Kalymnos (; ) is a

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

island and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the southeastern

Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans and Anatolia, and covers an area of some . In the north, the Aegean is connected to the Marmara Sea, which in turn con ...

. It belongs to the

Dodecanese The Dodecanese (, ; , ''Dodekánisa'' , ) are a group of 15 larger and 150 smaller Greek islands in the southeastern Aegean Sea and Eastern Mediterranean, off the coast of Anatolia, of which 26 are inhabited. This island group generally define ...

island chain, between the islands of

Kos Kos or Cos (; ) is a Greek island, which is part of the Dodecanese island chain in the southeastern Aegean Sea. Kos is the third largest island of the Dodecanese, after Rhodes and Karpathos; it has a population of 37,089 (2021 census), making ...

(south, at a distance of ) and

Leros Leros (), also called Lero (from the Italian language), is a Greek island and municipality in the Dodecanese in the southern Aegean Sea. It lies from Athens's port of Piraeus, from which it can be reached by a nine-hour ferry ride or by a 45-min ...

(north, at a distance of less than ): the latter is linked to it through a series of islets. Kalymnos lies between two and five hours away by sea from the island of

Rhodes Rhodes (; ) is the largest of the Dodecanese islands of Greece and is their historical capital; it is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, ninth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Administratively, the island forms a separ ...

. In 2021 the island had a population of 17,752, making it the third most populous island of the Dodecanese, after Kos and Rhodes. It is known in Greece for the affluence of much of its population, and also stands as both the wealthiest member of the Dodecanese and one of the wealthiest Greek islands overall. The Municipality of Kalymnos, which includes the populated offshore islands of

Pserimos Pserimos () is a small Greek island in the Dodecanese chain, lying between Kalymnos and Kos in front of the coast of Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relat ...

Telendos Telendos, () is a Greek island in the southeastern Aegean Sea, belonging to the Dodecanese. It is approximately off the coast of the larger island of Kalymnos, of which it is administratively a part. It was a member of the Delian League The ...

Kalolimnos Kalolimnos () is a small Greek island in the Dodecanese chain, lying between Kalymnos and Imia, opposite the coast of Turkey, in the Aegean Sea. It is part of the municipality of Kalymnos. Kalolimnos reaches an altitude of 80 meters above sea l ...

, and Pláti, as well as several uninhabited islets, has a combined land area of and a total population of 17,752 inhabitants (2021).

Naming

The island is known as ''Càlino'' in

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

and ''Kilimli'' or ''Kelemez'' in

Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...

Geography

The island has a length of , is across at its widest, and covers an area of . Moreover, on the north side there is a peninsula which stretches in a northwest direction. Kalymnos is mostly mountainous with complicated topography. There are three main chains going from W-NW to E-SE, and a fourth which extends NW the length of the peninsula. The coastline is very irregular, with many sheltered coves. There are some springs, one among them being thermal. The soil is mainly

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

-based, but in the valleys, there is a compact bank of volcanic

tuff Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock co ...

, the relic of an ancient volcano, located in Vigles, between the villages of Myrties and Kantouni. The island is mainly barren, except for the two fertile valleys of Vathys and

Pothia Pothia or Pothaia or Kalymnos Town (Greek: Πόθια or Ποθαία) is the capital of Kalymnos and the major settlement of the island. It is located in the south of Kalymnos on the edge of a bay. It is very close to Chorio or Chora, the old cap ...

, where olives, oranges and vines are grown. There is also an ostrich farm in Argos, near the airport. Earthquakes are a frequent occurrence around Kalymnos, a fact that is connected with the volcanoes in surrounding islands. The last earthquake that occurred was the

2017 Aegean Sea earthquake On 21 July 2017, a large earthquake measuring 6.6 on the moment magnitude scale struck close to the tourist locations of Kos in Greece and Bodrum in Turkey, killing 2 people and injuring hundreds. Mostly referenced as the 2017 Bodrum–Kos earthq ...

with a magnitude of 6.7 M_w, which injured two people in Kalymnos.

Archipelago of Kalymnos

Kalymnos is neighboured by the small island of

, which was once part of Kalymnos, but split off after a major earthquake in 554 and is now separated from Kalymnos by a channel of water (about 800 m wide).Spiteri, Stephen. ''Fortresses of the Knights'', p. 197. University of Michigan Press, 2001, 382 pages. . Between Kalymnos and Kos lies the islet of

which is inhabited and, with an area of , is one of the largest of the lesser islands of the Dodecanese. Near Pserimos lies the islet of Platí, and about to the NE lies the small islet of

History

Antiquity Antiquity or Antiquities may refer to: Historical objects or periods Artifacts *Antiquities, objects or artifacts surviving from ancient cultures Eras Any period before the European Middle Ages (5th to 15th centuries) but still within the histo ...

Kalymnos depended on Kos, and followed its

history History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

. The island's

Hellenistic In classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Greek history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the death of Cleopatra VII in 30 BC, which was followed by the ascendancy of the R ...

Temple of

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

was excavated by the British archaeologist Charles Newton in the nineteenth century; many of the finds he made, including important

epigraphic Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...

inscriptions, are in the

British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...

's collection. In the Middle Ages it was under the influence of the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

, and during the 13th century it was used by the

Venetian Republic The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and Maritime republics, maritime republic with its capital in Venice. Founded, according to tradition, in 697 ...

as a naval base. In 1310 it came under the control of the

Knights of Rhodes The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there u ...

, and later (mainly in 1457 and 1460) was often attacked by the

Ottomans Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empir ...

, who eventually conquered it in 1522. Unlike Rhodes and Kos, during the Ottoman period, there was no Turkish immigration to Kalymnos. According to the Ottoman General Census of 1881/82-1893, the

kaza A kaza (, "judgment" or "jurisdiction") was an administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire, administrative division of the Ottoman Empire. It is also discussed in English under the names district, subdistrict, and juridical district. Kazas co ...

of Kalymnos had a total population of 9,716, consisting of 9,482

Greeks Greeks or Hellenes (; , ) are an ethnic group and nation native to Greece, Greek Cypriots, Cyprus, Greeks in Albania, southern Albania, Greeks in Turkey#History, Anatolia, parts of Greeks in Italy, Italy and Egyptian Greeks, Egypt, and to a l ...

, 64 Muslims and 170 foreign citizens. On May 12, 1912, during the

Italo-Turkish War The Italo-Turkish (, "Tripolitanian War", , "War of Libya"), also known as the Turco-Italian War, was fought between the Kingdom of Italy and the Ottoman Empire from 29 September 1911 to 18 October 1912. As a result of this conflict, Italy captur ...

, Kalymnos was occupied by Italian sailors of the

Regia Marina The , ) (RM) or Royal Italian Navy was the navy of the Kingdom of Italy () from 1861 to 1946. In 1946, with the birth of the Italian Republic (''Repubblica Italiana''), the changed its name to '' Marina Militare'' ("Military Navy"). Origin ...

. Italy took control of the island along with other islands of the Dodecanese (except

Kastellorizo Kastellorizo or Castellorizo ( ; ), officially Megisti (), is a Greek island and municipality of the Dodecanese in the Eastern Mediterranean.Bertarelli, 131 It lies roughly off the south coast of Turkey, about southeast of Athens and east of R ...

initially) until 1947, when the Dodecanese were finally united with mainland Greece, as part of the modern Greek state.

Religion

The majority of Kalymnians are Orthodox Christians. The island belongs to that small part of Greece that does not depend on the

Church of Greece The Church of Greece (, ), part of the wider Greek Orthodox Church, is one of the autocephalous churches which make up the communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. Its canonical territory is confined to the borders of Greece prior to th ...

, but rather on the

Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople (, ; ; , "Roman Orthodox Patriarchate, Ecumenical Patriarchate of Istanbul") is one of the fifteen to seventeen autocephalous churches that together compose the Eastern Orthodox Church. It is heade ...

based in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

, Turkey. Kalymnos belongs to the

Metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural area for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big city b ...

of Leros, Kalymnos and Astypalaia.

Sponge diving

Kalymnos is known and billed as the "Sponge-divers' island".

Sponge diving Sponge diving is underwater diving to collect soft natural sponges for human use. Background Most sponges are too rough for general use due to their structural spicules composed of calcium carbonate or silica. But two genera, '' Hippospongia' ...

has long been a common occupation on Kalymnos and sponges were the main source of income of Kalymnians, bringing wealth to the island and making it famous throughout the Mediterranean. The Kalymnians harvested sponges from the sea-bed as close as

or as far as North Africa. Early diving was done without equipment (

free diving Freediving, free-diving, free diving, breath-hold diving, or skin diving, is a mode of underwater diving that relies on apnea, breath-holding until resurfacing rather than the use of breathing apparatus such as scuba set, scuba gear. Besides the ...

), using a

harpoon A harpoon is a long, spear-like projectile used in fishing, whaling, sealing, and other hunting to shoot, kill, and capture large fish or marine mammals such as seals, sea cows, and whales. It impales the target and secures it with barb or ...

. Sponges are still fished individually, by hand. The Greek sponge trade was centered close in the Dodecanese, featuring Kalymnos until the mid-80s, when a disease hit the eastern Mediterranean destroying a great number of sponges and damaging the sponge-fishing industry as a result. Today, Kalymnos faces a lack of sponges due to the outbreak of a disease that has decimated sponge crops. An annual celebration, Sponge Week, occurs a week after Easter to honour this "Kalymnian gold.” Much has been written, sung and filmed about the legendary courage and recklessness of the sponge divers themselves. The local

folk dance A folk dance is a dance that reflects the life of the people of a certain country or region. Not all ethnic dances are folk dances. For example, Ritual, ritual dances or dances of ritual origin are not considered to be folk dances. Ritual dances ...

Mihanikos depicts the crippling effects of

decompression sickness Decompression sickness (DCS; also called divers' disease, the bends, aerobullosis, and caisson disease) is a medical condition caused by dissolved gases emerging from Solution (chemistry), solution as bubbles inside the body tissues during D ...

that is caused by sponge diving. It is typically only performed by men.

Climbing

Kalymnos is a popular

rock climbing Rock climbing is a climbing sports discipline that involves ascending climbing routes, routes consisting of natural rock in an outdoor environment, or on artificial resin climbing walls in a mostly indoor environment. Routes are documented in c ...

location with more than 3,000 climbing routes set in the limestone rock of the island and a climate that allows climbing all year around. The island has seen a boom in climbing related tourism since 1997, when the Italian Andrea di Bari started establishing the first routes.

Economy

Being mostly barren (only 18% of the land can be cultivated), agriculture has always played a minor role in the economy of the island, except for the valley of Vathi. The island is famous for its citrus fruits grown in this area. Another industrial activity typical of Kalymnos was the production of painted head scarfs, which were the most original component of the female dress. In recent times,

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

has become important for the island, particularly for

. In 2006, the island also acquired an airport, the

Kalymnos Island National Airport Kalymnos Island National Airport () is an airport on the island of Kalymnos in Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders w ...

in Argos, a village between

and Brosta (the villages which are opposite of Telendos), to better link the island with the mainland. Since the beginning of the 20th century, there has been much emigration from Kalymnos (the 1925 population was some 24,000 inhabitants as compared to 16,500 in 2012), especially to the United States and Australia. The cities of Darwin and

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

in Australia, and

Tarpon Springs Tarpon Springs is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. Downtown Tarpon Springs has long been a focal point and underwent beautification in 2010. It is part of the Tampa Bay area. The population was 25,117 at the 2020 census. As of ...

, Gary, IN, and Campbell, OH in the United States are home to large Greek communities of Kalymnian descent. Kalymnian emigrants and their descendants also form a substantial portion of the bridge painting industry in the USA. Some researchers link this to the sponge diving tradition and way of life as both trades involve dangerous work with long periods away from home.

Election Results

Notable people

* St Savvas the New of Kalymnos (1862-1947), Orthodox Christian Saint and patron Saint of the island of Kalymnos * Skevos Zervos (1875–1966), professor and surgeon *

Bob Costas Robert Quinlan Costas (born March 22, 1952) is an American sportscaster who is known for his long tenure with NBC Sports, from 1980 through 2019. He has received 28 Emmy awards for his work and was the prime-time host of 12 Olympic Games from ...

(1952- ), American sportscaster of Kalymnian descent * Mike Bilirakis (1930 - ), American politician of Kalymnian descent *

Gus Bilirakis Gus Michael Bilirakis ( ; born February 8, 1963) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for since 2013. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, ...

(1963- ), American politician of Kalymnian descent * Maria Skyllas-Kazacos, Australian chemical engineer, emeritus professor at University of New South Wales, Inventor of Vanadium Redox Flow Battery

Gallery

File:Kalymnos, Pothia - panoramio (4).jpg, Statue of

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine giv ...

(Victory) File:Pothia, Kalymnos.JPG, The seafront of Pothia File:Kastro tou Choriou.JPG, The medieval town-castle of Chorio (or Chora) File:Kalymnos, Pothia - panoramio (1).jpg,

File:Emborios.JPG, Emborios in the northernmost part of the island File:View of Telendos at sunset from Masouri.jpg,

at sunset File:View of Masouri in the evening.jpg, Masouri File:Emborios, Kalymnos. - panoramio.jpg, Emborios File:Pothia Kalymos - Port at night time.jpg, Pothia Port File:Narrow shop lanes in Potha - Kalymnos.jpg, Shopping lanes in Pothia File:Pserimos beach.jpg, Pserimos beach File:Kalymnos, Masouri - panoramio.jpg, Masouri File:Kalymnos Pothia 7.jpg,

File:Kalymnos, Pothia - panoramio (2).jpg, Pothia File:Metamorfosi Sotiros Christou Kalymnos Cathedral 2.jpg, Metamorfosi Sotiros Cathedral File:Map of Kalymnos - Bordone Benedetto - 1547.jpg, Map of Kalymnos by Bordone Benedetto (1547) File:Kalymnos Sektor Palace - panoramio.jpg, Panoramic view

References

Notes

{{notelist Municipalities of the South Aegean Populated places in Kalymnos (regional unit) Islands of Greece Dodecanese Volcanoes of Greece Landforms of Kalymnos (regional unit) Islands of the South Aegean Members of the Delian League Climbing areas of Greece