Aegean Sea

Aegean Sea

AEGEAN SEA

Arm of the Mediterranean between Greece and Turkey.

The Aegean Sea contains more than three thousand islands and is considered the home of the earliest European civilization (formerly the Mycenean-Minoan, now called the Aegean), from about 3000 to 1100 b.c.e. Crete is the largest island, lying almost equidistant from both Greece and Turkey, at the southern end of the Aegean, with the Ionian Sea to its west. Since the Aegean is the only breach in the mountainous belt to the north of the Mediterranean, it has been extremely important as a trading area and trade route; control of this sea has been the cause of wars since early Near Eastern civilization clashed with early European.

In 1820, all the shores and islands of the Aegean belonged to the Ottoman Empire, but the western shore and practically all the islands have since gradually gone to Greece, a cause of Turkish resentment. Two islands, İmroz (Greek, Im bros) and Bozca (Greek, Tenedos), are still Turkish. Greece claims the Aegean as a territorial sea, which Turkey disputes, in hopes of sharing benthic minerals. Petroleum was discovered on the sea bottom east of Thasos in 1970, which has sharpened the dispute.


Bibliography


Drysdale, Alasdair, and Blake, Gerald H. The Middle East and North Africa: A Political Geography. New York: Oxford University Press, 1985.

John R. Clark

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Aegean Sea

Aegean Sea Gr. Aigaion Pelagos, Turkish Ege Denizi, arm of the Mediterranean Sea, c.400 mi (640 km) long and 200 mi (320 km) wide, off SE Europe between Greece and Turkey; Crete and Rhodes mark its southern limit. Irregular in shape, it is dotted with islands, most of which belong to Greece; they include Évvoia , the Sporades , the Cyclades , Sámos , Khíos , Lesbos , Thásos , and the Dodecanese . The Aegean Sea's greatest depths (more than 11,600 ft/3,540 m) are found E of Crete. The Dardanelles strait connects the Aegean Sea with the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea.

Sardines and sponges taken from the Aegean are economically important. There has been considerable tension between Greece and Turkey since the 1970s over oil deposits and mineral rights in the Aegean. The name Aegean has been variously derived from Aegae, a city of Évvoia; from Aegeus, father of Theseus, who drowned himself in the sea believing his son had been slain by the Minotaur; and from Aegea, an Amazon queen who drowned in it. The sea's ancient name, Archipelago, now applies to its islands and, generally, to any island group.

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"Aegean Sea." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 14 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

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Aegean Islands

Aegean Islands, overall name for numerous islands and island groups in the Aegean Sea including the Cyclades, Dodecanese, and Sporades groups. The larger islands were occupied by Axis forces after the Balkan campaign and the fall of Crete in June 1941. When the Italians surrendered in September 1943 the Germans and the British fought the Dodecanese campaign for the possession of some of them.

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I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "Aegean Islands." The Oxford Companion to World War II. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 14 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "Aegean Islands." The Oxford Companion to World War II. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (February 14, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O129-AegeanIslands.html

I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "Aegean Islands." The Oxford Companion to World War II. 2001. Retrieved February 14, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O129-AegeanIslands.html

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Aegean Sea

Aegean Sea Part of the Mediterranean Sea between Greece and Turkey, bounded by Crete to the s and connected to the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara by the Dardanelles to the ne. Oil and natural gas have been discovered in the area, but the principal income is derived from tourism, fishing, and crops such as citrus fruits, olives, and grapes.

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Free newspaper and magazine articles

Aegean Sea rivals make efforts to tide over feud.(World)(Briefing/Europe)
Newspaper article from: The Washington Times (Washington, DC); 10/22/2000
Aegean Sea incident spurs anger in Greece; Turkey's bid to join EU seen at...
Newspaper article from: The Washington Times (Washington, DC); 6/5/2003
Tanker threatens Spanish coastline. (Aegean Sea tanker leak)
Newspaper article from: The Oil Daily; 12/4/1992

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Aegean Sea images
Aegean Sea. Wikimedia Commons (Public Domain)