There are a lot of examples of words with a κ in Greek that becomes a C in English. For example, the prefix micro- from μικρός, or the name Cyrus from Κύρος. I agree that it doesn't make the most sense, but it's common.
The problem is not that αλφα isn't an accepted answer, it is more that some letter's english spelling has little to do with the original greek pronounciation which makes it impossible to guess a phonetic spelling when you don't know the answer.
@2Boo2: I went to school in suburban Philadelphia, and we did a unit on ancient Greek culture in like fourth grade. But I think I probably remember the alphabet more because I have a knack for languages than because it was such an important part of the curriculum.
Upsilon? I tried it with Ipsilon and Ypsilon, never did I imagine... Is the spelling Americanized or do they spell it like that in Greece too? In that case just my country changed the spelling..
Because this is an English language quiz site the answers use the English spelling. I don't know if there is a Greek quiz site, but if there is then the spelling would be in the Greek language.
Tau may be pronounced Taf, but I'm sure it's still spelt with an upsilon, even in modern Greek. ευχαριστώ (thanks) is pronounced "eff-charis-to" but it's still written the way it always has been. Same with mu and nu, pronounced mee and nee but written with upsilons.
Well, thinking about it, maybe I just am wrong about the alphabet. It just strikes me as odd, but maybe typical ,that the only country in the world which doesn't teach the traditional Greek letter spellings would be Greece. In English we maintain 'ph' spellings in words which are derived from Greek words that contained Φ, but in Greece the very letters are now spelt with iotas instead of upsilons.
They are not mistakes, it is just the traditional transliteration used by English native speakers. And as this quiz is in English, there is nothing wrong about it (:
That's because the "standard" pronunciation of Ancient Greek, as it's taught around the world, is based on the theories of Erasmus of Rotterdam in the 16th century - which are probably wrong. When I started learning Modern Greek four years ago, this surprised me too.
Someone should make a quiz about the modern spellings of Greek letter names. They are different from the classic ones and even more different from their names in English.
To think that joining a fraternity at Slippery Rock State College (Sigma Pi = Sig Pigs) in 1975 somehow proved useful. I bested Bluto Bartowski with a 0.0 GPA.
You should definitely accept omikron as an alternate spelling, since there's no c in Greek and you'd spell it using a kappa. I've always learned omikron, and never seen it written this way outside this quiz (I understand using omicron because of "micro" but that's an Anglification of the original Greek spelling)
tried Ypsilon for a few, same with theta, but for the wrong ones..
Still 50% right! never had greek, and no such things as sororities here. So know pi from maths, gamma from gamma rays. and a few more in similar ways. Alpha and omega are terms you here now and then
hi, I am a person from the future and I come from the year 2023. Fortunately, the omicron variant fell off and so did covid cases as a whole. no more lockdowns, masks, or strict regulations
I'm greek and know the alphabet in greek, but these are spelt weird
Name That Russian Letter!
Β: vee-ta
Ζ: zee-ta
H: ee-ta
Θ: thee-ta
I: yo-ta
M: me (what is mu seriously?)
N: nee (pronounced like knee)
P: should be exactly like "p" in english they changed it to avoid confusion.
R: raw (much more accurate)
T: tough
Y: he-psilon
Φ: fee
Χ: he
Ψ: psi but like saying pepsi not psychic
I think this should make it easier for both you and us. I had a really hard time understanding greek letters at my british uni and it was crazy.
Still 50% right! never had greek, and no such things as sororities here. So know pi from maths, gamma from gamma rays. and a few more in similar ways. Alpha and omega are terms you here now and then
Where did you get it?
Check in with a Greek speaker first.
I got everything right but this one.
Scoring
You scored 5/24 = 21%
This beats or equals 10% of test takers
The average score is 17
Your high score is 5