Marathon
Μαραθώνας
The town of Marathon
The town of Marathon
Marathon is located in Greece
Marathon
Marathon
Location within the region
Coordinates: 38°9′N 23°57′E / 38.150°N 23.950°E / 38.150; 23.950
CountryGreece
Administrative regionAttica
Regional unitEast Attica
Government
 • MayorStergios Tsirkas
Area
 • Municipality222.75 km2 (86.00 sq mi)
 • Municipal unit97.06 km2 (37.48 sq mi)
Elevation
28 m (92 ft)
Lowest elevation
0 m (0 ft)
Population
 (2011)[1]
 • Municipality
33,423
 • Municipality density150/km2 (390/sq mi)
 • Municipal unit
12,849
 • Municipal unit density130/km2 (340/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal code
190 07
Area code(s)22940
Vehicle registrationZ
Websitewww.marathon.gr

Marathon (Demotic Greek: Μαραθώνας, Marathónas; Attic/Katharevousa: Μαραθών, Marathṓn) is a town in Greece and the site of the Battle of Marathon in 490 BCE, in which the heavily outnumbered Athenian army defeated the Persians. Legend has it that Pheidippides, a Greek herald at the battle, was sent running from Marathon to Athens to announce the victory, which is how the marathon running race was conceived in modern times.[n 1] Today it is part of East Attica regional unit, in the outskirts of Athens and a popular resort town and center of agriculture.

History

Ruins of a Frankish tower near Marathon

The name "Marathon" (Μαραθών) comes from the herb fennel, called márathon (μάραθον) or márathos (μάραθος) in Ancient Greek,[2][n 2] so Marathon literally means "a place full of fennel".[4] It is believed that the town was originally named so because of an abundance of fennel plants in the area.

In ancient times, Marathon (Ancient Greek: Μαραθών) occupied a small plain in the northeast of ancient Attica, which contained four places, Marathon, Probalinthus, Tricorythus, and Oenoe, which originally formed the Tetrapolis, one of the 12 districts into which Attica was divided before the time of Theseus. Here Xuthus, who married the daughter of Erechtheus, is said to have reigned; and here the Heracleidae took refuge when driven out of Peloponnesus, and defeated Eurystheus.[5][6] The Marathonii claimed to be the first people in Greece who paid divine honours to Heracles, who possessed a sanctuary in the plain.[7] Marathon is also celebrated in the legends of Theseus, who conquered the ferocious bull, which used to devastate the plain.[8][9] Marathon is mentioned in Homer's Odyssey in a way that implies that it was then a place of importance.[10] In mythology, its name was derived from an eponymous hero Marathon, who is described by Pausanias as a son of Epopeus, king of Sicyon, who fled into Attica in consequence of the cruelty of his father[11] Plutarch calls him an Arcadian, who accompanied the Dioscuri in their expedition into Attica, and voluntarily devoted himself to death before the battle.[12]

After Theseus united the 12 independent districts of Attica into one state, the name of Tetrapolis gradually fell into disuse; and the four places of which it consisted became Attic demi, Marathon, Tricorythus, and Oenoë belonging to the tribe Aeantis, and Probalinthus to the tribe Pandionis; but Marathon was so superior to the other three, that its name was applied to the whole district down to the latest times. Hence Lucian speaks of "the parts of Marathon about Oenoë".[13]

Few places have obtained such celebrity in the history of the world as Marathon, on account of the victory which the Athenians here gained over the Persians in 490 BCE (Battle of Marathon). After Miltiades (the general of the Greek forces) defeated Darius' Persian forces, the Persians decided to sail from Marathon to Athens in order to sack the unprotected city. Miltiades ordered all his hoplite forces to march "double time" back to Athens, so that by the time Darius' troops arrived they saw the same Greek force waiting for them.

Although the name Marathon had a positive resonance in Europe in the nineteenth century, for some time that was sullied by the Dilessi murders, which happened nearby in 1870.

In the 19th century and beginning of twentieth century the village was inhabited by an Arvanite population.[14][15]

Plain of Marathon
View of the Lake Marathon

The sophist and magnate Herodes Atticus was born in Marathon. In 1926, the American company ULEN began construction on the Marathon Dam in a valley above Marathon, in order to ensure water supply for Athens. It was completed in 1929. About 10 km2 of forested land were flooded to form Lake Marathon.

Marathon battle memorial.

The beach of Schinias is located southeast of the town. The beach is popular as a spot for windsurfing and the Olympic Rowing Center used for the 2004 Summer Olympics is also located there. At the 1896 and 2004 Summer Olympics, Marathon was the starting point of the marathon races (for both women and men in 2004).[16][17] The area is susceptible to flash flooding, because of forest fires having denuded parts of the eastern slopes of Mount Penteli especially in 2006.

Municipality

The municipality Marathon was formed at the 2011 local government reform by the merger of the following 4 former municipalities, that became municipal units:[18]

The municipality has an area of 222.747 km2, the municipal unit 97.062 km2.[19]

Population

YearTownMunicipal unitMunicipality
19814,841--
19915,45312,979-
20014,3998,882-
20117,17012,84933,423

The other settlements in the municipal unit are Agios Panteleimonas (pop. 1,591), Kato Souli (2,142), Vranas (1,082), Avra (191), Vothon (177), Ano Souli (232), and Schinias (264).

Points of interest

The Soros, a burial mound (Marathon tumuli) to the fallen of the Battle of Marathon
  • The Soros, a tumulus (Greek Τύμβος, tymbos, tomb), or burial mound, erected to the 192 Athenian fallen at the Battle of Marathon, is a feature of the coastal plain, now marked by a marble memorial stele and surrounded by a small park.[20]
  • Kato Souli Naval Transmission Facility with its 250-metre (820 ft) tall radio mast, the tallest structure in Greece.

Sister cities

See also

Notes and references

Notes
  1. ↑ In modern Greek the sports event is called Marathonios Dromos (Μαραθώνιος Δρόμος) or simply Marathonios.
  2. ↑ The Greek word for fennel is first attested in Mycenaean Linear B on tablets MY Ge 602, MY Ge 606 + fr., MY Ge 605 + 607 + frr. + 60Sa + 605b - as 𐀔𐀨𐀶𐀺, ma-ra-tu-wo.[3]
References
  1. ↑ "Απογραφή Πληθυσμού - Κατοικιών 2011. ΜΟΝΙΜΟΣ Πληθυσμός" (in Greek). Hellenic Statistical Authority.
  2. ↑ μάραθον. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project.
  3. ↑ "The Linear B word ma-ra-tu-wo". Palaeolexicon. Word study tool of Ancient languages. Raymoure, K.A. "ma-ra-tu-wo". Minoan Linear A & Mycenaean Linear B. Deaditerranean. Archived from the original on 2019-07-05. Retrieved 2014-03-19. "MY 602 Ge (57)". "MY 606 Ge + fr. (57)". "MY 605 Ge + 607 + fr. [+] 60Sa + fr. [+] 605b + frr. (57)". DĀMOS: Database of Mycenaean at Oslo. University of Oslo.
  4. ↑ Μαραθών in Liddell and Scott.
  5. ↑ Strabo. Geographica. Vol. viii. p.383. Page numbers refer to those of Isaac Casaubon's edition.
  6. ↑ Stephanus of Byzantium. Ethnica. Vol. sub voce Τετμάπολις.
  7. ↑ Pausanias (1918). "15.3". Description of Greece. Vol. 1. Translated by W. H. S. Jones; H. A. Ormerod. Cambridge, Massachusetts; London: Harvard University Press; William Heinemann – via Perseus Digital Library., 1.35.4.
  8. ↑ Plutarch, Thes. 14; Strabo. Geographica. Vol. ix. p. 399. Page numbers refer to those of Isaac Casaubon's edition.
  9. ↑ Pausanias (1918). "27.10". Description of Greece. Vol. 1. Translated by W. H. S. Jones; H. A. Ormerod. Cambridge, Massachusetts; London: Harvard University Press; William Heinemann – via Perseus Digital Library.
  10. ↑ Homer. Odyssey. Vol. 7.80.
  11. ↑ Pausanias (1918). "1.1". Description of Greece. Vol. 2. Translated by W. H. S. Jones; H. A. Ormerod. Cambridge, Massachusetts; London: Harvard University Press; William Heinemann – via Perseus Digital Library., 2.6.5, 1.15.3, 1.32.4
  12. ↑ Plutarch, Thes. 32.
  13. ↑ Μαραθῶνος τὰ περὶ τὴν Οἰνόην, Icaro-Menip. 18.
  14. ↑ Chase, Thomas, Hellas, her monuments and scenery, Sever and Francis, Cambridge, pp. 102–103
  15. ↑ Hichens, The Near East, Dalmatia, Greece and Constantiople, Hodder and Stoght, London, 1913, p. 116.
  16. ↑ Wallechinsky, David and Jaime Loucky (2008). "Track & Field (Men): Marathon". In The Complete Book of the Olympics: 2008 Edition. London: Aurum Press Limited. p. 133.
  17. ↑ 2004 Summer Olympics official report. Archived 2008-08-19 at the Wayback Machine Volume 2. p. 242.
  18. ↑ "ΦΕΚ B 1292/2010, Kallikratis reform municipalities" (in Greek). Government Gazette.
  19. ↑ "Population & housing census 2001 (incl. area and average elevation)" (PDF) (in Greek). National Statistical Service of Greece. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-21.
  20. ↑ Aerial photograph in John Boardman, Jasper Griffin and Oswyn Murray, Greece and the Hellenistic World (Oxford History of the Classical World) 1988, vol. I p. 34.

Attribution

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Smith, William, ed. (1854–1857). "Marathon". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography. London: John Murray.

Bibliography

  • Δεκουλάκου, Ιφιγένεια (2021). "Ανασκαφή στο ιερό των Αιγυπτίων θεών τον Μαραθώνα". Πρακτικά Αρχαιολογικής Εταιρείας. 176: 19–32.
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