Thessaloniki

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Thessaloniki (Θεσσαλονίκη)
Location of Thessaloniki in Greece
 
Periphery Central Macedonia
Prefecture Thessaloniki [2]
Province
Population 363,987 source (2001)
Area 17.8 km²
Population density 20,412/km²
Elevation 20 m
Coordinates 40°38′ N 22°57′ E
Postal code 53x xx, 54x xx, 55x xx, 56x xx
Area code 2310
Licence plate code Ν
Mayor Vasilios Papageorgopoulos
Website thessalonikicity.gr
Seal of Thessaloniki
Seal of Thessaloniki

Thessaloníki or Salonica (Greek: Θεσσαλονίκη) is the second-largest city of Greece and is the principal, the largest city, and the capital of the Greek region of Macedonia. It is also the capital of the Thessaloniki prefecture and the capital of the EU region (or, synonymously, Greek periphery) of Central Macedonia.

The popular Greek name Σαλονίκη gives it its alternate English name — formerly the common name Salonika (also spelled Salonica), and the South Slavic Солун (Solun). Other names include Săruna (Aromanian), סלוניקה (Ladino), and Selânik (Turkish).

(See also: Different names).

The metropolitan area (comprised of 13 municipal areas) has a total population of around 1 million and lies in a bay of the Thermaic Gulf at the head of the Chalcidice peninsula. Its coordinates are 40°38′N 22°57′E.

Contents

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History

The statue of Alexander the Great in Thessaloniki sea front.
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Hellenistic Era

The city was founded circa 315 BC by Kasander, the King of Macedon (Μακεδών), on or near the site of the ancient town of Therma and 26 other local villages. He named it after his wife Thessalonica, the sister of Alexander the Great. She gained her name from her father, Philip II of Macedon, to commemorate her birth on the day of his gaining a victory (Gr. Nike) over the Thessalians.

Thessaloniki developed rapidly and as early as the 2nd century BC the first walls were built, forming a large square. It was, as all the other contemporary Greek cities, an autonomous part of the Kingdom of Macedon, with its own parliament where the King was represented and could interfere in the city's domestic affairs.

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Roman Era

The Arch of Galerius


After the fall of the kingdom of Macedon in 168 BC, Thessaloníki became a city of the Roman Empire. It grew to be an important trade-hub located on the Via Egnatia, a Roman road that connected Byzantium (later Constantinople), with Dyrrhachium (now Durrës in Albania), facilitating the trade between Europe and Asia. The city was made capital of one of the four Roman districts of Macedonia. It kept its privileges but was ruled by a Praetor and had a Roman garrison. For a short time in the 1st century BC all the Greek provinces were subdued to Thessalonica.

Due to the city's great commercial importance, a spacious harbour was built by the Romans, the famous Burrow Harbour (Σκαπτός Λιμήν) that accommodated the city's trade up to the 18th century but covered later. Remnants of the harbour's docks can be found nowadays under Frangon Street, near the Catholic Church.

Thessaloniki's acropolis, located in the northern hills, was built in 55 BC after Thracian raids in the city's outskirts, for security reasons.

It had a sizeable Jewish colony, established during the 1st century AD and was an early centre of Christianity. On his second missionary journey, St Paul preached in the city's synagogue, the chief synagogue of the Jews in that part of Thessaloniki, and laid the foundations of a church. Opposition against him from the Jews drove him from the city, and he fled to Veroia.

Thessaloníki acquired a patron saint, St. Demetrius, in 306 AD. He was the Roman Proconsul of Greece under the anti-Christian emperor Maximian and was martyred at a Roman prison, where today lays the Church of St. Demetrius, first built by the Roman sub-prefect of Illyricum, Leontios in 463 AD.

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Byzantine era and Middle Ages

Gold and enamel pendant reliquary, 13th century AD, depicting St George and St Demetrius.
Gold and enamel pendant reliquary, 13th century AD, depicting St George and St Demetrius.

When the Roman Empire was divided into eastern and western segments ruled from Byzantium/Constantinople and Rome respectively, Thessaloníki came under the control of the Byzantine Empire. Its importance was second only to Constantinople itself. After a revolt against the emperor Theodosius I in 390 against his Gothic troops, 7,000 - 15,000 of the citizens were massacred in the city's hippodrome in revenge – an act which earned Theodosius a temporary excommunication.

A quiet and prosperous era follows until repeated barbarian invasions after the fall of the Roman Empire, while a catastrophic earthquake severely damaged the city in 620 resulting in the destruction of the Roman Forum and several other public buildings. Thessaloníki itself came under attack from Slavs (the Byzantine sources call Sklavinies) in the 7th century, However they failed to capture the city. Greek brothers Saint Cyril and Saint Methodius were born in Thessaloníki and the Byzantine Emperor Michael III encouraged them to visit the northern regions as missionaries; their adopted South Slavonic speech became the basis for the Old Church Slavonic language. In the 9th century, the Byzantines decided to move the market for Bulgarian goods from Constantinople to Thessaloníki. Tsar Simeon I of Bulgaria invaded Thrace, defeated a Byzantine army and forced the empire to move the market back to Constantinople.

A new era of invasions comes next and at 904, Saracens based at Crete managed to seize the city and after a ten day depredation, left with much loot and 22,000 slaves, mostly young people. Also, in 1185 the Norman rulers of Sicily, under the leadership of Count Baldwin and Riccardo d'Acerra attacked and occupied the city, resulting in considerable destruction. But their rule lasted less that a year, since they were defeated in two battles later that year by the Byzantine army and forced to evacuate the city.

The White Tower of Thessaloniki.

It passed out of Byzantine hands again in 1204, when Constantinople was captured by the Fourth Crusade in 1204. Thessaloníki and its surrounding territory—the Kingdom of Thessalonica—became the largest fief of the Latin Empire, covering most of north and central Greece. It was given by the emperor Baldwin I to his rival Boniface of Montferrat but in 1224 it was seized by Michael Ducas, the Greek Despot of Epirus. The city was recovered by the Byzantine Empire in 1246.

At that time, despite the various invasions, Thessaloniki had a large population and flourishing commerce. That resulted in an intellectual and artistic florescence that can be traced in the numerous churches and their frescoes of that era and also by the names of scholars that taught there. (Thomas Magististos, Dimitrios Triklinios, Nikiforos Choumnos, Kostantinos Armenopoulos, Neilos Kavassilas, etc). Many fine examples of Byzantine art survive in the city, particularly the mosaics in some of its historic churches, including the basilica of Hagia Sophia and the church of St George.

In the 14th century though, the city was appalled by the Zelotes social movement (1342-1349). It began as a religious conflict between bishop Gregorios Palamas, who supported conservative ideas and the monk Barlaam, who introduced progressive social ones. Quickly, it turned into a political commotion, leading to the prevalence of the Zelotes, who for a while ruled the city, applying progressive social policies.

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Ottoman Era

The Byzantine Empire, unable to hold it against the encroachments of the Ottoman Empire, was forced to sell it to Venice, who held it until it was captured by the Ottoman ruler Murad II on 29 March 1430, after a 3 day long siege of the city.

During Ottoman times the city was multicultural with a population made up of Jews (the majority), Turks, Bulgarians, Albanians and Greeks (around one quarter of the total<ref>Mark Mazower, Salonica city of Ghosts : Christians, Muslims and Jews, 2005</ref>). Of its 130,000 inhabitants at the start of the century, around 60,000 were Sephardic Jews, whose ancestors had been expelled from Spain and Portugal after 1492. Some Romaniotes Jews were also present. Thessaloníki, renamed Selânik, remained in Ottoman hands for the next four centuries and became one of the most important cities in the Empire, being the foremost trade and commercial center in Balkans. The railway reached the city in 1888 and new modern port facilities were built in 1896-1904. The founder of modern Turkey, Kemal Atatürk, was born here in 1881, and the Young Turk movement was headquartered there in the early 20th century. Selânik first became a sanjak center in Rumeli eyalet between 1393 and 1402 and again 1430 and 1864, after it became a province. Selânik province constituted from sanjaks of Selânik (Thessaloniki), Drama and Serres (Siroz or Serez).

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Modern era

Thessaloniki was the main prize of the First Balkan War of 1912, during which it was successfully captured by Greece. It was liberated on 26 October 1912, which is now a local holiday. King George I of Greece was assassinated during a visit to Thessaloniki on 18 March 1913.

In 1915, during World War I, a large Allied expeditionary force landed at Thessaloniki to use the city as the base for an offensive against pro-German Bulgaria. A pro-Allied temporary government headed by Eleftherios Venizelos was established there, against the will of the pro-neutral King of Greece.

Most of the town was destroyed by a single fire on 5 August 1917 of unknown origin, probably an accident, that burned for 4 days. The fire made some 70000 people homeless out of a population of approximately 120000 at the time. Venizelos forbade the reconstruction of the town center until a full modern city plan was prepared. This was accomplished a few years later by the French architect and archeologist Ernest Hebrard. The Hebrard plan swept away the Oriental features of Thessaloníki and transformed it to a European style city.

One consequence of the fire saw close to half the city's Jewish population, their homes and livelihoods destroyed, emigrate. Many went to Palestine. Some stepped onto the Orient Express to Paris. Still others found their way to America. Their numbers were quickly replaced by refugees from another disaster a few years after the war, when huge numbers of ethnic Greeks were expelled from Turkey in 1922 following the Greco-Turkish War. The city expanded enormously as a result. It was nicknamed "The Refugee Capital" (I Protévoussa ton Prosfígon) and "Mother of the Poor" (Ftohomána), and even today the city's inhabitants and culture are distinctively Anatolian in character.

A 7th-century mosaic from Hagios Demetrios representing St Demetrius with children.
A 7th-century mosaic from Hagios Demetrios representing St Demetrius with children.

Thessaloniki fell to the forces of Nazi Germany on 9 April 1941 and remained under German occupation until 30 October 1944. The city suffered considerable damage from Allied bombing, and almost its entire Jewish population was exterminated by the Nazis. Barely a thousand Jews survived. However, Thessaloniki was rebuilt and recovered fairly quickly after the war. This recovery included a rapid growth of its population, mainly in the 1950s and 1960s. Most of the urban development of that period was, unfortunately, without the proper planning, causing most of the city's today problems.

At 23.04 (local time) on 20 June 1978, the city was struck by a powerful earthquake registering 6.5R. It caused significant damage to many buildings and lots of its Byzantine monuments, as well as, 45 deaths.

Early Christian and Byzantine monuments of Thessaloniki were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1988. Thessaloniki became the European City of Culture for 1997.

Thessaloniki is one of the most important university centers in Southeastern Europe with a vibrant student life. There are two universities — the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, the largest university in Greece (founded 1926) and the University of Macedonia. In addition to these, there is City College, affiliated to the University of Sheffield, UK.

In June 2003 the Summit meeting of European leaders, at the end of the Greek Presidency of the EU, was hosted at a holiday resort near the city. In 2004, the city hosted some of the football events of the 2004 Summer Olympics. Thessaloniki unsuccessfully bid for the 2008 EXPO.

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Historical population

Year Population Change
1981 406,413 -
1991 383,967 -22,446/-5.52%
2001 363,987 -19,980/-5.20%

Although the population of the Municipality of Thessaloniki (table above) has declined in the last two censuses, the city's population is still growing, as people are moving to the suburbs. Today's population of the city's metropolitan area is 773.180 (2001 census).

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Historical mayors

  • K. Merkouriou
  • George Seremetis (1943 - 1944)
  • Petros Levis (1944 - 1945)
  • Christos Konstantinou
  • Michalis Papadopoulos
  • Thanasis Giannousis (1982-1983)
  • Theoharis Manavis (1983-1987)
  • Sotiris Kouvelas (1987-1990)
  • Konstantinos Kosmopoulos (1990-1999)
  • Vasilios Papageorgopoulos (1999- )
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Economy

Thessaloníki is a major port city [3] and an industrial and commercial center. The city's industries produce refined oil, steel, petrochemicals, textiles, machinery, flour, cement, pharmaceuticals, and liquor. The city is also a major transportation hub for the whole of southeastern Europe, carrying trade to and from the newly capitalist countries of the region.

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Festivals

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Thessaloniki International Fair

The Thessaloniki International Fair has a long history that dates back to 1926. It is hosted every September for 10 days at the 180,000m2 Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre, in the heart of the city. It's organised by HELEXPO, which also organises themed exhibitions and congresses throughout the year. The International Trade Fair is a very prestigious event, it is inaugurated by the Prime Minister and attended by more than 300,000 visitors every year.

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Thessaloniki International Film Festival

Thessaloniki International Film Festival hoarding
Thessaloniki International Film Festival hoarding

The International Thessaloniki Film Festival has become the Balkans' primary showcase for the work of new and emerging filmmakers, as well as the leading film festival in the region. The event features the International Section, the panorama of Greek films, the New Horizons program, the Balkan Survey, and numerous retrospectives and tributes to leading figures in the world of film.

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Dimitria

The 3 month long festival of cultural events is held every September-December since 1966. It's named after Aghios Dimitrios (St. Demetrius), that patron Saint of the city, and it has become an institution for the city and very popular with the local population. It includes musical, theatrical, dance events, street happenings and exhibitions. It is organised and overlooked by the Municipality of Thessaloniki [4] and last year it celebrated 40 years of history [5].

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Video Dance Festival

The Video Dance Festival started in 2000 at Thessaloniki as an international dance film festival, but soon it widened up to include more kinds of experiment on movement and the moving image.

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DMC DJ Championship

DMC’s World DJ Championships, sponsored internationally by Technics and Ortofon, has grown through the years and the formats of the competitions have developed along with the demands. Originally meant to be a DJ mixing battle, DJ Cheese in 1986, introduced scratching in his routine, changing the course of the DMC battles forever. Since that time, the prestigious Technics / DMC World Champion title has been the most sought after by aspiring DJs / turntablists worldwide!

he only equipment permitted in the Technics DJ Championships is Technics SL1200 turntables and are Technics EX-DJ1200 mixer. No other equipment is allowed. The DJs are allowed a period of exactly six (6) minutes to impress the judges. The same rules are applied to all competitions around the world.

The Greek DMC DJ Championship is hosted in Thessaloniki in the International Trade Fair Of Thessaloniki

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Communications

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Radio

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Television

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Transportation

Thessaloniki did not have a motorway link until the 1970s. Thessaloniki is accessed with GR-1/E75 from Athens, GR-4, GR-2, Via Egnatia/E90 and GR-12/E85 from Serres and Sofia. In the early 1970s, the motorway reached Thessaloniki and was the last section of the GR-1 to be completed. In the 1980s construction begun on the 4-lane bypass of Thessaloniki, which was finally opened to traffic in 1988, running from the west industrial side of the city up to the other side of Thessaloniki to its southeast approaching Thermi and Halkidiki. It has recently been upgraded with new junctions and improved motorway features. The latest motorway expansion was Via Egnatia northwest of Thessaloniki. A long promised 9.5km long Metro network, construction of which should commence by summer 2006, should ease traffic congestion in the city centre when completed in 2012. Public transport in Thessaloniki is currently served only by buses [8].

The city is a major railway hub for the Balkans, with direct connections to Sofia, Skopje, Belgrade, Moscow, Vienna, Budapest, Istanbul as well as Athens and other major destinations in Greece.


Air traffic of the city is served by Makedonia Airport with both International and Domestic flights.

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Sport clubs

  • PAOK FC [9] The most popular club of Thessaloniki and northern Greece, playing in the First Division. (2004-2005: 5th place)
  • Aris FC [10] The club is playing in the Greek second B division championship.(2004-2005: 14th place)
  • Iraklis FC [11] Historical club that founded in 1908, playing in the First Division. (2004-2005: 7th place)
  • Apollon Kalamarias [12] The pride of the suburban city Kalamaria, First Division. (2004-2005: 12th place)
  • Agrotikos Asteras - third division
  • LITEX Lykoi - third division
  • Pavlos Melas FC - third division
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Climate

The city experiences a Mediterranean climate. Those north of Thessaloniki experience a Balkan climate, with cold winters.

Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Maximum. [°C] 9 10 13 18 23 28 31 30 26 21 14 10
Minimum temperature [°C] 1 2 5 7 12 16 18 18 15 11 6 2
Rainfall (mm) 40 38 43 35 43 30 22 20 27 45 58 50
Record temperatures [] 20 22 25 31 36 39 42 39 36 32 27 26
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Twinnings

(in chronological order)

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Landmarks

The sea front at Thessaloniki with the White Tower in the distance
The sea front at Thessaloniki with the White Tower in the distance
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Museums

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Archaeological sites

  • Crypt of Aghios Demetrios
  • Agia Paraskevi, Thessaloniki, archaic cemetery
  • The Ancient Agora of Thessaloniki
  • Monastery of Latomos at Thessaloniki
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Monuments

  • The Arch and Tomb of Galerius
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People

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See also

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External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
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References

  • Apostolos P. Vacalopoulos, A History of Thessaloniki, Institute for Balkan Studies, 1972.
  • Thessaloniki: Tourist guide and street map, A. Kessopoulos, MalliareÌ„s-Paideia, 1988.
  • Mark Mazower, Salonica, City of Ghosts: Christians, Muslims and Jews, 1430-1950, 2004, ISBN 0375412980.
  • Thessaloniki City Guide, Axon Publications, 2002.
  • James C. Skedros, Saint Demetrios of Thessaloniki: Civic Patron and Divine Protector, 4th-7Th Centuries (Harvard Theological Studies), Trinity Press International (1999).
  • Vilma Hastaoglou-Martinidis (ed.), Restructuring the City: International Urban Design Competitions for Thessaloniki, Andreas Papadakis, 1999.

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Municipalities and communities of the Thessaloniki Prefecture
Agios Athanasios | Agios Georgios | Agios Pavlos | Ampelokipoi | Apollonia | Arethousa | Assiros | Axios | Chalastra | Chalkidona | Chortiati | Echedoros | Egnatia | Eleftherio-Kordelio | Epanomi | Evosmos | Kalamaria | Kallindoi | Kallithea | Koronia | Koufalia | Lachana | Lagkadas | Madytos | Menemeni | Michaniona | Mikra | Mygdonia | Neapoli | Oraiokastro | Panorama | Polichni | Pylaia | Rentina | Sochos | Stavroupoli | Sykies | Thermaikos | Thermi | Thessaloniki | Triandria | Vasilika | Vertiskos
Efkarpia | Pefka