Petra, Lesbos

The municipality

Communities and Municipalities of Greece

The municipalities and communities of Greece are one of several levels of government within the organizational structure of that country. Thirteen regions called peripheries form the largest unit of government beneath the State. Within these peripheries are 54 second-level areas called prefectures...

 of Petra (Greek

Greek language

Greek , an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, is the language of the Greeks. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. In its ancient form, it is the language of classical...

: Πέτρα meaning rock

Rock (geology)

In geology, rock is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...

) is located at the northwest of Lesvos and comprises the villages Petra, Skoutaros, Stypsi, Lafionas, Ypsilometopo and the settlements Petri and Anaxos. The region combines exceptional natural beauties: olive groves and forests with pines, oak-trees, cypress-trees as well as fruit-bearing trees, traditional stone built mountain villages with running waters and rich vegetation, but also seaside modern summer holiday settlements with sandy beaches and crystal waters.

The municipality

Communities and Municipalities of Greece

The municipalities and communities of Greece are one of several levels of government within the organizational structure of that country. Thirteen regions called peripheries form the largest unit of government beneath the State. Within these peripheries are 54 second-level areas called prefectures...

 of Petra (Greek

Greek language

Greek , an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, is the language of the Greeks. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. In its ancient form, it is the language of classical...

: Πέτρα meaning rock

Rock (geology)

In geology, rock is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...

) is located at the northwest of Lesvos and comprises the villages Petra, Skoutaros, Stypsi, Lafionas, Ypsilometopo and the settlements Petri and Anaxos. The region combines exceptional natural beauties: olive groves and forests with pines, oak-trees, cypress-trees as well as fruit-bearing trees, traditional stone built mountain villages with running waters and rich vegetation, but also seaside modern summer holiday settlements with sandy beaches and crystal waters. Petra Lesvos is beginning to sprawl behind its broad, sandy beach and seafront square with a core of old stone houses, many with Levantine-style balconies overhanging the streets. Petra takes its name from the giant monolith located some distance inland and capped by the eighteenth-century church of Panagia Glykofiloussa, reached via 114 rock-hewn steps on the northeast side. The town of Mithymna

Mithymna

Mithymna , ancient form Methymna, is the second most important town on Lesbos. Mithymna is also the seat of the municipality as well as the province. It is also known by the name Molyvos or Molivos used under the Ottoman Empire . Mithymna is located NE of Eressos, N of Plomari and NW of...

 is approx. 6 km to the north. The municipality has a land area of 72.479 km² and a population of 3,749 at the 2001 census. Its largest towns are Pétra, the municipal seat (pop. 1.246), Stýpsi (1,024), and Skoutáros (967).

Historical population

Year	Population	Change	Municipal population	Change
1981	994	-	-	-
1991	915	-79/6.59%	3,603	-

External links

• Mapquest - Petra, street map not yet available
  • Communities of the Lesbos prefecture