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Greece Culture and Society

by Vishal Kumar

Greece – Culture and Society can be characterized by great diversity and richness. There are a number of important factors that influences the culture and society of Greece.

Factors Affecting Greece culture and Society

Greece is located at a meeting point of the eastern countries of the world and the western countries and this affects its c.

Thus the lifestyle of the people is influenced by diverse traditions and practices, which further affects the culture of the land. Greece is known to have a great history. The country had been under the occupation of a number of countries and has also passed through several historical phases. All these have had an impact upon the Culture and Society of Greece. Greek is the native language of the land. Greeks are religious people and there are a number of important traditions that forms an important part of the culture and lifestyle of the Greeks.

Greece Culture

Traditions, religious practices, music, food are all integral part of the Greece Culture. Large numbers of religious festivals are celebrated by the Greeks with great enthusiasm. Greeks were initially known to be orthodox by their nature but this has changed with the increasing western influence. Majority of the Greeks follows Christianity. Muslims, Jewish and Roman Catholic are other religious groups of Greece.

Greece Society

Greece Society consists of close knit families. There are other important social organizations in Greece that have gradually evolved from the idea of family. These organization works for the social benefit and welfare of the people of Greece. The institution of marriage also plays an important role in Greece Society. Tradition and religious practices forms a core of the social lifestyle of the Greeks. Women in Greece society are given great importance and are provided with good educational facilities.

Greece Fashion

Greece is famous for its fashion since the ancient times. The traditional Greece fashion and style is unique. It represents the classy choice of the ancient people and the lifestyle they use to lead. Greece is famous all over the world for various reasons.

Fashion in Greece is one of these well-known reasons. There are fashion designers around the world who often research on the ancient Greece fashion and get extremely inspired by them. According to the reviews of few internationally famous fashion designers, the ancient style and fashion of Greece gives unique and innovative ideas for new creations.

There were mainly three types of clothing that the people of Greece used in ancient period. 

The matrials used in making them were:

  • Linen
  • Wool
  • Drapery

Earlier, the average class of Greek men and women use to wear same style of dresses unlike the Kings and queens. Their dresses and fabrics represented a classiness and quality of clothing. The Greece accessories are as famous as the fashion of Greece. The Greece accessories include jewelries, bags, cosmetics and foot-wears. They are an important part of the Greece Fashion.

Greek Food

Greek Food is famous world wide as it offers an array of delicacies. The Greece cuisine reflects the Mediterranean style of cooking and diet.

Fruits and fresh vegetables play an important role in making some of the most well flavored and colorful Greek delicacies. Among them garlic, onions, fennel, zucchini, grapes, apples, dates and figs are widely used.

Seasonings and herbs like dill, mint and oregano and lemon rind also form an important part of the recipes.

Foods in Greece Bulgur, Pasta and Dolmades are the most common names in the category of grain food items in Greece. Lots of vegetables and fruits are preferred by the Greeks. Wheat and rice form the staple diet. As olives are cultivated in plenty, olive oil is used liberally in Greece cooking.

Lamb meat is widely used in the preparation of Greek Foods, especially during the religious festivals. Pork and beef meat also form an important part of the regular diet of the people of Greece.

Fish is especially preferred by the Greeks. These items can be grilled, braised, baked or stewed, and prepared with an assortment of vegetables along with avgolemnono to be served to the diners.

Moussaka, Paidakia, Pastitsio and Kokorets are some of the basic Greek recipes that form the basis of Greece Foods and are simply savored.

Greece Literature

Greece Literature has always been rich in diversity and quality. The history of the Greek literature goes 2500 years back, when it originated with the Iliad and the Odyssey composed by Homer in the 700 BC.

Ancient Greek literature is more profound compared to the modern literature produced in Greece. Greek literature can be classified into epics, poems, plays, historical accounts and philosophical essays. Legal and political speeches, significant in literary value are also considered a part of the Greek literature.

Ancient Greek Literature

The Greek epics are an example of ancient Greek literature. They are still available in their original form due to the fact that they were vigilantly preserved. The most renowned works are Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey. The Greek epics, which are lengthy narrations about a hero in the form of poetry, also include the Epic of Gilgamesh, which is considered as a ‘western epic’. The other important epic written in Rome by Virgil in the 19 BC is the Aeneid. Early Greek Literature also contains the outstanding works of Ascheylus and Sophocles.

Modern Greek Literature

The revival of the Greek Literature occurred in the 19th century during the era of revolt against the decree of the Ottoman Empire. It had temporarily died away under the Turkish Rule. Greek literature in the 20th century mirrors the fruition of European modernism. It is characterized by traits like symbolism, surrealism and experiments in narrative techniques.

Greek Literary Works

The most important Greek literary works are the epics Iliad and Odyssey, poetry of Hesiod, Sappho and Archilochus, the Greek tragedies by Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides and Aristophanes, the historical accounts by Herodotus and Thucydides and the philosophical treatise by Aristotle. Other literary works worth mention are the comedies by Menander and the historical accounts by Polybius.

Greece Literature, with its immense resources and tremendous affluence, has influenced the history of World Literature to a considerable extent. English and European literature often derives sources and influence from the Greek works.