Ithaca or Ithaka (in Greek, Ιθάκη, Ithaki) is an island in the Ionian Sea, in Greece, with an area of 118 km² (45 sq. miles) and three thousand inhabitants. It is an independent municipality of the prefecture of Kefalonia and Ithaka, and lies off the northeast coast of Kefalonia. The municipality of Ithaca includes some smaller islands as well. The capital, Itháki (Vathý), has one of the world's largest natural harbors.

Origin of Name

There are various interpretations as to the origin the name Ithaca, it is believed that it comes from:

• Ithacos, the hero from mythology;
• the Greek word "ithy" which means "cheerful;"
• the Greek adjective "ithys" which means "straight" (or, metaphorically, just or true)
• the Phoenician word "utica" which means "colony."

The name Ithaca has remained unchanged since ancient times, but it has been noticed that in written documents of different periods, it has also been referred to by other names such as:

• Nerikii (7th century BC);
• Val di Compare (Valley of the Bestman), Piccola (Small) Cephallonia, Anticephallonia (Middle Ages till the beginning of the Venetian period);
• Ithaki nisos (island), Thrakoniso, Thakou, Thiakou (Byzantine period);
• Fiaki (Turkish period);
• Teaki (Venetian period); and
• Thiaki (before the Venetian period, also called so by the sailors and has remained the name used by the inhabitants).

History

The origin of the first people to inhabit the island, which was during the last years of the Neolithic Period (4000-3000 BC), is unknown. The traces of buildings, walls and a road from this time period prove that life existed and continued to do so during the Early Hellenic era (3000-2000 BC). In the pre-Mycenaean years (2000-1500 BC), some of the population migrated to the southern part of the island. The buildings and walls that were excavated showed the lifestyle of this period had remained primitive.

Mycenaean Era

see: Mycenaean Greece

During the Mycenaean period (1500-1100 BC), Ithaca rose to the highest level of its ancient history. The island became the capital of the Cephalonian states, which included the surrounding lands, and was referred to as one of the most powerful states of that time. The Ithacans were characterized as great navigators and explorers with daring expeditions reaching further than the Mediterranean Sea.

The epic poems of Homer, the Iliad and the Odyssey, may shed some light on Bronze-Age Ithaca. Those poems are generally thought to have been composed sometime within the 8th to 6th centuries BC, but are based on older mythological and poetic traditions; their depiction of the hero Odysseus, and his rule over Ithaca and the surrounding islands and mainland, may preserve some memories of the political geography of the time.