- 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-grc2:2.160.1-2.160.4
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-08
Messengers from Elis visit Egypt to boast of the fairness of the Olympic Games, explaining their rules to the wise men summoned by King Psammis. The Egyptian sages point out that fairness cannot be maintained if Elian citizens participate, advising them to bar Elians from competing.
ἐπὶ τοῦτον δὴ τὸν Ψάμμιν βασιλεύοντα Αἰγύπτου ἀπίκοντο Ἠλείων ἄγγελοι, αὐχέοντες δικαιότατα καὶ κάλλιστα τιθέναι τὸν ἐν Ὀλυμπίῃ ἀγῶνα πάντων ἀνθρώπων, καὶ δοκέοντες παρὰ ταῦτα1 οὐδʼ ἂν τοὺς σοφωτάτους ἀνθρώπων Αἰγυπτίους οὐδὲν ἐπεξευρεῖν·2
During the reign of this Psammis over Egypt, messengers from Elis arrived, boasting that they established the contest in Olympia most justly and beautifully of all men, and thinking that not even the Egyptians, the wisest of men, could devise anything further than this.
ὡς δὲ ἀπικόμενοι ἐς τὴν Αἴγυπτον οἱ Ἠλεῖοι ἔλεγον τῶν εἵνεκα ἀπίκοντο, ἐνθαῦτα ὁ βασιλεὺς οὗτος συγκαλέεται Αἰγυπτίων τοὺς λεγομένους εἶναι σοφωτάτους. συνελθόντες δὲ οἱ Αἰγύπτιοι ἐπυνθάνοντο τῶν Ἠλείων λεγόντων3 ἅπαντα τὰ κατήκει σφέας ποιέειν περὶ τὸν ἀγῶνα· ἀπηγησάμενοι δὲ τὰ πάντα ἔφασαν ἥκειν ἐπιμαθησόμενοι εἴ τι ἔχοιεν Αἰγύπτιοι τούτων δικαιότερον ἐπεξευρεῖν.
When the Elians arrived in Egypt and stated the purpose of their coming, this king thereupon summoned those of the Egyptians who were said to be the wisest. When the Egyptians assembled, they inquired of the Elians as they stated all that it was proper for them to do concerning the contest; and having explained everything, they said they had come to learn if the Egyptians could devise anything more just than these rules.
οἳ δὲ βουλευσάμενοι ἐπειρώτων τοὺς Ἠλείους εἴ σφι οἱ πολιῆται ἐναγωνίζονται. οἳ δὲ ἔφασαν καὶ σφέων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων Ἑλλήνων ὁμοίως τῷ βουλομένῳ ἐξεῖναι ἀγωνίζεσθαι.
After consulting together, the Egyptians asked the Elians whether their own citizens competed in the games. They replied that it was open to any of themselves and of the other Greeks alike, whoever wished, to compete.
οἱ δὲ Αἰγύπτιοι ἔφασαν σφέας οὕτω τιθέντας παντὸς τοῦ δικαίου ἡμαρτηκέναι. οὐδεμίαν γὰρ εἶναι μηχανὴν ὅκως οὐ τῷ ἀστῷ ἀγωνιζομένῳ προσθήσονται,4 ἀδικέοντες τὸν ξεῖνον. ἀλλʼ εἰ δὴ βούλονται δικαίως τιθέναι καὶ τούτου εἵνεκα ἀπικοίατο5 ἐς Αἴγυπτον, ξείνοισι ἀγωνιστῇσι ἐκέλευον τὸν ἀγῶνα τιθέναι, Ἠλείων δὲ μηδενὶ εἶναι ἀγωνίζεσθαι. ταῦτα μὲν Αἰγύπτιοι Ἠλείοισι ὑπεθήκαντο.
But the Egyptians said that in organizing it in this way they erred completely from all justice; for there was no way that they would not favor their own citizen when he competed, thereby doing injustice to the stranger. But if they indeed wished to organize it justly, and had come to Egypt for this purpose, they urged them to hold the contest for foreign competitors only, and that no Elian should be allowed to compete. This was the advice the Egyptians gave to the Elians.
- 2.160.1παρὰ ταῦτα
The preposition παρά with the accusative ταῦτα (referring to the rules of the games just mentioned) means 'beyond this' or 'in addition to these,' indicating that no further improvement could be devised.
- 2.160.1οὐδʼ ἂν ... ἐπεξευρεῖν
The particle ἄν goes with the infinitive ἐπεξευρεῖν, representing a potential optative or past indicative in indirect discourse. It forms an accusative with infinitive construction governed by δοκέοντες, with τοὺς σοφωτάτους ... Αἰγυπτίους as the subject.
- 2.160.2ἐπυνθάνοντο τῶν Ἠλείων λεγόντων
The verb πυνθάνομαι ('to hear, inquire') here takes a genitive of the source (τῶν Ἠλείων), which is modified by the participle λεγόντων, representing either 'inquired of the Elians who were speaking' or 'heard from the Elians as they explained.'
- 2.160.4ὅκως οὐ ... προσθήσονται
Led by the impersonal construction οὐδεμίαν εἶναι μηχανήν ('there is no way'), the subordinate clause is introduced by ὅκως (Ionic for ὅπως) with the future indicative προσθήσονται, expressing a strong necessity or impossibility: 'there is no way that they will not side with [their own citizen].'
- 2.160.4ἀπικοίατο
An Ionic optative third-person plural form, equivalent to the Attic ἀπίκοιντο. Within the conditional clause εἰ ... βούλονται ... καὶ ... ἀπικοίατο, it pairs a present indicative (βούλονται) with an optative, which here reflects the past fact of their arrival in Egypt shifted into the optative of indirect discourse.