from
Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
Thessalonica
a large and populous city on the Thermaic bay. It was the
capital of one of the four Roman districts of Macedonia, and was
ruled by a praetor. It was named after Thessalonica, the wife of
Cassander, who built the city. She was so called by her father,
Philip, because he first heard of her birth on the day of his
gaining a victory over the Thessalians. On his second missionary
journey, Paul preached in the synagogue here, the chief
synagogue of the Jews in that part of Macedonia, and laid the
foundations of a church (Acts 17:1-4; 1 Thes. 1:9). The violence
of the Jews drove him from the city, when he fled to Berea (Acts
17:5-10). The "rulers of the city" before whom the Jews "drew
Jason," with whom Paul and Silas lodged, are in the original
called politarchai, an unusual word, which was found, however,
inscribed on an arch in Thessalonica. This discovery confirms
the accuracy of the historian. Paul visited the church here on a
subsequent occasion (20:1-3). This city long retained its
importance. It is the most important town of European Turkey,
under the name of Saloniki, with a mixed population of about
85,000.