- Source
- Herodotus. Godley, Alfred Denis, editor. Cambridge, MA; London: Harvard University Press; William Heinemann, Ltd., 1920-1925 (printing).
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:2.16.1-2.16.2
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-03
The author points out that if the Ionians' view were correct, their division of the world into three parts (Europe, Asia, and Libya) would be logically inconsistent, as the Delta would have to be counted as a fourth part belonging to neither.
εἰ ὦν ἡμεῖς ὀρθῶς περὶ αὐτῶν γινώσκομεν, Ἴωνες οὐκ εὖ φρονέουσι περὶ Αἰγύπτου· εἰ δὲ ὀρθή ἐστι ἡ γνώμη τῶν Ἰώνων, Ἕλληνάς τε καὶ αὐτοὺς Ἴωνας ἀποδείκνυμι οὐκ ἐπισταμένους1 λογίζεσθαι, οἳ φασὶ τρία μόρια εἶναι γῆν πᾶσαν, Εὐρώπην τε καὶ Ἀσίην καὶ Λιβύην.
If, then, we judge correctly about these matters, the Ionians are not of sound mind concerning Egypt; but if the opinion of the Ionians is correct, I demonstrate that the Greeks, and indeed the Ionians themselves, do not know how to calculate, who say that the whole earth consists of three parts—Europe, Asia, and Libya.
τέταρτον2 γὰρ δή σφεας δεῖ προσλογίζεσθαι Αἰγύπτου τὸ Δέλτα, εἰ μήτε γε ἐστὶ τῆς Ἀσίης μήτε τῆς Λιβύης· οὐ γὰρ δὴ ὁ Νεῖλός γε ἐστὶ κατὰ τοῦτον τὸν λόγον ὁ τὴν Ἀσίην οὐρίζων τῇ Λιβύῃ, τοῦ Δέλτα δὲ τούτου κατὰ τὸ ὀξὺ περιρρήγνυται3 ὁ Νεῖλος, ὥστε ἐν τῷ μεταξὺ Ἀσίης τε καὶ Λιβύης γίνοιτʼ ἄν.4
For they must certainly reckon the Delta of Egypt in addition as a fourth part, if it belongs neither to Asia nor to Libya; for, according to this argument, it is certainly not the Nile that boundaries Asia from Libya, but at the apex of this Delta the Nile splits and flows around it, so that it would lie in the middle between Asia and Libya.
- 2.16.1Ἕλληνάς τε καὶ αὐτοὺς Ἴωνας ... οὐκ ἐπισταμένους
The participle οὐκ ἐπισταμένους functions predicatively with the accusative object of ἀποδείκνυμι (Ἕλληνάς τε καὶ αὐτοὺς Ἴωνας), forming a construction meaning 'I demonstrate that they do not know how to...'.
- 2.16.2τέταρτον
The noun μόριον (part) is omitted, and τέταρτον functions predicatively with the infinitive προσλογίζεσθαι, meaning 'as a fourth part'.
- 2.16.2περιρρήγνυται
The middle-passive of περιρρήγνυμι (to break around), describing how the Nile divides at the apex of the Delta (κατὰ τὸ ὀξύ) and flows around its sides as if breaking around it.
- 2.16.2γίνοιτʼ ἄν
The subject is τὸ Δέλτα (the Delta) understood from the context. In the result clause introduced by ὥστε, the optative with ἄν (potential optative) expresses a logical consequence or inference ('it would come to be...').