Perceptions and Social Uses of the Ancient Greek Dialects

Andreas Willi, Philomen Probert

• Publisher: De Gruyter
• Year: 2025
• Topic: History
• eBook ISBN:
  9783111679310
• Subtopic: Ancient History
• Index: History

Research on the ancient Greek dialects traditionally focusses on the grammatical description of these regional varieties. But dialects are more than geographically conditioned varieties of a language: in antiquity no less than in modern times, dialects may assume a range of social meanings, as speakers associate specific forms of speech with communicative situations and purposes that are independent of geographical location as such. This volume aims to complement research on the grammars of the ancient Greek dialects by exploring sociolinguistic and socio-pragmatic dimensions of dialect variation in the Greek world. For example, what factors determine the choice of a given variety, in situations of competition between different dialects—including competition between Koiné Greek and regional dialects? How are regional dialects represented in literature, and what do ancient sources tell us about the para-linguistic associations evoked by the use of a given dialect? How do ancient scholars and grammarians evaluate dialect usage—including 'unexpected' dialect features in literary texts? How do social and historical changes impact on the relationship between epichoric and literary dialects?

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Frontmatter
• Contents
• List of Abbreviations
• List of Tables
• List of Figures
• Introduction: Perceptions and Social Uses of the Ancient Greek Dialects
• Section I: Poetic Dialects and Epigraphic Poetry
• A Polymorphic Goddess: The Multiple Dialectal Variants of Athena’s Name in Attic Poetry
• Alternative Literary Traditions in Greek Epigrammatic Poetry down to 400 BCE?
• Local Dialects and “Literary Language(s)” in Classical and Hellenistic Inscribed Sacred Songs: Tradition, Linguistic Adaptation, and Transmission
• Hellenistic Epigrams from Cos: Between Pan-Hellenic Dialectal Trends and Local Influence
• Section II: Regional Histories of Dialect Use and Variation
• Dialect Competition: Arcadian as a Test Case
• The Cretan Dialect and its Socio-political Context (8th-1st Centuries BCE)
• The Boeotian Dialect (Late 8th or Early 7th to 2nd Century BCE): Ecology of a System
• Dialect, Koine, and Latin on Lesbos
• Section III: When and How to Switch to Koine Greek
• Competing Influences and Dialectal Models in the Language of Boeotian Proxeny Decrees (4th to 2nd Century BCE)
• Koineization in NW Doric Areas and the Onomastic Evidence: The Κλεύμαχος/Κλεόμαχος-type Compound Names Revisited
• Socio-dialectal Koineization in the Argive Onomasticon: A Quantitative Analysis of a Cohort of 275 Personal Names (6th cent. BCE – 2nd cent. CE)
• Section IV: Perceptions and Classifications of the Greek Dialects in Antiquity and Beyond
• Perceptions of Linguistic Divergence in Greek Comedy
• Sounding Attic in Imperial Inscriptions
• “Unlicensed Greek”: The “Dialect of Alexandria” in Ancient Greek Scholarship
• The Grammaticus Leidensis on the Aeolic Dialect: A Study in Textual Criticism and Historical Perceptual Dialectology
• The Aeolodoric Theory: A Reflection on the Perception of the Ancient Greek Dialects
• List of Contributors
• General Index
• Index of Authors and Passages
• Index of Inscriptions and Papyri