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Crete is the largest island in Greece, the second largest (after Cyprus) of the eastern Mediterranean and the fifth largest in the Mediterranean. Crete lies at the southern end of the Aegean Sea and covers an area of ​​8.336 km ². The coordinates are approximately 35 ° N 24 ° A. The population is 601.100 people (census 2001).

 

The island is 260 km long and varies in width from 60 km (measured from the Dion cape to cape Stone), at only 12 km on the Isthmus of Ierapetra in eastern Crete. The coastline has deep geographic division, giving Crete over 1,000 km of coastline. Crete is located about 160 km south of the Greek mainland. Surrounded by the northern Aegean Sea, south by the Libyan.

The island is extremely mountainous and is defined by a high mountain range crossing from West to East, formed by three different groups of mountains. These are:
  • Leuka Oroi (White mountains) (2.452 μ).
  • Psiliritis (Idi) (35.18° Β 24.82° Α 2.456 μ).
  • the mountain Deiktis (2.148 μ).

These mountains offer gifted Crete with fertile plateaus like Lasithi Plateau, Omalos and Nida, caves like Dikteon and the Ideon cave, and gorges like the famous Gorge of Samaria, Imbros Gorge, the canyon Kourtaliotiko etc.

Crete was the Minoan civilization (about 3000-1400 BC), one of the first civilizations in Europe.

It is part of the regional government of Greece. Divided into four prefectures of Heraklio, Chania, Rethymnon and Lassithi.

Administrative division of Crete:

  • Heraklio
  • Chania
  • Rethymno
  • Agios Nikolaos