Jump to. Sections of this page. Accessibility Help. Email or Phone Password Forgot account? Log In. Forgot account? Not Now. Community See All. About See All.

Accessibility links


BBC News Navigation
A Greek father's constant concern was his daughter's virginity. Athenian homes were designed with separate quarters for the males and females of the household. With the female portion of the dwelling being either on a second floor or at the rear of a house, the father could maintain an excellent watch on his wife and daughter. An Athenian woman's life was one of seclusion. Only during certain religious festivals could women go forth from the household and mix freely in the city. Even at these times, a chaperon was necessary. Even at mealtimes in the household, the women were not allowed to dine with the men. A wife's duty was to maintain the household, and her education was limited to domestic training so that she might "see as little, hear as little, and ask as few questions as possible. Fathers arranged their daughter's marriages when the girls were around the age of fourteen, setting up a dowry for her husband-to-be, who would easily be twice her age. Because of this, love rarely figured into marriage.
Navigation menu
Pederasty in ancient Greece was a socially acknowledged romantic relationship between an adult male the erastes and a younger male the eromenos usually in his teens. Some scholars locate its origin in initiation ritual , particularly rites of passage on Crete , where it was associated with entrance into military life and the religion of Zeus. Scholars have debated the role or extent of pederasty, which is likely to have varied according to local custom and individual inclination. He is aware of his attractiveness, but self-absorbed in his relationship with those who desire him. He will smile sweetly at the admiring lover; he will show appreciation for the other's friendship, advice, and assistance.
Long unkempt, greasy hair, bushy mustaches, unbuttoned silk shirts that show off hairy chests and gold crosses on golden chains; It might not be what Greeks like me want the rest of the world to think we look like but — in the s and 80s — this was how a foreigner would describe someone Greek. The men who popularised the archetypal image of that period were called "kamaki" — a Greek slang word for the kind of man who spends most of his time in tourist areas trying to pick up girls. Kissing a Greek girl back then would amount to asking for her hand in marriage but that wasn't the case for the English and Scandinavian girls visiting Greece in the summer. In the years before the Greek military junta of , Greece's unique offering of sea, sun and sand covered in semi-naked bodies led to a surge in tourism.