Oropos
Encyclopedia
Oropos is a small town and a municipality
in East Attica
, Greece
.
. Oropos is located N of Avlona and Athens
, E of Thebes
and SE of Chalcis
. Oropos is linked with the road linking Nea Palatia
and Sikamino. Oropos is also linked with the service road which links with the GR-1
/E75
at its nearest interchanges. The area around Oropos supports farmlands with olive groves to the south and with some mountains to the south. South of the superhighway is the Parnitha
mountain. Various businesses form the industry of Oropos, and agriculture dominates the farmlands.
Oropos was founded by colonists from Eretria
; it was either located in or identical with Graea
. In ancient times, it was a border city between Boeotia
and Attica, and its possession was a continual cause of dispute between the two states; but ultimately it came into possession of Athens, and was always an Attic town, even during the Roman Empire
. The actual harbour, which was called Delphinium, was at the mouth of the Asopus
, about a mile (1.6 km) north of the city.
The famous oracle of Amphiaraus
was situated in the territory of Oropus, 12 stadia
from the city. The site has been excavated by the Greek Archaeological Society; it contained a temple, a sacred spring, into which coins were thrown by worshippers, altars and porticoes, and a small theatre, of which the proskenion
is well preserved. Worshippers used to consult the oracle of Amphiaraus by sleeping on the skin of a slaughtered ram within the sacred building.
The town (pop. 860 in 2001) is the seat of government of the community, which also includes the villages of Kámpos Oropoú (pop. 237), and Platánia Oropoú (155). Oropos has a school and a lyceum or a middle school, a gymnasia or a high school, churches, a post office and a few squares (plateies
).
Communities and Municipalities of Greece
For the new municipalities of Greece see the Kallikratis ProgrammeThe municipalities and communities of Greece are one of several levels of government within the organizational structure of that country. Thirteen regions called peripheries form the largest unit of government beneath the State. ...
in East Attica
East Attica
East Attica is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Attica. The capital of the regional unit is the town of Pallini. The regional unit covers the eastern part of the agglomeration of Athens, and also the rural area to its east....
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
.
Geography
It is situated on the southern Euboean Gulf, opposite EretriaEretria
Erétria was a polis in Ancient Greece, located on the western coast of the island of Euboea, south of Chalcis, facing the coast of Attica across the narrow Euboean Gulf. Eretria was an important Greek polis in the 6th/5th century BC. However, it lost its importance already in antiquity...
. Oropos is located N of Avlona and Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, E of Thebes
Thebes, Greece
Thebes is a city in Greece, situated to the north of the Cithaeron range, which divides Boeotia from Attica, and on the southern edge of the Boeotian plain. It played an important role in Greek myth, as the site of the stories of Cadmus, Oedipus, Dionysus and others...
and SE of Chalcis
Chalcis
Chalcis or Chalkida , the chief town of the island of Euboea in Greece, is situated on the strait of the Evripos at its narrowest point. The name is preserved from antiquity and is derived from the Greek χαλκός , though there is no trace of any mines in the area...
. Oropos is linked with the road linking Nea Palatia
Nea Palatia
Nea Palatia is a community in East Attica, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Oropos, of which it is a community....
and Sikamino. Oropos is also linked with the service road which links with the GR-1
Greek National Road 1
The Greek Motorway 1 is a motorway, partly under construction, and the 2nd longest in Greece. It is the principal north-south road connection in Greece, connecting the country's capital Athens with the regions of Thessaly and Macedonia, as well as the country's second largest city,...
/E75
European route E75
European route E 75 is part of the International E-road network, which is a series of main roads in Europe.The E 75 starts from Vardø, Norway in the Barents Sea and runs south through Finland, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia and Republic of Macedonia to Sitia, Greece on...
at its nearest interchanges. The area around Oropos supports farmlands with olive groves to the south and with some mountains to the south. South of the superhighway is the Parnitha
Parnitha
Mount Parnitha is a densely forested mountain range north of Athens, the highest on the peninsula of Attica, with an elevation of 1,413 m and a summit known as Karavola...
mountain. Various businesses form the industry of Oropos, and agriculture dominates the farmlands.
Municipality
The present municipality Oropos was formed at the 2011 local government reform by the merger of the following 9 former municipalities, that became municipal units (constituent communities in brackets):- AfidnesAfidnesAfidnes is a suburb in Attica, Greece just about 28 km north of Athens. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Oropos, of which it is a municipal unit....
- Avlonas
- KalamosKalamos, AtticaKalamos is a town and a former community in the Greek prefecture of Attica. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Oropos, of which it is a municipal unit....
- KapandritiKapandritiKapandriti is a town near Marathon in the north of Attica in Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Oropos, of which it is a municipal unit.Kapandriti is linked by road to Nea Makri, Afidnes, and Kalamos...
- MalakasaMalakasaMalakasa is a town and former community of Attica in Greece, it is also a suburb of Athens. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Oropos, of which it is a municipal unit....
- Markopoulo OropouMarkopoulo OropouMarkopoulo Oropou is a town and a former community of East Attica, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Oropos, of which it is a municipal unit....
- OropioiOropioiOropioi is a former municipality in East Attica, Greece. Population 8,674 . The seat of the municipality was in the town Skala Oropou. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Oropos, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipality Oropioi consisted of the municipal...
(Nea PalatiaNea PalatiaNea Palatia is a community in East Attica, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Oropos, of which it is a community....
, Skala OropouSkala OropouSkala Oropou is a community in East Attica, Greece, on the South Gulf of Euboea, due north of Athens. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Oropos, of which it is a community....
and Oropos) - PolydendriPolydendriPolydendri is a town and former community of East Attica, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Oropos, of which it is a municipal unit.It is located north of Athens...
- SykaminoSykaminoSykamino is a town and former community of Attica, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Oropos, of which it is a municipal unit....
Nearest places
- Chalkoutsi, north
- Skala OropouSkala OropouSkala Oropou is a community in East Attica, Greece, on the South Gulf of Euboea, due north of Athens. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Oropos, of which it is a community....
, northeast - Milessi, east
- Avlona, south
- OinofytaOinofytaOinofyta is a village and former municipality in eastern Boeotia, Greece. Following the local government reform of 2011 it is now part of the municipality of Tanagra, of which it is a municipal unit...
, west
History
Eretria
Erétria was a polis in Ancient Greece, located on the western coast of the island of Euboea, south of Chalcis, facing the coast of Attica across the narrow Euboean Gulf. Eretria was an important Greek polis in the 6th/5th century BC. However, it lost its importance already in antiquity...
; it was either located in or identical with Graea
Graea
Graea or Graia is a region,or a city of ancient Greece that is placed under Boeotia in Homer's Catalogue of Ships; it seems to have included the city of Oropos, though by the fifth century BC it was probably a kome of that city...
. In ancient times, it was a border city between Boeotia
Boeotia
Boeotia, also spelled Beotia and Bœotia , is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Central Greece. It was also a region of ancient Greece. Its capital is Livadeia, the second largest city being Thebes.-Geography:...
and Attica, and its possession was a continual cause of dispute between the two states; but ultimately it came into possession of Athens, and was always an Attic town, even during the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
. The actual harbour, which was called Delphinium, was at the mouth of the Asopus
Asopus
Asopus or Asôpos is the name of four different rivers in Greece and one in Turkey. In Greek mythology, it was the name of the gods of those rivers.-The rivers in Greece:...
, about a mile (1.6 km) north of the city.
The famous oracle of Amphiaraus
Amphiareion of Oropos
The Amphiareion of Oropos , situated in the hills 6 km southeast of the fortified port of Oropos, was a sanctuary dedicated in the late 5th century BCE to the hero Amphiaraos, where pilgrims went to seek oracular responses and healing. It became particularly successful during the 4th century...
was situated in the territory of Oropus, 12 stadia
Stadia
Stadium or stadion has the plural stadia in both Latin and Greek. The anglicized term is stade in the singular.Stadium may refer to:* Stadium, a building type...
from the city. The site has been excavated by the Greek Archaeological Society; it contained a temple, a sacred spring, into which coins were thrown by worshippers, altars and porticoes, and a small theatre, of which the proskenion
Proskenion
In a Hellenistic theatre, the proskenion is a raised platform in front of the skênê, on which the actors perform. The Romans used the proskenion and skênê as acting areas after they adopted Hellenistic theatre....
is well preserved. Worshippers used to consult the oracle of Amphiaraus by sleeping on the skin of a slaughtered ram within the sacred building.
Historical population
| Year | Town population | Community population |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 672 | - |
| 1991 | 784 | 924 |
| 2001 | 860 | 1,252 |
Other
Plateia
Plateia or platia is the Greek word for town square. Most Greek and Cypriot cities have several town squares which are a point of reference in travelling and guiding...
).