Thessaloniki

Thessaloniki Θεσσαλονίκη Saloniki
—  City  —
Clockwise from top: Aristotle Square, Church of Saint Demetrius, Thessaloniki Concert Hall, Panoramic view of Thessaloniki's waterfront and the Thermaic Gulf, White Tower of Thessaloniki
Flag Logo
Nickname: The Nymph of the Thermaic Gulf
Location of the Municipality of Thessaloniki within Central Macedonia
Country	Greece
Geographic region	Macedonia
Administrative region	Central Macedonia
Regional unit	Thessaloniki
Founded	315 B.C.E. (2339 years ago)
Incorporated	Oct. 1912 (112 years ago)
Municipalities	7
Government
- Type	Mayor–council government
Area
- Municipality	19.307 km² (7.5 sq mi)
- Urban	112 km² (43.2 sq mi)
- Metro	1,286 km² (496.5 sq mi)
Highest elevation	250 m (820 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population (2021)
- Municipality	319,045
- Urban	802,572
- Metro	1,006,112
Postal codes	53xxx, 54xxx, 55xxx, 56xxx
Area code(s)	2310
Website: www.thessaloniki.gr

Thessaloniki (/ˌθɛsələˈniːki/; Greek: Θεσσαλονίκη [θesaloˈnici]), also known as Thessalonica, Thessalonika (English: /ˌθɛsələˈnaɪkə, ˌθɛsəˈlɒnɪkə/), Saloniki, Salonika, Salonicco, or Salonica (/ˌθɛsələˈniːki/; Greek: Θεσσαλονίκη [θesaloˈnici]), is the second-largest city in Greece. It is located on the Thermaic Gulf, at the northwest corner of the Aegean Sea. It is Greece's second major economic, industrial, commercial, and political center, and a major transportation hub for Greece and southeastern Europe, notably through the Port of Thessaloniki.

The city was founded in 315 B.C.E. by Cassander of Macedon, and was an important metropolis by the Roman period, and the second largest and wealthiest city of the Byzantine Empire. Thessaloniki exhibits Byzantine architecture, including numerous Paleochristian and Byzantine monuments, a World Heritage Site, and several Roman, Ottoman, and Sephardic Jewish structures.

Thessaloniki is a popular tourist destination in Greece. It is renowned for its festivals, events, and vibrant cultural life in general. With a multicultural population, the present day city is vibrantly modern while at the same time highlighting archaeological sites and historical buildings that preserve its past.

Names and etymology

Inscription reading "To Queen Thessalonike, (Daughter) of Philip", Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki

The original name of the city was Θεσσαλονίκη Thessaloníkē. It was named after the princess Thessalonike of Macedon, the half sister of Alexander the Great, whose name means "Thessalian victory," from Θεσσαλός Thessalos, and Νίκη "victory," honoring the Macedonian victory at the Battle of Crocus Field (353/352 B.C.E.).

The name Σαλονίκη Saloníki is first attested in Greek in the Chronicle of the Morea (fourteenth century), and is common in folk songs, but it must have originated earlier, as al-Idrisi called it Salunik already in the twelfth century.

It is also known in Greek as "η Συμπρωτεύουσα" (i Symprotévousa), literally "the co-capital," a reference to its historical status as the Συμβασιλεύουσα (Symvasilévousa) or "co-reigning" city of the Byzantine Empire alongside Constantinople.

Thessaloniki was revived as the city's official name in 1912, when it joined the Kingdom of Greece during the Balkan Wars.

Geography

Thessaloniki is located 502 kilometers (312 mi) north of Athens. Located on the Thermaic Gulf, at the northwest corner of the Aegean Sea, It is bounded on the west by the delta of the Axios.

Climate

Thessaloniki's climate is transitional, lying on the periphery of multiple climate zones. According to the Köppen climate classification, the city has a cold semi-arid climate (BSk) with Mediterranean (Csa) and humid subtropical (Cfa) influences. The Pindus mountain range greatly contributes to the generally dry climate of the area by substantially drying the westerly winds.

Winters are somewhat dry, with occasional morning frost. Snowfalls occur more or less every winter, but the snow cover does not last for more than a few days. During the coldest winters, temperatures can drop to −10 °C (14.0 °F). On average, Thessaloniki experiences frost (sub-zero temperature) 32 days a year, though that is less common near the city center, owing to the urban heat island effect which characterizes the city and is more pronounced during the winter months. The coldest month of the year in downtown Thessaloniki is January, with an average 24-hour temperature of 8 °C (46 °F). The city is also quite windy in the winter months, with January and February having an average wind speed of about 11 kilometers per hour (7 mph).

Thessaloniki's summers are hot and moderately dry. Maximum temperatures usually rise above 30 °C (86 °F), but they rarely exceed 40 °C (104 °F); while the average number of days the temperature is above 32 °C (90 °F) is 32. Generally, the sea breeze blowing from the Thermaic gulf helps moderate the city's temperatures. The maximum recorded temperature in the city was 44 °C (111 °F). Rain occasionally falls in the summer, mainly during thunderstorms, while heat waves occur sporadically, though few of them are intense. The hottest months of the year in downtown Thessaloniki are July and August, with an average 24-hour temperature of around 27.5 °C (81 °F).

Geology

Ling on the northern fringe of the Thermaic Gulf on its eastern coast, Thessaloniki is bound by Mount Chortiatis on its southeast. Its proximity to imposing mountain ranges, hills, and fault lines, especially towards its southeast have historically made the city prone to geological changes.

Since medieval times, Thessaloniki has been hit by strong earthquakes, notably in 1759, 1902, 1978, and 1995. The earthquakes in June 1978, caused considerable damage to a number of buildings and ancient monuments, but the city withstood the catastrophe without any major problems.

History

The city was founded by Cassander of Macedon, who named it after his wife Thessalonike, daughter of Philip II of Macedon and sister of Alexander the Great. It was built 40 km southeast of Pella, the capital of the Kingdom of Macedonia. An important metropolis by the Roman period, Thessaloniki was the second largest and wealthiest city of the Byzantine Empire. It was conquered by the Ottomans in 1430 and remained an important seaport and multi-ethnic metropolis during the nearly five centuries of Turkish rule. It passed from the Ottoman Empire to the Kingdom of Greece in 1912.

Classical antiquity to Roman Empire

Ancient coin depicting Cassander, son of Antipater, and founder of the city of Thessaloniki

The city was founded around 315 B.C.E. by the King Cassander of Macedon, on or near the site of the ancient town of Therma and 26 other local villages. He named it after his wife Thessalonike, a half-sister of Alexander the Great and princess of Macedonia as daughter of Philip II. Under the kingdom of Macedonia the city retained its own autonomy and parliament and evolved to become the most important city in Macedonia.

Twenty years after the fall of the Kingdom of Macedonia in 168 B.C.E., in 148 B.C.E., Thessalonica was made the capital of the Roman province of Macedonia. It became a free city of the Roman Republic under Mark Antony in 41 B.C.E. It grew to be an important trade hub located on the Via Egnatia, the road connecting Dyrrhachium with Byzantium, which facilitated trade between Thessaloniki and great centers of commerce such as Rome and Byzantium. Thessaloniki also lies at the southern end of the main north–south route through the Balkans along the valleys of the Morava and Axios river valleys, thereby linking the Balkans with the rest of Greece.

At the time of the Roman Empire, about 50 C.E., Thessaloniki was also one of the early centers of Christianity; while on his second missionary journey, Paul the Apostle visited this city's chief synagogue on three Sabbaths and sowed the seeds for Thessaloniki's first Christian church. Later, Paul wrote letters to the new church at Thessaloniki, with two letters to the church under his name appearing in the Biblical canon as First and Second Thessalonians.

The fourth-century C.E. Rotunda of Galerius, one of several Roman monuments in the city and a UNESCO World Heritage Site

In 306 C.E., Thessaloniki acquired a patron saint, St. Demetrius, a Christian whom Galerius is said to have put to death. A basilical church dedicated to St. Demetrius, Hagios Demetrios, was first built in the fifth century C.E. and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

When the Roman Empire was divided into the tetrarchy, Thessaloniki became the administrative capital of one of the four portions of the Empire under Galerius Maximianus Caesar, where Galerius commissioned an imperial palace, a new hippodrome, a triumphal arch and a mausoleum, among other structures.

In 379, when the Roman Prefecture of Illyricum was divided between the East and West Roman Empires, Thessaloniki became the capital of the new Prefecture of Illyricum. The following year, the Edict of Thessalonica made Christianity the state religion of the Roman Empire. In 390, troops under the Roman Emperor Theodosius I led a massacre against the inhabitants of Thessalonica, who had risen in revolt against the detention of a favorite charioteer. By the time of the Fall of Rome in 476, Thessaloniki was the second-largest city of the Eastern Roman Empire.

Byzantine era and Middle Ages

Section of the Walls of Thessaloniki

From the first years of the Byzantine Empire, Thessaloniki was considered the second city in the Empire after Constantinople, both in terms of wealth and size. The city held this status until its transfer to Venetian control in 1423.

During the sixth and seventh centuries, the area around Thessaloniki was invaded by Avars and Slavs, who unsuccessfully laid siege to the city several times, as narrated in the Miracles of Saint Demetrius. In the ninth century, the Byzantine missionaries Cyril and Methodius, both natives of the city, created the first literary language of the Slavs, the Old Church Slavonic, most likely based on the Slavic dialect used in the hinterland of their hometown.

A naval attack led by Byzantine converts to Islam (including Leo of Tripoli) in 904 resulted in the sack of the city.

Church of the Acheiropoietos (fifth century) at the city's center

The economic expansion of the city continued through the twelfth century as the rule of the Komnenoi emperors expanded Byzantine control to the north. Thessaloniki passed out of Byzantine hands in 1204, when Constantinople was captured by the forces of the Fourth Crusade and incorporated the city and its surrounding territories in the Kingdom of Thessalonica — which then became the largest vassal of the Latin Empire. In 1224, the Kingdom of Thessalonica was overrun by the Despotate of Epirus, a remnant of the former Byzantine Empire, under Theodore Komnenos Doukas who crowned himself Emperor, and the city became the capital of the short-lived Empire of Thessalonica. Following his defeat at Klokotnitsa however in 1230, the Empire of Thessalonica became a vassal state of the Second Bulgarian Empire until it was recovered again in 1246, this time by the Nicaean Empire.

In 1342, the city saw the rise of the Commune of the Zealots, an anti-aristocratic party formed of sailors and the poor, which is nowadays described as social-revolutionary. The city was practically independent of the rest of the Empire, as it had its own government, a form of republic. The zealot movement was overthrown in 1350 and the city was reunited with the rest of the Empire.

The capture of Gallipoli by the Ottomans in 1354 kicked off a rapid Turkish expansion in the southern Balkans, conducted both by the Ottomans themselves and by semi-independent Turkish ghazi warrior-bands. By 1369, the Ottomans were able to conquer Adrianople (modern Edirne), which became their new capital until 1453. Thessalonica, ruled by Manuel II Palaiologos (r. 1391–1425) itself surrendered after a lengthy siege in 1383–1387, along with most of eastern and central Macedonia, to the forces of Sultan Murad I. Initially, the surrendered cities were allowed complete autonomy in exchange for payment of the kharaj poll tax. Following the death of Emperor John V Palaiologos in 1391, however, Manuel II escaped Ottoman custody and went to Constantinople, where he was crowned emperor, succeeding his father. This angered Sultan Bayezid I, who laid waste to the remaining Byzantine territories, and then turned on Chrysopolis, which was captured by storm and largely destroyed. Thessalonica too submitted again to Ottoman rule at this time, possibly after brief resistance, but was treated more leniently: although the city was brought under full Ottoman control, the Christian population and the Church retained most of their possessions, and the city retained its institutions.

A mosaic of Saint George in Saint Demetrios Church

Thessalonica remained in Ottoman hands until 1403, when Emperor Manuel II sided with Bayezid's eldest son Süleyman in the Ottoman succession struggle that broke out following the crushing defeat and capture of Bayezid at the Battle of Ankara against Tamerlane in 1402. In exchange for his support, in the Treaty of Gallipoli the Byzantine emperor secured the return of Thessalonica, part of its hinterland, the Chalcidice peninsula, and the coastal region between the rivers Strymon and Pineios. Thessalonica and the surrounding region were given as an autonomous appanage to John VII Palaiologos. Thessalonica enjoyed a period of relative peace and prosperity after 1403, as the Turks were preoccupied with their own civil war, but was attacked by the rival Ottoman pretenders in 1412 and 1416 (during the uprising of Mustafa Çelebi against Mehmed I Once the Ottoman civil war ended, the Turkish pressure on the city began to increase again.

In 1423, Despot Andronikos Palaiologos ceded it to the Republic of Venice with the hope that it could be protected from the Ottomans who were besieging the city. The Venetians held Thessaloniki until it was captured by the Ottoman Sultan Murad II on March 29, 1430.

Ottoman period

Hot chamber of the men's baths in the Bey Hamam (1444)

When Sultan Murad II captured Thessaloniki and sacked it in 1430; contemporary reports estimated that about one-fifth of the city's population was enslaved. Ottoman artillery was used to secure the city's capture and bypass its double walls. However, the change of sovereignty from the Byzantine Empire to the Ottomans did not affect the city's prestige as a major imperial city and trading hub.Thessaloniki and Smyrna, although smaller in size than Constantinople, were the Ottoman Empire's most important trading hubs. Thessaloniki's importance was mostly in the field of shipping, but also in manufacturing, while most of the city's tradespeople were Jewish.

Demographics of Thessaloniki between 1500 and 1950

During the Ottoman period, the city's population of Ottoman Muslims (including those of Turkish origin, as well as Albanian Muslim, Bulgarian Muslim, especially the Pomaks and Greek Muslim of convert origin) and Muslim Roma like the Sepečides Romani grew substantially. Soon after the turn of the fifteenth to the sixteenth century, however, nearly 20,000 Sephardic Jews immigrated to Greece from the Iberian Peninsula following their expulsion from Spain by the 1492 Alhambra Decree. By 1519, Sephardic Jewish households numbered 15,715, over 50 percent of the city's population. The city became both the largest Jewish city in the world and the only Jewish majority city in the world in the sixteenth century. As a result, Thessaloniki attracted persecuted Jews from all over the world.

The White Tower of Thessaloniki, built by the Ottomans in 1430 and rebuilt in 1535, has become a symbol of the city

Thessaloniki was the capital of the Sanjak of Selanik within the wider Rumeli Eyalet (Balkans) until 1826, and subsequently the capital of Selanik Eyalet (after 1867, the Selanik Vilayet).

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the modern republic of Turkey, was born in Thessaloniki (then known as Selânik in Ottoman Turkish) in 1881. His birthplace on İslahhane Caddesi (now 24 Apostolou Street) is now the Atatürk Museum and forms part of the Turkish consulate complex.

The last few decades of Ottoman control over the city were an era of revival, particularly in terms of the city's infrastructure. It was at that time that the Ottoman administration of the city acquired an "official" face with the creation of the Government House while a number of new public buildings were built in the eclectic style in order to project the European face both of Thessaloniki and the Ottoman Empire.

Twentieth century and beyond

The seafront of Thessaloniki, as it was in 1917

In the early twentieth century, Thessaloniki was ethnically diverse and cosmopolitan. Many varied religions were practiced and many languages spoken, including Judeo-Spanish, a dialect of Spanish spoken by the city's Jews. The Jewish element was the most dominant; Thessaloniki was the only city in Europe where the Jews were a majority of the total population.

Thessaloniki was in the center of radical activities by various groups; the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization, founded in 1897, and the Greek Macedonian Committee, founded in 1903.

Constantine I of Greece with George I of Greece and the Greek army enter the city.

Thessaloniki was also the center of activities of the Young Turks, a political reform movement, whose goal was to replace the Ottoman Empire's absolute monarchy with a constitutional government. The Young Turks started out as an underground movement, until finally in 1908, they started the Young Turk Revolution from the city of Thessaloniki, which lead to of them gaining control over the Ottoman Empire and put an end to the power of the Ottoman sultans.

Allied armies in Thessaloniki, World War I

The 1st Battalion of the Army of National Defence marches on its way to the Macedonian front.

When the First Balkan War broke out, Greece declared war on the Ottoman Empire and expanded its borders. When Eleftherios Venizelos, Prime Minister at the time, was asked if the Greek army should move towards Thessaloniki or Monastir (now Bitola, Republic of North Macedonia), Venizelos replied "Θεσσαλονίκη με κάθε κόστος!" (Thessaloniki, at all costs!). As both Greece and Bulgaria wanted Thessaloniki, the Ottoman garrison of the city entered negotiations with both armies. On November 8, 1912, the feast day of the city's patron saint, Saint Demetrius, the Greek Army accepted the surrender of the Ottoman garrison at Thessaloniki. The Bulgarian army arrived one day after the surrender of the city to Greece and Hasan Tahsin Pasha, commander of the city's defenses, told the Bulgarian officials that "I have only one Thessaloniki, which I have surrendered."

In 1915, during World War I, a large Allied expeditionary force established a base at Thessaloniki for operations against pro-German Bulgaria. In 1916, pro-Venizelist Greek army officers and civilians, with the support of the Allies, launched an uprising, creating a pro-Allied temporary government by the name of the "Provisional Government of National Defence" that controlled the "New Lands" (lands that were gained by Greece in the Balkan Wars, most of Northern Greece including Greek Macedonia, the North Aegean as well as the island of Crete); the official government of the King in Athens, the "State of Athens," controlled "Old Greece" which were traditionally monarchist. The State of Thessaloniki was disestablished with the unification of the two opposing Greek governments under Venizelos, following the abdication of King Constantine in 1917.

Aerial photograph of the Great Fire of 1917

Most of the old center of the city was destroyed by the Great Thessaloniki Fire of 1917. The fire swept through the center of the city, leaving a quarter of the population homeless and more than half unemployed as a result of destruction of many businesses. Following the fire, the government prohibited quick rebuilding, so it could implement the new redesign of the city according to the European-style urban plan prepared by a group of architects, including the Briton Thomas Mawson, and headed by French architect Ernest Hébrard.

After the defeat of Greece in the Greco-Turkish War and during the break-up of the Ottoman Empire, a population exchange took place between Greece and Turkey. Over 160,000 ethnic Greeks deported from the former Ottoman Empire, particularly Greeks from Asia Minor and East Thrace were resettled in the city, changing its demographics. Additionally many of the city's Muslims, including Ottoman Greek Muslims, were deported to Turkey. This made the Greek element dominant, while the Jewish population was reduced to a minority for the first time since the sixteenth century.

Registration of the male Jews of Thessaloniki in July 1942, Eleftherias Square.

Part of Eleftherias Square and Stein mansion during the Axis occupation

During World War II Thessaloniki was heavily bombarded by Fascist Italy and, the Italians having failed in their invasion of Greece, it fell to the forces of Nazi Germany on April 8, 1941 and went under German occupation. The Nazis soon forced the Jewish residents into a ghetto near the railroads and on March 15, 1943 began the deportation of the city's Jews to Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen concentration camps. Most were immediately murdered in the gas chambers. Of the 45,000 Jews deported to Auschwitz, only 4 percent survived.

Indian troops sweep for mines in Salonika, 1944.

After the war, Thessaloniki was rebuilt with large-scale development of new infrastructure and industry throughout the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Many of its architectural treasures still remain, adding value to the city as a tourist destination, while several early Christian and Byzantine monuments of Thessaloniki were added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1988.

Government

The Government House, now the Ministry for Macedonia and Thrace, designed by Vitaliano Poselli in 1891

The Prefecture building (Villa Allatini)

Thessaloniki is the second largest city in Greece. It is an influential city for the northern parts of the country and is the capital of the region of Central Macedonia and the Thessaloniki regional unit.

It is customary every year for the Prime Minister of Greece to announce his administration's policies on a number of issues, such as the economy, at the opening night of the Thessaloniki International Fair.

Thessaloniki is the capital of the geographic region of Macedonia, the administrative region of Central Macedonia and the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace.

According to the Kallikratis reform, the Thessaloniki Urban Area (Greek: Πολεοδομικό Συγκρότημα Θεσσαλονίκης) which makes up the "City of Thessaloniki," is made up of six self-governing municipalities (Greek: Δήμοι) and one municipal unit (Greek: Δημοτική ενότητα). Included in the Thessaloniki Urban Area are those of Thessaloniki (the city center and largest in population size), Kalamaria, Neapoli-Sykies, Pavlos Melas, Kordelio-Evosmos, Ampelokipoi-Menemeni, and the municipal units of Pylaia and Panorama, part of the municipality of Pylaia-Chortiatis.

Thessaloniki Municipality

The municipality of Thessaloniki (Greek: Δήμος Θεσαλονίκης) is the second most populous in Greece, after Athens. The municipality forms the core of the Thessaloniki Urban Area, with its central district (the city center), referred to as the Kentro, meaning "center" or "downtown."

The city's first mayor, Osman Sait Bey, was appointed when the institution of mayor was inaugurated under the Ottoman Empire in 1912.

Economy

The old building of Banque de Salonique, now Stoa Malakopi

A building of the Bank of Greece

Thessaloniki rose to economic prominence as a major economic hub in the Balkans during the years of the Roman Empire. The Pax Romana and the city's strategic position allowed for the facilitation of trade between Rome and Byzantium (later Constantinople and now Istanbul) through Thessaloniki by means of the Via Egnatia. The Via Egnatia also functioned as an important line of communication between the Roman Empire and the nations of Asia, particularly in relation to the Silk Road. With the partition of the Roman Empire into East (Byzantine) and West, Thessaloniki became the second-largest city of the Eastern Roman Empire after New Rome (Constantinople) in terms of economic might.

As the city passed from Byzantium to the Republic of Venice in 1423, it was subsequently conquered by the Ottoman Empire. Under Ottoman rule the city retained its position as the most important trading hub in the Balkans. Manufacturing, shipping and trade were the most important components of the city's economy during the Ottoman period.

Historically important industries for the economy of Thessaloniki included tobacco and banking (in Ottoman years Thessaloniki was a major center for investment from western Europe, with the Banque de Salonique having a capital of 20 million French francs in 1909).

After WWII and the Greek Civil War, heavy industrialization of the city's suburbs began in the mid-1950s. In early 1960s, with the collaboration of Standard Oil and ESSO-Pappas, a large industrial zone was created, containing refineries, oil refinery, and steel production (owned by Hellenic Steel Co.). The zone attracted also a series of different factories during the next decades.

During the 1980s, a spate of factory shutdowns occurred, mostly of automobile manufacturers, such as Agricola, AutoDiana, EBIAM, Motoemil, Pantelemidis-TITAN, and C.AR. Since the 1990s, companies took advantage of cheaper labor markets and more lax regulations in other countries. However, Thessaloniki still remains a major business hub in the Balkans and Greece, with a number of important Greek companies headquartered in the city, such as the Hellenic Vehicle Industry (ELVO), Namco, Astra Airlines, Ellinair, Pyramis, and MLS Multimedia, which introduced the first Greek-built smartphone in 2012. Multinational companies such as Air Liquide, Cyanamid, Nestlé, Pfizer, Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company, and Vivartia have industrial facilities in the suburbs of the city.

View of the port

The service sector accounts for nearly two-thirds of the total labor force of Thessaloniki.

The city's port, the Port of Thessaloniki, is one of the largest ports in the Aegean and as a free port, it functions as a major gateway to the Balkan hinterland. As a result, the city is a major transportation hub for the whole of south-eastern Europe.

In recent years Thessaloniki has begun to turn into a major port for cruising in the eastern Mediterranean.

Demographics

The municipality of Thessaloniki is the most populous in the Thessaloniki Urban Area.

Jewish family of Salonika in 1917

Since the late nineteenth century, many merchants from Western Europe (mainly from France and Italy) were established in the city. They had an important role in the social and economic life of the city and introduced new industrial techniques. Their main district was what is known today as the "Frankish district" (near Ladadika), where the Catholic church designed by Vitaliano Poselli is also situated. A part of them left after the incorporation of the city into the Greek kingdom, while others, who were of Jewish faith, lost their lives in Nazi concentration camps.

The Bulgarian community of the city also increased during the late nineteenth century. The community had a Men's High School, a Girl's High School, a trade union and a gymnastics society. A large part of them were Catholics, as a result of actions by the Lazarists society, which had its base in the city.

Another group is the Armenian community which dates back to the Byzantine and Ottoman periods. During the twentieth century, after the Armenian genocide and the defeat of the Greek army in the Greco-Turkish War (1919–22), many fled to Greece including Thessaloniki.

The Jewish population in Greece is the oldest in mainland Europe. When Paul the Apostle came to Thessaloniki, he taught in the area of what today is called Upper City. Later, during the Ottoman period, with the coming of Sephardic Jews from Spain, the community of Thessaloniki became mostly Sephardic. Thessaloniki became the largest center in Europe of the Sephardic Jews, who nicknamed the city la madre de Israel (Israel's mother). It also included the historically significant and ancient Greek-speaking Romaniote community.

Cityscape

Plan for central Thessaloniki by Ernest Hébrard. Much of the plan can be seen in today's city center.

Thessaloniki's urban area spreads over 30 kilometers (19 mi) from Oraiokastro in the north to Thermi in the south in the direction of Chalkidiki.

Architecture

Architecture in Thessaloniki is the direct result of the city's position at the center of all historical developments in the Balkans. Merchants, traders, and refugees from all over Europe settled in the city. The need for commercial and public buildings in this new era of prosperity led to the construction of large edifices in the city center. During this time, the city saw the building of banks, large hotels, theatres, warehouses, and factories. Architects who designed some of the most notable buildings of the city, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, include Vitaliano Poselli, Pietro Arrigoni, Xenophon Paionidis, Salvatore Poselli, Leonardo Gennari, Eli Modiano, Moshé Jacques, Joseph Pleyber, Frederic Charnot, Ernst Ziller, Max Rubens, Filimon Paionidis, Dimitris Andronikos, Levi Ernst, Angelos Siagas, Alexandros Tzonis, and more, using mainly the styles of Eclecticism, Art Nouveau, and Neobaroque.

The city layout changed after 1870, when the seaside fortifications gave way to extensive piers, and many of the oldest walls of the city were demolished, including those surrounding the White Tower, which today stands as the main landmark of the city. As parts of the early Byzantine walls were demolished, this allowed the city to expand east and west along the coast. The expansion of Eleftherias Square towards the sea completed the new commercial hub of the city and at the time was considered one of the most vibrant squares of the city. As the city grew, workers moved to the western districts, because of their proximity to factories and industrial activities; while the middle and upper classes gradually moved from the city-center to the eastern suburbs, leaving mainly businesses.

In 1917, a devastating fire swept through the city and burned uncontrollably for 32 hours. It destroyed the city's historic center and a large part of its architectural heritage, but paved the way for modern development featuring wider diagonal avenues and monumental squares.

Panoramic view of Aristotelous Square, one of Thessaloniki's most recognizable areas, which was designed by Ernest Hébrard

City center

The old Hotel Astoria on Tsimiski Street, typical beaux-arts architecture of the post-fire architecture boom

After the Great Thessaloniki Fire of 1917, a team of architects and urban planners including Thomas Mawson and Ernest Hebrard, a French architect, chose the Byzantine era as the basis of their (re)building designs for Thessaloniki's city center. The new city plan included axes, diagonal streets, and monumental squares, with a street grid that would channel traffic smoothly. The plan of 1917 included provisions for future population expansions and a street and road network that would be sufficient today. It contained sites for public buildings and provided for the restoration of Byzantine churches and Ottoman mosques.

A street in Ladadika district

Also called the historic center, it is divided into several districts, including Dimokratias Square (Democracy Sqare known also as Vardaris) Ladadika (where many entertainment venues and tavernas are located), Kapani (where the city's central Modiano market is located), Diagonios, Navarinou, Rotonda, Agia Sofia and Hippodromio, which are all located around Thessaloniki's most central point, Aristotelous Square.

Various commercial stoas (covered walkways or porticoes) around Aristotelous are named from the city's past and historic personalities of the city, like stoa Hirsch, stoa Carasso/Ermou, Pelosov, Colombou, Levi, Modiano, Morpurgo, Mordoch, Simcha, Kastoria, Malakopi, Olympios, Emboron, Rogoti, Vyzantio, Tatti, Agiou Mina, Karipi etc.

The western portion of the city center is home to Thessaloniki's law courts, its central international railway station and the port, while its eastern side hosts the city's two universities, the Thessaloniki International Exhibition Center, the city's main stadium, its archaeological and Byzantine museums, the new city hall and its central parks and gardens, namely those of the ΧΑΝΘ and Pedion tou Areos.

Ano Poli

Ano Poli (also called Old Town and literally the Upper Town) is the heritage listed district north of Thessaloniki's city center that was not engulfed by the great fire of 1917; it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site by ministerial actions of Melina Merkouri, during the 1980s. It consists of Thessaloniki's most traditional part of the city, still featuring small stone paved streets, old squares, and homes featuring old Greek and Ottoman architecture. It is the favorite area of Thessaloniki's poets, intellectuals, and bohemians.

Panorama of the city from Ano Poli

Ano Poli is also the highest point in Thessaloniki and as such, is the location of the city's acropolis, its Byzantine fort, the Heptapyrgion, a large portion of the city's remaining walls, and with many of its additional Ottoman and Byzantine structures still standing. With the capture of Thessaloniki by the Ottomans in 1430, after a lengthy siege of the city from 1422 to 1430, the Ottomans settled in Ano Poli. This geographical choice was attributed to the higher level of Ano Poli, which was convenient to control the rest of the population remotely, and the microclimate of the area, which favored better living conditions in terms of hygiene compared to the areas of the center.

Today, the area provides access to the Seich Sou Forest National Park and features panoramic views of the whole city and the Thermaic Gulf. On clear days Mount Olympus, at about 100 kilometers (62 mi) away across the gulf, can also be seen towering the horizon.

Other Districts

Xirokrini neighborhood

In the Municipality of Thessaloniki, in addition to the historic center and the Upper Town, are included the following districts: Xirokrini, Dikastiria (Courts), Ichthioskala, Palaios Stathmos, Lachanokipoi, Behtsinari, Panagia Faneromeni, Doxa, Saranta Ekklisies, Evangelistria, Triandria, Agia Triada-Faliro, Ippokrateio, Charilaou, Analipsi, Depot, and Toumba.

In the area of the Old Railway Station (Palaios Stathmos) are located the Railway Museum of Thessaloniki, the Water Supply Museum, and large entertainment venues of the city, such as Milos, Fix, Vilka (which are housed in converted old factories). The Thessaloniki railway station is located on Monastiriou street.

Other extended and densely built-up residential areas are Charilaou and Toumba, which is divided into "Ano Toumpa" and "Kato Toumpa". Toumba was named after the homonymous hill of Toumba, where extensive archaeological research takes place. It was created by refugees after the 1922 Asia Minor disaster and the population exchange (1923–1924). On Exochon avenue (Rue des Campagnes, today Vasilissis Olgas and Vasileos Georgiou Avenues), was up until the 1920s home to the city's most affluent residents and formed the outermost suburbs of the city at the time, with the area close to the Thermaic Gulf, from the nineteenth-century holiday villas which defined the area.

Thessaloniki urban area

The cultural center (including MOMus–Museum of Modern Art and two theatres of the National Theatre of Northern Greece), former Catholic Lazarist Monastery (Moni Lazariston)

Aerial view of the newest section of the promenade (Nea Paralia), which was opened to the public in January 2014

Other districts of the wider urban area of Thessaloniki are Ampelokipi, Eleftherio – Kordelio, Menemeni, Evosmos, Ilioupoli, Stavroupoli, Nikopoli, Neapoli, Polichni, Paeglos, Meteora, Agios Pavlos, Kalamaria, Pylaia, and the Sykies. Northwestern Thessaloniki is home to Moni Lazariston, located in Stavroupoli, which today forms one of the most important cultural centers for the city, including MOMus–Museum of Modern Art–Costakis Collection and two theatres of the National Theatre of Northern Greece.

In northwestern Thessaloniki many cultural premises exist, such as the open-air Theater Manos Katrakis in Sykies, the Museum of Refugee Hellenism in Neapolis, the municipal theatre and the open-air theatre in Neapoli and the New Cultural Center of Menemeni (Ellis Alexiou Street). The Stavroupolis Botanical Garden on Perikleous Street includes 1,000 species of plants and is a 5-acre (2.0 ha) oasis of greenery. The Environmental Education Center in Kordelio was designed in 1997 and is one of a few public buildings of bioclimatic design in Thessaloniki.

Northwest Thessaloniki forms the main entry point into the city of Thessaloniki with the avenues of Monastiriou, Lagkada, and 26is Octovriou passing through it, as well as the extension of the A1 motorway, feeding into Thessaloniki's city center. The area is home to the Macedonia InterCity Bus Terminal (KTEL), the Thessaloniki railway station, the Zeitenlik Allied memorial military cemetery.

Monuments have also been erected in honor of the fighters of the Greek Resistance, as in these areas the Resistance was very active: the monument of Greek National Resistance in Sykies, the monument of Greek National Resistance in Stavroupolis, the Statue of the struggling Mother in Eptalofos Square, and the monument of the young Greeks who were executed by the Nazis on May 11, 1944 in Xirokrini.

Today southeastern Thessaloniki has in some way become an extension of the city center, with the avenues of Megalou Alexandrou, Georgiou Papandreou (Antheon), Vasileos Georgiou, Vasilissis Olgas, Delfon, Konstantinou Karamanli (Nea Egnatia), and Papanastasiou passing through it, enclosing an area traditionally called Ντεπώ (Depó, lit. Dépôt), from the name of the old tram station.

The municipality of Kalamaria is also located in southeastern Thessaloniki, inhabited mainly by Greek refugees from Asia Minor and East Thrace after 1922. There are the Northern Greece Naval Command and the old royal palace (called Palataki), located on the most westerly point of Mikro Emvolo cape.

Paleochristian and Byzantine monuments

Because of Thessaloniki's importance during the early Christian and Byzantine periods, the city has several paleochristian monuments that have significantly contributed to the development of Byzantine art and architecture throughout the Byzantine Empire as well as Serbia. The evolution of Imperial Byzantine architecture and the prosperity of Thessaloniki go hand in hand, especially during the first years of the Empire when the city continued to flourish. It was at that time that the Complex of Roman emperor Galerius was built, as well as the first church of Hagios Demetrios.

By the eighth century, the city had become an important administrative center of the Byzantine Empire, and handled much of the Empire's Balkan affairs. During that time, the city saw the creation of more notable Christian churches that are now part of Thessaloniki's UNESCO World Heritage Site, such as the Church of Saint Catherine, the Hagia Sophia of Thessaloniki, the Church of the Acheiropoietos, the Church of Panagia Chalkeon. When the Ottoman Empire took control of Thessaloniki in 1430, most of the city's churches were converted into mosques, but have survived to this day. Travelers such as Paul Lucas and Abdulmejid I document the city's wealth in Christian monuments during the years of Ottoman control of the city.

Thessaloniki has more monuments listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site than any other city in Greece, a total of 15 monuments, listed since 1988.

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  The church of Saint Demetrius, patron saint of the city, built in the fourth century

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  Hagia Sophia, Thessaloniki

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  Panagia Chalkeon church in Thessaloniki (1028 C.E.)

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  The Byzantine Bath of the Upper Town

Urban sculptures

There are around 150 statues in the city. Probably the most famous is the equestrian statue of Alexander the Great on the promenade, placed in 1973 and created by sculptor Evangelos Moustakas. An equestrian statue of Constantine I, by sculptor Georgios Dimitriades, is located in Demokratias Square. Other notable statues include that of Eleftherios Venizelos by sculptor Giannis Pappas, Pavlos Melas by Natalia Mela, the statue of Emmanouel Pappas by Memos Makris, Chrysostomos of Smyrna by Athanasios Apartis, such as various creations by George Zongolopoulos.

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  The equestrian statue of Alexander the Great on the promenade

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  Statue of Aristotle on Aristotelous Square

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  Chrysostomos of Smyrna statue, Agias Sofias Square, Thessaloniki

Culture

Leisure and entertainment

The building of the Society of Macedonian studies, seat of the National Theatre of Northern Greece

The city has long been known in Greece for its vibrant city culture, including having the most cafes and bars per capita of any city in Europe; and as having some of the best nightlife and entertainment in the country, thanks to its large young population and multicultural feel.

The city's main theaters, run by the National Theatre of Northern Greece (Greek: Κρατικό Θέατρο Βορείου Ελλάδος), include the Theater of the Society of Macedonian Studies, where the National Theater is based, the Royal Theater (Βασιλικό Θέατρο)-the first base of the National Theater-, Moni Lazariston, and the Earth Theater and Forest Theater, both amphitheatrical open-air theatres overlooking the city.

The opera is based at the Thessaloniki Concert Hall, one of the largest concert halls in Greece. Thessaloniki is also the seat of two symphony orchestras, the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra and the Symphony Orchestra of the Municipality of Thessaloniki. Olympion Theater, the site of the Thessaloniki International Film Festival and the Plateia Assos Odeon multiplex are the two major cinemas in downtown Thessaloniki. The city also has a number of multiplex cinemas in major shopping malls in the suburbs, most notably in Mediterranean Cosmos, the largest retail and entertainment development in the Balkans.

Thessaloniki is renowned for its major shopping streets and lively laneways. Tsimiski Street, Mitropoleos and Proxenou Koromila avenue are the city's most famous shopping streets and are among Greece's most expensive and exclusive high streets. The city is also home to one of Greece's most famous and prestigious hotels, Makedonia Palace hotel, the Hyatt Regency Casino and hotel (the biggest casino in Greece and one of the biggest in Europe) and Waterland, the largest water park in southeastern Europe.

Parks and recreation

Marina of Aretsou

Part of the coastline of the southeastern suburb of Peraia on the Thermaic Gulf, with views towards Thessaloniki

Although Thessaloniki is not renowned for its parks and greenery throughout its urban area, where green spaces are few, it has several large open spaces around its waterfront, namely the central city gardens of Palios Zoologikos Kipos, the park of Pedion tou Areos, which also holds the city's annual floral expo; and the parks of the Nea Paralia (waterfront) that span for 3 kilometers (2 mi) along the coast, from the White Tower to the concert hall.

The Nea Paralia parks are used throughout the year for a variety of events, while they open up to the Thessaloniki waterfront, which is lined up with several cafés and bars; and during summer is full of Thessalonians enjoying their long evening walks (referred to as "the volta" and is embedded into the culture of the city).

Thessaloniki's proximity to places such as the national parks of Pieria and beaches of Chalkidiki allows its residents to easily have access to some of the best outdoor recreation in Europe; the city is also right next to the Seich Sou forest national park, just 3.5 kilometers (2 mi) away from Thessaloniki's city center; and offers residents and visitors alike, quiet viewpoints towards the city, mountain bike trails, and landscaped hiking paths. The city's zoo, which is operated by the municipality of Thessaloniki, is also located nearby the national park.

Other recreation spaces throughout the Thessaloniki metropolitan area include the Fragma Thermis, a landscaped parkland near Thermi and the Delta wetlands west of the city center; while urban beaches are located along the 10 kilometers (6 mi) coastline of Thessaloniki's southeastern suburbs of Thermaikos, about 20 kilometers (12 mi) away from the city center.

Museums and galleries

View of the Museum of Byzantine Culture

Because of the city's rich and diverse history, Thessaloniki houses many museums dealing with many different eras in history. Two of the city's most famous museums include the Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki and the Museum of Byzantine Culture.

Head of Isis, Archaeological Museum, Thessaloniki. Early third century B.C.E. (2021) by Ymblanter

The Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki was established in 1962 and houses some of the most important ancient Macedonian artifacts, including an extensive collection of golden artwork from the royal palaces of Aigai and [[Pella It also houses exhibits from Macedon's prehistoric past, dating from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age.

The Museum of Byzantine Culture is one of the city's most famous museums, showcasing the city's glorious Byzantine past. The museum of the White Tower of Thessaloniki houses a series of galleries relating to the city's past, from the creation of the White Tower until recent years.

One of the most modern museums in the city is the Thessaloniki Science Center and Technology Museum and is one of the most high-tech museums in Greece and southeastern Europe. It features the largest planetarium in Greece, a cosmotheatre with the country's largest flat screen, an amphitheater, a motion simulator with 3D projection and 6-axis movement and exhibition spaces. Other industrial and technological museums in the city include the Railway Museum of Thessaloniki, which houses an original Orient Express train, the War Museum of Thessaloniki and others. The city also has a number of educational and sports museums, including the Thessaloniki History Center and the Thessaloniki Olympic Museum.

The Atatürk Museum in Thessaloniki is the historic house where Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of modern-day Turkey, was born. The museum contains historic information about Atatürk and his life, especially while he was in Thessaloniki. The house is now part of the Turkish consulate complex, but admission to the museum is free. Other ethnological museums include the Historical Museum of the Balkan Wars, the Jewish Museum of Thessaloniki, and the Museum of the Macedonian Struggle, containing information about the anti-Ottoman rebellions of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

The city also has a number of important art galleries. Such include the Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art, housing exhibitions from a number of well-known Greek and foreign artists. The Teloglion Foundation of Art is part of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and includes an extensive collection of works by important artists of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, including works by prominent Greeks and native Thessalonians. The Thessaloniki Museum of Photography also houses a number of important exhibitions, and is located within the old port of Thessaloniki.

Archaeological sites

View of the Roman Forum (Ancient Agora)

Thessaloniki is home to a number of prominent archaeological sites. Apart from its recognized UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Thessaloniki features a large two-terraced Roman forum featuring two-storey stoas, dug up by accident in the 1960s. The forum complex also boasts two Roman baths and a small theater, which was also used for gladiatorial games.

Another important archaeological site is the imperial palace complex which Roman emperor Galerius, located at Navarinou Square, commissioned when he made Thessaloniki the capital of his portion of the Roman Empire. The large octagonal portion of the complex, most of which survives to this day, is believed to have been an imperial throne room. Various mosaics from the palatial complex have also survived.

Not far from the palace itself is the Arch of Galerius, known colloquially as the Kamara. The arch was built to commemorate the emperor's campaigns against the Persians. The original structure featured three arches; however, only two full arches and part of the third survive to this day. Many of the arches' marble parts survive as well, although it is mostly the brick interior that can be seen today.

Other monuments of the city's past, such as Las Incantadas, a Caryatid portico from the ancient forum, have been removed or destroyed over the years. Las Incantadas in particular are on display at the Louvre.

The construction of the Thessaloniki Metro inadvertently started the largest archaeological dig not only of the city, but of Northern Greece; the dig spans 20 square kilometers (7.7 sq mi) and has unearthed 300,000 individual artifacts from as early as the Roman Empire and as late as the Great Thessaloniki Fire of 1917. Ancient Thessaloniki's Decumanus Maximus was also found and 75 meters (250 ft) of the marble-paved and column-lined road were unearthed along with shops, other buildings, and plumbing, prompting one scholar to describe the discovery as "the Byzantine Pompeii."

Festivals

Olympion Theatre, seat of the International Film Festival

Thessaloniki is home of a number of festivals and events. The Thessaloniki International Fair is the most important event to be hosted in the city annually, by means of economic development. It was first established in 1926 and takes place every year at the 180,000 square meters (1,900,000 sq ft) Thessaloniki International Exhibition Center. The event attracts major political attention and it is customary for the Prime Minister of Greece to outline his administration's policies for the next year, during event.

The Thessaloniki International Film Festival is one of the most important film festivals in Southern Europe. The Documentary Festival, founded in 1999, has focused on documentaries that explore global social and cultural developments, with many of the films presented being candidates for FIPRESCI and Audience Awards.

The Dimitria festival, founded in 1966 and named after the city's patron saint of St. Demetrius, has focused on a wide range of events including music, theatre, dance, local happenings, and exhibitions. Thessaloniki also holds an annual International Book Fair.

Sports

The main stadium of the city is the Kaftanzoglio Stadium (also home ground of Iraklis F.C.), while other main stadiums of the city include the football Toumba Stadium and Kleanthis Vikelidis Stadium home grounds of PAOK FC and Aris F.C., respectively, all of whom are founding members of the Greek league. There are also aquatic and athletic complexes such as Ethniko and Poseidonio.

Being the largest "multi-sport" stadium in the city, Kaftanzoglio Stadium regularly plays host to athletics events; such as the European Athletics Association event "Olympic Meeting Thessaloniki" every year; it has hosted the Greek national championships in 2009 and has been used for athletics at the Mediterranean Games and for the European Cup in athletics.

Thessaloniki's major indoor arenas include the state-owned Alexandreio Melathron, P.A.O.K. Sports Arena and the YMCA indoor hall. Other sporting clubs in the city include Apollon FC based in Kalamaria, Agrotikos Asteras F.C. based in Evosmos and YMCA. Thessaloniki has a rich sporting history with its teams winning the first ever panhellenic football (Aris FC), basketball (Iraklis B.C.E.), and water polo (AC Aris) tournaments.

The city played a major role in the development of basketball in Greece. The local YMCA was the first to introduce the sport to the country, while Iraklis B.C.E. won the first ever Greek championship.

The city is also the finish point of the annual Alexander The Great Marathon, which starts at Pella, in recognition of its Ancient Macedonian heritage.

Cuisine

Bougatsa, typical Thessalonian treat

Because Thessaloniki remained under Ottoman rule for about 100 years longer than southern Greece, it has retained a lot of its Eastern character, including its culinary tastes. Spices in particular play an important role in the cuisine of Thessaloniki, something which is not true to the same degree about Greece's southern regions. Thessaloniki's Ladadika borough is a particularly busy area in regards to Thessalonian cuisine, with most tavernas serving traditional meze and other such culinary delights.

Bougatsa, a breakfast pastry, which can be either sweet or savory, is very popular throughout the city and has spread around other parts of Greece and the Balkans as well. Another popular snack is koulouri.

Notable sweets of the city are Trigona, Roxákia, Kourkoubinia, and Armenonville. A stereotypical Thessalonian coffee drink is Frappé coffee. Frappé was invented in the Thessaloniki International Fair in 1957 and has since spread throughout Greece and Cyprus to become a hallmark of the Greek coffee culture.

Kapani or Agora Viali is the oldest central market in Thessaloniki, with shops selling fish, meat, vegetables, fruits, drinks, olives, sweets, nuts, and spices; and Modiano Market is located nearby.

Tourism

A tourism boom took place in the 2010s, during the years of mayor Boutaris, especially from the neighboring countries, Austria, Israel, and Turkey. Today Thessaloniki is a popular tourist destination in Greece, and is known as a "party capital" due to its thriving nightlife and young atmosphere.

The city is renowned for its festivals, events and vibrant cultural life in general. Events such as the Thessaloniki International Fair and the Thessaloniki International Film Festival are held annually. Thessaloniki was the 2014 European Youth Capital. The city's main university, Aristotle University, is the largest in Greece and the Balkans.

Music

The city is viewed as romantic in Greece, and as such Thessaloniki is commonly featured in Greek songs. There are a number of famous songs that go by the name 'Thessaloniki' (rebetiko, laïko etc.) or include the name in their title.

During the 1930s and 1940s, the city became a center of the Rebetiko music, partly because of the Metaxas censorship, which was stricter in Athens.

The city is the birthplace of significant composers in the Greek music scene, such as Manolis Chiotis, Stavros Kouyioumtzis, and Dionysis Savvopoulos. It is also notable for its rock music scene and its many rock groups; some became famous such as Xylina Spathia, Trypes, or the pop rock group Onirama.

Between 1962–1997 and 2005–2008 the city also hosted the Thessaloniki Song Festival.

Mosaic of Saint Demetrius of Thessaloniki in the Church of Saint Demetrius in Thessaloniki

Notable Thessalonians

Throughout its history, Thessaloniki has been home to a number of well-known figures and people, including the following saints and other religious figures:

• Cyril and Methodius (creators of the first Slavic alphabet)
• Saint Mitre
• Saint Demetrius
• Gregorios Palamas
• Matthew Blastares
• Eustathius of Thessalonica and Patriarch Philotheus I of Constantinople
• Paisios of Mount Athos

Education

Aerial view of the campus of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (to the right), the largest university in Greece and the Balkans

Thessaloniki is a major center of education for Greece. Three of the country's largest universities are located in central Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, the University of Macedonia and the International Hellenic University. Aristotle University was founded in 1926 and is currently the largest university in Greece by number of students, and is a member of the Utrecht Network. Since 2010, Thessaloniki is also home to the Open University of Thessaloniki, which is funded by Aristotle University, the University of Macedonia and the municipality of Thessaloniki.

Additionally, a TEI (Technological Educational Institute), namely the Alexander Technological Educational Institute of Thessaloniki, is located in the western suburb of Sindos; home also to the industrial zone of the city. Numerous public and private vocational institutes (Greek: IEK) provide professional training to young students, while a large number of private colleges offer American and UK academic curriculum, via cooperation with foreign universities. In addition to Greek students, the city hence attracts many foreign students either via the Erasmus program for public universities, or for a complete degree in public universities or in the city's private colleges.

Transport

Tram

The old tram lines on Agiou Mina Street

Tram was the main, oldest and most popular public urban mean of Thessalonians in the past. It was in operation from 1893 to 1957, when it was disestablished by the government of Konstantinos Karamanlis. The Belgian Compagnie de Tramways et d' Éclairage Électrique de Salonique operated it from 1912 until 1940, when the company was purchased by the Hellenic State. The operating base and tram station was in the district of Dépôt.

Bus

Thessaloniki Urban Transport Organization (OASTH) operates buses as the only form of public transport in Thessaloniki. It was founded in 1957 and operates a fleet of 604 vehicles on 75 routes throughout the Thessaloniki metropolitan area. International and regional bus links are provided by KTEL at its Macedonia InterCity Bus Terminal, located to the west of the city center.

Metro

The creation of a metro system for Thessaloniki goes back as far as 1918, when Thomas Hayton Mawson and Ernest Hébrard proposed the creation of a Thessaloniki Metropolitan Railway. In 1968, a circular metro line was proposed, and in 1987 the first serious proposal was presented and construction briefly started in 1988, before stalling and finally being abandoned due to lack of funding. Both the 1918 and 1988 proposals ran almost the identical route to the current Line 1.

Construction on Thessaloniki's current metro began in 2006. Line 1 is 9.5 kilometers (5.9 mi) long and stops at 13 stations, while Line 2 is 4.8 kilometers (3.0 mi) long and stops at a further five stations, while also calling at 11 of the Line 1 stations. Line 2 is to be expanded further, with a loop extension to the western suburbs of the city, towards Evosmos and Stavroupoli, and one overground extension towards the Airport. Important archaeological discoveries were made during construction, and some of the system's stations house archaeological exhibitions.

Commuter rail

Commuter rail services have recently been established between Thessaloniki and the city of Larissa (the service is known in Greek as the "Proastiakos," meaning "Suburban Railway"). The service is operated using Siemens Desiro EMU trains on a modernised electrified double track and stops at 11 refurbished stations, covering the journey in 1 hour and 33 minutes. An additional line has also been established, although with the use of regional trains, between Thessaloniki and the city of Edessa.

Thessaloniki Airport "Makedonia"

Thessaloniki International Airport

International and domestic air traffic to and from the city is served by Thessaloniki Airport "Makedonia". After long delays, a new longer runway was completed in spring 2019, supporting intercontinental flights. Construction of a second terminal was completed in February 2021.

Railways

New railway station

Because of the Greek economic crisis, all international train links from the city were suspended in February 2011. Until then, the city was a major railway hub for the Balkans, with direct connections to Sofia, Skopje, Belgrade, Moscow, Vienna, Budapest, Bucharest and Istanbul, alongside Athens and other destinations in Greece. Daily through trains to Sofia and Belgrade were restarted in May 2014 but stopped again for COVID-19. Thessaloniki remains one of Greece's most important railway hubs and has the biggest marshalling yard in the country.

Regional train services within Greece (operated by TrainOSE, the Hellenic Railways Organization's train operating company), link the city with other parts of the country, from its central railway passenger station, called the "New railway station" located at the western end of Thessaloniki's city center.

Port

The Port of Thessaloniki connects the city with seasonal ferries to the Sporades and other north Aegean islands, with its passenger terminal, being one of the largest in the Aegean Sea basin. Actions have been ongoing on for more connections and the port was recently being upgraded, as Thessaloniki is also slowly turning into a major tourist port for cruising in the eastern Mediterranean.

Motorways

Part of the ring road (Peripheriaki Odos)

Thessaloniki lies on the crossroads of the A1/E75, A2/E90 and A25 motorways; which connect the city with other parts of the country, as well as the neighboring countries of North Macedonia, Bulgaria and Turkey.

The city itself is bypassed by the C-shaped Thessaloniki Inner Ring Road (Esoteriki Peripheriaki Odos, Greek: Εσωτερική Περιφεριακή Οδός), which all of the above motorways connect onto it. The western end of the route begins at the junction with the A1/A2 motorways in Lachanagora District. Clockwise it heads northeast around the city, passing through the northwestern suburbs, the forest of Seich Sou and through to the southeast suburb/borough of Kalamaria. The ring road ends at a large junction with the A24 motorway, which then continues south to Chalkidiki, passing through Thessaloniki's outer southeast suburbs.

An outer ring road known as Eksoteriki Peripheriaki Odos (Greek: Εξωτερική Περιφεριακή Οδός, outer ring road) carries all traffic that completely bypasses the city. It is Part of Motorway 2.

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External links

All links retrieved December 27, 2024.

• Municipality of Thessaloniki
• Thessaloniki Port Authority
• Thessaloniki Concert Hall
• Thessaloniki Film Festival
• Guide to Thessaloniki Greeka
• Thessaloniki Lonely Planet
• Thessaloniki Visit Greece

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