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Introductory Ancient Greek Language/Lesson 2

2008-07-21T13:51:35Z

74.215.71.202: /* Accent Marks */

== Breathing Marks Explained ==
Every Greek word that begins with a vowel (α,ε,η,ι,ο,υ, and ω) will have something called a breathing mark. These look like apostrophes and can be either rough or smooth.

'''Rough Breathings'''

If the breathing is rough then it is an apostrophe curved in the opposite direction (ἑ,ἁ,ἡ, etc...) If a breathing is rough then the word is pronounced as if there were an /h/ in front of it. Thus, the Greek word for 'sleep' ὕπνος will be pronounced as [hupnos].

'''Smooth Breathings'''

If the breathing mark is smooth (ἀ,ἐ,ὀ, etc...) then it is shaped exactly like an apostrophe and comes either slightly before the vowel or directly above. Smooth breathing marks simply mean there is no /h/ pronounciation.

'''Exception'''

The only consonant that takes a breathing mark is the letter rho (ρ). If rho is the first letter of a word then it always has a rough breathing mark. This is why most English derived words such as rhinoceros, rheumatism, and rhododendron have the /rh/ in front.

== Accent Marks ==

You may notice the second mark after the breathing mark in the word ὕπνος. They are important for distinguishing the difference between words. There are three different types of accents in Ancient Greek. The acute, the circumflex, and the grave. Ancient Greek was originally a tonal language - this meant that the pitch of a word made a difference to its meaning. The acute accent used to indicate a higher pitch, the grave a lower pitch, and the circumflex a higher then immediately lower pitch. later they simply indicated on which syllable the emphasis landed.

First, you will need to know some important accentuation terminology.

1. Ultima - last syllable of a word (from Latin 'ultimus, a, um' - last)
2. Penult - next-to-last syllable of a word (from Latin 'paene' + 'ultimus, a, um' - almost last)
3. Antepenult - third-to-last syllable of a word (from Latin 'ante' + 'paene' + 'ultimus, a, um' - before next-to-last)

There are three accents in Ancient Greek:

ACUTE ACCENT - ά - may stand on any of the last three syllables, but stands on the antepenult only when the ultima is short.

GRAVE ACCENT - ὰ - (pronounced 'gr-ah-v', not 'gr-ay-v') written instead of an acute when an acute would normally stand on the ultima but the word is followed by another word without any intervening punctuation.

CIRCUMFLEX ACCENT - ῶ - stands only on long vowels or diphthongs, and only occurs on the ultima or penult. it will stand on a long penult only if the ultima is short.

NOTE: All of this may have sounded very confusing, but I think it will become clearer as you see examples of various accents in Ancient Greek.
[[Category:Ancient Greek Language]]

Introductory Ancient Greek Language/Lesson 2

2008-07-21T13:39:51Z

74.215.71.202: /* Breathing Marks Explained */

== Breathing Marks Explained ==
Every Greek word that begins with a vowel (α,ε,η,ι,ο,υ, and ω) will have something called a breathing mark. These look like apostrophes and can be either rough or smooth.

'''Rough Breathings'''

If the breathing is rough then it is an apostrophe curved in the opposite direction (ἑ,ἁ,ἡ, etc...) If a breathing is rough then the word is pronounced as if there were an /h/ in front of it. Thus, the Greek word for 'sleep' ὕπνος will be pronounced as [hupnos].

'''Smooth Breathings'''

If the breathing mark is smooth (ἀ,ἐ,ὀ, etc...) then it is shaped exactly like an apostrophe and comes either slightly before the vowel or directly above. Smooth breathing marks simply mean there is no /h/ pronounciation.

'''Exception'''

The only consonant that takes a breathing mark is the letter rho (ρ). If rho is the first letter of a word then it always has a rough breathing mark. This is why most English derived words such as rhinoceros, rheumatism, and rhododendron have the /rh/ in front.

== Accent Marks ==

You may notice the second mark after the breathing mark in the word ὕπνος. They are important for distinguishing the difference between words. There are three different types of accents in Ancient Greek. The acute, the circumflex, and the grave. Ancient Greek was originally a tonal language - this meant that the pitch of a word made a difference to its meaning. The acute accent used to indicate a higher pitch, the grave a lower pitch, and the circumflex a higher then immediately lower pitch. later they simply indicated on which syllable the emphasis landed.

There are various rules concerning where an accent mark will fall:

'''Acute:'''
*It can be placed on both long and short vowels on any of the final three syllables.
*If the last syllable is long, it can only be placed on the final two syllables.
*If the penult is long and the ultima is short, it cannot go on the penult.

'''Circumflex:'''
*It can only be placed on long vowels.
*It can only be placed on the last two syllables.
*It can only go on the penult if the ultima is short.

'''Grave''':
*Only ever exists when replacing an acute accent on the ultima when another word follows immediately without any intervening punctuation.

''Antepenult''= third last syllable of a word

''Penult'' = second last syllable of a word

''Ultima'' = last syllable of a word

'''NB:''' accents on words DO change to obey these rules, eg. ἄνθρωπος becomes ἀνθρώπου when it goes from nominative to genitive, and οἶκος becomes οἴκου when it goes from nominative to genitive.
[[Category:Ancient Greek Language]]

Introductory Ancient Greek Language/Basics

2008-07-21T13:37:55Z

74.215.71.202: /* Diphthongs */

Learning a different alphabet may seem daunting at first, but Greek characters are very similar to the Latin ones English speakers are used to. Greek evolved from the Phoenicians who were the first recorded civilization to create an alphabet, and Latin similarly developed from Greek and other languages. The name alphabet itself comes from the words Alpha and Beta.

It's a lot to take in at one go so don't feel bad if you fail to remember all of these immediately. You will have plenty of time to get these characters under your belt. When you feel ready try to convert some Greek into English and some English into Greek below.

== The Letters, Greek orthography ==

{| class="wikitable"
!Greek !!Name !!English equivalent !!Notes
|-
|Α α|| alpha|| a|| pronounced like 'a' in 'father'
|-
|Β β|| beta|| b|| like 'b' in 'book'
|-
|Γ γ || gamma|| g || normally 'g' as in 'graph', but when followed by other palatal consonants (γ, κ, χ, etc.), the resulting diphthong is pronounced like "ng."
|-
|Δ δ || delta || d|| like 'd' in 'demography'
|-
|Ε ε || epsilon|| e|| like 'e' in 'epigraphy'
|-
|Ζ ζ || zeta || z || pronounced like 'sd' or 'ds' (as in 'glazed' or 'adze')
|-
|Η η || eta || ē || pronounced like "a" in "hate."
|-
|Θ θ || theta || th|| like 'th' in 'theatric' (never 'th' as in 'that')
|-
|Ι ι || iota || i|| like 'i' in 'policeman'
|-
|Κ κ || kappa || k|| like 'k' in 'kinetic'
|-
|Λ λ || lambda || l|| like 'l' in 'look'
|-
|Μ μ || mu || m|| like 'm' in 'meter'
|-
|Ν ν || nu || n|| like 'n' in 'noon'
|-
|Ξ ξ || xi || x|| like 'x' in 'axe'
|-
|Ο ο || omicron || o|| more of an 'aw' sound, like 'o' in 'optic'
|-
|Π π || pi || p|| like 'p' in 'port'
|-
|Ρ ρ || rho || r|| trilled, like Spanish 'r'
|-
|Σ σ or ς || sigma || s|| like 's' in 'seed'; ς (final sigma) is used at the end of a word
|-
|Τ τ || tau || t|| like 't' in 'tactile'
|-
|Υ υ || upsilon || u|| pronounced like French 'tu', comparable to 'oo' in 'wood' when short; when long, more like 'oo' in 'food' or 'u' in French 'sur'
|-
|Φ φ || phi || ph|| like 'ph' in 'Philip'
|-
|Χ χ || chi || ch|| like 'ch' in 'loch'
|-
|Ψ ψ || psi || ps|| like 'ps' in 'lapse'
|-
|Ω ω || omega || ō|| like 'o' in 'ode'
|}

Notes

1.Capital letters are used at the beginning of names but not at the beginning of sentences unless the sentence begins a paragraph or quotation.

2.The letters ψ, ξ, and ζ are called double consonants; θ, φ, and χ are called aspirated consonants.

3.ε and ο are always short, and η and ω are always long. α, ι, and υ can be long or short.

4.Sometimes ι is written beneath α, η, and ω. This is known as an iota subscript, which is not pronounced. If an iota subscript is written with a capital letter, it is written on the line but still not pronounced.

eg - ᾳ, ῳ, ῃ and AI, ΩΙ, ΗΙ

ῳκει, ῳδη, ζῳον - iota subscript not pronounced

== Diphthongs ==

The word diphthong comes from Greek - δι, meaning "double" and φθογγος, meaning "sound, voice". A diphthong is made up of two vowel sounds combined in succession to make up one sound; compare 'I' in English to the sounds 'a' followed by 'i'. 'I' is pronounced much quicker, so as to have one sound. Because Ancient Greek was spoken over a long period of time, the pronunciation of the diphthongs changed over time. Initially, the partial diphthongs were proper in that they were pronounced as diphthongs. Over time, they came to be pronounced as the first vowel, and only the orthography showed the diphthongization.

Proper diphthongs:

αυ - ow as in English ''house''

ευ - ew as in English ''ewe''

υι - we as in English ''queen''

ει - ei as in English ''eight''

ου - oo as in Enlish ''food''

οι - oi as in English ''coin''

αι - ai as in English ''aisle''

ηυ - η followed by υ

== Latinization ==

Through history Greek names have been translated according to a Latin form, which English typically uses.

υ to y

κ to c

αι to ae

οι to oe

In order to stay true to the original Greek, however, we will not concern ourselves with the latinized, transliterated forms. We will deal exclusively in Greek, and however those letters get transposed to English will be inconsequential.

== Activities ==

Convert these English words to Greek characters.

Ping 
Dig 
Philadelphia 
Below 
Telephone 
Relay 

Convert these Greek words to English.

Δελφι 
Μιδας 
Ξερξης 
Λεωνιδας 
Θερμοπυλη 
κυκλοψ 
κυδος 

[[fr:Alphabet/Grec ancien]]
[[Category:Languages]]
[[Category:Ancient Greek Language]]

Introductory Ancient Greek Language/Basics

2008-07-21T13:37:05Z

74.215.71.202: /* Diphthongs */

Learning a different alphabet may seem daunting at first, but Greek characters are very similar to the Latin ones English speakers are used to. Greek evolved from the Phoenicians who were the first recorded civilization to create an alphabet, and Latin similarly developed from Greek and other languages. The name alphabet itself comes from the words Alpha and Beta.

It's a lot to take in at one go so don't feel bad if you fail to remember all of these immediately. You will have plenty of time to get these characters under your belt. When you feel ready try to convert some Greek into English and some English into Greek below.

== The Letters, Greek orthography ==

{| class="wikitable"
!Greek !!Name !!English equivalent !!Notes
|-
|Α α|| alpha|| a|| pronounced like 'a' in 'father'
|-
|Β β|| beta|| b|| like 'b' in 'book'
|-
|Γ γ || gamma|| g || normally 'g' as in 'graph', but when followed by other palatal consonants (γ, κ, χ, etc.), the resulting diphthong is pronounced like "ng."
|-
|Δ δ || delta || d|| like 'd' in 'demography'
|-
|Ε ε || epsilon|| e|| like 'e' in 'epigraphy'
|-
|Ζ ζ || zeta || z || pronounced like 'sd' or 'ds' (as in 'glazed' or 'adze')
|-
|Η η || eta || ē || pronounced like "a" in "hate."
|-
|Θ θ || theta || th|| like 'th' in 'theatric' (never 'th' as in 'that')
|-
|Ι ι || iota || i|| like 'i' in 'policeman'
|-
|Κ κ || kappa || k|| like 'k' in 'kinetic'
|-
|Λ λ || lambda || l|| like 'l' in 'look'
|-
|Μ μ || mu || m|| like 'm' in 'meter'
|-
|Ν ν || nu || n|| like 'n' in 'noon'
|-
|Ξ ξ || xi || x|| like 'x' in 'axe'
|-
|Ο ο || omicron || o|| more of an 'aw' sound, like 'o' in 'optic'
|-
|Π π || pi || p|| like 'p' in 'port'
|-
|Ρ ρ || rho || r|| trilled, like Spanish 'r'
|-
|Σ σ or ς || sigma || s|| like 's' in 'seed'; ς (final sigma) is used at the end of a word
|-
|Τ τ || tau || t|| like 't' in 'tactile'
|-
|Υ υ || upsilon || u|| pronounced like French 'tu', comparable to 'oo' in 'wood' when short; when long, more like 'oo' in 'food' or 'u' in French 'sur'
|-
|Φ φ || phi || ph|| like 'ph' in 'Philip'
|-
|Χ χ || chi || ch|| like 'ch' in 'loch'
|-
|Ψ ψ || psi || ps|| like 'ps' in 'lapse'
|-
|Ω ω || omega || ō|| like 'o' in 'ode'
|}

Notes

1.Capital letters are used at the beginning of names but not at the beginning of sentences unless the sentence begins a paragraph or quotation.

2.The letters ψ, ξ, and ζ are called double consonants; θ, φ, and χ are called aspirated consonants.

3.ε and ο are always short, and η and ω are always long. α, ι, and υ can be long or short.

4.Sometimes ι is written beneath α, η, and ω. This is known as an iota subscript, which is not pronounced. If an iota subscript is written with a capital letter, it is written on the line but still not pronounced.

eg - ᾳ, ῳ, ῃ and AI, ΩΙ, ΗΙ

ῳκει, ῳδη, ζῳον - iota subscript not pronounced

== Diphthongs ==

Ancient Greek has 9 proper diphthongs, and 3 partial diphthongs. The word diphthong comes from Greek - δι, meaning "double" and φθογγος, meaning "sound, voice". A diphthong is made up of two vowel sounds combined in succession to make up one sound; compare 'I' in English to the sounds 'a' followed by 'i'. 'I' is pronounced much quicker, so as to have one sound. Because Ancient Greek was spoken over a long period of time, the pronounciation of the diphthongs changed over time. Initially, the partial diphthongs were proper in that they were pronounced as diphthongs. Over time, they came to be pronounced as the first vowel, and only the orthography showed the diphthongization.

Proper diphthongs:

αυ - ow as in English ''house''

ευ - ew as in English ''ewe''

υι - we as in English ''queen''

ει - ei as in English ''eight''

ου - oo as in Enlish ''food''

οι - oi as in English ''coin''

αι - ai as in English ''aisle''

ηυ - η followed by υ

== Latinization ==

Through history Greek names have been translated according to a Latin form, which English typically uses.

υ to y

κ to c

αι to ae

οι to oe

In order to stay true to the original Greek, however, we will not concern ourselves with the latinized, transliterated forms. We will deal exclusively in Greek, and however those letters get transposed to English will be inconsequential.

== Activities ==

Convert these English words to Greek characters.

Ping 
Dig 
Philadelphia 
Below 
Telephone 
Relay 

Convert these Greek words to English.

Δελφι 
Μιδας 
Ξερξης 
Λεωνιδας 
Θερμοπυλη 
κυκλοψ 
κυδος 

[[fr:Alphabet/Grec ancien]]
[[Category:Languages]]
[[Category:Ancient Greek Language]]

Introductory Ancient Greek Language/Basics

2008-07-21T13:35:00Z

74.215.71.202: /* The Letters, Greek orthography */

Learning a different alphabet may seem daunting at first, but Greek characters are very similar to the Latin ones English speakers are used to. Greek evolved from the Phoenicians who were the first recorded civilization to create an alphabet, and Latin similarly developed from Greek and other languages. The name alphabet itself comes from the words Alpha and Beta.

It's a lot to take in at one go so don't feel bad if you fail to remember all of these immediately. You will have plenty of time to get these characters under your belt. When you feel ready try to convert some Greek into English and some English into Greek below.

== The Letters, Greek orthography ==

{| class="wikitable"
!Greek !!Name !!English equivalent !!Notes
|-
|Α α|| alpha|| a|| pronounced like 'a' in 'father'
|-
|Β β|| beta|| b|| like 'b' in 'book'
|-
|Γ γ || gamma|| g || normally 'g' as in 'graph', but when followed by other palatal consonants (γ, κ, χ, etc.), the resulting diphthong is pronounced like "ng."
|-
|Δ δ || delta || d|| like 'd' in 'demography'
|-
|Ε ε || epsilon|| e|| like 'e' in 'epigraphy'
|-
|Ζ ζ || zeta || z || pronounced like 'sd' or 'ds' (as in 'glazed' or 'adze')
|-
|Η η || eta || ē || pronounced like "a" in "hate."
|-
|Θ θ || theta || th|| like 'th' in 'theatric' (never 'th' as in 'that')
|-
|Ι ι || iota || i|| like 'i' in 'policeman'
|-
|Κ κ || kappa || k|| like 'k' in 'kinetic'
|-
|Λ λ || lambda || l|| like 'l' in 'look'
|-
|Μ μ || mu || m|| like 'm' in 'meter'
|-
|Ν ν || nu || n|| like 'n' in 'noon'
|-
|Ξ ξ || xi || x|| like 'x' in 'axe'
|-
|Ο ο || omicron || o|| more of an 'aw' sound, like 'o' in 'optic'
|-
|Π π || pi || p|| like 'p' in 'port'
|-
|Ρ ρ || rho || r|| trilled, like Spanish 'r'
|-
|Σ σ or ς || sigma || s|| like 's' in 'seed'; ς (final sigma) is used at the end of a word
|-
|Τ τ || tau || t|| like 't' in 'tactile'
|-
|Υ υ || upsilon || u|| pronounced like French 'tu', comparable to 'oo' in 'wood' when short; when long, more like 'oo' in 'food' or 'u' in French 'sur'
|-
|Φ φ || phi || ph|| like 'ph' in 'Philip'
|-
|Χ χ || chi || ch|| like 'ch' in 'loch'
|-
|Ψ ψ || psi || ps|| like 'ps' in 'lapse'
|-
|Ω ω || omega || ō|| like 'o' in 'ode'
|}

Notes

1.Capital letters are used at the beginning of names but not at the beginning of sentences unless the sentence begins a paragraph or quotation.

2.The letters ψ, ξ, and ζ are called double consonants; θ, φ, and χ are called aspirated consonants.

3.ε and ο are always short, and η and ω are always long. α, ι, and υ can be long or short.

4.Sometimes ι is written beneath α, η, and ω. This is known as an iota subscript, which is not pronounced. If an iota subscript is written with a capital letter, it is written on the line but still not pronounced.

eg - ᾳ, ῳ, ῃ and AI, ΩΙ, ΗΙ

ῳκει, ῳδη, ζῳον - iota subscript not pronounced

== Diphthongs ==

Ancient Greek has 9 proper diphthongs, and 3 partial diphthongs. The word diphthong comes from Greek - δι, meaning "double" and φθογγος, meaning "sound, voice". A diphthong is made up of two vowel sounds combined in succession to make up one sound; compare 'I' in English to the sounds 'a' followed by 'i'. 'I' is pronounced much quicker, so as to have one sound. Because Ancient Greek was spoken over a long period of time, the pronounciation of the diphthongs changed over time. Initially, the partial diphthongs were proper in that they were pronounced as diphthongs. Over time, they came to be pronounced as the first vowel, and only the orthography showed the diphthongization.

Proper diphthongs:

αυ - ow as in English ''house''

ευ - ew as in English ''ewe''

υι - we as in English ''queen''

ει - ei as in English ''eight''

ου - oo as in Enlish ''soup''

οι - oi as in English ''coin''

αι - ai as in English ''I''

ηυ - η followed by υ

ωυ - ω followed by υ

== Latinization ==

Through history Greek names have been translated according to a Latin form, which English typically uses.

υ to y

κ to c

αι to ae

οι to oe

In order to stay true to the original Greek, however, we will not concern ourselves with the latinized, transliterated forms. We will deal exclusively in Greek, and however those letters get transposed to English will be inconsequential.

== Activities ==

Convert these English words to Greek characters.

Ping 
Dig 
Philadelphia 
Below 
Telephone 
Relay 

Convert these Greek words to English.

Δελφι 
Μιδας 
Ξερξης 
Λεωνιδας 
Θερμοπυλη 
κυκλοψ 
κυδος 

[[fr:Alphabet/Grec ancien]]
[[Category:Languages]]
[[Category:Ancient Greek Language]]

Introductory Ancient Greek Language/Basics

2008-07-21T13:20:24Z

74.215.71.202: /* The Letters, Greek orthography */

Learning a different alphabet may seem daunting at first, but Greek characters are very similar to the Latin ones English speakers are used to. Greek evolved from the Phoenicians who were the first recorded civilization to create an alphabet, and Latin similarly developed from Greek and other languages. The name alphabet itself comes from the words Alpha and Beta.

It's a lot to take in at one go so don't feel bad if you fail to remember all of these immediately. You will have plenty of time to get these characters under your belt. When you feel ready try to convert some Greek into English and some English into Greek below.

== The Letters, Greek orthography ==

{| class="wikitable"
!Greek !!Name !!English equivalent !!Notes
|-
|Α α|| alpha|| a|| pronounced like 'a' in 'father'
|-
|Β β|| beta|| b|| like 'b' in 'book'
|-
|Γ γ || gamma|| g || normally 'g' as in 'graph', but when followed by other palatal consonants (γ, κ, χ, etc.), the resulting diphthong is pronounced like "ng."
|-
|Δ δ || delta || d|| like 'd' in 'demography'
|-
|Ε ε || epsilon|| e|| like 'e' in 'epigraphy'
|-
|Ζ ζ || zeta || z || pronounced like 'sd' or 'ds' (as in 'glazed' or 'adze')
|-
|Η η || eta || ē || pronounced like "a" in "hate."
|-
|Θ θ || theta || th|| like 'th' in 'theatric' (never 'th' as in 'that')
|-
|Ι ι || iota || i|| like 'i' in 'policeman'
|-
|Κ κ || kappa || k|| like 'k' in 'kinetic'
|-
|Λ λ || lambda || l|| like 'l' in 'look'
|-
|Μ μ || mu || m|| like 'm' in 'meter'
|-
|Ν ν || nu || n|| like 'n' in 'noon'
|-
|Ξ ξ || xi || x|| like 'x' in 'axe'
|-
|Ο ο || omicron || o|| more of an 'aw' sound, like 'o' in 'optic'
|-
|Π π || pi || p|| like 'p' in 'port'
|-
|Ρ ρ || rho || r|| trilled, like Spanish 'r'
|-
|Σ σ or ς || sigma || s|| like 's' in 'seed'; ς (final sigma) is used at the end of a word
|-
|Τ τ || tau || t|| like 't' in 'tactile'
|-
|Υ υ || upsilon || u|| pronounced like French 'tu', comparable to 'oo' in 'wood' when short; when long, more like 'oo' in 'food' or 'u' in French 'sur'
|-
|Φ φ || phi || ph|| like 'ph' in 'Philip'
|-
|Χ χ || chi || ch|| like 'ch' in 'loch'
|-
|Ψ ψ || psi || ps|| like 'ps' in 'lapse'
|-
|Ω ω || omega || ō|| like 'o' in 'ode'
|}

== Diphthongs ==

Ancient Greek has 9 proper diphthongs, and 3 partial diphthongs. The word diphthong comes from Greek - δι, meaning "double" and φθογγος, meaning "sound, voice". A diphthong is made up of two vowel sounds combined in succession to make up one sound; compare 'I' in English to the sounds 'a' followed by 'i'. 'I' is pronounced much quicker, so as to have one sound. Because Ancient Greek was spoken over a long period of time, the pronounciation of the diphthongs changed over time. Initially, the partial diphthongs were proper in that they were pronounced as diphthongs. Over time, they came to be pronounced as the first vowel, and only the orthography showed the diphthongization.

Proper diphthongs:

αυ - ow as in English ''house''

ευ - ew as in English ''ewe''

υι - we as in English ''queen''

ει - ei as in English ''eight''

ου - oo as in Enlish ''soup''

οι - oi as in English ''coin''

αι - ai as in English ''I''

ηυ - η followed by υ

ωυ - ω followed by υ

== Latinization ==

Through history Greek names have been translated according to a Latin form, which English typically uses.

υ to y

κ to c

αι to ae

οι to oe

In order to stay true to the original Greek, however, we will not concern ourselves with the latinized, transliterated forms. We will deal exclusively in Greek, and however those letters get transposed to English will be inconsequential.

== Activities ==

Convert these English words to Greek characters.

Ping 
Dig 
Philadelphia 
Below 
Telephone 
Relay 

Convert these Greek words to English.

Δελφι 
Μιδας 
Ξερξης 
Λεωνιδας 
Θερμοπυλη 
κυκλοψ 
κυδος 

[[fr:Alphabet/Grec ancien]]
[[Category:Languages]]
[[Category:Ancient Greek Language]]