TRIKALA

also spelled Trkkala agricultural and grazing centre of Thessaly (Thessala), Greece, and capital of the noms (department) of Trkala. It commands the Mtsovon Pass leading westward across the Pindus Mountains and on the southwest the Gates of Trkala leading to rta. The Byzantine fortified acropolis may be the site of ancient Tricca, legendary abode of the healer god Asclepius; the sanctuary was believed to be the oldest in ancient Greece. Captured by the Normans in 1081, Trkala was mentioned a century later as a trading centre, and for centuries more it was the most important town of Thessaly. Under the Turks it was the seat of the pasha of Thessaly. In 1881 Turkey ceded it to Greece. It is the seat of the bishop of Trkki and Stagoi. The town deals in corn (maize), wheat, rice, and tobacco. Its population is swollen in winter by the annual migration of Vlach herdsmen from the hills. Pop. (1981) city, 40,857; noms, 134,207.