Spoken Latin
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Contents |
[edit] Spoken Latin
[edit] Introduction
Latin as a language was spoken from its earliest origins all through the middle ages to the renaissance and beyond by numerous students, scholars and the educated nobility. Like all spoken languages, Latin evolved in vocabulary and form. Often the vernacular languages influenced how Latin was spoken. While there were many attempts to stay true to Ciceronian form in speech and writing by scholars, most when they spoke the Latin tongue used forms and vocabulary often derived from their mother tongue which would have been incomprehensible to Classical speakers.
Latin grammar has remained fixed and unchanged for centuries. The two most controversial issues about the living use of Latin (living Latin) are pronunciation and the introduction of new words. Regarding pronunciation, the choice is between "ecclesiastical" pronunciation and "classical" pronunciation. Each has its problems. Although the Italian pronunciation is often presented as the standard for ecclesiastical or 'Church' Latin, there are different systems of pronunciation in different countries, all of them equally legitimated by tradition. For example, the Italian pronunciation will be used in Masses celebrated in the Latin language, which is still the official liturgical language of the Catholic Church.
"Classical" pronunciation offers consistency of sound across national borders, and makes the claim that it is what the ancient Romans (or at least educated speakers of the late Republican/early imperial period) actually spoke. It is described in books like the paradigmatic Allen's Vox Latina. To some, the classical rules (in particular the replacement of the "v" sound with the "w" sound) produce an unpleasing effect. Classical pronunciation, however, is the clear favorite of the "Living Latin" movement, which has the fastest growing number of new speakers of the language.
Regarding modern vocabulary, many schools exist, and there is no consensus as yet. The Vatican, the only state that still has Latin as its official language, even if hardly any of her cardinals can actually speak it anymore, publishes a Latin dictionary with an exhaustive number of modern words translated into this ancient tongue; often this is done through cumbersome periphrases (e.g. a hippie is 'osor conformitatis') and other times by arbitrary coinage of new words.
[edit] Standard Pleasantries
| Latin | English |
|---|---|
| Salve! | Hello |
| Salvete! | Hello all |
| Vale! | Goodbye |
| Valete! | Goodbye all |
| Quid agis? | How are you? |
| Bene me habeo | I am well |
| Et tu? | And you? |
| Gratias <tibi> ago | Thank you (singular) |
| Gratias <vobis> ago | Thank you (plural) |
[edit] Getting Acquainted
| Latin | English |
|---|---|
| Quid nōmen tibi est? | What is your name? |
| Mihi nōmen Iulius est. | My name is Julius. |
| Unde venīs/vēnistī? | Where did you come from? |
| Ubi habitās? | Where do you live? |
| Habitō in domiciliō/casā. | I live in a house. |
| Tūne Paula es? | Aren't you Paula? |
| Nōn Paula, sed Paulae filia, Maria sum. | Not Paula, but I am Paula's daughter, Maria. |
| Et tū, quis es? | And you, who are you? |
| Sum Paulus. | I am Paul. |
| Esne (tū) marītus an caelebs? | Are (you) married or single? |
| Marītus (ego) sum. Habeō uxōrem. | (I) am (a) married (man). I have a wife. |
| Quid nōmen est uxōrī? | What is the name of the wife? |
| Nōmen uxorī est Sophia. | The name of the wife is Sophia. |
[edit] Miscellaneous
| Latin | English |
|---|---|
| Quot annos habēs? | How old are you? |
| Ubi vīvis? | Where do you live? |
| Quot habēs frātrēs et sorōrēs? | How many brothers and sisters do you have? |
| Sīc/Ita/Ita vērō. | Yes |
| Nōn ita/Minimē. | No. |
| Fortasse. | Maybe. |
| Quid agis hodiē? | How do you do today? |
| Bene, gratiās. | Fine, thank you. |
| Nonne Paula es? | Aren't you Paula? |
| Nōn Paula, sed Paulae filia, Maria sum. | Not Paula, but I am Paula's daughter, Maria. |
| Et tū, quis es? | And you, who are you? |
| Ubi est valētūdinārium/nosocomīum? | Where is the hospital? |
| Admodum bene, haud ita multum valeō. | [oxymoronic] |
| Ubi sunt loca sēcrēta? | Where is the bathroom? |
| Vidi mulierem exeuntem e statione ferroviaria. | I saw the girl leaving the station. |
| Puella defessa in agro sedet. | The tired girl is seating in the field. |
| Ibit crastine. | He will go tommorrow. |
| Eum sapientem esse credo. | I believe him to be wise. |
| Ubi sumus? | Where are we? |
| Esne Maria? | Are you Maria? |
| Non Maria, sed Mariae fillia, Julia sum. | I am not Maria but Maria's daughter, July. |
| Cur in terra iaces? | Why are you lying on the ground? |
| Ex equo cecidi. | I fell off the horse. |
| Vini avidus sum. | I am greedy for wine. |
| Fortasse, velis venire mecum? | Maybe you would like to come with me? |
| Crastine, ibit oppidum. | Tomorrow, he will go to town. |
| Domina/Domine, potesne mihi succurrere? | Ma'am/Sir, can you help me? |
| Quis crimina in eum intulit? | Who brought charges against him? |
| Latrocinium modo factum est. | A robbery just took place. |
| Tunc modo volebat edere. | At that time, he just wanted to eat. |
| Bonam natalitiam. | Happy birthday. |
| Lupus non est. | It's not lupus. |
| Lupus nunquam est. | It's never lupus. |
[edit] External links
- http://linguaeterna.com/la/conv.php
- A complete textbook for spoken Classical Latin, G.J. Adler's "A Practical Grammar of the Latin Language for Speaking and Writing Latin" can be found on Google Books:
http://www.google.co.uk/books?id=GJgAAAAAYAAJ This textbook can be heard read out aloud here: http://latinum.mypodcast.com
