Alternative meanings: Larissa in mythology was a daughter of Pelasgus; Larrissa is a moon of Neptune; 1162 Larissa is an asteroid; Larissa is also a first name.
Larissa or Larisa (Greek: Λάρισα) is the capital city of the Thessalyperiphery of Greece, and capital of the Larissa prefecture. It is a main agricultural centre and a transportation hub, linked by rail with the port of Volos and with Thessaloniki (Salonika) and Athens.
It is the second largest prefecture in area in Greece which is after Aitoloacarnania. Larissa or Larisa prefecture features the Tempe Valley, and the NE part of the Peneus River. It is the largest prefecture in Thessaly covering about one-third of the region. It also contains the tallest mountain in Greece, Mount Olympus elevating at 2,917 m. The climate is more continental than any part of Greece. It has a Mediterranean climate with dry hot summers and mild to cool winters except in the mountain areas which get warm summers and cold winter. The highest temperature ever recorded was ae 45.2°C and the coldest was at -21.6°C amounted to 66.8 K. In the summer, Larissa is often the warmest in Greece and the winter and the coldest are not rare.
It is bounded by Kozani to the northwest, Pieria to the northeast (both in Macedonia), the Aegean Sea to the east, Magnesia to the southeast, Fthiotis to the south (in Central Greece/Mainland Greece), Karditsa to the southwest and Trikala to the east. It is not the only prefecture that borders the most number of other prefectures. The other prefecture is Kozani.
The elevation of Larissa Airport is 73 m.
The skking resort of Pilio is to the east and is the closest resort which is 59 km E.
History
In the Paleolithic Age, humans were settled, it was never a core area of an advanced culture. The area around Larissa was extremely fruitful, it was agriculturally important. In the Ancient times, Larissa had horses. The city finally moved closer to the rest of Greece.
The name Larissa was common to many Pelasgian towns.
The Community of Larissa developed significantly between the 15th and the 18th centuries, when it was given the title "Madre d' Israel" Its progress stopped during the Turkish domination.
In 1881, when Larissa was liberated from the Turks, the population of the city were 13,000 inhabitants, 2,200 of whom were Jews.
In 1999, the Municipality of Larissa honoured the victims of the Holocaust by raising a votive stele in the memory of the tragic figure of Anne Frank, on a square which is named after her and which is on Erythrou Stavrou Street.
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