Athonite Grammar I

A GRAMMAR OF ATHONITE, THAT IS, THE GREEK DIALECT SPOKEN BY THE PEOPLE OF THE SERENE MONASTIC REPUBLIC OF THE HOLY MOUNTAIN

• Athonite is the official language of the Serene Monastic Republic of the Holy Mountain. It is spoken daily by the citizens; all street signs, traffic signs, the weekly newspaper, etc., are written in Athonite.
• Modern Greek is taught to the children in school so that, by the time they graduate from the gymnasio or liceo, they are fluent in it as well.
• The language began when Greek refugees came to the Monastic Republic from Turkey. They spoke only Turkish, and Athonite was developed as these Greeks started to learn Modern Greek.
• As a result, there is some Turkish influence in grammar and vocabulary. A note about the Turkish influence will be highlighted in red.

Orthography and Pronunciation

• The name of the language is Athonite (Αþωνίτ).
• A spelling reform, proposed by a monk, has standardized the orthography so that it is more consistent with the pronunciation.
• Double letters have been eliminated.
• An acute accent is placed over the accented vowel. Monosyllabic words contain no accent, unless followed by an enclitic.

Greek	Athonite	Latin	Pronunciation	IPA
α	α	a ä	father when accented but otherwise	/a/ /ʌ/
αι	ɛ	e	bed	/ɛ/
αυ	αυ	af, äf av, äv	before voiceless consonants before voiced consonants	/af/, /ʌf/ /av/, /ʌv/
β	β	v	vine	/v/
γ	γ	g j	Sp. vagar before a, ø, o, u, & consonants yes before e, i, y	/g/ /j/
γγ	γγ	ng	sing	ŋ
γκ	γκ	g	go	g
γξ	γξ	nks	sing + lynx	/ŋks/
γχ	γχ	nh	sing + Ger. ich	/ŋç/
δ	δ	ð	that	/ð/
ε	ε	e	bet	/ɛ/
ει	ι	i	feet	/i/
ɛυ	ɛυ	ef ev	before voiceless consonants before voiced consonants	/ɛf/ ɛv/
ζ	ζ	z	zoo	/z/
η	ι	i	feet	/i/
θ	θ	þ	thin	/θ/
ι	ι	i y	bee yes between vowels	/i/ /j/
κ	κ	k	kin	/k/
λ	λ	l	long	/l/
μ	μ	m	mat	/m/
μπ	μπ	b	bat	/b/
ν	ν	n	nap	/n/
ντ	ντ	d nd	initially, dot medially, wind	/d/ /nd/
ξ	ξ	x	ax	/ks/
ο	ο	ø	awe	/ɔ/
οι	ι	i	feet	/i/
ου	oυ	ou	boot	/u/
π	π	p	pit	/p/
ρ	ρ	r	Sp. pero	/r/
ς, σ	ς	s	zoo before voiced consonants sue before voiceless consonants	/z/ /s/
τ	τ	t	tap	/t/
τζ	τζ	dz	reads	/ʣ/
	τγ	j	jam	/ʣ/
υ	υ	u	Fr. dur	/y/
φ	φ	f	fun	/f/
χ	χ	h	Ger. ich	/ç/
ψ	ψ	ps	lips	/ps/
ω	ω	o	boat	/o/

Grammar

The Articles

• Under the influence of Turkish, there is neither a definite nor an indefinite article.

Nouns

• Nouns in Athonite are classified biologically and not grammatically. Thus the nouns are divided into two classes, the masculine/feminine and the neuter.
  • Masculine/feminine nouns are those which denote a male or female being, e.g., άγγελ, (a/the) man; γυνέκ, (a/the) woman.
  • Neuter nouns are those that denote objects without biological gender, e.g., γραφ, (a/the) office; πεδ, (a/the) child.
• There are three cases for the nouns in Athonite.
  • The nominative case is used for the subject of the sentence.
  • The genitive case is used to express possession or appurtenance
    • Παράθυρα ςπίτου μου ακάθαρτ. My house's windows (are) filthy.
  • The accusative case is used for the object of verbs.
    • Σκύλον βλέπω. I see a/the dog.
  • The accusative case is also used for the objects of prepositions.
    • αδελφόν μου ς' δουλίν καθ πρωί πέρνω. I take my brother to work every morning.
  • After some nouns it expresses their content.
    • Ποτίρο ςουν θέλω. I want a glass of water.

The Nominative Singular

• The nominative singular has been formed by deleting the nominative singular ending of the Greek noun.
  • The accent remains on the same syllable if it is in the root, e.g., πατέρας > πατέρ; άνεμος > άνεμ.
  • If the accent is on the ending, it reverts to the final syllable, e.g., αδελφή > αδέλφ.
  • Nouns of the neuter declension characterized by an increase in the genitive in Greek use the genitive stem for the nominative, e.g., ελπίς, ελπίδος > ελπίδ.
  • Some nouns whose genitive stems end in consonant clusters, e.g., δένδρος, drop the final consonant (-ρος) which gives the Athonite δενδ. These nouns then restore the -ρ in the plural, δένδρι.

The Genitive Singular

• In the genitive singular:
  • Masculine nouns add -ου.
    • άγγελος, angel, > άγγελ, άγγελου, of the angel
    • εργάτης, workman, εργάτ, εργάτου, of the workman
    • αδελφός, brother, > αδέλφ, αδελφού, of the brother
  • Feminine nouns add -ις.
    • βασίλισσα, queen, > βαςίλις, βαςίλιςις, of the queen
    • κοπέλλα, girl, > κοπέλ, κοπέλις, of the girl
    • αδελφή, sister, > αδέλφ, αδελφίς, of the sister
  • Neuter nouns add -ου.
    • κόκκαλο, cart, > κόκαλ, κόκαλου, of the cart
    • ζιγάρο, cigarette, > ζιγάρ, ζιγάρου, of the cigarette
    • σινεμά, cinema, > ςινέμ, ςινεμού, of the cinema

The Accusative Singular

• In the accusative singular:
  • Masculine nouns add -ον.
    • άγγελος, angel, > άγγελ, άγγελον, angel
    • εργάτης, workman, εργάτ, εργάτον, workman
    • αδελφός, brother, > αδέλφ, αδελφόν, brother
  • Feminine nouns add -ιν.
    • βασίλισσα, queen, > βαςίλις , βαςίλιςιν, queen
    • κοπέλλα, girl, > κοπέλ, κοπέλιν, girl
    • αδελφή, sister, > αδέλφ, αδελφίν, sister
  • Neuter nouns add -ο.
    • κόκκαλο, cart, > κόκαλ, κόκαλο, cart
    • ζιγάρο, cigarette, > ζιγάρ, ζιγάρο, cigarette
    • σινεμά, cinema, > ςινέμ, ςινεμό, cinema

The Nominative Plural

• In the nominative plural:
  • Masculine nouns add -ι.
    • άγγελος, angel, > άγγελ, άγγελι, angels
    • εργάτης, workman, εργάτ, εργάτι, workmen
    • αδελφός, brother, > αδέλφ αδελφί, brothers
  • Feminine nouns add -ες.
    • βασίλισσα, queen, > βαςίλις , βαςίλιςες, queens
    • κοπέλλα, girl, > κοπέλ, κοπέλες, girl
    • αδελφή, sister, > αδέλφ, αδελφές, sister
  • Neuter nouns add -α.
    • κόκκαλο, cart, > κόκαλ, κόκαλα, cart
    • ζιγάρο, cigarette, > ζιγάρ, ζιγάρα, cigarette
    • σινεμά, cinema, > ςινέμ, ςινέμα, cinema
  • Certain neuter nouns in Greek end in -ι. In Athonite these nouns drop the -ι in the singular, but restore it in the plural, e.g., ψαρ, fish, ψάρια, fishes; πεδ, child, πεδιά, children.
  • There are a few irregular plurals:
    • χρώμ, color; χρώματα, colors
    • φως, light; φώτα, lights
  • Certain neuter nouns can be made masculine or feminine in the plural by using the appropriate plural ending, e.g., ςκύλα, dogs; ςκύλeς, bitches.

The Genitive Plural

• In the genitive plural:
  • All nouns add -ων.
    • άγγελος, angel, > άγγελ, άγγελων, of the angels
    • εργάτης, workman, εργάτ, εργάτων, of the workmen
    • αδελφός, brother, > αδέλφ, αδελφών, of the brothers
    • βασίλισσα, queen, > βαςίλις , βαςίλιςων, of the queens
    • κοπέλλα, girl, > κοπέλ, κοπέλων, of the girls
    • αδελφή, sister, > αδέλφ, αδελφών, of the sisters
    • κόκκαλο, cart, > κόκαλ, κόκαλων, of the carts
    • ζιγάρο, cigarette, > ζιγάρ, ζιγάρων, of the cigarettes
    • σινεμά, cinema, > ςινέμ, ςινεμών, of the cinemas

The Accusative Plural

• In the accusative plural:
  • Masculine nouns add -ους.
    • άγγελος, angel, > άγγελ, άγγελους, angels
    • εργάτης, workman, εργάτ, εργάτους, workmen
    • αδελφός, brother, > αδέλφ αδελφούς, brothers
  • Feminine nouns add -ας.
    • βασίλισσα, queen, > βαςίλις , βαςίλιςας, queens
    • κοπέλλα, girl, > κοπέλ, κοπέλας, girls
    • αδελφή, sister, > αδέλφ, αδελφάς, sisters
  • Neuter nouns add -α.
    • κόκκαλο, cart, > κόκαλ, κόκαλα, carts
    • ζιγάρο, cigarette, > ζιγάρ, ζιγάρα, cigarettes
    • σινεμά, cinema, > ςινέμ, ςινεμά, cinemas

Nouns as Modifiers

• To express the material of which something is made, the nominative singular of the material is placed before the appropriate case of the object.
  • A wooden table (is) in the room, ξυλ τραπέζ εν δομάτιου.
  • I see a wooden table, ξυλ τραπέζo βλέπω.

Adjectives

• Adjectives in Athonite are indeclinable. They are derived from Modern Greek adjectives in the same way as the nouns.
• Adjectives precede the noun they modify.
• Indeclinable adjective and noun are seen as a unit. This unit must have an accent, so one is added to the monosyllabic noun, e.g., καλ + πεδ = καλ πέδ, good child; but in μεγάλ πεδ, big child, the accent for the unit is already there.
  • καλ άγγελ, good man
  • καλ γυνέκ, good woman
  • καλ πέδ, good child
  • μεγάλ κιπ, large garden
  • μεγάλ πορτ, large door
  • μεγάλ δομάτ, large room
• The adjectives αφτ, 'this,' and εκίν, 'that,' follow the noun they modify.
  • άγγελ αφτ, this man
  • κίπ αφτ, this garden (N.B. the added accent)
  • γυνέκ αφτ, this woman
  • πέδ αφτ, this child (N.B. the added accent)
  • εργάτ εκίν, that worker
  • νυχτ εκίν, that night
  • δομάτ εκίν, that room
• Negation is expressed by putting the negative particle δεν in front of the verb.
  • Πρωίν έτιμ, breakfast (is) ready.
  • Πρωίν έτιμ δεν, breakfast (is) not ready.
  • Μπαρ γεμάτ δεν, the bar (is) not full.
  • Πόρτ αφτ μεγάλ δεν, this door is not big. (N.B. the added accent)

The Possessive Adjectives

	singular	plural
1.	μου, my	μας, our
2.	ςου, your	ςας, your
3.	του, his τις, her του, its	των, their

• Likewise, the possessive adjective and noun are seen as a unit. This unit must have an accent, so one is added to the monosyllabic noun.
• These adjectives are placed after the nouns they modify.
  • ςπιτ, house; ςπίτ μου, my house
  • φιλ, friend; φίλ μου, my friend
  • χέρ μου, my hand
  • ρατέρ ςου, your father
  • μιτέρ τις, her mother
  • κίπ μας, our garden
  • κίπι μας, our gardens
  • λέπτ ςας, your money
  • κενούρ αμάξ, new cart; κενούρ αμάξ μου, my new cart
  • καλ φίλ μας, our good friend

Comparison of Adjectives

• Under the influence of Turkish, adjectives form the comparative degree only by placing the adverb πιο before them and not by adding a suffix. They are then followed by από and the accusative case.
• Πιο is an enclitic and causes an accent on the following adjective if it doesn't already have one.
  • O Μιχάλ πλους, Michael (is) rich.
  • καρδές μου πιο δυνάτ από καρδεςό ςου, my brother (is) stronger than your brother.
  • O Γιαν πιο φτόχ από O Κόςτο, John is poorer than Costas.
  • Σπίτ αφτ πιο κάλ από εκό, This house is better than that one.
  • Άφτοκίνετ αφτ πολύ πιο κίρ από άλο, This automobile (is) much worse than the other.
• Because Greek lacks a superlative degree distinct from the comparative, under the influence of Turkish, adjectives form the superlative degree by placing the adverb εν before them, followed by ςε and the genitive case.
  • O Ανδρέ 'ν καλ μαθίτ ς' τάξου του, Andrew (is) the best pupil in his class.
  • Πατέρ τις εν πλούς ς' Αθίνου, Her father is the richest man in Athens.
  • I Ελέν εν ωρέ γυνέκ ς' Ελάδου ίτε, Helen was the most beautiful woman in Greece.
• The comparison of inferiority is expressed with λιγώτ, less, followed by από with the accusative.
  • O Νικ λιγώτ έξυπ από O Κόςτο ίνε, Nick is not as smart as Costa.
• The comparison of equality is expressed by τόςο...όςο κε followed by the nominative.
  • Πατέρ μου τόςο πλους όςο κε πατέρ ςου, My father is as rich as your father.

Intensification of Adjectives

• Although the meaning of an adjective can be intensified by the use of words such as πολύ, the more common way to do so is by reduplication of the first letter, e.g., καθάρ, clean; κάκαθαρ, very clean, spic 'n' span.
• The vowel between the two is the vowel of the first syllable, e.g., βαθ, deep; βάβαθ, very deep, ταμ, exact; τάταμ, precise; but, νορ, early; νόνορ, very early.
• If the adjective begins with a vowel, the reduplication consists of that vowel and a π, e.g., ακρίβ, dear; άπακριβ, very dear; ωρέ, beautiful; ώπωρε, very beautiful.
• The reduplicated syllable receives the accent, but no farther back than the antepenult, e.g., blue, γαλαξί; bright blue, γαγάλαξι.
• Examples:
  • all, ολ; wholly όπολ
  • alone, μον; absolutely alone, μόμον
  • black, μαυρ; jet black, μάμαυρ
  • boring, ανιάρ; tedious, άπανιαρ
  • bright, λαμπ; brilliant, λάλαμπ
  • cold, κρυ; frigid, κύκρυ
  • crazy, τρελ; insane, τέτρελ
  • full, γεμάτ, crammed full, γέγεματ
  • hot, ζεςτ; red hot, ζέζεςτ
  • ill, αρώςτ; terminally ill, άπαρωςτ
  • large, μεγάλ; gigantic, μέμεγαλ
  • new, νε; brand new, νένε
  • old, μεγάλ; ancient, μέμεγαλ
  • other, αλ; quite another thing, άπαλ
  • poor, φτοχ; dirt poor φόφτοχ
  • proud, φιλότιμ; arrogant, φιφίλοτιμ
  • tired, κουραςμέν; exhausted, κουκούραςμεν
  • wide, πλας; expansive, πάπλας

Pronouns

The Personal Pronouns

• First person

	singular	plural
Nominative	γω, I	μις, we
Genitive	μου, my	μων, our
Accusative	μεν, me	μας, us

• Second person

	singular	plural
Nominative	ςυ, you	ςις, you
Genitive	ςου, your	ςων, your
Accusative	ςεν, you	ςας, you

• Third person

	singular	plural
Nominative	τος, he τι, she το, it	τι, they τες, they τα, they
Genitive	του, his τις, her του, its	των, their
Accusative	τον, him τιν, her το, it	τους, them τις, them τα, them

• The object pronouns are placed before the verb except in the imperative when they follow the verb.
  • Μου το έφερε, He brought it to me.
  • Δίνε μου βίβλι, Give me the book.
• The negative precedes the object pronoun.
  • Δεν του το έδινα, I did not give it to him.

The Possessive Pronouns

• The personal possessive pronouns are formed by prefixing the adjective δικ to the possessive adjectives.

	singular	plural
1.	δίκμου, mine	δίκμας, ours
2.	δίκςου, yours	δίκςας, yours
3.	δίκτου, his δίκτις, hers δίκτου, its	δίκτων, theirs

The Genitive Pronouns

• The genitive is used when the verb may take two objects. In such cases the object which can be replaced by a prepositional construction is in the genitive case, and the other object is in the accusative. This happens whether the objects are nouns or pronouns.
  • Του Γιόργου βίβλιον έδοςα , I gave George a book.
• The genitive could be replaced as follow:
  • ς' Γιοργου βίβλιον έδοςα, I gave George a book.
• When the objects are pronouns the genitive is put in front of the accusative and also in front of the verb, e.g.,Τις το έδωςα, I gave it to her.
• When the verb is in the imperative the pronouns are put after it, e.g.,
  • Δός τις λιγ ςού, Give her some water.
  • Μου ίπε, He told me.
  • Σεν ίδα, I saw you.
  • Πράματα θα ςου ςτίλω, I shall send you the things.
• The genitive of the pronoun may also be used after certain prepositions, adverbs or adjectives, e.g., μαζί μου, with me; μόνος του , alone (by himself); κόντα του, near him.
• The genitive is also used after words denoting greeting, e.g., καλιμέρ ςας, good morning to you; καλινύχτ ςας, good night; Για ςου, Good-bye (to one person).

The Relative Pronoun

• As in Turkish, there is only one relative pronoun in Athonite: που which stands for all the relative pronouns: who, whom, which, and that.
  • Κοπέλ, που γελά, αδέλφ μου, The girl who is laughing (is) my sister.

The Interrogative Pronoun

	singular	plural
Nominative	πι	πιές
Genitive	πιού	πιών
Accusative	πιόν	πιούς

• The Interrogative Pronoun: who, whose, whom
  • Πι τρώγι; Who is eating?
  • Πιού καπέλ εκίν; Whose hat (is) that?
  • Πιούς ζιτάτε; For whom are you looking?
• The interrogative pronoun: What = τι.
  • Τι κάνετε; What are you doing?
  • Τι άφτ; What (is) this?

The Reflexive Pronouns

• The reflexive pronouns are formed by prefixing κέντι to the personal pronouns.

	singular	plural
1.	κέντιμου, myself	κέντιμας, ourselves
2.	κέντιςου, yourself	κέντιςας, yourselves
3.	κέντιτου, himself κέντιτις, herself κέντιτου, itself	κέντιτων, themselves

Athonite Grammar II