Ὁ Καρπάθιος τὸν λαγῳόν
the Karpathian (brought in) the hare
Translated by David Whitehead7 Oct 2001Vetting: high6 revisions
Translation
They say that the Karpathians, being islanders,1 brought in a hare, because they did not have [any] in their territory. But the hares became numerous and ruined their agriculture.
So the proverb is applied to those devising something to their own detriment.
So the proverb is applied to those devising something to their own detriment.
Greek original · Adler’s text
Ὁ Καρπάθιος τὸν λαγῳόν· φασὶν ὅτι οἱ Καρπάθιοι νῆσον οἰκοῦντες ἐπηγάγοντο λαγῳόν, οὐκ ἔχοντες ἐν τῇ χώρᾳ. οἱ δὲ πολλοὶ γενόμενοι τὰ γεώργια αὐτῶν ἐλυμαίνοντο. εἴρηται οὖν ἡ παροιμία ἐπὶ τῶν καθ' ἑαυτῶν τι ἐπινοουμένων.
Betacode
*(o *karpa/qios to\n lagw|o/n: fasi\n o(/ti oi( *karpa/qioi nh=son oi)kou=ntes e)phga/gonto lagw|o/n, ou)k e)/xontes e)n th=| xw/ra|. oi( de\ polloi\ geno/menoi ta\ gew/rgia au)tw=n e)lumai/nonto. ei)/rhtai ou)=n h( paroimi/a e)pi\ tw=n kaq' e(autw=n ti e)pinooume/nwn.
Notes (1)
- cf. lambda 30 and omicroniota 121; both say that a plurality of hares were introduced, which is surely correct.
- 1The island of Karpathos, present-day Scarpanto, lies between Rhodes and Crete. See generally OCD4 Carpathos. ↩
Linked from4 entries
- λ29Λαγὼς καθεύδωνa sleeping hare[sc. A proverbial phrase] in reference to those pretending to sleep. The form lagwo/s, lagwou= is also used. And in the Epigrams: "while I was still a swift-footed child, torn straight from the breast of her who bore…
- λ30Λαγὼς περὶ τῶν κρεῶνa hare [runs] for his lifeA proverb: for the hare [is] a cowardly animal. Hence a man from Rhegium was called a hare; for they used to satirize the people of Rhegium for cowardice. There is a proverb: 'the hare runs [to save] his life'. In…
- οι121Οἰνόη τὴν χαράδρανOinoe (created) the torrent[This is said] whenever someone does something to his own detriment; for Oinoe is a deme of Attica, the members of which diverted the course of a torrent which was approaching them into their own territory. The torrent…
- φ449ΦίλωνPhilon, PhiloOf Karpathos. He wrote a Commentary on the Song of Songs.
Neighbouring entries
Revision history6 revisions · last 26 Mar 2021
- Revised — David Whitehead
- Revised — David Whitehead
- Revised — David Whitehead
- another keyword — David Whitehead
- added keyword — David Whitehead
- Revised — Catharine Roth
- Translated — David Whitehead