Ὀλέκρανον
elbow
Translated by Amanda Aponte17 Dec 2009Vetting: high4 revisions
Translation
Some [sc. define this as] the bend of the arm [a)gkw/n ]; but no longer the sharp point in the bend of the hand. The spot [is] painful to those wounded in it. But Aristotle does not [define it as] the bend of the arm [a)gkw=na ], but the sharp point of the hand, and a)gkw/n the [part] above that.1 But Aristophanes calls the bends of the limbs -- that is, of the hands -- elbows [o)le/krana ]. So [it is] clear that he is speaking of the sharp and curved [part] of the arms; the one we ourselves call a)gkw/n . "May he never stop pulling arrows out from his elbows [o)lekra/nwn ]."
Greek original · Adler’s text
Ὀλέκρανον· τινὲς τὸν ἀγκῶνα· οὐκέτι δὲ τὸ ἐν τῇ καμπῇ τῆς χειρὸς ὀξύ. ἐπώδυνος δὲ ὁ τόπος τοῖς τρωθεῖσιν εἰς αὐτόν. Ἀριστοτέλης δὲ οὐ τὸν ἀγκῶνα, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἐν καμπῇ τῆς χειρὸς ὀξύ, ἀγκὼν δὲ τὸ ὑπὲρ ἐκεῖνο. Ἀριστοφάνης δὲ ὀλέκρανα λέγει τὰ τῶν ὠλενῶν κρανία, τουτέστι τῶν χειρῶν. δῆλον οὖν, ὅτι τὸ ὀξὺ καὶ ἐπικαμπὲς τῶν χειρῶν λέγει· ὃν ἀγκῶνα φαμὲν ἡμεῖς. μηδέποτε παύσοιτ' ἐκ τῶν ὀλεκράνων ἀκίδας ἐξαιρούμενος.
Betacode
*)ole/kranon: tine\s to\n a)gkw=na: ou)ke/ti de\ to\ e)n th=| kamph=| th=s xeiro\s o)cu/. e)pw/dunos de\ o( to/pos toi=s trwqei=sin ei)s au)to/n. *)aristote/lhs de\ ou) to\n a)gkw=na, a)lla\ to\ e)n kamph=| th=s xeiro\s o)cu/, a)gkw\n de\ to\ u(pe\r e)kei=no. *)aristofa/nhs de\ o)le/krana le/gei ta\ tw=n w)lenw=n krani/a, toute/sti tw=n xeirw=n. dh=lon ou)=n, o(/ti to\ o)cu\ kai\ e)pikampe\s tw=n xeirw=n le/gei: o(\n a)gkw=na fame\n h(mei=s. mhde/pote pau/soit' e)k tw=n o)lekra/nwn a)ki/das e)cairou/menos.
Notes (1)
- Aristophanes, Peace 442-3 (web address 1), with scholion. See also omicron 142.
- 1This attempts to explain a passage from Aristotle (possibly History of Animals 1.493b27, Adler suggests) in which he names the parts of the arms. Beginning at the shoulder (
w)=mos ), Aristotle moves down the arm mentioninga)gkw/n ,w)le/kranon (o)le/kranon in Aristophanes),ph=xus , (forearm) and ending at the hand (xei/r ). This led the scholiast to conclude that Aristotle useda)gkw/n to refer to the point of bone at the end of the elbow in particular, whileo)le/kranon was the actual bending joint. Aristophanes though, he concludes, combined the two ideas and referred to both parts aso)le/kranon . ↩
External resources
- Web address 1 perseus.tufts.edu
Linked from1 entry
Neighbouring entries
Revision history4 revisions · last 30 Dec 2020
- tweaked link — Catharine Roth
- x-ref; another keyword; adjustments — David Whitehead
- augmented n.1; tweaks and cosmetics — David Whitehead
- cosmetics — Catharine Roth
- Translated — Amanda Aponte