Ancient Greece Intro:
Ancient Greece was a very influential civilization to the United States and countries all around the world today. One example is, like the Ancient Greeks, we have three branches of government, the Executive, Judicial, and Legislative branches. Some other examples include the names of some of our cities (Athens, TX; Olympia, WA; Ithica, OH). The names from the Greek alphabet for college sororities (ex: Kappa Kappa Gamma, Pi Beta Phi) and fraternities, and the architecture (for example the different types of columns).
Due to the very mountainous geography of Greece, many city-states formed which made it extremely difficult for one single person to rule Greece. This caused a large differentiation between different city- states. The best example of this is Athens and Sparta. They were two completely different city-states even though they were in the same country/ civilization. Some other city states included, Delphi, Corinth, Olympia, and Knosso, on the island of Crete.
Mythology was a also a very important aspect in Ancient Greek life. They believed that the gods and goddesses ruled over every aspect of their lives and controlled everything that happened on Earth. For example, They believed that Poseidon was the god of the sea, so whenever they were going to go on a boat they might pray to Poseidon or give up a sacrifice to him in order to be on his good side to return home safely.
Due to the very mountainous geography of Greece, many city-states formed which made it extremely difficult for one single person to rule Greece. This caused a large differentiation between different city- states. The best example of this is Athens and Sparta. They were two completely different city-states even though they were in the same country/ civilization. Some other city states included, Delphi, Corinth, Olympia, and Knosso, on the island of Crete.
Mythology was a also a very important aspect in Ancient Greek life. They believed that the gods and goddesses ruled over every aspect of their lives and controlled everything that happened on Earth. For example, They believed that Poseidon was the god of the sea, so whenever they were going to go on a boat they might pray to Poseidon or give up a sacrifice to him in order to be on his good side to return home safely.
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win a date with Aphrodite.... the goddess of love Photo from: Vector Graphics
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Fun Facts...*** The ancient Greeks considered their children to be "youths" until they reached the age of 30! When a child was born to ancient Greek family, a naked father carried his child, in a ritual dance, around the household. Friends and relatives sent gifts. The family decorated the doorway of their home with a wreath of olives (for a boy) or a wreath of wool (for a girl).
*** The first Olympic Games were held in 776 BC at the Greek city of Olympia. ***The Ancient Greeks played an important part in the development of the alphabet. The first two letters of the Greek alphabet - alpha and beta- have given us the word "alphabet" *** The first known person who realized that Earth could not be flat was the Greek philosopher Anaximander; around 560 BCE, he suggested that the Earth had a cylindrical shape. ***Ancient Greeks did not eat tomatoes, potatoes, oranges or lemons since these were unknown at the time. ***Men of ancient Athens rivaled each other in the excellence of their beards. Beard trimming became an art and barbers became leading citizens. ***Boys in Sparta were sent to military camps at the age of seven. They learned how to read and write at age 14. Military service lasted until the age of 60. ***The yo-yo is the second oldest toy in the world (only the doll is older), used 3,000 years ago in Greece. ***Girls left their childhood toys at the temple of Artemis, signifying that they were passing into adulthood. *** Miniature elephants once existed on Crete, Cyprus, and various other Mediterranean islands. *** Electrical shocks given by torpedo fish were used for medicinal purposes by the ancient Greeks. |