Ancient Greece Adapted by Mr Dawson Fall 2016

Ancient Greece Adapted by Mr. Dawson Fall 2016

Where is Greece? • Sunny Greece is 4, 900 miles from Baltimore. • It’s capital city is Athens • It is famous for its beautiful beaches and sea!

Ancient Greece • In Ancient Greece, the different cities were at war with each other. • The most fearsome fighters came from the town of Sparta.

The Climate • The climate is Mediterranean. • The Mediterranean Sea affects the Greek climate, cooling the air in summer and providing warmth in winter. • The warm summers are cooled by seasonal breezes from the Mediterranean.

The Climate (Greece vs. Maryland’s) • The average temperature in Greece can range from a low of 44° to a high of 89°. • The average temperature in Maryland ranges from a low of 23° to a high of 87° • The average rainfall is 15 inches per year in Greece. • In Maryland it is over 42 inches.

Ancient greece - terrain • Greece has a very scenic landscape. • The terrain of Greece is varied. • There are mountains, valleys and coasts. • The high mountains are separated by deep valleys through which rivers flow.

Ancient greece - terrain • No part of Greece is more than about forty miles from the coast (a couple of days journey on foot). • There are lots of islands surrounding Greece. • The Greek mainland is a Peninsula of Peninsulas!

Soil and Plants • Vegetation is dependent on geographical regions. • Due to the variety of land, there a some 6, 000 indigenous species in Greece. • In Ancient Greece, farmers grew olives, figs, grain, fruit and grapes in the fertile valleys.

Soil and plants • However, other parts of Ancient Greece had drier soil and less vegetation, particularly around the cities. • Although surrounded by sea water, they found it difficult to find fresh water away from the valleys. • The high mountains also prevented large-scale farming, so the Greeks were forced to look beyond their own country for fertile land.

volcanic • Another important aspect of the Greek environment is that it is very unstable. • Greece is in the middle of a very volcanic zone, between the European and African tectonic plates. • There are several active volcanoes and earthquakes are common.

What does a civilization need to establish itself and then to flourish? • Why did the Greeks decide to build their city-states where they did? • City-states in Ancient Greece were established: 1. A reliable fresh-water source 2. A climate that is suitable for growing crops 3. A structure for ruling itself from within (government) 4. A system for protecting itself from without (military) 1. Near rivers (ex. ILISSOS River in Athens) 2. Farmed the hillsides outside the city-state 3. With governments (ex. Democracy in Athens, Oligarchy in Sparta) 4. Each city-state had its on army. Also, the city-states were established near mountains for added protection.

What have the Greeks contributed to the world? • Ancient Greece is often referred to as, “the cradle of Western civilization” • What is a cradle? • What is the purpose of a cradle?

Why the cradle? • Countless contributions were made by the ancient Greeks that western civilization benefits from today. These include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. philosophies (Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Hippocrates) ideas about the scientific world (Astronomy and Botany) political systems (democracy) the English alphabet The theater (comedy and tragedy) Architecture (using stone to build with, the idea of using columns) Sports; Marathon and the Olympic games

Philosophy • • • Aristotle Socrates Plato Hippocrates Pythagoras

The Greek Language • Greek is part of the Indo-European language family. • Greek is one of the oldest written languages spanning 34 centuries of use. • There are 24 letters in the language.

Has the Greek language influenced English? Greek word English word abyssos abyss akadimaikos academic alergia allergy angelos angel Biblos Bible climate dimokratia democracy geographia geography patriotis patriot stadio stadium xenophobia zoologia zoology

Theater: Comedy and Tragedy • The ancient Greeks built amphitheaters in their cities. • They are credited with developing the Comedy and Tragedy that we know today. • In general the comedy has the hero live at the end and tragedy has the hero die at the end.

Building with stone • Architecture – the Greeks used stone extensively in their building projects. Over time they experimented with and then perfected the use of the column. (Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian) Buildings like the Parthenon are excellent examples of Greek architecture.

Athletics • Olympics - The first Olympic games were held in 776 BC. • Marathon - Most large cities in the world host a running event known as a marathon. Each marathon takes runners on a 26. 2 mile journey. Why that distance? In 490 BC a soldier named Pheidippides ran from a battlefield at the site of the town of Marathon, Greece, to Athens. Legend has it that Pheidippides delivered the message "Niki!" ("victory"), then collapsed and died.

Religion Christian, Greek Orthodox - Due to a difference in theological interpretation of the Bible “The Great Schism” occurred. A Schism is a split into sections in the church. The great schism occurred in 1054 AD and divided the Christian church into Eastern (Eastern Orthodox) and Western (Roman Catholic).

Time Line 776 BC about 750 BC The first Olympic games. Early Greek culture. Homer '. writes the epics 'The Iliad' and the 'Odyssey 650 - 580 BC 508 BC 490 and 480 BC Corinth is ruled by the tyrant Kypselos and then his son Periander. Democracy begins in Athens Greeks defeat Persian invaders at the battles of Marathon (490 BC)and Salamis (480 BC). by 450 BC Athens becomes a very powerful city, and controls an empire. 472 - 410 BC Greeks theatre thrives in Athens. Many of the most famous Greek plays are written during this time.

Time line 462 - 429 BC Perikles is the popular leader at Athens as the general of the Athenian army 432 BC The Parthenon in Athens is finished being built. 431 - 404 BC War between Athens and Sparta (the Peloponnesian war) 428 BC The revolt of Mytilene 404 BC Sparta defeats Athens. 338 BC Philip, king of Macedonia, takes control of Greece 336 - 323 BC Alexander the Great, son of Philip, conquers most of the known world as far east as India. 146 BC Rome conquers Greece - Greece becomes part of the Roman empire. •