Akadimia Platonos ( ) literally meaning Plato's Academy, is a neighbourhood located west-northwest of the downtown part of the Greek capital 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 ...

History

The area is named after

Plato's Academy The Academy (), variously known as Plato's Academy, or the Platonic Academy, was founded in Athens by Plato ''circa'' 387 BC. The academy is regarded as the first institution of higher education in the west, where subjects as diverse as biolog ...

, which he founded in the area in 387 BC and which continued to operate until it was destroyed by the Roman dictator Sulla in 86 BC.Lindberg, David C. (2007). The Beginnings of Western Science
University of Chicago Press. p. 70. . Excavations of Ancient artefacts began in 1929 and continue to the present day, under the auspices of the third General Directorate of Antiquities. The area saw housing developments in the early part of the 20th century when Athens began to grow. An industrial zone was also laid out during this time. The area was mostly urbanised during the period after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and the

civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

Present day

The area is densely populated, with people mainly living in five to seven-story buildings. Major streets bordering this subdivision include Lenorman Avenue to the east, Palamidou Street to the south and

Athinon Avenue Athinon Avenue (also known as Kavalas Avenue) is an avenue linking west of downtown Athens at Achilleos Street and Konstantinopouleos Avenue and the Piraeus interchange with the road linking Skaramagkas and Piraeus. For its entire length exce ...

( GR-8 and GR-8A and E90 westbound.) The two main squares are Akademia Platonos and

Metaxa Metaxa () is a line of branded Greek alcoholic drinks, each a flavored amber blend of spirits and Muscat wine, aged in oak barrels, and packaged in amphora-shaped bottles. Several Metaxa products have numbered “star” designations indicating ...

. The population is approximately 15,000.

Residential streets

Several residential streets are named after places in the

Peloponnese The Peloponnese ( ), Peloponnesus ( ; , ) or Morea (; ) is a peninsula and geographic region in Southern Greece, and the southernmost region of the Balkans. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmus of Corinth land bridg ...

, famous people, and myths.

Amenities

Akadimia Platonos has schools, lyceums (middle schools), gymnasia (secondary schools), churches, banks, shops and squares ('' plateies''). The nearest

Athens Metro The Athens Metro () is a rapid transit system serving the Athens urban area in Greece. Line 1 opened as a single-track conventional steam railway in 1869 and was electrified in 1904. Beginning in 1991, Elliniko Metro S.A. constructed and ext ...

subway station is to the east ( Metaxourgeio metro station). Akadimia Platonos has also given its name to the title of a movie screened in Locarno Film Festival 2009 directed by Filippos Tsitos.

References

External links

Plato's AcademyMovie Clips
{{Athens Neighbourhoods in Athens