Akraifnio

Akraifnio
Ακραίφνιο
Akraifnio
Coordinates: 38°27′N 23°13′E / 38.450°N 23.217°E / 38.450; 23.217Coordinates: 38°27′N 23°13′E / 38.450°N 23.217°E / 38.450; 23.217
Country Greece
Administrative region Central Greece
Regional unit Boeotia
Municipality Orchomenos
Municipal unit Akraifnia
Elevation 250 m (820 ft)
Community
  Population 1058
Time zone EET (UTC+2)
  Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+3)
Vehicle registration ΒΙ

Akraifnio (Greek: Ακραίφνιο), before 1933 known as Karditsa (Καρδίτσα),[1]) is a village in Boeotia, Greece.

It was the seat of the former municipality Akraifnia, which is a municipal unit of the municipality Orchomenos since the 2011 local government reform.[2] Population 1,058 (2011).

Akraifnio is situated on the western edge of the Ptoo mountains, close to where the river Cephissus flows into Lake Yliki. It is 17 km northwest of Thebes. The A1 motorway (Athens-Thessaloniki) passes southwest of the village.

Population

Year Population
1991 1,462
2001 1,256
2011 1,058

History

Akraifnio was named after the ancient city Acraephia (Ancient Greek: Ἀκραιφία). Acraephia or Acraephnium (Ἀκραίφνιον) was an ancient Greek city (polis) on the eastern shore of Lake Copais (drained in the late 19th century) and at the foot of the Ptoo mountains. It was believed to have been founded by the mythical Acraepheus. The ruins are a short distance south from the modern village.[3] When Alexander razed Thebes those who were too weak or old to move to Attica settled at Acraephia. Near the town there was a sanctuary to Acraephian or Ptoan Apollo with an oracle.[4]

In the late Middle Ages, the site was occupied by the village of Karditsa. In the 13th–15th centuries, it was part of the Frankish Duchy of Athens, and in the first decades of the 14th century, it was the seat of the knight Antoine le Flamenc, reputed to be "the wisest man in the duchy", and his son, Jean. Antoine is buried in the Church of Saint George, which he built, and which carries an inscription commemorating his donation.[5]

The village Karditsa was renamed Akraifnio in 1933 after the ancient city.[1] From 1912 until 1997, when it became part of the largr municipality Akraifnia, Akraifnio was an independent community.[6]

Landmarks and points of interests

References

  1. 1 2 Name changes of settlements in Greece
  2. Kallikratis law Greece Ministry of Interior (Greek)
  3.  Smith, William, ed. (1854–1857). "Acraephia". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography. London: John Murray.
  4. Pausanias, Description of Greece 9.23.5-6
  5. Miller, William (1921). Essays on the Latin Orient. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 117, 132–134.
  6. EETAA local government changes
  7. Pelagia Monastery
  8. Ministry of Culture and Sports, Sarakinos Cave
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