Armolia

Armolia is a village of south Chios located on a valley 22 kilometers away from the city of Chios. There are about 500 people currently living in the village. The nearest villages to Armolia are Kalamoti, Pyrgi and Vessa.

In the ancient years, the village was called "Hermolia", a name derived from the God Hermes. Another theory is that the name "Armolia" comes from the verb "harmozow" (Αρμόζω) - literally meaning "befitting".

The village is well-known in Chios thanks to the pottery (pots, cups, "bourboulia", jars, etc) made in it. Pottery is a tradition for local people that was started decades ago. This was made possible thanks to the large amounts of clay, found at the bottom of a small lake, near the village.

Armolia is one of the villages of north Chios where mastic trees (Pistacia lentiscus, var. Chia) are grown.

Arriving at Armolia, one will note the small pond used for the village water supply - for watering the crops, for the pottery laboratories, etc.

There is also a medieval castle, called Apolihni, on the mountain Lykouri, near Armolia. As the castle is located outside the village, the architecture of Armolia is not that of a castle-village, like for example Mesta.