Many of these later came under the imperial control of Athens, but these settlements ensured that Greek language and culture spread widely and influenced local societies wherever there was cultural and economic contact. Some historians have theorized that the colonialism was a response to overpopulation, but in any case by the fifth century (400s BCE) there were Greek settlements scattered all along the Mediterranean and Black Sea shorelines. Already by the 600s BCE, Greeks had established overseas settlements/colonies throughout the Mediterranean and Black Seas (Marseilles, Syracuse, Odessa, etc.). Colonial expansion first began relatively early in the eighth century. They were all individual polities, and all engaged in colonization. The Greek city states-it is important to remember that there was never any unified kingdom or state of Greece even under Philip II of Macedon and his son Alexander the Great in the fourth century BCE-let's get back to my point about the Greek city states. I'll repeat that in my comments on Christianity. Both focused on the role of the individual (and not community responsibility for events), and both would complement each other (ethical irrationalism in the form of religion and ethical rationalism in the form of philosophy) when merged later in Christianity. Whereas the Hebrews provided an ethical religion for the West (in the form of Judaism and the idea of ethical monotheism), the Ancient Greeks provided an ethical philosophy. (You could argue that the contemporary understanding of democracy is still not all that clear.) The Greeks also developed the idea and practice of 'democracy,' an idea and practice so radical in the ancient world and much different than the current understanding and use of the concept. The Greek appreciation of the value and beauty of the individual was crucial to the ensuing artistic and aesthetic history of the West. The Greek use of rational thought, and not supernatural explanation, to understand the natural world formed the basis of Western philosophy and science. Much of the Greek experience remains deeply embedded in the Western world today and not just as letters to distinguish one fraternity or sorority from another.

The Ancient Greeks contributed much to the development of Western culture in so many different areas: alphabet, drama, comedy, poetry, politics, democracy, medicine, architecture, science, sculpture and philosophy. As I was refiling the folders, I found the missing folder on Plato. Pericles (Obviously, I have a lot of information about Pericles as we have a important assignment that centers on the Pericles Funeral Oration in our online courses.).Antigone (not sure why I have this one).

I'll list the topics here, just for the fun of it: Remnants of the Temple of Zeus at Olympia, GreeceĪnd so I am looking through my notes to decide what to write here about the Greeks, and I've discovered that I have eleven folders with information on different aspects of Ancient Greece.

Greek knotes