Italy Gives Islands to Greece
What Happened
Under the Paris Peace Treaty, Italy surrendered the Dodecanese Islands to Greece. These Mediterranean islands, including Rhodes and Kos, had been Italian since 1912. The transfer reflected the post-war effort to align national borders with the cultural and linguistic identity of local populations, as most residents were ethnically Greek.
Impact on Citizenship
When Italy ceded the Dodecanese Islands to Greece after World War II, residents had to make an important choice about their citizenship. People living on these islands were given one year to decide between keeping their Italian citizenship or becoming Greek citizens. Today, you can only claim Italian citizenship through ancestors from this region if they specifically chose to maintain their Italian citizenship during this period.
colonialism