Psara (, , ; known in ancient times as /, /) is a Greek island in the Aegean Sea. Together with the small island of Antipsara (Population 4) it forms the municipality of Psara. It is part of the Chios regional unit, which is part of the North Aegean region. The only town of the island and seat of the municipality is also called Psara. Psara had 448 inhabitants according to the 2011 census. It has a small port linking to the island of Chios and other parts of Greece. It was also the site of the Psara massacre, in which thousands of Greeks on the island were massacred by Ottoman troops during the Greek War of Independence in 1824. Geography Psara lies northwest of Chios, from the northwestern point of the island of Chios and east-northeast of Athens. The length and width of the island are about and the area is . The highest point on the island is "Profitis Ilias" (). The municipality has total area of . Flag The modern flag of Psara is based largely on the island's famous revolutionary flag created by Psariot locals in 1824. The original flag, carried during the War of Independence by Psariot ships, was made of white cloth bordered with red. It bore the symbols of in red (a large cross atop a crescent, a spear, and an anchor). A snake was wrapped around the anchor, often depicted with a bird flying near its mouth. On either side of the symbols, in red capital letters, were the words ΕΛΕΥΘΕΡΙΑ Η ΘΑΝΑΤΟΣ (FREEDOM OR DEATH) and in some cases, the island's name, spelled or . An original 1824 flag of Psara is preserved at the National Historical Museum of Greece. The flag of Psara currently in use has a very similar design but omits the island's name and bears a star below the crescent. History Psara has been inhabited since the Mycenaean period, its inhabitants relying on the sea to make a living as the island is treeless and rocky with little shrubbery. Homer, Strabo, Cratinus, Suda and Stephanus of Byzantium referred to the island as Psyra () and Psyrian (). The island had a city also called Psyra. The islanders' sole source of livelihood has always been fishing, mainly for the locally abundant slipper lobsters, and shipping, with some tourist development in recent years. The Greek ancient proverb Psyra celebrating