Antike Literatur in neuer Deutung Volume 85 (Festschrift für Joachim Latacz anlässlich seines 70. Geburtstages) || An Indo-European stylistic feature in Homer

An Indo-European stylistic feature in Homer

MARTIN L. WEST

The stylistic feature with which I am concerned may be called the Augmented Triad. It consists in the construction of a verse from three names, of which the third is furnished with an epithet or other qualification, as in II. 1.145, ή ' Αίας ή ' Ιδομενεύς ή δίος 'Οδυσσεύς, 'Ajax or Idomeneus or lordly Odysseus'. Such lines are common in Homer and Hesiod. There are also instances with common nouns in place of proper names, as in II. 2.460 χηνών ή γεράνων ή κύκνων δουλιχοδείρων; 6.48 (et al.) χαλκός τε χρυσός τε πολύκμητός τε σίδηρος; Od. 5.64 κλήθρη τ ' αίγειρος τε καί ευώδης κυπάρισσος, 5.66 σκώπές τ ' ϊρηκές τε τανύγλωσσοί τε κορώναι.

It was noticed over a century ago that verses of this type are also frequent in the great Indian epic, the Mahäbhärata. We owe the observation to the Sanskrit-ist Adolf Holtzmann (1892: 64-65), who spoke of

[...] eine dichterische Technik, deren Gesetze und Kunstgriffe zum Theil viel-leicht in die früheste Vorzeit hinaufreichen. So finden wir z.B. die Gewohnheit Homers, von drei im gleichen Verse aufgezählten Eigennamen je den dritten mit einem Beiworte zu versehen, auch im Mahäbhärata wieder: "drei sind noch am Leben, Krpa, Krtavarman und der grosse Wagenheld Açvatthâman" 8, 79, 12 = 4012. 9, 27, 5 = 1447 und andere Beispiele in Menge. Bei Homer ist dieser Ge-brauch sehr häufig z.B. IL 4, 52. 2, 497. Od. 3, 414. 8, 119, in zwei Versen nach einander IL 24, 2S0. 2S1. Nie soll der dritte, durch ein Beiwort ausgezeichnete Nomen vor den anderen dadurch einen Vorzug erhalten; vgl. IL 17, 534 "Hektor und Antenor und der göttergleiche Chromios." Vielmehr will der Dichter nur die Eintönigkeit der Aufzählung durch eine Anregung der vorstellenden Phantasie unterbrechen.

Holtzmann was hesitant about projecting the feature back to an "indogermani-sches Urepos", a topic that he had discussed in cautious terms some pages be-fore (1892: 42-51). Hermann Hirt, however, registered it unequivocally as "eine StileigentUmlichkeit der idg. Poesie", "die sich sehr häufig bei Indern und Grie-

Brought to you by | Dalhousie UniversityAuthenticated | 172.16.1.226

Download Date | 7/30/12 5:22 PM

34 Martin L. West

chen, in Resten auch bei den Germanen findet" (1927-37:1.126). He quoted five examples from the Mahäbhärata (two of them having four names plus the final epithet), nine from the Iliad, one from Virgil (Aen. 4.510), and five from various Germanic poems (Old English, Old Norse, and Middle High German).

The Germanist Friedrich Klaeber (1932: 425-429) collected a larger quantity of Germanic material, though many of his examples are not strictly of the type we are considering. He included, for example, verses in which the third item was a compound noun or name, and so bulkier than the other two, but lacking a separate adjective. He drew attention to the fact that all such cases were to be understood in the context of the "Gesetz der wachsenden Glieder" discovered by another Germanist, Otto Behaghel (1909), and illustrated by him exclusively from Greek, Latin, and German texts. This is the principle that shorter phrases tend to be placed before longer ones, both in prose and in verse. In his general list of examples Behaghel had included three Homeric lines of the type we are considering (1909: 120, cf. 140-141). He did not make them into a special category, but they form such a distinct and recognizable type that we may justifiably continue to treat them as a phenomenon in their own right. In the final volume of his Indogermanische Grammatik (1927-37: VII.232-233) Hirt discussed Behaghel's Law and again quoted a few of the Homeric Augmented Triads among his illustrations of it.

Since then other Indoeuropeanists have mentioned the phenomenon in a rather casual way, with less rather than more documentation. The great Basel philologist Jacob Wackernagel (1943: 9) cited a couple of Greek and Latin examples in the context of Behaghel's Law. Rüdiger Schmitt (1967: 273) adduces some earlier Indian evidence than Holtzmann and Hirt had done, quoting Rigveda 1.90.9, 7.66.7, and a couple of other less exact instances, but for the rest he contents himself with Homeric and Latin examples. Calvert Watkins (1995: 24, 31) also takes note of the matter, and offers an early Greek example from outside epic: Alemán 1.75-76 καί ποτιγλέποι Φίλυλλα Δαμαρέτα τ ' έρατά τε Ριανθεμίς, 'and may Philulla look my way, and Damareta, and lovely Vianthemis'. But I know of no more systematic dis-cussion. There remains a good deal more to be said.1

I begin with the Greek evidence. I have not attempted to collect all the instances in early epic, but as an indication of their frequency I can state that

1 I touched on the subject in West (1966: 207) and (1988: 155-156). It is duly remarked in the note on II. 1.145 in the new Gesamtkommentar master-minded by Joachim Latacz.



An Indo-European stylistic feature in Homer 35

there are fourteen examples in the Catalogue of Ships (II. 2.494-877) and twenty-five in Hesiod's Theogony. It is possible to find places where not just two such verses occur in succession, as Holtzmann noted, but as many as four ([Hes.] fr. 33a.9-12). In Hes. Th. 338-345 six of the eight lines are of this type.

Of course there are other ways of fitting names into the hexameter. A verse may be made up of three names without any epithets, as in II. 2.495 Άρκεσίλαός τε Προθοήνωρ τε Κλονίος τε; or of four names, as in Hes. Th. 341 Νέσσον τε 'Ροδίον θ' 'Αλιάκμονα θ' Έπτάπορόν τε; or of two that both have epithets, as in II. 2.640 Χαλκίδα τ' άγχίαλον Καλυδώνα τε πετρήεσσαν, 'and Chalcis by the sea, and rocky Calydon'. There are also lines with three names where it is the first or second that has the epithet, not the third, as in II. 2.520 Κρνσάν τε ζαθέην καί Δαυλΐδα καί Πανοπηα, 'and holy Crisa, and Daulis and Panopeus'. But they are far less common than those in which the third name has the epithet. I find only that one case in the Catalogue of Ships, and three in the Theogony.

The epithet qualifying the third name may either precede it or follow. In the Catalogue of Ships it precedes in twelve of the fourteen instances. In the Theogony the preference is the other way: the epithet precedes the name in nine instances, but follows it in sixteen. Each name is linked to the one before by 'and' (τε, καί, νδέ, or ήδέ), except that in a catalogue extending over several lines the copula is sometimes omitted with the first name in the verse, as in II. 2.498, 502, Th. 250, 339.

Now let us turn to India. Here is a collection of examples from the Rigveda:

1.90.9 sám na Indro, Brhaspátih, sám no Visnur urukramáh 'a blessing (be) to us Indra (and) Brhaspati, a blessing to us Visnu the wide-stepping*

5.41.11 Diyaúr, Vana, Giráyo vrksäkesäh 'the Sky, the Forests, the Mountains tree-tressed'

5.46.8 Indrânt, Agnayî, Asvinï rat 'Indräni, Agnäyi, Aávini the queen'

6.50.12 Rbhuksà, Vajo, daíviyo Vidhäta 'Rbhuksan, Väja, divine Vidhàtar'

6.51.3 Áditim, Mitrám, Vârunam sujätan 'Aditi, Mitra, Varuna, the well-born ones'2

2 Here the epithet is accusative plural, referring to all three gods. Cf. 7.51.2, 7.60.4.



Martin L West

índro, Agnir, Asvinä tustuvâna 'Indra, Agni, the Aávins that have been lauded' Mitrâm grnïse, Vàrunam, Aryamànam risadasam 'Mitra I hymn, Varuna, Aryaman the [epithet of obscure sense]' yâbih Pakthàm âvatho, yàbhir Ádhrigum, yâbhir Babhrúm víjosasam 'with which you helped Paktha, with which Adhrigu, with which Babhru (when he was) isolated' Tvàstà, Savita, suyämä Sàrasvatï 'Tvastr, Savitr, easy-guided Sarasvatî' Vâyùh, Pûsâ, Sàrasvatï sajôsasah 'Vâyu, Pusan, Sarasvatî, (all) united' Áditir, Dyàvaprthivî, Rtám mahád, \ Índrávísnü, Marútah, Súvar brhát I [...] I Vásün, Rudran, Savitâram sudámsasam, 'Aditi, Heaven-Earth, great Truth, | Indra-Visnu, the Maruts, the lofty Daylight, | [...] I Vasus, Rudras, Savitr of wondrous deeds'

10.66.12 Adityä, Rüdrä, Vásavah südänavah 'Ädityas, Rudras, Vasus of fine gifts'

10.75.6 Susärtuvä, Rasâyâ, Èvetiyà tiyâ 'with Susartu, with Rasa, with that ávetya'

10.101.1 Dadhikram, Agnim, Usásam ca devîm 'Dadhikra, Agni, and the goddess Dawn'

10.184.2 gârbham dhehi Sinïvâli, | gárbham dhehi Sarasvatî, | gârbham te Asvinau devav \ a dhattäm púskarasraja 'set the embryo, Sinïvâlï, | set the embryo, Sarasvatî, | let the divine Aávins the embryo | set for you, the lotus-crowned ones'

And from the Atharvaveda (áaunaka recension):

4.4.6 adyagne, adyá Savitar, \ adyà devi Sarasvatî 'today, Agni, today, Savitr, today, goddess Sarasvatî!'

5.27.9 fdä, Sàrasvatï, mahíBhàratï 'Ida, Sarasvatî, the great Bhâratî'

6.44.1 =77.1 (cf. 88.1) ästhäd diyaúr, àsthât prthivy, àsthâd visvam idám jâgat 'still stands the sky, still stands the earth, still stands this universe of movement'

9.2.6 Kâmasyéndrasya, Várunasya rajño 'of Kama, of Indra, of Varuna the king'

7.51.3

7.66.7

8.22.10

9.81.4

10.65.1

10.66.4




10.10.4 yäyä dyaúr, yäyä prthivî, yâyapo gupitâ imàh

'by whom the sky, by whom the earth, by whom these waters are guarded'

There are numerous examples in the two great epics, the Mahäbhärata and the Rämäyana. I have counted thirty in the Ädiparvan3 alone.

As in Greek, the epithet accompanying the third name may precede or follow it, but the latter position is by far the more common. At the end of the verse it provides a convenient means of achieving the requisite metrical clausula. In the commonest epic metre, the sloka, the verse has an iambic close, w - υ - . Quite often this is supplied by a formulaic epithet compounded with the fore-element mahä- 'great-', for example:

Mbh. 12.76cd Daityänäm Dänavänam ca Yaksänäm ca mahaujasäm, 'of great might' 159.24cd Asvagrivas ca Süksmas ca Tuhundas ca mahäsurah, 'the great asura' 160.2ab Mrgasryädhas ca Éarvas ca Nirrtis ca mahäyasäh, 'of great fame' 1177.17ab Akrürah Sätyakis caiva Uddhavas ca mahäbalah, 'of great strength' 1177.19cd Brhadratho Bâhlïkas ca Èrutâyus ca mahärathah, 'of the great chariot'

Räm. VII 87.2ab Visvämitro Dirghatapä Durväsäs ca mahätapäh, 'of great austerities'.

We may compare the use in Greek of μεγά-θυμος, as in Hes. Th. 734, ενθα Γύγης Κόττος τε καί Όβριάρεως μεγάθυμος, 'there Gyges and Kottos and Obriareos the great-hearted', and likewise [Hes.] frs. 33a.l0, 150.17, 227. In general the adjectives used in Augmented Triads tend to be of a non-specific and formulaic character. In the verses quoted above from the Rigveda we see some compounded with the prefix su- 'good-', 'well-', which corresponds to the Greek έϋ-. We can compare verses such as II. 2.712, Βοίβην καν Γλαφύρας καί έϋκτιμένην Ίαωλκόν, 'Boibe and Glaphyrai and well-cultivated Iolkos', or Hes. Th. 250, 255, 343, 354.

Before leaving the Indian material, we may note a similarity in the use of the copula. The Sanskrit ca, which is etymologically identical with the Greek τε, may follow all three names, or the last two only, or the last one only. The verses

3 The first book of the Mahäbhärata. In case anyone cares to look them up, the verses are: 1.167cd; 2.76cd; 59.23ab, 59.24cd; 60.2abcd = 114.57abcd, 60.3ab, 60.5cd; 89.9abcd, 89.45cd, 89.46ab, 89.48abcd, 89.49cd, 89.51cd, 89.52cd; 177.7ab, 177.8cd, 177.10cd, 177.12abcd, 177.15abcd, 177.17ab, 177.19cd; 213.27ab; 218.36ab.



38 Martin L. West

quoted above illustrate the three alternatives.4 Only the third is avoided in the Greek epic, and it is not foreign to Greek overall; cf. Aesch. Pers. 312, Άρκτεύς, Άδεύης, καν Φερεσσεύης τρίτος, 'Arcteus, Adeues, and Pheresseues as third'.

If the Augmented Triad is so common in early Greek and Indian texts, it seems natural to look for examples from Iran, though I do not know that anyone has done so. If we had a fund of old Iranian epic, they might be easier to find. There are none in the Gathas. Nevertheless, a few specimens can be gleaned from other parts of the Avesta. In each case the copula ca is attached to all three items in the triad.

YaSt

13.48 haOra Mtöcäca RaSnuca uxraca DâmôiS Upamanô 'with Mithra, Rainu, and the strong DâmôiS Upamana'

13.86 y$mca gâuiyçmca Gayehe yçmca spävaoyö aSâvaoyô 'and that of the Cow, and that of Gaya, and that of the blessed Truth-

followers'

17.5 Haomaheca namö M?9raheca aSaonaëca ZaraOuStrahe 'homage to Haoma, to the Mantra, and to the truthful Zarathushtra'

19.7 aOaurunaëca raOaèStâica vâstryâica fSuyente 'for the priest and the warrior and the stock-raising herdsman'

Cf. 13.88, (Zarathushtra) 'the first priest, the first warrior, the first stock-

raising herdsman'

Vidëvdât 3.4 = 23 yavançmca vâstrançmca urvarançmca χ*araöö.bairyançm

'grains and herbage and plants with edible fruits'

I may seem by now to have adduced enough evidence to support the claim that the Augmented Triad is something inherited from proto-Indo-European. But that would be a premature conclusion. The assumption that "Homer + Rigveda (± Avesta) = Indo-European" is a fallacy that Indoeuropeanists and their camp-followers constantly commit. Indo-Iranian and Greek, together with Phrygian and Armenian, form a subfamily within Indo-European. Features that they share by common inheritance do not necessarily go back to proto-Indo-European, but only to the common ancestor of these languages, that is, to a form

4 In Mbh. I 177.17a caiva (ca contracted with the particle eva) is merely a metrical variant for the simple ca.




of East Indo-European that must have been spoken in the Pontic-Caspian area towards the end of the third millennium. Indeed, significant correspondences between Greek and Indian or Iranian verse do not necessarily take us back even that far. For one thing, we know that in the mid second millennium speakers of a form of Old Indie exercised military power in Mitanni in north Syria, and they might have had cultural contacts with the Mycenaean world. For another thing, the archaeologist János Makkay (2000) has recently marshalled a series of plausible arguments for the thesis that a band of Iranian-speaking invaders from the steppes occupied Mycenae itself at the beginning of the Late Helladic period, around 1600. This might account for the presence in the Homeric language of Iranian loan-words such as τόξον 'bow' and γωρυτός 'bowcase'.

To make a case for inheritance from an earlier phase of Indo-European, therefore, it is necessary to supplement the evidence from the east with evidence from the west, from the areas of Germanic, Celtic, and Italic settlement and culture. As mentioned earlier, some scholars have in fact quoted examples of the Augmented Triad from Latin and Germanic verse. But of their Germanic texts only a very few date from the first millennium, and the Latin instances are of little value, as they are naturally accounted for as imitations of Greek models. However, the Germanic material can be amplified, and further evidence can be added from the early Celtic literatures.

From Germany itself Klaeber cited from the Wessobrunn Prayer:

noh sunna ni seein, \ noh mäno ni Huh ta, noh der mâreo sëo 'nor did the sun shine, nor the moon give light, nor the glorious sea (exist)'.

This is not a perfect example, because of the verbs accompanying the first two nouns, and because the triad is spread over a verse and a half; in fact it is a segment excerpted from a longer series of clauses. Better ones are found in the Old English corpus:

Beowulf 61 Heorogär ond Hrödgar ond Hälga til

'Heorogar, Hrothgar, and Haiga the good' 2434 Herebeald ond Hcedcyn od de Hygeläc min

'Herebeald and Haethcyn, or my Hygelac'

Christ (III) 990 hu past gestun ond se storm ond seo stronge lyft

'how that crashing and the storm and the powerful wind'



40 Martin L West

997 dar bid cirm ond cearu ond cwicra gewin 'there is crying and lamenting and tribulation of the living'.

More can be found in the shorter poems of the Nordic tradition. From the so-called Poetic Edda we can quote the following:

Vçluspi 3 vara sandr ni seer né svaiar unnir

'there was not sand nor sea nor the cool waves' 18 là né Iceti né lito goda

'heat(?) nor voice nor goodly hue'

Grímnismál 29 Kçrmt oc Qrmt oc Kerl aligar tvxr

'Kormt and Ormt and the Kerlaugs twain'

Helgaqvida Hundingsbana in fyrri 52 Atla oc Yngva, Ólfinom gamia

'Atli and Yngvi, Alf the old'

Sigrdrífumál 18 pxc ro med Ásom, pier ro med Álfom, \ sumar med visom Vçnum

'they are with the £sir , they are with the Elves, | some are with the wise Vanir'

Hyndluljófll 18 Frapmtur oc Gyrör oc Frecar báOir, I Amt oc Içsurmarr, Álfr inn gamli

'Frathmar and Gyrth and the Frekis both, | Am and Josurmar, Alf the old' 23 Tindr oc Tyrfingr oc tveir Haddingiar

'Tind and Tyrfing and the two Haddings'.

More can be collected from poems and verse catalogues quoted in the Sagas:

Bardar Saga 5 Búrfell ok Bala, bada Lóndranga

'Burfell and Bole (and) the two Londiengs'

Hâlfs Saga 15 Oddr ok Qrnólfr, Áti enn svurti

'Odd and Ornolf, Ati the swart' 16 Hringr ok Hàlfdanr, Haukar bádir

'Hring and Halfdan, (and) the two Hauks'




Hervarar Saga 11 saxi ok med sverdì, sièri bryniu

'with dagger and sword (and) long corslet'.

Turning to the Celtic domain, we may quote first from the Gorchans (Lays) associated with the Welsh heroic poem Y Gododdin and printed in sequence with it in the edition of Jarman (1990):

Gorchan Tudfwlch (Y Gododdin 1057-8) Cynan, Cynon, Teithfyw o Fôn 'Cynan, Cynon, Teithfyw from Môn'

Gorchan Cynfelyn {Y Gododdin 1115) Cynon a Chadraith a Chadlew o Gadnant 'Cynon and Cadraith and Cadlew of Cadnant'.

The next example comes from stanza 121 of the Cyvoesi Myrddin, the first poem in the Red Book of Hergest:5

Marú Morgeneu, marú Kyfrennin | Moryal, marú Moryen mur trin 'dead is Morgeneu, dead is Cyvrennin Moryal, dead is Moryen the bulwark of battle'.

These are typical items from the Triads of the Island of Britain (Bromwich 1978):

(3) Ewein mab Vryen, | Run mah Maelgwn, | Ruuavn Beuyr mab Dewrarth Wledic '(Three Fair Princes of the Island of Britain:) | Owain son of Urien, | Rhun son of Maelgwn, | Rhufawn the radiant son of Dewrarth Wledig'

(21) Drystan mab Tallwch, | a Hueil mab Caw, \ a Chei mab Kenyr Keinuaruavc '(Three battle-diademed men of the Isle of Britain:) Drystan son of Tallwch, I and Hueil son of Caw, | and Cai son of Cenyr of the fine beard'.

Further examples will be quoted later. The Old Irish material is abundant:

5 Skene (1868) II232 (text), 1476 (translation).



42 Martin L West

Campanile (1988: 29) no. 6.3

Nòe, Ladru Lergnaid, luath Cuar

'Nóe, Ladru Lergnaid, the swift Cuar'

Campanile (1988: 35) no. 20.1

Nia Corbb, Corbmacc, Cairpre came aire Ara

'Nia Corbb, Corbmacc, Cairpre Ara, a noble bear'.

Numerous examples are to be found in Meyer (1913: 27, 29, 30, 42, 54). Some contain the names of persons, others of peoples:6

Conchobur, Fili Find, Russ ran.

Boad, Rifad, Gomêr glan.

Germain, Point, Pampil mûaid.

Recin, Roid, Romain miir, \ Masail, Morcain, Macidöin niir.

Narboin, Nordi, Nombithi brais, | Bethain, Β retain, Belgio mais.

Galait, Achuid, Athain aird.

Alain, Albâin, Hircäin öig.

Nôenal, Fâibur, Göedel-Glass ôengno ('uniquely fair').

Agnomain, Töe, Banb bOadach brasgein ('a victorious strong one').

Enôc, Iarëth, Malalêl côirchtann, | Câinân, E nos, Sëth sôirchlann.

Ëillim, Eochaid, Lugaid Γι, \ Änruth, Rôeda, Roân rî.

Môen, Cass, Airer ôenâith ('uniquely keen').

More than two dozen more can be collected from the antiquarian verse passages of the Lebor Gabâla Érenn (Book of the Invasions of Ireland), edited by Stewart Macalister (1938-56): see lines 186, 190, 263, 268, 313, 315, 319, 323, 327, 407, 538, 743, 1021, 1027, 1437, 1443, 1445, 2117, 2270, 2311, 2629, 2631, 3062, 3850, 4502, 4802, and 4808.7 It is unnecessary to set them out. They are monotonously uniform in construction, similar to the ones quoted above from Meyer, with the names nearly always in asyndeton and the epithet (usually a monosyllable) in final position.

6 Here I can dispense with translations. The epithets are almost all of a general nature, meaning glorious, noble, bright, great, honourable, exalted, etc.

1 In each of his five volumes Macalister separates the verse passages from the prose narrative, and he numbers the verses continuously throughout.




There are further instances in the Acallam na Senórach:8 'Finn and Oisin, sturdy Catite'; 'Stocán, Mug Ruith, and Finn from Formael [...] Miach and Airmed, their father Dían Cécht'.

Lastly I may quote this compound specimen from the twelfth-century poem Suibne Geilt 55-6 (Murphy 1956: 134):

dam Ella, dam Orbraige, dam lonn Locha Léin, dam Seimne, dam Latharna, dam Line na lenn, dam Cúailnge, dam Conachla, dam Baime dà benn.

'The stag of Duhallow, the stag of Orrery, the angry stag of Lough Leane, the stag of Island Magee, the stag of Larne, the stag of Moylinny of the cloaks, the stag of Cooley, the stag of Cunghill, the stag of two-peaked Burren.'

We see that the Augmented Triad is as much at home in the early poetic traditions of the west as in those of Greece and India. Some scholars strive to derive as much as possible in Celtic and Germanic literature from Classical models. But to apply this explanation to the phenomenon under discussion would surely be an extreme of dogmatism. The texts I have used are not composed in Classical verse-forms and do not imitate Classical style, diction, or conceits. None of them is earlier than the seventh century, it is true. But in the case of the Germanic epic traditions, the general similarities between the Nordic, Anglo-Saxon, continental Saxon, and High German branches in respect of metre, style, and historical memory point to a common background in the Gothic world of the fourth century, and behind that, in all probability, there was a continuous tradition going back to the type of heroic song mentioned by Tacitus.9 It is only the absence of written texts that prevents us from tracing both the Germanic and the Celtic poetic traditions back into a remoter past. It is

' I quote the translations of Dooley-Roe (1999: 41 and 78), being unable to locate the recension of the original that they are following.

9 Tac. Ann. 2.88, (Arminius) canitur adhuc barbaras apud gentes, 'he is sung of to this day among the barbarian peoples'.



44 Martin L. West

more likely that the Augmented Triad was a feature of this poetry from the start than that it was something introduced at a late date.

It seems, then, that this is a pattern truly characteristic of Indo-European poetry over the whole area from India to the Celtic west. It is not tied to a particular metre, but can be adapted to new metres as they arise. It developed initially, we may suppose, because on the one hand there was a tendency to group names and other things in threes, and on the other hand there was need of a simple technique for filling out a verse to its due measure. We have seen that the Augmented Triad frequently serves this purpose in Greek and Sanskrit verse.

How well do these conclusions square with current concepts of Indo-European versification? My own construct of thirty years ago,10 which so far as I am aware has not yet been demolished or superseded, posited a set of syllable-counting verse forms marked by regulation of syllabic quantities towards the end of the line, an intrinsic feature that would have favoured the use of fillers (such as conventional epithets) in final position.

From another point of view, however, the Augmented Triad may seem to pose a problem. The principal Indo-European metres that I reconstructed were verses of seven or eight syllables, capable of being extended to eleven or twelve syllables by means of a four-syllable prefix or suffix. Now, an eight-syllable verse can easily accommodate three names and an epithet when, as often in Old Norse or Irish, these elements are disyllables or monosyllables. But in proto-Indo-European we should expect many compound names of three or four syllables, and adjectives of at least two syllables, or more in the case of compounds. Even a twelve-syllable line, we should think, would often have been too short to hold an Augmented Triad. In Greek and Sanskrit we have found some examples in eleven- or twelve-syllable lines, but the great majority take up more space: in Greek a hexameter of anything up to seventeen syllables, in Sanskrit two octosyllabic lines (Rgv. 1.90.9, 7.66.7, Atharvav. 4.4.6, 6.44.1, 10.10.4) or, in the epics, a sixteen-syllable sloka. The sloka is a syzygy of two octosyllables with differentiated clausulae (choliambic + iambic). The Greek hexameter, too, has long been assumed to be a compound from two original cola, though the details are disputed. As in the sloka, there is a strong sense of two balancing halves, so that when the line is to contain three names, two will naturally go in the first half, the third in the second, and something more, such

10 West (1973).




as an epithet, will be needed to maintain the balance of the cola. It is similar with the four-stress Germanic verse, which also falls into two balancing halves: Oddr ok Qcnólfr, Áti enn svarti. This metre too is argued to go back to a pairing of two Indo-European verses." The inference from all this is that such pairing was already a feature of some types of Indo-European composition, and that an Augmented Triad might often unroll itself across a double-verse of (say) 8 + 8 or 8 + 7 syllables.

In what kinds of poetic setting might such Triads have occurred? One, at any rate, is common to the Greek, Indian, Germanic, and Celtic traditions. In all of them we find triadic lines within longer catalogues of names. Catalogues are typical of heroic poetry, as is well known, and of genealogical and other antiquarian verse. Some sort of heroic poetry, at least, can be postulated for the Indo-Europeans on other grounds.

But Triads also appear where there is no longer list but simply a trio of names. Sometimes it is explicitly noted that the last name is the third: II. 14.117 "Αγριος ήδέ Μέλας, τρίτατος δ ' ήν ιππότα Οίνεύς, 'Agrios and Mêlas, and horseman Oineus made the third'; 15.188 Ζευς καί εγώ, τρίτατος δ ' Ά'ΐδης ένέροισιν άνάσσων, 'Zeus and myself, and thirdly Hades who rules those below'; Alemán 20 θέρος καν χείμα κώπώραν τρίταν, 'summer and winter and autumn as third'; Aesch. Pers. 308 Λίλαιος Άρσάμης τε κ'Αργήστης τρίτος, 'Lilaios and Arsames and Argestes as third'; ibid. 312, Άρκτεύς, Άδεύης, καν Φερεσσεύης τρίτος, 'Arcteus, Adeues, and Pheresseues as third'; Hálfs Saga 17 Hámundr ok Geirmundr Hjçrvi bornir, I en Leifr pciôi, Loöhattarsonr, 'Hamund and Geirmund born to Hj<?rr, | and Leif as the third, the son of Lodhçttr'. There may perhaps be examples in the Mahäbhärata; certainly we find there the analogous case that an Augmented Triad completes a list of eight brothers, and the last one is specified as 'the eighth': Mbh. 1.89.46ab Uccaihsravä Bhadrakäro Jitäris cästamah smrtah, 'Uccaiháravas, Bhadrakära, and Jitäri recorded as the eighth', and again in another list a few lines later, Mbh 1.89.49cd.

Sometimes the trio of names is preceded by the announcement that they are three:

II. 4.51-52: ήτοι έμοί τρεις μεν πολύ φίλταταί είσι πόληες, "Αργός τε Σπάρτη τε καί εύρυάγυια Μυκήνη.

11 West (1973: 179-181).



46 Martin L. West

'To me there are three cities most dear, Argos and Sparta and broad-wayed Mycene.'

Lebor Gabála Érenn 535/538: tri rig na läechraide lüaidim [...] Milid, Oici, Uici in. Ί mention three kings of the hero-band [...] Mil, Occe, Ucce the splendid.'

Within this class one type of trio is especially common, the three sons sprung from one father:

II. 20.231-232: Τρωός δ' αυ τρεις παίδες άμύμονες έξεγένοντο, ΤΙλός τ' Άσσάρακός τε καί άντίθεος Γανυμήδης. 'From Tros three fine sons were born: Ilos and Assarakos and godlike Ganymedes.'

The pattern is a recurrent one in Greek epic; compare II. 9.144-145; 14.115/117; 15.187-188; Od. 8.118-119; Hes. Th. 147-149, 907/909; [Hes.] fr. 23a.3-5; 26.5-9. But it appears in very similar form in other traditions:

Mbh. 1.60.5: trayas tv Angirasah puträ loke sarvatra visrutäh: Brhaspatir Utathyas ca Samvartas ca dhrtavratäh. 'But of Angiras, three sons renowned everywhere in the world: Brhaspati and Utathya and Samvarta the resolute.'

Mbh. 1.89.52: Pratïpasya trayah puträ jajñire, bharatarsabha: Deväpih Samtanus caiva Bâhlïkas ca mahärathah. 'Of Pratìpa three sons were born, O bull among the Bharatas: Devâpi and Samtanu and Bâhlïka of the great chariot.'

Mabinogion, p. 55.32 MUhlhausen (1988): Tri meib Giluaethwy ennwir, tri chenryssedat kywir: Bleidwn, Hydwn, Hychdwn hir. 'The three sons of false Gilfaethwy, | three champions true, | Bleiddwn, Hyddwn, Hychdwn the tall.'




Enwev meibon 3 (Rowland 1990: 413 (text), 473 (translation)): Tri meib Llywarch, tri aghimen kad, tri cheimad awlawen: Llev ac Arav ac Vrien. 'Three sons of Llywarch, three bold in battle, | three fierce champions: | Llew and Araw and Urien.'

Lebor Gabála Érenn 185-186: tñ meic dAdtm c» mbii cland: Seth, Site, Ciia clien-cam. 'Three sons of Adam, who had progeny: | Seth, Sile, Cain perverse-and-crooked.'

Lebor Gabála Érenn 189-190: tri meic Nòe nair cech neirt: Sem, Cam, Iafet aurdairc. 'Three sons of Noah, of every (kind of) strength: | Shem, Ham, Japheth the glorious.'

In inverse order, Lebor Gabála Érenn 1437-1438: Erglan, Matach, Iartacht in, tri meic Beöain meic Stairn stlall-bin. 'Erglan, Matach, Iartacht the splendid: | three sons of Beoan, son of Stam white-girdled.'

See also Meyer (1913: 29), v. 31. In nearly every case we have the identical pattern: the words 'three sons', with the father's name in the genitive, with or without a verb such as 'were born'; a general qualification of the sons as 'fine', 'renowned', etc.; and then their individual names in an Augmented Triad. It is the same in Beowulf 59-61 with only a minor modification:

pxm Jeower beam fordgerimed in worold wöcun, weoroda rœswa<n>, Heorogär ondHrödgar ondHaiga til [...] 'For him four children forthnumbered | woke to the world, warband chieftains, | Heorogar, Hrothgar, and Haiga the good [...]'

The name of the fourth child, a daughter, was given in the next line. With this ancient formulaic scheme in mind, we cannot help but sense a

fragment of Scythian poetry behind the genealogy reported by Herodotus 4.5:



48 Martin L· West

γένεος μεν τοιούτου δή τίνος γενέσθαι τον Ταργίταον, τούτου δέ γενέσθαι παΐδας τρεις, Λιπόξαϊν καί Άρπόξαϊν και νεώτατον Κολάξαϊν.

'Of such lineage they say that Targitaos came, and that from him came three sons, Lipoxai's and Arpoxai's and the youngest, Kolaxai's.'

The names of the three surely stood in a compound verse, perhaps of 8 + 8 or 8 + 7 syllables, something like *Lipok$ayi$, Rpokâayté, KolakSayiS ca - u - . Kolaxai's' name might have been accompanied by 'the third', as in the examples noted above, rather than 'the youngest'.

Similarly with that oldest fragment of Germanic genealogical poetry recorded by Tacitus, Germ. 2.3:

celebrant carminibus antiquis, quod unum apud illos memoriae et annalium genus est, Tuistonem deum terra editum et filium Mannum originem gentis conditoresque. Manno tris filios adsignant, e quorum nominibus proximi Oceano Ingaeuones, medii Herminones, ceteri Istaeuones uocentur.

'They celebrate in traditional poems, which is their only form of historical record, a god Tuisto born from the earth, and his son Mannus, as the origin and founders of the nation. To Mannus they attribute three sons, from whose names those nearest the Ocean are called Ingaevones, those in the middle Herminones, and the rest Istaevones.'

As Much (1959: 24) noted, the names Ingaeuo, Hermino, and Istaeuo, the first and third of which alliterate, must have stood together in a verse. Assuming that the metre resembled the Vierstäbler typical of all the earliest Germanic traditions, there would have been another stressed word accompanying Istaiwo in the second half-line. There is a good chance that it was an adjective, completing an Augmented Triad.

It has long been believed that Homeric epic not only descends from Mycenaean antecedents but preserves occasional traces of a yet older poetic tradition, going back to Indo-European times. It is the aim of my current research to lend greater substance to that belief. The present paper, the first fruits of this research, may fittingly be offered to a scholar outstanding in his enthusiastic engagement with all aspects of Homeric studies.




References

Behaghel, O. (1909). "Beziehungen zwischen Umfang und Reihenfolge von Satzgliedern". IF, 25: 110-142.

Campanile, E. (1988). Die älteste Hofdichtung von Leinster (SAWW, 503). Wien.

Dooley, Α., and Roe, Η. (1999). Tales of the Elders of Ireland. Oxford. Hirt, Η. (1927-37). Indogermanische Grammatik, I-VII. Heidelberg. Holtzmann, A. (1892). Zur Geschichte und Kritik des Mahäbhärata. Kiel. Jarman, Α. Ο. H. (1990). YGododdin. Llandysul. Klaeber, F. (1932). "Eine kleine Nachlese zum Beowulf'. Anglia, 56: 421-431. Macalister, R. A. S. (1938-56). Lebor Gabála Érenn (Irish Texts Society, vols.

34-35, 39, 41, 44). Dublin. Makkay, J. (2000). The Early Mycenaean Rulers and the Contemporary Early

Iranians of the Northeast. Budapest. Meyer, K. (1913). Über die älteste irische Dichtung, I (SPAW, 1913: 6). Berlin. Much, R. (1959). Die Germania des Tacitus (2nd edn.). Heidelberg. Mühlhausen, L. (1988). Die vier Zweige des Mabinogi (2nd edn. by S. Zimmer).

Tubingen. Murphy, G. (1956). Early Irish Lyrics. Oxford. Rowland, J. (1990). Early Welsh Saga Poetry. Cambridge. Schmitt, R. (1967). Dichtung und Dichtersprache in indogermanischer Zeit.

Wiesbaden. Skene, W. F. (1868). The Four Ancient Books of Wales. Edinburgh. Wackernagel, J. (1943). "Indogermanische Dichtersprache". Philologus, 95: 1-

19 (reprinted in J. Wackernagel, Kleine Schriften, Göttingen, 1955-79, 1.186-204, and R. Schmitt (ed.), Indogermanische Dichter spräche, Darmstadt, 1968, 83-101).

Watkins, C. (1995). How to Kill a Dragon. New York and Oxford. West, M. L. (1966). Hesiod. Theogony. Oxford. — (1973). "Indo-European Metre". Glotta, 51: 161-187. — (1988). "The Rise of the Greek Epic". JHS, 108: 151-172.





Documents

Antike Literatur in neuer Deutung Volume 85 (Festschrift für Joachim Latacz anlässlich seines 70. Geburtstages) || An Indo-European stylistic feature in Homer