Greece (Hellas)

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	Greece (Hellas \| Ελλάδος)
Despite centuries of Ottoman rule, Greek national identity — defined by their ancient cultural heritage, distinct language, and Orthodox Christian faith — persisted into the 19th century. The war for Greek independence, which began in 1821 with tacit Russian support, generated public sympathy throughout Europe, and inspired Lord Byron and other Romantic artists and poets to get involved. The intervention of a combined British, French, and Russian fleet in 1827, and the arrival of Russian armies at the gates of Constantinople, forced an Ottoman ceasefire in 1829. In 1832, the Great Powers recognized Greece as an independent state, with a Bavarian prince on its throne.
As the new kingdom encompassed only a third of the Greek-speaking population of the Ottoman Empire, the "Great Idea" of a pan-Aegean state remained a potent force in Greek politics. Greece took possession of the Ionian Islands from Britain in 1862, acquired Thessaly in 1881, and went to war with the Ottomans over Crete in 1897.

The Balkan Wars of 1912-13 led to gains in Epiros, Macedonia, Thrace, and the northeastern Aegean islands, and Greece joined the Allied cause in World War I in hopes of securing additional territory in Asia Minor.		Unfortunately, the ensuing Greco-Turkish War ended in defeat, and the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne mandated the exchange of 1.5 million Greeks and 400 thousand Turks between the two countries.
Greek politics remained turbulent throughout much of the 20th century. A group of army officers seized power in 1924 and declared a republic, but right-wing royalist forces restored the monarchy in 1935. Despite its neutrality during World War II, Greece was occupied by German troops from 1941. Resistance groups united to force the Nazis out by 1944, but civil war dragged on until 1949 between left-wing Communist forces and the monarchical government backed by British and American aid. Meanwhile, Greece and Turkey were admitted to NATO in 1952, despite the continuing animosity between these two neighbors.
Greek politics remained in turmoil over the ensuing decades, punctuated by an army coup in 1967, the declaration of a republic in 1972, and a Greek-backed coup in Cyprus in 1974. The massacre of student demonstrators on 17 November 1973 inspired an indigenous terrorist movement which remained active until 2002. Despite this chaotic legacy, Greece managed to secure entry into the European Community in 1981, and adopted the euro as its currency in 2002. As the 2004 Olympics demonstrated, the "cradle of Western civilization" may have finally emerged as a stable Western democracy.

We visited Greece in January - February 2005:

Athens

Peloponnesus

Mainland

Greek Alphabet The word "alphabet" comes from the Greek names of its first two letters
Α	α	a	Alpha	Ν	ν	n	Nu
Β	β	b, v	Beta	Ξ	ξ	x	Xi
Γ	γ	g	Gamma	Ο	ο	o	Omicron
Δ	δ	d	Delta	Π	π	p	Pi
Ε	ε	e	Epsilon	Ρ	ρ	r	Rho
Ζ	ζ	z	Zeta	Σ	σ ς	s	Sigma
Η	η	e, i	Eta	Τ	τ	t	Tau
Θ	θ	th	Theta	Υ	υ	y	Upsilon
Ι	ι	i	Iota	Φ	φ	ph, f	Phi
Κ	κ	k	Kappa	Χ	χ	kh, ch	Chi
Λ	λ	l	Lambda	Ψ	ψ	ps	Psi
Μ	μ	m	Mu	Ω	ω	o	Omega

Vowel Combinations			Consonant Combinations
ΑΙ	αι	e, ai	ΓΓ	γγ	ng
ΑΥ	αυ	au, av	ΓΞ	γξ	nx, ks
ΕΙ	ει	i, ei	ΓΚ	γκ	nk, g
ΕΥ	ευ	eu, ev	ΓΧ	γχ	nch
ΗΥ	ηυ	eu, iv	ΜΠ	μπ	mp, b
ΟΙ	οι	i, oi	ΝΤ	ντ	nt, d, nd
ΟΥ	ου	u, ou	ΤΖ	τζ	dz
ΥΙ	υι	ui, i

This page was last updated 17 August 2008.