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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