Pelendri

La ciudad de Pelendri, información de interés

Población: 1237 habitantes
There are villages in Cyprus -even though very few -that, when first being acquainted with them, you persistently seek to learn and be informed about how they managed to survive upon the rough and arid landscape they stand on, as well as how they managed to increase their populations to levels that surpass the economic potentials of the village.
One such village is Pelendri, which can be found in the western end of Pitsylia, in the east of the "Karvouna - Saitta" valley, surrounded by hills at an altitude of 880 meters. It stands at a distance of about 40 kilometres from Limassol while in the north-west it connects with the village Kato Amiantos, in the east with Potamitissa and Agros, and in the west with Trimiklini.

For many years, a large number of Pelendri's inhabitants was employed in the nearby mine of Amiantos. The employment offered by the mine was one of the main reasons for the development of the village.

The village has gone through large fluctuations of its population. In 1881 the inhabitants numbered 444, which increased to 798 in 1921, and to 1504 in 1946. The population increased to 2094 in 1960 and to 2253 in 1973. Then on then village -like many other villages -was struck by the urban pull and the inhabitants were reduced to 2218 in 1976 and to 1739 in 1982. In the 2001 census the inhabitants numbered 1350.

Pelendri existed as a settlement since the Mediaeval times. De Masse Latri mentions it as Pelendres or Pelondres that in 1353 was a feud of John de Lusignan, who was a member of the royal family of Cyprus. The mediaeval annalist Georgios Voustronios mentions the village twice in his chronicle. In one instance he reports that around 1461 a wealthy persons -most probably a merchant -under the name Satenis lived in the settlement. In the second instance he mentions two farms/ranches of Pelendri that belonged to Ridgo di Marino and that were confiscated in 1474 by Catherine Cornaro. These two ranches, which are the Kardama and the Filagra, were dissolved during the Turkish domination era. The Filagra however was re-established under the same name in the middle of the 20th century with very few houses and entertainment centres for the tourists along the main road of Karvounas - Saittas. In old maps the Filagra is found marked as Filoga.
According to some recounts it is said that -apart from these two settlements -there were further 14 small villages, whose inhabitants were compelled to abandon and join the inhabitants of Pelendri so as to feel more safe. The following villages are mentioned as such: Poulos, in which important archaeological articles from the era of Alexander the Great were found, Fournia, in which there are traces of a very old copper-pyrites (fool's gold) mine, Gerames, which was totally destroyed after a landslide, Rontia, Konnara, Matokambos, Chalazin, Argirou, Daesis, Agios Giannes Potamoulion, Pontikia, and Kountourides.

There are several versions regarding the origin of the village's name:

A. The name Pelendri and Pelendria, which was used in older times, came from a plant that grew in abundance in the region and was named Felandrio (Oenanthe, of the Umbelliferae genus). Theofrastos mentions that out of the leafs of this plant, which were very odorous, a fragrant/unction was made.
B. In the area a type of mushroom grows in abundance, which the inhabitants call Pelendro. It is a poisonous mushroom with a bitter and pungent taste and with its appearance as a distinctive mark since it is much larger than the known types of mushrooms. N. Clerides however reports that the mushroom took its name from the village.
C. In a French magazine it is mentioned that the village took its name from an aromatic herb that grew in the village and that it is named Pedendri and so it was named Pelendri.
D. Another interpretation supports that the village took its name from the surname of a medieval family that onetime possessed it as a feud (before 1353). Leontios Machairas mentions a Pelentri family.
E. Finally, according to more recent version, Pelendri used to be called Polydendri because there were many trees in the region (dendro=tree). Later the name was changed to Pelendri for short.



Pelendri receives an average annual rainfall of about 750 millimetres; fruit-trees (apple, pear, peach, and plum trees), olive, almond, and walnut trees, winemaking grapevine varieties, as well as vegetables (potatoes, fresh beans, tomatoes, etc.) are cultivated in the area. The village is included in the plan for a uniform agrarian development for Pitsylia and has benefited by the construction of the earthen reservoir for the irrigation of land, by the creation of a sanitary centre, by the improvement of the rural streets, and by the re-allotment of land project that was done in the region. Part of the state forests of Troodos and of Moni, as well as the whole of the small state forest Kakogyros, are within the administrative limits of the village.

Pelendri is on of the most picturesque villages of Cyprus and it preserves -to a quite large degree -elements of traditional folkloric architecture. Several modern buildings have been constructed in the village, however, in the centre of the original nucleus many traditional houses are still preserved, built with local rock gabbrou. The wooden lintels, the balks, the wooden doors, and the yards of the houses, all of the have their own unique history and beauty.

Pelendri, as a feud and an administrative centre during the medieval years, has preserved a rich cultural heritage, mainly the monuments of Byzantine art. From a statistical point of view, Pelendri ranks first in the entire district of Limassol in volume of Byzantine heritage and especially in the percentage of icons. Also, it is known for its unique churches and chapels.

The church of the Holy Cross with frescos from 1178 is a part of the global cultural heritage of UNESCO, the church of Panagia Catholiki with its 16th century icons was placed under the protection of the Department of Antiquities, the church of Ioannis Lambadistis leaves an impression with its large dome that makes it stand out from a large distance, and the church of Archangel Michael.

NATURE TRAIL
THE MONI-PHYLAGRA PATH
The Moni-Phylagra Path was designed and constructed by the Forest Department in 2003-2004 with the cooperation of the Community of Pelendri and the Cypriot Tourist Organisation sponsorship. The contribution of the Pelendri friends and emigrants association was of major importance.

The Path
The path is linear and is 3km long. One of its ends is near the Trimiklini-Pelendri highway, next to the bakery. A small part of the route is uphill while the rest is downhill. The other end is located near the Kato Amiantos-Phylagra highway. There are signs indicating the path along the Kato Amiantos-Saittas and Trimiklini-Pelendri highways.
The largest part of the path, almost 2 km, is located in private land. The rest is within the premises of public land, and to be more specific, it is part of the Moni Forest. The altitude in Pelendri reaches 930m and 1000m and in Phylagra 750m.
The path is old and it was used by the people of Pelendri to reach the land they cultivated, mostly in the %u201CTzierami%u201D and %u201CPhylagra%u201D areas, which were old properties since the Venetians ruled the island.

The surrounding environment
The plantation surrounding the path is unvarying and mostly consist of pine trees (Pinus brutia) with the plant %u201Cksistarka%u201D (Cistus creticus & Cistus salviifolius). In some parts nearer Pgylagra, there are some bushes of indifegous %u201Clatzia%u201D (Quercusalnifol), while some other peculiar plants are %u201Cpernia%u201D (Quercus coccifera), %u201Cagriotremithia%u201D (Pistacia terebinthus), %u201Csteratzia%u201D (Styrax officinalis), %u201Cschinia%u201D (Pistacia lentiscus), which is found nearer Pelendri, %u201Cadrouklia%u201D (Arbutus andrachne), olive trees (Olea europaea), %u201Cspatzia%u201D (Salvia fruticosa), %u201Ckitrinomosfilia%u201D (Crataegus azarolus), %u201Cpiphanis%u201D (Astragalus lusitanicus), the indigenous %u201Codontitis%u201D (Odontites cypria) and %u201Ctefkrion%u201D (Teucrium divaricatum), %u201Crashiin%u201D (Calycotome villosa) and others. Towards Kourri river, the riparian plantation consists of planes (Platanus orientalis), %u201Cskledro%u201D (Alnus orientalis), oleander (Nerium oleander), calamus (Arundo donax) and many others.
It is worth mentioning that the private land surrounding the path used to be cultivated. It is now planted with silvan plantation.
The stratum found along the path consists of gabbro, namely plutonic beds of rock that belong to the complex of Troodos. The average annual rainfall reaches 800mm.

Interesting Points
The route offers the visitor the chance to come close to nature, experience a variety of silvan microcosms and enjoy the surrounding serenity while walking.
It also offers an extraordinary view of the villages Agios Ioannis and Agios Theodoros, reaching the small gulf of Limassol (seen from Pelendri) and the southern slopes of Mount Troodos, especially the area of Mesa Potamos (seen from Phylagra).

The visitor can also pay a visit at the local winery, which is located 250m away, by following the old path.


Fauna
The path is located in an area, which is extremely rich in flora and fauna. The peculiar kinds of plantation, the morphology of the ground and the high altitude of the area are characteristics that add to the fauna of the area, which consists of:

Mammals
Hare (Lepus europaeus cyprius)
Fox (Vulpes vulpes indutus)
Rat (Rattus rattus)
Hedgehog (Hemiechinus auritus dorotheae)

Birds
Aetogerakina (Buteo rufinus)
Spiyaetos (Hieraaetus fasciatus)
Diplosaino (Accipiter gentiles)
%u039Alokkaros (Corvus corax)
Partridge (Alectoris chukar)
Stockdove (Columba palumbus)
%u03A4zikla (%u03A4urdus philomelos) (Turdus Merula)
Mauropoulos (%u03A4urdus merula)
Skalifourta (Oenanthe cypriaca)
%u03A4ryprashis(Sylvia melanothorax)
%u039Aarakaksa (Pica pica)
%u039Aoronos (Corvus corone)
Robin (Erithacus rubecula)
Reptiles
Phina (Macrovipera lebetina)
Saitta (Malpolon monspessulanus)
Black snake (Coluber jugularis)
%u039Aourkoutas (Laudakia stellio cypriaca)
Chameleon (Chamaeleo chamaeleon recticrista)

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