10.04.24: reading the month and the year

Image #1

Mēnse Iānuāriō │ Annō [ablative] 1654

In the month of January │ in the year 1654

Or: Mēnse Iānuāriō │ Annī [genitive] 1654

In the month of January │ of the year 1654

Image #2

Concerning the observations of a comet at Ingolstadt:

MĒNSE DECEMBRĪ │ ANNĪ M.DC.LXIV

In the month of December │ of the year 1664

IANVARIŌ ITEM AC FEBRVĀRIŌ │ ANNĪ M.DC.LXV

Likewise in January and (in) February │ of the year 1665

Image #3: from the same work as #2 above

MĒNSE APRĪLĪ │ DIĒ XXIX

In the month of April │ on the 29th day [XX 20 + IX 9]

And, in very small print at the bottom:

ANNŌ M.DC.LXV

In the year 1665

M: 1000

D: 500

C: 100

L: 50

V: 5

M 1000 │ + D 500 + C 100 │ + │ L 50 + X 10 │ + │ V 5 = 1665

 

 

10.04.24: origins of the days of the week

The days of the week in English originate from Germanic, but the Germanic expressions themselves are interpretations or translations of the Latin terms.

10.04.24: Saying and reading the date - our way!

Discussing the Roman calendar and learning how to express the date in Classical Latin is a whole topic in itself! It will be covered later, but in the next couple of posts we will look at the Latin equivalent of the way the date would be expressed now. That’s useful when, for example, you’re describing your routine so you can say on what day(s) you do certain activities. Furthermore, in the post-Classical period, one way of expressing the date is similar to our own.

After the legalisation of Christianity by Emperor Constantine, the seven days of the week were given official Latin names.

diēs Sōlis = the day of the Sun = Sunday

diēs Lūnae = the day of the Moon = Monday

diēs Mārtis = the day of Mars = Tuesday

diēs Mercuriī = the day of Mercury = Wednesday

diēs Iovis = the day of Jupiter = Thursday

diēs Veneris = the day of Venus = Friday

diēs Saturnī = the day of Saturn = Saturday

What you have there is diēs (day) + the gentitive singular of the following noun:

Mārs, Mārtis [3/m] > diēs ¦ Mārtis i.e. the day ¦ of Mars = Tuesday

Mārs, Mārtis [3/m]: Mars

Mercurius, -ī [2/m]: Mercury

Iuppiter, Iovis [3/m]: Jupiter [note the unusual genitive]

Venus, Veneris [3/f]: Venus

Sāturnus, -ī [2/m]: Saturn

In Late Latin from the time of Christianity, diēs Sāturnī and diēs Sōlis were replaced:

diēs Sāturnī > diēs Sabbatī: ‘the day of the Sabbath’ i.e. Saturday

diēs Sōlis > diēs Dominicus or diēs Dominica: ‘the day of the Lord’ i.e. Sunday; diēs may be masculine or feminine, hence the use of either Dominicus or Dominica because, unlike all the other words expressing the days of the week, dominicus is an adjective.

To say on a certain day, the ablative of time when is used:

diēs (day) > diē; note: diēs is from a declension that we’ve not looked at yet and so just be able to use the word in this context and recognise it elsewhere:

diēs: day

> Quō diē? On what day?

> Quibus diēbus? On what days?

diēs Sāturnī: Saturday

> diē Sāturnī: on the day ¦ of Saturn = on Saturday

diēs Veneris: Friday

> diē Veneris: on Friday

Note: diēs Dominicus [adjective] / Dominica [adjective] > diē Dominicō or diē Dominicā [adjective agreeing with diē]: on Sunday

 

 

09.04.24: a message to the 17th century school children

In the first chapter of Comenius’ book is a message to the 17th century school children:

Posteā ībimus in mundum, et spectābimus omnia.

Afterwards we shall go into the world and we will look at everything.

09.04.24: time phrases from Comenius

From the Comenius schoolbook illustrating some of the time phrases in the previous post.

A Man is first an Infant, 1. │ Homō est prīmum Īnfāns, 1.

then a Boy, 2. │ deinde Puer, 2.

then a Youth, 3. │ tum Adolēscēns, 3.

then a Young-man, 4. │ inde Juvenis, 4.

then a Man, 5. │ posteā Vir, 5.

after that an Elderly-man, 6. │ dehinc Senex, 6.

and at last, a decrepid old man, 7. │ tandem Silicernium, 7.

silicernium: This was said to be the name of a funeral entertainment or dish of meats offered up to the spirits of the dead in silence. It could also be used in a derogatory way to describe a very old man.

Ego tē exercēbō hodiē ut dignus es, silicernium. (Terence)

I'll work you to day, you skeleton, as you deserve.

09.04.24: pointing to the future; expressions of time [3]

1. Nunc iam dehinc erit tibi vērāx. (Plautus) │ From this time forward he shall be truthful to you

2. Quid mihi fīet posteā? (Plautus) │ What will happen to me then?

3. Hūc veniet posteā. (Plautus) │ He’ll be here later.

4. iam inde ā prīncipiō huius imperī ... (Cicero) │ from the very beginning of this empire ...

5. At posthāc tibi male quod poterō facere faciam. (Plautus) │ But after this all I can do against you I'll do.

6. Posthāc ad tē ... scrībam plānē omnia (Cicero) │ After this I will give you a clear account,

7. Dēnique aliquid exstābit, (Cicero) │ In the end something will appear

8. Sī id faciēs, tum dēmum sciēs ... (Plautus) │ If you do this then finally you will know ...

9. Nec in futūrum erimus tyrannōrum praeda │ Nor shall we be the prey of tyrants in the future.

10. Nunc et in posterum erit gaudium et laetitia dē adventū tuō. │ Now and in the future, there will be joy and happiness about your arrival.

11. Ōtium ubi erit, tum tibi operam lūdō et dēliciae dabō; (Plautus) │ When I have leisure, then I'll give my attention to toying and delights to please you

12. Sī volēs dē faece dēmere vīnum, tum erit eī reī optimum tempus. (Cato.) │ If you wish to draw off the wine from the dregs, then will be the best time to do it.

13. Sed tum dēmum cōnsilia nostra commūtanda erunt. (Cicero) │ But then and not till then will be the time to change our plans

 

 

09.04.24: practice with ordinal numbers [2]

The following are a series of British legal Acts entitled in Latin. In which year(s) of the reign of which monarch(s) did each piece of legislation come into force?

1. ANNO REGNI WILLIELMI ET MARIAE PRIMO
2. ANNO QUINTO DECIMO GEORGII VI REGIS
3. ANNO UNDECIMO & DUODECIMO VICTORIAE REGINAE
4. ANNO UNDEVICESIMO ELIZABETHAE SECUNDAE REGINAE
5. ANNO DECIMO TERTIO GEORGII III REGIS
6. ANNO REGNI GEORGII II REGIS, DECIMO QUARTO
7. ANNO SECUNDO & TERTIO GULIELMI IV REGIS
8. ANNO NONO GEORGII IV REGIS

 

 

09.04.24: practice with ordinal numbers

Below are the names of some Roman legions. Match the legion’s Roman number with the ordinal number.

decima

duodecima

duodēvīcēsima

prīma

septima decima

vīcēsima

ūndēvīcēsima

tertia decima

1. LEGIO I GERMANICA
2. LEGIO X EQUESTRIS
3. LEGIO XII FULMINATA
4. LEGIO XIII GEMINA
5. LEGIO XIX
6. LEGIO XVII
7. LEGIO XVIII LIBYCA
8. LEGIO XX VICTRIX

The image shows the denarius issued by Mark Antony in celebration of the tenth legion.

09.04.24: more on ordinal numbers; 11th – 31st

Image: ordinal numbers from 11th – 31st

Where the ordinal comprises two parts e.g. septimus decimus, both parts will decline: septimō decimō

From the 1631 text:

decimō quīntō: on the fifteenth (day)

decimō octāvō: on the eighteenth (day)

vīgēsimō tertiō: on the twenty-third (day)

Note again the use of the ablative to express a specific point in time: decimō quīntō; on the fifteenth (day)

 

 

09.04.24: more on ordinal numbers [1]; adjectives in -ius / -ī

The text from 1631 made use of ordinal numbers.

The ordinal numbers 1st – 10th were already covered in previous posts.

image #1: ordinal numbers 1st – 10th

Some English derivations from ordinal numbers:

[1] prīmus: primary school i.e. the first school which a child attends.

[2] secundus: English borrows ‘second’ from Old French, the word derived from Latin e.g. secondaryeducation

Other Gmc languages use an ordinal from ‘two’: (Gm: zweite; Du: tweede)

Note: secundus has an alternative meaning of “favourable”: ventus secundus (a favourable wind)

[3] tertius: tertiary education e.g. university, the third level after primary and secondary

[4] quārtus: quarter

[5] quīntus: see image #2

[6] nōnus: noon is derived from a Germanic borrowing of Latin nōna hōra (the 9thhour), originally 3pm; Old Engl: nōn > Mid. Engl: noen, none, non

[7] octāvus: octavo is a size of paper made by folding the original sheet three times to produce eight leaves

[8] decimus: decimate originally meant the killing of 1/10 of a group as a military punishment in the Roman army

Image #3: ordinal numbers function as adjectives, and they all decline like 1st/ 2nd declension adjectives.

Image #4: alteris also a 1st / 2nd declension adjective ending in -er (like miser, -a, -um) but belongs to a small group of adjectives which have a different singular ending in the [1] masculine and neuter genitive (-ius) and [2] masculine and neuter dative (-ī). The other adjectives which take the same endings are:

alius, -a, -ud: another

alter, -a, -um: the other

ūllus, -a, -um: any

nūllus, -a, -um: none; no [in the sense of ‘not any’]

ūter, -a, -um: which [one]; which [of two]

neuter, -a, -um: neither

sōlus, -a, -um: alone

tōtus, -a, -um: whole; entire

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMFcKMmSM7E

08.04.24: quotations using future expressions

 Thomas Jefferson wrote, in latin, in 1769:

Verbum sat sapientī. Magna clādēs mox erit iīs quī aliter sunt. │ A word to the wise. A great loss will soon come to those who are otherwise.

From the novelist Aupleius (c. 124-170):

Sed ego tē nārrātiōnibus lepdiīs anīlibusque fābulīs prōtinus āvocābō. │ But right now I shall divert you with a pretty story and old wives’ tales.

08.04.24: pointing to the future; expressions of time [2]

1. Nunc ad eum pergam (Plautus) │ Now I’ll go to him.
2. Nam Amphitruō āctūtum uxōrī turbās conciet. (Plautus) │ For Amphitryon will instantly rage at his wife.
3. Quod quālecumque erit, continuō sciēs. (Cicero) │ Whatever it be, you will know forthwith.
4. Rēcta portā invādam extemplō in oppidum antīquum et vetus (Plautus) │ I’ll immediately charge straight through the gate into the old and ancient town.
5. Ad ipsamque prōtinus Proserpinam introībis (Apuleius) │ And you will come directly / immediately to Proserpine.
6. Sed tamen faciam statim tē certiōrem (Cicero) │ But I will let you know at once.
7. Vidēbis brevī tempore (Cicero) │ You will see shortly.
8. Laenīō tuās commendātiōnēs et statim verbīs et reliquō tempore rē probābō. (Cicero) │ I will prove your recommendations to Laenius immediately in words, and in the future [in the remaining time] in deed.

 

08.04.24: medical notes from 1631 [second post]

When reading, you don’t have to know every word; sometimes a single word or phrase can lead you to the answer.

The author lists these symptoms according to the day of the month:

prīmō: on the first (day)

secundō: on the second (day)

etc.

Here are some questions on the text:

Give the number of the day(s) on which the patient will:

1. barely escape with his life

2. barely recover (recuperate)

3. be sick for a long time

4. be violently ill

5. feel faint

6. finally recover

7. get better even if he’s elderly

8. have breathing difficulties

9. need medicine

10. quickly recover

11. rarely recover

12. recover after a long illness

13. struggle to avoid death

14. suddenly recover

15. suffer a short illness

16. will be slow to recover his former health

 

08.04.24: medical notes from 1631 [first post]

Imagine you have a twelve year old daughter who has just started French at school. Let’s say, she’s been studying the language for a month or so. Now imagine she comes home during that time with a 250 page novel in French which the teacher expects her to read. You’d go crazy and rightly so because how could anybody expect to read such a work in a foreign language when that language is still completely new? Therefore, why do people want to do that with Latin?

Being able to read the Roman authors is an “end point”. Classical Latin literature is not easy, and to get there is a long journey. However, it is simply not the case that there are no “middle stages”. Apart from the extracts from the school textbooks, together with relatively simple quotations from the Roman authors that have been posted here – and I’ll keep posting those as they continue to present increasingly challenging language and / or illustrate a point – there are other sources which, while not Classical Latin, still have all the Latin you need to develop your knowledge.

There is another big “milestone” coming up and, once that’s done, what you can read in Latin will increase enormously at which point we can take a look at some Mediaeval texts. Similarly, the Vulgate which, by its very name indicates that it was written for “ordinary” people, is written in a style that provides a “stepping stone” to more advanced language.

The extract I’m going to discuss in the next post is from 1631 – whether you want to call that the Renaissance period or the Age of Enlightenment depends on whose opinion you ask, but, regardless of the "label", Latin was the language used during that period by scholars to transmit their work to as many of their peers as possible throughout Europe.

Some medical notes from 1631

"Quōmodo diēs bonī ā malīs, per observātiōnem numerī lūnāris discernantur."

• How good days are distinguished from bad days through the observation of the lunar number.

"Experientiā ductī sunt aliquī ut crēdant quod sint diēs aliquī in mēnsālī Lūnae cursū, ergā īnfirmōs propitiōrēs aliīs, vel ferōciōrēs atque īnfēlīciōrēs."

• Through experience, some people have been led to believe that there are some days in the course of the lunar month that are more favourable (propitiōrēs) than others, or fiercer and more unlucky.

It’s interesing to note how Robert Fludd, the author, distances himself from these beliefs: “Some people have been led to believe…”

He provides a list using many future tenses referring to what will happen on a particular day during the month.

In the next post are extracts from that list, and there may be some days on which you may wish to avoid being ill! 

08.04.24: something to remember

 

08.04.24: pointing to the future; expressions of time [1]

Apart from those which make a specific reference to the past or future e.g. herī (yesterday) and crās (tomorrow), most expressions of time can be used with any tense since the context and / or the verb itself will indicate when the action took, takes or will take place. Posted are expressions which either specifically refer or can refer to the future. Bear in mind that this is a selection providing you with a ready set of ‘tools’ which allows you to refer to different points in time. In the literature, the way of expressing the idea, the order of words and the choice of case may be different, but you will acquire more as you begin to read the literature.

Some of the examples are from Plautus and other sources e.g. the Vulgate, but most are from Cicero’s letters to Atticus. Authentic examples are selected to illustrate the point, yet are expressed using language that is readily understood, generally unmodified or with slight adaptation; there is no purpose in battling with a lengthy and grammatically complex sentence simply to show that an author used a particular word.

1. Crās igitur mittam. (Cicero) │ So I’ll send <a letter> tomorrow.
2. Crās igitur nōs mātūrē vidēbit (Cicero) │ Therefore, he’ll see ‘us’ [ = me] early tomorrow.
3. Sciēs fortasse crās, summum perendiē (Cicero) │ So you shall hear to-morrow perhaps, at the latest the day after.
4. Mē hinc cōnferam perendiē māne. │ I’ll go from here the day after tomorrow in the morning.
5. In crāstinum differam rēs sevērās. │ I’ll put off serious things until tomorrow.
6. Sed nunc properō. Perscrībam ad tē paucīs diēbus omnia. (Cicero) │ I am in a hurry now. I will write everything in a few days’ time.
7. Post trēs diēs resurgam (Vulgate) │ After three days I will rise again.
8. Solvite templum hoc et in tribus diēbus excitābō illud (Vulgate) │ Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.
9. Ergō, ut spērō, prope diem tē vidēbō. (Cicero) │ So, as I hope, I shall see you soon.
10. Ex eō diē diēs XLV rēctē putābis. (Cato) │ You will trim <the olive yard> correctly from this day for 45 days.
11. Septimō diē cessābis (Vulgate) │ On the seventh day you will stop <working>
12. Et illūdent eī, et cōnspuent eum, et flagellābunt eum, et interficient eum: et tertia diē resurget. (Vulgate) │ And they will mock him, and spit upon him, and flog him, and kill him; and on the third day he will rise.

07.04.24: future tense; examples from the authors

Some more examples of the future tense from the authors. Every verb is in the future. Again, take a look at the constructions with sī (if); in Latin, in this particular construction, the future tense is used. In the first example, I give the literal translation in brackets.

Nox, sī volēs, manēbō. (Plautus) │ I’ll stay at night if you (will) want.

Vidēbis ergō hominem, sī volēs. (Cicero) │ Therefore, you will see the man if you wish.

Sī ego hīc perībō … (Plautus) │ If I die here …

Sī mē audiēs ..., certē putābis. (Cicero) │ If you listen to me, ... you will certainly think <it worthwhile>

Sī obscūrē scrībam, tū tamen intellegēs. (Cicero) │ If I write vaguely, you’ll understand nonetheless.

Sī quandō satis pecūniae habēbō, tum mē cōnsiliō et philosophiae dabō. (Seneca) │ If I ever have enough money, then I will give (devote) myself to wisdom and philosophy

Sī quid rēs feret, cōram inter nōs cōnferēmus. (Cicero) │ If any point arises, we will discuss it together face to face.

Sī quid tē volam, ubi eris? (Plautus) │ If I want you for anything, where will you be?

And a very dramatic example from Plautus; all the verbs are in the future tense:

Intrō rumpam in aedīs, │ I’ll burst into the house,

… sī ancillam seu servum sīve uxōrem sīve adulterum seu patrem sīve avum vidēbō, │ … (and) if I (will) see a maidservant or a man or a wife or an adulterer or a father or a grandfather,

… obtruncābō in aedibus, │ … I’ll cut (them) down in my house,

… neque mē Iuppiter neque dī omnēs id prohibēbunt, │ .. and neither Jupiter nor all the gods will prevent me from this

… sī volent. │ … (even) if they (will) want to.

07.04.24: practice in the future tense

A little exercise from a 19th century German schoolbook teaching Latin. Look at the English translation and then complete the dialogue with the verbs listed. It’s a little old fashioned but it does revise the future tense forms covered in the previous posts. And the text throws in a couple of present tenses.

Note that, in Latin, the construction with “when” is in the future tense.

aberis; aberō (used twice); abībis; absum; agam; agēs; agō; canam; erisne; erō; labōrābis; legam; pingam; poterō; scrībam; veniam; veniēs (used twice)

Will you be at home tomorrow when I (will) come to you?

__________ crās domī, cum ad tē __________?

I will be at home if you (will) come before midday; if, however, you (will) come after midday, I shall be away.

__________ domī, sī ante merīdiem __________ ; sī autem post merīdiem __________ , __________.

At what time will you go away?

Quotā hōrā __________?

At six o’clock.

Sextā horā.

Will you be away for a long time?

Diūne __________?

I will not be away for longer than I am away every day in the afternoon.

Nōn diūtius __________ quam cotīdiē post merīdiem __________.

How long will you be working today?

Quam diū hodiē __________?

Not longer than I can [= will be able].

Nōn diūtius quam __________.

What will you be doing tomorrow?

Quid crās __________?

Tomorrow, I’ll do what I do every day. In the morning, I’ll paint, before midday I’ll write, in the afternoon I’ll read, in the evening I’ll sing.

Crās __________ quod cotīdiē __________ : māne __________ , ante merīdiem __________ , post merīdiem __________ , vesperī __________ .

The original text is posted in the comments. It has a couple of older spellings of Latin words (quum = cum; quotidie = cotidie)

 

07.04.24: message from Plautus ... before the show starts

 And before the show starts, some words of warning from its author, Plautus:

07.04.24: future tense in the Vulgate

An interesting source of examples of the future tense comes from the Vulgate. The Ten Commandments are written in the future tense saying what you will or will not do. Most of them are listed below. I have only omitted those which involve some other grammatical features which are not being covered at the moment.

• adsūmō, adsūmere [3]: take up
• colō, colere [3]: worship
• concupīscō, concupīscere [3]: desire; covet
• fūrtum, -ī [2/n]: theft
• occīdō, occīdere [3]: kill
• sculptilis [masc. / fem.] scultpile [neut.]: carved; (here) something carved i.e. “a graven image”

Nōn habēbis deōs aliēnōs cōram mē.

Nōn faciēs tibi sculptile.

Nōn adōrābis ea neque cōlēs.

Nōn adsūmēs nōmen Dominī Deī tuī in vānum.

Faciēs omnia opera tua.

Nōn occīdēs.

Nōn fūrtum faciēs.

Nōn concupīscēs domum proximī tuī nec dēsīderābis uxōrem eius.

07.04.24: reading practice

Read the text for understanding and then look at the notes.

CRĀS

[Chesnutt: the Road to Latin (1933)]

Crās Cornēlius fīliōs Lūcium et Aulum ad Forum Rōmānum dūcet. Ibi puerī aedificia multa et magna vidēbunt. Multōs virōs clārōs quoque vidēbunt. Nam virī clārī ad Forum Rōmānum cotīdiē veniunt. Multa verba dē glōriā patriae dīcentur et audientur. Fortasse Cornēlius sententiam dē bellō dīcet. Tum puerī laetī erunt quod Cornēlius ā multīs audiētur et laudābitur. Forum Rōmānum virōrum et fēminārum erit plēnum. Erit pompa in Forō Rōmānō. Virī ad templa deōrum properābunt. Fēminae ad tabernās ambulābunt et puerī tardī ad lūdōs current. In Forō nōn erit ōtium quod multum negōtium agētur.

Cornēlius rogābit, “Nōnne, puerī, in tabernās veniētis?” “Libenter in tabernās veniēmus, nam dōna ad Tulliam līberōsque mittēmus,” respondēbunt fīliī. Ē tabernīs multa dōna ad villam ā servīs portābuntur. Parvum scūtum ad Pūblium, parvus gladius ad Servium mittētur. Ad Tulliam fībula pulchra mittētur. Tum Cornēlius et fīliī per angustās viās Rōmae ad Circum Maximum properābunt, et cum amīcis spectāculum exspectābunt. Ē subsellīs spectāculum vidēbunt. Quadrīgae per arēnam volābunt. Equī celeriter current. Virī et fēminae et puerī clāmābunt. Tandem dēfessī domum venient et Tulliae liberīsque dōna dabunt.

Vocabulary

• exspectō, exspectāre [1]: wait (for)
• fībula, -ae [1/f]: pin; brooch
• negōtium, -ī [2/n]: business
• ōtium, -ī [2/n]: leisure
• sententia, -ae [1/f]: opinion; thought
• tardus, -ā, -um: late

Notes

[1] Every verb in this text – except one - is in the future tense. Which of these verbs belongs to the [i] 1st / 2nd conjugation and which belong to the [ii] 3rd, 3rd-iō or 4th?

Look at the “codes”

[i] 1st / 2nd: -bō / -bi- / -bu-

[ii] 3rd, 3-iō, 4th: -(i)e / (i)ē-

[2] Which future tense verb is irregular?

[3] Nam virī clārī ad Forum Rōmānum cotīdiē veniunt. This verb is not in the future. What tense is it?

[4] It has been mentioned in previous posts, but look again at the -ur ending; this marks the passive of the verb

Multa verba dē glōriā patriae dīcentur et audientur.

• Many words will be said and (will be) heard about the glory of the country.

Cornēlius ā multīs audiētur et laudābitur.

• Cornelius will be heard / listened to and (will be) praised by many people.

Multum negōtium agētur.

• A lot of business will be done.

Multa dōna … ā servīs portābuntur.

• Many gifts will be carried … by the slaves.

Parvus gladius ad Servium mittētur.

• A small sword will be sent to Servius.

Ad Tulliam fībula pulchra mittētur.

• A beautiful brooch will be sent to Tullia.

          

07.04.24: spotting the differences; present and future tenses of 3rd, 3-iō and 4th conjugation verbs

If you’ve read the previous post, then you’ve already heard what one student said:

“Sometimes the words look the same but they’re not.”

At first sight the tables all look frighteningly similar! But it’s like “cracking a code”. They all look similar but they’re not. The exercise is simply going to ask you which of the verbs is present tense and which is future. You need to look for the key information:

[i] For the first person singular:

If the verb ends in –(i)ō, it’s present tense [e.g. dūcō; audiō]

If it ends in –(i)am, it’s future tense. [e.g. dūcam; audiam]

[ii] For the rest, look at the other vowels:

If the ending is -i/ī- or –(i)u- it’s present tense [e.g. dūcis; dūcunt; audīs; audiunt]

If the ending is -(i)e / -(i)ē, it’s future tense [e.g. dūcēs; ducent; audiēmus; audient]

[A]

1. capiam

2. capiō

3. cupiunt

4. cupient

5. dormiēmus

6. dormīmus

7. leget

8. legit

9. mittēs

10. mittis

11. scrībētis

12. scrībitis

[B]

This time, completely random verbs, some of which are in the present and some of which are in the future. Keep checking the “codes” to identify whether the verb is present or future tense.

1. adveniet

2. agis

3. bibētis

4. currō

5. cūstōdīmus

6. dīcitis

7. fugiam

8. iaciēs

9. interficient

10. lūdēmus

11. rapiunt

12. venit

07.04.24: the code breakers

Before I post the next text, I wanted to share something which, I think, will be relevant in terms of reading Latin.

Before I retired, I worked in one school where there was a student who was an absolute computer whizz-kid. The UK GCSE ICT examination was a walk in the park for him, and, independently, he was also studying Advanced Level Computer Science, as well as Additional Mathematics. This lad knew everything about computer programming, html, coding i.e. all the things that I knew nothing about. More than that, he was a fanatical online gamer – something else I know nothing about but, whatever he was doing, it looked complex. Interestingly, he also attended Chinese classes.

One day I mentioned casually to a colleague that this boy should study Latin but didn’t really explain why beyond saying that he had the sort of mind that would like it.

Some time went by and we reached International Day – a lot of schools have that. All the kids are divided according to their “house”, each house is allocated a country and they then have to do presentations, performances and displays e.g. cookery pertaining to that country.

Purely by chance, this boy’s house had been given Italy.

On the day of the presentations, he stood up and gave a speech – in Latin – perfectly pronounced and with no errors. I nearly fell off my chair. My colleague whispered “Did you tell him to learn Latin?” “No,” I replied “I had no idea he was doing that.”

At the end of the presentation, I asked him why he had chosen to learn Latin by himself. This is what he said:

“It’s like Computer Science or Mathematics, they’re codes, to get to the answer you need to look at the endings, see how the words are related to each other, sometimes the words look the same but they’re not. Each sentence is a challenge and, to get to the next level, you need to break the code.”

I could also see why Chinese would appeal to him; every character was a code to be cracked. I suggested to him that, at some point in his life, he should also take a look at Russian, and the Hieroglyphs.

Now, for him, Latin was not of historical or cultural interest – he was far from being a “History” man – but he recognised the intellectual challenge which Latin presented and that the mental skills involved in analysing what is happening in a Latin sentence, learning ‘formulae’, applying information and seeing connections captivated him as much as Computer Science and Advanced Algebra.

The deeper you get into Latin, the less likely the “answer” is going to jump off the page. You need to be familiar with the endings, but you can’t just learn the tables. How it’s all working together in a text means you do have to be able to ”crack the codes”.

But that doesn’t happen quickly. The next couple of posts will give some simple practice in it.

 

 

07.04.24: future tenses working together

This little text shows you both future tenses working together. The verbs in bold are 3rd and 4th conjugation, the verbs in italics 1st conjugation.

Again, note the characteristic -bō / -bi- / -bu- of the 1st (and 2nd) conjugation and, this time, the characteristic –(i)am / -(i)e/ē- of the 3rd and 4th.

PŪBLIUS ET SERVIUS

[Chesnutt: the Road to Latin (1933)]

Pūblius et Servius in hortō lūdunt. Prope puerōs parvōs Tullia cum amīcā Camillā sedet. Fēminae puerōs spectant et audiunt.

“Nōn semper,” inquit Pūblius, “parvī erimus. Tum nōs quoque cum Lūciō et Aulō Rōmam ambulābimus.” Mox discipulī erimus et cotīdie ad lūdum properābimus,” respondet Servius. “Quid in ludō agēs?” rogat Pūblius. “In lūdō fābulās legam,” respondet Servius. “Tūne, Servī, semper fābulās legēs?” Interdum lūdī magister fābulās leget. Fābulās dē deis et deābus leget,” respondet Servius. “Nōs in lūdō multās fābulās legēmus!” clāmat Pūblius.

“Quālēs fābulās, meī fīliī, legētis?” rogat Tullia. “Fābulās dē bellīs et dē aurigīs legēmus,” respondent Pūblius et Servius.

“Meī fīliī parvī, Camilla,” inquit Tullia, “Libenter fābulās legent. Fortasse domī fābulās nārrābunt.” “Parvī fīliī tuī sunt cārī, Tullia. Fortasse ad vīllam meam mox venient. Nunc domum properābō. Nōnne ad lectīcam, puerī, veniētis?” rogat Camilla. “Veniēmus sī Tullia quoque veniet,” respondent puerī. “Cum fīliīs parvīs,” inquit Tullia, “libenter veniam. Nōnne iterum, cāra Camilla, ad vīllam veniēs?” “Mox veniam et fīliae meae quoque venient,” respondent Camilla.

lectīca, -ae [1/f]: sedan; portable sofa / couch [see image]

quālis [masc. / fem.] quāle [neut.]: what kind of?

[1] Two future tense verbs are the focus of the text:

[i] legō, legere [3]: read

legam: I shall read

legēs: you (sg.) will read

leget: he / she / it will read

legēmus: we will read

legētis: you (pl.) will read

legent: they will read

[ii] veniō, venīre [4]: come

veniam: I shall come etc.

veniēs

veniet

veniēmus

veniētis

venient

[2] Note again the variation in tense usage between Latin and English:

Veniēmus [future] ¦ sī Tullia quoque veniet [future]

We will come [future] ¦ if Tullia also comes [present]

[3] “Quid in ludō agēs?” rogat Pūblius.

agō, agere [3]: do

Publius asks a useful question: What will you do in school? We will use that question later to do more practice of the future tense.

07.04.24: future tense of 3rd, 3rd-iō and 4th conjugations

The future tense endings for the 3rd, 3rd-iō and 4th conjugations are effectively the same:

-am

-ēs

-et

-ēmus

-ētis

-ent

[i] For 3rd conjugation verbs, remove the infinitive ending in its entirety:

mittō, mitt¦ere [3]: send > mitt¦-

Then add the endings:

mitt¦am, mittēs, mittet, mittēmus, mittētis, mittent

[ii] In the 4th conjugation -re is removed from the infinitive, but the long /ī/ is shortened > /ĭ/:

audī¦re > audī¦- > audĭ¦-

Then add the same endings:

audiam, audiēs, audiet, audiēmus, audiētis, audient

[iii] 3rd-iō verbs endings are exactly the same as the 4th conjugation:

capiō, capere [3-iō]: take

Remove the infinitive ending in its entirety:

cap¦- > add short /ĭ/: capi-

Then add the endings:

capiam, capiēs, capiet, capiēmus, capiētis, capient