Pi From Greek Plato List of Greek Phrases - Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

The School of Athens. Fresco by Raphael

(1510–1511)

Aristotle, marble copy

of Lysippus

Ἀεὶ κολοιὸς παρὰ κολοιῷ ἱζάνει

Papyrus, dated 75–125 A.D.

describing one of the oldest

diagrams of Euclid's Elements

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

List of Classical Greek Phrases/Proverbs

Contents

Α Β Γ Δ Ε Ζ Η Θ Ι Κ Λ Μ Ν Ξ Ο Π Ρ Σ Τ Υ Φ Χ Ψ ΩSee also

Αα

(h)a

ἀγεωμέτρητος μηδεὶς εἰσίτωAgeōmétrētos mēdeìs eisítō."Let no one untrained in geometry enter."Motto over the entrance to Plato's Academy (quoted in Elias' commentary onAristotle's Categories).

ἀεὶ Λιβύη φέρει τι κακόν / καινόνAeì Libýē phérei ti kakón / kainón."Libya always bears something evil / new", Aristotle, Historia Animalium.Compare Latin Ex Africa semper aliquid novi "From Africa always something new",Pliny.

ἀεὶ κολοιὸς παρὰ κολοιῷ ἱζάνειAeì koloiòs parà koloiôi hizánei."A jackdaw is always found near a jackdaw"Similar to English "birds of a feather flock together."

ἀεὶ ὁ θεὸς γεωμετρεῖAei ho theos geōmetreî."God always geometrizes", PlatoPlutarch elaborated on this phrase in his essay Πῶς Πλάτων ἔλεγε τὸν θεὸν ἀεί γεωμετρεῖν "What is

Plato’s meaning when he says that god always applies geometry".[1] Based on the above phrase ofPlato, a present day mnemonic for π (pi) was derived:ἀεὶ ὁ θεὸς ὁ μέγας γεωμετρεῖ τὸ σύμπανAeì ho theòs ho mégas geōmetreî tò sýmpan."Always the great God applies geometry to everything"

π = 3.1415926...

ἀεὶ ὁ θεὸς ὁ μέγας γεωμετρεῖ τὸ σύμπαν

3 letters 1 letter 4 letters 1 letter 5 letters 9 letters 2 letters 6 letters

ἀετοῦ γῆρας, κορυδοῦ νεότηςAetoû gêras, korydoû neótēs."An eagle's old age (is worth) a sparrow's youth".

ἀἰὲν ἀριστεύεινaièn aristeúein“Ever to Excel“Motto of the University of St Andrews (founded 1410), the Edinburgh Academy (founded1824), and Boston College (founded 1863). The source is the sixth book of Homer's Iliad,(Iliad 6. 208) in a speech Glaucus delivers to Diomedes:"Hippolocus begat me. I claim to be his son, and he sent me to Troy with strict instructions:Ever to excel, to do better than others, and to bring glory to your forebears, who indeedwere very great ... This is my ancestry; this is the blood I am proud to inherit."

ἀνάγκᾳ δ’ οὐδὲ θεοὶ μάχονται

List of Greek phrases - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Greek_phrases

1 of 13 19/12/2011 8:04 AM

Aἰὲν ἀριστεύειν motto, Depicted on

engraving at the Boston College

"Ἀπὸ τοῦ ἡλίου μετάστηθι" —

Diogenes the Cynic - in a 1763

painting by Jacques Gamelin

Entrance of the Pump Room at Bath

Anánkāi d'oudè theoì mákhontai."Not even the gods fight necessity" — Simonides, 8, 20.

ἀνδρῶν γὰρ ἐπιφανῶν πᾶσα γῆ τάφοςAndrôn gàr epiphanôn pâsa gê táphos.For illustrious men have the whole earth for their tomb. Pericles' Funeral Oration fromThucydides, The Peloponnesian War 2.43.1

ἀνεῤῥίφθω κύβοςAnerrhíphthō kýbos.Alea iacta est.Latin: "The die has been cast"; Greek: "Let the die be cast."Julius Caesar as reported by Plutarch, when he entered Italy with his army in 49 BC.Translated into Latin by Suetonius as alea iacta est.

ἄνθρωπος μέτρονÁnthrōpos métron."Man [is] the measure [of all things]"Motto of Protagoras.

ἅπαξ λεγόμενονHápax legómenon."Once said"A word that only occurs once.

ἀπὸ μηχανῆς ΘεόςApò mēkhanês TheósDeus ex machina"God from the machine"The phrase originates from the way god figures appeared in ancient Greek theaters, held high up by a machine, to solve aproblem in the plot.

ἀπὸ τοῦ ἡλίου μετάστηθιApò toû hēlíou metástēthi"Stand a little out of my sun"Legendary reply of Diogenes the Cynic when Alexander the Great asked him if he had

any wish he desired to fulfil — version recounted by Plutarch[2]

ἄριστον μὲν ὕδωρÁriston mèn hýdōr."Greatest however [is] water" — Pindar, Olymp. 1, 1Used as the inscription over the Pump Room at Bath.

Ββ

b

βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶνBasileía tôn ouranôn"kingdom of the heavens""Heaven" is a foundational theological concept in Christianity and Judaism."God's Kingdom" (Βασιλεία τοῦ Θεοῦ, Basileia tou Theou), or the "Kingdom of [the]Heaven[s]" was the main point of Jesus Christ's preaching on earth. The phrase occursmore than a hundred times in the New Testament.

Βελλεροφόντης τὰ γράμματαBellerophóntēs tà grámmata"Bellerophontic letter"King Proetus dared not to kill a guest, so he sent Bellerophon to King Iobates, his father-in-law,bearing a sealed message in a folded tablet: "Pray remove the bearer from this world: heattempted to violate my wife, your daughter."

βρῶμα θεῶνBrôma theôn"Food of the gods"Allegedly said by Nero of the poisoned mushrooms with which his mother Agrippina theYounger murdered Claudius.


2 of 13 19/12/2011 8:04 AM

From a ca 500 BC vase

depicting writing with stylus

and folding wax tablet

Athenian tetradrachm depicting

goddess Athena (obverse) and owl

(reverse). In daily use, Athenian

drachmas were called glaukai, "owls"[3]

Alexander cuts the Gordian Knot,

(Jean-Simon Berthélemy)

Deimos and Phobos

Δεῖμος καὶ Φόϐος

ΔΙΠΛΟΥΝ ΟΡΩΣΙΝ ΟΙΜΑΘΟΝΤΕΣ ΓΡΑΜΜΑΤΑ.

Γγ

g

γενηθήτω φῶς.Genēthētō phôs.Fiat lux."Let there be light."Translated from Hebrew יהי אור (yehiy ʾor) in Genesis. Often used for its metaphorical meaning of dispelling ignorance.

γλαῦκ’ Ἀθήναζε / εἰς ἈθήναςGlaûk’ Athēnaze / eis Athēnas"Owls (Athenian drachmas) to Athens" — Aristophanes, The Birds [4]

E.g., coals to Newcastle, ice to the Eskimos.

γνῶθι σεαυτόν.Gnôthi seautón."Know thyself"Aphorism inscribed over the entrance to the temple of Apollo at Delphi.

Γόρδιος δεσμόςGórdios desmós"Gordian Knot"The Gordian Knot is a legend associated with Alexander the Great. It is often used as ametaphor for an intractable problem, solved by a bold stroke

Δδ

d

Δεῖμος καὶ ΦόβοςDeîmos kaì Phóbos"Horror and Fear"Deimos and Phobos, the moons of Mars, are named after the sons of the Greek god Ares

(Roman Mars): Deimos "horror"[5] and Phobos "fear".[6]

διαίρει καὶ βασίλευεDiaírei kaì basíleue."Divide and rule."

διπλοῦν ὁρῶσιν οἱ μαθόντες γράμματα.Diploûn horôsin hoi mathóntes grámmata."Those who know the letters see double."Attributed to Pythagoras. — Inscription in Edinburgh from 1954: ΔΙΠΛΟΥΝ ΟΡΩΣΙΝΟΙ ΜΑΘΟΝΤΕΣ ΓΡΑΜΜΑΤΑ.

δῶς μοι πᾶ στῶ καὶ τὰν γᾶν κινάσωDôs moi pâ stô, kaì tàn gân kīnāsō."Give me somewhere to stand, and I will move the earth".Attributed to Archimedes.

Εε

(h)e

εἷς οἰωνὸς ἄριστος, ἀμύνεσθαι περὶ πάτρηςHeîs oiōnòs áristos, amýnesthai perì pátrēs"There is only one omen, to fight for one's country"Hector to Polydamas when the latter was superstitious about a bird omen. The omen was an eagle that flew with a snake in itstalons, still alive and struggling to escape. The snake was twisting itself backwards till it struck the bird on the neck, forcing the

eagle to let the snake fall. [7]

ἐκ τῶν ὧν οὐκ ἄνευEk tôn hôn ouk áneuSine qua non


3 of 13 19/12/2011 8:04 AM

Eagle carrying a snake in its talons

Helmet and the skull

of an Athenian hoplite

uncovered from the

tomb at the Battle of

Marathon

Archimedes, a

medieval portrait

370 BC copy of

marble statue of Plato

Maniot flag: Νίκη ἢ

Θάνατος - ἢ τὰν ἢ ἐπὶ

"Without things which [one can]not [be] without"

Ἑλλήνων προμαχοῦντες Ἀθηναῖοι Μαραθῶνι χρυσοφόρων Μήδων ἐστόρεσαν δύναμινHellēnōn promachoûntes Athēnaîoi Marathôni chrysophórōn Mēdōn estóresandýnaminFighting in the forefront of the Hellenes, the Athenians at Marathon brought low theMedes' gilded power.Epigram by Simonides on the tomb of the Athenians who died in the Battle of Marathon.

ἓν οἶδα ὅτι οὐδὲν οἶδαHèn oîda hóti oudèn oîda"I know one thing, that I know nothing"Socrates, paraphrased from Plato's Apology.

ἐπεὶ δ' οὖν πάντες ὅσοι τε περιπολοῦσιν φανερῶς καὶ ὅσοι φαίνονται καθ' ὅσον ἂν ἐθέλωσιν θεοὶ γένεσινἔσχον, λέγει πρὸς αὐτοὺς ὁ τόδε τὸ πᾶν γεννήσας τάδε

Epeì d' oûn pántes hósoi te peripoloûsin phanerôs kaì hósoi phaínontai kath' hóson ànethélōsin theoì génesin éskhon, légei pròs autoùs ho tóde tò pân gennēsas táde"When all of them, those gods who appear in their revolutions, as well as those other gods who appearat will had come into being, the creator of the universe addressed them the following" :Plato, Timaios,41a, on gods and the Creator of the universe.

εὕρηκα!Heúrēka!"I have found [it]!"While Archimedes was taking a bath, he noticed that the level of the water rose as he got in; havingsuddenly discovered what is today known as Archimedes' Principle, i.e. that the volume of waterdisplaced must be equal to the volume of the part of his body he had submerged. This meant that thevolume of irregular objects could be calculated with precision, a previously intractable problem. He wasso excited that he ran through the streets naked and still wet from his bath, crying "I have found it!".

Ζζ

ζῷον δίπουν ἄπτερονZôion dípoun ápteron"two-legged featherless animal"

Plato's definition of man,[8] latinized as "Animal bipes implume"To criticize this definition, Diogenes the Cynic plucked a chicken and brought it into Plato's Academysaying:οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ Πλάτωνος ἄνθρωπος

Oûtós estin o Plátōnos ánthrōpos"Here is Plato's man."

In response, Plato added to his definition:πλατυώνυχον

Platuōnychon"Having broad nails" — Diogenes Laertios, Lives of eminent philosophers[9]

ζῷον πολιτικόνZôion politikòn"Man is by nature a political animal", i.e. animal of the polis or social beingAristotle, Politics, book 1: ὁ ἄνθρωπος φύσει πολιτικὸν ζῷον

Ηη

(h)ē

ἢ τὰν ἢ ἐπὶ τᾶςĒ tān ē epì tâs"Either [with] it [your shield], or on it"Meaning "either you will win the battle, or you will die and then be carried back home on your shield".It was said by Spartan mothers to their sons before they went out to battle to remind them of theirbravery and duty to Sparta and Greece. A hoplite could not escape the field of battle unless he tossedaway the heavy and cumbersome shield. Therefore losing one's shield meant desertion. (Plutarch,Moralia, 241)


4 of 13 19/12/2011 8:04 AM

τᾶς "Victory or

Death : Either With

Your Shield or On It"

Θάλαττα, θάλαττα — “The Sea! The

Sea!“ — painting by Granville Baker

ΙΧΘΥΣ: Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς Θεοῦ Υἱὸς

Σωτήρ

ἡ φύσις οὐδὲν ποιεῖ ἅλματα.Hē phýsis oudèn poieî hálmata.Natura non facit saltus."Nature does not make [sudden] jumps."A principle of natural philosophies since Aristotle's time, the exact phrase coming from Carl von Linné.

ἦλθον, εἶδον, ἐνίκησα.Êlthon, eîdon, eníkēsa.Veni, vidi, vici."I came, I saw, I conquered".

With these words, Julius Caesar described his victory against Pharnaces, according to Plutarch.[10]

Θθ

th

θάλασσα καὶ πῦρ καὶ γυνή, κακὰ τρίαThálassa kaì pŷr kaì gynē, kakà tría."Sea and fire and woman, three evils."

θάλαττα, θάλαττα.Thálatta, thálatta.“The Sea! The Sea!“Thalatta! Thalatta! from Xenophon's Anabasis. It was the shouting of joy when theroaming 10,000 Greeks saw Euxeinos Pontos (the Black Sea) from Mount Theches(Θήχης) in Armenia after participating in Cyrus the Younger's failed march againstPersian Empire in the year 401 BC.

θάνατος οὐδὲν διαφέρει τοῦ ζῆν.Thánatos oudèn diaphérei tou zên."Death is no different than life."

Thales' philosophical view to the eternal philosophical question about life and death.[11]

θέρος, τρύγος, πόλεμος.Théros, trýgos, pólemos.“Summer, harvest, war.“

Ιι

(h)i

ἰατρέ, θεράπευσον σεαυτόν.Iatré, therápeuson seautón."Physician, take care of yourself!""Medice cura te ipsum."An injunction urging physicians to care for and heal themselves first before dealing with patients. It was made famous in theLatin translation of the Bible, the Vulgate. The proverb was quoted by Jesus, recorded in the Gospel of Luke chapter 4:23. Lukethe Evangelist was himself a physician.

Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς Θεοῦ Υἱὸς ΣωτήρIēsoûs Khristòs Theoû Hyiòs Sōtēr"Jesus Christ, Son of God, Saviour." As an acronym: ΙΧΘΥΣ (Ichthys) — "fish".

ἰσχύς μου ἡ ἀγάπη τοῦ λαοῦ.Ischýs mou hē agápē toû laoû."The people's love [is] my strength.“Motto of the Royal House of Glücksburg.

Κκ

k, c

καὶ σὺ τέκνον;Kaì sỳ téknon?"And thou, my child?" or "Even you, my child?"


5 of 13 19/12/2011 8:04 AM

Marcus Junius Brutus

"Kallístēi" inscription in

the Euboean alphabet

Diagoras of Rhodes carried

in the stadium by his two

sons

Et tu, Brute?On March 15, 44 BC, Julius Caesar was attacked by a group of senators, includingMarcus Junius Brutus, a senator and Caesar's adopted son. Caesar initially resisted hisattackers, but when he saw Brutus, he supposedly spoke those words and resignedhimself to his fate. It is almost certain that Caesar did not actually say these exact words.Ancient sources report that he either died wordlessly or spoke in Greek (Suetonius, DeVita Caesarum, LXXXII [4] (http://www.splash.it/latino/?path=/svetonio/de_vita_caesarum/!01!divus_iulius) ). The Latin version was made famous by WilliamShakespeare, who used it in his play, Julius Caesar (act 3, scene 1,85).

κακοῦ κόρακος κακὸν ὠόνKakoû kórakos kakòn ōón."From a bad crow, a bad egg"I.e. like father, like son.

κακὸς ἀνὴρ μακρόβιοςKakòs anēr makróbios"A bad man lives long"

καλλίστῃKallístēi"For the prettiest one", "To the most beautiful"From the myth of the Golden Apple of Discord.

κάτθανε, Διαγόρα, οὐ καὶ ἐς Ὄλυμπον ἀναβήσῃKátthane, Diagóra, ou kaì es Ólympon anabēsē."Die, Diagoras — you will certainly not ascend Olympus."A Spartan spectator to Diagoras of Rhodes, a former Olympic champion himself, during the 79thOlympiad, when his two sons became Olympic champions and carried him around the stadium ontheir shoulders.

Κρῆτες ἀεὶ ψεῦσταιKrêtes aeì pseûstai"Cretans always lie" — One of the earliest logical paradoxes attributed to Epimenides of Knossosknown as the Epimenides paradox. As Epimenides is a Cretan himself, it leads to the conclusionthat the above statement is not true, hence the paradox.

κτῆμα ἐς ἀείktêma es aeí"possession for eternity" (Thucydides)

Κύριε ἐλέησονKýrie eléēson"Lord have mercy" — a very common phrase in Greek Orthodox liturgies, and also used in Greekin the Roman Catholic Mass.

Λλ

l

λάθε βιώσαςLáthe biōsas"Live hidden"An Epicurean phrase, because of his belief that politics troubles men and doesn't allow them to reach inner peace. So Epicurussuggested that everybody should live "Hidden" far from cities, not even considering a political career. Cicero criticized this ideabecause, as a stoic, he had a completely different opinion of politics, but the sentiment is echoed by Ovid's statement bene quilatuit bene vixit ("he has lived well who has stayed well hidden", Tristia 3.4.25). Plutarch elaborated in his essay Is the Saying"Live in Obscurity" Right? (Εί καλῶς είρηται το λάθε βιώσας) 1128c.

λέγειν τὰ λεγόμεναLégein tà legómenaProdenda, quia prodita or Relata refero"I tell as I was told" or "I report reports"From Herodotus (7,52 etc.):Ἐγὼ δὲ ὀφείλω λέγειν τὰ λεγόμενα, πείθεσθαί γε μὲν οὐ παντάπασι ὀφείλω.Egō dè opheílō légein tà legómena, peíthesthaí ge mèn ou pantápasi opheílō.


6 of 13 19/12/2011 8:04 AM

Archimedes: Μὴ μοῦ τοὺς κύκλους

τάραττε

The words (ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ) as they

are inscribed on the marble of the

modern era monument at

Thermopylae.

And I must tell what I am told, since I don't have to be persuaded completely.

Μμ

m

μὴ γένοιτο.Mē génoito."Let it not be!" / "Heaven forbid!"Phrase used by St Paul.

μέτρον ἄριστον.Métron áriston"Moderation is best"On occasions where neither too much nor too little is a good choice, as when eating or celebrating. Cleobulus, according to

Diogenes Laertius.[12]

μὴ μοῦ τοὺς κύκλους τάραττε.Mē moû toùs kúklous táratte."Do not disturb my circles."The last words attributed to Archimedes. During the raid of Syracuse by the Romans,Archimedes was busy drawing circles. He was eventually attacked and killed by a Romansoldier.

μὴ χεῖρον βέλτιστον.Mē kheíron béltiston."The least bad [choice] is the best."When there is no good option, one should pick the one that does the least harm.

μηδὲν ἄγαν.Mēdèn ágan."Nothing in excess"Inscription from the temple of Apollo at Delphi

μῆλον της Ἔριδος.Mêlon tês Éridos."Apple of Discord"goddess Eris tossed the Apple of Discord "to the fairest". Paris was the judge of the prettiest one.

μηκέτι ὑδροπότει, αλλ' οἴνῳ ὀλίγῳ χρῶ διὰ τὸν στόμαχόν σου καὶ τὰς πυκνάς σου ασθενείας.Mēkéti hydropótei, all' oínōi olígōi khrô dià tòn stómakhón sou kaì tàs pyknás sou astheneías.Stop drinking only water, but take a little wine for your stomach and your frequent illnesses.From the I Timothy 5:23

μολὼν λαβέ!Molōn labé!"Come take [them]!"King Leonidas of Sparta, in response to King Xerxes of Persia's demand that the Greek

army lay down their arms before the Battle of Thermopylae.[13]

μυστήριον τῆς πίστεωςMystērion tês písteōs"Mystery of faith"Latinized as Mysterium Fidei is a Christian theological term. It means that believing hasan unexplainable way of changing one's life. The phrase appears in the Roman Ritewithout indicating a specific mystery as the word mystery in that phrase has a moregeneral meaning.

Νν

n

ναὶ ναί, οὒ οὔ·Naì naí, où oú;"Yes yes, no no;"Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 5


7 of 13 19/12/2011 8:04 AM

Painting of Pheidippides as he gave

word of the Greek victory over Persia

at the Battle of Marathon to the people

of Athens.

Luc-Olivier Merson, 1869

Trireme during the Persian Wars

οἶνοψ πόντος — wine dark sea

“33 Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made tothe Lord.’ 34 But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool;or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair whiteor black. 37 Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one."

νενικήκαμεν.Nenikēkamen."We have won."The traditional story relates that the Athenian herald Pheidippides ran the 40 km (25 mi)from the battlefield near the town of Marathon to Athens to announce the Greek victoryover Persia in the Battle of Marathon (490 BC) with the word 'We have won') andcollapsed and died on the spot because of exhaustion.

νίψον ἀνομήματα μὴ μόναν ὄψινNípson anomēmata mē mónan ópsin"Wash the sins not only the face"

A palindromic inscription attributed to Gregory of Nazianzus,[14] inscribed in HagiaSophia and on many church fonts. In the Greek alphabet, the /ps/ sound is rendered bythe single letter ψ (psi).

νοῦς ὑγιὴς ἐν σώματι ὑγιεῖNoûs hugiēs en sōmati hugieî.Latin: Mens sana in corpore sano"Healthy mind in healthy body."A healthy body can sustain a healthy mind.

Ξξ

x

ξένος ὢν ἀκολούθει τοῖς ἐπιχωρίοις νόμοις.Xénos ōn akoloúthei toîs epikhōríois nómois."As a foreigner, follow the laws of that country."Loosely, "Do in Rome as Rome does." Quotation from the works of Menander.

ξύλινον τεῖχοςXýlinon teîkhos"Wooden defensive wall"The "walls" of ships during the Persian Wars.

Οο

(h)o

οἶνοψ πόντοςOînops póntos"Wine dark sea"A common Homeric epithet of the sea, on which many articles have been written.

ὅπερ ἔδει δεῖξαι (ΟΕΔ)Hóper édei deîxai. (abbreviated as OED)"Quod erat demonstrandum""what was required to be proved"Used by early mathematicians including Euclid (Elements, 1.4), Aristotle (APo.90b34)and Archimedes, written at the end of a mathematical proof or philosophical argument, tosignify the proof as complete. Later it was latinized as "QED" or the Halmos tombstonebox symbol.

οὔ με πείσεις, κἂν με πείσῃςOú me peíseis, kàn me peísēis"You will not convince me even if you do convince me"

οὐ φροντὶς ἹπποκλείδῃOu phrontìs Hippokleídēi."Hippocleides doesn't care."From a story in Herodotus (6.129), in which Hippocleides loses the chance to marry Cleisthenes' daughter after getting drunk and


8 of 13 19/12/2011 8:04 AM

Odysseus, 2nd century

BC statue

Kotinos, the prize for the winner at the

Ancient Olympic Games.

dancing on his head. Herodotus says the phrase was a common expression in his own day.

Οὖτις ἐμοί γ' ὄνομαOûtis emoí g' ónoma."My name is Nobody".Odysseus to Polyphemus when asked what his name was. (Homer, Odyssey, ix, 366).

Ππ

p

πάντοτε ζητεῖν τὴν ἀλήθειανPántote zeteῖn tḕn alētheian"ever seeking the truth" — Diogenes Laertius, Lives of eminent philosophers[15] — a characteristic of Pyrrhonism. Anabbreviated form, ζητεῖν τὴν ἀλήθειαν (seek the truth), is a motto of the Geal family.

παπαί, Μαρδόνιε, κοίους ἐπ' ἄνδρας ἤγαγες μαχησομένους ἡμέας, οἳ οὐ περὶ χρημάτων τὸνἀγῶνα ποιεῦνται ἀλλὰ περὶ ἀρετῆς.

Papaí, Mardónie, koíous ep' ándras ēgages makhēsoménous hēméas, hoì ou perìkhrēmátōn tòn agôna poieûntai allà perì aretês."Good heavens! Mardonius, what kind of men have brought us to fight against? Men whodo not compete for possessions, but for honour."Spontaneous response of Tigranes, a Persian general (who seemed to be speaking Greek),while Xerxes was interrogating some Arcadians after the Battle of Thermopylae. Xerxesasked why there were so few Greek men defending the Thermopylae. The answer was"All the other men are participating in the Olympic Games". And when asked "What isthe prize for the winner?", "An olive-wreath" came the answer. — Herodotus, The

Histories[16]

πάθει μάθοςPáthei máthos"(There is) learning in suffering/experience"Aeschylus, Agamemnon - I also like the variant πάθος μάθος "suffering is learning/learning is suffering."

πέμπε δέ μιν Λυκίηνδε, πόρεν δ' ὅ γε σήματα λυγρὰγράψας ἐν πίνακι πτυκτῷ θυμοφθόρα πολλά

Pémpe dé min Lykíēnde, póren d' hó ge sēmata lygràgrápsas en pínaki ptyktôi thȳmophthóra pollá"So he sent him to Lycia, and gave (him) terrible signs/lettershe had engraved these on a folded tablet, they were many and life-destroying."

Homer, Iliad 6.168-9 - This passage shows that Homer actually knew the verb γράφειν (inscribe, later write).[17]

πίστις, ἐλπίς, ἀγάπηPístis, elpís, agápē"Faith, hope, (and) love." (1 Corinthians, 13, 13.)

πόλεμος πάντων μὲν πατήρ ἐστιPólemos pántōn mèn patēr esti"War is the father of all" — Heraclitus

πύξ, λάξ, δάξPýx, láx, dáx"With fists, kicks, and bites"Πύξ = fist, Λάξ = kick, Δάξ = biteEpigram describing how laypersons were chased away from the Eleusinian Mysteries.

Ρρ

rh

ῥοδοδάκτυλος ἨώςRhododáktylos Ēōs"Rosy-fingered Dawn."This phrase occurs frequently in the Homeric poems referring to Eos, the Titanic goddess of the dawn. Eos opened the gates ofheaven so that Helios could ride his chariot across the sky every day.


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Rosy-fingered dawn

Plutarch. Marble statue at

the Delphi Archaeological

Museum

Σσ

s

σπεῦδε βραδέωςSpeûde bradéōs."Hasten slowly" (cf. Latin festina lente), "less haste, more speed".

σὺν Ἀθηνᾷ καὶ χεῖρα κίνειSỳn Athēnâi kaì kheîra kinei."Along with Athena, move also your hand" — cf. the English "God helps those who helpthemselves."

Ττ

t

τὰ πάντα ῥεῖ καὶ οὐδὲν μένει.Tà pánta rheî kaì oudèn ménei."Everything flows, nothing stands still."Heraclitus — Plato, in his dialogue Cratylus, recounts Heraclitus' saying:τὰ ὄντα ἰέναι τε πάντα καὶ μένειν οὐδέν

Tà ónta iénai te pánta kaì ménein oudèn

"[That] things that exist move and nothing remains still",[18] which he expands:πάντα χωρεῖ καὶ οὐδὲν μένει καὶ δὶς ἐς τὸν αὐτὸν ποταμὸν οὐκ ἂν ἐμβαίης

Pánta khōreî kaì oudèn ménei kaì dìs es tòn autòn potamòn ouk àn embaíēs

"All things move and nothing remains still, and you cannot step twice into the same stream".[19]

τάδ᾽ ἐστὶ Πελοπόννησος, οὐκ Ἰωνία.Tád' estì Pelopónnēsos, ouk Iōnía."Here is Peloponnesus, not Ionia" — Inscription written on a pillar erected by Theseus on the Isthmus of Corinth facing towards

the West, i.e. towards the Peloponnese.[20]

τάδ᾽ οὐχὶ Πελοπόννησος, ἀλλ᾽ Ἰωνία.Tád' oukhì Pelopónnēsos, all' Iōnía."Here is not Peloponnesus, but Ionia" — inscription as per above, but towards East, i.e. towards Attica.

τὴν δέ μεγάλην ἤπειρον, ὑφ' ἧς ἡ μεγάλη περιέχεται κύκλῳ θάλαττα, τῶν μὲν ἂλλων ἔλαττον ἀπέχει,τῆς δ' Ὠγυγίας περὶ πεντακισχιλίους σταδίους.

Tēn dè megáalēn ēpeiron hyph' hês hē megálē periékhetai kýklō thálatta, tôn mèn állōnélatton apékhei, tês d' Ōgygíās perì pentakiskhilíous stadíous."The great continent, by which the great sea is surrounded on all sides, lies less distant from theothers, but about five thousand stadia from Ogygia." Plutarch on the great continent west of theAtlantic Ocean (From: “On the Face in the Moon”, 941 B)

τί δύσκολον; Τὸ ἐαυτὸν γνῶναι.Tí dýskolon? Tò eautòn gnônai."What is hard? To know thyself." — attributed (among other sages) to Thales, according to

Pausanias [21]

τί ἐστιν ὃ μίαν ἔχον φωνὴν τετράπουν καὶ δίπουν καὶ τρίπουν γίνεται;Ti estin ho mian ekhon phōnēn tetrapoun kai dipoun kai tripoun ginetai?"What is that which has one voice and yet becomes four-footed and two-footed and three-footed?." — The famous riddle of the Sphinx. Oedipus solved the riddle correctly by answering:“Man: as an infant, he crawls on fours; as an adult, he walks on two legs and; in old age, he uses a

walking stick”.[22] In allegorical terms it also describes the development of man: from a primitivestate (four-footed animal), to self-sustained (two-footed) and finally to stable and mature (see alsotripod).

τί εὔκολον; Τὸ ἄλλῳ ὑποτίθεσθαι.Tí eúkolon? Tò állōi hypotíthesthai."What is easy? To advise another." — Thales

τί καινὸν εἴη τεθεαμένος; Γέροντα τύραννον.Tí kainòn eiē tetheaménos? Géronta týrannon."What is the strangest thing to see? "An aged tyrant." — Thales


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Bust of Thales, one of the

seven Sages of Greece

Oedipus and the sphinx. On

an Attic red-figure kylix

Φοβοῦ τοὺς Δαναοὺς καὶ δῶρα

φέροντας — Maquette Trojan Horse,

used in Troy film, a gift from Brad Pitt

to the Turkish town Canakkale.

τί κοινότατον; Ἐλπίς. Καὶ γὰρ οἷς ἄλλο μηδέν, αὔτη παρέστη.Tí koinótaton? Elpís. Kaì gàr hoîs állo mēdén, aútē paréstē."What is quite common? Hope. When all is gone, there is still hope. Literally: "Because even tothose who have nothing else, it is still nearby." — Thales

τί τάχιστον; Νοῦς. Διὰ παντὸς γὰρ τρέχει.Tí tákhiston? Noûs. Dià pantòs gàr trékhei."What is the fastest? The mind. It travels through everything." — Thales

τί πρότερον γεγόνοι, νὺξ ἢ ἡμέρα; "νύξ, μιᾷ ἡμέρᾳ πρότερον.Tí próteron gegónoi, nỳx ē hēméra? núx, miâi hēméraa próteron."Which is older, day or night? "Night is the older, by one day." — Thales

τὸ γὰρ ἡδύ, ἐὰν πολύ, οὐ τί γε ἡδύ.Tò gàr hēdý, eàn polý, ou tí ge hēdý."A sweet thing tasted too often is no longer sweet."

τὸ δὶς ἐξαμαρτεῖν οὐκ ἀνδρὸς σοφοῦ.Tò dìs examarteîn ouk andròs sophoû."To commit the same sin twice [is] not [a sign] of a wise man."

τὸ πεπρωμένον φυγεῖν ἀδύνατον.Tò peprōménon phygeîn adýnaton."It's impossible to escape from what is destined."

Υυ

hy

υἱὸς μονογενήςHyiòs monogenēs"Only-begotten son"Unigenitus (named for its Latin opening words Unigenitus dei filius, or "Only-begotten son of God") is an apostolic constitutionin the form of a papal bull promulgated by Pope Clement XI in 1713.

ὕστερον πρότερονHýsteron próteron"The latter one first"Rhetorical device in which the most important action is placed first, even though it happens after the other action. The standardexample comes from the Aeneid of Virgil (2.353):Moriamur, et in media arma ruamus "Let us die, and charge into the thick of the fight".

Φφ

ph

φοβοῦ τοὺς Δαναοὺς καὶ δῶρα φέρονταςPhoboû toùs Danaoùs kaì dôra phérontas.Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes." Virgil's Aeneid (II, 49)"Fear the Danaans (Greeks), even when bearing gifts."King Priam decides to take the abandoned by the Danaans Trojan Horse into the walls ofTroy. In an effort to stop him, Laocoön the priest of Poseidon warns of the plot usingaccording to Virgil, the well known verses from the Aeneid reading (Quidquid id est)timeo Danaos et dona ferentīs. But two sea serpents sent by Athena strangle Laocoönand his sons. Thus, the Trojan Horse is brought into the city and Troy is sacked.An expression to urge cautiousness when an enemy acts as a friend. — Literally: don't

"swallow the bait".[23]

Φοινικήϊα γράμματαPhoinikēïa grámmata"Phoenician letters"

The Phoenician prince Cadmus was generally accredited by Greeks like Herodotus[24] with the introduction of the Phoenician

alphabet several centuries before the Trojan war, around 2000 BC.[25]

Χχ


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The Ancient Library of Alexandria.

Epitaph at the Thermopylae

kh

χαῖρε, αὐτοκράτορ· οἱ ἀπολούμενοί σε ἀσπαζόμεθαKhaîre, autokrátor; hoi apoloúmenoí se aspazómetha."Hail, Emperor; we who are about to perish salute you."Latin: Ave Caesar morituri te salutant.The first literary attestation of the Latin is in Suetonius, De Vita Caesarum, 5 (Divus Claudius), 21, 6,

χαλεπὰ τὰ καλάKhalepà tà kalá"The good/beautiful things [are] difficult [to attain].""Naught without labor."Cf. Plato, Republic 4, 435c.

Ψψ

ps

ψυχῆς ἰατρεῖον

Psykhês iatreîon."Hospital of the soul"The Library of Alexandria, also known as the Great Library in Alexandria, Egypt, wasonce the largest library in the world.A story concerns how its collection grew so large: by decree of Ptolemy III of Egypt, allvisitors to the city were required to surrender any form of written media in any languagein their possession which were listed under the heading "books of the ships". Thesewritings were then swiftly copied by official scribes. Sometimes the copies were soprecise that the originals were put into the library and the copies were delivered to theunsuspecting previous owners. This process also helped to create a reservoir of books inthe relatively new city.The phrase is used in reverse as ἰατρεῖον ψυχῆς as a motto for Carolina Rediviva, auniversity library in Uppsala, and is echoed in the motto of the American PhilologicalAssociation, "ψυχῆς ἰατρὸς τὰ γράμματα" ("literature is the soul's physician").

Ωω

(h)ō

Ὦ ξεῖν’, ἀγγέλλειν Λακεδαιμονίοις ὅτι τῇδε / κείμεθα τοῖς κείνων ῥήμασι πειθόμενοι.Ô xeîn’, angéllein Lakedaimoníois hóti têide / keímetha toîs keínōn rhēmasipeithómenoi."Stranger, tell the Spartans that here we lie, obedient to their laws."Epigram , a single elegiac couplet by Simonides on the dead of Thermopylae.

ὤδινεν ὄρος καὶ ἔτεκε μῦν.Ōdinen óros kaì éteke mŷn."A mountain had labour pains and a mouse was born"

Horace wrote Parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus;[26] "the mountains will labour,a ridiculous mouse will be born."Horace here meant to poke fun at heroic labours producing meager results; his line is also an allusion to one of Aesop's fables,The Mountain in Labour. The title to Shakespeare's play, Much Ado about Nothing, expresses a similar sentiment.

ὡς ἐν ἄλλῳ κόσμῳHōs en állōi kósmōi"As if in another world"Proverb quoted by Desiderius Erasmus in his Adagia.

See also

English words of Greek originGreek languageList of Greek words with English derivativesList of Latin phrases


12 of 13 19/12/2011 8:04 AM

Notes

^ (Symposiacs Problem VIII, 2 [1] (http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/p/plutarch/symposiacs/chapter8.html#section80) , (in Greek)Quaestiones Convivales (718b-)718c @PerseusProject [2] (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2008.01.0311%3Astephpage%3D718c) ,(in English) Quaestiones Convivales 8.2.1 @PerseusProject [3](http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2008.01.0312%3Abook%3D8%3Achapter%3D2%3Asection%3D1) .Note: All three references , Symposiacs Problem VIII-2, Quaestiones Convivales (718b-)718c and Quaestiones Convivales 8.2.1 point tothe same work and passage)

1.

^ Plutarch, Alexander, 14.3 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2008.01.0129%3Achapter%3D14%3Asection%3D3)

2.

^ γλαύξ (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0057:entry=glau/c)3.^ Aristophanes, The Birds, 302 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Aristoph.+Birds+301&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0025)

4.

^ δειμός (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0057:entry=deimo/s) . Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert;A Greek–English Lexicon at Perseus Project

5.

^ φόβος (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0057:entry=fo/bos) in Liddell and Scott6.^ Homer, Iliad 12.243 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0217:book=12:card=243)7.^ Plato, Statesman 266e (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0172%3Atext%3DStat.%3Asection%3D266e)

8.

^ Diogenes Laertios, Lives of eminent philosophers Chapter 2.40 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0258%3Abook%3D6%3Achapter%3D2)

9.

^ Plutarch, Caesar Plut. Caes. 50.2 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2008.01.0130%3Achapter%3D50%3Asection%3D2)

10.

^ Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers Θαλῆς (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0257%3Abook%3D1%3Achapter%3D1)

11.

^ Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers Κλεόβουλος (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0257%3Abook%3D1%3Achapter%3D6) .

12.

^ Plutarch, Apophthegmata Laconica, 51.11 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2008.01.0195%3Achapter%3D51%3Asection%3D11)

13.

^ Alex Preminger, Terry V.F. Brogan, and Frank J. Warnke, The New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics, 3rd ed., PrincetonUniversity Press, 1993, ISBN 0-691-02123-6, p. 874.

14.

^ Diogenes Laertius, Lives of eminent philosophers Chapter 9.11 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=D.+L.+9.11&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0258)

15.

^ Herodotus, The Histories Hdt. 8.26 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Hdt.+8.26&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0126)

16.

^ Σήματα λυγρὰ γράψας ἐν πίνακι πτυκτῷ Hom. Il. 6.156 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text;jsessionid=0A9C835E67118467F7E8A7D81C9FF2DA?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0133%3Abook%3D6%3Acard%3D156)

17.

^ Plato, Cratylus, Plat. Crat. 401d (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0171%3Atext%3DCrat.%3Asection%3D401d)

18.

^ Plato, Cratylus Plat. Crat. 402a (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0171%3Atext%3DCrat.%3Asection%3D402a)

19.

^ Plutarch, Parallel Lives , Theseus, Plut. Thes. 25 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2008.01.0075%3Achapter%3D25)

20.

^ Pausanias, Description of Greece, Paus. 10.24 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0159%3Abook%3D10%3Achapter%3D24)

21.

^ Apollodorus, Library Apollod. 3.5.8 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0022%3Atext%3DLibrary%3Abook%3D3%3Achapter%3D5%3Asection%3D8)

22.

^ Meaning, "do not completely accept something, especially an offer that is a trick or way of getting something from you. See alsoDefinition of swallow the bait (http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/swallow-the-bait)

23.

^ Herodotus, Histories, Book V, 58 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0126&layout=&loc=5.58.1) .

24.

^ Herodotus. Histories, Book II, 2.145 (http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Hdt.+2.145&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0126)

25.

^ Horace, Ars Poetica, l. 13926.

External links

Greek proverbs on Wikiquote

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