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I dont think that Greece ever adopted a strict school uniform rule. During the 1930s and 40s (or something like that), there was no perscribed school uniform, but boys of school age had to wear a special hat with an owl badge on it. It looked rather like a police cap and they should wear it at all times even outside school, even at play. Those caps persisted onto the 1950s. If a teacher caught them not wearing it they would be punished next day at school. In the 1960s and 70s the uniform was comprised of something like a blue overall. I am not sure about that but the uniform surely didnt look like those of the U.K. or other European schools. School uniforms were actually banned in 1981. But even before children didnt wear strict school uniforms. The school uniform rules in Greece had so many expeptions which make it hard to understand who wore what and when. A HBC reader has helped to better understand school uniform trends by describing chronological trends. School uniform appears to have been caught up in wider political debates in Greece.
to clear things out. Note that while HBC likes to organize school uniforms by decade, so that school trends in compared chronologically in diffent countries. This was difficult in the case of Greece because important decissions were made on the national level by government administrations that do not fit neatly into precise decades.
We have some unformation on education in ancint Greece, but relatively limited information about more modern times. Educational ideas of ancient Greece are the fundamental basi of modern liberals arts education. Greece has perhaps the lonest historical tradition of eduction (paideia) of any country. Paideia was a central societal institution in the Greek and wider Hellenistic world. Unlike Western Europe, education dud not collapse with the fall of Rome. Education continued in the Eastern or what came to be called the Byzantine Empire. The first European institution that can be called a university was founded in Constantinople (5th century AD)/ It operated in one form or another until Contantinople fell to the Ottoman Turks (1453). The University of Constantinople proved to be Christian Europe's first secular institution of higher learning. Unlike later medieval universities, no religious subjects were taught. And given the initial meaning, a corporation of students, the world’s first true university. we do not know much about Greek schools during the Ottoman era. We know virtully nothing about the 19th century. We have begun to develop some limited information about the 20th century.
We do not know a great deal about Greek education in the early-20th century yet. We believe that it was a fairly standard east and central European scgool system. It s primar features were set by a German influenced academic stanndard and and Greece's limited ability to fully fimance a public education system. As in most of Europe. Most children attended orimaru school, although not all children completed the full program. Mist villiages of any size had a primary school. Many were very basic facilities. Secondry schooling was far more limitd although of a high standard. Only children in the cities had access to secondary schools. Thus baiclly limited secondary eduction to the middle class. we have archived some 1930s school images giving us a look at some of rhecschools duing the decase.
The Germans invaded Greece and quickly defeated the Greeks and British who attempted to assist the Greeks, The country was tyen divided into Axis occupation zones. The Italians occupied most of the country. The Germans occupied Athens and other areas. The Bulgarians occupied the northeast. Conditions during the occupation were harsh. German seizure of food supplies caused a famine in Athens. Anti-partisans actions were very brutal. The Bulgarians essentilly depopulated a substantial part of their occupation zone. The Greek Government during the occupation oversaw a ranging inflation which along with the Axis occupation left the country in shambles. I am not entirely sure what happened to the schools during the occupation. The Government could not afford to pay teachers a living wage. We think many schools closed. Some were destroyed, but we have gew details at this time. The Germans replaced the Italiand (1943). Allied disinformation campaigns convinved OKW that the Allies were planning to invade. They rushed in reinforcements from the Wehrmacht's dwindling reserves. This mean they were not available for the critical campaigns in the Eastand West. But the Germans did use them to intensify the anti-partisan campaign. The Germans finally departed, afraid of being cut off by the advancing Red Army (September 1944). The Greeks were saddled withthe task of piecing together a devastated country. Tagically the Axis occupation was followed by a vicious civil war as the Communists who had played a major role in the occupation attempted to seize control. One task was to get the school system running again. Many schools had been destroyed. Many teachers taught in primitive conditions. Book and supplies were in very short supply. School authorities didn't require students to wear a school uniform. Maby children attended school in ragged clothing and barefoot. Most boys wore short pants to school. I'm not sure if smocks were worn.
There were two levels of schooling at that period in Greece. "Demotiko" (elementary school) for children of ages 6-11 and "Gymnasio" (high school) for children of ages 12-17. Schools operated 6 days a week during 8-12 in the morning and 3-5 in the afternoon. Besides the summer, the school holidays were Christmas, Easter, "Kathara Deftera", Independence day and "Ochi" day. The school uniform for the Demotiko consisted of blue smock with white
collar for girls and boys. The term used for the school uniform in Greece is "Scholiki podia" or simply "Podia" which means "Apron". This was the standard uniform but in many cases it was acceptable for boys to wear a blue sweater with blue or grey short or long trousers instead. In poor and/or isolated regions teachers and school authorities tolerated non uniformed students. As a result almost none of the children in those areas wore
a uniform in school. For the Gymnasio school uniforms were mandatory. While girls still had to wear the blue smock with the white collar, boys had to wear a simple long or
short trousers with a shirt/sweater/blazer (the combination varied on
weather conditions and/or economic prosperity of the family) and a necesairy
cap with the emblem of an owl (symbol of wisdom in ancient Greece). Boys had to wear the cap in and outside school. If they were caught without the cap they would be punished at school. The cap was abolished in 1964 from the reformist government of George Papandreou.
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. School photographs during this period, however, show considerable 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.
In 1982 the social democrat government of Andreas Papandreou abolished the school uniform once and forever. In the school year of 1982 students were asked to solve the following mathematical problem: "The fashion designer X has 30 meters of blue cloth left in stock due to the abolishment of the school uniform. How many..." One major change from the mid 70s on was the introduction of a specific sport outfit for the class of physical education. Cotton trousers with matched tops were required for both boys and girls in Demotiko and Gymnasio. At the beginning teachers tolerated students who couldn't afford them but
when they became cheap in late 70s they were strictly required for PE class. The term used for this outfit is "forma" or in plural "formes" which means uniform in Greek. In the 1980s with the abolisshment of school uniform, children began wearing their formes to class as school garments rather than PE garments. But they have nothing to do with school uniforms since students can buy any type and color they like. Since the late 80s Nike, Adidas and other brands are prefered by students over the classic "made in Greece" cheap cotton forms. They continue to be very popular.
There have been significant changes in Greek education, especially after World War II. Even after the War it many Greek parents did not send their girls to secondary school. Today it is mandatory to enroll in school for the first 9 grades, but 95 percent of the students choose to finish school. More than that, more than 80 percent enroll in
universities and colleges. Since education in Greece (according to the 1975 constitution) is completely free (no fees, free books but also free food and housing for students from low income families) most students decide to enroll anyway.
Related Chronolgy Pages in the Boys' Historical Web Site
[The 1880s]
[The 1930s]
[The 1940s]
[The 1930s]
[The 1940s]
[The 1950s]
[The 1960s]
[The 1970s]
[The 1980s]
Related Style Pages in the Boys' Historical Web Site
[Long pants suits]
[Short pants suits]
[Socks]
[Eton suits]
[Jacket and trousers]
[Blazer]
[School sandals]
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