Karpathos: The Residence of the Gods

The island of Karpathos is located in the Dodecanese region and is the second largest island in the region after Rhodes.

Juhani Komulainen, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

The name of the island comes from the fact that the inhabitants were so proud of their island that they kidnapped the gods of Olympus and brought them to the island. For this reason they were called “Arpatheoi” (those who steal the gods). The modern name of Karpathos was formed after slight phonological transitions.

The ancient Greeks were very impressed by the flourishing, mountainous nature and the long coastlines of the island and therefore considered Karpathos as the dwelling place of various mythical figures such as Titan Iapetus, Prometheus, The Titan Who Defied Zeus, the creator of mankind as well as the place where the goddess Athena, the goddess of wisdom was raised.

Featured Image Credit: Ввласенко, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

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Evangelia

Evangelia Hatzitsinidou is the creator and author of www.greek-gods.info which has been merged with Olympioi.com. She has been writing about Greek Mythology for almost twenty years. A native to Greece, she teaches and lives just outside Athens.