Greece, and my work has been mainly to check, to correct, and to amplify; but for the latter half I would ask the indulgent consideration which may fairly be extended to a pioneer. Analogies and coincidences in the beliefs and customs of modern and of ancient Greece have indeed been pointed out by others; but no large attempt has previously been made to trace the continuity of the life and thought of the Greek people, and to exhibit modern Greek folklore as an essential factor in the interpretation of ancient Greek religion.
It is my hope that this book will prove interesting not to Greek scholars only, but to readers who have little or no acquaintance with Greek. All quotations whether from the ancient or modern language are translated, and references to ancient and modern writers are distinguished by the use of the ordinary Latinised names and titles in the case of the former, and the retention of the Greek character for denoting the latter. As regards the transliteration of modern Greek words, I have made no attempt to represent the exact sound, except to indicate in some words the accented syllable and to make the obvious substitution of the English v for the Greek β; but to replace (
Greek characters) by gh and (Greek characters)[Greek: d] by dh, as is sometimes done, gives to words an uncouth appearance without assisting the majority of readers in their pronunciation.
It remains only to express my thanks to the reviser of my proofs, Mr W. S. Hadley of Pembroke College, but these are the hardest to express adequately. I was conscious of making no small demand on the kindness of the Tutor of a large College when I asked him to do me this service; and I am conscious now that any words in acknowledgement of his kindness are a poor expression of my gratitude for the generous measure of time and of trouble which he has expended on each page.
Lastly I would thank the Syndics of the University Press for their willingness to undertake the publication of this book, and the staff of the Press for their unfailing courtesy in the course of its preparation.
Pembroke College,
Cambridge,
December 31, 1909.
