- Pieria
:"
Pieria (Syria) was a province of Roman Syria."Infobox Pref GR
name = Pieria
name_local =
"Nomos Pierias"
flag_reg = Flag of Greek Macedonia.svg
periph =Central Macedonia
capital =Katerini
population = 134,739
population_as_of = 2005
pop_rank = 26th
pop_dens = 88.9
popdens_rank = 10th
area = 1,516
area_rank = 42nd| postal_code = 60x xx
area_code = 235x0| licence = ΚΝ
provinces = "none"
municip = 13
commun =
ISO =
website = [http://www.pieria.gr/ www.pieria.gr]Pieria ( _el. Πιερία) is one of the
prefectures of Greece . It is located in the southern part of Macedonia, in the Periphery ofCentral Macedonia . Its capital is the town ofKaterini . Pieria is the smallest prefecture within Macedonia. The name Pieria originates from the ancient tribe and the ancient country of Pieris. In Pieria, there are many sites of archeological interest, such as Dion,Pydna andPlatamonas . Pieria is also home toMt. Pierus , home toOrpheus and theMuses , as well as thePierian Spring . Mt. Olympus, the highest mountain in Greece and throne of the ancient Greek gods, is towering at the south side of Pieria. Other ancient cities includedLeivithros andPimpleia or Pimplia.Geography
The Pieria prefecture is bounded with Larissa in
Thessaly to the south and west, the Kozani to the west and Imathia to the north. Until the late-20th century, it surrounded the village of Elafos in which it was part of the Imatha prefecture.The
Pierian Mountains lie to the west. TheThermian Gulf lies to the east. It also has a valley by the GR-13. Most of the population live within the Olympian Riviera. The lowest point is the Thermian Gulf and the highest point is Mount Olympus.Climate
Its climate is mainly of Mediterranean climate with hot summers and cool winters. In most of the central part and the western part receives winter weather especially in the hills, the Pierian Mountains and Mount Olympus.
Municipalities
See also:
List of settlements in the Pieria prefecture andSlavic toponyms of places in Pieria Prefecture History
The
Pieres were a Thracian people, occupying the narrow strip of plain land, or low hill, between the mouths of the Peneius and theHaliacmon rivers, at the foot of the great woody steeps ofmount Olympus . Later Pieria has been incorporated in theKingdom of Macedonia whereas it was the second province of the ancient kingdom, later theRoman Empire as well as theByzantine Empire . It was later invaded and became a part of theOttoman Empire . During that time, theGreek War of Independence occurred in the area in 1821 but their battle was lost. Pieria did not join the rest ofGreece until theBalkan Wars in 1913. Until 1947, Pieria was part of theThessaloniki Prefecture in that time was the largest prefecture, it was then a province. Pieria saw an economic boom in agriculture and businesses. During theGreco-Turkish War , it saw an influx of refugees fromAsia Minor in what is now a part ofTurkey and several places were named after their former homelands includingNea Trapezounta from Trezibond (nowTrabzon ) andNea Efesos fromEphesus (nowEfes ), they now belong toTurkey . Roads were being paved, Katerini saw electricity. AfterWorld War II and theGreek Civil War , Pieria was rebuilt and its population was emigrating. Electricity were introduced to the rest of the prefecture in the 1960s, television in the 1970s and the 1980s and also more pavement of roads.The GR-1 was under construction in the late-1960s and was opened to traffic in 1972 with two lanes, in the 1980s, it became two-laned in the northern part, in the 1990s, it became two laned that it went as far as the prefectural boundary with Larissa in the early-2000s.
On
June 8 ,2007 , a low pressure received system from Southern and Central Europe heavy rainfalls ravaged the prefecture and saw damages in fruit and vegetable production, one farm was like a small pond that can be seen in the valley. The hard hit area wasKorinos .Transport
*GR-1/
E75 , both the old and the new highways
*GR-13Famous Pierians
According to various sources,
Alexis Zorba (1867-1942), the person who inspired the Greeknovelist Nikos Kazantzakis to write the famous novel "Zorba the Greek", was born in the village ofKatafigi , nearKolindros . His original name was Georgios Zorbas.porting teams
*
Pierikos - Greek Third Division (North Club)ee also
*
Olympus Festival External links
* [http://www.greekmountainflora.info/Pieria/Pieria.html Greek Mountain Flora]
* [http://www.pieria-tourism.gr/ Pieria Tourism]
* [http://www.pieriahotels.gr/ Pieria Hotels Guide]
*http://www.culture.gr/maps/macedon/pieria/pieria.html
*dmoz|Regional/Europe/Greece/Prefectures/Pieria/ en icon
*dmoz|World/Greek/%CE%A4%CE%BF%CF%80%CE%B9%CE%BA%CE%AC/%CE%95%CF%85%CF%81%CF%8E%CF%80%CE%B7/%CE%95%CE%BB%CE%BB%CE%AC%CE%B4%CE%B1/%CE%9D%CE%BF%CE%BC%CE%BF%CE%AF/%CE%A0%CE%B9%CE%B5%CF%81%CE%AF%CE%B1/|Πιερία gr icon
*http://www.plefsis.gr/pieria.htm
*http://www.mpa.gr/specials/olympus/pieria.html
*http://users.pie.sch.gr/amgr1/pieria_photos.htm
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