Gazi (, ; formerly Γκαζοχώρι ''Gazochori'' or Φωταέριο ''Fotaerio'') is a neighborhood of

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

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 ...

. It surrounds the old Athens

gasworks A gasworks or gas house is an industrial plant for the production of flammable gas. Many of these have been made redundant in the developed world by the use of natural gas, though they are still used for storage space. Early gasworks Coal ...

, which is the industrial museum and exhibition space "Technopolis", widely known as Gazi, next to Keramikos and close to the Acropolis.

History

The old

was founded in 1857. Around 1910, several brothels were set up in the area, a fact which led to brothels in general being referred to as 'Gazi'. During the mid-20th century, small dwellings with few rooms and large gardens began to spring up around the gasworks. These were generally home to large, poor families from Athens. Gazi was a deprived area but despite this, there was no associated high crime rate. The area was mainly inhabited by crate makers. In 1967, due to difficult socioeconomic conditions in

northern Greece Northern Greece ( el, Βόρεια Ελλάδα, Voreia Ellada) is used to refer to the northern parts of Greece, and can have various definitions. Administrative regions of Greece Administrative term The term "Northern Greece" is widely used ...

, many Muslim families established a presence in the area, working at the gasworks. Over the years, numerous garages, paint shops, tinsmiths and spare parts shops opened up in the area.

Climate

In Gazi, one of main weather stations of the National Observatory of Athens is hosted. The area has a Mediterrannean climate. Annual precipitation averages 460mm. August has been a very hot and dry month in the last decade. December averages around 80mm. Winter is a cool and wet period, while summer is a very hot and dry season.

Modern era

To this day, there is a heavy Muslim presence in the area. A 'multicultural' school exists in the area, the 87th Elementary School of Athens, with a student body comprising 70% Muslim, 20%

Greek Orthodox 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 ...

and 10% Albanian and

Romanians The Romanians ( ro, români, ; dated exonym '' Vlachs'') are a Romance-speaking ethnic group. Sharing a common Romanian culture and ancestry, and speaking the Romanian language, they live primarily in Romania and Moldova. The 2011 Roman ...

. Gazi is home to the Technopolis of

, that spreads in an area of about 30,000 m2, an industrial museum of modern architecture which today operates as a multipurpose cultural center. In July 1986 the ministry of culture and Sports, Melina Merkouri, characterized the factory building as listed building and a year later on September 30, 1987 it turned into a focal point in the cultural identity of Athens with the contribution of the Municipality of Athens. Since the start of the 21st century, Gazi has experienced urban refinement and features active

nightlife Nightlife is a collective term for entertainment that is available and generally more popular from the late evening into the early hours of the morning. It includes pubs, bars, nightclubs, parties, live music, concerts, cabarets, theatre, ...

and

night clubs A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

, cafeterias, restaurants,

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

and lesbian bars and several gay-friendly shops, establishing itself as an

entertainment district An entertainment district is a type of arts district with a high concentration of movie theaters, theatres or other entertainment venues. Such areas may be officially designated by local governments with functional zoning regulations, as well as ...

. A branch of the

Benaki Museum The Benaki Museum, established and endowed in 1930 by Antonis Benakis in memory of his father Emmanuel Benakis, is housed in the Benakis family mansion in downtown Athens, Greece. The museum houses Greek works of art from the prehistorical to the ...

has also been installed in the area.Ενημερωτική Έκδοση της Αττικό Μετρό Εταιρεία Λειτουργίας ΑΕ, Μάρτιος 2008. Gazi has been connected with Thissio through the footpaths of Ermou, the construction of parks and free spaces, while the station of Kerameikos metro station was the station of its development. Kerameikos metro station on Line 3 of the

Athens Metro The Athens Metro ( el, Μετρό Αθήνας, Metro Athinas, translit-std=iso) is a rapid-transit system in Greece which serves the Athens urban area and parts of East Attica. Line 1 opened as a conventional steam railway in 1869 and electrif ...

is adjacent to the Technopolis of Gazi.

References

External links

The History of Gazi
Neighbourhoods in Athens Entertainment districts LGBT in Greece {{Athens-geo-stub