Kapodistrias reform


Kapodistrias reform is the common name of law 2539 of Greece, which reorganised the country's administrative divisions. The law, named after 19th-century Greek statesman Ioannis Kapodistrias, passed the Hellenic Parliament in 1997, and was implemented in 1998. The administrative system was changed again at the 2010 Kallikratis reform.

Municipalities and communities

Before and after the Kapodistrias reform, the difference between municipalities and communities was merely a matter of size. Municipalities were larger and had a more urban character than communities, which were as small as a single village. The reform reduced the number of municipalities and communities sharply: from 5775 to 1033.
Municipalities and communities varied in population from 745,514 to 28 with an average of 10,603.5 and a median of only 4,661.5. The following chart illustrates the range:
PopulationNumber of municipalities and communities
Less than 1,000
88
1,001 to 5,000
458
5,001 to 10,000
260
10,001 to 50,000
184
50,001 to 100,000
36
More than 100,000
8

Municipalities and communities varied in land area from 873.552 km2 to 0.800 km2, with an average of 127.618 km2 and a median of 105.669 km2.