BBC Quiz

[Salpigoal]

BBC has a quiz on this Slavic state. My annoyance at the constant referral to them as "Macedonians".

http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4687276.stm?markResults=true&x=60&y=20

[preston]

BBC has a quiz on this Slavic state. My annoyance at the constant referral to them as "Macedonians".

http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4687276.stm?markResults=true&x=60&y=20

Well...if they do not they will give away the answer to the quiz...don't you think so???
:clapping: :clapping: :clapping: :clapping: :clapping:

[Tsontos]

What happened when the Macedonian King Alexander I (498-454BC) applied to race in the Olympics?


Correct answer:

C: Greek athletes protested, saying they would not run with a barbarian



the quizzes explanation:

Herodotus says Alexander I took part in the games, but his name cannot be found in the records.


By what records are they going then that Greeks protested because he was a barbarian?

its just a cheap shot.

there are thousands of macedonians who are recorded as having compteted and I have never even heard about this claim

[Amyntas]

cant anyone email them that their quiz isnt relaying on facts??

[Spartan]

The biggest problem with that quiz is their connecting the modern country FYROM(as they call it Macedonia) with the ancient Empire of Macedonia. This is incorrect and misleading. When people read this they will automatically think the two are on in the same.

The one good thing is that is shows the language being closest to Bulgarian!

[Spartan]

I have posted a comment on the Quiz with BBC, commenting on the misleading and innacurate questions! Especially, #'s 7 and 8.


Here is what I e-mailed them.


"In your recent "quiz" (February 14th) on the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, you made the statement that you would "...largely ignore politics, focusing instead on history, geography, language culture and sport."

Even though the majority of the quiz does remain within the guidelines mentioned, there are two inaccurate and misleading questions and answers. I have commented on each below.

Question #7

In which country is the ancient Macedonian capital of Pella situated?

A: Greece
B: Bulgaria
C: Serbia

This question is misleading in that, if someone with no idea of the history of the Balkans reads it, they would assume that the modern country occupies the ancient territory and that the people of modern "Macedonia" are the descendants of the ancient Macedonians. This as, is well known, is not the case.

Connecting Ancient Macedonia with Modern Macedonia should have never been attempted considering, only 20-25% of the entire country of F.Y.R.O.M occupies the ancient kingdom. This of course was only after the expansion under Philip II! The original kingdom, pre-Philip, lays entirely within the border of the modern Republic of Greece. So when discussing the history of modern "Macedonia" the questions should deal with the arrival of the Slavs into the Balkans during the late 6th century and no time before.

Next, Question #8

What happened when the Macedonian King Alexander I (498-454BC) applied to race in the Olympics?

A: The runner bearing the reply was kidnapped en route
B: The King was told he could run as long as he remained sober
C: Greek athletes protested, saying they would not run with a barbarian

"Herodotus says Alexander I took part in the games, but his name cannot be found in the records."

The correct answer given is only half there. The part that is missing is that the Helladonikai(judges) of the Olympics were presented with Alexanders geneological tree showing his descendancy from Argos and was thus accepted as Greek.

Also, for reasons of accuracy the creator of the quiz should not have applied the meaning of "barbarian" as being non-Greek. All one has to do is look into "The Oxford Dictionary Of The Classical World" to find what was the true meaning of the word at that time. Barbarian had two main definitions, the first being "non-Greek" while the second was uncivilized and backwoods. The second meaning is attested by the lifestyles and mode of subsistance the Ancient Macedonians lead compared to the City-States. If one compares the cultures of the Ancient Macedonians with those of the Epiriots and the Acarnanians(also considered Barbarians by the City-States), one would see that there is very little difference between them and many other Greeks.

Furthermore, there are numerous ancient sources that consistantly point to the Ancient Macedonians as being Greek, including Hesiod dating to 700 B.C.E, more than 200 years before Alexander I.

In future posting on topics of such a nature, I would suggest the author to do two things. The first is to look at the maps of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia and compare them to the modern country of "Macedonia". The second would be to read-up on the history of the region and the developement of the modern state, so further confusion is not created.

I appreciate you taking the time to read my comments and hope that any further confusion can be defused before being published. "


I intentionally avoided all political issues in order to stick with the guidelines the author posted. This way it would make him appear more hypocritical. Just to let everyone know I ONLY used the term "Macedonia" to retain a neutral tone in my response. This was so I would be recieved as a "non-combatant" and would be taken more seriously. So please, please don't take it the wrong way!:D

[preston]

:clapping: Well done Spartan,..could not have puted better my self!