Histories by Herodotus
English translation: G. C. Macaulay
(pub. Macmillan, London and NY) [1890]

Volume 1 - BOOK IV.
The Fourth Book Of The Histories, Called Melpomene - Herodotus



—————





Notes To Book Iv.


1 (return)
[ Some enterprises had been entrusted to others, e.g. the attack on Samos; but this had not been the case with the capture of Babylon, therefore some Editors have proposed corrections, e.g. {au tou} (Schweighäuser), and {autika} (Stein).]

2 (return)
[ See i. 106.]

3 (return)
[ {tes ano 'Asies}: this means Eastern Asia as distinguished from the coasts of Asia Minor; see i. 103 and 177.]

4 (return)
[ {katapausantes}: the expression is awkward if meant to be equivalent to {kai katepausan}, but it is hardly improved by the alteration to {katapausontes}. Perhaps the clause is out of place.]

5 (return)
[ {ponos}.]

6 (return)
[ {peristixantes}: so the two best MSS.; others have {peristesantes} or {peristexantes}. The word {peristixantes} would be from {peristikho}, equivalent to {peristikhizo}, and is acknowledged in this sense by Hesychius.]

7 (return)
[ The connexion is not clear either at the beginning of the chapter or here. This clause would seem to be a repetition of that at the beginning of the chapter, and that which comes between should be an explanation of the reason why the slaves are blinded. As it stands, however, we can only refer it to the clause which follows, {ou gar arotai eisi alla nomades}, and even so there is no real solution of the difficulty, for it is not explained why nomads should have blinded slaves. Perhaps the best resource is to suppose that some part of the explanation, in connexion with the manner of dealing with the milk, has been lost.]

8 (return)
[ {te per}: a conjectural emendation for {e per}, "which is a very great lake".]

9 (return)
[ {epi touton arkhonton}: the word {arkhonton} is omitted in some MSS. and by some Editors.]

10 (return)
[ {sagarin}.]

11 (return)
[ {tous basileious}: so Wesseling. The MSS. have {tous basileas}, "the kings," which may perhaps be used here as equivalent to {tous basileious}: some Editors, including Stein, adopt the conjecture {tou basileos}, "from the youngest of them who, was king, those who," etc.]

12 (return)
[ {tou basileos}: some Editors read by conjecture {Skolotou basileos}, "after their king Scolotos".]

1201 (return)
[ {katazonnumenon}: or {kata tade zonnumenon}, "girded in this manner".]

13 (return)
[ {mekhanesasthai ten metera Skuthe}: the better MSS. read {mekhanasthai} and {Skuthen}: the meaning seems doubtful, and some Editors would omit the clause as an interpolation.]

14 (return)
[ {pros pollous deomenon}: the better MSS. read {pro pollou deomena}. The passage has been emended in various ways, e.g. {pros pollous deoi menontas} (Buttmann), {pros pollous menontas} (Bredow), {pro spodou deomenon} (Stein).]

15 (return)
[ {poiesas}: some authorities have {eipas}.]

16 (return)
[ Italy means for Herodotus only the Southern part of the peninsula.]

17 (return)
[ {diekosioisi}: so the best authorities; others have {priekosioisi}.]

18 (return)
[ {'Italioteon}, i.e. Hellenic settlers in Italy.]

19 (return)
[ {to agalmati to 'Apollonos}: {agalma} is used for anything dedicated to a god, most commonly the sacred image.]

20 (return)
[ {katuperthe}: "above," i.e. beyond them towards the North. Similarly when dealing with Libya the writer uses the same word of those further from the coast towards the South; see ch. 174.]

21 (return)
[ {en autoisi toisi epesi poieon}: "even in the verses which he composed," in which he might be expected as a poet to go somewhat beyond the literal truth.]

22 (return)
[ Or, "Alizonians".]

23 (return)
[ {'Olbiopolitas}.]

24 (return)
[ See ch. 101, where the day's journey is reckoned at 200 stades (23 English miles).]

25 (return)
[ The meaning of {eremos} here is not waste and barren land, but land without settled inhabitants.]

26 (return)
[ i.e. "Man-eaters".]

27 (return)
[ This is the reading of the MSS., but it is not consistent with the distance given in ch. 101, nor with the actual facts: some Editors therefore read "four" instead of "fourteen".]

28 (return)
[ i.e. "Cliffs".]

29 (return)
[ i.e. "Black-cloaks".]

30 (return)
[ {'Argippaioi}: it is not certain that this is the form which ought to be read here: Latin writers make the name "Arimphaei," and in some MSS. it is given here as {'Orgempaioi}.]

31 (return)
[ {agalmati}.]

32 (return)
[ {ta genesia}.]

33 (return)
[ Or, "violent".]

34 (return)
[ Od. iv. 85.]

35 (return)
[ {e phuonta phuein mogis}.]

36 (return)
[ {prosthekas}, "additions".]

37 (return)
[ i.e. of Apollo and Artemis.]

3701 (return)
[ Omitting {legon}.]

38 (return)
[ The word "Asia" is not contained in the MSS. and need not be inserted in the text, but it is implied, if not expressed; see chap. 41.]

39 (return)
[ {aktai}.]

40 (return)
[ {ou legousa ei me nomo}.]

41 (return)
[ i.e. 100,000 fathoms, equivalent to 1000 stades; see ii. 6, note 10.]

42 (return)
[ {oude sumballein axie}.]

43 (return)
[ ii. 158.]

4301 (return)
[ {brota}: some MSS. have {probata} "cattle".]

44 (return)
[ {omoia parekhomene}: the construction is confused, but the meaning is that all but the Eastern parts are known to be surrounded by sea.]

45 (return)
[ {logion}: some MSS. have {logimon}, "of reputation".]

46 (return)
[ Stein reads {eisi de} for {eisi de}, and punctuates so that the meaning is, "it has become the greatest of all rivers in the following manner:—besides other rivers which flow into it, those which especially make it great are as follows".]

47 (return)
[ {pente men oi}: this perhaps requires emendation, but the corrections proposed are hardly satisfactory, e.g. {pente megaloi} or {pente monoi}.]

48 (return)
[ Or "Skios": called by Thucydides "Oskios" (ii. 96).]

49 (return)
[ {eti}: most of the MSS. give {esti}, which is adopted by some Editors.]

50 (return)
[ "Sacred Ways".]

51 (return)
[ {Gerreon}: in some MSS. {Gerrou}, "the region called Gerros".]

52 (return)
[ {tesserakonta}: some Editors have altered this number, but without authority or sufficient reason.]

53 (return)
[ {di eremou}: see note 25 on ch. 18. The region here spoken of is that between the Gerrians and the agricultural Scythians.]

5301 (return)
[ {es touto elos}: i.e. the Dneiper-Liman. (The Medicean and Florentine MSS. read {es to elos}, not {es to telos}, as hitherto reported.)]

54 (return)
[ {eon embolon tes khores}.]

55 (return)
[ {Metros}: i.e. the Mother of the gods, Kybele, cp. ch. 76; some less good authorities have {Demetros}.]

56 (return)
[ {reei de}: most MSS. have {reei men gar}.]

57 (return)
[ Or, "Apia".]

58 (return)
[ Or, "Goitosyros".]

59 (return)
[ The MSS. have also "Arippasa" and "Artimpasa".]

60 (return)
[ The authorities have also "Thagimasa" and "Thamimasidas".]

61 (return)
[ {ton arkheion}: some read by conjecture {en to arkheio}, "at the seat of government," or "in the public place".]

62 (return)
[ {eson t' epi stadious treis}.]

63 (return)
[ {upo ton kheimonon}.]

64 (return)
[ {akinakes}.]

65 (return)
[ {agalma}: see note 19 on ch. 15.]

66 (return)
[ {kata per baitas}.]

67 (return)
[ Or, "and put them together in one bundle".]

68 (return)
[ See i. 105.]

69 (return)
[ {kuperou}: it is not clear what plant is meant.]

70 (return)
[ i.e. for this purpose. The general use of bronze is attested by ch. 81.]

71 (return)
[ {ode anabibazontes, epean k.t.l}: the reference of {ode} is directly to the clause {epean——trakhelou}, though in sense it refers equally to the following, {katothen de k.t.l}. Some Editors punctuate thus, {ode anabibazontes epean} and omit {de} after {katothen}, making the reference of {ode} to the latter clause alone.]

72 (return)
[ {oruontai}, as in iii. 117, but here they howl for pleasure.]

73 (return)
[ Like the Egyptians for example, cp. ii. 91.]

74 (return)
[ {mete ge on allelon}: the MSS. have {me ti ge on allelon}. Most Editors read {allon} for {allelon} and alter the other words in various ways ({me toi ge on, me toigaron} etc.), taking {me} as in {me oti} (ne dicam aliorum). The reading which I have adopted is based on that of Stein, who reads {mete teon allon} and quotes vii. 142, {oute ge alloisi 'Ellenon oudamoisi, umin de de kai dia panton ekista}. With {allon} the meaning is, "rejecting those of other nations and especially those of the Hellenes". For the use of {me} after {pheugein} cp. ii. 91.]

75 (return)
[ Or, according to some MSS., "as they proved in the case of Anacharsis and afterwards of Skyles".]

76 (return)
[ {gen pollen}.]

77 (return)
[ {epitropou}.]

78 (return)
[ {peplastai}: some authorities give {pepaistai}, "has been invented as a jest".]

79 (return)
[ {es kheiras agesthai}.]

7901 (return)
[ {o theos}.]

80 (return)
[ {diepresteuse}: this or {epresteuse} is the reading of most of the MSS. The meaning is uncertain, since the word does not occur elsewhere. Stein suggests that it may mean "scoffed (at the Scythians)". Various conjectures have been tried, e.g. {diedresteuse}, {diedrepeteuse}, etc.]

81 (return)
[ {os Skuthas einai}: cp. ii. 8. Some (e.g. Dindorf and Bähr) translate "considering that they are Scythians," i.e. for a nation so famous and so widely extended.]

82 (return)
[ i.e. about 5300 gallons.]

83 (return)
[ {epi to iro}: the MSS. mostly have {epi iro}, and Stein adopts the conjecture {epi rio}, "on a projecting point". The temple would be that of {Zeus ourios} mentioned in ch. 87. (In the Medicean MS. the omitted {i} is inserted above the line beforethe {r}, not directly over it, as represented by Stein, and the accent is not omitted.)]

84 (return)
[ {stadioi}, and so throughout.]


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