The idiom ‘it’s Greek to me’ hints at the general confusion or misunderstanding surrounding the complexities of Greek culture, but in fact many elements of modern Western society— our calendar, our government, and even our names— are rooted in Greek and Roman worlds.
“Classics really is an excellent window onto the basis for Western Society— why we speak the language we do, why we ask the questions of life we do, what we assume about interpersonal relationships and about our connection to our government, society, and our culture,” said Noel Lenski, associate professor and chair of the University of Colorado Boulder Classics Department.
Designed to expose the middle and high school students to the ongoing importance of ancient language and culture in our contemporary civilization, Colorado Classics Day was hosted by the Classics Department on Sept. 22. Inaugurated in 2011, Classics Day 2012 grew in scope and size. More than 200 people from across the state took part in the interactive event, and the majority of the Classics Department faculty, often with the assistance of graduate students, led workshops throughout the day.
Supported by a CU-Boulder Outreach Award, Classics Day transformed the modern CU-Boulder campus into a scene from ancient days. The event began with Lenski and Alison Orlebeke, Classics instructor, and their introduction of the CU-Boulder faculty and the day’s workshops. Then the participating schools, some in antiquity-inspired costume, introduced their groups with a chant in English or in Latin.
For the first part of the day, participants learned about archaeology, ancient Latin, ancient graffiti, the Greek language, and more. In the afternoon, the pupils broke out of the classroom and onto the mock battlefield through hands-on, controlled activities hosted by the Rocky Mountain Romans reenactment group, which specializes in reenactments of the life of Roman legionaries.
“We like generating enthusiasm for the ancient world and connecting people to a distant past that ultimately is not so different from the present,” Lenski said. “The students learn how sophisticated the ancients were and how many of the ancients’ concerns were the same as those of people today.”
For many participants, Classics Day was an excuse to break from the present and learn about the past.
“People often become too caught up in the present and their present concerns,” Lenski said. “We hope this event showed people how fulfilling life was for the ancients as well and how the problems they faced and the solutions they arrived at were very close to our modern experiences.”