Epirus Ήπειρος |
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Administrative region of Greece Traditional region of Greece |
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Epirus within Greece |
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Coordinates: 39°36′N 20°48′E / 39.6°N 20.8°ECoordinates: 39°36′N 20°48′E / 39.6°N 20.8°E | ||
Country | Greece | |
Decentralized Administration | Epirus and Western Macedonia | |
Capital | Ioannina | |
Regional units |
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Government | ||
• Regional governor | Alexandros Kachrimanis (Nea Dimokratia) | |
Area | ||
• Total | 9,203.22 km2 (3,553.38 sq mi) | |
Population (2011) | ||
• Total | 336,856 | |
• Density | 37/km2 (95/sq mi) | |
Time zone | EET (UTC+2) | |
• Summer (DST) | EEST (UTC+3) | |
ISO 3166 code | GR-D | |
Website | www |
Epirus (/ɪˈpaɪrəs/; Greek: Ήπειρος, Ípeiros), is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region in northwestern Greece. It borders the regions of West Macedonia and Thessaly to the east, West Greece to the south, the Ionian Sea and Ionian Islands to the west and Albania to the north. The region has an area of about 9,200 km2 (3,600 sq mi). It is part of the wider historical region of Epirus, which overlaps modern Albania and Greece but lies mostly within Greek territory.
Greek Epirus, like the region as a whole, is rugged and mountainous. It comprises the land of the ancient Molossians and Thesprotians and a small part of the land of the Chaonians the greater part being in Southern Albania. It is largely made up of mountainous ridges, part of the Dinaric Alps. The region's highest spot is on Mount Smolikas, at an altitude of 2.637 metres above sea level. In the east, the Pindus Mountains that form the spine of mainland Greece separate Epirus from Macedonia and Thessaly. Most of Epirus lies on the windward side of the Pindus. The winds from the Ionian Sea offer the region more rainfall than any other part of Greece.