Chapter IX: Front Matter (9)

The ancient Greeks had a somewhat vague conception of the northern limits of Hellas. Thessaly was generally included and Epirus excluded; some writers included some of the southern cantons of Epirus, while others excluded not only all that country but Aetolia and Acarnania. Generally speaking, the confines of Hellas in the age of its greatest distinction were represented by a line drawn from the northern shore of the Ambracian Gulf on the W. to the mouth of the Peneus on the E. Macedonia and Thrace were regarded as outside the pale of Hellenic civilization till 386 B.C., when after his conquest of Thessaly and Phocis, Philip of Macedon obtained a seat in the Amphictyonic Council. In another sense, however, the name Hellas expressed an ethnological rather than a geographical unity; it denoted every country inhabited by Hellenes. It thus embraced all the Greek settlements on the coasts and islands of the Mediterranean, on the shores of the Hellespont, the Bosporus and the Black Sea. Nevertheless, the Greek peninsula within the limits described above, together with the adjacent islands, was always regarded as Hellas _par excellence_. The continental area of Hellas proper was no greater than that of the modern Greek kingdom, which comprises but a small portion of the territories actually occupied by the Greek race. The Greeks have always been a maritime people, and the real centre of the national life is now, as in antiquity, the Aegean Sea or Archipelago. Thickly studded with islands and bordered by deeply indented coasts with sheltered creeks and harbours, the Aegean in the earliest days of navigation invited the enterprise of the mariner; its shores, both European and Asiatic, became covered with Greek settlements and its islands, together with Crete and Cyprus, became Greek. True to their maritime instincts, the Greeks rarely advanced inland to any distance from the sea; the coasts of Macedonia, Thrace and Asia Minor are still mainly Greek, but, except for some isolated colonies, the _hinterland_ in each case lies outside the limits of the race. Continental Greece is divided by its mountain ranges into a number of natural cantons; the existence of physical barriers tended in the earliest times to the growth of isolated political communities, and in the epoch of its ancient independence the country was occupied by seventeen separate states, none of them larger than an ordinary English county. These states, which are noticed separately, were: Thessaly, in northern Greece; Acarnania, Aetolia, Locris, Doris, Phocis, Megaris, Boeotia and Attica in central Greece; and Corinthia, Sicyonia, Achaea, Elis, Messenia, Laconia, Argolis and Arcadia in the Peloponnesus.

Extent of modern Greece.

Modern Greece, which (including the adjacent islands) extends from 35 deg. 50' to 39 deg. 54' N. and from 19 deg. 20' to 26 deg. 15' E., comprises all the area formerly occupied by these states. Under the arrangement concluded at Constantinople on the 21st of July 1832 between Great Britain, France, Russia and Turkey, the northern boundary of Greece was drawn from the Gulf of Arta (Sinus Ambracius) to the Gulf of Volo (S. Pagasaeus), the line keeping to the crest of the Othrys range. Thessaly and part of Acarnania were thus left to Turkey. The island of Euboea, the Cyclades and the northern Sporades were added to the new kingdom. In 1864 the Ionian Islands (q.v.) were ceded by Great Britain to Greece. In 1880 the Conference of Berlin proposed a new frontier, which transferred to Greece not only Thessaly but a considerable portion of southern Epirus, extending to the river Kalamas. This, however, was rejected by Turkey, and the existing boundary was traced in 1881. Starting from the Aegean coast at a point near Platamona, between Mount Olympus and the mouth of the Salambria (Peneus), the line passes over the heights of Kritiri and Zygos (Pindus) and descends the course of the river Arta to its mouth. After the war of 1897 Greece restored to Turkey some strategical points on the frontier possessing no geographical importance. The greatest length of Greece is about 250 m., the greatest breadth 180 m. The country is generally divided into five parts, which are indicated by its natural features:--(i.) Northern Greece, which extends northwards from Mount Othrys and the gulfs of Zeitun (Lamia) and Arta to the Cambunian Mountains, and comprises Thessaly and a small portion of Epirus; (ii.) Central Greece, extending from the southern limits of Northern Greece to the gulfs of Corinth and Aegina; (iii.) the peninsula of the Peloponnesus or Morea, attached to the mainland by the Isthmus of Corinth; (iv.) the Ionian Islands on the west coasts of Epirus and Greece; (v.) The islands of the Aegean Sea, including Euboea, the Cyclades and the northern Sporades.

Physical features.

In the complexity of its contour and the variety of its natural
features Greece surpasses every country in Europe, as Europe surpasses
every continent in the world. The broken character of its coast-line
is unique; except a few districts in Thessaly no part of the country
is more than 50 m. from the sea. Although the area of Greece is
considerably smaller than that of Portugal, its coast-line is greater
than that of Spain and Portugal together. The mainland is penetrated
by numerous gulfs and inlets, and the adjoining seas are studded with
islands. Another characteristic is the number and complexity of the
mountain chains, which traverse every part of the country and which,
together with their ramifications, cover four-fifths of its surface.
The mountain-chains interlace, the interstices forming small enclosed
basins, such as the plain of Boeotia and the plateau of Arcadia; the
only plain of any extent is that of Thessaly. The mountains project
into the sea, forming peninsulas, and sometimes reappearing in rows or
groups of islands; they descend abruptly to the coast or are separated
from it by small alluvial plains. The portions of the country suitable
for human colonization were thus isolated one from the other, but as a
rule possessed easy access to the sea. The earliest settlements were
generally situated on or around some rocky elevation, which dominated
the surrounding plain and was suitable for fortification as a citadel
or acropolis; owing to the danger of piratical attacks they were
usually at some little distance from the sea, but in the vicinity of a
natural harbour. The physical features of the country played an
important part in moulding the character of its inhabitants. Protected
against foreign invasion by the mountain barriers and to a great
extent cut off from mutual intercourse except by sea, the ancient
Greek communities developed a marked individuality and a strong
sentiment of local patriotism; their inhabitants were both
mountaineers and mariners; they possessed the love of country, the
vigour and the courage which are always found in highlanders, together
with the spirit of adventure, the versatility and the passion for
freedom characteristic of a seafaring people. The great variety of
natural products as well as the facility of maritime communication
tended to the early growth of commercial enterprise, while the
peculiar beauty of the scenery, though little dwelt upon in ancient
literature, undoubtedly quickened the poetic and artistic instincts of
the race. The effects of physical environment are no less noticeable
among the modern Greeks. The rural populations of Attica and Boeotia,
though descended from Albanian colonists in the middle ages, display
the same contrast in character which marked the inhabitants of those
regions in ancient times.

In its general aspect the country presents a series of striking and
interesting contrasts. Fertile tracts covered with vineyards, olive
groves, corn-fields or forests display themselves in close proximity
with rugged heights and rocky precipices; the landscape is never,
monotonous; its outlines are graceful, and its colouring, owing to the
clearness of the air, is at once brilliant and delicate, while the
sea, in most instances, adds a picturesque feature, enhancing the
charm and variety of the scenery.

Mountains.

The ruling feature in the mountain system of northern Greece is the
great chain of Pindus, which, extending southwards from the lofty Shar
Dagh (Skardos) near Uskub, forms the backbone of the Balkan peninsula.
Reaching the frontier of Greece a little S. of lat. 40 deg., the Pindus
range is intersected by the Cambunian Mountains running E. and W.; the
eastern branch, which forms the northern boundary of Thessaly, extends
to the Gulf of Salonica and culminates in Mount Olympus (9754 ft.) a
little to the N. of the Greek frontier; then bending to the S.E. it
follows the coast-line, forming a rampart between the Thessalian plain
and the sea; the barrier is severed at one point only where the river
Salambria (anc. _Peneus_) finds an exit through the narrow defile of
Tempe. South of Tempe the mountain ridge, known as the Mavro Vouno,
connects the pyramidal Kissovo (anc. _Ossa_, 6400 ft.) with Plessidi
(anc. _Pelion_, 5310 ft.); it is prolonged in the Magnesian peninsula,
which separates the Gulf of Volo from the Aegean, and is continued by
the mountains of Euboea (highest summits, Dirphys, 5725 ft., and Ocha,
4830 ft.) and by the islands of Andros and Tenos. West of Pindus, the
Cambunian Mountains are continued by several ridges which traverse
Epirus from north to south, enclosing the plain and lake of Iannina;
the most westerly of these, projecting into the Adriatic, forms the
Acroceraunian promontory terminating in Cape Glossa. The principal
pass through the Cambunian Mountains is that of Meluna, through which
runs the carriage-road connecting the town of Elassona in Macedonia
with Larissa, the capital of Thessaly; there are horse-paths at Reveni
and elsewhere. The central chain of Pindus at the point where it is
intersected by the Cambunian Mountains forms the mass of Zygos (anc.
_Lacmon_, 7113 ft.) through which a horse-path connects the town of
Metzovo with Kalabaka in Thessaly; on the declivity immediately N. of
Kalabaka are a series of rocky pinnacles on which a number of
monasteries are perched. Trending to the S., the Pindus chain
terminates in the conical Mount Velouchi (anc. _Tymphrestus_, 7609
ft.) in the heart of the mountainous region of northern Greece. From
this centre-point a number of mountains radiate in all directions. To
the E. runs the chain of Helloro (anc. _Othrys_; highest summit,
Hagios Elias, 5558 ft.) separating the plain of Thessaly from the
valley of the Spercheios and traversed by the Phourka pass (2789 ft.);
to the S.E. is Mount Katavothra (anc. _Oeta_, 7080 ft.) extending to
the southern shore of the Gulf of Lamia at Thermopylae; to the S.E.,
S. and S.W. are the mountains of Aetolia and Acarnania. The Aetolian
group, which may be regarded as the direct continuation of the Pindus
range, includes Kiona (8240 ft.), the highest mountain in Greece, and
Vardusi (anc. _Korax_, 8190 ft.). The mountains of Acarnania with
[Greek: Hupsele koruphe] (5215 ft.) rise to the W. of the valley of
the Aspropotamo (anc. _Achelous_). The Aetolian Mountains are
prolonged to the S.E. by the double-crested Liakoura (anc.
_Parnassus_; 8064 ft.) in Phocis; by Palaeo Vouno (anc. _Helicon_,
5738 ft.) and Elateas (anc. _Cithaeron_, 4626 ft.) respectively W. and
S. of the Boeotian plain; and by the mountains of Attica,--Ozea (anc.
_Parnes_, 4626 ft.), Mendeli (anc. _Pentelicus_ or _Brilessos_, 3639
ft.), Trellovouno (anc. _Hymettus_, 3369 ft.), and Keratia (2136
ft.)--terminating in the promontory of Sunium, but reappearing in the
islands of Ceos, Cythnos, Seriphos and Siphnos. South of Cithaeron are
Patera in Megaris (3583 ft.) and Makri Plagi (anc. _Geraneia_, 4495
ft.) overlooking the Isthmus of Corinth.

The mountains of the Morea, grouped around the elevated central
plateau of Arcadia, form an independent system with ramifications
extending through the Argolid peninsula on the E. and the three
southern promontories of Malea, Taenaron and Acritas. At the eastern
end of the northern chain, separating Arcadia from the Gulf of
Corinth, is Ziria (anc. _Cyllene_, 7789 ft.); it forms a counterpart
to Parnassus on the opposite side of the gulf. A little to the W. is
Chelmos (anc. _Aroania_, 7725 ft.); farther W., Olonos (anc.
_Erymanthus_, 7297 ft.) and Voidia (anc. _Panachaicon_, 6322 ft.)
overlooking the Gulf of Patras. The highest summit in the Argolid
peninsula is Hagios Elias (anc. _Arachnaeon_, 3930 ft.). The series of
heights forming the eastern rampart of Arcadia, including Artemision
(5814 ft.) and Ktenia (5246 ft.) is continued to the S. by the Malevo
range (anc. _Parnon_, highest summit 6365 ft.) which extends into the
peninsula of Malea and reappears in the island of Cerigo. Separated
from Parnon by the Eurotas valley to the W., the chain of Taygetus
(mod. _Pentedaktylon_; highest summit Hagios Elias, 7874 ft., the
culminating point of the Morea) forms a barrier between the plains of
Laconia and Messenia; it is traversed by the Langada pass leading from
Sparta to Kalamata. The range is prolonged to the S. through the arid
district of Maina and terminates in Cape Matapan (anc. _Taenarum_).
The mountains of western Arcadia are less lofty and of a less marked
type; they include Hagios Petros (4777 ft.) and Palaeocastro (anc.
_Pholoe_, 2257 ft.) N. of the Alpheus valley, Diaphorti (anc.
_Lycaeus_, 4660 ft.), the haunt of Pan, and Nomia (4554 ft.) W. of the
plain of Megalopolis. Farther south, the mountains of western Messenia
form a detached group (Varvara, 4003 ft.; Mathia, 3140 ft.) extending
to Cape Gallo (anc. _Acritas_) and the Oenussae Islands. In central
Arcadia are Apanokrapa (anc. _Maenalus_, also sacred to Pan) and
Roudia (5072 ft.); the Taygetus chain forms the southern continuation
of these mountains.

The more noteworthy fortified heights of ancient Greece were the
Acrocorinthus, the citadel of Corinth (1885 ft.); Ithome (2631 ft.) at
Messene; Larissa (950 ft.) at Argos; the Acropolis of Mycenae (910
ft.); Tiryns (60 ft.) near Nauplia, which also possessed its own
citadel, the Palamidhi or Acro-nauplia (705 ft.); the Acropolis of
Athens (300 ft. above the mean level of the city and 512 ft. above the
sea), and the Cadmea of Thebes (715 ft.).

Rivers.

Greece has few rivers; most of these are small, rapid and turbid, as
might be expected from the mountainous configuration of the country.
They are either perennial rivers or torrents, the white beds of the
latter being dry in summer, and only filled with water after the
autumn rains. The chief rivers (none of which is navigable) are the
Salambria (_Peneus_) in Thessaly, the Mavropotamo (_Cephisus_) in
Phocis, the Hellada (_Spercheios_) in Phthiotis, the Aspropotamo
(_Achelous_) in Aetolia, and the Ruphia (_Alpheus_) and Vasiliko
(_Eurotas_) in the Morea. Of the famous rivers of Athens, the one, the
Ilissus, is only a chain of pools all summer, and the other, the
Cephisus, though never absolutely dry, does not reach the sea, being
drawn off in numerous artificial channels to irrigate the neighbouring
olive groves. A frequent peculiarity of the Greek rivers is their
sudden disappearance in subterranean chasms and reappearance on the
surface again, such as gave rise to the fabled course of the Alpheus
under the sea, and its emergence in the fountain of Arethusa in
Syracuse. Some of these chasms--"Katavothras"--are merely sieves with
herbage and gravel in the bottom, but others are large caverns through
which the course of the river may sometimes be followed. Floods are
frequent, especially in autumn, and natural fountains abound and gush
out even from the tops of the hills. Aganippe rises high up among the
peaks of Helicon, and Peirene flows from the summit of Acrocorinthus.
The only noteworthy cascade, however, is that of the Styx in Arcadia,
which has a fall of 500 ft. During part of the year it is lost in
snow, and it is at all times almost inaccessible. Lakes are numerous,
but few are of considerable size, and many merely marshes in summer.
The largest are Karla (_Boebeis_) in Thessaly, Trichonis in Aetolia,
Copais in Boeotia, Pheneus and Stymphalus in Arcadia.

Plains.

The valleys are generally narrow, and the plains small in extent, deep
basins walled in among the hills or more free at the mouths of the
rivers. The principal plains are those of Thessaly, Boeotia, Messenia,
Argos, Elis and Marathon. The bottom of these plains consists of an
alluvial soil, the most fertile in Greece. In some of the mountainous
regions, especially in the Morea, are extensive table-lands. The plain
of Mantinea is 2000 ft. high, and the upland district of Sciritis,
between Sparta and Tegea, is in some parts 3000 ft.

Coast.

Strabo said that the guiding thing in the geography of Greece was the
sea, which presses in upon it at all parts with a thousand arms. From
the Gulf of Arta on the one side to the Gulf of Volo on the other the
coast is indented with a succession of natural bays and gulfs. The
most important are the Gulfs of Aegina (_Saronicus_) and Lepanto
(_Corinthiacus_), which separate the Morea from the northern mainland
of Greece,--the first an inlet of the Aegean, the second of the Ionian
Sea,--and are now connected by a canal cut through the high land of
the narrow Isthmus of Corinth (3-1/2 m. wide). The outer portion of the
Gulf of Lepanto is called the Gulf of Patras, and the inner part the
Bay of Corinth; a narrow inlet on the north side of the same gulf,
called the Bay of Salona or Itea, penetrates northwards into Phocis so
far that it is within 24 geographical miles of the Gulf of Zeitun on
the north-east coast. The width of the entrance to the gulf of Lepanto
is subject to singular changes, which are ascribed to the formation of
alluvial deposits by certain marine currents, and their removal again
by others. At the time of the Peloponnesian war this channel was 1200
yds. broad; in the time of Strabo it was only 850; and in our own day
it has again increased to 2200. On the coast of the Morea there are
several large gulfs, that of Arcadia (_Cyparissius_) on the west,
Kalamata (_Messeniacus_) and Kolokythia (_Laconicus_) on the south and
Nauplia (_Argolicus_) on the east. Between Euboea and the mainland lie
the channels of Trikeri, Talanti (_Euboicum Mare_) and Egripo; the
latter two are connected by the strait of Egripo (_Euripus_). This
strait, which is spanned by a swing-bridge, is about 180 ft. wide, and
is remarkable for the unexplained eccentricity of its tide, which has
puzzled ancients and moderns alike. The current runs at the average
speed of 5 m. an hour, but continues only for a short time in one
direction, changing its course, it is said, ten or twelve times in a
day; it is sometimes very violent.

Volcanic action.

There are no volcanoes on the mainland of Greece, but everywhere
traces of volcanic action and frequently visitations of earthquakes,
for it lies near a centre of volcanic: agency, the island of Santorin,
which has been within recent years in a state of eruption. There is an
extinct crater at Mount Laphystium (_Granitsa_) in Boeotia. The
mountain of Methane, on the coast of Argolis, was produced by a
volcanic eruption in 282 B.C. Earthquakes laid Thebes in ruins in
1853, destroyed every house in Corinth in 1858, filled up the
Castalian spring in 1870, devastated Zante in 1893 and the district of
Atalanta in 1894. There are hot springs at Thermopylae and other
places, which are used for sanitary purposes. Various parts of the
coast exhibit indications of upheaval within historical times. On the
coast of Elis four rocky islets are now joined to the land, which were
separate from it in the days of ancient Greece. There are traces of
earlier sea-beaches at Corinth, and on the coast of the Morea, and at
the mouth of the Hellada. The land has gained so much that the pass of
Thermopylae which was extremely narrow in the time of Leonidas and his
three hundred, is now wide enough for the motions of a whole army.
(J. D. B.)

Geology.

Structurally, Greece may be divided into two regions, an eastern and a
western. The former includes Thessaly, Boeotia, the island of Euboea,
the isthmus of Corinth, and the peninsula of Argolis, and, throughout,
the strike of the beds is nearly from west to east. The western region
includes the Pindus and all the parallel ranges, and the whole of the
Peloponnesus excepting Argolis. Here the folds which affect the
Mesozoic and early Tertiary strata run approximately from N.N.W. to
S.S.E.

Up to the close of the 19th century the greater part of Greece was
believed to be formed of Cretaceous rocks, but later researches have
shown that the supposed Cretaceous beds include a variety of
geological horizons. The geological sequence begins with crystalline
schists and limestones, followed by Palaeozoic, Triassic and Liassic
rocks. The oldest beds which hitherto have yielded fossils belong to
the Carboniferous System (_Fusulina_ limestone of Euboea). Following
upon these older beds are the great limestone masses which cover most
of the eastern region, and which are now known to include Jurassic,
Tithonian, Lower and Upper Cretaceous and Eocene beds. In the Pindus
and the Peloponnesus these beds are overlaid by a series of shales and
platy limestones (Olonos Limestone of the Peloponnesus), which were
formerly supposed to be of Tertiary age. It has now been shown,
however, that the upper series of limestones has been brought upon the
top of the lower by a great overthrust. Triassic fossils have been
found in the Olonos Limestone and it is almost certain that other
Mesozoic horizons are represented.

The earth movements which produced the mountain chains of western
Greece have folded the Eocene beds and must therefore be of
post-Eocene date. The Neogene beds, on the other hand, are not
affected by the folds, although by faulting without folding they have
in some places been raised to a height of nearly 6000 ft. They lie,
however, chiefly along the coast and in the valleys, and consist of
marls, conglomerates and sands, sometimes with seams of lignite. The
Pikermi deposits, of late Miocene age, are famous for their rich
mammalian fauna.

Although the folding which formed the mountain chains appears to have
ceased, Greece is still continually shaken by earthquakes, and these
earthquakes are closely connected with the great lines of fracture to
which the country owes its outline. Around the narrow gulf which
separates the Peloponnesus from the mainland, earthquakes are
particularly frequent, and another region which is often shaken is the
south-western corner of Greece, the peninsula of Messene.[2] (P. La.)

Flora.

The vegetation of Greece in general resembles that of southern Italy
while presenting many types common to that of Asia Minor. Owing to the
geographical configuration of the peninsula and its mountainous
surface the characteristic flora of the Mediterranean regions is often
found in juxtaposition with that of central Europe. In respect to its
vegetation the country may be regarded as divided into four zones. In
the first, extending from the sea-level to the height of 1500 ft.,
oranges, olives, dates, almonds, pomegranates, figs and vines
flourish, and cotton and tobacco are grown. In the neighbourhood of
streams are found the laurel, myrtle, oleander and lentisk, together
with the plane and white poplar; the cypress is often a picturesque
feature in the landscape, and there is a variety of aromatic plants.
The second zone, from 1500 to 3500 ft., is the region of the oak,
chestnut and other British trees. In the third, from 3500 to 5500 ft.,
the beech is the characteristic forest tree; the _Abies cephalonica_
and _Pinus pinea_ now take the place of the _Pinus halepensis_, which
grows everywhere in the lower regions. Above 5500 ft. is the Alpine
region, marked by small plants, lichens and mosses. During the short
period of spring anemones and other wild flowers enrich the hillsides
with magnificent colouring; in June all verdure disappears except in
the watered districts and elevated plateaus. The asphodel grows
abundantly in the dry rocky soil; aloes, planted in rows, form
impenetrable hedges. Medicinal plants are numerous, such as the _Inula
Helenium_, the _Mandragora Officinarum_, the _Colchicum napolitanum_
and the _Helleborus orientalis_, which still grows abundantly near
Aspraspitia, the ancient Anticyra, at the foot of Parnassus.

Fauna.

The fauna is similar to that of the other Mediterranean peninsulas,
and includes some species found in Asia Minor but not elsewhere in
Europe. The lion existed in northern Greece in the time of Aristotle
and at an earlier period in the Morea. The bear is still found in the
Pindus range. Wolves are common in all the mountainous regions and
jackals are numerous in the Morea. Foxes are abundant in all parts of
the country; the polecat is found in the woods of Attica and the
Morea; the lynx is now rare. The wild boar is common in the mountains
of northern Greece, but is almost extinct in the Peloponnesus. The
badger, the marten and the weasel are found on the mainland and in the
islands. The red deer, the fallow deer and the roe exist in northern
Greece, but are becoming scarce. The otter is rare. Hares and rabbits
are abundant in many parts of the country, especially in the Cyclades;
the two species never occupy the same district, and in the Cyclades
some islands (Naxos, Melos, Tenos, &c.) form the exclusive domain of
the hares, others (Seriphos, Kimolos, Mykonos, &c.) of the rabbits. In
Andros alone a demarcation has been arrived at, the hares retaining
the northern and the rabbits the southern portion of the island. The
chamois is found in the higher mountains, such as Pindus, Parnassus
and Tymphrestus. The Cretan _agrimi_, or wild goat (_Capra nubiana_,
_C. aegagrus_), found in Antimelos and said to exist in Taygetus, the
jackal, the stellion, and the chameleon are among the Asiatic species
not found westward of Greece. There is a great variety of birds; of
358 species catalogued two-thirds are migratory. Among the birds of
prey, which are very numerous, are the golden and imperial eagle, the
yellow vulture, the _Gypaetus barbatus_, and several species of
falcons. The celebrated owl of Athena (_Athene noctua_) is becoming
rare at Athens, but still haunts the Acropolis and the royal garden;
it is a small species, found everywhere in Greece. The wild goose and
duck, the bustard, partridge, woodcock, snipe, wood-pigeon and
turtle-dove are numerous. Immense flocks of quails visit the southern
coast of the Morea, where they are captured in great numbers and
exported alive. The stork, which was common in the Turkish epoch, has
now become scarce. There is a great variety of reptiles, of which
sixty-one species have been catalogued. The saurians are all harmless;
among them the stellion (_Stellio vulgaris_), commonly called [Greek:
krokodeilos] in Mykonos and Crete, is believed by Heldreich to have
furnished a name to the crocodile of the Nile (Herod. ii. 69). There
are five species of tortoise and nine of Amphibia. Of the serpents,
which are numerous, there are only two dangerous species, the _Vipera
ammodytes_ and the _Vipera aspis_; the first-named is common. Among
the marine fauna are the dolphins, familiar in the legends and
sculpture of antiquity; in the clear water of the Aegean they often
afford a beautiful spectacle as they play round ships; porpoises and
whales are sometimes seen. Sea-fish, of which 246 species have been
ascertained, are very abundant.

Climate.

The climate of Greece, like that of the other countries of the Balkan
peninsula, is liable to greater extremes of heat and cold than prevail
in Spain and Italy; the difference is due to the general contour of
the peninsula, which assimilates its climatic conditions to those of
the European mainland. Another distinctive feature is the great
variety of local contrasts; the rapid transitions are the natural
effect of diversity in the geographical configuration of the country.
Within a few hours it is possible to pass from winter to spring and
from spring to summer. The spring is short; the sun is already
powerful in March, but the increasing warmth is often checked by cold
northerly winds; in many places the corn harvest is cut in May, when
southerly winds prevail and the temperature rises rapidly. The great
heat of summer is tempered throughout the whole region of the
archipelago by the Etesian winds, which blow regularly from the N.E.
for forty to fifty days in July and August. This current of cool dry
air from the north is due to the vacuum resulting from intense heat in
the region of the Sahara. The healthy Etesian winds are generally
replaced towards the end of summer by the southerly Libas or sirocco,
which, when blowing strongly, resembles the blast from a furnace and
is most injurious to health. The sirocco affects, though in a less
degree, the other countries of the Balkan peninsula and even Rumania.
The mean summer temperature is about 79 deg. Fahr. The autumn is the
least healthy season of the year owing to the great increase of
humidity, especially in October and November. At the end of October
snow reappears on the higher mountains, remaining on the summits till
June. The winter is mild, and even in January there are, as a rule,
many warm clear days; but the recurrence of biting northerly winds and
cold blasts from the mountains, as well as the rapid transitions from
heat to cold and the difference in the temperature of sunshine and
shade, render the climate somewhat treacherous and unsuitable for
invalids. Snow seldom falls in the maritime and lowland districts and
frost is rare. The mean winter temperature is from 48 deg. to 55 deg.
Fahr. The rainfall varies greatly according to localities; it is
greatest in the Ionian Islands (53.34 ins. at Corfu), in Arcadia and
in the other mountainous districts, and least on the Aegean littoral
and in the Cyclades; in Attica, the driest region in Greece, it is
16.1 ins. The wettest months are November, December and January; the
driest July and August, when, except for a few thunder-storms, there
is practically no rainfall. The rain generally accompanies southerly
or south-westerly winds. In all the maritime districts the sea breeze
greatly modifies the temperature; it begins about 9 A.M., attains its
maximum force soon after noon, and ceases about an hour after sunset.
Greece is renowned for the clearness of its climate; fogs and mists
are almost unknown. In most years, however, only four or five days are
recorded in which the sky is perfectly cloudless. The natural
healthiness of the climate is counteracted in the towns, especially in
Athens, by deficient sanitation and by stifling clouds of dust, which
propagate infection and are peculiarly hurtful in cases of ophthalmia
and pulmonary disease. Malarial fever is endemic in the marshy
districts, especially in the autumn.

Area and population.

The area of the country was 18,341 sq. m. before the acquisition of the Ionian Islands in 1864, 19,381 sq. m. prior to the annexation of Thessaly and part of Epirus in 1881, and 24,552 sq. m. at the census in 1896. If we deduct 152 sq. m., the extent of territory ceded to Turkey after the war of 1897, the area of Greece in 1908 would be 24,400 sq. m. Other authorities give 25,164 and 25,136 sq. m. as the area prior to the rectification of the frontier in 1898.[3] The population in 1896 was 2,433,806, or 99.1 to the sq. m., the population of the territories annexed in 1881 being approximately 350,000; and 2,631,952 in 1907, or 107.8 to the sq. m. (according to the official estimate of the area), showing an increase of 198,146 or 0.81% per annum, as compared with 1.61% during the period between 1896 and 1889; the diminished increase is mainly due to emigration. The population by sex in 1907 is given as 1,324,942 males and 1,307,010 females (or 50.3% males to 49.6 females). The preponderance of males, which was 52% to 48% females in 1896, has also been reduced by emigration; it is most marked in the northern departments, especially in Larissa. Only in the departments of Arcadia, Eurytania, Corinth, Cephalonia, Lacedaemon, Laconia, Phocis, Argolis and in the Cyclades, is the female population in excess of the male.

Neither the census of 1896 nor that of 1889 gave any classification by
professions, religion or language. The following figures, which are
only approximate, were derived from unofficial sources in
1901:--agricultural and pastoral employments 444,000; industries
64,200; traders and their employes 118,000; labourers and servants
31,300; various professions 15,700; officials 12,000; clergy about
6000; lawyers 4000; physicians 2500. In 1879, 1,635,698 of the
population were returned as Orthodox Christians, 14,677 as Catholics
and Protestants, 2652 as Jews, and 740 as of other religions. The
annexation of Thessaly and part of Epirus is stated to have added
24,165 Mahommedan subjects to the Hellenic kingdom. A considerable
portion of these, however, emigrated immediately after the annexation,
and, although a certain number subsequently returned, the total
Mahommedan population in Greece was estimated to be under 5000 in
1908. A number of the Christian inhabitants of these regions,
estimated at about 50,000, retained Turkish nationality with the
object of escaping military service. The Albanian population,
estimated at 200,000 by Finlay in 1851, still probably exceeds
120,000. It is gradually being absorbed in the Hellenic population. In
1870, 37,598 persons (an obviously untrustworthy figure) were returned
as speaking Albanian only. In 1879 the number is given as 58,858. The
Vlach population, which has been increased by the annexation of
Thessaly, numbers about 60,000. The number of foreign residents is
unknown. The Italians are the most numerous, numbering about 11,000.
Some 1500 persons, mostly Maltese, possess British nationality.

By a law of 27 November 1899, Greece, which had hitherto been divided
into sixteen departments ([Greek: nomoi]) was redivided into
twenty-six departments, as follows:--

_Departments._ _Pop._ _Departments._ _Pop._

1 Attica 341,247 14 Corinth 71,229
2 Boeotia 65,816 15 Arcadia 162,324
3 Phthiotis 112,328 16 Achaea 150,918
4 Phocis 62,246 17 Elis 103,810
5 Aetolia and Acarnania 141,405 18 Triphylia 90,523
6 Eurytania 47,192 19 Messenia 127,991
7 Arta 41,280 20 Laconia 61,522
8 Trikkala 90,548 21 Lacedaemon 87,106
9 Karditsa 92,941 22 Corfu 99,571
10 Larissa 95,066 23 Cephalonia 71,235
11 Magnesia 102,742 24 Leucas (with Ithaca) 41,186
12 Euboea 116,903 25 Zante 42,502
13 Argolis 81,943 26 Cyclades 130,378

The population is densest in the Ionian Islands, exceeding 307 per sq.
m. The departments of Acarnania, Phocis and Euboea are the most thinly
inhabited (about 58, 61 and 66 per sq. m. respectively).

Very little information is obtainable with regard to the movement of
the population; no register of births, deaths and marriages is kept in
Greece. The only official statistics are found in the periodical
returns of the mortality in the twelve principal towns, according to
which the yearly average of deaths in these towns for the five years
1903-1907 was approximately 10,253, or 23.8 per 1000; of these more
than a quarter are ascribed to pulmonary consumption, due in the main
to defective sanitation. Both the birth-rate and death-rate are low,
being 27.6 and 20.7 per 1000 respectively. Infant mortality is slight,
and in point of longevity Greece compares favourably with most other
European countries. The number of illegitimate births is 12.25 per
1000; these are almost exclusively in the towns.

Of the total population 28.5% are stated to live in towns. The
population of the principal towns is:--

1896. 1907.

Athens 111,486 167,479
Peiraeus 43,848 73,579
Patras 37,985 37,724
Trikkala 21,149 17,809
Hermopolis (Syra) 18,760 18,132
Corfu 18,581 28,254*
Volo 16,788 23,563
Larissa 15,373 18,001
Zante 14,906 13,580
Kalamata 14,298 15,397
Pyrgos 12,708 13,690
Tripolis 10,465 10,789
Chalcis 8,661 10,958
Laurium 7,926 10,007

* Including suburbs.

No trustworthy information is obtainable with regard to immigration
and emigration, of which no statistics have ever been kept.
Emigration, which was formerly in the main to Egypt and Rumania, is
now almost exclusively to the United States of America. The principal
exodus is from Arcadia, Laconia and Maina; the emigrants from these
districts, estimated at about 14,000 annually, are for the most part
young men approaching the age of military service. According to
American statistics 12,431 Greeks arrived in the United States from
Greece during the period 1869-1898 and 130,154 in 1899-1907; a
considerable number, however, have returned to Greece, and those
remaining in the United States at the end of 1907 were estimated at
between 136,000 and 138,000; this number was considerably reduced in
1908 by remigration. Since 1896 the tendency to emigration has
received a notable and somewhat alarming impulse. There is an
increasing immigration into the towns from the rural districts, which
are gradually becoming depopulated. Both movements are due in part to
the preference of the Greeks for a town life and in part to distaste
for military service, but in the main to the poverty of the peasant
population, whose condition and interests have been neglected by the
government.

Ethnology.

Greece is inhabited by three races--the Greeks, the Albanians and the Vlachs. The Greeks who are by far the most numerous, have to a large extent absorbed the other races; the process of assimilation has been especially rapid since the foundation of the Greek kingdom. Like most European nations, the modern Greeks are a mixed race. The question of their origin has been the subject of much learned controversy; their presumed descent from the Greeks of the classical epoch has proved a national asset of great value; during the period of their struggle for independence it won them the devoted zeal of the Philhellenes, it inspired the enthusiasm of Byron, Victor Hugo, and a host of minor poets, and it has furnished a pleasing illusion to generations of scholarly tourists who delight to discover in the present inhabitants of the country the mental and physical characteristics with which they have been familiarized by the literature and art of antiquity. This amiable tendency is encouraged by the modern Greeks, who possess an implicit faith in their illustrious ancestry. The discussion of the question entered a very acrimonious stage with the appearance in 1830 of Fallmerayer's _History of the Morea during the Middle Ages_. Fallmerayer maintained that after the great Slavonic immigration at the close of the 8th century the original population of northern Greece and the Morea, which had already been much reduced during the Roman period, was practically supplanted by the Slavonic element and that the Greeks of modern times are in fact Byzantinized Slavs. This theory was subjected to exhaustive criticism by Ross, Hopf, Finlay and other scholars, and although many of Fallmerayer's conclusions remain unshaken, the view is now generally held that the base of the population both in the mainland and the Morea is Hellenic, not Slavonic. During the 5th and 6th centuries Greece had been subjected to Slavonic incursions which resulted in no permanent settlements. After the great plague of 746-747, however, large tracts of depopulated country were colonized by Slavonic immigrants; the towns remained in the hands of the Greeks, many of whom emigrated to Constantinople. In the Morea the Slavs established themselves principally in Arcadia and the region of Taygetus, extending their settlements into Achaia, Elis, Laconia and the promontory of Taenaron; on the mainland they occupied portions of Acarnania, Aetolia, Doris and Phocis. Slavonic place-names occurring in all these districts confirm the evidence of history with regard to this immigration. The Slavs, who were not a maritime race, did not colonize the Aegean Islands, but a few Slavonic place-names in Crete seem to indicate that some of the invaders reached that island. The Slavonic settlements in the Morea proved more permanent than those in northern Greece, which were attacked by the armies of the Byzantine emperors. But even in the Morea the Greeks, or "Romans" as they called themselves ([Greek: Rhomaioi]), who had been left undisturbed on the eastern side of the peninsula, eventually absorbed the alien element, which disappeared after the 15th century. In addition to the place-names the only remaining traces of the Slav immigration are the Slavonic type of features, which occasionally recurs, especially among the Arcadian peasants, and a few customs and traditions. Even when allowance is made for the remarkable power of assimilation which the Greeks possessed in virtue of their superior civilization, it is difficult to resist the conclusion that the Hellenic element must always have been the most numerous in order to effect so complete an absorption. This element has apparently undergone no essential change since the epoch of Roman domination. The destructive invasions of the Goths in A.D. 267 and 395 introduced no new ethnic feature; the various races which during the middle ages obtained partial or complete mastery in Greece--the Franks, the Venetians, the Turks--contributed no appreciable ingredient to the mass of the population. The modern Greeks may therefore be regarded as in the main the descendants of the population which inhabited Greece in the earlier centuries of Byzantine rule. Owing to the operation of various causes, historical, social and economic, that population was composed of many heterogeneous elements and represented in a very limited degree the race which repulsed the Persians and built the Parthenon. The internecine conflicts of the Greek communities, wars with foreign powers and the deadly struggles of factions in the various cities, had to a large extent obliterated the old race of free citizens by the beginning of the Roman period. The extermination of the Plataeans by the Spartans and of the Melians by the Athenians during the Peloponnesian war, the proscription of Athenian citizens after the war, the massacre of the Corcyraean oligarchs by the democratic party, the slaughter of the Thebans by Alexander and of the Corinthians by Mummius, are among the more familiar instances of the catastrophes which overtook the civic element in the Greek cities; the void can only have been filled from the ranks of the metics or resident aliens and of the descendants of the far more numerous slave population. Of the latter a portion was of Hellenic origin; when a city was taken the males of military age were frequently put to the sword, but the women and children were sold as slaves; in Laconia and Thessaly there was a serf population of indigenous descent. In the classical period four-fifths of the population of Attica were slaves and of the remainder half were metics. In the Roman period the number of slaves enormously increased, the supply being maintained from the regions on the borders of the empire; the same influences which in Italy extinguished the small landed proprietors and created the _latifundia_ prevailed also in Greece. The purely Hellenic population, now greatly diminished, congregated in the towns; the large estates which replaced the small freeholds were cultivated by slaves and managed or farmed by slaves or freedmen, and wide tracts of country were wholly depopulated. How greatly the free citizen element had diminished by the close of the 1st century A.D. may be judged from the estimate of Plutarch that all Greece could not furnish more than 3000 hoplites. The composite population which replaced the ancient Hellenic stock became completely Hellenized. According to craniologists the modern Greeks are brachycephalous while the ancient race is stated to have been dolichocephalous, but it seems doubtful whether any such generalization with regard to the ancients can be conclusively established. The Aegean islanders are more brachycephalous than the inhabitants of the mainland, though apparently of purer Greek descent. No general conception of the facial type of the ancient race can be derived from the highly-idealized statues of deities, heroes and athletes; so far as can be judged from portrait statues it was very varied. Among the modern Greeks the same variety of features prevails; the face is usually oval, the nose generally long and somewhat aquiline, the teeth regular, and the eyes remarkably bright and full of animation. The country-folk are, as a rule, tall and well-made, though slightly built and rather meagre; their form is graceful and supple in movement. The urban population, as elsewhere, is physically very inferior. The women often display a refined and delicate beauty which disappears at an early age. The best physical types of the race are found in Arcadia, in the Aegean Islands and in Crete.

The Albanian population extends over all Attica and Megaris (except the towns of Athens, Peiraeus and Megara), the greater part of Boeotia, the eastern districts of Locris, the southern half of Euboea and the northern side of Andros, the whole of the islands of Salamis, Hydra, Spetsae and Poros, and part of Aegina, the whole of Corinthia and Argolis, the northern districts of Arcadia and the eastern portion of Achaea. There are also small Albanian groups in Laconia and Messenia (see ALBANIA). The Albanians, who call themselves _Shkyipetar_, and are called by the Greeks _Arvanitae_ ([Greek: Arbanitai]), belong to the Tosk or southern branch of the race; their immigration took place in the latter half of the 14th century. Their first settlements in the Morea were made in 1347-1355. The Albanian colonization was first checked by the Turks; in 1454 an Albanian insurrection in the Morea against Byzantine rule was crushed by the Turkish general Tura Khan, whose aid had been invoked by the Palaeologi. With a few exceptions, the Albanians in Greece retained their Christian faith after the Turkish conquest. The failure of the insurrection of 1770 was followed by a settlement of Moslem Albanians, who had been employed by the Turks to suppress the revolt. The Christian Albanians have long lived on good terms with the Greeks while retaining their own customs and language and rarely intermarrying with their neighbours. They played a brilliant part during the War of Independence, and furnished the Greeks with many of their most distinguished leaders. The process of their Hellenization, which scarcely began till after the establishment of the kingdom, has been somewhat slow; most of the men can now speak Greek, but Albanian is still the language of the household. The Albanians, who are mainly occupied with agriculture, are less quick-witted, less versatile, and less addicted to politics than the Greeks, who regard them as intellectually their inferiors. A vigorous and manly race, they furnish the best soldiers in the Greek army, and also make excellent sailors.

The Vlachs, who call themselves _Aromani_, i.e. Romans, form another important foreign element in the population of Greece. They are found principally in Pindus (the Agrapha district), the mountainous parts of Thessaly, Othrys, Oeta, the mountains of Boeotia, Aetolia and Acarnania; they have a few settlements in Euboea. They are for the most part either nomad shepherds and herdsmen or carriers (_kiradjis_). They apparently descend from the Latinized provincials of the Roman epoch who took refuge in the higher mountains from the incursions of the barbarians and Slavs (see VLACHS and MACEDONIA). In the 13th century the Vlach principality of "Great Walachia" ([Greek: Megale Blachia]) included Thessaly and southern Macedonia as far as Castoria; its capital was at Hypati near Lamia. Acarnania and Aetolia were known as "Lesser Walachia." The urban element among the Vlachs has been almost completely Hellenized; it has always displayed great aptitude for commerce, and Athens owes many of its handsomest buildings to the benefactions of wealthy Vlach merchants. The nomad population in the mountains has retained its distinctive nationality and customs together with its Latin language, though most of the men can speak Greek. Like the Albanians, the pastoral Vlachs seldom intermarry with the Greeks; they occasionally take Greek wives, but never give their daughters to Greeks; many of them are illiterate, and their children rarely attend the schools. Owing to their deficient intellectual culture they are regarded with disdain by the Greeks, who employ the term [Greek: blachos] to denote not only a shepherd but an ignorant rustic.

A considerable Italian element was introduced into the Ionian Islands during the middle ages owing to their prolonged subjection to Latin princes and subsequently (till 1797) to the Venetian republic. The Italians intermarried with the Greeks; Italian became the language of the upper classes, and Roman Catholicism was declared the state religion. The peasantry, however, retained the Greek language and remained faithful to the Eastern Church; during the past century the Italian element was completely absorbed by the Greek population.

The Turkish population in Greece, which numbered about 70,000 before the war of liberation, disappeared in the course of the struggle or emigrated at its conclusion. The Turks in Thessaly are mainly descended either from colonists established in the country by the Byzantine emperors or from immigrants from Asia Minor, who arrived at the end of the 14th century; they derive their name Konariots from Iconium (Konia). Many of the beys or land-owning class are the lineal representatives of the Seljuk nobles who obtained fiefs under the feudal system introduced here and in Macedonia by the Sultan Bayezid I.

National character.