How to learn Latin: ‘unum facere et aliud non omittere’ (pars altera)
[This is the second part of the article; the first part can be read here.] The purpose of such a study is not—and I say this again so as not to be misunderstood—to go shopping in Latin or to use Latin as a living language, as one might English (which many people learn in order to take a plane or book a hotel, and not to read [...]
How to learn Latin: ‘unum facere et aliud non omittere’ (pars prior)
If we were to ask students and teachers the question, “What is Latin?” we would hear a multitude of adjectives related to the word: alive or (almost always) dead; useful or (mostly) useless; beautiful and ugly; ancient; interesting; boring; hard; not to mention Catholic; classist; Fascist. These are only a few adjectives, but they demonstrate how hard it is to provide a firm and impartial definition of [...]
Why learn Latin?
In our previous article, we established that Latin is a language of history and culture, that allows us to follow man’s path across centuries and understand two fundamental perspectives: historicity and rationality. If it is true that a few reasons for studying Latin are for the most part less valid today than in previous centuries, when the knowledge of the language of Rome had obvious practical implications [...]
Via directa
Symbola quae sequitur anno 1938° in commentariis Societatis linguae latinae usui internationali adaptandae, qui Lygia appellabantur, a Villelmo Henrico Denham Rouse latine exarata apparuit. Villelmus ille (1863°-1950°) linguae latinae graecaeque illustris magister fuit, qui Cantabrigiae viam directam ad linguas docendas, quae dicitur, diu ac strenue excoluit. Plura scire volentibus de via directa hunc et hunc eiusdem Rouse librum suademus. Symbola quam hic proponimus in ipsis commentariis hic legi [...]
Hans Henning Ørberg
A century ago Hans Henning Ørberg, the well-known Danish teacher and scholar, was born. His textbook, Lingua Latina per se illustrata, has made Latin accessible to many tens of thousands of young people, and has been used by many successive generations of students and other learners. From the 1950s to the last days of his life he tirelessly worked to improve Lingua Latina, both by writing some ancillary books and devising [...]
De Ara Pacis
Vere novo, vobis monstrare cupimus imaginem lacunariorum Arae Pacis, quam curavit exstruendam Augustus, ut memoriae proderet victoriam suam de populis circa Mare Nostrum incolentibus. Constructio conscita est a. d. III Id. Iul. anno XIII ante Christum natum, et ara ipsa dedicata a. d. III Kal. Feb. anno IX ante Christum natum: qui dies Liviae natalis erat, uxoris imperatoris. Facta est ex marmore Carrariensi, neque secus atque templum [...]
De sancto Valentino martyre, cur sponsorum patronus habeatur
Hoc die, 14° mensis februarii, sanctum quendam, Valentinum nomine, coli vix est qui ignoret, qui sponsorum sponsarumque patronus esse dicatur. Unde autem orta est haec traditio? Ad hoc interrogatum non tam facile est respondere. Perpauca de sancto illo martyre scimus. Quibus studia haec hagiographa in deliciis sunt, legant ea quae anno 1658° bollandianus quidam vir scripsit (bollandiani vocantur coetus quidam jesuitarum qui ab Johanne Bollando nomen ducunt, [...]
What is Latin?
How many times have you wondered ‘What is Latin’? Is it alive or dead, useful or not, a beautiful or ugly language, interesting or boring, not to mention whether it is Catholic, classist or fascist? These are but a few of the adjectives associated with Latin, which, if nothing else, show just how difficult it is to define this language in a precise and impartial way. Also [...]
Why this blog about Latin?
Suffice it to say that the origins of this project stem from years of our passionate work with Latin. We could obviously add that we like Latin, we are interested in it, it even fascinates us: and that alone would be reason enough to create a blog. Especially if we consider that Latin is a language which, as such, deserves its communication and sharing. We could also [...]