The ancient Classical and Hellenistic eras of Greece are undoubtedly the most splendid, having left behind a host of ideas, concepts, and art to provide the foundation of what we call “western civilization”. However, the two previous millennia that lead to these ancient eras, as well as the other two millennia that succeeded them are all part of the history of Greece and have left just as rich a cultural footprint on the land.
Much of the ancient Greek civilization has survived either directly or through permutations to our day. The ancient Greek dialects are influential even to this day with much Greek vocabulary embedded in the Modern Greek and English languages. Likewise, the art and architecture of ancient Greece has remained relevant and influential up to our time in the breadth of western society. The much-celebrated Renaissance was guided in large part by the re-discovery of the ancient Greek ideas through text and art, which were hitherto suppressed by the belief in the absolute authority of the supernatural power and the church.
It should be noted that History is a discipline that was conceived first in Ancient Greece. Herodotus (484 – 425 BCE) is considered the Father of History, as he was the first who attempted to record events and human actions for the sole purpose of preserving them for future generations. Being the first to attempt such a feat, Herodotus was not spared from harsh criticism for including in his Histories (written between 431 and 435 BCE), myths, legends, and outrageous tales.
Not much later than Herodotus, Thucydides (460 – 395 BCE) with his History of the Peloponnesian War, put his own stamp on the discipline of History by attempting to present history in an “objective” way, and to make correlations between human actions and events. Their approach and methods of recording historical events became the guiding light for historians of the next two thousand years.
HISTORY
Greece (Greek: Ελλάδα), officially the Hellenic Republic (Greek: Ελληνική Δημοκρατία historically also known as Hellas (Ancient Greek: Ἑλλάς is a country in southeastern Europe, with a population of approximately 11 million as of 2015. Athens is the nation's capital and largest city, followed by Thessaloniki.