabited in the 2nd Millennium BC by the Carians! It was called Pyra, meaning fire because of its red soil.
Later the Cretans, Minoans settled here and in the 2nd century BC it was invaded by the Romans who used the island as a haven for their ships, protecting the islands from pirates.
In the 13th century the Venetians conquered the Aegean sea and there was a decline in the defense and in the 16th century it was finally taken over by the Turks who stayed in Astypalea until its liberation in the 19th century. The island however, was again occupied by the Italians during World War II but in 1948 was finally liberated!
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 Religion |
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This topic is not island-specific. It applies to the nation of Greece.
Orthodox Christianity is the recognized dominant religion of Greece and it is legally protected by the state. This has caused legal discrimination against non-Orthodox Churches, and although the constitution of 1975 removed the power of most of the old laws against Protestants, problems still exist today. There is a lot of fear towards anything outside of the Orthodox Church, especially on the islands. However, repeated rulings of the European Court of Justice in favour of religious minorities in cases of discrimination have led to a relative increase of the freedoms that these religious minorities now enjoy.
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 Saints |
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Saint George is amongst the most worshipped saint on this island
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 Prayer |
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That the Lord prepare the hearts of all those that will hear the gospel this summer!
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 Miscellaneous |
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One of the most beautiful churches in the entire Dodecanese is in Astyplalea. The Panagia Poraitissa. This is just below the famous Venetian castle of Gourini which has two of its own churches, dedicated to St. George and to the Annunciation (Evangelismos)
There are also a lot of other old churches on this island.
A few of the most beautiful beaches are among these: Livadi, Agios Vasillis, Tzaneki, Agios Ioannis, Deftero Marmari, Trito Marmari, Maltezana.
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 Celebrations |
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There are a few folklore activities during the summer, which will be a great experience to participate in. The biggest one is on August 15, called the “Panagiri” where the dancing with local dances takes place until the early hours of the morning.
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 Resources |
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www.greektravel.com
www.in2greece.com
http://www.astypalea.net/
http://www.astypalaia.com/
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