Location: Europe
Status: UN Country
Capital City: Athens (Athínai)
Main Cities: Thessaloniki, Piraeus, Patrai
Population: 10,232,000
Area: 131,990 km2
Currency: 1 euro = 100 cents
Languages: Greek
Religions: Greek Orthodox
More about Greece: a republic in SE Europe, occupying the S part of the Balkan Peninsula and many islands in the Ionian and Aegean Seas; site of two of Europe's earliest civilizations (the Minoan and Mycenaean); in the classical era divided into many small independent city-states, the most important being Athens and Sparta; part of the Roman and Byzantine Empires; passed under Turkish rule in the late Middle Ages; became an independent kingdom in 1827; taken over by a military junta (1967-74); the monarchy was abolished in 1973; became a republic in 1975; a member of the European Union. Official language: Greek. Official religion: Eastern (Greek) Orthodox. Currency: euro. Capital: Athens. Pop.: 10 977 000 (2004 est.). Area: 131 944 sq. km (50 944 sq. miles) Modern Greek name: Ellás