{{Infobox Country
|native_name = Ελληνική Δημοκρατία
''Ellīnikī́ Dīmokratía''
|conventional_long_name = Hellenic Republic
|common_name = Greece
|image_flag = Flag of Greece.svg
|image_coat = COA of Greece.svg
|symbol_type = National emblem
|image_coat_caption = National emblem
|image_map = Location Greece EU Europe.png
|national_motto =
(transliteration)
"Freedom or Death"
|national_anthem = Ύμνος εις την Ελευθερίαν (Ímnos is tin Eleftherían) Hymn to Freedom
|official_languages = Greek
|demonym = Greek
|capital = Athens
|latd=38 |latm=00 |latNS=N |longd=23 |longm=43 |longEW=E
|largest_city = capital
|government_type = Parliamentary republic
|leader_title1 = President
|leader_name1 = Karolos Papoulias
|leader_title2 = Prime Minister
|leader_name2 = Kostas Karamanlis
|leader_title3 = President of Parliament
|leader_name3 = Dimitrios Sioufas
|sovereignty_type = Formation
|established_event1 = First known Greek civilizations¹
|established_date1 =
c.3000 BC
|established_event2 = Last previously independent state²
|established_date2 =
1461
|established_event3 = Independence from
the Ottoman Empire
|established_date3 =
25 March 1821
|established_event4 = Recognized
|established_date4 = 30 November 1829, at the London Conference
|accessionEUdate = January 1 1981
|EUseats = 24
|area_rank = 96^th
|area_magnitude = 1 E11
|area_km2 = 131,990
|area_sq_mi = 50,944
|percent_water = 0.8669
|population_estimate = 11,170,957 http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/
|population_estimate_rank = 74^th
|population_estimate_year = 2007
|population_census = 10,964,020 http://www.statistics.gr
|population_census_year = 2001
|population_density_km2 = 84
|population_density_sq_mi = 218
|population_density_rank = 88^th
|GDP_PPP = $391.395 billion
|GDP_PPP_rank = 30^th
|GDP_PPP_year = 2007 IMF
|GDP_PPP_per_capita = $35,167
|GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 18^th
|GDP_nominal = $356.258 billion
|GDP_nominal_rank = 27^th
|GDP_nominal_year = 2007 IMF
|GDP_nominal_per_capita = $32,010
|GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = 25^th
|HDI = 0.921
|HDI_rank = 24^th
|HDI_year = 2004
|HDI_category = high
|Gini = 35.4⁴
|Gini_year = 2000
|Gini_category = low
|currency = Euro (€)³
|currency_code = EUR
|country_code =
|time_zone = EET
|utc_offset = +2
|time_zone_DST = EEST
|utc_offset_DST = +3
|cctld = .gr⁵
|calling_code = 30
|footnote1 = Minoan and Cycladic civilizations.
|footnote2 = Empire of Trebizond.
|footnote3 = Prior to 2001: Greek Drachma.
|footnote4 = UNU/Wider World Income Inequality Database.
|footnote5 = The .eu domain is also used, as it is shared with other European Union member states.
}}

Greece (or Ελλάς ), officially the Hellenic Republic (Greek: Ελληνική Δημοκρατία ), is a country in Southeastern Europe, situated on the southern end of the Balkan Peninsula. It borders Albania, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to the east. The Aegean Sea lies to the east and south of mainland Greece, while the Ionian Sea lies to the west. Both parts of the Eastern Mediterranean basin feature a vast number of islands.

Greece lies at the juncture of Europe, Asia, and Africa. It is heir to the heritages of classical Greece, the Byzantine Empire,Sir Steven Runciman, ''The Fall of Constantinople'' and nearly four centuries of Ottoman rule."Greece." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2006. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 6 Sept. 2006 . Regarded as the cradle of western civilization and the birthplace of democracy,Finley, M. I. Democracy Ancient and Modern. 2d ed., 1985. London: Hogarth. Western philosophy, History of Philosophy, Volume 1 by Frederick Copleston the Olympic Games, western literature, political science, major scientific principles and dramaBrockett, Oscar G. History of the Theatre. sixth ed., 1991. Boston; London: Allyn and Bacon. including both tragedy and comedy, Greece has a particularly long and eventful history and a cultural heritage considerably influential in Northern Africa and the Middle East, and fundamentally formative for the culture of Europe and what may be called the West.

Modern Greece is a developed country, a member of the European Union since 1981, a member of the Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union since 2001, NATO since 1952, the OECD since 1961, the WEU since 1995, and ESA since 2005. Athens is the capital; Thessaloniki, Patras, Heraklion, Volos and Larissa are some of the country's other major cities.

Antiquity

The shores of Greece's Aegean Sea saw the emergence of the first advanced civilizations in Europe whose impact is inseparable from today's western institutions and western cultural and political development. In the wake of the Minoan and Mycenean civilizations, there emerged across the Greek peninsula and islands ''poleis'', or city-states, each with their own distinct social and governmental infrastructure, uniting under Athens and Sparta to repel Persian advance. The conditions had been created for the flowering of Athens and birth of Classical civilization, drawing to a close only with the culmination of the perennial conflict between Athens and Sparta, the Peloponnesian War. Within a century the Greek tribes had been united under the rule of Alexander the Great to roll back Persian gains and herald the Hellenistic era, itself brought only partially to a close with the establishment of Roman rule in 146 BC.

Although the establishment of Roman rule did not break the continuity of Hellenistic society and culture, which remained essentially unchanged until the advent of Christianity, it marked the end of Greek political independence. Rome enthusiastically took up Hellenic culture and it thus became a major influence throughout the empire. The Greek peninsula became a province of Rome, while Greek language and culture continued to dominate the eastern Mediterranean.

Byzantine Era

When the Roman Empire finally split in two, during the late third century, the Eastern Roman Empire centered around Constantinople (known previously as Byzantium, today Istanbul, Turkey), remained Hellenistic in nature, and came to be known as the "Empire of the Greeks" or "Greece" to its western European contemporaries. The eleventh and twelfth centuries are said to have been the Golden Age of Byzantine art in Greece, while the crusading epochs between 1204 and 1458 saw Greece hit by a series of non-Orthodox armies such as The Great Company in the name of religion. The Greek-Byzantine states persisted, nevertheless, and were centered in the Greek peninsula. The Latin clashes of the 13th century gave birth to a form of modern Greek proto-nationalism in Byzantium, and Constantinople was consciously an ethnic Greek city when it fell on May 29, 1453.S. Runciman, The fall of Constantinople

Ottoman Era

While the Ottomans were completing the main conquest of the Greek mainland, two Greek migrations occurred. The first saw the Greek intelligentsia migrate to Western Europe (especially to Italy) and was a significant factor in the advent of the Western European Renaissance. The second migration of Greeks left the plains of the Greek peninsula and resettled in the mountains, the islands of the Aegean and other Greek regions where the Ottomans were unable to create a permanent military and administrative presence. As a result, some Greek mountain clans across the peninsula, as well as some islands, were able to maintain a status of independence. The millet system contributed to the ethnic cohesion of Orthodox Greeks by segregating the various peoples within the Ottoman Empire based on religion. Eventually, religion played an integral part in the formation of modern Greek and other post-Ottoman national identities.

Establishment of the modern Greek state

In March 1821, the Greeks rebelled against the Ottoman Empire. Their struggle lasted until 1829, when the independence of the nascent Greek state was finally recognised under the London Protocol, although the Ottomans delayed recognition until the Treaty of Constantinople of 1832. In 1827, the Russian ex-minister of foreign affairs, Ioannis Kapodistrias (Ιωάννης Καποδίστριας), a noble Greek from the Ionian Islands, was chosen as the governor of the new Republic. However, the Great Powers soon dissolved that republic and installed a monarchy.

The first king, Otto, was of the Bavarian House of Wittelsbach. The War of Independence also set in motion the establishment of major new cities and centres of trade such as Hermoupolis, Athens and Pireaus. In 1843 King Otto was forced, as a result of an uprising, to grant his subjects a constitution and a representative assembly. He was deposed in 1863 and replaced by Prince Vilhelm (William) of Denmark, of the Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg line of the House of Oldenburg, who took the name George I and brought with him the Ionian Islands as a coronation gift from Britain. On 29 March 1864, the Treaty of London pledged the transfer of sovereignty to Greece upon ratification. Thus, on May 28, by proclamation of the Lord High Commissioner, the Ionian Islands were united with Greece.

Greece was growing economically, whilst becoming politically more liberal. In 1877, Prime Minister Charilaos Trikoupis curbed the power of the monarchy to interfere in the Assembly. This period was punctuated by the undertaking of one of the largest construction initiatives on the European continent, one of significant commercial importance; the creation of the Corinth Canal, lasting from 1881 to 1893. In 1896 the Olympic Games were revived in Athens, and hailed as a success.

Territorial expansion and internal turmoil

As a result of the Balkan Wars of 1912-13, Crete, Chios, Samos, most of Epirus and southern Macedonia, including Thessaloniki, were incorporated into Greece. King George, monarch for five decades, was assassinated in Thessaloniki in 1913; he was succeeded by his eldest son, King Constantine I. His struggle with Prime Minister Eleftherios Venizelos over Greece's entry into the First World War resulted in Greece's joining the Entente against Germany and Austria and the later abdication of King Constantine in favour of his son, Alexander, but left Greece divided into two bitterly hostile political camps for decades (see National Schism). At that time, a part of Asia Minor centered around the city of Smyrna (known today as İzmir) still retained a large Greek population. The area was awarded to Greece by the Great Powers as a reward for having sided with the entente powers in World War I against the Ottoman Empire. Three years later, Turkish nationalists led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk denounced the Sultan's government in Istanbul and formed a new one in Ankara, eventually re-establishing control over Asia Minor (Greco-Turkish War (1919-1922)).

Following the withdrawal of Greek forces, the destruction of Smyrna and the displacement of thousands of Greeks from the city, a new government was established in Greece. Soon afterwards, the Treaty of Lausanne was signed, fixing the Greco-Turkish borders to this date. A population exchange was included in the agreement and immediately afterwards around five hundred thousand Muslims, then living in mainland Greece went to Turkey in exchange for more than 1.22 million Greek residents of Asia Minor (excluding Constantinople, Imvros and Tenedos). From 1924 a succession of unstable governments continued until 1935, when a referendum was held, resulting in an overwhelming majority in favour of restoring the monarchy in the person of King George II. In 1936, General Ioannis Metaxas established an authoritarian conservative dictatorship in Greece, known as the 4th of August Regime.

Greece during World War II (1940-1944)

In the early hours of October 28, 1940, Italian dictator Mussolini demanded that Greece surrender all its arms and allow the Axis troops to invade the country; the administration then gave what became known as the simple negative response of “No” (see Okhi Day), thereby siding with the Allies. Italian troops immediately began invading the country from southern Albania. However, they were checked by the significantly smaller Greek Army, signalling the Allies' first major victory on land against the Axis powers. A prolonged period of fierce fighting in the Pindus mountains followed, in which Mussolini's forces were successfully pushed back. Hitler and his generals realized that their strategic southern flank needed to be secured more effectively so German forces, whose ranks included troops from Bulgaria and Italy, invaded.

The invasion of Greece by Nazi Germany began on April 6, 1941 and led to the complete occupation of the country. Greek Resistance to the occupation was fierce, often with bitter retaliation from the occupiers. The Greek resistance in 1940-41 however, is believed to have forced a delay in German plans to initiate invasion against the Soviet Union, thereby extending the campaign into the punishing Russian winter. Meanwhile the extremely heavy losses suffered by German paratroop forces (5000) in the Battle of Crete foiled a planned German campaign in the Middle East against British-held Iraq and its oil fields. Germany retained its disastrous grip on the country until October 12, 1944 when its troops finally withdrew after the landing of Allied Forces in Athens. The Jewish communities of Greece, especially of Thessaloniki, suffered the heaviest toll in the Holocaust, ca. 300,000 Greeks died of famine and the country's economy languished.

Regime of the Colonels (1967-1974)

In 1965, a period of political turbulence and uncertainty began which led to a coup d’etat against the elected government and King Constantine II on April 21, 1967. In their place, a US-supported military junta, known as the Regime of the Colonels, was established under Colonel George Papadopoulos. In the ensuing years, a number of citizens opposed to the regime, from all shades of the political spectrum, were arrested and in some cases tortured by the members of the regime. Many politicians evaded capture and found political refuge elsewhere in Europe, such as France and Sweden. The then head of state, King Constantine, had officially acknowledged the new regime, which was then duly recognized by the international community, so diplomatic relations continued. However, the King subsequently attempted a failed counter-coup in December 1967, after which the former head of state went into exile in Rome. In 1973 Papadopoulos launched a failed attempt to liberalize, under the premiership of Spiros Markezinis. In November 1973 the Athens Polytechnic Uprising sent shockwaves across the regime, and a counter-coup by junta hardliner Brigadier Dimitrios Ioannides prolonged the junta until July 20, 1974. On that day, Turkey invaded the predominately Greek island of Cyprus, allegedly to protect the island's Turkish minority from a junta-sponsored coup d'etat. The developing crisis led to the collapse of the Regime of the Colonels on July 23, 1974.

Modern Era (1975-present)

Ex-Premier Constantine Karamanlis was immediately invited back from Paris, where he had resided since 1963. Marking the beginning of the Metapolitefsi era of modern Greek history, the plane carrying Constantine Karamanlis landed in Athens in the early hours of July 24, amidst massive celebrations and enormous crowds, extending from the capital's Ellinikon International Airport to Syntagma Square; Karamanlis was immediately appointed as the interim prime minister under President Gizikis and founded the conservative New Democracy party, going on to win the ensuing elections by a large margin. Democratic rule was finally restored in its birthplace and a democratic republican constitution activated in 1975. The monarchy was abolished by a referendum held that same year, denying King Constantine II and his family any access to the country until 2004. Meanwhile, another prominent figure of the past, Andreas Papandreou, had also returned from the United States and had already founded the Panhellenic Socialist Party, or PASOK.

Karamanlis won the 1977 parliamentary elections but resigned in 1980 giving way to George Rallis. Papandreou, however, won the elections held on October 18, 1981 by a landslide and formed the first socialist government in Greece's history. Papandreou dominated the Greek political stage for almost 15 years (excepted only by the 1990-1993 period when Constantine Mitsotakis of the New Democracy party won elections), until his death in June 23, 1996. By that time Kostas Simitis, one of many prominent political figures of PASOK, had already succeeded the ailing and hospitalized Papandreou as the new Prime Minister. Following a long period of diplomatic tension and the threat of a military confrontation (see Imia-Kardak crisis), relations with neighbouring Turkey have improved substantially over the last decade, since successive earthquakes hit both nations in the summer of 1999. Rapprochement came about through what became known as Greek-Turkish earthquake diplomacy and today Greece is an active supporter of Turkey's effort to be accepted by the European Union as a full member, under the assumption that it addresses humanitarian issues. Prime Minister Simitis remained in office until March 7, 2004 when Kostas Karamanlis of the conservative New Democracy party and a nephew of Constantine Karamanlis, won the parliamentary elections. Greece became the tenth member of the European Union on January 1 1981 and ever since the nation has experienced a remarkable and sustained economic growth. Widespread investments in industrial enterprises and heavy infrastructure, as well as funds from the European Union and growing revenues from tourism, shipping and a fast growing service sector have raised the country's standard of living to unprecedented levels. The country adopted the Euro in 2001 and successfully organised the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

Government and politics

Greece is a parliamentary democracy.The Constitution of Greece: Article 1 The head of state is the President of the Republic, who is elected by the Parliament for a five-year term.The Constitution of Greece: Article 30 After the Constitutional amendment of 1986 the President's duties were curtailed to a significant extent, and they are now largely ceremonial.K. Mavrias, ''Constitutional Law'', 477-478

The current Constitution of Greece was drawn up and adopted by the Fifth Revisionary Parliament of the Hellenes and entered into force in 1975 after the fall of the military junta of 1967-1974. It has been revised twice since, in 1986 and in 2001. The Constitution, which consists of 120 articles, provides for a separation of powers into executive, legislative, and judicial branches, and grants extensive specific guarantees (further reinforced in 2001) of civil liberties and social rights.P.D. Dagtoglou, ''Individual Rights'', I, 21

E. Venizelos, ''The "Acquis" of the Constitutional Revision'', 131-132, 165-172

According to the Constitution, executive power is exercised by the President of the Republic and the Government;The Constitution of Greece: Article 26 after 1986, however, the role of the President in the executive branch is ceremonial. The position of Prime Minister, Greece's head of government, belongs to the current leader of the political party that can obtain the confidence of a plurality in the Parliament. The President of the Republic formally appoints the Prime Minister and, on his recommendation, appoints and dismisses the other members of the Cabinet.The Constitution of Greece: Article 37 The Prime Minister exercises vast political power, and the amendment of 1986 further strengthened his position to the detriment of the President of the Republic.K. Mavrias, ''Constitutional Law'', 477-478, 486-487

Legislative power is exercised by a 300-member unicameral Parliament.The Constitution of Greece: Articles 51, 53 Statutes passed by the Parliament are promulgated by the President of the Republic.The Constitution of Greece: Article 42 Parliamentary elections are held every four years, but the President of the Republic is obliged to dissolve the Parliament earlier on the proposal of the Cabinet, in view of dealing with a national issue of exceptional importance.The Constitution of Greece: Article 41 The President is also obliged to dissolve the Parliament earlier, if the opposition manages to pass a motion of no confidence.The Constitution of Greece: Article 84

The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature and comprises three Supreme Courts: the Court of Cassation (Άρειος Πάγος), the Council of State (Συμβούλιο της Επικρατείας) and the Court of Auditors (Ελεγκτικό Συνέδριο). The Judiciary system is also composed of civil courts, which judge civil and penal cases and administrative courts, which judge administrative cases, namely disputes between the citizens and the State.

Since the restoration of democracy the party system is dominated by the liberal-conservative New Democracy and the socialist Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK). Non-negligible parties include the Communist Party of Greece, the Coalition of the Radical Left and the Popular Orthodox Rally.

On March 7, 2004, Kostas Karamanlis, president of the New Democracy party and nephew of the late Constantine Karamanlis was elected as the new Prime Minister of Greece, thus marking his party's first electoral victory in nearly eleven years. Karamanlis took over government from Kostas Simitis of PASOK, who had been in office since January 1996, replacing the ailing Andreas Papandreou who died on June 23, 1996. Kostas Karamanlis won a second term on September 16, 2007, however his party acquired a slimmer majority in the Greek Parliament gaining only 152 out of 300 seats.

Peripheries and prefectures

Administratively, Greece consists of fourteen peripheries subdivided into a total of fifty-four prefectures (, singular ). There is also one autonomous area, Mount Athos (, "Holy Mountain"), which borders the periphery of Central Macedonia.

| rowspan=15 |
|-
| 1 || Attica || Athens || style="text-align:right"|3,808 km²|| style="text-align:right"|3,841,408
|-
| 2 || Central Greece || Lamia || style="text-align:right"|15,549 km²|| style="text-align:right"|614,614
|-
| 3 || Central Macedonia || Thessaloniki ||style="text-align:right"|18,811 km²|| style="text-align:right"|1,931,870
|-
| 4 || Crete || Iraklio || style="text-align:right"|6,336 km²|| style="text-align:right"|623,666
|-
| 5 || East Macedonia and Thrace || Komotini || style="text-align:right"|14,157 km²|| style="text-align:right"|623,248
|-
| 6 || Epirus || Ioannina ||style="text-align:right"|9,203 km²|| style="text-align:right"|358,698
|-
| 7 || Ionian Islands || Corfu || style="text-align:right"|2,307 km²|| style="text-align:right"|220,097
|-
| 8 || North Aegean || Mytilene || style="text-align:right"|3,836 km²|| style="text-align:right"|208,151
|-
| 9 || Peloponnese || Tripoli || style="text-align:right"|15,490 km²|| style="text-align:right"| 650,310
|-
| 10 || South Aegean || Ermoupoli || style="text-align:right"|5,286 km²|| style="text-align:right"|320,001
|-
| 11 || Thessaly || Larissa || style="text-align:right"|14.037 km²|| style="text-align:right"|760,714
|-
| 12 || West Greece || Patras || style="text-align:right"|11,350 km²|| style="text-align:right"|753,267
|-
| 13 || West Macedonia || Kozani || style="text-align:right"|9,451 km²|| style="text-align:right"|303,857
|-
| - || Mount Athos (Autonomous) || Karyes || style="text-align:right"|390 km²|| style="text-align:right"|2,250

\|- style="font-size:100%; text-align:left" !width="40px"\| Map !! Number !!width="140px"\| Periphery !!width="80px"\| Capital !!width="80px"\| Area !!width="80px"\| Population

Geography

Albania

F.Y.R.O.M.

Bulgaria

Turkey

>GREECE

>ATHENS

''---''Thasos

''--''Samothrace

Nafplion

.

Sparta

.

Areopoli

.

Piraeus

Eleusina

Laurium

Heraklion

''M a c e d o n i a''

''Thrace''

''Epirus''

''Thessaly''

''Central Greece''

''Peloponnese''

''M.Olympus (2917 m)''

''Lefkada''

''Kefalonia''

''Zakynthos-''

''Lemnos''

''Lesbos''

''Chios''

''Samos''

Andros

Tinos

Mykonos

I''caria''

''--''Patmos

''Naxos''

Milos

''Santorini---''

''Kos''

''Rhodes''

''Karpathos''

''Kassos''

''Kythira''

''Gavdos''

'''''Aegean''

''Sea''

''Sea of Crete''

''Myrtoan''

''Sea''

''Ionian''

''Sea''

''Mediterranean''

''Sea''

''Crete''

''NE Aegean''

''Islands''

''Cyclades''

''Dodecanese''

''Ionian Islands'''''

Greece consists of a mountainous and craggy mainland jutting out into the sea at the southern end of the Balkans, the Peloponnesus peninsula (separated from the mainland by the canal of the Isthmus of Corinth), and numerous islands (around 2,000), including Crete, Euboea, Lesbos, Chios, the Dodecanese and the Cycladic groups of the Aegean Sea as well as the Ionian Sea islands. Greece has the tenth longest coastline in the world with 14,880 km; its land boundary is 1,160 km (721 mi).

Four-fifths of Greece consist of mountains or hills, making the country one of the most mountainous in Europe. Western Greece contains a number of lakes and wetlands and it is dominated by the Pindus mountain range. Pindus has a maximum elevation of 2,636 metres (8,648 ft) and it is essentially a prolongation of the Dinaric Alps.

The range continues through the western Peloponnese, crosses the islands of Kythera and Antikythera and find its way into southwestern Aegean, in the island of Crete where it eventually ends. (the islands of the Aegean are peaks of underwater mountains that once constituted an extension of the mainland). Pindus is characterized by its high, steep peaks, often dissected by numerous canyons and a variety of other karstic landscapes. Most notably, the impressive Meteora formation consisting of high, steep boulders provides a breathtaking experience for the hundreds of thousands of tourists who visit the area each year. Special lifts transfer visitors to the scenic monasteries that lie on top of those rocks.

Meteora is situated in the Trikala prefecture. The Vikos-Aoos Gorge is yet another spectacular formation. The Vikos-Aoos Gorge is a popular hotspot for those fond of extreme sports. Mount Olympus is the highest mountain in the country, located in the southwestern Pieria prefecture, near Thessaloniki. Mytikas in the Olympus range has a height of 2,920 m (9,570 ft) at its highest peak. Once considered the throne of the Gods, it is today extremely popular among hikers and climbers who deem its height as a challenge. Moreover, northeastern Greece features yet another high altitude mountain range, the Rhodope range, spreading across the periphery of East Macedonia and Thrace; this area is covered with vast, thick, ancient forests. The famous Dadia forest is in the prefecture of Evros, in the far northeast of the country.

Expansive plains are primarily located in the prefectures of Thessaly, Central Macedonia and Thrace. They constitute key economic regions as they are among the few arable places in the country. Volos and Larissa are the two largest cities of Thessaly. Rare marine species such as the Pinniped Seals and the Loggerhead Sea Turtle live in the seas surrounding mainland Greece, while its dense forests are home to the endangered brown bear, the lynx, the Roe Deer and the Wild Goat.

Climate

The climate of Greece can be categorised into three types that influence well-defined regions of its territory. The Pindus mountain range strongly affects the climate of the country by making the western side of it (areas prone to the south-westerlies) wetter on average than the areas lying to the east of it (lee side of the mountains). The three distinct types are the Mediterranean, the Alpine and the Temperate types. The first one features mild, wet winters and hot, dry summers. The Cyclades, the Dodecanese, Crete, Eastern Peloponessus and parts of the Sterea Ellada region are mostly affected by this particular type. Temperatures rarely reach extreme values although snowfalls do occur occasionally even in the Cyclades or the Dodecanese during the winter months.

The Alpine type is dominant mainly in the mountainous areas of Northwestern Greece (Epirus, Central Greece, Thessaly, Western Macedonia) as well as in the central parts of Peloponnese, including the prefectures of Achaia, Arcadia and parts of Laconia, where extensions of the Pindus mountain range pass by). Finally, the Temperate type affects Central Macedonia and East Macedonia and Thrace; it features cold, damp winters and hot, dry summers. Athens is located in a transitional area featuring both the Mediterranean and the Temperate types. It averages about 16 inches of rain annually. The city's northern suburbs are dominated by the temperate type while the downtown area and the southern suburbs enjoy a typical Mediterranean type.

Economy

Greece operates a capitalist economy that produced a GDP of $305.595 billion in 2006. The principal economic activities mainly include the tourism and shipping industries, banking and finance, manufacturing and construction and telecommunications. The country serves as the regional business hub for many of the world's largest multinational companies.

The people of Greece enjoy a high standard of living. Greece ranks 24th in the 2006 HDI, 22nd on The Economist's 2005 world-wide quality-of-life index, and it has an average per capita income that has been estimated at $33,004 for the year 2006, higher than that of Germany, France and Italy.

Greece's present prosperity is largely owed to the post-World War II "Greek economic miracle" (when GDP growth averaged 7% between 1950 and 1973), the implementation of a number of structural and fiscal reforms, combined with considerable European Union funding over the last twenty-five years and increasing private consumption. The latter facts have contributed to a consistent annual growth of the Greek GDP that was surpassing the respective one of most other EU partners. http://www.elke.gr/default.asp?V_DOC_ID=765

Today, the service industry (74.4%) makes up the largest, most vital and fastest-growing sector of the Greek economy, followed by industry (20.6%) and agriculture (5.1%). The tourism industry is a major source of foreign exchange earnings and revenue accounting for 15% of Greece’s total GDP and employing (directly or indirectly) 659,719 people (or 16.5% of total employment). In 2005, Greece welcomed almost 18 million visitors and in 2006 that figure almost reached 20 million.

The Greek banking & finance sector is also an important source of revenue and employment and Greek banks have invested heavily in the Balkan region. The manufacturing sector accounts for about 13% of GDP with the food industry leading in growth, profit and export potential.

High-technology equipment production, especially for telecommunications, is also a fast-growing sector. Other important areas include textiles, building materials, machinery, transport equipment, and electrical appliances. Construction (10%GDP) and agriculture (7%) are yet two other significant sectors of the Greek economic activity.

Greek Maritime Industry

The shipping industry is a key element of Greek economic activity.. Given that Greece is a peninsula, shipping in ancient times was the natural way for Greeks to reach their neighboring people, trade with them and expand by establishing colonies. Today, shipping is one of the country's most important industries. It accounts for 4.5% of GDP, employs about 160,000 people (4% of the workforce), and represents 1/3 of the country's trade deficit.{{cite web |url=http://www.nbg.gr/en/pr_release_resb.asp?P_ID=463 |work=National Bank of Greece |publisher=www.nbg.gr |title=Greek shipping is modernized to remain a global leader and expand its contribution to the Greek economy
|date=2006-05-11 |accessdate=2007-04-08}}

During the 1960s the size of the Greek fleet nearly doubled, primarily through the investment undertaken by the shipping magnates Onassis and Niarchos.. The basis of the modern Greek maritime industry was formed after World War II when Greek shipping businessmen were able to amass surplus ships sold to them by the United States Government through the Ship Sales Act of the 1940s.

According to the BTS, the Greek-owned maritime fleet is today the largest in the world, with 3,079 vessels accounting for 18% of the world's fleet capacity (making it the largest of any other country) with a total dwt of 141,931 thousand (142 million dwt). In terms of ship categories, Greece ranks first in both tankers and dry bulk carriers, fourth in the number of containers, and fourth in other ships. However, today's fleet roster is smaller than an all-time high of 5,000 ships in the late 70's.

Science

Because of its strategic location, qualified workforce and political and economic stability, many multinational companies, such as Ericsson, Siemens, SAP, Motorola, Coca-Cola have their regional R&D Headquarters in Greece.

The General Secretariat for Research and Technology of the Hellenic Ministry of Development is responsible for designing, implementing and supervising national research and technological policy.

In 2003, public spending on R&D was 456,37 million Euros (12,6% increase from 2002). Total research and development (R&D) spending (both public and private) as a percentage of GDP has increased considerably since the beginning of the past decade, from 0,38% in 1989, to 0,65% in 2001. R&D spending in Greece remains lower than the EU average of 1,93%, but, according to Research DC, based on OECD and Eurostat data, between 1990 and 1998, total R&D expenditure in Greece enjoyed the third highest increase in Europe, after Finland and Ireland.

In 2001, there were 55,626 researchers (from 30,500 in 1993)in such fields as telecommunications, microelectronics, multimedia, computer science, computer networks and software engineering, attracting the interest of many multinational companies and producing an increasing number of high quality publications. Of that number, approximately 33,507 were employed in Higher Education Foundations, 13,100 by private companies, 8,800 in State-owned Research Centres and approximately 200 in non-profit private research centres.

Greece's technology parks with incubator facilities include the Science and Technology Park of Crete (Heraklion), the Thessaloniki Technology Park , the Lavrio Technology Park and the Patras Science Park .

Greece has been a member of the European Space Agency (ESA) since 2005. Cooperation between ESA and the Hellenic National Space Committee began in the early 1990s. In 1994, Greece and ESA signed their first cooperation agreement. Having formally applied for full membership in 2003, Greece became ESA's sixteenth member on March 16 2005. As member of the ESA, Greece participates in the agency's telecommunication and technology activities, and the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security Initiative.

Demographics

The official Statistical body of Greece is the National Statistical Service of Greece (NSSG). According to the NSSG, Greece's total population in 2005 was 11,082,752, of whom 5,486,632 were males and 5,596,119 females. As statistics from 1971, 1981 and 2001 show, the Greek population has been aging the past several decades. The birth rate in 2003 stood 9.5 per 1,000 inhabitants (14.5 per 1,000 in 1981). At the same time the mortality rate increased slightly from 8.9 per 1,000 inhabitants in 1981 to 9.6 per 1,000 inhabitants in 2003. In 2001, 16.71% of the population were 65 years old and older, 68.12% between the ages of 15 and 64 years old, and 15.18% were 14 years old and younger. In 1971 the figures were 10.92%, 63.72% and 25.36% respectively. Greek society has also rapidly changed with the passage of time. For example, marriage rates kept falling from almost 71 per 1,000 inhabitants in 1981 until 2002, only to increase slightly in 2003 to 61 per 1,000. Divorce rates on the other hand, have seen an everlasting and accelerating increase – from 89.2 per 1,000 marriages in 1981 to 191 per 1,000 marriages in 2002. Almost two-thirds of the Greek people live in urban areas. Greece's largest cities in 2001 were: Athens (3,361,806), Thessaloniki (800,764), Patra (185,626), Iraklio (144,642), Volos (124,591), and Larissa (124,394).

Immigration

Due to the complexity of Greek immigration policy, practices and data collection, truly reliable data on immigrant populations in Greece is difficult to gather and therefore subject to much speculation. A study from the Mediterranean Migration Observatory maintains that the 2001 Census from the NSSG recorded 762,191 persons residing in Greece without Greek citizenship, constituting around 7% of total population and that, of these, 48,560 were EU or EFTA nationals and 17,426 Cypriots with privileged status. At the same time, Albanians constituted some 56% of total immigrants, followed by Bulgarians (5%), Georgians (3%) and Romanians (3%). Americans, Cypriots, British and Germans appeared as sizeable foreign communities at around 2% each of total foreign population. The rest were around 690,000 persons of non-EU or non-homogeneis status.

The greatest cluster of non-EU immigrant population is in the Municipality of Athens –some 132,000 immigrants, at 17% of local population. Thessaloniki is the second largest cluster, with 27,000 – but reaching only 7% of local population. After this, the predominant areas of location are the Athens environs.

According to the same study, the foreign population (documented and undocumented) residing in Greece may in reality figure upwards to 8.5% or 10.3%, that is approximately meaning 1.15 million - if immigrants with ''homogeneis'' cards are accounted
for.

Religion

The constitution of Greece recognizes the Greek Orthodox faith as the "prevailing" religion of the country, while guaranteeing freedom of religious belief for all. The majority of Greek citizens (97%) identify themselves as Greek Orthodox, and most of them celebrate at least the main religious feasts, especially Pascha (Greek Orthodox Easter).

The Greek Government does not keep statistics on religious groups and censuses do not ask for religious affiliation. Judaism has existed in present-day Greece for more than 2000 years. Sephardic Jews had made such a large presence in the city of Thessaloniki that their traditional language, Ladino, had been spoken by the non-Jews of the city as well. Few Greek Jews survived the Holocaust, and today the Jewish community as estimated to be around 5,000. Estimates of the recognised Muslim minority, which is mostly located in Thrace, range from 98,000 to 140,000, (between 0.9% and 1.2%) while the immigrant Muslim community numbers between 200,000 and 300,000. In an address to the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church of Greece on 10 October 2006 Archbishop Christodoulos stated: "Today more than 500,000 Muslims live in our country."''Εκκλησία'', Official Gazette of the Church of Greece, October 2006, page 737

Greek members of Roman Catholic faith (including both Byzantine Greek Catholics and Latin Catholics) are estimated at 50,000 with the Roman Catholic immigrant community approximating 200,000. Old Calendarists account for 500,000 followers. The Jehovah's Witnesses report having 30,000 active members. Protestants including Evangelicals at about 30,000. Free Apostolic Church of Pentecost and other Pentecostals denominations are about 12,000.Synod of Apostolic Church of Christ Mormons can also be found with 420 followers, and Scientologists with 500 followers. The long-standing Jewish community numbers approximately 5,500 followers.

Ancient Greek religion has also reappeared, CNN, http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/01/21/ancient.gods.ap/index.html with approximately 2,000 adherents, comprising 0.02% of the general population.US Department of State, http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2006/71383.htm. Some of these Greek religionists have made claims that they are not reconstructionists but are just people coming out of the closethttp://www.superfectafilms.com/.

In the Eurostat - Eurobarometer poll of 2005, 81% of Greek citizens responded that they ''believe there is a God'', whereas 16% answered that ''they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force'', and 3% that they ''do not believe there is a God, spirit, nor life force''. Greece's percentage of respondents asserting that they ''believe there is a God'' was the third highest among EU members behind Malta and Cyprus.

Education

Compulsory education in Greece comprises primary schools (Δημοτικό Σχολείο, ''Dimotikó Scholeio'') and gymnasium (Γυμνάσιο). Nursery schools (Παιδικός σταθμός, ''Paidikós Stathmós'') and kindergartens (Νηπιαγωγείο, ''Nipiagogeío'') are popular but not compulsory. Children start primary school aged 6 and remain there for six years. Some primary schools are "all-day", offering an extended timetable and enriched syllabus. Attendance at gymnasia starts at age 12 and last for three years. Greece's post-compulsory secondary education consists of two school types: unified upper secondary schools (Ενιαίο Λύκειο, ''Eniaia Lykeia'') and technical-vocational educational schools (Τεχνικά και Επαγγελματικά Εκπαιδευτήρια, "TEE"). Post-compulsory secondary education also includes vocational training institutes (Ινστιτούτα Επαγγελματικής Κατάρτισης, "IEK") which provide a formal but unclassified level of education. As they can accept both ''Gymnasio'' (lower secondary school) and ''Lykeio'' (upper secondary school) graduates, these institutes are not classified as offering a particular level of education.

Public higher education is divided into universities, "Highest Educational Institutions" (Ανώτατα Εκπαιδευτικά Ιδρύματα, ''Anótata Ekpaideytiká Idrýmata'', "ΑΕΙ") and "Highest Technological Educational Institutions" (Ανώτατα Τεχνολογικά Εκπαιδευτικά Ιδρύματα, ''Anótata Technologiká Ekpaideytiká Idrýmata'', "ATEI"). Students are admitted to these Institutes according to their performance at national level examinations taking place after completion of the third grade of ''Lykeio''. Additionally, students over twenty-two years old may be admitted to the Hellenic Open University through a form of lottery.

The Greek education system also provides special kindergartens, primary and secondary schools for people with special needs or difficulties in learning. Specialist gymnasia and high schools offering musical, theological and physical education also exist.

Some of the main universities in Greece include:

National and Capodistrian University of Athens National Technical University of Athens University of Piraeus University of Macedonia (in Thessaloniki) University of Crete Technical University of Crete Athens University of Economics and Business Aristotle University of Thessaloniki University of the Aegean (across the Aegean Islands) Democritus University of Thrace University of Ioannina University of Thessaly Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences University of Patras Charokopeio University of Athens Ionian University (across the Ionian Islands)

Sports

The Greek national football team is the reigning UEFA European Champions having won the EURO 2004. In the final, the team managed to beat their Portuguese opponents by 1-0. They are as of March ranked 15th in the world, and are currently first in their 2008 UEFA European Football Championship qualifying group. The Greek Super League is the highest professional football league in the country. Currently sixteen clubs compete in that league, playing each other twice, once at home and once away. At the end of each season, the bottom three clubs are relegated to the Second National League only to be replaced by the top three teams from that particular league. The top three most known football clubs are Panathinaikos, Olympiacos, and AEK Athens.

The men's Greek national basketball team actually is more successful with a decades-long tradition of excellence. Greece is generally considered an important power in international basketball and the national team is regarded as one of the best in the world. They have won the European Championship twice, once in 1987 and again in 2005, and have reached the final four in three of the last four FIBA World Championships (1994, 1998, 2006) taking second place in 2006. They currently are ranked 5th in the world. The domestic Greek basketball league, A1 Ethniki is composed of fourteen teams. The most successful Greek teams are Panathinaikos, Aris Salonica, Olympiacos, AEK Athens and PAOK.

International Rankings

\|- ! Organization ! Survey ! Ranking \|- \| United Nations Development Programme \| Human Development Index 2006 Human Development Index 2004 Human Development Index 2000 \| 24 out of 177 24 out of 177 24 out of 177 \|- \| ''The Economist'' \| Worldwide Quality-of-life Index, 2005 \| 22 out of 111 \|- \| International Monetary Fund \| GDP per capita (PPP) \| 27 out of 180 \|- \| Heritage Foundation/''Wall Street Journal'' \| Index of Economic Freedom \| 57 out of 157 \|- \| Reporters Without Borders \| Worldwide Press Freedom Index 2006 Worldwide Press Freedom Index 2005 Worldwide Press Freedom Index 2004 \| 32 out of 168 18(tied) out of 168 33 out of 167 \|- \| Transparency International \| Corruption Perceptions Index 2006 Corruption Perceptions Index 2005 Corruption Perceptions Index 2004 \| 54 out of 163 47 out of 158 49 out of 145 \|- \| World Economic Forum \| Global Competitiveness Report \| 47 out of 125 \|- \| Yale University/Columbia University \| Environmental Sustainability Index 2005 \| 67 out of 146 \|- \| Nationmaster \| Labor strikes \| 13 out of 27 \|- \| A.T. Kearney / Foreign Policy \| Globalization Index 2006 Globalization Index 2005 Globalization Index 2004 \| 32 out of 62 29 out of 62 28 out of 62