Greece
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Hellas" redirects here. For other uses of "Hellas" and "Greece", see Hellas (disambiguation) and Greece
(disambiguation).
Hellenic Republic
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: , "Freedom or Death"(traditional)
Anthem:
"Hymn to Liberty"
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Location of Greece (dark green)
in Europe (green & dark grey)
in the European Union (green) [Legend]
Capital
and largest city
Athens
3758N 2343E
Official languages Greek
Ethnic groups (2010 /
2012
[1][2][3][4]
)
94% Greek
4% Albanian
2% others
Demonym Greek
Government Unitary parliamentaryconstitutional republic
- President Karolos Papoulias
- Prime Minister Antonis Samaras
- Speaker Vangelis Meimarakis
Legislature Parliament
Formation
- Independence
declaredfrom
the Ottoman Empire
1 January 1822
- Recognized 3 February 1830
- Current constitution 11 June 1975
- Joined the EEC (now
the
European Union)
1 January 1981
Area
- Total 131,957 km
2[5]
(97th)
50,949 sq mi
- Water (%) 0.8669
Population
- 2011 census 10,815,197
[6]
(78th)
- Density 82
[7]
/km
2
(120th)
212/sq mi
GDP (PPP) 2013 estimate
- Total $266 billion
[8]
(44th)
- Per capita $23,631
[8]
(42nd)
GDP (nominal) 2013 estimate
- Total $243.330 billion
[8]
(42nd)
- Per capita $21,617
[8]
(37th)
Gini (2012) 34.3
[9]
medium
HDI (2013) 0.860
[10]
very high 29th
Currency Euro ()
a
(EUR)
Time zone EET (UTC+2)
- Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+3)
Date format dd/mm/yyyy
Drives on the right
Calling code +30
ISO 3166 code GR
Internet TLD .gr
b
a.
Before 2002, the Greek drachma.
b.
The .eu domain is also used, as in other European Unionmember states.
Greece (Greek: , Ellda, pronounced [elaa] ( listen)), officially the Hellenic Republic (
[elinici imokrati.a] Elliniki Dimokrata)
[11]
and known since ancient times
as Hellas (Greek: ), is a country in Southern Europe.
[12]
According to the 2011 census, Greece's
population is around 11 million.Athens is the nation's capital and largest city.
Greece is strategically located at the crossroads of Europe, Western Asia, andAfrica,
[13][14][15]
and shares land
borders with Albania to the northwest, the Republic of Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north and Turkey to the
northeast. The country consists of nine geographic regions: Macedonia, Central Greece,
the Peloponnese, Thessaly,Epirus, the Aegean Islands (including
the Dodecanese and Cyclades), Thrace, Crete, and the Ionian Islands. The Aegean Sea lies to the east of
the mainland, the Ionian Seato the west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Greece has the longest
coastline on the Mediterranean Basin and the 11th longest coastline in the world at 13,676 km (8,498 mi) in
length, featuring a vast number of islands (approximately 1,400, of which 227 are inhabited). Eighty percent of
Greece consists of mountains, of which Mount Olympus is the highest, at 2,917 m (9,570 ft).
Modern Greece traces its roots to the civilization of Mycenaean Greece and is considered the cradle of
all Western civilization. As such, it is the birthplace ofdemocracy,
[16]
Western philosophy,
[17]
the Olympic
Games, Western literature andhistoriography, political science, major scientific
and mathematical principles,
[18]
andWestern drama,
[19]
including both tragedy and comedy. The cultural and
technological achievements of Greece greatly influenced the world, with many aspects of Greek civilization
being imparted to the East through Alexander the Great's campaigns, and to the West through the Roman
Empire. This rich legacy is partly reflected in the 17UNESCO World Heritage Sites located in Greece, ranking
it 7th in Europe and 13th in the world. The modern Greek state, which comprises much of the historical core of
Greek civilization, was established in 1830 following the Greek War of Independencefrom the Ottoman Empire.
Greece is a democratic,
[20]
developed country with an advanced high-income economy, a high standard of
living
[21][22]
and a very high Human Development Index.
[23]
Greece is a founding member of the United Nations,
a member of what is now the European Unionsince 1981 (and the eurozone since 2001
[24]
), and is also a
member of numerous other international institutions, including the Council of
Europe, NATO
[a]
, OECD, OSCE and the WTO. Greece's economy is also the largest in the Balkans, where
Greece is an important regional investor.
