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The μn iνα + subjunctive construction in Greek documentary papyri
No full textThe construction of μn iνα + subjunctive, which is attested in Greek documentary papyri of the Roman and Byzantine periods, is conventionally explained as an inversion of iνα μή + subjunctive. By reference to various examples, it is argued here that the two patterns (i. e. iνα μή and μn iνα) are not in fact syntactically equivalent variants, but rather convey different meanings and functions on both the syntactic and the pragmatic level. In reality, μn iνα with the subjunctive does not constitute a subordinate clause but rather represents an instance of grammatical ‘insubordination’. The investigation combines a morphosyntactic analysis with a pragmatic and cognitive approach
Variation and change of counterfactual conditionals in Postclassical Greek: Evidence from private papyrus letters
No full textThis paper deals with counterfactual conditional clauses in Ancient Greek, focusing on evidence from private letters from Greek documentary papyri of the Roman and Byzantine periods (1st-7th century CE). It investigates variation and change in the constructions of counterfactual conditionals in the Postclassical stage of the language in comparison with the Classical stage, investigating certain aspects of apodosis and protasis construction. In particular, it addresses the verb morphology and the combination of the verb with the modal particle án in the apodosis, the morphology of the verb in the protasis, and the emergence of some new types of conditional clauses, for instance, the type introduced by ei mē hóti (literally 'if not that'). The present investigation contributes to the general topic of the volume by analyzing the different elements that occur in counterfactual conditional clauses in order to express modal meanings, investigating how they have changed with respect to the previous language stage, and how they interact with further elements found in the conditional structure (e.g., negation and particles). The morphosyn-tactic analysis is complemented by the pragmatic one, which discusses the functions of ei mē hóti utterances, with respect to the position of the conditional structure within the discourse. The functions of the coordinator kaí 'and', which often precedes the construction under investigation, as well as information structure and clausal relation are also considered
Purpose and Result Clauses: ἵvα-hína and ὥστε-hōste in the Greek Documentary Papyri of the Roman Period
No full textDocumentary papyri are among the most important and copious sources for the study of the ancient everyday Greek language. They are very useful for reconstructing the development of different phenomena of Postclassical Greek. They show a number of deviations from Classical Greek, including the disappearance of categories known from the literary language. In the present paper, purpose and result clauses are analyzed, focusing on the syntax of the conjunctions iνα-hina and ωστε-hōste in the Greek documentary papyri of the Roman period (1st - 4th cent. AD). This topic is significant not only for investigating linguistic variation provided by documents written in a colloquial register, but also for gaining an improved understanding of language change. In order to stress the importance of the data provided by the papyri, some selected examples from the Roman and the Byzantine periods will be presented, collected from the examination of the Oxyrhynchus Papyri and with the help of various papyrological databases. The constructions found in the documentary texts will be compared with the same constructions found in other earlier, contemporary and later texts (such as New Testament, literary authors of the Koine), in order to distinguish between a common Greek development and a development that is found in the documentary papyri only. Furthermore, the evidence from the later stages of Greek will be aduced
Some aspects of Irrealis and the usage of in post-classical Greek
No full textThe paper addresses some aspects of the changes related to the encoding of irrealis in Ancient Greek, focusing on the usage of the modal particle án in texts of the Post-Classical period. It primarily discusses evidence from documentary papyri. By means of examples, it considers alternative strategies to the usage of an with secondary tenses in the apodoses of counterfactual conditionals, as well as combinations of án with the negative ouk (i.e., ouk án) or with the particle dé (i.e. dán) in main clauses, and of án with in the cluster kán. In this regard, it illustrates the instances of kán in combination with further linguistic elements (e.g. with the adverb vûn), highlighting the difference between the usage of kán as particle and as conjunction. Finally, the paper draws synchronic and diachronic comparisons with other types of Greek texts, particularly with the New Testament and the Chronicle of John Malalas
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