Ierapetra, the nymph of the Libyan Sea, is one of the most beautiful areas of the Lasithi prefecture, which shows an uninterrupted and continuous course through the passage of time, something that is evident both in its historical and folklore tradition.
In the pages of this book, after a brief historical overview of the timelessness of Ierapetra, the unique linguistic richness of the said area is recorded and preserved, which has survived both through the oral tradition experienced by the author from the late ancestors and other relatives and close ones, as well as through various similar domestic writings.
The dialect of the Great Island shows many peculiarities depending on the prefecture and area, but also many similarities regarding the words and expressions used by the island’s inhabitants. Thus, many common words may be presented in all the prefectures of the island, something logical and expected, but the eastern and Ierapetra linguistic idiom differs in many points from that of other areas of Crete.
In this way, this book records all the words of the Ierapetra local dialect – collected by the author – both those that have fallen into obscurity because they are no longer used but are preserved in various texts of Ierapetra locals in narratives and stories, as well as those that are used more or less even today.
