Thessaloniki is the capital of Greek Macedonia, the administrative territory of Central Macedonia, and the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace. Its nickname is (Symprotévousa), which means “co-capital,” and refers to its historical role as the (Symvasilévousa) or “co-reigning” city of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, alongside Constantinople.
In 2007, the historical core of Thessaloniki had a population of 385,406, while the Thessaloniki Urban Area had a population of 800,764. In 2011, the Thessaloniki Metropolitan Area had a population of 1,104,460 people.
Thessaloniki is Greece’s second most important economic, industrial, commercial, and political center, as well as a key transportation hub for the rest of southeastern Europe; its commercial port is also vital to Greece and the southeastern European hinterland. The city is well-known for its festivals and events, as well as its dynamic cultural life in general, and is regarded as Greece’s cultural capital. Annual events include the Thessaloniki International Trade Fair and the Thessaloniki International Film Festival, and the city also holds the biggest bi-annual gathering of the Greek diaspora. Thessaloniki was named European Youth Capital in 2014.
Cassander of Macedon established the city of Thessaloniki in 315 BC. By the Roman time, Thessaloniki was an important metropolis, the second biggest and richest city in the Byzantine Empire. It was seized by the Ottomans in 1430 and handed up to modern Greece on November 8, 1912.
Numerous noteworthy Byzantine sites may be found in Thessaloniki, including the Paleochristian and Byzantine monuments of Thessaloniki, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as well as other Roman, Ottoman, and Sephardic Jewish constructions. Aristotle University, the city’s flagship university, is the biggest in Greece and the Balkans.
Thessaloniki is a renowned Greek tourism destination. National Geographic Magazine named Thessaloniki one of the top tourist destinations in the world in 2013, while the Financial Times FDI magazine (Foreign Direct Investments) named Thessaloniki the best mid-sized European city of the future for human capital and lifestyle in 2014. The downtown of Thessaloniki is also regarded as the most popular site for street photographers in Greece.