Greeks The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...

( mk, Грци, Grci ) in

North Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Socialist Feder ...

form an ethnic minority numbering 294 individuals per 2021 census.

Current status

Greeks are mainly settled now in the cities of

Gevgelija Gevgelija ( mk, Гевгелија; ) is a town with a population of 15,685 located in the very southeast of the North Macedonia along the banks of the Vardar River, situated at the country's main border with Greece (Bogorodica-Evzoni), the point ...

( el, Γευγελή, ''Gevgelī́'') and

Bitola Bitola (; mk, Битола ) is a city in the southwestern part of North Macedonia. It is located in the southern part of the Pelagonia valley, surrounded by the Baba, Nidže, and Kajmakčalan mountain ranges, north of the Medžitlija-Níki ...

( el, Μοναστήρι, ''Monastī́ri''). Today most Greeks in the country are political refugees who fled Greece due to the

Greek Civil War The Greek Civil War ( el, ο Eμφύλιος �όλεμος ''o Emfýlios'' 'Pólemos'' "the Civil War") took place from 1946 to 1949. It was mainly fought against the established Kingdom of Greece, which was supported by the United Kingdom ...

Pg.440 and their descendants.

Ethnologue ''Ethnologue: Languages of the World'' (stylized as ''Ethnoloɠue'') is an annual reference publication in print and online that provides statistics and other information on the living languages of the world. It is the world's most comprehensiv ...

also cites

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

as an "immigrant language" in the Republic of North Macedonia. The most recent census (2002) recorded 422 individuals declaring their ethnicity as Greek.

Alternative estimates

The Greek right-wing party

Popular Orthodox Rally The Popular Orthodox Rally or People's Orthodox Alarm (Greek language, Greek: Λαϊκός Ορθόδοξος Συναγερμός, ''Laikós Orthódoxos Synagermós''), often abbreviated to LAOS (ΛΑ.Ο.Σ.) as a pun on the Greek word for ''peo ...

claims via questions presented in the

Greek Parliament The Hellenic Parliament ( el, Ελληνικό Κοινοβούλιο, Elliniko Kinovoulio; formally titled el, Βουλή των Ελλήνων, Voulí ton Ellínon, Boule of the Hellenes, label=none), also known as the Parliament of the Hel ...

that there are more than 100,000 (up to 280,000) Greeks that now live in the country. This number is not supported officially by the

Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs The Minister for Foreign Affairs ( el, Υπουργός Εξωτερικών) is the senior minister at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece. The incumbent Minister for Foreign Affairs is Nikos Dendias of New Democracy New Democracy, ...

. According to a Greek research, the Greek population of North Macedonia in 1996 made up 2% of the total population, consisting of approximately 42,000 individuals.

Aromanians

The controversy surrounding a Greek minority within the Republic of North Macedonia stems from the statistical treatment of Aromanian population groups in the country, who in their majority used to identify themselves as Greeks as part of the

Rum millet Rūm millet (millet-i Rûm), or "''Roman nation''", was the name of the Eastern Orthodox Christian community in the Ottoman Empire. Despite being subordinated within the Ottoman political system, the community maintained a certain internal aut ...

. A large number of Aromanians with Greek identity left the region after the Balkan Wars, with

Florina Florina ( el, Φλώρινα, ''Flórina''; known also by some alternative names) is a town and municipality in the mountainous northwestern Macedonia, Greece. Its motto is, 'Where Greece begins'. The town of Florina is the capital of the F ...

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 ...

witnessing the arrival of a large Greek-speaking commercial population from Monastiri (Bitola). The present-day community is a remnant of the formerly larger Aromanian community of the part of Macedonia that fell within the borders of the

Kingdom of Serbia The Kingdom of Serbia ( sr-cyr, Краљевина Србија, Kraljevina Srbija) was a country located in the Balkans which was created when the ruler of the Principality of Serbia, Milan I, was proclaimed king in 1882. Since 1817, the Princi ...

after the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and defe ...

. Today, the

Aromanians in North Macedonia The Aromanians in North Macedonia ( rup, Armãnji, mk, Аромани, ''Aromani''), also known as Vlachs ( rup, Vlahi, mk, Власи, ''Vlasi''), are an officially recognised minority group numbering some 9,695 people according to the 2002 c ...

are an officially recognized minority group numbering ca. 10,000 people, although some estimates put this number higher.

Notable historical personalities

The following people were born during Ottoman times in what is today

: * Theodoros Adam, chieftain of the

Macedonian Struggle The Macedonian Struggle ( bg, Македонска борба; el, Μακεδονικός Αγώνας; mk, Борба за Македонија; sr, Борба за Македонију; tr, Makedonya Mücadelesi) was a series of social, po ...

* Charalambos Boufidis, chieftain of the Macedonian Struggle * Petros Christou (1887-1908), chieftain of the Macedonian Struggle *

Georgios Karaiskakis Georgios Karaiskakis ( el, Γεώργιος Καραϊσκάκης), born Georgios Karaiskos ( el, Γεώργιος Καραΐσκος; 1782 – 1827), was a famous Greek military commander and a leader of the Greek War of Independence. Early ...

(-1910), chieftain of the Macedonian Struggle *

Evangelos Koukoudeas Evangelos Koukoudeas ( el, Ευάγγελος Κουκουδέας) was a Greeks, Greek guerrilla fighter the Macedonian Struggle and the Autonomous Republic of Northern Epirus, North Epirote Struggle for Autonomy, hero of the Balkan Wars, and offi ...

, chieftain of the Macedonian Struggle *

Dimitrios Lalas Dimitrios Stergios Lalas or Lallas ( el, Δημήτριος Στέργιος Λάλας ή Λάλλας) was a significant Greek composer and musician. Biography Lalas was born in 1844 or 1848 in Magarevo, then Ottoman Empire (now North Macedon ...

(1844/48-1911), composer and musician *

Georgios Modis Georgios Modis ( el, Γεώργιος Μόδης; 14 May 1887 – 18 June 1975) was a Greek jurist, politician, writer and participant in the Macedonian Struggle. Biography Georgios Modis was born in 1887 in Monastir (modern Bitola). He graduat ...

(1887-1975), jurist, politician, writer and participant in the Macedonian Struggle * Traianos Nallis (1874-?), politician * Pantelis Papaioannou (c.1880-1907), chieftain of the Macedonian Struggle * Theofylaktos Papakonstantinou (1905-1991), writer and politician *

Anastasios Pichion Anastasios Pichion ( el, Αναστάσιος Πηχιών) or Picheon (Πηχεών) (1836 – 24 March 1913) was a Greek of Aromanian descent who was an educator and revolutionary of the Macedonian Struggle. Biography He was born in Ohrid dur ...

(1836-1913), educator and participant the Macedonian Struggle * Michail Sapkas (1873-1956), politician and doctor *

Dimitrios Semsis Dimitrios Semsis, also known as Dimitrios Salonikios ( el, Δημήτρης Σέμσης; 1883 – 13 January 1950), was a Greek violinist born Dimitrios Koukoudeas (Δημήτριος Κουκουδέας) in Strumica, in the Salonica Vilayet ...

(1883-1950), violinist *

Michael Sionidis Michael Sionidis ( el, Μιχαήλ Σιωνίδης or , '; c. 1870–1935) was a Greek leader of '' makedonomachoi'' in the Macedonian Struggle. Early life Michael Sionidis was born in the village of Grčište, Ottoman Empire (near Bogdanci i ...

(1870-1935), chieftain of the Macedonian Struggle *

Alexandros Svolos Alexandros Svolos ( el, Αλέξανδρος Σβώλος; 1892, Kruševo, Manastir Vilayet, Ottoman Empire – 22 February 1956, Athens, Greece) was a prominent Greek legal expert, who also served as president of the Political Committee of Natio ...

(1892-1956), President of

Political Committee of National Liberation The Political Committee of National Liberation ( el, Πολιτική Επιτροπή Εθνικής Απελευθέρωσης, ''Politiki Epitropi Ethnikis Apeleftherosis'', PEEA), commonly known as the "Mountain Government" ( el, Κυβέρ ...

during WW2 * Dimitrios Tsapanos (1882 or 1883-), chieftain of the Macedonian Struggle * Dimitrios Tsitsimis, chieftain of the Macedonian Struggle * Georgios Vafopoulos (1903-1996), poet, writer, teacher and journalist * Antonios Zois (1869-1941), chieftain of the Macedonian Struggle

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Greeks In The Republic Of North Macedonia North Macedonia, Republic of Ethnic groups in North Macedonia Greece–North Macedonia relations

Current status

Alternative estimates

Aromanians

Notable historical personalities

See also

References