Scientists estimate that about ten percent of words in Russian are of foreign origin. And almost a quarter of that amount comes from ancient Greece. They got into the Russian vocabulary so long ago that many are unaware of their foreign roots.
Instructions
Step 1
The initial penetration of Greek words into the Russian language is due to objective historical reasons - economic and Christian.
Step 2
At one time, Kievan Rus maintained close trade ties with Byzantium. It is for this reason that a large number of Greek words related to trade and shipping have penetrated into the Russian language. Words such as "ship", "sail", "bed", "lemon", "cucumber", "lantern" entered the Russian language in this way. At first, they were used only by merchants, but then they gradually took root and appeared in the vocabulary of other people. Now, few people know that the word "kimarit" also came from there. From Greek it translates as "sleep".
Step 3
With the adoption of Christianity, Kievan Rus also adopted a number of Greek words of religious significance. Words like “Angelos” “Apostolos”, “Demonos” never required translation. And the “Bible”, “Gospel”, “Icon” are also from Greece.
Step 4
Both Greek culture and education have contributed to this process. They introduced into the Russian vocabulary such words as "philosophy", "mathematics" "astronomy" "notebook", "school"
Step 5
Many Greek words have been borrowed through Latin. As a result, all words ending in “cratia” (democracy), logia (chronology), “ema” (dilemma, problem, system) came from there.
Step 6
Often Greek origins can be found in parts of compound words: aqua (water), chrono (time), geo (earth). There are especially many of them in the names of various sciences. There are often Greek roots such as logos (word) and graph (write). Moreover, in the latter case, two Greek roots are usually used in such words at once. Geography - a description of the earth, geology - the science of the earth, an autograph - I write it myself.
Step 7
There are also double-borrowed Greek words in Russian. For example, the word "Mesopotamia". This was the name given to the area between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. It is directly borrowed from the Greek mesos (middle, in the middle) and potamos (river). And there is also a derivative of these words, the Russian tracing paper "interfluve". There are other similar examples: aligoria - allegory - allegory, symphony - symphony - consonance, symmetry - symmetry - proportion.
Step 8
And, finally, there are borrowings of their Greek language, which have nothing in common with the Russian words derived from them, and are sometimes used in the exact opposite meaning. So the Greek word "idiotos" literally translates as "private person. In Russian, the word "idiot" is a person suffering from oligophrenia. And the Greek word "skoli, from which the Russian" school "comes from, is completely translated as" leisure, entertainment, rest."
