Hellenistic Greek © 2008
Lesson 2: The Alphabet (Upper Case Letters)

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Lesson at a Glance

Pronunciation and Recognition

In the table below, the upper case (capital) Greek letters are paired with the lower case letters that you learned in lesson one. Take a few minutes now to compare the upper and lower case forms of each letter and review the pronunciation of each letter.

The Upper Case Greek Letters, Their Names and Pronunciation

Recognizing the Upper Case Letters

The Upper Case Letters. Several of the upper case letters resemble their English equivalents: Α, Β, Ε, Ζ, Ι, Κ, Μ, Ν, Ο, Τ. Others resemble their lower case Greek equivalents: Θ, Π, Ρ, Φ, Χ, Ψ. Two of these (Ρ, and Χ) should be carefully distinguished from the English letters that look like them. Ρ is the upper case of ρ, not p. Χ is the upper case of χ, not x.

You should concentrate on the following upper case letters: Γ, Δ, Η, Λ, Ξ, Σ, Υ, and Ω. Be careful to distinguish Η and Υ from the English letters that resemble them. Η is the upper case form of η. Υ is the upper case of υ, not γ.

Usage of the Upper Case in Printed Greek Texts

In printed editions of texts from the Hellenistic period, upper case letters are used for proper names and at the beginning of a paragraph, not at the beginning of every sentence.

"Long" and "Short" Vowels

For purposes of accentuation (the placement of accent marks) the Greek vowels are divided into three groups. ε and ο are designated as short vowels. η and ω are designated long vowels. The other three vowels (α, ι, υ) may be considered either short or long, depending upon the context in which they occur.

In the Classical period (before 350 BCE), long vowels were actually pronounced for a longer time than short vowels, about twice as long. By the middle of the Hellenistic period, though, this distinction was not consistently made. The terms long and short do not indicate anything about the pronunciation of the Greek vowels in this course. They only designate the way the vowels function with regard to the placement of accent marks, which we will learn later.

All diphthongs except αι and οι are considered long in all contexts. The diphthongs αι and οι are long except when they occur as the last two letters of a word.

Iota Subscript

Three Greek vowels frequently occur with a small iota (ι) written beneath them: ᾳ, ῃ, ῳ. These digraphs have traditionally been called “improper diphthongs” and are in fact descended from diphthongs that have lost their second element. The iota subscript (iota written underneath) does not affect pronunciation in any way.

Exercise 1: Proper Names

Click here to practice recognizing capital letters by reading a few proper names.

Punctuation Marks

The Greek comma and period look the same as in English and are used in very similar ways to their English counterparts.

Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ λόγος, καὶ ὁ λόγος ἦν πρὸς τὸν θεόν, καὶ θεὸς ἦν ὁ λόγος.
In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God. (John 1:1)

A raised dot (·) indicates a break where we might expect a colon (:) or semicolon (;) in English.

ἐπροφήτευσεν λέγων· Εὐλογητός κύριος ὁ θεὸς  τοῦ Ἰσραήλ.
He prophesied saying: Blessed be the Lord God of Israel. (Luke 1:67-68)

The Greek question mark poses the greatest potential for confusion and should be learned with care. It looks like an English semi-colon (;).

τί λέγει;
What does it say? (Romans 10:8

Writing the Greek Upper Case Letters

Notice that all of the upper case letters sit neatly on the line. None of them extend below it.

Α Β Γ Δ Ε Ζ Η Θ Ι Κ Λ Μ Ν Ξ Ο Π Ρ Σ Τ Υ Φ Χ Ψ Ω

Take a piece of paper and practice writing these letters.

Greek Word Order

The order of the words in a Greek sentence often does not match the order of the words in a good English translation of that sentence. As this course proceeds, you will learn how to understand Greek word order and choose the correct order for your English translation. Some examples appear in the exercise that follows.

Reading and Translation: Punctuation and Word Order

Read the Greek, and attempt your own translation. After attempting your own translation, look at the English translation provided. Sometimes more than one translation is provided. Write down for review any words or phrases that you translate incorrectly.

The Greek texts in this exercise include several words that you have not seen before. Try to guess at what they might mean before you look at the English translation.

1.    Ἐν ἀρχῇ
In [the] beginning

2.    [ἦν = was, existed]
Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ λόγος.
In the beginning was the word.
The word existed in the beginning.

3.    ὁ λόγος ἦν θεός.
The word was God.

4.    θεὸς ὁ λόγος ἦν.
The word was God.

5.   θεὸς ἦν ὁ λόγος.
The word was God.

6.    ὁ λόγος ἦν πρὸς τὸν θεόν. (Guess what πρὸς means.)
The word was with God.

7.    [καί = and]
Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ λόγος, καὶ ὁ λόγος ἦν πρὸς τὸν θεόν.
In the beginning was the word and the word was with God (John 1:1).

8.    Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ λόγος, καὶ ὁ λόγος ἦν πρὸς τὸν θεόν, καὶ θεὸς ἦν ὁ λόγος.
In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God (John 1:1).

Pronunciation Practice

Practice pronouncing the following words. If you are studying in a classroom setting, listen to your instructor’s pronunciation, and attempt to imitate it. Your instructor may ask you to pronounce these words in class.

9.    θεός
The little slanted line above the ο indicates that this vowel should be pronounced slightly louder than the one before it. The pronunciation should be theh-Os, not thEh-os.

10.    πέμπω
Be careful with the combination μπ. This combination is pronounced /mb/, not /mp/.

11.    λόγος
Because the γ is followed by ο, it is pronounced like the g in "get," not the y in "yet."

12.    ἀρχή
Once again, pay attention to the accent mark above the letter η. This word should be pronounced arkhEE, not ARKHee.

13.    Δαυίδ
Be careful with the combination αυ. It should be pronounce as /av/, not /au/. The name is pronouned Daveed, not Daweed.

14.    Λευί
Be careful with the combination ευ. It should be pronounce as /ev/, not /eu/. The name is pronouned Lehvee, not Lehwee.

Vocabulary Self-quiz

Now that you have read the entire lesson, take the following quiz to see how you are doing. Do not look back at the lesson until after you have completed the entire quiz.

On a sheet of paper, copy each of the following names, and add an English translation for each one in the blank space to its right.

15.    Δαυίδ  _______________
16.    Ἀβραάμ  _______________
17.    Ἰακώβ  _______________
18.    Ἰσαάκ  _______________
19.    Μαρία  _______________


Copy each of the following words onto a sheet of paper, and give an English translation for each one.

18.    ἀπόστολος   _______________
19.    λόγος   _______________
20.    μέγα   _______________
21.    μικρός   _______________
22.    θεός    _______________

To check your answers, compare the tables below.

Answers to vocabulary self-quiz

If you answered at least six of these correctly, congratulate yourself. You are ready to proceed to lesson three. If you answered less than six correctly, you should review lesson two before proceeding to lesson three.

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