Greece

**Greece** (Greek: *Ελλάδα* or *Ελλάς*), kent offeecially as the **Hellenic Republic** (Greek: *Ελληνική Δημοκρατία*) is a kintra in sooth-eastren Europe, wi a population o approximately  million as o . Athens is the naition's caipital an largest ceety, follaed bi Thessaloniki.

Greece is locatit at the crossroads o Europe, Asie, an Africae. Situatit on the soothren tip o the Balkan Peninsula, it shares laund mairches wi Albanie tae the northwast, North Macedonie an Bulgarie tae the north, an Turkey tae the northeast. The Aegean Sea lies tae the east o the mainland, the Ionian Sea tae the wast, the Cretan Sea an the Mediterranean Sea tae the sooth. Greece haes the langest coastline on the Mediterranean Basin an the 11t langest coastline in the warld at  in lenth, featurin a muckle nummer o islands, o that 227 are inhabitit. Aichty percent o Greece is muntainous, wi Munt Olympus bein the heichest peak at . The kintra consists o nine geografic regions: Macedonie, Central Greece, the Peloponnese, Thessaly, Epirus, the Aegean Islands (includin the Dodecanese an Cyclades), Thrace, Crete, an the Ionian Islands.

Greece is conseedert the cradle o Wastren ceevilisation, bein the birthplace o democracy, Wastren filosofie, Wastren leeteratur, historiografie, poleetical science, major scienteefic an mathematical principles, an Wastren drama, as weel as the Olympic Gemmes. Frae the aicht century BC, the Greeks war organised intae various independent ceety-states, kent as *poleis* (seengular *polis*), that spanned the entire Mediterranean region an the Black Sea. Philip o Macedon unitit maist o the Greek mainland in the fowert century BC, wi his son Alexander the Great rapidly conquerin muckle o the auncient warld, spreidin Greek cultur an science frae the eastren Mediterranean tae Indie. Greece wis annexed bi Roum in the seicont century BC, becomin an integral pairt o the Roman Empire an its successor, the Byzantine Empire, whaurin the Greek leid an cultur war dominant. The Greek Orthodox Kirk shapit modren Greek identity an transmittit Greek tradeetions tae the wider Orthodox Warld. Fawin unner Ottoman domeenion in the mid-15t century, the modren naition state o Greece emerged in 1830 follaein a war o unthirldom. Greece's rich historical legacy is reflectit bi its 18 UNESCO Warld Heritage Steids, amang the maist in Europe an the warld.

Greece is a democratic an developit kintra wi an advanced heich-income economy, a heich quality o life, an a verra heich staundart o leevin. A foondin member o the Unitit Naitions, Greece wis the tent member tae jyne the European Commonties (precursor tae the European Union) an haes been pairt o the Eurozone syne 2001. It is a member o numerous ither international institutions, includin the Cooncil o Europe, the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation an Development (OECD), the Warld Tred Organisation (WTO), the Organisation for Siccarity an Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), an the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF). Greece's unique cultural heritage, muckle tourism industry, prominent shippin sector an geostrategic importance clessifee it as a middle pouer. It is the lairgest economy in the Balkans, whaur it is an important regional investor.

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