The empire that grew from Greek conquest, particularly by Alexander the Great, spurred the spread of Greek language, religion, science and philosophy throughout the colonies. While most Greeks considered their own culture superior to all others (the word barbarian is derived from mutterings that sounded to Greek ears like "bar-bar"), Alexander was unique in promoting a campaign to win the hearts and minds of the Persians. He adopted Persian customs of clothing and otherwise encouraged his men to by adopting local wives and learning their mannerisms. Of note is that he radically departed from earlier Greek attempts at colonisation, characterised by the murder and enslavement of the local inhabitants and the settling of Greek citizens from the polis.