Expert: Maria - 4/13/2008

Question
Can you help me please?  I need to get the Caesar quote translated into Ancient Greek "Cowards die many times before their deaths; The Valient never taste of death but once."  I was wondering if it were possible to get it in the ancient lettering also?

Answer
Hello,

First of all this is not a quote from Julius Caesar, Roman general and writer, but from Shakespeare’s tragedy just entitled 'Julius Caesar',act II,scene II, lines 36-37, where Caesar replies to his wife Calpurnia by saying: “Cowards die many times before their deaths;the valiant never taste of death but once”.

As for the translation of this Shakespeare’s quote into ancient Greek, here it is in the Latin transliteration which is nothing but the Greek text written in the Latin alphabet we use still today:

“Hoi deiloi pollakis thneskousi pro tou thanatou; apax hoi andreioi“

As for the same text written in ancient Greek letters, here it is, but I’m afraid you cannot read it, first because the system often does not allow the use of the Greek letters and diacritic marks, second because you perhaps do not know the Greek alphabet:

“ Όι δειλοι πολλάκις  θνήσκουσι προ του θανάτου, άπαξ οι ανδρειοι “.

Best regards,
Maria