Figure 1.--These children were photographed in Athens during 1978. Almost all the boys and girls are wearing the blue smock uniform, but in most cases it is hidden under overcoats and sweaters or accompanied with fashionable bell bottom trousers. They are involved in the time-honored activity of feeding the pigions in Syntagma Square in Athens (just in front of the Parliament with the Evzones) during a school outing. Note that several children are more interested in the pigeons than having their pictures taken. Click on the image to learn more about the pigeons.

The democratic Karamanlis government of 1974 changed the shool uniform requirements. Now, boys and girls in Demotiko had to wear the blue smock with the white collar and there were theoretically no exceptions to the rule. HBC finds its curious that a country so at odds with neighboring Turkey would adopt a type school uniform so similar to the Turkish school uniform. Of course, the blue and white colors of the smock and collar are in the Greek national colors. School photographs during this period, show some divrsity in what the children wore. This varied greatly from school to school and over time. There were no regulations as to what children wore with their smocks. More and more boys began wearing long pants to school during this period--especilly in the cooler winter months. In Gymnasio there were significant differences as to the regulations for boys and girls. The girls had to wear the smock with the collar but boys weren't required to wear any kind of uniform or cap. Presumably fashion concious Greek girls were not to pleased about that. Boys were required however to wear proper clothes and keep their haircuts short. This was something that was not that easy since bell bottoms and long hair were extremely fashionable in Greece at that time. School authorities found these regulations increasingly difficult to enforce by the late 1970s.

Created: April 26, 2002
Last updated: April 27, 2002