Introduction

The present book draws on a wide range of archives from which original information is obtained. It also includes rich literature pertaining to women’s social standing. It aspires to be ground-breaking in the field of gender studies. More specifically, it studies regions of southern and central Europe particularly focusing on the elite ladies’ lives and on the prevailing social norms with the aim to explore their cultural background, to study their relations to their peers of the western world as well as to look to the chances they stood in order to pursue studies in a transnational setting. Furthermore, it delves into the reasons of their failure, in some cases. In addition, the book seeks to answer the questions how and in what way a number of them succeeded in breaking free of social constraints imposed on them, and how they managed to move forward. Another theme that is also studied is the way masculinity and femininity intertwined as this facet hitherto remains under-researched. The present monograph attempts to reach a broader readership. As its chapters attest, they pertain to a number of portraits of women mainly living in southeastern and central Europe. The above ladies had a commonly shared characteristic: the same Greek origin. Besides, most of them belonged to the urban elite merchant class while the majority of them showed largesse by means of exercising charity. Additionally, in order to diversify its readership, the present book explores the education of the daughters of the diaspora Greeks intending to provide the necessary signposts as to examine the idea of patriotism and what it entailed. Also, it seeks to explore transculturality and cosmopolitanism. The Greek merchants who were organized in international networks of commerce wished their daughters to be supplied with a good level of schooling notwithstanding the fact that priority for pursuing higher studies was given to male members of the family as the latter enjoyed the privilege of attending universities.