Humanitext Reader

Herodotus · Histories §4.172.1-4.172.4

Territory, Marriage Customs, and Oaths of the Nasamones

Passage 736 of 1577 · Greek

Summary

Describes the geographical distribution of the Nasamones, their agriculture, marriage customs, and rituals for oaths and divination.

§4.172.1Αὐσχισέων δὲ τούτων τὸ πρὸς ἑσπέρης ἔχονται Νασαμῶνες, ἔθνος ἐὸν πολλόν, οἳ τὸ θέρος καταλείποντες ἐπὶ τῇ θαλάσσῃ τὰ πρόβατα ἀναβαίνουσι ἐς Αὔγιλα χῶρον ὀπωριεῦντες τοὺς φοίνικας.
To the west of these Auschisae border the Nasamones, a very large tribe, who in the summer leave their flocks by the sea and go up to the region of Augila to harvest the dates.
οἳ δὲ πολλοὶ καὶ ἀμφιλαφέες πεφύκασι, πάντες ἐόντες καρποφόροι.
These are numerous and large, and all of them bear fruit.
τοὺς δὲ ἀττελέβους ἐπεὰν θηρεύσωσι, αὐήναντες πρὸς τὸν ἥλιον καταλέουσι καὶ ἔπειτα ἐπὶ γάλα ἐπιπάσσοντες πίνουσι.
When they catch locusts, they dry them in the sun, grind them to powder, and then, sprinkling them on milk, they drink it.
§4.172.2γυναῖκας δὲ νομίζοντες πολλὰς ἔχειν ἕκαστος ἐπίκοινον αὐτέων τὴν μῖξιν ποιεῦνται τρόπῳ παραπλησίῳ τῷ καὶ Μασσαγέται· ἐπεὰν σκίπωνα προστήσωνται, μίσγονται.
It is the custom for each man to have many wives, and they make their intercourse with them common in a manner very similar to that of the Massagetae; when they have set up a staff in front of the dwelling, they have intercourse.
πρῶτον δὲ γαμέοντος Νασαμῶνος ἀνδρὸς νόμος ἐστὶ τὴν νύμφην νυκτὶ τῇ πρώτῃ διὰ πάντων διεξελθεῖν τῶν δαιτυμόνων μισγομένην· τῶν δὲ ὡς ἕκαστος οἱ μιχθῇ, διδοῖ δῶρον τὸ ἂν ἔχῃ φερόμενος ἐξ οἴκου.
When a Nasamonian man marries for the first time, it is the custom for the bride on the first night to pass through all the guests, having intercourse with each; and each of them, after he has had intercourse with her, gives her whatever gift he has brought with him from his home.
§4.172.3ὁρκίοισι δὲ καὶ μαντικῇ χρέωνται τοιῇδε· ὀμνύουσι μὲν τοὺς παρὰ σφίσι ἄνδρας δικαιοτάτους καὶ ἀρίστους λεγομένους γενέσθαι, τούτους, τῶν τύμβων ἁπτόμενοι· μαντεύονται δὲ ἐπὶ τῶν προγόνων φοιτέοντες τὰ σήματα, καὶ κατευξάμενοι ἐπικατακοιμῶνται· τὸ δʼ ἂν ἴδη ἐν τῇ ὄψι ἐνύπνιον, τούτῳ χρᾶται.
They practice oaths and divination in the following way: they swear by those men among them who are said to have been the most just and best, touching their tombs; and they divine by visiting the graves of their ancestors, and after praying they lie down to sleep on them; and whatever dream one sees in his vision, this he uses.
§4.172.4πίστισι δὲ τοιῇσιδε χρέωνται· ἐκ τῆς χειρὸς διδοῖ πιεῖν καὶ αὐτὸς ἐκ τῆς τοῦ ἑτέρου πίνει.
They use the following pledges of faith: they give each other to drink from the hand, and each drinks from the other's hand.
ἢν δὲ μὴ ἔχωσι ὑγρὸν μηδέν, οἳ δὲ τῆς χαμᾶθεν σποδοῦ λαβόντες λείχουσι.
If they have no liquid, they take some dust from the ground and lick it.

Notes

  1. §4.172.1οἳ δὲ — The relative pronoun ὅς is used as a demonstrative pronoun at the beginning of the clause, referring back to the preceding `τοὺς φοίνικας` (the date palms), meaning 'and these'.
  2. §4.172.2νομίζοντες — Present participle of the verb νομίζω in the sense of 'to hold as a custom' or 'to be accustomed to', translated as 'accustomed to having each many wives'.
  3. §4.172.2τῶν δὲ ὡς ἕκαστος οἱ μιχθῇ — The genitive τῶν is a partitive genitive referring to the preceding `τῶν δαιτυμόνων` (the guests). οἱ is the third-person singular dative pronoun referring to the bride (τὴν νύμφην). μιχθῇ is the aorist passive subjunctive, here in a general temporal/conditional clause with the omission of ἄν.

Cite this passage

Herodotus, Histories §4.172.1-4.172.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:4.172.1-4.172.4

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.