Athens Olympic Game Summer 2020

Greek Traditions and Customs

Traditions in Greece and Greek Islands are either of a religious character or coming from paganism. Furthermore, most of the traditions and festivals still followed and celebrated today are religious. That is why so many panygiria are organized in the country, which are actually religious celebrations of saints followed by traditional music and dance in the square of the village.

Many Greeks are very superstitious people and believe a lot in religion as well as in supernatural or paranormal phenomenon. This impresses many visitors who travel in Greece. For example, some people believe it is bad luck to see a black car, it is 7 years bad luck to break a glass or mirror, while others knock their fingers against wood if they have a bad thought.

The 97% of the Greeks are Christians Orthodox. The rest of the population are Muslims, Roman Catholics and Jewish. Greece and Russia are the only countries to have such a big proportion of Christians Orthodox.

 Greek Sports

The ancient Greeks were huge sports fans. Every four years, the Olympic Games were held in the staduim at Olympia. The best athletes in Greece competed in different events that were a part of religious life. The games began with a sacrifice to the god Zeus. Because the games were religious, anyone who was caught cheating during the games was never allowed to compete again because cheating was considered disrespectful to the gods.

Many of the games played in the Olympic Games of ancient Greece are still included in the Olympics of today. Three of these games are boxing, weightlifting ,and the pentathalon. Boxing was much the same in ancient Greece as it is today. Boxers padded their hands in cloth and fought until one of them was knocked out. The pentathalon was made up of five different events: discus throwing, javelin throwing, wrestling, running, and long jumping. All of these events are still included in the Olympics today. One event from the ancient Greek Olympics that is too dangerous to be included in the games today is chariot racing.

Colors-- White, green and blue

 

Greek Ornaments and Decorations