Legacies of Ancient Greece A legacy is something

Legacies of Ancient Greece

A legacy is something that is handed down through time. These can be ways of doing things or simply ideas.

The ancient Greeks developed many ideas and ways of doing things that we still use today. Let’s explore some of their most important legacies!

Democracy

The word democracy comes from the Greek word démokratia (Démos = the people, Kratos = power, force) so th. AT means “power of the people. "

Democracy was started in Athens By Pericles

Only adult male citizens of Athens could vote. But this was the first time in history that the citizens of an area ran their own government.

Democracy A government where the people have the right to make decisions about leaders and laws Greek word meaning “power of the people” Athens developed the first democracy The U. S. government is based on Athenian democracy.

Theatre

Theatre in ancient Greece developed due to the worship of the god Dionysus.

Dionysus was the Greek god of wine and pleasure

Greek theatre was especially important because of the development of the tragedy and the comedy.

Greek tragedy is a play that deals with tragic events and has an unhappy ending, especially concerning the downfall of the main character.

Comedy is A play characterized by its humor, showing amusing people or events in which the main character ultimately triumphs over adversity.

Trial by Jury

Trial by jury began in ancient Greece in the polis of Athens.

Here is how the system worked: • There were 201 - 501 people on each jury. • They would listen to the defendant and the accuser give a speech. • They would then vote on guilt or innocence. • Both sides would give a speech on what the punishment should be and the jury would vote again to decide which to choose.

Olympics

Once every four years, men in Greece would travel to Olympia to compete for their polis in the Olympic games. The Greeks would compete in events such as running, wrestling, javelin, discus, and jumping.

These games were held in honor of the Greek’s chief god Zeus and his wife Hera. The Olympics always went on in ancient Greece no matter what. Wars were even stopped so the games could be played!

architecture

The Greeks were excellent builders and are known for their architecture, especially their use of columns. There were three main types of columns used by the Greeks and they are still used today.

Doric columns have tall thick shafts with a very plain top or capital

Ionic columns have a slightly decorated capital with tall, slim shafts.

Corinthian columns have highly decorated capitals. These can be with leaves or other designs.

One of their greatest architectural achievements was the Parthenon.

mathematics

The Greeks were also interested in math. They developed the first universities in the world and math was part of their studies. A well known Greek mathematician was Pythagoras.

He is credited with proving the Pythagorean theorem which is used in geometry today. This theory proves that the long side of a right triangle (when squared) is equal to the sum of the other two sides (squared). It is written as follows: A 2 + B 2 = C 2

philosophy

The ancient Greeks believed in wisdom. They had many great Philosophers, (people who discussed, debated, and studied wisdom). The word philosophy comes from the Greek term meaning "the love of wisdom”. Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle were three of the greatest philosophers of ancient Greece.

A group of Greek intellectuals were known as the “Sophists. ” Sophos is a word in ancient Greek that means wise. Today the term sophisticated refers to a person who is cultured and educated. We get that word from the sophists.

mythology

The word myth comes from the Greek word “muthos” meaning a fable or a word.

The ancient Greeks were polytheistic. This means they believed in many gods. Writers and artists use the stories and symbols of Greek myths to this day. While we no longer view the myths as religion, many people still enjoy reading them.

Myths are traditional stories. The Greeks used myths to explain things they did not understand. At first, myths were passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth. Later, Greek poets created epic stories based on those legends. An epic is a long poem about great heroes and their deeds.

The Greek gods lived atop Mount Olympus, the highest mountain in Greece. Zeus was the head of the family of gods. He ruled the sky with his powerful thunderbolt.

One of his brothers, Poseidon, ruled the sea; another brother, Hades, ruled the “underworld. ”

The Legacies of Ancient Greece Please click on a button to view more information about that topic. democracy scientific method theater trial by jury epics Olympics architecture Socratic Method classification Greek mythology tragedy comedy Hippocratic Oath marathon philosophy Conclusion