Markopoulo Mesogaias () is a town and a municipality in East Attica, Greece. The municipality has an area of .

Geography

The municipality Markopoulo Mesogaias is situated in the

Mesogaia The Mesogeia or Mesogaia (, "Midlands") is a geographical region of Attica in Greece. History The term designates since antiquity the inland portion of the Attic peninsula. The term acquired a technical meaning with the reforms of Cleisthenes in , ...

plain, in the eastern part of the

Attica Attica (, ''Attikḗ'' (Ancient Greek) or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the entire Athens metropolitan area, which consists of the city of Athens, the capital city, capital of Greece and the core cit ...

peninsula, and touches the

Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans and Anatolia, and covers an area of some . In the north, the Aegean is connected to the Marmara Sea, which in turn con ...

coast in the east, where the port town

Porto Rafti Porto Rafti (), officially named Limin Markopoulou (), is a seaside resort town located in East Attica, Greece. Porto Rafti's main source of income is Tourism in Greece, tourism and winemaking. It is part of the municipality of Markopoulo Mesogaia ...

is located. The town Markopoulo is in the western part of the municipality, at about elevation. It is north of

Kalyvia Thorikou Kalyvia Thorikou () is a town and a former municipality in East Attica, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Saronikos, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit. The municipal unit has an area of 70.63 ...

, east of

Koropi Koropi (, ) is a suburban town in East Attica, Greece. It is the seat of the municipality Kropia. It has been home to the new training facilities of Panathinaikos football club since the summer of 2013. Geography Koropi is situated east of the ...

and southeast of

Athens Athens ( ) 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 southe ...

city centre.

Greek National Road 89 Greek National Road 89 is a road in East Attica, Greece. It connects Gerakas with Sounio, via Koropi and Lavrio. Between Gerakas and Koropi it has lost importance after the opening of the A6 motorway. There are plans to upgrade the section bet ...

(Gerakas - Koropi - Lavrio - Sounio) passes through Markopoulo.

Athens International Airport Athens International Airport ''Eleftherios Venizelos'' , commonly initialised as AIA, is the largest international airport in Greece, serving the city of Athens and region of Attica. It began operation on 28 March 2001 (in time for the 2004 Su ...

is north of the town. Markopoulo had a railway station on the Athens–Lavrion Railway, which closed for passenger traffic in 1957.

Settlements

*Agía Triáda (2021 census pop. 285) *Vravróna, ancient

Brauron Brauron (; Ancient Greek: Βραυρών) was one of the twelve cities of ancient Attica, but never mentioned as a ''deme'', though it continued to exist down to the latest times. It was situated on or near the eastern coast of Attica, between St ...

(pop. 268) - located in the northeast by the

*Chamoliá (pop. 134) *Koulidás (pop. 115) *Markópoulo (pop. 10,394) - the municipal seat *Poriá (pop. 0) *

or ''Limín Markopoúlou'' (pop. 10,526)

History

Markopoulo along with Malakasa, Kakosalesi and Spata is one of the earliest villages formed by

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

settlers in medieval Attica and it had already appeared by 1456. As such, Markopoulo has historically been an

Arvanite Arvanites (; Arvanitika: , or , ; Greek: , ) are a population group in Greece of Albanian origin. They are bilingual, traditionally speaking Arvanitika, an Albanian language variety, along with Greek. Their ancestors were first recorded ...

settlement.

Historical monuments

* The church of Saint Paraskevi, in 1741 (Markopoulo-Mesogeia). A wall painting monument (1741) of George Markou the Argus, the great and prolific post-Byzantine ecclesiastic iconographer of the 18th century (''"....La Santa Parascevi (inizio della sua agiografia1741׃ ,(che si trova al paesimo di Marcopulo, dell 'Attica...."'' ''Evangelos Andreou'' ) * The church of Saint Thecla. A wall painting monument (18th century) of "Georgios Markou the Argeius" iconographers school * The

Temple of Artemis The Temple of Artemis or Artemision (; ), also known as the Temple of Diana, was a Greek temple dedicated to an ancient, localised form of the goddess Artemis (equated with the Religion in ancient Rome, Roman goddess Diana (mythology), Diana) ...

Sports

Markopoulo was the home to two venues of the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

: the

Markopoulo Olympic Equestrian Centre The Markopoulo Olympic Equestrian Centre hosted the Equestrian at the 2004 Summer Olympics, equestrian events at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. The venue is located at Markopoulo Mesogaias, Markópoulo on the outskirts of the Athens su ...

and the

Markopoulo Olympic Shooting Centre The Markopoulo Olympic Shooting Centre was the site of the shooting events at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. The venue is located in Markópoulo, on the outskirts of the eastern suburbs of Athens. It has a seating capacity of 4,000, t ...

. Markopoulo's women

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

team plays in the

A1 Ethniki Women's Volleyball The Greek Women's Volleyball League is organised by Hellenic Volleyball Federation (Greek:Ελληνική Ομοσπονδία Πετοσφαίρισης). Panathinaikos won the first championship in 1971. During the first decade, Panathinaikos a ...

, the highest level national competition.

Economy

Historically, the economy of the region has been largely agricultural, with grapes and wine being the major components of the local economy until today. The Merenda quarry also allowed for a major economic expansion during the 1990s, however operations have ceased since 2014. Today, tourism is a major driver as is a very popular tourist destination in Attica thanks to the port settlement of

. Multiple companies, including

SkyGreece Airlines SkyGreece Airlines S.A. was a Canadian-owned Greek airline headquartered in Markopoulo Mesogaias, Attica, near Athens. On 27 August 2015, the airline suspended operations. History SkyGreece Airlines was founded in Athens, Greece in October 2012, ...

have had their corporate headquarters in Markopoulo Mesogaias due to the easy access to Athens International Airport.

Historical population

References

External links

Markopoulo Official Site
{{Arvanites Populated places in East Attica Municipalities of Attica Arvanite settlements