Plato, Timaeus 25a · 25a

The true sea and the kings of Atlantis

Critias — ἐπὶ τὴν καταντικρὺ πᾶσαν ἤπειρον τὴν περὶ τὸν ἀληθινὸν ἐκεῖνον πόντον. τάδε μὲν γάρ, ὅσα ἐντὸς τοῦ στόματος οὗ λέγομεν, φαίνεται λιμὴν στενόν τινα ἔχων εἴσπλουν· ἐκεῖνο δὲ πέλαγος ὄντως ἥ τε περιέχουσα αὐτὸ γῆ παντελῶς ἀληθῶς ὀρθότατʼ ἂν λέγοιτο ἤπειρος. ἐν δὲ δὴ τῇ Ἀτλαντίδι νήσῳ ταύτῃ μεγάλη συνέστη καὶ θαυμαστὴ δύναμις βασιλέων, κρατοῦσα μὲν ἁπάσης τῆς νήσου, πολλῶν δὲ ἄλλων νήσων καὶ μερῶν τῆς ἠπείρου· πρὸς δὲ τούτοις ἔτι τῶν ἐντὸς τῇδε

Critias: to the whole continent opposite, the one around that true sea. For all that lies inside the mouth we speak of looks like a harbour with a narrow entrance, but the other is truly a sea, and the land around it may most rightly be called, in every respect, a continent. On this island of Atlantis a great and marvellous power of kings arose. It ruled the whole island, and many other islands and parts of the continent as well; and besides these, of the lands inside here,

Word by word

Critias

ἐπὶepìtoτὴνtḕntheκαταντικρὺkatantikrỳoppositeπᾶσανpâsanwholeἤπειρονḗpeironcontinentτὴνtḕnthe oneπερὶperìaroundτὸνtòn—ἀληθινὸνalēthinòntrueἐκεῖνονekeînonthatπόντονpóntonsea.τάδεtádethisμὲνmèn—γάρgárfor,ὅσαhósaallἐντὸςentòsinsideτοῦtoûtheστόματοςstómatosmouthοὗhoûthatλέγομενlégomenwe speak of,φαίνεταιphaínetailooks likeλιμὴνlimḕna harbourστενόνstenónnarrowτιναtinaaἔχωνéchōnwithεἴσπλουνeísplounentrance·ἐκεῖνοekeînothatδὲdèbutπέλαγοςpélagosseaὄντωςóntōstrulyἥhḗtheτεteandπεριέχουσαperiéchousasurroundingαὐτὸautòitγῆgêlandπαντελῶςpantelôsaltogetherἀληθῶςalēthôstrulyὀρθότατʼorthótatʼmost rightlyἂνànmightλέγοιτοlégoitobe calledἤπειροςḗpeiroscontinent.ἐνenonδὲdèandδὴdḕ—τῇtêi—ἈτλαντίδιAtlantídiAtlantisνήσῳnḗsōiislandταύτῃtaútēithisμεγάληmegálēgreatσυνέστηsynéstēaroseκαὶkaìandθαυμαστὴthaumastḕmarvellousδύναμιςdýnamispowerβασιλέωνbasiléōnof kings,κρατοῦσαkratoûsarulingμὲνmèn—ἁπάσηςhapásēsallτῆςtêstheνήσουnḗsouisland,πολλῶνpollônmanyδὲdèandἄλλωνállōnotherνήσωνnḗsōnislandsκαὶkaìandμερῶνmerônpartsτῆςtêsof theἠπείρουēpeíroucontinent·πρὸςpròsbesidesδὲdèandτούτοιςtoútoistheseἔτιétialsoτῶνtônof theἐντὸςentòsinsideτῇδεtêidehere

Atlantis as Athanasius Kircher drew it from this passage, with south at the top: Africa and Spain upper left, America at the right — Plato, Timaeus — Atlantis as Athanasius Kircher drew it from this passage, with south at the top: Africa and Spain upper left, America at the right · Athanasius Kircher, Situs Insulae Atlantidis, in Mundus Subterraneus (Amsterdam, 1665), vol. 1 · public domain

The setting

Critias finishes the geography: the island leads to the whole continent around the true ocean. He then describes the great power of kings that rose on Atlantis and how far it ruled.

A note on this passage

The geography is built on a contrast between two bodies of water. What lies inside the mouth is a limēn, a harbour, with a stenos eisplous, a narrow way in. The sea outside is pelagos ontōs, "really a sea," and the land around it is called ēpeiros, continent. Critias reasons from the names: the land that rings a true ocean is a continent in the proper sense, and he says so with the superlative orthotat' an legoito, "might most rightly be called."

The kings arrive with the verb synestē, which means to stand together or be put together, and the power is called megalē kai thaumastē, great and marvellous. The verb kratousa, "ruling," takes in the whole island first, then many other islands and parts of the continent. The sentence then turns to ta entos tēide, the lands on this side of the strait, and breaks off at the section end before saying what became of them.

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