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 Location |
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Anafi is one of the smallest islands of the Cyclades Islands. It lies east of Santorini and it is the southern of the four islands in the group. Its whole dimension is 40 km.
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 Population |
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Around 260 inhabitants.
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 History |
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Mythology: According to mythology, Anaphi was emerged from the sea after the command of god Apollo, in order to offer a shelter to the Argonauts who were in the middle of a terrible storm while returning from their Campaign. Due to this myth, the island was called Anaphi (anaphainomai = emerge). Another myth has it, though, that it got its name from the inexistence of snakes (An-ophis = no snakes).
History: During its long history, the island met many conquerors. Anaphi's first inhabitants were the Phoenicians and later on the Dorians. During Classical Times, Anaphi was part of the Athenian Alliance. In the 2nd century B.C. the island fell into the hands of Romans and it was used as a place of exile. During the Byzantine Times, the island suffered from repeated pirates invasions and pillages. Afterwards, it was occupied by the Venetians until the 16th century when Turks took the control of it. The island's liberation came in 1832, when it was finally united with the rest of Greece.
Modern Times: During the World War II, Anaphi, as well as the rest of the Cyclades Islands, were repeatedly bombed. The islands' economic growth started right after the end of the War
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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.
Ancient Gods:
God Apollo was being worshipped in the island. Remains of his temple were found on the foot of the mountain Kalamos. In the same place, it was later built the monastery of Panagia (Virgin Mary) Kalamiotissa
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 Saints |
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The inhabitants' religious sentiment is particularly developed, which is proved by the 80 churches and temples that exist on the island. The locals devoutly honor Panagia (Virgin Mary), whose icon, according to tradition, was found tied on a reed..
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 Prayer |
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Spiritual deliverance of the island's inhabitants.
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 Miscellaneous |
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Tourism: Due to its small geographical size, Anaphi doesn't attract much tourism. It has basically one dwelling village, which is called Chora. During summer time though, two other very small villages, Ag. Nikolaos and Kleisidi, are also dwelled.
-conomy: Anaphi's economy is mainly based on fishing, agriculture and tourism. Great thyme honey is also produced in the island, as well as goat cheese.
Sightseeing: The remains of the Ancient City, the Castle and the windmills are some of the island's sightseeing. One could also visit the remains of the Apollo's temple on the foot of the mountain Kalamos, as well as the monastery of Panagia (Virgin Mary) Kalamiotissa, whose icon, as it has already been mentioned, was found tied on a reed.
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 Celebrations |
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8 September: The island's inhabitants, as well as other pilgrims that come by boat from Santorini, celebrate each year the festival of Panagia (Virgin Mary) Kalamiotissa.
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 Resources |
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www.greektravel.com
www.in2greece.com
www.fede.gr
www.oreivatein.com
http://www.dilos.com/region/cyclad/anafi.html
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