07.02.25: Speaking Latin on Campus (University of Dallas) [7]: notes [iv]; introduction to the accusative-infinitive

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

This, like the subjunctive, is a lengthy topic; all we will do here is give an overview.

Sciō aliquō locō esse sēminārium │ I know that there is a seminary (in / at) some place.

What Vincent uses here is an indirect statement.

There is a good example of this from the National Latin examination:

Marcus … dīcit ¦ duōs fūrēs esse in apodytēriō │Marcus says that two thieves are in the changing room.

“Two thieves are in the changing room.” │ direct statement; the actual word used by Marcus

Marcus says that two thieves are in the changing room. │ indirect statement also known in English as reported speech

In English and other languages, an indirect statement is introduced by a conjunction:

Engl: he says that …; Fr: il dit que ….; Gmn: er sagt, dass …; Russ: on govorit, chto ….

Late / Mediaeval Latin can introduce indirect statements in the same way with the use of quod – but Classical Latin cannot do this; CL uses a completely different, and – at first sight – odd construction known as the accusative-infinitive. In English, it is not entirely alien; there are examples, but the usage is very restricted mainly to expressions of opinion / belief but there may well be other examples found in older English literature:

I consider ¦ (i) him [direct object] (ii) to be [infinitive] a good man = I think ¦ that he is a good man.

I believe ¦ (i) her  [direct object] (ii) to be [infinitive] wealthy = I believe ¦ that she is wealthy.

We hold ¦ (i) these truths [direct object] ¦ (ii) to be [infinitive] self-evident = We believe ¦ that these truths are self-evident.

These constructions can sound rather old-fashioned, but they do exist and, in Latin, the use extends to all expressions of indirect statement and thought:

[1] Marcus … dīcit ¦ (i) duōs fūrēs [direct object: accusative] (ii) esse [infinitive] in apodytēriō

> (very) literally: Marcus says ¦ (i) two thieves (ii) to be in the changing room

> Marcus says ¦ that two thieves are in the changing room.

Further examples:

[2] Sciō ¦ (i) eum [accusative] (ii) venīre [infinitive]

> literally: I know ¦ him to be coming

> I know ¦ that he is coming.

[3] Credō ¦ (i) tē [accusative] sapientem (ii) esse [infinitive]

> literally: I believe ¦ you to be wise

> I believe ¦ that you are wise.

[4] Magister dīcit ¦ (i) discipulōs [accusative] (ii) studēre [infinitive]

> literally: The teacher says ¦ (i) the pupils (ii) to be studying

> The teacher says ¦ that the pupils are studying.

Therefore, let’s go back to what Vincent said:

Sciō aliquō locō esse [infinitive] sēminārium [accusative]

> literally: I know ¦ a seminary to be in some place.

> I know ¦ that there is a seminary in some place.

At this stage simply be aware of this construction since there is much more involved in it.

07.02.25: Speaking Latin on Campus (University of Dallas) [6]; notes [iii]; introduction to the subjunctive (2)

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

[1] Hodiē velim ostendere vōbīs ūnversitātem. │Today I would like to show you the university.

The subjunctive mood has different tenses; this is an example of the present subjunctive of the irregular verb volō:

velim

velīs

velit

velīmus

velītis

velint

velim (subjunctive) │ I would like to; Fr: je voudrais (conditional tense); German: ich möchte (subjunctive)

The subjunctive is used in Latin to express wish i.e. something that you would like to do. Now, of course, Vincent does show you the university, but the grammar of the verb indicates something that, at that point, is desired but has not yet happened i.e. the grammar gods would say: Maybe you would like to do it but that doesn’t guarantee that you will!

[2] Volō deambulāre hīc ut omnia videam. │I want to take a walk here to see everything.

This is the regular present subjunctive of a 2^nd conjugation verb:

videam

videās

videat

videāmus

videātis

videant

The sentence would translate as “I want to take a walk here to see everything” but that’s not how the Latin is actually working:

Volō deambulāre hīc ¦ ut omnia videam │ Literally: I want to take a walk ¦ so that I may see everything.

Again, although Vincent does see everything, at the moment he says it, it hasn’t in grammatical terms happened yet; he tells you what the purpose is of him walking. Compare the translation from the Vulgate:

People were bringing little children to him in order that / so that he might touch them.

The same idea is conveyed in:

Cūrāte ut valeātis │literally: take care / see to it that you are well / healthy i.e. the purpose of taking care is so that you may be well

[3]

nesciō ubi sit. │ I don’t know where it is.

nesciō utrum sit in mediō campī │I don’t know whether (or not) it is in the middle of the campus.

This is the present subjunctive of esse and appears very often in the literature:

sim

sīs

sit

sīmus

sītis

sint

Compare:

Where is it? │ direct question > I don’t know where it is │indirect question

Is it here or not? │direct question > I don’t know whether it’s here or not │indirect question

An example in English can convey the same idea as the Latin subjunctive: I’ve no idea where he might be.

There is far more involved in the subjunctive than what has been referred to here, but this at least gives you an idea as to why it is being used in the contexts above.

07.02.25: Speaking Latin on Campus (University of Dallas) [5]; notes [ii]; introduction to the subjunctive (1)

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

In his video Vincent uses a number of examples of the subjunctive:

• velim ostendere vōbīs ūnversitātem │I would like to show you the university
• Nesciō utrum sit in mediō campī │I don’t know whether it’s in the middle of the campus
• Ergō nesciō ubi sit. │ Therefore, I don’t know where it is. [I don’t know where it could / might be.]
• Volō deambulāre hīc ut omnia videam. │ I want to take a walk here to see everything [literally: so that I may see everything]
• Cūrāte ut valeātis │ Take care; literally: See to it that you may be well.

The term subjunctive has been mentioned from time to time in the group with little – if any – comment, and I wanted to give, from my own experience, my reasons for avoiding it until now.

The subjunctive:

[1] is a lengthy topic; of all the features of Latin that I studied, this one took the longest;

[2] is a bit like an algebraic equation; you can’t do algebra until you can add, subtract etc. i.e. knowing how to form the subjunctive relies on previous knowledge of other verb forms which is why it is frequently last in a Latin grammar book or textbook that is dealing with the language in depth;

[3] has multiple uses in different contexts and those uses are not always immediately obvious, especially in translation

What is the subjunctive?

Speakers of, for example, French and German will not be unfamiliar with this; in German it is known as the Konjunktiv, and in French, as conjonctif or subjonctif. That familiarity will be based on the fact that both of those languages have subjunctive forms of the verbs even if the usage does not always match the Latin.

English, on the other hand, does not have separate subjunctive forms i.e. you’re not going to find tables of English verbs with subjunctives in the same way as you find past tense forms. However, English has auxiliary verbs which it uses to convey some of the ideas of the Latin subjunctive, and so we’ll start there. Have a look at a few examples with the verbs in italics:

[i] Are you going tonight? > Yes, I’m going │I may go or I might go; ‘may’ / ‘might’ express possibility but uncertainty

• We could rearrange the time if you like.
• Were you there? │I may have been / might have been there.
• What should I do  / ought I to do? I could phone him or I might just send him an email; the speaker is deliberating but shows uncertainty.

[ii] You might have told me that you hadn’t sent the email! Here, ‘might have’ expresses an unreal situation.

• I could have helped you yesterday (but I can’t now).
• I would have preferred a different colour in the kitchen (but they painted it red).
• You should have stayed at home (but you didn’t).
• If only he were with me now (but he isn’t).

If I were rich, … (but I’m not, often with the unsaid inference that the situation will remain unreal: “I’m not rich ¦ and I’m not going to be.”)

[iii] I would love to buy that Mercedes; expressions of desire, but desiring something does not mean your ‘wish’ will be granted!

• I would like him to tell me the truth.

[iv] You must / have to / need to stay at home. │You should / ought to stay at home; suggestions, recommendations are not the same as commands i.e. you may make a suggestion but that does not imply the suggestion will be carried out.

• I recommend that he stay at home.
• I suggest that you be careful.

[v] John went to the store and bought a cake [action concluded]. │ John went to the store to buy a cake [action unconcluded]; the second sentence indicates purpose but it does not indicate that the action was fulfilled. Maybe in the end he did buy a cake but, at the moment the sentence is stated, the action remained unfulfilled.

In ‘older’ English: John went to the store so that / in order that he might buy a cake. English speakers would rarely use that now, but it does exist:

• People were bringing little children to him in order that / so that he might touch them (Vulgate transl.)

There are other examples but I think that’s enough to give you the idea of the thinking that underpins the subjunctive. The term subjunctive does not refer to a tense (the subjunctive has several tenses) but to a grammatical mood that conveys doubt / uncertainty, desire, unfulfilled / unreal / hypothetical situations, purpose.

When dealing with the subjunctive in Latin, those senses don’t necessarily jump off the page at you, but Latin is far more rigid in using the subjunctive – and in many more specific contexts – than any “equivalents” in English. Moreover, while the English examples are deliberately chosen to reflect some of the ideas of the Latin subjunctive, words such as “may”, “might”, “could” – when translating from Latin into English – may not be appropriate.

In the next post I’m going to focus only on the subjunctives which Vincent uses in the video.

07.02.25: Speaking Latin on Campus (University of Dallas) [4]; notes [i]

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

[1] studeō litterīs classicīs │ I study Classics

There are a number of verbs in Latin which are followed by the dative case; this topic will be covered in depth when the third level is introduced in the group. However, I’ve listed two links to the Latin Tutorial videos which will give an explanation at this stage:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AW4sAIcZBFU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fi30NwfGaA&t=130s

The original Classical Latin meaning of studeō, -ēre, -uī [2] is much broader than merely ‘study’; it has the idea of ‘dedicating oneself / being devoted to something’, hence the dative case; the meaning of ‘study’ i.e. to apply oneself to learning emerges in Late / Mediaeval Latin.

[2] Examples of the passive voice with the distinctive -ur ending:

invenit │(s)he / it finds > invenītur │(s)he / it is found

appellat │ (s)he addresses / calls somebody by name > hoc aedificium quod appellātur … │this building which is called …

[3] loquor │ I (am) speak(ing); loquimur │ we (are) speak(ing) are examples of deponent verbs; these are verbs which look passive but are active. Compare:

[i] invenītur │it is found (passive)

[ii] loquitur │he speaks / is speaking (active)

Again, there are some very detailed posts coming up on this topic when Level 3 is introduced in the group, but the link below will give you information now:

https://www.thelatinlibrary.com/101/Deponent.pdf

07.02.25: Speaking Latin on Campus (University of Dallas) [3]; vocabulary

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

Estisne discipulī rērum classicārum? Ego quoque (sum). Salvēte sodāles. Vincentius loquor. Hodiē velim ostendere vōbīs ūnversitātem ubi nunc studeō litterīs classicīs: Universitās Dāllāsēnsis. Ecce turris. Nesciō utrum sit in mediō campī; fortasse nōn quia hinc possum vidēre viam. Novus discipulus sum; ergō nōndum vīdī neque intrāvī in omnia aedificia. Sed hodiē tempus mihi est. Volō deambulāre hīc ut omnia videam. [background dialogue: Anglicē, id est, barbaricē loquimur; ignoscite]. Sciō aliquō locō esse sēminārium, sed nōn habeō tabulam geōgraphicam. Ergō nesciō ubi sit. Ut credō ibi invenītur; veritās -  virtūs - sapientia. Frequentō tantum hoc aedificium quod appellātur ‘Anselm’ (ex nōmine Sānctī Anselmī Cantuariēnsis) in quō sunt conclāvia mea. Nunc bibliothēcam petō. Cuius est hic lectus suspensus? Tempus est prandium sūmere. Grātiās vōbīs agō quod spectāvistis. Cūrāte ut valeātis; in proximum.

Find the Latin:

also

as

because

but

from here

here

in which

nor; and … not …

not yet

now

only

perhaps

there

therefore

this (building)

this (hammock)

today

where

which

whose?

What’s the difference between hīc (with long /ī/) and hic (with short /i/)? They don’t have the same meaning.

cuius; ergō; fortasse; hic; hīc; hinc; hoc; hodiē; ibi; in quō; neque; nōndum; nunc; quia; quod; quoque; sed; tantum; ubi; ut

07.02.25: Speaking Latin on Campus (University of Dallas) [2]; comprehension

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

Either listen to the video alone or follow the text below and answer the questions.

[1] Estisne discipulī rērum classicārum? Ego quoque (sum). Salvēte sodālēs. Vincentius loquor. Hodiē velim ostendere vōbīs ūnversitātem ubi nunc studeō litterīs classicīs: Universitās Dāllāsēnsis.

[i] What question does Vincent ask you? (1)

[ii] What does he want to do today and why? (2)

[2] Ecce turris. Nesciō utrum sit in mediō campī; fortasse nōn quia hinc possum vidēre viam. Novus discipulus sum; ergō nōndum vīdī neque intrāvī in omnia aedificia. Sed hodiē tempus mihi est. Volō deambulāre hīc ut omnia videam.

[iii] What tall building does he point out? (1)

[iv] What is he not sure of? (1)

[v] What can he see? (1)

[vi] True / false? Vincent’s been at the university for several years. (1)

[vii] True / false? He’s been in all the buildings. (1)

[viii] Why does he want to take a walk? (1)

[3] [background dialogue: Anglicē, id est, barbaricē loquimur; ignoscite]. Sciō aliquō locō esse sēminārium, sed nōn habeō tabulam geōgraphicam. Ergō nesciō ubi sit. Ut credō ibi invenītur; veritās -  virtūs – sapientia.

[ix] Why does Vincent apologise? (1)

[x] What building is he looking for? (1)

[xi] Why does he not know where it is? (1)

[xii] Which three very “Roman” characteristics does he refer to? (3)

[4] Frequentō tantum hoc aedificium quod appellātur ‘Anselm’ (ex nōmine Sānctī Anselmī Cantuariēnsis) in quō sunt conclāvia mea.

[xiii] True / false: Vincent uses several buildings when he studies. (1)

[xiv] Why does the building have the name ‘Anselm’ (2); note: he doesn’t say this but writes it in the subtitles.

[xv] What is in the building? (1)

[5] Nunc bibliothēcam petō. Cuius est hic lectus suspensus? Tempus est prandium sūmere. Grātiās vōbīs agō quod spectāvistis. Cūrāte ut valeātis; in proximum.

[xvi] Where is he heading to? (1)

[xvii] What question does he ask? (1)

[xviii] What time of the day is it? (1)

____________________

[i] Are you students?

[ii] Show you the university; he’s studying Classics there 

[iii] tower

[iv] whether it’s in the middle of the campus

[v] a road

[vi] false: he’s a new student

[vii] false: he’s not yet been in all the buildings

[viii] to see everything

[ix] they’re speaking in English

[x] seminary

[xi] doesn’t have a map

[xii] truth; virtue; wisdom

[xiii] false: he only goes to one building

[xiv] named after Saint Anselm of Canterbury

[xv] his classrooms

[xvi] the library

[xvii] Whose hammock is this?

[xviii] lunch time

07.02.25: Speaking Latin on Campus (University of Dallas) [1]; video / transcript / translation

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

Post #1: video / transcript / translation (literal and reworked); points to be covered later are indicated in bold and italics.

[1] Estisne discipulī rērum classicārum? Ego quoque (sum). Salvēte sodālēs. Vincentius loquor. Hodiē velim ostendere vōbīs ūnversitātem ubi nunc studeō litterīs classicīs: Universitās Dāllāsēnsis.

Are you students of Classics? Me, too [literally: I also (am) / I am, too]. Hello, friends. It’s me, Vincent, speaking [literally: I, Vincent, am speaking]. Today I would like to show you the university where I’m now studying Classics: the University of Dallas.

[2] Ecce turris*. Nesciō utrum sit in mediō campī; fortasse nōn quia hinc possum vidēre viam. Novus discipulus sum; ergō nōndum vīdī neque intrāvī in omnia aedificia. Sed hodiē tempus mihi est. Volō deambulāre hīc ut omnia videam.

*turris, -is [3/f]: tower; this 3^rd declension noun has two alternative accusatives: turrem and turrim

Here’s a tower. I don’t know whether it’s in the middle of the campus; perhaps not because I can see a road from here. I’m a new student; therefore, I have not yet seen nor gone into all the buildings. But today I have time. I want to take a walk here to see everything [literally: (in order / so) that I may see].

[3] [background dialogue: Anglicē, id est, barbaricē loquimur; ignoscite] Sciō aliquō locō esse sēminārium, sed nōn habeō tabulam geōgraphicam. Ergō nesciō ubi sit. Ut credō ibi invenītur; veritās -  virtūs – sapientia.

[“We speak in English, that is / i.e. in Babarian. Forgive (us).] I know ¦ that there is a seminary in some place [literally: I know ¦ a seminary to be in some place], but I don’t have a map. Therefore, I don’t know where it is [literally: where it may / might be]. I think [literally: as I believe], it can be found there / you can find it there [literally: it is found there]; truth – virtue – wisdom.

[4] Frequentō tantum hoc aedificium quod appellātur ‘Anselm’ (ex nōmine Sānctī Anselmī Cantuariēnsis) in quō sunt conclāvia mea.

I only ‘frequent’ i.e. regularly visit / go to this building which is called ‘Anselm’ (from the name of Saint Anselm of Canterbury) where [literally: in which] my classrooms are.

[5] Nunc bibliothēcam petō. Cuius est hic lectus suspensus*? Tempus est prandium sūmere. Grātiās vōbīs agō quod spectāvistis. Cūrāte ut valeātis; in proximum.

*lectus, -ī suspensus: (New Latin) hammock; also lectulus (literally: a little bed) suspensus; the Neo-Latin Lexicon gives nine possibilities for ‘hammock’

https://neolatinlexicon.org/latin/hammock/

I think one is enough.

Now I’m heading to / making for the library. Whose hammock is this? It’s time to take lunch. Thank you (all) for watching [literally: thank you because you have watched]. Take care [literally: see to it that you may be well]; until the next time.

07.02.25: follow-up and introduction: Speaking Latin on Campus

Referring to:

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1664G7koga/

or

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

When this group began, its original name was Latin for Starters, but soon after it changed its name to Latin for Learners because it was clear that the members had different levels of knowledge. This is the reason why most of the posts are labelled Level 1 and Level 2; a Level 3 will be introduced soon.

Vincent’s video is a very good example of how one passage of Latin can operate at different levels and so there will be a series of posts relating to it to try to cater for different members who are at different stages of the language:

[1] transcript / translation (including literal translation) i.e. you can simply follow the Latin and the translation without thinking too much about the way in which Latin expresses certain ideas

[2] focus on listening / comprehension with questions on the content

[3] vocabulary; identifying key words that occur again and again in Latin

__________

Want to go further?

[4] – [7] These posts are not for beginners; they introduce more advanced concepts in the language. Everything in [4] – [7] gives introductions to the ideas and will be looked at again when Level 3 is introduced. Therefore, they are not essential at this stage but, as I mentioned earlier, there are members who are already at this point in their study of Latin and so they may want to explore the language in greater depth.

I have also included links to Latin Tutorial videos and files that will give more information.