
Ios, Io or Nio (Greek: Ίος, Greek pronunciation: [ˈi.os]; Ancient Greek: Ἴος [í.os]; locally Nios, Νιός) is a Greek island in the Cyclades group in the Aegean Sea. Ios is a hilly island with cliffs down to the sea on most sides. It is situated halfway between Naxos and Santorini. It is about 18 kilometres (11 miles) long and 10 kilometres (6 miles) wide, with an area of 109.024 square kilometres (42.094 sq mi). Population was 2,299 in 2021 (down from 3,500 in the 20th century). Ios is part of the Thira regional unit.
Ios Ίος, Νιός | |
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![]() Clockwise from top: Church of Saint Irene, Odysseas Elytis Theatre, Cathedral Church Of Ios, Chora Hill, Windmills in Chora | |
![]() Seal | |
![]() Ios Location within the region ![]() | |
Coordinates: 36°43′0″N 25°20′11″E / 36.71667°N 25.33639°E | |
Country | Greece |
Administrative region | South Aegean |
Regional unit | Thira |
Municipality established | 1835 |
Seat | Chora |
Government | |
• Mayor | Gkikas Gkikas |
Area | |
• Municipality | 109.0 km2 (42.1 sq mi) |
Highest elevation | 713 m (2,339 ft) |
Lowest elevation | 0 m (0 ft) |
Population (2021) | |
• Municipality | 2,299 |
• Density | 21/km2 (55/sq mi) |
Demonym(s) | Ιήτης (Iitis)(official) Ιέτης (Ietis)(Ancient Alternative) Νιώτης (Niotis) (local) Iitian or Ietian(anglicised) |
Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
Postal code | 840 01 |
Area code(s) | 22860 |
Vehicle registration | EM |
Website | ios |

Chora
The Port of Ios is at the head of the Ormos harbour in the northwest. There is a path up the nearby hill to Chora, named after the Greek word for the main village on an island. Chora is a white and cycladic village, full of stairs and narrow paths that make it inaccessible for cars. Today, the main path through this village is completely taken over by tourism with restaurants, boutiques, bars and discothèques catering to visitors. Apart from the port and the village of Chora, Ios has a few small settlements that consist of groups of spread out houses in the background of major beaches (Theodoti, Kalamos, Manganari). Since the 1990s, the island mayor Pousseos has worked on Ios' development towards attracting different types of tourists. With the help of European Community funds some roads have been built, all of them paved, and a scenic amphitheatre was created by the German architect Peter Haupt at the top of the village hill.
Name
According to Plutarch, it is thought that the name has derived from the Ancient Greek word for violets, "ἴα", (ia) because they were commonly found on the island and it is the most accepted etymology. It is also posited that the name was derived from the Phoenician word iion, meaning "pile of stones". Pliny the Elder also wrote that the name comes from the Ionians who lived on the island. In the Ottoman period the island was called Anza or Aina, and its present name was officially established in the 19th century after over 2000 years of usage. During the ancient times the island was also called "Φοινίκη" (Phiniki), named after and by the Phoenicians and in the 3rd century, when the island joined League of the Islanders, was likely temporarily named Arsinoe after the wife of Ptolemy II Today the inhabitants of the Cycladic Islands call the island Nio, a name deriving from the Byzantine Era. The name Little Malta, which is found in texts of travelers during the Ottoman domination, is related to the permanent presence of pirates on the island. In languages with Latin script, the island name is Nio or Io.
Geography and geology
The shape of Ios resembles a rectangle, with an average side size of 15 km (9.3 mi) and 7 km (4.3 mi) respectively. The longest axis is in the NW direction, from the Karatza cape to the Achlades Peninsula and is 17.5 km (10.9 mi) long, while the longest axis, in the AD direction, is 14 km (8.6 mi) long. Ios has 86 km (53.4 mi) of coastline, of which 32 km (19.9 mi) are sandy beaches.
The highest elevation (723 m, 2372 ft) is the Kastro (Greek: Κάστρο) peak also called Pyrgos (Greek: Πύργος), located in the center of the island, while around the Kastro are the next three Highest peaks: Xylodema (Greek: Ξυλόδεμα) (660 m, 2165 ft), Kostiza (Greek: Κοστίζα) (586 m, 1923 ft) and Prophetis Elias (Greek: Προφήτης Ηλίας) (490 m, 951 ft).
Ios consists almost entirely of metamorphic rocks, on which lie limited quaternary appearances.
Plan Homer
In case of extreme events like earthquakes and wildfires, the Municipality of Ios had prepared a general plan called Homer (Greek: Όμηρος) which includes the cooperation of all Iitians.
Demographics
Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
---|---|---|
1696 | 3,000 | — |
1771 | 1,400 | −1.01% |
1829 | 2,177 | +0.76% |
1856 | 2,167 | −0.02% |
1879 | 2,113 | −0.11% |
1889 | 2,043 | −0.34% |
1896 | 2,171 | +0.87% |
1907 | 2,090 | −0.35% |
1920 | 2,154 | +0.23% |
1928 | 1,797 | −2.24% |
1940 | 2,041 | +1.07% |
1951 | 1,753 | −1.37% |
1961 | 1,343 | −2.63% |
1971 | 1,270 | −0.56% |
1981 | 1,362 | +0.70% |
1991 | 1,654 | +1.96% |
2001 | 1,838 | +1.06% |
2011 | 2,024 | +0.97% |
2021 | 2,299 | +1.28% |
Source: |
According to the Greek census 2011, 2,084 people live in Ios. 1,754 of which live in the capital town of Chora. From the 1940s to the early 1970s, the population of the island reduced consistently. The main causes of this phenomenon were the migration movement, the epidemiological conditions of the time and to a lesser extent, the loss of men aged between 18 and 45 during the war.
Food
The island is famous for its local cheeses. They are mainly made in the municipal creamery using milk from goats or sheep. The most famous one is the "skotíri" (σκοτύρι), a sour cheese with the smell of summer savory. Popular dishes of Ios are the "tsimediá" (τσιμεντιά, pumpkin flowers stuffed with rice) and "mermitzéli" (μερμιτζέλι, handmade barley).
Education
In 1827 the local leaders of Ios wrote a letter to the revolutionary government of Greece requesting a school to open in the island. During the 1850s the first school opened which housed a small number of students of all ages. The type of school that operated was called Skolarcheion (Greek: Σχολαρχείον) and was equivalent to an elementary school with some high school basic courses. Most students at the time didn't graduate as their time was occupied helping their families in the fields. This resulted in a large percentage of illiterate children. The richer families sent their children to schools of the nearby islands. From 1936 the first elementary school was founded. In 1972 the first kindergarten was opened and in 1980 the first high school that had some senior high school courses. Today, in Chora there is a kindergarten, a high school, a senior high school and an EPAL high school.
History
Prehistory
Ios from the prehistoric era and thanks to its safe natural harbour played an important role on the sea roads to Crete. The early Cycladic settlement on Skarkos hill and other prehistoric sites on the island have been found by archaeologists. Ios was under the influence of the Minoan and then of the Mycenaean civilisation. The Phoenicians most likely arrived on the island and maintained their presence until the 9th century BC.
Ios became Ionian at some point after, as testified by its membership in the Delian Amphictyony. From 534 BC the island paid taxes to Athens.
Classical and Hellenistic times
Ios was an important and strong city in Classical and Hellenistic times. Its decline began with the Roman occupation, when it was used as a place for exile, and continued in Byzantine times. The island experienced a recovery at the time of the Duchy of Naxos, but the Ottoman domination interrupted it. Palaiokastro, a ruined Venetian castle from the 15th century lies on the northern part of the island. Ios was important enough in the Roman province of Insulae to become a suffragan see of the Metropolis of Rhodes, but later faded and disappeared.
Numismatics
During the 3rd and 2nd century BC as Ios became part of the league of the islanders, she minted her own coins, most of them can be found in the Berlin Archaeological Museum and British Museum. There are 28 known different coins. They depict Homer, a palm tree or Athena, as she was worshiped on the island. Most of them had the writing ΙΗΤΩΝ meaning of the people of Ios.
Middle Ages
Albanians settled in Ios either by invitation of the Crispi family or later in 1579 to repopulate the island as its inhabitants had been sold into slavery in 1558. The Albanians of Ios were linguistically assimilated in the second half of the 18th century as Greeks settled in the island.
1820s
Although Ios did not have a strong naval force, it was one of the first islands to raise the flag of revolution in when the Greek War of Independence began in 1821. Ios took part in the naval battle at Kuşadası on July 9, 1821, as well as in the Second National Assembly at Astros in 1823 and in the Third National Assembly at Troezen in 1827.
Modern times
In a modern era, the island began to emerge in the 1970s as an increasingly popular tourist destination for young people in Europe. Today Ios retains its reputation as an island of youth and entertainment, with excellent tourist infrastructure, an organised marina at its harbour and an adequate road network.
Ecclesiastically, its territory is now part of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Thera, Amorgos and the Islands of the Church of Greece.
Homer's death
The legend
The island is very strongly connected with Homer, because according to the legend, Homer died in Ios. Considered the greatest epic poet of the Greeks, the legend accounts that he died because he violated a Pythian oracle. According to Pausanias, Homer visited the Delphi oracle to ask Pythia about his parents and origins. Pythia replied with the oracle "Your mother's home is the island of Ios, which will accept you when you die, but you should be careful of the enigma of the young children." The poet, however, broke the oracle and traveled to Ios. There he saw some small children fishing on the coast. He asked what they had caught and the children replied: "Whatever we get we leave it and whatever we don't get we take it with us". The children were talking about lice. Those who found them, killed them, but those who did not find them, had them to their heads. Homer did not find the answer, but he remembered the warning of Pythia. He was horrified and ran away quickly. The road was muddy and the poet in his hurry slipped and fell, hitting his head and dying almost instantaneously.
According to another version, Homer died from his sadness that he did not solve the puzzle, while a third version says he was already seriously ill and went to Ios because he knew he would die. Of course, the death of Homer is not based on historical records, but on myths and traditions that circulated from oral tradition. Pausanias simply recorded a popular narrative.
Count Pasch de Krienen's expedition
In 1771, a Dutch count named Pasch di Krienen after having read the narrative, came to Ios in order to find the grave. He was informed by a local priest of the Saint Aikaterini Chapel that there is a place with marbles and some of which had inscriptions. He was told that they were constructed long after Homer's death but he persisted and with the help of Spyridon Valetas he found three graves and the last one had inscriptions about Homer including Ενθάδε την ιερήν κεφαλήν κατά γαία καλύπτει ανδρών ηρώων κοσμήτορα θείον Όμηρον which means here under the earth lies the sacred head of heroic Homer. When he found this, Pasch was sure that the grave belonged to the epic poet but he spotted some grammatical mistakes on the gravestone and he began doubting its authenticity. After having spent considerable time and money, he decided to give up after having also found two graves at Agia Theodoti
On 25 January 1884 the alleged tomb of Homer was visited by Theodore and Mabel Bent during their tour of the Cyclades.
Beaches
Ios attracts a large number of young tourists, many of whom used to sleep on their sleeping bags during the 1970s on the popular beach of Mylopotas after partying through the night. Today Mylopotas beach has been developed to an equivalent mass package tourism resort like Platys Gialos and Paradise Beach of Mykonos.
Climate
Ios has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification: BSh). Similar to other Cyclades islands, there is an almost constant breeze from the north during summer, known as meltemi, which moderates temperatures.
Climate data for Ios island (3m) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 14.7 (58.5) | 15.5 (59.9) | 17.3 (63.1) | 18.9 (66.0) | 23.8 (74.8) | 27 (81) | 29.2 (84.6) | 29.3 (84.7) | 26.8 (80.2) | 24.6 (76.3) | 20.6 (69.1) | 17.6 (63.7) | 22.1 (71.8) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 10.1 (50.2) | 11 (52) | 12.5 (54.5) | 14 (57) | 17.4 (63.3) | 21.9 (71.4) | 23.9 (75.0) | 24.5 (76.1) | 22.4 (72.3) | 19.7 (67.5) | 16.5 (61.7) | 13.6 (56.5) | 17.3 (63.1) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 74 (2.9) | 69.8 (2.75) | 66.2 (2.61) | 25.2 (0.99) | 1 (0.0) | 0.5 (0.02) | 0.1 (0.00) | 0 (0) | 1.6 (0.06) | 33.7 (1.33) | 53.5 (2.11) | 52.6 (2.07) | 378.2 (14.84) |
Source: http://penteli.meteo.gr/stations/ios/ (2019 – 2020 averages) |
Timeline
Year | Event |
---|---|
3rd millennium BC | Humans start living in the island |
350 BC | The island minted the first coins depicting Homer |
314 BC | The island joined the League of the Islanders |
300 BC - 200 | It becomes part of the Roman Empire and part of the provincia insularum |
286 | It becomes part of the Byzantine Empire |
1207 | The island is conquered by the Franks and becomes a part of the Duchy of Naxos |
1269 | The island is regained by the Byzantine Empire |
1296 | The island is conquered by Domenico Schiavi and remained in his family |
1335 | The island is conquered for a second time by the Duchy of Naxos |
1371 | The island is under Francesco I Crispo's control and his family's |
1537 | The island is occupied by Hayreddin Barbarossa but remains under the control of the Crispo family |
1558 | The island is attacked by Pirates causing most of the people of Ios to move to other islands |
1566 | After the death of the last Cripi, the island becomes part of the Ottoman Empire and its under the administration of Joseph Nasi |
March 1, 1821 | Panagiotis Amoiradakis raised the flag of the Greek revolution in Ios |
July 9, 1821 | The island takes part in the Naval battle of Kuşadası |
1830 | Ios becomes part of Greece |
Notable people
Ancient
- Critheïs, mother of Homer
Medieval
- Adriana Crispo (d. after 1537), noblewoman of the Crispo family, lady of Ios
Modern
- Spyridon Valetas (1779–1843), scholar, member of Filiki Eteria
- Lakis Nikolaou (1949– ), footballer
- Jean-Marie Drot (1929-2015), writer and cinematographer who loved the island and also founded The Jean Marie Drot Museum in Ios
Gallery
- Tomb of Homer
- View of Chora
- Chora
- Odysseas Elytis Theatre
- Windmills
- Manganari Beach
- Young Hippies on Ios during the 1970s
- Western view of Ios
- Eastern view of Ios
References
- Municipality of Ios, Municipal elections – October 2023, Ministry of Interior
- "Αποτελέσματα Απογραφής Πληθυσμού - Κατοικιών 2021, Μόνιμος Πληθυσμός κατά οικισμό" [Results of the 2021 Population - Housing Census, Permanent population by settlement] (in Greek). Hellenic Statistical Authority. 29 March 2024.
- "Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854), IOS".
- "Stephanus-Ethnica".
- "Population & housing census 2001 (incl. area and average elevation)" (PDF) (in Greek). National Statistical Service of Greece. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-21.
- "ΦΕΚ A 87/2010, Kallikratis reform law text" (in Greek). Government Gazette.
- Newsroom (19 October 2015). "Ίος: Το νησί του Ομήρου". Archived from the original on 11 December 2017.
{{cite web}}
:|last=
has generic name (help) - "Untitled Document". gym-iou.kyk.sch.gr. Archived from the original on 2017-12-28. Retrieved 2017-12-17.
- "Cultural Portal of the Aegean Archipelago".
- "History of Ios Island". Archived from the original on 2017-03-18. Retrieved 2018-03-17.
- "Η Νιος σε τόνους του άσπρου και του μαύρου - σχετικά άρθρα - Το Βήμα Online". Archived from the original on 2018-03-19. Retrieved 2018-03-18.
- "ΒΕΛΤΙΩΣΗ ΥΦΙΣΤΑΜΕΝΗΣ ΟΔΟΥ ΠΡΟΣΒΑΣΗΣ ΣΤΗΝ ΠΑΡΑΛΙΑ ΚΑΛΑΜΟΣ ΤΗΣ ΝΗΣΟΥ ΙΟΥ" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-03-10. Retrieved 2018-03-10.
- https://diavgeia.gov.gr/doc/68%CE%97%CE%97%CE%A9%CE%95%CE%A0-%CE%A3%CE%A7%CE%9C?inline=true [bare URL PDF]
- http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00025.pdf p.36
- http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00023.pdf p.211
- http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00016.pdf p.180
- http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00004.pdf p.97
- http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00003.pdf p.17
- http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00002.pdf p.14
- http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00097.pdf p.37
- Βικέντιος Κορονέλι Isolario volume II page 262, Venice 1696
- Πας Βαν Κρινεν Brave discrizione dell Archipelago, Livorno 1773
- "Drakou 2011" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-10-20. Retrieved 2019-05-29.
- Kapodistrias 1829 census
- "Ίος (Γαστρονομία - τοπικά προϊόντα) - αθηνόραμα travel". www.athinorama.gr. Archived from the original on 2018-01-04.
- Η εκπαίδευση κατά την Ελληνική Επανάσταση page 182 ISBN 9789605600518
- http://nefeli.lib.teicrete.gr/browse/sdo/tour/2011/DrakouMargarita/attached-document-1300432232-113994-30049/drakou2011.pdf Archived 2020-10-27 at the Wayback Machine page 66-67
- "Ίος Ιστορία". www.iosinfo.gr. Archived from the original on 2017-03-01.
- "iosgreece.info". Retrieved 2024-02-15.
- "Amphictyones" – A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities (1890)
- E Nesos Ios(Ios Island) by Theodoros Othonaios, Athens 1936 page 78
- Jochalas, Titos P. (1971): Über die Einwanderung der Albaner in Griechenland: Eine zusammenfassene Betrachtung ["On the immigration of Albanians to Greece: A summary"]. München: Trofenik. pg. 89–106.
- "Ίος Ιστορία". Archived from the original on 2017-03-01. Retrieved 2017-12-18.
- "Πώς πέθανε ο ποιητής Όμηρος που αψήφησε το χρησμό του μαντείου; Ο θρύλος με το αίνιγμα που δεν κατάφερε να λύσει και τον οδήγησε στο θάνατο - ΜΗΧΑΝΗ ΤΟΥ ΧΡΟΝΟΥ". 16 April 2015. Archived from the original on 28 December 2017.
- Herodotus (1761). "Hē tou Hērodotou Halikarnasseōs historia (Romanized form)".
- GŎmýrou bíos@ kaì poiýmata page 45
- Breve Descrizione del Arcipelago by Pasch di Krienen, 1771, page 35-47
- “Next morning, Friday 25th [January, 1884] the Demarch came to fetch us to breakfast… Afterwards we and the Demarch started to Plaketos at the other side of the island: 3 hours. We saw the supposed tomb of Homer who died here on his way from Samos to Athens…’ Extract from The Travel Chronicles of Mrs J. Theodore Bent, Vol. 1 (2006, Oxford, p.39). See also, Theodore Bent, The Cyclades, or Life Among the Insular Greeks (1885, London, pp.151ff.).
- "Monthly Bulletins". Retrieved 15 April 2023.
- "Museum of Modern Art Jean Marie Drot | Ios Chora, Ios Island, Cyclades | Yallou". Archived from the original on 2021-10-03. Retrieved 2018-06-03.
External links
Ios travel guide from Wikivoyage
- Municipality of Ios (in Greek and English)
Ios Io or Nio Greek Ios Greek pronunciation ˈi os Ancient Greek Ἴos i os locally Nios Nios is a Greek island in the Cyclades group in the Aegean Sea Ios is a hilly island with cliffs down to the sea on most sides It is situated halfway between Naxos and Santorini It is about 18 kilometres 11 miles long and 10 kilometres 6 miles wide with an area of 109 024 square kilometres 42 094 sq mi Population was 2 299 in 2021 down from 3 500 in the 20th century Ios is part of the Thira regional unit Ios Ios NiosMunicipalityClockwise from top Church of Saint Irene Odysseas Elytis Theatre Cathedral Church Of Ios Chora Hill Windmills in ChoraSealIosLocation within the regionCoordinates 36 43 0 N 25 20 11 E 36 71667 N 25 33639 E 36 71667 25 33639CountryGreeceAdministrative regionSouth AegeanRegional unitThiraMunicipality established1835SeatChoraGovernment MayorGkikas GkikasArea Municipality109 0 km2 42 1 sq mi Highest elevation713 m 2 339 ft Lowest elevation0 m 0 ft Population 2021 Municipality2 299 Density21 km2 55 sq mi Demonym s Ihths Iitis official Ieths Ietis Ancient Alternative Niwths Niotis local Iitian or Ietian anglicised Time zoneUTC 2 EET Summer DST UTC 3 EEST Postal code840 01Area code s 22860Vehicle registrationEMWebsiteios wbr grMap of IosChoraIos town The Port of Ios is at the head of the Ormos harbour in the northwest There is a path up the nearby hill to Chora named after the Greek word for the main village on an island Chora is a white and cycladic village full of stairs and narrow paths that make it inaccessible for cars Today the main path through this village is completely taken over by tourism with restaurants boutiques bars and discotheques catering to visitors Apart from the port and the village of Chora Ios has a few small settlements that consist of groups of spread out houses in the background of major beaches Theodoti Kalamos Manganari Since the 1990s the island mayor Pousseos has worked on Ios development towards attracting different types of tourists With the help of European Community funds some roads have been built all of them paved and a scenic amphitheatre was created by the German architect Peter Haupt at the top of the village hill NameA 1420 map of the island where the name Nio is used According to Plutarch it is thought that the name has derived from the Ancient Greek word for violets ἴa ia because they were commonly found on the island and it is the most accepted etymology It is also posited that the name was derived from the Phoenician word iion meaning pile of stones Pliny the Elder also wrote that the name comes from the Ionians who lived on the island In the Ottoman period the island was called Anza or Aina and its present name was officially established in the 19th century after over 2000 years of usage During the ancient times the island was also called Foinikh Phiniki named after and by the Phoenicians and in the 3rd century when the island joined League of the Islanders was likely temporarily named Arsinoe after the wife of Ptolemy II Today the inhabitants of the Cycladic Islands call the island Nio a name deriving from the Byzantine Era The name Little Malta which is found in texts of travelers during the Ottoman domination is related to the permanent presence of pirates on the island In languages with Latin script the island name is Nio or Io Geography and geologyThe shape of Ios resembles a rectangle with an average side size of 15 km 9 3 mi and 7 km 4 3 mi respectively The longest axis is in the NW direction from the Karatza cape to the Achlades Peninsula and is 17 5 km 10 9 mi long while the longest axis in the AD direction is 14 km 8 6 mi long Ios has 86 km 53 4 mi of coastline of which 32 km 19 9 mi are sandy beaches The highest elevation 723 m 2372 ft is the Kastro Greek Kastro peak also called Pyrgos Greek Pyrgos located in the center of the island while around the Kastro are the next three Highest peaks Xylodema Greek 3ylodema 660 m 2165 ft Kostiza Greek Kostiza 586 m 1923 ft and Prophetis Elias Greek Profhths Hlias 490 m 951 ft Ios consists almost entirely of metamorphic rocks on which lie limited quaternary appearances Plan Homer In case of extreme events like earthquakes and wildfires the Municipality of Ios had prepared a general plan called Homer Greek Omhros which includes the cooperation of all Iitians DemographicsHistoric populationYearPop p a 16963 000 17711 400 1 01 18292 177 0 76 18562 167 0 02 18792 113 0 11 18892 043 0 34 18962 171 0 87 19072 090 0 35 19202 154 0 23 19281 797 2 24 19402 041 1 07 19511 753 1 37 19611 343 2 63 19711 270 0 56 19811 362 0 70 19911 654 1 96 20011 838 1 06 20112 024 0 97 20212 299 1 28 Source According to the Greek census 2011 2 084 people live in Ios 1 754 of which live in the capital town of Chora From the 1940s to the early 1970s the population of the island reduced consistently The main causes of this phenomenon were the migration movement the epidemiological conditions of the time and to a lesser extent the loss of men aged between 18 and 45 during the war FoodThe island is famous for its local cheeses They are mainly made in the municipal creamery using milk from goats or sheep The most famous one is the skotiri skotyri a sour cheese with the smell of summer savory Popular dishes of Ios are the tsimedia tsimentia pumpkin flowers stuffed with rice and mermitzeli mermitzeli handmade barley EducationIn 1827 the local leaders of Ios wrote a letter to the revolutionary government of Greece requesting a school to open in the island During the 1850s the first school opened which housed a small number of students of all ages The type of school that operated was called Skolarcheion Greek Sxolarxeion and was equivalent to an elementary school with some high school basic courses Most students at the time didn t graduate as their time was occupied helping their families in the fields This resulted in a large percentage of illiterate children The richer families sent their children to schools of the nearby islands From 1936 the first elementary school was founded In 1972 the first kindergarten was opened and in 1980 the first high school that had some senior high school courses Today in Chora there is a kindergarten a high school a senior high school and an EPAL high school HistoryPrehistory The Skarkos hill Ios from the prehistoric era and thanks to its safe natural harbour played an important role on the sea roads to Crete The early Cycladic settlement on Skarkos hill and other prehistoric sites on the island have been found by archaeologists Ios was under the influence of the Minoan and then of the Mycenaean civilisation The Phoenicians most likely arrived on the island and maintained their presence until the 9th century BC Ios became Ionian at some point after as testified by its membership in the Delian Amphictyony From 534 BC the island paid taxes to Athens Classical and Hellenistic times Ios was an important and strong city in Classical and Hellenistic times Its decline began with the Roman occupation when it was used as a place for exile and continued in Byzantine times The island experienced a recovery at the time of the Duchy of Naxos but the Ottoman domination interrupted it Palaiokastro a ruined Venetian castle from the 15th century lies on the northern part of the island Ios was important enough in the Roman province of Insulae to become a suffragan see of the Metropolis of Rhodes but later faded and disappeared Numismatics During the 3rd and 2nd century BC as Ios became part of the league of the islanders she minted her own coins most of them can be found in the Berlin Archaeological Museum and British Museum There are 28 known different coins They depict Homer a palm tree or Athena as she was worshiped on the island Most of them had the writing IHTWN meaning of the people of Ios Middle Ages Albanians settled in Ios either by invitation of the Crispi family or later in 1579 to repopulate the island as its inhabitants had been sold into slavery in 1558 The Albanians of Ios were linguistically assimilated in the second half of the 18th century as Greeks settled in the island 1820s Although Ios did not have a strong naval force it was one of the first islands to raise the flag of revolution in when the Greek War of Independence began in 1821 Ios took part in the naval battle at Kusadasi on July 9 1821 as well as in the Second National Assembly at Astros in 1823 and in the Third National Assembly at Troezen in 1827 Modern times In a modern era the island began to emerge in the 1970s as an increasingly popular tourist destination for young people in Europe Today Ios retains its reputation as an island of youth and entertainment with excellent tourist infrastructure an organised marina at its harbour and an adequate road network Ecclesiastically its territory is now part of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Thera Amorgos and the Islands of the Church of Greece Homer s deathThe legend Bust of Homer in Ios The island is very strongly connected with Homer because according to the legend Homer died in Ios Considered the greatest epic poet of the Greeks the legend accounts that he died because he violated a Pythian oracle According to Pausanias Homer visited the Delphi oracle to ask Pythia about his parents and origins Pythia replied with the oracle Your mother s home is the island of Ios which will accept you when you die but you should be careful of the enigma of the young children The poet however broke the oracle and traveled to Ios There he saw some small children fishing on the coast He asked what they had caught and the children replied Whatever we get we leave it and whatever we don t get we take it with us The children were talking about lice Those who found them killed them but those who did not find them had them to their heads Homer did not find the answer but he remembered the warning of Pythia He was horrified and ran away quickly The road was muddy and the poet in his hurry slipped and fell hitting his head and dying almost instantaneously According to another version Homer died from his sadness that he did not solve the puzzle while a third version says he was already seriously ill and went to Ios because he knew he would die Of course the death of Homer is not based on historical records but on myths and traditions that circulated from oral tradition Pausanias simply recorded a popular narrative Count Pasch de Krienen s expedition In 1771 a Dutch count named Pasch di Krienen after having read the narrative came to Ios in order to find the grave He was informed by a local priest of the Saint Aikaterini Chapel that there is a place with marbles and some of which had inscriptions He was told that they were constructed long after Homer s death but he persisted and with the help of Spyridon Valetas he found three graves and the last one had inscriptions about Homer including En8ade thn ierhn kefalhn kata gaia kalyptei andrwn hrwwn kosmhtora 8eion Omhron which means here under the earth lies the sacred head of heroic Homer When he found this Pasch was sure that the grave belonged to the epic poet but he spotted some grammatical mistakes on the gravestone and he began doubting its authenticity After having spent considerable time and money he decided to give up after having also found two graves at Agia Theodoti On 25 January 1884 the alleged tomb of Homer was visited by Theodore and Mabel Bent during their tour of the Cyclades BeachesIos attracts a large number of young tourists many of whom used to sleep on their sleeping bags during the 1970s on the popular beach of Mylopotas after partying through the night Today Mylopotas beach has been developed to an equivalent mass package tourism resort like Platys Gialos and Paradise Beach of Mykonos ClimateIos has a hot semi arid climate Koppen climate classification BSh Similar to other Cyclades islands there is an almost constant breeze from the north during summer known as meltemi which moderates temperatures Climate data for Ios island 3m Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec YearMean daily maximum C F 14 7 58 5 15 5 59 9 17 3 63 1 18 9 66 0 23 8 74 8 27 81 29 2 84 6 29 3 84 7 26 8 80 2 24 6 76 3 20 6 69 1 17 6 63 7 22 1 71 8 Mean daily minimum C F 10 1 50 2 11 52 12 5 54 5 14 57 17 4 63 3 21 9 71 4 23 9 75 0 24 5 76 1 22 4 72 3 19 7 67 5 16 5 61 7 13 6 56 5 17 3 63 1 Average precipitation mm inches 74 2 9 69 8 2 75 66 2 2 61 25 2 0 99 1 0 0 0 5 0 02 0 1 0 00 0 0 1 6 0 06 33 7 1 33 53 5 2 11 52 6 2 07 378 2 14 84 Source http penteli meteo gr stations ios 2019 2020 averages TimelineYear Event3rd millennium BC Humans start living in the island350 BC The island minted the first coins depicting Homer314 BC The island joined the League of the Islanders300 BC 200 It becomes part of the Roman Empire and part of the provincia insularum286 It becomes part of the Byzantine Empire1207 The island is conquered by the Franks and becomes a part of the Duchy of Naxos1269 The island is regained by the Byzantine Empire1296 The island is conquered by Domenico Schiavi and remained in his family1335 The island is conquered for a second time by the Duchy of Naxos1371 The island is under Francesco I Crispo s control and his family s1537 The island is occupied by Hayreddin Barbarossa but remains under the control of the Crispo family1558 The island is attacked by Pirates causing most of the people of Ios to move to other islands1566 After the death of the last Cripi the island becomes part of the Ottoman Empire and its under the administration of Joseph NasiMarch 1 1821 Panagiotis Amoiradakis raised the flag of the Greek revolution in IosJuly 9 1821 The island takes part in the Naval battle of Kusadasi1830 Ios becomes part of GreeceNotable peopleAncient Critheis mother of HomerMedieval Adriana Crispo d after 1537 noblewoman of the Crispo family lady of IosModern Spyridon Valetas 1779 1843 scholar member of Filiki Eteria Lakis Nikolaou 1949 footballer Jean Marie Drot 1929 2015 writer and cinematographer who loved the island and also founded The Jean Marie Drot Museum in IosGalleryTomb of Homer View of Chora Chora Odysseas Elytis Theatre Windmills Manganari Beach Young Hippies on Ios during the 1970s Western view of Ios Eastern view of IosReferencesMunicipality of Ios Municipal elections October 2023 Ministry of Interior Apotelesmata Apografhs Plh8ysmoy Katoikiwn 2021 Monimos Plh8ysmos kata oikismo Results of the 2021 Population Housing Census Permanent population by settlement in Greek Hellenic Statistical Authority 29 March 2024 Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography 1854 IOS Stephanus Ethnica Population amp housing census 2001 incl area and average elevation PDF in Greek National Statistical Service of Greece Archived from the original PDF on 2015 09 21 FEK A 87 2010 Kallikratis reform law text in Greek Government Gazette Newsroom 19 October 2015 Ios To nhsi toy Omhroy Archived from the original on 11 December 2017 a href wiki Template Cite web title Template Cite web cite web a last has generic name help Untitled Document gym iou kyk sch gr Archived from the original on 2017 12 28 Retrieved 2017 12 17 Cultural Portal of the Aegean Archipelago History of Ios Island Archived from the original on 2017 03 18 Retrieved 2018 03 17 H Nios se tonoys toy asproy kai toy mayroy sxetika ar8ra To Bhma Online Archived from the original on 2018 03 19 Retrieved 2018 03 18 BELTIWSH YFISTAMENHS ODOY PROSBASHS STHN PARALIA KALAMOS THS NHSOY IOY PDF Archived from the original PDF on 2018 03 10 Retrieved 2018 03 10 https diavgeia gov gr doc 68 CE 97 CE 97 CE A9 CE 95 CE A0 CE A3 CE A7 CE 9C inline true bare URL PDF http dlib statistics gr Book GRESYE 02 0101 00025 pdf p 36 http dlib statistics gr Book GRESYE 02 0101 00023 pdf p 211 http dlib statistics gr Book GRESYE 02 0101 00016 pdf p 180 http dlib statistics gr Book GRESYE 02 0101 00004 pdf p 97 http dlib statistics gr Book GRESYE 02 0101 00003 pdf p 17 http dlib statistics gr Book GRESYE 02 0101 00002 pdf p 14 http dlib statistics gr Book GRESYE 02 0101 00097 pdf p 37 Bikentios Koroneli Isolario volume II page 262 Venice 1696 Pas Ban Krinen Brave discrizione dell Archipelago Livorno 1773 Drakou 2011 PDF Archived from the original PDF on 2016 10 20 Retrieved 2019 05 29 Kapodistrias 1829 census Ios Gastronomia topika proionta a8hnorama travel www athinorama gr Archived from the original on 2018 01 04 H ekpaideysh kata thn Ellhnikh Epanastash page 182 ISBN 9789605600518 http nefeli lib teicrete gr browse sdo tour 2011 DrakouMargarita attached document 1300432232 113994 30049 drakou2011 pdf Archived 2020 10 27 at the Wayback Machine page 66 67 Ios Istoria www iosinfo gr Archived from the original on 2017 03 01 iosgreece info Retrieved 2024 02 15 Amphictyones A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities 1890 E Nesos Ios Ios Island by Theodoros Othonaios Athens 1936 page 78 Jochalas Titos P 1971 Uber die Einwanderung der Albaner in Griechenland Eine zusammenfassene Betrachtung On the immigration of Albanians to Greece A summary Munchen Trofenik pg 89 106 Ios Istoria Archived from the original on 2017 03 01 Retrieved 2017 12 18 Pws pe8ane o poihths Omhros poy apshfhse to xrhsmo toy manteioy O 8rylos me to ainigma poy den katafere na lysei kai ton odhghse sto 8anato MHXANH TOY XRONOY 16 April 2015 Archived from the original on 28 December 2017 Herodotus 1761 He tou Herodotou Halikarnasseōs historia Romanized form GŎmyrou bios kai poiymata page 45 Breve Descrizione del Arcipelago by Pasch di Krienen 1771 page 35 47 Next morning Friday 25th January 1884 the Demarch came to fetch us to breakfast Afterwards we and the Demarch started to Plaketos at the other side of the island 3 hours We saw the supposed tomb of Homer who died here on his way from Samos to Athens Extract from The Travel Chronicles of Mrs J Theodore Bent Vol 1 2006 Oxford p 39 See also Theodore Bent The Cyclades or Life Among the Insular Greeks 1885 London pp 151ff Monthly Bulletins Retrieved 15 April 2023 Museum of Modern Art Jean Marie Drot Ios Chora Ios Island Cyclades Yallou Archived from the original on 2021 10 03 Retrieved 2018 06 03 External linksIos at Wikipedia s sister projects Definitions from WiktionaryMedia from CommonsNews from WikinewsQuotations from WikiquoteTexts from WikisourceTextbooks from WikibooksResources from Wikiversity Ios travel guide from Wikivoyage Municipality of Ios in Greek and English