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Glite Dictionary
Demotic language

Demotic language

9.9
Most people use the everyday form of Greek when they speak and write
  • noun
  • /dɪˈmɑtɪk ˈlæŋɡwɪdʒ/
translation icon : lengua demótica
  • The debate between using Demotic language and Katharevousa shaped Greek education policy for decades.

Examples

  • Many novels of the twentieth century in Greece were written in Demotic language for broader accessibility.

  • Many people prefer the Demotic language for informal communication.

  • He studied the transition of official documents from ancient Greek to Demotic language in the early 20th century.

  • The Demotic language is widely spoken in Greece.

  • Many novels of the twentieth century in Greece were written in Demotic language for broader accessibility.

  • The debate between using Demotic language and Katharevousa shaped Greek education policy for decades.

  • Many people prefer the Demotic language for informal communication.

Synonyms

Modern Greek
vsDemotic language
1 4.5

The Greek language spoken and written since the late Middle Ages

is the modern everyday speech and writing form not the general historical label
Demotic
vsDemotic language
  • Specialized
9.9

The everyday form of Greek spoken in Greece

is the same but written here in a longer phrase
Romaic
vsDemotic language
  • Archaic
9.9

A modern everyday form of the Greek language used instead of ancient Greek

is the everyday form rather than the older classical variety
New Greek
vsDemotic language
5.7

The Greek language people speak and write today

is the vernacular used daily in speech and writing rather than the broad term
Romaic language
vsDemotic language
  • Archaic
9.9

A common form of Greek spoken since the late Middle Ages

is the living everyday form now called by the modern name
New Greek language
vsDemotic language
4.9

The Greek language spoken and written from the Middle Ages to today, also called Modern Greek

is the everyday vernacular used now rather than the broad historical form
Modern Greek language
vsDemotic language
4.2

The form of Greek spoken and written in Greece and Cyprus today

is the everyday vernacular across speakers not the regional usage label

Surface Forms

Demotic language singular
Demotic languages plural

Morphology

Demotic + language

The meaning is directly compositional: 'Demotic' denotes the modern vernacular variety and 'language' denotes a speech system, so together they denote the modern vernacular form of Greek. While 'demotic' can be somewhat specialized, if a learner knows that constituent the combined meaning follows a regular noun–noun composition and is therefore immediately derivable.

Etymology

Demotic language gets its name from the Greek word demos, meaning 'the people'. It was used for the ordinary, everyday speech of regular people rather than the formal written language, so today it means the common, modern form of Greek that people use in daily life.