ETYM Greek agora.
1. A place of assembly for the people in ancient Greece; SYN. forum, public square.
2. The marketplace in ancient Greece.
In an ancient Greek town, the public meeting place and market, equivalent to the Roman forum. The limits were marked with boundary stones, and trade there was regulated. The Agora at Athens contained an altar to the twelve Olympian gods, sanctuaries of Zeus, Apollo, and Hephaestus, the mint, administrative offices of state, fountain houses, shops, and covered arcades (stoas).
The ceremonial Panathenaic Way, on which sacred processions and festival races were held, ran south through the agora to the acropolis.

Suffering from agoraphobia; abnormally afraid of open or public places.

A morbid fear of open spaces (as fear of being caught alone in some public place).
Morbid fear of open spaces. Phobia involving fear of open spaces and public places. The anxiety produced can be so severe that some sufferers are unable to leave their homes for many years.
Agoraphobia affects 1 person in 20 at some stage in their lives. The most common time of onset is between the ages of 18 and 28.