Delladetsimas, Pavlos‑Marinos

Land tenure relations in Greece are shaped by the dominant dichotomy between private and public property. Cases of common land, locally managed by formal and customary law, are very scarce and sparsely distributed across the country. In the Ionian Archipelago, the Domestic Estate of Kythira Island (DEK), forms such an exceptional case. The Domestic Estate is a historical commons, with its roots dating back to the 15th century, the era of the Venetian Empire’s occupation on the island. Today, it is still active, encompassing all the non-private areas of the island, that are legally acknowledged by the Greek State as the common, ex ab indiviso property of the local people of Kythira. The governance of the common property of Kythira is executed by a specific body, the Committee for the DEK, whose members are elected by the local municipal council.