Search results
Sep 26, 2023 · As you step off your cruise ship, prepare to embark on an unforgettable adventure filled with exploration and new memories. Corfu, known as Kerkyra, is the second-largest island in the Ionian Sea. It boasts a fascinating blend of influences from various civilizations throughout history, leaving their mark on architecture, culture, and cuisine.
From the twin peaks of the new site, the medieval city received its new name, Korypho (Κορυφώ, "city on the peak") or Korphoi (Κορφοί, "peaks"), whence the modern Western name of "Corfu".
- Where Is Corfu Island?
- The Island’s Place in Greek Mythology
- Ancient Greece
- The Siege of Corfu
This is a small Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the second largest of the Ionian Islands and including its small satellite islands, forms the edge of the northwestern frontier of Greece. Corfu is the Venetian name of the island, while it is also known as Kerkyra. This island is well known for its beauty, history, and uniqueness in architectur...
Corfu’s cultural history stretches back to the age of mythology, with the island’s Greek name originating from a Poseidonian tale. The island’s Greek name is Kerkyra, a slight variation on the name Korkyra – itself, the name of a nymph with which Poseidon fell in love. The story tells of Poseidon’s abduction of Korkyra, and flight to an unnamed isl...
Beyond the mythological origins of the island, it has an incredibly rich and dense history – having been at the core of conflict and culture in Greece since the Palaeolithic era. Before the emigration of Corinthians to the island in the 8thcentury BC, the island had been populated by immigrants from Eritrea. Evidence exists of civilisation on the i...
Corfu has been no stranger to conflict since the 7thcentury BC, but the next great period of war and instability would come during the island’s Venetian rule between the 1500s and the 1700s. The Venetian rivalry with the Ottoman Empire would frequently break out around Corfu, known then as the Door of Venice. Venetian fortifications rendered attemp...
The more recent name Corfu is a corruption of koryphi , which means peak, after the summit on which the Byzantines began building a castle early in the 7th century, and where the main town was later re-established.
Korypho-Corfu. So how come we call it Corfu? In Byzantine Greek Koryphai means ‘peaks’ and the Byzantine word Korypho means ‘city of the peaks’ – the name was given to the island because of the twin peaks of the town’s Old Venetian Fortress.
The latin name of the island, Corfù, an Italian version of the Byzantine Κορυφώ (Koryphō), meaning “city of the peaks”, derives from the Byzantine Greek Κορυφαί (Koryphai) (crests or peaks), denoting the two peaks -today bastions- of Corfu town where the Old Fortress is located.
Jun 14, 2023 · The expansive Corfu New Port (Neo Limani), located next to the historic Corfu Old Town, has room for several large cruise ships at any given time. Like it, PIN IT! In fact, between 300 and 500 cruises make port here each year, delivering over 750,000 passengers to the island.
