Processed from: Anca_Mihaela_Sapovici_THE_OUTCOME_OF_GRE.txt
Date Compiled: 2026-04-12

Sapovici — The Outcome of Greek Loanwords into Present-Day Romanian

Author: Anca Mihaela Sapovici
Type: Peer-reviewed journal article
Topic: Greek lexical borrowing in Romanian, 16th–19th century

Summary

This article examines Greek loanwords in Romanian, focusing on expressive words that underwent stylistic depreciation due to extra-linguistic factors. The study is a first step toward a monographic analysis of Romanian words borrowed from Greek during three historical periods.

Three Periods of Greek Influence

  1. Old Greek (via Latin) — inherited through Romance substrate
  2. Medieval Greek / Byzantine Greek — during medieval Balkan contact
  3. Neo-Greek (Phanariot period) — the dominant period of borrowing, 16th–19th century

Key Arguments

  • Greek loanwords arrived primarily during the Phanariot period (1711–1821), when Greek-speaking rulers governed Wallachia and Moldavia
  • Greek was a language of prestige in the Balkans, mediated through Church (Patriarchate of Constantinople), commerce, and administration
  • Many Greek officials were polyglot intellectuals educated at Constantinople university, western Italian universities (Rome, Padova, Bologna), spreading Greek culture into Romanian territories
  • The end of Phanariot rule did not end Greek influence — it continued until the late 19th century
  • Turkish influence ran parallel to Greek, and the two are often confused in Romanian linguistic consciousness

Named Entities

  • phanariot-period — Phanariot regime (1711–1821)
  • neo-greek — Neo-Greek language period
  • moldavia — Principality of Moldavia
  • wallachia — Principality of Wallachia
  • constantinople-patriarchate — Seat of Greek cultural authority
  • Stolnicul Constantin Cantacuzino, Radu Mihnea, Alexandru Iliaș — Greek-influenced rulers
  • Luca al Buzăului, Matei al Mirelor — Church figures
  • Grigore II Ghica, Constantin Mavrocordat — Phanariot rulers

Key Concepts

  • turkisms — Turkish loanwords, distinct from Greek but often confused with them
  • bilingualism-balkan — Greek-Romanian bilingualism in the Principalities
  • stylistic-depreciation — how Greek loanwords became marked as "low" or "vulgar" in modern Romanian

Sources Cited

  • Gheție, I. 1975. Baza dialectală a românei literare
  • Rezachevici, C. 2012. "Prefanariotismul" in Byzantine Studies 3
  • Kostas Kazazis on Turkisms in Balkan languages
  • Friedman, V.A. on Turkish in the Balkans

Status

Source article — compiled from processed text.