- 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-grc2:2.62.1-2.62.2
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-05
The text describes the festival of "Lychnokaie" in Sais, where lamps of salt and oil are lit, and explains that even those who do not attend observe this lighting throughout Egypt.
ἐς Σάιν δὲ πόλιν ἐπεὰν συλλεχθέωσι, τῆς θυσίης1 ἐν τῇ νυκτὶ λύχνα καίουσι πάντες πολλὰ ὑπαίθρια περὶ τὰ δώματα κύκλῳ· τὰ δὲ λύχνα ἐστὶ ἐμβάφια ἔμπλεα ἁλὸς καὶ ἐλαίου, ἐπιπολῆς δὲ ἔπεστι αὐτὸ τὸ ἐλλύχνιον, καὶ τοῦτο καίεται παννύχιον, καὶ τῇ ὁρτῇ οὔνομα κέεται λυχνοκαΐη.
When they gather in the city of Sais, on the night of the sacrifice, they all burn many lamps outdoors around their houses; these lamps are saucers full of salt and oil, and on the surface rests the wick itself, and this burns all night long, and the name “Lychnokaie” is given to the festival.
οἳ δʼ ἂν μὴ ἔλθωσι τῶν Αἰγυπτίων ἐς τὴν πανήγυριν ταύτην, φυλάσσοντες τὴν νύκτα τῆς θυσίης καίουσι καὶ αὐτοὶ πάντες τὰ λύχνα, καὶ οὕτω οὐκ ἐν Σάι μούνῃ καίεται ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀνὰ πᾶσαν Αἴγυπτον. ὅτευ2 δὲ εἵνεκα φῶς ἔλαχε3 καὶ τιμὴν ἡ νὺξ αὕτη, ἔστι ἱρὸς περὶ αὐτοῦ λόγος λεγόμενος.
And those of the Egyptians who do not come to this festival, keeping watch of the night of the sacrifice, themselves also all burn their lamps, and thus they are burned not only in Sais but also throughout all Egypt. But for what reason this night obtained light and honor, there is a sacred story told about it.
- 2.62.1τῆς θυσίης
A genitive qualifying ἐν τῇ νυκτὶ or acting as a genitive of time, specifying the night on which the sacrifice takes place.
- 2.62.2ὅτευ
The Ionic genitive singular neuter of the general relative/interrogative pronoun ὅστις (equivalent to Attic οὗτινος), serving as the object of the postposition εἵνεκα.
- 2.62.2ἔλαχε
Aorist of λαγχάνω (to obtain by lot or fate). The subject is the following ἡ νὺξ αὕτη (this night), and the objects are φῶς καὶ τιμήν (light and honor), metaphorically treating the night as obtaining these attributes.