Anafi Ανάφη | |
|---|---|
 View of Anafi from Mt. Kalamos | |
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  Anafi | |
| Coordinates:36°22′19″N25°47′43″E / 36.37194°N 25.79528°E /36.37194; 25.79528 | |
| Country | Greece |
| Administrative region | South Aegean |
| Regional unit | Thira |
| Area | |
• Municipality | 40.370 km2 (15.587 sq mi) |
| Highest elevation | 584 m (1,916 ft) |
| Lowest elevation | 0 m (0 ft) |
| Population (2021)[1] | |
• Municipality | 293 |
| • Density | 7.26/km2 (18.8/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
| Postal code | 840 09 |
| Area code | 22860 |
| Vehicle registration | EM |
| Website | www.anafi.gr |
Anafi orAnaphe (Greek:Ανάφη;Ancient Greek:Ἀνάφη)[2] is aGreek islandcommunity in theCyclades. In 2021, it had a population of 293. Its land area is 40.370 square kilometres (15.587 square miles).[3] It lies east of the island ofThíra (Santorini). Anafi is part of theThira regional unit.[4]
According to mythology, the island was given the name Anafi because Apollo made it appear to theArgonauts as a shelter from a bad storm, using his bow to shed light upon it (i.e. the island nameἈνάφη is derived fromἀνέφηνεν,lit. 'he made appear').[5] If the name of the island derives from this word, and means 'revelation', then Anafi is linked toDelos, an island whose name also derives from an ancient Greek word meaning 'to reveal'. Others say that the name is due to the non-existence of snakes on the island: "an Ophis" ("without snakes"). Despite its small size, Anafi offers archaeological as well as mythological interest. At the monastery of Panagia Kalamiotissa there are ruins of a temple built as an offering to the godApollo Aegletus (Greek:Απόλλων Αιγλήτης). Some of the inscriptions from the island (Inscriptiones Graecae XII, 248 line 8) refer to the god Apollo asasgelatos (ασγέλατος, a unique usage, said by some scholars to be a variant ofAigletes, 'radiant'). However, one scholar (Burkert 1992) links this epithet to aSumerian goddess of healing and to Apollo's sonAsclepius. Ruins can also be found at Kasteli, and most of the findings, such as the statues, are now located at the Archaeological Museum at the Chora, in an extremely small room. InRoman times the island was used as a place of exile.
After theFourth Crusade in 1204, when the Cyclades were taken over by Venetians, Anafi was granted by theDuke of Naxos,Marco I Sanudo toLeonardo Foscolo.[6] UnderLatin rule, the island was known asNamfio.[7] In the late 1270s, the island was recovered for theByzantine Empire byLicario and another Italian renegade and native of Anafi,John de lo Cavo, who succeeded Licario as imperial admiral in the Aegean.[8] In 1307, following a treaty between the Byzantines and theRepublic of Venice, the island was recovered by the Dukes of Naxos,[7] who assigned it as a fief toJanuli Gozzadini, ofBolognese origin.[9]
Much later the ruler of Anafi,William Crispo (1390-1463), became regent of the Duchy of Naxos, leaving Anafi under the control of his daughter Florence. William is said to have built the fortifications (kastro) above the present village. He is also claimed to have built a fortress, sometimes referred to as 'Gibitroli', on Mount Kalamos.[10]
In 1481, the island passed to thePisani family as part of adowry. The Pisani ruled it until 1537, when theOttoman admiralHayreddin Barbarossa raided it and carried off all its inhabitants as slaves.[11] The island was eventually resettled, and acquired a set of privileges from the Ottoman court in 1700 in exchange for 500 crowns. Thereafter it was left largely to fend for itself, except for the annual visit of the Ottoman fleet to collect tribute.[11] The island was visited in 1700 byJoseph Pitton de Tournefort, botanist to the French court. He describes Mount Kalamos as "une des plus effroyables roches qui soit au monde" ("one of the most terrible rocks in the world"). Some of the ancient remains from the island were acquired by French and British antiquaries; oneHellenistic statue from Kastelli (of a woman holding an incense cup) can be found in theHermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg.
During theRusso-Turkish War of 1768–1774, it was held and used as a base by the Russian fleet underAlexei Orlov from 1770 until the war's end.[11] During theGreek War of Independence, the Anafiots sent "twoCaïques of men" to join the struggle. Many men left the island to help in the building of Athens as capital city of Greece, and from then on there was both seasonal and permanent migration, and a migrant community grew up in the city. They built houses for themselves on the slopes of theAcropolis rock, in an area still known asAnafiotika (see Caftanzoglou 2000).James Theodore Bent visited the island with his wife in the winter of 1880-81 and gives a vivid description of the island.[12]
The island was used as a place ofinternal exile for criminals and political dissidents from the 1920s onward.[13]
Tourism developed after the fall of themilitary junta in 1974 and the installation of an electricity generator and undertaking of harbor works the same year. The building of paved roads that begun in the late 1980s not only increased tourism but revived the island's agricultural economy. There are numerous publications relating to the island from the mid-1960s (see books and articles by Margaret Kenna[14]) and her photographs of the island and migrant communities over the decades since 1966 have been gifted to theBenaki Museum Photographic Archive (located inKolonaki Square - Filikis Etaireias 15).
Along with its larger neighbourSantorini, Anafi was not originally counted among the Cyclades by ancient geographers but among theSporades. This only changed during the period ofLatin rule in the lateMiddle Ages.[15]
Anafi is very much an island for walking. Antonis Kaloyerou has published a walkers' guide to the island, in Greek, profusely illustrated, with detailed instructions, timings, and distances (Αντωνης Καλογηρου, Τα Μονοπατια της Αναφης, ROAD 2010, see www.road.gr). There is also a 1:15.000 "hiking map" in Greek and English published by Terrain, no: 318. (See www.terrainmaps.gr) Through the old paths and around the steep hills, you can walk to the other side of the island. The most popular beaches are Klisidi and Roukounas. A peninsula at the eastern end of the island is dominated by a monolithic peak, Mt. Kalamos, among the largest in theMediterranean at 420 m (1,378 ft). Perched atop this massif is the Kalamiotissa church, rebuilt in large part after an earthquake in the 1950s. The icon from this church (called locally "the Upper Monastery") was taken, after a storm in 1887, to the church at the foot of Mount Kalamos, built inside the walls of Apollo's temple (called locally "the Lower Monastery"). The festival associated with this icon is celebrated on 8 September, the Birth of the Virgin. On the island, the epithet (unique in Greece) applied to the Virgin is Kalamiotissa, as the icon is said to have been found on areed (kalami) on the peak of Mount Kalamos. The journey to and from Anafi can only be done by boat, and since they have added more destinations on the way, it takes almost 19 hours fromAthens. However, the boat schedule changes in the summer, and in the winter, so it is important to check carefully before travelling. It is also possible to reach the island from Santorini.
A geological survey of the island published in 1870 mentions deposits ofcalamine (used ingalvanising), and there are deposits of clay in the area of Vayia used by the island's potter in the 1950s. More recently geologists took advantage of the extensive excavations associated with road-building in the 1980s and 1990s to examine the rock strata and other geological features affected by the volcanic eruptions of Santorini and the deposits of volcanic ash which fell on Anafi.[16] A hydrographic chart of the island ("Anaphi, Pasha and Makrea") from 1859, under the direction of CaptainThomas Spratt (1811-1888) ofHMS Medina, can be found in the archives of the UK Hydrographic Office, accessioned 4 June 1860 and ref D4737.
As of 2021, there are indications of an airfield being constructed at the western end of the island.[17] The port is served by aPireas toRhodes ferry, which also stops atHeraklion (Crete) andAthinios (Santorini) among other places.[18]
Anafi has a hot-summerMediterranean climate with mild winters and pleasant summers. There is a longdry season lasting from May to the end of September.
| Climate data for Anafi (235m) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 13.3 (55.9) | 13.9 (57.0) | 14.9 (58.8) | 17.5 (63.5) | 23.1 (73.6) | 26.5 (79.7) | 29 (84) | 29.4 (84.9) | 25.9 (78.6) | 22.9 (73.2) | 18.8 (65.8) | 15.6 (60.1) | 20.9 (69.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 9.9 (49.8) | 10.3 (50.5) | 11 (52) | 12.9 (55.2) | 17.4 (63.3) | 20.3 (68.5) | 22.8 (73.0) | 23.5 (74.3) | 20.9 (69.6) | 18.3 (64.9) | 15.4 (59.7) | 12 (54) | 16.2 (61.2) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 68.8 (2.71) | 91.6 (3.61) | 65.7 (2.59) | 15.9 (0.63) | 1.7 (0.07) | 0.1 (0.00) | 0.1 (0.00) | 0.1 (0.00) | 0.2 (0.01) | 15.4 (0.61) | 44.2 (1.74) | 74.8 (2.94) | 378.6 (14.91) |
| Source:http://penteli.meteo.gr/stations/anafi/ (2019-2021 averages) | |||||||||||||
Anafi has a relatively diverse flora for its small size, represented by 314 plantgenera and a total of 635 species and subspecies, 37 of which are endemic to Greece.[19] It is also one of the islands whereEleonora's Falcon can be seen, a falcon ("hobby") which preys on migrating birds and breeds in the late summer/ autumn.[20] An area along the south coast of the island (Roukounas and Kalamos) is protected under theEU Natura 2000 conservation scheme.[21]
Embroideries from Anafi can be found in the Benaki Museum, and in the Museum of Folk Crafts, Athens.[22] There are also examples in theFitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge (UK), and in theVictoria and Albert Museum, London (UK). Many of these were collected and later donated by AJB Wace.
The island hosts a biennial art event named Phenomenon, which started in 2015.
Anafi travel guide from Wikivoyage| Regional unit ofAndros |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Regional unit ofKalymnos | ||
| Regional unit ofKarpathos-Kasos | ||
| Regional unit ofKea-Kythnos | ||
| Regional unit ofKos | ||
| Regional unit ofMilos | ||
| Regional unit ofMykonos | ||
| Regional unit ofNaxos | ||
| Regional unit ofParos | ||
| Regional unit ofRhodes | ||
| Regional unit ofSyros | ||
| Regional unit ofThira | ||
| Regional unit ofTinos | ||
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| Geographic | |
| Other | |
