Astras () is a mountain village of the

Elis Elis also known as Ellis or Ilia (, ''Eleia'') is a historic region in the western part of the Peloponnese peninsula of Greece. It is administered as a regional unit of the modern region of Western Greece. Its capital is Pyrgos. Until 2011 it ...

region in

West Greece Western Greece Region (, ) is one of the thirteen Modern regions of Greece, administrative regions of Greece. It comprises the western part of Central Greece (geographic region), continental Greece and the northwestern part of the Peloponnese pen ...

. A formerly independent community, it became part of the municipality of

Lampeia Lampeia (Greek language, Greek: Λάμπεια, before 1928: Δίβρη - ''Divri'', between 1928 and 1929: Πρινόφυτον - ''Prinofyton'') is a mountain village, a community and a former Communities and Municipalities of Greece, munici ...

as a result of the 1997

Kapodistrias reform Kapodistrias reform (, "Kapodistrias Plan") is the common name of law 2539 of Greece, which reorganised the country's administrative divisions. The law, named after 19th-century Greek statesman (Ioannis Kapodistrias), passed the Hellenic Parliamen ...

. At the 2011

Kallikratis reform The Kallikratis Programme () is the common name of Greek law 3852/2010 of 2010, a major administrative reform in Greece. It brought about the second major reform of the country's administrative divisions following the 1997 Kapodistrias reform. ...

, Lampeia became a municipal unit of the municipality of

Ancient Olympia Olympia ( ; ), officially Archaia Olympia ( ), is a small town in Elis on the Peloponnese peninsula in Greece, famous for the nearby archaeological site of the same name. The site was a major Panhellenic religious sanctuary of ancient Greece, ...

. Towards the lower end of the village lies a settlement named Kaluvia of Astras. A mountain road goes through a forest which connects Astras to the village of Lampeia (formerly ''Divri'').

Demographics

As of the 2011 census, Astras had a population of 132 as compared to the 2001 census population of 143 inhabitants (0.80% decrease). The first recorded census was conducted in 1700 by Francisco Grimani from

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

. The village had 174 inhabitants (92 men and 82 women) and 34 families at that time.

History

The region of Astras has been inhabited since ancient times (now known as Nousa), a few kilometers from

Tripotama Psofida (Greek: Ψωφίδα) is a village and a community in the municipal unit of Aroania in the southern part of Achaea, Greece. The community consists of the villages Psofida, Ano Psofida, Tripotama, Ano Tripotama, Kato Tripotama and Vasiliki. ...

. The nearby ancient city of

Psophis Psophis (Ancient Greek: , '' Eth.'' ) was an ancient Greek city in the northwest end of Arcadia, bounded on the north by Achaea, and on the west by Elis. It was located near the modern village Psofida, part of the municipality of Kalavryta. C ...

is mentioned in ''

Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; , ; ) is one of two major Ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Odyssey'', the poem is divided into 24 books and ...

''. In ancient times, Astras was a part of Psophis, as indicated by sculptures and other things of daily use in the neighborhood of Kaluvia of Astras. Proper Astras history begins during 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 ...

. A significant town event was in the Proto-Byzantine years, when Alaric the Great destroyed Ancient Psophis in 398 AD. Historian Zosimus wrote about the area 50 years after the destruction of Psophis. He mentioned that only a few citizens returned to the destroyed city. The most significant fact about the village is the “Asketerion of Nousa”. After the fall of the Byzantines, the village became part of the

Republic of Venice 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 ...

. Nousa belonged to

Kalavryta Kalavryta () is a town and a municipality in the mountainous east-central part of the regional unit of Achaea, Greece. The town is located on the right bank of the river Vouraikos, south of Aigio, southeast of Patras and northwest of Tripoli, G ...

when Grimani's census took place, finding 174 inhabitants. During the Ottoman Occupation, the villagers suffered from Ottoman rule and especially from the city of Bay of Lala. Thus the Nousaites became

klephts Klephts (; Greek κλέφτης, ''kléftis'', pl. κλέφτες, ''kléftes'', which means "thieves" and perhaps originally meant just "brigand": "Other Greeks, taking to the mountains, became unofficial, self-appointed armatoles and were know ...

, who spent their lives in the mountains seeking freedom. Many heroes of the

Greek revolution The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. In 1826, the Greeks were assisted ...

were from Nousa. According to the

National Library of Greece The National Library of Greece () is the main public library of Greece, located in Athens. Founded by Ioannis Kapodistrias in 1832, its mission is to locate, collect, organize, describe and preserve the perpetual evidence of Greek culture and its ...

, Nousa's freedom fighters included Nikolaos Koulis, Chrysanthos Koulis, Demetrius Karachioutis, Konstantinos Stathopoulos, Vasileios Makris, Aggellis Makris, and Panagiotes Makris (Makropanagos). The last was a relative of the famous Giannias who became the terror of the Turkalbanians in the region containing villages of

Patrai Patras (; ; Katharevousa and ; ) is Greece's List of cities in Greece, third-largest city and the regional capital and largest city of Western Greece, in the northern Peloponnese, west of Athens. The city is built at the foot of Mount Panachaiko ...

. After liberation Nousa became part of the Municipality of Lampeia.

Present

The village retains the traditional character of the whole region. Annual festivities honour

Saint George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...

, who is considered to be the village's protector. The majority of the villagers are involved in agriculture. In summer, the village attracts tourists. The river of Erymanthos that passes through the town is where

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...

is said to have captured the

Erymanthian boar In Greek mythology, the Erymanthian boar (Greek: ὁ Ἐρυμάνθιος κάπρος; Latin: ''aper Erymanthius'') was a mythical creature that took the form of a "shaggy and wild" "tameless" "boar" "of vast weight" "and foaming jaws". It was ...

Asketerion

The Asketerion of Astras is a two-story building built inside mountain. To the left of the entrance, a ladder made of rock leads to the upper floor that hosts a small chapel with an image of

Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

(Platytera). Near the Asketerion are the ruins of the church of Saint John. The Asketerion was made by Osios Meletios in the 9th century, who established many

monasteries A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which m ...

there and in neighboring regions.

Astras Poem

In 1930 Theodoros Ksudis from Elia wrote a poem with the name Astras: Greek:

Αστρά, περήφανε Αστρά, βαθιά θεμελιωμένε, που καμαρώνεις άσειστος, ωραίε κι αγριεμένε, Κρύβεις απέθαντες ψυχές μέσ’ στα πυκνά σου ελάτια και δείχνεσαι στον ουρανό σαν ουρανός με μάτια... Αστρά, περήφανε Αστρά, νεανικέ Αστρά μου, της νιότης είσαι η νιότη συ και της χαράς χαρά μου. Με ποια γαλήνια προσευχή που δένεται η ψυχή μου στην τρυφερή, ρεμβαστική κι εκστατική στιγμή μου! English: Astras, proud Astras Strongly established You who stand steadily Beautiful and wild You hide immortal souls In your deep forests And you show yourself to the sky Like a sky with eyes Astras proud Astras My young Astras You are the youth of my youth And the joy of my joy With which relaxing prayer My soul goes with In my beautiful Ecstatic moment of mine watching you

References

External links

{{commons category-inline, Astras Ileias Populated places in Elis Olympia, Greece