Thiva was a powerful city-state in 400 BC during Greece’s golden age, occupying a strategic position between northern Greece and the Peloponnese. The tragic fate of its royal dynasty, centered on the myth of Oedipus, rivaled that of ancient Mycenae.

Present-day Thiva has few vestiges of its past glory, except those that can be viewed within the Archaeological Museum. On the acropolis of the ancient city stands the present commercial and agricultural center of Thiva. Situated on a low ridge dividing the surrounding plain, the modern city is the seat of the Greek Orthodox bishop of Thiva and Levadia.

It has abundant springs of water, the most famous one Dirce, and the fertile plain in the vicinity is well irrigated. Today, Thiva is a bustling market town, known for its many products and wares. Until the 1980s it had a flourishing agrarian production with some industrial complexes.

Tourism in the area is based mainly in Thiva and the surrounding villages, where a lot of places of interest related to antiquity exist, such as the Plataea battlefield where the homonymous battle took place in 479 BC.