Face-to-face
Greek interpreters on site for appointments, hearings and meetings.
European languages
Greek interpreting and translation
Greek is the official language of Greece and Cyprus and has one of the longest written histories of any language. SILA Linguists provides Greek interpreters and certified translators for legal, shipping, healthcare and business work.
Ελληνικά
- Script
- Greek
- Direction
- Left to right
- ISO 639-3
ell
Greek forms its own branch of the Indo-European family. Modern Greek is the official language of Greece and, alongside Turkish, of Cyprus. It is an official EU language, and there are long-established Greek-speaking communities in southern Albania, southern Italy and Istanbul, and large diaspora communities in Australia, the UK, the United States, Germany and Canada.
Standard Modern Greek is the language of education, government and media. Cypriot Greek is a distinct spoken variety with its own vocabulary and pronunciation, and Cypriot speakers often switch between it and the standard. Other varieties, such as Cretan, have local features, and Pontic Greek, historically spoken around the Black Sea, is very different and is sometimes treated as a separate language.
Greek uses the 24-letter Greek alphabet. Modern official writing uses the monotonic system with a single accent mark; older texts and church documents use the polytonic system with several accents and breathings.
- Main areas: Greece, Cyprus
Communities abroad are not shown. Point to an area to see its name.
How we help
Greek services
Video (VRI)
Secure video interpreting when people are in different places.
Telephone, 24/7
Telephone interpreting 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Certified translation
Certified Greek translation accepted by UK authorities.
SILA Linguists®
Greek interpreters and certified Greek translation with SILA Linguists®
Modern Greek is the official language of Greece and, alongside Turkish, of Cyprus, an official EU language and the language of long-established communities in southern Albania, southern Italy and Istanbul, with large diasporas in Australia, the UK, the United States, Germany and Canada. Cypriot Greek is a distinct spoken variety. SILA Linguists® provides Greek interpreters, translators and transcribers to shipping and maritime law firms, insurers, courts, healthcare and elderly care providers, probate practitioners, tourism businesses and universities across the UK, North America, Australia, New Zealand and beyond.
Greek interpreting for Greece, Cyprus and the diaspora
Tell us whether your client is from Greece or Cyprus. Cypriot Greek speakers understand standard Greek, but an interpreter familiar with Cypriot speech helps in detailed conversations about health or family matters, and many older diaspora clients in care settings are most at ease with a familiar accent. Greek distinguishes polite εσείς from familiar εσύ, and our interpreters follow the speaker's register.
Shipping and maritime law is a major Greek specialism: our interpreters support arbitration hearings, crew and master interviews, charterparty disputes and insurance investigations. We also cover courts and solicitors, hospitals and elderly care, and property and inheritance meetings, face to face, by telephone at any hour, or by video through the SILA Linguists® video app or Teams, Zoom or similar. Consecutive, simultaneous and remote simultaneous interpreting are available for shipping conferences, academic symposia and tourism trade events.
Greek translation, names and certification
Greek passports transliterate names under the national ELOT 743 standard, but older documents and other countries' records may spell the same name differently, so we match the passport. Older documents in polytonic script need translators who read it accurately, and ours do. Certified translations of birth, marriage and death certificates, wills, property deeds, court judgments and degree certificates carry a signed statement of accuracy, accepted by UK authorities such as the Home Office and the courts, and by recruiters. Greece has its own routes for certified translation, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' service, so check what a Greek authority needs. Greek and Cypriot records for the United States, Canada or Australia are certified to their rules, including NAATI-certified translation for Australia.
For maritime and insurance clients, we translate bills of lading, charterparties, survey reports and claims files, and for tourism and hospitality, websites, booking platforms and marketing, localised for Greek and Cypriot audiences.
Greek transcription and subtitling
We transcribe Greek and Cypriot Greek interviews, recorded evidence, arbitration audio and research recordings with timings marked and an English translation supplied, and subtitle documentaries, films and corporate video.
Sectors we support in Greek
Our vetted, trained and qualified Greek linguists can support shipping, maritime law and insurance, courts and solicitors, healthcare and elderly care, property, inheritance and probate, tourism and hospitality, and universities and research. SILA Linguists® provides a single coordinator and Greek specialists matched to your sector, and every file is protected by NDAs and UK GDPR. Greek interpreters can assist courts, hospitals, estates and family matters in Australia, the United States and Canada, as well as in the UK.
Good to know
Working with Greek
Interpreting
- When booking, tell us whether the client is from Greece or Cyprus. Cypriot Greek speakers understand standard Greek, but an interpreter familiar with Cypriot speech is helpful in detailed conversations, for example about health or family matters. Greek distinguishes polite and familiar address (εσείς and εσύ), and interpreters follow the speaker's register.
- Greek interpreting is often needed in shipping and maritime law, healthcare, courts and property matters. We provide face-to-face, video, telephone and conference interpreting.
Translation
- Names in Greek passports are transliterated into Latin script under a national standard (ELOT 743), but older documents and other countries' records may spell the same name differently. Supply the passport so we can match it. Older documents in polytonic script require translators who can read it accurately.
- Greece has several routes for certified translation: the Translation Service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, translators on the Ministry's register of certified translators, and Greek lawyers, who may also translate documents. Our certified translations are accepted by UK authorities such as the Home Office, tribunals, courts and universities, and by international bodies; documents for Greek or Cypriot authorities may need a translation made under local rules. Where a document is needed in the United States, Canada or Australia, we arrange the certification the receiving authority expects, from a translator's certificate of accuracy for US immigration authorities to NAATI-certified translation for Australia.
Related languages
Greek and its neighbours
Choose a language to see its page. Getting the right variety matters: tell us the region or dialect if you know it.
Where Greek is often needed
- Shipping, maritime law and insurance
- Courts and solicitors
- Healthcare and elderly care
- Property, inheritance and probate
- Tourism and hospitality
- Universities and research
Explore more european languages or see all languages A to Z.
Get in touch
Need a Greek interpreter or translator?
Our bookings team will confirm the details with you and arrange the right linguist. Have the language (and dialect, if you know it), the type of assignment and the date ready.