The picturesque village is on the top of a hillock next to the Anapodaris river and 240 meters above the sea level.
Administratively it falls under the Archanes- Asterousia municipality of the Heraclion prefecture and takes in Kato Kalivia ( very few residents) and Neochori (142 residents).
53 people live in Kalivia and their main occupations are mostly olive crop and vine-growing.
The village with the fragrant and multicolored flowers in its yards is about 45 kilometers from Heraclion.
HISTORY
In the area of Eklisaki, a tomb has been found and it is estimated to be built the third post Minoan era. The existence of a cemetery from the Greco-Roman era has been found,too.
A building from the byzantine years, known as Loutra, has been also found. In Loutra, there is a cruciform place with “ipokaysta” , that is heating conductors and ventilators.
The village is mentioned for the first time in a document of the Ducal records of Chandax in 1370. In 1583 the settlement is stated in the Venetian census of Kastrofilakas by the name “ Calivia” with 6 residents.
CHURCHES
The church of the Eisodia of Theotokos is in Kalivia and that of Agios Georgios in Neochori.