What is the difference between an agora and a forum?
Most basically agoras are in Greek cities while fora are in Roman cities. An agora is purely commercial in nature. It is the market place where a number of tent like shops are set up during the day. Being the center of a cities’ life, the agora is often in the center of the city and is commonly very close to other public buildings of the city like temples and baths. A forum, on the other hand, is political and religious in nature, not commercial. Roman temples are in the forum, as are the offices of important politicians. The market place of a Roman city will often be close to the forum, as will the baths.
