Edessa, Greece in the context of "Pella (regional unit)"

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⭐ Core Definition: Edessa, Greece

Edessa (Greek: Έδεσσα, pronounced [ˈeðesa]), known until 1923 as Vodena (Greek: Βοδενά), is a city in northern Greece and the capital of the Pella regional unit, in the Central Macedonia region of Greece. It was also the capital of the defunct province of the same name.

Edessa holds a special place in the history of the Greek world as, according to some ancient sources, it was here that Caranus established the first capital of ancient Macedon. Later, under the Byzantine Empire, Edessa benefited from its strategic location, controlling the Via Egnatia as it enters the Pindus mountains, and became a center of medieval Greek culture, famed for its strong walls and fortifications. In the modern period, Edessa was one of Greece's industrial centers until the middle of the 20th century, with many textile factories operating in the city and its immediate vicinity. Today however its economy mainly relies on services and tourism. Edessa hosts most of the administrative services of the Pella regional unit, as well as some departments of the Thessaloniki-based University of Macedonia.

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👉 Edessa, Greece in the context of Pella (regional unit)

Pella (Greek: Περιφερειακή ενότητα Πέλλας) is one of the regional units of Greece, in the geographic region of Macedonia. It is part of the Region of Central Macedonia. It is named after the ancient city of Pella, the capital of ancient Macedonia and the birthplace of Alexander the Great. The capital of Pella is Edessa with a population of 19,036 inhabitants according to the census of 2021, while the largest town is Giannitsa. Other towns include Aridaia, Skydra, Arnissa, Exaplatanos and Krya Vrysi.

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Edessa, Greece in the context of Aegae (Macedonia)

Aegae or Aigai (Ancient Greek: Αἰγαί) was the original capital of Macedon, the ancient kingdom of the Makedones in Emathia in northern Greece. The site is located on the foothills of the Pierian Mountains, between the modern towns of Vergina and Palatitsia, and overlooks the Central Macedonian Plain. The city was abandoned in the 3rd century and was rediscovered in the 19th.

Three major archaeological missions have been carried out at Aegae. The first was led by Léon Heuzey of the French School at Athens in the 1860s; Manolis Andronikos led excavations over a century later and made many important discoveries, including the tomb of Philip II and the Golden Larnax bearing the Vergina Sun; and Angeliki Kottaridi [el] led restoration efforts in the 2000s. Today it is the site of an archaeological site and two museums. Prior to the discoveries at Vergina, Edessa was thought to be the site of Aegae.

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Edessa, Greece in the context of Edessa

Edessa (/əˈdɛsə/; Ancient Greek: Ἔδεσσα, romanizedÉdessa) was an ancient city (polis) in Upper Mesopotamia, in what is now Urfa or Şanlıurfa, Turkey. It was founded during the Hellenistic period by Macedonian general and self proclaimed king Seleucus I Nicator (r. 305–281 BC), founder of the Seleucid Empire. He named it after an ancient Macedonian capital. The Greek name Ἔδεσσα (Édessa) means "tower in the water". It later became capital of the Kingdom of Osroene, and continued as capital of the Roman province of Osroene. In Late Antiquity, it became a prominent center of Christian learning and seat of the Catechetical School of Edessa. During the Crusades, it was the capital of the County of Edessa.

The city was situated on the banks of the Daysan River (Ancient Greek: Σκίρτος; Latin: Scirtus; Turkish: Kara Koyun), a tributary of the Khabur, and was defended by Şanlıurfa Castle, the high central citadel.

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Edessa, Greece in the context of Eordaea

Eordaea (also spelled Eordaia or Eordia, Greek: Ἐορδαία) was a geographical region of Upper Macedonia and later an administrative region of the kingdom of Macedon. Eordaea was located south of Lynkestis, west of Emathia, north of Elimiotis, and east of Orestis. It was incorporated into the Argead kingdom of Macedon earlier than the rest of Upper Macedonia.

Eordaea stretched in the basin of Eordaia, the current homonymous municipality in Greece, which is named after the ancient region, and also in the southern part of the municipality of Amyntaio and the western part of the municipality of Edessa.

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Edessa, Greece in the context of John Komnenos Doukas

John Komnenos Doukas (Greek: Ιωάννης Κομνηνός Δούκας, Iōannēs Komnēnos Doúkas), Latinized as Comnenus Ducas, was ruler of Thessalonica from 1237 until his death in 1244.

John was the eldest son of Theodore Komnenos Doukas and Maria Petraliphaina. In 1230 his father was captured together with his family in the Battle of Klokotnitsa by Ivan Asen II of Bulgaria. When his sister Irene married Ivan Asen II in 1237, John was released from captivity together with his now blind father Theodore and his younger brother Demetrios. Theodore and his sons made their way back to Thessalonica and incited a revolt against Theodore's brother Manuel Komnenos Doukas who had ruled the city since 1230. Since Theodore was blind, he installed his son John as ruler and retired to Vodena.

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Edessa, Greece in the context of Pozar Baths

Pozar thermal baths (Greek: Λουτρά Πόζαρ) are located 32 km north of Edessa and 13 km west of Aridaia in the region of Macedonia, Greece.

The baths are naturally heated at 37 °C (99 °F) and are a popular tourist attraction in the cooler months.

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Edessa, Greece in the context of Thessaloniki–Bitola railway

The railway from Thessaloniki to Bitola is a 219 kilometres (136 mi) long railway line, that connects the port city Thessaloniki in Greece with Bitola in the Republic of North Macedonia, via Veroia, Edessa, Amyntaio and Florina. The line was opened in 1894 under the name "Société du Chemin de Fer ottoman Salonique-Monastir", when the area was part of the Ottoman Empire. The section between the international border and Bitola is not used anymore, and as of 2025 passenger services are restricted to the section between Thessaloniki and Florina. Makedonski Železnici also operates a daily service from Žabeni to Bitola and onwards to Skopje. The easternmost section of the line, Platy–Thessaloniki, is part of the important connection towards Athens and Northern Greece.

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