Ancient Greek – Morphology, Part 4
Beek, Lucien van
Huitink, Luuk
Introduction to the inflectional categories of verbs in Ancient Greek.
 Hello there, welcome back to the fourth and last part of the morphology section. This presentation is about the most complicated part of Greek morphology, verbal conjugation. So, in this presentation I'll first give a general overview of the categories expressed by Greek verbs, and then discuss one characteristic morphological marker, redouplication, in more detail. Added Greek verbal morphology is paradigm-based. Forms within a paradigm may express up to five different categories. All verb forms belong to a so-called tense aspect stem, about which we will hear more on the next slide. Moreover, every form is marked for voice, the main opposition being between active and middle voice. In finite verb forms, mode must be expressed. The choice is between indicative, subjunctive, optative and imperative. All finite forms are marked for personate number, singular, dual or plural. And finally, for each tense aspect stem and voice, there are two non-finite verb forms, an infinitive, which is non-inflective, and a participle, which is inflective. Indicative forms are also marked for tense, in that the present and perfect stems have a distinction between primary, that is, non-past, and secondary, past endings. These indicatives with secondary endings are called imperfect and pluperfect. The secondary endings are also used by and large in the optative and imperative modes. What has just been said is illustrated by the sample paradigm of luo to release in the active voice. From top to bottom, the modes and non-finite forms are presented for each tense aspect stem. These tense aspect stems are given from left to right. The categories personate number are not included in this table. We will find out more about this paradigm in the following slides. All Greek verbal paradigms revolve around these four tense aspect stems. Dynamic events are expressed with either the present stem or the aorist stem. The present stem has imperfective aspect, the aorist stem has perfective aspect. For non-dynamic predicates, the perfect stem is used. It expresses stative actions art. The future stem is used for events with future temporal reference. Note that the future and perfect stems are unmarked for aspect. The semantic and syntactic properties of these tense aspect stems will be discussed in more detail in the presentations on syntax. In Ionic Greek and especially in the Homeric epics, there are some additional derived stems, such as the past iterative in schae score and the reduplicated aorist. And there are also lexicalized traces of other types of derived stem. In classical Attic however, almost every verbal paradigm has the four tense aspect stems that we just mentioned, at no derived stems. The main morphological device used in verbal stem formation is suffixation, as for instance in the productive aorist and future stem suffix sigma, the active perfect stem suffix kappa, and various different present stem suffixes. These suffixes may well have had a derivational function originally, but synchronically they are used inflectionally within verbal paradigms. Apart from such suffixes, another important inflectional device is reduplication, as found in the perfect stem. Reduplication is used in both inflection and derivation, and we will discuss it in more detail in a minute. A remarkable feature is the augment, which is either a prefix e attached before the stem, as in eluon, or a lengthening of the stem initial vowel. In Attic Greek, the augment is used as an obligatory marker of indicative forms with secondary endings. In Homeric Greek however, the augment was not yet obligatory. In fact, past tense forms in Homer more commonly have no augment. Over the past decades there has been a lively debate about the augment's original function. This function is likely to have involved pragmatic and or aspectual factors. I will now show you the morphological markers that we just discussed in the active paradigm of Luo. So here are the forms that we already saw. And here you see the sigmatic suffix in all moods of the aorist and future of Luo. Note that these two stems remain distinct because the future in addition has thematic endings. Also, note that the sigmatic suffix is only one of several ways to mark an aorist or future stem. And as you may know, there are other types of aorist such as the thematic aorist. Here we see the K as one of the two markers of the active perfect stem. By the way, the K is not a general marker of the perfect stem. The middle perfect does not have it, and only one group of active perfect has the suffix. The productive marker of the perfect stem in Greek is reduplication. Every perfect stem has it, with the exception of Oida to know. And here we see that all indicative forms with secondary endings are obligatorily marked with the augments. As for voice, Greek has a basic distinction between active and mediopassive forms. In the present stem, the mediopassive may express typical middle meanings, such as reflexive and anti-causative, but also passive. Thus, luomai means either I am releasing with an affected subject, or I untie myself, or even passive I am being released. In the aorist and future stems, however, most transitive verbs have a three-fold opposition in which the passive voice is expressed by the suffix e, or more often te. In these stems, the middle form is used only for expressing the typical middle meanings. Thus, elusamen means I released, mostly with the nuance that the subject takes interest in its own action, or is affected by it. On the other hand, eluten, I was released, is simply a passive. Not all verbs have voice distinctions. There are many verbs without active forms, so-called deponent verbs, and also quite some active only verbs. Here we again see all finite and infinite stem forms of the active voice. The corresponding middle forms are obtained by keeping the stem intact, and simply replacing the active endings by middle ones. An exception is the perfect stem, where the middle le luomai does not have the marker k, but is characterized only by reduplication. And here we see that only the aorist and future stem have separate passive forms. The present and perfect stems are identical to those of the middle. In fact, mediopassive perfects such as le luomai usually have passive meaning when they are formed to transitive verbs. Let us now discuss reduplication as a morphological device in more detail. As we just heard, reduplication in ancient Greek belongs to two domains of morphology, inflection and derivation. In Attic Greek, it is productive only in the formation of the perfect stem. Now, perfect reduplication comes in three forms. The default strategy is partial reduplication, copying only the first onset consonant of the root. The reduplication vowel in these perfects is always e. We find this type with roots starting with a single consonant, or with consonant plus resonant, or an original w. Examples are le leupa, I have left from the root lepe, and the mediopassive perfect beblermai, I have been hit from the up-loading root ble. Note that in beblermai, the perfect stem is distinguished from that of the middle root aorist ble-to. He was hit only by its reduplication. This incidentally proves that reduplication is used as an inflectional device. Another frequent means of deriving a perfect stem is by prefixing e to roots with an onset consisting of two occlusives, or a starting with s plus occlusive, occlusive plus s, or with row. Examples are ectona, esfaktai, and erraptai. Synchronically, such perfect stems are not reduplicated, but historically speaking, forms like esfaktai and erraptai once were reduplicated. Since their roots started with s, the reduplication syllable se yielded the ad prefix by regular lenition of pre-vocalic s and dissimulation of aspirates. From such cases, the ad prefix may have been generalized to environments as in ectona, where normal reduplication was for some reason avoided. A final type of reduplication in the perfect stem is called attic reduplication. In roots with initial vowel plus consonant, where the initial vowel derives from a proto-in-european laryngel, the most widespread reduplication strategy is to copy vc and then lengthen the root initial vowel. This yields forms like eleluta, I have come from the root elaut elut, and akekoa, the perfect of akuo, to hear. These two examples have disalabic roots, but the same procedure is widespread for monosalabic roots, for instance ar to fit with the perfect arere. It is still debated whether attic reduplication can be explained from a normal type of reduplication, where only the first consonant was copied. Outside the perfect stem, there is one other formation where reduplication was used productively, but only in Homer. This is the reduplicated aorist, a derived stem, with causative meaning in the active. Its reduplication syllable has a vocalism as a default, but there are also cases of attic reduplication. An example is the root frad, meaning to notice, which has a causative aorist, epephradon, I pointed out. Otherwise, we find reduplication only as a relic in certain derived stems. In Greek present stems, the only productive reduplication vowel is i. We find a number of reduplicated athematic root presence, like tithemi, derived from the up-loading root te, and secondly, there are a number of reduplicated thematic root presence, such as mimno, to hold on with the root men to remain in the zero grade. Thirdly, there are various reduplicated presence with a suffix skor, such as gingno skor, to recognize, and only in the small type mimno does the reduplicated present stem compete with another formation, the thematic root present menno. So if we want to approach possible original functions of reduplication, it is in such pairs that we have to look first. I hope this presentation has given you an overview of the inflectional verbal system of classical attic, and that it also gives you an idea of other derivational formations that existed in earlier stages of the language. I thank you for your attention.
 Hello there, welcome back to the fourth and last part of the morphology section.  This presentation is about the most complicated part of Greek morphology, verbal conjugation.  So, in this presentation I'll first give a general overview of the categories expressed by Greek verbs,  and then discuss one characteristic morphological marker, redouplication, in more detail.  Added Greek verbal morphology is paradigm-based. Forms within a paradigm may express up to five different categories.  All verb forms belong to a so-called tense aspect stem, about which we will hear more on the next slide.  Moreover, every form is marked for voice, the main opposition being between active and middle voice.  In finite verb forms, mode must be expressed. The choice is between indicative, subjunctive, optative and imperative.  All finite forms are marked for personate number, singular, dual or plural.  And finally, for each tense aspect stem and voice, there are two non-finite verb forms,  an infinitive, which is non-inflective, and a participle, which is inflective.  Indicative forms are also marked for tense, in that the present and perfect stems have a distinction between primary,  that is, non-past, and secondary, past endings.  These indicatives with secondary endings are called imperfect and pluperfect.  The secondary endings are also used by and large in the optative and imperative modes.  What has just been said is illustrated by the sample paradigm of luo to release in the active voice.  From top to bottom, the modes and non-finite forms are presented for each tense aspect stem.  These tense aspect stems are given from left to right.  The categories personate number are not included in this table.  We will find out more about this paradigm in the following slides.  All Greek verbal paradigms revolve around these four tense aspect stems.  Dynamic events are expressed with either the present stem or the aorist stem.  The present stem has imperfective aspect, the aorist stem has perfective aspect.  For non-dynamic predicates, the perfect stem is used. It expresses stative actions art.  The future stem is used for events with future temporal reference.  Note that the future and perfect stems are unmarked for aspect.  The semantic and syntactic properties of these tense aspect stems will be discussed in more detail in the presentations on syntax.  In Ionic Greek and especially in the Homeric epics, there are some additional derived stems,  such as the past iterative in schae score and the reduplicated aorist.  And there are also lexicalized traces of other types of derived stem.  In classical Attic however, almost every verbal paradigm has the four tense aspect stems that we just mentioned, at no derived stems.  The main morphological device used in verbal stem formation is suffixation,  as for instance in the productive aorist and future stem suffix sigma,  the active perfect stem suffix kappa, and various different present stem suffixes.  These suffixes may well have had a derivational function originally,  but synchronically they are used inflectionally within verbal paradigms.  Apart from such suffixes, another important inflectional device is reduplication, as found in the perfect stem.  Reduplication is used in both inflection and derivation, and we will discuss it in more detail in a minute.  A remarkable feature is the augment, which is either a prefix e attached before the stem,  as in eluon, or a lengthening of the stem initial vowel.  In Attic Greek, the augment is used as an obligatory marker of indicative forms with secondary endings.  In Homeric Greek however, the augment was not yet obligatory.  In fact, past tense forms in Homer more commonly have no augment.  Over the past decades there has been a lively debate about the augment's original function.  This function is likely to have involved pragmatic and or aspectual factors.  I will now show you the morphological markers that we just discussed in the active paradigm of Luo.  So here are the forms that we already saw.  And here you see the sigmatic suffix in all moods of the aorist and future of Luo.  Note that these two stems remain distinct because the future in addition has thematic endings.  Also, note that the sigmatic suffix is only one of several ways to mark an aorist or future stem.  And as you may know, there are other types of aorist such as the thematic aorist.  Here we see the K as one of the two markers of the active perfect stem.  By the way, the K is not a general marker of the perfect stem.  The middle perfect does not have it, and only one group of active perfect has the suffix.  The productive marker of the perfect stem in Greek is reduplication.  Every perfect stem has it, with the exception of Oida to know.  And here we see that all indicative forms with secondary endings are obligatorily marked with the augments.  As for voice, Greek has a basic distinction between active and mediopassive forms.  In the present stem, the mediopassive may express typical middle meanings,  such as reflexive and anti-causative, but also passive.  Thus, luomai means either I am releasing with an affected subject, or I untie myself,  or even passive I am being released.  In the aorist and future stems, however, most transitive verbs have a three-fold opposition  in which the passive voice is expressed by the suffix e, or more often te.  In these stems, the middle form is used only for expressing the typical middle meanings.  Thus, elusamen means I released, mostly with the nuance that the subject takes interest in its own action,  or is affected by it.  On the other hand, eluten, I was released, is simply a passive.  Not all verbs have voice distinctions.  There are many verbs without active forms, so-called deponent verbs,  and also quite some active only verbs.  Here we again see all finite and infinite stem forms of the active voice.  The corresponding middle forms are obtained by keeping the stem intact,  and simply replacing the active endings by middle ones.  An exception is the perfect stem, where the middle le luomai does not have the marker k,  but is characterized only by reduplication.  And here we see that only the aorist and future stem have separate passive forms.  The present and perfect stems are identical to those of the middle.  In fact, mediopassive perfects such as le luomai usually have passive meaning  when they are formed to transitive verbs.  Let us now discuss reduplication as a morphological device in more detail.  As we just heard, reduplication in ancient Greek belongs to two domains of morphology,  inflection and derivation.  In Attic Greek, it is productive only in the formation of the perfect stem.  Now, perfect reduplication comes in three forms.  The default strategy is partial reduplication,  copying only the first onset consonant of the root.  The reduplication vowel in these perfects is always e.  We find this type with roots starting with a single consonant,  or with consonant plus resonant, or an original w.  Examples are le leupa, I have left from the root lepe,  and the mediopassive perfect beblermai, I have been hit from the up-loading root ble.  Note that in beblermai, the perfect stem is distinguished from that of the middle root aorist ble-to.  He was hit only by its reduplication.  This incidentally proves that reduplication is used as an inflectional device.  Another frequent means of deriving a perfect stem is by prefixing e to roots with an onset  consisting of two occlusives, or a starting with s plus occlusive, occlusive plus s, or with row.  Examples are ectona, esfaktai, and erraptai.  Synchronically, such perfect stems are not reduplicated,  but historically speaking, forms like esfaktai and erraptai once were reduplicated.  Since their roots started with s, the reduplication syllable se  yielded the ad prefix by regular lenition of pre-vocalic s and dissimulation of aspirates.  From such cases, the ad prefix may have been generalized to environments as in ectona,  where normal reduplication was for some reason avoided.  A final type of reduplication in the perfect stem is called attic reduplication.  In roots with initial vowel plus consonant, where the initial vowel derives from a proto-in-european laryngel,  the most widespread reduplication strategy is to copy vc and then lengthen the root initial vowel.  This yields forms like eleluta, I have come from the root elaut elut,  and akekoa, the perfect of akuo, to hear.  These two examples have disalabic roots, but the same procedure is widespread for monosalabic roots,  for instance ar to fit with the perfect arere.  It is still debated whether attic reduplication can be explained from a normal type of reduplication,  where only the first consonant was copied.  Outside the perfect stem, there is one other formation where reduplication was used productively,  but only in Homer.  This is the reduplicated aorist, a derived stem, with causative meaning in the active.  Its reduplication syllable has a vocalism as a default, but there are also cases of attic reduplication.  An example is the root frad, meaning to notice, which has a causative aorist, epephradon, I pointed out.  Otherwise, we find reduplication only as a relic in certain derived stems.  In Greek present stems, the only productive reduplication vowel is i.  We find a number of reduplicated athematic root presence, like tithemi,  derived from the up-loading root te, and secondly, there are a number of reduplicated thematic root presence,  such as mimno, to hold on with the root men to remain in the zero grade.  Thirdly, there are various reduplicated presence with a suffix skor, such as gingno skor, to recognize,  and only in the small type mimno does the reduplicated present stem compete with another formation, the thematic root present menno.  So if we want to approach possible original functions of reduplication, it is in such pairs that we have to look first.  I hope this presentation has given you an overview of the inflectional verbal system of classical attic,  and that it also gives you an idea of other derivational formations that existed in earlier stages of the language.  I thank you for your attention.
Ancient_Greek_3_0_119.png Ancient_Greek_3_120_2639.png Ancient_Greek_3_2640_4223.png Ancient_Greek_3_4224_7295.png Ancient_Greek_3_7296_8663.png Ancient_Greek_3_8664_9791.png Ancient_Greek_3_9792_10211.png Ancient_Greek_3_10212_10499.png Ancient_Greek_3_10500_11495.png Ancient_Greek_3_11496_11639.png Ancient_Greek_3_11640_12059.png Ancient_Greek_3_12060_13343.png Ancient_Greek_3_13344_14855.png Ancient_Greek_3_14856_15683.png Ancient_Greek_3_15684_18071.png Ancient_Greek_3_18072_19077.png
Hello there, welcome back to the fourth and last part of the morphology section. This presentation is about the most complicated part of Greek morphology, verbal conjugation. So, in this presentation I'll first give a general overview of the categories expressed by Greek verbs, and then discuss one characteristic morphological marker, redouplication, in more detail. Added Greek verbal morphology is paradigm-based. Forms within a paradigm may express up to five different categories. All verb forms belong to a so-called tense aspect stem, about which we will hear more on the next slide. Moreover, every form is marked for voice, the main opposition being between active and middle voice. In finite verb forms, mode must be expressed. The choice is between indicative, subjunctive, optative and imperative. All finite forms are marked for personate number, singular, dual or plural. And finally, for each tense aspect stem and voice, there are two non-finite verb forms, an infinitive, which is non-inflective, and a participle, which is inflective. Indicative forms are also marked for tense, in that the present and perfect stems have a distinction between primary, that is, non-past, and secondary, past endings. These indicatives with secondary endings are called imperfect and pluperfect. The secondary endings are also used by and large in the optative and imperative modes. What has just been said is illustrated by the sample paradigm of luo to release in the active voice. From top to bottom, the modes and non-finite forms are presented for each tense aspect stem. These tense aspect stems are given from left to right. The categories personate number are not included in this table. We will find out more about this paradigm in the following slides. All Greek verbal paradigms revolve around these four tense aspect stems. Dynamic events are expressed with either the present stem or the aorist stem. The present stem has imperfective aspect, the aorist stem has perfective aspect. For non-dynamic predicates, the perfect stem is used. It expresses stative actions art. The future stem is used for events with future temporal reference. Note that the future and perfect stems are unmarked for aspect. The semantic and syntactic properties of these tense aspect stems will be discussed in more detail in the presentations on syntax. In Ionic Greek and especially in the Homeric epics, there are some additional derived stems, such as the past iterative in schae score and the reduplicated aorist. And there are also lexicalized traces of other types of derived stem. In classical Attic however, almost every verbal paradigm has the four tense aspect stems that we just mentioned, at no derived stems. The main morphological device used in verbal stem formation is suffixation, as for instance in the productive aorist and future stem suffix sigma, the active perfect stem suffix kappa, and various different present stem suffixes. These suffixes may well have had a derivational function originally, but synchronically they are used inflectionally within verbal paradigms. Apart from such suffixes, another important inflectional device is reduplication, as found in the perfect stem. Reduplication is used in both inflection and derivation, and we will discuss it in more detail in a minute. A remarkable feature is the augment, which is either a prefix e attached before the stem, as in eluon, or a lengthening of the stem initial vowel. In Attic Greek, the augment is used as an obligatory marker of indicative forms with secondary endings. In Homeric Greek however, the augment was not yet obligatory. In fact, past tense forms in Homer more commonly have no augment. Over the past decades there has been a lively debate about the augment's original function. This function is likely to have involved pragmatic and or aspectual factors. I will now show you the morphological markers that we just discussed in the active paradigm of Luo. So here are the forms that we already saw. And here you see the sigmatic suffix in all moods of the aorist and future of Luo. Note that these two stems remain distinct because the future in addition has thematic endings. Also, note that the sigmatic suffix is only one of several ways to mark an aorist or future stem. And as you may know, there are other types of aorist such as the thematic aorist. Here we see the K as one of the two markers of the active perfect stem. By the way, the K is not a general marker of the perfect stem. The middle perfect does not have it, and only one group of active perfect has the suffix. The productive marker of the perfect stem in Greek is reduplication. Every perfect stem has it, with the exception of Oida to know. And here we see that all indicative forms with secondary endings are obligatorily marked with the augments. As for voice, Greek has a basic distinction between active and mediopassive forms. In the present stem, the mediopassive may express typical middle meanings, such as reflexive and anti-causative, but also passive. Thus, luomai means either I am releasing with an affected subject, or I untie myself, or even passive I am being released. In the aorist and future stems, however, most transitive verbs have a three-fold opposition in which the passive voice is expressed by the suffix e, or more often te. In these stems, the middle form is used only for expressing the typical middle meanings. Thus, elusamen means I released, mostly with the nuance that the subject takes interest in its own action, or is affected by it. On the other hand, eluten, I was released, is simply a passive. Not all verbs have voice distinctions. There are many verbs without active forms, so-called deponent verbs, and also quite some active only verbs. Here we again see all finite and infinite stem forms of the active voice. The corresponding middle forms are obtained by keeping the stem intact, and simply replacing the active endings by middle ones. An exception is the perfect stem, where the middle le luomai does not have the marker k, but is characterized only by reduplication. And here we see that only the aorist and future stem have separate passive forms. The present and perfect stems are identical to those of the middle. In fact, mediopassive perfects such as le luomai usually have passive meaning when they are formed to transitive verbs. Let us now discuss reduplication as a morphological device in more detail. As we just heard, reduplication in ancient Greek belongs to two domains of morphology, inflection and derivation. In Attic Greek, it is productive only in the formation of the perfect stem. Now, perfect reduplication comes in three forms. The default strategy is partial reduplication, copying only the first onset consonant of the root. The reduplication vowel in these perfects is always e. We find this type with roots starting with a single consonant, or with consonant plus resonant, or an original w. Examples are le leupa, I have left from the root lepe, and the mediopassive perfect beblermai, I have been hit from the up-loading root ble. Note that in beblermai, the perfect stem is distinguished from that of the middle root aorist ble-to. He was hit only by its reduplication. This incidentally proves that reduplication is used as an inflectional device. Another frequent means of deriving a perfect stem is by prefixing e to roots with an onset consisting of two occlusives, or a starting with s plus occlusive, occlusive plus s, or with row. Examples are ectona, esfaktai, and erraptai. Synchronically, such perfect stems are not reduplicated, but historically speaking, forms like esfaktai and erraptai once were reduplicated. Since their roots started with s, the reduplication syllable se yielded the ad prefix by regular lenition of pre-vocalic s and dissimulation of aspirates. From such cases, the ad prefix may have been generalized to environments as in ectona, where normal reduplication was for some reason avoided. A final type of reduplication in the perfect stem is called attic reduplication. In roots with initial vowel plus consonant, where the initial vowel derives from a proto-in-european laryngel, the most widespread reduplication strategy is to copy vc and then lengthen the root initial vowel. This yields forms like eleluta, I have come from the root elaut elut, and akekoa, the perfect of akuo, to hear. These two examples have disalabic roots, but the same procedure is widespread for monosalabic roots, for instance ar to fit with the perfect arere. It is still debated whether attic reduplication can be explained from a normal type of reduplication, where only the first consonant was copied. Outside the perfect stem, there is one other formation where reduplication was used productively, but only in Homer. This is the reduplicated aorist, a derived stem, with causative meaning in the active. Its reduplication syllable has a vocalism as a default, but there are also cases of attic reduplication. An example is the root frad, meaning to notice, which has a causative aorist, epephradon, I pointed out. Otherwise, we find reduplication only as a relic in certain derived stems. In Greek present stems, the only productive reduplication vowel is i. We find a number of reduplicated athematic root presence, like tithemi, derived from the up-loading root te, and secondly, there are a number of reduplicated thematic root presence, such as mimno, to hold on with the root men to remain in the zero grade. Thirdly, there are various reduplicated presence with a suffix skor, such as gingno skor, to recognize, and only in the small type mimno does the reduplicated present stem compete with another formation, the thematic root present menno. So if we want to approach possible original functions of reduplication, it is in such pairs that we have to look first. I hope this presentation has given you an overview of the inflectional verbal system of classical attic, and that it also gives you an idea of other derivational formations that existed in earlier stages of the language. I thank you for your attention.
of the categories expressed by Greek verbs, and the inflectional verbal system of classical