Santorini is one of the most famous Greek islands. Its view of the sunset is one of the most spectacular in the whole world!
So let’s dive into some trivia and facts about this island!
- Santorini, officially Thira and classic Greek Thera
- It is an island in the southern Aegean Sea
- About 200 km (120 mi) southeast of Greece’s mainland
- It is the largest island of a small, circular archipelago, which bears the same name
- It is the remnant of a volcanic caldera
- It forms the southernmost member of the Cyclades group of islands
- With an area of approximately 73 km2 (28 sq mi) and a 2011 census population of 15,550
- The municipality of Santorini includes the inhabited islands of Santorini and Therasia
- And the uninhabited islands of Nea Kameni, Palaia Kameni, Aspronisi, and Christiana
- The total land area is 90.623 km2
- Santorini is part of the Thira regional unit
- The island was the site of one of the largest volcanic eruptions in recorded history
- The Minoan eruption
- Sometimes is called the Thera eruption
- It occurred about 3,600 years ago at the height of the Minoan civilization
- The eruption left a large caldera surrounded by volcanic ash deposits hundreds of metres deep
- It may have led indirectly to the collapse of the Minoan civilization on the island of Crete, 110 km (68 mi) to the south
- Through a gigantic tsunami
- Another popular theory holds that the Thera eruption is the source of the legend of Atlantis
- It is the most active volcanic centre in the South Aegean Volcanic Arc
- Though what remains today is chiefly a water-filled caldera
- The volcanic arc is approximately 500 km (310 mi) long and 20 to 40 km (12 to 25 mi) wide
- The region first became volcanically active around 3- 4 million years ago
- Though volcanism on Thera began around 2 million years ago with the extrusion of dacitic lavas from vents around Akrotiri
- Santorini was named by the Latin Empire in the thirteenth century
- And is a reference to Saint Irene
- From the name of the old cathedral in the village of Perissa
- The name Santorini is a contraction of the name Santa Irini
- Before then, it was known as Kallístē
- Meaning the most beautiful one
- Strongýlē meaning “the circular one”
- Or Thēra
- The name Thera was revived in the nineteenth century as the official name of the island and its main city
- But the colloquial name Santorini is still in popular use
- Santorini’s primary industry is tourism
- Agriculture also forms part of its economy
- And the island sustains a wine industry
- Based on the indigenous Assyrtiko grape variety
- White varieties also include Athiri and Aidani
- Whereas red varieties include mavrotragano and mandilaria
- Archaeological, seismological, and vulcanological evidence has been presented linking the Atlantis myth to Santorini
- Speculation suggesting that Thera/Santorini was the inspiration for Plato’s Atlantis began with the excavation of Akrotiri in the 1960s
- And gained increased currency as reconstructions of the island’s pre-eruption shape and landscape frescos located under the ash both strongly resembled Plato’s description
- The possibility has been more recently popularized by television documentaries
- Such as The History Channel programme Lost Worlds (episode “Atlantis”), the Discovery Channel’s Solving History with Olly Steeds, and the BBC’s Atlantis, The Evidence
- They suggest that Thera is Plato’s Atlantis
- Santorini has a semi-arid climate
- With Mediterranean characteristics
- Total rainfall averages about 38 cm (15 inches) per year
- In the summer season, strong winds can also be observed
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