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Diodorus Siculus · Bibliotheca Historica §12.11.1-12.11.4

Civil Strife in Thurii and Formation of Democracy

Passage 105 of 723 · Greek

Summary

Civil strife broke out in Thurium between the original Sybarites and the new citizens over privileges, leading to the near-total elimination of the former. The remaining citizens established a democracy, divided themselves into ten tribes, and appointed Charondas as their lawgiver.

§12.11.1ὀλίγον δὲ χρόνον ὁμονοήσαντες οἱ Θούριοι στάσει μεγάλῃ περιέπεσον οὐκ ἀλόγως.
Having remained in harmony for a short time, the Thurians fell into a great sedition, and not without reason.
οἱ γὰρ προϋπάρχοντες Συβαρῖται τὰς μὲν ἀξιολογωτάτας ἀρχὰς ἑαυτοῖς προσένεμον, τὰς δʼ εὐτελεῖς τοῖς ὕστερον προσγεγραμμένοις πολίταις· καὶ τὰς γυναῖκας ἐπιθύειν τοῖς θεοῖς ᾤοντο δεῖν πρώτας μὲν τὰς πολίτιδας, ὑστέρας δὲ τὰς μεταγενεστέρας· πρὸς δὲ τούτοις τὴν μὲν σύνεγγυς τῇ πόλει χώραν κατεκληρούχουν ἑαυτοῖς, τὴν δὲ πόρρω κειμένην τοῖς ἐπήλυσι.
For the original Sybarites assigned the most important offices to themselves, but the minor ones to the citizens enrolled later; and in offering sacrifices to the gods they thought that the women of original citizens should do so first, and the later ones afterward; and besides this, they allotted the land near the city to themselves, and that which lay far off to the newcomers.
§12.11.2γενομένης δὲ διαφορᾶς διὰ τὰς εἰρημένας αἰτίας, οἱ προσγραφέντες ὕστερον πολῖται πλείους καὶ κρείττονες ὄντες ἀπέκτειναν σχεδὸν ἅπαντας τοὺς προϋπάρχοντας Συβαρίτας, καὶ τὴν πόλιν αὐτοὶ κατῴκησαν.
And when a dispute arose for the reasons mentioned, the citizens enrolled later, being more numerous and stronger, killed almost all the original Sybarites, and themselves inhabited the city.
πολλῆς δὲ οὔσης καὶ καλῆς χώρας, οἰκήτορας ἐκ τῆς Ἑλλάδος μεταπεμψάμενοι συχνούς, διενείμαντο τὴν πόλιν καὶ τὴν χώραν ἐπʼ ἴσης ἔνεμον.
And since the land was extensive and fertile, they sent for many settlers from Greece, divided the city, and allotted the land on equal terms.
§12.11.3οἱ δὲ διαμένοντες ταχὺ πλούτους μεγάλους ἐκτήσαντο, καὶ πρὸς τοὺς Κροτωνιάτας φιλίαν συνθέμενοι καλῶς ἐπολιτεύοντο.
Those who remained quickly acquired great wealth, and having concluded a friendship with the Crotoniates, they governed themselves excellently.
συστησάμενοι δὲ πολίτευμα δημοκρατικὸν διεῖλον τοὺς πολίτας εἰς δέκα φυλάς, καὶ τὰς προσηγορίας ἁπάσαις περιέθηκαν ἐκ τῶν ἐθνῶν, τρεῖς μὲν ἀπὸ τῶν ἐκ Πελοποννήσου συναχθέντων ὀνομάσαντες Ἀρκάδα καὶ Ἀχαΐδα καὶ Ἠλείαν, τὰς ἴσας δὲ ἀπὸ τῶν ἔξωθεν ὁμοεθνῶν, Βοιωτίαν, Ἀμφικτυονίδα, Δωρίδα, τὰς δὲ λοιπὰς τέτταρας ἀπὸ τῶν ἄλλων γενῶν, Ἰάδα, Ἀθηναΐδα, Εὐβοΐδα, Νησιῶτιν.
Having established a democratic government, they divided the citizens into ten tribes, and gave to all of them names derived from the nationalities: naming three from those gathered from the Peloponnese, Arcadian, Achaean, and Elean; and an equal number from those of the same race outside it, Boeotian, Amphictyonis, and Dorian; and the remaining four from the other groups, Ionian, Athenian, Euboean, and Islander.
εἵλοντο δὲ καὶ νομοθέτην τὸν ἄριστον τῶν ἐν παιδείᾳ θαυμαζομένων πολιτῶν Χαρώνδαν.
They also chose as lawgiver Charondas, the best of those citizens admired for their learning.
§12.11.4οὗτος δὲ ἐπισκεψάμενος τὰς ἁπάντων νομοθεσίας ἐξελέξατο τὰ κράτιστα καὶ κατέταξεν εἰς τοὺς νόμους· πολλὰ δὲ καὶ ἴδια ἐπινοησάμενος ἐξεῦρε, περὶ ὧν οὐκ ἀνοίκειόν ἐστιν ἐπιμνησθῆναι πρὸς διόρθωσιν τῶν ἀναγινωσκόντων.
He, having examined the laws of all peoples, selected the best and incorporated them into his laws; and he also devised and discovered many laws of his own, which it is not out of place to mention for the improvement of the readers.

Notes

  1. 12.11.1ἐπιθύειν — The infinitive `ἐπιθύειν` depends on the impersonal `δεῖν`, which in turn forms an accusative-and-infinitive (AcI) construction governed by `ᾤοντο`. `τὰς γυναῖκας` is the subject accusative of `ἐπιθύειν`, while `πρώτας μὲν τὰς πολίτιδας, ὑστέρας δὲ τὰς μεταγενεστέρας` functions in apposition or predicatively to specify the order of the women offering sacrifices.
  2. 12.11.3τὰς ἴσας — An accusative feminine plural phrase modifying the omitted noun `φυλάς` (tribes). It corresponds to the preceding numeral `τρεῖς` (three), thereby meaning 'the equal number [of tribes]' (i.e., three additional tribes).
  3. 12.11.4πρὸς διόρθωσιν — The genitive of the present participle `τῶν ἀναγινωσκόντων` (of those who read) depending on the prepositional phrase `πρὸς διόρθωσιν` (for the improvement/correction) functions as an objective genitive after the verbal noun `διόρθωσις`, meaning 'for the moral or intellectual improvement of the readers.'

Cite this passage

Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica §12.11.1-12.11.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0060.tlg001.humanitext-grc4:12.11.1-12.11.4

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