Introductory Ancient Greek Language/Basics
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
The letters of the Greek alphabet look like this: αβγδεζηθικ...
Here is more information about the letters
Alpha Α α
Short or long A pronounced like the English a in drama.
Beta Β β
b
Gamma Γ γ
g
When followed by γ, κ, χ, or ξ it is pronounced like /ng/.
Delta Δ δ
d
Epsilon Ε ε
Short e pronounced like the e in bed.
Zeta Ζ ζ
Commonly pronounced like z, however, it is more correctly the combination of a seperate s and d sound as in the word wisdom.
Eta Η η
Long a, e pronounced like hate.
Theta Θ θ
Often pronounced simply as /th/ however it is more correctly pronounced as pothole.
Iota Ι ι
This letter's name is pronounced as yota (not ee-ota as is common). Pronounced as short or long English i.
Kappa Κ κ
k
Lambda Λ λ
l
Mu Μ μ
m
Nu Ν ν
n
Xi Ξ ξ
ks or x
Omicron Ο ο
Short o. The name itself means little o. Mikron being the Greek word for small.
Pi Π π
p
Rho Ρ ρ
r
Sigma Σ σ,ς
s. It is written as σ when in the middle of a word, but as ς when at the end of one.
Tau Τ τ
t
Upsilon Υ υ
Long or short u.
Phi Φ φ
Commonly pronounced as /f/ as in philosopher, but is more correctly pronounced as in tophat
Chi Χ χ
The name of this letter is pronounced "kee". Pronounced as in khaki
Psi Ψ ψ
ps
Omega Ω ω
Long o. The name means big o since mega is Greek for large.
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
Activities
Convert these English words to Greek characters.
Sparta Spartans philosopher museum nectar genesis angel mētropolis thōrax critērion
Convert these Greek words to English.
Δελφι Μιδας Ξερξης Λεωνιδας Θερμοπυλη κυκλοψ κυδος
Answers
Σπαρτα Σπαρτανς φιλοσοφερ μυσευμ νεκταρ γενεσις αγγελ μητροπολις θωραξ κριτηριον
Delphi Midas Xerxēs Leōnidas Thermopylae Cyclops kudos