Greek alphabetThe Greek alphabet has been used to write the Greek language since the late 9th or early 8th century BC. It is derived from the earlier Phoenician alphabet, and was the earliest known alphabetic script to have distinct letters for vowels as well as consonants. In Archaic and early Classical times, the Greek alphabet existed in many local variants, but, by the end of the 4th century BC, the Euclidean alphabet, with 24 letters, ordered from alpha to omega, had become standard and it is this version that is still used for Greek writing today.
Nu (letter)Nu 'njuː (νι ni ni) is the thirteenth letter of the Greek alphabet (uppercase Ν, lowercase ν), representing the voiced alveolar nasal n. In the system of Greek numerals it has a value of 50. It is derived from the ancient Phoenician language nun . Its Latin equivalent is N, though the lowercase () resembles the Roman lowercase v. The name of the letter is written νῦ in Ancient Greek and traditional Modern Greek polytonic orthography, while in Modern Greek it is written νι [ni]. Letters that arose from nu include Roman N and Cyrillic Н.
LambdaLambda ('l{md@; uppercase Λ, lowercase λ; λάμ(β)δα, lám(b)da) is the eleventh letter of the Greek alphabet, representing the voiced alveolar lateral approximant l. In the system of Greek numerals, lambda has a value of 30. Lambda is derived from the Phoenician Lamed . Lambda gave rise to the Latin L and the Cyrillic El (Л). The ancient grammarians and dramatists give evidence to the pronunciation as laːbdaː (λάβδα) in Classical Greek times. In Modern Greek, the name of the letter, Λάμδα, is pronounced ˈlam.
Greek diacriticsGreek orthography has used a variety of diacritics starting in the Hellenistic period. The more complex polytonic orthography (πολυτονικό σύστημα γραφής), which includes five diacritics, notates Ancient Greek phonology. The simpler monotonic orthography (μονοτονικό σύστημα γραφής), introduced in 1982, corresponds to Modern Greek phonology, and requires only two diacritics. Polytonic orthography () is the standard system for Ancient Greek and Medieval Greek.
