(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 …

(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 ru…

(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 an…

(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…

(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'.…

(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, d…

(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 riv…

(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 o…

(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' bec…

(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 …

(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, n…

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 debat…

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.comโดย Emmanuela Lia

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 , I…

(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…

(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 Twi…

(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)…

(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 mea…

(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…

(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' w…

(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 literatur…

(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 Twi…

(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…

(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 …

(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…

(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…

(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. …

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 y…

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…

(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 's…

(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 …

(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'…

(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 collectio…

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, christ…

(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 a…

(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 tha…

(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 …

(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 …

(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 (p…

(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'. …

(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 S…

(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/UTOPI…

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 it…

(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 anglicise…

(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 conn…

(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 yourgre…

(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…

(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…

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 shor…