History of Naxos Island

According to the Naxos history, it is believed that the first inhabitants of Naxos were the Careans from Thrace, who worshipped Dionysus, the son of Zeus and god of wine and pleasure. Dionysus took up with Ariadne, the pre-Hellenic goddess of fertility, who was abandoned on the island by Theseus. The union of Ariadne and Dionysus endowed the island with fruitful grapevines and fertile soil. To honor this great gift, the inhabitants hold the "Dionysia" cultural festival every year.

Naxos is the largest of the Cyclades islands, a wealthy place with a natural environment suitable for the development of farming and stock-raising. It is also an island with good natural harbours, a condition which has contributed much to its strong continuous cultural presence in Greece from the end of the 4th millennium BC up to today.