Ancient Greece
Introduction
Critical Thinking
Indo-Europeans who migrated to Greece
in 1900 B.C.
Built hilltop fortresses
Painted scenes of hunting and warfare
The Mycenaeans
Became wealthy by trading and raiding
Captured Minoan territory
Declined by 1150 B.C.
Indo-Europeans
Atlantis?
Geography of Greece
OCCUPIES A
PENINSULA ON THE
MEDITERRANEAN SEA
4/5 OF IT IS RUGGED
AND MOUNTAINOUS
SOCIETIES LIVED IN
VALLEYS
GREECE BECAME AN
ISLAND TRAVELING
MARITIME CIVILIZATION
The Dorian Dark Ages
Greeks known as the Dorians lived in a “Dark Age” from 1200 to 900 B.C.
No major structures were built
Writing may not have existed
Agriculture suffered and the population declined
Agricultural refugees looked for other lands to settle
A Shared Culture
• Greeks had a shared language and religion
• They were polytheists (Belief in Many Gods)
• The events in nature were explained by the gods
• They believed in an afterlife in a world called Hades
• Stories of their gods were called myths
Hellenic Civilization
AS THE DARK AGES ENDED,
FARMLANDS BEGAN TO
EMERGE
AGRICULTURE SPREAD AND
BOOMED LEADING TO A RISE
IN POPULATION
TRADE WAS INTRODUCED
WHICH IN TURN GAVE BIRTH
TO A WRITING SYSTEM
THE GREEKS IMPROVED THE
PHOENICIAN ALPHABET AND
RECORDED EPICS ALONG
WITH HISTORY
The Olympics
• First held in Olympia from 776 B.C. to 394
A.D.
• Male athletes only
• Only foot races at first
• Other events such as wrestling and discus
were added
• The Olympics resumed in Athens in 1896
Herodotus
The Father of History
Greek Polis
The Greeks organized into separate city-states (Polis)
A Polis had a capital city with surrounding countryside
and villages
Eventually there were 200 poleis
They were walled and had an acropolis (High city for
retreat or worship)
The town square was called the agora
Athenian Acropolis
The Parthenon
Expansion of the city-states
The Greeks searched for new farmlands and set up colonies in The Mediterranean
Region
Democracy started in the Greek city-states
Only citizens, and sometimes only property owners, could participate (No thanks
women and slaves)
Foreigners could not become citizens
Sometimes wealthy landowners would take control and become tyrants
Legacy of Polis
Cities
•
•
•
•
Indianapolis
Minneapolis
Cassopolis (Michigan)
Metropolis (A major
city or where
Superman lives)
Words
• Police
• Policy
Critical
Thinking