Boys schools, started in the Middle Ages as an alternative to Church schools and giving free education to some boys.
[A-tik-a] The region around Athens.
Raised decoration on a soldiers helmet, like a ridge. On Greek helmets, the crest was made of stiff horsehair.
In a law court, the people who listen to evidence and decide whether an accused person is guilty or not.
[SPAR-ta] A city-state in southern Greece. The Spartans were famous for their strict military training and powerful army.
A map of the world drawn on a sphere, useful in geography lessons.
[TRY-reem] A Greek warship with three banks or rows of oars.
Building with machines for producing goods in large numbers.
There was not much furniture in most Greek homes. People sat on wooden chairs or stools. Rich people decorated the walls and floors of their homes with coloured tiles in patterns ormosaicpictures.
Rich Greeks hadslaves- sometimes 50 slaves worked for a rich family. Slaves did the hard work, on the farm, in the fields and workshops and in the house too.
[HOP-light] A Greek foot soldier. Hoplites carried round shields and long spears and had bronze helmets and leg guards.
A tall cylinder-shaped support for the roof or doorway to a building. There were three styles of columns in Greek architecture: Doric, Ionic and Corinthian.
The patron goddess of Athens, and goddess of wisdom. A huge statue of Athena stood inside the Parthenon in Athens.
Few Greek women had much freedom. One exception was Aspasia, who lived in Athens. She was clever, and people listened to her: she was also the girlfriend of the Athenian leader,Pericles!
There were public baths, some with hot water, but most homes had no bathroom – people washed in small tubs or in the nearest stream. Rich women (withslavesto carry the water) enjoyed baths at home, and afterwards rubbed their bodies with perfumed oil to keep their skin soft.
Beds had leather straps, on top of which was a mattress stuffed with wool, feathers or dry grass. Most people went to bed as soon as it got dark. The only light at night came from flickering oil lamps and candles.
Lived from about 428 to 348, he was a philosopher and teacher in Athens.
In warfare, a pointed weapon for battering holes in walls or ships. Greek warships had rams fixed to their front ends or prows.
Young Greeks showed their legs in short tunics. Older men wore tunics down to their ankles.
4learning: Who were the Ancient Greeks?
At men-only parties, women called hetairai sang, danced and played music for the guests.
Roman means of Rome or a person from Rome. The Ancient Romans conquered Greece around 146 BC, but admired and copied Greek civilization.
Rich women went out only with aslave, perhaps to visit women friends. InAthens, only poor women went shopping alone. Rich women always went with a slave or a male companion. Poor women went out more. They worked alongside their husbands, fetched water, and did the family washing in a stream. They could chat with friends while they worked.
Many people went barefoot. Some wore leather sandals or, for horse-riding, high boots. Men and women wore wide-brimmed hats, to shade their heads from the hot sun. We know Greeks liked jewellery, because jewels were buried with dead people in theirtombs.
The olive was the most valuable tree in Greece. People ate the fruit, but also crushed olives to make olive oil. They used the oil for cooking, in oil lamps, and cosmetics.
State in the north of Greece, birthplace of Alexander the Great.
Flat dish-shaped object thrown by an athlete, a bit like a Frisbee only smaller and heavier.
A building used for religious worship and ceremonies. The Greeks put statues of gods and goddesses inside their temples.
[DEL-fee] A city to the west of Athens, withthe famous Oracle of Delphi. People went to consult the Oracle for advice from the gods.
Greeks called house-thieves wall-diggers. Mud-brick houses were easy to dig into!
A system of government in which citizens can vote to decide things. Athens had democracy from 510 BC.
The burial place for a dead person. Ancient people often put food, pottery, weapons and other possessions in a persons tomb.
Anything made by people. Artefacts found by archaeologists include broken pottery, bits of wood and metal, brick and stone.
A play written to make the audience laugh. In the Greek theatre comedies poked fun at the foolishness of people and especially politicians.
[PARTH-en-on] A huge temple on top of the Acropolis hill in Athens.
Greek fighting formation, made up of ranks of foot soldiers.
Greeks ate with their fingers. Food was cut up in the kitchen first.
Decoration around the top of a wall or building.
A religious custom where people asked the Oracle questions or sought advice. The Oracle was supposed to give the answers of the gods.
Punishment for a serious crime, such as murder. The person found guilty was executed (killed).
A person who thinks and writes about the meaning of life and how people live.
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Monsters with wings and hair made of snakes. The gorgon Medusa could turn people to stone.
The metal part of a fire and fireplace.
[Zerksees] King of Persia. Son of Darius. Led the Persian army at the Battle of Salamis.
Sea robber. There were many pirate ships in the Mediterranean and Aegean seas at the time of the Ancient Greeks.
Artist who makes statues and other works of art from stone, wood or metal.
In theatre, a play with a sad or serious ending, and a moral lesson or teaching.
An overseas settlement. The Greeks set up colonies around the shores of the Mediterranean Sea.
A slave who worked for a Spartan master.
[a-CROP-olis] The Acropolis is a large hill in the centre of Athens. On top of it were many temples and other buildings, the remains of which can still be seen today
Oven heated by wood, charcoal or some other burning fuel for firing (heating and hardening) clay pots.
A woman who taught rich girls and young boys in their homes, as a paid, live-in servant.
Greek women put white lead on their faces to make the skin pale. Suntans were not at all cool. White lead is poisonous, so it did more harm than good.
Ancient Greek public toilets were very public – as many as 30 people in a row, over a pit.
City in what is now Turkey, in which people called Trojans lived. They fought a 10-year war with the Greeks.
Ancient kingdom, north of the Black Sea in a region now inside Ukraine and Russia.
[PER-i-kleez] A popular leader of Athens from 458 – 429 BC. Pericles was famous for his stirring public speeches.
[zz YOOS] The king of the gods. Zeus was the most powerful of the ancient Greek gods.
Said to be the author of the two long poems, The Iliad and The Odyssey, but nothing is really known about him.
[aris-TOT-ull] Lived from 384 to 322 BC. A scientist and philosopher.
Picture-decoration made from small coloured tiles.
[aris-TOF-a-neez] Lived from about 450 to 385 BC. He wrote comedy plays comedies for the theatre in Athens.
Greek travellers often carried a stick, to help them over mountains and rough roads. A stick was handy for fighting off bandits too.
At home, a Greek man sat on the best chair, called a thronos . His wife and children sat on small chairs and stools.
A group of men who travelled around Britain to investigate the working conditions of children in both factories and mines.
A person with no freedom, owned by someone else.
[SOK-rat-TEES] Lived from about 470 to 399. A philosopher and friend of Plato, he was famous for asking questions, but was forced to kill himself because Athens rulers feared his teachings.
Someone who writes about, and studies, the past, especially from writings left by earlier people.
Ancient Greek cities had their own governments, laws and armies. The city and the land it controlled around it made up the city-state.
Someone who studies – and often writes books too.
Breakfast might be bread dipped in wine (made from grapes), with fruit. Lunch might be bread and cheese. For dinner, people ate porridge made from barley, with cheese, fish, vegetables, eggs and fruit. For pudding people ate nuts, figs and cakes sweetened with honey. Only rich people ate much meat, including hares, deer and wild boar killed by hunters. Octopus was a favourite seafood. Rich people always ate at home; onlyslavesand poor people ate in public.
BBC GCSE Bitesize History: Ancient Medicine
Battle between the Greeks and Persians.
[pan-KRAT-ion] A type of wrestling with almost no rules; one of the Olympic events.
Married women stayed at home much of the time. At home, Greek women spent much of their time spinning thread and weaving cloth. They looked after the children and prepared food.
A gift made to the gods. For example, pieces of meat could be burned on an altar as a sacrifice.
The capital city of modern Greece. In ancient times Athens was a powerful city-state with its own government, laws, army and navy.
[SOF-o-kleez] A writer of plays who died in 406 BC. He was also a general, in the army of Pericles. Sophocles wrote tragedies.
Most Greek houses were small, with a walled garden or yard in the middle. The house was made of sun-dried mud brick. Mud houses crumbled away in a few years, and had to rebuild. Soarchaeologistsdo not dig up the ruins of Ancient Greek homes. What we know comes mostly from writings and pictures. The house had a roof of clay tiles, and small windows, with no glass, but wooden shutters to keep out the hot sun.
A History of the World: Objects from Ancient Greece
Useful containers such as bowls, dishes, plates and mugs made from soft clay that is baked hard in an oven called a kiln.
A favourite after-dinner game was kottabos. People flicked spots of wine from their wine cups, trying to hit a target.
Expert in studying the past from remains left by people.
Narrow strip of land with sea either side.
A boatman who takes people across a river or lake in a boat called a ferry.
The pomegranate fruit was a symbol of married love.
The British Museum: Ancient Greece – Daily Life
A Greek woman wore a longtunic, called a chiton, made from a piece of cotton or linen material. It reached the ankles. Over it, she wore a cloak, called a himation – thin for summer, thick for winter, and draped from the shoulders. Young men wore short tunics, older men preferred long ones.Slavesoften wore just a strip of cloth (a loincloth).
Mythical creature with a horses lower body and legs, but the chest, arms and head of a man. Centaurs were wild and unruly, but one named Chiron was wise and skilled in healing.
Greek men and women ate separately. Slaves carried in food and wine on small tables.
[COH-rinth] A city-state in southern Greece, famous for its pottery and overland ship-track. Someone or something from Corinth is known as Corinthian.
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Person active in politics – the business of governing a city or country.
Typical clothing of Greek men and boys, a loose-fitting garment like a long shirt with short sleeves.
A religious festival held in honour of Zeus, attended by people from all over Greece.
Large piece of wood, leather and metal held in front of a soldiers body to protect him in battle. Most Greek shields were round.
An empire to the east of Greece, ruled by kings. Persia tried to invade Greece. Ancient Persia is modern Iran.
[AB-buh-KUS Beads on a wire or wood frame used for counting and doing sums.
In Athens a citizen was a person with the right to take part in the assembly, serve on juries and take a turn as a member of the ruling council. Only male Athenians were allowed citizen rights.