Time for a Greek song! Posted by Ourania on Aug 29, 2019
Γεια σας! It is time to explore Greek music, so the topic of this post is Με γέλασαν τα πουλιά, a Greek folk song from Thrace (Θράκη). The version I chose to present is by Θανάσης Ζήκας (Thanasis Zikas) and Εύη Σεϊτανίδου (Evi Seytanidou), known as Καντινέλια (Kadinelia). If you ever have the chance…
Greek vocabulary quiz for upper-intermediate students Posted by Ourania on Aug 21, 2019
Γεια σας! The summer will end soon and some of you might want to review vocabulary before resuming the Greek lessons. In this post, there is a vocabulary quiz suitable for upper-intermediate students (B2 level). For sentences 1-12 choose the Greek word (α, β, γ or δ) that has the same meaning as the English…
Herbs used by the Greeks Posted by Ourania on Aug 14, 2019
If you visit Greece, you should try, at least once, a herbal tea and if you can, bring some herbs (βότανα) back home. Hippocrates (Ιπποκράτης), the father of medicine, studied the benefits of more than 250 herbs. in In this post, we will see a list of herbs, most of which are found in every…
Colloquial Greek: a list of common phrases Posted by Ourania on Aug 7, 2019
One of the biggest challenges we face when we communicate in a foreign language is to understand the colloquial language: we hear people speak and even though we know the meanings of the words they use, we cannot decode their phrases. In this post, there is a list of colloquial phrases which will help you…
Ten Common Greek verbs in the Imperative Mood Posted by Ourania on Jul 31, 2019
Γεια σας! In this post we will see the Imperative mood of ten passive verbs which are commonly used by native speakers. The tenses given are Ενεστώτας (Present), Αόριστος (Past Simple) and Προστακτική (Imperative). #1. Ενεστώτας:έρχομαι (to come) Αόριστος:ήρθα Προστακτική:έλα / ελάτε Example:Παιδιά, ελάτε μέσα, βρέχει! / Children, come in, it’s raining!…
Cotton candy or old woman’s hair? Greek idioms Posted by Ourania on Jul 14, 2019
The word μαλλί takes different meanings depending on the context. It can mean hair, wool and yarn. There are many idioms and proverbs used in colloquial Greek. Πόσο πάει το μαλλί; (How much does it cost?) «Βρήκα δωμάτια στο καινούργιο ξενοδοχείο.» «Πόσο πάει το μαλλί;» (“I found rooms at the new hotel.” “How much do…
7 things you didn’t know about the Greek election Posted by Ourania on Jul 3, 2019
Γεια σας! Sunday, the 7th of July is the date of the general election (βουλευτικές εκλογές). In this post, we will explore some historic facts related to the public election in Greece. The Constitution of 1864 (Το Σύνταγμα του 1864) acknowledged civil rights (πολιτικά δικαιώματα) to women. Τhe Greek women participated at the general election…