Greece - Geography

Here, let us take a look at the Geography of Greece. Strategic location dominating the Aegean Sea and southern approach to Turkish Straits; a peninsular country, possessing an archipelago of about 2,000 islands. Mother's mean age at first birth is 30.7 years (2020 est.) (), whereas, the Maternal mortality ratio is 8 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)

Geographical data of Greece
Location Southern Europe, bordering the Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea, between Albania and Turkey
Geographic coordinates 39 00 N, 22 00 E
Map references Europe
Tarrain mountainous with ranges extending into the sea as peninsulas or chains of islands
Natural Resources lignite, petroleum, iron ore, bauxite, lead, zinc, nickel, magnesite, marble, salt, hydropower potential
Natural Hazards

severe earthquakes

volcanism: Santorini (367 m) has been deemed a Decade Volcano by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to its explosive history and close proximity to human populations; although there have been very few eruptions in recent centuries, Methana and Nisyros in the Aegean are classified as historically active

Irrigated Land 11,853 sq km (2019)
Major rivers (by length in km)
Major aquifers
Land Boundaries 1,110 km
Border Countries Albania 212 km; Bulgaria 472 km; North Macedonia 234 km; Turkey 192 km
Coastline 13,676 km
Climate temperate; mild, wet winters; hot, dry summers
Area
Total Area
Land Area 130,647 sq km
Water Area 1,310 sq km
comparative Area slightly smaller than Alabama
Maritime Claims
Territorial sea 6 nm
Continental shelf 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Elevations
Highest point Mount Olympus 2,917
Lowest point Mediterranean Sea 0 m
Mean elevation 498 m
Land Use
Agricultural land 63.4% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land: arable land arable land: 19.7% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land: permanent crops permanent crops: 8.9% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land: permanent pasture permanent pasture: 34.8% (2018 est.)
Forest 30.5% (2018 est.)
Other 6.1% (2018 est.)
Population Distribution

One-third of the population lives in and around metropolitan Athens; the remainder of the country has moderate population density mixed with sizeable urban clusters

People and Society

In Greece, the different Ethnic groups are such that we have: Greek 91.6%, Albanian 4.4%, other 4% (2011 est.)

Population
Pop growth rate -0.35% (2024 est.)
Birth rate 7.4 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Death rate 12 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Health expenditure 9.5% of GDP (2020)
Physicians Density
Hospital bed Density 4.2 beds/1,000 population (2018)
Total fertility rate 1.41 children born/woman (2024 est.)
Gross reproduction rate 0.68 (2024 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rate NA
Est married women (ages 15-49) 54.1% (2023 est.)
Literacy age 15 and over can read and write
Education expenditures 4.4% of GDP (2020 est.)
Net Migration rate 1.1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Nationality Greek | Greek(s)
Languages
Religions Greek Orthodox 81-90%, Muslim 2%, other 3%, none 4-15%, unspecified 1% (2015 est.)
Age Structure
0-14 years 13.8% (male 742,131/female 699,079)
15-64 years 62.6% (male 3,278,906/female 3,267,140)
65 years and over 23.6% (2024 est.) (male 1,096,825/female 1,377,010)
Dependency Ratios
Total dependency ratio 57.7
Youth dependency ratio 22.2
Elderly dependency ratio 35.5
Potential support ratio 2.8 (2021 est.)
Median Age
Total 46.5 years (2024 est.)
Male 44.6 years
Female 48.3 years
Urbanization
Urban population 80.7% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization 0.11% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major urban areas (Pop) 3.154 million ATHENS (capital), 815,000 Thessaloniki (2023).
Sex Ratio
At birth 1.07 male(s)/female
0-14 years 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over 0.8 male(s)/female
Total population 0.96 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
Infant Motality
Total 3.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)
Male 3.8 deaths/1,000 live births
Female 3 deaths/1,000 live births
Life Expectancy at birth
Total population 81.9 years (2024 est.)
Male 79.4 years
Female 84.6 years
Drinking Water Sources
Improved: urban urban: 100% of population
Improved: rural rural: 100% of population
Improved: total total: 100% of population
Unimproved: urban urban: 0% of population
Unimproved: rural rural: 0% of population
Unimproved: total total: 0% of population (2020 est.)
Sanitation facility acess
Improved: urban urban: 100% of population
Improved: rural rural: 100% of population
Improved: total total: 100% of population
Unimproved: urban urban: 0% of population
Unimproved: rural rural: 0% of population
Unimproved: total total: 0% of population (2020 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
Total 6.33 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Beer 2.13 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Wine 2.66 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Spirits 1.45 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Other alcohols 0.08 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Tobacco use
Total 33.5% (2020 est.)
Male 36.5% (2020 est.)
Female 30.5% (2020 est.)
Demographic profile
All Important Facts about Greece

Want to know more about Greece? Check all different factbooks for Greece below.

Greece is found in Southern Europe