The Thyamis ( el, Θύαμις), also known as Glykys (Γλυκύς) or Kalamas (Καλαμάς), is a river in the

Epirus sq, Epiri rup, Epiru , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Historical region , image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg , map_alt = , map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinri ...

region of

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...

. It flows into the

Ionian Sea The Ionian Sea ( el, Ιόνιο Πέλαγος, ''Iónio Pélagos'' ; it, Mar Ionio ; al, Deti Jon ) is an elongated bay of the Mediterranean Sea. It is connected to the Adriatic Sea to the north, and is bounded by Southern Italy, including ...

. It is long, and its drainage area is about , over 99% of which on Greek territory. The names of the Chameria region (''Tsamouria'' in Greek), as well as the

Chams The Cham ( Cham: ''Čaṃ'') or Champa people ( Cham: , ''Urang Campa''; vi, Người Chăm or ; km, ជនជាតិចាម, ) are an Austronesian ethnic group. From the 2nd century to 1832 the Cham populated Champa, a contiguous territ ...

, derive from the river's name. Thyamis in ancient Greece was mentioned by Pausanias as forming the boundary between

Thesprotis Thesprotia (; el, Θεσπρωτία, ) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the Epirus region. Its capital and largest town is Igoumenitsa. Thesprotia is named after the Thesprotians, an ancient Greek tribe that inhabited the re ...

and

Kestrine Cestria or Kestria ( grc, Κεστρία), also known as Ilium or Ilion (Ἴλιον), or Troja (Τροΐα), was a town in ancient Epirus. Its district was called Cestrine or Kestrine (Κεστρίνη) and Kestrinia (Κεστρινία), and was l ...

. In addition,

Suda The ''Suda'' or ''Souda'' (; grc-x-medieval, Σοῦδα, Soûda; la, Suidae Lexicon) is a large 10th-century Byzantine encyclopedia of the ancient Mediterranean world, formerly attributed to an author called Soudas (Σούδας) or Souida ...

and

Ptolemaeus Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importance ...

Ptolemaeus, Geography, §3.13.2
/ref> mentioned it. Some

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...

scholars believed that the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

owed its name to the River Thyamis, as early

Celt The Celts (, see pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples () are. "CELTS location: Greater Europe time period: Second millennium B.C.E. to present ancestry: Celtic a collection of Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancient ...

ic tribes were thought to have migrated from the Epirus region to England. While this belief influenced the modern spelling of the English river's name, it is no longer regarded as credible.

Geography

The source of the river is near the village Kalpaki, in the northwestern part of the Ioannina regional unit. It flows south at first, and turns southwest near Soulopoulo. It receives its tributary Tyria near Vrosina, and turns west near Kyparisso in

Thesprotia Thesprotia (; el, Θεσπρωτία, ) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the Epirus region. Its capital and largest town is Igoumenitsa. Thesprotia is named after the Thesprotians, an ancient Greek tribe that inhabited the ...

, where the

hydroelectric dam Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined a ...

is located. It empties into the Ionian Sea near the village Kestrini, between Igoumenitsa and Sagiada, close to the

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and share ...

n border. Places along the river include, from source to mouth: Mazaraki, Soulopoulo, Vrosina, Raveni, Pente Ekklisies, Kyparisso, Parapotamos and Kestrini. During the interwar period of the 20th century, Albanian speaking villages of the Thyamis delta and river basin were small and scattered compared to the upland larger Greek villages of the hilly area to the north. "The greater part of the canton of Filiates lies north of the lower Kalamas. It is contained between the river and its northern watershed, along which the present frontier runs between Greece and Albania. There is little fertile land except in the delta and the inner basin of the Kalamas. The northern part of the canton is broken up by a tangle of mountain peaks, and i found it difficult to traverse.... In contrast to the Albanian-speaking villages of the Kalamas delta and basin, these villages are Greek in speech and outlook,.... The other villages have on average some 200 houses, and they are considerably larger than the scattered Albanian-speaking villages of the Kalamas basin."

Environment

Thyamis forms a

river delta A river delta is a landform shaped like a triangle, created by deposition of sediment that is carried by a river and enters slower-moving or stagnant water. This occurs where a river enters an ocean, sea, estuary, lake, reservoir, or (more rare ...

where it empties in the Ionian Sea, north of Igoumenitsa. The delta is known for being rich in flora and

migrating birds Bird migration is the regular seasonal movement, often north and south along a flyway, between breeding and wintering grounds. Many species of bird migrate. Migration carries high costs in predation and mortality, including from hunting b ...

stop in its waters for food and rest. The river, however, has suffered from

environmental degradation Environmental degradation is the deterioration of the environment through depletion of resources such as quality of air, water and soil; the destruction of ecosystems; habitat destruction; the extinction of wildlife; and pollution. It is defin ...

for decades, due to uncontrolled human activities (farming activity, urban and industrial effluents and waste, lack of management plan and poor coordination of competent authorities for its protection).

References

{{reflist

External links

Greek Travel Pages - River Thyamis
Landforms of Thesprotia Rivers of Greece Landforms of Ioannina (regional unit) Rivers of Epirus (region)

Geography

Environment

See also

References

External links