7.3 KiB
Hellenism
Overview
Hellenism refers to the spread of Greek language, culture, art, and thought across the eastern Mediterranean and Near East following Alexander the Great's conquests. The Hellenistic period lasted from Alexander's death (323 BCE) until Roman absorption of the last successor kingdom with the death of Cleopatra VII (30 BCE). @t[323 BCE..30 BCE]
Key Facts
- Period: 323–30 BCE (death of Alexander to death of Cleopatra VII) @t[323 BCE..30 BCE]
- Region: Eastern Mediterranean, Near East, Central Asia, Egypt
- Key kingdoms: Ptolemaic Egypt, Seleucid Empire, Antigonid Macedon, Pergamon
- Lingua franca: Koine Greek
- End marker: Battle of Actium (31 BCE) followed by Roman conquest of Egypt (30 BCE) 1
Cultural Achievements
- Library of Alexandria and the Mouseion: by the 2nd century BCE, Alexandria had grown into a cosmopolitan metropolis of ~300,000 people 1
- Hellenistic sculpture: Venus de Milo, Winged Victory of Samothrace, Laocoön
- Science: Euclid, Archimedes, Eratosthenes, Hipparchus
- Philosophy: Stoicism, Epicureanism, Skepticism flourished 2
Syncretism
- Greek and local cultures blended: Serapis (Egyptian-Greek deity), Gandhara art (Greek-Buddhist)
- Greek became the administrative and literary language from Egypt to Afghanistan
- Hellenistic Judaism: Septuagint translation, Philo of Alexandria 3
Economy and Urban Development
- Alexander's Persian campaign injected vast quantities of silver bullion into the Greek monetary system, enabling standardized coinage across the Hellenistic world 1
- Major Hellenistic cities — Alexandria, Antioch, Pergamon — were planned on Hippodamian grid layouts with monumental public spaces blending Greek and local architectural traditions
- Long-distance trade networks connected the Mediterranean to Central Asia and India, facilitated by shared coinage standards and Koine Greek as a commercial language
Legacy
- Roman culture was deeply Hellenized ("Captive Greece captured her rude conqueror" — Horace)
- Koine Greek became the language of the New Testament
- Hellenistic science and philosophy transmitted to the Islamic Golden Age
Review Queue
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@q[temporal]Line 9: "Region: Eastern Mediterranean, Near East, Central Asia, Egypt" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 10: "Key kingdoms: Ptolemaic Egypt, Seleucid Empire, Antigonid Macedon, Pergamon" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 11: "Lingua franca: Koine Greek" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 12: "End marker: Battle of Actium (31 BCE) followed by Roman conquest of Egypt (30..." - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 15: "Library of Alexandria and the Mouseion: by the 2nd century BCE, Alexandria ha..." - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 16: "Hellenistic sculpture: Venus de Milo, Winged Victory of Samothrace, Laocoön" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 17: "Science: Euclid, Archimedes, Eratosthenes, Hipparchus" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 18: "Philosophy: Stoicism, Epicureanism, Skepticism flourished 2 " - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 21: "Greek and local cultures blended: Serapis (Egyptian-Greek deity), Gandhara ar..." - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 22: "Greek became the administrative and literary language from Egypt to Afghanistan" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 23: "Hellenistic Judaism: Septuagint translation, Philo of Alexandria 3 " - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 26: "Alexander's Persian campaign injected vast quantities of silver bullion into ..." - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 27: "Major Hellenistic cities — Alexandria, Antioch, Pergamon — were planned o..." - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 28: "Long-distance trade networks connected the Mediterranean to Central Asia and ..." - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 31: "Roman culture was deeply Hellenized ("Captive Greece captured her rude conque..." - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 32: "Koine Greek became the language of the New Testament" - when was this true? -
@q[temporal]Line 33: "Hellenistic science and philosophy transmitted to the Islamic Golden Age" - when was this true? -
@q[missing]Line 8: "Period: 323–30 BCE (death of Alexander to death of Cleopatra VII) @t[323 BC..." - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 9: "Region: Eastern Mediterranean, Near East, Central Asia, Egypt" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 10: "Key kingdoms: Ptolemaic Egypt, Seleucid Empire, Antigonid Macedon, Pergamon" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 11: "Lingua franca: Koine Greek" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 16: "Hellenistic sculpture: Venus de Milo, Winged Victory of Samothrace, Laocoön" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 17: "Science: Euclid, Archimedes, Eratosthenes, Hipparchus" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 21: "Greek and local cultures blended: Serapis (Egyptian-Greek deity), Gandhara ar..." - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 22: "Greek became the administrative and literary language from Egypt to Afghanistan" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 27: "Major Hellenistic cities — Alexandria, Antioch, Pergamon — were planned o..." - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 28: "Long-distance trade networks connected the Mediterranean to Central Asia and ..." - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 31: "Roman culture was deeply Hellenized ("Captive Greece captured her rude conque..." - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 32: "Koine Greek became the language of the New Testament" - what is the source? -
@q[missing]Line 33: "Hellenistic science and philosophy transmitted to the Islamic Golden Age" - what is the source? -
@q[ambiguous]Line 8: "Period: 323–30 BCE (death of Alexander to death of Cleopatra VII) @t[323 BC..." - what does "BC" mean in this context? -
@q[stale]Line 12: "End marker: Battle of Actium (31 BCE) followed by Roman conquest of Egypt (30..." - Erskine source from 2003 may be outdated, is this still accurate? -
@q[stale]Line 15: "Library of Alexandria and the Mouseion: by the 2nd century BCE, Alexandria ha..." - Erskine source from 2003 may be outdated, is this still accurate? -
@q[stale]Line 18: "Philosophy: Stoicism, Epicureanism, Skepticism flourished 2 " - Shipley source from 2000 may be outdated, is this still accurate? -
@q[stale]Line 23: "Hellenistic Judaism: Septuagint translation, Philo of Alexandria 3 " - Green source from 1990 may be outdated, is this still accurate? -
@q[stale]Line 26: "Alexander's Persian campaign injected vast quantities of silver bullion into ..." - Erskine source from 2003 may be outdated, is this still accurate?