Acropolis
An English word for a fortified hilltop citadel, derived from the Greek akropolis meaning "high city," most famously the limestone plateau in Athens crowned by the Parthenon
The Meaning of Acropolis
The word "acropolis" derives from the Greek akros (highest) and polis (city), meaning the high city or upper citadel. Almost every Greek city possessed an acropolis — the fortified hilltop that served as a last refuge in times of attack and the location of the city's most sacred temples. The most famous is the Acropolis of Athens, a flat-topped limestone plateau rising 150 metres above the surrounding plain. In the fifth century BCE, under the leadership of Pericles, the Athenians undertook one of the most ambitious building programmes in history, crowning the Acropolis with the Parthenon (temple of Athena), the Erechtheion, the Propylaea (monumental gateway), and the Temple of Athena Nike. The sculptor Pheidias oversaw the artistic programme, including the colossal chryselephantine statue of Athena that stood inside the Parthenon. The Acropolis served simultaneously as a religious sanctuary, a treasury, and a symbol of Athenian cultural supremacy. After centuries of damage from war, conversion to a church and then a mosque, and an explosion in 1687, extensive restoration work continues today. The word entered English to describe any fortified hilltop citadel, though it invariably evokes Athens.
Parents
None recorded
Symbols
Fun Fact
In 1687, a Venetian cannonball struck the Parthenon, which the Ottomans were using as a gunpowder magazine, causing an explosion that destroyed much of the building
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
Explore Further
Cyclopean
💭 conceptLanguage and architecture
An English adjective meaning immense or massive, particularly applied to ancient stonework of enormous blocks, named after the Cyclopes who were believed to have built the walls of Mycenae and Tiryns
Agora
💭 conceptLanguage and civic life
An English word for a public gathering place or marketplace, derived from the Agora of Athens, the civic and commercial centre where democracy, philosophy, and daily commerce intersected
Ilium
🏛 placeGeography
The citadel of Troy, site of the legendary ten-year siege by the Greek forces
Acrocorinth
🏛 placegeography
The towering citadel rock above Corinth, sacred to Aphrodite and site of her famous temple.
Mycenaean Culture
💭 conceptHistory
The Late Bronze Age Greek civilisation whose warrior aristocracy forms the historical basis of Homeric epic
Minoan Culture
💭 conceptHistory
The Bronze Age civilisation of Crete that preceded and profoundly influenced Greek mythology and religion
Tiryns
🏛 placegeography
A massive Bronze Age citadel in the Argolid, birthplace of Heracles, whose cyclopean walls were said to be built by giants.
Athens
🏛 placeCity of Athena, cradle of democracy
Athens was the city sacred to Athena, birthplace of democracy, philosophy, drama, and Western civilisation — named after the goddess who won the city in a contest with Poseidon.
Aegis
💭 conceptLanguage and protection
An English word meaning protection, sponsorship, or authoritative backing, derived from the aegis, the divine shield or breastplate of Zeus and Athena
Titan
💭 conceptLanguage and scale
An English word meaning something of enormous size, strength, or importance, derived from the Titans, the primordial gods who ruled before the Olympians
Ajax
💭 conceptThe great tower shield
Ajax's shield was a massive tower shield of seven ox-hides layered with bronze — the largest defensive weapon in the Iliad, symbol of immovable resistance.
Olympian
💭 conceptExcellence, supreme achievement, athletic greatness
Pertaining to supreme mastery or athletic competition, from Mount Olympus, home of the gods.