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Until I started this podcast, I didn't realise how many English speaking people named things by combining Greek words; either because they thought it would make them look smarter or because the words they chose, were the perfect description for their invention (and sounded smart).In 1787 the painter and inventor Robert Barker, created a 360 degree visual medium, patented under the title 'Apparatus for exhibiting Pictures'. The viewer would stand on a platform in the middle of it and would be surrounded by pictures. In 1789 he also invented its name by putting two Greek words together to describe it. Παν (pan) means 'everything' or 'the whole' and Οραμα (orama) means 'vision' or 'the thing to see' ΠΑΝΟΡΑΜΑ/PANORAMA

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This is an English word based on an ancient Greek one that quickly changed meanings, started going on circles creating more words and making it-I'll be kind- fun to research. Κλήρος (Kleros) in ancient Greek meant 'Lot', 'piece of land' and subsequently 'inheritance', so far so good. A few hundred years go by and in the 5th book of the bible, people working as temple assistants were called Κληρικοί (Kleriki) because, and I quote '...therefore shall they have no inheritance among their brethren: the Lord is their inheritance'. But that name 'kliriki' expanded outside the church and was given to anyone who would read and write and was working in public offices or keeping accounts for businesses . With every language it went through the word came closer to today's meaning. 'Clericus'/ A priest in Latin, 'clerc'/a scribe in old French and in 1200 in old English and today, although the Greeks have kept the Christian meaning of the word, ΚΛΗΡΙΚΟΣ/CLERK

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The internet reads for this creature; a duck billed, beaver tailed, otter footed, egg laying, aquatic creature native to Australia. Then, what is it doing bearing a Greek name? Before the Natural History Museum in London became the great institution it is today, it was part of the British Museum and its keeper, George Shaw, was the first to describe and accept this creature as a real animal, in 1799. He named it based on the look of its feet but that name was already taken by a beetle, so, in 1803 Johann Friedrich, Blumenbach, publish another description and named it 'Ornithorinchus Paradoxus' ,which is also Greek and means 'Paradoxical bird-snout. I think we'd all agree that, that's too long to remember let alone ,say. And that's why we call it what George Shaw named it. Πλατύς (platys) in ancient and modern Greek means 'wide' and πούς (pous), in ancient Greek, means 'foot. ΠΛΑΤΥΠΟΥΣ/PLATYPUS

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From Greek Mythology to Euripides's Greek Drama 'The Bacchae' to Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Neil Gaiman's 'The Sandman' , those Nymphs were responsible for drinking, dancing, eating raw meat, being strong enough to pull trees from the ground with, just, their hands and killing anyone who'd refuse their mating call. They followed and worshiped Dionysus from Greece to India and back and they were in the hundreds! Their name Μαινάδες (Maenads) means 'obsessively passionate to the point of rage' and comes from the infinitive Μένεσθαι (menesthe). Their frantic state is a word that from Greek to Latin to French to English late in the 14th century, has stayed the same. ΜΑΝΙΑ/MANIA

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Twitter @yourgreeksunday ,
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email yourgreeksunday@gmail.com

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Greek Mathematicians were the first to use this word until Plato came along and used it to describe different realities and bigger ideas. Ανά (ana) is a preposition meaning -among other things- 'upon'. Λόγος (logos) means 'speech', 'thought', 'reason' and 'ratio' . The combined word means 'according to ratio' and is used for literal or metaphorical proportions. ΑΝΑΛΟΓΙΑ/ANALOGY

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Plato wrote 'Our salvation depends on the correct choice between pleasure and sadness, that is the choice between more, or less.' The ancient Greek verb Αιρώ (aero) has been completely claimed by Christianity and turned on its head with regards to the original meaning and perception of the word. In 380 AD, the Roman emperor Theodosius the 1st , legally tied the word to anyone not Christian (at the time the division between the Catholic and the Orthodox church didn't exist. In fact, Theodosius was the last emperor before the split.) So he drafted 'The Edict Of Thessalonica' which he fought tooth and nail throughout his life trying to enforce in the empire . And he succeeded. The original word means 'the right to choose/the right to a different belief' and it was commonly used up until that point. 'We order the followers of this law to embrace the name of Catholic Christians; but as for the others, since, in our judgment they are foolish madmen, we decree that they shall be branded with the ignominious name of heretics...' The word was written down and passed on in all religious texts and that's how it arrived in England . The word also became a crime in 1401 and was decriminalised in 1677 putting a stop to the punishment which was death by burning at the stake and giving people back the freedom to choose (well, sort of) ΑΙΡΕΣΗ/HERESY

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In ancient Greek mythology there are three women (sometimes more) , daughters of Zeus (sometimes of the Sun or of Dionysus) that are responsible for organising all the feasts in Mount Olympus and making sure that everything is beautiful, joyous, healthy and sexy. No, they're not the Muses although, they were all good friends. They are Aphrodite's followers and they are The Graces! Χάριτες (Charites) in Greek. Their names Αγλαϊα (Aglaea-Radiance), Ευφροσύνη(Evfrosini-Joy) and Θάλεια (Thalia-Boom). They were worshiped all around Greece but they had their own temple in the mainland where three rocks fell from the sky (yes ,rocks) and were worshiped until people carved and made statues of them. There was a big art festival dedicated to them and archaeologists have discovered plaques with names of musicians and poets and artists that have won the competition. Although their English name is The Graces, their touch to a human's life has the same name as an offering from the gods in Greek. It's a ΧΑΡΙΣΜΑ/CHARISMA

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