Piraeus, city, central Greece, in Attikí (Attica) Department, on the Gulf of Saronikós, near Athens. It is a major port and industrial center of Greece. The city has shipyards, flour mills, and factories in which agricultural equipment, textiles, rugs, glass, and chemicals are produced. It also has a school of industrial studies (1938). Piraeus (Pireás) was laid out about 450 BC, at which time it already served Athens as a port. In 86 BC, it was totally destroyed by the Romans, and it resumed importance only after Greece became independent in the 19th century. In 1834 the site was chosen as the port for modern Athens. Population (1991) 182,671.
