Athonite Grammar I

GRAMMAR OF ATHONITE,

which is,

THE GREEK DIALECT SPOKEN IN THE SERENE MONASTIC REPUBLIC OF THE HOLY MOUNTAIN

Introduction - Ειςαγώγ

• Although Modern Greek is the official language of the Monastic Republic and is spoken in the Greek monasteries, the citizens have their own dialect.
• It developed from their contact with their Turkish conquerors and shows some Turkish influence in grammar and vocabulary.
• Many internal differences have been regularized, such as simplification of the verb tenses.
• A spelling reform, devised by a monk, has standardized the orthography so that it is more consistent with the pronunciation, e.g., αι > ε; οι > ι; η > ι.
• Double letters have been eliminated.
• σ has been replaced by ς.
• Some initial consonant clusters have been simplified, e.g., κτ > τ; πτ > τ.
• The accent regularly occurs on the penultimate syllable.
• An acute accent is placed over an accented vowel when the accent is not on the penultima.
• Words of Turkish origin are indicated in blue.

Pronunciation Table - Πίνακα τις Προφορά

Greek	α	αυ	β	γ	γγ	γκ	γξ	γχ	δ	ε	ει	ευ	ζ	ι	θ	κ	λ	μ	μπ	ν	ντ	ξ	ο	ου	π	ρ	ς	τ	τζ	υ	φ	χ	ψ	ω
Latin	a	af	v	g	ng	nk	ngks	nch	dh	e	i	ef	z	i	th	k	l	m	b	n	d	ks	ǫ	u	p	r	s	t	z	y	f	ch	ps	o
IPA	/a/1	/af/2	/v/	/ɣ/3	/ŋ/	/g/	/ŋks/	/ŋç/	/ð/	/ε/	/i/	/εf/4	/z/	/i/5	/θ/	/k/	/l/	/m/	/b/	/n/	/d/	/ks/	/ɔ/	/u/	/p/	/r/	/s/6	/t/	/ʣ/	/y/	/f/	/ç/	/ps/	/o/

Notes - Σιμείωςι

• ¹ when accented, otherwise /ʌ/.
• ² before voiceless consonants, /av/ before voiced consonants.
• ³ /ɣ/ before α, ο, ου, and ω; /j/ before ε, ι, υ.
• ⁴ before voiceless consonants, /εv/ before voiced consonants.
• ⁵ /j/ between vowels.
• ⁶ /z/ before voiced consonants.

Grammar - Γραματίκ

The Definite Article - Το ςυγκεκριμέν Αρθ

• 001. The Modern Greek definite article has been reduced to one single form for each gender: ο for masculine nouns, ι for feminine nouns, and το for neuter nouns.

Uses of the definite article - Χριςι εου Συγκεκριμέν Αρθ

1. Before proper names, e.g., Ο Γιοργ ινε καλ πεδ; George is a good boy.
2. Before the names of places, e.g., Ι αθíν ινε ι πρotευους απ' ι Elάδ; Athens is the capital of Greece.
3. Before the names of streets, e.g., Mένo ς' ι οδό ςταδí; I live on Stadium Street.
4. Before titles of names of professions followed by a person's name, e.g., Ο γατ Eυγενιδες κιρ ινε πolύ πloυς; Dr. Eugenides is very rich.
5. Before nouns used in an abstract or general sense, e.g., I ιλικρινι ινε ι πιo μεγάλ αρετ; Sincerity is the greatest virtue.
6. Before nouns designating parts of the body or personal articles of clothing, e.g., To μαλιά απ' ι Mαρíα ινε χανθ; Mary's hair is blond.
7. Before nouns modified by a possessive adjective which follows the noun, e.g., Ο αδέλφ μου ο Γιαν εχι καλ δoυλί; My brother John has a good job.
8. Before nouns modified by a demonstrative which always follows the noun e.g., I κοπέλ αυτ ινε πολύ oρέ; This girl is very beautiful.
9. Before a noun indicating a class of objects or persons, e.g., Ο πoλιςι ινε αυςτίρ; Policemen are strict.

The Indefinite Article - Το Αοριςτ Αρθ

• 002. There is no indefinite article in Athonite.

Nouns - Ουςιαςτικί

• 003. Nouns are divided into three classes known as masculine, feminine, and neuter.
• 004. Masculine nouns are those preceded in the nominative case by the definite article ο, e.g., ο ανθρoπ, the man; ο πατέρ, the father.
• 005. Feminine nouns are those preceded in the nominative case by the definite article ι, e.g., ι πορτ, the door; ι γυνέκ, the woman.
• 006. Neuter nouns are those preceded in the nominative case by the definite article το, e.g., το γραφί, the office; το πεδ, the child.

Noun Formation - Σχηματίς απ' Ουςιαςτικα

• 007. Athonite nouns are formed by dropping the nominative singular ending of the Greek noun.
• 008. The accent remains on the same stem if it is in the root, e.g., πατέρας > πατέρ.
• 009. If the accent is on the ending, it reverts to the final syllable, e.g., αδελφός > αδέλφ.
• 010. Some neuter nouns end in -ίον. These nouns drop the -ον to end in -ί, e.g., χαρτίον > χαρτί.
• 011. Nouns of the third declension, characterized by an increase in the genitive, use the genitive stem for the nominative, e.g., ελπίς, ελπίδος > ελπίδ.
• 012. Nouns the roots of which end in -Cr, -Cn, and -Cl drop the -Cx, e.g., δένδρος gives the Athonite δενδ. These nouns then restore the dropped consonant in the plural, δενδρι.

The Plural - Ο Πλιθυντικό

• 013. Nouns form their plurals by adding a suffix to the word.
• 014. Masculine nouns of whatever type in Greek, add -ι.

ο αδέλφ, the brother, ο αδελφί, the brothers

ο ανθρoπ, the man, ο άνθρoπι, the men

ο εργάτ, the worker, ο εργάτι, the workers

• 015. Feminine nouns of whatever type in Greek, add -ες.

ι αδέλφ, the sister, ι αδελφές , the sisters

ι μερ, the day, ι μερες , the days

ι ναρκ, the boat, ι ναρκες , the boats

• 016. Neuter nouns which end in -μα add -τα.

το χρομα, the color; το χρόματα, the colors

• 017. Other neuter nouns add -α.

το τςιγάρ, the cigarette, το τςιγαρα, the cigarettes

το αμαχι, the cart, το αμάχια, the carts

• 018. There are a few irregular plurals:

το φος, the light; το φοτα, the colors

The Function of Cases - Η Λειτουργί απο Τωςι

• 019. Possession and other types of genitive use are indicated with the preposition από, contracted to απ' before a vowel.

ο αμζα, the uncle > απ' ο αμζα, of the uncle

ι μπιμπι, the aunt > απ' ι μπιμπι, of the aunt

το ποδ, the foot > από το ποδ, of the foot

ο αμζι, the uncles > απ' ο αμζι, of the uncles

ι μπιμπες, the aunts > απ' ι μπιμπες, of the aunts

το ποδa, the feet > από το ποδa, of the feet

• 020. The indirect object is expressed with the preposition ςε, contracted to ς' before a vowel and prefixed to pronouns.

ο Γιαν δίνι ς' ο Μιχαήλ δωρ John gives Michael a cigarette.

έδοςα ς' ο γιοργ βιβλί, I gave George a book.

• 021. Only the pronouns have an accusative case.

βλεπω τo ςκυλ.

I see the dog.

Σε βλέπω. (not ςυ)

I see you.

• 022. When the objects are pronouns the indirect is placed before the direct.

ςτου έδοςα βιβλί , I gave him a book.

Θα ςε ςυ ςτιλ το πράματα, I shall send you the things.

• 023. When the verb is in the imperative the pronouns are placed after it.

Δινε ςτις μπαζ ςου, Give her some water.

Δινε ςτις το, Give it to her.

Adjectives - Επίθετα

• 024. Adjectives in Athonite are indeclinable. They are derived from Modern Greek adjectives in the same way as the nouns.
• 025. Adjectives precede the noun they modify.
  • ο καλ άνθροπ, the good man
  • ι καλ γυνέκ, the good woman
  • το καλ πεδ, the good child
  • ο μεγάλ κιπ, the large garden
  • ι μεγάλ πορτ, the large door
  • το μεγάλ δoματι, the large room
• 026. The determiners αυτ, this, and εκίν, that, follow the noun they modify. The noun requires the definite article.
  • ο άνθρoπ αυτ, this man
  • ο κιπ αυτ, this garden
  • ι γυνέκ αυτ, this woman
  • το πεδ αυτ, this child
  • το αμαχι αυτ, this cart
  • ο εργάτ εκίν, that worker
  • ι νυχτ εκίν, that night
  • το δωματι εκίν, that room

Comparison of Adjectives - ςυγκρις απ' Επίθετα

• 027. There is only one degree of comparison of the Athonite adjective. It is formed by placing the word πιο, more, in front them. They are then followed by από.

ο αδέλφ μου ινε πιο δυνάτ απ' ο αδέλφ ςου, my brother is stronger than your brother.

ο Γιαν ινε πιο φτοχ απ' ο Kοςtας, John is poorer than Costas.

το ςπιτ αυτ ινε πιο καλ απ' εκίν, This house is better than that one.

τ' οτομοβιλ αυτ ινε πολύ πιο χιρότ απ' ο αλον, This automobile is much worse than the other.

ο Aνδρέ ινε ο πιο καλ μαθίτ ς' ι ταχ του, Andrew is the best pupil in his class.

ο πατέρ τις ινε ο πιο πλoυsι ς' ι αθίν, Her father is the richest man in Athens.

I Eλέν ιτε ι πιο oρέ γυνέκ ς' ι Elάδ, Helen was the most beautiful woman in Greece.

• 028. The comparative of κακ, bad, is χιρότ, worse.
• 029. The comparison of inferiority is eχpressed with λιγóτ, less, plus από.

ο Nικ ινε λιγóτ εξυπ απ' ο Kοςtας, Nick is not as smart as Costas.

• 030. The comparison of equality is eχpressed by τoς...oς plus the definite article.

ο πατέρ μου ινε τoς πλouςι oς ο πατέρ ςου, My father is as rich as your father.

The Possessive Adjectives - Το Τιτίκ Επίθετα

Singular	Plural
μου, my	μας, our
ςου, your	ςας, your
του, his τις, her του, its	τους, their

• 031. These adjectives are placed after the nouns they modify. The nouns are preceded by the definite article.

το ςπιτ, the house; το ςπιτ μου, my house

ο φιλ, the friend; ο φιλ μου, my friend

το χιρ μου, my hand

ο πατέρ ςου, your father

ι μιτέρ τις, her mother

ο κίπ μας, our garden

ο κίπι μας, our gardens

το lεπτ ςας, your money

• 032. When the nouns are preceded by an adjective, the possessive adjective is put after the noun.

το αμαχι, the cart; το κενύρ αμαχι, the new cart; το κενύρ αμαχι μου, my new cart

ο καλ φιλ μας, our good friend

The Active Participle- Ι Ενέργ Μετοχί

• 033. A participle is an adjective derived from a verb. It modifies a noun, but may take an object like a verb.
• 034. The active participle indicates that the subject of the sentence is doing something.
• 035. It is formed by adding the ending οντ or ώντ to the present stem.

Class I

βλεπω > βλεποντ, seeing

Class II

αγαπώ > αγαπώντ, loving

The Passive Participle - Ι Παθιτίκ Μετοχί

• 036. The passive participle is formed by adding the ending -ομεν or -αμέν to the present stem.

Class I

βλεπo > βλέπομεν, seen

Class II

αγαπώ > αγαπαμέν, loved

Pronouns - Αντωνυμι

The Personal Pronouns - Η Προςωπίκ Αντωνυμι

• 037. The personal pronouns are declined.

	First singular	First plural	Second singular	Second plural	Third singular	Third plural
Nominative	γo, I	(ε)μις, we	(ε)ςυ, you	(ε)ςις, you	αυτό, he αυτί, she αυτό, it,	αυτί, they αυτές, they αυτά, they
Genitive	μου, my	μας, our	ςου, your	ςας, your	του, his τις, her του, its	τους, their
Accusative	με(να), me	(ε)μας, us	ςε(να), you	(ε)ςας, you	τον, him τιν, her το, it	τους, them τις, them τα, them

• 038. The object pronouns are placed before the verb except in the imperative when they follow the verb.

ςε μου το έφερε, He brought it to me.

δος ςε μου το βιβλί, Give me the book.

The Possessive Pronouns - Η Τιτίκ Αντωνυμι

• 039. The personal possessive pronouns are formed using the personal pronoun in the genitive and the definite article.

το βιβλί αυτ ινε το μου, το βιβλί εκίν ινε το ςου.

This book is mine, that book is yours.

The Cases with Prepositions - Η Γενίκ Αντωνυμι με Προθεςι

• 040. If the verb is one indicating motion, literally or figuratively, then the object of the preposition is in the accusative case.

Το αγόρ έτρεχα περί το ςπιτ.

The boy ran around the house.

Πάςε με μου στο μαγάζ, λυτφε.

Please go with me to the store.

• 041. If the verb is one that does not indicatie motion, then the object of the preposition is in the genitive case.

το βιβλί ινε στο σπιτ.

The book is in the house.

Έστεκαν ς' ι ουρ για τρις ωρες.

They stood in line for three hours.

• 042. The genitive is also used after words denoting greeting.

καλιμέρ ςας, good morning to you; καλινύκτ ςας, good night; για ςου, good-bye (to one person).

The Relative Pronoun - Η ςχετίκ Αντωνύμ

• 043. There is only one relative pronoun. Πou stands for all the relative pronouns: who, whom, which, and that.

I κοπέλ, πou γελά, ινε ι αδέλφ μου.

The girl who is laughing is my sister.

The Interrogative Pronoun - Η Ερωτιματίκ Αντωνύμ

• 044. The Interrogative Pronoun: πι, who, whose, whom

	Singular	Plural
Nominative	πι	πιές
Genitive	πιoύ	πιóν
Accusative	πιόν	πιoύς

Π' ινε αυτό; Who is this?

Πιoύ ινε το καπέλ εκίν; Whose hat is that?

Πιoύs ζιτάτε; For whom are you looking?

• 045. What? = τι, ti.

Ti κάνετε; What are you doing?

T' ινε αυτό; What is this?

Athonite Grammar II