Filiates

Filiates (Φιλιάτες, Filat or Filati )) is a town and a municipality in Thesprotia, Greece. It is located in the northernmost part of the prefecture, bordering western Ioannina Prefecture and southern Albania. It has a land area of 495.727 km² and a population of 8,288 (2001 census). Its village population was 2,246 and the municipal district population was 2,344.  It is the 11th-largest municipality in area in Greece, and the largest in Thesprotia, covering almost one-third of the prefecture. Its municipal seat is the town of Filiátes (pop. 2,246), one of the biggest towns in the area. The largest other towns or villages in the municipality are Keramítsa (pop. 309), Palaiochóri (291), Vrysélla (277), Leptokaryá (276), Trikóryfon (245), Ampeló (222), Kerasochóri (211), and Kokkiniá (205). The municipality has a total of 42 municipal districts, the most of any municipality in Greece. (The next largest two, with 31 each, are Megalópoli in Arcadia, and Kalavryta in Achaea.)

Ancient History
Cestrine (or Kestrine; modern-day Filiates) is a district of Epirus, separated from Thesprotia by the River Thyamis. In the past, the city was also known as Cammania, Cestria, Filiates, Ilion, Epirus, Troy, Epirus and Troia, Epirus. According to Pausanias (Description of Greece), Cestrine took its name from Cestrinus, the son of Helenus, having previously borne the appellation of Cammania.

Location
Filiates is located southwest of Konitsa, west-southest of Kozani and Thessaloniki, west of Ioannina, northwest of Athens, north of Preveza and east of Igoumenitsa.

Filiates is connected with the GR-6 (Larissa - Metsovo - Ioannina - Igoumenitsa) and is now the old road. It has a few interchanges with the Egnatia Odos (Alexandroupoli - Thessaloniki - Igoumenisa) and several had just opened. It is connected with the GR-19 that goes down to Paramythia and Preveza.

Modern History
The town was burned by Cham Albanian bands (October 28-November 14 1940) during the Greek-Italian War. It was home to a Cham Albanian community, before 1944, when they fled due to collaboration with Nazi forces.

Municipal districts

 * Achladia
 * Aetos
 * Agios Nikolaos
 * Agioi Pantes (Agioi Pantes, Palaiochori)
 * Ampelonas
 * Anavryto
 * Charavgi (Charavgi, Agia Varvara)
 * Faneromeni
 * Filiates (Filiates, Elaia)
 * Foiniki
 * Gardiki (Gardiki, Melissa, Perama)
 * Giromeri
 * Gola (Gola, Rodostiva)
 * Kallithea
 * Kato Xechoro (Kato Xechoro, Vrysoula, Potamia, Sitaina, Skolakatika)
 * Keramitsa
 * Kerasochori (Kerasochori, Mavroneri)
 * Kefalochori (Kefalochori, Kossyvatika)
 * Kokkinia (Kokkinia, Tsatsoulaiika)
 * Kokkinolithari (Kokkinolithari, Nerochori)
 * Kouremadi
 * Kryoneri
 * Kyparisso (Kyparisso, Agios Arsenios)
 * Leptokarya (Leptokarya, Agia Marina)
 * Lia
 * Lista
 * Malouni (Malouni, Achouria Malouniou, Velentzina Malouniou)
 * Milea
 * Palaiokklisi (Ano Palaiokklisi, Kato Palaiokklisi)
 * Palaiochori (Palaiochori, Donatos)
 * Palampas
 * Pigadoulia
 * Plaisio (Plaisio, Kotsika)
 * Platanos
 * Raveni
 * Rizo (Rizo, Chlomos)
 * Sideri
 * Trikoryfo (Trikoryfo, Fragma Kalama)
 * Tsamantas (Tsamantas, Kamitsani)
 * Xechoro (Xechoro, Dafni)

Geography
Its geography consists of almost entirely mountainous with several valleys. The Mourgkana mountains lie to the north with the Albanian border. Farmlands are in the valleys and forests and grasslands also dominates the areas and covers about 60 to 70%.

Climate
Its climate is one of the wettest in the prefecture, when the western coastline receives more sunshine, the area receives rain and snow during the winter months.

Other
Filiates has schools, a few lyceums (middle school) a gymnasium (secondary school), churches, banks, shops and a square (plateia). Its nearest university is east in Ioannina, the University of Ioannina.