Geography of Greece

The position of Greece at the crossroads between Africa, Asia, and Europe has undeniably played a large role in its diverse and often turbulent history.

Protruding from Europe, Greece hangs precariously southward from the end of the Balkan Peninsula, and slices towards the Mediterranean Sea with dramatic mountain ranges, peninsulas, and thousands of large and small islands.

The Mediterranean Sea offered an easily adaptable climate with mild winters and hot, dry summers, while the rugged mountains and coastline afforded multiple easily defensible positions.

The wind patterns of the Mediterranean profoundly shaped ancient history and culture, influencing everything from seasonal trade to military campaigns. In the era of sailing ships, prevailing winds were as critical to commerce and communication as mountains and valleys were to land travel.

The prevailing winds of the Mediterranean, the “Etesian” (today’s meltemia) annual seasonal winds of the Aegean, and the Skiron winds in today’s gulf of Lion, became sea lanes for commerce and culture for more than two thousand years.

Our map includes an approximate graphic representation of these wind patterns to illustrate their effect on the direction, speed, duration, and reach of ancient maritime travel.

The surrounding sea offered an environment conducive to developing and sustaining enduring civilizations that were relatively safe from casual incursions while able to communicate and exchange large quantities of goods and ideas with ease through the sea lanes.

It is not by accident that the ancient Greek civilization developed around a significant maritime power.

Modern Greek borders confine the country in a much smaller area than in ancient times when Hellenic civilization spread throughout the Mediterranean.

As early as the 7th century BCE Greek influence reached far beyond the traditional mainland, the islands, and the coast of Asia Minor. Hellenic cities and trading posts spread as far as today’s Italy, Sicily, France, Spain, Libya, Crimea, and the entire Black Sea coast as far as Georgia.

With the conquests of Alexander the Great after the fourth century BCE Hellenic civilization attained its widest reach.

During the Hellenistic era Greek culture expanded to include Asia Minor, the Middle East, Egypt, farther East to the Western parts of India, and as far north as today’s Afghanistan.