Ancient Greek Civilization: Legacy and Cultural Influence

Language and Literacy: Foundation of Greek Identity

The history of the Greeks is the backbone of the world we live in today. Their civilizations, culture, and language have survived longer than they did, and we see evidence of their influence in our everyday world. We utilize many of their discoveries still, and you may not even realize it. If there is one thing the people of ancient Greece knew, it was how to utilize their resources for new and further expansion of their legendary empire.

It is important to note that the name "Greeks" was not one chosen by those who actually lived in Greece. It was a name given to them by the Romans centuries later. Those who traveled and settled into Greece considered themselves Greek by living there, immersing themselves in the language and culture. Language gave them identity and newfound common ground together.

Our first evidence of a written language among the Greeks comes from a jug found with Greek characters on it, dating back to 750 BC. The Greeks were the first to have a fully functioning written language. Dating as far back as the 8th century BC, we have the written language using the Greek alphabet—the first real alphabetical writing—starting with Homer's epics and the first Greek inscriptions on archaeological findings. Thirty-five centuries of written tradition and at least forty centuries of continuous oral tradition have given Greek an early cultivation of both oral and written forms, making it one of the top languages in our world.

Their love for language only continued to evolve. By 500 BC, they had such a rich literary presence. They could differentiate their literature into drama, lyric hymns, history, and epigram. Plays are among the finest pieces of literature from ancient Greece, and some modern operas and films are based on these plays. Ancient Greece also produced several important philosophers we still refer to today. Socrates was a well-known philosopher who taught about knowledge, friendship, and justice. One of Socrates' students, Plato, also wrote about government, mathematics, astronomy, and human behavior. Their ability to turn their language into written literature has left us with artifacts that enable us to truly understand who they were and what their lives were like.

The language maintained such a cohesion of structure and vocabulary that is still prevalent today. The writing of the Homeric epics—the Iliad and the Odyssey—came from this time and are still considered great works of literature. The Greeks left behind a huge monumental legacy of written language, and their rich love for literacy represents our first true works of written history.

Religion and Mythology in Greek Culture

Another important aspect of Greek culture was their religious beliefs. It was a combination of publicly practiced religion and local superstition, but it gave them a sense of identity. They formed many of their myths by trying to understand their world around them. Mainstream Greek religion appears to have evolved from the earlier Mycenaean religion of the Bronze Age.

Greeks held local superstitions and beliefs in legends they came to worship and teach. Their theology was based on gods and goddesses who were remarkably human with supernatural powers. Many Greek people recognized the major Olympian gods and goddesses: Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Apollo, Artemis, Aphrodite, Ares, Dionysus, Hephaestus, Athena, Hermes, Demeter, Hestia, and Hera. Different cities often worshiped the same deities, sometimes with epithets that distinguished them and specified their local nature. This belief is apparent in much of their art, such as pottery, where they could honor their gods or teach lessons of life using them.

When the Roman Republic conquered Greece in 146 BC, it took much of Greek religion (along with many other aspects of Greek culture such as literary and architectural styles) and incorporated it into its own. The Greek gods were equated with the ancient Roman deities. Some of the gods, such as Apollo and Bacchus, had earlier been adopted by the Romans. There were also many deities that existed in the Roman religion before its interaction with Greece that were not associated with a Greek deity, including Janus and Quirinus. The Greeks, though, thrived and held a sense of pride in their shared beliefs even after their empire was taken from them.

Geography, Trade, and Economic Development

Another very important aspect of Greek culture was their place in the world. Settled within the Mediterranean basin, their lives revolved around the currents that flowed around them. Goods were traded within their different city-states: wine, olives, figs, pulses, eels, cheese, honey, meat, tools, perfumes, and fine pottery. Eighty percent of the people of Greece worked in agriculture, and it provided a lifestyle and profit for all.

With rivers and streams flowing around them in many directions, Greeks were at an advantage in being able to spread their ideas and reach out to others for knowledge and trade. By 500 BC, maritime technology was in full swing, making it possible for them to travel in ships using sails or oars. They had figured out the winds and currents and started utilizing them for travel. Because the Mediterranean was accessible by so many water sources, it became a common place of trade. The presence of pottery and precious goods such as gold, copper, and ivory, found far from their place of production, tells us that there was an exchange network which existed between Egypt, Asia, and other islands such as Crete, Cyprus, and the Cyclades.

Due to this trade and growing commerce, coinage and currency became necessary. Coinage probably began in Lydia around 600 BC and circulated in the cities of Asia Minor under its control. The technique of minting coins arrived in Greece around 550 BC, beginning with coastal trading cities like Aegina and Athens. Their use spread, and the city-states quickly secured a coinage of their creation. Coins played several roles in the Greek world. They provided a common ground for exchange, mostly used by city-states to hire mercenaries and compensate citizens. They were a source of revenue: foreigners had to change their money into the local currency at an exchange rate favorable to the state. They served as a mobile form of metal resources, which explains discoveries of Athenian coins with high levels of silver at great distances from their home city. Finally, the minting of coins gave a sense of prestige to any Greek city that had the honor of doing so. This growing Greek economy became the starting point for a much-needed established government.

Government Evolution and Political Systems

Greek cities in the eastern Aegean and Asia Minor came under the domination of the Persian Empire at the end of the sixth century. An unsuccessful revolt by the Greeks living on the Ionian coast led to the invasion of Greece by the Persians in 490 BC and again in 480 BC. The Archaic period officially came to an end with the defeat of the Persian forces at the Battles of Salamis and Plataia in 480/79 BC. Once free from Persian rule, Greece was free to flourish.

As their population grew, ancient Greeks formed city-states. Each city-state had its own form of government and laws, with a shared common language, religion, and way of life. Three kinds of government were common in these Greek city-states: oligarchy, tyranny, and democracy. Many of the Greek cities in the mainland, Aegean islands, and the Ionian coast were ruled by tyrants who ruled by constitutional authority, but not by popular support.

The two most important city-states were Athens and Sparta. Athens, located in the center of the Greek Peninsula, was a democracy. Sparta was in the southern part of the Greek Peninsula and was an oligarchy ruled by two kings. The city-states of ancient Greece fought constantly with each other. But despite their inner city-state wars, individual city-states and their colonies continued to prosper, giving rise to centers of political, religious, philosophic, and artistic development. Monumental sculptures, stone temple architecture, and civic building programs are among the achievements of this period that we can still see today.

In the years after the Persian defeat, Athens took the lead in a league of Greek states, known as the Delian League, sworn to pursue the war against the Persians. Conflict with other Greek cities resulted in the Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC) and eventually the defeat of Athens at the end of the fifth century. Subsequent decades saw the rise of Macedonian power, beginning when the Greeks were conquered by King Philip II in 338 BC. After Philip died (possibly at the hand of his own wife in 336 BCE), his son, Alexander the Great, took control.