Ancient Greek – did I start something? Inițiatorul discuției: Robert Tucker (X)
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Robert Tucker (X)
Regatul Unit
Local time: 19:13
din germană în engleză
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| | And why not? | Jul 30, 2010 |
There are so many English words that derive from Latin and Greek (90 percent of all scientific words...). Best regards,
Teresa
| | | | sokolniki 
Statele Unite
Local time: 13:13
din engleză în rusă
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After all those years I am still thankful for this Latin course at the university, no matter how much we hated it. It still helps and I am sure the same refers to ancient Greek.
| | | | Robert Tucker (X)
Regatul Unit
Local time: 19:13
din germană în engleză
+ ...
INIŢIATORUL SUBIECTULUI
Yes, I can see that learning case and the rest of Greek grammar might be useful, as would having an understanding of the origin of many English words; I'm just not so sure that aspiration or lack of it and whatever else Ancient Greek diacritics were/are used to signify doesn't/won't rather cast a detracting, mystifying (or "mistifying") haze over it all.
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Electra Voulgari
Spania
Local time: 20:13
Membru (2010)
din spaniolă în greacă
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(A bit of) Ancient Greek at school is all about learning how to structure sentences the good old-fashioned way.
There is nothing wrong with that!! As a teacher, I can assure you students could do with some "S-V-O" order.
Plus, they get to undestand that words like "tv", "photo", "phone" or "psycho" are not just random syllables.
And as a translator, my experience with Ancient Greek texts has helped me hundreds of times disentangle some of the messiest sen... See more (A bit of) Ancient Greek at school is all about learning how to structure sentences the good old-fashioned way.
There is nothing wrong with that!! As a teacher, I can assure you students could do with some "S-V-O" order.
Plus, they get to undestand that words like "tv", "photo", "phone" or "psycho" are not just random syllables.
And as a translator, my experience with Ancient Greek texts has helped me hundreds of times disentangle some of the messiest sentences, no matter what language I was translating from and into.
E ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Totally agree | Aug 1, 2010 |
ElectraV wrote:
(A bit of) Ancient Greek at school is all about learning how to structure sentences the good old-fashioned way.
There is nothing wrong with that!! As a teacher, I can assure you students could do with some "S-V-O" order.
Plus, they get to undestand that words like "tv", "photo", "phone" or "psycho" are not just random syllables.
And as a translator, my experience with Ancient Greek texts has helped me hundreds of times disentangle some of the messiest sentences, no matter what language I was translating from and into.
I've studied modern Greek only and it is too bad we didn't have Ancient Greek courses, it would definitely help me with the legal texts I use to translate from modern Greek. However I have some basic knowledge of Ancient Greek. I've learned something by myself. I've met at least two native English speakers, at a summer Greek Language School in Greece, who were studying Greek in order to understand English better.
As Electra mentioned, it would be very helpful for learning correct orthography and, as far as I know, native English speakers do have problems with it, as English spelling system is not the most regular one.
Furthermore, English language has very many words with (Ancient) Greek origin. The great thing about Greek is that words are built, not just invented and sometimes a non native Greek speaker/translator from Greek, could understand the meaning of a new word, by splitting it into small pieces. It is difficult to find a single word in Greek, that has no history or that can not be relied on real or mythological facts.
Just to make it clearer, I copy below
THE INFLUENCE OF THE ANCIENT GREEK WORDS ON THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
Η παρακάτω εισήγηση έγινε από τον Dr. John N. Kalaras, founder of Ariston University, στο Ξενοδοχείο ΤΙΤΑΝΙΑ στις 15/3/2000 - ANAPOLIS ATHENS-HELLAS, 15 MARCH 2000
DIALOGUE APATHY AND ECONOMY - BY DR. JOHN KALARAS
Prologue
The scope of my lecture is to generate a dynamic dialogue on organizational and economic systems and techniques. Basically, my methodology is characterized by dialogue, a systematic phenomenon with every academician or epistimologist. I will systematically analyze the idiosyngracies and the characteristics of the organizational systems practiced today. The architecture of my analysis-strategy, is systematic and pragmatic, yet paradoxically is characterized by enthusiasm and synchronization between theory and practice. The harmonic synergy of mathematical models and statistical techniques, has generated theorems and axioms practiced in capitalistic economic systems. My philosophy is logical, ethical and practical and has erected organizational models that have generated economic euphoria.
The magic esthetics of my tactic, is the plethora of Hellenic terminology in my phraseology.
The genesis of tragic economic problems generated in an economy are not symptomatic, in fact they are cyclical and periodic phenomena. Such phenomena stigmatize and traumatize the economic euphoria of the agora. Economic systems basically symbolize the philosophy and ideology of the governing political party.
The chronic and pathetic egomania and megalomania of certain governors, monarchs or tyrants, their apathy for philanthropy, their enigmatic and problematic logic, generated gigantic economic crises, which stigmatized and traumatized their political career. Such practices generate phobia, panic and periodically paralysis of the socioeconomic system.
The agora, during the archaic periods, was characterized as the physical parameters where philosophers, scholars, economists and epistimologists analyzed the problems generated by the political system. The basic methodology was dialogue or rhetoric. Dialogue, in a diametric antithesis with the monologue, has magic, it is characterized by synthesis and analysis and a plethora of other lectic schemes.
http://www.agrino.org/chicago/greek_attorneys.htm
If you don't know Greek, I can assure you that ALL above words are Greek words in fact (except modal verbs, articles, pronouns etc.). I believe that a native user of English, with no special education in English Language, would need to use a dictionary to understand many of the above words. I am not a native speaker of English, but I know Greek and I fully understand this text, with all its encrypted messages (encrypted - another one ).
You should be happy that somebody had this idea and it will hopefully be implemented.
| | | | | Non-native English speaker | Aug 1, 2010 |
If you don't know Greek, I can assure you that ALL above words are Greek words in fact (except modal verbs, articles, pronouns etc.). I believe that a native user of English, with no special education in English Language, would need to use a dictionary to understand many of the above words. I am not a native speaker of English, but I know Greek and I fully understand this text, with all its encrypted messages (encrypted - another one ). You should be happy that somebody had this idea and it will hopefully be implemented.
It is quite painful for us who do not use Roman alphabets in our written language e.g. Japanese, Chinese, Thai. We need to face with more hardships to master English like the native speakers by studying ancient Greek as extra subjects! (English, Latin, foreign words imported to English are already our big work load.)
Best regards,
Soonthon L.
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