Pan-Hellenic Games of Ancient Greece –
Speaker: Dr. Evaggelos Vallianatos
The Olympic games were the oldest pan-Hellenic athletic and religious celebration among the Greeks. Similar festivals took place in Delphi (Pythian games), the Isthmus of Corinth (Isthmian games), Nemea in Argolis, Peloponnesos (Nemean games), Athens (Panathenaian games) and Dodona, Epirus. However, the festivities in Olympia, Peloponnesos, dominated Greece for centuries. The Olympics, taking place every four years, was a reliable national calendar. Fundamentally, these games honored the gods. Zeus in Olympia, Nemea and Dodona; Poseidon in Isthmus, Apollo in Delphi and Athena in Athens. In addition, these pan-Hellenic festivals aimed to bring the Greeks together: get to know each other and celebrate their common identity and culture. Poets read from Homer’s epics and their own poetry. Politicians made speeches. The games also had a restraining influence on war among the Greeks. During the games all hostile actions and war ceased. Dr. Vallianatos earned a BA in zoology, MA in Greek medieval history from the University of Illinois, and a PhD from the University of Wisconsin.
Introduction: Anne Sonner
Fellowship: Milt Wilson
Greeters: Milt Wilson, Peter Boniface