The Village of Tyros in Arcadia
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The area around Tyros has been inhabited since the Neolithic period and this was one of the first parts of the Peloponnese to be settled.

Evidence has been found locally of ancient settlements. The remains of a fortified settlement can be seen on the hill of Castro (overlooking the harbour) and Bronze Age remains have been found near Palaiochora.

On the hill of Profitis Ilias (near Melena) there was a small 6th century BC temple devoted to Apollo Tyritis (guardian of the production of milk and cheese) from which Tyros gets its name.


The pre-Hellenic tribes were influenced by the Dorians and the dialect of Tsakonica, still spoken by older residents of Tyros, derives from a Doric dialect.

Between the 7th and 4th centuries BC Arkadia was the scene of conflict between the two major Peloponnesian city states of Argos and Sparta with the Argives holding the North while the Spartans held the South including Kynouria.

In more recent times, Kynouria played a major part in the Greek War of Independence and when this broke out in the Peloponnese in March 1821 Tsakonian fighters along with those from the Mani besieged and captured the castle at Monemvasia in the summer of that year.

Until fairly recently the main settlements were at Palaiochora (old place) on the plateau of Mt Parnon and the village of Ano Tyros. It was only in the latter half of the twentieth century that the coastal strip (Paralia Tyrou) developed.

For more information about the history of this region visit: