Free Best Dating Site In Greece
In a Walmart commercial, Sam Cooke says that “the best things in life are free.” While the lyric was referring to the store’s free two-day shipping deal, it really applies to so many other things, including totally free online dating sites.
- Free Best Dating Site In Greece For Seniors
- Free Best Dating Site In Greece Women
- Free Best Dating Site In Greece For Women
Who says you have to spend your hard-earned money to find your perfect match? If you’re wondering which dating sites are completely free, then take a look at our list of the top free online dating sites where registration, profile browsing, and private communication don’t ever cost a thing.
100% Free Greece Dating. A 100% free Online Dating service for Greece singles with loads of quality features to help you connect with friends in Greece and worldwide. Many online dating sites claim to be free, and then surprise you with charges for features such as emailing, chat, IM, etc. Expert Dating and World Class Services. Expert gay dating and relationship editor Sean Woods, who has written and appeared in radio shows about sex, dating and relationships since the early 1980s, said attitudes towards gay men are changing among the next generation of straight people. “It’s a part of growing up, learning about people.
Read on to see our reviews on the best free dating resources as well as some bonus answers to frequently asked questions by online daters like you.
- Founded in 2000, eharmony is a well-known name in the dating industry, but it’s also known for its affordability (a basic membership is 100% free), ingenuity (the one-of-a-kind 32 Dimensions of Compatibility Quiz), and simplicity (the site does all the searching for you).
- Want to Find Single Women Greece Dating Service Seeking Men? If you’re wondering how to find a woman online or simply how to meet single women. The online world can be rough for women, Greece Dating Service but finding the best dating sites for women is its own type of intimidating.
- After all, Altadena Best Dating Sites you need time to understand what kind of person you need. Of course, you Altadena Best Dating Sites can fall in love with someone from the first sight, but these cases are quite rare. Commonly, you need Altadena Best Dating Sites to change 10 through 15 counterparts before you find the only one.
Elite Singles may be be free, but it doesn’t skimp on quality. The site is dedicated to college graduates who are over 30 and looking for a serious relationship. Approximately, 82% of its members hold at least a bachelor’s degree, and approximately 2,500 of its members find love every month. On Elite Singles, more features won’t cost you anything, including registration, browsing, and certain forms of communication. However, you do have to upgrade if you want complete access to your inbox and other members’ photos.
| User Base | Gender Ratio | Popularity (Visits/Mo.) | Today's Deal |
| All Singles* | 44%* 56%* | 2 Million* | Sign Up Free |
Founded in 2000, eharmony is a well-known name in the dating industry, but it’s also known for its affordability (a basic membership is 100% free), ingenuity (the one-of-a-kind 32 Dimensions of Compatibility Quiz), and simplicity (the site does all the searching for you). The brainchild of clinical psychologist, Christian theologian, and seminary professor Dr. Neil Clark Warren, eharmony is the mastermind behind 2 million relationships in the United States, and it creates a new match every 14 minutes, so you’ll be in good hands if you join.
| User Base | Gender Ratio | Popularity (Visits/Mo.) | Today's Deal |
| All Straight Singles* | 48%* 52%* | 4.1 Million* | Join eharmony FREE |
Not only does Zoosk have a $0 price tag, but it also has one of the largest and most diverse user bases of any dating site — 40 million+ members from 80+ countries speaking 25+ languages. Plus, 30 million+ app downloads and 3 million+ messages exchanged every day. Pretty impressive! Once you create a dating profile (which you can do via Facebook or Google+), the Carousel is where you’ll want to head because that’s where you can start liking potential matches and getting people’s attention.
| User Base | Gender Ratio | Popularity (Visits/Mo.) | Today's Deal |
| All Singles* | 48%* 52%* | 28.9 Million* | Start Zoosk for FREE |
If we’re talking about free stuff, Match.com is like the free food of dating sites — it’s the best. It’s absolutely free to fill out a profile (with info about yourself and your ideal date or partner), browse through members, receive at least five matches a day, flirt (e.g., like people and send winks), receive Yes Ratings (those who’ve said yes to being interested in you), and hear about exclusive Match events. Plus, you can’t go wrong with the free dating site that’s responsible for creating more long-term relationships and marriages than its competitors.
| User Base | Gender Ratio | Popularity (Visits/Mo.) | Today's Deal |
| All Singles* | 49%* 51%* | 39.7 Million* | Get 3 Days FREE |
Many Christian singles’ idea of the perfect match is usually someone who has the same beliefs, values, and lifestyle, but they also do want to spend an arm and a leg while finding like-minded people. That’s why they turn to ChristianMingle — it’s among the most reputable and popular Christian dating sites, and a standard subscription is totally free. As a basic member, you can upload information and photos, search for date prospects, receive match suggestions, and communicate in a variety of ways.
| User Base | Gender Ratio | Popularity (Visits/Mo.) | Today's Deal |
| Christian Singles* | 44%* 56%* | 3.5 Million* | Free Search, Then $14.99/Mo. |
According to Business Insider, people over 60 make up 11% of the world’s population, and that number is estimated to grow to 22% by 2050. This is a huge demographic that deserves special attention, particularly the singles. OurTime is our top recommendation for older people in the dating scene for many reasons. 1) It’s just for senior singles. 2) It’s safe and easy. 3) It’s free. Just provide your gender, the gender you’re looking for, hair color, eye color, height, ethnicity, body type, marital status, how many children you have, how many children live with you, your smoking habits, country, zip code, age, username, and password.
| User Base | Gender Ratio | Popularity (Visits/Mo.) | Today's Deal |
| Mature Singles (50+)* | 48%* 52%* | 8.9 Million* | Over 50? Start FREE |
BlackPeopleMeet is a People Media site, which means it can be trusted to connect you to that special someone. The niche site’s focus is on biracial and black singles. Launched in 2002, BlackPeopleMeet sees more than 1.4 million visitors a month and has a four-star rating on Google Play. Whether you’re looking for casual dates, pen pals, love interests, or a husband or wife, BlackPeopleMeet can help you make the right connections quickly and simply.
| User Base | Gender Ratio | Popularity (Visits/Mo.) | Today's Deal |
| Black Singles* | 47%* 53%* | 5.7 Million* | FREE Trial for New Users |
SilverSingles is another terrific option for single seniors, especially those who aren’t tech savvy or feel nervous about online dating. The site has a clean, intuitive layout that anyone can pick up on, and the features are all streamlined for easy navigation (e.g., filtering searches, receiving compatible profiles, and sending messages). Most importantly, SilverSingles doesn’t charge you to test out the site and see if it’s a good fit for you.
| User Base | Gender Ratio | Popularity (Visits/Mo.) | Today's Deal |
| Mature Singles (50+)* | 41%* 59%* | 800,000* | Sign up for FREE |
For hookup-minded singles, BeNaughty is where it’s at. This free sex site has millions of frisky men and women from all over the world looking for all kinds of sexual encounters, including one-night stands, threesomes, affairs, and swinging partners. You can rest assured that you’re safe while using BeNaughty because the site verifies its members and uses SSL encryption to protect your personal and financial information. Plus all chatting and instant messaging is completely free on this dating site.
| User Base | Gender Ratio | Popularity (Visits/Mo.) | Today's Deal |
| All Singles* | 48%* 52%* | 13.3 Million* | Browse Profiles Free |
OkCupid
Since its launch in 2004, OkCupid has been been completely free, and the team says it’ll stay that way as long as the site is running. That’s right — you don’t have to pay to create a dating profile, search for compatible dates, receive a potential match, flirt, send and receive messages, or anything else. OkCupid is most known for its proprietary matching algorithm — you’ll answer numerous questions, specify how you want your potential dates to answer the questions, and then rank the importance of each question. That’s how the free dating site calculates your compatibility ratings with other members. A match percentage of 85% or higher means you’ve got quite a lot in common!
URL:https://www.okcupid.com/
Plenty of Fish
Plenty of Fish (POF) is another free dating site that promises to never make you pay to send or receive messages — and that’s a really good thing because POF users have more conversations than those on any other dating site and exchange 1 billion messages a month. Some other impressive numbers include that 70,000 new people join the site every day, and it’s available in 11 languages and more than 20 countries. One user named Simon Whitelock wrote on Google Play: “Been on a couple of other sites a week now and had absolutely nothing at all. Cast my net on POF and, within 48 hours, I’ve had some contact. Proves that POF does work.”
URL:https://www.pof.com/
Mingle2
Mingle2 says that it’ll only take 30 seconds for you to set up an account, and then you’re on your way to meeting a lot of authentic people. The team monitors the site to ensure that all the profiles are real and to keep scammers away. One helpful feature is the Members Online Now section, where you can see who’s logged in at the same time, which makes for even quicker connections. Mingle2 says you can put away your credit card as well because they won’t ask you for it.
URL:https://mingle2.com/
DateHookup
Founded by Dustin Weirich, DateHookup has so many free features that we can’t possibly list them all. Some of the best include signup, viewing profiles (filters include gender, age, and location), saving your searches, seeing who’s online now, liking profiles, posting and replying to threads in the forum, and chatting in real time. In addition, the Articles page offers free advice on a bunch of topics, including date ideas, dating when on a budget, and protecting yourself from catfishers and fake profiles.
URL:https://www.datehookup.com/
Which Online Dating Site Offers Completely Free Messaging?
Most people assume that a free online dating site will offer a free chat room for singles seeking dates, but sometimes the free services include only profile browsing and virtual liking — not the ability to send, read, and receive messages. This is a pretty big let down for some online daters, but luckily they don’t have get a paid membership to meet new people on a totally free dating site like OkCupid.
OkCupid offers 100% free communication between all its users, and they don’t have to pay a thing to access the messages in their inbox and greetings on other people’s dating profiles.
We’ve consistently ranked OkCupid as one of the best completely free dating sites because it has everything you need to make a great match.
OkCupid operates under the motto “Dating deserves better.”
We’ve already covered the basics of how OkCupid works and all the free dating services it can provide to support local singles, but a low price tag isn’t the only thing this totally free dating site and dating app have to offer.
The OkCupid match formula can direct users to the ideal first date and empower a single person to find their perfect match within no time. Every year, the OkCupid site and app create over 91 million matches between real people seeking the real deal.
Is Tinder the Best Dating App for a Casual Fling?
Most online daters are familiar with Tinder. It’s pretty much the most popular dating app on the planet, after all. Tinder launched in 2012 back when online dating was still very much stigmatized and underutilized by most people — but Tinder’s revolutionary swiping feature changed all that.
Tinder is a free dating app where users can express their likes and dislikes without holding back. By swiping on profiles, a single person can generate a potential match list comprised solely of people who turn them on. Plus, messaging is totally free between all users who like each other’s profiles.
There’s no denying that Tinder is a great hookup app where it’s easy to flirt with a stranger and pick up a hot date, and you can start chatting people up as soon as you create a profile connected to your phone number or Facebook account.
Tinder arranges over 1.5 million first dates every week, so it can definitely introduce you to some sexy local singles in the dating scene.
What Is Coffee Meets Bagel?
Coffee Meets Bagel is a free dating app where a single person can build a serious relationship with a potential soul mate. The app promotes authenticity, selectivity, and serious dating, so it’s a natural vehicle for single men and women who are tired of the traditional swiping scene.
By taking a quality-driven approach to online dating, Coffee Meets Bagel has changed the way local singles engage with one another online.
CoffeeMeetsBagel began as a passion project of three single women in Silicon Valley.
Coffee Meets Bagel limits the number of likes and matches a person can review each day, and that gives single people an incentive to slow down and consider each potential match more carefully and thoughtfully.
Free Best Dating Site In Greece For Seniors
If you’re looking for true love, you should consider downloading this dating app for free and using its match capabilities to meet the person of your dreams.
How Do I Spot Fake Profiles on a Dating Website?
Spotting fake profiles is a regrettably necessary skill for any single guy or gal surfing on a free online dating platform because such free services tend to attract a few bad apples and unsavory characters.
As you chat with people online, you may start to pick up on certain warning signs and red flags that your online crush has something to hide. Things like speaking broken English, pressuring you to meet up right away, and making too-good-to-be-true boasts can all indicate that something fishy is going on.
Online daters should always do their research on a person before agreeing to meet up in person. You can do that organically by asking questions and carrying on a conversation in a private chat room — or you can straight up look that person up on Google, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. Searching for someone by name, occupation, and location is useful because it can give you some good background information and pictures. This online footprint can verify that a person is exactly who he or she claims to be.
You can always trying using an online dating service like DateID to automatically screen your potential match and dig up the dirt before your first date.
Which Hookup Website Has No Hidden Fees?
An online dating site with no hidden fees can offer a great chat opportunity to singles looking to hook up right away, and that’s probably why almost 50% of singles under 30 have used a dating site or app to meet new people.
BeNaughty is one of our favorite 100 percent free dating sites for hookups because it doesn’t charge a penny to send and receive messages on the website — you can even send a mass text message to everyone who meets your dating criteria. BeNaughty is an incredibly fast-paced and sex-forward dating scene where singles can come into their own.
All you need to do to get access to free chatting on BeNaughty is upload a profile picture that clearly shows your face. As soon as the moderators approve your photo, you’ll be good to mix and mingle as much as you please.
Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.
Relationships:Hookups, Chats
Match System:Search by encounter, location, and more
Our Experts Say:“BeNaughty is a premier hookup app where you can feel comfortable expressing your desires. Plus, it's free to join, browse, and flirt...” Full Review»
Browse Free:View Photos Now
| User Base | Gender Ratio | Popularity (Visits/Mo.) | |
| All Singles* | 48%* 52%* | 13.3 Million* | Browse Profiles Free |
As you can tell from our review, BeNaughty can give you a lot of bang for virtually zero bucks. It’s free to create a dating profile and send messages on this hookup site, and you don’t have to worry about your free membership ever expiring or tacking on hidden fees. In fact, you never have to give BeNaughty your credit card information or PayPal account at all if you’d rather mingle for free.
However, some singles find it useful to upgrade to a paid BeNaughty subscription because they’d like extra perks and security features. This is completely optional, but it can up your odds of meeting someone special online.
What Is Facebook Dating & How Does It Work?
Facebook Dating is a free dating service that launched in the U.S. in September 2019. Anyone with a Facebook profile is eligible to join Facebook Dating and expand their reach in the local dating scene. You can only access this free dating service through the Facebook app, and you’ll have to create a new dating profile to get started.
Your activity on Facebook Dating will not be visible anywhere on your Facebook profile or newsfeed. Users aren’t even allowed to take screenshots in the app, so you can rest assured your secret crushes will stay secret.
Our Facebook Dating review goes into more details about how the dating service works and what it can offer singles — as well as some alternative free dating websites and apps worth giving a try.
Which Online Dating Site Works Best for a Serious Relationship?
This is an easy one. Only one dating website has been around since the early days of the internet and created more relationships and marriages than any other dating service in the world — and it’s Match.com.
Match has spent years perfecting its algorithm, honing its search filters, and streamlining the online dating process, so now it can offer a no-muss and no-fuss dating solution for anyone looking for the perfect match. This smart matchmaking website has a lot of great bells and whistles — including a fully functional dating app — so singles can build a relationship that lasts.
Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.
Relationships:Friends, Dates, and Relationships
Match System:Browse by zip, age, appearance, more
Our Experts Say:“Match has facilitated the most dates and relationships of any dating site, and its large audience and high success rate make it our top review...” Full Review»
Browse Free:View Photos Now
| User Base | Gender Ratio | Popularity (Visits/Mo.) | |
| All Singles* | 49%* 51%* | 39.7 Million* | Try Match.com FREE |
Match is by far our favorite dating website for finding true love and happiness because it looks at personality traits, educational background, family values, and other important factors when creating matches and recommending date prospects.
Plus, a majority of Match users are over 30 and willing to pay for a monthly subscription package, so it’s a more serious dating crowd than you’ll find on the typical free dating site or free dating app.
Love Shouldn’t Come With a Price Tag!
Sam Cooke didn’t have online dating on his mind when he was singing about life’s free treasures, but his catchy tune still applies to the modern dating experience. You don’t have to pay for swiping and matching with a free site or app in hand, and that can make your journey all the more enjoyable.
Totally free online dating sites have definitely become one of the most popular ways to meet new people and build relationships. So take advantage of the free sites we’ve just told you about — and put your credit card away!
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- in Dating Site Options by Dating Throne Team
Warmth, spirit, and infectious enthusiasm for life--these are the things that come to mind when thinking of the Greek culture. Family and family values are the foundations upon which this rich and vibrant culture is built.
In order to meet others who share the same Greek values and sensibilities, more and more Greek singles are turning to online dating sites. There are many Greek dating sites online, so before you join one be sure and do some homework first.
The following is a list featuring ten of the most popular and reputable Greek Dating sites out there today. You owe it to yourself to compare their features, to visit them, and to find the one that's just right for you!
If you're looking for something beyond a hookup, keep reading below for the best greek dating websites!
If you’re ready to join a dating site that’s committed to providing a great experience, we recommend you join eHarmony.
Although not specifically geared towards Greeks, there are so many users of eHarmony that there are more Greek singles here than just about anywhere else.
Launched in 2000, eHarmony is one of the largest, most trusted dating sites around today, responsible for more than two million marriages during this time. The dating site has a mixture of people from around the world, so it's easy to find someone no matter what you seek in a partner.
The eHarmony site is up to date and easy to use with a sleek, smooth interface and easy navigation experience. Apart from dating profiles, eHarmony has a 29-component personality quiz that matches you with the best singles -and a blog and dating tips.
- Get a free start.
- Men and women of all ages.
- Trusted site in business since 2000.
- Excellent customer service.
Click on the following link to learn more about eHarmony now!
While Match.com is not a Greek dating site per se, with over thirty-million members it is still your best chance statistically speaking of meeting Greek singles. Free membership is a major draw to the site as well.
Free Best Dating Site In Greece Women
- 39.7 Million Visits per Month.
- Free Membership.
- First Ever Online Dating Site.
Visit Match.com to learn more about the site's numerous features.
It can seem like a never-ending process to find someone who you would like to spend the rest of your life with. Do not give up. Instead, change your approach. This is why Elite Singles was created and has become a premier online dating site.
You will be able to access this site from your desktop computer and get started filling out your profile in no time at all. You will be joined by millions of other professional adults from around the world, over 80 percent of whom have a college degree. You will be sent matches to begin communicating with.
- Elite Singles boasts one of the highest membership numbers of any online dating site in the world.
- The site is geared toward single adults over the age of 30, most of whom have a college degree.
- You will be able to browse through three to seven matches sent to you by the site daily.
- Plenty of Greeks available for dating.
This popular online dating site invites you to 'find your Greek partner for life, love, and marriage. Eligible Greeks boasts a number of free features, including but not limited to:
- Free Profile Creation.
- Free Browsing.
- Free Chat Invites.
Visit Eligible Greeks now to experience more of what the site can offer.
In the Greek language, 'Agape' means love. Founded in 1998, Agape Online offers free trials to new members. Profile essays are featured on the site, giving members deeper insight into each potential match.
- Free Trial For New Members.
- First International Greek Dating Site.
- Profiles Featuring Essays.
Your perfect Greek match may await you at Agape Online
Featuring a 'Latest Visitor' section that features the profiles of members who have just joined or logged in, Greek Dating Net is another great way to meet Greek singles. Give a few words about yourself and what you're looking for in a match to get started.
- 100% Free Greek Dating Site.
- Featuring Blog Post on Navigating the Site.
- Featuring Blog Post on Dating Greek Singles.
Find out if Greek Dating Net is the right online dating service for you.
Another leading Greek dating site, Nice Greeks describes itself as the place 'where Greek singles become Greek couples.' Thousands of members have been successfully matched by Nice Greeks. Joining the site is free.
To learn more about Nice Greeks, and to find out if this might be the service for you, visit Nice Greeks.
Proclaiming itself the 'definite dating site for single people of Hellenic descent,' Greek Connection is free to join. Once a month Greek Connection features the profiles of a few members on its homepage, increasing their visibility.
- Free to Join.
- Free to Browse Members.
- Free Chat in Real Time
Greek Connection also features advice on how to initiate communication and even tips to help you with the grammar of any messages you send.
Though based in Australia, Greek Dating Site is a part of the 'Online Connections' dating network. This means that your profile will appear on a number of Greek Dating Site's sister sites as well, increasing your chances of finding that certain someone.
- Browse Profiles for Free.
- Send Flirts for Free.
- Modify Your Profile for Free.
Visit Greek Dating Site to learn more about the features offered.
Rounding out our list of popular online Greek dating sites is another non-niche entry. Zoosk is not a 'Greek' dating service but it does boast over 500,000 current paying members. So large a membership makes Zoosk a great place to find Greek singles.
- 40 Million Members.
- 500,000 Plus Current Paying Members.
- Over 30 Million Downloads.
Since it was started in 2007, Zoosk has served over 40 million members.
What is dating in Greece like for foreigners?
About 93 percent of people living in Greece are ethnically Greek. Their parents, grandparents, and ancestors have all come from the country. Foreigners are rarer, though international tourism makes up a large part of the economy.
If you're in Greece on vacation or have moved to the country, you might be wondering how to approach the dating scene.
Many people have noted that foreigners are attractive to Greeks. This may be because it's rare to see people from different cultures, and so foreigners appear fascinating and exotic. If you go to a bar, you might find more Greek men or women striking up conversation than you'd expect.
The country does tend to have strict traditions regarding gender roles. Women are expected to take care of the house, their husbands, and their children. While it's not unheard of for married women to work, it is taboo for a woman to make more money than her husband.
Meeting people can be difficult. Despite foreigners being considered attractive, you might have limited social opportunities to meet new people. It's common for Greek people to go out for drinks and coffee - but they tend to go with close friends, and they stick to those friend groups rather than talking to strangers.
Why is meeting someone's friends a big deal in Greek romance?
In many cultures, group dating is the norm. There are also cultures that encourage people to meet large groups of friends first and then find a romantic partner within them. But Greek culture is a little different.
In Greek culture, a person's closest friends are called their parea. The term parea is similar in weight to family. Culturally speaking, a person's parea can be thought of as their found or chosen family. It's the group of individuals that a person has fostered close enough friendships with to want lifelong partnerships.
Most people in Greece have a parea. The group tends to be made up of a mix of genders and may include people from a person's workplace, college, or childhood. Unlike American friendship groups, which tend to be segregated into different social circles, the members of a person's parea all meet up and spend time together.
Because of this, meeting the parea is considered just as crucial as meeting someone's parents. Westerners understand the concept of parental approval being important for a relationship, so why not friend approval? If a person's friends dislike their romantic partner, the relationship doesn't tend to last long.
In keeping with that, there's not a culture of abandoning friends for new romantic partners. Romantic partners are expected to be integrated into a friend group, and if they aren't compatible, the friendships take priority. Parea friendships are often lifelong commitments, while romantic relationships can be seen as more casual.
What are some common traits of Greek men in relationships?
As with any culture, you'll find a wide variety of personalities and values among individuals. Every man is a different person, and you can't expect them all to adhere strictly to the stereotypical Greek dating traditions. These observations are based around Greece's overall culture, but they shouldn't be taken as strict rules.
Greek men are known to be loyal in their serious relationships. Monogamy is the standard for dating. When it's clear that the relationship will last, men tend to be invested in making sure the romance doesn't die.
Like other people in Greece, Greek men typically have a laid-back and friendly attitude. A daily siesta is also a cultural norm, which is a rest that occurs during the hottest part of the day. In the afternoon and evening, when the day is cooler, people go back to their lives.
Greek men also tend to prioritize family. Siestas are spent with family members, and meeting a man's parents is a pretty big deal. Most Greek men value honor strongly and want to treat their partners fairly, so they tend to be kind and well-behaved.
As mentioned, most Greek people have a parea made up of close friends that they prefer to spend time with. Food is also an important part of Greek culture, though the level of expertise a man has with cooking varies widely.
What role does marriage play in Greek culture?
Marriage has been a big part of Greek culture for a long time. Even though many Western countries today have begun seeing more non-traditional relationships, most Greeks still get married. Greece happens to have one of the lowest European divorce rates.
Marriage is especially common with practicing Greek Orthodox individuals. This denomination of Christianity has some strong emphasis placed on the value of marriage and family.
There have been some changes with modernization, though. Although gender roles are largely traditional in Greek marriages, it's less common today for men to ask the permission of a woman's parents for marriage. You might see it in more rural parts of the country, but most people don't adhere to the formality.
Despite this, casual relationships are fairly common in Greece. Parents don't tend to control their child's dating life, and they may not even criticize a child's partner when they don't like them. There are a lot of couples who cohabitate for years prior to deciding to marry. Some people opt not to marry permanently.
For a couple to be legally recognized by the government, they must be married. There is no precedent for common law marriages or de facto relationships. Historically, marriages had to be performed as religious ceremonies. More recently, civil partnerships can be legally recognized with a secular ceremony.
Greece does have a higher average age of marriage than some countries. Though marriage is traditional and expected, there's not a lot of pressure to marry right away. This is partly due to the laid-back social culture.
In some places, people are expected to get married in their 20s, and being unmarried at 30 is a social taboo. That's not the case in Greece. Instead, the average woman marries at age 29, and the average man marries at age 32. Plenty of people marry in their mid to late thirties. Your 20s are meant to be spent 'finding yourself' instead.
This may be part of what contributes to Greece's low divorce rates. Another thing contributing is the length of relationships before marriage. In the strictest traditions, after a man receives the approval of his partner's parents, there will be a long engagement in which the two learn more about each other.
Even though strict tradition isn't often practiced anymore, the idea of a long relationship before marriage remains. Couples have a chance to learn about each other, about the other's family and friends, about each other's values, and about whether they can handle domestic cohabitation for their entire lives.
What does a traditional Greek family look like?
In Greek culture, the family is the single most important unit in a community. A person's family is where they get the majority of their economic and emotional support growing up. Many people continue having close bonds with family members after entering adulthood.
Greek families are known for being large and robust. It's true that in the past, the average Greek family had many members. But over the past few decades, families have become smaller as birth rates decline. The level of closeness between families remains as tight as ever, though.
Greek people take great pride in their families. Greece has a collectivist culture, which means that there's a strong emphasis placed on families and the social groups making up a community. Different families have different histories and social status in Greece.
In fact, the family name of a Greek person has an effect on how people perceive their honor, status, and reputation. Many people feel pressured to praise their family name and associate it with positive things. Greek people may also be fiercely defensive of relatives because preserving the integrity of the family name is vital.
The most common household structure is a nuclear family. Women are expected to perform the typical duties of a housewife including cooking, cleaning, childcare, and caring for their husbands. Men are expected to provide emotional support.
Extended families do tend to play a larger role than in many Western cultures, though, particularly the US. It's common for Greek people to live with their parents until well into adulthood. Some married couples may continue to live with their parents. Aging grandparents might also move into the home of their independent children so they can be cared for.
There's a stigma against nursing homes in Greek culture. Children are expected to care for aging parents. If a nursing home is involved, the cultural expectation is that children will be extremely involved in their parent's care and life.
Elderly Greek people are shown the highest respect. They are considered to have the most wisdom due to their life experience, so many people consult them when making a big decision. It's also common for people to be taught not to argue or sass their elders.
What superstitions are most common in Greek culture?
Greek culture tends to be more superstitious than most. Most superstitions can be traced back to paganism or religion. The exact cultural superstitions vary from area to area, but some of the most common include:
- 'Catching' the evil eye
- Spitting to chase misfortune away
- Black cats as bad luck
- Broken mirrors as bad luck
- Mythical hobgoblins
- Tuesday the 13th as an unlucky day
- Saying the same phrase 'jinx'
It's common for people in Greek villages to believe that a person's envy or jealous compliment can make them catch 'the evil eye.' When this happens, the person feels psychologically and physically bad. A special prayer must be done by an expert to cleanse the person from this pain.
People who believe in the evil eye wear charms to protect against it. You may have seen these types of charms before: blue beads with eyes painted on them.
Spitting is supposed to chase away the devil. When people talk about bad news, the people they're talking to may spit three times. Another cultural example would be that if someone compliments the beauty of a baby or child, they have to spit on the person they complimented to keep them from catching the evil eye.
Like in many Western traditions, black cats and broken mirrors are bad luck. Tuesday the 13th is an unlucky day rather than Friday the 13th.
In Greek tradition, hobgoblins are small and deformed creatures. They live underground, but between Christmas and January 6, they emerge onto the surface and play pranks. On January 6, otherwise known as Epiphany Day, a village priest sprinkles the rooms in every house with holy water to make the hobgoblins go back underground.
In the US, when people say the same thing simultaneously, they might say, 'Jinx!' Rules vary, but oftentimes the 'jinxed' partner can't talk for a period of time. Greek culture has a similar tradition. People who speak simultaneously will say 'piase kokkino,' which means 'touch red.' They'll then touch whatever red object they first find.
This is because Greek superstitions state that speaking simultaneously is an omen. If the people don't touch a red object, they're doomed to have an argument or fight.
What are the most important holidays and celebrations to Greeks?
Easter is by far the most important cultural holiday. Some Greek-specific holidays include:
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- Name days, which are an annual celebration of the saint a person is named after, and considered more important than birthdays
- Carnival or Apokries, a two-week festival of parties and feasts
- Clean Monday, the first day of Lent, which families spend together
- Greek Independence Day, celebrating the country's independence from the Ottoman Empire
- Ohi Day, when Greeks celebrate the refusal of dictator Metaxas to let Italians invade the country
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