Geography |
The Hellenic Republic is located in south-eastern Europe on the southern end of the Balkan Peninsula. It also includes numerous islands in the Ionian and Aegean seas. It is bordered on the north-west by Albania, on the north by Macedonia and Bulgaria, on the north-east by Turkey, on the east by the Aegean Sea, on the south by the Mediterranean Sea, and on the west by the Ionian Sea. The total area is 131 957 km2.
Greece has very diverse topography, including mountains, plains and islands.
The region of Thrace lies west of Turkey and south of Bulgaria. There is a narrow plain along the coast and, to the north, the Rhodope Mountains near the Bulgarian border. The region of Macedonia (not to be confused with the country of the same name) lies to the west of Thrace and includes portions of the Pindus and southern Balkan mountains, as well as two fertile agricultural plains--Thessaloniki and Serrai.
Thessaly, which lies south of Macedonia, is a large plain nearly surrounded by tall mountains, including Mount Olympus (2 917-m), the highest peak in Greece. Epirus is a small, mountainous region that lies in the north-western part of the country between Albania and the Gulf of Amvrakia.
Central Greece and Euboea, located south of Epirus and Thessaly, is a region of mountains and hills, small valleys, and many islands. The Peloponnesus is a large peninsula with small valleys and rugged mountains and coastlines. The Corinth Canal cuts through the isthmus that connects the region with the rest of the mainland, making it almost an island.
The Ionian Islands lie in the Ionian Sea, west of the Greek mainland. The largest are Cephalonia, Corfu, Leucas, and Zante. The Aegean Islands lie in the Aegean Sea between the Greek mainland and Turkey. The northern islands include Chios, Lesbos, Limnos, Samothrace, Thasos, and the Northern Sporades group. To the south are the Cyclades group and the Dodecanese Islands. The islands generally have rocky soils.
Crete, to the south in the Mediterranean Sea, is the largest Greek island. It consists mainly of hills and mountains with some fertile valleys. A narrow plain extends along the northern coast. Along the southern coast, mountains fall steeply to the sea
The climate of Greece is Mediterranean with hot, dry summers and rainy winters. The mountain areas are much cooler, with more rain in the summer months and snow in the winter. Temperatures average about 4° C in winter and above 24° C in summer in the lowlands. The mean annual temperature in Athens is about 17° C and the extremes range from a normal low of 0° C in January to a normal high of 37° C in July.
Rainfall varies greatly from region to region. In general, rainfall decreases from west to east and from north to south. It ranges from over 1 200 mm along the west coast and in the Pindus Mountains to less than 38 mm in Thessaly and 380 mm on the island of Kea in the Aegean.
The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.