As is the case with the nearby municipalities, the area of Álimos is continuously inhabited from 3000 BC, according to findings from the Neolithic Age, the Mycenean Era, the Geometric and Classical years etc.
During the golden age of Athens (5th cen. BC), the area is known as the municipality of Alimoúntos, next to the municipalities of Aixoní (Glyfáda) and Fáliro. Its name, as today’s name of “Álimos”, derive from the ancient word “als” which means sea (Álimos in the sense of maritime, i.e. by the sea). Álimos is known today by another name, “Kalamáki”, which is thought to originate either from a very large reed area within the municipality or a characteristic 4-clone reed which sprouted on a central crossroad of the settlement.
In Álimos, around 460 BC., the great historian Thoukidídys was born, who even today after 25 centuries is being taught in the largest universities of the world.
According to findings from the archaic and the Byzantine Era, the centre of Alimoúntos municipality was the (today’s) hill of Agía Ánna, between Alímou Avenue and the old airport of Ellinikó. On the hill, remains of an ancient temple were found, where it is thought the renowned celebration “Thesmofória” was performed.
Thesmofória was a Greek religious celebration, performed throughout Greece. It was dedicated to goddess Dímitra (Ceres) and only women were allowed to participate who, for the duration of the feast, were compelled to abstain from any sexual activity. The leaders of the festival were two women, the Árchouses, who were chosen from the group of the rest of the women. During the Proeórtia (first stage of the celebration) there was an atmosphere of fun and joking among the women, whereas during the “Ánodo” (ascension), the women would march towards the temple with books of customs and laws on their head. The celebration also included “Mési” (Middle), where the women would sit near the statue of the goddess upon wicker twigs and eat only “sesamountes”, a sweet made from sesame seeds (like today’s pastel). At night there was a torchlight race and group dancing. On the last day of Thesmofória, called “Kalligéneia”, the fertility of the earth and the woman were celebrated and then ended with the “eupaedias” race, in which an award was given to the mother with the fairest child of that year.
During the 11 centuries of the Byzantine Empire, all the coast of Attikí (including Álimos) suffered from attacks and plundering from pirates. The few inhabitants of Álimos live by means of agriculture and stockbreeding. On the Turkish Rule, Álimos was a large estate belonging to two beys – neighbouring Brahámi owes its name to one of them, Ibrahim Hamza bey and the nearby area of Ellinikó was known then as “Hasani”, named after the second bey, Hasan.
Álimos as we know it today, started to form in the beginning of the 20th century. During the 2nd World War and the German occupation, due to its proximity with Ellinikó airport, many German officers had commandeered houses and villas of the area. The upside was that bombings of Álimos were scarce during the war, because of its use by the Germans. In 1960, the population grows more than double its size and the first grand constructions begin. Álimos marina was completed during the dictatorship (1967 – 1974).
