Macedonians ( el, Μακεδόνες, ''Makedónes''), also known as Greek Macedonians or Macedonian Greeks, are a regional and historical population group of ethnic
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 ...
, inhabiting or originating from the
Greek region of Macedonia, in
Northern Greece
Northern Greece ( el, Βόρεια Ελλάδα, Voreia Ellada) is used to refer to the northern parts of Greece, and can have various definitions.
Administrative regions of Greece
Administrative term
The term "Northern Greece" is widely used ...
. Today, most Macedonians live in or around the regional capital city 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 metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
and other cities and towns in
Macedonia (Greece)
Macedonia (; el, Μακεδονία, Makedonía ) is a geographic and former administrative region of Greece, in the southern Balkans. Macedonia is the largest and Greek geographic region, with a population of 2.36 million in 2020. It i ...
, while many have spread across Greece and in the
diaspora.
Name
The name Macedonia ( el, Μακεδονία, ') comes from the ancient Greek word ('). It is commonly explained as having originally meant "a tall one" or "highlander", possibly descriptive of the
people
A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of prope ...
. The shorter English name variant ''Macedon'' developed in Middle English, based on a borrowing from the French form of the name, ''Macédoine''.
History
Preface: Ancient Macedonian, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman periods
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 ...
populations have inhabited the region of
Macedonia since ancient times. The
rise of Macedon
Under the reign of Philip II (359–336 BC), the kingdom of Macedonia, initially at the periphery of classical Greek affairs, came to dominate Ancient Greece in the span of just 25 years, largely thanks to the personality and policies of its k ...
, from a small kingdom at the periphery of
Classical Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
affairs, to one which came to dominate the entire Hellenic world, occurred under the reign of
Philip II Philip II may refer to:
* Philip II of Macedon (382–336 BC)
* Philip II (emperor) (238–249), Roman emperor
* Philip II, Prince of Taranto (1329–1374)
* Philip II, Duke of Burgundy (1342–1404)
* Philip II, Duke of Savoy (1438-1497)
* Philip ...
. Philip's son,
Alexander the Great
Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...
(356–323 BC), managed to briefly extend Macedonian power not only over the central Greek city-states, but also over the entire
Persian empire which he toppled, including
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...
, and later went on towards lands as far east as the fringes of India today Pakistan. Alexander's adoption of the styles of government of the conquered territories was accompanied by the spread of Greek culture and learning through his vast empire. Although the empire fractured into multiple Hellenic regimes shortly after his death, his conquests left a lasting legacy, not least in the new Greek-speaking cities founded across Persia's western territories, heralding the
Hellenistic
In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...
period. In the partition of Alexander's empire among the
Diadochi
The Diadochi (; singular: Diadochus; from grc-gre, Διάδοχοι, Diádochoi, Successors, ) were the rival generals, families, and friends of Alexander the Great who fought for control over his empire after his death in 323 BC. The War ...
, Macedonia fell to the
Antipatrid dynasty
The Antipatrid dynasty (; grc-gre, Ἀντιπατρίδαι) was a Dorian Greek dynasty of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon founded by Cassander, the son of Antipater, who declared himself King of Macedon in 302 BC. This dynasty did not l ...
, which was overthrown by the
Antigonid dynasty after only a few years, in 294 BC.
Ancient Macedonian, whether it was a
Greek dialect probably of the
Northwestern Doric group in particular,
as findings such as
Pella curse tablet
The Pella curse tablet is a text written in a distinct Doric Greek idiom, found in Pella, the ancient capital of Macedon, in 1986. Ιt contains a curse or magic spell ( grc, κατάδεσμος, '' katadesmos'') inscribed on a lead scroll, dated t ...
indicate,
or a separate
Hellenic language
Greek ( el, label=Modern Greek, Ελληνικά, Elliniká, ; grc, Ἑλληνική, Hellēnikḗ) is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece, Cyprus, southern Italy ( Calabria and Salento), southern A ...
, was gradually replaced by
Attic Greek; the latter came in use from the times of
Philip II of Macedon
Philip II of Macedon ( grc-gre, Φίλιππος ; 382 – 21 October 336 BC) was the king ('' basileus'') of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia from 359 BC until his death in 336 BC. He was a member of the Argead dynasty, founders of the ...
and later evolved into
Koine Greek
Koine Greek (; Koine el, ἡ κοινὴ διάλεκτος, hē koinè diálektos, the common dialect; ), also known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek or New Testament Greek, was the common supra-reg ...
.
![Theodoros Gaza André Thevet](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/Theodoros_Gaza_Andr%C3%A9_Thevet.jpg)
After the
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
conquest of the Balkans, the Macedonians were an integral component of the people of the
Roman province of Macedonia
Macedonia ( grc-gre, Μακεδονία) was a province of the Roman Empire, encompassing the territory of the former Antigonid Kingdom of Macedonia, which had been conquered by Rome in 168 BC at the conclusion of the Third Macedonian War. The pr ...
. Under Roman control and later in the
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
the region saw also the influx of many ethnicities (
Armenians
Armenians ( hy, հայեր, '' hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diasp ...
,
Slavs,
Aromanians
The Aromanians ( rup, Armãnji, Rrãmãnji) are an ethnic group native to the southern Balkans who speak Aromanian, an Eastern Romance language. They traditionally live in central and southern Albania, south-western Bulgaria, northern and ...
etc.) that settled in the area where the ancient Macedonians lived. The region had also since ancient times a significant
Romaniote Jew
The Romaniote Jews or the Romaniotes ( el, Ῥωμανιῶτες, ''Rhomaniótes''; he, רומניוטים, Romanyotim) are a Greek-speaking ethnic Jewish community native to the Eastern Mediterranean. They are one of the oldest Jewish comm ...
population. In the late Byzantine period much of central Macedonia was ruled by a
Latin Crusader state based in
Thessalonica
Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
, before being
ruled for a while by the rival emperor
Theodore Komnenos Doukas
Theodore Komnenos Doukas ( el, Θεόδωρος Κομνηνὸς Δούκας, ''Theodōros Komnēnos Doukas'', Latinized as Theodore Comnenus Ducas, died 1253) was ruler of Epirus and Thessaly from 1215 to 1230 and of Thessalonica and most ...
and his descendants and subsequently re-incorporated into the
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
centred in
Constantinople
la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه
, alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...
. The territory of western Macedonia was subsequently contested between the main powers in the region, the Byzantine Empire, the
Despotate of Epirus, the rulers of
Thessaly
Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, The ...
, the
Serbian Empire
The Serbian Empire ( sr, / , ) was a medieval Serbian state that emerged from the Kingdom of Serbia. It was established in 1346 by Dušan the Mighty, who significantly expanded the state.
Under Dušan's rule, Serbia was the major power in the ...
, and the
Bulgarian Empire.
After the
Ottoman conquest and towards the end of the Ottoman era, the term ''Macedonia'' came to signify a region in the north of the Greek peninsula different from the
previous Byzantine theme. In Ottoman Macedonia,
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 ...
,
Aromanians
The Aromanians ( rup, Armãnji, Rrãmãnji) are an ethnic group native to the southern Balkans who speak Aromanian, an Eastern Romance language. They traditionally live in central and southern Albania, south-western Bulgaria, northern and ...
,
Slavs,
Jews
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
,
Albanians and
Turks
Turk or Turks may refer to:
Communities and ethnic groups
* Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages
* Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
* Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic ...
lived side-by-side but in self-contained communities, while in western
Macedonia (Greece)
Macedonia (; el, Μακεδονία, Makedonía ) is a geographic and former administrative region of Greece, in the southern Balkans. Macedonia is the largest and Greek geographic region, with a population of 2.36 million in 2020. It i ...
there were sizable populations of
Greek Muslims
Greek Muslims, also known as Grecophone Muslims, are Muslims of Greek ethnic origin whose adoption of Islam (and often the Turkish language and identity) dates to the period of Ottoman rule in the southern Balkans. They consist primarily of th ...
such as the
Vallahades The Vallahades ( el, Βαλαχάδες) or Valaades ( el, Βαλαάδες) were a Muslim Macedonian Greek population who lived along the river Haliacmon in southwest Greek Macedonia, in and around Anaselitsa (modern Neapoli) and Grevena. They n ...
.
The matter of the multicultural composition of the people of Macedonia came to be known as the
Macedonian Question
The region of Macedonia is known to have been inhabited since Paleolithic times.
Еarliest historical inhabitants
The earliest historical inhabitants of the region were the Pelasgians, the Bryges and the Thracians. The Pelasgians occupied E ...
.
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 metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
remained the largest city where the most Macedonians resided.
[
]
Contribution to the Greek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence refers to the efforts of the 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 ...
to establish an independent Greek state, at the time that Greece was part of the Ottoman Empire. The revolution was initially planned and organized through secret organizations, most notable of which the Filiki Eteria
Filiki Eteria or Society of Friends ( el, Φιλικὴ Ἑταιρεία ''or'' ) was a secret organization founded in 1814 in Odessa, whose purpose was to overthrow the Ottoman rule of Greece and establish an independent Greek state. (''ret ...
, that operated in Greece and other European regions outside the Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
. Macedonian Greeks were actively involved in those early revolutionary movements; among the first was Grigorios Zalykis, a writer, who founded the Hellenoglosso Xenodocheio, a precursor of the Filiki Eteria. Even after the end of the Greek national revolution, there were several revolts in Macedonia with all of them having as their stated aim the union of the region with the Kingdom of Greece
The Kingdom of Greece ( grc, label= Greek, Βασίλειον τῆς Ἑλλάδος ) was established in 1832 and was the successor state to the First Hellenic Republic. It was internationally recognised by the Treaty of Constantinople, wh ...
.
The Greek revolution in Macedonia started in Chalkidiki
Chalkidiki (; el, Χαλκιδική , also spelled Halkidiki, is a peninsula and regional unit of Greece, part of the region of Central Macedonia, in the geographic region of Macedonia in Northern Greece. The autonomous Mount Athos region co ...
, where the population was almost entirely Greek. On 28 May 1821, Yussuf Bey of Thessaloniki, alarmed by the danger of a general insurrection, demanded hostages from the region. At the time that his troops arrived at Polygyros
Polygyros ( Greek: Πολύγυρος) is a town and municipality in Central Macedonia, Greece. It is the capital of Chalkidiki.
Geography
Polygyros town (pop. 6,121 at the 2011 census) is built in the shape of an amphitheatre on a plateau on ...
, the local insurgents and monks from Mount Athos rose up and killed the Turkish voivod and his guards, compelling the Ottomans to retire to Thessaloniki. Yussuf Bey took the revenge by beheading a bishop, impaling three dignitaries while in durance and imprisoning a lot of Christians in Thessaloniki. The Ottomans also turned Muslims and Jews against the Greeks, stating that the latters intended to exterminate non-Christian populations. That was the first accomplishment of the Greek side under Emmanouel Pappas, who had assumed at the time the title of "General of Macedonia"; he managed to capture Chalkidiki and threaten Thessaloniki but, in June, the Greek forces retreated from Vasilika and were finally superseded. Letters from the period show Pappas either being addressed or signing himself as "Leader and Defender of Macedonia" and is today considered a Greek hero along with the unnamed Macedonians that fought with him. The revolution in Chalkidiki ended on 27 December, with the submission of Mount Athos to the Ottomans.
While conflicts endured for some time in Macedonia, such as the one in Naousa with notable figures being Anastasios Karatasos, Aggelis Gatsos
Angelis Gatsos ( el, Αγγελής Γάτσος; bg, Ангел Гацов) (1771–1839) was a Slavophone Greek military commander during the Greek War of Independence. He was born in the village of Sarakinovo, today known as Sarakinoi (Almo ...
and Zafeirakis Theodosiou, it was the defeat of Pappas that was the turning point in the oppression of the Macedonian revolt in the Greek War of Independence at the time. While the revolution led to the establishment of the independent modern Greek state in the south, which earned international recognition in 1832, Greek resistance movements continued to operate in the territories that remained under Ottoman control, including Macedonia as well as Thessaly
Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, The ...
, Epirus
sq, Epiri rup, Epiru
, native_name_lang =
, settlement_type = Historical region
, image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg
, map_alt =
, map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinri ...
and Crete
Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...
. Events of the Russo-Turkish Crimean War
The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia.
Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...
in 1854 ignited a new Macedonian revolt that was spawned in Chalkidiki. One of the prime instigators of the revolt was Dimitrios Karatasos
Dimitrios Karatasos ( el, Δημήτριος Καρατάσος, 1798–1861), known as Yero-Tsamis ( el, Γέρo-Τσάμης) or Yero-Karatasos ( el, Γέρo-Καρατάσος), was a Greek chieftain who participated in the Greek War of Indepen ...
, son of Anastasios Karatasos, better known as Tsamis Karatasos or Yero Tsamis. The insurrections of the Macedonian Greeks had the support of King Otto of Greece
Otto (, ; 1 June 181526 July 1867) was a Bavarian prince who ruled as King of Greece from the establishment of the monarchy on 27 May 1832, under the Convention of London, until he was deposed on 23 October 1862.
The second son of King Ludw ...
, who thought that liberation of Macedonia and other parts of Greece was possible, hoping on Russian support. The revolt however failed in its part having deteriorated the Greco-Turkish relations for the years to come.
The 1878 revolt was prepared from both the Greek government and the leading Macedonian revolutionaries and took place in southern Macedonia, with large numbers of people from Greek and Vlach
"Vlach" ( or ), also "Wallachian" (and many other variants), is a historical term and exonym used from the Middle Ages until the Modern Era to designate mainly Romanians but also Aromanians, Megleno-Romanians, Istro-Romanians and other Easter ...
communities taking part.[ In the same year the Principality of Bulgaria was established, which along with the Bulgarian Exarchate started to wield on the Slavic-speaking populations of Macedonia, with the foundation of Bulgarian schools and the affiliation of local churches to the Exarchate; Greek, Serbian and Romanian schools were also founded in several parts. After Greece's defeat in the 1897 Greco-Turkish War, further Bulgarian involvement was encouraged in Macedonian affairs and their bands invaded the region, terrorizing populations of Greek consciousness.
]
Early 20th century
On the eve of the 20th century, Greek Macedonians were a minority population in a number of areas inside the multiethnic region of Macedonia, more so away from the coast. They lived alongside Slavic-speaking populations, most of whom had come to be identified as Bulgarians
Bulgarians ( bg, българи, Bǎlgari, ) are a nation and South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and the rest of Southeast Europe.
Etymology
Bulgarians derive their ethnonym from the Bulgars. Their name is not completely unders ...
, and other ethnicities such as Jews
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
, Turks
Turk or Turks may refer to:
Communities and ethnic groups
* Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages
* Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
* Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic ...
and Albanians. However, the Greek speakers were the predominant population in the southern zone of the region which comprised two-thirds of modern Greek Macedonia
Macedonia (; el, Μακεδονία, Makedonía ) is a geographic and former administrative region of Greece, in the southern Balkans. Macedonia is the largest and Greek geographic region, with a population of 2.36 million in 2020. It is ...
. Bulgarian actions to exploit the Bulgarian population of Macedonia with the foundation of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization
The Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO; bg, Вътрешна Македонска Революционна Организация (ВМРО), translit=Vatrešna Makedonska Revoljucionna Organizacija (VMRO); mk, Внатр ...
and the influence of the Bulgarian Exarchate on the region, led to the Ilinden Uprising Ilinden ( Bulgarian/Macedonian Cyrillic: Илинден) or Ilindan (Serbian Cyrillic: Илиндан), meaning "Saint Elijah
Elijah ( ; he, אֵלִיָּהוּ, ʾĒlīyyāhū, meaning "My God is Yahweh/YHWH"; Greek form: Elias, ''Elías'' ...
which was shut down by Ottoman forces; these events provoked Greece to help the Macedonians to resist both Ottoman and Bulgarian forces, by sending military officers who formed bands made up of Macedonians and other Greek volunteers, something that resulted in 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 ...
from 1904 to 1908, which ended with the Young Turk Revolution
The Young Turk Revolution (July 1908) was a constitutionalist revolution in the Ottoman Empire. The Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), an organization of the Young Turks movement, forced Sultan Abdul Hamid II to restore the Ottoman Consti ...
. According to the 1904 census, conducted by Hüseyin Hilmi Pasha for the Ottoman authorities, the Greeks were the predominant population in the vilayets 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 metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
and Monastir, outnumbered in the vilayet of Kosovo by the Bulgarians who formed the majority.
During the Balkan Wars, 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 metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
became the prize city for the struggling parties, Greece, Bulgaria and Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...
. Greece claimed the southern region which corresponded to that of ancient Macedonia, attributed as part of Greek history, and had a strong Greek presence.[ Following the Balkan Wars, Greece
obtained most of the vilayets of Thessaloniki and Monastir, what is now Greek Macedonia, from the dissolving Ottoman Empire. After ]World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and the agreement between Greece and Bulgaria on a mutual population exchange in 1919, the Greek element was reinforced in the region of Greek Macedonia, which acquired a high degree of ethnic homogeneity. During the 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey
The 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey ( el, Ἡ Ἀνταλλαγή, I Antallagí, ota, مبادله, Mübâdele, tr, Mübadele) stemmed from the "Convention Concerning the Exchange of Greek and Turkish Populations" signed at ...
, there was a mass departure of Muslims and some pro-Bulgarian element from Macedonia, with the simultaneous arrival of Greek refugees
Greek refugees is a collective term used to refer to the more than one million Greek Orthodox natives of Asia Minor, Thrace and the Black Sea areas who fled during the Greek genocide (1914-1923) and Greece's later defeat in the Greco-Turkish War ...
from Asia Minor
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
and east Thrace, mainly Pontic Greeks
The Pontic Greeks ( pnt, Ρωμαίοι, Ρωμίοι, tr, Pontus Rumları or , el, Πόντιοι, or , , ka, პონტოელი ბერძნები, ), also Pontian Greeks or simply Pontians, are an ethnically Greek group i ...
. According to the statistics of the League of Nations
The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...
in 1926, the Greeks comprised 88.8% of the total population, the Slavic-speakers 5.1%, while the remainder was mostly made up of Muslims and Jews.[
The Macedonians (Greeks) fought alongside the regular Greek army during the struggle for Macedonia, with many victims from the local population, to resist to the Bulgarian expansionism and ]pan-Slavic
Pan-Slavism, a movement which crystallized in the mid-19th century, is the political ideology concerned with the advancement of integrity and unity for the Slavic people. Its main impact occurred in the Balkans, where non-Slavic empires had rule ...
danger. There are monuments in Macedonia commemorating the ''Makedonomachi'', the local Macedonian and other Greek fighters, who took part in the wars and died
to liberate Macedonia from the Ottoman rule, officially memorialized as heroes. Several of the Macedonian revolutionaries that were instrumental in the war later became politicians of the modern Greek state. The most notable of them were writer and diplomat Ion Dragoumis and his father Stephanos Dragoumis
Stefanos Dragoumis ( el, Στέφανος Δραγούμης; 1842September 17, 1923) was a judge, writer and the Prime Minister of Greece from January to October 1910. He was the father of Ion Dragoumis.
Early years
Dragoumis was born in Athen ...
, a judge who became Prime Minister of Greece in 1910. The Dragoumis family, originating from Vogatsiko, in the Kastoria
Kastoria ( el, Καστοριά, ''Kastoriá'' ) is a city in northern Greece in the region of Western Macedonia. It is the capital of Kastoria regional unit, in the geographic region of Macedonia. It is situated on a promontory on the weste ...
region, had a long history of participation in the Greek revolutions with Markos Dragoumis being a member of Filiki Eteria
Filiki Eteria or Society of Friends ( el, Φιλικὴ Ἑταιρεία ''or'' ) was a secret organization founded in 1814 in Odessa, whose purpose was to overthrow the Ottoman rule of Greece and establish an independent Greek state. (''ret ...
. Heroic stories from the Macedonian struggle were transcribed in many of the novels of Greek writer Penelope Delta, from narratives collected in 1932–1935 by her secretary Antigone Bellou-Threpsiadi, who was herself a daughter of a Macedonian fighter. Ion Dragoumis also wrote about his personal recollections of the Macedonian struggle in his books. During the Population exchange between Greece and Turkey
The 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey ( el, Ἡ Ἀνταλλαγή, I Antallagí, ota, مبادله, Mübâdele, tr, Mübadele) stemmed from the "Convention Concerning the Exchange of Greek and Turkish Populations" signed at ...
the Greek refugees settled mainly in Macedonia. The Greek refugees from Turkey constituted 45% of the population of Macedonia (Greece)
Macedonia (; el, Μακεδονία, Makedonía ) is a geographic and former administrative region of Greece, in the southern Balkans. Macedonia is the largest and Greek geographic region, with a population of 2.36 million in 2020. It i ...
in 1928.
World War II
During the Axis occupation of Greece at World War II, Macedonia suffered thousands of victims due to anti-partisan activity of the German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
occupying forces and the ethnic cleansing policies of the Bulgarian authorities. The Bulgarian Army entered Greece on 20 April 1941 at the heels of the Wehrmacht
The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...
and eventually occupied the whole of northeastern Greece east of the Strymon River
The Struma or Strymónas ( bg, Струма ; el, Στρυμόνας ; tr, (Struma) Karasu , 'black water') is a river in Bulgaria and Greece. Its ancient name was Strymṓn (Greek: Στρυμών ). Its drainage area is , of which in Bulgaria, ...
( Eastern Macedonia and Western Thrace
Western Thrace or West Thrace ( el, υτικήΘράκη, '' ytikíThráki'' ; tr, Batı Trakya; bg, Западна/Беломорска Тракия, ''Zapadna/Belomorska Trakiya''), also known as Greek Thrace, is a geographic and histori ...
), except for the Evros Prefecture
Evros ( el, Περιφερειακή ενότητα Έβρου) is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of East Macedonia and Thrace. Its name is derived from the river Evros, which appears to have been a Thracian hydronym ...
, at the border with Turkey, which was occupied by the Germans. Unlike Germany and Italy, Bulgaria officially annexed the occupied territories, which had long been a target of Bulgarian irredentism, on 14 May 1941.
In Greek Macedonia, Bulgarian policy was that of extermination or expulsion, aiming to forcibly Bulgarize as many Greeks as possible and expel or kill the rest. A massive campaign was launched right from the start, which saw all Greek officials (mayors, judges, lawyers and gendarmes) deported. The Bulgarians closed the Greek schools and expelled the teachers, replaced Greek clergymen with priests from Bulgaria, and sharply repressed the use of the Greek language
Greek ( el, label= Modern Greek, Ελληνικά, Elliniká, ; grc, Ἑλληνική, Hellēnikḗ) is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece, Cyprus, southern Italy ( Calabria and Salento), southe ...
: the names of towns and places changed to the forms traditional in Bulgarian,[ and even gravestones bearing Greek inscriptions were defaced.]
Large numbers of Greeks were expelled and others were deprived of the right to work by a license system that banned the practice of a trade or profession without permission. Forced labour was introduced, and the authorities confiscated the Greek business property and gave it to Bulgarian colonists.[ By late 1941, more than 100,000 Greeks had been expelled from the Bulgarian occupation zone. Bulgarian colonists were encouraged to settle in Macedonia by government credits and incentives, including houses and land confiscated from the natives.
In this situation, a revolt broke out on 28 September 1941, known as the Drama revolt. It started from the city of ]Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...
and quickly spread throughout Macedonia. In Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...
, Doxato
Doxato ( el, Δοξάτο, formerly Δοξάτον) is a town and municipality in the Drama regional unit, in East Macedonia and Thrace, Greece. The seat of the municipality is the town Kalampaki.
Municipality
The municipality Doxato was formed ...
, Khoristi and many other towns and villages clashes broke out with the occupying forces. On 29 September Bulgarian troops moved into Drama and the other rebellious cities to suppress the uprising. They seized all men between 18 and 45, and executed over three thousand people in Drama alone. An estimated fifteen thousand Greeks were killed from the Bulgarian occupational army during the next few weeks and in the countryside entire villages were machine gunned and looted.[
The massacres precipitated a mass exodus of Greeks from the Bulgarian into the German occupation zone. Bulgarian reprisals continued after the September revolt, adding to the torrent of refugees. Villages were destroyed for sheltering "partisans" who were in fact only the survivors of villages previously destroyed. The terror and famine became so severe that the Athens government considered plans for evacuating the entire population to German-occupied Greece. The Great Famine that broke up in 1941, that killed hundreds of thousands in the occupied country canceled these plans, leaving the population to endure those conditions for another three years. In May 1943 deportation of Jews from the Bulgarian occupation zone began as well. In the same year the Bulgarian army expanded its zone of control into ]Central Macedonia
Central Macedonia ( el, Κεντρική Μακεδονία, Kentrikí Makedonía, ) is one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece, consisting of the central part of the geographical and historical region of Macedonia. With a populat ...
under German supervision, although this area was not formally annexed nor administered by Bulgaria.
Two of the leading members of the Greek resistance were Macedonians. Evripidis Bakirtzis, a veteran of the Balkan Wars, was commander of Macedonian forces of the Greek People's Liberation Army
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 ...
(ELAS) during the Axis Occupation of Greece in the period 1941–1944. He became the first president of the 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 ...
— also referred to as the "Mountain Government" — an opposition government separate to the royal
Royal may refer to:
People
* Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name
* A member of a royal family
Places United States
* Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community
* Royal, Illinois, a village
* Royal, Iowa, a ...
government-in-exile of Greece. Bakirtzis was succeeded by the second president, jurist 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 ...
(an Aromanian). It was Svolos who attended the Lebanon conference in 1944 when the organization was dissolved in the wake of the formation of the national unity government
A national unity government, government of national unity (GNU), or national union government is a broad coalition government consisting of all parties (or all major parties) in the legislature, usually formed during a time of war or other nat ...
of Georgios Papandreou
Georgios Papandreou ( ''Geórgios Papandréou''; 13 February 1888 – 1 November 1968) was a Greek politician, the founder of the Papandreou political dynasty. He served three terms as prime minister of Greece (1944–1945, 1963, 1964–196 ...
, with Svolos later becoming a minister.
Later, during 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 and ...
, the region of Macedonia suffered a lot due to the battles between the Hellenic Army
The Hellenic Army ( el, Ελληνικός Στρατός, Ellinikós Stratós, sometimes abbreviated as ΕΣ), formed in 1828, is the land force of Greece. The term ''Hellenic'' is the endogenous synonym for ''Greek''. The Hellenic Army is th ...
and the Democratic Army.
Identity
Origins
There had been a documented continuous Greek presence in Macedonia since antiquity, which marked the region, alongside the presence of many other groups that passed from its soil through the centuries, such as the Thracians
The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied t ...
, Illyrians
The Illyrians ( grc, Ἰλλυριοί, ''Illyrioi''; la, Illyrii) were a group of Indo-European-speaking peoples who inhabited the western Balkan Peninsula in ancient times. They constituted one of the three main Paleo-Balkan populations, a ...
, Romans
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
, Slavs, Latins, Jews
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
and Ottoman Turks. Today, due to the long and rich history of the region, some small linguistic communities of Aromanian and Slavic speaking Macedonians still remain. These communities are using their various dialects in some social situations, while they are being identified as ethnic Greeks. After the 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey
The 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey ( el, Ἡ Ἀνταλλαγή, I Antallagí, ota, مبادله, Mübâdele, tr, Mübadele) stemmed from the "Convention Concerning the Exchange of Greek and Turkish Populations" signed at ...
, half of the refugees from Asia Minor
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
, Pontus
Pontus or Pontos may refer to:
* Short Latin name for the Pontus Euxinus, the Greek name for the Black Sea (aka the Euxine sea)
* Pontus (mythology), a sea god in Greek mythology
* Pontus (region), on the southern coast of the Black Sea, in modern ...
, and Eastern Thrace
Eastern may refer to:
Transportation
*China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai
*Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways
*Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991
*Eastern Air Li ...
settled in the region.
Culture
The Greek Macedonians have their own particular cultural heritage, which is classified as a subgroup of the national Greek culture
The culture of Greece has evolved over thousands of years, beginning in Minoan and later in Mycenaean Greece, continuing most notably into Classical Greece, while influencing the Roman Empire and its successor the Byzantine Empire. Other cul ...
. They admire, along with the ancient Macedonians
The Macedonians ( el, Μακεδόνες, ''Makedónes'') were an ancient tribe that lived on the alluvial plain around the rivers Haliacmon and lower Axios in the northeastern part of mainland Greece. Essentially an ancient Greek people ...
(especially Alexander the Great
Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...
), the fighters 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 ...
as their own primary heroes, in contrast to southern Greeks who mainly praise the southern heroes of the Greek War of Independence. According to late-19th century folklorist Frederick G. Abbott:
The use of the Macedonian flag is very common in the Macedonian population and the diaspora, depicting the Vergina Sun
The Vergina Sun ( el, Ήλιος της Βεργίνας, Ilios tis Vergínas, Sun of Vergina), also known as the Star of Vergina, Vergina Star or Argead Star, is a rayed solar symbol first appearing in ancient Greek art of the period between th ...
as their regional symbol, while " Famous Macedonia" is an unofficial anthem and military march. They also have some folk dances that bear the name of the region, Makedonia and Makedonikos antikristos.
The overwhelming majority of the Greek Macedonians speak a variant of 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 ...
, called Macedonian (Μακεδονίτικα, ''Makedonitika''). It belongs to the northern dialect group, with phonological and few syntactical differences distinguishing it from standard Greek which is spoken in southern Greece. One of these differences is that the Macedonian dialect uses the accusative case instead of genitive to refer to an indirect object. The Macedonians also have a characteristically heavier accent, which readily identifies a speaker as coming from Macedonia. There is also a minority of Slavic-speakers that predominantly self-identifies as Greek Macedonians, primarily found in West Macedonia
Western Macedonia ( el, Δυτική Μακεδονία, translit=Ditikí Makedonía, ) is one of the thirteen regions of Greece, consisting of the western part of Macedonia. Located in north-western Greece, it is divided into the regional unit ...
.
Vallahades
During the Ottoman period, some Macedonian Greeks converted to Islam and were called Vallahades The Vallahades ( el, Βαλαχάδες) or Valaades ( el, Βαλαάδες) were a Muslim Macedonian Greek population who lived along the river Haliacmon in southwest Greek Macedonia, in and around Anaselitsa (modern Neapoli) and Grevena. They n ...
. With the 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey, the Vallahades went to Turkey. In Turkish they are known as 'patriots'; sometimes 'Greek' is used.
Expressions
The strong sense of Macedonian identity among the Greek Macedonians had significant effect in the context of the "Macedonia naming dispute
The use of the country name "Macedonia (terminology), Macedonia" was disputed between Greece and the North Macedonia, Republic of Macedonia (now North Macedonia) between 1991 and 2019. The dispute was a source of instability in the Balkans#W ...
". It has led to reactions to the notion of '' Macedonians'' and ''Macedonian language
Macedonian (; , , ) is an Eastern South Slavic language. It is part of the Indo-European language family, and is one of the Slavic languages, which are part of a larger Balto-Slavic branch. Spoken as a first language by around two million ...
'' with a non-Greek qualification, as used by the Socialist Republic of Macedonia, during the times of socialist Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yugo ...
, and the contemporary Republic of 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 Yugoslavia. It ...
. The dispute over the moral right to the use of the name '' Macedonia'' and its derivatives traces its origin to the Macedonian question
The region of Macedonia is known to have been inhabited since Paleolithic times.
Еarliest historical inhabitants
The earliest historical inhabitants of the region were the Pelasgians, the Bryges and the Thracians. The Pelasgians occupied E ...
in the 19th and early-20th century between Greece, Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
and Bulgaria. The Greek Macedonians have been objecting to these notions originally fearing territorial claims as they were noted by United States Secretary of State Edward Stettinius in 1944, under president Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
. The dispute continued to be a reason of controversy between the three nations during the 1980s.
The dispute achieved international status after the breakup of Yugoslavia, when the concerns of the Macedonian Greeks rose to extreme manifestations. On 14 February 1992, about one million Greek Macedonians turned out in the streets 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 metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
to demonstrate their objection to the name ''Macedonia'' being a part of the name of the then newly established Republic of Macedonia using the slogan "Macedonia is Greece". Following the recognition of the Republic of Macedonia by the United States, another rally was held in Thessaloniki on 31 March 1994, while two major rallies, organized by the Macedonian Greek community in Australia, were held in Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
in 1992 and 1994, with around 100,000 people taking part in each of these.
Explicit self-identification as Macedonian is a typical attitude and a matter of national pride for the Greeks originating from Macedonia. Responding to issues about the Macedonia naming dispute as Prime Minister of Greece, Kostas Karamanlis
Konstantinos A. Karamanlis ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Αλεξάνδρου Καραμανλής; born 14 September 1956), commonly known as Kostas Karamanlis ( el, Κώστας Καραμανλής, ), is a Greek politician who served as the ...
– in a characteristic expression of this attitude – quoted saying in emphasis ''"I myself am a Macedonian, just as another 2.5 million Greeks are Macedonians"'' at a meeting of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg in January 2007. Both Kostas Karamanlis and his uncle Konstantinos Karamanlis
Konstantinos G. Karamanlis ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Γ. Καραμανλής, ; 8 March 1907 – 23 April 1998), commonly anglicised to Constantine Karamanlis or just Caramanlis, was a four-time prime minister and twice as the president of ...
, are Macedonian ethnic Greeks with origin from Serres
Sérres ( el, Σέρρες ) is a city in Macedonia, Greece, capital of the Serres regional unit and second largest city in the region of Central Macedonia, after Thessaloniki.
Serres is one of the administrative and economic centers of Northe ...
. As President of Greece
The president of Greece, officially the President of the Hellenic Republic ( el, Πρόεδρος της Ελληνικής Δημοκρατίας, Próedros tis Ellinikís Dimokratías), commonly referred to in Greek as the President of the Rep ...
, Konstantinos Karamanlis senior had also expressed his strong sentiments regarding the Macedonian regional identity, most notably in one emotionally charged statement made in 1992.
Diaspora
Australia had been a popular destination for the waves of Macedonian Greek immigrants throughout the 20th century. Their immigration was similar to that of the rest of the Greek diaspora
The Greek diaspora, also known as Omogenia ( el, Ομογένεια, Omogéneia), are the communities of Greeks living outside of Greece and Cyprus (excluding Northern Cyprus). Such places historically include Albania, North Macedonia, parts of ...
, affected by their socio-economic and political background in their homeland, and has been recorded mainly between 1924 and 1974. Settlers from West Macedonia
Western Macedonia ( el, Δυτική Μακεδονία, translit=Ditikí Makedonía, ) is one of the thirteen regions of Greece, consisting of the western part of Macedonia. Located in north-western Greece, it is divided into the regional unit ...
were the first to arrive in Australia and dominated the immigration waves until 1954. Macedonian families from the regions of 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 ...
and Kastoria
Kastoria ( el, Καστοριά, ''Kastoriá'' ) is a city in northern Greece in the region of Western Macedonia. It is the capital of Kastoria regional unit, in the geographic region of Macedonia. It is situated on a promontory on the weste ...
established settlements in rural areas, while people from Kozani
Kozani ( el, Κοζάνη, ) is a city in northern Greece, capital of Kozani regional unit and of Western Macedonia. It is located in the western part of Macedonia, in the northern part of the Aliakmonas river valley. The city lies above sea ...
settled mainly in Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
. Only after 1954, people from Central and Eastern Macedonia began to arrive in Australia. Vasilios Kyriazis Blades from Vythos, a village in the prefecture of Kozani, is believed to be the first Macedonian settler to arrive in Australia and was landed in Melbourne in 1915; his arrival exhorted other people from his village and adjacent Pentalofos to settle in Melbourne, while several families from other districts also settled in Australia, bringing with them hundreds of people in the following decades.
The geographic distribution of Macedonians before World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
differed from the distribution of other Greek settlers. While the Greeks from the islands settled mainly in the eastern states of the country attracting more Greek immigrants there, large portions of Macedonians were concentrated in western Australia. During the first years of their settlement, the Macedonians were dispersed in the Australian countryside close to the metropolitan centers, working as market gardeners, farmhands and woodcutters; there was a significant change of their occupational patterns after 1946, when they began to bring with them their families from Greece.[ The urbanization process for the Macedonians started after the Great Depression, when the availability of work in urban areas increased, something that led to extended move of Macedonians towards the large cities, especially Melbourne, ]Perth
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...
and Sydney, where they set up their own communities and regional institutions. While the majority of the settlers were indigenous Macedonians, there were also small numbers of Pontic Greeks
The Pontic Greeks ( pnt, Ρωμαίοι, Ρωμίοι, tr, Pontus Rumları or , el, Πόντιοι, or , , ka, პონტოელი ბერძნები, ), also Pontian Greeks or simply Pontians, are an ethnically Greek group i ...
coming from the region of Macedonia, who did not share the same regional identity and founded distinct institutions.
After World War II greater numbers from all parts of Macedonia entered Australia, many of them as refugees 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 and ...
. These new waves of immigrants resulted in crowded communes and over sixty Macedonian organizations were established in the country, the most prominent of which is the Pan-Macedonian Federation of Australia, the peak umbrella organization. Apart from its regional character, the federation also serves as the voice of the Greek Macedonian communities in Australia and has taken active role in the Macedonia naming dispute
The use of the country name "Macedonia (terminology), Macedonia" was disputed between Greece and the North Macedonia, Republic of Macedonia (now North Macedonia) between 1991 and 2019. The dispute was a source of instability in the Balkans#W ...
.[ Its headquarters is in Melbourne, where the non-profit organization of Pan-Macedonian Association of Melbourne and Victoria was established in 1961, while the federation is also active in ]New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
, Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
, South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
and Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
. According to an estimate in 1988, there were around 55,000 Macedonians in Australia. More recent accounts cite 145,000 Macedonians.
Other large Greek Macedonian communities can also be found particularly in the United States, Canada and Great Britain
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...
. The main institutions which were established by some of these communities or are closely affiliated with them are:
Pan-Macedonian Association USA, founded in 1947 in New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
by Greek American
Greek Americans ( el, Ελληνοαμερικανοί ''Ellinoamerikanoí'' ''Ellinoamerikánoi'' ) are Americans of full or partial Greek ancestry. The lowest estimate is that 1.2 million Americans are of Greek descent while the highest e ...
s whose origin were from Macedonia to unite all the Macedonian communities of the United States, works to collect and distribute information on the land and people of Macedonia, organize lectures, scientific discussions, art exhibitions, educational and philanthropic activities, while they have funded work in the Library of New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, th ...
with books about the Macedonian history and culture. Additionally, they promote the social welfare and educational advancement of the inhabitants of Macedonia.
The Pan-Macedonian Association of Canada is the association's branch for the Greek Canadians
Greek Canadians ( el, Ελληνοκαναδοί) are Canadian citizens who have full or partial Greek heritage or people who emigrated from Greece and reside in Canada. According to the 2021 Census, there were 262,140 Canadians who claimed Gr ...
of Macedonian origin.
The Macedonian Society of Great Britain, founded in 1989 in London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
by Macedonian immigrants, promotes the Macedonian history, culture and heritage, organizes lectures and presentations, as well as social events and gatherings for the British Greeks.
Panhellenic Macedonian Front
The Panhellenic Macedonian Front ( el, Πανελλήνιο Μακεδονικό Μέτωπο, ΠΑ.Μ.ΜΕ.) is a political party in Greece. It was founded in May 2009 by the politician Stelios Papathemelis and professor Kostas Zouraris to run i ...
, a Greek political party
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...
founded in 2009 by politician Stelios Papathemelis and professor Kostas Zouraris
Konstantinos (Kostas) Zouraris ( el, Κωνσταντίνος (Κώστας) Ζουράρις; born 1940 in Thessaloniki) is a Greek, from Greece's Macedonia region, political scientist and writer.Hellenic Ministry of Culture National Book Centerbi ...
to run for the 2009 European Parliament elections
The 2009 European Parliament election was held in the 27 member states of the European Union (EU) between 4 and 7 June 2009. A total of 736 Member of the European Parliament, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were elected to represent so ...
, which is affiliated with several Macedonian diaspora organizations.
Notable Greek Macedonians
*Athanasios Christopoulos
Athanasios Christopoulos ( el, Αθανάσιος Χριστόπουλος; 2 May 177219 January 1847) was a celebrated Greek poet, playwright, a distinguished scholar and jurist. He has been proclaimed a champion of the modern Greek demotic and th ...
, writer, poet.
* Grigorios Zalykis, writer, founder of the Hellenoglosso Xenodocheio.
* Emmanouel Pappas, leader of the Greek War of Independence in Macedonia. Other prominent personalities of the war included Georgios Lassanis
Georgios Lassanis ( el, Γεώργιος Λασσάνης) (1793–1870) was a scholar and politician from Kozani, Greece.
He studied literature and philosophy in Leipzig, then, in 1818, moved to Odessa, where he taught at the Greek community's ...
, Nikolaos Kasomoulis, Christoforos Perraivos Christoforos Perraivos ( el, Χριστόφορος Περραιβός) was a Greek officer of the Greek War of Independence, member of the Filiki Eteria and author. In non-Greek sources his name is usually found as ''Per(r)evo(s).''
Biography
Pe ...
, Ioannis Skandalidis, Anastasios Polyzoidis, Anastasios Karatasos, Aggelis Gatsos
Angelis Gatsos ( el, Αγγελής Γάτσος; bg, Ангел Гацов) (1771–1839) was a Slavophone Greek military commander during the Greek War of Independence. He was born in the village of Sarakinovo, today known as Sarakinoi (Almo ...
and Zafeirakis Theodosiou.
*Stephanos Dragoumis
Stefanos Dragoumis ( el, Στέφανος Δραγούμης; 1842September 17, 1923) was a judge, writer and the Prime Minister of Greece from January to October 1910. He was the father of Ion Dragoumis.
Early years
Dragoumis was born in Athen ...
, formed the Macedonian Committee
The Macedonian Committee ( gr, Μακεδονικό Κομιτάτο, ''Makedoniko Komitato''), formally the Hellenic Macedonian Committee (Ελληνομακεδονικό Κομιτάτο, ''Ellinomakedoniko Komitato''), was a Greek revolutionary ...
in 1904 in Athens, originated from Vogatsiko
Vogatsiko ( el, Βογατσικό, ''Vogatsikó'') is a village and a community in northern Greece in the region of Western Macedonia, located at the southeast corner of Kastoria regional unit. Between 1997 and 2010, it was the seat of the muni ...
in western Macedonia and his son Ion Dragoumis, politicians with contribution in 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 ...
.
* Georgios Modis jurist, politician, writer and participant in 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 ...
.
* Gonos Yotas, a Slavophone Greek Macedonian fighter in 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 ...
from Plugar, a village near Giannitsa
Giannitsa ( el, Γιαννιτσά , in English also Yannitsa, Yenitsa) is the largest city in the regional unit of Pella and the capital of the Pella municipality, in the region of Central Macedonia in northern Greece.
The municipal unit Gian ...
.
*Kottas
Kottas Christou ( el, Κώττας Χρήστου) or Kote Hristov ( Bulgarian/ Macedonian: Коте Христов), known simply as Kottas or Kote,, and often referred to as Konstantinos Christou ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Χρήστου), ...
, a Slavophone Greek Makedonomachos.
* Ioannis Papafis, Konstantinos Bellios, benefactors.
*Stamatios Kleanthis
Stamatios or Stamatis Kleanthis ( el, Σταμάτιος or ; 1802–1862) was a Greek architect.
Biography
Stamatios Kleanthis was born to a Macedonian Greek family in the town of Velventos in Kozani, Macedonia in 1802. As a youth he move ...
, Xenophon Paionidis, Lysandros Kaftanzoglou
Lysandros Kaftanzoglou (Greek: Λύσανδρος Καυτανζόγλου, 1811 – 1885) was a Greek architect of the 19th century and Chancellor of the National Technical University of Athens.
He was born in Thessaloniki. During the massacre ...
, Aristotelis Zachos, architects.
* Emilios Riadis, composer.
* Evripidis Bakirtzis, Hellenic Army officer and leading member of the National Resistance, nicknamed "the Red Colonel" from his pen name in the communist '' Rizospastis''.
*George Zorbas
Georgios Zorbas ( el, Γεώργιoς Ζορμπάς; 1865 September 16, 1941) was a Greek miner upon whom Nikos Kazantzakis based Alexis Zorbas, the protagonist of his 1946 novel '' Zorba the Greek''.
Biography
Georgios Zorbas was born in 1865 ...
, the character upon which Nikos Kazantzakis
Nikos Kazantzakis ( el, ; 2 March (Old Style and New Style dates, OS 18 February) 188326 October 1957) was a Greeks, Greek writer. Widely considered a giant of modern Greek literature, he was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in ni ...
based the fictional protagonist of his novel '' Zorba the Greek''.
*Panagiotis Fasoulas
Panagiotis "Panos" Fasoulas (alternate spelling: Fassoulas; Greek: Παναγιώτης Φασούλας; born May 12, 1963 in Thessaloniki) is a Greek politician and former professional basketball player. He was selected in the second round by ...
and Dimitris Diamantidis
Dimitris Diamantidis ( el, Δημήτρης Διαμαντίδης ; born May 6, 1980) is a retired Greek professional basketball player, who spent the last twelve seasons of his EuroLeague career with Panathinaikos, where he last served as the ...
, prominent basketball players and European champions with 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 ...
in 1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...
and 2005 respectively. Fasoulas was also mayor of Piraeus
Piraeus ( ; el, Πειραιάς ; grc, Πειραιεύς ) is a port city within the Athens urban area ("Greater Athens"), in the Attica region of Greece. It is located southwest of Athens' city centre, along the east coast of the Saron ...
, while Diamantidis was announced European Player of the Year in 2007. Other basketball players include Giannis Ioannidis
Giannis Ioannidis (alternate spellings: Ioannis, Yiannis, Yannis) ( Greek: Γιάννης Ιωαννίδης; born 26 February 1945 in Thessaloniki, Greece) is a former Greek basketball player, professional basketball coach, and Greece New Democ ...
, Nikos Hatzivrettas
Nikolaos (Nikos) Chatzivrettas (alternate spelling: Hatzivrettas) (Greek: Νικόλαος (Νίκος) Χατζηβρέττας; born May 26, 1977) is a retired Greek professional basketball player. Chatzivrettas is 1.97 m (6 ft 5 in) tall ...
, Kostas Tsartsaris
Konstantinos "Kostas" Tsartsaris ( el, Κωνσταντίνος "Κώστας" Τσαρτσαρής; born October 17, 1979 in Veria, Greece), is a retired Greek professional basketball player and coach, who spent most of his playing career with t ...
, Nikolaos Zisis and Fedon Matheou, widely considered to be the ''Patriarch'' of Greek basketball.
*Theodoros Zagorakis
Theodoros Zagorakis ( el, Θεόδωρος Ζαγοράκης ; born 27 October 1971) is a Greek politician and former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He was the captain of Greece that won UEFA Euro 2004, and was also presid ...
, captain of the Greece national football team
The Greece national football team ( el, Εθνική Ελλάδας, ) represents Greece in men's international football matches and is controlled by the Hellenic Football Federation, the governing body for football in Greece. Greece play most ...
that won the UEFA Euro 2004
The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2004, was the 12th edition of the UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football competition contested by the men's national teams of UEFA member associations. The ...
, and other players of the 2004 Euro team such as Vassilios Tsiartas, Traianos Dellas, Vassilis Lakis
Vasilios Lakis ( el, Βασίλειος Λάκης; born 10 September 1976) is a Greek former professional footballer. He was nicknamed "Turbo" for his speed when attacking along the right wing and ability to provide accurate crosses for the str ...
, Pantelis Kafes
Pantelis Kafes ( el, Παντελής Καφές; born 24 June 1978) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He was known for being one of very few outfield players to have worn the number 1 jersey and has won accla ...
, Nikos Dabizas, Zisis Vryzas
Zisis Vryzas ( el, Ζήσης Βρύζας; born 9 November 1973) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a forward for various teams in Greece and abroad, as well as for the Greece national football team, when they won the Euro ...
, Georgios Samaras (from his father's side) and Angelos Charisteas
Angelos Charisteas ( el, Άγγελος Χαριστέας, ; born 9 February 1980) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a forward. He works as sporting director for Aris Thessaloniki.
At club level he played for Aris Thessa ...
. Other notable figures of the Greek football include Kleanthis Vikelidis
Kleanthis Vikelides ( el, Κλεάνθης Βικελίδης; 23 October 1916 – 4 November 1988) was a Greek footballer who played for Aris Thessaloniki and the Greece national football team. He was also a manager, taking charge of Aris Thess ...
, Giorgos Koudas
Giorgos Koudas ( el, Γιώργος Κούδας; born 23 November 1946) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He spent his entire career in PAOK. Due to his fierce competitiveness and his Macedonian h ...
and Alketas Panagoulias.
*Several Olympic medalists: Georgios Roubanis (Melbourne 1956
The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, whi ...
, bronze medal), Voula Patoulidou
Paraskevi ("Voula") Patoulidou ( el, Παρασκευή "Βούλα" Πατουλίδου, born 29 March 1965) is a Greek former athlete and politician. Born in Tripotamo (part of Florina prefecture), Patoulidou throughout her athletics career ...
( Barcelona 1992, gold), Ioannis Melissanidis
Ioannis Melissanidis ( el, Ιωάννης Μελισσανίδης; born 27 March 1977) is a retired Greek artistic gymnast and the 1996 Olympic champion on the floor exercise. He was also the first Greek gymnast ever to medal at the World Champ ...
( Atlanta 1996, gold), Dimosthenis Tampakos
Dimosthenis Tampakos ( el, Δημοσθένης Ταμπάκος, born 12 November 1976 in Thessaloniki) is a Greek gymnast and Olympic gold medalist.
He won gold in the men's rings at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens with a score of 9.862. He ...
( Athens 2004, gold), Alexandros Nikolaidis (Athens 2004, silver medal), Elisavet Mystakidou
Elisavet "Elli" Mystakidou ( el, Ελλη Μυστακίδου; born 14 August 1977 in Giannitsa) is a Greek taekwondo practitioner and Olympic medalist. She participated in the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens where she earned a silver medal in t ...
(Athens 2004, silver), Anna Korakaki
Anna Korakaki ( el, Άννα Κορακάκη, born 8 April 1996) is a Greek Olympic shooter.
Career
She represented Greece at the 2016 Summer Olympics, winning a gold medal in the 25m pistol shot event and a Bronze medal in the 10m air pistol ...
(Rio 2016, gold)
*Konstantinos Karamanlis
Konstantinos G. Karamanlis ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Γ. Καραμανλής, ; 8 March 1907 – 23 April 1998), commonly anglicised to Constantine Karamanlis or just Caramanlis, was a four-time prime minister and twice as the president of ...
, former President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
* President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
and Prime Minister of Greece, as well as his nephew Kostas Karamanlis
Konstantinos A. Karamanlis ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Αλεξάνδρου Καραμανλής; born 14 September 1956), commonly known as Kostas Karamanlis ( el, Κώστας Καραμανλής, ), is a Greek politician who served as the ...
who also served as Prime Minister.
*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 ...
, former President of Greece
The president of Greece, officially the President of the Hellenic Republic ( el, Πρόεδρος της Ελληνικής Δημοκρατίας, Próedros tis Ellinikís Dimokratías), commonly referred to in Greek as the President of the Rep ...
.
*Herbert von Karajan
Herbert von Karajan (; born Heribert Ritter von Karajan; 5 April 1908 – 16 July 1989) was an Austrian conductor. He was principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic for 34 years. During the Nazi era, he debuted at the Salzburg Festival, wit ...
''(originally Karajanis)'' (1908–1989), an Austrian born orchestra and opera conductor who was descended paternally from Greek-Macedonian ancestors who migrated centuries earlier from Kozani
Kozani ( el, Κοζάνη, ) is a city in northern Greece, capital of Kozani regional unit and of Western Macedonia. It is located in the western part of Macedonia, in the northern part of the Aliakmonas river valley. The city lies above sea ...
to Chemnitz, Germany and then to Saxony
Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...
and subsequently to Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
where they held key academic, medical, and administrative posts.
* Thalia Flora-Karavia, artist and painter
* Achilles Papapetrou, physicist
*Vassilis Vassilikos
Vassilis Vassilikos ( el, Βασίλης Βασιλικός, born 18 November 1934) is a Greek writer and diplomat.
Biography
He was born in Kavala to parents native to the island of Thasos. His father was an MP with the Liberal Party. He grew u ...
, writer. Other writers include Georgios Vafopoulos, Anthoula Vafopoulou
*Giannis Dalianidis
Giannis Dalianidis ( el, Γιάννης Δαλιανίδης; 31 December 1923 – 16 October 2010) was a Greek film director.
His first film was ''Mousitsa'', released in 1959, which was followed by a series of musicals. Between 1974 and 1981, ...
, Takis Kanellopoulos, Titos Vandis
Titos Vandis ( el, Τίτος Βανδής; 7 November 1917 – 23 February 2003) was a Greek actor.
Biography
Vandis began his career on the Greek stage in the late 1930s. In 1962, he won the Best Actor award for the film ''Poliorkia'' at ...
, Costas Hajihristos, Zoe Laskari, Kostas Voutsas: notable figures of the Greek cinema
The cinema of Greece has a long and rich history. Though hampered at times by war or political instability, the Greek film industry dominates the domestic market and has experienced international success. Characteristics of Greek cinema include ...
.
* Patrick Tatopoulos, movie production designer
In film and television, the production designer is the individual responsible for the overall aesthetic of the story. The production design gives the viewers a sense of the time period, the plot location, and character actions and feelings. Wo ...
and is a French-Greek with Macedonian descent on his father's side.
*Figures of the musical scene: Manolis Chiotis
Manolis Chiotis (Greek: Μανώλης Χιώτης; March 21, 1921 – March 20, 1970) was a Greek rebetiko and laiko composer, singer, and bouzouki player.English translation He is considered one of the greatest bouzouki soloists of all ti ...
, Giorgos Hatzinasios, Marinella
Marinella ( el, Μαρινέλλα) (born 20 May 1938, Thessaloniki) is one of the most popular Greek singers whose career has spanned several decades. She has sung professionally since 1957. Since the beginning of her career, she has release ...
, Dionysis Savvopoulos
Dionysis Savvopoulos ( el, Διονύσης Σαββόπουλος) (born 2 December 1944) is a prominent Greek singer-songwriter.
Career
Savvopoulos was born in the city of Thessaloniki, Greece (December 1944) in a middle-class family. He pass ...
, Antonis Remos
Antonis Remos ( el, Αντώνης Ρέμος, ; born Antonios Paschalidis, el, Αντώνιος Πασχαλίδης, links=no; 19 June 1970) is a Greek singer.
Biography Early life
He was born in Düsseldorf, West Germany. Later his family ...
, Despina Vandi
Despina Vandi - ΣΤΑ 'ΔΩΣΑ ΟΛΑΑ ( el, Δέσποινα Βανδή, ), born as Despina Malea () on 22 July 1969, is a Greek singer. Born in Tübingen near Stuttgart, Germany, Vandi's family returned to Kavala, Greece when she was six ye ...
*Of partial Macedonian descent, from their father, were also educator Manolis Triantafyllidis Manolis A. Triantafyllidis ( el, Μανόλης Α. Τριανταφυλλίδης; Athens, 15 November 1883 – Athens, 20 April 1959) was a major representative of the demotic movement in education in Greece.
He was mostly active in Thessalonik ...
, writer Demetrios Vikelas
Demetrios Vikelas (also Demetrius Bikelas; el, Δημήτριος Βικέλας; 15 February 1835 – 20 July 1908) was a Greek businessman and writer; he was the first President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), from 1894 to 18 ...
and composer Spyridon Samaras
Spyridon-Filiskos Samaras (also Spyros, Spiro Samára; el, Σπυρίδων Σαμάρας) () was a Greek composer particularly admired for his operas who was part of the generation of composers that heralded the works of Giacomo Puccini. His co ...
.
File:Ioannis Papafis.JPG, Ioannis Papafis, benefactor from Thessaloniki
File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-S47421, Herbert von Karajan.jpg, Herbert von Karajan
Herbert von Karajan (; born Heribert Ritter von Karajan; 5 April 1908 – 16 July 1989) was an Austrian conductor. He was principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic for 34 years. During the Nazi era, he debuted at the Salzburg Festival, wit ...
(1908–1989), who is considered to have been one of the greatest conductors of all time, was descended paternally from Greek-Macedonian ancestors.
See also
*Ancient Macedonians
The Macedonians ( el, Μακεδόνες, ''Makedónes'') were an ancient tribe that lived on the alluvial plain around the rivers Haliacmon and lower Axios in the northeastern part of mainland Greece. Essentially an ancient Greek people ...
*Byzantine Greeks
The Byzantine Greeks were the Greek-speaking Eastern Romans of Orthodox Christianity throughout Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. They were the main inhabitants of the lands of the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Roman Empire), of Constantinople ...
* Demographic history of Macedonia
* Greeks in North Macedonia
*List of Macedonians (Greek)
The following is a list of Macedonians.
Ancient
''See List of ancient Macedonians.''
Roman
''Also see Macedonia (Roman province)#Citizens''
* Sopater, (Veria 1st century BC), saint, accompanied with Paulos
* Antipater of Thessalonica (late ...
*Macedonia (ancient kingdom)
Macedonia (; grc-gre, Μακεδονία), also called Macedon (), was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and initially ruled by ...
*Macedonia (Greece)
Macedonia (; el, Μακεδονία, Makedonía ) is a geographic and former administrative region of Greece, in the southern Balkans. Macedonia is the largest and Greek geographic region, with a population of 2.36 million in 2020. It i ...
* Macedonia (region)
*Macedonia (terminology)
The name ''Macedonia'' is used in a number of competing or overlapping meanings to describe geographical, political and historical areas, languages and peoples in a part of south-eastern Europe. It has been a major source of political controver ...
* Macedonians (ethnic group)
*Ottoman Greeks
Ottoman Greeks ( el, Ρωμιοί; tr, Osmanlı Rumları) were ethnic Greeks who lived in the Ottoman Empire (1299–1922), much of which is in modern Turkey. Ottoman Greeks were Greek Orthodox Christians who belonged to the Rum Millet (''Millet ...
*Slavic speakers in Ottoman Macedonia
Slavic-speakers inhabiting the Ottoman-ruled region of Macedonia had settled in the area since the Slavic migrations during the Middle Ages and formed a distinct ethnolinguistic group. While Greek was spoken in the urban centers and in a coastal ...
*Slavic speakers of Greek Macedonia
, region3 =
, pop3 = 81,745 (2006 census) – 90,000 (est.) descendants of migrants from the region of Macedonia
, ref3 =
, region4 =
, pop4 = 50,000 – 70,000 (est., incl. descendants)
, ref4 = Simpson, Neil (1994). Macedonia Its Disputed H ...
References
External links
Pan-Macedonian Association of Melbourne and Victoria
{{Ethnic groups in Greece
Ethnic groups in Macedonia (region)