Karditsa Prefecture

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GreeceKarditsa Prefecture
Νομός Καρδίτσας
Location of Karditsa Prefecture in Greece
Periphery Thessaly
Capital Karditsa
Population 130,214 (2005)Ranked 28th
Area 2,636 km² Ranked 20th
Population density 49.4/km²Ranked 31st
Number of municipalities 20
Number of communities 1
Postal codes 43x xx
Area codes 244x0
Licence plate code ΚΑ
ISO 3166-2 code GR-41

Karditsa is one of the prefectures of Greece. It is within the Thessaly periphery, and is mostly an agricultural prefecture , one with no provinces.The capital of this prefecture is the city of Karditsa, a small city of approximately 35,000 people. The prefecture is known for its beautiful countryside and friendly people, while the Dimotiki Agora (Δημοτική Αγορά) or Public Market is found in the city and forms one of UNESCO's protected cultural monuments.

The city is also an important knowledge centre, supporting the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Thessaly, the Faculty of Wood and Furniture Technology, and the Faculty of Forestry Technology of the Educational and Technological Institution of Larissa. There is also a police academy.

Karditsa is about 300 kilometers from Athens, and can be reached by bus or train from Athens and Thessaloniki. It is located SSE of Trikala, SW of Larissa and NE of Arta.

The western half of the prefecture is dominated by the Pindus mountains, famous for the Agrafa region of Greece.

Karditsa is bounded by the prefectures of Trikala to the north, Larissa to the east, Phthiotis to the southeast, Aetolia-Acarnania and Evrytania to the southwest and Arta to the west. The main rivers are Megdova to the south, one, another to the northwest to the east and the Pineios River to the north.

Contents

[edit] Geography

The farmlands dominate the central and the eastern part which is part of the Thessalian Plain while the Agrafa mountains dominate the southern and the western part. The Plastiras Dam and Lake Plastiras is to the south which supplies water to the plains and the central part of Greece.

[edit] Population

  • 2001: 121,775

[edit] History

The present day Karditsa prefecture was in the Kingdom of Macedonia and later the Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, Great Wallachia, the Ottoman Empire from the 1400s until 1881 and finally Greece after the liberation of Thessaly and northcentral Greece. Its economy and agriculture boomed during that period ; Karditsa was administered as the Trikala-Karditsa prefecture until 1947. It was affected by World War II and the [[Greek Civil War], ] which saw many buildings destroyed and inhabitants left homeless and in hiding. The prefecture was later rebuilt and received electricity, appliances and motorised transport, while emigration also began in the 1950s, when construction of lake Plastiras was added. Television arrived in the 1970s and the 1980s for its villages, and its economy later declined, seeing high unemployment in the prefecture.

[edit] People

The plains of central and southern Karditsa are inhabited by the Karagounides (Greek: Καραγκούνηδες), while the Agrafa mountains in the west of the prefecture are dominated by a strong Sarakatsani (Greek: Σαρακατσάνοι) and Aromanian, or Vlach (Greek: Βλάχοι - Vlahi), element.

[edit] Transport

There are a number of highways E75 and the main railway from Volos to Meteora crosses Thessaly. The region is directly linked to the rest of Europe through International Airport of Central Greece located in Nea Anchialos in a small distance from Karditsa.

  • Greece Interstate 30, NW, Cen., SE
  • Karditsa - Larissa road, Cen., NE
  • Karditsa Bypass

[edit] Notable Figures

[edit] Municipalities and communities

Municipality YPES code Seat (if different) Postal code Area code
Acheloos 2404 Vragkiana 430 66 24450-31
Argithea 2402 Anthiro 430 65 24450-31
Arni 2403 Mataragka 433 00 24430-41
Fyllo 2421 Itea 430 62 24440-31
Itamos 2406 Kallithiro 431 00 24410-81
Ithomi 2405 Fanari 430 64 24410-39
Kallifono 2407 431 00 24410-88
Kampos 2408 Stavros 431 00 24410
Karditsa 2409 431 00 24410-2 through 7
Menelaida 2410 Kedros 433 00 24430-51
Mitropoli 2411 431 00 24410-55
Mouzaki 2412 430 60 24450-4
Nevropoli Agrafon 2413 Pezoula 430 60 24410-92
Palamas 2414 432 00 24440-2
Pamisos 2415 Agnantero 430 61 24410-8
Plastiras 2416 Morfovouni 430 67 24410-95
Rentina 2417 430 68 24430-71
Sellana 2418 Proastio 430 70 24410-5
Sofades 2419 433 00 24430-2
Tamasio 2420 Leontari 430 63 24430-31
Community YPES code Seat (if different) Postal code Area code
Athamanes 2401 Petrilo 430 69 24450-31

See also: List of settlements in the Karditsa prefecture

[edit] Sporting teams

  • Anagennisi Karditsa (football) - Karditsa (city) - fourth division
  • A.O. Karditsa - Karditsa - fourth division
  • Iraklis Sofades - Sofades
  • Tavropos - Karditsa - fourth division

[edit] External links

Europe | Greece | Thessaly
Karditsa | Larissa | Magnesia | Trikala