Ancient Rome v. Ancient Greece (July 24, 2024)(Grade 5, Language Arts)

 

Ancient Rome and Ancient Greece are arguably two of the most influential civilizations in the world. They have both influenced the Western world, and they both had similar pagan religions. In addition, they both had written language, advanced militaries, and beautiful architecture that inspired the White House in Washington, D.C. Plus, words from both Latin and Greek have influenced English. Latin and Greek are also Indo-European languages. However, they also have profound differences. Greeks spoke a Hellenic language; Romans spoke an Italic language. The Greek civilization was also older than the Roman’s and became prominent in history before the Roman Empire was formed. This led to some Greek words influencing Latin. Adding to the differences, the Romans conquered Greece and held on to it for a long time. The Byzantine Empire, though centered around Greece, started as just the eastern half of the Roman Empire due to this. Meanwhile, after the mass conversion to Christianity, a schism happened in the 11th century. The Romans supported Roman Catholicism, while the Greeks practiced Eastern Orthodoxy. These two religions influenced the West and East, respectively. Overall, the Romans and Greeks were very similar in some ways yet very different in others.