- 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-grc2:4.199.1-4.199.2
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-10
The passage explains that Cyrene, due to its elevation differences, has three distinct harvest seasons progressing from the coast to the hills and high ground, lasting for eight months.
ἔχει δὲ καὶ ἡ Κυρηναίη χώρη, ἐοῦσα ὑψηλοτάτη ταύτης τῆς Λιβύης τὴν οἱ νομάδες νέμονται,1 τρεῖς ὥρας ἐν ἑωυτῇ ἀξίας θώματος. πρῶτα μὲν γὰρ τὰ παραθαλάσσια τῶν καρπῶν ὀργᾷ2 ἀμᾶσθαι τε καὶ τρυγᾶσθαι· τούτων τε δὴ συγκεκομισμένων τὰ ὑπὲρ τῶν θαλασσιδίων χώρων τὰ μέσα ὀργᾷ συγκομίζεσθαι, τὰ βουνοὺς καλέουσι·
And the Cyrenaic land, which is the highest part of this Libya which the nomads inhabit, has in itself three harvest seasons worthy of wonder. For first, the crops of the coastal regions are ripe for reaping and gathering; and when these have been harvested, the middle regions above the coastal areas—which they call the “Hills”—are ripe for gathering.
συγκεκόμισται τε οὗτος ὁ μέσος καρπὸς καὶ ὁ ἐν τῇ κατυπερτάτῃ τῆς γῆς πεπαίνεταί τε καὶ ὀργᾷ, ὥστε ἐκπέποται τε καὶ καταβέβρωται3 ὁ πρῶτος καρπὸς καὶ ὁ τελευταῖος συμπαραγίνεται. οὕτω ἐπʼ ὀκτὼ μῆνας Κυρηναίους ὀπώρη ἐπέχει. ταῦτα μέν νυν ἐπὶ τοσοῦτον εἰρήσθω.
And when this middle crop has been harvested, that in the highest part of the land ripens and is ripe for harvest, so that the first crop has been drunk up and consumed when the last one arrives. In this way, the harvest season occupies the Cyrenaeans for eight months. Now, let so much have been said about these matters.
- 4.199.1ταύτης τῆς Λιβύης τὴν οἱ νομάδες νέμονται
ταύτης τῆς Λιβύης is a partitive genitive depending on the superlative adjective ὑψηλοτάτη ('the highest part of this Libya'). The relative pronoun τὴν is in the accusative case, referring back to ταύτης τῆς Λιβύης and serving as the direct object of the transitive verb νέμονται.
- 4.199.1ὀργᾷ
The verb ὀργάω originally means 'to swell with lust or passion, to teem'. Here, in reference to crops and harvesting, it is used with infinitives (ἀμᾶσθαι, τρυγᾶσθαι, συγκομίζεσθαι) in an idiomatic sense meaning 'to be ripe for' or 'to be ready for' reaping or gathering.
- 4.199.2ὥστε ἐκπέποται τε καὶ καταβέβρωται
In this result clause introduced by ὥστε, indicative perfect verbs (ἐκπέποται, καταβέβρωται) are used instead of infinitives. This emphasizes that the result is an actual, accomplished fact ('has been already drunk up and consumed') rather than a merely anticipated or potential outcome.