The history of the city of Thessaloniki is a long one, dating back to the ancient Greeks (Macedonians). Today with the opening of borders in Southeastern Europe it is currently experiencing a strong revival, serving as the prime port for the northern Greek regions of Macedonia and Thrace, as well as for the whole of Southeastern Europe.
The town was founded around 315 BC by King Cassander of Macedon, on or near the site of the ancient town of Therma and twenty-six other local villages. King Cassander of Macedon named the new city after his wife Thessalonike, a half-sister of Alexander the Great. She gained her name (“victory of Thessalians”, from Greek: nikē “victory”) from her father, Philip II, to commemorate her birth on the day of his gaining a victory over the Phocians, who were defeated with the help of Thessalian horsemen, the best in Greece at that time.
Thessaloniki developed rapidly and as early as the 2nd century BC, it had its first walls built, which enclosed and protected the city.
The city also came to be an autonomous part of the Kingdom of Macedon, with its own parliament where a King was represented that could interfere in the city’s domestic affairs.
The city is renowned for its festivals, events and vibrant cultural life in general, and is considered to be Greece’s cultural capital. … The city’s main university, Aristotle University, is the largest in Greece and the Balkans.
Thessaloniki is a popular tourist destination in Greece. Soon it became an important urban center because of its location, it got fortified and after the Romans had conquered Greece, in the 2nd century BC, it became the capital of one of the four Roman districts of Macedonia.
The Romans built a spacious harbor and set the foundations for the city’s flourishing. Thessaloniki is regarded as a safe place and there is only a low level of crime within the city.
However, corruption and bribery is a major problem in Thessaloniki, as it is in many places in Greece.
Attacks based on skin color, ethnic origin, or religion, on the other hand, are extremely rare within Thessaloniki. It is one of the largest student centers in South-Eastern Europe while many of its monuments are included on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The name Thessalonica is a Biblical Names baby name. In Biblical Names, the meaning of the name Thessalonica is Victory against the Thessalians!