"Our Archives, Our Heritage" is an article authored by Professor Alexander Kitroeff, published in The National Herald, November 18-24, 2023 Edition.   ---------- Several years ago, we were lucky enough to get permission from The National Herald to repost articles that are of interest to our group.                                                                                           ---------- Note:  Information on how to contribute to Meletis Pouliopoulos project "Greek Cultural Resources" can be found at the bottom of this page.                                          ...

  THE SPONGE DIVERS OF KALYMNOS by Willard Manus, published in The Athenian, August 30, 1974 - pages 19-21 "The young girls of Kalymnos sang their song of farewell, the wives and mothers wept as the diving boats left the harbor in slow formation, flags flapping in the breeze, newly-painted gunwales gleaming in the hard-white Aegean sunlight. And the whole of the ancient harbor resounded with the peal of church bells, and with shouts and cries and sobs: ‘Goodbye… goodbye!’ ‘Kalo taxithi… good journey!’ ‘Farewell, children… farewell!’ It was six days after Easter. A dozen tiny boats were putting out to sea, bound for the sponge beds of Greece and North Africa. Each boat carried from eight to twenty men — the famed sphoungarades (sponge divers) of Kalymnos. They would stay away for seven long months, risking death or paralysis to tear sponges from the bottom of the sea. Kalymnians have dived for sponges for as long as man can remember, but today that tradition is for the first time i...

  The Goatmen (and Women) of Skyros - Away from the mainland compulsion to change and conform, some special customs have been preserved on Skyros.  Goat Dancing or Dionysiac cult? - article written by Anne Peters, published in The Athenian, March 1, 1992. "We should have known we were in for something out of the ordinary. On our first trip to Skyros, newly arrived, Saturday evening, all our enquiries about the return boat to Kymi on Monday (Kathari Deftera/CIean Monday) were met with evasive smiles, and a vague “Well maybe, but then again maybe not!” In the event, the ticket office remained stubbornly closed until Monday evening, and the rickety Anemoessa (now in semi-retirement on a trunk line in the Dodecanese and replaced by the possibly more punctual Lykomedes) didn’t run. This, it turned out, was not entirely due to snow… For much longer than anyone can remember, throughout Apokries, but especially on Tyrinis, or Cheese Sunday – so-called as it is the last day on which c...

This is the village of my Cretan ancestors, the FOUSKETAKIS family. ----- This page is the link to the Facebook page for the "Folklore Museum of Agia Marina" https://www.facebook.com/pg/folkmuseumagiamarina/photos/?ref=page_internal Don't forget to check out the Gallery Tab which includes many wonderful photographs, and the video tab which will allow you to watch 3 videos pertaining to life in Crete. ----- This is the link to their website -  https://folk-museum-agiamarina.business.site/?fbclid=IwAR3TtgBAlbWiK9uRRgCjHYVHGK-ortEZt7qDMCBPapsyG5Sf0RK-VPLbM6Y

Greek Orthodox Wedding Ceremony Traditions, symbols, and meanings Published in The National Herald, Special Wedding Edition February 2019 Note:  With information of the Evhologion and the Typikon (books) of the Church ------------------------------ I am excited that  The National Herald  has given Hellenic Genealogy Geek the right to reprint articles that may be of interest to our group.  ------------------------------ The wedding ceremony of the Greek Orthodox Church is an ancient and evocative service by which a man and a woman are united together "In Faith, and in Oneness of Mind, in Truth, and in Love," acknowledging that their love is rooted in God, who is Love itself. The marriage ceremony is abundant with symbols that reflect the basic and important elements of marriage:  Love, Mutual respect, Equality and Sacrifice. The traditions observed have special meanings and significance.  These symbolic actions are oft...

Cliffs of Freedom Brings Greek War of Independence to the Big Screen by Eleni Sakellis Published in The National Herald, February 16, 2019 ------------------------------ I am excited that  The National Herald  has given Hellenic Genealogy Geek the right to reprint articles that may be of interest to our group.  ------------------------------ Cliffs of Freedom opens in theaters in New York and Los Angeles on March 1 and expands on March 8 and 15. NEW YORK – Bringing the story of the Greek War of Independence to the big screen has long been a dream for many hoping to share this dramatic period in history with as wide an audience as possible. The soon-to be-released Cliffs of Freedom represents a true passion project for Greek-American Executive Producer and Co-writer Marianne Metropoulos, who spent several years developing a story that would bring the Greek War of Independence to life for modern audiences. Metropoulos told The National He...

Greek American Heritage Society of Philadelphia (GAHSP)  2019 Photo Tour Axia - A Celebration of Extraordinary  Greek American Women Watch this short video preview at  https://gahsp.org/gahsp-announces-2019-photo-tour/ Excerpt from The National Herald, issue February 2-9, 2019 -  The annual Photo Tour, now in its fifth edition will take place on Saturday, March 16, 5:30 PM at the Stotesbury Mansion in Rittenhouse Square, 1923 Walnut Street in Philadelphia . This year’s premier event "Axia – A Celebration of Extraordinary Greek American Women" will honor and celebrate the extraordinary women of our community who have steadfastly contributed to our rich Hellenic heritage. These are women of resilience, courage, dignity, and creativity who excelled in commerce, philanthropy, medicine, arts, and education for the last 100 years, some of whom may be familiar to you and others perhaps not. All are invited to attend this yearly affair that is l...

HERE THERE BE WHISTLERS - On a small Greek island, practitioners of an ancient shistling language are holding onto their culture as it slowly dies out. Published online at www.theoutline.com - February 5, 2018 - authored by Sarah Souli Greeks are fabulous at cursing. The innovative insults roll off the tongue as they liken your grandmother’s private parts to a coin-slot receiver, curse the Antichrist, your house, or your bottom. Though usually hissed or shouted, whistled insults don’t disappoint, either. On a recent visit to Antia, a tiny village folded into the green mountains of Evia, Greece’s second largest island, we cajoled Mrs. Katerina, a local octogenarian, to whistle us a blaspheme. “Go to hell,” she whistled, the breathy syllables sounding remarkably bird-like. She leaned back in her chair and dissolved into peals of laughter. Antia is home to the last whistlers of Greece. Sfyria, as the whistling language is called in Greek — it comes from the Greek word sfyrizo, t...

Photograph Title:  GREEK WOMAN 1909 Ellis Island Immigration Station  Photographer:  Sherman, Augustus F., 1865-1925 Source:   Manuscripts and Archives Division, The New York Public Library. "Greek woman."  The New York Public Library Digital Collections . 1909. http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47da-dcb2-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

Source:  Byzantines Did It First! by Eileen Stephenson, March 11, 2018 The Byzantine Princess and the Fork, East-West Culture Clash by Steve Frangos Published in The National Herald, December 1, 2018 ------------------------------ I am excited that  The National Herald  has given Hellenic Genealogy Geek the right to reprint articles that may be of interest to our group.  ------------------------------ When I was growing up, I heard many a tale of Greeks, from Classical times to reminiscences shared with me by my grandparents and their generation. One reoccurring set of stories was how Byzantine Empire refugees transmitted culture to the West. We gave the ‘light’ to the West, I was told repeatedly. As Greeks and other peoples of the eastern Mediterranean, North Africa, and the Balkans were escaping from Ottoman domination they brought new information, materials and skills to Europe and so, I was told, helped to launch the Renaissance. I w...

IT'S THAT SEASON AGAIN - LET'S TALK - GREEK WEDDING TRADITIONS The following article was published in The National Herald on February 10, 2018 Authored by Eleni Sakellis ----- The Greek wedding has taken on mythic proportions in the popular imagination worldwide, thanks in no small part to the film My Big Fat Greek Wedding, even if it is nearing sixteen years since its release.  Greek-Americans have done their part in expanding the idea of the Greek wedding in all its grandeur, from the huge guest list to the impressive reception menu, but the traditional aspects of the Greek wedding are what make it truly unique and special. Those of us from the average, usually large, Greek family will undoubtedly have attended numerous weddings throughout a single lifetime. I recall being shocked and saddened to hear that one of my classmates (non-Greek) had never attended a wedding in her life at the ripe old age of 12 or 13. By that age, most GreekAmericans have been to at...

HOW DID THOSE GREEK FESTIVALS  GET STARTED IN AMERICA? By Steve Frangos Published in The National Herald, June 2, 2007 ------------------------------ I am excited that  The National Herald  has given Hellenic Genealogy Geek the right to reprint articles that may be of interest to our group.  ------------------------------ As with so many things in Greek American history, no one really knows who started the Greek Festival. Outside of the liturgical calendar, it’s safe to say this is the one social event celebrated by nearly every Greek Orthodox Church in the country. This one event has so aided and changed our society and culture in North America, one would imagine that some enterprising folklorist or cultural historian has documented its origins and development. Nothing could be further from the truth.  In keeping with most other Greek-inspired cultural innovations in North America, these ‘Hellenic,’ ‘Greek’ of ‘Greci...