"City Overview" a Athens Travel Page by shiran_d

Athens (Athina) is named after Athena – the goddess of wisdom – who, according to legend, won the city after defeating Poseidon in a duel. The goddess’ victory was celebrated by the construction of a temple on the Acropolis, the site of the city’s earliest settlement in Attica.

According to Greek mythology, Poseidon and Athena compete to become protectors and deities of the city. They challenge each other and the prize for the winner was the city of Athens. According to the myth, an olive tree sprung from the ground at the touch of Athena's spear. Whilst Poseidon summoned forth a seawater spring. Consequently, the olive tree won over the seawater spring!
The earliest settlement, dating from before 3000 BC, was situated on the summit of the Acropolis, protected on all sides except the west by its steep slopes. Named for the city's patron goddess, Athena, the ancient city developed mainly to the north of this hill, around the Agora, or marketplace. Parallel walls, called the Long Walls, made a protected thoroughfare between the city and its port of Piraeus. The most glorious period in the city's history was the 5th century BC, when it was the cultural and artistic center of the classical world. Although overshadowed by the rise of Rome, it remained a city of social and intellectual importance during the Roman Empire. St. Paul visited Athens, and the Emperor Hadrian lavished money on its public buildings.

Thereafter the city declined in importance. It was subject to attack by Slavs and was reduced to a petty provincial town in the Byzantine Empire. In 1204, Athens was occupied by the Crusaders and remained under Western rule until its capture by the Turks in 1456. Greece gained independence from the Turks in the war of 1821-32, and in 1833, Athens became the capital of Greece.