Ancient Greek Culture

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The culture of ancient Greece is characterized by a structured hierarchy in social and political life. Greek society was primarily divided into ‘Free People’ and ‘Slaves’. This kind of social structure later changed into the categories of ‘citizens’ and ‘metics’. Some Interesting Facts In ancient Greece, the nation was made up of independent city-states. Athens was a large city-state, with an area of 2500 sq. km. Aristocrats governed most of the states in Greece. A majority of the aristocrats were landowners. The system in which aristocrats governed the states was known as oligarchy. Cleisthenes was the aristocrat who introduced the …

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Greek Culture Facts

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Greece is a southern European country surrounded by the Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea. It lies between Albania and Turkey. Summers in Greece are hot and dry while winters are wet and quite cold. Bluish green mountain ranges extending into the sea as peninsulas or chains of islands add to the beauty of Greek terrain. Nearly 70% of Greece is hilly, stony and mountainous. The country consists of 9,841 islands, 114 of which are inhabited and thus, it enjoys a coastline of nearly 15,000 km! Ancient Greek culture facts help us know about world famous Greek mythology which is in fact, …

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Ancient Greek Names

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Ancient Greece is considered as the birthplace of the Olympic games, Western philosophy, democracy, etc. The exact time period of ancient Greece is not known, but it is said that it existed somewhere between 8th century BC and 6th century AD. Ancient Greek names are always popular because of their typical meanings and unique pronunciations. Previously in ancient Greece, a person had no last name and was identified with only his first name. But after some decades, use of the geographical place in the name became compulsory. For example, Markos in the Aegean Islands. This rule was specially made for …

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Ancient Greek Musical Instruments

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Would you believe me if I told you that the first ‘rock’ band in the history of the world was formed exactly 50,000 years ago, in the ‘Stone’ Age? Yeah okay…you’re right, I was kidding on that one. But the joke was pretty good, wasn’t it? Yeah alright…I know…the joke was probably the worst you’ve ever heard. But, hey, what if I said that the first ever music concert on our beloved Mother Earth happened over 35,000 years ago, and it featured a group of prehistoric flautists. Now what would be your take on that one? Nope, I’m not kidding …

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Ancient Greek Philosophy

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Interestingly, Greek philosophy does not have its roots in ancient Greece. Research reveals that the movement, as we study and understand it today, developed along the western coast of Ionia or modern Turkey. The first philosopher was a Phoenician called Thales, who is also recognized as the world’s first materialist. Nevertheless, the word ‘philosophy’ has its roots in ancient Greece. Ancient Greeks were leaders in their understanding and advances in logic, geometry, and the natural sciences. They gave a lot of importance to every individual’s quest for knowledge and regularly documented observations made by theorists of early civilization. Ancient Greek philosophy incorporated …

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Greek Proverbs and Quotes

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Ancient Greek philosophers are well known for their words of wisdom. Names like Socrates, Aristotle and Plato are just a few among the sonorous names of great Greek thinkers. See some famous Greek quotes given below! Know yourself! Socrates A different man, a different taste. A gift, though small, is welcome. A library is a repository of medicine for the mind. A lucky person is someone who plants pebbles and harvests potatoes. A mad bull is not to be tied up with a pack thread. A miser and a liar bargain quickly. Many words are poverty. A person can be …

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The History of Rhodes – Greek Islands

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Rhodes was inhabitated from the Neolithic period. From 1500 until 1100 BC, first Cretans and later Achians and Dorians colonized the island. The Dorians founded three cities: Ialusso, Lindos, and Kameros. Then the naval and trading strength of Rhodes developed and continued throughout the centuries of its ancient history. From the 6th Century BC the history of the island has been characterized by various and always different political alliances, such as those with the Athenians in 490, with the Persians in 480 and again with the Athenians in 478. In 408 BC, the three cities of Rhodes decided to establish, on the …

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Ancient Greek Music

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“Every man’s work, whether it be literature or music or pictures or anything else, is always a portrait of himself, and the more he tries to conceal himself the more clearly will his character appear in spite of him.”- Samuel Butler Music is one of those art forms, which acts as a mirror of the social and cultural structure. If the society or the culture of a place were degenerating the music of that place would also exhibit the same. Similarly when the society and the culture is flourishing, the music would also flourish. Thus music has a major role …

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Ancient Greek Architecture

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The beautiful and ornate carvings and pillars speak volumes of the ancient Greek architecture. Religion was an important aspect of life in ancient Greece, which is evident from the magnificent Greek temples Ancient Greek Architecture The common materials of Greek architecture were wood, unbaked bricks, limestone and marble, terracotta and metals, which were especially used for decorative details. The architects of the Archaic and Classical periods in Greek history used these raw materials to construct five basic types of buildings which are: religious, domestic, civic, recreational and funerary. There existed three major architectural systems (orders) in Greek architecture. The three …

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Famous Greek People

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The Greeks are known to enjoy a very high standard of living, which is probably because Greece today, serves as a major business hub for many activities and also houses some of the world’s largest multinational companies. The service industry remains to be the fastest growing industries and tourism remains to be the principle activities out here. There are many famous Greek people who have brought laurels to this very beautiful place. Here, we shall take a look at some of the famous people of Greece who have made major contributions in their respective fields from the modern or the …

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