Questions tagged [classical-latin]
Questions concerning Latin of the classical era, approximately 75 BCE to 300 CE
837
questions
5
votes
2
answers
221
views
What's difference between a "stagnum" and "lacuna"?
I'm trying to give title to a earth (no pluvial) water "puddle" of photo
- 521
2
votes
1
answer
126
views
Reimagining the logical gates in Latin
Boolean logic has logical gates which have the following truth tables:
NON gate:
Input
Output
0
1
1
0
AND gate:
Input A
Input B
Output
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
1
1
1
NAND gate:
Input A
Input B
...
- 446
4
votes
1
answer
157
views
How can I avoid ambiguity when using terms with declinations included in phrases?
By the question Nested genitive?, it is possible to say "gas mask of my friend" as persona gasi amící meí, but this kind of nested genitives are prone to ambiguity in the general case, so is ...
- 446
1
vote
2
answers
114
views
Lanius non laneo. Evolution
I am trying to do the evolution from Classical Latin to Vulgar Latin of this word: Lanius non laneo. Could someone help me? What are the changes that occur? I was thinking of a diphthongation but I'm ...
- 11
-2
votes
4
answers
252
views
+100
If the laws of physics no longer apply in the future, god help you
I am trying to translate the phrase If the laws of physics no longer apply in the future, god help you. I have some problems to decide how to translate no longer to Latin*, in Spanish it would be more ...
- 446
0
votes
1
answer
80
views
Attemping to translate the song "Alright"
Given that some look like that don't understand the importance of macros here is some reference by ScorpioMartinus where explains that speaking Latin without their macros is like speaking German ...
- 15
-1
votes
1
answer
150
views
Attempt to translate the song "Still Alive"
Important note
Given that some looks like that don't understand the importance of macros here is some reference by ScorpioMartinus where explains that speaking Latin without their macros is like ...
- 15
0
votes
2
answers
146
views
¿Cómo se dice "valor" de ser apreciado en alguna manera por algún observador?
(English version below.)
Quiero escribir en latín un pequeño ensayo sobre los diferentes tipos del valor que uno le da a las cosas, pero mi diccionario español-latín me esta dando solamente para ...
- 446
-2
votes
1
answer
156
views
How would you translate Socialism/Communism into Latin?
Note that both socialism and communist have been synonyms their appearance in the romance Sprachen until the end of the times, unless you believe Stalin's lies. Therefore both a word based in the stem*...
- 446
4
votes
1
answer
626
views
Tacitus Germania XIV: Cum ventum in aciem
This is clear in meaning but I am confused with the ventum itself. It seems the ventum here is either supine or PPP. But either one does not really fit my understanding of them. Can someone tell me ...
- 43
3
votes
2
answers
269
views
What is the role of "ipso" in this quote from Cicero?
Following on from Q: Why is accusative pronoun "te" used in this construction?, in this quote from Cicero:
"nihil necesse est mihi de me ipso dicere, quamquam est id quidem senile ...
- 8,400
5
votes
1
answer
385
views
What's the role of the word "scribam" in this Cicero's sentence?
This sentence comes from a letter by Cicero to Atticus written when the former is in exile. It can be found in Epistulae ad Atticum 3, 5:
Ad te quid scribam nescio.
I understand that "nescio&...
- 1,736
-1
votes
1
answer
83
views
Lepus: "lepusculus". Longus: "longusculus" or "longiculus"
-iculus or -usculus for "Longus"?, please
- 521
3
votes
1
answer
185
views
How does this apposition work?
I'm reading Wheelock's Latin and I stumbled across this passage at page 90:
Nōn amo tē, Sabidī, nec possum dīcere quārē.
Hoc tantum possum dīcere: nōn amo tē.
Why is the name Sabidius used with the ...
1
vote
0
answers
84
views
Which Latin Translations of Modern Literature Stay True to Classical Latin?
While exploring the List of Latin translations of modern literature, I was drawn to Hobbitus Ille, translated by Mark Walker. However, based on reviews from Amazon.com and Texkit, it seems the ...
user13912
4
votes
1
answer
126
views
Is the expression "ut poësis pictura" formally correct?
I'm writing an essay in which I'd like to use the expression "ut poësis pictura" with the intent of flipping the original expression by Horace "ut pictura poësis". I never studied ...
- 143
7
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Why is this Etruscan letter sometimes transliterated as "ch"?
I've noticed that the Etruscan letter 𐌙 is sometimes transliterated as "ch", as you can see in the following image of an information panel in the Hypogeum of the Volumnus family:
...
- 1,736
2
votes
1
answer
174
views
Sextus Empiricus and Latin
I am learning Latin from Duolingo and when i finish Duolingo, i am planning to move to Lingua Latina Per Se Illustrata, the famous book.
In this context i am wondering that when i finish these two, ...
- 357
7
votes
1
answer
478
views
Does "laviniaque" from Vergil's Aeneid point to Romance palatalization?
The second i in "laviniaque" from the 2nd line of Aeneid is supposed to be consonantal to fit the hexameter; therefore the pronunciation should be something like: /la'wi.nja.qʷe/.
My ...
7
votes
2
answers
590
views
"Non splendeat toga, ne sordeat quidem"
In Seneca's Epistulae morales ad Lucilium (Letter 5):
Non splendeat toga, ne sordeat quidem.
What exactly does ne...quidem mean here? It is certainly not "not even? In Leob we read the ...
- 10.4k
5
votes
1
answer
602
views
How do I say "Humanism" in Latin?
Humanism is coined from a Latin root (homo, hominis) and a Greek suffix (-ισμός).
Would there be a "purely Latin" translation of this word?
user12055
0
votes
0
answers
41
views
How to say Power above the Sovereign…?
I’d like to know how to say a couple of expressions in Latin.
1- “Power above the Sovereign”
2- “The Sovereigns power above the Sovereign power”.
About the first one, I don’t know if “above” should be ...
7
votes
1
answer
563
views
Use of 'suus' in 'ignoranti quem portum petat nullus suus ventus est'
Seneca, Epistolae LXXI: ignoranti quem portum petat nullus suus ventus est
commonly translated as 'he who does not know which port he is heading to has no favourable wind'.
Could anyone explain what ...
- 481
6
votes
1
answer
615
views
References to "coin tossing", "heads or ships", or "navia aut caput"
Dear Latin or Greek experts,
I'm doing a project on the statistics of coin tossing. I would like to provide some references to ancient Greek, Roman, or other texts that reference the practice of coin ...
- 105
6
votes
1
answer
153
views
Can we use "numquam" with a imperative?
In English(in Portuguese, as well) we can use the adverb "nunquam" with an imperative "Never do/say/etc something!
I'm asking because when I read the dictionaries, I never see a ...
user11898
0
votes
0
answers
34
views
I need to translate a phrase "From the bottom of my heart, to the root"
The phrase is "From the bottom of my heart, to the root" I need it in Latin, I researched it and I found that the phrase is "Ab imo pectore ad radices", but I need to be sure.
...
- 1
4
votes
1
answer
763
views
How to say They came, they saw, they conquered in Latin?
I would like to translate the famous Julius Caesar quote into the third person plural:
They Came, They Saw, They Conqurered.
1
vote
0
answers
82
views
To what degree Latin proper accents are known and taught?
NOTE:
After comment by @Draconis and others: I have used the term "accent" as per Webster: effort in speech to stress one syllable over adjacent syllables. Sorry if this is not the ...
- 413
5
votes
1
answer
359
views
What is "an agreeable succession of long and short syllables"?
I am currently (re)reading Allen and Greenough's Latin Grammar and I am somewhat confused by the end of paragraph 601 on the structure of the Period.
f. The Romans were careful to close a period with ...
user12055
2
votes
2
answers
206
views
What is difference between adit and advenit?
In LLPSI I was introduced to two verbs "adit" and "advenit", but what is difference between them if both of them mean "to go to"? Same to "abit" and "exit&...
- 29
2
votes
1
answer
141
views
How would the Gates of Ivory and Horn from the Odyssey be said in ancient Greek and Latin?
How would one say the name of each individual gate from the Gates of Ivory and Horn in ancient Greek and Latin? According to the Odyssey, they are located in the underworld near the Asphodel fields. I ...
- 489
2
votes
0
answers
96
views
Recommend a graded reading list of Latin works starting with De Bello Gallico
I'm about halfway through Caesar's De Bello Gallico which is typically considered the easiest work of Classical Latin for beginners. It would be good to know where to go next once I'm finished: ...
- 453
4
votes
1
answer
540
views
What where the formal words in Rome for human genitals? I have heard that penis/vagina had the same tone as cock/cunt today
I have several times heard anecdotes on the theme that the words we use for genitals today were considered very vulgar back in Rome during ancient times, similar to cock/cunt etc in modern vocabulary (...
- 283
4
votes
0
answers
65
views
Best translation - "Live Deliberately" - vive de industria? vive deliberate? vive consilium?
What would the best translation of "Live Deliberately" be as a motto? I'm thinking of a few different phrases: vive de industria? vive deliberate? vive consilium? Not sure what is best.
...
- 41
9
votes
1
answer
478
views
What did "semel iterumque" mean?
I am told that "semel iterumque" was a common phrase in classical Latin. What did it mean?
Google translate says "once and again," but I'm not sure what that's supposed to signify (...
- 93
1
vote
0
answers
96
views
Why is Q so dependent? [duplicate]
Why does Q always need a U right after it? What's the meaning behind it? Like every word in Latin that has a Q always has a U behind it. Why is that?
9
votes
2
answers
982
views
Can Latin do Noun-Noun Adjuncts?
First, to begin, I'm a hobbyist with no formal background whatsoever in Latin. I only know what I can manage to successfully google and read on my own.
Anyway, I've read that Latin can't use nouns as ...
- 111
7
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Why study a classical language?
This is admittedly a variation on why study Latin (see Related questions below), but there is specific aspect/motivation that I would like to explore deeper.
Often cited reasons for studying classical ...
- 357
7
votes
0
answers
118
views
Roman awareness of the Italic branch
I've recently learned the Romans and Greeks were aware of their linguistic connection (aeolism). However, I couldn't find anything pertaining to their more obvious relationship with the Sabellic ...
- 131
8
votes
1
answer
558
views
Is there a Latin parallel to the TLG website?
The TLG (=Thesaurus Linguae Graecae) is an incredibly helpful tool for understanding how an author uses a certain word. For example, if I wanted to learn how the word ἀνάπαυσις was used by Clement of ...
- 183
5
votes
1
answer
2k
views
How do you say "medicine" in Latin without borrowing a Greek word?
Is there a "purely Latin" way of saying "medicine"?
The Smith & Hall and Goelzer dictionaries both give "medicina" as the only translation.
Is there a paraphrase like ...
user12055
1
vote
0
answers
59
views
"On the utility of Latin" in Latin
What would be the best translation of "On the utility of Latin" into (ciceronian) Latin?
Specifically as a title (e.g., of a blog article).
I am open to loose translations, here are some ...
user12055
11
votes
3
answers
3k
views
What's the difference between aster, stella, sidus and astrum in Latin?
aster, stella, sidus and astrum are are all nearly means or related to stars. But are there any key differences between these words ?
- 219
3
votes
0
answers
365
views
How do you say "chicken" in Latin?
I know which words to use for specific types of chicken:
gallīna is a female (adult) chicken (hen).
gallus is a male (adult) chicken (cock, rooster); it also is used for the male (cock) of other ...
- 27.3k
0
votes
0
answers
83
views
Beginning a letter in latin--what were common conventions [duplicate]
In the USA, it is customary to begin a letter with "Dear" and the name of the recipient. E.g., "Dear Dr. Smith" or "Dear Alex".
Was there a similar convention for the ...
- 793
6
votes
1
answer
558
views
Why does the length of a vowel before verb endings change?
I'm learning Latin and I see that the stem I am supposed to add things onto keeps changing from long to short and back again. For example, take teneō, tenēre, tenuī, tentum.
As I see the present ...
- 63
5
votes
0
answers
53
views
Why is the phrase negotiorum gestio instead of alienorum gestio?
In Law negotiorum gestio is a form of agency wherein a gestor acts on behalf and for the benefit of a principal without the latter's prior consent.
For example, while you are traveling abroad, a ...
- 191
3
votes
1
answer
125
views
Looking for title of latin textbook - US high-school 1960's
I'm trying to figure out what textbook I had for Latin, in a US high-school around 1968. (Chicago suburbs if that helps). I think the first story was about a boy and a girl on a picnic, because I ...
- 133
8
votes
1
answer
444
views
How do I scan the hexameter "faunique satyrique et monticolae silvani"? (From Metamorphoses I, 193)
I was wondering if anyone knows how to scan this hexameter (complete source here https://la.wikisource.org/wiki/Metamorphoses_(Ovidius)/Liber_I). Something that is usually short definitely needs to be ...
- 81
3
votes
1
answer
262
views
Best conjugation for memento vivere or viveri
Memento vivere or viveri, as a complementary phrase (not necessary an opposite) to memento mori?
- 31