View source for Athens

{{short description|Capital and largest city of Greece}}
{{redirect|Athenian|other uses|Athenian (disambiguation)|and|Athens (disambiguation)}}
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{{Use British English|date=February 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name               = Athens
| native_name        = {{native name|el|Αθήνα}}
| image_skyline      = {{multiple image
| border             = infobox
| perrow             = 1/2/2/2
| total_width        = 300
| align              = center
| caption_align      = center
| image1                   = Monastiraki Square and Acropolis in Athens (44149181684).jpg
| caption1                 = [[Monastiraki|Monastiraki square]] and [[Acropolis of Athens]]
| imagesize1               = 150px
| image2 = The Parthenon in Athens.jpg
| caption2                 = [[Parthenon|The Parthenon]]
| imagesize2 = 170px
| image3 = Attica 06-13 Athens 27 Zappeion.jpg
| caption3                 = [[Zappeion]]
| image5 = The Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens (Metropolis of Athens) in April 2019.jpg
| caption5                 = [[Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens|Metropolitan Cathedral]]
| image4 = Griechisches Parlament nachts (Zuschnitt).jpg
| caption4                = [[Hellenic Parliament|The Hellenic Parliament]]<br/><small>([[Old Royal Palace]])</small>| image6 = Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center - 52036972429.jpg
| caption6                 = [[Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center]]
| image7 = Akademie von Athen.jpg
| caption7                 = [[Academy of Athens (modern)|Academy of Athens]]
}}
| settlement_type    = [[Capital city]]
| nicknames          = {{lang|el|τὸ κλεινὸν ἄστυ}} ({{transliteration|el|tò kleinòn ásty}}, "the glorious city")<br/>{{lang|el|τὸ ἰοστεφὲς ἄστυ}} ({{transliteration|el|tò iostephès ásty}}, "the [[City of the Violet Crown|violet-crowned city]]") <br /> The City of Wisdom<ref>{{Cite web |date=30 March 2022 |title=Athens: City of Wisdom |url=https://www.washingtonindependentreviewofbooks.com/index.php/bookreview/athens-city-of-wisdom |access-date=10 September 2022 |publisher=Washington Independent Review of Books}}</ref><br/>City of Reason<ref>{{Cite web |date=15 July 2022 |title=Athens and Jerusalem: City of Reason, City of Faith |url=https://worldview.stratfor.com/article/athens-and-jerusalem-city-reason-city-faith |access-date=18 October 2022 |publisher=RANE Network}}</ref>
| image_flag         = Flag of the City of Athens.svg
| flag_link          = 
| image_seal         = Coat of Arms of Athens (English Version).svg
| mapframe = yes
| mapframe-shape = yes
| pushpin_map        = Greece#Europe
| pushpin_map_caption = Location within Greece##Location within Europe
| pushpin_relief     = 1
| coordinates        = {{coord|37|59|03|N|23|43|41|E|display=it}}
| subdivision_type   = Country
| subdivision_name   = {{flagicon|Greece}} [[Greece]]
| subdivision_type1  = [[Geographic regions of Greece|Geographic region]]
| subdivision_name1  = [[Central Greece (geographic region)|Central Greece]]
| subdivision_type2  = [[Administrative regions of Greece|Administrative region]]
| subdivision_name2  = [[Attica (region)|Attica]]
| subdivision_type3  = [[Regional units of Greece|Regional unit]]
| subdivision_name3  = [[Central Athens (regional unit)|Central Athens]]
| government_type    = [[Mayor–council government]]
| leader_party       = {{nowrap|[[PASOK – Movement for Change|PASOK]]}}
| leader_title       = [[List of mayors of Athens|Mayor]]
| leader_name        = [[Haris Doukas]]<ref name=mayor>[https://ekloges.ypes.gr/current/d/home/en/municipalities/9186/ Municipality of Athens, Municipal elections – October 2023] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250219122013/https://ekloges.ypes.gr/current/d/home/en/municipalities/9186/ |date=19 February 2025 }}, Ministry of Interior</ref>
| named_for          = [[Athena]]
| parts_type         = Districts
| parts_style        = para
| p1                 = 7
| established_title  = 
| established_date   = 
| population_as_of   = 2021
| population_footnotes = <ref name=census21/>
| area_total_km2     = 38.964
| population_total   = 643,452
| total_type         = Capital city and municipality
| population_rank    = [[List of cities in Greece|1st]] urban, 1st metro in Greece
| population_urban   = 3,059,764
| area_urban_km2     = 412
| population_density_urban_km2 = auto
| population_metro   = 3,638,281
| area_metro_km2     = 2,928.717
| population_density_metro_km2 = auto
| population_demonym = [[wikt:Athenian|Athenian]]
| demographics_type1 = GDP
| demographics1_footnotes = <ref>{{cite web |  url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/tgs00003/default/table?lang=en | title=EU regions by GDP, Eurostat|access-date=18 September 2023|website=www.ec.europa.eu}}</ref>
| demographics1_title1 = Metro
| demographics1_info1 = €109.654&nbsp;billion (2023)
| demographics1_title2 = Per capita
| demographics1_info2 = €29,000 (2023)
| timezone1          = [[East European Time|EET]]
| utc_offset1        = +2
| timezone1_DST      = [[Eastern European Summer Time|EEST]]
| utc_offset1_DST    = +3
| elevation_min_m    = 70.1
| elevation_max_m    = 338
| postal_code_type   = [[Postal codes in Greece|Postal codes]]
| postal_code        = 10x xx, 11x xx, 120 xx
| area_code_type     = [[Telephone numbers in Greece|Telephone]]
| area_code          = 21
| registration_plate = [[Vehicle registration plates of Greece|Yxx, Zxx, Ixx]]
| blank_name_sec1    = [[Patron saint]]
| blank_info_sec1    = [[Dionysius the Areopagite]] (3 October)
| blank_name_sec2    = Major airport(s)
| blank_info_sec2    = [[Athens International Airport]]
| website            = {{URL|https://cityofathens.gr|cityofathens.gr}}
| official_name      = 
| population_density_rank = 
}}

'''Athens'''{{efn|({{IPAc-en|ˈ|æ|θ|ɪ|n|z}} {{respell|ATH|inz}}) {{langx|el|Αθήνα|Athína|engvar=gb}}, {{IPA|el|aˈθina|pron|el-Αθήνα.ogg}}; {{langx|grc|Ἀθῆναι|Athênai|engvar=gb}}, {{IPA|grc|atʰɛ̂ːnai̯|pron}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wells |first=John C. |title=Longman pronunciation dictionary |publisher=Longman |year=1990 |isbn=0-582-05383-8 |location=Harlow, England |page=48 |chapter=Athens}}</ref>}} is the [[Capital city|capital]] and [[List of cities and towns in Greece|largest city]] of [[Greece]]. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the [[Attica (region)|Attica region]] and is the southernmost capital on the [[European mainland]]. With its urban area's population numbering over 3.6 million, it is the [[List of urban areas in the European Union|eighth-largest urban area]] in the [[European Union]] (EU). The [[Municipality of Athens]] (also City of Athens), which constitutes a small administrative unit of the entire urban area, had a population of 643,452 in 2021,<ref name="census21">{{Cite press release |title=Census 2021 GR |date=19 July 2022 |publisher=[[Hellenic Statistical Authority]] |url=https://elstat-outsourcers.statistics.gr/Census2022_GR.pdf |access-date=12 September 2022 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://elstat-outsourcers.statistics.gr/Census2022_GR.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2022}}</ref> within its official limits, and a land area of {{convert|38.96|km2|sqmi|2|abbr=on}}.<ref name="stat01">{{Cite web |title=Population & housing census 2001 (incl. area and average elevation) |url=http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00098%20.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150921212047/http://dlib.statistics.gr/Book/GRESYE_02_0101_00098%20.pdf |archive-date=21 September 2015 |publisher=National Statistical Service of Greece |language=el}}</ref><ref name="area">{{Cite web |title=Characteristics |url=http://www.ypes.gr/topiki.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070104231706/http://www.ypes.gr/topiki.htm |archive-date=4 January 2007 |access-date=6 January 2007 |website=Hellenic Interior Ministry |publisher=ypes.gr}}</ref>

Athens is one of the [[List of oldest continuously inhabited cities|world's oldest cities]], with its [[recorded history]] spanning over 3,400 years,<ref>Vinie Daily, Athens, the city in your pocket, p. 6.</ref> and its earliest human presence beginning somewhere between the 11th and 7th millennia BC. According to [[Greek mythology]] the city was named after [[Athena]], the ancient Greek goddess of wisdom, but modern scholars generally agree that the goddess took her name after the city.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Greenberg |first1=Mike |last2=PhD |date=23 February 2021 |title=Athena Facts: Things that not many people know about... |url=https://mythologysource.com/facts-about-athena/ |access-date=20 February 2024 |language=en-US}}</ref> [[Classical Athens]] was one of the most powerful [[Polis|city-states]] in [[ancient Greece]]. It was a centre for [[Greek democracy|democracy]], [[the arts]], education and [[Ancient Greek philosophy|philosophy]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Contents and Principles of the Programme of Unification of the Archaeological Sites of Athens |url=http://www.yppo.gr/4/e4000.jsp?obj_id=90&lhmma_id=3817 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160821134233/http://www.yppo.gr/4/e4000.jsp?obj_id=90&lhmma_id=3817 |archive-date=21 August 2016 |access-date=31 December 2009 |website=Hellenic Ministry of Culture |publisher=yppo.gr}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=((CNN & Associated Press)) |date=16 January 1997 |title=Greece uncovers 'holy grail' of Greek archeology |publisher=CNN |url=http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9701/16/greece.lyceum/index.html |access-date=28 March 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071206113529/http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9701/16/greece.lyceum/index.html |archive-date=6 December 2007}}</ref> and was highly influential throughout the European continent, particularly in [[Ancient Rome]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090129202226/http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_1741501460/Ancient_Greece.html Encarta Ancient Greece] from the Internet Archive– Retrieved on 28 February 2012. [https://web.archive.org/web/20091028030542/http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_1741501460/Ancient_Greece.html Archived] 31 October 2009.</ref> For this reason it is often regarded as the [[cradle of civilization|cradle]] of [[Western civilization|Western civilisation]] and the [[History of democracy|birthplace of democracy]] in its own right independently from the rest of Greece.<ref name=britannica>{{Cite web |title=Athens |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/40773/Athens |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090106054445/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/40773/Athens |archive-date=6 January 2009 |access-date=31 December 2008 |quote=Ancient Greek Athenai, historic city and capital of Greece. Many of classical civilization's intellectual and artistic ideas originated there, and the city is generally considered to be the birthplace of Western civilization}}</ref><ref name=bbc>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/greeks/greekdemocracy_01.shtml BBC History on Greek Democracy] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191219115917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/greeks/greekdemocracy_01.shtml |date=19 December 2019 }} – Accessed on 26 January 2007</ref>

In modern times Athens is a large cosmopolitan [[metropolis]] and central to economic, financial, industrial, maritime, political and cultural life in Greece. It is a [[Globalization and World Cities Research Network#Beta|Beta (+)]] – 
status [[global city]] according to the [[Globalization and World Cities Research Network]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=The World According to GaWC 2020 |url=https://www.lboro.ac.uk/gawc/world2020t.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200824031341/https://www.lboro.ac.uk/gawc/world2020t.html |archive-date=24 August 2020 |access-date=31 August 2020 |website=GaWC – Research Network |publisher=Globalization and World Cities}}</ref> and is one of the biggest economic centres in [[Southeast Europe]]. It also has a large financial sector, and its port [[Piraeus]] is both the second-busiest passenger port in Europe<ref name="ESPO">{{Cite web |date=21 November 2022 |title=Maritime passenger statistics |url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Maritime_passenger_statistics&oldid=550549#Messina_remained_the_largest_EU_passenger_port_in_2020 |access-date=25 March 2023 |website=Eurostat |publisher=[[Eurostat]]}}</ref> and the thirteenth-largest container port in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |title=World Shipping Council- Top 50 Ports |url=https://www.worldshipping.org/top-50-ports |access-date=7 July 2022 |website=World Shipping Council |publisher= |archive-date=13 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210813193707/https://www.worldshipping.org/top-50-ports |url-status=dead }}</ref> The [[Athens metropolitan area]]<ref>{{Cite book |title=Monthly Statistical Bulletin of Greece, December 2012 |publisher=ELSTAT |year=2012 |page=64}}</ref> extends beyond its administrative municipal city limits as well as its [[Urban Agglomeration|urban agglomeration]], with a population of 3,638,281 in 2021<ref name=census21/><ref>{{Cite web |title=Μόνιμος Πληθυσμός – ELSTAT |url=https://www.statistics.gr/2021-census-res-pop-results |access-date=10 June 2023 |website=www.statistics.gr |archive-date=5 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105191336/https://www.statistics.gr/2021-census-res-pop-results |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Athens, Greece Metro Area Population 1950–2023 |url=https://www.macrotrends.net/cities/21113/athens/population |access-date=2 March 2023 |website=www.macrotrends.net}}</ref> over an area of {{convert|2,928.717|km2|sqmi|0|abbr=on}}.<ref name=area/>

The heritage of the [[Classical Greece|Classical Era]] is still evident in the city, represented by [[ancient monument]]s, and works of art, the most famous of these being the [[Parthenon]], considered a key landmark of early [[Western culture]]. Athens retains [[Roman Greece|Roman]], [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] and a smaller number of [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] monuments, while its historical urban core features elements of continuity through its millennia of history. Athens contains two [[World Heritage Site|World Heritage Sites]] recognised by [[UNESCO]]: the [[Acropolis of Athens]] and the medieval [[Daphni Monastery]]. Athens is home to several museums and cultural institutions, such as the [[National Archaeological Museum, Athens|National Archeological Museum]], featuring the world's largest collection of ancient Greek antiquities, the [[Acropolis Museum]], the [[Goulandris Museum of Cycladic Art|Museum of Cycladic Art]], the [[Benaki Museum]] and the [[Byzantine and Christian Museum]]. Athens was the host city of the [[1896 Summer Olympics|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 more than one occasion.<ref name="oly">{{Cite news |last=((CNN & Sports Illustrated)) |date=5 September 1997 |title=Sentiment a factor as Athens gets 2004 Olympics |publisher=sportsillustrated.cnn.com |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/olympics/news/1997/09/05/athens_update/ |access-date=28 March 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080519032341/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/olympics/news/1997/09/05/athens_update/ |archive-date=19 May 2008}}</ref>

== Etymology and names==
{{Further|Names of European cities in different languages (A)}}

In [[Ancient Greek language|Ancient Greek]] the name of the city was {{lang|grc|Ἀθῆναι}} (''Athênai'', {{IPA|grc|atʰɛ̂ːnai̯|pron}} in [[Attic Greek|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 {{lang|grc|Ἀθήνη}} (''Athḗnē'').<ref>As for example in [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Hom.+Od.+7&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0135 Od.7.80] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418015639/https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Hom.+Od.+7&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0135 |date=18 April 2021 }}</ref> It was possibly rendered in the plural later on, like those of {{lang|grc|Θῆβαι}} (''[[Thebes, Greece|Thêbai]]'') and {{lang|grc|Μυκῆναι}} (''[[Mycenae|Μukênai]]''). The root of the word is probably not of Greek or [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European]] origin,<ref name="Beekes2009">{{Citation |last=Beekes |first=Robert S. P. |title=Etymological Dictionary of Greek |date=2009 |page=29 |place=Leiden and Boston |publisher=Brill |author-link=Robert Beekes}}</ref> and is possibly a remnant of the [[Pre-Greek substrate]] of Attica.<ref name="Beekes2009" /> 

In [[classical antiquity]] it was debated whether Athens took its name from its patron goddess [[Athena]] ([[Attic Greek|Attic]] {{lang|grc|Ἀθηνᾶ}}, ''Athēnâ'', [[Ionic Greek|Ionic]] {{lang|grc|Ἀθήνη}}, ''Athḗnē'', and [[Doric Greek|Doric]] {{lang|grc|Ἀθάνα}}, ''Athā́nā'') or Athena took her name from the city.<ref name="Burkert1985">{{Citation |last=Burkert |first=Walter |title=Greek Religion |date=1985 |url=https://archive.org/details/greekreligion0000burk/page/139 |page=[https://archive.org/details/greekreligion0000burk/page/139 139] |place=Cambridge, Massachusetts |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=0-674-36281-0 |author-link=Walter Burkert}}</ref> Modern scholars now generally agree that the goddess takes her name from the city,<ref name="Burkert1985" /> because the ending -''ene'' is common in names of locations, but rare for personal names.<ref name="Burkert1985" />

According to the ancient Athenian [[founding myth]], Athena, the goddess of wisdom and war, competed against [[Poseidon]], the God of the Seas, for patronage of the yet-unnamed city;<ref name="Kerényi1951">{{Citation |last=Kerényi |first=Karl |title=The Gods of the Greeks |date=1951 |url=https://archive.org/details/godsofgreeks00kerrich/page/124 |page=[https://archive.org/details/godsofgreeks00kerrich/page/124 124] |place=London, England |publisher=Thames and Hudson |author-link=Károly Kerényi |url-access=registration}}</ref> they agreed that whoever gave the Athenians the better gift would become their patron<ref name="Kerényi1951" /> and appointed [[Cecrops I|Cecrops]], the king of Athens, as the judge.<ref name="Kerényi1951" /> According to the account given by [[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Pseudo-Apollodorus]], Poseidon struck the ground with his [[Trident of Poseidon|trident]] and a salt water spring welled up.<ref name="Kerényi1951" /> In an alternative version of the myth from [[Virgil]]'s poem ''[[Georgics]]'', Poseidon instead gave the Athenians the first horse.<ref name="Kerényi1951" /> In both versions, Athena offered the Athenians the first domesticated [[olive tree]].<ref name="Kerényi1951" /><ref name="Garland2008">{{Cite book |last=Garland |first=Robert |title=Ancient Greece: Everyday Life in the Birthplace of Western Civilization |date=2008 |publisher=Sterling |isbn=978-1-4549-0908-8 |location=New York}}</ref> 

Cecrops accepted this gift<ref name="Kerényi1951" /> and declared Athena the patron goddess of Athens.<ref name="Kerényi1951" /><ref name="Garland2008" /> Eight different etymologies, now commonly rejected, have been proposed since the 17th century. [[Christian Lobeck]] proposed as the root of the name the word {{lang|grc|ἄθος}} (''áthos'') or {{lang|grc|ἄνθος}} (''ánthos'') meaning "flower", to denote Athens as the "flowering city". [[Johann Christoph Wilhelm Ludwig Döderlein|Ludwig von Döderlein]] proposed the stem of the verb {{lang|grc|θάω}}, stem θη- (''tháō'', ''thē-'', "to suck") to denote Athens as having fertile soil.<ref>''[[Great Greek Encyclopedia]]'', vol. II, Athens 1927, p. 30.</ref> 

Athenians were called [[cicada]]-wearers ({{langx|grc|Τεττιγοφόροι|links=no|engvar=gb}}) because they used to wear pins of golden cicadas. A symbol of being [[Autochthon (ancient Greece)|autochthonous]] (earth-born), because the legendary founder of Athens, [[Erechtheus]] was an autochthon or of being musicians, because the cicada is a "musician" insect.<ref>{{Cite web |title=ToposText |url=https://topostext.org/work/240#tau.377 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225005003/https://topostext.org/work/240#tau.377 |archive-date=25 February 2021 |access-date=27 March 2020 |website=topostext.org}}</ref> 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 {{lang|grc|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 {{lang|el|Ἀθήνα}}. Variant names included Setines, Satine, and Astines, all derivations involving [[false splitting]] of prepositional phrases.<ref name="Bourne1887">{{Cite journal |last=Bourne, Edward G. |year=1887 |title=The Derivation of Stamboul |journal=American Journal of Philology |publisher=The Johns Hopkins University Press |volume=8 |issue=1 |pages=78–82 |doi=10.2307/287478 |jstor=287478| issn=0002-9475 }}</ref> King [[Alfonso X of Castile|Alphonse X of Castile]] gives the pseudo-etymology 'the one without death/ignorance'.<ref>'General Storia' (Global History)</ref>{{page needed|date=November 2020}} In Ottoman Turkish, it was called {{Script|Arab|آتينا}} ''Ātīnā''.<ref>''Osmanlı Yer Adları'', Ankara 2017, ''s.v.'' [https://www.devletarsivleri.gov.tr/varliklar/dosyalar/eskisiteden/yayinlar/genel-mudurluk-yayinlar/osmanli_yer_adlari.pdf full text] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200731234949/https://www.devletarsivleri.gov.tr/varliklar/dosyalar/eskisiteden/yayinlar/genel-mudurluk-yayinlar/osmanli_yer_adlari.pdf |date=31 July 2020 }}</ref> .

==History ==
{{Main|History of Athens}}
{{For timeline}}
{{Historical affiliations
| width = 23em
| bgcolor = #B0C4DE
| fontsize = 80%
| align = right
|[[List of kings of Athens|Kingdom of Athens]] 1556 BC–1068 BC
|[[Classical Athens|City-state of Athens]] 1068 BC–323 BC
|[[League of Corinth|Hellenic League]] 338 BC–323 BC
|[[History of Athens#Hellenistic era|Hellenistic Athens]] 322 BC–86 BC
|[[Roman Republic]] 86 BC–27 BC
|[[Roman Empire]] 27 BC–395 AD
|[[Eastern Roman Empire]] 395–1205
|[[Duchy of Athens]] 1205–1458
|[[Ottoman Empire]] 1458–1822 
|[[First Hellenic Republic]] 1822–1827
|[[Ottoman Empire]] 1827–1833
|[[Greece]] 1833–present
}}

=== Antiquity ===
{{main|Classical Athens|Hellenistic Greece|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.<ref name="ethnos.gr">{{Cite web |date=July 2011 |title=v4.ethnos.gr – Οι πρώτοι… Αθηναίοι |url=http://www.ethnos.gr/article.asp?catid=22784&subid=2&pubid=2530782&tag=8796 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721080919/http://www.ethnos.gr/article.asp?catid=22784&subid=2&pubid=2530782&tag=8796 |archive-date=21 July 2011 |access-date=26 October 2018 |publisher=Ethnos.gr}}</ref> Athens has been continuously inhabited for at least 5,000 years (3000 BC).<ref>S. Immerwahr, The Athenian Agora XIII: the Neolithic and Bronze Ages, Princeton 1971</ref><ref name=tung/> By 1400&nbsp;BC, the settlement had become an important centre of the [[Mycenaean Greece|Mycenaean]] civilisation, and the [[Acropolis of Athens|Acropolis]] was the site of a major [[Mycenae]]an fortress, whose remains can be recognised from sections of the characteristic [[Cyclopean]] walls.<ref>Iakovides, S. 1962. 'E mykenaïke akropolis ton Athenon'. Athens.</ref> Unlike other Mycenaean centres, such as [[Mycenae]] and [[Pylos]], it is not known whether Athens suffered destruction in about 1200&nbsp;BC, an event often attributed to a [[Dorians|Dorian]] invasion, and the Athenians always maintained that they were pure [[Ionians]] with no Dorian element. However, Athens, [[Bronze Age collapse|like many other Bronze Age settlements]], went into economic decline for around 150 years afterwards.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Last Mycenaeans and Their Successors; an Archaeological Survey, c. 1200–c. 1000 B.C. |last=Desborough |first=Vincent R. d'A |author-link=Vincent Desborough |publisher=Clarendon Press |year=1964 |location=Oxford |page=113}}</ref> [[Iron Age]] burials, in the [[Kerameikos]]<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Little |first=Lisa M. |date=1988 |title=A Social Outcast in Early Iron Age Athens |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/148450 |journal=Hesperia: The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens |volume=67, No. 4 |issue=Oct. – Dec. 1998 |pages=375–404 |jstor=148450 }}</ref> and other locations, are often richly provided for and demonstrate that from 900&nbsp;BC onwards Athens was one of the leading centres of trade and prosperity in the region.<ref>Osborne, R. 1996, 2009. ''Greece in the Making 1200–479&nbsp;BC''.{{ISBN?}}{{page needed|date=December 2024}}</ref>

=== Classical Athens ===
{{main|Classical Athens|Delian League}}
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&nbsp;BC. Athens had by this time become a significant naval power with a large fleet, and helped the [[Ionian Revolt|rebellion of the Ionian cities]] against [[Achaemenid Empire|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 [[Battle of Marathon|Marathon]] under the leadership of [[Miltiades]] in 490&nbsp;BC, and crucially at [[Battle of Salamis|Salamis]] under the leadership of [[Themistocles]] in 480&nbsp;BC. However, this did not prevent Athens from being [[Achaemenid destruction of Athens|captured and sacked twice]] by the Persians within one year, after a heroic but ultimately failed resistance at [[Battle of Thermopylae|Thermopylae]] by [[Sparta]]ns and other Greeks led by [[Leonidas I|King Leonidas]],<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lewis |first=John David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BHe0KeXyL_AC&pg=PA34 |title=Nothing Less than Victory: Decisive Wars and the Lessons of History |year=2010 |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-1400834303 |access-date=24 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200312034708/https://books.google.com/books?id=BHe0KeXyL_AC&pg=PA34 |archive-date=12 March 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref> after both [[Boeotia]] and [[Attica]] fell to the Persians.

[[File:Map athenian empire 431 BC-no.svg|thumb|The [[Delian League]] under the leadership of Athens before the [[Peloponnesian War]] in 431 BC]]
The decades that followed became known as the [[Fifth-century Athens|Golden Age of Athenian democracy]], during which time Athens became the leading city of [[Ancient Greece]], with its cultural achievements laying the foundations for [[western culture|Western civilisation]].<ref name=britannica /><ref name= bbc /> The playwrights [[Aeschylus]], [[Sophocles]] and [[Euripides]] flourished in Athens during this time, as did the historians [[Herodotus]] and [[Thucydides]], the physician [[Hippocrates]], and the philosophers [[Socrates]] and [[Plato]]. Guided by [[Pericles]], who promoted the arts and fostered democracy, Athens embarked on an ambitious building program that saw the construction of the Acropolis of Athens (including the [[Parthenon]]), as well as empire-building via the [[Delian League]]. Originally intended as an association of [[Greek city-state]]s, which were led by [[Cimon]], 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&nbsp;BC), in which Athens was defeated by its rival Sparta.<ref>[[Xenophon]], ''[[Hellenica]]'', 2.2.20, 404/3</ref>

[[File:The_Parthenon_in_Athens.jpg|thumb|The [[Parthenon]] on the [[Acropolis of Athens|Acropolis]] hill of Athens, dedicated to [[Athena Parthenos]]]]

Nonetheless the city reemerged soon as a major power in the Greek world, forming the [[Second Athenian League]] during the time of the Spartan and Theban hegemonies. By the mid-4th century BC the northern Greek kingdom of [[Macedon]] was becoming dominant in Greek affairs. In 338&nbsp;BC the armies of [[Philip II of Macedon|Philip II]] and his son [[Alexander the Great]] defeated an alliance of some of the Greek city-states led by Athens and [[Thebes, Greece#Decline and destruction|Thebes]] at the [[Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC)|Battle of Chaeronea]]. After this defeat, Athens joined the [[League of Corinth|Hellenic League]] under Philip and then Alexander.

<Gallery>
File:Athenian Agora (3358219222).jpg|The [[Ancient Agora of Athens]], a major commercial centre (''[[agora]]'') of ancient Athens
File:L'Olympieion_(Athènes)_(30776483926).jpg|The ruins of the [[Temple of Olympian Zeus, Athens|Temple of Olympian Zeus]], conceived by the sons of [[Peisistratus]]
File:The Clock Tower of Andronicus Cyrrhestes (Tower of the Winds) on May 19, 2021.jpg|The [[Tower of the Winds]] in the [[Roman Agora]], the second commercial centre of ancient Athens
File:The Odeon of Herodes Atticus on September 13, 2020.jpg|The [[Odeon of Herodes Atticus]] built in AD 161 by [[Herodes Atticus]]
</Gallery>

=== Roman Empire ===
{{Main|Roman Greece}}
Later, under Rome, Athens was given the status of a [[free city (classical antiquity)|free city]] because of its widely admired schools. In the second century AD, the Roman emperor Hadrian, himself an Athenian citizen,<ref>Kouremenos, Anna (2022). "'The City of Hadrian and not of Theseus': A Cultural History of Hadrian's Arch". In A. Kouremenos (ed.) ''The Province of Achaea in the 2nd century CE: The Past Present''. London: Routledge. https://www.academia.edu/43746490/_2022_The_City_of_Hadrian_and_not_of_Theseus_a_cultural_history_of_Hadrians_Arch</ref> 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, Athens|Temple of Olympian Zeus]].
In the early 4th century AD the [[Eastern Roman Empire]] began to be governed from [[Constantinople]], and with the construction and expansion of the imperial city, many of Athens's works of art were taken by the emperors to adorn it. The Empire became [[Christianised]], and the use of [[Latin]] declined in favour of exclusive use of [[Medieval Greek|Greek]]; in the [[Roman imperial period (chronology)|Roman imperial period]], both languages had been used. In the later Roman period, Athens was ruled by the emperors continuing until the 13th century, its citizens identifying themselves as citizens of the Roman Empire ("''[[Rhomaioi]]''"). The conversion of the empire from paganism to Christianity greatly affected Athens, resulting in reduced reverence for the city.<ref name=tung/> 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 centre of learning, especially of [[Neoplatonism]]—with notable pupils including [[Gregory of Nazianzus]], [[Basil of Caesarea]] and the Roman emperor [[Julian (emperor)|Julian]] ({{Reign|355|363}})—and consequently a centre of paganism. Christian items do not appear in the archaeological record until the early 5th century.<ref name="ODB">{{cite encyclopedia|last1=Gregory|first1=Timothy E.|last2=Ševčenko|first2=Nancy Patterson|title=Athens|pages=221–223|editor-last=Kazhdan|editor-first=Alexander|editor-link=Alexander Kazhdan|year=1991|encyclopedia=[[The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium]]|location=Oxford and New York|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-504652-6}}</ref> The sack of the city by the [[Herules]] in 267 and by the [[Visigoths]] under their king [[Alaric I]] ({{Reign|395|410}}) in 396, however, dealt a heavy blow to the city's fabric and fortunes, and Athens was henceforth confined to a small fortified area that embraced a fraction of the ancient city.<ref name="ODB" /> The emperor [[Justinian I]] ({{Reign|527|565}}) banned the teaching of philosophy by pagans in 529,<ref>Alan Cameron, "The Last Days of the Academy at Athens," in A. Cameron, Wandering Poets and Other Essays on Late Greek Literature and Philosophy, 2016, (Oxford University Press: Oxford), pp. 205–246</ref> an event whose impact on the city is much debated,<ref name="ODB" /> but is generally taken to mark the end of the ancient history of Athens.

=== Byzantine Athens ===
{{main|Byzantine empire|Byzantine Greece}}
[[File:At_the_Byzantine_Monastery_of_Daphni_on_October_31,_2019.jpg|thumb|The [[Daphni Monastery]], an 11th-century [[Byzantine]] monastery northwest of central Athens, is a designated [[UNESCO World Heritage Site]].]]

Athens was sacked by the [[Slavs]] in 582, but remained in imperial hands thereafter, as highlighted by the visit of the emperor [[Constans II]] ({{Reign|641|668}}) in 662/3 and its inclusion in the [[Theme of Hellas]].<ref name="ODB"/> The city was threatened by [[Saracen]] raids in the 8th–9th centuries—in 896, Athens was raided and possibly occupied for a short period, an event which left some archaeological remains and elements of Arabic ornamentation in contemporary buildings<ref name="EI2">{{cite encyclopedia | article = Atīna | first = Franz | last = Babinger | author-link = Franz Babinger | encyclopedia = The Encyclopedia of Islam, New Edition, Volume I: A–B | publisher = Brill| location = Leiden and New York | year = 1986 | isbn = 90-04-08114-3 | pages = 738–739 | url = http://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-2/atina-SIM_0849 }}</ref>—but there is also evidence of a [[mosque]] existing in the city at the time.<ref name="ODB" /> In the great dispute over [[Byzantine Iconoclasm]], Athens is commonly held to have supported the [[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.<ref name="ODB" /> A few years later, another Athenian, [[Theophano of Athens|Theophano]], became empress as the wife of [[Staurakios]] (r. 811–812).<ref name="ODB" />

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 I Komnenos|Alexios]], [[John II Komnenos|John]] and [[Manuel I Komnenos|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.
[[File:Acropolis_Frankish_tower.jpg|thumb|The [[Frankish Tower (Acropolis of Athens)|Frankish Tower of the Acropolis of Athens]] in 1874, the year before it was demolished, with the ruins of the [[Propylaea (Acropolis of Athens)|Propylaea]] and view west over the Athenian plain towards [[Mount Aigaleo]]]]

The [[Ancient Agora of Athens|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 [[Venice|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<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://byzantine-world.com/city/byzantine-athens-a-provincial-city-in-the-shadow-of-its-glorious-past/|title=Byzantine Athens: A provincial city in the shadow of its glorious past|date=January 8, 2025}}</ref>.

The 11th and 12th centuries were the Golden Age of [[Byzantine art]] in Athens. Almost all of the most important Middle Byzantine churches in and around Athens were built during these two centuries, and this reflects the growth of the town in general. This medieval prosperity did not last.

=== Duchy of Athens ===
{{Further|Duchy of Athens}}
In 1204, the [[Fourth Crusade]] conquered Athens and the city was not recovered from the [[Roman Catholicism|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 [[Crusades]]. The "Latins", or "[[Franks (Crusaders)|Franks]]", were western Europeans and followers of the [[Latin Church]] brought to the [[Eastern Mediterranean]] during the Crusades. Along with rest of Byzantine Greece, Athens was part of the series of feudal [[fiefs]], similar to the  [[Crusader states]] established in [[Syria (region)|Syria]] and on [[Kingdom of Cyprus|Cyprus]] after the [[First Crusade]]. This period is known as the ''[[Frankokratia]]''.

===Ottoman Athens===
{{Main|Ottoman Greece}}
[[File:Monastiraki Square in Athens (30996716898).jpg|thumb|[[Tzistarakis Mosque]], an [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] mosque, built in 1759, in [[Monastiraki]] Square]]
[[File:Peytier - Mosque in the Parthenon.jpg|thumb|The second [[Parthenon mosque]] in the ruined [[Parthenon]], which was destroyed by a [[Siege of the Acropolis (1687)|Venetian bombardment in 1687]], depicted by [[Pierre Peytier]] in the 1830s]]

The first [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] attack on Athens, which involved a short-lived occupation of the town, came in 1397, under the Ottoman generals [[Yaqub Pasha]] and Timurtash.<ref name="EI2"/> In 1458, Athens was captured by the Ottomans under the personal leadership of Sultan [[Mehmed II]].<ref name="EI2"/> 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 [[Parthenon mosque|main mosque]] of the city.<ref name=tung/>

Under Ottoman rule, Athens was denuded of any importance and its population severely declined, leaving it as a "small country town" ([[Franz Babinger]]).<ref name="EI2"/> From the early 17th century, Athens came under the jurisdiction of the [[Kizlar Agha]], the chief black eunuch of the [[Imperial Harem|Sultan's harem]]. The city had originally been granted by Sultan [[Ahmed I]] ({{reign|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.<ref>{{cite book |last = Augustinos |first = Olga |chapter = Eastern Concubines, Western Mistresses: Prévost's ''Histoire d'une Grecque moderne'' |page=24 |editor1-last = Buturović |editor1-first = Amila |editor2-last = Schick |editor2-first = İrvin Cemil |title = Women in the Ottoman Balkans: Gender, Culture and History |year = 2007 |publisher = I.B. Tauris |location = London and New York |isbn = 978-1-84511-505-0 |chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=xEHnuObu1D4C&pg=PA24}}</ref>

The Turks began a practice of storing gunpowder and explosives in the Parthenon and [[Propylaea (Acropolis of Athens)|Propylaea]]. In 1640, a lightning bolt struck the Propylaea, causing its destruction.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ancient-greece.org/history/acropolis-ottoman.html |title=and (Dontas, The Acropolis and its Museum, 16) |publisher=Ancient-greece.org |date=21 April 2007 |access-date=22 March 2009}}</ref> In 1687, during the [[Morean War]], the Acropolis [[Siege of the Acropolis (1687)|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.<ref name=tung/><ref name="EI2"/> 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.<ref name="EI2"/>

=== Modern history ===
{{Main|Greek War of Independence|Kingdom of Greece|Republic of Greece}}
[[File:Peter von Hess - The Entry of King Othon of Greece in Athens - WGA11387.jpg|thumb|''[[The Entry of King Otto of Greece into Athens]]'' by [[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 [[Greek War of Independence]] and the establishment of the [[Greek Kingdom]], Athens was chosen to replace [[Nafplio]] as the second capital of the newly independent Greek state in 1834, largely because of historical and sentimental reasons.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vb2xAAAAIAAJ&q=otto+move+capital+athens |title=Planning and Urban Growth in Southern Europe |last=Wynn |first=Martin |year=1984 |publisher=Mansell |isbn=978-0720116083 |page=6 |language=en}}</ref> At the time, after the extensive destruction it had suffered during the war of independence, it was reduced to a town of about 4,000 people (less than half its earlier population) in a loose swarm of houses along the foot of the Acropolis. The first [[King of Greece]], [[Otto 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.
[[File:Olympic flame at opening ceremony.jpg|thumb|The [[Olympic Flame]] at the [[2004 Summer Olympics opening ceremony|opening ceremony]] of the [[2004 Summer Olympics]]]]

The first modern city plan consisted of a triangle defined by the Acropolis, the ancient cemetery of [[Kerameikos]] and the new palace of the Bavarian king (now housing the [[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. 

In 1896, Athens hosted the first modern [[Olympic Games]]. In the 1920s a number of [[Greek refugees]], expelled from [[Anatolia|Asia Minor]] after the [[Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922)|Greco-Turkish War]] and [[Population exchange between Greece and Turkey]], swelled Athens's population. After [[World War II]] and [[Greek Civil War|the Civil War]] ended, Athen's population boomed in the 1950s and 1960s.
{{Expand section|with=more details about post-World War II growth.|date=November 2025}}
In the 1980s it became evident that smog from factories and an ever-increasing fleet of cars, as well as a lack of adequate free space due to congestion, had evolved into the city's most important challenge. 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. Athens hosted the [[2004 Summer Olympics]]. Further urban improvements began in the 2020s along the coastal zone, including the [[Hellenikon Metropolitan Park|Hellenikon Park]] development and the Faliro Delta upgrade, adding to the [[Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center|Stavros Niarchos Centre]]. The Hellenikon Park development will feature the [[Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Athens]], the first [[integrated resort]] in [[continental Europe]] and the [[Riviera Tower]].

==Geography<!--'Athens Basin' and 'Attica Basin' redirect here-->==
[[File:Athens,_Greece_ESA24382014.jpeg|thumb|The Athens Urban Area within the Attica Basin, seen from space]]

Athens sprawls across the central plain of Attica that is often referred to as the '''Athens Basin'''<!--boldface per WP:R#PLA--> or the '''Attica Basin'''<!--boldface per WP:R#PLA--> ({{langx|el|Λεκανοπέδιο Αθηνών/Αττικής|translit=Lekanopédio Athinón/Attikís|engvar=gb}}). The basin is bounded by four large mountains: [[Mount Aigaleo]] to the west, Mount [[Parnitha]] to the north, [[Mount Pentelicus]] to the northeast and Mount [[Hymettus]] to the east.<ref name="Focus on Athens">{{Cite web |title=Focus on Athens |url=http://www.urbanheatisland.info/images/newsletter/UHI_newsletter_Issue_1.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130722204815/http://www.urbanheatisland.info/images/newsletter/UHI_newsletter_Issue_1.pdf |archive-date=22 July 2013 |access-date=18 March 2011 |website=UHI Quarterly Newsletter, Issue 1, May 2009|page= 2 |publisher=urbanheatisland.info}}</ref> Beyond Mount Aegaleo lies the [[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 ({{convert|1413|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}),<ref>{{Cite web |title=Welcome!!! |url=http://www.parnitha-np.gr/welcome.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190128002355/http://www.parnitha-np.gr/welcome.htm |archive-date=28 January 2019 |access-date=10 June 2009 |publisher=Parnitha-np.gr}}</ref> and has been declared a [[national park]]. The Athens urban area spreads over {{convert|50|km}} from [[Agios Stefanos, Attica|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. [[Mount Lycabettus|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 [[inversion (meteorology)|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.<ref name=tung/> This issue is not unique to Athens; for instance, Los Angeles and [[Mexico City]] also suffer from similar atmospheric inversion problems.<ref name="tung">{{Cite book |last=Tung |first=Anthony |title=Preserving the World's Great Cities: The Destruction and Renewal of the Historic Metropolis |publisher=Three Rivers Press |year=2001 |isbn=0-609-80815-X |location=New York |page=[https://archive.org/details/preservingworlds00anth/page/266 266] |chapter=The City the Gods Besieged |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/preservingworlds00anth |chapter-url-access=registration}}</ref>

The [[Cephissus (Athenian plain)|Cephissus]] river, the [[Ilisos]] and the [[Eridanos (Athens)|Eridanos]] stream are the historical rivers of Athens.

=== Environment ===
[[File:Smog Athens.jpg|thumb|[[Smog]] in Athens]]
By the late 1970s the pollution of Athens had become so destructive that according to the then Greek [[Minister for Culture (Greece)|Minister of Culture]], Constantine Trypanis, "...the carved details on the five the caryatids of the [[Erechtheum]] had seriously degenerated, while the face of the horseman on the Parthenon's west side was all but obliterated."<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=31 January 1977 |title=Acropolis: Threat of Destruction |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,918645,00.html |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930095951/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,918645,00.html |archive-date=30 September 2007 |access-date=3 April 2007}}</ref> 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,<ref name="outraged">{{Cite news |last=Kitsantonis |first=Niki |date=16 July 2007 |title=As forest fires burn, suffocated Athens is outraged |work=International Herald Tribune |url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/07/16/news/greece.php |access-date=3 February 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070918215853/http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/07/16/news/greece.php |archive-date=18 September 2007}}</ref> the Attica region experienced a number of [[2007 Greek forest fires|brush fires]],<ref name=outraged/> including a blaze that burned a significant portion of a large forested national park in [[Parnitha|Mount Parnitha]],<ref name="ypexode">{{Cite press release |date=18 July 2007 |publisher=Hellenic Ministry for the Environment, Physical Planning, & Public Works |url=http://www.minenv.gr/download/2007-07-18.sinenteksi.typoy.Parnitha.doc |quote=Συνολική καμένη έκταση πυρήνα Εθνικού Δρυμού Πάρνηθας: 15.723 (Σύνολο 38.000) |language=el |access-date=15 January 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216035359/http://www.minenv.gr/download/2007-07-18.sinenteksi.typoy.Parnitha.doc |archive-date=16 February 2008 |script-title=el:Συνέντευξη Τύπου Γ. Σουφλιά για την Πάρνηθα |format=.doc}}</ref> considered critical to maintaining a better air quality in Athens all year round.<ref name=outraged/> Damage to the park has led to worries over a stalling in the improvement of air quality in the city.<ref name=outraged/>

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 ====
[[File:Pedion_Areos08_25_05_623000.jpeg|thumb|The [[Pedion tou Areos]] park]]
[[File:20140410 60 Athens National Gardens (13824726745).jpg|alt=|thumb|The entrance of the [[National Garden of Athens|National Gardens]], commissioned by [[Amalia of Oldenburg|Queen Amalia]] in 1838 and completed by 1840]]

[[Parnitha]] National Park is punctuated by well-marked paths, gorges, springs, torrents and caves dotting the protected area. Hiking and mountain-biking in all four mountains are popular outdoor activities for residents of the city. The [[National Garden of Athens]] was completed in 1840 and is a green refuge of 15.5 hectares in the centre of the Greek capital. Located between the Parliament and [[Zappeion]] buildings, the latter of which maintains its own garden of seven hectares. Parts of the City Centre have been redeveloped under a masterplan called the ''Unification of Archeological Sites of Athens'', which has also gathered funding from the EU to help enhance the project.<ref name=EUfund/><ref>{{Cite web |title=Eaxa :: Ενοποιηση Αρχαιολογικων Χωρων Αθηνασ Α.Ε |url=http://www.astynet.gr/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090228090100/http://www.astynet.gr/ |archive-date=28 February 2009 |access-date=21 March 2009 |publisher=Astynet.gr}}</ref> 

The landmark [[Dionysiou Areopagitou Street]] has been pedestrianised, forming a scenic route. The route starts from the [[Temple of Olympian Zeus (Athens)|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 [[ancient Agora of Athens|Agora]], the meeting point of ancient Athenians, away from the busy City Centre.

The hills of Athens also provide green space. [[Mount Lycabettus|Lycabettus]], [[Philopappos Monument|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|National Archaeological Museum]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Περιφέρεια Αττικής|url=https://www.patt.gov.gr/tag/%CF%80%CE%B5%CE%B4%CE%AF%CE%BF%CE%BD-%CE%AC%CF%81%CE%B5%CF%89%CF%82/|access-date=13 July 2025}}</ref>

===Climate===

[[File:Athens_and_Mount_Lycabettus_from_the_Areopagus_on_July_22,_2019.jpg|thumb|Sunrise in Athens]]
[[File:Sunset over the Hill of the Nymphs, viewed from the Propylaea, 2024.jpg|thumb|Sunset over the Hill of the Nymphs, viewed from the [[Propylaea (Acropolis of Athens)|Propylaea]], 2024]]
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]] and [[Cape Town]]. According to the meteorological station near the city centre which is operated by the [[National Observatory of Athens]], the downtown area has a simple mean annual temperature of {{convert|19.2|C|F}} while parts of the urban agglomeration may reach up to {{convert|19.8|C|F}}, being affected by the [[urban heat island]] effect.<ref name="Climate Atlas of Greece">{{Cite web |title=Climate Atlas of Greece |url=http://climatlas.hnms.gr/sdi/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220204171218/http://climatlas.hnms.gr/sdi/ |archive-date=4 February 2022 |access-date=10 April 2022 |publisher=[[Hellenic National Meteorological Service]]}}</ref>. [[Fog]] is rare in the city centre, but somewhat more frequent in areas to the east, close to Mt. [[Hymettus]].<ref name="Practical Information About Athens">{{Cite web |title=Practical Information About Athens |url=https://www.ippcathens2024.gr/general-info |access-date=31 May 2023 |website=www.ippcathens2024.gr |language=en-gb}}</ref> Advection fog can occur in spring, especially along the coastline.

The southern section of the [[Athens metropolitan area]] (i.e., [[Elliniko]], [[Athens Riviera]]) lies in the transitional zone between [[Mediterranean climate|Mediterranean]] (''Csa'') and hot [[semi-arid climate]] (''BSh''), with its port-city of [[Piraeus]] being the most extreme example, receiving just {{convert|331.9|mm|in}} per year. The areas to the south generally see less extreme temperature variations as their climate is moderated by the [[Saronic Gulf|Saronic gulf]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Melas |first1=D. |last2=Ziomas |first2=I. |last3=Klemm |first3=O. |last4=Zerefos |first4=C. S. |date=1 June 1998 |title=Anatomy of the sea-breeze circulation in Athens area under weak large-scale ambient winds |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1352231097004202 |journal=Atmospheric Environment |language=en |volume=32 |issue=12 |pages=2223–2237 |doi=10.1016/S1352-2310(97)00420-2 |bibcode=1998AtmEn..32.2223M |issn=1352-2310|url-access=subscription }}</ref> 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 [[Dirfi|Dirfys]] and [[Parnitha]] mountains, substantially drying the westerly<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mountain Weather in Greece : Articles : SummitPost |url=https://www.summitpost.org/mountain-weather-in-greece/1002640 |access-date=31 May 2023 |website=www.summitpost.org}}</ref> and northerly<ref name="Practical Information About Athens"/> winds respectively.
[[File:View_of_the_Ancient_Agora_of_Athens_from_Apostolou_Pavlou_Pedestrian_Street_on_February_16,_2021.jpg|thumb|Snowfall in Athens on 16 February 2021]]

Snowfall is not very common. It usually does not cause heavy disruption to daily life, in contrast to the northern parts of the city, where [[blizzard]]s occur on a somewhat more regular basis. The most recent examples include the snowstorms of 16 February 2021<ref>{{Cite web |date=16 February 2021 |title=Unusually heavy snow blankets Athens – in pictures |url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2021/feb/16/unusually-heavy-snow-blankets-athens-in-pictures |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211221073843/https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2021/feb/16/unusually-heavy-snow-blankets-athens-in-pictures |archive-date=21 December 2021 |access-date=21 December 2021 |website=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref> and 24 January 2022,<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 January 2022 |title=Severe weather brings snow to Athens, Greek islands |url=https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1176103/cold-weather-front-hits-greece/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220124163328/https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1176103/cold-weather-front-hits-greece/ |archive-date=24 January 2022 |access-date=24 January 2022 |publisher=Ekhatimerini}}</ref> when the entire urban area was blanketed in snow, apart, in the second case, to many areas adjacent to [[Piraeus]].

Athens may get particularly hot in the summer, owing partly to the strong [[urban heat island]] effect characterising the city.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Giannaros |first1=Theodore M. |last2=Melas |first2=Dimitrios |last3=Daglis |first3=Ioannis A. |last4=Keramitsoglou |first4=Iphigenia |last5=Kourtidis |first5=Konstantinos |date=1 July 2013 |title=Numerical study of the urban heat island over Athens (Greece) with the WRF model |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1352231013001726 |journal=Atmospheric Environment |language=en |volume=73 |pages=103–111 |doi=10.1016/j.atmosenv.2013.02.055 |bibcode=2013AtmEn..73..103G |issn=1352-2310|url-access=subscription }}</ref>  In fact, Athens has been referred to as the hottest city in [[mainland Europe]],<ref name="Athens will be the first European city to appoint a chief heat officer">{{cite web|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/90658073/athens-will-be-the-first-european-city-to-appoint-a-chief-heat-officer|title=Athens will be the first European city to appoint a chief heat officer|work=Fast Company |date=23 July 2021 |publisher=Fast Company media magazine|accessdate=10 April 2022 |last1=Visram |first1=Talib }}</ref> and is the first city in Europe to appoint a chief heat officer to deal with severe [[heat wave]]s.<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 June 2022 |title=Athens' chief heat officer prepares the city for the climate crisis |url=https://www.euronews.com/2022/06/24/europes-first-chief-heat-officer-explains-how-athens-is-preparing-for-severe-heatwaves |access-date=8 June 2023 |website=euronews |language=en}}</ref> [[List of extreme temperatures in Greece|Temperatures of 47.5°C and over]] have been reported in several locations of the metropolitan area, including within the urban agglomeration. [[Athens metropolitan area|Metropolitan Athens]] was until 2021 the holder of the [[World Meteorological Organization]] record for the highest temperature ever recorded in Europe with {{convert|48.0|C|F}} which was recorded in the areas of [[Elefsina]] and [[Tatoi Palace|Tatoi]] on 10 July 1977.<ref>{{Cite web |title=World Meteorological Organization's World Weather & Climate Extremes Archive |url=https://wmo.asu.edu/content/europe-highest-temperature |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160924095721/https://wmo.asu.edu/content/europe-highest-temperature |archive-date=24 September 2016 |access-date=23 September 2016 |website=[[Arizona State University]] website |publisher=[[World Meteorological Organization]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=17 July 2023 |title=WMO is monitoring potential new temperature records |url=https://wmo.int/media/news/wmo-monitoring-potential-new-temperature-records |access-date=17 July 2023 |website=public.wmo.int |language=en }}</ref>

{{Weather box
| location = downtown Athens (1991–2020, extremes 1890–present)
| metric first = y
| single line = y
| collapsed = 
| Jan high C = 13.3
| Feb high C = 14.2
| Mar high C = 17.0
| Apr high C = 21.1
| May high C = 26.5
| Jun high C = 31.6
| Jul high C = 34.3
| Aug high C = 34.3
| Sep high C = 29.6
| Oct high C = 24.4
| Nov high C = 18.9
| Dec high C = 14.4
| year high C = 23.3		
|Jan mean C = 10.2
|Feb mean C = 10.8
|Mar mean C = 13.1
|Apr mean C = 16.7
|May mean C  = 21.8
|Jun mean C  = 26.6
|Jul mean C = 29.3
|Aug mean C = 29.4
|Sep mean C = 25.0
|Oct mean C = 20.3
|Nov mean C = 15.6
|Dec mean C = 11.6
|year mean C= 19.2
| Jan low C = 7.1
| Feb low C = 7.3
| Mar low C = 9.2
| Apr low C = 12.3
| May low C = 17.0
| Jun low C = 21.6
| Jul low C = 24.2
| Aug low C = 24.4
| Sep low C = 20.4
| Oct low C = 16.2
| Nov low C = 12.2
| Dec low C = 8.7
| year low C = 15.0
| Jan record high C = 22.8
| Feb record high C = 25.3
| Mar record high C = 28.2
| Apr record high C = 32.2
| May record high C = 37.6
| Jun record high C = 44.8
| Jul record high C = 42.8
| Aug record high C = 43.9
| Sep record high C = 38.7
| Oct record high C = 36.5
| Nov record high C = 30.5
| Dec record high C = 23.1
| Jan record low C = −6.5
| Feb record low C = −5.7
| Mar record low C = −2.6
| Apr record low C = 1.7
| May record low C = 6.2
| Jun record low C = 11.8
| Jul record low C = 16.0
| Aug record low C = 15.5
| Sep record low C = 8.9
| Oct record low C = 5.9
| Nov record low C = −1.1
| Dec record low C = -4.0
| rain colour = green
| Jan rain mm = 55.6
| Feb rain mm = 44.4
| Mar rain mm = 45.6
| Apr rain mm = 27.6
| May rain mm = 20.7
| Jun rain mm = 11.6
| Jul rain mm = 10.7
| Aug rain mm = 5.4
| Sep rain mm = 25.8
| Oct rain mm = 38.6
| Nov rain mm = 70.8
| Dec rain mm = 76.3
| Jan humidity = 72
| Feb humidity = 70
| Mar humidity = 66
| Apr humidity = 60
| May humidity = 56
| Jun humidity = 50
| Jul humidity = 42
| Aug humidity = 47
| Sep humidity = 57
| Oct humidity = 66
| Nov humidity = 72
| Dec humidity = 73
| Jan uv = 2
| Feb uv = 3
| Mar uv = 5
| Apr uv = 7
| May uv = 9
| Jun uv = 10
| Jul uv = 10
| Aug uv = 9
| Sep uv = 6
| Oct uv = 4
| Nov uv = 2
| Dec uv = 2
| source 1 = Cosmos, scientific magazine of the [[National Observatory of Athens]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Το 'νέο' κλίμα της Αθήνας – Περίοδος 1991–2020 |url=http://magazine.noa.gr/archives/4446 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211021120650/http://magazine.noa.gr/archives/4446 |archive-date=21 October 2021 |access-date=3 July 2021 |publisher=[[National Observatory of Athens]]}}</ref>
| source 2 = Meteoclub<ref>{{Cite web |title=Το κλίμα της Αθήνας |url=https://www.meteoclub.gr/themata/egkyklopaideia/to-klima-ths-athinas |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211021120728/https://www.meteoclub.gr/themata/egkyklopaideia/to-klima-ths-athinas |archive-date=21 October 2021 |access-date=3 July 2021 |website=www.meteoclub.gr}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Το αρχείο του Θησείου |url=http://www.meteoclub.gr/themata/egkyklopaideia/5103-to-arxeio-tou-thiseiou |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160504183604/http://www.meteoclub.gr/themata/egkyklopaideia/5103-to-arxeio-tou-thiseiou |archive-date=4 May 2016 |access-date=1 May 2016 |website=www.meteoclub.gr}}</ref>
| source = 
}}
{{Weather box
| location = [[Neos Kosmos, Athens|Neos Kosmos]], downtown Athens 85 m a.s.l.
| collapsed = y
| metric first = y
| single line = y
| Jan high C = 14.1
| Feb high C = 15.2
| Mar high C = 17.6
| Apr high C = 21.6
| May high C = 25.8
| Jun high C = 31.1
| Jul high C = 34.1
| Aug high C = 33.6
| Sep high C = 29.6
| Oct high C = 24.1
| Nov high C = 19.8
| Dec high C = 15.6

| Jan mean C = 11.3
| Feb mean C = 12.3
| Mar mean C = 14.4
| Apr mean C = 18.0
| May mean C = 22.1
| Jun mean C = 27.2
| Jul mean C = 30.3
| Aug mean C = 30.0
| Sep mean C = 26.1
| Oct mean C = 20.8
| Nov mean C = 16.9
| Dec mean C = 13.0

| Jan low C = 8.6
| Feb low C = 9.4
| Mar low C = 11.1
| Apr low C = 14.3
| May low C = 18.4
| Jun low C = 23.4
| Jul low C = 26.6
| Aug low C = 26.4
| Sep low C = 22.6
| Oct low C = 17.6
| Nov low C = 14.0
| Dec low C = 10.4

| Jan record high C = 22.8
| Feb record high C = 25.0
| Mar record high C = 25.4
| Apr record high C = 31.2
| May record high C = 36.4
| Jun record high C = 41.2
| Jul record high C = 42.6
| Aug record high C = 42.8
| Sep record high C = 38.1
| Oct record high C = 32.6
| Nov record high C = 27.5
| Dec record high C = 23.4
| Jan record low C = -1.2
| Feb record low C = -0.5
| Mar record low C = 0.0
| Apr record low C = 5.2
| May record low C = 12.6
| Jun record low C = 15.8
| Jul record low C = 19.6
| Aug record low C = 20.8
| Sep record low C = 15.7
| Oct record low C = 9.3
| Nov record low C = 6.7
| Dec record low C = 0.9
| rain colour = green
| Jan rain mm = 52.1
| Feb rain mm = 47.0
| Mar rain mm = 31.9
| Apr rain mm = 19.0
| May rain mm = 17.0
| Jun rain mm = 21.0
| Jul rain mm = 5.9
| Aug rain mm = 6.0
| Sep rain mm = 21.2
| Oct rain mm = 40.6
| Nov rain mm = 60.0
| Dec rain mm = 69.6
| source 1 = [[National Observatory of Athens]] Monthly Bulletins (Oct 2010 – Sep 2025) <ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.meteo.gr/Monthly_Bulletins.cfm | title=Meteo.gr – Προγνώσεις καιρού για όλη την Ελλάδα }}</ref>
| source 2 = Neos Kosmos N.O.A station,<ref>{{cite web | url=https://penteli.meteo.gr/stations/neoskosmos/ | title=Latest Conditions in Neos Kosmos, Athens }}</ref> [[World Meteorological Organization]]<ref name="WMO">{{cite web | url=https://oscar.wmo.int/surface/#/search/station/stationReportDetails/0-300-1-neoskosmos | title=World Meteorological Organization | accessdate=14 July 2023}}</ref>
}}
{{Weather box
| location = [[Elliniko]], coastal Athens (1955–2010), Extremes (1957–present)
| collapsed = y
| metric first = y
| single line = y
| Jan record high C = 22.4
| Feb record high C = 24.2
| Mar record high C = 27.0
| Apr record high C = 30.9
| May record high C = 35.6
| Jun record high C = 40.0
| Jul record high C = 42.2
| Aug record high C = 43.0
| Sep record high C = 37.2
| Oct record high C = 35.2
| Nov record high C = 28.6
| Dec record high C = 22.9
| Jan high C = 13.6
| Feb high C = 14.1
| Mar high C = 15.9
| Apr high C = 19.6
| May high C = 24.4
| Jun high C = 29.2
| Jul high C = 32.2
| Aug high C = 32.2
| Sep high C = 28.3
| Oct high C = 23.4
| Nov high C = 18.8
| Dec high C = 15.1
| Jan mean C = 10.3
| Feb mean C = 10.6
| Mar mean C = 12.4
| Apr mean C = 16.1
| May mean C = 20.9
| Jun mean C = 25.6
| Jul mean C = 28.3
| Aug mean C = 28.2
| Sep mean C = 24.3
| Oct mean C = 19.6
| Nov mean C = 15.4
| Dec mean C = 11.9
| Jan low C = 7.0
| Feb low C = 7.1
| Mar low C = 8.5
| Apr low C = 11.5
| May low C = 15.8
| Jun low C = 20.3
| Jul low C = 23.0
| Aug low C = 23.1
| Sep low C = 19.6
| Oct low C = 15.7
| Nov low C = 12.0
| Dec low C = 8.8
| Jan record low C = −2.9
| Feb record low C = −4.2
| Mar record low C = -2.0
| Apr record low C = 0.6
| May record low C = 8.0
| Jun record low C = 11.4
| Jul record low C = 15.5
| Aug record low C = 16.0
| Sep record low C = 10.4
| Oct record low C = 3.0
| Nov record low C = 1.4
| Dec record low C = -2.0
| rain colour = green
| Jan rain mm = 47.7
| Feb rain mm = 38.5
| Mar rain mm = 42.3
| Apr rain mm = 25.5
| May rain mm = 14.3
| Jun rain mm = 5.4
| Jul rain mm = 6.3
| Aug rain mm = 6.2
| Sep rain mm = 12.3
| Oct rain mm = 45.9
| Nov rain mm = 60.1
| Dec rain mm = 62.0
| Jan rain days = 12.9
| Feb rain days = 11.4
| Mar rain days = 11.3
| Apr rain days = 9.3
| May rain days = 6.4
| Jun rain days = 3.6
| Jul rain days = 1.7
| Aug rain days = 1.6
| Sep rain days = 4.7
| Oct rain days = 8.6
| Nov rain days = 10.9
| Dec rain days = 13.5
| Jan humidity = 69.3
| Feb humidity = 68.0
| Mar humidity = 65.9
| Apr humidity = 62.2
| May humidity = 58.2
| Jun humidity = 51.8
| Jul humidity = 46.6
| Aug humidity = 46.8
| Sep humidity = 54.0
| Oct humidity = 62.6
| Nov humidity = 69.2
| Dec humidity = 70.4
| Jan sun = 130.2
| Feb sun = 134.4
| Mar sun = 182.9
| Apr sun = 231.0
| May sun = 291.4
| Jun sun = 336.0
| Jul sun = 362.7
| Aug sun = 341.0
| Sep sun = 276.0
| Oct sun = 207.7
| Nov sun = 153.0
| Dec sun = 127.1
| source 1 = [[HNMS]] (1955–2010 normals)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Climatic Data for selected stations in Greece: Elliniko (Elliniko) |url=http://www.hnms.gr/emy/en/climatology/climatology_city?perifereia=Attiki&poli=Athens_Hellinikon |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210205131656/http://www.hnms.gr/emy/en/climatology/climatology_city?perifereia=Attiki&poli=Athens_Hellinikon |archive-date=5 February 2021 |access-date=5 February 2021}}</ref>
| source 2 = [[Deutscher Wetterdienst]] (Extremes 1961–1990),<ref>{{Cite web |title=Klimatafel von Athen Flughafen (Hellinikon) / Griechenland |url=https://www.dwd.de/DWD/klima/beratung/ak/ak_167160_kt.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200612160622/https://www.dwd.de/DWD/klima/beratung/ak/ak_167160_kt.pdf |archive-date=12 June 2020 |access-date=15 May 2020 |website=Baseline climate means (1961–1990) from stations all over the world |publisher=Deutscher Wetterdienst}}</ref> Info Climat (Extremes 1991–present)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Climatic Data for selected stations in Greece: Athens Airport |url=https://www.infoclimat.fr/climatologie/normales-records/1981-2010/athinai-airport-athenes/valeurs/16716.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210205131829/https://www.infoclimat.fr/climatologie/normales-records/1981-2010/athinai-airport-athenes/valeurs/16716.html |archive-date=5 February 2021 |access-date=15 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite tweet |number=1348003628360073223 |user=EKMeteo |title=Aussi 22.4°C #Athènes-Ellinikon record mensuel à la station |date=9 January 2021 |access-date=10 January 2021 |language=French |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210109202836/https://twitter.com/EKMeteo/status/1348003628360073223 |archive-date=9 January 2021 |url-status=live |first=Etienne |last=Kapikian}}</ref>
| source = 
}}

== Administration<!--'Athens City Centre', 'Athens City Center', 'Athens city centre', 'Athens city center', 'City of Athens', 'Municipality of Athens', 'Athens Municipality', 'Athens municipality' redirect here--> ==
[[File:Δημαρχείο Αθηνών 9734.jpg|thumb|Athens City Hall]]
[[File:Ancien_Palais_Royal_-_Athènes_(GRA1)_-_2022-03-26_-_1.jpg|thumb|The [[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)|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'''<!--boldface per WP:R#PLA--> ({{langx|el|Κέντρο της Αθήνας|translit=Kéntro tis Athínas|engvar=gb}}) of the Greek capital falls directly within the '''Municipality of Athens'''<!--boldface per WP:R#PLA--> ({{langx|el|Δήμος Αθηναίων|translit=Dímos Athinaíon|engvar=gb}}), which is the largest in population size in Greece and forms the core of the Athens urban area is made up of a series of smaller Municipal Communities, followed by the '''Municipality of [[Piraeus]]''', which forms a significant city centre on its own within the Athens urban area and it is the second largest in population size within it.

=== Athens Urban Area<!--'Athens Urban Area', 'Athens urban area', 'Urban Area of the Capital', and 'Greater Athens' redirect here--> ===
The '''Athens Urban Area'''<!--boldface per WP:R#PLA--> ({{langx|el|Πολεοδομικό Συγκρότημα Αθηνών|translit=Poleodomikó Synkrótima Athinón|engvar=gb}}), also known as '''Urban Area of the Capital'''<!--boldface per WP:R#PLA--> ({{langx|el|Πολεοδομικό Συγκρότημα Πρωτεύουσας|translit=Poleodomikó Synkrótima Protévousas|engvar=gb}}) or '''Greater Athens'''<!--boldface per WP:R#PLA--> ({{langx|el|Ευρύτερη Αθήνα|translit=Evrýteri Athína|engvar=gb}})<!--boldface per WP:R#PLA-->,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Greater Athens (Greece): Municipalities – Population Statistics, Charts and Map |url=https://www.citypopulation.de/php/greece-athens.php |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200503034211/https://www.citypopulation.de/php/greece-athens.php |archive-date=3 May 2020 |access-date=24 May 2020 |website=citypopulation.de}}</ref> today consists of 40 municipalities: 35 of them divided in four regional units ([[Central Athens (regional unit)|Central Athens]], [[North Athens (regional unit)|North Athens]], [[West Athens (regional unit)|West Athens]], [[South Athens (regional unit)|South Athens]]), and a further 5 municipalities which make up the [[Piraeus (regional unit)|regional unit of Piraeus]]. The Athens urban area spans over {{convert|412|km2|sqmi|0|abbr=on}},<ref name="Kallikratis">{{Cite web |title=ΦΕΚ B 1292/2010, Kallikratis reform municipalities |url=http://www.et.gr/idocs-nph/search/pdfViewerForm.html?args=5C7QrtC22wGYK2xFpSwMnXdtvSoClrL81-32jgAMSfbnMRVjyfnPUeJInJ48_97uHrMts-zFzeyCiBSQOpYnT00MHhcXFRTsb2fGphpq4MKX2ZkaHobySNnvZCNHXvYVvlf80XevW0Q. |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211010162605/http://www.et.gr/idocs-nph/search/pdfViewerForm.html?args=5C7QrtC22wGYK2xFpSwMnXdtvSoClrL81-32jgAMSfbnMRVjyfnPUeJInJ48_97uHrMts-zFzeyCiBSQOpYnT00MHhcXFRTsb2fGphpq4MKX2ZkaHobySNnvZCNHXvYVvlf80XevW0Q. |archive-date=10 October 2021 |access-date=9 September 2021 |publisher=[[Government Gazette (Greece)|Government Gazette]] |language=el}}</ref> with a population of 3,059,764 people as of 2021.

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; margin:1em auto"
|+ Athens Urban Area
|-
|style="text-align:left;"|
{|style="width: 100%; font-size: 85%;"
|-
|'''[[Regional units of Greece|Regional units]]''':
|-
|[[Central Athens (regional unit)|Central Athens]]:<br />{{Legend0|#FFFFFF|Athens Municipality}}<br />{{Legend0|#F08080|Other municipalities}}
|-
|{{Legend0|#1E90FF|[[North Athens (regional unit)|North Athens]]}}
|-
|{{Legend0|#FFFACD|[[South Athens (regional unit)|South Athens]]}}
|-
|{{Legend0|#66CDAA|[[West Athens (regional unit)|West Athens]]}}
|-
|{{Legend0|#A0522D|[[Piraeus (regional unit)|Piraeus]]}}
|}
|style="text-align:center;"|[[File:Athens aglomeration.svg|400px]]
|}

=== Athens metropolitan area===
{{main|Athens metropolitan area}}
[[File:Athens_Metropolitan_Region.svg|thumb|[[Athens metropolitan area]]]]

The [[Athens metropolitan area]] spans {{convert|2928.717|km2|sqmi|0|abbr=on}} within the [[Attica (region)|Attica region]] and includes a total of 58 municipalities, which are organised 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.<ref name=census21/> Athens and Piraeus municipalities serve as the two metropolitan centres of the Athens Metropolitan Area.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Master Plan for Athens and Attica 2021|pages= 13, 24, 27, 33, 36, 89 |url=http://www.ypeka.gr/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=UfCMqBJHswQ%3d&tabid=367&language=el-GR |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321062128/http://www.ypeka.gr/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=UfCMqBJHswQ%3D&tabid=367&language=el-GR |archive-date=21 March 2012}}</ref> 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.

[[File:Βίλα Ατλαντίς 3473.jpg|alt=|thumb|Vila Atlantis, in [[Kifissia]], designed by [[Ernst Ziller]]]]
[[File:Alimos - panoramio (33).jpg|alt=|thumb|A beach in the southern suburb of [[Alimos]] – one of the many beaches on the southern coast of Athens]]

The [[Athens Metropolitan Area, Greece|Athens Metropolitan Area]] consists of 58<ref name="statistics1">{{Cite web |title=ΕΛΣΤΑΤ Απογραφη 2011 |url=http://www.statistics.gr/portal/page/portal/ESYE/BUCKET/General/A1602_SAM01_DT_DC_00_2011_01_F_GR.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111011061403/http://www.statistics.gr/portal/page/portal/ESYE/BUCKET/General/A1602_SAM01_DT_DC_00_2011_01_F_GR.pdf |archive-date=11 October 2011 |access-date=22 August 2011 |publisher=statistics.gr}}</ref> densely populated municipalities, sprawling around the [[Municipality of Athens]] (the City Centre) in virtually all directions. For the Athenians, all the urban municipalities surrounding the City Centre are called suburbs. According to their geographic location in relation to the City of Athens, the suburbs are divided into four zones; the northern suburbs (including [[Agios Stefanos, Attica|Agios Stefanos]], [[Dionysos, Greece|Dionysos]], [[Ekali]], [[Nea Erythraia]], [[Kifissia]], [[Kryoneri, Attica|Kryoneri]], [[Marousi|Maroussi]], [[Pefki]], [[Lykovrysi]], [[Metamorfosi]], [[Nea Ionia]], [[Nea Filadelfeia]], [[Irakleio, Attica|Irakleio]], [[Vrilissia]], [[Melissia]], [[Penteli, Greece|Penteli]], [[Chalandri]], [[Agia Paraskevi]], [[Gerakas]], [[Pallini]], [[Galatsi]], [[Psychiko]] and [[Filothei]]); the southern suburbs (including [[Alimos]], [[Nea Smyrni]], [[Moschato]], [[Tavros]], [[Agios Ioannis Renti]], [[Kallithea]], [[Piraeus]], [[Agios Dimitrios]], [[Palaio Faliro]], [[Ellinikon|Elliniko]], [[Glyfada]], [[Lagonisi]], [[Saronida]], [[Argyroupoli]], [[Ilioupoli]], [[Varkiza]], [[Voula]], [[Vari]] and [[Vouliagmeni]]); the eastern suburbs (including [[Zografou]], [[Dafni, Attica|Dafni]], [[Vyronas]], [[Kaisariani]], [[Cholargos]] and [[Papagou]]); and the western suburbs (including [[Peristeri]], [[Ilion, Greece|Ilion]], [[Egaleo]], [[Koridallos]], [[Agia Varvara]], [[Keratsini]], [[Perama]], [[Nikaia]], [[Drapetsona]], [[Chaidari]], [[Petroupoli]], [[Agioi Anargyroi]], [[Ano Liosia]], [[Aspropyrgos]], [[Eleusina]], [[Acharnes]] and [[Kamatero]]).

The Athens city coastline, extending from the major commercial port of [[Piraeus]] to the southernmost suburb of [[Varkiza]] for some {{convert|25|km|mi|-1|abbr=on}},<ref>{{Cite web |date=9 December 2007 |title=Distance between Piraeus (Attiki) and Varkiza (Piraios Nomos) (Greece) |url=http://distancecalculator.globefeed.com/Greece_Distance_Result.asp?fromplace=Piraeus%20(Attiki)&toplace=Varkiza%20(Piraios%20Nomos)&fromlat=37.9474464019929&tolat=37.8185988001751&fromlng=23.6370849609375&tolng=23.7987041473389 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110711101743/http://distancecalculator.globefeed.com/Greece_Distance_Result.asp?fromplace=Piraeus%20(Attiki)&toplace=Varkiza%20(Piraios%20Nomos)&fromlat=37.9474464019929&tolat=37.8185988001751&fromlng=23.6370849609375&tolng=23.7987041473389 |archive-date=11 July 2011 |access-date=9 June 2009 |publisher=Distancecalculator.globefeed.com}}</ref> is also connected to the City Centre by tram.

In the northern suburb of Maroussi, the upgraded main [[Athens Olympic Sports Complex|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 [[Ellinikon International Airport|Elliniko]] – in the southern suburbs, into one of the largest landscaped parks in Europe, to be named the [[Hellenikon Metropolitan Park]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hellenikon Metropolitan Park Competition |url=http://www.minenv.gr/hellenikon-competition/oa/en/main.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040408211156/http://www.minenv.gr/hellenikon-competition/oa/en/main.htm |archive-date=8 April 2004 |access-date=3 January 2007 |website=Hellenic Ministry of the Environment and Public Works |publisher=minenv.gr}}</ref>

Many of the southern suburbs (such as [[Alimos]], [[Palaio Faliro]], [[Ellinikon|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 Organization|Greek National Tourism Organisation]] and require an entrance fee. Casinos operate on both Mount Parnitha ([[Regency Casino Mont Parnes]]), some {{convert|25|km|mi|0|abbr=on}}<ref>{{Cite news |date=29 June 2007 |title=Europe &#124; Greek forest fire close to Athens |work=BBC News |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6252676.stm |url-status=live |access-date=9 June 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090827205825/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6252676.stm |archive-date=27 August 2009}}</ref> 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]]).
{{wide image|2009-02-19 Yachthafen Glyfada 03.jpg|800px|align-cap=center|Coastline of [[Palaio Faliro]]}}

=== Twin towns – sister cities ===
{{main|List of twin towns and sister cities in Greece}}
The concept of a [[Sister city|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."

'''Partnerships'''

* {{flagicon|Armenia}} [[Yerevan]], Armenia (1993)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Partnership cities |url=https://www.yerevan.am/en/partner/partner-cities/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140819225714/https://www.yerevan.am/en/partner/partner-cities/ |archive-date=19 August 2014 |access-date=17 April 2018 |website=Yerevan municipality |publisher=yerevan.am}}</ref>
== Demographics ==
[[File:Population Density in Athens.PNG|thumb|upright=1.5|A map of Athens' population density]]

The Municipality of Athens had a population of 643,452 people in 2021.<ref name=census21/> In the [[2021 Greek census|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 [[Piraeus (regional unit)|regional unit of Piraeus]] (sometimes referred to 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).<ref name=census21/>

The municipality (centre) of Athens is the [[List of cities in Greece|most populous in Greece]], with a population of 643,452 people (in 2021)<ref name=census21/> and an area of {{convert|38.96|km2|sqmi|2|abbr=on}},<ref name=stat01/> forming the core of the Athens Urban Area within the Attica Basin. The incumbent [[List of mayors of Athens|Mayor of Athens]] is Charis Doukas of PASOK. The municipality is divided into seven municipal districts which are mainly used for administrative purposes.<ref name="statistics">{{Cite web |title=PAGE-themes |url=http://www.statistics.gr/portal/page/portal/ESYE/PAGE-themes?p_param=A1604 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006121421/http://www.statistics.gr/portal/page/portal/ESYE/PAGE-themes?p_param=A1604 |archive-date=6 October 2014 |access-date=3 October 2014 |publisher=statistics.gr}}</ref>

For the Athenians the most popular way of dividing the downtown is through its neighbourhoods such as [[Pangrati|Pagkrati]], [[Ambelokipi, Athens|Ampelokipoi]], [[Goudi]], [[Exarcheia]], [[Patisia]], [[Ilisia, Athens|Ilisia]], [[Petralona]], [[Plaka]], [[Anafiotika]], [[Koukaki]], [[Kolonaki]] and [[Kypseli, Athens|Kypseli]], each with its own distinct history and characteristics.

[[Romani people]] are concentrated in Acharnes, Ano Liosia, Agia Varvara, Zefeiri and Kamatero.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://greekreporter.com/2022/04/08/roma-people-greece/|title=International Roma Day: The Stigmatized People of Greece|date=8 April 2022 }}</ref>

There is a large Albanian community in Athens.<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/1369183X.1998.9976623|title=A migrant's story: From Albania to Athens|date=1998 |doi=10.1080/1369183X.1998.9976623 |last1=King |first1=Russell |last2=Iosifides |first2=Theodoros |last3=Myrivili |first3=Lenio |journal=Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies |volume=24 |pages=159–175 |url-access=subscription }}</ref>

=== Metropolitan Area ===
The Athens Metropolitan Area, with an area of {{convert|2928.717|km2|sqmi|0|abbr=on}} and inhabited by 3,744,059 people in 2021,<ref name=census21/> consists of the Athens Urban Area with the addition of the towns and villages of [[East Attica|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 [[Attica (region)|region of Attica]], excluding the [[Islands (regional unit)|islands]].

{|class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="6"|Classification of regional units within Greater Athens, Athens Urban Area and Athens Metropolitan Area
|-
! [[Regional units of Greece|Regional unit]]
! Population (2021)<ref name=census21/>
! Land Area (km2)
!colspan="3"|Area
|-
| [[Central Athens (regional unit)|Central Athens]]
| align=right| 1,002,212
| align=right| 87.4
| rowspan="4" style="text-align:center;"| '''Former Athens prefecture''' <br />2,611,713<br />364.2 km2
| rowspan="5" style="text-align:center;"| '''Athens Urban Area or Greater Athens''' <br />3,059,764<br />414.6 km2
| rowspan="7" style="text-align:center;"| '''Athens Metropolitan Area'''<br /> 3,744,059<br />2931.6 km2
|-
| [[North Athens (regional unit)|North Athens]]
| align=right| 601,163
| align=right| 140.7
|-
| [[South Athens (regional unit)|South Athens]]
| align=right| 529,455
| align=right| 69.4
|-
| [[West Athens (regional unit)|West Athens]]
| align=right| 478,883
| align=right| 66.7
|-
| [[Piraeus (regional unit)|Piraeus]]
| align=right| 448,051
| align=right| 50.4
| align=center | '''Piraeus regional unit'''<br />448,051<br />50.4 km2
|-
| [[East Attica]]
| align=right| 518,755
| align=right| 	1,513
|-
| [[West Attica]]
| align=right| 165,540
| align=right| 	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.<ref>{{Cite web |date=9 December 2017 |title=Safe Cities Index 2017: Security in a rapidly urbanizing world |url=https://dkf1ato8y5dsg.cloudfront.net/uploads/5/82/safe-cities-index-2017-eng-web.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171016083013/https://dkf1ato8y5dsg.cloudfront.net/uploads/5/82/safe-cities-index-2017-eng-web.pdf |archive-date=16 October 2017 |access-date=8 February 2018 |publisher=The Economist Intelligent Unit}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Athens Safety Index |url=https://safearound.com/europe/greece/athens/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029140948/https://safearound.com/europe/greece/athens/ |archive-date=29 October 2019 |access-date=1 September 2019 |publisher=Safe Around}}</ref> As November 2024 the crime index from [[Numbeo]] places Athens at 55.40 (moderate), while its safety index is at 44.60.<ref>[https://www.numbeo.com/crime/in/Athens Crime in Athens]</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=26 February 2019 |title=Is Athens Safe? Areas to Avoid and Other Warnings |url=https://www.smartertravel.com/areas-avoid-athens-dangers-warnings/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190716130116/https://www.smartertravel.com/areas-avoid-athens-dangers-warnings/ |archive-date=16 July 2019 |access-date=8 February 2019 |publisher=Mercer}}</ref> According to a [[Mercer (consulting firm)|Mercer]] 2019 Quality of Living Survey, Athens ranks 89th on the Mercer Quality of Living Survey ranking.<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 March 2019 |title=Athens Has the Biggest Fall in Mercer's 21st Personal Safety Ranking |url=https://www.thenationalherald.com/234850/athens-has-the-biggest-fall-in-mercers-21st-personal-safety-ranking/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190319130738/https://www.thenationalherald.com/234850/athens-has-the-biggest-fall-in-mercers-21st-personal-safety-ranking/ |archive-date=19 March 2019 |access-date=8 February 2018 |publisher=Mercer}}</ref>

== Economy ==
[[File:OTE_Headquarters_(20-12-2021).png|thumb|[[OTE]] headquarters in [[Marousi]], the largest [[technology company]] in Greece]]
[[File:Μέγαρο_Γεωργίου_Στράτου_-_Εθνική_Τράπεζα_1249.jpg|thumb|The [[National Bank of Greece]] is the largest Greek bank by total assets.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Economy and Banking Sector of Greece |url=https://thebanks.eu/countries/Greece/major_banks |website=The European Banks}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=List of Banks in Greece – Overview of Top 10 Greek Banks |url=https://www.advratings.com/europe/top-banks-in-greece |access-date=10 March 2023 |website=ADV Ratings }}</ref>]]
[[File:Ermou_Street_in_the_evening._In_the_distance_the_Byzantine_Church_of_Panagia_Kapnikarea.jpg|alt=|thumb|[[Ermou Street (Athens)|Ermou street]], the main commercial street of Athens]]

Athens is the [[Financial centre|financial capital]] of Greece. According to data from 2014, Athens as a metropolitan economic area produced US$130&nbsp;billion as GDP in [[Purchasing power parity|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 [[United States dollar|US dollars]].<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Parilla |first2=Alan |last2=Berube |first3=Jesus |last3=Leal Trujillo |first4=Tao |last4=Ran |first1=Joseph |date=22 January 2015 |title=Global Metro Monitor |url=https://www.brookings.edu/research/global-metro-monitor/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190107040203/https://www.brookings.edu/research/global-metro-monitor/ |archive-date=7 January 2019 |access-date=23 February 2019 |website=Brookings}}</ref>

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 Shipping|COSCO]] have already been delivered during the recent decade, the completion of the new Cargo Centre in Thriasion,<ref>{{Cite web |date=8 October 2017 |title=Cargo container centers |url=http://www.gaiaose.com/en/cargo-container-centers/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224121331/http://www.gaiaose.com/en/cargo-container-centers/ |archive-date=24 February 2019 |access-date=24 February 2019 |website=GAIA OSE}}</ref> the [[Line 4 (Athens Metro)|expansion of the Athens Metro]] and the [[Athens Tram]], as well as the [[Hellenikon Metropolitan Park|Hellenikon metropolitan park]] redevelopment in Elliniko and other urban projects, are the economic landmarks of the upcoming years.

Prominent Greek companies such as [[Hellas Sat]], [[Hellenic Aerospace Industry]], [[Mytilineos Holdings]], [[Titan Cement]], [[Hellenic Petroleum]], [[Papadopoulos (biscuits)|Papadopoulos E.J.]], [[Folli Follie]], [[Jumbo S.A.]], [[OPAP]], and [[Cosmote]] have their headquarters in the metropolitan area of Athens. Multinational companies such as [[Ericsson]], [[Sony]], [[Siemens]], [[Motorola]], [[Samsung]], [[Microsoft]], [[Teleperformance]], [[Novartis]], [[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 Ergasias|Eurobank]], and [[Piraeus Bank]], while the [[Bank of Greece]] is also situated in the City Centre. The [[Athens Exchange|Athens Stock Exchange]] was severely hit by the [[Greek government-debt crisis]] and the decision of the government to proceed into [[Capital controls in Greece|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.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Report for Selected Countries and Subjects |url=https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2018/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=1980&ey=2023&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=174&s=NGDP_R,NGDP_RPCH,NGDPRPC,PCPIPCH,LUR,GGXWDG_NGDP&grp=0&a=&pr.x=26&pr.y=12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224173413/https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2018/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=1980&ey=2023&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=174&s=NGDP_R,NGDP_RPCH,NGDPRPC,PCPIPCH,LUR,GGXWDG_NGDP&grp=0&a=&pr.x=26&pr.y=12 |archive-date=24 February 2019 |access-date=24 February 2019 |website=International Monetary Fund }}</ref>

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&nbsp;million visitors in 2015, 30.1&nbsp;million visitors in 2017, and over 33&nbsp;million in 2018, making Greece one of the [[World Tourism rankings#Europe|most visited countries in Europe]] and the world, and contributing 18% to the country's GDP. Athens welcomed more than 5&nbsp;million tourists in 2018, and 1.4&nbsp;million were "city-breakers"; this was an increase by over a million city-breakers since 2013.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Εξαπλασιάστηκαν σε μία πενταετία οι τουρίστες στην πρωτεύουσα, Του Ηλία Μπέλλου  |url=http://www.kathimerini.gr/952595/article/oikonomia/ellhnikh-oikonomia/e3aplasiasthkan-se-mia-pentaetia-oi-toyristes-sthn-prwteyoysa |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224173447/http://www.kathimerini.gr/952595/article/oikonomia/ellhnikh-oikonomia/e3aplasiasthkan-se-mia-pentaetia-oi-toyristes-sthn-prwteyoysa |archive-date=24 February 2019 |access-date=24 February 2019 |website=Kathimerini |date=8 March 2018 }}</ref>

=== Tourism ===

[[File:Monastiraki Square and the Acropolis in Summer.jpg|thumb|Monastiraki Square bustling with tourists during peak season]]

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 Summer Olympics|2004 Olympic Games]]. 

The Greek Government, aided by the EU, has funded major infrastructure projects such as the state-of-the-art [[Athens International Airport|Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Financial Statements as at 31 December 2007 |url=http://www.aia.gr/UserFiles/File/235956_Englishl.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090205201638/http://www.aia.gr/UserFiles/File/235956_Englishl.pdf |archive-date=5 February 2009 |access-date=5 April 2007 |website=Athens International Airport, S.A. }}</ref> the expansion of the [[Athens Metro]] system,<ref name="EUfund">{{Cite web |title=Olympic Games 2004: five major projects for Athens |url=http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/themes/olympe/pages/focus_en.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070520043310/http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/themes/olympe/pages/focus_en.htm |archive-date=20 May 2007 |access-date=5 April 2007 |website=European Union Regional Policy |publisher=ec.europa.eu}}</ref> and the new [[Attiki Odos]] Motorway.<ref name=EUfund/> 

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 tourist options alongside the city's archaeological sites and museums.<ref>{{Cite news |title=How angry street art is making Athens hip |url=https://www.economist.com/europe/2017/09/30/how-angry-street-art-is-making-athens-hip |access-date=22 July 2024 |newspaper=The Economist |issn=0013-0613}}</ref>
{{Wide image|Athens4 tango7174.jpg|800px|Panorama from Mount Lycabettus, with a view of the [[Panathinaiko Stadium]], the [[Temple of Olympian Zeus, Athens|Temple of Olympian Zeus]], the [[Hellenic Parliament]] and the [[Acropolis of Athens]]}}

== Transport ==
{{Main|Public transport in Athens}}
[[File:Public transport map of Athens.png|thumb|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 (Greece)|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 [[Athens Metro|Metro]], a [[Athens Suburban Railway|Suburban Railway]] service<ref>{{Cite web |title=Suburban Railway |url=https://www.trainose.gr/en/passenger-activity/suburban-railway/ |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418013949/https://www.trainose.gr/en/passenger-activity/suburban-railway/ |archive-date=18 April 2021 |access-date=28 March 2021 |website=[[TrainOSE]]}}</ref> and a [[Athens Tram|tram network]], connecting the southern suburbs to the city centre.<ref>{{Cite web |title= The tram of Athens  |url=http://www.tramsa.gr/index.cfm?page_id=192&category=learn&lang_id=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090114071740/http://www.tramsa.gr/index.cfm?page_id=192&category=learn&lang_id=1 |archive-date=14 January 2009 |access-date=5 January 2009 |publisher=Tram Sa }}</ref>

=== Bus transport ===
OSY ({{langx|el|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 outage|power failure]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Στόλος λεωφορείων |url=https://www.osy.gr/ethelsite/pages/allBuses.php |website=Ο.ΣΥ. Α.Ε. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417234252/https://www.osy.gr/ethelsite/pages/allBuses.php |archive-date=17 April 2021 |access-date=28 March 2021 |language=Greek}}</ref>

International links are provided by a number of private companies. National and regional bus links are provided by [[KTEL (Greece)|KTEL]] from two InterCity Bus Terminals; [[Athens Peloponnese Bus Station|Kifissos Bus Terminal]] A and [[Athens Liosion Bus Station|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 [[Elaionas|Eleonas]] due to be completed by 2027.

=== Railways ===
{{Main|Athens Metro|Proastiakos|Athens Tram}}

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

[[File:Athens_Larissa_Station_09.jpg|thumb|Suburban rail ([[Proastiakos]])]]

The [[Athens Suburban Railway]], referred to as the ''[[Proastiakos]]'', connects Athens International Airport to the city of [[Kiato]], {{convert|106|km|mi|0|abbr=on}}<ref name=proastiakos/> 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 {{convert|120|km|mi|0|abbr=on}},<ref name="proastiakos">{{Cite web |title=Proastiakos |url=http://www.proastiakos.gr/en/?tid=3&aid=0 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090203121158/http://proastiakos.gr/en/?tid=3&aid=0 |archive-date=3 February 2009 |access-date=9 June 2009 |publisher=proastiakos.gr}}</ref> and is expected to stretch to {{convert|281|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} by 2010.<ref name=proastiakos/>

[[File:20140622-Anthoupoli-62D304 (7872).jpg|thumb|[[Athens Metro]] train (third generation stock)]]

The [[Athens Metro]] is operated by STASY S.A. ({{langx|el|ΣΤΑΣΥ}}) (Statheres Sygkoinonies S.A.), a subsidiary company of OASA (Athens urban transport organisation), which provides public transport throughout the Athens Urban Area. While its main purpose is transport, it also houses Greek artefacts found during the construction of the system.<ref>{{Cite web |title= Excavations for the Athens Metro 3rd EPCA - Stations |first1=Liana |last1=Parlama |url=http://www.culture.gr/2/21/211/21103a/e211ca09.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061207072925/http://www.culture.gr/2/21/211/21103a/e211ca09.html |archive-date=7 December 2006 |access-date=26 January 2007 |website=Hellenic Ministry of Culture }}</ref> The Athens Metro runs three metro lines, namely [[Athens Metro Line 1|Line 1 (Green Line)]], [[Athens Metro Line 2|Line 2 (Red Line)]] and [[Athens Metro Line 3|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,<ref name="xyz">{{Cite web |title=The Athens Urban Transport Network in Facts and Figures |pages=15 |url=http://www.oasa.gr/pdf/FactsAndFigures_en.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060629074436/http://www.oasa.gr/pdf/FactsAndFigures_en.pdf |archive-date=29 June 2006 |access-date=4 February 2007 |website=OASA }}</ref> with a daily occupancy of 1,353,000 passengers.<ref>"Homepage – The Company – Attiko Metro S.A." Attiko Metro S.A. Archived from the original on 3 December 2010. Retrieved 2 June 2014.</ref>

''Line 1'' (Green Line) serves 24 stations, and is the oldest line of the Athens metro network. It runs from [[Piraeus]] station to [[Kifissia]] station and covers a distance of {{convert|25.6|km|1|abbr=on}}. There are transfer connections with the Blue Line 3 at [[Monastiraki]] station and with the Red Line 2 at [[Omonoia Square|Omonia]] and [[Attiki]] stations. ''Line 2'' (Red Line) runs from [[Anthoupoli metro station|Anthoupoli]] station to [[Elliniko metro station|Elliniko]] station and covers a distance of {{convert|17.5|km|1|abbr=on}}.<ref name=xyz/> The line connects the western suburbs of Athens with the southeast suburbs, passing through the centre of Athens. The Red Line has transfer connections with the Green Line 1 at [[Attiki metro station|Attiki]] and [[Omonia metro station|Omonia]] stations. There are also transfer connections with the Blue Line 3 at [[Syntagma Square|Syntagma]] [[Syntagma metro station|station]] and with the tram at [[Syntagma Square|Syntagma]], [[Syngrou–Fix station|Syngrou Fix]] and [[Neos Kosmos station|Neos Kosmos]] stations. ''Line 3'' (Blue Line) runs from [[Dimotiko Theatro metro station|Dimotiko Theatro]] station, through the central [[Monastiraki]] and [[Syntagma metro station|Syntagma]] stations to [[Doukissis Plakentias station|Doukissis Plakentias]] avenue in the northeastern suburb of [[Chalandri|Halandri]].<ref name=xyz/> It then ascends to ground level and continues to [[Athens International Airport|Athens International Airport Eleftherios Venizelos]] using the suburban railway infrastructure, extending its total length to {{convert|39|km|mi|0|abbr=on}}.<ref name=xyz/> The spring 2007 extension from Monastiraki westwards to [[Egaleo]] connected some of the main [[Nightlife|night life]] hubs of the city, namely those of Gazi ([[Kerameikos metro station|Kerameikos]] station) with Psirri ([[Monastiraki metro station|Monastiraki]] station) and the city centre ([[Syntagma station]]).The new stations  [[Maniatika metro station|Maniatika]], [[Piraeus station|Piraeus]] and [[Dimotiko Theatro metro station|Dimotiko Theatro]], were completed on 10 October 2022,<ref name="Attiko Metro">{{Cite web|url=https://www.ametro.gr/?page_id=116 |title=Line3|website=Attiko Metro |publisher=ametro.gr}}</ref><ref name="Athens Greece Guide">{{Cite web|url=https://www.athensguide.org|title=Athens Greece Guide|website=Athensguide.org }}</ref> connecting the biggest port of Greece, the Port of Piraeus, with Athens International Airport, the biggest airport of Greece.

[[File:Attica_06-13_Athens_26_Tram.jpg|alt=|thumb|Vehicle of the [[Athens Tram]]]]

The [[Athens Tram]] is operated by STASY S.A. (Statheres Sygkoinonies S.A.), a subsidiary company of [[Transport for Athens]] (OASA). It has a fleet of 35 [[Hitachi Sirio|Sirio]] type vehicles<ref name="athenstram">{{Cite web |title=The tram in numbers |url=http://www.tramsa.gr/index.cfm?page_id=207&category=learn&lang_id=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721083439/http://www.tramsa.gr/index.cfm?page_id=207&category=learn&lang_id=1 |archive-date=21 July 2011 |access-date=25 October 2009 |publisher=Tram SA }}</ref> and 25 [[Alstom Citadis]] type vehicles<ref>{{Cite web |title=Alstom introduces the Citadis X05 tram to Athens |url=https://www.alstom.com/press-releases-news/2020/9/alstom-introduces-citadis-x05-tram-athens |date=8 Sep 2020 |access-date=19 April 2023 |website=Alstom |language=en}}</ref> which serve 48 stations,<ref name=athenstram/> employ 345 people with an average daily occupancy of 65,000 passengers.<ref name=athenstram/> The tram network spans a total length of {{convert|27|km|mi|abbr=on|0}} and covers ten Athenian suburbs.<ref name=athenstram/> 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.<ref name="EF">{{Cite web |title=The Athens Urban Transport Network in Facts and Figures | page= 13 |url=http://www.oasa.gr/pdf/FactsAndFigures_en.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060629074436/http://www.oasa.gr/pdf/FactsAndFigures_en.pdf |archive-date=29 June 2006 |access-date=28 January 2007 |website=OASA }}</ref>

=== Athens International Airport ===
{{Main|Athens International Airport}}
[[File:Greece-0028_(2215861772).jpg|alt=|thumb|[[Athens International Airport]]]]

Athens is served by the [[Athens International Airport]] (ATH), located near the town of [[Spata]], in the eastern Messoghia plain, some {{convert|35|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} east of the centre of Athens.<ref name="aia">{{Cite web |title=Contact |url=http://www.aia.gr/contact.asp?langid=2 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080406162653/http://www.aia.gr/contact.asp?langid=2 |archive-date=6 April 2008 |access-date=11 February 2007 |website=Athens International Airport }}</ref> The airport, awarded the "European Airport of the Year 2004" Award,<ref name=pro/> is intended as an expandable hub for air travel in [[Balkans|southeastern Europe]] and was constructed in 51 months, costing 2.2&nbsp;billion euros. It employs a staff of 14,000.<ref name="pro">{{Cite web |title=History |url=http://www.aia.gr/pages.asp?pageid=15&langid=2 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070607020147/http://www.aia.gr/pages.asp?pageID=15&langID=2 |archive-date=7 June 2007 |access-date=11 February 2007 |website=Athens International Airport }}</ref>

=== 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 [[List of islands of Greece|Greek islands]] of the [[Aegean Sea]], [[Euboea|Evia]] while also serving the cruise ships that arrive.

=== Motorways ===
{{Further|National Roads and Motorways in Greece}}
[[File:Athens-Kiffisia-aerial.jpg|thumb|Aerial view of an [[A6 motorway (Greece)|A6]] interchange north of Athens]]

Two main motorways of Greece begin in Athens, namely the [[A1 motorway (Greece)|A1]]/[[European route E75|E75]], heading north towards Greece's second largest city, [[Thessaloniki]]; and the border crossing of Evzones and the [[A8 motorway (Greece)|A8]]/[[European route E94|E94]] heading west, towards Greece's third largest city, [[Patras]], which incorporated the [[Greek National Road 8A|GR-8A]]. Before their completion much of the road traffic used the [[Greek National Road 1|GR-1]] and the [[Greek National Road 8|GR-8]].

Athens's Metropolitan Area is served by the [[Attiki Odos]] toll motorway network: its main section, the [[A6 motorway (Greece)|A6]], extends from the western industrial suburb of [[Eleusina|Elefsina]] to [[Athens International Airport]]; while two beltways, namely the Aigaleo Beltway ([[A65 motorway (Greece)|A65]]) and the Hymettus Beltway ([[A62 motorway (Greece)|A62]]) serve parts of western and eastern Athens respectively. The span of the Attiki Odos in all its length is {{convert|65|km|mi|0|abbr=on}},<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.aodos.gr/article.asp?catid=12069&tag=7275|title=Aodos.gr}}{{Dead link|date=May 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> making it the largest metropolitan motorway network in all of Greece.

== Education ==
[[File:Ακαδημία_Αθηνών_1178.jpg|alt=|thumb|Facade of the [[Academy of Athens (modern)|Academy of Athens]]]]
[[File:Universität_von_Athen.jpg|thumb|[[National and Kapodistrian University of Athens|University of Athens]]]]
[[File:Griechische Nationalbibliothek.jpg|thumb|The [[National Library of Greece]]]]

Located on [[Panepistimiou Street]], the old campus of the [[National and Kapodistrian University of Athens|University of Athens]], the [[National Library of Greece|National Library]], and the [[Academy of Athens (modern)|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|Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences]] (1927), [[University of Piraeus]] (1938), [[Harokopio University|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 [[University of Indianapolis – Athens Campus|Athens Campus]] of the [[University of Indianapolis]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ιδιωτικά Πανεπιστήμια στην Ελλάδα – Private Universities in Greece |url=http://www.thought.de/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120625234055/http://www.thought.de/ |archive-date=25 June 2012 |access-date=12 June 2012 |website=www.thought.de}}</ref>

== Culture ==
{{Main|Culture of Greece}}

=== Archaeological hub and museums ===
{{Further|List of museums in Greece}}
[[File:Archäologisches Nationalmuseum Athen.jpg|thumb|The [[National Archaeological Museum, Athens|National Archaeological Museum]] in central Athens]]
[[File:The_Acropolis_Museum_as_seen_from_the_top_of_the_Acropolis_hill.jpg|thumb|The [[Acropolis Museum]]]]
[[File:The_Stoa_of_Attalus_on_February_26,_2022.jpg|thumb|[[Museum of the Ancient Agora]] in the [[Stoa of Attalos]]]]

The city is a world centre of [[archaeology|archaeological research]]. Alongside national academic institutions, such as the [[National and Kapodistrian University of Athens|Athens University]] and the [[Archaeological Society of Athens|Archaeological Society]], it is home to multiple archaeological museums, taking in the [[National Archaeological Museum, Athens|National Archaeological Museum]], the [[Goulandris Museum of Cycladic Art|Cycladic Museum]], the [[Epigraphy|Epigraphic]] Museum, the [[Byzantine & Christian Museum]], as well as museums at the ancient Agora, [[Acropolis Museum|Acropolis]], [[Kerameikos]], and the [[Kerameikos Archaeological Museum]]. The city is also the setting for the [[Democritus|Demokritos]] laboratory for [[Archaeological science|Archaeometry]], alongside regional and national archaeological authorities forming part of the [[Minister for Culture (Greece)|Greek Department of Culture]].

Athens hosts 17 [[List of Foreign Archaeological Institutes in Greece|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 specialised archaeological laboratories, and is the venue of several hundred specialised 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's most important museums include:
* the [[National Archaeological Museum, Athens|National Archaeological Museum]], the largest archaeological museum in the country, and one of the most important internationally, as it contains a vast collection of antiquities. Its artefacts cover a period of more than 5,000 years, from late [[Neolithic]] Age to [[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 & Christian Museum|Byzantine and Christian Museum]], one of the most important museums of [[Byzantine art]];
* the [[National Gallery (Athens)|National Art Gallery]], the nation's eponymous leading gallery, which reopened in 2021 after renovation;
* the [[Athens National Museum of Contemporary Art|National Museum of Contemporary Art]], which opened in 2000 in a former brewery building;
* the [[Goulandris Museum of Contemporary Art]], which displays many of the modern art works amassed by shipowner [[Basil Goulandris]] and his wife [[Elise Goulandris|Elise Karadontis]]
* the [[Numismatic Museum of Athens|Numismatic Museum]], housing a major collection of ancient and modern coins;
* the [[Goulandris Museum of Cycladic Art]], home to an extensive collection of [[Cycladic art]], including its famous figurines of white marble;
* the [[Acropolis Museum|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 artefacts from the burial site of Kerameikos. Much of the pottery and other artefacts 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 [[History of the Jews in Greece|the Greek Jewish community]].

=== Architecture ===
{{see also|Modern architecture in Athens}}
[[File:Attica 06-13 Athens 27 Zappeion.jpg|thumb|The [[Zappeion]] Hall]]
[[File:Μητρόπολη Αθηνών 3321.jpg|thumb|The [[Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens|Cathedral of Athens]] (Athens Metropolis)]]

Athens incorporates [[architectural style]]s ranging from [[Greek Revival architecture|Greco-Roman]] and [[Neoclassical architecture|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.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Doumas |first=Christos |title=1998 Excavation and rescue operations: what to preserve and why |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1468-0033.00142|publisher=UNESCO |doi=10.1111/1468-0033.00142 |access-date=4 July 2022 |journal=Museum International|date=April 1998 |volume=50 |issue=2 |pages=6–9 |url-access=subscription }}</ref>

For the greatest part of the 19th century Neoclassicism dominated Athens, as well as some deviations from it such as [[Eclecticism]], especially in the early 20th century. Thus, the [[Old Royal Palace]] was the first important public building to be built, between 1836 and 1843. Later in the mid and late 19th century, [[Baron Theophil von Hansen|Theophil Freiherr von Hansen]] and [[Ernst Ziller]] took part in the construction of many neoclassical buildings such as the [[Academy of Athens (modern)|Athens Academy]] and the [[Zappeion]] Hall. Ziller also designed many private mansions in the centre of Athens which gradually became public, usually through donations, such as [[Heinrich Schliemann|Schliemann]]'s [[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, Athens|Kypseli]].<ref>[[Helen Fessas-Emmanouil|Fessas-Emmanouil, Helen]]. ''Ελληνική Αρχιτεκτονική Εταιρεία: Αρχιτέκτονες του 20ού αιώνα: Μέλη της Εταιρείας'', Ποταμός, Athens, 2009, pp. xxi & xxv. {{ISBN|960-6691-38-1}}</ref>

In the 1950s and 1960s during the extension and development of Athens, other modern movements such as the [[International Style (architecture)|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.<ref>[[Helen Fessas-Emmanouil|Fessas-Emmanouil, Helen]]. ''Ελληνική Αρχιτεκτονική Εταιρεία: Αρχιτέκτονες του 20ού αιώνα: Μέλη της Εταιρείας'', Ποταμός, Athens, 2009, p. xxxi, {{ISBN|960-6691-38-1}}</ref> 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 International Airport|Ellinikon Airport]].

=== Urban sculpture ===
[[File:The Old Parliament House - National Historical Museum - on March 1, 2019.jpg|thumb|The [[Old Parliament House, Athens|Old Parliament House]] is 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 Ewart Gladstone|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 ===
[[File:Εθνικό Θέατρο Αθηνών 9854.jpg|alt=|thumb|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 [[Odeon of Herodes Atticus]], home to the [[Athens Festival]], which runs from May to October each year.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Home Page |url=http://www.urbanaudit.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090206144738/http://urbanaudit.org/ |archive-date=6 February 2009 |access-date=21 March 2009 |publisher=Urban Audit}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Athens – Epidaurus Festival 2008 |url=http://www.greekfestival.gr/?lang=en |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090222165312/http://www.greekfestival.gr/?lang=en |archive-date=22 February 2009 |access-date=21 March 2009 |publisher=Greekfestival.gr}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite web |date=26 October 1997 |title=Megaron Events Chart |url=http://www.megaron.gr/megaro/programeng/top.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090201025145/http://www.megaron.gr/megaro/programeng/top.htm |archive-date=1 February 2009 |access-date=21 March 2009 |publisher=Megaron.gr}}</ref> The Athens [[Planetarium]],<ref>{{Cite web |script-title=el:Ίδρυμα Ευγενίδου. Εκπαιδευτικό Κοινωφελές Ίδρυμα |url=http://www.eugenfound.edu.gr |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080608171428/http://www.eugenfound.edu.gr/ |archive-date=8 June 2008 |access-date=21 March 2009 |publisher=Eugenfound.edu.gr |language=el}}</ref> located in [[Andrea Syngrou Avenue]], in [[Palaio Faliro]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rizzo |first=Demetrio |title=Athens Today |url=https://www.athens-today.com/it/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201128070911/https://www.athens-today.com/it/ |archive-date=28 November 2020 |access-date=29 May 2020 |website=athens-today.com}}</ref> is one of the largest and best equipped digital planetaria in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Athens Eugenides Planetarium |url=http://www.barco.com/reference/2484 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707220221/http://www.barco.com/reference/2484 |archive-date=7 July 2011 |access-date=16 June 2011 |publisher=Barco}}</ref> The [[Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center]], inaugurated in 2016, will house the [[National Library of Greece]] and the [[Greek National Opera]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vision |url=http://www.snfcc.org/about/vision/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161116230830/http://www.snfcc.org/about/vision/ |archive-date=16 November 2016 |access-date=16 November 2016 |publisher=SNFCC}}</ref> In 2018 Athens was designated as the [[World Book Capital]] by [[UNESCO]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=29 March 2018 |title=Athens: Books everywhere |url=https://en.unesco.org/courier/2018-2/athens-books-everywhere |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220423165332/https://en.unesco.org/courier/2018-2/athens-books-everywhere |archive-date=23 April 2022 |access-date=31 March 2022 |website=UNESCO |language=en}}</ref>

Restaurants, tavernas and bars can be found in the entertainment hubs in [[Plaka]] and the [[Monastiraki|Trigono]] areas of the historic centre, the inner suburbs of [[Gazi, Athens|Gazi]] and [[Psyri|Psyrri]] are especially busy with nightclubs and bars, while [[Kolonaki]], [[Exarcheia|Exarchia]], [[Kypseli, Athens|Kypseli]], [[Metaxourgeio]], [[Koukaki]] and [[Pangrati]] offer more of a cafe and restaurant scene. The coastal suburbs of [[Piraeus|Microlimano]], [[Alimos]] and [[Glyfada]] include many tavernas, beach bars and busy summer clubs.
	
[[File:Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center - 52035330487.jpg|alt=|thumb|[[Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center|The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Centre]], home of the [[Greek National Opera]] and the new [[National Library of Greece|National Library]]]]

The most successful songs during the period 1870–1930 were the Athenian serenades (Αθηναϊκές καντάδες), based on the [[Heptanese]]an [[Greek folk music#Ionian Islands|kantádhes]] (καντάδες '[[serenade]]s'; sing.: καντάδα) and the songs performed on stage (επιθεωρησιακά τραγούδια 'theatrical revue songs') in [[revues]], [[Musical theatre|musical comedies]], [[operettas]] and [[nocturnes]] that were dominating Athens's theatre scene.

In 1922, following the [[Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922)|Greek-Turkish war]], [[Greek genocide]] and later [[Population exchange between Greece and Turkey|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 [[Rebetiko]] music, making it also popular in Greece, and which later became the base for the [[Laïko]] music. Other forms of song popular today in Greece are elafrolaika, entechno, dimotika, and skyladika.<ref name="Tales of Orpheus">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fT5TAQAAQBAJ |title=Athens – The Truth: Searching for Mános, Just Before the Bubble Burst |year= 2013 |publisher=Tales of Orpheus |isbn=9780955209031 |access-date=24 October 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210205131700/https://books.google.com/books?id=fT5TAQAAQBAJ |archive-date=5 February 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> Greece's most notable, and internationally famous, composers of Greek song, mainly of the entechno form, are [[Manos Hadjidakis]] and [[Mikis Theodorakis]]. Both composers have achieved fame abroad for their composition of film scores.<ref name="Tales of Orpheus" />

The renowned American-born Greek soprano [[Maria Callas]] spent her teenage years in Athens, where she settled in 1937.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rémy |first=Pierre-Jean |url=http://archive.org/details/mariacallastribu00rm |title=Maria Callas, a tribute |date=1978 |publisher=New York : St. Martin's Press |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-312-51448-8 |pages=19}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Petsalis-Diomidis |first=Nikolaos |url=http://archive.org/details/isbn_9781574670592 |title=The unknown Callas: the Greek years |date=2001 |publisher=Portland, Or. : [[Amadeus Press]] |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-1-57467-059-2 |pages=76, 88 |url-access=registration}}</ref> Her professional opera career started in 1940 in Athens, with the [[Greek National Opera]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Petsalis-Diomidis |first=Nikolaos |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781574670592 |title=The unknown Callas: the Greek years |date=2001 |publisher=[[Amadeus Press]] |isbn=978-1-57467-059-2 |series=Opera biography series |location=Portland, Or |page=214 |url-access=registration}}</ref> In 2018, the city's municipal Olympia Theatre was renamed the  "[[Olympia City Music Theatre "Maria Callas"|Olympia City Music Theatre 'Maria Callas']]"<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 February 2023 |title=Olympia {{!}} ΟΛΥΜΠΙΑ ΔΗΜΟΥ ΑΘΗΝΑΙΩΝ |url=https://oly.gr/en/oly/ |access-date=31 October 2023 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Βατόπουλος |first=Νίκος |date=30 November 2018 |title="Ολύμπια", η μεγάλη επιστροφή |url=https://www.kathimerini.gr/culture/music/997785/olympia-i-megali-epistrofi/ |access-date=31 October 2023 |website=Η ΚΑΘΗΜΕΡΙΝΗ |language=greek}}</ref> and in 2023, the Municipality inaugurated the [[Maria Callas Museum]], housing it in a [[Neoclassical architecture|neoclassical building]] on 44 Mitropoleos street.<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 October 2023 |title=Maria Callas museum, first in the world, opens in central Athens |url=https://www.iefimerida.gr/english/maria-callas-museum-first-world-opens-central-athens |access-date=29 October 2023 |website=iefimerida.gr |language=el}}</ref>

=== Sports ===
{{See also|List of sports clubs in Athens Municipality}}
[[File:The Panathenaic Stadium on April 22, 2021.jpg|thumb|The Panathenaic Stadium of Athens ([[Panathenaic Stadium|Kallimarmaron]]), dating back to the 4th century BC, hosted the [[1896 Summer Olympics|first modern Olympic Games]] in 1896.]]
[[File:Aerial_view_of_Olympic_complex_in_Athens_2004_DSC06793.jpg|thumb|[[Athens Olympic Sports Complex]]]]
[[File:Panathinaikos_-_Sparta_Prague_DSC00055.JPG|thumb|[[Panathinaikos FC]] vs [[Sparta Prague]] in the [[Athens Olympic Stadium]], 2008]]

Athens has a long tradition in sports and sporting events, serving as home to the most important clubs in [[Sport in Greece|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 [[Summer Olympic Games]] twice, in [[1896 Summer Olympics|1896]] and [[2004 Summer Olympics|2004]]. The 2004 Summer Olympics required the development of the [[Olympic Stadium (Athens)|Athens Olympic Stadium]], which has since gained a reputation as one of the most beautiful stadiums in the world, and one of its most interesting modern monuments.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Athens 21st Century – Athens Olympic Stadium |url=http://www.athens-today.com/e-olimpica_stadio.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090216232456/http://www.athens-today.com/e-olimpica_stadio.htm |archive-date=16 February 2009 |access-date=26 December 2008 |publisher=Athens-today.com}}</ref> The biggest stadium in the country, it hosted two finals of the [[UEFA Champions League]], in [[1994 UEFA Champions League Final|1994]] and [[2007 UEFA Champions League Final|2007]]. Other major stadiums are the [[Karaiskakis Stadium]] located in the nearby city of [[Piraeus]], a sports and entertainment complex, host of the [[1971 European Cup Winners' Cup Final|1971 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Final]], and [[Agia Sophia Stadium]] located in [[Nea Filadelfeia]], host of the [[2024 UEFA Europa Conference League final]].

The [[EuroLeague]] final has been hosted twice in 1985 and in [[FIBA European Championship 1992–93|1993]] at the [[Peace and Friendship Stadium]], most known as SEF, a large indoor arena,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Athens 21st Century – The Olympic Coastal Complex |url=http://www.athens-today.com/e-olimpica_faliro.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090214023850/http://www.athens-today.com/e-olimpica_faliro.htm |archive-date=14 February 2009 |access-date=26 December 2008 |publisher=Athens-today.com}}</ref> and the third time in [[2006–07 Euroleague|2007]] at the [[Olympic Indoor Hall]]. Events in other sports such as [[Track and field athletics|athletics]], volleyball, [[water polo]] etc., have been hosted in the capital's venues.

Greater Athens is home to three widely supported and successful multi-sport clubs, [[Panathinaikos A.O.|Panathinaikos]], originated in the city of Athens, [[Olympiacos CFP|Olympiacos]], originated in the port city of [[Piraeus]] and [[A.E.K. (sports club)|AEK]], originated in the suburban town of [[Nea Filadelfeia]]. In [[association football|football]], [[Olympiacos F.C.|Olympiacos]] is the dominant force at the national level and the only Greek club to have won a European competition, the [[2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League]], [[Panathinaikos F.C.|Panathinaikos]] made it to the [[1971 European Cup Final]], while [[AEK Athens F.C.|AEK Athens]] is the other member of the [[P.O.K.|big three]]. These clubs also have successful [[basketball]] teams; [[Panathinaikos B.C.|Panathinaikos]] and [[Olympiacos B.C.|Olympiacos]] are considered among the top powers in Europe, having won the [[EuroLeague]] seven and three times respectively, whilst [[AEK Athens B.C.|AEK Athens]] was the first Greek team to win a European trophy in any team sport.

Other notable clubs within the region are [[Athinaikos F.C.|Athinaikos]], [[Panionios F.C.|Panionios]], [[Atromitos F.C.|Atromitos]], [[Apollon Smyrnis F.C.|Apollon Smyrnis]], [[Panellinios G.S.|Panellinios]], [[Egaleo F.C.|Egaleo]], [[Ethnikos Piraeus F.C.|Ethinkos Piraeus]], [[Maroussi B.C.|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 [[hiking|on foot]] and [[Mountain biking|on bicycle]].

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.<ref name=oly/> 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.<ref name=oly/> Prior to this round, the cities of [[Buenos Aires]], Stockholm and [[Cape Town]] had been eliminated from competition, having received fewer votes.<ref name=oly/> Although the heavy cost was criticised, estimated at US$1.5&nbsp;billion, Athens was transformed into a more functional city that enjoys modern technology both in transportation and in modern [[urban planning|urban development]].<ref name="olyy">{{Cite news |date=30 August 2004 |title=Athens bids farewell to the Games |work=CNN |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2004/SPORT/08/29/closing.ceremony/ |url-status=live |access-date=29 March 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080115082941/http://edition.cnn.com/2004/SPORT/08/29/closing.ceremony/ |archive-date=15 January 2008}}</ref> The games welcomed over 10,000 athletes from 202 countries.<ref name=olyy/>

== See also ==
* [[List of modern cities named after Athens]]
* [[Outline of Athens]]
* [[Timeline of Athens]]

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

== External links ==
{{sister project links|voy=Athens}}
* {{official website|https://cityofathens.gr}} of the Municipality of Athens

{{Adjacent communities
|Centre=Municipality of Athens
|North=[[Nea Filadelfeia]], [[Nea Ionia]] and [[Galatsi]]
|Northeast=[[Psychiko]], [[Neo Psychiko]] and [[Papagou]]
|East=[[Zografou]] and [[Kaisariani]]
|Southeast=[[Vyronas]], [[Ymittos]] and [[Dafni, Attica|Dafni]]
|South= [[Nea Smyrni]]
|Southwest=[[Kallithea]]
|West=[[Egaleo|Aigaleo]] and [[Tavros]]
|Northwest=[[Peristeri]]
}}
{{Athens}}
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}}
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