Dionysiou Areopagitou Street (, ) is a pedestrianized street, adjacent to the south slope of the

Acropolis An acropolis was the settlement of an upper part of an ancient Greek city, especially a citadel, and frequently a hill with precipitous sides, mainly chosen for purposes of defense. The term is typically used to refer to the Acropolis of Athens ...

in the Makrygianni district 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 ...

. It is named after

Dionysius the Areopagite Dionysius the Areopagite (; ''Dionysios ho Areopagitēs'') was an Athenian judge at the Areopagus Court in Athens, who lived in the first century. A convert to Christianity, he is venerated as a saint by multiple denominations. Life As rel ...

, the first Athenian convert to Christianity after

Apostle Paul Paul, also named Saul of Tarsus, commonly known as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul, was a Apostles in the New Testament, Christian apostle ( AD) who spread the Ministry of Jesus, teachings of Jesus in the Christianity in the 1st century, first ...

's sermon, according to the ''

Acts of the Apostles The Acts of the Apostles (, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; ) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of The gospel, its message to the Roman Empire. Acts and the Gospel of Luke make u ...

'', and patron saint of the city of Athens. The street runs from east to west. It starts from Amalias Avenue near the Arch of Hadrian and ends near Philopappos Hill where it continues as Apostolou Pavlou Avenue, the rest of the pedestrian zone which goes around the archaeological site of the Acropolis and the

Agora The agora (; , romanized: ', meaning "market" in Modern Greek) was a central public space in ancient Ancient Greece, Greek polis, city-states. The literal meaning of the word "agora" is "gathering place" or "assembly". The agora was the center ...

. The street was first mapped in 1857 in a position more northern than where it is located today, adjacently to the

Odeon of Herodes Atticus The Odeon of Herodes Atticus (; also called Herodeion or Herodion; ) is a stone Roman theatre structure located on the southwest slope of the Acropolis of Athens, Greece. The building was completed in AD 161 and then renovated in 1950. Ancien ...

. It acquired its current shape in 1955, when it was redesigned by architect Dimitris Pikionis, who also designed the paved paths of the archaeological site. The street was finally pedestrianized in 2003. Ελένη Αργυρίου (28 March 2008)
"Καθ' οδόν: Στη Διονυσίου Αρεοπαγίτου"
''Ριζοσπάστης''; Retrieved March 2013 Dimitris Diamantopoulos (17 June 2009)
"O μεγάλος περίπατος"
''Lifo''; Retrieved June 2014

Buildings and monuments

The beginning of the street, near Amalias Avenue, has buildings on both sides. However, after Makrygianni Street, buildings cease on the north side and give place to the archaeological site of the Acropolis. Near Makrygianni Street is the entrance to the ancient

Theatre of Dionysus The Theatre of Dionysus (or Theatre of Dionysos, ) is an ancient Greek theatre in Athens. It is built on the south slope of the Acropolis hill, originally part of the sanctuary of Dionysus Eleuthereus (Dionysus the Liberator). The first ''orches ...

. On the south side is the

Acropolis Museum The Acropolis Museum (, ''Mouseio Akropolis'') is an archaeological museum focused on the findings of the archaeological site of the Acropolis of Athens. The museum was built to house every artifact found on the rock and on the surrounding slope ...

and an upmarket residential district with apartment buildings and houses. Near the end is the entrance to the

. In the middle of the street were found the foundations of the house of

Proclus Proclus Lycius (; 8 February 412 – 17 April 485), called Proclus the Successor (, ''Próklos ho Diádokhos''), was a Greek Neoplatonist philosopher, one of the last major classical philosophers of late antiquity. He set forth one of th ...

Notable residents

* Vangelis Papathanasiou, composer. He owned a neoclassical mansion near the Acropolis Museum which was threatened to be demolished during the construction of the museum. *

Konstantinos Parthenis Konstantinos Parthenis (Greek language, Greek: Κωνσταντίνος Παρθένης; 10 May 1878 – 25 July 1967) was a Greece, Greek Painting, painter. Born in Alexandria, part of the Egyptian Greeks, Greek community in Egypt, Parthenis b ...

, painter. His house was demolished after his death in 1967. *

Akis Tsochatzopoulos Apostolos-Athanasios "Akis" Tsochatzopoulos (; 31 July 1939 – 27 August 2021) was a Greek politician, engineer, and economist. He served as a minister in several Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) cabinets between 1981 and 2004 most notabl ...

, politician. His expensive apartment which he bought using money from economic scandals has caused a stir. *

Xenophon Zolotas Xenophon Euthymiou Zolotas (; 26 April 1904 – 10 June 2004) was a Greek economist and served as an interim non-party Prime Minister of Greece. Life and career Born in Athens on 26 April 1904. He graduated from Rizarios Ecclesiastical School ...

, economist and interim prime minister of Greece.

References

External links

{{Streets in Athens Transport in Athens Streets in Athens Odonyms referring to religion