Daily Life of the Ancient Greeks

34 Daily Life of the Ancient Greeks
south. The technical Greek term for each is koinon, which means
literally “the common thing,” perhaps “the commonwealth.” Both
leagues were evolved tribal organizations—that is, they were settled
communities but without any acknowledged center.
The era from the death of Alexander until the Roman conquest
is called the Hellenistic Period. It takes its name from the fact that
Hellenic or Greek culture was now disseminated over a very wide
geographical area and was influencing many other cultures. One
culture that fell under Greek influence in this period was Jewish. In
Alexandria, for instance, where there was a very large Jewish population,
Ptolemy II is said to have authorized a Greek translation of
the Torah (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible), principally no
doubt for the benefit of Jews who could not speak Hebrew. The
translation, the Septuagint, was so named because it was alleged to
have been the work of 70 translators.
In numerous ways the spread of Greek culture affected the daily
lives of peoples living within its orbit throughout the eastern Mediterranean.
It did not, however, obliterate local traditions. On the
contrary, for the most part Greek culture coexisted peacefully with
them, though it did eventually clash with Jewish culture. We should
not, however, assume that it infiltrated the entire land mass ruled
by the Successors. Vibrant pockets of Hellenism existed in urban
settings alongside local cultures, some of which—particularly those
that thrived in rural areas—were hardly influenced by it at all.
THE ROMAN CONQUEST
Rome first came into contact with Greece through Greek settlements
founded in Italy and Sicily. As noted earlier, the concentration
of Greek states was so dense in southern Italy that the entire region
came to be called Megalê Hellas, meaning “Great Greece,” and then
later, when the Romans encountered the Greeks, Magna Graecia.
The communities of Magna Graecia attained considerable material
prosperity and achieved a very high level of cultural achievement.
It was undoubtedly through contact with them that the Romans
first fell under the spell of Hellenism, which was destined to have
such a profound impact upon virtually all aspects of Roman life,
including religion, art, architecture, education, literature, statecraft,
mythology, language, philosophy, and science.
In the 280s b.c.e., the Romans answered an appeal from Thourii
in the Tarentine Gulf in the instep of Italy, under siege from the
neighboring city of Tarentum. In turn, the Tarentines appealed to