Greece
- For other meanings see Greece (disambiguation).
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| National motto: Eleftheria i thanatos (Greek: Liberty or Death) |
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| image:LocationGreece.png | ||||
| Official language | Greek | |||
| Capital | Athens | |||
| President | Kostis Stephanopoulos | |||
| Prime Minister | Kostas Simitis | |||
| Area - Total - % water |
Ranked 94th 131,940 km˛ 0.86% |
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| Population - Total (2001) - Density |
Ranked 70th 10,964,020 80.5/km² |
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| Independence - Declared - Recognised |
FromOttoman Empire March 25, 1821 1828 |
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| Currency | Euro¹, Greek euro coins | |||
| Time zone | UTC +2 | |||
| National anthem | Imnos pros tin Eleftherian | |||
| Internet TLD | .GR | |||
| Calling Code | 30 | |||
| (1) Prior2001: Greek drachma | ||||
| Tablecontents |
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2 Politics 3 Peripheries 4 Geography 5 Economy 6 Demographics 7 Culture 8 Miscellaneous topics 9 See also 10 External links |
History
Main article: HistoryGreeceThe shores ofAegean Sea sawemergence offirst civilisationsEurope, namelyMinoanMycenaean civilisations. After these has subsidedDark Age followed until around 800 BCnew Hellenic Greece emerged. It was this Greececity-states that established colonies alongMediterranean, resisted Persian invasionswhose culture would bebasisHellenistic civilisation that followedempireAlexanderGreat (kingMacedonia).
Militarily Greece itself declined untilwas conquered byRomans from 168 BC onwards, though Greek culture wouldturn conquer Roman life. A province ofRoman Empire, Greek culture would continuedominateeastern MediterraneanwhenEmpire finally splittwoEastern or Byzantine Empire, centred on Constantinople, would be Greeknature, as well as encompassing Greece itself. From4th century to15th centuryEastern Roman Empire survived eleven centuriesattacks fromwesteast until Constantinople fell on May 29, 1453 toOttoman Empire. Greece had gradually been conquered byOttomans during15th century.
Ottoman rule remained until1821Greeks declared their independence. AfterGreek WarIndependence was concluded1828, Greece was then established asmonarchy1833. During19thearly 20th centuries Greece soughtencompassGreek-speaking population ofOttoman Empire, slowly growingterritorypopulation untilreached its present size1947.
After World War II, Greece experiencedcivil war that lasted until 1949 after whichjoined NATO1952. On April 21, 1967military seized power incoup d'état, establishing what became known asRegime ofColonels. In 1973regime abolishedGreek monarchy. Conflict overissueCyprus led tocollapse ofmilitary junta1974 andestablishment ofdemocratic republic1975, followingplebiscite. Greece joinedEuropean Union1981adopted Euro as its currency2001.
Politics
Main article: PoliticsGreeceThe 1975 constitution includes extensive specific guaranteescivil libertiesvestspowers ofheadstatean indirectly elected president, whoadvised byCouncil ofRepublic. The prime ministercabinet playcentral role inpolitical process, whilepresident performs some governmental functionsadditionceremonial duties. The presidentelected by parliament to5-year termcan be reelected once.
MembersGreece's unicameral parliament (the Vouli ton Ellinon)elected by secret ballot formaximum4 years, but elections can be called earlier. Greece usescomplex reinforced proportional representation electoral system which discourages splinter partiesmakesparliamentary majority possible even ifleading party falls short ofmajority ofpopular vote. A party must receive 3% oftotal national votequalifyone of300 parliamentary seats.
ForlistGreek political parties, see Listpolitical partiesGreece.
Peripheries
Main articles: PeripheriesGreeceGreece consists13 administrative regions known as peripheries, whichfurther subdivided into 51 prefecturess (nomoi, singular - nomos):
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Beyond these thereone autonomous region, Mount Athos (Ayion Oros - Holy Mountain),monastic state under Greek sovereignty.
The nomoidivided into 147 eparchies (singular eparchia), whichdivided into 1,031 municipalities: 130 urban municipalities (dimi)901 rural communities (kinotites). Before 1999, there were 5,775 local authorities: 361 demoi, 5,560 koinotites, subdivided into 12,817 localities (oikosmoi).
Geography
Main article: GeographyGreeceThe country consists oflarge mainland,southern end ofBalkans, andPeloponnesus peninsula, separated frommainland bycanal ofIsthmusCorinth. Withmostly internal Aegean Sea therenumerous islands, including Crete, Rhodes, Euboea, andDodecaneseCycladic groups. Greece has more than 14,880 kilometrescoastline andland boundary1,160 kilometres.
About 80%Greecemountainous or hilly. Much ofcountrydryrocky; only 28% oflandarable. Western Greece contains lakeswetlands. Pindus,central mountain range, has an average elevation2,650 m. The legendary Mount Olympus ishighest pointGreece at 2,917 m above sea level.
Greece's climate features mild, wet wintershot, dry summers. Temperaturesrarely extreme, although snowfalls do occur inmountainsoccasionally evenAthens inwinter.
Economy
Main article: EconomyGreeceGreece hasmixed capitalist economy withpublic sector accountingabout halfGDP. Tourism iskey industry, providinglarge portionGDPforeign exchange earnings. Greece ismajor beneficiaryEU aid, equalabout 3.3%GDP. The economy has improved steadily overlast few years, asgovernment tightened policy inrun-upGreece's entry intoEU's single currency,euro, on January 1, 2001.
Major challenges remaining includereductionunemploymentfurther restructuring ofeconomy, including privatising several state enterprises, undertaking social security reforms, overhaulingtax system,minimising bureaucratic inefficiencies. Economic growthforecast at 3%-3.5%2002.
The national central bankGreece isBankGreece.
Demographics
Main article: DemographicsGreeceMost Greeks (98%) adhere toGreek Orthodox Church, whichunderprotection ofstate that also paysclergy's salaries,Eastern Orthodox Christianity is"prevailing" religionGreece according toconstitution. The Greek Orthodox Church self-governing but underspiritual guidance ofEcumenical PatriarchConstantinople.
A Greek Muslim minority (of 1.3%), concentratedThrace, was given legal status by provisions ofTreatyLausanne1923is Greece's only officially recognised minority.
Culture
Main article: CultureGreeceGreek cuisinefamous worldwidemanyits foods, like Feta cheese, Spanakopita, Souvlaki, Greek saladothers. ThereGreek restaurantsmany places ofworld, including USA.
Greek architecture, which together withRoman onealso known as Classical,very decorativeelementsitstill used todaymany countries.
Greek mythologywell-known all overworldmany people, no matter their culture, enjoy reading stories from it. Some cinema moviescartoonsbased on stories which include ancient Greek mythological characters.
Greek literature has not tied itselffruitless archaismis partbroader currentsWestern literature.
The Greek languagespoken not only byresidentsGreece but also by Greeks who liveother countries, includingUSAAustralia. Itone ofoldest languages inworld.
| Date | English Name | Local Name | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 25 | |||
| October 28 |
Miscellaneous topics
- EducationGreece
- CommunicationsGreece
- TransportationGreece
- MilitaryGreece
- Foreign relationsGreece
- TourismGreece
- ListGreek language television channels
- Listradio stationsGreece
- ListGreek roads
- ListGreek dances
See also
- Hellenic National Intelligence Service
- National Statistical ServiceGreece
- BankGreece
- National BankGreece
- Greek electronic game ban
External links
- Greece Now - Government sponsored e-zine on Greek life
- Government.gr - Official governmental site (mainlyGreek)
- Hellenic Parliament - Official parliamentary site
- world-wide press freedom index Rank 19 out139 countries
Austria | Belgium | Denmark | Finland | France | Germany | Greece | Ireland
Italy | Luxembourg | Netherlands | Portugal | Spain | Sweden | United Kingdom
Countries accedingmembership on May 1, 2004:
Cyprus | Czech Republic | Estonia | Hungary | Latvia | Lithuania | Malta | Poland | Slovakia | Slovenia
