Greece

Greece (Greek: Ελλάδα, About this sound Elláda [eˈlaða]), officially the Hellenic Republic (Greek: Ελληνική Δημοκρατία Ellīnikī́ Dīmokratía [eliniˈci ðimokraˈti.a]), historically also known as Hellas (Ancient Greek: Ἑλλάς Hellás [heˈlas]), is a country in southeastern Europe. Athens is the nation's capital and largest city, followed by Thessaloniki. Greece is strategically located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Situated on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, the Republic of Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to the northeast. Greece consists of nine geographic regions: Macedonia, Central Greece, the Peloponnese, Thessaly, Epirus, the Aegean Islands (including the Dodecanese and Cyclades), Thrace, Crete, and the Ionian Islands.