In the following description, only forms that differ from those of later Greek are discussed. Omitted forms can usually be predicted from patterns seen in Ionic Greek.
Exceptions include nouns likeθεᾱ́ ("a goddess"), and the genitive plural of first-declension nouns and the genitive singular of masculine first-declension nouns.For exampleθεᾱ́ων ("of goddesses"), andἈτρεΐδᾱο ("of the son of Atreus").
Thenominative singular of most feminine nouns ends in-η, rather than long-ᾱ, even afterρ,ε, andι (an Ionic feature):χώρη forχώρᾱ. However,θεᾱ́ and some names end in long-ᾱ.
Some masculine nouns have a nominative singular in short-ᾰ rather than-ης (ναύτης,Ἀτρεΐδης):ἱππότᾰ for Atticἱππότης.
The genitive singular of masculine nouns ends in-ᾱο or-εω (rarely - only after vowels --ω), rather than-ου:Ἀτρεΐδᾱο for AtticἈτρείδου.[note 1]
Thegenitive plural usually ends in-ᾱων or-εων:νυμφᾱ́ων for Atticνυμφῶν.[note 2]
Thedative plural almost always ends in-ῃσι(ν) or-ῃς:πύλῃσιν for Atticπύλαις.
Second declension
Genitive singular: ends in-οιο, as well as-ου. For example,πεδίοιο, as well asπεδίου.
Genitive and dative dual: ends in-οιϊν. Thus,ἵπποιϊν appears, rather thanἵπποιν.
Dative plural: ends in-οισι(ν) and-οις. For example,φύλλοισι, as well asφύλλοις.
Third declension
Accusative singular: ends in-ιν, as well as-ιδα. For example,γλαυκῶπιν, as well asγλαυκώπιδα.
Dative plural: ends in-εσσι and-σι. For example,πόδεσσι orἔπεσσι.
Homeric Greek lacks thequantitative metathesis present in later Greek (except in certain α-stem genitive plurals and certain masculine α-stem genitive singulars):
After short vowels, the reflex of Proto-Greek *ts can alternate between-σ- and-σσ- in Homeric Greek. This can be of metrical use. For example,τόσος andτόσσος are equivalent;μέσος andμέσσος;ποσί andποσσί.
A relic of the Proto-Greek instrumental case, the ending-φι(ν) (-οφι(ν)) can be used for the dative singular and plural of nouns and adjectives (occasionally for the genitive singular and plural, as well). For example,βίηφι (...by force),δακρυόφιν (...with tears), andὄρεσφιν (...in the mountains).
-ν appears rather than-σαν. For example,ἔσταν forἔστησαν in the third-person plural active.
The third plural middle/passive often ends in-αται or-ατο; for example,ἥατο is equivalent toἧντο.
Tenses
Future: Generally remains uncontracted. For example,ἐρέω appears instead ofἐρῶ orτελέω instead ofτελῶ.
Present or imperfect: These tenses sometimes take iterative form with the suffix-σκ- before the ending. For example,φύγεσκον: 'they kept on running away'
Aorist or imperfect: Both tenses can occasionally drop their augments. For example,βάλον may appear instead ofἔβαλον, andἔμβαλε may appear instead ofἐνέβαλε.
The subjunctive appears with a short vowel. Thus, the formἴομεν, rather thanἴωμεν.
The second singular middle subjunctive ending appears as both-ηαι and-εαι.
The third singular active subjunctive ends in-σι(ν). Thus, we see the formφορεῇσι, instead ofφορῇ.
Occasionally, the subjunctive is used in place of the future and in general remarks.
Infinitive
The infinitive appears with the endings-μεν,-μεναι, and-ναι, in place of-ειν and-ναι. For example,δόμεναι forδοῦναι;ἴμεν instead ofἰέναι;ἔμεν,ἔμμεν, orἔμμεναι forεἶναι; andἀκουέμεν(αι) in place ofἀκούειν.
Contracted verbs
In contracted verbs, where Attic employs an-ω-, Homeric Greek will use-οω- or-ωω- in place of-αο-. For example, Atticὁρῶντες becomesὁρόωντες.
Similarly, in places where-αε- contracts to-α- or-αει- contracts to-ᾳ-, Homeric Greek will show eitherαα orαᾳ.
In most circumstances, Homeric Greek did not have available a truedefinite article.Ὁ,ἡ,τό and their inflected forms do occur, but they are in origin and usually used asdemonstrative pronouns.[4]
Homer (in theIliad and theOdyssey) uses about 9,000 words, of which 1,382 areproper names. Of the 7,618 remaining words 2,307 arehapax legomena.[5][6] According to classical scholarClyde Pharr, "theIliad has 1097hapax legomena, while theOdyssey has 868".[7] Others have defined the term differently, however, and count as few as 303 in theIliad and 191 in theOdyssey.[8]
Sing, O goddess, the destructive wrath of Achilles, son of Peleus, which brought countless woes upon the Greeks, and hurled many valiant souls of heroes down to Hades, and made themselves a prey to dogs and to all birds but the will of Jove was being accomplished, from the time when Atrides, king of men, and noble Achilles, first contending, were disunited.
^Some suggest that-ᾱο may have originally been the more expected-ηο, with-ηο later being transcribed-ᾱο under the influence of other (literary) dialects, whilst others suggest that-ᾱο may have been an Aeolic form.Alternatively, it may be that as of the Homeric period, original ᾱ had not yet merged with η in front of ο or ω, and was instead still pronounced [æː]. Then, in later Ionic, when vernacular [æːo] and [æːɔː] had disappeared via metathesis to [eɔː], the metrically-constrained ᾱο of epic poetry came to be pronounced [aːo]. (Seeλᾱός andΠοσειδᾱ́ων for expectedληός andΠοσειδήων.)
^-ᾱων for expected-ηων would occur for the reasons given in Note 1.
^Carroll D. Osburn (1983). "The Historical Present in Mark as a Text-Critical Criterion".Biblica.64 (4):486–500.JSTOR42707093.
^Goodwin, William W. (1879).A Greek Grammar (pp 204). St Martin's Press.
^The Iliad: A Commentary: Volume 5, Books 17-20, Geoffrey Stephen Kirk, Mark W. Edwards, Cambridge University Press, 1991,ISBN978-0-521-31208-0 p53, footnote 72
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