Fourka
Fourka
| |
|---|---|
Location within the regional unit | |
Fourka | |
| Coordinates: 40°10′N 20°57′E / 40.167°N 20.950°E | |
| Country | Greece |
| Administrative region | Epirus |
| Regional unit | Ioannina |
| Municipality | Konitsa |
| Area | |
| • Municipal unit | 32.374 km2 (12.500 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 1,360 m (4,460 ft) |
| Population (2021)[1] | |
| • Municipal unit | 56 |
| • Municipal unit density | 1.7/km2 (4.5/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
| Postal code | 440 08 |
| Vehicle registration | ΙΝ |
| Website | www |
Fourka (Greek: Φούρκα; Aromanian: Furkă)[2] is a village and a former community in the Ioannina regional unit, Epirus, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Konitsa, of which it is a municipal unit.[3] The municipal unit has an area of 32.374 km2.[4] Population 56 (2021).[1]
Name
The toponym is derived either from the Aromanian furca meaning 'the fork, or distaff' or from a Latin loan rendered as fourka in common modern Greek, stemming from the medieval Greek fourka and originating from Latin furca.[5] The word also exists in Romanian as furca and Albanian as furk/ë with the same meaning.[5]
Linguist Kostas Oikonomou wrote the name relates to the geography of the land, as the village according to local tradition was located at Paluhoară, a place resembling a fourka and formed by two pits called Visani and Louri.[6] Local tradition attributes the name to forks placed alongside the road leading into the village, so people would not get lost in fog, snow or storm weather conditions.[7]
Demography
Fourka has an Aromanian population and is an Aromanian speaking village.[8][9] In the early 21st century, elderly people were bilingual in the community language and Greek, whereas younger residents under 40 might have understood the community language but did not use it.[10] Aromanian multipart singing (polyphony) is practised in the village.[11]
References
- ^ a b "Αποτελέσματα Απογραφής Πληθυσμού - Κατοικιών 2021, Μόνιμος Πληθυσμός κατά οικισμό" [Results of the 2021 Population - Housing Census, Permanent population by settlement] (in Greek). Hellenic Statistical Authority. 29 March 2024.
- ^ Koukoudis, Asterios (2003). The Vlachs: Metropolis and Diaspora. Zitros Publications. p. 147. ISBN 9789607760869.
Fourka (Furkă), the most northerly of the Pindos Vlach villages.
- ^ "ΦΕΚ B 1292/2010, Kallikratis reform municipalities" (in Greek). Government Gazette.
- ^ "Population & housing census 2001 (incl. area and average elevation)" (PDF) (in Greek). National Statistical Service of Greece. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-21.
- ^ a b Oikonomou 2002, p. 297.
- ^ Oikonomou 2002, pp. 297–298.
- ^ Oikonomou 2002, p. 298.
- ^ Frost, F. (1988). "A submerged settlement at Skyllaieis". In Raban, Avner (ed.). Archaeology of Coastal Changes: Proceedings of the First International Symposium "Cities on the Sea-Past and Present" Haifa, Israel, September 22-29, 1986. BAR Publishing. p. 47. ISBN 9780860545194.
- ^ Oikonomou 2002, pp. 2, 297.
- ^ Oikonomou, Kostas E. (2002). Τα οικωνύμια του νομού Ιωαννίνων. Γλωσσολογική εξέταση [The oikonyms of the prefecture of Ioannina. A linguistic examination] (PDF) (in Greek). Nomarchiaki Aftodioikisi Ioanninon. pp. 2–3. ISBN 9789608316010. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 November 2024.
- ^ Kahl, Thede (2008). "Multipart Singing among the Aromanians (Vlachs)". In Ahmedaja, Ardian; Haid, Gerlinde (eds.). European Voices: Multipart singing in the Balkans and the Mediterranean. Böhlau Verlag. p. 268. ISBN 9783205780908.