Drama ( el, Δράμα ) is a city and
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...
in
Macedonia, northeastern
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...
. Drama is the capital of the
regional unit
The 74 regional units of Greece ( el, περιφερειακές ενότητες, ; sing. , ) are the country's Seventy-four second-level administrative units. They are divisions of the country's 13 regions, and are further divided into munici ...
of
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...
which is part of the
East Macedonia and Thrace region
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...
. The city (pop. 55.593 2021 censu
is the economic center of the municipality (pop. 58,944), which in turn comprises 60 percent of the regional unit's population. The next largest communities in the municipality are
Choristi (pop. 2,725), Χiropótamos (2,554), Kallífytos (1,282), Kalós Agrós (1,178), and Koudoúnia (996).
Built at the foot of mount
Falakro
Falakro Oros ( Greek: Φαλακρό όρος, translated in English as: "Bald mountain"; bg, Боздаг, ''Bozdag''; Turkish: ''Bozdağ'', translated in English as: "Gray mountain") is a mountain in the Drama regional unit, eastern Greek M ...
, in a verdant area with abundant water sources, Drama has been an integral part of the Hellenic world since the
classical era;
under the
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
, Drama was a fortified city with a castle and rose to great prosperity under the
Komnenoi as a commercial and military junction.
During the
Ottoman era, tobacco production and trade, the operation of the railway (1895) and improvement of the road network towards the port of
Kavala
Kavala ( el, Καβάλα, ''Kavála'' ) is a city in northern Greece, the principal seaport of eastern Macedonia and the capital of Kavala regional unit.
It is situated on the Bay of Kavala, across from the island of Thasos and on the Egnat ...
, led to an increase in the population of the city and to the enhancement of commercial activity.
Drama hosts the "Eleftheria", cultural events in commemoration of the city's liberation, at the end of June or beginning of July, and an annual film festival in September.
Name
Archaeological finds show that in the area of the modern city there used to be an ancient Greek settlement named ''Dyrama'' (
Greek: Δύραμα) or alternatively ''Hydrama'' (
Greek: Ύδραμα), both meaning "rich in water".
Some scholars associate Drama with the ancient Greek Drabescus ( el, Δράβησκος). Hydrama was notable as the place of worship for many gods of classical
Greek mythology
A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities o ...
, especially
Apollo
Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...
and
Artemis
In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Artemis (; grc-gre, Ἄρτεμις) is the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, care of children, and chastity. She was heavily identified with ...
. With the passage of time Dyrama became Drama. In the
South Slavic languages
The South Slavic languages are one of three branches of the Slavic languages. There are approximately 30 million speakers, mainly in the Balkans. These are separated geographically from speakers of the other two Slavic branches ( West and Eas ...
, the city is known as Драма which is itself a transliteration of the Greek name.
History
The
ancient Greeks
Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cult ...
knew the city as Ydrama or Dyrama (Ύδραμα, Δύραμα) owing to its abundant water. Later known as Drabescus, it became part of the Roman and
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
s along with the rest of Greece. The
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...
conquered the region in 1371. In the 19th century, the town became centre of the
Sanjak of Drama. In 1912, during the
First Balkan War
The First Balkan War ( sr, Први балкански рат, ''Prvi balkanski rat''; bg, Балканска война; el, Αʹ Βαλκανικός πόλεμος; tr, Birinci Balkan Savaşı) lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and invo ...
,
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...
n troops took Drama from the Ottomans. In 1913, as a result of the
Treaty of Bucharest following the
Second Balkan War
The Second Balkan War was a conflict which broke out when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece, on 16 ( O.S.) / 29 (N.S.) June 1913. Serbian and Greek armies ...
, the area became part of Greece - along with the rest of eastern Macedonia.
World War II
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, in the wake of the 1941
German invasion of Greece, Bulgarian troops occupied Drama from 1941 to 1944.
On 28 September 1941, the local communist party organized a
series of guerrilla attacks against the occupying forces in the villages of Drama and the surrounding villages. In response, the Bulgarian occupation forces applied harsh reprisals in Drama,
Doxato
Doxato ( el, Δοξάτο, formerly Δοξάτον) is a town and municipality in the Drama regional unit, in East Macedonia and Thrace, Greece. The seat of the municipality is the town Kalampaki.
Municipality
The municipality Doxato was formed ...
and several villages like
Choristi,
Kyrgia, Koudounia, and
Prosotsani. The following day, 29 September, the leaders of the attacks were all killed in battle or in their attempts to escape to the German occupation zone. Bulgarian troops moved into Drama to suppress the uprising and arrested all men between 18 and 45. They were reported to have executed between 360 and 500 people in Drama. According to the Bulgarian military reports, up to 1,600 Greeks were killed in the uprising and in the weeks that followed.
The massacres precipitated an exodus of Greeks from the Bulgarian to the German occupation zone in
Central Macedonia
Central Macedonia ( el, Κεντρική Μακεδονία, Kentrikí Makedonía, ) is one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece, consisting of the central part of the geographical and historical region of Macedonia. With a populat ...
. The terror and famine became so severe that the government in Athens considered plans for evacuating the entire Greek population to German-occupied Greece.
On 4 March 1943, after midnight, the Bulgarian military authorities rounded up the Jewish population across their zone of occupation in eastern Macedonia and Thrace. The 4,000-strong community, including 589 Jews from Drama, was carried by train into Bulgarian territory and assembled in tobacco warehouses, which were empty at that time of year. From there they were taken by train to the
Treblinka
Treblinka () was an extermination camp, built and operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland during World War II. It was in a forest north-east of Warsaw, south of the village of Treblinka in what is now the Masovian Voivodeship. The cam ...
extermination camp. None of the 589 Jews from Drama ever returned.
Geography
Climate
Drama has a
Mediterranean climate
A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...
with hot, dry summers and chilly, wet winters.
Municipality
The municipality Drama was formed at the 2011 local government reform by the merger of the following 2 former municipalities, that became municipal units (constituent communities in brackets):
*Drama (
Choristi, Drama, Kallifytos, Kalos Agros, Koudounia, Livadero, Makryplagio, Mavrovatos, Mikrochori, Monastiraki, Mylopotamos, Nikotsaras, Xiropotamos)
*
Sidironero
Sidironero ( gr, Σιδηρόνερο, before 1927: Οσενίτσα - ''Osenitsa'', bg, Осеница, ) is a village and a former community in the Drama regional unit, East Macedonia and Thrace, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform ...
(Sidironero, Skaloti)
The municipality has an area of 840.103 km
2, the municipal unit 488.830 km
2.
Population
Economy
In the recent past the economy of the Drama area relied heavily on the local
paper
Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distribu ...
and
textile
Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, different #Fabric, fabric types, etc. At f ...
-
clothing
Clothing (also known as clothes, apparel, and attire) are items worn on the body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over time it has included garments made from animal skin and other thin sheets of materials and natura ...
industries. However, these industries have either closed down or moved across the border to
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...
, because of the low demands of the Bulgarian workforce, with a negative impact on the local economy and employment. The situation worsened after 2007, when Bulgaria was admitted to the
EU, and local Greek businessmen moved to expand their operations there. Other sources of revenue include
agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people ...
, consisting mainly of
tobacco
Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
plantations, small-scale
mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the econom ...
(particularly of
marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphose ...
) and forestry. Recently, there have been efforts to exploit the rich local
natural environment
The natural environment or natural world encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally, meaning in this case not artificial. The term is most often applied to the Earth or some parts of Earth. This environment encompasses t ...
and to develop
ecotourism
Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide fund ...
.
There is a modern
ski resort
A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area – a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In Nort ...
on Mount
Falakro
Falakro Oros ( Greek: Φαλακρό όρος, translated in English as: "Bald mountain"; bg, Боздаг, ''Bozdag''; Turkish: ''Bozdağ'', translated in English as: "Gray mountain") is a mountain in the Drama regional unit, eastern Greek M ...
. Drama also hosts an annual short
film festival.
Transport
Rail Transport
The town is served by
Drama railway station
Drama railway station ( el, Σιδηροδρομικός Σταθμός Δράμας, Sidirodromikós Stathmós Drámas) is a railway station that serves the Northern Greek City of Drama, Greece, Drama, in Drama (regional unit), Drama in East Mac ...
on the
Thessaloniki-Alexandroupoli line, with daily services to
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
and
Alexandroupolis.
Culture
Since 1978, Drama has hosted the
Drama International Short Film Festival
Drama International Short Film Festival is Greece's leading short film festival, and the annual meeting place for filmmakers and industry professionals. Based in Drama, Greece the festival runs a six-day schedule in September and its main venues ...
. In 1987, the festival was recognized nationally. In 1995, it added the International competition section, where short films from all over the world visit the city every year.
In 1996, the festival was included in the National Cultural Network of Cities by the
Greek Ministry of Culture
The Ministry of Culture and Sports ( el, Υπουργείο Πολιτισμού και Αθλητισμού) is the government department of Greece entrusted with preserving the country's cultural heritage, promoting the arts, and overseeing s ...
.
Museums
Archaeological Museum
The Archaeological Museum of Drama covers human presence in the regional unit of Drama from the mid Paleolithic Period (50,000 years before present) with traces of life from Paleolithic hunts in the caves of the source of the Angitis, up to modern times (1913).
The exhibition space consists of three main halls. In the first archaeological finds from the cave of Maara give witness to the presence of nomadic hunters in the area from the mid Palaeolithic period, while other finds show us about the life of settled farmers and animal rearers from Neolithic villages and the passage of the Copper Age in the city of Drama and the village of Sitagri. The reproduction of a Neolithic house with finds which describe the activities of Neolithic man and his daily activities is the main centre of interest for visitors of all ages.
Bust of
Dionysius, found in the area of Kali Vrysi. The same hall continues the journey through time to the Iron Age and later years where the main element was the worship of Dionysius at the city of Drama itself and at Kali Vrysi and other areas of the regional unit. In the second hall architectural sculptures, pottery and coins confirm that life continued in the city and throughout the whole regional unit during early Christian,
Byzantine
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
and post-Byzantine years.
The visitor is taken through modern recent history by a photographic exhibition relating to the city of Drama, the towns of the regional unit and the mountain villages. The exhibition covers the period from the beginning of the
Ottoman period up to the middle of the 19th century. In the third hall which is roofed with an atrium, the visitor can admire sculptures arranged into three thematic groups. The first includes architectural sculptures dating from ancient times up to Turkish occupation. The second contains votive monuments connected with the worship of various gods in the Greco-Roman
pantheon
Pantheon may refer to:
* Pantheon (religion), a set of gods belonging to a particular religion or tradition, and a temple or sacred building
Arts and entertainment Comics
*Pantheon (Marvel Comics), a fictional organization
* ''Pantheon'' (Lone St ...
as well as local deities, with particular reference to Dionysius while the third group of sculptures focuses on funerary monuments from Hellenistic and
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
* Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...
times.
Ecclesiastical Museum
The history of the Christian Church in Drama began during the Byzantine period and underwent difficult and troubled times. From the 14th century when the city was captured by the Ottomans until the 20th century with successive foreign occupations, the
Greek Orthodox Church
The term Greek Orthodox Church ( Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the entire body of Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Christianity, sometimes also cal ...
in Drama struggled without end, fed by the blood of many faithful, martyrs to the faith and to the
Hellenic ideal and provided succor to its followers through difficult periods.
The collection of icons dating from
Byzantine
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
times to the 20th century forms the basic core of the museum's exhibits. The Museum of the Cathedral of Drama, founded during the reign of the honourable Bishop Dionysius 1st, is now housed in a recently restored five-storey wing of the Bishop of Drama's palace on Venizelou St. In the spacious and well-attended halls, ecclesiastical treasures of priceless spiritual and artistic value are on exhibition. The Icons of the Virgin Ηοdegetria and the Blessing Lord from the 13th century, icons from the 17th century and particularly from the 19th century decorate and sanctify the place. Moreover, the episcopal canonicals, holy vessels and their covers, many from the 19th century, relics of Chrysostomos of Drama and Smyrni, constitute the most important exhibits in the museum.
Many of the exhibits are relics brought by refugees from
Asia Minor
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
and Pontus in 1922 from the churches of their ancient homes to their new home, valuable reminders of who they were and where they came from. Organized groups of pilgrims and visitors to the city are advised to contact the office of the Diocese of Drama before visiting the museum to make arrangements.
Other museums
*
Folklore Museum (Drama)
Sport
Drama hosts many sport teams in various sports. The most famous and most popular is
Doxa Dramas, founded in 1918. Other successful clubs with presence in Greek national divisions are
KAOD (basketball club),
Pandramaikos FC,
Drama 1986 and
Amazones Dramas.
Notable people
*
Tabanıyassı Mehmed Pasha-
Grand Vizier
Grand vizier ( fa, وزيرِ اعظم, vazîr-i aʾzam; ota, صدر اعظم, sadr-ı aʾzam; tr, sadrazam) was the title of the effective head of government of many sovereign states in the Islamic world. The office of Grand Vizier was first ...
of the Ottoman Empire, (died 1637)
*
Mahmud Dramali Pasha (1780–1822) - Ottoman General during the Greek Independence War
* (1900–1992), classical Turkish music composer - singer
*
Koulis Stoligkas
Koulis (Ioannis) Stoligkas or Stoligas ( el, Κούλης Στολίγκας) (1909 or 1910, Drama, Salonica Vilayet, Ottoman Empire – 25 February 1984, Athens), was a Greek actor, one of the most loved stars in the Greek cinema and played ...
(1910–1984), actor
*
Michael Athans
Michael Athans (born Michael Athanassiades in Drama, Greece, May 3, 1937 - May 26, 2020) was a Greek-American control theorist and a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the Massachusetts Inst ...
(b. 1937), electrical engineer, retired MIT professor
*
Apostolos Nikolaidis (1938–1999), Greek singer
*
Basilis C. Xanthopoulos (1951–1990), theoretical physicist
*
Nikos Sergianopoulos (1952–2008), television and stage actor
*
Tania Tsanaklidou,(b. 1952) singer
*
Athanassios Tsakiris (b. 1965), five-time Winter Olympian
*
Petros Gaitanos (b. 1967), singer
*
Natassa Theodoridou, (b. 1970), singer
*
Paraskevas Antzas
Paraskevas Antzas ( el, Παρασκευάς Άντζας, born 18 August 1977) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a central defender.
Career
Antzas' career began in Pandramaikos F.C. in Gamma Ethniki in 1993. In 1995, he ...
(b. 1977), footballer
*
Charikleia Bouda (b. 1980), Olympic sprinter
*
Stratos Perperoglou
Efstratios "Stratos" Perperoglou ( Greek: Στράτος Περπέρογλου; born August 7, 1984) is a Greek former professional basketball player. He is 2.03 m (6'8") tall and he played mainly at the small forward position.
Professional care ...
(b. 1984), basketball player
*
Konstantinos Douvalidis (b. 1987), Olympic hurdler
*
Dimitris Siovas (b. 1988), footballer
*
Panagiota Tsakiri (b. 1990), Olympic biathlete and cross-country skier
*
Ioannis Fetfatzidis (b. 1990), footballer
*
Anna Korakaki (b. 1996), shooter, Gold medalist Women's 25m pistol, bronze medalist in the
10m air pistol at the
2016 Summer Olympics
)
, nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams)
, athletes = 11,238
, events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines)
, opening = 5 August 2016
, closing = 21 August 2016
, opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer
, cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro de ...
Gallery
File:Macedonian Museums-26--482.jpg, Grave stele of Tiberius Claudius Maximus, Archaeological Museum of Drama
File:Saint Sophia Church Drama.jpg, Agia Sofia Byzantine church
File:Καπναποθήκη Σπίρερ, Δράμα (την ημέρα των Φώτων).jpg, Spierer tobacco warehouse in snow
File:Jewish Memorial Drama.jpg, Holocaust memorial
See also
*
List of settlements in the Drama regional unit
Cooperation with other cities
*
Kragujevac
Kragujevac ( sr-Cyrl, Крагујевац, ) is the fourth largest city in Serbia and the administrative centre of the Šumadija District. It is the historical centre of the geographical region of Šumadija in central Serbia, and is situated on ...
,
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia ( Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hu ...
*
Lauf an der Pegnitz
Lauf an der Pegnitz (; Northern Bavarian: ''Lauf an da Pegnitz'') is a town to the East of Nuremberg, Germany. It is the capital of the district Nürnberger Land, in Bavaria. It is in the valley of the River Pegnitz, which flows through the to ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
References
Bibliography
* Gaydarska, B. "Prehistoric Drama and its regional context," in Stoyanov, T., Angelova, S. & Lozanov (eds), ''Stephanos Archaeologicos in honorem Professoris Ludmilli Getov,'' Vol. I (Sofia: Sofia University Press, 2005), 116 – 133.
External links
*
Official website of Drama regional unit
{{Authority control
Wine regions of Greece
Populated places in Drama (regional unit)