Let's learn the basic places and climate before learning history.
Let's check the location of Greece
It is easy to understand because the same country name remains even in modern times, but check it on the map.
Greece is located beyond the Balkan Peninsula (striped part in the map above) in Europe. Light pink is the current Republic of Greece.
In the case of ancient Greece, it can be considered that it is almost the same as the present Greek, but the development of ancient Greece is police . I think it should be noted that the main development was the city-state unit called.
There are also Greek colonial cities on the Anatolian Peninsula and the African Continent, and when the Greek world is said to include not only the present Greek but also such colonial cities. The formation of a unified nation is a little delayed compared to other regions, so it may be a little different from the "country" you have learned so far.
Sometimes you create an independent city-state, sometimes you create a city-state for trading purposes was. The range of activities of the Greeks is very wide, partly because of the widespread trade, and it seems that they have traveled not only to the Greek coast but also to the Italian peninsula on the Mediterranean coast, the Iberian peninsula with Spain, the Black Sea coast, and the North African coast. is.
Let's take a look at the Greek climate
Land
It is made up of many islands. In addition, 80% of the current Greek territory is made up of mountains . It is said that there are no large plains or rivers.
Furthermore, the northern part of Greece is rich soil (soil called Chernosel similar to the fertile crescent zone spreads), but the southern soil is said to be thin limestone "terra rossa (red soil)".
* Soil is created by the action of living things on materials such as rocks that are the source of soil and the corrosion of corpses. Many factors such as the type of original rock, the type of organisms that act on the soil, and the climate are combined to create the characteristics of the soil. Also, the smaller the rock grains that are the material of the soil, the more clayey it seems.
Those who have wondered "Why is it a thin land?" Even though I introduced a map that the Greek soil was ranked B in the article I wrote earlier! Let me make an excuse! !! If you don't mind, go through ...
The main soil in Japan, Andosols, is
Despite being evaluated in this way, it is evaluated as rank C in the evaluation from A to G. Although the Greek soil is rank B, which is the second from the top, it seems that there is a clear difference from rank A Chernosel.
Since we have derailed from history, we will finish the soil once, but if you look at the distribution of this soil, the places where nomads are located are categorized as rank G. It may be worth remembering.
Climate
It is a Mediterranean climate in the Köppen climate classification.
In Greece, the summer is sunny and the temperature is high, but the humidity is low and the climate is crisp and comfortable, with constant rain in the winter.
Crop
Limited crops can be produced from dry climates and lean soils in the summer. olive And grape Fruits such as citrus It is cultivation of.
Today's Greece ... It may be easier to imagine Mediterranean cuisine including Italy and Spain, but it was caught as an agricultural product in addition to octopus, squid, shellfish, fish, fish eggs, etc. caught in the Mediterranean Sea. Cooking using olive oil processed from olives There are many, right?
wine There are quite a few images of this in the Mediterranean. By the way, since tomatoes are native to Peru in South America, they have been eaten since the 18th century, so they have not been eaten in ancient times (it seems that vinegar was used before tomatoes). In the case of Greece, yogurt is influenced by Turkey. There are also many dishes that use.
Actually olive Also grape Has been eaten for a long time, and livestock for making yogurt Was also done in Greece.
As you can see from the map and soil ranking, Macedonia had rivers pouring into the Aegean Sea and rich soil. Not as mountainous as southern Greece.
That's why, before the rise of civilization in Greece, the area around Macedonia in the north of Greece was an advanced area by the time early agriculture began in the Stone Age (until about 3200 years ago).
However, the amount of grain caught in Macedonia is not comparable to Mesopotamia, which has large rivers and large plains. So the ancient Greeks decided to change policy. From northern to southern Greece, olive oil and wine were used as trade items.