- 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-grc2:4.23.1-4.23.5
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-10
The passage describes the bald and sacred Argippaeans living at the foot of high mountains beyond Scythia, detailng their unique physical features and their reliance on the Pontic tree for food and shelter.
μέχρι μὲν δὴ τῆς τούτων τῶν Σκυθέων χώρης ἐστὶ ἡ καταλεχθεῖσα πᾶσα πεδιάς τε γῆ καὶ βαθύγαιος, τὸ δʼ ἀπὸ τούτου λιθώδης τʼ ἐστὶ καὶ τρηχέα.
Up to the land of these Scythians, all the country described is a flat plain with deep soil, but from this point onward it is stony and rugged.
διεξελθόντι1 δὲ καὶ τῆς τρηχέης χώρης πολλὸν οἰκέουσι ὑπώρεαν2 ὀρέων ὑψηλῶν ἄνθρωποι λεγόμενοι εἶναι πάντες φαλακροὶ ἐκ γενετῆς γινόμενοι, καὶ ἔρσενες καὶ θήλεαι ὁμοίως, καὶ σιμοὶ καὶ γένεια ἔχοντες μεγάλα, φωνὴν δὲ ἰδίην ἱέντες, ἐσθῆτι δὲ χρεώμενοι Σκυθικῇ, ζῶντες δὲ ἀπὸ δενδρέων.
To one having passed through a great extent of this rugged country, there dwell at the foot of lofty mountains people who are said to be all bald from their birth, both males and females alike, having flat noses and large beards, speaking a language of their own, using Scythian dress, and living on the fruit of trees.
ποντικὸν μὲν οὔνομα τῷ δενδρέῳ ἀπʼ οὗ ζῶσι, μέγαθος δὲ κατὰ συκέην μάλιστά κῃ. καρπὸν δὲ φορέει κυάμῳ ἴσον, πυρῆνα δὲ ἔχει. τοῦτο ἐπεὰν γένηται πέπον, σακκέουσι ἱματίοισι, ἀπορρέει δὲ ἀπʼ αὐτοῦ παχὺ καὶ μέλαν· οὔνομα δὲ τῷ ἀπορρέοντι ἐστὶ ἄσχυ· τοῦτο καὶ λείχουσι καὶ γάλακτι συμμίσγοντες πίνουσι, καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς παχύτητος αὐτοῦ τῆς τρυγὸς παλάθας συντιθεῖσι καὶ ταύτας σιτέονται.
The name of the tree on which they live is the Pontic tree, and its size is about equal to that of a fig tree. It bears a fruit like a bean, which contains a stone. When this becomes ripe, they strain it through cloths, and a thick, black juice flows from it; the name of this juice is aschy. They both lick this up and drink it mixed with milk, and from the thickest part of the dregs they make cakes and eat them.
πρόβατα γάρ σφι οὐ πολλά ἐστι. οὐ γάρ τι σπουδαῖαι αἱ νομαὶ αὐτόθι εἰσί. ὑπὸ δενδρέῳ δὲ ἕκαστος κατοίκηται, τὸν μὲν χειμῶνα ἐπεὰν τὸ δένδρεον περικαλύψῃ πίλῳ στεγνῷ λευκῷ, τὸ δὲ θέρος ἄνευ πίλου.
For they do not have many sheep, since the pastures in those parts are not good. Each man dwells under a tree, in the winter covering the tree with a thick white felt, but in the summer without the felt.
τούτους οὐδεὶς ἀδικέει ἀνθρώπων· ἱροὶ γὰρ λέγονται εἶναι· οὐδέ τι ἀρήιον ὅπλον ἐκτέαται. καὶ τοῦτο μὲν τοῖσι περιοικέουσι οὗτοι εἰσὶ οἱ τὰς διαφορὰς διαιρέοντες, τοῦτο δὲ3 ὃς ἂν φεύγων καταφύγῃ ἐς τούτους, ὑπʼ οὐδενὸς ἀδικέεται· οὔνομα δέ σφι ἐστὶ Ἀργιππαῖοι.
No man does harm to these people, for they are said to be sacred; nor do they possess any weapon of war. And on the one hand, these are they who decide the disputes of their neighbors, and on the other hand, whoever takes refuge with them as a fugitive is harmed by no one; and their name is the Argippaeans.
- 4.23.2διεξελθόντι
The so-called 'dative of the traveler' (dative of reference), commonly used in geographical descriptions to indicate the position relative to the perspective of someone performing the action.
- 4.23.2ὑπώρεαν
An accusative without a preposition, functioning as the direct object of the intransitive verb οἰκέουσι (or as an accusative of place, meaning 'dwelling along/at the foot of').
- 4.23.5τοῦτο μὲν... τοῦτο δὲ
A correlative construction using the neuter accusative singular of the pronoun adverbially, meaning 'on the one hand... on the other hand...', linking and contrasting the two characteristics in the main clauses.
Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25) · Revision history (2, latest 2026-09-22)
- 2026-09-22 AI review — translation 1
- 2026-09-21 AI review — translation 1