 Peninsula – area of land surrounded by water  Mountains – ¾ of mainland  Limited contact between people  Seas – source of food and transportation  Ship builders and sailors  Islands – 1,450

 Groups formed  Polis – city state  Foundation of Greek civilization  Marked the beginning of Greece’s classical age  Classical age is one that is marked by great achievements  Acropolis – fortress on top of a high hill

 Rule by a few  At first a king ruled  Aristocrats – rich landowners that took power  Oligarchy – government in which a few people have power  Citizens – people who had the right to participate in government  All free men

 Oligarchy was replaced by a tyrant – leader who held power through the use of force  Cleisthenes helped form the first democracy – type of government in which people rule themselves  Direct democracy – all citizens participate directly  Representative democracy – citizens elect officials to represent them

 Mythology – a body of stories about gods and heroes that try to explain how the world works  Each story, or myth, explained natural or historical events  mythology/olympian-gods.html mythology/olympian-gods.html  Lived on Mt. Olympus

 Ceremonies were held in honor of the gods  Most famous was the Olympics  Held in honor of Zeus  Myths also told about adventures of great heroes  Most famous was Hercules

 Homer – wrote the epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey  Aesop – wrote fables – short stories that teach the reader a lessons about life or give advice on how to live  Has influenced today’s language, literature, and art