GREEK TRADITIONS 2

An introduction to Greek Culture and Civilization

THE GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION OF GREECE IN THE WORLD MAP

https://maps.google.sk/maps?oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&channel=sb&q=greece+maps&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=0x135b4ac711716c63:0x363a1775dc9a2d1d,%CE%95%CE%BB%CE%BB%CE%AC%CE%B4%CE%B1&gl=sk&ei=YOgFU7HNHoiMswbA4ICgAQ&ved=0CDYQ8gEwAA

Greece is located on: - the south-east end of Europe- the south end of the Balkan Peninsula- the point where Europe meets Asia and Africa

NEIGHBOR-COUNTRIES

o Albaniao FYROMo Bulgariao Turkey

PHYSICAL BORDERSo Evros River

(Turkey)o Rhodope

Mountain Range (Bulgaria)

o Doiran Lake (FYROM)

o Big Prespa Lake (FYROM-Albania)

o Small Prespa Lake (Albania)

o Ionian Sea (Italy)o Mediterranean

Sea (Libya & Egypt)

o Aegean Sea (Turkey)

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GREEK LANDSCAPE

o Total area: 131.957 km2, of which 0,86% is WATERo Approximately half of the total area is covered by

ISLANDSo Most of the mainland of Greece is mountainous

o Fishery, “international” trade (besides agriculture and cattle-breeding)

o Colonization all around the Mediterranean Sea

GEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS OF GREECE Greece is divided

in 9 geographical regions:

Thrace Macedonia Thessaly Epirus Central Greece Peloponnese Aegean Islands Ionian Islands Crete

…& 51 prefectures

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GREEK POPULATION

o Population: 10.815.197 (2011), of which 94% are Greek, 4% Albanians and 2% other ethnic groupso Official Language: Greeko Religion: Orthodox (98%) Muslims (1,3%) others (0,7%)

o Lingual & religious homogeneity

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GREEK STATE

Polity: Presidential Parliamentary Republic

Member of the United Nations Member of the North Atlantic Treaty

Organization (NATO) (1951) Member of the European Union (EU) (1979-

1981) Member of the Euro Zone – Replacement of

drachma with euro (2001)