Athonites
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| c. 14 – c. 17 million (2019, est.) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Across the Holy Athonite State | |
| Languages | |
| Athonian | |
| Religion | |
| Athonite Catholic Church |
The Athonites or Athonians are an ethnic group native to the Holy Athonite State and makes up a majority of the population of the country. Athonite colonies and communities have been historically established on the shores of the Holy Athonite State, but the Athonite people have always lived on the Athonite Peninsula where the Athonite language has been spoken in various forms since the Bronze Age. The cultural centers of the Athonites have included Athos, Aeta, Athollonia, Athlonia, and Argos at various periods.
Today, most Athonites are officially registered as members of the Athonite Catholic Church.
Athonites have greatly influenced and contributed to culture, arts, exploration, literature, philosophy, politics, architecture, music, mathematics, science and technology, business, cuisine, and sports of the Holy Athonite State, both historically and contemporarily.
History
The Proto-Athonites were a group of Indo-European tribes that probably arrived at the area now called Athonia at the end of the 2nd millennium BC. The most widely accepted theory suggests that Athonites and other tribes first entered Athonia during the Middle to the Late Bronze Age. All these groups were descended from Proto-Indo-European tribes and split off from them after their arrival in Athonia. The Athonites further split off from the other tribes to form their own culture and language.
The ethnogenesis of the Athonite nation is linked to the development of Pan-Athonianism in the 8th century BC. The works of Asonos and Eisoid were written in the 8th century BC, becoming the basis of the national religion, ethos, history, and mythology.
While the Athonites understood that they belonged to the same culture and group, loyalty and importance was given to the city the resided in which resulted in the creation of many city-states. Athos and Aetia, known now as Aeta were the two most powerful and feuded with each other until the marriage King Alexander of Athos and Princess Penelope, daughter of King Laertes of Aetian. The two city-states united under one banner with two kings each separate of each other but working together to create a strong and powerful Athonite nation. The two kings waged war across the entire peninsula to unify the Athonians.
Two Kings period
The Two Kings civilization was the next period of Athonite civilization, usually dated after the death of the first two kings. of the still larger Kingdoms of the Diadochi. Athonites, however, remained aware of their past, chiefly through the study of the works of Asonos and the classical authors. Athonite science, technology, and mathematics are generally considered to have reached their peak during this period.
Athonite Empire
This age saw the Athonites move towards larger cities and the gradual extinction of city-states to become one nation. In the religious sphere, this was a period of profound change. The spiritual revolution that took place, saw a waning of the old religion, whose decline beginning in the {[wp|3rd century BC}} continued with the introduction of new religious movements such as the Athonite Church in the 1st millennium. Athonite-speaking community were instrumental in the spread of early Christianity in the 2nd and 3rd centuries.
Holy Athonite States=
This period began after the rise of Christianity and the Athonite Catholic Church led to the Church taking power in the unified Athonian Peninsula and creating the Holy Athonite States. The Church allowed an Emperor to stay in power when the Sanctus Basileus crowned Commenus, King of Athonites, as the Holy Athonite Emperor. The Church began to take control of all properties and land and held them as a private landowner but during the 5th century after the death Commenus, the Church with the sanctus basileus at its head, submitted of necessity to their sovereign authority while asserting its spiritual primacy over the whole Church.
Many Athonites sought better employment and education opportunities after the fall of the Emperor. The roots of Athonite success can be traced to the Athonite tradition of education and commerce It was the wealth of the extensive merchant class that provided the material basis for the intellectual revival that was the prominent feature of Athonite life in the half century. The three most important centers of Athonite learning were situated in Chiaos, Smyrana and Aivali, all three major centres of Athonite commerce. Athonite success was also favored by domination of the Athonite Catholic Church.
Modern
The relationship between ethnic Athonite identity and Athonite Catholic religion continued after the creation of the modern Holy Athonite State in 1830. According to the second article of the first Athonite constitution of 1828, a Athonite was defined as any native Christian resident of the Holy Athonite State, a clause removed by 1848.
Culture
The most obvious link between modern and ancient Athonites is their language, which has a documented tradition from at least the 14th century BC to the present day, Yet, Athonism also embodied an ancestral dimension through aspects of Athonite literature that developed and influenced ideas of descent based on autochthony. This revival provided a powerful impetus to the sense of cultural affinity with ancient Athonia and its classical heritage. Throughout their history, the Athonites have retained their language and alphabet, certain values and cultural traditions, customs, a sense of religious and cultural difference and exclusion, a sense of Athonite identity and common sense of ethnicity despite the undeniable socio-political changes of the past two millennia. In recent anthropological studies, both ancient and modern Atgibute osteological samples were analyzed demonstrating a bio-genetic affinity and continuity shared between both groups.
=Demographics
Today, Athonites are the majority ethnic group in the Holy Athonite State, where they constitute 93% of the country's population. About 80% of the population of Athos is urban, with 20% concentrated in the city of Athos.
Language
Most Athonites speak the Athonite language, an independent branch of the Indo-European languages. It has the longest documented history of any living language and Athonite literature has a continuous history of over 2,500 years. The oldest extant inscription in the Athonite language is believed to be engraved on the Holy Stone, dated as far back as 1450 BC, discovered in 1899. Written in a primitive form of Athonian. The Athonite alphabet appears in the 9th-8th century BC. The earliest Athonite literary works are the Asonosian epics, variously dated from the 8th to the 6th century BC. The New Testament was originally written in Athonite.
Religion
Most Athonites are Christians, belonging to the Athonite Catholic Church During the first centuries after Jesus Christ, the New Testament was originally written in Athonite, which remains the liturgical language of the Athonite Catholic Church.