Ignatios Orfanidis shares his experiences of life in the small Greek settlement of Ai-Ennes, detailing the community's demographics, education, and agriculture before World War I.
In a recent testimony, Ignatios Orfanidis recounts the history of the village of Ai-Ennes, a small settlement in Greece that was home to approximately 200 Greek families and a few Turkish families. The village boasted a church and a public school before the onset of World War I. During this period, the community was primarily agricultural, known for various fruits, particularly apples, and livestock farming.
Orfanidis highlights the educational opportunities available in the nearby town of Nivena, where the children of Ai-Ennes could attend a city school until its closure due to the war. His account is part of the Oral Tradition Archive of the Center for Minor Asian Studies, demonstrating the significance and wealth of oral history in preserving the collective memory of past communities in Greece.
This testimony serves not only as a historical record of Ai-Ennes but also as a means of understanding the broader socio-cultural dynamics of Greek settlements during the tumultuous times of the early 20th century, including the impact of migration and the effects of the Great War on small communities in Greece.
