Herodotus

[Nooj]

One text I'm using says:

7.206.2

ὣς δὲ καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ τῶν συμμάχων ἐνένωντο καὶ αὐτοὶ ἕτερα τοιαῦτα ποιήσειν· ἦν γὰρ κατὰ τὠυτὸ Ὀλυμπιὰς τούτοισι τοῖσι πρήγμασι συμπεσοῦσα· οὔκων δοκέοντες κατὰ τάχος οὕτω διακριθήσεσθαι τὸν ἐν Θερμοπύλῃσι πόλεμον ἔπεμπον τοὺς προδρόμους.

(H. has previously described what the Spartans did). In such a way, the rest of the allies also intended to do such and other things, as the Olympic games fell in with that business at the same time. Not thinking that the war at Thermopylae would be settled so quickly, they sent forth the advance party.

The text I'm using says οὐκ ὦν δοκέοντες. If I use the latter version, how do I understand ὦν? Is it a relative pronoun that's been attracted into the clause, i.e. τούτων (ὦν) ἃ οὐκ δοκέοντες...

[pster]

What text are you using? I'm inclined to just read it as οὔκων.

[NateD26]

Smyth in 2954a writes:

• Hdt. has οὐκ ὦν (sometimes written οὔκων) to emphasize an idea opposed to what goes before (non tamen). Thus, ταῦτα λέγοντες τοὺς Κροτωνιήτᾱς οὐκ ὦν ἔπειθον by these words they did not however persuade the men of Croton 3. 137.

Smyth notes this is to be distinguished from either οὔκουν or οὐκοῦν and it is usually written
as two words in Attic, οὐκ (μὴ) οὖν which I assume in Ionic is οὐκ (μὴ) ὦν. Note that the
gen. pl. relative pron. is aspirated, so there couldn't have been attraction here.

Following Smyth's translation of 3.137, your translation is spot on.

[Nooj]

Thank you Nate!