- 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-grc2:3.106.1-3.106.3
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-09
The author explains that the edges of the inhabited world receive the finest blessings, citing India at the eastern extreme with its giant animals, abundant gold, and wild trees producing high-quality wool.
αἱ δʼ ἐσχατιαί κως τῆς οἰκεομένης τὰ κάλλιστα ἔλαχον, κατά περ ἡ Ἑλλὰς τὰς ὥρας πολλόν τι κάλλιστα κεκρημένας1 ἔλαχε.
In some way, the extreme parts of the inhabited world have been allotted the most excellent things, just as Greece has been allotted seasons blended by far the most beautifully.
τοῦτο μὲν γὰρ πρὸς τὴν ἠῶ ἐσχάτη τῶν οἰκεομενέων ἡ Ἰνδική ἐστι, ὥσπερ ὀλίγῳ πρότερον εἴρηκα· ἐν ταύτῃ τοῦτο μὲν τὰ ἔμψυχα, τετράποδά τε καὶ τὰ πετεινά, πολλῷ μέζω ἢ ἐν τοῖσι ἄλλοισι χωρίοισι ἐστί, πάρεξ τῶν ἵππων (οὗτοι δὲ2 ἑσσοῦνται ὑπὸ τῶν Μηδικῶν, Νησαίων δὲ καλευμένων ἵππων), τοῦτο δὲ χρυσὸς ἄπλετος αὐτόθι ἐστί, ὃ μὲν ὀρυσσόμενος, ὁ δὲ καταφορεύμενος ὑπὸ ποταμῶν, ὁ δὲ ὥσπερ ἐσήμηνα ἁρπαζόμενος.
For on the one hand, towards the east, India is the most extreme of inhabited lands, as I said a little while ago; in this country, on the one hand, the living creatures, both four-footed beasts and birds, are much larger than in other places, except for the horses (and these are surpassed by the Median horses called Nisaean); on the other hand, there is gold in abundance there, some of it mined, some brought down by rivers, and some, as I have indicated, carried off.
τὰ δὲ δένδρεα τὰ ἄγρια αὐτόθι φέρει καρπὸν εἴρια καλλονῇ τε προφέροντα3 καὶ ἀρετῇ τῶν ἀπὸ τῶν ὀίων· καὶ ἐσθῆτι Ἰνδοὶ ἀπὸ τούτων τῶν δενδρέων χρέωνται.4
And the wild trees there bear wool as their fruit, surpassing in beauty and quality that from sheep; and the Indians use clothing made from these trees.
- 3.106.1κεκρημένας
Perfect passive participle feminine plural accusative of the verb kerannumi (to mix, blend), modifying tas horas. It predicatively describes the Greek seasons as being blended or tempered in a most beautiful manner.
- 3.106.2τοῦτο μὲν... τοῦτο δὲ
A correlative adverbial construction common in Herodotus. Here it structures the description in a nested way: first contrastively introducing India's position (touto men...) and its resources (touto de chrusos...), while inside the first part (after en taute) it introduces another touto men to contrast giant animals with the exception of horses.
- 3.106.3προφέροντα
Present participle neuter plural. While it could agree with the subject ta dendrea (neuter plural nominative), it is contextually more natural to agree with the appositive eiria (neuter plural accusative, wool), meaning 'bearing wool that surpasses (the wool from sheep)'. The genitive ton apo ton oion serves as the object of comparison.
- 3.106.3χρέωνται
Third-person plural present of the verb chraomai (to use), in its Ionic form corresponding to Attic chrontai. It governs the dative estheti. The phrase apo touton ton dendreon indicates the source, 'using (what is obtained) from these trees as clothing'.