Macedonians (Greeks) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Macedonians are a regional population group of ethnic Greeks

Greeks

The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....

, inhabiting or originating from the region of Macedonia

Macedonia (Greece)

Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in Southern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...

, in northern Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

. Today, most live in or around the regional capital city of Thessaloniki

Thessaloniki

Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...

. Many have spread across the whole of Greece and in the diaspora

Greek diaspora

The Greek diaspora, also known as Hellenic Diaspora or Diaspora of Hellenism, is a term used to refer to the communities of Greek people living outside the traditional Greek homelands, but more commonly in southeast Europe and Asia Minor...

Preface

Greek

Greeks

populations have inhabited the region of Macedonia

Macedonia (region)

Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time, but nowadays the region is considered to include parts of five Balkan countries: Greece, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia, as...

since ancient times. During the reign of Alexander the Great, the ancient Macedonians

Ancient Macedonians

The Macedonians originated from inhabitants of the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, in the alluvial plain around the rivers Haliacmon and lower Axios...

rose into prominence with the incorporation of the city-states of mainland Greece into the kingdom of Macedonia. His extended conquests into the far east resulted in the culmination of the Greek

Ancient Greece

Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...

culture and the formation of the Hellenistic civilization

Hellenistic civilization

Hellenistic civilization represents the zenith of Greek influence in the ancient world from 323 BCE to about 146 BCE...

over non-Greek lands. The ancient Macedonian language

Ancient Macedonian language

Ancient Macedonian was the language of the ancient Macedonians. It was spoken in the kingdom of Macedon during the 1st millennium BCE and it belongs to the Indo-European group of languages...

, whether it was a Greek dialect or a sibling language to Greek

Greek language

Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...

, was gradually replaced by Attic Greek

Attic Greek

Attic Greek is the prestige dialect of Ancient Greek that was spoken in Attica, which includes Athens. Of the ancient dialects, it is the most similar to later Greek, and is the standard form of the language studied in courses of "Ancient Greek". It is sometimes included in Ionic.- Origin and range...

; the latter came in use from the times of Philip II of Macedon

Philip II of Macedon

Philip II of Macedon "friend" + ἵππος "horse" — transliterated ; 382 – 336 BC), was a king of Macedon from 359 BC until his assassination in 336 BC. He was the father of Alexander the Great and Philip III.-Biography:...

and later evolved into Koine Greek

Koine Greek

Koine Greek is the universal dialect of the Greek language spoken throughout post-Classical antiquity , developing from the Attic dialect, with admixture of elements especially from Ionic....

. After the Roman

Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....

conquest of the Balkans, the Macedonians were an integral component of the people of the Roman province of Macedonia

Macedonia (Roman province)

The Roman province of Macedonia was officially established in 146 BC, after the Roman general Quintus Caecilius Metellus defeated Andriscus of Macedon, the last Ancient King of Macedon in 148 BC, and after the four client republics established by Rome in the region were dissolved...

. Under Roman control and later in the Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire

The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...

the region saw the influx of many ethnicities (Slavs

Slavic peoples

The Slavic people are an Indo-European panethnicity living in Eastern Europe, Southeast Europe, North Asia and Central Asia. The term Slavic represents a broad ethno-linguistic group of people, who speak languages belonging to the Slavic language family and share, to varying degrees, certain...

, Aromanians

Aromanians

Aromanians are a Latin people native throughout the southern Balkans, especially in northern Greece, Albania, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, and as an emigrant community in Serbia and Romania . An older term is Macedo-Romanians...

, and later Turks

Turkish people

Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...

) that settled in the area where the indigenous Macedonians lived.

After the Ottoman

Ottoman Turks

The Ottoman Turks were the Turkish-speaking population of the Ottoman Empire who formed the base of the state's military and ruling classes. Reliable information about the early history of Ottoman Turks is scarce, but they take their Turkish name, Osmanlı , from the house of Osman I The Ottoman...

invasions, Macedonia came under the rule of the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

. 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, Albanians

Albanians

Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...

, Bulgarians

Bulgarians

The Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...

, Greeks

Greeks

, Serbs

Serbs

The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...

and Turks were living together. The matter of the multicultural composition of the people of Macedonia came to be known as the Macedonian Question. Thessaloniki

Thessaloniki

remained the biggest city where the larger part of Macedonians resided.

Greek War of Independence

The Greek War of Independence

Greek War of Independence

The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution was a successful war of independence waged by the Greek revolutionaries between...

refers to the efforts of the Greeks

Greeks

to establish an independent Greek state, at the time that Greece was part of the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Greece

Most of Greece gradually became part of the Ottoman Empire from the 15th century until its declaration of independence in 1821, a historical period also known as Tourkokratia ....

. The revolution was initially planned and organized through secret organizations, most notable of which the Filiki Eteria

Filiki Eteria

thumb|right|200px|The flag of the Filiki Eteria.Filiki Eteria or Society of Friends was a secret 19th century organization, whose purpose was to overthrow Ottoman rule over Greece and to establish an independent Greek state. Society members were mainly young Phanariot Greeks from Russia and local...

, that operated in Greece and other Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

an regions outside the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

. Macedonian Greeks were actively involved in those early revolutionary movements; among the first was Grigorios Zalykis

Grigorios Zalykis

Grigorios Zalykis was a Greek scholar, writer and diplomat. He was born in Thessaloniki in 1785 and died in Paris at 4 of October, 1827...

, a writer, who founded the Hellenoglosso Xenodocheio

Hellenoglosso Xenodocheio

The Ellinoglosso Xenodocheio , was a secret organization established in Paris in 1814, whose purpose was to educate the Greeks and prepare the struggle against Ottoman rule over Greece. Two of its founders were the Macedonian Grigorios Zalykis and the Epirote Athanasios Tsakalov...

, a precursor of the Filiki Eteria. Even after the end of the Greek national revolution, there were several revolts in Macedonia

Macedonia (region)

with all of them having as their stated aim the union of the region with the Kingdom of Greece

Kingdom of Greece

The Kingdom of Greece was a state established in 1832 in the Convention of London by the Great Powers...

The Greek revolution in Macedonia started in Chalkidiki, 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

Polygyros is a town and municipality in Central Macedonia, Greece. It is the capital of Chalkidiki.-Geography:Polygyros town is built in the shape of an amphitheatre on a plateau on the south west side of the mountain Cholomontas. It is south of Greek National Road 16...

, the local insurgents and monks from Mount Athos

Mount Athos

Mount Athos is a mountain and peninsula in Macedonia, Greece. A World Heritage Site, it is home to 20 Eastern Orthodox monasteries and forms a self-governed monastic state within the sovereignty of the Hellenic Republic. Spiritually, Mount Athos comes under the direct jurisdiction of the...

uprised and murdered 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

Emmanouel Pappas

Emmanouel Pappas , prominent member of Filiki Etaireia and leader of the Greek War of Independence in Macedonia was one of the most heroic figures of the Struggle....

, 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

Vasilika

Vasilika is a town and a former municipality in the Thessaloniki regional unit, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Thermi, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 9,303 ....

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

Naousa, Imathia

Naousa or Naoussa is a city in the Imathia peripheral unit of Macedonia, Greece. Population 34,441.It is famous for its parks and for its ski resorts...

with notable figures being Anastasios Karatasos

Anastasios Karatasos

Anastasios Karatasos was a Greek military commander during the Greek War of Independence was born in the village of Dovras, Imathia Prefecture and is considered to be the most important revolutionary from Macedonia....

, Aggelis Gatsos

Aggelis Gatsos

Aggelis Gatsos was a Slavophone Greek military commander during the Greek War of Independence. He was born in the village of Sarakinovo, today known as Sarakini , in the Moglena region....

and Zafeirakis Theodosiou

Zafeirakis Theodosiou

Zafeirakis Theodosiou was a Greek prokritos , meaning political leader of Greeks during Ottoman rule, of Naousa, Imathia and an important figure of the Greek War of Independence in the region of Macedonia.-Life:...

, 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 rebellion 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

Thessaly is a traditional geographical region and an administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, and appears thus in Homer's Odyssey....

, Epirus

Epirus

The name Epirus, from the Greek "Ήπειρος" meaning continent may refer to:-Geographical:* Epirus - a historical and geographical region of the southwestern Balkans, straddling modern Greece and Albania...

and Crete

Crete

Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...

. Events of the Russo-Turkish Crimean War

Crimean War

The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...

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

Dimitrios Tsamis Karatasos , was a Greek armatolos, the son of Anastasios Karatasos who had proclaimed the Greek Revolution in the Naoussa area in 1821....

, 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 of Greece

Otto, Prince of Bavaria, then Othon, King of Greece was made the first modern King of Greece in 1832 under the Convention of London, whereby Greece became a new independent kingdom under the protection of the Great Powers .The second son of the philhellene King Ludwig I of Bavaria, Otto ascended...

, 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

Vlachs

Vlach is a blanket term covering several modern Latin peoples descending from the Latinised population in Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe. English variations on the name include: Walla, Wlachs, Wallachs, Vlahs, Olahs or Ulahs...

communities taking part. In the same year the Principality of Bulgaria

Principality of Bulgaria

The Principality of Bulgaria was a self-governing entity created as a vassal of the Ottoman Empire by the Treaty of Berlin in 1878. The preliminary treaty of San Stefano between the Russian Empire and the Porte , on March 3, had originally proposed a significantly larger Bulgarian territory: its...

was established, which along with the Bulgarian Exarchate

Bulgarian Exarchate

The Bulgarian Exarchate was the official name of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church before its autocephaly was recognized by the Ecumenical See in 1945 and the Bulgarian Patriarchate was restored in 1953....

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

Greco-Turkish War (1897)

The Greco-Turkish War of 1897, also called the Thirty Days' War and known as the Black '97 in Greece, was a war fought between the Kingdom of Greece and Ottoman Empire. Its immediate cause was the question over the status of the Ottoman province of Crete, whose Greek majority long desired union...

, 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, Macedonians were a Greek minority population in a number of areas inside the multiethnic region of Macedonia

Macedonia (Greece)

Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in Southern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...

, more so away from the coast. They lived alongside Slavic-speaking populations, most of whom had come to be identified as Bulgarians

Bulgarians

, and other ethnicities such as Jews

Jews

The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...

, Turks

Turkish people

, Vlachs

Vlachs

and Albanians

Albanians

Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...

. However, the ethnic Greeks were the predominant population in the southern zone of the region which comprised the best part of modern Greek Macedonia

Macedonia (Greece)

Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in Southern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...

. Bulgarian actions to exploit the Bulgarian population of Macedonia with the foundation of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization and the influence of the Bulgarian Exarchate

Bulgarian Exarchate

on the region, led to the Ilinden Uprising which was shut down by Ottoman

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

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 from 1904–1908, which ended with the Young Turk Revolution

Young Turk Revolution

The Young Turk Revolution of 1908 reversed the suspension of the Ottoman parliament by Sultan Abdul Hamid II, marking the onset of the Second Constitutional Era...

. According to the 1904 census, conducted by Hüseyin Hilmi Pasha

Hüseyin Hilmi Pasha

Hüseyin Hilmi Pasha was a statesman and twice Grand vizier of the Ottoman Empire in the wake of the Second Constitutional Era and was also Co-founder and Head of the Turkish Red Crescent...

for the Ottoman authorities, the Greeks were the predominant population in the vilayets of Thessaloniki

Salonika Province, Ottoman Empire

The Vilayet of Salonica was an Ottoman province from 1867 to 1912. In the late 19th century it reportedly had an area of .The vilayet was bounded by the Principality , of Bulgaria on the north; Eastern Rumelia on the northeast ; Edirne Vilayet on the east; the Aegean Sea on the south; Monastir...

and Monastir

Monastir Province, Ottoman Empire

The Vilayet of Monastir was an Ottoman vilayet, created in 1864. The Monastir Vilayet was occupied during the First Balkan War in 1912 and later divided between Principality of Albania, Kingdom of Greece and Kingdom of Serbia.- Demographics :...

, outnumbered in the vilayet of Kosovo

Kosovo Province, Ottoman Empire

The Vilayet of Kosovo was a vilayet of the Ottoman Empire in the Balkan Peninsula which included the current territory of Kosovo and the western part of the Republic of Macedonia...

by the Bulgarians who formed the majority.

During the Balkan Wars

Balkan Wars

The Balkan Wars were two conflicts that took place in the Balkans in south-eastern Europe in 1912 and 1913.By the early 20th century, Montenegro, Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia, the countries of the Balkan League, had achieved their independence from the Ottoman Empire, but large parts of their ethnic...

, Thessaloniki

Thessaloniki

became the prize city for the struggling parties, Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

, Bulgaria

Bulgaria

Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

and Serbia

Serbia

Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...

. Greece claimed the southern region which corresponded to that of ancient Macedonia, attributed as part of Greek history

History of Greece

The history of Greece encompasses the history of the territory of the modern state of Greece, as well as that of the Greek people and the areas they ruled historically. The scope of Greek habitation and rule has varied much through the ages, and, as a result, the history of Greece is similarly...

, 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

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

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

Population exchange between Greece and Turkey

The 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey was based upon religious identity, and involved the Greek Orthodox citizens of Turkey and the Muslim citizens of Greece...

, there was a mass departure of Muslim

Muslim

A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...

s and some pro-Bulgarian element from Macedonia, with the simultaneous arrival of Greek refugees

Greek refugees

Greek refugees is a collective term used to refer to the Greeks from Asia Minor who were evacuated or relocated in Greece following the Treaty of Lausanne and the Population exchange between Greece and Turkey...

from Asia Minor

Anatolia

Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...

and east Thrace

East Thrace

East Thrace or Eastern Thrace , also known as Turkish Thrace, is the part of the modern republic of Turkey that is geographically part of Europe, all in the eastern part of the historical region of Thrace; most of Turkey is in Anatolia, also known as Asia Minor. Turkish Thrace is also called...

, mainly Pontic Greeks

Pontic Greeks

The Pontians are an ethnic group traditionally living in the Pontus region, the shores of Turkey's Black Sea...

. According to the statistics of the League of Nations

League of Nations

The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...

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 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

Pan-Slavism was a movement in the mid-19th century aimed at unity of all the Slavic peoples. The main focus was in the Balkans where the South Slavs had been ruled for centuries by other empires, Byzantine Empire, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Venice...

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

Ion Dragoumis

Ion Dragoumis was a Greek diplomat, writer and revolutionary.Born in Athens, Dragoumis was the son of Stephanos Dragoumis who was foreign minister under Charilaos Trikoupis. The family originated in Vogatsiko in Kastoria...

and his father Stephanos Dragoumis

Stephanos Dragoumis

Stephanos Dragoumis was a judge, writer and Prime Minister of Greece in January-October 1910. He was the father of Ion Dragoumis.-Early years:...

, a judge who became Prime Minister of Greece

Prime Minister of Greece

The Prime Minister of Greece , officially the Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic , is the head of government of the Hellenic Republic and the leader of the Greek cabinet. The current interim Prime Minister is Lucas Papademos, a former Vice President of the European Central Bank, following...

in 1910. The Dragoumis family, originating from Vogatsiko, in the Kastoria

Kastoria Prefecture

Kastoria is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of West Macedonia. Its capital is the town of Kastoria.-Geography:...

region, had a long history of participation in the Greek revolutions with Markos Dragoumis being a member of Filiki Eteria

Filiki Eteria

. Heroic stories from the Macedonian struggle were transcribed in many of the novels of Greek writer Penelope Delta

Penelope Delta

Penelope Delta was a Greek author of books for children. Practically the first Greek children's books writer, her historical novels have been widely read and influenced Greek popular perceptions on national identity and history...

, 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.

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

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...

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

Wehrmacht

The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...

and eventually occupied the whole of northeastern Greece east of the Strymon River

Struma River

The Struma or Strymónas is a river in Bulgaria and Greece. Its ancient name was Strymōn . Its catchment area is 10,800 km²...

(East Macedonia and Western Thrace

Western Thrace

Western Thrace or simply Thrace is a geographic and historical region of Greece, located between the Nestos and Evros rivers in the northeast of the country. Together with the regions of Macedonia and Epirus, it is often referred to informally as northern Greece...

), except for the Evros Prefecture

Evros Prefecture

Evros 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. Evros is the northernmost regional unit. It borders Turkey to the east, across the river Evros, and it...

, at the border with Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

, which was occupied by the Germans. Unlike Germany and Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, Bulgaria officially annexed the occupied territories, which had long been a target of Bulgarian irredentism

Greater Bulgaria

Greater Bulgaria is term to identify the territory associated with a historical national state and a modern Bulgarian irredentist nationalist movement which would include most of Macedonia, Thrace and Moesia...

, on 14 May 1941.

In Greek Macedonia, Bulgarian policy was that of extermination or expulsion, aiming to forcibly Bulgarize

Bulgarisation

Bulgarisation is a term used to describe a cultural change of the spread of Bulgarian culture within various areas in the Balkans....

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 language

: 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, Greece

Drama , the ancient Drabescus , is a town and municipality in northeastern Greece. Drama is the capital of the peripheral unit of Drama which is part of the East Macedonia and Thrace periphery. The town is the economic center of the municipality , which in turn comprises 53.5 percent of the...

and quickly spread throughout Macedonia. In Drama

Drama, Greece

, Doxato

Doxato

Doxato is a town and municipality in the Drama peripheral unit, in East Macedonia and Thrace, Greece. The seat of the municipality is the town Kalampaki.-Municipality:...

, Khoristi

Khoristi

Choristi formerly Chataldzha or Chatalja is a town in Drama Municipality, Drama peripheral unit, East Macedonia and Thrace Periphery, Greece. The town is located about 8 km southeast of Drama and has a population of 2,625...

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

Great Famine (Greece)

The Great Famine was a period of mass starvation in Axis-occupied Greece, during World War II . The local population suffered greatly during this period, while the Axis Powers initiated a policy of large scale plunder...

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

Central Macedonia is one of the thirteen regions of Greece, consisting of the central part of the region of Macedonia. With a population of over 1.8 million, it is the second most populous in Greece after Attica.- Administration :...

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

Balkan Wars

, was commander of Macedonian forces of the Greek People's Liberation Army (ELAS) during the Axis Occupation of Greece in the period 1941–1944. He became the first president of the Political Committee of National Liberation

Political Committee of National Liberation

The Political Committee of National Liberation , commonly known as the "Mountain Government" was a communist-dominated government established in Greece in 1944 in opposition to both the collaborationist German-controlled government at Athens and to the royal government-in-exile in Cairo...

— also referred to as the "Mountain Government" — an opposition government separate to the royal

Kingdom of Greece

The Kingdom of Greece was a state established in 1832 in the Convention of London by the Great Powers...

government-in-exile of Greece. Bakirtzis was succeeded by the second president, jurist Alexandros Svolos

Alexandros Svolos

Alexandros Svolos was a prominent Greek legal expert, who also served as president of the Political Committee of National Liberation, a Resistance-based government during the Axis Occupation of Greece.- Early life :...

. 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

National unity government

A national unity government, government of national unity, or national union government is a broad coalition government consisting of all parties in the legislature, usually formed during a time of war or other national emergency.- Canada :During World War I the Conservative government of Sir...

of Georgios Papandreou, with Svolos later becoming a minister.

Origins

There is documented Greek presence in Macedonia since antiquity

Ancient Macedonians

The Macedonians originated from inhabitants of the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, in the alluvial plain around the rivers Haliacmon and lower Axios...

. Today, due to the history of the area, there are some small linguistic communities of Aromanian

Aromanian language

Aromanian , also known as Macedo-Romanian, Arumanian or Vlach is an Eastern Romance language spoken in Southeastern Europe...

and Slavic speaking Macedonians, using their various dialects in some social situations, while identifying themselves as ethnic Greeks. After the 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey

Population exchange between Greece and Turkey

The 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey was based upon religious identity, and involved the Greek Orthodox citizens of Turkey and the Muslim citizens of Greece...

, half of the refugees from Asia Minor

Asia Minor

Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...

, Pontus, and Eastern Thrace 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

Culture of Greece

The culture of Greece has evolved over thousands of years, beginning in Mycenaean Greece, continuing most notably into Classical Greece, through the influence of the Roman Empire and its Greek Eastern successor the Byzantine Empire...

. They honor, along with the ancient Macedonians

Ancient Macedonians

The Macedonians originated from inhabitants of the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, in the alluvial plain around the rivers Haliacmon and lower Axios...

, the fighters of the Macedonian struggle as their own primary heroes, in contrast to southern Greeks who mainly praise the heroes of the Greek War of Independence

Greek War of Independence

The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution was a successful war of independence waged by the Greek revolutionaries between...

. According to late-19th century folklorist Frederick G. Abbott: The use of the Macedonian flag

Flag of Macedonia (Greece)

The flag of Macedonia, the largest Greek region, represents a Vergina Sun with 16 rays extending from the blue field. The Vergina Sun on a blue background is commonly used as an unofficial flag of the three peripheries, the prefectures and the municipalities of Greek Macedonia...

is very common in the Macedonian population, depicting the Vergina Sun

Vergina Sun

The Vergina Sun — also known as the Star of Vergina, Macedonian star, or Argead Star — is the name given to a symbol of a stylised star or sun with sixteen rays. It was unearthed in 1977 during excavations in Vergina, in the northern Greek region of Macedonia, by archaeologist Manolis Andronikos...

as their regional symbol, while "Famous Macedonia

Famous Macedonia

Famous Macedonia is a military march, often regarded as the unofficial anthem of the Greek region of Macedonia, and used by the Hellenic Army since the Balkan Wars....

" is their unofficial anthem

Anthem

The term anthem means either a specific form of Anglican church music , or more generally, a song of celebration, usually acting as a symbol for a distinct group of people, as in the term "national anthem" or "sports anthem".-Etymology:The word is derived from the Greek via Old English , a word...

. They have even some folk dances that bear the name of the region, Makedonia

Makedonia (dance)

Makedonia is a form of the Greek folk dance Hasapiko ) that has evolved over the years to the patriotic song "Makedonia Xakousti" , unofficial anthem of the Greek region of Macedonia...

and Makedonikos antikristos

Makedonikos antikristos

Makedonikos antikristos is a dance from Macedonia in Greece. It means "face to face dance from Macedonia", and it is danced by two people, usually by a man and a woman. It is mainly danced in the western side of Macedonia in the city of Kozani....

.
The overwhelming majority of the Greek Macedonians speak a variant of Greek

Greek language

, called Macedonian (Μακεδονίτικα, Makedonitika). It belongs to the northern dialect group

Varieties of Modern Greek

The linguistic varieties of Modern Greek can be classified along two principal dimensions. First, there is a long tradition of sociolectal variation between the natural, popular spoken language on the one hand and archaizing, learned written forms on the other. Second, there is regional variation...

, with phonological and few syntactical differences distinguishing it from standard Greek

Dimotiki

Demotic Greek or dimotiki is the modern vernacular form of the Greek language. The term has been in use since 1818. Demotic refers particularly to the form of the language that evolved naturally from ancient Greek, in opposition to the artificially archaic Katharevousa, which was the official...

which is spoken in southern Greece. One of these differences is that the Macedonian dialect uses the accusative case

Accusative case

The accusative case of a noun is the grammatical case used to mark the direct object of a transitive verb. The same case is used in many languages for the objects of prepositions...

instead of genitive

Genitive case

In grammar, genitive is the grammatical case that marks a noun as modifying another noun...

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

West Macedonia

West Macedonia is one of the thirteen regions of Greece, consisting of the western part of Greek Macedonia. It is divided into the regional units of Florina, Grevena, Kastoria, and Kozani.-Geography:...

Expressions

The strong sense of Macedonian identity among the Greek Macedonians has significant effects in the context of the Macedonia naming dispute

Macedonia naming dispute

A diplomatic dispute over the use of the name Macedonia has been an ongoing issue in the bilateral relations between Greece and the Republic of Macedonia since the latter became independent from former Yugoslavia in 1991...

. It has led to reactions to the notion of Macedonians
Macedonians (ethnic group)
The Macedonians also referred to as Macedonian Slavs: "... the term Slavomacedonian was introduced and was accepted by the community itself, which at the time had a much more widespread non-Greek Macedonian ethnic consciousness...

and Macedonian language
Macedonian language
Macedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...

with a non-Greek qualification, as used by the Socialist Republic of Macedonia

Socialist Republic of Macedonia

The Socialist Republic of Macedonia was a socialist state that was a constituent country of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...

, during the times of socialist Yugoslavia

Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia

The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...

, and the contemporary Republic of Macedonia

Republic of Macedonia

Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...

. The dispute over the moral right to the use of the name Macedonia
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 controversy since the early 20th century...

and its derivatives traces its origin to the Macedonian question in the 19th and early-20th century between Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

, Yugoslavia

Yugoslavia

Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....

and Bulgaria

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

Edward Stettinius, Jr.

Edward Reilly Stettinius, Jr. was United States Secretary of State under Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman, serving from 1944 to 1945....

in 1944, under president Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...

. 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 of Macedonians turned out in the streets of Thessaloniki

Thessaloniki

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 Greek". Following the recognition of the Republic of Macedonia by the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, 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

Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...

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

Macedonia (Greece)

Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in Southern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...

. Responding to issues about the Macedonia naming dispute as Prime Minister of Greece

Prime Minister of Greece

, Kostas Karamanlis – 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

Council of Europe

The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...

in Strasbourg

Strasbourg

Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...

in January 2007. Both Kostas Karamanlis and his uncle, late former Prime Minister of Greece Konstantinos Karamanlis, are Macedonian ethnic Greeks with origin from Serres

Serres

Serres is a city in Greece, seat of the Serres prefecture.Serres may also refer to:Places:* Serres, Germany, a part of Wiernsheim in Baden-WürttembergIn France:* Serres, Aude in the Aude département...

. As President of Greece

President of Greece

The President of the Hellenic Republic , colloquially referred to in English as the President of Greece, is the head of state of Greece. The office of the President of the Republic was established after the Greek republic referendum, 1974 and formally by the Constitution of Greece in 1975. The...

, 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

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

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

Greek diaspora

, affected by their socio-economic and political background in their homeland, and has been recorded mainly between 1924–1974. Settlers from West Macedonia

West Macedonia

were the first to arrive in Australia and dominated the immigration waves until 1954. Macedonian families from the regions of Florina

Florina Prefecture

Florina is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of West Macedonia. Its capital is the town of Florina.-Geography:Florina borders the regional units of Pella to the east, Kozani to the south and Kastoriá to the southwest...

and Kastoria

Kastoria Prefecture

Kastoria is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of West Macedonia. Its capital is the town of Kastoria.-Geography:...

established settlements in rural areas, while people from Kozani

Kozani Prefecture

Kozani is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of West Macedonia. Its capital is the city of Kozani.-Geography:Kozani borders the regional units of Kastoria to the west and northwest, Florina to the north, Pella to the northeast, Imathia and Pieria to the east, Larissa ...

settled mainly in Melbourne

Melbourne

. Only after 1954, people from Central

Central Macedonia

and East Macedonia

East Macedonia and Thrace

East Macedonia and Thrace is one of the thirteen regions of Greece. It consists of the northeastern parts of the country, comprising the eastern part of the region of Macedonia along with the region of Thrace, and the islands of Thasos and Samothrace....

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

Pentalofos, Kozani

Pentalofos is a village and a former community in Kozani peripheral unit, West Macedonia, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Voio, of which it is a municipal unit. It is located at 1060 meters elevation to the base of mountain Voio near Smolikas....

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

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

differed from the distribution of other Greek settlers

Greek Australian

Greeks are the seventh-largest ethnic group in Australia, after those declaring their ancestry simply as "Australian". In the 2006 census, 365,147 persons declared having Greek ancestry, either alone or in conjunction with another ethnicity....

. 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

Great Depression in Australia

Australia suffered badly during the period of the Great Depression of the 1930s. The Depression began with the Wall Street Crash of October, 1929 and rapidly spread worldwide. As in other nations, Australia suffered years of high unemployment, poverty, low profits, deflation, plunging incomes, and...

, 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, Western Australia

Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....

and Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, 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

Pontic Greeks

The Pontians are an ethnic group traditionally living in the Pontus region, the shores of Turkey's Black Sea...

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

Greek Civil War

The Greek Civil War was fought from 1946 to 1949 between the Greek governmental army, backed by the United Kingdom and United States, and the Democratic Army of Greece , the military branch of the Greek Communist Party , backed by Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Albania...

. 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

Macedonia naming dispute

. 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

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

, Queensland

Queensland

Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...

, South Australia

South Australia

South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...

and Western Australia

Western Australia

Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

. According to an estimate in 1988, there were around 55,000 Macedonians in Australia.

Other large Greek Macedonian communities can also be found particularly in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

and Great Britain

Great Britain

Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...

. The main institutions which were established by these communities or are closely affiliated with them are:

Pan-Macedonian Association USA, founded in 1947 in New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

by Greek American

Greek American

Greek Americans are Americans of Greek descent also described as Hellenic descent. According to the 2007 U.S. Census Bureau estimation, there were 1,380,088 people of Greek ancestry in the United States, while the State Department mentions that around 3,000,000 Americans claim to be of Greek descent...

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 founded wink in the Library of New York University

New York University

New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...

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

Greek Canadians are Canadian citizens of Greek origin, also known as Hellenic origin. According to the 2006 Canadian census, there were 242,685 Canadians who claimed Greek ethnicity.- Authors :...

of Macedonian origin.

The Macedonian Society of Great Britain, founded in 1989 in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

by Macedonian immigrants, promotes the Macedonian history, culture and heritage, organizes lectures and presentations, as well as social events and gatherings for the Greek Britons.

Panhellenic Macedonian Front
Panhellenic Macedonian Front
The Panhellenic Macedonian Front is a political party in Greece. It was founded in May 2009 by the politician Stelios Papathemelis and professor Kostas Zouraris to run in the European Parliamentary elections of June with 22 candidates...

, a Greek political party

Political party

A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...

founded in 2009 by politician Stelios Papathemelis

Stelios Papathemelis

Stelios Papathemelis is a Greek politician and lawyer.-Early life:He was born in Thessaloniki on January, 1938. He studied law at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.This man is Macedonian from village of Ossa, Langada, Thessaloniki, Macedonia .-Political career :He was elected for the first...

and professor Kostas Zouraris

Kostas Zouraris

Kostas Zouraris is a Macedonian Greek political scientist and writer.He studied law in Thessaloniki and political science in Paris, where he was involved in the May 1968 movement. He has taught political science at Vincennes-Paris university since 1969...

to run for the 2009 European Parliament elections

European Parliament election, 2009

Elections to the European Parliament were held in the 27 member states of the European Union between 4 and 7 June 2009. A total of 736 Members of the European Parliament were elected to represent some 500 million Europeans, making these the biggest trans-national elections in history...

, which is affiliated with several Macedonian diaspora organizations.

Notable Macedonians

George Zorbas
George Zorbas
George Zorbas was the character upon whom Nikos Kazantzakis based his fictional Alexis Zorbas, the protagonist of his novel Zorba the Greek....

, the character upon which Nikos Kazantzakis
Nikos Kazantzakis
Nikos Kazantzakis was a Greek writer and philosopher, celebrated for his novel Zorba the Greek, considered his magnum opus...

based the fictional protagonist of his novel Zorba the Greek
Zorba the Greek
Zorba the Greek is a 1964 film based on the novel Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis. The film was directed by Cypriot Michael Cacoyannis and the title character was played by Anthony Quinn...

.
Panagiotis Fasoulas
Panagiotis Fasoulas
Panagiotis Fasoulas is a Greek politician and former professional basketball player...

and Dimitris Diamantidis
Dimitris Diamantidis
Dimitris Diamantidis is a Greek professional basketball player. Standing at 1.98 m , Diamantidis mainly plays at the point guard position, but he also has the ability to play as a shooting guard, as well as to assume the small forward position, being utilized as a point forward...

, prominent basketball players and European champions with Greece
Greece national basketball team
The Greece national basketball team is the representative for Greece in international men's basketball competitions, organized and run by the Hellenic Basketball Federation. Traditionally, Greece is considered among the world's top basketball powers; they were runners-up in the 2006 FIBA World...

in 1987
Eurobasket 1987
The EuroBasket 1987 was held in Greece between June 3 and June 14, 1987. Twelve national teams entered the event under the auspices of FIBA Europe, the sport's regional governing body...

and 2005
Eurobasket 2005
The EuroBasket 2005 was held in Serbia and Montenegro between 16 September and 25 September 2005. Greece won the gold medal by defeating Germany, while France won the bronze medal over Spain...

respectively. Fasoulas is the current mayor of Piraeus
Piraeus
Piraeus is a city in the region of Attica, Greece. Piraeus is located within the Athens Urban Area, 12 km southwest from its city center , and lies along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf....

, while Diamantidis was announced European Player of the Year
Mr. Europa
The Mister Europa European Player of the Year Award is an annual basketball award created in 1976 and given today by the panel of journalists of the Italian weekly magazine Superbasket. Its purpose is to praise the best European basketball player, regardless of where he plays in the world,...

in 2007.
Theodoros Zagorakis
Theodoros Zagorakis
-Kavala:Zagorakis was a defensive midfielder who usually operated on the right hand side of midfield. He started his career with Kavala, the club that also produced Zisis Vryzas, with whom he became close friends...

, captain of the Greek national football team
Greece national football team
The Greece national football team represents Greece in association football and is controlled by the Hellenic Football Federation, the governing body for football in Greece. Greece's home ground is Karaiskakis Stadium in Piraeus and their head coach is Fernando Santos...

that won the UEFA Euro 2004, and other players of the 2004 Euro team such as Vassilios Tsiartas, Traianos Dellas
Traianos Dellas
Traianos Dellas is a Greek international footballer currently playing as a centre back for AEK Athens in the Greek Super League...

, Angelos Charisteas
Angelos Charisteas
Angelos Charisteas was born on 9 February 1980 in Strymoniko, Serres, but originates from Mani. He is a Greek football player who currently plays as a striker for Panetolikos F.C....

and Zisis Vryzas
Zisis Vryzas
Zisis Vryzas is a former football player, and had been the vice president of PAOK FC for the past 3 years. He was born 9 November 1973 in Kavala, city of northern Greece, located in the region of Macedonia . He played as a striker for various teams in Greece and abroad, as well as the Greek...

.
Several Greek Olympic medalists: Voula Patoulidou
Voula Patoulidou
Paraskevi Patoulidou was born in Tripotamo . A prolific athlete, Patoulidou throughout her athletics career competed in the 100 metres, 100 metres hurdles and in the long jump events. Patoulidou became a Greek sporting legend in 1992, when she was the surprise winner of the Women's 100 m hurdles...

(Barcelona 1992
1992 Summer Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event celebrated in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in 1992. The International Olympic Committee voted in 1986 to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same...

, gold medal), Ioannis Melissanidis
Ioannis Melissanidis
Ioannis Melissanidis is a retired Greek artistic gymnast and the 1996 Olympic champion on the floor exercise...

(Atlanta 1996
1996 Summer Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics of Atlanta, officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad and unofficially known as the Centennial Olympics, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1996 in Atlanta, Georgia, United States....

, gold medal), Dimosthenis Tampakos
Dimosthenis Tampakos
Dimosthenis Tampakos is a Greek gymnast.He won gold in the men's rings at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens with a score of 9.862. He had also won the silver medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. In 2003 he tied for first place with Yordan Yovchev at the World Championships.-External links:*...

(Athens 2004
2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto Welcome Home. 10,625 athletes competed, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team...

, gold medal), Alexandros Nikolaidis
Alexandros Nikolaidis
Alexandros Nikolaidis is an Olympic taekwondo athlete from Greece. Initially the favorite, he eventually won the silver medal at the 2004 Olympics held in Athens after losing from his opponent and eventual gold medalist, Moon Dae-Sung of South Korea.On March 24, 2008 Alexandros Nikolaidis had the...

(Athens 2004, silver medal) and Elisavet Mystakidou
Elisavet Mystakidou
Elisavet "Elli" Mystakidou is a Greek taekwondo practitioner and Olympic medalist. She participated in the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens where she earned a silver medal in the under 67 kg division....

(Athens 2004, silver medal).
Konstantinos Karamanlis, former President
President of Greece
The President of the Hellenic Republic , colloquially referred to in English as the President of Greece, is the head of state of Greece. The office of the President of the Republic was established after the Greek republic referendum, 1974 and formally by the Constitution of Greece in 1975. The...

and Prime Minister of Greece
Prime Minister of Greece
The Prime Minister of Greece , officially the Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic , is the head of government of the Hellenic Republic and the leader of the Greek cabinet. The current interim Prime Minister is Lucas Papademos, a former Vice President of the European Central Bank, following...

, as well as his nephew Kostas Karamanlis who also served as Prime Minister.
Vassilis Vassilikos
Vassilis Vassilikos
-Biography:A native of the northern Greek island of Thasos, Vassilikos grew up in Thessaloniki, graduating from law school there before moving to Athens to work as a journalist....

, famous author.
Patrick Tatopoulos
Patrick Tatopoulos
Patrick Tatopoulos is a French-Greek production designer, who lives and works in the United States. His designs have appeared in numerous motion pictures, including Pitch Black, Underworld, I, Robot, The Chronicles of Riddick, Independence Day, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Stargate, Spawn, Godzilla,...

, movie production designer
Production designer
In film and television, a production designer is the person responsible for the overall look of a filmed event such as films, TV programs, music videos or adverts. Production designers have one of the key creative roles in the creation of motion pictures and television. Working directly with the...

and is a French-Greek with Macedonian descent on his father's side.
Dionysis Savvopoulos
Dionysis Savvopoulos
Dionysis Savvopoulos is a Greek music composer, lyricist and singer.He was born in Thessaloniki. In 1963 he moved to Athens, terminating his law studies in favour of his career in music...

, music composer, lyricist and singer.
Manolis Chiotis
Manolis Chiotis
Manolis Chiotis was a Greek Rebetiko composer, singer and bouzouki player. He was born on March 21, 1920 in Thessaloniki and died in 1970.- See also :* Bouzouki* Rebetes* Rebetiko* Laiko* Greek nightclubs* Greek music...

, considered one of the greatest bouzouki
Bouzouki
The bouzouki , is a musical instrument with Greek origin in the lute family. A mainstay of modern Greek music, the front of the body is flat and is usually heavily inlaid with mother-of-pearl. The instrument is played with a plectrum and has a sharp metallic sound, reminiscent of a mandolin but...

soloists of all time.
Marinella
Marinella
Marinella 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 released 66 personal albums and has been featured in albums of other musicians.-Early life:She was born Kyriaki...

, one of the most prestigious female Greek folk ("Laïko
Laïko
Laïkó ), is a Greek music genre. Also called folk song or urban folk music , in its plural form is a Greek music genre which has taken many forms over the years...

") vocalists.
Katia Zygouli
Katia Zygouli
Ekaterini Zygouli , born July 4, 1978, is a Greek fashion model and occasional actress.-Career:Zygouli is considered as one of the highest-paid Greek models...

, model with appearances in international covers.

External links

Pan-Macedonian Association of Melbourne and Victoria

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Preface

Greek War of Independence

Early 20th century

World War II

Origins

Culture

Expressions

Diaspora

Notable Macedonians

See also

External links