Ἄρκτος

not necessarily identical to the modern constellation

Ἐν μὲν γαῖαν ἔτευξ’, ἐν δ’ οὐρανόν, ἐν δὲ θάλασσαν, ἠέλιόν τ’ ἀκάμαντα σελήνην τε πλήθουσαν, ἐν δὲ τὰ τείρεα πάντα, τά τ’ οὐρανὸς ἐστεφάνωται, Πληϊάδας θ’ Ὑάδας τε τό τε σθένος Ὠρίωνος Ἄρκτόν θ’, ἣν καὶ Ἄμαξαν ἐπίκλησιν καλέουσιν, ἥ τ’ αὐτοῦ στρέφεται καί τ’ Ὠρίωνα δοκεύει, οἴη δ’ ἄμμορός ἐστι λοετρῶν Ὠκεανοῖο.

‘On it he produced the earth, and on it the sky, and on it the sea, and the untiring sun and the full moon, and on it all the constellations, that the sky is wreathed with: the Pleiades as well as the Hyades as well as the might of Orion as well as the Bear, which they call Wagon as additional name, and which revolves around itself and keeps an eye on Orion, and which alone is without share of baths in Ocean.’

used in plural for both Bears together

Βόρεια δέ ἐστιν, ὅσα τοῦ τῶν ζῳδίων κύκλου πρὸς ἄρκτους κεῖται. Ἔστι δὲ τάδε· ἡ Μεγάλη Ἄρκτος, ἡ Μικρά, Δράκων ὁ διὰ τῶν Ἄρκτων, Ἀρκτοφύλαξ, Στέφανος, Ἐνγόνασιν, Ὀφιοῦχος, Ὄφις, Λύρα, Ὄρνις, Ὀϊστός, Ἀετός, Δελφίς, Προτομὴ Ἵππου καθ’ Ἵππαρχον, Ἵππος, Κηφεύς, Κασσιέπεια, Ἀνδρομέδα, Περσεύς, Ἡνίοχος, Δελτωτὸν καὶ ὁ ὕστερον κατεστηριγμένος ὑπὸ Καλλιμάχου Βερενίκης Πλόκαμος.

‘Northern (constellations) there are as many as lie to the north of the zodiac. These are the following: the Great Bear, the Little (Bear), Dragon between the Bears, Bear Keeper, Crown, Kneeling Man, Ophiuchus, Serpent, Lyre, Bird, Arrow, Eagle, Dolphin, Forepart of a Horse according to Hipparchus, Horse, Cepheus, Cassiopeia, Andromeda, Perseus, Charioteer, Triangle and the later by Callimachus established Lock of Berenikē.’

Ἰσημερία δέ ἐστι φθινοπωρινή, ὅταν ὁ ἥλιος ἀπ’ ἄρκτων πρὸς μεσημβρίαν παροδεύων πάλιν ἐπὶ τοῦ ἰσημερινοῦ γένηται κύκλου καὶ ἴσην τὴν ἡμέραν τῇ νυκτερινῇ ποιήσηται.

‘And it is autumnal equinox, when the sun, in passing from north to south, arrives at the celestial equator again and makes the day equal to the night.’