Hellenism

[ hel-uh-niz-uhm ]

noun

1. ancient Greek culture or ideals.
2. the imitation or adoption of ancient Greek language, thought, customs, art, etc.:

   the Hellenism of Alexandrian Jews.

3. the characteristics of Greek culture, especially after the time of Alexander the Great; civilization of the Hellenistic period.

Hellenism

/ ˈhɛlɪˌnɪzəm /

noun

1. the principles, ideals, and pursuits associated with classical Greek civilization
2. the spirit or national character of the Greeks
3. conformity to, imitation of, or devotion to the culture of ancient Greece
4. the cosmopolitan civilization of the Hellenistic world

Word History and Origins

Origin of Hellenism¹

First recorded in 1600–10, Hellenism is from the Greek word Hellēnismós an imitation of or similarity to the Greeks. See Hellene, -ism

Example Sentences

He struggles with a physical disability and he goes to great lengths to paper over the shortcomings of a similarly disabled Ph.D. student named Charles Walker, whose subject is Shelley’s Hellenism.

From The New Yorker

Conflicts between traditional Jews and those influenced by Hellenism led to tensions, and Jewish rebels took up arms in 167 B.C.

From National Geographic

Thanks to new tools and techniques, the glories of Hellenism could be commodified and commercialized.

From The New Yorker

Today, the Maccabees are extolled for having put a hard stop, after their recapture of Jerusalem in 164 B.C., to Hellenism’s threat to swallow traditional Judaism.

From Washington Post

“The slaves, in modern Hellenism, would be the computers.”

From Time

Related Words

• grandeur