Cypriot Greek is spoken primarily in Cyprus and is currently characterized by levelling of local sub-varieties and by the emergence of a dialectal continuum ranging from basilectal to acrolectal forms. Cypriot Greek is characterized by its geminate consonants, which can be found in word-initial and within-word positions. There are several studies on children’s acquisition of Cypriot Greek demonstrating that phonetic inventories increase as a function of age with significant developmental trends occurring between the ages of 1;6 and 5;0. Latest acquired segments include the establishment of affricates and the normalization of the voicing categories (e.g., voice onset time). Studies on children with speech sound disorders suggested that protracted phonological patterns include persisted omission of word-initial onsets, occurrence of regressive assimilation, and inconsistent realization of multisyllabic targets. Common interventions include: auditory discrimination, minimal pairs, cued articulation, phonological awareness, traditional articulation therapy, auditory bombardment, the Nuffield Centre Dyspraxia Program, and core vocabulary.

Key words:
Greek, Cypriot, multilingual, communication, speech, language, children’s development, interdisciplinary, international communities, assessment, intervention

Book chapter:
Petinou, K., Armostis, S., & Babatsouli, E. (2025). Greek (Cypriot):speech development. In S. McLeod (Ed.). The Oxford handbook of speech development in languages of the world. Oxford University Press.

Language overview presentation:

• Petinou, K., Armostis, S., & Babatsouli, E. (2024). Greek (Cypriot): Multilingual children’s speech development. Charles Sturt University, Australia. https://www.csu.edu.au/research/multilingual-speech/languages
• PowerPoint: Greek (Cypriot): [English version] – Children’s Speech Development (pdf)

This presentation relates to the following United Nations Sustainable Development Goals:

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being
• SDG 4: Quality Education
• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
• SDG 17: Partnerships to Achieve the Goals