Nea Ionia
Nea Ionia (Greek: Νέα Ιωνία, meaning New Ionia) is a northern suburb of Athens, Greece, and a municipality of the Attica region. It was named after Ionia, the region in Anatolia from which many Greeks migrated in the 1920s as a part of the Population exchange between Greece and Turkey.
Nea Ionia is 7 km northeast of Athens city centre. It is served by three STASY commuter rail stations: Nea Ionia, Pefkakia and Perissos.
History
In the past, the area was named Podarades after a Byzantine family (Podaras family) which has farms in this place. The modern settlement was built after the Asia Minor Disaster, in 1923. That year refugees, mainly from Pisidia of Asia Minor, settled in the area. The new settlement originally named Nea Pisidia. But later, due to the arrival many refugees from other places of Ionia, the settlement finally named Nea Ionia. The suburb developed rapidly thanks to carpet handicrafts. The refugees carried their expertise in Athens and opened important carpet handicrafts. This branch was the main economical source for the residents of Nea Ionia for many years. Nea Ionia gradually increases its population and was expanded in a large area. The suburb today comprises the districts Perissos, Kalogreza, Alsoupoli, Pefkakia, Eleftheroupoli, Inepoli, Saframpoli and Neapoli.
