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{{Infobox Greek Dimos
  |name = Zacharo
  |name_local = Ζαχάρω 
|type = municipality
  |image_map = 2011 Dimos Zacharos.png
  |image_skyline = Panoramic Ai Lias.jpg
|periph = [[West Greece]]
|periphunit         =  [[Elis (regional unit)|Elis]]
|pop_municipality   = 8654
|area_municipality  = 276.2
|pop_municunit   = 7404
|area_municunit   = 187.0
|pop_community   = 3172
  |population_as_of = 2021
  |elevation = 33
  |coordinates        = {{coord|37|29|N|21|39|E|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
  |postal_code = 270 54
  |area_code = 26250
  |licence = ΗΑ
  |website = {{url|https://www.zacharo.gr/}}
 |city_flag          = 
 |city_seal          = 
 |districts          = 
 |mayor = Konstantinos Mitropoulos<ref name=mayor>[https://ekloges.ypes.gr/current/d/home/en/municipalities/9138/ Municipality of Zacharo, Municipal elections – October 2023] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240508134633/https://ekloges.ypes.gr/current/d/home/en/municipalities/9138/ |date=2024-05-08 }}, Ministry of Interior</ref>
 |party              = 
 |since              = 2023
 |elevation_min      = 0
 |elevation_max      = 1345
}}
'''Zacharo''' ({{langx|el|Ζαχάρω}}) is a town and municipality in western [[Peloponnese]], [[Greece]]. Administratively, it belongs to the regional unit of [[Elis (regional unit)|Elis]] in [[West Greece]]. Zacharo is situated on the coast of the [[Gulf of Kyparissia]], a part of the [[Ionian Sea]]. The mountain [[Lapithas]] is to the north, and the [[Minthi (mountain)|Minthi]] is to the east. Northwest of the town, between mount Lapithas and the sea, is the [[Kaiafas Lake]]. Zacharo is 18&nbsp;km south of [[Olympia, Greece|Olympia]], 28&nbsp;km southeast of [[Pyrgos, Elis|Pyrgos]], 65&nbsp;km northwest of [[Kalamata]] and 65&nbsp;km west of [[Tripoli, Greece|Tripoli]]. The town is crossed by the [[Greek National Road 9]]/[[European route E55|E55]], that links [[Patras]] with Kalamata.

==Municipality==
The municipality Zacharo was formed at the 2011 local government reform by the merger of the following 2 former municipalities, that became municipal units:<ref name=Kallikratis>{{Cite web|url=http://www.et.gr/idocs-nph/search/pdfViewerForm.html?args=5C7QrtC22wGYK2xFpSwMnXdtvSoClrL81-32jgAMSfbnMRVjyfnPUeJInJ48_97uHrMts-zFzeyCiBSQOpYnT00MHhcXFRTsb2fGphpq4MKX2ZkaHobySNnvZCNHXvYVvlf80XevW0Q.|title=ΦΕΚ B 1292/2010, Kallikratis reform municipalities|language=el|publisher=[[Government Gazette (Greece)|Government Gazette]]}}</ref>
*[[Figaleia]]
*Zacharo

The municipality has an area of 276.222&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>, the municipal unit 187.047&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>.<ref name=stat01>{{cite web|url=http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00098%20.pdf|publisher=National Statistical Service of Greece|title=Population & housing census 2001 (incl. area and average elevation)|language=el}}</ref>

===Subdivisions===
The municipal unit of Zacharo is divided into the following communities:<ref name=Kallikratis/>
*'''Zacharo'''
*[[Agios Ilias, Zacharo|Agios Ilias]]
*[[Anilio, Elis|Anilio]]
*[[Arini, Greece|Arini]]
*[[Artemida, Elis|Artemida]]
*[[Chrysochori, Elis|Chrysochori]]
*[[Giannitsochori]]
*[[Kakovatos]]
*[[Kalidona]]
*[[Lepreo]]
*[[Makistos]]
*[[Milea, Elis|Milea]]
*[[Minthi]]
*[[Neochori, Zacharo|Neochori]]
*[[Prasidaki]]
*[[Rodina, Elis|Rodina]]
*[[Smerna]]
*[[Schinoi]]
*[[Taxiarches, Elis|Taxiarches]]
*[[Xirochori, Elis|Xirochori]]

==Zacharo town==
[[File:2010_Dimos_Zacharos.svg|thumb|220px|Zacharo municipality map.]]
[[Image:oldneighboorhoodzach.jpg|thumb|220px|An old street of Zacharo.]]
[[File:Giannitsoxori30Jun13 P Latsoudis (96).jpg|thumb|The beach of Zacharo is one of the longest in Greece.]]

Zacharo has a school, a kindergarten, a lyceum, a gymnasium, churches, a post office, a police station, a [[court]], a health center, banks and a railway station. Athletic facilities include a football stadium, a basketball court and a community gym which is open to the public free of charge. The town is also the home of a football team, ''Olympiakos Zacharos'', established in 1928. In the town center, there is a square with [[Platanus]] trees. The [[Patron saint]] of Zacharo is [[Saint Spyridon]], and the central church of the city bears his name. The Saint's [[feast day]] is on December 12 and it is a holiday for the town.

==Population==

{| class=wikitable
! Year !! Town !! Municipal unit !! Municipality 
|-
| 1981 || 2,812 || - || - 
|-
| 1991 || 4,318 || 11,041 || -  
|-
| 2001 || 6,739 || 12,910 || - 
|-
| 2011 || 3,145 || 7,582 || 8,953 
|-
| 2021 || 3,172 || 7,404 || 8,654
|}

==History==
The history of Zacharo begins in the middle of the 19th century. At the time of the [[Greek War of Independence]], the area of Zacharo was sparsely populated. However, in the decades that followed, populations from the villages of the surrounding mountains started to migrate to the area. The town allegedly took its name from an [[Public house#Inns|inn]], that belonged to a woman named Zacharoula. In 1881 Zacharo was officially proclaimed a community. In late August 2007, [[2007 Greek forest fires|forest fires]] caused over 40 deaths, as well as extensive property damage. Zacharo was one of the worst-hit areas in Greece.

==Economy==

The economy of Zacharo relies on tourism as well as on agriculture. The pleasant [[Mediterranean climate]], long [[Zacharo beach]], the [[Kaiafas Lake]], the [[Thermal Springs of Kaiafas]] and the adjacent [[Lapithas]] mountain draw many tourists, especially in summer. The agricultural sector is also a major source of income for the local economy. It is based on the cultivation of [[olive trees]], for the production of [[olive oil]]. The variety of olive tree which prevails in the area is the [[Koroneiki]], which is one of the most distinguished in Greece. The olive oil produced is of extra-virgin quality and is mostly exported to the international market. The Zacharo tomato is famed for its sweetness. When ripe, it is loaded with sugars (mainly [[fructose]] and [[inulin]]) to the extent that the sugar crystals are visible to the naked eye. Cultivation of the Zacharo tomato is all but extinct, as the cultivar does not grow well in [[greenhouse]]s, has a short season, and its extreme fleshiness makes the fruit heavy and liable to squeezing and decay when packed.

==People==
*[[Doxapatres Boutsaras]], 13th century Byzantine ruler

== Gallery ==
<gallery>
Image:View lapithas.JPG|View of Zacharo from [[Lapithas]] mountain.
File:Monument, Zacharo.jpg|A monument.
Image:Zacharothinalos2.jpg|Zacharo's beach. 
Image:Oldneighboorhoodzach2.jpg|View of the old town.
Image:Zacharoschool1.jpg|Zacharo's school.
File:KaiafasLake1.jpg|Kaiafas lake.
Image:Zacharo 02.jpg|View of the Orthodox church of the city.
Image:Stparask.jpg|St.Paraskevi's chapel.
</gallery>

==See also==

*[[List of settlements in Elis]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://www.zacharo.gr/ Municipality of Zacharo] {{in lang|el}}
*[http://www.zacharo.com Zacharo.com]

{{Geographic location
| Centre    = Zacharo
| North      = [[Skillounta]]
| Northeast = 
| East       = [[Alifeira]]
| Southeast = [[Figaleia]]
| South     = [[Avlonas, Messenia|Avlonas]]
| Southwest = ''Ionian Sea''
| West      = ''[[Ionian Sea]]''
| Northwest = 
| image     = 
}}

{{Zacharo}}
{{Kallikratis-West Greece}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Zacharo| ]]
[[Category:Populated places in Elis]]
[[Category:Municipalities of Western Greece]]