- 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-grc2:7.218.1-7.218.3
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-07
The Persians are detected by the Phocians due to the rustling of oak leaves. While the Phocians retreat to the mountain peak to prepare for death, the Persians ignore them and quickly descend the mountain.
ἔμαθον δὲ σφέας οἱ Φωκέες ὧδε ἀναβεβηκότας· ἀναβαίνοντες γὰρ ἐλάνθανον1 οἱ Πέρσαι τὸ ὄρος πᾶν ἐὸν δρυῶν ἐπίπλεον.2 ἦν μὲν δὴ νηνεμίη, ψόφου δὲ γινομένου πολλοῦ, ὡς οἰκὸς ἦν φύλλων ὑποκεχυμένων ὑπὸ τοῖσι ποσί, ἀνά τε ἔδραμον οἱ Φωκέες καὶ ἐνέδυνον τὰ ὅπλα, καὶ αὐτίκα οἱ βάρβαροι παρῆσαν.
The Phocians discovered that they had ascended in the following way: for as they were climbing, the Persians were unnoticed because the whole mountain was full of oak trees. It was indeed windless, but when a great rustling arose, as was natural with leaves strewn underfoot, the Phocians sprang up and began to put on their armor, and immediately the barbarians were present.
ὡς δὲ εἶδον ἄνδρας ἐνδυομένους ὅπλα, ἐν θώματι ἐγένοντο· ἐλπόμενοι γὰρ οὐδένα σφι φανήσεσθαι ἀντίξοον ἐνεκύρησαν στρατῷ. ἐνθαῦτα Ὑδάρνης καταρρωδήσας μὴ οἱ Φωκέες ἔωσι3 Λακεδαιμόνιοι, εἴρετο Ἐπιάλτην ὁποδαπὸς εἴη ὁ στρατός, πυθόμενος δὲ ἀτρεκέως διέτασσε τοὺς Πέρσας ὡς ἐς μάχην.
When they saw men putting on their armor, they were thrown into amazement; for expecting that no one would appear to oppose them, they had encountered an army. Thereupon Hydarnes, fearing that the Phocians might be Lacedaemonians, asked Ephialtes of what country the army was; and having learned the truth accurately, he drew up the Persians as if for battle.
οἱ δὲ Φωκέες ὡς ἐβάλλοντο τοῖσι τοξεύμασι πολλοῖσί τε καὶ πυκνοῖσι, οἴχοντο φεύγοντες4 ἐπὶ τοῦ ὄρεος τὸν κόρυμβον, ἐπιστάμενοι ὡς ἐπὶ σφέας ὁρμήθησαν ἀρχήν, καὶ παρεσκευάδατο5 ὡς ἀπολεόμενοι. οὗτοι μὲν δὴ ταῦτα ἐφρόνεον, οἱ δὲ ἀμφὶ Ἐπιάλτην καὶ Ὑδάρνεα Πέρσαι Φωκέων μὲν οὐδένα λόγον ἐποιεῦντο, οἳ δὲ κατέβαινον τὸ ὄρος κατὰ τάχος.
But the Phocians, as they were hit by many and thick arrows, fled and went away to the crest of the mountain, believing that the enemy had made the attack against them from the beginning, and they made ready as if to perish. While these men indeed were of this mind, the Persians with Ephialtes and Hydarnes paid no regard to the Phocians, but began to descend the mountain with speed.
- 7.218.1ἀναβαίνοντες γὰρ ἐλάνθανον
The combination of the verb λανθάνω with a nominative participle means 'to do something secretly' or 'unnoticed'. Here, it means 'they (the Persians) were climbing unnoticed'.
- 7.218.1ἐὸν δρυῶν ἐπίπλεον
ἐόν is the neuter singular participle of the verb εἰμί in the Ionic dialect (corresponding to Attic ὄν), modifying τὸ ὄρος πᾶν (the whole mountain). The adjective ἐπίπλεον (full) takes the genitive δρυῶν (oak trees).
- 7.218.2καταρρωδήσας μὴ οἱ Φωκέες ἔωσι
Following the verb of fearing καταρρωδέω, the conjunction μὴ with the subjunctive (ἔωσι, third-person plural subjunctive of εἰμί, corresponding to Attic ὦσι) expresses a fear or apprehension: 'fearing lest the Phocians might be...'.
- 7.218.3οἴχοντο φεύγοντες
The combination of the verb οἴχομαι with a participle emphasizes the completion of the action and the departure of the subject, meaning 'they fled and went away' or 'they had gone in flight'.
- 7.218.3παρεσκευάδατο
This is the third-person plural pluperfect passive of παρασκευάζω in the Ionic dialect (characterized by the ending -ατο, corresponding to Attic παρεσκευασμένοι ἦσαν), meaning 'they had made themselves ready (to perish)'.