Every Greek knows what ΦΙΛΟΤΙΜΟ means. It’s hard to explain to non-Greeks simply because there isn’t an equivalent word in any other language in the world and because it describes not just a term, but a complex set of values tried and tested since the depths of time when the Greek civilization was evolving. PHILOTIMO is engraved on our souls and directs our lives. It is in our DNA.
It is one of the reasons I feel proud to be Greek. It’s about honoring your word, sacrificing yourself for the greater good, being honest with yourself and others, living by principals and so many more ideas the following video nicely presents in an effort to decode this concept.
As a Greek, by watching this video I realized that when I distance myself from someone (something which I rarely do) it is because either I come before the sad conclusion that this person doesn’t have any φιλότιμο at all, or because he purposely stepped on and betrayed my φιλότιμο for his own personal gain so my αξιοπρέπεια takes over.
video source: Secret Real Truth