From The Telegraph – Which are the oldest cities in Europe ?
1. Argos, Greece
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 5,000 BC
Árgos, in the north-eastern Peloponnese, 12km from Nafplio, has been inhabited, at least as a village, for some 7,000 years, and was a significant centre during the Mycenaean period (1600-1100 BC), although became most prominent during the reign of the tyrant king Pheidon, in the 7th century BC.
2. Athens, Greece
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 5,000 BC
The Acropolis has been inhabited since at least 5,000 BC, and Greek legend says that the city of Athens won its name after Athena planted an olive seed in a contest with Poseidon
3. Plovdiv, Bulgaria
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 4,000 BC
The remains of a Neolithic settlement at Plovdiv suggest a history spanning 6,000 years for a city dominated by the Thracians, then the Macedonian Greeks, and then the Romans, who built it up into a significant conurbation.
4. Chania, Crete
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 4,000 BC
Excavations of the ancient city of Kydonia are taking place on Kastelli hill above the harbour at Chania on Crete. The ruins are thought to date from the Minoan period (2,100-1,100BC) and Kydonia probably came into its own around then, but traces of inhabitation at the site date back to the Neolithic period. Homer said that the city was one of the most important of the time, and frescoes, pottery and coins have all been unearthed on the site, which is open to view today. It is thought that the Saracens destroyed Kyronia in around 828, and the Venetians later built on it the settlement that would become modern-day Chania. The city is arguably Crete’s most attractive, with its walls, beaches, museums, boats and all important tavernas creating an amiable atmosphere.
5. Patra, Greece
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? c. 3,500 BC
Excavations show that the area that is now the city of Patra has been inhabited since the Early Helladic period in the middle of the 3rd millennium BC. Like many other cities in Greece, it was later occupied by the Turks, while it was then set on fire by Muslim Albanians in 1779.
6. Trikala, Greece
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 3,000 BC
The ancient city of Trikka, founded around the 3rd millennium BC, lies underneath the modern conurbation, and was named after the nymph Trikke, daughter of Penaeus.
7. Thebes, Greece
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 3,000 BC
Evidence of buildings with rock-cut foundations, drains and mud brick walls shows Thebes has been inhabited for some 5,000 years, although the placement of the modern town on top of the ruins has made piecing together the history of the ancient settlement difficult.
8. Kutaisi, Georgia
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 2nd millennium BC
Kutaisi, a city in western Georgia, was the capital of the Kingdom of Colchis, an ancient region of the southern Caucasus, from as early as the second millennium BC.
9. Larnaca, Cyprus
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 1,300 BC
Modern-day Larnaca sits on the site of ancient Kition/Citium, which was colonised by both the Greek Achaeans and the Phoenicians, who came from what is now Lebanon, and then belonged to the Persian Empire.
10. Chalcis, Greece
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? At least 1,300 BC
Homer refers to Chalcis in the Iliad, written in about 762 BC, meaning that the city is at least 2,800 years old.
11. Lisbon, Portugal
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 1,200 BC
Permanent settlements in and around modern-day Lisbon date back to around 2,500 BC, but details about inhabitants are sketchy. A Phoenecian population has certainly lived there since 1,200BC, proven by archaeological excavations near the Castelo de São Jorge and the Cathedral.
12. Mytilene, Lesbos, Greece
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 1,100 BC
This ancient city is now the capital of the Aegean island of Lesbos, not far from the Turkish coast. Aristotle lived on the islands for two years, 337-335 BC – although whether he inhabited what we know as the city today is unclear.
13. Cádiz, Spain
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 1,100 BC
Phoenicians from Tyre in Lebanon founded Cádiz in 1,100 BC, and was known to them as “Gadir”. They used it as a base for amber trading, and later the Romans took it as a naval outpost.
14. Mtskheta, Georgia
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 1,000 BC
The placement of Georgia in Europe is perhaps contentious, but given the widely-accepted definition of the continent’s border beyond the whole Caucasus region, it is fair to consider the country as European.
15. Zadar, Croatia
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 900 BC
The Illyrian Liburnian tribe – hailing from the Balkan peninsula – inhabited Zadar from as early as the 9th century BC, and the city then fell under Roman rule, until the Empire’s split saw it become part of Byzantium
16. Yerevan, Armenia
When did the earliest inhabitants settle? 782 BC
Some 30 years before Rome was founded, the city that is now Armenia’s capital was serving as an important stop along the caravan routes from Asia to Europe
