Ithaca is one of the Ionian Islands, situated west of Greece and east of Cephalonia, from which it is separated by a narrow channel. Its area is about 38 square miles, the surface being mountainous and the coast steep and rocky. Vineyards and olive and other orchards cover the mountain sides. Fishing is carried on by the inhabitants, another industry being the production of olive oil. Its population is about 3,040 (2001).
Ithaca is supposed to be the site of the castle of Ulysses, the principal character in Homer's Odyssey. Excavations were made by Schliemann in 1869, which corroborated sites named by Homer.
Ulysses