Although no written texts exist or have been identified as pre-Greek, the
phonology and
lexicon have been partially reconstructed from the many words borrowed into Greek; such words often show a type of variation not found in inherited Indo-European Greek terms, and certain recurrent patterns that can be used to identify pre-Greek elements.
Phonology Vowels The pre-Greek language had a simple
vowel system, with either three or five monophthongs. This system consisted of either //, //, //, //, //, or most likely just //, //, //, in which // varied between //~//~// as a result of palatalization for // and labialization for //. Additionally, it had at least one diphthong (//), and it may also have had //, although this is also often explained as the sequence -- adapted in Greek as --, since // is often seen with an //.
Consonants The phonology of pre-Greek likely featured a series of both
labialized and
palatalized consonants, as indicated by
Mycenaean inscriptions in
Linear B. These features were found not only in
stops, but in
resonants as well (presumably including even the rare modified approximants // and //), which was different from Indo-European languages at the time and is generally considered a rare feature characteristic of pre-Greek. It is, however, unlikely that
voicing or
consonantal aspiration were distinctive features, as pre-Greek loanwords in Greek vary freely between plain, voiced and aspirated stops (e.g. , '''', 'asparagus'). The observation of such variants for a particular word is often a strong indication of substrate-derived etymology. Furthermore, while the existence of word-initial
approximants /w/ and /j/ can be safely inferred from common motifs in inherited words (e.g. the ἰα‑ from *ja- in , ) or even retained in early and dialectal forms (e.g. *wa- in the cases of , , ),
word-initial aspiration probably did not exist, with // considered by Beekes a non-native phoneme in pre-Greek. The initial consonant // or // is very common in pre-Greek and characteristic when it shows up as an
s-mobile.
Consonant clusters Certain characteristic
consonant clusters associated with pre-Greek phonology as reflected in words inherited into Greek, as listed by Beekes according to their frequency in the PIE language: Not possible in PIE • -- //, not possible in PIE, only in pre-Greek (but rare) • -- //, not possible in PIE, though still very rare in pre-Greek • -- //, not possible in PIE, common in pre-Greek Rare in PIE • -- //, rare in PIE, not as much in pre-Greek • -- //, rare in PIE, not in pre-Greek • -- //, rare in PIE, not in pre-Greek • -- //, very rare overall and found only in pre-Greek loans • -- //, very rare and problematic identification in PIE, common in pre-Greek probably from • -- //, rare in PIE, common in pre-Greek perhaps from • non word-initial -- // and -- //, rare in PIE, somehow common in pre-Greek derivative words • -- // and -- //, rare in PIE, sometimes in substrate words • word-initial - //, extremely common in pre-Greek loans (most words beginning with - being such) Possible in PIE • -- //, not as rare in both PIE and pre-Greek • -- //, common in PIE but in pre-Greek also with variants --, -- etc. • -- //, common in PIE and also in many pre-Greek words • -- //, possible in PIE, also found in some pre-Greek words • -- //, when pre-Greek usually also with variants -- and -- • -- //, possible in PIE but more common in substrate words • -- //, possible in PIE but also common in pre-Greek loans
Lexicon Various categories of words have been suggested to be pre-Greek (or "Aegean") loanwords: •
Anatomy: • αὐχήν,
, 'neck'; • λαιμός, '''', 'neck, throat'; • ῥίς, '''', 'nose, snout'; • σιαγών, '''', 'jaw, jawbone'; • σπόνδυλος/σφόνδυλος, '''', 'vertebra'; • σφάκελος/σφάκηλος, '''', 'middle finger'; • ἰχώρ, ''ikhṓr, '
ichor'.'' •
Animals: • αἴλουρος, '''', 'cat'; • ἀράχνη, '''', 'spider'; • βόλινθος/βόνασσος, '''', 'wild ox'; • κάνθαρος, '''', 'beetle'; • κῆτος, '''', 'whale, sea monster'; • πελεκῖνος, '''', 'pelican'; • σμίνθος, '''', 'mouse'. •
Architecture and building materials: • ἄργῐλλος/ἄργῑλος/ἄργῐλλα, '''', 'white clay, argil'; • καλύβη/καλυβός/κολυβός, '''', 'hut, cabin'; • λαβύρινθος, '''', 'labyrinth'; • πέτρα, '''', 'stone (as building material)'; • πλίνθος, '''', 'brick'; • πύργος, '''', '
tower'. •
Geography and topography: • ἄμβων/ἄμβη, '''', 'crest of a hill', 'raised edge or protuberance'; • κρημνός, '''', 'edge of a trench, cliff'; • κορυφή, '''', 'mountain top'; • ὄχθη, '''', 'riverbank'; • σπέος/σπεῖος, '''', 'cave, cavern'; • χαράδρα/χαράδρη, '''', 'torrent, riverbed, gorge'; •
Maritime vocabulary: • ἄκατος, '''', 'small dinghy, skiff'. • θάλασσα, '''', 'sea'. • θάλαμος, '''', 'an inner room or chamber', 'the lowest, darkest part of the ship', 'the hold'; • θίς, '''', 'heap of sand, beach, shore, sand at the bottom of the sea'; • κυβερνάω, '''', 'to steer, to be a steerman'. •
Metals and metallurgy: • κασσίτερος, '''', 'tin'; • μόλυβδος, '''', 'lead'; • σίδηρος, '''', 'iron'; • τάγχουρος/τάγχαρας/ἄγχουρος, '''', 'gold'; • χαλκός, '''', 'copper'. •
Musical instruments: • κίθαρις, '''', 'zither'; • λύρα, '''', '
lyre'; • σάλπιγξ, '''', 'trumpet'; • σύριγξ, '''', 'flute'; • φόρμιγξ, '''', 'lyre'. •
Mythological characters: • Ἀχιλλεύς/Ἀχιλεύς, '''',
Achilles; • Δαναός, '''',
Danaus; • Κάδμος, '''',
Cadmus; • Ὀδυσσεύς, '''',
Odysseus; • Ῥαδάμανθυς, '''',
Rhadamanthus. •
Plants: • ἄμπελος, '''', 'vine'; • ἀψίνθιον, '''', 'wormwood' or '
absinthe'; • ἐλαία, '''', 'olive tree'; • κισσός, '''', 'ivy'; • κολοκύνθη/κολοκύνθα/κολοκύνθος/κολοκύντη, '''', 'bottle gourd'; • κυπάρισσος, '''', 'cypress'; • μίνθη, '''', '
mint' • σταφυλή, '''', 'grape'; • σῦκον/τῦκον, '''', 'fig'. •
Social practices and institutions: • ἅμιλλα, '''', 'contest, trial, sporting activity'; • ἀτέμβω, '''', 'maltreat' or 'to be bereft or cheated of a thing'; • ϝάναξ/ἄναξ, '''', 'lord, king'; • θίασος, '''', '
thiasus, Bacchic revel'; • τύραννος, '''', 'absolute ruler'. •
Theonyms: • Ἀπόλλων, '''',
Apollo; • Ἄρης, '''',
Ares; • Ἄρτεμις, '''',
Artemis; • Ἀσκληπιός, '''',
Asclepius; • Ἀθήνη, '''',
Athena; • Ἄτλας, '''',
Atlas; • Διόνῡσος, '''',
Dionysus; • Ἑρμῆς, '''',
Hermes; • Ἥφαιστος, '''',
Hephaestus; • Ἰαπετός, '''',
Iapetus. •
Tools related to agricultural activities: • δίκελλα, '''', 'adze, pickaxe'; • κάμαξ, '''', 'vine pole'; • μάκελλα, '''', 'mattock, pick'; • χαλινός, '''', 'bridle, rein'. •
Toponyms/placenames: • -νθ-,
-nth- (e.g. Κόρινθος, '
, Corinth; Ζάκυνθος, ',
Zakynthos); • -σσ-,
-ss- (e.g. Παρνασσός, '''',
Parnassus); • -ττ-,
-tt- (e.g. Ἀττική, '
, Attica; Ὑμηττός, ',
Hymettus); • region names e.g. Ἀχαΐα, '
, Achaea; Λακωνία, ',
Laconia; Μαγνησία, '''',
Magnesia; • city names e.g. Δωδώνη, '
, Dodona; Κνωσσός, ',
Knossos; Κυδωνία, '''',
Cydonia; • isles e.g. Κρήτη, '
, Crete; Νάξος, ',
Naxos; • mountain names e.g.Ὄλυμπος, '
, Olympus; Πίνδος, ',
Pindus; •
hydronyms e.g. Ἀχελῷος, '
, Achelous; Γέλας, ',
Gela; Ἰλισός, '''',
Ilisos; • other geographical features e.g. Σούνιον, '''',
Sounion; • mythological locations e.g. Ἠλύσιον, '''',
Elysium. •
Use of domestic species: • ἔλαιον, '''', 'olive oil'; • λήκυθος, '''', 'oil-flask'; • κάνθων, '''', 'pack-ass'; • στέμφυλον, '''', 'mass of olives from which the oil has been pressed, mass of pressed grapes'. •
Weapons and armor: • θώραξ, '''', 'corselet'; • μάστιξ, '''', 'whip'; • ὑσσός, '''', 'javelin'. •
Weaving: • ἀρύβαλλος, '''', 'purse'; • βρόχος, '''', 'slip knot, mesh'; • ἠλακάτη, '''', 'spindle'; • μύρινθος, '''', 'cord'. == Anatolian loanwords ==