Euboea

Euboea (/juːˈbiːə/; Greek: Εύβοια, Evvia; Ancient Greek: Εὔβοια, Eúboia) is the second-largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete. The narrow Euripus Strait separates it from Boeotia in mainland Greece. In general outline it is a long and narrow, seahorse-shaped island; it is about 180 kilometres (110 mi) long, and varies in breadth from 50 kilometres (31 mi) to 6 kilometres (3.7 mi). Its general direction is from northwest to southeast, and it is traversed throughout its length by a mountain range, which forms part of the chain that bounds Thessaly on the east, and is continued south of Euboea in the lofty islands of Andros, Tinos and Mykonos.

It forms most of the regional unit of Euboea, which also includes Skyros and a small area of the Greek mainland.

Name

Like most of the Greek islands, Euboea was originally known under other names in Antiquity, such as Macris (Μάκρις) and Doliche (Δολίχη) from its elongated shape, or Ellopia, Aonia and Abantis from the tribes inhabiting it. Its ancient and current name, Εὔβοια, derives from the words εὖ "good", and βοῦς "ox", meaning "the land of the well-fed oxen".

Euboea (mythology)

Euboea is the name of several women in Greek mythology.

References

Euboea (regional unit)

Euboea (Greek: Περιφερειακή ενότητα Εύβοιας) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the administrative region of Central Greece. It consists of the islands of Euboea and Skyros, as well as a 395 km² area on the Greek mainland. Its land area is 4,167.449 km², whereas the total land area of the municipalities actually on the island Euboea is 3,684.848 km², which includes that of numerous small offshore islets (Petalies Islands) near Euboea's southern tip.

Administration

The Euboea regional unit is subdivided into 8 municipalities. These are (number as in the map in the infobox):

Prefecture

As a part of the 2011 Kallikratis government reform, the former Euboea Prefecture (Greek: Νομός Εύβοιας) was transformed into a regional unit within the Central Greece region, without any change in boundaries. At the same time, the municipalities were reorganised, according to the table below.