Kopanaki
village in Messinia, Greece
Kopanaki (Greek: Κοπανάκι) is a town in northwestern Messenia, Peloponnese, Greece. It was the seat of the former municipality of Aetos and now it belongs to the municipality of Trifylia. Agriculture, specifically olive farming, is the main economic activity in the village. The community Kopanaki also includes the small villages Agios Dimitrios and Rizochori. Being the geographical and economic center of upper Trifylia, Kopanaki is well known for "pazari" (bazaar) or "agora", that takes place in the central square every Sunday since 1900 and attracts further population. The messenian tradition of baking "gournopoula" (pork) and selling it on the edge of the street started from this location, initially only on Sundays, for the visitors from far away, so they could have a hearty meal and the power to do the return trip. Today in many places of the region lying on main road someone can find (no matter the day) grilled gournopoula.
Population
Geography
Kopanaki is situated in the valley of a tributary of the small river Peristeri, between Tetrazio and Kyparissia mountains. It is 12 km east of Kalonero (on the Ionian Sea coast) and 39 km northwest of Kalamata. It is situated on the main road from Pyrgos and Kyparissia to Kalamata and on the metre gauge railway from Kalonero to Zevgolateio.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Kopanaki” as village in Messinia, Greece. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as village in Messinia, Greece. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 20, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q3558238. Authority coordinates are 37.289, 21.819. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1900.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Kopanaki”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Kopanaki primary sources, Kopanaki archive and Kopanaki research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Kopanaki”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Kopanaki” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.