Maria Spyropoulou
In Greece, the commonly asked question, “Where are you from?” reaches into a far deeper and more resonant space than in other cultures. If uninitiated, you might answer in the standard way: by telling the other person where you live currently or maybe where you grew up. But by doing so, you invite the inevitable follow-up question, “No, no, where are you from? Where is your village?” In other words, “What are your roots?” What the questioner is really hoping to ascertain is your “καταγωγή”—a word that translates roughly to origin, descent, lineage, parentage. In how many other countries are you asked about your ancestral lineage within one minute of meeting somebody? |