Elis (regional unit)

The title of this article is ambiguous. see Elis (disambiguation)

Regional Unit Elis Περιφερειακή Ενότητα Ηλείας (Ηλεία)
Basic data
State :	Greece
Region :	West Greece
Area :	2,618 km²
Residents :	159,300 (2011)
Population density :	60.8 inhabitants / km²
NUTS 3 code no. :	EL633
Structure:	7 municipalities

The regional district of Elis ( modern Greek Ηλεία Ilia ) is one of the three regional districts of the Greek region of western Greece , located in the north-western Peloponnese . It is located in the historical landscape of Eli .

The German name follows the ancient Greek and Latin name of the polis and landscape Ēlis ( ancient Greek Ἦλις ), the modern Greek corresponds to the ancient name Ēleia ( Ἠλεία ) also used for the landscape

geography

Elis extends in the northwest of the Peloponnese peninsula. Its profile is mostly flat and consists of the alluvial land of the rivers Pinios and Alfios , which drain into the Ionian Sea , where the island of Zakynthos rises out of the sea around 20 kilometers west of the Pinios estuary . The coastal plain continues to the north behind Cape Araxos in the Achaia prefecture and forms the most extensive plain in the Peloponnese. To the east the terrain rises to the central Peloponnesian mountains, the highest point is in the Erymanthos massif at a little over 2000 m, to the southwest of it the mountains Lambia and Foloi rise . On the southern border with Messenia, the Minthi massif reaches a height of 1345 m. The Elis region is extremely prone to earthquakes and has numerous hot springs that are also used therapeutically.

The coast of Elis is not very indented, only the rocky Cape Kyllini and Cape Katakolo protrude into the sea. South of Cape Katakolo, one of the longest sandy beaches in Greece stretches along the Bay of Kyparissia with a length of around 70 km.

The relative abundance of rain in the region enables extensive agriculture in the coastal region, the mountains are partially covered by forests that have repeatedly fallen victim to forest fires, most recently in 2007 in the municipality of Zacharo .

structure

Elis is divided into the parishes

• Andravida-Kyllini
• Andritsena-Krestena
• Archea Olymbia
• Ilida
• Pinios
• Pyrgos
• Zacharo

history

Prehistory to the Middle Ages

See Eli's # story

Modern times

Elis was established in 1930 as an independent prefecture from the division of the prefecture Achaia and Elis , which had existed since 1833, and in 1939 gained the province of Olymbiada (roughly ancient Triphylia ) from Messenia . Since the administrative reform in 2010 , the area has had no political significance apart from the allocation of seats in the regional council. The main town is the city of Pyrgos .

Attractions

Parts of the city of Elis have been excavated by the Austrian Archaeological Institute and the Archaeological Society of Athens since 1911 . The most striking ruin is that of the ancient theater. Elis has its own archaeological museum.

In today largely exposed sanctuary of Zeus in Olympia were Olympic Games of antiquity aligned. The finds from the sanctuary are shown in the associated museum .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Results of the 2011 census at the National Statistical Service of Greece (ΕΛ.ΣΤΑΤ) ( Memento from June 27, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) (Excel document, 2.6 MB)