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Volakas (Greek: Βώλακας) is a former municipality in Elis, West Greece, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Pyrgos, of which it is a municipal unit.[1] Its seat of administration was in the town of Epitalio. Epitalio is accessed by GR-9 to the north and south which until the 1980s ran through the town. The Alpheus river flows to the north.

Location

The location is SE of Pyrgos and the bypass, WSW of Olympia, W of Tripoli, NW of Krestena and Andritsaina, NW of Kalamata and NNW of Kyparissia. The name and the settlement dates back to the ancient times. The ancient ruins lie to the north. From the Medieval Times to the late-2nd millennium, the village was known as Agoulinitsa.

Subdivisions

The municipal unit Volakas is subdivided into the following communities (constituent villages in brackets):

Epitalio (Epitalio, Paralia, total pop: 2,059)
Agridi (pop: 50)
Alfeiousa (pop: 1,061)
Anemochori (pop: 382)

Geography

The geography of Epitalio includes hills with several hilltops, streams and valleys to the east and pine forests to the north and east and to the southeast. Olive groves are slightly north, southeast and to the northwest. The plain which is mainly filled with pastures, fruits and vegetables are to the southwest which stretches for two and three kilometres. The area was once a wetland and a lagoon. Some forests also cover the west. Residential area covers the west and east of the bypass. The pine forests are along the southern part of the Alpheus valley. The view of several mountains are to the southeast near Krestena. The beaches lie to the west. The small airport of Epitalto (ICAO: LGEP) is near Epitalio. The runway is unpaved and is 1 km long.

Historical population
Year Epitalio (municipal district) Volakas (municipality)
1981 1,869 -
1991 1,752 3,438
2001 2,069 3,552

History

In ancient times, Aegis left himself tired, recrossing the Alpheus and he was careful to leave a garrison in Epitalium near the Alpheus.

Epitalio was ruled by the Ottoman Turks, it became a part of Greece after the Greek War of Independence. It adopted its current name in the early 20th century. After World War II and the Greek Civil War, its buildings were rebuilt. Epitalio became connected with asphalt in the 1960s. More pavement was accessed in the late 20th century. Electricity, radio and automobiles were introduced in the mid-20th century, television in the late-20th century and computer and internet at the turn of the millennium. Epitalio escaped the furies of the a tremendous fire on Sunday August 26, 2007.

Other

Epitalio has a school, a lyceum, a high school, a church, banks, and a post office, a train station (Pyrgos - Kyparissia - Oichalia), a water tower, and a square (plateia). Its nearest hospital is in Pyrgos and its university is the University of Patras in Rio.