Greek literature, modern: The Rebirth of Greek Literature

Under Turkish rule, Greek literature virtually ceased, except in Crete. In the late 18th cent. two patriots, the poet Rhigas Pheraios (1751–98) and the intellectual Adamantios Koraës (1748–1833), sought to encourage a revival of Greek letters. The revolutionary society Philike Hetairea, founded in 1816, reflected the growing influence in Greece of the French Enlightenment and the rise of European romanticism; both furnished the intellectual framework for the War of Independence (1821–27) and spurred the postwar nationalist revival that awakened a modern Greek literature.

Sections in this article:

• Introduction
• The Twentieth Century
• The Language Debate
• The Rebirth of Greek Literature
• Bibliography

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

See more Encyclopedia articles on: Miscellaneous European Literature