Chapter 5 Lesson 1: Rise of Greek Civilization

Chapter 5 Lesson 1: Rise of Greek Civilization

By Mr. Rowe

Ancient Greece

The Land in Greece

Greece is a small country in southern Europe. It is shaped somewhat like an outstretched hand, with fingers of land that reach into the Mediterranean Sea. The mainland of Greece is a peninsula. A peninsula is land that is surrounded on three sides by water. Greece also includes many islands throughout the Mediterranean and the Aegean (ih-JEE-luhn) seas.

Mainland Greece is a land of steep, rugged mountains, almost entirely surrounded by turquoise blue seas. The ancient Greeks lived on farms or in small villages scattered throughout the country. These farms and villages were isolated, or separated, from each other by the mountains and seas.

Multiple Choice

Greece is a

• peninsula

• delta

• archapelago

• isthmus

Multiple Choice

Which physical features are important to understand conditions in ancient Greece?

• Islands

• Peninsula

• Mountains

• All of the above

Multiple Select

Check all of the theories about why Mycenaean civilization declined

• A. Natural disasters caused shortages that turned cities against one another

• B. Mycenaean cities were invaded by the mysterious Sea Peoples

• A plague spread through Mycenaean cities

Multiple Choice

Extensive trade and wars made Mycenaean kings rich

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

What is a city-state?

• a city that governs itself

• a city that looks like a state

• a country that governs many cities

• none of the above

Greek alphabet

The early Greek alphabet was written, like its Semitic forebears, from right to left. This gradually gave way to the boustrophedon style, and after 500 bce Greek was always written from left to right. The Classical alphabet had 24 letters, 7 of which were vowels, and consisted of capital letters, ideal for monuments and inscriptions. From it were derived three scripts better suited to handwriting: uncial, which was essentially the Classical capitals adapted to writing with pen on paper and similar to hand printing, and cursive and minuscule, which were running scripts similar to modern handwriting forms, with joined letters and considerable modification in letter shape. Uncial went out of use in the 9th century ce, and minuscule, which replaced it, developed into the modern Greek handwriting form.

Multiple Choice

Who were the first civilization to write all vowels as well as consonants?

• Persians

• Greeks

• Phoenicians

• Egyptians