Is there any acceptable translation for "Lux Astrum"?

Question

While asking this question where I was asking about building a brand name and motto using Latin, I realized that my choice of name is incorrect.

If you want to go with lux astrum or something similar, I recommend caution. The form astrum as a plural genitive is prone to misinterpretation. Especially some who have studied Latin are likely to mock it as a grammatical error, as the short form of the first and second declension plural genitive ending is not that well known. If people read astrum as singular (as was my first thought), lux astrum does not make sense. Therefore I recommend changing it to lux astrorum ("light of stars") or lux astri ("light of star").

-- Joonas Ilmavirta

The question therefore becomes this: To avoid changing any material already created, is there an acceptable translation for the phrase Lux Astrum, that doesn't stretch too much - i.e. can actually be considered correct form by somebody with complete lack of project-relevant information?

Answer 1

can actually be considered correct form by somebody with complete lack of project-relevant information?

Those who don’t know Latin are clueless and won’t question your wording.

Those who know some Latin know that this phrase is not “normal” Latin, and will mark it as incorrect.

Those who have a very good knowledge of Latin might try to save the situation by remembering that there could possibly exist a secundary form astrum, instead of the regular astrorum, whence the translation “light of the stars”, or “starlight”. (I am not sure of the actual existence of such a form for the word astrum, but let’s say it doesn’t matter...)

This is it. Ways out? I can think of three of them:

1) Lux asterum does work and means “starlight”. It uses the word aster, -eris instead of astrum, -i. It is rare, but Macrobius used it with the meaning “star” and Plinius used it with the meaning “aster”. Maybe you can superimpose the missing “e” somewhere above/between “t” and “r” in the existing material and call it an original graphic twist.

2) Lucis astrum does work and means “Star of light”, which is very close to the “bright star” you mentioned in your first question. This expression exists and was used in the Middle Ages in reference to the Virgin Mary (source: Analecta Hymnica Medii Aevi, II.,n. 58, 24: nomen matris, lucis astrum, vel odoris alabastrum...) Of course, it is difficult to transform “x” into “cis”...

3) If J.K.Rowling could get away with riddiculus, and a lot of similar “wrong” Latin expressions, you probably shouldn’t care either...