culture and society

Marriage - Weddings

In ancient Athens, wedding ceremonies started after dark. The veiled bride traveled from her home to the home of the groom while standing in a chariot. Her family followed the chariot on foot, carrying the gifts.
Friends of the bride and groom lit the way, carrying torches and playing music to scare away evil spirits. During the wedding ceremony, the bride would eat an apple, or another piece of fruit, to show that food and other basic needs would now come from her husband.
Gifts to the new couple might include baskets, furniture, jewelry, mirrors, perfume, vases filled with greenery.
In ancient Sparta, the ceremony was very simple. After a tussle, to prove his superior strength, the groom would toss his bride over his shoulder and carried her off.
In Vino Veritas: Wine Cups Tell History of Athenian Life   Live Scie

nce - January 12, 2011
Over centuries, the ancient Athenian cocktail parties went full circle, from a practice reserved for the elite to one open to everyone and then, by the fourth century B.C., back to a luxurious display of consumption most could not afford.

culture and society

Religion

The ancient Greeks were a deeply religious people. They worshipped many gods whom they believed appeared in human form and yet were endowed with superhuman strength and ageless beauty.
The Iliad and the Odyssey, our earliest surviving examples of Greek literature, record men's interactions with various gods and goddesses whose characters and appearances underwent little change in the centuries that followed.
While many sanctuaries honored more than a single god, usually one deity such as Zeus at Olympia or a closely linked pair of deities like Demeter and her daughter Persephone at Eleusis dominated the cult place.
Elsewhere in the arts, various painted scenes on vases, and stone, terracotta and bronze sculptures portray the major gods and goddesses.
The deities were depicted either by themselves or in traditional mythological situations in which they interact with humans and a broad range of minor deitie
s, demi-gods and legendary characters. 
credits : http://www.crystalinks.com/greekculture.html
liyana 

culture and society

The Ancient Greek were not fussy about their clothing. The garments they wore were made for function, and they were made simply. A single piece of fabric could be styled and restyled, to fit a particular occasion or a fashion. And with Greek summers being brutally hot, the less fabric and complicating seams to deal with, the better.

The fabrics that the Greeks used for their clothing was sometimes spun in the home (often into a heavy wool material), or made from linen fabric that was imported. For every member of the family, except for infants who often wore nothing at all, an outfit usually consisted of a square or rectangular piece of fabric, pins for fastening, and sometimes shoes and/or hats. The pieces of fabric were folded around the body, and pinned together at the side seams and shoulders, as well as being belted. Though it might sound as if the Greeks walked around wearing plain potato sacks, their clothing would have been dyed bright colors and would have been decorated with ornate patterns.
The style and type of the garment depended on who was wearing it, and the job or function required of the person. There were several types of garments, derived from a basic tunic. The tunic was worn by both men and women, and varied in length according to job and gender. It was often tied at the waist, and might also have been pinned at the seams, depending on the style of the garment.
A chiton was a type of tunic worn by Greek men, and was often made of a lighter linen material, as men were often outdoors more often, and would require the more comfortable clothing (especially in the summer). It could be draped over both shoulders, or over only one. When it was draped over one shoulder, usually the left, it was known as an exomie. This type of chiton was usually worn for horseback riding, work, or exercise.

Greek Peplos Dress  A peplos (or peplum) was a type of tunic worn by women. Usually made from a heavier wool material, this garment was made from a large rectangular piece of fabric, and could be draped and fastened (with buttons, pins, or brooches) in different ways to reflect different styles. A peplos was worn as a full-length garment, because a proper Greek woman revealed nothing.
In colder weather, Greeks wore a cloak over their tunics for warmth, known as a himation. This garment was usually made of wool, and was fashioned from a rectangular piece of cloth that was draped over the person, sort of like a Roman toga. It served a dual purpose, especially for men. The himation came in handy for soldiers away from home, also serving as a warm blanket on a cold winter night. Other types of cloaks worn by the Greeks included the epiblema, a shawl worn by Greek women, and the chlamys, a short cloak worn by young Greek males.
The Greeks were not particularly fond of shoes, usually eschewing them, especially at home. But on special occasions or matters of business, Greeks would wear leather sandals or boots with their tunics. However, it wasn’t uncommon for a Greek to go barefoot for his entire life!
In addition to covering their feet, the Greeks sometimes covered their heads as well. A Greek man sometimes wore a petasos, a wide-brimmed hat that helped to protect them from the summer heat. Women occasionally could be seen wearing hats that featured high-peaked crowns. This was no doubt only for the most special of occasions, though.
While certainly not fancy, Greek clothing was functional, and built to last. In fact, in today’s haute couture we often see a bit of Ancient Greek fashion influence. The columnar style of the tunic, especially the women’s peplos, is not an uncommon style to be worn by women today.

credits http://www.ancient.eu/article/20/
liyana 

culture and society

Ancient Greek Language

 

The Ancient Greeks were the first Europeans to read and write with an Alphabet, which eventually led to all modern European languages.
The Ancient Greek Language has different theories of origin; firstly some believe it migrated with the Proto-Greek speakers into the Greek Peninsula, dating from 2500BC to 1700 BC. Second Theory considers the migration into Greece happened before Proto-Greek, so the characteristics of Greek sounds were later.
Ancient Greek Dialects Different variants of the early Greek alphabet suited to local dialects. There were three major dialects in ancient Greece, Aeolic, Doric and Ionic. Each of these were from different tribes, the Aeolians lived in the islands of the Aegean, the Dorians, from the Greek coast of Peloponnesus, including Crete, Sparta and other parts of West Coast Asia Minor. The Ionians settled in the West coast of Asia Minor including the Smyma.
The first surviving script for writing Greek was the Linear B discovered in 1953. It was used for the archaic Mycenaean dialect. When Mycenaean civilization was destroyed, there was a period of roughly five hundred years, when writing was either not used, or either that there was nothing that survived.
Homer's poetry of the Iliad and Odyssey were written in a sort of literary Ionic with some borrowed words from the other dialects. Ionic, became the first literary language of ancient Greece until the ascendancy of Athens in the late fifth century. Greek lyrical poetry and Ancient Greek Tragedy was written in Doric.
Attic Greek was a sub dialect of Ionic that belonged to the language of the Athenians for centuries. Classical Literature that survived is written in Attic Greek, this includes extant text of Plato and Aristotle .
Hellenistic Greek 'Koine' (meaning Common, also known as Biblical Greek) came from the colonization of Asian Minoans to Egypt and to the Middle East; this is where the language evolved into multiple dialects. Alexander the Great was instrumental in combining these dialects to make the 'Koine' dialect. As this allowed Alexander's combined Army to communicate with itself and the language also taught the inhabitants of the land he conquered, making Greek a world language. This then allowed the Greek language to flourish during the Hellenistic period.
From the beginning of the classical period, Greek has been written in the Greek alphabet, which was derived from the Phoenicians. This is clear from the shap

e of the letters, even Herodotus in his book of Histories, claimed the Greek alphabet included Phoenician styled letters in the alphabet, However, the Phoenician language only had letters for constants, which the Greeks adopted and evolved to included letters of sounds that were not included. Early Ancient Greek was also written from right to left, the same as the Phoenician.

 

Culture and society

Ancient Greek Everyday Life

 

Men if they were not training in military, or discussing politics went to the Theatre for entertainment. To watch dramas that they could relate to, including tragedies and comedies. These often involved current politics and gods in some form. It is thought that women were not allowed to watch theatre or perform at the theatre, although male actors did play women roles.
Lives of Women in Ancient Greece were closely tied to domestic work, spinning, weaving and other domestic duties. They were not involved in public life or in politics. The live were normally quite confined to the house although one public duty was acting as a priestess at a temple.
Children in ancient Greece usually occupied their time playing with toys and games.

Farming and Food

The majority of Ancient Greek people made their living from farming. Citizens often had land outside the city which provided their income. The Greek landscape and climate was difficult to farm.
Grapes were usually picked around September and either kept for eating or made into wine. Making wine was done by treading and kept in jars to ferment.
Olives were either picked by hand or knocked out of the tress with wooden sticks. Some were crushed in a press to produce olive oil and some eaten. This was an important product to the Greeks that had many uses including; cooking, lighting, beauty products and for athletic purposes. It is also believed that uprooting an olive tree was a criminal offence. The grain was usually harvest around October to ensure it would grow during the wettest season. A man drove the ox driven plough, as second man sowed the seeds behind. In Spring the Crops were harvested using curved knives (sickles). After harvesting the grain, it was then thrashed, using mules and the help of the wind to separate the chaff from the grain, the husks were then removed by pounding the grain with a pestle and mortar.
Ancient Greeks usually ate bread (barley or wheat) and porridge, accompanied with food such as cheese, vegetables, fish, eggs and fruit. Animal such as deer, hare and boars were hunted only as addition to the food supply. Seasoning usually involved coriander and sesame seeds. Honey was probably the only sweetening that existed at the time, importance this is shown as the beehives were kept in terracotta

Ancient Greek Games

Greek boys played games like hockey, which were not part of the Olympic Games. The Ancient Greek boys usually played games naked, so girls were forbidden to watch.
Ancient Greek women and girls were not expected to do much physical activity for recreation purposes. From this pot we can see a young girl, juggling three balls, but there is nothing to presume she was a performer, as she is dressed like an ordinary girl. The Ancient Greeks also played games that did not involve much physical activity also, such as marbles, dice, checkers and knucklebones. Below is a famous vase from the Vatican museum depicting Achilles and Ajax playing 'Petteia' checkers. The Ancient Greek version of checkers was similar to what the current game of backgammon is where the Game backgammon is derived from. The Ancient Greek version of Checkers involved a board, stones and dice.

copy :http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Life/
liyana  

 

The War

The Ionian or Decelean War

Sparta recommenced war in 414 BC. Now Sparta had a strong army and navy. Athens had lost all its best sailors and finances were wearing. The Spartan on King Agis orders occupied Decelea so that Athens could not access their silver mines. The Athenian empire started to fall apart due to attack after attack. Persia entered the war to support Sparta. The Athenian navy called back Alcibiades, who had fled to Sparta, to help them.
The food sources of Sicily and Egypt were under the control of Sparta and Egypt. Athens only support was in form of Crimea. The Athenians under Thrasybulus and Thrasylus defeated the Spartans at Cynossema. Athens also enjoyed a naval victory over Persia at Cyzicus at the Sea of Marmora.
Sparta saw a new leadership in the form of Lysander who along with Persian leader Cyrus started to builds a new armada. Alcibiades divided his forces and left one at Notium. But Lysander attacked Notium and Alcibiades could not do anything upon returning as the damage had been done. He was called back to Athens, probably for his trial, and he therefore fled to Hellespont.

Callicratidas was the next leader after Lysander left. He attacked the Athenian harbor of Mitylene. Athens sailed their fleet in the battle of Arginusae where Sparta lost. Callicratidas lost his life due to drowning. Sparta offered peace but Athens refused. Athens sailed to Aegospotami in Hellespont. Lysander was called back and he was based at the harbor of Abydos, opposite Aegospotami. Lysander captured the entire Athenian fleet and smashed and bringing the war to an end in just one attack. Lysander blocked Athens through its naval power, while the army attacked on land. With food supply closed, Athens surrendered on Spartan terms.
Repercussions: After the war ended, the 'Thirty Tyrants' ruled Athens for a short period of time. Democracy was reinitiated in 403 BC. Spartan victory in the Peloponnesian War was somewhat diluted because of their defeat in Battle of Leuctra in 371 BC. Later on when Philip II of Macedon conquered all of Greece, Sparta's empire and power was diminished and ultimately destroyed.

copy : http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Wars/
liyana 

The war

The Sicilian war 

Sicily was attacked by Syracuse in 416 BC. Under the able guidance of Alcibiades, they dreamt of conquering the whole of Sicily. Athens could loot Sicily, as it was a flourishing region. But then Alcibiades was held for crimes against religious statues (hermai). Alcibiades was allowed for the Sicilian expedition but on arriving called back to Athens for trial. He fled to Sparta and Nicias was the new leader. Alcibiades became a Spartan messenger.
Nicias delayed the attack and Syracuse was left with no harm. The delay helped Syracuse who raised forces with the help of Sparta and other Sicilian cities. They defeated the Athenian's and prevented them from entering Syracuse. Demosthenes from Athens joined Nicias for help to attack Sicily. But the Athenian's were defeated once again. A late withdraws due to lunar eclipse and the battle ensued in the Great Harbor of Syracuse. Nicias and Demosthenes fleet was faced a major and embarrassing defeat.

copy : http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Wars/#sicilian 

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