One of the 12 villages of Karpathos is Pyles.
The smallest village in terms of population, built on the western side of the island, with a panoramic view of the neighbouring historic island of Kasos and the mountains of Sitia. It is literally drowned in the greenery of its many enclosures and every evening, you can enjoy a wonderful sunset from here!

The village was first inhabited in the 17th century by refugees who left the coast of the island, where they originally lived, to escape the pirates who were ravaging the Aegean islands. During the Revolution of 1821, many fugitives from neighbouring Crete and the martyred island of Kasos were added to the ranks.

Pyles followed the fate of Karpathos (Turkish, Italian-German occupation), bravely resisted the conquerors, took part in the liberation struggles, and was one of the first to taste the joy of liberation (1944) and integration (1947) with Mother Greece!

In the cemetery of the village is buried the Ierolochite Sergeant Konstantinos Psillis, from Chios, who was killed by a shell in Proni.

The Pylians were scattered to the ends of the Earth. Philhergic as they are, they prospered and thrived wherever they went. But they always love and visit their village. They support every charitable work and are interested in its progress.

The name of the village

There are several versions of the name of our village.

There were some gates (doors) or the village was a gate (passage, entrance), which connected the villages of the northern zone with lower and southern Karpathos.

There was – and is – a lot of clay. (spelled with -i: Pylees) There were caves and the word ended up becoming Pylees.

The education

Pyles, famous for the many good Masters they produced, was given the name: “the village of the Masters”. In 1908, at the expense of the Church Committee, the school building was purchased and in 1925 the school building was rebuilt from the ground up, which housed the three-seat at first, two-seat later and finally a one-seat Primary School.

The school building was damaged by the earthquakes, was completely rebuilt again in 1994 and since then it has housed the Community Office and the Community Clinic.

In 1985 the new school building was built on privately owned community land at the edge of the village. It is a modern educational centre, well equipped with all the latest electronic educational resources. Original educational programmes are applied in teaching with the use of 8 computers.

In our School the innovative program “LOGOMATHIA” (1993) was first implemented and the GREEK SCHOOL NETWORK “TELEMAXOS” (1995) was inaugurated.

The School participates in the global environmental programme GLOBE-ALEXANDROS (1997) and in a programme for the protection of the Mediterranean seal. In 1998 it was twinned with the Pyla Primary School in Larnaca, Cyprus, with which a valuable cooperation is developing.

In 1980, at the expense of the late George N. Grivas, the Kousourelakio Foundation and our fellow villagers and friends of our village, the two-storey Library of our School was built, equipped and operates in an exemplary manner.

Associations

In the Community there are clubs and associations that operate and offer important services, each in its own field:

– The Charitable and Educational Association “APOLLON”
– The Sports Club “ARGONAYTIS”
– The Ladies and Ladies Association “PROODOS”
– The Local Committee of the Kusourelaki Foundation
– The Parents and Guardians Association
– The Student Cooperative
– The Agricultural Cooperative