Xanthi is a city in the region of Western Thrace, northeastern

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 ...

. It is the capital of the Xanthi regional unit of the

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

East Macedonia and Thrace Eastern Macedonia and Thrace ( ; , ) is one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It consists of the northeastern parts of the country, comprising the eastern part of the region of Macedonia along with the region of Western Thr ...

. Amphitheatrically built on the foot of Rhodope mountain chain, the city is divided by the Kosynthos River, into the west part, where the old and the modern town are located, and the east part that boasts a rich natural environment. The "Old Town of Xanthi" is known throughout Greece for its distinctive architecture, combining many

Byzantine Greek Medieval Greek (also known as Middle Greek, Byzantine Greek, or Romaic; Greek: ) is the stage of the Greek language between the end of classical antiquity in the 5th–6th centuries and the end of the Middle Ages, conventionally dated to the F ...

churches with neoclassical mansions of Greek merchants from the 18th and 19th centuries and Ottoman-Era mosques. Other landmarks in Xanthi include the Archaeological Museum of Abdera and the Greek Folk Art Museum. Xanthi is famous throughout Greece (especially

Macedonia Macedonia (, , , ), most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a former administr ...

and

Thrace Thrace (, ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe roughly corresponding to the province of Thrace in the Roman Empire. Bounded by the Balkan Mountains to the north, the Aegean Sea to the south, and the Black Se ...

) for its annual spring

carnival Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that occurs at the close of the Christian pre-Lenten period, consisting of Quinquagesima or Shrove Sunday, Shrove Monday, and Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras. Carnival typi ...

(

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 ...

: καρναβάλι) which has a significant role in the city's economy. Over 40 cultural associations from around Greece participate in the carnival program. The festivities which take place during the period include concerts, theatre plays, music and dance nights, exhibitions, a cycling event, games on the streets, and re-enactments of old customs.

Name

There are two theories regarding the origin of its name: it was either named after a daughter of

Oceanus In Greek mythology, Oceanus ( ; , also , , or ) was a Titans, Titan son of Uranus (mythology), Uranus and Gaia, the husband of his sister the Titan Tethys (mythology), Tethys, and the father of the River gods (Greek mythology), river gods ...

and Tethys, or after Xanthi, one of the

Amazons The Amazons (Ancient Greek: ', singular '; in Latin ', ') were a people in Greek mythology, portrayed in a number of ancient epic poems and legends, such as the Labours of Hercules, Labours of Heracles, the ''Argonautica'' and the ''Iliad''. ...

that ruled the region, according to legend. Xanthi is known as ''İskeçe'' in Turkish and Скеча (''Skecha'') or Ксанти (''Ksanti'') in Bulgarian.

History

Xanthi is sometimes identified with the ancient city of ''Xantheia'' mentioned in the 1st century BC by the geographer

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-si ...

, but it was not mentioned by any other ancient historian. It began as a small village and experienced all the tumultuous periods of the history of

, such as raids, disasters, ethnic conflicts, civil wars. The population of the region of Xanthi had dwindled down to almost nothing, as the region was depopulated in the 3rd century AD and almost everything had been destroyed when the Ottomans conquered the region in 1361. For this reason, 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 ...

brought Turkish settlers from within of

Asia Minor Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

, which is how Genisea (Γενισέα) was created, while Oraio (Ωραίο) and Xanthi remained mainly

and Christian centres.

Middle Ages

Known references to Xanthi (), or Xanthia (), the city's origins are obscure; it was a prosperous stronghold of the

Byzantine 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 the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

era but latter became a colony of the Ottomans known as ''Eskije''. Xanthi is first recorded in 879 (Bishop Georgios of Xantheia is reported as taking part in the Fourth Council of ConstantinopleAbout Xanthi
). From the 13th to the 14th century it was the most important city of the region. Two monasteries date from the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

: Pammegiston Taxiarchon, and Panagia Archangeliotisa, although written records indicate several others now lost.History of Xanthi
. Xanthi featured in the campaign of

Andronikos II Palaiologos Andronikos II Palaiologos (; 25 March 1259 – 13 February 1332), Latinization of names, Latinized as Andronicus II Palaeologus, reigned as Byzantine emperor from 1282 to 1328. His reign marked the beginning of the recently restored em ...

in 1327.

Early modern

By 1715, Xanthi, as well as Genisea, became renowned for its

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

quality. Many foreign sightseers traveled throughout the region and described both the life and struggles of the locals. The tobacco trade throughout Europe led Xanthi into a course of prosperity. George Demetriou was active in the Xanthi area during the Greek Revolution of 1821. In March and April 1829 two

earthquake An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they ...

s leveled the city, however, they played a decisive role in the further developments as the city's rebuilding immediately got underway. In 1870, the city of Genisea was burned down and thus all of the agencies and services were transferred to Xanthi which, at that time, had a population of about 10,000 inhabitants. In 1891, a rail line was established near the city, while further economic development led to the founding of schools and associations. During the late period of Ottoman rule until 1912, the city was administratively located in the Sanjak of Gümülcine within the Adrianople Vilayet.

Balkan Wars

During the

First Balkan War The First Balkan War lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and involved actions of the Balkan League (the Kingdoms of Kingdom of Bulgaria, Bulgaria, Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia, Kingdom of Greece, Greece and Kingdom of Montenegro, Montenegro) agai ...

, Xanthi was captured by the

Bulgarian army The Bulgarian Army (), also called Bulgarian Armed Forces, is the military of Bulgaria. The commander-in-chief is the president of Bulgaria. The Ministry of Defense is responsible for political leadership, while overall military command is in ...

from the Ottomans in 8 November 1912. In the

Second Balkan War The Second Balkan War was a conflict that broke out when Kingdom of Bulgaria, Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia and Kingdom of Greece, Greece, on 1 ...

the Greek army captured it in July 1913. However, with the Treaty of Bucharest, Xanthi along with Western Thrace were ceded to Bulgaria (where it was also called ''Skecha''), and remained a part of the latter until the end of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Following the Bulgarian defeat in this war, Western Thrace came under Allied administration and on 4 October 1919 the Greek army under Georgios Leonardopoulos command entered the city. That date is today celebrated in Xanthi as the anniversary of its liberation. Second lieutenant Gavriel Ladas, who was from Xanthi, led the first Greek troops in the city. Ladas became the mayor of Xanthi from 1959 to 1964.

World War II

On 8 April 1941 the 164th Infantry Division captured Xanthi following the

German invasion of Greece The German invasion of Greece or Operation Marita (), were the attacks on Kingdom of Greece, Greece by Kingdom of Italy, Italy and Nazi Germany, Germany during World War II. The Italian invasion in October 1940, which is usually known as the Gr ...

and the Germans passed the city to Bulgaria, who occupied the whole region east of Strymonas, except a small German zone near the border with Turkey. The city became the administrative center of the Bulgarian province of Belomorie and served as headquarters for the Bulgarian Second Army. During the Bulgarian occupation, more than 2,000 men from Xanthi, both Christians and Muslims were sent for forced labor in Bulgaria. On 4 March 1943 the Jews of Xanthi were arrested by the Bulgarians and imprisoned in a tobacco warehouse. On 18 and 19 March, they were deported to

Nazi concentration camps From 1933 to 1945, Nazi Germany operated more than a thousand concentration camps (), including subcamp (SS), subcamps on its own territory and in parts of German-occupied Europe. The first camps were established in March 1933 immediately af ...

in Poland. From a community of 550 people, only six Jews survived the Holocaust. The synagogue of Xanthi built in 1926 at the corner of Hatzistavrou and Anatolikis Thrakis streets, was used by Christian Associations and later abandoned. It was sold and demolished in 1995. The city was liberated following the 9 September coup d'etat in Bulgaria when partisans of the Greek People's Liberation Army entered the city and took over control without a fight. However, the Bulgarian army remained in the region until the end of October 1944 and it withdrew under pressure from the Allies.

Today

Nowadays Xanthi is a modern city, rich in history, traditions and customs, and with many attractions for the visitors (including the surrounding areas). Xanthi is known as ''the city of a thousand colours'', and like Komotini (Gümülcine) and Didymoteicho (Dimetoka) has a large population of Turkish-speaking Muslims. The Muslim population of

dates to the Ottoman period, and unlike the Ottoman Muslims and

Greek Muslims Greek Muslims, also known as Grecophone Muslims, are Muslims of Greeks, Greek ethnic origin whose adoption of Islam (and often the Turkish language and identity in more recent times) dates either from the contact of early Arabic dynasties of th ...

of Greek Macedonia and

Crete Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...

was exempted from the 1922–23

Greek-Turkish population exchange The 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey stemmed from the "Convention Concerning the Exchange of Greek and Turkish Populations" signed at Lausanne, Switzerland, on 30 January 1923, by the governments of Greece and Turkey. It involv ...

following the Treaty of Lausanne. In 1972 the Greek authorities planned to demolish the landmark of the city, the

clock tower Clock towers are a specific type of structure that house a turret clock and have one or more clock faces on the upper exterior walls. Many clock towers are freestanding structures but they can also adjoin or be located on top of another building ...

, built by Pomak Hadji Emin Aga in 1870. This decision resulted in protests by the local Muslims and the plans were cancelled.

Transport

Road Transport

A few kilometers outside Xanthi, the Egnatia Motorway crosses Xanthi with

Epirus Epirus () is a Region#Geographical regions, geographical and historical region, historical region in southeastern Europe, now shared between Greece and Albania. It lies between the Pindus Mountains and the Ionian Sea, stretching from the Bay ...

and the rest of

. The Xanthi Bus Station runs daily services to several cities throughout Greece. Xanthi is 206 km from

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; ), also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, Salonika, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece (with slightly over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area) and the capital cit ...

, 704 km from

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, 397 km from

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 ...

and 236 km from

Edirne Edirne (; ), historically known as Orestias, Adrianople, is a city in Turkey, in the northwestern part of the Edirne Province, province of Edirne in Eastern Thrace. Situated from the Greek and from the Bulgarian borders, Edirne was the second c ...

. On 15 January 2010, the Agios Konstantinos border crossing point between

and

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

was inaugurated, 51 km from Xanthi, linking the nearby village of Thermi with the town of

Zlatograd Zlatograd (, , ) List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, is a town in Smolyan Province, southern-central Bulgaria. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Zlatograd Municipality. In December 2009, the town had a population of 7,110.

. A link road between the A2 motorway and the Bulgarian town of Rudozem is to be opened on 1 January 2025 via the Aegean Pass.

Rail transport

Outside Xanthi is the Xanthi railway station on the Thessaloniki-Alexandroupoli line, with daily services to

and

Alexandroupolis Alexandroupolis (, ) or Alexandroupoli (, ) is a city in Greece and the capital of the Evros (regional unit), Evros regional unit. It is the largest city in Greek Thrace and the region of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, with a population of 71,75 ...

Air Transport

Xanthi does not have an airport. It is mainly served by Kavala Airport, 42 km away, and secondarily by Alexandroupolis Airport, 112 km away.

Municipality

The municipality Xanthi was formed at the 2011 local government reform by the merger of the following 2 former municipalities, that became municipal units: * Stavroupoli *Xanthi The municipality has an area of 495.118 km², the municipal unit 153.116 km².

Communities

The municipal unit Xanthi is subdivided into the communities Evmoiro, Kimmeria and Xanthi. These communities contain the following settlements: * Evmoiro **Kallithea **Lamprino **Lefki **Nea Morsini **Palaia Morsini **Petrochori * Kimmeria **Gialisteri **Livadi **Pelekito **the abandoned villages Alikochori, Anthiro, Askyra, Eranos, Ketiki, Porta, Prioni and Ydrochori *Xanthi

Economy

Traditionally, the tobacco business, commerce, and farming have been the primary occupation of the residents of the area. During the last decades, tourism has also increased, especially during the period of the "Old Town Festival".

Population

Education

* Democritus University of Thrace School of Engineering *Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering *Department of Civil Engineering *Department of Environmental Engineering *Department of Architectural Engineering *Department of Production Management Engineering

Cultural events

Carnival and old town's festivals

The city has a rich history, tradition, and customs and it is the cultural center in the area. It is also considered a multi-cultural city and it has been characterized as "the city of the thousand colours". Xanthi's Carnival is very popular (every February) and is one of the most popular in Greece, while the "old town festival" (early September) is equally famous. Furthermore, the bazaar of Xanthi is famous and takes place at Emboriou Square every Saturday. In addition, the

Manos Hatzidakis Manos Hatzidakis (also spelled Hadjidakis; ; 23 October 1925 – 15 June 1994) was a Greek composer and theorist of Greek music, widely regarded as one of the greatest Greek composers of all time. He was one of the main proponents of the " Ént ...

' festival attracts worldwide interest.

Museums

*Folklore and Historical Museum of Xanthi *Εcclesiastical Museum Metropolis of Xanthi *Municipal Gallery of Xanthi *Museum of Natural History *Foundation of Thracian Art and Tradition *Museum of the History of the Greek Costume *Manos Hadjidakis House

Sports

* Xanthi FC, plays in the

Super League Greece 2 The Super League Greece 2 () is the second division of professional Association football, football in Greece, serving as a feeder league to the top level Super League Greece, Super League 1. Made up of 20 teams in two groups, it is usually played ...

* Xanthi BC, played in the Greek A2 League * Aspida Xanthi, football (one appearance in the First League) and basketball * Orfeas Xanthi FC, football *Orion Xanthi, basketball

Famous people from Xanthi

Manos Hadjidakis Manos may refer to: Films * The Hands (film), ''The Hands'' (film) (Spanish: ''Las manos''), a 2006 Argentinean-Italian film * ''Manos: The Hands of Fate'', 1966 horror film Other uses * Manos (album), ''Manos'' (album), by The Spinanes * Manos (n ...

(1925–1994): Major Greek composer. Winner of the Academy Award for Best Original Song for his song Never on Sunday from the film of the same name. *

Şerif Gören Şerif Gören (, 1 July 1944 – 8 December 2024) was a Turkish film director. Aside from important films under his own signature, he was also the winner of the Palme d'Or ("Golden Palm") award in Cannes Film Festival in 1982 for the film '' Yol ...

: Turkish film director. Winner of 1982

Palme d'Or The (; ) is the highest prize awarded to the director of the Best Feature Film of the Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festiv ...

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

* Yanaki Paskalev (1863–1933): Bulgarian revolutionary, member of

IMORO The Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO; ; ), was a secret revolutionary society founded in the Ottoman territories in Europe, that operated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Founded in 1893 in Salonica, it initia ...

* Archbishop Christodoulos (1939–2008): former Archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Church * Vasilis Torosidis: football player for Olympiacos F.C. and the

Greece national football team The Greece national football team (, ) represents Greece in men's international Association football, football matches, and is controlled by the Hellenic Football Federation, the governing body for football in Greece. Greece is one of only ten ...

* Lambros Papantoniou (Mandra, Xanthi 1945-Washington, USA 2009): journalist, political analyst. * Zafeiris Melas, contemporary Greek laïko singer. * Çiğdem Asafoğlu, The Party of Friendship, Equality and Peace General President * Apostolos Roumoglou, basketball player for the

UConn Huskies The UConn Huskies (or Connecticut Huskies) are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Connecticut, with its main campus located in Storrs, Connecticut. The school is a member of ...

International relations

Xanthi is twinned with: *

Smolyan Smolyan () is a List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, town and ski resort in the south of Bulgaria near the border with Greece. It is the administrative and industrial centre of the Smolyan Province. The town is built along the narrow valley of t ...

, Bulgaria *

Novi Beograd New Belgrade (, ) is a Subdivisions of Belgrade, municipality of the city of Belgrade. It was a Planned community, planned city and now is the central business district of Serbia and South East Europe. Construction began in 1948 in a previously un ...

, Serbia *

Gifhorn Gifhorn () is a town and capital of the district of Gifhorn (district), Gifhorn in the east of Lower Saxony, Germany. It has a population of about 42,000 and is mainly influenced by the small distance to the more industrial and commercially import ...

, Lower Saxony, Germany *

Biga Biga may refer to: Places * Biga, Çanakkale, a town and district of Çanakkale Province in Turkey * Sanjak of Biga, an Ottoman province * Biga Çayı, a river in Çanakkale Province * Biga Peninsula, a peninsula in Turkey, in the northwest part ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

''(since 2000)'' *

Bursa Bursa () is a city in northwestern Turkey and the administrative center of Bursa Province. The fourth-most populous city in Turkey and second-most populous in the Marmara Region, Bursa is one of the industrial centers of the country. Most of ...

, Turkey * Adra, Spain

Gallery

File:XANTHI-NESTOS RIVER - panoramio (1).jpg, Nestos river outside the city File:Metropolis in Xanthi.jpg, Greek Orthodox Metropolis File:Kapnapothiki p NEW montarismeni.jpg, Old tobacco warehouses, today a restored museum File:ΠΑΛΙΑ ΠΟΛΗ ΞΑΝΘΗ.jpg, Old mansions File:Old town, Ksanthi.jpg, Old town streetΞάνθη: Μία πόλη, χίλια χρώματα
File:Xanti clock tower.jpg, Xanthi clock tower File:National Bank of Greece building, Xanthi.jpg, National Bank of Greece building File:Xanthi2.jpg, Old town File:Μνημειο Πεσωντων - panoramio.jpg, War memorial File:20130421 Ottoman Bridge 4km Xanthi Stavroupolh Thrace Greece.jpg, Ottoman bridge Xanthi-Stavroupoli File:Xanthi, Chapel of St.George & archangel Michael.jpg, Chapel of St. George and Archangel Michael

Notes

References

External links

The old town of Xanthi – 3D ReconstructionDemocritus University of ThraceMunicipality of XanthiThrace the land of Orpheus – Democritus University of ThraceCultural and Educational Technology InstituteXanthi Festival 2024
{{Authority control Populated places in Xanthi (regional unit) Greek prefectural capitals Municipalities of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace