Psychiko ( ) is a town and a suburb in the Athens agglomeration,

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 ...

. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Filothei-Psychiko, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit. The municipality has an area of .

Overview

Psychiko is located 5 km northeast of Athens city centre. It is a strictly residential suburb of Athens, with commercial businesses allowed only within two small designated zones, the "Nea Agora" (New Market) and the "Palaia Agora" (Old Market), with current regulations also restricting buildings to full detachment, and a maximum of 3 floors. Psychiko was historically the home of aristocrats, members of the Greek royal family, and generally

old money Old money is a social class of the rich who have been able to maintain their wealth over multiple generations, in contrast with new money whose wealth has been acquired within its own generation. The term often refers to perceived members of th ...

people. The area remains one of the wealthiest suburbs of Athens, with very high land value, and a number of embassies, particularly of rich Middle Eastern countries, to be found located in Psychiko, and neighbouring

Filothei Filothei () is a green, affluent northeastern suburban town in the Athens agglomeration, Greece, consisting mainly of hillside villas, relatively close to the Olympic Stadium in the nearby town of Marousi. Since the 2011 local government reform ...

. This was once home to Queen Frederica of the Hellenes, until the military coup d'état of 1967.

Andreas Papandreou Andreas Georgiou Papandreou (, ; 5 February 1919 – 23 June 1996) was a Greek academic and economist who founded the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) and served three terms as Prime minister of Greece, prime minister of Third Hellenic Repu ...

and his wife Margaret also lived in Psychiko before the dictatorship. Later, when he became Prime Minister he left Psychiko and moved to Ekali. In recent decades however, many prominent families choose to build their houses in the southern, seaside suburbs, like

Glyfada Glyfada (, ) is a town and a suburb in the South Athens regional unit located in the Athens Riviera along the coast of Saronic Gulf. It is situated in the southern parts of the Athens#Athens Urban Area, Athens urban area. The area stretches from ...

Vouliagmeni Vouliagmeni (, meaning "sunken") is a seaside suburb and former municipality 20 km south of Athens city centre. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Vari-Voula-Vouliagmeni, of which it is a municipal unit. The ...

. A number of private schools are located in Psychiko: Athens College and Psychiko College, Moraitis School, the Arsakeio, and the Varvakeio.

Name

The name literally means "an act of charity". A popular legend about the

battle of Marathon The Battle of Marathon took place in 490 BC during the first Persian invasion of Greece. It was fought between the citizens of Athens (polis), Athens, aided by Plataea, and a Achaemenid Empire, Persian force commanded by Datis and Artaph ...

and the

Marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

run was recorded by Andreas Karkavitsas in the 19th century, and also by Linos Politis. POT-Psychiko

Historical population

Notable people

Constantine II of Greece Constantine II (, ; 2 June 1940 – 10 January 2023) was the last King of Greece, reigning from 6 March 1964 until the abolition of the Greek monarchy on 1 June 1973. Constantine was born in Athens as the only son of Crown Prince Paul and ...

, former King of the Hellenes; also competed in the

1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad () and commonly known as Rome 1960 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 25 August to 11 September 1960 in Rome, Italy. Rome had previously been awar ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, winning a gold medal. * Princess Sophia of Greece and Denmark, later Queen Sofía of Spain, sister of Constantine II. * Nikos Dimou, writer. *Bobolas family, editor and co-owners of Ellaktor * Babis Vovos, former billionaire and owner of the construction group Babis Vovos S.A.. * George Zongolopoulos

Embassies and consulates

Psychiko is home to many embassies.Ministry of Foreign Affairs: GTP Business directory
/ref> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * State *

Consulates

* * *

References

External links

Municipal Website

Psychiko Cultural Center
{{Authority control Battle of Marathon Populated places in North Athens (regional unit) Filothei-Psychiko