17.02.26: Level 3; indirect statement; the accusative-infinitive [24]: use of quod

[i] In the first post on the topic of indirect statement, it was mentioned that quod as an equivalent of the English conjuction ‘that’ is a feature of Late Latin rather than Classical:

Level 3: indirect statement; the accusative-infinitive [1] (note [4])

https://adckl2.blogspot.com/2025/06/level-3-indirect-statement-accusative.html

et vīdit Deus ¦ quod esset bonum (Vulgate) │ and God saw that it was good

lēgātī renūntiāvērunt ¦ quod Pompeium in potestāte habērent │ the ambassadors reported that they had Pompey in their power

This type of clause with quod gradually took over from the accusative and infinitive construction and became the usual way of expressing indirect speech in the Romance languages:

French / Spanish / Portuguese: que; Italian: che; Romanian: că

This parallels with, for example, Old English: þæt; Mediaeval German: daȥ; Modern Russian: chto (что)

However, in Classical Latin quod / quia introduces a causal / explanatory clause rather than an indirect statement:

[ii] quod: “(the fact) that”

quod rediit ¦ nōbīs mīrābile vidētur (Cicero) │ (the fact) that he returned ¦ seems marvellous to us

praetereō ¦ quod eam sibī domum dēlēgit (Cicero) │  I pass over ¦ the fact that he chose that house for himself

i.e. these two do not ‘report’ an event, but express a reaction to something already known

[iii] verbs of emotion / feeling are followed by either quod or quia; a way of differentiating the use of quod (or quia) in this context is mostly to interpret the meaning as ‘because’ rather than ‘that’.

Quod scrībis . . . gaudeō. │ I am glad ¦ that you write.

Gaudēmus quod ad tempus adestis │ We rejoice ¦ that you are here on time

Faciō libenter quod eam nōn possum praeterīre. │ I am glad ¦ that I cannot pass it by.

Gaudet quod vivit │ He rejoices ¦ that he is alive.

Opportūnissima rēs accidit quod Germānī vēnērunt. │ A very fortunate thing happened, ¦ (namely) that the Germans came.

Optimum, quod sustulistī. │ It is a very good thing ¦ that you have removed [him].

dolet mihi quod tū nunc stomachāris (Cicero) │ I'm sorry ¦ that you're angry now

quī ¦ quia nōn habuit ā mē turmās equitum ¦ fortasse suscēnset │ who perhaps feels angry ¦ that he did not receive squadrons of cavalry from me

https://dcc.dickinson.edu/grammar/latin/indicative-quod

[iv] The question is how the term Classical Latin is defined as opposed to, for example, Ecclesiastical or, in this case, “vernacular”. The use of quod to introduce an indirect statement is not considered a feature of Classical Latin i.e. the formal writing of Cicero, Livy etc. There may be occasional examples of quod introducing indirect statement. From Plautus:

Equidem sciō iam fīlius quod amet meus istanc meretrīcem ē proxumō Philaenium. │ I already know that my son is in love with that prostitute from next door, Philaenium.

Nunc sciō ego quod tē amāvī et miser sum factus. │ Now I know that I loved you and have been made wretched.

These would imply that quod was used in the vernacular, which would not be surprising given the common developments in the Romance languages that reflect that use, as well as equivalents in, for example, the Germanic and Slavonic languages, all of which would suggest it is a very early feature. While that is interesting to note, it is the literary language of the Classical period that is the predominant concern, and none of the major writers on Latin grammar refer to it, nor is it standard literary practice.