Tripoli, Greece

Tripoli is a city in the central part of the Peloponnese, in Greece. It is the capital of the Peloponnese region and also of the regional unit of Arcadia. The city has a rich history and is an important place in Greece.

In 2021, the municipality of Tripoli had 44,165 inhabitants. The city's name in Greek is Τρίπολη, which is written as Trípoli when using the Latin alphabet. In an older form of Greek called Katharevousa, it is written as Τρίπολις, or Trípolis in Latin letters.

Tripoli is part of modern Greece, and it holds the position of being a key city in the beautiful Peloponnese area.

Names and etymology

In the Middle Ages, the city now called Tripoli was known by names like Drobolitsa, Droboltsá, or Dorboglitza. Some think this name came from a Greek word meaning "Water City." Others think it might mean "Plain of Oaks" from a South Slavic language.

Later, some people thought the name was linked to ideas about "three cities" such as Tegea, Mantineia, and Pallantium, but these ideas turned out to be wrong guesses. Over time, the city was called by many different names like Dorbogliza, Tripoliça, Trepoliça, and Trapoliça.

History

Not much is known about an old place called Drobolitza. It was listed in 1467 after a leader named Mehmed took over this part of Greece. Later, after another leader named Osman took control, the main town moved from Mouchli to Drobolitza.

In 1770, when Greeks were fighting for their freedom, the city of Tripolitsa was a strong point. Before Greece gained its independence, Tripolitsa was an important city with many Muslim and Jewish people. In 1821, Greek fighters took the city after a long fight.

Later, the city was rebuilt and became an important place in Greece. It served as the capital of the Arcadia district. Over time, it grew to be a key center for business and travel in the southern part of the Peloponnese.

Geography and climate

Tripoli has a warm climate with hot summers and cool winters. It is in the middle of the Peloponnese, near a big valley of farmland. The city is surrounded by mountains, including the wooded Mainalo to the west.

Because it is high up and far from the sea, Tripoli can get very cold in winter and very hot in summer. Snow sometimes falls between November and April. The city's streets have many plazas, and it has an industrial area in the southwest.

Surrounding area and geology

In the large Tripoli Basin and nearby areas of the Arcadian Highland, special landforms have developed. There are several plains and small basins, including the Tripoli-Basin, the Argon Pedion, the Basin of Levidi, and the Basin of Vlacherna Arcadia/Hotoussa/Kandila.

Water in these areas often goes underground instead of staying on top. This makes special waterways called ponors. There are many ponors here, and big rains can sometimes cause small floods or lakes to appear.

Municipality

The municipality of Tripoli was formed in 2011 by joining eight smaller areas. These areas are now called municipal units. They are Falanthos, Korythio, Levidi, Mantineia, Skiritida, Tegea, Tripoli, and Valtetsi. The whole municipality covers 1,475.805 km². The main part of Tripoli covers 119.287 km².

The main area of Tripoli is divided into several communities. These include Agios Vasileios, Agios Konstantinos, Evandro, Makri, Merkovouni, Pallantio, Pelagos, Perthori, Skopi, Thanas, and Tripoli itself.

Education

Tripoli has the main campus of the University of the Peloponnese, which opened in 2000.

At this campus, you will find the School of Economy, Management, and Informatics. This school has the Department of Economics and the Department of Informatics and Telecommunications.

Transportation

Tripoli is an important place for travel in the middle of the Peloponnese. It is near cities like Corinth, Pyrgos, Patras, Kalamata, and Sparti.

You can get to Tripoli from Athens and other parts of Greece using the A7 toll motorway. There is also a shorter road called the EO7 national road and other roads from Pyrgos and Sparta. Trains run from Corinth to Kalamata, but they have stopped and started again several times.

Military

Tripoli has two large training schools for soldiers in Greece. One is run by the army and the other by the air force. These schools help new soldiers learn their jobs.

Sports

Tripoli has three sports clubs that play in the top leagues of Greek football and basketball.

In popular culture

The old siege of Tripolitsa is remembered in a famous folk song called "Forty lads from Livadeia."

Historical population

Notable people

• Theodoros Kolokotronis (1770 – 1843), a general and leader in the Greek War of Independence
• Epameinontas Deligeorgis (1829–1879), Prime Minister of Greece
• Nikos Floros, a sculptor
• Konstantinos Georgakopoulos (1890–1978), a lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of Greece
• Kostas Karyotakis (1896–1928), a poet
• Ioannis Kossos, a sculptor
• Yiannis Kouros (1956), an ultramarathon runner
• Konstantinos Manetas (1879–1960), a general and politician
• Theodoros Manetas (1881–1947), a general and politician
• Alexandros Papanastasiou (1876–1936), a politician and sociologist, Prime Minister of Greece
• Dr. Giorgos Peponis, a medical practitioner, sports administrator and former captain of the Australian Rugby League team, born in the city in 1953
• Petros Tatoulis (1953), a politician
• Semni Karouzou (1897–1994), an archaeologist and curator

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Greece

Twin towns — sister cities

Tripoli, Greece has friendly connections with:

• Peine, Germany
• Arcadia, California, United States