Spurious diphthong
Encyclopedia
A spurious diphthong is an Ancient Greek
vowel
that is etymologically a long vowel
, but is written and pronounced exactly like a true diphthong
ει, ου (ei, ou).
of short ε, ο (e, o) after the deletion of a consonant:
or from contraction of two vowels:
In general, spurious ει, ου contracts from ε, ο + ε, ο, ει, ου. The specific rules are more complex.
+ i, or o-grade + u, and coexist beside forms with the other grade:
, the diphthong versions of ει and ου would have been pronounced as [ei̯, ou̯], and the long vowel versions as [eː, oː]. By the Classical
period, the diphthong and long vowel had merged in pronunciation and were both pronounced as long monophthong
s [eː, oː].
By the time of Koine Greek
, ει and ου had shifted to [iː, uː]. (The shift of a Greek vowel to i is called iotacism
.) In Modern Greek
, distinctive vowel length has been lost, and the vowels are pronounced short, as [i, u].
-Ionic
: ει, ου and η, ω (ē, ō). In earlier Severer Doric
, by contrast, only η, ω counted as a long vowel, and this was the vowel of contraction. Though later forms of Doric contracted to ει, ου, throughout the history of Doric, compensatory lengthening used η, ω.
"Severe" refers to the sterner-sounding open pronunciation of η, ω [ɛː, ɔː] in contrast to the closer
ει, ου [eː, oː].
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
vowel
Vowel
In phonetics, a vowel is a sound in spoken language, such as English ah! or oh! , pronounced with an open vocal tract so that there is no build-up of air pressure at any point above the glottis. This contrasts with consonants, such as English sh! , where there is a constriction or closure at some...
that is etymologically a long vowel
Vowel length
In linguistics, vowel length is the perceived duration of a vowel sound. Often the chroneme, or the "longness", acts like a consonant, and may etymologically be one, such as in Australian English. While not distinctive in most dialects of English, vowel length is an important phonemic factor in...
, but is written and pronounced exactly like a true diphthong
Diphthong
A diphthong , also known as a gliding vowel, refers to two adjacent vowel sounds occurring within the same syllable. Technically, a diphthong is a vowel with two different targets: That is, the tongue moves during the pronunciation of the vowel...
ει, ου (ei, ou).
Origin
A spurious diphthong has two origins: from compensatory lengtheningCompensatory lengthening
Compensatory lengthening in phonology and historical linguistics is the lengthening of a vowel sound that happens upon the loss of a following consonant, usually in the syllable coda...
of short ε, ο (e, o) after the deletion of a consonant:
- μόντ-ι̯α → μόνσα (assibilationAssibilationIn linguistics, assibilation is the term for a sound change resulting in a sibilant consonant. It is commonly the final phase of palatalization.-Romance languages:...
from palatalizationPalatalizationIn linguistics, palatalization , also palatization, may refer to two different processes by which a sound, usually a consonant, comes to be produced with the tongue in a position in the mouth near the palate....
) → μοῦσα "muse" - δοτερ-ι̯α → δότειρα "giver" (feminine; compare masculine δοτήρ)
or from contraction of two vowels:
- φιλέ-ετε → φιλεῖτε "y'all love"
- νόος → νοῦς "mind"
In general, spurious ει, ου contracts from ε, ο + ε, ο, ει, ου. The specific rules are more complex.
True diphthongs
By contrast, true diphthongs are e or o placed before i or u. Some come from e-grade of ablautIndo-European ablaut
In linguistics, ablaut is a system of apophony in Proto-Indo-European and its far-reaching consequences in all of the modern Indo-European languages...
+ i, or o-grade + u, and coexist beside forms with the other grade:
- λείπω "I leave" (e-grade: genuine diphthong) — λέReduplicationReduplication in linguistics is a morphological process in which the root or stem of a word is repeated exactly or with a slight change....
-λοιπα "I have left" (o-grade) - ἐλεύ(θ)σομαι "I will come" (e-grade) — HomericHomeric GreekHomeric Greek is the form of the Greek language that was used by Homer in the Iliad and Odyssey. It is an archaic version of Ionic Greek, with admixtures from certain other dialects, such as Aeolic Greek. It later served as the basis of Epic Greek, the language of epic poetry, typically in...
εἰλ-ήλουθα "I have come" (o-grade)
Pronunciation
Early in the history of GreekHistory of Greek
This article is an overview of the history of Greek.-Origins:There are several theories about the origins of the Greek language. One theory suggests that it originated with a migration of proto-Greek speakers into the Greek peninsula, which is dated to any period between 2500 BC and 1700 BC...
, the diphthong versions of ει and ου would have been pronounced as [ei̯, ou̯], and the long vowel versions as [eː, oː]. By the Classical
Classical Greece
Classical Greece was a 200 year period in Greek culture lasting from the 5th through 4th centuries BC. This classical period had a powerful influence on the Roman Empire and greatly influenced the foundation of Western civilizations. Much of modern Western politics, artistic thought, such as...
period, the diphthong and long vowel had merged in pronunciation and were both pronounced as long monophthong
Monophthong
A monophthong is a pure vowel sound, one whose articulation at both beginning and end is relatively fixed, and which does not glide up or down towards a new position of articulation....
s [eː, oː].
By the time of Koine Greek
Koine Greek
Koine Greek is the universal dialect of the Greek language spoken throughout post-Classical antiquity , developing from the Attic dialect, with admixture of elements especially from Ionic....
, ει and ου had shifted to [iː, uː]. (The shift of a Greek vowel to i is called iotacism
Iotacism
Iotacism is the process by which a number of vowels and diphthongs in Ancient Greek converged in pronunciation so that they all sound like iota in Modern Greek....
.) In Modern Greek
Modern Greek
Modern Greek refers to the varieties of the Greek language spoken in the modern era. The beginning of the "modern" period of the language is often symbolically assigned to the fall of the Byzantine Empire in 1453, even though that date marks no clear linguistic boundary and many characteristic...
, distinctive vowel length has been lost, and the vowels are pronounced short, as [i, u].
Other dialects
Long e or o existed in two forms in AtticAttic Greek
Attic Greek is the prestige dialect of Ancient Greek that was spoken in Attica, which includes Athens. Of the ancient dialects, it is the most similar to later Greek, and is the standard form of the language studied in courses of "Ancient Greek". It is sometimes included in Ionic.- Origin and range...
-Ionic
Ionic Greek
Ionic Greek was a subdialect of the Attic–Ionic dialect group of Ancient Greek .-History:Ionic dialect appears to have spread originally from the Greek mainland across the Aegean at the time of the Dorian invasions, around the 11th Century B.C.By the end of the Greek Dark Ages in the 5th Century...
: ει, ου and η, ω (ē, ō). In earlier Severer Doric
Doric Greek
Doric or Dorian was a dialect of ancient Greek. Its variants were spoken in the southern and eastern Peloponnese, Crete, Rhodes, some islands in the southern Aegean Sea, some cities on the coasts of Asia Minor, Southern Italy, Sicily, Epirus and Macedon. Together with Northwest Greek, it forms the...
, by contrast, only η, ω counted as a long vowel, and this was the vowel of contraction. Though later forms of Doric contracted to ει, ου, throughout the history of Doric, compensatory lengthening used η, ω.
"Severe" refers to the sterner-sounding open pronunciation of η, ω [ɛː, ɔː] in contrast to the closer
Close-mid vowel
A close-mid vowel is a type of vowel sound used in some spoken languages. The defining characteristic of a close-mid vowel is that the tongue is positioned two-thirds of the way from a close vowel to a mid vowel...
ει, ου [eː, oː].