# Does Molon Labe Mean Anything in Modern Greek?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-molon-labe-mean-anything-in-modern-greek/646669>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [January 9, 2013, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-molon-labe-mean-anything-in-modern-greek/646669 "2013-01-09T20:54:52Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\
**Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-molon-labe-mean-anything-in-modern-greek/646669/1 "2013-01-09T20:54:52Z")

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Apart from its historical significance, that is? Is that the proper way to say “come and get them” in modern Greek?

Sent from my SGH-i677 using Board Express

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**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\
**Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-molon-labe-mean-anything-in-modern-greek/646669/2 "2013-01-09T23:27:58Z")

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According to Wikipedia, it’s still used as the emblem motto of the [Greek 1st Army Corps](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_First_Army_Corps).

Wikipedia article’s “[Modern usage](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molon_labe#Modern_usage)” section implies that it was used in relatively modern times by a Greek Cypriot rebel barricaded against authorities as his answer to demands to surrender.

I can’t address whether the precise Greek phrase has persisted unchanged for centuries, but it seems to be used and understood verbatim.

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**Author:** ![isaiahrobinson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/85e7bf/32.png) [@isaiahrobinson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/isaiahrobinson)\
**Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-molon-labe-mean-anything-in-modern-greek/646669/3 "2013-01-09T23:50:39Z")

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I suspect not. They share the same alphabet, but Ancient Greek is quite different to Modern Greek. My guess is it would read like a quote from Chaucer or a tricky part of Shakespeare does to us - i.e. sounds familiar, but doesn’t make much sense any more (“Whan that aprill with his shoures soote/ The droghte of march hath perced to the roote,/ And bathed every veyne in swich licour/ Of which vertu engendred is the flour” is the opening lines of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales).