Daily Life in Ancient Greece was divided into many periods and consisted of complex social structures. Citizens had rights not afforded to women, foreigners, or slaves. Family life was patriarchal and centered around the oikos or household. Children were raised communally in Sparta but had more schooling in Athens. Religion heavily influenced all aspects of life and the Greeks believed in many gods and held various festivals in their honor.

1. Daily Life in Ancient
Greece
By Isabel

2. Introduction
 Ancient Greece dates back to Stone Age hunters.
 After the Stone Age came the Dark Age.
 Ancient Greece consisted of many different stages. The Neolithic
Period lasted from 6000-2900 B.C.. The Early Bronze Age went from
2900-2000 B.C.. Another time period for Ancient Greece was the
Minoan Age, which lasted from 2000-1400 B.C..
 From 500-338 B.C., Ancient Greece was divided into city-states, which
were cities usually surrounded by countryside.

3.  Slaves were not considered
Social citizens. They were mixed in with
people from foreign countries and
Structure people that were only legally
allowed to live in the country.
• Men who owned land, and  Slaves owned by the city-state were
were native born were trained to notice counterfeit
entitled to full citizenship. money, and also to work as a police
force.
• A slave had no power.
They could have a
family, but had no rights to
any involvement in
political government.
• Most families had many
slaves as servants, and
even poor families had a
few slaves.

4. Social Structure Pyramid
Gods/Goddesses
The Council
Men from the Country (The
Assembly)
The Jury
Women and Children
Slaves and Immigrants

5.  Marriages in Ancient Greece were arranged by the mother and
father of the intended bride and groom.
 Girls married between the ages of fourteen and eighteen, and
men usually married at around the age of twenty, but some
M
even married at age thirty.
a
 A priest did not run the wedding, but a set of rituals were
performed, and for the couple to be officially married, a child
had to be conceived.
r
 Divorce was easily arranged. If the wife could not give birth, or
if she will not perform adultery, the marriage will end.
r
i
g
e

6. Family Life
 Usually, there were more than just the wife and kids living in the
groom’s house. Sometimes his parents would live with him, and each
family had a couple of slaves that lived in their house.
 A wealthy woman would never leave the house alone, and would
usually go to only weddings or funerals. Poorer women without
slaves would normally go out to get water.
 If there was a divorce in the family, the children would live with their
father, where they would learn how work the farm, or whatever the
family business was.

7.  In some cities, the babies would be
wrapped up in clothes to ensure
Childbirth that they would have strong limbs.
• Most babies died in the
first couple of days that
they were born, and most
babies were not given
names until the were about
a week old.
• If a baby was
deformed, then it would
most likely be left to die on
a mountain. More female
babies were abandoned
than male babies.
• Some abandoned babies
were brought up as slaves.

8.  In Sparta, children spent most of their time with their mother.
Girls would receive their schooling from their mother. The
C
h
boys, however, learned mostly from their fathers, or they
would go to school at the age of seven.
 In Sparta, boys were raised away from their families as well.
They were taken to barracks, and raised to be in the military. i
They were not allowed out until they were about thirty years
old.
l
 Many toys that are similar to today’s were found then too.
Dolls, rattles, tops, and swings are just a few of the things that
have been discovered.
d
h
o
o
d

9. Schooling
 In Sparta, girls did not go to school, but they were allowed to
participate in wrestling and gymnastics. In Athens, girls stayed at
home with their mothers, and learned how to clean.
 Schooling mainly focused on raising strong soldiers. Teachers didn’t
care about math and writing, because it wasn’t used often in latter
years.
 In Athens, boys went to school at age seven, and were taught how to
become wise men, not just soldiers.
 They learned reading and writing, physical training, and music. They
would also learn how to write plays.

10.  Most houses were planned around
Housing a courtyard, with high walls and a
gate in the front.
• Men and women lived in
different parts of the
house.
• Most houses were built out
of stone or clay. Roves
were covered in tiles or
reed. Houses usually had
one or two stories.
• Richer houses had a
kitchen, a room for
bathing, an eating area for
the men, and a sitting area
for the women.

11. F
 Ancient Greeks mostly ate food the could be easily grown in
the rocky terrain. Breakfast consisted of bread dipped in wine.
Lunch was made up of bread dipped in wine, figs, olives, dried
fish or cheese.
 Dinner was the most important meal of the day in Ancient
o
Greece. It was eaten at sunset and usually consisted of
fish, fruits and vegetables, and sometimes honey cakes. o
 Fish was the main source of protein, as beef cost a lot of
money. Wine was the drink that people usually had. The wine
d
was usually watered down, because drinking it straight out
was considered barbaric.
 The Greek did not have utensils, so they would usually eat
with their hands. Bread was used as a napkin, and after it was
used, it would be thrown to dogs or slaves to eat. (Better than
eating a napkin!)

12. Religion: Gods and
Goddesses
People believed in twelve main gods. Their names are:
 Zeus  Aphrodite
 Hera  Athena
 Poseidon  Apollo
 Ares  Artemis
 Hermes  Demeter
 Hades
 Hephaestus

13.  Ancient Greeks thought that all the
gods were responsible for different
Religion things. For example, they thought
that Zeus was responsible for
thunder and lightning, that
Poseidon was responsible for the
• Religious practices water, and that Hades was
extended outside the responsible for the underworld.
mainland. Ionia and coasts
just south of Italy also
practiced Greek religion.
• Ancient Greeks believed
that there was an
underworld where spirits
went after death.
• The Greeks thought that
they had to sacrifice an
animal at the altar when
they prayed.

14. C
 There were festivals that were held for a few important god that
they believed in. These gods were e
Apollo, Athena, Dionysus, Poseidon, Zeus.
l
 People danced at the festivals, and they we even know the
names of some of these dances. When they thought that the e
youths had been freed from the Minotaur by Theseus, the
Ancient Greeks danced the Crane Dance. b
 Athletic contests were also very common in festivals. Statues
would be cleaned and new robes would be put on them.
r
Banquets would be held, and women would weave and create
art.
a
t
I
o
n
s

15. Death
 The Ancient Greeks thought that the spirit of a dead person was
carried away on a gust of wind.
 Relatives of the deceased, mostly women, would prepare the body for
the ceremony. The body would be smeared with oil, the body would
be dressed and put on a bed in the house. Afterwards, relatives
would come and mourn over the body and pay their respects.
 Lastly, the dead body would be buried with a few of their
belongings, and they would usually have a gravestone put up above
where they were buried.

16.  Lots of statues in the “golden age”
were shown moving and doing
Art something, like the one below.
• There were three different
types of architectural
orders. These orders were
Doric, which is very
plain, Ionic, the thin and
elegant style, and
Corinthian, which is very
elaborate, and included
leaves in most designs.
• Most sculptures were
created naked or wearing a
toga.

17.  Music was used in weddings, funerals, festivals, and banquets.
 Even though Ancient Greeks knew how to play many different
instruments, there were three that they used most. They were
the kithara, which was a string instrument that was plucked, the
lyre, another string instrument, and a wind instrument with two
reeds.
M
 If you had the ability to sing while you were playing an
instrument, it was considered a highly developed skill.
u
 Most Greek men learned how to play an instrument, sing, and
dance.
s
i
c

18. Fact Bibliography
 April 2012 - Introduction Page - http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/History/
 April 2012 Social Structure Page - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Greece
 April 2012 Marrige Page - http://www.historylink102.com/greece3/marriage.htm
 April 2012 Family Life Page -
http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/greeks/people/family.htm
 April 2012 Childbirth Page -
http://www.historylink102.com/greece3/children.htm
 April 2012 Childhood Page -
http://www.historylink102.com/greece3/children.htm
 April 2012 Schooling Page -
http://library.thinkquest.org/J002606/AncientGreece.html
 April 2012Housing Page - http://www.woodlands-
junior.kent.sch.uk/Homework/greece/houses.htm

19. Fact Bibliography Cont.
 April 2012 Food Page -
http://www.historylink102.com/greece3/food.htm
 April 2012 Religion: Gods and Goddesses Page -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Greece#Religion_and_mytho
logy
 April 2012 Religion Page -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_ancient_Greece
 April 2012 Celebrations Page - http://www.fjkluth.com/festival.html
 April 2012 Death Page -
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/dbag/hd_dbag.htm
 April 2012 Art Page - http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Art/

20. Fact Bibliography Cont.
 April 2012 Art Page - http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Sculpture/
 April 2012 Music Page -
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/grmu/hd_grmu.htm

21. Image Bibliography
 Title Paeg - http://www.ancientsculpturegallery.com/222.html
 Introduction Page - http://www.greeka.com/greece-maps/ancient-greece-
map.htm
 Social Structure Page -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Grabstein_einer_Frau_mit_Dienerin.jpg
 Social Structure Pyramid - http://cyberchuck-
video.homeip.net/wordpress/?p=3198
 Marriage Page - http://www.richeast.org/htwm/Greeks/marriage/bride.gif
 Family Life -
http://www.womeninthebible.net/3.1.Family_Work_Religion.htm

22. Image Bibliography Cont.
 Childbirth Page - http://www.theoi.com/Gallery/K12.27.html
 Childhood Page -
http://www.historywiz.com/didyouknow/spartanfamily.htm
 Schooling Page - http://library.thinkquest.org/J002606/AncientGreece.html
 Housing Page - http://www.meads.e-sussex.sch.uk/greek/gkhouse.htm
 Food Page - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Greek_cuisine
 Religion Page - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_ancient_Greece
 Celebrations Page - http://www.fjkluth.com/festival.html
 Death Page - http://www.21stcenturycollaborative.com/2010/03/lessig-on-
openness/

23. Image Bibliography Cont.
 Art Page - http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Sculpture/
 Music Page - http://www.ionio.gr/central/en/events-
forthcoming/read/297/