How do you say hi in Cypriot?

Γεια σου to one person, γεια σας to a group or politely — the same as in Greece. Cypriot Greek has its own spoken forms, but standard greetings are understood everywhere on the island.

Is Cypriot Greek a different language?

It is a dialect of Greek. Standard Modern Greek is the written and taught form in Cyprus, while the spoken dialect differs in pronunciation and vocabulary.

Cypriot in Greek

Κύπριος

Kiprios — Cypriot

noun masculine

Hear Κύπριος

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Κύπριος (Kiprios) is a Cypriot man, Κύπρια a Cypriot woman, and the island itself is Κύπρος. Stress the first syllable throughout: KI-prios. As an adjective, κυπριακός describes anything from Cyprus — κυπριακό φαγητό, κυπριακή μουσική.

Cypriot Greek is a dialect of Greek rather than a separate language, and standard Modern Greek is what gets written, taught and broadcast on the island. The spoken dialect differs enough in sound and vocabulary that visitors who learned Greek in Athens often need a moment to tune in.

Greetings carry across without trouble. Γεια σου and γεια σας work in Cyprus exactly as they do in Greece, so nothing you learn from standard Greek goes to waste there. Τα κυπριακά, as a noun, is the name for the dialect itself.

Example sentences

Είμαι Κύπριος.

Eimai Kiprios.

I am Cypriot.
Μου αρέσει το κυπριακό φαγητό.

Mou aresei to kypriako fagito.

I like Cypriot food.

Related forms

Κύπρος (Kipros) — Cyprus
κυπριακός (kipriakos) — Cypriot, as an adjective

Common questions

How do you say hi in Cypriot?: Γεια σου to one person, γεια σας to a group or politely — the same as in Greece. Cypriot Greek has its own spoken forms, but standard greetings are understood everywhere on the island.
Is Cypriot Greek a different language?: It is a dialect of Greek. Standard Modern Greek is the written and taught form in Cyprus, while the spoken dialect differs in pronunciation and vocabulary.

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