Από τότε που άρχισα αυτό το μάθημα, η καθημερινότητά μου έχει αλλάξει λίγο.

Since I started this course, my everyday life has changed a bit.

Breakdown of Από τότε που άρχισα αυτό το μάθημα, η καθημερινότητά μου έχει αλλάξει λίγο.

• αυτός: this
• λίγο: a little
• έχω: to have
• μου: my
• αρχίζω: to start
• αλλάζω: to change
• το μάθημα: the lesson
• η καθημερινότητα: the everyday life
• από τότε που: since

Questions & Answers about Από τότε που άρχισα αυτό το μάθημα, η καθημερινότητά μου έχει αλλάξει λίγο.

What exactly does Από τότε που mean, and how is it different from just από τότε or όταν?

Από τότε που literally means “from the time (that)” and is used to introduce a time clause meaning “since (the moment that)”.

• Από τότε που άρχισα αυτό το μάθημα
  → Since I started this course

Differences:

• από τότε on its own = “since then”
  
  • Από τότε έχει αλλάξει η ζωή μου. = “Since then my life has changed.”
• όταν = “when” (neutral in time, not “since”)
  
  • Όταν άρχισα αυτό το μάθημα, ήμουν κουρασμένος. = “When I started this course, I was tired.”
    This just places one event at a point in time; it doesn’t mean “ever since”.

So:

• Από τότε που + past → “since (the time that) …”
• όταν + past → “when …” (no idea of “up to now”)

Why is it άρχισα (simple past) and not έχω αρχίσει (“I have started”) after Από τότε που?

Greek normally uses the simple past (aorist) in the time clause (the “since…” part) and puts the present perfect or present in the main clause:

• Από τότε που άρχισα αυτό το μάθημα, η καθημερινότητά μου έχει αλλάξει.
  “Since I started this course, my daily routine has changed.”

Using έχω αρχίσει here would be unusual and feel overloaded in Greek:

• ✗ Από τότε που έχω αρχίσει αυτό το μάθημα… sounds wrong / very unnatural.

So typical pattern:

• Από τότε που + aorist (άρχισα)
• Main clause: present perfect / present (έχει αλλάξει / αλλάζει)

Why is it έχει αλλάξει and not just άλλαξε? They both mean “changed,” right?

Both forms involve change, but they’ve got different focuses:

• άλλαξε = simple past (aorist): “changed (at some point)”
  Focus on the event, not the result.
• έχει αλλάξει = present perfect: “has changed”
  Focus on the result that still holds now.

Here, the speaker means:

• “My routine is now different compared to before, and that difference still applies now.”

So η καθημερινότητά μου έχει αλλάξει λίγο =
“My daily routine has changed a bit (and is still different now).”
Using άλλαξε would sound more like talking about a completed event in the past, with less emphasis on the current situation.

What is the subject of έχει αλλάξει in this sentence?

The subject of έχει αλλάξει is η καθημερινότητά μου:

• η καθημερινότητά μου → “my daily routine”
• έχει αλλάξει → “has changed”

So structurally:

• Από τότε που άρχισα αυτό το μάθημα,
  (time clause, no explicit subject for the second verb yet)
• η καθημερινότητά μου (subject)
• έχει αλλάξει λίγο (verb phrase + adverb)

Greek doesn’t repeat the subject with pronouns the way English often does; the noun phrase η καθημερινότητά μου is enough.

Why does καθημερινότητά have that extra accent before μου? Shouldn’t it just be καθημερινότητα?

The base word is η καθημερινότητα (“daily routine / everyday life”).
When you add the possessive clitic μου (“my”), an extra accent is often added to keep the natural stress:

• η καθημερινότητα (stress on -τό-)
• η καθημερινότητά μου

The added accent on the final syllable happens because:

• The word is already stressed on the third syllable from the end,
• and an enclitic like μου is attached.

This is a regular accent rule in Greek: attaching enclitics (like μου, σου, του etc.) can cause:

• either moving the stress, or

• adding a second written accent, as here:

• η μαμά → η μαμά μου (no change)
• η καθημερινότητα → η καθημερινότητά μου (extra accent appears)

What’s the difference between καθημερινότητα and καθημερινή ζωή? Could I say η καθημερινή μου ζωή instead?

Both are usable, but they feel a bit different:

• η καθημερινότητα
  = daily routine, the pattern of everyday life, the day‑to‑day reality.
  Often used in a more abstract or general sense.
• η καθημερινή ζωή
  = “everyday life” (literally “daily life”). Slightly more concrete and “descriptive”.

In this sentence you could say:

• Από τότε που άρχισα αυτό το μάθημα, η καθημερινή μου ζωή έχει αλλάξει λίγο.

It would be understood and acceptable, but:

• η καθημερινότητά μου sounds a bit more natural and idiomatic here, especially for the idea of routine and lifestyle pattern.

Why is it λίγο and not λίγα or λίγη? What is λίγο doing grammatically?

Here λίγο is used as an adverb, meaning “a little / a bit / slightly”, modifying the verb έχει αλλάξει.

• έχει αλλάξει λίγο → “has changed a little / a bit”

As an adverb:

• λίγο stays in the neuter singular form and does not agree in gender/number with anything.

If λίγο / λίγη / λίγα were adjectives or pronouns referring to nouns, they would change:

• λίγο χρόνο = a little (bit of) time
• λίγη ζάχαρη = a little sugar
• λίγα λεφτά = a little money / a few bucks

But after a verb, as here, λίγο = “a bit” in an adverbial sense.

Why do we say αυτό το μάθημα and not *το αυτό μάθημα? What’s the correct order with demonstratives?

In Modern Greek, the usual structure with demonstratives is:

• αυτό το μάθημα = this course / this lesson
  (literally: “this the lesson”)

Pattern:

• [demonstrative] + [article] + [noun]
  • αυτό το μάθημα = this lesson
  • εκείνο το βιβλίο = that book
  • αυτή η πόλη = this city

Το αυτό μάθημα is not how people talk in modern Greek; that order is old-fashioned / archaic.

So the natural phrase is:

• Από τότε που άρχισα αυτό το μάθημα… = “Since I started this course…”

What are the genders and basic forms of μάθημα and καθημερινότητα?

• το μάθημα (neuter)

  • Meaning: lesson, class, course
  • Basic forms (singular):
    • Nominative: το μάθημα
    • Genitive: του μαθήματος
    • Accusative: το μάθημα

• η καθημερινότητα (feminine)

  • Meaning: daily routine / everyday life
  • Basic forms (singular):
    • Nominative: η καθημερινότητα
    • Genitive: της καθημερινότητας
    • Accusative: την καθημερινότητα

In the sentence:

• αυτό το μάθημα → accusative (direct object of άρχισα)
• η καθημερινότητά μου → nominative (subject of έχει αλλάξει)

Why is there a comma before η καθημερινότητά μου? Is it required?

Yes, the comma is normal and stylistically preferred here.

The sentence has:

• A dependent time clause: Από τότε που άρχισα αυτό το μάθημα
• Followed by a main clause: η καθημερινότητά μου έχει αλλάξει λίγο

Greek commonly separates such clauses with a comma, especially when the dependent clause comes first:

• Αφού τελείωσα τη δουλειά, πήγα σπίτι.
• Όταν τον είδα, χάρηκα πολύ.
• Από τότε που άρχισα αυτό το μάθημα, η καθημερινότητά μου έχει αλλάξει λίγο.

You might see it sometimes without a comma in casual writing, but with the comma is standard and clearer.

Could I say Από τότε που ξεκίνησα αυτό το μάθημα instead of άρχισα? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can say:

• Από τότε που ξεκίνησα αυτό το μάθημα, η καθημερινότητά μου έχει αλλάξει λίγο.

Both άρχισα and ξεκίνησα are fine and close in meaning:

• άρχισα = I started / I began
• ξεκίνησα = I started / I set out / I kicked off

Nuance:

• άρχισα is a very neutral, common verb for starting activities (lessons, studies, work, etc.).
• ξεκίνησα can sometimes carry a slightly more dynamic feel (“set out on / embarked on”), but in everyday speech it also commonly just means “started”.

In this context, both sound perfectly natural.

Why is the possessive μου placed after καθημερινότητά and not before, like English “my daily routine”?

In Greek, possessive pronouns of this type are clitics and normally come after the noun:

• η καθημερινότητά μου = my daily routine
• το μάθημά μου = my lesson
• το σπίτι σου = your house

So the pattern is:

• [article] + [noun] + [possessive clitic]

You can’t say:

• ✗ μου η καθημερινότητα (this is wrong in modern Greek in this sense)

If you want to emphasize the possessor strongly, you use a stressed pronoun in the genitive, but still usually after:

• η καθημερινότητά μου η δική μου = my routine, mine
• η δική μου καθημερινότητα (here the phrase η δική μου comes before the noun, but that’s a different structure using δικός / δική / δικό for emphasis).