To be a citizen of ancient Athens, one had to be a what?

Question

a. free male over thirty
b. resident of the city
c. son or daughter of an Athenian
d. member of the legislature

Answer 1

None of the answers provided are completely correct.

Citizenship allotted many privileges to the population of Athens, thus it was difficult to attain and was only given to a male child if both parents were Athenian. Women were excluded from becoming citizens (with limited exception in the later Hellenistic period). Hereditary links however, did not just determine citizenship. From the time of their birth, young Athenian men were expected to attain an education. Based upon their birth and the wealth of their parents, the length of education was from the age of 5 to 14, for the wealthier 5 to 18 and sometimes into a students' mid-twenties. Unfortunately the above only applied to the 6th Century BC, when formalized schools were established, by the 4th Century BC, in Hellenistic Greece, a potential citizen spent 2 years in the gymnasium, and 2 years training in the military, also known as the ephebeia. Citizens had rights which for the most part were limited only to themselves. Namely, a Citizen could own land, have heirs, own slaves, belong to the Assembly, and could have some political sway. Citizens also played a large part in the year-round religious festivals of Athens.

Answer 2

The answer is a
b. is wrong because women, children and slaves were "residents."
c. is wrong because a "daughter" couldn't be a citizen
d. is wrong because although only citizens could be legislators, not all citizens were legislators.

Only adult male Athenian citizens who had completed their military training as ephebes – effectively twenty years and over – had the right to vote in Athens. This excluded a majority of the population, namely slaves, children, women and resident foreigners (metics). Also disallowed citizens whose rights were under suspension (typically for failure to pay a debt to the city: see atimia); for some Athenians this amounted to permanent (and in fact inheritable) disqualification. Still, in contrast with oligarchical societies, there were no real property requirements limiting access. (The property classes of Solon's constitution remained on the books, but they were a dead letter). Given the exclusionary and ancestral conception of citizenship held by Greek city-states, a relatively large portion of the population took part in the government of Athens and of other radical democracies like it. At Athens some citizens were far more active than others, but the vast numbers required just for the system to work testify to a breadth of participation among those eligible that greatly exceeded any present day democracy.
Athenian citizens had to be legitimately descended from citizens—after the reforms of Pericles in 450 BC on both sides of the family, excluding the children of Athenian men and foreign women. Although the legislation was not retrospective, five years later the Athenians removed 5000 from the citizen registers when a free gift of grain arrived for all citizens from an Egyptian king. Citizenship could be granted by the assembly and was sometimes given to large groups (Plateans in 427 BC, Samians in 405 BC), but by the 4th century only to individuals and by a special vote with a quorum of 6000. This was generally done as a reward for some service to the state. In the course of a century the numbers involved were in the hundreds rather than thousands. This reflected the general conception of the polis as a community, somewhat like an extended family, rather than as a territorial state.

Answer 3

Free men over 30, reason being only fighters could vote. Voting was a way of solving civil wars between neighboring cities. Example; If one city state decided to invade another city state they could simply have a vote and the city with the most warriors won without shedding the blood of their kin (they were all Athenians).

Answer 4

A) free male over thirty

Answer 5

Land owning men

Answer 6

A. Free male over thiry.

Answer 7

a. free male over thirty

Answer 8

a. free male over thirty

Answer 9

I would assume option B). It makes the most logical sense to me.

Answer 10

E. Wealthy enough to not be owned as a slave.