Santorini

For other uses, see Santorini (disambiguation).
"Thera" and "Thira" redirect here. For other uses, see Thera (disambiguation).

Santorini
Σαντορίνη
Θήρα
Municipality
Santorini montage. Clicking on an image in the picture causes the browser to load the appropriate article, if it exists.Partial panoramic view of SantoriniSunset in the village of OiaRuins of the Stoa Basilica at Ancient TheraOrthodox Metropolitan Cathedral of Ypapanti at the town of FiraThe Aegean Sea as seen from OiaView of Fira from the isle of Nea Kameni at the Santorini caldera
Clockwise from top: Partial panoramic view of Santorini, sunset in the village of Oia, ruins of the Stoa Basilica at Ancient Thera, the Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral of Ypapanti (it) Cattedrale della Presentazione di Cristo (Fira) at the town of Fira, the Aegean Sea as seen from Oia, and view of Fira from the island of Nea Kameni at the Santorini caldera.
Santorini is located in Greece
Santorini
Santorini
Location within the region
Coordinates: 36°24′54″N 25°25′57″E / 36.41500°N 25.43250°E / 36.41500; 25.43250
CountryGreece
Administrative regionSouth Aegean
Regional unitThira
Government
 • MayorAnastasios Zorzos[1] (since 2023)
Area
 • Municipality
90.69 km2 (35.02 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)[2]
 • Municipality
15,480
 • Density170/km2 (440/sq mi)
 • Municipal unit
14,393
 • Community
1,516
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal code
847 00, 847 02
Area code(s)22860
Vehicle registrationEM
Websitewww.thira.gr

Santorini (Greek: Σαντορίνη, romanized: Santoríni, pronounced [sa(n)doˈrini]), officially Thira (Greek: Θήρα, romanized: Thíra, pronounced [ˈθira]) or Thera,[a] is a Greek island in the southern Aegean Sea, about 200 km (120 mi) southeast from its mainland. It is the largest island of a small, circular archipelago formed by the Santorini caldera. It is the southernmost member of the Cyclades group of islands, with an area of approximately 73 km2 (28 sq mi) and a 2021 census population of 15,480. The municipality of Santorini includes the inhabited islands of Santorini and Therasia, as well as the uninhabited islands of Nea Kameni, Palaia Kameni, Aspronisi and Christiana. The total land area is 90.623 km2 (34.990 sq mi).[3] Santorini is part of the Thira regional unit.[4]

The island was the site of one of the largest volcanic eruptions in recorded history: the Minoan eruption (sometimes called the Thera eruption), which occurred about 3,600 years ago at the height of the Minoan civilization.[5] The eruption left a large caldera surrounded by volcanic ash deposits hundreds of metres deep.

It is the most active volcanic centre in the South Aegean Volcanic Arc, though what remains today is chiefly a water-filled caldera. The volcanic arc is approximately 500 km (300 mi) long and 20 to 40 km (12 to 25 mi) wide. The region first became volcanically active around 3–4 million years ago,[citation needed] though volcanism on Thera began around 2 million years ago with the extrusion of dacitic lavas from vents around Akrotiri.

  1. ^ Municipality of Thira, Municipal elections – October 2023, Ministry of Interior
  2. ^ "Αποτελέσματα Απογραφής Πληθυσμού - Κατοικιών 2021, Μόνιμος Πληθυσμός κατά οικισμό" [Results of the 2021 Population - Housing Census, Permanent population by settlement] (in Greek). Hellenic Statistical Authority. 29 March 2024.
  3. ^ "Population & housing census 2001 (incl. area and average elevation)" (PDF) (in Greek). National Statistical Service of Greece. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 September 2015.
  4. ^ "ΦΕΚ A 87/2010, Kallikratis reform law text". Government Gazette (in Greek). Archived from the original on 23 October 2021. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference readersnatural was invoked but never defined (see the help page).


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