Language Variation in Modern Greek Socially Marginalized Idioms

Georgios Stampoulidis
george_stampoul@yahoo.gr
Master's Programme in Language and Linguistics - Greek/Modern Greek, Centre for
Languages and Literature, Lund University

Language Variation in Modern Greek, 15 ECTS (NYGR15), May, 2014
Supervisor: Vassilios Sabatakakis
Abstract
The aim of this paper is primarily to explore the fundamental dimensions of linguistic phenomenon, also the
operations and uses of Greek human language. Particular accent will be given in the fact that the language
requires the interaction of all members of each linguistic community because its use is the most important
joint activity
1
. Then it is carefully examined the social dimension of linguistic phenomenon and it is
appeared one by our fundamental purposes of this assignment, according to the fact that the language and
society are found in a permanent relation of interdependence and interaction. More specifically, my aim is to
provide a description and interpretation of this sociocultural phenomenon, from a sociolinguistic overview
by taking into account not only the study of terminology of any concrete linguistic thematic fields but also
the creative expression of people's thoughts found daily together aggregating a special social team.
Accordingly, in this current work we will try to check into thoroughly the main different linguistic varieties
which are integrally connected with the society. Henceforth, we adjust a classification of linguistic codes in
three individual categories (special, professional and concealed languages) along with our concentration in
the marginal idioms related to their genesis and evolvement and predominantly connected with their
functions and their reason of creation.
Key words: human language communication, marginal idioms, argot language, slang vocabulary, sociolects
Introduction - Human Language as a multifaceted phenomenon
Assuming that the existence of language cannot be separated from society, we will discuss the creation of
linguistic codes from socially marginalized teams and also from the characterized underworld having as a
basic circumstance in our mind that the language constitutes a multifunctional phenomenon with
heightened symbolic dynamics and characterizations of complexity. In each case, the scrutiny of linguistic
phenomenon is supremely essential, because via this exploration we might comprehend the deeper reasons
of creation and the symbolic messages of particular linguistic variety of each social group. Babiniotis
2
point
out that the language recommends a system of communication which is complemented by signs within the
members of community emit and accept messages in various communicative conditions.
Generally speaking, the language is a code of communication and it is highly noticeable to involve
recognizable meanings by all speakers. Through millenniums, the language is exceptionally developed,
depending on the socio-political changes and reflecting the evolution of human civilization. Nevertheless,
the language is lively and alive and is accessed as a system of signs which are in functional unity; they reflect
the distinct conception and organization of the global human nation. I thus align that it is a skill which
comes from social life and it is defined by it.
In the light of all the above, the linguistic community is not characterized by linguistic uniformity, i.e. we
could not demonstrate that there is a set of speakers, who uses everywhere and always the same linguistic
models. In contrast, it is characterized by diversity according to the linguistic behavior. Thus, different
groups of speakers use different linguistic varieties with common characteristics which distinguish them
from other varieties of the same language. Labof
3
, in his work Sociolinguistic Patterns, approaches these
varieties, based on the geographical origin of the speaker and on the sociolinguistic behavior, respectively.
These variations are divided into geographical dialects (horizontal classification) which are the varieties of

1 Kardara (2007: 13-15)
2 Babiniotis (1974: 11)
3 Labof (1981: 188)
Language Variation in Modern Greek Socially Marginalized Idioms - 2 -

language that the residents of specific geographic regions speak. These dialects usually represent differences
in phonetics and phonology, morphology, syntax and lexicon
4
. On the other hand there are the social
dialects according to Labof (vertical classification) which concern the intralinguas varieties used by different
social teams
5
. These social dialects include numerous types of text and specific languages, based on the
social group in which their speakers belong in. K [sociolect] is a way of speaking with lexical,
factual and structural features used under certain communication contexts. he present study aims attention
in the differentiation of language per any social and cultural circumstances.
The Social Dimension of Linguistic Phenomenon
Interestingly, an also important linguistic differentiation which is specified conforming to Angeliki Kardara
6

in her doctoral dissertation and it is asserted firstly from John Lyons
7
is the linguistic registers. In
sociolinguistics, as style is called each linguistic variety which is connected with a social environment. These
different varieties can be placed in one continuous that oscillates from exceptionally official until very
informal. According to this research the speakers adapt and also differentiate their linguistic register (style)
proportionally with the communicative conditions. (Who speaks, in which social - communicative
environment, which is addressed to whom, which relation do two speakers have between themselves?).
Consequently, the language is characterized by diversity, as we have concerned previously, and it becomes
quite easily perceptible that the linguistic change
8
recommends one of the most important characteristics of
all languages in an international level.
Ultimately, it is to be considered that the first sociolinguistic varieties began to attract the particular
interest of linguistic research mainly afterwards the second world war when the geographic dialects began
receding to be lost because of the locomotion of a big part of population from the province to the big urban
centers with only one aim, the job finding. The elements of social identity of speakers are formed by the basic
characteristics of social team in which they belong in
9
.We could say specifically that these vocabularies
function as characteristics of linguistic identity of each user and as a consequence as a factor of solidarity that
tightens the bonds of team which uses this unique vocabulary
10
. The linguistic properties (idioms) of socially
marginalized teams, despite the fact that are considered to be inferior linguistically by somebodies and are
used only in the oral speech, nevertheless we support the idea that these linguistic varieties have great
linguistic, social and cultural value after constituting exclusive linguistic codes which allow the successful
communication and expression of internal sentiments between the members of team
11
. It is quite clear from
the above quotations that Slang Vocabulary is a variety of speech characterized by newly and rapidly
changing vocabulary, mainly used by the young or by social and professional groups for in-group
communication and thus tending to prevent understanding by the rest of the speech community.
At this particular point we will try to survey the multidimensional and bidirectional relation of
interdependence between the language and the thought. This means that the sentiments, the reflections and
principally our thoughts spring from our intellectual spirit and are expressed via their implementation with
the language. This opinion was firstly emphatically insisted from the father of linguistics Ferdinand de
Saussure
12
and correspondingly from a lot of linguists who stressed those thoughts and sounds comprising
two aspects of the same currency which are unbreakably connected between themselves.
History, Origin and Characteristics of argot language (Greek Slang)
The argot language is a different artificial language, or in another way a social dialect and most times this
marginal linguistic code of communication assembles any of elements by which the official language is
characterized, such as development, change and enrichment with new words. The marginal properties are

4 In this sense, a dialect is regarded as a geographical variety of a language, spoken in a certain area, and being
different in some linguistic items from other geographical varieties of the same language.
5 Dendrinou (2001)
6 Kardara (2007: 19)
7 Lyons (1981: 24-27)
8 When we say linguistic change, we mean that a language is renewed daily proportionally with stimuli of speakers of
their social environment in which they are found and it is enriched with new words.
9 Kakridi, Kati, Nikiforidou (1999) suggest as main elements of any social identity the age (language of young persons),
social place (language of social margin and social exclusion), profession or occupation (special languages of seamen,
military men, law, builders, engineers)
10 Georgakopoulou, Goutsos (1999)
11 Anderson & Trudgill (1990)
12 Saussure (1979)
Language Variation in Modern Greek Socially Marginalized Idioms - 3 -

supposed to be the linguistic varieties which according to Philippaki Warburton
13
constitute the extreme
expressions of social dialects. Argot is eminently an oral linguistic property used as encrypted language of
communication from any social or professional teams and it is almost always shaped by linguistic loans and
deterioration of Standard Language
14
.
This paragraph aptly illustrates, albeit in a brief way that various detailed classifications of the social
functions of language have been made, especially in Hallidayan linguistics, and in relation to pragmatics and
the theory of speech acts. As indicated above, we will not be supposed to forget that Halliday, as it is
mentioned from Keith & Burridge
15
in a more comprehensible way, describes argot language as []
antilanguage, the language of antisociety []. According to this opinion, argot language expresses
anticultural, antipolitical and antisocial interpretation and also most of times it clashes and forces
lexicological, syntactic, semantic and grammatical rules and simply exists as a unique existence in the
general and international linguistic environment
16
. On the other hand, many researchers come to agreement
to the place, which I also support unambiguously, that the language has the force to direct the thought of
cultural society as long as also to influence the social structure
17
. The use of different argot languages,
especially the youth language, causes various reactions which are more generally summarized in the fear of
the adulteration and vulgarization of the pure and elevated language.
To the extent that such judgments are possible, Androutsopoulos
18
claims that the social networks of
young persons are narrower rather than those of adults and this is the major reason why the pressure for
linguistic conformity in the frames of belonging in a company is intensified. However, as it becomes already
perceptible from the above, the more special vocabularies are related with informal and usually marginal
activities which are constituted by the marginal vocabulary (slang). The vocabulary of young persons (youth
language /slang), the hacker slang through social networking websites, the language of drug-addicted persons
(drogue language), the language of homosexual people (lgbt slang) and the military language with code words
(military slang) are only some of the main cases of slang vocabulary in Greece which have been already
selected for our analysis in this work. The above vocabularies often are discerned from Standard Modern
Greek (SMG) so as to be impossible their comprehension except for team and thus it is achieved at
significance a coded identity that offers protection and oneness to the team members
19
. Trying to obviate any
decencies of the public offence, I decided to attribute with phonetic transcription all the words and
expressions used in the present work as examples of social idioms.
Youth Language
Recently, certain articles with object the language of young persons were presented (we typically mention
the article of Iordanidou & Androutsopoulos)
20
; where there is a detailed reference that young persons are
not a homogeneous team: they are differentiated on more than one particular category. We should think
about gender, social status, education, their interests (music, sports, and machines), the neighborhood, the
school, their ways of entertainment. Respectively, the expressions of youth language are also
differentiated. This is the dominant conception why most of scholars prefer speak for properties (idioms) of
young persons. Unquestionably, the current separate ways of communication of adolescents represent
certain common and recognizable features that discriminate them from the spoken language of most adults.
This is precisely, in my personal assumption, the new and important element included in this very recent
juvenile linguistic differentiation.
Now, it should be noted in general that the term youth language is a linguistic code of communication
which represents not only a great variety of words but also a rich slang vocabulary. When a youth belongs in
a social team, begins to use a particular handling of language providing himself the green light for his
conformity by the team. At the same time, a new possibility is given to the young person; his / her linguistic
tool is influenced continuously by stimulations in which he / she is receiver and as a result the vocabulary is
going to be embellished with new words that cover new communication needs.

13 Philippaki Warburton (1992)
14 www.greek-language.gr
15 Keith & Burridge (2006: 70)
16 Battistella (2005: 5-8)
17 Archakis & Konduli (2004: 37-38)
18 Androutsopoulos (1998)
19 Veloudis (2001)
20 Iordanidou & Androutsopoulos (1997: 267-276)
Language Variation in Modern Greek Socially Marginalized Idioms - 4 -

Some of the noticed neologisms in the language of young persons are fter (any activity which is realized
later and mainly is related with a kind of amusement), jalantzi (not real, fake), gatzetkias (the person who
enjoys collecting mainly electronic devices independently from their usefulness), bxas (the one that smells
intensely) and vizvios (calling a woman who has big breast). The young person achieves with this
vocabulary, within bold words and strange idioms, to transmit messages of criticism. According to Holmes
21

teenagers reject from their vocabulary anything which is considered to be past or finite and for this reason
the juvenile vocabulary includes words and expressions related to youth culture, such as arpaxt (easy profit),
gdarxos (idiot), gavgdiko (folklore amusement related to music), goths (the person who hears gothic music).
Moreover, the juvenile vocabulary is referred to many psychological situations and wishes, whereas there
are several evaluative expressions which declare a particular attitude opposite to an object of report (dzmi,
astri, psnio, flmpa, laps, and psri)
22
. Additionally, the social categories are largely productive semantic
fields (flros, tpissa, fut, klampkias and koukourokou).
The enthusiastic youthful vocabulary is also enriched through the exploitation of productive mechanisms
of Standard Modern Greek (SMG), production and composition: (- atos: chlidtos < luxury, -ari: kollitri <
closed-friend, kara-: karakatna, - poulo: eurpoulo < euro, - oni: gatni <gta (intelligent), - oulas: ftoulas
<fut (spasklas), and the productive conclusion of comparative degree: argotertera kaluterteros, because it
is characterized by intense linguistic plasticity, with result this variety of neologisms.
It might be expressed mainly that a portion of scholar linguists condemns the language of young persons
approaching it as a divergence from the official language, which is considered more correct. Their
accusation is supported in excessive evaluative characterizations, as we contemplate, while they judge that
the unique treatment is the systematic teaching of Ancient Greek. Supplementary, there are some
researchers who defend the youth language; they argue that all languages are equal because they are used
from equal people.
Hacker Slang and Greeklish
Hacker slang challenges some common linguistic and anthropological beliefs, while as the language is an
alive organism which is permanently developed, thus the common global language, an invented term in the
last few decades and peoples millions all over the world communicate using this kind of language, also is
developed. In accordance with the Institute for Language and Speech Processing (ILSP)
23
the local languages and
dialects between the populations raise and contribute in the creation of international society where everyone
can communicate with everyone.
Nowadays what we call , or Greeklish is not a phenomenon of our
decade. On the contrary, it is a usual practice presented in various places and seasons and was applied by
various Greek communities with different ways and for different purposes. Indicatively, we could report in
some light lines that Crete and Cyprus were the first places during the Middle Age where popular Greek
songs and romances were written with Latin characters, later on another area was Smyrna where not only a
lot of Greek books were printed with Latin characters but also it became a great attempt to be published a
Greek newspaper written with Latin characters. Coming after, Chiotes () and other tradesmen of
abroad were writing letters and telegrams in the Greek Language but with Latin characters. This
also used by Greeks in order to communicate with other Greeks living in Smyrna, in
London or elsewhere. The claims and proposals are illustrated above designate a synoptic formulation of
Karatheos assessments based on the text of Foti Giofulli in the magazine in 1930, according to
Androutsopoulos in his article to the newspaper to Vma ( )
24
.
Besides that, we basically pay attention to a new form argot which is the electronic argot or the argot of
internet or differently speaking as we have chosen the term Hacker Slang. This new linguistic code is
constituted by useful technical terms for the report in processes that become electronic and have been also
imported to our daily vocabulary sometimes because of the weakness of creation a new word
25
. It is still
constituted by abbreviations of technical terms and by virtual representations that symbolize entire phrases
and it is difficult for a nonsystematic user of Internet to recognize and understand the meanings (for instance
the word oglimeans the online internet search through google or other words such as phtis, megle,

21 Holmes (1992: 166-174)
22 Androutsopoulos (1997,2001), Ksudopoulos (2008)
23 http://www.ilsp.gr/
24 Androutsopoulos (1999)
25 Androutsopoulos (1998)
Language Variation in Modern Greek Socially Marginalized Idioms - 5 -

tspa). Interestingly, a great part of this Hacker slang is the Greeklish, the writing of Greek text with Latin
characters (I grafi ellinikou keimenou me latinikous xaraktires)
26
.
The scholarly studies on this specific subject of Greeklish are mostly articles and papers, but also a few
dissertations distinguishing them in two categories phonetic and orthographic. However, most of the users
employ a mixed system and somebodies use also the numbers 8 and 3 apart from English characters. Some
instances of this particular way of writing are following:
In phonetic: kalimra, ps ste? / Sizitis
In orthographic: kalhmra, ps este? / Syzhthsh
Apart from the phrases, the more general climate that assesses this tendency is the simplification. This is
interpreted either as ill-treatment of Greek language or as exemption by the spelling. More specifically,
all Greek words which contain diphthongs or vowels like , , , , are written either with "ei", "oi", "h",
"u" i or simply i , the vowels , are replaced with o, and the vowel or the diphthong are
replaced with e, respectively. Another big problem among Greeklish is the letter "" written with many
variations: e.g. "thlo", "8lo", "9lo", and "ulo".
Some certain examples in Hacker Slang and Greeklish: lollaugh out loud, brbbe right back, npno
problem, omgoh my God, plzplease, asapas soon as possible, cysee you, thxthanks, u2you too, w8wait,
y-why?, k kai, dn den, tpt tipota, klmr kalimera.
Contrary to what is believed, current Greeklish is not identified with the language of young persons:
it is mostly a way of writing in the computer and anything can be written in this, from anyone regardless
the age. However, at this point a young person uses a lot Greeklish; because according to the reputable
linguists Kakridi and Androutsopoulos
27
, this is the generation that grew with natural and obvious
company of the computers and communication via those is mainly the English internet. It has been also
claimed by both scholars and amateurs that this way of writing is not related with the presupposition for
poverty of juvenile vocabulary, which, once again, Kakridi considers that it constitutes exaggeration of
bigger generations. On the other hand, if we put the same thing differently, we meet the extensive opposite
opinion of Babiniotis
28
who supports and stresses with heavy characterizations in his recent article which
was published in the newspaper Ta nathat Greeklish constitute the easier way of removal and alienation
from, what the picture of equitably written word symbolizes, optik ndalma as he characteristically
reports. Moreover, if we consider that the language recommends not only a tool of communication other
than the historical continuity of national population and culture connecting all those traits that comprise
the mirror of our national and cultural identity, we easily gather the conclusion that removal from the
language involves removal from the culture with final result the cultural alienation
29
.


Drogue language
The drogue language according to the professor of criminology John Panousis
30
is a form of our official-
clean language, where the values, the feelings, the solidarity and the contestation constitute their own
resistance, and where the semiotic of linguistic contestation leads the reader to the localization of other
attitude in front of the social, moral, political and ideological questions of modern world.
It is evidently a concealed language used by the drug addicted persons constituting the conjunctive ring
that links the members of team. Without this link, the comprehension of meanings from individuals who do
not belong in this team is not feasible. The biggest part of this special vocabulary concerns about the
different names of the narcotic substances. However, in each case as we are trying to be somehow more
focused to these words comprising the special vocabulary of drogue language, everyone can comprehend

26 At this point, it is remarkable to be reported that one book written in Greeklish was published in 2000 by G.
Androutsopoulos with the title EXEGESIS. It is a particular love story that is played entirely via electronic messages
and is reported in the artificial intelligence describing software that acquires its trial will.
27 Androutsopoulos, Kakridi (2010)
28 Babiniotis (2011)
29 Nevertheless, does stereotype threat exist of Greek language or is about another development of language, as it
has also happened not only in the past few years with the linguistic question, conceived in the early 19th century as a
compromise between Ancient Greek and the Demotic Greek of the time, but also as well later with the suppression of
the complex polytonic orthography with a variety of diacritics? I strongly recommend that the scale of reality does not
bend in no one from both sides, but from the other balance does not exist already, on the contrary the gap grows
between the generations.
30 Panousis (1995)
Language Variation in Modern Greek Socially Marginalized Idioms - 6 -

that it is particularly difficult until impossible to be included a big part of vocabulary for the very obvious
reason that in order to know the words and much more the semantic charge (meaning) of each word, it is
essential for someone to be part of this particular team and as result of having free access in the secrets and
the coded expressions of communication.
he vocabulary of this sociolinguistic variety analyzed in this part of our work draws elements from
remainder argot languages, it mainly uses linguistic loans and subsequently the beloved method of
anagrammatism which is considered to be quite easy mean
31
. At this point, we will make a detail
examination of some from the terms that we accomplished to locate relatively with the names of substances,
mainly based on their origin from the one side and on their particular use by the other, as long as this is
feasible, if we think about the objective difficulties and our reflections that we developed above.
Some indicative examples are following: zpre = prza (anagrammatism). Other words emanating
from the language of narcotics: he is farmakomnos ,mastouromnos > he has taken medicine = the
detainee that finds under the influence of medicines, he is charmnis > the detainee that does not have to
take narcotic, zompa or zopa > the cigarette which has been made by rubbed pills, e.g. stedon, lid
(kapki) > unit of measurement of pinch which is used mainly in the prison and it is usually made with pen
fault or other means, buttons (kumpi) > the pills extent or other narcotic pills, black (maro) > the
hashish, narcotics of luxury > very expensive narcotics, e.g. cocaine, small ball (mpalki) > narcotics in
packing, ntrgka paramuthio > prza, I drink fine > I drink pinch, I took many ntrgkia (pra poll
ntrgkia) = I took big quantity of narcotic substances, I took pass (pra tin psa) > I received the narcotics
which are sent to me by someone, loukrisma > the transport of narcotics in the prisons, chocolate >
pasteurized narcotic, tamchn () = prza, tripki > the result of use of narcotic substances,
trfullo () > the hashish, fonta () > narcotics that smoke in the prison, kka or kok
or anapsuktik > cocaine, certain usual types of ecstasy are named as Adam (Adm), buttons
(kumpi), white pigeons (leuk peristria), disco burgers and Neoyorkezoi (Neoyorkzoi) and the
LSD can be sold using the drawings on small squares as commercial names, as Strawberries (froules),
E.T. , or Chinese Dragon (kinzikos drkos)
32
. As can be effortlessly observed there is a tendency of
universal vocabulary rendering possible the communication between the drugs addicted users.
Kaliarnta( Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender LGBT Slang)
The etymology of word kaliarnta emanates at the dictionary of Manolis Triantafyllidis
33
from the gipsyish
address kaliarnta which is used to say black, while Wikipedia
34
supports the French origin from the
substantive gkagiar, which honors levntes. The Greek language has the advantage to achieve the
blending of those two opinions: mara kai rachla, alla levntika.
It has been used in various languages including Greek since the early 1900s as a means by which members
of the LGBT community can identify themselves and speak in code with brevity and speed to other LGBTs.
LGBT slang serves as an argot, a secret language and a way for the LGBT community to communicate with
each other publicly without revealing their sexual orientation to others. However, which is the history of this
dialect that changed the order of homosexuals? According to the studies, kaliarnta in Greek first appeared
in the decade 1940 and they were created by their need for a code on communication between each other,
without being meaningful by the hostile environment. Ilias Petropoulos was the first who dealt with
kaliarnta. In his homonym book kaliarnta, the folklorist reports that this dialect was actually a defensive
wall. In his explanatory-etymologic dictionary, Kaliarnta, (first publication 1971
35
, reprint 1993 from the
publications Nefeli) recorded above 3.000 words.
The homosexuals of more inferior socio-economic layers in the years of interwar faced pressures from the
hostile social environment. Thus, they should find a linguistic code which would allow them to
communicate with each other without understand the other. Alekos Sakelarios in his chronograph (Press
Free World < >, 1972), concealing the book of Petropoulos, supports that homosexuals
borrowed kaliarnta from the gipsies. According to the writer, it is about an alteration of an old Indian dialect
which the gipsies brought together from their distant homeland. Kaliarnta passed in the underworld; they

31 Kardara (2007)
32 The lexicological samples that were selected in this point of our work have been drawn mainly from the book of
professor John Panousis (he vocabulary of Douglas), as well as from articles of Athenian
newspapers of weekly circulation: (to vma), (ta na), (to thnos)
33 Triantafyllidis (1998)
34 http://el.Wikipedia.org/wiki/
35 Petropoulos (1971)
Language Variation in Modern Greek Socially Marginalized Idioms - 7 -

were developed step by step within the big Greek cities and acquired Greek conclusions, with influences
from Turkish: gunti > intense hand insistence wish > , guzl > (gmena)
woman, as an erotic company, kolobars > kulampara ( ), btsos > ba (), English: avlo
biesmn > harass somebody > , Italian: avlo > wish and French: kzi > social status >
. They are distinguished into two levels: in simple kaliarnta (that all homosexuals speak) and
in hard kaliarnta (ntora) with elements of Greek Katharevousa. Petropoulos supports that the actors played
a leading part, but the actor Sperantza Vrana remembers that he was considered mpanal, whoever spoke
kaliarnta: I was hearing the spoken kaliarnta from the homosexuals that frothed in their hangouts: they used words,
e.g. pagr, but they were not still widespread. A few years later, the dialect passed also in the autobiography of
acquaintance transvestite Mpety, with some new words such as tzveno, tzasls, tekn, pur, kuls, musant,
semnokaulomni and loltzo. On the other hand, the writer-translator Loukas Theodorakopoulos characterizes
kaliarnta as a long gone dialect, because as the sexual choice becomes free choice for everyone among
Greek society in our times as much no reason exists for kaliarnta to be a shibboleth language.
Linguistic Loans from Romani Languages (Gipsy Language)
Romani is the language that Rom speak (Gypsies) all over the world. The various dialects and the
properties which Rom speak today emanate primarily from the sanskritika and certain languages of northern
India (pantzampi, chinti, Nepali). Therefore, it is mainly about an Eastern language with a lot of linguistic
influences.
In the sector of Phonetics and Phonology the effects - if we can name them as effects they become obvious
in said gipsy style which new Greek speakers use certain times for humorous and facetious reasons. In the
sector of Vocabulary and particularly in kaliarnta (linguistic variety of homosexuals of Greece), some
example phrases are mentioned below:
Pour, pours, porepsa from the Romani word [puro] or [phuro] =gros
Tzasts, tzse, tzso, from the Romani word [dzav] or [dZav] =fego
Chfto, chapsa, chpsei Romani from word [xav] =tro
Nowadays, the gay slang (kaliarnt in Greek) is represented enough different from that season.
Henceforth, kaliarnta have been incorporated in our community and also continue to be used from gay
community in Greece, but as each language as kaliarnta is developed in the modern life through the new
emerged communicative needs.
36

Military Slang
he army is a closed society that allocates all those particular characteristic traits which compose the
physiognomy of our wider society. Therefore, each closed society, as the previous cases of communities of
young persons, drugs addicted and homosexual, has developed with the byway of time concrete
terminology. As has been rendered explicit language and society are characterized by a narrow relation
between themselves. The characteristics of society are realized via the language and the language as a
flexible living organism is characterized by the attribute to be adapted in this social and cultural
environment. As a result, the communication and the use of language in the army bring in the light a lot of
characteristic features of their life, their way of existence, their everyday routine, their occupations and even
more their education, revealing the varied military terminology
37
. The fact is that the most unforgettable
slang comes from the military environment and according to Burgess
38
: It has been mostly the armed forces
that have spawned the most memorable catchphrases, which, it may be suggested, are often the product of
oppression and boredom. Undoubtedly, it is important to point out that the most essential aspects of
Greek military slang are divided between the official and the unofficial military terminology.
The Armed Forces are considered to be one big organization with multiple differentiations, a particular
social team, which functions as a social sub system inside our wider social system. It is used here masterfully
the term social team because it refers not simply in a category of individuals, but also in a social structure

36 he selected words or phrases for our analysis according to this particular social dialect have been drawn either
from the homonym book of Ilias Petropoulos or from the web site www.slang.gr or are emanated from our personal
influences. The number of words is the minimal we could in order to show the linguistic wealth of this dialect and its
influences. We were not allowed to analyze more this linguistic phenomenon because of the small extent of this
present work.
37 Athanasopoulos (1986: 5)
38 Burgess (1994: 329)
Language Variation in Modern Greek Socially Marginalized Idioms - 8 -

concrete aim, mission and organization, determined number of members, devotion, penalties and
prohibitions
39
.
he military administration by the season when the Greek army was recommended uses Katharevousa,
all documents are written in this form of language and even more orders are pronounced in Katharevousa
and this causes a lot of problems after this language does not become comprehensible from the simple
soldiers even if certain words have been developed as following:
Thalamoflax thalamoflakas ()
Mons monda ()
Egertrion egertrio ()
The characteristic example of use of Katharevousa in the oral speech is the common phrase: ! ;
that the aim is compelled to say when he conceives that somebody approaches to him. Here, however, we
owe to point out the absurd phenomenon of military terminology, which compels the aim to use a foreign
word () with a question in the ancient Greek ( ;)! On the other hand, on investigating the origin of
official militaristic terms, slang and colloquial expressions it is explored from most scholars that the majority
of them originated during wars and conflicts, especially those of the 20
th
Century. As a consequence, military
innovations accelerated during conflict and that led directly to the creation of a new vocabulary. In order to
demonstrate that the birth of this language is definitely concurrent with such military and cultural affairs are
compared with the growth of both official and unofficial vocabulary of the armed forces.
In each case, all military forces depend for their operation on a strict, unambiguous organizational
hierarchy which has usually been reflected in distinctive uniforms. Therefore I think that an important
element in which we owe also to stand and discuss particularly it is the fact that the official military
hierarchy has influenced generally the military society. Thus, we observe that a form of informal hierarchy
happens also between simple soldiers; because the one that serves more time is supposed to be old (palis)
while the new (noi) soldiers are characterized as fishes (psria) or mice (pontkia).
The military slang has also accepted a lot of effects from foreign languages mostly from English, and this
is owed obviously if we mind the collaboration between the countries in military level. Examples of words
such as and testify the effect of English language in Greek military slang with the
mixing of Greek morpheme and English conclusion. Last but not least, it is important to notice that the word
skopto is reported in the viewpoint while the term germanik nomero is reported in the intermediary
shift 2-4 a.m. and the word anthpa is related to word .
Conclusion
The findings of this study suggest that finally the marginal properties are a catholic phenomenon which is
met all over the world, from the moment that the need of creation of concealed languages was presented and
henceforth was evolved in lingua codes adopting by abundance of speakers in each society. It is certainly no
exaggeration to say that language varieties used by particular societal strata are referred to as sociolects.
Most antilanguages are developed in marginalized communities. It should be emphasized, however, as it is
referred to the outset that most language varieties have a particular social distribution which is generally
larger mostly among the lower classes. In this work we discussed also slang vocabulary characterized as a
very informal language variety including new and sometimes not polite words and meanings. It is often
used among particular groups of people, for example groups of teen-agers (youth language), and it is
usually not used in serious speech or writing. Further, I would like to decipher in the end of this study that
there are many ways of speaking, and each way of speaking is a linguistic variety. In a more precise manner,
a variety may be defined as a set of linguistic items with similar social distribution
40
and as well a scientific field
with special rhythms of linguistic changes which will be estimated to be inquired more systematically in the
research future. Conclusively, I would like to express my hope that this work will contribute to further
investigation of marginal social dialects as well as further discovery of human communication in general.
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