Category Archives: Zarafonitis

Visiting the Villages: Zarafona

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When a family moves from one village to another, the natives of their new “horio” may refer to them as the people from [name of their former village]. That is exactly what happened to my third great-grandfather, Panagiotis Zarafonitis. Sometime in the mid-1800s, he left his mountain village of Zarafona and settled in the fertile plains of Sparta, specifically the village of Sklavochori (now part of Amykles).

One of several mountain paths that the Zarafonitis family could have walked to settle in the valley.

He became known as Zarafonitis, the man from Zarafona. His original surname is unknown. The Zarafonitis family of Amykles claims that there were two Zarafona families who settled in Amykles: Mazis and Tountas. Another comment was that the Maltezos family of Zarafona also came to Amykles. Because the migration most likely occurred after the Revolution of 1821 ended, around 1830–before records were created by the modern Greek state–the name will have to remain a mystery.

The village of Zarafona

Zarafona, also known as Kallithea, is most likely ancient and surely pre-dates Byzantium. Its church, Enniamera tis Panagias / Εννιάμερα της Παναγίας (Nine Days of the Virgin Mary) was built in the 10th century.

The Byzantine Church of Zarafona

The village has a castle which towers at the top of a mountain. “According to an inscription found on the west external wall, the castle was constructed in the period that the Despotate of Moreas was governed by Theodoros II Paleologos (1407-1448). Therefore it was a construction of the first half of the 15th century, part of the effort of the Byzantines to confront the Ottoman threat.”1 The short video below shows both the castle and the surrounding countryside.

Castle of Zarafona; photo from Kastrologos

With the castle as a fortress, one can conclude that the Zarafonites were activey engaged in thwarting the Ottoman incursion into their territory. It’s rather thrilling to imagine Panagiotis Zarafonitis and others in active opposition to this threat, and their jubilation when the Ottomans were defeated.

It makes sense that, after their freedom was secured, Panagiotis did exactly as so many others — go down from the mountain to settle in the fertile valley.2 I know he was there by 1849, the approximate year of the birth of my second great grandmother, Giannoula, in Sklavochori.3

Park adjacent to the plateia

Zarafona is an agricultural community. Crops such as olives, citrus fruits, vegetables, and grapes are cultivated. The region has a long history of wine production. The village is peaceful and the neat gardens and livestock give it a homey atmosphere.

Sheep, chickens and gardens make Zarafona feel comfortable and homey
Traditional stone houses; some whitewashed and some natural stone. All neatly maintained
There are two signs on this well.
Left: Major donors for drilling, 1995; Panagiotis P. Ferizis; Ilias Legakis
Right: Gift from the Zarafona Women’s Syllogos and Leonida Nikia, 1-5-2013
Another well, adjacent to the church, in memory of Leonida K. and [?] Nik. Oikonomopoulos
War Memorial
1912-1940: S.K. Voudouris; P I. Ferizis ;I. D. Chrysikos; I. V. Maltezos; P. G. Maltezos; G. N. Voudouris; I. P. Giakas; P. Ch. Farlekas; K. D. Stamatopoulos; N. Th. Oikonomopoulos; I. H. Douvris; Ef. Lochagos; N. G. Ferizis; S. P. Maltezos; P. V. Flogos; I. P. Manousopoulos
1940-1949: P. D. Karakitsos; G. I. Plagakis; Chr. P. Katranis; D. I. Nikias; E. P. Oikonomopoulos; P. G. Danas; I. G. Koumoutzis; G. Th. Vlachos; I. P. Oikonomakis; H. I. Danas

I thank Yanni Lambrinakos for taking me to see this village. His knowledge of the area and its people have helped me better understand this branch of my ancestral roots.


1Source: Kastrologos
2For migration patterns after the Revolution, see this post.
3Giannoula’s marriage record to Dimitrios Nikolaos Zacharakis on April 18, 1869 states her residence as Sklavochori. I estimate her birth at 20 years prior to marriage.
Metropolis of Sparta, Marriage Index Book
Book: Sparta, 1866-1872; Year: 1869; Entries: 88-94
Entry  #89
License Date: April 18, 1869
Marriage Date: not given
Groom:  Dimitrios Zacharakis, no father listed; residence: Theologos
Bride:  Giannoula Zarafonitou; father: P., residence: Sklavochori
Church Name:  not given
First marriage for both bride and groom
Photographed at the Metropolis of Sparta in Sparta, Greece by Carol Kostakos Petranek, July 2017

  

A Signature, An Ancestor

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Letter of Consent to Marriage of Giannoula P. Zarafonitis and Dimitrios Nikolaos Zacharakis, April 18, 1869 in Sklavochori (now Amykles), Lakonia, Greece

This letter granting permission for the marriage of my second great-grandparents, Giannoula Zarafonitis and Dimitrios N. Zacharakis, was signed by Giannoula’s father, Panagiotis G. Zarafonitis. By adding the “G” in his signature, Panagiotis (my third great-grandfather born 1821) provided the first initial of his father which took my lineage back one more generation to my fourth great-grandfather! In this area of Sparta and for my family, the initial “G” would most likely indicate the name of Georgios.

P. G. Zarafonitis

I am thrilled that this document –so meaningful to me–is one that I digitized with my own hands. During the summers of 2019, 2018 and 2017, I volunteered to work with Gregory Kontos of GreekAncestry.net to preserve, through the digitization process, marriage books and documents at the Metropolis of Sparta for the years 1835-1935.

It is incredibly emotional for me to see the signature of my third great-grandfather, Panagiotis, and to know that through my work, his handwriting and mark of mortality has been saved and is now viewable by his descendants. And I am especially grateful to him for choosing to include that most important initial of G.

Translation of marriage letter*:

Metropolis of Sparta and Monemvasia
Marrriage #89
The consent of the parents and other relatives of the future groom and bride, Dimitriou Zacharakis of the village, Theologos of Dimos Sellasias, and Giannoula daughter of Panagiotou Zarafonitou of the Dimos Sparta and village of Sklavochori, affirming that there is no kinship between the future couple nor any other impediment for them to join in matrimony, both for the first time, with the signature of two guarantors and two witnesses.

In Sklavochori on 18 April 1869

Signatures, left side:
Relatives of the groom:
N. Papastratis
Priest, S. Dimitropoulos
For the bride:
P. G. Zarafonitis

Signatures, right side:
Guarantors:
P. Anagnostakos
P. Iliopoulos
Witnesses:
M. Michalalopoulos
Ioannis Chatzikos

________
*Translation by Gregory Kontos, GreekAncestry.net

Beyond the Basics: Aristeia Awards, 1821 Revolution

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March 25 is a day of celebration and pride for Hellenes throughout the world, as we celebrate the commencement of the War of Independence from 400 hundred years of Ottoman rule. Men throughout Greece banded as brothers to battle for the freedom of their homeland. Those who fought with exemplary actions and bravery were awarded an aristeia (αριστείο). The word άριστος (aristos) means excellence; and the award is one of great prestige and distinction.* Men who received an aristeia displayed exceptional bravery in battle and were considered heroes.

There are three levels of Aristeia awards: silver, iron, and bronze. These are on display at the War Museum in Athens, which I visited in 2017 with my friend and guide, Giannis Mihalakakos. (Take a virtual tour of the museum here.)

War of Independence Awards, display of Aristeia awards

Many fighters of the Revolution received aristeia awards from the Government of Greece. Among them are members of my extended family. In a previous post, I wrote about Ioannis Zaharakis, born circa 1798 in Theologos, who received an Aristeia for his service. I have since learned of others, and on this commemorative day, I recognize these men of my family with honor and pride:

  • Mihail Aridakos / Aridas of Agios Ioannis
  • Efstratios and Dimitrios Iliopoulos of Agios Ioannis
  • Christos Kostakos of Anavryti
  • Georgios Christakos of Agios Ioannis
  • Christos Lerikos of Agios Ioannis
  • Dimitrios, Vasileios and Nikolaos Maltziniotis of Agios Ioannis
  • Kalogeros Papagiannakos of Agios Ioannis
  • Ioannis Zaharakis of Sellasia/Theologos
  • Dimitrios, Ioannis and Georgios Zarafonitis of Sklavohori

This image shows recipients Kalogeros Papagiannakos (line 42) and Georgios Christakos (line 51) of Agios Ioannis who received the Iron Medal.

Aristeia Awards, Line 42: Kalogeros Pappagiannakis; Line 51: Georgios Christakos, both of Agios Ioannis, Sparta. Research by Konstandinos Koutsodontis, 2020

The General State Archives of Greece is the repository for Aristeia Records. It has thousands of lists, each filled with thousands of names. There are files online at the GAK , but working through them to locate villages and names is beyond my ability. Researching in this collection is best left to Greek genealogy professionals. Those who have examined these archives for me are: Gregory Kontos of GreekAncestry.net, Konstandinos Koutsodontis of Greek Genealogist, and Giannis Mihalakakos of Maniatika. I am grateful to each of them, my colleagues and friends. 🙂

Next year on March 25, 2021, and throughout the year, the 200th anniversary of the Revolution will be celebrated. Konstandinos, Gregory and Giannis will be writing about the men who freed Greece from captivity. Use their resources to find the heroes in your family, and contact them for research help. Gregory Kontos’ “Tracing Freedom: 1821” collection has just launched with searchable lists of captives from Lakonia.

Your ancestors fought and secured the freedom of Greece, thus securing a sovereign nation for the birth of your family. They deserve to be recognized and honored.

*A Hellenic historian shared the following: Aristeia is an ancient Greek word meaning “prize for excellence, prowess, the best and the bravest.”

Amykles Book, Excerpt: Sklavohori

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In 1982, Sarantos P. Antonakos published Amykles, a history book about his native village. Amykles is one of my ancestral villages, too–the birthplace of my 3rd great grandfather, Panagiotis Zarafonitis. I am beyond excited to have found this book in the Central Library of Sparta, and I copied some of the pages relevant to my family. With sincere thanks to Giannis Michalakakos for his translations and history lessons, I am learning much about this beautiful village and the lives of my ancestors. This is the first posts of several, with excerpts from the book.

Prophet Ilias Church, built in the late 13th century, Amykles.

In the Preface, Mr. Antonakos writes: Amykles was the salt and the pepper for  the Spartans and for the whole Laconian peninsula, a religious, cultural and commercial center. The people lived here hundreds of years in the middle of a very fertile plain through which the Evrotas River passed and it was from then, until today, the subject of study of hundreds of scientists and researchers.

Among several profiles of prominent men in Amykles is a paragraph about Georgios Dimitrios Zarafonitis, a soldier who fought with distinction in the Revolution of 1821.

Antonakos, Sarantos P., Amykles, pp. 250-215; 1982; Athens. Repository: Central Library of Sparta Greece

The translation reads: στ. Zarafonitis George.

          Soldier of the sacred struggle was Georgios Zarafonitis, who, immediately after the start of the revolution took up arms, and after he entered became the head of relatives who fought all the battles in Morea.
During the invasion of Ibrahim Pasha, the house of Zarafonitis was burned to the ground by the Arabs, like many of his fellow countrymen. Zarafonitis sent an application to the state to recognize his services on 19 May 1846 [he is applying for an Aristeia award]. The application included a certificate from the chieftains G. Sklavohoriti, P. Matalo, etc.
In this certificate, the chieftains of Lacedaimon referred among others “… Mr. George Dimitriou Zarafonitis, citizen of Sklavohori of the municipality Amykles of this province (Lacedaemon) from the beginning of the Holy Fight, in charge of his relatives, put himself under the direction of the chief Panagiotis Giatrakos, and he was with us in different battles like the seige of Tripolis, the battle of Fragoviso, Kerasis, Ververa, Valtezi, Doliana, even in the siege of the fortress Nafplion, Corinth, Patra and when Dramali Pascha came in Argos, Vervenakia and after his disaster in Messinia, fought against Arabs in Coroni, Methoni, and Neokastro, also in Kalamata in Verga of Almyro and in the horrible battle of Polyaravo.
This Greek during all the time of the revolution served military and did his duty with passion and extreme obedience to his superior officers. from his certificate I can assume that he was a very good soldier.”

Unfortunately, a paper trail between this hero of the Revolution and my Panagiotis does not exist. But using “educated deduction” and knowing that families of the same name from the same village are related, I can claim Georgios as part of my ancestral clan.

Another reference to Georgios is found in a list of men from Sklavohori who served as Jurors. This was published on 2 November 1894 in ΦΕΚ, the official newspaper of the Government of Greece. In the page below, he is enumerated on line 12; he is age 50 and a resident of Sklavohori (click on image to enlarge).

General Archives of Greece
List of Jurors – 1849
FEK: Official Government Newspaper of Greece
2 November 1894
Line 112 , Georgios Zarafonitis, age 50, of Sklavohori, farmer
FHL: Film #1038847, section-6, image 28; Family History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah

Sklavohori, the home of Panagiotis and Georgios, is the same village as Amykles. As is common in areas of foreign dominion, name changes occurred over the centuries. It is an unusual word, certainly not of Greek origin, and Mr. Antonakos addresses this on page 201, Sklavohori. It is a fascinating study.

a.  Some researchers opine that the name was given when Slavs occupied the area. However, Slavic tribes resided in the region known as Amykles in 750 A.D;  and the name “Sklavohori” is not mentioned in any documentation until 1432 — 700 years after the Slavs departed.

b.  When St. Nikon resided in Lacedaimon from 968 to 998, the village was called Amykles and Amyklion. When the life story of St. Nikon was written in 1142, the region still was known as Amykles; proving that the name change occurred later.

c.  All of the Slavic toponyms in Laconia, which are many, were given when the Slavic tribes settled; this did not happen in Sklavohori.

d.  No villages in the plains of Evrotas (where Amykles is located) have Slavic names. Slavic place names are found in mountain villages, where the Slavic tribes retreated so as to remain inaccessible from those determined to evict them (the Franks, the Byzantines, etc.).

These facts support the theory that the name Sklavohori was given much later than the Slavic occupation of the region. Thus, Mr. Antonakos proposes two other, more plausible, explanations:

a.  The name comes from the word, “slave” or “slavery.”  Feudal rulers enslaved Greek citizens, and gave them land to farm, which was located in the fertile plains of Sparta. A literal translation of the name, Sklav-ohori, would be “village of slaves.”

b.  In the island of Tinos in the Aegean Sea, there a a village named Sklavohori. However, there was never a Slavic presence there. The village was given its name because its citizens had been enslaved.

As I wandered through Amykles/Sklavohori in July, I could not imagine this village of my ancestors once being a den of enslavement. The land is a beautiful and abundant valley nestled under the Taygetos mountains; its citizens are hospitable, filled with the spirit of φιλότιμο (filotimo).

The beautiful cemetery belies the hardships and tragedies that the heroes and citizens of Amykles overcame. My family is among them.

Amykles cemetery, July 2017