Learning Ancient Greek for Beginners

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  • Опубликовано: 13 янв 2025

Комментарии • 672

  • @m.v.8689
    @m.v.8689 6 лет назад +397

    Everyone is complaining about his Greek pronunciation. I just feel a bit let down that, with a name like Hans-Friedrich Mueller, and straight-up Beethoven hair, he doesn't have a thick German accent.

    • @robertwendel445
      @robertwendel445 3 года назад +7

      He said he came from German ancestry not that he was from Germany,

    • @StavsT
      @StavsT 3 года назад +14

      This is Erasmian Greek (ancient greek with Dutch accent)

    • @nikidoudoumi5560
      @nikidoudoumi5560 3 года назад +1

      Oh no not another one, butchering

    • @gamergamer1296
      @gamergamer1296 3 года назад +12

      @@StavsT his pronunciation doesn't have anything to do with Greek. I admire his excitement and knowledge however he can't even pronounce the words correctly let alone have an ancient Greek pronunciation

    • @vachikhacopian3890
      @vachikhacopian3890 2 года назад +20

      @@gamergamer1296 Please stop with the pity. Pity makes you speakers of modern Greek sound petty. Professor Mueller was trying to teach, as he clearly stated, "restored Ancient Greek." You noticed the beta sounded like a b, not a v, as in modern Greek. Also, the g is always pronounced as a hard g, never soft, as it is sometimes in modern Greek (like Giannis or gyro). Prof. Mueller apologized for his American accent more than once. To mock him is to mock Ancient Greek. The man is trying to celebrate your ancestors. Is it hard for you to focus on the importance of what he is trying to accomplish. Making fun of his accent says much about your level of intelligence.

  • @mannypip
    @mannypip 7 лет назад +378

    Anyone who promotes, speaks and encourages the Greek Language, ancient or modern, is a friend of mine ... καλά κάνει ο καθηγητής!!

    • @Hans4Modeltrains
      @Hans4Modeltrains 4 года назад +21

      Manuel Pippos , Γεια σου φίλε, έμαθα τα ελληνικά για 4 χρόνια στο σχόλιο στη Ολλανδία.
      Και μου αρέσουν τα αρχεία ελληνικά και διαβάζω την Οδύσσεια λίγο

    • @dev4424
      @dev4424 4 года назад +9

      i m from Bangladesh. apparently my mother tongue is Bengali. but i want to learn Greek. the pure greek. what sources should i look for brother.?

    • @strangerinastrangeland5314
      @strangerinastrangeland5314 4 года назад +8

      I am Russian, but some of my ancestors were Greek. I want to learn the language now. I am 23 and I hope it is not late.

    • @saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014
      @saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014 4 года назад +7

      I am a Philhellene, i consider Ancient Greek to Humanity s'best language ever

    • @tool4811
      @tool4811 4 года назад +6

      @@dev4424 Hi there friend! Probably very late to answer but I would like to suggest a way of learning modern greek. At first, you might want to get a good grasp of the alphabet and get used to the pronunciation of some combinations of letters. Surprisingly you will not have an extreme difficulty in doing so. Then, despite the context you should read aloud some small greek articles and attempt to write them afterwards in order to exercise your speaking and writing skills. After a week or so, you should grab some basic grammar, such as personal pronouns and fundamental verbs or nouns to boost your vocabulary

  • @moonflower5553
    @moonflower5553 2 года назад +18

    This is the most encouraging video I've ever seen. This is how all subjects should be taught.
    This guy feels like the type to sincerely say "good job" when you make a mistake, because that's how you learn.

  • @matthewmclaughlin4787
    @matthewmclaughlin4787 3 года назад +56

    Great lesson! I absolutely adore the works of Homer - one of the best writers of all time. Your lesson motivates me to study Ancient Greek (here and there when I can find a free moment).... Thank you very much.

    • @danaron3348
      @danaron3348 3 года назад +1

      Good for you Matthew 👍
      I am also here because I would like to be able to read Homer, Thucydides and ancient poets in classical Greek. I realise that it will take me a long time to achieve this because I only started two weeks ago and I'm no spring chicken but I'm going to get there! People like you are inspirational.

  • @aagrafio
    @aagrafio 3 года назад +14

    At 30:21, in the verb προϊάπτω, diairesis (or διαλυτικά, as we call in in Greek) is been used. This is used for the spelling, in order to distinguish between "oi" and "i", which in turn proves that without diairesis, the diphthong "οι" is spelled as ι and not as ο-ι. Unless Erasmus knew better than the Greeks, how to speak their language.

    • @badsocks756
      @badsocks756 2 года назад +1

      it's well understood that no one actually spoke Greek in the way Erasmus thought; nevertheless, it is now the standard across the world for how students learn to pronounce ancient Greek

    • @kindnessasgreatasthesea1158
      @kindnessasgreatasthesea1158 Год назад +1

      Yeah, it makes no sense. Without diairesis they pronounce οι as "oi" and with diairesis they pronounce οϊ as "oi", which is the same sound.

  • @SkrfTrth
    @SkrfTrth 6 лет назад +79

    I love the way he teaches

  • @chak3237
    @chak3237 4 года назад +66

    I absolutely adore his teaching, it makes me actually want to learn.

    • @soundsoftheheart3164
      @soundsoftheheart3164 4 года назад

      Hey. Is ancient Greek still spoken? Like I don't want to learn it but it's no longer spoken

    • @helenajunqueira4872
      @helenajunqueira4872 3 года назад

      @@soundsoftheheart3164 hey so this language is a dead language which means isn't still spoken

    • @ellinmakedon1216
      @ellinmakedon1216 3 года назад

      @@helenajunqueira4872 are you sure?

    • @internetguy8075
      @internetguy8075 2 года назад +2

      @@soundsoftheheart3164 Just learn modern Greek if you want to learn Greek that people still use in day to day life. There are some enthusiasts that can speak some ancient Greek (I think usually Koine, maybe some Attic), but the idea behind learning it is mostly that you can read old texts, like the New Testament for example. The further back in time you go, the less able anyone would be to actually learn the full language, even if they're great at learning new languages. In Homeric Greek texts a huge chunk of the vocabulary in the texts only occurs once, so we just don't know enough to really get to a fully conversational level as far as I understand it. The people who do speak some form of ancient Greek are so few and far between that you'll probably have a hard time getting in touch with anyone to practice. I expect Latin might be *slightly* easier in that regard. Take this with a grain of salt, I'm not an expert.

  • @GaryWirsching
    @GaryWirsching 3 года назад +76

    I must say, I like his teaching style; it's firm, authoritative and confident. I damn well feel that I'm bound to learn something if I stick around!

  • @michaelggriffiths
    @michaelggriffiths 4 года назад +17

    What an excellent orator! Thoroughly engaging and confident in his approach.
    For those who truly want to learn, the accent is nether here nor there. For decades I have read and studied interlinear versions of the New Testament along with Vines Expository to elicit a fuller, richer understanding. The clarity and beauty of phrase does not need an accompanying accent to resonate with me.
    Bravo.

  • @trentp151
    @trentp151 3 года назад +14

    This is by far the best lesson on languages I've ever experienced. Excellent job!

  • @Theo-lf5yp
    @Theo-lf5yp 5 лет назад +184

    If you want to read Greek the letter " Pi " should be pronounced like " Pee " not like " Pie ", because the letter " I " in Hellenic is pronounced as one short sound ' i ' or ' ee '. The same for Ι, Φ, Χ and Ψ, the proper is Eeota, Fee, Hee, Psee and not Aïota, Faï, Haï, Psy, this is ridiculous.

    • @eric_welch
      @eric_welch 4 года назад +25

      we learned how to properly say the greek letters in my physics classes and i was very fortunate to have a professor in my masters who was Greek herself :)

    • @zerocooljpn
      @zerocooljpn 4 года назад +21

      yeah, that's sooo annoying. He's supposed to be teaching the alphabet, that should include how to read the alphabet in the language he's teaching, not English...

    • @evelynl.4554
      @evelynl.4554 4 года назад +16

      eric welch I’m not sure if you paid attention, but the professor clear states that he is teaching a certain type of pronunciation for Ancient Greek not modern Greek....most likely your teacher taught you modern greek

    • @ploptart4649
      @ploptart4649 3 года назад +17

      @@evelynl.4554 He also says he's bending towards American sounds because he's teaching in the US. Americans say pi like pie, and the English say it like pee. I agree, he clearly justifies the way he's saying everything, and then said learning should be a pleasure, not a torture. None of these people even watched this video, and they definitely didn't hear that last part. God, people are a drag.

    • @EvaFuji
      @EvaFuji 3 года назад +9

      @@evelynl.4554 iota in ancient greek is ee not ai. αι=ai like in μαθηταί ι=ee like in ίππος you didn't pay attention

  • @charleseliyahpelosof8468
    @charleseliyahpelosof8468 5 лет назад +33

    I am a teacher so I give you respect for your teachings. I have been reading ancient Greek for more than 33 years now and with all due respect , i disagree with the pronunciation given in this video. That's my right. The iota should sound like eeotah in english transliteration, not the way it is presented. The 2nd letter should sound like Veetah in english transliteration not Beta. In the Hebrew language, the second letter is bet or vet depending if the little dot is inside the letter and other example. If people wants to learn ancient Greek i would recommend to look for a Greek teacher specialized in ancient Greek. When i was young, my friends in Greek schools had to learn Archaia Ellinika. it was mandatory.

    • @kalebg.7507
      @kalebg.7507 4 года назад +9

      I mean, I started laughing after his pronunciation of alpha. He read it in English instead of Greek which like he even said 'a' is not supposed to sound the same.
      I have been learning Koine for the last 4 years so this video was cringe.

  • @majorminor300
    @majorminor300 Год назад +1

    I'm so glad I came across your channel today. I hope to watch and learn more. You make it fun, interesting and memorable, which makes learning language easy and enjoyable. Thanks.

  • @Peter-oh3hc
    @Peter-oh3hc 4 месяца назад +1

    I am just starting and since the pronunciation if only for me I am picking this one (bought the dvd). Using this and other books and videos give me hope

  • @Antpaok
    @Antpaok 6 лет назад +623

    I'm Greek and I didn't even realize he was speaking Greek when he supposedly spoke in ancient Greek, all I heard were a bunch of American sounding syllables

    • @joannagrimeki7415
      @joannagrimeki7415 6 лет назад +81

      because he uses the erasmus-restorted-ancient greek version...we greeks know the original non restort version of ancient greek...this is the difference!

    • @thomaszaccone3960
      @thomaszaccone3960 6 лет назад +47

      Well, i guess modern Greek sounds more like Ancient Greek than Anglo-Greek, but Ancient Greek and modern Greek are not identical. Homeric Greek is from probably around 600 BC. That's over 2,000 years ago. Homeric Ancient Greek is older and Mycenaean Greek is 3,000 years old and used Minoan symbols, not the Ancient Greek Alphabet. Try reading something in Old English like Beowulf. That is only 1000 years ago or so. Admittedly modern Greek is probably a lot closer to Ancient Greek than Old English is to modern Greek. You all did not have Normans.
      I think he needs a haircut.

    • @devinreese1109
      @devinreese1109 6 лет назад +29

      modern greek is the best way to learn a Hellenic accent way of speaking (and really the only way). However, modern greeks in my opinion do not speak like the ancient greeks. the pronunciation has changed. You can somewhat tell from the ancient greek. Also, each area had its own dialect and most likely somewhat accent, all of which is lost, except what we can get from studying the spelling in inscriptions. So, in this case we have to accept that we may never know exactly. Hellenes also went through many different stages, as you can also see the society and architecture did. the style and alphabet of alexander's day is hardly the style of the minoans. its a world of difference at every stage. which is precisely one reason why they are so fascinating. So much good stuff and so different. but you can not get a precise way of pronouncing hellene without listening to a native speaker. But I do not think it was the same. We have plenty of evidence pronunciations change in all languages over time. For instance: H was once a consonant in greek and so was digamma a V, (not B for v.). Hta took the place of long e or a in Ionic dialects, not a long iota. Y is pronounced as a v in au and eu but as a semivowel that would correspond to a u-vowel in origin, (and does in every other indo-european language), not a long i, which is how it's pronounced now. Eventually at some point H was pronounced like a long i--I am not sure when this happened, but, people speculate it was around the time of koine, but I am not sure what is in hard evidence in archaeology. Also: the accent in modern greek is all one accent. There are three in ancient greek, because it was probably a pitch accent: just like in vedic, to which ancient greek is most comparable to in languages. Without the rough breathing being pronounced an H why would you need to write it? Today it isn't pronounced. That doesn't make any sense. People don't write something they don't pronounce. Like in french. Originally the -s was pronounced. Originally louis (louie) was written and pronounced Clovis. This metamorphosis is actually an ongoing process and we have evidence for it at every time. The mycenaeans spoke and wrote a different language than classical greek and then both are different from modern. The word kalos was originally Kalvos (v-digamma) why write digamma if you dont pronounce it? Eventually you don't. But some languages keep something for along time in spelling that isn't pronounced. Originally, whent hey were first making writing this wasn't the case. They just changed the spelling. Well, it's likely it was all different at different times, evolving, changing. Study your greek dialects, sanskrit and epigraphh (inscriptions) from each area. Study your Platwnas: the heraclitean reality. Reality always changing. Only the forms (ideas) survive.

    • @heronimousbrapson863
      @heronimousbrapson863 6 лет назад +19

      No one can necessarily assume that the ancient Greeks spoke with the same pronounciation and accent as modern Greeks anyway.

    • @amkju
      @amkju 5 лет назад +41

      He's speaking in an anglicized version of Ancient Greek pronunciation, as he says in the video. While the ancient pronunciation is known to scholars (not in perfect detail, but relatively well), it's rarely followed that closely because it's just easier assimilate the pronunciation to your native language. And it's not like people go around conversing in Ancient Greek anyway. People study the language mostly to be able to understand the ancient texts.

  • @autumnkiskinis5957
    @autumnkiskinis5957 5 лет назад +22

    So I'm curious to those of you who have who have learned ancient Greek in school, in Greece..... Do you use the accent that people normally use to speak Greek? I remember when my Pappou would speak ancient Greek to me he would just use the regular accent that we used to speak modern Greek... I feel that the modern Greek accent is the closest thing we have to knowing what the ancient Greeks sounded like....

    • @dadaniti7822
      @dadaniti7822 4 года назад +2

      We know that they had a different pronunciation but: 1.since we are learning it not as a foreign language but as a previous form of ours
      2.since it is still not clear how they spoke and erasmian pronunciation is full of mistakes
      3.since it comes easier, after all none has to speak it, (sometimes we do it for fun though)
      We use the modern pronunciation

    • @michelaristegui1342
      @michelaristegui1342 4 года назад +3

      'I feel that the modern Greek accent is the closest thing we have to knowing what the ancient Greeks sounded like....' Is it really scientific? I'm not sure it's a matter of feeling.

    • @michelaristegui1342
      @michelaristegui1342 4 года назад +5

      Being native Greek is not relevant, I'm afraid.

    • @alexjann5802
      @alexjann5802 3 года назад +6

      @@michelaristegui1342 more relevant than being Dutch

    • @OracleechoAutumn
      @OracleechoAutumn 3 года назад

      @Vlad Tsepes 😂😂 ok I did too…

  • @vijaykumar-lb5od
    @vijaykumar-lb5od 4 года назад +5

    From India.... thanks you very much I lockdown 2020 I have been learning Greek . Russian. Japanese Urdu french Portuguese Spanish and sanskrit

  • @Dr.Reason
    @Dr.Reason 8 месяцев назад

    Been working on Greek now for about a year, and just found this guy. Not sure if I would have liked it a year ago but am really enjoying his lessons now. Love his flamboyant and dramatic presentation. It’s actually fun!

  • @LondonPower
    @LondonPower 4 года назад +3

    I learn ancient Greek from grandfathers they used to live in a remote part of Anatolia the region is call it Pontus or karadeniz in Turkish

    • @AmazonWarriorQueen
      @AmazonWarriorQueen 4 года назад

      London Power, that’s real cool! I’ve been wanting to learn Pontic Greek myself, but I don’t know where I can find reliable sources to learn it. You are lucky to have family from that region to help you!

    • @metis9692
      @metis9692 4 года назад

      @@AmazonWarriorQueen come blacksea))

    • @StergiosMekras
      @StergiosMekras 4 года назад

      Pontic Greek is one of the dialects closest to ancient Greek so... win-win?

  • @saidlaaroua1178
    @saidlaaroua1178 6 лет назад +82

    I"m so surprised that I already know all the letters in shape and in pronunciation, I am a physics teacher. Awesom!

    • @romanmindset-r2j
      @romanmindset-r2j 4 года назад +4

      If your a physics teacher you shouldn't be surprised by that at all

    • @Francescomonti60
      @Francescomonti60 4 года назад +2

      That's very cool, but can your physic translate homer's texts?

    • @johnjustice8478
      @johnjustice8478 3 года назад

      You are a "Nature Indicator," you said, Said, just once, once.

    • @timelesswiftie
      @timelesswiftie 3 года назад +1

      i mean if you're a teacher your grammar should be correct- it's not, firstly it's i'm, i apostrophe m, not a quote, and secondly, it's awesome with an e

  • @rooker56
    @rooker56 3 года назад +10

    To my recollection, one morning all Greek people (wherever they lived), woke up and suddenly decided to start speaking their language differently! But this doesn't make sense!
    The truth is not so complicated as shown in all these comments: Ancient and Modern Greek is one and only language. It was inherited from generation to generation from ancient eras till today. May be modern greek came to be a simplified form of the ancient one, but it is the same language. If someone is interested to have an idea about nearly ancient accent and pronounciation, it could be a good idea to hear greek as spoken by older people still alive, originated from Pontus (Black Sea), Cyprus, Creta, Kappadokia, etc. Nothing to do with what Erasmus stated!
    Anyway, many thanks for video. It was a good reason for thoughts sharing.

    • @polytrelaras1
      @polytrelaras1 3 года назад +1

      I was thinking the same ..how is it possible that all greek speaking enclaves all over the world is speaking in more or less form? Erasmus was speaking Dutch.. It would be very difficult for a non greek to speak it without distortion or/and oversimplification.

    • @Atmirilias1
      @Atmirilias1 3 года назад +1

      No, it is not the same as ancient greek. Ancient Greek is a different language. Using the same alphabet does not mean they are the same languages. English is not a Latin language because it uses the Latin alphabet.

    • @gaelicreaction1049
      @gaelicreaction1049 2 года назад

      Yeah, because those regions kept the same pronunciation for 2,000 years and didn't evolve at all 🙄

    • @TMPOUZI
      @TMPOUZI Год назад +2

      @@Atmirilias1 English has become a latin language because a great amount of its vocabulary comes from French/Latin etymologicaly.
      On the other way most vocabulary of modern Greek derives directly from ancient Greek and the changes of pronunciation in MG are also ancient. Till 2nd century AD they spoke it pretty much as today

  • @williamstapp3882
    @williamstapp3882 4 года назад +11

    Having read some of the other comments, it's hard to believe that so many know so much more. I have never heard so much wisdom concentrated in so short a space. Perhaps that's because I need to get out more. But, on the other hand I have noted that knowledge and wisdom become much diluted when spread among the entire population.

  • @galegleen9128
    @galegleen9128 5 лет назад +27

    Absolutely captivating teaching style.
    It's a Yes from me!

  • @betrisher55
    @betrisher55 5 лет назад +4

    I don't care if Prof Mueller's accent annoys the purists! In just half an hour I learned the alphabet, the sounds and how to use accents! That's more than I could get to stick inside my head with just me and my textbook. He's an *excellent* teacher!

  • @marias.3639
    @marias.3639 2 года назад +2

    You pronounce the letters of alphabet with english influence. "i" is ee not ai. We don't say psai but psee . Also we say "d" thelta (like the sound of the article the) for the sound of d we use the combination NT. And the letter T is called taf. Because the combination of a+u makes either f or v sound.

    • @TMPOUZI
      @TMPOUZI Год назад +2

      he went for the pronunciation of classical ages (5th century bC) which was different from the later Byzantine. But I agree with the i (ee). Also in classical Athens ει was already pronounced i or e, not ei. The rest of what he said is erasmian. What ruins it completely though, is the heavy american accent

  • @domingomartinez2779
    @domingomartinez2779 3 года назад +1

    Great teacher !! From Venezuela learning ancient Greek in 2021

  • @echolee601
    @echolee601 4 года назад +42

    Thank you!Learned ancient Greek 5 years ago and it is still so intriguing!(compared to Latin and ancient Hebrew,the ancient Greek is always my favorite😍😍

  • @dejavuGR
    @dejavuGR 5 лет назад +23

    ''restored classical pronunciation''?! Well, I would say it's more a "distortion'' of the classical pronunciation. It's really remarkable, why the western countries adopted a pronunciation was offered from a Dutchman (Erasmus) and ignored the pronunciation that the Greeks themselves used for their own language !

    • @Hans4Modeltrains
      @Hans4Modeltrains 4 года назад

      dejavuGR , yes indeed, he pronounce the diphtone ευ correct instead of what Erasmus did.
      He pronounced it with Dutch diphtone ui
      When I was in Greece, they were very suprised that we in Western European countries, pronounce the ευ in ancient Greek different, I explained them it is pronouncation according to Erasmus

    • @mohamedgo9403
      @mohamedgo9403 4 года назад +1

      Make a video and show us what you know instead of this saying of yours.

  • @oobidoobscoobdoobbenoobi7733
    @oobidoobscoobdoobbenoobi7733 4 года назад +11

    5:15 u forgot 'aight ima hed out'

  • @nageshwarraodowari8766
    @nageshwarraodowari8766 6 месяцев назад +1

    Very good teaching, thank you sir, God bless you 🙏

  • @TimMcNamara-sh2cg
    @TimMcNamara-sh2cg 6 месяцев назад

    I learned someting today in his presentatio. I learned about the diuresis, and I learned how to pronounce ui as oui in French. I have two years of Ancient Greek from the University of Michigan in Ann, Arbor Michigan, so to say I learned something new is really remarkable!

  • @sastrinidis
    @sastrinidis 3 года назад +5

    7:32 I know I'm going to be in for a great lesson when he says alpha is pronounced like the a in father and then pronounces the a in alpha like in cat or cake

  • @powerengineer4064
    @powerengineer4064 5 лет назад +168

    When you’re studying engineering and you already know the Greek alphabet 😎

    • @angeloritofasanaro9850
      @angeloritofasanaro9850 4 года назад +1

      日本

    • @angeloritofasanaro9850
      @angeloritofasanaro9850 4 года назад +1

      ε σ Σ Δ Γ

    • @angeloritofasanaro9850
      @angeloritofasanaro9850 4 года назад +3

      It similar to i fenician berberi alphabet used by all mediterranean before Mohamed invasion

    • @Francescomonti60
      @Francescomonti60 4 года назад +3

      If you know the alphabet (part of it) but you don't know how to translate or speak it isn't very useful.

    • @eric_welch
      @eric_welch 4 года назад

      just because you know it doesn't mean you know how to use it :p Physics teaches the real way to use these letters :p

  • @TorSmawbs
    @TorSmawbs 4 года назад +28

    This man's performance is hilarious. No shade on his teaching of course.

  • @DiomedesDioscuro
    @DiomedesDioscuro 3 года назад +1

    I can't but dislike the aspiration in κ, π and τ. But I guess he's right that life is too short.

  • @williamstapp3882
    @williamstapp3882 4 года назад +4

    This is a jewel! A gold mine! The Greek alphabet with pronunciation, spoken words, diphthongs, split diphthongs, diacritical markings! I have never heard anyone else say that language is felt by all the senses (my summary). So correct! I am trilingual (English, German and Spanish) and I experience a change in personality depending on which language I speak. You deliver your lesson, slowly, patiently and with verve. I will of course subscribe to "The Great Courses Plus" to continue my study of Ancient Greek. This is a huge contribution to learning Ancient Greek.

  • @rajnilmukherjee8274
    @rajnilmukherjee8274 7 лет назад +4

    I love it. Pls post the 2nd lecture for the benefit of all. You are doing a GREAT job.

    • @opheliasgrace
      @opheliasgrace 7 лет назад +1

      Think the idea is to show you one lecture to peek your interest so you'll pay for the whole set of lectures.

    • @antoinekanavaros7322
      @antoinekanavaros7322 4 года назад

      RAJNIL MUKHERJEE
      Yes he is doing a great job slaughtering the greek language

  • @mithrasenkidu9423
    @mithrasenkidu9423 5 лет назад +3

    I think that Xi, Pi, Phi, Khi, Psi should have to be called Ksee, Pee, Phee, Khee as the Ancient Greeks didn't pronounce I as the Anglo-Saxons do... Same with Mu and Nu, in which the U seems to have been pronounced like the French U and the German Ü. However I'm French myself and I know that our pronounciation of Ancient Greek is also biaised.

  • @charliefowkes1932
    @charliefowkes1932 3 года назад +16

    I’m learning Ancient Greek and this tutorial has been a big help 👍🏻 does anyone know if this course is still available, it’s not clear on the website, thanks

    • @TheGreatCourses
      @TheGreatCourses  3 года назад +3

      Hi Charlie, yes, you can find it here: www.thegreatcoursesplus.com/ancient-greek-civilization

  • @johnjackson5308
    @johnjackson5308 4 года назад +12

    I think you are an excellent teacher. You make it fun, interesting and relevant. You are getting a lot of flack from our Modern eta centric Greeks who claim to have the correct pronunciation. I would advise them to listen to Old English and try to claim the same argument via Modern English. I don't want to give the impression that the Erasmian pronunciation is a truthful rendition of the way Greek sounded in Athens 2000 years ago but it is used in universities the world over. I can listen to an Iliad recital from an Indian, German or American and still understand it because they use a common standard. The only truth in pronunciation is that it is always changing. Listen to an 1888 recording of William Gladstone and you can hear the shifts of of little more than a hundred years.

    • @StergiosMekras
      @StergiosMekras 4 года назад +2

      The problem is that the "modern" Greek pronunciation is far closer to the "ancient" one than the Erasmian will ever be. There certainly has been a shift in both consonants and vowels over the centuries, but these changes are fairly well documented (give or take a century or two for each). The Erasmian pronunciation was never "accurate" to any degree and even Erasmus would attest that.

    • @StavsT
      @StavsT 3 года назад +1

      My family speaks an old form of Greek closer to Ancient rather than modern and it doesn't sound at all like Erasmian. Erasmian Greek is an old Dutch pronunciation of ancient greek.

    • @StavsT
      @StavsT 3 года назад +1

      The spelling may be correct but in the end of the day it's still a foreigner speaking it leaving a large possibility for mispronunciation.

  • @umar.666
    @umar.666 4 месяца назад

    I enjoyed n learned the Alpa n Omega❤ Great way of teaching Greek! 👍👌🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽

  • @debbie5600
    @debbie5600 4 года назад +2

    I have to know English just to understand better my own language. It is kind of sad but I am really happy at the same time for finding out this video.

  • @testymcgee1472
    @testymcgee1472 5 лет назад +5

    This is the pronunciation that I learned in high school, and throughout the years I found that it did not seem to flow naturally with what I was reading. It's not real. I think you should commit to the authentic ancient pronunciation or at least modern Greek pronunciation if you want to claim that you are "speaking" the language.

  • @Dimas-d1j
    @Dimas-d1j 7 лет назад

    Also it is veta,like in video ,beta is made by combining m(μ) with p(π) ,μπ.

  • @gerhardhelzel
    @gerhardhelzel 6 лет назад +7

    It is very difficult for an American to pronounce a long ē or a long ō: they must say ‘ei‘ and ‘ou‘, pronouncing ē and ō as diphthongs, unless one has learned a modern language or Latin with good pronunciation.
    Concerning the Erasmian pronunciation: It is not necessary to follow Erasmus to find a good ancient pronunciation, for we know from Latin many details of the pronunciation of the classical Greek:
    1) Words beginning with Ἥρα are always written in Latin with ‘Hera‘ , not ‘Ira‘. E.g.: Hēraclēum, Hēraclīdēs. Greek ει could be transferred by i or e, as in ‘Alexandréa‘ or ‘Alexandría‘, i.e. it must have been in Greek between i and e.
    2) Also, we know from Latin that β was always b, e.g. barbitos = βάρβιτος.
    3) In classical times there was not yet the ‘spirantisation‘ of the tenues φ θ χ (ph th ch) (except θ in Doric, but that is not classical). Gellius tells us that Greek is more beautiful than Latin because it does not have the ‘ugly letter = littera foeda‘ f (“lingua Graeca est eo pulchrior quam Latina quod f litteram non habet“).
    4) ει, η, ι, οι, υ, υι are in the Neogreek pronunciation all pronounced as i, what cannot be genuine. And if we study Greek in Germany, we have to translate into ancient Greek. If we used the Neogreek pronunciation we should make so many mistakes that it would be extremely impractical.

  • @theseeker9591
    @theseeker9591 4 года назад +1

    this is just little. is there a whole Playlist? links plz.

  • @axiomist1076
    @axiomist1076 6 лет назад +200

    You are pronouncing all the letters with an English sound. So we are not learning Greek. One example, it's not "thaita" but "thehta". It's not ah-i-oh-uhta but "eeohtah". So, let's learn Greek, not "Anglo-Greek!

    • @quackduck4090
      @quackduck4090 6 лет назад +9

      The pronunciation of ancient greek was different than the one we use now
      though admittedly he has an american accent, that is to be expected
      it's not that easy to learn how to pronounce and recognise phonemes that do not exist in your native language
      also, the reason why greek loan words have such weird spellings in english is because that's how the used to be pronounced
      take the word phoneme for example, this f sound used to be a aspirated p sound
      why else would greek have so many letters for the same exact vowels
      all this is a result thousands of years of mutating that merged all those sounds together
      here's a wikipedia article en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iotacism

    • @devinreese1109
      @devinreese1109 6 лет назад +4

      modern greek is the best way to learn a greek accent way of speaking. However, modern greeks in my opinion do not speak like the ancient greeks. the pronunciation has changed. You can somewhat tell from the ancient greek. Also, each area had its own dialect and most likely somewhat accent, all of which is lost, except what we can get from studying the spelling inscriptions. So, in this case we have to accept that we may never know exactly.

    • @robertyianni3623
      @robertyianni3623 6 лет назад +5

      @@quackduck4090 We don't know how ancient Greek sounded...

    • @SodagreenVic
      @SodagreenVic 6 лет назад +5

      I'm Chinese and I used to work an live in Greece. Even I can tell he speaks American English rather than ancient Greek.

    • @heronimousbrapson863
      @heronimousbrapson863 6 лет назад +9

      Of course he's speaking Greek. If a Greek person speaking English speaks it with a heavy Greek accent, are they not still speaking English?

  • @johnjustice8478
    @johnjustice8478 3 года назад +4

    Diphthongs are pronounced as "two utterances."
    The difference in pronunciation between a monophthong and a diphthong may be subtle but it is there, as Sanskritists know.
    This bloke's very present day in his teaching

  • @jemimafontanilla4210
    @jemimafontanilla4210 6 лет назад +26

    I feel like watching Dionysus or Chiron.

  • @hemantasharma486
    @hemantasharma486 Год назад

    Wow! It's great lesson and excellent teaching for us!

  • @douglasheld
    @douglasheld 3 года назад

    9:15 Why is the α in γάμμα pronounced as in cat? Just 30 seconds earlier we were asked not to pronounce it that way.

  • @katrieladolphus920
    @katrieladolphus920 2 года назад +1

    That intro was amazing 👏

  • @estherelson9473
    @estherelson9473 2 года назад

    I love how he teaches

  • @annepamelamanning
    @annepamelamanning 3 года назад +1

    Excellent teaching! I am hooked! Been wanting to learn NT Greek forever, but never got down to it. Now in quarantine because of international travel, I am locked in to learn. ;) ;)

    • @TheGreatCourses
      @TheGreatCourses  3 года назад

      Thanks for your kind words, Anne! That's the best way to keep yourself entertained while you're quarantined. 😉 Never stop learning!

  • @johnjustice8478
    @johnjustice8478 3 года назад +1

    "Diacriticals" is adjectival. "Diacriticl is the nounal form. No "noun-adjective substantive," so to speak, is required.

  • @HannahHoffmanMusic
    @HannahHoffmanMusic 4 года назад +3

    How come your pronunciation of certain letters doesn't reflect their
    Greek spelling? For example, you pronounce "alpha" with an "a" sound
    like "cat" instead of "father." And you pronounce "iota" with an "i"
    sound like "pie" instead of "police" or "hit." Please advise!

  • @ssossuomensosiaalioikeudel8892
    @ssossuomensosiaalioikeudel8892 4 года назад +2

    As far as I understand, the Finnish (or the Nordic) way to pronounce ancient Greek is rather accurate and very close to to the (restored) original. Pronouncing diphthongs and finding the difference between long and short wovels is very easy to Finns, because in our language (which is phonetically very conservative) these oppositions are important.
    - I have seen here some videos where teatchers of modern "vernacular" Greek pronounce ancient Greek and they do so e.g. without paying attention to spiritus lenis or spirtus asper. / Jari J. Marjanen, Helsinki, Finland

    • @mazinga5159
      @mazinga5159 2 года назад

      The so called “Ancient Greek” is Pellasgian language , that people spread tru (today European territories and)

    • @lynnberger7164
      @lynnberger7164 2 года назад

      Same is for us Croatians. It is easy for us to pronounce all the letters. (Btw, I like Finnish:))

  • @ΑθηνάΑμπατζή-ψ9σ
    @ΑθηνάΑμπατζή-ψ9σ 4 года назад +3

    Μπράβο για την αγάπη στα αρχαία Ελληνικά όμως η προφορά του αλφαβήτου δεν είναι σωστή .Είναι όμως πολύ εύκολο να διορθωθεί .

  • @domesticcat1725
    @domesticcat1725 6 лет назад +23

    I don't know how you manage to make ‹κοινή› sound like ‘queen A’

    • @olaf2627
      @olaf2627 5 лет назад +5

      He pronounces it perfectly according to all ancient greek pronounciation guides I've seen.

    • @koulouris7303
      @koulouris7303 4 года назад +2

      Olaf Sorry it’s a year later,but he pronounces it wrong,the guides you’ve read cannot compare to real life language and in greece we don’t say K-o-ee-n-e but k-ee-n-ee

    • @RANDOMNAME-kj1zv
      @RANDOMNAME-kj1zv 4 года назад +9

      @@koulouris7303 How you pronounce it in modern Greece is irrelevant to how it was pronounced 2000 years ago.
      Only 1000 years ago in English “Knight” would have been pronounced “K-nee-gh-t” where now it’s pronounced “Nite”, and “Knife” would have been “K-nee-ve”. A lot changes over time.

  • @89Dustdevil
    @89Dustdevil 3 года назад +2

    Ancient Greek has a completely different form of pronunciation than Modern Greek. It was basically made up by European scholars. It’s actually easier to learn for a lot of people since each letter has a unique sound while in Modern Greek some sound the same. There is a definite shift towards using Modern pronunciation today. People like this professor have been using this for decades though and it’s still the standard in academic contexts.

  • @innosanto
    @innosanto Год назад

    I think he has great style of the stuff

  • @antonioluna4688
    @antonioluna4688 3 года назад +3

    No sabía que la pronunciación del griego clásico era muy similar a la del inglés americano. I didn't know the classical Greek Pronunciation was very similar to current American English. Lol...

  • @secretary.of.estatechief-c6220
    @secretary.of.estatechief-c6220 6 месяцев назад

    Very nice teaching methods😊

  • @taniaharrington4297
    @taniaharrington4297 3 года назад

    REALLY enjoyed this by the way.

  • @justinnamuco9096
    @justinnamuco9096 2 года назад

    Thanks for introducing vocabulary. It was great

  • @junebrown8207
    @junebrown8207 6 лет назад

    I wish people would stop complaining about this video. It may not be perfect, but then, who is? At least he is trying to teach Greek and it is free when all said and done. If you feel you can do better, then please get your own channel here on RUclips and start teaching Ancient Greek yourselves, and for free as well. However, if none of you are willing to do that, then go and have a look at Bill Mounce, I really do like his videos, that is, William D Mounce, as he is really good at teaching Ancient Greek. Hopefully, you won't complain about him!

  • @heronimousbrapson863
    @heronimousbrapson863 5 лет назад +25

    During the Roman Empire, Greek was actually the preferred language of the Roman upper classes when speaking among themselves.

  • @Agapy8888
    @Agapy8888 3 года назад

    Love your knowledge and pronunciation. Cheers.

  • @martinbowman1993
    @martinbowman1993 Год назад

    I love this course.

  • @alanbrookes275
    @alanbrookes275 5 лет назад +2

    Just as Greek texts can tell how Imperial Latin was pronounced Latin texts about Greek matters can show us how words in Attic Greek were pronounced.

  • @samuelcahill7226
    @samuelcahill7226 4 года назад +1

    Where is this guidebook he is talking about?

    • @TheGreatCourses
      @TheGreatCourses  4 года назад +1

      Hello, Samuel. By becoming a member of The Great Courses Plus you will have access to the guidebook depending on the format you've bought. The digital version comes with a free downloadable PDF, the DVD option (if available - on The Great Courses site, not plus) comes with a printed guidebook and downloadable PDF.

    • @samuelcahill7226
      @samuelcahill7226 4 года назад +1

      @@TheGreatCourses Thank you for letting me know. I think it's great that you are providing resources for people to learn Ancient Greek and many other things! Keep up the good work👍🏻

    • @TheGreatCourses
      @TheGreatCourses  4 года назад +1

      You are welcome, Samuel, and thank you for the great feedback. We appreciate it 😊.

  • @GeoBBB123
    @GeoBBB123 4 года назад +2

    Great ... even though his pronunciation cannot shake off the 'Anglic'

  • @ianvillanueva6065
    @ianvillanueva6065 4 года назад +6

    This guys lectures on The Pagan World are friggin fantastic.

  • @Albukhshi
    @Albukhshi 7 лет назад +3

    @ 1:10
    Honestly, the Greeks should have called it Pathos--which can mean "pain", and "suffering"

  • @roman2164
    @roman2164 3 года назад

    Is anyone else learning this not only for linguistics reasons and also being a science enthusiast(Knowing that science is an advanced language that is a smoothie of ancient greek, latin and english)?

    • @roman2164
      @roman2164 3 года назад

      And as expected, A lot of this is used by science and maths students every day like mu(micro) and delta(Change in) or lambda(wavelength)

  • @quagapp
    @quagapp 7 лет назад +2

    We say "zed" for Z (in NZ). In the US they say Z which is o.k. Just something I am not used to.

  • @innosanto
    @innosanto Год назад +1

    Erasmus had some point.
    About spme stuff he was probably correct.

  • @zmiroslav011
    @zmiroslav011 6 лет назад +1

    The set is fine

  • @JadeDragon407
    @JadeDragon407 3 года назад

    Helpful info; glad I ran across this. Can't help but wonder if Θάλασσα is where Tallahassee's name came from (which is NOT on the coast hehe).

  • @onemanenclave
    @onemanenclave 2 года назад

    Will I be able to read Plato and the gospels in the original after this?

  • @redeyeloon4032
    @redeyeloon4032 3 года назад +2

    Thank you so much!

  • @MyColourPage
    @MyColourPage 4 года назад +4

    This was a really interesting lesson!!! I enjoyed it a lot!!!

  • @ΠέτροςΓαλανάκης
    @ΠέτροςΓαλανάκης 3 года назад

    ΣΥΓΧΑΡΗΤΗΡΙΑ !

  • @rogerxavier18
    @rogerxavier18 4 года назад +1

    I love this guy!

  • @YuriRadavchuk
    @YuriRadavchuk 4 года назад +12

    It's so hard to see a professor not even trying to reduce his accent.

  • @tashatekuchova4418
    @tashatekuchova4418 Год назад

    Awesome lesson 🫶

  • @nick54thegreat
    @nick54thegreat 7 лет назад +2

    Great lecture where can I see lesson 2.

    • @opheliasgrace
      @opheliasgrace 7 лет назад +5

      You have to buy it. This is an intro to the lecture series for sale with Great Courses.

  • @antonybar426
    @antonybar426 3 года назад +2

    The pronunciation of the greek alphabet is wrong in this video.
    A = Alpha .
    B = Veta .
    Γ = gamma and g sounds like the word W(ay) - W(ay)amma .
    Δ= delta and d sounds like the word TH(e) - TH(e)-elta .
    Ε = epsilon .
    Z= zeta .
    H = eta
    Θ = theta and th sounds like the word TH(anks) - TH(anks)eta
    Ι = yo-ta
    Κ = cappa
    Λ = lamda. lam sounds like the word LAM(a) and da sounds like the word TH(e) -lam(a)th(e)a
    M = me
    N= ni. Ni sounds like the word ΝΙ(xon )
    Ξ = xy. Χy sounds like the word (se)XY
    O = omikron
    Π = pe
    Ρ= ro. Ro sounds like the word RO(mance)
    Σ = seegma. G sounds like the word W(ay) seeW(ay)ma.
    Τ = is pronounced exactly as the word tough
    Υ = ypsilon
    Φ= fee
    X = he
    Ψ = psi and sounds like the word (y)PSI(lon)
    Ω =omega. G sounds like the word W(ay) OmeW(ay)a.

  • @johnjustice8478
    @johnjustice8478 3 года назад +3

    "logos" means "word," he says. But it also means "thought" and "collection," from the verb, "lego," "I collect." A collection is things combined, however loosely, one might say.
    A collection of a couple of notions might make an idea.
    Thus, "In the beginning was the thought; and the thought was with God; and the though was God." What does that mean? How does it differ from t'other?

  • @telosfd
    @telosfd 4 года назад +1

    Great lecture sir.

  • @Jacob011
    @Jacob011 4 года назад +3

    This is a fantastic lesson! I love you managed to explain some of the diacritical signs.

  • @laurasibley6293
    @laurasibley6293 Год назад

    What study guide??? Where can I get it??

  • @annanicolenolina
    @annanicolenolina 2 года назад +1

    Thank you for the video! Amazing and motivating! I like your English a lot! And great teacher! One doesn’t have to be perfect in order to teach; it’s good enough to know how to give the knowledge further! And that’s exactly the case of this teacher! I like to study with him and don’t care about the accent: no one Ancient Greek will be angry with me about American accent, if I would be able to find the existing one at the meantime 😂

  • @trevorreedstudios
    @trevorreedstudios 4 года назад

    How can I get to see the following videos to this please?

    • @TheGreatCourses
      @TheGreatCourses  4 года назад

      Hi, you can find more info about this topic on our website. Click on the link in bio and simply search for the course you're looking for. Never stop learning!

    • @trevorreedstudios
      @trevorreedstudios 4 года назад

      @@TheGreatCoursesThanks!

  • @denisblack9897
    @denisblack9897 6 лет назад +10

    this makes me wanna play Age of Mythology

    • @TheGreatCourses
      @TheGreatCourses  6 лет назад +7

      These courses can do that. In this part of the office it can also kick off a few campaign missions from Zeus: Master of Olympus!

  • @Coco-eh8gx
    @Coco-eh8gx 4 года назад +1

    Is it possible or worth it to learn ancient greek on my own?

  • @taniaharrington4297
    @taniaharrington4297 3 года назад

    Can anyone tell me the spelling of his greeting? Does it mean 'welcome'? 'Hidete' or something similar. Thanks.

  • @PippDawg69
    @PippDawg69 7 месяцев назад

    I love this guy

  • @victorrsouz
    @victorrsouz 5 лет назад +4

    Anglophones have such a thick characteristic accent in whatever language they attempt to learn. It's remarkable.

  • @IpatiasCreations
    @IpatiasCreations 6 лет назад +22

    I am disheartened in learning this ancient "Greek" pronunciation, which is so different from our Greek language and the Greek Divine Liturgy. How can Greek priests, who study this ungainly pronunciation in these classes, preach to the Greek people? They will make fun of them, I am sure. There is a disconnect here - between the scholars (who have decided upon themselves to slaughter the Greek pronunciation and teach it with arrogance, as if they have the right to do so ) and the traditional Greek that has been handed down from generation to generation. This course is an intellectual exercise and no more. I wouldn't call this a language, though, because it needs to be communicated, and it is not reaching the Greek speaking people, but a small sector of scholars.

    • @Geezypt
      @Geezypt 5 лет назад

      Patty Apostolides do you know of any RUclips video that teaches and explains how to learn proper Ancient Greek? I’ve been looking for a while now, if you do know of some let me know. Thank you.

    • @chaidle
      @chaidle 5 лет назад

      Geezy have you found one? yet??? at least this vids are good introduction though. WHy do you want to learn it?

    • @michelaristegui1342
      @michelaristegui1342 4 года назад

      He is certainly not teaching 'the Greek speaking peple'. Why would he? Homeric Greek pronunciation was entirely different from modern Greek pronunciation. It's a scientific fact, well established today.