1032 social organization: Greece largest of these landholders, is the king (basileus) of Ithaca Other noble landholders compete for honor and power within Ithaca, but there exists as well the ethos of xenia (guest friendship), which governs relations between members of different households and different communities Xenia demands that strangers be treated with respect and provides them protection, since it is viewed as a sacred bond protected by Zeus Xenios, the god of strangers Moreover, xenia forges reciprocal bonds of friendship and obligation that last from one generation to the next When a man of high status travels to a distant land, he will call upon other noblemen to provide him with shelter; the exchange of guest presents, often quite lavish ones, is customary His descendants will be governed by the same obligations of xenia The most striking example of this practice is in the Iliad, in which Glaukos and Diomedes meet on the battlefield Upon learning that their grandfathers had entertained each other as xenoi, the two warriors refuse to fight each other and exchange armor in a gesture of mutual friendship (Homer remarks that Diomedes gets the better of the exchange, receiving gold armor in return for bronze; this observation is perhaps a commentary on the rivalry and craftiness that might lurk behind the practice of gift giving) The actual practice of xenia was perhaps less important than its ideological significance For the upper classes it marked a way of life that set them apart from those below them Contempt for merchants and those who make their living by trade is evident in the Odyssey and shows up in pro-aristocratic sources centuries later Nevertheless, the Homeric worldview also exhibits sympathy for those of lower status Those who overstep the limits of their class (the common soldier Thersites in the Iliad and the beggar Iros in the Odyssey) are treated harshly, but in general slaves and beggars are accorded sympathy Being a wanderer or an exile is considered one of the worst possible fates (thus the poignancy of Odysseus’s plight), especially for those who lack the safety supplied to the upper classes by the practice of xenia Slavery was a condition to which anyone might be subject (piracy and warfare being common), and Homer expresses compassion for those who were subject to it (The poems’ dominant ruling-class ideology is reflected, however, in the expectation that slaves be loyal to their masters’ interests.) THE ARCHAIC PERIOD In the eighth century through the sixth century b.c.e the poems of Homer became the central texts for the Greeks’ conception of themselves as a people (or group of peoples) During this time interest in genealogy grew, with oral or written genealogies becoming a way for noble families to trace their descent from the great heroes of the past as well as a foundation for the kinship systems that formed the basic social structures of archaic Greece The poems of Hesiod (fl ca 800 b.c.e.) reflect the importance of heroic genealogies: Descent from a heroic or divine ancestor guaranteed the prestige of a particular group, whether a city or a family, and intercity alliances were made and unmade on the basis of such gene- alogies It was during this time that the distinction between Dorians and Ionians solidified Greeks had always spoken a variety of dialects (Doric and Ionic among them), but it was during the early Archaic Period that these dialects took on an ethnic and political dimension Thenceforward states could claim solidarity based on ethnicity and distant kinship, so that the fift h century b.c.e conflict between the Spartan and Athenian Empires could be portrayed as a Dorian versus Ionian struggle The structure of Greek society was permanently altered by the events of the Archaic Period A combination of factors led to material prosperity and expansion, in both colonization and trade The influx of new wealth challenged the older aristocratic order, and colonization allowed more Greeks to possess more land, which remained the main source of wealth throughout antiquity In many cities tyrants arose to champion the newly prosperous classes against the aristocracy; in others reforms kept the cities free from one-man rule Material culture reveals a tendency toward equality The rich tended to avoid ostentatious displays of wealth, and taste in art and handicrafts became relatively uniform throughout society Literary sources reveal a flourishing debate on the nature of citizenship, wealth, and power Some poets, such as Archilochus (seventh century b.c.e.), claim to represent the voice of the common soldier or citizen, while others, such as Theognis (sixth to fift h century b.c.e.), take a reactionary viewpoint, expressing disdain for poorer citizens’ claims to social and political equality This point of view was represented even into the fift h century b.c.e., with the odes of Pindar (ca 522–ca 438 b.c.e.) expressing a preference for inherited excellence over acquired skill and using the language of older aristocratic institutions such as xenia in an era in which they had long since lost their original significance The reforms of the statesman Solon (ca 630–ca 560 b.c.e.) in Athens illustrate the social developments of the Archaic Period A rapidly changing economy led to a situation in which many small farmers had become heavily indebted to their landlords or even enslaved for debt Solon abolished debt slavery, gave the tenant farmers ownership of their land, and divided the citizen body into four property classifications, with varying degrees of citizen rights The top two classes, for example, could hold the major elected offices The third could hold minor offices and the fourth none All four classes could participate in the Assembly Solon thus reestablished land ownership as the basis for citizenship, a tendency that continued throughout antiquity in many Greek states and was removed in Athens only with the advent of the democracy in 508 b.c.e Land, however, remained the main source of wealth for citizens even in Athens, and various measures were enacted to prevent the concentration of land in too few hands PHRATRIES The most significant kinship groups were the phyle (tribe) and the phratry Membership in a phratry was determined by heredity and was normally linked to a particular place Its