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 also plugged in areas of Hellenic culture that matured at those times in the hands of the Greek.

Conventionally, you will find that the Greek period is traced back with the date of the earliest Olympic Games in 776 BC. But several historians beg to differ as they have now lengthened the term back to about 1000 BC. On the other hand, end of the ancient Greek era came into effect with the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC. However, Hellenistic or the incorporation of Greece into the Roman Republic in 146 BC followed soon.

Throwing light on Greek history, you will know that the Greeks had actually migrated southward into the Balkan peninsula owing to influences initiated in the late 3rd millennium BC. The period from 1600 BC to 1100 BC speaks of the sovereignty of King Agamemnon and not to mention the wars in opposition to Troy as reflected in the epics of Homer. Inscriptions and writings by historians along with writers like Herodotus, Thucydides, Xenophon, Demosthenes, Plato and Aristotle have survived to tell the tales of these times.

Monarchy was prevalent in ancient Greece. The coercion of the monarchs led a small class of landowners to shape a warrior aristocracy that took to small inter-city wars to cast out the monarch. This gave rise to a mercantile class in about 680 BC. Greek politics was highlighted in the face of Athens and Sparta’s rivalry. However, Sparta formed a permanent militarist regime under a dual monarchy while in Athens monarchy was abolished in 683 BC, which gave way to a moderate system of aristocratic government.

The Persians made war and it wasn’t long before they established control over Ionia that consisted of eminent centers like Miletus and Halicarnassus. The Ionian Revolt followed in 499 BC much with the help from Athens and some of the other Greek cities. It was the Greeks, under the Spartan Pausanius that eventually crushed the Persian army at Plataea. Winning battles and wiping out the Persians, Athens regained overall power. 

As regards the Greek society, there were two kinds -the free and the slave. Unlike the slaves the free people had protection of the law under their belt. The slaves were the most deprived bunch of people. They were ripped of any power or status and not even the right to have a family and possess property. As a matter of fact by the 5th century BC, the slaves constituted about one-third of the sum inhabitants in a number of city-states. Four social classes on the basis of wealth existed in Athens while in Sparta the male citizens earned the title of “equal” once they were through with their education.

In the face of architecture, the Greeks excelled enormously. Low apartment buildings or single-family homes featured in the city lives of ancient Greece. There were residences, public buildings, and temples next to the agora. The male members of the house were responsible for sustaining the family by earning while the women were more or less engaged in household work. Agriculture was the chief means of livelihood for the Greeks.

As regards the clothing, these men and women were dressed in loose Peplos and Chitons. Multihued designs formed a part of the tunics and these were sported with a belt. Cloaks, hats and leather boots in wintry weather and sandals in summers are what the Greeks wore.

Ornaments and cosmetics were also common amongst the ladies. Religion played quite a role in Greek civilization. The Greeks were very religious people and they worshipped many Gods. Truth be told, their God were in the likes of the different elements of nature. What’s more these Gods were honored by means of contests in music, drama, and poetry. Festivals were also prevalent like for instance the huge Panhellenic festivals, which were held at Olympia, Delphi, Nemea, and Isthmia.

Education was under wraps except for Sparta. Public schools sprouted during the Hellenistic period in more than a few city-states. Besides formal education, they were also trained in singing and playing instruments. Not just that, they were also qualified as athletes in favor of military service.

Ancient Greece has indeed made great strides on all fronts and it well remains as a standing example for all of us.

Our present civilization is indebted to our predecessors who with their might and mind have laid the foundation of human civilization throughout the world. We will now discuss some of the ancient civilizations in brief.

The History Of Ancient Greece

The Greek civilization is the foundational civilization of the western world. Ancient Greece is not limited to today’s Greek peninsula, all the places where the Greeks established Hellenic culture in ancient times comes under this purview.
 
Ancient Greek empire influenced the spheres of science, technology, architecture, art, language, education, polity, and philosophy. Ancient Greece stimulated Renaissance in Western Europe. Greek classicism was revived to elevate literature in the 18th and 19th century Neo-classical period in Europe and in the Americas.

The Mighty Roman Empire

The Roman Empire is the base structure of European civilization. Though the Romans were the conquerors they learned a lot from the Greek heritage. Usually the name of Ancient Rome is uttered together with ancient Greece as contenders of “classical antiquity”. Ancient Roman civilization has a huge influence on European law, war, art, architecture and language, which is still continuing its legacy. 

 The Roman Empire spread its rule on the vast landmasses of Western Europe and areas surrounding the Mediterranean Sea. During the 12th century Roman Empire transformed from a monarchy to an oligarchic republic to a huge empire.

The traditional date of the fall of Rome is 476 B.C after the vast empire was broke into independent kingdoms in the west and the eastern empire came to be known as the Byzantine empire, governed from Constantinople.

Ancient China

China has preserved the earliest written evidence of civilization of 13th century B.C Shang dynasty. The evidences are written inscriptions, prediction records on animal bones and shells called “oracle bones”. The last of the nine capitals of Shang is modern Anyang of modern day Henang. The Zhou dynasty emerged as the new power in 2nd millennium B.C. The Zhou king Wu with the help of his uncle, the duke of Zhou defeated the Shangs in the battle of Muye. The Zhou king established the concept of “Mandate of Heaven” to strengthen his rule and this concept lived long through the gradual succession of the dynasty.

Initially the area of modern Xian, near the Yellow river was the capital of Zhou dynasty but gradually they expanded their rule to the Yangtze River valley. This is the first ever record of north to south migration of Chinese population.

However, the 8th century episode of Spring and Autumn periods was the history of decentralization of Zhou power in the hands of local leaders who rose to power. China now had hundreds of small states. The arena of intellectual thoughts saw the rise of many intellectual movements like the Hundred School of thoughts, Confucianism, Taoism, Legalism and Mohism.

In the 5th century B.C these few states battled with each other. This period is known as the Warring states period. King Ying Zhen , the king of Qin annexed, assimilated  and unified several states and proclaimed himself as the First Emperor of China.

Ancient India

As per Sanskrit literature Ancient India revolves round the rich history of the classical Hindu age termed as “golden age”. This age began during the 500 BCE with the Mahajanapadas, the sixteen monarchies and republics, which occupied the territory of Indo-Gangetic plain stretching from Afghanistan to Bangladesh. Four great Mahajanapadas were Magadha, Kosala, Kuru and Gandhara.

Ancient India had a grand oral literary tradition starting with the Rig Veda, compiled in circa 1500B.C. The epics Ramayana and Mahabharata belong to the classical period. Indian history embraced the well-recorded written form from 6th century B.C after the birth of Buddha and Mahavira.

Amongst the sixteen Mahajanapadas, Magadha rose to eminence and became famous under the legendary rule of king Ashoka of the Maurya dynasty. The south was under the rule of the Chera, Chola and the Pandya dynasties.

After Ashoka, the Gupta Empire integrated the north India (320-550 BCE). Gupta period saw immense progress in law, order, art, mathematics, education, Sanskrit drama, grammar, logic, metaphysics, medicine and astronomy. The Gupta Empire declined with the invasion of the Hunas.

The south Indian Tamil people of the Sangam age traded with the Greco Roman world from the coast of Malabar. They had connections with the Greeks, Romans, Phoenicians, Arabs, Jews and Chinese.

India was the richest subcontinent of the world till the Mughal period.

The Ancient Civilizations Of Sub- Saharan Africa

The ancient civilization of Egypt is the most famous African civilization mothered by the river Nile. It spanned over three and a half millennia. The inception of the civilization was the unification of Nile valley polities around 3500 B.C and ended in 30B.C with the Roman conquest.

Egyptian civilization balanced nature and human resources effectively with the gift of fertility from Nile.

Ancient Civilization Mesopotamia

The name Mesopotamia is derived from the Greek words for “between” and “river”. Ancient Mesopotamia was spread in the Tigris and Euphrates river basins and the area in-between. Mesopotamia is referred to as the “Cradle of Civilization” as it is the place where first literate societies evolved in the 4th millennium B.C. The time span of ancient Mesopotamia is from 4th millennium BCE to the rise of the Achaemenids in 6th century BCE.

Mesopotamia homed ancient civilizations like the Akkadian, Assyrian and Babylonian empires.

Ur Nammu (king of Ur), Sargon (Established the Akkadian empire) and Hammurabi (Established the Babylonian empire) and Tiglath Pileser (established the Assyrian empire) are some prominent names in the pages of ancient Mesopotamia.

The History Of Phoenicia

The ancient Phoenician civilization is a maritime trading civilization, which was centered on the ancient Cannan and did spread across the Mediterranean with its vital concentration on the lands of modern Lebanon during the first millennium B.C.

The language of the Phoenicians is Phoenician, a member of Canaanite language of the Semitic family. The most important historical sources are the inscriptions. The Phoenician Punic colonies of North Africa are also a valuable source to know about the ancient Phoenicians.

The Ancient Civilizations Of The Americas

The Aztecs

The Aztec civilization is a colorful civilization of Mexico. The Aztecs were Mesoamerican people who called themselves Mexicas, who lived during the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries in central Mexico.

Mandatory education and a complex yet rich mythology are the chief texture of the Aztec civilization. Practice of human sacrifice was in vogue.

The Chronicles Of The Olmec

The Olmec people are the ancient pre-Columbian people of south central Mexico, which roughly corresponds to modern days Veracruz, and Tabasco. The span is roughly from 1200 B.C to 400B.C and the Olmec people are thought to be the predecessor of every principal Mesoamerican Civilization.

The Inca Civilization

Inca empire was the biggest pre-Columbian empire of America and one the chief empires in the world. It rose to prominence in highlands of Peru during 1200 BC. Cuzco was the political, administrative and military center.

The official language was Quechua, though seven hundred local languages were spoken.

The Inca leadership promoted worship of Pachamama or Mother Earth. The Incas believed Inti or Sun God to be the chief God.

The Inca Empire was divided in a stratified society. The empire was divided in “senorios”(dominions) and the ruler was the Inca. The economy was based on the collective property of the land. The Inca was undertaken as a massive civilization project based on a mythology of harmony between human, God and Nature.

The Incas declined with the coming of Spanish Conquistadors.

Maya Civilization

Maya Civilization is Mesoamerican civilization, which reached the zenith of art, architecture, mathematics and astronomy. The Maya people developed a fully written system of language. The famed period of 250 to 900 BCE of Maya Civilization is known as Classic period in Mesoamerican chronology. The spread of civilization was from the northern Central America to the southern parts of Mexico. It was a vibrant and lively civilization.

Here ends the chronicle of the famous ancient civilizations of the world.

Colors of every shade enrich this vast expanse of world culture. The myriad cultures with their widely differing languages, religions, literatures and lifestyles provide an interesting study of the populace residing in different parts of the world. 

The Culture of Europe

Europe has been the seat of many revolutionary cultural movements of which some like the Renaissance Movement has also gone on to shape the course of events around the globe. A prime reason for the spread of the European cultural threads has been the colonialist ruling of the Europeans.

This is particularly evident from the fact that there are people in USA who speak European languages like Spanish, English, French and Portuguese. The influx of the culture of Europe can be seen in some of the countries of Asia, Africa and Australia too, most notably in the arts and architectural spheres.

The culture of Europe as a whole is a unique fusion, imbibing practices and thoughts from various sources and evolving into an eclectic entirety. A trip here and you will be bowled over by the flavor of world culture nestled in a single continent. However, the advent of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) and the European Union in recent times has seen a trend towards a unification of these varied cultures. 

The Culture of Asia and the Middle East

World culture is not something compartmentalized and exclusive; there are similarities between even apparently widely dissimilar cultures. For instance, like Christianity in Europe, religion and spiritualism too have been the basis of cultural development in both Asia and the Middle East.

Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Islam and Christianity have played dominant roles in shaping the literature, arts and philosophy of Asia. And amongst the various countries of Asia, India and China, the seats of two of the most ancient civilizations of the world, have exerted quite an influence on the course of development in this continent.

To elaborate, during the 20th century the “Ahimsa” or the principle of Non-violence propagated by Mahatma Gandhi and the Communist ideology preached by Mao Zedong won the admiration and criticism of the world at large. The Hindu and the Buddhist philosophies too, emanating from this region, have gone to mesmerize the West, with the result that there have been a constant stream of Westerners visiting India and East Asia to learn more about these ideologies.

The Middle East is the cradle of Islam, Christianity and Judaism. Christianity was born in Judea at the end of the 1st century and from there it spread wings to Europe, Asia and the American continent via Greece and Rome. 

The Culture of USA and Canada

Anglo America (USA and Canada) share sundry cultural similarities, partly because people in these two countries speak a common language, English that is, and also because there is hardly much of a geographical boundary between the countries. However, Canada is considered one of the most ethnically diverse countries of the world. And this has led to the growth of an amazingly multi-hued culture with traces of English, French, Irish, Scottish and aboriginal elements.

World culture is an endless stream of influences and counter-influences between the varied cultures and this is evident in the American culture as well. For instance, while American music is a soulful blend of rock and roll, hip hop, jazz and country, Native American delicacies like turkey, potatoes, corn and squash and European dishes like apple pies and pizzas mingle delectably in American cuisine. In its turn, Hollywood movies continue to dictate fashion and lifestyle trends all around the world.

Be it African or Asian, American or European, the wholesome palate of world culture is a truly dynamic entity where change is the only constant.

King James Bible is a literary and religious treasure. This version of the Bible was published in the year 1611. The original Bible in Greek and Hebrew language was beyond the understanding of the common Christians. Thus, for their convenience King James I requested the Bible to be translated in English – the language of the mass. However, at that time before the publication of the King’s Bible, the Geneva Bible existed as the popular translated version from the original.

However, King James was not in favor of this Geneva style for he felt that some parts of the Bible went against the sovereign authority. However, in spite all arrangements and sincere efforts the translated version of the Bible dedicated to King James never received the King’s authorization nor did it came to be identified as the only permitted text within the church premise. Irrespective of such a restricted promulgation, the King James Bible was successfully able to replace the popularity of both Geneva and Bishop’s Bible.

The process of translation  

People chosen for the translation work were divided into six panels and each panel was given to translate specified books of the Bible. Soon after the translation was complete, a committee of translators was chosen from each of the six panels assigned to evaluate the work done following a set of established guideline rules. This was done in order to ensure that none of the translated versions was disorientation of the original form by the inclusion of strange opinions and political chauvinism of individual translators.

The translated version of the Bible was designed in a way to put more emphasis on rhythm and punctuation. This was done to help the text develop a fresh oral quality to be read out loud and clear in the Church.

Translation rules followed for King James Bible 

• It was suggested to retain the names of the Prophets and the Holy Writers along with other names of the text

• It is likeable that there could be words in the original text with different Significations and only those, which were profusely used by the Ancient Fathers, were to be used according to the Property of the Place, and the Analogy of the Faith

• Old ecclesiastical words have to be used. Say, for example, words like Church and Congregation cannot be supplemented with suitable synonyms

• During the translation process, it was necessary to follow the original Bishops Bible and playing with the true and authentic was not permissible

• The Divisions or the Chapters of the text had to be altered as par requirement

• There was no need to attach any sort of added explanation only certain meanings of Hebrew or Greek words which are beyond the normal capacity of human understanding had to be deciphered

• All books needed to go through a proper system of judgment and re-judgment before the final attribution 

• The translation was principally based on the Bishop’s Bible but the translators were also liable to make use of the Tyndale, Matthew, Coverdale, Great, and Geneva Bibles for a more concretization of facts

The King’s Bible was bigger in comparison to the Great Bible. The letters were printed in black following the italicized Roman type. Such a creation, which was done to produce something mightier than the mightiest made religion simpler for the commoners. Here lies the significance of King James Bible.

Ancient Greek art occupies a pride of place in the annals of the greatest artworks of the world. The artistic exploits of the ancient Greek people has continued to mesmerize one and all throughout the ages with their myriad manifestations of charm, aristocracy, grace and sheer opulence. It is no wonder that ancient Greek art has influenced the course of art to a massive extent.  

The Time Period Of Ancient Greek Art

Ancient Greek art boasts of a rich artistic lineage, dating back to the Minoan prehistorical civilization, spanning a dizzy duration of about 4000 years. The time period of ancient Greek art can be further divided into the Archaic, the Classical and the Hellenistic periods.

Influences On Ancient Greek Art

Western Classical art, was influenced by the artistic traditions of the East, the then emerging religion of Christianity, the Renaissance ideals, the Italian ideologies of the Romanticist Era and the Ancient artwork of Greece.

The subjects depicted in the myriad forms of ancient Greek artwork range from the high ideals like bravery, heroism, and liberty to religious beliefs that they held and images of their Gods and Goddesses and from playful rendering of beautiful young men and women to athletic meets and battles.

Ancient Greek art has in turn exerted considerable influence on the course of how art has developed throughout the world. Thus you can discern Greek artistic strains in the artwork of the Romans and cultural exchanges during the time of Alexander the Great led to the Greek artistic traditions making inroads as far as the Far East. The humanistic traits and the high standards of craftsmanship inherent in ancient Greek art have been sources of inspiration for generations of Europeans artists. 

Greek art is primarily in four forms: architecture, sculpture, painting and pottery.

Ancient Greek Architecture and Sculpture

Ancient Greek architecture has earned recognition all throughout the world for the sheer grandeur and the exquisite artistry that the edifices portray. But sadly enough, there are not many relics left of ancient Greek architecture, what with the almost incessant wars, widespread looting and the havoc wrought in by the earthquakes. In fact, there are no remnants left of the Four Wonders of the World erected by the Greek architects, which are the Statue of Zeus at Olympia, the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, the Colossus of Rhodes and Lighthouse of Alexandria.

The Archaic variety of ancient Greek sculpture was characterized by crude and hard lines and forms, while the Classical period saw the advent of more refined and realistic shapes and lines. In the Hellenistic period the sculptural traits of the Greek artisans bordered on the highly ornamental and the intricate.

To elaborate, in the Archaic period (800-500 BC), the most common form of a statue was a human figurine in some kind of a rigid posture, with a stiffer smile playing on the lips. The statues were somewhat after Egyptian sculptures, complete with a slight smile, extended palms and the fist clasped.

This tradition had quite a shift in the Classical period with the sculptors concentrating more on achieving a life-like fidelity in their creations. The stiffness also gave way to more fluidity in the bodily expressions, while the wistful smile was replaced by a grave look.

In the Hellenistic period, the Greek artist wielded more freedom of expression with grand designs, quirky plays of light and shadow and quite spectacular facial emotional and bodily postures.

Ancient Greek Painting and Painted Pottery

The ancient Greeks held paintings in high esteem. The Greek painters usually worked on wooden panels and also on pottery. However, much of the disappointment of the posterity, there isn’t much of remnants, except for a few pieces of terracotta works and a few paintings on the walls of the tombs in Macedonia and Italy. Amongst all the ancient Greek painters, Polygnotus of Thasos is the most renowned.

Ancient Greek art has, in many ways, charted the course of art all around the world and still continues to bring out the wide-eyed stares and gasps from the onlookers.

For students of history and even who like knowing about history, ancient history holds a special place. This is because it represents a world that is left far behind but was very similar to ours when you look at it closely. The basics of civilization had its seeds sown in those times and they have remained unchanged down the centuries.

Early history is often specifically referred to as the history of Greece and Rome from the ancient times to the Middle Ages. But this does not mean that those were the only civilizations that were present at those times, there were other civilizations mushrooming and burgeoning all around the world at more or less the same period. Other empires like that in China and Mohenjodaro and Harappa (India) in Asia, Mesopotamia, Egypt in Africa, Aztecs, Mayans and Incas in Latin America etc. flourished at around this time too. So the term ancient history should ideally also include the study of these civilizations.

The main handicap in studying ancient history is that we know too little of that period, this is because the exact happenings of the old times have not been well documented or it has been lost. The ones that remain of course contain a biased view of the authors and cannot always be fully depended upon. Thus, whatever knowledge we have of the ancient world is through archaeology. Important archaeological finds to date are the Egyptian pyramids, the city of Mohenjodaro and Harappa, Pompeii-the city destroyed by the volcano, as well as the Chinese terracotta army.

The Classical age of history that comprises mainly the Roman and Greek civilizations also extends to the Mediterranean region of Phoenicia, Scythia, Carthage, and to the Hittites and Etruscans. The historians who have recorded the events of this age are Livy, Herodotus, Tacitus, Suetonius, Polybius, Thucydides etc. Such were the knowledge, learning and teaching of the great people of this age that they are followed to this day. For example, in philosophy and literary theory, Aristotle remains unchallenged, Hippocrates and Galen form the basis of the medicinal world. They have influenced every facet of our lives like politics, sculpture and architecture.

Thus, if a timeline is created to represent the major events of ancient history then it will be seen that the beginnings start with the Sumerian Civilization followed by the Egyptian civilization, the Indus Valley civilization, the Shang dynasty of China and the Greek and Roman Civilization. The two other notable civilizations from the Americas are the Maya and Inca.

While studying early history thus, concentrating on a single civilization does not suffice, you need to focus uniformly on the developments of each continent. For example, in America itself there have been the Mayas, Incas and the Olmec civilizations, which have all contributed to ancient history in their own particular way.