Chalkidiki Περιφερειακή ενότητα Χαλκιδικής | |
|---|---|
 Municipalities of Chalkidiki | |
 Chalkidiki within Greece | |
  Chalkidiki | |
| Coordinates:40°20′N23°30′E / 40.333°N 23.500°E /40.333; 23.500 | |
| Country | Greece |
| Geographic region | Macedonia |
| Administrative region | Central Macedonia |
| Seat | Polygyros |
| Area | |
• Total | 2,918 km2 (1,127 sq mi) |
| Population (2021)[1] | |
• Total | 102,085 |
| • Density | 34.98/km2 (90.61/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
| Postal code | 63x xx |
| Area code | 237x0, 239x0 |
| Vehicle registration | ΧΚ |
| Website | www |
Chalkidiki (/kælˈkɪdɪki/;Greek:Χαλκιδική,romanized: Chalkidikḗ[xalciðiˈci], alternativelyHalkidiki), also known asChalcidice, is apeninsula andregional unit of Greece, part of the region ofCentral Macedonia, in thegeographic region ofMacedonia inNorthern Greece. The autonomousMount Athos region constitutes the easternmost part of the peninsula, but not of the regional unit.
The capital of Chalkidiki is the town ofPolygyros, located in the centre of the peninsula, while the largest town isNea Moudania. Chalkidiki is a popular summer tourist destination.
Chalkidiki also spelledHalkidiki (/kælˈkɪdɪki/) orChalcidice (/kælˈsɪdɪsi/) is named after the ancient Greek city-state ofChalcis inEuboea, which colonised the area in the 8th century BC.
Chalkidiki consists of a large peninsula in the northwesternAegean Sea, resembling a hand with three 'fingers' (though in Greek these peninsulas are often referred to as 'legs'). From west to east, these areKassandra (highest peak 345 m),Sithonia (highest peak Mt Itamos 817 m), andMount Athos, a special polity within Greece known for its monasteries and its highest peak reaching 2,033 metres above sea level. These 'fingers' are separated by two gulfs, theToronean Gulf and theSingitic Gulf.
Chalkidiki borders on the regional unit of Thessaloniki to the north, and is bounded by theThermaic Gulf on the west, and theStrymonian Gulf and Ierissos Gulf on the east (which are separated by the Brostomnitsa peninsula).
TheCholomontas mountains lie in the north-central part of Chalkidiki, with the highest peak reaching 1,165 metres above sea level. Chalkidiki has a few rivers running from Mt Cholomontas south to the sea, these include the Havrias, Vatonias (Olynthios) and Psychros rivers. Chalkidiki also has a few islands including the inhabitedAmmouliani andDiaporos both in the Singitic Gulf.
Its largest towns areNea Moudania (Νέα Μουδανιά),Nea Kallikrateia (Νέα Καλλικράτεια) and the capital town ofPolygyros (Πολύγυρος).
There are several summer resorts on the beaches of all three fingers where other minor towns and villages are located, such as atYerakini (Gerakina Beach) andPsakoudia in central Chalkidiki,Kallithea,Chanioti andPefkochori in theKassandra peninsula,Nikiti andNeos Marmaras (Porto Carras) in theSithonia peninsula, andOuranoupolis at Mount Athos. A popular village in winter isArnaia for its architecture and mountain scenery.
The climate of Chalkidiki is mainlyMediterranean (Koppen:Csa) with cool, wet winters and hot, relatively dry summers. Snowfalls are possible but not long-lasting during the winter months, while occasional thunderstorms may occur during the summer. Few areas such asNeos Marmaras have ahot semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification:BSh).[2][3]
| Climate data forNeos Marmaras 6 m a.s.l. | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 20.7 (69.3) | 22.8 (73.0) | 22.8 (73.0) | 26.5 (79.7) | 32.4 (90.3) | 36.4 (97.5) | 39.9 (103.8) | 41.6 (106.9) | 37.0 (98.6) | 29.3 (84.7) | 26.1 (79.0) | 19.8 (67.6) | 41.6 (106.9) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 12.2 (54.0) | 14.1 (57.4) | 15.6 (60.1) | 19.5 (67.1) | 24.3 (75.7) | 29.3 (84.7) | 32.1 (89.8) | 32.4 (90.3) | 27.8 (82.0) | 22.2 (72.0) | 18.1 (64.6) | 14.0 (57.2) | 21.8 (71.2) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 9.4 (48.9) | 11.0 (51.8) | 12.2 (54.0) | 15.4 (59.7) | 20.0 (68.0) | 24.9 (76.8) | 27.7 (81.9) | 28.0 (82.4) | 23.9 (75.0) | 18.9 (66.0) | 15.2 (59.4) | 11.3 (52.3) | 18.2 (64.7) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 6.5 (43.7) | 7.9 (46.2) | 8.7 (47.7) | 11.3 (52.3) | 15.6 (60.1) | 20.5 (68.9) | 23.2 (73.8) | 23.6 (74.5) | 20.0 (68.0) | 15.6 (60.1) | 12.2 (54.0) | 8.6 (47.5) | 14.5 (58.1) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −4.2 (24.4) | −0.5 (31.1) | 0.6 (33.1) | 4.2 (39.6) | 10.5 (50.9) | 13.1 (55.6) | 16.3 (61.3) | 18.6 (65.5) | 13.2 (55.8) | 9.9 (49.8) | 3.7 (38.7) | −0.6 (30.9) | −4.2 (24.4) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 62.4 (2.46) | 28.9 (1.14) | 50.1 (1.97) | 27.4 (1.08) | 21.7 (0.85) | 33.9 (1.33) | 28.0 (1.10) | 11.6 (0.46) | 29.5 (1.16) | 36.8 (1.45) | 41.8 (1.65) | 60.3 (2.37) | 432.4 (17.02) |
| Source:National Observatory of Athens (Feb 2014 – Jul 2024),[4] Neos Marmaras N.O.A station[3] andWorld Meteorological Organization[5] | |||||||||||||
The first Greek settlers in this area came fromChalcis andEretria, ancientionian cities inEuboea, around the 8th century BC who founded cities such asMende,[6]Toroni andScione.[7] A second wave came fromAndros in the 6th century BC[8] who founded cities such asAkanthos.[9] The ancient city ofStageira was the birthplace of the great philosopherAristotle. Chalkidiki was an important theatre of war during thePeloponnesian War betweenAthens andSparta. Later, the Greek colonies of the peninsula were conquered byPhilip II of Macedon and Chalkidiki became part ofMacedonia (ancient kingdom). After the end of thewars between the Macedonians and the Romans, the region became part of theRoman Empire, along with the rest of Greece. At the end of the Roman Republic (in 43 BC) a Roman colony was settled in Cassandreia, which was later (in 30 BC) resettled by Augustus.[10]
During the following centuries, Chalkidiki was part of theByzantine Empire (East Roman Empire). On achrysobull of EmperorBasil I, dated 885, theHoly Mountain (Mount Athos) was proclaimed a place of monks, and no laymen or farmers or cattle-breeders were allowed to be settled there. With the support ofNikephoros II Phokas, theGreat Lavra monastery was founded soon afterwards. Athos with its monasteries has been self-governing ever since. Today, over 2,000 monks from Greece and many other Orthodox Christian countries, such as Romania, Moldova, Georgia, Bulgaria, Serbia, and Russia, live an ascetic life in Athos, isolated from the rest of the world.
After a short period of domination by the LatinKingdom of Thessalonica, the area became again Byzantine until its conquest by theOttomans in 1430. During the Ottoman period, the peninsula was important for itsgold mining. In 1821, theGreek War of Independence started and the Greeks of Chalkidiki revolted under the command ofEmmanouel Pappas, a member ofFiliki Eteria, and other local fighters. The revolt was progressing slowly and unsystematically. The insurrection was confined to the peninsulas of Mount Athos and Kassandra. One of the main goals was to restrain and detain the coming of the Ottoman army fromIstanbul, until the revolution in the south (mainlyPeloponnese) became stable. Finally, the revolt resulted in a decisive Ottoman victory at Kassandra. The survivors, among them Papas, were rescued by thePsarian fleet, which took them mainly toSkiathos,Skopelos andSkyros. The Ottomans proceeded in retaliation and many villages were burnt.
Finally, the peninsula was incorporated into theGreek Kingdom in 1912 after theBalkan Wars. Many Greek refugees fromEast Thrace andAnatolia (modern Turkey) were settled in parts of Chalkidiki after the 1922Greco-Turkish war, adding to the indigenous Greek population.
In the 1980s, a tourism boom came to Chalkidiki and took over agriculture as the primary industry.[11] In June 2003, at the holiday resort ofPorto Carras located in Neos Marmaras, Sithonia, leaders of theEuropean Union presented the first draft of the European Constitution (seeHistory of the European Constitution for developments after this point).
In June 2022, archaeologists announced the discovery of a poorly preserved single-edgedsabre among the ruins of a monastery on the coast of Chalcidice. Alongside the curved sword, excavators revealed evidence of a fire, a large cache of 14th-century glazed pottery vessels, as well as other weapons, including axes and arrowheads.[12]
The peninsula is notable for itsolive oil and its greenolives production. Also various types ofhoney andwine are produced.
Chalkidiki has been a popular summer tourist destination since the late 1950s when people fromThessaloniki started spending their summer holidays in the coastal villages. In the beginning tourists rented rooms in the houses of locals. By the 1960s, tourists fromAustria andGermany started to visit Chalkidiki more frequently. Since the start of the big tourist boom in the 1970s, the whole region has been captured by tourism.[13] In the region there is agolf course, with plans for four others in the future.
Gold was mined in the region during antiquity byPhilip II of Macedon and the next rulers. Since 2013, a revival ofmining forgold and other minerals has occurred, and a number of concessions have been granted toEldorado Gold of Canada. Critics claim that mining adversely affects tourism and the environment.[14] Plus, the movement took panhellenic and international affection in the name of "Chalkidiki SOS" with major strikes and protests at European capitals during the years.[15]
The Chalkidikiregional unit is subdivided into fivemunicipalities (numbered as in the infobox map):[16]
As a part of Greece's2011 local government reform, the Chalkidiki regional unit (περιφερειακή ενότητα,perifereiakí enótita) was created out of the former Chalkidikiprefecture (νομός,nomós); the regional unit has the same territory as the former prefecture. As part of the reforms, Chalkidiki's five municipalities (δήμοι,dhími) were created by combining former municipalities, which were in turn demoted to municipal units (δημοτικές ενότητες,dhimotikés enótites), according to the table below.[16]
Before the abolishment of theprovinces of Greece in 2006, the Chalkidiki prefecture was subdivided into the following provinces:[17]
| Province | Seat |
|---|---|
| Arnaia Province | Arnaia |
| Chalkidiki Province | Polygyros |
The autonomous monastic state ofMount Athos which is often considered to be geographically part of Chalkidiki recorded an additional 1,746 people in the 2021 census. The population is mostly Orthodox Christian monks.
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1991[18] | 85,471 | — |
| 2001[18] | 96,849 | +13.3% |
| 2011[18] | 105,908 | +9.4% |
| 2021[1] | 102,085 | −3.6% |
In September 2018 it was announced thatLine 2 of theThessaloniki Metro could be extended in the future in order to serve commuters to and from some areas of Chalkidiki.[19]
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Media related toChalkidiki at Wikimedia CommonsAdministrative division of theCentral Macedonia Region | ||
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| Regional unit ofChalkidiki |  | |
| Regional unit ofImathia | ||
| Regional unit ofKilkis | ||
| Regional unit ofPella | ||
| Regional unit ofPieria | ||
| Regional unit ofSerres | ||
| Regional unit ofThessaloniki | ||
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