Athens

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Coordinates: 37°59′03″N 23°43′41″E / 37.98417°N 23.72806°E / 37.98417; 23.72806
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Athens
Αθήνα
Capital city
Acropolis of Athens from Mount Lycabettus
Zappeion
Monastiraki
Metropolitan Cathedral
Old Royal Palace
(The Hellenic Parliament)
Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center
Academy of Athens
UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal codes
10x xx, 11x xx, 120 xx
Telephone21
Vehicle registrationYxx, Zxx, Ixx
Patron saintDionysius the Areopagite (3 October)
Major airport(s)Athens International Airport
Websitecityofathens.gr

Athens (

Municipality of Athens (also City of Athens), which constitutes a small administrative unit of the entire urban area, had a population of 643,452 (2021)[4] within its official limits, and a land area of 38.96 km2 (15.04 sq mi).[7][8]

Athens is one of the

Western civilization and the birthplace of democracy in its own right independently from the rest of Greece.[14][15]

In modern times, Athens is a huge cosmopolitan

urban agglomeration, with a population of 3,638,281 (2021)[4][20][21] over an area of 2,928.717 km2 (1,131 sq mi).[8]

The heritage of the

UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the Acropolis of Athens and the medieval Daphni Monastery. Athens is also home to several museums and cultural institutions, such as the National Archeological Museum, featuring the world's largest collection of ancient Greek antiquities, the Acropolis Museum, the Museum of Cycladic Art, the Benaki Museum, and the Byzantine and Christian Museum. Athens was the host city of the first modern-day Olympic Games in 1896, and 108 years later it hosted the 2004 Summer Olympics, making it one of five cities to have hosted the Summer Olympics on multiple occasions.[22]

Etymology and names

Further information: Names of European cities in different languages (A)

In

Ancient Greek, the name of the city was Ἀθῆναι (Athênai, pronounced [atʰɛ̂ːnai̯] in Classical Attic), which is a plural word. In earlier Greek, such as Homeric Greek, the name had been current in the singular form though, as Ἀθήνη (Athḗnē).[23] It was possibly rendered in the plural later on, like those of Θῆβαι (Thêbai) and Μυκῆναι (Μukênai). The root of the word is probably not of Greek or Indo-European origin,[24] and is possibly a remnant of the Pre-Greek substrate of Attica.[24] In antiquity, it was debated whether Athens took its name from its patron goddess Athena (Attic Ἀθηνᾶ, Athēnâ, Ionic Ἀθήνη, Athḗnē, and Doric Ἀθάνα, Athā́nā) or Athena took her name from the city.[25] Modern scholars now generally agree that the goddess takes her name from the city,[25] because the ending -ene is common in names of locations, but rare for personal names.[25]

According to the ancient Athenian

olive tree.[26][27] Cecrops accepted this gift[26] and declared Athena the patron goddess of Athens.[26][27] Eight different etymologies, now commonly rejected, have been proposed since the 17th century. Christian Lobeck proposed as the root of the name the word ἄθος (áthos) or ἄνθος (ánthos) meaning "flower", to denote Athens as the "flowering city". Ludwig von Döderlein proposed the stem of the verb θάω, stem θη- (tháō, thē-, "to suck") to denote Athens as having fertile soil.[28] Athenians were called cicada-wearers (Ancient Greek: Τεττιγοφόροι) because they used to wear pins of golden cicadas. A symbol of being autochthonous (earth-born), because the legendary founder of Athens, Erechtheus was an autochthon or of being musicians, because the cicada is a "musician" insect.[29] In classical literature, the city was sometimes referred to as the City of the Violet Crown
, first documented in Pindar's ἰοστέφανοι Ἀθᾶναι (iostéphanoi Athânai), or as τὸ κλεινὸν ἄστυ (tò kleinòn ásty, "the glorious city").

During the medieval period, the name of the city was rendered once again in the singular as Ἀθήνα. Variant names included Setines, Satine, and Astines, all derivations involving

false splitting of prepositional phrases.[30] King Alphonse X of Castile gives the pseudo-etymology 'the one without death/ignorance'.[31][page needed] In Ottoman Turkish, it was called آتينا‎ Ātīnā,[32]
and in modern Turkish, it is Atina.

History

Historical affiliations
1822–present
Main article: History of Athens
For a chronological guide, see Timeline of Athens.

Antiquity

Main articles:
Roman Greece

The oldest known human presence in Athens is the Cave of Schist, which has been dated to between the 11th and 7th millennia BC.

like many other Bronze Age settlements, went into economic decline for around 150 years afterwards.[37] Iron Age burials, in the Kerameikos[38] and other locations, are often richly provided for and demonstrate that from 900 BC onwards Athens was one of the leading centres of trade and prosperity in the region.[39]

Peisistratus

By the sixth century BC, widespread social unrest led to the reforms of Solon. These would pave the way for the eventual introduction of democracy by Cleisthenes in 508 BC. Athens had by this time become a significant naval power with a large fleet, and helped the rebellion of the Ionian cities against Persian rule. In the ensuing Greco-Persian Wars Athens, together with Sparta, led the coalition of Greek states that would eventually repel the Persians, defeating them decisively at Marathon in 490 BC, and crucially at Salamis in 480 BC. However, this did not prevent Athens from being captured and sacked twice by the Persians within one year, after a heroic but ultimately failed resistance at Thermopylae by Spartans and other Greeks led by King Leonidas,[40] after both Boeotia and Attica fell to the Persians.

Delian League under the leadership of Athens before the Peloponnesian War in 431 BC

The decades that followed became known as the

Greek city-states to continue the fight against the Persians, the league soon turned into a vehicle for Athens's own imperial ambitions. The resulting tensions brought about the Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC), in which Athens was defeated by its rival Sparta.[41]

The Parthenon on the Acropolis hill in Athens

By the mid-4th century BC, the northern Greek kingdom of

Macedon was becoming dominant in Athenian affairs. In 338 BC the armies of Philip II defeated an alliance of some of the Greek city-states including Athens and Thebes at the Battle of Chaeronea. Later, under Rome, Athens was given the status of a free city because of its widely admired schools. In the second century AD, The Roman emperor Hadrian, himself an Athenian citizen,[42] ordered the construction of a library, a gymnasium, an aqueduct which is still in use, several temples and sanctuaries, a bridge and financed the completion of the Temple of Olympian Zeus
.

Tower of the Winds in the Roman Agora, the second commercial centre of ancient Athens

In the early 4th century AD, the

Rhomaioi"). The conversion of the empire from paganism to Christianity greatly affected Athens, resulting in reduced reverence for the city.[35]
Ancient monuments such as the Parthenon, Erechtheion and the Hephaisteion (Theseion) were converted into churches. As the empire became increasingly anti-pagan, Athens became a provincial town and experienced fluctuating fortunes.

The city remained an important center of learning, especially of

Theme of Hellas.[43]

Middle Ages

Further information: Byzantine Greece and Duchy of Athens
UNESCO World Heritage Sites

The city was threatened by

iconophile position, chiefly due to the role played by Empress Irene of Athens in the ending of the first period of Iconoclasm at the Second Council of Nicaea in 787.[43] A few years later, another Athenian, Theophano, became empress as the wife of Staurakios (r. 811–812).[43]

Invasion of the empire by the Turks after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, and the ensuing civil wars, largely passed the region by and Athens continued its provincial existence unharmed. When the Byzantine Empire was rescued by the resolute leadership of the three Komnenos emperors Alexios, John and Manuel, Attica and the rest of Greece prospered. Archaeological evidence tells us that the medieval town experienced a period of rapid and sustained growth, starting in the 11th century and continuing until the end of the 12th century.

Propylaea and view west over the Athenian plain towards Mount Aigaleo
before it demolished in 1875

The Agora (marketplace) had been deserted since late antiquity, began to be built over, and soon the town became an important centre for the production of soaps and dyes. The growth of the town attracted the Venetians, and various other traders who frequented the ports of the Aegean, to Athens. This interest in trade appears to have further increased the economic prosperity of the town.

The 11th and 12th centuries were the Golden Age of

Latins before it was taken by the Ottoman Turks
. It did not become Greek in government again until the 19th century.

From 1204 until 1458, Athens was ruled by Latins in three separate periods, following the

fiefs, similar to the Crusader states established in Syria and on Cyprus after the First Crusade. This period is known as the Frankokratia
.

Ottoman Athens

Main article: Ottoman Greece
Tzistarakis Mosque, an Ottoman mosque, built in 1759, in Monastiraki Square
The second Parthenon mosque in the ruined Parthenon, which was destroyed by a Venetian bombardment in 1687, depicted by Pierre Peytier in the 1830s

The first Ottoman attack on Athens, which involved a short-lived occupation of the town, came in 1397, under the Ottoman generals Yaqub Pasha and Timurtash.[45] Finally, in 1458, Athens was captured by the Ottomans under the personal leadership of Sultan Mehmed II.[45] As the Ottoman Sultan rode into the city, he was greatly struck by the beauty of its ancient monuments and issued a firman (imperial edict) forbidding their looting or destruction, on pain of death. The Parthenon was converted into the main mosque of the city.[35]

Under Ottoman rule, Athens was denuded of any importance and its population severely declined, leaving it as a "small country town" (

Sultan's harem. The city had originally been granted by Sultan Ahmed I (r. 1603–1617) to Basilica, one of his favourite concubines, who hailed from the city, in response of complaints of maladministration by the local governors. After her death, Athens came under the purview of the Kizlar Agha.[46]

The Turks began a practice of storing gunpowder and explosives in the Parthenon and

Propylaea. In 1640, a lightning bolt struck the Propylaea, causing its destruction.[47] In 1687, during the Morean War, the Acropolis was besieged by the Venetians under Francesco Morosini, and the temple of Athena Nike was dismantled by the Ottomans to fortify the Parthenon. A shot fired during the bombardment of the Acropolis caused a powder magazine in the Parthenon to explode (26 September), and the building was severely damaged, giving it largely the appearance it has today. The Venetian occupation of Athens lasted for six months, and both the Venetians and the Ottomans participated in the looting of the Parthenon. One of its western pediments was removed, causing even more damage to the structure.[35][45] During the Venetian occupation, the two mosques of the city were converted into Catholic and Protestant churches, but on 9 April 1688 the Venetians abandoned Athens again to the Ottomans.[45]

Modern history

Main articles:
Republic of Greece
The Entry of King Otto in Athens, Peter von Hess, 1839

In 1822, a Greek insurgency captured the city, but it fell to the Ottomans again in 1826 (though Acropolis held till June 1827). Again the ancient monuments suffered badly. The Ottoman forces remained in possession until March 1833, when they withdrew.

Following the

King of Greece, King Otto of Bavaria, commissioned the architects Stamatios Kleanthis and Eduard Schaubert to design a modern city plan fit for the capital of a state.[citation needed
]

Olympic Flame at the opening ceremony of the 2004 Summer Olympics

The first modern city plan consisted of a triangle defined by the Acropolis, the ancient cemetery of

Greek Parliament), so as to highlight the continuity between modern and ancient Athens. Neoclassicism, the international style of this epoch, was the architectural style through which Bavarian, French and Greek architects such as Hansen, Klenze, Boulanger or Kaftantzoglou designed the first important public buildings of the new capital.[citation needed] In 1896, Athens hosted the first modern Olympic Games. During the 1920s a number of Greek refugees, expelled from Asia Minor after the Greco-Turkish War and Population exchange between Greece and Turkey, swelled Athens's population; nevertheless it was most particularly following World War II, and from the 1950s and 1960s, that the population of the city exploded,[citation needed
] and Athens experienced a gradual expansion.

In the 1980s, it became evident that smog from factories and an ever-increasing fleet of automobiles, as well as a lack of adequate free space due to congestion, had evolved into the city's most important challenge.[citation needed] A series of anti-pollution measures taken by the city's authorities in the 1990s, combined with a substantial improvement of the city's infrastructure (including the Attiki Odos motorway, the expansion of the Athens Metro, and the new Athens International Airport), considerably alleviated pollution and transformed Athens into a much more functional city. In 2004, Athens hosted the 2004 Summer Olympics.

Geography

The Athens Urban Area within the Attica Basin from space

Athens sprawls across the central plain of Attica that is often referred to as the Athens Basin or the Attica Basin (

Thriasian plain, which forms an extension of the central plain to the west. The Saronic Gulf lies to the southwest. Mount Parnitha is the tallest of the four mountains (1,413 m (4,636 ft)),[50] and has been declared a national park. The Athens urban area spreads over 50 kilometres (31 mi) from Agios Stefanos in the north to Varkiza
in the south. The city is located in the north temperate zone, 38 degrees north of the equator.

Athens is built around a large number of hills. Lycabettus is one of the tallest hills of the city proper and provides a view of the entire Attica Basin. The meteorology of Athens is deemed to be one of the most complex in the world because its mountains cause a temperature inversion phenomenon which, along with the Greek government's difficulties controlling industrial pollution, was responsible for the air pollution problems the city has faced.[35] This issue is not unique to Athens; for instance, Los Angeles and Mexico City also suffer from similar atmospheric inversion problems.[35]

The Cephissus river, the Ilisos and the Eridanos stream are the historical rivers of Athens.

Environment

Smog in Athens

By the late 1970s, the pollution of Athens had become so destructive that according to the then Greek

Erechtheum had seriously degenerated, while the face of the horseman on the Parthenon's west side was all but obliterated."[51]
A series of measures taken by the authorities of the city throughout the 1990s resulted in the improvement of air quality; the appearance of smog (or nefos as the Athenians used to call it) has become less common.

Measures taken by the Greek authorities throughout the 1990s have improved the quality of air over the Attica Basin. Nevertheless, air pollution still remains an issue for Athens, particularly during the hottest summer days. In late June 2007,[52] the Attica region experienced a number of brush fires,[52] including a blaze that burned a significant portion of a large forested national park in Mount Parnitha,[53] considered critical to maintaining a better air quality in Athens all year round.[52] Damage to the park has led to worries over a stalling in the improvement of air quality in the city.[52]

The major waste management efforts undertaken in the last decade (particularly the plant built on the small island of Psytalia) have greatly improved water quality in the Saronic Gulf, and the coastal waters of Athens are now accessible again to swimmers.

Parks and zoos

The Pedion tou Areos park
National Gardens, commissioned by Queen Amalia
in 1838 and completed by 1840

Temple of Olympian Zeus at Vasilissis Olgas Avenue, continues under the southern slopes of the Acropolis near Plaka, and finishes just beyond the Temple of Hephaestus in Thiseio. The route in its entirety provides visitors with views of the Parthenon and the Agora
(the meeting point of ancient Athenians), away from the busy City Centre.

The hills of Athens also provide green space. Lycabettus, Philopappos hill and the area around it, including Pnyx and Ardettos hill, are planted with pines and other trees, with the character of a small forest rather than typical metropolitan parkland. Also to be found is the Pedion tou Areos (Field of Mars) of 27.7 hectares, near the National Archaeological Museum. Athens' largest zoo is the Attica Zoological Park, a 20-hectare (49-acre) private zoo located in the suburb of Spata. The zoo is home to around 2000 animals representing 400 species, and is open 365 days a year. Smaller zoos exist within public gardens or parks, such as the zoo within the National Garden of Athens.

Climate

Sunrise in Athens

Athens has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification: Csa). The climate in Athens can be considered warmer than some cities that are similar or even less distant from the equator such as Seoul, Melbourne, Buenos Aires, Cape Town and Norfolk (Virgina, US). According to the meteorological station near the city center which is operated by the National Observatory of Athens, the downtown area has an annual average temperature of 19.2 °C (66.6 °F) while parts of the urban agglomeration may reach up to 19.8 °C (67.6 °F), being affected by the urban heat island effect.[56] Athens receives about 433.1 millimetres (17.05 in) of precipitation per year, largely concentrated during the colder half of the year with the remaining rainfall falling sparsely, mainly during thunderstorms. Fog is rare in the city center, but somewhat more frequent in areas to the east, close to mount Hymettus.[57]

The southern section of the Athens metropolitan area (i.e., Elliniko, Athens Riviera) lies in the transitional zone between Mediterranean (Csa) and hot semi-arid climate (BSh), with its port-city of Piraeus being the most extreme example, receiving just 331.9 millimetres (13.07 in) per year. The areas to the south generally see less extreme temperature variations as their climate is moderated by the Saronic gulf.[58] The northern part of the city (i.e., Kifissia), owing to its higher elevation, features moderately lower temperatures and slightly increased precipitation year-round. The generally dry climate of the Athens basin compared to the precipitation amounts seen in a typical Mediterranean climate is due to the rain shadow effect caused by the Pindus mountain range and the Dirfys and Parnitha mountains, substantially drying the westerly[59] and northerly[57] winds respectively.

Snowfall in Athens on 16 February 2021

Snowfall is not very common, though it occurs almost annually, but it usually does not cause heavy disruption to daily life, in contrast to the northern parts of the city, where blizzards occur on a somewhat more regular basis. The most recent examples include the snowstorms of 16 February 2021[60] and 24 January 2022,[61] when the entire urban area was blanketed in snow.

Athens may get particularly hot in the summer, owing partly to the strong

mainland Europe,[63] and is the first city in Europe to appoint a chief heat officer to deal with severe heat waves.[64] Temperatures of 47.5°C have been reported in several locations of the metropolitan area, including within the urban agglomeration. Metropolitan Athens was until 2021 the holder of the World Meteorological Organization record for the highest temperature ever recorded in Europe with 48.0 °C (118.4 °F) which was recorded in the areas of Elefsina and Tatoi on 10 July 1977.[65][66]

Climate data for downtown Athens (1991–2020), Extremes (1890–present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 22.8
(73.0) 		25.3
(77.5) 		28.2
(82.8) 		32.2
(90.0) 		37.6
(99.7) 		44.8
(112.6) 		42.8
(109.0) 		43.9
(111.0) 		38.7
(101.7) 		36.5
(97.7) 		30.5
(86.9) 		23.1
(73.6) 		44.8
(112.6)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 13.3
(55.9) 		14.2
(57.6) 		17.0
(62.6) 		21.1
(70.0) 		26.5
(79.7) 		31.6
(88.9) 		34.3
(93.7) 		34.3
(93.7) 		29.6
(85.3) 		24.4
(75.9) 		18.9
(66.0) 		14.4
(57.9) 		23.3
(73.9)
Daily mean °C (°F) 10.2
(50.4) 		10.8
(51.4) 		13.1
(55.6) 		16.7
(62.1) 		21.8
(71.2) 		26.6
(79.9) 		29.3
(84.7) 		29.4
(84.9) 		25.0
(77.0) 		20.3
(68.5) 		15.6
(60.1) 		11.6
(52.9) 		19.2
(66.6)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 7.1
(44.8) 		7.3
(45.1) 		9.2
(48.6) 		12.3
(54.1) 		17.0
(62.6) 		21.6
(70.9) 		24.2
(75.6) 		24.4
(75.9) 		20.4
(68.7) 		16.2
(61.2) 		12.2
(54.0) 		8.7
(47.7) 		15.0
(59.0)
Record low °C (°F) −6.5
(20.3) 		−5.7
(21.7) 		−2.6
(27.3) 		1.7
(35.1) 		6.2
(43.2) 		11.8
(53.2) 		16.0
(60.8) 		15.5
(59.9) 		8.9
(48.0) 		5.9
(42.6) 		−1.1
(30.0) 		−4.0
(24.8) 		−6.5
(20.3)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 55.6
(2.19) 		44.4
(1.75) 		45.6
(1.80) 		27.6
(1.09) 		20.7
(0.81) 		11.6
(0.46) 		10.7
(0.42) 		5.4
(0.21) 		25.8
(1.02) 		38.6
(1.52) 		70.8
(2.79) 		76.3
(3.00) 		433.1
(17.06)
Average
relative humidity
(%) 		72.0 70.0 66.0 60.0 56.0 50.0 42.0 47.0 57.0 66.0 72.0 73.0 60.9
Average ultraviolet index 2 3 5 7 9 10 10 9 6 4 2 2 6
Source 1: Cosmos, scientific magazine of the National Observatory of Athens[67]
Source 2: Meteoclub[68][69]
Climate data for Neos Kosmos 85 m a.s.l.
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 22.8
(73.0) 		25.0
(77.0) 		25.4
(77.7) 		31.2
(88.2) 		36.4
(97.5) 		41.2
(106.2) 		42.6
(108.7) 		42.8
(109.0) 		38.1
(100.6) 		32.6
(90.7) 		27.5
(81.5) 		23.4
(74.1) 		42.8
(109.0)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 13.9
(57.0) 		15.3
(59.5) 		17.5
(63.5) 		21.7
(71.1) 		25.7
(78.3) 		31.0
(87.8) 		34.0
(93.2) 		33.6
(92.5) 		29.6
(85.3) 		24.0
(75.2) 		19.9
(67.8) 		15.6
(60.1) 		23.5
(74.3)
Daily mean °C (°F) 11.2
(52.2) 		12.4
(54.3) 		14.3
(57.7) 		18.0
(64.4) 		22.1
(71.8) 		27.1
(80.8) 		30.2
(86.4) 		30.0
(86.0) 		26.1
(79.0) 		20.8
(69.4) 		17.0
(62.6) 		13.0
(55.4) 		20.2
(68.3)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 8.5
(47.3) 		9.5
(49.1) 		11.0
(51.8) 		14.3
(57.7) 		18.4
(65.1) 		23.2
(73.8) 		26.5
(79.7) 		26.3
(79.3) 		22.5
(72.5) 		17.6
(63.7) 		14.1
(57.4) 		10.3
(50.5) 		16.8
(62.3)
Record low °C (°F) −1.2
(29.8) 		−0.5
(31.1) 		0.0
(32.0) 		5.2
(41.4) 		12.6
(54.7) 		15.8
(60.4) 		19.6
(67.3) 		20.8
(69.4) 		15.7
(60.3) 		9.3
(48.7) 		6.7
(44.1) 		0.9
(33.6) 		−1.2
(29.8)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 53.2
(2.09) 		47.5
(1.87) 		33.6
(1.32) 		19.8
(0.78) 		17.2
(0.68) 		22.0
(0.87) 		6.1
(0.24) 		6.2
(0.24) 		23.3
(0.92) 		43.3
(1.70) 		62.1
(2.44) 		68.5
(2.70) 		402.8
(15.85)
Source 1: National Observatory of Athens Monthly Bulletins (Oct 2010 - Jul 2024) [70]
Source 2: Neos Kosmos N.O.A station, [71] World Meteorological Organization[72]
Climate data for Elliniko, coastal Athens (1955–2010), Extremes (1957–present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 22.4
(72.3) 		24.2
(75.6) 		27.0
(80.6) 		30.9
(87.6) 		35.6
(96.1) 		40.0
(104.0) 		42.2
(108.0) 		43.0
(109.4) 		37.2
(99.0) 		35.2
(95.4) 		28.6
(83.5) 		22.9
(73.2) 		43.0
(109.4)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 13.6
(56.5) 		14.1
(57.4) 		15.9
(60.6) 		19.6
(67.3) 		24.4
(75.9) 		29.2
(84.6) 		32.2
(90.0) 		32.2
(90.0) 		28.3
(82.9) 		23.4
(74.1) 		18.8
(65.8) 		15.1
(59.2) 		22.2
(72.0)
Daily mean °C (°F) 10.3
(50.5) 		10.6
(51.1) 		12.4
(54.3) 		16.1
(61.0) 		20.9
(69.6) 		25.6
(78.1) 		28.3
(82.9) 		28.2
(82.8) 		24.3
(75.7) 		19.6
(67.3) 		15.4
(59.7) 		11.9
(53.4) 		18.6
(65.5)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 7.0
(44.6) 		7.1
(44.8) 		8.5
(47.3) 		11.5
(52.7) 		15.8
(60.4) 		20.3
(68.5) 		23.0
(73.4) 		23.1
(73.6) 		19.6
(67.3) 		15.7
(60.3) 		12.0
(53.6) 		8.8
(47.8) 		14.4
(57.9)
Record low °C (°F) −2.9
(26.8) 		−4.2
(24.4) 		−2.0
(28.4) 		0.6
(33.1) 		8.0
(46.4) 		11.4
(52.5) 		15.5
(59.9) 		16.0
(60.8) 		10.4
(50.7) 		3.0
(37.4) 		1.4
(34.5) 		−2.0
(28.4) 		−4.2
(24.4)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 47.7
(1.88) 		38.5
(1.52) 		42.3
(1.67) 		25.5
(1.00) 		14.3
(0.56) 		5.4
(0.21) 		6.3
(0.25) 		6.2
(0.24) 		12.3
(0.48) 		45.9
(1.81) 		60.1
(2.37) 		62.0
(2.44) 		366.5
(14.43)
Average rainy days 12.9 11.4 11.3 9.3 6.4 3.6 1.7 1.6 4.7 8.6 10.9 13.5 95.9
Average
relative humidity
(%) 		69.3 68.0 65.9 62.2 58.2 51.8 46.6 46.8 54.0 62.6 69.2 70.4 60.4
Mean monthly sunshine hours 130.2 134.4 182.9 231.0 291.4 336.0 362.7 341.0 276.0 207.7 153.0 127.1 2,773.4
Source 1:
HNMS (1955–2010 normals)[73]
Source 2: Deutscher Wetterdienst (Extremes 1961–1990),[74] Info Climat (Extremes 1991–present)[75][76]

Administration

Athens City Hall
Old Royal Palace

Athens became the capital of Greece in 1834, following

Nafplion, which was the provisional capital from 1829. The municipality (City) of Athens is also the capital of the Attica region
. The term Athens can refer either to the Municipality of Athens, to Greater Athens or urban area, or to the entire Athens Metropolitan Area.

The large City Centre (

Athens Urban Area
and it is the second largest in population size within it.

Athens Urban Area

The Athens Urban Area (Greek: Πολεοδομικό Συγκρότημα Αθηνών, romanized: Poleodomikó Synkrótima Athinón), also known as Urban Area of the Capital (Greek: Πολεοδομικό Συγκρότημα Πρωτεύουσας, romanized: Poleodomikó Synkrótima Protévousas) or Greater Athens (Greek: Ευρύτερη Αθήνα, romanized: Evrýteri Athína),[78] today consists of 40 municipalities, 35 of which make up what was referred to as the former Athens Prefecture municipalities, located within 4 regional units (North Athens, West Athens, Central Athens, South Athens); and a further 5 municipalities, which make up the former Piraeus Prefecture municipalities, located within the regional unit of Piraeus as mentioned above.

The Athens Municipality forms the core and center of Greater Athens, which in its turn consists of the Athens Municipality and 40 more municipalities, divided in four regional units (Central, North, South and West Athens), accounting for 2,611,713 people (in 2021)[4] within an area of 361 km2 (139 sq mi).[8] Until 2010, which made up the abolished Athens Prefecture and the municipality of Piraeus, the historic Athenian port, with 4 other municipalities make up the regional unit of Piraeus. The regional units of Central Athens, North Athens, South Athens, West Athens and Piraeus with part of East[79] and West Attica[80] regional units combined make up the continuous Athens Urban Area,[80][81][82] also called the "Urban Area of the Capital" or simply "Athens" (the most common use of the term), spanning over 412 km2 (159 sq mi),[83] with a population of 3,059,764 people as of 2021. The Athens Urban Area is considered to form the city of Athens as a whole, despite its administrative divisions, which is the largest in Greece and the 9th most populated urban area in Europe.

Athens Urban Area
Regional units:
Central Athens:
     Athens Municipality
     Other municipalities
     North Athens
     South Athens
     West Athens
     Piraeus

Athens metropolitan area

Main article: Athens metropolitan area
Athens metropolitan area

The Athens metropolitan area spans 2,928.717 km2 (1,131 sq mi) within the Attica region and includes a total of 58 municipalities, which are organized in seven regional units (those outlined above, along with East Attica and West Attica), having reached a population of 3,638,281 according to the 2021 census.[4] Athens and Piraeus municipalities serve as the two metropolitan centres of the Athens Metropolitan Area.[84] There are also some inter-municipal centres serving specific areas. For example, Kifissia and Glyfada serve as inter-municipal centres for northern and southern suburbs respectively.

View of Vila Atlantis, in Kifissia, designed by Ernst Ziller
Beach in the southern suburb of Alimos, one of the many beaches in the southern coast of Athens

The

Eleusina, Acharnes and Kamatero
).

The Athens city coastline, extending from the major commercial port of Piraeus to the southernmost suburb of Varkiza for some 25 km (20 mi),[86] is also connected to the City Centre by tram.

In the northern suburb of Maroussi, the upgraded main Olympic Complex (known by its Greek acronym OAKA) dominates the skyline. The area has been redeveloped according to a design by the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, with steel arches, landscaped gardens, fountains, futuristic glass, and a landmark new blue glass roof which was added to the main stadium. A second Olympic complex, next to the sea at the beach of Palaio Faliro, also features modern stadia, shops and an elevated esplanade. Work is underway to transform the grounds of the old Athens Airport – named Elliniko – in the southern suburbs, into one of the largest landscaped parks in Europe, to be named the Hellenikon Metropolitan Park.[87]

Many of the southern suburbs (such as

Elliniko, Glyfada, Voula, Vouliagmeni and Varkiza) known as the Athens Riviera, host a number of sandy beaches, most of which are operated by the Greek National Tourism Organisation and require an entrance fee. Casinos operate on both Mount Parnitha, some 25 km (16 mi)[88] from downtown Athens (accessible by car or cable car), and the nearby town of Loutraki (accessible by car via the Athens – Corinth National Highway, or the Athens Suburban Railway
).

Coastline of Palaio Faliro

Twin towns – sister cities

Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in Greece

The concept of a partner city is used under different names in different countries, but they mean the same thing, that two cities in different countries assist each other as partners. Athens has quite a number of partners, whether as a "twin", a "sister", or a "partner."

Demographics

Athens population distribution

The Municipality of Athens has an official population of 643,452 people (in 2021).[4] According to the 2021 Population and Housing Census, The four regional units that make up the former Athens prefecture have a combined population of 2,611,713 . They together with the regional unit of Piraeus (sometimes referred as Greater Piraeus) make up the dense Athens Urban Area or Greater Athens which reaches a total population of 3,059,764 inhabitants (in 2021).[4]

The municipality (Center) of Athens is the

most populous in Greece, with a population of 643,452 people (in 2021)[4] and an area of 38.96 km2 (15.04 sq mi),[7] forming the core of the Athens Urban Area within the Attica Basin. The incumbent Mayor of Athens is Charis Doukas of PASOK. The municipality is divided into seven municipal districts which are mainly used for administrative purposes.[89]

For the Athenians the most popular way of dividing the downtown is through its neighbourhoods such as

Ampelokipoi, Goudi, Exarcheia, Patisia, Ilisia, Petralona, Plaka, Anafiotika, Koukaki, Kolonaki and Kypseli
, each with its own distinct history and characteristics.

Romani people are concentrated in Acharnes, Ano Liosia, Agia Varvara, Zefeiri and Kamatero.[90]

There is a large Albanian community in Athens.[91]

Metropolitan Area

The Athens Metropolitan Area, with an area of 2,928.717 km2 (1,131 sq mi) and inhabited by 3,744,059 people in 2021,[4] consists of the Athens Urban Area with the addition of the towns and villages of East and West Attica, which surround the dense urban area of the Greek capital. It actually sprawls over the whole peninsula of Attica, which is the best part of the region of Attica, excluding the islands.

Classification of regional units within Greater Athens, Athens Urban Area and Athens Metropolitan Area
Regional unit Population (2021)[4] Land Area (km2) Area
Central Athens 1,002,212 87.4 Former Athens prefecture
2,611,713
364.2 km2 		Athens Urban Area or Greater Athens
3,059,764
414.6 km2 		Athens Metropolitan Area
3,744,059
2931.6 km2
North Athens 601,163 140.7
South Athens 529,455 69.4
West Athens 478,883 66.7
Piraeus 448,051 50.4 Piraeus regional Unit
448,051
50.4 km2
East Attica 518,755 1,513
West Attica 165,540 1,004

Safety

Athens ranks in the lowest percentage for the risk on frequency and severity of terrorist attacks according to the EU Global Terrorism Database (EIU 2007–2016 calculations). The city also ranked 35th in Digital Security, 21st on Health Security, 29th on Infrastructure Security and 41st on Personal Security globally in a 2017 The Economist Intelligence Unit report.[92] It also ranks as a very safe city (39th globally out of 162 cities overall) on the ranking of the safest and most dangerous countries.[93] As May 2022 the crime index from Numbeo places Athens at 56.33 (moderate), while its safety index is at 43.68.Crime in Athens[94] According to a Mercer 2019 Quality of Living Survey, Athens ranks 89th on the Mercer Quality of Living Survey ranking.[95]

Economy

OTE headquarters in Marousi, the largest technology company in Greece
National Bank of Greece, the largest Greek bank by total assets[96][97]
Ermou street
, the main commercial street of Athens

Athens is the financial capital of Greece. According to data from 2014, Athens as a metropolitan economic area produced US$130 billion as GDP in PPP, which consists of nearly half of the production for the whole country. Athens was ranked 102nd in that year's list of global economic metropolises, while GDP per capita for the same year was 32,000 US dollars.[98]

Athens is one of the major economic centres in south-eastern Europe and is considered a regional economic power. The port of Piraeus, where big investments by COSCO have already been delivered during the recent decade, the completion of the new Cargo Centre in Thriasion,[99] the expansion of the Athens Metro and the Athens Tram, as well as the Hellenikon metropolitan park redevelopment in Elliniko and other urban projects, are the economic landmarks of the upcoming years.

Prominent Greek companies such as

Mondelez and Coca-Cola also have their regional research and development headquarters in the city. The banking sector is represented by National Bank of Greece, Alpha Bank, Eurobank, and Piraeus Bank, while the Bank of Greece is also situated in the City Centre. The Athens Stock Exchange was severely hit by the Greek government-debt crisis and the decision of the government to proceed into capital controls during summer 2015. As a whole the economy of Athens and Greece was strongly affected, while data showed a change from long recession to growth of 1.4% from 2017 onwards.[100]

Tourism is also a leading contributor to the economy of the city, as one of Europe's top destinations for city-break tourism, and also the gateway for excursions to both the islands and other parts of the mainland. Greece attracted 26.5 million visitors in 2015, 30.1 million visitors in 2017, and over 33 million in 2018, making Greece one of the most visited countries in Europe and the world, and contributing 18% to the country's GDP. Athens welcomed more than 5 million tourists in 2018, and 1.4 million were "city-breakers"; this was an increase by over a million city-breakers since 2013.[101]

Tourism

Athens has been a destination for travellers since antiquity. Over the 2000s, the city's infrastructure and social amenities have improved, in part because of its successful bid to stage the 2004 Olympic Games. The Greek Government, aided by the EU, has funded major infrastructure projects such as the state-of-the-art Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport,[102] the expansion of the Athens Metro system,[54] and the new Attiki Odos Motorway.[54] In recent years, Athens has become more dynamic with the addition of numerous new bars and cafés and a growing presence of street art and graffiti, enhancing its urban edge and adding more touristic options alongside the city's archaeological sites and museums.[103]

Panathinaiko Stadium, the Temple of Olympian Zeus, the Hellenic Parliament and the Acropolis of Athens

Transport

Main article: Public transport in Athens
Athens railways network (Metro, Suburban Railway and Tram)

Athens is the country's major transportation hub. The city has Greece's largest airport and its largest port; Piraeus, too, is the largest container transport port in the Mediterranean, and the largest passenger port in Europe.

Athens is a major national hub for Intercity (Ktel) and international buses, as well as for domestic and international rail transport. Public transport is serviced by a variety of transportation means, making up the country's largest mass transit system. Transport for Athens operates a large bus and trolleybus fleet, the city's Metro, a Suburban Railway service[104] and a tram network, connecting the southern suburbs to the city centre.[105]

Bus transport

OSY (Greek: ΟΣΥ) (Odikes Sygkoinonies S.A.), a subsidiary company of OASA (Athens urban transport organisation), is the main operator of buses and trolleybuses in Athens. As of 2017, its network consists of around 322 bus lines, spanning the Athens Metropolitan Area, and making up a fleet of 2,375 buses and trolleybuses. Of those 2,375, 619 buses run on compressed natural gas, making up the largest fleet of natural gas-powered buses in Europe, and 354 are electric-powered (trolleybuses). All of the 354 trolleybuses are equipped to run on diesel in case of power failure.[106]

International links are provided by a number of private companies. National and regional bus links are provided by

Kifissos Bus Terminal A and Liosion Bus Terminal B, both located in the north-western part of the city. Kifissos provides connections towards Peloponnese, North Greece, West Greece and some Ionian Islands, whereas Liosion is used for most of Central Greece. Both of these terminals will be replaced by a new Intercity Bus Terminal under construction in Eleonas
due to be completed by 2027.

Railways

Main articles: Athens Metro, Proastiakos, and Athens Tram

Athens is the hub of the country's national railway system (OSE), connecting the capital with major cities across Greece and abroad (Istanbul, Sofia, Belgrade and Bucharest).

Suburban rail (Proastiakos)

The Athens Suburban Railway, referred to as the Proastiakos, connects Athens International Airport to the city of Kiato, 106 km (66 mi)[107] west of Athens, via Larissa station, the city's central rail station and the port of Piraeus. The length of Athens's commuter rail network extends to 120 km (75 mi),[107] and is expected to stretch to 281 km (175 mi) by 2010.[107]

Athens Metro train (3rd generation stock)

The

Line 3 (Blue Line) lines, of which the first was constructed in 1869, and the other two largely during the 1990s, with the initial new sections opened in January 2000. Line 1 mostly runs at ground level and the other two (Line 2 & 3) routes run entirely underground. A fleet of 42 trains, using 252 carriages, operates on the network,[109] with a daily occupancy of 1,353,000 passengers.[110]

Line 1 (Green Line) serves 24 stations, and is the oldest line of the Athens metro network. It runs from

Syntagma station).The new stations Maniatika, Piraeus and Dimotiko Theatro, were completed on 10 October 2022,[111][112]
connecting the biggest port of Greece, the Port of Piraeus, with Athens International Airport, the biggest airport of Greece.

Vehicle of the Athens Tram

The

Sirio type vehicles[113] and 25 Alstom Citadis type vehicles[114] which serve 48 stations,[113] employ 345 people with an average daily occupancy of 65,000 passengers.[113] The tram network spans a total length of 27 km (17 mi) and covers ten Athenian suburbs.[113] The network runs from Syntagma Square to the southwestern suburb of Palaio Faliro, where the line splits in two branches; the first runs along the Athens coastline toward the southern suburb of Voula, while the other heads toward Piraeus. The network covers the majority of the Athens coastline.[115]

Athens International Airport

Main article: Athens International Airport
Athens International Airport

Athens is served by the Athens International Airport (ATH), located near the town of Spata, in the eastern Messoghia plain, some 35 km (22 mi) east of center of Athens.[116] The airport, awarded the "European Airport of the Year 2004" Award,[117] is intended as an expandable hub for air travel in southeastern Europe and was constructed in 51 months, costing 2.2 billion euros. It employs a staff of 14,000.[117]

Ferry

The Port of Piraeus is the largest port in Greece and one of the largest in Europe. Rafina and Lavrio act as alternative ports of Athens, connects the city with numerous Greek islands of the Aegean Sea, Evia while also serving the cruise ships that arrive.

Motorways

Further information:
National Roads and Motorways in Greece
Aerial view of an A6 interchange north of Athens

Two main motorways of Greece begin in Athens, namely the

GR-8A. Before their completion much of the road traffic used the GR-1 and the GR-8
.

Athens' Metropolitan Area is served by the

Elefsina to Athens International Airport; while two beltways, namely the Aigaleo Beltway (A65) and the Hymettus Beltway (A62) serve parts of western and eastern Athens respectively. The span of the Attiki Odos in all its length is 65 km (40 mi),[118]
making it the largest metropolitan motorway network in all of Greece.

Education

Facade of the Academy of Athens
University of Athens
The National Library of Greece.

Located on Panepistimiou Street, the old campus of the University of Athens, the National Library, and the Athens Academy form the "Athens Trilogy" built in the mid-19th century. The largest and oldest university in Athens is the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. Most of the functions of NKUA along National Technical University of Athens have been transferred to a campus in the eastern suburb of Zografou. The National Technical University of Athens old campus is located on Patision Street.

The University of West Attica is the second largest university in Athens. The seat of the university is located in the western area of Athens, where the philosophers of Ancient Athens delivered lectures. All the activities of UNIWA are carried out in the modern infrastructure of the three University Campuses within the metropolitan region of Athens (Egaleo Park, Ancient Olive Groove and Athens), which offer modern teaching and research spaces, entertainment and support facilities for all students. Other universities that lie within Athens are the Athens University of Economics and Business, the Panteion University, the Agricultural University of Athens and the University of Piraeus.

There are overall ten state-supported Institutions of Higher (or Tertiary) education located in the Athens Urban Area, these are by chronological order: Athens School of Fine Arts (1837), National Technical University of Athens (1837), National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (1837), Agricultural University of Athens (1920), Athens University of Economics and Business (1920), Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences (1927), University of Piraeus (1938), Harokopio University of Athens (1990), School of Pedagogical and Technological Education (2002), University of West Attica (2018). There are also several other private colleges, as they called formally in Greece, as the establishment of private universities is prohibited by the constitution. Many of them are accredited by a foreign state or university such as the American College of Greece and the Athens Campus of the University of Indianapolis.[119]

Culture

Main article: Culture of Greece

Archaeological hub and museums

Further information: List of museums in Greece
The National Archaeological Museum in central Athens
The Acropolis Museum
Museum of the Ancient Agora in the Stoa of Attalos

The city is a world centre of

Greek Department of Culture
.

Athens hosts 17 Foreign Archaeological Institutes which promote and facilitate research by scholars from their home countries. As a result, Athens has more than a dozen archaeological libraries and three specialized archaeological laboratories, and is the venue of several hundred specialized lectures, conferences and seminars, as well as dozens of archaeological exhibitions each year. At any given time, hundreds of international scholars and researchers in all disciplines of archaeology are to be found in the city.

Athens' most important museums include:

  • the
    Roman Greece
    ;
  • the Benaki Museum with its several branches for each of its collections including ancient, Byzantine, Ottoman-era, Chinese art and beyond;
  • the
    Byzantine and Christian Museum, one of the most important museums of Byzantine art
    ;
  • the National Art Gallery, the nation's eponymous leading gallery, which reopened in 2021 after renovation;
  • the
    National Museum of Contemporary Art
    , which opened in 2000 in a former brewery building;
  • the Numismatic Museum, housing a major collection of ancient and modern coins;
  • the Museum of Cycladic Art, home to an extensive collection of Cycladic art, including its famous figurines of white marble;
  • the New Acropolis Museum, opened in 2009, and replacing the old museum on the Acropolis. The new museum has proved considerably popular; almost one million people visited during the summer period June–October 2009 alone. A number of smaller and privately owned museums focused on Greek culture and arts are also to be found.
  • the Kerameikos Archaeological Museum, a museum which displays artifacts from the burial site of Kerameikos. Much of the pottery and other artifacts relate to Athenian attitudes towards death and the afterlife, throughout many ages.
  • the Jewish Museum of Greece, a museum which describes the history and culture of the Greek Jewish community.

Architecture

See also: Modern architecture in Athens
The Zappeion Hall
The Cathedral of Athens (Athens Metropolis)

Athens incorporates architectural styles ranging from Greco-Roman and Neoclassical to Modern. They are often to be found in the same areas, as Athens is not marked by a uniformity of architectural style. A visitor will quickly notice the absence of tall buildings: Athens has very strict height restriction laws in order to ensure the Acropolis Hill is visible throughout the city. Despite the variety in styles, there is evidence of continuity in elements of the architectural environment throughout the city's history.[120]

For the greatest part of the 19th century Neoclassicism dominated Athens, as well as some deviations from it such as

Iliou Melathron
.

Beginning in the 1920s, modern architecture including Bauhaus and Art Deco began to exert an influence on almost all Greek architects, and buildings both public and private were constructed in accordance with these styles. Localities with a great number of such buildings include Kolonaki, and some areas of the centre of the city; neighbourhoods developed in this period include Kypseli.[121]

In the 1950s and 1960s during the extension and development of Athens, other modern movements such as the

International style played an important role. The centre of Athens was largely rebuilt, leading to the demolition of a number of neoclassical buildings. The architects of this era employed materials such as glass, marble and aluminium, and many blended modern and classical elements.[122] After World War II, internationally known architects to have designed and built in the city included Walter Gropius, with his design for the US Embassy, and, among others, Eero Saarinen, in his postwar design for the east terminal of the Ellinikon Airport
.

Urban sculpture

The Old Parliament House, now home to the National History Museum. View from Stadiou Street.

Across the city numerous statues or busts are to be found. Apart from the neoclassicals by Leonidas Drosis at the Academy of Athens (Plato, Socrates, Apollo and Athena), others in notable categories include the statue of Theseus by Georgios Fytalis at Thiseion; depictions of philhellenes such as Lord Byron, George Canning, and William Gladstone; the equestrian statue of Theodoros Kolokotronis by Lazaros Sochos in front of the Old Parliament; statues of Ioannis Kapodistrias, Rigas Feraios and Adamantios Korais at the university; of Evangelos Zappas and Konstantinos Zappas at the Zappeion; Ioannis Varvakis at the National Garden; the" Woodbreaker" by Dimitrios Filippotis; the equestrian statue of Alexandros Papagos in the Papagou district; and various busts of fighters of Greek independence at the Pedion tou Areos. A significant landmark is also the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Syntagma.

Entertainment and performing arts

The National Theatre of Greece, near Omonoia Square

Athens is home to 148 theatrical stages, more than any other city in the world, including the ancient

Athens Festival, which runs from May to October each year.[123][124] In addition to a large number of multiplexes, Athens plays host to open air garden cinemas. The city also supports music venues, including the Athens Concert Hall (Megaro Moussikis), which attracts world class artists.[125] The Athens Planetarium,[126] located in Andrea Syngrou Avenue, in Palaio Faliro[127] is one of the largest and best equipped digital planetaria in the world.[128] The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, inaugurated in 2016, will house the National Library of Greece and the Greek National Opera.[129] In 2018 Athens was designated as the World Book Capital by UNESCO.[130]

Restaurants, tavernas and bars can be found in the entertainment hubs in Plaka and the Trigono areas of the historic centre, the inner suburbs of Gazi and Psyrri are especially busy with nightclubs and bars, while Kolonaki, Exarchia, Metaxourgeio, Koukaki and Pangrati offer more of a cafe and restaurant scene. The coastal suburbs of Microlimano, Alimos and Glyfada include many tavernas, beach bars and busy summer clubs.

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Centre, home of the Greek National Opera and the new National Library

The most successful songs during the period 1870–1930 were the Athenian serenades (Αθηναϊκές καντάδες), based on the

nocturnes
that were dominating Athens' theatre scene.

In 1922, following the war, genocide and later population exchange suffered by the Greek population of Asia Minor, many ethnic Greeks fled to Athens. They settled in poor neighbourhoods and brought with them

Manos Hadjidakis and Mikis Theodorakis. Both composers have achieved fame abroad for their composition of film scores.[131]

The renowned American-born Greek soprano Maria Callas spent her teenage years in Athens, where she settled in 1937.[132][133] Her professional opera career started in 1940 in Athens, with the Greek National Opera.[134] In 2018, the city's municipal Olympia Theatre was renamed to "Olympia City Music Theatre 'Maria Callas'"[135][136] and in 2023, the Municipality inaugurated the Maria Callas Museum, housing it in a neoclassical building on 44 Mitropoleos street.[137]

Sports

See also: List of sports clubs in Athens Municipality
The Panathenaic Stadium of Athens (Kallimarmaron) dates back to the fourth century BC and has hosted the first modern Olympic Games in 1896.
Athens Olympic Stadium
, 2008

Athens has a long tradition in sports and sporting events, serving as home to the most important clubs in Greek sport and housing a large number of sports facilities. The city has also been host to sports events of international importance.

Athens has hosted the

1971 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Final, and Agia Sophia Stadium located in Nea Filadelfeia
.

Athens has hosted the

athletics, volleyball, water polo
etc., have been hosted in the capital's venues.

Athens is home to three European multi-sport clubs:

AEK Athens
was the first Greek team to win a European trophy in any team sport.

Other notable clubs within Athens are

Apollon, Panellinios, Egaleo F.C., Ethnikos Piraeus, Maroussi BC and Peristeri B.C.
Athenian clubs have also had domestic and international success in other sports.

The Athens area encompasses a variety of terrain, notably hills and mountains rising around the city, and the capital is the only major city in Europe to be bisected by a mountain range. Four mountain ranges extend into city boundaries and thousands of kilometres of trails criss-cross the city and neighbouring areas, providing exercise and wilderness access on foot and bike.

Beyond Athens and across the prefecture of Attica, outdoor activities include skiing, rock climbing, hang gliding and windsurfing. Numerous outdoor clubs serve these sports, including the Athens Chapter of the Sierra Club, which leads over 4,000 outings annually in the area.

Athens was awarded the 2004 Summer Olympics on 5 September 1997 in Lausanne, Switzerland, after having lost a previous bid to host the 1996 Summer Olympics, to Atlanta, United States.[22] It was to be the second time Athens would host the games, following the inaugural event of 1896. After an unsuccessful bid in 1990, the 1997 bid was radically improved, including an appeal to Greece's Olympic history. In the last round of voting, Athens defeated Rome with 66 votes to 41.[22] Prior to this round, the cities of Buenos Aires, Stockholm and Cape Town had been eliminated from competition, having received fewer votes.[22] Although the heavy cost was criticized, estimated at $1.5 billion, Athens was transformed into a more functional city that enjoys modern technology both in transportation and in modern urban development.[140] The games welcomed over 10,000 athletes from all 202 countries.[140]

See also

Notes

  1. romanized: Athênai, pronounced [atʰɛ̂ːnai̯]

References

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