Months of the Year in Greek
Despite the unique alphabet, learning the months of the year in Modern Greek is a breeze for English speakers. Since the calendar structure dates back to Roman times, the phonetic sounds of the months closely mirror their English counterparts.
If you're studying global timelines, pairing this with general concepts like how many weeks in a year and how many days in each month will give you a complete foundational understanding of calendars.
Quick Answer: All 12 Months
Script Note: The Greek alphabet is used below. The transliteration column shows how to pronounce these words using the standard English alphabet. Note the accent mark (τόνος) which dictates the stressed syllable.
| English | Greek | Transliteration | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | Ιανουάριος | Ianouarios | |
| February | Φεβρουάριος | Fevrouarios | |
| March | Μάρτιος | Martios | |
| April | Απρίλιος | Aprilios | |
| May | Μάιος | Maios | |
| June | Ιούνιος | Iounios | |
| July | Ιούλιος | Ioulios | |
| August | Αύγουστος | Avgoustos | |
| September | Σεπτέμβριος | Septemvrios | |
| October | Οκτώβριος | Oktovrios | |
| November | Νοέμβριος | Noemvrios | |
| December | Δεκέμβριος | Dekemvrios |
How Months Are Named
Greek months owe their names to the Roman Julian calendar. "Μάρτιος" directly traces to Mars, and "Αύγουστος" to Emperor Augustus. The common ending "-ος" (-os) is typical of masculine nouns in the Greek language. This makes memorization incredibly straightforward once you learn to read the Greek alphabet.
Cultural Notes
Unlike many European languages, Greek months are capitalized. Because Greek grammar involves cases, the spelling of the month changes depending on its function. The table above shows the Nominative case (the base dictionary form). If you say "in January", you use the Accusative case, dropping the final 's' to become "τον Ιανουάριο".
Frequently Asked Questions
Are months capitalized in Greek?
Yes, in Greek, the names of the months are treated as proper nouns and are always capitalized.
What is the Greek word for month?
The Greek word for month is 'μήνας' (minas).
Do Greek months share origins with English?
Yes, both originate from the Roman calendar, which makes the Greek words sound very similar to the English ones.
How do you say 'in January' in Greek?
You use 'τον Ιανουάριο' (ton Ianouario), changing the ending of the word due to grammatical cases.