Trikala

Trikala (Greek: Τρίκαλα) is a city in northwestern Thessaly, Greece, and the capital of the Trikala regional unit. The city straddles the Lithaios river, which is a tributary of Pineios. According to the National Statistical Service, Trikala is populated by 81,355 inhabitants (2011), while in total the Trikala regional unit is populated by 131,085 inhabitants (2011).

History

Antiquity

The region of Trikala has been inhabited since prehistoric times. The first indications of permanent settlement have been uncovered in the cave of Theopetra, and date back to approx. 49,000 BC. Neolithic settlements dating back to 6,000 BC have been uncovered in Megalo Kefalovriso and other locations.

The city of Trikala is built on the ancient city of Trikka or Trikke, which was founded around the 3rd millennium BC and took its name from the nymph Trikke, daughter of Penaeus, or according to others, daughter of the river god Asopus. The ancient city was built at a defensive location in between the local hill and the river Lithaios. The city became an important center in Antiquity and it was considered to be the birthplace and main residence of the Healing God Asclepius. The city exhibited one of the most important and ancient of Asclepius' healing temples, called asclepieia. The city is mentioned in Homer's Iliad as having participated in the Trojan War with thirty ships under Asclepius' sons Machaon and Podalirius. In the Mycenean period, the city was the capital of a kingdom, and later it constituted the main center of the Thessalian region of Estaiotis, which occupied roughly the territory of the modern Trikala Prefecture.

Trikala (disambiguation)

Trikala (Greek: Τρίκαλα) may refer to several places in Greece:

Trikala (regional unit)

Trikala (Greek: Περιφερειακή ενότητα Τρικάλων) is one of the regional units of Greece, forming the northwestern part of the region of Thessaly. Its capital is the town of Trikala. The regional unit includes the town of Kalampaka and the Meteora monastery complex.

Geography

Trikala borders the regional units of Karditsa to the south, Arta to the southwest, Ioannina to the west, Grevena to the north and Larissa to the east. The name means 'Three good', good water, good weather and good earth.

The southeastern part belongs to the Thessalian Plain. The forested Pindus mountain range dominates the western part. The northern part of Trikala is also mountainous and made up of forests and barren lands, the ranges here are Chasia and Antichasia. Its major river is the Pineios, flowing to the south and east.

Its climate is mainly of Mediterranean character, with hot summers and cold winters, along with temperate climate conditions by the mountains.

Administration

The regional unit Trikala is subdivided into 4 municipalities. These are (number as in the map in the infobox):