Greektown in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, Canada is an area in the

Kitsilano Kitsilano ( ) is a neighbourhood in the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Named after Squamish chief August Jack Khatsahlano, Kitsilano is located along the southern shore of English Bay, Vancouver, English Bay between Fairview, Vancou ...

neighborhood that was historically an enclave of

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as permanent residents. Commuters, tourists, and other short- ...

s and their descendants. The term is an informal one, and Greektown's borders are not strictly defined; however, West

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

around šxʷməθkʷəy̓əmasəm Street is generally considered the neighbourhood's heart, while Blenheim St to the west and MacDonald St to the east are approximately its outer limits. Vancouverites of Greek descent, who live in Kitsilano, nostalgically also call the area Ουέστ Μπροντουέι (literally "West Broadway"). This

Greek identity Greeks or Hellenes (; , ) are an ethnic group and nation native to Greece, Greek Cypriots, Cyprus, Greeks in Albania, southern Albania, Greeks in Turkey#History, Anatolia, parts of Greeks in Italy, Italy and Egyptian Greeks, Egypt, and to a l ...

has waned considerably since the area first became a community of exiles during the dictatorship in Greece of the 1960s and early 1970s, and the primary markers of Greektown are St. George's Greek Orthodox Cathedral, located at the intersection of Arbutus Street and Valley Drive, the local Athens Social Club, a Greek supermarket, and a higher-than-average concentration of Greek restaurants. There is also a Greek Senior Citizen Society. St. George's Greek Orthodox Cathedral been noted for its traditional Byzantine

Icons An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic, and Lutheran churches. The most common subjects include Jesus, Mary, saints, and angels. Although especially ...

. St. George's Hellenic Community of Vancouver (attached to the cathedral with the same patron saint), holds every year a Greek Food Festival from October 20 to October 22. The Hellenic Cultural Festival takes place every June in Kitsilano. The highlight is Greek Day, when Broadway is closed to vehicle traffic between MacDonald and Blenheim for free, family-oriented festivities. The festival is part of an ongoing effort to restore the Greek identity of Greektown.

History

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 ...

, Greek refugees from Europe and western Canada congregated in the Kitsilano area of Vancouver. They founded the aforementioned Greek Orthodox Cathedral, several businesses and social clubs, schools, a bank, newspapers, and, later, a television station. In the 1971 Canada census, Greek was the second-most common language and ethnicity in the Kitsilano area (most common was English and the British Isles, respectively). In 1974, the city of Vancouver sanctioned an annual Greek Day celebration in the area. The current St. George's Greek Orthodox Cathedral was built in 1974 and its adjacent Hellenic Community Centre was built shortly thereafter in 1977. Originally St. George's Greek Orthodox Cathedral was located at West Seventh and Vine. But between 1954 and 1960 when Vancouver saw such an influx of Greek immigrants that St. George's Hellenic community leaders realized their original church was no longer large enough to accommodate the congregation. The property, today the home of Kitsilano Neighbourhood House, was also not big enough for the construction of a larger church so a new location was proposed. In the 2001 Canada census, the percentage of people in Kitsilano reporting Greek as their mother tongue had shrunk to 2 percent, fewer than those speaking English, Chinese, French, or German. In 2005 the City of Vancouver, the Government of

, and the Government of

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

sponsored a return of Greek Day that has continued annually since.

References

{{coord, 49, 15, 51, N, 123, 10, 05, W, source:skwiki_region:CA, display=title Ethnic enclaves in British Columbia European-Canadian culture in British Columbia Neighbourhoods in Vancouver