Gymnasium (ancient Greece): Difference between revisions
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The '''gymnasium''' in [[Ancient Greece]] functioned as a training facility for male competitors in public [[game]]s. It was also a place for socializing and engaging in intellectual pursuits. The name comes from the Ancient Greek term ''[[wikt:γυμνός#Ancient Greek|gymnós]]'' meaning "[[Nudity|naked]]". Athletes competed nude, a practice said to encourage aesthetic appreciation of the male body, and to be a tribute to the gods. Gymnasia and [[palaestra|palestrae]] (wrestling schools) were under the protection and patronage of [[Heracles]], [[Hermes]] and, in Athens, [[Theseus]].<ref>Pausanias (geographer), ''Guide to Greece,'' 4.32.1</ref> | The '''gymnasium''' in [[Ancient Greece]] functioned as a training facility for male competitors in public [[game]]s. It was also a place for socializing and engaging in intellectual pursuits. The name comes from the Ancient Greek term ''[[wikt:γυμνός#Ancient Greek|gymnós]]'' meaning "[[Nudity|naked]]". Athletes competed nude, a practice said to encourage aesthetic appreciation of the male body, and to be a tribute to the gods. Gymnasia and [[palaestra|palestrae]] (wrestling schools) were under the protection and patronage of [[Heracles]], [[Hermes]] and, in Athens, [[Theseus]].<ref>Pausanias (geographer), ''Guide to Greece,'' 4.32.1</ref> The whole education of a Greek boy was divided into four parts: grammar, music, the art of drawing or painting, and gymnastics. <ref> Plato, Theog. p122; Plut. de Audit. 17; Clitoph. p497</ref> <ref>Aristotle (de Republ. VIII.3)</ref> | ||
Many relationships between Greek "boylovers" and their beloveds were either begun, or fostered by, contacts between adult males and [[peri-pubescent]] or [[puberty|pubescent]] youths meeting at the gymnasiums. | Many relationships between Greek "boylovers" and their beloveds were either begun, or fostered by, contacts between adult males and [[peri-pubescent]] or [[puberty|pubescent]] youths meeting at the gymnasiums. | ||
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==References== | ==References== | ||
{{reflist}} | {{reflist}} | ||
==See also== | |||
*[[Palaestra]] | |||
==External links== | |||
*[http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/secondary/SMIGRA*/Gymnasium.html Gymnasium] | |||
[[Category:Ancient Greece]] | [[Category:Ancient Greece]] | ||
Revision as of 10:26, 12 May 2015
The gymnasium in Ancient Greece functioned as a training facility for male competitors in public games. It was also a place for socializing and engaging in intellectual pursuits. The name comes from the Ancient Greek term gymnós meaning "naked". Athletes competed nude, a practice said to encourage aesthetic appreciation of the male body, and to be a tribute to the gods. Gymnasia and palestrae (wrestling schools) were under the protection and patronage of Heracles, Hermes and, in Athens, Theseus.[1] The whole education of a Greek boy was divided into four parts: grammar, music, the art of drawing or painting, and gymnastics. [2] [3]
Many relationships between Greek "boylovers" and their beloveds were either begun, or fostered by, contacts between adult males and peri-pubescent or pubescent youths meeting at the gymnasiums.
