Crete’s long and multicultural past is reflected in every aspect of modern Cretan life, including the language, dance, music, food, arts and traditional crafts.

The folk tradition of Crete remains an inexhaustible and living cultural heritage. Customs, beliefs, material and spiritual traditions, as well as habits rooted in antiquity, have shaped the core of life on the island and continue to survive through the generations. The Cretan dialect is regarded as one of the oldest surviving Greek dialects and has long attracted scholarly interest. Dozens of its words have ancient Greek or archaic origins, while the centuries of Arab, Venetian and Ottoman presence have also left clear traces in its vocabulary.

Descendants of Zeus

Hardened by the difficulties of life and the island’s rugged landscape, the people of Crete remain genuine, proud and warm-hearted. They take particular pleasure in sharing their feelings, food and hospitality with visitors.

The Greek word philoxenia, meaning hospitality, derives from the words philos, meaning friend, and xenos, meaning stranger or guest. Its deeper meaning is therefore to welcome a stranger and treat them as a friend.

As the descendants of Cretan-born Zeus, the protector of strangers and god of hospitality, Cretans are renowned for welcoming visitors openly and without expecting anything in return. Their hospitality is founded on generosity and respect for other people.

It is almost impossible to stop at a traditional coffee shop in a Cretan village to ask for directions or assistance without being offered at least a glass of raki, often accompanied by a small plate of local food.

Myths

Crete is inseparably connected with myths and legends that reach back to the earliest centuries of Greek history. According to mythology, it was here that Rhea gave birth to Zeus, who would later become the father of the gods and humans and the protector of hospitality. Both the Diktaean Cave at Psychro and the Idaean Cave are associated with his birth, protection and upbringing.

Later, Zeus assumed the form of a white bull and abducted the beautiful Phoenician princess Europa, carrying her across the sea to Crete. Beneath the evergreen plane tree of Gortyn, which survives to this day, Zeus and Europa were united. From their union was born Minos, the legendary king of the first great European civilization, the Minoan civilization, while the continent of Europe took its name from Europa.

It was also on Crete that the ingenious craftsman Daedalus designed the famous Labyrinth in which the Minotaur was imprisoned. According to the myth, Daedalus later defied the limitations of the human body and escaped from the island by flying with his son Icarus. Inside the same dark Labyrinth, Theseus killed the Minotaur and managed to find his way out by following Ariadne’s thread.

The bronze giant Talos, often described as the first robot of mythology, was the tireless guardian of Crete. He circled the island three times every day, protecting its shores from approaching enemies, until he was eventually defeated by the Argonauts.

Legends of supernatural beings and apparitions remain alive even today. The best known are the Drosoulites, shadowy figures said to appear outside the fortress of Frangokastelo during the first hours of dawn, usually between May and June. According to tradition, they are the souls of warriors who died there while fighting the Ottomans.

Musical Tradition

The island has a long and exceptionally rich musical tradition, with roots reaching back to antiquity. It was strongly influenced by Byzantine music and enriched over the centuries by the musical cultures of the wider eastern Mediterranean. Through family gatherings, village festivals and religious celebrations, residents and visitors are introduced to the distinctive musical culture of Crete.

Cretan music is considered one of the most vibrant folk traditions in Greece. It has not remained frozen in the past, but continues to evolve and creatively incorporate contemporary musical elements, while still expressing and commenting on modern life.

Improvisation is one of the defining characteristics of Cretan musicians and dancers. Performers do not merely repeat a fixed melody, but enrich it with spontaneous variations that respond to the atmosphere of the celebration and the movements of the dancers. The dancers, in turn, improvise their steps and figures in constant dialogue with the musicians.

The mantinades are short rhyming couplets that express the feelings, thoughts and everyday experiences of the Cretan people. They speak of love, sorrow, separation, friendship, honour and every emotion that springs from the sensitive Cretan soul. Particularly impressive are the traditional mantinada contests, during which one improvised couplet follows another as an answer or challenge to the opposing singer, sometimes continuing for many hours.

In western Crete, groups of men traditionally sing the powerful rizitika songs, one of the oldest surviving forms of the island’s musical and poetic heritage.

The Dances of Crete

According to ancient tradition, Greek music and dance first appeared on Crete, where Rhea, the Mother of the Gods, taught them to the armed Kouretes as part of their ritual purification. The most celebrated ancient Cretan dance was the warlike Pyrrhic dance. Many of today’s Cretan dances are considered distant echoes of the circular and martial dances of the Kouretes.

Traditional Cretan dances are performed by both men and women, who often wear the magnificent traditional Cretan costume during formal events. Some dances are fast and vigorous, while others are slow and restrained, yet they are always dynamic and imposing. When performed by groups of men, their movements strongly recall ancient warrior dances.

To the sound of the Cretan lyra or violin, accompanied mainly by the laouto and, more rarely, by instruments such as the boulgari, askomandoura or thiamboli, the dancers form a circle and perform the elaborate steps of the traditional dances. The first dancer, usually a man, is supported by the hand of the second dancer and performs individual leaps and skilful figures known as talimia.

Every part of the island has its own traditional dances, many of which preserve their ancient circular form and continue to be performed regularly. The best-known Cretan dances include the Pentozalis, Kastrinos Pidichtos, Sousta, Siganos and Chaniotikos Syrtos.

The famous melody of “Zorba the Greek” by Mikis Theodorakis was based on an older form of the Chaniotikos Syrtos.

The Cretan Diet

The Cretan diet embodies an entire philosophy of life. It is not limited to particular dishes or ingredients, but is closely connected with the traditional way of life, seasonal food, family gatherings and the social role of the shared meal.

The inhabitants of this hospitable island developed their ancient dietary habits around the products generously provided by the Cretan land: olive oil, wheat, wine, honey, cheese and dairy products, as well as wild greens and aromatic herbs. Traditionally, meat appeared on the table less frequently, especially because of the long fasting periods observed throughout the year.

Gatherings around the table, accompanied by music, conversation and dance, remain one of the favourite customs of the Cretans. Food is not simply a means of nourishment, but a way of expressing hospitality, strengthening social bonds and sharing the produce of the land with family, friends and visitors.

Festivals and Celebrations

Cretans have always loved the arts, public gatherings and celebrations, which allow them to meet, communicate and share their emotions with others.

During summer evenings, towns and villages throughout the island host art exhibitions and festivals devoted to theatre, music, cinema and dance. Concerts are organised in stadiums, archaeological sites, Venetian fortifications and small open-air theatres in the countryside.

The feast days of saints are traditionally accompanied by large village festivals, with the sound of the Cretan lyra, traditional dances and communal meals in village squares or beside churches. Many of the customs associated with these celebrations are believed to preserve elements whose roots reach as far back as Minoan Crete.

Numerous local festivals are dedicated to products associated with a particular village or region and always provide an opportunity for a large celebration. Festivals devoted to potatoes, raki, courgettes, traditional bread, wine, myzithra, graviera cheese, snails, cherries and apples are only a few examples. They are generally accompanied by music, dancing and free tastings of the local products.

When the short Cretan winter arrives, the desire for celebration does not disappear. Groups of friends gather around the rakokazana, the traditional raki distilleries, where the ritual of distilling tsikoudia soon develops into a lively feast with food, music and dancing.

The Culture of Water and Wind

Crete’s limited water resources and uneven rainfall led its inhabitants to construct major works for collecting and transporting water to settlements and cities. Surviving sections of the Roman aqueduct that supplied ancient Hersonissos remain impressive, while the aqueduct bridges of the enormous Venetian Morosini Aqueduct carried water from springs near Archanes and Skalani to the heart of Candia, present-day Heraklion.

In the larger cities, water was distributed through elaborate public fountains. The best known is the Morosini Fountain, also known as the Lions Fountain, situated in the centre of Heraklion. In parts of Crete where water was scarce, particularly in mountainous Mirabelo, large stone-built cisterns and wells were constructed and many of them survive today.

Although Crete is not known for large rivers, the island possesses some of the most beautiful stone bridges in Greece. The most famous is the arched bridge of Preveli. Of particular archaeological importance are the ancient bridge of Eleftherna, constructed using a corbelled system, and the Elliniki Kamara at Vrysses in Apokoronas.

In western Crete, where rainfall is more abundant, numerous watermills were built to grind grain. In the drier landscape of eastern Crete, however, the inhabitants turned to the power of the wind. This resulted in the creation of large groups of windmills known locally as milotopia. The windmill complex at Ambelos, on the edge of the Lassithi Plateau, is the largest traditional stone windmill complex in Greece, while many other windmill sites survive in mountainous Mirabelo.

Apart from grinding grain, the need to pump water for the irrigation of extensive cultivated areas inspired the inhabitants of Lassithi to construct lightweight metal windmills. These simple but ingenious machines drew water from wells and once turned in their thousands across the plateaus of Lassithi and Ziros.

During the middle of the 20th century, the Lassithi Plateau had approximately 12,000 metal windmills. Together they formed what has often been described as the first large wind farm in the world, with an estimated total power of around 5 MW.