Hints on Pronouncing Ancient Greek Names
Here are a few suggestions to help you pronounce ancient Greek names (and
other ancient Greek words) in
their usual Anglicized way (i.e., not in reconstructed ancient Greek
pronunciation). This is at best a guide; to be sure you will have to
look in a dictionary. For the most part, pronounce the name like an
English word, but with the following exceptions:
-
Final "e" is always pronounced: Athene = a-THEE-neh.
-
"Ch" is pronounced like "k," never as in "church."
-
"C" is pronounced soft (like "s") before "e" and "i" sounds, otherwise
it's pronounced hard (like "k"). (This is quite unhistorical; in
ancient times all "c"s were hard, but we are used to pronouncing
"Caesar," "Circe," etc. with a soft "c.")
-
The same applies to "g"; soft (as in "giant") before "e" and "i"
sounds, hard (as in "gate") otherwise.
-
"Th" is always smooth, as in "thigh," never rough, as in "they."
-
You can pronounce the vowels as in English, but you will be a little
closer to the ancient pronunciation if you pronounce them as in Romance
languages (Italian, Spanish, etc.).
-
"Ae" and "oe" can be pronounced like "e."
-
General rules of accent:
-
If a name has two syllables, accent the first.
-
If a name has three or more syllables, then:
- accent the second-to-last syllable, if it's long;
- accent the third-to-last, otherwise.
Unfortunately, the decision is determined by whether the syllable is
long in Greek!
However, if the syllable contains a diphthong or contains a vowel followed by two
or more consonants, it is guaranteed to be long.
Beyond that, you are on your own, I'm afraid.
-
Examples:
Aeschylus = ES-kih-lus or EE-skih-lus,
Aphrodite = ah-froh-DI-tee,
Herodotus = heh-RAH-do-tus,
Thermopylae = ther-MO-pih-lee,
Thucydides = thoo-SIH-di-des.
Source: Crosby & Schaeffer, Intro. to Greek, sect. 66.
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Last updated:
Tue Sep 28 15:39:23 EDT 1999