Arcadia

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For other uses of Arcadia, see Arcadia (disambiguation).

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"Arcady" redirects here. For the software, see ARCADY. For the United States Navy ship, see USS Arcady (SP-577).

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"Arkadia" redirects here. For other uses, see Arkadia (disambiguation).
Arcadia
Περιφερειακή ενότητα
Αρκαδίας
Regional unit
Municipalities of Arcadia
Municipalities of Arcadia
Arcadia within Greece
Arcadia within Greece
Coordinates: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Country Greece
Region Peloponnese
Capital Tripoli
Area
 • Total 4,419 km2 (1,706 sq mi)
Population (2011)
 • Total 86,685
 • Density 20/km2 (51/sq mi)
Postal codes 22x xx
Area codes 2710, 275x0, 279x0
ISO 3166 code GR-12
Car plates ΤΡ
Website www.arcadia.gr

Arcadia (Greek: Αρκαδία, Arkadía) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Peloponnese. It is situated in the central and eastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. It takes its name from the mythological character Arcas. In Greek mythology, it was the home of the god Pan. In European Renaissance arts, Arcadia was celebrated as an unspoiled, harmonious wilderness.

Geography

Mount Lykaion

Arcadia has its present-day capital at Tripoli. It covers about 18% of the Peloponnese peninsula, making it the largest regional unit on the peninsula. Arcadia has a ski resort on Mount Mainalo, located about 20 km NW of Tripoli. Other mountains of Arcadia are the Parnon in the southeast and the Lykaion in the west.

The climate consists of hot summers and mild winters in the eastern part, the southern part, the low-lying areas and the central area at altitudes lower than 1,000 m. The area primarily receives rain during fall and winter months in the rest of Arcadia. Winter snow occurs commonly in the mountainous areas for much of the west and the northern part, the Taygetus area, the Mainalon.

History

Ancient history

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Main article: Arcadia (ancient region)
"Les Bergers d’Arcadie" by Nicolas Poussin.
Landscape of Arcadia.

Medieval history

After the collapse of the Roman power in the west, Arcadia became part of the Greek-speaking Byzantine Empire. Arcadia remained a beautiful, secluded area, and its inhabitants became proverbial as herdsmen leading simple pastoral unsophisticated yet happy lives, to the point that Arcadia may refer to some imaginary idyllic paradise, immortalized by Virgil's Eclogues, and later by Jacopo Sannazaro in his pastoral masterpiece, Arcadia (1504); see also Arcadia (utopia).

After the Fourth Crusade, the area became a part of the Principality of Achaea, but was progressively recovered by the Byzantine Greeks of the Despotate of the Morea from the 1260s on, a process that lasted until the mid-14th century. The region fell into the hands of the Ottoman Turks in 1460. With the exception of a period of Venetian rule in 1687–1715, the region remained under Turkish control until 1821.

The Latin phrase Et in Arcadia ego, which is usually interpreted to mean "Even in Arcadia there am I", is an example of memento mori, a cautionary reminder of the transitory nature of life and the inevitability of death. The phrase is most often associated with a 1647 painting by Nicolas Poussin, also known as "The Arcadian Shepherds". In the painting the phrase appears as an inscription on a tomb discovered by youthful figures in classical garb.

Modern history

Commander Panagiotis Kephalas raising the Maniot flag in Tripoli (Tripolitsa), the capital of Arcadia, after the successful siege.

Arcadia was one of the centres of the Greek War of Independence which saw victories in their battles including one in Tripoli. After a victorious revolutionary war, Arcadia was finally incorporated into the newly created Greek state. Arcadia saw economic growth and small emigration.

In the 20th century, Arcadia experienced extensive population loss through emigration, mostly to the Americas. Many Arcadian villages lost half their inhabitants, and fears arose that they would turn into ghost towns. Arcadia now has a smaller population than Corinthia. Demographers expected that its population would halve between 1951 and the early 21st century. The population has fallen to 87,000 in 2011.

An earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Richter magnitude scale shook Megalopoli and the surrounding area in 1965. Large numbers of buildings were destroyed, leaving people homeless. Within a couple of years, the buildings were rebuilt anti-seismically. In 1967, construction began on the Megalopoli Power Plant, which began operating in 1970, producing additional electricity for southern Greece. A mining area south of the plant is the largest mining area in the peninsula and continues to the present day with one settlement moved.

In July and August 2007 forest fires caused damage in Arcadia, notably in the mountains.

In 2008, a theory proposed by classicist Christos Mergoupis suggested that the mummified remains of Alexander the Great (not his actual tomb), may in fact be located in Gortynia-Arkadia, in the Peloponnese of Greece. Since 2008, this research is ongoing and currently being conducted in Greece. The research was first mentioned on CNN International in May 2008.[1][2]

Language

When, during the Greek Dark Ages (ca. 1200 BC–800 BC), Doric Greek dialects were introduced to the Peloponnese, the older language apparently survived in Arcadia, and formed part of the Arcado-Cypriot group of Greek languages. Arcadocypriot never became a literary dialect, but it is known from inscriptions. Tsan is a letter of the Greek alphabet occurring only in Arcadia, shaped like Cyrillic И; it represents an affricate that developed from labiovelars in context where they became t in other dialects.

Tsakonian Greek, still spoken on the coast of modern Arcadia, (but in the Classical period considered the southern Argolid coast immediately adjoining Arcadia), is a descendant of Doric Greek, and as such is an extraordinary example of a surviving regional dialect of archaic Greek. The principal cities of Tsakonia are the Arcadian coastal towns of Leonidio and Tyros.

Administration

Megalopoli
Leonidio
Karytaina
Dimitsana

The regional unit Arcadia is subdivided into 5 municipalities. These are (number as in the map in the infobox):[3]

Prefecture

As a part of the 2011 Kallikratis government reform, the regional unit Arcadia was created out of the former prefecture Arcadia (Greek: Νομός Αρκαδίας). The prefecture had the same territory as the present regional unit. At the same time, the municipalities were reorganised, according to the table below.[3]

New municipality Old municipalities Seat
Gortynia Dimitsana Dimitsana
Vytina
Iraia
Kleitor
Kontovazaina
Langadia
Trikolonoi
Tropaia
Megalopoli Megalopoli Megalopoli
Gortyna
Falaisia
North Kynouria
(Voreia Kynouria)		 North Kynouria Astros
South Kynouria
(Notia Kynouria)		 Leonidio Leonidio
Kosmas
Tyros
Tripoli Tripoli Tripoli
Valtetsi
Korythio
Levidi
Mantineia
Skyritida
Tegea
Falanthos

Provinces

Arcadia was divided into four provinces:

Note: Provinces no longer hold any legal status in Greece.

Ancient and modern towns and cities

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See also: List of settlements in Arcadia
Ancient site of Orchomenus (Arcadia).

The main towns in modern Arcadia are Tripoli, Astros, Vytina, Dimitsana, Lagkadia, Tyros, Leonidio, Levidi, Megalopolis and Stemnitsa.

Ancient cities include Acacesium (founded by Acacus), Asea, Astros, Athinaio, Daseae, Falaisia (Phalesia), Gortys, Hypsus (Stemnitsa), Heraia, Lusi, Lykaio, Lycosura, Mantineia, Megalopoli, Orchomenus (Orchomenos), Tegea, Thoknia, Trapezus, Trikolonoi, Tropaia, Tripoli, Tyros, other cities includes Basilis, Caphyae, Charisia, Ellison, Enispe, Kaous, Karyes, Methydrio, Melangeia, Oryx, Paroria, Pelagos, Rhipe, Stratia, Teuthis and several more. Cities which once belonged in Arcadia include Alea (now in Argolis) and Amilos (now in Achaia).

Economy

A thermoelectric power station which produces electricity for most of southern Greece, operates to the south of Megalopolis, along with a coal mine.

In agriculture, potato farms (dominant in central and northcentral Arcadia), mixed farming, olive groves, and pasture dominate the plains of Arcadia, especially in the area around Megalopolis and between Tripoli and Levidi.

Transport

The Moreas Motorway (A7, E65) highway connects Tripoli with Corinth and Athens. It is being extended further southwest to Megalopoli and Kalamata.

Arcadia has two tunnels. The Artemisio Tunnel opened first, followed by the tunnel east of Megalopolis; both serve traffic flowing between Messenia and Athens.

News

Television

Sports teams

Notable Arcadians

Mythology

  • Hermes, God of gymnasium, public speaking, thievery,
  • Pan, God of the wild, shepherds and flocks, nature of mountain wilds, hunting and rustic music, and companion of the nymphs
  • Atalanta, a Greek mythic woman said to have been the daughter of the King of Arcadia

Ancient Arcadians

Ancient Olympic victors

Greek War of Independence fighters

Politicians

Poets

Scientists, scholars, educators, academicians

Artists

Athletes

Other notable personalities

References in popular culture

  • Demis Roussos has a song entitled "Lovely Lady Of Arcadia".
  • The prize winning play Arcadia by Tom Stoppard (1993).
  • In BBC's Doctor Who, a city on Gallifrey is named Arcadia.
  • The Greek and Latin name Arcadius (Arkadios) was derived from "Arcadia" (see the Emperor Arcadius, the grammarian Arcadius of Antioch, the patriarch Arkadios II). From Greek it passed in Russian, Ukrainian, and other Slavic languages, where it is a common male name as Arkady or Arcady.
  • The word Arcadia has become a poetic idyllism meaning "utopia".
  • The area of the prefecture were featured in several ERT programs including documentaries on the Megalopoli Mine and Ladon Lake.
  • In the 1988 video game The Battle of Olympus, Arcadia is the initial starting point of the game.
  • The 2003–2005 TV series Joan of Arcadia takes place in a fictional city of Arcadia, Maryland.
  • Marianas Trench refers to Arcadia, in their 2009–2010 song "Acadia", referring to it as a "unspoiled, harmonious wilderness".
  • The 2010 Avantasia Album Angel of Babylon features a song entitled "Journey to Arcadia" which portrays the region as a mythical destination full of wonder and mystery.
  • The 2014 TV series Resurrection takes place in a real town, Arcadia, Missouri. The choice of setting likely is a reference to the Latin phrase Et in Arcadia ego, since the premise of the show deals with questions of life, death, and people being resurrected from the dead.
  • In Yu-Gi-Oh 5D's, there was a group of psychics known as the Arcadia Movement.
  • In the Iron Fey novels by Julie Kagawa, Arcadia is the home of the Summer fey, ruled by King Oberon and Queen Titania. It is described as a beautiful land with many flowers, trees, springs and fountains. The Winter fey, ruled by Queen Mab, live in Tir Na Nog, a land covered in snow.
  • In the Digimon: Digital Monsters franchise there is a digimon named Arukadhimon, said to potentially be the greatest threat to the Digital World. Its name is derived from the city of Arcadia.
  • In Fire Emblem Rekka No Ken, Arcadia is a utopia where dragons and humans lived in peace during and after the Scouring, as described by the Archsage Athos. It is also the place where Athos and Nergal came upon the knowledge of dragons, and where Nergal learned how to steal a creature's life force, or quintessence, and use it to fuel his own avaricious desires.
  • In the 2008 video game Rise of the Argonauts, Arcadia was the original home of all centaurs and sacred to Hermes, the father of their race.
  • Captain Harlock pilots the starship Arcadia.
  • Al Stewart, a Scottish folksinger, has a song on his "Time Passages" album called "Timeless Skies", in which he sings of "timeless Arcadian Skies".
  • In the video game Life Is Strange, Arcadia Bay is the town in which the story takes place.

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Kallikratis reform law text PDF

External links

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