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Greece joins UN Security Council members in condemning Israel’s Gaza occupation plan

The Greek Herald
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Greece joins UN Security Council members in condemning Israel’s Gaza occupation plan

Greece has joined four other UN Security Council members in publicly condemning Israel’s plan to expand its military operations and occupy Gaza.

“We condemn the government of Israel’s decision to further expand its military operations in Gaza. This plan risks violating international humanitarian law,” said Slovenia’s UN ambassador Samuel Zbogar, delivering the joint statement on behalf of Slovenia, Britain, France, Denmark and Greece.

The five nations urged Israel to “urgently reverse this decision and not to implement it,” warning that the move would endanger civilians, threaten the remaining hostages, and breach international law.

Zbogar described Gaza’s worsening conditions: “Children are dying from starvation. Hunger is so severe that desperate civilians are taking the risk of getting killed at aid distribution sites in order to feed their families.”

Calling the situation a “manmade crisis,” the countries demanded Israel lift restrictions on aid, including “unreasonable visa and registration requirements” for international NGOs.

They also called for an immediate ceasefire, the release of hostages, and progress toward a two-state solution.

Greek Air Force delivers humanitarian aid to Gaza

The Greek Herald
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Greek Air Force delivers humanitarian aid to Gaza

Two Hellenic Air Force transport aircraft delivered over eight tonnes of humanitarian aid to Gaza on Saturday, August 9, to help alleviate the escalating hunger crisis.

The C-130 and C-27 aircraft departed Friday from Elefsina’s 112th Combat Wing, first flying to Amman’s Queen Alia International Airport in Jordan with personnel from the Air Supply Battalion (TENEF).

After official clearance, aid packages, primarily food, were dropped across designated areas in Gaza before the planes returned to base.

The mission, coordinated with Jordanian and Israeli authorities, was planned last week following a decision taken at the end of last month and preceded by talks between Athens and Jerusalem.

Hours before the operation, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis spoke with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, reaffirming Greece’s support for a two-state solution and the Palestinian Authority as the legitimate representative of the Palestinian people.

Mitsotakis said the EU–Middle East–coordinated mission aimed to meet basic needs in Gaza, adding: “Greece will continue to take initiatives for the immediate cessation of hostilities, the release of hostages and the unhindered flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza. It is the duty of all of us to immediately stop the human suffering.”

Source: Ekathimerini.

Step into the world of mental health with Georgia Cassimatis’ latest book

Evelyn Karatzas
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Step into the world of mental health with Georgia Cassimatis’ latest book

Have you ever found yourself consumed by the world around you and found a fascination in every detail about the people in it and the way they function?

Greek Australian author and journalist of over 25 years, Georgia Cassimatis has released a new book all about exploring the world of mental health.

The Psychiatrist’s Waiting Room: Behind The Secretary’s Door is the second addition to her book collection and focuses on a series of short stories that explore themes of mental health, self-discovery and conflict.

“I’ve grown up in the world of mental health and worked as a secretary on and off for my dad [who is a psychiatrist] for many years, especially while I was in university,” Georgia told The Greek Herald.

“After being in that space for so long, I discovered that there is a world where a relationship forms between the patient and the secretary before they go into the door and see the psychiatrist, and the secretary can become like a therapist.

“This was written as an insight into people’s lives, and I made it into a novella, which is like a short form novel.”

What is the book about?

The book is all about raising awareness on mental health through the lens of various characters, their experiences, and emotional struggles.

“It’s based on a secretary who starts working for the first time for a psychiatrist, and she’s on the coalface of mental health,” Georgia said.

“The story is about her relationship with 30 patients over a 30-month period, and it’s an insight into all the various illnesses of different characters, without really mentioning what the illnesses are.”

Georgia added that the book goes into themes of PTSD, trauma, alcoholism, sobriety, ADHD, Asperger’s, autism, addiction, bipolar disorder and erotomania.

“It involves experiences like people having nervous breakdowns through maybe losing a job, and having nervous breakdowns through breakups in relationships and marriages etc.,” she explained.

“Each character gives insight into all of those various cross sections of trauma, mental health and mental illnesses.”

Shaped by personal experience

Georgia revealed that her book was originally going to be an academic journal for university students, however after having lots of fun creating the characters and writing about their personalities and mental illnesses, she decided to create a fictional book based on her “lived experience.”

“I sort of just took bits and pieces from things I had seen, lived through and heard from more than 40 years of growing up in the world of mental health, and I developed a character out of it,” she said.

“I wanted to shed some light on what people really go through once they enter the waiting room of a psychiatrist and it’s based on all that lived experience of having seen hundreds of people go through the door.”

‘The response has been nice’

The Psychiatrist’s Waiting Room: Behind The Secretary’s Door was released in August 2024. Georgia said it’s an inclusive book aimed towards men and women aged 18 to 80.

The Greek Australian author revealed the book has received plenty of positive feedback by people of all ages and backgrounds.

“The response has been really nice,” Georgia said.

“The people that have read it, have been really appreciative that it’s from someone who’s actually worked in mental health, and not an author who may have done research, but has never worked in it and could be making it up.”

Georgia revealed that putting together this book was something she “always wanted to do.”

“I’ve always had it in my mind to write about people and what they go through,” she said.

“I find mental health is, like, my journey—it’s about being connected to and inspired by the deeper world around us. It’s something I’ve always wanted to explore, and I’ve done it now, and it’s out there.”

Georgia said although her book is a one-off, her ultimate goal is to see the ABC, SBS, or Netflix create a TV series adaptation of it in the future.

GOCNSW Welfare Service to put a spotlight on cyber security awareness

The Greek Herald
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GOCNSW Welfare Service to put a spotlight on cyber security awareness

The Greek Orthodox Community of NSW’s (GOCNSW) Welfare Service has organised three Cyber Security Awareness education and training workshops to be delivered in the coming months, teaching vital digital safety information for our community’s elderly.

The workshops will be held at the GOCNSW’s premises in Lakemba, delivering important cyber security information of particular interest to older citizens.

The first workshop will be held on 20 August and will serve as a purely educational session, with two subsequent workshops on 17 September and 1 October to give attendees hands-on training using digital devices.

The project is fully funded by the Department of Home Affairs as part of the Australian Cyber Security Strategy program 2023-2030.

The coming three workshops are part of five in total that will be rolled out by the GOCNSW Welfare Service during the period of 2025-2027.

The project aims to provide cyber security literacy to vulnerable Australians, build on national resilience and expand on the national cyber security awareness campaign.

The workshops are considered of great benefit to people over 65 years old, who are believed to gain a great deal of important information through this initiative.

The workshops are based on materials developed under the existing “Act Now, Stay Secure” government campaign, with the events to cover numerous aspects of Cyber Security Safety and Scams.

Guest Presenters:  

  • Aziza Rifai, Multicultural Service Officer, Services Australia
  • Dr. Rahat Masood, Senior Lecturer School of Computer Science and Engineering (CSE)at UNSW
  • Sam Dasakis, Kix 4 IT Solutions
  • Constable Cleo Tsiotsias, Campsie Police Area Command

The workshops are all free events with lunch and morning refreshment to be provided for all attendees.

Cyber Security Awareness Workshops

Workshop 1

  • Date:    Wednesday 20th August 2025
  • Time:   11.30am – 2.00pm
  • Place:  Greek Community Club, 206-210 Lakemba St, Lakemba

Workshop 2

  • Date:    Wednesday 17th September 2025
  • Time:   11.30am – 1.30pm
  • Place:  Greek Community Club, 206-210 Lakemba St, Lakemba

Workshop 3

  • Date:    Wednesday 1st October 2025
  • Time:   11.30am – 1.30pm
  • Place:  Greek Community Club, 206-210 Lakemba St, Lakemba

For more information or to register your interest, please contact the GOC Welfare Service at (02) 9740 6022

Marriage of a Greek woman abroad: What to watch out for

The Greek Herald
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Marriage of a Greek woman abroad: What to watch out for

By Anastasia Miliou, Attorney at the Supreme Courts

Greek women who live and work abroad choose to build their personal and family life there. Many marriages of Greek women are conducted abroad and must then be registered with the Greek Special Registry Office and the municipal register to which each woman belongs.

It is during this registration process that numerous problems arise, which are not dealt with immediately but later on, causing obstacles and confusion.

Let’s take things from the beginning. If a Greek woman decides to marry a foreigner and the marriage takes place abroad, she may declare on the foreign marriage certificate that she wishes to take her husband’s surname, something that is common abroad. That is, what was formerly the case in Greece still applies in nearly all European countries, so that after the marriage the entire family—spouses and children—carry the same surname. If the Greek woman also obtains a second nationality after the marriage, she practically acquires a new passport with her husband’s surname. If, subsequently, she has children who are born abroad, then on their birth certificates, the surname of the Greek mother will be that of her husband.

At some point, however, the time comes when the Greek wife decides to register the marriage and the births of her children in Greece. There are cases where registrations are done simultaneously and others where the marriage has already been registered with the Special Registry Office and the municipal register, and an attempt is then made to register the children’s births.

It is then that it becomes apparent there is a problem with the surname of the Greek wife. Regardless of whether the marriage was performed abroad and the law of the husband’s nationality and the couple’s country of residence applied, in Greece the registration of the marriage follows Greek law. This stipulates that the Greek woman either retains her surname after marriage or, upon declaration, ADDS the husband’s surname to her own. The change of surname and exclusive adoption of the husband’s surname was abolished in the early 1980s.

Therefore, in the Greek marriage certificate that will be registered with the Special Registry Office, the Greek woman will retain her paternal surname and this will also be used to open her new family record in the municipality where she is registered.

When she then submits the birth certificate of her child, the Special Registry Office will not proceed with the registration because the mother’s details on the child’s birth certificate and the marriage certificate will not match. That is, the mother of the child on the birth certificate will bear a different surname to that of the Greek woman who married the child’s father.

So, what should Greek women who marry abroad do?

One option is to retain their Greek paternal surname after marriage, even abroad, and to be known everywhere by it.

The second is to explicitly declare on the foreign marriage certificate that, after marriage, they wish to add their husband’s surname to their own. Care must be taken here because, in Greek documents, the husband’s surname will follow the paternal surname. Therefore, the same order must be used on the foreign marriage certificate; otherwise, there will again be no identity match, which the Registry Office requires in order to register the children’s births.

The third option, for wives who truly wish to take their husband’s surname, is to ensure they declare this wish not only on the foreign marriage certificate but also on the Greek certificate at the Greek Consulate. This declaration must be made even if the surname does not change.

Consulates are often reluctant to record this declaration, but they are, in fact, obliged to register such a note. Greek women should insist on this point.

Next, an application must be made to a Greek court to recognise the validity of the foreign law which grants the Greek woman the right to adopt her husband’s surname. After the decision is issued, the Greek woman will be able to register her marriage with the Special Registry Office and adopt her husband’s surname, which will also be changed on her birth certificate and family register. This means that both her Greek ID and Greek passport will fully match her foreign certificates.

Anastasia C. Miliou is an Attorney at Law at the Supreme Courts with experience in international law and a large clientele in both Greece and abroad. Her telephone number is 6945028153. If you would like questions answered as part of her articles in English online, you can e-mail her at natmil@otenet.gr or visit www.legalaction.gr

Athena Competition Greek winners show olive oil diversity

The Greek Herald
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Athena Competition Greek winners show olive oil diversity

By Lisa Radinovsky from Greek Liquid Gold.

At the 10th anniversary edition of the ATHENA International Olive Oil Competition in Chania, Crete, Greece in May, 175 Greek olive oils earned awards. This year, a record-breaking 640 olive oil samples from 25 countries on four continents were evaluated by 30 judges from 14 countries. Those judges honored Laconiko as the competition’s Best Greek Olive Oil.

Laconiko Extra Virgin Olive Oil was also deemed the World’s Best Koroneiki variety olive oil. Koroneiki is the most common type of olive oil in Greece and the third most planted olive tree in the world. Moreover, judges were deeply impressed by Laconiko’s flavored olive oil. They selected Laconiko Citrus Habanero, a very spicy oil flavored with lime and habanero pepper, as the Best Flavored Olive Oil worldwide.

Laconiko co-owner Diamantis Pierrakos says “being the first brand to receive top honors for both our estate olive oil and our flavored oil in this competition is incredibly humbling, and a reflection of the passion in everything we do.” Their awards reflect “the care and attention we give to every step of the process, from the grove to the harvest, from extraction to bottling,” with “dedication at every stage.”

Pierrakos considers their prizes a testament to the Laconiko team’s “unwavering commitment to quality, even when faced with the unpredictability of nature. Every season brings its own challenges, but our ability to adapt while staying true to our standards is something we’re very proud of.” In addition to numerous prizes in the past, Laconiko won five special awards and ten medals at the ATHENA competition this year. Laconiko’s multiple awards “help communicate that the quality isn’t just a one-time thing. It’s something we strive to uphold year after year.”

Greek winners discuss consistent efforts, education, and goals

Another company from Laconia, Peloponnese that demonstrates that consistent, painstaking effort can lead to consistent excellence is Olive Poem. Their olive oil was judged the Best Organic Olive Oil of Greece at the ATHENA contest for the fourth time in the last five ears. (Olive Poem also earned the Best of Greece award at the BIOL competition for organic extra virgin olive oils in the “missing” year.) “So every year we maintain the highest level of our product,” reports owner Theodoros Koutsotheodoris. They do so by combining “ideal conditions for the cultivation of the olive tree” in their area with “ultimate control of everything” involved in making their single-estate olive oil, from cultivation of their groves to operation of their own small-scale production, storage, and bottling unit. This is how they create their superb Olive Poem – “a drop of art.”

With olive oil produced in the southern part of Greece, Melissa – Kikizas won the Best of Crete award and a Double Gold medal for Terra Creta Grand Cru Koroneiki Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO), in addition to three more awards for Terra Creta PGI Chania Crete EVOO and Platinum 0.3 EVOO, and for Terra Creta olive oil infused with fresh basil. Emmanouil Karpadakis attributes this success to the Terra Creta team’s “clear goals, deep knowledge about the product and the procedures, well established synergies, and the work done by the Terra Creta Olive Academy,” which educates olive farmers about best practices in cultivation, grove care, and harvesting.

Greek winners emphasise collaboration and close attention to all stages of production

Originating in northeastern Greece, Kyklopas’s Ages Organic extra virgin olive oil from the Makris olive variety was awarded the Best of Thrace prize this year, as well as a Double Gold medal. Valia Kelidou attributes this to a combination of the “excellent natural characteristics” of the olive variety and her vertically integrated family business’s control of “every stage of our olive oil production. This way, we ensure quality by taking the right steps from the grove to bottling” and storage. Their “45 years of experience and advanced equipment guarantee top quality.”

Farther south in Elis, Peloponnese, Eliada created Double Gold medal winning Elixir, a blend of Koroneiki and Olympia EVOOs. Elixir is characterized by “intense fruitiness, a balance between a spicy and bitter taste,” low acidity, and healthy high phenolic content, as Camelia Adam explains. The company entails a collaboration between two Romanian partners passionate about healthy nutrition, and dedicated Greek partners. Eliada is “the most awarded Romanian olive oil brand in international competitions, and our mission is to educate Romanian consumers and to meet their growing expectations.”

Also from Elis, The Master Miller captured a Double Gold Medal for their Mythocia olive oil co-milled with basil, plus three Golds and two Silvers for their organic and conventionally produced extra virgin olive oils. As CEO Konstantinos Papadopoulos reveals, their olive oil “reflects an ecosystem of care: from scientifically monitored cultivation to precision extraction within hours of harvest. The harmony of our terroir in Ancient Olympia and our Master Growers’ dedication makes each drop a symphony of quality and authenticity. With high-polyphenol profiles, co-milled innovations, certified traceability, and sustainability, we are forging new standards. Our team of agronomists, producers, and visionaries collaborates to combine inherited knowledge with modern know-how.”

Greek winners appreciate the Athena competition’s national and international diversity and esteem

For Papadopoulos, “ATHENA is not just a competition. It’s a celebration to show that a new chapter of Greek olive oil is being written — one rooted in respect for nature and driven by innovation. A celebration of quality which fosters international dialogue and highlights the evolving narrative of Greek olive oil on the world’s stage.”

Indeed, the competition is unique in highlighting different olive growing regions in Greece, with a new judging location each year, and events to spotlight each area’s history, tradition, and products. This year in Chania, Crete, a local olive oil exhibition and a roundtable on exporting olive oil offered extra support for the area’s producers. The competition was also one of the events associated with the “Crete European Region of Gastronomy 2026.”

The ATHENA competition’s Greek winners represented a wide range of regions and olive varieties. At the same time, the competition showcased international geographic diversity. In fact, the 25 countries sending olive oil samples from Europe, Asia, America, and Africa included Uzbekistan, Montenegro, and Malaysia for the first time this year.
Kelidou explains that Kyklopas participates in the ATHENA competition “because it has proven its credibility as an international competition over the past ten years.” Laconiko’s Pierrakos adds that “this competition holds deep meaning for us. As Greek producers, it’s an honor to be evaluated among peers in our home country, especially in an event that is so well-respected globally.”

The top Greek winners agree that great care every step of the way, from the olive grove to the bottle, can help earn the international competition awards that can foster consumers’ trust in a brand.

Top Greek Winners at the 2025 Athena International Olive Oil Competition 

Medal – Olive Oil – Company – Olive Variety – Region

Best of Greece and Best Koroneiki variety olive oil worldwide

Double Gold – Laconiko – Laconiko – Koroneiki 100% – Peloponnese, Laconia

Best Greek organic extra virgin olive oil

Double Gold – Olive Poem – Olive Poem – Koroneiki 75%, Mirtolia 25% – Peloponnese, Laconia

Best of their olive variety

Gold – Polykarpos Dimitra – Polykarpos Dimitra – Organic Kolovi 100% – Aegean Islands, Lesbos

Gold – Mavroudis Au Premium – Mavroudis Corfu Family Olive Oil – Lianolia of Corfu 100% – Ionian Islands, Corfu

Gold – Liogēnnito Manaki – Liogēnnito – Organic Manaki 100% – Peloponnese, Argolis

Gold – Pamako Premium Mountain Organic Monovarietal Tsounati – Androulakis Eftychios Olive Oil Bottling Pamako – Organic Tsounati 100% – Crete, Chania

Bronze – Maleas Estate Organic Monovarietal Megaritiki – Maleas Estate – Megaritiki 100% – Macedonia, Drama

Silver – Thallon – Thallon – Organic Chondrolia of Chalkidiki 100% – Macedonia, Chalkidiki

Best Greek olive oil per region

Double Gold – Ages Organic – Kyklopas Elaiotriveio Argyri Kelidi – Makris 100% – Thrace, Evros

Gold – Argilos V Fruity – Agriston – Petroelia 50%, Lefkoelia of Serres 50% – Macedonia, Kavala

Silver – Poiema Organic Land of Kassopia – Poiema Organic Olive Oil – Lianolia of Preveza 100% – Epirus, Preveza

Gold – Mavroudis Au Premium – Mavroudis Corfu Family Olive Oil – Lianolia of Corfu 100% – Ionian Islands, Corfu

Bronze – Patistis Organic – Patistis Olive Groves – Amfissis 100% – Thessaly, Magnesia

Gold – Tombazis Olive Grove – Tombazis Olive Grove – Organic Koroneiki 100% – Central Greece, Piraeus Islands

Double Gold – Laconiko – Laconiko – Koroneiki 100% – Peloponnese, Laconia

Gold – Olvia Organic – Tzortzis Michael – Adramitini 80%, Kolovi 20% – Aegean Islands, Lesbos

Double Gold – Terra Creta Grand Cru – Melissa – Kikizas SA – Koroneiki 100% – Crete, Chania

Best flavoured or infused olive oil worldwide

Double Gold – Laconiko Citrus Habanero (flavored) – Laconiko – Koroneiki 100% – Peloponnese, Laconia

Additional Double Gold medal winners from Greece

Double Gold – Eliada Elixir – Eliada – Koroneiki 80%, Olympia 20% – Peloponnese, Elis

Double Gold – Liokareas Cold Fused Leek (flavored) – Liokareas – Koroneiki 100% – Peloponnese, Messenia

Double Gold – Mythocia Basil (flavored) – The Master Miller – Koroneiki 100% – Peloponnese, Elis

Double Gold – Petalas – Petalas – Koroneiki 100% – Crete, Rethymno

*Originally published on Greek Liquid Gold: Authentic Extra Virgin Olive Oil (greekliquidgold.com). See that site for recipes with olive oil, photos from Greece, agrotourism and food tourism suggestions, and olive oil news and information.

Greece’s island communities face population crisis

The Greek Herald
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Greece’s island communities face population crisis

The demographic decline in Greece is hitting its islands hard, with Lemnos and Agios Efstratios showing alarming signs of aging populations, falling birth rates, and shrinking services, tovima.com, has reported.

On Lemnos, home to about 16,000 people, only 100 births are registered annually — with just 20 occurring at the local hospital. Deaths are double the number of births. “We are a society that is aging without being renewed. For us here on the islands, this means something even more serious: the sustainability of our local society is at risk,” said Eleni Farmaki, pediatrician and president of the Lemnos Medical Association.

The island, once dotted with kindergartens and schools in nearly every village, now runs only 10 of each. Healthcare also suffers, with staff shortages and only about 50 of 70 doctors actively practicing.

Agios Efstratios, with just 180 residents, faces even more severe challenges. Most are over 60, and there are only 16 children. The kindergarten has been closed for three years, and only two children attend primary school. The island’s only doctors — two young rural physicians — will soon leave. Despite having telemedicine equipment, the system remains inactive due to lack of institutional support.

Experts stress the importance of education on reproductive health. One concern is the limited awareness among women about fertility decline after age 35. AMH testing is being promoted to help women understand their reproductive potential. A new fertility hotline is launching, and 50 free AMH tests will be offered to women on Lemnos. In Greece, infertility affects around 18% of couples trying to conceive.

Source: tovima.com

Historic Syntagma Square fountain undergoes first-ever scientific restoration

The Greek Herald
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Historic Syntagma Square fountain undergoes first-ever scientific restoration

The iconic fountain at Athens’ Syntagma Square has been out of service for weeks due to ongoing maintenance and restoration by the Municipality of Athens, tovima.com, has reported.

Described as “a timeless point of reference for Athens’ political and social life,” Syntagma Square-once called “Palace Square”-was renamed after the 1843 revolution, when King Otto granted Greece its first constitution.

Installed in the late 19th century, the fountain bears the inscription “Municipality of Athens 1872” and was designed by famed German architect Ernst Ziller. Though simplified over time, it remains a historic part of the city’s landscape.

The restoration is part of a broader municipal initiative: the “Preservation of Outdoor Sculptures of the Municipality of Athens.” Given the fountain’s heritage status, the Municipality says the work is being carried out with “surgical precision.”

The project goes beyond basic cleaning. It involves structural repairs, waterproofing, and restoration of the two large marble basins—both inside and out. Made of Pentelic marble, each component has aged differently, requiring individualized treatment.

Restorers are meticulously removing layers of grime and decay by hand using surgical scalpels. The team includes five certified experts: conservators of antiquities and artworks, plus a marble technician.

This marks the first scientifically documented conservation of the fountain in its history. The city aims to complete the restoration and reopen the fountain by the end of August.

Source: tovima.com

Magna Graecia – Part 5: Exiled Spartans and Forgotten Greek Cities

The Greek Herald
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Magna Graecia – Part 5: Exiled Spartans and Forgotten Greek Cities

By Dr Themistocles Kritikakos (Historian)

In 706 BCE, Spartans arrived in what is now Puglia. They were not conquerors but exiles, cast out from their homeland. The Spartans established a settlement on the southern coast of Italy that would grow into the influential city of Taras (modern-day Taranto), named after the son of Poseidon.

The exiled founders, known as the Partheniae (“sons of virgins”), were the offspring of emergency unions between Spartan women and non-citizens (men considered to be of lower status) during the brutal Messenian Wars. Some sources suggest these unions were formed to maintain the population while the men were away at war. When these unions were later declared invalid, their children faced a choice: exile or rebellion. They chose exile, transforming their rejection into one of Magna Graecia’s success stories.

Taras: The rise of a Spartan city

Mythological accounts tell of oracle prophecies influencing Phalanthus, the divine hero, to colonise Taras. Tucked into the heel of Italy’s boot, Puglia, particularly around modern Taranto, stands as a testament to ancient Greek colonisation. While often overshadowed by the celebrated Greek sites of Campania, Calabria, and Sicily, this region nurtured flourishing Hellenic settlements that merged with local cultures.

Taras evolved into a maritime and commercial powerhouse, its position strengthened by the resolve of its Spartan founders. Situated between two natural harbours on the Gulf of Taranto, the city held a strategic position along important maritime routes connecting Greece, Sicily, and the wider Mediterranean. While Taras initially reflected Sparta’s military discipline and aristocratic traditions, interaction with local Italic tribes (the Messapii, Peucetians, and Daunians) created cultural fusion that merged Greek religious practices and artistic styles. By 500 BCE, the city had grown into one of Magna Graecia’s most significant and populous centres.

Map including Taras (Tarentum) and Metapontum

The city produced Archytas, a 4th-century BCE philosopher, mathematician, Pythagorean statesman, and military commander (strategos), whose pioneering contributions to mathematics and mechanics elevated Taras’ standing throughout Magna Graecia. According to tradition, Archytas saved Plato’s life by dispatching a ship to rescue him from the court of Dionysius II of Syracuse.

Archytas

Artefacts in Taranto’s museum (pottery, jewellery, and terracotta figurines) reveal its vibrant material culture. Among the most prominent discoveries is the Tomb of the Athlete, where an Olympic victor was buried with his prize amphora and sporting equipment, demonstrating the city’s athletic prestige.

Though Rome eventually conquered Taras in 272 BCE following the defeat of Pyrrhus of Epirus, the city’s importance endured. During the Second Punic War (218-201 BCE), Taras again asserted its independence by allying with Hannibal, though this ultimately sealed its fate under Roman rule.

In the Salento peninsula, also known as Grecìa Salentina (Salentine Greece), at Puglia’s southern tip, this cultural persistence is tangible in the Griko dialect, still spoken in a handful of villages. This surviving dialect represents a living link to the region’s Greek heritage, although scholars debate whether its roots stem directly from the ancient Greek colonies of Magna Graecia or primarily from later Byzantine Greek influence. Griko demonstrates that the legacy of Magna Graecia is reflected not only in archaeological sites but also in living cultural practices. Today, as Taranto serves as Italy’s primary naval base, the importance of this ancient harbour continues, bridging its Greek past with its modern maritime role.

The Golden Grain: Metapontum’s story

Moving inland from Puglia’s coast, the neighbouring region of Basilicata also played an important role in the story of Magna Graecia. Founded by Achaean colonists around 720–700 BCE, the ancient city of Metapontum developed as an agricultural and trading centre, with its fertile plains producing the grain that sustained the city’s wealth. This economic success was symbolised by the ear of barley adorning its coins. Metapontum gained lasting fame through its association with Pythagoras, who spent his final years in the city around 500 BCE.

Ear of Barley (Metapontum)

Metaponto’s Archaeological Park, featuring the famous Temple of Hera (Tavole Palatine), the theatre, and the agora, offers vivid glimpses into its rich Hellenic past. Although the city declined under Roman rule, its Greek cultural influence endured in the Byzantine monastic communities that later spread across Basilicata’s interior.

Temple of Hera, Metapontum

Across both Puglia and Basilicata, the interaction between Greek settlers and Italic peoples created a distinctive cultural blend. Religious worship, theatrical performance, and funerary art all reveal a creative dialogue between Hellenic and local traditions. Greek motifs (meanders, mythological scenes, and terracotta figurines) merged with Italic forms, leaving behind a rich material and spiritual legacy that archaeologists continue to uncover.

Puglia and Basilicata may receive less attention than Sicily, Calabria, and Campania, but they complete the mosaic of Magna Graecia. Together, these regions reveal a Mediterranean world shaped by exchange, where Greek settlers transformed southern Italy into a network of cities, sanctuaries, trade routes, and ideas. They remind us of Greek civilisation’s broad influence and how even exiles and outcasts could build cities that permanently shaped history, as the Spartans did in Taras.

Next Fortnight: Part 6 of the Magna Graecia series will bring the story to a close with a comprehensive overview, exploring the enduring legacies of Greek civilisation in southern Italy.

Links to the series:

Magna Graecia – Part 1: Hellenism beyond the homeland

Magna Graecia – Part 2: The Greek foundations of a new city

Magna Graecia – Part 3: Hellenism cast in bronze

Magna Graecia – Part 4: From Colony to Colossus: Syracuse and Hellenism in Sicily

*Dr Themistocles Kritikakos is a Greek-Australian historian, philosopher and writer. He holds a PhD in History from the University of Melbourne. His forthcoming book explores intergenerational memories of violence in the late Ottoman Empire, identity, and communal efforts toward genocide recognition, focusing on the Armenian, Greek, and Assyrian communities in Australia.

Cyprus: Historical and political responsibilities of a national tragedy (Part 3)

Anastasios Tamis
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Cyprus: Historical and political responsibilities of a national tragedy (Part 3)

From the viewpoint of the Cypriot diaspora, the ensuing grievances of an illegal invasion and partition of Cyprus by Turkey and the struggle for resolution of reunification had as their ultimate aim the strengthening of intra-community cohesion, the prevention or the softening of ideological differences. Therefore, the prosperity and the noteworthy contribution of the Cypriots of the Diaspora was not a creation out of nothing, but was owed to the great zeal of many years of intensive efforts and sacrifices of Cypriot migrants.

With reference to the organised Cypriot Hellenism and its collective organs in Australia, the struggle for the reunification of the island began in two courses of mobilisation. The first was the path of constant vigilance, with unceasing communication of its leadership with the global international fora, so that the leaderships of the latter would be persistently pressured for a solution to the problem, denouncing Turkish intransigence and guilt for the invasion and occupation.

The other sequence sought dialogue and understanding with their Turkish Cypriot compatriots, not only in Australia but also internationally, so that the issue of reunification of Cyprus would be a common decision of all Cypriots.

For example, Christos Violaris, one of the longest-serving and most consistent Cypriot migrant leaders, addressed numerous letters and reports to British, Australian and global leaders, depicting with a vivid and concrete narration, but without excessive deference, his appeal for justice for Cyprus.

For example, on 28 November 2005, he wrote to British Prime Minister Tony Blair protesting against the “British indifference” to the resolution of the protracted Cypriot crisis. In reply, Sean Norsworthy, attaché of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, reiterated that the United Kingdom maintains and will continue to maintain its “long-standing policy of non-recognition of the so-called ‘Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus’ set up by the recognised leader of the Turkish Cypriot community, Mr Talat” and insisted that “the bi-zonal, bi-communal federation remains the only realistic basis on which a comprehensive settlement can be achieved.” However, the high-ranking British authority did not fail to remind Ch. Violaris that “it was a matter of deep regret that the negotiations for a comprehensive settlement ended in failure in 2004, with the rejection of the Annan Plan by the Greek Cypriots.”

How to increase communication and improve relations with the Turkish Cypriots in Melbourne was also another burning question for the Cypriot leaders of Australia and their administration. For this purpose, they cooperated with the President of the Federation of Cypriot Communities of Australia (FECCA), Panikos Minas, and held several meetings with Turkish Cypriot delegations at the facilities of the Cypriot Community Club of Melbourne and Victoria (CCMV). After several meetings in which the Federation of Turkish Cypriots participated with their counterparts, the Federation of Cypriot Communities of Australia (FECCA), it was agreed to hold their joint Festival on 20 February 2005.

It was during the decade of the 2000s when Cypriots (Turks and Greeks) living in the Diaspora once again showed keen interest in issues concerning their community rapprochement. In a systematic effort to reinvent their mutual intercommunal interests in a reunited Cyprus, they gave the proper thought and action to building an environment of dialogue. Those involved were all practical people who had to deal with the concrete facts of the prevailing situation. They were for the most part original minds who found the opportunity to answer questions that demanded solutions with increasing persistence. Naturally, they faced many problems when they tried to develop a workable and mutually acceptable method of contact.

The cultivation of Greek Cypriot relations and the pursuit of exceptional forms of communication found every form of expression in political, social, athletic, sporting and intellectual life. The concept of rapprochement of the two Cypriot communities entered the agenda of their organisations, beginning systematically especially during the first decade of the 21st century. In countless ways they contributed to the transformation of deeply rooted ideals and concepts of genuine goodwill and mutual trust.

Firstly, there was the role of the Trade Union Movement, with the participation of progressive, radical and perceptive leaders both from the Cypriot communities and from their counterparts in Australia. In late 2001, Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, members of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and the Australian Trade Union Movement undertook the mission to convene a forum in Victoria to discuss the patterns and parameters of a possible rapprochement of the two communities.

A group of determined leaders, including Tümer Mimi, Ali Genc (President, Turkish Cypriot Federation, Victoria), Erdil Nami, Panikos Minas (President, FECCA), Michalis Michail and George Zangalis, reached an agreement to invite from Cyprus Babis Kyritsis, the President of the Cyprus Workers’ Confederation (PEO) and his Turkish Cypriot counterpart, Ali Kule, to an assembly with delegates from the most dynamic industrial and commercial unions of Australia, including those of Ford and General Motors.

Kyritsis, Kule, Minas and Genc, after constructive consultations, found common ground in the most important sectors, including a reunited Cyprus, equality for all and a single citizenship. The Cypriots Kule and Kyritsis then appeared on Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot radio programmes and expressed their cooperation and agreement.

These initiatives based on the trade union movement were strengthened during the following years with the participation of academic researchers, peace activists, trade unionists and intellectuals, encouraging tolerance and transparency. They also included more frequent visits of Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot unionists to Australia, including those of Kostis Toiranidis and Ali Yiaman to Melbourne and Sydney, which left “impeccable impressions on all, even on those who were more suspicious.”

Australia’s role was also of decisive importance. Despite having been elevated to a large extent in its role as a UN peacekeeping force since 1964, its direct involvement first with Senator Jim Short as its permanent envoy on the Cyprus issue and later, additionally, with Alexander Downer with his mission to the UN, Australia pressed indiscriminately for a fair solution through its High Commissioners who served in Cyprus.

Sternness very often characterised their role and the Greek Cypriots of Australia often complained about the imbalance of the share of justice accorded to Turkish grievances in Cyprus. Nevertheless, the correspondence exchanged clearly certifies that in many cases, Greek Cypriot leaders were obliged to lodge a report and to criticise the diplomatic credentials or the decisions made both by Short and by Downer.

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