Variko, Florina

Variko (gr. Βαρικό ) is a village and community of Florina prefecture.
Variko is 27 km south-southeast of the city of Florina. The population in 2001 was 698. The village's primary agricultural products are beans, corn, and wheat. There is an annual bean festival on August 15, coinciding with the Dormition of Virgin.

History

The village was first mentioned in an Ottoman defter of 1481, under the name of Mokreni, and was described as having sixty-nine households. In the beginning of 19th century Francois Pouqueville noted Mocrena as one of the Bulgarian villages in the region.The population of Mocreni was Bulgarian in 19th and early 20th centuries. The village was burned by the Turks during the Ilinden Uprising. There was a Bulgarian school in the village in the beginning of 20th century. After the Treaty of Bucharest in 1913, when the area became part of Greece, many people emigrated to Bulgaria. The village was renamed Variko in 1926.

Links

School Newspaper from Variko (in Greek)