Greece – Hellenic RepublicΕλλάδα

By Nikola Kohout

Contents

• Basics• Population– Religion and languages

• History• Greece and Turkey today• The economic/financial crisis• Greek islands • Culture– Archaeoligical sites and food

• Sources

Basics

Basics

• Capital: Athens• Official language: Greek• Currency: €• Population: 10 815 197 (2011)• Parliamentary constitutional republic• President: Karolos Papoulias• Prime Minister: Antonis Samara• Independence Day: 25th March• National Celebration: 28th October

Population• Languages:

– 97.4% of the Greek population speak modern Greek

– Minorities: 2.6 % (Turkish,Macedonian, Aromanians, Pomaks)

– Ancient Greek: - School subject- Church service

Population

• Religion:– Attribute of identification– State religion: Orthodox Catholic Church– Confessions:

- around 97% orthodox catholic- 0.2 % atheists- 1.7 % no confession

- Greek muslims: ancestors of the Greek that converted to the Islam during the Ottoman Empire

History

• Ancient Greece = “cradle of Europe”• 120 000 – 10 000 B.C.: First traces of human

inhabitation• 9th – 8th century B.C. = Greek Renaissance Years:

Greek alphabet, city-states, Homer• After 395 B.C.: part of the Byzantine Empire• 1453: capture of Constantinople through the

Ottomans

History

• 1821: Greek Revolution• 1830: Independence • World War I followed by the Greco-Turkish War

(1919-1922)• 1922: Asia Minor catastrophy• World War II: rejection of the Italian Ultimatum

Greece and Turkey today

• Discussions about the territorial waters, air corridor, demilitarization, resources of the Aegean

• Biggest discussion: CYPRUS -> where does it belong to?– Until 16th century: connection to the culture of Greece– 1573: conquest of the Ottomans– London Protocol: Independence of Cyprus– Makarios became President of the Republic– 1974: Turkish Invasion– today: north still Turkish, south still Greek– Admission of Cyprus to the EU could cause new problems

Greece and Turkey today

• Positive aspects:

– Turkey and Greece are partners in the NATO– Turkey wants to become part of the EU– Process of “confidence-building measures”– Since 2002: leader of the two populations in

Cyprus are working together on a common base

The economic/financial crisis

• Reasons/origins:

– Greece lives above its financial circumstances– Brightened figures– 2011: debt of € 350 billion (160% of the GDP)– Weakness of the economy and Greek mentality– Missing control of the EU– Deficient statistics -> no working fiscal authorities– No supervision of the budget; deficit of 15%– Tax evasion and manipulation of tax returns– corruption: “Fakelaki”

The economic/financial crisis

• Where you see the crisis/what Greek population thinks:

– Rich people don’t pay taxes– Nepotism– A lot of restaurants/bars close– Football stadiums & holiday houses are empty– Suicide rate increases: 2009 = 677 suicides

2011 = 1000 suicides– 62 % unemployment rate among young people– Growing dissatisfaction with the political parties– People would like to have back the “Junta”

Greek islands

• 6 000 islands

• only 227 inhabited

• 7 500 km of the country’s total 16 000 km coastline

• 58.5% of the country’s hotel units are located on the islands

The Cyclades – Delos, Naxos, Mykonos, Santorini

• most famous island group in the Aegean Sea

• group of 56 islands

• architecture in white and blue

• “Cyclades” refers to the islands forming a circle

Delos – birth place of Apollo & Artemis

Naxos Mykonos

Santorini - Thira

• Cousteau looked there for the lost city of Atlantis• Crescent-shaped • Southernmost island of the Cyclades• Still an active volcano• Last big eruption: 3600 years ago• Capital: Fira -> very turistic• “wedding destination”• Red, black and white beaches

Santorini

Crete – the largest island of Greece

• 4 regions: Chania, Rethymno, Heraklion, Lasithi• Heraklion: – most densely populated region on Crete– Between “Idí “ and “Dikti”– Unique mixture of civilizations– Palace of Knossos

• The island of Zeus

Crete

Culture – Archaeological sites

• Acropolis:

– In Athens– Parthenon: dedicated

to Athena Parthenos– Part of the UNESCO

world heritage since 1986

Culture – Archaeological sites

• Delphi:

– “navel of the world”– Most important

oracle in the classical Greek world

– Temple of Apollo– Castalian spring

Culture – Archaeological sites

• Olympia:– Birthplace of the

Olympic Games– First list of winners: 776

B.C.– Temple of Zeus

Culture – Archaeological sites

• Epidauros:– Theatre in the

mountains of Argolis– Constructed for 14 000 spectators– “acoustic test”– Part of the UNESCO

World Heritage

Culture - Food

Culture - Food

Sources• http://visitgreece.gr/• http://www.wissen.de/80-jahre-konflikt-griechenland-tuerkei• http://

www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/soziales/euro-krise-griechen-schauen-pessimistisch-ins-neue-jahr-a-875155.html

• http://www.rp-online.de/panorama/ausland/richtig-oder-falsch-klischees-ueber-griechen-1.2878757#

• http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/wirtschaftskrise-immer-mehr-griechen-verueben-selbstmord-a-868936.html

• http://www.lpb-bw.de/6783.html• http://

www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/euro-krise-griechen-vertrauen-eu-nicht-mehr/8060370.html• http://

www.welt.de/politik/ausland/article115549850/Viele-Griechen-wuenschen-sich-Militaerdiktatur-zurueck.html

• http://www.deutsch-tuerkische-nachrichten.de/2012/01/354454/ehemaliger-griechischer-premier-ein-krieg-mit-der-tuerkei-wuerde-nur-zwei-stunden-dauern/

• http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Griechisch-T%C3%BCrkischer_Krieg

Thank you for your attention!

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