Xirokambi

Xirokambi (Greek: Ξηροκάμπι, also transliterated as Xirokampi or Xirocambi) is a village and a community near Sparta in the regional unit of Laconia, Greece. Located in the southern Peloponnese, records show that the modern community has existed since at least 1758.^[2]

CountryGreece

Elevation

242 m (794 ft)

Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)

Postal code

230 54

Quick facts Ξηροκάμπι, Country ...

Xirokambi Ξηροκάμπι
Community
Clockwise from top right: Holy Trinity Orthodox Church (Agia Triada) next to village plateia, Olive tree said to be 1,000 years old, Stone arch bridge towards Koumousta said to be the oldest functional bridge in Europe (built 1st century AD)
Xirokambi
Coordinates: 36°57′34″N 22°27′8″E
Country	Greece
Administrative region	Peloponnese
Regional unit	Laconia
Municipality	Sparta
Municipal unit	Sparta
Elevation	242 m (794 ft)
Population  (2021)[1]
• Community	868
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal code	230 54

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During the Ottoman rule of Greece, most residents lived 6km further into the mountains in the nearby traditional settlement of Koumousta. After the conclusion of the Greek War of Independence, the inhabitants of Koumousta slowly returned to Xirokambi over the 19th and 20th centuries, revitalizing the village. On the path from Xirokambi to Koumousta is a bridge believed to have been constructed in the 1st century AD which, according to local legend, was used by Helen of Troy.^[3]

Like nearby Kalamata, famous for its Kalamata olives, olive trees are plentiful in the region surrounding Xirokambi due to its fertile soil and favorable weather conditions. The village contains one tree thought to be over 1,000 years old on the border of nearby Kidonitsa.