Studies in the ancient Greek middle voice and the development of the middle participle

Ramble-Wallace, M. (2026) Studies in the ancient Greek middle voice and the development of the middle participle. PhD thesis, University of Reading. doi: 10.48683/1926.00130765

Abstract/Summary

This study examines the use and development of the Ancient Greek middle voice between the Archaic period and the Roman period, with specific focus on the aorist participle. During this time frame developments in the Greek language have been observed in scholarship which include a change in the use of voice, specifically a decrease in the use of the middle voice. Observations in scholarship also indicate a change in the use of the participle. This study demonstrates that a decrease in the use of the middle voice is not consistent across all verb forms. The findings presented are based on quantitative data collected using chosen verbs and verb forms found in Greek texts between the Archaic and Roman period. Through this research the participle, infinitive, and finite forms are found to behave differently to each other. Rather than a consistent decrease in the frequency of middle voice forms the middle participle increases in the Hellenistic period. This increase in frequency of the middle participle is found both in relation to the active and passive participle and in relation to finite forms and infinitives. Differences in verb form frequencies are found not only through diachronic analysis of the data but also between different genres and styles of contemporary texts. Prose shows a higher frequency of middle participles than verse. Within prose, history texts generally show a higher frequency overall and a more impactful diachronic change in middle participles than other prose genres. In the Roman period an analysis of the New Testament, papyri, and literary texts shows that the use of the middle participle is not consistent across all texts considered to be lower register. The findings presented in this study highlight a gap in current research and demonstrate that the middle participle is behaving in a way that is unexpected.

Item Type	Thesis (PhD)
URI	https://centaur.reading.ac.uk/id/eprint/130765
Identification Number/DOI	10.48683/1926.00130765
Divisions	Arts, Humanities and Social Science > School of Humanities > Classics
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