Greece: Difference between revisions
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File:Hellenic Parliament from high above.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Hellenic Parliament]] in central [[Athens]].]] |
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{{Redirect|Hellas}} |
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{{Other uses}} |
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{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2011}} |
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{{Pp-protected|small=yes}} |
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{{Infobox Country |
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|native_name = Ελληνική Δημοκρατία<br />''Ellīnikī́ Dīmokratía'' |
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|conventional_long_name = Hellenic Republic |
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|common_name = Greece |
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|image_flag = Flag of Greece.svg |
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|image_coat = Coat of arms of Greece.svg |
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|symbol_type = National emblem |
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|image_coat_caption = National emblem |
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|image_map = Location Greece EU Europe.png |
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|map_caption = {{map_caption |location_color=dark green |region=[[Europe]] |region_color=dark grey |subregion=the [[European Union]] |subregion_color=green |legend=EU-Greece.svg}} |
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|national_anthem = <center>[[File:Greece national anthem.ogg]]</center><br />"{{polytonic|Ὕμνος εἰς τὴν Ἐλευθερίαν}}<br />''Ýmnos is tin Eleftherían''<br />[[Hymn to Liberty]]{{Smallsup|1}}" |
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|national_motto = [[Eleftheria i Thanatos]], (Greek: "Ελευθερία ή Θάνατος", ''"Freedom or Death"'') (traditional) |
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|official_languages = [[Modern Greek|Greek]] |
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|ethnic_groups = |
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|demonym = [[Greeks|Greek]] (Officially: [[Greeks|Hellenic]]) |
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|capital = [[Athens]] |
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|latd=38 |latm=00 |latNS=N |longd=23 |longm=43 |longEW=E |
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|largest_city = Athens |
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|government_type = [[Unitary state|Unitary]] [[parliamentary republic]] |
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|leader_title1 = [[President of Greece|President]] |
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|leader_name1 = [[Karolos Papoulias]] |
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|leader_title2 = [[Prime Minister of Greece|Prime Minister]] |
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|leader_name2 = [[George Papandreou (junior)|Giorgos Papandreou]] [[Hellenic Parliament|MP]] |
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|legislature = [[Hellenic Parliament|Parliament]] |
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|sovereignty_type = Modern statehood |
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|established_event1 = Independence from the [[Ottoman Empire]] |
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|established_date1 = 25 March 1821 (''Traditional'') |
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|established_event2 = Independence recognized |
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|established_date2 = 3 February 1830, in the [[London Protocol]] |
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|established_event3 = [[Kingdom of Greece]] |
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|established_date3 = 7 May 1832, in the [[London Conference of 1832|Convention of London]] |
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|established_event4 = [[Constitution of Greece|Current constitution]] |
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|established_date4 = 11 June 1975,<br />[[Constitutional history of Greece#The Third Hellenic Republic|Third Hellenic Republic]] |
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|accessionEUdate = 1 January 1981 |
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|EUseats = 24 |
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|area_rank = 96th |
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|area_magnitude = 1 E11 |
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|area_km2 = 131,990 |
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|area_sq_mi = 50,944 <!--Do not remove per [[WP:MOSNUM]]--> |
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|percent_water = 0.8669 |
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|population_estimate = 11,305,118<ref name="Eurostat">{{Cite web|url=http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/tgm/table.do?tab=table&language=en&pcode=tps00001&tableSelection=1&footnotes=yes&labeling=labels&plugin=1 |title=Total population |publisher=[[Eurostat]] |date=1 January 2010 |accessdate=8 January 2010}}</ref> |
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|population_estimate_rank = 74th |
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|population_estimate_year = 2010 |
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|population_census = 10,964,020<ref name="2001census">{{Cite web |publisher=National Statistical Service of Greece: Population census of 18 March 2001 |url=http://www.statistics.gr/gr_tables/S1101_SAP_09_TB_DC_01_01_Y.pdf |title=Πίνακας 1. Πληθυσμός κατά φύλο και ηλικία'' }}{{dead link|date=November 2010}}</ref> |
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|population_census_year = 2001 |
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|population_density_km2 = 85.3 |
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|population_density_sq_mi = 221.0 <!--Do not remove per [[WP:MOSNUM]]--> |
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|population_density_rank = 88th |
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| GDP_PPP =$318.082 billion<ref name="imf2">{{Cite web|url=http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2011/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2008&ey=2011&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=174&s=NGDPD%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPGDP%2CPPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=&pr.x=57&pr.y=16 |title=Greece|publisher=International Monetary Fund|accessdate=26 April 2011}}</ref> |
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|GDP_PPP_rank = |
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|GDP_PPP_year = 2010 |
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|GDP_PPP_per_capita = $28,433<ref name=imf2/> |
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|GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = |
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|GDP_nominal = $305.415 billion<ref name=imf2/> |
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|GDP_nominal_rank = |
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|GDP_nominal_year = 2010 |
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|GDP_nominal_per_capita = $27,301<ref name=imf2/> |
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|GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = |
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|HDI = {{increase}} 0.855<ref name="HDI">{{Cite web|url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2010_EN_Table1.pdf|title=Human Development Report 2010|year=2010|publisher=United Nations|accessdate=5 November 2010}}</ref>|HDI_rank = 22<sup>nd</sup> |
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|HDI_year = 2010 |
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|HDI_category = <span style="color:#090;">very high</span> |
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|Gini = 33<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2172.html|title=Distribution of family income – Gini index|publisher=CIA – The World Factbook|accessdate=9 July 2010}}</ref> |
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|Gini_year = 2005 |
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|currency = [[Euro]] ([[Euro sign|€]])<sup>2</sup> |
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|currency_code = EUR |
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|country_code = |
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|time_zone = [[Eastern European Time|EET]] |
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|utc_offset = +2 |
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|time_zone_DST = [[EEST]] |
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|utc_offset_DST = +3 |
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|ethnic_groups = 94% [[Greeks|Greek]],<br />4% [[Albanians|Albanian]],<br />2% others<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.eurfedling.org/Greece.htm |title=Demographics of Greece |work=European Union National Languages |accessdate=19 December 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gr.html |title=Greece |work=The CIA World Factbook |accessdate=16 April 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.statistics.gr/portal/page/portal/ESYE/BUCKET/A1602/Other/A1602_SAM07_TB_DC_00_2001_07_F_GR.pdf |title= Πίνακας 7: Αλλοδαποί κατά υπηκοότητα, φύλο και επίπεδο εκπαίδευσης - Σύνολο Ελλάδας και Νομοί |work=Greek National Statistics Agency |accessdate=16 April 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/population/documents/Tab/report.pdf |title=Demography Report 2010 |work=Eurostat Yearbook 2010 |accessdate=16 April 2011 }}</ref> |
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|drives_on = right |
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|cctld = [[.gr]]<sup>3</sup> |
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|calling_code = [[Telephone numbers in Greece|30]] |
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|footnote1 = Also the national anthem of [[Cyprus]]. |
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|footnote2 = Before 2001, the [[Greek drachma]]. |
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|footnote3 = The [[.eu]] domain is also used, as in other [[European Union]] member states. |
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}} |
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'''Greece''' ({{IPAc-en|en-us-Greece.ogg|ˈ|ɡ|r|iː|s}}; {{lang-el|Ελλάδα}}, [[Romanization of Greek|''Elláda'']], {{IPA-el|eˈlaða|IPA|Ellada.ogg}}; {{lang-grc|Ἑλλάς}}, ''Hellás'', {{IPA-el|helːás|IPA}}), also known as '''Hellas''' and officially the '''Hellenic Republic''' (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία, ''Ellīnikī́ Dīmokratía'', {{IPA-el|eliniˈci ðimokraˈtia|IPA}}<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gr.html |publisher=www.cia.gov |work=[[CIA]] |date=15 March 2007 |accessdate=7 April 2007 |title=World Factbook – Greece: Government}}</ref>), is a [[country]] in southeastern [[Europe]]. Situated on the southern end of the [[Balkans|Balkan Peninsula]], Greece has land borders with [[Albania]], the [[Republic of Macedonia]] and [[Bulgaria]] to the north, and [[Turkey]] to the east. The [[Aegean Sea]] lies to the east of mainland Greece, the [[Ionian Sea]] to the west, and the [[Mediterranean Sea]] to the south. Greece has the [[list of countries by length of coastline|twelfth longest coastline]] in the world at {{convert|13,676|km|0|abbr=on|lk=out}} in length, featuring a vast number of [[List of islands of Greece|islands]] (approximately 1400, of which 227 are inhabited), including [[Crete]], the [[Dodecanese]], the [[Cyclades]], and the [[Ionian Islands]] among others. Eighty percent of Greece consists of mountains, of which [[Mount Olympus]] is the highest at {{convert|2917|m|0|abbr=on|lk=out}}. |
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Modern Greece traces its roots to the civilisation of [[ancient Greece]], generally considered the cradle of [[Western culture|Western civilization]]. As such, it is the birthplace of [[democracy]],<ref>Finley, M. I. Democracy Ancient and Modern. 2d ed., 1985. London: Hogarth.</ref> [[Western philosophy]],<ref>History of Philosophy, Volume 1 by Frederick Copleston</ref> the [[Olympic Games]], [[Western literature]] and [[historiography]], [[political science]], major scientific and [[Greek mathematics|mathematical]] principles, and Western [[drama]],<ref>Brockett, Oscar G. History of the Theatre. sixth ed., 1991. Boston; London: Allyn and Bacon.</ref> including both [[tragedy]] and [[comedy]]. This legacy is partly reflected in the 17 [[List of World Heritage Sites in Europe#Greece|UNESCO World Heritage Sites]] located in Greece. The modern Greek state was established in 1830, following a [[Greek War of Independence|victorious uprising]] against [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman rule]]. |
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A [[developed country]] with an advanced,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2010/01/weodata/groups.htm#ae|title=World Economic Outlook Database April 2010—WEO Groups and Aggregates Information|publisher=[[International Monetary Fund]]|accessdate=19 August 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/appendix/appendix-b.html|title=Appendix B :: International Organizations and Groups|work=[[The World Factbook]]|publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]]|accessdate=19 August 2010}}</ref> [[high income economy|high-income economy]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://data.worldbank.org/about/country-classifications/country-and-lending-groups#OECD_members|title=Country and Lending Groups|publisher=[[World Bank]]|accessdate=19 August 2010}}</ref> a very high [[Human Development Index]] (22nd highest in the world as of 2010) and consistently high [[quality of life]] rankings,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/|title=Human Development Report 2009 – HDI rankings|publisher=[[United Nations Development Programme]]|accessdate=19 August 2010}}</ref><ref name="Economist2005">{{Cite news |url=http://www.economist.com/media/pdf/QUALITY_OF_LIFE.pdf |title=The Economist Intelligence Unit’s quality-of-life index (2005)|work=The Economist |publisher=www.economist.com|accessdate=19 August 2010|format=PDF}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Interactive Infographic of the World's Best Countries|url=http://www.newsweek.com/2010/08/15/interactive-infographic-of-the-worlds-best-countries.html|work=Newsweek |accessdate=1 October 2010}}</ref> Greece has been a member of what is now the [[European Union]] since 1981 and the [[eurozone]] since 2001,<ref name="europa.eu">{{Cite web |url=http://europa.eu/abc/european_countries/eu_members/greece/index_en.htm |publisher=europa.eu |work=European Union |accessdate=7 April 2007 |title=Member States of the EU: Greece}}</ref> [[NATO]] since 1952,<ref name="integrated1974">On 14 August 1974 Greek forces withdrew from the integrated military structure of [[NATO]] in protest at the Turkish occupation of northern Cyprus. Greece rejoined NATO in 1980.</ref> and the [[European Space Agency]] since 2005.<ref name = ESA>{{Cite web |url=http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMWYQRMD6E_index_0.html |title=Greece becomes 16th ESA Member State |publisher=www.esa.int |work=European Space Agency |date=22 March 2005 |accessdate=7 April 2007}}</ref> It is also a founding member of the [[United Nations]], the [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development|OECD]],<ref name="organisation1">{{Cite web |url=http://www.oecd.org/document/7/0,2340,en_2649_201185_1915847_1_1_1_1,00.html |publisher=oecd.org |work=[[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development]] |title=Convention on the OECD |accessdate=7 April 2007}}</ref> and the [[Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation|Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization]]. [[Athens]] is the [[Capital (political)|capital]] and the largest city in the country (its metropolitan area includes also [[Piraeus]]). |
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==History== |
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{{Main|History of Greece}} |
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[[File:Parthenon.JPG|thumb|left|180px|The [[Parthenon]] on the [[Acropolis of Athens]].]] |
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[[File:BattleofIssus333BC-mosaic-detail1.jpg|thumb|left|180px|Detail of the [[Alexander Mosaic]], depicting [[Alexander the Great]] on his horse [[Bucephalus]].]] |
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[[File:The sortie of Messologhi by Theodore Vryzakis.jpg|thumb|left|180px|''The sortie of Messolonghi'', during the [[Greek War of Independence|Greek Revolution (1821–1830)]], by [[Theodoros Vryzakis]].]] |
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Greece was the first area in [[Europe]] where advanced early civilizations emerged, beginning with the [[Cycladic civilization]] of the [[Aegean Sea]], the [[Minoan civilization]] in [[Crete]] and then the [[Mycenaean Greece|Mycenaean]] civilization on the mainland. Later, [[city-state]]s emerged across the Greek peninsula and spread to the shores of the [[Black Sea]], [[Magna Grecia|South Italy]] and [[Anatolia|Asia Minor]], reaching great levels of [[wealth|prosperity]] that resulted in an unprecedented cultural boom, that of [[classical Greece]], expressed in [[Architecture of ancient Greece|architecture]], [[Theatre of ancient Greece|drama]], [[science]] and [[Ancient Greek philosophy|philosophy]], and nurtured in [[Classical Athens|Athens]] under a [[Athenian democracy|democratic]] environment. |
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Athens and [[Sparta]] led the way in repelling the [[Achaemenid Empire|Persian Empire]] in a series of [[Greco-Persian Wars|battles]]. Both were later overshadowed by [[Ancient Thebes (Boeotia)|Thebes]] and eventually [[Macedonia (ancient kingdom)|Macedonia]], with the latter under the guidance of [[Alexander the Great]] uniting and leading the Greek world to victory over the Persians. |
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The [[Hellenistic period]] was brought only partially to a close two centuries later with the establishment of [[Roman Greece|Roman rule]] over Greek lands in 146 BC.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6930285.stm Alexander's Gulf outpost uncovered]. ''BBC News.'' 7 August 2007.</ref> Many Greeks migrated to [[Alexandria]], [[Antioch]], [[Seleucia]] and the many other new Hellenistic cities in [[Seleucid Empire|Asia]] and [[Ptolemaic Kingdom|Africa]] founded in Alexander's wake.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.princeton.edu/~pswpc/pdfs/morris/120509.pdf|title=Growth of the Greek Colonies in the First Millenium BC (application/pdf Object)|publisher=www.princeton.edu|accessdate=2 January 2009|last=|first=}}</ref> |
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The subsequent mixture of [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] and Hellenic cultures took form in the establishment of the [[Byzantine Empire]] in 330 AD around [[Constantinople]]. Byzantium remained a major cultural and military power for the next 1,123 years, until the [[Fall of Constantinople]] to the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman Turks]] in 1453. On the [[Byzantine–Ottoman Wars|eve]] of the Ottoman conquest, much of the Greek intelligentsia migrated to [[Italy]] and other parts of Europe not under Ottoman rule, playing a significant role in the [[Renaissance]] through the transmission of [[Ancient Greece|ancient Greek]] works to [[Western Europe]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.economist.com/diversions/millennium/displaystory.cfm?story_id=346800 |title=Millennium issue: Trouble with Turkey The fall of Constantinople Economist.com |work=The Economist |date=20 March 1997 |accessdate=6 January 2009}}</ref> Nevertheless, the [[Millet (Ottoman Empire)|Ottoman millet]] system contributed to the cohesion of the Orthodox Greeks by segregating the various peoples within the empire based on religion, as the latter played an integral role in the formation of modern Greek identity. |
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After the [[Greek War of Independence]], successfully waged against the Ottoman Empire from 1821 to 1829, the [[First Hellenic Republic|nascent Greek state]] was finally recognized under the [[London Protocol]] in 1830. In 1827, [[Ioannis Kapodistrias]], from [[Corfu]], was chosen as the first governor of the new Republic. However, following his assassination, the [[Great Power]]s installed a [[Kingdom of Greece|monarchy]] under [[Otto of Greece|Otto]], of the Bavarian [[House of Wittelsbach]]. In 1843, an uprising forced the King to grant a constitution and a representative assembly. |
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Due to his unimpaired authoritarian rule, he was eventually dethroned in 1863 and replaced by Prince Vilhelm (William) of Denmark, who took the name [[George I of Greece|George I]] and brought with him the [[Ionian Islands]] as a coronation gift from [[United Kingdom|Britain]]. In 1877, [[Charilaos Trikoupis]], who is attributed with the significant improvement of the country's infrastructure, curbed the power of the monarchy to interfere in the assembly by issuing the rule of [[Motion of no confidence|vote of confidence]] to any potential [[prime minister]]. |
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===20th century onwards=== |
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As a result of the [[Balkan Wars]], Greece increased the extent of its territory and population. In the following years, the struggle between [[Constantine I of Greece|King Constantine I]] and charismatic Prime Minister [[Eleftherios Venizelos]] over the country's foreign policy on the eve of [[World War I]] dominated the country's political scene, and divided the country into [[National Schism|two opposing groups]]. |
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In the aftermath of WWI, Greece [[Greco-Turkish War (1919-1922)|fought]] against Turkish nationalists led by [[Mustafa Kemal Atatürk|Mustafa Kemal]], a war which resulted in a [[Population exchange between Greece and Turkey|massive population exchange between the two countries]] under the [[Treaty of Lausanne]].<ref>[http://www.spiegel.de/international/0,1518,451140,00.html The Diaspora Welcomes the Pope]. Spiegel Online. 28 November 2006.</ref> According to various sources,<ref>[[R. J. Rummel]], The Holocaust in Comparative and Historical Perspective, 1998, Idea Journal of Social Issues, Vol.3 no.2</ref> several hundred thousand [[Pontic Greeks]] died during this period.<ref>Chris Hedges. [http://www.nytimes.com/2000/09/17/nyregion/a-few-words-in-greek-tell-of-a-homeland-lost.html A Few Words in Greek Tell of a Homeland Lost]. The New York Times. 17 September 2000.</ref> Instability and successive [[coup d'état|coups d'état]] marked the following era, which was overshadowed by the massive task of incorporating 1.5 million Greek [[Population exchange between Greece and Turkey|refugees from Turkey]] into Greek society. The Greek population in [[Istanbul]] dropped from 300,000 at the turn of the century to around 3,000 in the city today.<ref name="minorities">"''[http://books.google.com/books?id=I9p_m7oXQ00C&pg=PA186&dq&hl=en#v=onepage&q=&f=false Nationalism, globalization, and orthodoxy: the social origins of ethnic conflict in the Balkans]''". Victor Roudometof, Roland Robertson (2001). [[Greenwood Publishing Group]]. p.186. ISBN 978-0-313-31949-5</ref> |
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[[File:Konstantine Venizelos 1913.jpg|thumb|180px|King [[Constantine I of Greece|Constantine I]] and [[Eleftherios Venizelos]] (seated, with back to camera) in 1913, during the [[Balkan Wars]].]] |
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[[File:Greekhistory.GIF|thumb|180px|Territorial evolution of [[Kingdom of Greece]] until 1947.]] |
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On 28 October 1940 Fascist [[Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)|Italy]] demanded the surrender of Greece, but Greek dictator [[Ioannis Metaxas]] refused and in the following [[Greco-Italian War]], Greece repelled Italian forces into [[Albania]], giving the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] their first victory over [[Axis powers|Axis]] forces on land. The country would eventually fall to urgently dispatched German forces during the [[Battle of Greece]]. The German occupiers nevertheless met serious challenges from the [[Greek Resistance]]. Over 100,000 civilians died from starvation during the winter of 1941–42, and the great majority of [[History of the Jews in Greece|Greek Jews]] were deported to Nazi extermination camps.<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/244154/Greece/26430/Greek-history-since-World-War-I Greece]. Britannica Online Encyclopedia.</ref> |
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[[File:GreecefightsonBig.jpg|thumb|left|180px|A poster of 1942 during [[World War II]] in support of Greece.]] |
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After liberation, Greece experienced a bitter [[Greek Civil War|civil war]] between [[communism|communist]] and [[anticommunist]] forces, which led to economic devastation and severe social tensions between [[right-wing politics|rightists]] and largely communist [[left-wing politics|leftists]] for the next 30 years.<ref>Mazower, Mark. ''After the War was Over''</ref> The next 20 years were characterized by marginalisation of the left in the political and social spheres but also by [[Greek economic miracle|rapid economic growth]], propelled in part by the [[Marshall Plan]]. |
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King [[Constantine II of Greece|Constantine]]'s [[Apostasia of 1965|dismissal]] of [[George Papandreou (senior)|George Papandreou]]'s centrist government in July 1965 prompted a prolonged period of political turbulence which culminated in a coup d'état on 21 April 1967 by the [[United States]]-backed [[Greek military junta of 1967–1974|Regime of the Colonels]]. The brutal suppression of the [[Athens Polytechnic uprising]] on 17 November 1973 sent shockwaves through the regime, and a counter-coup established [[Brigadier]] [[Dimitrios Ioannidis]] as dictator. On 20 July 1974, as [[Turkey]] [[Turkish invasion of Cyprus|invaded]] the island of [[Cyprus]], the regime collapsed. |
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Former premier [[Konstantinos Karamanlis]] was invited back from [[Paris]] where he had lived in self-exile since 1963, marking the beginning of the [[Metapolitefsi]] era. On 14 August 1974 Greek forces withdrew from the integrated military structure of [[NATO]] in protest at the Turkish occupation of northern Cyprus.<ref name="autogenerated2">History, Editorial Consultant: Adam Hart-Davis, Dorling Kindersley Limited publisher, ISBN 978-1-85613-062-2</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nato.int/docu/update/70-79/1974e.htm |title=[[NATO]] Update 1974 |publisher=Nato.int |date=26 October 2001 |accessdate=22 March 2009}}</ref> The first multiparty [[Greek legislative election, 1974|elections]] since 1964 were held on the first anniversary of the Polytechnic uprising. A democratic and republican [[Constitution of Greece|constitution]] was promulgated on 11 June 1975 following a [[Greek republic referendum, 1974|referendum]] which abolished the monarchy. |
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Meanwhile, [[Andreas Papandreou]] founded the [[Panhellenic Socialist Movement]] (PASOK) in response to Karamanlis's conservative [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]] party, with the two political formations alternating in government ever since. Greece rejoined NATO in 1980.<ref name="autogenerated2" /> Traditionally strained [[Greek–Turkish relations|relations]] with neighbouring Turkey [[Greek–Turkish earthquake diplomacy|improved]] when successive earthquakes hit both nations in 1999, leading to the lifting of the Greek veto against Turkey's [[Accession of Turkey to the European Union|bid]] for EU membership. |
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Greece became the tenth member of the [[European Communities]] (subsequently subsumed by the [[European Union]]) on 1 January 1981, ushering in a period of remarkable and sustained economic growth. Widespread investments in industrial enterprises and heavy infrastructure, as well as funds from the European Union and growing revenues from tourism, shipping and a fast-growing service sector have raised the country's standard of living to unprecedented levels. The country adopted the [[euro]] in 2001 and successfully hosted the [[2004 Summer Olympics|2004 Olympic Games]] in [[Athens]]. More recently, it has borne the brunt of the [[late-2000s recession]] and related [[2010 European sovereign debt crisis]]. |
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==Geography== |
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{{Main|Geography of Greece|Regions of Greece}} |
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{{See|List of cities in Greece|List of islands of Greece}} |
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{| style="float:right;" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="1" |
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|- |
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|<div style="position: relative">[[File:000 Greqia harta.PNG|center]] |
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<!----------------------------------- NATIONS/FLAGS --> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:18px;top:38px;">[[File:Flag of Albania.svg|25px]]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:11px;top:52px;">[[Albania|<span style="color: black;">Albania]]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:74px;top:10px;">[[File:Flag of Macedonia.svg|25px]]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:50px;top:22px;">[[Republic of Macedonia|<span style="color: black;">Rep. Macedonia]]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:174px;top:2px;">[[File:Flag of Bulgaria.svg|25px]]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:160px;top:16px;">[[Bulgaria|<span style="color: black;">Bulgaria]]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:283px;top:135px;">[[File:Flag of Turkey.svg|25px]]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:272px;top:150px;">[[Turkey|<span style="color: black;">Turkey]]</div> |
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<!------------------------------- TOWNS/ISLANDS --> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:3px;top:254px;">[[File:Flag of Greece.svg|65px]]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:2px;top:299px;"><big>'''<span style="color: black;">Greece'''</big></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:157px;top:172px;">[[Athens]]'''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:124px;top:71px;"><small>[[Thessaloniki]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:160px;top:42px;"><small>[[Kavala]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:184px;top:60px;"><small>[[Thasos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:228px;top:53px;"><small>[[Alexandroupoli]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:219px;top:70px;"><small>[[Samothrace]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:0;top:101px;"><small>[[Corfu]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:1px;top:117px;"><small>[[Igoumenitsa]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:113px;top:107px;"><small>[[Larissa]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:133px;top:118px;"><small>[[Volos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:58px;top:108px;"><small>[[Ioannina]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:151px;top:156px;"><small>[[Chalcis]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:59px;top:173px;"><small>[[Patras]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:90px;top:180px;"><small>[[Corinth]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:80px;top:202px;"><small>[[Nafplion]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:75px;top:220px;"><small>[[Sparta]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:70px;top:236px;"><small>[[Areopoli]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:137px;top:186px;"><small>[[Piraeus]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:111px;top:172px;"><small>[[Eleusina]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:148px;top:200px;"><small>[[Laurium]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:204px;top:290px;"><small>[[Heraklion]]</small></div> |
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<!----------------------------------------- Locations --> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:91px;top:52px;">'''''[[Macedonia (Greece)|Macedonia]]''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:197px;top:43px;">''[[Western Thrace|Thrace]]''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:41px;top:95px;">''[[Epirus (periphery)|Epirus]]''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:72px;top:119px;">''[[Thessaly]]''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:133px;top:142px;">''[[Euboea]]''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:57px;top:150px;">''[[Central Greece]]''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:64px;top:191px;">''[[Peloponnese]]''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:57px;top:79px;"><small>[[Mount Olympus|Mt. Olympus]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:10px;top:143px;"><small>[[Lefkada]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:8px;top:175px;"><small>[[Kefalonia]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:3px;top:190px;"><small>[[Zakynthos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:180px;top:88px;"><small>[[Lemnos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:213px;top:128px;"><small>[[Lesbos Island|Lesbos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:211px;top:162px;"><small>[[Chios]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:265px;top:185px;"><small>[[Samos Island|Samos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:180px;top:185px;"><small>[[Andros]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:189px;top:195px;"><small>[[Tinos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:205px;top:207px;"><small>[[Mykonos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:225px;top:191px;"><small>[[Icaria]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:254px;top:209px;"><small>[[Patmos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:220px;top:220px;"><small>[[Naxos Island|Naxos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:181px;top:234px;"><small>[[Milos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:165px;top:249px;"><small>[[Santorini]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:251px;top:233px;"><small>[[Kos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:269px;top:263px;"><small>[[Rhodes]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:277px;top:282px;"><small>[[Karpathos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:268px;top:300px;"><small>[[Kassos]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:105px;top:258px;"><small>[[Kythira]]</small></div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:170px;top:322px;"><small>[[Gavdos]]</small></div> |
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<!------------------------------------- SEAS --> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:194px;top:140px;">[[Aegean Sea|<span style="color:#09d;">''Aegean'']]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:214px;top:177px;">[[Aegean Sea|<span style="color:#09d;">''Sea'']]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:185px;top:268px;">[[Sea of Crete|<span style="color:#09d;">''Sea of Crete'']]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:133px;top:228px;">[[Myrtoan Sea|<span style="color:#0088dd;">''Myrtoan'']]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:147px;top:237px;">[[Myrtoan Sea|<span style="color:#0088dd;">''Sea'']]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:09px;top:208px;">[[Ionian Sea|<span style="color:#0088dd;">''Ionian'']]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:14px;top:223px;">[[Ionian Sea|<span style="color:#0088dd;">''Sea'']]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:225px;top:319px;">[[Mediterranean Sea|<span style="color:#0088dd;">''Mediterranean'']]</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:238px;top:333px;">[[Mediterranean Sea|<span style="color:#0088dd;">''Sea'']]</div> |
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<!------------------------------------- ISLAND GROUPS --> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:192px;top:305px;">''[[Crete]]'''''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:169px;top:105px;">'''''[[Aegean Islands|<span style="color:#999;">Aegean]]''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:180px;top:117px;">''[[Aegean Islands|<span style="color:#999;">Islands]]''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:143px;top:217px;">''[[Cyclades|<span style="color:#999;">Cyclades]]''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:229px;top:247px;">''[[Dodecanese|<span style="color:#999;">Dodecanese]]''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:02px;top:151px;">''[[Ionian Islands|<span style="color:#999;">Ionian]]''</div> |
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<div style="position:absolute;left:01px;top:161px;">''[[Ionian Islands|<span style="color:#999;">Islands]]''</div> |
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|} |
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Greece consists of a mountainous, peninsular mainland jutting out into the sea at the southern end of the [[Balkans]], ending at the [[Peloponnese]] peninsula (separated from the mainland by the [[Corinth Canal|canal]] of the [[Isthmus of Corinth]]). Due to its highly indented coastline and numerous islands, Greece has the [[List of countries by length of coastline|twelfth longest coastline]] in the world with {{convert|13676|km|mi|0|abbr=on}};<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2060.html?countryName=Greece&countryCode=gr®ionCode=eu&#gr |title=The World Fact Book - Field Listing :: Coastline |accessdate=2011-03-17 |publisher=CIA}}</ref> its land boundary is {{convert|1160|km|mi|0|abbr=on}}. The country lies approximately between latitudes [[35th parallel north|34°]] and [[42nd parallel north|42° N]], and longitudes [[19th meridian east|19°]] and [[30th meridian east|30° E]]. |
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Greece features a [[Greek islands|vast number of islands]], between 1200 and 6000, depending on the definition,<ref>{{cite book |last=Marker |first= Sherry |coauthors= John Bowman, Peter Kerasiotis, Heidi Sarna |title= ''Frommer's Greek islands'' |publisher=Frommer's |year=2010 |page=12 |isbn=0470526645 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=wvlP7D9C_7gC&pg=PA12&dq=number+of+greek+islands&hl=en&ei=IniOTaGHFZS5tgeRkaTEDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CEIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=number%20of%20greek%20islands&f=false}}</ref> 227 of which are inhabited. [[Crete]] is the largest and most populous, [[Euboea]], separated from the mainland by the 60m-wide [[Euripus Strait]], is the second largest island is [[Euboea]], followed by [[Rhodes]] and [[Lesbos]]. |
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The Greek islands are traditionally grouped into the following clusters: The [[Argo-Saronic Islands]] in the Saronic gulf near [[Athens]], the [[Cyclades]], a large but dense collection occupying the central part of the Aegean Sea, the [[North Aegean islands]], a loose grouping off the west coast of Turkey, the [[Dodecanese]], another loose collection in the southeast between Crete and Turkey, the [[Sporades]], a small tight group off the coast of Euboea, and the [[Ionian Islands]], located to the west of the mainland in the [[Ionian Sea]] |
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Eighty percent of Greece consists of mountains or hills, making the country one of the most mountainous in Europe. [[Mount Olympus (Mountain)|Mount Olympus]], the mythical abode of the [[Twelve Olympians|Greek Gods]], culminates at Mytikas peak {{convert|2917|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}, the highest in the country. Western Greece contains a number of lakes and wetlands and is dominated by the [[Pindus]] mountain range. The Pindus, a continuation of the [[Dinaric Alps]], reaches a maximum elevation of {{convert|2637|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} at Mt. Smolikas (the second-highest in Greece) and historically has been a significant barrier to east-west travel. |
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[[File:Ναυάγιο Ζακύνθου.jpg|thumb|upright|left|[[Navagio]] ([[MV Panagiotis|shipwreck]]) bay, in [[Zakynthos]].]] |
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The Pindus range continues through the central [[Peloponnese]], crosses the islands of [[Kythera]] and Antikythera and find its way into southwestern Aegean, in the island of [[Crete]] where it eventually ends. The islands of the Aegean are peaks of underwater mountains that once constituted an extension of the mainland. Pindus is characterized by its high, steep peaks, often dissected by numerous canyons and a variety of other karstic landscapes. The spectacular [[Vikos Gorge]], part of the [[Vikos-Aoos National Park]] in the Pindus range, is listed by the Guinness book of World Records as the deepest gorge in the world.<ref>{{cite book | author= | title=Guinness World Records 2005: Special 50th Anniversary Edition | publisher=Guinness World Records | year=2004 | editor= |url= http://books.google.com/books?id=D4wYAAAAIAAJ&dq=Vikos%2BGuines&lr=&as_brr=0&hl= | isbn= 9781892051226| page = 52}}</ref> Another notable formation are the [[Meteora]] rock pillars, atop which have been built medieval Greek Orthodox monasteries. |
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Northeastern Greece features another high-altitude mountain range, the [[Rhodope]] range, spreading across the periphery of [[East Macedonia and Thrace]]; this area is covered with vast, thick, ancient forests, including the famous Dadia forest in the prefecture of [[Evros Prefecture|Evros]], in the far northeast of the country. |
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[[File:Olympus-fromOlympicbeach.jpg|right|250px|thumb|View of [[Mount Olympus (Mountain)|Mount Olympus]], located on the border between [[Thessaly]] and [[Macedonia (Greece)|Macedonia]].]] |
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Expansive plains are primarily located in the prefectures of [[Thessaly]], [[Central Macedonia]] and [[Western Thrace|Thrace]]. They constitute key economic regions as they are among the few arable places in the country. Rare marine species such as the Pinniped Seals and the [[Loggerhead Sea Turtle]] live in the seas surrounding mainland Greece, while its dense forests are home to the endangered [[brown bear]], the [[lynx]], the [[Roe Deer]] and the Wild Goat. |
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[[Phytogeography|Phytogeographically]], Greece belongs to the [[Boreal Kingdom]] and is shared between the East Mediterranean province of the [[Mediterranean Region]] and the Illyrian province of the [[Circumboreal Region]]. According to the [[World Wide Fund for Nature]] and the [[European Environment Agency]], the territory of Greece can be subdivided into six [[ecoregion]]s: the [[Illyrian deciduous forests]], [[Pindus Mountains mixed forests]], [[Balkan mixed forests]], Rhodope montane mixed forests, Aegean and Western Turkey sclerophyllous and mixed forests and Crete Mediterranean forests. |
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===Climate=== |
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{{Main|Climate of Greece}} |
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[[File:Greece topo.jpg|thumb|right|Topographical map of Greece.]] |
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Greece primarily has a [[Mediterranean climate]], featuring mild, wet winters and hot, dry summers. This climate occurs at all coastal locations, including [[Athens]], the [[Cyclades]], the [[Dodecanese]], [[Crete]], the [[Peloponnese]] and parts of the [[Sterea Ellada]] (Central Continental Grece) region. The [[Pindus]] mountain range strongly affects the climate of the country, as areas to the west of the range are considerably wetter on average (due to greater exposure to south-westerly systems bringing in moisture) than the areas lying to the east of the range (due to a [[rain shadow]] effect). |
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The mountainous areas of Northwestern Greece (parts of [[Epirus (periphery)|Epirus]], [[Central Greece]], [[Thessaly]], [[Western Macedonia]]) as well as in the mountainous central parts of [[Peloponnese]], including parts of the prefectures of [[Achaia]], [[Arcadia]] and [[Laconia]] feature an [[Alpine climate]] with heavy snowfalls. The inland parts of northern Greece, in [[Central Macedonia]] and [[East Macedonia and Thrace]] feature a [[temperate climate]] with cold, damp winters and hot, dry summers with frequent thunderstorms. Snowfalls occur every year in the mountains and northern areas, and brief snowfalls are not unknown even in low-lying southern areas, such as Athens. |
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==Politics== |
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{{Main|Politics of Greece|List of political parties in Greece}} |
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[[File:Hellenic Parliament from high above.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Hellenic Parliament]] in central [[Athens]].]] |
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[[File:Kapodistrias2.jpg|thumb|150px|[[Count Ioannis Kapodistrias]] (1776–1831), first head of state and governor of independent Greece.]] |
[[File:Kapodistrias2.jpg|thumb|150px|[[Count Ioannis Kapodistrias]] (1776–1831), first head of state and governor of independent Greece.]] |
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[[File:Karolos Papoulias .jpg|150px|thumb|The current [[President of Greece]], [[Karolos Papoulias]].]] |
[[File:Karolos Papoulias .jpg|150px|thumb|The current [[President of Greece]], [[Karolos Papoulias]].]] |
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Greece is a [[parliamentary republic]].<ref name="con51,53">{{Cite web|url=http://www.parliament.gr/english/politeuma/syntagma.pdf|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20070925181747/http://www.parliament.gr/ WELL WELL WELLL LOOKES LIKES ITS ME AGAIN TUFFF LUCK BUT I DNT GO DAT EASILY ILL REPORT U FOR SENDING MESSAGES I WILL U JUST WATCH ME YYRRR YRRRR YRRRR YRRR. |
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Greece is a [[parliamentary republic]].<ref name="con51,53">{{Cite web|url=http://www.parliament.gr/english/politeuma/syntagma.pdf|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20070925181747/http://www.parliament.gr/english/politeuma/syntagma.pdf|archivedate=25 September 2007 |title=syntagma.qxd |format=PDF |language={{el icon}} |date= |accessdate=2 August 2009}}</ref> The nominal [[head of state]] is the [[President of Greece|President of the Republic]], who is elected by the [[Hellenic Parliament|Parliament]] for a five-year term.<ref name="con51,53"/> The current [[Constitution of Greece|Constitution]] was drawn up and adopted by the Fifth Revisionary Parliament of the Hellenes and entered into force in 1975 after the fall of the [[Greek military junta of 1967-1974|military junta of 1967–1974]]. It has been revised twice since, in 1986 and in [[Greek Constitutional amendment of 2001|2001]]. The Constitution, which consists of 120 articles, provides for a [[separation of powers]] into [[executive branch|executive]], [[legislative branch|legislative]], and [[judicial branch]]es, and grants extensive specific guarantees (further reinforced in 2001) of [[civil liberties]] and [[social rights]].<ref>P.D. Dagtoglou, ''Individual Rights'', I, 21 & E. Venizelos, ''The "Acquis" of the Constitutional Revision'', 131–132, 165–172</ref> [[Women's suffrage]] was guaranteed with a 1952 Constitutional amendment. |
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According to the Constitution, executive power is exercised by the President of the Republic and the [[Cabinet of Greece|Government]].<ref name="con51,53"/> From the [[Greek Constitutional amendment of 1986|Constitutional amendment of 1986]] the President's duties were curtailed to a significant extent, and they are now largely ceremonial; most political power thus lies in the hands of the Prime Minister.<ref name="M477-478">K. Mavrias, ''Constitutional Law'', 477–478, 486–487</ref> The position of [[Prime Minister of Greece|Prime Minister]], Greece's [[head of government]], belongs to the [[List of Prime Ministers of Greece|current leader]] of the [[List of political parties in Greece|political party]] that can obtain a vote of confidence by the Parliament. The President of the Republic formally appoints the Prime Minister and, on his recommendation, appoints and dismisses the other members of the Cabinet.<ref name="con51,53"/> |
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Legislative powers are exercised by a 300-member elective [[unicameralism|unicameral Parliament]].<ref name="con51,53"/> Statutes passed by the Parliament are promulgated by the President of the Republic.<ref name="con51,53"/> [[Elections in Greece#Election of the legislature|Parliamentary elections]] are held every four years, but the President of the Republic is obliged to dissolve the Parliament earlier on the proposal of the Cabinet, in view of dealing with a national issue of exceptional importance.<ref name="con51,53"/> The President is also obliged to dissolve the Parliament earlier, if the opposition manages to pass a [[motion of no confidence]].<ref name="con51,53"/> |
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The [[Judicial system of Greece|Judiciary]] is independent of the executive and the legislature and comprises three Supreme Courts: the [[Court of Cassation (Greece)|Court of Cassation]] (Άρειος Πάγος), the [[Council of State (Greece)|Council of State]] (Συμβούλιο της Επικρατείας) and the [[Chamber of Accounts (Greece)|Court of Auditors]] (Ελεγκτικό Συνέδριο). The Judiciary system is also composed of civil courts, which judge civil and penal cases and administrative courts, which judge disputes between the citizens and the Greek administrative authorities. |
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===Political parties=== |
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{{Main|Political parties of Greece}} |
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Since the restoration of democracy, the Greek [[two-party system]] is dominated by the liberal-conservative [[New Democracy (Greece)|New Democracy]] (ND) and the social-democratic [[Panhellenic Socialist Movement]] (PASOK).<ref>For a diachronic analysis of the Greek party system see T. Pappas, ''Transformation of the Greek Party System Since 1951'', 90–114, who distinguishes three distinct types of party system which developed in consecutive order, namely, a predominant-party system (from 1952 to 1963), a system of polarised pluralism (between 1963 and 1981), and a two-party system (since 1981).</ref> Other significant parties include the [[Communist Party of Greece]] (KKE), the [[Coalition of the Radical Left]] (SYRIZA) and the [[Popular Orthodox Rally]] (LAOS). The current prime minister is [[George Papandreou (junior)|George Papandreou]], president of the PASOK, who on [[Greek legislative election, 2009|4 October 2009]], won with a majority in the Parliament of 160 out of 300 seats. |
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===Administrative divisions=== |
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{{Main|Administrative divisions of Greece (2011)}} |
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Since the [[Kallikratis programme]] reform entered into effect on 1 January 2011, Greece consists of thirteen [[Peripheries of Greece|peripheries]] subdivided into a total of 325 [[Municipalities of Greece|municipalities]]. The 54 old [[Prefectures of Greece|prefectures and prefecture-level administrations]] have been largely retained as ''[[Peripheral units of Greece|sub-units]]'' of the peripheries. Seven decentralized administrations group one to three peripheries for administrative purposes on a regional basis. There is also one [[autonomous area]], [[Mount Athos]] ({{lang-el|Agio Oros}}, "Holy Mountain"), which borders the periphery of [[Central Macedonia]]. |
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{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:left;" |
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|- style="font-size:100%; text-align:center;" |
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!Map !! Number !! [[Peripheries of Greece|Periphery]] !! Capital !! Area (km²)!! Area (sq mi)!!Population </tr> |
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|- |
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|rowspan="15" valign="middle"|[[File:GreeceNumberedPerepheries.png|300px|left|]] |
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|- |
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| 1 || [[Attica]] || [[Athens]] || style="text-align:right"|3,808|| style="text-align:right"|1,470|| style="text-align:right"|3,761,810 |
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|- |
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| 2 || [[Central Greece (periphery)|Central Greece]] || [[Lamia (city)|Lamia]] || style="text-align:right"|15,549|| style="text-align:right"|6,004|| style="text-align:right"|605,329 |
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|- |
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| 3 || [[Central Macedonia]] || [[Thessaloniki]] ||style="text-align:right"|18,811|| style="text-align:right"|7,263|| style="text-align:right"|1,871,952 |
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|- |
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| 4 || [[Crete]] || [[Heraklion]] || style="text-align:right"|8,259|| style="text-align:right"|3,189|| style="text-align:right"|601,131 |
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|- |
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| 5 || [[East Macedonia and Thrace]] || [[Komotini]] || style="text-align:right"|14,157|| style="text-align:right"|5,466|| style="text-align:right"|611,067 |
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|- |
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| 6 || [[Epirus (periphery)|Epirus]] || [[Ioannina]] ||style="text-align:right"|9,203|| style="text-align:right"|3,553|| style="text-align:right"|353,820 |
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|- |
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| 7 || [[Ionian Islands]] || [[Corfu (city)|Corfu]] || style="text-align:right"|2,307|| style="text-align:right"|891|| style="text-align:right"|212,984 |
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|- |
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| 8 || [[North Aegean]] || [[Mytilene]] || style="text-align:right"|3,836|| style="text-align:right"|1,481|| style="text-align:right"|206,121 |
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|- |
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| 9 || [[Peloponnese (periphery)|Peloponnese]] || [[Tripoli, Greece|Tripoli]] || style="text-align:right"|15,490|| style="text-align:right"|5,981|| style="text-align:right"|638,942 |
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|- |
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| 10 || [[South Aegean]] || [[Ermoupoli]] || style="text-align:right"|5,286|| style="text-align:right"|2,041|| style="text-align:right"|302,686 |
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|- |
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| 11 || [[Thessaly]] || [[Larissa]] || style="text-align:right"|14,037|| style="text-align:right"|5,420|| style="text-align:right"|753,888 |
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|- |
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| 12 || [[West Greece]] || [[Patras]] || style="text-align:right"|11,350|| style="text-align:right"|4,382|| style="text-align:right"|740,506 |
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|- |
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| 13 || [[West Macedonia]] || [[Kozani]] || style="text-align:right"|9,451|| style="text-align:right"|3,649|| style="text-align:right"|301,522 |
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|- |
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| – || [[Mount Athos]] (Autonomous) || [[Karyes (Athos)|Karyes]] || style="text-align:right"|390|| style="text-align:right"|151|| style="text-align:right"|2,262 |
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|} |
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===Foreign relations=== |
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{{Main|Foreign relations of Greece}} |
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Prominent issues in Greek foreign policy include the enduring [[Cyprus conflict|dispute over Cyprus]], differences with Turkey over the [[Aegean dispute|Aegean]] sea, as well as the [[Macedonia naming dispute|naming dispute]] with the [[Republic of Macedonia]], which Greece refers to internationally by the provisional reference "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia". |
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===Military=== |
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{{Main|Military of Greece}} |
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{| class="toccolours" style="float:right; margin:0 0 1em 1em;" |
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| style="background:#ddd; text-align:center;"| |
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<div class="center"> |
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; Armed forces |
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</div> |
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|- |
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| |
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<gallery> |
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File:HS Psara F454.jpg|Frigate [[Hydra class frigate|Psara]], [[MEKO|MEKO-200 HN]] type of the Hellenic Navy. |
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File:Mirage 2000 of Hellenic Air Force.JPEG|Hellenic Air Force [[Mirage 2000]] preparing for take off. |
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</gallery> |
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|} |
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The Hellenic Armed Forces are overseen by the [[Hellenic National Defense General Staff]] (Γενικό Επιτελείο Εθνικής Άμυνας – ΓΕΕΘΑ) and consists of three branches: |
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* [[Hellenic Army]] |
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* [[Hellenic Navy]] |
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* [[Hellenic Air Force]] |
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The civilian authority for the Greek military is the [[Ministry of National Defence (Greece)|Ministry of National Defence]]. Furthermore, Greece maintains the [[Hellenic Coast Guard]] for law enforcement in the sea and for search and rescue. |
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Greece currently has [[Conscription in Greece|universal compulsory military service]] for males, while females (who may serve in the military) are exempted from conscription. As of 2009, Greece has mandatory military service of 9 months for male citizens between the ages of 19 and 45. However, as the Armed forces had been gearing towards a complete professional army system, the government had promised that the mandatory military service would be cut or even abolished completely. |
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Greek males between the age of 18 and 60 who live in strategically sensitive areas may be required to serve part-time in the National Guard. Service in the Guard is paid. As a member of [[NATO]], the Greek military participates in exercises and deployments under the auspices of the alliance. |
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==Economy== |
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{{Main|Economy of Greece}} |
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[[File:Main building of the bank of Greece 2008.jpg|thumb|The main building of the [[Bank of Greece]] in [[Athens]].]] |
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[[File:Salonica-view-aerial2.jpg|thumb|Aerial view of the central districts of [[Thessaloniki]], Greece's second largest city and a major economic and industrial centre.]] |
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The Greek economy (that is gross domestic product, GDP) expanded at an average annual rate of 4% from 2004–2007 and 2% during 2008 (at constant prices of 2000), one of the highest rates in the Eurozone. However, in 2009 GDP decreased by −1.9%. In 2010 a decrease of GDP by −2.5% to −4% is estimated.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.investingreece.gov.gr/default.asp?pid=16&la=1|title=Greek Economy |publisher=investingreece.gov.gr |date= |accessdate=2010-12-30}}</ref> See below: [[Greece#2010-2011_Economic_Crisis|2010-2011 Economic Crisis]]. |
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The tourism industry is a major source of foreign exchange earnings and revenue accounting for 15% of Greece’s total GDP<ref name="ciaecon">{{Cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gr.html|title=Greece}}</ref> and employing, directly or indirectly, 16.5% of the total workforce. |
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The Greek labor force totals 4.9 million, and it is the second most industrious between [[OECD]] countries, after [[South Korea]].<ref>{{Cite web|author=Posted by internetakias |url=http://internetakias.gr/2008/05/28/greece-second-hardest-working/ |title=Οι Ελληνες 2οι πιο σκληρά εργαζόμενοι στον κόσμο! |publisher=Internetakias.gr |date= |accessdate=22 March 2009}}</ref> The [[University of Groningen|Groningen Growth & Development Centre]] has published a poll revealing that between 1995 and 2005, Greece ranked third in the ''working hours per year ranking'' among European nations; Greeks worked an average of 1,811 hours per year.<ref>[[:File:Yearly working time 2004.jpg]]</ref> In 2007, the [[List of countries by GDP (PPP) per hour worked|average worker produced around 20 dollars per hour]], similar to Spain and slightly more than half of average U.S. worker's hourly output. Immigrants make up nearly one-fifth of the work force, occupied mainly in agricultural and construction work. |
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Greece's [[List of countries by GDP (PPP) per capita|purchasing power-adjusted GDP per capita]] is the world's 25th highest. According to the [[International Monetary Fund]] it has an estimated average per capita income of $29,882 for the year 2009,<ref>{{Cite web |title=IMF World Economic Outlook, October 2007. |url=http://imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2008/02/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2008&ey=2008&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&pr1.x=29&pr1.y=12&c=512%2C446%2C914%2C666%2C612%2C668%2C614%2C672%2C311%2C946%2C213%2C137%2C911%2C962%2C193%2C674%2C122%2C676%2C912%2C548%2C313%2C556%2C419%2C678%2C513%2C181%2C316%2C682%2C913%2C684%2C124%2C273%2C339%2C921%2C638%2C948%2C514%2C943%2C218%2C686%2C963%2C688%2C616%2C518%2C223%2C728%2C516%2C558%2C918%2C138%2C748%2C196%2C618%2C278%2C522%2C692%2C622%2C694%2C156%2C142%2C624%2C449%2C626%2C564%2C628%2C283%2C228%2C853%2C924%2C288%2C233%2C293%2C632%2C566%2C636%2C964%2C634%2C182%2C238%2C453%2C662%2C968%2C960%2C922%2C423%2C714%2C935%2C862%2C128%2C716%2C611%2C456%2C321%2C722%2C243%2C942%2C248%2C718%2C469%2C724%2C253%2C576%2C642%2C936%2C643%2C961%2C939%2C813%2C644%2C199%2C819%2C184%2C172%2C524%2C132%2C361%2C646%2C362%2C648%2C364%2C915%2C732%2C134%2C366%2C652%2C734%2C174%2C144%2C328%2C146%2C258%2C463%2C656%2C528%2C654%2C923%2C336%2C738%2C263%2C578%2C268%2C537%2C532%2C742%2C944%2C866%2C176%2C369%2C534%2C744%2C536%2C186%2C429%2C925%2C178%2C746%2C436%2C926%2C136%2C466%2C343%2C112%2C158%2C111%2C439%2C298%2C916%2C927%2C664%2C846%2C826%2C299%2C542%2C582%2C443%2C474%2C917%2C754%2C544%2C698%2C941&s=PPPPC&grp=0&a= World Economic Outlook Database-October 2008}}</ref> a figure slightly higher than that of Italy and Spain. According to [[Eurostat]] data, Greek PPS GDP per capita stood at 95 per cent of the EU average in 2009.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/cache/ITY_PUBLIC/2-25062009-BP/EN/2-25062009-BP-EN.PDF|title=GDP per capita in PPS|publisher=Eurostat|accessdate=25 June 2009}}</ref> According to a survey by ''[[The Economist]]'', the cost of living in Athens is close to 90% of the costs in New York; in rural regions it is lower.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://greece.angloinfo.com/countries/greece/life3.asp |title=Living in Greece – Cost of Living|publisher=Greece.angloinfo.com |date= |accessdate=12 November 2010}}</ref> |
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[[File:Euro banknotes.png|thumb|left|Greece introduced the euro in 2002.]] |
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In Greece, the euro was introduced in 2002. As a preparation for this date, the minting of the new euro coins started as early as 2001, however all Greek euro coins introduced in 2002 have this year on it; unlike some other countries of the [[Eurozone]] where mint year is minted in the coin. Eight different designs, one per face value, was selected for the Greek coins. In 2007, in order to adopt the new common map like the rest of the Eurozone countries, Greece changed the common side of their coins. Before adopting the Euro in 2002 Greece had maintained use of the [[Greek drachma]] from 1832. |
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In 2009, Greece had the EU's second lowest [[Index of Economic Freedom]] (after [[Poland]]), ranking 81<sup>st</sup> in the world.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.heritage.org/Index/Ranking.aspx |title=Country rankings for trade, business, fiscal, monetary, financial, labor and investment freedoms |publisher=Heritage.org |date= |accessdate=27 October 2009}}</ref> The country suffers from high levels of political and economic corruption and low global competitiveness relative to its EU partners.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gFT9P42akY4DsLHpAOMSe5ij4TJwD9AVLEEO0 |title=? }}{{Dead link|date=October 2009}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.weforum.org/pdf/GCR09/GCR20092010fullreport.pdf |title=? }}{{dead link|date=December 2010}}</ref> The Greek economy faces significant problems, including rising unemployment levels and an inefficient government bureaucracy.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12756043&fsrc=rss |title=Premium content |work=The Economist |date=9 December 2008 |accessdate=27 October 2009}}</ref> |
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[[File:GreeceEconomyGDPEnglish.png|thumb|GDP Growth of Greece compared to the [[Eurozone]] between 1996 and 2006.]] |
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Although remaining above the euro area average, economic growth turned negative in 2009 for the first time since 1993.<ref>European Commission, ''Economic Forecast – Spring 2009'', 65</ref>{{Verify source|date=September 2009}} An indication of the trend of over-lending in recent years is the fact that the ratio of loans to savings exceeded 100% during the first half of the year.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://stocks.pathfinder.gr/news/560812.html|title=Ζούμε με δανεικά|language=Greek|date=16 October 2007}}</ref> |
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===2010-2011 Economic Crisis=== |
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{{See also|Economy of Greece#2010 debt crisis|2010 European sovereign debt crisis}} |
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By the end of 2009, as a result of a combination of international and local factors (respectively, the world financial crisis and uncontrolled government spending), the Greek economy faced its [[2010 European sovereign debt crisis|most severe crisis]] since the restoration of democracy in 1974 as the Greek government revised its deficit from an estimated 6% to 12.7% of gross domestic product (GDP).<ref>Matthew Lynn, ''Bust: Greece, the Euro and the Sovereign Debt Crisis'' (2010)</ref><ref>{{Cite news| last = | first = | title = Greece's sovereign-debt crunch: A very European crisis - The Economist | url = http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displaystory.cfm?story_id=15452594 | publisher=| date = 4 February 2010| accessdate = 2 May 2010 }}</ref> In early 2010 it was revealed that successive Greek governments had been found to have consistently and deliberately misreported the country's official economic statistics to keep within the [[Euro convergence criteria|monetary union guidelines]].<ref>{{Cite web| last = | first = | title = EU Stats Office: Greek Economy Figures Unreliable&nbsp;– ABC News | url = http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory?id=9541636 | publisher=| date = | accessdate = 2 May 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web| last = | first = | title = Rehn: No other state will need a bail-out&nbsp;– EU Observer | url = http://euobserver.com/19/30015 | publisher=| date = | accessdate = 6 May 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web| last = | first = | title = Greece Paid Goldman {{Nowrap|$300 Million}} To Help It Hide Its Ballooning Debts&nbsp;– Business Insider | url = http://www.businessinsider.com/henry-blodget-greece-paid-goldman-300-million-to-help-it-hide-its-ballooning-debts-2010-2 | publisher=| date = | accessdate = 6 May 2010 }}</ref> This had enabled Greek governments to spend beyond their means, while hiding the actual deficit from the EU overseers.<ref>{{Cite news| last = | first = | title = Wall St. Helped to Mask Debt Fueling Europe's Crisis |work=The New York Times | url = http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/14/business/global/14debt.html?pagewanted=1&hp | publisher=| date = 14 February 2010| accessdate = 6 May 2010 | first1=Louise | last1=Story | first2=Landon | last2=Thomas Jr | first3=Nelson D. | last3=Schwartz}}</ref> In May 2010, the Greek government deficit was again revised and estimated to be 13.6%<ref>{{Cite web| last = | first = | title = Greek Deficit Revised to 13.6%; Moody's Cuts Rating (Update2)&nbsp;– Bloomberg.com | url = http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601068&sid=aUi3XLUwIIVA | publisher=| date = | accessdate = 2 May 2010 }} |
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</ref> which was one of the highest in the world relative to GDP<ref>{{Cite news| last = | first = | title = Britain's deficit third worst in the world, table&nbsp;– Telegraph | url = http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/financialcrisis/7269629/Britains-deficit-third-worst-in-the-world-table.html | publisher=| date = 19 February 2010| accessdate = 2 May 2010 | location=London | work=The Daily Telegraph}} |
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</ref> and public debt was forecast, according to some estimates, to hit 120% of GDP during 2010,<ref>{{Cite news| last = | first = | title = Greek debt to reach 120.8 pct of GDP in '10&nbsp;– draft| Reuters | url = http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSATH00496420091105 | publisher=| date = 5 November 2009| accessdate = 2 May 2010 }} |
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</ref> [[List of sovereign states by public debt|one of the highest rates in the world]]. |
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As a consequence, there was a crisis in international confidence in Greece's ability to repay its sovereign debt. In order to avert such a default, in May 2010 the other Eurozone countries, and the [[International Monetary Fund]] agreed to a rescue package which involved giving Greece an immediate €{{Nowrap|45 billion}} in bail-out loans, with more funds to follow, totaling €{{Nowrap|110 billion}}.<ref>{{Cite news|author=Gabi Thesing and Flavia Krause-Jackson |title= Greece Gets {{Nowrap|$146 Billion}} Rescue in EU, IMF Package |url= http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=a9f8X9yDMcdI | publisher=Bloomberg |date=3 May 2010 |accessdate=6 May 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|author=Kerin Hope |title= EU puts positive spin on Greek rescue |url= http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/08a87e4e-55c4-11df-b835-00144feab49a.html |work=Financial Times |date=2 May 2010 |accessdate=6 May 2010}}</ref> In order to secure the funding, Greece was required to adopt harsh austerity measures to bring its deficit under control. Their implementation will be monitored and evaluated by the [[European Commission]], the [[European Central Bank]] and the [[International Monetary Fund]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/10099143.stm "Greece's austerity measures"], ''BBC News'', Retrieved 9 May 2010.</ref><ref>[http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/07/greek-parliament-passes-austerity-measures/?src=busln "Greek Parliament Passes Austerity Measures"], ''New York Times''. Retrieved 9 May 2010.</ref> |
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On 15 November 2010, the EU's statistics body Eurostat revised the public finance and debt figure for Greece following an excessive deficit procedure methodological mission in Athens and put Greece's 2009 government deficit at 15.4% of GDP and government debt at 126.8% of GDP making it the biggest deficit (as a percentage of GDP) amongst the EU member nations (although some have speculated that Ireland's in 2010 may prove to be worse).<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.europolitics.info/economy-monetary-affairs/deficits-increase-in-eurozone-and-eu-artb287086-50.html |work=Eurostat |title=Deficits increase in eurozone and EU |first=Eric |last=van Puyvelde |date= Monday 15 November 2010 |accessdate=19 December 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.irishcentral.com/news/Ireland-worse-than-Greece-faces-financial-ruin-say-two-leading-economists--94688524.html |work=IrishCentral.com |title=Ireland worse than Greece, faces financial ruin, say two leading economists |first=Patrick |last=Cooper |date= 23 May 2010 |accessdate=31 December 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.irishcentral.com/news/Ireland-worse-than-Greece-faces-financial-ruin-say-two-leading-economists--94688524.html |work=IrishCentral.com |title=Ireland Now Has A Worse Deficit Problem Than Even Greece |date= 3 October 2010 |accessdate=31 December 2010 }}</ref><ref>((cite web |url=http://timiacono.com/index.php/2010/11/23/ireland-deficit-now-32-of-gdp/ |title=Ireland Deficit Now 32% of GDP? |work=Eurostat |accessdate=30 December 2010}}</ref> |
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===Maritime industry=== |
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{{Main|Greek shipping|List of ports in Greece}} |
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[[File:Piraeus Mikrolimano2.JPG|thumb|left|[[Piraeus]] is the largest marine – based shipping centre of Greece and also the commercial hub of [[Greek shipping]], with most of Greece's shipowners basing their commercial operations there.]] |
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The shipping industry is a key element of Greek economic activity dating back to ancient times.<ref name="shipping">{{Cite web |url=http://www.greece.org/poseidon/work/articles/polemis_one.html |title=The History of Greek Shipping |last=Polemis |first=Spyros M. |publisher=www.greece.org |work=|accessdate=9 April 2007}}</ref> Today, shipping is one of the country's most important industries. It accounts for 4.5% of GDP, employs about 160,000 people (4% of the workforce), and represents 1/3 of the country's trade deficit.<ref name =nbg>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nbg.gr/en/pr_release_resb.asp?P_ID=463 |work=National Bank of Greece |publisher=www.nbg.gr |title=Greek shipping is modernized to remain a global leader and expand its contribution to the Greek economy |
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|date=11 May 2006 |accessdate=8 April 2007| archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20070831114031/http://www.nbg.gr/en/pr_release_resb.asp?P_ID=463| archivedate = 31 August 2007}}</ref> |
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During the 1960s, the size of the Greek fleet nearly doubled, primarily through the investment undertaken by the shipping magnates [[Aristotle Onassis|Onassis]] and [[Stavros Niarchos|Niarchos]].<ref name="slate">{{Cite news |url=http://slate.msn.com/id/2124542/ |title=So Many Greek Shipping Magnates... |last=Engber |first=Daniel |work=Slate |publisher=Washington Post/slate.msn.com |date=17 August 2005 |accessdate=9 April 2007}}</ref> The basis of the modern Greek maritime industry was formed after World War II when Greek shipping businessmen were able to amass surplus ships sold to them by the United States Government through the Ship Sales Act of the 1940s.<ref name=slate/> |
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According to the [[Bureau of Transportation Statistics|BTS]], the Greek-owned maritime fleet is today the largest in the world, with 3,079 vessels accounting for 18% of the world's fleet capacity (making it the largest of any country) with a total [[dead weight tonnage|dwt]] of 141,931 thousand (142 million dwt).<ref name="BTS">{{Cite web |url=http://www.bts.gov/publications/maritime_trade_and_transportation/2002/html/table_01_05.html |title=Top 20 Ranking of World Merchant Fleet by Country of Owner as of 1 January 2001a |publisher=www.bts.gov |work=Bureau of Transportation Statistics |year=2001 |accessdate=8 April 2007}}</ref> In terms of ship categories, Greece ranks first in both [[tanker (ship)|tankers]] and dry [[bulk carrier]]s, fourth in the number of [[container ship|containers]], and fourth in other ships.<ref name=BTS/> However, today's fleet roster is smaller than an all-time high of 5,000 ships in the late 70's.<ref name=shipping/> |
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[[File:12063 - Santorin - Fira de nuit.jpeg|right|thumb|[[Fira]], [[Santorini]].]] |
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===Tourism=== |
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{{Main|Tourism in Greece}} |
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An important percentage of Greece's income comes from tourism. In 2004 Greece welcomed 16.5 million tourists. According to a survey conducted in People's Republic of China in 2005, Greece was voted as the Chinese people's number one choice as a tourist destination,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=5623408&postcount=1 |title=View Single Post – Thank you China! With love from Greece! |publisher=SkyscraperCity |date= |accessdate=22 March 2009}}</ref> and 6,088,287 tourists visited only{{Clarify|date=March 2010}} the city of Athens, the capital city. In November 2006, Austria, like China, announced that Greece was the favourite destination.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.voiceofgreece.gr/OmogeneiaMainNews_en.asp?ID=22066 |title=? }}{{Dead link|date=March 2009}}</ref> |
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===Transport=== |
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{{Main|Transport in Greece}} |
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[[File:A2 Motorway, Greece - Section Ioannina-Driskos - Driskos-Tunnel, southern entry - 03.jpg|thumb|left|[[Egnatia Odos (modern road)|Egnatia]] highway in northern Greece.]] |
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Since the 1980s, the roads and rail network of Greece has been significantly modernized. Important works include the [[Egnatia Odos (modern road)|Egnatia Odos]] that connects northwestern Greece ([[Igoumenitsa]]) with northern and northeastern Greece ([[Kipoi, Evros|Kipoi]]). The [[Rio–Antirrio bridge]], the longest suspension cable bridge in Europe, (2250 m or 7382 ft long) connects the western [[Peloponnese]] from [[Rio, Greece|Rio]] (7 km or 4 mi from [[Patras]]) with [[Antirrio]] in [[Central Greece]]. |
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[[File:BrugPatras.JPG|thumb|right|The [[Rio-Antirio bridge]] near the city of [[Patras]] is the longest [[cable-stayed bridge]] in Europe and second in the world.]] |
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An expansion of the Patras-Athens national motorway towards [[Pyrgos, Ilia|Pyrgos]] in the western Peloponnese is scheduled to be completed by 2014. Most of the highway connection of Athens to Thessaloniki has also been upgraded. |
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The Athens metropolitan area has an [[Athens International Airport|international airport]], the privately run suburban motorway [[Attiki Odos]] and an expanded [[Athens Metro|metro system]]. Most of the Greek islands and many main cities of Greece are connecting by air mainly from the two major airlines of Greece, [[Olympic Air]] and [[Aegean Airlines]]. Maritime connections have been improved with modern high-speed craft, including [[hydrofoils]] and [[catamarans]]. Railway connections play a somewhat lesser role than in many other European countries, but railways too have been expanded, with new suburban connections around Athens, a modern intercity connection between Athens and Thessaloniki, and upgrading to double lines in many parts of the 2500 km (1550 mi) network. International railway lines connect Greek cities with the rest of Europe, the [[Balkans]] and [[Turkey]]. |
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===Communications=== |
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Broadband internet availability is widespread in Greece; there were a total of 2.105.076 broadband connections as of early 2010. This translates to 18.6% broadband penetration.<ref name="cnbc">{{Cite news|url=http://www.adslgr.com/forum/showthread.php?t=431545 |title=? |language=Greek |accessdate=19 December 2010 }}</ref> [[Internet cafes]] that provide net access, office applications and multiplayer gaming are also a common sight in the country, while mobile internet on [[3G]] cellphone networks and public [[Wi-Fi]] connectivity are present, but not as extensively available. |
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===Science and technology=== |
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<!-- {{main|Science and technology in Greece}} --> |
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[[File:NOESIS.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Thessaloniki Science Center and Technology Museum]].]] |
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The [http://www.gsrt.gr/default.asp?V_LANG_ID=2, General Secretariat for Research and Technology] of the [http://www.ypan.gr/index_uk_c_cms.htm Hellenic Ministry of Development] is responsible for designing, implementing and supervising national research and technological policy. In 2003, public spending on R&D was 456.37 million euros (12.6% increase from 2002). Total research and development (R&D) spending (both public and private) as a percentage of GDP has increased considerably since the beginning of the past decade, from 0.38% in 1989, to 0.65% in 2001. R&D spending in Greece remains lower than the EU average of 1.93%, but, according to Research DC, based on OECD and Eurostat data, between 1990 and 1998, total R&D expenditure in Greece enjoyed the third highest increase in Europe, after Finland and Ireland. Because of its strategic location, qualified workforce and political and economic stability, many multinational companies such as [[Ericsson]], [[Siemens AG|Siemens]], [[SAP AG|SAP]], [[Motorola]] and [[Coca-Cola]] have their regional research and development headquarters in Greece. |
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Greece's technology parks with incubator facilities include [http://www.stepc.gr/ the Science and Technology Park of Crete] (Heraklion), the [http://www.thestep.gr/ Thessaloniki Technology Park], the [http://www.ltp.ntua.gr/ Lavrio Technology Park] and the [http://www.psp.org.gr/apps/en/spag/ Patras Science Park]{{dead link|date=November 2010}}.Greece has been a member of the [[European Space Agency]] (ESA) since 2005.<ref name = ESA/> Cooperation between ESA and the Hellenic National Space Committee began in the early 1990s. In 1994, Greece and ESA signed their first cooperation agreement. Having formally applied for full membership in 2003, Greece became ESA's sixteenth member on 16 March 2005. As member of the ESA, Greece participates in the agency's telecommunication and technology activities, and the [[Global Monitoring for Environment and Security]] Initiative. |
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==Demographics== |
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{{Main|Demographics of Greece|Greeks}} |
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{{See|Greek diaspora}} |
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[[File:Nafplion view from Palamidi castle.JPG|right|thumb|Panorama of [[Nafplion]], first capital of modern Greece.]] |
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The official Statistical body of Greece is the [[National Statistical Service of Greece]] (NSSG). According to the NSSG, Greece's total population in 2001 was 10,964,020.<ref name="nssg">{{Cite web |url=http://www.statistics.gr/eng_tables/hellas_in_numbers_eng.pdf |title=Greece in Numbers |work=National Statistical Service of Greece |publisher=www.statistis.gr |year=2006 |accessdate=14 December 2007|format=PDF| archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20071124142319/http://www.statistics.gr/eng_tables/hellas_in_numbers_eng.pdf| archivedate = 24 November 2007}}</ref> That figure is divided into 5,427,682 males and 5,536,338 females.<ref name=nssg/> As statistics from 1971, 1981, and 2001 show, the Greek population has been aging the past several decades.<ref name=nssg/> |
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The birth rate in 2003 stood 9.5 per 1,000 inhabitants (14.5 per 1,000 in 1981). At the same time the mortality rate increased slightly from 8.9 per 1,000 inhabitants in 1981 to 9.6 per 1,000 inhabitants in 2003. In 2001, 16.71% of the population were 65 years old and older, 68.12% between the ages of 15 and 64 years old, and 15.18% were 14 years old and younger.<ref name=nssg/> |
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Greek society has also rapidly changed with the passage of time. Marriage rates kept falling from almost 71 per 1,000 inhabitants in 1981 until 2002, only to increase slightly in 2003 to 61 per 1,000 and then fall again to 51 in 2004.<ref name=nssg/> Divorce rates on the other hand, have seen an increase – from 191.2 per 1,000 marriages in 1991 to 239.5 per 1,000 marriages in 2004.<ref name=nssg/> Almost two-thirds of the [[Greeks|Greek people]] live in urban areas. Greece's largest municipalities in 2001 were: Athens, [[Thessaloniki]], [[Piraeus]], [[Patras]], [[Iraklio]], [[Larissa]], and [[Volos]].<ref name="cities">{{Cite web |url=http://www.statistics.gr/Athena2001/Athena2001.ASP?wcu=$cmd=0$id=5200712142356520314915 |title=Athena 2001 Census |work=National Statistical Service of Greece |accessdate=14 December 2007 |publisher=www.statistics.gr| archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20080117231653/http://www.statistics.gr/Athena2001/Athena2001.ASP?wcu=$cmd=0$id=5200712142356520314915| archivedate = 17 January 2008}}</ref> |
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Throughout the 20th century, millions of Greeks migrated to the [[Greek American|United States]], [[Greek Britons|United Kingdom]], [[Greek Australian|Australia]], [[Greek Canadians|Canada]], and [[Greeks in Germany|Germany]], creating a thriving [[Greek diaspora]]. The migration trend however has now been reversed after the important improvements of the Greek economy since the 80's. |
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{{Largest cities of Greece}} |
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[[File:Rhodes harbour.jpg|thumb|View of the harbour of [[Rhodes (city)]], capital of [[Dodecanese]].]] |
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[[File:Syros ermoupolis 140707.jpg|thumb|The [[Hermoupolis]] port in the island of [[Syros]] is the capital of the [[Cyclades]].]] |
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===Immigration=== |
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{{Main|Immigration to Greece|Minorities in Greece}} |
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Due to the complexity of Greek immigration policy, practices and data collection, truly reliable data on [[Immigration to Greece|immigrant populations]] in Greece is difficult to gather and therefore subject to much speculation. In 1986, legal and unauthorized immigrants totaled approximately 90,000. A study from the [http://www.mmo.gr/ Mediterranean Migration Observatory] maintains that the 2001 Census from the NSSG recorded 762,191 persons residing in Greece without Greek citizenship, constituting around 7% of total population and that, of these, 48,560 were EU or [[European Free Trade Association|EFTA]] nationals and 17,426 Cypriots with privileged status. People from the Balkan countries of Albania (56%), Bulgaria (5%), and Romania (3%) make up almost two-thirds of the total foreign population. Migrants from the former Soviet Union (Georgia, Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, etc.) comprise 10% of the total.<ref>[http://www.migrationinformation.org/Profiles/display.cfm?ID=228 Greece: A History of Migration] Charalambos Kasimis and Chryssa Kassimi, ''Migration Information Source.'' June 2004.</ref> The greatest cluster of non-EU immigrant population is in the Municipality of Athens –some 132,000 immigrants, at 17% of local population. Thessaloniki is the second largest cluster, with 27,000, reaching 7% of local population. After this, the predominant areas of location are the big cities environs and the agricultural areas. |
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[[File:50 largest Greek diaspora.png|thumb|180px|left|Map of the top 50 countries with the largest Greek communities]] |
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According to the same study, the foreign population (documented and undocumented) residing in Greece may in reality figure upwards to 8.5% or 10.3%, that is approximately meaning 1.15 million – if immigrants with ''homogeneis'' cards are accounted for. |
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Greece is a gateway for the entry of illegal immigrants to Europe. The Cabinet has approved a draft law that would allow children born in Greece to parents who are immigrants, one of whom must have been living in the country legally for at least 5 consecutive years to apply for Greek citizenship.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://diavatirio.net/diavat/news.php |title=Διαβατήριο – Διαδικτυακό περιοδικό για μετανάστες Ελληνοαλβανικός Σύνδεσμος Φιλίας Σωκράτης: Ειδήσεις |publisher=Diavatirio.net |date= |accessdate=12 November 2010}}</ref> The government, despite strong objections from oppositions is determined to pass the bill. The main objective is to facilitate the smooth integration of legal immigrants and their children in the Greek social reality. The basic criteria remain the legality of residence and children's participation in Greek culture. For the same reason, moreover, long-term residents, political refugees and expatriates will be allowed to participate in local elections. |
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=== Religion === |
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{{Main|Religion in Greece}} |
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[[File:Flag of the Greek Orthodox Church.svg|thumb|180px|Flag of the [[Greek Orthodox Church]].]] |
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[[File:Meteora Agios Triadas IMG 7632.jpg|thumb|180px|Holy Trinity monastery, in [[Meteora]], central Greece.]] |
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The constitution of Greece recognizes the [[Orthodox Church|Orthodox faith]] as the "prevailing" of the country, while guaranteeing freedom of religious belief for all.<ref name="con51,53"/> The Greek Government does not keep statistics on religious groups and censuses do not ask for religious affiliation. According to the State Department, an estimated 97% of Greek citizens identify themselves as [[Orthodox Church|Orthodox Christians]], belonging to the [[Greek Orthodox Church]].<ref name="religion">{{Cite web |url=http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90178.htm |title=International Religious Freedom Report 2007: Greece |publisher=state.gov |work=US Dept. of State/Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor |date=15 September 2006 |accessdate=14 April 2007}}</ref> In the [[Eurostat]] – [[Eurobarometer]] poll of 2005, 81% of Greek citizens responded that they ''believe there is a God'',<ref name="eurostat">{{Cite web |url=http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_225_report_en.pdf |title=Eurobarometer: Social values, science, and technology |work=Eurobarometer |publisher=europa.eu.int |date=2005-06 |accessdate=14 April 2007|format=PDF}}</ref> which was the third highest percentage among EU members behind only Malta and Cyprus.<ref name=eurostat/> According to other sources, 15.8% of [[Greeks]] describe themselves as ''very religious'', which is the highest among all European countries. The survey also found that just 3.5% never attend a church, compared to 4.9% in Poland and 59.1% in the Czech Republic.<ref name="forskning.no">{{Cite web |url=http://www.forskning.no/artikler/2005/oktober/1128932447.69 |title=Dagens ESS: Religiøsitet og kirkebesøk |publisher=www.forskning.no |language=Norwegian |date=11 October 2005 |accessdate=11 September 2010}}</ref> |
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Estimates of the recognized [[Muslim minority of Greece|Muslim minority]], which is mostly located in [[Thrace]], range from 98,000 to 140,000,<ref name=religion/><ref name=religion2/> (between 0.9% and 1.2%) while the immigrant Muslim community numbers between 200,000 and 300,000. Albanian immigrants to Greece are usually associated with the Muslim religion, although most are [[secular]] in orientation.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2006/71383.htm |title=Greece |publisher=State.gov |date=26 August 2005 |accessdate=6 January 2009}}</ref> Following the [[Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922)|Greco-Turkish War]] of 1919–1922 and the 1923 [[Treaty of Lausanne]] Greece and Turkey agreed to a [[Population exchange between Greece and Turkey|population transfer based on cultural and religious identity]]. About 500,000 Muslims from Greece, predominantly [[Turkish people|Turks]], but also other Muslims, were exchanged with approximately 1,500,000 Greeks from [[Anatolia|Asia Minor]] (now Turkey).<ref>[http://countrystudies.us/turkey/24.htm Turkey – Population]. Source: ''U.S. Library of Congress.''</ref> |
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Athens is the only EU capital without a purpose-built place of worship for its Muslim population.<ref>{{Cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/5190256.stm |publisher=BBC News | title=Athens Muslims to get a mosque | date=18 July 2006 | accessdate=10 April 2010 | first=Andrew | last=Burroughs}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news| url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/05/world/europe/05iht-greek.1.6505511.html | work=The New York Times | first=Niki | last=Kitsantonis | date=6 July 2007 | accessdate=10 April 2010 | title=Muslims in Athens build their own mosque}}</ref> |
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Judaism has [[History of the Jews in Greece|existed]] in Greece for more than 2,000 years. [[Sephardi Jews]] used to have a large presence in the city of [[Thessaloniki]] (by 1900, some 80,000, or more than half of the population, were Jews),<ref>[http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/vjw/Greece.html Greece]. Jewish Virtual Library.</ref> but nowadays the Greek-Jewish community who survived German occupation and [[the Holocaust]], during World War II, is estimated to number around 5,500 people.<ref name=religion/><ref name=religion2/> |
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Greek members of Roman Catholic faith are estimated at 50,000<ref name=religion/><ref name=religion2/> with the Roman Catholic immigrant community approximating 200,000.<ref name=religion/> [[Greek Old Calendarists|Old Calendarists]] account for 500,000 followers.<ref name="religion2">{{Cite web |url=http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/fundamental_rights/pdf/aneval/religion_el.pdf |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20070605013415/http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/fundamental_rights/pdf/aneval/religion_el.pdf |archivedate=5 June 2007 |title=Executive Summary Discrimination on the grounds of religion and belief Greece |publisher=ec.europa.eu |work=Dr Ioannis Ktistakis & Dr Nicholas Sitaropoulos |date=22 June 2004 |accessdate=14 April 2007|format=PDF}}</ref> [[Protestants]], including [[Greek Evangelical Church]] and [[Free Evangelical Churches]], stand at about 30,000.<ref name=religion/><ref name=religion2/> [[Assemblies of God]], [[International Church of the Foursquare Gospel]] and other [[Pentecostalism|Pentecostal]] churches of the [[Greek Synod of Apostolic Church]] has 12,000 members.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.pentecost.gr/English/history.htm |title=Synod of Apostolic Church of Christ |publisher=Pentecost.gr |date= |accessdate=22 March 2009}}</ref> Independent [[Free Apostolic Church of Pentecost]] is the biggest Protestant denomination in Greece with 120 churches.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.christianity.gr/church/addresses.php |title=Church addresses from the Official Site – in Greek |publisher=Christianity.gr |date= |accessdate=22 March 2009| archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20080421172048/http://www.christianity.gr/church/addresses.php| archivedate = 21 April 2008}}</ref> There are not official statistics about Free Apostolic Church of Pentecost, but the Orthodox Church estimates the followers as 20,000.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.egolpio.com/PENTECOSTAL/freechurpentecost.htm |title=Orthodox estimate – in Greek |publisher=Egolpio.com |date= |accessdate=22 March 2009}}</ref> The [[Jehovah's Witnesses]] report having 28,859 active members.<ref name=religion/><ref name=religion2/><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://watchtower.org/e/statistics/worldwide_report.htm |title=2009 Report |publisher=Watchtower.org |date= |accessdate=16 December 2010}}</ref> |
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===Languages=== |
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{{Main|Languages of Greece|Minorities in Greece}} |
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[[File:Greece linguistic minorities.svg|thumb|left|180px|Regions with a traditional presence of languages other than Greek. Greek is today spoken as the dominant language throughout the country.<ref>See Ethnologue {{Cite web |url=http://www.ethnologue.com/show_map.asp?name=GR&seq=10 |title=Languages of Greece |publisher=ethnologue.com |accessdate=19 December 2010 }}; Euromosaic, ''Le (slavo)macédonien / bulgare en Grèce'', ''L'arvanite / albanais en Grèce'', ''Le valaque/aromoune-aroumane en Grèce'', and Mercator-Education: European Network for Regional or Minority Languages and Education, ''The Turkish language in education in Greece''. cf. also P. Trudgill, "Greece and European Turkey: From Religious to Linguistic Identity", in S Barbour, C Carmichael (eds.), ''Language and nationalism in Europe'', Oxford University Press 2000.</ref>]] |
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The first concrete evidence of the Greek language dates back to 15th century BC and the [[Linear B]] script which is associated with the [[Mycenaean Greece|Mycenaean Civilization]]. Greek was a widely spoken [[lingua franca]] in the Mediterranean world and beyond during [[Classical Antiquity]], and would eventually become the official parlance of the [[Byzantine Empire]]. During the 19th and 20th centuries there was a major dispute known as [[Greek language question]], on whether the official language of Greece should be the archaic [[Katharevousa]], created in the 19th century and used as the state and scholarly language, or the [[Dimotiki]], the form of the [[Greek language]] which evolved naturally from [[Byzantine Greek language|Byzantine Greek]] and was the language of the people. The dispute was finally resolved in 1976, when Dimotiki was made the only official variation of the [[Greek language]], and [[Katharevousa]] fell to disuse. |
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Greece is today relatively homogeneous in linguistic terms, with a large majority of the native population using Greek as their first or only language. Among the Greek-speaking population, speakers of the distinctive [[Pontic Greek|Pontic]] dialect came to Greece from Asia Minor after the [[Greek genocide]] and constitute a sizable group. |
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The [[Muslim minority of Greece|Muslim minority]] in Thrace, which amounts to approximately 0.95% of the total population, consists of speakers of [[Turkish language|Turkish]], [[Bulgarian language|Bulgarian]] ([[Pomaks]])<ref>P. Trudgill, "Greece and European Turkey: From Religious to Linguistic Identity", in S Barbour, C Carmichael (eds.), ''Language and nationalism in Europe'', Oxford University Press 2000.</ref> and [[Romani language|Romani]]. Romani is also spoken by Christian [[Romani people|Roma]] in other parts of the country. Further minority languages have traditionally been spoken by regional population groups in various parts of the country. Their use has decreased radically in the course of the 20th century through assimilation with the Greek-speaking majority. Today they are only maintained by the older generations and are on the verge of extinction. This goes for the [[Arvanites]], an [[Albanian language|Albanian]]-speaking group mostly located in the rural areas around the capital Athens, and for the [[Aromanians]] and [[Megleno-Romanians|Moglenites]], also known as [[Vlachs]], whose language is closely related to [[Romanian language|Romanian]] and who used to live scattered across several areas of mountaneous central Greece. Members of these groups ethnically identify as Greeks<ref>[http://dev.eurac.edu:8085/mugs2/do/blob.html?type=html&serial=1044526702223 Greek Helsinki Monitor]{{dead link|date=November 2010}}, Minority Rights Group, Greece, Report about Compliance with the Principles of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (along guidelines for state reports according to Article 25.1 of the Convention) 8 September 1999</ref> and are today all at least bilingual in Greek. |
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Near the northern Greek borders there are also some [[Slavic languages|Slavic]]-speaking groups, whose members identify ethnically as Greeks in their majority. Their dialects can be linguistically classified as forms of either [[Macedonian language|Macedonian Slavic]] (locally called ''Slavomacedonian'' or simply ''Slavic'' to distinguish it from [[Modern_Greek_dialects#Spoken_dialects|Macedonian Greek]]) or [[Bulgarian language|Bulgarian]].<ref name="Bulgarian language">{{cite web| url = http://www.omniglot.com/writing/bulgarian.htm |
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| title = Bulgarian language | work = Omniglot-Writing systems&Languages of the World| accessdate = 17 октомври 2010 | ref = harv}}</ref><ref name="The Bulgarian language">{{cite web| url =http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/language/about/bulgarian.html |
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| title = The Bulgarian language | work = Kwintessential| accessdate = 17 октомври 2010 | ref = harv}}</ref> It is estimated that in the aftermath of the population exchanges of 1923 there were somewhere between 200,000 and 400,000 Slavic speakers in Greek Macedonia.<ref name="minorities"/> The Jewish community in Greece traditionally spoke [[Ladino language|Ladino]] (Judeo-Spanish), today maintained only by a small group of a few thousand speakers. |
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===Education=== |
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{{Main|Education in Greece}} |
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[[File:Athens academy.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Academy of Athens (modern)|Academy of Athens]] is Greece's [[national academy]] and the highest research establishment in the country.]] |
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[[File:Aristotle University-Faculty of Education.png|thumb|190px|The Faculty of Education of [[Aristotle University of Thessaloniki|Aristotle University of]] [[Thessaloniki]].]] |
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Compulsory education in Greece comprises primary schools (Δημοτικό Σχολείο, ''Dimotikó Scholeio'') and [[gymnasium (school)|gymnasium]] (Γυμνάσιο). Nursery schools (Παιδικός σταθμός, ''Paidikós Stathmós'') are popular but not compulsory. [[Kindergarten]]s (Νηπιαγωγείο, ''Nipiagogeío'') are now compulsory for any child above 4 years of age. Children start primary school aged 6 and remain there for six years. Attendance at gymnasia starts at age 12 and last for three years. |
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Greece's post-compulsory secondary education consists of two school types: unified upper secondary schools (Ενιαίο Λύκειο, ''Eniaia Lykeia'') and [[technical school|technical]]–[[vocational school|vocational]] educational schools (Τεχνικά και Επαγγελματικά Εκπαιδευτήρια, "TEE"). Post-compulsory secondary education also includes vocational training institutes (Ινστιτούτα Επαγγελματικής Κατάρτισης, "IEK") which provide a formal but unclassified level of education. As they can accept both ''Gymnasio'' (lower secondary school) and ''Lykeio'' (upper secondary school) graduates, these institutes are not classified as offering a particular level of education. |
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Public higher education is divided into [[university|universities]], "Highest Educational Institutions" (Ανώτατα Εκπαιδευτικά Ιδρύματα, ''Anótata Ekpaideytiká Idrýmata'', "ΑΕΙ") and "Highest Technological Educational Institutions" (Ανώτατα Τεχνολογικά Εκπαιδευτικά Ιδρύματα, ''Anótata Technologiká Ekpaideytiká Idrýmata'', "ATEI"). Students are admitted to these Institutes according to their performance at national level examinations taking place after completion of the third grade of ''Lykeio''. Additionally, students over twenty-two years old may be admitted to the [[Hellenic Open University]] through a form of lottery. The [[National and Capodistrian University of Athens|Capodistrian university of Athens]] is the oldest university in the eastern Mediterranean. |
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The Greek education system also provides special kindergartens, primary and secondary schools for people with special needs or difficulties in learning. Specialist gymnasia and high schools offering musical, theological and physical education also exist. |
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==Culture== |
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{{Main|Culture of Greece|List of Greeks}} |
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[[File:Amphitheatre in Epidavros.jpg|thumb|The ancient theatre of [[Epidaurus]] is nowadays used for staging ancient Greek drama shows.]] |
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The culture of Greece has evolved over thousands of years, with its beginnings in [[Mycenaean Greece|the Mycenaean and Minoan Civilizations]], continuing most notably into [[Classical Greece]], the [[Hellenistic Period]], through the influence of the [[Roman Empire]] and its [[Greek East]]ern successor the [[Byzantine Empire]]. The [[Ottoman Empire]] too had a significant influence on Greek culture, but the [[Greek War of Independence]] is credited with revitalizing Greece and giving birth to a single entity of its multi-faceted culture throughout the ages. |
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===Philosophy=== |
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{{Main|Ancient Greek philosophy}} |
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Most western philosophical traditions began in ancient Greece in the 6th century BC.The first philosophers are called "Presocratics" which designates that they came before Socrates. The Presocratics were from the western or the eastern colonies of Greece and only fragments of the original writings of the presocratics survive, in some cases merely a single sentence. |
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A new period of philosophy started with [[Socrates]]. Like the [[Sophists]], he rejected entirely the physical speculations in which his predecessors had indulged, and made the thoughts and opinions of people his starting-point. Aspects of Socrates were first united from [[Plato]], who also combined with them many of the principles established by earlier philosophers, and developed the whole of this material into the unity of a comprehensive system. |
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[[Aristotle]] of [[Stagira]], the most important disciple of Plato, shared with his teacher the title of the greatest philosopher of antiquity but while Plato had sought to elucidate and explain things from the supra-sensual standpoint of the forms, his pupil preferred to start from the facts given us by experience. Except from these three most significant Greek philosophers other known schools of [[Greek philosophy]] from other founders during ancient times were [[Stoicism]], [[Epicureanism]], [[Skepticism]] and [[Neoplatonism]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.iep.utm.edu/g/greekphi.htm |title=Greek philosophy from the Internet encyclopedia of philosophy}}</ref> |
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===Literature=== |
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{{Main|Greek Literature|Ancient Greek literature}} |
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[[File:Thermopyles.jpg|thumb|170px|The manuscript of the poem "Thermopyles" (Θερμοπύλες) by [[Constantine P. Cavafy]]. Cavafy's poems are, typically, concise but intimate evocations of real or literary figures and ''milieux'' that have played roles in Greek culture. He is considered probably the greatest modern Greek poet.]] |
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The timeline of the Greek literature can be separated into three big periods: the ancient, the Byzantine and the modern Greek literature. |
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At the beginning of Greek literature stand the two monumental works of [[Homer]]: the ''[[Iliad]]'' and the ''[[Odyssey]]''. Though dates of composition vary, these works were fixed around 800 BC or after. In the classical period many of the genres of western literature became more prominent. [[Lyrical poetry]], [[ode]]s, [[pastorals]], [[elegy|elegies]], [[epigrams]]; dramatic presentations of comedy and [[tragedy]]; [[historiography]], [[rhetorical]] treatises, philosophical dialectics, and philosophical treatises all arose in this period.The two major lyrical poets were [[Sappho]] and [[Pindar]]. |
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The Classical era also saw the dawn of drama. |
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[[File:Adamantios Korais.jpg|thumb|left|190px|[[Adamantios Korais]].]] |
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Of the hundreds of [[tragedies]] written and performed during the classical age, only a limited number of plays by three authors have survived: those of [[Aeschylus]], [[Sophocles]], and [[Euripides]]. The surviving plays by [[Aristophanes]] are also a treasure trove of comic presentation, while [[Herodotus]] and [[Thucydides]] are two of the most influential historians in this period. |
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The greatest prose achievement of the 4th century was in philosophy with the works of the three great philosophers. |
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[[Byzantine literature]] refers to literature of the [[Byzantine Empire]] written in [[Attic Greek|Atticizing]], [[Medieval]] and early [[Modern Greek]], and it is the expression of the intellectual life of the [[Byzantine Greeks]] during the Christian [[Middle Ages]]. |
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[[Modern Greek literature]] refers to literature written in common Modern Greek, emerging from late Byzantine times in the 11th century AD. The Cretan Renaissance poem ''[[Erotokritos]]'' is undoubtedly the masterpiece of this period of Greek literature. It is a verse [[romance (genre)|romance]] written around 1600 by [[Vitsentzos Kornaros]] (1553–1613). Later, during the period of [[Diafotismos|Greek enlightenment (Diafotismos)]], writers such as [[Adamantios Korais]] and [[Rigas Feraios]] will prepare with their works the [[Greek War of Independence|Greek Revolution]] (1821–1830). |
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Contemporary Greek literature is representated by many writers, poets and novelists: [[Dionysios Solomos]], [[Andreas Kalvos]], [[Angelos Sikelianos]], [[Emmanuel Rhoides]], [[Kostis Palamas]], [[Penelope Delta]], [[Yannis Ritsos]], [[Alexandros Papadiamantis]], [[Nikos Kazantzakis]], [[Andreas Embeirikos]], [[Kostas Karyotakis]], [[Gregorios Xenopoulos]], [[Constantine P. Cavafy]], [[Demetrius Vikelas]], while [[George Seferis]] and [[Odysseas Elytis]] have been awarded the [[Nobel Prize in Literature]]. |
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===Cuisine=== |
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{{Main|Greek cuisine}} |
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[[File:GreekSalad.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Greek salad]] with additional ingredients.]] |
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[[Greek cuisine]] is as an example of the healthy [[Mediterranean diet]] ([[Cretan diet]]).<ref>Sari Edelstein "Food, Cuisine, and Cultural Competency for Culinary, Hospitality, and Nutrition Professionals" [http://books.google.com/books?id=lj0CeaIIETkC&pg=PA147&dq=Greek+Cuisine:+A+Cultural+History&hl=en&ei=WC1MTY72M8Sblgf2nYTiDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CC0Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Greek%20Cuisine&f=false (pg.147-149)]</ref> Greek cuisine incorporates fresh ingredients into a variety of local dishes such as [[moussaka]], [[stifado]], [[Greek Salad]], [[spanakopita]] and the world famous [[Souvlaki]]. Some dishes can be traced back to ancient Greece like [[skordalia]]{{Citation needed|date=June 2010}} (a thick purée of potatoes, walnuts, almonds, crushed garlic and olive oil), [[lentil]] [[soup]], [[retsina]] (white or rosé wine sealed with pine resin) and pasteli (candy bar with sesame seeds baked with honey). Throughout Greece people often enjoy eating from small dishes such as [[meze]] with various dips such as [[tzatziki]], grilled [[octopus]] and small fish, [[feta cheese]], [[dolmades]] (rice, currants and pine kernels wrapped in vine leaves), various [[pulses]], [[olive]]s and cheese. [[Olive oil]] is added to almost every dish. |
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Sweet desserts such as [[galaktoboureko]], and drinks such as [[ouzo]], [[metaxa]] and a variety of wines including [[retsina]]. Greek cuisine differs widely from different parts of the mainland and from island to island. It uses some flavorings more often than other Mediterranean cuisines: [[oregano]], [[Mentha|mint]], [[garlic]], onion, [[dill]] and [[bay laurel]] leaves. Other common herbs and spices include [[basil]], [[thyme]] and [[fennel]] seed. Many Greek recipes, especially in the northern parts of the country, use "sweet" spices in combination with meat, for example [[cinnamon]] and [[cloves]] in stews. |
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===Music=== |
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{{Main|Music of Greece}} |
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[[File:Mikis2004.jpg|thumb|160px|[[Mikis Theodorakis]], one of the most popular Greek songwriters.]] |
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Greek vocal music extends far back into Ancient times where mixed-gender choruses performed for entertainment, celebration and spiritual reasons. Instruments during that period included the double-reed [[aulos]] and the plucked string instrument, the [[lyre]], especially the special kind called a [[kithara]]. Music played an important role in the education system during ancient times. Boys were taught music from the age of six. Later influences from the [[Roman Empire]], Eastern Europe, and the [[Byzantine Empire]] changed Greek music. |
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While the new technique of polyphony was developing in the West, the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] resisted any type of change. Therefore, [[Byzantine music]] remained monophonic and without any form of instrumental accompaniment. As a result, and despite certain attempts by certain Greek chanters (such as Manouel Gazis, Ioannis Plousiadinos or the Cypriot Ieronimos o Tragodistis) Byzantine music was deprived of elements of which in the West encouraged an unimpeded development of art. However, the isolation of [[Byzantium]] after 1453, which kept music away from polyphony, along with centuries of continuous culture, enabled monophonic music to develop to the greatest heights of perfection. Byzantium presented the monophonic [[Byzantine chant]]; a melodic treasury of inestimable value for its rhythmical variety and expressive power. |
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[[File:Sfakia-dance.jpg|thumb|left|[[Cretan]] dancers of traditional music.]] |
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Along with the Byzantine chant, the Greek people also cultivated the [[Greek folk music|Greek folk song]] which is divided into two cycles, the [[Acritic songs|akritic]] and [[klephtic song|klephtic]]. The akritic was created between the 9th and 10th centuries A.D. and expressed the life and struggles of the [[akrites]] (frontier guards) of the Byzantine empire, the most well known being the stories associated with [[Digenis Acritas|Digenes Akritas]]. The klephtic cycle came into being between the late Byzantine period and the start of the [[Greek War of Independence]] struggle in 1821. The klephtic cycle, together with historical songs, ''paraloghes'' (narrative song or ballad), love songs, wedding songs, songs of exile and dirges express the life of the Greeks. There is a unity between the Greek people's struggles for freedom, their joys and sorrow and attitudes towards love and death. |
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The Second World War, German occupation of Greece and the Greek Civil War decisively influenced the Greek folk song. After the first World War and the 1922 debacle, the trend towards urban living focused on Athens where popular musicians congregated and, in 1928, founded their own professional society: the Athens and Piraeus Musicians Society. Until the early years of this century, musical tradition was preserved in the villages where there was little contact with the outside world. |
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The events and social changes of the 20th century changed Greek folk song. Once the seat of folk song was the village, now the reverse applies.{{Clarify|It is not apparent what the 'reverse' of 'village' is.|date=November 2010}} The commercialised folk song spreads in all directions to the remotest villages. The authentic songs and dances have been replaced by the stylised modern "folk songs" written by contemporary musicians which they write new lyrics to authentic folk tunes, changing them enough to ensure copyright protection. |
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===Sports=== |
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{{Multiple image |
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| image1 = Panathenaic Stadium 1896 oppening.jpg |
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| image2 = Athens 2004 Main Olympic Stadium.jpg |
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| caption2 = [[Panathinaiko Stadium|Panathenaic Stadium]] at the first day of the 1896 Summer Olympics (top) and the [[Olympic Stadium (Athens)|Olympic Stadium of Athens]], during the 2004 games (bottom). |
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}} |
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{{Main|Sport in Greece}} |
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Greece is the birth place of the [[Olympic Games]]. The Panathenian stadium in Athens hosted the [[1896 Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]] in 1896. It had also hosted Olympic Games in 1870 and 1875 (see [[Evangelis Zappas]]). The Panathenian stadium also hosted the Games in 1906 and was used to host events at the [[2004 Summer Olympics]]. |
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The [[Greece national football team|Greek national football team]], ranked 12th in the [[FIFA World Rankings|world]] in 2009,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/ranking/lastranking/gender=m/fullranking.html |title=FIFA World Rankings |publisher=www.fifa.com |work=FIFA |accessdate=23 July 2009 |month=July | year=2009}}</ref> won the [[UEFA Euro 2004]] in one of the biggest surprises in the history of the sport.<ref name="Euro2004">{{Cite news |last=McNulty |first=Phil |title=Greece win Euro 2004 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/euro_2004/3860105.stm |publisher=BBC News |accessdate=7 May 2007 |date=4 July 2004}}</ref> The [[Super League Greece|Greek Super League]] is the highest professional football league in the country comprising 16 teams. The most successful are [[Olympiacos F.C.|Olympiacos]], [[Panathinaikos FC|Panathinaikos]] and [[AEK Athens F.C.|AEK Athens]]. |
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The [[Greece national basketball team|Greek national basketball team]] has a decades-long tradition of excellence in the sport. In August 2008, it ranked 4th in the [[FIBA World Rankings|world]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/even/rank/rankMen.asp |title=Ranking Men after Olympic Games: Tournament Men (2008) |month=August | year=2008 |accessdate=24 August 2008 |work=International Basketball Federation}}</ref> They have won the [[EuroBasket|European Championship]] twice in [[EuroBasket 1987|1987]] and [[EuroBasket 2005|2005]],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wilkinson |first=Simon |url=http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2172612 |title=Greece tops Germany for Euro Title |accessdate=7 May 2007 |date=26 September 2005 |publisher=ESPN |work=ESPN}}</ref> and have reached the final four in three of the last four [[FIBA World Championship]]s, taking second place in 2006. In 2009, Greece beat France in the [[FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship|under-20 European Basketball championship]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.usatoday.com/sports/basketball/2009-07-26-108192511_x.htm |title=Greece beats France to win under-20 European title |work=USA Today |date=26 July 2009 |accessdate=2 August 2009}}</ref> The domestic top basketball league, [[A1 Ethniki]], is composed of fourteen teams. The most successful Greek teams are [[Panathinaikos BC|Panathinaikos]], [[Olympiacos B.C.|Olympiacos]], [[AEK Athens B.C.|AEK Athens]]. [[Water polo]] and volleyball are also practiced widely in Greece while [[cricket]] and [[team handball|handball]] are relatively popular in [[Corfu]] and [[Veroia]] respectively. |
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===Mythology=== |
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{{Main|Greek mythology}} |
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==See also== |
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{{Portal box|Greece|European Union}} |
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{{Main|Outline of Greece|Index of Greece-related articles}} |
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* [[Name days in Greece]] |
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{{Template group |
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|title = Articles related to Greece |
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|list = |
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{{Greece topics|state=expanded}} |
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{{Template group |
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|title = Geographic locale |
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|list = |
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{{Sovereign states of Europe}} |
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{{Countries and territories bordering the Mediterranean Sea}} |
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{{Balkan countries}} |
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}} |
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{{Template group |
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|title = International membership |
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|list = |
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{{Members of the European Union (EU)}} |
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{{Council of Europe}} |
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{{North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO)}} |
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{{Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development}} |
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{{World Trade Organization}} |
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{{Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation}} |
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{{La Francophonie|state=collapsed}} |
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}} |
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{{Ancient Greece topics}} |
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{{National personifications}} |
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}} |
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==References== |
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{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}} |
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{{Reflist|colwidth=30em|group="note"}} |
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;Bibliography |
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* {{Cite book |last=Dagtoglou |first=P.D. |title=Constitutional Law – Individual Rights – Volume I |year=1991 |publisher=Ant. N. Sakkoulas Publishers |location=Athens-Komotini |language=Greek |chapter=Protection of Individual Rights}} |
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* {{Cite book |last=Mavrias |first=Kostas G. |title=Constitutional Law |year=2002 |publisher=Ant. N. Sakkoulas Publishers |location=Athens |language=Greek |isbn=978-960-15-0663-0}} |
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* {{Cite book |title=The Constitution of Greece |url=http://www.hellenicparliament.gr/UserFiles/f3c70a23-7696-49db-9148-f24dce6a27c8/001-156%20aggliko.pdf |accessdate=21 March 2011 |year=2008 |publisher=Hellenic Parliament |location=Athens |isbn=978-960-560-073-0|format=PDF |author=translated by Xenophon Paparrigopoulos, Stavroula Vassilouni}} |
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* {{Cite book |last=Venizelos |first=Evangelos |authorlink=Evangelos Venizelos |title=The "Acquis" of the Constitutional Revision |year=2002 |publisher=Ant. N. Sakkoulas Publishers |location=Athens |language=Greek |isbn=978-960-15-0617-3|chapter=The Contribution of the Revision of 2001}} |
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* {{Cite journal |last=Pappas |first=Takis |year=2003 |month=April |title=The Transformation of the Greek Party System Since 1951 |journal=[[West European Politics (WEP)|West European Politics]]|volume=26 |issue=2|pages=90–114|doi=10.1080/01402380512331341121|url=http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/routledg/wep/2003/00000026/00000002/art00005|accessdate=8 June 2008}} |
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* {{Cite document |first=Richard |last=Clogg |title=A Concise History of Greece |edition=Second |location= |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2002 |isbn= |postscript= }}. |
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* Kalaitzidis, Akis. ''Europe's Greece: A Giant in the Making'' (Palgrave Macmillan; 2010) 219 pages; $85. the impact of European Union membership on Greek politics, economics, and society. |
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* Minorities in Greece – historical issues and new perspectives. History and Culture of South Eastern Europe. An Annual Journal. München (Slavica) 2003. |
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==External links== |
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{{Sister project links|Greece}} |
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; Government |
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* [http://www.presidency.gr/ President of the Hellenic Republic] |
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* [http://www.primeminister.gr/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4762&Itemid=89 Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic] |
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* [https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/world-leaders-1/world-leaders-g/greece.html Chief of State and Cabinet Members] |
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* [http://www.ypex.gov.gr/www.mfa.gr/en-US/Services/Directory/Foreign+Authorities+in+Greece/ Foreign missions in Greece] |
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* [http://www.ypex.gov.gr/www.mfa.gr/en-US/Services/Directory/Greek+Missions+Abroad/ Greek missions abroad] (embassies, consulates, representations) |
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* [http://www.visitgreece.gr/portal/site/eot/?langID=2 Greek National Tourism Organisation] |
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* [http://www.greeknewsagenda.gr/ Greek News Agenda Newsletter] |
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* [http://www.ypex.gov.gr/www.mfa.gr/en-US Ministry of Foreign Affairs] |
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IM DA BEST |
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; General information |
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* [http://www.britannica.com/nations/Greece Greece] at [[Encyclopaedia Britannica]] |
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* [http://www3.nationalgeographic.com/places/countries/country_greece.html Greece] at [[National Geographic]] |
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* {{CIA_World_Factbook_link|gr|Greece}} |
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* [http://ucblibraries.colorado.edu/govpubs/for/greece.htm Greece] at ''UCB Libraries GovPubs'' |
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* {{dmoz|Regional/Europe/Greece}} |
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* [http://www.gcr.gr/ Greek Council for Refugees] |
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* {{Wikitravel}} |
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* [http://www.fhw.gr/chronos/en/ Hellenic History] |
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* [http://www.hellenism.net/ Hellenism.Net – Everything about Greece] |
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* [http://eudocs.lib.byu.edu/index.php/History_of_Greece:_Primary_Documents History of Greece: Primary Documents] |
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* [http://www.ellopos.net/elpenor/default.asp The Greek Heritage] |
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* {{Wikiatlas|Greece}} |
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YES YES ITS ME |
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{{Coord|39|N|22|E|type:country_region:GR|display=title}} |
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IT IS |
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[[Category:Greece| ]] |
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[[Category:Member states of NATO]] |
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YES IT IS |
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{{Link FA|vi}} |
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LALALA |
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{{Link FA|uk}} |
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PISSSSSEEEEDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD |
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Revision as of 12:54, 1 May 2011
File:Hellenic Parliament from high above.jpg|thumb|left|The Hellenic Parliament in central Athens.]]
Greece is a parliamentary republic.<ref name="con51,53">{{Cite web|url=http://www.parliament.gr/english/politeuma/syntagma.pdf%7Carchiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20070925181747/http://www.parliament.gr/ WELL WELL WELLL LOOKES LIKES ITS ME AGAIN TUFFF LUCK BUT I DNT GO DAT EASILY ILL REPORT U FOR SENDING MESSAGES I WILL U JUST WATCH ME YYRRR YRRRR YRRRR YRRR.
IM DA BEST
YES YES ITS ME
IT IS
YES IT IS LALALA
PISSSSSEEEEDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD