Mace Don Ian vs Greek History

8/6/2019 Mace Don Ian vs Greek History

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You can alsoc lick here to go directly to AncientSculptureGallery.com's Hellenistic, Macedonian, Greek, and Roman sculptures. AncieSculpture Gallery has 9 different busts, statues, and plaques of Alexander the Great (including the famous Alexander Sarcophagus) ansculptures of Philip of Macedon, Demosthenes, Achilles, Hippocrates, Caesar, Apollo, Aphrodite, Heracles, Pan, Orpheus, Zeus, ArtemHermes, Dionysus, Athena, Perseus, Medusa, Eros, Centaur, Lapith, Nike, the Maenads, the Muses, the Graces, etc.

The Macedonian-Greek ConflictThe age long conflict between the Greeks and the Macedonians

The Macedonian-Greek conflict is a very complex issue. Lots of books have been written about Macedobut many of them simply serve to justify the aspirations, propaganda, and the partition of Macedon1913, by the neighboring countries such as Greece. These sources are, therefore, biased. The Greek pabout Macedonia rely strictly on their very own Greek propaganda sources, which naturally makes tbiased. In order to find the real truth about Macedonia, one has to rely on the independent and neusources when looking into history. This page is such case, which browses historical independent and nefacts, to show the truth about Macedonia against the century-old Greek propaganda.

Macedonia seceded from Yugoslavia and became a sovereign state by a popular referendum heSeptember 1991 when the majority of voters chose independence. Greece immediately demanded frominternational community not to recognize the country under its name Macedonia.

Greece alleges that:

1. The Macedonians should not be recognized as Macedonians because the Macedonians have beeGreek nationality since 2000 BC.

2. Those Macedonians whose language belongs to the Slavic family of languages, must notthemselves Macedonians because 4000 years ago, the Macedonians spoke Greek and still spnothing but Greek.

3. Macedonia has no right to call itself by this name because Macedonia has always been and still region of Greece.

The people of Macedonia affirm that:

1. The ancient Macedonians were a distinct European people, conscious and proud of their nationa

their customs, their language, and their name. The same applies to the modern Macedonians tod

2. The ancient Macedonians regarded the ancient Greeks as neighbors, not as kinsmen. The Gretreated the Macedonians as foreigners ("barbarians") whose native language was Macedonian,Greek.

3. Macedonia was never a region of Greece. On the contrary, ancient Greece was subjecteMacedonia. In 1913, modern Greece and her Balkan allies partitioned Macedonia. If today a po
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of Macedonia belongs to Greece, it is by virtue of an illegal partition of the whole and occupationpart of Macedonia.

These assertions will be shown to be true in the eyes of history proving the absurdity of Greek allegatagainst the people of Macedonia.

ANCIENT MACEDONIA AND GREECE

In the course of the second pre-Christian millennium, the ancient Greeks descended in several migrawaves from the interior of the Balkans to Greece. Some passed across the plain of Thessaly on their south, while others went south through Epirus. More recent scholars point to Asia Minor as the original Ghomeland. There is no evidence that the ancient Greeks ever settled prehistoric Macedonia. Archeologevidence shows that ancient Macedonia lay beyond the cultural and ethnic borders of the Bronze Mycenaean Greek Civilization, which ends at the border of northern Thessaly (1400 - 1100 BC). prehistoric Macedonians show a remarkable continuation of existing material culture.

Ancient Macedonia was home to many tribes. The ancient Macedonian tribes emerged from the BrygianPhrygians. Some of the Brygians left Macedonia and migrated to Asia Minor where they changed their n

to Phrygians and established a powerful Phrygian kingdom (Herodotus). When the Macedonian army uAlexander the Great will enter Phrygia centuries later, Philotas spoke of the connections betweenPhrygians and the Macedonians, by calling the Macedonians "Phrygians" (Curtius).

Greek migrants settled few coastal areas of Macedonia, Thrace, and Illyria after they exhaustedpossibilities of settlement in Asia Minor, Italy, France, Spain and Scythia (Ukraine and Russia). Howethey did not consider Macedonia especially attractive for permanent settlement. Neither did the Macedonwelcome them as open-heartedly as did the Italians and Scythians. By the middle of the fourth centurythe Greek settlers were expelled from Macedonia and their cities, including Aristotle's native Stragira, rto the ground by the Macedonian kingPhilip II (360-336). Aristotle died in exile in Greece.

The ancient Macedonians regarded the Greeks as potentially dangerous neighbors, never as kinsmen.Greeks stereotyped the Macedonians as "barbarians" and treated them in the same bigoted manner in wthey treated all non-Greeks. Herodotus, the Father of History, relates how the Macedonian king Alexa

I(498-454 BC), a Philhellene (that is "a friend of the Greeks" and logically a non-Greek), wanted to tapart in the Olympic games. The Greek athletes protested, saying they would not run with a barbarHistorianThucydidis also calls the Macedonians barbarians, and so did Thracymachus who called Archelabarbarian who enslaved Greeks. Demosthenes, the great Athenian statesman and orator, spoke of Philas:

"... not only no Greek, nor related to the Greeks, but not even a barbarian from any place that be named with honors, but a pestilent knave from Macedonia, whence it was never yet possiblbuy a decent slave."[Third Philippic, 31]

The Macedonian "barbarian" defeated Greece at the battle of Chaeronea in August 338 BC and appoihimself "Commander of the Greeks". This battle had established Macedonian hegemony over Greece anddate is commonly taken as the end of Greek history and the beginning of the Macedonian era. Greece

not regain its independence until 1827 AD.

In 335 BC, Philip's son Alexander campaigned toward the Danube, to secure Macedonia's northern fronOn rumors of his death, a revolt broke out in Greece with the support of leading Athenians. Alexamarched south covering 240 miles in two weeks. When the revolt continued he sacked Thebes, killing 6people and enslaving the survivors. Only the temples and the house of the poet Pindar were spared.

The Ancient Macedonian Language
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The Macedonians spoke their own native language which was unrecognizable by the Greeks. The very barbarian literally means a person who does not speak Greek. Though Alexander spoke also Greek, loHomer, and respected his tutor Aristotle, there is much evidence that he hated the Greeks of his day, like his father Philip II. Philip had razed to the ground the Greek cities on Macedonian territory (includin32 Greek cities in Chalcidice) and enslaved their inhabitants. Alexander the Great thoroughly destroThebes. His Asian empire has not once been described as "Greek", but is correctly called Macedonian fowon it with an army of 35,000 Macedonians and only 7,600 Greeks, and similar numbers of ThraciansIllyrians who were all forced to fight with their Macedonian overlords. The overwhelming number of Grehowever, 50,000 in total (Curtius), had however, distinguished themselves on the side of the Persians fought fiercely till the end against the Macedonians. For instance, at the battle of Granicus there w

20,000 Greeks, out of which the Macedonians killed 18,000 and the 2,000 survivors were sent in chainMacedonia (Arrian, Curtius). Arrianspecifically speaks of the "old racial rivalry" between Macedonians Greeks that characterized this battle. At the battle of Issus, there were 30,000 Greeks on the side ofPersians to fight Alexander, and their survivors also fought at Gaugamela along with the Albanians andPersians, against the Macedonians.

The question of the use of the ancient Macedonian language was raised by Alexander himself during theof Philotas, one of his generals accused of treason. This is what Alexander has said to Philotas:

"The Macedonians are about to pass judgement upon you; I wish to know weather you will use tnative tongue in addressing them." Philotas replied: "Besides the Macedonians there are mpresent who, I think, will more easily understand what I shell say if I use the same language wyou have employed."Than said the king: "Do you not see how Philotas loathes even the languof his fatherland? For he alone disdains to learn it. But let him by all means speak in whatever he desires, provided that you remember that he holds out customs in as much abhorrence aslanguage"(Curtius).

The trial of Philotas took place in Asia before a multiethnic public, which has understood Greek as it was a common language, like English today. But Alexander spoke Macedonian with his Macedonians language he accuses Philotas of loathing) and used Greek in addressing the west Asians. Like CarthagenIllyrian, and Thracian, ancient Macedonian was not recorded in writing. However, on the bases of abo

hundred glosses, Macedonian words noted and explained by Greek writers, some place names Macedonia, and a few names of individuals, most scholars believe that ancient Macedonian was a sepaIndo-European language. Evidence from phonology indicates that the ancient Macedonian language distinct from ancient Greek.

THE ROMAN OCCUPATION

Both Macedonia and Greece were annexed by the Romans after the battle of Pydna in 168 BC. significant that the Greeks again fought against the Macedonians during the Macedonian Wars, on the sidthe Romans. The Macedonians were asked to evacuate from the whole of Greece and withdrewMacedonia by the Romans, and the Greek fought against the Macedonian army and its king Philip V their final defeat (Polybius, Livy). After the end of the Macedonian kingdom, Latin was the official languin Roman Macedonia from 168 BC until the demise of Roman rule at the end of the sixth century AD.

SLAV SETTLEMENTS IN MACEDONIA, GREECE, THRACE, AND ILLYRIA

In the sixth century, the Slavs penetrated Illyria, Thrace, Macedonia, and Greece. The Slavs settled landfar as Peloponnesus and the Aegean islands, and some of the Slavic tribes in Greece remained unconquefor centuries. During the following centuries, the Slavs mixed with the original Macedonians, GreThracians, and Illyrians, and thus laid the foundations to the modern nations of the Balkans, and tmodern languages.

Today's modern Macedonian language has both ancient Macedonian and Slavic background. How mmodern Macedonian is based upon ancient Macedonian is impossible to say since we do not have m
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ancient Macedonian words that have survived, except about 150 glosses. Yet, ancient Macedonian wordsstill present in modern Macedonian. Alexander's infantrypeshatairoiliterally means "armed walking memodern Macedonian (peshatari). Hammond says that the ancient Macedonians called their commatchelniku, which again means in modern Macedonian "somebody who leads" (chelniku). The Macedoprodromoi, were the openers in the battles of Alexander the Great. Today in modern Macedonian this me"somebody who penetrates" (prodir), etc. Many ancient Macedonian names are still present among todMacedonians, and many ancient Macedonian customs have the ancients have described have survivewell among today's Macedonians. The memory of Philip II and Alexander the Great echoes in Macedonian folklore.

The modern Macedonian language was systemized in the middle of the ninth century by SS Cyril Methodius, the two Macedonian brothers from the largest Macedonian city of Salonica. This languagefunctioned as the principal literary, liturgical, and colloquial language of Macedonia ever since. This periothe Macedonian history set the foundations for the development of the modern Macedonian nation and incenturies after the coming of the Slavs, the Macedonians continue to exist in Byzantine sources as natMacedonia resisted the settlement attacks by the Armenian and Syrian dynasties, who held power in Rome (Byzantium), and by the nomadic Bulgarians. From 1014 to 1204, Macedonia was part of the mcultural Byzantine Empire. In the next two centuries, the Macedonians fought foreign invaders, adventurand bandits who failed to dominate their land, apart from the Serbs and the Bulgarians who briefly held

the fifteenth century, the Ottoman Turks succeeded in conquering all of Macedonia, Greece, and the resthe Balkans, and enforced their 500-year old rule.

MACEDONIA IN THE XIX CENTURY

Greek, Serbian, and Bulgarian Independence

In 1827, the European powers intervened on behalf of the Greek rebels and forced the Turks to grant tindependence. The same powers, established the first modern Greek state, chose Prince Otto of Bavaribe the "King of the Hellenes", and sent him to Athens. Serbia freed herself also from the Turkish rule, wRussia declared war on Turkey to help Bulgaria gain its independence.

San Stefano and Berlin Conferences

The war between Russia and Turkey ended on March 3, 1878, with the peace settlement of San Stefano.Turks had to agree to the formation of the new Bulgarian state, to also include all of Macedonia but the of Salonika. Russia was hoping that greater Bulgaria with Macedonia would give her the strategic exit onAegean Sea, but she encountered fierce resistance from Austria-Hungary and England that saw interests on the Balkans endangered. On July 13, 1878 with the Berlin Conference, they forced Russigive up her dream and the San Stefano agreement was revised. Macedonia was returned to the OttoEmpire. From this moment, Macedonia became a battleground where the interests not only of the Bastates, but also of the Great Powers, collide.

The Macedonian and Greek Orthodox Churches

The Ohrid Archiepiscopy was founded as a separate church in 995 to care for the religious needs of

Orthodox Macedonians. However, under the influence of the Greek Orthodox church, the Turkish suabolished the Macedonian church in 1767. The Greek Orthodox church was now able to enforce its religteachings in Greek as the only Orthodox church to exist in the Balkans. Greece hoped to spreadinfluence and propaganda through the newly opened Greek schools, with a goal to Hellenize the populaof Macedonia. But as their influence grew bigger, so did the resistance of the Macedonians. On Marc1851, the residents of Enidje-Vardar (today in Greece) signed a petition, for replacement of the teachingGreek with Macedonian. In 1859, in Kukush was formed the resistance movement against the Hellenizathat quickly spread to Voden (Edessa), Kostur (Kastoria), Lerin (Florina), and the rest of soutMacedonia.


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Balkan and Neutral Statistics on the Population of Macedonia

Adding to the Greek influence, the Bulgarians opened their schools in Macedonia in 1871, and the Sfollowed shortly after. This is the beginning of the so-called "Macedonian Question". The new indepenBalkan states used those schools to propagate how the Macedonians do not exist, and how Macedonia

populated only by Greeks, Bulgarians, and Serbs. Ethnographers, historians, and writers begun wrbooks in favor of this or that propaganda. Many of them did not even visit Macedonia, while those whoalready had a written scenario. Their presence there was only a simple formality. The Turkish statistics mthe picture more confusing as the Turks registered the people based on religion, not on ethnic backgroTable 1 gives an excellent proof of those Balkan speculations surrounding Macedonia:

balkan views

Greek

Nikolaides

1899

Bulgarian

Kenchov

1900

Serbian

Gopchevich

1886

MacedonianSlavs

454,000 - -

Serbs - 400 1,540,000

Bulgarians - 1,037,000 -

Greeks 656,300 214,000 201,000

Turks andothers

576,600 610,365 397,020

Table 1. Greek, Bulgarian, and Serbian Statistics of Macedonia's population

It is more than obvious that all the views coming from the Macedonia's neighbors which sharply contraeachother, are biased. They all claim their people in Macedonia to justify their well-planned aspirations. important to note that both the Bulgarian and Serbian views agree that the Greeks in Macedonia repreonly a small minority of 10%. The Greek ethnographer Nikolaides, on the other hand, claims three ti

bigger number than his colleagues in Belgrade and Sofia. However, the most important about Nikolaidthat he recognizes the Macedonian Slavs as a separate nation, separate from the Bulgarians and the Seto be part of population of Macedonia. And although he tries hard to lower the numbers of those MacedoSlavs, he still comes up with a convincing proof of their existence.

This is the time when many European slavists, ethnographers, and historians, are also attracted to Macedonia and conduct their own investigations. Therefore, to find the unbiased population numberMacedonia, we have to rely on neutral and independent statistics:

neutral views

German

Dr. K.Ostreich

1905

Austrian

K. Gersin

1903

English

Andrew

Rousos

MacedonianSlavs

1,500,000 1,182,036 1,150,000

Serbs - - -

Bulgarians - - -

Greeks 200,000 228,702 300,000
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Turks andothers

550,000 627,915 400,000

Table 2. Independent and Neutral European Statistics of Macedonia's Population

Although the Macedonians are referred as "Macedonian Slavs", the main point of the statistics is the fact

they are recognized as distinct nation with cultural and historical right over their country Macedonia in wthey are overwhelming majority. The reluctance to refer to them for what they are (simply as Macedoniais explained by the overemphasizing of the contemporary Greek vs. Slavic (Serb and Bulgarian) rivalry Macedonia in which the westerners desired to make the note that the Macedonians were more "Slavs" t"Greeks" - thus resulting in the use of the term "Macedonian Slavs" to distinguish them from all butindicate their closer relation to their northern then southern neighbors, as interestingly was the case the ancient Macedonians and their closer relations with the Thracians and Illyrians then with the ancGreeks.

Yet the term "Macedonian Slavs" is erroneous since the Macedonians, although conscious of their ancMacedonian roots and Slav admixture, did not specifically call themselves "Macedonians Slavs", Macedonians as the documents over the last 2,500 years show. The same "Macedonian Slavs" mistakeagain repeated by some western media, as the Albanian terrorists attacked Macedonia in March of 2001,

again it was done deliberately. This deliberate bias is again there, unfortunately because of the polsituation and the western media's inclination towards the goals of the Albanian terrorism for "GreAlbania". As at the beginning of the 20th century, the Macedonians showed their outrage at the beginof the 21st century of this racial insult and publicly instead that their nationality be respected. Not onlyMacedonians all over the world vigorously accused the western media for racial bias, but also did vawestern independent and non-government organizations. That referring to the Macedonians as "MacedoSlavs" was a mistake was publicly acknowledged by BBC which apologized and withdrew its reporter Wood precisely for his bias reporting, and since continued to rightfully refer to the Macedonians for wthey have always been - Macedonians.

From the two above tables one can easily notice that the number of Greeks in Macedonia according to

neutral authors also aligns with the numbers given by the Serb and Bulgarian authors. This is a proof the Greeks before the partition of Macedonia, were indeed a small minority, only 10% from the population. This fact certainly does not give them the copyright of the name Macedonia. Dr. Ostre

Gersin, and Roussos, are only a few of the many neutral authors to prove the groundless speculations oBalkan counties. They proved that Macedonia belongs to a separate nation, which proves that the Bulgarand the Serbs have than simply substituted the numbers of the Macedonians for theirs. Another AustrKarl Hron explained why that is unjustified:

"According to my own studies on the Serb-Bulgarian conflict I came to the conclusion that Macedonians looking at their history and language are a separate nation, which means they areSerbs nor Bulgarians, but the descendants of those Slavs who populated the Balkan peninsula lbefore the Serb and Bulgarian invasions, and who later did not mix with any of those other nations..."and:

"... the Macedonian language according to its own laws in the development of the voices, andown grammatical rules, forms one separate language".

There were even Greek and Bulgarian writers to support what Karl Hron has written. One such exampthe Bulgarian slavist and ethnographer P. Draganov, who in his studies of 1887-1894 and 1903, provedexistence of the Macedonians and the Macedonian language as a distinct language. Here is what HeBrailsford had said about the Macedonians in "Macedonia: its Races and their Future".

"Are the Macedonians Serbs or Bulgars? The question is constantly asked and dogmatically answin Belgrade and Sofia. But the lesson of history is obviously that there is no answer at all. Theynot Serbs, for their blood can hardly be purely Slavonic... On the other hand, they can hardlyBulgarians... They are very probably very much what they were before either a Bulgarian o
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Serbian Empire existed - a Slav people derived from various stocks, who invaded the peninsuldifferent periods."

At the time of the emergence of the so-called Macedonian question, and the aspirations of the Macedoneighbors for occupation of the country, the famous Macedonian Gjorgi Pulevski wrote in 1875:

"People who originate from one and the same race, speak the same language, live together in harmony, have the same customs, songs and mentality, constitute a nation, and the place where they live is theirhomeland. In this way, the Macedonians are a nation and their homeland is Macedonia" and,

"I am not Bulgarian, nor Greek, nor Tzintzar, I am pure Macedonian as were Philip and Alexander theMacedonian and Aristotle Philosopher"

Pulevski was right back in 1875. He was conscious and aware that the Macedonians were a distinct natiofact that the documents of the last 25 centuries clearly show.

Macedonian Uprisings

The Macedonians will first start an organized resistance in the XIX century, to free their land from the year old Turkish yoke. The uprisings in Kresna and Razlog (1878 - 1879), although unsuccessful, gasympathies of many intellectuals in Europe. Among them was W.E. Gladstone who wrote:

"... Next to the Ottoman government nothing can be more deplorable and blameworthy jealousies between Greek and Slav and plans by the states already existing for appropriating oterritory. Why not Macedonia for the Macedonians as well as Bulgaria for the Bulgarians and Sefor the Serbians."

Gladstone was three times elected Prime Minister of England (1868 -1874; 1880 - 1885 and 1893 - 18He supported the Macedonian nation in its quest for freedom. Perhaps Macedonia would have gaineindependence had this man been once again elected Prime Minister during the big Ilinden Uprising on Au2, 1903. Left without any support, the uprising was crushed by the Turks, followed by the massacre on

innocent Macedonian population.

THE PARTITION OF MACEDONIA AND ITS CONSEQUENCES

On October 8, 1912, the First Balkan War begun. Montenegro, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Greece attackedEuropean positions of the Ottoman Empire. More than 100,000 Macedonians also took active part contributed in driving the Turks out of Macedonia. Turkey capitulated soon, but Macedonia did not free itThe victorious Balkan kingdoms convened in Bucharest in August 1913 to divide the spoils. The partitioMacedonia is best illustrated with the following maps:
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Macedonia within Turkey before 1912 and its partition in 1913 among Greece, Serbia, Bulgaand Albania

Greece was awardedAegean Macedonia and renamed it to "Northern Greece"; Bulgaria annexed Macedonia and abolished the Macedonian name, and Serbia took over Vardar Macedonia and renamed "Southern Serbia".The same year, N. Pasich of Serbia and E. Venizelos of Greece agreed on the neformed Greek-Serbian (later Yugoslavian) border, so that there would be "only Serbs to the North and Greeks to the South", and no "Macedonians" on either side. Thus, the politics to assimilate the Macedonof Aegean Macedonia had already begun.

The Greek Atrocities in Aegean Macedonia

1. On June 21, 22, and 23, 1913, the Greek army completely burned to the ground the city of Kuk(today Kilkis), known for its resistance against Hellenism in the XIX century and the birthplacGotse Delchev.

2. Between June 29 and 25, 39 villages in the Kukush area were also burned down.

3. On June 23 and 24, the city of Serres (today Serrai) was set on fire where 4000 houses perishedthe Serres gymnasium the Greeks murdered about 200 people.

4. During these days the larger portion of Strumica was also destroyed by the Greek army.

5. Between June 23 and 30, many villages in the Drama and Serres districts were burned down.

6. From June 27 to July 6 all Macedonian quarts of Salonika were set on fire.

The Carnegie Commission composed of members from USA, Germany, Russia, France, Austria, and Englwitnessed the Greek atrocities when visited Aegean Macedonia. Their final conclusion was that the G

army has burned to the ground 170 villages with over 17,000 houses.

Since 1913, official Greece has been trying to banish native Macedonian names of villages, towns, cirivers, and lakes in Aegean Macedonia. For example, the little stream which issues from Mount Olympusflows into the Aegean Sea is labeled Mavroneri("black water") on the maps made by Greek cartograpafter 1913. However, the same river appears as Crna Reka, a native Macedonian name meaning "briver" on the maps made before 1913. Kukush has been dropped for Kilkis and Serres for Serai, togewith at least 300 other places all over Macedonia.


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Forced Change of the Ethnic Structure of Aegean Macedonia

The presence of the Macedonians in Aegean Macedonia could not allow Greece to claim that land to be Gand only Greek. Since it was proven that they resisted the Hellenization, Greece decided to drive them oMacedonia. Greece made agreements with Bulgaria (signed 10/27/19), and Turkey (1/30/23 in Lausan

for exchange of population. This provided for the Macedonians of Aegean to leave for Bulgaria, whileGreeks in Bulgaria and Turkey settled in the Aegean part of Macedonia. These measures changed the etcharacter of the Aegean Macedonia. According to the "Great Greek Encyclopedia", there were 1,221newcomers against 80,000 "slavophones". The "Ethnic Map of Greek Macedonia Showing the Ratio BetwVarious Ethnic Elements in 1912 and 1926," claims there were 119,000 "bulgarisants" in 1912, and 77,in 1926. The Greek ethnic map of Aegean Macedonia was submitted to the League of the nations byGreek government. The League of the Nations had not visited Aegean Macedonia and did not participatall in conducting this statistics. Greece here refers to the Macedonians as "bulgarisants", which means "twho pretend to be Bulgarians" and obviously non-Bulgarians. However, Greece uses many other namefalsifying the identity of the Macedonians. Slavophones, Slav Macedonians, Makedoslavs, Slav Greeks,Bulgarisants, are only some of the names that prove Greece's unpreparess in this mean falsification ofMacedonian people and language. There are also other Greek sources that contradict the previous numof the Macedonians in Greece. The Athenian newspaper, "Message d' Aten" wrote on February 15, 1913,the number of "Bulgar-echarhists" was 199,590 contradicting with those 119,000 of the "Ethnic Ma

Greek Macedonia".

How many Macedonians remained in Greece?

When the Bulgarian and Serbian views are added, the confusion gets only bigger. According to the BulgaRumenov, in 1928 there were total of 206,435 "Bulgarians", while the Serb Bora Milojevich claimed 250,"Slavs" in Aegean Macedonia. Belgrade's "Politika" in its 6164 issue of June 24, 1925 gave three tigreater numbers for the Macedonians in Greece than official Athens:

"The Greek government must not complain that we are pointing to the fact that the Macedopopulation of West Macedonia - 250,000 - 300,000 - is the most unfortunate national and linguminority in the world, not only because their personal safety in endangered, but also because thave no church nor school in their own language, and they had them during the Turkish rule."

The speculations with the real number of Macedonians is obvious again. Their true number remdisputable in the Balkan documents, same as it was the case before the partition of 1912. UnfortunatelyGreek government would not allow anybody, including neutral observers to conduct statistical stuForced to leave, the Macedonians emigrated in large numbers to Australia, Canada, and the USA. result, there are about 300,000 Macedonians that presently live in Australia. In the city of Toronto, Canthere are about 100,000. The present Macedonian colonies in these counties are represented mostly bydescendants of those Aegean Macedonians who settled there in the 1920's.

According to the "Ethnic Map of Greek Macedonia Showing the Ratio Between Various Ethnic Elemen1912 and 1926", only 42,000 left their homes. If we take the statistical tables of the Balkan and neusources above, by 1913 in the whole of Macedonia lived around 1,250,000 Macedonians. In the Aegean (51%) which Greece took after 1913, half of the Macedonian nation remained under Greek rule - that wbe 625,000 people. If up to 1926 42,000 out of these 625,000 left, in the Greek part of Macedon

thereafter remained 583,000 Macedonians.

Recognition of the Macedonian Language by Greece

After World War I and under the international law, Greece signed the agreement to provide education inlanguages of the minorities that remained in its borders. As a result, Sakerlarou Press in Athens printeprimer in the Macedonian language called "Abecedar" in 1924. It was intended for the Macedonian childin the soon to be opened new schools and it was a clear recognition of the existence of the MacedonianGreece. The Greek government, however, later changed its position and the primer never reached


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schools.

The Macedonian Language Forbidden in Greece

The Englishmen B. Hild who traveled through Aegean Macedonia in 1928 has recorded that the Greeks

chasing not only the alive Macedonians, to whom they sometimes refer to as "bulgarophones" sometimes as "slavophones", but also the graves of dead Macedonians, by destroying all non-Greek signthe crosses. The use of the Macedonian language was forbidden and punishable when dictator Metgained power in Greece. Between 1936 and 1940, some 5,250 Macedonians were persecuted for speatheir native language. The official order of the National Garde in Nered (Polipotamos):

"All residents from two to fifty years of age are forbidden to use any other language but Greedirect special attention to the youth. Anyone to break this law will be punished."

But as the facts point out, the Macedonians were not wiped out from Aegean Macedonia in spite of the massimilation attempts by the Greek government. One such fact is the ethnic map of Europe in The TiAtlas of World History, where the Macedonians presented as separate nationality cover the territorcomplete Macedonia, including Aegean Macedonia in Greece.

Here is another map, part of a larger Balkan map and made by German ethnographers, first published aWorld War I, which proves that the ethnic Macedonians are the majority in Aegean Macedonia while

Greeks consist only a small minority.


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The Macedonians on this map (Mazedonier in German, and presented in green with stripes), populatelargest area of Aegean Macedonia, including the cities of Kostur (Kastoria), Lerin (Florina), Voden (EdesBer (Veroia), and Salonika (Thessaloniki), the largest Macedonian city. This map is yet another clear pthat the Macedonians do exist as large minority in Greece. It is also very important to note, southernmost river in Macedonia which many ethnographers consider to be Macedonia's border with Gre

is labeled on this map with the native Macedonian name Wistritza (Bistrica). However, Greek maps that after the partition of Macedonia, have changed this name with the Greek Aliakmon. Another examplewiping off the native Macedonian names from this map, would also be the second largest city in AegMacedonia, Serres which Greece changed to Serrai later, the river Mesta which was changed to Nestothe lake Beschikwhich today appears as Volvi.

The CIA Ethnic Map of Balkans and Macedonia is yet another proof that the ethnic Macedonians to

represent a big national minority in northern Greece or Aegean Macedonia. According to this CIA sourceMacedonians live in all parts of Macedonia: today's Republic of Macedonia, Pirin Macedonia in Bulgaria, Aegean Macedonia in Greece.
http://www.lib.utexas.edu/Libs/PCL/Map_collection/europe/Balkans.jpghttp://www.lib.utexas.edu/Libs/PCL/Map_collection/europe/Balkans.jpg


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Macedonians Oppressed in Greece

Following are several documents regarding the oppression of the Macedonians in Aegean Macedonia be

the World War II. They appeared in "Rizospastis", a newspaper published by the Greek Communist P(KKE).

April 15, 1934

Serres (Serrai). The town square was covered with leaflets with revolutionary proclamations caupon the soldiers to straggle for a solution to their problems and against the beastly reign of terOfficers imprisoned the soldiers who read the leaflets... The most barbarous methods were uagainst us Macedonians, soldiers of the 6th Heavy Artillery Regiment. The majority of usilliterate, we do not know Greek and therefore we frequently do not understand their orders. officers tried to teach us to read and write, but their efforts were abandoned too soon and wperformed so improperly than none of us learned anything.

June 6, 1934

Voden (Edessa). Here, in Voden, and in our whole district, in the heart of Macedonia, here whwe Macedonians do not know any other language but our own Macedonian, various agents ofGreek capitalism fore us to speak Greek. Consequently, they threaten us constantly with expulto Bulgaria, they call us Komitajis, expropriate our fields which we have drenched with our swjust to produce a piece of bread. In addition, they deprive us of the freedom which our fathers after many years of struggle in which they gave their lives for the liberation of Macedonia. We under the yoke of Greek capitalism, literally as slaves. In the elementary schools, the young childwho speak their own language are beaten every day. Particularly here in Voden, the henchman fascist Georgiadis beats the children if they speak their Macedonian tongue.

June 8, 1934

Lerin (Florina). It has been some time now that the whole bourgeois press launched a campagainst the Macedonian people. It represents a part of the fascist and military measures whichGovernment of Tsaldaris carries out in its orientation towards an increasingly brutal oppressiothe people's masses in Macedonia. The Chief of the Security Forces here, Karamaunas, whenevemeets us on the streets threatens us with the words: "You are Bulgarians and if by any chandiscover any sort of organized movement, I will beat you without mercy and than I will deport yWe Macedonians should rise with greater courage and by means of increased activities should rethis campaign because it brings us an even more brutal oppression, starvation, misery, and war.


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How it is possible that the Western countries have chosen to follow "democratic" Greece where lies preover the truth? The European Court found the Greek embargo illegal and put Greece on trial, but did notto stop it while it was so harmful to the Macedonian economy. They never cared about the rights ofMacedonians in Greece while the Macedonians of the Aegean are still facing daily oppression persecution. Finally, they still play that game for the Macedonia's name, the way Greece wants them to. this is yet anotherproof that interests are stronger than the truth. Greece is a member of the EuropUnion, NATO, an important ally that occupies a very strategic position. On the other hand, all other counthat do not belong to those organizations have recognized Macedonia under its constitutional name. Ruand China are among those countries. The question now is if the West is willing to risk losing Greece forsmall landlocked Macedonia? But by standing silent on the issue, they are taking an active role in Gree

politics.

Yet, on every atlas (like National Geographic), encyclopedia (like Britannica), newspaper (like New YTimes), and TV media (like CNN), Macedonia is referred simply as Macedonia. Even the US SecretarState Warren Christopher, and Defense Secretary William Perry, speak of Macedonians and refeMacedonia as Macedonia. Matthew Nimitz, the US mediator in the Greek - Macedonian talks has said "the country has an Constitutional name - Republic of Macedonia" and that besides the opposing of GreMacedonia was admitted at UN under the reference "former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia", but tha"only a reference and not name". The truth about Macedonia slowly but surely is coming to the top, wor

towards a final end to the century-old shadow of Greek lies and propaganda. That is until the change oBalkan policies and interests might push it all back to where it started. But regardless of everything,Macedonians continue to exits on every part of divided Macedonia - the Republic of Macedonia, andMacedonian parts which are today held by Greece and Bulgaria. They have survived as Macedoniansalmost 3,000 years and nobody by renaming them will change the fact that they are and will remMacedonians.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Karl Hron. Das Volksthum der Slaven Makedoniens. Wien, 1890.2. P. Draganov. Makedonski Slavjanski Sbornik. St. Petersburg, 1894.3. Spiridon Gopchevich. Makedonien und Altserbien. Wien, 1899

4. Dr. Cleonthes Nikolaides. Macedonien, die gesschichtliche Entwickelung der makedoniscFrage in Alterthum und in die neuren Zeit. Berlin, 1899.

5. Newspaper The Times, London. Saturaday, February 6, 1897 edition.6. K. Gersin. Macedonian und das Turkische Problem. Wien, 1903.7. Dr. K. Ostreich. Die Bevolkerung von Makedonien. Leipzig, 1905.8. Dr. Karl Peucher. Statistische Angaben. Die Volker Macedoniens und Altserbiens. 1905.9. Henry N. Brailsford. Macedonia, its Races and their Future. London, Metheuen and Co,

published in 1906.10. Volker und Sprachenkarte der Balkan - Halbinsel vor den Krigen 1912-18. Bibliographis

Institut, Leipzig.11. Newspaper Message d' Aten. Athens, February 15, 1913.12. Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Report of the International Commision

Inquire the Causes and Conduct of the Balkan Wars. Washington, 1914.13. R.G.D. Laffan. The Serbs. New York, 1917.14. League of the Nations. Ethnic Map of Greek Macedonia Showing the Ratio Between Vari

Ethnic Elements in 1912 and 1926. Lausanne, 1926.15. Newspaper Politika. Edition 6369. Belgrade, January 5, 1926.16. Andrew Roussos. The British Foreign Office and Macedonian National Identity 1918 - 19417. Newspaper Rizospastis, ar.195 (7132), 4/12/34, p.3 and ar.89 (7026), 6/10/34, p.3 and ar

(7024), 6/8/34, p.1.18. Dr. Vladimir Rumenov. Makedonski pregled. Sofia, 194119. Elisabeth Barker. Macedonia - Its Place in Balkan Power Politics. London, 1950.20. Spoljnopoliticka Dokumentacija No 36. Belgrade, 1951.21. Lazar Moysov. Macedonians in Aegean Macedonia. Skopje, 1953.22. Hammond Incorporated. The Times Atlas of World History. Maplewood NJ, 1989. Copy

Times Books Limited, London.


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23. Stoyan Prebicevich. Macedonia, Its People and History. The Pennsylvania State University Pr1982.

24. Jacques Bacid, Ph.D. Macedonia Through the Ages. Columbia University, 1983.25. Quantis Curtius Rufus. History of Alexander the Great of Macedon, VI. Harmondsworth, 19826. Rand McNally and Co. Inc. The Random House Encyclopedia Random House, New York, 199027. Jackson J. Spielvogel. Western CivilizationThe Pennsylvania State University, West Publis

Company, 1991.

28. Human Rights Watch / Helsinki. Denying Ethnic Identity - Macedonians of Greece, New Y1994.

29. Newspaper Elefteros Tipos. Athens, September 20, 1994.30. The Constitution of the Republic of Macedonia.

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