Hellenes



Herodotus defines Hellenism as "our relationship, common language, the joint altars and sacrifices and the common customs, which it would not be well for the Athenians to betray.” But in the fourth century, Isocrates writes in particular about Athenian exceptionalism within this Hellenic community: “(Athens) has made it seem that the name ‘Hellenes’ is no longer one of common descent but of thought, and that those are called ‘Hellenes’ who share our education rather than our common nature.” Because the Athenians are autochthonous, and not Hellenic in origin, the definition of Hellenic changes into one which embraces the cultural practices of the “unmixed” superior. In Thucydides’ writings, he acknowledges a dichotomy between the barbarians and Hellenes: “Homer, in fact, does not mention barbarians because...the Hellenes had not yet been brought under a single name in opposition to the barbarians.” In this arrangement, the Hellenes are also defined by their differences to a barbaric people. Isocrates praises the city of Athens in particular, and he associates the Hellenes with people “more for taking in our culture than sharing our blood”

Josephus records that Jews born in Judea sought to adopt Greek behaviors and social practices, which included changing their names and their own political constitution (from kingship to a democratic system). Gymnasiums and other public buildings were viewed as reflections of Hellenization. Physically marked characteristics were also related to Hellenization; Jews hid their circumcision in the gymnasium so that they might be considered Greeks.

Panhellenism
Herodotus referred to an Athenian argument against joining the Persians in war against the other Greeks. Temples and statuary of the gods are important physical aspects of Panhellenism, as well as a shared kinship and language. Herodotus also explored the definition of Greek identity in the context of the Olympic games. Alexander of the Macedonians was not allowed to compete in the games initially, but the decision was overturned when he revealed his Argive ancestry. Euripides explored the social obligations implied among the Greek aristocracy. Looking beyond Odysseys’ argument that he defended Hellas from the Phrygians, the hero also argued that shipwrecked suppliants were protected by Greek life.

Migration
Thucydides says that Greece was made up of disparate peoples who were forced to migrate at several different times, save perhaps the Athenians, before permanently settling their well-known areas

Connections to Egyptian Practice
Curiously, Herodotus states that the Greeks took the names of the original twelve gods from the Egyptians, and that ritual space and votive statuary to divinities originated with the Egyptians. Egyptian priests were also quite surprised that Greek agriculture was supported entirely by rainwater, rather than rivers, suggesting that if Zeus were angered, the crops of the Hellenes would suffer from drought (Herodotus, Histories 2.13-2.18 = RECW 7.1 pp. 210-214). Plato states that the Egyptians also considered the Hellenes to be a much younger people, because their mythology only recalled one major flood narrative (Plato, Timaeus 21e-24d = RECW 7.2 pp. 120-124).