The oldest language in the world, is it only spoken in Greece? Where is Greek spoken?
The oldest language in the world
The Greek language is a language native to Greece that belongs to the Indo-European language family and is one of the few survivors of the Greek branch.
Among the Indo-European languages, it is the one with the longest documented history, since the first writings made with it date back more than 3,000 years.
The writing system, which has been used for most of its history and up to the present, is the Greek alphabet and consists of twenty-four (24) letters.
Developed around the 9th century BC. C. from the Phoenician consonantal alphabet, the Greeks adopted the first complete alphabet in history and gave rise to the Latin, Cyrillic and Coptic alphabets, among others.
Modern Greek, as it is known today, derives from Ancient Greek via Medieval or Byzantine Greek.
The languages most learned by Greek citizens are English (51%), German (9%), French (8.5%) and Italian (8%).
Greek as official language
Greek is the official language of Greece. Both the media and official organizations and entities use it and it is compulsory education in the country. Unlike other nearby countries, Greece has limited itself to using its mother tongue as the only official one.
It is also the co-official language of the Republic of Cyprus, where it coexists with the Turkish language and also in the areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, whose official name is Akrotiri and Dhekelia Sovereign Base Areas — they are two sovereign bases of the United Kingdom in Cyprus, a former British Crown colony. Here it shares official status with English.
Greek is also one of the official languages of the European Union since 1981.
Where else is Greek spoken?
The number of Greek language speakers in the world is difficult to measure, since it is one of the least widespread languages on the planet.
Currently, it can be heard in approximately 7 countries.
Greek as a minority language in the world
As a minority language it has been present for more than two thousand years in southern Albania.
Also in Italy, where Griko is spoken, which is a Greek language notably different from Modern Greek, which belongs to the Greco-Italian group of modern Greek languages. There are 2 varieties of the griko: the Greco-Salentino and the Greco-Calabrian (also called Greco-Bovesian)Also in Italy, where Griko is spoken, which is a Greek language notably different from Modern Greek, which belongs to the Greco-Italian group of modern Greek languages. There are 2 varieties of the griko: the Greco-Salentino and the Greco-Calabrian (also called Greco-Bovesian)
Grecia Salentina (region located on the Salento peninsula, in Apulia, in the extreme southeast of Italy.) where Grecosalentino is spoken.
Bovesia and Reggio Calabria, south of Calabria, where the Greco-Calabrian language, also called Greco-Bovesian, is spoken.
Other minorities are found in:
Turkey: mainly in Istanbul, Izmir and the Anatolian coasts of the Aegean Sea and the Sea of Marmara.
Georgia: at some coastal sites.
Ukraine - on the Crimean peninsula and in the southern part of the Zaporozhia region.
Bulgaria and Romania: mainly in the coastal regions.
Since the end of the 19th century there have been some Greek-speaking communities descending from emigrants in France, Germany, England, Australia, the United States, Canada, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay and Venezuela.
Greek is considered to be commonly spoken by about 16 million people in 2006.
Basic expressions
Would you like to know some of the basic expressions of this language?
Let's see some examples to motivate you to know it.
Good Morning! - Καλημέρα (kaliméra)
Good Afternoon! - Καλησπέρα (kalispéra)
Good bye! - Αντίο (adío)
See you later! - Τα λέμε αργότερα (ta léme argótera)
Yes – Ναι (ne)
No – Όχι (óhi)
Thank you – Ευχαριστώ (efharistó)
You are welcome- Σας παρακαλώ (sas parakaló)
Okay – Σύμφωνηu (símfoni)
I don't understand - Δεν καταλαβαίνω (den katalavéno)
It will be a challenge but it is worth trying. Learning new languages keeps the mind active and has many benefits. Therefore, you can now add Greek to your list of languages to learn.
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