Questions tagged [passage-request]
The passage-request tag has no usage guidance.
80
questions
5
votes
1
answer
200
views
encrypt / to hide a message in Latin
What was the verb(s) the Romans used when the hide/encrypt a message in another text (and also the antonym "to decipher")? After consulting Döderlein's Hand-book of Latin Synonymes (Celare), ...
- 10.4k
8
votes
1
answer
104
views
Stacking many infinitives
Consider the sentence: Dixit se velle posse audere venire.
("He said that he wants to be able to dare to come.")
This has a stack of four infinitives.
In theory we might be able to stack as ...
- 111k
5
votes
1
answer
179
views
Did the Romans have an idiom or saying similar to "one thing leads to another"?
Did any writers of antiquity use a saying or phrase that has an equivalent meaning to "one thing leads to another" in English? I'm looking for the more general meaning in that one action ...
- 8,430
5
votes
2
answers
111
views
What are some quotations of Romans longing for the "good 'ole days"?
In Wheelock's Latin there is an edited excerpt of Livy from Ab Urbe Conditā:
Populus Rōmānus magnōs animōs et paucās culpās habēbat. Dē officiīs nostrīs cōgitābāmus et glōriam bellī semper laudābāmus....
- 8,430
10
votes
0
answers
157
views
Did the Romans walk their dogs?
Here is a mosaic from Pompeii showing a Roman dog in a leash:
(Image from Wikipedia.)
Other similar pictures of mosaics are easy to find online, so I am confident that dog leashes were a well known ...
- 111k
7
votes
1
answer
327
views
What adjectives did the Romans use to describe skin color?
The Romans surely met peoples of different skin color in their interactions between Gauls and Africans and many others.
I assume that there were clear color differences back then and that the Romans ...
- 111k
3
votes
1
answer
93
views
How the 'conflict' between heart/feelings and the "head" was described in the classical period
It sometimes happens to us, living beings of this age that we are, that we experience some kind of inner conflict; a conflict between what seems to our intellect or reason(*) and the feeling or "...
- 10.4k
7
votes
2
answers
906
views
Did the Romans use 'animus' and 'anima' together?
The words animus and anima are pretty close to each other, and their difference has been explored on this site before.
In order to understand their nuances in classical Latin I would like to see an ...
- 111k
15
votes
1
answer
307
views
Roman wedding congratulations
How did the Romans congratulate a couple on their wedding day?
The concepts of wedding and marriage were not quite what they are now back then, but I assume that celebrations and congratulations were ...
- 111k
5
votes
1
answer
948
views
Did Plato describe man as "a being in search of meaning"?
I happened upon this Quora question, in which the quote "man, a being in search of meaning" is ascribed to Plato.
Did Plato write this and if so, where? Obviously there are other Platonic ...
- 30.9k
8
votes
1
answer
92
views
How was the Concept of Price-Wage Inflation Expressed in the Roman World?
Inflation bedevils capitalist economies. Despite the power of Rome, the low-wage slave-economy, and a single currency (quite an achievement), the Roman World suffered from inflation. This happened ...
- 8,400
12
votes
1
answer
2k
views
How did the Romans congratulate a new father?
One of our users recently became a father and of course congratulations are in order.
How did the Romans do that?
More specifically, are there any attested congratulations to a new father in the ...
- 111k
10
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Is "Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end" correctly attributed to Seneca (the younger)?
The quote is a fairly well know lyric in the 1998 song Closing Time by Semisonic. In the Wikipedia entry for the song, it claims "The song ends with a quote attributed to Roman Stoic philosopher ...
- 201
11
votes
1
answer
521
views
Numbering of persons
It is conventional to number the three persons of Latin and Greek and many other languages so that the first person is the speaker, the second one is the listener, and the third one is anyone else.
...
- 111k
9
votes
1
answer
130
views
Is there a pre-Christian Roman story of "coming to faith"?
Is there a story in the Roman literature of someone previously not believing in the traditional Roman gods or a specific deity within their pantheon but later, after a vision or another experience, ...
- 111k
7
votes
1
answer
297
views
What did the Romans think about new technology?
Are there any attested texts where a Roman comments on some new technology?
The modern world sees a constant flux of them, but technological advancement was slower in antiquity and I do not recall ...
- 111k
8
votes
2
answers
236
views
Is the Abrahamic god ever named in Classical-era Latin or Greek?
As far as I'm aware, the Septuagint, New Testament, and Vulgata never directly transcribe the Tetragrammaton (יהוה) into Greek or Latin: they substitute in words like κύριος/dominus "lord" or θεός/...
- 65.1k
6
votes
1
answer
224
views
finding a Latin quote
I am reading the book "6/5" by Alexandre Laumonier, in French about high-frequency trading in electronic financial markets (bear with me). Near the end of "5", he says
Pour autant, comme l'écrivit ...
21
votes
3
answers
4k
views
Historicity doubted by Romans
The Roman historians seem happy to mix history with myth with no discussion on the reliability of one's sources — or even a mention of the sources in the first place.
I would like to imagine ...
- 111k
4
votes
1
answer
107
views
Written evidence of a ten-month calendar
There is speculation that prior to the republic Roman calendar there was an earlier calendar instated by Romulus and consisting of ten months.
I do not want to discuss here whether Romulus existed and ...
- 111k
4
votes
1
answer
3k
views
What is the origin of "Wonder begets wisdom?"
Socrates famously said, "Wonder begets wisdom."
Where is this passage from and what is the full text translation?
There seems to be some great missing context...
- 191
4
votes
0
answers
124
views
Is Hades ever associated with iron?
Traditionally, the Greek and Roman god of the dead is associated with gold and silver, since he controls everything under the earth: he has epithets like Plūtōn "the [god] of riches" and Dīs Pater "...
- 65.1k
2
votes
1
answer
156
views
Branches of Roman military in Latin
The military force of a country is often divided in branches such as an army, a navy, and an air force.
There are many other branches out there, but the point is that I am looking for a division of ...
- 111k
12
votes
1
answer
259
views
Do any Latin authors mention other Italic languages?
By the power of modern linguistics, quite a lot is known about the early history of Latin: for quite a while it coexisted with close relatives like Oscan, Umbrian, and Faliscan, as well as the ...
- 65.1k
2
votes
1
answer
142
views
A poem about looking back without regret
There's an adage I've heard about grief: look back and be happy about the time you had, rather than regret what might have been.
The Roman lyricists seem to have poems for every possible aspect of ...
- 65.1k
2
votes
1
answer
305
views
Latin original for "Would you have a great empire?" saying, by Publilius Syrus
Can someone provide the original Latin translation for Publilius Syrus's famous axiom, "Would you have a great empire? Rule over yourself." I have searched online and not been able to find it in Latin....
- 21
5
votes
1
answer
141
views
Are there Roman accounts of Easter?
Now that it is Easter time, I wonder whether the Romans wrote about Easter.
I am looking for non-Christian accounts in Latin describing the events of Jesus's death and subsequent resurrection.
I ...
- 111k
5
votes
1
answer
177
views
Do the Romans write about "converting" foreign gods?
I've heard stories of Roman legions preparing for a battle by praying to the enemies' gods, offering them worship back in Rome if they'll switch sides and help the Romans win. This was one of the ways ...
- 65.1k
3
votes
1
answer
188
views
Did the Romans mention any excavations?
The Romans wrote about history and recognized monuments from past eras both at home and abroad.
But it occurs to me that I have never heard of them digging anything up — I fail to recall ...
- 111k
4
votes
2
answers
320
views
Did the Greeks or Romans have future fiction?
Did the Greeks or Romans have any literature describing events in the future?
The modern era has produced a number of books and movies concerning a future society with flying cars or other ...
- 111k
5
votes
1
answer
504
views
Do we ever see "in saeculo saeculorum"?
Recently, luchonacho asked about the phrase in saecula saeculōrum: literally, "into the lifetimes of the lifetimes". It's kind of a weird phrase, for multiple reasons.
However, I'd always thought the ...
- 65.1k
4
votes
0
answers
72
views
Roman adage: The best death
There is a very famous quotation from one of the Roman authors to the effect that the best death is the one for which you can choose the time, and the second best is the one that comes unexpected. For ...
- 17.6k
2
votes
1
answer
101
views
Are there Classical attestations of specifically "Etruscan" deities?
As the Roman Empire expanded, the state religion incorporated new deities and practices from all over the world: Bacchus, for example, was borrowed from the Greeks, while Isis came from Egypt, and ...
- 65.1k
7
votes
1
answer
379
views
What did the Romans think about female leadership?
Women seem to be absent from leading roles in Roman politics.
However, the Romans were in interaction with other nations with female leaders, both historically (e.g. Cleopatra of Egypt) and mythically ...
- 111k
5
votes
0
answers
56
views
Seeking a Classical quote for an epigraph
I'm editing a short piece of writing set in early Imperial Rome, and seeking a Classical quotation to use as an epigraph.
The piece involves a woman whose arms and legs are twisted from birth, ...
- 65.1k
6
votes
2
answers
2k
views
A classical Latin phrase for "all or nothing"
Is there a saying in classical Latin similar to "all or nothing"?
I am aware of aut Caesar aut nihil, and that would be fine if it was classical.
In most cases the era of origin is irrelevant, but I ...
- 111k
5
votes
2
answers
379
views
How did dogs and wolves compare in the Roman mind?
The Romans knew both dogs and wolves.
But how similar and how dissimilar did they think they were, as indicated by their literature?
I am looking for an understanding about Roman views on dogs and ...
- 111k
7
votes
6
answers
298
views
Coincidental similarities between Latin and other ancient languages?
There are cases where a word in another language means something else in another one.
I do not mean cognates or loan words having close but not identical meanings, but two words in different languages ...
- 111k
5
votes
1
answer
385
views
A quote for a relieving loss of a loved one
Is there a poem or other passage of classical Latin about the following sentiment?
I prefer poetry, but good hits in prose are also welcome.
It need not — and indeed should not — be the ...
- 111k
5
votes
2
answers
121
views
Which verb do insects fly with?
Having read a question (and answer) about flies flying, I started to wonder whether flies would really fly with the verb volare.
I had always somehow imagined that volare referred to more elegant and ...
- 111k
9
votes
1
answer
223
views
Garden path sentences in classical Latin
A garden path sentence is a sentence that leads the reader astray and forces them to reanalyze.
The obvious first interpretation when one starts reading is a red herring and it comes clear that the ...
- 111k
9
votes
1
answer
163
views
When was a pair of Greek and Roman gods first identified?
There is a canonical correspondence between some Greek and Roman gods and goddesses, for example Ares and Mars.
However, these two were originally different deities: Ares represented rage in war and ...
- 111k
10
votes
3
answers
281
views
Did the ancients write that their sculpture is painted?
I have the impression that for a long time scholars thought that ancient Greek and Roman sculpture was unpainted, and marble statues would be wholly white, but the modern consensus is that sculpture ...
- 111k
7
votes
1
answer
101
views
Ancient accounts of traffic
Are there accounts of traffic in the ancient world written in Latin?
By traffic I mean the behaviour of various vehicles1 on roads and in intersections, not masses of pedestrians.
If there are ...
- 111k
4
votes
1
answer
148
views
Ancient plagiarism
I have no doubt that plagiarism existed in the Greek and Roman antiquity: some authors must have copied material more or less directly from others without attribution.
(The moral requirement to cite ...
- 111k
6
votes
1
answer
141
views
A representative work of Ovid
I am considering reading some Ovid(ius), possibly with some colleagues.
I don't want too much due to time limitations; perhaps something on the order of a single book of Metamorphoses should be ...
- 111k
7
votes
4
answers
2k
views
How to break up in classical Latin?
Are there any attested breakup letters, notes, or similar in classical Latin?
A great number of relationships must have started and ended in classical antiquity, but I don't recall seeing any passages ...
- 111k
3
votes
1
answer
82
views
What is the earliest Latin crossword puzzle?
I think it is safe to assume that there have been crossword puzzles in Latin, and I think I have seen some in textbooks as well.
But what was the earliest Latin crossword puzzle?
I do not mean word ...
- 111k
9
votes
1
answer
147
views
What was the first name of Christmas?
What was the first Latin word or expression used for Christmas, the Christian event in the honor of Jesus' birth?
I know what to call Christmas in Latin, but it occurred to me that there is no ...
- 111k
1
vote
0
answers
51
views
Did the Romans distinguish derivation and loan?
I learned from this question that the Romans used the same verb mutuari both for loaning words from Greek and deriving new words within Latin.
Are there any examples in classical literature that make ...
- 111k