Aristophanes, Birds, ed. F. W. Hall, ed. William M. Geldart, 1743

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Πισθέταιρος

ἐχάρην ὕμνοις, ἐχάρην ᾠδαῖς·

ἄγαμαι δὲ λόγων. ἄγε νυν αὐτοῦ

καὶ τὰς χθονίας κλῄσατε βροντὰς
1745

τάς τε πυρώδεις Διὸς ἀστεροπὰς

δεινόν τʼ ἀργῆτα κεραυνόν.

Χορός

ὦ μέγα χρύσεον ἀστεροπῆς φάος,

ὦ Διὸς ἄμβροτον ἔγχος πυρφόρον,

ὦ χθόνιαι βαρυαχέες
1750

ὀμβροφόροι θʼ ἅμα βρονταί,

αἷς ὅδε νῦν χθόνα σείει.

διὰ σὲ τὰ πάντα κρατήσας

καὶ πάρεδρον Βασίλειαν ἔχει Διός.

Ὑμὴν ὦ Ὑμέναιʼ ὦ.

Πισθέταιρος

ἔπεσθε νῦν γάμοισιν ὦ
1755

φῦλα πάντα συννόμων

πτεροφόρʼ ἐπὶ δάπεδον Διὸς

καὶ λέχος γαμήλιον.

ὄρεξον ὦ μάκαιρα σὴν

χεῖρα καὶ πτερῶν ἐμῶν
1760

λαβοῦσα συγχόρευσον· αἴρων

δὲ κουφιῶ σʼ ἐγώ.

Χορός

ἀλαλαλαὶ ἰὴ παιών,

τήνελλα καλλίνικος, ὦ

δαιμόνων ὑπέρτατε.
1765

Birds. Aristophanes. ed. F. W. Hall, ed. William M. Geldart. Oxford. 1906.

Sponsored by Perseus Project, Tufts University.

Funding provided by The Annenberg CPB/Project.

Current edition Perseus

Ὄρνιθες (Greek) (Aristophanes. Aristophanis Comoediae, Vol. 1. Hall, F. W. and Geldart, William M., editors. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1906.)

Translations (3)

Birds Perseus (Aristophanes. The Complete Greek Drama, Vol. 2. Anonymous, translator. O'Neill, Eugene; Oates, Whitney Jennings, editors. New York: Random House, 1938 (printing).) — 1743 focus

Pisthetaerus

I am delighted with your songs, I applaud your verses. Now celebrate

the thunder that shakes the earth, the flaming lightning of Zeus and the terrible flashing thunderbolt.
1745

Chorus
Singing.

Oh, thou golden flash of the lightning! oh, ye divine shafts of flame, that Zeus has hitherto shot forth!

Oh, ye rolling thunders, that bring down the rain! 'Tis by the order of our king that ye shall now stagger the earth! Oh, Hymen! 'tis through thee that he commands the universe and that he makes Basileia, whom he has robbed from Zeus, take her seat at his side. Oh! Hymen! oh! Hymenaeus!
1750

Pisthetaerus
Singing.

Let all the winged tribes of our fellow-citizens follow the bridal couple to the palace of Zeus and to the nuptial couch! Stretch forth your
1755

hands, my dear wife! Take hold of me by my wings and let us dance; I am going to lift you up and carry you through the air.
1760

Pisthetaerus and Basileia leave dancing; the Chorus follows them.

Chorus
Singing

Alalalai ie Paian! Tenella kallinikos!

Loftiest art thou of gods!
1765

Birds (OCR draft) Experimental (Anonymous translation, 1938 compilation; legacy Perseus source migration. Preserved separately from the revised canonical perseus-eng2 at the project owner's request.) — 1743 focus

Pisthetaerus

I am delighted with your songs, I applaud your verses. Now celebrate 1745 the thunder that shakes the earth, the flaming lightning of Zeus and the terrible flashing thunderbolt.

Chorus
Singing.

Oh, thou golden flash of the lightning! oh, ye divine shafts of flame, that Zeus has hitherto shot forth! 1750 Oh, ye rolling thunders, that bring down the rain! 'Tis by the order of our king that ye shall now stagger the earth! Oh, Hymen! 'tis through thee that he commands the universe and that he makes Basileia, whom he has robbed from Zeus, take her seat at his side. Oh! Hymen! oh! Hymenaeus!

Pisthetaerus
Singing.

1755 Let all the winged tribes of our fellow-citizens follow the bridal couple to the palace of Zeus and to the nuptial couch! Stretch forth your 1760 hands, my dear wife! Take hold of me by my wings and let us dance; I am going to lift you up and carry you through the air.

Pisthetaerus and Basileia leave dancing; the Chorus follows them.

Chorus
Singing

Alalalai ie Paian! Tenella kallinikos! 1765 Loftiest art thou of gods!

English (Sanjaya, generated; selected passages) (OCR draft) Experimental (Source: pnadelofficial/aristophanes-sanjaya, commit c319590c139e5603e71f0699caa0663d823af8ad. Machine-generated source annotations retained; see Sanjaya import audit for coverage and limitations.) — 1743 focus

Pisthetaerus: I rejoiced at the hymns, I rejoiced at the songs;

Pisthetaerus: I admire speeches. Come now, let's do it here.

Pisthetaerus: And call up the thunder of the chthonic deities.

1745

Pisthetaerus: and the fiery thunderbolts of Zeus,

Pisthetairos: a terrible, slow lightning bolt.

Chorus: O great light of lightning!

Chorus: O deathless, fire-bearing spear of Zeus,

Chorus: O earth-dwelling ones of heavy groans

1750

Chorus: Rain-bringing, too, with the thunder!

Chorus: with whom this man now shakes the earth.

Chorus: having prevailed in everything on your account

Chorus: and Zeus has Basileia as his attendant.

Chorus: Hymen, O Hymenaeus, O!

Pisthetaerus: Follow now, O marriages!

1755

Pisthetaerus: all the tribes of kindred.

Pisthetaerus: a winged one to the floor of Zeus

Pisthetaerus: And a nuptial bed.

Pisthetaerus: Stretch out, O blessed one, your hand.

Pisthetaerus: a hand and [the feathers] of my wings.

1760

Pisthetaerus: Take it and dance along! Lift it up!

Pisthetaerus: But I will make you lighter.

Chorus: A la la la, iē Paean!

Chorus: tenealla kalinnikos, oh

Chorus: O supreme of the gods.

1765

Aristophanes Birds 1743

ed. F. W. Hall, ed. William M. Geldart

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Χορός

ἀλαλαλαὶ ἰὴ παιών,

τήνελλα καλλίνικος, ὦ

δαιμόνων ὑπέρτατε.
1765

Current edition Perseus

Pisthetaerus

I am delighted with your songs, I applaud your verses. Now celebrate

the thunder that shakes the earth, the flaming lightning of Zeus and the terrible flashing thunderbolt.
1745

Pisthetaerus
Singing.

Let all the winged tribes of our fellow-citizens follow the bridal couple to the palace of Zeus and to the nuptial couch! Stretch forth your
1755

hands, my dear wife! Take hold of me by my wings and let us dance; I am going to lift you up and carry you through the air.
1760

Chorus
Singing

Alalalai ie Paian! Tenella kallinikos!

Loftiest art thou of gods!
1765

Pisthetaerus

I am delighted with your songs, I applaud your verses. Now celebrate 1745 the thunder that shakes the earth, the flaming lightning of Zeus and the terrible flashing thunderbolt.

Pisthetaerus
Singing.

1755 Let all the winged tribes of our fellow-citizens follow the bridal couple to the palace of Zeus and to the nuptial couch! Stretch forth your 1760 hands, my dear wife! Take hold of me by my wings and let us dance; I am going to lift you up and carry you through the air.

Chorus
Singing

Alalalai ie Paian! Tenella kallinikos! 1765 Loftiest art thou of gods!

Stable identifiers

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Χορός ἀλαλαλαὶ ἰὴ παιών, τήνελλα καλλίνικος, ὦ δαιμόνων ὑπέρτατε. 1765

Current edition Perseus

Pisthetaerus I am delighted with your songs, I applaud your verses. Now celebrate the thunder that shakes the earth, the flaming lightning of Zeus and the terrible flashing thunderbolt. 1745

Pisthetaerus Singing. Let all the winged tribes of our fellow-citizens follow the bridal couple to the palace of Zeus and to the nuptial couch! Stretch forth your 1755 hands, my dear wife! Take hold of me by my wings and let us dance; I am going to lift you up and carry you through the air. 1760

Chorus Singing Alalalai ie Paian! Tenella kallinikos! Loftiest art thou of gods! 1765

Pisthetaerus I am delighted with your songs, I applaud your verses. Now celebrate 1745 the thunder that shakes the earth, the flaming lightning of Zeus and the terrible flashing thunderbolt.

Pisthetaerus Singing. 1755 Let all the winged tribes of our fellow-citizens follow the bridal couple to the palace of Zeus and to the nuptial couch! Stretch forth your 1760 hands, my dear wife! Take hold of me by my wings and let us dance; I am going to lift you up and carry you through the air.

Chorus Singing Alalalai ie Paian! Tenella kallinikos! 1765 Loftiest art thou of gods!

Stable identifiers

Χορός

ἀλαλαλαὶ ἰὴ παιών,

τήνελλα καλλίνικος, ὦ

δαιμόνων ὑπέρτατε.
1765

Pisthetaerus

I am delighted with your songs, I applaud your verses. Now celebrate

the thunder that shakes the earth, the flaming lightning of Zeus and the terrible flashing thunderbolt.
1745

Pisthetaerus
Singing.

Let all the winged tribes of our fellow-citizens follow the bridal couple to the palace of Zeus and to the nuptial couch! Stretch forth your
1755

hands, my dear wife! Take hold of me by my wings and let us dance; I am going to lift you up and carry you through the air.
1760

Chorus
Singing

Alalalai ie Paian! Tenella kallinikos!

Loftiest art thou of gods!
1765

Pisthetaerus

I am delighted with your songs, I applaud your verses. Now celebrate 1745 the thunder that shakes the earth, the flaming lightning of Zeus and the terrible flashing thunderbolt.

Pisthetaerus
Singing.

1755 Let all the winged tribes of our fellow-citizens follow the bridal couple to the palace of Zeus and to the nuptial couch! Stretch forth your 1760 hands, my dear wife! Take hold of me by my wings and let us dance; I am going to lift you up and carry you through the air.

Chorus
Singing

Alalalai ie Paian! Tenella kallinikos! 1765 Loftiest art thou of gods!