10 Facts On Greece
From the Olympics of ancient Greece to the modern country, there is much to discuss on this country. Here are 10 facts on Greece you might not know.
10 Facts On Greece
1. The Greek name for the country is Elliniki Dimokratia. The people of Greece are called Ellines (or Hellenes). Women are Ellenides and men are Ellines. The country’s area size is 131,940 sq km.
2. The coastline is 13,676 km in length, primarily because of the many islands. The Greek population is just under eleven million with fifty-four percent being women.
3. Greece shares borders with Albania, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkey and Bulgaria. The highest mountain of the country is Mt Olympus. The capital is Athens.
4. Natural resources of the country are petroleum, hydropower, marble, magnesite, lignite, bauxite and gold. The main trade partners of the country are Germany, Italy, UK, Netherlands, France and the USA.
5. Greece is also a religious country: 98 percent are Greek Orthodox, whereas 1.3 are Muslim and 0.7 are followers of other religions.
6. Agriculture is widely developed in the country. Food, wine, tobacco, dairy products, olives, potatoes, meat, tomatoes, corn, wheat, barley, sugar beets are produced in Greece. Other industries are tourism, textiles, chemicals, metal, mining, petroleum.
7. Population growth is nearly non-existent at .02 percent a year. Life expectancy is 81.16 for women and 78.44 for men.
8. Greece has 51 prefectures and 1 autonomous regions: Ayion Oros (Mt. Athos), Aitolia kai Akarnania, Achaia, Argolis, Arkadia, Arta, Attici, Dodekanisos, Drama, Evritania, Evros, Evvoia, Florina, Fokis, Fthiotida, Grevena, Ilia, Imathia, Ioannina, Irakleion, Karditsa, Kastoria, Kavala, Cephalonia, Kerkyra (Corfu), Halcidiki, Chania, Chios, Cyclades, Kilkis, Korinth, Kozani, Lakonia, Larissa, Lasithi, Lesvos, Lefcas, Magnisia, Messinia, Pella, Pieria, Preveza, Rethymnon, Rodhopi, Samos, Serrai, Thesprotia, Thessaloniki, Trikala, Voiotia, Xanthi, and Zakynthos.
9. Elections take place every 4 years. The Parliament has 300 seats, and the MPs are voted in by popular vote and then serve for four years.
10. Greece has the following ports and harbors: Alexandroupolis, Eleusis, Irakleion, Kavala, Kerkyra (Corfu), Chalkis, Igoumenitsa, Lavrion, Patras, Pireus, Thessaloniki, Volos.
Greece has much going for it from both a historical and modern perspective. Picking 10 facts on Greece is a fool’s game considering there are hundreds of thousands of interesting facts. Nonetheless, you have to start somewhere!
