koine

noun ! Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about koine at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

1. A Greek dialect that flourished under the Roman Empire.
2. A common language used by speakers of different languages.

   Koine is a dialect of ancient Greek that was the lingua franca of the empire of Alexander the Great and was widely spoken throughout the eastern Mediterranean area in Roman times