Koumeika village

Fast facts

Village altitude  160 m
Village land area  0,08 km²
Region averege altitude 149 m, semi-mountainous
Region land area 8,72 km²
Population  2011: 315, 2001: 402, 1981: 447,  1961: 623,  1928: 974, 1886: 999, 1869: 1.095 inhabitants.
Area per person  241 m² per person.
Economy relies mainly on agriculture (olives trees, famous onions, vegetables). In earlier days, they also cultivated anise and carobs for animal feed. By the middle of the 20th century, about 20% of the male population were sailors.

Description

Koumeika village  (Greek: Κουμαίικα) is located to the south of the island, at the southwestern foothills of “Ambelos” mountain (or Karvounis).

The distances are: 9,5 km from Marathokampos village, 14 Km from Karlovasi town, 27 Km from Pythagorio town and 40,5 Km from Samos town.

Administratively consists the local communities of Koumeika, which belongs to Marathokampos municipal unit, of West Samos Municipality with Karlovasi capital.

It’s a very picturesque village with beautiful architecture and a large square under the shade of the centuries-old plane tree, planted by the monk Ioannis Pantazakis in 1882.   Τhe same year (ruler Konstantinos Adosidis) where the imposing public fountain was built, with the three taps, which since 1998 has been designated as a historical monument (2784/66 / 24-2-1998).

Koumeika village is not far from the sea (2,4 km distance), but it is hidden behind a hill so it is not visible by the sea. This is a typical precaution of the early settlers who did not want their houses to be visible by the pirates at sea.

The village preserves elements of the local traditional architecture and since 2002, has been characterized by the Greek goverment, as settlement of special natural beauty (4754 / 30-4-2002), with many restrictions on the houses construction and repair.

History & name

According to the authors, Ep. Stamatiadis in Samiaka (1886), Em. Kritikidis in the Topography of Samos (1869) and Victor Guérin in the Description of Samos (1856), the first inhabitants of the village were settlers from Kymi of Evia, whence the name of the village, since Kymi was formerly called “Koumi “.

Nikolaos Dimitriou, in his book “Folklore of Samos” (1983-1997), claims that the first inhabitant of the village was from the neighboring village of Spatharei, and was called “Koumas”, whence the name of the village.

The prevailing opinion is that the name of the village comes from the first settler, since the name “Koumas” exists in Spatharei village, and in addition the movements of populations were common, during the 17th – 18th c. Besides, the toponyms (that derived from surname) Georgaleika, Mpruzeika, Zambeteika and Stamouleika, in the wider area of the village prove the existence of other family settlements, which probably did not prevail and were assimilated by Koumeika village.

The village was first inhabited at the beginning of the 18th c. approximately (maybe earlier), concluding from the population mobility in the wider area, according to the history of neighboring villages Skoureika, Neochori and Spatharei. In addition, the church of the Assumption of the Virgin, to the northwest of the village, was built in 1754, proving that the area had already been inhabited in the middle of the 18th century.

The three-aisled domed royal, orthodox parish church of Agios Nikolaos (celebrating December 6), was founded in 1841, completed in 1844, while the iconostasis was built in 1868. It has a rich collection of sacred utensils and icons, most importantly the icon of Agios Nikolaos created in 1756, the three gospels since 1748, 1769 and 1776, the icons of the iconostasis since 1841 and typical of Saint Sava of 1771.

Settlements

Two settlements belong to Koumeika,
> Velanidia settlement, 4 Km west south from Koumeika with 10 inhabitants
> and “Ormos Koumeikon” (= bay of Koumeika) also known as Balos, 2.4 Km distance south from Koumeika, with 45 inhabitants.
During the 18th to 19th c. Balos was an important trade hub of Koumeika village and the neighboring villages of Skoureika and Neochori. Many agricultural products of the villages (oil, onions, anise, carobs etc.), were transported through Koumeika bay, to the islands, mainly in the southeastern Aegean. To serve the trade, there were some warehouses, but there was no port and in addition, did not offer any protection from bad weather, which made difficult for boats to be loaded and unloaded, so they were often served by the nearby and organized port of Ormos Marathokampou.
Today it is a small tourist resort with several small family business, apartments to let and restaurants, which extends in front of the homonymous beach, 800m length.

Tips

• Take a tour of the village streets and enjoy the beautiful architecture of the village.
• Following the route to the east, after 4.5 Km you will reach the village of Skoureika.
• Visit the folklore museum of Koumeika “D. Papaioannou”
• Following the route to the south, after 2.5 Km you will reach Ormos Koumeikon or Balos, for swimming or eating.

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