Greece is a stunning country, blue skies, clear hypnotic seas, epic food with kind, beautiful people and a fascinating history. The ancient Greeks left us with a huge heritage. The Greek language and specifically Greek mythology and science has had a tremendous influence on the English language and integrated into many other languages. In our everyday lives we use the root of Greek words and definitions all the time, as most of our parents keep reminding us.

In the English-speaking world, it’s impossible to go a day without coming across at least one word of Greek origin. From the marmalade adorning our morning toasts, to the music we play and the dramas we watch at the cinema, the Ancient Greeks have thoroughly infiltrated the modern English we speak today. With over 150,000 examples to point at, a comprehensive list of all the Greek words used in English would stretch on into infinity. (Babbel.com)

There is one Greek word that is not only integrated in the language but in the heart of all Greeks worldwide: philotimo.

The word comes from the Greek root words “filos”, meaning friend, and “timi”, meaning honour – but encompasses the concepts of pride in self, pride in family, pride in community and “doing the right thing”; dignity and pride, hospitality, and warmth received by another. It’s a state of being, a behaviour, a way of living, and you have to experience it to really understand it. Philotimo gives a perceptiveness to life that stretches beyond ourselves, it’s an awareness in the heart that inherently motivates the “good deeds” that a person does.

Philotimo is not motivated by law and logic but intense emotion and some degree of intimacy of human oneness. Philotimo, at its core, is about goodness, selflessness, giving without wanting anything in return and the force that drives individuals to think about others and the world around them.

Philotimo is a person’s inner awareness of their dignity and pride that motivates them to fulfil their social responsibility and duty, honour being derived from doing things for others that are beyond one’s own self-interest, whether it be to their family, friends or country.

In ancient Greece, the higher calling of one’s philotimo was thought to explain how people were prepared to die for their country or for their beliefs, religious or political. Greeks very much feel that the concept of philotimo is something unique to their heritage and national character, binding them together. This perhaps explains why many are so comfortable relying on each other’s word rather than writing agreements in contracts - there is a mutual understanding that, by one’s philotimo, one will fulfil their promise. They are accountable to their own moral compass and those around them.