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Geography and Early Greek Civilization

In this lesson, students will identify characteristics of Greece’s geography and its impact on the development of ancient cultures. Students will be able to identify and/or define the following terms and concepts:

The Geography of GreeceGeographic Effects on Greek cultures

Polis

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Greece is mountainous.

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Greece is a mountainous peninsulawith islands.

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The Geography of Greece

• Ancient Greece consisted of a large mountainous peninsula and islands in the Aegean Sea.

• Its hilly terrain made farming difficult

• Its location encouraged trade.

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Mountains separated Greek cities.

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The Effects of Mountains

• Greece’s mountainous terrain separated the ancient Greek cities.

• As such, the ancient Greeks never developed a unified system of government.

• The ancient Greeks developed the polis or city-state.

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The Greeks lived in separate city-states.

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The Polis

• Polis was the Greek word for “city-state”.

• A polis was an independent city and its surrounding farmland.

• Every polis had its own government and laws but the Greeks shared a common language and religion.

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The ancient Greeks farmed but it wasdifficult. Hills are not suited for farming.

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However, there is always the sea.

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Even today, the Greeks have accessto the Mediterranean Sea and theAegean Sea.

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The Seas

• Greece is a peninsula and islands.

• Seas surround parts of Greece.

• The Seas allowed the Greeks to travel and trade.

• Trade encouraged cultural diffusion.

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Trade and Cultural Diffusion

• The seas allowed the Greeks to depend heavily on trade.

• Trade encouraged cultural diffusion.

• The Greeks were exposed to the Phoenician alphabet and Egyptian geometry.

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Questions for Reflection:• Why was it difficult to farm in ancient

Greece?• Why did the Greeks depend heavily on

trade?• List two geographic features and their

effects on the Greeks.• Why did the ancient Greeks never develop

a unified system of government?• Define polis.