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Veria Βέροια
Settlement
Nightview of Veria from the Villa Vikela Hill
Country	Greece
Administrative region	Central Macedonia
Government
• Mayor	Charoula Ousoultzoglou-Georgiadi
Area
• Total	359.146 km (138.667 sq mi)
Elevation	128 m (420 ft)
Population
• Total	47,411
• Density	130/km (340/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal code	591 00
Area code(s)	23310
Vehicle registration	ΗΜ
Website	www.veria.gr

Veria (officially transliterated as Veroia, Greek Βέροια or Βέρροια, also Φέροια in Classical Greek - Βέροια being the Ancient Macedonian equivalent) is a city built at the foot of Vermion Mountains in Greece. It is a commercial center of Macedonia, the capital of the prefecture of Imathia, the province of Imathia and the seat of a bishop of the Greek Orthodox Church. Veria is on the site of the ancient city of Beroea (called Berea in some translations of the Bible), which was prominent from the 4th century BC and part of the Kingdom of Macedon. Part of Rome from 168 BC, both Paul and Silas preached there in AD 54 or 55 (see Bereans). Diocletian made the large and populous city one of two capitals of the Roman Province of Macedonia, and it was one of the earliest cities to become the seat of a bishop. Invaded by Bulgars, it was conquered by the Ottomans in 1361, who named it Kara Ferye. It was incorporated into the Greek state in 1912.

Veria since the 1980s is bypassed and is linked by the superhighway linking to GR-1. GR-4/Via Egnatia runs through Veria and also the road to Edessa. It is located NE of Kozani, S of Edessa, SW of Thessaloniki, NW of Katerini, WNW of Athens and N of Larissa.

History

The city of Veria is first mentioned in the writings of Thucydides in 432 BC, although there is evidence that the city was populated as early as 1000 BC.

The city got its name from its mythical creator Ferona or Verona OR from the daughter of the king of Veria (Verita) who is the thought to be the son of Macedon. The first inhabitants are known as the Vriges, who were uprooted by the Macedonians.

The Macedonians made it their second most important city after Pella. During the Roman empire, Veria became a place of worship for the Romans. Within the city there was a Jewish settlement where the Apostle Paul preached after leaving Thessalonica (Acts 17:1-15). The Apostolic Constitutions (7.46) records the first bishop of Berorea as Onesimus, who may be the freedman of Philemon.

Under the Byzantine Empire the city continued to grow and prosper until it was pillaged in the 9th century by the Bulgarians. During the Crusades it was conquered by the Normans (1185) and the Franks (1204) and in the middle of the 13th century by the Serbs. In Macedonian Slavic and Bulgarian it is called Бер, Ber. In 1436, it was besieged and captured by the Ottoman Empire and remained in their control until 1912.

Culture

Veria hosts one of the largest and most complete public libraries in Greece. Originally a small single-room library with limited funds and material, it expanded into a four-story building offering multimedia, as well as special and rare editions. Veria's public library collaborates with many international organizations and hosts several cultural events. Every summer (August 15 to September 15) the "Imathiotika" festivities take place with a rich cultural program deriving mainly from Veria's tradition. The site of Elia offers great natural beauty and with an amazing view of the Imathia plain. Neighboring Seli is a well-known ski resort and a few kilometers outside the city is the Aliakmonas river dam.

Historical population

Sports

Veria is home to many sports clubs.The most famous is Veria FC which competes in Beta Ethniki. Veria also has two basketball teams. AOK Veria and Filippos Veria which compete in a local and third national division respectively. Most promiment, though, is the handball team of Filippos Veria, competing in the first national division and which has won many championships (both national and international) throughout the years.

Education

The School of Urban-Regional Planning and Development Engineering of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki is located in Veria since 2004.

Climate

Typically, Veria experiences cold wet winters and hot summers.

Famous People

• Sedat Alp, archaeologist
• Yiannis Arabatzis, footballer
• Pantelis Kafes, footballer
• Konstantinos Kallokratos, teacher and poet
• Pavlos Kontogiannidis, actor, singer
• Ioannis Kottounios, writer and humanist
• Dimitris Mavropoulos, actor and theatrical director
• Patriarch Metrophanes of Alexandria, Patriarch of Alexandria
• Patriarch Nephon I of Constantinople, Patriarch of Constantinople
• Panagiotis Tsalouchidis, former football player
• Kostas Tsartsaris, basketball player

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Veria is twinned with:

Country	City
Bulgaria	Kazanlak

Gallery

• Panoramic view of Veria
• Mosaic of St.Paul Mosaic of St.Paul
• Snow in Veria in December 2007

See also

• List of communities of Imathia

References

1. De Facto Population of Greece Population and Housing Census of March 18th, 2001 (PDF 39 MB). National Statistical Service of Greece. 2003.
2. veria.gr, Veria:Its history (greek), accessed June 1, 2008.
3. Merry, Bruce (2004). Encyclopedia of modern Greek literature. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 239. ISBN 0313308136. KOTOUNIOS, IOANNIS (1577-1658) Born at Beroia (Macedonia)
4. (greek) hellasportal.gr,Apostle Paul preach in Veria, accessed June 1, 2008.

External links

• Mapquest - Veria, street map not yet available
• Coordinates: 40°31′14″N 22°12′8″E / 40.52056°N 22.20222°E / 40.52056; 22.20222

Template:Imathia

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• Cities, towns and villages in the Imathia Prefecture
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• Imathia
• Jewish history
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