world cultures

Ancient Greek Origins

Review the PowerPoint slides that accompany this lecture:

Ancient Greek Origins PPT   Download Ancient Greek Origins PPT (includes live links to websites and videos).

Aegean Civilizations

The Minoans

Scholars determined that the Aegean Civilizations started around 3000 B.C.E. The most ancient civilization found in this area is the Minoan civilization from the island of Crete. Their archeologists have found the Palace of Minos at Knossos. We know this culture as Minoan because we learned that there lived a king named Minos. From then on, the civilization has been called the Minoans. We might be familiar with the concept of the Minotaur, the half-bull, half-man beast that lived under the palace according to the myth. The myth of the Minotaur suggests that the Greeks were already trying to challenge myth through reason. The Minotaur had to be defeated, and this is done through wit. This is a sign of the later Greek obsession with understanding reality for what it is. Human reason was destined in Greece to develop to its highest form.

Artifacts found in Knossos suggest ancient fertility cults (Fiero, 2016). There is the famous Priestess with Snakes and the Bull Leaping Fresco. There are also two forms of early language, Linear A and Linear B. We do not know exactly what happened to the Minoans, but it seems that at a certain point, the civilization just disappeared. Some scholars suggest that they were victims of a volcanic eruption. Others that the mainland Myceneans had something to do with it.

The Myceneans (ca. 1600-1200 B.C.E.)

Scholars think that the Mycenean civilization was militant and aggressive. One of the reasons is that they built massive walls known as “Cyclopean” walls. The later Greeks were so impressed with these constructions that they named them Cyclopean, assuming that one-eyed giants built them. It is thought that when a civilization protects itself in this way, it shows that they are protecting itself from the fact they are in constant conflict.

The most famous deed of the Myceneans might be the incursion in Ilia, also known as Troy. We know this through Homer’s book, The Iliad. Popular culture has picked up these stories through time, and we have different versions of what happened at Ilia more than 2,500 years ago. Homer described these adventures for the Greeks in the Iliad and The Odyssey. In his poems, Homer emphasizes the role of the gods in the conflict. Fate also plays an important role in the lives of the Greeks.

Dorians destroyed the Myceneans. It is thought that tales of what happened at Troy were passed down through generations of storytellers, and eventually, they became the Iliad and the Odyssey in written form. Some scholars doubt the existence of one poet called Homer that wrote these books. They think that many storytellers added to these stories, and someone eventually put them together in book form. We know that Greeks were very proud of these stories, and they became national poems that served as models for the image of the hero that Greek men wanted to represent (Fiero, 2016).

The Greek Gods

The Greek gods were also originated during this time. There is evidence from the island of Crete and the Mycenean culture that these gods were in existence for the cultures of that historical period. The relationship between the Greeks and their gods was not like modern Christian relationships. The Greek gods were just like human beings. The only difference is that they had power and were immortal. The gods intervene directly in the lives of humans, but they do not require humans to be good. If Greeks sacrificed to them, the gods might respond favorably. They lived at the top of Mount Olympus, a real place. Zeus, for example, was considered the main sky god, and together with his wife Hera, they were considered the ruling deities. 

Although the Greeks had gods, there were no sacred scriptures to guide ethical behavior. The Greeks had only Homer as a guide for being Greek. We find a lot of this information through Hesiod’s Theogony. The Greeks built temples and shrines mainly used to offer sacrifice or ask for favors from the gods. But there was no need for the people to go regularly to the temples as we do today. For a fee, kings and regular people could request answers to their questions. There is the famous shrine of Apollo at Delphi. 

Because of the type of topography of mainland Greece, the people formed separate communities called domes separated by mountains. Each of these communities became autonomous city-states or polis. Although they share culture, they have different forms of government, for example. 

The Persian Wars

In 499 B.C.E., the Ionian city-states revolted against Persia. These Greek city-states were under Persian rule, but they enjoyed certain freedom. When they rebelled, their Greek neighbors from the mainland came to their aid. In 490 B.C.E., the Greeks defeated the Persians at the Greek city of Marathon. This was a very dramatic win for the Greeks since they could defend their land even though they were extremely outnumbered in battle. Although this was not such an important defeat for the Persians, for the Greeks, it became a symbol of their freedom, and it had a lot of significance for their later struggles. The Greeks finally defeated the Persians at Salamis (Fiero, 2016). 

This experience taught the Greeks that they had to unite if they wanted to face enemies like the Persian empire. A lot of what we know today about these events is told by Herodotus, who is considered “the father of history.” Herodotus was the first writer in the history of humanity who researched the event, considering both sides involved in it. Although his account of these events is not free of flaws, at least we see the first attempt to tell what happened. The word history derives from the original Greek “historie,” which means an investigation of inquiry. This laid the basis for what we call history today. 

References

Chambers, M., Hanawalt, B., Rabb, T., Woloch, I., & Grew, R. (2003).  The western experience (8th ed.). McGraw-Hill. 

Coffin, J. G. (2008).  Western civilizations: Their history and their culture. W.W. Norton and Company

Fiero, G. (2016).  The humanistic tradition: Book 1, HUM 2220 (7th ed.).  McGraw Hill Education.

McNeill, W. H. (1973).  The Ecumene: story of humanity. Harper and Row Publishers.

Perry, M., Chase, M., Jacob, J., Jacob, M., & Von Laue, T. H. (2007).  Western civilization: Ideas, politics, and society (8th ed.). Houghton Mifflin Company.

Spielvogel, J. J. (1997).  Western civilization: Volume I: To 1715. West Publishing.

Ancient Greek Origins

Review the PowerPoint slides that accompany this lecture:

Ancient Greek Origins PPT   Download Ancient Greek Origins PPT (includes live links to websites and videos).

Aegean Civilizations

The Minoans

Scholars determined that the Aegean Civilizations started around 3000 B.C.E. The most ancient civilization found in this area is the Minoan civilization from the island of Crete. Their archeologists have found the Palace of Minos at Knossos. We know this culture as Minoan because we learned that there lived a king named Minos. From then on, the civilization has been called the Minoans. We might be familiar with the concept of the Minotaur, the half-bull, half-man beast that lived under the palace according to the myth. The myth of the Minotaur suggests that the Greeks were already trying to challenge myth through reason. The Minotaur had to be defeated, and this is done through wit. This is a sign of the later Greek obsession with understanding reality for what it is. Human reason was destined in Greece to develop to its highest form.

Artifacts found in Knossos suggest ancient fertility cults (Fiero, 2016). There is the famous Priestess with Snakes and the Bull Leaping Fresco. There are also two forms of early language, Linear A and Linear B. We do not know exactly what happened to the Minoans, but it seems that at a certain point, the civilization just disappeared. Some scholars suggest that they were victims of a volcanic eruption. Others that the mainland Myceneans had something to do with it.

The Myceneans (ca. 1600-1200 B.C.E.)

Scholars think that the Mycenean civilization was militant and aggressive. One of the reasons is that they built massive walls known as “Cyclopean” walls. The later Greeks were so impressed with these constructions that they named them Cyclopean, assuming that one-eyed giants built them. It is thought that when a civilization protects itself in this way, it shows that they are protecting itself from the fact they are in constant conflict.

The most famous deed of the Myceneans might be the incursion in Ilia, also known as Troy. We know this through Homer’s book, The Iliad. Popular culture has picked up these stories through time, and we have different versions of what happened at Ilia more than 2,500 years ago. Homer described these adventures for the Greeks in the Iliad and The Odyssey. In his poems, Homer emphasizes the role of the gods in the conflict. Fate also plays an important role in the lives of the Greeks.

Dorians destroyed the Myceneans. It is thought that tales of what happened at Troy were passed down through generations of storytellers, and eventually, they became the Iliad and the Odyssey in written form. Some scholars doubt the existence of one poet called Homer that wrote these books. They think that many storytellers added to these stories, and someone eventually put them together in book form. We know that Greeks were very proud of these stories, and they became national poems that served as models for the image of the hero that Greek men wanted to represent (Fiero, 2016).

The Greek Gods

The Greek gods were also originated during this time. There is evidence from the island of Crete and the Mycenean culture that these gods were in existence for the cultures of that historical period. The relationship between the Greeks and their gods was not like modern Christian relationships. The Greek gods were just like human beings. The only difference is that they had power and were immortal. The gods intervene directly in the lives of humans, but they do not require humans to be good. If Greeks sacrificed to them, the gods might respond favorably. They lived at the top of Mount Olympus, a real place. Zeus, for example, was considered the main sky god, and together with his wife Hera, they were considered the ruling deities. 

Although the Greeks had gods, there were no sacred scriptures to guide ethical behavior. The Greeks had only Homer as a guide for being Greek. We find a lot of this information through Hesiod’s Theogony. The Greeks built temples and shrines mainly used to offer sacrifice or ask for favors from the gods. But there was no need for the people to go regularly to the temples as we do today. For a fee, kings and regular people could request answers to their questions. There is the famous shrine of Apollo at Delphi. 

Because of the type of topography of mainland Greece, the people formed separate communities called domes separated by mountains. Each of these communities became autonomous city-states or polis. Although they share culture, they have different forms of government, for example. 

The Persian Wars

In 499 B.C.E., the Ionian city-states revolted against Persia. These Greek city-states were under Persian rule, but they enjoyed certain freedom. When they rebelled, their Greek neighbors from the mainland came to their aid. In 490 B.C.E., the Greeks defeated the Persians at the Greek city of Marathon. This was a very dramatic win for the Greeks since they could defend their land even though they were extremely outnumbered in battle. Although this was not such an important defeat for the Persians, for the Greeks, it became a symbol of their freedom, and it had a lot of significance for their later struggles. The Greeks finally defeated the Persians at Salamis (Fiero, 2016). 

This experience taught the Greeks that they had to unite if they wanted to face enemies like the Persian empire. A lot of what we know today about these events is told by Herodotus, who is considered “the father of history.” Herodotus was the first writer in the history of humanity who researched the event, considering both sides involved in it. Although his account of these events is not free of flaws, at least we see the first attempt to tell what happened. The word history derives from the original Greek “historie,” which means an investigation of inquiry. This laid the basis for what we call history today. 

References

Chambers, M., Hanawalt, B., Rabb, T., Woloch, I., & Grew, R. (2003).  The western experience (8th ed.). McGraw-Hill. 

Coffin, J. G. (2008).  Western civilizations: Their history and their culture. W.W. Norton and Company

Fiero, G. (2016).  The humanistic tradition: Book 1, HUM 2220 (7th ed.).  McGraw Hill Education.

McNeill, W. H. (1973).  The Ecumene: story of humanity. Harper and Row Publishers.

Perry, M., Chase, M., Jacob, J., Jacob, M., & Von Laue, T. H. (2007).  Western civilization: Ideas, politics, and society (8th ed.). Houghton Mifflin Company.

Spielvogel, J. J. (1997).  Western civilization: Volume I: To 1715. West Publishing.