Events in the year 2022 in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

Incumbents

Events

* Ongoing:

COVID-19 pandemic in Greece The COVID-19 pandemic in Greece is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The first case in Greece was confirmed on 26 February 2020 when a 38-year-old woman ...

* January 4 – Greece reports a record 50,126 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, thereby bringing the nationwide total of confirmed cases to 1,344,923. * January 9 – The Greek

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

announces that fully vaccinated people who have not received a COVID-19 vaccine

booster dose A booster dose is an extra administration of a vaccine after an earlier (primer) dose. After initial immunization, a booster provides a re-exposure to the immunizing antigen. It is intended to increase immunity against that antigen back to protec ...

seven months after receiving their second dose will be banned from entering most indoor venues and participating in many types of activities beginning on February 1. * January 17 – Greece begins to introduce monthly fines for people over the age of 60 who are unvaccinated against COVID-19 amid an increase in the number of new cases in the country. The monthly fine will initially be

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...

50 this month and will be €100 per month thereafter. * February 18 – Eleven people are missing after a

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

travelling between Greece and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

catches fire. * April 19 – Greece seizes Russian-flagged

oil tanker An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a ship designed for the bulk transport of oil or its products. There are two basic types of oil tankers: crude tankers and product tankers. Crude tankers move large quantities of unrefined crud ...

''Pegas/Lana'' off the island of

Euboea Evia (, ; el, Εύβοια ; grc, Εὔβοια ) or Euboia (, ) is the second-largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete. It is separated from Boeotia in mainland Greece by the narrow Euripus Strait (only at its narrowest poin ...

as part of

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

economic sanctions Economic sanctions are commercial and financial penalties applied by one or more countries against a targeted self-governing state, group, or individual. Economic sanctions are not necessarily imposed because of economic circumstances—they may ...

on Russia. The ship had 19 crew members on board, according to the Ministry of Shipping. * May 1 – The Greek Civil Aviation announces that Greece has lifted their

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

restrictions for domestic and foreign flights. Passengers will still be required to wear a mask. * May 11 – Greece bans the practice of

conversion therapy Conversion therapy is the pseudoscientific practice of attempting to change an individual's sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression to align with heterosexual and cisgender norms. In contrast to evidence-based medicine and cli ...

for minors as well as all

advertisement Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...

s promoting it. * May 21 – Greece reports its first case of

monkeypox Monkeypox (also called mpox by the WHO) is an infectious viral disease that can occur in humans and some other animals. Symptoms include fever, swollen lymph nodes, and a rash that forms blisters and then crusts over. The time from exposure to ...

. * May 26 – The US seizes a

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

n owned

carrying Iranian

crude oil Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude ...

in Greece and has transferred the cargo to another ship destined for the US. It is unclear if the seizure was due to

US sanctions against Iran The United States has since 1979 applied various economic, trade, scientific and military sanctions against Iran. United States economic sanctions are administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), an agency of the United States De ...

or US sanctions on Russia. * June 1 –

Turkish President The president of Turkey, officially the president of the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Cumhurbaşkanı), is the head of state and head of government of Turkey. The president directs the executive branch of the national govern ...

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician serving as the List of presidents of Turkey, 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as prime minister of Turkey from 2003 to 2014 and as Lis ...

cancels high-level talks with

Greek Prime Minister The prime minister of the Hellenic Republic ( el, Πρωθυπουργός της Ελληνικής Δημοκρατίας, Prothypourgós tis Ellinikís Dimokratías), colloquially referred to as the prime minister of Greece ( el, Πρωθυ� ...

Kyriakos Mitsotakis Kyriakos Mitsotakis ( el, Κυριάκος Μητσοτάκης, ; born 4 March 1968) is a Greek politician serving as the prime minister of Greece since 8 July 2019. A member of the New Democracy (Greece), New Democracy, he has been its presi ...

, accusing Mitsotakis of consistently using Greek jets to violate

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

's airspace. Turkish Foreign Affairs Minister

Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu (; born 5 February 1968) is a Turkish diplomat and politician who has served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey since 24 November 2015. He previously served in the same position from August 2014 to August 2015. He is ...

had also accused Greece of violating the airspace of

demilitarized zone A demilitarized zone (DMZ or DZ) is an area in which treaties or agreements between nations, military powers or contending groups forbid military installations, activities, or personnel. A DZ often lies along an established frontier or bounda ...

s in the

Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea ; tr, Ege Denizi (Greek language, Greek: Αιγαίο Πέλαγος: "Egéo Pélagos", Turkish language, Turkish: "Ege Denizi" or "Adalar Denizi") is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It ...

yesterday. * June 5 – A large

wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire ...

breaks out on the

Hymettus Hymettus (), also Hymettos (; el, Υμηττός, translit=Ymittós, pronounced ), is a mountain range in the Athens area of Attica, East Central Greece. It is also colloquially known as ''Trellós'' (crazy) or ''Trellóvouno'' (crazy mountain) ...

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arise ...

near

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

, Greece. A number of homes are damaged in the fire. * July 11 – Two people are killed and four others are injured after a three car pileup caused by a pack of boars north of

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...

. * July 13 – Two firefighters are killed and two others survive after a helicopter crashes on the

Greek island Greece has many islands, with estimates ranging from somewhere around 1,200 to 6,000, depending on the minimum size to take into account. The number of inhabited islands is variously cited as between 166 and 227. The largest Greek island by a ...

Samos Samos (, also ; el, Σάμος ) is a Greek island in the eastern Aegean Sea, south of Chios, north of Patmos and the Dodecanese, and off the coast of western Turkey, from which it is separated by the -wide Mycale Strait. It is also a separate ...

. * July 16 – An

Antonov An-12 The Antonov An-12 (Russian: Антонов Ан-12; NATO reporting name: Cub) is a four-engined turboprop transport aircraft designed in the Soviet Union. It is the military version of the Antonov An-10 and has many variants. For more than thr ...

cargo plane A cargo aircraft (also known as freight aircraft, freighter, airlifter or cargo jet) is a fixed-wing aircraft that is designed or converted for the carriage of cargo rather than passengers. Such aircraft usually do not incorporate passenger am ...

, operated by a Ukrainian airline, crashes near the city of

Kavala, Greece Kavala ( el, Καβάλα, ''Kavála'' ) is a city in northern Greece, the principal seaport of eastern Macedonia (Greece), Macedonia and the capital of Kavala (regional unit), Kavala regional unit. It is situated on the Bay of Kavala, across ...

, killing all eight people on board. The aircraft was carrying weapons from

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

, and crashed before a planned stop in

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

. * July 23 – Nine people are rescued after

s burn on the

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

Lesbos Lesbos or Lesvos ( el, Λέσβος, Lésvos ) is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of with approximately of coastline, making it the third largest island in Greece. It is separated from Anatolia, Asia Minor ...

and threaten the resort town of

Vatera Vatera is an 8-kilometer long sandy beach in the southern part of Lesbos island. The name (Βατερά) comes from ''βάτα'' (''vata'', meaning "bramble"), in reference to prickly bushes that blocked the old mule-drive access. It is 55 ...

amid a

heat wave A heat wave, or heatwave, is a period of excessively hot weather, which may be accompanied by high humidity, especially in oceanic climate countries. While definitions vary, a heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in the ...

in the country. * August 21 – In

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

, world number 156

Borna Ćorić Borna Ćorić (; born 14 November 1996) is a Croatian professional tennis player. On 5 November 2018, he reached his best singles ranking of world No. 12. On 21 August 2022, Ćorić became the lowest-ranked champion in Masters 1000 history when ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

becomes the lowest-ranked champion in the

ATP Tour Masters 1000 The ATP Masters 1000 tournaments (previously known as ATP Masters Series) is an annual series of nine tennis tournaments featuring the top-ranked players on the ATP Tour. The series' events have been held in Europe and North America since the ...

after defeating

Stefanos Tsitsipas Stefanos Tsitsipas ( gr, Στέφανος Τσιτσιπάς, ; born 12 August 1998) is a Greek professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he first achieved on 9 ...

of Greece in the men's singles final of the 2022

Cincinnati Masters The Cincinnati Masters or Cincinnati Open (branded as the Western & Southern Open for sponsorship reasons) is an annual outdoor hardcourt tennis event held in Mason, Ohio near Cincinnati. The event started on September 18, 1899, and is the olde ...

. * September 3 –

President of Turkey The president of Turkey, officially the president of the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Cumhurbaşkanı), is the head of state and head of government of Turkey. The president directs the executive branch of the government of Tu ...

accuses Greece of "arming" and "occupying" the demilitarized Aegean islands, with

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...

threatening to revoke recognition of Greek sovereignty over the islands if the alleged militarization is not halted. * October 15 –

2022 Greek floods In October 2022, Crete, the largest island of Greece was hit by destructive floods. The floods were triggered by a large thunderstorm and heavy rains. Two fatalities were reported along with of rain falling within less 12 hours. Response On 15 ...

Deaths

* 4 January **

Andreas Michalopoulos Andreas Michalopoulos ( el, Ανδρέας Μιχαλόπουλος; 23 February 1948 – 4 January 2022) was a Greek footballer who played as a striker for Panachaiki. Career He played for Panachaiki when the team qualified for the 1973–7 ...

, 73, footballer **

Stelios Serafidis Stelios Serafidis ( el, Στέλιος Σεραφείδης; 6 August 1935 – 4 January 2022) was a Greek international football player who played as a goalkeeper for AEK Athens. Serafidis was among the most reliable and consistent goalkeepers ...

, 86, footballer * 16 January –

Alekos Fassianos Alekos Fassianos ( el, Αλέκος Φασιανός, 13 December 1935 – 16 January 2022) was a Greek painter. Life and career Fassianos was born in Athens in 1935. After graduating from the Athens School of Fine Arts, he moved to Paris, Fr ...

, 86, painter * 3 February –

Christos Sartzetakis Christos Sartzetakis ( el, Χρήστος Σαρτζετάκης; 6 April 1929 – 3 February 2022) was a Greek jurist and a supreme justice of the Court of Cassation, who served as the President of Greece from 1985 to 1990. Early life and educ ...

, 92, politician * 16 February – Vasilios Botinos, 77, footballer * 22 February – Christos Angourakis, 69, athlete * 25 February –

Dimitris Tsovolas Dimitris Tsovolas ( el, Δημήτριος Τσοβόλας; 4 September 1942 – 25 February 2022) was a Greek politician who served as Minister of Finance from 1985 to 1989. Early life and education Tsovolas was born at Melissourgoi, a village ...

, 79, politician * 27 February –

Marietta Giannakou Marietta Giannakou ( el, Μαριέττα Γιαννάκου, 6 June 1951 – 27 February 2022) was a Greek politician, member of New Democracy. She served as Minister for National Education and Religious Affairs of Greece. Biography She was b ...

, 70, politician * 10 March –

Dimitris Kontominas Dimitris Kontominas ( el, Δημήτρης Κοντομηνάς; 3 June 1939 – 10 March 2022) was a Greek businessman who was active in insurance, television, cinema, and retail trade. Life and career Kontominas was born on 3 June 1939 in Ath ...

, 82, businessman * 17 March – Elsa Papadimitriou, 80, politician * 29 March – Irini Konitopoulou-Legaki, 90, singer * 12 April – Giorgos Katiforis, 87, lawyer * 25 April –

Kostas Karapatis Konstantinos "Kostas" Karapatis ( el, Κώστας Καραπατής; 9 January 1928 – 25 April 2022) was a Greek football player and manager who played as a goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (s ...

, 94, footballer * 6 May –

Kostas Gousgounis Konstantinos "Kostas" Gousgounis ( el, Κώστας Γκουσγκούνης; 21 March 1931 – 6 May 2022) was a Greek pornographic actor. He was considered as a legendary figure of 1970s and 1980s Greek pornography. He appeared in films such ...

, 91, pornographic actor * 8 May – Stefanos Petrakis, 97, Olympic sprinter * 17 May –

Vangelis Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou ( el, Ευάγγελος Οδυσσέας Παπαθανασίου ; 29 March 1943 – 17 May 2022), known professionally as Vangelis ( ; el, Βαγγέλης, links=no ), was a Greek composer and arranger of ...

, 79, musician * 10 June –

Sotirios Trambas Sotirios Trambas ( el, Σωτήριος Τράμπας; 17 July 1929 – 10 June 2022) was a Greek Orthodox prelate, who served as Orthodox Metropolitan of Korea from 2004 to 2008. Biography Trambas was born in Arta in 1929. He graduated from ...

, 92, prelate * 13 June – **

Nikolaos Deligiorgis Nikolaos Deligiorgis ( el, Νικόλαος Δεληγιώργης; 14 May 1937 – 13 June 2022) was a Greek magazine editor and publisher. Life and career Nikos Deligiorgis was born on 14 May 1937 in Piraeus, Greece Greece,, or , romaniz ...

, 85, magazine editor **

Marina Lambraki-Plaka Marina Lambraki-Plaka (c. 1939 – 13 June 2022) was a Greek historian, archaeologist, and academic. Born in Greece. She was the director of the National Gallery from 1992 to 2022. She served as Alternate Minister of Culture in the Caretaker Ca ...

, 83, historian * 19 June –

Thalis Tsirimokos Thalis Tsirimokos ( el, Θαλής Τσιριμώκος; 7 September 1954 – 19 June 2022) was a Greek footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of footb ...

, 62, footballer * 21 June – Nikos Salikas, 81, politician * 8 July – Athanasios Dimitrakopoulos, 86, politician * 16 July –

Georgios Daskalakis Georgios P. Daskalakis (; 12 July 1936 – 16 July 2022) was a Greek businessman, trade unionist, and politician who served in the Hellenic Parliament from 1981 until 1996 and from 2000 until 2004. Daskalakis was one of the co-founders of the Pa ...

, 86, politician * 2 August –

Stavros Psycharis Stavros Psycharis (; 1945 – 2 August 2022) was a Greek publisher and politician. He served as Civil Administrator of Mount Athos The Civil Administrator of Mount Athos ( el, Πολιτικός διοικητής του Αγίου Όρο� ...

, 77, politician * 7 August – Dionysis Simopoulos, 79, astronomer * 9 August –

Dimitris Tsironis Dimitris "Takis" Tsironis (born 26 October 1959) is a retired Greek football forward. Born in Neapoli, Thessaloniki Tsironis started his career from the local team Ermis Neapolis. At his 15, he transferred to Makedonikos. In 1979 has an offer ...

, 62, politician * 21 August – Robert Williams, 72, composer * 2 September – Georgios Kalamidas, 77, judge * 13 September – ** Theophilos Kamberidis, 92, politician **

Kostas Kazakos Kostas Kazakos ( el, Κώστας Καζάκος, alt. sp. Costas Kazakos; 29 May 1935 – 13 September 2022) was a Greek actor, television director, and politician. He was married to the famous actress Tzeni Karezi for 24 years until her deat ...

, 87, actor ** Spiros Zournatzis, 86, journalist and politician * 14 September – **

Dimitrios Pandermalis Dimitrios Pandermalis ( el, Δημήτριος Παντερμαλής; 1940 – 14 September 2022) was a Greek archaeologist. He was professor of archaeology at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, supervisor of the Archaeological site of ...

, 82, archaeologist **

Irene Papas Irene Papas or Irene Pappas ( el, Ειρήνη Παππά, Eiríni Pappá, ; born Eirini Lelekou ( el, Ειρήνη Λελέκου, Eiríni Lelékou, link=no); 3 September 1929 – 14 September 2022) was a Greek actress and singer who starred ...

, 93, actress * 18 September –

Martha Karagianni Martha Karagianni ( el, Μάρθα Καραγιάννη; 6 November 1939 – 18 September 2022) was a Greek film actress. She was born in Athens, but raised in Keratsini. She was one of the most popular Greek actresses of the 1960s. She starred ...

, 82, actress * 30 September – Zahos Hadjifotiou, 99, businessman * 1 October –

Stamatis Kokotas Stamatis Kokotas (Greek: Σταμάτης Κόκοτας, 23 March 1937 – 1 October 2022) was a Greek folk singer. Life and career Born in Athens, the son of a doctor, Kokotas moved to Paris to study medicine, and there he became friend of ...

, 85, singer * 2 October – Themis Katrios, 70, Greek basketball player * 13 October –

Stavros Sarafis Stavros Sarafis ( el, Σταύρος Σαράφης; 17 January 1950 – 13 October 2022) was a Greek football player who spent his entire career in PAOK, playing as an attacking midfielder or forward. He was one of the club's most famous pla ...

, 72, football player * 14 October –

Alexandros Nikolaidis Alexandros Nikolaidis (17 October 1979 – 14 October 2022) was a Greek taekwondo athlete. He was named the 2008 Greek Male Athlete of the Year. Initially the home favorite, he won the silver medal at the 2004 Olympics held in At ...

, 42, taekwondo athlete

References

{{Year in Europe, 2022 2020s in Greece Years of the 21st century in Greece