In the archaic period we observe the final process of transformations suffered by the Greek Gentile communities. No longer adopting the collective use of land, a class of landowners began to appear within the genos. For the most part, this aristocratic class was closely linked to the pater, the patriarchal leader present in each of these communities.
This new social class, also known as eupatrids (father's children or high-born) formed a restricted group of landowners who will mobilize in search of the maintenance of their possessions. The genos began to gather in phratries and tribes controlled by the domination of the new Greek aristocracy. At that time, in addition to the political hegemony of the Eupatrids, we noticed that the increase in population caused a major problem with regard to access to productive land.
The populations excluded from the land appropriation process were forced to seek other regions where it was possible to seek better living conditions. The migration of these Greek populations to regions marked the so-called Second Greek Diaspora. Occurred in 750 BC C., this diaspora expanded the territories of the Greek world and created an important network of trade in agricultural products between the Greek communities.
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The consolidation of political power in the hands of the aristocracy together with the expansion of economic activities gave conditions for the emergence of a new space of socio-political representation in Greece: the city State. The city-states consisted of urban centers where important political decisions and the transit of goods took place.
With its consolidation, we have the emergence of different city-states composed of social, political and cultural practices that are distinct from each other. In such a way, what we observe within the Greek world will be a decentralized political configuration. Organizational differences in the Greek world will be noted with great prominence when we study, for example, the differences between the city-states of Sparta and Athens.
By Rainer Sousa
Graduated in History
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
SOUSA, Rainer Gonçalves. "Archaic Period"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/historiag/grecia-arcaico.htm. Accessed on June 27, 2021.
