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Epic Poetry Tradition

Type Object Region Mediterranean Time c. -800

Oral-written tradition of long narrative poems on heroes, gods, and peoples, reaching a major stage around 800 BCE in the Mediterranean and Near East.

Timeline

  1. c. -900–-800Mainland Greece and Aegean islands · Aegean worldRhapsodes (aoidos) sang hexameter epics of the Trojan War and heroes' returns at banquets and religious festivals; oral memory and fixed formulae enabled long narratives to be transmitted across generations.
  2. c. -750–-600Athens · AtticaAfter the spread of the Greek alphabet, the epics were written down and recited at pan-Hellenic festivals (such as the Panathenaea), becoming a shared cultural canon of the Greeks and profoundly influencing tragedy and historiography.

Sources