Ithaca

Ithaca Περιφερειακή ενότητα / Δήμος Ιθάκης
Regional unit
View of Vathy
Ithaca within the Ionian Islands
Coordinates: 38°22′N 20°43′E / 38.367°N 20.717°E / 38.367; 20.717Coordinates: 38°22′N 20°43′E / 38.367°N 20.717°E / 38.367; 20.717
Country	Greece
Region	Ionian Islands
Capital	Vathy
Government
• Vice Governor	Sotiris Kouris
• Mayor	Ioannis Kassianos
Area
• Total	117.8 km2 (45.5 sq mi)
Population (2011)
• Total	3,231
• Density	27/km2 (71/sq mi)
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Postal codes	283 0x
Area codes	26740
Car plates	ΚΕ
Website	www.ithaki.gr

Ithaca or Ithaka (/ˈɪθəkə/; Greek: Ιθάκη, Ithakē [iˈθaci]) is a Greek island located in the Ionian Sea, off the northeast coast of Kefalonia and to the west of continental Greece.

Ithaca's main island has an area of 96 square kilometres (37 sq mi) and had a population in 2011 of 3,231. It is the second-smallest of seven main Ionian Islands, after Paxi. Ithaca is a separate regional unit of the Ionian Islands region, and the only municipality of the regional unit. The capital is Vathy (or Vathi).

Modern Ithaca is generally identified with Homer's Ithaca, the home of Odysseus, whose delayed return to the island is the Odyssey's plot.

The fact that classical Greek authors often used eponymous explanations to explain away names through folk etymology makes it more likely that Ithakos derives from Ithaca rather than vice versa.

Although the name Ithaca has remained unchanged since ancient times, written documents of different periods also refer to the island by other names, such as:

The island has been inhabited since the 2nd millennium BC. It may have been the capital of Cephalonia during the Mycenaean period and the capital-state of the small kingdom ruled by Odysseus. The Romans occupied the island in the 2nd century BC, and later it became part of the Byzantine Empire. The Normans ruled Ithaca in the 13th century, and after a short Turkish rule it fell into Venetian hands (Ionian Islands under Venetian rule).

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Wikipedia