Eutopia – Utopia – A Greek Neverland?
The word Utopia; used to describe an imaginary island, a perfect world, was first used by Sir Thomas More, an English lawyer, writer and statesman, in his book “Utopia”, written in 1516....
Category: Untranslatable Greek Words
Greek Word Draconian – Drastic Measures in Ancient Greece
The word, draconian (δρακόντειος – drakónteios), meaning harsh, severe, cruel and drastic, is used in English and other European languages but its origins are Greek. Draconian derives from Draco (also called Drako...
The Greek Phrase – I Throw a Black Stone Behind Me – Never Going Back
We’ve all had that feeling of ‘I never want to go back there ’ or ‘I never want to see that accursed place again’; a Greek’s response to this, may be to...
Abraxas – Abracadabra – Greek Magic!
The magic word, abracadabra, often spoken with great gusto and the wave of a magic wand, just before a rabbit is pulled out of a hat, may have Greek origins, in the...
Kudos – The Ancient Greek Word For You’re Awesome
Here’s yet another Greek word, used frequently in English today, taken from ancient Greek: Kudos ((κῦδος – kudos), meaning praise and honour received for an achievement. Synonyms: prestige, regard, honour, praise Kudos, a singular...
The Word Panic Originates From the Greek God Pan
The word Panic, Panikos in Greek, meaning a sudden sensation of fear, overwhelming anxiety or agitation; a feeling so strong as to often block out reasonable and logical behavior, is derived...
20 of the Funniest and Dirtiest Nonsensical Greek Expressions
Greek isn’t one of the easiest foreign languages to master and when it comes to everyday quips and wisecrack sayings, which usually contain Greek slang, unless you are Greek, or have lived...
Meaning of Euphoria – A Greek State of Ecstacy
Euphoria, an overwhelming, pleasurable, emotion, is an ancient Greek word, a noun, from the Greek ‘eu’, meaning well and ‘phero’, meaning to bear, or, to carry. The opposite of euphoria, is dysphoria,...
Philhellenism and Famous Philhellenes – For the Love of Greece
Philhellenism comes from the Greek word “philos”, meaning friend and Hellenism, meaning Greekness (for want of a better word), it is to have a love, a passion, an enthusiasm, an obsession even,...
Greek Word Kairos – the Ancient Concept of Time and Opportunity
Many people, including the Greeks themselves, think the words ‘Kairos’ or ‘Caerus’ and the word ‘Chronos’ have the same meaning, well, in a way, they do. Invariably, when asking a Greek the...
