Encyclopedia of Greece and the Hellenic Tradition

by Graham Speake (Editor)

Overview

Hellenism is the living culture of the Greek-speaking peoples and has a continuing history of more than 3,500 years. The Encyclopedia of Greece and the Hellenic Tradition contains approximately 900 entries devoted to people, places, periods, events, and themes, examining every aspect of that culture from the Bronze Age to the present day. The focus throughout is on the Greeks themselves, and the continuities within their own cultural tradition. Language and religion are perhaps the most obvious vehicles of continuity; but there have been many others--law, taxation, gardens, music, magic, education, shipping, and countless other elements have all played their part in maintaining this unique culture.

Today, Greek arts have blossomed again; Greece has taken its place in the European Union; Greeks control a substantial proportion of the world's merchant marine; and Greek communities in the United States, Australia, and South Africa have carried the Hellenic tradition throughout the world. This is the first reference work to embrace all aspects of that tradition in every period of its existence.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781135942137
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	01/31/2021
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	1500
File size:	62 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Graham Speake (Edited by)

Table of Contents

2-volume resource, with listings from A to Z.

Editorial Reviews

Recent political events have brought the Balkans to center stage, prompting many library users to seek the connection between current events and those going back to the Ottoman Empire and, indeed, beyond. This volume provides the needed continuity, encompassing 3500 years of the cultural history of Greece and the Greeks. Those searching for data about the Byzantine Empire are occasionally frustrated by the Western preoccupation with Rome in many sources covering this era, but this work is refreshing in its lack of emphasis on Rome as empire or church. On the subject of abortion, for example, the focus is on the viewpoints of the Church Fathers and Greek Orthodoxy rather than Western or Catholic doctrines. The essay on ethics summarizes the general schools of thought in the Ancient Greek world, but when discussing the neoplatonists, the encyclopedia focuses on Byzantine moral theology, mentioning Western figures and thought only as they relate to the Hellenic tradition. Modern topics, such as cinema and markets, also have entries. Speake (A Dictionary of Ancient History) has found contributors who are well-respected scholars: for instance, E.E. Rice, who writes the essay on Alexander the Great, did the same for the Oxford Classical Dictionary (1996). Each of over 1000 signed entries has a bibliography and, where appropriate, a summary. Volume 1 provides a thematic, a chronological, and, of course, an alphabetical index. This work fills a discomforting gap splendidly. Recommended for academic and large public libraries. Clay Williams, Hunter Coll., New York Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

This two-volume encyclopedia explores Greece and the Greeks for the 3500 years of their recorded history. It is restricted to the history and culture of the Greeks themselves, and does not focus on the Hellenic tradition in global terms or the influence that Hellenism has exerted on other cultures. In addition to the articles on people and places, there are essays which attempt to trace the manifestations of a specific theme throughout the span of Greek history. An extended set of articles devoted to the political history of Greece is divided into the normal recognized periods even though throughout the rest of the reference, periodization is avoided. A complementary set of articles (entries scattered throughout the volumes according to the name by which they are usually known, i.e. ) discusses the cultural history of those same periods. Many entries are followed by short summaries or biographies. The volumes contain maps and site plans, alphabetical and thematic lists of entries, a chronological list of individuals, and many b&w illustrations. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews

"The sheer scope of this work is a worthy endeavor given the expansiveness of Greek history... Those interested in the place of Greece in the ancient, medieval, and modern world will find the work unique. Public and academic libraries serving a Greek population or with an interest in all facets of Greek and Eastern history will likely find this work to be a good value." — Booklist/RBB
"The Encyclopedia of Greece and the Hellenic Tradition is a 2-volume resource on the 3,500 recorded years of Greece, its people, its culture, and its history... This work is highly recommended for all academic libraries." — American Reference Books Annual

From the Publisher