Greek language in the context of Evagrius Scholasticus

Attica (/ˈætɪkə/ AT-ih-kə; Greek: Περιφέρεια Αττικής, romanized: Periféria Attikís, [periˈferi.a atiˈcis]) is an administrative region of Greece that encompasses the entire Athens metropolitan area, the core city of which is the country's capital and largest city, Athens. The region is coextensive with the former Attica Prefecture of Central Greece and covers a greater area than the historical region of Attica.

Greeks or Hellenes (/ˈhɛliːnz/; Greek: Έλληνες, Éllines [ˈelines]) are an ethnic group and nation native to Greece, Cyprus, southern Albania, Anatolia, parts of Italy and Egypt, and to a lesser extent, other countries surrounding the Eastern Mediterranean and Black Sea. They also form a significant diaspora (omogenia), with many Greek communities established around the world.

Greek colonies and communities have been historically established on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea, but the Greek people themselves have always been centered on the Aegean and Ionian seas, where the Greek language has been spoken since the Bronze Age. Until the early 20th century, Greeks were distributed between the Greek peninsula, the western coast of Asia Minor, the Black Sea coast, Cappadocia in central Anatolia, Egypt, the Balkans, Cyprus, and Constantinople. Many of these regions coincided to a large extent with the borders of the Byzantine Empire of the late 11th century and the Eastern Mediterranean areas of ancient Greek colonization. The cultural centers of the Greeks have included Athens, Thessalonica, Alexandria, Smyrna, and Constantinople at various periods.

Thessaloniki (/ˌθɛsələˈniːki/; Greek: Θεσσαλονίκη [θesaloˈnici] ; also known by various spellings and names) is a city in northern Greece. The nation's second-largest, with slightly over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, it is the capital of the geographic region of Macedonia, the administrative region of Central Macedonia and the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace. It is also known in Greek as i Symprotévousa, literally "the co-capital", a reference to its historical status as the "co-reigning" city (Symvasilévousa) of the Byzantine Empire alongside Constantinople.

Thessaloniki is located on the Thermaic Gulf, at the northwest corner of the Aegean Sea. It is bounded on the west by the delta of the Axios. The municipality of Thessaloniki, the historical centre, had a population of 319,045 in 2021, while the Thessaloniki metropolitan area had 1,006,112 inhabitants and the greater region had 1,092,919. It is Greece's second major economic, industrial, commercial and political centre, and a major transportation hub for Greece and southeastern Europe, notably through the Port of Thessaloniki. The city is renowned for its festivals, events and vibrant cultural life in general. Events such as the Thessaloniki International Fair and the Thessaloniki International Film Festival are held annually. Thessaloniki was the 2014 European Youth Capital. The city's main university, Aristotle University, is the largest in Greece and the Balkans.

Patras (/pəˈtræs, ˈpætrəs/; Greek: Πάτρα, romanized: Pátra pronounced [ˈpatra] ; Katharevousa and Ancient Greek: Πάτραι; Latin: Patrae) is Greece's third-largest city and the regional capital and largest city of Western Greece, in the northern Peloponnese, 215 km (134 mi) west of Athens. The city is built at the foot of Mount Panachaikon, overlooking the Gulf of Patras.

As of the 2021 census, the municipality of Patras has a population of 215,922, while the urban population is 173,600. The core settlement has a history spanning four millennia. In the Roman period, it had become a cosmopolitan centre of the eastern Mediterranean whilst, according to the Christian tradition, it was also the place of Saint Andrew's martyrdom.

The Sea of Crete (Greek: Κρητικό Πέλαγος, Kritiko Pelagos), or Cretan Sea, is a sea, part of the Aegean Sea, located in its southern extremity, with a total surface area of 45,000 km (17,000 sq mi). The sea stretches to the north of the island of Crete, east of the islands of Kythera and Antikythera, south of the Cyclades, and west of the Dodecanese islands of Rhodes, Karpathos and Kassos. The bounding sea to the west is the Ionian Sea. To the northwest is the Myrtoan Sea, a subdivision of the Mediterranean Sea that lies between the Cyclades and Peloponnese. To the east-southeast is the rest of the Mediterranean Sea, sometimes credited as the Levantine Sea. Across the island of Crete, to the opposite shore of it begins the Libyan Sea. Ferry routes to and from Piraeus and Heraklion, as well as the southern islands of the Aegean and the Dodecanese, run in this area.

Just off the coastline of Northeastern Crete, the sea reaches a maximum depth of near 3,293 m (10,000 ft). Other sources (maps) show a maximum depth of 2,591 m (8,500 ft).

The traditional geographic regions of Greece (Greek: γεωγραφικά διαμερίσματα, lit. 'geographic departments') are the country's main historical-geographic regions, and were also official administrative regional subdivisions of Greece until the 1987 administrative reform. Despite their replacement as first-level administrative units by only partly identical administrative regions (Greek: περιφέρειες), the nine traditional geographic regions—six on the mainland and three island groups—are still widely referred to in unofficial contexts and in daily discourse.

As of 2011, the official administrative divisions of Greece consist of 13 regions (Greek: περιφέρειες)—nine on the mainland and four island groups—which are further subdivided into 74 regional units and 325 municipalities. Formerly, there were also 54 prefectures or prefectural-level administrations.

Heraklion, Herakleion (/hɪˈrækliən/ hih-RAK-lee-ən; Greek: Ηράκλειο, Iráklio, pronounced [iˈrakli.o], not to be mistaken with Heracleion, Egypt) or Iraklion, is the largest city and the administrative capital of the island of Crete and capital of Heraklion regional unit. It is the fourth largest city in Greece, and the largest city in the Greek islands, with a municipal population of 179,302 (2021) and 211,370 in its wider metropolitan area, according to the 2011 census.The greater area of Heraklion has been continuously inhabited since at least 7000 BCE, making it one of the oldest inhabited regions in Europe. It is also home to the ancient Knossos Palace, a major center of the Minoan civilization dating back to approximately 2000-1350 BCE, often considered Europe's oldest city. The palace is one of the most significant archaeological sites in Greece, second only to the Parthenon in terms of visitor numbers.

Heraklion was Europe's fastest growing tourism destination for 2017, according to Euromonitor, with an 11.2% growth in international arrivals. According to the ranking, Heraklion was ranked as the 20th most visited region in Europe, as the 66th area on the planet and as the 2nd in Greece for the year 2017, with 3.2 million visitors and the 19th in Europe for 2018, with 3.4 million visitors.

The League of Corinth, also referred to as the Hellenic League (Greek: κοινὸν τῶν Ἑλλήνων, koinòn tõn Hellḗnōn; or simply οἱ Ἕλληνες, the Héllēnes), was a federation of Greek states created by Philip II in 338–337 BC. The League was created in order to unify Greek military forces under Macedonian leadership (hegemony) in their combined conquest of the Persian Achaemenid Empire.

King Philip was initially urged by Isocrates in 346 BC to unify Greece against the Persians. After the Battle of Chaeronea, the League of Corinth was formed and controlled by Philip. Alexander utilized his father's league when planning his pan-Hellenic invasion of Asia to expand Macedon and take revenge on the Persian Empire. During the Hellenistic period, some Antigonid rulers of Macedon shortly revived the league, also known as the 'Hellenic Alliance'.

Medieval Greek (also known as Middle Greek, Byzantine Greek, or Romaic; Greek: Ῥωμαϊκή) is the stage of the Greek language between the end of classical antiquity in the 5th–6th centuries and the end of the Middle Ages, conventionally dated to the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453.

From the 7th century onwards, Greek was the only language of administration and government in the Byzantine Empire. This stage of language is thus described as Byzantine Greek. The study of the Medieval Greek language and literature is a branch of Byzantine studies, the study of the history and culture of the Byzantine Empire.

A Greek Orthodox Church (Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, romanized: Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía, IPA: [elinorˈθoðoksi ekliˈsia]) is any of three classes of Christian churches, each associated in some way with Greek Christianity, Levantine Arabic-speaking Christians or more broadly the rite used in the Eastern Roman Empire:

• The broader meaning refers to "the entire body of Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Christianity, sometimes also called 'Eastern Orthodox', 'Greek Catholic', or generally 'the Greek Church'".
• A second, narrower meaning refers to "any of several independent churches within the worldwide communion of [Eastern] Orthodox Christianity that retain the use of the Greek language in formal ecclesiastical settings". In this sense, the Greek Orthodox Churches are the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and its dependencies, the Patriarchates of Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem, the Church of Greece and the Church of Cyprus.
• The third meaning refers to the Church of Greece, an Eastern Orthodox Church operating within the modern borders of Greece.

The regions of Greece (Greek: περιφέρειες, romanized: periféreies) are the country's thirteen second-level administrative entities, counting decentralized administrations of Greece as first-level. Regions are divided into regional units, known as prefectures until 2011.

The Athens metropolitan area (Greek: Μητροπολιτική Περιοχή της Αθήνας) spans 2,928.717 km (1,131 sq mi) within the Attica region and consists of 58 municipalities plus parts of East Attica and West Attica, having reached a population of 4,073,179 according to the 2021 census. The municipalities of Athens and Piraeus both serve as the two metropolitan centres of the Athens metropolitan area.

According to the Hellenic Telecommunications and Post Commission, the Athens metropolitan area consists of all areas with a dialing code of 21 and includes areas such as Salamina, Elefsina, Kifissia, Mandra, Magoula,Aspropyrgos, Pallini, Agios Stefanos, Dionysos, Parnitha, Koropi, Vari, Vouliagmeni, Voula and the Athens International Airport.

Attica Prefecture (Greek: Νομὸς Ἀττικῆς) was a prefecture of Greece, first established in 1833 and disestablished for the last time in 1987. The prefecture was coextensive with the present-day Attica region.

Continental Greece (Greek: Στερεά Ελλάδα, romanized: Stereá Elláda; formerly Χέρσος Ἑλλάς, Chérsos Ellás), colloquially known as Roumeli (Ρούμελη), is a traditional geographic region of Greece. In English, the area is usually called Central Greece, but the equivalent Greek term (Κεντρική Ελλάδα, Kentrikí Elláda) is more rarely used.

It includes the southern part of the Greek mainland (sans the Peloponnese), as well as the offshore island of Euboea. Since 1987, its territory has been divided among the administrative regions of Central Greece and Attica, and the regional unit (former prefecture) of Aetolia-Acarnania in the administrative region of Western Greece.

Attica (Greek: Αττική, romanised: Attikí, Greek pronunciation: [atiˈci]; Ancient Greek: Ἀττική, romanised: Attikḗ, Ancient Greek pronunciation: [atːikɛ̌ː]), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the entire Athens metropolitan area, which consists of the city of Athens, the capital of Greece and the core city of the metropolitan area, as well as its surrounding suburban cities and towns. It is a peninsula projecting into the Aegean Sea, bordering on Boeotia to the north and Megaris to the west. The mines of Laurion were an important mining region located at Lavrio, on the southern tip of the peninsula.

The history of Attica is closely linked with that of Athens. In ancient times, Attica corresponded with the classical Athens city‑state. It was the most prominent region in Ancient Greece, specifically during the Golden Age of Athens in the classical period. Ancient Attica was divided into demoi, or municipalities, from the reform of Cleisthenes in 508/7 BC, grouped into three zones: urban (astu) in the region of Athens main town, and Piraeus (the port), coastal (paralia) along the coastline, and inland (mesogeia) in the interior.

Penthesilea (Greek: Πενθεσίλεια, romanized: Penthesíleia) was an Amazonian queen in Greek mythology, the daughter of Ares and Otrera and the sister of Hippolyta, Antiope, and Melanippe. She assisted Troy in the Trojan War, during which she was killed by Achilles or Neoptolemus. The asteroid 271 Penthesilea, discovered in 1887, was named in her honor.

Mycenaean Greece (or the Mycenaean civilization) was the last phase of the Bronze Age in ancient Greece, spanning the period from approximately 1750 to 1050 BC. It represents the first advanced and distinctively Greek civilization in mainland Greece with its palatial states, urban organization, works of art, and writing system. The Mycenaeans were mainland Greek peoples who were likely stimulated by their contact with insular Minoan Crete and other Mediterranean cultures to develop a more sophisticated sociopolitical culture of their own. The most prominent site was Mycenae, after which the culture of this era is named. Other centers of power that emerged included Pylos, Tiryns, and Midea in the Peloponnese, Orchomenos, Thebes, and Athens in Central Greece, and Iolcos in Thessaly. Mycenaean settlements also appeared in Epirus, Macedonia, on islands in the Aegean Sea, on the south-west coast of Asia Minor, and on Cyprus, while Mycenaean-influenced settlements appeared in the Levant and Italy.

The Mycenaean Greeks introduced several innovations in the fields of engineering, architecture and military infrastructure, while trade over vast areas of the Mediterranean was essential for the Mycenaean economy. Their syllabic script, Linear B, offers the first written records of the Greek language, and their religion already included several deities also to be found in the Olympic pantheon. Mycenaean Greece was dominated by a warrior elite society and consisted of a network of palace-centered states that developed rigid hierarchical, political, social, and economic systems. At the head of this society was the king, known as a wanax.

The Parthenon (/ˈpɑːrθəˌnɒn, -nən/; Ancient Greek: Παρθενών, romanized: Parthenōn [par.tʰe.nɔ̌ːn]; Greek: Παρθενώνας, romanized: Parthenónas [parθeˈnonas]) is a former temple on the Athenian Acropolis, Greece, that was dedicated to the goddess Athena. Its decorative sculptures are considered some of the high points of classical Greek art, and the Parthenon is considered an enduring symbol of ancient Greece, Western civilization, and democracy.

The Parthenon was built in the 5th century BC in thanksgiving for the Greek victory over the Persian invaders during the Greco-Persian Wars. Like most Greek temples, the Parthenon also served as the city treasury. Construction started in 447 BC when the Delian League was at the peak of its power. It was completed in 438 BC; work on the artwork and decorations continued until 432 BC. For a time, it served as the treasury of the Delian League, which later became the Athenian Empire.