ἥμισυ ~ ἡμίσεος (noun n.): half
γενεά ~ γενεᾶς (noun f.): generation, tribe
κτῆμα ~ κτήματος (noun n.): possession
διδάσκαλος ~ διδασκάλου (noun c.): teacher
καῖσαρ ~ καίσαρος (noun m.): Caesar
These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):
Ἀρχὴ ἥμισυ παντός.
Γενεὰ πορεύεται καὶ γενεὰ ἔρχεται.
Σοφία δὲ πλούτου κτῆμα τιμιώτερον.
Πολλοὶ μαθηταὶ κρείττονες διδασκάλων.
Τὰ καίσαρος ἀπόδοτε καίσαρι καὶ τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τῷ θεῷ.
And now, some commentary:
Ἀρχὴ ἥμισυ παντός.
The beginning (is) half of the whole.
The beginning (is) half of the whole.
In other words: the key to finishing anything is just to get started. Compare the English saying: "Well begun is half done." Things that are "archaic" existed from the beginning of time, and you can see the "half" of ἥμισυ is English words like "hemisphere."
Γενεὰ πορεύεται καὶ γενεὰ ἔρχεται.
A generation goes and a generation comes.
The words are from the Biblical Book of Ecclesiastes. The complete verse reads: γενεὰ πορεύεται καὶ γενεὰ ἔρχεται καὶ ἡ γῆ εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα ἕστηκεν, "and the earth abides forever." The Greek word γενεά is from the Indo-European root, *ǵenh₁, "produce, give birth," thus related to English "kin."
Σοφία δὲ πλούτου κτῆμα τιμιώτερον.
Wisdom is a more valuable possession than wealth.
The word τιμιώτερον is a comparative form of the adjective, τίμιον, "valued, valuable," and it thus takes a genitive complement: "more valuable than wealth." The noun σοφία, "wisdom," shares a root with the adjective σοφός, "wise," and this is where we get soph- words in English.
Πολλοὶ μαθηταὶ κρείττονες διδασκάλων.
Many students are greater than (their) teachers.
This Greek proverb actually appears in Henry Fielding's Tom Jones: "I remember my old schoolmaster, who was a prodigious great scholar, used often to say, Polly matete cry town is my daskalon. The English of which, he told us, was, That a child may sometimes teach his grandmother to suck eggs." Thanks to Michael Gilleland for that citation!
Τὰ καίσαρος ἀπόδοτε καίσαρι καὶ τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ τῷ θεῷ.
Pay the things of Caesar to Caesar, and the things of God to God.
The words appear in the Gospel of Mark, and also in Matthew and Luke. You can find out more at Wikipedia: Render Unto Caesar. The word καῖσαρ is a Roman name used in Greek, Caesar, which was originally a Roman clan name, or cognomen, which then became a shorthand way of saying "emperor," as the Julio-Claudians were the first Roman imperial family. You can find out more at Wikipedia: Caesar - Title. This is the origin of the German word Kaiser, which is much closer to the Roman pronunciation than English "Caesar." It is also the origin of the Russian word tsar.
And here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too :
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