Aigaleo
Aigaleo
Αιγάλεω | |
---|---|
UTC+3 (EEST) | |
Postal code | 122 xx |
Area code(s) | 210 |
Vehicle registration | Z |
Website | www |
Aigaleo or Egaleo (Greek: Αιγάλεω, romanized: Aigáleo pronounced [eˈɣaleo]) is a town and a suburban municipality in the western part of the Athens urban area, belonging to the West Athens regional administrative unit. It takes its name from Mount Aigaleo, whose name comes from the words αίγα/aiga/goat and λαός/laos/people. Its population was 65,831 at the 2021 census.
Geography
Aigaleo is four km (2.5 mi) west of Athens city centre. The municipality has an area of 6.450 km2 (2.490 sq mi).[2] It is southeast of Mount Aigaleo. The Cephissus river flows through the industrialized eastern part of the municipality; about 1/4 of its area is taken up by factory developments. The town is served by two Metro stations: Egaleo and Agia Marina metro stations. The Motorway 1 (Athens-Thessaloniki-Evzones) passes through the town.
Aigaleo consists of the quarters Kato Aigaleo, Neo Aigaleo, Damarakia, Lioumi, Rosika, Agios Spyridonas and Agios Georgios.
History
During the ancient times, Aigaleo was primarily used by the tribes of Athens for farming and raising animals. In particular, the town was well-known for its excellent goat meat.
In 1874, the gunpowder factory "Ελληνικόν Πυριτιδοποιείο"/Ellinikon Pyritidopoieio was built, transforming Aigaleo into a heavily industrial area, covered by thick smog. In the dark tunnels where the construction sites operated, explosions often occurred and workers were buried alive. After each accident the blown-up galley was permanently sealed, without even declaring the dead. In 1908, after a merger, it was upgraded to a general ammunition production factory, and the company "
After the fall of Smyrna in 1922 during the
Aigaleo was a part of the
During the 1950s, in collaboration with NATO, the Aigaleo's gunpowder factory began production once again. The later Greek army rearmament, however, consisted primarily of imported guns and bullets. As a result, the factory began producing less and less. During the 1970s the production was almost non-existent, consisting mainly of small amounts of hunting shells.
After the passage of new legislation prohibiting the existence of factories within the limits of urban areas, Aigaleo's factory was declared illegal. The factory was finally moved to Elefsina in 1974. The old factory's area was later sold to the Greek state and transformed into a forest, greatly improving the air quality in the area.
The city's present mayor is Lampros Sklavounos , since the 2023 Greek local elections.
List of Mayors
- Athanasios Papadopoulos (1934-1939, first president of the community "Nees Kydonies")
- Giorgos Kourousis (1939-1944)
- Ioannis Batzakidis (1944-1945)
- Athanasios Papadopoulos (1945-1946)
- Sosipatros Moros (1946)
- Aggelos Kouvelos (1946–1950)
- Chr. Katharios (1950-1951)
- Apostolos Stigas (1951–1954)
- Stavros Mavrothalassitis (1955–1967, 1975–1978)
- Georgios Martinis (1959)
- military government, 1967–74)
- Leandros Rakindzis (1974-1975)
- Panos Spiliopoulos (1979–1986, 1991–1994)
- Ioannis Mistakopoulos (1987–1990, 1995–2002)
- Dimitris Kalogeropoulos (2003–2010)
- Christos Kardaras (1 September 2010 – 31 August 2014)
- Dimitris Birbas (1 September 2014 – 31 August 2019)
- Giannis Gikas (1 September 2019 – 31 August 2023)
- Lampros Sklavounos (1 September 2023 – present)[6]
Historical population
Year | Population |
---|---|
1940 | 17,686 (community) |
1951 | 29,464 |
1961 | 57,840 |
1971 | 79,961 |
1981 | 81,906 |
1991 | 78,563 |
2001 | 74,046 |
2011 | 69,946 |
2021[1] | 65,831 |
Culture
Aigaleo was always known for its nightlife, with numerous night clubs and
At some point, the town was known to have more than twenty cinemas. Out of those, only a couple remain operative to this day. The town also have the open theatre "Alexis Minotis" inside the forest. The town also operates the cultural centre "Elliniko Molybi"(the Greek pencil), that promotes local young artists, also teaching literature and theatre writing.
Sports
Aigaleo hosts many sport teams. The most successful is the Athletic Club Egaleo with successful departments in football (
Notable sport clubs based in Egaleo | |||
---|---|---|---|
Club | Sports | Founded | Achievements |
A.P.O. Orfeas | Football | 1928 | Earlier presence in Beta Ethniki |
Egaleo | Football | 1946 | Long-time presence in A Ethniki. B Ethniki Champions(4 times).
Γ Ethniki Champions(2 times). |
Basketball |
1956 | Earlier presence in A1 Ethniki | |
Diagoras Dryopideon | Basketball | 1967 | Earlier presence in Beta Ethniki |
Notable people
- Rita Abatzi, Greek musician
- Keti Garbi, Greek singer
- Giorgos Zampetas, Greek musician
- Eleni Rantou, Greek actor
- Giorgos Messalas, Greek actor
- Vicky Psarakis, Greek singer
International relations
Aigaleo is
- Comunidad de Madrid), Spain
- Kythrea, Cyprus(under Turkish occupation, since August 1974)
References
- ^ a b "Αποτελέσματα Απογραφής Πληθυσμού - Κατοικιών 2021, Μόνιμος Πληθυσμός κατά οικισμό" [Results of the 2021 Population - Housing Census, Permanent population by settlement] (in Greek). Hellenic Statistical Authority. 29 March 2024.
- ^ "Population & housing census 2001 (incl. area and average elevation)" (PDF) (in Greek). National Statistical Service of Greece. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-21.
- ^ "EETAA local government changes". Retrieved 28 June 2020.
- ^ efimeris.nlg.gr http://efimeris.nlg.gr/ns/pdfwin_ftr.asp?c=64&pageid=93&id=-1&s=0&STEMTYPE=0&STEM_WORD_PHONETIC_IDS=ARsASdASZASRAScASRASMASXASYASXASRASNASHASX&CropPDF=0. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
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(help) - ^ https://www.aigaleo.gr/dimarhos/.
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Sources
- "Τέχνης έργα και πρόσωπα του Αιγάλεω" (Published by the Municipality of Egaleo)
- "Εξήντα χρόνια τοπική αυτοδιοίκηση στο Αιγάλεω" (Nikolaos Mihiotis)
- "Απ' τις Νέες Κυδωνίες στο Δήμο Αιγάλεω" (Eugenia Bournova)
External links
- (in Greek) Municipality of Aigaleo