Aetolia-Acarnania, (Greek: Αιτωλοακαρνανία, Aitoloakarnanía, also Aetoloacarnania) is one of the prefectures of Greece. It is located in the western part of Greece. The prefecture is a combination of the regions Aetolia and Acarnania. Its capital for historical reasons is Messolongi and its biggest city and economical center is Agrinio. The area is now connected with the Peloponnese peninsula with Rio-Antirio bridge. The surrounding prefectures are Arta in Epirus, a narrow length bordering Karditsa of Thessaly, Evrytania to the northeast and Phocis to the east. It is the largest prefecture in area in Greece.

Geography

Mountains dominate the north, northeast, west and southeast especially the Acarnanian Mountains. The longest and main river is the Acheloos which ends as a delta in a wetlands in the southwest. The prefecture excludes islands lying in the west which belongs to the Kefallinia prefecture. There is one reservoir and a lake in the central part. Its mountains includes the in the northeast and the where a spring water company was founded.

Climate

Its climate varies from hot summers to mild winters in the low lying areas, cool winters dominate the mountain areas while in the highest elevations, summers are cool and snow and cold weather dominate the winter months in the Panaitoliko.

History

For the earlier history about Aetoloacarnania, see Aetolia or Acarnania.

Aetolia and Acarnania became a prefecture and merged to form Aetolia-Acarnania. In the 20th century, ferry services with Rio with the Peloponnese began. In the 1950s and the 1960s, ferry services began to use vehicles. A drawbridge linking the island of Lefkada began in the 1960s. The following years, GR-5 bypassed Messolonghi and Agrinio and GR-38 became connected with paved road with Evrytania and Fthiotida. In the late-1980s, the by-pass of Nafpaktos began construction but after paving the road, the signs did not appear and until 1998, left unopened, in 1999, the road was rerepaired and finally opened to traffic. In 2000, the construction of the Rio-Antirio or the Trikoupis Bridge connecting the Peloponnese began construction and was opened to traffic in August 2004. The superhighway, the (Ionian Highway/Route) which will run centrally bypassing communities and places at whole is in plan but the date of construction has yet set.

On July 29, 2005, a small forest fire burnt forests and grasslands in the area are , no damages were reported.

Population history

• 1991: 230,688
• 2001: 228,180

Transportation

• Greek National Road 5/E55, SE, S, Cen., N
• Greek National Road 38, Cen., NE
• , N, NW
• Greek National Road 48/E65, SE
• Road linking Agios Nikolaos, Astakos and Aitoliko, NW, W, SW, S

Communications

Radio

Television

• Acheloos TV - Agrinio
• , UHF channel 32 (religious), broadcasting from Nafpaktos
• - Nafpaktos

Newspapers

• - Bampini
• , website: http://www.epoxi.gr

Provinces

• - Messolonghi/Messolongi
• - Nafpaktos
• - Agrinio
• - Amfilochia
• Province - Vonitsa

Municipalities

See also: List of settlements in the Aetolia-Acarnania prefecture

Sporting teams

• - Agrinio, third division

External links

• culture.gr on Aetoloacarnania
• Structurae on Aetoloacarnania

See also:

• Prefectures of Greece