Benefaction in Modern Greece
Greece is a country with a modern, independent existence ranging just two centuries back. Still it is a society with deep roots in history and with an equally strong sense of collective belonging – also with an important, quite successful Diaspora. So, when the newly formed Greek State had to build social infrastructure, from education to health to transport etc., it relied heavily on donations coming from successful Greeks, mainly of the Diaspora. These donations supplemented its meagre fiscal resources.
This saga of benefaction that evolved subsequantly is the object of “Benefaction in Modern Greece: Theory and History”, a book by Matoula Tomara-Sideris, Professor of Historical Demography and Cultural Attitudes, published by Kerkyra Publications-economia Publishing.
The community reflexes of Greeks in Egypt
The communities built by Greeks in Egypt through time were tightly-woven affairs, both with internal cohesion and with extrovert reflexes – especially turned toward the mother country and its perceived needs. Close ties with Greece proper built a network of relationships conductive to benefactions:
