Psachna () is a town in

Euboea Euboea ( ; , ), also known by its modern spelling Evia ( ; , ), is the second-largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete, and the sixth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is separated from Boeotia in mainland Greece by ...

, central

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 with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

, 16 km north of

Chalcis Chalcis (; Ancient Greek and Katharevousa: , ), also called Chalkida or Halkida (Modern Greek: , ), is the chief city of the island of Euboea or Evia in Greece, situated on the Euripus Strait at its narrowest point. The name is preserved from ...

. It is built in a small plain in the central-west part of the island. Psachna is the seat of

Dirfys-Messapia Dirfys-Messapia () is a municipality in the Euboea regional unit, Central Greece, Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land border ...

municipality and the seat of Messapia regional unit. The town is also known for the Psachna campus of

National and Kapodistrian University of Athens The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA; , ''Ethnikó kai Kapodistriakó Panepistímio Athinón''), usually referred to simply as the University of Athens (UoA), is a public university in Athens, Greece, with various campuses alo ...

and the football team Iraklis Psachna. Its population is 5,827 residents according to 2011 census.

History

The settlement of Psachna was built by refugees after the sack of Chalcis in 1470 during the

First Ottoman–Venetian War First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

. During the Ottoman occupation, it was a small village with few houses. After Greek independence, refugees from

Samos Samos (, also ; , ) is a Greek island in the eastern Aegean Sea, south of Chios, north of Patmos and the Dodecanese archipelago, and off the coast of western Turkey, from which it is separated by the Mycale Strait. It is also a separate reg ...

were installed in Psachna, leading to the naming of a district of Psachna as "Samiotika". The population of Psachna was increased in the last century when residents of the more mountainous villages such as Pyxaria, Vavoula, Apogremno moved in. In August 2020, the town and the region was badly hit from catastrophic floods that resulted in 6 deaths.

Historical population

Description

The

has a campus in Psachna. There are three monasteries near Psachna: Saint John Kalyvitis, Panagia Makrymallis and Panagia Gorgoepikoos. The first two were built during the Byzantine period, destroyed later and rebuilt. The third monastery was built after 1960. Psachna has also the best medical facilities in the area.

References

{{Dirfys-Messapia div Populated places in Euboea Dirfys-Messapia