doric

Doric refers to two related but distinct uses in the ancient world: a group of Greek dialects and the oldest of the three principal orders of classical architecture. The term is derived from the Dorians, an ancient Greek people, and it came to denote a stylistic tradition in both language and building.

Doric Greek is a branch of the ancient Greek language. Dialects known as Doric were spoken in parts of southern Greece, including the Peloponnese, western Greece, and some Aegean islands, as well as in many western Greek colonies in Sicily and southern Italy. Doric is distinguished in historical sources from other Greek dialect groups such as Ionic and Aeolic. In inscriptions and literature, Doric forms appear in specific regional varieties, and the dialect gradually declined in everyday use with the spread of Koine Greek in the Hellenistic and later periods.

In architecture, the Doric order is the oldest of the canonical Greek architectural orders and is known for its sturdy, masculine proportion. Typical features include stout fluted columns with no base, a simple rounded capital (echinus) and flat abacus, and a plain architrave. The frieze often contains triglyphs and metopes, and the shaft commonly has about 20 flutes with a gentle taper. The style emphasizes horizontal rather than ornate vertical elaboration. Doric temples were common on the Greek mainland and in Magna Graecia, with notable examples such as the Temple of Hera at Olympia and the Temple of Concordia at Agrigento. The Parthenon’s exterior is Doric, paired with an Ionic frieze inside.

The Doric tradition influenced later architectural practice and remains a fundamental reference in the study of classical architecture and ancient Greek culture.