Did athens in the 1500 believe in fairies and witches?

Answer 1

Not like in the west. There are some rural legends too in Greece, but not to the extent of England etc.

Answer 2

Looking back at that time, the main faith had been the Greek Orthodox Church. Like in many cultures, there are always those who pratice different beliefs, but during the Ottoman Era, the Christian and Muslim faiths were predominant; Greeks and Ottomans under the rule of the Sultan. The Sultan regarded the Ecumenical Patriarch of the Greek Orthodox Church as the leader of the Greeks within the empire. The Patriarch was accountable to the Sultan for the Greeks' good behavior, and in exchange he was given wide powers over the Greek community. The Patriarch controlled the courts and the schools, as well as the Church, throughout the Greek communities of the empire. This made Orthodox priests the effective rulers of Greek villages. Some Greek towns, such as Athens and Rhodes, retained municipal self-government, while others were put under Ottoman governors. As a rule, the Ottomans did not require the Greeks to become Muslims, although many did so in order to avert the economic hardships of Ottoman rule. Many Greeks became Crypto-Christians (Greek Muslims who were secret practitioners of the Greek Orthodox faith) in order to avoid heavy taxes and at the same time express their identity by maintaining their secret ties to the Greek Orthodox Church. Crypto-Christians ran the risk of being killed if they were caught practicing a non-Muslim religion once they converted to Islam. Greeks who converted to Islam and were not Crypto-Christians were deemed Turks in the eyes of Orthodox Greeks. Christians were subject to various forms of discrimination. Sumptuary laws forced Christians and Jews to wear distinctive clothing, distinguishing them from their neighbors. Non-Muslims were not allowed to ride horses, and if they were riding a donkey or mule they had to dismount if they passed a Muslim.Churches were not allowed to ring their bells. Christians also had to pay higher taxes than Muslims.

Answer 3

I guess Christianity was a well-established religion then. There are som kind of male "witches", more like trolls, all dressed in black, calle karakatzani...They probably believed in them back then, too.

Answer 4

Well... I don't think so... you see Greeks at that time believed strongly in the Orthodox Church and they were not free.... so how could they think about fairies and witches ???

Answer 5

I don't know. I think that at the time they were stuggling with Turks. Not too sure.

VERY VERY interesting question though! I will keep track and hope you get some good answers!

Answer 6

they believed in the fairie of jesus and the wichie papa in istubul !!

Answer 7

NO