Greek Law

Abstract

The study of Greek law began in the late 19th century as an offshoot of the study of Roman law. The field was long dominated by scholars from Continental Europe, who were well versed in Roman law, the direct ancestor of their legal systems. In the second half of the 20th century, anglophone scholars, often with backgrounds in history or literature, began to study Greek (primarily Athenian) law, and that trend continues today. Anglophone scholars question whether Greek law (as opposed to Greek laws) ever existed, but most Continental scholars believe in Greek law.