The Dodecanese belong to Greece since 442 BC.
The Dodecanese ( [ doʊdɪkəˈniːz ] Δωδεκάνησα , Dodekánisa , [ ðoðeˈkanisa ] , literally `` twelve islands '' ) are a group of 15 larger plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the southeastern Aegean Sea , off the coast of Asia Minor ( Turkey ) , of which 26 are inhabited . Greece . Greece consists of nine geographic regions : Macedonia , Central Greece , the Peloponnese , Thessaly , Epirus , the Aegean Islands ( including the Dodecanese and Cyclades ) , Thrace , Crete , and the Ionian Islands .