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Plautus · Poenulus §978-1049

Hanno's Punic Speech and Recognition of Agorastocles

Passage 16 of 22 · Latin

Summary

Hanno the Carthaginian arrives and speaks in Punic, but the slave Milphio comically misinterprets it with homophonic Latin words. Eventually, Hanno speaks in Latin and confirms his hospitality relation with Agorastocles.

§978servos quidem edepol veteres antiquosque habet.
By Pollux, he certainly has old and long-standing slaves.
§979Qui scis?
How do you know?
§979bViden homines sarcinatos consequi?
Do you see the baggage-laden men following him?
§980† atque ut opinor digitos in manibus non habent.
And, in my opinion, they do not have fingers on their hands.
§981Quid iam?
Why so?
§981bQuia incedunt cum anulatis auribus.
Because they walk with ringed ears.
§982Adibo hosce atque áppellabo Punice.
I will approach them and address them in Punic.
§983si respondebunt, Punice pergam loqui; §984si non, tum ad horum mores linguam vertero.
If they answer, I will go on speaking in Punic; if not, then I will turn my tongue to their manners.
§985Quid ais tu? écquid commeministi Punice?
What do you say? Do you remember any Punic at all?
§986Nihil edepol.
Not a bit, by Pollux.
nam qui scire potui, dic mihi, §987qui illim sexennis perierim Carthagine?
For tell me, how could I know it, who was lost from Carthage when I was six years old?
§988Pro di immortales, plurumi ad illum modum §989periere pueri liberi Carthagine.
O immortal gods, in that very manner very many freeborn boys were lost from Carthage.
§990Quid ais tu?
What do you say?
§990bQuid vis?
What do you want?
§990cVin appellem hunc Punice?
Do you want me to address him in Punic?
§991An scis?
Do you know it?
§991bNullus me est hodie Poenus Poenior.
Today there is no Carthaginian more Carthaginian than I.
§992Adi atque appella, quid velit, quid venerit, §993qui sit, quoiatis, unde sit: ne parseris.
Go to him and ask what he wants, why he has come, who he is, of what country, where he is from: do not spare him.
§994Avo.
Avo!
quoiates estis aut quo ex oppido?
Of what country are you, or from what town?
§995Anno byn mytthymballe udradait annech.
Anno byn mytthymballe udradait annech.
§996Quid ait?
What does he say?
§996bHannonem se esse ait Carthagine, §997Carthaginiensis Mytthumbalis filium.
He says that he is Hanno of Carthage, the Carthaginian, son of Mytthumbal.
§998Avo.
Avo.
§998bSalutat.
He greets you.
§998cDonni.
Donni.
§998dDoni volt tibi §999dare hic nescio quid.
He wants to give something or other here.
audin pollicitarier?
Do you hear him promising?
§1000Saluta hunc rursus Punice verbis meis.
Greet him back in Punic in my words.
§1001Avo donni inquit hic tibi verbis suis.
Avo donni, says he here to you in his own words.
§1002Me har bocca.
Me har bocca.
§1002bIstuc tibi sit potius quam mihi.
May that rather be yours than mine.
§1003Quid ait?
What does he say?
§1003bMiseram esse praedicat buccam sibi.
He declares that he has a wretched cheek.
§1004fortasse medicos nos esse arbitrarier.
Perhaps he thinks we are doctors.
§1005Si ita est, nega esse; nolo ego errare hospitem.
If that is so, deny it; I do not want the guest to be mistaken.
§1006Audin tu?
Do you hear?
§1006bRufeyn nyccho issam.
Rufeyn nyccho issam.
§1006cSic volo
Just so.
§1007profecto vera cuncta huic expedirier.
Indeed, I wish all the truth to be explained to him.
§1008roga númquid opus sit.
Ask if he needs anything.
§1008bTu qui zonam non habes, §1009quid in hanc venistis urbem aút quid quaeritis?
You, who have no belt, why have you come to this city or what are you seeking?
§1010Muphursa.
Muphursa.
§1010bQuid ait?
What does he say?
§1010cMiuulec hianna.
Miuulec hianna.
§1010dQuid venit?
Why did he come?
§1011Non audis? mures Africanos praedicat §1012in pompam ludis dare se velle aedilibus.
Don't you hear? He declares that he wants to give African mice to the aediles for the games in the procession.
§1013Lech lachanna nilimniichto.
Lech lachanna nilimniichto.
§1013bQuid nunc ait?
What does he say now?
§1014Ligulas, canalis ait se advexisse et nuces: §1015nunc orat, operam ut des sibi, ut ea veneant.
He says he has brought ladles, pipes, and nuts; now he begs that you give him assistance so that they may be sold.
§1016Mercator credo est.
I believe he is a merchant.
§1016bAssam.
Assam.
§1016cArvinam quidem.
Roasted fat, indeed.
§1017Palu mirga detha.
Palu mirga detha.
§1017bMilphio, quid nunc ait?
Milphio, what does he say now?
§1018Palas vendundas sibi ait et mergas datas, §1019ad messim credo, nisi quid tú aliud sapis.
He says that shovels are for sale and pitchforks have been given to him, for the harvest, I believe, unless you understand something else.
§1021Quid istuc ad me?
What is that to me?
§1021bCertiorem te esse volt, §1022ne quid clam furtim se accepisse censeas.
He wants you to be informed, lest you should think he has received anything secretly or by theft.
§1023Mufonnim siccoratim.
Mufonnim siccoratim.
§1023bHem, cave sis feceris §1024quod hic te órat.
Ah, beware, please, of doing what he begs of you.
§1024bQuid ait aut quid orat? expedi.
What does he say or what does he beg? Explain.
§1025Sub cratim ut iubeas se supponi átque eo §1026lapides imponi multos, ut sese neces.
That you order him to be placed under a hurdle, and on it many stones to be piled, so that you may kill him.
§1027Gunebbal samem lyryla.
Gunebbal samem lyryla.
§1027bNarra, quid est?
Tell me, what is it?
§1028quid ait?
What does he say?
§1028bNon hercle nunc quidem quicquam scio.
By Hercules, indeed now I know nothing at all.
§1029At ut scias, nunc dehinc latine iam loquar.
But that you may know, from now on I will speak in Latin.
§1030servom hercle te esse oportet et nequam et malum, §1031hominem peregrinum atque advenam qui inrideas.
By Hercules, you must be a worthless and wicked slave, to mock a foreign man and a stranger.
§1032At hercle te hominem et sycophantam et subdolum, §1033qui huc advenisti nos captatum, migdilix, §1034bisulci lingua quasi proserpens bestia.
But by Hercules, you are a deceitful and crafty fellow, who came here to catch us, you Punic babbler, with a double-forked tongue like a crawling beast.
§1035Maledicta hinc aufer, linguam compescas face.
Take away your insults; make sure you control your tongue.
§1036maledicere huic tu temperabis, si sapis.
You will refrain from insulting him, if you are wise.
§1037meis cónsanguineis nolo te iniuste loqui.
I do not want you to speak unjustly to my kinsmen.
§1038Carthagini ego sum gnatus, ut tu sis sciens.
I was born in Carthage, so that you may know.
§1039O mi popularis, salve.
O my fellow countryman, greetings!
§1039bEt tu edepol, quisquis es.
And you too, by Pollux, whoever you are.
§1040et si quid opus est, quaeso, dic atque impera §1041popularitatis causa.
And if there is need of anything, I pray, speak and command, for the sake of our common country.
§1041bHabeo gratiam.
I thank you.
§1044sed ecquem ádulescentem tu hic novisti Agorastoclem?
But do you know any young man here named Agorastocles?
§1045Siquidem Ántidamai quaeris ádoptaticium, §1046ego sum ipsus quem tu quaeris.
If indeed you are seeking the adopted son of Antidamas, I am the very one whom you seek.
§1046bHem, quid ego audio?
Ha, what do I hear?
§1047Antidamae gnatum me esse.
That I am the son of Antidamas.
§1047bSí itast, tesseram §1048conferre si vis hospitalem, eccam attuli.
If it is so, if you wish to compare the hospitality token, look, I have brought it.
§1049Agedum huc ostende.
Come, show it here.
est par probe, quam habeo domi.
It is an exact match for the one I have at home.

Notes

  1. 987perierim — Subjunctive perfect (perierim) in a relative clause of cause or characteristic referring to the first-person subject, presenting his abduction at six years old as the reason.
  2. 1002bsit — An independent subjunctive of wish (optative), meaning 'May that rather be yours than mine,' used as a comically hostile rejection.
  3. 1021bne — A negative purpose clause depending on the preceding statement (Certiorem te esse volt): 'lest you should think...'.
  4. 1033captatum — The accusative of the supine (captatum) expressing purpose after the verb of motion advenisti: 'to catch (cheat) us.'

Cite this passage

Plautus, Poenulus §978-1049. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0119.phi015.humanitext-lat2:978-1049

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