Sitia Σητεία | |
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 Seal | |
  Sitia Location within the region  | |
| Coordinates:35°12′N26°6′E / 35.200°N 26.100°E /35.200; 26.100 | |
| Country | Greece |
| Administrative region | Crete |
| Regional unit | Lasithi |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Georgios Zervakis[1] (since 2019) |
| Area | |
• Municipality | 710.9 km2 (274.5 sq mi) |
| • Municipal unit | 277.4 km2 (107.1 sq mi) |
| Highest elevation | 5 m (16 ft) |
| Lowest elevation | 0 m (0 ft) |
| Population (2021)[2] | |
• Municipality | 20,438 |
| • Density | 29/km2 (74/sq mi) |
| • Municipal unit | 15,615 |
| • Municipal unit density | 56/km2 (150/sq mi) |
| • Community | 11,166 |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
| Postal code | 72x xx |
| Area code(s) | 28430 |
| Vehicle registration | ΑΝ |
| Website | www.sitia.gr |
Sitia (Latin andItalian) orSiteia (Greek:Σητεία,Siteía[siˈtia]) is a port town and a municipality inLasithi,Crete, Greece. The town has 11,166 inhabitants and the municipality has 20,438 (2021).[2] It lies east ofAgios Nikolaos and northeast ofIerapetra. Sitia's port is on theSea of Crete, part of theAegean Sea[3] and is one of the economic centers of theLasithi region.European route E75 (which ends inVardø, Norway) starts in Sitia. The town is served by theSitia Public Airport. It has not experienced the effects of mass tourism[dubious –discuss] even though there is a long beach along the road leading toVai and several places of historical interest.
The settlement of the town dates to pre-Minoan times. Excavations in thePetras neighbourhood have found architectural remains from the end of the Neolithic (3000 BC) and continue through the Bronze Age 3000-1050 BC, including the Minoan palace of Petras. Several other Minoan settlements have been found within the municipality, notablyItanos andMochlos.[citation needed]
According toDiogenes Laërtius, Sitia was the home ofMyson of Chen, one of theSeven Sages of Greece.[citation needed]
The ancient Itia or Etea[4] (Ancient Greek:Ἠτεία,Ēteía) appears to correspond roughly to modern Sitia. The name Siteia itself is probably the result ofrebracketing ofse (σε, "at") andĒteía.[5][6]
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Sitia was founded byMinoans as Itia,[dubious –discuss] and was a place of refuge for native Cretans after the fall of the major Minoan settlements.[citation needed] The city continued to prosper through the Classical, Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine periods as one of the island's chief ports.
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The town was later expanded and fortified by theVenetians after their acquisition of Crete in 1204, who used it as a base of operations for the Eastern Mediterranean. During the Venetian occupation, the town was destroyed three times: first by an earthquake in 1508, then by the Turkish pirateHayreddin Barbarossa in 1538, and finally by the Venetians themselves in 1651. This final destruction took place in the context of theCretan War (1645–1669) in which the Venetians battled to retain their hold on the island against theOttoman Empire. While Sitia did not fall in the initial Turkish advance, the Venetians did not have the resources to withstand a long siege, and accordingly destroyed the fortifications and removed the garrison toHeraklion. The local inhabitants meanwhile removed westwards to Liopetro and the site was subsequently abandoned for the next 200 years of Turkish rule.
The main remnant of the Venetian occupation is theKazarma (from Italiancasa di arma), the old fortress overlooking the harbour.
After the Venetian period and subsequent abandonment the town was rebuilt until 1870 by the progressive Turkish governorHüseyin Avni Pasha following theCretan Revolt. It was subsequently created capital of the Sanjak of Lasit (laterLasithi, which it remains to this day). Under Turkish rule the town was renamedAvniye[clarification needed] after its rebuilder, but as the local Greeks continued to use the traditional name of Sitia this innovation did not survive independence. Despite the turbulent history of Crete in leaving the Ottoman Empire and joining Greece, as well as the First World War, the population almost quadrupled between 1881 (570 inhabitants) and 1928 (2,100 inhabitants). Major public works were carried out by the Greek government in 1911 to modernise the town, in the course of which much of the Ottoman era town was rebuilt, as well as a fresh water supply.
The municipality Sitia was formed at the 2010 local government reform by the merger of the three former municipalitiesItanos,Lefki and Sitia, which became municipal units.[7] In November 2011, Sitia incorporated the four communitiesChrysopigi,Lithines,Perivolakia andPefkoi, which had previously been part of the municipalityIerapetra.[8] In 2014, these communities were grouped into the new municipal unitAnalipsi.[9]
The municipality Sitia consists of the following municipal units and communities:[citation needed]
The municipality has an area of 627 km2 (242 sq mi), the municipal unit 277 km2 (107 sq mi).[10]
Sitia Province or Eparchy (Επαρχία Σητείας,Eparkhía Siteías) was one of theprovinces of Lasithi. Its territory corresponded with that of the current municipality Sitia and the municipal unitMakry Gialos.[11] It was abolished in 2006.
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There are a number of sites in the municipality of Sitia that are protected as National Parks, Aesthetic Forests, Wildlife Refuges etc. under national and international laws. Sitia is home to the Sitia UNESCO Global Geopark.Notable examples are:
Sitia has a hot-summerMediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification:Csa) with hot, dry summers and mild, rainy winters.
| Climate data for Sitia (1960–2010) | |||||||||||||
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 15.2 (59.4) | 15.3 (59.5) | 16.9 (62.4) | 19.9 (67.8) | 23.5 (74.3) | 27.1 (80.8) | 28.4 (83.1) | 28.4 (83.1) | 26.5 (79.7) | 23.5 (74.3) | 20.1 (68.2) | 16.9 (62.4) | 21.8 (71.2) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 12.2 (54.0) | 12.2 (54.0) | 13.7 (56.7) | 16.6 (61.9) | 20.3 (68.5) | 24.1 (75.4) | 25.9 (78.6) | 25.8 (78.4) | 23.6 (74.5) | 20.3 (68.5) | 16.9 (62.4) | 13.9 (57.0) | 18.8 (65.8) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 9.7 (49.5) | 9.5 (49.1) | 10.5 (50.9) | 12.8 (55.0) | 15.9 (60.6) | 19.9 (67.8) | 22.6 (72.7) | 22.7 (72.9) | 20.4 (68.7) | 17.3 (63.1) | 14.0 (57.2) | 11.4 (52.5) | 15.6 (60.1) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 92.6 (3.65) | 71.0 (2.80) | 49.0 (1.93) | 23.3 (0.92) | 12.1 (0.48) | 2.2 (0.09) | 0.2 (0.01) | 0.8 (0.03) | 16.2 (0.64) | 50.2 (1.98) | 59.5 (2.34) | 91.8 (3.61) | 468.9 (18.46) |
| Average precipitation days | 13.1 | 11.3 | 8.8 | 5.0 | 3.0 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 1.7 | 5.7 | 8.2 | 12.4 | 70.4 |
| Source:Hellenic National Meteorological Service[13] | |||||||||||||
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The municipality of Sitia is served by theSitia Public Airport which offers several domestic destinations. The first landing occurred on June 7, 1984 and the airport opened officially on June 9, 1984. Construction of new building facilities that included a control tower was completed in May 1993. Runway and apron extension works were finished in May 2003. In 2011, the local authorities completed negotiations with international travel agents for organising regular charter flights starting in May 2012.[14] The same year, local officials negotiationed with the low-cost airlineRyanair.[15]
In addition, Sitia is served by a port which connects Sitia and eastern Crete with several other Greek islands as well as with theport of Piraeus.[16] The town also has a marina which accommodates smaller fishing boats and yachts.
Sitia General Hospital was founded in 1947 as a local health center and was later (1994) relocated to a new 7500m2 (110-bed capacity) building and accordingly upgraded to serve as the main hospital for the municipality of Sitia and the surrounding area.[17]
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Sitia travel guide from WikivoyageAdministrative division of theCrete Region | ||
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| Regional unit ofChania |  | |
| Regional unit ofHeraklion | ||
| Regional unit ofLasithi | ||
| Regional unit ofRethymno | ||
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| International | |
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| National | |
