The ‘Sinful’ Greek Village Where Wives and Mistresses Lived Together

In a small village in Greece, where secrets quietly simmered beneath the surface, adultery was not only tolerated—it was an unspoken norm. In this corner of the world, a man could live openly with both his wife and his lover, their lives intertwined in plain view, yet everyone remained silent, as if it were a common secret shared by the villagers.

This place, Chora of Gortynia in Arcadia, stood in stark contrast to the social norms and Christian ethics of the 1950s and ’60s, where such behavior would have been unthinkable elsewhere.

Throughout history, human societies have viewed adultery as either socially acceptable or heavily condemned, but they have most commonly regarded it as morally transgressive, especially in Christianity and other monotheistic religions, where it has been strictly prohibited.

The scandal of Chora of Gortynia: A hidden truth unveiled

It was December 1960, when Chora of Gortynia in Arcadia (on the border with Ilia) occupied the minds of people on a pan-Hellenic level for an unprecedented reason.

In the 1960s, the village had 750 permanent residents and around 120 families. The village lies one and a half hours from Pyrgos, and its inhabitants primarily engage in animal husbandry, with a few owning land.

A journalist’s report on the injury of a man uncovered a social phenomenon that villagers had long concealed with a code of silence, or “omerta.” The scandal came to light when the reporter innocently approached a woman sitting beside the injured man.

She confessed, “I am the second wife, we have one child together and I’m pregnant with another. We’re not married. Let his wife tell you what happened, sitting next to me,” revealing a hidden truth with startling honesty.

The rise of “Ibsenic triangles” and social tolerance

Until that moment, this issue had remained in the shadows of the village, but the press seized upon it, labeling the village a den of “depraved morals.” The term “Ibsenic triangles,” referencing the love triangles often explored by playwright Henrik Ibsen, was used to describe the situation.

The journalist’s investigation revealed a widespread culture of immorality in the village, one that was tacitly accepted by both the police and the Church. The village doctor attempted to justify this behavior by tracing it back to the Turkish occupation (1453-1821), when polygamy was more common.

However, this explanation was flawed, as it did not apply to the majority of the Greek region. The true cause lay in the deeply ingrained patriarchy of the village. It became socially-acceptable that a man could father children with another woman if his wife was unable to have children. They could even live under the same roof together with both his mistress and his legitimate wife.

The decline of the “scandal” and its legacy

Initially, the women of the village resisted, but over time, they came to accept this as a social norm. Village men, seeking both children and romance, found the arrangement convenient. It thus became socially acceptable to have an “official mistress,” and villagers increasingly legitimized the love triangles within married couples.

Despite attempts by both the Church and police to intervene, the situation persisted. The director of the Gendarmerie at the time explained, “As long as the legal wives do not react, we cannot do anything.” Eventually, the practice became less common, and, over time, the “scandalous” days of the small village community faded into history.

The issue of this village presents a special case of how villagers in Greece approached adultery. Polygamy is an institution that exists in countries of the Middle East, such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar, as well as other parts of Asia and Africa.

In Islam, polygamy is permitted under specific conditions, allowing a man to marry up to four wives, provided he treats them equally in terms of financial support and emotional care. However, it is only permissible if a man can fulfill these responsibilities fairly.

In contrast, Christianity has long upheld monogamy, with the belief that marriage should be between one man and one woman. Anything beyond is considered sinful and adultery, and this belief has been central to Christian doctrine for centuries.

However, in this village, it wasn’t merely a formalization of parallel relationships. Instead, it involved the voluntary acceptance of both a legitimate and an illegitimate wife within the same household. This practice often came at the expense of women, as has usually been the case throughout history and in most societies.