Ancient Greece and Greek Literature Periods

Vocabulary terms covering the history, major periods, key figures, and famous works of Ancient Greek literature.

Greek Literature

The body of writings in the Greek language, with a continuous history extending from the 1st millennium BC to the present day.

Ancient Greek Literature

Surviving writings written in a Phoenician-derived alphabet that arose in Greek Ionia and was fully adopted by Athens in the 5th century.

Archaic Period

The literary period lasting to the end of the 6th century BC, characterized by an oral tradition where poetry was intended to be sung or recited at festivals.

Classical Period

The period during the 5th and 4th centuries BC known as the golden age of Greek literature, featuring the rise of philosophy, drama, and history.

Hellenistic and Greco-Roman Periods

The literary period from the 3rd century BC onward where literature became more personal, emotional, and scholarly as Greek culture spread across the Mediterranean.

Homer

The presumed author of the Iliad and the Odyssey whose two epics established most of the literary conventions of the epic poem.

Iliad

An epic that tells the story of the Trojan War, focusing on the anger of Achilles and the battles between Greeks and Trojans.

Odyssey

An epic that follows the long and dangerous journey of Odysseus as he tries to return home after the Trojan War.

Hesiod

The author of Theogony and the father of didactic poetry who was considered one of the most respected old Greek poets alongside Homer.

Didactic Poetry

A type of poetry that teaches a lesson, gives advice, or explains an idea.

Theogony

A work by Hesiod described as a hymn to Apollo's Muses.

Greek Tragedians

The three writers from the Classical period for whom complete plays still exist: Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides.

Hellenistic Poets and Writers

A group of figures including Callimachus, Theocritus, Apollonius Rhodius, and the historian Plutarch.

Greco-Roman Legacy

The period after the death of Alexander the Great where Roman literature and art took on a distinctive Greek flavor due to the immense influence of Greek poetry and prose.