Thucydides History of the Peloponnesian War 1.3

[1] And to me the imbecility of ancient times is not a little demonstrated also by this [that followeth]. For before the Trojan war nothing appeareth to have been done by Greece in common;

[2] nor indeed was it, as I think, called all by that one name of Hellas; nor before the time of Hellen, the son of Deucalion, was there any such name at all. But Pelasgicum (which was the farthest extended) and the other parts, by regions, received their names from their own inhabitants. But Hellen and his sons being strong in Phthiotis and called in for their aid into other cities, these cities, because of their conversing with them, began more particularly to be called Hellenes; and yet could not that name of a long time after prevail upon them all. This is conjectured principally out of Homer.

[3] For though born long after the Trojan war, yet he gives them not anywhere that name in general, nor indeed to any but those that with Achilles came out of Phthiotis and were the first so called; but in his poems he mentioneth Danaans, Argives, and Achaeans. Nor doth he likewise use the word barbarians; because the Grecians, as it seemeth unto me, were not yet distinguished by one common name of Hellenes, oppositely answerable unto them.

[4] The Grecians then, neither as they had that name in particular by mutual intercourse, nor after, universally so termed, did ever before the Trojan war, for want of strength and correspondence, enter into any action with their forces joined. And to that expedition they came together by the means of navigation, which the most part of Greece had now received.

[1] There is also another circumstance that contributes not a little to my conviction of the weakness of ancient times. Before the Trojan war there is no indication of any common action in Hellas ,

[2] nor indeed of the universal prevalence of the name; on the contrary, before the time of Hellen, son of Deucalion, no such appellation existed, but the country went by the names of the different tribes, in particular of the Pelasgian. It was not till Hellen and his sons grew strong in Phthiotis , and were invited as allies into the other cities, that one by one they gradually acquired from the connection the name of Hellenes; though a long time elapsed before that name could fasten itself upon all.

[3] The best proof of this is furnished by Homer. Born long after the Trojan war, he nowhere calls all of them by that name, nor indeed any of them except the followers of Achilles from Phthiotis, who were the original Hellenes: in his poems they are called Danaans, Argives, and Achaeans. He does not even use the term barbarian, probably because the Hellenes had not yet been marked off from the rest of the world by one distinctive appellation.

[4] It appears therefore that the several Hellenic communities, comprising not only those who first acquired the name, city by city, as they came to understand each other, but also those who assumed it afterwards as the name of the whole people, were before the Trojan war prevented by their want of strength and the absence of mutual intercourse from displaying any collective action.

Indeed, they could not unite for this expedition till they had gained increased familiarity with the sea.

Wie schwach es in alter Zeit mit den Kräften bestellt war,
entnehme ich namentlich auch daraus, daß es vor dem Troja­
nischen Kriege offenbar noch zu keinen gemeinsamen Unter­
nehmungen der Hellenen gekommen ist. Meiner Meinung nach
gab es damals auch diesen Gesamtnamen noch gar nicht; und
er scheint vor Hellen, dem Sohne Deukalions, überhaupt nicht
vorgekommen zu sein. Vielmehr führten die einzelnen Völker­
schaften, so namentlich die Pelasger, alle noch ihre besonderen
Namen. Erst als Hellen und seine Söhne in der Phthiotis
mächtig geworden und dann auch von anderen Städten zu
Hilfe gerufen worden waren, wurde es mehr und mehr üblich,
auch die übrigen schlechtweg Hellenen zu nennen, wenn es auch
gewiß längerer Zeit bedurft hat, bis der Name für alle Geltung
gewann. Der beste Beweis dafür ist Homer; denn obgleich
dieser erst lange nach dem Trojanischen Kriege lebte, so ge­
braucht er den Namen Hellenen doch nirgends als Gesamt­
bezeichnung, sondern nennt niemand so außer Achills Lands­
leuten aus der Phthiotis, also eben nur jene ursprünglichen
Hellenen. Meint er sie alle, so nennt er sie in seinen Gedichten
Danaer, Argeier oder Achäer. Ja auch von Barbaren redet
er noch nicht, und nach meiner Meinung eben deshalb nicht,
weil man die Hellenen als solche noch durch keinen Gesamt­
namen von ihnen unterschied. Diese Völkerschaften aber,mochten
nun bloß einzelne von ihnen oder schon alle, soweit sie eine
Sprache redeten, den Namen Hellenen führen, schwach und
ohne Zusammenhang unter sich, wie sie waren, haben vor dem
Trojanischen Kriege nichts Gemeinsames unternommen und
sich auch zu diesem Zuge erst verbunden, nachdem sie mit der
See schon vertrauter geworden waren.

III. Une preuve non moins convaincante pour moi de la faiblesse des anciens, c’est qu’avant la guerre de Troie on ne voit pas que les Grecs aient jamais rien entrepris en commun. Je crois même que le pays n’était pas alors, comme aujourd’hui, compris tout entier sous le nom commun d’Hellade, ou plutôt qu’avant Hellen, fils de Deucalion, cette dénomination était tout à fait inconnue. Jusque-là chaque peuplade, et tout particulièrement la race pélasgique, avait son nom propre. Lorsque Hellen et ses fils eurent assis leur puissance dans la Phthiotide ¹ et obtenu accès dans les autres villes, à titre d’auxiliaires, les relations habituelles firent prévaloir peu à peu le nom d’Hellènes. Cependant il se passa longtemps encore avant qu’il fùt universellement adopté. On en trouve surtout la preuve dans Homère : quoique postérieur de beaucoup à la guerre de Troie ² il ne désigne pas l’ensemble des peuples grecs sous le nom commun d’Hellènes, et réserve exclusivement cette appellation aux peuples de la Phthiotide, compagnons d’Achille, qui étaient en effet les véritables Hellènes ; il nomme et distingue, dans ses poëmes, les Danaëns, les Argiens, les Achéens, et n’emploie pas non plus l’expression de barbares ; par la raison, ce me semble, que les Grecs, de leur côté, n’étaient pas désignés sous un nom unique qu’on pût opposer à celui de barbares. Ainsi le nom d’Hellènes fut d’abord particulier à une peuplade ; il s’étendit à plusieurs cités par suite des relations réciproques ; plus tard il devint commun à tous les Grecs ; mais, avant la guerre de Troie, ces peuples, faibles et isolés, n’entreprirent rien d’un commun accord ; et même, s’ils purent se réunir pour cette expédition, c’est que déjà ils avaient acquis une plus grande habitude de la mer.

Ce qui achève de me démontrer la faiblesse de l'ancienne Grèce, c’est qu’avant la guerre de Troie on ne voit pas qu’elle ait rien entrepris en commun. Je crois même qu’elle ne portait pas encore tout entière le nom d'Hellas ¹ , mais qu’avant Hellen, fils de Deucalion, ce nom était complètement inconnu. Chaque peuplade, et la plus étendue était celle des Pélasges, donnait son propre nom au sol qu’elle occupait. Mais lorsque Hellen et ses fils furent devenus puissants en Phthiotide ² et que diverses villes commencèrent à les appeler à leur aide, alors, par l’efifet de ces relations journalières, le nom d’Hellènes se propagea de plus en plus, bien que de longtemps il ne pût prévaloir. La preuve en est dans Homère : quoique ce poète soit bien postérieur à la guerre de Troie ³ , nulle part il ne donne aux Grecs un nom collectif; il n’appelle Hellènes que les soldats d’Achille, venus de Phthiotide, et les seuls à qui cette qualification appartînt primitivement; mais il spécifie dans ses vers les Da-naens, les Argiens et les Achéens. Il n’emploie pas non plus le nom de Barbares, sans doute parce que les Grecs ne se distinguaient pas encore par une dénomination commune, en opposition aux autres peuples. Quoi qu’il en soit, ces Hellènes, dont le nom, borné d’abord à quelques peuplades parlant le même langage, s’étendit plus tard à toute la nation, ne firent, grâce à leur isolement et à leur faiblesse, aucune entreprise commune avant la guerre de Troie; encore ne se réunirent-ils pour cette expédition que lorsqu’ils furent plus familiarisés avec la mer.

[1] The weakness of the olden times is further proved to me chiefly by this circumstance, that before the Trojan war, Hellas, as it appears, engaged in no enterprise in common.

[2] Indeed, it seems to me that as a whole it did not yet have this name, either, but that before the time of Hellen, son of Deucalion, this title did not even exist, and that the several tribes, the Pelasgian most extensively, gave their own names to the several districts; but when Hellen and his sons became strong in Phthiotis and were called in to the aid of the other cities, the clans thenceforth came more and more, by reason of this intercourse, to be called Hellenes, though it was a long time before the name could prevail among them all. The best evidence of this is given by Homer;

[3] for, though his time was much later even than the Trojan war, he nowhere uses this name of all, or indeed of any of them except the followers of Achilles of Phthiotis, who were in fact the first Hellenes, but designates them in his poems as Danaans and Argives and Achaeans. And he has not used the term Barbarians, either, for the reason, as it seems to me, that the Hellenes on their part had not yet been separated off so as to acquire one common name by way of contrast.

[4] However this may be, those who then received the name of Hellenes, whether severally and in succession, city by city, according as they understood one another's speech, or in a body at a later time, engaged together in no enterprise before the Trojan war, on account of weakness and lack of intercourse with one another. And they united even for this expedition only when they were now making considerable use of the sea.

[1] And to me the weakness of ancient times is not a little demonstrated by this too. Before the Trojan war, Greece appears to have done nothing in common;

[2] and, as it seems to me, the whole of it had not as yet even this name; nay, before the time of Hellen, the son of Deucalion, it does not appear that this appellation existed at all; but that in their different tribes, and the Pelasgian to the greatest extent, they furnished from themselves the name [of their people.] ¹ But when Hellen and his sons had grown strong in Phthiotis, and men invited them for their aid into the other cities; from associating with them, separate communities were now more commonly called Hellenes: ² and yet not for a long time after could that name prevail amongst them all.

[3] And Homer proves this most fully; for, though born long after the Trojan war, he has no where called them all by that name, nor indeed any others but those that came with Achilles out of Phthiotis; who were the very original Hellenes; but in his poems he mentions Danaans, Argives, and Achaeans. Nor again does he speak of barbarians; because neither were the Hellenes, in my opinion, as yet distinguished by one common term in opposition to that.

[4] The several Hellenic communities, then, who in the different cities understood each other's language, and were ³ afterwards all so called, did nothing in a body before the Trojan war, through want of strength and mutual intercourse. Nay, even for this expedition they united [only] because they now made more use of the sea.

[1] Demonstrat milii autem hoc quoque praeter celera priscorum temporum tenuitatem : Trojanum enim ante bellum nihil communiter gessisse constat Helladem;

[2] et vero, ut mea fert sententia, ne nomen quidem hoc universa Graecia jam habebat, sed ante aetatem Hellenis filii Deucalionis cognomen istud prorsus nullum dum arbitror fuisse, sed singulas gentes quum alias tuqi Pelasgicam latiasime nomen a seipsis terrae fecisse; quum autem Hellen ejusque liberorum res in Phthiotide magna incrementa cepissent, essentque qui eos in alias civitates auxilii causa accerserent, tum quidem jam singulos per commercium saepius Hellenas vocari, et tamen ne sic quidem longo post tempore id inter omnes poterat obtinere.

[3] Argumento est maxime Homerus, qui quamquam multo posterior fuit bello Trojano nusquam tamen neque universos sic appellavit, nec alios, quam eos, qui cum Achille ex Phthiotide venerant, qui quidem primi Ἕλληνες erant; contra Danaos in carminibus suis nominat et Argivos et Achaeos. Nec magis tamen barbaros dixit, quod ne llellencs quidem adhuc, ut mihi videtur, assumpto contrario uno nomine ab illis discreti essent.

[4] Jam vero singuli hi pro se quique et oppidatim, quotquot se mutuo intelligehant, et universi postea Hellenes nominati, propter virium imbecillitatem et vitae genus mutuo commercio carens nihil ante Trojana tempora conjuncti geaserunt.

[5] Sed et ad hanc expeditionem convenerunt, quod jam frequentius rebus maritimis operam dabant.

Un’altra considerazione mi chiarisce sommamente della debolezza degli antichi. È certo non aver la Eliade (Grecia) prima della guerra troiana fatto impresa veruna in comune : e per me credo che neppure tutta insieme avesse ancora questo nome ; anzi che tal cognome punto non fosse, almeno prima di Elleno figliolo di Deucalione ; e che popolo per popolo, ed in maggiore estensione degli altri, i Pelasgi si attribuissero da sè il proprio soprannome. Ma che poi, Elleno ed i suoi figlioli fattisi poteuti nella Ftiotide, e quei popoli invitandoseli per proprio vantaggio anche nelle altre città, sin d’allora presso ciascuni, per lo usare con quelli, prevalesse il nome di Elleni. Il qual nome pur non potette per molto tempo pigliar piede fra tutti, come ne dà principalmente indizio Omero, che quantunque vissuto molto dopo la guerra troiana, in nessun luogo dà a tutti loro insieme cotal nome ; anzi non ad altri che ai compagni di Achille venuti dalla Ftiotide, i quali erano pure i primi che ebbero nome Elleni. Ma ne’ suoi versi uomina partitamente Danai, Argivi, Achei. Nè li chiamò barbari, perchè, come sembrami, non ancora gli Elleni erano distinti sotto un medesimo nome che agli altri contrappor si potesse. Or dunque gli Elleni, nè ciascun popolo in particolare , nò quelli che città per città s' intendevano scambievolmente, nè quelli che poi tutti insieme furono chiamati cosi, mai si erano riuniti fra loro a fare impresa veruna prima della guerra troiana, perchè deboli e senza comunicazione di scambievole commercio : anzi a questa spedizione concorsero perchè la maggior parte già usavano il mare.