Editing Magna Graecia (section)

==Culture==
The Greek colonists of Magna Graecia elaborated a civilization,<ref name="dizionario"/> which had peculiar characteristics, due to the distance from the motherland and the influence of the indigenous peoples of southern Italy.<ref name="dizionario"/> From the motherland Greece, art, literature and philosophy decisively influenced the life of the colonies. In Magna Graecia much impetus was given to culture, especially in some cities, such as Taras (now [[Taranto]]).<ref name="ragazzi"/> [[Pythagoras]] moved to Crotone where he founded [[Pythagoreanism|his school in 530 BC]]. Among others, [[Aeschylus]], [[Herodotus]], [[Xenophanes]] and [[Plato]] visited Magna Graecia.

Among the illustrious characters born in Magna Graecia are the philosophers [[Parmenides]] of [[Velia|Elea]], [[Zeno of Elea|Zeno]] of Elea, [[Gorgias]] of Lentini and [[Empedocles]] of Agrigento; the Pythagoreans [[Philolaus]] of Crotone, [[Archytas]] of Taranto, [[Lysis of Taras|Lysis]] of Taranto, [[Echecrates of Phlius|Echecrates]] and [[Timaeus of Locri|Timaeus]] of Locri; the mathematician [[Archimedes]] of Syracuse; the poets [[Theocritus]] of Syracuse, [[Stesichorus]], [[Ibycus]] of Reggio Calabria, [[Nossis]] of Locri, [[Alexis (poet)|Alexis]] of Thuri and [[Leonidas of Tarentum|Leonidas]] of Taranto; the doctors [[Alcmaeon of Croton|Alcmeon]] of Crotone and [[Democedes]] of Crotone; the sculptor from Reggio [[Clearchus of Rhegium|Clearchus]]; the painter [[Zeuxis (painter)|Zeuxis]], the musicologist [[Aristoxenus]] of Taranto and the legislator [[Zaleucus]] of Locri.

===Language===

A remnant of Greek influence can be found in the survival of the Greek language in some villages of the above-mentioned Salento peninsula (the "heel" of Italy). This living dialect of Greek, known locally as [[Griko language|Griko]], is found in the Italian regions of [[Calabria]] and [[Apulia]]. ''Griko'' is considered by linguists to be a descendant of [[Byzantine Greek]], which had been the majority language of Salento through the Middle Ages, combining also some ancient [[Doric Greek|Doric]] and local [[Romance languages|romance]] elements. There is a rich [[oral tradition]] and Griko [[folklore]], limited now but once numerous, to around 30,000 people, most of them having abandoned their language in favour of Italian. Some scholars, such as [[Gerhard Rohlfs]], argue that the origins of Griko may ultimately be traced to the colonies of Magna Graecia.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Rohlfs |first1=Gerhard |year=1967 |title=Greek Remnants in Southern Italy |journal=The Classical Journal |volume=62 |issue=4 |pages=164–9 |jstor=3295569}}</ref>

===Art and architecture===
{{see also|South Italian ancient Greek pottery}}
[[File:Choregos Painter - RVAp 1-123 - the stealers of daintings - Herakles supporting the world - Milano MA A 0-9-2841 - 01.jpg|thumb|[[Apulian vase painting|Apulian pottery]] exhibited in the [[Archaeological Museum, Milan|Archaeological Museum of Milan]], 380–370 BC]]
[[File:Reperti - Museo di Monasterace Marina.JPG|thumb|Archaeological finds exhibited in the [[Monasterace Archeological Museum]]]]

Magna Graecia, in some fields such as architecture and urban planning, sometimes surpassed the mother country and the other Greek colonies.<ref name="magnagrecia">{{cite web|url=http://www.magnagrecia.it/pagare/calabria/italiano/itinerar/arte/architet.html|title=L'architettura in Grecia e nelle colonie|access-date=21 July 2023|language=it}}</ref> In Magna Graecia, as well as in the other Greek colonies, the [[Doric style]] enriched with showy decorations was adopted as the dominant architectural style. In Magna Graecia, in particular, a Doric style influenced by the [[Ionic style|Ionic]] one was also used, especially in Sicily in the Achaean colonies.<ref name="magnagrecia"/> In Magna Graecia, limestone was used as a building material due to the difficulty in finding other materials. The Doric style in Magna Graecia reached its apogee, surpassing that of the motherland and the other Greek colonies.<ref name="magnagrecia"/>

Regarding urban planning, the cities of Magna Graecia, as well as many cities of Greek colonies in other regions, were more orderly and rational in the distribution of spaces than those of the mother country, making the urban fabric more practical. The first examples of urbanistically more rational Greek cities belonged to Magna Graecia, in this case [[Taranto]], [[Metapontum]] and [[Megara Hyblaea]].<ref name="magnagrecia"/> Characteristic of this new urban concept, which later spread also in the motherland to [[Rhodes]] and [[Miletus]], was a checkerboard road network.<ref name="magnagrecia"/>

In Magna Graecia painting and sculpture also reached a notable level of quality.<ref name="bronzi50">{{cite web|url=https://www.bronzi50.it/artisti-magna-grecia/|title=Gli artisti della Magna Grecia
|access-date=21 July 2023|language=it}}</ref><ref name="fotoartearchitettura">{{cite web|url=https://www.fotoartearchitettura.it/storia-arte/pittura-vascolare-greca.html|title=La pittura vascolare greca|access-date=21 July 2023|language=it}}</ref> In Magna Graecia there were examples of excellence in sculpture, coroplastics and bronzes.<ref name="bronzi50"/> As for vase painting, many famous Athenian potters moved to Magna Graecia creating works influenced by the culture of the place, making their paintings peculiar and different from those of the motherland,<ref name="fotoartearchitettura"/> giving rise to the [[South Italian ancient Greek pottery]]. Also noteworthy are the mosaics, the goldsmith's art and wall painting.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.arte.it/notizie/napoli/riapre-la-collezione-magna-grecia-al-mann-un-passeggiata-nella-storia-tra-gli-antichi-tesori-del-sud-16027|title=Riapre la collezione Magna Grecia: al MANN un passeggiata nella storia degli antichi tesori del sud|access-date=21 July 2023|language=it}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/manifestazioni-della-cultura-dell-occidente-greco-la-pittura-parietale_(Il-Mondo-dell'Archeologia)|title=Manifestazioni della cultura dell'Occidente greco. La pittura parietale|access-date=21 July 2023|language=it}}</ref>

Noteworthy sculptures from Magna Graecia are the [[Apollo of Gaza]], the [[Apollo of Piombino]], the [[Dancing Satyr of Mazara del Vallo]], the [[Head of a Philosopher]] and the ''[[Riace bronzes]]'', while notable vases from Magna Graecia are the [[Darius Vase]] and the [[Nestor's Cup (Pithekoussai)|Nestor's Cup]]. Noteworthy temples of Magna Graecia are the [[Temple of Concordia, Agrigento]], the [[Temple of Hera Lacinia]], the [[Temple of Heracles, Agrigento]], [[The Temple of Juno in Agrigento]], the [[Temple of Olympian Zeus, Agrigento]], the [[Temple of Apollo (Syracuse)]], the [[Temple of Athena (Syracuse)]], the [[Temple of Athena (Paestum)]], the [[Temple C (Selinus)]], the [[Temple E (Selinus)]], the [[Temple F (Selinus)]], the [[Temple of Juno Lacinia (Crotone)]], the [[Second Temple of Hera (Paestum)]], the [[Heraion at Foce del Sele]], the [[Temple of Poseidon (Taranto)]], the [[Tavole Palatine]] and the [[Temple of Victory (Himera)]].

===Theatre===
{{see also|Theatre of Italy}}
[[File:Taormina BW 2012-10-05 16-23-06.JPG|thumb|[[Ancient theatre of Taormina|Greek Theater of Taormina]], [[Sicily]]]]

The [[Sicily|Sicilian]] Greek colonists in Magna Graecia, but also from [[Campania]] and [[Apulia]], also brought theatrical art from their motherland.<ref name="melogranoarte">{{cite web|url=https://www.melogranoarte.it/storia-del-teatro-nelle-citta-ditalia/|title=Storia del Teatro nelle città d'Italia|access-date=27 July 2022|language=it}}</ref> The [[Greek Theatre of Syracuse]], the {{ill|Greek Theatre of Segesta|it|Teatro di Segesta}}, the {{ill|Greek Theatre of Tindari|it|Teatro greco di Tindari}}, the {{ill|Greek Theatre of Hippana|it|Teatro di Hippana}}, the {{ill|Greek Theatre of Akrai|it|Teatro di Akrai}}, the {{ill|Greek Theatre of Monte Jato|it|Teatro di Monte Jato}}, the {{ill|Greek Theatre of Morgantina|it|Teatro di Morgantina}} and the most famous [[Ancient theatre of Taormina|Greek Theater of Taormina]], amply demonstrate this.

Only fragments of original dramaturgical works are left, but the tragedies of the three great giants [[Aeschylus]], [[Sophocles]] and [[Euripides]] and the comedies of [[Aristophanes]] are known.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.studocu.com/it/document/liceo-italia/greco/il-teatro-eschilo-sofocle/16686977|title=Il teatro|access-date=27 July 2022|language=it}}</ref>

Some famous playwrights in the Greek language came directly from Magna Graecia. Others, such as Aeschylus and [[Epicharmus of Kos|Epicharmus]], worked for a long time in Sicily. Epicharmus can be considered Syracusan in all respects, having worked all his life with the [[List of tyrants of Syracuse|tyrants of Syracuse]]. His comedy preceded that of the more famous Aristophanes by staging the gods for the first time in comedy. While Aeschylus, after a long stay in the Sicilian colonies, died in Sicily in the colony of [[Gela]] in 456 BC. Epicarmus and [[Phormis]], both of 6th century BC, are the basis, for [[Aristotle]], of the invention of the Greek comedy, as he says in his book on ''[[Poetics (Aristotle)|Poetics]]'':<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.studocu.com/it/document/universita-degli-studi-di-torino/storia-della-critica-letteraria/aristotele-origini-della-commedia/296709|title=Aristotele – Origini della commedia|access-date=28 July 2022|language=it}}</ref>

{{blockquote|As for the composition of the stories (Epicharmus and Phormis) it came in the beginning from Sicily|Aristotle, ''Poetics''}}

Other native dramatic authors of Magna Graecia, in addition to the Syracusan Phormis mentioned, are [[Achaeus of Syracuse]], [[Apollodorus of Gela]], [[Philemon (poet)|Philemon of Syracuse]] and his son Philemon the younger. From Calabria, precisely from the colony of [[Thurii]], came the playwright [[Alexis (poet)|Alexis]]. While [[Rhinthon]], although Sicilian from Syracuse, worked almost exclusively for the colony of [[Taranto]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/rintone|title=Rintóne|access-date=28 July 2022|language=it}}</ref>