Greek I An Introduction to Biblical Greek: Alphabet and Pronunciation (Chapters 1 – 3)

Highlights of Aims and Requirements Our goal: to learn the language of the New Testament, that we might better understand God’s Word and be equipped to better communicate it. Our textbook: The Basics of Biblical Greek by William Mounce, with accompanying CD and workbook. At some point you will want to buy The Greek New Testament, published by the UBS (revised 4th edition). Grading Breakdown: Vocabulary Quizzes (30% of final grade) Workbook Exercises (30% of final grade) Final Exam, consisting of exercises drawn from the workbook (40% of final grade). See page 2 for schedule of topics.

Keys to Success in Learning Greek The desire to do it. Much of language learning is self-taught. Regular study, particularly review of vocabulary. Thirty minutes a day will go a long way toward mastering vocabulary. Mounce’s CD and programs from www.teknia.com Vocabulary cards Always keep before you the reason you are learning this language and don’t give up!

Why Bother to Learn Greek? After all, we have excellent translations of the Bible in our own language. There are nuances of meaning that can get lost in any translation; the best way to understand any piece of literature is to study it in the language in which it was originally written.

An Example VEn avrch/| h=n o` lo,goj( In beginning was the Word, kai. o` lo,goj h=n pro.j to.n qeo,n( and the Word was with the God, kai. qeo.j h=n o` lo,gojÅ and God was the Word.

The Greek Alphabet See pp. 8 and 9 in Mounce.

Observations a b d e i k o j t u q = th f = ph c = ch y = ps Write out the alphabet Letters that look like their English counterparts: a b d e i k o j t u Four Greek letters transliterated by two English letters: q = th f = ph c = ch y = ps Two forms of sigma, s and j. Seven vowels in Greek: a e h i o u w Gamma (g) usually has a hard “g” sound as in “get.” However, when it is immediately followed by g, k, c, or x, it is pronounced as a “n.” Example: a;ggeloj.

e and o are always short, h and w are always long. Observations e and o are always short, h and w are always long. Breathing marks – Every word beginning with either a vowel or the consonant r will have a breathing mark. There are 2 kinds: Rough breathing: adds an “h” sound to the word, e.g. u`pe.r. All words beginning with a r or u will take a rough breathing. Smooth breathing: not pronounced, e.g. avpo,stoloj.

Pronouncing Dipthongs (pp. 10-11) A dipthong consists of two vowels that produce only one sound. The second vowel will always be an i or an u. Examples: ai;rw, auvto,j, ui`o,j An improper dipthong is made up of a vowel and an iota subscript. The iota subscript is not pronounced. Examples: w[ra|, grafh/| , lo,gw|. Diaeresis – when two vowels that would normally form a dipthong do not. Examples: Naïve, Mwu?sh/j

For Advanced Students Only! Notice the capitalized forms of the Greek letters on page 12.

For Next Week Be able to write out and pronounce the entire Greek alphabet and identify which letters are vowels. If you have not already read through page 12 in Mounce, be sure to do that. Do exercise number 3 in the workbook. Next week’s topics will include punctuation, syllabification, and English nouns. Read pages 13-26 in Mounce.