Greece will hold a state-funded funeral for philosopher and author Stelios Ramfos, who died at age 87, in recognition of his contributions to Greek culture and philosophy, the government has said.
The decision was made jointly by Minister of National Economy and Finance Kyriakos Pierrakakis, Interior Minister Theodoros Livanios, and Deputy Minister of National Economy and Finance Thanasis Petralias.
Mr. Ramfos was born in Athens in 1939 and studied law at the University of Athens before relocating to Paris in 1965 to pursue philosophy.
He taught at the University of Vincennes from 1969 to 1974 before returning to Greece, where he lived and worked for the remainder of his life.
His body of work, spanning several decades, touched on philosophy, religion, psychology, history and Greek national identity, with particular emphasis on the influence of Byzantium and Orthodox Christian tradition on the formation of modern Greek consciousness.
Mr. Ramfos was a prominent public intellectual whose commentary extended into contemporary political debate; a decade ago, he took part in a widely discussed conversation with then-opposition leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis on populism and Greek politics, published by iefimerida.gr.