The Aroniadika is a very interesting traditional settlement in Kythera, in region of Kastris. In the 18th century, the district of Kastrisi included Aroniadika, Kastrisianika, Mitata, Aloizianika, Kyperi (Friligianika), Pitsinades, Kominianika (Perlegianika, Durianika), Drymonari (Kypriotianika), and Agios Theodoros.
Tradition says that the settlement of Aroniadika was created by residents of Old Town which were saved from the destruction of Paliochora by Barbarossa in 1537. The surname Aronis dominated the village for over two centuries..
Today, the patronymic and matronymic nicknames of the Aronis family prevail, e.g. Panagiotis' son is Aronis- Panagiotopoulos, Marietta's son is Aronis-Marietis, Tsitsilia's son is Aronis-Tsitsilios, and so on.
The village had about 200 inhabitants in the 18th century, divided into three parishes: Sotiras, Archangelos, and Agios Charalambos in Gerakitanika. In the 19th century, the population grew and developed into three neighborhoods. The houses are one- or two-story, densely built with passageways, external stone staircases, arched or rectangular windows with limestone or almond stone, ground floor walkways with ovens, wine presses, warehouses, workshops, and auxiliary spaces. In the past, the village was famous for its copper craftsmen., who made all the agricultural tools (hoes, pickaxes, axes, shovels) as well as all the ironwork necessary for household and construction purposes.
Among the notable figures who hail from the village, we should mention Georgios Aronis-Panagiotopoulos, member of the Ionian Parliament and fighter for the Union, as well as Manolis Aronis, the renowned professor of physics and chemistry at the University of Sydney, who is internationally recognized and, among other things, founded and funded a university chair in Modern Greek literature in Sydney. Today, the Aronis Foundation in Australia benefits Kythira in many ways. Aroniadika, a favorite destination and refuge for intellectuals such as Professor Christos Giannaras, can be promoted through careful interventions and restorations to become a A splendid example of a 17th- and 18th-century settlement on Kythira..
