Greece
The cradle of Western civilisation and the heart of Orthodox Christianity, a land of deep faith and ancient glory, of legendary hospitality, the shared table, the unhurried pace of life, the great Easter, the village festivals, the sea, and the islands. The complete guide.
Greece is a country in southeastern Europe, at the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, a land of mountains, sea, and thousands of islands scattered across the Aegean and Ionian waters, home to about ten million people. To understand it, begin with its ancient inheritance, for Greece is the cradle of Western civilisation, the land of the philosophers, the democracy, the drama, and the art of classical antiquity, a heritage that fills the nation with pride and the land with ruins; with the Greek Orthodox Church, the eastern Christian faith that is bound tightly to Greek identity and shapes the calendar, the customs, and the milestones of life; with the legendary hospitality the Greeks call filoxenia, the love of the guest and the stranger; with the deep bonds of family and the warmth of company; with the unhurried, sociable pace of life lived around the table, the cafe, and the village square; and with the sea and the islands that have shaped the nation since antiquity. From these flow the customs that follow: the warm greeting, the shared meal, the great festivals. This guide walks through each in turn.
Overview
Greece is a country in southeastern Europe, occupying the southern end of the Balkan peninsula and a great scattering of islands across the Aegean Sea to the east and the Ionian Sea to the west, so that no part of the country lies far from the water. It is a land of rugged mountains, deep blue seas, and some two thousand islands, of which a few hundred are inhabited, set in a Mediterranean climate of hot dry summers and mild winters. About ten million people live there, the great majority on the mainland, with the capital, Athens, the ancient and modern heart of the nation, home to a large share of the population, and the northern city of Thessaloniki the second great centre.
Greece is a parliamentary republic, governed from Athens by a prime minister and parliament, with a president as head of state, and it is a member of the European Union and the eurozone, using the euro, as well as of NATO. The official language is Greek, one of the oldest languages in the world, written in its own ancient alphabet, a deep source of national identity and pride. The overwhelming majority of Greeks belong to the Greek Orthodox Church, the eastern Christian faith that is woven into the very identity of the nation, with small minorities of other faiths.
A few deep forces shape life in Greece. There is the ancient inheritance, the cradle of Western civilisation. There is the Greek Orthodox Church, bound to national identity. There is the legendary hospitality, the filoxenia. There are the deep bonds of family and the warmth of company. There is the unhurried, sociable pace of life. And there is the sea and the islands. The sections that follow trace these forces and then walk through the customs of daily life.
The cradle of the West
No nation carries a more famous or more influential ancient inheritance than Greece, for here, in the centuries before Christ, arose the civilisation of classical antiquity that became the foundation of Western culture, and the Greeks are deeply conscious of being its heirs. Ancient Greece gave the world democracy, born in Athens; philosophy, in the persons of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle; the drama, comedy and tragedy alike; history, mathematics, and science; the Olympic Games; and an art and architecture of such beauty and balance that they have inspired the world ever since. The Parthenon on the Acropolis of Athens, the temples and theatres, the sculptures and the myths, are among the most cherished treasures of humanity.
This immense inheritance is the deepest source of Greek national pride and a foundation of Greek identity, for modern Greeks see themselves as the descendants and inheritors of this ancient glory, connected across the millennia to the civilisation that shaped the West. The land is filled with the ruins of antiquity, the Acropolis, Delphi, Olympia, the temples and theatres scattered across the mainland and islands, which draw visitors from across the world and make Greece one of the great destinations of cultural tourism. The ancient myths, gods, and heroes remain woven into the language, the place names, and the imagination of the nation.
The connection to antiquity is more than a matter of ruins and pride; it runs through the modern Greek sense of self, the language that descends from the ancient tongue, the deep value placed on certain ancient ideals, and the strong feeling of cultural continuity and endurance across the centuries, through the Byzantine and Ottoman ages to the modern nation. The founding of modern Greece in the nineteenth century was seen as the restoration of an independent Greek civilisation, reaching back to the ancient glory. For a visitor, the ancient heritage is everywhere, and the Greek pride in it is deep and genuine. To understand Greece is to understand its place as the cradle of Western civilisation, the ancient glory that still fills the nation with pride and identity.
The Orthodox Church
If antiquity is one foundation of Greek identity, the other is the Greek Orthodox Church, the eastern Christian faith that has been bound to Greek identity for many centuries and that shapes the calendar, the customs, the values, and the milestones of life across the nation. The overwhelming majority of Greeks belong to the Greek Orthodox Church, the form of Christianity that took shape in the Byzantine Empire, the Greek-speaking eastern Roman world centred on Constantinople, and that broke from the Catholic Church of the West in the great schism of the eleventh century. Orthodoxy, with its icons, its incense, its chanted liturgy, and its ancient ritual, is at the heart of Greek religious and cultural life.
The bond between Orthodoxy and Greek national identity is exceptionally deep, forged through the long centuries of Ottoman rule, when the Church preserved the Greek language, faith, and identity and became the keeper of the nation's soul, so that to be Greek and to be Orthodox came to be felt as nearly one and the same. The Church plays a more visible role in public life than in many other European countries, there is no separation of church and state, and Orthodox Christianity remains tied to the national holidays, the customs, and the public ceremonies of the nation. The flag itself bears the cross of the faith.
Religion runs through Greek life even for those who are not deeply observant, for many Greeks are culturally Orthodox, respecting and keeping the customs, symbols, and holidays of the faith even where regular church attendance has declined. Churches and chapels stand in every neighbourhood, village, and hilltop, often tiny and white; the major events of life, baptism, marriage, and death, are marked in the Orthodox tradition; and the rhythm of the year follows the Orthodox calendar, its fasts and feasts, above all the great Easter. For a visitor, respect for the faith and its customs, and an understanding of its place at the heart of Greek identity, is essential. To understand Greece is to understand the Greek Orthodox Church, the faith woven into the very identity of the nation.
Filoxenia and the love of the guest
If any one quality defines the Greek people, it is their hospitality, a warmth and generosity toward guests and strangers so deep that it has its own name and its own ancient roots: filoxenia, literally the love of the stranger or friend to the stranger, a value reaching back to antiquity, when the welcoming of the guest was held a sacred duty under the protection of the gods, and which remains to this day deeply imprinted in the Greek character. To welcome a guest, even a stranger, with open warmth and generosity, to feed them, to host them, to make them feel like family, is among the deepest of Greek values and pleasures.
This hospitality is offered with a genuine warmth and an abundance that can be overwhelming. A visitor to a Greek home will be fed generously, pressed to eat more and more, offered the best the household has, and treated with a kindness and attentiveness that flow from the heart; an invitation to coffee or a meal can turn into a whole evening of food, drink, talk, and laughter. The host gives freely and takes pride in the giving, and to accept the hospitality graciously, with at least token protest at the generosity before giving in, is the gracious response, for to refuse outright can give offence.
The filoxenia flows from deep roots in the ancient tradition, the values of the Orthodox faith, the warmth of a sociable Mediterranean culture, and a genuine delight in the company of others, and it is bound up with food, for the feeding of the guest is its central expression. Greeks take real pride in their hospitality and in the welcome they offer to visitors, and the warmth of the Greek welcome is one of the things travellers remember most. For a visitor, the keys are to receive Greek hospitality graciously, to return warmth with warmth, and to understand that the generosity is sincere and heartfelt. To understand Greece is to understand filoxenia, the ancient and living love of the guest at the heart of the culture.
The unhurried life
One of the most distinctive features of Greek life is its pace, unhurried, relaxed, and sociable, lived around the table, the cafe, and the village square rather than rushed by the clock, and captured in the beloved phrase siga siga, slowly, slowly, which is less an instruction than a whole philosophy of life. Greeks place a high value on enjoying life, on taking time for food, family, friends, and conversation, on not being ruled by haste and work, and on savouring the pleasures of the day, and this relaxed and life-loving attitude runs deep in the culture.
The rhythm of the Greek day reflects this. In the heat of the afternoon, especially in summer, comes the mesimeri, the midday rest, when shops, offices, and businesses close for a few hours, the streets grow quiet, and people retreat from the sun to rest, eat, and sleep, before life revives in the cooler evening. The evening is the great social time, when Greeks pour out to the cafes, the tavernas, and the squares to eat, drink, talk, and stroll long into the night, for the cafe and the taverna are central institutions of Greek social life, places to linger for hours over a coffee, a meal, or an ouzo, in the warmth of company.
Coffee culture runs deep, the Greeks lingering over the traditional thick Greek coffee or the iced frappe for hours of talk, and the social life of food and drink, conversation and company, is the heart of daily pleasure. This unhurried, sociable approach to life, the value placed on enjoyment, relationship, and the present moment, can be a delight to the visitor and a contrast to more hurried cultures, though it can also mean a relaxed attitude to time and punctuality. For a visitor, the way to enjoy Greece is to slow down, to linger, to take time for the long meal and the long conversation, to live siga siga. To understand Greece is to understand the unhurried, life-loving pace of its days, lived around the table and the company of others.
Kin and the parea
The family lies at the very heart of Greek life, the deepest and most important of all bonds, and Greek families are close, warm, and strongly knit, with deep ties between parents and children that endure through life, and a wide web of extended kin, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, who gather often and support one another. The family is the foundation of society, the first source of love, support, and identity, and the bonds are strong and lifelong, with the successful establishment of one's children a driving goal, parents sacrificing willingly for them, and the generations remaining close, often living near one another and gathering frequently for meals and celebrations.
Around the family lies the warm Greek world of the parea, the close company of friends, the group of companions who gather regularly to eat, drink, talk, and share life, which is a central feature of Greek sociability and a deep source of belonging and pleasure. Greeks are intensely sociable, and life is lived in company, in the gathering of family and friends around the table, in the cafe and the taverna, in the long evenings of food, drink, and talk. The individual is understood within this warm web of family and friends, and time spent together is among the deepest of Greek values.
Respect for elders and for parents runs through Greek life, the old honoured and cared for within the family, and the bonds between the generations strong. Though modern life, the cities, and the economic pressures that have driven many Greeks abroad have brought change, smaller families, and more mobility, the family and the parea remain the bedrock of Greek society and the deepest source of warmth, support, and identity. For a visitor, the warmth of Greek family and friendship, and the readiness to draw a guest into the circle, is one of the great pleasures of the culture. To understand Greece is to understand the central place of the close family and the warm company of friends in the life of every Greek.
The passion of Greek talk
Greek greetings are warm, expressive, and full of feeling, reflecting the friendliness and the emotional warmth of the people. Among friends and family, greetings are affectionate, with handshakes among acquaintances and a kiss on each cheek among those who know one another, accompanied by warm inquiries after one's health and family. The common greetings come in Greek, the friendly yassou or the more formal yassas for hello, and the universal kalimera for good morning, and they are exchanged with genuine warmth and often at some length, for the greeting is a valued moment of connection.
Greek conversation is famously lively, expressive, loud, and full of passion, for Greeks talk with energy and feeling, gesture freely, raise their voices in animated discussion, and throw themselves into conversation with their whole being. A visitor should not mistake this passion and volume for anger or conflict, for it is simply the warm, expressive Greek way of talking, full of heart, humour, and engagement. Talk is a great pleasure and a social art, conversations stretching for hours over coffee or a meal, ranging over politics, family, and the affairs of the day, with everyone joining in.
Courtesy, warmth, and respect shape Greek social interaction, with respect shown to elders and the polite forms used in formal settings, alongside the easy warmth of ordinary friendly life. Greeks are open, curious, and welcoming toward strangers, quick to draw a visitor into conversation and to offer help, hospitality, and friendship. For a visitor, the way to get on is to meet the Greek warmth with warmth, to greet people properly, to enter into the lively spirit of conversation, to be open and friendly, and not to be put off by the volume and passion of the talk. Even a few words of Greek are warmly received. To understand Greece is to understand the warmth, expressiveness, and passion of its greetings and its talk.
Olive oil, meze, and the Greek table
Greek food is one of the glories of the Mediterranean, a cuisine of fresh, simple, sun-blessed ingredients, built above all on olive oil, which is poured generously over nearly everything and is the soul of the cooking, together with vegetables, herbs, grains, beans, fish, lamb, and the famous cheeses, the salty white feta above all. It is a healthy, flavourful, and generous cuisine, drawing on the produce of the land and sea, the tomatoes, cucumbers, aubergines, olives, lemons, and herbs of the Mediterranean, and shaped by centuries of history, including the Ottoman age that left its mark on many dishes.
The dishes are beloved across the world. There is the Greek salad, the horiatiki, of tomato, cucumber, onion, olives, and feta drizzled with olive oil; tzatziki, the dip of yoghurt, cucumber, and garlic; moussaka, the rich baked dish of aubergine, minced meat, and white sauce; souvlaki and gyros, the grilled and spit-roasted meats; dolmades, the stuffed vine leaves; the grilled fish and seafood of the coasts and islands; and a wealth of sweets, the honey-and-nut baklava, the syrupy pastries, and the festive cookies. The national drink is ouzo, the anise-flavoured spirit drunk with water and meze, and Greece has a long and reviving tradition of wine, including the resinous retsina.
The Greek meal is a deeply social and unhurried occasion, built on sharing, with many small dishes, the meze, placed in the centre of the table for all to share, eaten slowly over hours of conversation, drink, and company, for in Greece the table is the heart of social life and the chief expression of hospitality. The taverna, the traditional eating house, is a central institution, and a long evening of shared meze, wine or ouzo, and talk is among the great pleasures of Greek life. Food is offered generously to guests, who are pressed to eat their fill and more. For a visitor, to share a Greek meal, the meze and the olive oil, the souvlaki and the ouzo, slowly and in company, is to taste the heart of the culture. To understand Greece is to understand its glorious Mediterranean table and the deep place of the shared meal in its life.
Easter and the Holy Fire
The greatest festival of the Greek year, by far, is Easter, Pascha, the most important religious and family celebration in the Orthodox calendar, observed with a depth of feeling and a richness of custom that surpass even Christmas. Greek Orthodox Easter, which often falls on a different date from the Western Easter, is the heart of the religious year, preceded by the long fast of Lent and the solemn observances of Holy Week, when the faithful follow the Passion of Christ through the services of each day, the flower-decked bier of Good Friday carried in procession through the streets, and the whole nation turns toward the great event.
The climax comes at the midnight service of Holy Saturday, when the churches fill and the lights are extinguished, and the priest emerges from the sanctuary bearing the Holy Light, the flame of the Resurrection, which is passed from candle to candle through the whole congregation until the dark church blazes with light, and at the stroke of midnight the priest proclaims Christos Anesti, Christ is risen, the bells ring out, fireworks and firecrackers explode, and the people greet one another with the joyful words and carry the holy flame home. It is a moment of profound and joyful feeling, the spiritual heart of the Greek year.
Easter is also a great family festival, when many Greeks return to their home villages to celebrate together, and the joy of the Resurrection is followed by feasting, above all the roasting of whole lambs on spits for the Easter Sunday meal, shared by family and community in celebration, with the cracking of the red-dyed eggs that symbolise the Resurrection, music, dancing, and rejoicing. Customs vary by region, from the pot-smashing of Corfu to the fireworks of other islands, but everywhere Easter is the supreme celebration of faith, family, and joy. To understand Greece is to understand the great Easter, the Holy Fire and the risen Christ, the spiritual and family heart of the Greek year.
The name day
One of the most distinctive and beloved of Greek customs is the celebration of the name day, the feast day of the saint after whom a person is named, which in Greece is often celebrated more than the birthday itself. Because most Greeks are named after Orthodox saints, each person has a name day, the day in the calendar dedicated to their saint, and on that day they are wished well, visited, given small gifts, and may host an open celebration, welcoming family and friends to their home with food and drink, for the name day is a warm and sociable occasion that ties the individual to the faith and the calendar of the Church. To know someone's name is, in Greece, to know when to wish them well.
The Greek year is rich with festivals, nearly all of them tied to the Orthodox calendar and its saints and feasts. After Easter, the next greatest is the Feast of the Dormition, or Assumption, of the Virgin Mary on the fifteenth of August, a major religious and family holiday, marked by church services, pilgrimages to the great shrines of the Virgin, and celebrations across the land, falling in the height of the August holiday season. Christmas, too, is celebrated, with its own Greek customs, the carols, the decorated boats of the islands, and the festive foods, and Epiphany in January, with the blessing of the waters and the diving for the cross.
Beyond the religious feasts, the year holds the lively Carnival season, Apokries, before Lent, with its masquerades, costumes, and street celebrations, especially vibrant in cities like Patras, with roots reaching back to ancient festivals; the national days that mark the struggle for independence, of which more below; and the round of name days, saints' days, weddings, and baptisms that fill the social calendar. Greeks love to celebrate, and the festivals blend deep faith with the warmth, food, music, and dancing of Greek sociability. To understand Greece is to understand its festivals, above all the beloved name days that tie each person to the saints and the calendar of the faith.
The panigyria and the saints
Among the most joyful and characteristic of Greek celebrations are the panigyria, the village festivals held to honour the patron saint of a town, village, church, or island on the saint's feast day, which gather the whole community, and often visitors from far away, in celebrations that blend deep religious devotion with the food, music, dancing, and sociability that Greeks love. The panigyri begins with the religious observance, the church service and often a procession in honour of the saint, and flows into a great communal feast and celebration that may last long into the night and even over several days.
These festivals are at their most vivid and numerous in the summer, when the islands and villages come alive with panigyria, the squares filled with long tables of local food and wine, the air loud with traditional music and the playing of the clarinet, the bouzouki, and the regional instruments, and the people, young and old, joining hands in the circle dances of the region, eating, drinking, and dancing in the warm night. Each region and island has its own customs, its own music and dances, its own foods and traditions, and the panigyri is a vivid expression of local identity and community as well as of faith.
The panigyria express something deep in Greek culture: the binding of faith and festivity, the devotion to the saints and their shrines, the strength of local community and identity, and the Greek love of gathering, eating, drinking, and dancing in company. They draw families home to their villages, gather the community across the generations, and welcome the visitor into the warmth of the celebration, for the Greek festival, like the Greek table, is open and hospitable. For a visitor, to come upon a summer panigyri, with its music, dancing, and feasting in the village square, is to meet the living, joyful heart of Greek tradition. To understand Greece is to understand the panigyria, the village festivals of the saints that blend faith, community, and the joy of the celebration.
From baptism to the grave
The great milestones of life in Greece are marked in the Orthodox tradition, with the gathering of family and community, and they are among the richest and most joyful expressions of the culture. The first great rite is baptism, the central ceremony of infancy, when the baby is initiated into the Orthodox community, immersed three times in the holy water, anointed, and given its name, an occasion of deep importance and joyful family celebration, in which the godparent, who plays a lifelong role, takes a central part.
The wedding is the supreme celebration, and the Greek Orthodox wedding is rich in beautiful and symbolic ritual, full of meaning and emotion. At its heart are the stefana, the wedding crowns joined by a ribbon, placed on the heads of the bride and groom and exchanged, symbolising their union and their reign over the home; the sharing of the common cup of wine; and the ceremonial walk three times around the altar, the first steps of their married life. The koumbaros or koumbara, the sponsor, plays a central and honoured role. Beyond the church, the Greek wedding is a great and joyful social occasion, with abundant food, music, dancing, and the gathering of family and community in celebration, often late into the night, for the wedding is the joining of families and a cause of communal rejoicing.
Death is marked in the Orthodox tradition, with the funeral service in the church, the burial, and the customs of mourning, including the wearing of black, especially by widows, and the memorial services held at set intervals after the death, at which the boiled-wheat dish called koliva is shared in remembrance. The community gathers around the bereaved family in support, for mourning, like celebration, is shared. Through the milestones of life, baptism, marriage, and death, run the enduring threads of Greek culture: faith, family, community, and the rituals of the Orthodox Church. To understand Greece is to understand these milestones, where faith and family mark the passage of every Greek life.
How Greeks dress
Dress in Greece is modern, European, and stylish, for Greeks, like other Mediterranean peoples, take care over their appearance and dress well, and everyday clothing follows the fashions of Europe, smart and well-kept, especially in the cities, where appearance and good grooming are valued. Greeks generally dress neatly and with care for going out, to the cafe, the taverna, or the evening stroll, and casual sloppiness is less common than in some northern countries, particularly among the style-conscious of Athens and the cities.
For the warm climate and the beaches and islands, summer dress is light and casual, and beachwear is normal at the coast and the resorts, though it is out of place in towns, villages, and especially churches. Modest and respectful dress is required when visiting churches and monasteries, where shoulders and knees should be covered, women may need to cover the arms and sometimes the head, and shorts and beachwear are not acceptable; some monasteries have strict dress rules, and wraps or skirts may be provided. Respect for the dress customs of religious places is important.
Traditional regional costume, once the everyday wear of the countryside and islands, each region with its own distinctive and often beautiful dress, is now kept for festivals, weddings, folk dancing, and ceremonial occasions, worn with pride as a mark of local identity and heritage, and seen at the panigyria and national celebrations. The famous costume of the ceremonial guard in Athens, with its kilt and pom-pom shoes, is a national emblem. For a visitor, the keys are to dress neatly and reasonably, to keep beachwear for the beach, and above all to dress modestly and respectfully when visiting churches and monasteries. To understand Greece is to understand its modern, stylish dress and the respect owed to the dress customs of its sacred places.
The gestures to know
Greek life is warm and informal, but a visitor who understands a few customs will get on well and avoid giving offence. Greeks are friendly, open, and forgiving of the well-meaning foreigner, but a few points are worth knowing. The open hand held up with the palm facing another person, a gesture called the moutza, is a serious insult in Greece, so one should not wave or gesture with the open palm thrust toward someone; to beckon or wave, the palm is turned inward. A nod of the head upward, rather than a shake, can mean no.
Hospitality should be received graciously: when offered food, drink, or hospitality, it is polite to accept, at least a little, and to refuse outright can seem cold, while a guest is expected to accept what is offered with only token protest. When invited to a Greek home, it is customary to bring a small gift, such as sweets, pastries, wine, or flowers, and to compliment the home and the food; the effort and generosity of the host should be warmly appreciated. Respect should be shown around churches, religious occasions, and the customs of the faith, with modest dress and quiet behaviour in sacred places.
In manner, warmth, openness, and good humour are the keys, for Greeks value friendliness, generosity, and genuine human connection, and dislike coldness, arrogance, and condescension. The loud, passionate Greek style of talk should not be mistaken for rudeness or anger. Greeks can be sensitive on matters of national pride and history, and certain political and historical subjects, such as relations with neighbouring countries, are best approached with care. Punctuality is held loosely in social life. Above all, the visitor should meet the Greek warmth with warmth, accept the hospitality, and enter into the sociable spirit. To understand Greece is to understand its warm and informal courtesy, the few gestures to avoid, and the gracious receiving of its hospitality.
The sea and the islands
No nation is more bound to the sea than Greece, for the sea is everywhere in Greek life, history, and identity, surrounding the mainland and scattering the country into some two thousand islands across the Aegean and Ionian waters, and shaping the Greeks as a seafaring people since the dawn of their history. The ancient Greeks were great sailors, traders, and colonisers who spread across the Mediterranean; the sea has fed, carried, and defined the nation for thousands of years; and to this day a great share of the world's merchant shipping is owned by Greeks, the sea remaining central to the economy and the soul of the nation.
The islands are among the glories of Greece and a world of their own, from the famous Cyclades with their white cubic houses and blue domes against the blue sea, to the green Ionian islands, the large island of Crete with its own strong identity and ancient civilisation, the Dodecanese, and the many others, each with its own character, customs, dialect, food, and traditions, often differing markedly from the mainland and from one another. Island life, shaped by the sea, the fishing, the summer winds, and the long isolation of earlier times, keeps its own strong local identities and traditions, and the islands draw visitors from across the world to their beauty.
The sea shapes the rhythm and the pleasures of Greek life: the fishing and the seafood, the summer swimming and the beaches, the ferries that link the islands and carry Greeks to their home places, the long coastline of bays and harbours, and the deep cultural attachment to the water. The mainland too is varied, from the great city of Athens and the plains and mountains of the interior to the north around Thessaloniki, with its own history and Ottoman-tinged culture, and the wild mountain regions with their distinct traditions. For a visitor, the sea and the islands are at the heart of the experience of Greece. To understand Greece is to understand the sea and the islands, the waters that have shaped the nation and scattered it into a thousand worlds.
The bouzouki and the circle dance
Greece holds a rich artistic heritage, ancient and modern alike, and music and dance lie close to the heart of its living culture. Greek music ranges from the Byzantine chant of the Church to the rich folk traditions of the regions and islands, each with its own songs, rhythms, and instruments, and to the beloved popular music of the modern age, above all the rebetiko, the soulful urban music of the early twentieth century, and the songs carried by the bouzouki, the long-necked stringed instrument whose sound is one of the most recognisable in the world and the very voice of Greek popular music.
Dance is woven into Greek celebration and life, and the traditional circle and line dances, in which the dancers join hands and move together, the kalamatianos, the syrtos, and the many regional dances, are danced at weddings, festivals, and gatherings by young and old alike, an expression of community and joy. The dance made famous to the world as the sirtaki, the slow-building dance of the film, has become a symbol of Greece. Music and dance fill the panigyria, the weddings, and the celebrations, and the readiness of Greeks to rise and dance in company is part of the warmth of the culture.
Greece's wider artistic inheritance is immense, from the sculpture, architecture, and pottery of antiquity that shaped Western art, to the icons and church art of the Byzantine tradition, to a thriving modern culture. In literature Greece has made great contributions, the land of Homer and the ancient poets and playwrights, and in modern times of celebrated poets, including Nobel laureates, and novelists, and of a lively film, theatre, and artistic life. The crafts of the regions, the weaving, embroidery, pottery, and metalwork, carry old traditions. This rich blend of the ancient and the modern, the sacred and the popular, marks all of Greek art. To understand Greece is to understand its arts, the music and dance, the bouzouki and the circle dance, and the deep cultural soul of the nation.
The nation today
Greece today is a parliamentary republic of about ten million people, a member of the European Union and the eurozone and of NATO, a modern European nation with an ancient soul, with its capital and heart at Athens. It is governed by a prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, as head of government, and a president as head of state, and it has recovered from a severe economic crisis that struck it hard in the years after 2010, bringing deep hardship, austerity, and the emigration of many young Greeks, before a gradual return to growth and stability. The Greek language and the Orthodox faith remain at the heart of national identity.
Modern Greece faces real challenges. The long shadow of the economic crisis, though lifting, has left its mark, and the economy remains smaller than before; the country has been on the front line of Europe's migration, lying at the crossroads of continents and receiving great numbers of migrants and refugees crossing from the east; it has long-standing tensions with its neighbour Turkey over the Aegean and other matters; and it faces the pressures of an aging population, emigration, and the strains common to the nations of southern Europe. These are the concerns of a proud and ancient nation finding its way in the modern world and the European Union.
Through all its modern trials, Greece holds firmly to the identity that defines it. The ancient inheritance, the cradle of Western civilisation, still fills the nation with pride; the Greek Orthodox Church still stands at the heart of identity and the calendar of life; the legendary filoxenia still opens every door; the deep bonds of family and the warm company of friends still anchor society; the unhurried, life-loving pace still shapes the days; and the sea and the islands still define the nation. To know Greece is to meet a land of extraordinary depth, the birthplace of so much that the West holds dear, a place of deep faith, warm hospitality, and a profound love of life, where the ancient and the modern, the sacred and the sociable, meet in the warmth of the table, the festival, and the sea.