Greek (Pontic) Typing Speed Test
Free Online Pontic Greek Keyboard – Type Ποντιακά, the Black Sea Greek Variety
Welcome to the Pontic Greek keyboard (Ποντιακά)! Our free virtual keyboard provides the Greek alphabet along with the archaic letters and older accent forms that writing Pontic and historical Greek calls for. It runs in your browser on any computer, tablet, or phone, with nothing to install — which matters for a language whose speakers are scattered across a dozen countries.
What Pontic Greek is. Pontic (Ποντιακά, also called Ρωμαίικα or Romeyka) is a Greek variety that developed along the southern coast of the Black Sea, in the region of Pontus around Trebizond — modern Trabzon in northeastern Turkey. It separated from the Greek mainstream early enough to keep features the rest of the language lost, including the infinitive, and it preserves vocabulary and pronunciation traceable to Ionic Greek. Speakers of standard Modern Greek generally find it difficult to follow.
A language of displacement. After the 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey, the great majority of Pontic Greeks were resettled in Greece, mainly in Macedonia and Thrace. Others had already moved north into the Russian Empire, and their descendants live in Russia, Georgia, Ukraine, Armenia, and Kazakhstan, with later migration to Germany, Australia, and the United States. Estimates of speaker numbers vary widely and are hard to pin down, but the language is classified as endangered, and Romeyka — the variety still spoken by Muslim communities in the Of and Çaykara districts of Turkey — is more endangered still.
The archaic letters on this keyboard. The layout includes Ϙ/ϙ (archaic koppa), Ϟ/ϟ (koppa), and Ϡ/ϡ (sampi). These are letters the Greek alphabet dropped from ordinary spelling but kept as numerals: in the Greek numbering system koppa stands for 90 and sampi for 900. They appear in dates, manuscript foliation, ecclesiastical and scholarly texts, and anywhere Greek numerals are written out. The keyboard also carries the perispomeni vowels ᾶ, ᾷ, ῆ, ῇ, ῶ, ῷ for older orthography.
Perfect for: Pontic speakers and their descendants writing in their own variety, researchers documenting Greek dialects, linguists working on archaic features, cultural associations preparing song lyrics and lyra repertoire, family historians transcribing records, and anyone writing Greek numerals or older orthography.
Related keyboards: for standard Modern Greek use the Greek keyboard, and for ancient texts with the full accentuation see Greek Polytonic. Switch between them with the Layout dropdown above.
Your privacy is guaranteed – all typing happens 100% locally in your browser. Nothing you write is sent to a server, stored, or logged.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Pontic Greek?
Pontic (Ποντιακά, also Ρωμαίικα or Romeyka) is a Greek variety from the southern Black Sea coast — the region of Pontus around Trebizond, now Trabzon in northeastern Turkey. It branched off early enough to retain features standard Greek lost, including the infinitive, and keeps vocabulary and pronunciation traceable to Ionic Greek.
Where is Pontic Greek spoken today?
Mainly in Greece, especially Macedonia and Thrace, where most Pontic Greeks were resettled after the 1923 population exchange. Communities descended from earlier northward migration live in Russia, Georgia, Ukraine, Armenia, and Kazakhstan, with later diaspora in Germany, Australia, and the United States. Romeyka is still spoken by Muslim communities in the Of and Çaykara districts of Turkey.
Is Pontic understandable to Modern Greek speakers?
Not readily. Pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar all differ — Pontic kept the infinitive, which standard Modern Greek lost — and speakers of standard Greek generally find continuous Pontic speech hard to follow. It is best treated as its own variety rather than a light accent.
What are the letters Ϙ, Ϟ and Ϡ?
They are archaic Greek letters that dropped out of ordinary spelling but survive as numerals. Ϙ/ϙ is archaic koppa and Ϟ/ϟ is koppa, both standing for 90; Ϡ/ϡ is sampi, standing for 900. They appear wherever Greek numerals are written — dates, manuscript foliation, ecclesiastical and scholarly texts.
Are those letters specific to Pontic?
No, and it is worth being clear about that. They belong to the wider history of the Greek alphabet rather than to Pontic alone, and they function as numeral signs rather than as everyday letters. They are included here because this layout is aimed at older orthography and Greek numbering as well as at Pontic itself.
Can I type older accent forms?
Yes. The perispomeni (circumflex) vowels ᾶ, ᾷ, ῆ, ῇ, ῶ and ῷ are on the layout, for older orthography and for quoting text that predates the 1982 monotonic reform.
Is this Greek keyboard free?
Yes, completely free. There is no cost, no registration, no account, and no limit on how much you type. The site is supported by advertising, which is what keeps the keyboard free to use for everyone.
Does it work on mobile phones and tablets?
Yes. The layout is fully responsive and works on Android and iOS phones, tablets, Chromebooks, Windows, and macOS. On a touchscreen you tap the letters directly, which makes it practical on a device with no Greek keyboard installed.
Is my typing private?
Completely private. All processing happens locally in your browser using JavaScript. Your text is never transmitted to a server, never stored, and never logged, so it is safe for personal work and unpublished research.
Is Pontic Greek endangered?
Yes. It is classified as endangered, with transmission to younger generations weakening across the diaspora, and Romeyka — the variety still spoken in Turkey — is considered more endangered still. Writing in Pontic, including online, is one of the practical ways speakers keep it in use.
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