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Homeric Hymns · Hymn 11
Athena, Guardian of the City
Ἀθηνᾶ
Prayer and ritual
These hymns may be spoken as complete prayers to the Gods. Within the Temple’s practice, a ritual is a direct theurgical act; hymnody gathers the mind and turns it toward the Divine, helping the initiate enter reverent communion with the Gods.
Use a hymn on its own in place of another prayer, or add it to the prayer portion of a suitable ritual. Choose according to the deity addressed and the petition expressed in the hymn. When combining them, preserve the ritual’s prescribed sequence and let the hymn give voice to its purpose.
The petition of this hymn
Invoke Athena’s guardianship over the community and seek good fortune and flourishing.
Use this hymn as a concise prayer for those who must go out into danger and return. It may accompany a protective rite for a city or community, retaining the hymn’s explicit awareness of war together with its petition for preservation.
English hieratic rendering
Hymn 11 · An English rendering aligned with the Greek lines.
- I begin to sing Pallas Athena, guardian of the city,
- terrible, who with Ares is concerned with the works of war,
- the sacking of cities, the battle cry, and wars,
- and who preserves the people as they go forth and return.
- Hail, Goddess; grant us good fortune and blessed flourishing.
Ancient Greek & pronunciation
Read the English pronunciation spelling directly below each Greek line.
- Παλλάδʼ Ἀθηναίην ἐρυσίπτολιν ἄρχομʼ ἀείδειν,pah-LAHDH’ ah-thee-NEH-een eh-ree-SEEP-toh-leen AHR-khohm’ ah-EE-dheen,
- δεινήν, ᾗ σὺν Ἄρηι μέλει πολεμήια ἔργαdhee-NEEN, EE SEEN AH-ree-ee MEH-lee poh-leh-MEE-ee-ah EHR-ghah
- περθόμεναί τε πόληες ἀϋτή τε πτόλεμοί τε,pehr-THOH-meh-NEH teh POH-lee-ehs ah-ee-TEE teh PTOH-leh-MEE teh,
- καί τʼ ἐρρύσατο λαὸν ἰόντα τε νισσόμενόν τε.KEH t’ eh-REE-sah-toh lah-OHN ee-OHN-dah teh nee-SOH-meh-NOHN teh.
- χαῖρε, θεά, δὸς δʼ ἄμμι τύχην εὐδαιμονίην τε.HYEH-reh, theh-AH, DHOHS dh’ AH-mee TEE-hyeen ehv-dheh-moh-NEE-een teh.
Short sound guide for English speakers
Every line beneath the Greek uses English pronunciation spellings. Say each hyphenated syllable in sequence and emphasize the syllable in CAPITALS. For example, οὐρανόθεν is oo-rah-NOH-thehn. Read adjacent vowels separately: theh-AH has two syllables; oo-rah-NEE-een has four. Hyphens guide the voice; they do not mark pauses.
| Spelling | Sound to make |
|---|---|
| ah · eh · ee · oh · oo | father · met · see · go without its final glide · moon. Keep these vowels clear in unstressed syllables too. |
| th · dh | The unvoiced th in thin · the voiced th in this. Thus DHEE begins with the sound in “thee.” |
| kh | The ch in Scottish loch or German Bach: let air pass at the back of the mouth, without closing it into a k. |
| hy | The breathy beginning of a carefully spoken Hugh. Raise the middle of the tongue toward the roof of the mouth and let air pass without voice. In shy, sound s followed by hy; do not use the English sh sound or the English word “shy.” |
| gh | Make the kh sound above, then add voice. Keep the passage open; this is a flowing sound, not a hard g. |
| y · g | y as in yes, with gentle friction · always a hard g as in get. |
| r | Tap the tongue lightly behind the upper teeth, or use a light roll. |
| ks · ps | Sound both consonants, even at the beginning of a word: ks as in backs, ps as in lips. |
| n-g · m-b · n-d | Sound the nasal and the following consonant. In AHN-geh-leh, the n-g group is like finger, with the g audible. |
Always sound s as in hiss, even at the end of DHEE-kees; z is voiced, as in zero. All other consonants have their usual English sounds. Initial consonant groups may be unfamiliar: sound every written consonant, without inserting an extra vowel. A word without capitals carries no written stress in the Greek. Where two syllables have capitals, both written accents are retained. An apostrophe marks a vowel already elided in the Greek; do not add it back. A hyphen at the end of a Greek verse joins the unfinished word to the next verse.
These spellings follow the Modern Greek liturgical reading used throughout this library. Breathings and iota subscripts are silent; separately pronounced vowels remain separate. The few Greek consonants without an exact English equivalent use the sound cues above. Ancient vowel length, pitch accent and metre are not reconstructed.
Hymn notes
Sacred meaning
Athena’s protection is named in the presence of the battle cry, warfare, and the destruction of cities. Her guardianship accompanies the people in both departure and return. The closing request gathers this power into the desire for fortunate and flourishing life.
Text and attribution
Greek text: Hugh G. Evelyn-White, Hymn 11 To Athena (1914), Perseus Digital Library. Greek source. The English hieratic rendering and suggested devotional use are new editorial work. The applications are guidance for this library, not additional lines of the ancient poem.