Greek Proverbs

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations... and with a quiz too! See how you do on the questions up top, and then try them again down below after you've read through the proverbs (the quiz results display only at the blog, not in the email):

Γλαῦκας εἰς ______.

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Γλαῦκας εἰς Ἀθήνας.

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______ βέβρωκε.

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Σκορπίους βέβρωκε.

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______ ἐν πιθήκοις.

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Ὄνος ἐν πιθήκοις.

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Λύκος κρέας ______.

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Λύκος κρέας νέμει.

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Λύκος μάτην ______.

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Λύκος μάτην χάνων.

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Γλαῦκας εἰς Ἀθήνας.

(Bringing) owls to Athens.

This refers to a foolish effort: there's no need to bring owls to Athens because Athens is full of owls. The owls that lived in the Parthenon were a symbol of Athens, and the coins of Athens were stamped with owls. Compare the English proverbial phrase, "coals to Newcastle."

Σκορπίους βέβρωκε.

He's eaten scorpions.

This refers to someone who gets angry easily. The idea is that they've eaten scorpions and those scorpions are still in there being disagreeable, as scorpions are wont to do.

Ὄνος ἐν πιθήκοις.

A donkey among the monkeys.

The saying appears in a long fragment of Menander quoted by Aulus Gellius. It refers to someone, not very bright, who is being mocked and insulted by those around him, as the donkey is regularly an object of ridicule, while monkeys are proverbially rude. 

Λύκος κρέας νέμει.

A wolf is distributing the meat.

This is something like the proverbial "lion's share." You know that the wolf is going to be constantly taking for himself even while he is "sharing" the meat with others. 

Λύκος μάτην χάνων.

The wolf, gaping like a fool.

This proverb refers to someone whose hopes are disappointed: he is gaping, empty-mouthed, not having gotten what he wanted. The proverb takes on narrative form in an Aesop's fable about a foolish wolf who heard a mother threatening her baby: "If you don't stop crying, I'll throw you to the wolf." Since the baby kept on crying, the wolf stood there outside the window, hoping that the woman would soon throw the baby to him, but he stood there gaping like a fool — the woman was never really going to throw the baby to the wolf.

Γλαῦκας εἰς ______.

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Γλαῦκας εἰς Ἀθήνας.

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______ βέβρωκε.

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Σκορπίους βέβρωκε.

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______ ἐν πιθήκοις.

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Ὄνος ἐν πιθήκοις.

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Λύκος κρέας ______.

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Λύκος κρέας νέμει.

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Λύκος μάτην ______.

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Λύκος μάτην χάνων.

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And to finish up, here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Proverbs: June 9

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations... and with a quiz too! See how you do on the questions up top, and then try them again down below after you've read through the proverbs (the quiz results display only at the blog, not in the email):

Δὶς κράμβη _____.

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Δὶς κράμβη θάνατος.

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Δός τι καὶ _____ τι.

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Δός τι καὶ λάβε τι.

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Παρ᾿ _____ λυρίζεις.

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Παρ᾿ ὄνῳ λυρίζεις.

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Εἰς _____ φάτνας.

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Εἰς ἀρχαίας φάτνας.

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Δωδωναῖον _____.

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Δωδωναῖον χαλκεῖον.

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Δὶς κράμβη θάνατος.

Cabbage two days in a row (is) death.

Cabbage was proverbially the food of poor people, and having to eat cabbage day after day is proverbial hyperbole for desperate poverty. The saying appears in the letters of Basil of Caesarea. You can find out about the Greek personification of death at Wikipedia: Thanatos.

Δός τι καὶ λάβε τι.

Give something and receive something.

Compare the English saying, "Give and take." The Greek phrase appears in a dialogue formerly attributed to Plato but now considered spurious; you can find out more at Wikipedia: Axiochus. In that dialogue, it is paired with a similar saying you saw in this blog post: Ἁ δὲ χεὶρ τὰν χεῖρα νίζει, "One hand washes another."

Παρ᾿ ὄνῳ λυρίζεις.

You're making music for a donkey.

This is yet another Greek proverb about the mismatch between donkeys and the music of the lyre. To have a donkey for your audience means, metaphorically, that you are wasting your time; the person you are speaking to cannot appreciate what you are saying. See this earlier post: Ὄνος λύρας ἀκούων κινεῖ τὰ ὦτα — and also this one: Τί γὰρ κοινὸν λύρᾳ καὶ ὄνῳ;

Εἰς ἀρχαίας φάτνας.

To their former mangers.

As Erasmus explains, this proverb is based on the way that animals return to their familiar feeding-troughs. Metaphorically, it applies to people who have suffered a reversal of fortune, causing them to return to their old lifestyle. The root of the adjective ἀρχαῖος is ἀρχή, "beginning, first, former," which you can see in the English noun archetype and in the adjective archaic.

Δωδωναῖον χαλκεῖον.

A bronze (bell) of Dodona.

This saying referred to a noisy person, as if they were as loud as the famous bronze bell or cymbal of Dodona (an oracle site in northern Greece) that rang out whenever the wind blew; another source tells us that the oracle spoke through a series of interconnected kettle drums made of bronze, such that when any one of them was struck, they all resounded. In any case, something noisy was going on at the oracle of Dodona, and that's what this saying refers to: a whole lot of noise-making! Find out more at Wikipedia: Dodona.

Δὶς κράμβη _____.

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Δὶς κράμβη θάνατος.

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Δός τι καὶ _____ τι.

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Δός τι καὶ λάβε τι.

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Παρ᾿ _____ λυρίζεις.

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Παρ᾿ ὄνῳ λυρίζεις.

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Εἰς _____ φάτνας.

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Εἰς ἀρχαίας φάτνας.

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Δωδωναῖον _____.

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Δωδωναῖον χαλκεῖον.

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And to finish up, here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Proverbs: June 4

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations... and with a quiz too! See how you do on the questions up top, and then try them again down below after you've read through the proverbs (the quiz results display only at the blog, not in the email):

______ δίδασκε.

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Νεώτερον δίδασκε.

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______ σπείρεις.

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Πέτρας σπείρεις.

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Ἐπὶ ______ μὴ καυχῶ.

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Ἐπὶ ῥώμῃ μὴ καυχῶ.

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______ ἐν προθύρῳ.

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Κύων ἐν προθύρῳ.

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Λύκων ______.

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Λύκων φιλία.

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Νεώτερον δίδασκε.

Teach a younger person.

This is one of those "Delphic maxims" recorded by Stobaeus. The word νεώτερος is a comparative form of νέος meaning "newer, younger; very new, very young." Catullus and other contemporary Roman poets were known as "neoteric" poets; they were the νεωτερικοί, the poetae novi. You can find out more at Wikipedia: Neoteric.

Πέτρας σπείρεις.

You're sowing rocks.

Of course, you are supposed to sow seeds, not rocks: you are not going to get any harvest if you sow rocks! Compare a similar saying about a futile endeavor from a previous post: Πέτρας ἕψεις.

Ἐπὶ ῥώμῃ μὴ καυχῶ.

Do not boast in your strength.

This is another one of those Delphic maxims preserved by Stobaeus, who attributes them to the Seven Sages. The word καυχῶ is a middle imperative from the verb καυχάομαι.

Κύων ἐν προθύρῳ.

A dog in his doorway.

This is about someone who is bold, perhaps too bold, the way that a dog in the doorway of his house will bark and bark, boldly accosting any stranger who dares to approach. 

Λύκων φιλία.

The friendship of wolves.

This is not much of a friendship, since wolves have no loyalty whatsoever. You can also find this idea expressed as a single word: λυκοφιλία.

______ δίδασκε.

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Νεώτερον δίδασκε.

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______ σπείρεις.

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Πέτρας σπείρεις.

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Ἐπὶ ______ μὴ καυχῶ.

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Ἐπὶ ῥώμῃ μὴ καυχῶ.

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______ ἐν προθύρῳ.

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Κύων ἐν προθύρῳ.

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Λύκων ______.

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Λύκων φιλία.

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And to finish up, here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Proverbs: June 2

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations... and with a quiz too! See how you do on the questions up top, and then try them again down below after you've read through the proverbs (the quiz results display only at the blog, not in the email):

Κατὰ ______ ἥκεις.

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Κατὰ θεὸν ἥκεις.

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______ ὀφθαλμός.

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Δίκης ὀφθαλμός.

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Αὐλητοῦ ______ ζῇς.

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Αὐλητοῦ βίον ζῇς.

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______ ὕεται.

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Ὄνος ὕεται.

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Σαρδώνιος ______.

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Σαρδώνιος γέλως.

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Κατὰ θεὸν ἥκεις.

You come by god.

This is a polite greeting to a guest, especially to an unexpected guest. In other words: it is by the will of a god that you have come here, like a divine version of  the English phrase "welcome" (i.e. well-come). The phrase "κατὰ θεὸν" appears in the LSJ dictionary entry for κατά with the meaning of "by the favour of a god, etc." 

Δίκης ὀφθαλμός.

The eye of justice.

There is a fuller form of this saying found in Plutarch, quoting an iambic line from an unidentified tragic poet: Ἔστι Δίκης ὀφθαλμός, ὅς τὰ πάνθ' ὁρᾷ, "There is an eye of justice that sees all things" (πάνθ' ὁρᾷ = πάντα ὁρᾷ). For more about Δίκη, the goddess of justice, see Wikipedia: Dike.

Αὐλητοῦ βίον ζῇς.

You are living the life of a flute player.

This referred to living a life of luxury, but at someone else's expense — because of the fact that these flute-players provided entertainment at banquets, where they were able to feast at someone else's table (see Erasmus). You can read more about this Greek instrument at Wikipedia: Aulos. From the Greek root of ζήω, we get English zoology.

Ὄνος ὕεται.

The donkey is being rained on.

This saying refers to someone who can't be bothered to do anything, no matter what is happening, just as a donkey stands there in the rain and doesn't bother to look for shelter.

Σαρδώνιος γέλως.

Sardonic laughter.

The Greek word Σαρδώνιος is a variant of Σαρδάνιος, referring to the island of Sardinia, called Σαρδώ in Greek; see Wikipedia: Sardinia. This phrase has survived in English, meaning laughter that is scornful or mocking. Different ancient authors offer different explanations for this saying. I like the one about a plant that grows in Sardinia which was so bitter that it twisted people's faces into a sneering grin. It might have been a poisonous form of hemlock, so that the people who ate the plant smiled themselves to death; details here: The Chilling Origins Of The Sardonic Laugh.

Κατὰ ______ ἥκεις.

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Κατὰ θεὸν ἥκεις.

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______ ὀφθαλμός.

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Δίκης ὀφθαλμός.

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Αὐλητοῦ ______ ζῇς.

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Αὐλητοῦ βίον ζῇς.

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______ ὕεται.

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Ὄνος ὕεται.

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Σαρδώνιος ______.

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Σαρδώνιος γέλως.

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And to finish up, here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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