Becoming a Greek Geek

[brofoxx]

It's my observation many here are able to handle Koine Greek and possibly Classical Greek.
I would like to join your ranks.
Would any of you share your thoughts on the best way to learn?
I once read "a little Greek is dangerous" so becoming a big Greek is preferable.
Thank you in advance for your input and guidance

Bill

[Paidion]

Welcome to the fourum, Bill!

I don't agree with those who say that a little bit of Greek is dangerous. I think any amount of learning of Koine Greek is helpful in understanding the New Testament.
There are various ways to learn Koine Greek. Are you near a Bible institute or Bible college? You may be able to take an evening course at one.
There are also online courses which you will find through an internet search. I once took a first year course from a London, England, Bible college.
The first thing to learn is the Greek alphabet. Perhaps you alread know it. But if not, I'll give you your first lesson. Each letter is pronounced in a word like the initial sound of its name. In case the pronunciation of the name is unclear, I have placed the usual pronunciation for learning Koine Greek letters in parentheses. The sounds of the letters may have been pronounced quite differently in the days Koine Greek was spoken. Modern Greek is definitely pronounced differently. I have also placed the letters into groups. Memorizing one group at a time seems to make memorization easier:

α alpha
β beta (bāta)
γ gamma
δ delta
ε epsilon

ζ zeta (dzāta)
η eta (āta)
θ theta (thāta)

ι iota (yōta)
κ kappa
λ lambda
μ mu (rhymes with "do"—at first I wrote " 'moo' as in cow", but I thought that might be confusing
ν nu (rhymes with "do")

ξ xi (ksē)
ο omicron
π pi (pē, just as the letter "p" is pronounced in English. I know it's pronounced "pie" in mathematics, but well... that's mathematics.)
ρ rho (rhō)
σ sigma ς sigma The second sigma is placed as the last letter in a word. Otherwise the first sigma is used.

τ tau (rhymes with "cow")
υ upsilon (pronounce the first vowel as the "oo" in "look")
φ phi (fē)
χ chi (chē) pronounce the "ch" and it would be pronounced in German
ψ psi (psē)

ω omega (ōmāga with the accent on the second syllable)

[backwoodsman]

It's my observation many here are able to handle Koine Greek and possibly Classical Greek.
I would like to join your ranks.

There are a few here who know some Greek, but my impression is that most of us know only what little we've picked up in the course of studying the Bible over the years.

I very much appreciate those who have put in the time and effort to become experts in Greek and Hebrew so they have the knowledge to translate the Bible, write lexicons, etc. But for those of us whose main purpose in studying the Bible is to deepen our relationship with God, I think the time and effort are better spent using the reference materials those folks wrote, than becoming language experts ourselves. Of course, your mileage may vary.

I once read a little Greek is dangerous so becoming a big Greek is preferable.

Big Greeks may be even more dangerous than little ones (but I digress). I think the idea of a little Greek being dangerous may come from the fact that Strong's typically offers several possible meanings for a word, but no hint of which is best in a particular instance, so it's very easy for someone who's a bit too hasty to pick one that's less than the best. That's where something like Robertson's Word Pictures can be very helpful. And there are lexicons much better than Strong's, like Thayer's or Zodhiates.

[dizerner]

[user account removed]

[brofoxx]

Thank you for the input.
Paidion, your pronunciations are more helpful than others I have found!

[Paidion]

Okay, so each letter of the Greek alphabet is pronounced like the first "sound" in its name, though the iota is pronounced either as a short "i" or a long "e" depending upon which sounds best in the word containing it. Thus the Greek word "ἀνθρωπος" is pronounced "anthrōpos" by modern people teaching or learning koine Greek. (I have reddened the accented syllable). By the way, that little mark above the alpha which looks like a comma, is called a smooth breathing. It does not alter the pronunciation. The double gamma in pronounced like "ng" in the English word "rang" If we were spelling "rang" with Greek letters, it would be "ραγγ".

"ἀνθρωπος" means "a human being" or "a person". Many lexicons give the definition "a man", but this can be confusing. It means "a man" only in the sense of being a member of the human race. But modern people seldom, if ever, use "a man" in that sense. I think a modern woman would be insulted if referred to as "a man."
The Greek word referring to a male person is "ἀνηρ" (anār).

All words beginning with a vowel have a breathing above the vowel. Here is a word with a rough breathing that looks like a backwards comma:
ἁ γιος
The rough breathing is pronounced as an "h". The word is pronounced "hagēos". It means "sanctified" or "holy" or "set apart for religious use".

Besides the letters of the alphabet, which include the vowels :α,ε,η,ι,ο,υ,ω, there are the vowel diphthongs.

αι, as in "aisle"
ει, (Greek instructors teach you to pronounce it as in "eight", but then it has the same sound as "η". So I taught my adult pupils to pronounce it as "ē".
οι, as in "oil"
αυ, as in "sauerkraut"
ευ, as in "feud"
ου, as in "soup"
υι,ηυ as in suite

Oh, by the way, if a word begins with a vowel diphthong, then the breathing is placed above the SECOND vowel in the diphthong.