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The Ionian Sea is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea is a sea or Ocean off the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Europe, on the south by Africa, and on the east by Asia....
, south of the Adriatic Sea
Adriatic Sea

The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges....
. It is bounded by southern Italy
Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
, including Calabria
Calabria

Calabria , is a Regions of Italy in Southern Italy Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian peninsula. It is bounded to the north by the region of Basilicata, to the south-west by the region of Sicily, to the west by the Tyrrhenian Sea, and to the east by the Ionian Sea....
, Sicily
Sicily

Sicily is an Autonomous regions with special statute of Italy. Of all the regions of Italy, Sicily covers the largest land area at 25,708 km? and currently has just over five million inhabitants....
 and the Salento
Salento

Salento is the south-eastern extremity of the Apulia region of Italy. It is a sub-peninsula of the main Italian peninsula, sometimes described as the "heel" of the Italian "boot"....
 peninsula, to the west, by southwestern Albania
Albania

Albania , officially the Republic of Albania , is a country in Balkans. It is bordered by Greece to the south-east, Montenegro to the north, Kosovo to the northeast, and the Republic of Macedonia to the east....
, including Saranda and Himara, and a large number of Greek islands, including Corfu
Corfu

Corfu is a Greece list of islands of Greece in the Ionian Sea. It is the second largest of the Ionian Islands, and lies off the coast of Sarand?, Albania, from which it is separated by straits varying in breadth from 3 to 23 km , including one near ancient Butrint and a longer one west of Thesprotia....
, Zante, Kephalonia, Ithaka, and Lefkas to the east.






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Ionian Sea Map


The Ionian Sea is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea is a sea or Ocean off the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Europe, on the south by Africa, and on the east by Asia....
, south of the Adriatic Sea
Adriatic Sea

The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges....
. It is bounded by southern Italy
Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
, including Calabria
Calabria

Calabria , is a Regions of Italy in Southern Italy Italy, south of Naples, located at the "toe" of the Italian peninsula. It is bounded to the north by the region of Basilicata, to the south-west by the region of Sicily, to the west by the Tyrrhenian Sea, and to the east by the Ionian Sea....
, Sicily
Sicily

Sicily is an Autonomous regions with special statute of Italy. Of all the regions of Italy, Sicily covers the largest land area at 25,708 km? and currently has just over five million inhabitants....
 and the Salento
Salento

Salento is the south-eastern extremity of the Apulia region of Italy. It is a sub-peninsula of the main Italian peninsula, sometimes described as the "heel" of the Italian "boot"....
 peninsula, to the west, by southwestern Albania
Albania

Albania , officially the Republic of Albania , is a country in Balkans. It is bordered by Greece to the south-east, Montenegro to the north, Kosovo to the northeast, and the Republic of Macedonia to the east....
, including Saranda and Himara, and a large number of Greek islands, including Corfu
Corfu

Corfu is a Greece list of islands of Greece in the Ionian Sea. It is the second largest of the Ionian Islands, and lies off the coast of Sarand?, Albania, from which it is separated by straits varying in breadth from 3 to 23 km , including one near ancient Butrint and a longer one west of Thesprotia....
, Zante, Kephalonia, Ithaka, and Lefkas to the east. The islands are collectively referred to as the Ionian Islands
Ionian Islands

The Ionian Islands are a island group in Greece. They are traditionally called "Eptanisa", i.e. "the Seven Islands" , but the group includes many smaller islands as well as the seven principal ones....
, and other islands including the Strophades, Sphagia
Sphagia

Sphagia is the modern name of the island known in ancient times as Sphacteria. It is located in the Peloponnese, Greece, west of Pylos.The island of Sphacteria is the site of the Battle of Sphacteria from the time of the Peloponnesian War ....
, Schiza
Schiza

Schiza is a Greece island off the southwestern coast of the Peloponnese. The 2001 census reported a population of two inhabitants. Administratively it is part of the Communities and Municipalities of Greece of Methoni, Messenia in the Messinia Prefecture....
, Sapientza
Sapientza

Sapientza is a Greece island off the southern coast of the Peloponnese. It is administratively part of the Communities and Municipalities of Greece of Methoni, Messenia in the Messinia Prefecture....
 and Kythira
Kythira

Kythira is an island of Greece, historically part of the Ionian Islands. It lies opposite the eastern tip of the Peloponnesos peninsula. It is administratively part of the Piraeus Prefecture although geographically distant from the prefecture's population center....
. The sea is one of the most seismic areas in the world.

There are ferry
Ferry

A ferry is a form of transport, usually a boat or ship, used to carry passengers and their vehicles across a body of water. Ferries are also used to transport freight and even railroad cars....
 routes between Patras
Patras

Patras is Greece's third largest urban centre and the capital of the prefecture of Achaea, located in northern Peloponnese, 215 kilometers west of Athens....
, Greece and Brindisi
Brindisi

Brindisi is an ancient city in the Italy region of Apulia, the capital of the province of Brindisi....
 and Ancona
Ancona

Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche, a region of central Italy, population 101,909 . Ancona is situated on the Adriatic Sea and is the center of the province of Ancona and the capital of the region....
, Italy, that cross over the east and north of the Ionian Sea, and shipping routes from Piraeus
Piraeus

Piraeus is a city in the periphery of Attica, Greece, and a municipality within Athens urban area, located 10 km southwest of its center....
 westward cross as well.

Origin and myth of the eponym of the Ionian Sea


The name Ionian comes from Greek . Its ultimate etymology is unknown. Ancient Greek writers, especially Aeschylus
Aeschylus

Aeschylus was an Ancient Greece playwright. He is often recognized as the father or the founder of tragedy, and is the earliest of the three Greek tragedy whose Play survive extant, the others being Sophocles and Euripides....
, linked it to the myth of Io
Io (mythology)

In Greek mythology, Io was a priestess of Hera in Argos who was seduced by Zeus, who changed her into a heifer to escape detection. Her mistress Hera set ever-watchful Argus Panoptes to guard her, but Hermes was sent to distract the guardian and slay him....
, who was believed to have swum through the sea. There were also narratives about other eponym
Eponym

An eponym is a person, whether real or fictitious, after whom a particular toponym, ethnonym, regnal year, discovery, or other item is named or thought to be named....
ic legendary figures; according to one version, Ionius was a son of Adrias (eponymic for the Adriatic Sea
Adriatic Sea

The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges....
), thought to have been an Illyria
Illyria

'Illyria' was in Classical antiquity a region in the western part of today's Balkan Peninsula, inhabited by tribes of Illyrians, an ancient people who spoke the Illyrian languages....
n king; according to another, Ionius was a son of Dyrrhachus, eponymic for the ancient Greek city of Dyrrhachium (modern Durrės
Durrės

File:Teuta, Illyrian Queen of Durres.jpgDurr?s is the second largest city of Albania. It is the most ancient and one of the most economically important cities of Albania....
 in Albania). When Dyrrhachus was attacked by his own brothers, Heracles
Heracles

In Greek mythology, Heracles or Herakles meaning "glory of Hera", or "Glorious through Hera" Alcides or Alcaeus " was a hero, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, foster son of Amphitryon and great-grandson of Perseus....
, who was passing through the country, came to his aid, but in the fight the hero killed his ally's son by mistake. The corpse was cast into the sea, which thereafter was called the Ionian Sea.

Places


In order from south to north in the west and then north to south in the east:
  • Taranto
    Taranto

    Taranto is a coastal city in Puglia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto and is an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base....
    , port N
  • Syracuse, port, W
  • Catania
    Catania

    Catania is an Italy city on the east coast of Sicily facing the Ionian Sea, between Messina and Syracuse, Sicily. It is the capital of the Province of Catania, and with 298,957 inhabitants it is the second-largest city on the island....
    , port, W
  • Saranda, port and a beach, NE
  • Parga
    Parga

    Parga , is a town and a municipality located in the northwestern part of Preveza in northwestern Greece being surrounded entirely by the prefecture of Thesprotia and is the only municipality in Greece that is surrounded by another prefecture....
    , small port
  • Preveza
    Preveza

    Preveza is a town in northwestern Greece, located at the mouth of the Ambracian Gulf. It is the capital of Preveza Prefecture, which is part of the periphery of Epirus ....
    ,port, E
  • Ancient Paleros
    Ancient Paleros

    Ancient Paleros was an city of ancient Greece, situated in the northwest part of what is now the region of Epirus . The city, ruinous for centuries, is thought to have existed during the Helladic period period, since parts of the city walls appear to date back to 2000 B.C....
  • Astakos
    Astakos

    Astakos , is a community and a municipality located on the eastern shore of the Ionian Sea but small hills inhibit the view of the place and it does not overlook most of the islands....
  • Fiskardo
    Fiskardo

    File:Fiskardo, Kefalonia.jpgFiskardo , lately, more commonly Fiscardo, is a village located about 54 km N of Argostoli and a district of the city of Erisos....
    , small port
  • Keri
    Keri, Greece

    Keri , older forms: -o and -on, also with an i accented is a village in the southern part of the island of Zakynthos. Its 2001 population was 487 for the village and 680 for the municipal district....
    , no port
  • Methoni
    Methoni, Messenia

    Methoni , alternative form: Mothoni from Mothona, a mythical rock is a town on the southwestern coast of the prefecture of Messinia, Greece....
    , small port and a beach
  • Ionian Islands
    Ionian Islands

    The Ionian Islands are a island group in Greece. They are traditionally called "Eptanisa", i.e. "the Seven Islands" , but the group includes many smaller islands as well as the seven principal ones....


Gulfs and straits


  • Strait of Messina
    Strait of Messina

    The Strait of Messina is the narrow section of water between the eastern tip of Sicily and the southern tip of Calabria in the south of Italy....
    , W
  • Gulf of Catania
    Gulf of Catania

    The Gulf of Catania is an inlet of the Ionian Sea on the eastern coast of the Italy island of Sicily.Some twenty miles long and some five miles wide, the gulf lies between Cape Campolato to the south and Cape Molini to the north....
    , W
  • Gulf of Taranto
    Gulf of Taranto

    The Gulf of Taranto is a gulf of the Ionian Sea, in southern Italy.The Gulf of Taranto is almost square, 140 km long and wide, and is delimited by the capes Santa Maria di Leuca and Colonna ....
    , NW
  • Ambracian Gulf
    Ambracian Gulf

    The Ambracian Gulf, also known as the Gulf of Arta or the Gulf of Actium, and in some official documents as the Amvrakikos Gulf , is a Headlands and bays of the Ionian Sea in northwestern Greece....
    , E
  • Gulf of Patras
    Gulf of Patras

    The Gulf of Patras is a branch of the Ionian Sea. On the east, it is closed by the Gulf of Corinth between capes Cape Rio and Antirrio, near the Rio-Antirio bridge....
    , connecting the Gulf of Corinth
    Gulf of Corinth

    The Gulf of Corinth or the Corinthian Gulf is a deep inlet of the Ionian Sea separating the Peloponnese from western mainland Greece. It is bounded in the east by the Isthmus of Corinth which includes the shipping route of the Corinth Canal, and in the west by the Strait of Rion, which separates the Gulf of Corinth from the oute...
    , ESE
  • Cyparissian Gulf, SE
  • Messenian Gulf
    Messenian Gulf

    The Messenian Gulf is a sea that is part of the Ionian Sea. The gulf covers the Messenia or Messinia and the southwestern part of Laconia prefectures....
    , SE
  • Laconian Gulf, ESE


Tributaries

In order from north to south
  • Pinios River (Peloponnese)
  • Ambracian Gulf
    Ambracian Gulf

    The Ambracian Gulf, also known as the Gulf of Arta or the Gulf of Actium, and in some official documents as the Amvrakikos Gulf , is a Headlands and bays of the Ionian Sea in northwestern Greece....
    • Acherontas River
  • Gulf of Patras/Strait of Rio-Antirrio Watershed
    • Acheloos
      Acheloos

      Acheloos may refer to:*Acheloos River, in Greece*Achelous, a river deity in Greek mythology*Acheloos , a municipality in the Karditsa prefecture, Greece...
       River
    • Glaucos/Glavkos River - Panachaicus mountains to south of Patras
    • Louros River, north
  • Cyparissian Gulf
    • Alfeios River
      Alfeios River

      Alfei?s is a river in Peloponnese, Greece. Its source is near Megalopolis, Greece in the prefecture Arcadia. It flows along Olympia, Greece and empties into the Ionian Sea in the prefecture of Ilia, near Pyrgos ....
      • Kladeos
        Kladeos

        Kladeos or Latin: Cladeus was a river god in Greek mythology, one of the sons of Oceanus and Tethys . It is a river that flows from the north, through Olympia, Greece and empties into the Alfeios River....
         or Cladeus River
      • Erymanthus River
        • Ladon River
          Ladon River

          The river Ladon features in Greek mythology. It rises in Arcadia, west of Tripoli, Greece. It is a tributary to the river Alfeios River, which empties into the Ionian Sea....
        • Ladon Lake
          Ladon Lake

          The Ladon Lake or the Ladon Reservoir is an artificial lake in the upper part of Ladon River in the northwestern part of the Arcadia prefecture in Greece, it supplies water to the prefecture and not electricity and prevents flooding from the low lying areas especially with the Alfeios valley....
    • Loussios
      Loussios

      The Lousios is a river and a gorge in western Arcadia that stretches from Karytaina north to Dimitsana in Greece. The river begins near Lykochori, Arcadia and flows into the Lousios Gorge....
       River
    • Larissos River - Nea Manolada
      Nea Manolada

      Nea Manolada is a community located about 500 m north of Greece Interstate 9/E55 from the community hall and a square on the old highway. It is in the municipality of Vouprasia and the prefecture of Ilia....
    • Neda
      Neda

      Neda or NEDA may refer to:* Neda , a municipality in Galicia, Spain* Neda River, a river in Greece* Neda, a village in and the seat of the municipality of Eira, Messenia in Greece...
       River — Elia-Messenia boundary/border