Travels in Northern Greece,by William Martin Leake,1835,London

[kostas68]

Halkidiki,Ierissos,:

A poor <agoyatis> (muleteer) knew in 1835 about Aristotle's native town and below,some of the ethnicities that lived in Macedonia at that time (without the <Makedontsi> included).

Arethousa,today Thessaloniki prefecture:

Native Greeks in the Strymonic gulf knew about ancient Amphipolis (today prefecture of Serres) and the Greek town of Rendina.(Thessaloniki prefecture).

Greek village Neochori (today Amphipolis,near the ruins of ancient Amphipolis).

Although Macedonia wasn't part of the Greek state in 1835,W. Leake considered it as a Greek land (if this tells something to someones).

Large Greek village Kutzos,today Efkarpia in Serres prefecture.

Serres and its population in 1835:15.000 Turks,5.000 Greeks and Bulgarians and a few Jews.Actually the Bulgarians weren't more than 200-300 sojourners and it's a pitty that Leake doesn't give us exactly numbers.He mentions also Meleniko,a large Greek city 70 km northern of Serres,today in Bulgarian soil.


Two ancient inscriptions in Serres from Roman time,in Greek language:
<The youngsters erected this in honour of the archpriest and agonothetes (organizer of competitions) of the koinon (community) of the Macedonians,also archpriest and agonothetes of the city of Amphipolitans,first agonothetes of the city of Serreans.....>.Notice that all the mentioned names are either Greek,like Diogenes,Kassandros,Dioskourides,Poseidippos,Pelop s,Eisidoros,or Roman like Claudius,Cyrinas,Tiberius,Flavianus,Valerianus but in their Greek forms,with ending in -os and not in -us,as in standard Latin.It was a common habit in Roman time,not only by the Macedonians but by all the Greeks to adopt Roman names which they <Hellenized>.

In Nigrita and Zervochori (Serres prefecture),the peasants brought to Leake ancient Macedonian coins <from all the times of the Greek empire>.

Some Bulgarian villages in Lower Macedonia.A few of the Bulgarian women,according to Leak could speak Greek.(I suppose that after a century,all of them could speak fluently <Makedonski> ).

This below has been already posted by me in another thread,but never mind:
When Leake was in Thessaloniki,he visited the church of St. Dimitrius,where he mentions an inscription in honour of Loukas Spandounis,who died in 1481 and is described as <pride of the nation of Hellenes> and <scion of the Hellenes> :


The population of Thessaloniki:35.000 Turks,15.000 Greeks,13.000 Jews and the remainder Franks and Gypsies.No mention about <Makedontsi>.

Greek and Bulgarian villages but not <Makedontsi>.

Again only Greeks and Bulgarians mentioned around Pella.

Again the same:Greeks,Bulgarians,even the Turks of Karadjova were Christian apostates of Bulgarian origin.

Ohrid is connected to Bulgaria and Edessa (Vodhena) with Greek and Turks inhabitants.

Naousa,a Greek town.

Veroia,Greek town:

Greeks and Turks in Kozani,Servia and Siatista:

Velvendos,Greek village in Kozani prefecture:

Macedonia is considered as a <celebrated province of Greece>.

[chicagogeorge]

Excellent!

[kzk842]

Just great....
But once again skops cant see it...

[Andrew]

Bravo re Kosta !!! Eskises akomi mia fora !!!