hellenica

What was the characteristics of the Greek dialects that were once spoken in western Anatolia?

I assume OP is asking about the West Anatolian dialects of Modern Greek, not Ancient Greek.

Why is the Parthenon of Athens not listed as one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world?

1. If the first list of the Seven Wonders was compiled by Herodotus (Seven Wonders of the Ancient World), then the Parthenon was under construction at the time he compiled it; and…

What’s the best Greek song that Stelios Kazantzidis, Greek singer, has ever made?

Kudos to Achilleas for his comprehensive answer, and for pointing out something unfamiliar to the contemporary Anglosphere: plenty of musical traditions, like Greece, don’t require singers…

What are the major characteristics of the poetry of Constantine P. Cavafy?

A major characteristic of Cavafy which does *not* come across in the most popular translation (Sherrard & Keeley’s) is the linguistic eclectisism, which adds to the overall feeling of restraint and…

Why are Greeks so leftist?

Good question! I trust someone more knowledgable will reply (who actually lives there now).

Of course, not all Greeks are leftist, and as with much of the West, the nominal left-wing parties have drifted further and further to the centre (Panhellenic…

Was the Byzantine Empire in the Greek medieval state?

Yes and no, but in a different way from Andrew Baird’s answer.

The lingua franca and administrative language was Greek. The Empire called itself Roman, but its scholars knew a lot about Ancient Greek and very…

Why do Greek and Cyrillic have different collation order than Roman alphabet?

The collation of Greek and Roman are pretty similar, as Philip said, once you factor out archaisms, and the tendency to insert new letters at the end of the alphabet.

What language is spoken in Athens, Greece?

To add to the other answers, and to answer a slightly different question :) : between the 1300s and the 1800s, the region *around* Athens was substantially Albanian-speaking (Arvanitika). That’s why the map Brian Collins included in his answer has a patch…

What are some common Greek and Turkish words?

There used to be a lot more Turkish words in Greek, but purism and changes in institutions have gotten rid of a lot of them. There are still a fair few in daily use. Nikos Sarantakos’ blog [Page on wordpress.com] has a list of 218 Turkish words that…