Týrnavos

Tyrnavos stands on the Titarisios River, a tributary of the Pineios in Thessaly. Its name comes from a Slavic word for a thorny place, and the settlement began as a pastoral community. After conquering Thessaly in 1423, the Ottoman commander Turahan Bey gathered inhabitants into a new town here, granted it privileges and endowed buildings. By 1770 Tyrnavos had sixteen churches and six mosques, reflecting the communities that lived alongside one another in the town.