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Περὶ τῶν ὀψὲ παραγιγνομένων ἐπὶ τὸ δεῖπνον· ἐν ᾧ καὶ πόθεν ἀκράτισμα καὶ ἄριστον καὶ δεῖπνον ὠνομάσθη.

[1] 20 τῶν υἱῶν μου τοὺς νεωτέρους ἐν θεάτρῳ προσδιατρίψαντας ἀκροάμασι καὶ βράδιον ἐπὶ τὸ 726a δεῖπνον ἐλθόντας οἱ Θέωνος υἱοὶ κωλυσιδείπνους¹ καὶ ζοφοδορπίδας² καὶ τοιαῦτα μετὰ παιδιᾶς ἔσκωπτον· οἱ δʼ ἀμυνόμενοι πάλιν ἐκείνους τρεχεδείπνους ἀπεκάλουν. καί τις εἶπε τῶν πρεσβυτέρων 5 τρεχέδειπνον εἶναι τὸν ὑστερίζοντα τοῦ δείπνου θᾶττον γὰρ ἢ βάδην ἐπειγόμενον, ὅταν βραδύνῃ, φαίνεσθαι. καὶ Γάλβα τοῦ³ παρὰ Καίσαρι γελωτοποιοῦ χάριεν ἀπεμνημόνευσεν ἐκεῖνος γὰρ ἐπιθυμοδείπνους ἐκάλει τοὺς ὀψὲ παραγιγνομένους ἐπὶ 10 δεῖπνον· ἀσχολουμένους γὰρ αὐτοὺς ὅμως διὰ τὸ φιλόδειπνον οὐκ ἀπολέγεσθαι τὰς κλήσεις.

[2] 726b ἐγὼ δʼ εἶπον, ὅτι καὶ Πολύχαρμος ἐν Ἀθήναις δημαγωγῶν καὶ τοῦ βίου διδοὺς ἀπολογισμὸν ἐν ἐκκλησίᾳ ταῦτʼ εἶπεν, ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, τἀμά⁴ 15 καὶ πρὸς τούτοις, οὐδέποτε κληθεὶς ἐπὶ δεῖπνον ὕστατος ἀφικόμην δημοτικὸν γὰρ εὖ μάλα δοκεῖ τὸ τοιοῦτο, καὶ τοὐναντίον οἱ ἄνθρωποι τοὺς ὀψὲ παραγιγνομένους ἀναγκαζόμενοι⁵ περιμένειν, ὡς ἀηδεῖς καὶ ὀλιγαρχικοὺς βαρύνονται.

[3] 20 ὁ δὲ Σώκλαρος ὑπερδικῶν τῶν νεανίσκων ἀλλʼ οὐδὲ τὸν Πιττακόν ἔφη ζοφοδορπίδαν ὁ Ἀλκαῖος⁶ ὡς ὀψὲ δειπνοῦντα λέγεται προσειπεῖν, ἀλλʼ ὡς ἀδόξοις τὰ πολλὰ καὶ φαύλοις ἡδόμενον συμπόταις· τὸ μέντοι πρωίτερον⁷ δειπνεῖν ὄνειδος ἦν 25 726c πάλαι, καὶ τὸ ἀκράτισμά φασιν⁸ οὕτω λέγεσθαι διὰ τὴν ἀκρασίαν.

ὑπολαβὼν δʼ ὁ Θέων ἥκιστʼ εἶπεν εἰ δεῖ⁹ τοῖς τὸν ἀρχαῖον βίον διαμνημονεύουσι πιστεύειν. φασὶ γὰρ ἐκείνους, ἐργατικοὺς ἅμα καὶ σώφρονας ὄντας, ἕωθεν ἐσθίειν ἄρτον ἐν ἀκράτῳ, καὶ μηθὲν 5 ἄλλο διὸ τοῦτο μὲν ἀκράτισμα καλεῖν διὰ τὸν ἄκρατον, ὄψον δὲ τὸ παρασκευαζόμενον εἰς δεῖπνον αὐτοῖς· ὀψὲ γὰρ δειπνεῖν ἀπὸ τῶν πράξεων γενομένους. ἐκ τούτου καὶ τὸ δεῖπνον καὶ τὸ ἄριστον, ἀφʼ ὅτου λάβοι τοὔνομα, ζήτησιν παρέσχε. καὶ τὸ 10 μὲν ἄριστον ἐδόκει τῷ ἀκρατίσματι ταὐτὸν εἶναι, μαρτυρεῖ τῷ Ὁμήρῳ λέγοντι¹⁰ τοὺς περὶ τὸν Εὔμαιον

ἐντύνοντας¹¹ ἄριστον ἃμ ἠοῖ φαινομένῃφι

¹² 726d καὶ πιθανὸν ἐδόκει διὰ τὴν ἑωθινὴν ὥραν ἄριστον ὠνομάσθαι, καθάπερ τὸ αὔριον¹³. τὸ δὲ δεῖπνον, ὅτι 15 τῶν πόνων διαναπαύει· πράξαντες γάρ τι δειπνοῦσιν ἢ μεταξὺ πράττοντες·. ἔστι δὲ καὶ τοῦτο παρʼ Ὁμήρου λαβεῖν λέγοντος

ἦμος δὲ δρυτόμος περ ἀνὴρ ὡπλίσσατο δεῖπνον.

¹⁴ εἰ μὴ νὴ Δία τὸ ἄριστον αὐτόθεν ἀπραγμόνως προσφερόμενοι 20 καὶ ῥᾳδίως ἀπὸ τῶν τυχόντων, τὸ δὲ δεῖπνον ἤδη παρεσκευασμένον, ἐκεῖνο μὲν¹⁵ ῥᾷστον, τοῦτο δʼ ὥσπερ διαπεπονημένον ἐκάλεσαν.

[5] ὑβριστὴς δʼ ὢν καὶ φιλόγελως φύσει ὁ ἀδελφὸς ἡμῶν Λαμπρίας ἔφη μυρίῳ τὰ Ῥωμαϊκὰ δείξειν 726e οἰκειότερα τῶν Ἑλληνικῶν ὀνόματα, τοσαύτης ἀδείας τῷ¹⁶ φλυαρεῖν δεδομένης. τὸ μὲν γὰρ δεῖπνόν φασι κοῖνα διὰ τὴν κοινωνίαν¹⁷ καλεῖσθαι· καθʼ ἑαυτοὺς 5 γὰρ ἠρίστων ἐπιεικῶς οἱ πάλαι Ῥωμαῖοι συνδειπνοῦντες¹⁸ τοῖς φίλοις. τὸ δʼ ἄριστον ἐκλήθη πράνδιον¹⁹ ἀπὸ τῆς ὥρας· ἔνδιον γὰρ τὸ δειλινόν, 726f καὶ τὴν μετʼ ἄριστον ἀνάπαυσιν ἐνδιάζειν· ἢ πρωινήν τινα σημαίνοντες ἐδωδὴν ἢ τροφήν, ᾗ²⁰ χρῶνται 10 πρὶν ἐνδεεῖς γενέσθαι. καὶ μὴν ἵνʼ ἀφῶ τὰ στρώματα ἔφη τὸν οἶνον, τὸ μέλι, τοὔλαιον, τὸ γεύσασθαι, τὸ προπιεῖν, ἕτερα πάμπολλα τοῖς αὐτοῖς ὀνόμασι καταφανῶς χρώμενα· τίς οὐκ ἂν εἴποι ἐπὶ κῶμον²¹ Ἑλληνικῶς κωμισσᾶτον²² λέγεσθαι, καὶ τὸ κεράσαι 15 μισκῆραι καθʼ Ὅμηρον²³,

ἡ δʼ αὖτʼ ἐν²⁴ κρητῆρι μελίφρονα οἶνον ἔμισγε²⁵

καί μῆνσαν²⁶ μὲν τὴν τράπεζαν ἀπὸ²⁷ τῆς· ἐν μέσῳ θέσεως, πᾶνεμ²⁸ δὲ τὸν ἄρτον ὡς ἀνιέντα τὴν πεῖναν τὸν δὲ στέφανον κορῶναν ἀπὸ τῆς κεφαλῆς, 20 727a ὡς Ὅμηρος²⁹ τὸ κράνος εἴκασέ που στεφάνῃ³⁰· τὸ δὲ καῖρε δέρε³¹, καί δέντης τοὺς ὀδόντας, καί λάβρα³² τὰ χείλη ἀπὸ τοῦ λαμβάνειν τὴν βορὰν διʼ αὐτῶν; ἢ καὶ τούτων οὖν ἀκουστέον ἀγελαστὶ λεγομένων, ἢ μηδʼ ἐκείνοις εὐκόπως οὕτως διὰ τῶν ὀνομάτων ὥσπερ τριγχίων³³ τὰ μὲν ἐκκόπτουσι μέρη τὰ δὲ καθαιροῦσι³⁴ 5 παραδύσεις³⁵ διδῶμεν³⁶.

Quaestiones Convivales. Plutarch. ed. Grēgorios N. Vernardakēs. Leipzig. 1892.

Sponsored by Perseus Project, Tufts University.

Funding provided by The National Endowment for the Humanities.

Current edition Perseus

Συμποσιακῶν προβλημάτων βιβλία (Greek) (Plutarch. Plutarchi Chaeronensis Moralia, Vol. IV. Vernardakēs, Grēgorios N., editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1892.)

Translations (1)

Symposiacs Perseus (Plutarch. Plutarch's Morals, Vol. III. Goodwin, William W., editor; Creech, Thomas, translator. Boston: Little, Brown, and Company; Cambridge: Press of John Wilson and Son, 1874.) — 8.6 focus

Question VI
CONCERNING THOSE WHO COME LATE TO AN ENTERTAINMENT; AND FROM WHENCE THESE WORDS, ἀκράτισμα, ἄριστον, AND δεῖπνον, ARE DERIVED.
PLUTARCH’S SONS, THEON’S SONS, THEON, PLUTARCH, SOCLARUS.

[1] MY younger sons staying too long at the plays, and coming in too late to supper, Theon’s sons waggishly and jocosely called them supper-hinderers, night-suppers, and the like; and they in reply called them runners-to-supper. And one of the old men in the company said τρεχέδειπνος signified one that was too late for supper; because, when he found himself tardy, he mended his pace, and made more than common haste. And he told us a jest of Battus, Caesar’s jester, who called those that came late supper-lovers, because out of their love to entertainments, though they had business, they would not desire to be excused.

[2] And I said, that Polycharmus, a leading orator at Athens, in his apology for his way of living before the assembly, said: Besides a great many things which I could mention, fellow-citizens, when I was invited to supper, I never came the last man. For this is more democratical; and on the contrary, those that are forced to stay for others that come late are offended at them as uncivil and of an oligarchical temper.

[3] But Soclarus, in defence of my sons, said: Alcaeus (as the story goes) did not call Pittacus a night-supper for supping late, but for delighting in base and scandalous company. Heretofore to eat early was accounted scandalous, and such a meal was called ἀκράτισμα, from ἀκρασιά, intemperance.

[4] Then Theon interrupting him said: By no means, if we must trust those who have delivered down to us the ancients’ way of living. For they say that those being used to work, and very temperate in a morning, ate a bit of bread dipped in wine, and nothing else, and that they called that meal ἀκράτισμα, from the ἄκρατον ( wine). Their supper they called ὄψον, because returning from their business they took it ὀψέ ( late). Upon this we began to enquire whence those meals δεῖπνον and ἄριστον took their names. In Homer ἄριστον and ἀκράτισμα seem to be the same meal. For he says that Eumaeus provided ἄριστον by the break of day; and it is probable that ἄριστον was so called from αἴριον, because provided in the morning; and δεῖπνον was so named from διαναπαύειν τῶν πόνων, easing men from their labor. For men used to take their δεῖπνον after they had finished their business, or whilst they were about it. And this may be gathered from Homer, when he says,

Then when the woodman doth his supper dress.¹

But some perhaps will derive ἄριστον from ῥᾷστον, easiest provided, because that meal is usually made upon what is ready and at hand; and δεῖπνον from διαπεπονημένον, labored, because of the pains used in dressing it.

[5] My brother Lamprias, being of a scoffing, jeering nature, said: Since we are in a trifling humor, I can show that the Latin names of these meals are a thousand times more proper than the Greek; δεῖπνον, suppler, they call coena ( κοῖνα διὰ τὴν κοινωνίαν), from community; because they took their ἄριστον by themselves, but their coena with their friends. Ἄριστον, dinner, they call prandium, from the time of the day; for ἔνδιον signifies noon-tide, and to rest after dinner is expressed by ἐνδιάζειν; or else by prandium they denote a bit taken in the morning, πρὶν ἐνδεεῖς γενέσθαι, before they have need of any. And not to mention stragula from στρώματα, vinum from οἶνος, oleum from ἔλαιον, mel from μἐλι, gustare from γεύσασθαι, propinare from προπίνειν, and a great many more words which they have plainly borrowed from the Greeks,—who can deny but that they have taken their comessatio, banqueting, from our κῶμος, and miscere, to mingle, from the Greeks too? Thus in Homer,

She in a bowl herself mixt ( ἔμισγε) generous wine.²

They call a table mensam, from τῆς ἐν μέσω θέσεως, placing it in the middle; bread, panem, from satisfying πεῖναν, hunger; a garland, coronam, from κάρηνον, the head;—and Homer somewhat likens κράνος, a head-piece, to a garland;— caedere to beat, from δέρειν; and dentes, teeth, from ὀδόντας; lips they call labra, from λαμβάνειν τῆν βόραν δι’ αὐτῶν, taking our victuals with them. Therefore we must either hear such fooleries as these without laughing, or not give them so ready access by means of words....

Notes on the current edition

Συμποσιακῶν προβλημάτων βιβλία

1. κωλύουσι δείπνους mei

2. ib. *: ζοφοδόρπιδας

3. καὶ Γάλβα τοῦ Madvigius: καὶ γὰρ βάτου (vel βάττου)

4. τἀμά W: τἄλλα

5. ἀναγκάζομεν· οἵ mei

6. ἄλκιος iidem

7. πρωίτερον R: πρότερον

8. R: φησὶν

9. εἰ δεῖ W: ἔδει

10. μάρτυρι τῷ Ὁμ. χρωμένοις λέγοντι R. Mihi vid. corr. μαρτυροῦσι (dat. plur.) pro μαρτυρεῖ cf. p. 734d

11. ἐντύνοντα vel ἐντείνοντα mei

12. Hom. π 2

13. αὔριον] scr. vid. δόρπον quod et coenam et tempus vespertinum significat. vid. Symb.

14. Hom. Λ 86

15. μὲν] μὲν οἶον?

16. τῷ] τοι vel τὸ mei

17. κοῖνα] κῆνα vel κῦνα mei

18. σπανίως vel ὀλιγάκις συνδειπνοῦντες R

19. πράνδιον] om. mei nisi quod πρανδε dant VdP

20. ᾗ] ἢ mei

21. ἐπὶ βωμὸν iidem

22. *: κομίσατον vel κομίσαιτο vel κωμεσσάτον

23. Ὁμηρον] κ 356

24. δ’ αὖτ’ ἐν] δὲ τρίτη idem

25. ἔμισγε] ἐκίρνα idem

26. μῆνσαν] μηνέα mei

27. ἀπὸ S

28. πᾶνεμ S: πᾶν

29. Ὁμηρος] H 12

30. Turnebus: στεφάνην

31. ib. τὸ δὲ δέρειν καίδερε W; malim τὸ δέ[ ρειν δὲ] καίδερε quae commendantur etiam eo quod nomina Graeca articulum requirunt sicut Latina respuunt, cf. lin. 4. 7. 15. 17 cett.

32. λαβρατάχια· ἢ mei i.e. λάβρα τὰ χ( ε) ἰλη

33. τριγχίων *: τρινχίων vel τριχίων

34. R: καθαιροῦσι vel καθαιρουσιν

35. παρεισδύσεις idem

36. ib. idem: δίδομεν

Plutarch Quaestiones Convivales 8.6

ed. Grēgorios N. Vernardakēs

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Περὶ τῶν ὀψὲ παραγιγνομένων ἐπὶ τὸ δεῖπνον· ἐν ᾧ καὶ πόθεν ἀκράτισμα καὶ ἄριστον καὶ δεῖπνον ὠνομάσθη.

Current edition Perseus

Question VI
CONCERNING THOSE WHO COME LATE TO AN ENTERTAINMENT; AND FROM WHENCE THESE WORDS, ἀκράτισμα, ἄριστον, AND δεῖπνον, ARE DERIVED.
PLUTARCH’S SONS, THEON’S SONS, THEON, PLUTARCH, SOCLARUS.

Notes on the current edition

Stable identifiers

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Περὶ τῶν ὀψὲ παραγιγνομένων ἐπὶ τὸ δεῖπνον· ἐν ᾧ καὶ πόθεν ἀκράτισμα καὶ ἄριστον καὶ δεῖπνον ὠνομάσθη.

Current edition Perseus

Question VI CONCERNING THOSE WHO COME LATE TO AN ENTERTAINMENT; AND FROM WHENCE THESE WORDS, ἀκράτισμα, ἄριστον, AND δεῖπνον, ARE DERIVED. PLUTARCH’S SONS, THEON’S SONS, THEON, PLUTARCH, SOCLARUS.

Notes on the current edition

Stable identifiers

Question VI
CONCERNING THOSE WHO COME LATE TO AN ENTERTAINMENT; AND FROM WHENCE THESE WORDS, ἀκράτισμα, ἄριστον, AND δεῖπνον, ARE DERIVED.
PLUTARCH’S SONS, THEON’S SONS, THEON, PLUTARCH, SOCLARUS.