Traveling With the Greek Language through Time

Abstract

Introduction. A language is the fundamental characteristic of a nation’s identity. It can unite the members of an ethic team and set them apart from the members of other ethnic teams. Aim. In this current review, the study presents the evolution of the Greek language from the ancient times, all the way up to today. Methodology. The study’s material consists of articles related to the topic, found in Greek and International και databases, the Google Scholar, and the Hellenic Academic Libraries (HEAL-Link). Results. The Greek language has been used since the third millennia B.C.. During the ancient times, it was the most widely used language in the Mediterranean Sea and South Europe. Until the fifth century B.C., the Greek language was a total of dialects. The Attica Dialect stood out from this dialectical mosaic. Then came the Hellenistic Common, which became the hegemonic language, the lingua franca of the "universe". The Hellenistic Common evolved to the Middle Ages Greek, and later the New Greek (fifth century A.D. - today). Besides, the creation of the New Greek state resulted to the gradual formation of the New Common, which will become the modern New Greek Common, under the effect of the scholar language. Conclusion. The Greek language keeps borrowing and assimilating words from other languages today, just like it did in the past, remaining unbroken for forty centuries.