Attic Greek

From Freepedia

Image:Greek dialects.png Attic Greek is the ancient dialect of the Greek that was spoken in Attica, which includes Athens. Of the ancient dialects, it is the most similar to later Greek. It differs from most Greek dialects, including Doric, by frequently changing long ā to ē; from Ionic in not changing all of them. The Homeric dialect was an artificial compound, which resembled Ionic; but it also differed from Attic in losing the augment on the past tenses, and much more frequent use of the dual and other archaic forms. The later Koiné was largely Attic; but Attic differed from it, and most other dialects in saying "tt" for "ss" (e.g. tettares tattomenoi for tessares tassomenoi).

Contents 1 Grammar 1.1 Nouns 1.1.1 Alpha Declension 1.1.2 Omicron Declension 1.2 The Article 1.3 Verbs 2 See also 3 References 4 External links

Grammar

Nouns

Attic Greek nouns have three numbers (singular, dual, and plural), three genders (masculine, feminine, and neuter) and five cases (nominative, genitive, dative, accusative and vocative). The two major noun declensions are the vowel declension and the consonant declension. The vowel declension is split into the alpha-declension and the omicron-declension. There is also the minor consonant declension.

Alpha Declension

The alpha declension is predominantly, but not exclusively, feminine. Nouns belonging to the alpha declension have stems ending in alpha, short or long. In certain circumstances the alpha may change its length or become eta.

In the table below of feminine nouns there are three examples: long-alpha stem (ᾱ-stems), short-alpha stems (α-stems), and a stems which can end in eta (η-stems).

	Feminine
	ᾱ-stems (χώρᾱ 'land')			α-stems (Μοῦςα 'Muse')			η-stems (τῑμή 'honor')
	Singular	Dual	Plural	Singular	Dual	Plural	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	χώρᾱ	χώρᾱ	χώραι	Μοῦσα	Μούσᾱ	Μοῦσαι	τῑμή	τῑμᾱ́	τῑμαί
Vocative	χώρᾱ	χώρᾱ	χώραι	Μοῦσα	Μούσᾱ	Μοῦσαι	τῑμή	τῑμᾱ́	τῑμαί
Accusative	χώρᾱν	χώρᾱ	χώρᾱς	Μοῦσαν	Μούσᾱ	Μούσᾱς	τῑμήν	τῑμᾱ́	τῑμᾱ́ς
Genitive	χώρᾱς	χώραιν	χώρῶν	Μούσης	Μούσαιν	Μουσῶν	τῑμῆς	τῑμαιν	τῑμῶν
Dative	χώρᾳ	χώραιν	χώραις	Μούσῃ	Μούσαιν	Μούσαις	τῑμῇ	τῑμαιν	τῑμαῖς

The short alpha stem is not present in masculine nouns, thus only ᾱ-stems and η-stems are declined.

	Masculine
	ᾱ-stems (ταμίᾱς steward)			η-stems (ποιπτής poet)
	Singular	Dual	Plural	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ταμίᾱς	ταμίᾱ	ταμίαι	ποιπτής	ποιπτᾱ́	ποιπταί
Vocative	ταμίᾱ	ταμίᾱ	ταμίαι	ποιπτ	ποιπτᾱ	ποιπταί
Accusative	ταμίᾱν	ταμίᾱ	ταμίᾱς	ποιπτήν	ποιπτᾱ́	ποιπτάς
Genitive	ταμίου	ταμίαιν	ταμίῶν	ποιπτοῦ	ποιπταῖν	ποιπτῶν
Dative	ταμίᾳ	ταμίαιν	ταμίαις	ποιπτῇ	ποιπταῖν	ποιπταῖς

Omicron Declension

Nouns in the omicron declension can be masculine, feminine, or neuter, though they are predominantly masculine and neuter. Masculine and feminine nouns are declined alike.

	Masculine and Feminine stems (λόγος 'word')			Neuter stems (δῶρον 'gift')
	Singular	Dual	Plural	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	λόγος	λόγω	λόγοι	δῶρον	δώρω	δῶρα
Vocative	λόγε	λόγω	λόγοι	δῶρον	δώρω	δῶρα
Accusative	λόγον	λόγω	λόγους	δῶρον	δώρω	δῶρα
Genitive	λόγον	λόγοιν	λόγων	δώρου	δώροιν	δῶρων
Dative	λόγῳ	λόγοιν	λόγοις	δώρῳ	δώροιν	δῶροις

The Article

Attic Greek has only a definite article, which declines with its noun. It does not have an indefinite article which can be translated as "a(n)," "some," or "a certain." Frequently proper names take the definite article. A common construction is a definite article followed by a definite article in the gentive, the noun in the genitive, and finally the noun of the first article. For example: τὸ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἔργον. Translated literally as "the (of the man) deed", or more clearly rendered in English: "The deed of the man."

The definite article is declined thus:

	Masculine			Feminine			Neuter
	Singular	Dual	Plural	Singular	Dual	Plural	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	ὁ	τώ	οἱ	ἡ	τά	αἱ	τό	τώ	τά
Accusative	τόν	τώ	τούς	τήν	τά	τάς	τό	τώ	τά
Genitive	τοῦ	τοῖν	τῶν	τῆς	ταῖν	τῶν	τοῦ	τοῖν	τῶν
Dative	τῷ	τοῖν	τοῖς	τῇ	ταῖν	ταῖς	τῷ	τοῖν	τοῖς

Verbs

Verbs have three numbers (singular, dual, plural), three persons (first person, second person, third person), seven tenses (present, imperfect, aorist, future, present perfect, pluperfect, and future perfect), two aspects (simple (or aorist) and continuous), three voices (active voice, middle voice, passive voice), and four moods (indicative mood, imperative mood, subjunctive mood, optative mood). Note that the aorist construction is more than a tense: with the augment it is a tense and an aspect: past simple; without the augment (as is the case for participles, infinitives, and imperatives) it signifies simple aspect only.

See also

History of the Greek language (see also: Greek alphabet)

Proto-Greek (c3000BC)

Mycenaean (c1600BC-1100BC)

Ancient Greek Dialects: Ionic, Attic, Doric, Aeolic

Koine Greek (from c323 BC)

Medieval Greek (c330-1453)

Modern Greek (from 1453) Dialects: Tsakonic, Pontic, Katharevousa

References

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External links

• Greek Grammar on the Web
• Ancient Greek Tutorials
• Textkit - Greek and Latin Learning Tools