oa De Griekse vertaling van de Res Gestae Divi Augusti

This paper discusses a number of linguistic and interpretative aspects of the Greek translation of the Res Gestae Divi Augusti. Linguistically, the text gives a good idea of the development of Koine Greek at the beginning of the 1^st century. Even though the translation is clearly aimed at rendering the Latin original as faithful as possible, there are still a considerable number of deviations from the Latin version which enable us to get a glimpse of the translator, the intended audience and their world views. A number of deviations can be explained as attempts by the translator to tailor the text to the knowledge and attitudes of a Greek-speaking eastern audience. Occasional errors in the translation seem to reveal that the translator was not fully acquainted with Roman institutions, which may be an indication that he was based in the Greek East rather than in Rome. A third group of deviations, finally, appear to point to a different, provincial Greek, attitude toward Roman imperialism and Augustus’ status as monarch.