Classical Greek Online

The Homeric poems are among the most read, admired and discussed works of literature. They are credited to a poet about whom nothing certain is known, but who apparently lived around 850 B.C. in one of the Asiatic Greek cities, probably Smyrna (Izmir) or Chios. Every Greek schoolboy is said to have known them, as have many in the western world until recent times. Their origin has been the subject of much discussion. By investigating Yugoslav oral poets of his day Milman Parry (1902-35) established the view that they were the results of a long tradition in which bards recited or sang shorter poems or lays that were the basis of longer poems, such as the Homeric epics. Such epics were recited by outstanding poets like Homer, and might later be fixed by written versions. Parry's contributions are readily available in The Making of Homeric Verse The Collected Papers of Milman Parry, ed. Adam Parry (New York: Oxford University Press, 1987). According to ancient tradition, the Homeric poems were first written down by Pisistratus in the sixth century B.C. They were later studied, especially by the Alexandrian grammarians, among whom the great critic, Aristarchus of the second century B.C., produced an edition that has been the basis of the poems ever since.

The lines of the Iliad and the Odyssey are composed in dactylic hexameter, with a caesura typical after the fourth member, and a a dactyl [- v v] rather than a spondee [- -] in the fifth. Among characteristics of epic verse are formulae, such as δι̂ος ʼΑχιλλεύς of line 7 below and ἑκηβόλου ʼΑπόλλωνος of line 14, in a different case in line 21. Parry published two long "Studies in the Epic Technique of Oral Verse-Making" (1987: 266-364). Especially the second of these with the sub-title "The Homeric Language as the Language of an Oral Poetry" may be consulted for further details.

Reading and Textual Analysis

The theme of the Iliad is given in the preamble of seven lines. It is the anger of Achilles. This was first directed at Agamemnon as they were besieging the city of Troy. But after the death of his friend, Patroclus, it was directed at his slayer, Hector, the prime warrior of the city. The poem deals with other combat during the intervening three weeks, such as that between Paris, son of Priam, head of Troy, and Menelaus, husband of Helen whom Paris had abducted, thereby causing the attack by the Greeks. The poem concludes with the death of Hector at the hands of Achilles, and his burial.

Μη̂νιν ʼάειδε, θεά, Πηληιάδεω ʼΑχιλλη̂ος

• μη̂νιν -- noun, feminine; accusative singular of <μη̂νις> anger -- anger
• ʼάειδε -- verb; 2nd person singular imperative of <ἀείδω> sing, chant -- sing
• θεά -- noun, feminine; vocative singular of <θεά> goddess -- oh goddess
• Πηληιάδεω -- noun, masculine; genitive singular of <Πηληιάδης> son of Peleus -- son of Peleus
• ʼΑχιλλη̂ος -- noun, masculine; genitive singular of <ʼΑχιλλεύς> Achilles -- of Achilles

οὐλομένην, ʽή μυρί' ʼΑχαιοι̂ς ʼάλγε' ʼέθηκε,
# Note that final vowels may be elided to provide regular meter (herein, μυρί' and ʼάλγε' have lost final α).

• οὐλομένην -- participle; accusative singular feminine of present participle middle of <ὀλόω> to destroy -- baneful
• ʽή -- relative pronoun; nominative singular feminine of <ʽός> who, which -- that
• μυρί' -- adjective; accusative plural neuter of <μυρίος> countless -- countless
• ʼΑχαιοι̂ς -- noun, masculine; dative plural of <ʼΑχαιός> Achaean -- on the Achaeans
• ʼάλγε' -- noun, neuter; accusative plural of <ʼάλγος> woe -- woes
• ʼέθηκε -- verb; 3rd person singular aorist of <τίθημι> put, place -- brought

πολλὰς δ' ἰφθίμους ψυχὰς Αʽίδι προίαψεν

• πολλὰς -- adjective; accusative plural feminine of <πολύς> many -- many
• δ' -- particle; <δέ> and, on the other hand -- and
• ἰφθίμους -- adjective; accusative plural feminine of <ʼίφθιμος> valiant -- valiant
• ψυχὰς -- noun, feminine; accusative plural of <ψυχή> soul -- souls
• Αʽίδι -- noun, masculine; dative singular of <Αʽίδης> Hades -- to Hades
• προίαψεν -- verb; 3rd person singular aorist of <προιάπτω> send forth -- sent forth

ἡρώων, αὐτοὺς δὲ ἑλώρια τευ̂χε κύνεσσιν

• ἡρώων -- noun, masculine; genitive plural of <ʽήρως> hero -- of warriors
• αὐτοὺς -- pronoun; accusative plural masculine of <αὐτός> oneself, he -- those
• δὲ -- particle; <δέ> and, on the other hand -- and
• ἑλώρια -- noun, neuter; accusative plural of <ἑλώριον> spoils, booty -- spoils
• τευ̂χε -- verb; 3rd person singular imperfect of <τεύχω> make ready, make -- made
• κύνεσσιν -- noun, masculine; dative plural of <κύων> dog -- for dogs

οἰωνοι̂σί τε πα̂σι, Διὸς δ' ἐτελείετο βουλή,

• οἰωνοι̂σί -- noun, masculine; dative plural of <οἰωνός> large bird, bird of prey -- for the birds of prey
• τε -- conjunction; <τε> and -- and
• πα̂σι -- adjective; dative plural masculine of <πα̂ς> all, every -- for all the
• Διὸς -- noun, masculine; genitive singular of <Ζεύς> Zeus -- of Zeus
• δ' -- particle; <δέ> and, on the other hand -- and
• ἐτελείετο -- verb; 3rd person singular imperfect passive of <τελείω> fulfill, complete -- was fulfilled
• βουλή -- noun, feminine; nominative singular of <βουλή> will -- the will

ἐξ οʽυ̂ δὴ τὰ πρω̂τα διαστήτην ἐρίσαντε

• ἐξ -- preposition; <ἐξ> from, out of -- from
• οʽυ̂ -- relative pronoun; genitive singular neuter <ʽός> who, which -- that (time)
• δὴ -- particle; <δή> indeed -- indeed
• τὰ -- article; accusative plural neuter of <ὁ> the -- the
• πρω̂τα -- adverb; accusative plural neuter of <πρω̂τος> first -- first
• διαστήτην -- verb; 2nd person dual aorist middle of <δι-ίστημι> separate, strive -- they separated
• ἐρίσαντε -- verb; 2nd person dual aorist participle of <ἐρίζω> quarrel -- quarreling with one another

ʼΑτρείδης τε ʼάναξ ἀνδρω̂ν καὶ δι̂ος ʼΑχιλλεύς.

• ʼΑτρείδης -- noun, masculine; nominative singular of <ʼΑτρείδης> son of Atreus -- the son of Atreus
• τε -- conjunction; <τε> and -- and
• ʼάναξ -- noun, masculine; nominative singular of <ʼάναξ> ruler -- ruler
• ἀνδρω̂ν -- noun, masculine; genitive plural of <ἀνήρ> man -- of men
• καὶ -- conjunction; <καί> and -- and
• δι̂ος -- adjective; nominative singular masculine of <δι̂ος> godlike, noble -- noble
• ʼΑχιλλεύς -- noun, masculine; nominative singular of <ʼΑχιλλεύς> Achilles -- Achilles

Τίς τ' ʼα̂ρ' σφωε θεω̂ν ʼέριδι ξυνέηκε μάχεσθαι;

• τίς -- interrogative pronoun; nominative singular masculine of <τίς> who, what -- who
• τ' -- conjunction; <τε> and -- ...
• ʼα̂ρ' -- interrogative particle; <ʼα̂ρα> then -- ...
• σφωε -- pronoun; accusative dual masculine of <σφωε> those two -- the two of them
• θεω̂ν -- noun, masculine; genitive plural of <θεός> god -- of the gods
• ʼέριδι -- noun, feminine; dative singular of <ʼέρις> strife -- in strife
• ξυνέηκε -- verb; 3rd person singular aorist of <συνίημι> bring together -- brought together
• μάχεσθαι -- verb; infinitive middle of <μάχομαι> fight, quarrel -- to quarrel

Λητου̂ς καὶ Διὸς υἱός; ὁ γὰρ βασιλη̂ι χολωθεὶς

• Λητου̂ς -- noun, feminine; genitive singular of <Λητώ> Leto -- of Leto
• καὶ -- conjunction; <καί> and -- and
• Διὸς -- noun, masculine; genitive singular of <Ζεύς> Zeus -- of Zeus
• υἱός -- noun, masculine; nominative singular of <υἱός> son -- the son
• ὁ -- article used as pronoun; nominative singular masculine of <ὁ> the -- he
• γὰρ -- conjunction; <γάρ> for -- for
• βασιλη̂ι -- noun, masculine; dative singular of <βασιλεύς> king -- the king
• χολωθεὶς -- verb; nominative singular masculine of aorist participle passive of <χολόω> anger -- angered at

νου̂σον ἀνὰ στρατὸν ʼω̂ρσε κακήν, ὀλέκοντο δὲ λαοί,

• νου̂σον -- noun, feminine; accusative singular of <νούσος> sickness -- a sickness
• ἀνὰ -- preposition; <ἀνά> on -- on
• στρατὸν -- noun, masculine; accusative singular of <στρατός> army -- the army
• ʼω̂ρσε -- verb; 3rd person singular aorist of <ʼόρνυμι> stir up -- brought about
• κακήν -- adjective; accusative singular feminine of <κακός> evil, poor -- evil
• ὀλέκοντο -- verb; 3rd person plural imperfect passive of <ὀλέκω> kill -- were perishing
• δὲ -- particle; <δέ> and, on the other hand -- and
• λαοί -- noun, masculine; nominative plural of <λαός> people -- people

οʽύνεκα τὸν Χρύσην ἠτίμασεν ἀρητη̂ρα

• οʽύνεκα -- conjunction; <οʽύνεκα> because -- because
• τὸν -- article; accusative singular masculine of <ὁ> the -- the
• Χρύσην -- noun, masculine; accusative singular of <Χρύσης> Chryses -- Chryses
• ἠτίμασεν -- verb; 3rd person singular aorist of <ἀτιμάζω> dishonor -- he had dishonored
• ἀρητη̂ρα -- noun, masculine; accusative singular of <ἀρητήρ> priest -- priest

ʼΑτρείδης· ὁ γὰρ ʼήλθε θοὰς ἐπὶ νη̂ας ʼΑχαιω̂ν

• ʼΑτρείδης -- noun, masculine; nominative singular of <ʼΑτρείδης> son of Atreus -- the son of Atreus
• ὁ -- article used as pronoun; nominative singular masculine of <ὁ> the -- he
• γὰρ -- conjunction; <γάρ> for -- for
• ʼήλθε -- verb; 3rd person singular aorist of <ʼέρχομαι> come, go -- came
• θοὰς -- adjective; accusative plural feminine; of <θοός> fast -- the fast
• ἐπὶ -- preposition; <ἐπί> on, about -- to
• νη̂ας -- noun, feminine; accusative plural of <ναυ̂ς> ship -- ships
• ʼΑχαιω̂ν -- noun, masculine; genitive plural of <ʼΑχαιός> Achaean -- of the Achaeans

λυσόμενός τε θυγάτρα φέρων τ' ἀπερείσι' ʼάποινα,

• λυσόμενός -- verb; nominative singular masculine of future participle middle of <λύω> loosen, free -- to free
• τε -- conjunction; <τε> and -- and
• θυγάτρα -- noun, feminine; accusative singular of <θυγάτηρ> daughter -- his daughter
• φέρων -- verb; nominative singular masculine of present participle of <φέρω> bear, bring, carry -- bearing
• τ' -- conjunction; <τε> and -- and
• ἀπερείσι' -- adjective; accusative plural neuter of <ἀπερείσιος> countless -- countless
• ʼάποινα -- noun, neuter; accusative plural of <ʼάποινα> ransom -- ransom

στέμματ' ʼέχων ἐν χερσὶν ἑκηβόλου ʼΑπόλλωνος

• στέμματ' -- noun, neuter; accusative plural of <στ́εμμα> wreath, garland -- garlands
• ʼέχων -- verb; nominative singular masculine of present participle of <ʼέχω> have -- having
• ἐν -- preposition; <ἐν> in -- in
• χερσὶν -- noun, feminine; dative plural of <χείρ> hand -- his hands
• ἑκηβόλου -- adjective; genitive singular masculine of <ἑκηβόλος> far-shooting -- of far-shooting
• ʼΑπόλλωνος -- noun, masculine; genitive singular of <ʼΑπόλλων> Apollo -- Apollo

χρυσέῳ ἀνὰ σκήπτρῳ, καὶ λίσσετο πάντας ʼΑχαιούς

• χρυσέῳ -- adjective; dative singular neuter of <χρύσεος> golden -- golden
• ἀνὰ -- preposition; <ἀνά> on -- on
• σκήπτρῳ -- noun, neuter; dative singular of <σκήπτρον> sceptre -- sceptre
• καὶ -- conjunction; <καί> and -- and
• λίσσετο -- verb; 3rd person singular imperfect of <λίσσομαι> pray -- prayed
• πάντας -- adjective; accusative plural masculine of <πα̂ς> all, every -- all
• ʼΑχαιούς -- noun, masculine; accusative plural of <ʼΑχαιός> Achaean -- Achaeans

ʼΑτρείδα δὲ μάλιστα δύω, κοσμήτορε λαω̂ν·

• ʼΑτρείδα -- noun, masculine; accusative dual of <ʼΑτρείδης> son of Atreus -- sons of Atreus
• δὲ -- particle; <δέ> and, on the other hand -- but
• μάλιστα -- adverb; superlative of <μάλα> very -- chiefly
• δύω -- number; dual of <δύο> two -- the two
• κοσμήτορε -- noun, masculine; accusative dual of <κοσμήτωρ> commander -- commanders
• λαω̂ν -- noun, masculine; genitive plural of <λαός> people -- of the peoples

"ʼΑτρείδαι τε καὶ ʼάλλοι εὐκνήμιδες ʼΑχαιοί,

• ʼΑτρείδαι -- noun, masculine; vocative plural of <ʼΑτρείδης> son of Atreus -- Sons of Atreus
• τε -- conjunction; <τε> and -- and
• καὶ -- conjunction; <καί> and -- and
• ʼάλλοι -- adjective; vocative plural masculine of <ʼάλλος> other -- other
• εὐκνήμιδες -- adjective; vocative plural masculine of <εὐκνη̂μις> well-greaved -- well-greaved
• ʼΑχαιοί -- noun, masculine; vocative plural of <ʼΑχαιός> Achaean -- Achaeans

ὑμι̂ν μὲν θεοὶ δοι̂εν ʼΟλύμπια δώματ' ʼέχοντες

• ὑμι̂ν -- pronoun; dative plural masculine of <σύ> you -- to you
• μὲν -- particle; <μέν> on the one hand -- indeed
• θεοὶ -- noun, masculine; nominative plural of <θεός> god -- the gods
• δοι̂εν -- verb; 3rd person plural optative aorist of <δίδωμι> give -- may . . .grant
• ʼΟλύμπια -- adjective; accusative plural neuter of <ʼΟλύμπιος> Olympian -- Olympian
• δώματ' -- noun, neuter; accusative plural of <δω̂μα> house, home -- homes
• ʼέχοντες -- verb; nominative plural masculine of present participle of <ʼέχω> have -- who have

ἐκπέρσαι Πριάμοιο πόλιν, εʼύ δ' οʼίκαδ' ἱκέσθαι!

• ἐκπέρσαι -- verb; aorist infinitive of <ἐκπέρθω> destroy -- that you destroy
• Πριάμοιο -- noun, masculine; genitive singular of <Πρίαμος> Priam -- of Priam
• πόλιν -- noun, feminine; accusative singular of <πόλις> city -- the city
• εʼύ -- adverb; <εʼύ> well -- safely
• δ' -- particle; <δέ> and, on the other hand -- and
• οʼίκαδ' -- adverb; <οʼίκαδε> home -- home
• ἱκέσθαι -- deponent verb; infinitive aorist middle of <ἱκνέομαι> reach -- return

παι̂δα δ' ἐμοὶ λύσαιτε φίλην, τὰ δ' ʼάποινα δέχεσθαι,

• παι̂δα -- noun, masculine/feminine; accusative singular of <παι̂ς> child -- child
• δ' -- particle; <δέ> and, on the other hand -- and
• ἐμοὶ -- pronoun; dative singular masculine of <ἐγώ> I -- to me
• λύσαιτε -- verb; 2nd person plural optative aorist of <λύω> loosen, free -- free
• φίλην -- adjective; accusative singular feminine of <φίλος> dear, friendly -- dear
• τὰ -- article; accusative plural neuter of <ὁ> the -- the
• δ' -- particle; <δέ> and, on the other hand -- and
• ʼάποινα -- noun, neuter; accusative plural of <ʼάποινα> ransom -- ransom
• δέχεσθαι -- verb; infinitive of <δέχομαι> receive -- receive

ἁζόμενοι Διὸς υἱὸν ἑκηβόλον ʼΑπόλλωνα."

• ἁζόμενοι -- verb; nominative plural masculine of present participle middle of <ʽάζομαι> stand in awe of -- respect with fear
• Διὸς -- noun, masculine; genitive singular of <Ζεύς> Zeus -- of Zeus
• υἱὸν -- noun, masculine; accusative singular of <υἱός> son -- the son
• ἑκηβόλον -- adjective; accusative singular masculine of <ἑκηβόλος> far-shooting -- far-shooting
• ʼΑπόλλωνα -- noun, masculine; accusative singular of <ʼΑπόλλων> Apollo -- Apollo

Lesson Text

Μη̂νιν ʼάειδε, θεά, Πηληιάδεω ʼΑχιλλη̂ος
οὐλομένην, ʽή μυρί' ʼΑχαιοι̂ς ʼάλγε' ʼέθηκε,
πολλὰς δ' ἰφθίμους ψυχὰς Αʽίδι προίαψεν
ἡρώων, αὐτοὺς δὲ ἑλώρια τευ̂χε κύνεσσιν
οἰωνοι̂σί τε πα̂σι, Διὸς δ' ἐτελείετο βουλή,
ἐξ οʽυ̂ δὴ τὰ πρω̂τα διαστήτην ἐρίσαντε
ʼΑτρείδης τε ʼάναξ ἀνδρω̂ν καὶ δι̂ος ʼΑχιλλεύς.
Τίς τ' ʼα̂ρ' σφωε θεω̂ν ʼέριδι ξυνέηκε μάχεσθαι;
Λητου̂ς καὶ Διὸς υἱός; ὁ γὰρ βασιλη̂ι χολωθεὶς
νου̂σον ἀνὰ στρατὸν ʼω̂ρσε κακήν, ὀλέκοντο δὲ λαοί,
οʽύνεκα τὸν Χρύσην ἠτίμασεν ἀρητη̂ρα
ʼΑτρείδης· ὁ γὰρ ʼήλθε θοὰς ἐπὶ νη̂ας ʼΑχαιω̂ν
λυσόμενός τε θυγάτρα φέρων τ' ἀπερείσι' ʼάποινα,
στέμματ' ʼέχων ἐν χερσὶν ἑκηβόλου ʼΑπόλλωνος
χρυσέῳ ἀνὰ σκήπτρῳ, καὶ λίσσετο πάντας ʼΑχαιούς
ʼΑτρείδα δὲ μάλιστα δύω, κοσμήτορε λαω̂ν·
"ʼΑτρείδαι τε καὶ ʼάλλοι εὐκνήμιδες ʼΑχαιοί,
ὑμι̂ν μὲν θεοὶ δοι̂εν ʼΟλύμπια δώματ' ʼέχοντες
ἐκπέρσαι Πριάμοιο πόλιν, εʼύ δ' οʼίκαδ' ἱκέσθαι!
παι̂δα δ' ἐμοὶ λύσαιτε φίλην, τὰ δ' ʼάποινα δέχεσθαι,
ἁζόμενοι Διὸς υἱὸν ἑκηβόλον ʼΑπόλλωνα."

Translation

Sing, oh goddess, of the wrath of Achilles, son of Peleus, the baneful wrath, which brought countless woes on the Achaeans and sent many valiant souls of heroes to Hades; But it made them themselves spoils for dogs and all kinds of birds, while the wish of the god was fulfilled. (Sing) from the time when, quarreling with one another, they first separated, the son of Atreus, ruler of men, and noble Achilles.

Who now of the gods brought those two to quarrel in strife? The son of Leto and Zeus! For he, angered at the king, brought about an evil sickness on the army, and the people were perishing, because the son of Atreus had dishonored Chryses, the priest. For he had come to the swift ships of the Achaeans to free his daughter, bearing countless ransom and having in his hands on a golden scepter garlands of far-shooting Apollo. And he requested of all the Achaeans, but chiefly the two sons of Atreus, commanders of the people: "Sons of Atreus and other well-greaved Achaeans, may the gods, who have Olympian homes, grant to you that you destroy the city of Priam and return safely home. But free my dear child to me, and receive the ransom, in awe of far-shooting Apollo, son of Zeus."

Grammar

6. Conjunctions and Particles.

As these texts exemplify, Greek makes great use of conjunctions and particles. These may have basic meanings, but many of them simply suggest relationships between syntactic units, so that they vary in use and may even not need to be translated.

The most common conjunction is καί, with a basic meaning of 'and' but also 'even' and at times 'but'. Another common conjunction is γάρ, with a basic meaning of 'for' but also 'now', or it may be added simply to strengthen questions.

Particles typically stand right after the first content word in sentences. Among the particles, δέ is very common, as in our texts; it has a basic adversative meaning and may often be translated 'but' or 'on the other hand', but is often redundant. In a different meaning it is attached to names of places that are in the accusative, and then means 'to'. In addition it may be added to pronouns to strengthen their meaning. The particle τε is also very common, and has the meaning 'and'; it is often used after both nouns that are conjoined. Moreover, in epic poetry it is added to other particles or to pronouns without adding to their meaning. The particle μέν often stands in clauses that are followed by other clauses including δέ, where it means something like 'one the one hand'; it may also be combined with other particles, as in μὲν ʼάρα, where it means 'and'. The particle δή indicates emphasis, as on the word preceding it. In short, particles often supply meaning much as intonation does in English. The meaning of the content words in sentences may be a guide to interpretation of the particles included in them.

7. Participles.

Participles are often used to function as verbs of modifying clauses. These modifying clauses may correspond to relative clauses, as does ʼέχοντες in line 18 of the Iliad text. The relationship to a principal clause may require a further interpretation, as does that of the participle λυσόμενος in line 13 or that of ἀζόμενος in line 21. On the other hand, they may be treated as participles in English, as for example φέρων in line 13. They may also be adjectival; an example is οὐλομένην in line 2. The interpretations will generally be clear from the contexts in which they are found.

8. Nouns in consonantal declension.

Nouns in the consonantal declension often have the final consonant elided before the nominative ending, so that their stem form must be determined from the genitive or other oblique cases. Examples are given here of nouns with stems ending in -δ- and -ρ-.

9. Personal pronouns.

The first and second personal pronouns have enclitic forms in the oblique cases of the singular, which are given here after the regular forms; they have no accent. The third person forms, for 'he, she, it', are supplied by the intensive pronoun meaning 'self'; the genitive singular forms would have the meanings 'of him, of her, of it', the dative singular forms would have the meanings 'to him, to her, to it', and so on.

10. The Present System of verbs.

The present system includes five categories of forms: the present indicative, the imperfect, the subjunctive, the optative, and the imperative. In addition there is an infinitive and also a participle. The first two categories have been given in Lesson 1; the others are given here using the verb [infinitive] παιδεύειν.

The participial forms, nominative and genitive singular, are as follows.