The Greek Language
The Greek Language, the official language of Cyprus and Greece, has a vast history on its shoulders. Most of the texts that gave shape to the western civilization were written in Greek and the influences of the language are still heavily felt in everyday life of this part of the world.
The Greek Language has the longest documented history of any living language, but the changes during its evolution were not especially extensive. For example, the early medieval English have more differences with Modern English than Classical Greek and Modern Greek have.
While the language still survives, it has several distinguishable periods
Proto-Greek, Mycenean Greek, Classical Greek, Koine Greek, Medieval Greek and Modern Greek :
The Greek Language, the official language of Cyprus and Greece, has a vast history on its shoulders. Most of the texts that gave shape to the western civilization were written in Greek and the influences of the language are still heavily felt in everyday life of this part of the world.
The Greek Language has the longest documented history of any living language, but the changes during its evolution were not especially extensive. For example, the early medieval English have more differences with Modern English than Classical Greek and Modern Greek have.
While the language still survives, it has several distinguishable periods
Proto-Greek, Mycenean Greek, Classical Greek, Koine Greek, Medieval Greek and Modern Greek :
But what is "Ancient Greek"
When we talk about "Ancient Greek" we speak about a broad part of Greek Language's history, ranging from approximately 10th century B.C. to 7th century A.D., which in turn had three periods (Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic).
That includes
->Homer's Odyssey and Iliad
->The first systematic historical though of the western world
->The first philosophers of the western world
->The first scientific texts of the western world
->The New testament
->Roman Legislation
Why include all this? Because the language used in all of these texts is especially similar, and it was mainly born in Athens during the Archaic and the Classical Period.
Whether you are learning "Classical" or "Koine" Greek, the language that you will study is the same. The same study that was introduced to the syllabus of the Renaissance and it is a part many European schools until now.
Thus, if you study "Ancient Greek", you will be able to read both the Iliad (750 BC) and the New testament (150 AD).
*It should be noted that some scholars, when using the term "Ancient Greek", refer only to Classical Greek, mainly because it is the most prominent period of the language.
An example of Ancient Greek is in the following video (produced by podium-arts.com), in which you can hear and read the "Hippocratic Oath" an oath historically taken by physicians and one of the most widely known of Greek medical texts.
*In this video you will hear the original Classical Greek pronunciation.
When we talk about "Ancient Greek" we speak about a broad part of Greek Language's history, ranging from approximately 10th century B.C. to 7th century A.D., which in turn had three periods (Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic).
That includes
->Homer's Odyssey and Iliad
->The first systematic historical though of the western world
->The first philosophers of the western world
->The first scientific texts of the western world
->The New testament
->Roman Legislation
Why include all this? Because the language used in all of these texts is especially similar, and it was mainly born in Athens during the Archaic and the Classical Period.
Whether you are learning "Classical" or "Koine" Greek, the language that you will study is the same. The same study that was introduced to the syllabus of the Renaissance and it is a part many European schools until now.
Thus, if you study "Ancient Greek", you will be able to read both the Iliad (750 BC) and the New testament (150 AD).
*It should be noted that some scholars, when using the term "Ancient Greek", refer only to Classical Greek, mainly because it is the most prominent period of the language.
An example of Ancient Greek is in the following video (produced by podium-arts.com), in which you can hear and read the "Hippocratic Oath" an oath historically taken by physicians and one of the most widely known of Greek medical texts.
*In this video you will hear the original Classical Greek pronunciation.
But it is not only that the Greek Literature is important for the western civilization, but the influence of the language itself in a vast amount of European languages. It is estimated than 12% of the English vocabulary has Greek origin.
How can such a different language, in a far away place (for Medieval standards) be influenced by Greek? What is special about the Greek Language?
How can such a different language, in a far away place (for Medieval standards) be influenced by Greek? What is special about the Greek Language?
If you are going to study the Ancient Greek language you have to know which are those characteristics that differentiate it from other Ancient Indo-European languages:
1) The vast vocabulary
The ancient Greeks were discovering the world and the knowledge. Having no history of prominent scholars behind them, they were constantly making new words, trying to explain everything - each one with his or her perspective.
Many languages, like Latin, did not have these words by the time of the discoveries, thus they borrowed the words from the Ancient Greek.
2) Capabilities to create new words
Due to the structure of the language, new words could be created in many ways, in theory by conjoining any words and/or changing the prefix and suffix. It is still so easy to create new words in the Greek Language, and because of that most of the scientific terms and especially medical terms in English are in Greek.
3) The enormous amount of ancient texts
Theater, drama, history, philosophy, literature, oratory and many more ways of human interaction and thought were born through this language. Until, and even after the destruction of the Byzantine Empire (1453 A.D.) many texts-milestones of the European Civilization were written in Greek and were translated in many other languages while keeping Greek terminology.
4) Musicality
The Greek language was really peculiar in term of its stress. You may noticed in the previous video (Hippocratic Oath) that the speaker was had "exaggerated" pronunciation. In truth he did not, because the Ancient Greek language was really similar to singing.
5) Historical Continuity
Mainly because it started out as a "pioneer", the language did not live many substantial core changes. After 3000 years, many words remain and the same, and their derivatives do. It is not easy to find an unrelated to Modern Greek word from an ancient text.
6) Punctilio
The words and the forms of the language are especially precise. While in English and in several other languages you can often find words that have several meanings for example: "I attack" and "the attack" (Verb and Noun), which is not the case with Greek. Furthermore, the Ancient Greek language started with seven cases.
These and many more reasons made the language "special enough" to survive through the millennia and still be alive by itself and in many other languages.
But should YOU study the language?
Learning an Ancient language is no easy task, and the "reward" depends on the circumstances and your disposition.
Are you trying to learn the language for a class, are you an avid reader or just out of love for Classics?
In any case, before progressing you, make sure what your goals are.
This is especially important when you are learning an ancient language. While we normally learn languages to obtain proficiency in communication, this is not the case with Ancient Greek or Latin.
Tip: You can start by reading one of the most prominent texts in English (or your mother tongue). By having an idea how ancient Greeks talked about things and what are the texts you are going to be able to read after your learn the language, you will create a clear image regarding what to do and what not.
Here are some recommendations:
Homer's Iliad Information
http://classics.mit.edu/Homer/iliad.html
Translated by Samuel Butler
Plato's Symposium Information
http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/symposium.html
Translated by Benjamin Jowett
Aristotle's Politics Information
http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/politics.html
Translated by Benjamin Jowett
Furthermore, if you need more recommendations suited for your preferences or want advice on what to study, don't hesitate to complete the following form, with your request in the comment section. Any assistance from my part is completely free of charge.
1) The vast vocabulary
The ancient Greeks were discovering the world and the knowledge. Having no history of prominent scholars behind them, they were constantly making new words, trying to explain everything - each one with his or her perspective.
Many languages, like Latin, did not have these words by the time of the discoveries, thus they borrowed the words from the Ancient Greek.
2) Capabilities to create new words
Due to the structure of the language, new words could be created in many ways, in theory by conjoining any words and/or changing the prefix and suffix. It is still so easy to create new words in the Greek Language, and because of that most of the scientific terms and especially medical terms in English are in Greek.
3) The enormous amount of ancient texts
Theater, drama, history, philosophy, literature, oratory and many more ways of human interaction and thought were born through this language. Until, and even after the destruction of the Byzantine Empire (1453 A.D.) many texts-milestones of the European Civilization were written in Greek and were translated in many other languages while keeping Greek terminology.
4) Musicality
The Greek language was really peculiar in term of its stress. You may noticed in the previous video (Hippocratic Oath) that the speaker was had "exaggerated" pronunciation. In truth he did not, because the Ancient Greek language was really similar to singing.
5) Historical Continuity
Mainly because it started out as a "pioneer", the language did not live many substantial core changes. After 3000 years, many words remain and the same, and their derivatives do. It is not easy to find an unrelated to Modern Greek word from an ancient text.
6) Punctilio
The words and the forms of the language are especially precise. While in English and in several other languages you can often find words that have several meanings for example: "I attack" and "the attack" (Verb and Noun), which is not the case with Greek. Furthermore, the Ancient Greek language started with seven cases.
These and many more reasons made the language "special enough" to survive through the millennia and still be alive by itself and in many other languages.
But should YOU study the language?
Learning an Ancient language is no easy task, and the "reward" depends on the circumstances and your disposition.
Are you trying to learn the language for a class, are you an avid reader or just out of love for Classics?
In any case, before progressing you, make sure what your goals are.
This is especially important when you are learning an ancient language. While we normally learn languages to obtain proficiency in communication, this is not the case with Ancient Greek or Latin.
Tip: You can start by reading one of the most prominent texts in English (or your mother tongue). By having an idea how ancient Greeks talked about things and what are the texts you are going to be able to read after your learn the language, you will create a clear image regarding what to do and what not.
Here are some recommendations:
Homer's Iliad Information
http://classics.mit.edu/Homer/iliad.html
Translated by Samuel Butler
Plato's Symposium Information
http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/symposium.html
Translated by Benjamin Jowett
Aristotle's Politics Information
http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/politics.html
Translated by Benjamin Jowett
Furthermore, if you need more recommendations suited for your preferences or want advice on what to study, don't hesitate to complete the following form, with your request in the comment section. Any assistance from my part is completely free of charge.
The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.
Socrates
If you made it this far, it means you want to continue with the language course, before progressing, try this 3-minute test, to test what you already know about the Ancient Greek language!
Happy learning!
Happy learning!