Modern Greek Lesson 3 - Greek for Beginners | Learn Greek Language for Free
Автор: NinjaGlossa
Загружено: 2019-02-01
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Hi everyone, today, we are going to look at the double consonants and the diphthongs. Therefore, this is the last part of the alphabet, where I am going to give you instructions on how to read in Greek.
This is Salvo and welcome to Ninjaglossa, your language learning hub. This channel is entirely dedicated to language learning. I am going to try my best to share with you my knowledge and passion that I have got for foreign languages and cultures.
So, these are the letters that we learnt in the previous video: άλφα is an “a” sound, βήτα is a “v” sound, γάμμα is a soft “g” sound, δέλτα is a “dh” sound, έψιλον is an “e” sound, ζήτα, ήτα, θήτα is a “th” sound as “think” in English, ιώτα is another “i” sound, κάππα is a “k” sound, λάμδα is “L” sound, μι (mi), νι (ni), and do not confuse νι with the letter “v” of the Latin alphabet, ξι (xi), and then όμικρον, πι (pi), ρο (ro) and do not be confused even if it looks like a “P” in the Latin alphabet, σίγμα (sigma), ταυ (taf), ύψιλον (ipsilon), this is our third consonant/ letter of the Greek alphabet that is read “i”: ήτα, ιώτα and ύψιλον. Then φι (fi), χι (chi), ψι (psi) and finally ωμέγα (omega). So we have two letters in the Greek alphabet that have the “o” sound and these are the όμικρον and the ωμέγα.
So, let’s a have a look now what happens when double constants are together. Because in Modern Greek the beta that was in Classical Greek is now a “vita”, we do not have a “b” anymore. So, how do we write words that have a “b” sound? This is done with a μ and π together making the sound of “b”, like in the word το μπάνιο (to banio), the bathroom. So, remember, μ and π together make a “b” sound. Another word is η μπύρα (i bira), the beer. To and η, as I said in my previous video, are two articles: το is for neutral nouns and η is for female nouns. So, “b” or “mb”, like in the word η καμπάνα (i kambana), the bell. So, if a word begins with μπ, it’s normally pronounced “b”, whereas if it’s found in the middle of a word, it will be pronounced “mb”.
No, we know that δέλτα has a “dh” sound, like in English “the house”. So, what if I have a word that has a “d” sound? “D” is the union of νι and ταυ. These two consonants together make the new sound of “d”. So, η ντουλάπα (i dulapa), the wardrobe. Or, if you want to say the word video, το βίντεο, we have another example. So, we have introduced γάμμα with a very soft pronunciation, like in the word το γάλα. So, what if I have word today that has the guttural “g” sound? Because γ is very soft, if I put a κάππα next to it, it becomes a guttural “g”, like in the word γκρι (gri) for the colour grey. Even if I want to say ο γκουρού (o guru).
If two γάμμα are encountered together, you will be reading them as “ng”. So, the word for "English" is αγγλικά (anglika). Even the word for angel, ο άγγελος, which originally meant “messenger” is written with a double γάμμα. Τ and σ make together the sound “ts” like in τσάντα (tsanda) for "handbag". The word for tzatziki τζατζίκι is written with τ and ζ to make the sound “tz”.
Here are the diphthongs. What are diphthongs? Basically, diphthongs are when two or more vowels together are pronounced as one single syllable. In Modern Greek, ε and ι together “ει” is read as “i”, like in the word το κλειδί (klidi) for "key". Whenever you see “ει”, you will have to pronounce it “i”. Also ο and ι together “οι” is read as “i”, like in the word οικονομία (ikonomia) for "economy". And that is always the rule, whenever you see “οι”, you will read “i”. So that means that we have at least five letters/combinations that read as “i”: ήτα, ιώτα, ύψιλον, ει and οι. Then, “αι” is read as “e” like in ναι (ne) for "yes". And “ου” is always “u”, like ουρανός (uranos) for “sky”.
This is the last list of consonant combinations with ύψιλον. Whenever we have “αυ” and a consonant, it will be read “av” like in αύριο (avrio) for “tomorrow”. But if it will be “ef” if followed by a ταυ, like in the word αυτό (afto), for “this”. The same story applies to “ευ”, like in ευχαριστώ (efcharisto) with an “ef” sound, or “ev” sound with a χι, like in the word ευγένια (evgenia) for “kindness” (from which the word Eugene derives).
Here are a few words that can help you remember the combinations of consonants and vowels in Greek. Let’s read together these words: η θεραπεία, το φαρμακείο, η μουστάρδα, η Ευρώπη, το ούζο, η είσοδος, η αρχαιολογία, το σουπερμάρκετ, η γυναίκα, το λεωφορείο, το νοσοκομείο, η ευχή.
Thank you very much for having watched this video. I hope you have enjoyed the last part of the Greek alphabet, the combination of consonants and diphthongs. Do not forget to subscribe!
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