Particle – ἄν, Conjunction – ὅπως

ObjectivesLearning objectives

• The uses and meaning of the particle ἄν
• The uses of the conjunction ὅπως
• The differences in meaning between the result particles ἵνα, ὥστε, and ὅπως

VocabularyVocabulary

SyntaxSyntax-semantics: Particle – ἄν

The particle ἄν is used in a variety of seemingly disparate contexts. After relative pronouns, it refers to hypothetical situations or habituals; in conditionals, it is found in the then -statement (apodosis), especially after counterfactuals; in temporal clauses, it is used with ὡς and ἕως to refer to a future event; with the existential quantifier τὶ ‘some’, it is used to yield a universal interpretation ‘whatever’; and it is occasionally found with ὅπως ‘so that’ in purpose/result clauses.

We will not posit a meaning for ἄν besides noting two facts that these examples demonstrate. First, ἄν is modal, i.e. it makes reference to a possible world rather than the real world. Each of the uses above can be given a modal analysis (see Semantics D). Second, ἄν seems to be a universal quantifier, i.e. it makes reference to all possible worlds rather than some (see Semantics B, D). To take just one of the examples above, the phrase ἄν τι αἰτήσητε ‘whatever you ask’ refers to all hypothetical things that would be asked for. Since it refers to ‘all’ of something, it appears to be a universal quantifier; since it refers to hypothetical things, it appears to be modal. This makes it similar to English would, and in fact, it can often be translated as ‘would.’1

SyntaxSyntax-semantics: Conjunction – ὅπως

Like ἵνα and ὥστε, ὅπως can introduce the purpose for which an action is undertaken.

Besides this use, ὅπως seems to be able to introduce a complement clause after verbs of asking, though in some examples, it is difficult to tell if ὅπως is introducing the content of what is being requested or the reason for the request.

In Luke 7:3, what is being requested is that Jesus come and heal the man’s slave. The ὅπως clause, therefore, seems to introduce that content, so ὅπως is acting as a complementizer. Acts 8:24, on the other hand, could be interpreted in either way. Is the content of the prayer that nothing would happen to Simon (who is giving the command), or is the prayer’s intended effect that nothing would happen to him? Both are plausible. Given clear examples like Luke 7:3, we know that the content interpretation is a viable option, and it is probably the more salient reading.

The conjunctions ὅπως, ὥστε, and ἵνα can all introduce purpose clauses, but they have their own unique set of uses as well. It could be the case that the kinds of purpose clauses introduced by each are also not equivalent, but I leave this question open for future research. The uses of each of the conjunctions are summarized in the following table:

1 For a more detailed discussion of the semantics of ἄν in Classical Greek, see Beck, Malamud, and Osadcha (2012). Given its use in real-world habituals, they do not require it to be used in modal contexts but rather state that “ἄν marks the presence of a universal quantifier over actual or possible situations” (2012:52). Technically, this would make ἄν not modal but only possibly modal. Real-world habituals could then be accounted for by specifying that they refer to a plurality of real-world situations. Whether or not modality is part of the meaning of ἄν or only one of its uses would depend on the nature of the habitual uses (whether they are real-world or not) in Koine Greek. I leave this question open, though the modal analysis seems better for Koine than for Classical, which is the authors’ corpus.