[B-Greek] The value of reading the NT in Modern Greek

Randall Buth randallbuth at gmail.com
Fri Aug 8 12:17:25 EDT 2008


> For example,  Randall Buth, of all
people, is not too enthusiastic. He says  the main advantage of
learning to speak modern Greek is  that it would be good practice for
learning to speak koine Greek!  There is also a post from a teacher
who found that  native Greek speakers often find their knowledge of
modern  Greek to INTERFERE with learning ancient Greek.
>

Hmm, !?
I think that modern Greek is a great way to visit Greece,
to listen to Greek music and to be able to understand
"locals" when they answer someone who has been
speaking to them in Koine. We did that last May and were
pleasantly surprised to find that it worked as long as both sides
were trying their hardest to communicate and had the patience
for success.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Carl for the
PDF of annotated readings from several periods of Greek.
The NEILOYTI letter (Antonios to mama Nilotis) is a riot to read
(fun), and also one that we gave our summer SXOLH at the end.
Antonios' pain is palpable, and his spelling is "charming". It
was justly chosen for the Loeb collection.

On PHROS as EMPEIROS 'experienced' = 'aware', I read the
line as written QELW PHROS GENESQAI 'I would be maimed'
[="I'd give my right arm ... not to ..."]

On the flow of the language:
I don't think that OI or Y had yet merged with EI and I in the
second century CE/AD, though mistakes had started in
unaccented initial syllables. Hta is something of a coin-toss,
perhaps it was already EI=I, or perhaps the Egyptian Greek
had developed an extended meaning of EI 'if, whether,
into "than".

Still, the letter is a must read for all lovers of the KOINH.

AIROSQE

IWANHS



-- 
Randall Buth, PhD
www.biblicalulpan.org
randallbuth at gmail.com
Biblical Language Center
Learn Easily - Progress Further - Remember for Life



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