Solomos Solomos is known as Greece's "national poet" because of his significant contribution to Greek literature and national identity. From 1990 until 2001, he was represented on the reverse of the Greek 20 drachma coin.
Born in Athens in 1821, Kostis Palamas wrote poems, songs, and dances that have become part of the Greek tradition. He was also a painter who helped define modern Greek style.
His work focuses on patriotic themes and has been praised for its simplicity and power. His poetry is often cited by scholars as one of the main influences behind the Modern Greek revival that occurred after the creation of the independent nation state in 1828.
Palamas died at age 37 while fighting with other young poets at the battle of Vardar against the Turks. He is considered a martyr by the Greek community worldwide.
Since 1950, Greece has had a national poet who is selected by an official body of writers. The office-holder presents a new poem every year on April 23 (O.S.) or November 17 (N.S.), National Poetry Day.
The current poet is Yiorgos Makris, who has published several books of poems. He was previously appointed in 2009 for three years. Before him, Constantine Cavafy was appointed in 1943 for ten years.
Dionysios Solomos was a Greek poet. The opening stanzas of Dionysios Solomos' poem "Hymn to Freedom," penned in May 1823 on the island of Zakynthos, comprise Greece's National Anthem. One year later, the lyric was published in Mesolonghi and was included in a collection of Greek folk songs by French historian Claude Charles Fauriel. In 1926, it was adopted as the official anthem of Greece.
Solon was an Athenian politician and one of Greece's Seven Wise Men. Solon abolished the aristocratic control of the government, replaced it with a system of affluent control, and instituted a new and more humane legal code. He was also a well-known poet. Born into an extremely wealthy family in 724 B.C., he became one of the leading politicians of his time. His laws, which included some of the first written regulations concerning inheritance, are said to have created a new class of citizens by including many previously excluded groups such as slaves. Solomon also reformed the political system of Athens by introducing oligarchy, i.e., the rule of the few rather than of the rich or noble.
As part of its effort to educate its citizens, Athens sponsored thousands of young men from all classes to study at its public schools and universities. These students were called "hetairoi" (singular: "hetroneus") because they came from rich families or had been granted citizenship for service to the state. In addition to education in philosophy, politics, and law, these boys were trained in military skills and conducted military campaigns with the help of their cities-at times even acting as mercenaries for others. When they returned home, they joined local governments or rose through them to higher offices. Some even became leaders of rebellions or revolutions.
The Greek National Anthem, also known as the Hymn to Liberty or the Hymn to Freedom, is a hymn that instills pride in the Greek people. Dionysios Solomos wrote the lyrics in 1823, and Nikolaos Mantzaros put them to music in 1865. It was adopted the same year as Greece's National Anthem.
Dionysios Solomos (1770-1843) was a Greek poet, philologist, and teacher who played an important role in the development of modern Greek. His poetry is characterized by its simplicity and directness. He is best known for his poems which were set to music by other poets including himself. One of his own songs was used as the basis for the Greek National Anthem.
Nikolaos Mantzaros (1808-1871) was a Greek musician and composer. He was born into a family of musicians and learned to play the violin at an early age. Later on, he became one of the leading composers of his time. In addition to his work on the Greek National Anthem, he composed numerous pieces of music including two symphonies, several operas, chamber music, and piano compositions.
After Mantzaros' death in 1871, his son Georgios Mantzaros continued his work on the anthem. In 1897, Georgios Mantzaros added another verse to the song which had been written by his father.
Hesiod Hesiod, Greek Hesiodos, Latin Hesiodus, (about 700 bc), one of the oldest Greek poets, is generally referred to as the "Father of Greek didactic poetry." The Theogony, which tells the mythology of the gods, and the Works and Days, which describe peasant life, are two of his full epics that have survived. He was probably a native of the region now called Tegea in southern Greece.
He is considered the founder of the major poetic genre of ancient Greece: the dithyramb. This type of song was used in worship to honor the gods. It consisted of a prologue and three parts: an introduction, a pericope, and a conclusion. Hesiod wrote many dithyrambs to praise various deities; these survive only in fragments. A few other poems by him have survived in whole or part: the Astronomy, the Scolias, and the Ehoia Theogony.
His influence on later poets was so great that some scholars believe he should be regarded as the father of literature rather than Homer. Among others, he was a major inspiration for Bacchylides, who lived about five hundred years after Hesiod. Like many other Greek poets, Bacchylides used the epic poem as a means of praising famous people such as soldiers or politicians. He also wrote several dithyrambs.