Ancient vs Modern Greek: Difference and Comparison

It is said that Unity in Diversity, and to maintain one, we need to preserve the other. In this diversified world, languages play a crucial role in uniting yet diversifying thousands of people.  

The Greek language is one of the most spoken languages, with its legs stretching up to 34 countries. Having a glorious history, this language holds significance in Greece primarily.

However, there are two main branches of this language. One is Ancient Greek, and the other is Modern Greek. Both of these are important yet different.  

Key Takeaways

1. Ancient Greek had more complex grammar, including a dual number, while Modern Greek has simplified grammar.
2. The pronunciation of certain letters and letter combinations has shifted in Modern Greek.
3. The vocabulary has evolved, with Modern Greek incorporating many loanwords from other languages.

Ancient Greek vs Modern Greek 

Ancient Greek was the classical language of the Athenians. It had long and short vowels, many diphthongs, double and single consonants, and a pitch accent. Modern Greek is much simpler, and the pitch accent has been changed to a stress accent, consisting of only five vowels and short consonants.

Ancient Greek was popular as a major Indo-European language between the 9th century BC to the 6th century BC. It is said that this used to be the language of historians, philosophers, and people who used to write plays and dramas.  

On the other hand, Modern Greek is a modified and newer version of ancient Greek and other similar languages.

The language staged itself in front of the world somewhere around 1453 AD. This language is different from the previous one in terms of pronunciation, dialect, and many other things.  

Comparison Table

Parameters of Comparison	Ancient Greek	Modern Greek
Definition	Ancient Greek is an Indo-European language and a branch of the Greek language.	Modern Greek is a newer version of Ancient Greek and other contemporary languages of the same nature.
Origin	Originated somewhere between 19th and 16th century BC.	It originated around 1453 AD.
Uses	Mostly used in ancient plays, philosophies, etc.	Used widely by not only Greek people but people from other cultures too.
Spoken in	It is not spoken in its true from anywhere.	Spoken in many countries in the name of Greek.
Letters	Ancient Greek only had capital letters.	It has small letters also.
Vowels	Presence of long and short vowels.	Only short vowels.
Forms of verb	It had four moods of a verb, namely- Indicative, Imperative, Subjunctive and Optative.	It had modal verbs, auxiliary verbs, gerund, and participle.
Relevance	Relevant as a historical language.	Relevant because of being spoken and written widely.

What is Ancient Greek? 

Ancient Greek is an Indo-European language to be spoken in over 34 countries. The era of the dominance of this language is divided into many phases.

Some of them are- The Mycenaean Period, Archaic Period, and Classical Period. In each period, the pronunciation and phonological variations were different.  

 As per the data and research, this language is presumed to be spoken between the 9th century and 6th century BC.

From the period of the Renaissance to the early start of the 20th century, this language, along with the Latin language, gained crucial significance in Europe. Even today, in some of the educational institutes in Europe, this language is taught as a compulsory subject.

Apart from this, Ancient Greek is also taught in many universities across the world.  

Coming to the salient features of Ancient Greek, it consists of 24 letters in total. Initially, this language was written in capital letters only. Even the concept of space between words was not popular then.

This language had four basic moods, namely- Indicative, Imperative, Subjunctive, and Optative.  

But nowadays, this language is rarely used by people, writers and speakers. However, some of the major books, such as The Harry Potter, were translated into Ancient Greek to maintain the existence and popularity of the language.  

What is Modern Greek? 

Modern Greek is also referred to as just Greek by native speakers and common people. This originated as the successor to the Ancient Greeks but soon made its own identity with all its distinctive elements and modern textures.

This language is mostly spoken in Greece and Cyprus. Speakers of this language are from many communities.  

Modern Greek has made spectacular changes in Ancient Greek. Following are some of such differences or updates- 

• Modern Greek has both capital and small letters. 
• It has replaced the B, D, and G sounds of Ancient Greek with V, TH, and GH, respectively.  
• It has introduced modal verbs, auxiliary verbs, and gerunds to Greek grammar.  
• Both definite and indefinite articles are present in Modern Greek. 

All these changes have made Modern Greek outrun Ancient Greek. However, being a branch of Ancient Greek itself, it preserves certain values and attributes of the same.  

Main Differences Between Ancient and Modern Greek 

1. The origin of Ancient Greek took place around 19th to 16th BC, while Modern Greek became popular during 1453 AD. 
2. Ancient Greek is older than Modern Greek. 
3. Ancient Greek is the branch of Greek, while Modern Greek is the branch of Ancient Greek. 
4. Ancient Greek only had capital letters, but Modern Greek had both capital and small letters. 
5. Ancient Greek had optative, indicative and imperative moods of the verb, while Modern Greek has gerund and auxiliary verbs in it. 

References 

1. https://books.google.co.in/books?hl=en&lr=&id=h5tKJvApybsC&oi=fnd&pg=PP17&dq=ancient+greek+language&ots=Arx0GX8gzU&sig=_pY_NNyRS8At6vSqoQR6CxrmSyk&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=ancient%20greek%20language&f=false
2. https://academic.oup.com/dsh/article-abstract/19/2/221/922932

Last Updated : 14 July, 2023