Athens, Georgia

Athens, Georgia
Consolidated city–county
Athens City Hall
Seal
Nickname:  "The Classic City"
Location of Athens in Clarke County (left) and of Clarke County in Georgia (right)
Athens, Georgia Location in Georgia Show map of Georgia Athens, Georgia Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 33°57′N 83°23′W / 33.950°N 83.383°W / 33.950; -83.383
Country	United States
State	Georgia
County	Clarke
Settled	1801 (1801)
As Town	December 1806 (1806-12)
As City	August 24, 1872 (1872-08-24)
Named for	Athens, Greece
Government
• Mayor	Kelly Girtz[1]
Area [2]
• Consolidated city–county	118.10 sq mi (305.87 km2)
• Land	116.33 sq mi (301.29 km2)
• Water	1.77 sq mi (4.58 km2)
Elevation	636 ft (194 m)
Population  (2020)[3]
• Consolidated city–county	127,315
• Rank	218th in the United States 6th in Georgia
• Density	1,094.43/sq mi (422.57/km2)
• Metro [4]	215,415 (212th)
Demonym	Athenian
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP code	30601-30609, 30612
Area code	706
FIPS code	13-03440[5]
Website	athensclarkecounty.com

Athens is a consolidated city-county and college town in the U.S. state of Georgia. Downtown Athens lies about 70 miles (110 km) northeast of downtown Atlanta.^[6] The University of Georgia, the state's flagship public university and an R1 research institution, is in Athens and contributed to its initial growth. In 1991, after a vote the preceding year, the original City of Athens abandoned its charter to form a unified government with Clarke County, referred to jointly as Athens–Clarke County where it is the county seat.^[7]

As of 2020, the U.S. Census Bureau's population of the consolidated city-county (all of Clarke County except Winterville and a portion of Bogart) was 127,315.^[3] Athens is the sixth-most populous city in Georgia, and the principal city of the Athens metropolitan area,^[8] which had a 2020 population of 215,415, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.^[4] Metropolitan Athens is a component of the larger Atlanta–Athens–Clarke County–Sandy Springs Combined Statistical Area.^[9]

The city is dominated by a pervasive college town culture and music scene centered in downtown Athens, next to the University of Georgia's North Campus.^[10] Major music acts associated with Athens include numerous alternative rock bands such as R.E.M., the B-52's, Widespread Panic, Drive-By Truckers, of Montreal, Neutral Milk Hotel, and Harvey Milk. The city is also known as a recording site for such groups as the Atlanta-based Indigo Girls. The 2020 book Cool Town: How Athens, Georgia, Launched Alternative Music and Changed American Culture describes Athens as the model of the indie culture of the 1980s.^[11]