gtp logo

Location information

Listed 5 sub titles with search on: Ancient literary sources  for wider area of: "KEFALLONIA Island IONIAN ISLANDS" .


Ancient literary sources (5)

Perseus Encyclopedia

Cephallenia

KEFALLONIA (Island) IONIAN ISLANDS
Ιsland, west of Greece, its contingent at Plataea, coveted by Neoptolemus, named after Cephalus.

Strabo

Asteria

ASTERIAS (Small island) KEFALLONIA
Between Ithaca and Cephallenia is the small island Asteria (the poet calls it Asteris), which the Scepsian says no longer remains such as the poet describes it, but in it are harbors safe for anchorage with entrances on either side; Apollodorus, however, says that it still remains so to this day, and mentions a town Alalcomenae upon it, situated on the isthmus itself.

KEFALLONIA (Island) IONIAN ISLANDS
Some, however, have not hesitated to identify Cephallenia with Dulichium, and others with Taphos, calling the Cephallenians Taphians, and likewise Teleboans, and to say that Amphitryon made an expedition thither with Cephalus, the son of Deioneus, whom, an exile from Athens, he had taken along with him, and that when Amphitryon seized the island he gave it over to Cephalus, and that the island was named after Cephalus and the cities after his children. But this is not in accordance with Homer; for the Cephallenians were subject to Odysseus and Laertes, whereas Taphos was subject to Mentes.

Cephallenia lies opposite Acarnania, at a distance of about fifty stadia from Leucatas (some say forty), and about one hundred and eighty from Chelonatas. It has a perimeter of about three hundred stadia, is long, extending towards Eurus, and is mountainous. The largest mountain upon it is Aenus, whereon is the temple of Zeus Aenesius; and where the island is narrowest it forms an isthmus so low-lying that it is often submerged from sea to sea. Both Paleis and Crannii are on the gulf near the narrows.

He (Homer) therefore knew the Ionian island, although he did not name it; in fact it was not called by the same name in earlier times, but Melampylus, then Anthemis, then Parthenia, from the River Parthenius, the name of which was changed to Imbrasus. Since, then, both Cephallenia and Samothrace were called Samos at the time of the Trojan War (for otherwise Hecabe would not be introduced as saying that he was for selling her children whom he might take captive "unto Samos and unto Imbros"), and since the Ionian Samos had not yet been colonized, it plainly got its name from one of the islands which earlier bore the same name. Whence that other fact is also clear, that those writers contradict ancient history who say that colonists came from Samos after the Ionian migration and the arrival of Tembrion and named Samothrace Samos, since this story was fabricated by the Samians to enhance the glory of their island.

You are able to search for more information in greater and/or surrounding areas by choosing one of the titles below and clicking on "more".

GTP Headlines

Receive our daily Newsletter with all the latest updates on the Greek Travel industry.

Subscribe now!
Greek Travel Pages: A bible for Tourism professionals. Buy online

Ferry Departures

Promotions

ΕΣΠΑ