Ithaca trivia: 55 facts about this Greek island

Ithaca is one of the Greek islands that you should visit. It is located in the Ionian Sea and has some of the most beautiful beaches!

So let’s dig into some more trivia and facts about this greek island!

1. Ithaca, Ithaki or Ithaka is a Greek island located in the Ionian Sea
2. Off the northeast coast of Kefalonia
3. And to the west of continental Greece
4. Ithaca’s main island has an area of 96 square kilometres (37 sq mi)
5. And had a population in 2011 of 3,231
6. It is the second-smallest of seven main Ionian Islands, after Paxi
7. Ithaca is a separate regional unit of the Ionian Islands region
8. And the only municipality of the regional unit
9. The capital is Vathy (or Vathi)
10. Modern Ithaca is generally identified with Homer’s Ithaca
11. The home of Odysseus
12. Whose delayed return to the island is the plot of the classical Greek tale the Odyssey
13. Although the name Ithaca has remained unchanged since ancient times, written documents of different periods also refer to the island by other names
14. These are Val di Compare (Valley of the Bestman), Piccola (Small) Cephallonia, Anticephallonia (Middle Ages until the beginning of the Venetian period), Ithaki nisos (Greek for island), Thrakoniso, Thakou, Thiakou (Byzantine period), Thiaki (Byzantine and before the Venetian period), Teaki (Venetian period), Fiaki (Ottoman period)
15. The island has been inhabited since the 2nd millennium BC
16. It may have been the capital of Cephalonia during the Mycenaean period
17. And the capital-state of the small kingdom ruled by Odysseus
18. The Romans occupied the island in the 2nd century BC
19. And later it became part of the Byzantine Empire
20. The Normans ruled Ithaca in the 13th century
21. After a short Turkish rule it fell into Venetian hands
22. Ithaca was subsequently occupied by France
23. Under the 1797 Treaty of Campo Formio
24. It was liberated by a joint Russo-Turkish force commanded by admirals Fyodor Ushakov and Kadir Bey in 1798
25. And subsequently became a part of the Septinsular Republic
26. Which was originally established as a protectorate of the Russian Empire and Ottoman Empire
27. It became a French possession again in 1807
28. Until it was taken over by the United Kingdom in 1809
29. Under the 1815 Treaty of Paris, Ithaca became a state of the United States of the Ionian Islands
30. A protectorate of the British Empire
31. In 1830 the local community requested to join with the rest of the newly restored nation-state of Greece
32. Under the 1864 Treaty of London, Ithaca, along with the remaining six Ionian islands, were ceded to Greece as a gesture of diplomatic friendship to Greece’s new Anglophile king, George I
33. The United Kingdom kept its privileged use of the harbour at Corfu
34. The origins of the first people to inhabit the island, which occurred during the last years of the Neolithic period (4000–3000 BC), are not clear
35. The traces of buildings, walls and a road from this time period prove that life existed and continued to do so during the Early Hellenic era (3000–2000 BC)
36. In the years (2000–1500 BC) some of the population migrated to part of the island
37. The buildings and walls that were excavated showed the lifestyle of this period had remained primitive
38. Ithaca lies east of the northwest coast of Cephalonia
39. From which it is separated by the Strait of Ithaca
40. The regional unit covers an area of 117.812 square kilometres (45.5 sq mi)
41. And has approximately 100 kilometres (62 miles) of coastline
42. The main island stretches in the north-south direction
43. In length of 23 km (14 miles)
44. And maximum width of 6 km (4 miles)
45. It consists of two parts, of about equal size, connected by the narrow isthmus of Aetos (Eagle)
46. Just 600 metres (1,969 feet) wide
47. The two parts enclose the bay of Molos
48. Whose southern branch is the harbor of Vathy, the capital and largest settlement of the island
49. The second largest village is Stavros in the northern part
50. Lazaretto Islet (or Island of The Saviour) guards the harbor
51. The church of The Saviour and the remains of an old gaol are located on the islet
52. The capes in the island include Exogi, the westernmost, Melissa to the north, Mavronos, Agios Ilias, Schinous, Sarakiniko and Agios Ioannis, to the east, and Agiou Andreou, to the south
53. Bays include Afales Bay to the northwest, Frikes and Kioni Bays to the northeast, Molos Gulf to the east, and Ormos Gulf and Sarakiniko Bay to the southeast
54. The tallest mountain is Nirito in the northern part (806 m)
55. Followed by Merovigli (669 m) in the south