From sunset to moonset, today we look at a short poem by Sappho, a quote from Hephaestio's Handbook on Meters starting with "The moon has set". This is Bergk 58, Edmonds 111, Campbell 168B, Lobel-Page curiously doesn't have it. Translated presumably in summer/fall/early winter 2010, the text presents no controversies except for a psilosis on ὥρα which is only absent in Bergk, the meter is x–uu–u–x, rendered in Italian and English as u–uu–u–u with alternating rhymes. I also want to advertise the IMO real nice Edmonds translation, which is in tetrasyllabics with rhymes ABCABC. A PDF from Sep 24 2012 mentions a change, dated "14/9", which turns «Alone my sadnèss I fight» to its current form. I had previously missed the change and only implemented it here on 16/5/21 at 23:15. 14/10/24 15:57, and «The Pleiadès too» changes to «The Pleiads have too», then «The Pleiads as well». On 5/7/25 I realize "occidit" is ambiguous in that the tense is not clear. I try to clarify the perfect with "Iam" instead of "Nunc" at 17:15-almost-16, doesn't really solve the problem, but is probably less present-leaning than "Nunc".
Two more tweaks, and one remake: English turns «The moon has alrè͞ady set» -> «Alrè͞ady the moon has set» 27/9/26 0:42, Italian turns «La luna è tramontata» 27/9/26 1:11, inspired by something in the Latin remake, and the Latin gets a remake 27/9/26 0:47-0:56. More specifically, we start with «Cum Plējadibus (0:47), because Plēĭădēs is mixed Ionic-Latin and Latin has Plēiadēs which is inmetrical. That swiftly gets completed as «Cum Plējadibus; volatque» (0:50), with «Tempus/Hōra» (0:51) to start the next line. That soon turns to «Tempus, media'st que nox iam» (0:52), whose awkward mediastque (misplaced -que) gets fixed 0:53 into its final form. Meanwhile, the last line becomes «Ac, en, iaceō_ipsa sōla» (0:52), then «Lectō iaceō_ego sōla» (0:54), after fixing l. 3, both to avoid en and to avoid ipsa. That becomes «Eheu, iaceō_ego sōla» at 0:56, avoiding the lectō which would probably require a preposition anyway.
Let's go!
Two more tweaks, and one remake: English turns «The moon has alrè͞ady set» -> «Alrè͞ady the moon has set» 27/9/26 0:42, Italian turns «La luna è tramontata» 27/9/26 1:11, inspired by something in the Latin remake, and the Latin gets a remake 27/9/26 0:47-0:56. More specifically, we start with «Cum Plējadibus (0:47), because Plēĭădēs is mixed Ionic-Latin and Latin has Plēiadēs which is inmetrical. That swiftly gets completed as «Cum Plējadibus; volatque» (0:50), with «Tempus/Hōra» (0:51) to start the next line. That soon turns to «Tempus, media'st que nox iam» (0:52), whose awkward mediastque (misplaced -que) gets fixed 0:53 into its final form. Meanwhile, the last line becomes «Ac, en, iaceō_ipsa sōla» (0:52), then «Lectō iaceō_ego sōla» (0:54), after fixing l. 3, both to avoid en and to avoid ipsa. That becomes «Eheu, iaceō_ego sōla» at 0:56, avoiding the lectō which would probably require a preposition anyway.
Let's go!
Δέδυκε μὲν ἀ σελάννα καὶ Πληίαδες· μέσαι δὲ νύκτες, παρὰ δ’ ἔρχετ’ ὤρα· ἔγω δὲ μόνα κατεύδω. La luna è tramontata, Le Pleiadi pure;͜ e mezza La notte s’è già volata; Son sola͜ e non ho dolcezza. |
Iăm ōccĭdĭt īllă lūnă
Ēt Plēĭădēsquĕ; nōxquĕ Mēdi͞ast, ĕt ăbīvĭt hōră; Āc sōlă iăce͞o ĕg’ īpsă.
Iam occidit illa lūna
Cum Plējadibus; volatque Tempus, media'st iam, en, nox; Eheu, iaceō ͜ego sōla. Alrè͞ady the moon has set, The Pleiads as well; the night Is half-gone away; in bed My sadness alone I fight. |
The moon has set,
The Pleiads too,
Midnight is nigh;
Time passes on
And passes, yet
Alone I lie.
The Pleiads too,
Midnight is nigh;
Time passes on
And passes, yet
Alone I lie.
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