ALA/LC romanization table compared with proposed ISO 843 1997 (1999 revision) table:

VERNACULARALA/LC 1997ISO843 1997 (1999 rev.)
Α, α A, a A, a
Β, β V, v ; B in Classical Greek V, v
Γ, γ
  • γγ
  • γκ
  • γξ
  • γχ
 G, g
  • ng
  • nk
  • nx
  • nch
 G, g
  • gg
  • gk
  • gx
  • gch
Δ,δ D, d D, d
Ε, ε E, e E, e
Ζ, ζ Z, z Z, z
Η, η Ē, ē Ī, ī
Θ, θ Th, th, TH, th
Ι, ι I, i I, i
Κ, κ K, k K, k
Λ, λ L, l L, l
Μ, μ
  • μπ
 M, m
  • b (at the beginning of word)
 M, m
Ν, ν
  • ντ
N, n
  • d (at the beginning of word)
 N, n
  • nt
Ξ, ξ X, x X, x
Ο, ο O, o O, o
Π, π P, p P, p
Ρ, ρ R, r R, r
Σ, σ, ς S, s S, s
Τ, τ T, t T, t
Υ, υ Y, y Y, y
Φ, φ Ph, ph F, f
Χ, χ Ch, ch CH, ch
Ψ, ψ Ps, ps PS, ps
Ω, ω Ō , ō Ō ,ō

Note: Greek dipthongs αυ, ευ and ου romanize to au, eu and ou in both transliteration schemes.

CATalog Note

There are several different forms of Romanization in use and you will encounter them on the Web. The proposed ISO table above is a predominant system, having an almost one-to-one correspondence to the Greek letters in pronunciation. In addition to Romanizing Greek, you will encounter what one can call "reverse Romanization" or rather, the Hellenized version of foreign words and names; i.e., phonetic representations of words written in Greek that reproduce the pronunciation of the non-Greek word. The examples given here are only a sampling. They will test your reading of the Greek letters and attune your ear to how letter combinations (consonants and vowel sounds) which do not exist in the Greek language are constructed to reproduce any foreign word in the Greek alphabet. Reading them carefully, you may experience the true meaning of Eureka! when the letter combinations you pronounce suddenly strike your ear in their English correspondents.

Ουάσινγκτον   Νιου Ιορκ   Χόλλυγοντ   Χόγκ-Κόνγκ

Ουίλλιαμ Σαίχπερ   Τσάρλς Σπένσερ   Τζών Φίτζεραλντ Κέννεντυ

ερκοντίσιον   γουόκμαν   κοπιράιτ   μπέιζμπολ   μπεϊμπισίτερ

Washington, New York, Hollywood, Hong-Kong
William Shakespeare, Charles Spenser, John Fitzgerald Kennedy
air-condition, walkman, copyright, baseball, babysitter