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GreekReporter.comGreeceHow the Greek Language Was Preserved by Orthodox Martyrs During Ottoman Rule

How the Greek Language Was Preserved by Orthodox Martyrs During Ottoman Rule

Greek Priest in church
How Orthodox martyrs saved the Greek language under Ottoman rule. Credit: Greek Reporter

The selfless Greek Orthodox monks and priests, who protected and taught the Greek language at a time of persecution of Greek culture and faith, were partially responsible for the language’s survival through almost four hundred years of Ottoman rule.

The contribution of the Church in saving and teaching the Greek language during those dark times for the country and its people was immense. Indeed, the Gospels were initially written in the Greek language, the one known as Common Hellenistic. They were then translated to other languages from Greek.

Through the Gospels written in Greek, Christian faith spread throughout the world. Greek was also the language of the Byzantine Empire.

After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, the Hellenistic world fell into shambles. In order to maintain its historical identity and cultural heritage, the key elements of national unity had to be utilized: religion, language, and tradition.

The ancient ways of the Greeks continued through the multi-dimensional worship of the Church.

By receiving the privileges granted by Sultan Mehmet II, a truly ecclesiastical Christian state was created which contributed to the physical and spiritual survival of Orthodoxy. This was despite the difficulties and obstacles to which Ottoman conquerors repeatedly challenged the Greeks.

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The Church was more than just spiritual refuge—it also preserved Greek language and culture

Being the only institution that remained alive after the Ottoman conquest, the responsibility for the political and spiritual survival of Hellenism during those dark ages fell on the Church.

Its decisions, actions, omissions, and mistakes would have a direct impact on the Greeks. Tdecisions were taken under the watchful eye of the Ottoman conqueror.

For the Greeks of the time, Orthodoxy meant much more than a religious doctrine. It was their whole life, the spiritual context through which their national consciousness was expressed. In the difficult years of slavery, the Church became a spiritual refuge, the one stable social institution, the cohesive web of Hellenism.

During those years, there were only secret schools (το κρυφό σχολειό) which would teach the Greek language, and the teaching was done by priests. The books of hymns were like the language book of the first grade, and the Gospels would be the textbooks for older students.

church in Chios, Greece
Church in Chios. Credit: /Wikimedia Commons

In fact, the first words young Greeks of the time learned were the words of “Our Father.” This comprised the words of the Divine Liturgy and all their meanings. This all occurred at a time when Ottoman Turkish was the official language.

It was all essential because there was no such thing as an organized educational system during the first period of Ottoman rule. There would be about ten to fifteen students gathered around a priest in the narthex of a church, or in a monastery around a monk, who would be taught only the most elementary Greek.

However, the contribution of the secret schools to the salvation of the Greek language, regardless of the educational level, proved to be significant in the middle of the 16th century. By 1680, when the rulers allowed the establishment of Greek schools for the first time, the foundations for the spiritual rebirth of the nation recorded in the 18th century would be laid.

Teachers of the Greek language under Ottoman rule

The emergence of pioneering teachers, establishment of schools in various cities and regions of Greece, as well as the writing of remarkable literary works and the repatriation of Greek teachers and students who had attended universities and academies in the West, all led to a spiritual rebirth of the nation.

Educated Patriarchs, such as Meletios Pigas, Maximos Margounios, and Cyril Loukaris, accompanied by the rise of the Greek middle class and the material contribution of wealthy merchants to the education of Greeks also contributed to this Greek renaissance.

The most important Orthodox monastic center during the Ottoman occupation was Mount Athos, a beacon of Orthodoxy, the reach of which went beyond the borders of Greece and continues to this day.

Greek language Ottoman rule
St. Cosmas of Aetolia. Credit:Peloponnisios /Wikimedia Commons/CC BY-SA 4.0

Some of the priests and monks who contributed to the salvation of the Greek language gave their lives for the cause and became martyrs. According to several clerics, St. Cosmas of Aetolia (Κοσμάς ο Αιτωλός, c.1714-1779, canonized in 1961) is the greatest martyr, and his contribution to the survival of the Greek languages is invaluable.

Cosmas was a monk who had studied theology and rhetoric, and in a period of sixteen years, he established many church schools to preserve the language in Western and Northern Greece, areas where many Greeks were converting to Islam.

At a time when entire villages were abandoning Christianity, the persistent monk worked hard to keep them on the path of Orthodoxy and, consequently, their Greek heritage.

The monk’s faith, devotion, and rhetoric were especially persuasive, and people were literally hanging on his every word. This infuriated the Ottoman authorities, who accused him of being a Russian agent—Russia being the biggest enemy of the Ottoman Empire at the time.

His prominence also threatened other rich and powerful members of the community who worked closely with Ottoman forces and the Venetians.

The martyr was arrested and hanged at Kolkondas (in today’s Albania) on August 24, 1779. He was never tried for any crime prior to his execution.

By preserving the Greek language, the Orthodox clergy played a crucial role in lifting the patriotic spirit of Greeks, giving them the strength to fight against their rulers of almost four hundred years.

It was at Agia Lavra Monastery under the blessings of Orthodox Metropolitan Palaion Patron Germanos (Germanos III of Old Patras) when the War of Independence was declared on March 25, 1821.

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