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Nisyros history

The history of Nisyros is closely linked with the volcanic eruptions that occurred in the ancient past. The first known inhabitants of the island were Karrians but recent evidence has found relics left by people from Kos, Thessaly and Rhodes during the ancient times of Greek History. According to the Greek Mythology, Nisyros was was born by a stone that Poseidon throw to the Giant Polyvoti during the fight of Gods against the Giants. The rock was a piece from the island of Kos and that rock created Nisyros. During the Persian wars Nisyros together with the islands of Kos and Kalymnos where under the rule of the small kingdom of Halicarnassus and her queen Artemissia one of the alliances of Xerxes in his campaign against Greece.

The history of Nissyros and its growth, because of its proximity, was linked to that of Rhodes. In modern times, the development of Nissyros is due to the investments made by ex-patriots who emigrated after the Second World War. Up until 1948 when the island unified with Greece, like all of the Dodecanese, Nisyros was an Italian colony.