Greece

Greece,officially theHellenic Republic,is a country inSoutheast Europe. Located on the southern tip of theBalkan peninsula, Greece shares land borders withAlbaniato the northwest,North MacedoniaandBulgariato the north, andTurkeyto the east. TheAegean Sealies to the east of themainland, theIonian Seato the west, and theSea of Creteand theMediterranean Seato the south. Greece has the longest coastline on theMediterranean Basin, featuringthousands of islands. The country comprises ninetraditional geographic regions, and has a population of over 10.4 million.Athensis the nation's capital andits largest city, followed byThessalonikiandPatras.
Greece is considered the cradle ofWestern civilisation, being the birthplace ofdemocracy,Western philosophy,Western literature,historiography,political science, majorscientificandmathematicalprinciples,theatre, and theOlympic Games. From the eighth century BC, theGreekswere organised into various independentcity-statesknown aspoleis(singularpolis) that spanned theMediterraneanandBlackseas.Philip II of Macedonunitedmost of present-day Greece in the fourth century BC, with his sonAlexander the Greatrapidly conquering much of theknown ancient worldfrom the eastern Mediterranean to northwestern India. The subsequentHellenistic periodsaw the height ofGreek cultureand influence in antiquity. Greece was annexed byRomein the second century BC, becoming an integral part of theRoman Empireand its continuation, theByzantine Empire, which was predominately Greek in culture andlanguage. TheGreek Orthodox Church, which emerged in the first century AD, helped shape modernGreek identityand transmitted Greek traditions to the widerOrthodox world. After theFourth Crusadein 1204,Latinpossessionswere establishedin parts of the Greek peninsula, but most of the area fell underOttomanrule by the mid-15th century.
Following a protractedwar of independence, which started in 1821, Greece emerged as a modernnation statein 1830. Over the first hundred years, theKingdom of Greecesoughtterritorial expansion, which was mainly realised in the early 20th century during theBalkan Warsand up until the catastrophic defeat of itsAsia Minor Campaignin 1922. Theshort-lived republicthat was established in 1924 was beset by the ramifications ofcivil strifeand the challenge of resettlingrefugees from Turkey. In 1936 aroyalist dictatorshipinaugurated a long period of authoritarian rule, marked bymilitary occupation,civil warandmilitary dictatorship.Greece transitioned to democracyin 1974–75, leading to the currentparliamentary republic.
Having achievedrecord economic growth from 1950 through the 1970s, Greece is adeveloped countrywith an advancedhigh-income economy. Greece was thetenth member to joinwhat is today theEuropean Unionin 1981 and is part ofmultiple international organizations and forums. It has a unique cultural heritage, largetourism industry, andprominent shipping sector. The country's rich historical legacy is reflected in part by its 19UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Greece was the ninthmost-visited countryin the world in 2023.
The native name of the country in Modern Greek isΕλλάδα(Elláda, pronounced[eˈlaða]). The corresponding form in Ancient Greek and conservative formal Modern Greek (Katharevousa) isἙλλάς(Hellas, classical:[hel.lás], modern:[eˈlas]). This is the source of the English alternative nameHellas, which is mostly found in archaic or poetic contexts today. The Greek adjectival formελληνικός(ellinikos,[eliniˈkos]) is sometimes also translated asHellenicand is often rendered in this way in the formal names of Greek institutions, as in the official name of the Greek state, theHellenic Republic(Ελληνική Δημοκρατία,[eliniˈciðimokraˈti.a]).
The English namesGreeceandGreekare derived, via the LatinGraeciaandGraecus, from the name of theGraeci(Γραικοί,Graikoí), one of firstancient Greek tribesto settleMagna Graeciainsouthern Italy.
TheApidima CaveinMani, in southern Greece, has been suggested to contain the oldest remains ofearly modern humansoutside of Africa, dated to 200,000 years ago.However others suggest the remains representarchaic humans.All three stages of theStone Ageare represented in Greece, for example in theFranchthi Cave.Neolithicsettlements in Greece, dating from the 7th millennium BC,are the oldest in Europe, as Greece lies on the route by which farming spread from theNear Eastto Europe.
Greece is home to the first advanced civilisations in Europe and is often considered the birthplace of Western civilisation.The earliest of them was theCycladic culturewhich flourished on the islands of theAegean Sea, starting around 3200 BC, and produced an abundance of folded-arm and othermarble figurines.Fromc.3100BC to 1100 BC,Crete, a major cultural and economic centre, was home to theMinoan civilisationknown for itscolourful art,religious figurines, andmonumental palaces.The Minoans wrotetheir undeciphered languageusing scripts known asLinear AandCretan hieroglyphs.On the mainland, theMycenaean civilisationdeveloped around 1750 BC and lasted untilc.1100BC.The Mycenaeans possessedadvanced militaryand builtlarge fortifications.Theyworshipedmany godsand usedLinear Bto write the earliestattestedform ofGreekknown asMycenaean Greek.
The collapse of theMycenaean civilisationushered in theGreek Dark Ages, from which written records are absent. The end of the Dark Ages is traditionally dated to 776 BC, the year of the firstOlympic Games.TheIliadand theOdyssey, the foundational texts ofWestern literature, are believed to have been composed byHomerin the 7th or 8th centuries BC.Poetryshaped beliefs to theOlympian gods, butancient Greek religionhad no priestly class or systematic dogmas and encompassed other currents, such as popular cults, likethat of Dionysus,mysteriesandmagic.At this time there emerged kingdoms andcity-statesacross the Greek peninsula,which spreadto the shores of theBlack Sea,Magna Graeciainsouthern Italy, andAsia Minor. These reached great prosperity that resulted in an unprecedented cultural boom, that ofclassical Greece, expressed inarchitecture,drama,science,mathematicsandphilosophy. In 508 BC,Cleisthenesinstituted the world's firstdemocraticsystem of government inAthens.
By 500 BC, thePersian Empirecontrolled the Greek city states in Asia Minor and Macedonia.Attempts by Greek city-states of Asia Minor to overthrow Persian rulefailed, and Persiainvaded the states of mainland Greecein 492 BC, but was forced to withdraw after defeat at theBattle of Marathonin 490 BC. In response, the Greek city-states formed the Hellenic League in 481 BC, led bySparta, which was the first recorded union of Greek states since the mythical union of theTrojan War.Thesecond Persian invasion of Greecewas decisively defeated in 480–479 BC, atSalamisandPlataea, marking the eventual withdrawal of the Persians from all their European territories. The Greek victories in theGreco-Persian Warsare a pivotal moment in history,as the 50 years of peace afterwards are known as theGolden Age of Athens, a seminal period that laid many foundations of Western civilisation. Lack of political unity resulted in frequent conflict between Greek states. The most devastating intra-Greek war was thePeloponnesian War(431–404 BC), which marked the demise of theAthenian Empireand the emergence ofSpartanand laterTheban hegemony.Weakened by constant wars among them during the 4th century BC, the Greekpoleiswere subjugated to therising powerof thekingdom of Macedonunder kingPhilip IIinto an alliance known as theHellenic League.
After Philip's assassination in 336 BC, his son andking of Macedon,Alexander, set himself leader of aPanhelleniccampaignagainst thePersian Empireand abolished it. Undefeated in battle, he marched, until his untimely death in 323 BC, to the banks of theIndus.Alexander's empire fragmented, inaugurating theHellenistic period. Afterfierce conflictamongst themselves, thegenerals that succeeded Alexander and their successorsfounded large personal kingdoms in the areas he had conquered, such as that of thePtolemiesinEgyptand of theSeleucidsinSyria,MesopotamiaandIran.The newly foundedpoleisof these kingdoms, such asAlexandriaandAntioch, were settled by Greeks as members of a ruling minority. As a result, during the centuries that followed a vernacular form ofGreek, known askoine, and Greek culture wasspread, while the Greeksadopted Eastern deities and cults.Greek science, technology, and mathematics reached their peak during the Hellenistic period.Aspiring to maintain their autonomy and independence from theAntigonid kingsof theMacedonians, manypoleisof Greece united inkoinaorsympoliteiaii.e. federations, while after the establishment of economic relations with the East, a stratum of wealthyeuergetaidominated their internal life.
From about 200 BC theRoman Republicbecame increasingly involved in Greek affairs and engaged in aseries of wars with Macedon.Macedon's defeat at theBattle of Pydnain 168 BC signalled the end ofAntigonidpower.In 146 BC, Macedonia was annexed as a province by Rome, and the rest of Greece became a Roman protectorate.The process was completed in 27 BC, when emperorAugustusannexed the rest of Greece and constituted it as thesenatorial provinceofAchaea.Despite their military superiority, the Romans admired and becameheavily influencedby Greek culture.
Greek-speaking communities of the Hellenised East were instrumental in the spread of Christianity in the 2nd and 3rd centuries,and Christianity's early leaders and writers were mostly Greek-speaking, though not from Greece itself.TheNew Testamentwas written in Greek, and some sections attest to the importance of churches in Greece inearly Christianity. Nevertheless, much of Greece clung to paganism, and ancient Greek religious practices were still in vogue in the late 4th century AD,when they were outlawed by the Roman emperorTheodosius Iin 391–392.The last recorded Olympic games were held in 393,and many temples were destroyed or damaged in the century that followed.The closure of theNeoplatonicAcademy of Athens by Emperor Justinian in 529 is considered the end of antiquity, although there is evidence that the academy continued.
The Roman Empire in the east, following thefall of the Western Roman Empirein the 5th century, is known as theByzantine Empire, but called "Kingdom of the Romans" in its own time. With its capital inConstantinople, its language and culture were Greek and its religion was predominantlyEastern Orthodox Christian.
The Empire's Balkan territories, including Greece, suffered from the dislocation ofbarbarian invasions;raids byGothsandHunsin the 4th and 5th centuries and theSlavicinvasion in the 7th century resulted in a collapse in imperial authority in the Greekpeninsula.The imperial government retained control of only the islands and coastal areas, particularly the populated walled cities such as Athens, Corinth and Thessalonica.However, the view that Greece underwent decline, fragmentation and depopulation is considered outdated, as cities show institutional continuity and prosperity between the 4th and 6th centuries. In the early 6th century, Greece had approximately 80 cities according to theSynekdemoschronicle, and the 4th to the 7th century is considered one of high prosperity.
Until the 8th century almost all of modern Greece was under the jurisdiction of theHoly SeeofRome. ByzantineEmperor Leo IIImoved the border of thePatriarchate of Constantinoplewestward and northward in the 8th century.The Byzantine recovery of lost provinces during theArab–Byzantine warsbegan in the 8th century and most of the Greek peninsula came under imperial control again.This process was facilitated by a large influx of Greeks from Sicily and Asia Minor to the Greek peninsula, while many Slavs were captured and re-settled in Asia Minor.During the 11th and 12th centuries the return of stability resulted in the Greek peninsula benefiting from economic growth.TheGreek Orthodox Churchwas instrumental in the spread of Greek ideas to the widerOrthodox world.
Following theFourth Crusadeand fall of Constantinople to the "Latins" in 1204, mainland Greece was split between the GreekDespotate of EpirusandFrenchrule(theFrankokratia).The re-establishment of the imperial capital in Constantinople in 1261 was accompanied by the empire's recovery of much of the Greek peninsula, while the islands remained under Genoese and Venetian control.During thePaleologi dynasty(1261–1453) a new era of Greek patriotism emerged accompanied by a turning back to ancient Greece.
In the 14th century much of the Greek peninsula was lost by the Byzantine Empire to theSerbsand then theOttomans.Constantinople fell to the Ottomans in 1453 and by 1460, Ottoman conquest of mainland Greece was complete.
While most of mainland Greece and the Aegean islands was under Ottoman control by the end of the 15th century,CyprusandCreteremainedVenetianand did not fall to the Ottomans until1571and1669respectively and Venicemaintained controlof theIonian Islandsuntil 1797, after which they fell under first French, then British control.While some Greeks in the Ionian islands andConstantinoplelived in prosperity, and Greeks of Constantinople (Phanariots) achieved power within the Ottoman administration,much of Greece suffered the economic consequences of Ottoman conquest. Heavy taxes were enforced, and in later years the Ottoman Empire enacted a policy of creation of hereditary estates, effectively turning the rural Greek populations intoserfs,while the Ottoman conquest had cut Greece off from European historical developments.
TheGreek Orthodox Churchand theEcumenical Patriarchate of Constantinoplewere considered by the Ottoman governments as the ruling authorities of the entireOrthodox Christianpopulation of the Ottoman Empire, whether ethnically Greek or not. Although the Ottoman state did not force non-Muslims to convert toIslam, Christians faced discrimination. Discrimination, particularly when combined with harsh treatment by local Ottoman authorities, led to conversions to Islam, if only superficially. In the 19th century, many "crypto-Christians" returned to their old religious allegiance.
The nature of Ottoman administration of Greece varied, though it was invariably arbitrary and often harsh.Some cities had governors appointed by theSultan, while others, like Athens, were self-governed municipalities. Mountainous regions in the interior and many islands remained effectively autonomous from the central Ottoman state for centuries.The 16th and 17th centuries are regarded as a "dark age" in Greek history,with the prospect of overthrowing Ottoman rule appearing remote.However, prior to the Greek Revolution of 1821, there had been wars which saw Greeks fight against the Ottomans, such as the Greek participation in theBattle of Lepantoin 1571,theMorean Warof 1684–1699, and theRussian-instigatedOrlov Revoltin 1770.These uprisings were put down by the Ottomans with great bloodshed.Many Greeks were conscripted as Ottoman subjects to serve in the Ottoman army and especially the navy, while the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, responsible for the Orthodox, remained in general loyal to the Empire.
In the 18th century, Greek merchants came to dominate trade within the Ottoman Empire, established communities throughout the Mediterranean, the Balkans, and Europe,and used their wealth to fund educational activities that brought younger generations into contact with Western ideas.In the 18th century, an increase in learning during theModern Greek Enlightenmentled to the emergence amongWesternisedGreek-speakingelitesof thenotion of a Greek nation. A secret organisation formed in this milieu was theFiliki Eteria, in 1814.They engagedtraditional strataof the Greek Orthodox world in theirliberal nationalistcause.
The first revolt began on 6 March 1821 in theDanubian Principalities, but was put down by the Ottomans. This spurred the Greeks of thePeloponneseand on 17 March theManiotsdeclared war on the Ottomans.By October 1821 the Greeks had capturedTripolitsa. There were revolts in Crete,MacedoniaandCentral Greece, which were suppressed. In 1822 and 1824 the Turks and Egyptians ravaged the islands, committingmassacres.This galvanised opinion in western Europe in favour of the Greeks.TheOttoman SultanMahmud IInegotiated withMehmet Ali of Egypt, who agreed to send his sonIbrahim Pashawith an army, in return for territorial gain.By the end of 1825, most of the Peloponnese was under Egyptian control.Threegreat powers,France,Russian Empire, and theUnited Kingdom, each sent a navy.The allied fleet destroyed the Ottoman–Egyptian fleet at theBattle of Navarino, and the Greeks captured Central Greece by 1828. Thenascent Greek statewas recognised under theLondon Protocolin 1830.
In 1827,Ioannis Kapodistrias, was chosen by theThird National Assembly at Troezenas the first governor of theFirst Hellenic Republic. Kapodistrias established state, economic and military institutions. Tensions appeared between him and local interests and, following his assassination in 1831 and theLondon Conference of 1832, Britain, France and Russia installed Bavarian PrinceOtto von Wittelsbachasmonarch.Otto's reign wasdespotic, and in its first 11 years of independence Greece was ruled by a Bavarian oligarchy led byJosef Ludwig von Armanspergand, later, by Otto himself, as King and Premier.Greece remained under the influence of its three protecting great powers.In 1843 anuprisingforced Otto to grant aconstitutionandrepresentative assembly.
Despite theabsolutismof Otto's reign, it proved instrumental in developing institutions which are still the bedrock of Greek administration and education.Reforms were taken in education, maritime and postal communications, effective civil administration and thelegal code.Historical revisionismtook the form of de-Byzantinificationand de-Ottomanisation, in favour of promoting Ancient Greek heritage.The capital was moved fromNafplio, where it had been since 1829, toAthens, then a smaller town.TheChurch of Greecewas established as Greece'snational churchand 25 March, the day ofAnnunciation, was chosen as the anniversary of theGreek War of Independenceto reinforce the link between Greek identity andOrthodoxy.
Ottowas deposedin 1862 because of the Bavarian-dominated government, heavy taxation, and a failed attempt to annex Crete from the Ottomans.He was replaced by Prince Wilhelm of Denmark, who took the nameGeorge Iand brought with him the Ionian Islands as a coronation gift from Britain. Anew Constitution in 1864changed Greece's form of government fromconstitutional monarchyto the more democraticcrowned republic.In 1875parliamentary majorityas a requirement for government was introduced,curbing the power of the monarchy to appointminority governments. Corruption, coupled with increased spending to fund infrastructure like theCorinth Canal,overtaxed the weak economy and forced the declaration ofpublic insolvencyin 1893.
Greeks were united, however, in their determination to liberate theHellenic landsunder Ottoman rule; theCretan Revolt (1866–1869)had raised nationalist fervour. When war broke out betweenRussia and the Ottomans in 1877, Greek sentiment rallied to Russia, but Greece was too poor and concerned about British intervention, to enter the war.Greeks in Crete continued to stage revolts, and in 1897, the Greek government, bowing to popular pressure, declared war on the Ottomans. In the ensuingGreco-Turkish War of 1897, the badly trained and equipped Greek army was defeated. Through the intervention of the Great Powers, however, Greece lost little territory, while Crete was established as anautonomous stateunderPrince George of Greece. With state coffers empty, fiscal policy came underInternational Financial Control.The government, aiming to quellKomitadjisand detach theSlavophone peasants of the regionfromBulgarianinfluence, sponsored aguerrillacampaign in Ottoman-ruledMacedonia, known as theMacedonian Struggle, which ended with theYoung Turk Revolutionin 1908.
Amidst dissatisfaction with the seeming inertia and unattainability ofnational aspirations, military officers organised acoupin 1909 and called onCretanpoliticianEleftherios Venizelos, who conveyed a vision of national regeneration. After winningtwoelectionsand becoming prime minister in 1910,Venizelos initiated fiscal, social, andconstitutional reforms, reorganised the military, made Greece a member of theBalkan League, and led it through theBalkan Wars. By 1913, Greece's territory and population had doubled, annexing Crete,Epirus, andMacedonia. The struggle betweenKing Constantine Iand charismatic Venizelos over foreign policy on the eve of First World War dominated politics and divided the country intotwo opposing groups. During parts of the war, Greece had two governments: A royalistpro-Germanone inAthensand aVenizelistpro-Ententeone inThessaloniki. They united in 1917, when Greece entered the war on the side of the Entente.
After the war, Greece attempted expansion intoAsia Minor, a region with a large native Greek population, but was defeated in theGreco-Turkish War (1919–1922), contributing to a flight ofAsia Minor Greeks.These events overlapped, happening during theGreek genocide(1914–22),when Ottoman and Turkish officials contributed to the death of several hundred thousand Asia Minor Greeks, along with similar numbers ofAssyriansand a larger number ofArmenians. The resultant Greek exodus from Asia Minor was made permanent, and expanded, in an officialpopulation exchange between Greece and Turkey, as part of theTreaty of Lausannewhich ended the war.The following era was marked by instability, as over 1.5 million propertyless Greek refugees from Turkey (some of whom could not speak Greek) had to be integrated into Greek society. The refugees made a dramatic population boost, as they were more than a quarter of Greece's prior population.
Following the catastrophic events in Asia Minor, the monarchy was abolishedvia a referendumin 1924 and theSecond Hellenic Republicdeclared.In 1935, a royalist general-turned-politicianGeorgios Kondylistook power after a coup and abolished the republic, holdinga rigged referendum, after whichKing George IIwas restored to the throne.
An agreement between Prime MinisterIoannis Metaxasand George II followed in 1936, which installed Metaxas as head of a dictatorship known as the4th of August Regime, inauguratingauthoritarian rulethat would last until 1974.Greece remained on good terms with Britain and was not allied with theAxis.
In October 1940,Fascist Italydemanded the surrender of Greece, but itrefused, and, in theGreco-Italian War, Greece repelled Italian forces into Albania.French generalCharles de Gaullepraised the fierceness of the Greek resistance, but the country fell to urgently dispatchedGermanforces during theBattle of Greece. The Nazis proceeded to administer Athens and Thessaloniki, while other regions were given to Fascist Italy and Bulgaria. Over 100,000 civilians died of starvation during the winter of 1941–42, tens of thousands more died because of reprisals by Nazis andcollaborators, the economy was ruined, and mostGreek Jews(tens of thousands) were deported and murdered in Nazi concentration camps.TheGreek Resistance, one of the most effective resistance movements, fought against the Nazis. The German occupiers committedatrocities, mass executions, and wholesale slaughter of civilians and destruction of towns and villagesin reprisals. Hundreds of villages were systematically torched and almost 1 million Greeks left homeless.The Germans executed around 21,000 Greeks, the Bulgarians 40,000, and the Italians 9,000.
Following liberation, Greece annexed theDodecanese Islandsfrom Italy and regainedWestern Thracefrom Bulgaria. The country descended into acivil warbetweencommunistforces and the anti-communist Greek government, which lasted until 1949, with the latter's victory. The conflict, one of the earliest struggles of theCold War,resulted in further economic devastation, population displacement and political polarisation for the next thirty years.
Although post-war was characterised by social strife and marginalisation of the left, Greece experiencedrapid economic growthand recovery, propelled in part by the U.S.Marshall Plan.In 1952, Greece joinedNATO, reinforcing its membership in theWestern Blocof the Cold War.
King Constantine II'sdismissalofGeorge Papandreou's centrist government in 1965 prompted political turbulence, which culminated in a coup in 1967 by theGreek junta, led byGeorgios Papadopoulos. Civil rights were suspended, political repression intensified, and human rights abuses, including torture, were rampant. Economic growth remained rapid before plateauing in 1972. The brutal suppression of theAthens Polytechnic uprisingin 1973 set in motion the fall of the regime, resulting in a counter-coup that established brigadierDimitrios Ioannidisas the new junta strongman. On 20 July 1974,Turkey invaded the island of Cyprusin response to a Greek-backed Cypriot coup, triggering a crisis in Greece that led to the regime's collapse and restoration of democracy throughMetapolitefsi.
The former prime ministerKonstantinos Karamanliswas invited back from self-exile and thefirst multiparty electionssince 1964 were held on the first anniversary of the Polytechnic uprising. A democratic and republicanconstitutionwas promulgated in 1975 following areferendumwhich chose not to restore the monarchy.
Meanwhile,Andreas Papandreou, George Papandreou's son, founded thePanhellenic Socialist Movement(PASOK) in response to Karamanlis's conservativeNew Democracyparty, with the two political formations dominating government over the next four decades. Greece rejoined NATO in 1980.Greece became the tenth member of theEuropean Communitiesin 1981, ushering in sustained growth. Investments in industrial enterprises and heavy infrastructure, as well as funds from theEuropean Unionand growing revenue from tourism, shipping, and a fast-growing service sector raised thestandard of living. In 1981, the election ofAndreas Papandreouresulted in reforms over the 1980s. He recognised civil marriage, the dowry was abolished, while education and foreign policy doctrines changed. However, Papandreou's tenure has been associated with corruption, high inflation, stagnation and budget deficits that later caused problems.
The country adopted the euro in 2001 and successfully hosted the2004 Summer Olympic Gamesin Athens.In 2010, Greece suffered from theGreat Recessionand relatedEuropean sovereign debt crisis. Due to the adoption of the euro, Greece could no longerdevalueits currency to regain competitiveness.In the 2012 elections, there was major political change, with new parties emerging from the collapse of the two main parties, PASOK and New Democracy.In 2015,Alexis Tsipraswas elected as prime minister, the first outside the two main parties.TheGreek government-debt crisis, and subsequent austerity policies, resulted in social strife. The crisis ended around 2018, with the end of the bailout mechanisms and return of growth.Simultaneously, Tsipras, and the leader of North Macedonia,Zoran Zaev, signed thePrespa Agreement, solving thenaming disputethat had strained the relations and eased the latter's way to become a member of the EU and NATO.
In 2019,Kyriakos Mitsotakisbecame Greece's new prime minister, after his centre-right New Democracy won theelection.In 2020, Greece's parliament elected a non-partisan candidate,Katerina Sakellaropoulou, as the first femalePresident of Greece.In February 2024, Greece became the first Orthodox Christian country to recognise same-sex marriage and adoption by same-sex couples.
Located inSouthernand Southeast Europe,Greece consists of a mountainous, peninsular mainland jutting out into the sea at the southern end of theBalkans, ending at thePeloponnesepeninsula (separated from the mainland by thecanalof theIsthmus of Corinth) and strategically located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa.Its highly indented coastline and numerous islands give Greece the11th longest national coastlinein the world, with 13,676 km (8,498 mi);its land boundary is 1,160 km (721 mi). The country lies approximately between latitudes34°and42° N, and longitudes19°and30° E, with the extreme points being:the villageOrmenioin the North and the islandsGavdos(South),StrongylinearKastellorizo/Megisti (East), andOthonoi(West). The islandGavdosis considered the southernmost island of Europe.
Approximately 80% of Greece consists of mountains or hills, making the country one of the most mountainous in Europe.Mount Olympus, the mythical abode of theGreek Gods, culminates at Mytikas peak 2,918 metres (9,573 ft),the highest in the country. Western Greece contains a number of lakes and wetlands and is dominated by thePindusmountain range. The Pindus, a continuation of theDinaric Alps, reaches a maximum elevation of 2,637 m (8,652 ft) atMt. Smolikas(the second-highest in Greece) and historically has been a significant barrier to east–west travel. Its extensions cross through the Peloponnese, ending in the island of Crete. TheVikos Gorge, part of theVikos-Aoos National Parkin the Pindus range, is listed by the Guinness book of World Records as the deepest gorge in the world.Another notable formation are theMeteorarock pillars, atop which have been built medieval Greek Orthodox monasteries.
Northeastern Greece features another high-altitude mountain range, theRhodoperange, spreading across the region ofEastern Macedonia and Thrace; this area is covered with vast, thick, ancient forests, including the famousDadia Forestin theEvros regional unit, in the far northeast of the country.
Extensive plains are primarily located in the regions ofThessaly,Central Macedonia, andThrace. They constitute key economic regions as they are among the few arable places in the country.
Greece features avast number of islands—between 1,200 and 6,000, depending on the definition,227 of which are inhabited. Crete is the largest and most populous island;Euboea, separated from the mainland by the 60 m-wideEuripus Strait, is the second largest, followed byLesbosandRhodes.
The Greek islands are traditionally grouped into the following clusters: theArgo-Saronic Islandsin the Saronic gulf near Athens; the Cyclades, a large but dense collection occupying the central part of the Aegean Sea; theNorth Aegean islands, a loose grouping off the west coast of Turkey; the Dodecanese, another loose collection in the southeast between Crete and Turkey; theSporades, a small tight group off the coast of northeast Euboea; and the Ionian Islands, located to the west of the mainland in the Ionian Sea.
Theclimate of Greeceis primarilyMediterranean(Köppen:Csa),featuring mild to cool, wet winters and hot, dry summers.This climate occurs at most of the coastal locations, includingAthens, theCyclades, theDodecanese,Crete, thePeloponnese, theIonian Islands, and parts ofmainland Greece. ThePindusmountain 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 arain shadoweffect),resulting to some coastal areas in the south falling to the hotsemi-arid climate(Köppen:BSh) category, such as parts of theAthens Rivieraand some of theCyclades, as well as some areas in the north featuring a cold equivalent climate (Köppen:BSk), such as the cities ofThessalonikiandLarissa.
The mountainous areas and the higher elevations of northwestern Greece (parts ofEpirus,Central Greece,Thessaly,Western Macedonia) as well as in the mountainous central parts of Peloponnese – including parts of the regional units ofAchaea,Arcadia, andLaconia– feature anAlpine climate(Köppen:D,E) with heavy snowfalls during the winter. Most of the inland parts of northern Greece, inCentral Macedonia, the lower elevations ofWestern MacedoniaandEastern Macedonia and Thracefeature ahumid subtropical climate(Köppen:Cfa) with cold, damp winters and hot, moderately dry summers with occasional thunderstorms. Snowfalls occur every year in the mountains and northern areas, and brief periods of snowy weather are possible even in low-lying southern areas, such asAthens.
Phytogeographically, Greece belongs to theBoreal Kingdomand is shared between the East Mediterranean province of theMediterranean Regionand the Illyrian province of theCircumboreal Region. According to theWorld Wide Fund for Natureand theEuropean Environment Agency, the territory of Greece can be subdivided into sixecoregions: theIllyrian deciduous forests,Pindus Mountains mixed forests,Balkan mixed forests,Rhodope montane mixed forests,Aegean and Western Turkey sclerophyllous and mixed forests, andCrete Mediterranean forests.It had a 2018Forest Landscape Integrity Indexmean score of 6.6/10, ranking it 70th globally out of 172 countries.In 2024, Greece became the first country in theEuropean Unionto banbottom trawlinginmarine protected areaswhat should protect itsmarine biodiversity.Rare marine species such as the pinniped seals and theloggerhead sea turtlelive in the seas surrounding mainland Greece, while its dense forests are home to the endangeredbrown bear, theEurasian lynx, theroe deer, and the wild goat.
The currentConstitution, establishing Greece as aparliamentary republic,was enacted in 1975, after the fall of themilitary dictatorship of 1967–1974, and has been amended four times since. It consists of 120 articles, provides for aseparation of powersintoexecutive,legislative, andjudicial branches, and grants extensive specific guarantees (further reinforced in2001) ofcivil libertiesandsocial rights.
Legislative powers are exercised by a 300-memberunicameral Parliament.According to the Constitution, executive power is exercised by theGovernmentand thePresident of the Republic, who is the nominal head of state, is elected by theParliamentfor a five-year term and promulgates statutes passed by Parliament.However, theConstitutional amendment of 1986rendered the President's office largely ceremonial; the most powerful officeholder is thus theprime minister, Greece's head of government.The position is filled by thecurrent leaderof thepolitical partythat can obtain a vote of confidence by the Parliament. The president of the republic formally appoints the prime minister and, on their recommendation, appoints and dismisses the other members of the Cabinet.
Members of Parliament are elected indirect elections, whichare conducted with a systemof"reinforced" proportional representation,favouring the party winning a plurality of the popular voteand leading to the formation of single-party governments.Parliamentary electionsare held every four years, but early elections are proclaimed by the President on the cabinet's proposal or if amotion of no confidencepasses in Parliament.Thevoting ageis 17.Women's suffragewas legislated in1952.
According to an OECD report, Greeks display a moderate level of civic participation compared to most other developed countries; voter turnout was 58% during recent elections, lower than the OECD average of 69%.
After therestoration of democracyin 1974–1975, the Greek party system was dominated by the liberal-conservativeNew Democracy(ND) and the social-democraticPanhellenic Socialist Movement(PASOK).PASOK and New Democracy largely alternated in power until the outbreak of thegovernment-debt crisisin 2009, whenceforth they experienced a sharp decline in popularity,manifested in theparliamentary elections of May 2012, when the left-wingSYRIZAbecame the second major party,overtaking PASOK as the main party of the centre-left.After arepeat election in June 2023, New Democracy gained almost 41% of the popular vote and a parliamentary majority of 158 and its leader,Kyriakos Mitsotakis, whohad been Prime Ministerfrom2019until theinconclusive election of May 2023, was sworn in for asecond four-year term.Other parties represented in theHellenic Parliamentare theCommunist Party of Greece(KKE),Greek Solution,New Left,Spartans,VictoryandCourse of Freedom.
Foreign policy is conducted through theMinistry of Foreign Affairsand its head, theMinister for Foreign Affairs, currentlyNikos Dendias. The aims of the Ministry are to represent Greece before other states and international organisations; safeguard the interests of the state and its citizens abroad; promote Greek culture; foster closer relations with theGreek diaspora; and encourage international cooperation.Greece is described as having aspecial relationshipwithCyprus, Italy, France, Armenia, Australia, Israel, the US and the UK.
Following the resolution of theMacedonia naming disputewith thePrespa Agreementin 2018, the Ministry identifies two remaining issues of particular importance to the Greek state:Turkish challenges to Greek sovereignty rightsin the Aegean Sea and corresponding airspace, and theCyprus probleminvolving theTurkish occupationofNorthern Cyprus.There is a long-standing conflict between Turkey and Greece over natural resources in the eastern Mediterranean. Turkey does not recognise a legalcontinental shelfandexclusive economic zonearound the Greek islands.
Due to its geographical proximity to Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa, Greece is of geostrategic importance, which it has leveraged to develop a regional policy to promote peace and stability in theBalkans, Mediterranean and the Middle East.This has accorded the countrymiddle powerstatus.
Greece is a member of numerous international organisations, including theCouncil of Europe, theEuropean Union, theUnion for the Mediterranean,NATO, theOrganisation internationale de la francophonieand the UN, of which it is a founding member.
The Hellenic Armed Forces are overseen by theHellenic National Defence General Staff(Greek: Γενικό Επιτελείο Εθνικής Άμυνας – ΓΕΕΘΑ), with civilian authority vested in theMinistry of National Defence. It consists of three branches:theHellenic Army(Ellinikos Stratos, ES), theHellenic Navy(Elliniko Polemiko Navtiko, EPN) and theHellenic Air Force(Elliniki Polemiki Aeroporia, EPA).
Moreover, Greece maintains theHellenic Coast Guardfor law enforcement at sea, search and rescue, and port operations. Though it can support the navy during wartime, it resides under the authority of theMinistry of Shipping.
Greek military personnel total 364,050, of whom 142,700 are active and 221,350 are reserve. Greeceranks 28th in the worldin the number of citizens serving in the armed forces.Mandatory military serviceis generally one year for 19 to 45 year olds.Additionally, Greek males between the ages of 18 and 60 who live in strategically sensitive areas may be required to serve part-time in the National Guard.
As a member ofNATO, the Greek military participates in exercises and deployments under the auspices of the alliance, although its involvement in NATO missions is minimal.Greece spends over US$7 billion annually on its military, or 2.3% of GDP, the24th-highest in the worldin absolute terms, theseventh-higheston a per capita basis, and the second-highest in NATO after the United States. Moreover, Greece is one of only five NATO countries to meet or surpass the minimum defence spending target of 2% of GDP.
The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature and comprises three Supreme Courts: theSupreme Civil and Criminal Court of Greece, theCouncil of Stateand theCourt of Audit. The judicial system is also composed of civil courts, which judge civil and penal cases and administrative courts, which judge disputes between citizens and the Greek administrative authorities.
The Hellenic Police is the national police force. It is a large agency with its responsibilities ranging fromroad traffic controltocounter-terrorism. It was established in 1984, after the merge of theHellenic Gendarmerieand theCities Policeforces.
Since theKallikratis Programmereform entered into effect in January 2011, Greece has consisted of 13regionssubdivided into a total of 325, from 2019 332 (Kleisthenis I Programme),municipalities. The 54 oldprefectures and prefecture-level administrationshave been largely retained assub-unitsof the regions. Sevendecentralised administrationsgroup one to three regions for administrative purposes on a regional basis. There is oneautonomous area,Mount Athos(Greek:Agio Oros, "Holy Mountain"),which borders the region ofCentral Macedonia.
As of 2023, the economy was the54thlargest bypurchasing power parity(PPP) at $417 billion.Greece is the 15th largest economy in the 27-memberEuropean Union.In per person income, Greece is51stin the world at $40,000. The economy is advancedandhigh-income.
Greece is adeveloped countrywith a highstandard of livingand high ranking in theHuman Development Index.Its economy mainly comprises theservice sector(85%) andindustry(12%), while agriculture makes up 3%.Important Greek industries includetourism(with 33 millioninternational tourists in 2023, it is the9th most visited country in the world) andmerchant shipping(at 18% of the world's total capacity,the Greek merchant marine is the largest in the world), while the country is a considerable agricultural producer (including fisheries) within the union. In 2021 unemployment stood at 13% andyouth unemploymentat 33%, compared with respectively 7% and 16% in the EU and eurozone.
Greece has the largest economy in the Balkans,and an important regional investor.It has been the number-two foreign investor of capital in Albania and most important trading partner and largest foreign investor of North Macedonia.The Greek telecommunications companyOTEhas become a strong investor in other Balkan countries.
Greece was a founding member of theOECDand theOrganisation of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation(BSEC). In 1979, its accession to theEuropean Communitiesand thesingle marketwas signed, and completed in 1982. Greece was accepted into theEconomic and Monetary Union of the European Unionin June 2000, and in January 2001 adopted the euro as its currency, replacing theGreek drachma.Greece is a member of theInternational Monetary Fundand theWorld Trade Organisation.
Greek economy had fared well (with high growth rates and low public debt) during most of the 20th century; high growth rates were maintained up to the2007–2008 financial crisis, coupled, however, with high structuraldeficits.In 2009, it was revealed deficits had been considerably higher than official figures.Banks had supplied cash in exchange for future payments by Greece and other Eurozone countries; in turn the liabilities of the countries were "kept off the books", hiding borrowing levels.This was one of the techniques that enabled Greece to reduce its recorded budget deficit.
The crisis was triggered by theGreat Recession, which caused Greece's GDP to contract 2.5% in 2009.Simultaneously, deficits were revealed to have been allowed to reach 10% and 15% in 2008 and 2009. This caused Greece's debt-to-GDP ratio to increase to 127%.As aeurozonemember, Greece had no autonomousmonetary policy flexibility. Greece's borrowing rates increased, causing a crisis of confidence in Greece's ability to pay back loans in early 2010.
To avert asovereign default, Greece, other eurozone members, and theInternational Monetary Fundagreed on a €110 billion rescue package in May 2010.Greece was required to adopt harshausteritymeasures to bring its deficit down.A second bail-out of €130 billion was agreed in 2012, subject to financial reforms and further austerity.Adebt haircutwas agreed.Greece achieved abudget surplusin 2013 and returned to growth in 2014.
Partly due to the imposed austerity,Greece experienced a 25% drop in GDP between 2009 and 2015.The debt ratio, jumped from 127% to about 170%, due to the shrinking economy.In 2013, the IMF admitted it had underestimated the effects of tax hikes and budget cuts and issued an informal apology.The policies have been blamed for worsening the crisis,while others stressed the creditors' share in responsibility.The bailouts ended in 2018.
In 2024, the Greek economy is forecast to grow nearly 3%, meaning it approaches its pre-crisis size of 2009 and far outpacing the eurozone average economic growth of 0.8%.
Greece is the European Union's largest producer ofcottonandpistachios(7,200 tons in 2021),second inolives(3m tons in 2021), third infigs(8,400 tons in 2022) andwatermelons(440,000 tons in 2022) and fourth inalmonds(40,000 tons in 2022).Agriculture contributes 3.8% of GDP and employs 12% of the labour force.
Greece is a major beneficiary of the EU'sCommon Agricultural Policy. As a result of entry to the European Community, much of its agricultural infrastructure has been upgraded and output increased.
Electricity production is dominated by the state-ownedPublic Power Corporation(known by its acronym ΔΕΗ, transliterated as DEI), which supplied 75% of electricity in 2021.Some of DEI's output is generated usinglignite.Renewable energy in Greeceaccounted for 46% of Greece's electricity in 2022,a rise from the 11% in 2011.Wind poweraccounts for 22%,solar power14%,hydropower9%, and natural gas 38%.Independent companies' energy production has increased. Greece does not have anynuclear power plants.
The shipping industry has been a key element of economic activity since ancient times.Shipping remains one of the country's most important industries, accounting for 5% of GDP and employing about 160,000 people (4% of the workforce).
TheGreek Merchant Navyis the largest in the world at 18% of global capacity.The merchant fleet ranks first in tonnage (384 milliondwt), 2nd in number of ships (at 4,870),first intankersand dry bulk carriers, fourth in the number of containers, and fifth in other ships.The number of ships flying a Greek flag (includes non-Greek fleets) is 1,517, or 5% of the world's tonnage (ranked fifth globally). Today's fleet is smaller than an all-time high of 5,000 ships in the late 1970s.During the 1960s, the Greek fleet nearly doubled, through the investment undertaken by the shipping magnates,Aristotle OnassisandStavros Niarchos.The modern Greek maritime industry was formed after World War II when Greek shipping businessmen were able to amass surplus ships sold by the U.S. government through the Ship Sales Act of the 1940s.
Greece has a significant shipbuilding and ship maintenance industry. The six shipyards around the port ofPiraeusare among the largest in Europe.Greece has become a leader in the construction and maintenance of luxury yachts.
Tourism has been a key element of the economy and one of the most important sectors, contributing 21% of gross domestic product in 2018.Greece was the 9th most visited country in the world in 2022, hosting 28 million visitors,an increase from 18 million tourists in 2007.
Most visitors come from the European continent,while the most from a single nationality are from the United Kingdom, followed by Germany. The most visitedregionof Greece isCentral Macedonia.
In 2011,Santoriniwas voted as "The World's Best Island" inTravel + Leisure.Its neighboring islandMykonos, came in fifth in the European category.There are19 UNESCO World Heritage Sitesin Greece,and Greece is ranked 17th in the world in total sites. Thirteen further sites are on the tentative list, awaiting nomination.
Since the 1980s, the road and rail network has been modernised. With a total length of about 2,320 km (1,440 mi) as of 2020, Greece's motorway network is the most extensive inSoutheastern Europeand one of the most advanced in Europe,including the east–westA2(Egnatia Odos) in northern Greece, the north–southA1(Athens–Thessaloniki–Evzonoi, AThE) along the mainland's eastern coastline and theA5(Ionia Odos) along the western coastline, leading to theRio–Antirrio bridge, the longest suspension cable bridge in Europe (2,250 m (7,382 ft) long), connectingRioin thePeloponnesewithAntirrioin western Greece. The Athens Metropolitan Area is served by the privately runAttiki Odos(A6/A62/A621/A64/A65) motorway network and the expandedAthens Metrosystem, while theThessaloniki Metrois under construction.
Railway connections play a lesser role than in many other European countries, but have been expanded, with new suburban/commuter railconnections, serviced byProastiakosaround Athens, Thessaloniki, and Patras. A modern intercity rail connection between Athens and Thessaloniki has been established, while an upgrade to double lines in many parts of the 2,500 km (1,600 mi) network is underway; along with anew double track, standard gaugerailway betweenAthensandPatras(replacing the oldmetre-gaugePiraeus–Patras railway) which is under construction and opening in stages.International railway lines connect Greek cities with the rest of Europe, the Balkans and Turkey.
All major islands are served by ferries to the mainland.Piraeus, the port of Athens, was the third busiest passenger port in Europe as of 2021. 37 million passengers travelled by boat in Greece in 2019, the second-highest in Europe.Greece has 39 active airports, 15 of which serve international destinations.Athens International Airportserved over 28 million passengers in 2023.Most Greek islands and main cities are connected by air, by the two major airlines,Olympic AirandAegean Airlines.
Modern digital information and communication networks reach all areas. There are over 35,000 km (21,748 mi) of fiber optics and an extensive open-wire network. Broadband internet availability is widespread in Greece: there were a total of 2,252,653 broadband connections as of early 2011, translating to 20% broadband penetration.In 2017 around 82% of the population used the internet regularly.
Internet cafésthat provide net access, office applications and multiplayer gaming are a common sight, while mobile internet on3Gand4G-LTEcellphone networks andWi-Ficonnections can be found almost everywhere.As of July 2022, 5G service is accessible in most of major cities. The UN ranks Greece among the top 30 countries with a highly developed information and communications infrastructure.
The General Secretariat for Research and Technology of the Ministry of Development and Competitiveness is responsible for designing, implementing and supervising national research and technological policy. In 2017, spending on research and development (R&D) reached an all-time high of €2 billion, equal to 1.1% of GDP.
Greece was ranked 45th in theGlobal Innovation Indexin 2024.
Greece has major technology parks with incubator facilities. TheHellenic National Space Committeebegan cooperating with theEuropean Space Agency(ESA) in 1994 and has been its member since 2005.The country participates in the ESA's telecommunication and technology activities and theGlobal Monitoring for Environment and SecurityInitiative.TheNational Centre of Scientific Research "Demokritos"was founded in 1959 and is the largest multidisciplinary research centre in Greece. Its activities cover several fields of science and engineering.
Greece has one of the highest rates of tertiary enrollment in the world,while Greeks are well represented in academia worldwide; leading Western universities employ a disproportionately high number of Greek faculty.Greek scientific publications have grown significantly in terms ofresearch impact, surpassing both the EU and global average from 2012 to 2016.
Notable Greek scientists of modern times includeGeorgios Papanikolaou(inventor of thePap test), mathematicianConstantin Carathéodory(known for theCarathéodory theoremsandCarathéodory conjecture), astronomerE. M. Antoniadi, archaeologistsIoannis Svoronos,Valerios Stais,Spyridon Marinatos,Manolis Andronikos(discovered the tomb ofPhilip II of MacedoninVergina), IndologistDimitrios Galanos, botanistTheodoros G. Orphanides, and scientists such asMichael Dertouzos,Nicholas Negroponte,John Argyris,John Iliopoulos(2007Dirac Prizefor his contributions on the physics of thecharm quark),Joseph Sifakis(2007Turing Award, the "Nobel Prize" of Computer Science),Christos Papadimitriou(2002Knuth Prize, 2012Gödel Prize),Mihalis Yannakakis(2005Knuth Prize) and physicistDimitri Nanopoulos.
Eurostatestimated the population at 10.6 million in 2022.
Greek society has changed over recent decades, coinciding with thewider European trendof declining fertility and aging. Thebirth ratein 2016 was 8.5 per 1,000, significantly lower than the rate of 14.5 in 1981. The mortality rate increased from 8.9 per 1,000 inhabitants in 1981 to 11.2 in 2016.
Thefertility rateof 1.4 children per woman is well below thereplacement rate of 2.1, and one of the lowest in the world, considerably below the high of 5.5 children in 1900.Greece's median age is 44.2 years, the seventh-highest in the world.In 2001, 17% of the population were 65 years old and older, 68% between the ages of 15 and 64 years old, and 15% were 14 years old and younger.By 2016, the proportion of the population age 65 and older had risen to 21%, while the proportion of those aged 14 and younger declined to slightly below 14%. Marriage rates began declining from almost 71 per 1,000 inhabitants in 1981 to 51 in 2004.Divorce rates have seen an increase from 191 per 1,000 marriages in 1991 to 240 per 1,000 marriages in 2004.
As a result of these trends, the average household is smaller and older than in previous generations. The economic crisis exacerbated this development, with 350,000–450,000 Greeks, predominantly young adults, emigrating since 2010.
Almost two-thirds of the Greek people live in urban areas. Greece's largest and most influential metropolitan centres areAthens(population 3,744,059 according to2021 census) andThessaloniki(population 1,092,919 in2021) that latter commonly referred to as thesymprotévousa(συμπρωτεύουσα,lit.'co-capital').Other prominent cities with populations above 100,000 inhabitants includePatras,Heraklion,Larissa,Volos,Rhodes,Ioannina,Agrinio,Chania, andChalcis.
The Greek Constitution recognisesEastern Orthodoxyas the 'prevailing' faith of the country, while guaranteeing freedom of religious belief for all.The government does not keep statistics on religious groups and censuses do not ask for religious affiliation. According to the U.S. State Department, an estimated 97% of Greek citizens identify themselves asEastern Orthodox, belonging to theGreek Orthodox Church,which uses theByzantine riteand theGreek language, the original language of theNew Testament. The administration of the Greek territory is shared between theChurch of Greeceand thePatriarchate of Constantinople.
In a 2010Eurostat–Eurobarometerpoll, 79% of Greek citizens responded that they "believe there is a God".According to other sources, 16% of Greeks describe themselves as "very religious", which is the highest among all European countries. The survey found just 3.5% never attend a church, compared to 5% inPolandand 59% in the Czech Republic.Estimates of the recognisedMuslim minority of Greece, mostly located inThrace, range around 100,000,about 1% of the population. Some of the Albanian immigrants to Greece come from a nominally Muslim background, though most are secular.Following the1919–1922 Greco-Turkish Warand the 1923Treaty of Lausanne, Greece and Turkey agreed to apopulation transfer based on cultural and religious identity. About 500,000 Muslims from Greece, predominantly those defined as Turks, but alsoGreek Muslims, were exchanged with approximately 1.5 million Greeks from Turkey. However, many refugees who settled in former Ottoman Muslim villages inCentral Macedonia, and were defined as Christian OrthodoxCaucasus Greeks, arrived from the former RussianTranscaucasusprovince ofKars Oblast, after it had been retroceded to Turkey prior to the population exchange.
Judaism hasbeen presentin Greece for more than 2,000 years.
The ancient community of Greek Jews is calledRomaniotes, while theSephardi Jewswere once a prominent community inThessaloniki, numbering some 80,000, or more than half of the population, by 1900.However, after theGerman occupation of Greeceandthe Holocaust, it is estimated to number around 5,500 people.
TheRoman Catholiccommunity is estimated to be around 250,000of which 50,000 are Greek citizens.Their communityis nominally separate from the smallerGreek Byzantine Catholic Church, which recognises the primacy of the Pope but maintains theliturgyof theByzantine Rite.Old Calendaristsaccount for 500,000 followers.Protestants, including theGreek Evangelical ChurchandFree Evangelical Churches, stand at about 30,000.Other Christian minorities, such asAssemblies of God,International Church of the Foursquare Gospeland variousPentecostalchurches of theGreek Synod of Apostolic Churchtotal about 12,000 members.The independentFree Apostolic Church of Pentecostis the biggest Protestant denomination in Greece with 120 churches.There are no official statistics about the Free Apostolic Church of Pentecost, but the Orthodox Church estimates the followers as 20,000.TheJehovah's Witnessesreport having 28,874 active members.
Since 2017,Hellenic Polytheism, or Hellenism has been legally recognised as an actively practised religion,with estimates of 2,000 active practitioners and an additional 100,000 "sympathisers".Hellenism refers to religious movements that continue, revive, or reconstructancient Greek religious practices.
Greece is 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 distinctivePonticdialect came to Greece from Asia Minor after theGreek genocideand constitute a sizable group. TheCappadociandialect came due to the genocide as well, but is endangered and barely spoken. Indigenous Greek dialects include the archaic Greek spoken by theSarakatsani, traditionally transhumant mountain shepherds ofGreek Macedoniaand other parts ofNorthern Greece. TheTsakonian language, a distinct Greek language derived fromDoric Greekinstead ofKoine Greek, is still spoken in villages in the southeastern Peloponnese.
The Muslim minority in Thrace, approximately 0.95% of the population, consists of speakers ofTurkish,Bulgarian(Pomaks)andRomani. Romani is spoken by ChristianRomain other parts of the country. TheCouncil of Europehas estimated that there are approximately 265,000Romani peopleare living in Greece (2.47% of the population).Other minority languages have traditionally been spoken by regional population groups in various areas. Their use decreased radically in the course of the 20th century through assimilation with the Greek-speaking majority. They are only maintained by the older generations and almost extinct. The same is true for theArvanites, anAlbanian-speaking group mostly located in rural areas around Athens, and for theAromaniansandMegleno-Romanianswhose language is closely related toRomanianand who used to live scattered across areas of mountainous central Greece. Members of these groups usually identify ethnically as Greekand are bilingual in Greek.
Near the northern Greek borders there are someSlavic–speaking groups, most of whom identify ethnically as Greeks. It is estimated that after the population exchanges of 1923,Macedoniahad 200,000 to 400,000Slavicspeakers.The Jewish community traditionally spokeLadino(Judeo-Spanish), today maintained by a few thousand speakers. Other notable minority languages includeArmenian,Georgian, and the Greco-Turkic dialect spoken by theUrums, a community ofCaucasus Greeksfrom theTsalkaregion of central Georgia and ethnic Greeks from southeasternUkrainewho arrived in Northern Greece as economic migrants in the 1990s.
Throughout the 20th century, millions of Greeks migrated to theUnited States,United Kingdom,Australia,Canada, andGermany, creating a largeGreek diaspora. Net migration started to show positive numbers from the 1970s, but until the beginning of the 1990s, the main influx was returning Greek migrants or ofPontic Greeksand others fromRussia,Georgia,TurkeytheCzech Republic, and elsewhere in the formerSoviet Bloc.
A study from the Mediterranean Migration Observatory maintains that the 2001 census recorded 762,191 persons residing in Greece without Greek citizenship, constituting around 7% of the population. Of the non-citizen residents, 48,560 were EU orEuropean Free Trade Associationnationals and 17,426 were Cypriots with privileged status. The majority come from Eastern European countries: Albania (56%), Bulgaria (5%), and Romania (3%), while migrants from the former Soviet Union (Georgia, Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, etc.) comprise 10% of the total.Some immigrants from Albania are from theGreek minority in Albaniacentred on the region ofNorthern Epirus. The total Albanian national population which includes temporary migrants and undocumented persons is around 600,000.
The2011 censusrecorded 9,903,268 Greek citizens (92%), 480,824 Albanian citizens (4.4%), 75,915 Bulgarian citizens (0.7%), 46,523 Romanian citizenship (0.4%), 34,177 Pakistani citizens (0.3%), 27,400Georgiancitizens (0.25%) and 247,090 people had other or unidentified citizenship (2%).189,000 people of the total population of Albanian citizens were reported in 2008 as ethnic Greeks fromSouthern Albania, in the historical region ofNorthern Epirus.
The greatest cluster of non-EU immigrant population are in the larger urban centres, especially Athens, with 132,000 immigrants comprising 17% of the local population, and then Thessaloniki, with 27,000 immigrants reaching 7% of the local population. There is a considerable number of co-ethnics that came from the Greek communities of Albania and formerSoviet Union.
Greece, together with Italy and Spain, is a major entry point forillegal immigrants trying to enter the EU. Illegal immigrants entering mostly do so from the border with Turkey at theEvros Riverand the islands of the eastern Aegean across from Turkey. In 2012, most illegal immigrants came fromAfghanistan, followed by Pakistanis and Bangladeshis.In 2015, arrivals of refugees by sea had increased dramatically due to theSyrian civil war. There were 856,723 arrivals by sea in Greece, an almost fivefold increase to the same period of 2014, of which theSyriansrepresented almost 45%.Most refugees and migrants use Greece as a transit country to Northern Europe.
Greeks have a long tradition of valuing and investing inpaideia(education), which was upheld as one of the highest societal values in the Greek and Hellenistic world. The first European institution described as a university was founded in fifth-century Constantinople and continued operating in various incarnations until the city's fall to the Ottomans in 1453.TheUniversity of Constantinoplewas Christian Europe's first secular institution of higher learning,and by some measures was the world's first university.
Compulsory education in Greece comprises primary schools (Δημοτικό Σχολείο,Dimotikó Scholeio) andgymnasium(Γυμνάσιο). Nursery schools (Παιδικός σταθμός,Paidikós Stathmós) are popular but not compulsory.Kindergartens(Νηπιαγωγείο,Nipiagogeío) are compulsory for any child above four. Children start primary school aged six and remain there for six years. Attendance at gymnasia starts aged 12 and lasts for three years.
Greece's post-compulsory secondary education consists of two school types: unified upper secondary schools (Γενικό Λύκειο,Genikό Lykeiό) andtechnical–vocationaleducational 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 bothGymnasio(lower secondary school) andLykeio(upper secondary school) graduates, these institutes are not classified as offering a particular level of education.
According to the Framework Law (3549/2007), Public higher education "Highest Educational Institutions" (Ανώτατα Εκπαιδευτικά Ιδρύματα,Anótata Ekpaideytiká Idrýmata, "ΑΕΙ") consists of two parallel sectors:the university sector (Universities, Polytechnics, Fine Arts Schools, the Open University) and the Technological sector (Technological Education Institutions (TEI) and the School of Pedagogic and Technological Education). There are State Non-University Tertiary Institutes offering vocationally oriented courses of shorter duration (2–3 years) which operate under the authority of other Ministries. Students are admitted to these Institutes according to their performance at national level examinations taking place after completion of the third grade ofLykeio. Students over 22 may be admitted to theHellenic Open Universitythrough a lottery.
The education system provides special kindergartens, primary, and secondary schools for people with special needs or difficulties in learning. There are specialist gymnasia and high schools offering musical, theological, and physical education.
72% of adults aged 25–64 have completed upper secondary education, which is slightly less than the OECD average of 74%. The average Greek pupil scored 458 in reading literacy, maths and science in the OECD's 2015 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). This is lower than the OECD average of 486. Girls outperformed boys by 15 points, much more than the average OECD gap of 2.
Greece hasuniversal health care. The system is mixed, combining a national health service withsocial health insurance(SHI). Per a 2000World Health Organisationreport, itshealth systemranked 14th in overall performance of 191 countries surveyed.In a 2013Save the Childrenreport, Greece was ranked the 19th out of 176 countries for the state of mothers and newborn babies.As of 2014, there were 124 public hospitals, of which 106 were general hospitals and 18 specialised hospitals, with a total capacity of about 30,000 beds.
Greece's health care expenditures was 9.6% of GDP in 2007. By 2015, it declined to 8.4%, compared with the EU average of 9.5%. Nevertheless, the country maintains the highest doctor-to-population ratio of any OECD countryand the highest doctor-to-patient ratio in the EU.
Life expectancyis among the highest in the world; life expectancy in 2015 was 81.1 years, slightly above the EU average of 80.6.The island ofIcariahas the highest percentage of nonagenarians in the world; 33% of islanders are 90 or older.Icaria is subsequently classified as a "Blue Zone", a region where people allegedly live longer than average and have lower rates of cancer, heart disease, or other chronic illnesses.
A 2011, OECD report showed Greece had the largest percentage of adult daily smokers of any of the 34 OECD members.The obesity rate is 18%, above the OECD average of 15%.
In 2008, infant mortality, with a rate of 3.6 deaths per 1,000 live births, was below the 2007 OECD average of 4.9.
The culture of Greece has evolved, beginning inMycenaean Greeceand continuing intoClassical Greece, through the influence of theRoman Empireand itsGreek Easterncontinuation, theByzantine Empire. Other cultures and nations, such as theLatin and Frankish states, theOttoman Empire, theVenetian Republic, theGenoese Republic, and theBritish Empirehave left their influence on modern Greek culture, though historians credit theGreek War of Independencewith revitalising Greece and giving birth to a single, cohesive entity of its multifaceted culture.
In ancient times, Greece was the birthplace ofWestern culture.Modern democracies owe a debt to Greek beliefs in government by the people, trial by jury, and equality under the law. The ancient Greeks pioneered in many fields that rely on systematic thought, includinglogic,biology,geometry, government,geography, medicine, history,philosophy,physics, and mathematics.They introduced important literary forms as epic and lyrical poetry, history, tragedy, comedy and drama. In their pursuit of order and proportion, the Greeks created an ideal of beauty that strongly influencedWestern art.
Artistic production in Greece began in the prehistoric pre-GreekCycladicand theMinoancivilisations, both of which were influenced by local traditions and theart of ancient Egypt.
There were interconnected traditions of painting in ancient Greece. Due to technical differences, they underwent differentiated developments. Not all painting techniques are equally well represented in thearchaeologicalrecord. The most respected form of art, according toPlinyorPausanias, were individual, mobile paintings on wooden boards, described aspanel paintings. Wall painting in Greece goes back at least to theMinoanandMycenaeancivilisations, with the lavish fresco decoration of sites likeKnossos,Tiryns, andMycenae.
Ancient Greek sculpturewas composed almost entirely of workable and durable materials,marbleorbronze, bronze becoming the favoured medium for major works by the early 5th century, whilechryselephantinesculptures, made largely ofgoldandivoryand used for templecult imagesand luxury works, were much rarer. It has been established that ancient Greek sculptures were paintedwith a variety of colours, a feature known aspolychromy.
Art production continued during the Byzantine era. The most salient feature of this new aesthetic was its "abstract", or anti-naturalistic character. Classical art was marked by attempts to create representations that mimicked reality, Byzantine art favoured a more symbolic approach. Byzantine painting concentrated mainly oniconsandhagiographies. TheMacedonian art (Byzantine)was the artistic expression ofMacedonian Renaissance, a label used to describe the Macedonian dynasty of the Byzantine Empire (867–1056), which scholars have seen as a time of increased interest in classical scholarship and the assimilation of classical motifs intoChristian artwork.
Post Byzantine art schools include theCretan SchoolandHeptanese School. The first artistic movement in theGreek Kingdomcan be considered theGreek academic art of the 19th century(Munich School). Modern Greek painters includeNikolaos Gyzis,Georgios Jakobides,Theodoros Vryzakis,Nikiforos Lytras,Konstantinos Volanakis,Nikos EngonopoulosandYannis Tsarouchis, while notable sculptors arePavlos Prosalentis,Ioannis Kossos,Leonidas Drosis,Georgios Bonanos, andYannoulis Chalepas.
The architecture of ancient Greece was produced by the ancient Greeks (Hellenes), whosecultureflourished on the Greek mainland, theAegean Islandsand theircolonies, from about 900 BC until the 1st century AD, with the earliest remaining architectural works dating from around 600 BC. The formal vocabulary of ancient Greek architecture, in particular the division of architectural style into three defined orders: theDoric Order, theIonic Order, and theCorinthian Order, was to have profound effect onWestern architecture.
Byzantine architecture was dominant in the Greek speaking world and significantly influencedMedieval architecturethroughout Europe and the Near East, becoming the primary progenitor of theRenaissanceandOttoman architecturaltraditions that followed the Byzantine Empire's collapse.
After Greek Independence, modern Greek architects combined traditional Greek and Byzantine elements and motives with the western European movements and styles.Patraswas the first city of the modern Greek state to develop a city plan applying the orthogonal rule byStamatis Voulgaris, a Greek engineer of the French army, in 1829.
Two special genres can be considered the Cycladic architecture, featuring white-coloured houses, in theCycladesand the Epirotic architecture in the region ofEpirus.Important is also the influence of theVenetian stylein theIonian islandsand the "Mediterranean style" ofFlorestano Di Fausto(during the fascist regime) in theDodecanese islands.
After the establishment of theGreek Kingdom, the architecture of Athens and other cities was mostly influenced by theNeoclassical architecture. For Athens, the firstKing of Greece,Otto of Greece, commissioned the architectsStamatios KleanthisandEduard Schaubertto design a modern city plan fit for a capital. After theGreat Thessaloniki Fire of 1917, the government ordered for a new city plan under the supervision ofErnest Hébrard. Other modern Greek architects includeAnastasios Metaxas,Lysandros Kaftanzoglou,Panagis Kalkos,Ernst Ziller,Xenophon Paionidis,Dimitris Pikionis, andGeorges Candilis.
There is an emerging need to secure the long-term preservation of the archaeological sites and monuments against the growing threats of climate change.
Theatre in its western form was born in Greece.Tragedy(late 6th century BC),comedy(486 BC), and thesatyr playwere the three dramatic genres that emerged in thecity-stateofClassical Athensand were institutionalised as part of a festival called theDionysia, which honoured the godDionysus. Of the hundreds oftragedieswritten and performed during the classical age, only a limited number of plays by three authors have survived:Aeschylus,Sophocles, andEuripides. The surviving plays byAristophanesare a treasure trove of comic presentation.
During the Byzantine period, theatrical art declined, the only form that survived was folk theatre (MimosandPantomimos), despite the hostility of the state.During the Ottoman period, the main theatrical folk art was theKaragiozis. The renaissance which led to the modern Greek theatre, took place in theVenetian Crete. Significal dramatists of the era includeVitsentzos KornarosandGeorgios Chortatzis.
Modern Greek theatre was born after independence, in the early 19th century, and initially was influenced by Heptanesean theatre and melodrama, such as the Italian opera. TheNobile Teatro di San Giacomo di Corfùwas the first theatre and opera house of modern Greece and the place where the first Greek opera,Spyridon Xyndas'The Parliamentary Candidatewas performed. During the late 19th and early 20th century, the Athenian theatre scene was dominated byrevues,musical comedies,operettasandnocturnesand notable playwrights includedSpyridon Samaras,Dionysios Lavrangas,Theophrastos Sakellaridis.
TheNational Theatre of Greecewas opened in 1900 asRoyal Theatre.Notable playwrights of the modern Greek theatre includeGregorios Xenopoulos,Nikos Kazantzakis,Pantelis Horn,Alekos Sakellarios, andIakovos Kambanellis, while notable actors includeCybele Andrianou,Marika Kotopouli,Aimilios Veakis,Orestis Makris,Katina Paxinou,Manos Katrakis, andDimitris Horn. Significant directors includeDimitris Rontiris,Alexis Minotis, andKarolos Koun.
Greek literature can be divided into three main categories: Ancient, Byzantine and modern Greek.Athens is considered the birthplace of Western literature.At the beginning of Greek literature stand the monumental works ofHomer: theIliadand theOdyssey, composed around 800 BC or after. In the classical period many of the genres of western literature became more prominent.Lyrical poetry,odes,pastorals,elegies,epigrams; dramatic presentations of comedy andtragedy;historiography,rhetoricaltreatises, philosophical dialectics, and philosophical treatises all arose in this period. The two major lyrical poets wereSapphoandPindar.HerodotusandThucydidesare two of the most influential historians in this period.
Byzantine literaturewritten inAttic,Medievaland earlyModern Greek, is the expression of the intellectual life of theByzantine Greeksduring the ChristianMiddle Ages. AlthoughpopularByzantine literature and earlyModern Greek literatureboth began in the 11th century, the two are indistinguishable.
Modern Greek literaturerefers to literature written in common Modern Greek, emerging from late Byzantine times in the 11th century. The Cretan Renaissance poemErotokritosis considered the masterpiece of this period. It is a verseromancewritten around 1600 byVitsentzos Kornaros(1553–1613). Later, during the period of Greek enlightenment (Diafotismos), writers such asAdamantios KoraisandRigas Feraiosprepared with their works the Greek Revolution.
Leading figures of modern Greek literature includeDionysios Solomos,Andreas Kalvos,Angelos Sikelianos,Emmanuel Rhoides,Demetrius Vikelas,Kostis Palamas,Penelope Delta,Yannis Ritsos,Alexandros Papadiamantis,Nikos Kazantzakis,Andreas Embirikos,Kostas Karyotakis,Gregorios Xenopoulos,Constantine Cavafy,Nikos Kavvadias,Kostas Varnalis, andKiki Dimoula. Two Greek authors have been awarded theNobel Prize in Literature:George Seferisin 1963, andOdysseas Elytisin 1979.
Ancient Greek philosophyinvolved a disposition to valuereasoningandthinking criticalof traditional culture, thus inaugurating theWestern intellectual tradition. Whilethinkers before himprovided proto-scientific explanations of the natural world,Socratesin 5th-century Athens systematically enquiredethics; the next century, his disciple,Plato, wrote presently still pertinent dialogues aboutethics,politics,metaphysics, andepistemology. There were also topics of treatises composed by Plato's prolific student,Aristotle, whose thought, especially inphysics,infusedtheWestfor centuries. Other philosophical schools emerged during the Hellenistic period,Cynicism,Stoicism,EpicureanismandSkepticism, whileNeoplatonismdominated subsequent thought.
Byzantine philosophywas characterised by a Christian world-view, but one which could draw ideas directly from the Greek texts of Plato, Aristotle, and theNeoplatonists. On the eve of theFall of Constantinople,Gemistus Plethotried to restore the use of the term "Hellene" and advocated the return to theOlympian Godsof the ancient world.Byzantine Greek scholars, who were largely responsible for preservingClassical Greekknowledge, fled to the West after thefall of Byzantium, taking with them literature and significantlycontributing to the Renaissance.
In the modern period,Diafotismos(Greek: Διαφωτισμός, "enlightenment", "illumination")was the Greek expression of theAge of Enlightenmentand its philosophical and political ideas. Notable representatives wereAdamantios Korais,Rigas FeraiosandTheophilos Kairis. Other modern era Greek philosophers or political scientists includeHelle Lambridis,Cornelius Castoriadis,Nicos PoulantzasandChristos Yannaras.
Greek vocal music extends back into ancient times where mixed-gender choruses performed for entertainment, celebration and spiritual reasons. Instruments included the double-reedaulosand the plucked string instrument, thelyre, especially the special kind called akithara. Music played an important role in education. Boys were taught music from the age of six. Later influences from the Roman Empire, Middle East, and theByzantine Empireaffected Greek music.
While the new technique of polyphony was developing in the West, theEastern Orthodox Churchresisted change. Therefore,Byzantine musicremained monophonic and without any form of instrumental accompaniment. As a result, and despite certain attempts by certain Greek chanters, Byzantine music was deprived of elements which, in the West, encouraged an unimpeded development of art. Byzantium presented the monophonicByzantine chant, a melodic music, with rhythmical variety and expressive power.
Along with Byzantine chant and music, the Greeks cultivated theGreek folk song(Demotiko) which is divided into two cycles, theakriticandklephtic. The akritic was created between the 9th and 10th centuries and expressed the life and struggles of theakrites(frontier guards) of the Byzantine empire, the most well known associated withDigenes Akritas. The klephtic cycle came into being between the late Byzantine period and start of the Greek War of Independence. The klephtic cycle, together with historical songs,paraloghes(narrative song or ballad), love songs,mantinades, wedding songs, songs of exile and dirges express the life of the Greeks.
TheHeptaneseankantádhes(καντάδες 'serenades'; sing.: καντάδα) became the forerunners of the Greek modern urban popular song, influencing its development. For the first part of the next century, Greek composers continued to borrow elements from the Heptanesean style. The most successful songs during 1870–1930 were the so-called Athenian serenades, and the songs performed on stage ('theatrical revue songs') inrevues,operettasandnocturnesthat dominated Athens' theater scene.
Rebetiko, initially a music associated with the lower classes, later reached greater acceptance as the rough edges of its overt subcultural character were softened and, sometimes to the point of unrecognisability.It was the base of the laterlaïkó(song of the people). The leading performers of the genre includeVassilis Tsitsanis,Grigoris Bithikotsis,Stelios Kazantzidis,George Dalaras,Haris AlexiouandGlykeria.
It was through theIonian islands(which were under western rule) that major advances of the western European classical music were introduced to mainland Greeks. The region is notable for the birth of the first school of modern Greek classical music (Heptanesean or Ionian School), established in 1815. Prominent representatives of this genre includeNikolaos Mantzaros,Spyridon Xyndas,Spyridon SamarasandPavlos Carrer.Manolis Kalomirisis considered the founder of the Greek National School of Music.
In the 20th century, Greek composers had significant impact on the development ofavant gardeand modern classical music, with figures such asIannis Xenakis,Nikos Skalkottas, andDimitri Mitropoulosachieving international prominence. Composers and musicians such asMikis Theodorakis,Manos Hatzidakis,Eleni Karaindrou,VangelisandDemis Roussosgarnered an international following, which include famousfilm scoressuch asZorba the Greek,Serpico,Never on Sunday,America America,Eternity and a Day,Chariots of Fire, andBlade Runner.Greek Americancomposers known for their film scores includeYanniandBasil Poledouris. Greek opera singers and classical musicians of the 20th and 21st century includeMaria Callas,Nana Mouskouri,Mario Frangoulis,Leonidas Kavakos, andDimitris Sgouros.
During theGreek juntaof 1967–74, the music of Mikis Theodorakis was banned, the composer jailed, internally exiled, and put in aconcentration camp,before finally being allowed to leave Greece due to international reaction. Released during the junta years,Make Love, Stop the Gunfire, by pop groupPollis considered the first anti-war protest song inGreek rock.
Greece participated in theEurovision Song Contest35 times after its debut at the1974 Contest. In2005, Greece won with "My Number One", performed by Greek-Swedish singerElena Paparizou, which became a smash hit in different countries and especially in Greece, and the51st Eurovision Song Contestof 2006 was held in Athens.
Greek cuisineis characteristic of theMediterranean diet, which is epitomised by dishes ofCrete.Greek cuisine incorporates fresh ingredients into local dishes such asmoussaka,pastitsio, classicGreek salad,fasolada,spanakopitaandsouvlaki. Some dishes can be traced back to ancient Greece likeskordalia(a thick purée of walnuts, almonds, crushed garlic and olive oil),lentilsoup,retsina(white or rosé wine sealed with pine resin) andpasteli(candy bar with sesame seeds baked with honey). People often enjoy eating from small dishes such asmezewith dips such astzatziki, grilled octopus and small fish,feta cheese,dolmades(rice, currants and pine kernels wrapped in vine leaves), variouspulses,olivesand cheese.Olive oilis a widespread addition.
Sweet desserts includemelomakarona,diplesandgalaktoboureko, and drinks such asouzo,metaxaand wines including retsina. Greek cuisine differs from different parts of the mainland and island to island. It uses some flavorings more often than other Mediterranean cuisines:oregano,mint, garlic, onion,dillandbay laurelleaves. Other common herbs and spices includebasil,thymeandfennelseed. Many recipes, especially in the northern parts of the country, use "sweet" spices in combination with meat, for examplecinnamonandclovesin stews.Koutoukiaare an underground restaurant common in Greece.
Cinema first appeared in Greece in 1896, but the first cine-theatre was opened in 1907 in Athens. In 1914, theAsty Films Companywas founded and the production of long films began.Golfo, a well known traditional love story, is considered the first Greek feature film, although there were minor productions such as newscasts before. In 1931,Orestis LaskosdirectedDaphnis and Chloe, containing one of the first nude scene in European cinema;it was the first Greek movie played abroad.In 1944,Katina Paxinouwas honoured with theBest Supporting Actress Academy AwardforFor Whom the Bell Tolls.
The 1950s and early 1960s are considered to be a "golden age" of Greek cinema.Directors and actors of this era were recognised as important figures in Greece and some gained international acclaim:George Tzavellas,Irene Papas,Melina Mercouri,Michael Cacoyannis,Alekos Sakellarios,Nikos Tsiforos,Iakovos Kambanelis,Katina Paxinou,Nikos Koundouros,Ellie Lambetiand others. More than sixty films per year were made, with most having film noir elements. Notable films includeThe Drunkard(1950, directed byGeorge Tzavellas),The Counterfeit Coin(1955, byGiorgos Tzavellas),Πικρό Ψωμί(1951, byGrigoris Grigoriou),O Drakos(1956, byNikos Koundouros),Stella(1955, directed by Cacoyannis and written by Kampanellis),Woe to the Young(1961, byAlekos Sakellarios),Glory Sky(1962, byTakis Kanellopoulos) andThe Red Lanterns(1963, byVasilis Georgiadis)
Cacoyannis directedZorba the Greekwith Anthony Quinn which received Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Film nominations.Finos Filmcontributed in this period with movies such asΛατέρνα, Φτώχεια και Φιλότιμο,Madalena,I theia ap' to Chicago,Το ξύλο βγήκε από τον Παράδεισοand many more.
During the 1970s and 1980s,Theo Angelopoulosdirected notable movies. His filmEternity and a Daywon thePalme d'Orand thePrize of the Ecumenical Juryat the1998 Cannes Film Festival.
There are internationally renowned filmmakers in the Greek diaspora, such as the Greek-FrenchCosta-Gavrasand the Greek-AmericansElia Kazan,John CassavetesandAlexander Payne.Yorgos Lanthimoshas received fourAcademy Awardnominations for his work, includingBest Foreign Language FilmforDogtooth(2009),Best Original ScreenplayforThe Lobster(2015), andBest PictureandBest DirectorforThe Favourite(2018).
Greece is the birthplace of theancient Olympic Games, first recorded in 776 BC inOlympia, and hosted the modernOlympic Gamestwice, the inaugural1896 Summer Olympicsand the2004 Summer Olympics. During the parade of nations, Greece is always called first, as the founding nation of the ancient precursor of modern Olympics. The nation has competed at everySummer Olympic Games, one of only four countries to have done so. Having won a total of 121 medals (35 gold, 45 silver and 41 bronze), Greece is ranked 33rd by gold medals in theall-time Summer Olympic medal count. Their best ever performance was in the 1896 Summer Olympics, when Greece finished second in themedal tablewith 10 gold medals.
TheGreece national football team, ranked 54th in theworldas of 2024 (and having reached a high of 8th in 2008 and 2011),were crownedEuropean ChampionsinEuro 2004in one of the biggest upsets in the history of the sport.TheGreek Super Leagueis the highest professional football league, comprising fourteen teams. The most successful areOlympiacos,Panathinaikos, andAEK Athens.
TheGreek national basketball teamhas a decades-long tradition of excellence, being considered among the world's top basketball powers. As of 2012, it ranked 4th in theworldand 2nd inEurope.They have won theEuropean Championshiptwice in1987and2005,and have reached the final four in two of the last fourFIBA World Championships, taking the second place in the world in2006 FIBA World Championship. The domestic top basketball league,A1 Ethniki, is composed of fourteen teams. The most successful Greek teams arePanathinaikos,Olympiacos,Aris Thessaloniki,AEK AthensandP.A.O.K. Greek basketball teams are themost successfulinEuropean basketball the last 25 years. After the2005 European Championshiptriumph of the Greek national basketball team, Greece became the reigning European Champion in both football and basketball.
TheGreece women's national water polo teamhave emerged as one of the leading powers in the world, becomingWorld Championsin2011. They won gold at the2005 World Leagueand silver at the2010and2012 European Championships. TheGreece men's national water polo teambecame the third best water polo team in the world in2005. The domestic top water polo leagues,Greek Men's Water Polo LeagueandGreek Women's Water Polo Leagueare considered amongst the top national leagues in European water polo, as its clubs have made significant success in European competitions.
TheGreek men's national volleyball teamhas won two bronze medals, one in theEuropean Volleyball Championshipand another one in theMen's European Volleyball Leagueand a 5th place in theOlympic Games. The Greek league, theA1 Ethniki, is considered one of the top volleyball leagues in Europe and Greek clubs have had significant success in European competitions.Olympiacosis the most successful volleyball club in the country. In handball,AC Diomidis Argousis the only Greek club to have won aEuropean Cup.
According to Greek law, every Sunday of the year is a public holiday. Since the late '70s, Saturday also is a non-school and not working day. In addition, there are four mandatory official public holidays: 25 March (Greek Independence Day),Easter Monday, 15 August (Assumption or Dormition of the Holy Virgin), and 25 December (Christmas). 1 May (Labour Day) and 28 October (Ohi Day) are regulated by law as being optional but it is customary for employees to be given the day off. There are, however, more public holidays celebrated in Greece than announced by the Ministry of Labour each year as either obligatory or optional. The list of these non-fixed national holidays rarely changes and has not changed in recent decades, giving a total of eleven national holidays each year. In addition to the national holidays, there are public holidays that are not celebrated nationwide, but only by a specific professional group or a local community. For example, many municipalities have a "Patron Saint" parallel to "Name Days", or a "Liberation Day".On such days it is customary for schools to take the day off.
Notable festivals, beyond the religious fests, includePatras Carnival,Athens Festivaland local wine festivals. The city ofThessalonikiis also home of a number of festivals and events. TheThessaloniki International Film Festivalis one of the most important film festivals in Southern Europe.
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