Neither. Metics (resident aliens) were merchants/traders/tradesmen/academics.
Sparta had serfs as a working class.
Athens had its own people as a working class.
Athens Did.
Sparta did
Sparta depended on slaves and helots (people from a nearby settlement who were forced to work.
Athenians included its working class, Sparta had serfs whom it had conquered in the southern Peloponnese.
Athens had citizens as the upper class Sparta's upper class was called equals not citizens.
In Sparta, the working class primarily consisted of the helots, who were subjugated populations primarily from Messenia, while foreign workers, known as "metics," were less prominent in Spartan society. In contrast, Athens had a significant population of metics, who were free foreigners living in the city and engaged in various professions, contributing to the economy. These metics often faced legal restrictions and were required to pay taxes, but they played a crucial role in Athenian trade and craftsmanship. Thus, while both city-states had forms of foreign labor, their roles and status differed markedly.
Foreigners were know as the perioeci and they were belonged in the social class between the Spartiates and the Helots. They had a lot of freedom and they had the opportunity to become merchants and trade.
Foreigners were know as the perioeci and they were belonged in the social class between the Spartiates and the Helots. They had a lot of freedom and they had the opportunity to become merchants and trade.
in my social studies class we have 5 city states, Corinth Athens Sparta Olympia and Megara.
Pericles believed that the power of Athens was in the demos, the free common people of Athens. That did not include foreigners, women, or slaves. At this time, the military of Athens was entirely lower class people, and Pericles wanted Athenian citizen to raise up to defend the state.
that's what I want to know
Yes, ancient Greek society was divided by class, with clear distinctions between different social groups. Citizens, who were typically free-born males, held political power and rights, while women, slaves, and foreigners were often excluded from political participation. Within the citizen class, there were further divisions based on wealth and status, such as the aristocrats or the wealthy landowners, which influenced their political influence and social standing. This class structure varied between city-states, with Athens and Sparta having particularly distinct systems.