Languages Spoken in Ancient Greece

Ancient Greece was linguistically diverse:

• Ancient Greek (major dialects): Attic (literature, philosophy), Ionic, Doric, Aeolic.
• Mycenaean Greek: Bronze Age (1600–1100 BCE), written in Linear B, administrative use.
• Cypriot Greek: Distinct dialect on Cyprus, used Cypriot syllabary.
• Pamphylian Greek: Southern Anatolia, blend of Doric/Ionic features.
• Non-Greek Languages: Carian (SW Anatolia), Lydian (W Anatolia)—unrelated to Greek, distinct families.

Greek dialects dominated the Aegean world, while neighboring Anatolian languages coexisted in Asia Minor.