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

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

History

The area is named after

Plato's Academy The Academy (Ancient Greek: Ἀκαδημία) was founded by Plato in c. 387 BC in Athens. Aristotle studied there for twenty years (367–347 BC) before founding his own school, the Lyceum. The Academy persisted throughout the Hellenistic p ...

, 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, 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 ...

and the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same 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 polic ...

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 excep ...

( GR-8 and GR-8A and E90 westbound.) The two main squares are Akademia Platonos and Metaxa. The population is approximately 15,000.

Residential streets

Several residential streets are named after places in the

Peloponnese The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmus of Corinth land bridge whi ...

, 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 ( 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 electri ...

subway station is to the east ( Metaxourghio 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 AcademyAkademia Platonos on GTP Travel Pages
(in English and Greek)
Movie Clips
{{Athens Neighbourhoods in Athens