μπουχέσας – buhesas Not in any of my dictionaries. The online app Word Reference translates μπουχέσας as ‘blimp’. I think the word is a lot more offensive than that. The middle syllable (whether deliberately or coincidentally – I do not know) adds to its vulgarity. This is because ‘χεσ-‘ is the root of the Greek... Continue Reading →
Greek Word of the Week #8
αβγατίζω – avghatizo It means to amass, increase I thought it derived from the Greek for egg [αυγό] and I imagined hens sitting on eggs to help them hatch. Something akin to “nest egg” in English. Totally wrong, apparently. It derives either from an unrelated (to egg) Ancient Greek word or the Latin augere meaning... Continue Reading →
Greek Word of the Week #7
ασκέρι – askeri Greece – or parts of it - was under the Turkish yoke from the 14th century until the 20th century. Unsurprisingly, a lot of Turkish loan-words (τουρκικοί δανεισμοί) entered the language during that period. On closer inspection, many of these loan-words entered Turkish from Arabic before being borrowed by Greek. Ασκέρι is... Continue Reading →
Greek Word of the Week #6
We live in a time of Covid 19. The Greek government seems to have handled the situation very well. Germany is held up as the poster boy of Europe, but Greece’s per capita death rate is much lower than Germany’s; Greece has 13 Covid deaths per million people, whereas Germany has lost 76 per million... Continue Reading →
Greek word of the week #5
κουρμπέτι – (kurbeti). I should say something that I should have said at the beginning. There is no rhyme, reason or pattern to my choice of words. The words simply catch my attention when I hear or read them. By a long circuitous route το κουρμπέτι has come to mean the marketplace or workplace. Βγαίνω... Continue Reading →
Greek word of the week #4
τσίκνα – (tsikna). Today, Thursday 20th February 2020, is Τσικνοπέμπτη (Tsiknopempti). Τσίκνα is the smoky smell that comes from meat roasting on a grill, so today is Smoky Thursday or Barbecue Thursday, and in towns all over Greece you will see plenty of activity around barbecues. The Orthodox Church does not have Ash Wednesday or... Continue Reading →
Greek word of the week #3
γαλαντόμος – (ghalandomos/ghaladomos). I’m very pleased to say this word was said about me. Grateful for every compliment I can get. I like the word because it feels like a borrowing, and indeed it is. Venetians played a major role in Greece’s medieval and post-medieval history and quite a few Venetian words have entered the... Continue Reading →
Greek word of the week #2
φλώρος – (floros) literally a greenfinch or oriole. I’ve only heard this word used by young people. It is certainly not a compliment. It ranges in meaning from ‘ineffectual’ to ‘effeminate’, but perhaps its best translation is wimp or wuss.
Greek word of the Week #1
κοπανέλι (kopaneli). This is the first in a series of Greek words that I have heard or read, and which have caught my attention. Apparently, κοπανέλι relates to a style of embroidery, but I heard it in the context of food. In Greek a chicken leg is called a chicken thigh (μπούτι - bouti), and... Continue Reading →