Famous Greek People

The Greeks are known to enjoy a very high standard of living, which is probably because Greece today, serves as a major business hub for many activities and also houses some of the world’s largest multinational companies. The service industry remains to be the fastest growing industries and tourism remains to be the principle activities out here. There are many famous Greek people who have brought laurels to this very beautiful place. Here, we shall take a look at some of the famous people of Greece who have made major contributions in their respective fields from the modern or the ancient period.

Famous Greek People:

Jennifer Aniston:
This very popular film and television actress won the hearts of many as Rachel Green from the sitcom-‘Friends’. Jennifer (February 11, 1969) wowed audiences with her portrayal of variety of roles in many Hollywood films. Jennifer is the daughter of John Aniston, a Greek American and Nancy Dow, born in New York City. Jennifer lived in Greece for a year in her childhood days. Jennifer Aniston faced a few setbacks in the initial stage of her career and this almost led her to take the decision to quit acting. However, the success of ‘Friends’ changed her destiny and Jennifer became a rage with the popularity of this sitcom. She was known for acting prowess and well…hold your breath! Her hairstyle as well! Jennifer created a phenomenon with her hairdo, which was called as ‘Rachel’, and even now, young girls all over wish to emulate this hairstyle. Jennifer also has a very successful career in films with ‘Bruce Almighty’ being one of her biggest hits. She also tasted success with her performances in ‘Along came Polly’, ‘Rumor Has It’, ‘’The Object of my Affection’ and ‘Derailed’. This high profile actress was also the object of media attention when she divorced her till-then successful marriage with Brad Pitt. The grapevine speculated the reason for the divorce was simply because of Brad’s romantic relations with Angelina Jolie. Since then, media reports about Jennifer being unable to deal with this break up were rife. Currently, Jennifer Aniston remains to be one of the 10th richest women in the entertainment industry.

Alexander the Great:
Alexander the Great (July 20 356 BC-June 10 323 BC) is known as the most successful military commanders who remained undefeated in battle. Alexander the Great was born in Pella, the capital city of Macedon. There are approximately around 70 towns that were founded by Alexander the Great. This ancient Greek king was also known as Alexander III and Alexander the Macedonian. There are many speculations regarding his death, which was possibly because of a disease or an excess of alcohol. Today, Alexander the Great is a prominent figure in history.

Socrates:
Socrates (c. 469 BC-399 BC) is known as the founder of Western philosophy. Discussing philosophy was his prime interest and records do not really accurately say that Socrates followed a particular profession. His theories are widely used and his work remains to form an integral part of philosophy. The ‘Socratic Method’ is considered a very important contribution. This theory is used even today. For this method, questions are asked to a person/group, which helps to understand their beliefs. Socrates believed in questioning oneself and others around him in a pursuit to examine oneself from within. He always mentioned Prodicuc and Anaxagoras as his main influences. This Greek philosopher was a strong influence on Plato who further taught Aristotle.

Archimedes:
Archimedes (c. 287 BC-c. 212 BC) also remains to be one of the highly regarded amongst the famous Greek people. This highly intelligent person was renowned as a Greek mathematician, inventor, physicist, engineer as well as an astronomer. Archimedes is considered to be the greatest mathematicians known to man. He is also known for discovering a very important solution which helped him to calculate the density of an object without really disturbing its original state. This solution occurred to Archimedes in the bathtub and such was his excitement, he yelled ‘Eureka’ and ran onto the streets naked. Amongst his many contributions to various fields, Archimedes is also known for designing innovative machines and providing the basics of formulas that are used worldwide today.

Plato:
This classical Greek philosopher, a student of Socrates, also played an important part in laying the foundations of Western culture. Some ancient sources claim that Plato was born between 429 – 423 BC. Plato was also known as one of Socrates’ most devoted followers. Plato was also renowned as a mathematician and famed writer of philosophical dialogues. He also founded the Academy in Athens, which introduced higher learning.