- 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-grc2:7.156.1-7.156.3
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-05
Gelon established and developed Syracuse as his main base, forcibly relocating the inhabitants of Kamarina and Gela, as well as the wealthy elites of Megara and Euboea, to Syracuse to make them citizens, while selling the common people of those cities into exile as slaves.
ὁ δὲ ἐπείτε παρέλαβε τὰς Συρηκούσας, Γέλης μὲν ἐπικρατέων λόγον ἐλάσσω ἐποιέετο, ἐπιτρέψας αὐτὴν Ἱέρωνι ἀδελφεῷ ἑωυτοῦ, ὁ δὲ τὰς Συρηκούσας ἐκράτυνε, καὶ ἦσάν οἱ πάντα αἱ Συρήκουσαι·
When he had taken over Syracuse, he held Gela in less account, though he still ruled it, having entrusted it to his brother Hieron; but he strengthened Syracuse, and Syracuse was everything to him.
αἳ δὲ παραυτίκα ἀνά τʼ ἔδραμον καὶ ἔβλαστον. τοῦτο μὲν γὰρ Καμαριναίους ἅπαντας ἐς τὰς Συρηκούσας ἀγαγὼν πολιήτας ἐποίησε, Καμαρίνης δὲ1 τὸ ἄστυ κατέσκαψε, τοῦτο δὲ Γελῴων ὑπερημίσεας τῶν ἀστῶν τὠυτὸ τοῖσι Καμαριναίοισι ἐποίησε· Μεγαρέας τε τοὺς ἐν Σικελίῃ, ὡς πολιορκεόμενοι ἐς ὁμολογίην προσεχώρησαν, τοὺς μὲν αὐτῶν παχέας,2 ἀειραμένους τε πόλεμον αὐτῷ καὶ προσδοκῶντας ἀπολέεσθαι διὰ τοῦτο, ἀγαγὼν ἐς τὰς Συρηκούσας πολιήτας ἐποίησε· τὸν δὲ δῆμον τῶν Μεγαρέων οὐκ ἐόντα μεταίτιον τοῦ πολέμου τούτου οὐδὲ προσδεκόμενον κακὸν οὐδὲν πείσεσθαι, ἀγαγὼν καὶ τούτους ἐς τὰς Συρηκούσας ἀπέδοτο ἐπʼ ἐξαγωγῇ3 ἐκ Σικελίης.
And Syracuse immediately grew up and flourished. For, on the one hand, he brought all the Kamarinaeans to Syracuse and made them citizens, and razed the town of Kamarina to the ground; and on the other hand, he did the same to more than half of the citizens of Gela as he had done to the Kamarinaeans. Moreover, as for the Megarians in Sicily, when, under siege, they came to terms of surrender, those of them who were wealthy—who had raised war against him and expected to be put to death because of this—he brought to Syracuse and made them citizens; but the common people of the Megarians, who had no share in the blame for this war and expected to suffer no harm, he also brought to Syracuse and sold them into slavery on condition of exportation from Sicily.
τὠυτὸ δὲ τοῦτο καὶ Εὐβοέας τοὺς ἐν Σικελίῃ ἐποίησε διακρίνας. ἐποίεε δὲ ταῦτα τούτους ἀμφοτέρους νομίσας δῆμον εἶναι συνοίκημα ἀχαριτώτατον.4
He did the very same thing to the Euboeans in Sicily as well, making a distinction among them. He did this to both of these peoples because he considered the common people to be a most disagreeable companion to live with.
- 7.156.2τοῦτο μὲν... τοῦτο δέ
Used adverbially to mean "on the one hand... on the other hand," introducing a coordinate contrast.
- 7.156.2παχέας
Accusative plural of the adjective meaning "thick" or "fat," used here as a social metaphor for "the wealthy" or "the prominent citizens."
- 7.156.2ἐπʼ ἐξαγωγῇ
The preposition ἐπί with the dative, meaning "on condition of." It specifies that the sale into slavery was on the condition of "exportation" (exile) out of Sicily.
- 7.156.3συνοίκημα ἀχαριτώτατον
Accusative predicate in apposition to the object δῆμον (masculine). συνοίκημα is a neuter noun meaning "companion in a household" or "joint dwelling," used here to objectify the common people as a highly disagreeable element (ἀχαριτώτατον) to live with.