We explain what Greek culture is, its history, and geographical location. We also discuss its characteristics and its relationship with Roman culture.
What is Greek culture?
The term “Greek culture” is used to identify the civilization that inhabited Greece in ancient times. It is one of the most important ancient civilizations due to its influence on other contemporary societies and on later Western society.
Greek culture inhabited southeastern Europe and the islands of the eastern Mediterranean around the 12th century BC. There, it adopted cultural traits from the ancient Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations. It spread along the coast of Asia Minor and later to other islands in the western Mediterranean, until it was conquered by the Romans in the 2nd century BC. You must read about Meteorology once.
During the Classical Period (6th and 5th centuries BC), the major Greek city-states (such as Athens, Corinth, Thebes, Sparta, and Miletus) fostered the development of art, architecture, and literature. The construction of great temples, such as the Parthenon, dedicated to the goddess Athena, and the Temple of Hephaestion in Athens, dates from this period.
At the same time, the growth of specialized studies led to great advances in philosophy, natural sciences, and mathematics. Notable in this regard are the philosophical works of Plato and Aristotle, and the medical studies of Hippocrates.
This cultural development became one of the main foundations of later European culture, along with the Roman culture that developed a few centuries later. In the 16th century, during the Renaissance, European artists and scholars revalued the styles and works of Greek culture. Maybe you should definitely read about Climatology once.
History of Greek Culture
The history of Greek culture can be divided into the following stages:
Minoan Civilization (2500–1600 BC)
This civilization was made up of different populations organized around palaces and urban centers on the island of Crete.
They were peaceful populations who did not engage in warfare. Their palaces were decorated with images of landscapes and animals. They worshipped various male and female deities, among whom a bull god (Minos) stood out. They developed two types of writing: one pictorial and the other syllabic.
Mycenaean Civilization (1600–1200 BC)
During this period, there were several small kingdoms that competed with each other for power and control of resources. The most important was Mycenae, on the Peloponnese peninsula.
The Mycenaean religion was polytheistic, with various anthropomorphic gods (in animal and human form). The Olympus pantheon and the gods Zeus, Hermes, Ares, Athena, Dionysus, and Artemis date from this period of Greek history.
Dark Ages (1200-800 BC)
During this period, the Greek kingdoms experienced a profound crisis, great material poverty, and the fall of palaces and urban centers. Furthermore, various warrior peoples entered the region, and writing disappeared.
The most important cultural characteristic of this period was the oral dissemination of heroic poems by aeds (singing poets). The Homeric poems of the Iliad and the Odyssey date from this period, and were transcribed in the 8th century BC. C.
Archaic Era (800-500 BC)
This period was characterized by the cultural, economic, and military development of small, independent city-states called poleis.
Each poleis had its own political and social organization and constituted the homeland of each Greek. However, all Greek poleis recognized a common cultural identity characterized by the use of the Greek language, a common pantheon of deities, and certain customs and habits of daily life.
Classical Era (500-330 BC)
During the Classical Era, the Greek poleis experienced a period of material expansion and cultural splendor. Different branches of the arts and knowledge flourished.
Most of the Greek authors who influenced later Western culture date from this period. Notable among them are the philosophers Plato and Aristotle; the works of Anaxagoras, Parmenides, and Empedocles on various areas of nature; Alcmaeon and Hippocrates in medicine and Euclid in geometry.
Hellenistic Period (330-30 BC)
During this period, the Macedonian king Alexander the Great conquered the various Greek poleis and united them under a vast empire that extended in all directions. Through various institutions, Alexander’s empire spread various aspects of Greek culture to the East.
Hellenistic culture was characterized by the combination of Greek culture with that of the various eastern peoples conquered under the Alexandrian Empire.
Geographic Location of Greek Culture
Ancient Greek culture emerged south of the Balkans, in the eastern Mediterranean. At its height, it occupied the entire Greek peninsula as far as the coasts of present-day Macedonia, Turkey, and Italy.
Greek civilization also founded settlements along the European Mediterranean coast, in present-day Spain and France, as well as on the coast of present-day Egypt.
During the Hellenistic period, under the leadership of the conqueror Alexander the Great, Greece (then called the Macedonian Empire) annexed the territories of present-day Turkey, Egypt, part of Libya, Syria, Jordan, Palestine, Israel, Armenia, and ancient Mesopotamia.
At its most expansive, the Hellenistic Empire also included parts of present-day Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan.
Characteristics of Greek Culture
Among the main characteristics of Greek culture are the political organization of the polis, religious polytheism, the development of philosophy, the study of nature and other branches of world knowledge, the pursuit of beauty in art, and a wealth of literary and theatrical works.
In summary, the culture of Ancient Greece was characterized by:
The Polis
During the Classical Period, the Greeks were organized into independent city-states, called polis. Each polis was a distinct political unit with a main urban center and surrounding lands. All Greeks identified with the Hellenistic culture that united them, but considered their homeland to be their polis. The most important polises of this period were Athens, Sparta, Miletus, Corinth, and Thebes.
Religious Polytheism
The Greeks believed in different divinities, whom they represented in human form. They held that the gods were immortal, but attributed to them the virtues and defects of mortals: they were guided by feelings such as love and hate. According to popular belief, the gods resided on Mount Olympus and watched over the behavior of mortals.
The Development of Philosophy
During the Classical Period, the Greeks developed the study of philosophy to understand various mysteries of life, such as the origin of natural phenomena or the nature of the human body and the Earth. Some philosophers, such as Thales of Miletus and Heraclitus, pondered the origin of things. Others, such as Plato and Aristotle, reflected on forms of political and social organization.
The Search for Beauty in Art
Greek artists sought to represent the human being in an ideal form. During the Classical period, the standard of beauty was influenced by the notions of balance, proportion, and harmony. In architecture, the construction of large marble temples painted in bright colors was prominent. In sculpture, artists exalted the human body, especially the male body.
Literary and Theatrical Works
The main written genres of Greek culture were epic poetry, lyric poetry, and drama. Many of these works told the stories of great mythical heroes who defied the will of the gods or of real figures of the time who faced comical situations. Among the most notable authors are Pindar (lyric poetry), Aristophanes (theatrical comedies), Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides (tragic plays).
Contributions of Greek Culture
The great development of Greek cultural studies, thought, works, and constructions over the centuries left behind a series of elements that influenced the development of later Western culture. Among them, the following stand out:
The Invention of Democracy
Towards the end of the 6th century BC, Athenian society underwent a series of political and social transformations that gave rise to a new, previously unknown form of government, called democracy.
This system granted equal political rights to all citizens for the first time. At that time, only males over the age of 21 with an Athenian father and mother were considered citizens. However, this was the first experience of a political and social organization based on popular political participation through suffrage.
The Olympic Games
The different Greek polis competed in athletic festivities held in honor of the Olympian gods. These games were held every four years, and specialists believe they began to be held around the 16th century BC. During the celebration of the Olympic Games, the polis agreed to a sacred truce that prohibited the practice of war or any military attack.
The Creation of Philosophy
The Greeks created philosophical studies. Among its main authors were Thales of Miletus, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Heraclitus, Democritus, and Parmenides. These philosophers laid the foundations of rational thought and posed some of the fundamental questions about the universe, nature, humanity, and society. Through their works, they shaped a worldview that influenced European thought and on which the main branches of later science developed.
Artistic Legacy
The Greeks developed various artistic traditions, most notably the work of authors such as Homer (author of the Iliad and the Odyssey), Aesop (author of numerous fables), Aristophanes (writer of comedies), Sophocles, Aeschylus, and Euripides (playwrights). Also notable are Herodotus (geographer and historian) and Hesiod (poet and philosopher).
Greece-Roman Culture
Between the 4th and 1st centuries BC, the Roman Republic underwent a process of expansion through the conquest of the different peoples of the Mediterranean region. During this period, the Romans came into contact with different cultures unknown to them, which generated changes in their customs and values.
The greatest cultural influence on Roman society was Greek culture. In the 2nd century BC, In the 1st century BC, the Romans conquered the Hellenistic kingdoms (Macedonia, Greece, and Pergamon) and seized their works of art, jewels, and various material goods, bringing them back to Rome as spoils of war.
In this context, the Romans also brought Greek intellectuals, philosophers, thinkers, and scholars to Rome. Some of them were employed as tutors for the young men of Roman aristocratic families, others as bureaucratic assistants.
Thus, a process of Hellenization of Roman culture began. Wealthy families learned the history and customs of Classical Greece. Furthermore, the worship of the Olympian gods spread, assimilated to local deities and linked to the stories of the Roman pantheon.
This Greco-Roman cultural tradition became centuries later one of the main elements of Western European culture.
References
All the information we offer is supported by authoritative and up-to-date bibliographic sources, ensuring reliable content in line with our editorial principles.
- Hornblower, S. (2022). Ancient Greek Civilization. Encyclopedia Britannica.
- Pollard, J., Thornhill, R., & Adkins, A. (2022). Greek Religion. Encyclopedia Britannica.
- Pomeroy, S., Burstein, S., Donlan, W., & Tolbert, J. (2001). Ancient Greece: A Political, Social, and Cultural History. Criticism.
