Administrative region of Greece
Administrative region in Macedonia, Greece
Central Macedonia
(
MASS
-?-
DOH
-nee-?
;
Greek
:
Κεντρικ? Μακεδον?α
,
romanized
:
Kentriki Makedonia
,
IPA:
[ce(n)dri?ci
maceðo?ni.a]
) is one of the thirteen
administrative regions
of
Greece
, consisting of the central part of the
geographical and historical region of Macedonia
. With a population of almost 1.8 million, it is the second most populous region in Greece after
Attica
.
Geography
[
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]
The region of Central Macedonia is situated in
northern Greece
, bordering the
regions
of
Western Macedonia
(west),
Thessaly
(south),
Eastern Macedonia and Thrace
(east), and bounded to the north at the international borders of Greece with
Republic of North Macedonia
and
Bulgaria
. The southern part is coastal and is bathed by the
Thermaic
,
Toroneos
,
Singitic
and
Strymonic
gulfs. The largest city and capital of the region is
Thessaloniki
.
Serres
is the second most populous city, followed by
Katerini
,
Veria
and
Giannitsa
. Central Macedonia is basically lowland and, with many rivers, is highly developed, both in the primary and the secondary sectors. The largest plain in
Greece
is situated in Central Macedonia.
Thessaloniki
, the metropolis of
Macedonia
, is Greece's second largest city. The highest mountains of the region of Central Macedonia are
Mount Olympus
(2,918 m.),
Voras Mountains
(2,524 m.),
Pierian Mountains
(2,193 m.),
Vermio Mountains
(2,065 m.) and
Mount Athos
(2,033 m.). The largest rivers are the
Haliacmon
, the
Axios
, the
Loudias
and the
Gallikos (Echedoros)
, which all flow into the
Thermaic Gulf
.
Koroneia
,
Volvi
,
Doiran
and
Kerkini
lakes are situated in Central Macedonia. The coasts are continuous, smooth, sandy and suitable for swimming (except the estuaries and the shores of the urban complex of Thessaloniki).
Administration
[
edit
]
The region was established in the 1987 administrative reform as the
Central Macedonia Region
(
Greek
:
Περιφ?ρεια Κεντρικ?? Μακεδον?α?
,
romanized
:
Periferia Kentrikis Makedonias
). With the 2010
Kallikratis plan
, its powers and authority were redefined and extended. Along with
Eastern Macedonia and Thrace
, it is supervised by the
Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace
, based in
Thessaloniki
. The region is based at its capital city of
Thessaloniki
and is divided into seven
regional units
(pre-Kallikratis
prefectures
),
Chalkidiki
,
Imathia
,
Kilkis
,
Pella
,
Pieria
,
Serres
and
Thessaloniki
. These are further subdivided into 38
municipalities
.
Although geographically part of Central Macedonia,
Mount Athos
is not administratively part of the region, but an autonomous self-governing state under the sovereignty of Greece.
Demographics
[
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]
The region has shrunk by 90,039 people between
2011
and
2021
, experiencing a population loss of 4.8%.
[1]
[4]
History
[
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]
The
modern Greek region
of Central Macedonia roughly corresponds to the
ancient Greek region
of
Lower Macedonia
, which included the center and two capitals,
Aigai (Vergina)
and
Pella
, of
ancient Macedonia
.
Pella
was the birthplace of
Alexander the Great
.
Economy
[
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]
In 2011, the
GDP per capita
of Central Macedonia was
€
14,400, marking a 9th place of the 13 regions of Greece, well below the national average of
€
18,500.
[5]
Tourism
[
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]
Central Macedonia is Greece's
fourth-most-popular
tourist region and the most popular destination that is not an
island
.
[6]
The
Chalkidiki
peninsula is
Macedonia
's most popular beach destination, combining 550 kilometres (340 mi) of sandy beaches with dense forests.
[7]
There were 116
Blue Flag beaches
in Macedonia in 2018, 85 of which were in Chalkidiki.
[8]
Chalkidiki is also home to Mount Athos, which is an important center of religious tourism.
Pieria
combines extensive plains, high mountains and sandy beaches and the region's beauty gives it a great potential for further tourist development. It is estimated that 10,000 people climb
Mount Olympus
each year, most of them reaching only the Skolio summit. Most climbs of Mount Olympus start from the town of
Litochoro
, which took the name City of Gods because of its location at the foot of the mountain. Central Macedonia is home to the ancient city of
Aigai
(modern day
Vergina
), one of
Greece's 18 UNESCO World Heritage sites
, which was the first capital of
ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon
. In 336 BC
Philip II
was assassinated in Aigai's theatre and his son,
Alexander the Great
, was proclaimed king. The most important recent finds were made in 1977 when the burial sites of several kings of Macedon were found, including the tomb of
Philip II of Macedon
. It is also the site of an extensive royal palace.
The archaeological museum of Vergina
was built to house all the artifacts found at the site and is one of the most important museums in Greece.
Pella
, which replaced Aigai as the capital of Macedon in the fourth century BC, is also located in Central Macedonia, as well as
Dion
in
Pieria
and
Amphipolis
. These are important destinations for
cultural tourism
.
Thessaloniki
is home to numerous notable
Byzantine monuments
, including the
Paleochristian and Byzantine monuments of Thessaloniki
, a
UNESCO
World Heritage Site
, as well as several
Roman
, Ottoman and
Sephardic Jewish
structures. Apart from being the cultural center of Macedonia,
Thessaloniki
is also a hub for urban tourism and
gastronomy
.
[9]
Major cities and towns
[
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]
References
[
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]
External links
[
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]
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Administration
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Economy
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Major cities
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Nature
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Monuments
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Culture
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Greek Macedonia Portal
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Geographic
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