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The Aegean sea in Greece as seen from the island of SantoriniThe Aegean Sea ( Greek: Αιγαίον Πέλαγος, Aigaion Pelagos; Turkish: Ege denizi) is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, located between the Greek peninsula and Anatolia (Asia Minor, now part of Turkey). It is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus.
In ancient times the sea was the birthplace of two ancient civilizations - the Minoans of Crete, and Mycenean Civilization of the Peloponnese. Later arose the city-states of Athens, Sparta among many others that constituted the Hellenic Civilization. The Aegean Sea was later inhabited by PersiaPersia is the historical name for the state of Iran. The name was used in the West due to the ancient Greek name for Iran, Persis''. Persia is used to describe the nation of Iran, its people, or its ancient empire. The name Persia comes from a province inns, RomansSee also Roman Republic (18th century) and Roman Republic (19th century). The Roman Republic traditionally lasted as a representative government of Rome and its territories from 510 BC until the establishment of the Roman Empire, typically placed at 44 BC, the Byzantine EmpireThe Byzantine Empire or Eastern Roman Empire was the eastern section of the Roman Empire, with its capital at Constantinople (modern Istanbul), which remained in existence after the fall of Rome in the 5th century. The Byzantine period is usually consider, the VenetiansVenice ( Italian Venezia German Venedig , the city of canals, is the capital of the region of Veneto, population 271,073 (2001). The city stretches across numerous small islands in a marshy lagoon along the Adriatic Sea in northeast Italy. The saltwater l, the Seljuk TurksThe Seljuk Turks ( Turkish: Selcuk Arabic: Saljuq al-Saljiqa Persian: Saljuqiyn also Seldjuk Seldjuq Seljuq were a major branch of the Oghuz Turks and a dynasty that occupied parts of Central Asia and the Middle East from the 11th to 14th centuries. The S, and the Ottoman EmpireOsmanlı İmparatorluğu Devlet-i Aliye-i Osmaniye The Ottoman Coat of Arms Imperial motto: unknown The Ottoman Empire at the height of its power Official language Ottoman Turkish Capital İstanbul ( Constantinople) Sovereigns Sultans. The Aegean was the site of the original democraciesA democracy is a form of government under which the power to alter the laws and structures of government lies with the voting citizenry (referred to as "the people", because in modern times it usually consists of all people over 18 years of age), and all, and it allowed for contact between several diverse civilizations of the Eastern Mediterranean.
The Aegean islands can be simply divided into seven groups: the Thracian Sea group, the East Aegean group, the Northern Sporades, the Cyclades, the Saronic Islands (or, Argo-Saronic Islands), the Dodecanese and Crete. The word archipelago was originally applied specifically to these islands. Many of the Aegean islands, or chains of islands, are actually extensions of the mountains on the mainland. One chain extends across the sea to Chios, another extends across Euboea to Samos, and a third extends across the Peloponnese and Crete to Rhodes, dividing the Aegean from the Mediterranean. Many of the islands have safe harbours and bays, but navigation through the sea is generally difficult. Many of the islands are volcanic, and marble and iron are mined on other islands. The larger islands have some fertile valleys and plains.
In ancient times there were various explanations for the name "Aegean." It was said to have been named after the town of Aegae; Aegea, a queen of the Amazons who died in the sea; and Aegeus, the father of Theseus, who drowned himself in the sea when he thought his son had died.
