[B-Greek] Enclitics

Ken Purscell k.j.purscell at tcu.edu
Tue Feb 7 15:35:54 EST 2006


> In researching information regarding a grammar problem, I have found you 
> may be specialists in the area of enclitics. In reference to my particular 
> situation, I would request your answer to the following question:
>
> What precise part is the word "both" in grammar?
>
> We have normally stated it to be an indefinite pronoun. But further 
> studies indicate it to be an enclitic. Would it be proper to say this is 
> an enclitic particle? Or would it be better to include it with enclitic 
> pronouns? An example to use for debating this would be the King James 
> Version Bible, Acts chapter 1 and verse 8 which states:
>
> "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: 
> and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, 
> and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."
>
> In this verse, what part is the word both? Please grant me your 
> professional opinion on this so that I may understand more clearly the 
> concept of enclitics with relation to the word both. My sincere 
> appreciation to you and your colleagues for your valued wisdom on this.
>
> Truly,
>
> B Thrall
> United States

In English, and often in Greek, "both" can be a conjunction, especially in a 
sentence such as the one you gave from Acts which uses the "both...and" 
construction.  (The "both" in, for example "both of you" could be called a 
pronoun, but that's a different constructin.) The textbook example in 
B-Greek, of course, is KAI...KAI, but as you've probably already noted, the 
"both" in the translation of Acts 1:8 doesn't translate a KAI, but the 
enclitic particle TE.  Here's the phrase in full:

KAI ESESQE MOU MARTURES EN TE IEROUSALHM KAI EN PASHi THi IOUDAIAi KAI 
SAMAREIAi KAI hEWS ESXATOU THS GHS

The reason most translators put "both" in the sentence is because TE starts 
the process of connecting concepts, in this case the places where the 
disciples are to be witnesses.  It does this, though, not because it is an 
enclitic, but because it is a particle which does this.   A word is called 
an enclitic if it often loses its accent mark, much as EN does in the same 
sentence.  (You'll notice that the first EN has its mark, and that's because 
it's followed by TE, another enclitic!  The second EN, followed by PASHi, is 
its usual bland, unaccented self.)

Particles are hard for English speakers because we don't have them, at least 
not in formal presentations of grammar.  Translators just have to learn to 
recognize them.  I've learned that when I come across TE I should just start 
looking for a KAI or another TE and see what things the writer is trying to 
link together.  Occasionally TE appears alone; "and" or even sometimes just 
ignoring it works well enough.

I hope both that this clears things up and that you hang in there.
Ken Purscell
Nebraska 




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