Alistrati
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Alistrati Αλιστράτη |
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 Alistrati
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Location within the regional unit
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| Coordinates: 41°01.552′N 24°00.642′E / 41.025867°N 24.010700°ECoordinates: 41°01.552′N 24°00.642′E / 41.025867°N 24.010700°E | |
| Country | Greece |
| Administrative region | Central Macedonia |
| Regional unit | Serres |
| Municipality | Nea Zichni |
| • Municipal unit | 129.9 km2 (50.2 sq mi) |
| Population (2011) | |
| • Municipal unit | 3,088 |
| • Municipal unit density | 24/km2 (62/sq mi) |
| Community | |
| • Population | 2,127 (2011) |
| Time zone | EET (UTC+2) |
| • Summer (DST) | EEST (UTC+3) |
| Vehicle registration | ΕΡ |
Alistrati (Greek: Αλιστράτη) is a town and a former municipality in the Serres regional unit, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Nea Zichni, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit has an area of 129.878 km2. Population: town 2,127; municipal unit 3,088 (2011). Alistrati is situated at the borders of the regional unit of Drama and regional unit of Serres. It's 20 km away from Drama and 45 km away from Serres. Alistrati was built on hills of the mountain range Menikio on an altitude of 325 m. You can realize it from the rising and sloping streets of the town. Remarkable traditional community, the biggest of the area Zichni - Fillida. It's been up-graded to municipality of Alistrati with the "Kapodistrias" law and included the villages: Agioxori, Skopia, Mandili, Lefkothea and R.S of Aggista. Since 2010, Alistrati is part of Nea Zichni municipality.
In the area of the town a plundered ancient Macedonian tomb has been found, which is undamaged even today. Alistrati is mentioned in 1460 in a manuscript of the holy Convent of Ikosifissa Pageo as a small town. A traveler from Turkey mentions it with the name Al-Strati in about 1650. There are many views about the etymology of the word "Alistrati". It is said that it comes from the Archistratigos (Michael - Gabriel).
Other people believe that the first name was "Alistrate" which means among streets. Some people give her the meaning of the street towards the sea, through Fillipi. According to the tradition, the name of the town, Alistrati, comes from "Agios Eustratios", the name of a saint, because it is believed that Alistrati was built on the ruins of a church devoted to Agios Eustratios. Alistrati was built by the people of the ancient town Alektrioupolis, situated 2 km southwest from Alistrati, where you can find the Monastery of Agia Kyriaki nowadays. That town lived until the mids of the 19th century as a small settling near the big number of roosters, which crew and made their presence audible in the area around. When the town was struck by an epidemic at the beginning of the Turkish occupation, most of the inhabitants moved to the today's Alistrati place.
At the beginning Alistrati was a small village, but it soon changed into a small town because of its geographical position and the merchandise, as well. It enjoyed great prosperity during the Turkish domination as it was a tobacco's industry centre and the religious and cultural centre of East Macedonia. After the revolution of 1821 against Turkish occupation, it was a transport, trade station between the area Serres-Drama-Kavala and that was now a remarkable business and trade activity had developed. It had also developed into an intellectual and religious center especially after it had been the seat of the See of Fillipi-Drama and Zichni (one can see the graves of three plelates in the yard of the Ag. Athanasios church) and after the establishing of the famous for that time Greek Central School of Alistrati where pupils from all the area of eastern Macedonia came to study.
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Wikipedia