Naxos, the largest island of the Cyclades, has a long and interesting history. Traces of this history can be seen all over the island, with remains from the ancient till the modern times.

There are several opinions about the origin of the name Naxos. Some say that the island has been named after the name of the son of Endymion, the leader of the Carean settlers. The Venetian rulers called the island Nassos or Naxia.

The island of Naxos is linked to the mythological story of Theseus and Ariadne. While Theseus was returning from Crete, after slaying the Minotaur, he abandoned Ariadne on the island of Naxos. There, Dionysos, the god of wine and protector of the island, found Ariadne and fell in love with her. The continuation of the story is not clear. Some say that Ariadne married Dionysos and lived happily together, while others say that she never got over Theseus and committed suicide.

It is said that the first inhabitants of Naxos were the Careans from Thrace. They were the worshippers of Dionysus and they believed that the union of Dionysus and Ariadne, the pre Hellenic goddess of fertility had gifted Naxos with fertile soil and grapevines. From the hands of the Careans, the island passed to the Cretans and eventually to the Mycenaeans. In the 6th century A.D, Naxos started sea trading and colonization. In 523 BC, Lygdamis took hold of Naxos. He was a tyrant and ruled for 33 years, until the Persians devastated the island.

During the Persian War, Naxos was the sole supporter of Athens and was the first island to come under the Athenian rule. Later on, it became a part of the empire of Alexander the Great. The Romans ruled over Naxos from 338 BC to 326 AD and then the island became part of the Byzantine Empire. However, in 1024, the Venetian Marco Sanudo took over Naxos and the rest of the Cyclades islands. He established himself as the Duke of Naxia and from then on, twenty one Venetian dukes ruled the island. In the Venetian period, Naxos became a wealthy maritime, trade and cultural center in the Aegean. Many remains of the Venetian Era are found today on the island, such as the elegant towers and the Castle in Chora.

In 1566, the island came under the rule of the Ottomans, which was interrupted for a brief period by the Russians in 1770 – 1774. Naxos finally gained her freedom in the Independence War of 1821. It became a part of the Greek state in 1828.