The Dorians were one of the four major ethnic groups into which the Hellenes of Classical Greece divided themselves. They are almost always referred to as just "the Dorians", as they are called in the earliest literary mention of them in the Odyssey, where they already can be found inhabiting the island of Crete.
Dorian site of Lato on the island of Crete
Uplands of Greece - the Pindus Mountains
Fifth century BC hoplite, or "heavy-armed soldier", possibly the Spartan king Leonidas, a Dorian, who died holding the pass at the Battle of Thermopylae.
Peloponnesus. Sparta was in the valley of the lowermost bay.
The Greeks or Hellenes are an ethnic group and nation native to Greece, Cyprus, southern Albania, Anatolia, parts of Italy and Egypt, and to a lesser extent, other countries surrounding the Eastern Mediterranean and Black Sea. They also form a significant diaspora, with many Greek communities established around the world.
Mycenaean funeral mask known as "Mask of Agamemnon", 16th century BC
Alexander the Great, whose conquests led to the Hellenistic Age
Bust of Cleopatra VII (Altes Museum, Berlin), the last ruler of a Hellenistic kingdom (apart from the Indo-Greek Kingdom)
Emperor Basil II (11th century) is credited with reviving the Byzantine Empire.
