Peloponnese, about 3,200 years ago. Natural disasters, internal conflicts and attacks by the Peoples of the Sea led to the decline of Mystical civilization. The big buildings, the writing, the commercial networks… went out and the ancient Dark Age of Greece began.
The rupture of the monarchic structure of micenic power and the isolation caused by peninsular orography led to oikos. Oikos means house, but in its broadest sense: the building itself, the family, the rest of the family’s assets (livestock, land, slaves…) and the laborers who worked there. It was therefore a basic economic entity of the society of the time. And from there comes the economy, of oikonomy, oikos (house) and nemein (manages).
It was only the idiot who dealt with private and private interests, who ignored public affairs. The Greeks attached great importance to public life and therefore the word 'idiotes' acquires a negligible tone
Driven by common interests and the need to protect themselves from external threats, the oikos were merging and a new form of organization emerged: the polis or the urban state. Aristotle said the polis were sets of oikos united for the well-being of people. After the Dark Ages, Archaic Greece was formed by those politically, socially and economically independent communities. But despite the strong competition between the polis, they shared the same language – dialects – religion and culture in general.
The political word comes from Polis. Originally, politics was everything related to urban states. When Aristotle said that man was a political zoon, it meant that man was a social animal living in an urban state and under the laws. Therefore, political and public were synonyms.
In search of antonyms appears the word idiotes, which means private in Ancient Greek. Therefore, originally, the idiot was only the one dealing with private and private interests, which ignored public affairs. The Greeks attached great importance to public life and, therefore, the word idiotes became invaluable.
And so, as they woke up from the Dark Ages, as Greek civilization developed, they built the foundations of European civilization. And politicians etymologically antonyms and idiots were slowly getting closer.
Gulf of Ambracia (Ionian Sea). In the 15th century a. 2 September 31. The Romans achieved victory in the naval battle of Accio and ensured control over Egypt. Therefore, the Greek hegemony in the Mediterranean is concluded on that date, but the Hellenic influence has remained so... [+]
This winter the archaeologists of the INRAP (National Institute of Preventive Archaeological Research) have found a special necropolis in the historic centre of Auxerre (French State), a Roman cemetery for newborn babies or stillbirths. - Oh, good! The necropolis used between... [+]
It was founded by R about 6,500 years ago. And recently, the archaeologist at the German Institute of Archaeology, Max Haibt, has created the city's "digital twin," using the technology used in video games.
The team has made a three-dimensional record of the 40 square kilometres... [+]
Rome, a.C. 443. Censors were elected for the first time. Two centuries later it would be the most important magistrature of the Republic. Every five years, they chose two censors among consular senators.
It was a position of great responsibility: they were primarily responsible... [+]
It has been considered that the wine drank by the ancient Romans was a poorly made wine, without body and with an unpleasant taste. But the work that researchers at the universities of Ghent and Warsaw have published in Antiquity has provoked the withdrawal of this belief.
The... [+]
A group of researchers from the Italian University of Padua analyzes a small stone boat discovered in Iran in 2001. In particular, the fingerprints inside the bottle have been analysed and have been shown to contain fine hematite – red mineral oxide, manganite, braunita and... [+]
Mostafa Waziri, Secretary General of the Upper Ancient Council of Egypt, recently presented the gigantic restoration project of the Mizerino pyramid: They will cover the man's smallest pyramid with granite blocks to regain its original appearance. Although Waziri has... [+]
Researchers at the Conservation Centre of the Egyptian Museum of Cairo have found that Eutrema japonicum or Cochlearia wasabi radish is suitable and effective for the cleaning and conservation of papyrus. That is, the wasabi used mainly in the Japanese kitchen, for its... [+]
To analyse the political situation in today ' s world we often do not use the history of the Roman era. I guess it will be because it seems too old and too far away. Moreover, among such different things, we find it difficult to empathize with the history there... [+]
Grecia, a.C. Século IV. Varios pensadores gregos, como Aristóteles ou Heraklides, escribiron sobre os etruscos, recollendo unha opinión negativa sobre o pobo que vivía no centro e norte da península italiana. As mulleres etrurianas foron especialmente criticadas e o... [+]