THE HELLENISTIC PERIOD

The term Hellenistic was first used by J.G. Droysen (Geschichte des Hellenismus) in 1836 AD from the Acts of the Apostols 6,1 where the term Hellenistai describes Jews which lived in Greek world, accepted Greek culture and accepted Greek language. Although Droysen assumed that the term describes Greek people which accepted oriental culture, the term Hellenistic was widely accepted for spreading of the Greek culture over non-Greek people and countries which were conqured by Alexander the Great (356-323 BC).

The historians have no unique view over the beginning of the Hellenistic period. H. Bengston claims that the Hellenistic period began around 360 BC when the Greek city-states started to decline and Philip II of Macedon emerged, while some put its beginning in year 338 BC when Philip II defeated Athens and Thebes in the Battle of Chaeronea or in year 336 BC (H.-J. Gehrke) when Alexander the Great became King of Macedon. The most of modern historians see the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC as the beginning of the Hellenistic period. Year 30 Bc is widely accepted as the end of Hellenistic period when the Ptolemaic Egypt became the Roman province although Hellenism in the cultural sense continued in Eastern part of the Roman Empire until the spread of Christianity in 4th century.

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