From en.wikipedia.org:
[Historic and administrative region of Greece] [other uses of Laconia and
Lakonia] [date=November 2015] {{Infobox Greece place | name = Laconia |
name_local = <small>Περιφερειακή ενότητα</small><br>Λακωνίας | type = regional
unit | image_skyline = 2010 Dimi Lakonias numbered.svg | caption_skyline =
Municipalities of Laconia | image_map = Nomos Lakonias.png | map_caption =
Laconia within Greece | coordinates = [37.0] | periph = Peloponnese
|districts=Laconia constituency| seat = Sparta | area = 3636 | elevation = |
population = 84337 | population_as_of = 2021 | demonym = Laconian(s) |
postal_code = 23x xx | area_code = 273x0 | licence = ΑΚ | website = }}
LACONIA or LAKONIA ([el], [el-Latn], [el]) is a historical and administrative
region of Greece located on the southeastern part of the Peloponnese
peninsula. Its administrative capital is Sparta. The word _laconic_—to speak
in a blunt, concise way—is probably derived from the name of this region[1], a
reference to the ancient Spartans who were renowned for their verbal austerity
and blunt, often pithy remarks.
** Geography
Laconia is bordered by Messenia to the west and Arcadia to the north and is
surrounded by the Myrtoan Sea to the east and by the Laconian Gulf and the
Mediterranean Sea to the south. It encompasses Cape Malea and Cape Tainaron
and a large part of the Mani Peninsula. The Mani Peninsula is in the west
region of Laconia.[2] The islands of Kythira and Antikythera lie to the south,
but they administratively belong to the Attica regional unit of islands. The
island, Elafonisos, situated between the Laconian mainland and Kythira, is
part of Laconia.
The Evrotas is the longest river in the prefecture. The Evrotas Valley is
predominantly an agricultural region that contains many citrus groves, olive
groves, and pasture lands. It is the location of the largest orange
production in the Peloponnese and probably in all of Greece. _Lakonia_, a
brand of orange juice, is based in Amykles.
The main mountain ranges are the Taygetus [2,407] in the west and the Parnon
[1,961] in the northeast. Taygetus, known as Pentadaktylos (_five-fingers_)
throughout the Middle Ages, is west of Sparta and the Evrotas Valley. It is
the highest mountain in Laconia and the Peloponnese and is mostly covered with
pine trees. Two roads join the Messenia and Laconia prefectures: one is a
tortuous mountain pass through Taygetus and the other bypasses the mountain
via the Mani district to the south.
The stalactite cave, Dirou, a major tourist attraction, is located south of
Areopolis in the southwest of Laconia.
*** Climate
The city of Sparta enjoys a sunny and warm Mediterranean climate (Köppen:
_Csa_). January highs are around [14] while July and August highs are around
[36] in the city proper. Sparta records the highest summer average maximum
temperatures in Greece.<ref name="Meteoclub.gr"/> In July 2012 the city
registered an average maximum temperature of [38.3], making it Greece's second
highest monthly average maximum temperature to date after the [38.6] recorded
in Stylida in July 2023.[3][4] The highest temperature ever recorded in Sparta
is [45.7] in August 2021.[5] On average, Sparta records 5 days per year with
temperatures of over [40.0].[6] {{Weather box |location=Sparta (2009–2024)
|metric first=yes |single line=yes |Jan high C=14.4 |Feb high C=16.1 |Mar high
C=18.4 |Apr high C=22.8 |May high C=27.8 |Jun high C=32.5 |Jul high C=36.0
|Aug high C=35.9 |Sep high C=31.3 |Oct high C=25.3 |Nov high C=20.2 |Dec high
C=16.1
|Jan mean C=8.8 |Feb mean C=10.0 |Mar mean C=12.0 |Apr mean C=15.4 |May mean
C=20.0 |Jun mean C=24.6 |Jul mean C=27.7 |Aug mean C=27.7 |Sep mean C=23.8
|Oct mean C=18.5 |Nov mean C=14.1 |Dec mean C=10.2
|Jan low C=3.1 |Feb low C=4.0 |Mar low C=5.6 |Apr low C=8.0 |May low C=12.2
|Jun low C=16.7 |Jul low C=19.5 |Aug low C=19.6 |Sep low C=16.4 |Oct low
C=11.8 |Nov low C=7.9 |Dec low C=4.4
|rain colour=green |Jan rain mm=122.6 |Feb rain mm=82.3 |Mar rain mm=62.4 |Apr
rain mm=33.1 |May rain mm=24.8 |Jun rain mm=35.3 |Jul rain mm=11.9 |Aug rain
mm=19.0 |Sep rain mm=52.2 |Oct rain mm=61.5 |Nov rain mm=88.1 |Dec rain
mm=92.0
| Jan record high C=23.5 | Feb record high C=26.4 | Mar record high C=27.2 |
Apr record high C=34.1 | May record high C=40.7 | Jun record high C=44.4 | Jul
record high C=44.2 | Aug record high C=45.7 | Sep record high C=40.3 | Oct
record high C=36.4 | Nov record high C=30.8 | Dec record high C=23.5
| Jan record low C=-5.3 | Feb record low C=-4.2 | Mar record low C=-4.6 | Apr
record low C=-0.7 | May record low C=6.2 | Jun record low C=9.4 | Jul record
low C=14.2 | Aug record low C=13.1 | Sep record low C=9.1 | Oct record low
C=1.5 | Nov record low C=-1.7 | Dec record low C=-5.2
|source=National Observatory of Athens (Feb 2009 - Feb 2024),[7][8]<br/>
Sparta N.O.A station,[9] World Meteorological Organization[10] }}
{{Weather box |collapsed=y |width=auto |location=Sparta Air Base (HNMS
,1974–2004) |metric first=yes |single line=yes |Jan high C=14.4 |Feb high
C=15.1 |Mar high C=17.7 |Apr high C=21.3 |May high C=27.0 |Jun high C=32.2
|Jul high C=34.8 |Aug high C=34.3 |Sep high C=30.5 |Oct high C=25.7 |Nov high
C=19.4 |Dec high C=15.2
|Jan mean C=9.6 |Feb mean C=10.2 |Mar mean C=12.4 |Apr mean C=15.8 |May mean
C=21.2 |Jun mean C=26.2 |Jul mean C=28.5 |Aug mean C=27.8 |Sep mean C=24.2
|Oct mean C=19.6 |Nov mean C=14.2 |Dec mean C=10.8
|Jan low C=3.5 |Feb low C=3.8 |Mar low C=5.5 |Apr low C=7.6 |May low C=11.8
|Jun low C=15.9 |Jul low C=18.7 |Aug low C=18.0 |Sep low C=15.3 |Oct low
C=12.3 |Nov low C=8.2 |Dec low C=5.1
|rain colour=green |Jan rain mm=90.7 |Feb rain mm=84.6 |Mar rain mm=73.3 |Apr
rain mm=66.0 |May rain mm=47.4 |Jun rain mm=14.6 |Jul rain mm=18.8 |Aug rain
mm=26.4 |Sep rain mm=30.8 |Oct rain mm=54.6 |Nov rain mm=90.0 |Dec rain
mm=107.9
|source 1=Meteoclub.gr[11] }}
** History
*** Ancient
[Sparta]
Evidence of Neolithic settlement in southern Laconia has been found during
excavations of the Alepotrypa cave site.[12] Significant archaeological
recovery exists at the Vaphio-tomb site in Laconia. Found there is advanced
Bronze Age art as well as evidence of cultural associations with the
contemporaneous Minoan culture on Crete.[13] At the end of the Mycenean
period, the population of Laconia sharply declined.[14] In classical Greece,
Laconia was Spartan territory but from the 4th century BC onward Sparta lost
control of various ports, towns and areas.[15][16] From the mid-2nd century BC
until 395 AD, Laconia was a part of the Roman Empire.
*** Medieval
In the medieval period, Laconia formed part of the Byzantine Empire. In the
7th century, Slavic tribes settled in the Peloponnese. Two of them, the
Melingoi and the Ezeritai, who settled in parts of Laconia, survived the
subsequent Byzantine reconquest and re-Hellenization of the Peloponnese, and
are attested until the late Middle Ages.
Following the Fourth Crusade, Laconia was gradually conquered by the Frankish
Principality of Achaea. In the 1260s, the Byzantines recovered Mystras and
other fortresses in the region and managed to evict the Franks from Laconia,
which became the nucleus of a new Byzantine province. By the mid-14th
century, this evolved into the Despotate of the Morea, held by the last Greek
ruling dynasty, the Palaiologoi. The capital of the Despotate, Mystras, was a
major site of the Palaiologan Renaissance, the last flowering of Byzantine
culture. With the fall of the Despotate to the Ottomans in 1460, Laconia was
conquered as well.
*** Modern
With the exception of a 30-year interval of Venetian rule, Laconia remained
under Ottoman control until the outbreak of the Greek War of Independence of
1821. Following independence, Sparta was selected as the capital of the
modern prefecture, and its economy and agriculture expanded. With the
incorporation of the British-ruled Ionian Islands into Greece in 1864,
Elafonissos became part of the prefecture. After World War II and the Greek
Civil War, its population began to somewhat decline, as people moved from the
villages toward the larger cities of Greece and abroad..
In 1992, a devastating fire ruined the finest olive crops in the northern part
of the prefecture, and affected the area of Sellasia along with Oinountas and
its surrounding areas. Firefighters, helicopters and planes battled for days
to put out the horrific fire.
In early 2006, flooding ruined olive and citrus crops as well as properties
and villages along the Eurotas river. In the summer 2006, a fire devastated a
part of the Mani Peninsula, ruining forests, crops, and numerous villages.
** Municipalities
The regional unit, Laconia, is subdivided into five municipalities. These are
(number as in the map in the infobox):<ref
name=Kallikratis>[url=http://www.et.gr/idocs-nph/search/pdfViewerForm.html?args=5C7QrtC22wGYK2xFpSwMnXdtvSoClrL8-SrPzKAEPjjtIl9LGdkF53UIxsx942CdyqxSQYNuqAGCF0IfB9HI6hq6ZkZV96FIukI0UzcPsWCK0LpLhpa7rhiWB4R5ntTnoWw7U8E1Amg.
]
- East Mani ( _Anatoliki Mani_ , 2)
- Elafonisos (3)
- Eurotas (4)
- Monemvasia (5)
- Sparta (1)
*** Prefecture
As a part of the 2011 Kallikratis government reform, regional unit Laconia was
created out of the former prefecture Laconia ([el]). The prefecture had the
same territory as the present regional unit. At the same time, the
municipalities were reorganised, according to the table below.<ref
name=Kallikratis/>
{| class="wikitable" |- ! New municipality !! Old municipalities !! Seat |- |
rowspan=4|East Mani <br>(_Anatoliki Mani_)|| East Mani || rowspan=4|Gytheio |-
| Gytheio |- | Oitylo |- | Sminos |- |Elafonisos||Elafonisos||Elafonisos |- |
rowspan=5|Eurotas|| Skala || rowspan=5|Skala |- | Geronthres |- | Elos |- |
Krokees |- | Niata |- | rowspan=5|Monemvasia|| Monemvasia || rowspan=5|Molaoi
|- | Asopos |- | Voies |- | Zarakas |- | Molaoi |- | rowspan=7|Sparti|| Sparti
|| rowspan=7|Sparti |- | Therapnes |- |Karyes |- | Mystras |- | Oinountas |- |
Pellana |- | Faris |}
*** Provinces
- Epidavros Limira Province – Molaoi
- Gytheio Province – Gytheio
- Lacedaemonia Province – Sparti
- Oitylo Province – Areopoli
_Note:_ Provinces no longer hold any legal status in Greece.
** Population
{{Historical populations |align=none |1907| 87,106 |1991<ref
name=elstat>[title=Απογραφές πληθυσμού 1991,2001,2011 σύμφωνα με την
κωδικοποίηση της Απογραφής 2011 ]|90600 |2001<ref name=elstat/>|92811
|2011<ref name=elstat/>|89138 |2021<ref name="census21"/>|84337 }}
The main cities and towns of Laconia are (ranked by 2021 census population):
- Sparta 16,782
- Gytheio 4,070
- Molaoi 2,850
- Skala 2,813
- Neapoli 2,715
** Transport
- Greek National Road 39 , Tripoli – Sparti – Gytheio
- Greek National Road 82 , Pylos – Kalamata – Sparti
- Greek National Road 86 , Gytheio – Monemvasia
- Molaoi to Leonidi Road, E, NE
** Communications
*** Radio
- FLY FM 89,7 (Sparta).
- POLITIA 90,7 – ΠΟΛΙΤΕΙΑ 90.7 (Sparta)
- Radio Sparti – 92.7 FM (Sparta)
- Radiofonias Notias Lakonias (Southern Laconia Radio) – 93.5 (Gytheio)
- Star FM – 94.7
*** Television
- Ellada TV – UHF 43, Sparta
- TV Notias Lakonias – Molaoi
*** Newspapers
- Λακωνικός Τύπος
- Ελεύθερη Άποψη
- Νέα Σπάρτη (see https://web.archive.org/web/20080318101036/http://www.lakonia.org/gr/gr_nea_sparth.htm)
- Παρατηρητής της Λακωνίας
** See also
- List of settlements in Laconia
- List of traditional Greek place names
- Laconic phrase
- Laconian (dog)
** References
[Reflist]
[Kallikratis-Peloponnese] [Prefectures of Greece] [Authority control]
Category:Prefectures of Greece Category:1833 establishments in Greece
Category:Regional units of Peloponnese (region)