άρχοντας

Ηi,

Is άρχοντας synonymous for δικαστής "judge"?

No, άρχοντας means lord, seigneur, ruler, prince, dominator. It comes from the verb "άρχω" which means to rule, to govern.

It can also be used metaphorically to indicate a rich person who has a luxurious life. Another metaphorical meaning is a dignified and generous person.

Thank you Alexandra. In Turkish version of that book it has been translated as "judge".

Out of curiosity, which Turkish word have they used? This Greek word is roughly the equivalent of "efendi" or "bey" (i.e. the Ottoman title, not "Mr."). And if it's not too much, would you also tell us the entire Greek phrase in which "άρχοντας" appears?

Or, is this the extract where the word appears?

...
Γεωργακάς:

άρχοντας: [...] ② AG hist magistrate, official, archon (syn L άρχων1): ήταν τόσοι πολλοί οι Aχαιοί ώστε δε διατηρήθηκε κανένα όνομα άρχοντά τους (ChZalokostas) | poem μαζεμένοι σμάρια σμάρια, σάμπως σε σφηκοφωλιές, | πάνε και δικάζουν όπου ο ~κλ (Stavrou Ar)

Careful, though, because this is the original meaning of magistrate, a member of the executive (from the Latin words magister and magistratus), and not a judge, which is a later meaning. In specific, the connection is made with the archons of Ancient Greece: http://www.britannica.com/topic/archon-ancient-Greek-magistrate . It's obviously a bad choice in the translation.

The translater had used "yargıç" the entire book, for Λαδάς of Ο Χριστός ξανασταυρώνεται.

Hm, in that case I'm not sure if the translation is all that wrong; Ladas is a προεστός, or kocabaşı, meaning that as such he does have some customary local judicial authority, usually for petty crimes. Unfortunately, it's been ages since I last read the book so I don't remember if there are such scenes in it, but I believe that this is why άρχοντας was translated as yargınç in that particular case.

That said, yargınç is a rather restrictive term, focusing only on one of his qualities.

:clap: Teşekkür ederim.

Rica ederim :)