Thessaloniki Prefecture

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Thessaloniki Prefecture
Νομός Θεσσαλονίκης
Location of Thessaloniki Prefecture in Greece
Periphery Central Macedonia
Capital Thessaloniki
Population 1,099,598 (2005)Ranked 2nd
Area 3,683 km² Ranked 9th
Population density 298.6/km²Ranked 3rd
Number of provinces 2
Number of municipalities 43
Number of communities 2
Postal codes 54x xx - 57x xx
Area codes 2310, 239x0
Licence plate code Ν
ISO 3166-2 code GR-54
Website www.nath.gr

Thessaloniki (Greek: Θεσσαλονίκη) is a nomos (prefecture) in Greece, containing Thessaloniki, Lagana and the northern portion of the Chalcidicean peninsula. The prefecture is the second in Greece in population and the largest in Macedonia as well as northern Greece.

Contents

[edit] Geography

The prefecture stretches from the Thermian Gulf to the Strymon Gulf. The Thermian Gulf is to the southwest while the Strymon Gulf is in the east. Two bodies of water stretch to the north, the Lagkada Lagoon in the heart of the prefecture and Lake Volvi to the east. The mountains are in the central and the northern parts, farmlands are in the western and the southwestern part and few to the northeast, the northern portion and along the Axios valley. The mountains include the Chortiatis to the westcentral part, the Vertiskos to the north and parts of the Kerdylio mountains to the northeast. The prefectures is bounded with the Imathia prefecture to the southwest, Pella to the west, Kilkis to the north, Serres to the east and Chalkidiki to the south

[edit] History

The Thessaloniki Prefecture was created when Thessaloniki joined with the rest of Greece during the First Balkan War in 1913. The area then was the largest in Greece covering about 7% of all of Greece. Pella split in 1930, Kilkis prefecture split in 1937 and after World War II in 1947, Imathia and Pieria split from the Thessaloniki prefecture. It did not affect the population rank and remained first in Macedonia, Central Macedonia and northern Greece. The prefecture was to be strucked by an earthquake in the 1970s and later recent heavy rainfalls clumbered parts of the prefecture in the 2000s.

The rainfall of October 8, 2006 (see Flooding of Central Macedonia) hampered the eastern portion of the prefecture, Apollonia, Greece, Asprovalta, Nea Madytos Stavros and Vrasna were affected sawing the streams overflowed with mud and about 300 houses were flooded and damaged. Several people were stranded that one helicopter helped several victims trapped in the raging floodwaters. The valley area was heavily flooded seeing much of the crops damaged with some not being affected. Trees were sawn over the flooded plain. Three bridges were destroyed including the old section of the Via Egnatia paralyzing traffic between Thessaloniki and Kavala and the other eroded a lane of the local road. The superhighway is north of the affected area and was re-opened. One of the causes of the flooding is the garbage not being cleaned out from its streams, the other was of poor architecture.

[edit] Climate

Its climate includes hot Mediterranean summers and cool to mild winters in low lying areas and its plains. Winter is very common in areas 500 m above sea level and into the mountains.

[edit] Transport

[edit] Roads and Highways

The area is connected by roads and highways

[edit] History

Several superhighways and highways were added including the GR-1 and the new Via Egnatia link with Thessaloniki and the superhighway in 1973, the Thessaloniki Ring and the Diagonal Road (GR-67, partly GR-18) and the partial section of the GR-65 in the 1970s and the 1980s and lately the Via Egnatia superhighway between 1997 and 2005 and currently, the GR-12 will be converted to a superhighway standard in the late-2000s and the early-2010s.

[edit] Other

  • Transit System (Thessaloniki)
  • Future Thessaloniki Subway System opening around 2011

[edit] Communications

Most of the stations are in the city (see Thessaloniki#Communications). Here are list of stations outside the city:

  • Thermi TV - Thermi

[edit] Sporting teams

[edit] Basketball teams

  • Aris
  • Iraklis
  • PAOK

[edit] Football/Soccer teams

[edit] Municipalities and communities

Municipality YPES code Seat (if different) Postal code Area code
Agios Athanasios 2101 570 03 2310-70
Agios Georgios 2102 Asprovalta 570 21 23970-2
Agios Pavlos 2103 554 2310-20 & 21
Ampelokipoi 2104 561 2310-72 through 74
Apollonia 2106 Nea Apollonia 570 15 23930-4
Arethousa 2107 570 21 23950-4
Assiros 2108 572 00 23940-6
Axios 2105 Kymina 573 00 23910-4
Chalastra 2142 573 00 2310-74
Chalkidona 2143 570 07 23910-2
Chortiatis 2144 Asvestochori 570 10 2310-38
Echedoros 2116 Sindos 570 08 2310-78
Egnatia 2111 Profitis 573 00 23930-5
Eleftherio-Kordelio 2112 562 2310-70 through 77
Epanomi 2113 575 00 23920-4
Evosmos 2115 562 2310-57 and 70
Kalamaria 2120 551 2310-40 through 49
Kallindoia 2122 Zagkliveri 570 12 23930-3
Kallithea 2121 545 2310-78
Koroneia 2123 Gerakarou 570 12 23930-2
Koufalia 2124 571 00 23950-5
Lachanas 2126 Xylopoli 570 14 23940-9
Lagkadas 2125 572 00 23940-2
Madytos 2127 Nea Madytos 570 14 23970-4
Menemeni 2128 561 2310-70 through 79
Michaniona 2129 Nea Michaniona 570 04 23920-3
Mikra 2130 Trilofo 575 00 23920-6
Mygdonia 2131 Liti 545 23940-73
Neapoli 2132 562 2310-60 through 68
Oraiokastro 2145 570 13 2310-69
Panorama 2133 552 2310-34
Polichni 2135 565 2310-60 through 68
Pylaia 2136 552 2310-30 through 39
Rentina 2137 570 10 23970-6
Sochos 2138 570 05 23950-
Stavroupoli 2139 564 2310-60 through 69
Sykies 2140 566 2310- 20 through 29 & 60 through 69
Thermaikos 2117 Peraia 570 19 23920-2
Thermi 2118 570 01 2310-41
Thessaloniki 2119 54x xx & 55x xx 2310-2 through 6
Triandria 2141 553 2310-90 through 99
Vasilika 2109 570 06 23960-2
Vertiskos 2110 Ossa 572 00 23940-9
Community YPES code Seat (if different) Postal code Area code
Efkarpia 2114 564 2310-68
Pefka 2134 570 10 2310-67

See also: List of settlements in the Thessaloniki prefecture