Your Greek Word On A Sunday

I’m very happy to welcome Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria in our audience ! With a name that means ‘Wisdom’ in Greek and being one of its closest neighbours it’s inexcusable that I’m yet to visit! One thing I’ll be looking for when I do, is the bells monument; Built in the ‘80s as a global children’s monument with the idea to include a bell dedicated to every country in the world and to have children ring these as a gesture of peace. Something we’re in desperate need of. Thank you for listening Sofia! Or Σοφία (Sofía) in Greek.
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
International women’s day was last week and Mother’s Day is today in the UK. So, I’m here to celebrate both  with a word that is a symbol of the circle of life, the power of nature and feminine power. A symbol that has been found in all ancient cultures sometimes in pottery, sometimes in statues and even on graves. But most importantly it’s a pattern we find in nature. It’s simple and endless . It starts on a fixed point and keeps winding outwards . The word travelled from Greek to Latin and French and arrived in English, almost intact, in 1550 by welsh physician and mathematician Robert Recorde. ΣΠΕΙΡΑ-SPIRAL

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A big welcome to Bangkok today! I’m so happy to have you in our audience. The city has a series of modesty laws including one that states that you should always wear underwear when you’re in a public space. Don’t worry , nobody will check but make sure it doesn’t show. Thank you for listening Bangkok!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go!
There’s a tree that is known for its malaria healing effects, its water consuming roots that help dry out marshes and its mosquito repellent scent.It’s native to Australia and it wasn’t brought to Greece until 1862 by the botanist Theodore Orfanides. Indigenous Australians have a different name for every species of this tree- which is around 700- but the settlers used the generic name gum tree. Until, French botanist  Charles Louis L’Herritier de Brutelle used two Greek words to name it, based on the complete cover of the buds until their bloom. Ευ (ef) in Ancient Greek meant ‘well/good’ and καλύπτω (calepto) still means ‘I cover’ so a tree that has well covered buds is an ΕΥΚΑΛΥΠΤΟΣ/EUCALYPTUS 
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Today, I’d like to welcome Olso in our audience! Oslo has a fantastic first! It was the first city to design a bee highway. A series of rooftops, green spaces and balconies were bees can follow throughout the city and pollinate! Thank you for that and for listening Oslo! 
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go! 
Here’s a myth that has taken many forms like its protagonists. I’m going to tell you the story of Αλκυόνη and Κυηξ and the rise and fall of their love. Αλκυόνη was a beautiful young Princess , daughter of Aeolus of Thessaly (not to be confused with the winds god). Κυηξ was a handsome young noble man . They fell in love and got married and their love was so passionate and strong that made them feel invincible and unique . Like love does. But the couple took it a little too far. They started believing they were as powerful as  Zeus and Hera and even called each other with those names. And that was hubris to the Olympians. They transformed them into birds and cursed them to live by the sea and only be able to lay eggs in the middle of winter. Many years passed and harsh winters kept destroying their eggs. Zeus felt pity for them and gave them 14 sunny and warm days from the middle of  January to the middle of February for their eggs to survive. In the rest of the world Αλκυόνη ‘ς name is now a metaphor for calm, happy and prosperous times but in Greece that is the name for the 14 Spring-like days in the middle of winter. ΑΛΚΥΟΝΗ/HALCYON

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This week, I’d like to welcome Reno in Nevada. Did you know that from the 1930s, and well into the 50s, Reno was called the divorce capital of the world? Hollywood actors would go there to get a divorce quickly because it only required a six week residency. Also called a ‘six week cure’. And if you’re wondering, no, it’s not happening anymore. Thank you for listening Reno!
Do you have a fun fact about the city you’re listening from? Email me at [email protected] and let the world know!
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go! 
There were many games in the Ancient Greek olympics and the most popular ones involved horses! For that purpose a special place was built. It was U shaped and between 400 and 780 meters long (or up to 4 stadia in Ancient Greek measurements). Its name is a combined word that travelled from Greek to Latin to French and, came to England in the 1500s in a translation by William Thomas . Ίππος (ippos) in ancient Greek meant horse and δρόμος (dromos) a word still in use in modern Greek, means road, way and, race. The place were horses compete is an ΙΠΠΟΔΡΟΜΟΣ/HIPPODROME

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A big welcome to the small town of Voorburg in the Netherlands! It was fascinating to read about the history of this  town. It’s one of the oldest inhabited places  in the Netherlands, dating back to the 1st century and its name means ‘in front of the castle’. Thank you for listening Voorburg. I hope I'm saying your name right.
(Piano music) Hello, and welcome to Your Greek Word On A Sunday, a weekly, bite-size podcast for anyone curious on language, etymology and connections. I am your host, Emmanuela Lia and wherever you are in the world, if you want to entertain your brain for a few minutes, this is the podcast for you. Let's Go! 
According to the Ancient Greek historian Herodotus, when Xerxes sent his spies to observe how the Spartans were training before battle, they reported back saying they were training for Κάλλος (Kallos) and Σθένος (sthenos). For beauty and strength. Eons went by and  in 18th century France a new term appeared for the exercise young girls were required to take, in order to be graceful and healthy. In 1842, in England, the term appears for the first time in writing, it was already in use in everyday language, in The New Monthly Magazine in an article by Thomas Hood. A term that combined the two Greek words and is now more than a physical exercise for little girls. ΚΑΛΛΙΣΘΕΝΙΚΗ/CALLISTHENICS

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