FSI Greek Basic Course

What is FSI Greek Basic?

FSI Greek Basic is a comprehensive course that will provide you with a solid foundation in the modern language.

The course was first published in 1967, meaning it is a little dated now. It comes from a time before the “Greek language question” had been resolved and Demotic Greek was declared the official version of the Greek language, but it still contains a wealth of materials that can be used to learn the tongue.

Like other FSI Basic courses, it is a rich source of dialogs, drills, and audio recordings, all of which can help you master this fascinating language.

How was FSI Greek originally used?

The FSI Greek course was originally created to help US diplomatic staff prepare for postings in the country.

They would study these materials as part of an intensive course that involved six hours of class time per day as well as two additional hours of personal study.

In class, they were expected to speak only Greek, and even among themselves, they were encouraged to use Greek to communicate at all times. In this way, in only around six months, they were able to acquire the necessary level of language required to carry out their duties abroad.

How can you use FSI Greek Basic?

Although it will be impossible for most people to recreate anything like the environment of an intensive FSI course, it is still possible to make use of the materials to help you achieve mastery of the language. If you are already studying Greek, the dialogs and drills can be a valuable tool for practicing your listening and fluency while also growing your vocabulary.

Alternatively, if you are looking for a free online Greek course, you can use it as your primary study resource, to be supplemented by whatever other study materials you have available.

For further details on how to make the best use FSI Basic courses, please check out our accompanying post here for more study tips and advice.

Taking it further

Of course, your goal in learning Greek is to use the language to converse with native speakers, and as soon as you can, we encourage you to take the Greek you have learned out into the real world and try it out.

It is only when you begin to use Greek in your daily life to speak with your Greek friends in their native tongue that you will really start to appreciate the progress you are making. And once you begin to do that, you will see how quickly your Greek improves.