Oktonia is a hillside village found in the east-central area of Evia Island, belonging to the Municipality of Kimi-Aliveri, Greece. Located near the lower side of the Gulf of Kimi, the village is composed of four communities, Alonia, Panochori (the upper village), Katochori (the lower village) and Panagia, covering a large area. It is 145 km from Athens, a distance covered in about 2.5 hours by car, making it a destination for both winter and summer holidays. According to the census of 2011, Oktonia has 455 permanent inhabitants.
Including the coastal communities of Agios Mercurios and Mourteri, the population is 650.
History and origins
The area of Oktonia has been inhabited since antiquity. The geographer Strabon (64 or 63 BC-c. 24 AD) wrote about Ochalia,a settlement apparently in the same location according to many scholars. Research indicates that there was a temple dedicated to Chthonia Demetra, the goddess Demetra who was the protector of the earth (chthon), and more specifically, agriculture and agricultural production.
From a compilation of historical data and traditional legend, it appears that during the late Byzantine Period, there was a village in the shadow of Kallimani Mountain just east of today’s village of Choreftaria. Groups of herders also grazed their flocks in the surrounding area. During this period, piracy was rampant; this village could not survive due to the fact that it was discernible to pirates from the sea.
According to tradition, one night during a festive gathering, when the watchtowers were unattended, pirates landed from the sea of Aili where their ships were moored. A woman who had perhaps learned of their plan, took her eight daughters and fled toward Kourvinou to escape the pirate raid. The rest of the villagers were captured and taken to the slave market in Anatolia. After some time, the mother and her daughters returned to the area but settled in a densely forested ravine at the foot of the mountain for protection from the pirates. Their initial settlement was on the site of present-day Panochori.
Around AD 1420, a village was founded and named Oktonees and later Oktonia (okto is the Greek for eight), for the eight young girls (nees) who escaped the pirates and first settled it. Development of this settlement over the years created present-day Oktonia.
The inhabitants of Oktonia come from many areas of Greece: the islands, the Peloponnese, central Greece, Epirus, Karistos, Chalkida, northern Evia, Constantinople and Asia Minor.
During the Turkish Occupation, the local population found comfort in religion from their suffering and humiliation, and there were four monasteries founded by the mid-16th century. Today, from these monastery complexes only the churches survive: St. George at Koutsouro, the Taxiarches (Archangels) at Kotsikia, the Presentation of the Virgin at Papavlassa, and St. Demetrios of the Waterfall.
Of these churches, St. Demetrios of the Waterfall is most noteworthy because the monastery played a significant role in the years leading up to the revolutionary struggle of 1821. The church contains important examples of post-Byzantine painting. In 1921, by Royal Decree this church became a Prominent Monument of the State.
During the 1821 Revolution, many people from the village fought and died to attain their freedom. The mountainous terrain favored the resistance and, because of its struggle against the Ottomans, Oktonia experienced battles, a siege on the castle (Kastro), torture and massacres. The abbot of the Monastery of St. Demetrios, Paisios, was put to death by impalement.
Oktoniates (people from Oktonia) also demonstrated their courage, patriotism and self-sacrifice during the subsequent National Liberation struggles including the Balkan Wars 1912-13, the Asia Minor Expedition and World War II.
The history of Oktonia during this period was turbulent. The villagers suffered, were attacked, taken into captivity, and many were killed, but they demonstrated resistance, bravery, sacrifice, heroism and a will to survive. As a result of these experiences, the people of Oktonia became industrious, inventive, resilient, progressive, and persistent in achieving their aims.
Oktonia today
Today Oktonia is a large, charming village of both new and renovated old houses with traditional tile roofs. Modern conveniences combine with age-old traditions in all aspects of village life. From the architectural standpoint, Oktonia is characterized as an Interesting Settlement with important structural and town-plan elements. These same pleasing elements are also found in the coastal settlements of Mourteri and Agios Mercurios.