Ῥῆτραι
rhetrai, rhetras
Translated by David Whitehead24 Jan 2010Vetting: high9 revisions
Translation
[Meaning] covenants, speeches, agreements. But the Tarentines [sc. apply this word to] laws and in effect decrees. Among Spartans a 'rhetra' [is] a law of Lycurgus, suggesting that its authority is an oracle.1 But others [sc. call] agreements rhetras, others documents. Also [sc. attested is the term] rhetra-guardians,2 [meaning] document-guardians.
"The soldiers through whom the rhetra had been promulgated: whichever of them turned tail and went [sc. back] to camp would die a miserable death at the hands of his friends, struck down as if an enemy."3
"The oracle says, '[?hear?]' a rhetra of a clear and manifest oracle'".4
"The soldiers through whom the rhetra had been promulgated: whichever of them turned tail and went [sc. back] to camp would die a miserable death at the hands of his friends, struck down as if an enemy."3
"The oracle says, '[?hear?]' a rhetra of a clear and manifest oracle'".4
Greek original · Adler’s text
Ῥῆτραι· συνθῆκαι, λόγοι, ὁμολογίαι. Ταραντῖνοι δὲ νόμους καὶ οἷον ψηφίσματα. παρὰ Λακεδαιμονίοις ῥήτρα Λυκούργου νόμος, ὡς ἐκ χρησμοῦ τιθέμενος. οἱ δὲ ῥήτρας ὁμολογίας, οἱ δὲ συγγράμματα. καὶ ῥητροφύλακας, τοὺς συγγραμματοφύλακας. οἱ δὲ στρατιῶται, δι' οὓς προῄρητο ἡ ῥήτρα, ὅστις αὐτῶν τὰ νῶτα στρέψας ἐπὶ τὸ στρατόπεδον ἴοι, ὡς πολέμιος βαλλόμενος ὑπὸ τῶν φίλων ἀλγεινῶς ἀποθάνοι. ὁ δὲ χρησμὸς λέγει, ῥήτραν σαφοῦς τε καὶ ἐναργοῦς χρησμοῦ.
Betacode
*(rh=trai: sunqh=kai, lo/goi, o(mologi/ai. *taranti=noi de\ no/mous kai\ oi(=on yhfi/smata. para\ *lakedaimoni/ois r(h/tra *lukou/rgou no/mos, w(s e)k xrhsmou= tiqe/menos. oi( de\ r(h/tras o(mologi/as, oi( de\ suggra/mmata. kai\ r(htrofu/lakas, tou\s suggrammatofu/lakas. oi( de\ stratiw=tai, di' ou(\s proh/|rhto h( r(h/tra, o(/stis au)tw=n ta\ nw=ta stre/yas e)pi\ to\ strato/pedon i)/oi, w(s pole/mios ballo/menos u(po\ tw=n fi/lwn a)lgeinw=s a)poqa/noi. o( de\ xrhsmo\s le/gei, r(h/tran safou=s te kai\ e)nargou=s xrhsmou=.
Notes (4)
- First part of this entry = Photius rho110 Theodoridis (s.v.
r(h/tra ), with references to similar material elsewhere, e.g. Timaeus' Platonic Lexicon. See also Glossarium Italioticum 143 Kassel-Austin. The root isvrh- , althoughvratra is attested in Elean; Chantraine says it can be explained phonetically. - 1cf. generally lambda 823, lambda 824. ↩
- 2Here in the accusative plural, evidently quoted from somewhere (but not independently attested). ↩
- 3Quotation (transmitted, in Adler's view, via the Excerpta Constantini Porphyrogeniti) unidentifiable. ↩
- 4Again, quotation unidentifiable. ↩
References
P. Chantraine, Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue grecque, ed. 2, Paris 2009.
Neighbouring entries
Revision history9 revisions · last 9 Jan 2022
- cosmeticule — Catharine Roth
- expanded note — Catharine Roth
- coding — Catharine Roth
- Revised — David Whitehead
- Revised — David Whitehead
- Revised — David Whitehead
- expanded note — Catharine Roth
- more notes — David Whitehead
- cosmetic, status — Catharine Roth
- Translated — David Whitehead