Katharevousa Survivals | Greek Grammar

Katharevousa is no longer an official alternative to Demotic, but many of its resources survive inside Modern Greek. Some are everyday fossils, others are normal in law and news, and a few deliberately evoke older officialese. The safest strategy is recognition first: learn each form with its domain and do not treat the learned layer as a productive replacement grammar.

A relic can be ordinary or conspicuously formal

Historical origin does not determine present register. Εντάξει descends from εν τάξει “in order,” yet it is now completely everyday. Εν προκειμένω, built from the same lost dative system, remains legal or academic. Frequency, spelling, and genre have developed separately for each expression.

Όλα εντάξει με την κράτηση ή χρειάζεστε κάτι ακόμη;

óla endáksi me tin krátisi i chriázeste káti akómi;

Is everything all right with the reservation, or do you need anything else? (neutral)

Εν προκειμένω, απαιτείται προηγούμενη έγκριση της αρμόδιας αρχής.

en prokiméno, apetíte proighúmeni éngrisi tis armódhias archís.

In the present case, prior approval from the competent authority is required. (legal/formal)

This course writes current and inherited Modern Greek forms in monotonic spelling. A polytonic form may be necessary when quoting an older document exactly, but adding breathings and circumflexes to a new formal sentence does not make it more correct.

Fossilized datives

Modern Greek has no productive dative case. The following items are fixed vocabulary inherited through the learned tradition; their endings cannot be extended to new nouns.

Survival	Current meaning	Present register
εντάξει < εν τάξει	all right, okay	neutral; everyday
τοις εκατό	per cent	neutral in percentages
εν πάση περιπτώσει	in any case	careful speech; formal writing
εν προκειμένω	in the present case	legal/academic
εν μέρει	in part	neutral careful speech; written
δόξα τω Θεώ	thank God	fixed religious/everyday formula

Η συμμετοχή αυξήθηκε κατά δεκαπέντε τοις εκατό μέσα σε έναν χρόνο.

i simetochí afksíthike katá dhekapénde tis ekató mésa se énan chróno.

Participation increased by fifteen per cent within one year.

Εν πάση περιπτώσει, η προθεσμία λήγει την Παρασκευή το μεσημέρι.

en pási periptósi, i prothezmía líyi tin Paraskeví to mesiméri.

In any case, the deadline expires at noon on Friday. (careful/formal)

The separate historical spelling εν τάξει may appear in older texts or when the literal components are being discussed; the established current adverb is solid εντάξει. The wider inventory and its idiosyncratic spellings belong to fossilized dative expressions.

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A large inherited list can look like a productive pattern. It is not one. For ordinary “in,” Modern Greek uses σε + accusative; never invent a new εν + dative phrase.

Learned participles: three different systems

Formal prose compresses relative clauses into declined participles, but the endings must not be collapsed into one “archaic participle.”

Type	Typical meaning	Example	Status
-ων / -ουσα / -ον	active, current or characteristic	η υπάρχουσα υποδομή	learned closed inventory; formal
-όμενος / -ούμενος	process under way, or lexical middle meaning	τα εξεταζόμενα μέτρα	productive in official/technical prose; some everyday words
-μένος / -μένη / -μένο	completed result or resulting state	το υπογεγραμμένο έντυπο	fully current and productive, not automatically a relic

Η υπάρχουσα υποδομή δεν επαρκεί για τόσο μεγάλο αριθμό επισκεπτών.

i ipárchusa ipodhomí dhen eparkí ya tóso meghálo arithmó episkeptón.

The existing infrastructure is insufficient for such a large number of visitors. (formal)

Τα εξεταζόμενα μέτρα αφορούν κυρίως τις μικρές επιχειρήσεις.

ta eksetazómena métra aforún kiríos tis mikrés epichirísis.

The measures under consideration mainly concern small businesses. (official/news)

Στείλτε το υπογεγραμμένο έντυπο μαζί με την απόδειξη πληρωμής.

stílte to ipoghraméno éndipo mazí me tin apódhiksi pliromís.

Send the signed form together with the proof of payment. (administrative)

The first participle is active: the infrastructure exists. The second presents measures while they are being considered. The third presents signing as completed. The learned active participle page owns their formation, agreement, and process–result contrast.

Learned prepositions and fixed frames

The items εν, συν, διά, εκ, προ survive with very unequal degrees of freedom. Their formal meaning must be learned together with their complement and collocation.

Form	Attested modern use	Everyday alternative
εν	fixed expressions: εν ισχύι, εν γνώσει, εν προκειμένω	σε + accusative, or a clause
συν	fossils, arithmetic “plus,” learned compounds	μαζί με; και
διά + genitive	through/by means of in legal formulas	με; μέσω
εκ + genitive	εκ μέρους, εκ του νόμου; fixed εκ νέου	από; ξανά
προ + genitive	before in dates and official phrasing	πριν από + accusative

Ο σύμβουλος μίλησε εκ μέρους και των δύο οργανισμών.

o símvulos mílise ek mérus ke ton dhío orghanizmón.

The adviser spoke on behalf of both organizations. (formal)

Η διαφορά επιλύθηκε διά της δικαστικής οδού.

i dhiaforá epilíthike dhiá tis dhikastikís odhú.

The dispute was resolved through the judicial route. (legal/markedly formal)

Η αίτηση θα εξεταστεί εκ νέου μετά την κατάθεση των στοιχείων.

i étisi tha eksetastí ek néu metá tin katáthesi ton stichíon.

The application will be examined again after the evidence is submitted. (formal)

Οι παρατηρήσεις πρέπει να αποσταλούν προ της συνεδρίασης.

i paratirísis prépi na apostalún pro tis sinedhríasis.

The comments must be sent before the meeting. (formal/administrative)

Συν is current as “plus” in arithmetic, but it is not the ordinary preposition “with.” Διά and προ are conspicuous in speech; εκ μέρους is much more established. Register is lexical, not determined by age alone.

Learned genitive singular in -εως

Feminines such as πόλη and κυβέρνηση have ordinary current genitives της πόλης and της κυβέρνησης. The inherited alternatives της πόλεως and της κυβερνήσεως remain visible in older official documents, institutional names, legal style, and a few set phrases (formal/older).

Οι εκπρόσωποι της κυβέρνησης απάντησαν στις ερωτήσεις των δημοσιογράφων.

i ekprósopi tis kivérnisis apándisan stis erotísis ton dhimosioghráfon.

The government representatives answered the journalists' questions. (neutral current)

Η θέση της κυβερνήσεως καταγράφηκε αναλυτικά στα πρακτικά.

i thési tis kiverníseos kataghráfike analitiká sta praktiká.

The government's position was recorded in detail in the minutes. (older/formal)

The learned option does not change the possessor or the basic meaning. It changes the stylistic profile. Contemporary formal Greek frequently prefers -ης, so -εως should be recognized rather than inserted mechanically.

Formal vocabulary as a register signal

Official prose also preserves lexical items such as αιτών “applicant,” ανωτέρω “above-mentioned/above,” εν λόγω “in question,” and learned passive formulas such as παρακαλείσθε “you are requested.” A single item can be conventional; stacking several can produce bureaucratic parody.

Ο αιτών οφείλει να επισυνάψει τα ανωτέρω δικαιολογητικά.

o etón ofíli na episinápsi ta anotéro dhikeoloyitiká.

The applicant must attach the supporting documents listed above. (administrative)

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Read the whole phrase, then decide whether you need to produce it. Legal terms, institutional names, and fixed formulas reward exact reproduction; an ordinary email usually rewards a clearer current alternative.

Common Mistakes

Treating εν as a living equivalent of σε

Εν survives in inherited expressions. For a new location phrase, use σε.

✅ Τα έγγραφα βρίσκονται στο συρτάρι του γραφείου.

✅ Ta éngrafa vrískonde sto sirtári tu ghrafíu.

The documents are in the desk drawer.

Calling every -μένος form Katharevousa

Result participles in -μένος are productive Modern Greek and occur in daily speech. Learned style favors compact participles, but the suffix alone is not an archaic label.

✅ Έχω κλεισμένη θέση στο πρωινό λεωφορείο.

✅ Écho klizméni thési sto proinó leoforío.

I have a reserved seat on the morning bus. (everyday)

Replacing every -ης genitive with -εως

The learned variant is restricted by lexeme and genre. Της κυβέρνησης is correct in both ordinary and much formal current prose.

✅ Η ανακοίνωση της κυβέρνησης στάλθηκε σε όλα τα υπουργεία.

✅ I anakínosi tis kivérnisis stálthike se óla ta ipuryía.

The government announcement was sent to all ministries. (current formal)

Over-archaizing a modern sentence

Combining several marked relics without a genre-based reason sounds imitative rather than precise. Prefer one conventional technical form inside otherwise clear Modern Greek.

✅ Πριν από τη συνεδρίαση, θα σας στείλουμε τα σχετικά έγγραφα.

✅ Prin apó ti sinedhríasi, tha sas stílume ta schetiká éngrafa.

Before the meeting, we will send you the relevant documents. (neutral professional)

Key Takeaways

Survivals range from everyday εντάξει to highly marked διά της...; origin alone does not predict current register.
Fossilized datives are fixed vocabulary, not a living case.
Distinguish active -ων/-ουσα, process -όμενος, and result -μένος.
Learn εν, συν, διά, εκ, προ inside attested modern frames.
Recognize της πόλεως / της κυβερνήσεως, but use current -ης unless the genre or fixed name calls for the learned form.

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