View source for Naxos

{{short description|Greek island in the Aegean Sea}}
{{other uses}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=December 2016}}
{{Infobox islands
| name               = Naxos
| native_name        = Νάξος
| native_name_lang   = el
| image_name         = {{image frame|content={{Photo montage
| photo1a = Naxos Νάξος 2020-08-20 02 Chora Grotta and Vintzi beaches.jpg{{!}}View of Naxos Town from Palatia
| photo2a = 20210713 Πορτάρα 6749.jpg{{!}}View of ''Portara'', the gate of the Temple of Apollo
| photo2b = Glezos Tower.jpg{{!}}Glezos Tower
| photo3a = Κάτω Σαγκρί 8619.jpg{{!}}Tower in Kato Sangri
| photo3b = Vigla Beach, Naxos isl.jpg{{!}}Mikri Vigla beach
| photo4c = "Der Tempel von Sangri gehört zu den frühen ionischen Tempeln". 03.jpg{{!}}Temple of Demeter
| photo4a = Street in Apeiranthos, Naxos, 101910.jpg{{!}}Street in Apeiranthos
| photo4b = Spiaggia di Agios Prokopios - panoramio (1).jpg{{!}}Agios Prokopios Beach
| photo2c = Naxos Halkio1 tango7174.jpg{{!}}Houses in Chalki
| photo5a = Naxos Filoti1 tango7174.jpg{{!}}View of the village of Filoti with Mt. Zas in the background.
| spacing = 3
| color = #FFFFFF
| border = 3
| size = 300
| color_border = white
}}
| caption = '''From top to bottom, left to right:''' View of [[Naxos (city)|Naxos Town (Chora)]] from Palatia, 
 Temple of Apollo, Castle of Naxos, houses in Chalki, tower in Kato Sangri, [[Mikri Vigla|Mikri Vigla Beach]], street in [[Apeiranthos]], [[Agios Prokopios|Agios Prokopios Beach]], [[Temple of Sangri|Temple of Demeter]], view of the village of [[Filoti]] with Mt. Zas in the background.
| align = center

}}
| coordinates        = {{coord|37|05|15|N|25|24|14|E|region:GR_type:isle_scale:500000|display=inline,title}}
| map                = Greece
| map_caption        = 
| pushpin_relief     = 1
| location           = 
| archipelago        = [[Cyclades]]
| total_islands      = 
| area_km2           = 430
| highest_mount      = Mt. Zeus
| elevation_m        = 1004
| country            = Greece
| country_admin_divisions_title = [[Modern regions of Greece|Region]]
| country_admin_divisions = [[South Aegean]]
| country_admin_divisions_title_1 = [[Regional units of Greece|Regional unit]]
| country_admin_divisions_1 = [[Naxos (regional unit)|Naxos]]
| country_admin_divisions_title_2 = Municipality
| country_admin_divisions_2 = 
| country_capital    = [[Naxos (city)]]
| population         = 20,578
| population_as_of   = 2021
| density_km2        = 124
| demonym            = [[wikt:Naxiot|Naxiot]]
| website            = [https://worldpopulationreview.com/regions/naxos#:~:text=The%20population%20of%20the%20entire,significantly%20higher%20than%2019%2C000%20people. worldpopulationreview.com]
}}

'''Naxos''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|n|æ|k|s|ɒ|s|,_|-|s|oʊ|s}}; {{langx|el|Νάξος}}, {{IPA|el|ˈnaksos|pron}}) is a [[list of islands of Greece|Greek island]] belonging to the [[Cyclades]] island group. It is the largest island in the group. The largest town and capital of the island is Chora or [[Naxos (city)|Naxos City]], with 8,897 inhabitants (2021 census). The main villages are [[Filoti]], [[Apeiranthos|Apiranthos]], Vivlos, Agios Arsenios, [[Koronos]] and [[Glynado]]. It was an important centre during the [[Bronze Age]] [[Cycladic Culture]] and in the [[Ancient Greece|Ancient Greek]] [[Archaic Greece|Archaic Period]]. The island is famous as a source of [[Emery (rock)|emery]], a rock rich in [[corundum]], which until modern times was one of the best [[abrasives]] available.<ref>https://www.naxos.gr/emery-mines/?lang=en (viewed 01/07/2023).</ref>

== History ==
=== Mythic Naxos ===
[[File:GR-Naxos-MtZas 2 View East 1.jpg|thumb|200px|Landscape of the island]]
[[File:Portara Naxos 26.jpg|thumb|200px|Entrance of [[Temple of Apollo (Naxos)|Apollo Temple]] (''Portara'')]]

According to [[Greek mythology]], the young [[Zeus]] was raised in a [[Cave of Zas (Naxos)|cave on Mt. Zas]] ("''Zas''" meaning "''Zeus''"). [[Homer]] mentions "[[Dia (island)|Dia]]"; literally the sacred island "of the Goddess". [[Károly Kerényi]] explains:

{{blockquote|This name, Dia, which means 'heavenly' or 'divine', was applied to several small craggy islands in our [Aegean] sea, all of them lying close to larger islands, such as [[Crete]] or Naxos. The name "Dia" was even transferred to the island of Naxos itself, since it was more widely supposed than any other to have been the nuptial isle of [[Dionysus]].<ref>{{cite book| first= Karl |last=Kerenyi |author-link= Karl Kerenyi| year=1951 | title=The Gods of the Greeks | url= https://archive.org/details/in.gov.ignca.7346 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/in.gov.ignca.7346/page/n303 271]–272}}</ref>}}

One legend has it that in the Heroic Age before the [[Trojan War]], [[Theseus]] abandoned [[Ariadne]] on this island after she helped him kill the [[Minotaur]] and escape from the [[Labyrinth]]. [[Dionysus]] (god of wine, festivities, and the primal energy of life) who was the protector of the island, met Ariadne and fell in love with her. But eventually Ariadne, unable to bear her separation from Theseus, either killed herself (according to the Athenians), or ascended to heaven (as the older versions had it). The Naxos portion of the Ariadne myth is also told in the [[Richard Strauss]] opera ''[[Ariadne auf Naxos]]''.

The [[Aloadae|giant brothers Otus and Ephialtes]] figure in at least two Naxos myths: in one, [[Artemis]] bought the abandonment of a siege they laid against the gods, by offering to live on Naxos as Otus's lover; in another, the brothers had actually settled Naxos.

It is also said that the sea god [[Poseidon]] was passing by Naxos whilst driving his chariot on the sea surface and is where he first laid eyes on his future wife, the [[nereid]] [[Amphitrite]] as she was dancing there.
[[File:Case 09 Neolithic finds from Zas cave, AM Naxos, 176842.jpg|thumb|left|Neolithic finds from the Zas cave: jewelry, pottery, tools; archaeological museum of Naxos]]

=== Middle Paleolithic era ===
Stelida quarry, south-west of [[Naxos City|Chora]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.stelida.org/english|title=Introducing Stelida|website=stelida.org|access-date=17 October 2019}}</ref> contains [[Mousterian]] tools dating back to the [[Middle Paleolithic]] era, which indicates that [[Neanderthal]] activity on the island spanned almost 200,000 years ago.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Carter|first1=Tristan|last2= Contreras|first2=Daniel A.|last3=Holcomb|first3=Justin|last4=Mihailović|first4=Danica D.|last5=Karkanas|first5=Panagiotis|last6=Guérin|first6=Guillaume|last7=Taffin|first7=Ninon|last8=Athanasoulis|first8=Dimitris|last9=Lahaye|first9=Christelle|title=Earliest occupation of the Central Aegean (Naxos), Greece: Implications for hominin and Homo sapiens' behavior and dispersals|journal=Science Advances|date=16 October 2019|volume=5|issue=10|article-number=eaax0997|doi=10.1126/sciadv.aax0997|pmid=31663021|pmc=6795523|bibcode=2019SciA....5..997C}}</ref> The extinct dwarf elephant species ''[[Dwarf elephant#Cyclades|Palaeoloxodon lomolinoi]]'' lived on Naxos at some point during the [[Late Pleistocene]].<ref name="VanderGeer2014">{{cite journal |last1=Van der Geer |first1=A. A. E. |last2=Lyras |first2=G. A. |last3=Van den Hoek Ostende |first3=L. W. |last4=De Vos |first4=J. |last5=Drinia |first5=H. |year=2014 |title=A dwarf elephant and a rock mouse on Naxos (Cyclades, Greece) with a revision of the palaeozoogeography of the Cycladic Islands (Greece) during the Pleistocene |url=http://repository.edulll.gr/3263 |journal=Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology |volume=404 |pages=133–144 |doi=10.1016/j.palaeo.2014.04.003 |hdl-access=free |hdl=10795/3263}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Athanassiou |first1=Athanassios |last2=van der Geer |first2=Alexandra A.E. |last3=Lyras |first3=George A. |date=August 2019 |title=Pleistocene insular Proboscidea of the Eastern Mediterranean: A review and update |url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0277379119300848 |journal=Quaternary Science Reviews |language=en |volume=218 |pages=306–321 |bibcode=2019QSRv..218..306A |doi=10.1016/j.quascirev.2019.06.028 |s2cid=199107354|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

=== Cycladic civilisation ===
Zas Cave, inhabited during the [[Neolithic]] era, contained objects of stone from [[Milos|Melos]] and copper objects including a dagger and gold sheet. The presence of gold and other objects within the cave indicated to researchers the status of the inhabitant.<ref>P Halstead – [https://books.google.com/books?id=tgdthHDYY5UC&dq=neolithic+rocks&pg=PA155 Neolithic Society in Greece] Continuum International Publishing Group, 1999 Retrieved 4 July 2012 {{ISBN|1850758247}}</ref>

[[Emery (mineral)|Emery]] was exported to other islands during that time.<ref>M Patton – [https://books.google.com/books?id=HTAc-DV_D1AC&dq=neolithic+rocks+prehistoric+Naxos&pg=PA143 Islands In Time: Island Sociogeography and Mediterranean Prehistory] Psychology Press, 23 July 1996 Retrieved 4 July 2012 {{ISBN|0415126592}}</ref>

=== Classical era and Greco-Persian Wars ===
[[File:Tempel der Demeter (Gyroulas) 18.jpg|thumb|200px|[[Temple of Sangri|Temple of Demeter]]]]

During the [[8th century BC|8th]] and [[7th century BC|7th]] centuries BC, Naxos dominated commerce in the Cyclades.

[[Herodotus]] describes Naxos circa 500 BC as the most prosperous Greek island.<ref>[[Herodotus]], 5.28,5.31</ref>

In 499 BC, an [[Siege of Naxos (499 BC)|unsuccessful attack on Naxos by Persian forces]] led several prominent men in the Greek cities of Ionia to rebel against the Persian Empire in the [[Ionian Revolt]], and then to the [[Greco-Persian Wars|Persian War]] between Greece and Persia.

Naxos was the first Greek [[Polis|city-state]] to attempt to leave the [[Delian League]] circa 469 BC; Athens quickly quashed the notion and forcibly removed all military naval vessels from the island's control. Athens then demanded all future payments from Naxos in the form of gold rather than military aid.

=== Byzantine era ===
{{Main|Aegean Sea (theme)}}
[[File:Moni Fotodotis Naxos 10-15 c AD 13M577.jpg|thumb|200px|Fotodotis monastery]]

In [[Late Antiquity]], the island was part of the province of the [[Islands (Roman province)|Islands]].<ref name="ODB">{{ODB|title=Naxos|last=Gregory|first=Timothy E.|pages=1444–1445}}</ref>

[[Pope Martin I]] was detained on the island of Naxos for almost a year after he was arrested by Byzantine authorities in Rome due to his holding of a synod that condemned [[monotheletism]]. He was held on the island prior to being taken to Constantinople for trial. While detained on the island, he wrote to a certain Theodore living in Constantinople.<ref>Andrew Ekonomou. Byzantine Rome and the Greek Popes. Lexington books, 2007</ref>

Under the [[Byzantine Empire]], Naxos was part of the [[theme (Byzantine district)|thema]] of [[Aegean Sea (theme)|the Aegean Sea]], which was established in the mid-9th century.

In Byzantine times, the island's capital was on the southern fortress of Apalyres.<ref name="EI2">{{EI2 | last = Savvides | first = A. | title = Naḳs̲h̲e | volume = 7 | pages = 939–941 | url = https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_5782}}</ref> During this time, it suffered from [[Saracen]] raids, particular during the existence of the [[Emirate of Crete]] (824–961), to which the island occasionally paid tribute. Traces of Muslim artistic influence are visible in frescoes from the 10th century.<ref name="EI2"/> Nevertheless, as in Antiquity, Naxos was celebrated for its agriculture and animal husbandry; the 12th-century geographer [[al-Idrisi]] records extensive cattle raising on the island.<ref name="EI2"/>

In the late 12th century, it may have been the capital of a short-lived thema of the "[[Dodecanese#Name|Dodekanesos]]".<ref name="ODB"/>

=== Duchy of Naxos ===
{{further|Duchy of the Archipelago}}
[[File:ShepherdByzempire1265.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.5|The Duchy of Naxos and other Frankish states, carved from the [[Byzantine Empire]], as they were in 1265.<ref>William R. Shepherd, ''Historical Atlas'', 1911</ref>]]
[[File:Tower of Sanudo, front view.JPG|thumb|200px|Sanudo tower, part of the Duchal Palace]]
[[File:GR-naxos-pirgos-belonia.jpg|thumb|200px|Belonia tower]]

In the aftermath of the [[Fourth Crusade]], with a [[Latin Empire]] under the influence of the Venetians established at [[Constantinople]], the [[Venice|Venetian]] [[Marco I Sanudo|Marco Sanudo]] conquered Naxos and most of the other Cyclades in 1205–1207.<ref name="ODB"/> Of all the islands, only on Naxos was there any opposition to Sanudo: a group of [[Genoa|Genoese]] pirates had occupied the castle between the end of Byzantine rule and Sanudo's arrival. To steel his band's resolve, Sanudo burnt his galleys "and bade his companions to conquer or die". The pirates surrendered the castle after a five weeks' siege.<ref>{{Latins in the Levant|page=43}}</ref>

Naxos became the seat of Sanudo's realm, known as the "Duchy of Naxos" or "Duchy of the Archipelago".<ref name="ODB"/> Twenty-one dukes in two dynasties ruled the Archipelago, until 1566; Venetian rule continued in scattered islands of the Aegean until 1714. Under Venetian rule, the island was called by its Italian name, ''Nasso''.

The Sanudi introduced Western feudal law to the island, based on the ''[[Assizes of Romania]]''. However, the native Greek population continued to use [[Byzantine law]] for civil matters at least until the late 16th century.<ref name="ODB"/>

In the 13th century, following the capture of [[Antalya]] and [[Alanya]] on the southern Anatolian coast by the [[Seljuk Turks]], refugees from these areas settled in Naxos.<ref name="EI2"/> In the 14th century, the island was once more exposed to raids, this time from the [[Anatolian beyliks|Anatolian Turkish beyliks]], chiefly the [[Aydınids]]. In turn, the Sanudi assisted the Genoese in capturing [[Chios]] in 1304 and the [[Knights Hospitaller]] in their [[Hospitaller conquest of Rhodes|conquest]] of [[Rhodes]] in 1309, in order to stop these islands being used as Turkish pirate base. Nevertheless, raids against Naxos are recorded in 1324 and 1326, and in 1341, [[Umur of Aydın]] carried off 6,000 people from the island and imposed a payment of tribute. Two years later, however, the [[Smyrniote crusade]] captured his main port, [[Smyrna]].<ref name="EI2"/>

[[File:I Naxos Nixia - Buondelmonti Cristoforo - 1420.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Fifteenth century map of Naxos by [[Cristoforo Buondelmonti]]]]
The relief was temporary, however, as Turkish raids recommenced later in the century. The island was so depopulated that [[Cristoforo Buondelmonti]] in {{circa|1420}} claimed that there were not enough men to wed the Naxiot women.<ref name="EI2"/> The rising [[Ottoman Empire]] first attacked the island in 1416, but the Sultans recognized Venetian overlordship over the Duchy in successive treaties, in exchange for an annual tribute.<ref name="EI2"/>

=== Ottoman era (1566–1821) ===
The [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] administration remained essentially in the hands of the Venetians; the Porte's concern was satisfied by the returns of taxes. Very few Turks ever settled on Naxos, and Turkish influence on the island was insignificant. Under Ottoman rule the island was known in [[Ottoman Turkish|Turkish]] as {{transliteration|ota|Nakşa}}. Ottoman sovereignty lasted until 1821, when the islands revolted; Naxos finally became part of the Greek state in 1832.{{Citation needed|date=April 2023}}

== Early commentators ==
'''Early commentators in English on the island include:'''<ref>http://www.ucke.de/christian/naxos/Naxos_Old_Travel_Descriptions.pdf (viewed 01/07/2023).</ref>

[[Bernard Randolph (merchant)|Bernard Randolph]], in ''The Present State of the Islands in the Archipelago'' (1687, Oxford, pp.&nbsp;20–21).

[[Jean de Thévenot]], in ''Travels into the Levant'' (1687, London, pp.&nbsp;103–105).

[[Joseph Pitton de Tournefort]], in ''A Voyage Into the Levant'' (1718, London, pp.&nbsp;161–176).

Thomas Bankes et al., in ''A new royal authentic and complete system of universal geography antient and modern...'' (1787, London, p.&nbsp;943).

[[Edward Daniel Clarke]], in ''Travels in Various Countries'' (1814, vol. 3, section 2, London, pp.&nbsp;377–400).

[[William Martin Leake]], in ''Travels in Northern Greece'' (1835, vol. 3, London, pp.&nbsp;93–95).

[[James Theodore Bent|Theodore Bent]], in ''The Cyclades, or Life Among the Insular Greeks'' (1885, London, pp.&nbsp;329–371).

== Geography ==
=== Climate ===
Naxos experiences both a [[Mediterranean climate]] (''Csa'') and a [[hot semi-arid climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification]]: ''BSh'') depending on the location. According to the stations of the [[National Observatory of Athens]], various locations in Naxos have a [[hot semi-arid climate]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.meteo.gr/Monthly_Bulletins.cfm|title=Monthly Bulletins|website=www.meteo.gr}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://penteli.meteo.gr/stations/naxos/ | title=Latest Conditions in Naxos, Cyclades }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://penteli.meteo.gr/stations/mikrivigla/ | title=Latest Conditions in Mikri Vigla of Naxos }}</ref> Inland areas of the island are much wetter and cooler in winter, owing to their higher elevation.

{{Weather box
|location = Naxos town (0m) 
|single line = Yes
|metric first = Yes
|Jan record high C = 22.8
|Feb record high C = 26.2
|Mar record high C = 28.6
|Apr record high C = 30.5
|May record high C = 33.6
|Jun record high C = 37.2
|Jul record high C = 37.9
|Aug record high C = 36.0
|Sep record high C = 34.0
|Oct record high C = 30.8
|Nov record high C = 28.8
|Dec record high C = 26.0
|year record high C = 37.9
|Jan high C = 14.4
|Feb high C = 14.6
|Mar high C = 15.8
|Apr high C = 18.7
|May high C = 22.1
|Jun high C = 25.9
|Jul high C = 27.1
|Aug high C = 27.0
|Sep high C = 25.1
|Oct high C = 21.9
|Nov high C = 18.8
|Dec high C = 15.9
|year high C =
|Jan mean C = 12.2
|Feb mean C = 12.3
|Mar mean C = 13.4
|Apr mean C = 16.1
|May mean C = 19.6
|Jun mean C = 23.5
|Jul mean C = 25.1
|Aug mean C = 25.0
|Sep mean C = 23.0
|Oct mean C = 19.7
|Nov mean C = 16.4
|Dec mean C = 13.7
|year mean C =
|Jan low C = 9.6
|Feb low C = 9.4
|Mar low C = 10.4
|Apr low C = 12.5
|May low C = 15.7
|Jun low C = 19.6
|Jul low C = 22.0
|Aug low C = 22.2
|Sep low C = 20.1
|Oct low C = 17.0
|Nov low C = 13.7
|Dec low C = 11.1
|year low C =
|Jan record low C = 0.4
|Feb record low C = -1.0
|Mar record low C = 2.0
|Apr record low C = 5.1
|May record low C = 7.1
|Jun record low C = 12.0
|Jul record low C = 14.8
|Aug record low C = 13.6
|Sep record low C = 11.2
|Oct record low C = 7.2
|Nov record low C = 4.5
|Dec record low C = 2.0
|year record low C = -1.0
|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation mm = 67.9
|Feb precipitation mm = 56.3
|Mar precipitation mm = 45.7
|Apr precipitation mm = 17.6
|May precipitation mm = 10.6
|Jun precipitation mm = 2.4
|Jul precipitation mm = 0.9
|Aug precipitation mm = 1.6
|Sep precipitation mm = 7.7
|Oct precipitation mm = 38.6
|Nov precipitation mm = 52.3
|Dec precipitation mm = 69.0
|year precipitation mm =
|Jan humidity = 73.5
|Feb humidity = 71.8
|Mar humidity = 71.7
|Apr humidity = 70.6
|May humidity = 70.8
|Jun humidity = 67.9
|Jul humidity = 68.6
|Aug humidity = 70.0
|Sep humidity = 70.8
|Oct humidity = 73.0
|Nov humidity = 74.1
|Dec humidity = 74.0
|year humidity =
|Jan precipitation days = 12.7
|Feb precipitation days = 11.0
|Mar precipitation days = 9.5
|Apr precipitation days = 6.0
|May precipitation days = 3.6
|Jun precipitation days = 1.1
|Jul precipitation days = 0.4
|Aug precipitation days = 0.3
|Sep precipitation days = 1.9
|Oct precipitation days = 5.5
|Nov precipitation days = 8.8
|Dec precipitation days = 12.6
|year precipitation days =
|source 1 =[[Hellenic National Meteorological Service]]<ref name = HNMS>{{cite web
| url = http://newportal.hnms.gr/emy/en/climatology/climatology_city?perifereia=South%20Aegean&poli=Naxos
| title = Naxos Climatological data
| publisher = Hellenic National Meteorological Service
| access-date = 25 September 2025}}</ref>
| date=September 2025
|source 2 =NOAA (extremes 1961-1990),<ref name= NOAA>
{{Cite FTP | url = ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG_VI/GR/16732.TXT
| server = [[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]]
| title = Naxos Climate Normals 1961–1990
| access-date = 2 March 2015
|date=June 2013}}</ref> Info Climat (extremes 1991-present)<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.infoclimat.fr/climatologie/normales-records/1991-2020/naxos/valeurs/16732.html | title=Normales et records climatologiques 1991-2020 à Naxos Airport - Infoclimat }}</ref>
}}

{{Weather box
| location = Apeiranthos village (600m)
| metric first = yes
| single line = yes
| Jan high C = 9
| Feb high C = 10.2
| Mar high C = 13
| Apr high C = 15.4
| May high C = 21.9
| Jun high C = 25.1
| Jul high C = 27.9
| Aug high C = 28.7
| Sep high C = 24.9
| Oct high C = 22.5
| Nov high C = 16.1
| Dec high C = 12.3
| Jan low C = 4.8
| Feb low C = 5.9
| Mar low C = 7.8
| Apr low C = 9.7
| May low C = 15
| Jun low C = 18.6
| Jul low C = 21.1
| Aug low C = 21.8
| Sep low C = 18.7
| Oct low C = 16.3
| Nov low C = 11.7
| Dec low C = 8.6
|precipitation colour = green
| Jan precipitation mm = 208.3
| Feb precipitation mm = 137.8
| Mar precipitation mm = 80.3
| Apr precipitation mm = 77.4
| May precipitation mm = 4.7
| Jun precipitation mm = 1.1
| Jul precipitation mm = 19.4
| Aug precipitation mm = 0.1
| Sep precipitation mm = 24.2
| Oct precipitation mm = 60.9
| Nov precipitation mm = 91.1
| Dec precipitation mm = 155.9
| source = http://penteli.meteo.gr/stations/apiranthos/ (2019 - 2020 averages)
}}

==Economy==
[[File:Naxos emery-mine.JPG|thumb|200px|[[Emery (rock)|Emery]] mine]]
[[File:GR-naxos-kinidaros-marmor-alexander.jpg|thumb|200px|Marble quarry of Naxos. Note large green truck at lower left of the marble face.]]

===Historical population===
{| class="wikitable"
! Year !!  Island population !! Change
|-
| 1981 || 14,037 || –
|-
| 1991 || 14,838 || +801/+5.71%
|-
| 2001 || 18,188 || +3,350/+22.58%
|-
| 2011 || 18,904 || +716/+3.93%
|}

=== Tourism ===
Naxos is a popular [[tourist destination]], with several places of touristic interest, including beaches, villages and old ruins. Beaches on the island include Agia Anna, [[Agios Prokopios, Naxos|Agios Prokopios]], Aliko, Kastraki, Mikri Vigla, Plaka, and Agios Georgios, most of them on the western side of the island, near Chora. Like other [[cycladic islands]], Naxos is considered a windy place perfect for [[windsurfing]], as well as [[kitesurfing]]. There are seven sports clubs on the island that offer both of these sports and other water activities.<ref>{{cite web |title=Visit Naxos – Official Tourism Website |url=https://www.naxos.gr/en/ |website=Municipality of Naxos |access-date=28 September 2025}}</ref>

=== Agriculture ===
Naxos is the most [[Fertility|fertile]] island of the Cyclades. It has a good supply of water in a region where water is usually inadequate. Mount Zeus ({{convert|1,004|m|ft|disp=or|abbr=off}}) is the highest peak in the Cyclades, and tends to trap the clouds, permitting greater rainfall. This has made [[agriculture]] an important economic sector with various vegetable and fruit crops as well as cattle breeding, making Naxos the most self-sufficient island in the Cyclades. Naxos is well known within Greece for its "Arseniko Naxou" cheese, potatoes, [[Kitron]] (a local lemon-citrus spirit), and Naxian honey (which is largely derived from the nectar of [[thyme]]).<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lisiecki |first1=Chelsea |last2=Foufopoulos |first2=Johannes |title=Profits vs. preservation: How can shepherds balance the social and ecological costs of livestock grazing on Naxos? |journal=World Development Perspectives |date=2022 |volume=26|doi=10.1016/j.wdp.2022.100430 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

===Marble===
The quarrying of marble on Naxos began before 550 [[BCE]].<ref name="nama">{{cite web |title=Archaic Period |url=https://www.namuseum.gr/en/collection/archaiki-periodos/ |website=Εθνικό Αρχαιολογικό Μουσείο |publisher=Government of Greece |access-date=26 October 2021 |language=en |quote=Item #10 in slide show}}</ref> Naxian marble was used for the creation of the [[roof tile]]s at [[ancient Olympia]] and on the [[Athenian Acropolis]],<ref>[[Aenne Ohnesorg]]: ''Inselionische Marmordächer.'' de Gruyter, Berlin 1993.</ref> As of 2016, about 5,000 m³ of high value [[Naxian marble]] was being exported annually.<ref>[http://nibis.ni.schule.de/~trianet/naxos/region/region08.htm Trianet: Gestein und Bergbau] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304194240/http://nibis.ni.schule.de/~trianet/naxos/region/region08.htm |date=2016-03-04 }}.</ref>

== Sports ==
* [[Pannaxiakos A.O. (sports club)]]

== Notable people ==<!-- notability established by existence of an article -->
* Ecumenical Patriarch [[Anthimus III of Constantinople]] (1762–1842)
* [[Ecumenical Patriarch Callinicus III of Constantinople]] (died 1726) 
* [[Keti Chomata]] (1946–2010), singer
* [[Manolis Glezos]] (1922–2020), rebel, politician, writer
* [[Giannoulis Fakinos]] (born 1989), soccer player 
* [[Iakovos Kambanelis]] (1922–2011), poet, playwright, lyricist and novelist
* [[Kostas Manolas]] (born 1991), soccer player
* [[Stelios Manolas]] (born 1961), soccer player
* [[Nikolaos Mykonios]], fighter of the [[Greek War of Independence]] and officer of the [[Hellenic Army|Greek Army]]
* [[Iakovos Nafpliotis]] (1864–1942), [[cantor (church)|cantor]]
* [[Nicodemus the Hagiorite]] (1749–1809), saint
* [[Giorgos Ninios]] (born 1959), actor 
* [[Michalis Polytarchou]], basketball player, Former Captain of [[AEK Athens BC]]
* [[Petros Protopapadakis]] (1854–1922), Prime Minister of Greece

== Gallery ==
<gallery class="center">
File:Naxos Νάξος Chora 2020-08-20 28 Portara Πορτάρα.jpg|View through [[Temple of Apollo (Naxos)|Portara]] on the peninsula Palátia towards Chora of Naxos
File:Agios Nikolaos at Grotta, Naxos, 4th to 7th c, 213443.jpg|Agios Nikolaos on the Grotta of Naxos Town (Chora)
File:Valley between Potamia and Moni, Naxos, 19M7555.jpg|Valley between Potamia and Moni, Naxos. View from road from Apeiranthos to Filoti
File:Heiligtum des Dionysos (Yria) 03.jpg|[[Sanctuary of Dionysus (Yria)]]
File:028MAD Sphinx.jpg|[[Sphinx of Naxos]], now at [[Delphi Archaeological Museum]]
File:Building from terrace, Byzantine Museum Naxos, 143770.jpg|Crispi tower, housing the Byzantine museum
File:Naos Drosianis Naxos 03.jpg|Panagia Drosiani church, Moni village
File:Naxos Moni Faneromenis.JPG|The monastery of Faneromeni
File:Akadimoi Naxos Greece 2018081316330N09239.jpg|Chalki, Naxos
File:Atsipapi, Naxos, Greece 2018081216580N08690.jpg|Agios Isidoros at Atsipapi
File:Kaloxilos Naxos Greece 2018081018100N08139.jpg|Kaloxilos, Naxos
File:Vourvouria Naxos Greece 2018081119110NH8230.jpg|Vourvouria
File:Catholic cathedral, Kastro, Noxos Town, 1207-1963 AD, 144131.jpg|Presentation of the Lord Catholic church of Naxos
File:Koronos, Naxos, 119500.jpg|[[Koronos]] village
File:Panagia Damiotissa Naxos Greece 2018080816280N05907.jpg|Panagia Damiotissa, Chalki
File:TO FILOTI APO TOYS PROPODES TOY ZA.jpeg|[[Filoti]] village
File:Tower in Filoti, Naxos, commemorated 1620, 119754.jpg|Tower in [[Filoti]]
File:Απόλλωνας Νάξου.jpeg|Apollonas village
File:Naxos Keramoti.JPG|[[Keramoti, Naxos|Keramoti]] village
File:Castle (Kastro) in Apeiranthos, Naxos, 101911.jpg|Tower in [[Apeiranthos]]
File:Aerial view of Hawaii Beach on Naxos Island, Greece.jpg|Hawaii beach, Alykos, Naxos
</gallery>

== See also ==
* [[Communities of the Cyclades]]
* [[Emery (rock)]], mined on Naxos
* [[Kitron]]
* [[Moutsouna]]

== Citations ==
{{reflist}}

== General and cited references ==
{{refbegin}}
* Agelarakis, A., "The Naxos Island Archaic Period Necropolis: Archaeological-Anthropology Research Report", Hellenic Antiquities Authority, ''Archival Report'', 2005, Naxos.
* [[Ernst Curtius]], Naxos. ''Ein Vortrag im wissenschaftlichen Verein zu Berlin 1846 gehalten, neu herausgegeben von [[Martin Biastoch]]'', Göttingen, 2012.
{{refend}}

== External links ==
{{Commons}}
* {{Official website|http://www.naxos.gr/}} {{in lang|de|el|en}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20160715203738/http://www.movingpostcards.tv/naxos/ Moving Postcards Naxos]
* [http://www.e-naxos.eu/ Municipality of Naxos and Small Cyclades] {{in lang|el}}
* [https://www.instagram.com/naxoslife/ Photos from Naxos inclusive Tourist-Infos]

{{The Cyclades}}
{{Aegean Sea}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Naxos| ]]<!--please leave the empty space as standard-->
[[Category:Euboean colonies]]
[[Category:Greek city-states]]
[[Category:Islands of Greece]]
[[Category:Islands of the South Aegean]]
[[Category:Landforms of Naxos (regional unit)]]
[[Category:Members of the Delian League]]