19 Facts About Pontian Greeks

The Pontic Pontian Greeks had a continuous presence in the region of Pontus, Georgia, and Eastern Anatolia from at least 700 BC until the Greek genocide and population exchange with Turkey in 1923.

Pontic Pontian Greeks are one of the peoples of the Caucasus; they are ethnic Pontian Greeks indigenous to Asia Minor.

Pontian Greeks lived in Pontus since "the time of the Argonauts, Herodotus and Xenophon and the Ten Thousand".

The Pontic Pontian Greeks are believed to be descendants of Pontian Greeks who in the 8th century BC had moved from the Ionian cities located in the islands and shores of the Aegean Sea, to the area of the Black Sea called Pontus.

Benny Morris and Dror Ze'evi give three theories on why most Pontic Pontian Greeks distanced themselves from nationalism and separatism: poorly developed political consciousness, tradition of submissiveness to Islamic hegemony, or fears of massacres and economic harm.

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Pontian Greeks'storian and psychologist Stavros Iason Gavriilidis states that this was a result of the trauma they faced from the Greek genocide.

The warlike characteristics of Pontic Pontian Greeks were once said to have been derived from the Amazons of Pontus.

In time, as the numbers of Pontian Greeks settling in the region grew significantly, more colonies were established along the whole Black Sea coastline of what is Turkey, Bulgaria, Georgia, Russia, Ukraine, and Romania.

Large communities of Christian Pontic Pontian Greeks remained throughout the Pontus area until the 1920s, and in parts of Georgia and Armenia until the 1990s, preserving their own customs and dialect of Greek.

Turkish guide-books on sale in the Taksim Meydane offer this account of the 1923 Katastrofe: 'After the proclamation of the Republic, the Pontian Greeks who lived in the region returned to their own country […].

Ancient Pontian Greeks reached and settled the Black Sea by the 700s BCE; Sinope was perhaps the earliest colony.

Ancient Pontian Greeks inhabited Giresun, then called Kerasous, from the 5th century BCE.

Pontic Pontian Greeks constructed a number of non-religious buildings during Byzantine times.

Rich cultural activity of Pontian Greeks is witnessed by the number of educational institutions, churches, and monasteries in the region.

Pontian Greeks music retains elements of the musical traditions of Ancient Greece, Byzantium, and the Caucasus .

Also significant in the shaping of Pontian Greeks music was the proximity of various non-Greek peoples on the fringes of the Pontic area.

Pontian Greeks dance retains aspects of Persian and Greek dance styles.

The most renowned Pontian Greeks dances are Tik, Serra, Maheria or Pyrecheios, Kotsari and Omal.

Pontic Pontian Greeks have contributed to sporting successes internationally, not limited to but mostly representing Greece, with several team members a part of sports triumphs in major international basketball and football tournaments .