Talk:Agios Nikolaos, Messenia

Selinitsa

Selinitsa is used by the locals and is often quoted as of Slavic origin. Does anybody has a reference of the ethymology handy? Patrick Leigh Fermor in Mani - Travels in the Southern Peloponnese (1958) only uses Selinitsa. Katerina Nikolas states: Selinitsa is actually the old name for Agios Nikolaos, but as this translates to Saint Nikolaos […] In which language? I don't see any similarities to modern Slavic languages; Saint Nicholas = Свети Никола (Mazedonian, Serbian, Bulgarian: Sveti Nikola), Святого Николая (Russian: Svyatogo Nikolaya), … There is a small town in Albania sq:Selenica, but no explanation of the name is given. I have even heard rumours that the name may derive form Selene. ;-) Alfie↑↓© 17:14, 20 September 2010 (UTC)

OK, found a reference. Case closed. Chapman writes: In Mani it is likely that there was some penetration by the Slavs and certainly into upper Mani as two tribes of Slavs were still in the area centuries later, the Melingi in what probably corresponds to the present day Messenian or Exo Mani and the Ezerites in the swampy area east of Githeon in Lakonia. Surveys of the spread of Slavic place names have revealed that these are widespread in the Exo Mani and certainly not uncommon in the inner Mani (see Malingoudis, P. Studien zu Slavischen Ortsnamen Griechenlands. 1: Slavische Flurnamen aus der messinischen Mani. Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur. Mainz. 1981). An obvious 'giveaway' is the ending '-itsa' which shows Slavic origins but other place names such as Gaitses have strayed in spelling over the centuries. In the 17th century this is recorded by the Ottoman writer Evliya Celebi as Gatsitsa. Alfie↑↓© 18:21, 20 September 2010 (UTC)