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Ancient Greece: Greeks
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Ancient Greece wasn't one large empire but a collection of smaller city-states. The term the Greeks used was polis, which meant (more or less) "city-state." A polis was bigger than a city but smaller than a state. They were scattered throughout the Mediterranean area. Some were sea-ports; others were more inland. Some of the more famous city-states were Athens, Sparta, Corinth, Delphi, and Thebes.
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Ancient Greece is the era in Greek history that stretched for about a thousand years. Historians believe that this culture was responsible for the underpinning of Western Civilization. So much so that it made commanding influence in the Roman Empire to say the least. Now, ancient Greece not only formed the geographical peninsula of contemporary Greece but ... plugged in areas of Hellenic culture that matured at those times in the hands of the Greek.
The Classical Period of the history of Ancient Greece (500-336 B.C.) featured an intense rivalry with the mighty Empire of the Persians. This Empire had been greatly extended under Cyrus the Great 600-529 B.C. who had united Media and Persia in 549 B.C., become master of Asia Minor in 546 B.C., and captured Babylon in 539 B.C. The Greek states in Asia Minor were variously imposed upon by the Empire of the Medes and Persians from 546 B.C.
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Long after ancient Greece lost its political and military power, its cultural accomplishments deeply influenced thinkers, writers, and artists, especially those in ancient Rome, medieval Arabia, and Renaissance Europe. People worldwide still enjoy ancient Greek plays, study the ideas of ancient Greek philosophers, and incorporate elements of ancient Greek architecture into the designs of new buildings. Modern democratic nations owe their fundamental political principles to ancient Greece, where democracy originated. Because of the enduring influence of its ideas, ancient Greece is known as the cradle of Western civilization. In fact, Greeks invented the idea of the West as a distinct region; it was where they lived, west of the powerful civilizations of Egypt, Babylonia, and Phoenicia.
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In the 8th century B.C., in Ancient Greece, the Dorian’s rule declined and the states started to re-emerge. Two ports, Argos and Corinth started to flourish, and began trades with the Near East and a local production. A wealthy elite emerged. These two ports were specialized in the manufacture of luxury goods. In trade contacts with the Phoenicians, they adopted their alphabet and other innovations that accelerated the changes in the Greek civilisation.
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The appreciation of food in ancient Greece—by those who had the time and money—marks the beginning of what is known today as gastronomy. Greek literary texts (especially comic plays) of around 350 B.C.E. present detailed discussions of which foods were consumed, how much they cost, and how they would be prepared. From the same period one can trace the beginnings of the idea that each city would have its own local food specialities and its own distinctive wine. Adherents of the medical tradition begun by Hippocrates were developing dietary theories and compiling handbooks that dealt with the contribution made by individual foodstuffs to human health.
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