Ἑλληνική

Greek (Ancient)

Indo-European (Hellenic) · historical / hidden variety

FamilyIndo-European (Hellenic) SpeakersExtinct ScriptGreek CountriesAncient Greece, Eastern Mediterranean Official inAthens, Greek city-states Vitalityextinct ISO 639-3grc

Also known as: Ancient Greek, Classical Greek, Koine

Ancient Greek (Ἑλληνική Hellēnikḗ) was the language of the ancient Greek world — the language of Homer (Iliad, Odyssey, c. 8th c. BCE), Plato, Aristotle, the Greek tragedians (Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides), and the New Testament (Koine Greek). Multiple historical stages: Mycenaean (Linear B, 14th–13th c. BCE), Archaic (Homer), Classical (Athenian, 5th–4th c. BCE), Hellenistic Koine (the lingua franca of Alexander's empire and the early Roman Empire). The foundation of Western philosophy, drama, science, and democracy. Gave rise to Modern Greek and contributed vast vocabulary to European languages (philosophy, biology, democracy, theater, etc.).

Where it is spoken

31 core words in Greek (Ancient)

Water

ὕδωρ

/hýdɔːr/

Fire

πῦρ

/pŷːr/

Sun

ἥλιος

/hɛ́ːlios/

Moon

σελήνη

/selɛ́ːnɛː/

Star

ἀστήρ

/astɛ̌ːr/

Mother

μήτηρ

/mɛ́ːtɛːr/

Father

πατήρ

/patɛ́ːr/

I

ἐγώ

/eɡɔ̌ː/

You

σύ

/sý/

Name

ὄνομα

/ónoma/

Eye

ὀφθαλμός

/opʰtʰalmós/

Hand

χείρ

/kʰéːr/

Heart

καρδία

/kardía/

Love

ἀγάπη

/aɡápɛː/

Tree

δένδρον

/déndron/

House

οἶκος

/oîkos/

Dog

κύων

/kýɔːn/

Cat

αἴλουρος

/aíluːros/

Eat

ἐσθίειν

/estʰíeːn/

Drink

πίνειν

/píneːn/

One

εἷς

/hêːs/

Two

δύο

/dýo/

Hello

χαῖρε

/kʰâire/

Thank you

εὐχαριστῶ

/eukʰaristɔ̂ː/

Good

ἀγαθόν

/aɡatʰón/

Cuckoo

κόκκυξ

/ˈkok.kyks/

Computer

ἄβαξ

/á.baks/

Sushi

τάριχος

/tá.riː.kʰos/

Sources

Words compared

Compared with related Indo-European (Hellenic) languages

Meaning Greek (Ancient)Mycenaean GreekGreek (Katharevousa)LatinDogriHittiteHindi
Water ὕδωρ /hýdɔːr/ 𐀄𐀈 /hudɔːr/ ὕδωρ /ˈiðor/ aqua /akʷa/ पाणी /paːɳiː/ 𒉿𒀀𒋻 /waːtar/ पानी /paːniː/
Fire πῦρ /pŷːr/ 𐀢 /pyːr/ πῦρ /pir/ ignis /iŋnis/ अग्ग /aɡː/ 𒉺𒄩𒄴𒄯 /paxːur/ आग /aːɡ/
Sun ἥλιος /hɛ́ːlios/ 𐀀𐀸𐀪𐀍 /haːwelios/ ἥλιος /ˈilios/ sōl /soːl/ सूरज /suːraj/ /—/ सूरज /suːɾədʒ/
Moon σελήνη /selɛ́ːnɛː/ 𐀕 /mɛːn/ σελήνη /seˈlini/ lūna /luːna/ चन्न /tʃanː/ 𒀀𒅈𒈠 /arma/ चाँद /tʃãːd/
Star ἀστήρ /astɛ̌ːr/ 𐀀𐀳𐀫 /astɛːr/ ἀστήρ /asˈtir/ stella /ˈstɛlːa/ तारा /taːraː/ 𒄩𒀸𒋼𒅕 /xaster/ तारा /taːɾaː/
Mother μήτηρ /mɛ́ːtɛːr/ 𐀔𐀳 /maːtɛːr/ μήτηρ /ˈmitir/ māter /maːter/ मां /mãː/ 𒀭𒈾 /anːa/ माँ /mãː/
Father πατήρ /patɛ́ːr/ 𐀞𐀳 /patɛːr/ πατήρ /paˈtir/ pater /pater/ बापू /baːpuː/ 𒀜𒋫 /atːa/ पिता /pitaː/
I ἐγώ /eɡɔ̌ː/ 𐀁𐀒 /eɡɔː/ ἐγώ /eˈɣo/ ego /ˈeɡoː/ औं /ɔ̃ː/ 𒌑𒊌 /uːk/ मैं /mɛ̃ː/
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Word order compared

Compare with major world languages

Greek (Ancient)
Ἐγὼ βούλομαι πειρᾶσθαι ἱμάτιον εἶδον ἐν καπηλείῳ ἐναντίον τοῦ πανδοκείου
أنا أريد أن أجرب بدلة رأيتها في محل مقابل الفندق
试穿 酒店 对面的 商店 看到的 那套西装
I want to try on a suit I saw ‌in a shop across from the hotel
Ich möchte einen Anzug anprobieren den ich in einem Geschäft gegenüber vom Hotel gesehen habe
मैं होटल के सामने एक दुकान में देखा सूट को पहनकर देखना चाहता हूँ
私は ホテルの 向かいの お店 見た スーツを 試着 したいです
Я хочу примерить костюм который я увидел в магазине напротив отеля

Compare with closely-related languages

Greek (Ancient)
Ἐγὼ βούλομαι πειρᾶσθαι ἱμάτιον εἶδον ἐν καπηλείῳ ἐναντίον τοῦ πανδοκείου
Unë dua ta provoj një kostum pashë një dyqan përballë hotelit
Ես ուզում եմ փորձել կոստում որ տեսա խանութում դիմաց հյուրանոցի
মই হোটেলৰ সন্মুখৰ দোকানত দেখা ছুটটো পিন্ধি চাব বিচাৰোঁ
हम होटल के सामने दुकान में देखल सूट पहिन के देखे के चाहत बानी

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