Macedonia - Greek Mainland (Greece)
Macedonia. Macedonia is Greek for Makedonia, a large district that stretches across northern Greece. It is bordered to the north by Albania, FYROM and Bulgaria, in the west with the Greek Epirus district, in the south with the district Thessaly and east with the Greek district of Thrace.
Today, the name “Macedonia,” often refers to the country FYROM (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia) north of Greece, a dilemma that is very sensitive to the Greeks. In the Greek district of Macedonia live 2.5 million people who are Greek and call themselves Macedonians (Makedonas means "Big Man " in Greek).
The district of Macedonia is divided into West, Central and Eastern Macedonia:
West Macedonia: with its prefectures (similar to counties, regions or provinces) of Kastoria, Kozani, Grevena and Florina.
Central Macedonia: consists of the prefectures of Pella, Imathia, Pieria, Kilkis, Thessaloniki, Halkidiki and Serres.
Eastern Macedonia: Those are the counties of Kavala and Drama.
The whole district is 34,178 square kilometers (over 20,000 square mi) and covers approximately 25% of the total area of Greece. It is much bigger than the entire country FYROM (25,713 km2). The capital of Macedonia is Thessaloniki, and other larger cities are the capitals of the Macedonian prefectures such as Serres, Katerini, Kavala, Drama, Veria, Kastoria, Kozani, Florina, Grevena and Edessa.
The highest mountain in Macedonia, as well as all of Greece, is Olympus at 2,917 meters (nearly 10,000 feet). Other high mountains in this district are Smolikas (2,637 meters/8,500 ft in Grevena), Voras (2,524 meters/8,200ft in Pella) and Grammos (2,520 meters/8,200 ft in Kastoria). Macedonia includes the islands of Thassos (near Kavala) and Ammouliani (in Halkidiki).
Photo Gallery Macedonia - Photos of Macedonia
The prefectures of Macedonia
Imathia: The towns of Veria and Naousa, and the exceptional archaeological excavations in Vergina, where the royal grave of Philip II (father of Alexander the Great) can be seen. More Imathia»
Pieria: The Olympus Mountains, the beaches of the Olympic Riviera, the traditional villages of Litochoro and Paleos Panteleimonas, the castle of Platamonas. More Pieria»
Pella: The waterfalls of Edessa, the archaeological site of Ancient Pella, the town of Giannitsa, the mountains Voras, Vermio, Paiko, Tzena and Pinovo. More Pella»
Kilkis: Kilkis town, the Post-Byzantine church of Agios Georgios, the cave of Agios Georgios, the scenic Goumenissa, the castle at Palio Gynekokastro. More Kilkis »
Halkidiki: The beautiful peninsulas and beaches of Kassandra and Sithonia, traditional mountain villages, the monastic state of Mount Athos. More Halkidiki »
Serres: Serres town, Serres museum, the caves at Alistratis, the Holy Monastery Ikosifinisi, the river and the gorge Aggitis, the ski center Lailia. More Serres »
Drama: Drama city and the ecclesiastical museum in the city, the springs of Agia Varvara, the Byzantine walls, Frakto Forest at Paranesti, the caves of Maara. More Drama»
Kavala: Kavala City, the summit of Mount Profitis Ilias, with excellent views over the city, the beaches of Nea Peramos and Keramoti, the historic city of Philippi. More Kavala»
Text: Yorgos and Wendy Nikolidakis - Revised by Katrina Butzer
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Photos Macedonia - Macedonia pictures
Macedonia in other languages
Macedonie (GriekseGids.nl)
Macedonie (GriekseGids.be)
Macedonia (JustGreece.com)
Makedonie (GriechenlandWeb.de)
Macedonia: Where on the map is Macedonia located?
