Many of Hollywood’s celebrities proudly claim Greece as their ancestral home, and while Jennifer Aniston is one of them, can she actually speak Greek?
The answer is rather unclear because Jennifer has never spoken Greek publicly. Based on information available, we can say that she probably does speak at least some Greek, given that she briefly lived in Greece and still visits it; she has family there too.
Let’s look further at the facts that support this conclusion.
Jennifer is Greek by Birth
When she was born, Jennifer Aniston’s parents named her Joanna Anastasakis. Anastasakis is her Greek family name; her father is Yiannis Anitios Anastassakis, and he changed his name to John Aniston and his daughter’s to Jennifer Aniston when he migrated to the United States in the 1960s. John Aniston was born in Chania, Crete. Most of Jennifer’s family is from there as well.
Jennifer actually comes from Greek acting roots. Not only was her father John a star on the soap opera Days of Our Lives – he played the character Victor Kiriakis for 30 years – but her godfather, Telly Savalas was the late legendary star of the 1970’s TV series Kojak.
Jennifer Has Only Lived in Greece Briefly
Even though she is Greek by birth, Jennifer has lived in the United States for most of her life. She was born here, and she only lived in Greece for a year when she moved there with her family. She was 5 years old. When she was 6 years old, her family had settled in New York and she had enrolled in a Waldorf school. This school, incidentally, was also where she discovered.
It is possible that Jennifer picked up some Greek from hearing her father speak it, or during those childhood months in Greece. When she lived there, she spent time in both Crete and Athens; where some of her father’s family still lives.
She Tries to Stay Connected to Her Roots
The Friends star once spoke about feeling desperate to reconnect with her Greek roots and heritage. Sources claimed that before her trip to Greece in the late 2000s, she spent a lot of time with DVDs that could teach her the Greek language so that she could speak it once she was there.
“There’s a warmth to my family and to Greeks in general,” she has said. Even though Jennifer has admitted to struggling with her Greek history genes when it comes to the stereotypes and expectations that Hollywood has, she still appreciates that part of her life. “I have friends from childhood who are still in my life today. All this keeps it real,” she says.
Jennifer Speaks Highly of Her Greek Heritage
People have often asked Jennifer how looks so flawless at her age, going so far as propagating rumors of plastic surgery. She, simply and proudly claims that her Greek ancestry is responsible. ‘My dad is 100 percent Greek; he turned 84 and he barely has a wrinkle. And neither did my grandmother, who was 95 when she died’, she says.
Jennifer further adds that her youthful glow can be attributed to her regular Transcendental Meditation, or TM, which she has been practicing since 2015. ‘I started doing TM and that’s really changed everything. Starting your day off with that and ending with that is pretty powerful,’ said the Friends star, commenting on her regular meditation practice.