Bust of Homer.

Classics or Classical Studies is the branch of the Humanities dealing with the languages, literature, history, art, and other aspects of the ancient Mediterranean world; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during the time known as classical antiquity, roughly spanning from the Ancient Greek Bronze Age in 1000 BCE to the Dark Ages circa CE 500. The study of the Classics was the initial field of study in the humanities. The word "Classics" also refers to the literature of that period. There are several meanings of the word classics For the term as used in the Arts, see Classics. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Homere. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Homere. ... For other uses, see Homer (disambiguation). ... The humanities are those academic disciplines which study the human condition using methods that are largely analytic, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural and social sciences. ... Old book bindings at the Merton College library. ... History studies time in human terms. ... This article is about the philosophical concept of Art. ... The Mediterranean Sea is an intercontinental sea positioned between Europe to the north, Africa to the south and Asia to the east, covering an approximate area of 2. ... Ancient Greece is a period in Greek history that lasted for around nine hundred years. ... Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula circa the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. ... Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, which begins roughly with the earliest-recorded Greek poetry of Homer (7th century BC), and continues through the rise of Christianity and the fall of the Western Roman Empire (5th century AD... The Bronze Age is a period in a civilizations development when the most advanced metalworking has developed the techniques of smelting copper from natural outcroppings and alloys it to cast bronze. ... BCE is a TLA that may stand for: Before the Common Era, date notation equivalent to BC (e. ... Petrarch, who conceived the idea of a European Dark Age. From Cycle of Famous Men and Women, Andrea di Bartolo di Bargillac, c. ... “BCE” redirects here. ...

Traditionally, the focus of classics was tightly centered on ancient Greece and Rome. Ancient Egypt was thought to be beyond the discipline. Today, classicists study a subject more broadly defined as that pertaining to the Ancient Mediterranean World. Those scholars focusing upon the landward side of the eastern Mediterranean—the ancient Persian Empire and the kingdoms of ancient India—are termed Orientalists. Khafres Pyramid (4th dynasty) and Great Sphinx of Giza (c. ... The Persian Empire was a series of historical empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau, the old Persian homeland, and beyond in Western Asia, Central Asia and the Caucasus. ... This article tries to compile and classify all the kingdoms of ancient India mentioned in the Sanskrit/Vedic literature. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ...

History of the western classics

The word "classics" is derived from the Latin adjective classicus meaning "belonging to the highest class of citizens," and has further connotations of superiority, authority, and perfection. The first, recorded use of the word "classics" was by Aulus Gellius, a second century Roman author who, in his miscellany Noctes Atticae (19, 8, 15), refers to classicus scriptor, non proletarius. He ranked writers per the classification of the Roman taxation classes. For other uses, see Latin (disambiguation). ... In grammar, an adjective is a word whose main syntactic role is to modify a noun or pronoun (called the adjectives subject), giving more information about what the noun or pronoun refers to. ... Perfectionism can be thought of as: The persistence of will in obtaining the optimal present and future quality of spiritual, mental, physical, and material being. ... Aulus Gellius ( 125 - after 180), Latin author and grammarian, possibly of African origin, probably born and certainly brought up at Rome. ... ( 1st century - 2nd century - 3rd century - other centuries) Events Roman Empire governed by the Five Good Emperors ( 96– 180) – Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius. ... An anthology is a collection of literary works, originally of poems, but in recent years its usage has broadened to be applied to collections of short stories and comic strips. ...

This method was started when the Greeks were constantly ranking their cultural work. The word they used was canon; ancient Greek for a carpenter's rule. Moreover, early Christian Church Fathers used this term to classify authoritative texts of the New Testament. This rule further helped in the preservation of works since writing platforms of vellum and papyrus and methods of reproduction was not cheap. The title of canon placed on a work meant that it would be more easily preserved for future generations. In modern times, a Western canon was collated that defined the best of Western culture. Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations · Other religions Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Luther Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Archbishop of Canterbury · Catholic Pope Coptic Pope · Ecumenical Patriarch Christianity Portal This box:      Christianity is... This article is about the Christian scriptures. ... The Western canon is a canon of books and art (and specifically one with very loose boundaries) that has allegedly been highly influential in shaping Western culture. ... For this articles equivalent regarding the East, see Eastern culture. ...

At the Alexandrian Library, the ancient scholars coined another term for canonized authors, hoi enkrithentes; "the admitted" or "the included."

Classical studies incorporate a certain type of methodology. The rule of the classical world and of Christian culture and society was Philo's rule:

"Philo's rule dominated Greek culture, from Homer to Neo-Platonism and the Christian Fathers of late antiquity. The rule is: "μεταχαραττε το θειον νομισμα" ("metacharatte to theion nomisma"). It is the law of strict continuity. We preserve and do not throw away words or ideas. Words and ideas may grow in meaning but must stay within the limits of the original meaning and concept that the word has."^{[citation needed]}

Classical education was considered the best training for implanting the life of moral excellence arete, hence a good citizen. It furnished students with intellectual and aesthetic appreciation for "the best which has been thought and said in the world." Edward Copleston, an Oxford classicist, said that classical education "communicates to the mind...a high sense of honour, a disdain of death in a good cause, (and) a passionate devotion to the welfare of one's country."^[1] Cicero commented, "All literature, all philosophical treatises, all the voices of antiquity are full of examples for imitation, which would all lie unseen in darkness without the light of literature." Arete (Greek: , pronounced in English ) in its basic sense means goodness or excellence of any kind. ... For other uses, see Cicero (disambiguation). ...

At Oxford University Classics is known as Literae Humaniores, comprising the study of Ancient Greek and Latin language and literature, Greek and Roman art and archaeology, history and philosophy. It is sometimes known as Greats after the nickname for the final examinations. The University of Oxford (usually abbreviated as Oxon. ... Literae Humaniores is the name given to the study of Classics at Oxford and some other universities. ...

Legacy of the Classical World

The Classical languages have been immensely influential on all western European languages, bestowing on them an international learned vocabulary. Until the 17th century, the Latin language itself was used as the international medium of communication in diplomatic, scientific, philosophical and religious matters. (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ...

Latin itself evolved into The Romance languages. Ancient Greek can be seen in Modern Greek and the Griko languages. The Romance languages (sometimes referred to as Romanic languages) are a branch of the Indo-European language family, comprising all the languages that descend from Latin, the language of the Roman Empire. ... Main article: Greek language Modern Greek (Νέα Ελληνικά or Νεοελληνική, lit. ... Griko, sometimes spelled Grico, is a Modern Greek dialect which is spoken by people in the Magna Graecia region in southern Italy and Sicily, and it is otherwise known as the Grecanic language. ...

The Latin influence on English is most prominent in technical vocabulary; in a similar way, so is the Greek influence on English. English has been called a Germanic language with a Romance vocabulary. ... The Greek language has contributed to the English vocabulary in three ways: directly as an immediate donor, indirectly through other intermediate language(s), as an original donor (mainly through Latin and French), and with modern coinages or new Greek. ...

The Ecclesiastical Latin dialect of Latin is still used by the Catholic Church. The term Ecclesiastical Latin (sometimes called Church Latin) refers to the Latin language as used in documents of the Roman Catholic Church and in its Latin liturgies. ...

Sub-disciplines within the classics

One of the most notable characteristics of the modern study of classics is the diversity of the field. Although traditionally focused on ancient Greece and Rome, the study now encompasses the entire ancient Mediterranean world, thus expanding their studies to Northern Africa and the Middle East. A world map showing the continent of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. ... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ...

Forebears of the Classical World

The Classical civilization did not develop in isolation; the ancient Greeks were indebted to their geographical proximity to the much older, intellectually and technologically sophisticated cultures of the East.

• Ancient Egypt
• Babylonia
• Phoenicia

Khafres Pyramid (4th dynasty) and Great Sphinx of Giza (c. ... Babylonia was a state in southern Mesopotamia, in modern Iraq, combining the territories of Sumer and Akkad. ... Phoenicia (or Phenicia ,[1] from Biblical Phenice [1]) was an ancient civilization centered in the north of ancient Canaan, with its heartland along the coast of modern day Lebanon and Syria. ...

Philology

Traditionally, classics was essentially the philology of ancient texts. Although now less dominant, philology retains a central role. One definition of classical philology describes it as "the science which concerns itself with everything that has been transmitted from antiquity in the Greek or Latin language. The object of this science is thus the Graeco-Roman, or Classical, world to the extent that it has left behind monuments in a linguistic form."^[2] Of course, classicists also concern themselves with other languages than Classical Greek and Latin including Linear A, Linear B, Sanskrit, Hebrew, Oscan, Etruscan, and many more. Before the invention of the printing press, texts were reproduced by hand and distributed haphazardly. As a result, extant versions of the same text often differ from one another. Some classical philologists, known as textual critics, seek to synthesize these defective texts to find the most accurate version. Philology, etymologically, is the love of words. ... Classical Latin is the language used by the principal exponents of that language in what is usually regarded as classical Latin literature. ... Linear A incised on tablets found in Akrotiri, Santorini. ... This article is about the ancient syllabary. ... Sanskrit ( , for short ) is a classical language of India, a liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Jainism, and one of the 23 official languages of India. ... “Hebrew” redirects here. ... Oscan, the language of the Osci, is in the Sabellic branch of the Italic language family, which is a branch of Indo-European and includes Umbrian, Latin and Faliscan. ... Extent of Etruscan civilization and the twelve Etruscan League cities. ... The printing press is a mechanical device for printing many copies of a text on rectangular sheets of paper. ...

Archaeology

Main article: Classical archaeology

Thanks to popular culture, such as the movie Raiders of the Lost Ark, classical archaeology is often seen as very exciting. Philologists rely on archaeological excavation, so that they may study the literary and linguistic culture of the ancient world. Likewise, archaeologists may rely on the philological study of literature in order to contextualize the excavated remains of the classical civilizations of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. The artifacts they find are key to all the other sub-disciplines and help provide new evidence for the understanding of the ancient world. Classical archaeology is a term given to archaeological investigation of the great Mediterranean civilizations of Ancient Greece and Rome. ... Raiders of the Lost Ark, also known as Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, is a 1981 adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, produced by George Lucas and starring Harrison Ford. ... For the magazine about archaeology, see Archaeology (magazine). ... For other uses, see Mesopotamia (disambiguation). ...

Art history

Some art historians focus their study of the development of art on the classical world. Indeed, the art and architecture of Ancient Rome and Greece is very well regarded and remains at the heart of much of our art today. For example, Ancient Greek architecture gave us the Classical Orders: Doric order, Ionic order, and Corinthian order. The Parthenon is still the architectural symbol of the classical world. This article is about the academic discipline of art history. ... The Doric order was one of the orginal pokersthree orders or organizational systems of Ancient Greek or classical architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian. ... Architects first real look at the Greek Ionic order: Julien David LeRoy, Les ruines plus beaux des monuments de la Grèce Paris, 1758 (Plate XX) Ionic order: 1 - entrablature, 2 - column, 3 - cornice, 4 - frieze, 5 - architrave or epistyle, 6 - capital (composed of abacus and volutes), 7 - shaft, 8... The Corinthian order as used for the portico of the Pantheon, Rome provided a prominent model for Renaissance and later architects, through the medium of engravings. ... For other uses, see Parthenon (disambiguation). ...

Greek sculpture is well known and we know the names of several Ancient Greek artists: for example, Phidias. Phidias Showing the Frieze of the Parthenon to his Friends by Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema Phidias (or Pheidias) (in ancient Greek, ) (c. ...

Civilization and history

Some classicists use the information gathered through philology, archaeology, and art history to seek an understanding of the history, culture, and civilization. They critically use the literary and physical artifacts to create and refine a narrative of the ancient world. Unfortunately, imbalances in the evidence available often leave a huge vacuum of information about certain classes of people. Thus, classicists are now working to fill in these gaps as much as possible to get an understanding of the lives of ancient women, slaves, and the lower classes. Other problems include the under-representation in the evidence of entire cultures. For example, Sparta was one of the leading city-states of Greece, but little evidence of it has survived for classicists to study. That which has survived has generally come from their key rival, Athens. Likewise, the domination and the expansion of the Roman Empire reduced much of the evidence of earlier civilizations like the Etruscans. Sparta (Doric: Spártā, Attic: Spártē) is a city in southern Greece. ... A city-state is a region controlled exclusively by a city. ... This article is about the capital of Greece. ... For other uses, see Roman Empire (disambiguation). ... The Etruscan civilization existed in Etruria and the Po valley in the northern part of what is now Italy, prior to the formation of the Roman Republic. ...

Philosophy

Main article: Ancient philosophy

The roots of Western philosophy lie in the study of the classics. The very word philosophy is Greek in origin—a term coined by Pythagoras to describe the "love of wisdom." It is not surprising, then, that many classicists study the wealth of philosophical works surviving from Roman and Greek philosophy. Among the most formidable and lasting of these thinkers are Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and the Stoics. This page lists some links to ancient philosophy, although for Western thinkers prior to Socrates, see Pre-Socratic philosophy. ... Western philosophy is a modern claim that there is a line of related philosophical thinking, beginning in ancient Greece (Greek philosophy) and the ancient Near East (the Abrahamic religions), that continues to this day. ... For other uses, see Philosophy (disambiguation). ... This page is about the ancient Greek philosopher. ... PLATO was one of the first generalized Computer assisted instruction systems, originally built by the University of Illinois (U of I) and later taken over by Control Data Corporation (CDC), who provided the machines it ran on. ... Aristotle (Greek: AristotélÄ“s) (384 BC – 322 BC) was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. ... Stoicism is a school of philosophy commonly associated with such Greek philosophers as Zeno of Citium, Cleanthes, or Chrysippus and with such later Romans as Cicero, Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, and Epictetus. ...

Classical Greece

Main article: Ancient Greece

Ancient Greece is a period in Greek history that lasted for around nine hundred years. ... The Pre-Socratic philosophers were active before Socrates or contemporaneously, but expounding knowledge developed earlier. ... The lower half of the benches and the remnants of the scene building of the theater of Miletus (August 2005) Miletus (Carian: Anactoria Hittite: Milawata or Millawanda, Greek: Μίλητος transliterated Miletos, Turkish: Milet) was an ancient city on the western coast of Anatolia (in what is now Aydin Province, Turkey), near... Location of Ionia Ionia (Greek Ιωνία; see also list of traditional Greek place names) was an ancient region of southwestern coastal Anatolia (in present-day Turkey, the region nearest Ä°zmir,) on the Aegean Sea. ... (2nd millennium BC - 1st millennium BC - 1st millennium) The 6th century BC started on January 1, 600 BC and ended on December 31, 501 BC. // Monument 1, an Olmec colossal head at La Venta The 5th and 6th centuries BC were a time of empires, but more importantly, a time... Thales of Miletos (, ca. ... Anaximander Possibly what Anaximanders map looked like Anaximander (Greek: Αναξίμανδρος)(c. ... Anaximenes was the name of several notable people in ancient Greece. ... Heraclitus of Ephesus (Ancient Greek - Herákleitos ho Ephésios (Herakleitos the Ephesian)) (about 535 - 475 BC), known as The Obscure (Ancient Greek - ho Skoteinós), was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher, a native of Ephesus on the coast of Asia Minor. ... Pythagoras of Samos (Greek: ; between 580 and 572 BC–between 500 and 490 BC) was an Ionian (Greek) philosopher[1] and founder of the religious movement called Pythagoreanism. ... Xenophanes of Colophon (Greek: Ξενοφάνης, 570 BC-480 BC) was a Greek philosopher, poet, and social and religious critic. ... Elea (Velia by the Romans; see also List of traditional Greek place names) was a Greek coastal city founded around 540 BC in Lucania in southern Italy, 15 miles southeast of the Gulf of Salerno. ... Magna Graecia around 280 b. ... Parmenides of Elea (Greek: , early 5th century BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher born in Elea, a Hellenic city on the southern coast of Italy. ... Zeno of Elea (IPA:zÉ›noÊŠ, É›lɛɑː)(circa 490 BC? – circa 430 BC?) was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher of southern Italy and a member of the Eleatic School founded by Parmenides. ... Concern has been expressed that this article or section is missing information about: discussions of existence of atoms among prominent physicists up to the end of 19th century. ... This article is about the philosopher. ... ‎ Democritus (Greek: ) was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher (born at Abdera in Thrace ca. ... Sophism (gr. ... Gorgias (in Greek Γοργἰας, circa 483-376 BC) // Introduction Due to his ushering in of rhetorical innovations involving structure and ornamentation and his introduction of paradoxologia – the idea of paradoxical thought and paradoxical expression – Gorgias of Leontini has been labeled the ‘father of sophistry’ (Wardy 6). ... Protagoras (in Greek Πρωταγόρας) was born around 481 BC in Abdera, Thrace in Ancient Greece. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... This page is about the ancient Greek philosopher. ... PLATO was one of the first generalized Computer assisted instruction systems, originally built by the University of Illinois (U of I) and later taken over by Control Data Corporation (CDC), who provided the machines it ran on. ... Aristotle (Greek: AristotélÄ“s) (384 BC – 322 BC) was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. ... Epicureanism is a system of philosophy based upon the teachings of Epicurus (c. ... A restored Stoa in Athens. ... Zeno of Citium Zeno of Citium (The Stoic) (sometime called Zeno Apathea) (333 BC-264 BC) was a Hellenistic philosopher from Citium, Cyprus. ... Cleanthes (c. ... Chrysippus of Soli (279-207 BC) was Cleanthess pupil and eventual successor to the head of the stoic philosophy (232-204 BC). ... Panaetius of Rhodes (c. ... The bust of Posidonius as an older man depicts his character as a Stoic philosopher. ... Epictetus (Greek: Επίκτητος; ca. ... Philosophical scepticism (UK spelling, scepticism) is both a philosophical school of thought and a method that crosses disciplines and cultures. ... Neoplatonism (also Neo-Platonism) is the modern term for a school of religious and mystical philosophy that took shape in the 3rd century AD, based on the teachings of Plato and earlier Platonists. ... The bust of Zeus found at Otricoli (Sala Rotonda, Museo Pio-Clementino, Vatican) Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the Ancient Greeks concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. ... Greek religion is the polytheistic religion practiced in ancient Greece in form of cult practices, thus the practical counterpart of Greek mythology. ... Astronomy is the oldest of the natural sciences, dating back to antiquity, with its origins in the religious, mythological, and astrological practices of pre-history: vestiges of these are still found in astrology, a discipline long interwoven with public and governmental astronomy, and not completely disentangled from it until a... This article is about the geographer, mathematician and astronomer Ptolemy. ... Greek mathematics, as that term is used in this article, is the mathematics written in Greek, developed from the 6th century BC to the 5th century AD around the Eastern shores of the Mediterranean. ... For other uses, see Euclid (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Hippocrates (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Galen (disambiguation). ... Aegean civilization is a general term for the Bronze Age civilizations of Greece and the Aegean. ... Mycenaean Greece, the last phase of the Bronze Age in ancient Greece, is the historical setting of the epics of Homer and much other Greek mythology. ... The Greek Dark Ages (ca. ... Parthenon This article is on the term Classical Greece itself. ... For the film of the same name, see Alexander the Great (1956 film). ... The Hellenistic period of Greek history was the period between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the annexation of the Greek peninsula and islands by Rome in 146 BC. Although the establishment of Roman rule did not break the continuity of Hellenistic society and culture, which... Roman Greece is the period of Greek history following the Roman victory over the Corinthians at the Battle of Corinth in 146 BC until the reestablishment of the city of Byzantium and the naming of the city by Emperor Constantine I as the capital of the Roman Empire (as Nova... “Byzantine” redirects here. ... // Main article: Ancient Greek literature Ancient Greek literature refers to literature written in Ancient Greek from the oldest surviving written works in the Greek language until the 4th century and the rise of the Byzantine Empire. ... Theocritus (Greek Θεόκριτος), the creator of Ancient Greek bucolic poetry, flourished in the 3rd century BC. Little is known of him beyond what can be inferred from his writings. ... Roman bronze bust, the so-called Pseudo-Seneca, now identified by some as possibly Hesiod Hesiod (Hesiodos, ) was an early Greek poet and rhapsode, who presumably lived around 700 BC. Hesiod and Homer, with whom Hesiod is often paired, have been considered the earliest Greek poets whose work has survived... For other uses, see Homer (disambiguation). ... Alcaeus (Alkaios) of Mitylene (ca. ... Alcman (also Alkman, Greek ) (7th century BC) was an Ancient Greek choral lyric poet from Sparta. ... Archilochus (Greek: ) (ca. ... Bacchylides, Ancient Greek lyric poet, was born at Iulis, in the island of Ceos. ... Mimnermus of Colophon, Greek elegiac poet, flourished about 630-600 BC. His life fell in the troubled time when the Ionic cities of Asia Minor were struggling to maintain themselves against the rising power of the Lydian kings. ... Pindar (or Pindarus) (probably born 522 BC in Cynoscephalae, a village in Boeotia; died 443 BC in Argos), was perhaps the greatest of the nine lyric poets of ancient Greece. ... Ancient Greek bust. ... Semonides (or Semontoes) of Amorgos, Greek iambic poet, flourished in the middle of the 7th century BC. He was a native of Samos, and derived his surname from having founded a colony in the neighbouring island of Amorgos. ... Bold textil8jjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjpooSimonides of Ceos (ca. ... Tyrtaeus was a Greek elegiac poet who lived at Sparta about the middle of the 7th century BC. According to the older tradition he was a native of the Attic deme of Aphidnae, and was invited to Sparta at the suggestion of the Delphic oracle to assist the Spartans in... For other uses, see Tragedy (disambiguation). ... This article is about the ancient Greek playwright. ... A statue of Euripides. ... This article is about the Greek tragedian. ... The word comedy has a classical meaning (comical theatre) and a popular one (the use of humor with an intent to provoke laughter in general). ... Sketch of Aristophanes Aristophanes (Greek: , ca. ... Bust of Menander Menander (342–291 BC) (Greek ), Greek dramatist, the chief representative of the New Comedy, was born in Athens. ... Xenophon, Greek historian Xenophon (In Greek , ca. ... Herodotus of Halicarnassus (Greek: HÄ“rodotos Halikarnāsseus) was a Greek historian from Ionia who lived in the 5th century BC (ca. ... Mestrius Plutarchus (Greek: Πλούταρχος; 46 - 127), better known in English as Plutarch, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist. ... Polybius (c. ... Bust of Thucydides residing in the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto. ... Xenophon, Greek historian Xenophon (In Greek , ca. ... Aeschines (389 - 314 BC), Greek statesman and one of the ten Attic orators, was born at Athens. ... Demosthenes (384–322 BC, Greek: Δημοσθένης, DÄ“mosthénÄ“s) was a prominent Greek statesman and orator of ancient Athens. ... Isocrates (436–338 BC), Greek rhetorician. ... Lysias (d. ... Lucian. ... PLATO was one of the first generalized Computer assisted instruction systems, originally built by the University of Illinois (U of I) and later taken over by Control Data Corporation (CDC), who provided the machines it ran on. ... Distribution of Greek dialects, ca. ... Note: This article contains special characters. ... Attic Greek is the ancient dialect of the Greek language that was spoken in Attica, which includes Athens. ... Distribution of Greek dialects, ca. ... The Greek alphabet is an alphabet that has been used to write the Greek language since about the 9th century BCE. It was the first alphabet in the narrow sense, that is, a writing system using a separate symbol for each vowel and consonant alike. ... Homeric Greek is the form of Ancient Greek that was used by Homer in the Iliad and Odyssey. ... Ionic Greek was a sub-dialect of the so called Attic-Ionic dialectal group of the ancient Greek language, which was itself a member of the Greek branch of Indoeuropean language family. ... The literal meaning of the Greek word koine (κοινή) is common. It is used in several senses: Koiné Greek (Κοινή Ἑλληνική), a Greek dialect that developed from the Attic dialect (of Athens) and became the spoken language of Greece at the time of the Empire of Alexander the Great. ...

Classical Rome

Main articles: Ancient Rome and Culture of Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula circa the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. ... Julius Caesar, from the bust in the British Museum, in Cassells History of England (1902). ... Bust, traditionally thought to be Seneca, now identified by some as Hesiod. ... Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus (Rome, April 26, 121[2] – Vindobona or Sirmium, March 17, 180) was Roman Emperor from 161 to his death in 180 . ... A head of Minerva found in the ruins of the Roman baths in Bath Roman mythology, the mythological beliefs of the people of Ancient Rome, can be considered as having two parts. ... The term Roman religion may refer to: Ancient Roman religion Imperial cult (Ancient Rome), Sol Invictus Mithraism Roman Christianity Category: ... Marcus Vitruvius Pollio (born ca. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The ancient quarters of Rome. ... This article refers to the state which existed from the 6th century BC to the 1st century BC. For alternate meanings, see Roman Republic (18th century) and Roman Republic (19th century). ... For other uses, see Roman Empire (disambiguation). ... This article is about the historiography of the decline of the Roman Empire. ... Combatants Roman Republic Samnium The Samnite Wars were three wars between the early Roman Republic and the tribes of Samnium. ... Combatants Carthage* Roman Republic* Epirus Magna Graecia Samnium Commanders Publius Valerius Laevinus Publius Decius Mus Pyrrhus of Epirus * Note: Carthage and Rome were not strong allies in this conflict. ... The Punic Wars were a series of three wars fought between Rome and Carthage. ... Combatants Roman Republic Carthage Commanders Marcus Atilius Regulus Gaius Lutatius Catulus Gaius Duilius Hamilcar Barca Hanno the Great Hasdrubal Xanthippus The First Punic War (264 to 241 BC) was the first of three major wars fought between Carthage and the Roman Republic. ... Combatants Roman Republic Carthage Commanders Publius Cornelius Scipio†, Tiberius Sempronius Longus Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus, Gaius Flaminius†, Fabius Maximus, Claudius Marcellus†, Lucius Aemilius Paullus†, Gaius Terentius Varro, Marcus Livius Salinator, Gaius Claudius Nero, Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Calvus†, Masinissa, Minucius†, Servilius Geminus† Hannibal Barca, Hasdrubal Barca†, Mago Barca†, Hasdrubal Gisco†, Syphax... Combatants Roman Republic Carthage Commanders Scipio Aemilianus Hasdrubal the Boetarch Strength 40,000 90,000 Casualties 17,000 62,000 The Third Punic War (149 BC to 146 BC) was the third and last of the Punic Wars fought between the former Phoenician colony of Carthage, and the Republic of... Combatants Roman Republic Italian allies of the Marsi, Samnites, Marrucini, Vestini, Paeligni, Frentani, Picentes Praetutii, Hirpini Commanders Publius Rutilius Lupus , Gaius Marius, Pompeius Strabo, Lucius Julius Caesar, Lucius Cornelius Sulla, Titus Didius, Lucius Porcius Cato Quintus Poppaedius Silo, Gaius Papius Mutilus, Herius Asinius, Publius Vettius Scato, Publius Praesenteius, Gaius Vidacilius... Combatants Roman Republic Several Gallic tribes Commanders Julius Caesar Titus Labienus Mark Antony Quintus Cicero Vercingetorix, Ambiorix, Commius, among other The Gallic Wars were a series of military campaigns by several invading Roman legions under the command of Julius Caesar into Gaul, and the subsequent uprisings of the Gallic tribes. ... Combatants Octavian Mark Antony and Cleopatra Commanders Octavian, Marcus Agrippa Mark Antony†, Cleopatra VII of Egypt† Strength 198,000 Roman legionaries [1] 260 Roman warships 193,000 mixed Roman and Egyptian soldiers [2] 300 Roman and Egyptian warships Casualties Unknown Unknown All of Antony’s Roman troops either changed loyalty... The Germanic Wars is a name given to a series of Wars between the Romans and various Germanic tribes between 113 BC and 439 AD1. ... Lucretius Titus Lucretius Carus (c. ... For other uses, see Ovid (disambiguation) Publius Ovidius Naso (March 20, 43 BC – 17 AD) was a Roman poet known to the English-speaking world as Ovid who wrote on topics of love, abandoned women and mythological transformations. ... For other uses, see Virgil (disambiguation). ... Fresco from Herculaneum, presumably showing a love couple. ... For other uses, see Ovid (disambiguation) Publius Ovidius Naso (March 20, 43 BC – 17 AD) was a Roman poet known to the English-speaking world as Ovid who wrote on topics of love, abandoned women and mythological transformations. ... Sextus Aurelius Propertius was a Latin elegiac poet born between 57 BC and 46 BC in or near Mevania, who died in around 12 BC. Like Virgil and Ovid, Propertius was also a member of the poetic circle of neoteric poets which collected around Mæcenas. ... This article contains translated text and needs attention from someone approaching dual fluency. ... Quintus Ennius (239 - 169 BC) was a writer during the period of the Roman Republic, and is often considered the father of Roman poetry. ... Lucan can refer to: Lucan, a town in County Dublin Lucan, a town in Minnesota, USA Lucan, a town in Ontario, Canada Earl of Lucan, a British peerage title Richard Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan, the most famous holder Lucan, a Roman poet Lucan the Butler, a Knight of the... For other uses, see Virgil (disambiguation). ... Fresco from Herculaneum, presumably showing a love couple. ... Horace, as imagined by Anton von Werner Quintus Horatius Flaccus, (December 8, 65 BC - November 27, 8 BC), known in the English-speaking world as Horace, was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus. ... Titus Macchius Plautus, generally referred to simply as Plautus, was a playwright of Ancient Rome. ... Publius Terentius Afer, better known as Terence, was a comic playwright of the Roman Republic. ... Gayus Plinius Colonoscopy Caecilius Secundus (63 - ca. ... Lucius Annaeus Seneca (often known simply as Seneca, or Seneca the Younger) (c. ... Lucius Apuleius (c. ... For other uses, see Julius Caesar (disambiguation). ... A portrait of Titus Livius made long after his death. ... Gaius Sallustius Crispus, simply known as Sallust, (86-34 BC). ... Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus ( 69/75 - after 130), also known as Suetonius, was a prominent Roman historian and biographer. ... For other uses, see Tacitus (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Cicero (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Latin (disambiguation). ... Classical Latin is the language used by the principal exponents of that language in what is usually regarded as classical Latin literature. ... Vulgar Latin, as in this political graffito at Pompeii, was the speech of ordinary people of the Roman Empire — different from the classical Latin used by the Roman elite. ...

Famous Classicists

Throughout the history of the Western world, many classicists have gone on to gain acknowledgement outside the field.

• Anthony James Leggett, Nobel Prize winner in physics who studied Greats at Balliol College, Oxford before switching to physics.
• George Berkeley,philosopher, read Classics at Trinity College, Dublin, where he was also Junior Lecturer in Greek
• Karl Marx, philosopher and political thinker, studied Latin and Greek and received a Ph.D. for a dissertation on ancient Greek philosophy, entitled "The Difference between the Democritean and Epicurean Philosophy of Nature." His classical background is reflected in his philosophies—indeed the term "proletariat" which he coined came from that Latin word referring to the lowest class of citizen.
• John Milton, author of Paradise Lost and English Civil War era political activist, studied, like most at the time, Latin and Greek texts. This classical background is quite obvious in Paradise Lost.
• Friedrich Nietzsche, famous philosopher, earned a Ph.D. and became Professor of Classics at the University of Basel in Switzerland.
• Oscar Wilde, celebrated Victorian playwright and novelist, was educated in Classics at Trinity College, Dublin and Magdalen College, Oxford
• Toni Morrison, noted author and Nobel Prize winner, studied classics at Howard University.
• Charles Geschke, founder of Adobe Systems, studied Classics at Xavier University and received a Bachelor of Arts in Classics.
• Ted Turner, media mogul, studied Classics before being expelled from Brown University.
• J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series, studied Classics and frequently uses classical terms in her books. The first Harry Potter book has been translated into both Latin and ancient Greek.
• Jerry Brown, former governor of California and former mayor of Oakland, majored in Classics at the University of California.
• W.E.B. du Bois, Afro-American civil rights leader, historian and sociologist, was a professor of Greek and Latin at Wilberforce University, Ohio.

Sir Anthony James Leggett, KBE, FRS, (born March 26, 1938 in Camberwell, London, England), is John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Chair and Center for Advanced Study Professor of Physics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. ... The Nobel Prizes (Swedish: ) are awarded for Physics, Chemistry, Literature, Peace, and Physiology or Medicine. ... A magnet levitating above a high-temperature superconductor demonstrates the Meissner effect. ... Literae Humaniores is the name given to the study of Classics at Oxford and some other universities. ... and of the Balliol College College name Balliol College Named after John de Balliol Established 1263 Sister college St Johns College, Cambridge Master Andrew Graham JCR President Helen Lochead Undergraduates 403 MCR President Chelsea Payne Graduates 228 Location of Balliol College within central Oxford , Homepage Boatclub Balliol College (pronounced... George Berkeley (IPA: , Bark-Lee) (12 March 1685 – 14 January 1753), also known as Bishop Berkeley, was an influential Irish philosopher whose primary philosophical achievement is the advancement of a theory he called immaterialism (later referred to as subjective idealism by others). ... Karl Heinrich Marx (May 5, 1818 – March 14, 1883) was a 19th century philosopher, political economist, and revolutionary. ... The proletariat (from Latin proles, offspring) is a term used to identify a lower social class; a member of such a class is proletarian. ... For other persons named John Milton, see John Milton (disambiguation). ... Title page of the first edition (1667) Paradise Lost is an epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century English poet John Milton. ... Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (October 15, 1844 – August 25, 1900) (IPA: ) was a nineteenth-century German philosopher. ... The University of Basel (German: Universität Basel) is located at Basel, Switzerland. ... Oscar Fingal OFlahertie Wills Wilde (October 16, 1854 – November 30, 1900) was an Irish playwright, novelist, poet, and author of short stories. ... Trinity College, Dublin TCD, corporately designated as the Provost, Fellows and Scholars of the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by Elizabeth I, and is the only constituent college of the University of Dublin, Irelands oldest university. ... College name Magdalen College Latin name Collegium Beatae Mariae Magdalenae Named after Mary Magdalene Established 1458 Sister college Magdalene College, Cambridge President Professor David Clary FRS JCR President Jessica Jones Undergraduates 395 MCR President Eloise Scotford Graduates 230 Location of Magdalen College within central Oxford , Homepage Boatclub Magdalen College (pronounced... For the Louisiana politician, see deLesseps Morrison, Jr. ... The Nobel Prizes (Swedish: ) are awarded for Physics, Chemistry, Literature, Peace, and Physiology or Medicine. ... Howard University is a university located in Washington, D.C., USA. A historically black university, Howard was established in 1867 by congressional order and named for Oliver O. Howard. ... Charles Geschke Charles M. Chuck Geschke (b. ... Adobe Systems (pronounced a-DOE-bee IPA: ) (NASDAQ: ADBE) (LSE: ABS) is an American computer software company headquartered in San Jose, California, USA. Adobe was founded in December 1982[1] by John Warnock and Charles Geschke, who established the company after leaving Xerox PARC in order to develop and sell... Xavier University is a name common to several education institutions found around the world. ... Robert Edward Turner III (born November 19, 1938) in Cincinnati, Ohio[1]) is an American media mogul and philanthropist. ... Brown University is a private university located in Providence, Rhode Island. ... Joanne Rowling OBE (born July 31, 1965 in Chipping Sodbury, South Gloucestershire), commonly known as J.K. Rowling (pronunciation: roll-ing; her former students used to joke with her name calling her the Rolling Stone), is a British fiction writer. ... This article is about the Harry Potter series of novels. ... For the whistleblower, see Gerald W. Brown. ... Berkeley Davis Irvine Los Angeles Merced San Diego Santa Barbara Santa Cruz UC Office of the President in Oakland The University of California (UC) is a public university system in the state of California. ... This article or section needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ... Wilberforce University, located in Wilberforce, Ohio, was founded in 1856. ...

Quotations

• "Nor can I do better, in conclusion, than impress upon you the study of Greek literature, which not only elevates above the vulgar herd but leads not infrequently to positions of considerable emolument."
  —Thomas Gaisford, Christmas sermon, Christ Church, Oxford.
• "I would make them all learn English: and then I would let the clever ones learn Latin as an honour, and Greek as a treat."
  —Sir Winston Churchill, Roving Commission: My Early Life
• "He studied Latin like the violin, because he liked it."
  —Robert Frost, The Death of the Hired Man
• "I enquire now as to the genesis of a philologist and assert the following: 1. A young man cannot possibly know what the Greeks and Romans are. 2. He does not know whether he is suited for finding out about them."
  —Friedrich Nietzsche, Unzeitgemässe Betrachtungen

Thomas Gaisford (December 22, 1779 - June 2, 1855) was an English classical scholar. ... Christ Church is the name of various churches and cathedrals, usually Protestant, named after Jesus Christ himself. ... This article is about the city of Oxford in England. ... “Churchill” redirects here. ... Robert Lee Frost (March 26, 1874 – January 29, 1963) was an American poet. ... Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (October 15, 1844 – August 25, 1900) (IPA: ) was a nineteenth-century German philosopher. ...

Bibliography

Dictionaries

• Biographical Dictionary of North American Classicists by Ward W. Briggs, Jr. (editor). Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1994 (hardcover, ISBN 0-313-24560-6).
• Classical Scholarship: A Biographical Encyclopedia (Garland Reference Library of the Humanities) by Ward W. Briggs and William M. Calder III (editors). New York: Taylor & Francis, 1990 (hardcover, ISBN 0-8240-8448-9).
• Dictionary of British classicists, 1500–1960 by Richard B. Todd (General editor). Bristol: Thoemmes Continuum, 2004 (ISBN 1-85506-997-0).
  • Reviewed by Mary Beard in The Times Literary Supplement, April 15, 2005.
• An Encyclopedia of the History of Classical Archaeology, edited by Nancy Thomson de Grummond. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1996 (hardcover, ISBN 0-313-22066-2; ISBN 0-313-30204-9 (A–K); ISBN 0-313-30205-7 (L–Z)).
• Harper's Dictionary of Classical Literature and Antiquities, ed. by Harry Thurston Peck. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1896; 2nd ed., 1897; New York: Cooper Square Publishers, 1965.
• Medwid, Linda M. The Makers of Classical Archaeology: A Reference Work. New York: Humanity Books, 2000 (hardcover, ISBN 1-57392-826-7).
• The New Century Classical Handbook, ed. by Catherine B. Avery. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1962.
• The Oxford Classical Dictionary, ed. by Simon Hornblower and Antony Spawforth, revised 3rd ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 2003 (ISBN 0-19-860641-9).
• The Oxford Companion to Classical Literature, ed. by M.C. Howatson. New York: Oxford University Press, 1989.

Miscellaneous

• Beard, Mary; Henderson, John. Classics: A very short introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995 (paperback, ISBN 0-19-285313-9); 2000 (new edition, paperback, ISBN 0-19-285385-6).
• Briggs, Ward W.; Calder, III, William M. Classical scholarship: A biographical encyclopedia (Garland reference library of the humanities). London: Taylor & Francis, 1990 (ISBN 0-8240-8448-9).
• Forum: Class and Classics:
  • Krevans, Nita. "Class and Classics: A Historical Perspective," The Classical Journal, Vol. 96, No. 3. (2001), p. 293.
  • Moroney, Siobhan. "Latin, Greek and the American Schoolboy: Ancient Languages and Class Determinism in the Early Republic," The Classical Journal, Vol. 96, No. 3. (2001), pp. 295–307.
  • Harrington Becker, Trudy. "Broadening Access to a Classical Education: State Universities in Virginia in the Nineteenth Century," The Classical Journal, Vol. 96, No. 3. (2001), pp. 309–322.
  • Bryce, Jackson. "Teaching the Classics," The Classical Journal, Vol. 96, No. 3. (2001), pp. 323–334.
• Knox, Bernard. The Oldest Dead White European Males, And Other Reflections on the Classics. New York; London: W.W. Norton & Co., 1993.
• Macrone, Michael. Brush Up Your Classics. New York: Gramercy Books, 1991. (Guide to famous words, phrases and stories of Greek classics.)
• Nagy, Péter Tibor. "The meanings and functions of classical studies in Hungary in the 18th–20th century", in The social and political history of Hungarian education (ISBN 963-200-511-2).
• Wellek, René. "Classicism in Literature," in Dictionary of the History of Ideas, Studies of Selected Pivotal Ideas, ed. by Philip P. Wiener. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1968.
• Winterer, Caroline. The Mirror of Antiquity: American Women and the Classical Tradition, 1750–1900. Ithaca, NY; London: Cornell University Press, 2007 (hardcover, ISBN 978-0-8014-4163-9).

Mary Beard is Professor in Classics at the University of Cambridge and a fellow of Newnham College. ... Mary Beard is Professor in Classics at the University of Cambridge and a fellow of Newnham College. ...

Online resources

At Wikiversity you can learn more about classics at:

The School of Classics