What binds us together as one? Well, nonetheless, it’s the language. Language plays an integral role in binding people and their thoughts together. Fortunately, we all are blessed with different languages.
Key Takeaways
- Koine Greek is an ancient dialect of Greek used in the Hellenistic period and early Roman Empire. In contrast, Modern Greek is the official language of Greece and Cyprus, with a different vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation.
- Koine Greek is no longer spoken, while Modern Greek is Greece and Cyprus’s most widely spoken language.
- Koine Greek has significantly impacted the development of the Western world, particularly in philosophy, science, and religion.
Koine Greek vs Modern Greek
The difference between koine Greek and Modern Greek is that koine Greek is an older language spoken in Greece and Cyprus, while modern Greek is a newer language. Also, If we talk on a practical basis, koine Greek was much more practical than the modern Greek language. Koine Greek was considered as the language of life, and modern Greek was the language of books.
Koine Greek, one of Greece’s most valuable and practical languages, was also known as the Alexander dialect, common attic, Hellenistic, and biblical dialect.
Modern Greek is an improvised version of koine Greek that was spoken centuries ago. It’s a collective of dialects of the Greek language that is in use in this modern era.
Comparison Table
| Parameters of Comparison | Koine Greek | Modern Greek |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Koine Greek is one of the finest languages spoken centuries ago. | Modern Greek, as the term suggests, is the language that is in use as of today. |
| Simplicity | Koine Greek is a way easier language to read and understand. | Modern Greek is a little bit tough to read and understand. |
| Practical Basis | Koine Greek is considered to be a more practical language. | Modern Greek is less practical. |
| Consideration | Koine Greek was considered to be the language of life. | Modern Greek is considered the language of books. |
| Spoken Era | Koine Greek was spoken between 300 BC to 300 AD. | Modern Greek started from 300 AD till now. |
What is Koine Greek?
Things kept evolving when there were certain drawbacks in the existing system, like flaws, limitations, no extension, etc. However, Koine Greek has nothing in any of that.
Alexander the Great and their army played an important role in giving Koine Greek a good base and made fruitful contributions towards the development of the language.
Talking about koine, it’s a language of the Greek translation of the old testament, of the new testament, and its writings of Polybius, a historian and Epictetus, a philosopher.
It was used in scholarly books and post-classical Greek literature. It was found to be well while reading and learning since the concepts and understanding were way simple.
What is Modern Greek?
Like you have something as of today, tomorrow it could get either replaced or transformed but doesn’t remain the same.
Talking about modern Greek it’s collectively made by putting several dialects together that are active in the modern era. This also includes the official standard Greek or Standard modern Greek.
It was in 1453 when this happened. Then it was considered as the end of the medieval period and the beginning of the modern period. Yes, the dates aren’t quite accurate, but it’s a belief, and many books say 1453.
Since modern Greek was spoken in the modern era, it’s believed that many alphabets and numbers have changed with time. Also, according to the survey, the number of the speaker as of 2012 were around 13 million.
Main Differences Between Koine Greek and Modern Greek
- Koine Greek was predominantly used from 300 BC to 300 AD, while modern Greek is spoken in the modern era.
- Koine Greek has simplified sentences with easy grammar, while modern Greek is not that easy.
- https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=KApnCgAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT15&dq=koine+greek&ots=S5PSNufOg8&sig=eT-k_mpmY7zR7_kpJNa4YvoZ34s
- https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=L-Z5DwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR3&dq=koine+greek&ots=bukpuTvi5M&sig=hksa8q8BdhjgBVjgo2EmwjKuGxU
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