Pontic Greeks and Cretan Greeks performing dances to the music of each other’s regions. | Unapologetically Greek

"Who are the Greeks of the Black Sea?" They are known as Pontic Greeks—an ancient Hellenic community that settled along the southern shores of the Black Sea over 2,500 years ago, carrying Hellenic language, trade, and Orthodox Christianity with them. They held on to their Greek identity for centuries, even through Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman rule. Pontic traditions run deep, with hauntingly beautiful music, circular dances like the Serra, and a unique Pontic dialect that echoes ancient Greek.