Your Greek Word On A Sunday: Recent Episodes
Emmanuela Lia
Bite size podcast. Every Sunday, Greek words used in the English language. Travelling words connecting cultures.
And just like that, we’re at the end of season nine! How did that happen? I want to thank everyone who stayed with me for another season, everyone new who joined us this year and everyone who commented and reviewed the podcast. It feels great reading what you think and since this is a solo venture it’s great when I know you’re out there, listening. Thank you again and…on with our episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
As this season comes to end I will leave you with the queen of Greek herbs! It smells fantastic , it goes with 99.9% of any Greek dish and it was of course created by the goddess Aphrodite! No, not really. But that’s how the myth goes! Aphrodite created this herb in her garden in mount Olympus to bring joy to humanity. It grows on mountains and its name comes from two words, όρος (oros) meaning ‘mountain’ and γάνα (gana) meaning ‘joy’. Because of that, Ancient Greeks would make wreaths out of it for weddings and in medieval times it was considered a ward against evil. There’s another plant in the same family that exists in Greece but it's also native to the UK and it’s called Marjoram. They are incredibly similar and people have been using it exactly as the Greeks where using theirs. In America the herb arrives with the Italian immigrants but it became very popular after WW2 when soldiers returning from Europe were craving it. How do you know you’re eating greek food? it has ΡΙΓΑΝΗ/OREGANO
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello Dunedin (ντανίντν) in New Zealand! Welcome to the family! A city with great architecture and history but most importantly, rent prices so affordable that artists can thrive there! From what I’m reading it’s an artistically vibrant city, Galleries, live music and theatre ! Oh I’m certainly visiting. Thank you for listening Dunedin.
If you like what you hear in this podcast you can subscribe, download and review it wherever you listen. A click and a few nice words go a long way! On with our episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
The oldest verified writing we have of this plant is in ancient Mycenaean. However, those syllables together can be found in other languages too and it’s led linguists to believe that the original name is Sumerian. Ancient Greeks used this herb as a staple. You had your salt, your pepper and this on the table and of course they used it medicinally. Digestive and respiratory problems as well as bleeding were some of the problems that plant helped with. Cultivated originally in Iran but the name in English came from the Roman version of the Greek word. The Romans also brought it in the UK. In America it arrived from the Spanish and the Portuguese and in Morocco you can still find it on the table next to salt and pepper . ΚΥΜΙΝΟ/CUMIN
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Welcoming Payakumbuh in Indonesia today! The city with a long tradition of a secret negotiation for livestock trades. The Marosok Tradition: Buyers and sellers hide their hands under a cloth and communicate the price by touching. It’s a whole different language of touching and tapping and squeezing different parts of the hand and it means something different depending on which is used . Isn’t that fascinating? Thank you for listening Payakumbuh!
If you like what you hear in this podcast you can subscribe, download and review it wherever you listen. A click and a few nice words go a long way! On with our episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Ancient Greek incense as part of sacrificial ceremonies for the gods was comprised of several herbs. The most prominent was one that got its name from the fumes it was creating when burning . Now, that’s one version, the other is that it got its name because of its resilience; and the Ancient Greeks lit it in temples to inspire courage. In medicine, its oil was used as an antibiotic and in gastronomy as an Ancient Greek wine infuser or an ancient Roman cheese herb. Speaking of the Romans, they were the first to bring it to the UK and it became incredibly popular so much so that many knights would get it as farewell present before battle and people would put it under their pillows to ward off nightmares. From the Ancient Greek verb Θύω (Theo) meaning ‘creating smoke’ and Latin ‘Thymum’ this herb can be found everywhere in Greece and it’s delicious! ΘΥΜΑΡΙ/THYME
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Happy July everyone, welcoming Houston in Texas this week. The city that was built on a scam. Oh yes, in the 19th century the Allen brothers bought very cheap land in Houston because it was, literally, a swamp. They started a campaign describing Houston as a Mediterranean paradise. Hills and breeze and a port that ships can travel to and fro. You have to remember, it was a different time so, people bought into it and then, moved into a reality that had nothing to do with what was advertised to them. When they tried to leave, the Allens bribed officials and made Houston the capital of Texas and promised progress and infrastructure. Nothing happened of course until the oil boom and then, the brothers had to wait for over two years to see their scam pay off. There’s much more to this story so, go ahead and have a read when you can. It’s fascinating. Thank you for listening Houston!
If you like what you hear in this podcast you can subscribe, download and review it wherever you listen. A click and a few nice words go a long way! On with our episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
July is the last month for this season and I have another series of linked words for you. Greece has been the connection between the east and the west since its birth. From big ideas and language to... spices! And this month I will focus on those . A beautiful plant that has divided taste buds for eons because of its strong flavour and smell. Native to southern Europe, North Africa and northwest Asia, its Greek name comes from the word Κοριός (korios) meaning ‘bedbug’ because the unripe seeds smell like crushed bedbugs. The word passed to Latin and French, as usual, but in the UK was brought by the Romans and used ever since, with a slight pause during the influx of other spices during the renaissance. From ancient times it’s been used as a digestive herb but also a perfume and an offering to the gods . From Ancient Mycenaean Korijadana to Ancient Greek Κορίανδρον (koriandron) to Latin Coriandrum and a mixed pronunciation of both the seeds and the leaves in modern Greek ΚΟΛΙΑΝΔΡΟ/CORIANDER
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Welcoming Devon in the UK today and particularly, Exeter. The town who’s underground passageways that used to bring fresh water into It, are still open to the public to visit through guided tours. If you’re not afraid of underground tight spaces that is. Thank you for listening Exeter!
If you like what you hear in this podcast you can subscribe, download and review it wherever you listen. A click and a few nice words go a long way! On with our episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Οίδημα (oedima) in Ancient Greek meant ‘swelling’ and πούς (pous) meant 'foot'. The spelling changed when moved to Latin and the Greek diphthong o+i turned into o+e but enough with grammar, let’s get to the fun part the myth which I absolutely recommend you read in full when you get a chance. In Greek mythology, when the king of Thebes Λάιος (Lios) got the prophesy that his firstborn will be the one that kills him, decided to pierce the baby’s feet and tight them together before handing him to a servant to abandon the infant on a mountain . A Shepard found the baby and took it home as he and his wife were childless and saw that as a blessing. They named him after his ailment, his swollen ankles, and when he grew up the young man wanted to find out his origins. He was told by an oracle that he’s bound to kill his father so, he left his home ,thinking that will keep his father safe. In his travels, he encountered a man that wouldn’t let him through a tight passage. They fought and the young man killed him. Continuing his journey, he reached Thebes but its gates were guarded by the Sphinx. A monster with a female head and a lion’s body that would devour anyone who didn’t solve its riddle: which creature has one voice but has four legs in the morning, two in the afternoon and three at night? The young man answered ‘a Man’ . A man crawls in the beginning of his life, stands in the middle of it and in the end uses a cane, so three legs. The Sphinx, defeated, threw herself from a cliff and the city of Thebes was liberated from the monster. The young man was crowned King of Thebes- since the king was missing- and married It’s Queen. The tragedy of his story became not one but two famous plays. The man who killed his father in a tight passage and married his mother is a terrible story of how fate plays an integral part in Ancient Greek storytelling. The young man’s name was ΟΙΔΗΠΟΔΑΣ/OEDIPUS
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Welcoming Minneapolis this week, the third largest theatre city in the US after New York and Chicago! So make sure you catch a show if you visit! Thank you for listening Minneapolis !
If you like what you hear in this podcast you can subscribe, download and review it wherever you listen. A click and a few nice words go a long way! On with our episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
When Greek words moved to Latin some underwent changes and some didn’t. One very common change was for the letter Δέλτα (Thelta) to turn into an L and today’s word is a very good example of that. Ancient Greek ships didn’t have a central helm but rather two πήδα (pida) and in singular πηδόν (pidon). From the word πούς (pous) meaning 'foot'. Two oars at the very front of the ship and the person steering a ship, the one guiding it , the one changing its 'footing’ was called πηδότης (pedotis). The word moved to Latin in the Middle Ages and from there, to French and English always meaning 'a helmsman'. In 1858 it expanded to ‘the one who controls a hot air balloon’ and in 1907 'the one who flies a plane'. ΠΗΔΟΤΗΣ/PILOT
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Welcoming Las Palmas of the Canary islands today! I have a fact that you wouldn’t expect from a holiday destination but I’m an actor so, of course, I found a theatre one. One of the most beautiful theatres in Las Palmas, Teatro Perez Galdós, is said to be haunted by the writer that gave it its name, Benito Perez Galdós. Although, considering how he fought against fanatical religious beliefs all his life and being a realist writer becoming a ghost seems unlikely, he is known to be a trickster ghost more than a scary one and pulls all kinds of pranks to actors and crew members. So, if you watch a show there, see if you can spot an actor who’s a little bit too on alert! Also, look up Galdós when you get a minute. He was a very important writer! Thank you for listening Las Palmas!
If you like what you hear in this podcast you can subscribe, download and review it wherever you listen. A click and a few nice words go a long way! On with our episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go
We continue this month with words from the same root. Πούς (pous) in Ancient Greek and πόδι (podi) in modern means ‘foot’. The base of a column or a vase in Ancient Greek was ποδίον (podion) ‘little foot’ . The word moved to Latin and the Romans were using it for the raised platform in Arenas where the VIPs would sit and David Humphries , the American diplomat , translator, and poet brought it into English in the 1700s. The word stayed linked to architecture until 1932 when a three-step platform became mandatory at the summer Olympics in Los Angeles and the word gained its wider meaning. ΠΟΔΙΟΝ/PODIUM
!
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Happy June everyone! If you like what you hear in this podcast, you can subscribe, download and review it wherever you listen. A click and a few nice words go a long way! On with our episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
This month, I’ll be telling you about words that come from the same root. Some are more straight forward than others and today, I’ll start with the most obvious one. Although it had a bit of a journey. Πούς (pous) in Ancient Greek meant 'foot' and when it moved to Latin became ‘pes’. A thing 'of the foot’ was ‘pedalis’ and in French ‘Pédale’. In 1610 it came to English to describe a pipe organ’s lever and in the 1800s a piano’s one. In the late 1800s the first bicycles were introduced to Greece and with them that exact word, now a loan, to describe a ΠΕΤΑΛΙ/PEDAL
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Welcoming Casablanca today! An ancient city that was established by Berbers in the 7th century BC and was later a pirates' port. Thank you for listening Casablanca!
If you like what you hear in this podcast, you can subscribe, download and review it wherever you listen. A click and a few nice words go a long way! On with our episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Daughters of Zeus and the Titan Mnemosyne who gave birth to all nine of them, the Muses lived between mount Olympus and the earth. They were assigned an art form (or more) each, to inspire humans and the seventh of them, was in charge of dance and choral song. She’s usually depicted dancing and holding a lyre. Her name entered the English language in the early 1700s, as a noun, in the writings of politician, philosopher and writer Anthony Ashley-Cooper. Τέρψη (terpsi) means ‘delight’ and χορός (choros) means ‘dance’. ΤΕΡΨΙΧΟΡΗ/TERPSICHORE
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
I am welcoming Denver in Colorado this week! Oh my, this city has too many facts to choose from but there’s one that won my heart! And although it was a marketing ploy to make people move west in the late 1800s and it doesn’t have ‘300 days of sunshine’ it still has 245. That’s all you need to know, people! 245 days of sunshine. Thank you for listening Denver!
If you like what you hear in this podcast you can subscribe, follow and review it wherever you listen. A click and a few nice words go a long way! On with our episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
In Ancient Greece, craftsmen and artists who wanted to make something, they would use an early design of a lathe. A machine like a big clasp with a bow attached at the end. The clasp would keep the object steady and by moving the bow with one hand to rotate it, they could smooth out or carve on it with the other. although most times it was a two person job. I’ll upload a photo on Instagram and Facebook for you to see it. The word came to English before the 1300s as a verb not a noun although nowadays is used as both. A wider use of the verb started a century later. The Ancient Greek lathe’s name was based on its rotating motion and in English it arrived from the Latin ‘tornare’ and the French ‘tornier’ and in Middle English it was ‘turnen’. A lathe in both ancient and modern Greek is called a Τόρνος (tornos) and the verb is ΤΟΡΝΕΥΩ/TURN
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Triceps
Let’s hear it for Birmingham joining our audience this week! The second biggest city in England, nicknamed ‘the city of a thousand trades’ because during the Industrial revolution it was the fuel of the country, from jewellery to heavy machinery. And today, there’s a show with that name by the Birmingham Royal Ballet paying homage to the city. Welcome Birmingham! Thank you for listening.
If you like what you hear in this podcast you can subscribe, follow and review it wherever you listen. A click and a few nice words go a long way! On with our episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
In ancient Greece among the classes of mythical creatures were, the monsters! Today I’ll tell you about Cerberus, the guardian of the underworld. A monster that claims as many forms as every writer who decided to describe it. They all agree it was a dog that made sure nobody gets in and out of Hades without permission but whether it had 50, 100 or just 3 heads , a dragon tail, a mix of dog and snake heads with poison, three backs or three bodies, depends on who you read. The description that survived was the three headed one and it matched the description of all his monster siblings that were multi headed. He became very famous when Hercules managed to subdue him. There’s an adjective that was attached to Cerberus and sometimes you only had to say that to imply him. Τρια (tria) in both ancient and modern Greek means ‘three’ and κεφαλή (kefali) means ‘head’. The masculine combined word came to English in 1577 in John Grange’s fiction novel ‘The Golden Aphrodite’. In Latin the word used in anatomy to describe the upper muscle of your arm that looks as if it has three tops, three heads, is a direct transfer from Greek, minus the alphabet adjustment. And since the beginning of the 20th century we use the shortened and singular version ΤΡΙΚΕΦΑΛΟΣ/TRICEP
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Welcome Cordoba! I’m so glad you joined our audience. This is the city where Christopher Columbus first met with Queen Isabella and secured a stipend to continue his studies and prepare for his expedition . One of the Queen’s demands was that he wouldn’t go to any other monarchs for funding. And the rest is history. Thank you for listening Cordoba!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Τρέπειν (trepin) is an Ancient Greek infinitive meaning ‘to turn’ in modern Greek the noun is τροπή (tropi). Around 490BC a practice started appearing in Ancient Greece that would become a custom and travel all the way to today albeit a little modified. After every battle they’d win , ancient Greeks would find the exact spot where they believed the enemy started turning away and they would either place a stick with an enemy armour on it (like a scarecrow) or they would build a small monument as a reminder of their victory and a threat so the enemy won’t attempt to come back. The custom was adopted by the Romans but it started disappearing around 600BC. The word came to English through Latin and French in the 1500s and shortly after started it’s figurative shift. By the revival on the Olympic Games in Athens in 1896 the word was well established as a reward for the winner of a sport. ΤΡΟΠΑΙΟ/TROPHY
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Happy May everyone! Give a big welcome to Mexico City! The birthplace of colour television. Oh yes! In the 1940s, 23 year old Guillermo Gonzales Camarena invented the 'chromoscopic adaptor for television equipment'. The base for what would become colour television 10 years later. Thank you for listening Mexico City!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
This month it’ll be talking about words that sound like they come from the same root but actually don’t. In the mid 19th century the young french aerialist and acrobat Jules Leotard was practicing over his father’s pool using his modified equipment . A rod held horizontally by two ropes on either side. That was something he saw used closer to the ground but never so high and never in full swing! He first performed on it in 1859 at the Cirque Napoleon in Paris and brought his act to London in 1861 flying above audiences eating their dinner. The shape the equipment forms with the ceiling, is an Ancient Greek geometric shape that is named after the very much still in use Greek word for ‘table’ ΤΡΑΠΕΖΙ/TRAPEZE
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello everyone! If you like this podcast why not spread the word? Leave us a review or a comment on the platform of your choice, it helps other people find us by nudging the algorithm to suggest us and , it puts a smile on my face reading what you have to say. You can also email me at yourgreeksunday@gmail.com with any questions or comments about what you hear in this podcast and if you don’t want to do any of that, thank you for listening, that’s more than enough! On with our episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Γαία (Gaia) in ancient Greek and Γη (ge) in modern means ‘earth’ and έργο (ergo) means 'work'. Ancient Greeks apart from the Goddess Demeter, connected Zeus with the fertility of the land so, sometimes they’d call upon that capacity of his with the name 'Zeus the γεωργός (georgos)'. Later on, that would become a name in itself Γεώργιος (Georgios) officially and Γιώργος (Giorgos) in everyday language. When Christianity gained popularity, a Roman soldier with that name would become a saint and crusaders between the 11th and the 13th centuries would bring his worship to England. A century later, he would become the patron saint of the island but his name wouldn’t be popular enough to name your children after until 1714 when the House of Hannover took on the British throne. ΓΕΩΡΓΙΟΣ/GEORGE
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello everyone! Give a warm welcome to Kansas city in Kansas for joining us! And I made a point mentioning it’s in Kansas because there are two Kansas cities . Oh yes, one in Kansas and one in Missouri and they’re divided by a single road. There’s a lot of history as to why and how that happened but both cities are named after the river that runs through them and that river is named after the Native American tribe Kanza that used to be there. Thanks for listening Kansas . Now cross the road and tell your neighbours to join us!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Ιστημι (istimi) is the Ancient Greek verb for ‘I stand’, in modern Greek is στέκομαι (stekome). The word moved to Latin quite intact (minus the Latin spelling of course) and in 1570 , mathematician, occultist and, astronomer of the court of Elisabeth the 1st , John Dee translated the word in a preface he wrote for a translation of Euclid’s elements by Henry Billingsley. He used the word to describe weight and equilibrium and the word remained in that use for many years until 1839 when it was first applied to frictional electricity. ΣΤΑΤΙΚΟΣ/STATIC
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello everyone, excuse my voice today but I do have a cold. Greetings to the beautiful city of Cork in the Republic of Ireland. Welcome to our audience ! Did you know that Cork has a butter museum? Of course it does! It was after all, the butter capital of the western world; and by that I mean its largest supplier in the 18th century. Thank you for listening Cork!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
This is another one of those words that suffered very little in their journey. A word that described part of a flower as ‘flat leaf’ in Ancient Greek and doubled as ‘thin metal plate’ remained the same in modern Greek but nowadays doubles as ‘horseshoe’. Latinised it became an official Roman word between the 3rd and 6th century and passed into English intact In the 1700s but keeping only the first meaning . ΠΕΤΑΛΟ/PETAL
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello Pittsburgh! Welcome to the family and thank you for creating the very first emergency medical services in America! Freedom House Ambulance Service was created in 1967 and was staffed entirely by trained black men and women. Listener, go look at its history and see what these amazing people achieved back then! Thank you for listening Pittsburgh!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Hubris in Ancient Greece seemed to be a very common reason for the gods to punish humans. And it was almost always a clear case of one . Son of a Satyr and a Nymph, Ορχις (orchis) was a young man who during the Dionysian festival attempted to sexually assault a priestess. The gods were furious with Dionysus applying his most brutal punishment . Orhis was not only torn apart by wild animals but was transformed to a very fragile flower. The boy’s name was given to the flower but also to male genitalia since it’s roots look like them. In English it had a few names until 1845, botanist John Lindley brought it over- from Latin- in his book ‘School Botany’ ΟΡΧΙΔΕΑ/ORCHID
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
And we’re back to greeting our new audiences this time from Pristina in Kosovo! Did you know that 50% of the population of Kosovo's Capital is under 30? Sounds like a vibrant city to me! Thank you for listening Pristina!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
In 1930 in Birmingham, Oscar Deutsch, a young businessman opened the first venue in England that would multiply and entertain the nation for decades to come. His wife, Lilly Deutsch designed the interior, in an art deco style and, they borrowed the name from similar and very popular French venues. A name that in Ancient Greece meant, a building available for music performances, poetry recitals and rehearsals of plays for the big festivals in the open theatres. Ωδή (ode) in Ancient Greek meant song and that very special venue that gave its name to… cinemas all over the country was called ΩΔΕΙΟΝ/ODEON
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Taking a break from welcoming cities today because I’d like to remind you to leave us a review on the platform of your choice. It means a lot more than you think, it helps other people find us. If you also like to email me with comments or questions about anything you’ve heard in this podcast feel free to do so at yourgreeksunday@gmail.com On with our episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
The Phoenician word for 'hand' (wrist to fingers) was ‘yodh’ and they wrote it by drawing a small vertical line . Ancient Greeks took that and incorporated it in the Alphabet as the 9th and smallest letter called Ιωτα (yiota) and pronounced like the I in ‘fit’. When the bible came round, the phrase ‘not one iota’ and similarly the word 'Jot' to describe an extremely small amount of something, became very popular . The phrase ‘jotting down‘ to indicate you take quick notes or sketching came much later in the 1700s in a dictionary written by Scottish Philologist John Jamieson, and for quite some time, the phrase was linked exclusive to Scottish writers. It’s worth mentioning that neither phrase is used in modern Greek; but the letter is . ΙΩΤΑ/IOTA
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
I’m very happy to welcome Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria in our audience ! With a name that means ‘Wisdom’ in Greek and being one of its closest neighbours it’s inexcusable that I’m yet to visit! One thing I’ll be looking for when I do, is the bells monument; Built in the ‘80s as a global children’s monument with the idea to include a bell dedicated to every country in the world and to have children ring these as a gesture of peace. Something we’re in desperate need of. Thank you for listening Sofia! Or Σοφία (Sofía) in Greek.
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
International women’s day was last week and Mother’s Day is today in the UK. So, I’m here to celebrate both with a word that is a symbol of the circle of life, the power of nature and feminine power. A symbol that has been found in all ancient cultures sometimes in pottery, sometimes in statues and even on graves. But most importantly it’s a pattern we find in nature. It’s simple and endless . It starts on a fixed point and keeps winding outwards . The word travelled from Greek to Latin and French and arrived in English, almost intact, in 1550 by welsh physician and mathematician Robert Recorde. ΣΠΕΙΡΑ-SPIRAL
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
A big welcome to Bangkok today! I’m so happy to have you in our audience. The city has a series of modesty laws including one that states that you should always wear underwear when you’re in a public space. Don’t worry , nobody will check but make sure it doesn’t show. Thank you for listening Bangkok!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
There’s a tree that is known for its malaria healing effects, its water consuming roots that help dry out marshes and its mosquito repellent scent.It’s native to Australia and it wasn’t brought to Greece until 1862 by the botanist Theodore Orfanides. Indigenous Australians have a different name for every species of this tree- which is around 700- but the settlers used the generic name gum tree. Until, French botanist Charles Louis L’Herritier de Brutelle used two Greek words to name it, based on the complete cover of the buds until their bloom. Ευ (ef) in Ancient Greek meant ‘well/good’ and καλύπτω (calepto) still means ‘I cover’ so a tree that has well covered buds is an ΕΥΚΑΛΥΠΤΟΣ/EUCALYPTUS
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Today, I’d like to welcome Olso in our audience! Oslo has a fantastic first! It was the first city to design a bee highway. A series of rooftops, green spaces and balconies were bees can follow throughout the city and pollinate! Thank you for that and for listening Oslo!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Here’s a myth that has taken many forms like its protagonists. I’m going to tell you the story of Αλκυόνη and Κυηξ and the rise and fall of their love. Αλκυόνη was a beautiful young Princess , daughter of Aeolus of Thessaly (not to be confused with the winds god). Κυηξ was a handsome young noble man . They fell in love and got married and their love was so passionate and strong that made them feel invincible and unique . Like love does. But the couple took it a little too far. They started believing they were as powerful as Zeus and Hera and even called each other with those names. And that was hubris to the Olympians. They transformed them into birds and cursed them to live by the sea and only be able to lay eggs in the middle of winter. Many years passed and harsh winters kept destroying their eggs. Zeus felt pity for them and gave them 14 sunny and warm days from the middle of January to the middle of February for their eggs to survive. In the rest of the world Αλκυόνη ‘ς name is now a metaphor for calm, happy and prosperous times but in Greece that is the name for the 14 Spring-like days in the middle of winter. ΑΛΚΥΟΝΗ/HALCYON
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
This week, I’d like to welcome Reno in Nevada. Did you know that from the 1930s, and well into the 50s, Reno was called the divorce capital of the world? Hollywood actors would go there to get a divorce quickly because it only required a six week residency. Also called a ‘six week cure’. And if you’re wondering, no, it’s not happening anymore. Thank you for listening Reno!
Do you have a fun fact about the city you’re listening from? Email me at yourgreesunday@gmail.com and let the world know!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
There were many games in the Ancient Greek olympics and the most popular ones involved horses! For that purpose a special place was built. It was U shaped and between 400 and 780 meters long (or up to 4 stadia in Ancient Greek measurements). Its name is a combined word that travelled from Greek to Latin to French and, came to England in the 1500s in a translation by William Thomas . Ίππος (ippos) in ancient Greek meant horse and δρόμος (dromos) a word still in use in modern Greek, means road, way and, race. The place were horses compete is an ΙΠΠΟΔΡΟΜΟΣ/HIPPODROME
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
A big welcome to the small town of Voorburg in the Netherlands! It was fascinating to read about the history of this town. It’s one of the oldest inhabited places in the Netherlands, dating back to the 1st century and its name means ‘in front of the castle’. Thank you for listening Voorburg. I hope I'm saying your name right.
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
According to the Ancient Greek historian Herodotus, when Xerxes sent his spies to observe how the Spartans were training before battle, they reported back saying they were training for Κάλλος (Kallos) and Σθένος (sthenos). For beauty and strength. Eons went by and in 18th century France a new term appeared for the exercise young girls were required to take, in order to be graceful and healthy. In 1842, in England, the term appears for the first time in writing, it was already in use in everyday language, in The New Monthly Magazine in an article by Thomas Hood. A term that combined the two Greek words and is now more than a physical exercise for little girls. ΚΑΛΛΙΣΘΕΝΙΚΗ/CALLISTHENICS
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Welcoming one of my favourite cities this week. Vienna! Did you know that there are more dead people occupying the Vienna cemetery than alive people in the city? Ha! Welcome Vienna , thank you for listening!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
This word has an extensive Catholic history but that’s for another episode perhaps. Δοκέιν (dokeen) is an Ancient Greek infinitive meaning ‘to think, to have an opinion’ a term still used today in modern Greek . But it also meant ‘to believe in something as the absolute truth’ and that’s the meaning we’re exploring today. In English the noun arrived in the 1600s through Latin and was solely associated with religion. In the 1800s it started getting popular and was used closer to the original meaning as ‘a philosophical tenet’. but it was between 1920 and 1940 that it got the meaning we know today. And the reasons were obvious. European thinkers, linking unshakable beliefs imposed on the population with authoritarian regimes . Such a practice and belief is called ΔΟΓΜΑ/DOGMA
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello! This week I’m happy to welcome Toronto in our audience! Did you know that in Mohawk language 'Toronto' means ‘the place where trees stand in water’? You do now! Thank you for listening Toronto!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Στένω (steno) is an Ancient Greek verb meaning 'to groan' or 'to mourn loudly'. In Homer’s Iliad, the goddess Hera possesses the body of a herald to empower the soldiers when they were losing a battle. The herald she chose, had a fantastically loud and clear voice. They said, he sounded not like one but fifty men and later, when he was challenged by Hermes to a shouting battle and won , Hermes killed him. His name became an adjective and came to English through a translation from Latin in the 1600s. And the name was ΣΤΕΝΤΩΡ/STENTORIAN
I’d like to dedicate this episode to every loud voice against oppression, violence and war in our world today.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Today’s shout out goes to Rio De Janeiro! Welcome Rio! Thank you for listening! I would definitely like to visit one day given how much I enjoy Brazilian food and music. Did you know that the stars on Brazil's flag represent the sky over Rio on November 15, 1889, when the Republic was proclaimed?. You do now! And that fact takes us straight to today’s episode.
(Piano music)Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Κοσμείν (kosmin) is an Ancient Greek infinitive meaning ‘to adorn’ but also ‘to place things in order/ to arrange/ to tidy up’. Greeks still use all meanings although they barely use infinitives anymore in every day speech. The Ancient Greek mathematician and philosopher Pythagoras was in awe of how complex but structured nature is. He saw a connection between numbers and order. Measurable structure. Looking up in the sky he saw an ‘adorned structure’ and was convinced it could be studied and measured too despite its vastness. He was the first to use that double meaning noun to describe the universe. In English the word came around 1200 but it didn’t become popular until 1848 when Alexander Von Humboldt’s book about the universe was translated from German. The book was entitled ΚΟΣΜΟΣ/COSMOS
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
I’d like to thank the global audience this podcast has developed throughout the years . You have been incredibly loyal and supportive .127 countries have been constantly listening and as impossible as it would be to mention every single city, town, and village, I will be giving a shout out to a new place every week. You can also email me at yourgreeksunday@gmail.com to let me know where you’re listening from. I always love hearing from you! Today a shout out to a new addition to our audience; Akron in Ohio, which was named by general Simon Perkins in 1825 after the Greek word for ‘edge’ because of its strategic elevated position. Thank you for listening Akron and welcome to the family!
(Piano music)Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
This Ancient Greek goddess has two names (in this version of her myth anyway) . She was a Titan, the Sun was her brother or her husband depending which Ancient Greek historian you ask and her first name is Σελήνη (Selene) which means ‘the one that shines bright light’ . Her second name, Μήνη (minie) was given to her because people counted time according to her movement. Circling the sky every day on her chariot, led by her half black and half white, winged horses. So you could only see her at night and from different angles. But there was one time when you could see her whole before she started her circles again. For 28 to 30 days. Ancient Greeks named that period Mήνα (mena). Now, this word has an even more ancient root ‘min’, which means that languages like Sanskrit , Persian, Armenian and Greek all share a variation of it. And it meant ‘to count’ In English, the word came from proto Germanic ‘menon’ and Latin ‘mensis’ who borrowed the sound from Ancient Greek. ΜΗΝΗ/MOON and MONTH
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Now this is a surprising word. Not because of the way it arrived in English but because of how it evolved. Σχολή (scholi) in Ancient Greek Meant the interval from work. Your free time. What was considered the ideal or socially acceptable way to spend your free time was , learning by either thinking, debating or, discussing a matter. And there were places to go for that. Like the agora under the Acropolis where most philosophers gathered to train minds and debate their ideas with each other. Each philosopher’s place, within the agora, was named after their belief so, you had for example the Σχολή του Σωκράτη (scholi of Socrates) Socrates’ free time. But since that kind of learning was considered equally important as anything else, the place for lectures by philosophers would also be called Σχολή. In Latin 'Schola' meant a place for instructions, in Middle English 'Scole' meant the institution of learning and from 1590 onwards in English it was the name for all buildings used for the purpose of learning. 'Ecole' in French, 'escuela' in Spanish, 'scuola' in Italian, 'Schule' in German, 'Skola' (with a K) in Swedish, 'Σχολείο' in modern Greek and in English, keeping the anglicised Greek spelling of ΣΧΟΛΗ/SCHOOL
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Happy New Year Everybody! May you have a healthy and prosperous 2026 and may you be as passionate for the people and the things you love, as an Ancient Greek! If you like what you hear in this podcast, subscribe, share and review on the platform of your choice. It helps other people find us and a good word goes a long way! On with our first episode!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Today’s word is one that took many turns before settling to what we know today . Plato used it to describe the state of poets and oracles. A state that 'takes the soul beyond reason, truth or beauty and is driven by a god'. Later on the same state would be used to describe divine possession that leads to madness. And in the 1500s borrowed from Latin and French, Martin Luther will use the word to describe religious fanatics or people claiming to have received the word of god directly. In 1716 the clergyman White Kennett wrote the word describing someone passionate about a cause but the word remained a negative one as it excluded all reason. The 19th century was kinder and accepted the word as a state of passion and inspiration. Εν (en) ,in both ancient and modern Greek, is a preposition and means ‘in/within’ and θεός (theos) means ‘god’. The state of being inspired and passionate as if touched by a god is ΕΝΘΟΥΣΙΑΣΜΟΣ/ENTHUSIASM
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
As the year ends and cold weather is setting, I thought of telling you a winter tale. And finish the year with the thought that, from the beginning of time, people always looked up to the vastness of the sky and tried to find meaning in our existence by creating and sharing stories and bringing everyone together. To listen. As an actor I couldn’t more proud to be human and be able to tell stories in any way I can. Thank you for staying with me this year, your company has been invaluable. See you in 2026!
(piano music)
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
There are several versions of this myth so I’m choosing the one that’s less complicated but have a look for the others . It’s fascinating how over the years , well into the Roman ones, people kept telling this story their own way. Artemis was the goddess of wild nature and hunting. Protector of animals, babies and mothers and connected to purity and youth. Καλλίστω (Callisto),who’s name means ‘beauty', was a nymph and a follower of Artemis and had vowed to stay a virgin. Zeus didn’t seem to care and seduced her by transforming into the god Apollo. When Hera, Zeus’s wife, found out, she turned Καλλίστω into a bear- an ‘άρκτος’ (arktos)- but before that, Zeus managed to save her unborn child and raise it in secret. When the child turned 15 he went hunting in the woods and there, met with a bear and without knowing it was his mother he was about to aim and kill. That’s when Zeus intervened once again and turned both of them into constellations. Preventing matricide and re-uniting them forever. A big and a small Bear constellation can be seen in the sky and in English they have kept their Latin names, Ursa major and minor. But the word for the Ancient Greek name of the celestial place where a bear can be found was given to the the terrestrial one. ΑΡΚΤΙΚΟΣ/ARCTIC
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(piano music)
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Merry Christmas to those celebrating and I hope you’ll have a few restful days those of you who don’t. I was as surprised as you’ll be to find out that this is a combination of Greek words but my hunch was proven right! You see the modern Greek word is slightly different so I never thought to look, until now! In Ancient Greece one of the most popular breads was one made from barley, oil and sometimes milk . It was called Μάζα (maza) and it looked like a lump of dough. It was named after the infinitive Μασσείν meaning 'to knead by hand'. The word was also used in medicine and alchemy to describe a blend of substances or elements very close together and that, expanded into describing crowds. Years went by and one place you’d find so many people together was a church. In Latin it came as 'Massa' and dropped the final ‘a’ when the French adopted the word in the 11th century as ‘Μasse’. It came to English two centuries later and meant 'an irregular shaped lump' or a 'crowd'. Now put that on the side. In Hebrew god’s son is the messiah meaning ‘the anointed one’ and that later on was given as a name to Jesus of Nazareth. in Greek, that translates as Χριστός (Christos) and that came to Latin as 'Christus'. Now put the two together and you have a crowd celebrating the anointed one. ΧΡΙΣΤΟΥΓΕΝΝΑ/CHRISTMAS
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(piano music)
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Today’s word is mostly known through Biblical stories but in the ancient world it was a high valued resin used as medicine and fragrance. And the name in Arabic means ‘bitter’. Trade, brought it to Greece from South Arabia and, they created a whole myth for it. What I find fascinating about this myth is that it’s not about a Greek princess but a Lebanese one and the myth comes probably from Cyprus but it is unclear what came first , an existing myth that was made to fit the origin of the resin or a myth that came with it but was altered to the point that it was made a Greek one? We’ll never know but it lasted through the years as both a story and a cautionary tale. Μύρρα (Myrrah) was a beautiful princess that had the misfortune of falling in love with her own father. For 12 nights her nurse, would lie to the King and say a princess has fallen in love with him but wishes to remain anonymous . So Μύρρα would hide her face and sleep with the King. On the 12th night, he wanted to find out who she was so he held up a torch and to his horror saw his daughter . He chased her with a sword but she managed to flee to Arabia and turned to the gods for protection for herself, and her unborn child. Aphrodite was not happy this , not happy at all. She didn’t tolerate bonds that didn't honour her so, she turned Μύρρα into a tree and in that form, she gave birth to the most beautiful boy of all times, Adonis. The bitter resin is said to be her tears and her story has been used in one form or another by Ovid, Dante, Mary Shelley, Ted Hughes, Ravel and, the Bible as one of the gifts the Magi brought to new-born Jesus. ΜΥΡΡΑ/MYRRH
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(piano music)
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
The countdown to Christmas has begun and It wouldn’t be December if I didn’t enter it with a cold! So I hope my voice is not too distracting and you can enjoy today’s episode! I have to thank my Iranian friend Lanna and her friend Mohsen for all the Farsi words guidance. Herodotus and Xenophon were established historians in Ancient Greece and they both mention a Persian all male caste , well versed in astronomy, science, philosophy and astrology. They were also quite influential in the Persian empire . Their practices involved praying, interpreting omens and they were believed to be the mediators between humans and the divine. Because of their vast knowledge, their title 'Mo’gh' in Greek, was immediately associated with wisdom. It means 'Priest' However, when Christianity took over the word kept its positive meaning in Latin, French and finally English, only to describe the three wise men that, by interpreting a star , travelled all the way from the East to meet a new born King. ΜΑΓΟΙ/MAGI
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hi, thank you all for your ratings and reviews so far, I love reading what you think and it does help other people find us so please, keep them coming. If you have any questions or comments about what you hear in this podcast you can email us at yourgreeksunday@gmail.com and you can also follow us on Instagram at @yourgreeksunday . Before we move on with today’s word I’d like to correct myself on last week’s episode. Of course Apollo wasn’t Cyclops’s dad, it was Poseidon. I mix up my Olympians sometimes. Oops! On with today’s word!
(piano music)
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
The ancient Greeks had three words for 'glory'. All meaning a different kind of fame. We’ll stick to the one that before it got really popular in English in the 1920s it was university slang among students of the classics in the late 18th century and it just meant ‘prestige’. In ancient Greek it meant praise given to someone for an achievement in battle, never outside of one. A praise for something one accomplished themselves not as part of an army, not the one to have won the war and definitely not the one to reflect the entire nation . A simple praise in battle was called ΚΥΔΟΣ/KUDOS
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(piano music)
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Following up from last week’s episode on giants and fossils here’s another word that comes with a mythical creature attached. When ancient Greeks found animal fossils that looked enormous, they called them ‘Giants’ but, when they found enormous fossils that had a hole in the middle of their scull they believed them to be a special type of giant. They named them Κύκλωπες (cyclops) meaning ‘central eye’. The last giant of his kind and son of Apollo was, Πολύφημος (Polyphemus) meaning, 'the famous one’ and in Homer’s Odyssey, he was blinded by Odysseus when the latter was kept prisoner in the giant’s island. For that ,Apollo punished Odysseus by making his journey home, much, much, much, much longer. It’s worth saying here that, many times a description of a creature from Phoenician merchants or creatures seen while fighting with foreign armies, would inspire stories and myths to explain things. Ivory in Ancient Greece wasn’t uncommon but it wasn’t for everyone. The statue of Athena inside the Parthenon was made of ivory and gold and that combination was generally used for high and religious art. Around the time of Alexander the Great the Greek name for ivory was applied, for the first time, to the animal and not just the material. The word came to Latin as ‘Elephantus’ then old French ‘olifant’, old English ‘Elpend’ and in modern English, keeping the Latin spelling, ΕLEFAS/ELEPHANT
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello , if you like what you hear in this podcast leave us a review on the platform of your choice. It helps other people find us and I love reading what you think!
(piano music)
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
We now know that ancient civilisations created some of their myths based on what surrounded them but was at the time incomprehensible. We don’t exactly know how the myths evolved or got embellished with time but sometimes there are clear and verified links. For the next two episodes I’m going to talk to you about two different words that come from the same fact. Prehistoric fossils found in Ancient Greece. Nobody could explain them and they looked… bizarre! Γαία (Gaia) was the name for the goddess Earth. Among her children were 100 , of enormous height and strength. With scaled bodies and lizard tails who were covered in hair. looked like humans and they were mortal. They were divided in clans and each had special extra powers. Including the lightning power they gifted Zeus. Most of them died in the Great War between them and the Olympian gods and there are depictions of that war on ancient vases and sculptures. Their name means ‘of the earth’ but in English it came through Latin and old French in the 1300s and by then it had turned into an adjective ΓΙΓΑΝΤΙΟΣ/GIGANTIC
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(piano music)
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
‘Remember remember the 5th of November…’ That’s how the rhyme goes in the UK. On November 5th 1605 a company of Catholic men was arrested for treason and hanged for attempting to blow up the House of Lords of the Protestant monarchy. The failure of The Gunpowder Plot as it’s known is celebrated to this day with bonfires and fireworks. Guy Fawkes one of the members of the plot, has been turned into an anti-establishment hero through movies and iconography but mainly, through a grave misunderstanding of history. He really was nothing more than a religious fanatic against a religiously fanatic monarchy. It's worth reading the story in full and understanding the behaviours of both religious groups at the time. Now, that misunderstanding leads us to an even older misunderstood word that is often assigned to guy Fawkes too. The word came to England through France in the 1600s and wasn’t always a pleasant term until Samuel Johnson put it in a dictionary, in 1755, cementing it as a virtue. Πατήρ (patir) in Ancient Greek and Πατέρας (pateras ) in modern means ‘father’. Πατρίδα (patrida) means ‘fatherland’. The ancient Greeks had city -states, Πόλεις (polis) so anyone who was a free citizen from the same city was a Συμπολίτης (sympolitis) unless they were a slave or a group of foreigners from another country entirely . They, were called ΠΑΤΡΙΩΤΕΣ/PATRIOTS
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(piano music)
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
I hope you had an amazing Halloween! I’m going to do one last spooky word for you today. Hades , the god of the underworld was married to Persephone (that’s a whole other can of worms for the Greek gods and, a future episode for us) but like his brother Zeus, Hades wasn’t very faithful. Persephone caught him cheating with a nymph of the underworld. And in the myth, there’s no indication that she punished him for it. The nymph however, had a terrible fate. She was dragged by Persephone on top of a mountain and crushed to dust in the ground. But then, and some say that was Hades’ doing, the air was filled with a scent of freshness and a small green plant started growing. A plant that, to this day , grows on the mountains of Greece and has been used to heal , refresh and restore our bodies . It has the nymph‘s name and it was brought to England by the Romans during their occupation. Μίνθη (minthi) in Ancient Greek and in modern ΜΕΝΤΑ/MINT
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Before we begin , a big thank you to everyone who left a review and rated our podcast recently our audience in growing fast and your words matter! If you haven’t done yet , it’s never too late ! As always, I love reading what you think.
(piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
It’s almost time and we’ve already started celebrating so, Happy Halloween let the spooky words in!
Ancient Greeks worshiped all their gods equally. But they feared the underworld most and they made sure to appease its gods .So whilst the Olympian Gods where getting drops of wine and prayers multiple times a day, the underworld was getting a big jug quickly poured directly into the ground which you slammed so you’d have their attention. Honey, wine, milk and water, always at night and only on important occasions. Funerals, religious festivals, spirit summonings, plagues and of course, important state deals. Also, you were obligated to have a sip of the wine offered to the Olympian gods but you should never drink the offering to the dead. What I love about the Ancient Greek gods is that sometimes they appear to be a concept rather than supernatural beings. Gaia is the name of the goddess earth when referring to things above the ground. In our world. Chthonia is her name below it and everything related to that. The word appears in English (from Latin) in the early 1880’s in the writings of Charles Francis Keary . ΧΘΟΝΙΟ/CHTHONIC
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
In the late 1700s a mysterious traveling showman Paul De Philipstal appeared in Berlin, he spoke French and in the advertisement for his show , he claimed to conjure ghosts, reunite audiences with dead loved ones and even show monsters on stage. He used magic tricks, shadow play and machinery. When he was kicked out of Berlin as a fraud, he moved to Paris where he spoke German and run the same show. In 1802, under an anglicised version of his name Paul Philidor and speaking English with a French accent, he has a show at the Lyceum theatre in London. He then starts touring the country and ends up in Leeds until his death. Nobody knows when he was born or where but he kept claiming several relations with different European royal families. A few years before Philidor started, French dramatist Louis-Sebastien Mercier had coined the term Philidor used to name his show. From the Ancient Greek infinitive φαινεσθαι (fenesthe) meaning ‘to appear´ we get Φάντασμα (fantasma) meaning ‘an apparition´, ´a ghost´. Αγορά (agora) meant ‘assembly´. An assembly of ghosts is a ΦΑΝΤΑΣΜΑΓΟΡΙΑ/PHANTASMAGORIA
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
I adore big cities! You can keep getting surprised by them, explore and discover new things and London is one of my favourite ones! Ancient Greeks didn’t have the sense of a capital city the way we have it today. They did however have city-states that had colonised others and therefore influenced socially, financially, politically and culturally more than their own population. Those city-states where called Mother-Cities . In English the combined word came from Latin and French and meant the one that belongs to a Mother-City referring primarily to bishops. Of course as time went by, the meaning widened and turned into 'Capital' or 'very important city'. Μήτηρ (mitir) in Ancient Greek and Μητέρα (mitera) in modern means ‘mother’ and πόλις (polis) means 'city' . ΜΗΤΡΟΠΟΛΙΣ/METROPOLIS
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello everybody and welcome to season 9! I hope you had a great summer and you’re ready to start another year with me! I’ve decided to make a small/big change. I never had ads in this podcast until earlier this year when I started my partnership with Audible (click on their link in the description and have a free audiobook and a free trial on us!) but, since we’re small ourselves I thought why not make some room here to help promote small businesses that don’t necessarily have the means to push themselves like big companies do. So if you or your company is related to languages, literature, education, entertainment, Greek related products and services, games, mythology and general fun stuff (which I suspect if you’re listening to this you have the same sense of fun as me) or if you know of anyone who will find this useful, email me at yourgreeksunday@gmail.com and let’s connect! .
Welcome to season 9!
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
The division of time within a year wasn’t always as neat and tidy as we know it today. The Gregorian calendar that we follow didn’t come about until 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII (13th) . So what was happening before ? A little bit of a mess. In Ancient Greece, every city-state had its own calendar and they adjusted their count based on the positions of the Sun and the Moon. The rest of the world had their own type of calendars. I cannot imagine how confused the Phoenicians, who travelled so much, must have been. Anyway. Then, the Romans came and tried to organise everything but based on their military and religious activities so, their year had only 10 months starting in March (yay! let’s kick off the year with a celebration of the god of War, Mars- and start conquering the world) , April (aperio meaning to open, to bloom like nature does) , May (for the earth goddess Maia and her festivals), June (from the goddess Juno the protector of marriage and the well being of women), July (in honour of Julius Cesar who also started making a little bit more sense by creating the Julian calendar paving the way for the order we have today), August was in honour of the first Roman emperor Augustus Cesar) and the next 4 months follow the combination of Latin numbers septem, octo, novem and Decem . And that’s where it ended. At 10 . January and February didn’t have a name. It was a time for peace and reflection between conquering and since it was too cold to March anywhere why name them, right? When the time to do so came however , Janus, the double faced god looking both in the past and the future became January and Februalia, the festival of purification and atonement gave its name to February. The adjustment of the Julian calendar didn’t happen overnight . It took many trials and a lot of errors. How many days in a month? What to do with the spare ones? How are we celebrating the festivals without misplacing them? Yes, it took time and now, we have a tidy system with a few holidays that move around for convenience, a month who is -or isn’t- a full one depending on the year but a 12 month year to suit all.
In the old calendar, the Latin name for the 8th month of the year comes from the Greek οκτώ (octo) meaning 8 and -b
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word on a Sunday summer edition. I just returned from my Greek holidays and the place I’ve been has a great myth behind it so I’m here to tell you all about it!
If you like this episode, don't forget to comment, review and rate it and most importantly, share it with your friends.
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Son of Tantalus and father of Atreus (among his numerous children), Pelops was a cunning man but had a tragic and triumphant history too. When he was a child his father cut him into pieces and served him as dinner to the gods to challenge their mental acuity. From all the gods only Demeter had a small piece from his shoulder as she was in deep grief from the loss of her daughter Persephone and didn’t realise what she was eating. The Gods ordered for the pieces of the child to be put in a cauldron and be reassembled by one of the fates . The missing piece from his shoulder was replaced by ivory and Pelops’s descendants would carry a white birthmark on their shoulders from then on.
Pelops survived and ‘thrived’!
As a young man, he fell for Hippodamia , daughter of king Oenomaus. A prophesy that the king would be killed by his son in law had him put on chariot races between himself and his daughter’s suitors killing everyone who lost and put their heads on a spike outside his palace. Pelops got into the race but not before sabotaging the king’s chariot , getting him killed, marrying his daughter and becoming king of the peninsula South of Athens that included Sparta and its famous army. He held a war against the Athenians for 27 years and won. Abolishing Democracy and establishing Oligarchy . A period that changed ancient Greece forever. If there’s one good thing Pelops did-even if it was out of fear and guilt for the murder of his father in law- was creating the Olympic Games, in Olympia. Chariot races where the first game.
But Pelops’s lineage was cursed, sons killing each other, his wife committing suicide, one of his sons went and created an empire of tragedy and left us with great myths in Greek drama. From Helen of Troy to the Oresteia. His death is a mystery but his bones said to have been summoned by Agamemnon (his descendant) when he was in Troy , to help him win the war. The bones were lost at sea, recovered years later and laid to rest in the place he called home. Νήσος (nisos) in Ancient Greek meant 'island' and the peninsula he reigned is a combined word meaning 'Pelops’s island'. Πελοπόνησσος/Peloponnesus
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello and welcome to the last episode for this season. Thank you for staying with me for another year, downloading and sharing the podcast! Our audience is getting bigger and this is all thanks to you! Stay tuned this summer as you might find a bonus episode or two coming your way during our break and if you haven’t yet leave a review on the platform of your choice. It does help other people find us and I always love reading what you have to say. If you're on this side of the globe have a fantastic summer and if you're on the other one, have a great autumn
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Today’s episode is thanks to our listener Dale Choate , American expat in London, creative director extraordinaire and of course Gregophile . Thanks Dale.
Πειρείν is the Ancient Greek infinitive of ‘I try/I attempt ‘ and Πειρατής (Peiratis) is the one attempting . it’s directly linked to an attack and in particular at sea. The practice goes a long way back and has been documented as an acceptable one in the Mediterranean sea, between countries. it was perfectly legal to attack and steal goods and ships from another nation. It was illegal to attack your own. Until the Romans made it illegal all around (and I suspect it was because they didn’t have great nautical skills) The stories of tactics, thief leaders and, trade offs in the ancient world are fascinating and in the Mediterranean in particular because of the proximity of countries, seafaring and, trade. Although the word originated in Greece -not because that’s where it began but because the meaning was so accurate- it has been used in many languages. Piraat in Dutch, Pirat in German, Pirata in Spanish, Italian and Latin and Pirat in French where it arrived from in English, in the 14th century. ΠΕΙΡΑΤΗΣ/PIRATE
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Στάδιο (stadio) in Ancient Greece was the most popular game in the Olympics and the very first one. From 776 to 724BC that 200 yard race, was the Olympics! But it remained as the most important one even when other games where added and the winner’s name would be given to the entire event for the next 4 years .The runners would compete naked and they were supervisors both in the beginning and the end of the race to make sure everything was done properly. If there was a tie the race would be repeated until a clear winner was declared. The name of the game became both a measurement for distance and the name of the place the race was happening. The measurement arrived in English with the first Bibles around 1300 and was translated as 'furlong' and in 1834 ‘a large open oval structure with tiers of seats for viewing sporting events’ was a ΣΤΑΔΙΟ/STADIUM
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
When Homer described the colour of the sea as 'wine-dark' in both the Odyssey and the Iliad, I'm sure he didn't anticipate the avalanche of misconceptions that would follow what-probably- was a moment of lyrical inspiration for the Greek Bard. And if you're wondering how can such a description cause linguistic mayhem , I urge you to ask the world wide web the following question: Did ancient Greeks have a word for the colour blue? And further more: were the ancient Greeks able to see the colour blue? Because no misconception is complete unless it's followed by a conspiracy theory nowadays. To save you the trouble the answers are 'yes' and 'yes' .What they didn't have, was the same vocabulary or colour palette as us. What we call today a shade of a colour to the ancient Greeks was the colour itself. So, as a modern example, burgundy would not be a shade of red but a colour of its own. Blue was not in the picture because there was turquoise, like the stone and the word for the lighter shade , that arrived in English through Latin and French in 1879, was first used by innovator, photographer and printer Edward Steichen, to describe a colour in his print of the solar spectrum. The Greeks used it in several combined words to define the exact shade but the colour of the sky, on a great, Greek, sunny day was ΚΥΑΝΟ/CYAN
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello and happy July everyone! The results of the prize draw are in and our winner is...Melanie Bittner from Germany! Congratulations Melanie, you will be receiving your gift very soon! Thank you for submitting your favourite episode which is from 2022 (now that's a loyal listener!). Let's pretend for a moment we're an old fashion radio station-I'm gonna lower my voice-and this, is a request from Melanie. Here, is her favourite episode
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Συριγξ (Syrinx) in Ancient Greek was the name of an Arcadian Nymph. When the god Pan was young, he fell in love with her and chased her to the shores of the river Λάδων (Ladon). She clearly wasn't interested because she hid among the canes by the shore. Pan never found her but he made his musical instrument, known as pan-pipe from those canes and he named it, in Greek, after her. Later on, anything with the shape of a hollow cylinder would be named after her. From long tunnels to injection instruments, her name would reach medieval Latin as Syrinx , before landing in England. Συριγξ/Syringe
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
This is a word that has changed very little and has a very interesting story. Στίζειν (stizin) is an ancient Greek infinitive meaning 'to mark'. The verb is Στιγματίζω (stigmatizo). Although in many countries being tattooed is considered an honourable action, the Ancient Greeks used it as a mark of disgrace. And they learned that from the Persians. In one of the battles between Greece and Persia, some Greeks joined the other side. When that battle was lost and Greeks surrendered, the Persians thought the traitors might double cross them in the future so, they marked their foreheads with the Persian royal emblem. We have several mentions from the historian Herodotus of Athenians, marking their enemies' foreheads with the Athenian symbol, the owl. Greeks also used a very painful method way to remove tattoos. It took 20 days and involved a cloth to tie around the head, a needle to pierce the tattoo, salt to dry it and either, gypsum and sodium carbonate or pepper dust and honey. Tattoos seemed to be almost exclusively on foreheads and marked criminals and slaves too. The word came to English in the late 1500s in the writings of courtier and author Sir John Harington and he used the Latinised spelling of the Ancient Greek noun ΣΤΙΓΜΑ/STIGMA
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello and welcome to our 300th episode! I know, right? I never thought I'd make it this far and it's all thanks to you! Have you entered the prize draw yet? Email me your favourite episode, your name and where you're listening from at yourgreeksunday@gmail.com by July 1st , for a chance to win a personalised gift. I will announce the winner on the episode of July 6th! On with our Myth-Of course it's a myth!
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
The Phaeacians were a mythical tribe in Homer's Odyssey who helped Odysseus get back to Ithaca. When Poseidon wrecked Odysseus's ship in the shores of Scheria, some say that's ancient Atlantis, he didn't anticipate Athena's and Aphrodite's determination to help our hero get back home. By transforming into several women and appearing in the Phaeacians' Princess dreams, they managed to make her help him get to King Alcinoous and ask for a ship. The Phaeacians were experts in sailing and navigating but they had a secret. A rock, clear in colour that came from the depths of the Ocean. It was said it held the knowledge of all the countries in the world and if you stuck a piece of it under your ship , it would not only make it indestructible but it would navigate itself by reading your mind about your destination and take you there safely. The word came to English the usual way, through Latin and French in the late 14th century. A rock that has been formed in cold waters or on the surface by extreme cold is a ΚΡΥΣΤΑΛΛΟ/CRYSTAL
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hi everyone! We are one episode away from our 300th one and I'm going to celebrate by giving to one of you out there, a little gift with your favourite Greek word from this podcast, written on it. This is how it works, email me your favourite word at yourgreeksunday@gmail.com with your name and the country you're listening from and I'll do a hat-draw and announce the winner on Sunday July 6th. If you already know what your favourite episode is, great! Send me an email right away. If you need more time to revisit the episodes and decide later, you have two whole weeks to do so! The deadline is the 1st of July, That's a Tuesday. For now, on with our episode!
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
I honestly didn't expect to find so much interesting information about today's word. It's one of those that stayed intact since put together but the progress, inventiveness and global collaboration is outstanding! Τέλε (tele) in ancient Greek , meant 'something far away' . Γραφείν (grafin) is the ancient greek infinitive meaning 'to write'. The combined word means 'writing over distance' and it's a practice that started with smoke signals, fires on to wers, flags on ships and as we became more industrious we have: in 1791 the Chappe brothers of France inventing what was called a two-flag semaphore. A complex construction of small flags and poles to indicate letters and numbers that would be put on top of a tower and could be read from afar. Then in 1795, George Murray of England would invent a shutter system, where opening and closing six shutters in different ways, read as letters to the person watching from far away. That system took over America where there are still places called 'signal hill' where shutters used to be placed. And then, electricity got established and with it, an invention upgraded step by step by different people, in different places and if I may add, very quickly! In 1800 Alessandro Volta of Italy discovering the voltaic cell and how to power devices with electricity. Hans Christian Orsted of Denmark, in 1820 discovering the electric needle and how to carry electric current without depending on the weather being clear. William sturgeon of Britain, five years later, in 1825 discovering the multiturn electromagnet. In 1831 Michael Faraday of England with Joseph Henry from the states, refining and electromagnetic power to make it stable and possible to power devices. And lastly, Sir William Forthgill Cooke and Sir Charles Wheatstone obtaining the patent. So, you see, the word might have started as an idea in Greece and from Latin and French came to English but it took years of collaborations and building upon other people's ideas, carrying on inventing and perfecting until we had a working ΤΗΛΕΓΡΑΦΟΣ/TELEGRAPH
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Before we begin, a shout out to fellow Thespian Constanza Ruff who suggested the word to me. If you'd like to send me ideas, comments or questions about anything you hear in this podcast, you can reach me at yourgreeksunday@gmail.com. On with our episode!
Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Τέλεσμα (telesma) in ancient Greek and Τελετή in modern means 'a ritual' . The word travelled to Arabic as Tilasm and meant 'enigma' or 'lucky charm'. Although, that would be our current interpretation of lucky charm. In the ancient world, it was more of a divine protection in the form of an inscription on clothes or a piece of paper one would always carry with them. Especially in battle. The word was picked up by the French through-possibly-Turkey in the mid 1600s according to French linguist Claudius Salmasius. And at the same time, appeared in English in the writings of English resident, German philologist, Franciscus Junius. It's worth saying here that, both men had French names but it was custom to adopt Latin names in order to publish work. Today, a symbol or a design that is used as protection from harm is a ΤΕΛΕΣΜΑ/TALISMAN
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Είδω (aedo) in Ancient Greek meant 'I know' but also 'I see', literally. Now, as if Greek spelling wasn't complicated enough, there are two ways to write this. Today we'll talk about the very first form that is still used today, but only in a handful of words. Ancient Greek philosophers used the noun 'είδωλον' (aedolon) to describe the formation of an image in one's head or an actual representation of that image; like a carving or a statue and more specifically, the image of one of the Gods. So, a statue of Athena, would be an είδωλον (aedolon) of Athena. By the time the word passed into Latin, Christianity had started to rise and the word, in religious texts, was associated with Paganism and the 'false representation of God'. The spelling was simplified in Latin and the word arrived in English the 1300s with religious texts. One last addition was in 1590 where a person worshiped like a God was also called an ΕΙΔΩΛΟ/IDOL
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Πολλοί (polloi) in both ancient and modern Greek means 'many' and Θεός (Theos) means 'God'. Philo of Alexandria was a Jewish philosopher that lived between 25BC and 50AD. In his writings he tried to harmonise the Tora with Ancient Greek Philosophy and particularly, Plato. He was the one wo spoke of the worship of many gods versus the one with many faces which was a meaning that would drive many religious debates for years to come. The term then vanishes and reappears in Jean Bodin's writings. A French, political philosopher and member of the French parliament who worked on the origins of religion in the 1500s. A hundred years later the term reappears in English this time, in the writings of traveller and English Anglican Cleric, Samuel Purches, who describes the religions of the places he visited. The meaning remained the same but the practice of worshiping many gods vanished in the west until the 1970s and the revival of paganism. Today, all around the world, there are people worshiping more than one god and that religion is called ΠΟΛΥΘΕΙΣΜΟΣ/POLYTHEISM
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Before we begin, I'd like to remind you that you can go to the description of this episode, click on the word 'Audible' and claim your one month free trial and a free download of your choice. Send me a message and let me know what you chose!
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
In Ancient Greece there was a form of government that peaked around the 6th and 7th century BC and saw many Greek states under it. One man that wasn't voted to rule but rather placed into power by his followers ignoring the public vote. A man that was popular and rich enough to not be challenged. He would assign high government officials that were family members, raise taxes for the majority of the population and make sure every decision was for the sake of his own profit. They were also extremely vain , some would benefit their states by backing the arts or building useful institutions but that was only because the competition with other states was high. And of course, they would pass on the ruling to their sons. There is no historical evidence that any Greek state had one family rule for more than three generations and although they loved to be called 'King' , Greek law had Kings abide to it, something these rulers completely ignored. The title word took a very nasty turn after Plato and Aristotle wrote about them and cemented the meaning that followed in Latin and spread across the world. A self-serving monarch that governs in vanity and greed is a ΤΥΡΑΝΝΟΣ/TYRANT
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
One of the oldest and most amazing civilisations that we can be thankful for their discoveries, developments and general advancement of the human race, used to bear a Greek name and although the Greeks referred to a very specific region, now known as Iraq, the name has come to represent a much wider area and academics use it to chronologically defined eras. We find the name as early as the 2nd century AD in Greek writing and until 1921 when it was officially changed, it was used interchangeably for many places between the rivers Tigris and Euphrates. Μέσο (meso) in ancient Greek and Μέση (mesi) in modern means 'the middle' and Ποταμός (potamos) means 'river'. The land between two rivers is ΜΕΣΟΠΟΤΑΜΙΑ/MESOPOTAMIA
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Μάσταξ (mastax) in Ancient Greek meant 'Jaw' and the verb- that is still used in Greek- is μασώ (maso). 'I chew'. One letter change from Jaw and your upper lip is called μύσταξ (mistax). The word for the hair growing on it is exactly the same and first came into French through Latin 'Mostaccio' and remained in English, as a French word. since 1585 when it was found in a translation by Thomas Washington. ΜΥΣΤΑΞ/MOUSTACHE
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Today's word had two meanings in Ancient Greece and could also be used metaphorically. Σκήπτω (skipto) in Ancient Greek meant 'I lean on' something. Ambassadors and messengers were often put in difficult positions either negotiating for their state's interests or bringing bad news so, they carried a staff to protect themselves but later it became a symbol of someone who was protected so they were safe on sight. A staff was also present in public debates and held by the speaker. And lastly, in courts, it was held by judges. As a symbol of power a staff would be passed from father to son and some had an ornament on top, the equivalent of a family crest although, Zeus had an Eagle (he would, would he?). Metaphorically we find the word used in the Greek Tragedy Oedipus Rex where his children are described as the staff that carries light. And today, we refer to it as a symbol of power. The word went from Latin 'Sceptrum' to French 'Ceptre' and then English in the 1300s. ΣΚΗΠΤΡΟ/SCEPTRE
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Happy Easter to those of you celebrating and I hope you're having a relaxing Sunday those of you who don't.
Before the Byzantine separation that brought us Eastern and Western Christianity, this word meant 'a universal faith' or more accurately 'a faith recognised by all'. The first time we find that word in writing is in a letter from 110AD by Ignatius of Antioch, addressing the Christians in Smyrna to follow their Bishop like the church follows 'the universal faith'. Κατά (kata) is a preposition and among other things, it means 'according to' and ολικός (olikos) means 'Whole'. ΚΑΘΟΛΙΚΟΣ/CATHOLIC
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Let me tell you what happens when you're your own producer, editor and, host. You spend a few hours of research and writing your episode then, you get into the booth, do a few takes so you have options, edit everything to an episode you really like and when you're about to save it-at which point you've spend the better part of you afternoon-a message pops up telling you 'that episode already exists' and you remember that you've done that word two years ago! I think it's for the best as the word I found instead, fits perfectly that situation.
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
One of the Phrygian gods that arrived in Greece (because they didn't have enough apparently) was the maternal goddess Κυβέλη (Cybele). She was similar to the Geek 'Gaia' and wasn't an instant hit but her myth is attached to Dionysus as she supposedly cured him from his madness so that made her more likable. Fast forward a few years and the Romans are in great distress by war, famine, failed harvest and a meteor shower! They feel the Empire might collapse so , they consult both the Roman and the Greek oracles and they decide to bring Κυβέλη to Rome. They rename her Magna Mater (The Great Mother) and soon after, the famine ends, the war is won and...it's Spring! They celebrated Magna Mater on March 25th, the Spring Equinox, and named that day (which became a whole festival)'Hilaria' from the Greek word for 'Joyous'. ΙΛΑΡΟΣ/HILARIOUS.
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Happy Spring, everyone! The clocks moved, the days are getting bigger and the Sun is gracing us with its presence more often than not.
On the first of April in most parts of the world, it's custom to lie, trick and prank eachother. Do you know why? There are a few theories but the most popular one goes back to 1564 in France. Up until that point , the French celebrated New Year's Day on the 25th of March and the celebrations lasted until the first of April but that year, the King decided to sync with the rest of Europe and changed the celebration to January 1st. Not everyone got the memo immediately so, the ones who kept celebrating in March were teased, pranked and called one name in particular. In ancient Greek, the word for a person not contributing to society because they were unskilled or uneducated translates as ' a private person', one that is not being in sync or engaging with society productively. In Latin, the word escaped the April Fool's custom and that's how it travelled in English. ΙΔΙΩΤΗΣ/IDIOT
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
It's Mother's day here, today, and I hope it's a happy one for all of you. My own Mum is listening from Athens so, Happy Mother's day Mum!
Αρχή (arhi) in both ancient and modern Greek means 'The authority' but also, 'The beginning'. The word for 'Mother' in ancient Greek is 'Μήτηρ' and in modern 'Μητέρα'. Now that's a word that goes back a very long time and although we find it in all Latin based languages, more or less in similar form, Mutter in German, Madre in Italian and Spanish, Mere in French, Mother in English and so on, there hasn't been a western society solely run by women apart from the Amazons. In Indonesia however, and specifically in West Sumatra, the indigenous ethnic group Minangkabau is the largest female led society that we know of with a population of 6.7 million. Do have a read about them when you get some time. The combination of the two words is found for the very first time in English in 1885 in London's literary journal The Athenaeum. ΜΗΤΡΙΑΡΧΙΑ/MATRIARCHY
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hi everyone! After listening to this episode, visit the description and click on the word 'Audible' for a month-long free trial and a free audiobook download. On with our word!
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Τρία (tria) in both ancient and modern Greek means 'three'. Πτυχή (ptyhi) means 'fold' and a picture you could fold because it was carved or painted in three compartments, was something very common in religious painting during the Middle Ages. However, it goes back much further, to ancient Greece where according to Herodotus in 5th century BC, a wooden frame filled with wax was used for writing. The material has changed since as well as the appliance of the term. Whether in photography, art or music, a three part project that can be seen as one is a ΤΡΙΠΤΥΧΟ/TRIPTYCH
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Before we begin, a shout-out to fellow thespian and loyal listener, David Charles for bringing today's word to my attention. A word with such an interesting and complex history . Thanks David!
Δια (dia) means 'through' or 'across' and Ασπρο (aspro) in modern Greek , means 'white'. And here's the tricky part, 'asper' is the Latin word for 'rough' (hence 'asperity' in English) but it was also used for the shiny coins of small denomination in Greek Byzantium because their engravings were rough. They were called 'aspro'. And because of that, a fabric that was white and bright with patterns woven onto it, was also called 'aspro'; but the Greeks needed distinguish between the coins and the fabrics so they added δια (dia) to the word, which means a fabric with patterns across it. As time went by and white fabrics started being used to clean babies the word went back to Latin as 'diasprum', to the French as 'diapre' -not used anymore- and in English from the Greek ΔΙΑΣΠΡΑ/DIAPERS
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Before we begin, if you haven't listened to last week's news, we have become an affiliate to Audible. If you like listening to podcasts and books go to the description of this episode, click on the word 'Audible' and get your one month, free trial to download any item you like. On with our episode!
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Every ancient culture has a myth about a flood that wipes out humanity. And so did the ancient Greeks. When Zeus decided that humans were corrupt, he sent a flood to drown Greece but he saved two people he thought were worth saving; King Δευκαλιων (Defkalion) and his Queen Πύρρα (Pirra). They built a boat and travelled for nine days until they reached Delphi. There, they asked the oracle how they could rebuild humanity. The oracle said 'you have to cover your faces and throw the mother's intestines behind your backs' , Oh, they both understood, so they covered their faces and started walking, picking up stones from Mother Earth and throwing them behind them. Wherever a stone landed, a human appeared. And so, humanity was saved. Or that's how the myth goes anyway. Κατά (kata) is a preposition meaning 'downward' and κλυζείν (klizin) is the ancient Greek infinitive meaning 'to flood' . The combined word came to English through religious texts from France in the early 1600s. ΚΑΤΑΚΛΥΣΜΟΣ/CATACLYSM
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Happy March, everyone!
At the beginning of the year, I promised to keep this podcast Ad free and find another way to make it a profitable endeavour and today, I'm here to celebrate exactly that!
I would like to welcome our new sponsor, Audible! A place where you can find thousands of audiobooks and download them, for your listening pleasure. Head to the description of this episode, click on the word 'Audible' and get your one month free-trial that you can cancel at anytime. And if you're wondering how this works for me, all the information can be found in the description as well. On with our episode!
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Ακούω (akouo) in Greek means 'I hear'. The noun is ακουστική (akoustiki) and it means 'the audible' . Joseph Sauveur was a mathematician and physicist in the French court, during the enlightenment, and a member of the French Academy of Sciences. He grew up with a hearing and speech impairment and had to often rely on musicians' ears for his results. Among other fascinating subjects he delved into the vibrations of Greek, Roman, Arabic and Persian music to study the correlation between frequency and pitch and in 1701 he presented the results of his research to the Academy. It was then when he coined the term for his new found practice on what the author and librettist, Fontenelle, called 'The discovery of an unknown country' ΑΚΟΥΣΤΙΚΗ/ACOUSTICS
Audible
Step into another world! Listen to any audiobook with a month long free trial (cancel anytime)
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
With the state of our world being what it is , I thought this word is a good fit.
Humphrey Osmond was a British-Canadian researcher and psychiatrist interested in exploring the possibilities of LSD to treat mental illness and substance abuse. He befriended Albert Hoffman (the scientist who discovered LSD) and, Aldous Huxley the author of books like The Doors of perception and Brave new world. Together with Huxley they tried to find a name for the experience of taking LSD and they experimented (full pun intended) by combining several Greek words. In 1957, during a meeting at the New York Academy of Sciences, Osmond used for the first time his new found term to describe his research. Ψυχή (psyche) in both ancient and modern Greek means 'soul' and δήλος (delos) meant 'the visible'. Osmond accompanied the word with this rhyme 'to fathom Hell or soar Angelic/just take a pinch of..' ΨΥΧΕΔΕΛΙΚΟ/PSYCHEDELIC
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Gaia in English and Γαία in Greek, was one of the first Ancient Greek gods and the mother of the world. Her modern name is 'The Earth'. Γραφείν (grafin) is the ancient Greek infinitive of the verb 'Writing'. Although the Babylonians were the first to attempt and draw a map of the world that surrounded them, the Ancient Greeks where the first to mathematically prove the earth is not flat (it really isn't). Eratosthenes, in the the 3rd century BC, made a pretty accurate calculation of the size of he earth and he also put the two greek words together to name the practice of mapping the world. The spelling has changed as the word travelled and it arrived in the English speaking world in the 1500s from France. ΓΕΩΓΡΑΦΙΑ/GEOGRAPHY
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Today's word is another example of a word having originally a wider meaning and getting very specific when attached to a belief. Ορθός (orthos) in both ancient and modern Greek means 'upright' but also 'correct'. Δόξα (doxa) means 'praise' but also 'opinion' and the combined word can mean all of the above. Well...used to. In 1054 AD the religious war in Byzantium, split Christianity in two. The East and the West, The East had a set of doctrines and needed a name to identify themselves and those against the Heretics. So, according to the Eastern church, believing in and praising the correct set of doctrines (that later went on to define eastern Christianity) , would make you an ΟΡΘΟΔΟΞΟΣ/ORTHODOX
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
I usually get the question 'Where do you find all these words?' and most times the answer will be 'from all of you'. Whether you 've sent me a word asking if it's Greek that sends me down a rabbit hole and discover four more on the way or I'm having a chat with a friend and we both pause to the sound of a word they've just used and I jot it down for research or even if my friends directly ask 'have you looked that one up?' I guess, after all this time, we have build a system , you and me where you can find me by email or on my social media and suggest, ask or comment freely. Please, keep doing that. I love hearing from you! All the links on how to get in touch are on the description of every episode. Today's word however, falls under a different category. Me, watching television. There's this great series I'm watching and the title is the very word I'm taking about.
Διπλούν (diploun) is an ancient Greek infinitive and it means 'to fold in two'. In modern Greek Διπλό (diplo) means 'double. Yes, that's the same root word. Ancient Greeks didn't use paper but papyrus so, no paper was folded. The Romans however, took that word and applied it to the official, folded in half, document needed to prove you were a Roman citizen, an ID if you like. The word for that document travelled to England in the 1600s and despite the noun and the adjective getting different meanings with time, they both kept their attachment to something official. An official document folded in two is called a ΔΙΠΛΩΜΑ and someone appointed as a representative to a different country is called a ΔΙΠΛΩΜΑΤΗΣ. DIPLOMA and DIPLOMAT.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
There is an ancient fruit that grows in Greece and it's the food that sustained thousands of Greeks, including my grandparents, during the second world war. It's called ΧΑΡΟΥΠΙ (charoupi). In ancient Greek it was called ΚΕΡΑΤΙΟΝ (cerateon) meaning 'little horn' because, it looks like one! The ancient Greeks discovered that the weight of each seed of the fruit never changes so they used it as a measure of weight against precious metals and stones. The Romans used to measure their gold with it as one seed was 1/24th of their gold siliqua coin. They, of course, used the Latin word for it that passed on to the French and came to English in the 15th century but the measure for gold purity remained 24 ΚΑΡΑΤΙ/CARAT
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
In ancient Athens there were many philosophical schools of thought that one could join. The main philosopher of each school would gather everyone in the Agora (a place under the Acropolis where you can still visit today) and there, they would have their own spot within it, to hold their teachings and debates. One of the most misunderstood philosophical schools today, was formed by Zeno of Citium in 300BC. He'd gather everyone in his Στοά Ποικίλη (stoa pikili)- stoa means 'porch' and pikili in ancient Greek meant 'colourful' . So, a painted porch. In this case depicting the famous battle of Marathon. He would teach, not detachment from emotion as many might think but, moderation in owning material goods, deep thinking before acting, the celebration and caretaking of one's life as there's no afterlife, reason and, inner peace.
Because not everyone had a porch and Zeno's was colourful, the school was named after it. ΣΤΟΙΚΙΣΜΟΣ-STOICISM
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
As we're moving into this new year, there's one thing I hope to be able to keep doing both as a human and an actor.
Μετά (meta) in both ancient and modern Greek means 'after'. Μορφή (morfi) means 'shape' . The combined word was first introduced in English in 1447 by Osbern Bokeman, an English poet and friar who travelled to Italy a lot. The word in Latin sounds exactly the same as the Greek but the spelling is Latinised and it means 'the process of becoming something new', 'constantly changing', 'transforming', 'reshaping' .
ΜΕΤΑΜΟΡΦΩΣΗ/METAMORPHOSIS
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Happy New Year, Everyone!
The oldest and the most elegant of the muses-according to Hesiod and Ovid- was Calliope. Her name meaning 'beautiful voice'. She was the mother of Orpheus and she presides over song, dance and epic poetry. Επος (epos) in Ancient Greek meant a tale, a story and a poem about heroic acts was called Επικο (epiko) . The word came to English in two parts. In 1580 it started being used as a 'long poem' regardless of content and in 1731 was used as the Greeks intended, the praising of heroic acts like The Odyssey or The Iliad.
May this year be full of new memories that will lead to amazing stories. ΕΠΙΚΟ/EPIC
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello everyone!
As the end of 2024 approaches, I'd like to take a minute to thank each and every one of you for the love and support you've shown for this podcast. I intend to keep your minute of knowledge ad free and try and find other ways to make this a profitable endeavour. In the meantime, there is a way you can help. Share this podcast. Far and wide. Post your favourite episode on social media, tell your friends, write a review, play an episode on speakers on the train. No, don't do that! Just share the joy of learning. You can also send me your comments, questions or thoughts about anything you've heard on this podcast to yourgreeksunday@gmail.com or, follow me on Instagram and Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday and leave a comment there.
Have a wonderful New Year's Eve and I'll be back on January 5th with a bright new word!
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Merry Christmas to those of you celebrating and, have a restful week ahead to those of you who don't. This is a spice that has travelled far and wide . Once a present fit for Kings or an offering to the Gods; It's referenced in most ancient religions as 'Precious'. In Greece it arrived form the Phoenicians and as far as we know the very first reference in Ancient Greek was in a poem by Sappho in 7th century BC. In Ancient Rome it was one of the most expensive spices, just 327 grams of it, cost a ten month salary! There were many myths in the ancient world about its origin. From the bottom of the Nile to plants guarded by dragons it arrived in England after the East India company took control of its trade in 1767 and the name came through the Latin and French but based in the Ancient Greek one ΚΙΝΝΑΜΩΜΟΝ/CINNAMON
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
It's getting a little festive in some parts of the world so, I thought of giving you a word that describes one of my favourite festive traditions. Χάρτης (Chartis) in ancient Greek and Χαρτί (charti) in modern, means paper. The word came to English in the 15th century through Latin: Carta then French: Carte and in old English the name for a piece of paper you could play games with. The meaning of a stamped paper that you could write on and post to people, is from 1870 and a little earlier 1862 we find the same word to describe writing and sending wishes for special occasions on a ΧΑΡΤΙ/CARD.
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Τηλέ (tele) is an Ancient Greek adverb meaning ‘far away’. Φωνή (phone) in both ancient and modern Greek means voice . In 1835 a system of conveying words to a distant point by means of musical notes, was invented by the French composer Jean Francois Sudre. For obvious reasons it wasn’t very practical. The combination of Greek words that was used to describe it however, carried on into foghorns signalling from ship to ship. That didn’t stick either. Then on March 7th 1876 Alexander Graham Bell used the combination of the words for one last time when he submitted his invention of a ΤΗΛΕΦΩΝΟ /TELEPHONE
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
I think this might be a tricky one if you're learning Greek at the moment so, I'd definitely recommend reading the transcript for the spelling because, if you rely on listening to this, you will get confused. If you're not learning Greek and just enjoying a minute of knowledge, you'll be fine without reading ;unless of course you want to! This is a combined word where the second component is an -ology. An easy way to remember what -ologies do is that they make the first word an expert. Ετυμος (etymos) is an ancient greek word that is not used anymore by itself. It meant 'The true one', 'The original'. The combined word means 'the expert study of the original' and it came to English through Latin and French in the 14th century. It is used for language and tracing back words to their original meaning . Pretty much what this podcast does. ΕΤΥΜΟΛΟΓΙΑ/ETYMOLOGY
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Before we begin, I have an announcement; From December 1st our account on X will no longer exist. Instead we're moving into Blue Sky and I'll put the handle on the description so you can find us there. @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social . I think it's a much friendlier platform. If you don't have an account there, you can find us on Instagram @yourgreeksunday where I also post videos with additional information on specific episodes or, you can follow my acting page on Facebook : Emmanuela Lia, a place where I share all my work including this podcast. And finally, if you're not into social media, thank you for waiting to listen to today's word! Let's go!
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Πους (pous) in ancient Greek and Πόδι (podi) in modern, means 'foot/leg'. Τρία (tria) means 'three'. From Ancient China to Ancient Greece we see many three- legged portable stands, cauldrons and vases. The first time the combination of those two words was recorded, was in the ancient syllabic alphabet used by the Mycenaeans and predating Ancient Greek, Linear B. The syllables read TI-RI-PO and of course nobody knows how they were pronounced but they were describing three-legged objects. The word was used in Ancient Greek and Latin and it came to English in 1603 in a translation of Plutarch's 'The Morals' by Philemon Holland and, a Latin pronunciation. ΤΡΙΠΟΔΟ/TRIPOD
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Today we have not one but two terms that were made up from Greek words and were coined in England. This time in 1865 by banker, philanthropist, scientist and polymath John Lubbock. He helped establish archaeology as a scientific discipline and promoted the need for public libraries, among other things. In his study of archaeology and the need to clearly distinguish Stone Age periods, he formed two new words. Παλαιό (paleo) in Greek means 'old' and Νεο (neo) means 'new' . Λίθος (lithos) means 'stone'. The combination seems fairly simple to us now but the concept is genius! The division of the Stone Age into ΠΑΛΑΙΟΛΙΘΙΚΟΣ & ΝΕΟΛΙΘΙΚΟΣ/PALAEOLITHIC & NEOLITHIC
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Aristotle used this word in his definition of Greek Drama and in particular Tragedy
Έστιν ουν τραγωδία, μίμησις πράξεως σπουδαίας και τελείας...' This is tragedy, the imitation of a significant and absolute act. Richard Dawkins used it to coin a new term in 1976 and according to Wikipedia 'it is an idea, behaviour or style that spreads by means of imitation from person to person within a culture and often carries symbolic meaning representing a particular phenomenon or theme' Well, in today's digital and visual language, it has taken the form of a short image-burst, that may or may not have words but it's an imitation of an idea, action or vibe. ΜΙΜΗΣΗ/MEME
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
Happy November, everyone! We're still in Halloween mood here in the UK so, I've decided to follow up from last week's word. This is probably one of the most accurate yet creative modern namings of a medicine I know. We touched upon this god on a couple of episodes with his name mentioned in the last one but I've never told you his story. He was one of the first gods. Son of night and Sleep, nephew of Death (and I'm here to correct myself calling them brothers last week) , two of his thousands of siblings were Fear and Fantasia, also known as Dreams and although they had wings, he didn't need them. His purpose was to deliver messages to mortals from the other gods. His name comes from the word Μορφή (morfi) which means 'Shape' , because he would shape into anyone in order for the message to be more effective. According to the Roman writer Ovid, he would sleep on a bed of poppies and that's were the German pharmacist Friedrich Serturner who isolated the substance in 1804, got the idea for the name. The substance that would ease your pain, cause you to hallucinate or be deadly. If you haven't guessed it yet, the name of the god is Morpheus and the medicine ΜΟΡΦΙΝΗ/MORPHINE
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Before we begin I have a small update for you, we did not win last week's Independent podcast awards but we're very happy we were nominated and, we got to spent the evening with so many interesting people, who are all passionate about the podcasts they create. So, go to the Independent Podcast Awards website, look up all the winners and the nominees. I'm sure you'll find more than one podcast to subscribe to.
But for today,
Happy Halloween
Let the spooky words in
(Piano music)
Hello and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
In modern Greek κοιμάμαι (kimame) means 'I sleep', in ancient Greek κείμαι (kime) meant 'I lie down' and a κοιμητήριο (kimitirio) was 'a bedroom'. After Christianity came along and suggested that death is nothing but a long sleep until the second coming, this place, would for some writers be an exceptional starting point for their ideas to come to life. Among other things. The word travelled to England through the usual route, Latin and French and Christianity secured the meaning. Although, Morpheus, the God of Sleep and his brother Death, never loosened their grip. ΚΟΙΜΗΤΗΡΙΟ/CEMETERY
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
Blue Sky @yourgreeksunday.bsky.social
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Διδάσκειν (didaskin) is ancient Greek infinitive, the noun is Διδαχή (didahi) and the verb that is also used in modern Greek is Διδάσκω (didasko). The word came to English from the French in the 1600s in a translation by Samuel Hartlib, who was a fascinating man and was described as 'The European intelligencer' , what a way to describe someone who's life goal is to further knowledge! Although today the word has a negative connotation that comes from the 19th century, it didn't start that way, it meant exactly was the Greek word still means today. Someone capable of teaching. ΔΙΔΑΚΤΙΚΟΣ/DIDACTIC
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
One of the benefits of being bilingual is that it gives you a bigger language field to get lost in and explore. However, sometimes you forget the obvious or take some words for granted; Like the one today which, I was convinced I've already talked about but haven't. Φίλος (philos) in both ancient and modern Greek means 'friend'. Σοφία (sofia/sophia) means 'wisdom'. The combined word was used to describe a practice in ancient Greece. The search for knowledge. Later on, it took the meaning of 'rational thought' and in English we first find it in Middle English as a direct loan from the French and meaning 'the exploration of all sciences including Alchemy'. As thinkers and scientists got more specific in their practices, so did the word. It got attached to the thinkers and, stayed. ΦΙΛΟΣΟΦΙΑ/PHILOSOPHY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Before we begin, I'd like to remind you that you can always email me with comments, questions or anything you want to say about what you hear in this podcast at yourgreeksunday@gmail.com . You can also follow me on Instagram and X @yourgreeksunday and leave a review or a comment on the platform of your choice.
(Intro & Piano music)
Welcome to season 8! Wow! Although technically this is 7 and a bit, as I started season 1 on a January but who's counting, right? Well, this summer I realised how long I've been doing this because I got a few people asking me for advice on how to start a podcast and, I could answer; which also gave me the idea of our first word. Here we go! When Odysseus left Ithaca for Troy, he assigned his best friend to stand in for him for his son Telemachus; he would advise and protect the boy and occasionally be replaced by the Goddess Athena for some extra wisdom (because Gods did that!). His name became a character quality in 1699 (and much much much later, a job) after the publication of the French novel 'The adventures of Telemachus' by Francois Fenelon; which seems to have been very popular both in France and England and the book itself has a very interesting journey, have a look when you get a chance. So, for this magnificent human skill that comes with years of hard work, experience or divine intervention, we have one character in Homer's Odyssey to thank for and his name is ΜΕΝΤΟΡ/MENTOR
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello and Happy Autumn, everyone or Happy Fall if you're on the other side of the pond. Our new season will start in October but until then, I have some wonderful news! Our podcast has been nominated for an Independent Podcasts Award! The awards ceremony will be held at The King's Place in London and I'll put a link in the description (see below) , in case you want to book a ticket for the night and join the fun.
Now, you cannot vote for us since this year's judges are the ones deciding the winners BUT what you can do is, go to the platform of your choice and leave us a review. That, will help more people discover us and experience what you already enjoy, not to mention I love reading your reviews! Thank you for listening and getting us so far. Oh, and don't forget to follow us on Instagram @yourgreeksunday for short videos and updates.
See you soon!
Link to the awards
https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/words/independent-podcast-awards-2024/
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Have you noticed how this year, the first word of every month has been a myth or myth related? Whether you have or not, thank you for listening and staying with me for another season. As this is the last episode before our summer break, I would be amiss not to mention amazing musician Laertes Malkotsis who composed our theme tune and Laurence Parsons who designed our logo. During the break, there might be a bolus episode or two so, keep your ears sharp and don't forget: you can find me on Instagram & Twitter @yourgreeksunday and you can email me with comments, questions or anything you like to discuss that you've heard on this podcast at yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Here we go!
(Intro & piano music)
This word first appears in writing in Homer's Epic, The Iliad and it meant 'a saying' , 'an opinion', 'an utterance'. Shortly after, Hesiod came along and used the word to detail the origins of human kind, its gods and heroes. And finally, Aristotle applied it to the plot of theatre plays and storytelling. The word came to English via Latin and around the 1800s was linked to fables and stories with heroic acts and supernatural elements ΜΥΘΟΣ/MYTH
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Sometimes, Greeks seem to have many words for the same thing but to their defence, they had many years of thinking, inventing and applying words to very specific things. So although we've already found the word for 'pebble' in a previous episode, today, we're using another one Κρόκη (Kroke); And combined with the word for 'Lizard' Δίλος (Delos) It gives us the word, the ancient Greeks used for the animal found in the river Nile. As language evolved, the spelling in modern Greek has changed and in English, it's directly from the Latin one ΚΡΟΚΟΔΕΙΛΟΣ/CROCODILE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Most English words have arrived here either via Latin or Germanic ones. And because it was easier geographically, the ones that originated in Greece are the Latin based ones. But there are some exceptions and today we have one of them. A small pebble in ancient Greece was called Κάλυξ (Calix) and in Latin it was called 'Calx' . However, the word did not go to the French and then English as usual but it rerouted to Germany where they used it for 'limestone'. So, when the word came here and was called 'caelc' in old English, it meant 'the soft, white limestone' found on the South of England and cut in small pieces it was used to mark debt or game scores. The modern spelling of the work is from the 14th century mimicking the Latin one. ΚΑΛΥΞ/CHALK
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
This word came to English in 1845 from the French that gave it the specific meaning we use today but: Ακρη (akri) in both ancient and modern Greek, means 'the edge' of a place, regardless if it's a mountain or a sidewalk and Βαίνειν (venin) is the ancient Greek infinitive for 'walking/Going' so, the one who walks on the edge of any place not just a high one and not only a rope, is an ΑΚΡΟΒΑΤΗΣ/ACROBAT
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Before we begin, I have a little announcement ,the podcast has finally made it to Instagram. It has now its own separate account than my acting one and it has everything , including videos with additional information and fun facts. So, go ahead, give us a follow @yourgreeksunday and I'll see you there!
(Intro & piano music)
Today's word is also linked to Dionysus as it's supposed to be one of the states his followers found themselves in, but it has a history of its own. Εκ (ek) in ancient and modern Greek is a preposition and means 'from', Ιστημι (istimi) is an ancient greek verb and it means 'I stand/I am in place'. The combined word means 'being out of place' and for the ancient Greeks that also meant being out of touch with yourself and your sanity. In the 14th century , writers of mystical theories, used the word to describe a state where your body was still but your mind and soul contemplated divine issues and that's where it probably got the positive link to euphoria. The word came to English in the 14th century from France through religious texts. ΕΚΣΤΑΣΗ/ECSTASY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @yourgreeksunday ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Until I started this podcast, I didn't realise how many English speaking people named things by combining Greek words; either because they thought it would make them look smarter or because the words they chose, were the perfect description for their invention (and sounded smart).In 1787 the painter and inventor Robert Barker, created a 360 degree visual medium, patented under the title 'Apparatus for exhibiting Pictures'. The viewer would stand on a platform in the middle of it and would be surrounded by pictures. In 1789 he also invented its name by putting two Greek words together to describe it. Παν (pan) means 'everything' or 'the whole' and Οραμα (orama) means 'vision' or 'the thing to see' ΠΑΝΟΡΑΜΑ/PANORAMA
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro and piano music)
This is an English word based on an ancient Greek one that quickly changed meanings, started going on circles creating more words and making it-I'll be kind- fun to research. Κλήρος (Kleros) in ancient Greek meant 'Lot', 'piece of land' and subsequently 'inheritance', so far so good. A few hundred years go by and in the 5th book of the bible, people working as temple assistants were called Κληρικοί (Kleriki) because, and I quote '...therefore shall they have no inheritance among their brethren: the Lord is their inheritance'. But that name 'kliriki' expanded outside the church and was given to anyone who would read and write and was working in public offices or keeping accounts for businesses . With every language it went through the word came closer to today's meaning. 'Clericus'/ A priest in Latin, 'clerc'/a scribe in old French and in 1200 in old English and today, although the Greeks have kept the Christian meaning of the word, ΚΛΗΡΙΚΟΣ/CLERK
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & Piano music)
The internet reads for this creature; a duck billed, beaver tailed, otter footed, egg laying, aquatic creature native to Australia. Then, what is it doing bearing a Greek name? Before the Natural History Museum in London became the great institution it is today, it was part of the British Museum and its keeper, George Shaw, was the first to describe and accept this creature as a real animal, in 1799. He named it based on the look of its feet but that name was already taken by a beetle, so, in 1803 Johann Friedrich, Blumenbach, publish another description and named it 'Ornithorinchus Paradoxus' ,which is also Greek and means 'Paradoxical bird-snout. I think we'd all agree that, that's too long to remember let alone ,say. And that's why we call it what George Shaw named it. Πλατύς (platys) in ancient and modern Greek means 'wide' and πούς (pous), in ancient Greek, means 'foot. ΠΛΑΤΥΠΟΥΣ/PLATYPUS
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
From Greek Mythology to Euripides's Greek Drama 'The Bacchae' to Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Neil Gaiman's 'The Sandman' , those Nymphs were responsible for drinking, dancing, eating raw meat, being strong enough to pull trees from the ground with, just, their hands and killing anyone who'd refuse their mating call. They followed and worshiped Dionysus from Greece to India and back and they were in the hundreds! Their name Μαινάδες (Maenads) means 'obsessively passionate to the point of rage' and comes from the infinitive Μένεσθαι (menesthe). Their frantic state is a word that from Greek to Latin to French to English late in the 14th century, has stayed the same. ΜΑΝΙΑ/MANIA
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Εν (en) in Greek is a preposition meaning 'with' 'within' . Εργο (ergo) means 'action'. The translation into Latin show some bumps along the way caused by many back and forths because of a misunderstanding on one of Aristotle's works. He used the combined word, meaning 'at work' as 'powering up' so although in modern Greek the adjective 'ενεργός' (energos) means 'active', 'at work', the noun has two meanings 'action' and ΕΝΕΡΓΕΙΑ/ENERGY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Greek Mathematicians were the first to use this word until Plato came along and used it to describe different realities and bigger ideas. Ανά (ana) is a preposition meaning -among other things- 'upon'. Λόγος (logos) means 'speech', 'thought', 'reason' and 'ratio' . The combined word means 'according to ratio' and is used for literal or metaphorical proportions. ΑΝΑΛΟΓΙΑ/ANALOGY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Plato wrote 'Our salvation depends on the correct choice between pleasure and sadness, that is the choice between more, or less.' The ancient Greek verb Αιρώ (aero) has been completely claimed by Christianity and turned on its head with regards to the original meaning and perception of the word. In 380 AD, the Roman emperor Theodosius the 1st , legally tied the word to anyone not Christian (at the time the division between the Catholic and the Orthodox church didn't exist. In fact, Theodosius was the last emperor before the split.) So he drafted 'The Edict Of Thessalonica' which he fought tooth and nail throughout his life trying to enforce in the empire . And he succeeded. The original word means 'the right to choose/the right to a different belief' and it was commonly used up until that point. 'We order the followers of this law to embrace the name of Catholic Christians; but as for the others, since, in our judgment they are foolish madmen, we decree that they shall be branded with the ignominious name of heretics...' The word was written down and passed on in all religious texts and that's how it arrived in England . The word also became a crime in 1401 and was decriminalised in 1677 putting a stop to the punishment which was death by burning at the stake and giving people back the freedom to choose (well, sort of) ΑΙΡΕΣΗ/HERESY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
In ancient Greek mythology there are three women (sometimes more) , daughters of Zeus (sometimes of the Sun or of Dionysus) that are responsible for organising all the feasts in Mount Olympus and making sure that everything is beautiful, joyous, healthy and sexy. No, they're not the Muses although, they were all good friends. They are Aphrodite's followers and they are The Graces! Χάριτες (Charites) in Greek. Their names Αγλαϊα (Aglaea-Radiance), Ευφροσύνη(Evfrosini-Joy) and Θάλεια (Thalia-Boom). They were worshiped all around Greece but they had their own temple in the mainland where three rocks fell from the sky (yes ,rocks) and were worshiped until people carved and made statues of them. There was a big art festival dedicated to them and archaeologists have discovered plaques with names of musicians and poets and artists that have won the competition. Although their English name is The Graces, their touch to a human's life has the same name as an offering from the gods in Greek. It's a ΧΑΡΙΣΜΑ/CHARISMA
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
I have a three combo word for you today, yup, that's as Greek as it gets! And it seems to have been distorted a little in English in order to single out personality traits but: Ιδιος (idios) in ancient Greek meant 'one's own', we could say 'one's self' but... mmm... ok let's go with that! Συν (sin) means 'with' and κράση (krasi) means 'a mixture' . So the combination of all the things that make someone themselves. From your personality, to your mannerisms, to the way you carry yourself. That singular combination and not one personality trait, that makes you, you is your ΙΔΙΟΣΥΓΚΡΑΣΙΑ/IDIOSYNCRASY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(intro & piano music)
Τύπτω (tipto) in ancient Greek means 'I strike', 'hit' or 'dent' something. In Latin it was 'typus' and meant 'symbol' or 'an emblem'. Around 1713 it moved to meaning 'printed on metal or wood'. Στερεό (stereo) means 'solid' and the combined word in 1804 meant a printing plate, an additional meaning in 1819 was 'to fix something firmly' and lastly in 1953 the word got the meaning we still use today ΣΤΕΡΕΟΤΥΠΟ/ STEREOTYPE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
My first job, shortly after I arrived in England, was a stage adaptation of 'Middlemarch', an epic story by George Eliot. The pen name of Mary Ann Evans. As time went by ,I realised that the name I was known for in Greece and had been working for years was too difficult for anyone in this industry to remember so, I decided to keep my first name but officially shorten my surname. In fact if you go to my IMDb you'll see three different versions of my name all of which are versions of my real name. Ψευδές (psevdes) means 'False' and όνομα (onoma) means 'name' . The combined word came to England from France in 1828 and was spelled in Latin characters. It is used only for when a person changes their name for a specific purpose , a pen name or a stage one. ΨΕΥΔΟΝΥΜΟ/PSEUDONYM
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
The history of this word goes back to those considered to be the first European civilisation. There is truth and there is myth connected to the Minoans. A name we know was given to them by the Greeks but have no evidence that, that's what they called themselves. Archaeological discoveries place them in Crete and their first ruler, according to the Greeks, was King Minos (his story and myth are for another episode). The symbol mostly found in the unearthing of this ancient civilisation is a double axe known as Λάβρυς (Lavris/Labris). Ancient Greek historians would write about the main palace in ancient Κνωσσός (Knossos) The capital city of ancient Crete, as 'The House of Λάβρυς' and surprisingly it's not shaped as a double axe but a ΛΑΒΥΡΙΝΘΟΣ/LABYRINTH
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
In 3rd century BC there was a biographer of philosophers and author of the history of philosophy, Διογένης Λαέρτιος( Diogenes Laertios) . In his 7th book (out of 10) he begins with a reference to Pythagoras's beliefs on how one should lead their life, one of them being , and I quote: Drunkenness, he considers to be a damage and he disapproves any kind of exaggeration, he says we should have συμμετρία and not overdo it with drinking and eating.
Συν (syn), among other things, means 'with'. Μέτρο (metro) means 'measure' . Whether it's used to describe moderation, proportions or compare measurements, the word has made it through centuries and keeps on going! ΣΥΜΜΕΤΡΙΑ/SYMMETRY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Τάσσω (tasso) in an Ancient Greek verb and it means 'I put things in order' . Something that was studied in Ancient Greece was the technique of how to put things in order, how to strategize and make smart decisions to achieve your goal (I know I'm summarising here but this is a bite-size podcast after all) . That technique was called Τακτική τέχνη (taktiki techne) and the word came to English in the 17th century , quite late if you think about how many successful strategists England had before that. ΤΑΚΤΙΚΗ/TACTIC
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
This sweet word is a combination of Ancient Greek and late Latin. It came into English in the 14th century from the French (of course) who took both both languages, applied the term to baking and quite possibly perfected the flavour. Χρίσμα (chrisma) in Greek means 'unguent' The Latin called it 'cramum' and the French 'crème'. ΧΡΙΣΜΑ/CREAM
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Today's word has a small journey as it's very straight forward. It has also been reduced to a single meaning in Greek. Αυτό (auto) is short for Εαυτό and it means 'self' . Κράτος (kratos) means 'state' . In Ancient Greece and Rome, the combined word meant , any system of government that was absolute and it included Monarchy, dictatorship and a whole empire. The word came to English through the usual route, Latin and old French and what I find interesting is which political system has been attached to most, today. In modern English it's used to describe a single ruler an 'autocrat' while in modern Greek it means 'an Empire'. ΑΥΤΟΚΡΑΤΟΡΙΑ/AUTOCRACY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
There are two versions of this myth and I chose the one places ancient Turkey and Ancient Greece geologically closer than they are today. The Greek God Ασωπός (Asopos), son of Poseidon, gave his name to a river that ran through central Greece and sprang from another river in Asia Minor. The river Μαίανδρος (Meandros). That river had so many twists and turns that its name is used to describe a very winding flow or way of travel. In modern Greek, the word is used described that little winding pattern you see in ancient greek merchandise. The word originally came into English from Latin around 1590 and was kept as a description of river flows until 1630 when it started being used metaphorically. The original river, now located in Turkey, is called Menderes and drains into the Aegean. ΜΑΙΑΝΔΡΟΣ/MEANDER
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
This word came to us from medicine and the metaphorical meaning is what we use today. Χεκτικός (Hektikos), in ancient Greek meant 'continuous'. It was linked to fevers and was a monitoring sign for certain diseases. In English it was used specifically for fever that not only wouldn't stop but go up and down during the course of a day, exhausting the patient. The word came from late Latin 'Hecticus' and nowadays describes a continuously , fast-paced life. ΧΕΚΤΙΚΟΣ/HECTIC
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Oenanthe Crocata, is a flower with a very sweet taste that grows near lakes in Sardinia. It's also known as 'Sardonion'. Eating it, will cause a state of drunkenness accompanied by laughter, paralyse your jaw, make your face muscles contract as if you're smiling and eventually, kill you. In Greek, it's called 'wine flower' because of its sweetness. Homer used its effects metaphorically to describe Odysseus's laughter and that's how it came to us today. A laughter or a smile that is not kind at all. ΣΑΡΔΟΝΙΟ/SARDONIC
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Today's word is so much older than the Valentine celebration and I have to admit I thought it would make a good joke. Δάκτυλος (Daktilos) in ancient Greek and Δάχτυλο (Dahtilo) in modern means, 'finger'. There's a plant that started, probably, in Mesopotamia in 4000BC that both its leaves and fruit resemble a human finger and that's how it got its name. 'Dactylus' in Latin, 'Datil' in old French and from the 1300 onwards in England ΔΑΧΤΥΛΟ/DATE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Φήμη (feme) was one of Gaia's daughters and sister to Hope, among others. She was responsible for spreading the news of both Godly and Human achievements but if you fell short on her liking then, you could expect all kinds of gossip linked to your name. The Greeks had a temple dedicated to her in the ancient agora in Athens, next to the temple of Pudency. She's usually depicted holding a laurel and a trumpet. In Roman mythology she's called Fama and that's how the word came to English in the 14th century. ΦΗΜΗ/FAME
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Intro & soft piano music
Πόλις (polis) in both ancient and modern Greek means the 'City' . This is a root word for many more that we'll have a chance to explore in the future. Plato wrote Πολιτεία (politia) around 380BC which was a fictional discussion between the philosophers of the time on what a Just society is, the educational system, the debate between Philosophy and Poetry and many more. It was split in ten books based on subject. The Latin translation is Res Rublica which means, 'the state of public affairs' and was translated as such to be understood by people living during the Roman Democracy. To put it simply, a set of rules made to govern a city. ΠΟΛΙΤΙΚΗ/POLICY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Intro & soft piano music
Συν (syn) is a preposition meaning 'and', 'together'. Θέση (thesi) means 'position' Combining things either naturally or artificially is called ΣΥΝΘΕΣΗ
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Intro & soft piano music
Κεντρί (kendri) in both ancient and modern Greek means the 'Sting' . Because the point of a compass was as sharp and pointy, the mathematician Euclid, named the mark left when drafting a circle, after it. The word came to English from Latin in the late 1400 and kept that spelling. ΚΕΝΤΡΟ/CENTER.
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & soft piano music)
Happy New Year everyone! May you be happy, prosper and shine in whatever you decide to do this year!
We begin 2024 with a Myth. We've touched upon this lineage before but today, we're going to where everything started. So, in the beginning, there was Chaos and they gave birth to Νυξ (Nyx). She was fierce and frightful and all powerful. Among her many children were Day, Dream, Death, Nemesis and Uranus (the sky) who, along with Gaia (the Earth) created the World. Nyx was also an oracle and she continued , long after the world was created, to advise the Olympian Gods. There is a similarity in most European languages on how to pronounce her name and (alongside other facts), it makes scholars think that the old countries counted time based on the dark part of the day not the light. 'Naktam' in Sanskrit, 'Nacht' in old German, 'Natt' in old Norse, 'Nochd' in old Irish, 'Nox' in Latin and in modern Greek, ΝΥΧΤΑ/NIGHT
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Merry Christmas to those celebrating and , have a well deserved rest those of you who don't! Today's word is the last one of the year and I thought of bringing you one that came all the way from Ancient Greece with only a slight modification due to the different alphabet and, a meaning worth of a day like this, ΠΑΥΣΗ/PAUSE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
The Ancient Greek Theatre has many parts and each of them has their specific function within Greek Drama. I won't talk about all of them but , in the centre was Θυμέλη (thimeli), the altar of Dionysus since theatre was part of the festivals celebrating him. Πάροδοι (parodae), on the sides the entrances and exits. Σκηνή (scene) the Stage at the forefront and raised. Προσκήνιο (proscenium) ,the painted pillars in front of the stage that formed the set and behind it, was the big open space where the chorus would sing and dance. That part was named after the Greek word for 'dance' όρχηση (orchisi). As theatre progressed, the space was used by the Romans for the area of officials and later the French, would use it for the place where the musicians stood and accompanied a play. And that's how it became synonymous to any large group of musicians. ΟΡΧΗΣΤΡΑ/ORCHESTRA
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
In every language, I suspect, there are words that have lost their original meaning because they've become closely associated with or solely used for, one purpose. Today's word is a very good example! Κατά (kata) is a preposition and among other things, it means 'according to'. Ηχος (echos) means 'Sound'. The combined word means 'according to what you hear' and it was used for any kind of verbal teaching or information spread by word of mouth. It arrived in English early in the 15th century through ecclesiastical Latin. ΚΑΤΗΧΗΣΗ/CATECHISM
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(intro & piano music)
There are some words whose history of meaning surprises me because it's not based on reason or practicality but, sentiment. Συν (syn) means 'with', Βάλλειν (vallin) is the ancient greek infinitive for 'throw'. The combined word arrived in English in the 15th century and meant the result of two individual things thrown together so they can form a whole. That match, was a sign for their owners to recognise eachother without speaking. A secret acknowledgment. The completed piece was called a ΣΥΜΒΟΛΟ/SYMBOL
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
I love it when I get the chance to prove how tricky Greek language can be. Only because it's a challenge to describe.
At then end of last month I talked about the same infinitive φαίνειν (phenin) meaning 'to show', to create the word 'Phantom'. Here, it's being used again, but after the preposition Εν (en) which becomes 'em' when combined and it means 'within' , 'from the inside' So, making something visible from the inside. Projecting. In rhetoric 'applying significance', in writing 'underlining'. The word started as a guide on how to do that with your voice, the force and stress applied to the utterance of a word or phrase. In England it arrived at the end of the 16th century from Latin. ΕΜΦΑΣΗ/EMPHASIS
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
The origins of all three meanings of this word, can be found in Aristotle, Plato and Socrates. But an Ancient Greek comedy character called Είρων (Eron/Iron) who would pretend to not understand what was happening, only to expose the boastful, started appearing more and more until his name was given to his actions. In literature those actions are divided in, Verbal: where you pretend you don't understand what's been said to you, and mock it. Dramatic: where everyone understands what's happening to you, but you. And, Situational: where you strive for one thing but get quite the opposite result. ΕΙΡΩΝΙΑ/IRONY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Δια (dia) means 'between', 'across' and it's also the name of the mathematical symbol for division. One of the meanings of the word Λόγος (logos) is, 'speech'. When a new form of speech is created within a language because of a region, a social group or a cultural one then, that form of speech is called a ΔΙΑΛΕΚΤΟΣ/DIALECT
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
We're doing all things language this November!
Φέρω (fero) is an ancient Greek verb meaning 'to carry', 'to bring'. Μετά (meta) is both a preposition and an adjective, meaning 'after', 'forward'. The combined word means a 'transition'. It's a figure of speech that explains one thing by using another. To carry a meaning over is a ΜΕΤΑΦΟΡΑ/METAPHOR
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Happy Halloween everyone!
This word has an interesting history and several origin theories. The Ancient Greek word Τύμβος (Timvos) , meant either the grave, the small hip of soil on top of a grave or the smoke coming up after the burning of the dead, You can also find the root in Armenian, Sanskrit and Old Welsh. But when the word came to Latin, it got shortened, kept the basic function and left the theories to the linguists and historians. ΤΥΜΒΟΣ/TOMB
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Approaching Halloween so, let the spooky words in!
Φαίνειν is an ancient Greek infinitive and it means 'to appear/ to make something visible'. The thing that is been made visible is a Φάντασμα and it used to mean 'an illusion' before it meant 'an apparition'. The root of this word can be found in old Armenian, old Irish and of course Sanskrit but the Greek one is the one that came through. Latin 'Fantasma', French 'Fantome' and eventually the English in the 1300's. ΦΑΝΤΑΣΜΑ/PHANTOM
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
There are some Greek words that the original meaning has been almost lost except for the occasional one that is used for this one specific thing and of course, it's only in Greek. So, υπό is a preposition meaning 'under' . Θέση means 'position'. The combined word originally meant 'placing something under' but in philosophy and , later, science, the word came to mean 'supposition' . Since that wider use in the 1600's, the world only knows that one meaning (for our Greek listeners υποθήκη is the one that's kept the original meaning). ΥΠΟΘΕΣΗ/HYPOTHESIS
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
If you see and Ancient Greek text, you'll understand it's difficult to know when a word ends and another begins. Today's word is a combined one, not by choice but by accident of someone who wasn't sure how to read it. Εν means in, κύκλος is circle and παιδεία is education. The Ancient Greeks had circles of education subjects. The Arts, Sciences etc. When you've completed one, you had an εγκυκλος παιδεία, a circled education on that subject. With time, the meaning widened to a general education, a rounded one, one containing all subjects. In the 15th century when the Romans were translating ancient Greek Texts, they mistook the three words for one and in the 18th century people thought, a book with as much general knowledge as possible should be named after that. ΕΓΚΥΚΛΟΠΑΙΔΕΙΑ/ENCYCLOPEDIA
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Hello and welcome to our seventh season! Can you believe it?! Seventh! Well, it's thanks to you we're still here. Subscribing, downloading and sharing our podcast far and wide has seen our audience grow and expand all over the globe. Stay tuned this year, as we have some surprises for you and don't forget to email us with questions or comments at yourgreeksunday@gmail.com. You can also follow us on X at yourgreeksunday and, on Instagram at EmmanuelaLia. Let the season commence!
Intro & Piano music
Βαίνειν (venin) is an ancient Greek infinitive meaning 'to be getting somewhere' in this case on a step or a pedestal. The first time you step onto something/setting your foundation is your Βάση. Following the most common journey, Latin and then French, the word came to English around the 14th century and stayed. ΒΑΣΗ/BASE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
This is the last episode for this season and I'd like to thank you for staying with us for another year! If you have questions, ideas or comments about what you hear in this podcast, feel free to reach out on our Twitter @yourgreeksunday , our email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com or leave a review in the listening platform of your choice. See you in the Autumn everyone! On with our myth! Oh yes, it's a myth!
(Intro & piano music)
When the Earth and the Sky, or in Greek mythology Gaia and Uranus, gave birth to the Titans, the strongest of them was the great water that surrounded the globe. He stayed out of the Titan war, married his sister Τίθυς (Tithys) and from them, all entities came to be, including the Gods . Their union was so fruitful that floods became a real danger and they had to split so the world could be saved. The word passed into Latin and kept its meaning 'Mare Oceanus' until the late 1600's As explorers started mapping the world, the names of different seas came to be, but his name stayed. ΩΚΕΑΝΟΣ/OCEAN
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Ψάω (psao) the verb for 'grinding' and 'smoothing' , and ψάμμος (psammos) the noun, is an ancient greek word that took two different journeys but kept its meaning. After coming to Latin, and among other alterations, it lost the pronunciation of the 'P' in the beginning and became 'Sabulum' ,which is the root for the Italian 'sabbia' and the French 'sable'. Now, this time the word came to English from the Germans that altered it further and shared the variations with the Germanic speaking world. From psammos, to sandam, to sandr, to zand and on the other strand, in modern Greek ΑΜΜΟΣ/SAND
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
We are counting down to the end of this season and as summer seems to be already here, our last three words are dedicated to it. In 1892, James Dewar, a Scottish scientist working in Cambridge, invented an insulated vessel for liquified gasses. What he didn't do is secure the patent for it. 11 years later, in 1903, the German glass blower Reinhold Burger, received the German patent for a vacuum flask to be used as a household item and, created the company that mass manufactured it. Dewar sued for claim to intellectual rights but lost. The name of the flask was put to public competition and the Greek word for 'Hot' won. Stay hydrated everyone! ΘΕΡΜΟΣ/THERMOS
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Κάλλος (kallos) in ancient Greek, and in some cases in modern too, meant 'beauty'. Γραφή (graphe) is the act of writing. The combined word referred to an artform that started in Egypt and spread around the world. . In English it came through Latin (with a changed spelling as Greeks don't have the letter 'c') in the early 1600's. In modern Greek the word has the additional meaning of,' just a beautiful hand writing'. ΚΑΛΛΙΓΡΑΦΙΑ/CALLIGRAPHY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Παρά (para) in both ancient and modern Greek is a preposition and it means 'on the side' or 'across' Δόξα (doxa) in ancient Greek meant 'belief' or 'opinion'. The combined word in philosophy meant,' the opposite of logic that might entail some truth, difficult for the average mind to grasp' . In literature it was the collection of unexplained events or personal anecdotes and in science, anything that is still unexplained but is being researched (for example, in the old days that would be the shape of the earth). The word came to English from Latin, in the 1500, and it only meant 'a different opinion'. In the 1900 the notion of absurdity in one's statement was attached to it, and stayed. ΠΑΡΑΔΟΞΟ/PARADOX
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Before we begin, just a little reminder that you can send your comments and questions to yourgreeksunday@gmail.com, follow us in Twitter @yourgreeksunday, and myself on instagram at emmanuela_lia
On with today's word!
(Intro & piano music)
Βιβλίο (vivlio) in Greek means 'Book', the letter 'B' is pronounced 'V' . As early as the 14th century, christian orthodox scriptures were referred to as Τα άγια βιβλία (ta agia vivlia)/The holy books. The word came to Latin in full-form but then the letters 'B' and 'I' adjusted to the Latin, and later the English, pronunciation . ΒΙΒΛΙΟ/BIBLE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Staying in ancient Greece but in more earthly matters today. This is a word that lasted all this time although the custom died within a century. In 500 BC in order to secure the safety of Democracy from politically influential citizens or corrupt politicians, a vote was established. Every year and with a two month notice (to avoid irrational action) 6.000 citizens had to vote by writing the name of the person they thought was endangering Democracy on a piece of shell or pottery shard. The person voted, was required to leave Athens for ten years. If the total count of the votes was less than 6.000 then nobody got exiled that year. Whoever did, had their assets and belongings taken care of, by family members and they still had their citizen privileges; which is why, the physical distance from Athens they should be exiled to, increased over time so, very influential people wouldn't be able to reach the city. The word came to English from Latin. In both ancient and modern Greek, the word for 'Shell' is Οστρακο (ostraco) . ΟΣΤΡΑΚΙΣΜΟΣ/OSTRACIZED.
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Τίθημι (tithimi) is an ancient greek verb meaning 'I put in the right place, I position correctly'. Among the Titans that survived the ancient war against the Olympian gods, was Themis. The goddess we all know holding a scale and a sword and has a blindfold. The goddess of justice. She sets the laws and although many think that she can't see, that's not why she has a blindfold. Themis was an oracle herself so the blindfold is there to remind us that she can see, regardless. She built the temple of Delphi, the most famous oracle temple in ancient Greece and she was the second wife of Zeus. Her children were Δίκη (diki) /Trial, Ειρήνη (Irene)/Peace, Μοίρες (Mires)/The Fates, Ωρες (ores)/The Hours and Ευνομία (Evnomia)/Law. Her name has come a long and wide way. In modern Greek the noun means 'the subject matter', in English it came in the 14th century through the usual route, Latin and French and means exactly the same. ΘΕΜΑ/THEME
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
As we enter Spring and enjoying clear skies more and more, can you imagine what the sky must have looked like in ancient times? How clear and rich the night sky might have looked? Around 500 BC , Greek astronomers were noticing -among other things-moving stars. Κόμη (Come) in ancient Greek meant 'hair' so, a moving start that looked like it had long hair whilst moving was-and still is-a ΚΟΜΗΤΗΣ/COMET
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
What are you having for breakfast? I have a word for you that's been going in circles like that spoon in your tea. Μέλι (meli) in Greek means 'Honey' and an 'apple' in ancient Greek was μέλον (melon), Yes ,yes that's a whole other episode. Μέλιμελον (melimelon) was a 'sweet apple' and coming to Latin, a paste made from apples was named Melimelum. The Portuguese then, took that and made a similar paste but out of quince and they gave it a name that in the 17th century became so popular (that even the Greeks still use) for any fruit preserve ΜΑΡΜΕΛΑΔΑ/MARMALADE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
One of the things I was worried about, around season 2 of this podcast, was how to explain the spelling when talking about different alphabets, It proved that I didn't have to, thanks to words like the one today. The only thing people had to do was replace the letters with the Latin equivalent, and say it out loud. Πίμπλημι (piblimi) in ancient Greek meant 'I'm full' or 'I fill up'. The original verb is not used anymore but many nouns and adjectives coming from it, are. There's one in particular that has moved into English and has undergone the spelling treatment. The abundance of things of similar nature is called a ΠΛΗΘΩΡΑ/PLETHORA
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Here is a word that has created some noise on pronunciation, meaning and, origin. Well, the origin is Greek but, which version? I'll try and untangle it here, wish me luck! Δια (dia) means 'through' and it's also the Greek name for the mathematical symbol of division -which has led people to believe that it also means 'half'. Λόγος (logos) means 'speech'. If you combine Δια/through and Λογος/Speech, you get Διαλογος (dialogos) , which means a 'conversation' between people (not necessarily just two people). Now, from the moment the word came to Latin and for the longest of times, that is exactly what people thought διαλογος (dialogos) meant; so much so, that they created a trialogue and a quadrilogue, which didn't last however, it wasn't until 1864 that things cleared up. The word two, the number, in Greek is Δυο, spelled in Latin, reads 'duo'. So, people could now stop counting heads conversing and use 'Duologue' for two people (which is not used in Greek by the way) and for any other conversation ΔΙΑΛΟΓΟΣ/DIALOGUE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
In the first few lines of Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus, we hear, for the first time ever, the word that marked the Titan's fate. His love for humanity made him steal, and gift us the skill to make fire and thus, survive. For those not familiar with the myth or the play, Zeus, did not like what Prometheus had done so, he had State and Violence bound him to mount Caucasus, and the god Hephaestus make the strongest bonds. Prometheus's torture was that an Eagle would come every day to eat his liver, only for it to grow overnight and repeat the torture the next day. It's worth saying here that the the ancient Greeks believed that the liver was the organ where emotions were created. The word came to English directly, and intact, from Latin in the 1600's. Ανθρωπος (anthropos) means 'Human' and Φίλος (philos) means 'Friend'. Prometheus's action was called a ΦΙΛΑΝΘΡΩΠΙΑ/PHILANTHROPY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
This, is another combined, greek word that was made up by a non-Greek. It was the philosopher and humanist Thomas More this time, and he used it to entitle his book, in 1516, about an ideal imaginary island. From the ancient Greek 'ου' meaning 'not' and 'τόπος' (topos) meaning 'place'. A place that doesn't exist. ΟΥΤΟΠΙΑ/UTOPIA
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Before we begin today, I'd like to remind you of our email address yourgreeksunday@gmail.com where you can send your questions, ideas or comments about anything you hear in this podcast. Here we go!
(Intro & piano music)
Πλανάσθαι (planasthe) is an ancient greek infinitive meaning 'to wander', 'to roam'. The verb did not leave Greece but some of its derivatives did, including their full meaning. 'Πλανήτης αστέρας' in Greek , 'Planeta' in Latin, 'Planete' in old French and in old English, with the greek meaning intact, Wandering star. ΠΛΑΝΗΤΗΣ/PLANET
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Αγω (ago) in both ancient and modern Greek means, 'I draw out', 'I bring forth'. Αγώνας (agonas) means 'a race' and metaphorically 'a struggle'. From Greek, to Latin, to French, to English in the 1600's. ΑΓΩΝΙΑ/AGONY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Φαίνειν (phainin) is an ancient Greek infinitive. The verb is Φαίνομαι (phaenome) and it means 'I show', I appear' . The noun came to English from Latin around 1660 and it was in reference to the different aspects of the moon. The wider use of the word started two centuries later, in 1861 and the spelling is an exact anglicised version of the ancient Greek ΦΑΣΗ/PHASE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Κρίνω (crino) , is an ancient Greek verb, the noun is κρίση (crisi) and the adjective κριτική (critiki) All three have a double meaning and from all three derive many words used today but we'll stick to the adjective otherwise we'll get lost. In ancient Greece the word was used in both medicine and philosophy. The medical connection is what made it to Latin first and passed onto English. It meant 'on the edge' , 'in an urgent situation'. Around the 1800's the other meaning started being used: something that has being thought of carefully, using all facts and applying reason. ΚΡΙΤΙΚΗ/CRITICAL
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Greeks have been using this word widely for a very long time but in English it was used only as a biology term until the 1920's. Συν (syn) means 'with' and Βίος (vios) means 'life'. When two organisms are brought to live together they are in ΣΥΜΒΙΩΣΗ/SYMBIOSIS
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
What do Okras, Euclid, and a south Korean boy band have in common? Well, πέντε (pendae) in Greek means 'five' and γωνία (gonia) means 'corner'. The combined word was given to this geometric shape by Euclid around 300BC . It's the shape of most starfish, the top of okras, the military headquarters in the US and the name of that South Korean boy band. ΠΕΝΤΑΓΩΝΟ/PENTAGON
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Welcome to our 200th episode! This feels like a very weird time to celebrate, especially when the rescue teams in Turkey and Syria are making superhuman efforts. Do donate if you can whether it's goods or money and, I hope you enjoy today's word. Σείω (seio) in both ancient and modern Greek means 'I shake', 'I move'. Keep that, you'll need it. There are many variations of how the leader of the giants, Ενγκέλαδος (Engelados), in the war against the Olympian Gods, was defeated. The most popular one is depicted in ancient jars and one particular moment , on a Parthenon metope. The moment when Athena threw her four-horse carriage on him. After that, the myth says, she buried him alive under the mount Aetna in Italy were when he tosses and turns angrily, he causes a ΣΕΙΣΜΟ/ SEISMIC
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
Before we begin today, I want to remind you to download this or any episode you might like; or if you listen frequently then why not slide that button across and get all new episodes automatically downloaded to your device. What gives you a little peace of mind that you won't miss an episode, means the world to our podcast! In order to keep it short and sweet but keep it growing and reaching more people, we need your downloads. Thank you and...on with our Sunday!
(Intro & piano music)
Φίλος (filos) in both ancient and modern Greek means 'Friend' and αδελφός (adelfos) means 'Brother' . The combined name was given first as a nickname to Ατταλος the second (Attalus II) and then, William Penn gave it to the city he designed in 1681 in America ' A greene Country Towne, which will never be burnt and always be wholesome' and hoped that would prosper peacefully alongside native inhabitants and where all religions would be accepted. Judging by the significance the city had in the civil rights movement, he mostly got his wish. In England the word came from Latin in the early 1600s . ΦΙΛΑΔΕΛΦΙΑ/PHILADELPHIA
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
This word has changed very little in its travels and it took the common route arriving here. Greek, Latin, French and in the 1600 across the English channel. Πρώτο (proto) in both ancient and modern Greek means 'The first' and τύπος (tipos) comes from the ancient greek verb τίπτω( tipto) meaning 'I hit'; that verb, used metaphorically, gave its name to 'stamping', which was a way of verifying originality. So, when something that was the original form after which everything else was formed got a literal or metaphorical seal of approval , it was called a ΠΡΩΤΟΤΥΠΟ/PROTOTYPE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Μονός (monos) in modern Greek means 'single' and τόνος(tonos) means -among other things- a musical 'note'. Something odd happened in 1706, the combined word that travelled from France was used... metaphorically and meant something tiresome, a lack of variation. The literal use in English started in mid 1700. ΜΟΝΟΤΟΝΟΣ/MONOTONE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
This is a Greek word that wasn't invented by the Greeks! Sir David Brewster, was a Scottish physicist known for his work in optics and polarized light. In 1817, he patented his reflective mirrors toy and named it by combining three Greek words; κάλος (kalos) meaning 'beauty' , είδος (edos) meaning 'form' and the infinitive σκοπείν (scopin) meaning 'to view'. To view a beautiful formation. ΚΑΛΕΙΔΟΣΚΟΠΙΟ/KALEIDOSCOPE.
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Any New Year's resolutions yet? Well, in Ancient Greek, 'Σχέδη' (Schedi) meant papyrus leaf-also known as writing material-. In modern , it means both plan and sketch. The outline of something, the general plan for the future or the full-on, laid-out plan for life. In English it came from the French 'Cedule' and it meant 'slips of paper attached to a document as an appendix', until the 1800's where it was used as the modern Greek one. ΣΧΕΔΙΟ/SCHEDULE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Happy New Year everyone!
Here's a little myth of strength and beauty to kickstart the month. The Ancient Greeks believed there was a creature born way before the gods that held all the knowledge. It had the most beautiful voice and the most amazing colours in its feathers. Some said it was the size of an eagle and others, bigger than an ostrich! But when it sang, the Sun would stop its chariot to listen to the song. There was only one born every five hundred years and when time was up, it would build a nest and set itself on fire, only to reborn and start the cycle again. Its name in ancient Greek meant deep red but the myth can be found in Egypt, Africa and Persia with variations yet, the name remains the same, ΦΟΙΝΙΚΑΣ/ PHOENIX
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Merry Christmas, everyone celebrating and have a wonderful Sunday, those of you who don't. Πολώ is an ancient Greek verb for 'I turn' , 'I pivot' . In the beginning, it was mainly used in geometry and philosophy until the noun was solely used to describe two things, magnets and the South and the North ΠΟΛΟΣ/POLE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & Piano music)
Today, I'll be telling you about two Greek words. One was invented by the Greeks and the other by the Swiss psychologist Carl Jung. Συν (syn) means' with', 'and', 'additionally'. Χρόνος (chronos) means 'time'. The combination can give us two different meanings depending on the suffix. One, describes combined timing in action, the second-and that's the one Jung coined-coincidence that appears to have meaning (when it's not necessarily the case). ΣΥΓΧΡΟΝΙΣΜΟΣ και ΣΥΓΧΡΟΝΙΚΟΤΗΤΑ/SYNCHRONISATION and SYNCHRONICITY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Nowadays, in order to describe something we don't understand, we make a reference to a difficult language for us. The English say 'It's all Greek to me', the Greeks say 'It's all Chinese to me' and so on. In ancient Greece-and here, I have to remind you that it was an empire with all the faults that come with one-the sound the Greeks heard from foreigners was 'VAR-VAR' (the letter v is written and pronounced b in English). And that's what they used to mock anyone not Greek, They also had a phrase 'πάς μη Ελλην, Βαρβαρος' anyone not Greek is a ΒΑΡΒΑΡΟΣ/BARBARIAN
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Σκέπτομαι (skeptome) in Ancient Greek and Σκέφτομαι (skeftome) in modern, means
' I think' . The noun is Σκέψη (skepsi). In Ancient Greece, being a Σκεπτικιστής (skeptikistis) meant you belonged to a philosophical group that doubted human knowledge can be obtained. Starting from Pyrros, to Descartes's attempt to contradict it, to Hume's partial support (I say partial as he worked on the modern version rather than the ancient Greek one) scepticism has gone through many meanings to reach today's, everyday, definition of 'taking everything you hear with a pinch of salt' . In English, it came from the Latin Scepticus around 1580. Sometimes it's spelled with a K and others with a C , both are correct. ΣΚΕΠΤΙΚΙΣΜΟΣ/SCEPTICISM
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Τέμνω (temno) in Greek means 'I cut', the noun is Τομή (tomi). Δυο (dio) means 'two' and when combined it becomes Διχο-(dicho). The combined word came into English from Latin and referred to the philosophical and political division theory of: cutting in two different classes. Since then, it's been more frequently used in every day language, meaning, simply, 'a division'. ΔΙΧΟΤΟΜΗΣΗ/DICHOTOMY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Well, I know I've said I won't be doing any medical terms but this one is an exception and has a very interesting origin. Μέλον and Μελανό (melon-melano) in both ancient and modern Greek, means 'dark coloured'. Χολή (Holi) means 'bile'. The original diagnosis for depression was attributed -among other things- to the excess production of bile within one's body. So, until the 18th century when medical practices advanced, the diagnosis for depression would be ΜΕΛΑΓΧΟΛΙΑ/MELANCHOLY
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Cucumis anguria, is the official name of small cucumbers. In medieval Greek it was called 'ανγκούριον' (angurion) , meaning 'immature', 'not ripe'. The Dutch turned it into an 'agurk' or 'gurk' and pickled it. In the 17th century it came to England and in the 1800's an 'h' was added in an attempt to keep the original pronunciation. ΑΝΓΚΟΥΡΙΟΝ/GHERKIN
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
Xenophon of Athens, was an army general, historian , and philosopher. His most famous work is 'Anabasis', that details the army expedition to Persia led by Cyrus who wanted to seize the throne from his brother. I will not bother you with all the Greek names involved but Socrates has cameo in this story. It's definitely worth read. In his seven books, and what is known as 'one of the first army adventures' (as well as an extraordinary literary achievement), Xenophon details not only the military aspects of the long journey, including the defeated return to Greece, but also, the scenery and the personalities of some of the mercenaries who joined Cyrus's army. After all, he was one of them. One of the 10.000, also known as ΜΥΡΙΟΙ/MYRIADS
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro and piano music)
Απο (apo) is a preposition meaning 'from' and 'away from' (such as, in this case) Καλύπτω (kalipto) is a verb and it means 'covering', 'concealing'. In both ancient and modern Greek, the combined word means to 'reveal' something but in Christian texts , which is how it came in English, it means 'the end of the world!'. Happy Halloween everyone. ΑΠΟΚΑΛΥΨΗ/APOCALYPSE
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
This is a prime example of a metaphor gaining its own power and becoming a stand-alone word. Ερημος (erimos) in both Ancient Greek and Sanskrit(we find it at the same time with minor differences) meant 'the desert' . A person that would dwell alone in the desert was an Ερημίτης (erimitis). Eons past and that was linked to religious acts of seclusion. But by then, anyone who was voluntarily alone was an Ερημίτης. Metaphorically, if someone was left alone or with nothing, was-and still is-called Eρημος. And that's how the word travelled, with an added 'h' during Medieval Latin. ΕΡΗΜΟΣ/HERMIT
Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
Instagram @emmanuela_lia ,
email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com
(Intro & piano music)
This is a word that has stayed intact from the beginning, including its derivatives. Πατήρ (patir) means 'Father'. Πατρίδα (patrida) 'Fatherland', and the one who loves their fatherland, ΠΑΤΡΙΩΤΗΣ/PATRIOT
(Intro & piano music)
Reads in ancient Greek 'Ποταμών άφρω μορμύροντα ιδών' That's what Homer called a boiling river's sound, in the Iliad. The word moved to Latin keeping its meaning and then into French to describe a human hum. Which is, what it has come to mean in modern Greek. ΜΟΥΡΜΟΥΡΑ/MURMUR
Hello and welcome to Season 6 of Your Greek Word On A Sunday. A little bit of news before we begin our word journey this season. We have, now , a new home; it's called Buzzsprout and you can find our link on our Twitter page @yourgreeksunday, give us a follow while you're there for updates on our episodes, top listening countries and audience of the week. . Moving house means more podcast platforms we can be found on and a new email where you can send your questions, comments or even word ideas if you've got them, email us at yourgreeksunday@gmail.com. And don't forget to download the episodes you listen to, being bite size means , our numbers will grow only if you download not just play an episode! I think that's all the housekeeping for now. Let's begin!
(Intro & piano music)
As we enter Season 6, we might as well record the word ancient Greeks used for, marking a point in time that stands still, a transfer period, a beginning of a new era or the marking of one. In Latin it just meant 'era' and in modern Greek 'season' (which is appropriate as Autumn is upon us) . So. happy new beginnings everyone! ΕΠΟΧΗ/EPOCH
(Intro & Piano music)
I'm quite tempted to go into politics with this word and yes, this might be the time but it's not the place for it so, Αν (an) as a first component in a word, is a prefix and it means 'without'. One of the meanings of the word Αρχή (Arhe)is 'authority', 'a ruling body' . A society without a leading authority is in a state of ΑΝΑΡΧΙΑ/ANARCHY
(intro & Piano music) Απο is a preposition and it means 'from' or 'as'. Θεός (Theos)means 'god' The combined infinitive that arrived in England , intact, during the 1600 from Latin. is αποθεούν (apotheoun) and it means to make someone god-like, to worship them like a god, to deify. ΑΠΟΘΕΩΣΗ/APOTHEOSIS
(Intro & piano music)
Τρία (Tria) in Greek means 'Three'. Λόγος(Logos) means speech, rational thinking and...story. In ancient Greece, during theatre competitions, the playwrights could present a comedy. a tragedy, a satyrical drama or a tragedy split in three parts (there's is actually a number of combinations they could present from all the above but that's for another episode). The only complete three-part tragedy saved to this day is The Oresteia and I highly recommend you read it or watch it at some point. Now, those Tragedies were called a ΤΡΙΛΟΓΙΑ/TRILOGY
Υπό means 'under'. Θέση originally meant 'placement', 'position' . It still does but 'seat' is an equally used meaning. Anyway, today we'll focus on the meaning 'position', either literally or metaphorically. The combined word means the 'foundation', the basis of something and it arrived in English around the 1500 but got this particular meaning a century later. In the arts of rhetoric and debate, it's the basis of an argument. An ΥΠΟΘΕΣΗ/HYPOTHESIS.
(Intro & Piano music) What do you think when you hear the phrase 'Greek Summer'? The three S' right? Sea, Sun and Sunsets! Well..if you grow up in Greece, the minute the temperature rises above 25 you know you have to take cover when the sun is down. Κώνωψ (konops) in Ancient Greek and κουνούπι (kounoupe) in modern, means 'mosquito'. The Ancient Greeks (and the Egyptians) had devised a bed that could protect you from the nasty biters. They'd hang a cloth from the ceiling to cover the entire bed and sleep inside, protected. Conopeum in Latin, Canopeum in medieval Latin , Conope in old French, and Canapy in Middle English. Κωνωπείον/Canopy.
(Intro & Piano music) There are mentions in Ancient Greek texts of a plant's root used to ease Asthma and inflammation. It grows in Northern Greece(among other places in the world) and there's even a village named after it. Γλυκό means 'sweet', ρίζα means 'root'. The word travelled to Italy and then France-where the spelling used in America comes from. In fact, both spelling were used until the 1700 where the British spelling took over for a couple of centuries before it got separated for good; there's also a pronunciation inconsistency, the word doesn't end with 'sh' but still, that's how we pronounce it and that's because, in Cooper's Grammatica Linguae Agglicanae that was published in 1685 it was written that way. This word has a fascinating pronunciation history in the States and I highly recommend reading all about it. ΓΛΥΚΟΡΙΖΑ/LIQUORICE
(Intro & piano music)
There is an ancient Greek epic poem called Theogony composed by Hesiodus in 7th century BC, about how the gods came to be. After his invocation to the muses, which was common practice in the epic poetry of the time, the poet writes: In the beginning there was only Χάος but then Γαία came into being with her broad chest, the ever firm foundation of all; and Τάρταρος, dim in the underground depths; and Ερως, loveliest of all the immortals who makes their bodies (as well as human bodies) go limp, mastering their minds and subduing their wills. This is just the beginning of course, the poem is written in 1022 hexameter verses. It was first translated in English in 1914 by Hugh G. Evelyn-White and it was plainly translated so everyone could read it. Γαία (Gaia) is the Earth, Ερως (Eros) is Love, Τάρταρος (Tartaros) is the centre, the core of the Earth and the ever expanding void that engulfs everything and nothing is the beginning of all ΧΑΟΣ/CHAOS
(intro & piano music)
I've decided to keep this episode very short, in line with what the word means. Συν means 'with' and is also the word for mathematical sign of plus(+). Οψις or Οψη (opsis) means 'view'. The combined word means, seeing the sum, the summary of something. A ΣΥΝΟΨΗ/SYNOPSIS
(Intro & Piano music) This word followed the route most Greek words took to come here. Greek-Latin-Old French-Middle English-Modern English. It arrived around the 14th century and it hasn't changed meaning. Αλλος (Allos) means 'other', 'another', Αγορα (agora) was the place in Ancient Greece where you'd go to shop, socialise and listen to philosophers talk. Nowadays it just means 'Market' but the verb 'Αγορευω' (agorevo)meaning 'I speak in public', is still used like that. The combination of the two gives us the noun Αλληγορία (alligoria). It's when, primarily in literature, you talk of one thing but have secret or hidden meanings in your story. Αλληγορία/Allegory.
(Intro & piano music) Δείκνυμι (diknimi) is an ancient Greek verb and it means 'I show', 'I present'. Para is a preposition meaning 'beside'. The act of putting two or more things side by side to compare them or to make a point is called παραδειγματισμός (paradigmatismos) The noun came to England through France in the late 16th century and stayed intact. Παράδειγμα/ Paradigm
(Intro & piano music) I've decided to give myself a little cheerful research for a change and tell you a myth. These magnificent creatures were believed to be two things: the link between the human and the divine and initially, humans! There are many myths to support both beliefs so, here's my favourite one. When Dionysus was returning from the island of Naxos, he was captured by pirates and was about to be sold as a slave in the markets of the East. As soon as the god realised that, he turned the oars into snakes, spread vines on the mast, overflowed the hold with wine and a deafening music played. A music that came out of nowhere and drove the pirates mad, especially when they saw their captain morph into a lion and chase them off ship. Dionysus saved only the ones that repented by turning them into those beautiful creatures and in return they would carry him from down below to up above, every year. They were described by Aristotle in 350BC as 'mammals who have an organised society'. The word came to the English from the French and their name means 'Womb'. ΔΕΛΦΙΝΙΑ/DOLPHINS.
(intro & piano music) Ancient Greece has seen a fair amount of different types of ruling, from Kings to Democracy and it's been a bumpy ride. Άρχειν (archin) is an ancient Greek infinitive and it means 'to rule'. It has lasted a very long time due to its use as a second component of combined words. One of the political systems or structures rather, that still, unofficially, exists in society, is the ruling of a few socially prominent men -who happen to be rich as well. Aristotle was the first to coin the term and link it to wealth. Ολίγοι (oligi) in Ancient Greek and Λίγοι (ligi) in modern, means 'the few' and combined with the infinitive means, 'the ruling of the few'. In England the word came from France in the 15th century and sadly it's a word that we hear often today. Ολιγαρχία/Oligarchy
(Intro & Piano musi)
In my search for information on this word in English, I was told by the internet, multiple times, that this is a very rare word. I say we bring it back. It's a word that has two meanings and while Greeks use the one, the English use the other. I do find this fascinating because there's no apparent reason why either language kept their version. The English one is based on how Plato -who also coined the term-used it and it arrived in England in the 17th century, via France. Φίλος (philos) means 'friend', Δόξα (doxa) means both 'opinion' and 'glory'. In Greek, the combined word means a friend of glory, an ambitious person. In English, it's someone who loves their own opinions, a dogmatic person a Φιλόδοξος/Philodox.
(intro & music) Δεσπόζω is an ancient Greek Verb, The adjective is Δεσποτικός and the noun Δεσπότης, meaning the absolute ruler of the land. The word didn't always have negative connotations , it was used for powerful people like the Pharaohs or the Emperors in the Byzantium and after 1453 when the Ottoman Empire conquered Constantinople, it became a rank in the orthodox priesthood as well. The word came to English in the 16th century through France and the current use didn't start until two centuries later. Meaning a single, cruel, ruler. Δεσποτικός/Despotic
(intro & piano music) Κατά (kata) is a preposition and, among other things, it means 'down'. Στροφή (strofi) means 'turn'. The combined word originally meant 'a turn for the worse' but it arrived in England through Latin literature in the 1500 where it was used to describe the ending of a dramatic work or the event that lead to it. In modern Greek it means 'Destruction' or, the same as in English, 'Disaster'. Καταστροφή/Catastrophe
(Intro &piano music) An Ελεγεία in ancient Greece was a religious poem made from two different verses. An hexameter and a pentameter. The poems escaped religion and started getting thematically wider but they all had one thing in common. Lament. Like the one used on the tombstone of the fallen 300 Spartans. 'Ω ξειν' αγγέλειν Λακεδαιμονίοις οτι τήδε κοίμεθα τοις κοίνων ρήμασι πειθόμενοι' -Oh stranger passing by, tell the Spartans that we're buried here, obeying their orders. In England, the poetry along with the style arrived from the French 'elegie' in the 16th century and stayed. Ελεγεία/Elegy
(intro & piano music) Music is primarily comprised of three parts, Αρμονία/Harmony, Ρυθμό/Rhythm and Μελωδία. That last one is a combined word from μέλος(melos) meaning 'part' and ωδή (ode) meaning 'song'. The level of complexity of a Μελωδία is what makes a song of clear and balanced form. In Latin it meant 'a balanced song', in French just 'song' and in English it has come to mean a 'tune'. Μελωδία/Melody
(intro & piano music) Ρις (Rhis) in ancient Greek (and as a medical term, in modern Greek too) menas 'nose'. Κέρας (Keras) means 'horn' . Since in Greek 'I' is pronounced as 'E' and the Greek alphabet doesn't have the letter 'C' at all, the Latin version of the combined word, has a different spelling. And that's how it arrived in England. In both languages however, a large animal with a horn above their nose is a Ρινόκερος/Rhinoceros
(Intro & piano music)
Ανά (ana) in Greek, is both a preposition and a prefix depending on its use and one of its meanings is 'again'-'going over something'. Λύω (Lyo) is a verb and it means to dissolve, to loosen. So, when you loosen something or go over it again and again-both literally and metaphorically- you are doing an, ανάλυση/analysis.
(Intro & Piano music)
Μυώ (meo) is an ancient Greek verb and it means I initiate someone into a religion, I induct. The ceremony for that induction is called a μυστήριον (mystirion). The biggest religious festival in ancient Greece was the Ελευσίνια μυστήρια (elefsinia mystiria) to celebrate and worship the goddess Demeter and her daughter Persephone. The festival would last nine days and people from all over Greece would travel to Athens to watch. Not all days were accessible to the public. Some would be and music, dance, food, theatre and re-enactments of Demeter's search for her daughter would take place. But the secret days were the ones where initiations happened. To this day, we know very little about what took place during days three and six and that's because revealing even the tiniest of detail, was punishable by death. The general idea was that the high priests would accept the new members by passing on the secret to the afterlife. The priests were called μύστες (mystes), the initiation μυστήριο (mystirio) and since secret and unknown things happened even after Christianity took over, and the festival ceased to exist, the word kept a meaning that engulfed all the festival was. In old French Mystere, in Latin Mysterium and in modern Greek the word for secret, Μυστικό/Mystic.
Before we start today, i'd like to reassure you that, there's nothing wrong with your podcast platform or this podcast. Human error however, made the episode supposed to be released last week, released much earlier. You can still listen to the word DECADE on the same Sunday Acme was released. That means the 26th of December 2021 came out with a double episode. Ok, on with today's word (intro & piano music)
Συριγξ(Syrix) in Ancient Greek was the name of an Arcadian Nymph. When the god Pan was young, he fell in love with her and chased her to the shores of the river Λάδων (Ladon). She clearly wasn't interested because she hid among the canes by the shore. Pan never found her but he made his musical instrument, known as pan-pipe from those canes and named it,in Greek, after her. Later on, anything with the shape of a hollow cylinder would be named after her. From long tunnels to injection instruments, her name would reach medieval Latin as Syrinx , before landing in England. Συριγξ/Syringe
SYMPOSIUM/ΣΥΜΠΟΣΙΟ (intro with piano music) Happy New Year everyone! Today, we're going to talk about parties.The preposition 'συν' means with/together. Πόση means 'drink'. In ancient Greece a Συμπόσιο was a social gathering for men where they would, drink wine, recite poetry, converse and listen to musicians. Fun fact, they would dilute the wine with water as this was considered the civilized way of drinking it. And they would even appoint one person to set the ratio of water to wine at the beginning. That was the party after the dinner. Συμπόσιο/Symposium
ACME/ΑΚΜΗ (Intro with piano music) With the winter solstice right behind us, New Year's eve coming up and this being the last episode of the year, I couldn't think of a better word. Ακμή in Greek means the highest point of something, both literally and metaphorically. And surprisingly, until the Middle Ages in England, it was written...in Greek! Ακμή/Acme
DECADE/ΔΕΚΑΣ (Intro with piano music) Δέκα (Deka) in both ancient and modern Greek means, ten (so does Dasa in Sanskrit by the way). Δεκάς (dekas) means a group of ten ot ten parts of something, In Latin is Decadem and in English from the middle of the 15th century, it came to mean, ten years. Δεκάς/Decade
CAROLS/ΧΟΡΟΣ (Intro with piano music) Χορός (choros) in both modern and ancient Greek, means Dance. Αυλός (aulus) means pan-pipe or flute. In Ancient Greece there was a festival in honour of Dionysus, in that festival Theatre was born but also, a long tradition of religious dances to the sound of a flute. That tradition reached the Middle Ages where song and dance accompanied religious plays. That section was named choraula. In England and during the Protestant reformation in the 16th century, religious songs were translated from Latin so everyone could sing along. Those songs were names after the French and shortened version of choraula, Carole. Χορός/Carols.
SYMPTOM/ΣΥΜΠΤΩΜΑ
Συν (syn) is a preposition and it means 'with' . Πίπτω (Pipto)is an ancient Greek verb ,still in use today, and one of its meanings is 'I occur'. The combined infinitive is Συμπίπτειν (sympiptin)and it means that something occurs at the same time as something else or as a result of something else. The noun is Συμπτωμα and it first appears in Middle English as 'synthoma' , to be replaced later by the French Symptome. Σύμπτωμα/Symptom.
MATHEMATICS/ΜΑΘΗΜΑΤΙΚΑ Μανθάνω (Manthano) in ancient Greek and Μαθαίνω (Matheno) in modern, means 'I learn'. Τέχνη (techne) means 'art' but also 'craft'. Around 600BC a man called Θαλής (Thales)of Miletus decided to put all his efforts in order to prove that not all phenomena are caused by the Gods but that all things are filled with Gods. That was the first step to deductive reasoning. His life, work and legacy are too big to fit in this episode so, do have a read about him if you find the time. Aristotle called him The Father Of Science, as he started measuring heights, distances, explaining earthquakes instead of fearing the God behind them, and asking all the right questions like, 'what is the nature of an object for it to behave that way?'. Gods started being more of a philosophical matter and science took centre stage. Learning was associated with science and excelling in it was considered a serious craft. Θαλής went on to put all sciences under one. In Latin, the study of science was called Ars Mathematica and today we just call it Μαθηματικά/Mathematics
HYPER/ΥΠΕΡ
Words transitioning from the Greek Alphabet to the Latin one, usually get a do-over in both spelling and pronunciation. Thankfully in most of them, you can still detect similarities in the spelling. Today's word is one of them. Υπερ started as an adverb in Ancient Greek. It meant 'beyond' or 'over'. In modern Greek it is a preposition (or a prefix) and it means 'over the top'. So when combined with a word it magnifies it. In many ways it has the same use the word 'over' has. There is an added use in English too. Since 1946 it's been used as an adjective. But only in English. Υπερ/Hyper.
PANIC/ΠΑΝΙΚΟΣ Greek Myths are so complex and -more often than not- linked to each other that it's very difficult to focus on one story. Today's myth is one of those and I deliberately leave out a few of the names and details of this story but I promise to make separate episodes for those. Hermes and one of the mountain Nymphs had a son. A son with the body of a man, horns in his head and goat legs for feet. His mother got so frightened seeing the newborn that she abandoned him. Hermes picked him up and took him to Mount Olympus. He grew up to be the Greek god of lust, fun and general mischief. A devoted follower of Dionysus and Apollo's musical rival. Legend has it that one day, he was chasing a nymph in the woods but she managed to get away by asking the river Λάδων to save her and the river transformed her into a cane. The boy cried but he heard his voice going through the canes and make sound. He gathered a few canes, put them together and blew. Music! From that day on, he would keep all herds calm by playing music, he would be the protector of farmers but when he got mischievous , he'd jump-scare everyone and everything with weird sounds that would spread through the forests. the boy's name was Παν(Pan), his musical instrument we know as a pan-pipe and that unexpected terror animals and people would feel from time to time, was named Πανικός/Panic