That's Greek to me or it's (all) Greek to me is an idiom in English referring to material that the speaker finds difficult or impossible to understand. It is commonly used in reference to a complex or imprecise verbal or written expression, that may use unfamiliar jargon, dialect, or symbols. The metaphor refers to the Greek language, which is unfamiliar to most English speakers, and additionally uses a largely dissimilar alphabet.
It may have been a direct translation of a similar phrase in Latin : Graecum est, non legitur ("it is Greek, [therefore] it cannot be read"). [1] The phrase is widely believed to have its origins among medieval scribes. While most scribes were familiar with Latin, few people in medieval Western Europe, even among the intellectual classes, were schooled in Greek. When copying classic manuscripts they would frequently encounter passages and quotations in Greek which they would have no way of translating, and as such would note the phrase in the margins.[ citation needed ]
Recorded usage of the metaphor in English traces back to the early modern period. It appears in 1599 in Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar , as spoken by Servilius Casca to Cassius after a festival in which Caesar was offered a crown:
CASSIUS: Did Cicero say any thing?
CASCA: Ay, he spoke Greek.
CASSIUS: To what effect?
CASCA: Nay, an I tell you that, I'll ne'er look you i' the face again: but those that understood him smiled at one another and shook their heads; but, for mine own part, it was Greek to me. I could tell you more news too: Marullus and Flavius, for pulling scarfs off Caesar's images, are put to silence. Fare you well. There was more foolery yet, if I could remember it.
Here, Casca's literal ignorance of Greek is the source of the phrase, using its common meaning to play on the uncertainty among the conspirators about Cicero's attitude to Caesar's increasingly regal behaviour.
Shakespeare was not the only author of this period to use the expression. It was also used in 1603 by Thomas Dekker in his play Patient Grissel :
FAR: Asking for a Greek poet, to him he fails. I'll be sworn he knows not so much as one character of the tongue.
RIC: Why, then it's Greek to him.
The expression is almost exclusively used with reference to the speaker (generally "Greek to me"); Dekker's "Greek to him" is rare.
Other languages have similar formulations, some referring to Greek but many referring to foreign languages such as Chinese or Spanish. Many refer to a language with different alphabet or writing system.
This is an example of the usage of demonyms in relation to the ability of a people to be understood, comparable to the development of the words barbarian (one who babbles), Nemec (Slavic for "the mute one," indicating Germans).
In an article published by Arnold L. Rosenberg in the language journal Lingvisticæ Investigationes , he claimed that there was a popular "consensus" that Chinese was the "hardest" language, since various non-English languages most frequently used the Chinese language in their equivalent expression to the English idiom "it's all Greek to me". [2] David Moser of the University of Michigan Center for Chinese Studies reached a similar conclusion. [3]
Language | Phrase | Pronunciation | Translation | Target language / meaning |
---|---|---|---|---|
English | It's Double Dutch.[ citation needed ] | Double Dutch (Tutnese) | ||
That's Greek to me.[ citation needed ] | Greek | |||
Chicken scratch.[ citation needed ] | illegible writing | |||
Albanian | Mos fol kinezce.[ citation needed ] | Do not speak Chinese. | Chinese | |
Afrikaans | Dis Grieks vir my.[ citation needed ] | It's Greek to me. | Greek | |
Ancient Greek | Αὐτὸ ἐστὶ σηρικὸν περὶ ἐμοί.[ citation needed ] | [au̯ˌto esˌti sɛːriˌkon peˌri eˈmoi̯] | It's Chinese to me. | Chinese |
Arabic | يتحدث باللغة الصينية[ citation needed ] | yataḥaddaṯ bil-luġah aṣ-Ṣīnīyah [jataˈħadːaθbɪlˈluɣaasˤːiːˈniːja] | He's speaking Chinese. | Chinese The verb in the example can be conjugated in other forms. |
Arabic, Syrian Colloquial | يحكي كرشوني[ citation needed ] | yaḥki Karšūni [ˈjaħkikarˈʃuːni] | He's speaking Syriac. | Syriac, using the Garshuni (Arabic) script as a reference to it. The verb in the example can be conjugated in other forms. |
Arabic, Egyptian Colloquial | بيتكلم بالهندي[ citation needed ] | byatkallam bel-hendi [bjætˈkælːæmbelˈhendi] | He's speaking Hindi. | Hindi The verb in the example can be conjugated in other forms. |
Asturian | Suename chinu Ta'n chinu.[ citation needed ] | It sounds like Chinese to me. It's in Chinese. | Chinese | |
Bulgarian | Все едно ми говориш на патагонски.[ citation needed ] | Vse edno mi govoriš na patagonski. [fsɛɛdˈnɔmiɡɔˈvɔriʃnapataˈɡɔnskʲi] | It's as if you're talking in Patagonian. | "Patagonian" (not a real language) |
Cantonese | 鬼畫符 / 鬼画符[ citation needed ] | gwai2 waak6 fu4 [liː˥kɔ˧hɐi˨mɐi˨kwɐi˧˥waːk̚˨fuː˨˩aː˧] | Ghost script? | No specific set phrase, treated like any ordinary language, eg. "Is this ghost script?" "Is this written in Martian?" |
火星話 / 火星话[ citation needed ] | fo2 sing1 waa6 [fɔ˥sɪŋ˨waː˧] | Martian | ||
Catalan | Com si diguessis Llúcia[ citation needed ] | [komsidi'ɣes:is'ʎusiə] | As if you say Lucy; not referring to a language | |
Cebuano | Linatin[ citation needed ] | Latin | Latin, a language used in rituals by holy men such as Catholic priests, faith healers, and talisman owners. | |
Ininsik[ citation needed ] | Chinese | Chinese | ||
Chavacano | Aleman ese comigo.[ citation needed ] | It's German to me. | German | |
Croatian | To su za mene španska sela.[ citation needed ] | [tôsuzaměneʃpǎːnskasêla] | These are to me the Spanish countryside. | Spanish |
Czech | To je pro mě španělská vesnice.[ citation needed ] | [ˈtojɛˈpromɲɛˈʃpaɲɛlskaːˈvɛsɲɪtsɛ] | This is a Spanish village to me. | Spanish |
Danish | Det rene volapyk.[ citation needed ] | [te̝ˈʁeˀnəvolɑˈpʰyk] | This is pure Volapük | Volapük, a 19th century constructed language |
Det er en by i Rusland.[ citation needed ] | This is a town in Russia. | Russian | ||
Kaudervælsk[ citation needed ] | Romansh | Romansh, a Rhaeto-Romance language spoken in Switzerland | ||
Dutch | Dat is Chinees voor mij.[ citation needed ] | [ˈdɑtɪsɕiˈneːsfoːrˈmɛi] [4] | That is Chinese to me. | Chinese |
Ik snap er geen jota van. | I don't understand one iota of it. Reference to Matthew 5:18. [5] | Greek | ||
Esperanto | Tio estas volapukaĵo.[ citation needed ] | [ˈtioˈestasvolapuˈkaʒo] | It's all Volapük. | Volapük, a 19th century constructed language |
Estonian | See on mulle hiina keel.[ citation needed ] | This is Chinese to me. | Chinese | |
Filipino | Parang Intsik[ citation needed ] | It looks like Chinese. | Chinese | |
Finnish | Täyttä hepreaa.[ citation needed ] | [ˈtæy̯tːæˈhepreɑː] | It's all Hebrew. | Hebrew |
Kuulostaa siansaksalta [ citation needed ] | Sounds like pig's German | gibberish | ||
harakanvarpaita (refers to undecipherable writing)[ citation needed ] | Magpie's toes | unintelligible writing (gibberish) | ||
French | C'est du chinois. C'est de l'hébreu. C'est du russe.[ citation needed ] | [s‿ɛ dy ʃinwa] [s‿ɛ də l‿ebʁø] [s‿ɛ dy ʁys] | It's Chinese. It's Hebrew. It's Russian. | Chinese Hebrew Russian |
German | Das kommt mir spanisch vor.[ citation needed ] | That sounds like Spanish to me. (usually meant to indicate something is fishy) | Spanish | |
Spreche ich Chinesisch?[ citation needed ] | Am I speaking Chinese? | Chinese | ||
Fachchinesisch[ citation needed ] | specialty Chinese (meaning technical jargon) | Chinese | ||
Kauderwelsch[ citation needed ] | trade Romance | Mediterranean Lingua Franca | ||
Das sind böhmische Dörfer für mich [ citation needed ] | [ˌbøːmɪʃəˈdœʁfɐ] | These are Bohemian villages to me | Czech, Bohemia being a region of the neighbouring Czech Republic that is nearest to Germany. | |
Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof [ citation needed ] | All I understand is "train station." | |||
Polnisch rückwärts[ citation needed ] | Polish [spoken] in reverse | Polish | ||
Greek, Standard Modern | Αυτά μου φαίνονται κινέζικα.[ citation needed ] | [afˈtamuˈfenɔːndeciˈnezika] | This strikes me as Chinese | Chinese |
Αυτά μου φαίνονται αλαμπουρνέζικα.[ citation needed ] | [afˈtamuˈfeno(n)deala(m)burˈnezika] | These seem to me gobbledygook. | "Alaburnese" (similar to gibberish) | |
Greek, Cypriot | Εν τούρτζικα που μιλάς;[ citation needed ] | [e‿ˈⁿduɾ̥t͡ʃi̞kɐp̬umi↗ˈlɐs] | Are you speaking Turkish? | Turkish |
Hebrew | זה סינית בשבילי[ citation needed ] | [zesinitbiʃvili] | It's Chinese to me! | Chinese |
Hindi, | क्या मैं फ़ारसी बोल रहा हूँ?[ citation needed ] کیا میں فارسی بول رہا ہوں؟[ citation needed ] | Kyā maĩ fārsī bol rahā hū̃? | Am I speaking Persian? | Persian |
Hungarian | Ez nekem kínai.[ citation needed ] | [ˈɛzˈnɛkɛmˈkiːnɒi] | It's Chinese to me. | Chinese |
Icelandic | Þetta kemur mér spánskt fyrir sjónir.[ citation needed ] | This looks like Spanish to me. | Spanish | |
Indonesian | (Tulisan) Cakar ayam[ citation needed ] | Chicken feet | gibberish Refers to unreadable writing. | |
Bahasa planet[ citation needed ] | (Other-)planet language | alien language | ||
Italian | Questo per me è arabo/aramaico/ostrogoto/turco/cinese[ citation needed ] | [ˈkwestoperˈmeˌɛˈaːrabo] , [araˈmaiko] , [ostroˈɡɔːto] , [ˈtu:rko] , [tʃiˈne:ze] | This is Arabic/Aramaic/Ostrogoth/Turkish/Chinese to me | Arabic, Aramaic, Ostrogoth, Turkish, Chinese |
Japanese | 珍紛漢紛[ citation needed ] | Chinpun kanpun [ˈtɕimpɯŋkamˌpɯɴ] | "Ching chong" | formal speech Refers to the "Chinese" sound of incomprehensible Chinese loanwords. |
Javanese | ꦕꦺꦏꦺꦂꦥꦶꦛꦶꦏ꧀[ citation needed ] | [t͡ʃɛkɛrpiʈɪˀ] | Chicken scratch | illegible handwriting |
ꦧꦱꦮꦭꦺꦴꦟ꧀ꦝ[ citation needed ] | [bʰɔsɔwalɔɳɖɔ] | Dutch language | Dutch | |
Korean | 횡설수설하고 있다[ citation needed ] | Hoengseolsuseolhago itta | They are speaking horizontally and vertically. | gibberish, especially for unrecognizable spoken language or incoherence. |
괴발개발[ citation needed ] (refers to unreadable writing) | Goebalgaebal | Cat's footprints and dog's footprints | gibberish | |
아무 말이나 한다[ citation needed ] | Amu marina handa | They are speaking out random words. | gibberish | |
외계어를 한다[ citation needed ] | Oegyeeoreul handa | They are speaking in an alien language. | alien language | |
개소리를 한다[ citation needed ] | Gaesorireul handa | They are making a dog's sound. | gibberish | |
Latin | Graecum est; nōn legitur[ citation needed ] | [ˈɡrae̯kumestnoːnˈleɡitur] | [It] is Greek; [it is] not legible/[it is] illegible | Greek |
Latvian | Tā man ir ķīniešu ābece[ citation needed ] | [taːmanirciːnieʃuaːbetse] | This is Chinese alphabet book to me | Chinese |
Lithuanian | Tai man kaip kinų kalba.[ citation needed ] | [taɪmɐnkaɪpkinuˑkɐlba] | It's Chinese to me | Chinese |
Lojban | ti itku'ile ga'a mi [6] [7] | It's Ithkuil to me | Ithkuil | |
Macedonian | За мене тоа е шпанско село.[ citation needed ] | Za mene toa e špansko selo. [zamɛnɛtɔaɛʃpaŋskɔsɛlɔ] | It is for me a Spanish village. | Spanish |
Malay | (Tulisan) Cakar ayam[ citation needed ] | Chicken feet | gibberish Refers to unreadable writing. | |
Mandarin | 天書/ 天书。[ citation needed ] | Kànqǐlái xiàng tiān shū [tʰjɛn˥ʂu˥] | Looks like a book from Heaven | "Heaven's language" Refers to an unknown writing system, or incomprehensible content, c.f. A Book from the Sky . |
鬼畫符 / 鬼画符[ citation needed ] | Zhè shì guǐhuàfú ma? [kwei˨˩hwa˥˩fu˧˥] | ghost-drawn marks | "ghost language" Refers to very poor, incomprehensible handwriting. | |
鳥語。/ 鸟语[ citation needed ] | Niǎo Yǔ [njɑʊ̯˧˥y˨˩] | bird language. | "bird language" (bird song) Refers to incomprehensible speech. | |
火星文[ citation needed ] | Huǒxīng wén [xwɔ˨˩ɕiŋ˥wən˧˥] | Martian writing | "Martian" Usually refers to comically unconventional writing, but is also often used in the same context of unintelligible words or text. | |
Low Saxon | Dat kümmt mi spaansch vör.[ citation needed ] | [datkymtmiːspoːnʃføɐ] | That seems like Spanish to me. | Spanish |
Norwegian | Det er helt gresk for meg.[ citation needed ] | It's complete Greek to me | Greek | |
Persian | مگه ترکی حرف میزنم؟[ citation needed ] | [mægetorkiːhærfmiːzænæm] | Am I speaking Turkish? | Turkish |
Polish | To dla mnie chińszczyzna.[ citation needed ] | [ˈtɔdlaˈmɲɛxʲij̃ˈʂtʂɨzna] | To me it's Chinese | Chinese |
Siedzieć jak na tureckim kazaniu[ citation needed ] | [ˈɕɛdʑɛtɕˈjaknatuˈrɛtskʲimkaˈzaɲu] | Sit as in a Turkish sermon | Turkish | |
Czeski film[ citation needed ] | [ˈtʂɛskʲiˈfilm] | Czech movie (this one refers to an incomprehensible situation rather than words, coined after a wave of absurdist movies in Czech cinematography) | Czech | |
Portuguese | Isto para mim é chinês.[ citation needed ] | [ˈiʃtupɐɾɐˈmĩɛʃiˈneʃ] | This is Chinese to me | Chinese (Portugal) |
Isto para mim é grego.[ citation needed ] | [ˈiʃtupɐɾɐˈmĩɛˈɣɾeɣu] | This is Greek to me | Greek (Portugal) | |
Proto-Germanic | *Þat isti Walhiskǭ/Winidiskǭ furi mek.[ citation needed ] | [θɑt ˈis.ti ˈwɑlxis.kɔ̃ː/ˈwiniðiskɔ̃ː ˈɸuri mek] | It's Proto-Italic/Proto-Slavic for me. | Proto-Italic, Proto-Slavic |
Proto-Slavic | *To estь Němьčьskъjь/Volšьskъjь děľa mę.[ citation needed ] | [tɔ ɛstɪ nɛːmɪt͡ʃɪskʊjɪ/ʋɔlʃɪskʊjɪ dɛːʎɑː mɛ̃ː] | It's Proto-Germanic/Proto-Italic for me. | Proto-Germanic, Proto-Italic |
Romanian | Parcă e chineză.[ citation needed ] | [ˈparkəjekiˈnezə] | It's like Chinese. | Chinese |
Ești turc?[ citation needed ] | [jeʃtʲˈtuɾk] | Are you Turkish? | Turkish | |
Nu înțeleg o iotă.[ citation needed ] | [nu ɨnˈt͡se.leɡ o jo.tə] | I don't understand one iota of it. Reference to Matthew 5:18. | Greek | |
Russian | Это для меня китайская грамота.[ citation needed ] | Eto dlja menjá kitájskaja grámota. [ˈɛtəˈdʲlʲæmʲɪˈnʲækʲɪˈtajskəjəˈɡramətə] | That's Chinese writing to me. | Chinese, but emphasis is put on reading rather than speaking. The phrase is often applied when not understanding branches of knowledge like chemistry, maths or computing due to lack of familiarity. |
Как курица лапой.[ citation needed ] | Like [scribbled by] chicken feet. | gibberish Refers to very poor, incomprehensible handwriting. | ||
Serbian | То су за мене шпанска села. To su za mene španska sela.[ citation needed ] | [tosuzameneʃpanskasela] | These are to me a Spanish village. | Spanish |
К'о да кинески причаш. K'o da kineski pričaš.[ citation needed ] | Like speaking in Chinese | Chinese | ||
Slovak | To je pre mňa španielska dedina.[ citation needed ] | [tojepremɲaʃpaɲielskaɟeɟina] | That is a Spanish village to me. | Spanish |
Slovene | To mi je španska vas[ citation needed ] | [ˈtóːmijɛˈʃpáːnskaˈʋáːs] | That is a Spanish village to me. | Spanish |
Spanish | Está en chino/arameo/ruso. Me suena a chino/arameo/ruso.[ citation needed ] | [esˈtaenˈtʃino] , [aɾaˈmeo] [meˈswenaaˈtʃino] , [aɾaˈmeo] | This is in Chinese/Aramaic/Russian. It sounds like Chinese/Aramaic/Russian to me. | Chinese, Aramaic, Russian |
No entiendo ni jota | [noenˈtjendoniˈxota] | I don't understand one iota of it. Reference to Matthew 5:18. [8] | Greek | |
Turkish | Konuya Fransız kaldım. [9] | [konujafɾansɯzkaɫˈdɯm] | I am French to the topic. | French, as from the viewpoint of a French person who doesn't understand any Turkish. |
Anladıysam Arap olayım. [10] | [anɫaˈdɯjsamaˈɾapoɫajɯm] | let me blacken, get dark skin ("turn into Arab") if I understood it (in Turkish "Arap olayım" is used in idioms in similar sense to "God strike me down if ...", to emphasize that something is not true) [11] (informal, old-fashioned, offensive) [12] | None (Arab doesn't refer to nationality or language, but skin color) | |
Ukrainian | Це для мене китайська грамота.[ citation needed ] | Tse dlja mene kitajs'ka gramota. [ˈtsɛdʲlʲɐˈmɛnekɪˈtɑjsʲkɐˈɦrɑmotɐ] | That's Chinese writing to me. | Chinese |
Venetian | Par mi xe turco.[ citation needed ] | [paɾˈmiˌzɛˈtuɾko] | To me this is Turkish. | Turkish |
Vietnamese | Nhìn/nghe như tiếng Miên.[ citation needed ] | (It) looks/sounds like Khmer | Khmer | |
Yiddish | תּרגום־לשון טערקיש אָץ־קוצץ־לשון מלאָכים־לשון חרטמים־לשון [ citation needed ] | targem-loshn terkish ots-koytsets-loshn malokhim-loshn khartumim-loshn | targum language (i.e. that of Aramaic translations of the Bible) Turkish gibberish the language of angels the language of a pharaoh's magicians (i.e. hieroglyphics) | Aramaic / Turkish / gibberish / angelic language / Hieroglyphics |
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