20 Awesome Facts About Athens
Like to know a little more about the capital cities of the world? Take a look at these 20 facts about Athens!
Geographical stats…
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- Athens is the capital city of Greece.
- Wondering how to say the name of this wonderful city? It’s pronounced Ath-enz.
- The total land area of Athens is 159 square miles (412 square kilometres)…
- …that’s a little more than 1/4 of the size of London.
- Athens’ population was 3,052,000 in 2015…
- …that’s just over 1/3 of the population of London…
- …and gives it a population density of around 19,195 residents per square mile!
- Athens is located 636 ft above sea level.
- Residents of Athens are known as Greeks.
- Greeks living in Athens enjoy a subtropical Mediterranean climate with hot and dry summers, followed by mild and wet winters and an average annual temperature of 18.5°C.
- Looking to fly yourself to Athens? You’ll need the coordinates of 37.9667° N, 23.7167° E.
- Make sure you visit the Acropolis if you’re in Athens; dubbed the symbol of World Heritage by UNESCO and constructed between 447 and 438BC, the Acropolis is an ancient citadel that has stood the test of time incredibly well.
- Whilst you may think of the West End or Broadway when it comes to theatre, Athens actually boasts more theatres than any other city in the world with a mind boggling 148 stages!
Social intricacies
- The official language of Athens is Greek.
- Athens is named after Athena, the goddess of wisdom!
- Euro is the official currency here.
- Athens is one of the oldest cities in the world and has been continuously inhabited for around 7,000 years!
- Greece welcomed 17,920,000 tourists into the country in 2013, many of whom visited Athens for its ancient history and magnificent buildings.
- Whilst the Olympics are named after the ancient Greek games held in Olympia in 776BC, the first modern Olympic Games were actually held in Athens in 1896!
Bonus Fact!
- Do you know someone lucky enough to live in Athens? You can make cheap calls to Athens with Cherry Call – don’t forget, you’ll also need to use the international dialling code of 0030.
To keep up-to-date with what’s going on in Athens, head over to the Kathimerini English Edition website.