Greek diaspora
122-453: Greek diaspora Constantinople and Asia Minor : Africa : Other regions : Other groups : Other languages Greek Cypriots ( Greek : Ελληνοκύπριοι , romanized : Ellinokýprioi , Turkish : Kıbrıs Rumları ) are the ethnic Greek population of Cyprus , forming the island's largest ethnolinguistic community. According to the 2011 census, 659,115 respondents recorded their ethnicity as Greek, forming almost 99% of
244-467: A church council in 754 , which condemned the worship of images, after which many treasures were broken, burned, or painted over with depictions of trees, birds or animals: one source refers to the church of the Holy Virgin at Blachernae as having been transformed into a "fruit store and aviary". Following the death of his son Leo IV in 780, the empress Irene restored the veneration of images through
366-799: A patriarchate , numbering Moscow's bishop as fifth in rank behind the ancient patriarchates . The Russian Orthodox Church became the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world. As Ottoman rule weakened, various parts of the Orthodox Church that had been under the direct influence of the Ecumenical Patriarchate came to be independent. These churches at first usually declared their independence without universal approval, which came after Constantinople gave its blessing. The rate at which these new autocephalous ("self-headed") churches came into being increased in
488-484: A Greek citizen through naturalization if they can prove that a parent or grandparent was a Greek national. The Greek ancestor's birth and marriage certificates and the applicant's birth certificate are required, along with birth certificates for all intervening generations between the applicant and the person with Greek citizenship. Greek citizenship is acquired by birth by all persons born in Greece who do not acquire
610-462: A diocese of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, declared its independence in 1448 shortly before Constantinople fell owing to its protest over the Council of Florence , in which representatives of the patriarchate had signed onto union with Rome , trading doctrinal concessions for military aid against the encroaching Ottomans. The military aid never came and those concessions were subsequently repudiated by
732-722: A foreign citizenship and all persons born to at least one parent who is a registered Greek citizen. People born out of wedlock to a father who is a Greek citizen and a mother who is a non-Greek automatically gain Greek citizenship if the father recognizes them as his child before they turn 18. Centers of the Greek diaspora are New York City , Boston , Chicago , Los Angeles , Munich , London , Melbourne , Wellington , Sydney , Auckland , Montreal , Toronto , Vancouver , Johannesburg , Rio de Janeiro , São Paulo , Culiacán , Mexico City , and Buenos Aires . The SAE – World Council of Hellenes Abroad has compiled several studies on
854-600: A high standard of living. Economic modernization created a more flexible and open society and caused Greek Cypriots to share the concerns and hopes of other secularized West European societies. The Republic of Cyprus joined the European Union in 2004, officially representing the entire island, but suspended for the time being in Turkish-occupied northern Cyprus . Greeks in Cyprus number 659,115, according to
976-593: A higher level of church attendance than Greeks in Greece. There are minorities of Catholics , Jehovah's Witnesses and Pentecostals . Currently, there are 152 Greek Orthodox churches in Australia, most under jurisdiction of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia . In addition, there are 8 monasteries as well as schools, theological colleges and aged care centres. About 50,000 Greeks immigrated to Brazil from Greece and Cyprus, with 20,000 in
1098-703: A membership of 90,000 in Latin America, the majority of whom live in Brazil. About 250 Non-Jewish Greeks immigrated to Ottoman Palestine and Mandatory Palestine for the service of the Greek-Orthodox church in the country between 1850 and 1920, mostly residing in Jerusalem and Nazareth City . About 1,500-2,500 Ethnic Greeks Today, few were able to obtain Greek Citizenship largely due to
1220-832: A result of a common ancient Greek ( Achaean ) genetic contribution, while Lebanese affinity can be explained through several migrations that took place from coastal Levant to Cyprus from the Neolithic (early farmers), the Iron Age (Phoenicians), and the Middle Ages (Maronites and other Levantine settlers during the Frankish era). The authors note however that the Calabrian samples used in the analysis were relatively small (n = 30 comparative dataset, n = 74 YHRD) and thus these results should be interpreted with caution. Furthermore, from
1342-431: A result of the gradual dysfunction of Ottoman rule, for instance in adjudicating justice and in the collection of taxes. Turkish settlers suffered alongside their Greek Cypriot neighbors, and the two groups together endured centuries of oppressive governance from Constantinople . A minority of Greek Cypriots converted to Islam during this period, and are sometimes referred to as "neo-Muslims" by historians. Politically,
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#17327652709631464-865: A town a church should not be larger in size than the largest mosque. Many churches were converted into mosques (among them the Hagia Sophia and Chora Church in Constantinople , and the Rotunda and Hagios Demetrios in Thessaloniki ) or served for other uses (e.g. Hagia Irene in Constantinople, which became an armory for the Janissaries, and the Gül Mosque [Hagia Theodosia or Christ Euergetes], also in Constantinople, which after
1586-552: A wide and homogeneous genetic domain, along with the people of the Aegean Islands (including Crete ), Sicily , and southern Italy (including the Greek-speaking minorities of Apulia and Calabria), while the continental part of Greece, including Peloponnesus, appears as slightly differentiated, by clustering with the other Southern Balkan populations of Albania and Kosovo. The study calls this distinct genetic domain,
1708-524: Is a (non-exhaustive) list of these prerogatives and their reference points: In the eighth and ninth centuries the iconoclast movement caused serious political unrest throughout the Empire. The emperor Leo III issued a decree in 726 against images and ordered the destruction of an image of Christ over one of the doors of the Chalke, an act which was fiercely resisted by the citizens. Constantine V convoked
1830-644: Is also a difficulty faced by the Patriarchate. In 2024, after the protests from Turkey, the signature of the Ecumenical Patriarchate has been removed from the statement of the June 2024 Ukraine peace summit . The affairs of the patriarchate are conducted by the Holy Synod , presided over by the Ecumenical Patriarch. The synod has existed since some time prior to the fourth century and assists
1952-545: Is now Greece , Asia Minor , Pontus , and Thrace . With the development of the hierarchical structure of the Church, the bishop of Constantinople came to be styled as exarch (a position superior to metropolitan). Constantinople was recognized as the fourth patriarchate at the First Council of Constantinople in 381, after Antioch , Alexandria , and Rome . The patriarch was usually appointed by Antioch. Because of
2074-627: Is one of the fifteen to seventeen autocephalous churches that together compose the Eastern Orthodox Church . It is headed by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople . Because of its historical location as the capital of the former Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire and its role as the mother church of most modern Orthodox churches, Constantinople holds a special place of honor within Orthodoxy and serves as
2196-608: Is one of the oldest diasporas in the world, with an attested presence from Homeric times to the present. Examples of its influence range from the role played by Greek expatriates in the emergence of the Renaissance , through liberation and nationalist movements involved in the fall of the Ottoman Empire , to commercial developments such as the commissioning of the world's first supertankers by shipping magnates Aristotle Onassis and Stavros Niarchos . In Archaic Greece ,
2318-630: Is protected from above by my God, Hellenism will be lost, only when the world is gone." Archbishop Kyprianos' fictional response to Kucuk Mehmet's threat to execute the Greek Orthodox Christian bishops of Cyprus, in Vasilis Michaelides epic poem "The 9th of July of 1821 in Nicosia, Cyprus", written in 1884–1895. The poem is considered a key literary expression of Greek Cypriot Enosis sentiment. During
2440-481: Is the low frequency of haplogroups I, R1a among Greek Cypriots because the mainland Greek population has received considerable migrations during the Byzantine era and the Middle Ages from other Balkanic populations, such as Slavs, Aromanians (Vlachs), and Albanians (Arvanites), while the biggest differentiating characteristic between Greek Cypriots and Middle Easterners is the much lower frequency of haplogroup J1 among
2562-873: Is why some members of the Aromanian diaspora that settled in places such as Vienna in Austria have been considered as Greeks and part of a Greek diaspora as well. During and after the Greek War of Independence , Greeks of the diaspora established the fledgling state, raised funds and awareness abroad and served as senior officers in Russian armies which fought the Ottomans to help liberate Greeks under Ottoman subjugation in Macedonia , Epirus , and Thrace . Greek merchant families had contacts in other countries; during
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#17327652709632684-597: The Albanian Orthodox Church declared its autocephaly, being granted recognition of it in 1937. In addition to these churches, whose territory had been agreed upon by all as within Constantinople's jurisdiction, several other disputed areas' Eastern Orthodox churches have had recognition by the Ecumenical Patriarchate as either autocephalous or autonomous , including the Finnish Orthodox Church and Estonian Orthodox Church in 1923,
2806-615: The Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate , usually important laymen who make large donations for the upkeep of the Patriarchate. In turn, they are granted honorary titles which once belonged to members of the Patriarchal staff in centuries past. The Patriarchate acts in the capacity of being an intermediary and facilitator between the Orthodox churches and also in relations with other Christians and religions. This role sometimes brings
2928-641: The Black Sea region, particularly from the Trebizond region, the Pontic Alps , eastern Anatolia, Georgia, and the former Russian south-Caucasus Kars Oblast . After 1919–23, most of these Pontic Greek and Caucasus Greek communities resettled in Greek Macedonia or joined other Greek communities in southern Russia and Ukraine . Anyone who is ethnically Greek and born outside Greece may become
3050-829: The Byzantine–Arab Wars . The Greek populations generally remained in these areas of the Caliphate and helped translate ancient Greek works into Arabic, thus contributing to early Islamic philosophy and science (which, in turn, contributed to Byzantine science ). After the Byzantine–Ottoman Wars , which resulted in the fall of Constantinople in 1453 and the Ottoman conquest of Greek lands, many Greeks fled Constantinople (now Istanbul ) and found refuge in Italy. They brought ancient Greek writings that had been lost in
3172-476: The Council of Chalcedon in 451 recognized an expansion of the boundaries of the Patriarchate of Constantinople and of its authority over bishops of dioceses "among the barbarians", which has been variously interpreted as referring either to areas outside the Byzantine Empire or to non-Greeks. The council resulted in a schism with the Patriarchate of Alexandria. In any case, for almost a thousand years
3294-758: The Greek Civil War (1946–49) and the Turkish Invasion of Cyprus in 1974. After World War I , most Pontian and Anatolian Greeks living in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey) were victims of Muslim Turkish intolerance for Christians in the Ottoman Empire. More than 3.5 million Greeks, Armenians, and Assyrians were killed in the regimes of the Young Turks and Mustafa Kemal, from 1914 to 1923. Greeks in Asia Minor fled to modern Greece, and
3416-590: The Late Helladic III (1400–1050 BC). The quantity of this pottery concludes that there were numerous Mycenaean settlers, if not settlements, on the island. Archaeological evidence shows that Greek settlement began unsystematically in c. 1400 BC, then steadied (possibly due to Dorian invaders on the mainland) with definite settlements established in c. 1200 BC. The close connection between the Arcadian dialect and those of Pamphylia and Cyprus indicates that
3538-579: The Latin Empire of Constantinople was established, and Byzantine refugees founded their own successor states, the most notable of these being the Empire of Nicaea under Theodore Lascaris (a relative of Alexius III ), the Empire of Trebizond , and the Despotate of Epirus . The new seat of the Patriarchate was established in the city of Nicaea until in 1261, when Constantinople was reconquered by
3660-673: The Polish Orthodox Church in 1924, and the Czech and Slovak Orthodox Church in 1998. The majority of these disputes are a result of the expansion of the Russian Empire , which often included a subjugation of the Orthodox churches in conquered lands to the Moscow Patriarchate. Due to this, the Moscow Patriarchate often disputes the Ecumenical Patriarch's role as prime representative and spiritual leader of
3782-712: The Russian Empire (later the USSR ) was also a major destination. After the Greek Civil War , many communist Greeks and their families fled to neighboring Yugoslavia, the USSR and the Soviet-dominated states of Eastern Europe (especially Czechoslovakia). Hungary founded a village ( Beloiannisz ) for Greek refugees, and many Greeks were resettled in the former Sudeten German region of northern Czechoslovakia around Krnov (Jägerndorf). Sweden also admitted large numbers of Greeks, and over 17,000 Greek-Swedish descendants live in
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3904-574: The largest cities in the world during Hellenistic and Roman times. Greeks spread across the Roman Empire , and in the eastern territories the Greek language (rather than Latin ) became the lingua franca . The Roman Empire was Christianized in the fourth century AD, and during the late Byzantine period the Greek Orthodox form of Christianity became a hallmark of Greek identity. In
4026-657: The "Great Church of Christ" and it was the touchstone and reference point for ecclesiastical affairs in the East, whether in terms of church government, relations with the state, or liturgical matters. In history and in canonical literature (i.e. the Church's canons and traditional commentaries on them), the Ecumenical Patriarchate has been granted certain prerogatives ( πρεσβεία , presveía ) that other autocephalous Orthodox churches do not have. Not all of these prerogatives are today universally acknowledged, though all do have precedents in history and canonical references. The following
4148-526: The "Mediterranean genetic continuum". A 2017 archaeogenetics study, concluded that both the Mycenaean Greeks and the Minoans were genetically closely related, and that both are closely related, but not identical, to modern Greek populations. The F ST between the sampled Bronze Age populations and present-day West Eurasians was estimated, finding that Mycenaeans are least differentiated from
4270-451: The 1190s through to 1570. King Amaury , who succeeded his brother Guy de Lusignan in 1194, was particularly intolerant of the Orthodox Church. Greek Cypriot land was appropriated for the Latin churches after they were established in the major towns on the island. In addition, tax collection was also part of the heavy oppressive attitude of the occupiers to the locals of the island, in that it
4392-549: The 16th century from the island of Crete . Cretan Greeks settled in the Antofagasta Region in the mid-16th century and spread to other locations, such as the Greek colony in Santiago and the cities of San Diego, Valparaíso, Talcahuano, Puerto Montt, and Punta Arenas. Australia has one of the world's largest Greek communities. Greek immigration to Australia began during the 19th century, increasing significantly in
4514-507: The 1950s and 1960s. According to the 2016 census, there were 397,431 Greeks and Greek Cypriots (by ancestry) living in Australia and 93,740 Greeks born in Greece or Cyprus. According to Greeks around the Globe , Greek Australians number about 700,000. The majority of Greeks in Australia (over 90 percent) are Greek Orthodox and many attend church weekly. According to the SBS , Greeks in Australia have
4636-513: The 19th century) outside of the traditional areas; such as in Australia , Canada , United States , United Kingdom , Germany , Argentina , Brazil , New Zealand , United Arab Emirates , Singapore , Norway , and others. The Greek diaspora population is estimated at 5 million, which when added to the population of Greece (approximately 10 million), it gives a total worldwide Greek population of approximately 15 million. The Greek diaspora
4758-614: The 19th century, particularly with the independence of Greece. In 1833, the Church of Greece declared its autocephaly, which was subsequently recognized by the patriarchate in 1850. In 1865, the Romanian Orthodox Church , against the protests of Constantinople, declared its independence, which was acknowledged in 1885. A year before Greece's autocephaly was self-proclaimed, the Serbian Orthodox Church
4880-404: The 2011 Cypriot census. There is a notable community of Cypriots and people of Cypriot descent in Greece. In Athens, the Greek Cypriot community numbers ca. 55,000 people. There is also a large Greek Cypriot diaspora, particularly in the United Kingdom . Cypriot cuisine , as with other Greek cuisine , was imprinted with the spices and herbs made common as a result of extensive trade links within
5002-420: The 667,398 Cypriot citizens and over 78% of the 840,407 total residents of the area controlled by the Republic of Cyprus. These figures do not include the 29,321 citizens of Greece residing in Cyprus, ethnic Greeks recorded as citizens of other countries, or the population of Northern Cyprus . The majority of Greek Cypriots are members of the Church of Cyprus , an autocephalous Greek Orthodox Church within
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5124-465: The Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos . In accordance with the traditional custom at the time, Sultan Mehmed II allowed his troops and his entourage three full days of unbridled pillage and looting in the city shortly after it was captured. Once the three days passed, he would then claim its remaining contents for himself. However, by the end of the first day, he proclaimed that the looting should cease as he felt profound sadness when he toured
5246-439: The Conquest served for a while as a naval dockyard). Such rules, however, although very strict in the beginning, with time and the increasing importance in the Ottoman Empire of the Rum millet were increasingly disregarded, so that in the 19th century in Istanbul there was a veritable building boom of Orthodox churches, many among them having high bell towers and brick domes, both of which had previously been strictly Since 1586
5368-471: The Ecumenical Patriarchate has had its headquarters in the Church of St George in the Fener (Phanar) district of Istanbul. The current territory of the Patriarchate is significantly reduced from what it was at its height. Its canonical territory currently includes most of modern Turkey , northern Greece and Mount Athos , the Dodecanese and Crete . By its interpretation of Canon 28 of Chalcedon, Constantinople also claims jurisdiction over all areas outside
5490-431: The Ecumenical Patriarchate, primarily in the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America . The Patriarchate also enjoys an even greater majority in the United Kingdom . Furthermore, the Albanian, Rusyn and Ukrainian jurisdictions in America are also part of the Patriarchate. Most of the Patriarchate's funding does not come directly from its member churches but rather from the government of Greece, due to an arrangement whereby
5612-452: The Great moved his residence to the town renaming it Nova Roma ( Νέα Ῥώμη ), or "New Rome". Thenceforth, the importance of the church there grew, along with the influence of its bishop. Prior to the moving of the imperial capital, the bishop of Byzantium had been under the authority of the metropolitan of Heraclea , but from the 4th century on, he grew to become independent in his own right and even to exercise authority throughout what
5734-471: The Great 's conquest of the Achaemenid Empire marked the beginning of the Hellenistic period , which was characterized by a new wave of Greek colonization in Asia and Africa; the Greek ruling classes established their presence in Egypt , West Asia , and Northwest India . Many Greeks migrated to the new Hellenistic cities founded in Alexander's wake, as geographically dispersed as Uzbekistan and Kuwait . Seleucia , Antioch and Alexandria were among
5856-433: The Greek Cypriot community to survive, administered on behalf of Constantinople by the Archbishop of the Church of Cyprus. Cypriot Greeks were now able to take control of the land they had been working on for centuries. Although religiously tolerant, Ottoman rule was generally harsh and inefficient. The patriarch serving the Ottoman sultan acted as ethnarch , or leader of the Greek nation, and gained secular powers as
5978-560: The Greek Cypriots. Greek Cypriots are also differentiated by Turkish Cypriots in some aspects; namely Turkish Cypriots have 5.6% Eastern Eurasian (likely Central Asian/Turkic) and 2.1% North African patrilineal ancestry, while Greek Cypriots have 0.6% Eastern Eurasian and no North African patrilineal ancestry. Greek diaspora Constantinople and Asia Minor : Africa : Other regions : Other groups : Other languages The Greek diaspora , also known as Omogenia ( Greek : Ομογένεια , romanized : Omogéneia ), are
6100-813: The Greek diaspora (including those of Greek ancestry): Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople Autocephaly recognized by some autocephalous Churches de jure : Autocephaly and canonicity recognized by Constantinople and 3 other autocephalous Churches: Spiritual independence recognized by Georgian Orthodox Church: Semi-Autonomous: The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( Greek : Οἰκουμενικὸν Πατριαρχεῖον Κωνσταντινουπόλεως , romanized : Oikoumenikón Patriarkhíon Konstantinoupóleos , IPA: [ikumeniˈkon patriarˈçion konstandinuˈpoleos] ; Latin : Patriarchatus Oecumenicus Constantinopolitanus ; Turkish : Rum Ortodoks Patrikhanesi, İstanbul Ekümenik Patrikhanesi , "Roman Orthodox Patriarchate, Ecumenical Patriarchate of Istanbul")
6222-518: The Greek diaspora. The total number of Greeks living outside Greece and Cyprus is uncertain. Available census figures indicate about three million Greeks outside Greece and Cyprus, but the SAE estimates about seven million worldwide. The Greek diaspora defends Greek interests, particularly in the US. Assimilation and loss of the Greek language influence the definition of the Greek diaspora. To learn more about how factors such as intermarriage and assimilation influence self-identification among young Greeks in
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#17327652709636344-617: The Greek sub-populations, Cretan Greeks were found to be the closest to Cypriots. In terms of Rst pairwise genetic differences, which indicate deeper shared paternal ancestry than shared haplotypes, Greeks appear genetically close to Cypriots, and equidistant from Greek and Turkish Cypriots. Both Greek and Turkish Cypriots have similar frequencies for their major patrilineal haplogroups, with the main subclades for both being J2a-M410 (23.8% and 20.3% resp.), E-M78 (12.8% and 13.9% resp.) and G2-P287 (12.5% and 13.7% resp.). The biggest differentiating characteristic between Greek Cypriots and mainland Greeks
6466-417: The Greek-speaking Christian Orthodox population; this often forced the inhabitants of rural districts, particularly in the more vulnerable lowland areas, to abandon their homes. A larger-scale movement of Greek-speaking peoples in the Ottoman period was Pontic Greeks from northeastern Anatolia to Georgia and parts of southern Russia, particularly the province of Kars Oblast in the southern Caucasus after
6588-400: The Latins were astounded at the riches they found. Though the Venetians had an appreciation for the art which they discovered (they were themselves semi-Byzantines) and saved much of it, the French and others destroyed indiscriminately, halting to refresh themselves with wine, violation of nuns, and murder of Orthodox clerics. The Crusaders vented their hatred for the Greeks most spectacularly in
6710-423: The Lombard catepan of Italy , Argyrus , who had spent years in Constantinople, originally as a political prisoner. Patriarch Michael I Cerularius ordered a letter to be written to John, the Bishop of Trani in which he attacked the "Judaistic" practices of the West, namely the use of unleavened bread. The letter was to be sent by John to all the bishops of the West, including the Pope. John promptly complied and
6832-427: The Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed. As Bishop Kallistos Ware writes, "Even after 1054 friendly relations between East and West continued. The two parts of Christendom were not yet conscious of a great gulf of separation between them. […] The dispute remained something of which ordinary Christians in East and West were largely unaware". In fact, efforts were made in subsequent centuries by Popes and Patriarchs to heal
6954-622: The Ottoman Empire. Names of many dishes came to reflect the sources of the ingredients from the many lands . Coffee houses pervasively spread throughout the island into all major towns and countless villages. The everyday language of Greek Cypriots is Cypriot Greek , a dialect of Modern Greek . It shares certain characteristics with varieties of Crete , the Dodecanese and Chios , as well as those of Asia Minor . Greek Cypriots are generally educated in Standard Modern Greek, though they tend to speak it with an accent and preserve some Greek Cypriot grammar. A 2017 study, found that Cypriots belong to
7076-493: The Ottomans and the creation of a Greater Greece . The terrible devastation of the island of Chios in the 1822 massacre caused a great dispersion of the islanders, leading to the creation of a specific Chian diaspora . After the Treaty of Constantinople , the political situation stabilised; some displaced families returned to the newly independent country to become key figures in cultural, educational and political life, especially in Athens. Financial assistance from overseas
7198-413: The Patriarch of Constantinople presided over the church in the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire and its missionary activity that brought the Christian faith in its Byzantine form to many peoples north of the imperial borders. The cathedral church of Constantinople, Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom), was the center of religious life in the eastern Christian world. The Ecumenical Patriarchate came to be called
7320-399: The Patriarchate had transferred property it had owned to Greece. In exchange, the employees, including the clergy, of the Patriarchate are remunerated by the Greek government. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America provides substantial support through an annual contribution, known as the logia , and its institutions, including the American-based Greek Orthodox Ladies Philoptochos Society and
7442-407: The Patriarchate into conflict with other Orthodox churches, as its role in the church is debated. The question centers around whether the Ecumenical Patriarchate is simply the most honored among the Orthodox churches or whether it has any real authority or prerogatives ( πρεσβεία , presveía ) that differ from the other autocephalous churches. This dispute is often between Constantinople and Moscow,
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#17327652709637564-405: The Russian province of Kars in the South Caucasus . Many Pontic Greeks fled their homelands in Pontus and northeastern Anatolia and settled in these areas to avoid Ottoman reprisals after supporting the Russian invasions of eastern Anatolia in the Russo-Turkish Wars from the late 18th to the early 20th century. Others resettled in search of new opportunities in trade, mining, farming, the church,
7686-411: The Turks, had they taken the city, would not have been as cruel as the Latin Christians. The defeat of Byzantium, already in a state of decline, accelerated political degeneration so that the Byzantines eventually became an easy prey to the Turks. The Crusading movement thus resulted, ultimately, in the victory of Islam, a result which was of course the exact opposite of its original intention. Meanwhile,
7808-406: The United Kingdom, United States, Australia, South Africa and Europe, although most left Cyprus before 1974. There are today estimated to be 335,000 Greek Cypriot emigrants living in Great Britain. The majority of the Greek Cypriots in Great Britain currently live in England ; there is an estimate of around 3,000 in Wales and 1,000 in Scotland . By the early 1990s, Greek Cypriot society enjoyed
7930-400: The West, contributing to the Renaissance . Most of these Greeks settled in Venice , Florence , and Rome . Between the fall of the Empire of Trebizond to the Ottomans in 1461 and the second Russo-Turkish War in 1828–29, thousands of Pontic Greeks migrated (or fled) from the Pontic Alps and eastern Anatolia to Georgia and other southern regions of the Russian Empire , and (later)
8052-555: The World Council of Churches, the Ecumenical Patriarchate has a membership of 600,000 in the US and Canada who are still Greek Orthodox; however, many Greeks in both countries have adopted other religions or become secular. The 2010 census recorded about 130,000 Greek Americans, although members of the community dispute its accuracy. Most Greek Canadians live in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. The 2016 census reported that 271,405 Canadians were Greek by ancestry and 16,715 people were born in Greece. Greek immigration to Chile began during
8174-407: The agency of the Second Council of Nicaea in 787. The iconoclast controversy returned in the early 9th century, only to be resolved once more in 843 during the regency of Empress Theodora, who restored the icons. The relations between the papacy and the Byzantine court were good in the years leading up to 1054. The emperor Constantine IX and the Pope Leo IX were allied through the mediation of
8296-449: The authority of the legates to issue such a bull is unclear. The legates left for Rome two days after issuing the bull of excommunication, leaving behind a city near riot. The patriarch had the immense support of the people against the emperor, who had supported the legates to his own detriment. To assuage popular anger, the bull was burnt, and the legates were anathematised . Only the legates were anathematised and, in this case too, there
8418-421: The beginning of the schism. The full schism was not actually consummated by the seemingly mutual excommunications. The New Catholic Encyclopedia reports that the legates had been careful not to intimate that the bull of excommunication implied a general excommunication of the Byzantine Church. The bull excommunicated only Cerularius, Leo of Achrida, and their adherents. Thus, the New Catholic Encyclopedia argues that
8540-450: The canonically defined territories of other Orthodox churches, which includes the entire Western hemisphere , Oceania , the United Kingdom , Western Europe , Northeast Asia , Southeast Asia . This claim is disputed by other autocephalous churches with dioceses in those areas, as well as the Turkish government. The Orthodox presence in Turkey itself is small; however the majority of Orthodox in North America (about two-thirds) are under
8662-433: The city of São Paulo . Brazil has a sizable community of Antiochean Greeks (known as Melkites), Orthodox, Catholics, and Jews. According to the Catholic Church, the Eparchy of Nossa Senhora do Paraíso em São Paulo (Melkite Greek), the Eparchia Dominae Nostrae Paradisis S. Pauli Graecorum Melkitarum had a 2016 membership of 46,600. The World Council of Churches estimates that the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch has
8784-506: The communities of Greeks living outside of Greece and Cyprus . Such places historically (dating to the ancient period) include, Albania , North Macedonia , southern Russia , Ukraine , Asia Minor and Pontus (in today's Turkey), Georgia , Egypt , Sudan , southern Italy (the so-called " Magna Graecia "), Sicily , Cargèse and Marseille in France. The term also refers to communities established by Greek migration (mostly since
8906-490: The concept of enosis – unification with the Greek "motherland" – became important to literate Greek Cypriots after Greece declared its independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1821. A movement for the realization of enosis gradually formed, in which the Church of Cyprus played a dominant role during the Cyprus dispute . "Hellenism is a race as aged as the world, Nobody could be found to eliminate it, Nobody, for it
9028-433: The country. Although many immigrants later returned to Greece, these countries still have a number of first- and second-generation Greeks who maintain their traditions. With the fall of Communism in eastern Europe and the USSR, Greeks of the diaspora immigrated to modern Greece's main urban centers of Athens, Thessaloniki, and Cyprus; many came from Georgia . Pontic Greeks are Greek-speaking communities originating in
9150-462: The crusaders inflicted a severe sacking on Constantinople for three days, during which many ancient and medieval Roman and Greek works were either stolen or destroyed. Despite their oaths and the threat of excommunication, the Crusaders ruthlessly and systematically violated the city's holy sanctuaries, destroying, defiling, or stealing all they could lay hands on; nothing was spared. It was said that
9272-453: The day the Turks made a great slaughter of Christians through the city". According to historian Philip Mansel , widespread persecution of the city's civilian inhabitants took place, resulting in thousands of murders and rapes, and 30,000 civilians being enslaved or forcibly deported. George Sphrantzes says that people of both genders were raped inside Hagia Sophia . After Constantinople
9394-740: The defense of Orthodox Christian traditions. Prominent issues for the Ecumenical Patriarchate's policy in the 21st century include the safety of the believers in the Middle East , reconciliation of the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic churches, and the reopening of the Theological School of Halki , which was closed down by the Turkish authorities in 1971. In the year 330 the Roman Emperor Constantine
9516-513: The desecration of the greatest Church in Christendom. They smashed the silver iconostasis, the icons and the holy books of Hagia Sophia, and seated upon the patriarchal throne a whore who sang coarse songs as they drank wine from the Church's holy vessels. The estrangement of East and West, which had proceeded over the centuries, culminated in the horrible massacre that accompanied the conquest of Constantinople. The Greeks were convinced that even
9638-628: The diaspora, and to help clarify the estimates of Greeks in the diaspora, the Next Generation Initiative began an academically supervised research study in 2008. The United States has the largest ethnically-Greek population outside Greece. According to the US Department of State, the Greek-American community numbers about three million and the vast majority are third- or fourth-generation immigrants. According to
9760-530: The dispute need not have produced a permanent schism any more than excommunication of any "contumacious bishop". The schism began to develop when all the other Eastern patriarchs supported Cerularius. According to the New Catholic Encyclopedia, it was the support of Emperor Michael VI Stratiotikos that impelled them to support Cerularius. Some have questioned the validity of the bull on the grounds that Pope Leo IX had died at that time and so
9882-682: The disturbances, many set up home bases around the Mediterranean (notably Marseilles in France, Livorno , Calabria and Bari in Italy and Alexandria in Egypt), Russia ( Odesa and St. Petersburg ), and Britain (London and Liverpool ) from where they traded (typically textiles and grain). Businesses frequently included the extended family, and they brought schools teaching Greek and the Greek Orthodox Church . As markets changed, some families became shippers (financed through
10004-468: The importance of the position of Constantinople's church at the center of the Roman Empire, affairs involving the various churches outside Constantinople's direct authority came to be discussed in the capital, particularly where the intervention of the emperor was desired. The patriarch naturally became a liaison between the emperor and bishops traveling to the capital, thus establishing the position of
10126-514: The influence of the patriarchate at its capital. This influence came to be enshrined in Orthodox canon law , to such an extent that it was elevated even beyond more ancient patriarchates: Canon 3 of the First Council of Constantinople (381) stated that the bishop of that city "shall have primacy of honor after the Bishop of Rome because Constantinople is the New Rome." In its disputed 28th Canon,
10248-467: The largest Orthodox church in terms of population, especially as expressed in the Third Rome theory which places Moscow in the place of Constantinople as the center of world Orthodoxy. Such disputes sometimes result in temporary breaks in full communion , though usually not for very long. The relationship between Constantinople and the Ottoman Empire was frequently bitter, due in no small part to
10370-570: The legates' authority legally ceased, but they effectively ignored this technicality. In response to Michael's refusal to address the issues at hand, the legatine mission took the extreme measure of entering the church of the Hagia Sophia during the Divine Liturgy and placing a bull of excommunication on the altar. The events of the East-West Schism are generally dated from the acts of 1054. However, these events only triggered
10492-458: The letter was passed to Humbert of Mourmoutiers , the cardinal-bishop of Silva Candida , who translated the letter into Latin and brought it to the Pope, who ordered a reply to be made to each charge and a defence of papal supremacy to be laid out in a response. Although he was hot-headed, Michael was convinced to cool the debate and thus attempt to prevent the impending breach. However, Humbert and
10614-581: The local Greek community, with the aid of the Ralli or Vagliano Brothers ). The diaspora expanded across the Levant , North Africa , India and the US. Many leaders of the Greek struggle for liberation from Ottoman Macedonia and other parts of the southern Balkans with large Greek populations still under Ottoman rule had links to the Greek trading and business families who funded the Greek liberation struggle against
10736-635: The looted and enslaved city. Hagia Sophia was not exempted from the pillage and looting and specifically became its focal point as the invaders believed it to contain the greatest treasures and valuables of the city. Shortly after the defence of the Walls of Constantinople collapsed and the Ottoman troops entered the city victoriously, the pillagers and looters made their way to the Hagia Sophia and battered down its doors before storming in. Throughout
10858-862: The migration came from Achaea . The Achaean tribe may have been an original population of the Peloponnese, Pamphylia, and Cyprus, living in the latter prior to the Dorian invasion , and not a subsequent immigrant group; the Doric elements in Arcadian are lacking in Cypriot. Achaeans settled among the old population, and founded Salamis . The epic Cypria , dating to the 7th century BC, may have originated in Cyprus. The Byzantine era profoundly molded Greek Cypriot culture. The Greek Orthodox Christian legacy bestowed on Greek Cypriots in this period would live on during
10980-562: The military, and the bureaucracy of the Russian Empire . Greeks spread through many provinces of the Ottoman Empire and took major roles in its economic life, particularly the Phanariots (wealthy Greek merchants who claimed noble Byzantine descent during the second half of the 16th century). The Phanariots helped administer the Ottoman Empire's Balkan domains in the 18th century; some settled in present-day Romania , influencing its political and cultural life. Other Greeks settled outside
11102-464: The next decade and a half, enosis was a key issue for Greek Cypriots, and a key cause of events leading up to the 1974 coup , which prompted the Turkish invasion and occupation of the northern part of the island. Cyprus remains divided today, with the two communities almost completely separated. Many of those whom lost their homes, lands and possessions during the Turkish invasion, emigrated mainly to
11224-481: The patriarch as one involving the unity of the whole Church, particularly in the East. In turn, the affairs of the Constantinopolitan church were overseen not just by the patriarch, but also by synods held including visiting bishops. This pan-Orthodox synod came to be referred to as the ἐνδημοῦσα σύνοδος ( endemousa synodos , " resident synod "). The resident synod not only governed the business of
11346-493: The patriarch in determining the affairs of the possessions under his jurisdiction. The synod first developed from what was referred to as the resident synod , composed of the patriarch, local bishops, and any Orthodox bishops who were visiting in the imperial capital of Constantinople. After the fall of Constantinople , the synod's membership became limited to bishops of the patriarchate. The Holy and Sacred Synod, presided over by His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I,
11468-408: The patriarchate but also examined questions pertinent to the whole Church as well as the eastern half of the old empire. The patriarch thus came to have the title of Ecumenical , which referenced not a universal episcopacy over other bishops but rather the position of the patriarch as at the center of the oikoumeni , the "household" of the empire. As the Roman Empire stabilized and grew, so did
11590-462: The patriarchate but, from 1448, the Russian church came to function independently. Within decades after the Fall of Constantinople to Mehmed II of the Ottoman Empire on 29 May 1453, some were nominating Moscow as the "Third Rome" , or the "New Rome". In 1589, 141 years later, Constantinople came to recognize Russia's independence and led the Eastern Orthodox Church in declaring Russia also to be
11712-511: The period of British colonial rule (1878–1960), an efficient colonial administration was established, but government and education were administered along ethnic lines, accentuating differences. For example, the education system was organized with two Boards of Education, one Greek and one Turkish, controlled by Athens and Istanbul , respectively. The resulting Greco-Turkish educational systems emphasized linguistic, religious, cultural, and ethnic differences and downplayed traditional ties between
11834-646: The period of the siege of Constantinople , the trapped worshippers of the city participated in the Divine Liturgy and the Prayer of the Hours at the Hagia Sophia and the church formed a safe-haven and a refuge for many of those who were unable to contribute to the city's defence, which comprised women, children, elderly, the sick and the wounded. Being trapped in the church, the many congregants and yet more refugees inside became spoils-of-war to be divided amongst
11956-576: The pope made no concessions and the former was sent with legatine powers to the imperial capital to solve the questions raised once and for all. Humbert, Frederick of Lorraine , and Peter, Archbishop of Amalfi , arrived in April 1054 and were met with a hostile reception; they stormed out of the palace, leaving the papal response with Michael, who in turn was even more angered by their actions. The patriarch refused to recognise their authority or, practically, their existence. When Pope Leo died on April 19, 1054,
12078-453: The populations of Greece, Cyprus, Albania, and Italy. A 2017 study, found that both Greek Cypriots' and Turkish Cypriots' patrilineal ancestry derives primarily from a single pre-Ottoman local gene pool. The frequency of total haplotypes shared between Greek and Turkish Cypriots is 7-8%, with analysis showing that none of these being found in Turkey, thus not supporting a Turkish origin for
12200-536: The privilege given to Islam . requires by law that the Patriarch be a Turkish citizen by birth, which all Patriarchs have been since 1923 – all ethnic Greeks from the decreasing Greek minority of Turkey , which is causing a shortage of priests and consequently potential candidates for the post of Ecumenical Patriarch. The closing of the Orthodox Theological School of Halki
12322-844: The refusal of recognition from Greece. Greeks started to immigrate to Mexico in the late 1800s from mainland and especially the Greek islands and Cyprus. While there was an individual immigration to Mexico, the Mexican government looked to start olive production in the Pacific Coast so thousands were taken to the state of Sinaloa where the Greeks found fortunes in the tomato production instead. Today there are tens of thousands of Greek-Mexicans living primarily in Culiacán , Veracruz , and Mexico City as well as surrounding areas and other cities. 35,747 (2005, Greek citizens) Notable people of
12444-411: The rift between the churches. However, a number of factors and historical events worked to widen the separation over time. The Fourth Crusade in exchange for promised funds attempted to help the deposed emperor Alexius IV regain his throne. After taking Constantinople, returning Alexius IV to the throne, the revolt against and murder of Alexius IV left the Crusaders without payment. On 12 April 1204,
12566-568: The sack of Constantinople by the Frankish and Venetian Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade: The Latin soldiery subjected the greatest city in Europe to an indescribable sack. For three days they murdered, raped, looted and destroyed on a scale which even the ancient Vandals and Goths would have found unbelievable. Constantinople had become a veritable museum of ancient and Byzantine art, an emporium of such incredible wealth that
12688-593: The seat for the Ecumenical Patriarch, who enjoys the status of primus inter pares (first among equals) among the world's Eastern Orthodox prelates and is regarded as the representative and spiritual leader of Eastern Orthodox Christians. The Ecumenical Patriarchate promotes the expansion of the Christian faith and Eastern Orthodox doctrine , and the Ecumenical Patriarchs are involved in ecumenism and interfaith dialogue , charitable work, and
12810-678: The seventh century, Emperor Heraclius adopted Medieval Greek as the official language of the Byzantine Empire . Greeks continued to live around the Levant , Mediterranean and Black Sea, maintaining their identity among local populations as traders, officials, and settlers. Soon afterwards, the Arab-Islamic Caliphate seized the Levant , Egypt , North Africa and Sicily from the Byzantine Greeks during
12932-401: The shared haplotypes. No shared haplotypes were observed between Greek Cypriots and mainland Turkish populations, while total haplotypes shared between Turkish Cypriots and mainland Turks was 3%. Both Cypriot groups show close genetic affinity to Calabrian (southern Italy) and Lebanese patrilineages. The study states that the genetic affinity between Calabrians and Cypriots can be explained as
13054-673: The short-lived Russian occupation of Erzerum and the surrounding region during the 1828–29 Russo-Turkish War . An estimated one-fifth of Pontic Greeks left their homeland in the mountains of northeastern Anatolia in 1829 as refugees, following the Tsarist army as it withdrew back into Russian territory (since many had collaborated with—or fought in—the Russian army against the Muslim Ottomans to regain territory for Christian Orthodoxy). The Pontic Greek refugees who settled in Georgia and
13176-579: The southern Balkans, moving north in service to the Orthodox Church or as a result of population transfers and massacres by Ottoman authorities after Greek rebellions against Ottoman rule or suspected Greek collaboration with Russia in the Russo-Turkish wars fought between 1774 and 1878. Greek Macedonia was most affected by the population upheavals, where the large, indigenous Ottoman Muslim population (often including those of Greek-convert descent ) could form local militias to harass and exact revenge on
13298-505: The southern Caucasus assimilated with preexisting Caucasus Greek communities. Those who settled in Ukraine and southern Russia became a sizable proportion of cities such as Mariupol , but generally assimilated with Christian Orthodox Russians and continued to serve in the Tsarist army. In 1788, Ali Pasha of Ioannina destroyed Moscopole . This predominantly ethnic Aromanian settlement historically had an important Greek influence. This
13420-633: The spiritual, administrative, fiscal, cultural and legal jurisdiction of the Patriarchate. Some of the other patriarchs came at various points to live permanently in Constantinople and function as part of the local church government. This situation, according to some of the Orientalists and historians, shows the Pax Ottomana (or Pax Ottomanica , literally "the Ottoman Peace"). The Russian Orthodox Church , which for centuries had been
13542-514: The succeeding centuries of foreign domination. Because Cyprus was never the final goal of any external ambition, but simply fell under the domination of whichever power was dominant in the eastern Mediterranean , destroying its civilization was never a military objective or necessity. The Greek Cypriots did however endure the oppressive rule of first the Lusignans and then the Venetians from
13664-410: The total amount looted from Constantinople was about 900,000 silver marks. The Venetians received 150,000 silver marks that was their due, while the Crusaders received 50,000 silver marks. A further 100,000 silver marks were divided evenly up between the Crusaders and Venetians. The remaining 500,000 silver marks were secretly kept back by many Crusader knights. Nicetas Choniates gives a vivid account of
13786-596: The trading and colonizing activities of Greeks from the Balkans and Asia Minor propagated Greek culture, religion and language around the Mediterranean and Black Sea basins. Greek city-states were established in Southern Italy (the so-called " Magna Graecia "), northern Libya , eastern Spain, the south of France, and the Black Sea coast, and the Greeks founded over 400 colonies in these areas. Alexander
13908-436: The triumphant invaders. The building was desecrated and looted, with the helpless occupants who sought shelter within the church being enslaved. While most of the elderly and the infirm/wounded and sick were killed, and the remainder (mainly teenage males and young boys) were chained up and sold into slavery. The women of Constantinople also suffered from rape at the hands of Ottoman forces. According to Barbaro, "all through
14030-606: The two Cypriot communities. The two groups were encouraged to view themselves as extensions of their respective motherlands, leading to the development of two distinct nationalities with antagonistic loyalties. The importance of religion within the Greek Cypriot community was reinforced when the Archbishop of the Church of Cyprus, Makarios III , was elected the first president of the Republic of Cyprus in 1960. For
14152-555: The wider communion of Orthodox Christianity . In regard to the 1960 Constitution of Cyprus , the term also includes Maronites , Armenians , and Catholics of the Latin Church ("Latins"), who were given the option of being included in either the Greek or Turkish communities and voted to join the former due to a shared religion. Cyprus was part of the Mycenaean civilization with local production of Mycenaean vases dating to
14274-440: The world's Orthodox Christians, citing that it represents the numerically largest Orthodox community. As a ruling institution, the Ottoman Empire brought regulations on how the cities would be built (quality reassurances) and how the architecture (structural integrity, social needs, etc.) should be shaped. Special restrictions were imposed concerning the construction, renovation, size and usage of bells in churches. For example, in
14396-737: Was channeled through these family ties, providing for institutions such as the National Library and sending relief after natural disasters. During the 20th century, many Greeks left the traditional homelands for economic and political reasons; this resulted in large migrations from Greece and Cyprus to the United States , Australia , Canada , Brazil , The United Kingdom , New Zealand , Argentina , The United Arab Emirates , Singapore , Germany , Norway , Belgium , Georgia , Italy , Armenia , Russia , Chile , Mexico and South Africa , especially after World War II (1939–45),
14518-576: Was named autocephalous by the local secular government but Constantinople refused recognition until 1879. In 1860 the Bulgarians de facto seceded from the Ecumenical Patriarchate; in 1870 the Bulgarian church was politically recognized as autonomous under the name Bulgarian Exarchate by the Sultan's firman, but it was not until 1945 that it was recognized by the Ecumenical Patriarchate. In 1922,
14640-574: Was no explicit indication that the entire Western church was being anathematised. In the bull of excommunication issued against Patriarch Michael I Cerularius by the papal legates, one of the reasons cited was the alleged deletion by the Eastern Church of the "Filioque" from the original Nicene Creed. In fact, it was precisely the opposite: the Eastern Church had not deleted anything; it was the Western Church that had added this phrase to
14762-427: Was now being conducted by the Latin churches themselves. The Ottoman conquest of Cyprus in 1571 replaced Venetian rule. Despite the inherent oppression of foreign subjugation, the period of Ottoman rule (1570–1878) had a limited impact on Greek Cypriot culture. The Ottomans tended to administer their multicultural empire with the help of their subject millets , or religious communities. The millet system allowed
14884-686: Was overrun by the Ottoman Turks in 1453, the Patriarchate came to care more directly for all the Orthodox living in the Ottoman Empire . Mehmed II appointed Gennadios II Scholarios as the Patriarch in 1454 and designated him as the spiritual leader as well as the ethnarch or, in Turkish, milletbashi of all the Orthodox Christians in the Empire, regardless of ethnic origin; not only Greeks, but also Bulgarians , Serbs , Albanians , Wallachians , Moldavians , Croatis , Syrians , orthodox Arabs , Georgians and Lazs came under
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