Greece

Greece (776 - 323)

Ancient Greece was one of two major civilizations founded along the Mediterranean coastline that left a lasting impact on Western civilization. Greece's location on a peninsula between the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas that was a major contributor to its success as a civilization, because it allowed them to dominate through naval trade and activity. Although the Greeks did not have much agricultural development due to their rocky terrain, they used their native olive products to engage in trade with other civilizations that they could reach by boat. The Greeks took advantage of their environmental asset of the Mediterranean, leading Athens to become a center of commercial activity in the West. The lack of easily-developed land also prompted the Greeks to focus on expansion to set up more colonies and gain access to more raw materials and productive land. For this to happen, they had to strengthen their military in order to obtain the territories and establish a solid, centralized government to keep the dispersed city-states unified. Each city-state, or polis, had a unique cultural identity and could operate as a separate unit. These differences often led to a polis being in conflict with other Greek cities. The elements that kept the individual city-states as part of a greater civilization were a common language and broader cultural traditions.

**Interaction between Humans and the Environment** – Demography and disease, Migration, Patterns of settlement, Technology
 * Development and Interaction of Cultures** – Religions, Belief systems, Science and technology, T he arts and architecture

**State-building, Expansion, and Conflict** – Political structures and forms of governance, Empires, Nations and nationalism, Revolts and revolutions, Regional, trans-regional, and global structures and organizations

**Creation, Expansion, and Interaction of Economic Systems** – Agricultural and pastoral production, Trade and commerce, Labor systems, Industrialization, Capitalism and socialism

**Development and Transformation of Social Structures** – Gender roles and relations, Family and kinship, Racial and ethnic constructions, Social and economic classes