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GCSE Classics · key term
A courtesan or paid female companion in ancient Greece, associated with sexual services, entertainment and sometimes educated conversation. The plural is hetairai; the label did not establish whether a woman was free or enslaved.
Used by OCR
Paper 2
Revise: GreeceA hetaira might be enslaved, purchase her freedom, or become the long-term companion of one man. Nor did musical skill belong exclusively to hetairai: women described as pornai could also perform at parties.
Distinguish a woman's occupation from her legal status: a hetaira could be enslaved, freed or free.
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