<p>How hard is Ancient Greek? I am very interested in learning it but will it be to difficult since I have not learned latin?</p>
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<p>It depends. How good are you at learning languages? If you stink at learning a new language, Greek won't be any different. No, you certainly don't need Latin.</p>
<p>FYI, there are several dialects of Greek. Ionic, Attic, and Homeric are the main dialects. Personally, I don't think Greek is terribly difficult, but then again, I'm a beginner and I like languages.</p>
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<p>I dont really know if im good at learning languages. I have only taken 2 years of spanish. It is pretty easy but im not fluent.</p>
<p>Will I be at a big disadvantage since I dont know Latin?</p>
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<p>Most people who take Greek won't know Latin.</p>
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<p>Not knowing Latin won't kill you, however, Greek is usually taught under the assumption that you know the details of a highly inflected language (i.e. Latin). And of course Greek has plenty of quirks of its own.</p>
<p>Since you have 7 months until school starts, I'd suggest you find out which text your university uses, buy a copy on Amazon, and try working through a few chapters. If things make sense, you should definitely give it a go! (There are 3 popular texts: Athenaze (Baum & Lawell), Greek: an Intensive Course (Hansen and Quinn), and From Alpha to Omega (Groton). In college you'll do the whole book (2 in the case of Athenaze) in one academic year.</p>
<p>Incidentally, you'll learn Attic Greek in your first year, and pick up the other dialects as needed in years 2 though forever. Homeric Greek is also called "Old Ionic"; for "new" Ionic you'll run into Herodotus first. </p>
<p>And then there's New Testament Greek (Koine) that tends to be ignored by Classicists and taught in Religion departments. It is basically simplified Attic.</p>
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<p>If you have a genuine interest in the subject it won't be much trouble. Where do you plan on studying next year?</p>
<p>I would also recommend taking a New Testament course. Especially if you grew up going to church and are familiar with the context. This will make it much easier</p>
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<p>i applied to boston university, holy cross, williams, boston college, and umass amherst. i think they all have pretty good classics programs. im also going to be doing premed. does anyone have any info on the classics programs at these schools?</p>
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<p>I will be a Classics major at Holy Cross next year. It has an excellent Classics Department and the acceptance rate for med school at Holy Cross is twice the national average. Boston University has a great Classics Department as well. I would recommend that you not study Classics at Boston College.</p>
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<p>did you apply to holy cross ED? i was going to but i wasnt sure about the financial aid they would give me. I hope i get a good aid package if i get in. i would love to go.</p>
<p>Im glad to hear that BU has a good classics program because i might get a full scholarship. i was not really considering BC, i just applied because i really love their campus and their sports teams.</p>
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<p>I learned Homeric Greek without knowing Latin.</p>
<p>You can do it, it is pretty much like learning other languages. If you are interested and enjoy it, you will put in the necessary work.</p>
<p>IMO, if you have a choice, study the Greek of the literature that most interests you. I, personally, did not enjoy New Testament Greek, in comparison to Homeric Greek. </p>
<p>WilliamC above offers good advice, IMO.</p>
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<p>mpkinney06, isn't the national average average of med school acceptance rates above 50%? Maybe i'm confusing it with graduation rates.</p>
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<p>Yes, I applied ED. My financial Aid package wasn't the best but I'm keeping my fingers crossed for the Bean Scholarship. What kind of scholarship is BU offering you?</p>
<p>DRab, Im pretty sure that Med schools accept Holy Cross grads at a rate that is twice the national average. It's somewhere on the website. Maybe "Holy Cross at a glance". Let me know if I'm wrong though.</p>
<p>I almost forgot. Have you taken a look at Tufts or Amherst. Both have excellent programs. Tufts has the Perseus library which is an excellent resource by the way.</p>
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<p>When I started taking ancient Greek, most of the students, including me, had already taken some Latin. But not everybody had, and you should be fine if you're willing to put in the work. The literature is wonderful, so, if you get into it, you'll have the motivation to work hard.</p>
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<p>How hard in Greek?</p>
<p>Hard. Very hard.</p>
<p>But also well worth the effort.</p>
<p>I started Greek wth Latin under my belt, and I still find it difficult. I think, though, knowledge of any foreign language that has conjugations and declensions will give you a leg up.</p>
<p>how close are the different ancient versions of Greek like Attic and Ionian to each other? How close are they to New Testament Koine?</p>
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<p>Mrniphty- </p>
<p>The dialect with the real difference is Homeric. I have read literature in the other dialects after having used an Attic Greek textbook, and I had only small problems, such as same words with different meanings and special forms only found in certain dialects.</p>
<p>I have not taken Homeric Greek yet, but will do so in the spring. Based on what I have heard from students who have already taken Homeric, there is quite a difference.</p>
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<p>While I was in latin, we had a greek week. I just couldn't comprehend translating different characters to make certain sounds, it was so confusing to me. I failed the test but I have the greek alphabet memorized! Great for when I pledge.</p>
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<p>Princessbell-</p>
<p>Funny thing is, I read Greek easier than I do Latin! I also comprehend tenses easier; I swear it has something to do with the different alphabet. And Greek just sounds so cool when spoken, especially when scanned. :)</p>
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<p>would it be to hard to take greek and latin at the same time?</p>
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<p>probably. If you're able to learn two languages at once, then fine. Many language learning advice that I've read suggested getting a solid foundation in one language before moving on to the next, but if you're capable, then it's fine. Latin and Greek aren't that similar, but because they are foreign to you, you may find yourself mixing them up in your mind when trying to do one or the other (at least sometimes).</p>
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