Pláka () is the old historical neighborhood of Athens, clustered around the northern and eastern slopes of the Acropolis, and incorporating labyrinthine streets and neoclassical architecture. Plaka is built on top of the residential areas of the ancient town of Athens. It is known as the "Neighborhood of the Gods" due to its proximity to the Acropolis and its many archaeological sites.[Costas Spirou, The Evolution of the Tourism Precinct in City spaces - tourist places: urban tourism precincts ed. by Bruce Hayllar, Tony Griffin, Deborah Edwards, page 31 :” Plaka the neighborhood of the Gods...Located at the base of the hill of Acropolis Plaka is the oldest district in Athens.”]
Name
The toponym
Plaka is first attested in the second half of the 17th century. Up until the era of Otto, it pertained only to the area around the Choragic Monument of Lysicrates (locals knew it as "
Kandili 'lantern' of Demosthenes" at least since 1460, or just as
kandili); it was only after 1834 that the toponym's application gradually expanded to eventually include the entire area between today's Makrygianni Street and the Ancient Agora. Prior of that, the local Athenians referred to the area by various other names, such as
Alikokkou,
Kontito,
Kandili, or by the names of the local churches.
[Kostas Mpiri, Place names of Athens, 1946: "Local Athenians, as we can see from the written evidence, didn't call the area as Plaka. All the source of Athenian historiography, which mention neighborhoods of the city, refer to this area with the names of Alikokou, Kontito, Kandili and with the Churches it included (Kωστα Μπιρη, Τοπωνυμικα των Αθηνων, 1946: "Οι γηγενείς Αθηναίοι δεν εσυνηθιζαν, όπως φαίνεται από τα γραπτά μνημεία, να την ονομάζουν έτσι. Οσες πηγές της Αθηναιογραφιας, εως την εποχή του Όθωνος, αναφέρουν συνοικίες της πόλεως, ονομάζουν αυτήν την περιοχήν με τα ονόματα Αλικόκου, Κοντιτό, Κανδήλι, και με τις ενορίες που περιλάμβανε.")] In particular, Alikokkou was the name of the broader area of what is now Plaka, until the early 20th century, and was one of the divisions into which Athens was divided during the Ottoman era; the toponym Alikokkou derived from the surname of a family who was likely of
Frankokratia origin, but had been Hellenized.
Some have suggested that the toponym Plaka derives from the Arvanitika Pliak Athena, meaning 'Old Athens'; from Albanian plak 'old'.
Location
Plaka is on the northeast slope of
Acropolis, between
Syntagma Square and
Monastiraki. Adrianou Street (running north and south) is the largest and most central street in Plaka and divides it into two areas: the upper level, - Ano Plaka - located right under the Acropolis and the lower level - Kato Plaka - situated between Syntagma and Monastiraki.
History
The extent of the area called
Plaka has evolved over time. Plaka was developed mostly around the ruins of Ancient Agora of Athens.
[Ancient marbles to American shores: Classical archaeology in the United states. by Stephen L Dyson Chapter 5 The American school of Classical studies at Athens page 181 : “The Plaka, the picturesque Turkish quarter of Athens, had developed over the ruins of ancient Agorra”] It is the oldest district of Athens and has been continuously inhabited from the
Neolithic to the present day. As a result, Plaka contains monuments from all periods of the city's history. Some of the streets, such as Adrianou and Tripodon, can be traced back to the ancient era. The population of Athens grew during the early 16th century, and the town experienced another urban development after the one which occurred in 1456, this time towards the north-east, again mainly by the settlement of Albanians who had moved in the region several years before the
Ottoman Empire arrival. After the Ottoman conquest, these settlements occurred in Attica in one wave after the Venetian loss of its Morean strongholds in 1540, and in another wave after a revolt in the Morea in 1570, when the Ottoman administration decreed the mandatory settlement of Albanians in Attica, in order to offer them improving living conditions. The such created parts of the north-eastern district of Athens later became known as
Plaka. During that period, Plaka was also the home of the
Greeks aristocratic
Benizelos family, the family that
Saint Philothei came from.
In the mid-17th century, out of the eight main administrative units () in Athens, it appears Plaka was the least densely inhabited.
During the Greek War of Independence, Plaka like the rest of Athens, was temporarily abandoned by its inhabitants because of the severe battles that took place in 1826. The area was repopulated during the first years of the reign of Otto of Greece. Plaka became inhabited by a mixed population, that included old Athenian families, as well as an influx of newcomers, such as artisans, professionals, military personnel, and others. It had a sizable Albanians community until the late 19th century, and as a result, it was the Albanians quarter of Athens.[Costas Spirou, The Evolution of the Tourism Precinct in City spaces - tourist places: urban tourism precincts ed. by Bruce Hayllar, Tony Griffin, Deborah Edwards page 32: "At its highest point, just under the Acropolis, Plaka contains a 19th century recreated island village settlement. The steep, charming, whitewashed structured of the Anafiotika (migrants from the island of Anafi built the small enclave). and intimate tavernas reflect the architecture of the Aegean."]
Plaka assumed its present form during the 19th and early decades of the 20th century. Following Greek independence, the area grew rapidly. In 1884, a fire burned down a large part of the neighborhood which gave the opportunity for the archaeologists to conduct excavations in the Roman Market and Hadrian's library. Excavations have been taking place continuously since the 19th century. Growth continued until World War II. From the 1950s until the 1970s, Plaka experienced some degradation, as a result of the post-war construction boom, the increase in motor cars, and the tourist boom. In the 1980s, a comprehensive preservation plan was implemented, and the area improved rapidly. Nowadays Plaka is a major tourist destination.
Modern neighbourhood
Plaka is visited by hundreds of thousands of tourists around the year,
and is under strict zoning and conservation regulations, as the only neighborhood in Athens where all utilities (water, power, cable television, telephone, internet, and sewage) lie underground in fully accessible, custom-made tunneling.
Museums in Plaka include:
-
Acropolis Museum
-
Athens University Museum
-
Frissiras Museum
-
Jewish Museum of Greece
-
Museum of Greek Folk Art, an annex of which is the Old Public Baths building
-
Museum of Greek Folk Musical Instruments
-
Museum of Pavlos and Alexandra Kanellopoulou
Cinema
Many movies of the
Greek cinema were filmed in the area. Some of them include:
-
And the Wife Shall Revere Her Husband
-
The Drunkard (film)
-
What If..., Christoforos Papakaliatis movie
-
Woe to the Young
Gallery
File:Choragic Monument of Lysicrates 00.JPG|Choragic Monument of Lysicrates
File:Entaulament i dues columnes, barri de Plaka, Atenes.JPG|Ancient Roman columns
Image:Karolos Koun Theatre, Plaka.jpg|"Karolos Koun" theatre
File:Μουσείο Ιστορίας Πανεπιστημίου Αθηνών.jpg|Athens University Museum
File:20100410 athina092.JPG|Polygnotou street
File:Plaka district-Athens 12.JPG|Neoclassical houses
File:Plaka district-Athens 55.JPG|Detail of a building
File:Άγιος Νικόλαος Ραγκαβά 9767-9.jpg|Agios Nikolaos Ragava Byzantine church
File:Αρχοντικό Μπενιζέλου 6545.jpg|The Benizelos mansion
Image:Typical shop in Plaka.jpg|Typical souvenir shop
Footnotes
Further reading
External links
