The city's name derives from the Greek words "άργυρος" ("árgyros" meaning "silver") and "πόλη" ("poli" meaning "city"). The name's older form was "Argyroupolis". The first name of the settlement was "New Argyroupolis", given by the refugees from Gümüşhane.
It is unlikely that slaves in the third century BCE revolted in the Acropolis because of harsh working conditions.