This book is an ambitious synthesis of the social, economic, political and cultural interactions between Greeks and non-Greeks in the Mediterranean world during the Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic periods. Instead of traditional and static distinctions between Greeks and Others, Professor Vlassopoulos explores the diversity of interactions between Greeks and non-Greeks in four parallel but interconnected worlds: the world of networks, the world of apoikiai ('colonies'), the Panhellenic world and the world of empires. These diverse interactions set into motion processes of globalisation; but the emergence of a shared material and cultural koine across the Mediterranean was accompanied by the diverse ways in which Greek and non-Greek cultures adopted and adapted elements of this global koine. The book explores the paradoxical role of Greek culture in the processes of ancient globalisation, as well as the peculiar way in which Greek culture was shaped by its interaction with non-Greek cultures.

'My favourite history book of the year so far? No contest: Kostas Vlassopoulos's Greeks and Barbarians … This book sets a new agenda in the field.'

Paul Cartledge Source: BBC History Magazine

'One of this book's most admirable qualities is that its own curiosity is as boundless as that of the Greeks it describes. Its range of reference is dizzying. … comfortably the best general account of the topic in English (and one written accessibly for a wide student and general readership).'

Thomas Harrison Source: Anglo-Hellenic Review