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Line 476

ὁ πατὴρ ἄρα τῆς κορυδοῦ νυνὶ κεῖται τεθνεὼς Κεφαλῆσιν.

The proper name Κεφαλῆσιν is the dative plural of Κεφαλή, referring to the Boeotian city of Cephisia (not the common noun 'head'), which serves as the setting for the bird society in this passage. The use of the dative of place where without a preposition is standard for city names, but the specific identification of Cephisia as the location of the 'father' (likely a pun on the bird's lineage or a specific character reference) is crucial for the joke: the father of the quail (κορυδῶν) is buried in Cephisia, a place already associated with the birds' flight and the play's geography.

Birds. Aristophanes. . 2026-09-08.

Current edition Experimental

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

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (1)

Ὄρνιθες Perseus (Aristophanes. Aristophanis Comoediae, Vol. 1. Hall, F. W. and Geldart, William M., editors. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1906.) — 462 focus

Πισθέταιρος

καὶ μὴν ὀργῶ νὴ τὸν Δία καὶ προπεφύραται λόγος εἷς μοι,

ὃν διαμάττειν οὐ κωλύει· φέρε παῖ στέφανον· καταχεῖσθαι

κατὰ χειρὸς ὕδωρ φερέτω ταχύ τις.

Ἐυελπίδης

δειπνήσειν μέλλομεν; ἢ τί;

Πισθέταιρος

μὰ Δίʼ ἀλλὰ λέγειν ζητῶ τι πάλαι μέγα καὶ λαρινὸν ἔπος τι,
465

ὅ το τὴν τούτων θραύσει ψυχήν· οὕτως ὑμῶν ὑπεραλγῶ,

οἵτινες ὄντες πρότερον βασιλῆς —

Χορός

ἡμεῖς βασιλῆς; τίνος;

Πισθέταιρος

ὑμεῖς

πάντων ὁπόσʼ ἔστιν, ἐμοῦ πρῶτον, τουδί, καὶ τοῦ Διὸς αὐτοῦ,

ἀρχαιότεροι πρότεροί τε Κρόνου καὶ Τιτάνων ἐγένεσθε,

καὶ γῆς.
470

Χορός

καὶ γῆς;

Πισθέταιρος

νὴ τὸν Ἀπόλλω.

Χορός

τουτὶ μὰ Δίʼ οὐκ ἐπεπύσμην.

Πισθέταιρος

ἀμαθὴς γὰρ ἔφυς κοὐ πολυπράγμων, οὐδʼ Αἴσωπον πεπάτηκας,

ὃς ἔφασκε λέγων κορυδὸν πάντων πρώτην ὄρνιθα γενέσθαι,

προτέραν τῆς γῆς, κἄπειτα νόσῳ τὸν πατέρʼ αὐτῆς ἀποθνῄσκειν·

γῆν δʼ οὐκ εἶναι, τὸν δὲ προκεῖσθαι πεμπταῖον· τὴν δʼ ἀποροῦσαν

ὑπʼ ἀμηχανίας τὸν πατέρʼ αὑτῆς ἐν τῇ κεφαλῇ κατορύξαι.
475

Ἐυελπίδης

ὁ πατὴρ ἄρα τῆς κορυδοῦ νυνὶ κεῖται τεθνεὼς Κεφαλῆσιν.

Πισθέταιρος

οὔκουν δῆτʼ εἰ πρότεροι μὲν γῆς πρότεροι δὲ θεῶν ἐγένοντο,

ὡς πρεσβυτάτων αὐτῶν ὄντῶν ὀρθῶς ἐσθʼ ἡ βασιλεία;

Ἐυελπίδης

νὴ τὸν Ἀπόλλω· πάνυ τοίνυν χρὴ ῥύγχος βόσκειν σε τὸ λοιπόν·

οὐκ ἀποδώσει ταχέως ὁ Ζεὺς τὸ σκῆπτρον τῷ δρυκολάπτῃ.
480

Πισθέταιρος

ὡς δʼ οὐχὶ θεοὶ τοίνυν ἦρχον τῶν ἀνθρώπων τὸ παλαιόν,

ἀλλʼ ὄρνιθες, κἀβασίλευον, πόλλʼ ἐστὶ τεκμήρια τούτων.

αὐτίκα δʼ ὑμῖν πρῶτʼ ἐπιδείξω τὸν ἀλεκτρυόνʼ, ὡς ἐτυράννει

ἦρχέ τε Περσῶν πρῶτον πάντων Δαρείου καὶ Μεγαβάζου,

ὥστε καλεῖται Περσικὸς ὄρνις ἀπὸ τῆς ἀρχῆς ἔτʼ ἐκείνης.
485

Ἐυελπίδης

διὰ ταῦτʼ ἄρʼ ἔχων καὶ νῦν ὥσπερ βασιλεὺς ὁ μέγας διαβάσκει

ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς τὴν κυρβασίαν τῶν ὀρνίθων μόνος ὀρθήν.

Πισθέταιρος

οὕτω δʼ ἴσχυσέ τε καὶ μέγας ἦν τότε καὶ πολύς, ὥστʼ ἔτι καὶ νῦν

ὑπὸ τῆς ῥώμης τῆς τότʼ ἐκείνης, ὁπόταν μόνον ὄρθριον ᾄσῃ,

ἀναπηδῶσιν πάντες ἐπʼ ἔργον χαλκῆς κεραμῆς σκυλοδέψαι
490

σκυτῆς βαλανῆς ἀλφιταμοιβοὶ τορνευτολυρασπιδοπηγοί·

οἱ δὲ βαδίζουσʼ ὑποδησάμενοι νύκτωρ.

Ἐυελπίδης

ἐμὲ τοῦτό γʼ ἐρώτα.

χλαῖναν γὰρ ἀπώλεσʼ ὁ μοχθηρὸς Φρυγίων ἐρίων διὰ τοῦτον.

ἐς δεκάτην γάρ ποτε παιδαρίου κληθεὶς ὑπέπινον ἐν ἄστει,

κἄρτι καθηῦδον, καὶ πρὶν δειπνεῖν τοὺς ἄλλους οὗτος ἄρʼ ᾖσεν·
495

κἀγὼ νομίσας ὄρθρον ἐχώρουν Ἀλιμουντάδε, κἄρτι προκύπτω

ἔξω τείχους καὶ λωποδύτης παίει ῥοπάλῳ με τὸ νῶτον·

κἀγὼ πίπτω μέλλω τε βοᾶν, ὁ δʼ ἀπέβλισε θοἰμάτιόν μου.

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).)

No corresponding passage available

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.) — 462 focus

Pisthetaerus

I am bursting with desire to speak; I have already mixed the dough of my address and nothing prevents me from kneading it.... Slave! bring the chaplet and water, which you must pour over my hands. Be quick!

Euelpides

Is it a question of feasting? What does it all mean?

Pisthetaerus

465 By Zeus, no! but I am hunting for fine, tasty words to break down the hardness of their hearts. To the Chorus. I grieve so much for you, who at one time were kings...

Leader of the Chorus

We kings? Over whom?

Pisthetaerus

... of all that exists, firstly of me and of this man, even of Zeus himself. Your race is older than Saturn, the Titans and the Earth.

Leader of the Chorus

What, older than the Earth!

Pisthetaerus

By Phoebus, yes.

Leader of the Chorus

470 By Zeus, but I never knew that before!

Pisthetaerus

That's because you are ignorant and heedless, and have never read your Aesop. He is the one who tells us that the lark was born before all other creatures, indeed before the Earth; his father died of sickness, but the Earth did not exist then; he remained unburied for five days, when the bird in its dilemma decided, 475 for want of a better place, to entomb its father in its own head.

Euelpides

So that the lark's father is buried at Cephalae.

Pisthetaerus

Hence, if they existed before the Earth, before the gods, the kingship belongs to them by right of priority.

Euelpides

Undoubtedly, but sharpen your beak well; 480 Zeus won't be in a hurry to hand over his scepter to the woodpecker.

Pisthetaerus

It was not the gods, but the birds, who were formerly the masters and kings over men; of this I have a thousand proofs. First of all, I will point you to the cock, who governed the Persians before all other monarchs, before Darius and Megabazus. 485 It's in memory of his reign that he is called the Persian bird.

Euelpides

For this reason also, even to-day, he alone of all the birds wears his tiara straight on his head, like the Great King.

Pisthetaerus

He was so strong, so great, so feared, that even now, on account of his ancient power, 490 everyone jumps out of bed as soon as ever he crows at daybreak. Blacksmiths, potters, tanners, shoemakers, bathmen, corn-dealers, lyre-makers and armorers, all put on their shoes and go to work before it is daylight.

Euelpides

I can tell you something about that. It was the cock's fault that I lost a splendid tunic of Phrygian wool. I was at a feast in town, given to celebrate the birth of a child; I had drunk pretty freely 495 and had just fallen asleep, when a cock, I suppose in a greater hurry than the rest, began to crow. I thought it was dawn and set out for Halimus. I had hardly got beyond the walls, when a footpad struck me in the back with his bludgeon; down I went and wanted to shout, but he had already made off with my mantle.

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.) — 462 focus

Pisthetaerus: Indeed, I am angry, by Zeus, and a certain plan has already occurred to me,

Pisthetaerus: whom he does not hinder from boasting; come on, boy, bring a crown; let him be anointed.

Pisthetaerus: Let someone quickly bring water in the hand.

Euelpides: Are we about to dine? Or what?

Pisthetaerus: By Zeus, but I have long been seeking a great and loud speech,

465

Pisthetaerus: He will shatter the soul of these people; thus I suffer greatly for you.

Pisthetaerus: whoever you were before, kings —

Chorus: We, kings? Of whom?

Pisthetairos: you

Pisthetaerus: Of all things that are, first of all this, and Zeus himself,

Pisthetaerus: You were born before the Titans and even before the elder ones, before Cronus,

Pisthetaerus: and of land.

470

Chorus: and the earth?

Pisthetaerus: By Apollo.

Chorus: By Zeus, I have not farted.

Pisthetaerus: for you were born ignorant and not meddlesome, nor have you trodden upon Aesop,

Pisthetaerus: who used to say, speaking, that the lark was the first bird to be born of all,

Pisthetaerus: first [he took] a land greater than this earth, and then he died of disease, her father:

Pisthetaerus: that there is no land, but that one lies before in five days; but that she is in need

Pisthetaerus: to have buried her father in her head out of helplessness.

475

Euelpides: So now the father of the quail lies dead at Cephale.

Pisthetaerus: But then, if they were first in relation to the earth and first in relation to the gods,

Pisthetaerus: Since they are the very oldest, is the kingship right?

Euelpides: By Apollo! Then in the future you must certainly feed your snout.

Euelpides: Zeus will not soon return the scepter to the woodpecker.

480

Pisthetaerus: But since the gods did not rule over men in ancient times,

Pisthetaerus: But birds, even if you were kings, there are many proofs of this.

Pisthetaerus: Immediately, then, I will first show you the rooster, how he tyrannized.

Pisthetaerus: First of all, he ruled the Persians, Darius and Megabazus,

Pisthetaerus: So it is called the Persian bird from that very beginning.

485

Euelpides: For this reason, then, having [it] now just like the great king, I ride over [it].

Euelpides: alone, standing upright with the birds' turban on my head.

Pisthetaerus: Thus he was strong and great and numerous at that time, so that even now

Pisthetaerus: By the strength of that time then, whenever it only sings at dawn,

Pisthetaerus: They all jump up for the work of the bronze-working potter to saw the dogs.

490

Pisthetaerus: tanners, ball-cleansers, barley-exchangers, lathe-turners, shield-makers;

Pisthetaerus: but those who walk put on their shoes at night.

Eupolis: Ask me this.

Euelpides: For that villain lost a cloak because of him, a cloak of Phrygian wool.

Euelpides: for once, having been summoned to the tenth [year], I used to drink in the city,

Euelpides: And just now I was going to sleep, and before the others had dined, this fellow has sung:

495

Euelpides: And I, thinking it was dawn, was marching to Alimounta, and just now I appear.

Euelpides: Outside the wall, a thief is hitting my back with a club;

Euelpides: And I am falling, and I am about to shout, but he has spit on my cloak.

Commentary

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

476. mvp-tlg0019-tlg006-sanjaya-com-eng1-15

Line 476

ὁ πατὴρ ἄρα τῆς κορυδοῦ νυνὶ κεῖται τεθνεὼς Κεφαλῆσιν.

Aristophanes Birds 476

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Line 476

Current edition Experimental

Ἐυελπίδης

δειπνήσειν μέλλομεν; ἢ τί;

Χορός

ἡμεῖς βασιλῆς; τίνος;

Πισθέταιρος

ὑμεῖς

πάντων ὁπόσʼ ἔστιν, ἐμοῦ πρῶτον, τουδί, καὶ τοῦ Διὸς αὐτοῦ,

ἀρχαιότεροι πρότεροί τε Κρόνου καὶ Τιτάνων ἐγένεσθε,

καὶ γῆς.
470

Χορός

καὶ γῆς;

Πισθέταιρος

νὴ τὸν Ἀπόλλω.

Χορός

τουτὶ μὰ Δίʼ οὐκ ἐπεπύσμην.

Ἐυελπίδης

ὁ πατὴρ ἄρα τῆς κορυδοῦ νυνὶ κεῖται τεθνεὼς Κεφαλῆσιν.

Πισθέταιρος

οὔκουν δῆτʼ εἰ πρότεροι μὲν γῆς πρότεροι δὲ θεῶν ἐγένοντο,

ὡς πρεσβυτάτων αὐτῶν ὄντῶν ὀρθῶς ἐσθʼ ἡ βασιλεία;

Ἐυελπίδης

νὴ τὸν Ἀπόλλω· πάνυ τοίνυν χρὴ ῥύγχος βόσκειν σε τὸ λοιπόν·

οὐκ ἀποδώσει ταχέως ὁ Ζεὺς τὸ σκῆπτρον τῷ δρυκολάπτῃ.
480

Ἐυελπίδης

διὰ ταῦτʼ ἄρʼ ἔχων καὶ νῦν ὥσπερ βασιλεὺς ὁ μέγας διαβάσκει

ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς τὴν κυρβασίαν τῶν ὀρνίθων μόνος ὀρθήν.

Pisthetaerus

I am bursting with desire to speak; I have already mixed the dough of my address and nothing prevents me from kneading it.... Slave! bring the chaplet and water, which you must pour over my hands. Be quick!

Euelpides

Is it a question of feasting? What does it all mean?

Pisthetaerus

465 By Zeus, no! but I am hunting for fine, tasty words to break down the hardness of their hearts. To the Chorus. I grieve so much for you, who at one time were kings...

Leader of the Chorus

We kings? Over whom?

Pisthetaerus

... of all that exists, firstly of me and of this man, even of Zeus himself. Your race is older than Saturn, the Titans and the Earth.

Leader of the Chorus

What, older than the Earth!

Pisthetaerus

By Phoebus, yes.

Leader of the Chorus

470 By Zeus, but I never knew that before!

Euelpides

So that the lark's father is buried at Cephalae.

Pisthetaerus

Hence, if they existed before the Earth, before the gods, the kingship belongs to them by right of priority.

Euelpides

Undoubtedly, but sharpen your beak well; 480 Zeus won't be in a hurry to hand over his scepter to the woodpecker.

Euelpides

For this reason also, even to-day, he alone of all the birds wears his tiara straight on his head, like the Great King.

Commentary

Line 476

Stable identifiers

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Line 476

Current edition Experimental

Ἐυελπίδης δειπνήσειν μέλλομεν; ἢ τί;

Χορός ἡμεῖς βασιλῆς; τίνος;

Πισθέταιρος ὑμεῖς πάντων ὁπόσʼ ἔστιν, ἐμοῦ πρῶτον, τουδί, καὶ τοῦ Διὸς αὐτοῦ, ἀρχαιότεροι πρότεροί τε Κρόνου καὶ Τιτάνων ἐγένεσθε, καὶ γῆς. 470

Χορός καὶ γῆς;

Πισθέταιρος νὴ τὸν Ἀπόλλω.

Χορός τουτὶ μὰ Δίʼ οὐκ ἐπεπύσμην.

Ἐυελπίδης ὁ πατὴρ ἄρα τῆς κορυδοῦ νυνὶ κεῖται τεθνεὼς Κεφαλῆσιν.

Πισθέταιρος οὔκουν δῆτʼ εἰ πρότεροι μὲν γῆς πρότεροι δὲ θεῶν ἐγένοντο, ὡς πρεσβυτάτων αὐτῶν ὄντῶν ὀρθῶς ἐσθʼ ἡ βασιλεία;

Ἐυελπίδης νὴ τὸν Ἀπόλλω· πάνυ τοίνυν χρὴ ῥύγχος βόσκειν σε τὸ λοιπόν· οὐκ ἀποδώσει ταχέως ὁ Ζεὺς τὸ σκῆπτρον τῷ δρυκολάπτῃ. 480

Ἐυελπίδης διὰ ταῦτʼ ἄρʼ ἔχων καὶ νῦν ὥσπερ βασιλεὺς ὁ μέγας διαβάσκει ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς τὴν κυρβασίαν τῶν ὀρνίθων μόνος ὀρθήν.

Pisthetaerus I am bursting with desire to speak; I have already mixed the dough of my address and nothing prevents me from kneading it.... Slave! bring the chaplet and water, which you must pour over my hands. Be quick!

Euelpides Is it a question of feasting? What does it all mean?

Pisthetaerus 465 By Zeus, no! but I am hunting for fine, tasty words to break down the hardness of their hearts. To the Chorus. I grieve so much for you, who at one time were kings...

Leader of the Chorus We kings? Over whom?

Pisthetaerus ... of all that exists, firstly of me and of this man, even of Zeus himself. Your race is older than Saturn, the Titans and the Earth.

Leader of the Chorus What, older than the Earth!

Pisthetaerus By Phoebus, yes.

Leader of the Chorus 470 By Zeus, but I never knew that before!

Euelpides So that the lark's father is buried at Cephalae.

Pisthetaerus Hence, if they existed before the Earth, before the gods, the kingship belongs to them by right of priority.

Euelpides Undoubtedly, but sharpen your beak well; 480 Zeus won't be in a hurry to hand over his scepter to the woodpecker.

Euelpides For this reason also, even to-day, he alone of all the birds wears his tiara straight on his head, like the Great King.

Commentary

Line 476

Stable identifiers

Ἐυελπίδης

δειπνήσειν μέλλομεν; ἢ τί;

Χορός

ἡμεῖς βασιλῆς; τίνος;

Πισθέταιρος

ὑμεῖς

πάντων ὁπόσʼ ἔστιν, ἐμοῦ πρῶτον, τουδί, καὶ τοῦ Διὸς αὐτοῦ,

ἀρχαιότεροι πρότεροί τε Κρόνου καὶ Τιτάνων ἐγένεσθε,

καὶ γῆς.
470

Χορός

καὶ γῆς;

Πισθέταιρος

νὴ τὸν Ἀπόλλω.

Χορός

τουτὶ μὰ Δίʼ οὐκ ἐπεπύσμην.

Ἐυελπίδης

ὁ πατὴρ ἄρα τῆς κορυδοῦ νυνὶ κεῖται τεθνεὼς Κεφαλῆσιν.

Πισθέταιρος

οὔκουν δῆτʼ εἰ πρότεροι μὲν γῆς πρότεροι δὲ θεῶν ἐγένοντο,

ὡς πρεσβυτάτων αὐτῶν ὄντῶν ὀρθῶς ἐσθʼ ἡ βασιλεία;

Ἐυελπίδης

νὴ τὸν Ἀπόλλω· πάνυ τοίνυν χρὴ ῥύγχος βόσκειν σε τὸ λοιπόν·

οὐκ ἀποδώσει ταχέως ὁ Ζεὺς τὸ σκῆπτρον τῷ δρυκολάπτῃ.
480

Ἐυελπίδης

διὰ ταῦτʼ ἄρʼ ἔχων καὶ νῦν ὥσπερ βασιλεὺς ὁ μέγας διαβάσκει

ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς τὴν κυρβασίαν τῶν ὀρνίθων μόνος ὀρθήν.

Pisthetaerus

I am bursting with desire to speak; I have already mixed the dough of my address and nothing prevents me from kneading it.... Slave! bring the chaplet and water, which you must pour over my hands. Be quick!

Euelpides

Is it a question of feasting? What does it all mean?

Pisthetaerus

465 By Zeus, no! but I am hunting for fine, tasty words to break down the hardness of their hearts. To the Chorus. I grieve so much for you, who at one time were kings...

Leader of the Chorus

We kings? Over whom?

Pisthetaerus

... of all that exists, firstly of me and of this man, even of Zeus himself. Your race is older than Saturn, the Titans and the Earth.

Leader of the Chorus

What, older than the Earth!

Pisthetaerus

By Phoebus, yes.

Leader of the Chorus

470 By Zeus, but I never knew that before!

Euelpides

So that the lark's father is buried at Cephalae.

Pisthetaerus

Hence, if they existed before the Earth, before the gods, the kingship belongs to them by right of priority.

Euelpides

Undoubtedly, but sharpen your beak well; 480 Zeus won't be in a hurry to hand over his scepter to the woodpecker.

Euelpides

For this reason also, even to-day, he alone of all the birds wears his tiara straight on his head, like the Great King.